WorldWideScience

Sample records for sources pubmed central

  1. Acta informatica medica is indexed in pubmed and archived in pubmed central.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Masic, Izet

    2013-03-01

    Acta Informatica Medica journal has been accepted for archiving in PubMed Central from 2011 onward. The journal started in 1993 as the official journal of the Society for Medical Informatics of Bosnia and Herzegovina. During the last 3 years, Acta Informatica Medica has een included in almost all prestigious online databases, including PubMed, Scopus and EMBASE. The 20th volume of the journal is fully international, with papers from 18 countries.

  2. PubMed Central Canada: Beyond an Open Access Repository?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nariani, Rajiv

    2013-01-01

    PubMed Central Canada (PMC Canada) represents a partnership between the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the National Research Council's Canada Institute for Scientific and Technical Information (NRC-CISTI), and the National Library of Medicine of the US. The present study was done to gauge faculty awareness about the CIHR Policy on…

  3. The inclusion of an online journal in PubMed central - a difficult path.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grech, Victor

    2016-01-01

    The indexing of a journal in a prominent database (such as PubMed) is an important imprimatur. Journals accepted for inclusion in PubMed Central (PMC) are automatically indexed in PubMed but must provide the entire contents of their publications as XML-tagged (Extensible Markup Language) data files compliant with PubMed's document type definition (DTD). This paper describes the various attempts that the journal Images in Paediatric Cardiology made in its efforts to convert the journal contents (including all of the extant backlog) to PMC-compliant XML for archiving and indexing in PubMed after the journal was accepted for inclusion by the database.

  4. Public accessibility of biomedical articles from PubMed Central reduces journal readership--retrospective cohort analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Davis, Philip M

    2013-07-01

    Does PubMed Central--a government-run digital archive of biomedical articles--compete with scientific society journals? A longitudinal, retrospective cohort analysis of 13,223 articles (5999 treatment, 7224 control) published in 14 society-run biomedical research journals in nutrition, experimental biology, physiology, and radiology between February 2008 and January 2011 reveals a 21.4% reduction in full-text hypertext markup language (HTML) article downloads and a 13.8% reduction in portable document format (PDF) article downloads from the journals' websites when U.S. National Institutes of Health-sponsored articles (treatment) become freely available from the PubMed Central repository. In addition, the effect of PubMed Central on reducing PDF article downloads is increasing over time, growing at a rate of 1.6% per year. There was no longitudinal effect for full-text HTML downloads. While PubMed Central may be providing complementary access to readers traditionally underserved by scientific journals, the loss of article readership from the journal website may weaken the ability of the journal to build communities of interest around research papers, impede the communication of news and events to scientific society members and journal readers, and reduce the perceived value of the journal to institutional subscribers.

  5. Analysis of PubMed User Sessions Using a Full-Day PubMed Query Log: A Comparison of Experienced and Nonexperienced PubMed Users

    Science.gov (United States)

    2015-01-01

    Background PubMed is the largest biomedical bibliographic information source on the Internet. PubMed has been considered one of the most important and reliable sources of up-to-date health care evidence. Previous studies examined the effects of domain expertise/knowledge on search performance using PubMed. However, very little is known about PubMed users’ knowledge of information retrieval (IR) functions and their usage in query formulation. Objective The purpose of this study was to shed light on how experienced/nonexperienced PubMed users perform their search queries by analyzing a full-day query log. Our hypotheses were that (1) experienced PubMed users who use system functions quickly retrieve relevant documents and (2) nonexperienced PubMed users who do not use them have longer search sessions than experienced users. Methods To test these hypotheses, we analyzed PubMed query log data containing nearly 3 million queries. User sessions were divided into two categories: experienced and nonexperienced. We compared experienced and nonexperienced users per number of sessions, and experienced and nonexperienced user sessions per session length, with a focus on how fast they completed their sessions. Results To test our hypotheses, we measured how successful information retrieval was (at retrieving relevant documents), represented as the decrease rates of experienced and nonexperienced users from a session length of 1 to 2, 3, 4, and 5. The decrease rate (from a session length of 1 to 2) of the experienced users was significantly larger than that of the nonexperienced groups. Conclusions Experienced PubMed users retrieve relevant documents more quickly than nonexperienced PubMed users in terms of session length. PMID:26139516

  6. Using data sources beyond PubMed has a modest impact on the results of systematic reviews of therapeutic interventions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Halladay, Christopher W; Trikalinos, Thomas A; Schmid, Ian T; Schmid, Christopher H; Dahabreh, Issa J

    2015-09-01

    Searching multiple sources when conducting systematic reviews is considered good practice. We aimed to investigate the impact of using sources beyond PubMed in systematic reviews of therapeutic interventions. We randomly selected 50 Cochrane reviews that searched the PubMed (or MEDLINE) and EMBASE databases and included a meta-analysis of ≥10 studies. We checked whether each eligible record in each review (n = 2,700) was retrievable in PubMed and EMBASE. For the first-listed meta-analysis of ≥10 studies in each review, we examined whether excluding studies not found in PubMed affected results. A median of one record per review was indexed in EMBASE but not in PubMed; a median of four records per review was not indexed in PubMed or EMBASE. Meta-analyses included a median of 13.5 studies; a median of zero studies per meta-analysis was indexed in EMBASE but not in PubMed; a median of one study per meta-analysis was not indexed in PubMed or EMBASE. Meta-analysis using only PubMed-indexed vs. all available studies led to a different conclusion in a single case (on the basis of conventional criteria for statistical significance). In meta-regression analyses, effects in PubMed- vs. non-PubMed-indexed studies were statistically significantly different in a single data set. For systematic reviews of the effects of therapeutic interventions, gains from searching sources beyond PubMed, and from searching EMBASE in particular are modest. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. pubmed.mineR: an R package with text-mining algorithms to analyse PubMed abstracts.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rani, Jyoti; Shah, A B Rauf; Ramachandran, Srinivasan

    2015-10-01

    The PubMed literature database is a valuable source of information for scientific research. It is rich in biomedical literature with more than 24 million citations. Data-mining of voluminous literature is a challenging task. Although several text-mining algorithms have been developed in recent years with focus on data visualization, they have limitations such as speed, are rigid and are not available in the open source. We have developed an R package, pubmed.mineR, wherein we have combined the advantages of existing algorithms, overcome their limitations, and offer user flexibility and link with other packages in Bioconductor and the Comprehensive R Network (CRAN) in order to expand the user capabilities for executing multifaceted approaches. Three case studies are presented, namely, 'Evolving role of diabetes educators', 'Cancer risk assessment' and 'Dynamic concepts on disease and comorbidity' to illustrate the use of pubmed.mineR. The package generally runs fast with small elapsed times in regular workstations even on large corpus sizes and with compute intensive functions. The pubmed.mineR is available at http://cran.rproject. org/web/packages/pubmed.mineR.

  8. Database citation in supplementary data linked to Europe PubMed Central full text biomedical articles.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kafkas, Şenay; Kim, Jee-Hyub; Pi, Xingjun; McEntyre, Johanna R

    2015-01-01

    In this study, we present an analysis of data citation practices in full text research articles and their corresponding supplementary data files, made available in the Open Access set of articles from Europe PubMed Central. Our aim is to investigate whether supplementary data files should be considered as a source of information for integrating the literature with biomolecular databases. Using text-mining methods to identify and extract a variety of core biological database accession numbers, we found that the supplemental data files contain many more database citations than the body of the article, and that those citations often take the form of a relatively small number of articles citing large collections of accession numbers in text-based files. Moreover, citation of value-added databases derived from submission databases (such as Pfam, UniProt or Ensembl) is common, demonstrating the reuse of these resources as datasets in themselves. All the database accession numbers extracted from the supplementary data are publicly accessible from http://dx.doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.11771. Our study suggests that supplementary data should be considered when linking articles with data, in curation pipelines, and in information retrieval tasks in order to make full use of the entire research article. These observations highlight the need to improve the management of supplemental data in general, in order to make this information more discoverable and useful.

  9. Advancing PubMed?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wildgaard, Lorna Elizabeth; Lund, Haakon

    2016-01-01

    the efficiency of biomedical literature searches. PubMed remains the primary resource for biomedical literature, and as PubMed makes the Medline data and Entrez PubMed Programming utilities freely available, any developer can produce alternative tools to search the database. The authors question if PubMed still...... provides the superior search interface for systematic searches or if the innovativeness of third-party tools provide alternatives worth considering. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach In all, 76 third-party tools that build on PubMed content were identified in a PubMed...... search and in published studies known to the authors. Only tools that provided free access to the broad PubMed content and designed specifically to enhance the search were included, reducing the set to 16 tools. The functionality of each tool within the scenario of a systematic search was compared across...

  10. PubMed searches: overview and strategies for clinicians.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lindsey, Wesley T; Olin, Bernie R

    2013-04-01

    PubMed is a biomedical and life sciences database maintained by a division of the National Library of Medicine known as the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI). It is a large resource with more than 5600 journals indexed and greater than 22 million total citations. Searches conducted in PubMed provide references that are more specific for the intended topic compared with other popular search engines. Effective PubMed searches allow the clinician to remain current on the latest clinical trials, systematic reviews, and practice guidelines. PubMed continues to evolve by allowing users to create a customized experience through the My NCBI portal, new arrangements and options in search filters, and supporting scholarly projects through exportation of citations to reference managing software. Prepackaged search options available in the Clinical Queries feature also allow users to efficiently search for clinical literature. PubMed also provides information regarding the source journals themselves through the Journals in NCBI Databases link. This article provides an overview of the PubMed database's structure and features as well as strategies for conducting an effective search.

  11. Praktische handleiding PubMed : hét boek om snel en doeltreffend te zoeken in PubMed

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Etten-Jamaludin, van F.; Deurenberg, H.W.J.

    2010-01-01

    Praktische handleidng PubMed is de eerste Nederlandstalige gids die op overzichtelijke wijze op de uitgebreide mogelijkheden van PubMed ingaat. PubMed (www.pubmed.gov) biedt gratis toegang tot MEDLINE en is de meest gebruikte medische zoekmachine. In deze geheel herziene derde editie van Praktisch

  12. PubMed

    Data.gov (United States)

    U.S. Department of Health & Human Services — PubMed comprises more than 26 million citations for biomedical literature from MEDLINE, life science journals, and online books. Citations may include links to...

  13. PubMed

    CERN Document Server

    PubMed is the National Library of Medicine's search service that provides access to over 10 million citations in MEDLINE, PreMEDLINE, and other related databases, with links to participating online journals.

  14. Towards PubMed 2.0.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fiorini, Nicolas; Lipman, David J; Lu, Zhiyong

    2017-10-30

    Staff from the National Center for Biotechnology Information in the US describe recent improvements to the PubMed search engine and outline plans for the future, including a new experimental site called PubMed Labs.

  15. Predicting clicks of PubMed articles.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mao, Yuqing; Lu, Zhiyong

    2013-01-01

    Predicting the popularity or access usage of an article has the potential to improve the quality of PubMed searches. We can model the click trend of each article as its access changes over time by mining the PubMed query logs, which contain the previous access history for all articles. In this article, we examine the access patterns produced by PubMed users in two years (July 2009 to July 2011). We explore the time series of accesses for each article in the query logs, model the trends with regression approaches, and subsequently use the models for prediction. We show that the click trends of PubMed articles are best fitted with a log-normal regression model. This model allows the number of accesses an article receives and the time since it first becomes available in PubMed to be related via quadratic and logistic functions, with the model parameters to be estimated via maximum likelihood. Our experiments predicting the number of accesses for an article based on its past usage demonstrate that the mean absolute error and mean absolute percentage error of our model are 4.0% and 8.1% lower than the power-law regression model, respectively. The log-normal distribution is also shown to perform significantly better than a previous prediction method based on a human memory theory in cognitive science. This work warrants further investigation on the utility of such a log-normal regression approach towards improving information access in PubMed.

  16. Answers to questions posed during daily patient care are more likely to be answered by UpToDate than PubMed.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hoogendam, A.; Stalenhoef, A.F.H.; Vries Robbe, P.F. de; Overbeke, A.J.P.M.

    2008-01-01

    BACKGROUND: UpToDate and PubMed are popular sources for medical information. Data regarding the efficiency of PubMed and UpToDate in daily medical care are lacking. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this observational study was to describe the percentage of answers retrieved by these information sources,

  17. Centralized light-source optical access network based on polarization multiplexing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grassi, Fulvio; Mora, José; Ortega, Beatriz; Capmany, José

    2010-03-01

    This paper presents and demonstrates a centralized light source optical access network based on optical polarization multiplexing technique. By using two optical sources emitting light orthogonally polarized in the Central Node for downstream and upstream operations, the Remote Node is kept source-free. EVM values below telecommunication standard requirements have been measured experimentally when bidirectional digital signals have been transmitted over 10 km of SMF employing subcarrier multiplexing technique in the electrical domain.

  18. Legislation on renewable energy sources in Central America

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rebollo, Jose

    2000-01-01

    This paper presents the development of renewable energy in Central America and the cooperation given by the European Comission in the promotion of renewable energy sources. Also discuss the current situation in energy demand in Central America and possible solutions linked to legislation that promotes the inversion of the private sector. The legal framework in each country of Central America is presented and its impact in the increasing of generation of energy through tax reductions, trading and prices

  19. GeneView: a comprehensive semantic search engine for PubMed.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thomas, Philippe; Starlinger, Johannes; Vowinkel, Alexander; Arzt, Sebastian; Leser, Ulf

    2012-07-01

    Research results are primarily published in scientific literature and curation efforts cannot keep up with the rapid growth of published literature. The plethora of knowledge remains hidden in large text repositories like MEDLINE. Consequently, life scientists have to spend a great amount of time searching for specific information. The enormous ambiguity among most names of biomedical objects such as genes, chemicals and diseases often produces too large and unspecific search results. We present GeneView, a semantic search engine for biomedical knowledge. GeneView is built upon a comprehensively annotated version of PubMed abstracts and openly available PubMed Central full texts. This semi-structured representation of biomedical texts enables a number of features extending classical search engines. For instance, users may search for entities using unique database identifiers or they may rank documents by the number of specific mentions they contain. Annotation is performed by a multitude of state-of-the-art text-mining tools for recognizing mentions from 10 entity classes and for identifying protein-protein interactions. GeneView currently contains annotations for >194 million entities from 10 classes for ∼21 million citations with 271,000 full text bodies. GeneView can be searched at http://bc3.informatik.hu-berlin.de/.

  20. Best, Useful and Objective Precisions for Information Retrieval of Three Search Methods in PubMed and iPubMed

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Somayyeh Nadi Ravandi

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available MEDLINE is one of the valuable sources of medical information on the Internet. Among the different open access sites of MEDLINE, PubMed is the best-known site. In 2010, iPubMed was established with an interaction-fuzzy search method for MEDLINE access. In the present work, we aimed to compare the precision of the retrieved sources (Best, Useful and Objective precision in the PubMed and iPubMed using two search methods (simple and MeSH search in PubMed and interaction-fuzzy method in iPubmed. During our semi-empirical study period, we held training workshops for 61 students of higher education to teach them Simple Search, MeSH Search, and Fuzzy-Interaction Search methods. Then, the precision of 305 searches for each method prepared by the students was calculated on the basis of Best precision, Useful precision, and Objective precision formulas. Analyses were done in SPSS version 11.5 using the Friedman and Wilcoxon Test, and three precisions obtained with the three precision formulas were studied for the three search methods. The mean precision of the interaction-fuzzy Search method was higher than that of the simple search and MeSH search for all three types of precision, i.e., Best precision, Useful precision, and Objective precision, and the Simple search method was in the next rank, and their mean precisions were significantly different (P < 0.001. The precision of the interaction-fuzzy search method in iPubmed was investigated for the first time. Also for the first time, three types of precision were evaluated in PubMed and iPubmed. The results showed that the Interaction-Fuzzy search method is more precise than using the natural language search (simple search and MeSH search, and users of this method found papers that were more related to their queries; even though search in Pubmed is useful, it is important that users apply new search methods to obtain the best results.

  1. TwiMed: Twitter and PubMed Comparable Corpus of Drugs, Diseases, Symptoms, and Their Relations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alvaro, Nestor; Miyao, Yusuke; Collier, Nigel

    2017-05-03

    Work on pharmacovigilance systems using texts from PubMed and Twitter typically target at different elements and use different annotation guidelines resulting in a scenario where there is no comparable set of documents from both Twitter and PubMed annotated in the same manner. This study aimed to provide a comparable corpus of texts from PubMed and Twitter that can be used to study drug reports from these two sources of information, allowing researchers in the area of pharmacovigilance using natural language processing (NLP) to perform experiments to better understand the similarities and differences between drug reports in Twitter and PubMed. We produced a corpus comprising 1000 tweets and 1000 PubMed sentences selected using the same strategy and annotated at entity level by the same experts (pharmacists) using the same set of guidelines. The resulting corpus, annotated by two pharmacists, comprises semantically correct annotations for a set of drugs, diseases, and symptoms. This corpus contains the annotations for 3144 entities, 2749 relations, and 5003 attributes. We present a corpus that is unique in its characteristics as this is the first corpus for pharmacovigilance curated from Twitter messages and PubMed sentences using the same data selection and annotation strategies. We believe this corpus will be of particular interest for researchers willing to compare results from pharmacovigilance systems (eg, classifiers and named entity recognition systems) when using data from Twitter and from PubMed. We hope that given the comprehensive set of drug names and the annotated entities and relations, this corpus becomes a standard resource to compare results from different pharmacovigilance studies in the area of NLP. ©Nestor Alvaro, Yusuke Miyao, Nigel Collier. Originally published in JMIR Public Health and Surveillance (http://publichealth.jmir.org), 03.05.2017.

  2. Comparison of PubMed and Google Scholar literature searches.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Anders, Michael E; Evans, Dennis P

    2010-05-01

    Literature searches are essential to evidence-based respiratory care. To conduct literature searches, respiratory therapists rely on search engines to retrieve information, but there is a dearth of literature on the comparative efficiencies of search engines for researching clinical questions in respiratory care. To compare PubMed and Google Scholar search results for clinical topics in respiratory care to that of a benchmark. We performed literature searches with PubMed and Google Scholar, on 3 clinical topics. In PubMed we used the Clinical Queries search filter. In Google Scholar we used the search filters in the Advanced Scholar Search option. We used the reference list of a related Cochrane Collaboration evidence-based systematic review as the benchmark for each of the search results. We calculated recall (sensitivity) and precision (positive predictive value) with 2 x 2 contingency tables. We compared the results with the chi-square test of independence and Fisher's exact test. PubMed and Google Scholar had similar recall for both overall search results (71% vs 69%) and full-text results (43% vs 51%). PubMed had better precision than Google Scholar for both overall search results (13% vs 0.07%, P PubMed searches with the Clinical Queries filter are more precise than with the Advanced Scholar Search in Google Scholar for respiratory care topics. PubMed appears to be more practical to conduct efficient, valid searches for informing evidence-based patient-care protocols, for guiding the care of individual patients, and for educational purposes.

  3. Assessment of ventilation system for centralized storage of spent radiation sources

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Soroka, Yu.N.; Udod, E.V.

    2014-01-01

    The hazards associated with treatment spent radiation sources in the centralized storage facility under construction in the Chernobyl exclusion zone are analysis. Models are proposed to calculate possible situations of contamination with radionuclides in centralized storage rooms. The required ventilation rate is calculated for areas where sources containing 60 Co; 90 Sr, 137 Cs, 226 Ra, 238 Pu, 239 Pu and 241 Am radionuclides are supposed to be treated

  4. PubMed Medical Publications From Libya | Bakoush | Libyan ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    We also used the same method to obtain data on the PubMed medical publications from Tunisia, Morocco and Yemen. Tunisia had the largest number of PubMed publications among the studied countries: 20.4 publications per million population per year and 7.2 publications per year per one billion US$ GDP. Libya had ...

  5. Retrieval of diagnostic and treatment studies for clinical use through PubMed and PubMed's Clinical Queries filters.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lokker, Cynthia; Haynes, R Brian; Wilczynski, Nancy L; McKibbon, K Ann; Walter, Stephen D

    2011-01-01

    Clinical Queries filters were developed to improve the retrieval of high-quality studies in searches on clinical matters. The study objective was to determine the yield of relevant citations and physician satisfaction while searching for diagnostic and treatment studies using the Clinical Queries page of PubMed compared with searching PubMed without these filters. Forty practicing physicians, presented with standardized treatment and diagnosis questions and one question of their choosing, entered search terms which were processed in a random, blinded fashion through PubMed alone and PubMed Clinical Queries. Participants rated search retrievals for applicability to the question at hand and satisfaction. For treatment, the primary outcome of retrieval of relevant articles was not significantly different between the groups, but a higher proportion of articles from the Clinical Queries searches met methodologic criteria (p=0.049), and more articles were published in core internal medicine journals (p=0.056). For diagnosis, the filtered results returned more relevant articles (p=0.031) and fewer irrelevant articles (overall retrieval less, p=0.023); participants needed to screen fewer articles before arriving at the first relevant citation (p<0.05). Relevance was also influenced by content terms used by participants in searching. Participants varied greatly in their search performance. Clinical Queries filtered searches returned more high-quality studies, though the retrieval of relevant articles was only statistically different between the groups for diagnosis questions. Retrieving clinically important research studies from Medline is a challenging task for physicians. Methodological search filters can improve search retrieval.

  6. GOClonto: an ontological clustering approach for conceptualizing PubMed abstracts.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zheng, Hai-Tao; Borchert, Charles; Kim, Hong-Gee

    2010-02-01

    Concurrent with progress in biomedical sciences, an overwhelming of textual knowledge is accumulating in the biomedical literature. PubMed is the most comprehensive database collecting and managing biomedical literature. To help researchers easily understand collections of PubMed abstracts, numerous clustering methods have been proposed to group similar abstracts based on their shared features. However, most of these methods do not explore the semantic relationships among groupings of documents, which could help better illuminate the groupings of PubMed abstracts. To address this issue, we proposed an ontological clustering method called GOClonto for conceptualizing PubMed abstracts. GOClonto uses latent semantic analysis (LSA) and gene ontology (GO) to identify key gene-related concepts and their relationships as well as allocate PubMed abstracts based on these key gene-related concepts. Based on two PubMed abstract collections, the experimental results show that GOClonto is able to identify key gene-related concepts and outperforms the STC (suffix tree clustering) algorithm, the Lingo algorithm, the Fuzzy Ants algorithm, and the clustering based TRS (tolerance rough set) algorithm. Moreover, the two ontologies generated by GOClonto show significant informative conceptual structures.

  7. Opportunities for renewable energy sources in Central Asia countries

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Obozov, A.J. [Project KUN (Kyrgyzstan); Loscutoff, W.V. [National Renewable Energy Lab., Golden, CO (United States)

    1998-07-01

    This report presents an overview of the state of conventional energy sources and the potential for development of renewable energy sources in the Central Asia countries of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, and Tajikistan. The region has a population of about 50 million in an area of more than four million square kilometers. The per capita gross internal product is more than $2,500, although the economy has been declining the past five years. The area has substantial coal, oil, uranium, and natural gas reserves, although they are not distributed equally among the five countries. Energy production is such that the countries do not have to rely heavily on imports. One of the problems in Central Asia is that the energy prices are substantially below the world prices. This is a factor in development of renewable energy sources. The primary renewable energy resources available are wind in Kazakhstan, solar in the entire region, biomass in Kyrgyzstan, and micro-hydropower stations in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. All of these have the potential to provide a significant amount of the required energy for the region. However, all of the countries have an abundance of various renewable energy resources. To effectively use these resources, however, a number of barriers to their development and commercialization must be overcome. These include low prices of conventional energy sources, absence of legislative support, lack of financing for new technologies, and lack of awareness of renewable energy sources by the population. A number of specific actions are proposed to overcome these barriers. These include establishment of a Central Asia coordinating council for renewable energy, development of a regional renewable energy program, and setting up a number of large demonstration projects. 16 figs.

  8. An efficient central DOA tracking algorithm for multiple incoherently distributed sources

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hassen, Sonia Ben; Samet, Abdelaziz

    2015-12-01

    In this paper, we develop a new tracking method for the direction of arrival (DOA) parameters assuming multiple incoherently distributed (ID) sources. The new approach is based on a simple covariance fitting optimization technique exploiting the central and noncentral moments of the source angular power densities to estimate the central DOAs. The current estimates are treated as measurements provided to the Kalman filter that model the dynamic property of directional changes for the moving sources. Then, the covariance-fitting-based algorithm and the Kalman filtering theory are combined to formulate an adaptive tracking algorithm. Our algorithm is compared to the fast approximated power iteration-total least square-estimation of signal parameters via rotational invariance technique (FAPI-TLS-ESPRIT) algorithm using the TLS-ESPRIT method and the subspace updating via FAPI-algorithm. It will be shown that the proposed algorithm offers an excellent DOA tracking performance and outperforms the FAPI-TLS-ESPRIT method especially at low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) values. Moreover, the performances of the two methods increase as the SNR values increase. This increase is more prominent with the FAPI-TLS-ESPRIT method. However, their performances degrade when the number of sources increases. It will be also proved that our method depends on the form of the angular distribution function when tracking the central DOAs. Finally, it will be shown that the more the sources are spaced, the more the proposed method can exactly track the DOAs.

  9. Gaps in affiliation indexing in Scopus and PubMed.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schmidt, Cynthia M; Cox, Roxanne; Fial, Alissa V; Hartman, Teresa L; Magee, Martha L

    2016-04-01

    The authors sought to determine whether unexpected gaps existed in Scopus's author affiliation indexing of publications written by the University of Nebraska Medical Center or Nebraska Medicine (UNMC/NM) authors during 2014. First, we compared Scopus affiliation identifier search results to PubMed affiliation keyword search results. Then, we searched Scopus using affiliation keywords (UNMC, etc.) and compared the results to PubMed affiliation keyword and Scopus affiliation identifier searches. We found that Scopus's records for approximately 7% of UNMC/NM authors' publications lacked appropriate UNMC/NM author affiliation identifiers, and many journals' publishers were supplying incomplete author affiliation information to PubMed. Institutions relying on Scopus to track their impact should determine whether Scopus's affiliation identifiers will, in fact, identify all articles published by their authors and investigators.

  10. In the pursuit of a semantic similarity metric based on UMLS annotations for articles in PubMed Central Open Access.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garcia Castro, Leyla Jael; Berlanga, Rafael; Garcia, Alexander

    2015-10-01

    Although full-text articles are provided by the publishers in electronic formats, it remains a challenge to find related work beyond the title and abstract context. Identifying related articles based on their abstract is indeed a good starting point; this process is straightforward and does not consume as many resources as full-text based similarity would require. However, further analyses may require in-depth understanding of the full content. Two articles with highly related abstracts can be substantially different regarding the full content. How similarity differs when considering title-and-abstract versus full-text and which semantic similarity metric provides better results when dealing with full-text articles are the main issues addressed in this manuscript. We have benchmarked three similarity metrics - BM25, PMRA, and Cosine, in order to determine which one performs best when using concept-based annotations on full-text documents. We also evaluated variations in similarity values based on title-and-abstract against those relying on full-text. Our test dataset comprises the Genomics track article collection from the 2005 Text Retrieval Conference. Initially, we used an entity recognition software to semantically annotate titles and abstracts as well as full-text with concepts defined in the Unified Medical Language System (UMLS®). For each article, we created a document profile, i.e., a set of identified concepts, term frequency, and inverse document frequency; we then applied various similarity metrics to those document profiles. We considered correlation, precision, recall, and F1 in order to determine which similarity metric performs best with concept-based annotations. For those full-text articles available in PubMed Central Open Access (PMC-OA), we also performed dispersion analyses in order to understand how similarity varies when considering full-text articles. We have found that the PubMed Related Articles similarity metric is the most suitable for

  11. AliBaba: PubMed as a graph.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Plake, Conrad; Schiemann, Torsten; Pankalla, Marcus; Hakenberg, Jörg; Leser, Ulf

    2006-10-01

    The biomedical literature contains a wealth of information on associations between many different types of objects, such as protein-protein interactions, gene-disease associations and subcellular locations of proteins. When searching such information using conventional search engines, e.g. PubMed, users see the data only one-abstract at a time and 'hidden' in natural language text. AliBaba is an interactive tool for graphical summarization of search results. It parses the set of abstracts that fit a PubMed query and presents extracted information on biomedical objects and their relationships as a graphical network. AliBaba extracts associations between cells, diseases, drugs, proteins, species and tissues. Several filter options allow for a more focused search. Thus, researchers can grasp complex networks described in various articles at a glance. http://alibaba.informatik.hu-berlin.de/

  12. How Complementary and Alternative Medicine Practitioners Use PubMed

    Science.gov (United States)

    Quint-Rapoport, Mia

    2007-01-01

    Background PubMed is the largest bibliographic index in the life sciences. It is freely available online and is used by professionals and the public to learn more about medical research. While primarily intended to serve researchers, PubMed provides an array of tools and services that can help a wider readership in the location, comprehension, evaluation, and utilization of medical research. Objective This study sought to establish the potential contributions made by a range of PubMed tools and services to the use of the database by complementary and alternative medicine practitioners. Methods In this study, 10 chiropractors, 7 registered massage therapists, and a homeopath (N = 18), 11 with prior research training and 7 without, were taken through a 2-hour introductory session with PubMed. The 10 PubMed tools and services considered in this study can be divided into three functions: (1) information retrieval (Boolean Search, Limits, Related Articles, Author Links, MeSH), (2) information access (Publisher Link, LinkOut, Bookshelf ), and (3) information management (History, Send To, Email Alert). Participants were introduced to between six and 10 of these tools and services. The participants were asked to provide feedback on the value of each tool or service in terms of their information needs, which was ranked as positive, positive with emphasis, negative, or indifferent. Results The participants in this study expressed an interest in the three types of PubMed tools and services (information retrieval, access, and management), with less well-regarded tools including MeSH Database and Bookshelf. In terms of their comprehension of the research, the tools and services led the participants to reflect on their understanding as well as their critical reading and use of the research. There was universal support among the participants for greater access to complete articles, beyond the approximately 15% that are currently open access. The abstracts provided by PubMed were

  13. Using noun phrases for navigating biomedical literature on Pubmed: how many updates are we losing track of?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Srikrishna, Devabhaktuni; Coram, Marc A

    2011-01-01

    Author-supplied citations are a fraction of the related literature for a paper. The "related citations" on PubMed is typically dozens or hundreds of results long, and does not offer hints why these results are related. Using noun phrases derived from the sentences of the paper, we show it is possible to more transparently navigate to PubMed updates through search terms that can associate a paper with its citations. The algorithm to generate these search terms involved automatically extracting noun phrases from the paper using natural language processing tools, and ranking them by the number of occurrences in the paper compared to the number of occurrences on the web. We define search queries having at least one instance of overlap between the author-supplied citations of the paper and the top 20 search results as citation validated (CV). When the overlapping citations were written by same authors as the paper itself, we define it as CV-S and different authors is defined as CV-D. For a systematic sample of 883 papers on PubMed Central, at least one of the search terms for 86% of the papers is CV-D versus 65% for the top 20 PubMed "related citations." We hypothesize these quantities computed for the 20 million papers on PubMed to differ within 5% of these percentages. Averaged across all 883 papers, 5 search terms are CV-D, and 10 search terms are CV-S, and 6 unique citations validate these searches. Potentially related literature uncovered by citation-validated searches (either CV-S or CV-D) are on the order of ten per paper--many more if the remaining searches that are not citation-validated are taken into account. The significance and relationship of each search result to the paper can only be vetted and explained by a researcher with knowledge of or interest in that paper.

  14. Abstract databases in nuclear medicine; New database for articles not indexed in PubMed

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ugrinska, A.; Mustafa, B.

    2004-01-01

    Full text: Abstract databases available on Internet free of charge were searched for nuclear medicine contents. The only comprehensive database found was PubMed. Analysis of nuclear medicine journals included in PubMed was performed. PubMed contains 25 medical journals that contain the phrase 'nuclear medicine' in different languages in their title. Searching the Internet with the search engine 'Google' we have found four more peer-reviewed journals with the phrase 'nuclear medicine' in their title. In addition, we are fully aware that many articles related to nuclear medicine are published in national medical journals devoted to general medicine. For example in year 2000 colleagues from Institute of Pathophysiology and Nuclear Medicine, Skopje, Macedonia have published 10 articles out of which none could be found on PubMed. This suggested that a big amount of research work is not accessible for the people professionally involved in nuclear medicine. Therefore, we have created a database framework for abstracts that couldn't be found in PubMed. The database is organized in user-friendly manner. There are two main sections: 'post an abstract' and 'search for abstracts'. Authors of the articles are expected to submit their work in the section 'post an abstract'. During the submission process authors should fill the separate boxes with the Title in English, Title in original language, Country of origin, Journal name, Volume, Issue and Pages. Authors should choose up to five keywords from a drop-down menu. Authors are encouraged if the abstract is not published in English to translate it. The section 'search for abstract' is searchable according to Author, Keywords, and words and phrases incorporated in the English title. The abstract database currently resides on an MS Access back-end, with a front-end in ASP (Active Server Pages). In the future, we plan to migrate the database on a MS SQL Server, which should provide a faster and more reliable framework for hosting a

  15. Health informatics research in Australia: retrospective analysis using PubMed

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kumara Mendis

    2007-01-01

    Discussion Australian HI publications in PubMed increased consistently throughout the period 1970-2005, which is on a par with world trends in HI publications. In Australia, most HI publications are in general medical journals. Lack of consistency in author names and failure to include the country name and even the state are the main obstacles to PubMed bibliometric analysis.

  16. Improving accuracy for identifying related PubMed queries by an integrated approach.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lu, Zhiyong; Wilbur, W John

    2009-10-01

    PubMed is the most widely used tool for searching biomedical literature online. As with many other online search tools, a user often types a series of multiple related queries before retrieving satisfactory results to fulfill a single information need. Meanwhile, it is also a common phenomenon to see a user type queries on unrelated topics in a single session. In order to study PubMed users' search strategies, it is necessary to be able to automatically separate unrelated queries and group together related queries. Here, we report a novel approach combining both lexical and contextual analyses for segmenting PubMed query sessions and identifying related queries and compare its performance with the previous approach based solely on concept mapping. We experimented with our integrated approach on sample data consisting of 1539 pairs of consecutive user queries in 351 user sessions. The prediction results of 1396 pairs agreed with the gold-standard annotations, achieving an overall accuracy of 90.7%. This demonstrates that our approach is significantly better than the previously published method. By applying this approach to a one day query log of PubMed, we found that a significant proportion of information needs involved more than one PubMed query, and that most of the consecutive queries for the same information need are lexically related. Finally, the proposed PubMed distance is shown to be an accurate and meaningful measure for determining the contextual similarity between biological terms. The integrated approach can play a critical role in handling real-world PubMed query log data as is demonstrated in our experiments.

  17. Time-dependent migration of citations through PubMed and OvidSP subsets: a study on a series of simultaneous PubMed and OvidSP searches.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boeker, Martin; Vach, Werner; Motschall, Edith

    2013-01-01

    To quantitatively describe (1) differences between search results derived at consecutive time points with the PubMed and OvidSP literature search interfaces over a five day interval, and (2) the migration of citations through different subsets to estimate the timeliness of OvidSP. PubMed-Identifiers (PMIDs) of the following subsets were retrieved from PubMed and OvidSP simultaneously (within 8 h) at 11 days in March and April 2010 including 5 consecutive days: as supplied by publisher, in process, PubMed not MEDLINE, and OLDMEDLINE. Search results were compared for difference and intersection sets. The migration of citations on individual level was determined by comparison of corresponding sets over several days. The "in process" set was stable with about 446,000 - 452,000 citations; a small fraction of up to 3 % of the total subsets were in PubMed only and OvidSP only subsets. About 96 % of the ca. 10,500 citations in the OvidSP only subset migrated within 2 days out of the "in process" subset. The database of OvidSP is updated within a period of two days.

  18. Validation of search filters for identifying pediatric studies in PubMed

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Leclercq, Edith; Leeflang, Mariska M. G.; van Dalen, Elvira C.; Kremer, Leontien C. M.

    2013-01-01

    To identify and validate PubMed search filters for retrieving studies including children and to develop a new pediatric search filter for PubMed. We developed 2 different datasets of studies to evaluate the performance of the identified pediatric search filters, expressed in terms of sensitivity,

  19. [Google and PubMed for physicians: how to find information without getting lost].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Muñoz Núñez, C F; Sendra Portero, F

    2013-06-01

    Searching on Internet looking for clinically relevant medical information, used as a clinical decision aid tool, for self-learning or for research, is currently a common practice in Radiology. This task has been strengthened by the technological environment where radiologists work with direct access to information sources from the Workstation. The aim of this paper is to review the basic features of information searching tools in order to understand their functions and to optimize medical information searching on Internet. Google, Google Scholar and PubMed are reviewed as models for that purpose. Copyright © 2012 SERAM. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

  20. A study on PubMed search tag usage pattern: association rule mining of a full-day PubMed query log.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mosa, Abu Saleh Mohammad; Yoo, Illhoi

    2013-01-09

    The practice of evidence-based medicine requires efficient biomedical literature search such as PubMed/MEDLINE. Retrieval performance relies highly on the efficient use of search field tags. The purpose of this study was to analyze PubMed log data in order to understand the usage pattern of search tags by the end user in PubMed/MEDLINE search. A PubMed query log file was obtained from the National Library of Medicine containing anonymous user identification, timestamp, and query text. Inconsistent records were removed from the dataset and the search tags were extracted from the query texts. A total of 2,917,159 queries were selected for this study issued by a total of 613,061 users. The analysis of frequent co-occurrences and usage patterns of the search tags was conducted using an association mining algorithm. The percentage of search tag usage was low (11.38% of the total queries) and only 2.95% of queries contained two or more tags. Three out of four users used no search tag and about two-third of them issued less than four queries. Among the queries containing at least one tagged search term, the average number of search tags was almost half of the number of total search terms. Navigational search tags are more frequently used than informational search tags. While no strong association was observed between informational and navigational tags, six (out of 19) informational tags and six (out of 29) navigational tags showed strong associations in PubMed searches. The low percentage of search tag usage implies that PubMed/MEDLINE users do not utilize the features of PubMed/MEDLINE widely or they are not aware of such features or solely depend on the high recall focused query translation by the PubMed's Automatic Term Mapping. The users need further education and interactive search application for effective use of the search tags in order to fulfill their biomedical information needs from PubMed/MEDLINE.

  1. PubMed had a higher sensitivity than Ovid-MEDLINE in the search for systematic reviews.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Katchamart, Wanruchada; Faulkner, Amy; Feldman, Brian; Tomlinson, George; Bombardier, Claire

    2011-07-01

    To compare the performance of Ovid-MEDLINE vs. PubMed for identifying randomized controlled trials of methotrexate (MTX) in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). We created search strategies for Ovid-MEDLINE and PubMed for a systematic review of MTX in RA. Their performance was evaluated using sensitivity, precision, and number needed to read (NNR). Comparing searches in Ovid-MEDLINE vs. PubMed, PubMed retrieved more citations overall than Ovid-MEDLINE; however, of the 20 citations that met eligibility criteria for the review, Ovid-MEDLINE retrieved 17 and PubMed 18. The sensitivity was 85% for Ovid-MEDLINE vs. 90% for PubMed, whereas the precision and NNR were comparable (precision: 0.881% for Ovid-MEDLINE vs. 0.884% for PubMed and NNR: 114 for Ovid-MEDLINE vs. 113 for PubMed). In systematic reviews of RA, PubMed has higher sensitivity than Ovid-MEDLINE with comparable precision and NNR. This study highlights the importance of well-designed database-specific search strategies. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  2. Environmental Protection Agency - EPA Pub Central

    Data.gov (United States)

    U.S. Environmental Protection Agency — PubMed Central (PMC) is a full-text, online archive of journal literature operated by the National Library of Medicine. The EPA is using PMC to permanently preserve...

  3. Pattern of Colon Cancer Lymph Node Metastases in Patients Undergoing Central Mesocolic Lymph Node Excision

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bertelsen, Claus A; Kirkegaard-Klitbo, Anders; Nielsen, Mingyuan

    2016-01-01

    BACKGROUND: Extended mesocolic lymph node dissection in colon cancer surgery seems to improve oncological outcome. A possible reason might be related to metastases in the central mesocolic lymph nodes. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to describe the pattern of mesocolic lymph node...... metastases, particularly in central lymph nodes, and the risk of skip, aberrant, and gastrocolic ligament metastases as the argument for performing extended lymph node dissection. DATA SOURCES: EMBASE and PubMed were searched using the terms colon or colorectal with sentinel node, lymph node mapping, or skip...... node; lymph node resection colon; and complete or total and mesocolic excision. STUDY SELECTION: Studies describing the risk of metastases in central, skip, aberrant, and gastrocolic ligament lymph node metastases from colon adenocarcinomas in 10 or more patients were included. No languages were...

  4. Enriching PubMed Related Article Search with Sentence Level Co-citations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tran, Nam; Alves, Pedro; Ma, Shuangge

    2009-01-01

    PubMed related article links identify closely related articles and enhance our ability to navigate the biomedical literature. They are derived by calculating the word similarity between two articles, relating articles with overlapping word content. In this paper, we propose to enrich PubMed with a new type of related article link based on citations within a single sentence (i.e. sentence level co-citations or SLCs). Using different similarity metrics, we demonstrated that articles linked by SLCs are highly related. We also showed that only half of SLCs are found among PubMed related article links. Additionally, we discuss how the citing sentence of an SLC explains the connection between two articles. PMID:20351935

  5. Mining PubMed for Biomarker-Disease Associations to Guide Discovery

    OpenAIRE

    Jessen, Walter; Landschulz, Katherine; Turi, Thomas; Reams, Rachel

    2012-01-01

    Biomedical knowledge is growing exponentially; however, meta-knowledge around the data is often lacking. PubMed is a database comprising more than 21 million citations for biomedical literature from MEDLINE and additional life science journals dating back to the 1950s. To explore the use and frequency of biomarkers across human disease, we mined PubMed for biomarker-disease associations. We then ranked the top 100 linked diseases by relevance and mapped them to medical subject headings (MeSH)...

  6. [Systematic literature search in PubMed : A short introduction].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Blümle, A; Lagrèze, W A; Motschall, E

    2018-03-01

    In order to identify current (and relevant) evidence for a specific clinical question within the unmanageable amount of information available, solid skills in performing a systematic literature search are essential. An efficient approach is to search a biomedical database containing relevant literature citations of study reports. The best known database is MEDLINE, which is searchable for free via the PubMed interface. In this article, we explain step by step how to perform a systematic literature search via PubMed by means of an example research question in the field of ophthalmology. First, we demonstrate how to translate the clinical problem into a well-framed and searchable research question, how to identify relevant search terms and how to conduct a text word search and a search with keywords in medical subject headings (MeSH) terms. We then show how to limit the number of search results if the search yields too many irrelevant hits and how to increase the number in the case of too few citations. Finally, we summarize all essential principles that guide a literature search via PubMed.

  7. [Use of PubMed to improve evidence-based medicine in routine urological practice].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rink, M; Kluth, L A; Shariat, S F; Chun, F K; Fisch, M; Dahm, P

    2013-03-01

    Applying evidence-based medicine in daily clinical practice is the basis of patient-centered medicine and knowledge of accurate literature acquisition skills is necessary for informed clinical decision-making. PubMed is an easy accessible, free bibliographic database comprising over 21 million citations from the medical field, life-science journals and online books. The article summarizes the effective use of PubMed in routine urological clinical practice based on a common case scenario. This article explains the simple use of PubMed to obtain the best search results with the highest evidence. Accurate knowledge about the use of PubMed in routine clinical practice can improve evidence-based medicine and also patient treatment.

  8. Retrieving clinical evidence: a comparison of PubMed and Google Scholar for quick clinical searches.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shariff, Salimah Z; Bejaimal, Shayna Ad; Sontrop, Jessica M; Iansavichus, Arthur V; Haynes, R Brian; Weir, Matthew A; Garg, Amit X

    2013-08-15

    Physicians frequently search PubMed for information to guide patient care. More recently, Google Scholar has gained popularity as another freely accessible bibliographic database. To compare the performance of searches in PubMed and Google Scholar. We surveyed nephrologists (kidney specialists) and provided each with a unique clinical question derived from 100 renal therapy systematic reviews. Each physician provided the search terms they would type into a bibliographic database to locate evidence to answer the clinical question. We executed each of these searches in PubMed and Google Scholar and compared results for the first 40 records retrieved (equivalent to 2 default search pages in PubMed). We evaluated the recall (proportion of relevant articles found) and precision (ratio of relevant to nonrelevant articles) of the searches performed in PubMed and Google Scholar. Primary studies included in the systematic reviews served as the reference standard for relevant articles. We further documented whether relevant articles were available as free full-texts. Compared with PubMed, the average search in Google Scholar retrieved twice as many relevant articles (PubMed: 11%; Google Scholar: 22%; PGoogle Scholar: 8%; P=.07). Google Scholar provided significantly greater access to free full-text publications (PubMed: 5%; Google Scholar: 14%; PGoogle Scholar returns twice as many relevant articles as PubMed and provides greater access to free full-text articles.

  9. Net improvement of correct answers to therapy questions after pubmed searches: pre/post comparison.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McKibbon, Kathleen Ann; Lokker, Cynthia; Keepanasseril, Arun; Wilczynski, Nancy L; Haynes, R Brian

    2013-11-08

    Clinicians search PubMed for answers to clinical questions although it is time consuming and not always successful. To determine if PubMed used with its Clinical Queries feature to filter results based on study quality would improve search success (more correct answers to clinical questions related to therapy). We invited 528 primary care physicians to participate, 143 (27.1%) consented, and 111 (21.0% of the total and 77.6% of those who consented) completed the study. Participants answered 14 yes/no therapy questions and were given 4 of these (2 originally answered correctly and 2 originally answered incorrectly) to search using either the PubMed main screen or PubMed Clinical Queries narrow therapy filter via a purpose-built system with identical search screens. Participants also picked 3 of the first 20 retrieved citations that best addressed each question. They were then asked to re-answer the original 14 questions. We found no statistically significant differences in the rates of correct or incorrect answers using the PubMed main screen or PubMed Clinical Queries. The rate of correct answers increased from 50.0% to 61.4% (95% CI 55.0%-67.8%) for the PubMed main screen searches and from 50.0% to 59.1% (95% CI 52.6%-65.6%) for Clinical Queries searches. These net absolute increases of 11.4% and 9.1%, respectively, included previously correct answers changing to incorrect at a rate of 9.5% (95% CI 5.6%-13.4%) for PubMed main screen searches and 9.1% (95% CI 5.3%-12.9%) for Clinical Queries searches, combined with increases in the rate of being correct of 20.5% (95% CI 15.2%-25.8%) for PubMed main screen searches and 17.7% (95% CI 12.7%-22.7%) for Clinical Queries searches. PubMed can assist clinicians answering clinical questions with an approximately 10% absolute rate of improvement in correct answers. This small increase includes more correct answers partially offset by a decrease in previously correct answers.

  10. Diagnosis checking of statistical analysis in RCTs indexed in PubMed.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Paul H; Tse, Andy C Y

    2017-11-01

    Statistical analysis is essential for reporting of the results of randomized controlled trials (RCTs), as well as evaluating their effectiveness. However, the validity of a statistical analysis also depends on whether the assumptions of that analysis are valid. To review all RCTs published in journals indexed in PubMed during December 2014 to provide a complete picture of how RCTs handle assumptions of statistical analysis. We reviewed all RCTs published in December 2014 that appeared in journals indexed in PubMed using the Cochrane highly sensitive search strategy. The 2014 impact factors of the journals were used as proxies for their quality. The type of statistical analysis used and whether the assumptions of the analysis were tested were reviewed. In total, 451 papers were included. Of the 278 papers that reported a crude analysis for the primary outcomes, 31 (27·2%) reported whether the outcome was normally distributed. Of the 172 papers that reported an adjusted analysis for the primary outcomes, diagnosis checking was rarely conducted, with only 20%, 8·6% and 7% checked for generalized linear model, Cox proportional hazard model and multilevel model, respectively. Study characteristics (study type, drug trial, funding sources, journal type and endorsement of CONSORT guidelines) were not associated with the reporting of diagnosis checking. The diagnosis of statistical analyses in RCTs published in PubMed-indexed journals was usually absent. Journals should provide guidelines about the reporting of a diagnosis of assumptions. © 2017 Stichting European Society for Clinical Investigation Journal Foundation.

  11. Tracking Australian health and medical research expenditure with a PubMed bibliometric method.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mendis, Kumara; Bailey, Jannine; McLean, Rick

    2015-06-01

    To assess Australian health and medical research (HMR) investment returns by measuring the trends in HMR expenditure and PubMed publications by Australian authors. Bibliometric analysis collating Australian HMR expenditure reported by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare and Australian HMR publications indexed in PubMed. Similar methods were applied to data from the United Kingdom and New Zealand. From financial year 2000/01 through 2011/12, HMR investment increased by 232% from $1.49 to $4.94 billion (current prices adjusted for inflation), while PubMed publications increased by 123% from 10,696 to 23,818. The average HMR investment required for a single PubMed publication rose by 49% from $139,304 in 2000/01 to $207,364 in 2011/12. Quality analyses showed an increase in systematic reviews, cohort studies and clinical trials, and a decrease in publications in PubMed's core clinical journal collection. Comparisons with New Zealand and the United Kingdom showed that Australia has had the greatest overall percentage increase in gross publication numbers and publications per capita. Our analyses confirm that increased HMR expenditure is associated with an increase in HMR publications in PubMed. Tracking HMR investment outcomes using this method could be useful for future policy and funding decisions at a federal and specific institution level. © 2015 Public Health Association of Australia.

  12. An automatic method to generate domain-specific investigator networks using PubMed abstracts

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gwinn Marta

    2007-06-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Collaboration among investigators has become critical to scientific research. This includes ad hoc collaboration established through personal contacts as well as formal consortia established by funding agencies. Continued growth in online resources for scientific research and communication has promoted the development of highly networked research communities. Extending these networks globally requires identifying additional investigators in a given domain, profiling their research interests, and collecting current contact information. We present a novel strategy for building investigator networks dynamically and producing detailed investigator profiles using data available in PubMed abstracts. Results We developed a novel strategy to obtain detailed investigator information by automatically parsing the affiliation string in PubMed records. We illustrated the results by using a published literature database in human genome epidemiology (HuGE Pub Lit as a test case. Our parsing strategy extracted country information from 92.1% of the affiliation strings in a random sample of PubMed records and in 97.0% of HuGE records, with accuracies of 94.0% and 91.0%, respectively. Institution information was parsed from 91.3% of the general PubMed records (accuracy 86.8% and from 94.2% of HuGE PubMed records (accuracy 87.0. We demonstrated the application of our approach to dynamic creation of investigator networks by creating a prototype information system containing a large database of PubMed abstracts relevant to human genome epidemiology (HuGE Pub Lit, indexed using PubMed medical subject headings converted to Unified Medical Language System concepts. Our method was able to identify 70–90% of the investigators/collaborators in three different human genetics fields; it also successfully identified 9 of 10 genetics investigators within the PREBIC network, an existing preterm birth research network. Conclusion We successfully created a

  13. An automatic method to generate domain-specific investigator networks using PubMed abstracts

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yu, Wei; Yesupriya, Ajay; Wulf, Anja; Qu, Junfeng; Gwinn, Marta; Khoury, Muin J

    2007-01-01

    Background Collaboration among investigators has become critical to scientific research. This includes ad hoc collaboration established through personal contacts as well as formal consortia established by funding agencies. Continued growth in online resources for scientific research and communication has promoted the development of highly networked research communities. Extending these networks globally requires identifying additional investigators in a given domain, profiling their research interests, and collecting current contact information. We present a novel strategy for building investigator networks dynamically and producing detailed investigator profiles using data available in PubMed abstracts. Results We developed a novel strategy to obtain detailed investigator information by automatically parsing the affiliation string in PubMed records. We illustrated the results by using a published literature database in human genome epidemiology (HuGE Pub Lit) as a test case. Our parsing strategy extracted country information from 92.1% of the affiliation strings in a random sample of PubMed records and in 97.0% of HuGE records, with accuracies of 94.0% and 91.0%, respectively. Institution information was parsed from 91.3% of the general PubMed records (accuracy 86.8%) and from 94.2% of HuGE PubMed records (accuracy 87.0). We demonstrated the application of our approach to dynamic creation of investigator networks by creating a prototype information system containing a large database of PubMed abstracts relevant to human genome epidemiology (HuGE Pub Lit), indexed using PubMed medical subject headings converted to Unified Medical Language System concepts. Our method was able to identify 70–90% of the investigators/collaborators in three different human genetics fields; it also successfully identified 9 of 10 genetics investigators within the PREBIC network, an existing preterm birth research network. Conclusion We successfully created a web-based prototype

  14. Quantity and quality assessment of randomized controlled trials on orthodontic practice in PubMed.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shimada, Tatsuo; Takayama, Hisako; Nakamura, Yoshiki

    2010-07-01

    To find current high-quality evidence for orthodontic practice within a reasonable time, we tested the performance of a PubMed search. PubMed was searched using publication type randomized controlled trial and medical subject heading term "orthodontics" for articles published between 2003 and 2007. The PubMed search results were compared with those from a hand search of four orthodontic journals to determine the sensitivity of PubMed search. We evaluated the precision of the PubMed search result and assessed the quality of individual randomized controlled trials using the Jadad scale. Sensitivity and precision were 97.46% and 58.12%, respectively. In PubMed, of the 277 articles retrieved, 161 (58.12%) were randomized controlled trials on orthodontic practice, and 115 of the 161 articles (71.42%) were published in four orthodontic journals: American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics, The Angle Orthodontist, the European Journal of Orthodontics, and the Journal of Orthodontics. Assessment by the Jadad scale revealed 60 high-quality randomized controlled trials on orthodontic practice, of which 45 (75%) were published in these four journals. PubMed is a highly desirable search engine for evidence-based orthodontic practice. To stay current and get high-quality evidence, it is reasonable to look through four orthodontic journals: American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics, The Angle Orthodontist, the European Journal of Orthodontics, and the Journal of Orthodontics.

  15. The central Myanmar (Burma) oil family - composition and implications for source

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Curiale, J A; Kyi, P; Collins, I D; Din, A; Nyein, K; Nyunt, M; Stuart, C J [Unocal Inc., Brea, CA (United States). Energy Resources Division

    1994-11-01

    Geochemical characteristics of 13 Miocene through Eocene oils/seeps, an Eocene coal and an Eocene resin from the central Myanmar (Burma) basin system are examined. Geologic arguments suggest a deep Paleogene source for these oils. Two geochemical arguments that support this inference are (a) the occurrence of saturated and unsaturated C-15 and C-30 cadinane monomers and dimers in pyrolyzates of an Eocene resin and the kerogen from an Eocene coal, and (b) identical compound-specific carbon isotope ratios for selected isoprenoids and n-alkanes in a typical central Myanmar oil and the hydrous pyrolyzate expelled from an Eocene coal. The authors propose an Eocene resinous shale/coal source for these oils, with the oldest (Eocene) reservoirs filling first and the youngst (Miocene) reservoirs filling last, consistent with the observation that the least mature oils are present in the oldest reservoirs. According to this model, surface seepage and near-surface oil could result from subsurface traps that are filled to spillpoint.

  16. Source Sector and Region Contributions to BC and PM2.5 in Central Asia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Particulate matter (PM) mass concentrations, seasonal cycles, source sector and source region contributions in Central Asia (CA) are analyzed for the period April 2008-July 2009 using the STEM chemical transport model and modeled meteorology from the WRF model. Predicted AOD valu...

  17. Source sector and region contributions to BC and PM2.5 in Central Asia

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Kulkarni, S.; Sobhani, N.; Miller-Schulze, J.P.; Shafer, M.M.; Schauer, J.J.; Solomon, P.A.; Saide, P.E.; Spak, S.N.; Cheng, Y.F.; Denier Van Der Gon, H.A.C.; Lu, Z.; Streets, D.G.; Janssens-Maenhout, G.; Wiedinmyer, C.; Lantz, J.; Artamonova, M.; Chen, B.; Imashev, S.; Sverdlik, L.; Deminter, J.T.; Adhikary, B.; D'Allura, A.; Wei, C.; Carmichael, G.R.

    2015-01-01

    Particulate matter (PM) mass concentrations, seasonal cycles, source sector, and source region contributions in Central Asia (CA) are analyzed for the period April 2008-July 2009 using the Sulfur Transport and dEposition Model (STEM) chemical transport model and modeled meteorology from the Weather

  18. Validation of search filters for identifying pediatric studies in PubMed.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Leclercq, Edith; Leeflang, Mariska M G; van Dalen, Elvira C; Kremer, Leontien C M

    2013-03-01

    To identify and validate PubMed search filters for retrieving studies including children and to develop a new pediatric search filter for PubMed. We developed 2 different datasets of studies to evaluate the performance of the identified pediatric search filters, expressed in terms of sensitivity, precision, specificity, accuracy, and number needed to read (NNR). An optimal search filter will have a high sensitivity and high precision with a low NNR. In addition to the PubMed Limits: All Child: 0-18 years filter (in May 2012 renamed to PubMed Filter Child: 0-18 years), 6 search filters for identifying studies including children were identified: 3 developed by Kastner et al, 1 developed by BestBets, one by the Child Health Field, and 1 by the Cochrane Childhood Cancer Group. Three search filters (Cochrane Childhood Cancer Group, Child Health Field, and BestBets) had the highest sensitivity (99.3%, 99.5%, and 99.3%, respectively) but a lower precision (64.5%, 68.4%, and 66.6% respectively) compared with the other search filters. Two Kastner search filters had a high precision (93.0% and 93.7%, respectively) but a low sensitivity (58.5% and 44.8%, respectively). They failed to identify many pediatric studies in our datasets. The search terms responsible for false-positive results in the reference dataset were determined. With these data, we developed a new search filter for identifying studies with children in PubMed with an optimal sensitivity (99.5%) and precision (69.0%). Search filters to identify studies including children either have a low sensitivity or a low precision with a high NNR. A new pediatric search filter with a high sensitivity and a low NNR has been developed. Copyright © 2013 Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

  19. Optimization of Ion Source Head Position in the Central Region of DECY-13 Cyclotron

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S Silakhuddin

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available Optimization of the ion source head position of the DECY-13 Cyclotron in the central region has been carried out based on simulation process using a particle tracking program written in Scilab 5.2.1. The simulated particle was the H- ion that was accelerated in DECY-13 Cyclotron. The input for the program were the magnetic field and the electric field in the central region that were calculated by Opera-3D software package and TOSCA module. The optimized position of ion source head position is in a radius of 2 cm relative to the zero point of the magnet and at a distance of 4 mm relative to the puller. This result can be useful for determining the configuration of the parts in the central region when it is tested for generating the first ion beam in the future.

  20. Information architecture: study and analysis of data Public Medical base (PubMed

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Odete Máyra Mesquita Sales

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available Objective. Based on principles proposed by Rosenfeld and Morville (2006, the present study examined the PubMed database interface, since a well-structured information architecture contributes to good usability in any digital environment. Method. The research development occurred through the use of literature techniques and empirical study on the analysis of information architecture based on organization, navigation, recommended labeling and search for Rosenfeld and Morville (2006 for the sake of usability base PubMed. For better understanding and description of these principles, we used the technique of content analysis. Results. The results showed that the database interface meets the criteria established by the elements of Information Architecture, such as organization based on hypertext structure, horizontal menu and local content divided into categories, identifying active links, global navigation , breadcrumb, textual labeling and iconographic and highlight the search engine. Conclusions. This research showed that the PubMed database interface is well structured, friendly and objective, with numerous possibilities of search and information retrieval. However, there is a need to adopt accessibility standards on this website, so that it reaches more efficiently its purpose of facilitating access to information organized and stored in the PubMed database.

  1. Statistical multifragmentation of non-spherical expanding sources in central heavy-ion collisions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Le Fevre, A.; Ploszajczak, M.; Toneev, V.D.

    2003-10-01

    We study the anisotropy effects measured with INDRA at GSI in central collisions of 129 Xe+ nat Sn at 50 A MeV and 197 Au+ 197 Au at 60, 80, 100 A MeV incident energy. The microcanonical multifragmentation model with non-spherical sources is used to simulate an incomplete shape relaxation of the multifragmenting system. This model is employed to interpret observed anisotropic distributions in the fragment size and mean kinetic energy. The data can be well reproduced if an expanding prolate source aligned along the beam direction is assumed. In the model, the anisotropy is the result of correlations between the charge of a fragment and its location in the freeze-out configuration, created by the mutual Coulomb interactions inside the non-spherical source. An either non-Hubblean or non-isotropic radial expansion is required to describe the fragment kinetic energies and their anisotropy. The qualitative similarity of the results for the studied reactions suggests that the concept of a longitudinally elongated freeze-out configuration is generally applicable for central collisions of heavy systems. The deformation decreases slightly with increasing beam energy. (orig.)

  2. The comparative recall of Google Scholar versus PubMed in identical searches for biomedical systematic reviews: a review of searches used in systematic reviews.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bramer, Wichor M; Giustini, Dean; Kramer, Bianca Mr; Anderson, Pf

    2013-12-23

    The usefulness of Google Scholar (GS) as a bibliographic database for biomedical systematic review (SR) searching is a subject of current interest and debate in research circles. Recent research has suggested GS might even be used alone in SR searching. This assertion is challenged here by testing whether GS can locate all studies included in 21 previously published SRs. Second, it examines the recall of GS, taking into account the maximum number of items that can be viewed, and tests whether more complete searches created by an information specialist will improve recall compared to the searches used in the 21 published SRs. The authors identified 21 biomedical SRs that had used GS and PubMed as information sources and reported their use of identical, reproducible search strategies in both databases. These search strategies were rerun in GS and PubMed, and analyzed as to their coverage and recall. Efforts were made to improve searches that underperformed in each database. GS' overall coverage was higher than PubMed (98% versus 91%) and overall recall is higher in GS: 80% of the references included in the 21 SRs were returned by the original searches in GS versus 68% in PubMed. Only 72% of the included references could be used as they were listed among the first 1,000 hits (the maximum number shown). Practical precision (the number of included references retrieved in the first 1,000, divided by 1,000) was on average 1.9%, which is only slightly lower than in other published SRs. Improving searches with the lowest recall resulted in an increase in recall from 48% to 66% in GS and, in PubMed, from 60% to 85%. Although its coverage and precision are acceptable, GS, because of its incomplete recall, should not be used as a single source in SR searching. A specialized, curated medical database such as PubMed provides experienced searchers with tools and functionality that help improve recall, and numerous options in order to optimize precision. Searches for SRs should be

  3. Research status and evaluation system of heat source evaluation method for central heating

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sun, Yutong; Qi, Junfeng; Cao, Yi

    2018-02-01

    The central heating boiler room is a regional heat source heating center. It is also a kind of the urban environment pollution, it is an important section of building energy efficiency. This article through to the evaluation method of central heating boiler room and overviews of the researches during domestic and overseas, summarized the main influence factors affecting energy consumption of industrial boiler under the condition of stable operation. According to the principle of establishing evaluation index system. We can find that is great significance in energy saving and environmental protection for the content of the evaluation index system of the centralized heating system.

  4. MET network in PubMed: a text-mined network visualization and curation system.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dai, Hong-Jie; Su, Chu-Hsien; Lai, Po-Ting; Huang, Ming-Siang; Jonnagaddala, Jitendra; Rose Jue, Toni; Rao, Shruti; Chou, Hui-Jou; Milacic, Marija; Singh, Onkar; Syed-Abdul, Shabbir; Hsu, Wen-Lian

    2016-01-01

    Metastasis is the dissemination of a cancer/tumor from one organ to another, and it is the most dangerous stage during cancer progression, causing more than 90% of cancer deaths. Improving the understanding of the complicated cellular mechanisms underlying metastasis requires investigations of the signaling pathways. To this end, we developed a METastasis (MET) network visualization and curation tool to assist metastasis researchers retrieve network information of interest while browsing through the large volume of studies in PubMed. MET can recognize relations among genes, cancers, tissues and organs of metastasis mentioned in the literature through text-mining techniques, and then produce a visualization of all mined relations in a metastasis network. To facilitate the curation process, MET is developed as a browser extension that allows curators to review and edit concepts and relations related to metastasis directly in PubMed. PubMed users can also view the metastatic networks integrated from the large collection of research papers directly through MET. For the BioCreative 2015 interactive track (IAT), a curation task was proposed to curate metastatic networks among PubMed abstracts. Six curators participated in the proposed task and a post-IAT task, curating 963 unique metastatic relations from 174 PubMed abstracts using MET.Database URL: http://btm.tmu.edu.tw/metastasisway. © The Author(s) 2016. Published by Oxford University Press.

  5. Statistical multifragmentation of non-spherical expanding sources in central heavy-ion collisions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Le Fevre, A. E-mail: a.lefevre@gsi.de; Ploszajczak, M.; Toneev, V.D.; Auger, G.; Begemann-Blaich, M.L.; Bellaize, N.; Bittiger, R.; Bocage, F.; Borderie, B.; Bougault, R.; Bouriquet, B.; Charvet, J.L.; Chbihi, A.; Dayras, R.; Durand, D.; Frankland, J.D.; Galichet, E.; Gourio, D.; Guinet, D.; Hudan, S.; Hurst, B.; Lautesse, P.; Lavaud, F.; Legrain, R.; Lopez, O.; Lukasik, J.; Lynen, U.; Mueller, W.F.J.; Nalpas, L.; Orth, H.; Plagnol, E.; Rosato, E.; Saija, A.; Schwarz, C.; Sfienti, C.; Tamain, B.; Trautmann, W.; Trzcinski, A.; Turzo, K.; Vient, E.; Vigilante, M.; Volant, C.; Zwieglinski, B.; Botvina, A.S

    2004-04-19

    We study the anisotropy effects measured with INDRA at GSI in central collisions of {sup 129}Xe+{sup nat}Sn at 50 A MeV and {sup 197}Au+{sup 197}Au at 60, 80, 100 A MeV incident energy. The microcanonical multifragmentation model with non-spherical sources is used to simulate an incomplete shape relaxation of the multifragmenting system. This model is employed to interpret observed anisotropic distributions in the fragment size and mean kinetic energy. The data can be well reproduced if an expanding prolate source aligned along the beam direction is assumed. An either non-Hubblean or non-isotropic radial expansion is required to describe the fragment kinetic energies and their anisotropy. The qualitative similarity of the results for the studied reactions suggests that the concept of a longitudinally elongated freeze-out configuration is generally applicable for central collisions of heavy systems. The deformation decreases slightly with increasing beam energy.

  6. Multi-lingual search engine to access PubMed monolingual subsets: a feasibility study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Darmoni, Stéfan J; Soualmia, Lina F; Griffon, Nicolas; Grosjean, Julien; Kerdelhué, Gaétan; Kergourlay, Ivan; Dahamna, Badisse

    2013-01-01

    PubMed contains many articles in languages other than English but it is difficult to find them using the English version of the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) Thesaurus. The aim of this work is to propose a tool allowing access to a PubMed subset in one language, and to evaluate its performance. Translations of MeSH were enriched and gathered in the information system. PubMed subsets in main European languages were also added in our database, using a dedicated parser. The CISMeF generic semantic search engine was evaluated on the response time for simple queries. MeSH descriptors are currently available in 11 languages in the information system. All the 654,000 PubMed citations in French were integrated into CISMeF database. None of the response times exceed the threshold defined for usability (2 seconds). It is now possible to freely access biomedical literature in French using a tool in French; health professionals and lay people with a low English language may find it useful. It will be expended to several European languages: German, Spanish, Norwegian and Portuguese.

  7. PubMed Phrases, an open set of coherent phrases for searching biomedical literature

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Sun; Yeganova, Lana; Comeau, Donald C.; Wilbur, W. John; Lu, Zhiyong

    2018-01-01

    In biomedicine, key concepts are often expressed by multiple words (e.g., ‘zinc finger protein’). Previous work has shown treating a sequence of words as a meaningful unit, where applicable, is not only important for human understanding but also beneficial for automatic information seeking. Here we present a collection of PubMed® Phrases that are beneficial for information retrieval and human comprehension. We define these phrases as coherent chunks that are logically connected. To collect the phrase set, we apply the hypergeometric test to detect segments of consecutive terms that are likely to appear together in PubMed. These text segments are then filtered using the BM25 ranking function to ensure that they are beneficial from an information retrieval perspective. Thus, we obtain a set of 705,915 PubMed Phrases. We evaluate the quality of the set by investigating PubMed user click data and manually annotating a sample of 500 randomly selected noun phrases. We also analyze and discuss the usage of these PubMed Phrases in literature search. PMID:29893755

  8. Use of scientific social networking to improve the research strategies of PubMed readers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Evdokimov, Pavel; Kudryavtsev, Alexey; Ilgisonis, Ekaterina; Ponomarenko, Elena; Lisitsa, Andrey

    2016-02-18

    Keeping up with journal articles on a daily basis is an important activity of scientists engaged in biomedical research. Usually, journal articles and papers in the field of biomedicine are accessed through the Medline/PubMed electronic library. In the process of navigating PubMed, researchers unknowingly generate user-specific reading profiles that can be shared within a social networking environment. This paper examines the structure of the social networking environment generated by PubMed users. A web browser plugin was developed to map [in Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) terms] the reading patterns of individual PubMed users. We developed a scientific social network based on the personal research profiles of readers of biomedical articles. A browser plugin is used to record the digital object identifier or PubMed ID of web pages. Recorded items are posted on the activity feed and automatically mapped to PubMed abstract. Within the activity feed a user can trace back previously browsed articles and insert comments. By calculating the frequency with which specific MeSH occur, the research interests of PubMed users can be visually represented with a tag cloud. Finally, research profiles can be searched for matches between network users. A social networking environment was created using MeSH terms to map articles accessed through the Medline/PubMed online library system. In-network social communication is supported by the recommendation of articles and by matching users with similar scientific interests. The system is available at http://bioknol.org/en/.

  9. Automated Patent Categorization and Guided Patent Search using IPC as Inspired by MeSH and PubMed.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eisinger, Daniel; Tsatsaronis, George; Bundschus, Markus; Wieneke, Ulrich; Schroeder, Michael

    2013-04-15

    Document search on PubMed, the pre-eminent database for biomedical literature, relies on the annotation of its documents with relevant terms from the Medical Subject Headings ontology (MeSH) for improving recall through query expansion. Patent documents are another important information source, though they are considerably less accessible. One option to expand patent search beyond pure keywords is the inclusion of classification information: Since every patent is assigned at least one class code, it should be possible for these assignments to be automatically used in a similar way as the MeSH annotations in PubMed. In order to develop a system for this task, it is necessary to have a good understanding of the properties of both classification systems. This report describes our comparative analysis of MeSH and the main patent classification system, the International Patent Classification (IPC). We investigate the hierarchical structures as well as the properties of the terms/classes respectively, and we compare the assignment of IPC codes to patents with the annotation of PubMed documents with MeSH terms.Our analysis shows a strong structural similarity of the hierarchies, but significant differences of terms and annotations. The low number of IPC class assignments and the lack of occurrences of class labels in patent texts imply that current patent search is severely limited. To overcome these limits, we evaluate a method for the automated assignment of additional classes to patent documents, and we propose a system for guided patent search based on the use of class co-occurrence information and external resources.

  10. ENERGY STAR Certified Non-AHRI Central Air Conditioner Equipment and Air Source Heat Pump

    Data.gov (United States)

    U.S. Environmental Protection Agency — Certified models meet all ENERGY STAR requirements as listed in the Version 5.0 ENERGY STAR Program Requirements for Air Source Heat Pump and Central Air Conditioner...

  11. PubMedReco: A Real-Time Recommender System for PubMed Citations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Samuel, Hamman W; Zaïane, Osmar R

    2017-01-01

    We present a recommender system, PubMedReco, for real-time suggestions of medical articles from PubMed, a database of over 23 million medical citations. PubMedReco can recommend medical article citations while users are conversing in a synchronous communication environment such as a chat room. Normally, users would have to leave their chat interface to open a new web browser window, and formulate an appropriate search query to retrieve relevant results. PubMedReco automatically generates the search query and shows relevant citations within the same integrated user interface. PubMedReco analyzes relevant keywords associated with the conversation and uses them to search for relevant citations using the PubMed E-utilities programming interface. Our contributions include improvements to the user experience for searching PubMed from within health forums and chat rooms, and a machine learning model for identifying relevant keywords. We demonstrate the feasibility of PubMedReco using BMJ's Doc2Doc forum discussions.

  12. Study on the efficiency of a central neutron source for the 300-MW(e)-THTR-Nuclear Power Station Schmehausen

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gutsch, U.; Scherer, W.; Gerwin, H.

    1976-03-01

    The loading and starting phase of the THTR-300 is controlled by an external neutron source. The possible positions of this source result from the requirement to fulfil certain criteria concerning the intensity and the interpretation of the detector-signal. In this study it is investigated how far a source centrally inserted into the reactor can be equal to this task and whether it is possible to go over to a non-central position at a later point of time. It is shown that the central source can fulfil all discussed demands. A source position lying in the vicinity of the side reflector demands a special choice of the detector position, which can be exactly determined only by further three-dimensional calculations. Beyond that, this study shows that during the loading phase in the subcritical range the spatial neutron flux distribution is expected to be completely different from that of the critical reactor. (orig.) [de

  13. Impact of PubMed search filters on the retrieval of evidence by physicians.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shariff, Salimah Z; Sontrop, Jessica M; Haynes, R Brian; Iansavichus, Arthur V; McKibbon, K Ann; Wilczynski, Nancy L; Weir, Matthew A; Speechley, Mark R; Thind, Amardeep; Garg, Amit X

    2012-02-21

    Physicians face challenges when searching PubMed for research evidence, and they may miss relevant articles while retrieving too many nonrelevant articles. We investigated whether the use of search filters in PubMed improves searching by physicians. We asked a random sample of Canadian nephrologists to answer unique clinical questions derived from 100 systematic reviews of renal therapy. Physicians provided the search terms that they would type into PubMed to locate articles to answer these questions. We entered the physician-provided search terms into PubMed and applied two types of search filters alone or in combination: a methods-based filter designed to identify high-quality studies about treatment (clinical queries "therapy") and a topic-based filter designed to identify studies with renal content. We evaluated the comprehensiveness (proportion of relevant articles found) and efficiency (ratio of relevant to nonrelevant articles) of the filtered and nonfiltered searches. Primary studies included in the systematic reviews served as the reference standard for relevant articles. The average physician-provided search terms retrieved 46% of the relevant articles, while 6% of the retrieved articles were relevant (corrected) (the ratio of relevant to nonrelevant articles was 1:16). The use of both filters together produced a marked improvement in efficiency, resulting in a ratio of relevant to nonrelevant articles of 1:5 (16 percentage point improvement; 99% confidence interval 9% to 22%; p PubMed search filters improves the efficiency of physician searches. Improved search performance may enhance the transfer of research into practice and improve patient care.

  14. Respiratory infections research in afghanistan: bibliometric analysis with the database pubmed

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pilsezek, F.H.

    2015-01-01

    Infectious diseases research in a low-income country like Afghanistan is important. Methods: In this study an internet-based database Pubmed was used for bibliometric analysis of infectious diseases research activity. Research publications entries in PubMed were analysed according to number of publications, topic, publication type, and country of investigators. Results: Between 2002-2011, 226 (77.7%) publications with the following research topics were identified: respiratory infections 3 (1.3%); parasites 8 (3.5%); diarrhoea 10 (4.4%); tuberculosis 10 (4.4%); human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) 11(4.9%); multi-drug resistant bacteria (MDR) 18(8.0%); polio 31(13.7%); leishmania 31(13.7%); malaria 46(20.4%). From 2002-2011, 11 (4.9%) publications were basic science laboratory-based research studies. Between 2002-2011, 8 (3.5%) publications from Afghan institutions were identified. Conclusion: In conclusion, the internet-based database Pubmed can be consulted to collect data for guidance of infectious diseases research activity of low-income countries. The presented data suggest that infectious diseases research in Afghanistan is limited for respiratory infections research, has few studies conducted by Afghan institutions, and limited laboratory-based research contributions. (author)

  15. Dialysis search filters for PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE, and Embase databases.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Iansavichus, Arthur V; Haynes, R Brian; Lee, Christopher W C; Wilczynski, Nancy L; McKibbon, Ann; Shariff, Salimah Z; Blake, Peter G; Lindsay, Robert M; Garg, Amit X

    2012-10-01

    Physicians frequently search bibliographic databases, such as MEDLINE via PubMed, for best evidence for patient care. The objective of this study was to develop and test search filters to help physicians efficiently retrieve literature related to dialysis (hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis) from all other articles indexed in PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE, and Embase. A diagnostic test assessment framework was used to develop and test robust dialysis filters. The reference standard was a manual review of the full texts of 22,992 articles from 39 journals to determine whether each article contained dialysis information. Next, 1,623,728 unique search filters were developed, and their ability to retrieve relevant articles was evaluated. The high-performance dialysis filters consisted of up to 65 search terms in combination. These terms included the words "dialy" (truncated), "uremic," "catheters," and "renal transplant wait list." These filters reached peak sensitivities of 98.6% and specificities of 98.5%. The filters' performance remained robust in an independent validation subset of articles. These empirically derived and validated high-performance search filters should enable physicians to effectively retrieve dialysis information from PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE, and Embase.

  16. RESPIRATORY INFECTIONS RESEARCH IN AFGHANISTAN: BIBLIOMETRIC ANALYSIS WITH THE DATABASE PUBMED.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pilsczek, Florian H

    2015-01-01

    Infectious diseases research in a low-income country like Afghanistan is important. In this study an internet-based database Pubmed was used for bibliometric analysis of infectious diseases research activity. Research publications entries in PubMed were analysed according to number of publications, topic, publication type, and country of investigators. Between 2002-2011, 226 (77.7%) publications with the following research topics were identified: respiratory infections 3 (1.3%); parasites 8 (3.5%); diarrhoea 10 (4.4%); tuberculosis 10 (4.4%); human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) 11 (4.9%); multi-drug resistant bacteria (MDR) 18 (8.0%); polio 31 (13.7%); leishmania 31 (13.7%); malaria 46 (20.4%). From 2002-2011, 11 (4.9%) publications were basic science laboratory-based research studies. Between 2002-2011, 8 (3.5%) publications from Afghan institutions were identified. In conclusion, the internet-based database Pubmed can be consulted to collect data for guidance of infectious diseases research activity of low-income countries. The presented data suggest that infectious diseases research in Afghanistan is limited for respiratory infections research, has few studies conducted by Afghan institutions, and limited laboratory-based research contributions.

  17. Leaving the Lecture Behind: Putting PubMed Instruction into the Hands of the Students.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Turner, Rose L; M Ketchum, Andrea; Ratajeski, Melissa A; Wessel, Charles B

    2017-01-01

    This column describes the development of a one-shot PubMed instruction class for medical students at a health sciences library. Background information on the objective is presented and discussed in the context of educational practice literature. The new course design centers on a guided group method of instruction in order to integrate more active learning. Surveyed students reported that the method was an effective way to learn how to search PubMed and that they preferred it to a traditional lecture. Pros and cons of the method are offered for other health sciences libraries interested in presenting PubMed instruction in a similar manner.

  18. GAPscreener: An automatic tool for screening human genetic association literature in PubMed using the support vector machine technique

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Khoury Muin J

    2008-04-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Synthesis of data from published human genetic association studies is a critical step in the translation of human genome discoveries into health applications. Although genetic association studies account for a substantial proportion of the abstracts in PubMed, identifying them with standard queries is not always accurate or efficient. Further automating the literature-screening process can reduce the burden of a labor-intensive and time-consuming traditional literature search. The Support Vector Machine (SVM, a well-established machine learning technique, has been successful in classifying text, including biomedical literature. The GAPscreener, a free SVM-based software tool, can be used to assist in screening PubMed abstracts for human genetic association studies. Results The data source for this research was the HuGE Navigator, formerly known as the HuGE Pub Lit database. Weighted SVM feature selection based on a keyword list obtained by the two-way z score method demonstrated the best screening performance, achieving 97.5% recall, 98.3% specificity and 31.9% precision in performance testing. Compared with the traditional screening process based on a complex PubMed query, the SVM tool reduced by about 90% the number of abstracts requiring individual review by the database curator. The tool also ascertained 47 articles that were missed by the traditional literature screening process during the 4-week test period. We examined the literature on genetic associations with preterm birth as an example. Compared with the traditional, manual process, the GAPscreener both reduced effort and improved accuracy. Conclusion GAPscreener is the first free SVM-based application available for screening the human genetic association literature in PubMed with high recall and specificity. The user-friendly graphical user interface makes this a practical, stand-alone application. The software can be downloaded at no charge.

  19. Risk factors for bladder cancer: challenges of conducting a literature search using PubMed.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Joshi, Ashish; Preslan, Elicia

    2011-04-01

    The objective of this study was to assess the risk factors for bladder cancer using PubMed articles from January 2000 to December 2009. The study also aimed to describe the challenges encountered in the methodology of a literature search for bladder cancer risk factors using PubMed. Twenty-six categories of risk factors for bladder cancer were identified using the National Cancer Institute Web site and the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) Web site. A total of 1,338 PubMed searches were run using the term "urinary bladder cancer" and a risk factor term (e.g., "cigarette smoking") and were screened to identify 260 articles for final analysis. The search strategy had an overall precision of 3.42 percent, relative recall of 12.64 percent, and an F-measure of 5.39 percent. Although search terms derived from MeSH had the highest overall precision and recall, the differences did not reach significance, which indicates that for generalized, free-text searches of the PubMed database, the searchers' own terms are generally as effective as MeSH terms.

  20. What time-lag for a retraction search on PubMed?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Decullier, Evelyne; Huot, Laure; Maisonneuve, Hervé

    2014-06-25

    To investigate fraud and errors, scientists have studied cohorts of retraction notices. These researches have been performed using a PubMed search on publication type "retraction of publication" which retrieves the notices of the retractions. We assessed the stability of the indexation of retraction notices over a 15-month period and what was the time-lag to get stability. A search on notices of retraction issued in 2008 was repeated every 3 months during 15 months from February 2011. The first search resulted in 237 notices of retraction. Throughout the study period, 14 discrepancies with the initial search were observed (6%). We found that the number of retraction notices became stable 35 months after the retraction. The time-lag observed in this study has to be taken into account when performing a PubMed search.

  1. Supplementary searches of PubMed to improve currency of MEDLINE and MEDLINE In-Process searches via Ovid.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Duffy, Steven; de Kock, Shelley; Misso, Kate; Noake, Caro; Ross, Janine; Stirk, Lisa

    2016-10-01

    The research investigated whether conducting a supplementary search of PubMed in addition to the main MEDLINE (Ovid) search for a systematic review is worthwhile and to ascertain whether this PubMed search can be conducted quickly and if it retrieves unique, recently published, and ahead-of-print studies that are subsequently considered for inclusion in the final systematic review. Searches of PubMed were conducted after MEDLINE (Ovid) and MEDLINE In-Process (Ovid) searches had been completed for seven recent reviews. The searches were limited to records not in MEDLINE or MEDLINE In-Process (Ovid). Additional unique records were identified for all of the investigated reviews. Search strategies were adapted quickly to run in PubMed, and reviewer screening of the results was not time consuming. For each of the investigated reviews, studies were ordered for full screening; in six cases, studies retrieved from the supplementary PubMed searches were included in the final systematic review. Supplementary searching of PubMed for studies unavailable elsewhere is worthwhile and improves the currency of the systematic reviews.

  2. Repacking of Cobalt 60 spent sources in the central interim storage

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zeleznik, N.

    2003-01-01

    After the transfer of the responsibility for the management of the Central interim storage for waste from small producers, located at the reactor centre in Brinje near Ljubljana, Slovenia, the national Agency for radwaste management (ARAO) started with most urgent activities to improve the utilization of the storage facility. One of the main tasks has also been the rearrangement of the already stored radioactive waste in order to reduce volume of the waste and to collect same radioisotopes in the containers. The latest campaign, performed in 2002/2003, was repacking of all Co-60 spent sealed sources in the storage facility and also at the producer's premises which were after conditioning put into two drums with concrete matrix and stored back to the Central interim storage. The preparation works together with the implementation are described in the paper. (author)

  3. Intriguing centrality dependence of the Au-Au source size at the AGS

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Baker, M.D.

    1996-01-01

    One of the main goals of high energy heavy ion physics is to establish the existence of a deconfined phase of nuclear matter--the quark-gluon plasma--at high temperatures or densities. One possible signature of such a phase transition, especially if it were first order, would be a larger source size or lifetime than a similar hadronic system. At current AGS energies, we attempt to form a quark- gluon plasma by achieving a high baryon density for a period of time in the center of the collision region. For a given density threshold, the size of this high density region should be a strong function of the impact parameter: the more central the event, the larger the high density region. Therefore, one possible signature of a quark-gluon plasma would be a sudden change in system lifetime or size as a function of the centrality of the collision. In this talk we present an intriguing effect which was not predicted for simple hadronic systems: a rapid increase of the HBT-measured source radius parameter for pion pairs with increasing centrality for Au-Au collisions at a beam momentum of 11.45 A GeV/c on a fixed target. Experience has shown, however, that we must be cautious in our interpretation. A complete understanding of the collision dynamics at a given energy must be built up from several measurements and new, but conventional, hadronic explanations must be considered for such unexpected effects. More study is needed, therefore, before any strong conclusions can be reached

  4. PubMed vs. HighWire Press: a head-to-head comparison of two medical literature search engines.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vanhecke, Thomas E; Barnes, Michael A; Zimmerman, Janet; Shoichet, Sandor

    2007-09-01

    PubMed and HighWire Press are both useful medical literature search engines available for free to anyone on the internet. We measured retrieval accuracy, number of results generated, retrieval speed, features and search tools on HighWire Press and PubMed using the quick search features of each. We found that using HighWire Press resulted in a higher likelihood of retrieving the desired article and higher number of search results than the same search on PubMed. PubMed was faster than HighWire Press in delivering search results regardless of search settings. There are considerable differences in search features between these two search engines.

  5. Characterization of PM10 sources in the central Mediterranean

    Science.gov (United States)

    Calzolai, G.; Nava, S.; Lucarelli, F.; Chiari, M.; Giannoni, M.; Becagli, S.; Traversi, R.; Marconi, M.; Frosini, D.; Severi, M.; Udisti, R.; di Sarra, A.; Pace, G.; Meloni, D.; Bommarito, C.; Monteleone, F.; Anello, F.; Sferlazzo, D. M.

    2015-12-01

    The Mediterranean Basin atmosphere is influenced by both strong natural and anthropogenic aerosol emissions and is also subject to important climatic forcings. Several programs have addressed the study of the Mediterranean basin; nevertheless important pieces of information are still missing. In this framework, PM10 samples were collected on a daily basis on the island of Lampedusa (35.5° N, 12.6° E; 45 m a.s.l.), which is far from continental pollution sources (the nearest coast, in Tunisia, is more than 100 km away). After mass gravimetric measurements, different portions of the samples were analyzed to determine the ionic content by ion chromatography (IC), the soluble metals by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES), and the total (soluble + insoluble) elemental composition by particle-induced x-ray emission (PIXE). Data from 2007 and 2008 are used in this study. The Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF) model was applied to the 2-year long data set of PM10 mass concentration and chemical composition to assess the aerosol sources affecting the central Mediterranean basin. Seven sources were resolved: sea salt, mineral dust, biogenic emissions, primary particulate ship emissions, secondary sulfate, secondary nitrate, and combustion emissions. Source contributions to the total PM10 mass were estimated to be about 40 % for sea salt, around 25 % for mineral dust, 10 % each for secondary nitrate and secondary sulfate, and 5 % each for primary particulate ship emissions, biogenic emissions, and combustion emissions. Large variations in absolute and relative contributions are found and appear to depend on the season and on transport episodes. In addition, the secondary sulfate due to ship emissions was estimated and found to contribute by about one-third to the total sulfate mass. Results for the sea-salt and mineral dust sources were compared with estimates of the same contributions obtained from independent approaches, leading to an

  6. To compare PubMed Clinical Queries and UpToDate in teaching information mastery to clinical residents: a crossover randomized controlled trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sayyah Ensan, Ladan; Faghankhani, Masoomeh; Javanbakht, Anna; Ahmadi, Seyed-Foad; Baradaran, Hamid Reza

    2011-01-01

    To compare PubMed Clinical Queries and UpToDate regarding the amount and speed of information retrieval and users' satisfaction. A cross-over randomized trial was conducted in February 2009 in Tehran University of Medical Sciences that included 44 year-one or two residents who participated in an information mastery workshop. A one-hour lecture on the principles of information mastery was organized followed by self learning slide shows before using each database. Subsequently, participants were randomly assigned to answer 2 clinical scenarios using either UpToDate or PubMed Clinical Queries then crossed to use the other database to answer 2 different clinical scenarios. The proportion of relevantly answered clinical scenarios, time to answer retrieval, and users' satisfaction were measured in each database. Based on intention-to-treat analysis, participants retrieved the answer of 67 (76%) questions using UpToDate and 38 (43%) questions using PubMed Clinical Queries (PPubMed Clinical Queries (PPubMed Clinical Queries users (PPubmed Clinical Queries can lead to not only a higher proportion of relevant answer retrieval within a shorter time, but also a higher users' satisfaction. So, addition of tutoring pre-appraised sources such as UpToDate to the information mastery curricula seems to be highly efficient.

  7. Discrepancies among Scopus, Web of Science, and PubMed coverage of funding information in medical journal articles.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kokol, Peter; Vošner, Helena Blažun

    2018-01-01

    The overall aim of the present study was to compare the coverage of existing research funding information for articles indexed in Scopus, Web of Science, and PubMed databases. The numbers of articles with funding information published in 2015 were identified in the three selected databases and compared using bibliometric analysis of a sample of twenty-eight prestigious medical journals. Frequency analysis of the number of articles with funding information showed statistically significant differences between Scopus, Web of Science, and PubMed databases. The largest proportion of articles with funding information was found in Web of Science (29.0%), followed by PubMed (14.6%) and Scopus (7.7%). The results show that coverage of funding information differs significantly among Scopus, Web of Science, and PubMed databases in a sample of the same medical journals. Moreover, we found that, currently, funding data in PubMed is more difficult to obtain and analyze compared with that in the other two databases.

  8. VLT/SINFONI Observations of Spitzer /MIPSGAL 24 μ m Circumstellar Shells: Revealing the Natures of Their Central Sources

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Silva, K. M. [Physics and Astronomy Department, University of Hawaii Hilo, 200 W Kawili Street, Hilo, HI 96720 (United States); Flagey, N. [Canada–France–Hawaii Telescope Corporation, 65-1238 Mamalahoa Highway, Kamuela, HI 96743 (United States); Noriega-Crespo, A. [Space Telescope Science Institue, 3700 San Martin Drive, Baltimore, MD 21218 (United States); Carey, S. [Infrared Processing Analysis Center, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States); Ingallinera, A., E-mail: silvakm@hawaii.edu [INAF-Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania, Via Santa Sofia 78, I-95123 Catania (Italy)

    2017-03-01

    We present Very Large Telescope/Spectrograph for INtegral Field Observations in the Near Infrared H - and K -band spectra of potential central stars within the inner 8″-by-8″ regions of 55 MIPSGAL “bubbles” (MBs), sub-arcminute circumstellar shells discovered in the mid-IR survey of the Galactic plane with Spitzer /MIPS. At magnitudes brighter than 15, we detect a total of 230 stars in the K band and 179 stars in the H band. We spectrally identify 145 stars in all but three MBs, with average magnitudes of 13.8 and 12.7 respectively, using spectral libraries and previous studies of near-IR stellar spectra. We also use tabulated intrinsic stellar magnitudes and colors to derive distances and extinction values, and to better constrain the classifications of the stars. We reliably identify the central sources for 21 of the 55 MBs, which we classify as follows: one Wolf–Rayet, three luminous blue variable candidates, four early-type (O to F), and 15 late-type (G to M) stars. The 21 central sources are, on average, one magnitude fainter than these in the most recent study of MBs, and we notice a significant drop in the fraction of massive star candidates. For the 34 remaining MBs in our sample, we are unable to identify the central sources due to confusion, low spectroscopic signal-to-noise ratio, and/or lack of detections in the images near the centers of the bubbles. We discuss how our findings compare with previous studies and support the trend, for the most part, between the shells’ morphologies in the mid-IR and central sources spectral types.

  9. A search engine to access PubMed monolingual subsets: proof of concept and evaluation in French.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Griffon, Nicolas; Schuers, Matthieu; Soualmia, Lina Fatima; Grosjean, Julien; Kerdelhué, Gaétan; Kergourlay, Ivan; Dahamna, Badisse; Darmoni, Stéfan Jacques

    2014-12-01

    PubMed contains numerous articles in languages other than English. However, existing solutions to access these articles in the language in which they were written remain unconvincing. The aim of this study was to propose a practical search engine, called Multilingual PubMed, which will permit access to a PubMed subset in 1 language and to evaluate the precision and coverage for the French version (Multilingual PubMed-French). To create this tool, translations of MeSH were enriched (eg, adding synonyms and translations in French) and integrated into a terminology portal. PubMed subsets in several European languages were also added to our database using a dedicated parser. The response time for the generic semantic search engine was evaluated for simple queries. BabelMeSH, Multilingual PubMed-French, and 3 different PubMed strategies were compared by searching for literature in French. Precision and coverage were measured for 20 randomly selected queries. The results were evaluated as relevant to title and abstract, the evaluator being blind to search strategy. More than 650,000 PubMed citations in French were integrated into the Multilingual PubMed-French information system. The response times were all below the threshold defined for usability (2 seconds). Two search strategies (Multilingual PubMed-French and 1 PubMed strategy) showed high precision (0.93 and 0.97, respectively), but coverage was 4 times higher for Multilingual PubMed-French. It is now possible to freely access biomedical literature using a practical search tool in French. This tool will be of particular interest for health professionals and other end users who do not read or query sufficiently in English. The information system is theoretically well suited to expand the approach to other European languages, such as German, Spanish, Norwegian, and Portuguese.

  10. Characterization of the mechanism of drug-drug interactions from PubMed using MeSH terms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lu, Yin; Figler, Bryan; Huang, Hong; Tu, Yi-Cheng; Wang, Ju; Cheng, Feng

    2017-01-01

    Identifying drug-drug interaction (DDI) is an important topic for the development of safe pharmaceutical drugs and for the optimization of multidrug regimens for complex diseases such as cancer and HIV. There have been about 150,000 publications on DDIs in PubMed, which is a great resource for DDI studies. In this paper, we introduced an automatic computational method for the systematic analysis of the mechanism of DDIs using MeSH (Medical Subject Headings) terms from PubMed literature. MeSH term is a controlled vocabulary thesaurus developed by the National Library of Medicine for indexing and annotating articles. Our method can effectively identify DDI-relevant MeSH terms such as drugs, proteins and phenomena with high accuracy. The connections among these MeSH terms were investigated by using co-occurrence heatmaps and social network analysis. Our approach can be used to visualize relationships of DDI terms, which has the potential to help users better understand DDIs. As the volume of PubMed records increases, our method for automatic analysis of DDIs from the PubMed database will become more accurate.

  11. Do language fluency and other socioeconomic factors influence the use of PubMed and MedlinePlus?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sheets, L; Gavino, A; Callaghan, F; Fontelo, P

    2013-01-01

    Increased usage of MedlinePlus by Spanish-speakers was observed after introduction of MedlinePlus in Spanish. This probably reflects increased usage of MEDLINE and PubMed by those with greater fluency in the language in which it is presented; but this has never been demonstrated in English speakers. Evidence that lack of English fluency deters international healthcare personnel from using PubMed could support the use of multi-language search tools like Babel-MeSH. This study aims to measure the effects of language fluency and other socioeconomic factors on PubMed MEDLINE and MedlinePlus access by international users. We retrospectively reviewed server pageviews of PubMed and MedlinePlus from various periods of time, and analyzed them against country statistics on language fluency, GDP, literacy rate, Internet usage, medical schools, and physicians per capita, to determine whether they were associated. We found fluency in English to be positively associated with pageviews of PubMed and MedlinePlus in countries with high literacy rates. Spanish was generally found to be positively associated with pageviews of MedlinePlus en Español. The other parameters also showed varying degrees of association with pageviews. After adjusting for the other factors investigated in this study, language fluency was a consistently significant predictor of the use of PubMed, MedlinePlus English and MedlinePlus en Español. This study may support the need for multi-language search tools and may increase access of health information resources from non-English speaking countries.

  12. A 2009 Mobile Source Carbon Dioxide Emissions Inventory for the University of Central Florida.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clifford, Johanna M; Cooper, C David

    2012-09-01

    A mobile source carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions inventory for the University of Central Florida (UCF) has been completed. Fora large urban university, more than 50% of the CO2 emissions can come from mobile sources, and the vast majority of mobile source emissions come from on-road sources: personal vehicles and campus shuttles carrying students, faculty, staff and administrators to and from the university as well as on university business trips. In addition to emissions from on-road vehicles, emissions from airplane-based business travel are significant, along with emissions from nonroad equipment such as lawnmowers, leaf blowers, and small maintenance vehicles utilized on campus. UCF has recently become one of the largest universities in the nation (with over 58,000 students enrolled in the fall 2011 semester) and emits a substantial amount of CO2 in the Central Florida area. For this inventory, students, faculty, staff and administrators were first surveyed to determine their commuting distances and frequencies. Information was also gathered on vehicle type and age distribution of the personal vehicles of students, faculty, administrators, and staff as well as their bus, car-pool, and alternate transportation usage. The latest US. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-approved mobile source emissions model, Motor Vehicle Emissions Simulator (MOVES2010a), was used to calculate the emissions from on-road vehicles, and UCF fleet gasoline consumption records were used to calculate the emissions from nonroad equipment and from on-campus UCF fleet vehicles. The results of this UCF mobile source emissions inventory were compared with those for another large U.S. university. With the growing awareness of global climate change, a number of colleges/universities and other organizations are completing greenhouse gas emission inventories. Assumptions often are made in order to calculate mobile source emissions, but without field data or valid reasoning, the accuracy of those

  13. Characterization of the mechanism of drug-drug interactions from PubMed using MeSH terms.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yin Lu

    Full Text Available Identifying drug-drug interaction (DDI is an important topic for the development of safe pharmaceutical drugs and for the optimization of multidrug regimens for complex diseases such as cancer and HIV. There have been about 150,000 publications on DDIs in PubMed, which is a great resource for DDI studies. In this paper, we introduced an automatic computational method for the systematic analysis of the mechanism of DDIs using MeSH (Medical Subject Headings terms from PubMed literature. MeSH term is a controlled vocabulary thesaurus developed by the National Library of Medicine for indexing and annotating articles. Our method can effectively identify DDI-relevant MeSH terms such as drugs, proteins and phenomena with high accuracy. The connections among these MeSH terms were investigated by using co-occurrence heatmaps and social network analysis. Our approach can be used to visualize relationships of DDI terms, which has the potential to help users better understand DDIs. As the volume of PubMed records increases, our method for automatic analysis of DDIs from the PubMed database will become more accurate.

  14. Aerosol composition and sources in the central Arctic Ocean during ASCOS

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chang, R. Y.-W.; Leck, C.; Graus, M.; Müller, M.; Paatero, J.; Burkhart, J. F.; Stohl, A.; Orr, L. H.; Hayden, K.; Li, S.-M.; Hansel, A.; Tjernström, M.; Leaitch, W. R.; Abbatt, J. P. D.

    2011-10-01

    Measurements of submicron aerosol chemical composition were made over the central Arctic Ocean from 5 August to 8 September 2008 as a part of the Arctic Summer Cloud Ocean Study (ASCOS) using an aerosol mass spectrometer (AMS). The median levels of sulphate and organics for the entire study were 0.051 and 0.055 μ g m-3, respectively. Positive matrix factorisation was performed on the entire mass spectral time series and this enabled marine biogenic and continental sources of particles to be separated. These factors accounted for 33% and 36% of the sampled ambient aerosol mass, respectively, and they were both predominantly composed of sulphate, with 47% of the sulphate apportioned to marine biogenic sources and 48% to continental sources, by mass. Within the marine biogenic factor, the ratio of methane sulphonate to sulphate was 0.25 ± 0.02, consistent with values reported in the literature. The organic component of the continental factor was more oxidised than that of the marine biogenic factor, suggesting that it had a longer photochemical lifetime than the organics in the marine biogenic factor. The remaining ambient aerosol mass was apportioned to an organic-rich factor that could have arisen from a combination of marine and continental sources. In particular, given that the factor does not correlate with common tracers of continental influence, we cannot rule out that the organic factor arises from a primary marine source.

  15. Life cycle comparison of centralized wastewater treatment and urine source separation with struvite precipitation: Focus on urine nutrient management.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ishii, Stephanie K L; Boyer, Treavor H

    2015-08-01

    Alternative approaches to wastewater management including urine source separation have the potential to simultaneously improve multiple aspects of wastewater treatment, including reduced use of potable water for waste conveyance and improved contaminant removal, especially nutrients. In order to pursue such radical changes, system-level evaluations of urine source separation in community contexts are required. The focus of this life cycle assessment (LCA) is managing nutrients from urine produced in a residential setting with urine source separation and struvite precipitation, as compared with a centralized wastewater treatment approach. The life cycle impacts evaluated in this study pertain to construction of the urine source separation system and operation of drinking water treatment, decentralized urine treatment, and centralized wastewater treatment. System boundaries include fertilizer offsets resulting from the production of urine based struvite fertilizer. As calculated by the Tool for the Reduction and Assessment of Chemical and Other Environmental Impacts (TRACI), urine source separation with MgO addition for subsequent struvite precipitation with high P recovery (Scenario B) has the smallest environmental cost relative to existing centralized wastewater treatment (Scenario A) and urine source separation with MgO and Na3PO4 addition for subsequent struvite precipitation with concurrent high P and N recovery (Scenario C). Preliminary economic evaluations show that the three urine management scenarios are relatively equal on a monetary basis (<13% difference). The impacts of each urine management scenario are most sensitive to the assumed urine composition, the selected urine storage time, and the assumed electricity required to treat influent urine and toilet water used to convey urine at the centralized wastewater treatment plant. The importance of full nutrient recovery from urine in combination with the substantial chemical inputs required for N recovery

  16. Bibliometric analysis of the Korean Journal of Parasitology: measured from SCI, PubMed, Scopus, and Synapse databases.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Choon Shil

    2009-10-01

    The Korean Journal of Parasitology (KJP) is the official journal of the Korean Society for Parasitology which is celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2009. To assess the contributions and achievements of the KJP, bibliometric analysis was conducted based on the citation data retrieved from 4 major databases; SCI, PubMed, Synapse, and Scopus. It was found that the KJP articles were constantly cited by the articles published in major international journals represented in these databases. More than 60% of 1,370 articles published in the KJP from 1963 to June 2009 were cited at least once by SCI articles. The overall average times cited by SCI articles are 2.6. The rate is almost 3 times higher for the articles published in the last 10 years compared to 1.0 for the articles of the 1960s. The SCI journal impact factor for 2008 is calculated as 0.871. It is increasing and it is expected to increase further with the introduction of the KJP in the database in 2008. The more realistic h-indices were measured from the study data set covering all the citations to the KJP; 17 for SCI, 6 for PubMed, 19 for Synapse, and 17 for Scopus. Synapse extensively picked up the citations to the earlier papers not retrievable from the other 3 databases. It identified many papers published in the 1960s and in the 1980s which have been cited heavily, proving the central role of the KJP in the dissemination of the important research findings over the last 5 decades.

  17. [A statistical analysis and perspective of headache-related papers covered in 2011 PubMed].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Ming-jie; Yu, Sheng-yuan; Chu, Bing-qian; Dai, Wei

    2013-01-01

    To investigate the distribution and hot spots of literatures on headache by bibliometric analysis in order to provide reference for further study. Literatures that contained headache or migraine in text words published in 2011 in PubMed databases (www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/Pubmed) were searched. Journals, countries and subjects were bibliometrically analysed. There were 3683 papers involved to headache published in PubMed in 2011, of which 1527 papers were on headache research. The number of papers on headache research published by USA was the most followed by Italy and Germany (USA 23.25%, Italy 10.74%, Germany 5.83%). The mainly studied subjects were therapy (29.60%), pathophysiology (18.66%) and etiology (16.31%). 14.86% papers published in Cephalalgia, which is one of the most important journals, reported negative results. The emphasis of headache research was on migraine. Therapy, pathophysiology and etiology were the hot spot. Literatures with negative result attracted authors to give the more attention.

  18. Nature of the Diffuse Source and Its Central Point-like Source in SNR 0509–67.5

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Litke, Katrina C.; Chu, You-Hua; Holmes, Abigail; Santucci, Robert; Blindauer, Terrence; Gruendl, Robert A.; Ricker, Paul M. [Astronomy Department, University of Illinois, 1002 W. Green Street, Urbana, IL 61801 (United States); Li, Chuan-Jui [Academia Sinica Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics, P.O. Box 23-141, Taipei 10617, Taiwan, R.O.C. (China); Pan, Kuo-Chuan [Departement Physik, Universität Basel, Klingelbergstrasse 82, CH-4056 Basel (Switzerland); Weisz, Daniel R., E-mail: kclitke@email.arizona.edu [Department of Astronomy, University of California, 501 Cambell Hall #3411, Berkeley, CA 94720-3411 (United States)

    2017-03-10

    We examine a diffuse emission region near the center of SNR 0509−67.5 to determine its nature. Within this diffuse region we observe a point-like source that is bright in the near-IR, but is not visible in the B and V bands. We consider an emission line observed at 6766 Å and the possibilities that it is Ly α , H α , and [O ii] λ 3727. We examine the spectral energy distribution (SED) of the source, comprised of Hubble Space Telescope B , V , I , J , and H bands in addition to Spitzer /IRAC 3.6, 4.5, 5.8, and 8 μ m bands. The peak of the SED is consistent with a background galaxy at z ≈ 0.8 ± 0.2 and a possible Balmer jump places the galaxy at z ≈ 0.9 ± 0.3. These SED considerations support the emission line’s identification as [O ii] λ 3727. We conclude that the diffuse source in SNR 0509−67.5 is a background galaxy at z ≈ 0.82. Furthermore, we identify the point-like source superposed near the center of the galaxy as its central bulge. Finally, we find no evidence for a surviving companion star, indicating a double-degenerate origin for SNR 0509−67.5.

  19. Nature of the Diffuse Source and Its Central Point-like Source in SNR 0509–67.5

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Litke, Katrina C.; Chu, You-Hua; Holmes, Abigail; Santucci, Robert; Blindauer, Terrence; Gruendl, Robert A.; Ricker, Paul M.; Li, Chuan-Jui; Pan, Kuo-Chuan; Weisz, Daniel R.

    2017-01-01

    We examine a diffuse emission region near the center of SNR 0509−67.5 to determine its nature. Within this diffuse region we observe a point-like source that is bright in the near-IR, but is not visible in the B and V bands. We consider an emission line observed at 6766 Å and the possibilities that it is Ly α , H α , and [O ii] λ 3727. We examine the spectral energy distribution (SED) of the source, comprised of Hubble Space Telescope B , V , I , J , and H bands in addition to Spitzer /IRAC 3.6, 4.5, 5.8, and 8 μ m bands. The peak of the SED is consistent with a background galaxy at z ≈ 0.8 ± 0.2 and a possible Balmer jump places the galaxy at z ≈ 0.9 ± 0.3. These SED considerations support the emission line’s identification as [O ii] λ 3727. We conclude that the diffuse source in SNR 0509−67.5 is a background galaxy at z ≈ 0.82. Furthermore, we identify the point-like source superposed near the center of the galaxy as its central bulge. Finally, we find no evidence for a surviving companion star, indicating a double-degenerate origin for SNR 0509−67.5.

  20. Chemical fingerprinting and source tracing of obsidian: the central Mediterranean trade in black gold.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tykot, Robert H

    2002-08-01

    Chemical fingerprinting using major or trace element composition is used to characterize the Mediterranean island sources of obsidian and can even differentiate as many as nine flows in the Monte Arci region of Sardinia. Analysis of significant numbers of obsidian artifacts from Neolithic sites in the central Mediterranean reveals specific patterns of source exploitation and suggests particular trade mechanisms and routes. The use of techniques such as X-ray fluorescence, the electron microprobe, neutron activation analysis, and laser ablation ICP mass spectrometry are emphasized in order to produce quantitative results while minimizing damage to valuable artifacts.

  1. PubMed search filters for the study of putative outdoor air pollution determinants of disease

    OpenAIRE

    Curti, Stefania; Gori, Davide; Di Gregori, Valentina; Farioli, Andrea; Baldasseroni, Alberto; Fantini, Maria Pia; Christiani, David C; Violante, Francesco S; Mattioli, Stefano

    2016-01-01

    Objectives: Several PubMed search filters have been developed in contexts other than environmental. We aimed at identifying efficient PubMed search filters for the study of environmental determinants of diseases related to outdoor air pollution. Methods: We compiled a list of Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) and non-MeSH terms seeming pertinent to outdoor air pollutants exposure as determinants of diseases in the general population. We estimated proportions of potentially pertinent articles to...

  2. pubmed. mineR: An R package with text-mining algorithms to ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    2016-08-26

    Aug 26, 2016 ... Three case studies are presented, namely, `Evolving role of diabetes educators', `Cancer risk assessment' and `Dynamic concepts on disease and comorbidity' to illustrate the use of pubmed.mineR. The package generally runs fast with small elapsed times in regular workstations even on large corpus ...

  3. Assessment of source material (U and Th) in exploration, mining, processing of zircon sand in Central Kalimantan

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dedi Hermawan; Pandu Dewanto; Sudarto

    2011-01-01

    From 2004 to 2008, according to data released by the Commerce Department, the volume of zircon sand and concentrates exports has increased highly. One of many locations in Indonesia that widely available zircon sand is Kalimantan island. For example, Central Kalimantan Province in 2007 to 2008 exports about 51,000 tones up to 79,000 tones of zircon sand annually. The concentration of source material in the zircon sand is important to be known because the presence of natural radioactive U and Th in zircon sand has the potential radiation hazard. Therefore it is necessary to conduct an assessment the potential reserves related to the source material contained in the zircon sand and radiation safety that are applied in the process of mining or processing of zircon sand. In this paper the location of mining and processing of zircon sand is restricted to the province of Central Kalimantan. From the assessment obtained that source material which is carried by zircon sand export form the province of Central Kalimantan have the potential to exceed the limits set by the BAPETEN Chairman Decree No.9 of 2006 About the Implementation of the Additional Protocol to the Accountability System and Control of Nuclear Materials. In terms of compliance with radiation safety, required increased surveillance of K3 during mining, process / processing by the worker, supervisor / supervisors and regional management company to be able the achievement of compliance with the provisions of the management of materials and the safety of radiation sources based on national regulations (BAPETEN) and international. (author)

  4. Comparison of PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar: strengths and weaknesses.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Falagas, Matthew E; Pitsouni, Eleni I; Malietzis, George A; Pappas, Georgios

    2008-02-01

    The evolution of the electronic age has led to the development of numerous medical databases on the World Wide Web, offering search facilities on a particular subject and the ability to perform citation analysis. We compared the content coverage and practical utility of PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar. The official Web pages of the databases were used to extract information on the range of journals covered, search facilities and restrictions, and update frequency. We used the example of a keyword search to evaluate the usefulness of these databases in biomedical information retrieval and a specific published article to evaluate their utility in performing citation analysis. All databases were practical in use and offered numerous search facilities. PubMed and Google Scholar are accessed for free. The keyword search with PubMed offers optimal update frequency and includes online early articles; other databases can rate articles by number of citations, as an index of importance. For citation analysis, Scopus offers about 20% more coverage than Web of Science, whereas Google Scholar offers results of inconsistent accuracy. PubMed remains an optimal tool in biomedical electronic research. Scopus covers a wider journal range, of help both in keyword searching and citation analysis, but it is currently limited to recent articles (published after 1995) compared with Web of Science. Google Scholar, as for the Web in general, can help in the retrieval of even the most obscure information but its use is marred by inadequate, less often updated, citation information.

  5. Measuring Medical Student Preference: A Comparison of Classroom Versus Online Instruction for Teaching Pubmed*EC

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schimming, Laura M.

    2008-01-01

    Objective: The research analyzed evaluation data to assess medical student satisfaction with the learning experience when required PubMed training is offered entirely online. Methods: A retrospective study analyzed skills assessment scores and student feedback forms from 455 first-year medical students who completed PubMed training either through classroom sessions or an online tutorial. The class of 2006 (n = 99) attended traditional librarian-led sessions in a computer classroom. The classes of 2007 (n = 120), 2008 (n = 121), and 2009 (n = 115) completed the training entirely online through a self-paced tutorial. PubMed skills assessment scores and student feedback about the training were compared for all groups. Results: As evidenced by open-ended comments about the training, students who took the online tutorial were equally or more satisfied with the learning experience than students who attended classroom sessions, with the classes of 2008 and 2009 reporting greater satisfaction (PPubMed skills assessment (91%) was the same for all groups of students. Conclusions: Student satisfaction improved and PubMed assessment scores did not change when instruction was offered online to first-year medical students. Comments from the students who received online training suggest that the increased control and individual engagement with the web-based content led to their satisfaction with the online tutorial. PMID:18654658

  6. A 54 year analysis of articles from Mpilo Central Hospital, Bulawayo ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    PubMed and Google Scholar were searched to obtain articles originating from Mpilo Central Hospital, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe - 1958 to August 2011 (54 years). 168 articles cited 999 times were retrieved giving about 6 citations per article. Analysis of publication trends over time as well as publication avenues is made.

  7. Integrated spatiotemporal characterization of dust sources and outbreaks in Central and East Asia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Darmenova, Kremena T.

    The potential of atmospheric dust aerosols to modify the Earth's environment and climate has been recognized for some time. However, predicting the diverse impact of dust has several significant challenges. One is to quantify the complex spatial and temporal variability of dust burden in the atmosphere. Another is to quantify the fraction of dust originating from human-made sources. This thesis focuses on the spatiotemporal characterization of sources and dust outbreaks in Central and East Asia by integrating ground-based data, satellite multisensor observations, and modeling. A new regional dust modeling system capable of operating over a span of scales was developed. The modeling system consists of a dust module DuMo, which incorporates several dust emission schemes of different complexity, and the PSU/NCAR mesoscale model MM5, which offers a variety of physical parameterizations and flexible nesting capability. The modeling system was used to perform for the first time a comprehensive study of the timing, duration, and intensity of individual dust events in Central and East Asia. Determining the uncertainties caused by the choice of model physics, especially the boundary layer parameterization, and the dust production scheme was the focus of our study. Implications to assessments of the anthropogenic dust fraction in these regions were also addressed. Focusing on Spring 2001, an analysis of routine surface meteorological observations and satellite multi-sensor data was carried out in conjunction with modeling to determine the extent to which integrated data set can be used to characterize the spatiotemporal distribution of dust plumes at a range of temporal scales, addressing the active dust sources in China and Mongolia, mid-range transport and trans-Pacific, long-range transport of dust outbreaks on a case-by-case basis. This work demonstrates that adequate and consistent characterization of individual dust events is central to establishing a reliable

  8. OvidSP Medline-to-PubMed search filter translation: a methodology for extending search filter range to include PubMed's unique content.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Damarell, Raechel A; Tieman, Jennifer J; Sladek, Ruth M

    2013-07-02

    PubMed translations of OvidSP Medline search filters offer searchers improved ease of access. They may also facilitate access to PubMed's unique content, including citations for the most recently published biomedical evidence. Retrieving this content requires a search strategy comprising natural language terms ('textwords'), rather than Medical Subject Headings (MeSH). We describe a reproducible methodology that uses a validated PubMed search filter translation to create a textword-only strategy to extend retrieval to PubMed's unique heart failure literature. We translated an OvidSP Medline heart failure search filter for PubMed and established version equivalence in terms of indexed literature retrieval. The PubMed version was then run within PubMed to identify citations retrieved by the filter's MeSH terms (Heart failure, Left ventricular dysfunction, and Cardiomyopathy). It was then rerun with the same MeSH terms restricted to searching on title and abstract fields (i.e. as 'textwords'). Citations retrieved by the MeSH search but not the textword search were isolated. Frequency analysis of their titles/abstracts identified natural language alternatives for those MeSH terms that performed less effectively as textwords. These terms were tested in combination to determine the best performing search string for reclaiming this 'lost set'. This string, restricted to searching on PubMed's unique content, was then combined with the validated PubMed translation to extend the filter's performance in this database. The PubMed heart failure filter retrieved 6829 citations. Of these, 834 (12%) failed to be retrieved when MeSH terms were converted to textwords. Frequency analysis of the 834 citations identified five high frequency natural language alternatives that could improve retrieval of this set (cardiac failure, cardiac resynchronization, left ventricular systolic dysfunction, left ventricular diastolic dysfunction, and LV dysfunction). Together these terms reclaimed

  9. Enabling multi-level relevance feedback on PubMed by integrating rank learning into DBMS.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yu, Hwanjo; Kim, Taehoon; Oh, Jinoh; Ko, Ilhwan; Kim, Sungchul; Han, Wook-Shin

    2010-04-16

    Finding relevant articles from PubMed is challenging because it is hard to express the user's specific intention in the given query interface, and a keyword query typically retrieves a large number of results. Researchers have applied machine learning techniques to find relevant articles by ranking the articles according to the learned relevance function. However, the process of learning and ranking is usually done offline without integrated with the keyword queries, and the users have to provide a large amount of training documents to get a reasonable learning accuracy. This paper proposes a novel multi-level relevance feedback system for PubMed, called RefMed, which supports both ad-hoc keyword queries and a multi-level relevance feedback in real time on PubMed. RefMed supports a multi-level relevance feedback by using the RankSVM as the learning method, and thus it achieves higher accuracy with less feedback. RefMed "tightly" integrates the RankSVM into RDBMS to support both keyword queries and the multi-level relevance feedback in real time; the tight coupling of the RankSVM and DBMS substantially improves the processing time. An efficient parameter selection method for the RankSVM is also proposed, which tunes the RankSVM parameter without performing validation. Thereby, RefMed achieves a high learning accuracy in real time without performing a validation process. RefMed is accessible at http://dm.postech.ac.kr/refmed. RefMed is the first multi-level relevance feedback system for PubMed, which achieves a high accuracy with less feedback. It effectively learns an accurate relevance function from the user's feedback and efficiently processes the function to return relevant articles in real time.

  10. Characterization of the radon source in North-Central Florida. Final report part 1 -- Final project report; Final report part 2 -- Technical report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1997-01-01

    This report contains two separate parts: Characterization of the Radon Source in North-Central Florida (final report part 1 -- final project report); and Characterization of the Radon Source in North-Central Florida (technical report). The objectives were to characterize the radon 222 source in a region having a demonstrated elevated indoor radon potential and having geology, lithology, and climate that are different from those in other regions of the U.S. where radon is being studied. Radon availability and transport in this region were described. Approaches for predicting the radon potential of lands in this region were developed

  11. Analysis of source spectra, attenuation, and site effects from central and eastern United States earthquakes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lindley, G.

    1998-02-01

    This report describes the results from three studies of source spectra, attenuation, and site effects of central and eastern United States earthquakes. In the first study source parameter estimates taken from 27 previous studies were combined to test the assumption that the earthquake stress drop is roughly a constant, independent of earthquake size. 200 estimates of stress drop and seismic moment from eastern North American earthquakes were combined. It was found that the estimated stress drop from the 27 studies increases approximately as the square-root of the seismic moment, from about 3 bars at 10 20 dyne-cm to 690 bars at 10 25 dyne-cm. These results do not support the assumption of a constant stress drop when estimating ground motion parameters from eastern North American earthquakes. In the second study, broadband seismograms recorded by the United States National Seismograph Network and cooperating stations have been analysed to determine Q Lg as a function of frequency in five regions: the northeastern US, southeastern US, central US, northern Basin and Range, and California and western Nevada. In the third study, using spectral analysis, estimates have been made for the anelastic attenuation of four regional phases, and estimates have been made for the source parameters of 27 earthquakes, including the M b 5.6, 14 April, 1995, West Texas earthquake

  12. PubMed Informer: Monitoring MEDLINE/PubMed through E-mail Alerts, SMS, PDA downloads and RSS feeds

    Science.gov (United States)

    Muin, Michael; Fontelo, Paul; Ackerman, Michael

    2005-01-01

    Summary PubMed Informer is a Web-based monitoring tool for topics of interest from MEDLINE/PubMed primarily designed for healthcare professionals. Five tracking methods are available: Web access, e-mail, Short Message Service (SMS), PDA downloads and RSS feeds. PubMed Informer delivers focused search updates and specific information to users with varying information-seeking practices. PMID:16779344

  13. Sensitivity and predictive value of 15 PubMed search strategies to answer clinical questions rated against full systematic reviews.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Agoritsas, Thomas; Merglen, Arnaud; Courvoisier, Delphine S; Combescure, Christophe; Garin, Nicolas; Perrier, Arnaud; Perneger, Thomas V

    2012-06-12

    Clinicians perform searches in PubMed daily, but retrieving relevant studies is challenging due to the rapid expansion of medical knowledge. Little is known about the performance of search strategies when they are applied to answer specific clinical questions. To compare the performance of 15 PubMed search strategies in retrieving relevant clinical trials on therapeutic interventions. We used Cochrane systematic reviews to identify relevant trials for 30 clinical questions. Search terms were extracted from the abstract using a predefined procedure based on the population, interventions, comparison, outcomes (PICO) framework and combined into queries. We tested 15 search strategies that varied in their query (PIC or PICO), use of PubMed's Clinical Queries therapeutic filters (broad or narrow), search limits, and PubMed links to related articles. We assessed sensitivity (recall) and positive predictive value (precision) of each strategy on the first 2 PubMed pages (40 articles) and on the complete search output. The performance of the search strategies varied widely according to the clinical question. Unfiltered searches and those using the broad filter of Clinical Queries produced large outputs and retrieved few relevant articles within the first 2 pages, resulting in a median sensitivity of only 10%-25%. In contrast, all searches using the narrow filter performed significantly better, with a median sensitivity of about 50% (all P PubMed pages. These results can help clinicians apply effective strategies to answer their questions at the point of care.

  14. Medical literature searches: a comparison of PubMed and Google Scholar.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nourbakhsh, Eva; Nugent, Rebecca; Wang, Helen; Cevik, Cihan; Nugent, Kenneth

    2012-09-01

    Medical literature searches provide critical information for clinicians. However, the best strategy for identifying relevant high-quality literature is unknown. We compared search results using PubMed and Google Scholar on four clinical questions and analysed these results with respect to article relevance and quality. Abstracts from the first 20 citations for each search were classified into three relevance categories. We used the weighted kappa statistic to analyse reviewer agreement and nonparametric rank tests to compare the number of citations for each article and the corresponding journals' impact factors. Reviewers ranked 67.6% of PubMed articles and 80% of Google Scholar articles as at least possibly relevant (P = 0.116) with high agreement (all kappa P-values PubMed searches and Google Scholar searches often identify different articles. In this study, Google Scholar articles were more likely to be classified as relevant, had higher numbers of citations and were published in higher impact factor journals. The identification of frequently cited articles using Google Scholar for searches probably has value for initial literature searches. © 2012 The authors. Health Information and Libraries Journal © 2012 Health Libraries Group.

  15. PubMed and beyond: a survey of web tools for searching biomedical literature

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lu, Zhiyong

    2011-01-01

    The past decade has witnessed the modern advances of high-throughput technology and rapid growth of research capacity in producing large-scale biological data, both of which were concomitant with an exponential growth of biomedical literature. This wealth of scholarly knowledge is of significant importance for researchers in making scientific discoveries and healthcare professionals in managing health-related matters. However, the acquisition of such information is becoming increasingly difficult due to its large volume and rapid growth. In response, the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) is continuously making changes to its PubMed Web service for improvement. Meanwhile, different entities have devoted themselves to developing Web tools for helping users quickly and efficiently search and retrieve relevant publications. These practices, together with maturity in the field of text mining, have led to an increase in the number and quality of various Web tools that provide comparable literature search service to PubMed. In this study, we review 28 such tools, highlight their respective innovations, compare them to the PubMed system and one another, and discuss directions for future development. Furthermore, we have built a website dedicated to tracking existing systems and future advances in the field of biomedical literature search. Taken together, our work serves information seekers in choosing tools for their needs and service providers and developers in keeping current in the field. Database URL: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/CBBresearch/Lu/search PMID:21245076

  16. PubMed and beyond: a survey of web tools for searching biomedical literature.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lu, Zhiyong

    2011-01-01

    The past decade has witnessed the modern advances of high-throughput technology and rapid growth of research capacity in producing large-scale biological data, both of which were concomitant with an exponential growth of biomedical literature. This wealth of scholarly knowledge is of significant importance for researchers in making scientific discoveries and healthcare professionals in managing health-related matters. However, the acquisition of such information is becoming increasingly difficult due to its large volume and rapid growth. In response, the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) is continuously making changes to its PubMed Web service for improvement. Meanwhile, different entities have devoted themselves to developing Web tools for helping users quickly and efficiently search and retrieve relevant publications. These practices, together with maturity in the field of text mining, have led to an increase in the number and quality of various Web tools that provide comparable literature search service to PubMed. In this study, we review 28 such tools, highlight their respective innovations, compare them to the PubMed system and one another, and discuss directions for future development. Furthermore, we have built a website dedicated to tracking existing systems and future advances in the field of biomedical literature search. Taken together, our work serves information seekers in choosing tools for their needs and service providers and developers in keeping current in the field. Database URL: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/CBBresearch/Lu/search.

  17. Discovering biomedical semantic relations in PubMed queries for information retrieval and database curation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, Chung-Chi; Lu, Zhiyong

    2016-01-01

    Identifying relevant papers from the literature is a common task in biocuration. Most current biomedical literature search systems primarily rely on matching user keywords. Semantic search, on the other hand, seeks to improve search accuracy by understanding the entities and contextual relations in user keywords. However, past research has mostly focused on semantically identifying biological entities (e.g. chemicals, diseases and genes) with little effort on discovering semantic relations. In this work, we aim to discover biomedical semantic relations in PubMed queries in an automated and unsupervised fashion. Specifically, we focus on extracting and understanding the contextual information (or context patterns) that is used by PubMed users to represent semantic relations between entities such as 'CHEMICAL-1 compared to CHEMICAL-2' With the advances in automatic named entity recognition, we first tag entities in PubMed queries and then use tagged entities as knowledge to recognize pattern semantics. More specifically, we transform PubMed queries into context patterns involving participating entities, which are subsequently projected to latent topics via latent semantic analysis (LSA) to avoid the data sparseness and specificity issues. Finally, we mine semantically similar contextual patterns or semantic relations based on LSA topic distributions. Our two separate evaluation experiments of chemical-chemical (CC) and chemical-disease (CD) relations show that the proposed approach significantly outperforms a baseline method, which simply measures pattern semantics by similarity in participating entities. The highest performance achieved by our approach is nearly 0.9 and 0.85 respectively for the CC and CD task when compared against the ground truth in terms of normalized discounted cumulative gain (nDCG), a standard measure of ranking quality. These results suggest that our approach can effectively identify and return related semantic patterns in a ranked order

  18. Central radio sources

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Phinney, E.S.

    1985-01-01

    The compact radio sources in the nuclei of most active galaxies lie closer to their centers of activity than any other region accessible to observation, excepting only the broad emission line region. They provide uniquely strong evidence for bulk motion of matter at relativistic velocities, encouraging the belief that the activity originates in a gravitational potential well whose escape velocity is of the order of the speed of light. The observational facts are reviewed as well as several theoretical pictures of them. Those places where systematic observations could help to distinguish the true theoretical picture from the many competing forgeries are emphasized. 76 references

  19. Searching PubMed for molecular epidemiology studies: the case of chromosome aberrations

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ugolini, Donatella; Neri, Monica; Knudsen, Lisbeth E

    2006-01-01

    to environmental pollutants. The search, done on the PubMed/MedLine database, was based on a strategy combining descriptors listed in the PubMed Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) Thesaurus and other available tools (free text or phrase search tools). 178 articles were retrieved by searching the period from January 1...

  20. Enhancing search efficiency by means of a search filter for finding all studies on animal experimentation in PubMed.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hooijmans, Carlijn R; Tillema, Alice; Leenaars, Marlies; Ritskes-Hoitinga, Merel

    2010-07-01

    Collecting and analysing all available literature before starting an animal experiment is important and it is indispensable when writing a systematic review (SR) of animal research. Writing such review prevents unnecessary duplication of animal studies and thus unnecessary animal use (Reduction). One of the factors currently impeding the production of 'high-quality' SRs in laboratory animal science is the fact that searching for all available literature concerning animal experimentation is rather difficult. In order to diminish these difficulties, we developed a search filter for PubMed to detect all publications concerning animal studies. This filter was compared with the method most frequently used, the PubMed Limit: Animals, and validated further by performing two PubMed topic searches. Our filter performs much better than the PubMed limit: it retrieves, on average, 7% more records. Other important advantages of our filter are that it also finds the most recent records and that it is easy to use. All in all, by using our search filter in PubMed, all available literature concerning animal studies on a specific topic can easily be found and assessed, which will help in increasing the scientific quality and thereby the ethical validity of animal experiments.

  1. Combining PubMed knowledge and EHR data to develop a weighted bayesian network for pancreatic cancer prediction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhao, Di; Weng, Chunhua

    2011-10-01

    In this paper, we propose a novel method that combines PubMed knowledge and Electronic Health Records to develop a weighted Bayesian Network Inference (BNI) model for pancreatic cancer prediction. We selected 20 common risk factors associated with pancreatic cancer and used PubMed knowledge to weigh the risk factors. A keyword-based algorithm was developed to extract and classify PubMed abstracts into three categories that represented positive, negative, or neutral associations between each risk factor and pancreatic cancer. Then we designed a weighted BNI model by adding the normalized weights into a conventional BNI model. We used this model to extract the EHR values for patients with or without pancreatic cancer, which then enabled us to calculate the prior probabilities for the 20 risk factors in the BNI. The software iDiagnosis was designed to use this weighted BNI model for predicting pancreatic cancer. In an evaluation using a case-control dataset, the weighted BNI model significantly outperformed the conventional BNI and two other classifiers (k-Nearest Neighbor and Support Vector Machine). We conclude that the weighted BNI using PubMed knowledge and EHR data shows remarkable accuracy improvement over existing representative methods for pancreatic cancer prediction. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  2. A bibliometric analysis of Australian general practice publications from 1980 to 2007 using PubMed.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mendis, Kumara; Kidd, Michael R; Schattner, Peter; Canalese, Joseph

    2010-01-01

    We analysed Australian general practice (GP) publications in PubMed from 1980 to 2007 to determine journals, authors, publication types, national health priority areas (NHPA) and compared the results with those from three specialties (public health, cardiology and medical informatics) and two countries (the UK and New Zealand). Australian GP publications were downloaded in MEDLINE format using PubMed queries and were written to a Microsoft Access database using a software application. Search Query Language and online PubMed queries were used for further analysis. There were 4777 publications from 1980 to 2007. Australian Family Physician (38.1%) and the Medical Journal of Australia (17.6%) contributed 55.7% of publications. Reviews (12.7%), letters (6.6%), clinical trials (6.5%) and systematic reviews (5%) were the main PubMed publication types. Thirty five percent of publications addressed National Health Priority Areas with material on mental health (13.7%), neoplasms (6.5%) and cardiovascular conditions (5.9%). The comparable numbers of publications for the three specialties were: public health - 80 911, cardiology - 15 130 and medical informatics - 3338; total country GP comparisons were: UK - 14 658 and New Zealand - 1111. Australian GP publications have shown an impressive growth from 1980 to 2007 with a 15-fold increase. This increase may be due in part to the actions of the Australian government over the past decade to financially support research in primary care, as well as the maturing of academic general practice. This analysis can assist governments, researchers, policy makers and others to target resources so that further developments can be encouraged, supported and monitored.

  3. Analysis of queries sent to PubMed at the point of care: Observation of search behaviour in a medical teaching hospital

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hoogendam, Arjen; Stalenhoef, Anton FH; Robbé, Pieter F de Vries; Overbeke, A John PM

    2008-01-01

    Background The use of PubMed to answer daily medical care questions is limited because it is challenging to retrieve a small set of relevant articles and time is restricted. Knowing what aspects of queries are likely to retrieve relevant articles can increase the effectiveness of PubMed searches. The objectives of our study were to identify queries that are likely to retrieve relevant articles by relating PubMed search techniques and tools to the number of articles retrieved and the selection of articles for further reading. Methods This was a prospective observational study of queries regarding patient-related problems sent to PubMed by residents and internists in internal medicine working in an Academic Medical Centre. We analyzed queries, search results, query tools (Mesh, Limits, wildcards, operators), selection of abstract and full-text for further reading, using a portal that mimics PubMed. Results PubMed was used to solve 1121 patient-related problems, resulting in 3205 distinct queries. Abstracts were viewed in 999 (31%) of these queries, and in 126 (39%) of 321 queries using query tools. The average term count per query was 2.5. Abstracts were selected in more than 40% of queries using four or five terms, increasing to 63% if the use of four or five terms yielded 2–161 articles. Conclusion Queries sent to PubMed by physicians at our hospital during daily medical care contain fewer than three terms. Queries using four to five terms, retrieving less than 161 article titles, are most likely to result in abstract viewing. PubMed search tools are used infrequently by our population and are less effective than the use of four or five terms. Methods to facilitate the formulation of precise queries, using more relevant terms, should be the focus of education and research. PMID:18816391

  4. PubMed Interact: an Interactive Search Application for MEDLINE/PubMed

    Science.gov (United States)

    Muin, Michael; Fontelo, Paul; Ackerman, Michael

    2006-01-01

    Online search and retrieval systems are important resources for medical literature research. Progressive Web 2.0 technologies provide opportunities to improve search strategies and user experience. Using PHP, Document Object Model (DOM) manipulation and Asynchronous JavaScript and XML (Ajax), PubMed Interact allows greater functionality so users can refine search parameters with ease and interact with the search results to retrieve and display relevant information and related articles. PMID:17238658

  5. Central venous pressure monitoring via peripherally or centrally inserted central catheters: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sanfilippo, Filippo; Noto, Alberto; Martucci, Gennaro; Farbo, Marco; Burgio, Gaetano; Biasucci, Daniele G

    2017-07-14

    The central venous pressure (CVP) is the most commonly used static marker of preload for guiding fluid therapy in critically ill patients, though its usefulness remains controversial. Centrally inserted central catheters (CICCs) are the gold-standard devices for CVP monitoring but peripherally inserted central catheters (PICCs) may represent a valid alternative. We undertook a systematic review and meta-analysis with the aim to investigate whether the difference between PICC- and CICC-measured CVP is not significant. We searched for clinical studies published in PubMed and EMBASE databases from inception until December 21st 2016. We included studies providing data on paired and simultaneous CVP measurement from PICCs and CICCs. We conducted two analyses on the values of CVP, the first one according to the total number of CVP assessments, the second one considering the number of patients recruited. Four studies matched the inclusion criteria, but only three of them provided data for the meta-analyses. Both analyses showed non-significant differences between PICC-measured and CICC-measured CVP: 1489 paired simultaneous CVP assessments (MD 0.16, 95%CI -0.14, 0.45, p = 0.30) on a total of 57 patients (MD 0.22, 95%CI -1.46, 1.91, p = 0.80). Both analyses showed no heterogeneity (I2 = 0%). Available evidence supports that CVP monitoring with PICCs is accurate and reproduces similar values to those obtained from CICCs. The possibility to monitor CVP should not be used among clinical criteria for preferring a CICC over a PICC line.

  6. Constraining the subsoil carbon source to cave-air CO2 and speleothem calcite in central Texas

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bergel, Shelly J.; Carlson, Peter E.; Larson, Toti E.; Wood, Chris T.; Johnson, Kathleen R.; Banner, Jay L.; Breecker, Daniel O.

    2017-11-01

    Canonical models for speleothem formation and the subsurface carbon cycle invoke soil respiration as the dominant carbon source. However, evidence from some karst regions suggests that belowground CO2 originates from a deeper, older source. We therefore investigated the carbon sources to central Texas caves. Drip-water chemistry of two caves in central Texas implies equilibration with calcite at CO2 concentrations (PCO2_sat) higher than the maximum CO2 concentrations observed in overlying soils. This observation suggests that CO2 is added to waters after they percolate through the soils, which requires a subsoil carbon source. We directly evaluate the carbon isotope composition of the subsoil carbon source using δ13C measurements on cave-air CO2, which we independently demonstrate has little to no contribution from host rock carbon. We do so using the oxidative ratio, OR, defined as the number of moles of O2 consumed per mole of CO2 produced during respiration. However, additional belowground processes that affect O2 and CO2 concentrations, such as gas-water exchange and/or diffusion, may also influence the measured oxidative ratio, yielding an apparent OR (ORapparent). Cave air in Natural Bridge South Cavern has ORapparent values (1.09 ± 0.06) indistinguishable from those expected for respiration alone (1.08 ± 0.06). Pore space gases from soils above the cave have lower values (ORapparent = 0.67 ± 0.05) consistent with respiration and gas transport by diffusion. The simplest explanation for these observations is that cave air in NB South is influenced by respiration in open-system bedrock fractures such that neither diffusion nor exchange with water influence the composition of the cave air. The radiocarbon activities of NB South cave-air CO2 suggest the subsoil carbon source is hundreds of years old. The calculated δ13C values of the subsoil carbon source are consistent with tree-sourced carbon (perhaps decomposing root matter), the δ13C values of which

  7. Inferring gene and protein interactions using PubMed citations and consensus Bayesian networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Deeter, Anthony; Dalman, Mark; Haddad, Joseph; Duan, Zhong-Hui

    2017-01-01

    The PubMed database offers an extensive set of publication data that can be useful, yet inherently complex to use without automated computational techniques. Data repositories such as the Genomic Data Commons (GDC) and the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) offer experimental data storage and retrieval as well as curated gene expression profiles. Genetic interaction databases, including Reactome and Ingenuity Pathway Analysis, offer pathway and experiment data analysis using data curated from these publications and data repositories. We have created a method to generate and analyze consensus networks, inferring potential gene interactions, using large numbers of Bayesian networks generated by data mining publications in the PubMed database. Through the concept of network resolution, these consensus networks can be tailored to represent possible genetic interactions. We designed a set of experiments to confirm that our method is stable across variation in both sample and topological input sizes. Using gene product interactions from the KEGG pathway database and data mining PubMed publication abstracts, we verify that regardless of the network resolution or the inferred consensus network, our method is capable of inferring meaningful gene interactions through consensus Bayesian network generation with multiple, randomized topological orderings. Our method can not only confirm the existence of currently accepted interactions, but has the potential to hypothesize new ones as well. We show our method confirms the existence of known gene interactions such as JAK-STAT-PI3K-AKT-mTOR, infers novel gene interactions such as RAS- Bcl-2 and RAS-AKT, and found significant pathway-pathway interactions between the JAK-STAT signaling and Cardiac Muscle Contraction KEGG pathways.

  8. Central voice production and pathophysiology of spasmodic dysphonia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mor, Niv; Simonyan, Kristina; Blitzer, Andrew

    2018-01-01

    Our ability to speak is complex, and the role of the central nervous system in controlling speech production is often overlooked in the field of otolaryngology. In this brief review, we present an integrated overview of speech production with a focus on the role of central nervous system. The role of central control of voice production is then further discussed in relation to the potential pathophysiology of spasmodic dysphonia (SD). Peer-review articles on central laryngeal control and SD were identified from PUBMED search. Selected articles were augmented with designated relevant publications. Publications that discussed central and peripheral nervous system control of voice production and the central pathophysiology of laryngeal dystonia were chosen. Our ability to speak is regulated by specialized complex mechanisms coordinated by high-level cortical signaling, brainstem reflexes, peripheral nerves, muscles, and mucosal actions. Recent studies suggest that SD results from a primary central disturbance associated with dysfunction at our highest levels of central voice control. The efficacy of botulinum toxin in treating SD may not be limited solely to its local effect on laryngeal muscles and also may modulate the disorder at the level of the central nervous system. Future therapeutic options that target the central nervous system may help modulate the underlying disorder in SD and allow clinicians to better understand the principal pathophysiology. NA.Laryngoscope, 128:177-183, 2018. © 2017 The American Laryngological, Rhinological and Otological Society, Inc.

  9. Using PubMed search strings for efficient retrieval of manual therapy research literature.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pillastrini, Paolo; Vanti, Carla; Curti, Stefania; Mattioli, Stefano; Ferrari, Silvano; Violante, Francesco Saverio; Guccione, Andrew

    2015-02-01

    The aim of this study was to construct PubMed search strings that could efficiently retrieve studies on manual therapy (MT), especially for time-constrained clinicians. Our experts chose 11 Medical Subject Heading terms describing MT along with 84 additional potential terms. For each term that was able to retrieve more than 100 abstracts, we systematically extracted a sample of abstracts from which we estimated the proportion of studies potentially relevant to MT. We then constructed 2 search strings: 1 narrow (threshold of pertinent articles ≥40%) and 1 expanded (including all terms for which a proportion had been calculated). We tested these search strings against articles on 2 conditions relevant to MT (thoracic and temporomandibular pain). We calculated the number of abstracts needed to read (NNR) to identify 1 potentially pertinent article in the context of these conditions. Finally, we evaluated the efficiency of the proposed PubMed search strings to identify relevant articles included in a systematic review on spinal manipulative therapy for chronic low back pain. Fifty-five search terms were able to extract more than 100 citations. The NNR to find 1 potentially pertinent article using the narrow string was 1.2 for thoracic pain and 1.3 for temporomandibular pain, and the NNR for the expanded string was 1.9 and 1.6, respectively. The narrow search strategy retrieved all the randomized controlled trials included in the systematic review selected for comparison. The proposed PubMed search strings may help health care professionals locate potentially pertinent articles and review a large number of MT studies efficiently to better implement evidence-based practice. Copyright © 2015 National University of Health Sciences. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  10. Atmospheric deposition of mercury in central Poland: Sources and seasonal trends

    Science.gov (United States)

    Siudek, Patrycja; Kurzyca, Iwona; Siepak, Jerzy

    2016-03-01

    Atmospheric deposition of total mercury was studied at two sites in central Poland, between April 2013 and October 2014. Hg in rainwater (bulk deposition) was analyzed in relation to meteorological parameters and major ions (H+, NO3-, Cl-, SO42 -) in order to investigate seasonal variation, identify sources and determine factors affecting atmospheric Hg chemistry and deposition. Total mercury concentrations varied between 1.24 and 22.1 ng L- 1 at the urban sampling site (Poznań) and between 0.57 and 18.3 ng L- 1 in the woodland protected area (Jeziory), with quite similar mean values of 6.96 and 6.37 ng L- 1, respectively. Mercury in precipitation exhibited lower spatial variability within the study domain (urban/forest transect) than the concentrations determined during other similar observations, reflecting the predominant influence of the same local sources. In our study, a significant seasonal pattern of Hg deposition was observed at both sampling sites, with higher and more variable concentrations of Hg reported for the urban area. In particular, deposition values of Hg were higher in the samples attributed to relatively large precipitation amounts in the summer and in those collected during the winter season (the result of higher contributions from combustion sources, i.e. intensive combustion of fossil fuels in residential and commercial boilers, individual power/heat-generating plants). In addition, a significant relationship between Hg concentration and precipitation amount was found while considering different types of wintertime samples (i.e. rain, snow and mixed precipitation). The analysis of backward trajectories showed that air masses arriving from polluted regions of western Europe and southern Poland largely affected the amount of Hg in rainwater. A seasonal variation in Hg deposition fluxes was also observed, with the maximum value of Hg in spring and minimum in winter. Our results indicated that rainwater Hg and, consequently, the wet deposition

  11. The trend of indexed papers in PubMed covering different aspects of self-immolation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rezaeian, Mohsen

    2014-01-01

    Self-immolation is a fatal and devastating method of committing suicide used around the world. The chief aim of the present article is to look at the trend of indexed papers in PubMed covering different aspects of self-immolation. PubMed search engine (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov) was searched by using six keywords i.e. "self-immolation", "self-inflicted burn", "self-burning", "self-incineration", "suicidal burns" and "suicide by burning". These keywords should appear either in the title or the abstract of the articles. The time frame was set as to retrieve papers expanding from early indexing time up to end of the year 2011. Based on the search strategy 132 papers were retrieved from these total numbers; 12 (9%) were categorized as review papers; 24 (18%) as case reports and the rest 96 (73%) were original studies. It seems that the number of papers increased during the years of investigations and the highest indexed papers i.e. 14 (10.6%) belonged to the year 2011. While most journals, published only one article the highest indexed papers i.e. 35 (26.5%) belonged to Burns. There was an increasing trend in the number of self-immolation articles indexed in PubMed since 1965. Three journals i.e. Burns, Journal of Burn Care and Rehabilitation and Journal of Forensic Sciences hosted for more than 37% of all those indexed articles. However, given the increasing trend of self-immolation still more studies are needed to shed light on the diverse aspects of this appalling human behavior.

  12. High-performance information search filters for CKD content in PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE, and EMBASE.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Iansavichus, Arthur V; Hildebrand, Ainslie M; Haynes, R Brian; Wilczynski, Nancy L; Levin, Adeera; Hemmelgarn, Brenda R; Tu, Karen; Nesrallah, Gihad E; Nash, Danielle M; Garg, Amit X

    2015-01-01

    Finding relevant articles in large bibliographic databases such as PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE, and EMBASE to inform care and future research is challenging. Articles relevant to chronic kidney disease (CKD) are particularly difficult to find because they are often published under different terminology and are found across a wide range of journal types. We used computer automation within a diagnostic test assessment framework to develop and validate information search filters to identify CKD articles in large bibliographic databases. 22,992 full-text articles in PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE, or EMBASE. 1,374,148 unique search filters. We established the reference standard of article relevance to CKD by manual review of all full-text articles using prespecified criteria to determine whether each article contained CKD content or not. We then assessed filter performance by calculating sensitivity, specificity, and positive predictive value for the retrieval of CKD articles. Filters with high sensitivity and specificity for the identification of CKD articles in the development phase (two-thirds of the sample) were then retested in the validation phase (remaining one-third of the sample). We developed and validated high-performance CKD search filters for each bibliographic database. Filters optimized for sensitivity reached at least 99% sensitivity, and filters optimized for specificity reached at least 97% specificity. The filters were complex; for example, one PubMed filter included more than 89 terms used in combination, including "chronic kidney disease," "renal insufficiency," and "renal fibrosis." In proof-of-concept searches, physicians found more articles relevant to the topic of CKD with the use of these filters. As knowledge of the pathogenesis of CKD grows and definitions change, these filters will need to be updated to incorporate new terminology used to index relevant articles. PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE, and EMBASE can be filtered reliably for articles relevant to CKD. These

  13. Identifying nurse staffing research in Medline: development and testing of empirically derived search strategies with the PubMed interface.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Simon, Michael; Hausner, Elke; Klaus, Susan F; Dunton, Nancy E

    2010-08-23

    The identification of health services research in databases such as PubMed/Medline is a cumbersome task. This task becomes even more difficult if the field of interest involves the use of diverse methods and data sources, as is the case with nurse staffing research. This type of research investigates the association between nurse staffing parameters and nursing and patient outcomes. A comprehensively developed search strategy may help identify nurse staffing research in PubMed/Medline. A set of relevant references in PubMed/Medline was identified by means of three systematic reviews. This development set was used to detect candidate free-text and MeSH terms. The frequency of these terms was compared to a random sample from PubMed/Medline in order to identify terms specific to nurse staffing research, which were then used to develop a sensitive, precise and balanced search strategy. To determine their precision, the newly developed search strategies were tested against a) the pool of relevant references extracted from the systematic reviews, b) a reference set identified from an electronic journal screening, and c) a sample from PubMed/Medline. Finally, all newly developed strategies were compared to PubMed's Health Services Research Queries (PubMed's HSR Queries). The sensitivities of the newly developed search strategies were almost 100% in all of the three test sets applied; precision ranged from 6.1% to 32.0%. PubMed's HSR queries were less sensitive (83.3% to 88.2%) than the new search strategies. Only minor differences in precision were found (5.0% to 32.0%). As with other literature on health services research, nurse staffing studies are difficult to identify in PubMed/Medline. Depending on the purpose of the search, researchers can choose between high sensitivity and retrieval of a large number of references or high precision, i.e. and an increased risk of missing relevant references, respectively. More standardized terminology (e.g. by consistent use of the

  14. Depth to the bottom of magnetic sources (DBMS) from aeromagnetic data of Central India using modified centroid method for fractal distribution of sources

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bansal, A. R.; Anand, S. P.; Rajaram, Mita; Rao, V. K.; Dimri, V. P.

    2013-09-01

    The depth to the bottom of the magnetic sources (DBMS) has been estimated from the aeromagnetic data of Central India. The conventional centroid method of DBMS estimation assumes random uniform uncorrelated distribution of sources and to overcome this limitation a modified centroid method based on scaling distribution has been proposed. Shallower values of the DBMS are found for the south western region. The DBMS values are found as low as 22 km in the south west Deccan trap covered regions and as deep as 43 km in the Chhattisgarh Basin. In most of the places DBMS are much shallower than the Moho depth, earlier found from the seismic study and may be representing the thermal/compositional/petrological boundaries. The large variation in the DBMS indicates the complex nature of the Indian crust.

  15. Energy Sources | Climate Neutral Research Campuses | NREL

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sources Energy Sources Many opportunities exist to improve the efficiency of energy supply systems at the central plant and then evaluate potential renewable energy sources and systems. Central Plant Begin by evaluating energy efficiency at the central plant through: Fuel Sources Heat Pumps and Combined

  16. The Central Point Source in G76.9++1.0 V. R. Marthi1,∗ , J. N. ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Astr. (2011) 32, 451–455 c Indian Academy of Sciences. The Central Point Source in G76.9++1.0. V. R. Marthi1,∗. , J. N. Chengalur1, Y. Gupta1 ... emission has indeed been seen at 2 GHz with the Green Bank Telescope. (GBT), establishing the fact that scattering is responsible for its non- detection at low radio frequencies.

  17. Searching PubMed for a broad subject area: how effective are palliative care clinicians in finding the evidence in their field?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Damarell, Raechel A; Tieman, Jennifer J

    2016-03-01

    Health professionals must be able to search competently for evidence to support practice. We sought to understand how palliative care clinicians construct searches for palliative care literature in PubMed, to quantify search efficacy in retrieving a set of relevant articles and to compare performance against a Palliative CareSearch Filter (PCSF). Included studies from palliative care systematic reviews formed a test set. Palliative care clinicians (n = 37) completed a search task using PubMed. Individual clinician searches were reconstructed in PubMed and combined with the test set to calculate retrieval sensitivity. PCSF performance in the test set was also determined. Many clinicians struggled to create useful searches. Twelve used a single search term, 17 narrowed the search inappropriately and 8 confused Boolean operators. The mean number of test set citations (n = 663) retrieved was 166 (SD = 188), or 25% although 76% of clinicians believed they would find more than 50% of the articles. Only 8 participants (22%) achieved this. Correlations between retrieval and PubMed confidence (r = 0.13) or frequency of use (r = -0.18) were weak. Many palliative care clinicians search PubMed ineffectively. Targeted skills training and PCSF promotion may improve evidence retrieval. © 2015 Health Libraries Group.

  18. Worldwide access to evidence-based mental health literature: how useful is PubMed in Anglo-Saxon and non-Anglo-Saxon countries?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Morlino, Massimo; Polese, Daniela; Bruni, Andrea; Renato, Bellinello

    2005-10-01

    The aim of this study was to verify the presence of cultural variety among the psychiatric journals available on PubMed, the major online tool for accessing literature. Data for analysis were taken from a survey of the world psychiatric journals indexed in Index Medicus 1999 (IM), the alphabetical list used by PubMed, and from the mean impact factor (IF) values of the journals. Approximately 80% of international psychiatric literature available on PubMed is published in Anglo-Saxon countries, especially in the USA (59.8% of the total). The widespread use of the English language (94.9% of all the journals) further stresses the dominance of the Anglo-Saxon cultural model, as do the mean IF values of Anglo-Saxon journals compared to non-Anglo-Saxon publications (3.252 vs. 1.693; P=0.0079). The under-representation of non-Anglo-Saxon cultural models on PubMed plays a negative role for bringing about a truly multicultural literature in psychiatry.

  19. Comparison of central corneal thickness with four noncontact devices: An agreement analysis of swept-source technology

    OpenAIRE

    Erhan Ozyol; Pelin Özyol

    2017-01-01

    Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare the central corneal thickness (CCT) measurements of four noncontact devices in healthy eyes. Materials and Methods: In a sample of 45 healthy controls, CCT was measured using an optical biometer (IOLMaster 700) based on swept-source optical coherence tomography (SS-OCT), high-resolution rotating Scheimpflug camera system (Pentacam HR), spectral-domain OCT (SD-OCT) device with an anterior segment module (Spectralis), and noncontact pachymetry (...

  20. Validation of a semi-automatic protocol for the assessment of the tear meniscus central area based on open-source software

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pena-Verdeal, Hugo; Garcia-Resua, Carlos; Yebra-Pimentel, Eva; Giraldez, Maria J.

    2017-08-01

    Purpose: Different lower tear meniscus parameters can be clinical assessed on dry eye diagnosis. The aim of this study was to propose and analyse the variability of a semi-automatic method for measuring lower tear meniscus central area (TMCA) by using open source software. Material and methods: On a group of 105 subjects, one video of the lower tear meniscus after fluorescein instillation was generated by a digital camera attached to a slit-lamp. A short light beam (3x5 mm) with moderate illumination in the central portion of the meniscus (6 o'clock) was used. Images were extracted from each video by a masked observer. By using an open source software based on Java (NIH ImageJ), a further observer measured in a masked and randomized order the TMCA in the short light beam illuminated area by two methods: (1) manual method, where TMCA images was "manually" measured; (2) semi-automatic method, where TMCA images were transformed in an 8-bit-binary image, then holes inside this shape were filled and on the isolated shape, the area size was obtained. Finally, both measurements, manual and semi-automatic, were compared. Results: Paired t-test showed no statistical difference between both techniques results (p = 0.102). Pearson correlation between techniques show a significant positive near to perfect correlation (r = 0.99; p Conclusions: This study showed a useful tool to objectively measure the frontal central area of the meniscus in photography by free open source software.

  1. Analysis of queries sent to PubMed at the point of care: observation of search behaviour in a medical teaching hospital.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hoogendam, A.; Stalenhoef, A.F.H.; Vries Robbe, P.F. de; Overbeke, A.J.P.M.

    2008-01-01

    BACKGROUND: The use of PubMed to answer daily medical care questions is limited because it is challenging to retrieve a small set of relevant articles and time is restricted. Knowing what aspects of queries are likely to retrieve relevant articles can increase the effectiveness of PubMed searches.

  2. Water soluble ions in aerosols (TSP) : Characteristics, sources and seasonal variation over the central Himalayas, Nepal

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tripathee, Lekhendra; Kang, Shichang; Zhang, Qianggong; Rupakheti, Dipesh

    2016-04-01

    Atmspheric pollutants transported from South Asia could have adverse impact on the Himalayan ecosystems. Investigation of aerosol chemistry in the Himalayan region in Nepal has been limited on a temporal and spatial scale to date. Therefore, the water-soluble ionic composition of aerosol using TSP sampler was investigated for a year period from April 2013 to March 2014 at four sites Bode, Dhunche, Lumbini and Jomsom characterized as an urban, rural, semi-urban and remote sites in Nepal. During the study period, the highest concentration of major cation was Ca2+ with an average concentration of 8.91, 2.17, 7.85 and 6.42 μg m-3 and the highest concentration of major anion was SO42- with an average of 10.96, 4.06, 6.85 and 3.30 μg m-3 at Bode, Dhunche, Lumbini and Jomsom respectively. The soluble ions showed the decrease in concentrations from urban to the rural site. Correlations and PCA analysis suggested that that SO42-, NO3- and NH4+ were derived from the anthropogenic sources where as the Ca2+ and Mg2+ were from crustal sources. Our results also suggest that the largest acid neutralizing agent at our sampling sites in the central Himalayas are Ca2+ followed by NH4+. Seasonal variations of soluble ions in aerosols showed higher concentrations during pre-monsoon and winter (dry-periods) due to limited precipitation amount and lower concentrations during the monsoon which can be explained by the dilution effect, higher the precipitation lower the concentration. K+ which is regarded as the tracer of biomss burning had a significant peaks during pre-monsoon season when the forest fires are active around the regions. In general, the results of this study suggests that the atmospheric chemistry is influenced by natural and anthropogenic sources. Thus, soluble ionic concentrations in aerosols from central Himalayas, Nepal can provide a useful database to assess atmospheric environment and its impacts on human health and ecosystem in the southern side of central

  3. How Twitter Is Studied in the Medical Professions: A Classification of Twitter Papers Indexed in PubMed.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Williams, Shirley Ann; Terras, Melissa; Warwick, Claire

    2013-01-01

    Since their inception, Twitter and related microblogging systems have provided a rich source of information for researchers and have attracted interest in their affordances and use. Since 2009 PubMed has included 123 journal articles on medicine and Twitter, but no overview exists as to how the field uses Twitter in research. This paper aims to identify published work relating to Twitter within the fields indexed by PubMed, and then to classify it. This classification will provide a framework in which future researchers will be able to position their work, and to provide an understanding of the current reach of research using Twitter in medical disciplines. Papers on Twitter and related topics were identified and reviewed. The papers were then qualitatively classified based on the paper's title and abstract to determine their focus. The work that was Twitter focused was studied in detail to determine what data, if any, it was based on, and from this a categorization of the data set size used in the studies was developed. Using open coded content analysis additional important categories were also identified, relating to the primary methodology, domain, and aspect. As of 2012, PubMed comprises more than 21 million citations from biomedical literature, and from these a corpus of 134 potentially Twitter related papers were identified, eleven of which were subsequently found not to be relevant. There were no papers prior to 2009 relating to microblogging, a term first used in 2006. Of the remaining 123 papers which mentioned Twitter, thirty were focused on Twitter (the others referring to it tangentially). The early Twitter focused papers introduced the topic and highlighted the potential, not carrying out any form of data analysis. The majority of published papers used analytic techniques to sort through thousands, if not millions, of individual tweets, often depending on automated tools to do so. Our analysis demonstrates that researchers are starting to use knowledge

  4. How Twitter Is Studied in the Medical Professions: A Classification of Twitter Papers Indexed in PubMed

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-01-01

    Background Since their inception, Twitter and related microblogging systems have provided a rich source of information for researchers and have attracted interest in their affordances and use. Since 2009 PubMed has included 123 journal articles on medicine and Twitter, but no overview exists as to how the field uses Twitter in research. Objective This paper aims to identify published work relating to Twitter within the fields indexed by PubMed, and then to classify it. This classification will provide a framework in which future researchers will be able to position their work, and to provide an understanding of the current reach of research using Twitter in medical disciplines. Methods Papers on Twitter and related topics were identified and reviewed. The papers were then qualitatively classified based on the paper’s title and abstract to determine their focus. The work that was Twitter focused was studied in detail to determine what data, if any, it was based on, and from this a categorization of the data set size used in the studies was developed. Using open coded content analysis additional important categories were also identified, relating to the primary methodology, domain, and aspect. Results As of 2012, PubMed comprises more than 21 million citations from biomedical literature, and from these a corpus of 134 potentially Twitter related papers were identified, eleven of which were subsequently found not to be relevant. There were no papers prior to 2009 relating to microblogging, a term first used in 2006. Of the remaining 123 papers which mentioned Twitter, thirty were focused on Twitter (the others referring to it tangentially). The early Twitter focused papers introduced the topic and highlighted the potential, not carrying out any form of data analysis. The majority of published papers used analytic techniques to sort through thousands, if not millions, of individual tweets, often depending on automated tools to do so. Our analysis demonstrates that

  5. Bibliometric and content analysis of medical articles in the PubMed database published by North Korean authors from 1997 to July 2017

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Geum Hee Jeong

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available This study aimed at analyzing the bibliometric characteristics and content of medical articles from North Korea in PubMed and characterizing the patterns of international cooperation of medical researchers in North Korea. We hypothesized that the number of publications from North Korea in PubMed has increased recently as a result of active cooperation with foreign researchers. PubMed was searched on July 19, 2017 using the search term “(North Korea [Affiliation] OR Democratic People’s Republic of Korea [Affiliation] OR DPRK [Affiliation].” The content of medical articles was analyzed and cooperative work with foreign researchers was noted. The number of medical articles in PubMed through July 2017 was 16, of which 2 were by North Korean authors only. From the content of these articles, it was found that researchers in top-notch institutions, including Kim Il Sung University, can access the internet, and that a dental caries prevention program supported by Finland has been in place for more than 10 years. The number of publications from North Korea in PubMed has increased recently, although the amount is still very small. Providing internet access to North Korean researchers will accelerate their submissions to international journals.

  6. Identification of risk conditions for the development of adrenal disorders: how optimized PubMed search strategies makes the difference.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guaraldi, Federica; Parasiliti-Caprino, Mirko; Goggi, Riccardo; Beccuti, Guglielmo; Grottoli, Silvia; Arvat, Emanuela; Ghizzoni, Lucia; Ghigo, Ezio; Giordano, Roberta; Gori, Davide

    2014-12-01

    The exponential growth of scientific literature available through electronic databases (namely PubMed) has increased the chance of finding interesting articles. At the same time, search has become more complicated, time consuming, and at risk of missing important information. Therefore, optimized strategies have to be adopted to maximize searching impact. The aim of this study was to formulate efficient strings to search PubMed for etiologic associations between adrenal disorders (ADs) and other conditions. A comprehensive list of terms identifying endogenous conditions primarily affecting adrenals was compiled. An ad hoc analysis was performed to find the best way to express each term in order to find the highest number of potentially pertinent articles in PubMed. A predefined number of retrieved abstracts were read to assess their association with ADs' etiology. A more sensitive (providing the largest literature coverage) and a more specific (including only those terms retrieving >40 % of potentially pertinent articles) string were formulated. Various researches were performed to assess strings' ability to identify articles of interest in comparison with non-optimized literature searches. We formulated optimized, ready applicable tools for the identification of the literature assessing etiologic associations in the field of ADs using PubMed, and demonstrated the advantages deriving from their application. Detailed description of the methodological process is also provided, so that this work can easily be translated to other fields of practice.

  7. Validation of a search strategy to identify nutrition trials in PubMed using the relative recall method.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Durão, Solange; Kredo, Tamara; Volmink, Jimmy

    2015-06-01

    To develop, assess, and maximize the sensitivity of a search strategy to identify diet and nutrition trials in PubMed using relative recall. We developed a search strategy to identify diet and nutrition trials in PubMed. We then constructed a gold standard reference set to validate the identified trials using the relative recall method. Relative recall was calculated by dividing the number of references from the gold standard our search strategy identified by the total number of references in the gold standard. Our gold standard comprised 298 trials, derived from 16 included systematic reviews. The initial search strategy identified 242 of 298 references, with a relative recall of 81.2% [95% confidence interval (CI): 76.3%, 85.5%]. We analyzed titles and abstracts of the 56 missed references for possible additional terms. We then modified the search strategy accordingly. The relative recall of the final search strategy was 88.6% (95% CI: 84.4%, 91.9%). We developed a search strategy to identify diet and nutrition trials in PubMed with a high relative recall (sensitivity). This could be useful for establishing a nutrition trials register to support the conduct of future research, including systematic reviews. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  8. Searching for observational studies: what does citation tracking add to PubMed? A case study in depression and coronary heart disease

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hemingway Harry

    2006-02-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background PubMed is the most widely used method for searches of the medical literature, but fails to identify many relevant articles. Electronic citation tracking offers an alternative search method. Methods Articles investigating the role of depression in the aetiology and prognosis of coronary heart disease were sought through two methods: a PubMed, and b citation tracking where Science Citation Index was searched for all articles which cited ("forward citation tracking" or were cited by ("backward citation tracking" any of the articles in an index review. The number and quality of eligible articles identified by the two methods were compared. Results 50 articles that were not already included in the index review met our inclusion criteria; 11 were identified through Science Citation Index alone, 8 through PubMed alone, and 31 through both methods. Articles identified by Science Citation Index alone were published in higher impact factor journals, were larger and were less likely to show a positive association. Conclusion Science Citation Index identified more eligible articles than PubMed, and these differed qualitatively. Failing to use citation tracking in a systematic review of observational studies may result in bias.

  9. Precise tremor source locations and amplitude variations along the lower-crustal central San Andreas Fault

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shelly, David R.; Hardebeck, Jeanne L.

    2010-01-01

    We precisely locate 88 tremor families along the central San Andreas Fault using a 3D velocity model and numerous P and S wave arrival times estimated from seismogram stacks of up to 400 events per tremor family. Maximum tremor amplitudes vary along the fault by at least a factor of 7, with by far the strongest sources along a 25 km section of the fault southeast of Parkfield. We also identify many weaker tremor families, which have largely escaped prior detection. Together, these sources extend 150 km along the fault, beneath creeping, transitional, and locked sections of the upper crustal fault. Depths are mostly between 18 and 28 km, in the lower crust. Epicenters are concentrated within 3 km of the surface trace, implying a nearly vertical fault. A prominent gap in detectible activity is located directly beneath the region of maximum slip in the 2004 magnitude 6.0 Parkfield earthquake.

  10. Beyond PubMed: Searching the "Grey Literature" for Clinical Trial Results.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Citrome, Leslie

    2014-07-01

    Clinical trial results have been traditionally communicated through the publication of scholarly reports and reviews in biomedical journals. However, this dissemination of information can be delayed or incomplete, making it difficult to appraise new treatments, or in the case of missing data, evaluate older interventions. Going beyond the routine search of PubMed, it is possible to discover additional information in the "grey literature." Examples of the grey literature include clinical trial registries, patent databases, company and industrywide repositories, regulatory agency digital archives, abstracts of paper and poster presentations on meeting/congress websites, industry investor reports and press releases, and institutional and personal websites.

  11. Source contributions to PM10 and arsenic concentrations in Central Chile using positive matrix factorization

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hedberg, Emma; Gidhagen, Lars; Johansson, Christer

    Sampling of particles (PM10) was conducted during a one-year period at two rural sites in Central Chile, Quillota and Linares. The samples were analyzed for elemental composition. The data sets have undergone source-receptor analyses in order to estimate the sources and their abundance's in the PM10 size fraction, by using the factor analytical method positive matrix factorization (PMF). The analysis showed that PM10 was dominated by soil resuspension at both sites during the summer months, while during winter traffic dominated the particle mass at Quillota and local wood burning dominated the particle mass at Linares. Two copper smelters impacted the Quillota station, and contributed to 10% and 16% of PM10 as an average during summer and winter, respectively. One smelter impacted Linares by 8% and 19% of PM10 in the summer and winter, respectively. For arsenic the two smelters accounted for 87% of the monitored arsenic levels at Quillota and at Linares one smelter contributed with 72% of the measured mass. In comparison with PMF, the use of a dispersion model tended to overestimate the smelter contribution to arsenic levels at both sites. The robustness of the PMF model was tested by using randomly reduced data sets, where 85%, 70%, 50% and 33% of the samples were included. In this way the ability of the model to reconstruct the sources initially found by the original data set could be tested. On average for all sources the relative standard deviation increased from 7% to 25% for the variables identifying the sources, when decreasing the data set from 85% to 33% of the samples, indicating that the solution initially found was very stable to begin with. But it was also noted that sources due to industrial or combustion processes were more sensitive for the size of the data set, compared to the natural sources as local soil and sea spray sources.

  12. [Useful tools and methods for literature retrieval in pubmed: step-by-step guide for physicians].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hevia M, Joaquín; Huete G, Álvaro; Alfaro F, Sandra; Palominos V, Verónica

    2017-12-01

    Developing skills to search the medical literature has potential benefits on patient care and allow physicians to better orient their efforts when answering daily clinical questions. The objective of this paper is to share useful tools for optimizing medical literature retrieval in MEDLINE using PubMed including MeSH terms, filters and connectors.

  13. Geologic sources and concentrations of selenium in the West-Central Denver Basin, including the Toll Gate Creek watershed, Aurora, Colorado, 2003-2007

    Science.gov (United States)

    Paschke, Suzanne S.; Walton-Day, Katherine; Beck, Jennifer A.; Webbers, Ank; Dupree, Jean A.

    2014-01-01

    Toll Gate Creek, in the west-central part of the Denver Basin, is a perennial stream in which concentrations of dissolved selenium have consistently exceeded the Colorado aquatic-life standard of 4.6 micrograms per liter. Recent studies of selenium in Toll Gate Creek identified the Denver lignite zone of the non-marine Cretaceous to Tertiary-aged (Paleocene) Denver Formation underlying the watershed as the geologic source of dissolved selenium to shallow ground-water and surface water. Previous work led to this study by the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the City of Aurora Utilities Department, which investigated geologic sources of selenium and selenium concentrations in the watershed. This report documents the occurrence of selenium-bearing rocks and groundwater within the Cretaceous- to Tertiary-aged Denver Formation in the west-central part of the Denver Basin, including the Toll Gate Creek watershed. The report presents background information on geochemical processes controlling selenium concentrations in the aquatic environment and possible geologic sources of selenium; the hydrogeologic setting of the watershed; selenium results from groundwater-sampling programs; and chemical analyses of solids samples as evidence that weathering of the Denver Formation is a geologic source of selenium to groundwater and surface water in the west-central part of the Denver Basin, including Toll Gate Creek. Analyses of water samples collected from 61 water-table wells in 2003 and from 19 water-table wells in 2007 indicate dissolved selenium concentrations in groundwater in the west-central Denver Basin frequently exceeded the Colorado aquatic-life standard and in some locations exceeded the primary drinking-water standard of 50 micrograms per liter. The greatest selenium concentrations were associated with oxidized groundwater samples from wells completed in bedrock materials. Selenium analysis of geologic core samples indicates that total selenium

  14. Development of a PubMed Based Search Tool for Identifying Sex and Gender Specific Health Literature.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Song, Michael M; Simonsen, Cheryl K; Wilson, Joanna D; Jenkins, Marjorie R

    2016-02-01

    An effective literature search strategy is critical to achieving the aims of Sex and Gender Specific Health (SGSH): to understand sex and gender differences through research and to effectively incorporate the new knowledge into the clinical decision making process to benefit both male and female patients. The goal of this project was to develop and validate an SGSH literature search tool that is readily and freely available to clinical researchers and practitioners. PubMed, a freely available search engine for the Medline database, was selected as the platform to build the SGSH literature search tool. Combinations of Medical Subject Heading terms, text words, and title words were evaluated for optimal specificity and sensitivity. The search tool was then validated against reference bases compiled for two disease states, diabetes and stroke. Key sex and gender terms and limits were bundled to create a search tool to facilitate PubMed SGSH literature searches. During validation, the search tool retrieved 50 of 94 (53.2%) stroke and 62 of 95 (65.3%) diabetes reference articles selected for validation. A general keyword search of stroke or diabetes combined with sex difference retrieved 33 of 94 (35.1%) stroke and 22 of 95 (23.2%) diabetes reference base articles, with lower sensitivity and specificity for SGSH content. The Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center SGSH PubMed Search Tool provides higher sensitivity and specificity to sex and gender specific health literature. The tool will facilitate research, clinical decision-making, and guideline development relevant to SGSH.

  15. A Bibliometric Analysis of PubMed Literature on Middle East Respiratory Syndrome.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Zhengting; Chen, Yongdi; Cai, Gaofeng; Jiang, Zhenggang; Liu, Kui; Chen, Bin; Jiang, Jianmin; Gu, Hua

    2016-06-13

    Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), a pandemic threat to human beings, has aroused huge concern worldwide, but no bibliometric studies have been conducted on MERS research. The aim of this study was to map research productivity on the disease based on the articles indexed in PubMed. The articles related to MERS dated from 2012 to 2015 were retrieved from PubMed. The articles were classified into three categories according to their focus. Publication outputs were assessed and frequently used terms were mapped using the VOS viewer software. A total of 443 articles were included for analysis. They were published in 162 journals, with Journal of Virology being the most productive (44 articles; 9.9%) and by six types of organizations, with universities being the most productive (276 articles; 62.4%).The largest proportion of the articles focused on basic medical sciences and clinical studies (47.2%) and those on prevention and control ranked third (26.2%), with those on other focuses coming in between (26.6%). The articles on prevention and control had the highest mean rank for impact factor (IF) (226.34), followed by those on basic medical sciences and clinical studies (180.23) and those on other focuses (168.03). The mean rank differences were statistically significant (p = 0.000). Besides, "conronavirus", "case", "transmission" and "detection" were found to be the most frequently used terms. The findings of this first bibliometric study on MERS suggest that the prevention and control of the disease has become a big concern and related research should be strengthened.

  16. Bibliometric assessment of publication output of child and adolescent psychiatric/psychological affiliations between 2005 and 2010 based on the databases PubMed and Scopus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Albayrak, Ozgür; Föcker, Manuel; Wibker, Katrin; Hebebrand, Johannes

    2012-06-01

    We aimed to determine the quantitative scientific publication output of child and adolescent psychiatric/psychological affiliations during 2005-2010 by country based on both, "PubMed" and "Scopus" and performed a bibliometric qualitative evaluation for 2009 using "PubMed". We performed our search by affiliation related to child and adolescent psychiatric/psychological institutions using "PubMed". For the quantitative analysis for 2005-2010, we counted the number of abstracts. For the qualitative analysis for 2009 we derived the impact factor of each abstract's journal from "Journal Citation Reports". We related total impact factor scores to the gross domestic product (GDP) and population size of each country. Additionally, we used "Scopus" to determine the number of abstracts for each country that was identified via "PubMed" for 2009 and compared the ranking of countries between the two databases. 61 % of the publications between 2005 and 2010 originated from European countries and 26 % from the USA. After adjustment for GDP and population size, the ranking positions changed in favor of smaller European countries with a population size of less than 20 million inhabitants. The ranking of countries for the count of articles in 2009 as derived from "Scopus" was similar to that identified via the "PubMed" search. The performed search revealed only minor differences between "Scopus" and "PubMed" related to the ranking of countries. Our data indicate a sharp difference between countries with a high versus low GDP with regard to scientific publication output in child and adolescent psychiatry/psychology.

  17. ENERGY STAR Certified Non-AHRI Central Air Conditioner Equipment and Air Source Heat Pump

    Science.gov (United States)

    Certified models meet all ENERGY STAR requirements as listed in the Version 5.0 ENERGY STAR Program Requirements for Air Source Heat Pump and Central Air Conditioner Equipment that are effective as of September 15, 2015. A detailed listing of key efficiency criteria are available at http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=airsrc_heat.pr_crit_as_heat_pumps Listed products have been submitted to EPA by ENERGY STAR partners that do not participate in the AHRI certification program. EPA will continue to update this list with products that are certified by EPA-recognized certification bodies other than AHRI. The majority of ENERGY STAR products, certified by AHRI, can be found on the CEE/AHRI Verified Directory at http://www.ceedirectory.org/

  18. Central Africa Energy: Utilizing NASA Earth Observations to Explore Flared Gas as an Energy Source Alternative to Biomass in Central Africa

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jones, Amber; White, Charles; Castillo, Christopher; Hitimana, Emmanuel; Nguyen, Kenny; Mishra, Shikher; Clark, Walt

    2014-01-01

    Much of Central Africa's economy is centered on oil production. Oil deposits lie below vast amounts of compressed natural gas. The latter is often flared off during oil extraction due to a lack of the infrastructure needed to utilize it for productive energy generation. Though gas flaring is discouraged by many due to its contributions to greenhouse emissions, it represents a waste process and is rarely tracked or recorded in this region. In contrast to this energy waste, roughly 80% of Africa's population lacks access to electricity and in turn uses biomass such as wood for heat and light. In addition to the dangers incurred from collecting and using biomass, the practice commonly leads to ecological change through the acquisition of wood from forests surrounding urban areas. The objective of this project was to gain insight on domestic energy usage in Central Africa, specifically Angola, Gabon, and the Republic of Congo. This was done through an analysis of deforestation, an estimation of gas flared, and a suitability study for the infrastructure needed to realize the natural gas resources. The energy from potential natural gas production was compared to the energy equivalent of the biomass being harvested. A site suitability study for natural gas pipeline routes from flare sites to populous locations was conducted to assess the feasibility of utilizing natural gas for domestic energy needs. Analyses and results were shared with project partners, as well as this project's open source approach to assessing the energy sector. Ultimately, Africa's growth demands energy for its people, and natural gas is already being produced by the flourishing petroleum industry in numerous African countries. By utilizing this gas, Africa could reduce flaring, recuperate the financial and environmental loss that flaring accounts for, and unlock a plentiful domestic energy source for its people. II. Introduction Background Africa is home to numerous burgeoning economies; a

  19. The proportion of cancer-related entries in PubMed has increased considerably; is cancer truly "The Emperor of All Maladies"?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reyes-Aldasoro, Constantino Carlos

    2017-01-01

    In this work, the public database of biomedical literature PubMed was mined using queries with combinations of keywords and year restrictions. It was found that the proportion of Cancer-related entries per year in PubMed has risen from around 6% in 1950 to more than 16% in 2016. This increase is not shared by other conditions such as AIDS, Malaria, Tuberculosis, Diabetes, Cardiovascular, Stroke and Infection some of which have, on the contrary, decreased as a proportion of the total entries per year. Organ-related queries were performed to analyse the variation of some specific cancers. A series of queries related to incidence, funding, and relationship with DNA, Computing and Mathematics, were performed to test correlation between the keywords, with the hope of elucidating the cause behind the rise of Cancer in PubMed. Interestingly, the proportion of Cancer-related entries that contain "DNA", "Computational" or "Mathematical" have increased, which suggests that the impact of these scientific advances on Cancer has been stronger than in other conditions. It is important to highlight that the results obtained with the data mining approach here presented are limited to the presence or absence of the keywords on a single, yet extensive, database. Therefore, results should be observed with caution. All the data used for this work is publicly available through PubMed and the UK's Office for National Statistics. All queries and figures were generated with the software platform Matlab and the files are available as supplementary material.

  20. Sources of greenhouse gases and carbon monoxide in central London (UK)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Helfter, Carole; Tremper, Anja; Zazzeri, Giulia; Barlow, Janet F.; Nemitz, Eiko

    2015-04-01

    Biosphere-atmosphere exchange of carbon dioxide (CO2) has been on the scientific agenda for several decades and new technology now also allows for high-precision, continuous monitoring of fluxes of methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O). Compared to the natural environment, flux measurements in the urban environment, which is home to over 50% of the population globally, are still rare despite high densities of anthropogenic sources of pollutants. We report on over three years of measurements atop a 192 m tower in central London (UK), Europe's largest city, which started in October 2011. Fluxes of methane, carbon monoxide (CO) and carbon dioxide are measured by eddy-covariance (EC) at the British Telecom tower (51° 31' 17.4' N 0° 8' 20.04' W). In addition to the long-term measurements, EC fluxes of nitrous oxide (N2O) were measured in February 2014. All four trace gases exhibit diurnal trends consistent with anthropogenic activities with minimum emissions at night and early afternoon maxima. Segregating emissions by wind direction reveals heterogeneous source distributions with temporal patterns and source strengths that differ between compounds. The lowest emissions for CO, CO2 and CH4 were recorded for NW winds. The highest emissions of methane were in the SE sector, in the NE for CO2 and in the W for CO. Fluxes of all 3 gases exhibited marked seasonal trends characterised by a decrease in emissions in summer (63% reduction for CO, 36% for CO2 and 22% for CH4). Monthly fluxes of CO and CO2 were linearly correlated to air temperature (R2 = 0.7 and 0.59 respectively); a weaker dependence upon temperature was also observed for CH4 (R2 = 0.31). Diurnal and seasonal emissions of CO and CO2 are mainly controlled by local fossil fuel combustion and vehicle cold starts are thought to account for 20-30% of additional emissions of CO during the winter. Fugitive emissions of CH4 from the natural gas distribution network are thought to be substantial, which is consistent

  1. Disentangling the major source areas for an intense aerosol advection in the Central Mediterranean on the basis of Potential Source Contribution Function modeling of chemical and size distribution measurements

    Science.gov (United States)

    Petroselli, Chiara; Crocchianti, Stefano; Moroni, Beatrice; Castellini, Silvia; Selvaggi, Roberta; Nava, Silvia; Calzolai, Giulia; Lucarelli, Franco; Cappelletti, David

    2018-05-01

    In this paper, we combined a Potential Source Contribution Function (PSCF) analysis of daily chemical aerosol composition data with hourly aerosol size distributions with the aim to disentangle the major source areas during a complex and fast modulating advection event impacting on Central Italy in 2013. Chemical data include an ample set of metals obtained by Proton Induced X-ray Emission (PIXE), main soluble ions from ionic chromatography and elemental and organic carbon (EC, OC) obtained by thermo-optical measurements. Size distributions have been recorded with an optical particle counter for eight calibrated size classes in the 0.27-10 μm range. We demonstrated the usefulness of the approach by the positive identification of two very different source areas impacting during the transport event. In particular, biomass burning from Eastern Europe and desert dust from Sahara sources have been discriminated based on both chemistry and size distribution time evolution. Hourly BT provided the best results in comparison to 6 h or 24 h based calculations.

  2. [An analysis of Chilean biomedical publications in PubMed in the years 2008-2009].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Valdés S, Gloria; Pérez G, Fernanda; Reyes B, Humberto

    2015-08-01

    During the years 2008 and 2009, 1,191 biomedical articles authored by Chilean investigators working in Chile were indexed in PubMed. To evaluate the potential visibility of those articles, according to scientometric indexes of the journals where they were published. Those journals where the articles had been published were identified and each journal’s Impact Factor (JIF), 5-year JIF, SCImago Journal Rank (SJR), SCImago Quartiles (Q) for 2010 and the Source Normalized Impact per Paper (SNIP) for 2008-2009 were identified. Three hundred and twelve articles (26,2%) were dedicated to experimental studies in animals, tissues or cells and they were classified as “Biomedicine”, while 879 (73,8%) were classified as “Clinical Medicine”; in both areas the main type of articles were original reports (90% and 73.6%, respectively). Revista Médica de Chile and Revista Chilena de Infectología concentrated the greater number of publications. Articles classified in Biomedicine were published more frequently in English and in journals with higher scientometric indexes than those classified in Clinical Medicine. Biomedical articles dealing with clinical topics, particularly case reports, were published mostly in national journals or in foreign journals with low scientometric indexes. It can be partly attributable to the authors’ interest in reaching local readers. The evaluation of research productivity should combine several scientometric indexes, selected according to the field of research, the institution's and investigators’ interests, with a qualitative and multifactorial assessment.

  3. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in soils of the central Tibetan Plateau, China: Distribution, sources, transport and contribution in global cycling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yuan, Guo-Li; Wu, Li-Juan; Sun, Yong; Li, Jun; Li, Jing-Chao; Wang, Gen-Hou

    2015-01-01

    Forty-four soil samples were collected across the central Tibetan Plateau (CTP) at altitudes between 3711 m and 5352 m, and their polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) contents were measured to be from 0.43 to 26.66 ng/g. The main sources of PAHs were identified for each of four sub-areas, and their concentrations in soils were determined to be mainly influenced by local sources. Along a 600 km sampling trajectory from Lhasa, which served as the biggest local source, the concentrations of PAHs decreased logarithmically with increasing distances from the source. Meanwhile, the fractional proportions of PAHs were observed to change logarithmically according to the transport distances. Conclusively, PAHs from local sources were transported within the CTP and dominated PAHs concentrations in the soils, but few of them were transported outside the CTP. In global cycling, the soils in the CTP mainly serve as background and a “sink” for PAHs. - Highlights: • Main sources of PAHs were identified for each of four sub-areas in CTP. • Local sources dominated PAHs in soils but rarely transported outside CTP. • The PAHs in soils changed logarithmically according to the distances from source. • It is first revealed how the local PAH sources influenced PAHs in the soils of CTP. - Local sources dominated PAHs concentrations in the soils of CTP but rarely transported outside, and PAHs in soils changed logarithmically according to the transported distances

  4. PubstractHelper: A Web-based Text-Mining Tool for Marking Sentences in Abstracts from PubMed Using Multiple User-Defined Keywords.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Chou-Cheng; Ho, Chung-Liang

    2014-01-01

    While a huge amount of information about biological literature can be obtained by searching the PubMed database, reading through all the titles and abstracts resulting from such a search for useful information is inefficient. Text mining makes it possible to increase this efficiency. Some websites use text mining to gather information from the PubMed database; however, they are database-oriented, using pre-defined search keywords while lacking a query interface for user-defined search inputs. We present the PubMed Abstract Reading Helper (PubstractHelper) website which combines text mining and reading assistance for an efficient PubMed search. PubstractHelper can accept a maximum of ten groups of keywords, within each group containing up to ten keywords. The principle behind the text-mining function of PubstractHelper is that keywords contained in the same sentence are likely to be related. PubstractHelper highlights sentences with co-occurring keywords in different colors. The user can download the PMID and the abstracts with color markings to be reviewed later. The PubstractHelper website can help users to identify relevant publications based on the presence of related keywords, which should be a handy tool for their research. http://bio.yungyun.com.tw/ATM/PubstractHelper.aspx and http://holab.med.ncku.edu.tw/ATM/PubstractHelper.aspx.

  5. CENTRAL WAVELENGTH ADJUSTMENT OF LIGHT EMITTING SOURCE IN INTERFEROMETRIC SENSORS BASED ON FIBER-OPTIC BRAGG GRATINGS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A. S. Aleynik

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available The paper is focused on the investigation of fiber-optic interferometric sensor based on the array of fiber Bragg gratings. Reflection spectra displacement mechanism of the fiber Bragg gratings under the external temperature effects and the static pressure is described. The experiment has shown that reflection spectra displacement of Bragg gratings reduces the visibility of the interference pattern. A method of center wavelength adjustment is proposed for the optical radiation source in accord ance with the current Bragg gratings reflection spectra based on the impulse relative modulation of control signal for the Peltier element controller. The semiconductor vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser controlled by a pump driver is used as a light source. The method is implemented by the Peltier element controller regulating and stabilizing the light source temperature, and a programmable logic-integrated circuit monitoring the Peltier element controller. The experiment has proved that the proposed method rendered possible to regulate the light source temperature at a pitch of 0.05 K and adjust the optical radiation source center wavelength at a pitch of 0.05 nm. Experimental results have revealed that the central wavelength of the radiation adjustment at a pitch of 0.005 nm gives the possibility for the capacity of the array consisting of four opticalfiber sensors based on the fiber Bragg gratings. They are formed in one optical fiber under the Bragg grating temperature change from 0° C to 300° C and by the optical fiber mechanical stretching by the force up to 2 N.

  6. Use of scientific social networking to improve the research strategies of PubMed readers

    OpenAIRE

    Evdokimov, Pavel; Kudryavtsev, Alexey; Ilgisonis, Ekaterina; Ponomarenko, Elena; Lisitsa, Andrey

    2016-01-01

    Background Keeping up with journal articles on a daily basis is an important activity of scientists engaged in biomedical research. Usually, journal articles and papers in the field of biomedicine are accessed through the Medline/PubMed electronic library. In the process of navigating PubMed, researchers unknowingly generate user-specific reading profiles that can be shared within a social networking environment. This paper examines the structure of the social networking environment generated...

  7. Effects of Nonpharmacological Interventions for Dizziness in Older People

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kendall, Julie C; Hartvigsen, Jan; Azari, Michael F

    2016-01-01

    people. DATA SOURCES: Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, PubMed, EMBASE, SCOPUS, CINAHL, AMED, Index to Chiropractic Literature, PsychINFO and MANTIS were searched from inception to May 2014. STUDY SELECTION: Two investigators independently screened controlled trials with dizzy participants...

  8. Physical activity and performance at school A systematic review of the literature including a methodological quality assessment

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Singh, A.S.; Uijtdewilligen, L.; Twisk, J.W.; van Mechelen, W.; Chin A Paw, M.J.M.

    2012-01-01

    Objective: To describe the prospective relationship between physical activity and academic performance. Data Sources: Prospective studies were identified from searches in PubMed, PsycINFO, Cochrane Central, and Sportdiscus from 1990 through 2010. Study Selection: We screened the titles and abstracts

  9. Central and Eastern United States (CEUS) Seismic Source Characterization (SSC) for Nuclear Facilities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Coppersmith, Kevin J.; Salomone, Lawrence A.; Fuller, Chris W.; Glaser, Laura L.; Hanson, Kathryn L.; Hartleb, Ross D.; Lettis, William R.; Lindvall, Scott C.; McDuffie, Stephen M.; McGuire, Robin K.; Stirewalt, Gerry L.; Toro, Gabriel R.; Youngs, Robert R.; Slayter, David L.; Bozkurt, Serkan B.; Cumbest, Randolph J.; Falero, Valentina Montaldo; Perman, Roseanne C.; Shumway, Allison M.; Syms, Frank H.; Tuttle, Martitia P.

    2012-01-01

    This report describes a new seismic source characterization (SSC) model for the Central and Eastern United States (CEUS). It will replace the Seismic Hazard Methodology for the Central and Eastern United States, EPRI Report NP-4726 (July 1986) and the Seismic Hazard Characterization of 69 Nuclear Plant Sites East of the Rocky Mountains, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Model, (Bernreuter et al., 1989). The objective of the CEUS SSC Project is to develop a new seismic source model for the CEUS using a Senior Seismic Hazard Analysis Committee (SSHAC) Level 3 assessment process. The goal of the SSHAC process is to represent the center, body, and range of technically defensible interpretations of the available data, models, and methods. Input to a probabilistic seismic hazard analysis (PSHA) consists of both seismic source characterization and ground motion characterization. These two components are used to calculate probabilistic hazard results (or seismic hazard curves) at a particular site. This report provides a new seismic source model. Results and Findings The product of this report is a regional CEUS SSC model. This model includes consideration of an updated database, full assessment and incorporation of uncertainties, and the range of diverse technical interpretations from the larger technical community. The SSC model will be widely applicable to the entire CEUS, so this project uses a ground motion model that includes generic variations to allow for a range of representative site conditions (deep soil, shallow soil, hard rock). Hazard and sensitivity calculations were conducted at seven test sites representative of different CEUS hazard environments. Challenges and Objectives The regional CEUS SSC model will be of value to readers who are involved in PSHA work, and who wish to use an updated SSC model. This model is based on a comprehensive and traceable process, in accordance with SSHAC guidelines in NUREG/CR-6372, Recommendations for Probabilistic

  10. Comparison of the time-to-indexing in PubMed between biomedical journals according to impact factor, discipline, and focus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Irwin, Adriane N; Rackham, Daniel

    Practicing evidence-based medicine requires health care professionals to efficiently retrieve relevant and current literature. The purpose of this study was to compare the time interval between PubMed entry and indexing with Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) between biomedical journals with varying impact factors, focus areas, and health care discipline representation. This was a cross-sectional study of articles entered into PubMed database between January 1 and December 31, 2012. The primary endpoint was the number of days between PubMed entry and indexing with MeSH terms. A total of 7906 articles were reviewed across 18 journals. In the first comparison, the time-to-indexing was 177 ± 100 days, 111 ± 69 days, and 23 ± 40 days for articles published in journals with impact factors of 2.0-2.5, 4.5-6.5, and >25, respectively (P ≤ 0.001). In the second comparison, the time-to-indexing was 111 ± 69 days for general medicine versus 170 ± 74 days for specialty journals (P ≤ 0.001). In the third comparison, the overall time-to-indexing was 177 ± 100 days, 234 ± 107 days, and 163 ± 58 days for medicine, nursing, and pharmacy journals, respectively (P ≤ 0.001). Study results identified a significant delay between entry of articles into the PubMed database and time-to-indexing with MeSH terms across journals of varying impact factor, discipline, and focus. Results suggest that there may be factors that influence the priority by which articles are indexed with MeSH terms. Future research should focus on determining those journal characteristics and any impact of this delay on clinical practice. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  11. Performance evaluation of unified medical language system®'s synonyms expansion to query PubMed

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Griffon Nicolas

    2012-02-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background PubMed is the main access to medical literature on the Internet. In order to enhance the performance of its information retrieval tools, primarily non-indexed citations, the authors propose a method: expanding users' queries using Unified Medical Language System' (UMLS synonyms i.e. all the terms gathered under one unique Concept Unique Identifier. Methods This method was evaluated using queries constructed to emphasize the differences between this new method and the current PubMed automatic term mapping. Four experts assessed citation relevance. Results Using UMLS, we were able to retrieve new citations in 45.5% of queries, which implies a small increase in recall. The new strategy led to a heterogeneous 23.7% mean increase in non-indexed citation retrieved. Of these, 82% have been published less than 4 months earlier. The overall mean precision was 48.4% but differed according to the evaluators, ranging from 36.7% to 88.1% (Inter rater agreement was poor: kappa = 0.34. Conclusions This study highlights the need for specific search tools for each type of user and use-cases. The proposed strategy may be useful to retrieve recent scientific advancement.

  12. Application of central composite design to optimize the amount of carbon source and prebiotics for Bifidobacterium bifidum BB01

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shu Guowei

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available The objective of the present study was to obtain the optimum proportion of the carbon source and prebiotics for Bifidobacterium bifidum BB01 by the central composite design (CCD. The effect of carbon source (lactose and two prebiotics (inulin and fructooligosaccharides on the BB01 were observed by measuring the OD600 value, pH value and the viable counts at 18h. The final optimized concentrations of carbon source and prebiotics were: lactose 1.6%, inulin 0.26%, and fructooligosaccharides 0.22%. The result indicates that the growth of B. bifidum BB01 shows an significant increase in the optimized culture medium (p < 0.05, the OD600 value reached 1.434 at 18h, which increased 6.58% compared to the control. And the viable counts of B. bifidum BB01 increased 24.36% and reached (2.17±0.06 ×109cfu/mL. The results show that the optimization of the carbon source and prebiotics using CCD in this study is workable and necessary.

  13. Drinking water and pregnancy outcome in central North Carolina: source, amount, and trihalomethane levels.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Savitz, D A; Andrews, K W; Pastore, L M

    1995-01-01

    In spite of the recognition of potentially toxic chemicals in chlorinated drinking water, few studies have evaluated reproductive health consequences of such exposure. Using data from a case-control study of miscarriage, preterm delivery, and low birth weight in central North Carolina, we evaluated risk associated with water source, amount, and trihalomethane (THM) concentration. Water source was not related to any of those pregnancy outcomes, but an increasing amount of ingested water was associated with decreased risks of all three outcomes (odds ratios around 1.5 for 0 glasses per day relative to 1-3 glasses per day, falling to 0.8 for 4+ glasses per day). THM concentration and dose (concentration x amount) were not related to pregnancy outcome, with the possible exception of an increased risk of miscarriage in the highest sextile of THM concentration (adjusted odds ratio = 2.8, 95% confidence interval = 1.1-2.7), which was not part of an overall dose-response gradient. These data do not indicate a strong association between chlorination by-products and adverse pregnancy outcome, but given the limited quality of our exposure assessment and the increased miscarriage risk in the highest exposure group, more refined evaluation is warranted. PMID:7556013

  14. High-performance information search filters for acute kidney injury content in PubMed, Ovid Medline and Embase.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hildebrand, Ainslie M; Iansavichus, Arthur V; Haynes, R Brian; Wilczynski, Nancy L; Mehta, Ravindra L; Parikh, Chirag R; Garg, Amit X

    2014-04-01

    We frequently fail to identify articles relevant to the subject of acute kidney injury (AKI) when searching the large bibliographic databases such as PubMed, Ovid Medline or Embase. To address this issue, we used computer automation to create information search filters to better identify articles relevant to AKI in these databases. We first manually reviewed a sample of 22 992 full-text articles and used prespecified criteria to determine whether each article contained AKI content or not. In the development phase (two-thirds of the sample), we developed and tested the performance of >1.3-million unique filters. Filters with high sensitivity and high specificity for the identification of AKI articles were then retested in the validation phase (remaining third of the sample). We succeeded in developing and validating high-performance AKI search filters for each bibliographic database with sensitivities and specificities in excess of 90%. Filters optimized for sensitivity reached at least 97.2% sensitivity, and filters optimized for specificity reached at least 99.5% specificity. The filters were complex; for example one PubMed filter included >140 terms used in combination, including 'acute kidney injury', 'tubular necrosis', 'azotemia' and 'ischemic injury'. In proof-of-concept searches, physicians found more articles relevant to topics in AKI with the use of the filters. PubMed, Ovid Medline and Embase can be filtered for articles relevant to AKI in a reliable manner. These high-performance information filters are now available online and can be used to better identify AKI content in large bibliographic databases.

  15. Searching PubMed during a pandemic.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ole Norgaard

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: The 2009 influenza A(H1N1 pandemic has generated thousands of articles and news items. However, finding relevant scientific articles in such rapidly developing health crises is a major challenge which, in turn, can affect decision-makers' ability to utilise up-to-date findings and ultimately shape public health interventions. This study set out to show the impact that the inconsistent naming of the pandemic can have on retrieving relevant scientific articles in PubMed/MEDLINE. METHODOLOGY: We first formulated a PubMed search algorithm covering different names of the influenza pandemic and simulated the results that it would have retrieved from weekly searches for relevant new records during the first 10 weeks of the pandemic. To assess the impact of failing to include every term in this search, we then conducted the same searches but omitted in turn "h1n1," "swine," "influenza" and "flu" from the search string, and compared the results to those for the full string. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: On average, our core search string identified 44.3 potentially relevant new records at the end of each week. Of these, we determined that an average of 27.8 records were relevant. When we excluded one term from the string, the percentage of records missed out of the total number of relevant records averaged 18.7% for omitting "h1n1," 13.6% for "swine," 17.5% for "influenza," and 20.6% for "flu." CONCLUSIONS: Due to inconsistent naming, while searching for scientific material about rapidly evolving situations such as the influenza A(H1N1 pandemic, there is a risk that one will miss relevant articles. To address this problem, the international scientific community should agree on nomenclature and the specific name to be used earlier, and the National Library of Medicine in the US could index potentially relevant materials faster and allow publishers to add alert tags to such materials.

  16. Use of positive and negative words in scientific PubMed abstracts between 1974 and 2014 : retrospective analysis

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Vinkers, Christiaan H|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/304824755; Tijdink, Joeri K; Otte, Willem M

    2015-01-01

    OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether language used in science abstracts can skew towards the use of strikingly positive and negative words over time. DESIGN: Retrospective analysis of all scientific abstracts in PubMed between 1974 and 2014. METHODS: The yearly frequencies of positive, negative, and

  17. Developing topic-specific search filters for PubMed with click-through data.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, J; Lu, Z

    2013-01-01

    Search filters have been developed and demonstrated for better information access to the immense and ever-growing body of publications in the biomedical domain. However, to date the number of filters remains quite limited because the current filter development methods require significant human efforts in manual document review and filter term selection. In this regard, we aim to investigate automatic methods for generating search filters. We present an automated method to develop topic-specific filters on the basis of users' search logs in PubMed. Specifically, for a given topic, we first detect its relevant user queries and then include their corresponding clicked articles to serve as the topic-relevant document set accordingly. Next, we statistically identify informative terms that best represent the topic-relevant document set using a background set composed of topic irrelevant articles. Lastly, the selected representative terms are combined with Boolean operators and evaluated on benchmark datasets to derive the final filter with the best performance. We applied our method to develop filters for four clinical topics: nephrology, diabetes, pregnancy, and depression. For the nephrology filter, our method obtained performance comparable to the state of the art (sensitivity of 91.3%, specificity of 98.7%, precision of 94.6%, and accuracy of 97.2%). Similarly, high-performing results (over 90% in all measures) were obtained for the other three search filters. Based on PubMed click-through data, we successfully developed a high-performance method for generating topic-specific search filters that is significantly more efficient than existing manual methods. All data sets (topic-relevant and irrelevant document sets) used in this study and a demonstration system are publicly available at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/CBBresearch/Lu/downloads/CQ_filter/

  18. Effectiveness of rehabilitation interventions in improving emotional and functional status in hearing or visually impaired older adults : a systematic review with meta-analyses

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Roets-Merken, Lieve M.; Draskovic, Irena; Zuidema, Sytse U.; van Erp, Willemijn S.; Graff, Maud J. L.; Kempen, Gertrudis I. J. M.; Vernooij-Dassen, Myrra J. F. J.

    Objective: To assess the effectiveness of non-equipment based rehabilitation interventions for older adults with an age-related hearing or visual impairment. Data sources: We searched PubMed, EMBASE, PsychInfo, CINAHL, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials. Review methods: Two

  19. The effects of exercise on cognition in older adults with and without cognitive decline: A systematic review

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Uffelen, J.G.Z. van; Chin A Paw, M.J.M.; Hopman-Rock, M.; Mechelen, W. van

    2008-01-01

    Objective: To systematically review the effect of physical exercise on cognition in older adults with and without cognitive decline. Data sources: Randomized controlled trials were identified by literature searches in PubMed, EMBASE, CENTRAL, PsycINFO, and AgeLine. Study selection: Papers were

  20. Centralized, Decentralized, and Hybrid Purchasing Organizations

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bals, Lydia; Turkulainen, Virpi

    This paper addresses one of the focal issues in purchasing and supply management – global sourcing – from an organizational design perspective. In particular, we elaborate the traditional classification of global sourcing organization designs into centralized, decentralized, and hybrid models. We...... organization we can identify organization designs beyond the classical centralization-decentralization continuum. We also provide explanations for the observed organization design at GCC. The study contributes to research on purchasing and supply management as well as research on organization design....

  1. Author Disambiguation in PubMed: Evidence on the Precision and Recall of Author-ity among NIH-Funded Scientists.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lerchenmueller, Marc J; Sorenson, Olav

    2016-01-01

    We examined the usefulness (precision) and completeness (recall) of the Author-ity author disambiguation for PubMed articles by associating articles with scientists funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). In doing so, we exploited established unique identifiers-Principal Investigator (PI) IDs-that the NIH assigns to funded scientists. Analyzing a set of 36,987 NIH scientists who received their first R01 grant between 1985 and 2009, we identified 355,921 articles appearing in PubMed that would allow us to evaluate the precision and recall of the Author-ity disambiguation. We found that Author-ity identified the NIH scientists with 99.51% precision across the articles. It had a corresponding recall of 99.64%. Precision and recall, moreover, appeared stable across common and uncommon last names, across ethnic backgrounds, and across levels of scientist productivity.

  2. Luminosity distribution in the central regions of Messier 87: Isothermal core, point source, or black hole

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    de Vaucouleurs, G.; Nieto, J.

    1979-01-01

    A combination of photographic and photoelectric photometry with the McDonald 2 m reflector is used to derive a precise mean luminosity profile μ/sub B/(r*) of M87 (jet excluded) at approx.0''.6 resolution out to r*=70''. Within 8'' from the center the luminosity is less than predicted by extrapolation of the r/sup 1/4/ law defined by the main body of the galaxy (8'' 0 =30.5) the structural length of the underlying isothermal is α=2''.78=170 pc, the mass of the ''black hole'' M 0 =1.7.10 9 M/sub sun/ and the luminosity of the point source (B 0 =16.95, M 0 =-13.55) equals 4.2% of the integrated luminosity B (6'') =13.52 of the galaxy within r*=6''. These results agree closely with and confirm the work of the Hale team. Comparison of the McDonald and Hale data suggests that the central source may have been slightly brighter (approx.0.5 mag) in 1964 than in 1975--1977

  3. The proportion of cancer-related entries in PubMed has increased considerably; is cancer truly “The Emperor of All Maladies”?

    Science.gov (United States)

    2017-01-01

    In this work, the public database of biomedical literature PubMed was mined using queries with combinations of keywords and year restrictions. It was found that the proportion of Cancer-related entries per year in PubMed has risen from around 6% in 1950 to more than 16% in 2016. This increase is not shared by other conditions such as AIDS, Malaria, Tuberculosis, Diabetes, Cardiovascular, Stroke and Infection some of which have, on the contrary, decreased as a proportion of the total entries per year. Organ-related queries were performed to analyse the variation of some specific cancers. A series of queries related to incidence, funding, and relationship with DNA, Computing and Mathematics, were performed to test correlation between the keywords, with the hope of elucidating the cause behind the rise of Cancer in PubMed. Interestingly, the proportion of Cancer-related entries that contain “DNA”, “Computational” or “Mathematical” have increased, which suggests that the impact of these scientific advances on Cancer has been stronger than in other conditions. It is important to highlight that the results obtained with the data mining approach here presented are limited to the presence or absence of the keywords on a single, yet extensive, database. Therefore, results should be observed with caution. All the data used for this work is publicly available through PubMed and the UK’s Office for National Statistics. All queries and figures were generated with the software platform Matlab and the files are available as supplementary material. PMID:28282418

  4. Ammonia pollution characteristics of centralized drinking water sources in China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fu, Qing; Zheng, Binghui; Zhao, Xingru; Wang, Lijing; Liu, Changming

    2012-01-01

    The characteristics of ammonia in drinking water sources in China were evaluated during 2005-2009. The spatial distribution and seasonal changes of ammonia in different types of drinking water sources of 22 provinces, 5 autonomous regions and 4 municipalities were investigated. The levels of ammonia in drinking water sources follow the order of river > lake/reservoir > groundwater. The levels of ammonia concentration in river sources gradually decreased from 2005 to 2008, while no obvious change was observed in the lakes/reservoirs and groundwater drinking water sources. The proportion of the type of drinking water sources is different in different regions. In river drinking water sources, the ammonia level was varied in different regions and changed seasonally. The highest value and wide range of annual ammonia was found in South East region, while the lowest value was found in Southwest region. In lake/reservoir drinking water sources, the ammonia levels were not varied obviously in different regions. In underground drinking water sources, the ammonia levels were varied obviously in different regions due to the geological permeability and the natural features of regions. In the drinking water sources with higher ammonia levels, there are enterprises and wastewater drainages in the protected areas of the drinking water sources.

  5. Palomar/triplespec observations of Spitzer/MIPSGAL 24 μm circumstellar shells: Unveiling the natures of their central sources

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Flagey, N. [Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, 4800 Oak Grove Drive, Pasadena, CA 91109 (United States); Noriega-Crespo, A. [Infrared Processing and Analysis Center, California Institute of Technology, 1200 East California Boulevard, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States); Petric, A. [California Institute of Technology, 1200 East California Boulevard, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States); Geballe, T. R., E-mail: nflagey@jpl.nasa.gov [Gemini North Observatory, 670 North A' ohoku Place, Hilo, HI 96720 (United States)

    2014-08-01

    We present near-IR spectroscopic observations of the central sources in 17 circumstellar shells from a sample of more than 400 'bubbles' discovered in the Spitzer/MIPSGAL 24 μm survey of the Galactic plane and in the Cygnus-X region. To identify the natures of these shells, we have obtained J, H, and K band spectra with a resolution of ∼2600 of the stars at their centers. We observed 14 MIPSGAL bubbles (MBs), WR149, and 2 objects in the Cygnus-X region (WR138a and BD+43 3710), our sample being about 2.5 mag fainter in the K band than previous studies of the central sources of MBs. We use spectroscopic diagnostics and spectral libraries of late- and early-type stars to constrain the natures of our targets. We find five late-type giants. The equivalent widths of their CO 2.29 μm features allow us to determine the spectral types of the stars and hence derive the extinction along the line of sight, distance, and physical size of the shells. We also find 12 early-type stars: in 9 MBs and the 3 comparison objects. We find that the subtype inferred from the near-IR for WR138a (WN9h) and WR149 (WN5h) agrees with that derived from optical observations. A careful analysis of the literature and the environment of BD+43 3710 allows us to rule out the carbon star interpretation previously suggested. Our near-IR spectrum suggests that it is a B5 supergiant. At the centers of the nine MBs, we find a WC5-6 star possibly of low mass, a candidate O5-6 V star, a B0 supergiant, a B/A-type giant, and five luminous blue variable (LBV) candidates. We also report the detections of emission lines arising from at least two shells with typical extents (∼10''), in agreement with those in the mid-IR. We summarize the findings on the natures of the MBs since their discovery, with 30% of them now known. Most MBs with central sources detected in the near- to mid-IR have been identified and are red and blue giants, supergiants, or stars evolving toward these phases

  6. Atmospheric carbonaceous aerosols from Indo-Gangetic Plain and Central Himalaya: impact of anthropogenic sources.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ram, Kirpa; Sarin, M M

    2015-01-15

    In the present-day scenario of growing anthropogenic activities, carbonaceous aerosols contribute significantly (∼20-70%) to the total atmospheric particulate matter mass and, thus, have immense potential to influence the Earth's radiation budget and climate on a regional to global scale. In addition, formation of secondary organic aerosols is being increasingly recognized as an important process in contributing to the air-pollution and poor visibility over urban regions. It is, thus, essential to study atmospheric concentrations of carbonaceous species (EC, OC and WSOC), their mixing state and absorption properties on a regional scale. This paper presents the comprehensive data on emission sources, chemical characteristics and optical properties of carbonaceous aerosols from selected urban sites in the Indo-Gangetic Plain (IGP) and from a high-altitude location in the central Himalaya. The mass concentrations of OC, EC and WSOC exhibit large spatio-temporal variability in the IGP. This is attributed to seasonally varying emissions from post-harvest agricultural-waste burning, their source strength, boundary layer dynamics and secondary aerosol formation. The high concentrations of OC and SO4(2-), and their characteristic high mass scattering efficiency, contribute significantly to the aerosol optical depth and scattering coefficient. This has implications to the assessment of single scattering albedo and aerosol radiative forcing on a regional scale. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. ScienceCentral: open access full-text archive of scientific journals based on Journal Article Tag Suite regardless of their languages.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huh, Sun

    2013-01-01

    ScienceCentral, a free or open access, full-text archive of scientific journal literature at the Korean Federation of Science and Technology Societies, was under test in September 2013. Since it is a Journal Article Tag Suite-based full text database, extensible markup language files of all languages can be presented, according to Unicode Transformation Format 8-bit encoding. It is comparable to PubMed Central: however, there are two distinct differences. First, its scope comprises all science fields; second, it accepts all language journals. Launching ScienceCentral is the first step for free access or open access academic scientific journals of all languages to leap to the world, including scientific journals from Croatia.

  8. Sources of Economic Fluctuations in Central America

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wilfredo Toledo

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Using panel data from Central America, this paper studies the determining factors of inflation and aggregate output fluctuations by estimating two Structural Vector Autoregressive (SVAR models. Price and output variables are included in one of the models, whereas M2 and the price of oil are additional variables in the other one. Findings of this study suggest that price is determined by the demand, while output seems to be influenced mainly by the supply shocks in that area. It was also evidenced that the price of oil does not have a significant impact on the general price level in that region.

  9. An exploratory analysis of PubMed's free full-text limit on citation retrieval for clinical questions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krieger, Mary M; Richter, Randy R; Austin, Tricia M

    2008-10-01

    The research sought to determine (1) how use of the PubMed free full-text (FFT) limit affects citation retrieval and (2) how use of the FFT limit impacts the types of articles and levels of evidence retrieved. Four clinical questions based on a research agenda for physical therapy were searched in PubMed both with and without the use of the FFT limit. Retrieved citations were examined for relevancy to each question. Abstracts of relevant citations were reviewed to determine the types of articles and levels of evidence. Descriptive analysis was used to compare the total number of citations, number of relevant citations, types of articles, and levels of evidence both with and without the use of the FFT limit. Across all 4 questions, the FFT limit reduced the number of citations to 11.1% of the total number of citations retrieved without the FFT limit. Additionally, high-quality evidence such as systematic reviews and randomized controlled trials were missed when the FFT limit was used. Health sciences librarians play a key role in educating users about the potential impact the FFT limit has on the number of citations, types of articles, and levels of evidence retrieved.

  10. The development of PubMed search strategies for patient preferences for treatment outcomes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    van Hoorn, Ralph; Kievit, Wietske; Booth, Andrew; Mozygemba, Kati; Lysdahl, Kristin Bakke; Refolo, Pietro; Sacchini, Dario; Gerhardus, Ansgar; van der Wilt, Gert Jan; Tummers, Marcia

    2016-07-29

    The importance of respecting patients' preferences when making treatment decisions is increasingly recognized. Efficiently retrieving papers from the scientific literature reporting on the presence and nature of such preferences can help to achieve this goal. The objective of this study was to create a search filter for PubMed to help retrieve evidence on patient preferences for treatment outcomes. A total of 27 journals were hand-searched for articles on patient preferences for treatment outcomes published in 2011. Selected articles served as a reference set. To develop optimal search strategies to retrieve this set, all articles in the reference set were randomly split into a development and a validation set. MeSH-terms and keywords retrieved using PubReMiner were tested individually and as combinations in PubMed and evaluated for retrieval performance (e.g. sensitivity (Se) and specificity (Sp)). Of 8238 articles, 22 were considered to report empirical evidence on patient preferences for specific treatment outcomes. The best search filters reached Se of 100 % [95 % CI 100-100] with Sp of 95 % [94-95 %] and Sp of 97 % [97-98 %] with 75 % Se [74-76 %]. In the validation set these queries reached values of Se of 90 % [89-91 %] with Sp 94 % [93-95 %] and Se of 80 % [79-81 %] with Sp of 97 % [96-96 %], respectively. Narrow and broad search queries were developed which can help in retrieving literature on patient preferences for treatment outcomes. Identifying such evidence may in turn enhance the incorporation of patient preferences in clinical decision making and health technology assessment.

  11. Central and Eastern United States (CEUS) Seismic Source Characterization (SSC) for Nuclear Facilities Project

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kevin J. Coppersmith; Lawrence A. Salomone; Chris W. Fuller; Laura L. Glaser; Kathryn L. Hanson; Ross D. Hartleb; William R. Lettis; Scott C. Lindvall; Stephen M. McDuffie; Robin K. McGuire; Gerry L. Stirewalt; Gabriel R. Toro; Robert R. Youngs; David L. Slayter; Serkan B. Bozkurt; Randolph J. Cumbest; Valentina Montaldo Falero; Roseanne C. Perman' Allison M. Shumway; Frank H. Syms; Martitia (Tish) P. Tuttle

    2012-01-31

    This report describes a new seismic source characterization (SSC) model for the Central and Eastern United States (CEUS). It will replace the Seismic Hazard Methodology for the Central and Eastern United States, EPRI Report NP-4726 (July 1986) and the Seismic Hazard Characterization of 69 Nuclear Plant Sites East of the Rocky Mountains, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Model, (Bernreuter et al., 1989). The objective of the CEUS SSC Project is to develop a new seismic source model for the CEUS using a Senior Seismic Hazard Analysis Committee (SSHAC) Level 3 assessment process. The goal of the SSHAC process is to represent the center, body, and range of technically defensible interpretations of the available data, models, and methods. Input to a probabilistic seismic hazard analysis (PSHA) consists of both seismic source characterization and ground motion characterization. These two components are used to calculate probabilistic hazard results (or seismic hazard curves) at a particular site. This report provides a new seismic source model. Results and Findings The product of this report is a regional CEUS SSC model. This model includes consideration of an updated database, full assessment and incorporation of uncertainties, and the range of diverse technical interpretations from the larger technical community. The SSC model will be widely applicable to the entire CEUS, so this project uses a ground motion model that includes generic variations to allow for a range of representative site conditions (deep soil, shallow soil, hard rock). Hazard and sensitivity calculations were conducted at seven test sites representative of different CEUS hazard environments. Challenges and Objectives The regional CEUS SSC model will be of value to readers who are involved in PSHA work, and who wish to use an updated SSC model. This model is based on a comprehensive and traceable process, in accordance with SSHAC guidelines in NUREG/CR-6372, Recommendations for Probabilistic

  12. Rb-Sr systematics of granitoids of the central gneissic complex, Arunachal Himalaya: implications on tectonism, stratigraphy and source

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dikshitulu, G.R.; Dhana Raju, R.; Pandey, B.K.; Krishna, Veena

    1995-01-01

    Precambrian central gneissic complex (CGC) in the Kameng district of Arunachal Pradesh comprises the oldest Sela group thrusting over the Bomdila group, with the Salari group being the youngest. Augen gneiss of the Bomdila group, granite of the Salari group and hornblende granite gneiss of the Sela group define Rb-Sr isochron ages of 1914±23, 1536±60 and 481± 23 Ma, respectively. The 481 Ma age on the hornblende gneiss from the oldest Sela group is attributed to the resetting of Rb-Sr clock due to tectonic imprint of the main central thrust (MCT). The 1914 Ma age of the augen gneiss, the oldest reported so far from the Arunachal Himalaya, is either the emplacement age or latest metamorphic event. The 1536 Ma old emplacement age of the granite intruding the black shale of the Salari group disproves the hitherto considered Gondwana age for the black shale, and, thus, necessitates revision in its chronostratigraphy ( 87 Sr/ 86 Sr), of the hornblende granite gneiss and Salari granite is high (0.719 and 0.709) indicating a crustal source for these, whereas it is low for the augen gneiss (0.703) suggesting an inherited signature of the upper mantle source together with some crustal contamination. Rb-Sr whole-rock isochron ages from the Arunachal Himalaya are correlatable with those reported from other parts of the Indian Himalaya. These cumulatively point to at least three major periods of activity in the Himalaya at ca. 2060±250, 1530±90 and 530± 75 Ma. (author). 22 refs., 2 figs., 3 tabs

  13. Rb-Sr systematics of granitoids of the central gneissic complex, Arunachal Himalaya: implications on tectonism, stratigraphy and source

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dikshitulu, G R; Dhana Raju, R [Dept. of Atomic Energy, Bangalore (India). Atomic Minerals Division; Pandey, B K; Krishna, Veena [Department of Atomic Energy, Hyderabad (India). Atomic Minerals Div.

    1995-01-01

    Precambrian central gneissic complex (CGC) in the Kameng district of Arunachal Pradesh comprises the oldest Sela group thrusting over the Bomdila group, with the Salari group being the youngest. Augen gneiss of the Bomdila group, granite of the Salari group and hornblende granite gneiss of the Sela group define Rb-Sr isochron ages of 1914{+-}23, 1536{+-}60 and 481{+-} 23 Ma, respectively. The 481 Ma age on the hornblende gneiss from the oldest Sela group is attributed to the resetting of Rb-Sr clock due to tectonic imprint of the main central thrust (MCT). The 1914 Ma age of the augen gneiss, the oldest reported so far from the Arunachal Himalaya, is either the emplacement age or latest metamorphic event. The 1536 Ma old emplacement age of the granite intruding the black shale of the Salari group disproves the hitherto considered Gondwana age for the black shale, and, thus, necessitates revision in its chronostratigraphy ({sup 87}Sr/{sup 86}Sr), of the hornblende granite gneiss and Salari granite is high (0.719 and 0.709) indicating a crustal source for these, whereas it is low for the augen gneiss (0.703) suggesting an inherited signature of the upper mantle source together with some crustal contamination. Rb-Sr whole-rock isochron ages from the Arunachal Himalaya are correlatable with those reported from other parts of the Indian Himalaya. These cumulatively point to at least three major periods of activity in the Himalaya at ca. 2060{+-}250, 1530{+-}90 and 530{+-} 75 Ma. (author). 22 refs., 2 figs., 3 tabs.

  14. Residents and Medical Students Correctly Answer Clinical Questions More Often with Google and UpToDate than With PubMed or Ovid MEDLINE. A Review of: Thiele, R. H., Poiro, N. C., Scalzo, D. C., & Nemergut, E. C. (2010. Speed, accuracy, and confidence in Google, Ovid, PubMed, and UpToDate: Results of a randomised trial. Postgraduate Medical Journal, 86(1018, 459-465. doi:10.1136/pgmj.2010.098053

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Theresa Arndt

    2011-06-01

    repeated questions. Otherwise, there was no statistically significant difference in questions answered correctly. Confidence did not differ. When asked to answer new questions, subjects using Google and UpToDate were significantly more likely to find a correct answer than PubMed users. UpToDate users were more confident. There was no statistical difference in primary outcome (correct answer with high confidence between Google, Ovid, and PubMed.Pooled data from parts I and II, removing repeated questions: Subjects using Google and UpToDate were more likely to find correct answers. Confidence was highest among UpToDate users. Average search time per question (limited to 5 minutes per question in ascending order of time spent was: UpToDate, Google, PubMed, and Ovid.Conclusion – While the number of participants is small, the results suggest that the popular search engine Google and the commercially produced secondary online source UpToDate are more useful and efficient for finding answers to questions arising in anesthesiology and critical care practice than tools focused exclusively on indexing the primary literature.

  15. Testing search strategies for systematic reviews in the Medline literature database through PubMed.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Volpato, Enilze S N; Betini, Marluci; El Dib, Regina

    2014-04-01

    A high-quality electronic search is essential in ensuring accuracy and completeness in retrieved records for the conducting of a systematic review. We analysed the available sample of search strategies to identify the best method for searching in Medline through PubMed, considering the use or not of parenthesis, double quotation marks, truncation and use of a simple search or search history. In our cross-sectional study of search strategies, we selected and analysed the available searches performed during evidence-based medicine classes and in systematic reviews conducted in the Botucatu Medical School, UNESP, Brazil. We analysed 120 search strategies. With regard to the use of phrase searches with parenthesis, there was no difference between the results with and without parenthesis and simple searches or search history tools in 100% of the sample analysed (P = 1.0). The number of results retrieved by the searches analysed was smaller using double quotations marks and using truncation compared with the standard strategy (P = 0.04 and P = 0.08, respectively). There is no need to use phrase-searching parenthesis to retrieve studies; however, we recommend the use of double quotation marks when an investigator attempts to retrieve articles in which a term appears to be exactly the same as what was proposed in the search form. Furthermore, we do not recommend the use of truncation in search strategies in the Medline via PubMed. Although the results of simple searches or search history tools were the same, we recommend using the latter.

  16. The development of PubMed search strategies for patient preferences for treatment outcomes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ralph van Hoorn

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background The importance of respecting patients’ preferences when making treatment decisions is increasingly recognized. Efficiently retrieving papers from the scientific literature reporting on the presence and nature of such preferences can help to achieve this goal. The objective of this study was to create a search filter for PubMed to help retrieve evidence on patient preferences for treatment outcomes. Methods A total of 27 journals were hand-searched for articles on patient preferences for treatment outcomes published in 2011. Selected articles served as a reference set. To develop optimal search strategies to retrieve this set, all articles in the reference set were randomly split into a development and a validation set. MeSH-terms and keywords retrieved using PubReMiner were tested individually and as combinations in PubMed and evaluated for retrieval performance (e.g. sensitivity (Se and specificity (Sp. Results Of 8238 articles, 22 were considered to report empirical evidence on patient preferences for specific treatment outcomes. The best search filters reached Se of 100 % [95 % CI 100-100] with Sp of 95 % [94–95 %] and Sp of 97 % [97–98 %] with 75 % Se [74–76 %]. In the validation set these queries reached values of Se of 90 % [89–91 %] with Sp 94 % [93–95 %] and Se of 80 % [79–81 %] with Sp of 97 % [96–96 %], respectively. Conclusions Narrow and broad search queries were developed which can help in retrieving literature on patient preferences for treatment outcomes. Identifying such evidence may in turn enhance the incorporation of patient preferences in clinical decision making and health technology assessment.

  17. Radon exposure and tumors of the central nervous system.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ruano-Ravina, Alberto; Dacosta-Urbieta, Ana; Barros-Dios, Juan Miguel; Kelsey, Karl T

    2017-03-15

    To review the published evidence of links between radon exposure and central nervous system tumors through a systematic review of the scientific literature. We performed a thorough bibliographic search in Medline (PubMed) and EMBASE. We combined MeSH (Medical Subject Heading) terms and free text. We developed a purpose-designed scale to assess the quality of the included manuscripts. We have included 18 studies, 8 performed on miners, 3 on the general population and 7 on children, and the results have been structured using this classification. The results are inconclusive. An association between radon exposure and central nervous system tumors has been observed in some studies on miners, but not in others. The results observed in the general adult population and in children are also mixed, with some research evincing a statistically significant association and others showing no effect. We cannot conclude that there is a relationship between radon exposure and central nervous system tumors. The available studies are extremely heterogeneous in terms of design and populations studied. Further research is needed in this topic, particularly in the general population residing in areas with high levels of radon. Copyright © 2017 SESPAS. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

  18. Tracking the 10Be-26Al source-area signal in sediment-routing systems of arid central Australia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Struck, Martin; Jansen, John D.; Fujioka, Toshiyuki; Codilean, Alexandru T.; Fink, David; Fülöp, Réka-Hajnalka; Wilcken, Klaus M.; Price, David M.; Kotevski, Steven; Fifield, L. Keith; Chappell, John

    2018-05-01

    Sediment-routing systems continuously transfer information and mass from eroding source areas to depositional sinks. Understanding how these systems alter environmental signals is critical when it comes to inferring source-area properties from the sedimentary record. We measure cosmogenic 10Be and 26Al along three large sediment-routing systems ( ˜ 100 000 km2) in central Australia with the aim of tracking downstream variations in 10Be-26Al inventories and identifying the factors responsible for these variations. By comparing 56 new cosmogenic 10Be and 26Al measurements in stream sediments with matching data (n = 55) from source areas, we show that 10Be-26Al inventories in hillslope bedrock and soils set the benchmark for relative downstream modifications. Lithology is the primary determinant of erosion-rate variations in source areas and despite sediment mixing over hundreds of kilometres downstream, a distinct lithological signal is retained. Post-orogenic ranges yield catchment erosion rates of ˜ 6-11 m Myr-1 and silcrete-dominant areas erode as slow as ˜ 0.2 m Myr-1. 10Be-26Al inventories in stream sediments indicate that cumulative-burial terms increase downstream to mostly ˜ 400-800 kyr and up to ˜ 1.1 Myr. The magnitude of the burial signal correlates with increasing sediment cover downstream and reflects assimilation from storages with long exposure histories, such as alluvial fans, desert pavements, alluvial plains, and aeolian dunes. We propose that the tendency for large alluvial rivers to mask their 10Be-26Al source-area signal differs according to geomorphic setting. Signal preservation is favoured by (i) high sediment supply rates, (ii) high mean runoff, and (iii) a thick sedimentary basin pile. Conversely, signal masking prevails in landscapes of (i) low sediment supply and (ii) juxtaposition of sediment storages with notably different exposure histories.

  19. Detailed budget analysis of HONO in central London reveals a missing daytime source

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J. D. Lee

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available Measurements of HONO were carried out at an urban background site near central London as part of the Clean air for London (ClearfLo project in summer 2012. Data were collected from 22 July to 18 August 2014, with peak values of up to 1.8 ppbV at night and non-zero values of between 0.2 and 0.6 ppbV seen during the day. A wide range of other gas phase, aerosol, radiation, and meteorological measurements were made concurrently at the same site, allowing a detailed analysis of the chemistry to be carried out. The peak HONO/NOx ratio of 0.04 is seen at  ∼  02:00 UTC, with the presence of a second, daytime, peak in HONO/NOx of similar magnitude to the night-time peak, suggesting a significant secondary daytime HONO source. A photostationary state calculation of HONO involving formation from the reaction of OH and NO and loss from photolysis, reaction with OH, and dry deposition shows a significant underestimation during the day, with calculated values being close to 0, compared to the measurement average of 0.4 ppbV at midday. The addition of further HONO sources from the literature, including dark conversion of NO2 on surfaces, direct emission, photolysis of ortho-substituted nitrophenols, the postulated formation from the reaction of HO2 ×  H2O with NO2, photolysis of adsorbed HNO3 on ground and aerosols, and HONO produced by photosensitized conversion of NO2 on the surface increases the daytime modelled HONO to 0.1 ppbV, still leaving a significant missing daytime source. The missing HONO is plotted against a series of parameters including NO2 and OH reactivity (used as a proxy for organic material, with little correlation seen. Much better correlation is observed with the product of these species with j(NO2, in particular NO2 and the product of NO2 with OH reactivity. This suggests the missing HONO source is in some way related to NO2 and also requires sunlight. Increasing the photosensitized surface conversion rate of NO2 by a

  20. Using 137Cs and 210Pbex and other sediment source fingerprints to document suspended sediment sources in small forested catchments in south-central Chile

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Schuller, P.; Walling, D.E.; Iroumé, A.; Quilodrán, C.; Castillo, A.; Navas, A.

    2013-01-01

    A study of the impact of forest harvesting operations on sediment mobilization from forested catchments has been undertaken in south-central Chile. The study focused on two sets of small paired catchments (treatment and control), with similar soil type, but contrasting mean annual rainfall, located about 400 km apart at Nacimiento (1200 mm yr −1 ) and Los Ulmos (2500 mm yr −1 ). The objective was to study the changes in the relative contribution of the primary sources of fine sediment caused by forestry operations. Attention focused on the pre-harvest and post-harvest periods and the post-replanting period was included for the Nacimiento treatment catchment. The sediment source fingerprinting technique was used to document the contributions of the potential sources. Emphasis was placed on discriminating between the forest slopes, forest roads and channel erosion as potential sources of fine sediment and on assessing the relative contributions of these three sources to the sediment yield from the catchments. The fallout radionuclides (FRNs) 137 Cs and excess lead-210, the environmental radionuclides 226 Ra and 40 K and soil organic matter (SOM) were tested as possible fingerprints for discriminating between potential sediment sources. The Kruskal–Wallis test and discriminant function analysis were used to guide the selection of the optimum fingerprint set for each catchment and observation period. Either one or both of the FRNs were selected for inclusion in the optimum fingerprint for all datasets. The relative contribution of each sediment source to the target sediment load was estimated using the selected fingerprint properties, and a mixing model coupled with a Monte Carlo simulation technique that takes account of uncertainty in characterizing sediment source properties. The goodness of fit of the mixing model was tested by comparing the measured and simulated fingerprint properties for the target sediment samples. In the Nacimiento treatment catchment

  1. Source tagging modeling study of heavy haze episodes under complex regional transport processes over Wuhan megacity, Central China

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lu, Miaomiao; Tang, Xiao; Wang, Zifa; Gbaguidi, Alex; Liang, Shengwen; Hu, Ke; Wu, Lin; Wu, Huangjian; Huang, Zhen; Shen, Longjiao

    2017-01-01

    Wuhan as a megacity of Central China was suffering from severe particulate matter pollution according to previous observation studies, however, the mechanism behind the pollution formation especially the impact of regional chemical transport is still unclear. This study, carried out on the Nested Air Quality Prediction Modeling System (NAQPMS) coupled with an on-line source-tagging module, explores different roles regional transport had in two strong haze episodes over Wuhan in October 2014 and quantitatively assesses the contributions from local and regional sources to PM 2.5 concentration. Validation of predictions based on observations shows modeling system good skills in reproducing key meteorological and chemical features. The first short-time haze episode occurred on 12 October under strong northerly winds, with a hourly PM 2.5 peak of 180 μg m −3 , and was found to be caused primarily by the long-range transport from the northern regions, which contributed 60.6% of the episode's PM 2.5 concentration (versus a total of 32.7% from sources in and near Wuhan). The second episode lasted from the 15–20 October under stable regional large-scale synoptic conditions and weak winds, and had an hourly PM 2.5 peak of 231.0 μg m −3 . In this episode, both the long-distance transport from far regions and short-range transport from the Wuhan-cluster were the primary causes of the haze episode and account for 24.8% and 29.2% of the PM 2.5 concentration respectively. Therefore, regional transport acts as a crucial driver of haze pollution over Wuhan through not only long-range transfer of pollutants, but also short-range aerosol movement under specific meteorological conditions. The present findings highlight the important role of regional transport in urban haze formation and indicate that the joint control of multi city-clusters are needed to reduce the particulate pollution level in Wuhan. - Highlights: • Regional transport impacts studied on two haze

  2. Spatio-Temporal Variations and Source Apportionment of Water Pollution in Danjiangkou Reservoir Basin, Central China

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pan Chen

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available Understanding the spatio-temporal variation and the potential source of water pollution could greatly improve our knowledge of human impacts on the environment. In this work, data of 11 water quality indices were collected during 2012–2014 at 10 monitoring sites in the mainstream and major tributaries of the Danjiangkou Reservoir Basin, Central China. The fuzzy comprehensive assessment (FCA, the cluster analysis (CA and the discriminant analysis (DA were used to assess the water pollution status and analyze its spatio-temporal variation. Ten sites were classified by the high pollution (HP region and the low pollution (LP region, while 12 months were divided into the wet season and the dry season. It was found that the HP region was mainly in the small tributaries with small drainage areas and low average annual discharges, and it was also found that most of these rivers went through urban areas with industrial and domestic sewages input into the water body. Principal component analysis/factor analysis (PCA/FA was applied to reveal potential pollution sources, whereas absolute principal component score-multiple linear regression (APCS-MLR was used to identify their contributions to each water quality variable. The study area was found as being generally affected by industrial and domestic sewage. Furthermore, the HP region was polluted by chemical industries, and the LP region was influenced by agricultural and livestock sewage.

  3. Connecting the dots between PubMed abstracts.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M Shahriar Hossain

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: There are now a multitude of articles published in a diversity of journals providing information about genes, proteins, pathways, and diseases. Each article investigates subsets of a biological process, but to gain insight into the functioning of a system as a whole, we must integrate information from multiple publications. Particularly, unraveling relationships between extra-cellular inputs and downstream molecular response mechanisms requires integrating conclusions from diverse publications. METHODOLOGY: We present an automated approach to biological knowledge discovery from PubMed abstracts, suitable for "connecting the dots" across the literature. We describe a storytelling algorithm that, given a start and end publication, typically with little or no overlap in content, identifies a chain of intermediate publications from one to the other, such that neighboring publications have significant content similarity. The quality of discovered stories is measured using local criteria such as the size of supporting neighborhoods for each link and the strength of individual links connecting publications, as well as global metrics of dispersion. To ensure that the story stays coherent as it meanders from one publication to another, we demonstrate the design of novel coherence and overlap filters for use as post-processing steps. CONCLUSIONS: WE DEMONSTRATE THE APPLICATION OF OUR STORYTELLING ALGORITHM TO THREE CASE STUDIES: i a many-one study exploring relationships between multiple cellular inputs and a molecule responsible for cell-fate decisions, ii a many-many study exploring the relationships between multiple cytokines and multiple downstream transcription factors, and iii a one-to-one study to showcase the ability to recover a cancer related association, viz. the Warburg effect, from past literature. The storytelling pipeline helps narrow down a scientist's focus from several hundreds of thousands of relevant documents to only

  4. Connecting the Dots between PubMed Abstracts

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hossain, M. Shahriar; Gresock, Joseph; Edmonds, Yvette; Helm, Richard; Potts, Malcolm; Ramakrishnan, Naren

    2012-01-01

    Background There are now a multitude of articles published in a diversity of journals providing information about genes, proteins, pathways, and diseases. Each article investigates subsets of a biological process, but to gain insight into the functioning of a system as a whole, we must integrate information from multiple publications. Particularly, unraveling relationships between extra-cellular inputs and downstream molecular response mechanisms requires integrating conclusions from diverse publications. Methodology We present an automated approach to biological knowledge discovery from PubMed abstracts, suitable for “connecting the dots” across the literature. We describe a storytelling algorithm that, given a start and end publication, typically with little or no overlap in content, identifies a chain of intermediate publications from one to the other, such that neighboring publications have significant content similarity. The quality of discovered stories is measured using local criteria such as the size of supporting neighborhoods for each link and the strength of individual links connecting publications, as well as global metrics of dispersion. To ensure that the story stays coherent as it meanders from one publication to another, we demonstrate the design of novel coherence and overlap filters for use as post-processing steps. Conclusions We demonstrate the application of our storytelling algorithm to three case studies: i) a many-one study exploring relationships between multiple cellular inputs and a molecule responsible for cell-fate decisions, ii) a many-many study exploring the relationships between multiple cytokines and multiple downstream transcription factors, and iii) a one-to-one study to showcase the ability to recover a cancer related association, viz. the Warburg effect, from past literature. The storytelling pipeline helps narrow down a scientist's focus from several hundreds of thousands of relevant documents to only around a hundred

  5. Implementation of warm-cloud processes in a source-oriented WRF/Chem model to study the effect of aerosol mixing state on fog formation in the Central Valley of California

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    H.-H. Lee

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available The source-oriented Weather Research and Forecasting chemistry model (SOWC was modified to include warm cloud processes and was applied to investigate how aerosol mixing states influence fog formation and optical properties in the atmosphere. SOWC tracks a 6-D chemical variable (X, Z, Y, size bins, source types, species through an explicit simulation of atmospheric chemistry and physics. A source-oriented cloud condensation nuclei module was implemented into the SOWC model to simulate warm clouds using the modified two-moment Purdue Lin microphysics scheme. The Goddard shortwave and long-wave radiation schemes were modified to interact with source-oriented aerosols and cloud droplets so that aerosol direct and indirect effects could be studied. The enhanced SOWC model was applied to study a fog event that occurred on 17 January 2011, in the Central Valley of California. Tule fog occurred because an atmospheric river effectively advected high moisture into the Central Valley and nighttime drainage flow brought cold air from mountains into the valley. The SOWC model produced reasonable liquid water path, spatial distribution and duration of fog events. The inclusion of aerosol–radiation interaction only slightly modified simulation results since cloud optical thickness dominated the radiation budget in fog events. The source-oriented mixture representation of particles reduced cloud droplet number relative to the internal mixture approach that artificially coats hydrophobic particles with hygroscopic components. The fraction of aerosols activating into cloud condensation nuclei (CCN at a supersaturation of 0.5 % in the Central Valley decreased from 94 % in the internal mixture model to 80 % in the source-oriented model. This increased surface energy flux by 3–5 W m−2 and surface temperature by as much as 0.25 K in the daytime.

  6. Trend Analysis of Studies on Water Fluoridation Related to Dental Caries in PubMed.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Oh, Hyo-Jung; Choi, Hyeon-Mi; Kim, Chonghyuck; Jeon, Jae-Gyu

    2018-04-04

    Water fluoridation has been cited as one of the top 10 public health achievements of the 20th century. Herein, we analyzed water fluoridation articles related to dental caries published in PubMed between 1950 and 2016 using informetrics and linguistic methods to investigate trends in the studies. To this aim, queries such as "dental caries and (water fluoridation or fluoridated water)," "dental caries and (fluoride or fluoridation)," and "dental caries" were submitted to PubMed to retrieve information about articles on water fluoridation within the area of dental caries and fluoride - their titles, abstracts, publication dates, author affiliations, and publication journals. This article information was then collected by an automatic web crawler and examined through informetrics and linguistic analyses. It was found that the number of articles concerned with water fluoridation and dental caries was 3,381 and declined over time after 1970. The articles were published by 750 journals - most notably, Community Dentistry and Oral Epidemiology and Caries Research. With regard to the geographic distribution of the authors, Europe and North America, especially the USA and UK, accounted for 59.9% of the articles published during the years 1987 to 2015, though there was a sharp increase in the number of authors in Oceania and Asia in recent years. In the titles and abstracts of the articles, "community" and "fluorosis" were mentioned more frequently than the other key terms selected in this study, regardless of the period examined. Our findings may allow one to assess how the research on water fluoridation has evolved over the past several decades. © 2018 S. Karger AG, Basel.

  7. Evidence-based measures to prevent central line-associated bloodstream infections: a systematic review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Perin, Daniele Cristina; Erdmann, Alacoque Lorenzini; Higashi, Giovana Dorneles Callegaro; Sasso, Grace Teresinha Marcon Dal

    2016-09-01

    to identify evidence-based care to prevent CLABSI among adult patients hospitalized in ICUs. systematic review conducted in the following databases: PubMed, Scopus, Cinahl, Web of Science, Lilacs, Bdenf and Cochrane Studies addressing care and maintenance of central venous catheters, published from January 2011 to July 2014 were searched. The 34 studies identified were organized in an instrument and assessed by using the classification provided by the Joanna Briggs Institute. the studies presented care bundles including elements such as hand hygiene and maximal barrier precautions; multidimensional programs and strategies such as impregnated catheters and bandages and the involvement of facilities in and commitment of staff to preventing infections. care bundles coupled with education and the commitment of both staff and institutions is a strategy that can contribute to decreased rates of central line-associated bloodstream infections among adult patients hospitalized in intensive care units. identificar evidências de cuidados para prevenção de infecção de corrente sanguínea relacionada a cateter venoso central em pacientes adultos em Unidades de Terapia Intensiva. revisão Sistemática realizada por meio de busca nas bases de dados Pubmed, Scopus, Cinahl, Web of Science, Lilacs, Bdenf e Cochrane. Foram buscadas pesquisas com cuidados com a cateterização e manutenção do cateter venoso central, publicados de janeiro de 2011 a julho de 2014. Os 34 estudos incluídos foram organizados em um instrumento e avaliados por meio da classificação do The Joanna Briggs Institute. os estudos apresentaram bundles de cuidados com elementos como a higiene das mãos e precauções máximas de barreira; programas multidimensionais e estratégias como cateteres e curativos impregnados e o envolvimento da instituição e engajamento da equipe nos esforços para prevenção de infecção. os cuidados no formato de bundles aliados com a educação e engajamento da equipe e

  8. A Case Study on Sepsis Using PubMed and Deep Learning for Ontology Learning.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Arguello Casteleiro, Mercedes; Maseda Fernandez, Diego; Demetriou, George; Read, Warren; Fernandez Prieto, Maria Jesus; Des Diz, Julio; Nenadic, Goran; Keane, John; Stevens, Robert

    2017-01-01

    We investigate the application of distributional semantics models for facilitating unsupervised extraction of biomedical terms from unannotated corpora. Term extraction is used as the first step of an ontology learning process that aims to (semi-)automatic annotation of biomedical concepts and relations from more than 300K PubMed titles and abstracts. We experimented with both traditional distributional semantics methods such as Latent Semantic Analysis (LSA) and Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) as well as the neural language models CBOW and Skip-gram from Deep Learning. The evaluation conducted concentrates on sepsis, a major life-threatening condition, and shows that Deep Learning models outperform LSA and LDA with much higher precision.

  9. Persistent Pb Pollution in Central East Antarctic Snow: A Retrospective Assessment of Sources and Control Policy Implications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chang, Chaewon; Han, Changhee; Han, Yeongcheol; Hur, Soon Do; Lee, Sanghee; Motoyama, Hideaki; Hou, Shugui; Hong, Sungmin

    2016-11-15

    Well-defined variations in the enrichments and isotopic compositions of Pb have been observed in snow from Dome Fuji and Dome A in the central East Antarctic Plateau (EAP) over the past few decades. The Pb isotopic fingerprints indicate that the rapid increase in Pb enrichments from the mid-1970s, reaching a peak in ∼1980, is due to the massive use of leaded gasoline in northern South America, especially Brazil. Since then, they show a continuous decline, mostly due to the significant removal of the Pb additives from gasoline in Brazil in the 1980s and, subsequently, in Argentina and Chile in the 1990s. After the phase-out of Pb in gasoline, Cu smelting in Chile has become the major source of Pb, contributing ∼90% to the total Pb emissions in northern South America in 2005. Nevertheless, Pb pollution in the central EAP declined substantially until recently as a result of the regulatory efforts to curb toxic trace metal emissions from the Cu industry in Chile. However, more than 90% of the Pb in the most remote places on Earth are still of anthropogenic origin, highlighting the need for the continuation of environmental regulations for the further reduction of Pb emissions.

  10. Allometric Scaling and Central Source Systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dreyer, Olaf

    2001-01-01

    Allometric scaling relations abound in nature. Examples include the power law relating the metabolic rate of animals and plants to their masses and the power law describing the dependence of the size of the drainage basin of a river on the total amount of water contained in that river. The exponent is of the form D/D+1 , where D is the dimension of the system. We show that this scaling exponent is simply a consequence of the source distribution of the systems considered and requires no further assumptions. To demonstrate the wide range of validity of the result we present a simple experiment that shows the predicted behavior in one dimension

  11. Bibliometrics analysis of the PubMed literatures on low-dose CT

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang Qian; Xia Guanghui; Ma Xiaohong; Zhao Xinming

    2012-01-01

    Objective: The purposes of this study were to evaluate the developmental rule and feature in low-dose CT examinations and to provide useful references for study in the future. Materials and Methods: The journal articles on PubMed from 2002 to 2011 were processed by Thomson Data Analyzer and five aspects were analysed: time, authors, institutions, journals, countries, and keywords. Results: The number of journal articles in low-dose CT examinations were 6 433, 3165 were from US (49.2%), 112 from China (1.4%); 3664 authors (80.42%) published only one article, the famous authors published more than 4 articles; there were 9 core journals in this area. In the last decade, the number and quality of the journal articles in low -dose CT have been dramatically increased. Conclusion: The interest on the low -dose CT examination has been steadily increasing, and world famous research teams have been established. The research in low-dose CT is a multi-discipline involving medicine, medical physics, and mathematics. Cooperation between multiple scientific domains is needed for the future studies. (authors)

  12. Source, variability, and transformation of nitrate in a regional karst aquifer: Edwards aquifer, central Texas

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Musgrove, M., E-mail: mmusgrov@usgs.gov [U.S. Geological Survey, 1505 Ferguson Lane, Austin, TX 78754 (United States); Opsahl, S.P. [U.S. Geological Survey, 5563 DeZavala, Ste. 290, San Antonio, TX 78249 (United States); Mahler, B.J. [U.S. Geological Survey, 1505 Ferguson Lane, Austin, TX 78754 (United States); Herrington, C. [City of Austin Watershed Protection Department, Austin, TX 78704 (United States); Sample, T.L. [U.S. Geological Survey, 19241 David Memorial Dr., Ste. 180, Conroe, TX 77385 (United States); Banta, J.R. [U.S. Geological Survey, 5563 DeZavala, Ste. 290, San Antonio, TX 78249 (United States)

    2016-10-15

    Many karst regions are undergoing rapid population growth and expansion of urban land accompanied by increases in wastewater generation and changing patterns of nitrate (NO{sub 3}{sup −}) loading to surface and groundwater. We investigate variability and sources of NO{sub 3}{sup −} in a regional karst aquifer system, the Edwards aquifer of central Texas. Samples from streams recharging the aquifer, groundwater wells, and springs were collected during 2008–12 from the Barton Springs and San Antonio segments of the Edwards aquifer and analyzed for nitrogen (N) species concentrations and NO{sub 3}{sup −} stable isotopes (δ{sup 15}N and δ{sup 18}O). These data were augmented by historical data collected from 1937 to 2007. NO{sub 3}{sup −} concentrations and discharge data indicate that short-term variability (days to months) in groundwater NO{sub 3}{sup −} concentrations in the Barton Springs segment is controlled by occurrence of individual storms and multi-annual wet-dry cycles, whereas the lack of short-term variability in groundwater in the San Antonio segment indicates the dominance of transport along regional flow paths. In both segments, longer-term increases (years to decades) in NO{sub 3}{sup −} concentrations cannot be attributed to hydrologic conditions; rather, isotopic ratios and land-use change indicate that septic systems and land application of treated wastewater might be the source of increased loading of NO{sub 3}{sup −}. These results highlight the vulnerability of karst aquifers to NO{sub 3}{sup −} contamination from urban wastewater. An analysis of N-species loading in recharge and discharge for the Barton Springs segment during 2008–10 indicates an overall mass balance in total N, but recharge contains higher concentrations of organic N and lower concentrations of NO{sub 3}{sup −} than does discharge, consistent with nitrification of organic N within the aquifer and consumption of dissolved oxygen. This study demonstrates

  13. Source, variability, and transformation of nitrate in a regional karst aquifer: Edwards aquifer, central Texas

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Musgrove, M.; Opsahl, S.P.; Mahler, B.J.; Herrington, C.; Sample, T.L.; Banta, J.R.

    2016-01-01

    Many karst regions are undergoing rapid population growth and expansion of urban land accompanied by increases in wastewater generation and changing patterns of nitrate (NO 3 − ) loading to surface and groundwater. We investigate variability and sources of NO 3 − in a regional karst aquifer system, the Edwards aquifer of central Texas. Samples from streams recharging the aquifer, groundwater wells, and springs were collected during 2008–12 from the Barton Springs and San Antonio segments of the Edwards aquifer and analyzed for nitrogen (N) species concentrations and NO 3 − stable isotopes (δ 15 N and δ 18 O). These data were augmented by historical data collected from 1937 to 2007. NO 3 − concentrations and discharge data indicate that short-term variability (days to months) in groundwater NO 3 − concentrations in the Barton Springs segment is controlled by occurrence of individual storms and multi-annual wet-dry cycles, whereas the lack of short-term variability in groundwater in the San Antonio segment indicates the dominance of transport along regional flow paths. In both segments, longer-term increases (years to decades) in NO 3 − concentrations cannot be attributed to hydrologic conditions; rather, isotopic ratios and land-use change indicate that septic systems and land application of treated wastewater might be the source of increased loading of NO 3 − . These results highlight the vulnerability of karst aquifers to NO 3 − contamination from urban wastewater. An analysis of N-species loading in recharge and discharge for the Barton Springs segment during 2008–10 indicates an overall mass balance in total N, but recharge contains higher concentrations of organic N and lower concentrations of NO 3 − than does discharge, consistent with nitrification of organic N within the aquifer and consumption of dissolved oxygen. This study demonstrates that subaqueous nitrification of organic N in the aquifer, as opposed to in soils, might be a

  14. Central European gas market perspectives

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vanous, Jan

    1999-01-01

    This presentation deals with (1) Definition of the Central European market, (2) Factors driving up consumption of natural gas in Central and Eastern Europe, (3) Role of natural gas in regional energy consumption, (4) Position of natural gas in individual country markets, (5) Future sources of imported natural gas into the region. The Central European market are the eleven countries Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Serbia and Montenegro, Slovakia, and Slovenia, with a total population of 121 million. This market is comparable to combined France and Italy in terms of population, but only 30% of its size in terms of GDP

  15. Information management and complementary alternative medicine: the anatomy of information about CAMs through PubMed.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Corrao, Salvatore; Argano, Christiano; Colomba, Daniela; Ippolito, Calogero; Gargano, Vincenzo; Arcoraci, Vincenzo; Licata, Giuseppe

    2013-10-01

    In recent years, there has been a growing interest about complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), and the use of CAM interventions has become more common among people. For these reasons, health professionals must be able to effectively manage information in this field of knowledge according to an evidence-based point of view. This study assessed the anatomy of the available information about CAMs using PubMed, to give practical instructions to manage information in this field. We also analyzed the anatomy of information according to each alternative medicine branch, narrow and broad search methods, subset filters for indexed-for-Medline and non-indexed citations, and different publication types including randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and meta-analyses. Our results demonstrated that the use of CAMs subset (supplied by PubMed search engine) leads to a great number of citations determining an information overload. Our data reveal that it would be more useful to search for the CAM separately, identifying specific items and study design. Moreover, we found the largest number of randomized clinical trials and meta-analyses related to herbal medicine and acupuncture, neither RCTs nor meta-analyses were available for bach and flower remedies, auriculoacupuncture, iridology, and pranotherapy. For the first time, our study gives a comprehensive view of the anatomy of information regarding CAMs and each branch of them. We suggest a methodological approach to face with searching information about this emerging issue from an evidence-based point of view. Finally, our data pointed out some "grey zones" since neither RCTs nor meta-analyses were available for some CAMs.

  16. What is covered by "cancer rehabilitation" in PubMed? A review of randomized controlled trials 1990-2011.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gudbergsson, Sævar Berg; Dahl, Alv A; Loge, Jon Håvard; Thorsen, Lene; Oldervoll, Line M; Grov, Ellen K

    2015-02-01

    This focused review examines randomized controlled studies included by the term "cancer rehabilitation" in PubMed. The research questions concern the type of interventions performed and their methodological quality. Using the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) terms: neoplasm AND rehabilitation, all articles with randomized controlled studies that included adult cancer patients, written in English, were extracted from PubMed. Papers covering physical exercise, psychiatric/psychological treatment or social support only were excluded as they had been reviewed recently. Abstracts and papers were assessed by 3 pairs of reviewers, and descriptive information was extracted systematically. Methodological quality was rated on a 10-item index scale, and the cut-off for acceptable quality was set at ≥ 8. A total of 132 (19%) of the 683 identified papers met the eligibility criteria and were assessed in detail. The papers were grouped into 5 thematic categories: 44 physical; 15 art and expressive; 47 psycho-educative; 21 emotionally supportive; and 5 others. Good quality of design was observed in 32 studies, 18 of them uni-dimensional and 14 multi-dimensional. Published randomized controlled studies on cancer rehabilitation are heterogeneous in terms of content and samples, and are mostly characterized by suboptimal design quality. Future studies should be more specific and well-designed with sufficient statistical strength.

  17. Source-to-Sink constraints on tectonic and sedimentary evolution of the Central Range, Cenderawasih Bay (Indonesia) and Gulf of Papua (Papua New Guinea)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Babault, J.; Viaplana-Muzas, M.; Legrand, X.; Van Den Driessche, J.; González-Quijano, M.; Mudd, S. M.; Kergaravat, C.; Ringenbach, J. C.; Callot, J. P.; Vetel, W.; Dhont, D.

    2017-12-01

    The island of Papua New Guinea is the result of continent-arc collision that began building the island's Central Range during the late Miocene. The tectono-sedimentary evolution of the Cenderawasih Bay, in the northwestern part of the island of Papua New Guinea (Indonesia), which links the Kepala Burung block to the Central Range is still poorly understood. Previous studies have shown that this bay contains a thick (> 8 km) sequence of undated sediments. Hypothesis claim that the embayment resulted from a 3 Ma aperture created by anticlockwise rotation of the Kepala Burung block with respect to the northern rim of the Australian plate, or from the southwest drift of a slice of volcanics/oceanic crust between 8 and 6 Ma. Using a source-to-sink approach, based on i) a geomorphologic analysis of the drainage network dynamics, ii) a reassessment of available thermochronological data, and iii) seismic lines interpretation, we suggest that sediments started to accumulate in the Cenderawasih Bay and onshore in the Waipoga Basin in the late Miocene since the beginning of the Central Range building at 12 Ma, resulting in sediment accumulation of up to 12200 m. At first order, we predict that infilling is mainly composed of siliciclastics sourced in the graphite-bearing Ruffaer Metamorphic Belt and its equivalent in the Weyland Overthrust. From the unroofing paths in the Central Range we deduce two rates of solid phase accumulation (SPAR) since 12 Ma, the first one at a mean SPAR ranging between 0.12-0.25 mm/a with a maximum SPAR of 0.23-0.58 mm/a, and the second during the last 3 Ma, at a mean SPAR ranging between 0.93-1.62 mm/a and with a maximum SPAR between 2.13-3.17 mm/a, i.e., 6700-10000 m of Plio-Pleistocene sediment accumulation. Local transtensional tectonics may explain these unusually high rates of sedimentation in an overall sinistral oblique convergence setting. We further extended this approach to the Gulf of Papua (Papua New Guinea), a foreland basin developed

  18. Wishing away Plagiarism in Scientific Publications! Will it work? A situational analysis of Plagiarism policy of journals in PubMed.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Debnath, Jyotindu; Cariappa, M P

    2018-04-01

    Plagiarism remains a scourge for the modern academia. There are inconsistencies in the plagiarism policy scientific journals. The aims of this study was to analyze types of published articles on 'Plagiarism' available on PubMed over last two decades against a backdrop of the plagiarism policy of the journals publishing such articles. A literature search on PubMed (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed) was made using the search term "plagiarism" from 01 January 1997 till 29 March 17. All publications having 'plagiarism' in the title formed the study group. The following were noted: types of articles published, ethical and plagiarism policy of the journal as available in the Instructions to authors and or in the journal home page. A total of 582 publications from 320 journals were studied. Editorials (165, 28.3%) and Letters to the Editor (159, 27.3%) formed the bulk. Research articles (56, 9.6%), Review articles (51, 8.7%) and Commentaries (47, 8%) formed the remainder. Detailed ethical guidelines were present in 221 (69%). Outline ethical guidelines only were present in 15 (4.7%) journals. 49 (15.3%) journals did not have any ethical guidelines. Detailed description of the policy on plagiarism was found in 80 (25%) journals. Only an outline description was found in 29 (9%) journals while a plagiarism policy/statement was totally absent in 176 (55%) journals. There is a need to have a well defined plagiarism policy/statement for all scholarly journals easily visible on their home pages on the internet and also in their Instructions to Authors.

  19. Diffusion Tensor Imaging of Central Auditory Pathways in Patients with Sensorineural Hearing Loss: A Systematic Review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tarabichi, Osama; Kozin, Elliott D; Kanumuri, Vivek V; Barber, Samuel; Ghosh, Satra; Sitek, Kevin R; Reinshagen, Katherine; Herrmann, Barbara; Remenschneider, Aaron K; Lee, Daniel J

    2018-03-01

    Objective The radiologic evaluation of patients with hearing loss includes computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to highlight temporal bone and cochlear nerve anatomy. The central auditory pathways are often not studied for routine clinical evaluation. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) is an emerging MRI-based modality that can reveal microstructural changes in white matter. In this systematic review, we summarize the value of DTI in the detection of structural changes of the central auditory pathways in patients with sensorineural hearing loss. Data Sources PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane. Review Methods We used the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis statement checklist for study design. All studies that included at least 1 sensorineural hearing loss patient with DTI outcome data were included. Results After inclusion and exclusion criteria were met, 20 articles were analyzed. Patients with bilateral hearing loss comprised 60.8% of all subjects. Patients with unilateral or progressive hearing loss and tinnitus made up the remaining studies. The auditory cortex and inferior colliculus (IC) were the most commonly studied regions using DTI, and most cases were found to have changes in diffusion metrics, such as fractional anisotropy, compared to normal hearing controls. Detectable changes in other auditory regions were reported, but there was a higher degree of variability. Conclusion White matter changes based on DTI metrics can be seen in patients with sensorineural hearing loss, but studies are few in number with modest sample sizes. Further standardization of DTI using a prospective study design with larger sample sizes is needed.

  20. Tracking the 10Be–26Al source-area signal in sediment-routing systems of arid central Australia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. Struck

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available Sediment-routing systems continuously transfer information and mass from eroding source areas to depositional sinks. Understanding how these systems alter environmental signals is critical when it comes to inferring source-area properties from the sedimentary record. We measure cosmogenic 10Be and 26Al along three large sediment-routing systems ( ∼  100 000 km2 in central Australia with the aim of tracking downstream variations in 10Be–26Al inventories and identifying the factors responsible for these variations. By comparing 56 new cosmogenic 10Be and 26Al measurements in stream sediments with matching data (n =  55 from source areas, we show that 10Be–26Al inventories in hillslope bedrock and soils set the benchmark for relative downstream modifications. Lithology is the primary determinant of erosion-rate variations in source areas and despite sediment mixing over hundreds of kilometres downstream, a distinct lithological signal is retained. Post-orogenic ranges yield catchment erosion rates of  ∼  6–11 m Myr−1 and silcrete-dominant areas erode as slow as  ∼  0.2 m Myr−1. 10Be–26Al inventories in stream sediments indicate that cumulative-burial terms increase downstream to mostly  ∼  400–800 kyr and up to  ∼  1.1 Myr. The magnitude of the burial signal correlates with increasing sediment cover downstream and reflects assimilation from storages with long exposure histories, such as alluvial fans, desert pavements, alluvial plains, and aeolian dunes. We propose that the tendency for large alluvial rivers to mask their 10Be–26Al source-area signal differs according to geomorphic setting. Signal preservation is favoured by (i high sediment supply rates, (ii high mean runoff, and (iii a thick sedimentary basin pile. Conversely, signal masking prevails in landscapes of (i low sediment supply and (ii juxtaposition of sediment storages with notably different exposure

  1. Use of positive and negative words in scientific PubMed abstracts between 1974 and 2014 : retrospective analysis

    OpenAIRE

    Vinkers, Christiaan H; Tijdink, Joeri K; Otte, Willem M

    2015-01-01

    OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether language used in science abstracts can skew towards the use of strikingly positive and negative words over time. DESIGN: Retrospective analysis of all scientific abstracts in PubMed between 1974 and 2014. METHODS: The yearly frequencies of positive, negative, and neutral words (25 preselected words in each category), plus 100 randomly selected words were normalised for the total number of abstracts. Subanalyses included pattern quantification of individual wo...

  2. The Central Trigger Processor (CTP)

    CERN Multimedia

    Franchini, Matteo

    2016-01-01

    The Central Trigger Processor (CTP) receives trigger information from the calorimeter and muon trigger processors, as well as from other sources of trigger. It makes the Level-1 decision (L1A) based on a trigger menu.

  3. Stable Isotopes of Nitrogen in Fossil Cladoceran Exoskeletons: Implications for Nitrogen Sources in the Central Baltic Sea During the Past Century

    Science.gov (United States)

    Struck, Ulrich; Voss, Maren; von Bodungen, Bodo; Mumm, Nicolai

    The ratios of stable nitrogen isotopes were analysed in zooplankton exoskeletons extracted from dated sediment cores from the Gotland Basin of the central Baltic Sea. Combined with results on δ15N of bulk sediment, organic carbon concentrations, and abundances of exoskeletons of Bosminalongispinamaritima in the sediment, the data are used to evaluate significant sources of nitrogen in the food web over the past century. Nitrogen isotopic composition of bulk sediments ranges from 2.5 to 4.5ö, that of exokeletons varies between 0.4 and 6.2ö. The two are positively correlated. A marked increase in the abundance of Bosmina since 1965 (from less than 500 specimen to more than 5000 specimencm3 of sediment) is correlated with a significant increase in sedimentary organic carbon concentrations (from 4% to more than 10%). The isotopic data do not identify increased land-derived nitrate as the dominant nitrogen source fuelling the increase. Instead, we postulate that nitrogen fixation by diazotrophic bacteria has been one of the larger sources of nitrogen in the Baltic Sea, as it is today.

  4. A SITELLE view of M31's central region - I. Calibrations and radial velocity catalogue of nearly 800 emission-line point-like sources

    Science.gov (United States)

    Martin, Thomas B.; Drissen, Laurent; Melchior, Anne-Laure

    2018-01-01

    We present a detailed description of the wavelength, astrometric and photometric calibration plan for SITELLE, the imaging Fourier transform spectrometer attached to the Canada-France-Hawaii telescope, based on observations of a red (647-685 nm) data cube of the central region (11 arcmin × 11 arcmin) of M 31. The first application, presented in this paper is a radial-velocity catalogue (with uncertainties of ∼2-6 km s-1) of nearly 800 emission-line point-like sources, including ∼450 new discoveries. Most of the sources are likely planetary nebulae, although we also detect five novae (having erupted in the first eight months of 2016) and one new supernova remnant candidate.

  5. Source-circuit design overview

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ross, R. G., Jr.

    1983-01-01

    The source circuit is the fundamental electrical building block of a large central-station array; it consists of a series-parallel network of solar cells that develops full system voltage. The array field is generally made up of a large number of parallel source circuits. Source-circuit electrical configuration is driven by a number of design considerations, which must be considered simultaneously. Array fault tolerance and hot spot heating endurance are examined in detail.

  6. Alternative food sources and overwintering feeding behavior of the boll weevil, Anthonomus grandis boheman (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) under the tropical conditions of Central Brazil.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ribeiro, Paulina de A; Sujii, Edison R; Diniz, Ivone R; Medeiros, Maria A de; Salgado-Labouriau, Maria L; Branco, Marina C; Pires, Carmen S S; Fontes, Eliana M G

    2010-01-01

    The boll weevil causes serious damage to the cotton crop in South America. Several studies have been published on this pest, but its phenology and behavior under the tropical conditions prevailing in Brazil are not well-known. In this study the feeding behavior and main food sources of adult boll weevils throughout the year in Central Brazil was investigated. The digestive tract contents of insects captured in pheromone traps in two cotton fields and two areas of native vegetation (gallery forest and cerrado sensu stricto) were analyzed. The insect was captured all through the year only in the cerrado. It fed on pollen of 19 different plant families, on Pteridophyta and fungi spores and algae cysts. Simpson Index test showed that the cerrado provided greater diversity of pollen sources. In the beginning of the cotton cycle, the plant families used for pollen feeding were varied: in cotton area 1, the weevil fed on Poaceae(50%), Malvaceae and Smilacaceae (25% each); in cotton area 2 the pollen sources were Malvaceae (50%), Asteraceae (25%) and Fabaceae and Clusiaceae (25% each); in the cerrado they were Chenopodiaceae (67%) and Scheuchzeriaceae (33%). No weevils were collected in the gallery forest in this period. After cotton was harvested, the family Smilacaceae was predominant among the food plants exploited in all the study areas. These results help to explain the survivorship of adult boll weevil during cotton fallow season in Central Brazil and they are discussed in the context of behavioral adaptations to the prevailing tropical environmental conditions.

  7. Shifting Sands: Science Researchers on Google Scholar, Web of Science, and PubMed, with Implications for Library Collections Budgets

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hightower, Christy; Caldwell, Christy

    2010-01-01

    Science researchers at the University of California Santa Cruz were surveyed about their article database use and preferences in order to inform collection budget choices. Web of Science was the single most used database, selected by 41.6%. Statistically there was no difference between PubMed (21.5%) and Google Scholar (18.7%) as the second most…

  8. The impact of moisture sources on the oxygen isotope composition of precipitation at a continental site in central Europe

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krklec, Kristina; Domínguez-Villar, David; Lojen, Sonja

    2018-06-01

    The stable isotope composition of precipitation records processes taking place within the hydrological cycle. Potentially, moisture sources are important controls on the stable isotope composition of precipitation, but studies focused on this topic are still scarce. We studied the moisture sources contributing to precipitation at Postojna (Slovenia) from 2009 to 2013. Back trajectory analyses were computed for the days with precipitation at Postojna. The moisture uptake locations were identified along these trajectories using standard hydrometeorological formulation. The moisture uptake locations were integrated in eight source regions to facilitate its comparison to the monthly oxygen isotope composition (δ18O values) of precipitation. Nearly half of the precipitation originated from continental sources (recycled moisture), and >40% was from central and western Mediterranean. Results show that moisture sources do not have a significant impact on the oxygen isotope composition at this site. We suggest that the large proportion of recycled moisture originated from transpiration rather than evaporation, which produced water vapour with less negative δ18O values. Thus the difference between the oceanic and local vapour source was reduced, which prevented the distinction of the moisture sources based on their oxygen isotope signature. Nevertheless, δ18O values of precipitation are partially controlled by climate parameters, which is of major importance for paleoclimate studies. We found that the main climate control on Postojna δ18O values of precipitation is the surface temperature. Amount effect was not recorded at this site, and the winter North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) does not impact the δ18O values of precipitation. The Western Mediterranean Oscillation (WeMO) was correlated to oxygen stable isotope composition, although this atmospheric pattern was not a control. Instead we found that the link to δ18O values results from synoptic scenarios affecting We

  9. PubMed-EX: a web browser extension to enhance PubMed search with text mining features.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tsai, Richard Tzong-Han; Dai, Hong-Jie; Lai, Po-Ting; Huang, Chi-Hsin

    2009-11-15

    PubMed-EX is a browser extension that marks up PubMed search results with additional text-mining information. PubMed-EX's page mark-up, which includes section categorization and gene/disease and relation mark-up, can help researchers to quickly focus on key terms and provide additional information on them. All text processing is performed server-side, freeing up user resources. PubMed-EX is freely available at http://bws.iis.sinica.edu.tw/PubMed-EX and http://iisr.cse.yzu.edu.tw:8000/PubMed-EX/.

  10. Dual-Source Swept-Source Optical Coherence Tomography Reconstructed on Integrated Spectrum

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shoude Chang

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Dual-source swept-source optical coherence tomography (DS-SSOCT has two individual sources with different central wavelengths, linewidth, and bandwidths. Because of the difference between the two sources, the individually reconstructed tomograms from each source have different aspect ratio, which makes the comparison and integration difficult. We report a method to merge two sets of DS-SSOCT raw data in a common spectrum, on which both data have the same spectrum density and a correct separation. The reconstructed tomographic image can seamlessly integrate the two bands of OCT data together. The final image has higher axial resolution and richer spectroscopic information than any of the individually reconstructed tomography image.

  11. Cupping Therapy May be Harmful for Eczema: A PubMed Search

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hon, Kam Lun E.; Luk, David Chi Kong; Leong, Kin Fon; Leung, Alexander K. C.

    2013-01-01

    Eczema is a common childhood atopic condition and treatment is with emollients, topical corticosteroids, and avoidance of possible triggers. S. aureus colonization is a common complication. As there is no immediate cure, many parents seek alternative therapies that claim unproven therapeutic efficacy. We report a girl with long history of treatment noncompliance. After practicing a long period of dietary avoidance and supplementation, the grandparents took her to an alternative medicine practitioner. Following cupping therapy and acupuncture, the child developed blistering and oozing over her back the next day, which rapidly evolved to two large irregular-edge deep ulcers. She was treated with intravenous antibiotics and received multidisciplinary supportive intervention. Using search words of  “cupping,” “eczema,” and “atopic dermatitis,” only two reports were found on PubMed. Therapeutic efficacy was claimed but not scientifically documented in these reports. Childhood eczema is an eminently treatable atopic disease. Extreme alternative therapy seems not to be efficacious and may even be associated with serious undesirable sequelae. Physicians should be aware of various alternative treatment modalities and be prepared to offer evidence-based advice to the patients with eczema and their families. PMID:24282650

  12. Cupping Therapy May be Harmful for Eczema: A PubMed Search

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kam Lun E. Hon

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Eczema is a common childhood atopic condition and treatment is with emollients, topical corticosteroids, and avoidance of possible triggers. S. aureus colonization is a common complication. As there is no immediate cure, many parents seek alternative therapies that claim unproven therapeutic efficacy. We report a girl with long history of treatment noncompliance. After practicing a long period of dietary avoidance and supplementation, the grandparents took her to an alternative medicine practitioner. Following cupping therapy and acupuncture, the child developed blistering and oozing over her back the next day, which rapidly evolved to two large irregular-edge deep ulcers. She was treated with intravenous antibiotics and received multidisciplinary supportive intervention. Using search words of  “cupping,” “eczema,” and “atopic dermatitis,” only two reports were found on PubMed. Therapeutic efficacy was claimed but not scientifically documented in these reports. Childhood eczema is an eminently treatable atopic disease. Extreme alternative therapy seems not to be efficacious and may even be associated with serious undesirable sequelae. Physicians should be aware of various alternative treatment modalities and be prepared to offer evidence-based advice to the patients with eczema and their families.

  13. Systematic identification of latent disease-gene associations from PubMed articles.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Yuji; Shen, Feichen; Mojarad, Majid Rastegar; Li, Dingcheng; Liu, Sijia; Tao, Cui; Yu, Yue; Liu, Hongfang

    2018-01-01

    Recent scientific advances have accumulated a tremendous amount of biomedical knowledge providing novel insights into the relationship between molecular and cellular processes and diseases. Literature mining is one of the commonly used methods to retrieve and extract information from scientific publications for understanding these associations. However, due to large data volume and complicated associations with noises, the interpretability of such association data for semantic knowledge discovery is challenging. In this study, we describe an integrative computational framework aiming to expedite the discovery of latent disease mechanisms by dissecting 146,245 disease-gene associations from over 25 million of PubMed indexed articles. We take advantage of both Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) modeling and network-based analysis for their capabilities of detecting latent associations and reducing noises for large volume data respectively. Our results demonstrate that (1) the LDA-based modeling is able to group similar diseases into disease topics; (2) the disease-specific association networks follow the scale-free network property; (3) certain subnetwork patterns were enriched in the disease-specific association networks; and (4) genes were enriched in topic-specific biological processes. Our approach offers promising opportunities for latent disease-gene knowledge discovery in biomedical research.

  14. Oxidation state inherited from the magma source and implications for mineralization: Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous granitoids, Central Lhasa subterrane, Tibet

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cao, MingJian; Qin, KeZhang; Li, GuangMing; Evans, Noreen J.; McInnes, Brent I. A.; Li, JinXiang; Zhao, JunXing

    2018-03-01

    Arc magmas are more oxidized than mid-ocean ridge basalts; however, there is continuing debate as to whether this higher oxidation state is inherited from the source magma or developed during late-stage magmatic differentiation processes. Well-constrained Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous arc-related intermediate to felsic rocks derived from distinct magma sources provide us with a good opportunity to resolve this enigma. A series of granitoids from the western Central Lhasa subterrane were analyzed for whole-rock magnetic susceptibility, Fe2O3/FeO ratios, and trace elements in zircon. Compared to Late Jurassic samples (1.8 ± 2.0 × 10-4 emu g-1 oe-1, Fe3+/Fetotal = 0.32 ± 0.07, zircon Ce4+/Ce3+* = 15.0 ± 13.4), Early Cretaceous rocks show higher whole-rock magnetic susceptibility (5.8 ± 2.5 × 10-4 emu g-1 oe-1), Fe3+/Fetotal ratios (0.43 ± 0.04), and zircon Ce4+/Ce3+* values (23.9 ± 22.3). In addition, positive correlations among whole-rock magnetic susceptibility, Fe3+/Fetotal ratios, and zircon Ce4+/Ce3+* reveal a slight increase in oxidation state from fO2 = QFM to NNO in the Late Jurassic to fO2 = ˜NNO in the Early Cretaceous. Obvious linear correlation between oxidation indices (whole-rock magnetic susceptibility, zircon Ce4+/Ce3+*) and source signatures (zircon ɛHf(t), TDM C ages) indicates that the oxidation state was predominantly inherited from the source with only a minor contribution from magmatic differentiation. Thus, the sources for both the Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous rocks were probably influenced by mantle wedge-derived magma, contributing to the increased fO2. Compared to ore-forming rocks at giant porphyry Cu deposits, the relatively low oxidation state (QFM to NNO) and negative ɛHf(t) (-16 to 0) of the studied granitoids implies relative infertility. However, this study demonstrates two potential fast and effective indices ( fO2 and ɛHf(t)) to evaluate the fertility of granitoids for porphyry-style mineralization. In an

  15. Transparency in ovarian cancer clinical trial results: ClinicalTrials.gov versus PubMed, Embase and Google scholar.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roberto, Anna; Radrezza, Silvia; Mosconi, Paola

    2018-04-10

    In recent years the question of the lack of transparency in clinical research has been debated by clinicians, researchers, citizens and their representatives, authors and publishers. This is particularly important for infrequent cancers such as ovarian cancer, where treatment still gives disappointing results in the majority of cases. Our aim was to assess the availability to the public of results in ClinicalTrials.gov, and the frequency of non-publication of results in ClinicalTrials.gov and in PubMed, Embase and Google Scholar. We collected all trials on ovarian cancer identified as "completed status" in the ClinicalTrials.gov registry on 17 January 2017. We checked the availability of the results in ClinicalTrials.gov and systematically identified published manuscripts on results. Out of 2725 trials on ovarian cancer identified, 752 were classified as "completed status". In those closed between 2008 and 2015, excluding phase I, the frequency of results in ClinicalTrials.gov was 35%. Of the 752 completed studies the frequency of published results in PubMed, Embase or Google Scholar ranged from 57.9% to 69.7% in the last years. These findings show a lack of transparency and credibility of research. Citizens or patients' representatives, with the medical community, should continuously support initiatives to improve the publication and dissemination of clinical study results.

  16. Interactive text mining with Pipeline Pilot: a bibliographic web-based tool for PubMed.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vellay, S G P; Latimer, N E Miller; Paillard, G

    2009-06-01

    Text mining has become an integral part of all research in the medical field. Many text analysis software platforms support particular use cases and only those. We show an example of a bibliographic tool that can be used to support virtually any use case in an agile manner. Here we focus on a Pipeline Pilot web-based application that interactively analyzes and reports on PubMed search results. This will be of interest to any scientist to help identify the most relevant papers in a topical area more quickly and to evaluate the results of query refinement. Links with Entrez databases help both the biologist and the chemist alike. We illustrate this application with Leishmaniasis, a neglected tropical disease, as a case study.

  17. Source, variability, and transformation of nitrate in a regional karst aquifer: Edwards aquifer, central Texas.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Musgrove, MaryLynn; Opsahl, Stephen P.; Mahler, Barbara J.; Herrington, Chris; Sample, Thomas; Banta, John

    2016-01-01

    Many karst regions are undergoing rapid population growth and expansion of urban land accompanied by increases in wastewater generation and changing patterns of nitrate (NO3−) loading to surface and groundwater. We investigate variability and sources of NO3− in a regional karst aquifer system, the Edwards aquifer of central Texas. Samples from streams recharging the aquifer, groundwater wells, and springs were collected during 2008–12 from the Barton Springs and San Antonio segments of the Edwards aquifer and analyzed for nitrogen (N) species concentrations and NO3− stable isotopes (δ15N and δ18O). These data were augmented by historical data collected from 1937 to 2007. NO3− concentrations and discharge data indicate that short-term variability (days to months) in groundwater NO3− concentrations in the Barton Springs segment is controlled by occurrence of individual storms and multi-annual wet-dry cycles, whereas the lack of short-term variability in groundwater in the San Antonio segment indicates the dominance of transport along regional flow paths. In both segments, longer-term increases (years to decades) in NO3− concentrations cannot be attributed to hydrologic conditions; rather, isotopic ratios and land-use change indicate that septic systems and land application of treated wastewater might be the source of increased loading of NO3−. These results highlight the vulnerability of karst aquifers to NO3− contamination from urban wastewater. An analysis of N-species loading in recharge and discharge for the Barton Springs segment during 2008–10 indicates an overall mass balance in total N, but recharge contains higher concentrations of organic N and lower concentrations of NO3−than does discharge, consistent with nitrification of organic N within the aquifer and consumption of dissolved oxygen. This study demonstrates that subaqueous nitrification of organic N in the aquifer, as opposed to in soils, might be a previously

  18. Long-term chemical analysis and organic aerosol source apportionment at nine sites in central Europe: source identification and uncertainty assessment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Daellenbach, Kaspar R.; Stefenelli, Giulia; Bozzetti, Carlo; Vlachou, Athanasia; Fermo, Paola; Gonzalez, Raquel; Piazzalunga, Andrea; Colombi, Cristina; Canonaco, Francesco; Hueglin, Christoph; Kasper-Giebl, Anne; Jaffrezo, Jean-Luc; Bianchi, Federico; Slowik, Jay G.; Baltensperger, Urs; El-Haddad, Imad; Prévôt, André S. H.

    2017-11-01

    Long-term monitoring of organic aerosol is important for epidemiological studies, validation of atmospheric models, and air quality management. In this study, we apply a recently developed filter-based offline methodology using an aerosol mass spectrometer (AMS) to investigate the regional and seasonal differences of contributing organic aerosol sources. We present offline AMS measurements for particulate matter smaller than 10 µm at nine stations in central Europe with different exposure characteristics for the entire year of 2013 (819 samples). The focus of this study is a detailed source apportionment analysis (using positive matrix factorization, PMF) including in-depth assessment of the related uncertainties. Primary organic aerosol (POA) is separated in three components: hydrocarbon-like OA related to traffic emissions (HOA), cooking OA (COA), and biomass burning OA (BBOA). We observe enhanced production of secondary organic aerosol (SOA) in summer, following the increase in biogenic emissions with temperature (summer oxygenated OA, SOOA). In addition, a SOA component was extracted that correlated with an anthropogenic secondary inorganic species that is dominant in winter (winter oxygenated OA, WOOA). A factor (sulfur-containing organic, SC-OA) explaining sulfur-containing fragments (CH3SO2+), which has an event-driven temporal behaviour, was also identified. The relative yearly average factor contributions range from 4 to 14 % for HOA, from 3 to 11 % for COA, from 11 to 59 % for BBOA, from 5 to 23 % for SC-OA, from 14 to 27 % for WOOA, and from 15 to 38 % for SOOA. The uncertainty of the relative average factor contribution lies between 2 and 12 % of OA. At the sites north of the alpine crest, the sum of HOA, COA, and BBOA (POA) contributes less to OA (POA / OA = 0.3) than at the southern alpine valley sites (0.6). BBOA is the main contributor to POA with 87 % in alpine valleys and 42 % north of the alpine crest. Furthermore, the influence of primary

  19. Geologic characterization of Cuvette Centrale petroleum systems Congo-DRC

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Vicentelli, Maria Gabriela C.; Barbosa, Mauro; Rezende, Nelio G.A.M. [HRT Petroleum, Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil)

    2008-07-01

    The Cuvette Centrale is an almost unexplored basin, which contains some petroleum system elements that indicate the presence of hydrocarbons. In this sense; this paper presents an exploratory alternative for this intracratonic basin. The interpretation of the limited gravimetric, magnetometric, geochemical and seismic available data allowed the identification of many huge structural features and also some areas with hydrocarbon potential for stratigraphic traps. The presence of several oil and gas seeps widespread around the Busira and Lokoro sub-basins indicate that at least one active petroleum system exist in the basin. Despite only four wells have been drilled in the basin, one of them presented oil shows during drilling. Geological correlations between Brazilian Paleozoic basins and Cuvette Centrale sedimentary sequences permitted to conclude that Cambro-Ordovician and Siluro-Devonian source rocks must be present and active in the Cuvette Centrale basin. The tectono-stratigraphic evolution history of the Cuvette Centrale from Neo proterozoic to Recent times shows extensional and compressional/transpressional alternating phases along the geological time. The most confident petroleum system expected in the Cuvette Centrale is characterized by the Cambrian Mamungi shale - source rock - and the Cambro-Ordovician. Upper Arenaceous Sequence - reservoirs, as observed in the MBandaka and Gilson wells and confirmed by surface geology in outcrops. Besides, other potential petroleum systems are expected to occur in the basin. One is characterized by the Neo proterozoic Itury Group source rock and reservoirs in the mature/over mature stage, the others are the Siluro-Devonian and Cretaceous source rocks and reservoirs, expected to occur with better maturity conditions only in the deeper parts of the basin. (author)

  20. The paredon, Mexico, obsidian source and early formative exchange.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Charlton, T H; Grove, D C; Hopke, P K

    1978-09-01

    In 1975, archeological surface surveys of trade routes located again a pre-Hispanic obsidian source in central Mexico first reported in 1902. Initial trace element studies of the Paredón source through an analysis by neutron activation have been compared with similar studies of the obsidian found at Chalcatzingo 150 kilometers from the source. These comparisons indicate that obsidian from Paredón, rather than Otumba, was of primary importance during the Early Formative in central Mexico.

  1. SOURCE APPORTIONMENT OF POLYCYCLIC AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS (PAHs) INTO CENTRAL PARK LAKE, NEW YORK CITY, OVER A CENTURY OF DEPOSITION

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yan, Beizhan; Bopp, Richard F.; Abrajano, Teofilo A.; Chaky, Damon; Chillrud, Steven N.

    2014-01-01

    Relative contributions of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from combustion sources of wood, petroleum, and coal were computed in sediments from Central Park Lake in New York City (NY, USA) by chemical mass balance based on several reliable source indicators. These indicators are the ratio of retene to the sum of retene and chrysene, the ratio of 1,7-dimethylphenanthrene (DMP) to 1,7-DMP and 2,6-DMP, and the ratio of fluroanthene to fluroanthene and pyrene. The authors found that petroleum combustion–derived PAH fluxes generally followed the historical consumption data of New York State. Coal combustion-derived PAH flux peaked approximately in the late 1910s, remained at a relatively high level over the next 3 decades, then rapidly declined from the 1950s to the 1960s; according to historical New York State coal consumption data, however, there was a 2-peak trend, with peaks around the early 1920s and the mid-1940s. The 1940s peak was not observed in Central Park Lake, most likely because of the well-documented shift from coal to oil as the major residential heating fuel in New York City during the late 1930s. It was widely believed that the decreased PAH concentrations and fluxes in global sediments during the last century resulted from a major energy shift from coal to petroleum. The data, however, show that this shift occurred from 1945 through the 1960s and did not result in an obvious decline. The sharpest decrease, which occurred in the 1970s was not predominantly related to coal usage but rather was the result of multiple factors, including a decline in petroleum usage largely, the introduction of low sulfur–content fuel in New York City, and the introduction of emission-control technologies. PMID:24375577

  2. Effects of N Fertilizer Sources and Tillage Practices on NH3 Volatilization, Grain Yield, and N Use Efficiency of Rice Fields in Central China

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tianqi Liu

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available Tillage practices and nitrogen (N sources are important factors affecting rice production. Few studies, however, have examined the interactions between tillage practices and N fertilizer sources on NH3 volatilization, nitrogen use efficiency (NUE, and rice grain yield. This study aimed to investigate the effects of N fertilizer sources (no N fertilizer, inorganic N fertilizer, organic N fertilizer alone, organic N fertilizer plus inorganic N fertilizer, and slow-release N fertilizer plus inorganic N fertilizer and tillage practices (no-tillage [NT] and conventional intensive tillage [CT] on NH3 flux, grain yield, and NUE in the rice field of central China. N sources significantly affected NH3 volatilization, as the cumulative volatilization from the treatments of inorganic N fertilizer, organic N fertilizer, organic N fertilizer plus inorganic N fertilizer, slow-release N fertilizer plus inorganic N fertilizer was 4.19, 2.13, 3.42, and 2.23 folds in 2013, and 2.49, 1.68, 2.08, and 1.85 folds in 2014 compared with that under no N fertilizer treatment, respectively. The organic N fertilizer treatment had the lowest grain yield and NUE among all N fertilizer treatments, while slow-release N fertilizer plus inorganic N fertilizer treatment led to relatively higher grain yield and the greatest N use efficiency. Moreover, NT only markedly increased NH3 volatilization from basal fertilizer by 10–14% in average compared with CT, but had no obvious effects on total volatilization during the whole seasons. Tillage practices had no significant effects on grain yield and NUE. Our study suggested that the combination of slow-release N fertilizer plus inorganic N fertilizer and NT might be a sustainable method for mitigating greenhouse gas and NH3 emissions and improving grain yield and NUE in paddy fields of central China.

  3. Effects of N Fertilizer Sources and Tillage Practices on NH3 Volatilization, Grain Yield, and N Use Efficiency of Rice Fields in Central China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Tianqi; Huang, Jinfeng; Chai, Kaibin; Cao, Cougui; Li, Chengfang

    2018-01-01

    Tillage practices and nitrogen (N) sources are important factors affecting rice production. Few studies, however, have examined the interactions between tillage practices and N fertilizer sources on NH 3 volatilization, nitrogen use efficiency (NUE), and rice grain yield. This study aimed to investigate the effects of N fertilizer sources (no N fertilizer, inorganic N fertilizer, organic N fertilizer alone, organic N fertilizer plus inorganic N fertilizer, and slow-release N fertilizer plus inorganic N fertilizer) and tillage practices (no-tillage [NT] and conventional intensive tillage [CT]) on NH 3 flux, grain yield, and NUE in the rice field of central China. N sources significantly affected NH 3 volatilization, as the cumulative volatilization from the treatments of inorganic N fertilizer, organic N fertilizer, organic N fertilizer plus inorganic N fertilizer, slow-release N fertilizer plus inorganic N fertilizer was 4.19, 2.13, 3.42, and 2.23 folds in 2013, and 2.49, 1.68, 2.08, and 1.85 folds in 2014 compared with that under no N fertilizer treatment, respectively. The organic N fertilizer treatment had the lowest grain yield and NUE among all N fertilizer treatments, while slow-release N fertilizer plus inorganic N fertilizer treatment led to relatively higher grain yield and the greatest N use efficiency. Moreover, NT only markedly increased NH 3 volatilization from basal fertilizer by 10-14% in average compared with CT, but had no obvious effects on total volatilization during the whole seasons. Tillage practices had no significant effects on grain yield and NUE. Our study suggested that the combination of slow-release N fertilizer plus inorganic N fertilizer and NT might be a sustainable method for mitigating greenhouse gas and NH 3 emissions and improving grain yield and NUE in paddy fields of central China.

  4. Using hydrogeology to identify the source of groundwater to Montezuma Well, a natural spring in central Arizona: part 1

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnson, Raymond H.; DeWitt, Ed H.; Arnold, L. Rick

    2012-01-01

    Montezuma Well is a natural spring located within a “sinkhole” in the desert environment of the Verde Valley in Central Arizona. It is managed by the National Park Service as part of Montezuma Castle National Monument. Because of increasing development of groundwater in the area, this research was undertaken to better understand the sources of groundwater to Montezuma Well. The use of well logs and geophysics provides details on the geology in the area around Montezuma Well. This includes characterizing the extent and position of a basalt dike that intruded a deep fracture zone. This low permeability barrier forces groundwater to the surface at the Montezuma Well “pool” with sufficient velocity to entrain sand-sized particles from underlying bedrock. Permeable fractures along and above the basalt dike provide conduits that carry deep sourced carbon dioxide to the surface, which can dissolve carbonate minerals along the transport path in response to the added carbon dioxide. At the ground surface, CO2 degasses, depositing travertine. Geologic cross sections, rock geochemistry, and semi-quantitative groundwater flow modeling provide a hydrogeologic framework that indicates groundwater flow through a karstic limestone at depth (Redwall Limestone) as the most significant source of groundwater to Montezuma Well. Additional groundwater flow from the overlying formations (Verde Formation and Permian Sandstones) is a possibility, but significant flow from these units is not indicated.

  5. What Are the Predictors of Altered Central Pain Modulation in Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain Populations? A Systematic Review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clark, Jacqui; Nijs, Jo; Yeowell, Gillian; Goodwin, Peter Charles

    2017-09-01

    Altered central pain modulation is the predominant pain mechanism in a proportion of chronic musculoskeletal pain disorders and is associated with poor outcomes. Although existing studies predict poor outcomes such as persistent pain and disability, to date there is little consensus on what factors specifically predict altered central pain modulation. To review the existing literature on the predictive factors specifically for altered central pain modulation in musculoskeletal pain populations. This is a systematic review in accordance with supplemented PRISMA guidelines. A systematic search was performed by 2 mutually blinded reviewers. Relevant articles were screened by title and abstract from Medline, Embase, PubMed, CINAHL, and Web of Science electronic databases. Alternative sources were also sought to locate missed potential articles. Eligibility included studies published in English, adults aged 18 to 65, musculoskeletal pain, baseline measurements taken at the pre-morbid or acute stage, > 3-month follow-up time after pain onset, and primary outcome measures specific to altered central pain modulation. Studies were excluded where there were concurrent diseases or they were non-predictive studies. Risk of bias was assessed using the quality in prognostic studies (QUIPS) tool. Study design, demographics, musculoskeletal region, inclusion/exclusion criteria, measurement timelines, predictor and primary outcome measures, and results were extracted. Data were synthesized qualitatively and strength of evidence was scored using the grading of recommendations, assessment, development, and evaluations (GRADE) scoring system. Nine eligible articles were located, in various musculoskeletal populations (whiplash, n = 2; widespread pain, n = 5; temporomandibular disorder, n = 2). Moderate evidence was found for 2 predictive factors of altered central pain modulation: 1) high sensory sensitivity (using genetic testing or quantitative sensory tests), and 2) psychological

  6. A cost-effective structure of a centralized-light-source WDM-PON utilizing inverse-duobinary-RZ downstream and DPSK upstream

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chen Long-Quan; Qiao Yao-Jun; Ji Yue-Feng

    2013-01-01

    In this paper, we propose a new structure of a centralized-light-source wavelength division multiplexed passive optical network (WDM-PON) utilizing inverse-duobinary-return-to-zero (inverse-duobinary-RZ) downstream and DPSK upstream. It reuses downstream light for the upstream modulation, which retrenches lasers assembled at each optical network unit (ONU), and ultimately cuts down the cost of ONUs a great deal. Meanwhile, a 50-km-reach WDM-PON experiment with 10-Gb/s inverse-duobinary-RZ downstream and 6-Gb/s DPSK upstream is demonstrated here. It is revealed to be a novel cost-effective alternative for the next generation access network. (electromagnetism, optics, acoustics, heat transfer, classical mechanics, and fluid dynamics)

  7. Within-plate Cenozoic Volcanism and Mantle Sources Within The Western-central Mediterranean Area

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beccaluva, L.; Bianchini, G.; Bonadiman, C.; Coltorti, M.; Siena, F.

    An integrated study of anorogenic basic magmas and entrained mantle xenoliths rep- resents a promising approach for a comprehension of the magmatogenic events occur- ring within the lithospheric mantle in the western-central Mediterranean area. In this contribution we review the geochemical characteristics of mafic lavas and associated peridotite xenoliths from three anorogenic volcanic districts: Pliocene-Quaternary vol- canism of Sardinia; Pliocene-Quaternary volcanism of the Iblean area (eastern Sicily); Paleocene-Oligocene Veneto Volcanic Province. Investigations have been focused on 1) petrological features of parental magmas, which may contribute to infer the com- positional characteristics of mantle sources and to constrain the modes of partial melt- ing; 2) modelling the depletion events and metasomatic enrichments in mantle xeno- liths of the three volcanic districts, as well as the nature of their causative agents. Petrological features and Sr-Nd-Pb isotopic data, both of lava and xenoliths, indicate that DM+HIMU components distinguish the lithospheric mantle sections of Iblean and Veneto Volcanic Provinces. On the other hand, lavas and xenoliths from Sardinia display a significant different isotopic signature characterised by DM+EM1. Similar geochemical fingerprints, i.e. the significant presence of EM components are gener- ally recorded by mafic lavas and mantle xenoliths from the European Plate, whereas they are not observed in the stable African lithospheric domain.

  8. [Use of information sources by recently graduated physicians of Lima].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mejia, Christian R; Caceres, Onice J; Vera, Claudia A; Nizama-Vía, Ayar; Curioso, Walter H; Mayta-Tristán, Percy

    2014-01-01

    In order to determine the use of information sources by recently graduated physicians of Lima, Peru in 2011, a survey was conducted among graduated physicians at seven universities. They were asked about the use of search engines in the health area during their year of medical internship [last year of medical school]. Regular use was defined as the source being used once a week or daily. For 490 respondents, regularly used information sources were SciELO, accessed by 173 (36.4%); PubMed 165 (34.4%); HINARI 117 (25.5%); UpToDate 98 (22.3%); Cochrane Library 94 (20.6%); LILACS 91 (19.8%); a hospital institutional library 70 (15.0%); LIPECS 39 (8.7%); and Peru BVS 42 (9.3%). Only a minority regularly accessed information sources related to health. It is necessary to improve capacity in the efficient use of various resources of scientific information in a continuous way and that reaches students and health professionals.

  9. Magnetic Data Interpretation for the Source-Edge Locations in Parts of the Tectonically Active Transition Zone of the Narmada-Son Lineament in Central India

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ghosh, G. K.

    2016-02-01

    The study has been carried out in the transition zone of the Narmada-Son lineament (NSL) which is seismically active with various geological complexities, upwarp movement of the mantle material into the crust through fault, fractures lamination and upwelling. NSL is one of the most prominent lineaments in central India after the Himalaya in the Indian geology. The area of investigation extends from longitude 80.25°E to 81.50°E and latitude 23.50°N to 24.37°N in the central part of the Indian continent. Different types of subsurface geological formations viz. alluvial, Gondwana, Deccan traps, Vindhyan, Mahakoshal, Granite and Gneisses groups exist in this area with varying geological ages. In this study area tectonic movement and crustal variation have been taken place during the past time and which might be reason for the variation of magnetic field. Magnetic anomaly suggests that the area has been highly disturbed which causes the Narmada-Son lineament trending in the ENE-WSW direction. Magnetic anomaly variation has been taken place due to the lithological variations subject to the changes in the geological contacts like thrusts and faults in this area. Shallow and deeper sources have been distinguished using frequency domain analysis by applying different filters. To enhance the magnetic data, various types of derivatives to identify the source-edge locations of the causative source bodies. The present study carried out the interpretation using total horizontal derivative, tilt angle derivative, horizontal tilt angle derivative and Cos (θ) derivative map to get source-edge locations. The results derived from various derivatives of magnetic data have been compared with the basement depth solutions calculated from 3D Euler deconvolution. It is suggested that total horizontal derivative, tilt angle derivative and Cos (θ) derivative are the most useful tools for identifying the multiple source edge locations of the causative bodies in this tectonically active

  10. Nursing identity and patient-centredness in scholarly health services research: a computational text analysis of PubMed abstracts 1986-2013.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bell, Erica; Campbell, Steve; Goldberg, Lynette R

    2015-01-22

    The most important and contested element of nursing identity may be the patient-centredness of nursing, though this concept is not well-treated in the nursing identity literature. More conceptually-based mapping of nursing identity constructs are needed to help nurses shape their identity. The field of computational text analytics offers new opportunities to scrutinise how growing disciplines such as health services research construct nursing identity. This paper maps the conceptual content of scholarly health services research in PubMed as it relates to the patient-centeredness of nursing. Computational text analytics software was used to analyse all health services abstracts in the database PubMed since 1986. Abstracts were treated as indicative of the content of health services research. The database PubMed was searched for all research papers using the term "service" or "services" in the abstract or keywords for the period 01/01/1986 to 30/06/2013. A total of 234,926 abstracts were obtained. Leximancer software was used in 1) mapping of 4,144,458 instances of 107 concepts; 2) analysis of 106 paired concept co-occurrences for the nursing concept; and 3) sentiment analysis of the nursing concept versus patient, family and community concepts, and clinical concepts. Nursing is constructed within quality assurance or service implementation or workforce development concepts. It is relatively disconnected from patient, family or community care concepts. For those who agree that patient-centredness should be a part of nursing identity in practice, this study suggests that there is a need for development of health services research into both the nature of the caring construct in nursing identity and its expression in practice. More fundamentally, the study raises questions about whether health services research cultures even value the politically popular idea of nurses as patient-centred caregivers and whether they should.

  11. PubMed search filters for the study of putative outdoor air pollution determinants of disease

    Science.gov (United States)

    Curti, Stefania; Gori, Davide; Di Gregori, Valentina; Farioli, Andrea; Baldasseroni, Alberto; Fantini, Maria Pia; Christiani, David C; Violante, Francesco S; Mattioli, Stefano

    2016-01-01

    Objectives Several PubMed search filters have been developed in contexts other than environmental. We aimed at identifying efficient PubMed search filters for the study of environmental determinants of diseases related to outdoor air pollution. Methods We compiled a list of Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) and non-MeSH terms seeming pertinent to outdoor air pollutants exposure as determinants of diseases in the general population. We estimated proportions of potentially pertinent articles to formulate two filters (one ‘more specific’, one ‘more sensitive’). Their overall performance was evaluated as compared with our gold standard derived from systematic reviews on diseases potentially related to outdoor air pollution. We tested these filters in the study of three diseases potentially associated with outdoor air pollution and calculated the number of needed to read (NNR) abstracts to identify one potentially pertinent article in the context of these diseases. Last searches were run in January 2016. Results The ‘more specific’ filter was based on the combination of terms that yielded a threshold of potentially pertinent articles ≥40%. The ‘more sensitive’ filter was based on the combination of all search terms under study. When compared with the gold standard, the ‘more specific’ filter reported the highest specificity (67.4%; with a sensitivity of 82.5%), while the ‘more sensitive’ one reported the highest sensitivity (98.5%; with a specificity of 47.9%). The NNR to find one potentially pertinent article was 1.9 for the ‘more specific’ filter and 3.3 for the ‘more sensitive’ one. Conclusions The proposed search filters could help healthcare professionals investigate environmental determinants of medical conditions that could be potentially related to outdoor air pollution. PMID:28003291

  12. PubMed search filters for the study of putative outdoor air pollution determinants of disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Curti, Stefania; Gori, Davide; Di Gregori, Valentina; Farioli, Andrea; Baldasseroni, Alberto; Fantini, Maria Pia; Christiani, David C; Violante, Francesco S; Mattioli, Stefano

    2016-12-21

    Several PubMed search filters have been developed in contexts other than environmental. We aimed at identifying efficient PubMed search filters for the study of environmental determinants of diseases related to outdoor air pollution. We compiled a list of Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) and non-MeSH terms seeming pertinent to outdoor air pollutants exposure as determinants of diseases in the general population. We estimated proportions of potentially pertinent articles to formulate two filters (one 'more specific', one 'more sensitive'). Their overall performance was evaluated as compared with our gold standard derived from systematic reviews on diseases potentially related to outdoor air pollution. We tested these filters in the study of three diseases potentially associated with outdoor air pollution and calculated the number of needed to read (NNR) abstracts to identify one potentially pertinent article in the context of these diseases. Last searches were run in January 2016. The 'more specific' filter was based on the combination of terms that yielded a threshold of potentially pertinent articles ≥40%. The 'more sensitive' filter was based on the combination of all search terms under study. When compared with the gold standard, the 'more specific' filter reported the highest specificity (67.4%; with a sensitivity of 82.5%), while the 'more sensitive' one reported the highest sensitivity (98.5%; with a specificity of 47.9%). The NNR to find one potentially pertinent article was 1.9 for the 'more specific' filter and 3.3 for the 'more sensitive' one. The proposed search filters could help healthcare professionals investigate environmental determinants of medical conditions that could be potentially related to outdoor air pollution. 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/.

  13. Procedures for central auditory processing screening in schoolchildren.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carvalho, Nádia Giulian de; Ubiali, Thalita; Amaral, Maria Isabel Ramos do; Santos, Maria Francisca Colella

    2018-03-22

    Central auditory processing screening in schoolchildren has led to debates in literature, both regarding the protocol to be used and the importance of actions aimed at prevention and promotion of auditory health. Defining effective screening procedures for central auditory processing is a challenge in Audiology. This study aimed to analyze the scientific research on central auditory processing screening and discuss the effectiveness of the procedures utilized. A search was performed in the SciELO and PUBMed databases by two researchers. The descriptors used in Portuguese and English were: auditory processing, screening, hearing, auditory perception, children, auditory tests and their respective terms in Portuguese. original articles involving schoolchildren, auditory screening of central auditory skills and articles in Portuguese or English. studies with adult and/or neonatal populations, peripheral auditory screening only, and duplicate articles. After applying the described criteria, 11 articles were included. At the international level, central auditory processing screening methods used were: screening test for auditory processing disorder and its revised version, screening test for auditory processing, scale of auditory behaviors, children's auditory performance scale and Feather Squadron. In the Brazilian scenario, the procedures used were the simplified auditory processing assessment and Zaidan's battery of tests. At the international level, the screening test for auditory processing and Feather Squadron batteries stand out as the most comprehensive evaluation of hearing skills. At the national level, there is a paucity of studies that use methods evaluating more than four skills, and are normalized by age group. The use of simplified auditory processing assessment and questionnaires can be complementary in the search for an easy access and low-cost alternative in the auditory screening of Brazilian schoolchildren. Interactive tools should be proposed, that

  14. Alternative food sources and over wintering feeding behavior of the boll weevil, Anthonomus grandis boheman (coleoptera: curculionidae) under the tropical conditions of central Brazil

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ribeiro, Paulina de A.; Sujii, Edison R.; Pires, Carmen S.S.; Fontes, Eliana M.G.; Diniz, Ivone R.; Salgado-Labouriau, Maria L.

    2010-01-01

    The boll weevil causes serious damage to the cotton crop in South America. Several studies have been published on this pest, but its phenology and behavior under the tropical conditions prevailing in Brazil are not well-known. In this study the feeding behavior and main food sources of adult boll weevils throughout the year in Central Brazil was investigated. The digestive tract contents of insects captured in pheromone traps in two cotton fields and two areas of native vegetation (gallery forest and cerrado sensu stricto) were analyzed. The insect was captured all through the year only in the cerrado. It fed on pollen of 19 different plant families, on Pteridophyta and fungi spores and algae cysts. Simpson Index test showed that the cerrado provided greater diversity of pollen sources. In the beginning of the cotton cycle, the plant families used for pollen feeding were varied: in cotton area 1, the weevil fed on Poaceae (50%), Malvaceae and Smilacaceae (25% each); in cotton area 2 the pollen sources were Malvaceae (50%), Asteraceae (25%) and Fabaceae and Clusiaceae (25% each); in the cerrado they were Chenopodiaceae (67%) and Scheuchzeriaceae (33%). No weevils were collected in the gallery forest in this period. After cotton was harvested, the family Smilacaceae was predominant among the food plants exploited in all the study areas. These results help to explain the survivorship of adult boll weevil during cotton fallow season in Central Brazil and they are discussed in the context of behavioral adaptations to the prevailing tropical environmental conditions. (author)

  15. Alternative food sources and over wintering feeding behavior of the boll weevil, Anthonomus grandis boheman (coleoptera: curculionidae) under the tropical conditions of central Brazil

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ribeiro, Paulina de A.; Sujii, Edison R.; Pires, Carmen S.S.; Fontes, Eliana M.G. [EMBRAPA Recursos Geneticos e Biotecnologia (CENARGEN), Brasilia, DF (Brazil)], e-mail: paulina723@hotmail.com, e-mail: sujii@cenargen.embrapa.br, e-mail: cpires@cenargen.embrapa.br, e-mail: eliana@cenargen.embrapa.br; Diniz, Ivone R. [Universidade de Brasilia (UnB), DF (Brazil). Dept. de Zoologia], e-mail: irdiniz@unb.br; Medeiros, Maria A. de; Branco, Marina C. [EMBRAPA Hortalicas, Brasilia, DF (Brazil)], e-mail: medeiros@cnph.embrapa.br, e-mail: marina@cnph.embrapa.br; Salgado-Labouriau, Maria L. [Universidade de Brasilia (UnB), DF (Brazil). Dept. de Geologia], e-mail: mlea@unb.br

    2010-01-15

    The boll weevil causes serious damage to the cotton crop in South America. Several studies have been published on this pest, but its phenology and behavior under the tropical conditions prevailing in Brazil are not well-known. In this study the feeding behavior and main food sources of adult boll weevils throughout the year in Central Brazil was investigated. The digestive tract contents of insects captured in pheromone traps in two cotton fields and two areas of native vegetation (gallery forest and cerrado sensu stricto) were analyzed. The insect was captured all through the year only in the cerrado. It fed on pollen of 19 different plant families, on Pteridophyta and fungi spores and algae cysts. Simpson Index test showed that the cerrado provided greater diversity of pollen sources. In the beginning of the cotton cycle, the plant families used for pollen feeding were varied: in cotton area 1, the weevil fed on Poaceae (50%), Malvaceae and Smilacaceae (25% each); in cotton area 2 the pollen sources were Malvaceae (50%), Asteraceae (25%) and Fabaceae and Clusiaceae (25% each); in the cerrado they were Chenopodiaceae (67%) and Scheuchzeriaceae (33%). No weevils were collected in the gallery forest in this period. After cotton was harvested, the family Smilacaceae was predominant among the food plants exploited in all the study areas. These results help to explain the survivorship of adult boll weevil during cotton fallow season in Central Brazil and they are discussed in the context of behavioral adaptations to the prevailing tropical environmental conditions. (author)

  16. Unclassified Source Term and Radionuclide Data for the Groundwater Flow and Contaminant Transport Model of Corrective Action Units 101 and 102: Central and Western Pahute Mesa, Nye County, Nevada, Revision 0

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    McCord, John

    2004-08-01

    This report documents the evaluation of the information and data available on the unclassified source term and radionuclide contamination for Central and Western Pahute Mesa: Corrective Action Units (CAUs) 101 and 102.

  17. Clinicians' perceptions of usefulness of the PubMed4Hh mobile device application for clinical decision making at the point of care: a pilot study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gartrell, Kyungsook; Brennan, Caitlin W; Wallen, Gwenyth R; Liu, Fang; Smith, Karen G; Fontelo, Paul

    2018-05-08

    Although evidence-based practice in healthcare has been facilitated by Internet access through wireless mobile devices, research on the effectiveness of clinical decision support for clinicians at the point of care is lacking. This study examined how evidence as abstracts and the bottom-line summaries, accessed with PubMed4Hh mobile devices, affected clinicians' decision making at the point of care. Three iterative steps were taken to evaluate the usefulness of PubMed4Hh tools at the NIH Clinical Center. First, feasibility testing was conducted using data collected from a librarian. Next, usability testing was carried out by a postdoctoral research fellow shadowing clinicians during rounds for one month in the inpatient setting. Then, a pilot study was conducted from February, 2016 to January, 2017, with clinicians using a mobile version of PubMed4Hh. Invitations were sent via e-mail lists to clinicians (physicians, physician assistants and nurse practitioners) along with periodic reminders. Participants rated the usefulness of retrieved bottom-line summaries and abstracts and indicated their usefulness on a 7-point Likert scale. They also indicated location of use (office, rounds, etc.). Of the 166 responses collected in the feasibility phase, more than half of questions (57%, n = 94) were answerable by both the librarian using various resources and by the postdoctoral research fellow using PubMed4Hh. Sixty-six questions were collected during usability testing. More than half of questions (60.6%) were related to information about medication or treatment, while 21% were questions regarding diagnosis, and 12% were specific to disease entities. During the pilot study, participants reviewed 34 abstracts and 40 bottom-line summaries. The abstracts' usefulness mean scores were higher (95% CI [6.12, 6.64) than the scores of the bottom-line summaries (95% CI [5.25, 6.10]). The most frequent reason given was that it confirmed current or tentative diagnostic or

  18. The energy future of Central Europe; Slovakia

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lejon, E.

    1996-01-01

    In this part of the book author deals with the energy future of Central Europe. The energy strategy, structure of energy supplies in Austria, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Bavaria, as well as restructuralization of the energy sources are analysed. From the ecological perspective, the Gabcikovo-Nagymaros Project (GNP) represents a very clear example, since the Project could play a very important role as a part of the strategy to reject nuclear energy , the same strategy that was clearly declared by the Austrian government, as well as for a transportation strategy based more on railroads and navigation. The GNP could serve as an impulse promoting further and more close Central European cooperation in renewable energy sources. It could assist in harmonization of the interest in the sphere of transportation policies of Switzerland, Bavaria, Austria, Slovakia, and Hungary. Such a community oriented towards common interests would definitely be of enormous importance for the development of transportation in Central Europe. Geothermal potential of Slovakia and other Central European states are presented. Surveys conducted in Slovakia show that it is possible to reduce pollution in specific areas by substituting fossil energy sources with geothermal heating a total reduction of pollution by 39,000 tons annually, out of which 159 tons represent the annual reduction of sulfur dioxide pollution. The reduction per GWh of geothermal heat in the particular cities was calculated to be about 527 tons of carbon dioxide and 2.1 ton of sulfur dioxide. Other opportunities for renewable energy in Slovakia, as well as potential of energy savings are estimated

  19. Seawater quality assessment and identification of pollution sources along the central coastal area of Gabes Gulf (SE Tunisia): Evidence of industrial impact and implications for marine environment protection.

    Science.gov (United States)

    El Zrelli, Radhouan; Rabaoui, Lotfi; Ben Alaya, Mohsen; Daghbouj, Nabil; Castet, Sylvie; Besson, Philippe; Michel, Sylvain; Bejaoui, Nejla; Courjault-Radé, Pierre

    2018-02-01

    Temperature, pH and trace elements (F, P, Cr, Cu, Zn, Cd, and Pb) contents were determined in 16 stations as well as in 2 industrial and 2 domestic discharge sources, in the central coastal area of the Gulf of Gabes. Compared to the northern and southern areas of the study area, the highest contents of contaminants were reached in the central area which hosts the coastal industrial complex. The seawater in this central area was also found to be acid and of higher temperature. Based on the Water Pollution Index results, an increasing degradation gradient of the seawater quality was revealed from northern and/or southern stations to central ones, categorized as 'strongly to seriously affected'. Phosphogypsum wastes dumped by the Tunisian Chemical Group (GCT) seem to have continuously degraded the seawater quality in the study area. A rapid intervention is needed to stop the effects on the marine environment. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. What indication, morbidity and mortality for central pancreatectomy in oncological surgery? A systematic review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Santangelo, Michele; Esposito, Anna; Tammaro, Vincenzo; Calogero, Armando; Criscitiello, Carmen; Roberti, Giuseppe; Candida, Maria; Rupealta, Niccolò; Pisani, Antonio; Carlomagno, Nicola

    2016-04-01

    Conventional pancreatic resections for pancreatic neck and body diseases include pancreaticoduodenectomy, distal pancreatectomy with or without splenectomy, and total pancreatectomy. Recent studies have reported encouraging results of non-traditional pancreatic resections, including central pancreatectomy (CP), for central pancreatic disease. This surgical approach offers the potentials of low postoperative morbidity and preservation of metabolic functions. This study performs a systematic review on CP. A comprehensive literature search was conducted, for the period 1992-2015, on three worldwide databases: PubMed, Scopus, ISI-Web of Knowledge. We focused on indications, morbidity and mortality of this surgical procedure. The review shows that CP is particularly suitable for small-medium size diseases localized into the pancreatic body. This procedure is associated with an increased postoperative morbidity but an excellent postoperative pancreatic function. CP is a safe and effective procedure when performed following the right indications. Copyright © 2015 IJS Publishing Group Limited. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  1. Radioactive source management in Daya Bay NPP

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mao Chun Yang

    2000-01-01

    'Small sources causes big accidents' had occurred worldwide many times. Radioactive source management in Nuclear Power Plant in very important for its safety record. This paper introduces the way and experience of radioactive source management in Daya Bay NPP from aspects of clarifying the responsibilities, centralizing the management of high radioactivity sources, work process management and experience feedback etc. (author)

  2. Trophic opportunism of central Amazon floodplain fish

    OpenAIRE

    Mortillaro, J. M.; Pouilly, Marc; Wach, M.; Freitas, C. E. C.; Abril, G.; Meziane, T.

    2015-01-01

    The food web of the central Amazon basin displays one of the largest discrepancies in food source utilisation versus availability for consumers. While C-4 macrophytes dominate the primary producing biomass in floodplains, the food web is dominated by the use of C-3 carbon sources. Amazon fish species have wide-ranging diets and show feeding flexibility in response to spatial and temporal patterns in food source availability. Fish are therefore expected to use a range of available resources. F...

  3. CHRISTMAS 2015 : THE PUBLICATION GAME Use of positive and negative words in scientific PubMed abstracts between 1974 and 2014: retrospective analysis

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Vinkers, Christiaan H.; Tijdink, Joeri K.; Otte, Wim

    2015-01-01

    Objective To investigate whether language used in science abstracts can skew towards the use of strikingly positive and negative words over time. Design Retrospective analysis of all scientific abstracts in PubMed between 1974 and 2014. Methods The yearly frequencies of positive, negative, and

  4. Asymmetries in four powerful radio sources

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lonsdale, C.J.; Morison, I.

    1983-01-01

    The extragalactic radio sources 3C 153, 196, 249.1 and 268.4 have been observed at frequencies of 408 and 1666 MHz with the new MERLIN array operated by Jodrell Bank, giving resolutions of approx. 0.9 and 0.25 arcsec respectively. The sources show marked asymmetries about the central object in spectral index, flux and morphology, which we believe are most naturally accounted for by the effects of a time-dependent asymmetry in the central powerhouse. In the case of 3C 249.1 the observations suggest that energy is being supplied alternately to the two sides of the source. The 1666-MHz observations also show that each of the other three sources contains one extremely compact hotspot. The minimum internal energy densities in these hotspots are such that confinement by ram pressure of motion through the intergalactic medium may not be possible, indicating that such features are transient phenomena in free expansion, or that some other confinement mechanism is operating. (author)

  5. Source apportionment of ambient particle number concentrations in central Los Angeles using positive matrix factorization (PMF

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. H. Sowlat

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available In this study, the positive matrix factorization (PMF receptor model (version 5.0 was used to identify and quantify major sources contributing to particulate matter (PM number concentrations, using PM number size distributions in the range of 13 nm to 10 µm combined with several auxiliary variables, including black carbon (BC, elemental and organic carbon (EC/OC, PM mass concentrations, gaseous pollutants, meteorological, and traffic counts data, collected for about 9 months between August 2014 and 2015 in central Los Angeles, CA. Several parameters, including particle number and volume size distribution profiles, profiles of auxiliary variables, contributions of different factors in different seasons to the total number concentrations, diurnal variations of each of the resolved factors in the cold and warm phases, weekday/weekend analysis for each of the resolved factors, and correlation between auxiliary variables and the relative contribution of each of the resolved factors, were used to identify PM sources. A six-factor solution was identified as the optimum for the aforementioned input data. The resolved factors comprised nucleation, traffic 1, traffic 2 (with a larger mode diameter than traffic 1 factor, urban background aerosol, secondary aerosol, and soil/road dust. Traffic sources (1 and 2 were the major contributor to PM number concentrations, collectively making up to above 60 % (60.8–68.4 % of the total number concentrations during the study period. Their contribution was also significantly higher in the cold phase compared to the warm phase. Nucleation was another major factor significantly contributing to the total number concentrations (an overall contribution of 17 %, ranging from 11.7 to 24 %, with a larger contribution during the warm phase than in the cold phase. The other identified factors were urban background aerosol, secondary aerosol, and soil/road dust, with relative contributions of approximately 12

  6. A Mini-BAL Outflow at 900 pc from the Central Source: VLT/X-shooter Observations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xu, Xinfeng; Arav, Nahum; Miller, Timothy; Benn, Chris

    2018-05-01

    We determine the physical conditions and location of the outflow material seen in the mini-BAL quasar SDSS J1111+1437 (z = 2.138). These results are based on the analysis of a high S/N, medium-resolution VLT/X-shooter spectrum. The main outflow component spans the velocity range ‑1500 to ‑3000 km s‑1 and has detected absorption troughs from both high-ionization species: C IV, N V, O VI, Si IV, P V, and S IV; and low-ionization species: H I, C II, Mg II, Al II, Al III, Si II, and Si III. Measurements of these troughs allow us to derive an accurate photoionization solution for this absorption component: a hydrogen column density, {log}({N}{{H}})={21.47}-0.27+0.21 cm‑2 and ionization parameter, {log}({U}{{H}})=-{1.23}-0.25+0.20. Troughs produced from the ground and excited states of S IV combined with the derived {U}{{H}} value allow us to determine an electron number density of {log}({n}{{e}})={3.62}-0.11+0.09 cm‑3 and to obtain the distance of the ionized gas from the central source: R={880}-260+210 pc.

  7. Evaluation of transboundary environmental issues in Central Europe

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Engi, D. [Sandia National Labs., Albuquerque, NM (United States). Corporate Planning and Strategic Business Development Div.; Kapustka, L.A.; Williams, B.A.; Meganck, R.A.; Garrison, J.G. [Ecological Planning and Toxicology, Inc., Corvallis, OR (United States); Glicken, J. [Ecological Planning and Toxicology, Inc., Albuquerque, NM (United States); Hostetler, C.J.; Lawrence, S. [Columbia Environmental Services, Inc., Kennewick, WA (United States)

    1997-05-01

    Central Europe has experienced environmental degradation for hundreds of years. The proximity of countries, their shared resources, and transboundary movement of environmental pollution, create the potential for regional environmental strife. The goal of this project was to identify the sources and sinks of environmental pollution in Central Europe and evaluate the possible impact of transboundary movement of pollution on the countries of Central Europe. In meeting the objectives of identifying sources of contaminants, determining transboundary movement of contaminants, and assessing socio-economic implications, large quantities of disparate data were examined. To facilitate use of the data, the authors refined mapping procedures that enable processing information from virtually any map or spreadsheet data that can be geo-referenced. Because the procedure is freed from a priori constraints of scale that confound most Geographical Information Systems, they have the capacity to generate new projections and apply sophisticated statistical analyses to the data. The analysis indicates substantial environmental problems. While transboundary pollution issues may spawn conflict among the Central European countries and their neighbors, it appears that common environmental problems facing the entire region have had the effect of bringing the countries together, even though opportunities for deteriorating relationships may still arise.

  8. Use of 15N/14N Ratio to Evaluate the Sources of Nitrate Pollution in Surface and Groundwaters in the Upper Orontes Basin (Central Syria)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kattan, Z.

    2004-01-01

    This work represents the results of using of 15 N technique in the evaluation and interpretation of nitrate pollution sources of surface and groundwaters in the Upper Orontes Basin (Central Syria). Based on this method, it was possible to distinguish between two groups of water bodies: 1) the group of fresh and non polluted water, which effectively reflects natural mineralization in nitrogen, such as the waters in the Upper Orontes River, the Qattineh Lake in its western and southern parts, as well as the Al-Qoussier well; 2) the group of polluted water, such as the waters in the other sampling sites. The chemical and isotopic 15 N characteristics of this group reflect the impact of different intensities of pollution processes, which could mainly be derived from anthropogenic source. The intensity of this source was maximum in the Al-Domineh well, which was practically close to a sewage sink. (author)

  9. Prospects of Source-Separation-Based Sanitation Concepts: A Model-Based Study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cees Buisman

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available Separation of different domestic wastewater streams and targeted on-site treatment for resource recovery has been recognized as one of the most promising sanitation concepts to re-establish the balance in carbon, nutrient and water cycles. In this study a model was developed based on literature data to compare energy and water balance, nutrient recovery, chemical use, effluent quality and land area requirement in four different sanitation concepts: (1 centralized; (2 centralized with source-separation of urine; (3 source-separation of black water, kitchen refuse and grey water; and (4 source-separation of urine, feces, kitchen refuse and grey water. The highest primary energy consumption of 914 MJ/capita(cap/year was attained within the centralized sanitation concept, and the lowest primary energy consumption of 437 MJ/cap/year was attained within source-separation of urine, feces, kitchen refuse and grey water. Grey water bio-flocculation and subsequent grey water sludge co-digestion decreased the primary energy consumption, but was not energetically favorable to couple with grey water effluent reuse. Source-separation of urine improved the energy balance, nutrient recovery and effluent quality, but required larger land area and higher chemical use in the centralized concept.

  10. Organic petrology and geochemistry of Eocene Suzak bituminous marl, north-central Afghanistan: Depositional environment and source rock potential

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hackley, Paul C.; Sanfilipo, John

    2016-01-01

    Organic geochemistry and petrology of Eocene Suzak bituminous marl outcrop samples from Madr village in north-central Afghanistan were characterized via an integrated analytical approach to evaluate depositional environment and source rock potential. Multiple proxies suggest the organic-rich (TOC ∼6 wt.%) bituminous marls are ‘immature’ for oil generation (e.g., vitrinite Ro  1) indicating organic input from marine algae and/or bacterial biomass, and sterane/hopane ratios are low (0.12–0.14). Monoaromatic steroids are dominated by C28clearly indicating a marine setting. High gammacerane index values (∼0.9) are consistent with anoxia stratification and may indicate intermittent saline-hypersaline conditions. Stable C isotope ratios also suggest a marine depositional scenario for the Suzak samples, consistent with the presence of marine foraminifera including abundant planktic globigerinida(?) and rare benthic discocyclina(?) and nummulites(?). Biomarker 2α-methylhopane for photosynthetic cyanobacteria implies shallow photic zone deposition of Madr marls and 3β-methylhopane indicates presence of methanotrophic archaea in the microbial consortium. The data presented herein are consistent with deposition of Suzak bituminous marls in shallow stratified waters of a restricted marine basin associated with the southeastern incipient or proto-Paratethys. Geochemical proxies from Suzak rock extracts (S content, high polar content, C isotopes, normal (αααR) C27–29 steranes, and C29/C30 and C26/C25 hopane ratios) are similar to extant data from Paleogene oils produced to the north in the Afghan-Tajik Basin. This observation may indicate laterally equivalent strata are effective source rocks as suggested by previous workers; however, further work is needed to strengthen oil-source correlations.

  11. Natural history of treatment-emergent central sleep apnea on positive airway pressure: A systematic review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nigam, Gaurav; Riaz, Muhammad; Chang, Edward T; Camacho, Macario

    2018-01-01

    Treatment-emergent central sleep apnea (TECSA) is observed in some patients when they are treated with positive airway pressure (PAP) after significant resolution of the preexisting obstructive events in patients with obstructive sleep apnea. The objective of this study was to systematically review the literature for studies describing the natural history of TECSA. PubMed, Medline, Scopus, Web of Science, and Cochran Library databases were searched through June 29, 2017. Five studies were identified that discussed the natural history of TECSA. TECSA developed in 3.5%-19.8% of PAP-treated patients. Treatment-persistent central sleep apnea (TPCSA), representing protracted periods of PAP therapy-related central apneas, was noted in 14.3%-46.2% of patients with TECSA. Delayed-TECSA (D-TECSA) represents an anomalous TECSA entity appearing weeks to months after initial PAP therapy. D-TECSA was observed in 0.7%-4.2% of OSA patients undergoing PAP treatment (after at least 1 month). In patients with TECSA, a higher apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) and central apnea index at their baseline study or a higher residual AHI at their titration study may be associated with an increased likelihood of conversion to TPCSA. Overall, TECSA developed in 3.5%-19.8% of PAP-treated patients with OSA. The vast majority will experience complete resolution of central apneas over a few weeks to months. Unfortunately, about a third of patients with TECSA may continue to exhibit persistence of central sleep apnea on reevaluation. A small proportion may experience D-TECSA after few weeks to several months of initial exposure to PAP therapy.

  12. Source region of volcanism and seismicity pattern beneath Central American volcanoes

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Špičák, Aleš; Hanuš, Václav; Vaněk, Jiří

    2005-01-01

    Roč. 236, 1/2 (2005), s. 149-172 ISSN 0077-7749 R&D Projects: GA ČR GA205/03/1203; GA AV ČR IAA3012303 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z30120515 Keywords : Central America * subduction * convergent plate margins Subject RIV: DC - Siesmology, Volcanology, Earth Structure Impact factor: 0.721, year: 2005

  13. The quality of the reported sample size calculations in randomized controlled trials indexed in PubMed.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Paul H; Tse, Andy C Y

    2017-05-01

    There are limited data on the quality of reporting of information essential for replication of the calculation as well as the accuracy of the sample size calculation. We examine the current quality of reporting of the sample size calculation in randomized controlled trials (RCTs) published in PubMed and to examine the variation in reporting across study design, study characteristics, and journal impact factor. We also reviewed the targeted sample size reported in trial registries. We reviewed and analyzed all RCTs published in December 2014 with journals indexed in PubMed. The 2014 Impact Factors for the journals were used as proxies for their quality. Of the 451 analyzed papers, 58.1% reported an a priori sample size calculation. Nearly all papers provided the level of significance (97.7%) and desired power (96.6%), and most of the papers reported the minimum clinically important effect size (73.3%). The median (inter-quartile range) of the percentage difference of the reported and calculated sample size calculation was 0.0% (IQR -4.6%;3.0%). The accuracy of the reported sample size was better for studies published in journals that endorsed the CONSORT statement and journals with an impact factor. A total of 98 papers had provided targeted sample size on trial registries and about two-third of these papers (n=62) reported sample size calculation, but only 25 (40.3%) had no discrepancy with the reported number in the trial registries. The reporting of the sample size calculation in RCTs published in PubMed-indexed journals and trial registries were poor. The CONSORT statement should be more widely endorsed. Copyright © 2016 European Federation of Internal Medicine. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  14. Investigations into the long-distance atmospheric transport in Central Europe using Rn-222

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Volpp, H.J.

    1984-01-01

    An measuring network was used to determine the atmospheric Rn-222 content in Central Europe (Northern and Southern Germany, Poland). Rn-222 is to serve as tracer for the long-distance atmospheric transport in central Europe. For several areas, an average Rn-222 flux density was found. The radon source 'continent' and the soil as radon source have been taken into account. (DG) [de

  15. Fossil landscapes and youthful seismogenic sources in the central Apennines: excerpts from the 24 August 2016, Amatrice earthquake and seismic hazard implications

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gianluca Valensise

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available We show and discuss the similarities among the 2016 Amatrice (Mw 6.0, 1997 Colfiorito-Sellano (Mw 6.0-5.6 and 2009 L’Aquila (Mw 6.3 earthquakes. They all occurred along the crest of the central Apennines and were caused by shallow dipping faults between 3 and 10 km depth, as shown by their characteristic InSAR signature. We contend that these earthquakes delineate a seismogenic style that is characteristic of this portion of the central Apennines, where the upward propagation of seismogenic faults is hindered by the presence of pre-existing regional thrusts. This leads to an effective decoupling between the deeper seismogenic portion of the upper crust and its uppermost 3 km.The decoupling implies that active faults mapped at the surface do not connect with the seismogenic sources, and that their evolution may be controlled by passive readjustments to coseismic strains or even by purely gravitational motions. Seismic hazard analyses and estimates based on such faults should hence be considered with great caution as they may be all but representative of the true seismogenic potential.

  16. PubMed Central: An Essential Resource for Information Professionals and Researchers. A Review of: Cornell, A., Bushman, B., & Womack, K. (2011. Analysis of journals that did not meet selection criteria for inclusion in the National Library of Medicine collection but have manuscripts in PubMed Central. Journal of the Medical Library Association, 99, 168-170.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Joanne L. Jordan

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available Objective – A review of the journals containing research listed in PubMed Central (PMC, but not selected for inclusion in the National Library of Medicine (NLM collection. The authors identified reasons why journals had not been included in the collection and if any met the NLM selection criteria and were appropriate for inclusion.Design – Descriptive study.Setting – National Library of Medicine, United States.Subjects – 571 journals that were not included in the NLM collection but had research articles in PMC.Methods – In October 2009, a report was produced from the NLM library system listing journals tagged as having articles in PMC and not being in the NLM collection. Information was gathered on the journals identified and these were checked against the Collection Development Manual of the NLM and the NLM checklist used for selecting electronic journals. The reason for non-selection of the journal was recorded and the subject category, according to the Library of Congress Classification, was noted. Recorded reasons why journals were not selected:• Less than 15% of articles were within scope of NLM collection• Not enough articles published• Coverage (lacking original research or not for a scholarly audience• Insufficient information to determine reasonFor journals where the criteria seemed to be met, the decision on selection to the NLM collection was reviewed.Main Results – The authors identified 571 journals that had articles in PMC but did not meet the criteria for inclusion in the NLM journal collection. The majority of these journals (73% were outside the NLM scope and a further 10% had not published a sufficient number of articles to be considered. A further 3% were assessed as not intended for a scholarly audience or lacked original research and another 3% could not be reviewed due to lack of information available. There were 65 journals (11% that were referred for further review as the selection criteria seemed to

  17. Lost in translation? A multilingual Query Builder improves the quality of PubMed queries: a randomised controlled trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schuers, Matthieu; Joulakian, Mher; Kerdelhué, Gaetan; Segas, Léa; Grosjean, Julien; Darmoni, Stéfan J; Griffon, Nicolas

    2017-07-03

    MEDLINE is the most widely used medical bibliographic database in the world. Most of its citations are in English and this can be an obstacle for some researchers to access the information the database contains. We created a multilingual query builder to facilitate access to the PubMed subset using a language other than English. The aim of our study was to assess the impact of this multilingual query builder on the quality of PubMed queries for non-native English speaking physicians and medical researchers. A randomised controlled study was conducted among French speaking general practice residents. We designed a multi-lingual query builder to facilitate information retrieval, based on available MeSH translations and providing users with both an interface and a controlled vocabulary in their own language. Participating residents were randomly allocated either the French or the English version of the query builder. They were asked to translate 12 short medical questions into MeSH queries. The main outcome was the quality of the query. Two librarians blind to the arm independently evaluated each query, using a modified published classification that differentiated eight types of errors. Twenty residents used the French version of the query builder and 22 used the English version. 492 queries were analysed. There were significantly more perfect queries in the French group vs. the English group (respectively 37.9% vs. 17.9%; p PubMed queries in particular for researchers whose first language is not English.

  18. 7 CFR 1032.14 - Other source milk.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 9 2010-01-01 2009-01-01 true Other source milk. 1032.14 Section 1032.14 Agriculture... and Orders; Milk), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE MILK IN THE CENTRAL MARKETING AREA Order Regulating Handling Definitions § 1032.14 Other source milk. See § 1000.14. ...

  19. Life cycle assessment and costing of urine source separation: Focus on nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug removal.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Landry, Kelly A; Boyer, Treavor H

    2016-11-15

    Urine source separation has the potential to reduce pharmaceutical loading to the environment, while enhancing nutrient recovery. The focus of this life cycle assessment (LCA) was to evaluate the environmental impacts and economic costs to manage nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) (i.e., diclofenac, ibuprofen, ketoprofen and naproxen) and nutrients in human urine. Urine source separation was compared with centralized wastewater treatment (WWT) (biological or upgraded with ozonation). The current treatment method (i.e., centralized biological WWT) was compared with hypothetical treatment scenarios (i.e., centralized biological WWT upgraded with ozonation, and urine source separation). Alternative urine source separation scenarios included varying collection and handling methods (i.e., collection by vacuum truck, vacuum sewer, or decentralized treatment), pharmaceuticals removal by ion-exchange, and struvite precipitation. Urine source separation scenarios had 90% lower environmental impact (based on the TRACI impact assessment method) compared with the centralized wastewater scenarios due to reduced potable water production for flush water, reduced electricity use at the wastewater treatment plant, and nutrient offsets from struvite precipitation. Despite the greatest reduction of pharmaceutical toxicity, centralized treatment upgraded with ozone had the greatest ecotoxicity impacts due to ozonation operation and infrastructure. Among urine source separation scenarios, decentralized treatment of urine and centralized treatment of urine collected by vacuum truck had negligible cost differences compared with centralized wastewater treatment. Centralized treatment of urine collected by vacuum sewer and centralized treatment with ozone cost 30% more compared with conventional wastewater treatment. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. Organizing for Global Sourcing

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bals, Lydia; Turkulainen, Virpi

    Research on Purchasing Organization is dominated by studies on centralization versus decentralization. While global sourcing relates to the integrated activities of purchasing and other functions in line with the company’s strategic objectives and while it has been put forward that hybrid...

  1. Comparison of the efficacy of three PubMed search filters in finding randomized controlled trials to answer clinical questions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yousefi-Nooraie, Reza; Irani, Shirin; Mortaz-Hedjri, Soroush; Shakiba, Behnam

    2013-10-01

    The aim of this study was to compare the performance of three search methods in the retrieval of relevant clinical trials from PubMed to answer specific clinical questions. Included studies of a sample of 100 Cochrane reviews which recorded in PubMed were considered as the reference standard. The search queries were formulated based on the systematic review titles. Precision, recall and number of retrieved records for limiting the results to clinical trial publication type, and using sensitive and specific clinical queries filters were compared. The number of keywords, presence of specific names of intervention and syndrome in the search keywords were used in a model to predict the recalls and precisions. The Clinical queries-sensitive search strategy retrieved the largest number of records (33) and had the highest recall (41.6%) and lowest precision (4.8%). The presence of specific intervention name was the only significant predictor of all recalls and precisions (P = 0.016). The recall and precision of combination of simple clinical search queries and methodological search filters to find clinical trials in various subjects were considerably low. The limit field strategy yielded in higher precision and fewer retrieved records and approximately similar recall, compared with the clinical queries-sensitive strategy. Presence of specific intervention name in the search keywords increased both recall and precision. © 2010 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  2. Relative Citation Ratio of Top Twenty Macedonian Biomedical Scientists in PubMed: A New Metric that Uses Citation Rates to Measure Influence at the Article Level.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Spiroski, Mirko

    2016-06-15

    The aim of this study was to analyze relative citation ratio (RCR) of top twenty Macedonian biomedical scientists with a new metric that uses citation rates to measure influence at the article level. Top twenty Macedonian biomedical scientists were identified by GoPubMed on the base of the number of deposited abstracts in PubMed, corrected with the data from previously published paper, and completed with the Macedonian biomedical scientists working in countries outside the Republic of Macedonia, but born or previously worked in the country. iCite was used as a tool to access a dashboard of bibliometrics for papers associated with a portfolio. The biggest number of top twenty Macedonian biomedical scientists has RCR lower than one. Only four Macedonian biomedical scientists have bigger RCR in comparison with those in PubMed. The most prominent RCR of 2.29 has Rosoklija G. RCR of the most influenced individual papers deposited in PubMed has shown the biggest value for the paper of Efremov D (35.19). This paper has the biggest number of authors (860). It is necessary to accept top twenty Macedonian biomedical scientists as an example of new metric that uses citation rates to measure influence at the article level, rather than qualification of the best Macedonian biomedical scientists.

  3. Acesso venoso central guiado por ultrassom: qual a evidência? Ultrasound-guided central venous catheterization: what is the evidence?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Felippe Leopoldo Dexheimer Neto

    2011-06-01

    Full Text Available Recentemente, órgãos internacionais de qualidade em saúde passaram a recomendar o uso de orientação ultrassonográfica para punções venosas centrais. O objetivo deste artigo foi revisar as evidências fundamentando tais recomendações. Foi revisada a literatura no MEDLINE, PubMed e SCIELO com os seguintes termos (MeSH: acesso venoso central, ultrassom e adultos. A pesquisa realizada em 24/09/2010, com seleção de metanálises, ensaios clínicos randomizados e revisões, encontrou 291 artigos. Os 21 artigos mais importantes foram utilizados para a confecção desta revisão. A veia jugular interna é o local mais estudado para punções guiadas por ultrassonografia, com metanálises demonstrando menor risco relativo de falha e de complicações. Além disso, o maior ensaio clínico randomizado disponível também demonstrou redução na incidência de infecções de corrente sanguínea associadas aos cateteres venosos centrais. Poucos estudos existem com relação à punção da veia subclávia, porém o uso do ultrassom mostrou-se benéfico em duas metanálises (mas com um número pouco expressivo de pacientes. Quanto ao sítio venoso femoral, há apenas um ensaio clínico randomizado (20 pacientes, o qual obteve resultados positivos. Em uma avaliação britânica de custo-efetividade, houve economia de recursos com o auxílio do ultrassom na realização das punções venosas nos diferentes sítios. Fortes evidências demonstram benefício com o auxílio ultrassonográfico para punção jugular interna. Embora o método pareça atraente para os demais sítios, ainda não há estudos suficientes que sustentem alguma recomendação.In recent years, international health quality assurance organizations have been recommending ultrasound guidance for central venous punctures. This article reviews the evidence behind these recommendations. The MEDLINE, PubMed and SCIELO databases were searched for the following MeSH terms: central venous

  4. Design of the central region for axial injection in the VINCY cyclotron

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Milinkovic, L.; Toprek, D.

    1996-01-01

    This paper describes the design of the central region for h=1, h=2 and h=4 modes of acceleration in the VINCY cyclotron. The result which is worth reported in that the central region is unique and compatible with the three above mentioned harmonic modes of operation. Only one spiral type inflector will be used. The central region is designed to operate with two external ion sources: (a) an ECR ion source with the maximum extraction voltage of 25 kV for heavy ions, and (b) a multicusp ion source with the maximum extraction voltage of 30 kV for H - and D - ions. Heavy ions will be accelerated by the second and fourth harmonics, D - ions by the second harmonic and H - ions by the first harmonic of the RF field. The central region is equipped with an axial injection system. The electric field distribution in the inflector and in the four acceleration gaps has been numerically calculated from an electric potential map produced by the program RELAX3D. The geometry of the central region has been tested with the computations of orbits carried out by means of the computer code CYCLONE. The optical properties of the spiral inflector and the central region were studied by using the programs CASINO and CYCLONE respectively. We have also made an effort to minimize the inflector fringe field using the RELAX3D program. (orig.)

  5. The Central Asian Journal of Global Health to Increase Scientific Productivity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kyle Freese

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The WHO Collaborating Center at the University of Pittsburgh, USA partnering with Nazarbayev University, developed the Central Asian Journal of Global Health (CAJGH, cajgh.pitt.edu in order to increase scientific productivity in Kazakhstan and Central Asia. Scientists in this region often have difficulty publishing in upper tier English language scientific journals due to language barriers, high publication fees, and a lack of access to mentoring services. CAJGH seeks to help scientists overcome these challenges by providing peer-reviewed publication free of change with English and research mentoring services available to selected authors. CAJGH began as a way to expand the Supercourse scientific network (www.pitt.edu/~super1 in the Central Asian region in order to rapidly disseminate educational materials. The network began with approximately 60 individuals in five Central Asian countries and has grown to over 1,300 in a few short years. The CAJGH website receives nearly 900 visits per month. The University of Pittsburgh's “open access publishing system” was utilized to create CAJGH in 2012. There are two branches of the CAJGH editorial board: Astana (at the Center for Life Sciences, Nazarbayev University and Pittsburgh (WHO Collaborating Center. Both are comprised of leading scientists and expert staff who work together throughout the review and publication process. Two complete issues have been published since 2012 and a third is now underway. Even though CAJGH is a new journal, the editorial board uses a rigorous review process; fewer than 50% of all submitted articles are forwarded to peer review or accepted for publication. Furthermore, in 2014, CAJGH will apply to be cross referenced in PubMed and Scopes. CAJGH is one of the first English language journals in the Central Asian region that reaches a large number of scientists. This journal fills a unique niche that will assist scientists in Kazakhstan and Central Asia publish their

  6. The Central Asian Journal of Global Health to Increase Scientific Productivity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Freese, Kyle; Shubnikov, Eugene; LaPorte, Ron; Adambekov, Shalkar; Askarova, Sholpan; Zhumadilov, Zhaxybay; Linkov, Faina

    2013-01-01

    The WHO Collaborating Center at the University of Pittsburgh, USA partnering with Nazarbayev University, developed the Central Asian Journal of Global Health (CAJGH, cajgh.pitt.edu) in order to increase scientific productivity in Kazakhstan and Central Asia. Scientists in this region often have difficulty publishing in upper tier English language scientific journals due to language barriers, high publication fees, and a lack of access to mentoring services. CAJGH seeks to help scientists overcome these challenges by providing peer-reviewed publication free of change with English and research mentoring services available to selected authors. CAJGH began as a way to expand the Supercourse scientific network (www.pitt.edu/~super1) in the Central Asian region in order to rapidly disseminate educational materials. The network began with approximately 60 individuals in five Central Asian countries and has grown to over 1,300 in a few short years. The CAJGH website receives nearly 900 visits per month. The University of Pittsburgh's "open access publishing system" was utilized to create CAJGH in 2012. There are two branches of the CAJGH editorial board: Astana (at the Center for Life Sciences, Nazarbayev University) and Pittsburgh (WHO Collaborating Center). Both are comprised of leading scientists and expert staff who work together throughout the review and publication process. Two complete issues have been published since 2012 and a third is now underway. Even though CAJGH is a new journal, the editorial board uses a rigorous review process; fewer than 50% of all submitted articles are forwarded to peer review or accepted for publication. Furthermore, in 2014, CAJGH will apply to be cross referenced in PubMed and Scopes. CAJGH is one of the first English language journals in the Central Asian region that reaches a large number of scientists. This journal fills a unique niche that will assist scientists in Kazakhstan and Central Asia publish their research findings and

  7. A New Way of Thinking About Strategic Sourcing

    Science.gov (United States)

    2016-05-17

    Battalion–Kandahar, 401st Army Field Support Brigade, organizes laundry at one of the battalion’s drop-off sites. (Photo by Sharonda Pearson )  By Penny...integrated process for de- termining preferred providers, and create a centralized market research database. A centralized strategic sourcing hub also

  8. The subduction erosion and mantle source region contamination model of Andean arc magmatism: Isotopic evidence from igneous rocks of central Chile

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Stern, Charles R

    2001-01-01

    Continental crust may be incorporated in mantle-derived Andean magmas as these magmas rise through the crust (Hildreth and Moorbath, 1988), or alternatively, crust may be tectonically transported into the mantle by subduction of trench sediments and subduction erosion of the continental margin, and then added into the mantle source region of Andean magmas (Stern, 1991). Since the mantle has relatively low Sr, Nd, and Pb concentrations compared to continental crust, differences in the isotopic compositions of magmas erupted in different region of the Andes may be produced by relatively small differences in the amount of subducted crust added to the mantle source region of these magmas. By comparison, significantly larger amounts of crust must be assimilated by mantle-derived magmas to produce isotopic differences of similar magnitude. Therefore, constraining the process by which continental crust is incorporated in Andean magmas has important implications for understanding the chemical cycling that takes place in the Andean subduction-related magma factory. Isotopic data suggest the incorporation of a greater proportion of crust in Andean magmas erupted at the northern portion of the Southern Volcanic Zone of central Chile compared to those erupted in the southern portion of the Southern Volcanic Zone of south central Chile (SSVZ) (Stern et al., 1984; Futa and Stern, 1988; Hildreth and Moorbath, 1988). The NSVZ occurs just south of the current locus of the subduction of the Juan Fernandez Ridge. The southward migration of the locus of subduction of this ridge has resulted in decreasing subduction angle below the NSVZ, the eastward migration of the volcanic front of the Andean arc, and an increase in the crustal thickness below the arc. These factors together have caused changes, since the middle Miocene, in the isotopic composition of Andean igneous rocks of central Chile. The data indicate a close chronologic relation between the southward migrations of the locus

  9. Producción científica española en obesidad a través de PubMed (1988-2007 Spanish scientific production in obesity research published in PubMed (1988-2007

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jesús Vioque

    2010-06-01

    Full Text Available Objetivo: Analizar la producción científica española sobre obesidad en PubMed durante dos décadas (1988-2007 y contextualizarla en el marco de la Unión Europea. Métodos: Se realizó un estudio bibliométrico a través de la base de datos MEDLINE en PubMed mediante la búsqueda de «obesity» en MeSH, estimando las tendencias del número de publicaciones anuales mediante análisis de regresión. Resultados: Se recopilaron 50.120 documentos sobre obesidad, y 1.407 (2,8% de la producción mundial eran de autores españoles. España fue el quinto país con más documentos de la Unión Europea (8,1%. El 69,1% (n=932 estaban publicados en inglés. El crecimiento medio anual fue del 15%, pasando de 91 documentos en el primer quinquenio a 702 en el último. La especialidad más frecuente del primer firmante fue endocrinología, con 279 (22,8% documentos, seguida de fisiología-nutrición-bromatología con 203 (16,6% y bioquímica con 161 (13,2%. Medicina Clínica con 83 (6,1%, Obesity Surgery con 79 (5,8%, International Journal of Obesity con 73 (5,3% y Nutrición Hospitalaria con 59 (4,3% fueron las revistas con mayor número de documentos. Las comunidades autónomas más productoras fueron Cataluña (n=338; 24,9%, Madrid (n=286; 20,6% y Navarra (n=159; 11,7%. Las instituciones más productivas fueron los hospitales, con 708 (52,1% documentos, y las universidades, con 521 (38,5% documentos. Conclusiones: La investigación sobre obesidad en España ha crecido en los últimos 20 años y ha supuesto una aportación importante en el conjunto de la Unión Europea. La mitad de las publicaciones españolas se hicieron en revistas extranjeras y procedían predominantemente de hospitales y universidades.Objective: To analyse Spanish scientific research output related to obesity during a 20-year period from 1988 to 2007 into context with the European Union productivity Methods: The bibliometric study was based on research of the MEDLINE database in PubMed

  10. Management of Disused Sealed Sources in Hungary - 13077

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kapitany, Sandor

    2013-01-01

    Since 1976 the spent and disused radioactive sources arisen in Hungary are stored in a central storage facility called Radioactive Waste Treatment and Disposal Facility operated by Public Limited Company for Radioactive Waste Management. The Facility is responsible for the record keeping, the waste acceptance procedure, the shipment and the storage or disposal (whether a certain source meets the waste acceptance criteria for disposal or not) of sources. Based on the more than 35 year old operation of the facility many experiences have been gathered regarding the technology for long-term storage of sources, the attitude of the users of sources, the evolution of the legislation and the national record keeping system. Recently a new legislation for the security of radioactive materials (including sources) was introduced, first in Central-Europe. It requires special security arrangements from the facility for transport and for storage. Due to the ongoing retrieval of radioactive waste formerly disposed of, partly containing sealed sources, there is a new challenge in the physical inventory control of historical waste. The paper would show the effect of the changes in the legislation system of record keeping or security on the users' attitude for discard of sources and on the management of the sources in the facility. The facility has a unique storage technology (shallow boreholes) in the narrow region. The sealed sources are placed into vertical pipes sunk into the surface. In the beginning, each of the sources were dropped into the pipe directly, recently they are placed in a metal tube first ensuring the retrieval. The lessons learned will be presented. There were several issues to introduce the new security arrangements (partly financially supported by US DOE) for storage and for transportation of sealed sources. These issues are addressed. In the past part of the sealed sources were disposed together with solid radioactive waste packaged in plastic bags. A waste

  11. Management of Disused Sealed Sources in Hungary - 13077

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kapitany, Sandor [PURAM, Puskas Tivadar street 11, Budaors, Pest 2040 (Hungary)

    2013-07-01

    Since 1976 the spent and disused radioactive sources arisen in Hungary are stored in a central storage facility called Radioactive Waste Treatment and Disposal Facility operated by Public Limited Company for Radioactive Waste Management. The Facility is responsible for the record keeping, the waste acceptance procedure, the shipment and the storage or disposal (whether a certain source meets the waste acceptance criteria for disposal or not) of sources. Based on the more than 35 year old operation of the facility many experiences have been gathered regarding the technology for long-term storage of sources, the attitude of the users of sources, the evolution of the legislation and the national record keeping system. Recently a new legislation for the security of radioactive materials (including sources) was introduced, first in Central-Europe. It requires special security arrangements from the facility for transport and for storage. Due to the ongoing retrieval of radioactive waste formerly disposed of, partly containing sealed sources, there is a new challenge in the physical inventory control of historical waste. The paper would show the effect of the changes in the legislation system of record keeping or security on the users' attitude for discard of sources and on the management of the sources in the facility. The facility has a unique storage technology (shallow boreholes) in the narrow region. The sealed sources are placed into vertical pipes sunk into the surface. In the beginning, each of the sources were dropped into the pipe directly, recently they are placed in a metal tube first ensuring the retrieval. The lessons learned will be presented. There were several issues to introduce the new security arrangements (partly financially supported by US DOE) for storage and for transportation of sealed sources. These issues are addressed. In the past part of the sealed sources were disposed together with solid radioactive waste packaged in plastic bags. A

  12. Open Source Vulnerability Database Project

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jake Kouns

    2008-06-01

    Full Text Available This article introduces the Open Source Vulnerability Database (OSVDB project which manages a global collection of computer security vulnerabilities, available for free use by the information security community. This collection contains information on known security weaknesses in operating systems, software products, protocols, hardware devices, and other infrastructure elements of information technology. The OSVDB project is intended to be the centralized global open source vulnerability collection on the Internet.

  13. Source Apportionment of Suspended Sediment Sources using 137Cs and 210Pbxs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lamba, J.; Karthikeyan, K.; Thompson, A.

    2017-12-01

    A study was conducted in the Pleasant Valley Watershed (50 km 2) in South Central Wisconsin to better understand sediment transport processes using sediment fingerprinting technique. Previous studies conducted in this watershed showed that resuspension of fine sediment deposited on the stream bed is an important source of suspended sediment. To better understand the role of fine sediment deposited on the stream bed, fallout radionuclides,137Cs and 210Pbxs were used to determine relative contribution to suspended sediment from in-stream (stream bank and stream bed) and upland sediment sources. Suspended sediment samples were collected during the crop growing season. Potential sources of suspended sediment considered in this study included cropland, pasture and in-stream (stream bed and stream bank). Suspended sediment sources were determined at a subwatershed level. Results of this study showed that in-stream sediment sources are important sources of suspended sediment. Future research should be conducted to better understand the role of legacy sediment in watershed-level sediment transport processes.

  14. Some aspects of volcanic ash layers in the Central Indian Basin.

    Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

    Sukumaran, N.P.; Banerjee, R.; Borole, D.V.; Gupta, S.M.

    Intercalated volcanic ash layers in two deep-sea sediment cores from the Central Indian Basin (CIB) are examined for the possibility of an in situ source of suboceanic volcanism. An in situ source has been predicated based on the bottom...

  15. Central Heating Plant Coal Use Handbook. Volume 1: Technical Reference.

    Science.gov (United States)

    1996-11-01

    CHUTES LIFT TRUCKS MONORAILS , TRAMWAYS J p WEIGHING, 0 MEASURING SCALES COAL METERS HOPPERS SAMPLERS 9 FIRING EQUIPMENT (Source: Power, February...Defense (DOD) installations employ coal- fired central energy plants, the U.S. Army Construction Engineering Research Laboratories (USACERL) was... fired central heat plant operations cost by improving coal quality specifications. The Handbook is tailored for military installation industrial

  16. Water quality, sources of nitrate, and chemical loadings in the Geronimo Creek and Plum Creek watersheds, south-central Texas, April 2015–March 2016

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lambert, Rebecca B.; Opsahl, Stephen P.; Musgrove, MaryLynn

    2017-12-22

    Located in south-central Texas, the Geronimo Creek and Plum Creek watersheds have long been characterized by elevated nitrate concentrations. From April 2015 through March 2016, an assessment was done by the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority and the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board, to characterize nitrate concentrations and to document possible sources of elevated nitrate in these two watersheds. Water-quality samples were collected from stream, spring, and groundwater sites distributed across the two watersheds, along with precipitation samples and wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluent samples from the Plum Creek watershed, to characterize endmember concentrations and isotopic compositions from April 2015 through March 2016. Stream, spring, and groundwater samples from both watersheds were collected during four synoptic sampling events to characterize spatial and temporal variations in water quality and chemical loadings. Water-quality and -quantity data from the WWTPs and stream discharge data also were considered. Samples were analyzed for major ions, selected trace elements, nutrients, and stable isotopes of water and nitrate.The dominant land use in both watersheds is agriculture (cultivated crops, rangeland, and grassland and pasture). The upper part of the Plum Creek watershed is more highly urbanized and has five major WWTPs; numerous smaller permitted wastewater outfalls are concentrated in the upper and central parts of the Plum Creek watershed. The Geronimo Creek watershed, in contrast, has no WWTPs upstream from or near the sampling sites.Results indicate that water quality in the Geronimo Creek watershed, which was evaluated only during base-flow conditions, is dominated by groundwater, which discharges to the stream by numerous springs at various locations. Nitrate isotope values for most Geronimo Creek samples were similar, which indicates that they likely have a common source (or

  17. PubMed search strategies for the identification of etiologic associations between hypothalamic-pituitary disorders and other medical conditions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guaraldi, Federica; Grottoli, Silvia; Arvat, Emanuela; Mattioli, Stefano; Ghigo, Ezio; Gori, Davide

    2013-12-01

    Biomedical literature has enormously grown in the last decades and become broadly available through online databases. Ad-hoc search methods, created on the basis of research field and goals, are required to enhance the quality of searching. Aim of this study was to formulate efficient, evidence-based PubMed search strategies to retrieve articles assessing etiologic associations between a condition of interest and hypothalamic-pituitary disorders (HPD). Based on expert knowledge, 17 MeSH (Medical Subjects Headings) and 79 free terms related to HPD were identified to search PubMed. Using random samples of abstracts retrieved by each term, we estimated the proportion of articles containing pertinent information and formulated two strings (one more specific, one more sensitive) for the detection of articles focusing on the etiology of HPD, that were then applied to retrieve articles identifying possible etiologic associations between HPD and three diseases (malaria, LHON and celiac disease) considered not associated to HPD, and define the number of abstracts needed to read (NNR) to find one potentially pertinent article. We propose two strings: one sensitive string derived from the combination of articles providing the largest literature coverage in the field and one specific including combined terms retrieving ≥40% of potentially pertinent articles. NNR were 2.1 and 1.6 for malaria, 3.36 and 2.29 for celiac disease, 2.8 and 2.2 for LHON, respectively. For the first time, two reliable, readily applicable strings are proposed for the retrieval of medical literature assessing putative etiologic associations between HPD and other medical conditions of interest.

  18. Radio Source Morphology: 'nature or nuture'?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Banfield, Julie; Emonts, Bjorn; O'Sullivan, Shane

    2012-10-01

    Radio sources, emanating from supermassive black-holes in the centres of active galaxies, display a large variety of morphological properties. It is a long-standing debate to what extent the differences between various types of radio sources are due to intrinsic properties of the central engine (`nature') or due to the properties of the interstellar medium that surrounds the central engine and host galaxy (`nurture'). Settling this `nature vs. nurture' debate for nearby radio galaxies, which can be studied in great detail, is vital for understanding the properties and evolution of radio galaxies throughout the Universe. We propose to observe the radio galaxy NGC 612 where previous observations have detected the presence of a large-scale HI bridge between the host galaxy and a nearby galaxy NGC 619. We request a total of 13 hrs in the 750m array-configuration to determine whether or not the 100 kpc-scale radio source morphology is directly related to the intergalactic distribution of neutral hydrogen gas.

  19. Sources of Indoor Air Pollution and Respiratory Health in Preschool Children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Virginia Fuentes-Leonarte

    2009-01-01

    Full Text Available We carried out bibliographic searches in PubMed and Embase.com for the period from 1996 to 2008 with the aim of reviewing the scientific literature on the relationship between various sources of indoor air pollution and the respiratory health of children under the age of five. Those studies that included adjusted correlation measurements for the most important confounding variables and which had an adequate population size were considered to be more relevant. The results concerning the relationship between gas energy sources and children's respiratory health were heterogeneous. Indoor air pollution from biomass combustion in the poorest countries was found to be an important risk factor for lower respiratory tract infections. Solvents involved in redecorating, DYI work, painting, and so forth, were found to be related to an increased risk for general respiratory problems. The distribution of papers depending on the pollution source showed a clear relationship with life-style and the level of development.

  20. Hydrochemical determination of source water contributions to Lake Lungo and Lake Ripasottile (central Italy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Claire Archer

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available Lake Lungo and Lake Ripasottile are two shallow (4-5 m lakes located in the Rieti Basin, central Italy, that have been described previously as surface outcroppings of the groundwater table. In this work, the two lakes as well as springs and rivers that represent their potential source waters are characterized physio-chemically and isotopically, using a combination of environmental tracers. Temperature and pH were measured and water samples were analyzed for alkalinity, major ion concentration, and stable isotope (δ2H, δ18O, δ13C of dissolved inorganic carbon, and δ34S and δ18O of sulfate composition.  Chemical data were also investigated in terms of local meteorological data (air temperature, precipitation to determine the sensitivity of lake parameters to changes in the surrounding environment. Groundwater represented by samples taken from Santa Susanna Spring was shown to be distinct with SO42- and Mg2+ content of 270 and 29 mg/L, respectively, and heavy sulfate isotopic composition (δ34S=15.2 ‰ and δ18O=10‰. Outflow from the Santa Susanna Spring enters Lake Ripasottile via a canal and both spring and lake water exhibits the same chemical distinctions and comparatively low seasonal variability. Major ion concentrations in Lake Lungo are similar to the Vicenna Riara Spring and are interpreted to represent the groundwater locally recharged within the plain. The δ13CDIC exhibit the same groupings as the other chemical parameters, providing supporting evidence of the source relationships. Lake Lungo exhibited exceptional ranges of δ13CDIC (±5 ‰ and δ2H, δ18O (±5 ‰ and ±7 ‰, respectively, attributed to sensitivity to seasonal changes. The hydrochemistry results, particularly major ion data, highlight how the two lakes, though geographically and morphologically similar, represent distinct hydrochemical facies. These data also show a different response in each lake to temperature and precipitation patterns in the basin that

  1. Sourcing from an Enterprise Architecture Perspective

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gøtze, John; Axél, Mette

    2013-01-01

    Enterprise architecture offers direct input in order to define the appropriate combination of people, components and services used to produce and deliver products and services. Sourcing, as the process of optimally organizing and procuring this inside and outside an organization, is therefore...... a central enterprise architecture concern. In this chapter we will discuss how enterprise architecture can benefit an enterprise’s sourcing strategy....

  2. Desert Dust and Health: A Central Asian Review and Steppe Case Study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Troy Sternberg

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available In Asian deserts environmental and anthropomorphic dust is a significant health risk to rural populations. Natural sources in dry landscapes are exacerbated by human activities that increase the vulnerability to dust and dust-borne disease vectors. Today in Central and Inner Asian drylands, agriculture, mining, and rapid development contribute to dust generation and community exposure. Thorough review of limited dust investigation in the region implies but does not quantify health risks. Anthropogenic sources, such as the drying of the Aral Sea, highlight the shifting dust dynamics across the Central EurAsian steppe. In the Gobi Desert, our case study in Khanbogd, Mongolia addressed large-scale mining’s potential dust risk to the health of the local population. Dust traps showed variable exposure to particulates among herder households and town residents; dust density distribution indicated that sources beyond the mine need to be considered when identifying particulate sources. Research suggests that atmospheric dust from multiple causes may enhance human particulate exposure. Greater awareness of dust in greater Central Asia reflects community concern about related health implications. Future human well-being in the region will require more thorough information on dust emissions in the changing environment.

  3. Desert Dust and Health: A Central Asian Review and Steppe Case Study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sternberg, Troy; Edwards, Mona

    2017-11-03

    In Asian deserts environmental and anthropomorphic dust is a significant health risk to rural populations. Natural sources in dry landscapes are exacerbated by human activities that increase the vulnerability to dust and dust-borne disease vectors. Today in Central and Inner Asian drylands, agriculture, mining, and rapid development contribute to dust generation and community exposure. Thorough review of limited dust investigation in the region implies but does not quantify health risks. Anthropogenic sources, such as the drying of the Aral Sea, highlight the shifting dust dynamics across the Central EurAsian steppe. In the Gobi Desert, our case study in Khanbogd, Mongolia addressed large-scale mining's potential dust risk to the health of the local population. Dust traps showed variable exposure to particulates among herder households and town residents; dust density distribution indicated that sources beyond the mine need to be considered when identifying particulate sources. Research suggests that atmospheric dust from multiple causes may enhance human particulate exposure. Greater awareness of dust in greater Central Asia reflects community concern about related health implications. Future human well-being in the region will require more thorough information on dust emissions in the changing environment.

  4. Source-to-sink constraints on tectonic and sedimentary evolution of the western Central Range and Cenderawasih Bay (Indonesia)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Babault, Julien; Viaplana-Muzas, Marc; Legrand, Xavier; Van Den Driessche, Jean; González-Quijano, Manuel; Mudd, Simon M.

    2018-05-01

    The island of New Guinea is the result of continent-arc collision that began building the island's Central Range during the late Miocene. Recent studies have shown that rapid subduction, uplift and exhumation events took place in response to rapid, oblique convergence between the Pacific and the Australian plates. The tectonic and sedimentary evolution of Cenderawasih Bay, in the northwestern part of the New Guinea Island is still poorly understood: this bay links a major structural block, the Kepala Burung block, to the island's Central Ranges. Previous studies have shown that Cenderawasih Bay contains a thick (>8 km) sequence of undated sediments. One hypothesis claims that the embayment resulted from a 3 Ma opening created by anticlockwise rotation of the Kepala Burung block with respect to the northern rim of the Australian plate. Alternatively, the current configuration of Cenderawasih Bay could have resulted from the southwest drift of a slice of volcanics and oceanic crust between 8 and 6 Ma. We test these hypotheses using (i) a geomorphologic analysis of the drainage network dynamics, (ii) a reassessment of available thermochronological data, and (iii) seismic lines interpretation. We suggest that sediments started to accumulate in Cenderawasih Bay and onshore in the Waipoga Basin in the late Miocene since the inception of growth of the Central Range, beginning at 12 Ma, resulting in sediment accumulation of up to 12,200 m. This evidence is more consistent with the second hypothesis, and the volume of sediment accumulated means it is unlikely that the embayment was the result of recent (2-3 Ma) rotation of structural blocks. At first order, we predict that infilling is mainly composed of siliciclastics sourced in the graphite-bearing Ruffaer Metamorphic Belt and its equivalent in the Weyland Overthrust. Ophiolites, volcanic arc rocks and diorites contribute minor proportions. From the unroofing paths in the Central Range we deduce two rates of solid phase

  5. Uranium metallogenic geological conditions in the south central section of da hinggan mountains

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang Qing; Liu Qing

    2014-01-01

    The south central section of Da Hinggan Mountains, where the Zha Lantun prospecting zones of volcanic type uranium ore, is a high density concentrated distribution area of uranium and polymetallic mineral. This article elaborated uranium metallogenic geological conditions in the south central section of Da Hinggan Mountain, from the tectonic conditions, the source of uranium, the heat source, the space for ore-forming, hydrothermal alteration, the mineralization, and ect. This area has a good prospecting foreground and potentiality. (authors)

  6. The central image of a gravitationally lensed quasar.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Winn, Joshua N; Rusin, David; Kochanek, Christopher S

    2004-02-12

    A galaxy can act as a gravitational lens, producing multiple images of a background object. Theory predicts that there should be an odd number of images produced by the lens, but hitherto almost all lensed objects have two or four images. The missing 'central' images, which should be faint and appear near the centre of the lensing galaxy, have long been sought as probes of galactic cores too distant to resolve with ordinary observations. There are five candidates for central images, but in one case the third image is not necessarily the central one, and in the others the putative central images might be foreground sources. Here we report a secure identification of a central image, based on radio observations of one of the candidates. Lens models using the central image reveal that the massive black hole at the centre of the lensing galaxy has a mass of 20,000M(o) pc(-2), which is in agreement with expections based on observations of galaxies that are much closer to the Earth.

  7. Fast network centrality analysis using GPUs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shi Zhiao

    2011-05-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background With the exploding volume of data generated by continuously evolving high-throughput technologies, biological network analysis problems are growing larger in scale and craving for more computational power. General Purpose computation on Graphics Processing Units (GPGPU provides a cost-effective technology for the study of large-scale biological networks. Designing algorithms that maximize data parallelism is the key in leveraging the power of GPUs. Results We proposed an efficient data parallel formulation of the All-Pairs Shortest Path problem, which is the key component for shortest path-based centrality computation. A betweenness centrality algorithm built upon this formulation was developed and benchmarked against the most recent GPU-based algorithm. Speedup between 11 to 19% was observed in various simulated scale-free networks. We further designed three algorithms based on this core component to compute closeness centrality, eccentricity centrality and stress centrality. To make all these algorithms available to the research community, we developed a software package gpu-fan (GPU-based Fast Analysis of Networks for CUDA enabled GPUs. Speedup of 10-50× compared with CPU implementations was observed for simulated scale-free networks and real world biological networks. Conclusions gpu-fan provides a significant performance improvement for centrality computation in large-scale networks. Source code is available under the GNU Public License (GPL at http://bioinfo.vanderbilt.edu/gpu-fan/.

  8. PubMed search strings for the study of agricultural workers' diseases.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mattioli, Stefano; Gori, Davide; Di Gregori, Valentina; Ricotta, Lara; Baldasseroni, Alberto; Farioli, Andrea; Zanardi, Francesca; Galletti, Stefania; Colosio, Claudio; Curti, Stefania; Violante, Francesco S

    2013-12-01

    Several optimized search strategies have been developed in Medicine, and more recently in Occupational Medicine. The aim of this study was to identify efficient PubMed search strategies to retrieve articles regarding putative occupational determinants of agricultural workers' diseases. We selected the Medical Subjects Heading (MeSH) term agricultural workers' diseases and six MeSH terms describing farm work (agriculture, agrochemicals NOT pesticides, animal husbandry, pesticides, rural health, rural population) alongside 61 other promising terms. We estimated proportions of articles containing potentially pertinent information regarding occupational etiology to formulate two search strategies (one "more specific," one "more sensitive"). We applied these strategies to retrieve information on the possible occupational etiology among agricultural workers of kidney cancer, knee osteoarthritis, and multiple sclerosis. We evaluated the number of needed to read (NNR) abstracts to identify one potentially pertinent article in the context of these pathologies. The "more specific" search string was based on the combination of terms that yielded the highest proportion (40%) of potentially pertinent abstracts. The "more sensitive" string was based on use of broader search fields and additional coverage provided by other search terms under study. Using the "more specific" string, the NNR to find one potentially pertinent article were: 1.1 for kidney cancer; 1.4 for knee osteoarthritis; 1.2 for multiple sclerosis. Using the sensitive strategy, the NNR were 1.4, 3.6, and 6.3, respectively. The proposed strings could help health care professionals explore putative occupational etiology for agricultural workers' diseases (even if not generally thought to be work related). © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  9. A random set scoring model for prioritization of disease candidate genes using protein complexes and data-mining of GeneRIF, OMIM and PubMed records

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jiang, Li; Edwards, Stefan M.; Thomsen, Bo

    2014-01-01

    from PubMed abstracts, OMIM, and GeneRIF records. We also investigated the validity of several vocabulary filters and different likelihood thresholds for predicted protein-protein interactions in terms of their effect on the network-based gene-prioritization approach, which relies on text...

  10. An overview of financial sources being utilized to support Zika Virus published research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goodridge, Keisha; Reveiz, Ludovic; Elias, Vanessa

    2017-01-01

    Since its initial detection in Brazil in 2015, Zika Virus (ZIKV) has spread rapidly throughout most of the Caribbean and South, Central and North America. An upsurge in congenital syndrome associated with ZIKV and Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS) has been associated with the increase in ZIKV. This amplification in numbers led to the need for funded research initiatives focusing on various countries globally and on specific experimental types. To determine the financial institutions involved in the production of primary research into the ZIKV epidemic. This research also intends to draw attention to the investigative areas that are dominating, experimental types being conducted and the geographical areas that are producing the bulk of the research utilizing available funds. A cross sectional search of published primary research was conducted using Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) Zika platform and PubMed between January 2007 and October 2016. Titles, abstract and full articles were assed and one researcher extracted data. Information was crossed checked by a second researcher to ensure accuracy. 268 articles were included and investigations occurred across 48 countries with Brazil and USA dominating the research. Applied Research and Laboratory based studies were most frequently utilized. 38.1% of articles did not report financial sources. Public institutions were the major known contributors. Other financiers included private, non-profits and mixed funders exclusive of public sources. 156 individual financial bodies assisted with National Institute of Health being most frequently mentioned followed by The National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) and the Institut Pasteur. Virus, vectors and reservoirs was most frequently used (99/268, 36.9%) followed by clinical management (70/268, 26.1%) and epidemiology (46/268, 17.2%). The evidence suggests international efforts to fund ZIKV research and a need to foster collaborative and

  11. Reporting of sources of funding in systematic reviews in periodontology and implant dentistry.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Faggion, C M; Atieh, M; Zanicotti, D G

    2014-02-01

    Industry-supported clinical trials may present better outcomes than those supported by other sources. The aim of this paper was to assess whether systematic reviews (SRs) published in periodontology and implant dentistry report and discuss the influence of funding sources on study results. Two reviewers conducted a comprehensive search in PubMed and the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews independently and in duplicate to identify SRs published up to 11 November 2012. Speciality dental journals and the reference lists of included SRs were also scrutinised. Information on the reporting and discussion of funding sources of primary studies included in the SRs was extracted independently and in duplicate. Any disagreement regarding SR selection or data extraction was discussed until consensus was achieved. Of 146 SRs included in the assessment, only 45 (31%) reported the funding sources of primary studies. Fourteen (10%) SRs discussed the potential influence of funding sources on study results, that is, sponsorship bias. Funding sources are inadequately reported and discussed in SRs in periodontology and implant dentistry. Assessment, reporting, and critical appraisal of potential sponsorship bias of meta-analytic estimates are paramount to provide proper guidance for clinical treatments.

  12. Chemotext: A Publicly Available Web Server for Mining Drug-Target-Disease Relationships in PubMed.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Capuzzi, Stephen J; Thornton, Thomas E; Liu, Kammy; Baker, Nancy; Lam, Wai In; O'Banion, Colin P; Muratov, Eugene N; Pozefsky, Diane; Tropsha, Alexander

    2018-02-26

    Elucidation of the mechanistic relationships between drugs, their targets, and diseases is at the core of modern drug discovery research. Thousands of studies relevant to the drug-target-disease (DTD) triangle have been published and annotated in the Medline/PubMed database. Mining this database affords rapid identification of all published studies that confirm connections between vertices of this triangle or enable new inferences of such connections. To this end, we describe the development of Chemotext, a publicly available Web server that mines the entire compendium of published literature in PubMed annotated by Medline Subject Heading (MeSH) terms. The goal of Chemotext is to identify all known DTD relationships and infer missing links between vertices of the DTD triangle. As a proof-of-concept, we show that Chemotext could be instrumental in generating new drug repurposing hypotheses or annotating clinical outcomes pathways for known drugs. The Chemotext Web server is freely available at http://chemotext.mml.unc.edu .

  13. Use of '15N/14N ratio to evaluate the anthropogenic source of nitrates in surface and groundwaters in the upper Orontes Basin (central Syria)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kattan, Z.

    2002-01-01

    The 15 N/ 14 N ratio of dissolved nitrogen species has long been used for the identification of the different sources of nitrate contamination of water systems. This study, which aims at providing a practical example of the utility of the 15 N stable isotope in identifying the natural and anthropogenic sources of nitrate in surface and groundwaters in the upper Orontes Basin, was implemented within the framework of the IAEA Regional technical project entitled 'Isotope Hydrology Techniques in Water Resources Management (RAW/8/002)'. The selected area for this work is located in the upper part of the Orontes River Basin, which occupies the central zone of the Syrian territories. This heavily populated region is characterized by intensive agricultural and industrial developments. Hence, the influence of the growing domestic activities is reflected by rapidly deteriorating of the surface and groundwaters qualities in this area

  14. Central and eastern European activities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rea, J.L.

    1993-01-01

    The Florida State University/Technical University of Budapest environmental research center, Center for Hungarian/American Environmental Research, Studies and Exchanges (CHAERSE), provides a resource base for information and technologies that is used to address near- and long-term environmental problems within the Department of Energy (DOE) complex and in Central and Eastern Europe. The CHAERSE is used as a technology transfer conduit for environmental restoration and waste management (ER/WM) problems and solutions. The International Technology Exchange Division (ITED) used the CHAERSE as one source of information for the identification of international ER/WM technologies being developed in Central and Eastern Europe. This was accomplished by matching high-priority problems in that region to high-priority problems in the DOE Complex; conducting symposia, meetings and workshops with international environmental experts; and identifying innovative technologies

  15. Effect of low emission sources on air quality in Cracow

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Nedoma, J. [EKOPOL Environmental Engineering Studies and Design Office, Co. Ltd., Cracow (Poland)

    1995-12-31

    The paper presents calculation of power engineering low emission and results of stimulation of the effect of this emission on air quality in Cracow, Poland. It has been stated that the segment of low emission in central areas of the town makes up ca. 40% of the observed concentration of sulfur dioxide. Furthermore it has been stated that the capital investment must be concentrated in the central part of the town in order to reach noticeable improvement of air quality in Cracow. Neither the output of a separate power source nor the emission level and its individual harmful effect, but the location of the source and especially packing density of the sources must decide the priority of upgrading actions.

  16. Centralization and Decentralization in the TRIUMF control system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dohan, D.A.; Gurd, D.P.

    1984-01-01

    Distributed control is characterized by a number of different concepts relating to hardware, software, data bases, and control stations. Although some control system designs are more centralized than others, all contain elements of both approaches. In particular, the TRIUMF system contains a unique blend of centralized and distributed attributes, deriving primarily from the multi-sourced CAMAC and memory systems at its executive node. The increased demands of an expanding accelerator laboratory have made it timely to consider strategies for expansion of the TRIUMF Control System. These requirements have led to reflections on one of the major themes of this conference - centralized vs distributed digital control systems for accelerators. This paper discusses the way in which the TRIUMF system successfully combines elements of both approaches

  17. Evidence-based review of lasers, light sources and photodynamic therapy in the treatment of acne vulgaris

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hædersdal, Merete; Togsverd-Bo, Katrine; Wulf, Hans Chr.

    2008-01-01

    through searches in PubMed and the Cochrane Library. Results A total of 16 randomized controlled trials (RCT) and 3 controlled trials (CT) were identified, involving a total of 587 patients. Interventions included photodynamic therapy (PDT; 5 RCTs), infrared lasers (4 RCTs), broad-spectrum light sources...... outcomes for PDT. We recommend that patients are preoperatively informed of the existing evidence, which indicates that optical treatments today are not included among first line treatments Udgivelsesdato: 2008/3...

  18. Genetics Home Reference: 2q37 deletion syndrome

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... on PubMed or Free article on PubMed Central Casas KA, Mononen TK, Mikail CN, Hassed SJ, Li S, ... 2005 Aug 18. Citation on PubMed Falk RE, Casas KA. Chromosome 2q37 deletion: clinical and molecular aspects. ...

  19. Microtask crowdsourcing for disease mention annotation in PubMed abstracts.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Good, Benjamin M; Nanis, Max; Wu, Chunlei; Su, Andrew I

    2015-01-01

    Identifying concepts and relationships in biomedical text enables knowledge to be applied in computational analyses. Many biological natural language processing (BioNLP) projects attempt to address this challenge, but the state of the art still leaves much room for improvement. Progress in BioNLP research depends on large, annotated corpora for evaluating information extraction systems and training machine learning models. Traditionally, such corpora are created by small numbers of expert annotators often working over extended periods of time. Recent studies have shown that workers on microtask crowdsourcing platforms such as Amazon's Mechanical Turk (AMT) can, in aggregate, generate high-quality annotations of biomedical text. Here, we investigated the use of the AMT in capturing disease mentions in PubMed abstracts. We used the NCBI Disease corpus as a gold standard for refining and benchmarking our crowdsourcing protocol. After several iterations, we arrived at a protocol that reproduced the annotations of the 593 documents in the 'training set' of this gold standard with an overall F measure of 0.872 (precision 0.862, recall 0.883). The output can also be tuned to optimize for precision (max = 0.984 when recall = 0.269) or recall (max = 0.980 when precision = 0.436). Each document was completed by 15 workers, and their annotations were merged based on a simple voting method. In total 145 workers combined to complete all 593 documents in the span of 9 days at a cost of $.066 per abstract per worker. The quality of the annotations, as judged with the F measure, increases with the number of workers assigned to each task; however minimal performance gains were observed beyond 8 workers per task. These results add further evidence that microtask crowdsourcing can be a valuable tool for generating well-annotated corpora in BioNLP. Data produced for this analysis are available at http://figshare.com/articles/Disease_Mention_Annotation_with_Mechanical_Turk/1126402.

  20. Why Principal Investigators Funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health Publish in the Public Library of Science Journals

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pontika, Nancy

    2015-01-01

    Introduction: The National Institutes of Health public access policy requires the principal investigators of any Institutes-funded research to submit their manuscript to PubMed Central, and the open access publisher Public Library of Science submits all articles to PubMed Central, irrespective of funder. Whether the investigators, who made the…

  1. Cassava leaves as protein source for pigs in Central Vietnam

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    2007-01-01

    The aim of the studies described in this thesis was to evaluate the use of cassava leaves as protein sources for pigs when used at high levels in the diet, either in fresh form or with simplified methods of processing. In twenty cassava varieties taken from the upper part of the plant at the root

  2. Earth and water resources and hazards in Central America

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cunningham, Charles G.; Fary, R.W.; Guffanti, Marianne; Laura, Della; Lee, M.P.; Masters, C.D.; Miller, R.L.; Quinones-Marques, Ferdinand; Peebles, R.W.; Reinemund, J.A.; Russ, D.P.

    1984-01-01

    Long-range economic development in Central America will depend in large part on production of indigenous mineral, energy, and water resources and on mitigation of the disastrous effects of geologic and hydrologic hazards such as landslides, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and floods. The region has six world-class metal mines at present as well as additional evidence of widespread mineralization. Systematic investigations using modern mineral exploration techniques should reveal more mineral deposits suitable for development. Widespread evidence of lignite and geothermal resources suggests that intensive studies could identify producible energy sources in most Central American countries. Water supply and water quality vary greatly from country to country. Local problems of ground- and surface-water availability and of contamination create a need for systematic programs to provide better hydrologic data, capital improvements, and management. Disastrous earthquakes have destroyed or severely damaged many cities in Central America. Volcanic eruptions, landslides, mudflows, and floods have devastated most of the Pacific side of Central America at one time or another. A regional approach to earthquake, volcano, and flood-risk analysis and monitoring, using modern technology and concepts, would provide the facilities and means for acquiring knowledge necessary to reduce future losses. All Central American countries need to strengthen institutions and programs dealing with earth and water resources and natural hazards. Some of these needs may be satisfied through existing or pending projects and technical and economic assistance from U.S. or other sources. The need for a comprehensive study of the natural resources of Central America and the requirements for their development is evident. The U.S. Caribbean Basin Initiative offers both an excellent opportunity for a regional approach to these pervasive problems and an opportunity for international cooperation.

  3. Bibliometric Analysis of Traditional Chinese Medicine Scientific Production between 1982 and 2016 Indexed in PubMed.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Consentino, Ricardo; Santos, Maria João; Matos, Luís Carlos; Machado, Jorge Pereira

    2018-05-03

    Background: Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) may be understood as a system of sensations and findings designed to establish the functional vegetative state of the body. This state may be treated by several therapeutic methods such as acupuncture, Chinese pharmacotherapy, dietetics, Tuina , and Qigong . Nowadays, as a result of several evidence-based reported beneficial effects over specific pathological conditions, there is an increasing tendency to integrate some of these practices in Western medicine. The main goal of this study was to perform a bibliometric analysis of TCM scientific production between 1982 and 2016 indexed in PubMed, by analyzing several parameters including time and location distribution, publication quality, experimental design, and treatment methods. Methods: The methodology was based on the quantitative inventory of published scientific research indexed in PubMed medical subject headings (MeSH), sorted within the broad term “Traditional Chinese Medicine” and integrating the following criteria as limit filters: “Species: Humans”, “Article Type: Clinical Trial”. In addition, the articles’ triage was ruled by temporal limitations set between 1945 and 2016. Results: The overall analysis of data allowed observation of an average annual growth of approximately 33%, with a productive peak of 122 articles in 2007. The scientific production was distributed in 27 countries, led by China (76.1%), followed by the United States of America (3.0%) and South Korea (2.1%). A significant amount of references were published in Chinese journals: more than 50%; however, these journals had a low impact factor. The most cited treatments in the keywords section of the articles were phytotherapy (55%) and acupuncture (40%). Conclusion: The increasing demand for TCM seems to be due to factors such as lower side effects and greater efficacy in some patients not responding well to conventional therapy. As a result, a considerable amount of TCM science

  4. Monte Carlo study of radial energy deposition from primary and secondary particles for narrow and large proton beamlet source models

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Peeler, Christopher R; Titt, Uwe

    2012-01-01

    In spot-scanning intensity-modulated proton therapy, numerous unmodulated proton beam spots are delivered over a target volume to produce a prescribed dose distribution. To accurately model field size-dependent output factors for beam spots, the energy deposition at positions radial to the central axis of the beam must be characterized. In this study, we determined the difference in the central axis dose for spot-scanned fields that results from secondary particle doses by investigating energy deposition radial to the proton beam central axis resulting from primary protons and secondary particles for mathematical point source and distributed source models. The largest difference in the central axis dose from secondary particles resulting from the use of a mathematical point source and a distributed source model was approximately 0.43%. Thus, we conclude that the central axis dose for a spot-scanned field is effectively independent of the source model used to calculate the secondary particle dose. (paper)

  5. West and Central Africa — Addressing new challenges | IDRC ...

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

    2011-01-25

    Jan 25, 2011 ... From his office in Dakar, Senegal, IDRC West and Central Africa Regional ... Privatization of former common land often spells trouble for herders and ... First, the region is increasingly dry, meaning that a source of water that is ...

  6. NEMO: Extraction and normalization of organization names from PubMed affiliations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jonnalagadda, Siddhartha Reddy; Topham, Philip

    2010-10-04

    Today, there are more than 18 million articles related to biomedical research indexed in MEDLINE, and information derived from them could be used effectively to save the great amount of time and resources spent by government agencies in understanding the scientific landscape, including key opinion leaders and centers of excellence. Associating biomedical articles with organization names could significantly benefit the pharmaceutical marketing industry, health care funding agencies and public health officials and be useful for other scientists in normalizing author names, automatically creating citations, indexing articles and identifying potential resources or collaborators. Large amount of extracted information helps in disambiguating organization names using machine-learning algorithms. We propose NEMO, a system for extracting organization names in the affiliation and normalizing them to a canonical organization name. Our parsing process involves multi-layered rule matching with multiple dictionaries. The system achieves more than 98% f-score in extracting organization names. Our process of normalization that involves clustering based on local sequence alignment metrics and local learning based on finding connected components. A high precision was also observed in normalization. NEMO is the missing link in associating each biomedical paper and its authors to an organization name in its canonical form and the Geopolitical location of the organization. This research could potentially help in analyzing large social networks of organizations for landscaping a particular topic, improving performance of author disambiguation, adding weak links in the co-author network of authors, augmenting NLM's MARS system for correcting errors in OCR output of affiliation field, and automatically indexing the PubMed citations with the normalized organization name and country. Our system is available as a graphical user interface available for download along with this paper.

  7. Toward Understanding the Fanaroff-Riley Dichotomy in Radio Source Morphology and Power

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baum, Stefi A.; Zirbel, Esther L.; O'Dea, Christopher P.

    1995-09-01

    In Paper I we presented the results of a study of the interrelationships between host galaxy magnitude, optical line luminosity, and radio luminosity in a large sample of Fanaroff-Riley classes 1 and 2 (FR 1 and FR 2) radio galaxies. We report several important differences between the FR 1 and FR 2 radio galaxies. At the same host galaxy magnitude or radio luminosity, the FR 2's produce substantially more optical line emission (by roughly an order of magnitude or more) than do FR 1's. Similarly, FR 2 sources produce orders of magnitude more line luminosity than do radio-quiet galaxies of the same optical magnitude, while FR 1 sources and radio-quiet galaxies of the same optical magnitude produce similar line luminosities. Combining these results with previous results from the literature, we conclude that while the emission-line gas in the FR 2's is indeed photoionized by a nuclear UV continuum source from the AGN, the emission-line gas in the FR 1's may be energized predominantly by processes associated with the host galaxy itself. The apparent lack of a strong UV continuum source from the central engine in FR 1 sources can be understood in two different ways. In the first scenario, FR l's are much more efficient at covering jet bulk kinetic energy into radio luminosity than FR 2's, such that an FR 1 has a much lower bolometric AGN luminosity (hence nuclear UV continuum source) than does an FR 2 of the same radio luminosity. We discuss the pros and cons of this model and conclude that the efficiency differences needed between FR 2 and FR 1 radio galaxies are quite large and may lead to difficulties with the interpretation since it would suggest that FR 2 radio source deposit very large amounts of kinetic energy into the ISM Intracluster Medium. However, this interpretation remains viable. Alternatively, it may be that the AGNs in FR 1 sources simply produce far less radiant UV energy than do those in FR 2 sources. That is, FR 1 sources may funnel a higher fraction

  8. The Source of Tok Pisin Structures.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goulden, Rick J.

    1989-01-01

    The source of the similarities and differences produced by pidginization is a central question studied in Pidgin-Creole linguistics. Several explanatory approaches are discussed that have guided research in this area, including simplification, substratum, independent innovation, and universals. (27 references) (Author/OD)

  9. Tikal obsidian: sources and typology

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Moholy-Nagy, H.; Asaro, F.; Stross, F.H.

    1984-01-01

    The obsidian industry of Classic period Tikal, Guatemala, is discussed with regard to geological source determinations and behavioral typology. The potential of these two approaches for cultural reconstruction is greatly extended when they can supplement each other. Recent source determinations of obsidian artifacts from Tikal indicate (1) a behavioral link between locally-produced prismatic blades of Highland Guatemalan stone and ceremonial incised obsidians and eccentrics, and (2) a Central Mexican origin for a seemingly large portion of Tikal's obsidian projectile points and knives. 25 references, 3 figures, 5 tables.

  10. New seismic sources parameterization in El Salvador. Implications to seismic hazard.

    OpenAIRE

    Alonso-Henar, Jorge; Staller, A.; Martínez Díaz, José J.; Benito, Belén; Álvarez Gómez, José Antonio; Canora Catalán, Carolina

    2014-01-01

    El Salvador is located at the pacific active margin of Central America, here, the subduction of the Cocos Plate under the Caribbean Plate at a rate of 80 mm/yr is the main seismic source. Although the seismic sources located in the Central American Volcanic Arc have been responsible for some of the most damaging earthquakes in El Salvador. The El Salvador Fault Zone is the main geological structure in El Salvador and accommodates 14 mm/yr of horizontal displacement between the Caribbean Plate...

  11. Teaching Central Eurasia in Undergraduate Survey Courses: Problems and Strategies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Amy Kardos

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Recent scholarship has challenged narratives of Central Eurasia’s relationships with its neighbors in East Asia, South Asia, and Southwest Asia.  This scholarship explains the trade networks that are commonly called the “Silk Routes” as the foreign trade component of a complex and dynamic Central Eurasian economy.  Scholarship of Central Eurasia also challenges long-standing narratives of “needy” or “predatory” nomads that militarily overwhelm sedentary empires. This article discusses the importance of incorporating such ideas into world history and Asian history survey courses, which are often taught by non-specialists who have only encountered Central Eurasia in their respective fields as a periphery.  Correcting misconceptions about Central Eurasia’s relationship with its neighbors also provides opportunities for students to think critically about historical sources and move past stereotypes of “barbarian” and “civilization.”

  12. Comparison between the fragmentation processes in central Pb + Ag and Pb + Au collisions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jouault, B.; Royer, G.; Sebille, F.; Haddad, F.; Lecolley, J.F.

    1996-01-01

    The fragmentation processes of a medium mass system and of a very massive one formed in central collisions are compared within the Landau-Vlasov model taking into account both the isospin dependence and the two-body residual interactions. The simulations predict the formation of a roughly ellipsoidal source in the central Pb + Ag reactions while, for the Pb + Au system, the fragmentation occurs from an hollow source, the configuration of which being intermediate between bubble-like and toroidal shapes. This difference shapes explain and allow to reproduce semi-quantitatively the two different profiles of the experimental kinetic energy spectra. (authors)

  13. Characteristics of Fine Particulate Carbonaceous Aerosol at Two Remote Sites in Central Asia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Central Asia is a relatively understudied region of the world in terms of characterizing ambient particulate matter (PM) and quantifying source impacts of PM at receptor locations, although it is speculated to have an important role as a source region for long-range transport of ...

  14. Ground-water temperature of the Wyoming quadrangle in central Delaware : with application to ground-water-source heat pumps

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hodges, Arthur L.

    1982-01-01

    Ground-water temperature was measured during a one-year period (1980-81) in 20 wells in the Wyoming Quadrangle in central Delaware. Data from thermistors set at fixed depths in two wells were collected twice each week, and vertical temperature profiles of the remaining 18 wells were made monthly. Ground-water temperature at 8 feet below land surface in well Jc55-1 ranged from 45.0 degrees F in February to 70.1 degrees F in September. Temperature at 35 feet below land surface in the same well reached a minimum of 56.0 degrees F in August, and a maximum of 57.8 degrees F in February. Average annual temperature of ground water at 25 feet below land surface in all wells ranged from 54.6 degrees F to 57.8 degrees F. Variations of average temperature probably reflect the presence or absence of forestation in the recharge areas of the wells. Ground-water-source heat pumps supplied with water from wells 30 or more feet below land surface will operate more efficiently in both heating and cooling modes than those supplied with water from shallower depths. (USGS)

  15. Sources of anthropogenic lead in sediments from an artificial lake in Brasilia-central Brazil

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gioia, S.M.C.L.; Pimentel, M.M.; Tessler, M.; Dantas, E.L.; Campos, J.E.G.; Guimaraes, E.M.; Maruoka, M.T.S.; Nascimento, E.L.C.

    2006-01-01

    Pb concentration and Pb isotopic composition are known to represent powerful tools to investigate the history of Pb pollution in water and sediments. In this paper, we present and discuss the results of a detailed study of sediments deposited in the Paranoa Lake, a 44-year-old artificial reservoir in Brasilia, central Brazil. Pb concentration and isotopic composition of the sediments were obtained by ID-TIMS, on three different sample fractions: leachate, residue, and bulk sample. The leachate phase has proven to be most efficient to distinguish between anthropogenic and natural Pb inputs. In the Paranoa lake, important sources of contamination were recognized, producing higher Pb concentrations (max. 37.68 ppm) and significant variations in Pb isotopic composition, relative to the regional geogenic background. Contamination of the sediments due to anthropogenic activity produced less radiogenic Pb isotopic compositions ( 206 Pb/ 207 Pb = 1.15-1.17), compared with the regional natural composition ( 206 Pb/ 207 Pb = 1.19-1.25). 21 Pb analyses along one bore hole which sampled the entire sediment section indicated a sedimentation rate of 8.2 ± 1.8 mm/year. The combined use of the 21 Pb ages and Pb isotopic compositions of these samples revealed three distinct periods in the lake history: (1) the period of the time formation of the lake in 1959 until ca. 1970 was characterized by the deposition of sediments displaying more radiogenic Pb isotopic signature, (2) the time interval from the start of the process of eutrophication at 1970, until 1995, was characterized by the deposition of sediments having less radiogenic average compositions, and (3) from 1995 until the present represents a period of recovery of water quality, after two sewage treatment stations started to operate

  16. Balanced Central Schemes for the Shallow Water Equations on Unstructured Grids

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bryson, Steve; Levy, Doron

    2004-01-01

    We present a two-dimensional, well-balanced, central-upwind scheme for approximating solutions of the shallow water equations in the presence of a stationary bottom topography on triangular meshes. Our starting point is the recent central scheme of Kurganov and Petrova (KP) for approximating solutions of conservation laws on triangular meshes. In order to extend this scheme from systems of conservation laws to systems of balance laws one has to find an appropriate discretization of the source terms. We first show that for general triangulations there is no discretization of the source terms that corresponds to a well-balanced form of the KP scheme. We then derive a new variant of a central scheme that can be balanced on triangular meshes. We note in passing that it is straightforward to extend the KP scheme to general unstructured conformal meshes. This extension allows us to recover our previous well-balanced scheme on Cartesian grids. We conclude with several simulations, verifying the second-order accuracy of our scheme as well as its well-balanced properties.

  17. Two-proton correlations from 158 A GeV Pb + Pb central collisions

    CERN Document Server

    Appelshauser, H.; Bailey, S.J.; Barna, D.; Barnby, L.S.; Bartke, J.; Barton, R.A.; Betev, L.; Bialkowska, H.; Billmeier, A.; Blyth, C.O.; Bock, R.; Boimska, B.; Bormann, C.; Brady, F.P.; Brockmann, R.; Brun, R.; Buncic, P.; Caines, H.L.; Carr, L.D.; Cebra, D.A.; Cooper, G.E.; Cramer, J.G.; Cristinziani, M.; Csato, P.; Dunn, J.; Eckardt, V.; Eckhardt, F.; Ferguson, M.I.; Fischer, H.G.; Flierl, D.; Fodor, Z.; Foka, P.; Freund, P.; Friese, V.; Fuchs, M.; Gabler, F.; Gal, J.; Ganz, R.; Gazdzicki, M.; Geist, Walter M.; Gladysz, E.; Grebieszkow, J.; Gunther, J.; Harris, J.W.; Hegyi, S.; Henkel, T.; Hill, L.A.; Hummler, H.; Igo, G.; Irmscher, D.; Jacobs, P.; Jones, P.G.; Kadija, K.; Kolesnikov, V.I.; Kowalski, M.; Lasiuk, B.; Lednicky, R.; Levai, P.; Malakhov, A.I.; Margetis, S.; Markert, C.; Melkumov, G.L.; Mock, A.; Molnar, J.; Nelson, John M.; Oldenburg, M.; Odyniec, G.; Palla, G.; Panagiotou, A.D.; Petridis, A.; Piper, A.; Porter, R.J.; Poskanzer, Arthur M.; Prindle, D.J.; Puhlhofer, F.; Susa, T.; Reid, J.G.; Renfordt, R.; Retyk, W.; Ritter, H.G.; Rohrich, D.; Roland, C.; Roland, G.; Rudolph, H.; Rybicki, A.; Sammer, T.; Sandoval, A.; Sann, H.; Semenov, A.Yu.; Schafer, E.; Schmischke, D.; Schmitz, N.; Schonfelder, S.; Seyboth, P.; Sikler, F.; Skrzypczak, E.; Snellings, R.; Squier, G.T.A.; Stock, R.; Strobele, H.; Struck, Chr.; Szentpetery, I.; Sziklai, J.; Toy, M.; Trainor, T.A.; Trentalange, S.; Ullrich, T.; Vassiliou, M.; Veres, G.; Vesztergombi, G.; Voloshin, S.; Vranic, D.; Wang, F.; Weerasundara, D.D.; Wenig, S.; Whitten, C.; Wood, L.; Xu, N.; Yates, T.A.; Zimanyi, J.; Zhu, X.Z.; Zybert, R.

    1999-01-01

    The two-proton correlation function at midrapidity from Pb+Pb central collisions at 158 AGeV has been measured by the NA49 experiment. The results are compared to model predictions from static thermal Gaussian proton source distributions and transport models RQMD and VENUS. An effective proton source size is determined by minimizing CHI-square/ndf between the correlation functions of the data and those calculated for the Gaussian sources, yielding 3.85 +- 0.15 (stat.) +- 0.15 (syst.) fm. The RQMD model overpredicts the effective source size, while the VENUS model underpredicts the effective source size.

  18. Tsunami hazard assessment in El Salvador, Central America, from seismic sources through flooding numerical models.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Álvarez-Gómez, J. A.; Aniel-Quiroga, Í.; Gutiérrez-Gutiérrez, O. Q.; Larreynaga, J.; González, M.; Castro, M.; Gavidia, F.; Aguirre-Ayerbe, I.; González-Riancho, P.; Carreño, E.

    2013-11-01

    El Salvador is the smallest and most densely populated country in Central America; its coast has an approximate length of 320 km, 29 municipalities and more than 700 000 inhabitants. In El Salvador there were 15 recorded tsunamis between 1859 and 2012, 3 of them causing damages and resulting in hundreds of victims. Hazard assessment is commonly based on propagation numerical models for earthquake-generated tsunamis and can be approached through both probabilistic and deterministic methods. A deterministic approximation has been applied in this study as it provides essential information for coastal planning and management. The objective of the research was twofold: on the one hand the characterization of the threat over the entire coast of El Salvador, and on the other the computation of flooding maps for the three main localities of the Salvadorian coast. For the latter we developed high-resolution flooding models. For the former, due to the extension of the coastal area, we computed maximum elevation maps, and from the elevation in the near shore we computed an estimation of the run-up and the flooded area using empirical relations. We have considered local sources located in the Middle America Trench, characterized seismotectonically, and distant sources in the rest of Pacific Basin, using historical and recent earthquakes and tsunamis. We used a hybrid finite differences-finite volumes numerical model in this work, based on the linear and non-linear shallow water equations, to simulate a total of 24 earthquake-generated tsunami scenarios. Our results show that at the western Salvadorian coast, run-up values higher than 5 m are common, while in the eastern area, approximately from La Libertad to the Gulf of Fonseca, the run-up values are lower. The more exposed areas to flooding are the lowlands in the Lempa River delta and the Barra de Santiago Western Plains. The results of the empirical approximation used for the whole country are similar to the results

  19. Injection and central region studies for the VINCY Cyclotron

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Milinkovic, L.; Toprek, D.; Brajuskovic, B.

    1992-01-01

    The central region of the VINCY Cyclotron, the main part of the TESLA Accelerator Installation, is designed to operate with two external ion sources: an ECR ion source for heavy ions, and a multicusp ion source for H - and D - ions. A tilted spiral inflector with an electric bending radius of 25 mm is used to bend the beams into the median plane of the Cyclotron at the magnetic radius of 16 mm. The optical properties of the inflector were studied, and an effort to minimize the inflector fringe field, using the RELAX3D code, for the calculation of the electric potential distribution, was made. (author) 7 refs.; 4 figs

  20. Centralized vs. de-centralized multinationals and taxes

    OpenAIRE

    Nielsen, Søren Bo; Raimondos-Møller, Pascalis; Schjelderup, Guttorm

    2005-01-01

    The paper examines how country tax differences affect a multinational enterprise's choice to centralize or de-centralize its decision structure. Within a simple model that emphasizes the multiple conflicting roles of transfer prices in MNEs – here, as a strategic pre-commitment device and a tax manipulation instrument –, we show that (de-)centralized decisions are more profitable when tax differentials are (small) large. Keywords: Centralized vs. de-centralized decisions, taxes, MNEs. ...

  1. Problem of spiral galaxies and satellite radio sources

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Arp, H.; Carpenter, R.; Gulkis, S.; Klein, M.

    1976-01-01

    A detailed comparison is made between the results of this program and the results of previous investigators. In particular, attention is called to the potentially important implications of an investigation by Tovmasyan, who searched a large number of spirals and found evidence that a small percentage of them apparently have radio satellites located up to 20' from the central galaxy. 15 sources were measured selected from Tovmasyan's list of 43 satellite sources. Results confirm his positions and relative flux densities for each of the sources

  2. Characteristics of randomized trials published in Latin America and the Caribbean according to funding source.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ludovic Reveiz

    Full Text Available INTRODUCTION: Few studies have assessed the nature and quality of randomized controlled trials (RCTs in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC. METHODS AND FINDINGS: The aims of this systematic review are to evaluate the characteristics (including the risk of bias assessment of RCT conducted in LAC according to funding source. A review of RCTs published in 2010 in which the author's affiliation was from LAC was performed in PubMed and LILACS. Two reviewers independently extracted data and assessed the risk of bias. The primary outcomes were risk of bias assessment and funding source. A total of 1,695 references were found in PubMed and LILACS databases, of which 526 were RCTs (N = 73.513 participants. English was the dominant publication language (93% and most of the RCTs were published in non-LAC journals (84.2%. Only five of the 19 identified countries accounted for nearly 95% of all RCTs conducted in the region (Brazil 70.9%, Mexico 10.1%, Argentina 5.9%, Colombia 3.8%, and Chile 3.4%. Few RCTs covered priority areas related with Millennium Development Goals like maternal health (6.7% or high priority infectious diseases (3.8%. Regarding children, 3.6% and 0.4% RCT evaluated nutrition and diarrhea interventions respectively but none pneumonia. As a comparison, aesthetic and sport related interventions account for 4.6% of all trials. A random sample of RCTs (n = 358 was assessed for funding source: exclusively public (33.8%; private (e.g. pharmaceutical company (15.3%; other (e.g. mixed, NGO (15.1%; no funding (35.8%. Overall assessments for risk of bias showed no statistically significant differences between RCTs and type of funding source. Statistically significant differences favoring private and others type of funding was found when assessing trial registration and conflict of interest reporting. CONCLUSION: Findings of this study could be used to provide more direction for future research to facilitate innovation, improve health

  3. Characteristics of randomized trials published in Latin America and the Caribbean according to funding source.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reveiz, Ludovic; Sangalang, Stephanie; Glujovsky, Demian; Pinzon, Carlos E; Asenjo Lobos, Claudia; Cortes, Marcela; Cañón, Martin; Bardach, Ariel; Bonfill, Xavier

    2013-01-01

    Few studies have assessed the nature and quality of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). The aims of this systematic review are to evaluate the characteristics (including the risk of bias assessment) of RCT conducted in LAC according to funding source. A review of RCTs published in 2010 in which the author's affiliation was from LAC was performed in PubMed and LILACS. Two reviewers independently extracted data and assessed the risk of bias. The primary outcomes were risk of bias assessment and funding source. A total of 1,695 references were found in PubMed and LILACS databases, of which 526 were RCTs (N = 73.513 participants). English was the dominant publication language (93%) and most of the RCTs were published in non-LAC journals (84.2%). Only five of the 19 identified countries accounted for nearly 95% of all RCTs conducted in the region (Brazil 70.9%, Mexico 10.1%, Argentina 5.9%, Colombia 3.8%, and Chile 3.4%). Few RCTs covered priority areas related with Millennium Development Goals like maternal health (6.7%) or high priority infectious diseases (3.8%). Regarding children, 3.6% and 0.4% RCT evaluated nutrition and diarrhea interventions respectively but none pneumonia. As a comparison, aesthetic and sport related interventions account for 4.6% of all trials. A random sample of RCTs (n = 358) was assessed for funding source: exclusively public (33.8%); private (e.g. pharmaceutical company) (15.3%); other (e.g. mixed, NGO) (15.1%); no funding (35.8%). Overall assessments for risk of bias showed no statistically significant differences between RCTs and type of funding source. Statistically significant differences favoring private and others type of funding was found when assessing trial registration and conflict of interest reporting. Findings of this study could be used to provide more direction for future research to facilitate innovation, improve health outcomes or address priority health problems.

  4. Sr isotope tracing of multiple water sources in a complex river system, Noteć River, central Poland

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zieliński, Mateusz, E-mail: mateusz.zielinski@amu.edu.pl [Institute of Geoecology and Geoinformation, Adam Mickiewicz University, Dzięgielowa 27, 61-680 Poznań (Poland); Dopieralska, Jolanta, E-mail: dopieralska@amu.edu.pl [Poznań Science and Technology Park, Adam Mickiewicz University Foundation, Rubież 46, 61-612 Poznań (Poland); Belka, Zdzislaw, E-mail: zbelka@amu.edu.pl [Isotope Laboratory, Adam Mickiewicz University, Dzięgielowa 27, 61-680 Poznań (Poland); Walczak, Aleksandra, E-mail: awalczak@amu.edu.pl [Isotope Laboratory, Adam Mickiewicz University, Dzięgielowa 27, 61-680 Poznań (Poland); Siepak, Marcin, E-mail: siep@amu.edu.pl [Institute of Geology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Maków Polnych 16, 61-606 Poznań (Poland); Jakubowicz, Michal, E-mail: mjakub@amu.edu.pl [Institute of Geoecology and Geoinformation, Adam Mickiewicz University, Dzięgielowa 27, 61-680 Poznań (Poland)

    2016-04-01

    Anthropogenic impact on surface waters and other elements in the environment was investigated in the Noteć River basin in central Poland. The approach was to trace changes in the Sr isotope composition ({sup 87}Sr/{sup 86}Sr) and concentration in space and time. Systematic sampling of the river water shows a very wide range of {sup 87}Sr/{sup 86}Sr ratios, from 0.7089 to 0.7127. This strong variation, however, is restricted to the upper course of the river, whereas the water in the lower course typically shows {sup 87}Sr/{sup 86}Sr values around 0.7104–0.7105. Variations in {sup 87}Sr/{sup 86}Sr are associated with a wide range of Sr concentrations, from 0.14 to 1.32 mg/L. We find that strong variations in {sup 87}Sr/{sup 86}Sr and Sr concentrations can be accounted for by mixing of two end-members: 1) atmospheric waters charged with Sr from the near-surface weathering and wash-out of Quaternary glaciogenic deposits, and 2) waters introduced into the river from an open pit lignite mine. The first reservoir is characterized by a low Sr content and high {sup 87}Sr/{sup 86}Sr ratios, whereas mine waters display opposite characteristics. Anthropogenic pollution is also induced by extensive use of fertilizers which constitute the third source of Sr in the environment. The study has an important implication for future archeological studies in the region. It shows that the present-day Sr isotope signatures of river water, flora and fauna cannot be used unambiguously to determine the “baseline” for bioavailable {sup 87}Sr/{sup 86}Sr in the past. - Highlights: • Sr isotopes fingerprint water sources and their interactions in a complex river system. • Mine waters and fertilizers are critical anthropogenic additions in the river water. • Limited usage of environmental isotopic data in archeological studies. • Sr budget of the river is dynamic and temporary.

  5. Bispectral pairwise interacting source analysis for identifying systems of cross-frequency interacting brain sources from electroencephalographic or magnetoencephalographic signals

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chella, Federico; Pizzella, Vittorio; Zappasodi, Filippo; Nolte, Guido; Marzetti, Laura

    2016-05-01

    Brain cognitive functions arise through the coordinated activity of several brain regions, which actually form complex dynamical systems operating at multiple frequencies. These systems often consist of interacting subsystems, whose characterization is of importance for a complete understanding of the brain interaction processes. To address this issue, we present a technique, namely the bispectral pairwise interacting source analysis (biPISA), for analyzing systems of cross-frequency interacting brain sources when multichannel electroencephalographic (EEG) or magnetoencephalographic (MEG) data are available. Specifically, the biPISA makes it possible to identify one or many subsystems of cross-frequency interacting sources by decomposing the antisymmetric components of the cross-bispectra between EEG or MEG signals, based on the assumption that interactions are pairwise. Thanks to the properties of the antisymmetric components of the cross-bispectra, biPISA is also robust to spurious interactions arising from mixing artifacts, i.e., volume conduction or field spread, which always affect EEG or MEG functional connectivity estimates. This method is an extension of the pairwise interacting source analysis (PISA), which was originally introduced for investigating interactions at the same frequency, to the study of cross-frequency interactions. The effectiveness of this approach is demonstrated in simulations for up to three interacting source pairs and for real MEG recordings of spontaneous brain activity. Simulations show that the performances of biPISA in estimating the phase difference between the interacting sources are affected by the increasing level of noise rather than by the number of the interacting subsystems. The analysis of real MEG data reveals an interaction between two pairs of sources of central mu and beta rhythms, localizing in the proximity of the left and right central sulci.

  6. The role of the central registry in the safety and security of radioactive materials in Hungary

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Petoe, A.; Safar, J.; Turi, G.; Abonyi, T.

    2001-01-01

    After a brief overview of the Hungarian legislation and regulatory infrastructure the report provides information on the number of companies and licensees using radioactive materials and explains also the role of the established central registry of radiation sources and radioactive materials in Hungary for improving the safety and security of radioactive materials in the country. It concludes that a reliable nationwide central registry can be a very useful tool for increasing the safety and security of radiation sources and radioactive materials. (author)

  7. Seismic explosion sources on an ice cap

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Shulgin, Alexey; Thybo, Hans

    2015-01-01

    crustal model can be modelled. A crucial challenge for applying the technique is to control the sources. Here, we present data that describe the efficiency of explosive sources in the ice cover. Analysis of the data shows, that the ice cap traps a significant amount of energy, which is observed......Controlled source seismic investigation of crustal structure below ice covers is an emerging technique. We have recently conducted an explosive refraction/wide-angle reflection seismic experiment on the ice cap in east-central Greenland. The data-quality is high for all shot points and a full...

  8. On the central charge extension of the N=4 SYM spin chain

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Berenstein, David

    2015-01-01

    In this paper it is argued that the central charge extension of the Coulomb branch of N=4 SYM theory appears as a limit of Beisert’s central charge extension of the planar N=4 spin chain in the presence of boundaries. These boundaries are interpreted as D-branes that source the central charge and are realized as giant gravitons and dual giant gravitons in the AdS dual. The BPS states that correspond to short representations of the centrally extended algebra on the spin chain can stop from existing when they cross walls of stability that depend on the position of the branes. These walls can be understood easily at weak coupling in the SU(2) sector.

  9. Meta-analysis of Pentacam vs. ultrasound pachymetry in central corneal thickness measurement in normal, post-LASIK or PRK, and keratoconic or keratoconus-suspect eyes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Wenjing; Wang, Yan; Xu, Lulu

    2014-01-01

    The aim of this meta-analysis is to evaluate the central corneal thickness (CCT) measurement differences between Pentacam (Oculus Inc., Germany) and Ultrasound Pachymetry (USP) in normal (unoperated eyes , myopic and astigmatic eyes without corneal disease or topographic irregularity), after laser in situ keratomileusis (LASIK) or photorefractive keratectomy (PRK), and keratoconic or keratoconus suspected eyes. We assess whether Pentacam and USP have similar CCT differences in normal, thinner corneas after LASIK or PRK procedures, and kerotoconic or keratoconus suspected eyes. Data sources, including PubMed, Medline, EMBASE, and Cochrane Central Registry of Controlled Trials on the Cochrane Library, were searched to find the relevant studies. Primary outcome measures were CCT measurement between Pentacam and USP. Three groups of eyes were analyzed: normal; LASIK or PRK eyes; and keratoconus suspected or keratoconic eyes. Nineteen studies describing 1,908 eyes were enrolled in the normal group. Pentacam results were 1.47 μm ,95 % confidence interval (CI) -2.32 to 5.27, higher than USP without statistically significant difference (P = 0.45). Nine studies with total 539 eyes were included in the corneas after LASIK or PRK. The mean difference in the CCT measurement with Pentacam and ultrasound pachymetry was 1.03 μm, with the 95 % CI -3.36 to 5.42, there was no statistically difference (P = 0.64). Four studies with a total of 185 eyes were included in the keratoconic eyes or keratoconus-suspect group, however,the mean difference was -6.33 μm (95 % CI -9.17 to-3.49), which was statistically different between Pentacam and ultrasound pachymetry in the CCT measurement (P LASIK or PRK procedures. However, in keratoconic or keratoconus-suspect eyes, Pentacam slightly underestimates the central corneal thickness than does ultrasound pachymetry, which may result from the difficulty in fixation of keratoconic eyes, misalignment of Pentacam and the variation

  10. Centralized Fabric Management Using Puppet, Git, and GLPI

    CERN Multimedia

    CERN. Geneva

    2012-01-01

    Managing the infrastructure of a large and complex data center can be extremely difficult without taking advantage of automated services. Puppet is a seasoned, open-source tool designed for enterprise-class centralized configuration management. At the RHIC/ATLAS Computing Facility at Brookhaven National Laboratory, we have adopted Puppet as part of a suite of tools, including Git, GLPI, and some custom scripts, that comprise our centralized configuration management system. In this paper, we discuss the use of these tools for centralized configuration management of our servers and services; change management, which requires authorized approval of production changes; a complete, version-controlled history of all changes made; separation of production, testing, and development systems using Puppet environments; semi-automated server inventory using GLPI; and configuration change monitoring and reporting via the Puppet dashboard. We will also discuss scalability and performance results from using these tools on a...

  11. Genetics Home Reference: infantile neuroaxonal dystrophy

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... journal.pone.0012897. Citation on PubMed or Free article on PubMed Central Hayflick SJ. Neurodegeneration with brain iron accumulation: from genes to pathogenesis. Semin Pediatr Neurol. 2006 Sep;13( ...

  12. A New Method for the 2D DOA Estimation of Coherently Distributed Sources

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Liang Zhou

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of this paper is to develop a new technique for estimating the two- dimensional (2D direction-of-arrivals (DOAs of coherently distributed (CD sources, which can estimate effectively the central azimuth and central elevation of CD sources at the cost of less computational cost. Using the special L-shape array, a new approach for parametric estimation of CD sources is proposed. The proposed method is based on two rotational invariance relations under small angular approximation, and estimates two rotational matrices which depict the relations, using propagator technique. And then the central DOA estimations are obtained by utilizing the primary diagonal elements of two rotational matrices. Simulation results indicate that the proposed method can exhibit a good performance under small angular spread and be applied to the multisource scenario where different sources may have different angular distribution shapes. Without any peak-finding search and the eigendecomposition of the high-dimensional sample covariance matrix, the proposed method has significantly reduced the computational cost compared with the existing methods, and thus is beneficial to real-time processing and engineering realization. In addition, our approach is also a robust estimator which does not depend on the angular distribution shape of CD sources.

  13. 5. Regional focus: Central Europe

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Livernash, R.; Levy, B.S.; Hertzman, C.

    1992-01-01

    The industrial regions of Central Europe are so choked by pollution that the health of children is impaired and the lives of adults shortened. The paper discusses this situation under the following headings: industrial development and energy efficiency; dependence on coal; the extent of the damage (atmospheric pollution: low stacks, auto emissions; water pollution (agricultural sources); forest and soil damage; transboundary pollution); managing market forces (impact of higher prices, managing growth: the case of motor vehicles); looking for least-cost solutions (coping with coal, adjusting the fuel mix, energy conservation); developing effective laws and regulations

  14. Preliminary comparison of the Essie and PubMed search engines for answering clinical questions using MD on Tap, a PDA-based program for accessing biomedical literature.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sutton, Victoria R; Hauser, Susan E

    2005-01-01

    MD on Tap, a PDA application that searches and retrieves biomedical literature, is specifically designed for use by mobile healthcare professionals. With the goal of improving the usability of the application, a preliminary comparison was made of two search engines (PubMed and Essie) to determine which provided most efficient path to the desired clinically-relevant information.

  15. Understanding the Sampling Distribution and the Central Limit Theorem.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lewis, Charla P.

    The sampling distribution is a common source of misuse and misunderstanding in the study of statistics. The sampling distribution, underlying distribution, and the Central Limit Theorem are all interconnected in defining and explaining the proper use of the sampling distribution of various statistics. The sampling distribution of a statistic is…

  16. THE HIGH-ENERGY, ARCMINUTE-SCALE GALACTIC CENTER GAMMA-RAY SOURCE

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chernyakova, M.; Malyshev, D.; Aharonian, F. A.; Crocker, R. M.; Jones, D. I.

    2011-01-01

    Employing data collected during the first 25 months of observations by the Fermi-LAT, we describe and subsequently seek to model the very high energy (>300 MeV) emission from the central few parsecs of our Galaxy. We analyze the morphological, spectral, and temporal characteristics of the central source, 1FGL J1745.6-2900. The data show a clear, statistically significant signal at energies above 10 GeV, where the Fermi-LAT has angular resolution comparable to that of HESS at TeV energies. This makes a meaningful joint analysis of the data possible. Our analysis of the Fermi data (alone) does not uncover any statistically significant variability of 1FGL J1745.6-2900 at GeV energies on the month timescale. Using the combination of Fermi data on 1FGL J1745.6-2900 and HESS data on the coincident, TeV source HESS J1745-290, we show that the spectrum of the central gamma-ray source is inflected with a relatively steep spectral region matching between the flatter spectrum found at both low and high energies. We model the gamma-ray production in the inner 10 pc of the Galaxy and examine cosmic ray (CR) proton propagation scenarios that reproduce the observed spectrum of the central source. We show that a model that instantiates a transition from diffusive propagation of the CR protons at low energy to almost rectilinear propagation at high energies can explain well the spectral phenomenology. We find considerable degeneracy between different parameter choices which will only be broken with the addition of morphological information that gamma-ray telescopes cannot deliver given current angular resolution limits. We argue that a future analysis performed in combination with higher-resolution radio continuum data holds out the promise of breaking this degeneracy.

  17. The efficacy of centralized flow rate control in 802.11-based wireless mesh networks

    KAUST Repository

    Jamshaid, K.

    2013-06-13

    Commodity WiFi-based wireless mesh networks (WMNs) can be used to provide last mile Internet access. These networks exhibit extreme unfairness with backlogged traffic sources. Current solutions propose distributed source-rate control algorithms requiring link-layer or transport-layer changes on all mesh nodes. This is often infeasible in large practical deployments. In wireline networks, router-assisted rate control techniques have been proposed for use alongside end-to-end mechanisms. We wish to evaluate the feasibility of establishing similar centralized control via gateways in WMNs. In this paper, we focus on the efficacy of this control rather than the specifics of the controller design mechanism. We answer the question: Given sources that react predictably to congestion notification, can we enforce a desired rate allocation through a single centralized controller? The answer is not obvious because flows experience varying contention levels, and transmissions are scheduled by a node using imperfect local knowledge. We find that common router-assisted flow control schemes used in wired networks fail in WMNs because they assume that (1) links are independent, and (2) router queue buildups are sufficient for detecting congestion. We show that non-work-conserving, rate-based centralized scheduling can effectively enforce rate allocation. It can achieve results comparable to source rate limiting, without requiring any modifications to mesh routers or client devices. 2013 Jamshaid et al.; licensee Springer.

  18. Clinical utility of anterior segment swept-source optical coherence tomography in glaucoma

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dewang Angmo

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Optical coherence tomography (OCT, a noninvasive imaging modality that uses low-coherence light to obtain a high-resolution cross-section of biological structures, has evolved dramatically over the years. The Swept-source OCT (SS-OCT makes use of a single detector with a rapidly tunable laser as a light source. The Casia SS-1000 OCT is a Fourier-domain, SS-OCT designed specifically for imaging the anterior segment. This system achieves high resolution imaging of 10΅m (Axial and 30΅m (Transverse and high speed scanning of 30,000 A-scans per second. With a substantial improvement in scan speed, the anterior chamber angles can be imaged 360 degrees in 128 cross sections (each with 512 A-scans in about 2.4 seconds. We summarize the clinical applications of anterior segment SS-OCT in Glaucoma. Literature search: We searched PubMed and included Medline using the phrases anterior segment optical coherence tomography in ophthalmology, swept-source OCT, use of AS-OCT in glaucoma, use of swept-source AS-OCT in glaucoma, quantitative assessment of angle, filtering bleb in AS-OCT, comparison of AS-OCT with gonioscopy and comparison of AS-OCT with UBM. Search was made for articles dating 1990 to August 2015.

  19. Seismoacoustic Coupled Signals From Earthquakes in Central Italy : Epicentral and Secondary Sources of Infrasound

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Shani Kadmiel, S.; Assink, Jelle D.; Smets, P.S.M.; Evers, L.G.

    2018-01-01

    In this study we analyze infrasound signals from three earthquakes in central Italy. The Mw 6.0 Amatrice, Mw 5.9 Visso, and Mw 6.5 Norcia earthquakes generated significant epicentral ground motions that couple to the atmosphere and produce infrasonic waves.

  20. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in soils from the Central-Himalaya region: Distribution, sources, and risks to humans and wildlife

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bi, X.; Luo, J.; Gao, J.; Xu, L.; Guo, Q.; Zhang, K.Y.; Romesh, J.P.; Giesy, S.; Kang, J.; de Boer, J.

    2016-01-01

    The Central Himalayas are not only a natural boundary between China and Nepal but also a natural barrier for transport of air masses from South Asia. In this study, 99 samples of surface soil were collected from five regions of Nepal on the southern side of the Central Himalayas, and 65 samples of

  1. Non-uniform dwell times in line source high dose rate brachytherapy: physical and radiobiological considerations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jones, B.; Tan, L.T.; Freestone, G.; Bleasdale, C.; Myint, S.; Littler, J.

    1994-01-01

    The ability to vary source dwell times in high dose rate (HDR) brachytherapy allows for the use of non-uniform dwell times along a line source. This may have advantages in the radical treatment of tumours depending on individual tumour geometry. This study investigates the potential improvements in local tumour control relative to adjacent normal tissue isoeffects when intratumour source dwell times are increased along the central portion of a line source (technique A) in radiotherapy schedules which include a relatively small component of HDR brachytherapy. Such a technique is predicted to increase the local control for tumours of diameters ranging between 2 cm and 4 cm by up to 11% compared with a technique in which there are uniform dwell times along the line source (technique B). There is no difference in the local control rates for the two techniques when used to treat smaller tumours. Normal tissue doses are also modified by the technique used. Technique A produces higher normal tissue doses at points perpendicular to the centre of the line source and lower dose at points nearer the ends of the line source if the prescription point is not in the central plane of the line source. Alternatively, if the dose is prescribed at a point in the central plane of the line source, the dose at all the normal tissue points are lower when technique A is used. (author)

  2. A review on antidepressant effect of medicinal plants

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zahra Rabiei

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available Depression is a life-threatening, debilitating, and common disease affecting different segments of community. Chemical and synthetic drugs available to treat this disease cause many adverse effects and may lead to complete recovery in only 50% of patients. At the same time, medicinal plants have been reported to exert optimal pharmacological effects in treating depression in different models. In this review, the relevant articles indexed in the reliable databases PubMed, PubMed central, Scopus and Web of Science were review-ed. The review indicated that most medicinal plants exerted antidepressant effects through synaptic regulation of serotonin, noradrenaline, and dopamine, regulating activity of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, reinfor-cing anti-oxidant defense system, and decreasing inflammatory mediators. The medicinal plants and their active compounds can relieve depression through different pathways and hence are considered a new source to produce antidepressants.

  3. Biomass energy in Central America

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Blanco, J M [Biomass Users` Network, Regional Office for Central America and the Caribbean, San Jose (Costa Rica)

    1995-12-01

    The objective of this paper is to introduce the concept of biomass to energy issues and opportunities in Central America. In this region, made up of seven countries (Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama), the biomass sector has the potential to play a crucial role in alleviating the environmental and development predicaments faced by all economies of the region. This paper assesses the available biomass resources at the regional and country levels and gives an overview of the current utilization of biomass fuels. It also describes the overall context in which the biomass-to-energy initiatives are immersed. At the regional level, biomass energy consumption accounts for more than 50% of total energy consumption. In regard to the utilization of biomass for energy purposes, it is clear that Central America faces a critical juncture at two levels, both mainly in rural areas: in the productive sector and at the household level. The absence of sustainable development policies and practices has jeopardized the availability of biomass fuels, particularly wood. Firewood is an important source of energy for rural industries such as coffee processing, which is one of the largest productive activities in the region. This paper comments on some of the most successful technological innovations already in place in the region, for instance, the rapid development of co-generation projects by the sugar cane industry, especially in El Salvador and Guatemala, the substitution of coffee husks for firewood in coffee processing plants in Costa Rica and El Salvador and the sustainable use of pine forests for co-generation in Honduras. Only one out of every two inhabitants in Central America now has access to electricity from the public grid. Biomass fuels, mainly firewood but also, to a lesser extent, other crop residues such as corn stalks, are the main source of energy for cooking and heating by most of the population. (It is foreseen that by the end

  4. Biomass energy in Central America

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Blanco, J.M.

    1995-01-01

    The objective of this paper is to introduce the concept of biomass to energy issues and opportunities in Central America. In this region, made up of seven countries (Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama), the biomass sector has the potential to play a crucial role in alleviating the environmental and development predicaments faced by all economies of the region. This paper assesses the available biomass resources at the regional and country levels and gives an overview of the current utilization of biomass fuels. It also describes the overall context in which the biomass-to-energy initiatives are immersed. At the regional level, biomass energy consumption accounts for more than 50% of total energy consumption. In regard to the utilization of biomass for energy purposes, it is clear that Central America faces a critical juncture at two levels, both mainly in rural areas: in the productive sector and at the household level. The absence of sustainable development policies and practices has jeopardized the availability of biomass fuels, particularly wood. Firewood is an important source of energy for rural industries such as coffee processing, which is one of the largest productive activities in the region. This paper comments on some of the most successful technological innovations already in place in the region, for instance, the rapid development of co-generation projects by the sugar cane industry, especially in El Salvador and Guatemala, the substitution of coffee husks for firewood in coffee processing plants in Costa Rica and El Salvador and the sustainable use of pine forests for co-generation in Honduras. Only one out of every two inhabitants in Central America now has access to electricity from the public grid. Biomass fuels, mainly firewood but also, to a lesser extent, other crop residues such as corn stalks, are the main source of energy for cooking and heating by most of the population. (It is foreseen that by the end

  5. Using Clinical Data, Hypothesis Generation Tools and PubMed Trends to Discover the Association between Diabetic Retinopathy and Antihypertensive Drugs

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Senter, Katherine G [ORNL; Sukumar, Sreenivas R [ORNL; Patton, Robert M [ORNL; Chaum, Ed [University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UTK)

    2015-01-01

    Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a leading cause of blindness and common complication of diabetes. Many diabetic patients take antihypertensive drugs to prevent cardiovascular problems, but these drugs may have unintended consequences on eyesight. Six common classes of antihypertensive drug are angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors, alpha blockers, angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs), -blockers, calcium channel blockers, and diuretics. Analysis of medical history data might indicate which of these drugs provide safe blood pressure control, and a literature review is often used to guide such analyses. Beyond manual reading of relevant publications, we sought to identify quantitative trends in literature from the biomedical database PubMed to compare with quantitative trends in the clinical data. By recording and analyzing PubMed search results, we found wide variation in the prevalence of each antihypertensive drug in DR literature. Drug classes developed more recently such as ACE inhibitors and ARBs were most prevalent. We also identified instances of change-over-time in publication patterns. We then compared these literature trends to a dataset of 500 diabetic patients from the UT Hamilton Eye Institute. Data for each patient included class of antihypertensive drug, presence and severity of DR. Graphical comparison revealed that older drug classes such as diuretics, calcium channel blockers, and -blockers were much more prevalent in the clinical data than in the DR and antihypertensive literature. Finally, quantitative analysis of the dataset revealed that patients taking -blockers were statistically more likely to have DR than patients taking other medications, controlling for presence of hypertension and year of diabetes onset. This finding was concerning given the prevalence of -blockers in the clinical data. We determined that clinical use of -blockers should be minimized in diabetic patients to prevent retinal damage.

  6. Geochemical evidence for the origin of late Quaternary loess in central Alaska

    Science.gov (United States)

    Muhs, D.R.; Budahn, J.R.

    2006-01-01

    Loess is extensive in central Alaska, but there are uncertainties about its source and the direction of paleo-winds that deposited it. Both northerly and southerly winds have been inferred. The most likely sources of loess are the Tanana River (south), the Nenana River (southeast), and the Yukon River (north). Late Quaternary loess in central Alaska has immobile trace-element compositions (Cr/Sc, Th/Ta, Th/ Sc, Th/U, Eu/Eu*, GdN/YbN) that indicate derivation mostly from the Tanana River. However, other ratios (As/Sb, Zr/Hf, LaN/YbN) and quantitative modeling indicate that the Yukon River was also a source. During the last glacial period, there may have been a longer residence time of the Siberian and Canadian high-pressure cells, along with a strengthened Aleutian low-pressure cell. This would have generated regional-scale northeasterly winds and explains derivation of loess from the Yukon River. However, superim-posed upon this synoptic-scale circulation, there may have been strong, southerly katabatic winds from expanded glaciers on the northern flank of the Alaska Range. These winds could have provided eolian silt from the Tanana River. Yukon River and Tanana River sediments are highly calcareous, whereas Fairbanks-area loess is not. This suggests that carbonate leaching in loess kept ahead of sedimentation and that late Quaternary loess in central Alaska was deposited relatively slowly. ?? 2006 NRC Canada.

  7. Characteristics and Source Analysis of Water-Soluble Inorganic Ions in PM10 in a Typical Mining City, Central China

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hongxia Liu

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available A total of 61 PM10 samples in Huangshi (HS, Central China, were collected every sixth day from April 2012 to March 2013 and were analyzed for water-soluble inorganic ions (WSIIs by ion chromatography. The sum of three major ions (SO42−, NO3−, and NH4+ accounted for 75.8% of the total WSIIs on average. The results of a non-parametric test (Kruskal-Wallis show that, except for Na+ (p > 0.05, the other ions present a distinctly seasonal variation with a statistically significant difference (p < 0.05. The minimum concentrations of all ions were found in summer, while the maximum values presented in autumn (for Ca2+ and winter (for Cl−, NO3−, SO42−, K+, NH4+, Mg2+. Based on the highest ratio of Cl−/Na+ (3.02 and the highest concentration of K (4.37 μg·m−3, Ba (0.37 μg·m−3, and Sr (0.07 μg·m−3 in February 2013, it can be concluded that firework powders have aggravated the haze weather during the Spring Festival of 2013. The micro-equivalent concentrations of cations and anions were calculated and the comparisons between the calculated and measured NH4+ concentrations were conducted. The results illustrate that aerosol particles in HS are acidic and there may exist some other cationic ions not detected in this study. An obvious positive correlation and good linear regression among WSIIs suggest that the chemical forms in HS aerosols show a great variety of combinations, such as NH4NO3, NH4HSO4, (NH42SO4, NH4Cl, KCl, KNO3, NaCl, NaNO3, Ca(NO32, CaSO4, MgCl2, Mg(NO32, and MgSO4. The WSIIs have large positive correlation and linear regression with the elements, suggesting that WSIIs in mining cities are strongly influenced by element constituents. Principal component analysis implies that WSIIs in PM10 are probably from three sources. NH4+, Mg2+, NO3−, K and K+, Cl− and Cl, SO42−, and S accounted for 46.9% of the total variances, suggesting likely anthropogenic sources, especially coal combustion, vehicular exhaust, and

  8. Central European projects could alter oil movement patterns

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Deffarges, E.H.; Howard, D.J.; Treat, J.E.

    1991-01-01

    This paper reports that several oil transportation projects are set to transform the flows of oil in Central Europe, with potentially important implications for crude oil and product prices in the region. These projects are spurred by the desires of the newly opened economies of Central Europe to diversify their sources of oil supplies away from the U.S.S.R. and by expectations of economic growth in this region. Today, Central European countries (Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Romania, and Bulgaria) rely heavily on Soviet crude supplies. Of the 1.7 million b/d of crude oil consumed by these six countries, about 55% is imported from the U.S.S.R. This is down significantly from the more than 75% import dependence in the mid-1980s. This dependency on U.S.S.R. crude - for countries that either have a history of indigenous production (Romania) or access to Middle East or North African supplies (Yugoslavia) - testifies to more than 40 years of centrally planned economics in which Moscow provided the energy and raw materials and Central European countries delivered finished goods. Since the end of World War II, the pipeline flow of crude oil and products from Western to Central Europe has been almost nonexistent. In fact, the Western European crude and product pipeline network itself is a rather poorly integrated system, with only limited interconnections between northern and southern networks and no real competition across the major flow routes

  9. Investigating the interactions of decentralized and centralized wastewater heat recovery systems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sitzenfrei, Robert; Hillebrand, Sebastian; Rauch, Wolfgang

    2017-03-01

    In the urban water cycle there are different sources for extracting energy. In addition to potential and chemical energy in the wastewater, thermal energy can also be recovered. Heat can be recovered from the wastewater with heat exchangers that are located decentralized and/or centralized at several locations throughout the system. It can be recovered directly at the source (e.g. in the showers and bathrooms), at building block level (e.g. warm water tanks collecting all grey water), in sewers or at the wastewater treatment plant. However, an uncoordinated installation of systems on such different levels can lead to competing technologies. To investigate these interactions, a modelling environment is set up, tested and calibrated based on continuous sewer temperature and flow measurements. With that approach different heat recovery scenarios on a household level (decentralized) and of in-sewer heat recovery (centralized) are investigated. A maximum performance drop of 40% for a centralized energy recovery system was estimated when all bathrooms are equipped with decentralized recovery systems. Therefore, the proposed modelling approach is suitable for testing different future conditions and to identify robust strategies for heat recovery systems from wastewater.

  10. Centralized Fabric Management Using Puppet, Git, and GLPI

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smith, Jason A.; De Stefano, John S., Jr.; Fetzko, John; Hollowell, Christopher; Ito, Hironori; Karasawa, Mizuki; Pryor, James; Rao, Tejas; Strecker-Kellogg, William

    2012-12-01

    Managing the infrastructure of a large and complex data center can be extremely difficult without taking advantage of recent technological advances in administrative automation. Puppet is a seasoned open-source tool that is designed for enterprise class centralized configuration management. At the RHIC and ATLAS Computing Facility (RACF) at Brookhaven National Laboratory, we use Puppet along with Git, GLPI, and some custom scripts as part of our centralized configuration management system. In this paper, we discuss how we use these tools for centralized configuration management of our servers and services, change management requiring authorized approval of production changes, a complete version controlled history of all changes made, separation of production, testing and development systems using puppet environments, semi-automated server inventory using GLPI, and configuration change monitoring and reporting using the Puppet dashboard. We will also discuss scalability and performance results from using these tools on a 2,000+ node cluster and 400+ infrastructure servers with an administrative staff of approximately 25 full-time employees (FTEs).

  11. Centralized Fabric Management Using Puppet, Git, and GLPI

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Smith, Jason A; De Stefano, John S Jr; Fetzko, John; Hollowell, Christopher; Ito, Hironori; Karasawa, Mizuki; Pryor, James; Rao, Tejas; Strecker-Kellogg, William

    2012-01-01

    Managing the infrastructure of a large and complex data center can be extremely difficult without taking advantage of recent technological advances in administrative automation. Puppet is a seasoned open-source tool that is designed for enterprise class centralized configuration management. At the RHIC and ATLAS Computing Facility (RACF) at Brookhaven National Laboratory, we use Puppet along with Git, GLPI, and some custom scripts as part of our centralized configuration management system. In this paper, we discuss how we use these tools for centralized configuration management of our servers and services, change management requiring authorized approval of production changes, a complete version controlled history of all changes made, separation of production, testing and development systems using puppet environments, semi-automated server inventory using GLPI, and configuration change monitoring and reporting using the Puppet dashboard. We will also discuss scalability and performance results from using these tools on a 2,000+ node cluster and 400+ infrastructure servers with an administrative staff of approximately 25 full-time employees (FTEs).

  12. Concentration, ozone formation potential and source analysis of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in a thermal power station centralized area: A study in Shuozhou, China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yan, Yulong; Peng, Lin; Li, Rumei; Li, Yinghui; Li, Lijuan; Bai, Huiling

    2017-04-01

    Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from two sampling sites (HB and XB) in a power station centralized area, in Shuozhou city, China, were sampled by stainless steel canisters and measured by gas chromatography-mass selective detection/flame ionization detection (GC-MSD/FID) in the spring and autumn of 2014. The concentration of VOCs was higher in the autumn (HB, 96.87 μg/m 3 ; XB, 58.94 μg/m 3 ) than in the spring (HB, 41.49 μg/m 3 ; XB, 43.46 μg/m 3 ), as lower wind speed in the autumn could lead to pollutant accumulation, especially at HB, which is a new urban area surrounded by residential areas and a transportation hub. Alkanes were the dominant group at both HB and XB in both sampling periods, but the contribution of aromatic pollutants at HB in the autumn was much higher than that of the other alkanes (11.16-19.55%). Compared to other cities, BTEX pollution in Shuozhou was among the lowest levels in the world. Because of the high levels of aromatic pollutants, the ozone formation potential increased significantly at HB in the autumn. Using the ratio analyses to identify the age of the air masses and analyze the sources, the results showed that the atmospheric VOCs at XB were strongly influenced by the remote sources of coal combustion, while at HB in the spring and autumn were affected by the remote sources of coal combustion and local sources of vehicle emission, respectively. Source analysis conducted using the Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF) model at Shuozhou showed that coal combustion and vehicle emissions made the two largest contributions (29.98% and 21.25%, respectively) to atmospheric VOCs. With further economic restructuring, the influence of vehicle emissions on the air quality should become more significant, indicating that controlling vehicle emissions is key to reducing the air pollution. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. Stable water isotope variation in a Central Andean watershed dominated by glacier and snowmelt

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    N. Ohlanders

    2013-03-01

    Full Text Available Central Chile is an economically important region for which water supply is dependent on snow- and ice melt. Nevertheless, the relative contribution of water supplied by each of those two sources remains largely unknown. This study represents the first attempt to estimate the region's water balance using stable isotopes of water in streamflow and its sources. Isotopic ratios of both H and O were monitored during one year in a high-altitude basin with a moderate glacier cover (11.5%. We found that the steep altitude gradient of the studied catchment caused a corresponding gradient in snowpack isotopic composition and that this spatial variation had a profound effect on the temporal evolution of streamflow isotopic composition during snowmelt. Glacier melt and snowmelt contributions to streamflow in the studied basin were determined using a quantitative analysis of the isotopic composition of streamflow and its sources, resulting in a glacier melt contribution of 50–90% for the unusually dry melt year of 2011/2012. This suggests that in (La Niña years with little precipitation, glacier melt is an important water source for central Chile. Predicted decreases in glacier melt due to global warming may therefore have a negative long-term impact on water availability in the Central Andes. The pronounced seasonal pattern in streamflow isotope composition and its close relation to the variability in snow cover and discharge presents a potentially powerful tool to relate discharge variability in mountainous, melt-dominated catchments with related factors such as contributions of sources to streamflow and snowmelt transit times.

  14. Water and rock geochemistry, geologic cross sections, geochemical modeling, and groundwater flow modeling for identifying the source of groundwater to Montezuma Well, a natural spring in central Arizona

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnson, Raymond H.; DeWitt, Ed; Wirt, Laurie; Arnold, L. Rick; Horton, John D.

    2011-01-01

    The National Park Service (NPS) seeks additional information to better understand the source(s) of groundwater and associated groundwater flow paths to Montezuma Well in Montezuma Castle National Monument, central Arizona. The source of water to Montezuma Well, a flowing sinkhole in a desert setting, is poorly understood. Water emerges from the middle limestone facies of the lacustrine Verde Formation, but the precise origin of the water and its travel path are largely unknown. Some have proposed artesian flow to Montezuma Well through the Supai Formation, which is exposed along the eastern margin of the Verde Valley and underlies the Verde Formation. The groundwater recharge zone likely lies above the floor of the Verde Valley somewhere to the north or east of Montezuma Well, where precipitation is more abundant. Additional data from groundwater, surface water, and bedrock geology are required for Montezuma Well and the surrounding region to test the current conceptual ideas, to provide new details on the groundwater flow in the area, and to assist in future management decisions. The results of this research will provide information for long-term water resource management and the protection of water rights.

  15. Divergence of Cs-137 sources fluence used in brachytherapy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vianello, E.A.; Almeida, C.E. de

    1998-01-01

    In this work the experimental determination of correction factor for fluence divergence (kln) of linear Cs-137 sources CDCS J4, with Farmer ionization chamber model 2571 in a central and perpendicular plan to source axis, for distances range from 1 to 7 cm., has been presented. The experimental results were compared to calculating by Kondo and Randolph (1960) isotropic theory and Bielajew (1990) anisotropic theory. (Author)

  16. Potential Development Essential Oil Production of Central Java, Indonesia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alighiri, D.; Eden, W. T.; Supardi, K. I.; Masturi; Purwinarko, A.

    2017-04-01

    Indonesia is the source of raw essential oil in the world. Essential oils are used in various types of industries such as food and beverage, flavour, fragrance, perfumery, pharmaceuticals, and cosmetics. However, the development of Indonesian essential oil industry has not been encouraging for the production of essential oils, further it is unable to meet global demand. Besides that, the quality of volatile oil resulted cannot meet the international market standards. Based on the facts, the potential of Indonesian essential oils needs to be developed to provide added value, through increased production, improved quality and product diversification. One part of Indonesia having abundant of raw essential oil source is Central Java. Central Java has the quite large potential production of essential oils. Some essential oils produced from refining industry owned by the government, private and community sectors include cananga oils (Boyolali district), clove oils (Semarang district), patchouli oils (Brebes district, Pemalang district, and Klaten district). The main problem in the development of plants industries that producing essential oil in Central Java is low crops production, farming properties, quality of essential oils are diverse, providing poor-quality products and volatile oil price fluctuations. Marketing constraints of Central Java essential oils are quite complex supply chain. In general, marketing constraints of essential oils due to three factors, namely the low quality due to type of essential oil business that generally shaped small businesses with different capital and technology, domestic marketing is still a buyer-market (price determined by the buyer) because of weak bargaining position processors businessman, and prices fluctuate (domestic and foreign) due to uncontrolled domestic production and inter-country competition among manufacturers.

  17. A survey of scientific production and collaboration rate among of medical library and information sciences in ISI, scopus and Pubmed databases during 2001-2010.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yousefy, Alireza; Malekahmadi, Parisa

    2013-01-01

    Research is essential for development. In other words, scientific development of each country can be evaluated by researchers' scientific production. Understanding and assessing the activities of researchers for planning and policy making is essential. The significance of collaboration in the production of scientific publications in today's complex world where technology is everything is very apparent. Scientists realized that in order to get their work wildly used and cited to by experts, they must collaborate. The collaboration among researchers results in the development of scientific knowledge and hence, attainment of wider information. The main objective of this research is to survey scientific production and collaboration rate in philosophy and theoretical bases of medical library and information sciences in ISI, SCOPUS, and Pubmed databases during 2001-2010. This is a descriptive survey and scientometrics methods were used for this research. Then data gathered via check list and analyzed by the SPSS software. Collaboration rate was calculated according to the formula. Among the 294 related abstracts about philosophy, and theoretical bases of medical library and information science in ISI, SCOPUS, and Pubmed databases during 2001-2010, the year 2007 with 45 articles has the most and the year 2003 with 16 articles has the least number of related collaborative articles in this scope. "B. Hjorland" with eight collaborative articles had the most one among Library and Information Sciences (LIS) professionals in ISI, SCOPUS, and Pubmed. Journal of Documentation with 29 articles and 12 collaborative articles had the most related articles. Medical library and information science challenges with 150 articles had first place in number of articles. Results also show that the most elaborative country in terms of collaboration point of view and number of articles was US. "University of Washington" and "University Western Ontario" are the most elaborative affiliation from

  18. Genetics Home Reference: type 1 diabetes

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Jan 4. Review. Citation on PubMed or Free article on PubMed Central van Belle TL, Coppieters KT, von Herrath MG. Type 1 diabetes: etiology, immunology, and therapeutic strategies. Physiol Rev. 2011 Jan;91( ...

  19. Genetics Home Reference: tetrahydrobiopterin deficiency

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... 1-16. Review. Citation on PubMed or Free article on PubMed Central Thöny B, Blau N. Mutations in the BH4-metabolizing genes GTP cyclohydrolase I, 6-pyruvoyl-tetrahydropterin synthase, sepiapterin ...

  20. Quality assurance program plan for FRG sealed isotopic heat sources project (C-229)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tanke, J.M.

    1997-01-01

    This QAPP implements the Quality Assurance Program Plan for the FRG Sealed Isotopic Heat Sources Project (C-229). The heat source will be relocated from the 324 Building and placed in interim storage at the Central Waste Complex (CWC)

  1. A Systematic Review of Techniques and Sources of Big Data in the Healthcare Sector.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alonso, Susel Góngora; de la Torre Díez, Isabel; Rodrigues, Joel J P C; Hamrioui, Sofiane; López-Coronado, Miguel

    2017-10-14

    The main objective of this paper is to present a review of existing researches in the literature, referring to Big Data sources and techniques in health sector and to identify which of these techniques are the most used in the prediction of chronic diseases. Academic databases and systems such as IEEE Xplore, Scopus, PubMed and Science Direct were searched, considering the date of publication from 2006 until the present time. Several search criteria were established as 'techniques' OR 'sources' AND 'Big Data' AND 'medicine' OR 'health', 'techniques' AND 'Big Data' AND 'chronic diseases', etc. Selecting the paper considered of interest regarding the description of the techniques and sources of Big Data in healthcare. It found a total of 110 articles on techniques and sources of Big Data on health from which only 32 have been identified as relevant work. Many of the articles show the platforms of Big Data, sources, databases used and identify the techniques most used in the prediction of chronic diseases. From the review of the analyzed research articles, it can be noticed that the sources and techniques of Big Data used in the health sector represent a relevant factor in terms of effectiveness, since it allows the application of predictive analysis techniques in tasks such as: identification of patients at risk of reentry or prevention of hospital or chronic diseases infections, obtaining predictive models of quality.

  2. Transmission grid requirements with scattered and flutuating renewable electricity sources

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Østergaard, Poul Alberg

    2002-01-01

    Denmark is in a situation with many scattered sources of electricity, that are not controlled by the central load dispatch. At the same time, Denmark is being used as an electricity transit corridor between Norway/Sweden and Germany. Through energy systems analyses and load-flow analyses......, it is determined that if scattered load balancing is introduced, electricity transit is enabled to a higher degree than if central load balancing is maintained....

  3. Genetics Home Reference: Stevens-Johnson syndrome/toxic epidermal necrolysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Hung SI. Recent advances in the genetics and immunology of Stevens-Johnson syndrome and toxic epidermal necrosis. ... 2012 May 29. Citation on PubMed or Free article on PubMed Central More from Genetics Home Reference ...

  4. Genetics Home Reference: cerebral folate transport deficiency

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... R. Cerebral folate deficiency syndromes in childhood: clinical, analytical, and etiologic aspects. Arch Neurol. 2011 May;68( ... 2009.08.005. Citation on PubMed or Free article on PubMed Central Toelle SP, Wille D, Schmitt ...

  5. Genetics Home Reference: HIVEP2-related intellectual disability

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... to have difficulty with this activity; their walking style (gait) is often unbalanced and wide-based. Speech ... Cell Biol. 1999 May;19(5):3736-47. Citation on PubMed or Free article on PubMed Central ...

  6. Genetics Home Reference: tubular aggregate myopathy

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... weakness may also lead to an unusual walking style (gait). Some people with this condition develop joint ... ajhg.2012.12.007. Epub 2013 Jan 17. Citation on PubMed or Free article on PubMed Central ...

  7. Genetics Home Reference: Glanzmann thrombasthenia

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Aug 8. Review. Citation on PubMed or Free article on PubMed Central Pillitteri D, Pilgrimm AK, Kirchmaier CM. Novel Mutations in the GPIIb and GPIIIa Genes in Glanzmann Thrombasthenia. Transfus Med Hemother. 2010;37( ...

  8. Antiseptic barrier cap effective in reducing central line-associated bloodstream infections: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Voor In 't Holt, Anne F; Helder, Onno K; Vos, Margreet C; Schafthuizen, Laura; Sülz, Sandra; van den Hoogen, Agnes; Ista, Erwin

    2017-04-01

    Microorganisms can intraluminally access a central venous catheter via the catheter hub. The catheter hub should be appropriately disinfected to prevent central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs). However, compliance with the time-consuming manual disinfection process is low. An alternative is the use of an antiseptic barrier cap, which cleans the catheter hub by continuous passive disinfection. To compare the effects of antiseptic barrier cap use and manual disinfection on the incidence of CLABSIs. Systematic review and meta-analysis. We systematically searched Embase, Medline Ovid, Web-of-science, CINAHL EBSCO, Cochrane Library, PubMed Publisher and Google Scholar until May 10, 2016. The primary outcome, reduction in CLABSIs per 1000 catheter-days, expressed as an incidence rate ratio (IRR), was analyzed with a random effects meta-analysis. Studies were included if 1) conducted in a hospital setting, 2) used antiseptic barrier caps on hubs of central lines with access to the bloodstream and 3) reported the number of CLABSIs per 1000 catheter-days when using the barrier cap and when using manual disinfection. A total of 1537 articles were identified as potentially relevant and after exclusion of duplicates, 953 articles were screened based on title and abstract; 18 articles were read full text. Eventually, nine studies were included in the systematic review, and seven of these nine in the random effects meta-analysis. The pooled IRR showed that use of the antiseptic barrier cap was effective in reducing CLABSIs (IRR=0.59, 95% CI=0.45-0.77, Pantiseptic barrier cap is associated with a lower incidence CLABSIs and is an intervention worth adding to central-line maintenance bundles. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. Erica Marat, The Military and the State in Central Asia: From Red Army to Independence

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Boris Petric

    2011-03-01

    Full Text Available Erica Marat is a one of the United States’ most brilliant Central Asian political scientists. She has offered numerous analyses of political transformations as presented by different think tanks and American foundations. In this book, Marat focuses on the role of the army in building state processes in contemporary Central Asian states. The book offers a wide panorama of Central Asian armies, compiling sources already published (books, reports in Russian and English etc. and some original da...

  10. Elemental characterization and source apportionment of PM{sub 10} and PM{sub 2.5} in the western coastal area of central Taiwan

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hsu, Chin-Yu; Chiang, Hung-Che [National Environmental Health Research Center, National Health Research Institutes, 35 Keyan Road, Zhunan Town, Miaoli 35053, Taiwan (China); Lin, Sheng-Lun [Super Micro Mass Research and Technology Center, Cheng Shiu University, No. 840, Chengcing Rd., Kaohsiung 83347, Taiwan (China); Chen, Mu-Jean; Lin, Tzu-Yu [National Environmental Health Research Center, National Health Research Institutes, 35 Keyan Road, Zhunan Town, Miaoli 35053, Taiwan (China); Chen, Yu-Cheng, E-mail: yucheng@nhri.org.tw [National Environmental Health Research Center, National Health Research Institutes, 35 Keyan Road, Zhunan Town, Miaoli 35053, Taiwan (China); Department of Occupational Safety and Health, China Medical University, 91 Hsueh-Shih Road, Taichung 40402, Taiwan (China)

    2016-01-15

    ABSTRACT: This study investigated seasonal variations in PM{sub 10} and PM{sub 2.5} mass and associated trace metal concentrations in a residential area in proximity to the crude oil refinery plants and industrial parks of central Taiwan. Particle measurements were conducted during winter, spring and summer in 2013 and 2014. Twenty-six trace metals in PM{sub 10} and PM{sub 2.5} were analyzed using ICP-MS. Multiple approaches of the backward trajectory model, enrichment factor (EF), Lanthanum enrichment and positive matrix fraction (PMF) were used to identify potential sources of particulate metals. Mean concentrations of PM{sub 10} in winter, spring and summer were 76.4 ± 22.6, 33.2 ± 9.9 and 37.4 ± 17.0 μg m{sup −3}, respectively, while mean levels of PM{sub 2.5} in winter, spring and summer were 47.8 ± 20.0, 23.9 ± 11.2 and 16.3 ± 8.2 μg m{sup −3}, respectively. The concentrations of carcinogenic metals (Ni, As and adjusted Cr(VI)) in PM{sub 10} and PM{sub 2.5} exceeded the guideline limits published by WHO. The result of EF analysis confirmed that Mo, Sb, Cd, Zn, Mg, Cr, As, Pb, Cu, Ni and V were attributable to anthropogenic emission. PMF analysis demonstrated that trace metals in PM{sub 10} and PM{sub 2.5} were from the similar sources, such as coal combustion, oil combustion and traffic-related emission, except for soil dust and crustal element emissions only observed in PM{sub 10} and secondary aluminum smelter only observed in PM{sub 2.5}. Considering health-related particulate metals, the traffic-related emission and coal combustion for PM{sub 10} and PM{sub 2.5}, respectively, are important to control for reducing potential carcinogenic risk. The results could aid efforts to clarify the impact of source-specific origins on human health. - Highlights: • Multiple approaches to identify sources of PM{sub 10} and PM{sub 2.5} metals were used. • Four similar sources contributed to metals in PM{sub 10} and PM{sub 2.5} in the study area. • Six

  11. Study of the central collisions in the reactions Ni + Al and Ni + Ni at 28 A.MeV; Etude des collisions centrales dans les reactions Ni + Al et Ni + Ni a 28 A.MeV

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lebreton, L.

    1995-12-01

    The work is in characterisation of mechanisms in the energy range of onset of multifragmentation (excitation energy of composed nucleus around 4 - 5 AMeV). This work focused on an experiment performed at the SARA facility, in Grenoble, using the AMPHORA multi detection array. I have been particularly interested in central collisions in the Ni + Al and Ni + Ni systems. The possibility to detect complete events for Ni + Al, and quasi-complete events for the Ni + Ni case, is the reason of this choice. Furthermore Ni + Ni presents the interest of a symmetrical system, for which the excitation energy per nucleon is maximum. The study of these reactions has been focused on the quasi-complete events (events for which at least 80 % of the total charge has been detected). Heavy ions produced in peripheral collisions are very likely emitted along the beam line or stopped in the plastic detectors, energy thresholds are too high for the quasi-target products detection, consequently by requiring complete or quasi-complete measurement of the total charge, we are able to detect mostly central events. The knowledge of informations like charge, energy or detection angles allows to isolate the source(s) and to reconstruct the size and the excitation energy of the source(s). Comparisons with simulations like sequential emission (GEMINI code), very deep inelastic collision or instantaneous emission (Berliner code) allows to characterise the first stage of the collision (binary collisions or central collisions) and the type of deexcitation of the source(s). Some calculations was also performed with the statistical model code MODGAN. Indeed azimuthal correlations seem to be a good tool in getting more information about involved reaction mechanisms. Comparisons with MODGAN provide information about angular momentum of the source and time delay between emissions of the two particles (separation between sequential or instantaneous process). (author). 69 refs.

  12. Distributions, sources and pollution status of 17 trace metal/metalloids in the street dust of a heavily industrialized city of central China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Zhonggen; Feng, Xinbin; Li, Guanghui; Bi, Xiangyang; Zhu, Jianming; Qin, Haibo; Dai, Zhihui; Liu, Jinling; Li, Qiuhua; Sun, Guangyi

    2013-11-01

    A series of representative street dust samples were collected from a heavily industrialized city, Zhuzhou, in central China, with the aim to investigate the spatial distribution and pollution status of 17 trace metal/metalloid elements. Concentrations of twelve elements (Pb, Zn, Cu, Cd, Hg, As, Sb, In, Bi, Tl, Ag and Ga) were distinctly amplified by atmospheric deposition resulting from a large scale Pb/Zn smelter located in the northwest fringe of the city, and followed a declining trend towards the city center. Three metals (W, Mo and Co) were enriched in samples very close to a hard alloy manufacturing plant, while Ni and Cr appeared to derive predominantly from natural sources. Other industries and traffic had neglectable effects on the accumulation of observed elements. Cd, In, Zn, Ag and Pb were the five metal/metalloids with highest pollution levels and the northwestern part of city is especially affected by heavy metal pollution. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. Central limit theorems under special relativity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McKeague, Ian W

    2015-04-01

    Several relativistic extensions of the Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution have been proposed, but they do not explain observed lognormal tail-behavior in the flux distribution of various astrophysical sources. Motivated by this question, extensions of classical central limit theorems are developed under the conditions of special relativity. The results are related to CLTs on locally compact Lie groups developed by Wehn, Stroock and Varadhan, but in this special case the asymptotic distribution has an explicit form that is readily seen to exhibit lognormal tail behavior.

  14. Management of Disused Radioactive Sealed Sources in Egypt - 13512

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mohamed, Y.T.; Hasan, M.A.; Lasheen, Y.F.

    2013-01-01

    The future safe development of nuclear energy and progressive increasing use of sealed sources in medicine, research, industry and other fields in Egypt depends on the safe and secure management of disused radioactive sealed sources. In the past years have determined the necessity to formulate and apply the integrated management program for radioactive sealed sources to assure harmless and ecological rational management of disused sealed sources in Egypt. The waste management system in Egypt comprises operational and regulatory capabilities. Both of these activities are performed under legislations. The Hot Laboratories and Waste Management Center HLWMC, is considered as a centralized radioactive waste management facility in Egypt by law 7/2010. (authors)

  15. Multifragmentation of a very heavy nuclear system (I): selection of single-source events

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Frankland, J.D.; Bacri, Ch.O.; Borderie, B. [Paris-11 Univ., Inst. de Physique Nucleaire, 91 - Orsay (France)] [and others

    2000-07-01

    A sample of 'single-source' events, compatible with the multifragmentation of very heavy fused systems, are isolated among well-measured {sup 155}Gd + {sup nat}U 36 A.MeV reactions by examining the evolution of the kinematics of fragments with Z {>=} 5 as a function of the dissipated energy and loss of memory of the entrance channel. Single-source events are found to be the result of very central collisions. Such central collisions may also lead to multiple fragment emission due to the decay of excited projectile- and target-like nuclei and so-called 'neck' emission, and for this reason the isolation of single-source events is very difficult. Event-selection criteria based on centrality of collisions, or on the isotropy of the emitted fragments in each event, are found to be inefficient to separate the two mechanisms, unless they take into account the redistribution of fragments' kinetic energies into directions perpendicular to the beam axis. The selected events are good candidates to look for bulk effects in the multifragmentation process. (authors)

  16. Multifragmentation of a very heavy nuclear system (I): selection of single-source events

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Frankland, J.D.; Bacri, Ch.O.; Borderie, B.; Rivet, M.F.; Squalli, M.; Auger, G.; Bellaize, N.; Bocage, F.; Bougault, R.; Brou, R.; Buchet, Ph.; Chbihi, A.; Colin, J.; Cussol, D.; Dayras, R.; Demeyer, A.; Dore, D.; Durand, D.; Galichet, E.; Genouin-Duhamel, E.; Gerlic, E.; Guinet, D.; Lautesse, Ph.; Laville, J.L.; Lecolley, J.F.; Legrain, R.; Le Neindre, N.; Lopez, O.; Louvel, M.; Maskay, A.M.; Nalpas, L.; Nguyen, A.D.; Parlog, M.; Peter, J.; Plagnol, E.; Rosato, E.; Saint-Laurent, F.; Salou, S.; Steckmeyer, J.C.; Stern, M.; Tabacaru, G.; Tamain, B.; Tirel, O.; Tassan-Got, L.; Vient, E.; Volant, C.; Wieleczko, J.P.

    2001-01-01

    A sample of 'single-source' events, compatible with the multifragmentation of very heavy fused systems, are isolated among well-measured 155 Gd+ nat U 36 A MeV reactions by examining the evolution of the kinematics of fragments with Z≥5 as a function of the dissipated energy and loss of memory of the entrance channel. Single-source events are found to be the result of very central collisions. Such central collisions may also lead to multiple fragment emission due to the decay of excited projectile- and target-like nuclei and so-called 'neck' emission, and for this reason the isolation of single-source events is very difficult. Event-selection criteria based on centrality of collisions, or on the isotropy of the emitted fragments in each event, are found to be inefficient to separate the two mechanisms, unless they take into account the redistribution of fragments' kinetic energies into directions perpendicular to the beam axis. The selected events are good candidates to look for bulk effects in the multifragmentation process

  17. Genetics Home Reference: Boucher-Neuhäuser syndrome

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... the cerebellum ). Affected individuals have an unsteady walking style (gait) and frequent falls. Another key feature of ... s00415-014-7516-3. Epub 2014 Sep 30. Citation on PubMed or Free article on PubMed Central ...

  18. Genetics Home Reference: obstructive sleep apnea

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... eCollection 2014. Review. Citation on PubMed or Free article on PubMed Central de Lima FF, Mazzotti DR, Tufik S, Bittencourt L. The role inflammatory response genes in obstructive sleep apnea syndrome: a review. Sleep ...

  19. Fundamental characteristics of a synthesized light source for optical coherence tomography.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sato, Manabu; Wakaki, Ichiro; Watanabe, Yuuki; Tanno, Naohiro

    2005-05-01

    We describe the fundamental characteristics of a synthesized light source (SLS) consisting of two low-coherence light sources to enhance the spatial resolution for optical coherence tomography (OCT). The axial resolution of OCT is given by half the coherence length of the light source. We fabricated a SLS with a coherence length of 2.3 microm and a side-lobe intensity of 45% with an intensity ratio of LED1:LED2 = 1:0.5 by combining two light sources, LED1, with a central wavelength of 691 nm and a spectral bandwidth of 99 nm, and LED2, with a central wavelength of 882 nm and a spectral bandwidth of 76 nm. The coherence length of 2.3 microm was 56% of the shorter coherence length in the two LEDs, which indicates that the axial resolution is 1.2 microm. The lateral resolution was measured at less than 4.4 microm by use of the phase-shift method and with a test pattern as a sample. The measured rough surfaces of a coin are illustrated and discussed.

  20. Scholarly Information Extraction Is Going to Make a Quantum Leap with PubMed Central (PMC).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Matthies, Franz; Hahn, Udo

    2017-01-01

    With the increasing availability of complete full texts (journal articles), rather than their surrogates (titles, abstracts), as resources for text analytics, entirely new opportunities arise for information extraction and text mining from scholarly publications. Yet, we gathered evidence that a range of problems are encountered for full-text processing when biomedical text analytics simply reuse existing NLP pipelines which were developed on the basis of abstracts (rather than full texts). We conducted experiments with four different relation extraction engines all of which were top performers in previous BioNLP Event Extraction Challenges. We found that abstract-trained engines loose up to 6.6% F-score points when run on full-text data. Hence, the reuse of existing abstract-based NLP software in a full-text scenario is considered harmful because of heavy performance losses. Given the current lack of annotated full-text resources to train on, our study quantifies the price paid for this short cut.

  1. Introduction to and Bibliography of Central European Women's Holocaust Life Writing in English

    OpenAIRE

    Vasvári, Louise O.

    2009-01-01

    In her "Introduction to and Bibliography of Central European Women's Holocaust Life Writing in English," Louise O. Vasvári discusses aspects and perspectives of women's life writing, including her criteria of selection, the problematics of sourcing, issues of translation, and processes of publication. While the authors listed in the bibliography are overwhelmingly Jewish and from Central and East Europe, there are works listed by others whose experiences also offer important testimony not onl...

  2. Exploiting heterogeneous publicly available data sources for drug safety surveillance: computational framework and case studies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koutkias, Vassilis G; Lillo-Le Louët, Agnès; Jaulent, Marie-Christine

    2017-02-01

    Driven by the need of pharmacovigilance centres and companies to routinely collect and review all available data about adverse drug reactions (ADRs) and adverse events of interest, we introduce and validate a computational framework exploiting dominant as well as emerging publicly available data sources for drug safety surveillance. Our approach relies on appropriate query formulation for data acquisition and subsequent filtering, transformation and joint visualization of the obtained data. We acquired data from the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS), PubMed and Twitter. In order to assess the validity and the robustness of the approach, we elaborated on two important case studies, namely, clozapine-induced cardiomyopathy/myocarditis versus haloperidol-induced cardiomyopathy/myocarditis, and apixaban-induced cerebral hemorrhage. The analysis of the obtained data provided interesting insights (identification of potential patient and health-care professional experiences regarding ADRs in Twitter, information/arguments against an ADR existence across all sources), while illustrating the benefits (complementing data from multiple sources to strengthen/confirm evidence) and the underlying challenges (selecting search terms, data presentation) of exploiting heterogeneous information sources, thereby advocating the need for the proposed framework. This work contributes in establishing a continuous learning system for drug safety surveillance by exploiting heterogeneous publicly available data sources via appropriate support tools.

  3. Application of remote source lighting system in different layouts of enclosed lift lobbies in highrise residential building of central core design

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wong, I.; Yang, H.X. [Hong Kong Polytechnic Univ., Hung Hom, Hong Kong (China). Dept. of Building Services, Renewable Energy Research Group

    2010-07-01

    This paper reported on a simulation study that explored a new building philosophy that optimizes solar energy to minimize reliance on fossil fuels and to design energy conscious buildings that minimize the energy needed for lighting and cooling. The viability of applying a remote source lighting (RSL) system to transmit daylight into central core lobbies in high-rise residential buildings in Hong Kong was demonstrated. These lobbies are usually enclosed without any windows, thus requiring electric lighting to be switched on 24 hours continuously, consuming non-renewable energy in most cases. In this study, the RSL system was composed of small diameter light pipes and optic fibers. The system transports daylight from the exterior to illuminate the enclosed lobbies. The simulation was conducted to analyze and compare the light transmission efficiency when applying the RSL system to different layouts of the lift lobbies. It was concluded that the efficiency of the RSL system is governed by the length and number of turns in the lobby. 13 refs., 12 figs.

  4. Potential profiles in the central core of the cathode in the star mode operation in an inertial-electrostatic fusion neutron source

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yoshikawa, K.; Masuda, K.; Toku, H.

    2003-01-01

    After the successful measurements of the localized electric fields in the center-spot mode operation with relatively large space-charge effects by the laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) method, measurements of potential profiles in the star mode operation with small space-charge effects on helium gas are made in the central cathode core region of an Inertial-Electrostatic Confinement Fusion (IECF) neutron source, which is most suitable to neutron calibration in the fusion devices. Since the high-voltage is required to the star mode operation on deuterium gas, it is predicted to bring about very small beam space charge-related potential. To increase accuracy, we adopted n=4 (2 1 S to 4 1 D:HeI) transition, instead of previous n=3, which is most sensitive to the local electric fields in the Stark transition, and verified using the well-known U-shaped hollow cathode potential. The localized electric fields thus measured by LIF method using n=4 transition show negligible electric fields in the star mode compared with the center-spot mode. (author)

  5. LitVar: a semantic search engine for linking genomic variant data in PubMed and PMC.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Allot, Alexis; Peng, Yifan; Wei, Chih-Hsuan; Lee, Kyubum; Phan, Lon; Lu, Zhiyong

    2018-05-14

    The identification and interpretation of genomic variants play a key role in the diagnosis of genetic diseases and related research. These tasks increasingly rely on accessing relevant manually curated information from domain databases (e.g. SwissProt or ClinVar). However, due to the sheer volume of medical literature and high cost of expert curation, curated variant information in existing databases are often incomplete and out-of-date. In addition, the same genetic variant can be mentioned in publications with various names (e.g. 'A146T' versus 'c.436G>A' versus 'rs121913527'). A search in PubMed using only one name usually cannot retrieve all relevant articles for the variant of interest. Hence, to help scientists, healthcare professionals, and database curators find the most up-to-date published variant research, we have developed LitVar for the search and retrieval of standardized variant information. In addition, LitVar uses advanced text mining techniques to compute and extract relationships between variants and other associated entities such as diseases and chemicals/drugs. LitVar is publicly available at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/CBBresearch/Lu/Demo/LitVar.

  6. Genetics Home Reference: cardiofaciocutaneous syndrome

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... This Page Allanson JE, Annerén G, Aoki Y, Armour CM, Bondeson ML, Cave H, Gripp KW, Kerr ... on PubMed or Free article on PubMed Central Armour CM, Allanson JE. Further delineation of cardio-facio- ...

  7. Sources and the flux pattern of dissolved carbon in rivers of the Yenisey basin draining the Central Siberian Plateau

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Prokushkin, A S; Korets, M A; Prokushkin, S G; Pokrovsky, O S; Shirokova, L S; Viers, J; Amon, R M W; Guggenberger, G; McDowell, W H

    2011-01-01

    Frequent measurements of dissolved organic (DOC) and inorganic (DIC) carbon concentrations in rivers during snowmelt, the entire ice-free season, and winter were made in five large watersheds (15 000–174 000 km 2 ) of the Central Siberian Plateau (Yenisey River basin). These differ in the degree of continuous permafrost coverage, mean annual air temperature, and the proportion of tundra and forest vegetation. With an annual DOC export from the catchment areas of 2.8–4.7 gC m −2 as compared to an annual DIC export of 1.0–2.8 gC m −2 , DOC was the dominant component of terrigenous C released to rivers. There was strong temporal variation in the discharge of DOC and DIC. Like for other rivers of the pan-arctic and boreal zones, snowmelt dominated annual fluxes, being 55–71% for water runoff, 64–82% for DOC and 37–41% for DIC. Likewise, DOC and DIC exhibited also a strong spatial variation in C fluxes, with both dissolved C species decreasing from south to north. The rivers of the southern part of the plateau had the largest flow-weighted DOC concentrations among those previously reported for Siberian rivers, but the smallest flow-weighted DIC concentrations. In the study area, DOC and DIC fluxes were negatively correlated with the distribution of continuous permafrost and positively correlated with mean annual air temperature. A synthesis of literature data shows similar trends from west to east, with an eastward decrease of dissolved C concentrations and an increased proportion of DOC in the total dissolved C flux. It appears that there are two contemporary limitations for river export of terrigenous C across Siberia: (1) low productivity of ecosystems with respect to potentially mobilizable organic C, slow weathering rates with concomitant small formation of bicarbonate, and/or wildfire disturbance limit the pools of organic and inorganic C that can be mobilized for transport in rivers (source-limited), and (2) mobilization of available pools of C is

  8. Teacher Views on School Administrators' Organizational Power Sources and Their Change Management Behaviours

    Science.gov (United States)

    Argon, Türkan; Dilekçi, Ümit

    2016-01-01

    This study aimed to determine school administrators' organizational power sources and change management behaviours based on Bolu central district primary and secondary school teachers' views. The study conducted with relational screening model reached 286 teachers. School Administrators' Organizational Power Sources Scale and Change Management…

  9. Where Have All the Central Compact Objects Gone?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gotthelf, Eric

    2017-09-01

    The central compact object (CCO) class of young neutron stars in supernova remnants (SNRs) are detected only as thermal X-ray sources. Characterized by weak magnetic fields, a fundamental puzzle of their evolution is the absence of any evidence for their numerous descendants in X-ray or radio surveys. We know that their true ages are much younger than their inferred timing ages, which implies that some apparently old radio pulsars may actually be evolved CCOs in dispersed SNRs, young enough to be detected as still hot thermal X-ray sources. Here we propose a complete volume limited survey of apparently old radio pulsars to search for descendants of CCOs, providing important constraints on neutron star evolution.

  10. The 2016-2017 Central Italy Seismic Sequence: Source Complexity Inferred from Rupture Models.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scognamiglio, L.; Tinti, E.; Casarotti, E.; Pucci, S.; Villani, F.; Cocco, M.; Magnoni, F.; Michelini, A.

    2017-12-01

    The Apennines have been struck by several seismic sequences in recent years, showing evidence of the activation of multiple segments of normal fault systems in a variable and, relatively short, time span, as in the case of the 1980 Irpinia earthquake (three shocks in 40 s), the 1997 Umbria-Marche sequence (four main shocks in 18 days) and the 2009 L'Aquila earthquake having three segments activated within a few weeks. The 2016-2017 central Apennines seismic sequence begin on August 24th with a MW 6.0 earthquake, which strike the region between Amatrice and Accumoli causing 299 fatalities. This earthquake ruptures a nearly 20 km long normal fault and shows a quite heterogeneous slip distribution. On October 26th, another main shock (MW 5.9) occurs near Visso extending the activated seismogenic area toward the NW. It is a double event rupturing contiguous patches on the fault segment of the normal fault system. Four days after the second main shock, on October 30th, a third earthquake (MW 6.5) occurs near Norcia, roughly midway between Accumoli and Visso. In this work we have inverted strong motion waveforms and GPS data to retrieve the source model of the MW 6.5 event with the aim of interpreting the rupture process in the framework of this complex sequence of moderate magnitude earthquakes. We noted that some preliminary attempts to model the slip distribution of the October 30th main shock using a single fault plane oriented along the Apennines did not provide convincing fits to the observed waveforms. In addition, the deformation pattern inferred from satellite observations suggested the activation of a multi-fault structure, that is coherent to the complexity and the extension of the geological surface deformation. We investigated the role of multi-fault ruptures and we found that this event revealed an extraordinary complexity of the rupture geometry and evolution: the coseismic rupture propagated almost simultaneously on a normal fault and on a blind fault

  11. DIGITAL GEOLOGIC MAP OF SHERMAN QUADRANGLE, NORTH CENTRAL TEXAS (CD-ROM)

    Science.gov (United States)

    This compact disc contains digital data sets of the surficial geology and geologic faults for the 1:250,000-scale Sherman quadrangle, North Central Texas, and can be used to make geologic maps, and determine approximate areas and locations of various geologic units. The source d...

  12. Leptospirosis following a major flood in Central Queensland, Australia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smith, J K G; Young, M M; Wilson, K L; Craig, S B

    2013-03-01

    Throughout December 2010 and January 2011, Queensland experienced widespread flooding due to unusually protracted and heavy rainfalls. In mid-January 2011, four individuals from a small community in Central Queensland were hospitalized with leptospirosis. A further five cases were subsequently identified from around Central Queensland, bringing the total to nine. Microscopic agglutination testing found that serovar Arborea (Leptospira borgpetersenii serovar Arborea) was presumptively responsible for leptospirosis in seven of nine confirmed cases. Serovars Hardjo and Australis were identified in samples from two remaining cases. All cases had exposure to flood water. No single exposure source was identified. This is the first reported outbreak of leptospirosis in Central Queensland and the first report of leptospirosis cases associated with flood water inundation in Queensland. Public health authorities should continue to promote awareness of leptospirosis in flood-affected populations. Healthcare providers must maintain a high level of suspicion for leptospirosis during and after flood events.

  13. Reporting funding source or conflict of interest in abstracts of randomized controlled trials, no evidence of a large impact on general practitioners' confidence in conclusions, a three-arm randomized controlled trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Buffel du Vaure, Céline; Boutron, Isabelle; Perrodeau, Elodie; Ravaud, Philippe

    2014-04-28

    Systematic reporting of funding sources is recommended in the CONSORT Statement for abstracts. However, no specific recommendation is related to the reporting of conflicts of interest (CoI). The objective was to compare physicians' confidence in the conclusions of abstracts of randomized controlled trials of pharmaceutical treatment indexed in PubMed. We planned a three-arm parallel-group randomized trial. French general practitioners (GPs) were invited to participate and were blinded to the study's aim. We used a representative sample of 75 abstracts of pharmaceutical industry-funded randomized controlled trials published in 2010 and indexed in PubMed. Each abstract was standardized and reported in three formats: 1) no mention of the funding source or CoI; 2) reporting the funding source only; and 3) reporting the funding source and CoI. GPs were randomized according to a computerized randomization on a secure Internet system at a 1:1:1 ratio to assess one abstract among the three formats. The primary outcome was GPs' confidence in the abstract conclusions (0, not at all, to 10, completely confident). The study was planned to detect a large difference with an effect size of 0.5. Between October 2012 and June 2013, among 605 GPs contacted, 354 were randomized, 118 for each type of abstract. The mean difference (95% confidence interval) in GPs' confidence in abstract findings was 0.2 (-0.6; 1.0) (P = 0.84) for abstracts reporting the funding source only versus no funding source or CoI; -0.4 (-1.3; 0.4) (P = 0.39) for abstracts reporting the funding source and CoI versus no funding source and CoI; and -0.6 (-1.5; 0.2) (P = 0.15) for abstracts reporting the funding source and CoI versus the funding source only. We found no evidence of a large impact of trial report abstracts mentioning funding sources or CoI on GPs' confidence in the conclusions of the abstracts. ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01679873.

  14. Insulin in the brain: sources, localization and functions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ghasemi, Rasoul; Haeri, Ali; Dargahi, Leila; Mohamed, Zahurin; Ahmadiani, Abolhassan

    2013-02-01

    Historically, insulin is best known for its role in peripheral glucose homeostasis, and insulin signaling in the brain has received less attention. Insulin-independent brain glucose uptake has been the main reason for considering the brain as an insulin-insensitive organ. However, recent findings showing a high concentration of insulin in brain extracts, and expression of insulin receptors (IRs) in central nervous system tissues have gathered considerable attention over the sources, localization, and functions of insulin in the brain. This review summarizes the current status of knowledge of the peripheral and central sources of insulin in the brain, site-specific expression of IRs, and also neurophysiological functions of insulin including the regulation of food intake, weight control, reproduction, and cognition and memory formation. This review also considers the neuromodulatory and neurotrophic effects of insulin, resulting in proliferation, differentiation, and neurite outgrowth, introducing insulin as an attractive tool for neuroprotection against apoptosis, oxidative stress, beta amyloid toxicity, and brain ischemia.

  15. Sports medicine clinical trial research publications in academic medical journals between 1996 and 2005: an audit of the PubMed MEDLINE database.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nichols, A W

    2008-11-01

    To identify sports medicine-related clinical trial research articles in the PubMed MEDLINE database published between 1996 and 2005 and conduct a review and analysis of topics of research, experimental designs, journals of publication and the internationality of authorships. Sports medicine research is international in scope with improving study methodology and an evolution of topics. Structured review of articles identified in a search of a large electronic medical database. PubMed MEDLINE database. Sports medicine-related clinical research trials published between 1996 and 2005. Review and analysis of articles that meet inclusion criteria. Articles were examined for study topics, research methods, experimental subject characteristics, journal of publication, lead authors and journal countries of origin and language of publication. The search retrieved 414 articles, of which 379 (345 English language and 34 non-English language) met the inclusion criteria. The number of publications increased steadily during the study period. Randomised clinical trials were the most common study type and the "diagnosis, management and treatment of sports-related injuries and conditions" was the most popular study topic. The knee, ankle/foot and shoulder were the most frequent anatomical sites of study. Soccer players and runners were the favourite study subjects. The American Journal of Sports Medicine had the highest number of publications and shared the greatest international diversity of authorships with the British Journal of Sports Medicine. The USA, Australia, Germany and the UK produced a good number of the lead authorships. In all, 91% of articles and 88% of journals were published in English. Sports medicine-related research is internationally diverse, clinical trial publications are increasing and the sophistication of research design may be improving.

  16. An overview of travel-associated central nervous system infectious diseases: risk assessment, general considerations and future directions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Izadi, Morteza; Is'haqi, Arman; Is'haqi, Mohammad Ali; Jonaidi Jafari, Nematollah; Rahamaty, Fatemeh; Banki, Abdolali

    2014-08-01

    Nervous system infections are among the most important diseases in travellers. Healthy travellers might be exposed to infectious agents of central nervous system, which may require in-patient care. Progressive course is not uncommon in this family of disorders and requires swift diagnosis. An overview of the available evidence in the field is, therefore, urgent to pave the way to increase the awareness of travel-medicine practitioners and highlights dark areas for future research. In November 2013, data were collected from PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Knowledge (1980 to 2013) including books, reviews, and peer-reviewed literature. Works pertained to pre-travel care, interventions, vaccinations related neurological infections were retrieved. Here we provide information on pre-travel care, vaccination, chronic nervous system disorders, and post-travel complications. Recommendations with regard to knowledge gaps, and state-of-the-art research are made. Given an increasing number of international travellers, novel dynamic ways are available for physicians to monitor spread of central nervous system infections. Newer research has made great progresses in developing newer medications, detecting the spread of infections and the public awareness. Despite an ongoing scientific discussion in the field of travel medicine, further research is required for vaccine development, state-of-the-art laboratory tests, and genetic engineering of vectors.

  17. Searching pristine source of two gabbric plutons outcroping in Central Sierras Pampeanas Range, Argentina

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Daziano, C.; Ayala, R.

    2010-01-01

    This work is about the study of two gabbric plutons outcrop ing throughout Central Sierras Pampeanas range (Cordoba province, Argentina). San Lorenzo hill gabbric plutons is in the Upper proterozoic age whereas Cañada del Puerto belongs to the Early proterozoic.They are stock-type igneous bodies and they are intrusive s in an Upper Precambrian crystalline basement; it is mainly composed by gneisses, migmatites, schistes, marbles, amphibolite s, tact's, serpentinites and related rocks

  18. Central Park Water - a league of its own

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wallace, Paula

    2013-01-01

    Central Park Water (CPW) is leading Australia with a unique water re-use approach at the massive Central Park mixed-use development on the Sydney CBD fringe. It is an integrated water cycle management solution, harvesting multiple water sources (from residential and commercial customers) and purifying these using world's best technologies. The eight-step purification process includes anaerobic and aerobic processes, chemical addition, membrane bioreactors, reverse osmosis, ultraviolet and chlorine addition. It meets the highest Australian standards and the recycled water is sold to customers within the precinct and outside to neighbouring communities. It results in an increased efficiency of infrastructure and easy management of peak or unexpected water demands. CPW is the first private utility to supply drinking water to commercial and residential customers under an agreement with Sydney Water.

  19. Meshable: searching PubMed abstracts by utilizing MeSH and MeSH-derived topical terms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Sun; Yeganova, Lana; Wilbur, W John

    2016-10-01

    Medical Subject Headings (MeSH(®)) is a controlled vocabulary for indexing and searching biomedical literature. MeSH terms and subheadings are organized in a hierarchical structure and are used to indicate the topics of an article. Biologists can use either MeSH terms as queries or the MeSH interface provided in PubMed(®) for searching PubMed abstracts. However, these are rarely used, and there is no convenient way to link standardized MeSH terms to user queries. Here, we introduce a web interface which allows users to enter queries to find MeSH terms closely related to the queries. Our method relies on co-occurrence of text words and MeSH terms to find keywords that are related to each MeSH term. A query is then matched with the keywords for MeSH terms, and candidate MeSH terms are ranked based on their relatedness to the query. The experimental results show that our method achieves the best performance among several term extraction approaches in terms of topic coherence. Moreover, the interface can be effectively used to find full names of abbreviations and to disambiguate user queries. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/IRET/MESHABLE/ CONTACT: sun.kim@nih.gov Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press.

  20. Central sleep apnea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sleep apnea - central; Obesity - central sleep apnea; Cheyne-Stokes - central sleep apnea; Heart failure - central sleep apnea ... Central sleep apnea results when the brain temporarily stops sending signals to the muscles that control breathing. The condition ...

  1. Textpresso Central: a customizable platform for searching, text mining, viewing, and curating biomedical literature.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Müller, H-M; Van Auken, K M; Li, Y; Sternberg, P W

    2018-03-09

    The biomedical literature continues to grow at a rapid pace, making the challenge of knowledge retrieval and extraction ever greater. Tools that provide a means to search and mine the full text of literature thus represent an important way by which the efficiency of these processes can be improved. We describe the next generation of the Textpresso information retrieval system, Textpresso Central (TPC). TPC builds on the strengths of the original system by expanding the full text corpus to include the PubMed Central Open Access Subset (PMC OA), as well as the WormBase C. elegans bibliography. In addition, TPC allows users to create a customized corpus by uploading and processing documents of their choosing. TPC is UIMA compliant, to facilitate compatibility with external processing modules, and takes advantage of Lucene indexing and search technology for efficient handling of millions of full text documents. Like Textpresso, TPC searches can be performed using keywords and/or categories (semantically related groups of terms), but to provide better context for interpreting and validating queries, search results may now be viewed as highlighted passages in the context of full text. To facilitate biocuration efforts, TPC also allows users to select text spans from the full text and annotate them, create customized curation forms for any data type, and send resulting annotations to external curation databases. As an example of such a curation form, we describe integration of TPC with the Noctua curation tool developed by the Gene Ontology (GO) Consortium. Textpresso Central is an online literature search and curation platform that enables biocurators and biomedical researchers to search and mine the full text of literature by integrating keyword and category searches with viewing search results in the context of the full text. It also allows users to create customized curation interfaces, use those interfaces to make annotations linked to supporting evidence statements

  2. Centralization vs. Decentralization in Medical School Libraries

    Science.gov (United States)

    Crawford, Helen

    1966-01-01

    Does the medical school library in the United States operate more commonly under the university library or the medical school administration? University-connected medical school libraries were asked to indicate (a) the source of their budgets, whether from the central library or the medical school, and (b) the responsibility for their acquisitions and cataloging. Returns received from sixtyeight of the seventy eligible institutions showed decentralization to be much the most common: 71 percent of the libraries are funded by their medical schools; 79 percent are responsible for their own acquisitions and processing. The factor most often associated with centralization of both budget and operation is public ownership. Decentralization is associated with service to one or two rather than three or more professional schools. Location of the medical school in a different city from the university is highly favorable to autonomy. Other factors associated with these trends are discussed. PMID:5945568

  3. Centralization vs. decentralization in medical school libraries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Crawford, H

    1966-07-01

    Does the medical school library in the United States operate more commonly under the university library or the medical school administration? University-connected medical school libraries were asked to indicate (a) the source of their budgets, whether from the central library or the medical school, and (b) the responsibility for their acquisitions and cataloging. Returns received from sixtyeight of the seventy eligible institutions showed decentralization to be much the most common: 71 percent of the libraries are funded by their medical schools; 79 percent are responsible for their own acquisitions and processing. The factor most often associated with centralization of both budget and operation is public ownership. Decentralization is associated with service to one or two rather than three or more professional schools. Location of the medical school in a different city from the university is highly favorable to autonomy. Other factors associated with these trends are discussed.

  4. Chicken fat and inorganic nitrogen source for lipase production by ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    MA41) from Atlantic Forest, using chicken fat and association of organic and inorganic nitrogen sources in submerged fermentation to seek economically attractive bioprocess. A 2-level, 4-factor Central Composite Design (CCD) and response ...

  5. Design of a portable directional neutron source finder

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yamanishi, Hirokuni

    2005-01-01

    An instrument that determines the direction of a remote existing neutron source has been designed. This instrument combines a polyethylene block and four 3 He counter tubes. The advantages of the instrument are portability and good angular resolution. The count from the detector was varied with the neutron incident angle due to the moderator. Using this characteristic, the direction of the neutron source can be measured precisely by revising the axis of the instrument so that the difference between the four detectors measurements is minimized. Consequently, the direction of the central axis of the instrument in which the response difference of the four detectors reaches a minimum indicates the direction of the neutron source. The practical use of the instrument was demonstrated by 252 Cf source irradiation experiment and MCNP simulation

  6. Multicharged and intense heavy ion beam sources

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kutner, V.B.

    1981-01-01

    The cyclotron plasma-are source (PIG), duoplasmatron (DP), laser source (LS), electron beam ion source (EBIS) and electron cyclotron resonance source (ECRS) from the viewpoint of generating intense and high charge state beams are considered. It is pointed out that for the last years three types of multicharged ion sources-EBIS, ECR and LS have been essentially developed. In the EBIS source the Xe 48+ ions are produced. The present day level of the development of the electron-beam ionization technique shows that by means of this technique intensive uranium nuclei beams production becomes a reality. On the ECR source Xe 26+ approximately 4x10 10 h/s, Asub(r)sup(12+) approximately 10 12 h/s intensive ion beams are produced. In the laser source a full number of C 6+ ions during one laser pulse constitutes not less than 10 10 from the 5x10mm 2 emission slit. At the present time important results are obtained pointing to the possibility to separate the ion component of laser plasma in the cyclotron central region. On the PIG source the Xe 15+ ion current up to 10μA per pulse is produced. In the duoplasmatron the 11-charge state of xenon ion beams is reached [ru

  7. Genetics Home Reference: prostate cancer

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Jan;73(2):169-75. doi: 10.1002/pros.22552. Epub 2012 Jun 21. Citation on PubMed or Free article on PubMed Central Nakagawa H. Prostate cancer genomics by high-throughput technologies: genome-wide association study and sequencing analysis. Endocr ...

  8. Evaluation of non-enteric sources of non-methane volatile organic compound (NMVOC) emissions from dairies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chung, Myeong Y.; Beene, Matt; Ashkan, Shawn; Krauter, Charles; Hasson, Alam S.

    2010-02-01

    Dairies are believed to be a major source of volatile organic compounds (VOC) in Central California, but few studies have characterized VOC emissions from these facilities. In this work, samples were collected from six sources of VOCs (Silage, Total Mixed Rations, Lagoons, Flushing Lanes, Open Lots and Bedding) at six dairies in Central California during 2006-2007 using emission isolation flux chambers and polished stainless steel canisters. Samples were analyzed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry and gas chromatography/flame ionization detection. Forty-eight VOCs were identified and quantified in the samples, including alcohols, carbonyls, alkanes and aromatics. Silage and Total Mixed Rations are the dominant sources of VOCs tested, with ethanol as the major VOC present. Emissions from the remaining sources are two to three orders of magnitude smaller, with carbonyls and aromatics as the main components. The data suggest that animal feed rather than animal waste are the main source of non-enteric VOC emissions from dairies.

  9. Source Coding in Networks with Covariance Distortion Constraints

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Zahedi, Adel; Østergaard, Jan; Jensen, Søren Holdt

    2016-01-01

    results to a joint source coding and denoising problem. We consider a network with a centralized topology and a given weighted sum-rate constraint, where the received signals at the center are to be fused to maximize the output SNR while enforcing no linear distortion. We show that one can design...

  10. Supernova 1986J Very Long Baseline Interferometry. II. The Evolution of the Shell and the Central Source

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bietenholz, M. F.; Bartel, N.; Rupen, M. P.

    2010-04-01

    We present new Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) images of supernova (SN) 1986J, taken at 5, 8.4, and 22 GHz between t = 22 and 25 yr after the explosion. The shell expands vpropt 0.69±0.03. We estimate the progenitor's mass-loss rate at (4-10) × 10-5 M sun yr-1 (for v w = 10 km s-1). Two bright spots are seen in the images. The first, in the northeast, is now fading. The second, very near the center of the projected shell and unique to SN 1986J, is still brightening relative to the shell, and now dominates the VLBI images. It is marginally resolved at 22 GHz (diameter ~0.3 mas; ~5 × 1016 cm at 10 Mpc). The integrated VLA spectrum of SN 1986J shows an inversion point and a high-frequency turnover, both progressing downward in frequency and due to the central bright spot. The optically thin spectral index of the central bright spot is indistinguishable from that of the shell. The small proper motion of 1500 ± 1500 km s-1 of the central bright spot is consistent with our previous interpretation of it as being associated with the expected black-hole or neutron-star remnant. Now, an alternate scenario seems also plausible, where the central bright spot, like the northeast one, results when the shock front impacts on a condensation within the circumstellar medium (CSM). The condensation would have to be so dense as to be opaque at cm wavelengths (~103× denser than the average corresponding CSM) and fortuitously close to the center of the projected shell. We include a movie of the evolution of SN 1986J at 5 GHz from t = 0 to 25 yr.

  11. SUPERNOVA 1986J VERY LONG BASELINE INTERFEROMETRY. II. THE EVOLUTION OF THE SHELL AND THE CENTRAL SOURCE

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bietenholz, M. F.; Bartel, N.; Rupen, M. P.

    2010-01-01

    We present new Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) images of supernova (SN) 1986J, taken at 5, 8.4, and 22 GHz between t = 22 and 25 yr after the explosion. The shell expands ∝t 0.69±0.03 . We estimate the progenitor's mass-loss rate at (4-10) x 10 -5 M sun yr -1 (for v w = 10 km s -1 ). Two bright spots are seen in the images. The first, in the northeast, is now fading. The second, very near the center of the projected shell and unique to SN 1986J, is still brightening relative to the shell, and now dominates the VLBI images. It is marginally resolved at 22 GHz (diameter ∼0.3 mas; ∼5 x 10 16 cm at 10 Mpc). The integrated VLA spectrum of SN 1986J shows an inversion point and a high-frequency turnover, both progressing downward in frequency and due to the central bright spot. The optically thin spectral index of the central bright spot is indistinguishable from that of the shell. The small proper motion of 1500 ± 1500 km s -1 of the central bright spot is consistent with our previous interpretation of it as being associated with the expected black-hole or neutron-star remnant. Now, an alternate scenario seems also plausible, where the central bright spot, like the northeast one, results when the shock front impacts on a condensation within the circumstellar medium (CSM). The condensation would have to be so dense as to be opaque at cm wavelengths (∼10 3 x denser than the average corresponding CSM) and fortuitously close to the center of the projected shell. We include a movie of the evolution of SN 1986J at 5 GHz from t = 0 to 25 yr.

  12. Characteristics of debris avalanche deposits inferred from source volume estimate and hummock morphology around Mt. Erciyes, central Turkey

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hayakawa, Yuichi S.; Yoshida, Hidetsugu; Obanawa, Hiroyuki; Naruhashi, Ryutaro; Okumura, Koji; Zaiki, Masumi; Kontani, Ryoichi

    2018-02-01

    Debris avalanches caused by volcano sector collapse often form characteristic depositional landforms such as hummocks. Sedimentological and geomorphological analyses of debris avalanche deposits (DADs) are crucial to clarify the size, mechanisms, and emplacement of debris avalanches. We describe the morphology of hummocks on the northeastern flank of Mt. Erciyes in Kayseri, central Turkey, likely formed in the late Pleistocene. Using a remotely piloted aircraft system (RPAS) and the structure-from-motion and multi-view stereo (SfM-MVS) photogrammetry, we obtained high-definition digital elevation model (DEM) and orthorectified images of the hummocks to investigate their geometric features. We estimated the source volume of the DAD by reconstructing the topography of the volcano edifice using a satellite-based DEM. We examined the topographic cross sections based on the slopes around the scar regarded as remnant topography. Spatial distribution of hummocks is anomalously concentrated at a certain distance from the source, unlike those that follow the distance-size relationship. The high-definition land surface data by RPAS and SfM revealed that many of the hummocks are aligned toward the flow direction of the debris avalanche, suggesting that the extensional regime of the debris avalanche was dominant. However, some displaced hummocks were also found, indicating that the compressional regime of the flow contributed to the formation of hummocks. These indicate that the flow and emplacement of the avalanche were constrained by the topography. The existing caldera wall forced the initial eastward flow to move northward, and the north-side caldera wall forced the flow into the narrow and steepened outlet valley where the sliding debris underwent a compressional regime, and out into the unconfined terrain where the debris was most likely emplaced on an extensional regime. Also, the estimated volume of 12-15 × 108 m3 gives a mean thickness of 60-75 m, which is much

  13. P and S wave Coda Calibration in Central Asia and South Korea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, D.; Mayeda, K.; Gok, R.; Barno, J.; Roman-Nieves, J. I.

    2017-12-01

    Empirically derived coda source spectra provide unbiased, absolute moment magnitude (Mw) estimates for events that are normally too small for accurate long-period waveform modeling. In this study, we obtain coda-derived source spectra using data from Central Asia (Kyrgyzstan networks - KN and KR, and Tajikistan - TJ) and South Korea (Korea Meteorological Administration, KMA). We used a recently developed coda calibration module of Seismic WaveForm Tool (SWFT). Seismic activities during this recording period include the recent Gyeongju earthquake of Mw=5.3 and its aftershocks, two nuclear explosions from 2009 and 2013 in North Korea, and a small number of construction and mining-related explosions. For calibration, we calculated synthetic coda envelopes for both P and S waves based on a simple analytic expression that fits the observed narrowband filtered envelopes using the method outlined in Mayeda et al. (2003). To provide an absolute scale of the resulting source spectra, path and site corrections are applied using independent spectral constraints (e.g., Mw and stress drop) from three Kyrgyzstan events and the largest events of the Gyeongju sequence in Central Asia and South Korea, respectively. In spite of major tectonic differences, stable source spectra were obtained in both regions. We validated the resulting spectra by comparing the ratio of raw envelopes and source spectra from calibrated envelopes. Spectral shapes of earthquakes and explosions show different patterns in both regions. We also find (1) the source spectra derived from S-coda is more robust than that from the P-coda at low frequencies; (2) unlike earthquake events, the source spectra of explosions have a large disagreement between P and S waves; and (3) similarity is observed between 2016 Gyeongju and 2011 Virginia earthquake sequence in the eastern U.S.

  14. BioMart Central Portal: an open database network for the biological community

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guberman, Jonathan M.; Ai, J.; Arnaiz, O.; Baran, Joachim; Blake, Andrew; Baldock, Richard; Chelala, Claude; Croft, David; Cros, Anthony; Cutts, Rosalind J.; Di Génova, A.; Forbes, Simon; Fujisawa, T.; Gadaleta, E.; Goodstein, D. M.; Gundem, Gunes; Haggarty, Bernard; Haider, Syed; Hall, Matthew; Harris, Todd; Haw, Robin; Hu, S.; Hubbard, Simon; Hsu, Jack; Iyer, Vivek; Jones, Philip; Katayama, Toshiaki; Kinsella, R.; Kong, Lei; Lawson, Daniel; Liang, Yong; Lopez-Bigas, Nuria; Luo, J.; Lush, Michael; Mason, Jeremy; Moreews, Francois; Ndegwa, Nelson; Oakley, Darren; Perez-Llamas, Christian; Primig, Michael; Rivkin, Elena; Rosanoff, S.; Shepherd, Rebecca; Simon, Reinhard; Skarnes, B.; Smedley, Damian; Sperling, Linda; Spooner, William; Stevenson, Peter; Stone, Kevin; Teague, J.; Wang, Jun; Wang, Jianxin; Whitty, Brett; Wong, D. T.; Wong-Erasmus, Marie; Yao, L.; Youens-Clark, Ken; Yung, Christina; Zhang, Junjun; Kasprzyk, Arek

    2011-01-01

    BioMart Central Portal is a first of its kind, community-driven effort to provide unified access to dozens of biological databases spanning genomics, proteomics, model organisms, cancer data, ontology information and more. Anybody can contribute an independently maintained resource to the Central Portal, allowing it to be exposed to and shared with the research community, and linking it with the other resources in the portal. Users can take advantage of the common interface to quickly utilize different sources without learning a new system for each. The system also simplifies cross-database searches that might otherwise require several complicated steps. Several integrated tools streamline common tasks, such as converting between ID formats and retrieving sequences. The combination of a wide variety of databases, an easy-to-use interface, robust programmatic access and the array of tools make Central Portal a one-stop shop for biological data querying. Here, we describe the structure of Central Portal and show example queries to demonstrate its capabilities. Database URL: http://central.biomart.org. PMID:21930507

  15. The Economics of Open Source Software Development: An Introduction

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schröder, Philipp J.H.; Bitzer, Jürgen

    2006-01-01

    This chapter introduces the fundamentals of Open Source Software, its nature, the central economic aspects and the key mechanisms of its development. Furthermore, we present the themes of the book and provide a first overview for the reader by giving short summaries of its chapters....

  16. Safety considerations of disposal of disused sealed sources in near surface facilities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pla, E.

    2003-01-01

    The report presents European commission studies on sealed radioactive sources - Management of Spent Radiation Sources in the European Union: Quantities, Storage, Recycling and Disposal. EUR 16960 EN. EC 1996; Management of sealed radioactive sources produced and sold in the Russian Federation. EUR 18191 EN. EC, 1999; Management and Disposal of Disused Sealed Radioactive Sources in the European Union. EUR 18186 EN. EC, 2000; Management of Spent Sealed Radioactive Sources in Central and Eastern Europe. EUR 19842 EN. EC, April 2001; Management of Spent Sealed Radioactive Sources in Bulgaria, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania and Slovakia. EUR 20654 EN. EC, January 2003. The conclusions and recommendations in them are given. The International catalogue of sealed radioactive sources and devices is described

  17. The effect of a local source on the composition of precipitation in south-central Maine

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scott D. Boyce; Samuel S. Butcher

    1976-01-01

    Bulk precipitation samples were collected from ten sites in south-central Maine during the period 18 June to 30 September 1974. Data from the chemical analyses of the precipitation were used to determine regional deposition patterns of the ionic constituents. Acidic pH values ranging from 3.8 to 5.0 are characteristic of the region, but relatively alkaline pH values of...

  18. Assessment of digital literacy and use of smart phones among Central Indian dental students.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saxena, Payal; Gupta, Saurabh Kumar; Mehrotra, Divya; Kamthan, Shivam; Sabir, Husain; Katiyar, Pratibha; Sai Prasad, S V

    2018-01-01

    Education has largely been digitalized. More so, for professional education, keeping updated in this fast paced world has become a necessary requisite and dentistry has not been left untouched. This cross sectional questionnaire based study aimed to assess the digital literacy and smartphone usage amongst the 260 Central Indian dental students including their perspicacity about smartphone/internet usage for learning purposes. The students' attitude for implementation of digital technology in study programs/education system was also evaluated. The questionnaire was distributed among total 260 dental students from different dental institutes of Central India. The data was collected and analyzed using SPSS software. Out of 260 students, 250 were internet users, out of which 56% had internet access all time. 94.23% students owned a smartphone. 46.53% (114/245) students had some app related to the dentistry in their smartphone device. The commonest site for surfing related to knowledge seeking was google scholar (72%) followed by Pubmed and others. Nearly 80% dental students believed that social media helps them in their professional course studies. Post graduate students showed statistitically significant difference from undergraduates and interns in terms of knowledge of keywords, dental apps and reading research journals. 89.23% students were keen for implementation of e-learning in their curriculum. This study reflects willingness of dental students to adopt digital revolution in dental education which in turn may present an opportunity for educators and policy makers to modify educational methods and thereby advance student's current learning approaches.

  19. Clinical Applications of Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound in the Pediatric Work-Up of Focal Liver Lesions and Blunt Abdominal Trauma

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Laugesen, Nicolaj Grønbæk; Nolsoe, Christian Pallson; Rosenberg, Jacob

    2017-01-01

    of Societies for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology and World Federation for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology. Literature was obtained by searching Medline and Pubmed Central (using Pubmed), Scopus database and Embase. CEUS proved to be an effective investigation in the hemodynamically stable child...

  20. Measuring device for strong gamma-ray sources; Dispositif de mesure des fortes sources emettrices {gamma}

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Engelman, J; Vagner, J [Commissariat a l' Energie Atomique, Saclay (France). Centre d' Etudes Nucleaires

    1956-07-01

    We are given the description of a hollow argon-filled cylindrical ionisation chamber which is to be used to measure gamma-emitting sources. The instrument is currently used at the Measures Department in routine gauging of some radioelements. Sources are introduced into the central part of the chamber through a remote handling device. Measures are directly registered, it is not worth while removing the source from the container; a deviation of the source has little effect on the ionization current. The chamber was gauged to test such elements as: {sup 198}Au, {sup 60}Co, {sup 192}Ir, {sup 24}Na, {sup 137}Cs. Its measuring power approximately ranges from 100 micro-curies to 5 curies. (author) [French] On decrit une chambre d'ionisation cylindrique creuse, a remplissage d'argon, destinee a la mesure des sources emettrices {gamma}. Cet appareil est utilise couramment par la Section Mesures pour l'etalonnage de routine d'un certain nombre de radioelements. Les sources sont mises en place au centre de la chambre par un dispositif de manipulation a distance. La mesure est faite directement, sans qu'il soit necessaire d'extraire la source de son container; un decentrement de la source n'a en effet pas d'influence sensible sur le courant d'ionisation. Cette chambre d'ionisation a ete etalonnee pour divers radioelements: {sup 198}Au, {sup 60}Co, {sup 192}Ir, {sup 24}Na, {sup 137}Cs. La flamme d'activite mesurable s'etend de 100 microcuries a 5 curies, environ. (auteur)

  1. Orden monetario y bancos centrales Monetary order and Central Banks

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aglietta Michel

    1996-06-01

    Full Text Available Con el enfoque evolucionista e institucionalista de la economía de las convenciones francesa, este trabajo analiza el surgimiento histórico de la banca central y la creación institucional del 'arte de la banca central'. El artículo estudia los modelos formales del orden monetario, la banca libre y la banca central, y analiza los eventos históricos que llevaron a que el Banco de Inglaterra inventara el arte de manejar los bancos centrales en conjunción con el aprendizaje colectivo e institucional que lo hizo posible. Aglietta muestra que la banca central no es una creación del Estado sino una creación institucional endógena al sistema de mercado.With the evolutionist and institutionalist focus of the economics of the French conventions, this paper analyzes the historical rise of the central bank and the institutional creation of the 'art of the central bank'. The article studies formal models of the monetary order, free banking and the central bank, and analyzes the historie events that led to the Bank of England inventing the art of managing the central banks, in conjunction with the collective and institutional learning that made it possible. Aglietta shows that the central bank is not a creation of the State, but rather aninstitutional creation endogenous to the market system.

  2. Design studies for an advanced ECR ion source for multiply charged ion beam generation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Alton, G.D.

    1994-01-01

    An innovative technique: for increasing ion source intensity is described which, in principle, could lead to significant advances in ECR ion source technology for multiply charged ion beam formation. The advanced concept design uses a minimum-B magnetic mirror geometry which consists of a multi-cusp, magnetic field, to assist in confining the plasma radially, a flat central field for tuning to the ECR resonant condition, and specially tailored min-or fields in the end zones to confine the plasma in the axial direction. The magnetic field is designed to achieve an axially symmetric plasma ''volume'' with constant mod-B, which extends over the length of the central field region. This design, which strongly contrasts w h the ECR ''surfaces'' characteristic of conventional ECR ion sources, results in dramatic increases in the absorption of RF power, thereby increasing the electron temperature and ''hot'' electron population within the ionization volume of the source

  3. A random set scoring model for prioritization of disease candidate genes using protein complexes and data-mining of GeneRIF, OMIM and PubMed records

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jiang, Li; Edwards, Stefan M.; Thomsen, Bo

    2014-01-01

    from PubMed abstracts, OMIM, and GeneRIF records. We also investigated the validity of several vocabulary filters and different likelihood thresholds for predicted protein-protein interactions in terms of their effect on the network-based gene-prioritization approach, which relies on text-mining......Background: Prioritizing genetic variants is a challenge because disease susceptibility loci are often located in genes of unknown function or the relationship with the corresponding phenotype is unclear. A global data-mining exercise on the biomedical literature can establish the phenotypic...

  4. The Regional Centrality of Vietnam’s Central Highlands

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Salemink, Oscar

    2018-01-01

    strategic value turned it into a battleground among various Vietnamese parties, France, and the United States. It was here that the outcome of the Indochina wars was determined, but at a terrible price for the local population. After the adoption of economic reforms in reunified Vietnam the Central......Vietnam’s Central Highlands—or Tây Nguyên—area is usually described as remote, backward, and primitive, but this region has played a central role in the history of the surrounding states and the wider East and Southeast Asia region. Far from isolated, the Central Highlands engaged in trade...... various rivalrous polities now known as Vietnam, Champa, Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand, the area occupied a strategic position in the wider mainland Southeast Asia region. With the emergence of a unified, neo-Confucianist Vietnamese state the region lost its centrality until the late colonial era, when its...

  5. BNL volume H- source

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Prelec, K.; Alessi, J.G.

    1991-01-01

    The volume H minus ion source under development at Brookhaven is unique in that it has a toroidal plasma region, which feeds ions into the central extraction region through a conically shaped filter field. In pulsed operation, it produced 25 mA of H minus in a 1 cm 2 aperture, with an electron-to-H minus ratio of ∼ 3. At 19 mA, a normalized, 90% emittance of 0.44 π mm-mrad has been measured. Up to 50 mA has been extracted through a 1.87 cm 2 aperture. Although not designed for steady state operation, up to 6 mA has been extracted d.c. The addition of xenon to the discharge was found to improve the source output by 20--70%. The circular magnetic cusp field geometry was found to be more favorable than radial cusp fields. 4 refs., 5 figs

  6. Research on frost formation in air source heat pump at cold-moist conditions in central-south China

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gong, Guangcai; Tang, Jinchen; Lv, Dongyan; Wang, Hongjin

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: ►A dynamic evaporator model is built up. ► The model involves the ratio of the latent heat to sensible heat of wet air. ►A correlation considering d eq is shown below to predict frost accumulation: (M fr v 3 )/(Ψd eq 2 ) =((T a )/(T w ) ) 0.1 ((vτ)/(d eq ) ) 0.7 (l/(d eq ) ) 1.378 X a 1.228 . ►The changing ratio can characterize the early development of system performance. ►The changing ratio can characterize the early development of frost accumulation. -- Abstract: A dynamic evaporator model of air source heat pump (ASHP), considering the ratio of the latent heat to sensible heat of wet air, is presented to analyze the performance of ASHP under frosting. The performance parameters, such as the heating capacity, COP and the outlet temperature of compressor, are simulated with CYCLEPAD. Then a semi-empirical correlation that predicts frost accumulation on the air-side of fin-tube heat exchanger is developed with dimensionless analysis and also modified by a test conducted under cold-moist conditions in winter. In addition, eight influence factors are considered involving the ambient conditions and structures of heat exchanger, whose effects are analyzed as well. Among them, the equivalent diameter of air flow cross-section in fin-tube d eq is especially proposed. Lastly, the relationships between the ratio, the performance parameters and the frost accumulation are discussed in this paper, followed by an evaluation of an optimal defrosting time interval to improve the ASHP’s energy efficiency and operational reliability at cold-moist conditions in central-south China.

  7. Safe management of discussed sealed sources in Peru

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mallaupoma, M.

    2000-01-01

    The future safe development of nuclear energy and progressive increasing use of sealed sources in medicine, research, industry and other fields in Peru, in the past years have determined the necessity to formulate and apply an Institutional policy to assure harmless and ecologically rational management of disused sealed sources in Peru. Some results of the studies, which served as a basis for design and construction of a facility for treatment, conditioning and storage of conditioned sealed sources are presented in this paper. The waste management system in Peru comprises operational and regulatory capabilities. Both of these activities are performed under a legislation. The Nuclear Research Center RACSO has a radioactive waste management department which is in charge of the management of disused sealed sources produced in the country. It is considered as a centralized waste processing and storage facility (WPSF). (author)

  8. Reconstruction of the central carbon metabolism of Aspergillus niger

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    David, Helga; Åkesson, Mats Fredrik; Nielsen, Jens

    2003-01-01

    The topology of central carbon metabolism of Aspergillus niger was identified and the metabolic network reconstructed, by integrating genomic, biochemical and physiological information available for this microorganism and other related fungi. The reconstructed network may serve as a valuable...... of metabolic fluxes using metabolite balancing. This framework was employed to perform an in silico characterisation of the phenotypic behaviour of A. niger grown on different carbon sources. The effects on growth of single reaction deletions were assessed and essential biochemical reactions were identified...... for different carbon sources. Furthermore, application of the stoichiometric model for assessing the metabolic capabilities of A. niger to produce metabolites was evaluated by using succinate production as a case study....

  9. Central upwind scheme for a compressible two-phase flow model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ahmed, Munshoor; Saleem, M Rehan; Zia, Saqib; Qamar, Shamsul

    2015-01-01

    In this article, a compressible two-phase reduced five-equation flow model is numerically investigated. The model is non-conservative and the governing equations consist of two equations describing the conservation of mass, one for overall momentum and one for total energy. The fifth equation is the energy equation for one of the two phases and it includes source term on the right-hand side which represents the energy exchange between two fluids in the form of mechanical and thermodynamical work. For the numerical approximation of the model a high resolution central upwind scheme is implemented. This is a non-oscillatory upwind biased finite volume scheme which does not require a Riemann solver at each time step. Few numerical case studies of two-phase flows are presented. For validation and comparison, the same model is also solved by using kinetic flux-vector splitting (KFVS) and staggered central schemes. It was found that central upwind scheme produces comparable results to the KFVS scheme.

  10. Central upwind scheme for a compressible two-phase flow model.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Munshoor Ahmed

    Full Text Available In this article, a compressible two-phase reduced five-equation flow model is numerically investigated. The model is non-conservative and the governing equations consist of two equations describing the conservation of mass, one for overall momentum and one for total energy. The fifth equation is the energy equation for one of the two phases and it includes source term on the right-hand side which represents the energy exchange between two fluids in the form of mechanical and thermodynamical work. For the numerical approximation of the model a high resolution central upwind scheme is implemented. This is a non-oscillatory upwind biased finite volume scheme which does not require a Riemann solver at each time step. Few numerical case studies of two-phase flows are presented. For validation and comparison, the same model is also solved by using kinetic flux-vector splitting (KFVS and staggered central schemes. It was found that central upwind scheme produces comparable results to the KFVS scheme.

  11. AutoLens: Automated Modeling of a Strong Lens's Light, Mass and Source

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nightingale, J. W.; Dye, S.; Massey, Richard J.

    2018-05-01

    This work presents AutoLens, the first entirely automated modeling suite for the analysis of galaxy-scale strong gravitational lenses. AutoLens simultaneously models the lens galaxy's light and mass whilst reconstructing the extended source galaxy on an adaptive pixel-grid. The method's approach to source-plane discretization is amorphous, adapting its clustering and regularization to the intrinsic properties of the lensed source. The lens's light is fitted using a superposition of Sersic functions, allowing AutoLens to cleanly deblend its light from the source. Single component mass models representing the lens's total mass density profile are demonstrated, which in conjunction with light modeling can detect central images using a centrally cored profile. Decomposed mass modeling is also shown, which can fully decouple a lens's light and dark matter and determine whether the two component are geometrically aligned. The complexity of the light and mass models are automatically chosen via Bayesian model comparison. These steps form AutoLens's automated analysis pipeline, such that all results in this work are generated without any user-intervention. This is rigorously tested on a large suite of simulated images, assessing its performance on a broad range of lens profiles, source morphologies and lensing geometries. The method's performance is excellent, with accurate light, mass and source profiles inferred for data sets representative of both existing Hubble imaging and future Euclid wide-field observations.

  12. Renewable energy management through microgrid central controller design: An approach to integrate solar, wind and biomass with battery

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zaheeruddin

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available In this study, an isolated microgrid comprising of renewable energy (RE sources like wind, solar, biogas and battery is considered. Provision of utility grid insertion is also given if total microgrid sources falls short of supplying the total load. To establish an efficient energy management strategy, a central controller takes the decision based on the status of the loads and sources. The status is obtained with the assistance of multi-agent concept (treating each source and load as an agent. The data acquisition system of these renewable sources and loads consists of multiple sensors interconnected through Low Power Radio over one of many GPRS communication. The Microgrid Central Controller (MGCC would use an embedded energy management algorithm to take decisions, which are then transmitted to the controllable RE systems to manage the utilization of their power outputs as per the load-supply power balance. A control strategy is adopted to regulate the power output from the battery in case of supply shortage, which results in a floating battery scheme in steady state.

  13. pubmed.mineR

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Network of association between terms of abstracts year wise for the diseases or .... 12. Genewise(): To search the number of abstracts for genes. This function will .... The commonly used English words, punctuation marks and white spaces are ...

  14. Embedded clusters in NGC1808 central starburst - Near-infrared imaging and spectroscopy

    OpenAIRE

    Galliano, E.; Alloin, D.

    2008-01-01

    In the course of a mid-infrared imaging campaign of close-by active galaxies, we discovered the mid-infrared counterparts of bright compact radio sources in the central star-forming region of NGC1808. We aim at confirming that these sources are deeply embedded, young star clusters and at deriving some of their intrinsic properties. To complement the mid-infrared data, we have collected a set of near-infrared data with ISAAC at the VLT: J, Ks, and L' images, as well as low-resolution, long-sli...

  15. Implementation of a database for the management of radioactive sources

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    MOHAMAD, M.

    2012-01-01

    In Madagascar, the application of nuclear technology continues to develop. In order to protect the human health and his environment against the harmful effects of the ionizing radiation, each user of radioactive sources has to implement a program of nuclear security and safety and to declare their sources at Regulatory Authority. This Authority must have access to all the informations relating to all the sources and their uses. This work is based on the elaboration of a software using python as programming language and SQlite as database. It makes possible to computerize the radioactive sources management.This application unifies the various existing databases and centralizes the activities of the radioactive sources management.The objective is to follow the movement of each source in the Malagasy territory in order to avoid the risks related on the use of the radioactive sources and the illicit traffic. [fr

  16. Genetics Home Reference: 1q21.1 microdeletion

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... reciprocal 1q21.1 deletions and duplications associated with microcephaly or macrocephaly and developmental and behavioral abnormalities. Nat Genet. 2008 Dec;40(12):1466-71. doi: 10.1038/ng.279. Citation on PubMed or Free article on PubMed Central Haldeman-Englert CR, Jewett T. ...

  17. Genetics Home Reference: desmosterolosis

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... 2001 Aug 22. Citation on PubMed or Free article on PubMed Central Zolotushko J, Flusser H, Markus B, Shelef I, Langer Y, Heverin M, Björkhem I, Sivan S, Birk OS. The desmosterolosis phenotype: spasticity, microcephaly and micrognathia with agenesis of corpus callosum and ...

  18. The origin of ferro-manganese oxide coated pumice from the Central Indian Ocean Basin

    Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

    Pattan, J.N.; Pearce, N.J.G.; Parthiban, G.; Smith, V.C.; Mudholkar, A.V.; Rao, N.R

    Pumice clasts, partially and fully coated with ferro-manganese oxide from the Central Indian Ocean Basin (CIOB) were analysed for major, trace and rare earth elements; and glass and mineral grain chemistry to assess their possible source...

  19. Spatially distributed pesticide exposure assessment in the Central Valley, California, USA

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Luo Yuzhou [Department of Land, Air, and Water Resources, University of California, Davis, CA 95616 (United States); Zhang Minghua, E-mail: mhzhang@ucdavis.ed [Department of Land, Air, and Water Resources, University of California, Davis, CA 95616 (United States)

    2010-05-15

    Field runoff is an important transport mechanism by which pesticides move into the hydrologic environment of intensive agricultural regions such as California's Central Valley. This study presents a spatially explicit modeling approach to extend Pesticide Root Zone Model (PRZM), a field-scale pesticide transport model, into basin level. The approach was applied to simulate chlorpyrifos use in the Central Valley during 2003-2007. The average value of loading as percent of use (LAPU) is 0.031%. Results of this study provide strong evidence that surface runoff generation and pesticide application timing are the two influencing factors on the spatial and temporal variability of chlorpyrifos sources from agricultural fields. This is one of the first studies in coupling GIS and field-scale models and providing simulations for the dynamics of pesticides over an agriculturally dominated landscape. The demonstrated modeling approach may be useful for implementations of best management practice (BMP) and total maximum daily load (TMDL). - Runoff generation and application timing are governing factors on spatiotemporal variability of pesticide sources.

  20. Spatially distributed pesticide exposure assessment in the Central Valley, California, USA

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Luo Yuzhou; Zhang Minghua

    2010-01-01

    Field runoff is an important transport mechanism by which pesticides move into the hydrologic environment of intensive agricultural regions such as California's Central Valley. This study presents a spatially explicit modeling approach to extend Pesticide Root Zone Model (PRZM), a field-scale pesticide transport model, into basin level. The approach was applied to simulate chlorpyrifos use in the Central Valley during 2003-2007. The average value of loading as percent of use (LAPU) is 0.031%. Results of this study provide strong evidence that surface runoff generation and pesticide application timing are the two influencing factors on the spatial and temporal variability of chlorpyrifos sources from agricultural fields. This is one of the first studies in coupling GIS and field-scale models and providing simulations for the dynamics of pesticides over an agriculturally dominated landscape. The demonstrated modeling approach may be useful for implementations of best management practice (BMP) and total maximum daily load (TMDL). - Runoff generation and application timing are governing factors on spatiotemporal variability of pesticide sources.

  1. Nominal ISOMERs (Incorrect Spellings Of Medicines Eluding Researchers)-variants in the spellings of drug names in PubMed: a database review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ferner, Robin E; Aronson, Jeffrey K

    2016-12-14

     To examine how misspellings of drug names could impede searches for published literature.  Database review.  PubMed.  The study included 30 drug names that are commonly misspelt on prescription charts in hospitals in Birmingham, UK (test set), and 30 control names randomly chosen from a hospital formulary (control set). The following definitions were used: standard names-the international non-proprietary names, variant names-deviations in spelling from standard names that are not themselves standard names in English language nomenclature, and hidden reference variants-variant spellings that identified publications in textword (tw) searches of PubMed or other databases, and which were not identified by textword searches for the standard names. Variant names were generated from standard names by applying letter substitutions, omissions, additions, transpositions, duplications, deduplications, and combinations of these. Searches were carried out in PubMed (30 June 2016) for "standard name[tw]" and "variant name[tw] NOT standard name[tw]."  The 30 standard names of drugs in the test set gave 325 979 hits in total, and 160 hidden reference variants gave 3872 hits (1.17%). The standard names of the control set gave 470 064 hits, and 79 hidden reference variants gave 766 hits (0.16%). Letter substitutions (particularly i to y and vice versa) and omissions together accounted for 2924 (74%) of the variants. Amitriptyline (8530 hits) yielded 18 hidden reference variants (179 (2.1%) hits). Names ending in "in," "ine," or "micin" were commonly misspelt. Failing to search for hidden reference variants of "gentamicin," "amitriptyline," "mirtazapine," and "trazodone" would miss at least 19 systematic reviews. A hidden reference variant related to Christmas, "No-el", was rare; variants of "X-miss" were rarer.  When performing searches, researchers should include misspellings of drug names among their search terms. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For

  2. The Einstein objective grating spectrometer survey of galactic binary X-ray sources

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vrtilek, S. D.; Mcclintock, J. E.; Seward, F. D.; Kahn, S. M.; Wargelin, B. J.

    1991-01-01

    The results of observations of 22 bright Galactic X-ray point sources are presented, and the most reliable measurements to date of X-ray column densities to these sources are derived. The results are consistent with the idea that some of the objects have a component of column density intrinsic to the source in addition to an interstellar component. The K-edge absorption due to oxygen is clearly detected in 10 of the sources and the Fe L and Ne K edges are detected in a few. The spectra probably reflect emission originating in a collisionally excited region combined with emission from a photoionized region excited directly by the central source.

  3. On-line biomedical databases-the best source for quick search of the scientific information in the biomedicine.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Masic, Izet; Milinovic, Katarina

    2012-06-01

    Most of medical journals now has it's electronic version, available over public networks. Although there are parallel printed and electronic versions, and one other form need not to be simultaneously published. Electronic version of a journal can be published a few weeks before the printed form and must not has identical content. Electronic form of a journals may have an extension that does not contain a printed form, such as animation, 3D display, etc., or may have available fulltext, mostly in PDF or XML format, or just the contents or a summary. Access to a full text is usually not free and can be achieved only if the institution (library or host) enters into an agreement on access. Many medical journals, however, provide free access for some articles, or after a certain time (after 6 months or a year) to complete content. The search for such journals provide the network archive as High Wire Press, Free Medical Journals.com. It is necessary to allocate PubMed and PubMed Central, the first public digital archives unlimited collect journals of available medical literature, which operates in the system of the National Library of Medicine in Bethesda (USA). There are so called on- line medical journals published only in electronic form. It could be searched over on-line databases. In this paper authors shortly described about 30 data bases and short instructions how to make access and search the published papers in indexed medical journals.

  4. Obsidian deposits in the central Balkans? Tested against archaeological evidence

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tripković Boban

    2003-01-01

    Full Text Available Finds of obsidian artefacts on sites distant from the presumed primary source have often received a romantic note in the history of archaeology manifested in the idea about local exploitation as a form of procurement and archaeologists’ search for as yet undetected deposits of this raw material. In due course, such concepts have found their way into Serbian archaeology as well. The main objective of this contribution, therefore, is to reconsider the current knowledge about obsidian in the central and north Balkans, to test how well founded the idea about the use of local sources is, as well as to indicate some possible directions for future research.

  5. Centralized vs. De-centralized Multinationals and Taxes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nielsen, Søren Bo; Raimondos-Møller, Pascalis; Schjelderup, Guttorm

    2005-01-01

    The paper examines how country tax differences affect a multinational enterprise's choice to centralize or de-centralize its decision structure. Within a simple model that emphasizes the multiple conflicting roles of transfer prices in MNEs - here, as a strategic pre-commitment device and a tax...

  6. Harms associated with taking nalmefene for substance use and impulse control disorders

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Johansen, Karina Glies Vincents; Tarp, Simon; Astrup, Arne

    2017-01-01

    IMPORTANCE: Nalmefene is a newly approved drug for alcohol use disorder, but the risk of harms has not been evaluated from empirical trial evidence. OBJECTIVE: To assess the harm of nalmefene administered to individuals diagnosed with substance use or impulse control disorders by performing...... only randomised controlled trials with placebo or active controls that administered nalmefene to adult individuals for treating impulse control and/or substance use disorders. Both published and unpublished randomised controlled trials were eligible for inclusion. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS...... a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. DATA SOURCES: A search was performed in Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL, 2014), MEDLINE via PubMed (1950), EMBASE via Ovid (1974), and Clinicaltrials.gov through December 2014. STUDY SELECTION: This study included...

  7. Coal-tar-based sealcoated pavement: A major PAH source to urban stream sediments

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Witter, Amy E.; Nguyen, Minh H.; Baidar, Sunil; Sak, Peter B.

    2014-01-01

    We used land-use analysis, PAH concentrations and assemblages, and multivariate statistics to identify sediment PAH sources in a small (∼1303 km 2 ) urbanizing watershed located in South-Central, Pennsylvania, USA. A geographic information system (GIS) was employed to quantify land-use features that may serve as PAH sources. Urban PAH concentrations were three times higher than rural levels, and were significantly and highly correlated with combined residential/commercial/industrial land use. Principal components analysis (PCA) was used to group sediments with similar PAH assemblages, and correlation analysis compared PAH sediment assemblages to common PAH sources. The strongest correlations were observed between rural sediments (n = 7) and coke-oven emissions sources (r = 0.69–0.78, n = 5), and between urban sediments (n = 22) and coal-tar-based sealcoat dust (r = 0.94, n = 47) suggesting that coal-tar-based sealcoat is an important urban PAH source in this watershed linked to residential and commercial/industrial land use. -- Highlights: • Total PAH concentrations were measured at 35 sites along an urbanizing land-use gradient. • PAH concentrations increased with increasing urban land-use. • Urban land-use metrics were measured at three spatial scales using GIS. • PAH assemblages indicate coal-tar-based sealcoat is a major urban PAH source. • PAH assemblages indicate coke-oven emissions are an important rural PAH source. -- Coal-tar-based sealcoated pavement is a major PAH source to urban freshwater stream sediments in south-central Pennsylvania, USA

  8. California GAMA Special Study: An isotopic and dissolved gas investigation of nitrate source and transport to a public supply well in California's Central Valley

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Singleton, M J; Moran, J E; Esser, B K; Roberts, S K; Hillegonds, D J

    2010-04-14

    This study investigates nitrate contamination of a deep municipal drinking water production well in Ripon, CA to demonstrate the utility of natural groundwater tracers in constraining the sources and transport of nitrate to deep aquifers in the Central Valley. The goal of the study was to investigate the origin (source) of elevated nitrate and the potential for the deep aquifer to attenuate anthropogenic nitrate. The site is ideal for such an investigation. The production well is screened from 165-325 feet below ground surface and a number of nearby shallow and deep monitoring wells were available for sampling. Furthermore, potential sources of nitrate contamination to the well had been identified, including a fertilizer supply plant located approximately 1000 feet to the east and local almond groves. A variety of natural isotopic and dissolved gas tracers including {sup 3}H-{sup 3}He groundwater age and the isotopic composition of nitrate are applied to identify nitrate sources and to characterize nitrate transport. An advanced method for sampling production wells is employed to help identify contaminant contributions from specific screen intervals. Nitrate transport: Groundwater nitrate at this field site is not being actively denitrified. Groundwater parameters indicate oxic conditions, the dissolved gas data shows no evidence for excess nitrogen as the result of denitrification, and nitrate-N and -O isotope compositions do not display patterns typical of denitrification. Contaminant nitrate source: The ambient nitrate concentration in shallow groundwater at the Ripon site ({approx}12 mg/L as nitrate) is typical of shallow groundwaters affected by recharge from agricultural and urban areas. Nitrate concentrations in Ripon City Well 12 (50-58 mg/L as nitrate) are significantly higher than these ambient concentrations, indicating an additional source of anthropogenic nitrate is affecting groundwater in the capture zone of this municipal drinking water well. This

  9. SEROTYPES AND ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE OF SALMONELLA ENTERICA SSP IN CENTRAL THAILAND, 2001-2006

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pantip, Sirichote; Aroon, B.; Kanokwan, Tienmanee

    2010-01-01

    This study was carried out to elucidate the epidemiological trends and antimicrobial susceptibilities against Salmonella serovars among Thai patients and asymptomatic carriers during 2001-2006 in central Thailand. A total of 1,401 human and 260 non-human isolates from various sources were include...

  10. Update on uncertain etiology of chronic kidney disease in Sri Lanka's north-central dry zone.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wanigasuriya, Kamani

    2014-04-01

    This manuscript updates a review previously published in a local journal in 2012, about a new form of chronic kidney disease that has emerged over the past two decades in the north-central dry zone of Sri Lanka, where the underlying causes remain undetermined. Disease burden is higher in this area, particularly North Central Province, and affects a rural and disadvantaged population involved in rice-paddy farming. Over the last decade several studies have been carried out to estimate prevalence and identify determinants of this chronic kidney disease of uncertain etiology. Summarize the available evidence on prevalence, clinical profile and risk factors of chronic kidney disease of uncertain etiology in the north-central region of Sri Lanka. PubMed search located 16 manuscripts published in peer-reviewed journals. Three peer-reviewed abstracts of presentations at national scientific conferences were also included in the review. Disease prevalence was 5.1%-16.9% with more severe disease seen in men than in women. Patients with mild to moderate stages of disease were asymptomatic or had nonspecific symptoms; urinary sediments were bland; 24-hour urine protein excretion was urine, and mycotoxins detected in foods were below maximum statutory limits. Calcium-bicarbonate-type water with high levels of fluoride was predominant in endemic regions. Significantly high levels of cadmium in urine of cases compared to controls, as well as the disease's dose-related response to these levels, has drawn attention to this element as a possible contributing factor. Familial clustering of patients is suggestive of a polygenic inheritance pattern comparable to that associated with diseases of multifactorial etiology. Available data suggest that chronic kidney disease of uncertain etiology is an environmentally acquired disease, but to date no definitive causal factor has been identified. Geographic distribution and research findings suggest a multifactorial etiology.

  11. National conference on centralized heat supply from heat feeders in selected localities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1990-05-01

    The proceedings contain 8 contributions, out of which 5 have been inputted in INIS. These deal with centralized heat supply systems, hydraulic and thermal parameters of the hot water distribution systems, and the feasibility of including nuclear sources into the systems. Treated are both actual systems and calculation models. (B.S.)

  12. Biomass energy projects in Central and Eastern Europe. General information, favorable concepts and financing possibilities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ellenbroek, R.; Ballard-Tremeer, G.; Koeks, R.; Venendaal, R.

    2000-08-01

    The purpose of this guide is to provide information on the possibilities to invest and carry out biomass energy projects in Central and Eastern Europe. In the first part of the guide background information is given on countries in Central and Eastern Europe, focusing on bio-energy. A few cases are presented to illustrate different biomass energy concepts. Based on economic calculations an indication is given of the feasibility of those concepts. Also the most relevant sources of information are listed. In the second part an overview is given of Dutch, European and international financial tools that can be used in biomass energy projects in Central and Eastern Europe

  13. System, centrality, and transverse mass dependence of two-pion correlation radii in heavy ion collisions at 11.6A and 14.6A GeV/c

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ahle, L.; Baker, M.D.; Cianciolo, V.; Costales, J.B.; Dunlop, J.C.; Heintzelman, G.; Judd, E.; Kehoe, W.L.; Ledoux, R.J.; Morrison, D.P.; Morse, R.J.; Ogilvie, C.A.; Parsons, C.G.; Rothschild, P.; Soltz, R.A.; Steadman, S.G.; Stephans, G.S.F.; Sung, T.W.; Vutsadakis, V.; Woodruff, D.

    2002-01-01

    Two-pion correlation functions are analyzed at midrapidity for three systems (14.6A GeV/c Si+Al, Si+Au, and 11.6A GeV/c Au+Au), seven distinct centrality conditions, and different k T bins in the range 0.1-0.5 GeV/c. Source reference frames are determined from fits to the Yano-Koonin source parametrization. Bertsch-Pratt radius parameters are shown to scale linearly with both number of projectile and total participants as obtained from a Glauber model calculation. A finite lifetime parameter that increases linearly with system/centrality is also reported. The m T dependences of the Bertsch-Pratt radii for the central Si+Au and central Au+Au systems differ only by an overall normalization factor given by the measured system/centrality dependence

  14. Trade, Industry Structure and Different Sources of Firm-heterogeneity

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schröder, Philipp J.H.; Jørgensen, Jan Guldager

    Recently the workhorse model of intra-industry trade has been augmented with heterogeneous cost structures at the firm level. In principle there exist various sources of heterogeneity, yet the literature appears -- for convenience or other reasons -- to settle on marginal cost heterogeneity...... as the preferred modelling device. The present paper develops a unified model framework allowing a systematic comparison of marginal and fixed cost heterogeneity. We find that both types of heterogeneity are in fact able to capture the central stylized facts of international trade. For example can either source...

  15. Comments to Middle Miocene closure of the Central American Seaway

    Science.gov (United States)

    Coates, A.G.; Stallard, Robert F.

    2016-01-01

    In a recent paper proposing an early (mid-Miocene) closure of the Central American Seaway (CAS), Montes et al. 2015 (1) disregard existing paleogeographic data that invalidate Panama as a source for zircons, and inappropriately ignore the evidence for trans-isthmian marine connections until 4-3 Ma. They also fail to cite previous work (2, 3), that had reconstructed the Central American arc already docked with South America by 12 Ma. Montes et al. 2015 (1) (Fig. 1) disregard the Atrato-San Juan sedimentary basin (3), a shallowing Oligocene to Pliocene, Pacific to Caribbean seaway (3, 4, 5). This deep graben (6) is filled with thousands of meters of Pre-Pliocene marine sediments (3, 5, 6) that now occupy a lowland between the Baudo uplift to the west and the Western Cordillera to the east. The Mande Batholith and numerous Eocene and younger volcanic rocks (4), the most proximal source of the zircons, are situated to the east of this seaway and would have shed zircons eastward towards the Cordillera Central. There is no evidence for any rivers crossing the seaway (3, 5), and thus no Panamanian source of zircons. Instead this seaway is evidence of a significant marine connection between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans into the Pliocene. The authors assume that the middle Miocene closure of the CAS effectively creates a continuous land bridge connecting North and South America and separating the Atlantic from the Pacific. They acknowledge, but then discount, marine connections across the Isthmus until 4-3 Ma even though these satisfactorily explain (Coates and Stallard, 2014 (6)) the oceanographic, molecular and Great American Biological Interchange events ignore unexplained by Montes et al. 2015. Only by conspicuously ignoring these events can they imply that the Isthmus was formed at 15-13 Ma. References 1. C. Montes et al., Middle Miocene closure of the Central American Seaway. Science 348, 226-229 (2015). 2. A. G. Coates, R. F. Stallard, How old is the Isthmus of

  16. Development of Renewable Energies in the liberation of the energy market in Central America

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rebollo, Jose; Puente, Margarita; Cabezas, Jose

    2000-01-01

    This paper presents the diagnostic of the current situation on renewable energy in Central America, including socio-economical situation, with economical index, supply and demand of energy and planning of wind resources. The experience of Europe in the promotion for the market of renewable energy, discussing the policies and cooperation between private sector and the government is included. A list of potential projects of renewable energy in each country of Central America based on biomass, hydro power, wind and other energy sources for power generation is presented

  17. Flux and brightness calculations for various synchrotron radiation sources

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Weber, J.M.; Hulbert, S.L.

    1991-11-01

    Synchrotron radiation (SR) storage rings are powerful scientific and technological tools. The first generation of storage rings in the US., e.g., SURF (Washington, D.C.), Tantalus (Wisconsin), SSRL (Stanford), and CHESS (Cornell), revolutionized VUV, soft X-ray, and hard X-ray science. The second (present) generation of storage rings, e.g. the NSLS VUV and XRAY rings and Aladdin (Wisconsin), have sustained the revolution by providing higher stored currents and up to a factor of ten smaller electron beam sizes than the first generation sources. This has made possible a large number of experiments that could not performed using first generation sources. In addition, the NSLS XRAY ring design optimizes the performance of wigglers (high field periodic magnetic insertion devices). The third generation storage rings, e.g. ALS (Berkeley) and APS (Argonne), are being designed to optimize the performance of undulators (low field periodic magnetic insertion devices). These extremely high brightness sources will further revolutionize x-ray science by providing diffraction-limited x-ray beams. The output of undulators and wigglers is distinct from that of bending magnets in magnitude, spectral shape, and in spatial and angular size. Using published equations, we have developed computer programs to calculate the flux, central intensity, and brightness output bending magnets and selected wigglers and undulators of the NSLS VUV and XRAY rings, the Advanced Light Source (ALS), and the Advanced Photon Source (APS). Following is a summary of the equations used, the graphs and data produced, and the computer codes written. These codes, written in the C programming language, can be used to calculate the flux, central intensity, and brightness curves for bending magnets and insertion devices on any storage ring

  18. INTERGEO - Central/East European Collaboration Network on direct application of geothermal energy

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Popovski, K [Central/East European Collaboration Network on Direct Application of Geothermal Energy, Bitola (Yugoslavia); Arpasi, M [International Geothermal Association - European Branch, Budapest (Hungary)

    1997-12-01

    A proposal for organisation of a Network to be known as INTERGEO is presented, which should extend and reinforce the cooperation for the development of the direct application of geothermal energy between the developed EC countries and the ones of the so called Central/East European region. Unter the term `developed countries` for this particular energy source utilisation mainly Italy, France and Germany should be understood. The Central/East European region consists the following countries: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Belarus, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lituania, Macedonia, Moldova, Poland, Roumania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Turkey, Ukraine and Yugoslavia. The idea itself, the need and possibilities for organisation, possible plan of action and expected benefits for the EC and Central/East European countries are elaborated in order to come to the conclusions for the proposal justifiableness and feasibility for realisation. (orig.)

  19. Characteristics of debris avalanche deposits inferred from source volume estimate and hummock morphology around Mt. Erciyes, central Turkey

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Y. S. Hayakawa

    2018-02-01

    Full Text Available Debris avalanches caused by volcano sector collapse often form characteristic depositional landforms such as hummocks. Sedimentological and geomorphological analyses of debris avalanche deposits (DADs are crucial to clarify the size, mechanisms, and emplacement of debris avalanches. We describe the morphology of hummocks on the northeastern flank of Mt. Erciyes in Kayseri, central Turkey, likely formed in the late Pleistocene. Using a remotely piloted aircraft system (RPAS and the structure-from-motion and multi-view stereo (SfM–MVS photogrammetry, we obtained high-definition digital elevation model (DEM and orthorectified images of the hummocks to investigate their geometric features. We estimated the source volume of the DAD by reconstructing the topography of the volcano edifice using a satellite-based DEM. We examined the topographic cross sections based on the slopes around the scar regarded as remnant topography. Spatial distribution of hummocks is anomalously concentrated at a certain distance from the source, unlike those that follow the distance–size relationship. The high-definition land surface data by RPAS and SfM revealed that many of the hummocks are aligned toward the flow direction of the debris avalanche, suggesting that the extensional regime of the debris avalanche was dominant. However, some displaced hummocks were also found, indicating that the compressional regime of the flow contributed to the formation of hummocks. These indicate that the flow and emplacement of the avalanche were constrained by the topography. The existing caldera wall forced the initial eastward flow to move northward, and the north-side caldera wall forced the flow into the narrow and steepened outlet valley where the sliding debris underwent a compressional regime, and out into the unconfined terrain where the debris was most likely emplaced on an extensional regime. Also, the estimated volume of 12–15 × 108 m3 gives a mean thickness of

  20. Duke Surgery Research Central: an open-source Web application for the improvement of compliance with research regulation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pietrobon, Ricardo; Shah, Anand; Kuo, Paul; Harker, Matthew; McCready, Mariana; Butler, Christeen; Martins, Henrique; Moorman, C T; Jacobs, Danny O

    2006-07-27

    Although regulatory compliance in academic research is enforced by law to ensure high quality and safety to participants, its implementation is frequently hindered by cost and logistical barriers. In order to decrease these barriers, we have developed a Web-based application, Duke Surgery Research Central (DSRC), to monitor and streamline the regulatory research process. The main objective of DSRC is to streamline regulatory research processes. The application was built using a combination of paper prototyping for system requirements and Java as the primary language for the application, in conjunction with the Model-View-Controller design model. The researcher interface was designed for simplicity so that it could be used by individuals with different computer literacy levels. Analogously, the administrator interface was designed with functionality as its primary goal. DSRC facilitates the exchange of regulatory documents between researchers and research administrators, allowing for tasks to be tracked and documents to be stored in a Web environment accessible from an Intranet. Usability was evaluated using formal usability tests and field observations. Formal usability results demonstrated that DSRC presented good speed, was easy to learn and use, had a functionality that was easily understandable, and a navigation that was intuitive. Additional features implemented upon request by initial users included: extensive variable categorization (in contrast with data capture using free text), searching capabilities to improve how research administrators could search an extensive number of researcher names, warning messages before critical tasks were performed (such as deleting a task), and confirmatory e-mails for critical tasks (such as completing a regulatory task). The current version of DSRC was shown to have excellent overall usability properties in handling research regulatory issues. It is hoped that its release as an open-source application will promote improved

  1. Duke Surgery Research Central: an open-source Web application for the improvement of compliance with research regulation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Martins Henrique

    2006-07-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Although regulatory compliance in academic research is enforced by law to ensure high quality and safety to participants, its implementation is frequently hindered by cost and logistical barriers. In order to decrease these barriers, we have developed a Web-based application, Duke Surgery Research Central (DSRC, to monitor and streamline the regulatory research process. Results The main objective of DSRC is to streamline regulatory research processes. The application was built using a combination of paper prototyping for system requirements and Java as the primary language for the application, in conjunction with the Model-View-Controller design model. The researcher interface was designed for simplicity so that it could be used by individuals with different computer literacy levels. Analogously, the administrator interface was designed with functionality as its primary goal. DSRC facilitates the exchange of regulatory documents between researchers and research administrators, allowing for tasks to be tracked and documents to be stored in a Web environment accessible from an Intranet. Usability was evaluated using formal usability tests and field observations. Formal usability results demonstrated that DSRC presented good speed, was easy to learn and use, had a functionality that was easily understandable, and a navigation that was intuitive. Additional features implemented upon request by initial users included: extensive variable categorization (in contrast with data capture using free text, searching capabilities to improve how research administrators could search an extensive number of researcher names, warning messages before critical tasks were performed (such as deleting a task, and confirmatory e-mails for critical tasks (such as completing a regulatory task. Conclusion The current version of DSRC was shown to have excellent overall usability properties in handling research regulatory issues. It is hoped that its

  2. Ion beam source construction and applications

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Torab, S.I.R.

    2011-01-01

    The aim of this thesis is to improve the performance of a new shape cold cathode Penning ion source to be suitable for some applications. In this work, many trials have been made to reach the optimum dimensions of the new shape of cold Molybdenum cathode Penning ion source with radial extraction. The high output ion beam can be extracted in a direction transverse to the discharge region. The new shape cold cathode Penning ion source consists of Copper cylindrical hollow anode of 40 mm length, 12 mm diameter and has two similar cone ends of 15 mm length, 22 mm upper cone diameter and 12 mm bottom cone diameter. The two movable Molybdenum cathodes are fixed in Perspex insulator and placed symmetrically at two ends of the anode. The Copper emission disc of 2 mm thickness and has central aperture of different diameters is placed at the middle of the anode for ion beam exit. The inner surface of the emission disc is isolated from the anode by Perspex insulator except an area of diameter 5 mm to confine the electrical discharge in this area. A movable Faraday cup is placed at different distances from the emission electrode aperture and used to collect the output ion beam from the ion source. The working gases are admitted to the ion source through a hole in the anode via a needle valve which placed between the gas cylinder and the ion source. The optimum anode- cathode distance, the uncovered area diameter of the emission disc, the central aperture diameter of the emission electrode, the distance between emission electrode and Faraday cup have been determined using Argon gas. The optimum distances of the ion source were found to be equal to 6 mm, 5 mm, 2.5 mm, and 3 cm respectively where stable discharge current and maximum output ion beam current at low discharge current can be obtained. The discharge characteristics, ion beam characteristics, and the efficiency of the ion source have been measured at different operating conditions and different gas pressures using

  3. In silico Interrogation of Insect Central Complex Suggests Computational Roles for the Ellipsoid Body in Spatial Navigation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vincenzo G. Fiore

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available The central complex in the insect brain is a composite of midline neuropils involved in processing sensory cues and mediating behavioral outputs to orchestrate spatial navigation. Despite recent advances, however, the neural mechanisms underlying sensory integration and motor action selections have remained largely elusive. In particular, it is not yet understood how the central complex exploits sensory inputs to realize motor functions associated with spatial navigation. Here we report an in silico interrogation of central complex-mediated spatial navigation with a special emphasis on the ellipsoid body. Based on known connectivity and function, we developed a computational model to test how the local connectome of the central complex can mediate sensorimotor integration to guide different forms of behavioral outputs. Our simulations show integration of multiple sensory sources can be effectively performed in the ellipsoid body. This processed information is used to trigger continuous sequences of action selections resulting in self-motion, obstacle avoidance and the navigation of simulated environments of varying complexity. The motor responses to perceived sensory stimuli can be stored in the neural structure of the central complex to simulate navigation relying on a collective of guidance cues, akin to sensory-driven innate or habitual behaviors. By comparing behaviors under different conditions of accessible sources of input information, we show the simulated insect computes visual inputs and body posture to estimate its position in space. Finally, we tested whether the local connectome of the central complex might also allow the flexibility required to recall an intentional behavioral sequence, among different courses of actions. Our simulations suggest that the central complex can encode combined representations of motor and spatial information to pursue a goal and thus successfully guide orientation behavior. Together, the observed

  4. In silico Interrogation of Insect Central Complex Suggests Computational Roles for the Ellipsoid Body in Spatial Navigation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fiore, Vincenzo G; Kottler, Benjamin; Gu, Xiaosi; Hirth, Frank

    2017-01-01

    The central complex in the insect brain is a composite of midline neuropils involved in processing sensory cues and mediating behavioral outputs to orchestrate spatial navigation. Despite recent advances, however, the neural mechanisms underlying sensory integration and motor action selections have remained largely elusive. In particular, it is not yet understood how the central complex exploits sensory inputs to realize motor functions associated with spatial navigation. Here we report an in silico interrogation of central complex-mediated spatial navigation with a special emphasis on the ellipsoid body. Based on known connectivity and function, we developed a computational model to test how the local connectome of the central complex can mediate sensorimotor integration to guide different forms of behavioral outputs. Our simulations show integration of multiple sensory sources can be effectively performed in the ellipsoid body. This processed information is used to trigger continuous sequences of action selections resulting in self-motion, obstacle avoidance and the navigation of simulated environments of varying complexity. The motor responses to perceived sensory stimuli can be stored in the neural structure of the central complex to simulate navigation relying on a collective of guidance cues, akin to sensory-driven innate or habitual behaviors. By comparing behaviors under different conditions of accessible sources of input information, we show the simulated insect computes visual inputs and body posture to estimate its position in space. Finally, we tested whether the local connectome of the central complex might also allow the flexibility required to recall an intentional behavioral sequence, among different courses of actions. Our simulations suggest that the central complex can encode combined representations of motor and spatial information to pursue a goal and thus successfully guide orientation behavior. Together, the observed computational features

  5. Tracer concentration profiles measured in central London as part of the REPARTEE campaign

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    D. Martin

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available There have been relatively few tracer experiments carried out that have looked at vertical plume spread in urban areas. In this paper we present results from two tracer (cyclic perfluorocarbon experiments carried out in 2006 and 2007 in central London centred on the BT Tower as part of the REPARTEE (Regent's Park and Tower Environmental Experiment campaign. The height of the tower gives a unique opportunity to study vertical dispersion profiles and transport times in central London. Vertical gradients are contrasted with the relevant Pasquill stability classes. Estimation of lateral advection and vertical mixing times are made and compared with previous measurements. Data are then compared with a simple operational dispersion model and contrasted with data taken in central London as part of the DAPPLE campaign. This correlates dosage with non-dimensionalised distance from source. Such analyses illustrate the feasibility of the use of these empirical correlations over these prescribed distances in central London.

  6. Trends and topics in eye disease research in PubMed from 2010 to 2014.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boudry, Christophe; Denion, Eric; Mortemousque, Bruno; Mouriaux, Fréderic

    2016-01-01

    The purpose of this study is to provide a report on scientific production during the period 2010-2014 in order to identify the major topics as well as the predominant actors (journals, countries, continents) involved in the field of eye disease. A PubMed search was carried out to extract articles related to eye diseases during the period 2010-2014. Data were downloaded and processed through developed PHP scripts for further analysis. A total of 62,123 articles were retrieved. A total of 3,368 different journals were found, and 19 journals were identified as "core journals" according to Braford's law. English was by far the predominant language. A total of 853,182 MeSH terms were found, representing an average of 13.73 (SD = 4.98) MeSH terms per article. Among these 853,182 MeSH terms, 14,689 different MeSH terms were identified. Vision Disorders, Glaucoma, Diabetic Retinopathy, Macular Degeneration, and Cataract were the most frequent five MeSH terms related to eye diseases. The analysis of the total number of publications showed that Europe and Asia were the most productive continents, and the USA and China the most productive countries. Interestingly, using the mean Five-Year Impact Factor, the two most productive continents were North America and Oceania. After adjustment for population, the overall ranking positions changed in favor of smaller countries (i.e. Iceland, Switzerland, Denmark, and New Zealand), while after adjustment for Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the overall ranking positions changed in favor of some developing countries (Malawi, Guatemala, Singapore). Due to the large number of articles included and the numerous parameters analyzed, this study provides a wide view of scientific productivity related to eye diseases during the period 2010-2014 and allows us to better understand this field.

  7. RAS in the central nervous system: Potential role in neuropsychiatric disorders.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rocha, Natalia Pessoa; Simões e Silva, Ana Cristina; Prestes, Thiago Ruiz Rodrigues; Feracin, Victor; Machado, Caroline Amaral; Ferreira, Rodrigo Novaes; Teixeira, Antonio Lucio; de Miranda, Aline Silva

    2018-02-25

    The Renin-Angiotensin System (RAS) is a key regulator of cardiovascular and renal homeostasis, but also plays important roles in mediating physiological functions in the central nervous system (CNS). The effects of the RAS were classically described as mediated by angiotensin (Ang) II via angiotensin type 1 (AT1) receptors. However, another arm of the RAS formed by the angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), Ang-(1-7) and the Mas receptor has been a matter of investigation due to its important physiological roles, usually counterbalancing the classical effects exerted by Ang II. We aim to provide an overview of effects elicited by the RAS, especially Ang-(1-7), in the brain. We also aim to discuss the therapeutic potential for neuropsychiatric disorders of the modulation of RAS. We carried out an extensive literature search in PubMed central. Within the brain, Ang-(1-7) contributes to the regulation of blood pressure by acting at regions that control cardiovascular functions. In contrast with Ang II, Ang-(1-7) improves baroreflex sensitivity and plays an inhibitory role in hypothalamic noradrenergic neurotransmission. Ang-(1-7) not only exerts effects related to blood pressure regulation, but also acts as a neuroprotective component of the RAS, for instance, by reducing cerebral infarct size, inflammation, oxidative stress and neuronal apoptosis. Pre-clinical evidence supports a relevant role for ACE2/Ang-(1-7)/Mas receptor axis in several neuropsychiatric conditions, including stress-related and mood disorders, cerebrovascular ischemic and haemorrhagic lesions and neurodegenerative diseases. However, very few data are available regarding the ACE2/Ang-(1-7)/Mas receptor axis in human CNS. Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.org.

  8. The effects of different source arrangement on the irradiation efficacy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liu Hongyue; Shi Peixin; Lin Yin

    1999-01-01

    The effects of 8 different arrangements with 16 pencil sources on irradiation productivity were studied by using a self-designed computer program. The results showed that the fashion of decentralized arrangement had a higher irradiation productivity than that of centralized in a static and uniform field

  9. Comparison of central corneal thickness with four noncontact devices: An agreement analysis of swept-source technology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ozyol, Erhan; Özyol, Pelin

    2017-06-01

    The purpose of this study was to compare the central corneal thickness (CCT) measurements of four noncontact devices in healthy eyes. In a sample of 45 healthy controls, CCT was measured using an optical biometer (IOLMaster 700) based on swept-source optical coherence tomography (SS-OCT), high-resolution rotating Scheimpflug camera system (Pentacam HR), spectral-domain OCT (SD-OCT) device with an anterior segment module (Spectralis), and noncontact pachymetry (NCP) device (Topcon TRK-2P). Agreement among the devices was analyzed using mean differences (i.e., bias) and Bland-Altman analysis with 95% limits of agreement (LoA). Mean CCT measurements were 537.5 ± 47.5 μm for SS-OCT optical biometer, 532.3 ± 43.8 μm for Scheimpflug system, 521.3 ± 44.7 μm for SD-OCT device, and 518.0 ± 43.1 μm for NCP (P < 0.001). The SD-OCT device and NCP showed the closest agreement, with a bias of 2.6 μm (95% LoA, -3.6-8.8 μm), whereas the SS-OCT optical biometer and NCP showed the least agreement, with a bias of 18.7 μm (95% LoA, -2.1-39.5 μm). Bias was 16.1 μm (95% LoA, -3.1-35.3 μm) for SS-OCT optical biometer and SD-OCT, 5.1 μm (95% LoA, -6.8-17.0 μm) for SS-OCT optical biometer and Scheimpflug system, 10.9 μm (95% LoA, -15.1-36.9 μm) for SD-OCT device and Scheimpflug system, and 13.6 μm (95% LoA, -5-32.2 μm) for Scheimpflug system and NCP. SS-OCT optical biometer overestimates CCT measurements compared to Scheimpflug system, SD-OCT device, and NCP. Given mean differences and range variations in CCT measurements between devices, SS-OCT optical biometer and Scheimpflug system are interchangeable as are SD-OCT and NCP.

  10. Organic Geochemistry of the Cenomanian-Turonian Bahloul Formation Petroleum Source Rock, Central and Northern Tunisia

    OpenAIRE

    Affouri , Hassene; Montacer , Mabrouk; Disnar , Jean-Robert

    2013-01-01

    International audience; Total organic carbon (TOC) determination, Rock-Eval pyrolysis, extractable organic matter content (EOM) fractionation, gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analyses, were carried out on 79 samples from eleven outcrop cross sections of the Bahloul Formation in central and northern Tunisia. The TOC content varied between 0.23 to 35.6%, the highest average values (18.73%, 8.46% and 4.02%) being at the east of the study area (at Ain Zakk...

  11. Comparison of large central and small decentralized power generation in India

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    None

    1997-05-01

    This reports evaluates two options for providing reliable power to rural areas in India. The benefits and costs are compared for biomass based distributed generation (DG) systems versus a 1200-MW central grid coal-fired power plant. The biomass based DG systems are examined both as alternatives to grid extension and as supplements to central grid power. The benefits are divided into three categories: those associated with providing reliable power from any source, those associated specifically with biomass based DG technology, and benefits of a central grid coal plant. The report compares the estimated delivered costs of electricity from the DG systems to those of the central plant. The analysis includes estimates for a central grid coal plant and four potential DG system technologies: Stirling engines, direct-fired combustion turbines, fuel cells, and biomass integrated gasification combined cycles. The report also discusses issues affecting India`s rural electricity demand, including economic development, power reliability, and environmental concerns. The results of the costs of electricity comparison between the biomass DG systems and the coal-fired central grid station demonstrated that the DG technologies may be able to produce very competitively priced electricity by the start of the next century. The use of DG technology may provide a practical means of addressing many rural electricity issues that India will face in the future. Biomass DG technologies in particular offer unique advantages for the environment and for economic development that will make them especially attractive. 58 refs., 31 figs.

  12. Comparison of large central and small decentralized power generation in India

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1997-05-01

    This reports evaluates two options for providing reliable power to rural areas in India. The benefits and costs are compared for biomass based distributed generation (DG) systems versus a 1200-MW central grid coal-fired power plant. The biomass based DG systems are examined both as alternatives to grid extension and as supplements to central grid power. The benefits are divided into three categories: those associated with providing reliable power from any source, those associated specifically with biomass based DG technology, and benefits of a central grid coal plant. The report compares the estimated delivered costs of electricity from the DG systems to those of the central plant. The analysis includes estimates for a central grid coal plant and four potential DG system technologies: Stirling engines, direct-fired combustion turbines, fuel cells, and biomass integrated gasification combined cycles. The report also discusses issues affecting India's rural electricity demand, including economic development, power reliability, and environmental concerns. The results of the costs of electricity comparison between the biomass DG systems and the coal-fired central grid station demonstrated that the DG technologies may be able to produce very competitively priced electricity by the start of the next century. The use of DG technology may provide a practical means of addressing many rural electricity issues that India will face in the future. Biomass DG technologies in particular offer unique advantages for the environment and for economic development that will make them especially attractive. 58 refs., 31 figs

  13. Temporal and spatial interactions of slope and catchment processes in the Central Spanish Pyrenees

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Beguería, S.; García-Ruiz, J.M.; Lana-Renault, N.; Valero-Garcés, B.; Lasanta, T.; Arnáez, J.; López-Moreno, J.I.; Regüés, D.; Martí-Bono, C.

    2004-01-01

    Historical and present day changes in land uses and plant cover explain the complex interactions assessed in the Central Spanish Pyrenees between geomorphic processes in hillslopes and channels. More intense erosion periods caused an enlargement of sediment sources areas and an increase of

  14. Amniotic fluid as a source of engraftable stem cells

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cesar V Borlongan

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available The ability of stem cells to differentiate into various lineages has made them powerful tools of regenerative medicine and applicable to multiple human diseases. Of particular interest, amniotic fluid-derived stem cells (AFSC have been characterized to express both adult and embryonic cell markers, indicating them as cells within an intermediate stage between embryonic and adult phenotype. AFSC can differentiate into cells of all three germ layers, including hepatic, myogenic, osteogenic, and neurogenic cell types. Furthermore, AFSC have minimal replicative senescence, retaining the ability to divide effectively for over 250 doublings. These facts indicate that amniotic fluid may exist as a promising donor source of stem cells for the treatment of multiple clinically relevant conditions. Of particular interest is the convenience of harvesting stem cells from the amniotic fluid stem for the treatment of newborns, as well as for banking or cryopreserving purposes to be used at a later date. Importantly, the promise of amniotic fluid as a source of stem cells merits ongoing research into their potential therapeutic applications. This paper is a review article. Referred literature in this paper has been listed in the references section. The datasets supporting the conclusions of this article are available online by searching various databases, including PubMed. Some original points in this article come from the laboratory practice in our research center and the authors' experiences.

  15. Radiation processing in some Central-East European countries: an area report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zagorski, Z.P.

    1990-01-01

    The area report presents the state of art and the hard-ware status of radiation processing in some Central-East European countries. Only sources exceeding 1.85 PBq (50 kCi) of the isotope and 0.5 kW beam power electron accelerators have been taken into account, operating in the first half of 1989. Trends of development are discussed. (author)

  16. Engineering economics of alternative energy sources

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Denno, K.

    1990-01-01

    This textbook presents a comprehensive picture of the economic aspects, feasibility and adaptability of alternative energy sources and their interconnections. The author intends for this treatment of energy sources to be total and complete. It therefore includes such topics as low temperature and high temperature fuel cells, rechargeable storage batteries (including lead acid, nickel-cadmium, lithium, and sodium-sulfur), Redox flows cells energy system in compatibility with fuel cells and storage batteries, MHD energy systems using non-fossil renewable fuels, solar energy system using direct thermal units and photovoltaic generators, wind energy conversion systems, tidal ocean wave energy converters, geothermal energy, and ocean thermal energy conversion systems. The book is structured so that each major energy source is given one chapter. Each chapter begins with a discussion of the basic structural components of the energy source, as well as operational and fuel characteristics. This is followed by an economic analysis, which includes incremental energy cost curves and economic coordination equations for each possible system of operation. Where appropriate, economic scheduling of generation is applied to several modes of system consumption (e.g., localized dispersed systems, interconnected load centers, and central systems)

  17. Identifying the source of fluvial terrace deposits using XRF scanning and Canonical Discriminant Analysis: A case study of the Chihshang terraces, eastern Taiwan

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chang, Queenie; Lee, Jian-Cheng; Hunag, Jyh-Jaan; Wei, Kuo-Yen; Chen, Yue-Gau; Byrne, Timothy B.

    2018-05-01

    The source of fluvial deposits in terraces provides important information about the catchment fluvial processes and landform evolution. In this study, we propose a novel approach that combines high-resolution Itrax-XRF scanning and Canonical Discriminant Analysis (CDA) to identify the source of fine-grained fluvial terrace deposits. We apply this approach to a group of terraces that are located on the hanging wall of the Chihshang Fault in eastern Taiwan with two possible sources, the Coastal Range on the east and the Central Range on the west. Our results of standard samples from the two potential sources show distinct ranges of canonical variables, which provided a better separation ability than individual chemical elements. We then tested the possibility of using this approach by applying it to several samples with known sediment sources and obtain positive results. Applying this same approach to the fine-grained sediments in Chihshang terraces indicates that they are mostly composed of Coastal Range material but also contain some inputs from the Central Range. In two lowest terraces T1 and T2, the fine-grained deposits show significant Central Range component. For terrace T4, the results show less Central Range input and a trend of decreasing Central Range influences up section. The Coastal Range material becomes dominant in the two highest terraces T7 and T10. Sediments in terrace T5 appear to have been potentially altered by post-deposition chemical alteration processes and are not included in the analysis. Our results show that the change in source material in the terraces deposits was relatively gradual rather than the sharp changes suggested by the composition of the gravels and conglomerates. We suggest that this change in sources is related to the change in dominant fluvial processes that controlled by the tectonic activity.

  18. Hide and Seek. Roads, Lookouts and Directional Visibility Cones in Central Anatolia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Turchetto Jacopo

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available In Cappadocia (central Turkey, routes that were only of a secondary importance during the Roman age acquired a new relevance starting from the end of the 7th century. In this framework, to what extent did the archaeological evidence match the picture recalled by the written sources? To address this question, the relationship between movement and visibility was considered and view shed analyses were conducted from targeted and strategic spots set along the routes considered. This allowed to better understand the role and the different functions of those axes crossing Cappadocia, and to evaluate the Byzantine/Arab military strategies in central Anatolia.

  19. ZK DrugResist 2.0: A TextMiner to extract semantic relations of drug resistance from PubMed.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khalid, Zoya; Sezerman, Osman Ugur

    2017-05-01

    Extracting useful knowledge from an unstructured textual data is a challenging task for biologists, since biomedical literature is growing exponentially on a daily basis. Building an automated method for such tasks is gaining much attention of researchers. ZK DrugResist is an online tool that automatically extracts mutations and expression changes associated with drug resistance from PubMed. In this study we have extended our tool to include semantic relations extracted from biomedical text covering drug resistance and established a server including both of these features. Our system was tested for three relations, Resistance (R), Intermediate (I) and Susceptible (S) by applying hybrid feature set. From the last few decades the focus has changed to hybrid approaches as it provides better results. In our case this approach combines rule-based methods with machine learning techniques. The results showed 97.67% accuracy with 96% precision, recall and F-measure. The results have outperformed the previously existing relation extraction systems thus can facilitate computational analysis of drug resistance against complex diseases and further can be implemented on other areas of biomedicine. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  20. The energy situation in five Central American countries

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Trocki, L.; Booth, S.R.; Umana Q, A.

    1987-06-01

    This study describes the energy resources and the changes that have taken place in energy supply and demand in five Central American countries between 1970 and 1984. Economic changes are also reviewed because they influence and are affected by changes in the energy sector. The work was performed under the auspices of the US Agency for International Development. The Central American countries of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Panama are highly dependent on fuel wood as a source of energy, particularly in the residential sector. They also rely upon imported oil products to supply a growing modern sector. Most countries have significant hydroelectric and geothermal resources, and most countries produce a large portion of their electricity from hydroelectric projects. Demand for electricity has grown rapidly. Relative shares of primary versus secondary energy in the five countries vary significantly and strongly correlate with average per capita income. Consumption of secondary energy has declined during the recent economic recession suffered by the region.