Next Generation Cloud-based Science Data Systems and Their Implications on Data and Software Stewardship, Preservation, and Provenance

Science.gov (United States)

Hua, H.; Manipon, G.; Starch, M.

2017-12-01

NASA's upcoming missions are expected to be generating data volumes at least an order of magnitude larger than current missions. A significant increase in data processing, data rates, data volumes, and long-term data archive capabilities are needed. Consequently, new challenges are emerging that impact traditional data and software management approaches. At large-scales, next generation science data systems are exploring the move onto cloud computing paradigms to support these increased needs. New implications such as costs, data movement, collocation of data systems & archives, and moving processing closer to the data, may result in changes to the stewardship, preservation, and provenance of science data and software. With more science data systems being on-boarding onto cloud computing facilities, we can expect more Earth science data records to be both generated and kept in the cloud. But at large scales, the cost of processing and storing global data may impact architectural and system designs. Data systems will trade the cost of keeping data in the cloud with the data life-cycle approaches of moving "colder" data back to traditional on-premise facilities. How will this impact data citation and processing software stewardship? What are the impacts of cloud-based on-demand processing and its affect on reproducibility and provenance. Similarly, with more science processing software being moved onto cloud, virtual machines, and container based approaches, more opportunities arise for improved stewardship and preservation. But will the science community trust data reprocessed years or decades later? We will also explore emerging questions of the stewardship of the science data system software that is generating the science data records both during and after the life of mission.

United States Department of Energy Nuclear Materials Stewardship

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Newton, J. W.

2002-01-01

The Department of Energy launched the Nuclear Materials Stewardship Initiative in January 2000 to accelerate the work of achieving integration and cutting long-term costs associated with the management of the Department's nuclear materials, with the principal focus on excess materials. Management of nuclear materials is a fundamental and enduring responsibility that is essential to meeting the Department's national security, nonproliferation, energy, science, and environmental missions into the distant future. The effective management of nuclear materials is important for a set of reasons: (1) some materials are vital to our national defense; (2) the materials pose physical and security risks; (3) managing them is costly; and (4) costs are likely to extend well into the future. The Department currently manages nuclear materials under eight programs, with offices in 36 different locations. Through the Nuclear Materials Stewardship Initiative, progress was during calendar year 20 00 in achieving better coordination and integration of nuclear materials management responsibilities and in evaluating opportunities to further coordinate and integrate cross-program responsibilities for the treatment, storage, and disposition of excess nuclear materials. During CY 2001 the Departmental approach to nuclear materials stewardship changed consistent with the business processes followed by the new administration. This paper reports on the progress of the Nuclear Materials Stewardship Initiative in evaluating and implementing these opportunities, and the remaining challenges in integrating the long-term management of nuclear materials

The Stewardship Science Academic Alliance: A Model of Education for Fundamental and Applied Low-energy Nuclear Science

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cizewski, J.A., E-mail: cizewski@rutgers.edu

2014-06-15

The Stewardship Science Academic Alliances (SSAA) were inaugurated in 2002 by the National Nuclear Security Administration of the U. S. Department of Energy. The purpose is to enhance connections between NNSA laboratories and the activities of university scientists and their students in research areas important to NNSA, including low-energy nuclear science. This paper highlights some of the ways that the SSAA fosters education and training of graduate students and postdoctoral scholars in low-energy nuclear science, preparing them for careers in fundamental and applied research and development.

Evaluation of early implementations of antibiotic stewardship program initiatives in nine Dutch hospitals

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Limburg, Maarten; Sinha, Bhanu; Lo-Ten-Foe, Jerome R; van Gemert-Pijnen, Julia Ewc

2014-01-01

BACKGROUND: Antibiotic resistance is a global threat to patient safety and care. In response, hospitals start antibiotic stewardship programs to optimise antibiotic use. Expert-based guidelines recommend strategies to implement such programs, but local implementations may differ per hospital.

Evaluation of early implementations of antibiotic stewardship program initiatives in nine Dutch hospitals

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Limburg, A.H.M.; Sinha, Bhanu; Lo-Ten-Foe, Jerome R.; van Gemert-Pijnen, Julia E.W.C.

2014-01-01

Background Antibiotic resistance is a global threat to patient safety and care. In response, hospitals start antibiotic stewardship programs to optimise antibiotic use. Expert-based guidelines recommend strategies to implement such programs, but local implementations may differ per hospital. Earlier

Embedding Data Stewardship in Geoscience Australia

Science.gov (United States)

Bastrakova, I.; Fyfe, S.

2013-12-01

; - Developing guiding Principles on how the Agency undertakes Science, Data Management and Cataloguing; - Developing a Data Classification Schema that aligns scientific requirements and business workflows with data architecture; - Creating the Scientific Data Stewardship Steering Committee, comprising champions from across the Agency to guide development and support implementation of Data Stewardship in GA; - Forming Scientific Data Communities of Practice of leading scientific experts to identify tandards and practices across their domain, and integrate data stewardship practices into scientific workflows; - Establishing the Data Governance and Services Section to provide ongoing capacity for the development, communication, coordination and governance of data stewardship policies, strategies, standards and practices. GA is now moving towards Data Stewardship as an operational capability and culture within the Agency. The challenges we face into the future include: - Maintaining continuous and enthusiastic engagement from the Agency executive; - Implementing long term cultural change at all levels within the organisation; - Formal recognition that data stewardship is a continuous operational BAU activity; - Incorporation of data custodianship and management activities in work programs and budgets; and - Cultivation and support of the data stewardship champions.

Core elements of hospital antibiotic stewardship programs from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Science.gov (United States)

Pollack, Loria A; Srinivasan, Arjun

2014-10-15

The proven benefits of antibiotic stewardship programs (ASPs) for optimizing antibiotic use and minimizing adverse events, such as Clostridium difficile and antibiotic resistance, have prompted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to recommend that all hospitals have an ASP. This article summarizes Core Elements of Hospital Antibiotic Stewardship Programs, a recently released CDC document focused on defining the infrastructure and practices of coordinated multidisciplinary programs to improve antibiotic use and patient care in US hospitals. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Infectious Diseases Society of America 2014. This work is written by (a) US Government employee(s) and is in the public domain in the US.

Characteristics of Antimicrobial Stewardship Programs at Veterans Affairs Hospitals: Results of a Nationwide Survey.

Science.gov (United States)

Chou, Ann F; Graber, Christopher J; Jones, Makoto; Zhang, Yue; Goetz, Matthew Bidwell; Madaras-Kelly, Karl; Samore, Matthew; Kelly, Allison; Glassman, Peter A

2016-06-01

BACKGROUND Antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs) are variably implemented. OBJECTIVE To characterize variations of antimicrobial stewardship structure and practices across all inpatient Veterans Affairs facilities in 2012 and correlate key characteristics with antimicrobial usage. DESIGN A web-based survey regarding stewardship activities was administered to each facility's designated contact. Bivariate associations between facility characteristics and inpatient antimicrobial use during 2012 were determined. SETTING Total of 130 Veterans Affairs facilities with inpatient services. RESULTS Of 130 responding facilities, 29 (22%) had a formal policy establishing an ASP, and 12 (9%) had an approved ASP business plan. Antimicrobial stewardship teams were present in 49 facilities (38%); 34 teams included a clinical pharmacist with formal infectious diseases (ID) training. Stewardship activities varied across facilities, including development of yearly antibiograms (122 [94%]), formulary restrictions (120 [92%]), stop orders for antimicrobial duration (98 [75%]), and written clinical pathways for specific conditions (96 [74%]). Decreased antimicrobial usage was associated with having at least 1 full-time ID physician (P=.03), an ID fellowship program (P=.003), and a clinical pharmacist with formal ID training (P=.006) as well as frequency of systematic patient-level reviews of antimicrobial use (P=.01) and having a policy to address antimicrobial use in the context of Clostridium difficile infection (P=.01). Stop orders for antimicrobial duration were associated with increased use (P=.03). CONCLUSIONS ASP-related activities varied considerably. Decreased antibiotic use appeared related to ID presence and certain select practices. Further statistical assessments may help optimize antimicrobial practices. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2016;37:647-654.

Impact of an Antimicrobial Stewardship Program on Antibiotic Use at a Nonfreestanding Children's Hospital.

Science.gov (United States)

Turner, R Brigg; Valcarlos, Elena; Loeffler, Ann M; Gilbert, Michael; Chan, Dominic

2017-09-01

Pediatric stewardship programs have been successful at reducing unnecessary antibiotic use. Data from nonfreestanding children's hospitals are currently limited. This study is an analysis of antibiotic use after implementation of an antimicrobial stewardship program at a community nonfreestanding children's hospital. In April 2013, an antimicrobial stewardship program that consisted of physician-group engagement and pharmacist prospective auditing and feedback was initiated. We compared antibiotic use in the preintervention period (April 2012 to March 2013) with that in the postintervention period (April 2013 to March 2015) in all units except the neonatal intensive care unit and the emergency department. In addition, drug-acquisition costs, antibiotic-specific use, death, length of stay, and case-mix index were examined. Antibiotic use decreased by 16.8% (95% confidence interval, 18.0% to -9.2%; P antibiotic use without an overt negative impact on overall clinical outcomes. The results of this study suggest that nonfreestanding children's hospitals can achieve substantial reductions in antibiotic use despite limited resources. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Gasoline toxicology: overview of regulatory and product stewardship programs.

Science.gov (United States)

Swick, Derek; Jaques, Andrew; Walker, J C; Estreicher, Herb

2014-11-01

Significant efforts have been made to characterize the toxicological properties of gasoline. There have been both mandatory and voluntary toxicology testing programs to generate hazard characterization data for gasoline, the refinery process streams used to blend gasoline, and individual chemical constituents found in gasoline. The Clean Air Act (CAA) (Clean Air Act, 2012: § 7401, et seq.) is the primary tool for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to regulate gasoline and this supplement presents the results of the Section 211(b) Alternative Tier 2 studies required for CAA Fuel and Fuel Additive registration. Gasoline blending streams have also been evaluated by EPA under the voluntary High Production Volume (HPV) Challenge Program through which the petroleum industry provide data on over 80 refinery streams used in gasoline. Product stewardship efforts by companies and associations such as the American Petroleum Institute (API), Conservation of Clean Air and Water Europe (CONCAWE), and the Petroleum Product Stewardship Council (PPSC) have contributed a significant amount of hazard characterization data on gasoline and related substances. The hazard of gasoline and anticipated exposure to gasoline vapor has been well characterized for risk assessment purposes. Copyright © 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Implementation of an antimicrobial stewardship program on the medical-surgical service of a 100-bed community hospital

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Storey Donald F

2012-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Antimicrobial stewardship has been promoted as a key strategy for coping with the problems of antimicrobial resistance and Clostridium difficile. Despite the current call for stewardship in community hospitals, including smaller community hospitals, practical examples of stewardship programs are scarce in the reported literature. The purpose of the current report is to describe the implementation of an antimicrobial stewardship program on the medical-surgical service of a 100-bed community hospital employing a core strategy of post-prescriptive audit with intervention and feedback. Methods For one hour twice weekly, an infectious diseases physician and a clinical pharmacist audited medical records of inpatients receiving systemic antimicrobial therapy and made non-binding, written recommendations that were subsequently scored for implementation. Defined daily doses (DDDs; World Health Organization Center for Drug Statistics Methodology and acquisition costs per admission and per patient-day were calculated monthly for all administered antimicrobial agents. Results The antimicrobial stewardship team (AST made one or more recommendations for 313 of 367 audits during a 16-month intervention period (September 2009 – December 2010. Physicians implemented recommendation(s from each of 234 (75% audits, including from 85 of 115 for which discontinuation of all antimicrobial therapy was recommended. In comparison to an 8-month baseline period (January 2009 – August 2009, there was a 22% decrease in defined daily doses per 100 admissions (P = .006 and a 16% reduction per 1000 patient-days (P = .013. There was a 32% reduction in antimicrobial acquisition cost per admission (P = .013 and a 25% acquisition cost reduction per patient-day (P = .022. Conclusions An effective antimicrobial stewardship program was implemented with limited resources on the medical-surgical service of a 100-bed community hospital.

Stewardship challenges abortion: A proposed means to mitigate abortion's social divisiveness.

Science.gov (United States)

Tardiff, Robert G

2015-08-01

Since 1973 the legislated constitutional right to abortion has produced a political dichotomy (anti-abortion versus pro-abortion) within the United States, even while witnessing a gradual decline in the rate of abortions. A third paradigm, moral stewardship, is advanced as an effective means to ameliorate this social divisiveness. Incorporating the concept of stewardship into deliberations of pregnancy termination would require recognition, through fact-based education programs, of the life circumstances that prompt the consideration to terminate a pregnancy. Based on collective responsibility, policies, and programs are needed to foster social justice for parents and for the offspring brought to term, without creating excessive burdens on women faced with an unwanted pregnancy. Moral stewardship is perceived as humanitarian to family and community and advantageous to society overall. It also offers a serious opportunity to reshape our society from divisiveness to inclusiveness, and to guide science policy judgment that enhances and strengthens social justice. Lay summary: Differing opinions over the ethics of human abortion have been legion since Roe v. Wade (1973). The disputes between pro- and anti-abortion factions have segregated society with few improvements in social justice. This study offers an alternative approach, one capable of social assimilation and justice for unwanted offspring and pregnant mothers bearing them. It promotes moral stewardship toward the unborn whose humanity and personhood are recognized genetically and supported philosophically by long-standing ethical principles. Stewardship incorporates all people at all levels of society based on collective responsibility, supported by government policies, yet not restricting a mother's choices for the future of her unborn offspring.

Antimicrobial stewardship in small animal veterinary practice

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Guardabassi, Luca; Prescott, John F

2015-01-01

Despite the increasing recognition of the critical role for antimicrobial stewardship in preventing the spread of multidrug-resistant bacteria, examples of effective antimicrobial stewardship programs are rare in small animal veterinary practice. This article highlights the basic requirements...

Best Practices for Curriculum, Teaching, and Evaluation Components of Aquatic Stewardship Education.

Science.gov (United States)

Siemer, William F.

This paper reviews the literature to outline principles and best practices for aquatic stewardship education. Stewardship education develops an internalized stewardship ethic and the skills needed for decision making and environmentally responsible actions. Successful stewardship education programs are designed to influence beliefs, values,…

Stockpile Stewardship at Los Alamos(U)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Webster, Robert B. [Los Alamos National Laboratory

2012-06-29

Stockpile stewardship is the retention of nuclear weapons in the stockpile beyond their original design life. These older weapons have potential changes inconsistent with the original design intent and military specifications. The Stockpile Stewardship Program requires us to develop high-fidelity, physics-based capabilities to predict, assess, certify and design nuclear weapons without conducting a nuclear test. Each year, the Lab Directors are required to provide an assessment of the safety, security, and reliability our stockpile to the President of the United States. This includes assessing whether a need to return to testing exists. This is a talk to provide an overview of Stockpile Stewardship's scientific requirements and how stewardship has changed in the absence of nuclear testing. The talk is adapted from an HQ talk to the War college, and historical unclassified talks on weapon's physics.

A special issue of the Journal of Forestry - Wilderness science and its role in wilderness stewardship

Science.gov (United States)

Susan F. Fox

2016-01-01

This special issue of the Journal of Forestry provides an overview of America’s National Wilderness Preservation System and highlights the important role that science serves in informing wilderness stewardship. The lead authors of the articles in this volume selected the Journal because it is highly respected and widely circulated among foresters and federal...

Antimicrobial stewardship: Strategies for a global response

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jenny Grunwald

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The increasing antimicrobial resistance worldwide, combined with dwindling antimicrobial armamentarium, has resulted in a critical threat to the public health and safety of patients. To combat this hazard, antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs have emerged. Antimicrobial stewardship programs prevent or slow the emergence of antimicrobial resistance by coordinated interventions designed to optimize antimicrobial use to achieve the best clinical outcomes and limiting selective pressures that drive the emergence of resistance. This also reduces excessive costs attributable to suboptimal antimicrobial use. Even though an ideal effective ASP should incorporate more than one element simultaneously, it also requires a multidisciplinary team, which should include an infectious diseases physician, a clinical pharmacist with infectious diseases training, infection control professionals, hospital epidemiologist, a clinical microbiologist and an information specialist. However, for antimicrobial stewardship (AMS programs to be successful, they must address the specific needs of individual institutions, must be built on available resources, the limitations and advantages of each institution, and the available staffing and technological infrastructure.

Technology to support integrated Antimicrobial Stewardship Programs : a user centered and stakeholder driven development approach

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Beerlage-de Jong, Nienke; van Gemert-Pijnen, Julia E.W.C.; Wentzel, M.J.; Hendrix, Ron; Tjin-Kam-Jet-Siemons, Liseth

2017-01-01

The rise of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a severe global health problem. Tackling this problem requires the prudent prescribing of antimicrobials. This is promoted through Antimicrobial Stewardship Programs (ASPs). In this position paper we describe i) how a socio-technical multidisciplinary

Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement for stockpile stewardship and management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-09-01

The Department of Energy (DOE) has been directed by the President and Congress to maintain the safety and reliability of the reduced nuclear weapons stockpile in the absence of underground nuclear testing. In order to fulfill that responsibility, DOE has developed a Stockpile Stewardship and Management Program to provide a single highly integrated technical program for maintaining the continued safety and reliability of the nuclear stockpile. The Stockpile Stewardship and Management Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) describes and analyzes alternative ways to implement the proposed actions for the Stockpile Stewardship and Management Program. This document contains Volume II which consists of Appendices A through H

Antimicrobial stewardship in long term care facilities: what is effective?

Science.gov (United States)

Nicolle, Lindsay E

2014-02-12

Intense antimicrobial use in long term care facilities promotes the emergence and persistence of antimicrobial resistant organisms and leads to adverse effects such as C. difficile colitis. Guidelines recommend development of antimicrobial stewardship programs for these facilities to promote optimal antimicrobial use. However, the effectiveness of these programs or the contribution of any specific program component is not known. For this review, publications describing evaluation of antimicrobial stewardship programs for long term care facilities were identified through a systematic literature search. Interventions included education, guidelines development, feedback to practitioners, and infectious disease consultation. The studies reviewed varied in types of facilities, interventions used, implementation, and evaluation. Comprehensive programs addressing all infections were reported to have improved antimicrobial use for at least some outcomes. Targeted programs for treatment of pneumonia were minimally effective, and only for indicators of uncertain relevance for stewardship. Programs focusing on specific aspects of treatment of urinary infection - limiting treatment of asymptomatic bacteriuria or prophylaxis of urinary infection - were reported to be effective. There were no reports of cost-effectiveness, and the sustainability of most of the programs is unclear. There is a need for further evaluation to characterize effective antimicrobial stewardship for long term care facilities.

Environmental Stewardship: A Conceptual Review and Analytical Framework

Science.gov (United States)

Bennett, Nathan J.; Whitty, Tara S.; Finkbeiner, Elena; Pittman, Jeremy; Bassett, Hannah; Gelcich, Stefan; Allison, Edward H.

2018-04-01

There has been increasing attention to and investment in local environmental stewardship in conservation and environmental management policies and programs globally. Yet environmental stewardship has not received adequate conceptual attention. Establishing a clear definition and comprehensive analytical framework could strengthen our ability to understand the factors that lead to the success or failure of environmental stewardship in different contexts and how to most effectively support and enable local efforts. Here we propose such a definition and framework. First, we define local environmental stewardship as the actions taken by individuals, groups or networks of actors, with various motivations and levels of capacity, to protect, care for or responsibly use the environment in pursuit of environmental and/or social outcomes in diverse social-ecological contexts. Next, drawing from a review of the environmental stewardship, management and governance literatures, we unpack the elements of this definition to develop an analytical framework that can facilitate research on local environmental stewardship. Finally, we discuss potential interventions and leverage points for promoting or supporting local stewardship and future applications of the framework to guide descriptive, evaluative, prescriptive or systematic analysis of environmental stewardship. Further application of this framework in diverse environmental and social contexts is recommended to refine the elements and develop insights that will guide and improve the outcomes of environmental stewardship initiatives and investments. Ultimately, our aim is to raise the profile of environmental stewardship as a valuable and holistic concept for guiding productive and sustained relationships with the environment.

Environmental Stewardship: A Conceptual Review and Analytical Framework.

Science.gov (United States)

Bennett, Nathan J; Whitty, Tara S; Finkbeiner, Elena; Pittman, Jeremy; Bassett, Hannah; Gelcich, Stefan; Allison, Edward H

2018-04-01

There has been increasing attention to and investment in local environmental stewardship in conservation and environmental management policies and programs globally. Yet environmental stewardship has not received adequate conceptual attention. Establishing a clear definition and comprehensive analytical framework could strengthen our ability to understand the factors that lead to the success or failure of environmental stewardship in different contexts and how to most effectively support and enable local efforts. Here we propose such a definition and framework. First, we define local environmental stewardship as the actions taken by individuals, groups or networks of actors, with various motivations and levels of capacity, to protect, care for or responsibly use the environment in pursuit of environmental and/or social outcomes in diverse social-ecological contexts. Next, drawing from a review of the environmental stewardship, management and governance literatures, we unpack the elements of this definition to develop an analytical framework that can facilitate research on local environmental stewardship. Finally, we discuss potential interventions and leverage points for promoting or supporting local stewardship and future applications of the framework to guide descriptive, evaluative, prescriptive or systematic analysis of environmental stewardship. Further application of this framework in diverse environmental and social contexts is recommended to refine the elements and develop insights that will guide and improve the outcomes of environmental stewardship initiatives and investments. Ultimately, our aim is to raise the profile of environmental stewardship as a valuable and holistic concept for guiding productive and sustained relationships with the environment.

Estimating landholders' probability of participating in a stewardship program, and the implications for spatial conservation priorities.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vanessa M Adams

Full Text Available The need to integrate social and economic factors into conservation planning has become a focus of academic discussions and has important practical implications for the implementation of conservation areas, both private and public. We conducted a survey in the Daly Catchment, Northern Territory, to inform the design and implementation of a stewardship payment program. We used a choice model to estimate the likely level of participation in two legal arrangements--conservation covenants and management agreements--based on payment level and proportion of properties required to be managed. We then spatially predicted landholders' probability of participating at the resolution of individual properties and incorporated these predictions into conservation planning software to examine the potential for the stewardship program to meet conservation objectives. We found that the properties that were least costly, per unit area, to manage were also the least likely to participate. This highlights a tension between planning for a cost-effective program and planning for a program that targets properties with the highest probability of participation.

Sharing Responsibility for Data Stewardship Between Scientists and Curators

Science.gov (United States)

Hedstrom, M. L.

2012-12-01

Data stewardship is becoming increasingly important to support accurate conclusions from new forms of data, integration of and computation across heterogeneous data types, interactions between models and data, replication of results, data governance and long-term archiving. In addition to increasing recognition of the importance of data management, data science, and data curation by US and international scientific agencies, the National Academies of Science Board on Research Data and Information is sponsoring a study on Data Curation Education and Workforce Issues. Effective data stewardship requires a distributed effort among scientists who produce data, IT staff and/or vendors who provide data storage and computational facilities and services, and curators who enhance data quality, manage data governance, provide access to third parties, and assume responsibility for long-term archiving of data. The expertise necessary for scientific data management includes a mix of knowledge of the scientific domain; an understanding of domain data requirements, standards, ontologies and analytical methods; facility with leading edge information technology; and knowledge of data governance, standards, and best practices for long-term preservation and access that rarely are found in a single individual. Rather than developing data science and data curation as new and distinct occupations, this paper examines the set of tasks required for data stewardship. The paper proposes an alternative model that embeds data stewardship in scientific workflows and coordinates hand-offs between instruments, repositories, analytical processing, publishers, distributors, and archives. This model forms the basis for defining knowledge and skill requirements for specific actors in the processes required for data stewardship and the corresponding educational and training needs.

Intergenerational equity and long-term stewardship plans

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hocking, E. K.

2002-01-01

For an untold number of contaminated sites throughout the world, stewardship will be inevitable. For many such sites, stewardship will be a reasonable approach because of the uncertainties associated with present and future site conditions and site contaminants, the limited performance of available technologies, the nonavailability of technologies, and the risk and cost associated with complete cleanup. Regardless of whether stewardship is a realistic approach to site situations or simply a convenient default, it could be required at most contaminated sites for multiple generations. Because the stewardship plan is required to protect the release of hazardous contaminants to the environment, some use restrictions will be put in place to provide that protection. These use restrictions will limit access to resources for as long as the protection is required. The intergenerational quality of long-term stewardship plans and their inherent limitations on resource use require that they be designed to achieve equity among the affected generations. Intergenerational equity, defined here as the fairness of access to resources across generations, could be achieved through a well-developed stewardship plan that provides future generations with the information they need to make wise decisions about resource use. Developing and implementing such a plan would take into account the failure mechanisms of the plan's components, feature short stewardship time blocks that would allow for periodic reassessments of the site and of the stewardship program's performance, and provide present and future generations with necessary site information

Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement for stockpile stewardship and management: Volume 1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-09-01

The Department of Energy (DOE) has been directed by the President and Congress to maintain the safety and reliability of the reduced nuclear weapons stockpile in the absence of underground nuclear testing. In order to fulfill that responsibility, DOE has developed Stockpile Stewardship and Maintenance Program to provide a single highly integrated technical program for maintaining the continued safety and reliability of the nuclear stockpile. The Stockpile Stewardship and Management Program Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) describes and analyzes alternative ways to implement the proposed actions for the Stockpile Stewardship and Management Program. This document contains Volume I of the PEIS

Clinical Outcomes of a Pharmacy-Led Blood Factor Stewardship Program.

Science.gov (United States)

Trueg, Anne O; Lowe, Christopher; Kiel, Patrick J

To report the results of a pharmacist-directed blood factor stewardship program targeting off-label utilization designed to limit use to established organizational guidelines in high-risk populations. Prospective evaluation of recombinant factor VIIa and prothrombin complex concentrate orders beginning June 2013 through May 2014 and a matched retrospective cohort from June 2012 to May 2013. Matched cohorts were evaluated for 28-day mortality, change in international normalized ratio (INR), adverse events, concurrent blood product use, and cost savings. Forty-two orders for blood factor were ordered between June 2013 and May 2014, 70 orders in the year before (N = 112). Twenty eight-day mortality was not different between the cohorts: 53.9% versus 50% (P = 0.77). Blood factor use with underlying liver failure and active bleeding was strongly associated with 28-day mortality: odds ratio (95% confidence interval), 2.9 (1.5-7.14) and 2.91 (0.01-2.91), respectively. Blood products dispensed increased over the year with plasma products the most significant (1 vs. 4 P = 0.004). All other clinical outcomes were nonsignificant. An annual cost savings of $375,539 was achieved, primarily through a significant reduction in recombinant factor VIIa and avoidance in high-risk patients. Use of off-label blood factors can be controlled through a pharmacist-led stewardship program. Twenty eight-day mortality was not different between the 2 cohorts; however, identification of risk factors for death associated with blood factor use allows for restriction in high-risk populations, creates a discussion of futile care, and yields cost savings.

OPTIMIZING ANTIMICROBIAL PHARMACODYNAMICS: A GUIDE FOR YOUR STEWARDSHIP PROGRAM

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joseph L. Kuti, PharmD

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Pharmacodynamic concepts should be applied to optimize antibiotic dosing regimens, particularly in the face of some multidrug resistant bacterial infections. Although the pharmacodynamics of most antibiotic classes used in the hospital setting are well described, guidance on how to select regimens and implement them into an antimicrobial stewardship program in one's institution are more limited. The role of the antibiotic MIC is paramount in understanding which regimens might benefit from implementation as a protocol or use in individual patients. This review article outlines the pharmacodynamics of aminoglycosides, beta-lactams, fluoroquinolones, tigecycline, vancomycin, and polymyxins with the goal of providing a basis for strategy to select an optimized antibiotic regimen in your hospital setting.

Antimicrobial stewardship: attempting to preserve a strategic resource

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Trevor Van Schooneveld, Md

2011-07-01

Full Text Available Antimicrobials hold a unique place in our drug armamentarium. Unfortunately the increase in resistance among both gram-positive and gram-negative pathogens coupled with a lack of new antimicrobial agents is threatening our ability to treat infections. Antimicrobial use is the driving force behind this rise in resistance and much of this use is suboptimal. Antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASP have been advocated as a strategy to improve antimicrobial use. The goals of ASP are to improve patient outcomes while minimizing toxicity and selection for resistant strains by assisting in the selection of the correct agent, right dose, and best duration. Two major strategies for ASP exist: restriction/pre-authorization that controls use at the time of ordering and audit and feedback that reviews ordered antimicrobials and makes suggestions for improvement. Both strategies have some limitations, but have been effective at achieving stewardship goals. Other supplemental strategies such as education, clinical prediction rules, biomarkers, clinical decision support software, and institutional guidelines have been effective at improving antimicrobial use. The most effective antimicrobial stewardship programs have employed multiple strategies to impact antimicrobial use. Using these strategies stewardship programs have been able to decrease antimicrobial use, the spread of resistant pathogens, the incidence of C. difficile infection, pharmacy costs, and improved patient outcomes.

Final programmatic environmental impact statement for stockpile stewardship and management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-09-01

In response to the end of the Cold War and changes in the world's political regimes, the United States is not producing new-design nuclear weapons. Instead, the emphasis of the U.S. nuclear weapons program is on reducing the size of the Nation's nuclear stockpile by dismantling existing nuclear weapons. The Department of Energy (DOE) has been directed by the President and Congress to maintain the safety and reliability of the reduced nuclear weapons stockpile in the absence of underground nuclear testing. In order to fulfill that responsibility, DOE has developed a Stockpile Stewardship and Management Program to provide a single highly integrated technical program for maintaining the continued safety and reliability of the nuclear stockpile. The Stockpile Stewardship and Management PEIS describes and analyzes alternative ways to implement the proposed actions for the Stockpile Stewardship and Management Program

Emergence of a global science-business initiative for ocean stewardship.

Science.gov (United States)

Österblom, Henrik; Jouffray, Jean-Baptiste; Folke, Carl; Rockström, Johan

2017-08-22

The ocean represents a fundamental source of micronutrients and protein for a growing world population. Seafood is a highly traded and sought after commodity on international markets, and is critically dependent on healthy marine ecosystems. A global trend of wild stocks being overfished and in decline, as well as multiple sustainability challenges associated with a rapid growth of aquaculture, represent key concerns in relation to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Existing efforts aimed to improve the sustainability of seafood production have generated important progress, primarily at the local and national levels, but have yet to effectively address the global challenges associated with the ocean. This study highlights the importance of transnational corporations in enabling transformative change, and thereby contributes to advancing the limited understanding of large-scale private actors within the sustainability science literature. We describe how we engaged with large seafood producers to coproduce a global science-business initiative for ocean stewardship. We suggest that this initiative is improving the prospects for transformative change by providing novel links between science and business, between wild-capture fisheries and aquaculture, and across geographical space. We argue that scientists can play an important role in facilitating change by connecting knowledge to action among global actors, while recognizing risks associated with such engagement. The methods developed through this case study contribute to identifying key competences in sustainability science and hold promises for other sectors as well.

Effective antibiotic stewardship in spinal cord injury: Challenges and a way forward.

Science.gov (United States)

Skelton, Felicia; Suda, Katie; Evans, Charlesnika; Trautner, Barbara

2018-01-11

Context Antibiotic stewardship, defined as a multidisciplinary program to reduce the misuse of antibiotics, and in turn, antibiotic resistance, is a high priority. Persons with spinal cord injury/disorder (SCI/D) are vulnerable to receiving multiple courses of antibiotics over their lifetime given frequent healthcare exposure, and have high rates of bacterial infection with multi-drug resistant organisms. Additional challenges to evaluating appropriate use of antibiotics in this population include bacterial colonization in the urine and the differences in the presenting signs and symptoms of infection. Therefore, Veterans Health Administration (VHA) facilities with SCI/D centers need effective antibiotic stewardship programs. Results We analyzed the results of a 2012 VHA-wide survey evaluating available antibiotic stewardship resources, and compared the resources present at facilities with SCI/D (n=23) versus non-SCI/D facilities (n=107). VHA facilities with SCI/D centers are more likely to have components of an antibiotic stewardship program that have led to reduced antibiotic use in previous studies. They are also more likely to have personnel with infectious diseases training. Conclusion VHA facilities with SCI/D centers have the resources needed for antibiotic stewardship. The next step will be to determine how to implement effective antibiotic stewardship tailored for this patient care setting.

[Measurement of antimicrobial consumption using DDD per 100 bed-days versus DDD per 100 discharges after the implementation of an antimicrobial stewardship program].

Science.gov (United States)

Collado, Roberto; Losa, Juan Emilio; Álvaro, Elena Alba; Toro, Piedad; Moreno, Leonor; Pérez, Montserrat

2015-12-01

Monitoring antimicrobial consumption in hospitals is a necessary measure. The indicators commonly employed do not clearly reflect the antibiotic selection pressure. The objective of this study is to evaluate two different methods that analyze antimicrobial consumption based on DDD, per stay and per discharge, before and after the implementation an antimicrobial stewardship program. Comparative pre-post study of antimicrobial consumption with the implementation of an antimicrobial stewardship program using DDD per 100 bed-days and DDD per 100 discharges as indicators. Hospital bed days remained stable and discharges increased slightly along the period of study Antibiotic consumption in DDD per 100 bed-days decreased by 2.5% versus 3.8% when expressed as DDD per 100 discharges. Antifungal consumption decreased by more than 50%. When average hospital stay decreases, reductions in the consumption of antimicrobials with an antimicrobial stewardship program system occur at the expense of reducing the number of patients receiving treatment, while increases occur due to longer durations of treatment.

Spatially explicit data: stewardship and ethical challenges in science.

Science.gov (United States)

Hartter, Joel; Ryan, Sadie J; Mackenzie, Catrina A; Parker, John N; Strasser, Carly A

2013-09-01

Scholarly communication is at an unprecedented turning point created in part by the increasing saliency of data stewardship and data sharing. Formal data management plans represent a new emphasis in research, enabling access to data at higher volumes and more quickly, and the potential for replication and augmentation of existing research. Data sharing has recently transformed the practice, scope, content, and applicability of research in several disciplines, in particular in relation to spatially specific data. This lends exciting potentiality, but the most effective ways in which to implement such changes, particularly for disciplines involving human subjects and other sensitive information, demand consideration. Data management plans, stewardship, and sharing, impart distinctive technical, sociological, and ethical challenges that remain to be adequately identified and remedied. Here, we consider these and propose potential solutions for their amelioration.

What is urban environmental stewardship? Constructing a practitioner-derived framework

Science.gov (United States)

M. Romolini; W. Brinkley; K.L. Wolf

2012-01-01

Agencies and organizations deploy various strategies in response to environmental challenges, including the formulation of policy, programs, and regulations. Citizen-based environmental stewardship is increasingly seen as an innovative and important approach to improving and conserving landscape health. A new research focus on the stewardship of urban natural resources...

Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement for stockpile stewardship and management: Volume 3

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-09-01

The Department of Energy (DOE) has been directed by the President and Congress to maintain the safety and reliability of the reduced nuclear weapons stockpile in the absence of underground nuclear testing. In order to fulfill that responsibility, DOE has developed a Stockpile Stewardship and Management Program to provide a single highly integrated technical program for maintaining the continued safety and reliability of the nuclear stockpile. The Stockpile Stewardship and Management Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) describes and analyzes alternative ways to implement the proposed actions for the Stockpile Stewardship and Management Program. This document consists of Volume III, Appendix I entitled ''National Ignition Facility Project-Specific Analysis,'' which investigates the environmental impacts resulting from constructing and operating the proposed National Ignition Facility

Strategic Program Planning Lessons Learned In Developing The Long-Term Stewardship Science and Technology Roadmap

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dixon, B.W.; Hanson, D.J.; Matthern, G.E.

2003-04-24

Technology roadmapping is a strategic planning method used by companies to identify and plan the development of technologies necessary for new products. The U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Environmental Management has used this same method to refine requirements and identify knowledge and tools needed for completion of defined missions. This paper describes the process of applying roadmapping to clarify mission requirements and identify enhancing technologies for the Long-Term Stewardship (LTS) of polluted sites after site cleanup has been completed. The nature of some contamination problems is such that full cleanup is not achievable with current technologies and some residual hazards remain. LTS maintains engineered contaminant barriers and land use restriction controls, and monitors residual contaminants until they no longer pose a risk to the public or the environment. Roadmapping was used to clarify the breadth of the LTS mission, to identify capability enhancements needed to improve mission effectiveness and efficiency, and to chart out the research and development efforts to provide those enhancements. This paper is a case study of the application of roadmapping for program planning and technical risk management. Differences between the planned and actual application of the roadmapping process are presented along with lessons learned. Both the process used and lessons learned should be of interest for anyone contemplating a similar technology based planning effort.

Role of the hospitalist in antimicrobial stewardship: a review of work completed and description of a multisite collaborative.

Science.gov (United States)

Rohde, Jeffrey M; Jacobsen, Diane; Rosenberg, David J

2013-06-01

Historically, antimicrobial stewardship programs have been led by infectious-disease physicians and pharmacists. With the growing presence of hospitalists in health and hospital systems, combined with their focus on quality improvement and patient safety, this emerging medical specialty has the potential to fill essential roles in antimicrobial stewardship programs. The goal of this article was to present the reasons hospitalists are ideally positioned to fill antimicrobial-stewardship roles, a narrative review of previously reported hospitalist-led antibiotic-stewardship projects, and a description of an ongoing multisite collaborative by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). A review of the published literature was performed, including an extensive review of the abstracts submitted to the Society of Hospital Medicine annual meetings. A number of examples of hospitalists developing and leading antimicrobial-stewardship programs are described. The details of a current multisite IHI/CDC hospitalist-focused initiative are discussed in detail. Hospitalists are actively involved with, and even lead, a variety of antimicrobial-stewardship programs in several different hospital systems. A large, multisite collaborative focused on hospitalist-led antimicrobial stewardship is currently in progress. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier HS Journals, Inc. All rights reserved.

Science and stewardship to protect and sustain wilderness values: Tenth World Wilderness Congress symposium; 2013, 4-10 October, Salamanca, Spain

Science.gov (United States)

Alan Watson; Stephen Carver; Zdenka Krenova; Brooke McBride

2015-01-01

The Tenth World Wilderness Congress (WILD10) met in Salamanca, Spain in 2013. The symposium on science and stewardship to protect and sustain wilderness values was the largest of multiple symposia held in conjunction with the Congress. This symposium was organized and sponsored by the Aldo Leopold Wilderness Research Institute, the Wildland Research Institute of the...

Evaluation of pharmacy generalists performing antimicrobial stewardship services.

Science.gov (United States)

Carreno, Joseph J; Kenney, Rachel M; Bloome, Mary; McDonnell, Jane; Rodriguez, Jennifer; Weinmann, Allison; Kilgore, Paul E; Davis, Susan L

2015-08-01

Improvements in medication use achieved by pharmacy generalists using a care bundle approach to antimicrobial stewardship are reported. A six-month prospective, repeated-treatment, quasi-experimental study involving three month-long intervention periods and three month-long control periods was conducted in the setting of an existing antimicrobial stewardship program at a large hospital. The intervention involved prospective audit and feedback conducted by pharmacy generalists who were trained in an antimicrobial stewardship care bundle approach. During control months, a pharmacy generalist who was not trained in antimicrobial stewardship rounded with the multidisciplinary team and provided standard-of-care pharmacy services. The primary endpoint was compliance with a care bundle of four antimicrobial stewardship metrics: documentation of indication for therapy in the medical record, selection of empirical therapy according to institutional guidelines, documented performance of indicated culture testing, and deescalation of therapy when indicated. Two-hundred eighty-six patients were enrolled in the study: 124 in the intervention group and 162 in the control group. The cumulative rate of full compliance with all care bundle components during the six-month study was significantly greater during intervention months than during control months (68.5% versus 45.7%, p management. Copyright © 2015 by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, Inc. All rights reserved.

Participatory eHealth development to support nurses in antimicrobial stewardship

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wentzel, Jobke; van Velsen, Lex; van Limburg, Maarten; de Jong, Nienke; Karreman, Joyce; Hendrix, Ron; van Gemert-Pi, Julia Elisabeth Wilhelmina Cornelia

2014-01-01

Background: Antimicrobial resistance poses a threat to patient safety worldwide. To stop antimicrobial resistance, Antimicrobial Stewardship Programs (ASPs; programs for optimizing antimicrobial use), need to be implemented. Within these programs, nurses are important actors, as they put

Participatory eHealth development to support nurses in antimicrobial stewardship

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wentzel, M.J.; van Velsen, Lex Stefan; van Limburg, A.H.M.; Beerlage-de Jong, Nienke; Karreman, Joyce; Hendrix, Ron; van Gemert-Pijnen, Julia E.W.C.

2014-01-01

Background Antimicrobial resistance poses a threat to patient safety worldwide. To stop antimicrobial resistance, Antimicrobial Stewardship Programs (ASPs; programs for optimizing antimicrobial use), need to be implemented. Within these programs, nurses are important actors, as they put

Impact of formulary restriction with prior authorization by an antimicrobial stewardship program.

Science.gov (United States)

Reed, Erica E; Stevenson, Kurt B; West, Jessica E; Bauer, Karri A; Goff, Debra A

2013-02-15

In an era of increasing antimicrobial resistance and few antimicrobials in the developmental pipeline, many institutions have developed antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs) to help implement evidence-based (EB) strategies for ensuring appropriate utilization of these agents. EB strategies for accomplishing this include formulary restriction with prior authorization. Potential limitations to this particular strategy include delays in therapy, prescriber pushback, and unintended increases in use of un-restricted antimicrobials; however, our ASP found that implementing prior authorization for select antimicrobials along with making a significant effort to educate clinicians on criteria for use ensured more appropriate prescribing of these agents, hopefully helping to preserve their utility for years to come.

Nuclear Materials Stewardship Within the DOE Environmental Management Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bilyeu, J. D.; Kiess, T. E.; Gates, M. L.

2002-01-01

The Department of Energy (DOE) Environmental Management (EM) Program has made significant progress in planning disposition of its excess nuclear materials and has recently completed several noteworthy studies. Since establishment in 1997, the EM Nuclear Material Stewardship Program has developed disposition plans for excess nuclear materials to support facility deactivation. All nuclear materials have been removed from the Miamisburg Environmental Management Project (Mound), and disposition planning is nearing completion for the Fernald Environmental Management Project and the Rocky Flats Environmental Technology Site. Only a few issues remain for materials at the Hanford and Idaho sites. Recent trade studies include the Savannah River Site Canyons Nuclear Materials Identification Study, a Cesium/Strontium Management Alternatives Trade Study, a Liquid Technical Standards Trade Study, an Irradiated Beryllium Reflectors with Tritium study, a Special Performance Assessment Required Trade Study, a Neutron Source Trade Study, and development of discard criteria for uranium. A Small Sites Workshop was also held. Potential and planned future activities include updating the Plutonium-239 storage study, developing additional packaging standards, developing a Nuclear Material Disposition Handbook, determining how to recover or dispose of Pu-244 and U-233, and working with additional sites to define disposition plans for their nuclear materials

Science, technology and engineering at LANL

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mercer-smith, Janet A [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Wallace, Terry C [Los Alamos National Laboratory

2011-01-06

The Laboratory provides science solution to the mission areas of nuclear deterrence, global security, and energy security. The capabilities support the Laboratory's vision as the premier national security science laboratory. The strength of LANL's science is at the core of the Laboratory. The Laboratory addresses important science questions for stockpile stewardship, emerging threats, and energy. The underpinning science vitality to support mission areas is supported through the Post Doc program, the fundamental science program in LDRD, collaborations fostered through the Institutes, and the LANL user facilities. LANL fosters the strategy of Science that Matters through investments, people, and facilities.

Science and stewardship to protect and sustain wilderness values: Seventh World Wilderness Congress symposium; 2001 November 2-8; Port Elizabeth, South Africa

Science.gov (United States)

Alan Watson; Janet Sproull

2003-01-01

The Seventh World Wilderness Congress met in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, in 2001. The symposium on science and stewardship to protect and sustain wilderness values was one of several symposia held in conjunction with the Congress. The papers contained in this proceedings were presented at this symposium and cover seven topics: state-of-knowledge on protected areas...

Final programmatic environmental impact statement for stockpile stewardship and management. Comment response document. Volume 4

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-09-01

In response to the end of the Cold War and changes in the world's political regimes, the United States is not producing new-design nuclear weapons. Instead, the emphasis on the U.S. nuclear weapons program is on reducing the size of the Nation's nuclear stockpile by dismantling existing nuclear weapons. The Department of Energy (DOE) has been directed by the President and Congress to maintain the safety and reliability of the reduced nuclear weapons stockpile in the absence of underground nuclear testing. In order to fulfill that responsibility, DOE has developed a Stockpile Stewardship and Management Program to provide a single highly integrated program for maintaining the continued safety and reliability of the nuclear stockpile. The Stockpile Stewardship and Management PEIS describes and analyzes alternative ways to implement the proposed actions for the Stockpile Stewardship and Management Program

Impact of the Antibiotic Stewardship Program on Prevention and Control of Surgical Site Infection during Peri-Operative Clean Surgery.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Juyuan; Li, Na; Hao, Jinjuan; Li, Yanming; Liu, Anlei; Wu, Yinghong; Cai, Meng

2018-04-01

Surgical site infections (SSIs) are the leading cause of hospital-acquired infections and are associated with substantial healthcare costs, with increased morbidity and mortality. To investigate the effects of the antibiotic stewardship program on prevention and control of SSI during clean surgery, we investigated this situation in our institution. We performed a quasi-experimental study to compare the effect before and after the antibiotic stewardship program intervention. During the pre-intervention stage (January 1, 2010 through December 31, 2011), comprehensive surveillance was performed to determine the SSI baseline data. In the second stage (January 1, 2012 through December 31, 2016), an infectious diseases physician and an infection control practitioner identified the surgical patients daily and followed up on the duration of antimicrobial prophylaxis. From January 1, 2010 to December 31, 2016, 41,426 patients underwent clean surgeries in a grade III, class A hospital. The rate of prophylactic antibiotic use in the 41,426 clean surgeries was reduced from 82.9% to 28.0% after the interventions. The rate of antibiotic agents administered within 120 minutes of the first incision increased from 20.8% to 85.1%. The rate at which prophylactic antimicrobial agents were discontinued in the first 24 hours after surgery increased from 22.1% to 60.4%. Appropriate antibiotic selection increased from 37.0% to 93.6%. Prophylactic antibiotic re-dosing increased from 3.8% to 64.8%. The SSI rate decreased from 0.7% to 0.5% (p < 0.05). The pathogen detection rate increased from 16.7% up to 41.8% after intervention. The intensity of antibiotic consumption reduced from 74.9 defined daily doses (DDDs) per 100 bed-days to 34.2 DDDs per 100 bed-days after the interventions. Long-term and continuous antibiotic stewardship programs have important effects on the prevention and control of SSI during clean surgery.

Antibiotic stewardship programs and the internist’s role

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Massimo Giusti

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Antimicrobial resistance (AMR is a worldwide issue, but with significant epidemiological diversity in different countries. A recently observed phenomenon is represented by the diffusion of AMR, initially confined to intensive-care units, to medical wards. This was predictable, since patients hospitalized in medical units are made up of more than 70% of elderly people (over 75 years of age in 1 case out of 2. They are fragile patients, with significant comorbidity (over a half with at least 3 diseases, weakened immune systems, and consequently a higher risk of infection. Given such a scenario, it becomes therefore both necessary and urgent to adopt a multifaceted approach of antimicrobial stewardship programs in order to prevent, detect and control the emergence of antimicrobial resistant organisms. The ideal antimicrobial program is led by an infectious diseases (ID physician and clinical pharmacist with ID training, together with a list of other important staff: clinical microbiologist, information systems specialist, infection control professional, and hospital epidemiologist. In real life, not all the Italian hospitals have got an ID physician and therefore the best canditates for antimicrobial management practices are internists if provided with a specific expertise in ID and antibiotic therapy. Adhering to the principles of optimal antimicrobial therapy in their clinical practice, the internist is able to improve the care and help to reduce the resistance of a patient at his bedside. At the same time, he can achieve other key goals reducing the length of stay and reducing the cost and utilization of health care resources.

Earth Stewardship: An initiative by the Ecological Society of America to foster engagement to sustain Planet Earth

Science.gov (United States)

Chapin, F. Stuart; Pickett, S.T.A.; Power, Mary E.; Collins, Scott L.; Baron, Jill S.; Inouye, David W.; Turner, Monica G.

2017-01-01

The Ecological Society of America (ESA) has responded to the growing commitment among ecologists to make their science relevant to society through a series of concerted efforts, including the Sustainable Biosphere Initiative (1991), scientific assessment of ecosystem management (1996), ESA’s vision for the future (2003), Rapid Response Teams that respond to environmental crises (2005), and the Earth Stewardship Initiative (2009). During the past 25 years, ESA launched five new journals, largely reflecting the expansion of scholarship linking ecology with broader societal issues. The goal of the Earth Stewardship Initiative is to raise awareness and to explore ways for ecologists and other scientists to contribute more effectively to the sustainability of our planet. This has occurred through four approaches: (1) articulation of the stewardship concept in ESA publications and Website, (2) selection of meeting themes and symposia, (3) engagement of ESA sections in implementing the initiative, and (4) outreach beyond ecology through collaborations and demonstration projects. Collaborations include societies and groups of Earth and social scientists, practitioners and policy makers, religious and business leaders, federal agencies, and artists and writers. The Earth Stewardship Initiative is a work in progress, so next steps likely include continued nurturing of these emerging collaborations, advancing the development of sustainability and stewardship theory, improving communication of stewardship science, and identifying opportunities for scientists and civil society to take actions that move the Earth toward a more sustainable trajectory.

Antimicrobial stewardship: a review of prospective audit and feedback systems and an objective evaluation of outcomes.

Science.gov (United States)

Chung, Gladys W; Wu, Jia En; Yeo, Chay Leng; Chan, Douglas; Hsu, Li Yang

2013-02-15

Antimicrobial stewardship is an emerging field currently defined by a series of strategies and interventions aimed toward improving appropriate prescription of antibiotics in humans in all healthcare settings. The ultimate goal is the preservation of current and future antibiotics against the threat of antimicrobial resistance, although improving patient safety and reducing healthcare costs are important concurrent aims. Prospective audit and feedback interventions are probably the most widely practiced of all antimicrobial stewardship strategies. Although labor-intensive, they are more easily accepted by physicians compared with formulary restriction and preauthorization strategies and have a higher potential for educational opportunities. Objective evaluation of antimicrobial stewardship is critical for determining the success of such programs. Nonetheless, there is controversy over which outcomes to measure and there is a pressing need for novel study designs that can objectively assess antimicrobial stewardship interventions despite the limitations inherent in the structure of most such programs.

Training should be the first step toward an antifungal stewardship program.

Science.gov (United States)

Valerio, Maricela; Muñoz, Patricia; Rodríguez-González, Carmen; Sanjurjo, María; Guinea, Jesús; Bouza, Emilio

2015-04-01

The frequency of use of systemic antifungal agents has increased significantly in most tertiary centers. However, antifungal stewardship has received very little attention. The objective of this article was to assess the knowledge of prescribing physicians in our institution as a first step in the development of an antifungal stewardship program. Attending physicians from the departments that prescribe most antifungals were invited to complete a questionnaire based on current guidelines on diagnosis and therapy of invasive candidiasis and invasive aspergillosis (IA). The survey was completed by 60.8% (200/329) of the physicians who were invited to participate. The physicians belonged to the following departments: medical (60%), pediatric (19%), intensive care (15.5%), and surgical (5.5%). The mean (±SD) score of correct responses was 5.16±1.73. In the case of candidiasis, only 55% of the physicians clearly distinguished between colonization and infection, and 17.5% knew the local rate of fluconazole resistance. Thirty-three percent knew the accepted indications for antifungal prophylaxis, and 23% the indications for empirical therapy. However, most physicians knew which antifungals to choose when starting empirical therapy (73.5%). As for aspergillosis, most physicians (67%) could differentiate between colonization and infection, and 34.5% knew the diagnostic value of galactomannan. The radiological features of IA were well recognized by 64%, but only 31.5% were aware of the first line of treatment for IA, and 36% of the recommended duration of therapy. The usefulness of antifungal levels was known by 67%. This simple, easily completed questionnaire enabled us to identify which areas of our training strategy could be improved. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier España, S.L.U. y Sociedad Española de Enfermedades Infecciosas y Microbiología Clínica. All rights reserved.

FY 2017 Stockpile Stewardship and Management Plan - Biennial Plan Summary

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

None, None

2016-03-01

This year’s summary report updates the Fiscal Year 2016 Stockpile Stewardship and Management Plan (FY 2016 SSMP), the 25-year strategic program of record that captures the plans developed across numerous NNSA programs and organizations to maintain and modernize the scientific tools, capabilities, and infrastructure necessary to ensure the success of NNSA’s nuclear weapons mission. The SSMP is a companion to the Prevent, Counter, and Respond: A Strategic Plan to Reduce Global Nuclear Threats (FY 2017-2021) report, the planning document for NNSA’s nuclear threat reduction mission. New versions of both reports are published each year in response to new requirements and challenges. Much was accomplished in FY 2015 as part of the program of record described in this year’s SSMP. The science-based Stockpile Stewardship Program allowed the Secretaries of Energy and Defense to certify for the twentieth time that the stockpile remains safe, secure, and effective without the need for underground nuclear explosive testing. The talented scientists, engineers, and technicians at the three national security laboratories, the four nuclear weapons production plants, and the national security site are primarily responsible for this continued success. Research, development, test, and evaluation programs have advanced NNSA’s understanding of weapons physics, component aging, and material properties through first-of-a-kind shock physics experiments, along with numerous other critical experiments conducted throughout the nuclear security enterprise. The multiple life extension programs (LEPs) that are under way made progress toward their first production unit dates. The W76-1 LEP is past the halfway point in total production, and the B61-12 completed three development flight tests. Critical to this success is the budget. The Administration’s budget request for NNSA’s Weapons Activities has increased for all but one of the past seven years, resulting in a total increase of

Improving Wellbeing and Environmental Stewardship Through Volunteering in Nature.

Science.gov (United States)

Molsher, Robyn; Townsend, Mardie

2016-03-01

Environmental volunteering (EV) can provide a unique way to optimise the wellbeing of participants while fostering environmental stewardship. However, the potential of EV to create human health benefits remains an under-researched area. This study provides evidence for improved wellbeing and mood state for 32 participants from diverse backgrounds undertaking EV activities. Most participants also reported improved environmental stewardship with a greatly improved understanding of the environment and the need to conserve it. Other benefits included: 31% of those seeking work obtained it; and 50% joined a volunteer group at program completion. EV provides a unique mechanism to enhance the wellbeing of the participants, while conserving the environment.

2008 stewardship report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2009-03-01

The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers prepares an annual stewardship report as part of the industry's commitment to stewardship through the open and transparent reporting of progress on environmental, health and safety, and social issues. These reports also serve to provide annual benchmarking targets for the industry to surpass. This report presented the eighth annual stewardship report for 2008 and discussed indicators relating to several areas. The first involved air quality as it relates to climate change and greenhouse gases and technological solutions such as toe-to-heel air injection; geothermal energy; and carbon capture and sequestration. The issues of releasing greenhouse gases through flaring and venting were also examined along with other issues such as returning the land to a sustainable landscape; using water to produce oil and gas; ensuring the workplace is safe; and maintaining positive relationships. It was concluded that while greenhouse gas intensity has dropped, overall emissions have increase. Surface water use has also slightly increased. figs

Eco-Visualization: Promoting Environmental Stewardship in the Museum

Science.gov (United States)

Holmes, Tiffany

2007-01-01

Eco-visualizations are artworks that reinterpret environmental data with custom software to promote stewardship. Eco-visualization technology offers a new way to dynamically picture environmental data and make it meaningful to a museum population. The questions are: How might museums create new projects and programs around place-based information?…

Antimicrobial stewardship in long term care facilities: what is effective?

OpenAIRE

Nicolle, Lindsay E

2014-01-01

Intense antimicrobial use in long term care facilities promotes the emergence and persistence of antimicrobial resistant organisms and leads to adverse effects such as C. difficile colitis. Guidelines recommend development of antimicrobial stewardship programs for these facilities to promote optimal antimicrobial use. However, the effectiveness of these programs or the contribution of any specific program component is not known. For this review, publications describing evaluation of antimicro...

Perceptions and Practices of Community Pharmacists towards Antimicrobial Stewardship in the State of Selangor, Malaysia

Science.gov (United States)

Khan, Muhammad Umair; Hassali, Mohamed Azmi Ahmad; Ahmad, Akram; Elkalmi, Ramadan Mohamed; Zaidi, Syed Tabish Razi; Dhingra, Sameer

2016-01-01

Background Increasing antimicrobial resistance is one of the pressing concerns globally. Injudicious use of antibiotics is one of the modifiable factors responsible for antimicrobial resistance. Given the widespread use of antimicrobials in community settings, pharmacists have an important role in ensuring appropriate use of antibiotics. The objective of this study was to assess the perception and self-reported practices of community pharmacists towards antimicrobial stewardship. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted among community pharmacists between March–April, 2015, using a self-administered, pre-tested questionnaire in the State of Selangor, Malaysia. A simple random sampling approach was used to select pharmacy sites. Descriptive and inferential statistical methods were used to analyse the data. Results A total of 188 pharmacists responded to the survey, giving a response rate of 83.5%. The majority of participants (n = 182, 96.8%) believed that antimicrobial stewardship program helps healthcare professionals to improve the quality of patient care. However, more than half of pharmacists were neutral in their opinion about the incorporation of antimicrobial stewardship programs in community pharmacies (n = 102, 54.2%). Though collaboration was often done by pharmacists with other health professionals over the use of antibiotics (n = 104, 55.3%), a significant proportion of participants (n = 102, 54.2%) rarely/occasionally participate in antimicrobial awareness campaigns. Pharmacists having postgraduate qualification were more likely to held positive perceptions of, and were engaged in, antimicrobial stewardship than their non-postgraduate counterpart (p 10 years) held positive perceptions towards antimicrobial stewardship (p<0.05). Conclusion The study highlighted some gaps in the perception and practices of community pharmacist towards antimicrobial stewardship. Development of customized interventions would be critical to bridging these gaps and

Perceptions and Practices of Community Pharmacists towards Antimicrobial Stewardship in the State of Selangor, Malaysia.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Muhammad Umair Khan

Full Text Available Increasing antimicrobial resistance is one of the pressing concerns globally. Injudicious use of antibiotics is one of the modifiable factors responsible for antimicrobial resistance. Given the widespread use of antimicrobials in community settings, pharmacists have an important role in ensuring appropriate use of antibiotics. The objective of this study was to assess the perception and self-reported practices of community pharmacists towards antimicrobial stewardship.A cross-sectional study was conducted among community pharmacists between March-April, 2015, using a self-administered, pre-tested questionnaire in the State of Selangor, Malaysia. A simple random sampling approach was used to select pharmacy sites. Descriptive and inferential statistical methods were used to analyse the data.A total of 188 pharmacists responded to the survey, giving a response rate of 83.5%. The majority of participants (n = 182, 96.8% believed that antimicrobial stewardship program helps healthcare professionals to improve the quality of patient care. However, more than half of pharmacists were neutral in their opinion about the incorporation of antimicrobial stewardship programs in community pharmacies (n = 102, 54.2%. Though collaboration was often done by pharmacists with other health professionals over the use of antibiotics (n = 104, 55.3%, a significant proportion of participants (n = 102, 54.2% rarely/occasionally participate in antimicrobial awareness campaigns. Pharmacists having postgraduate qualification were more likely to held positive perceptions of, and were engaged in, antimicrobial stewardship than their non-postgraduate counterpart (p 10 years held positive perceptions towards antimicrobial stewardship (p<0.05.The study highlighted some gaps in the perception and practices of community pharmacist towards antimicrobial stewardship. Development of customized interventions would be critical to bridging these gaps and improve their perception and

The organisational structure of urban environmental stewardship

Science.gov (United States)

Dana R. Fisher; Lindsay Campbell; Erika S. Svendsen

2012-01-01

How is the organisational structure of urban environmental stewardship groups related to the diverse ways that civic stewardship is taking place in urban settings? The findings of the limited number of studies that have explored the organisational structure of civic environmentalism are combined with the research on civic stewardship to answer this question. By...

The Capacity-Building Stewardship Model: assessment of an agricultural network as a mechanism for improving regional agroecosystem sustainability

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alison J. Duff

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Working lands have potential to meet agricultural production targets while serving as reservoirs of biological diversity and as sources of ecological services. Yet agricultural policy creates disincentives for this integration of conservation and production goals. While necessary, the development of a policy context that promotes agroecosystem sustainability will take time, and successful implementation will depend on a receptive agricultural audience. As the demands placed on working lands grow, there is a need for regional support networks that build agricultural producers' capacity for land stewardship. We used a social-ecological system framework to illustrate the Healthy Grown Potato Program as an agricultural network case study. Our Capacity-Building Stewardship Model reflects a 20-year experience working in collaboration with potato growers certified under an ecolabel in Wisconsin, USA. The model applies an evolving, modular farm stewardship standard to the entire farm - croplands and noncroplands. The model demonstrates an effective process for facilitating communication and shared learning among program participants, including agricultural producers, university extension specialists, nonprofit conservation partners, and industry representatives. The limitation of the model in practice has been securing funding to support expansion of the program and to ensure that the ecolabel standard is responsive to changes in the social-ecological system. Despite this constraint, the Capacity-Building Stewardship Model reveals an important mechanism for building regional commitment to conservation, with agricultural producers in a leadership role as architects, adopters, and advocates for stewardship behavior. Our experience provides important insight for the application of agri-environment schemes on private lands. The durability of a conservation ethic on working farms is likely to be enhanced when networks engage and support producers in an

Antimicrobial Stewardship: A Call to Action for Surgeons

Science.gov (United States)

Duane, Therese M.; Catena, Fausto; Tessier, Jeffrey M.; Coccolini, Federico; Kao, Lillian S.; De Simone, Belinda; Labricciosa, Francesco M.; May, Addison K.; Ansaloni, Luca; Mazuski, John E.

2016-01-01

Abstract Despite current antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs) being advocated by infectious disease specialists and discussed by national and international policy makers, ASPs coverage remains limited to only certain hospitals as well as specific service lines within hospitals. The ASPs incorporate a variety of strategies to optimize antimicrobial agent use in the hospital, yet the exact set of interventions essential to ASP success remains unknown. Promotion of ASPs across clinical practice is crucial to their success to ensure standardization of antimicrobial agent use within an institution. To effectively accomplish this standardization, providers who actively engage in antimicrobial agent prescribing should participate in the establishment and support of these programs. Hence, surgeons need to play a major role in these collaborations. Surgeons must be aware that judicious antibiotic utilization is an integral part of any stewardship program and necessary to maximize clinical cure and minimize emergence of antimicrobial resistance. The battle against antibiotic resistance should be fought by all healthcare professionals. If surgeons around the world participate in this global fight and demonstrate awareness of the major problem of antimicrobial resistance, they will be pivotal leaders. If surgeons fail to actively engage and use antibiotics judiciously, they will find themselves deprived of the autonomy to treat their patients. PMID:27828764

Organizational ethics in Catholic health care: honoring stewardship and the work environment.

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Magill, G

2001-04-01

Organizational ethics refers to the integration of values into decision making, policies, and behavior throughout the multi-disciplinary environment of a health care organization. Based upon Catholic social ethics, stewardship is at the heart of organizational ethics in health care in this sense: stewardship provides the hermeneutic filter that enables basic ethical principles to be realized practically, within the context of the Catholic theology of work, to concerns in health care. This general argument can shed light on the specific topic of non-executive compensation programs as an illustration of organizational ethics in health care.

Urban Ecological Stewardship: Understanding the Structure, Function and Network of Community-based Urban Land Management

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lindsay K. Campbell

2008-01-01

Full Text Available Urban environmental stewardship activities are on the rise in cities throughout the Northeast. Groups participating in stewardship activities range in age, size, and geography and represent an increasingly complex and dynamic arrangement of civil society, government and business sectors. To better understand the structure, function and network of these community-based urban land managers, an assessment was conducted in 2004 by the research subcommittee of the Urban Ecology Collaborative. The goal of the assessment was to better understand the role of stewardship organizations engaged in urban ecology initiatives in selected major cities in the Northeastern U.S.: Boston, New Haven, New York City, Pittsburgh, Baltimore, and Washington, D.C. A total of 135 active organizations participated in this assessment. Findings include the discovery of a dynamic social network operating within cities, and a reserve of social capital and expertise that could be better utilized. Although often not the primary land owner, stewardship groups take an increasingly significant responsibility for a wide range of land use types including street and riparian corridors, vacant lots, public parks and gardens, green roofs, etc. Responsibilities include the delivery of public programs as well as daily maintenance and fundraising support. While most of the environmental stewardship organizations operate on staffs of zero or fewer than ten, with small cohorts of community volunteers, there is a significant difference in the total amount of program funding. Nearly all respondents agree that committed resources are scarce and insufficient with stewards relying upon and potentially competing for individual donations, local foundations, and municipal support. This makes it a challenge for the groups to grow beyond their current capacity and to develop long-term programs critical to resource management and education. It also fragments groups, making it difficult for planners and

Science and society: the role of long-term studies in environmental stewardship

Science.gov (United States)

Charles T. Driscoll; Kathleen F. Lambert; F. Stuart Chapin; David J. Nowak; Thomas A. Spies; Frederick J. Swanson; David B. Kittredge; Clarisse M. Hart

2012-01-01

Long-term research should play a crucial role in addressing grand challenges in environmental stewardship. We examine the efforts of five Long Term Ecological Research Network sites to enhance policy, management, and conservation decisions for forest ecosystems. In these case studies, we explore the approaches used to inform policy on atmospheric deposition, public...

Antibiotic stewardship in community-acquired pneumonia.

Science.gov (United States)

Viasus, Diego; Vecino-Moreno, Milly; De La Hoz, Juan M; Carratalà, Jordi

2017-04-01

Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) continues to be associated with significant mortality and morbidity. As with other infectious diseases, in recent years there has been a marked increase in resistance to the antibiotics commonly used against the pathogens that cause CAP. Antimicrobial stewardship denotes coordinated interventions to improve and measure the appropriate use of antibiotics by encouraging the selection of optimal drug regimens. Areas covered: Several elements can be applied to antibiotic stewardship strategies for CAP in order to maintain or improve patient outcomes. In this regard, antibiotic de-escalation, duration of antibiotic treatment, adherence to CAP guidelines recommendations about empirical treatment, and switching from intravenous to oral antibiotic therapy may each be relevant in this context. Antimicrobial stewardship strategies, such as prospective audit with intervention and feedback, clinical pathways, and dedicated multidisciplinary teams, that have included some of these elements have demonstrated improvements in antimicrobial use for CAP without negatively affecting clinical outcomes. Expert commentary: Although there are a limited number of randomized clinical studies addressing antimicrobial stewardship strategies in CAP, there is evidence that antibiotic stewardship initiatives can be securely applied, providing benefits to both healthcare systems and patients.

Antifungal stewardship considerations for adults and pediatrics.

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Hamdy, Rana F; Zaoutis, Theoklis E; Seo, Susan K

2017-08-18

Antifungal stewardship refers to coordinated interventions to monitor and direct the appropriate use of antifungal agents in order to achieve the best clinical outcomes and minimize selective pressure and adverse events. Antifungal utilization has steadily risen over time in concert with the increase in number of immunocompromised adults and children at risk for invasive fungal infections (IFI). Challenges in diagnosing IFI often lead to delays in treatment and poorer outcomes. There are also emerging data linking prior antifungal exposure and suboptimal dosing to the emergence of antifungal resistance, particularly for Candida. Antimicrobial stewardship programs can take a multi-pronged bundle approach to ensure suitable prescribing of antifungals via post-prescription review and feedback and/or prior authorization. Institutional guidelines can also be developed to guide diagnostic testing in at-risk populations; appropriate choice, dose, and duration of antifungal agent; therapeutic drug monitoring; and opportunities for de-escalation and intravenous-to-oral conversion.

Service-Learning in the Environmental Sciences for Teaching Sustainability Science

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Truebe, S.; Strong, A. L.

2016-12-01

Understanding and developing effective strategies for the use of community-engaged learning (service-learning) approaches in the environmental geosciences is an important research need in curricular and pedagogical innovation for sustainability. In 2015, we designed and implemented a new community-engaged learning practicum course through the Earth Systems Program in the School of Earth, Energy and Environmental Sciences at Stanford University focused on regional open space management and land stewardship. Undergraduate and graduate students partnered with three different regional land trust and environmental stewardship organizations to conduct quarter-long research projects ranging from remote sensing studies of historical land use, to fire ecology, to ranchland management, to volunteer retention strategies. Throughout the course, students reflected on the decision-making processes and stewardship actions of the organizations. Two iterations of the course were run in Winter and Fall 2015. Using coded and analyzed pre- and post-course student surveys from the two course iterations, we evaluate undergraduate and graduate student learning outcomes and changes in perceptions and understanding of sustainability science. We find that engagement with community partners to conduct research projects on a wide variety of aspects of open space management, land management, and environmental stewardship (1) increased an understanding of trade-offs inherent in sustainability and resource management and (2) altered student perceptions of the role of scientific information and research in environmental management and decision-making. Furthermore, students initially conceived of open space as purely ecological/biophysical, but by the end of the course, (3) their understanding was of open space as a coupled human/ecological system. This shift is crucial for student development as sustainability scientists.

Treatment Modalities and Antimicrobial Stewardship Initiatives in the Management of Intra-Abdominal Infections

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Charles Hoffmann

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs focus on improving the utilization of broad spectrum antibiotics to decrease the incidence of multidrug-resistant Gram positive and Gram negative pathogens. Hospital admission for both medical and surgical intra-abdominal infections (IAIs commonly results in the empiric use of broad spectrum antibiotics such as fluoroquinolones, beta-lactam beta-lactamase inhibitors, and carbapenems that can select for resistant organisms. This review will discuss the management of uncomplicated and complicated IAIs as well as highlight stewardship initiatives focusing on the proper use of broad spectrum antibiotics.

76 FR 17180 - Meeting of the Regional Resource Stewardship Council

Science.gov (United States)

2011-03-28

... area components of the draft NRP and the benefits and challenges stemming from such programs. 5. Public... and will be called on during the public comment period. Handout materials should be limited to one printed page. Written comments are also invited and may be mailed to the Regional Resource Stewardship...

The Six Principles of Facilities Stewardship

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Kaiser, Harvey H.; Klein, Eva

2010-01-01

Facilities stewardship means high-level and pervasive commitment to optimize capital investments, in order to achieve a high-functioning and attractive campus. It includes a major commitment to capital asset preservation and quality. Stewardship is about the long view of an institution's past and future. It ultimately forms the backdrop for…

Advances in rapid identification and susceptibility testing of bacteria in the clinical microbiology laboratory: implications for patient care and antimicrobial stewardship programs

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Florian P. Maurer

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Early availability of information on bacterial pathogens and their antimicrobial susceptibility is of key importance for the management of infectious diseases patients. Currently, using traditional approaches, it usually takes at least 48 hours for identification and susceptibility testing of bacterial pathogens. Therefore, the slowness of diagnostic procedures drives prolongation of empiric, potentially inappropriate, antibacterial therapies. Over the last couple of years, the improvement of available techniques (e.g. for susceptibility testing, DNA amplification assays, and introduction of novel technologies (e.g. MALDI-TOF has fundamentally changed approaches towards pathogen identification and characterization. Importantly, these techniques offer increased diagnostic resolution while at the same time shorten the time-to-result, and are thus of obvious importance for antimicrobial stewardship. In this review, we will discuss recent advances in medical microbiology with special emphasis on the impact of novel techniques on antimicrobial stewardship programs.

Financial evaluations of antibiotic stewardship programs - a systematic review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jan-Willem Hendrik Dik

2015-04-01

Full Text Available IntroductionThere is an increasing awareness to counteract problems due to incorrect antimicrobial use. Interventions that are implemented are often part of an Antimicrobial Stewardship Program (ASPs. Studies publishing results from these interventions are increasing, including reports on the economical effects of ASPs. This review will look at the economical sections of these studies and the methods that were used. MethodsA systematic review was performed of articles found in the PubMed and EMBASE databases published from 2000 until November 2014. Included studies found were scored for various aspects and the quality of the papers was assessed following an appropriate check list (CHEC criteria list.Results1233 studies were found, of which 149 were read completely. 99 were included in the final review. Of these studies, 57 only mentioned the costs associated with the antimicrobial medication. Others also included operational costs (n=23, costs for hospital stay (n=18 and/or other costs (n=19. 9 studies were further assessed for their quality. These studies scored between 2 and 14 out of a potential total score of 19.ConclusionsThis review gives an extensive overview of the current financial evaluation of ASPs and the quality of these economical studies. We show that there is still major potential to improve financial evaluations of ASPs. Studies do not use similar nor consistent methods or outcome measures, making it impossible draw sound conclusions and compare different studies. Finally, we make some recommendations for the future.

Antimicrobial Stewardship: A Cross-Sectional Survey Assessing the Perceptions and Practices of Community Pharmacists in Ethiopia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniel Asfaw Erku

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Background. Community pharmacists are key healthcare professionals for antimicrobial stewardship programs owing to their role in dispensing of antimicrobials. The aim of the present study was to assess the perception and practices of community pharmacists towards antimicrobial stewardship (AMS in Ethiopia. Methods. A cross-sectional survey was conducted by selecting pharmacy sites through stratified simple random sampling technique. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the data. Results. Majority of respondents strongly agreed or agreed that AMS program is vital for the improvement of patient care. Almost all of respondents agreed that pharmacists can play a prominent role in AMS and infection prevention (93.2%, median = 5; IQR = 2–5. However, only 26.5% of respondents strongly agreed or agreed that AMS should be practiced at community pharmacy level (median = 4, IQR = 1–3 and more than half of community pharmacists (59.9% often/always dispense antimicrobial without a prescription. Conclusion. The present study revealed positive perceptions and practices of community pharmacists towards antimicrobial stewardship. Yet, some weak areas like integration of AMS program in community pharmacies, the significance of interprofessional involvement, and dispensing of antimicrobials without a valid prescription still need improvement.

Barriers to and enablers of implementing antimicrobial stewardship programs in veterinary practices.

Science.gov (United States)

Hardefeldt, Laura Y; Gilkerson, J R; Billman-Jacobe, H; Stevenson, M A; Thursky, K; Bailey, K E; Browning, G F

2018-03-23

Antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) programs are yet to be widely implemented in veterinary practice and medical programs are unlikely to be directly applicable to veterinary settings. To gain an in-depth understanding of the factors that influence effective AMS in veterinary practices in Australia. A concurrent explanatory mixed methods design was used. The quantitative phase of the study consisted of an online questionnaire to assess veterinarians' attitudes to antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and antimicrobial use in animals, and the extent to which AMS currently is implemented (knowingly or unknowingly). The qualitative phase used semi-structured interviews to gain an understanding of the barriers to and enablers of AMS in veterinary practices. Data were collected and entered into NVivo v.11, openly coded and analyzed according to mixed methods data analysis principles. Companion animal, equine, and bovine veterinarians participated in the study. Veterinary practices rarely had antimicrobial prescribing policies. The key barriers were a lack of AMS governance structures, client expectations and competition between practices, cost of microbiological testing, and lack of access to education, training and AMS resources. The enablers were concern for the role of veterinary antimicrobial use in development of AMR in humans, a sense of pride in the service provided, and preparedness to change prescribing practices. Our study can guide development and establishment of AMS programs in veterinary practices by defining the major issues that influence the prescribing behavior of veterinarians. © 2018 The Authors. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine.

Science Programs

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Laboratory Delivering science and technology to protect our nation and promote world stability Science & ; Innovation Collaboration Careers Community Environment Science & Innovation Facilities Science Pillars Research Library Science Briefs Science News Science Highlights Lab Organizations Science Programs Applied

Interoperability Across the Stewardship Spectrum in the DataONE Repository Federation

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, M. B.; Vieglais, D.; Wilson, B. E.

2016-12-01

Thousands of earth and environmental science repositories serve many researchers and communities, each with their own community and legal mandates, sustainability models, and historical infrastructure. These repositories span the stewardship spectrum from highly curated collections that employ large numbers of staff members to review and improve data, to small, minimal budget repositories that accept data caveat emptor and where all responsibility for quality lies with the submitter. Each repository fills a niche, providing services that meet the stewardship tradeoffs of one or more communities. We have reviewed these stewardship tradeoffs for several DataONE member repositories ranging from minimally (KNB) to highly curated (Arctic Data Center), as well as general purpose (Dryad) to highly discipline or project specific (NEON). The rationale behind different levels of stewardship reflect resolution of these tradeoffs. Some repositories aim to encourage extensive uptake by keeping processes simple and minimizing the amount of information collected, but this limits the long-term utility of the data and the search, discovery, and integration systems that are possible. Other repositories require extensive metadata input, review, and assessment, allowing for excellent preservation, discovery, and integration but at the cost of significant time for submitters and expense for curatorial staff. DataONE recognizes these different levels of curation, and attempts to embrace them to create a federation that is useful across the stewardship spectrum. DataONE provides a tiered model for repositories with growing utility of DataONE services at higher tiers of curation. The lowest tier supports read-only access to data and requires little more than title and contact metadata. Repositories can gradually phase in support for higher levels of metadata and services as needed. These tiered capabilities are possible through flexible support for multiple metadata standards and services

A World Wide Web-based antimicrobial stewardship program improves efficiency, communication, and user satisfaction and reduces cost in a tertiary care pediatric medical center.

Science.gov (United States)

Agwu, Allison L; Lee, Carlton K K; Jain, Sanjay K; Murray, Kara L; Topolski, Jason; Miller, Robert E; Townsend, Timothy; Lehmann, Christoph U

2008-09-15

Antimicrobial stewardship programs aim to reduce inappropriate hospital antimicrobial use. At the Johns Hopkins Children's Medical and Surgical Center (Baltimore, MD), we implemented a World Wide Web-based antimicrobial restriction program to address problems with the existing restriction program. A user survey identified opportunities for improvement of an existing antimicrobial restriction program and resulted in subsequent design, implementation, and evaluation of a World Wide Web-based antimicrobial restriction program at a 175-bed, tertiary care pediatric teaching hospital. The program provided automated clinical decision support, facilitated approval, and enhanced real-time communication among prescribers, pharmacists, and pediatric infectious diseases fellows. Approval status, duration, and rationale; missing request notifications; and expiring approvals were stored in a database that is accessible via a secure Intranet site. Before and after implementation of the program, user satisfaction, reports of missed and/or delayed doses, antimicrobial dispensing times, and cost were evaluated. After implementation of the program, there was a $370,069 reduction in projected annual cost associated with restricted antimicrobial use and an 11.6% reduction in the number of dispensed doses. User satisfaction increased from 22% to 68% and from 13% to 69% among prescribers and pharmacists, respectively. There were 21% and 32% reductions in the number of prescriber reports of missed and delayed doses, respectively, and there was a 37% reduction in the number of pharmacist reports of delayed approvals; measured dispensing times were unchanged (P = .24). In addition, 40% fewer restricted antimicrobial-related phone calls were noted by the pharmacy. The World Wide Web-based antimicrobial approval program led to improved communication, more-efficient antimicrobial administration, increased user satisfaction, and significant cost savings. Integrated tools, such as this World

Long-Term Stewardship At DOE's Hanford Site - 12575

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moren, R.J.; Grindstaff, K.D.

2012-01-01

The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Hanford Site is located in southeast Washington and consists of 1,518 square kilometers (586 square miles) of land. Established in 1943 as part of the Manhattan Project, Hanford workers produced plutonium for our nation's nuclear defense program until the mid 1980's. Since then, the site has been in cleanup mode that is being accomplished in phases. As we achieve remedial objectives and complete active cleanup, DOE will manage Hanford land under the Long-Term Stewardship (LTS) Program until completion of cleanup and the site becomes ready for transfer to the post cleanup landlord - currently planned for DOE's Office of Legacy Management (LM). We define Hanford's LTS Program in the ''Hanford Long-Term Stewardship Program Plan,'' (DOE/RL-201 0-35)(1), which describes the scope including the relationship between the cleanup projects and the LTS Program. DOE designed the LTS Program to manage and provide surveillance and maintenance (S and M) of institutional controls and associated monitoring of closed waste sites to ensure the protection of human health and the environment. DOE's Richland Operations Office (DOE-RL) and Hanford cleanup and operations contractors collaboratively developed this program over several years. The program's scope also includes 15 key activities that are identified in the DOE Program Plan (DOE/RL-2010-35). The LTS Program will transition 14 land segments through 2016. The combined land mass is approximately 570 square kilometers (220 square miles), with over 1,300 active and inactive waste sites and 3,363 wells. Land segments vary from buffer zone property with no known contamination to cocooned reactor buildings, demolished support facilities, and remediated cribs and trenches. DOE-RL will transition land management responsibilities from cleanup contractors to the Mission Support Contract (MSC), who will then administer the LTS Program for DOE-RL. This process requires an environment of cooperation

Cost-effectiveness analysis of implementing an antimicrobial stewardship program in critical care units.

Science.gov (United States)

Ruiz-Ramos, Jesus; Frasquet, Juan; Romá, Eva; Poveda-Andres, Jose Luis; Salavert-Leti, Miguel; Castellanos, Alvaro; Ramirez, Paula

2017-06-01

To evaluate the cost-effectiveness of antimicrobial stewardship (AS) program implementation focused on critical care units based on assumptions for the Spanish setting. A decision model comparing costs and outcomes of sepsis, community-acquired pneumonia, and nosocomial infections (including catheter-related bacteremia, urinary tract infection, and ventilator-associated pneumonia) in critical care units with or without an AS was designed. Model variables and costs, along with their distributions, were obtained from the literature. The study was performed from the Spanish National Health System (NHS) perspective, including only direct costs. The Incremental Cost-Effectiveness Ratio (ICER) was analysed regarding the ability of the program to reduce multi-drug resistant bacteria. Uncertainty in ICERs was evaluated with probabilistic sensitivity analyses. In the short-term, implementing an AS reduces the consumption of antimicrobials with a net benefit of €71,738. In the long-term, the maintenance of the program involves an additional cost to the system of €107,569. Cost per avoided resistance was €7,342, and cost-per-life-years gained (LYG) was €9,788. Results from the probabilistic sensitivity analysis showed that there was a more than 90% likelihood that an AS would be cost-effective at a level of €8,000 per LYG. Wide variability of economic results obtained from the implementation of this type of AS program and short information on their impact on patient evolution and any resistance avoided. Implementing an AS focusing on critical care patients is a long-term cost-effective tool. Implementation costs are amortized by reducing antimicrobial consumption to prevent infection by multidrug-resistant pathogens.

Mapping educational opportunities for healthcare workers on antimicrobial resistance and stewardship around the world.

Science.gov (United States)

Rogers Van Katwyk, Susan; Jones, Sara L; Hoffman, Steven J

2018-02-05

Antimicrobial resistance is an important global issue facing society. Healthcare workers need to be engaged in solving this problem, as advocates for rational antimicrobial use, stewards of sustainable effectiveness, and educators of their patients. To fulfill this role, healthcare workers need access to training and educational resources on antimicrobial resistance. To better understand the resources available to healthcare workers, we undertook a global environmental scan of educational programs and resources targeting healthcare workers on the topic of antimicrobial resistance and antimicrobial stewardship. Programs were identified through contact with key experts, web searching, and academic literature searching. We summarized programs in tabular form, including participating organizations, region, and intended audience. We developed a coding system to classify programs by program type and participating organization type, assigning multiple codes as necessary and creating summary charts for program types, organization types, and intended audience to illustrate the breadth of available resources. We identified 94 educational initiatives related to antimicrobial resistance and antimicrobial stewardship, which represent a diverse array of programs including courses, workshops, conferences, guidelines, public outreach materials, and online-resource websites. These resources were developed by a combination of government bodies, professional societies, universities, non-profit and community organizations, hospitals and healthcare centers, and insurance companies and industry. Most programs either targeted healthcare workers collectively or specifically targeted physicians. A smaller number of programs were aimed at other healthcare worker groups including pharmacists, nurses, midwives, and healthcare students. Our environmental scan shows that there are many organizations working to develop and share educational resources for healthcare workers on antimicrobial

1996 ICF program overview

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Correll, D

1996-01-01

The continuing objective of the Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF) Program is the demonstration of thermonuclear fusion ignition and energy gain in the laboratory. The underlying theme of all ICF activities as a science research and development program is the Department of Energy's (DOE's) Defense Programs (DP) science-based Stockpile Stewardship and Management (SSM) Program. The extension of current program research capabilities in the National Ignition Facility (NIF) is necessary for the ICF Program to satisfy its stewardship responsibilities. ICF resources (people and facilities) are increasingly being redirected in support of the performance, schedule, and cost goals of the NIF. One of the more important aspects of ICF research is the national nature of the program. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's (LLNL's) ICF Program falls within DOE's national ICF Program, which includes the Nova and Beamlet laser facilities at LLNL and the OMEGA, Nike, and Trident laser facilities at the University of Rochester (Laboratory for Laser Energetics, UR/LLE), the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL), and Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), respectively. The Particle Beam Fusion Accelerator (PBFA) and Saturn pulsed-power facilities are at Sandia National Laboratories (SNL). General Atomics, Inc. (GA) develops and provides many of the targets for the above experimental facilities. LLNL's ICF Program supports activities in two major interrelated areas: (1) target physics and technology (experimental, theoretical, and computational research); and (2) laser science and optics technology development. Experiments on LLNL's Nova laser primarily support ignition and weapons physics research. Experiments on LLNL's Beamlet laser support laser science and optics technology development. In addition, ICF sciences and technologies, developed as part of the DP mission goals, continue to support additional DOE objectives. These objectives are (1) to achieve diversity in energy sources

Antimicrobial Stewardship in Daily Practice: Managing an Important Resource

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nicole Le Saux

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Antimicrobial stewardship is a recent concept that embodies the practical, judicious use of antimicrobials to decrease adverse outcomes from antimicrobials while optimizing the treatment of bacterial infections to reduce the emergence of resistant pathogens. The objectives of the present statement are to illustrate the principles of antimicrobial stewardship and to offer practical examples of how to make antimicrobial stewardship part of everyday hospital and outpatient practice. Vital components of antimicrobial stewardship include appropriate testing to diagnose whether infections are viral or bacterial, and using clinical follow-up rather than antibiotics in cases in which the child is not very ill and uncertainty exists. Other specific, important actions include questioning whether positive urine cultures are contaminated when there is no evidence of pyuria or inflammatory changes, and obtaining a chest radiograph to support a diagnosis of bacterial pneumonia. Optimizing the choice and dosage of antimicrobials also reduces the probability of clinical failures and subsequent courses of antimicrobials. A list of common clinical scenarios to promote stewardship is included.

Nuclear materials stewardship: Our enduring mission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Isaacs, T.H.

1998-01-01

The US Department of Energy (DOE) and its predecessors have handled a remarkably wide variety of nuclear materials over the past 50 yr. Two fundamental changes have occurred that shape the current landscape regarding nuclear materials. If one recognizes the implications and opportunities, one sees that the stewardship of nuclear materials will be a fundamental and important job of the DOE for the foreseeable future. The first change--the breakup of the Soviet Union and the resulting end to the nuclear arms race--altered US objectives. Previously, the focus was on materials production, weapon design, nuclear testing, and stockpile enhancements. Now the attention is on dismantlement of weapons, excess special nuclear material inventories, accompanying increased concern over the protection afforded to such materials; new arms control measures; and importantly, maintenance of the safety and reliability of the remaining arsenal without testing. The second change was the raised consciousness and sense of responsibility for dealing with the environmental legacies of past nuclear arms programs. Recognition of the need to clean up radioactive contamination, manage the wastes, conduct current operations responsibly, and restore the environment have led to the establishment of what is now the largest program in the DOE. Two additional features add to the challenge and drive the need for recognition of nuclear materials stewardship as a fundamental, enduring, and compelling mission of the DOE. The first is the extraordinary time frames. No matter what the future of nuclear weapons and no matter what the future of nuclear power, the DOE will be responsible for most of the country's nuclear materials and wastes for generations. Even if the Yucca Mountain program is successful and on schedule, it will last more than 100 yr. Second, the use, management, and disposition of nuclear materials and wastes affect a variety of nationally important and diverse objectives, from national

A cost analysis of introducing an infectious disease specialist-guided antimicrobial stewardship in an area with relatively low prevalence of antimicrobial resistance.

Science.gov (United States)

Lanbeck, Peter; Ragnarson Tennvall, Gunnel; Resman, Fredrik

2016-07-27

Antimicrobial stewardship programs have been widely introduced in hospitals as a response to increasing antimicrobial resistance. Although such programs are commonly used, the long-term effects on antimicrobial resistance as well as societal economics are uncertain. We performed a cost analysis of an antimicrobial stewardship program introduced in Malmö, Sweden in 20 weeks 2013 compared with a corresponding control period in 2012. All direct costs and opportunity costs related to the stewardship intervention were calculated for both periods. Costs during the stewardship period were directly compared to costs in the control period and extrapolated to a yearly cost. Two main analyses were performed, one including only comparable direct costs (analysis one) and one including comparable direct and opportunity costs (analysis two). An extra analysis including all comparable direct costs including costs related to length of hospital stay (analysis three) was performed, but deemed as unrepresentative. According to analysis one, the cost per year was SEK 161 990 and in analysis two the cost per year was SEK 5 113. Since the two cohorts were skewed in terms of size and of infection severity as a consequence of the program, and since short-term patient outcomes have been demonstrated to be unchanged by the intervention, the costs pertaining to patient outcomes were not included in the analysis, and we suggest that analysis two provides the most correct cost calculation. In this analysis, the main cost drivers were the physician time and nursing time. A sensitivity analysis of analysis two suggested relatively modest variation under changing assumptions. The total yearly cost of introducing an infectious disease specialist-guided, audit-based antimicrobial stewardship in a department of internal medicine, including direct costs and opportunity costs, was calculated to be as low as SEK 5 113.

Development of an Evidence-Based Antimicrobial Stewardship Smartphone App in a Tertiary Academic Pediatric and Women’s Health Centre in Canada

OpenAIRE

Slayter, Kathryn; Turple, Jennifer; Comeau, Jeannette L; Top, Karina A; Langley, Joanne M; Mailman, Tim; Halperin, Scott A

2017-01-01

Abstract Background Smart phone use by medical professionals is ubiquitous. In a recent survey, > 90% of health care providers were interested in locally developed antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) and infectious diseases applications (“apps”). We describe the process by which our antimicrobial stewardship program (ASP) developed an app to provide guidance regarding empiric antimicrobial choice, and education about antimicrobials and pathogens, integrating local laboratory data. We also describ...

Deep-sea genetic resources: New frontiers for science and stewardship in areas beyond national jurisdiction

Science.gov (United States)

Harden-Davies, Harriet

2017-03-01

The deep-sea is a large source of marine genetic resources (MGR), which have many potential uses and are a growing area of research. Much of the deep-sea lies in areas beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJ), including 65% of the global ocean. MGR in ABNJ occupy a significant gap in the international legal framework. Access and benefit sharing of MGR is a key issue in the development of a new international legally-binding instrument under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) for the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity in ABNJ. This paper examines how this is relevant to deep-sea scientific research and identifies emerging challenges and opportunities. There is no internationally agreed definition of MGR, however, deep-sea genetic resources could incorporate any biological material including genes, proteins and natural products. Deep-sea scientific research is the key actor accessing MGR in ABNJ and sharing benefits such as data, samples and knowledge. UNCLOS provides the international legal framework for marine scientific research, international science cooperation, capacity building and marine technology transfer. Enhanced implementation could support access and benefit sharing of MGR in ABNJ. Deep-sea scientific researchers could play an important role in informing practical new governance solutions for access and benefit sharing of MGR that promote scientific research in ABNJ and support deep-sea stewardship. Advancing knowledge of deep-sea biodiversity in ABNJ, enhancing open-access to data and samples, standardisation and international marine science cooperation are significant potential opportunity areas.

The value of participatory development to support antimicrobial stewardship with a clinical decision support system

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Beerlage-de Jong, Nienke; Wentzel, Jobke; Hendrix, Ron; van Gemert-Pijnen, Lisette

2017-01-01

Background: Current clinical decision support systems (CDSSs) for antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs) are guideline- or expert-driven. They are focused on (clinical) content, not on supporting real-time workflow. Thus, CDSSs fail to optimally support prudent antimicrobial prescribing in daily

The value of participatory development to support antimicrobial stewardship with a clinical decision support system

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Beerlage-de Jong, Nienke; Wentzel, M.J.; Hendrix, Ron; van Gemert-Pijnen, Julia E.W.C.

Background Current clinical decision support systems (CDSSs) for antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs) are guideline- or expert-driven. They are focused on (clinical) content, not on supporting real-time workflow. Thus, CDSSs fail to optimally support prudent antimicrobial prescribing in daily

Multi-generational stewardship of plutonium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pillay, K.K.S.

1997-01-01

The post-cold war era has greatly enhanced the interest in the long-term stewardship of plutonium. The management of excess plutonium from proposed nuclear weapons dismantlement has been the subject of numerous intellectual discussions during the past several years. In this context, issues relevant to long-term management of all plutonium as a valuable energy resource are also being examined. While there are differing views about the future role of plutonium in the economy, there is a recognition of the environmental and health related problems and proliferation potentials of weapons-grade plutonium. The long-term management of plutonium as an energy resource will require a new strategy to maintain stewardship for many generations to come

Los Alamos neutron science center nuclear weapons stewardship and unique national scientific capabilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schoenberg, Kurt F.

2010-01-01

This presentation gives an overview of the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE) and its contributions to science and the nuclear weapons program. LANSCE is made of multiple experimental facilities (the Lujan Center, the Weapons Neutron Research facility (WNR), the Ultra-Cold Neutron facility (UCN), the proton Radiography facility (pRad) and the Isotope Production Facility (IPF)) served by the its kilometer long linear accelerator. Several research areas are supported, including materials and bioscience, nuclear science, materials dynamics, irradiation response and medical isotope production. LANSCE is a national user facility that supports researchers worldwide. The LANSCE Risk Mitigation program is currently in progress to update critical accelerator equipment to help extend the lifetime of LANSCE as a key user facility. The Associate Directorate of Business Sciences (ADBS) plays an important role in the continued success of LANSCE. This includes key procurement support, human resource support, technical writing support, and training support. LANSCE is also the foundation of the future signature facility MARIE (Matter-Radiation Interactions in Extremes).

Los Alamos neutron science center nuclear weapons stewardship and unique national scientific capabilities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schoenberg, Kurt F [Los Alamos National Laboratory

2010-12-15

This presentation gives an overview of the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE) and its contributions to science and the nuclear weapons program. LANSCE is made of multiple experimental facilities (the Lujan Center, the Weapons Neutron Research facility (WNR), the Ultra-Cold Neutron facility (UCN), the proton Radiography facility (pRad) and the Isotope Production Facility (IPF)) served by the its kilometer long linear accelerator. Several research areas are supported, including materials and bioscience, nuclear science, materials dynamics, irradiation response and medical isotope production. LANSCE is a national user facility that supports researchers worldwide. The LANSCE Risk Mitigation program is currently in progress to update critical accelerator equipment to help extend the lifetime of LANSCE as a key user facility. The Associate Directorate of Business Sciences (ADBS) plays an important role in the continued success of LANSCE. This includes key procurement support, human resource support, technical writing support, and training support. LANSCE is also the foundation of the future signature facility MARIE (Matter-Radiation Interactions in Extremes).

Laser Science and Technology Program Annual Report-2002 NIF Programs Directorate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hackel, L; Chen, H L

2003-01-01

The Laser Science and Technology (LSandT) Program's mission is to develop advanced lasers, optics, materials technologies, and applications to solve problems and create new capabilities of importance to the nation and the Laboratory. A top, near-term priority is to provide technical support in the deployment and upgrade of the National Ignition Facility (NIF). Our other program activities synergistically develop technologies that are consistent with the goals of the NIF Directorate and develop state-of-the-art capabilities. The primary objectives of LSandT activities in 2002 have been fourfold--(a) to support deployment of hardware and to enhance laser and optics performance for NIF, (b) to develop high-energy petawatt laser science and technology for the Department of Energy (DOE), (c) to develop advanced solid-state laser systems and optical components for the Department of Defense (DoD), and (d) to invent, develop, and deliver improved concepts and hardware for other government agencies and industry. LSandT activities during 2002 focused on seven major areas: (1) NIF Project-LSandT led major advances in the deployment of NIF Final Optics Assembly (FOA) and the development of 30.1 optics processing and treatment technologies to enhance NIF's operations and performance capabilities. (2) Stockpile Stewardship Program (SSP)-LSandT personnel continued development of ultrashort-pulse lasers and high-power, large-aperture optics for applications in SSP, extreme-field science and national defense. To enhance the high-energy petawatt (HEPW) capability in NIF, LSandT continued development of advanced compressor-grating and front-end laser technologies utilizing optical-parametric chirped-pulse amplification (OPCPA). (3) High-energy-density physics and inertial fusion energy-LSandT continued development of kW- to MW-class, diode-pumped, solid-state laser (DPSSL). (4) Department of Defense (DoD)-LSandT continued development of a 100 kw-class solid-state heat-capacity laser

Implementation of Rapid Molecular Infectious Disease Diagnostics: the Role of Diagnostic and Antimicrobial Stewardship.

Science.gov (United States)

Messacar, Kevin; Parker, Sarah K; Todd, James K; Dominguez, Samuel R

2017-03-01

New rapid molecular diagnostic technologies for infectious diseases enable expedited accurate microbiological diagnoses. However, diagnostic stewardship and antimicrobial stewardship are necessary to ensure that these technologies conserve, rather than consume, additional health care resources and optimally affect patient care. Diagnostic stewardship is needed to implement appropriate tests for the clinical setting and to direct testing toward appropriate patients. Antimicrobial stewardship is needed to ensure prompt appropriate clinical action to translate faster diagnostic test results in the laboratory into improved outcomes at the bedside. This minireview outlines the roles of diagnostic stewardship and antimicrobial stewardship in the implementation of rapid molecular infectious disease diagnostics. Copyright © 2017 American Society for Microbiology.

Los Alamos Neutron Science Center

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kippen, Karen Elizabeth [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)

2016-11-08

For more than 30 years the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE) has provided the scientific underpinnings in nuclear physics and material science needed to ensure the safety and surety of the nuclear stockpile into the future. In addition to national security research, the LANSCE User Facility has a vibrant research program in fundamental science, providing the scientific community with intense sources of neutrons and protons to perform experiments supporting civilian research and the production of medical and research isotopes. Five major experimental facilities operate simultaneously. These facilities contribute to the stockpile stewardship program, produce radionuclides for medical testing, and provide a venue for industrial users to irradiate and test electronics. In addition, they perform fundamental research in nuclear physics, nuclear astrophysics, materials science, and many other areas. The LANSCE User Program plays a key role in training the next generation of top scientists and in attracting the best graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, and early-career scientists. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) —the principal sponsor of LANSCE—works with the Office of Science and the Office of Nuclear Energy, which have synergistic long-term needs for the linear accelerator and the neutron science that is the heart of LANSCE.

A broader view of stewardship to achieve conservation and sustainability goals in South Africa

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jaco Barendse

2016-05-01

Full Text Available Stewardship is a popular term for the principles and actions aimed at improving sustainability and resilience of social-ecological systems at various scales and in different contexts. Participation in stewardship is voluntary, and is based on values of altruism and long-term benefits. At a global scale, "earth stewardship" is viewed as a successor to earlier natural resource management systems. However, in South Africa, stewardship is narrowly applied to biodiversity conservation agreements on private land. Using a broader definition of stewardship, we identify all potentially related schemes that may contribute to sustainability and conservation outcomes. Stewardship schemes and actors are represented as a social network and placed in a simple typology based on objectives, mechanisms of action and operational scales. The predominant type was biodiversity stewardship programmes. The main actors were environmental non-governmental organisations participating in prominent bioregional landscape partnerships, together acting as important "bridging organisations" within local stewardship networks. This bridging enables a high degree of collaboration between non-governmental and governmental bodies, especially provincial conservation agencies via mutual projects and conservation objectives. An unintended consequence may be that management accountability is relinquished or neglected by government because of inadequate implementation capacity. Other stewardship types, such as market-based and landscape initiatives, complemented primarily biodiversity ones, as part of national spatial conservation priorities. Not all schemes related to biodiversity, especially those involving common pool resources, markets and supply chains. Despite an apparent narrow biodiversity focus, there is evidence of diversification of scope to include more civic and community-level stewardship activities, in line with the earth stewardship metaphor.

Organizing urban ecosystem services through environmental stewardship governance in New York City

Science.gov (United States)

James J. Connolly; Erika S. Svendsen; Dana R. Fisher; Lindsay K. Campbell

2013-01-01

How do stewardship groups contribute to the management of urban ecosystem services? In this paper, we integrate the research on environmental stewardship with the social-ecological systems literature to explain how stewardship groups serve as bridge organizations between public agencies and civic organizations, working across scales and sectors to build the flexible...

Choosing Wisely Canada Students and Trainees Advocating for Resource Stewardship (STARS) campaign: a descriptive evaluation.

Science.gov (United States)

Cardone, Franco; Cheung, Daphne; Han, Angela; Born, Karen B; Alexander, Lisa; Levinson, Wendy; Wong, Brian M

2017-12-19

Resource stewardship is being increasingly recognized as an essential competency for physicians, but medical schools are just beginning to integrate this into education. We describe the evaluation of Choosing Wisely Canada's Students and Trainees Advocating for Resource Stewardship (STARS) campaign, a student-led campaign to advance resource stewardship education in medical schools across Canada. We evaluated the campaign 6 months after its launch, in November 2015. STARS students were administered a telephone survey eliciting a description of the initiatives that they had implemented or planned to implement at their schools to promote resource stewardship, and exploring their perceptions of facilitators of and barriers to successful implementation of their initiatives. We used a mixed-methods approach to analyze and summarize the data. Twenty-seven (82%) of the 33 eligible students representing all 17 medical schools responded. In 14 schools (82%), students led various local activities (e.g., interest groups, campaign weeks) to raise awareness about resource stewardship among medical students and faculty. Students contributed to curriculum change (both planned and implemented) at 10 schools (59%). Thematic analysis revealed key program characteristics that facilitated success (e.g., pan-Canadian student network, local faculty champion) as well as barriers to implementing change (e.g., complex processes to change curriculum, hierarchical nature of medical school). This student-led campaign, with support from local faculty and Choosing Wisely Canada staff, led to awareness-building activities and early curricula change at medical schools across Canada. Future plans will build on the initial momentum created by the STARS campaign to sustain and spread local initiatives. Copyright 2017, Joule Inc. or its licensors.

ESIP's Emerging Provenance and Context Content Standard Use Cases: Developing Examples and Models for Data Stewardship

Science.gov (United States)

Ramdeen, S.; Hills, D. J.

2013-12-01

Earth science data collections range from individual researchers' private collections to large-scale data warehouses, from computer-generated data to field or lab based observations. These collections require stewardship. Fundamentally, stewardship ensures long term preservation and the provision of access to the user community. In particular, stewardship includes capturing appropriate metadata and documentation--and thus the context of the data's creation and any changes they underwent over time --to enable data reuse. But scientists and science data managers must translate these ideas into practice. How does one balance the needs of current and (projected) future stakeholders? In 2011, the Data Stewardship Committee (DSC) of the Federation of Earth Science Information Partners (ESIP) began developing the Provenance and Context Content Standard (PCCS). As an emerging standard, PCCS provides a framework for 'what' must be captured or preserved as opposed to describing only 'how' it should be done. Originally based on the experiences of NASA and NOAA researchers within ESIP, the standard currently provides data managers with content items aligned to eight key categories. While the categories and content items are based on data life cycles of remote sensing missions, they can be generalized to cover a broader set of activities, for example, preservation of physical objects. These categories will include the information needed to ensure the long-term understandability and usability of earth science data products. In addition to the PCCS, the DSC is developing a series of use cases based on the perspectives of the data archiver, data user, and the data consumer that will connect theory and practice. These cases will act as specifications for developing PCCS-based systems. They will also provide for examination of the categories and content items covered in the PCCS to determine if any additions are needed to cover the various use cases, and also provide rationale and

Laser Science and Technology Program Update 2002

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hackel, L A; Chen, H L

2003-01-01

The Laser Science and Technology (LSandT) Program's mission is to develop advanced lasers, optics, materials technologies, and applications to solve problems and create new capabilities of importance to the nation and the Laboratory. A top, near-term priority is to provide technical support in the deployment and upgrade of the National Ignition Facility (NIF). Our other program activities synergistically develop technologies that are of interest to the NIF Directorate but outside the scope of the NIF funding. The primary objectives of LSandT activities in 2002 have been fourfold--(a) to support deployment of hardware and to enhance laser and optics performance for NIF, (b) to develop high-energy petawatt laser science and technology for the Department of Energy (DOE), (c) to develop advanced solid-state laser systems and optical components for the Department of Defense (DoD), and to invent develop, and deliver improved concepts and hardware for other government agencies and industry. Special efforts have been devoted to building and maintaining our capabilities in three technology areas: high-power short-pulse solid-state lasers, high-power optical materials, and applications of advanced lasers. LSandT activities during 2002 focused on seven major areas: (1) NIF Project--LSandT led major advances in the deployment of NIF Final Optics Assembly (FOA) and the development of 3ω optics processing and treatment technologies to enhance NIF's operations and performance capabilities. (2) Stockpile Stewardship Program (SSP)--LSandT personnel continued development of ultrashort-pulse lasers and high-power, large-aperture optics for applications in SSP, extreme-field science and national defense. To enhance the high-energy petawatt (HEPW) capability in NIF, LSandT continued development of advanced compressor-grating and front-end laser technologies utilizing optical-parametric chirped-pulse amplification (OPCPA). (3) High-energy-density physics and inertial fusion energy

The National Space Science and Technology Center's Education and Public Outreach Program

Science.gov (United States)

Cox, G. N.; Denson, R. L.

2004-12-01

The objective of the National Space Science and Technology Center's (NSSTC) Education and Public Outreach program (EPO) is to support K-20 education by coalescing academic, government, and business constituents awareness, implementing best business/education practices, and providing stewardship over funds and programs that promote a symbiotic relationship among these entities, specifically in the area of K-20 Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education. NSSTC EPO Program's long-term objective is to showcase its effective community-based integrated stakeholder model in support of STEM education and to expand its influence across the Southeast region for scaling ultimately across the United States. The Education and Public Outreach program (EPO) is coordinated by a supporting arm of the NSSTC Administrative Council called the EPO Council (EPOC). The EPOC is funded through federal, state, and private grants, donations, and in-kind contributions. It is comprised of representatives of NSSTC Research Centers, both educators and scientists from the Alabama Space Science and Technology Alliance (SSTA) member institutions, the Alabama Space Grant Consortium and the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center's (MSFC) Education Office. Through its affiliation with MSFC and the SSTA - a consortium of Alabama's research universities that comprise the NSSTC, EPO fosters the education and development of the next generation of Alabama scientists and engineers by coordinating activities at the K-20 level in cooperation with the Alabama Department of Education, the Alabama Commission on Higher Education, and Alabama's businesses and industries. The EPO program's primary objective is to be Alabama's premiere organization in uniting academia, government, and private industry by way of providing its support to the State and Federal Departments of Education involved in systemic STEM education reform, workforce development, and innovative uses of technology. The NSSTC EPO

Optimizing Antibiotic Use in Nursing Homes Through Antibiotic Stewardship.

Science.gov (United States)

Sloane, Philip D; Huslage, Kirk; Kistler, Christine E; Zimmerman, Sheryl

2016-01-01

Antibiotic stewardship is becoming a requirement for nursing homes. Programs should be interdisciplinary and multifaceted; should have support from nursing home administrators; and should aim to promote antibiotics only when needed, not just in case. Recommended components include use of evidence-based guidelines; ongoing monitoring of antibiotic prescriptions, cultures, and study results; monitoring of health outcomes; use of nursing home-specific antibiograms; regular reporting and feedback to medical providers and nurses; and education of residents and families. ©2016 by the North Carolina Institute of Medicine and The Duke Endowment. All rights reserved.

Benefits of a Biological Monitoring Program for Assessing Remediation Performance and Long-Term Stewardship - 12272

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Peterson, Mark [Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831 (United States)

2012-07-01

The Biological Monitoring and Abatement Program (BMAP) is a long-running program that was designed to evaluate biological conditions and trends in waters downstream of Department of Energy (DOE) facilities in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. BMAP monitoring has focused on aquatic pathways from sources to biota, which is consistent with the sites' clean water regulatory focus and the overall cleanup strategy which divided remediation areas into watershed administrative units. Specific programmatic goals include evaluating operational and legacy impacts to nearby streams and the effectiveness of implemented remediation strategies at the sites. The program is characterized by consistent, long-term sampling and analysis methods in a multidisciplinary and quantitative framework. Quantitative sampling has shown conclusively that at most Oak Ridge stream sites, fish and aquatic macro-invertebrate communities have improved considerably since the 1980s. Monitoring of mercury and PCBs in fish has shown that remedial and abatement actions have also improved stream conditions, although in some cases biological monitoring suggests further actions are needed. Follow-up investigations have been implemented by BMAP to identify sources or causes, consistent with an adaptive management approach. Biological monitoring results to date have not only been used to assess regulatory compliance, but have provided additional benefits in helping address other components of the DOE's mission, including facility operations, natural resource, and scientific goals. As a result the program has become a key measure of long-term trends in environmental conditions and of high value to the Oak Ridge environmental management community, regulators, and the public. Some of the BMAP lessons learned may be of value in the design, implementation, and application of other long-term monitoring and stewardship programs, and assist environmental managers in the assessment and prediction of the effectiveness of

Materials Science Programs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1990-03-01

The Division of Materials Sciences is located within the Department of Energy in the Office of Basic Energy Sciences. The Office of Basic Energy Sciences reports to the Director of the Office of Energy Research. The Director of this office is appointed by the President with Senate consent. The Director advises the Secretary on the physical research program; monitors the Department's R ampersand D programs; advises the Secretary on management of the laboratories under the jurisdiction of the Department, excluding those that constitute part of the nuclear weapon complex; and advises the Secretary on basic and applied research activities of the Department. The research covers a spectrum of scientific and engineering areas of interest to the Department of Energy and is conducted generally by personnel trained in the disciplines of Solid State Physics, Metallurgy, Ceramics, Chemistry, Polymers and Materials Science. The Materials Sciences Division supports basic research on materials properties and phenomena important to all energy systems. The aim is to provide the necessary base of materials knowledge required to advance the nation's energy programs. This report contains a listing of research underway in FY 1989 together with a convenient index to the Division's programs

From Cleanup to Stewardship. A companion report to Accelerating Cleanup: Paths to Closure and background information to support the scoping process required for the 1998 PEIS Settlement Study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

None, None

1999-10-01

Long-term stewardship is expected to be needed at more than 100 DOE sites after DOE's Environmental Management program completes disposal, stabilization, and restoration operations to address waste and contamination resulting from nuclear research and nuclear weapons production conducted over the past 50 years. From Cleanup to stewardship provides background information on the Department of Energy (DOE) long-term stewardship obligations and activities. This document begins to examine the transition from cleanup to long-term stewardship, and it fulfills the Secretary's commitment to the President in the 1999 Performance Agreement to provide a companion report to the Department's Accelerating Cleanup: Paths to Closure report. It also provides background information to support the scoping process required for a study on long-term stewardship required by a 1998 Settlement Agreement.

Aspen's Global 100: Beyond Grey Pinstripes 2009-2010--Preparing MBAs for Social and Environmental Stewardship

Science.gov (United States)

Aspen Institute, 2009

2009-01-01

Beyond Grey Pinstripes is a research survey and alternative ranking of business schools that spotlights innovative full-time MBA programs leading the way in integrating social and environmental stewardship into their curriculum and scholarly research. These schools are preparing today's students--tomorrow's leaders--for future market realities by…

Integrated Weed Control for Land Stewardship at Legacy Management's Rocky Flats Site in Colorado - 13086

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nelson, Jody K.

2013-01-01

Land stewardship is one of nine sustainability programs in the U.S. Department of Energy's Environmental Management System. Land stewardship includes maintaining and improving ecosystem health. At the Rocky Flats Site near Westminster, Colorado, land stewardship is an integral component of the Office of Legacy Management's post-closure monitoring and management at the site. Nearly 263 hectares (650 acres) were disturbed and re-vegetated during site cleanup and closure operations. Proactive management of revegetation areas is critical to the successful reestablishment of native grasslands, wetlands, and riparian communities. The undisturbed native plant communities that occur at the site also require active management to maintain the high-quality wetlands and other habitats that are home to numerous species of birds and other wildlife such as elk and deer, rare plant communities, and the federally listed threatened Preble's meadow jumping mouse. Over the past several decades, an increase of Noxious weeds has impacted much of Colorado's Front Range. As a result, weed control is a key component of the land stewardship program at Rocky Flats. Thirty-three species of state-listed Noxious weeds are known to occur in the Central and Peripheral Operable Units at Rocky Flats, along with another five species that are considered invasive at the site. Early detection and rapid response to control new invasive species is crucial to the program. An integrated weed control/vegetation management approach is key to maintaining healthy, sustainable plant communities that are able to resist Noxious weed invasions. Weed mapping, field surveys, and field-staff training sessions (to learn how to identify new potential problem species) are conducted to help detect and prevent new weed problems. The integrated approach at Rocky Flats includes administrative and cultural techniques (prevention), mechanical controls, biological controls, and chemical controls. Several species of biocontrol

Collaboration in long-term stewardship at DOE Hanford Site

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Moren, R. J.; Zeisloft, J. H.; Feist, E. T.; Brown, D.; Grindstaff, K. D.

2013-01-10

The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Hanford Site comprises approximately 1,517 km{sup 2} (586 mi{sup 2}) of land in southeastern Washington. The site was established in 1943 as part of the Manhattan Project to produce plutonium for the nation's nuclear weapons program. As the Cold War era came to an end, the mission of the site transitioned from weapons production to environmental cleanup. As the River Corridor area of the site cleanup is completed, the mission for that portion of the site will transition from active cleanup to continued protection of environment through the Long-Term Stewardship (LTS) Program. The key to successful transition from cleanup to LTS is the unique collaboration among three (3) different DOE Programs and three (3) different prime contractors with each contractor having different contracts. The LTS Program at the site is a successful model of collaboration resulting in efficient resolution of issues and accelerated progress that supports DOE's Richland Office 2015 Vision for the Hanford Site. The 2015 Vision for the Hanford Site involves shrinking the active cleanup footprint of the surface area of the site to approximately 20 mi{sup 2} on the Central Plateau. Hanford's LTS Program is defined in DOE's planning document, Hanford Long-Term Stewardship Program Plan, DOE/RL-2010-35 Rev 1. The Plan defines the relationship and respective responsibilities between the federal cleanup projects and the LTS Program along with their respective contractors. The LTS Program involves these different parties (cleanup program and contractors) who must work together to achieve the objective for transition of land parcels. Through the collaborative efforts with the prime contractors on site over the past two years, 253.8 km{sup 2} (98 mi{sup 2}) of property has been successfully transitioned from the cleanup program to the LTS Program upon completion of active surface cleanup. Upcoming efforts in the near term will include transitioning another large

Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement for Stockpile Stewardship and Management: Volume 3, Appendix I, Appendix J, Appendix K

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-02-01

In response to the end of the Cold War and changes in the world's political regimes, United States is no longer producing new nuclear weapons. Instead, the US nuclear weapons program is reducing the size of the nuclear stockpile by dismantling existing weapons. DOE has been directed to maintain the safety and reliability of the reduced nuclear weapons stockpile in the absence of underground testing. Therefore, DOE has developed a stewardship and management program to provide a single highly integrated technical program. The stockpile stewardship portion of the PEIS evaluates the potential impacts of three proposed facilities: the National Ignition Facility, the Contained Firing facility, and the Atlas Facility. This volume contains appendices for these 3 facilities; alternatives affecting LANL, LLNL, SNL, and NTS are addressed. Impacts on land resources, site infrastructure, air qualaity, water resources, geology and soils, biotic resources, cultural resources, etc., are evaluated. This PEIS presents unclassified information only

Government stewardship of the for-profit private health sector in Afghanistan.

Science.gov (United States)

Cross, Harry E; Sayedi, Omarzaman; Irani, Laili; Archer, Lauren C; Sears, Kathleen; Sharma, Suneeta

2017-04-01

Since 2003, Afghanistan's largely unregulated for-profit private health sector has grown at a rapid pace. In 2008, the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) launched a long-term stewardship initiative to oversee and regulate private providers and align the sector with national health goals. We examine the progress the MoPH has made towards more effective stewardship, consider the challenges and assess the early impacts on for-profit performance. We reviewed publicly available documents, publications and the grey literature to analyse the development, adoption and implementation of strategies, policies and regulations. We carried out a series of key informant/participant interviews, organizational capacity assessments and analyses of hospital standards checklists. Using a literature review of health systems strengthening, we proposed an Afghan-specific definition of six key stewardship functions to assess progress towards MoPH stewardship objectives. The MoPH and its partners have achieved positive results in strengthening its private sector stewardship functions especially in generating actionable intelligence and establishing strategic policy directions, administrative structures and a legal and regulatory framework. Progress has also been made on improving accountability and transparency, building partnerships and applying minimum required standards to private hospitals. Procedural and operational issues still need resolution and the MoPH is establishing mechanisms for resolving them. The MoPH stewardship initiative is notable for its achievements to date under challenging circumstances. Its success is due to the focus on developing a solid policy framework and building institutions and systems aimed at ensuring higher quality private services, and a rational long-term and sustainable role for the private sector. Although the MoPH stewardship initiative is still at an early stage, the evidence suggests that enhanced stewardship functions in the MoPH are leading to a

ICASE Computer Science Program

Science.gov (United States)

1985-01-01

The Institute for Computer Applications in Science and Engineering computer science program is discussed in outline form. Information is given on such topics as problem decomposition, algorithm development, programming languages, and parallel architectures.

Antimicrobial stewardship: Limits for implementation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sinha, Bhanu

2014-01-01

Antibiotic stewardship programme (ASP) is a multifaceted approach to improve patients' clinical outcomes, prevent the emergence of antimicrobial resistance, and reduce hospital costs by prudent and focused antimicrobial use. Development of local treatment guidelines according to local ecology, rapid

Collaboration in Long-Term Stewardship at DOE's Hanford Site - 13019

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moren, Rick; Brown, David; Feist, Ella; Grindstaff, Keith; Zeisloft, Jamie

2013-01-01

The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Hanford Site comprises approximately 1,517 km 2 (586 mi 2 ) of land in southeastern Washington. The site was established in 1943 as part of the Manhattan Project to produce plutonium for the nation's nuclear weapons program. As the Cold War era came to an end, the mission of the site transitioned from weapons production to environmental cleanup. As the River Corridor area of the site cleanup is completed, the mission for that portion of the site will transition from active cleanup to continued protection of environment through the Long-Term Stewardship (LTS) Program. The key to successful transition from cleanup to LTS is the unique collaboration among three (3) different DOE Programs and three (3) different prime contractors with each contractor having different contracts. The LTS Program at the site is a successful model of collaboration resulting in efficient resolution of issues and accelerated progress that supports DOE's Richland Office 2015 Vision for the Hanford Site. The 2015 Vision for the Hanford Site involves shrinking the active cleanup footprint of the surface area of the site to approximately 20 mi 2 on the Central Plateau. Hanford's LTS Program is defined in DOE's planning document, Hanford Long-Term Stewardship Program Plan [1]. The Plan defines the relationship and respective responsibilities between the federal cleanup projects and the LTS Program along with their respective contractors. The LTS Program involves these different parties (cleanup program and contractors) who must work together to achieve the objective for transition of land parcels. Through the collaborative efforts with the prime contractors on site over the past two years,, 253.8 km 2 (98 mi 2 ) of property has been successfully transitioned from the cleanup program to the LTS Program upon completion of active surface cleanup. Upcoming efforts in the near term will include transitioning another large parcel that includes one of the six (6

Stewardship Reporting in the DOD Agency-Wide Financial Statements for FY 1998

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

1999-01-01

...; heritage assets, stewardship land, and stewardship investments were presented on the financial statements accurately and in accordance with generally accepted accounting standards for Federal agencies...

Decreased antimicrobial resistance and defined daily doses after implementation of a clinical culture-guided antimicrobial stewardship program in a local hospital

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chang-Teng Wu

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Background: We aimed to report the implementation of an antimicrobial stewardship program (ASP guided by clinically significant cultures in a hospital to assess its pharmaceutical, microbiological, financial, and outcome effects. Methods: A 3-year cohort study of an antimicrobial restriction policy implementation was performed. The ASP with culture-guided de-escalation of antibiotics was instituted in a local hospital since January 1, 2012. The cost of antimicrobials, defined daily dose (DDD, susceptibility to antimicrobials, and outcome of all admitted patients were calculated and evaluated before and after the ASP implementation. Results: Average monthly length of stay of admitted patients decreased from 7.8 ± 0.5 days in 2011 to 6.9 ± 0.3 days in 2013 (p < 0.001. The average monthly cost of antimicrobials decreased 46.9% from US$30,146.8 in 2011 to US$16,021.3 in 2013 (p < 0.001. Total intravenous antimicrobial DDDs per 100 bed-days of the inpatients were 66.9, 54.1 and 48.4 in 2011, 2012 and 2013, respectively. A total of 18.6 DDDs per 100 bed-days of inpatients (27.7% decreased from 2011 to 2013. By comparing data in 2013 to those in 2011, the ASP reduced antimicrobial resistance of Gram-positive bacteria (p = 0.013, Gram-negative bacteria (p < 0.001, and predominant species (all p < 0.05. The yearly mortality also decreased from 1.3% in 2011 to 1.1% in 2012 and 1.0% in 2013. Conclusions: The ASP with a culture-guided de-escalation of antibiotics successfully reduced length of stay, mortality, the cost of antimicrobials, DDDs, and antimicrobial resistance rate, and that is highly recommended for local hospitals. Keywords: antimicrobial resistance, antimicrobial restriction policy, antimicrobial stewardship program, defined daily dose

Antimicrobial Stewardship in Acute Care Centres: A Survey of 68 Hospitals in Quebec

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vincent Nault

2008-01-01

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs and quantitative monitoring of antimicrobial use are required to ensure that antimicrobials are used appropriately in the acute care setting, and have the potential to reduce costs and limit the spread of antimicrobial-resistant organisms and Clostridium difficile. Currently, it is not known what proportion of Quebec hospitals have an ASP and/or monitor antimicrobial use.

Behavioral approach to appropriate antimicrobial prescribing in hospitals: the Dutch Unique Method for Antimicrobial Stewardship (DUMAS) participatory intervention study.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sikkens, J.J.; Agtmael, M.A. van; Peters, E.J.G.; Lettinga, K.D.; Kuip, M. van der; Vandenbroucke-Grauls, C.M.J.E.; Wagner, C.; Kramer, M.H.H.

2017-01-01

Importance: Inappropriate antimicrobial prescribing leads to antimicrobial resistance and suboptimal clinical outcomes. Changing antimicrobial prescribing is a complex behavioral process that is not often taken into account in antimicrobial stewardship programs. Objective: To examine whether an

STEWARDSHIP: A Conceptual Imperative For Managerial ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

resources for the management of the health sector. (Stewardship of ... of health sector development and performance. Examples of ... attempt at health sector decentralization and improving ... organizations could create inherent limitations on.

Microbiological surveillance and antimicrobial stewardship minimise ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Microbiological surveillance and antimicrobial stewardship minimise the need for ultrabroad-spectrum combination therapy for treatment of nosocomial infections in a trauma intensive care unit: An audit of an evidence-based empiric antimicrobial policy.

Mash-up of techniques between data crawling/transfer, data preservation/stewardship and data processing/visualization technologies on a science cloud system designed for Earth and space science: a report of successful operation and science projects of the NICT Science Cloud

Science.gov (United States)

Murata, K. T.

2014-12-01

Data-intensive or data-centric science is 4th paradigm after observational and/or experimental science (1st paradigm), theoretical science (2nd paradigm) and numerical science (3rd paradigm). Science cloud is an infrastructure for 4th science methodology. The NICT science cloud is designed for big data sciences of Earth, space and other sciences based on modern informatics and information technologies [1]. Data flow on the cloud is through the following three techniques; (1) data crawling and transfer, (2) data preservation and stewardship, and (3) data processing and visualization. Original tools and applications of these techniques have been designed and implemented. We mash up these tools and applications on the NICT Science Cloud to build up customized systems for each project. In this paper, we discuss science data processing through these three steps. For big data science, data file deployment on a distributed storage system should be well designed in order to save storage cost and transfer time. We developed a high-bandwidth virtual remote storage system (HbVRS) and data crawling tool, NICTY/DLA and Wide-area Observation Network Monitoring (WONM) system, respectively. Data files are saved on the cloud storage system according to both data preservation policy and data processing plan. The storage system is developed via distributed file system middle-ware (Gfarm: GRID datafarm). It is effective since disaster recovery (DR) and parallel data processing are carried out simultaneously without moving these big data from storage to storage. Data files are managed on our Web application, WSDBank (World Science Data Bank). The big-data on the cloud are processed via Pwrake, which is a workflow tool with high-bandwidth of I/O. There are several visualization tools on the cloud; VirtualAurora for magnetosphere and ionosphere, VDVGE for google Earth, STICKER for urban environment data and STARStouch for multi-disciplinary data. There are 30 projects running on the NICT

A system simulation to enhance stockpile stewardship (ASSESS)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yoshimura, A.S.; Plantenga, T.D.; Napolitano, L.M.; Johnson, M.M.

1997-01-01

This paper describes the ASSESS project, whose goal is to construct a policy driven enterprise simulation of the DOE nuclear weapons complex (DOE/NWC). ASSESS encompasses the full range of stockpile stewardship activities by incorporating simulation component models that are developed and managed by local experts. ASSESS runs on a heterogeneous distributed computing environment and implements multi-layered user access capabilities. ASSESS allows the user to create hypothetical policies governing stockpile stewardship, simulate the resulting operation of the DOE/NWC, and analyze the relative impact of each policy

A study of science leadership and science standards in exemplary standards-based science programs

Science.gov (United States)

Carpenter, Wendy Renae

The purpose for conducting this qualitative study was to explore best practices of exemplary standards-based science programs and instructional leadership practices in a charter high school and in a traditional high school. The focus of this study included how twelve participants aligned practices to National Science Education Standards to describe their science programs and science instructional practices. This study used a multi-site case study qualitative design. Data were obtained through a review of literature, interviews, observations, review of educational documents, and researcher's notes collected in a field log. The methodology used was a multi-site case study because of the potential, through cross analysis, for providing greater explanation of the findings in the study (Merriam, 1988). This study discovered six characteristics about the two high school's science programs that enhance the literature found in the National Science Education Standards; (a) Culture of expectations for learning-In exemplary science programs teachers are familiar with a wide range of curricula. They have the ability to examine critically and select activities to use with their students to promote the understanding of science; (b) Culture of varied experiences-In exemplary science programs students are provided different paths to learning, which help students, take in information and make sense of concepts and skills that are set forth by the standards; (c) Culture of continuous feedback-In exemplary science programs teachers and students work together to engage students in ongoing assessments of their work and that of others as prescribed in the standards; (d) Culture of Observations-In exemplary science programs students, teachers, and principals reflect on classroom instructional practices; teachers receive ongoing evaluations about their teaching and apply feedback towards improving practices as outlined in the standards; (e) Culture of continuous learning-In exemplary

"Nuestra Tierra Dinamica" Global Climate Change STEM Education Fostering Environmental Stewardship

Science.gov (United States)

La Grave, M.; de Valenzuela, M.; Russell, R.

2012-12-01

CLUB ECO LÓGICO is a democratic and participatory program that provides active citizenship in schools and community, placing climate change into context for the Latino Community. The program's objectives focus on: 1. The Environment. Reducing the school and community impact on the environment through environmental footprint through stewardship actions. 2. Empowerment. Engaging participants through project and service learning and make decisions about how to improve their schools, their homes and their community's environment. 3. Community and Research Partnerships. Fostering collaborations with local community, stakeholders, government, universities, research organizations, and businesses that have expertise in environmental research, management, education and climate change. 4. Awareness. Increasing environmental and climate science knowledge of participants through STEM activities and hands-on access to technology. 5. Research and evaluation. Assessing the relevance of program activities through the engagement of the Latino community in planning and the effectiveness and impact of STEM activities through formative and summative evaluation. To address these objectives, the program has several inter related components in an after school setting: SUN EARTH Connections: Elementary (grades K to 2) students learn the basic climate change concepts through inquiry and hands on STEM activities. Bilingual 8 facilitators adapt relevant NASA educational resources for use in inquiry based, hands on activities. Drama and the arts provide unique experiences as well as play a key role in learning, participation and facilitation. GREEN LABS: Elementary students (grades 3 to 5) participate in stations where each Lab is staffed by at least two professionals: a College level fully bilingual Latin American Professional and a stakeholder representing either a research organization or other relevant environmental organization. Our current Green Lab themes include: Air, Soils, Water

Collaboration in long-term stewardship at DOE Hanford Site-13019

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moren, R. J.; Zeisloft, J. H.; Feist, E. T.; Brown, D.; Grindstaff, K. D.

2013-01-01

The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Hanford Site comprises approximately 1,517 km 2 (586 mi 2 ) of land in southeastern Washington. The site was established in 1943 as part of the Manhattan Project to produce plutonium for the nation's nuclear weapons program. As the Cold War era came to an end, the mission of the site transitioned from weapons production to environmental cleanup. As the River Corridor area of the site cleanup is completed, the mission for that portion of the site will transition from active cleanup to continued protection of environment through the Long-Term Stewardship (LTS) Program. The key to successful transition from cleanup to LTS is the unique collaboration among three (3) different DOE Programs and three (3) different prime contractors with each contractor having different contracts. The LTS Program at the site is a successful model of collaboration resulting in efficient resolution of issues and accelerated progress that supports DOE's Richland Office 2015 Vision for the Hanford Site. The 2015 Vision for the Hanford Site involves shrinking the active cleanup footprint of the surface area of the site to approximately 20 mi 2 on the Central Plateau. Hanford's LTS Program is defined in DOE's planning document, Hanford Long-Term Stewardship Program Plan, DOE/RL-2010-35 Rev 1. The Plan defines the relationship and respective responsibilities between the federal cleanup projects and the LTS Program along with their respective contractors. The LTS Program involves these different parties (cleanup program and contractors) who must work together to achieve the objective for transition of land parcels. Through the collaborative efforts with the prime contractors on site over the past two years, 253.8 km 2 (98 mi 2 ) of property has been successfully transitioned from the cleanup program to the LTS Program upon completion of active surface cleanup. Upcoming efforts in the near term will include transitioning another large parcel that includes one

The cost-benefit of federal investment in preventing Clostridium difficile infections through the use of a multifaceted infection control and antimicrobial stewardship program.

Science.gov (United States)

Slayton, Rachel B; Scott, R Douglas; Baggs, James; Lessa, Fernanda C; McDonald, L Clifford; Jernigan, John A

2015-06-01

To determine the potential epidemiologic and economic value of the implementation of a multifaceted Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) control program at US acute care hospitals Markov model with a 5-year time horizon Patients whose data were used in our simulations were limited to hospitalized Medicare beneficiaries ≥65 years old. CDI is an important public health problem with substantial associated morbidity, mortality, and cost. Multifaceted national prevention efforts in the United Kingdom, including antimicrobial stewardship, patient isolation, hand hygiene, environmental cleaning and disinfection, and audit, resulted in a 59% reduction in CDI cases reported from 2008 to 2012. Our analysis was conducted from the federal perspective. The intervention we modeled included the following components: antimicrobial stewardship utilizing the Antimicrobial Use and Resistance module of the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN), use of contact precautions, and enhanced environmental cleaning. We parameterized our model using data from CDC surveillance systems, the AHRQ Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project, and literature reviews. To address uncertainty in our parameter estimates, we conducted sensitivity analyses for intervention effectiveness and cost, expenditures by other federal partners, and discount rate. Each simulation represented a cohort of 1,000 hospitalized patients over 1,000 trials. RESULTS In our base case scenario with 50% intervention effectiveness, we estimated that 509,000 CDI cases and 82,000 CDI-attributable deaths would be prevented over a 5-year time horizon. Nationally, the cost savings across all hospitalizations would be $2.5 billion (95% credible interval: $1.2 billion to $4.0 billion). The potential benefits of a multifaceted national CDI prevention program are sizeable from the federal perspective.

2003 Stewardship progress report : committed to continuous improvement

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2003-12-01

The stewardship initiative is a mandatory requirement for members of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP). It involves performance management and benchmarking, voluntary audits and verification, as well as training and improved communication inside and outside the industry. This fourth annual progress report describes the environment, health, safety and socio-economic stewardship initiative. This report presents an aggregate of industry performance. Stewardship of Excellence awards were presented in 2003, celebrating outstanding performance by members who demonstrated their commitment to responsible development and continuous improvement within a business framework. The awards were presented in three categories, namely environment, health and safety, and socio-economic. Northrock Resources was presented with the award in the environment category for its voluntary waste gas reduction. The health and safety recognition went to Burlington Resources Canada Ltd. for superior office ergonomics, while the award in the socio-economic category was presented to Suncor Energy Inc. for Aboriginal business development. A brief overview of the achievements of each of these three companies was presented. tabs., figs.

Student science enrichment training program

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sandhu, S.S.

1994-08-01

This is a report on the Student Science Enrichment Training Program, with special emphasis on chemical and computer science fields. The residential summer session was held at the campus of Claflin College, Orangeburg, SC, for six weeks during 1993 summer, to run concomitantly with the college`s summer school. Fifty participants selected for this program, included high school sophomores, juniors and seniors. The students came from rural South Carolina and adjoining states which, presently, have limited science and computer science facilities. The program focused on high ability minority students, with high potential for science engineering and mathematical careers. The major objective was to increase the pool of well qualified college entering minority students who would elect to go into science, engineering and mathematical careers. The Division of Natural Sciences and Mathematics and engineering at Claflin College received major benefits from this program as it helped them to expand the Departments of Chemistry, Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science as a result of additional enrollment. It also established an expanded pool of well qualified minority science and mathematics graduates, which were recruited by the federal agencies and private corporations, visiting Claflin College Campus. Department of Energy`s relationship with Claflin College increased the public awareness of energy related job opportunities in the public and private sectors.

Integrated Weed Control for Land Stewardship at Legacy Management's Rocky Flats Site in Colorado - 13086

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nelson, Jody K. [Stoller LMS Team, Contractor to the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Legacy Management, 11025 Dover Street, Suite 1000, Westminster, Colorado 80021 (United States)

2013-07-01

Land stewardship is one of nine sustainability programs in the U.S. Department of Energy's Environmental Management System. Land stewardship includes maintaining and improving ecosystem health. At the Rocky Flats Site near Westminster, Colorado, land stewardship is an integral component of the Office of Legacy Management's post-closure monitoring and management at the site. Nearly 263 hectares (650 acres) were disturbed and re-vegetated during site cleanup and closure operations. Proactive management of revegetation areas is critical to the successful reestablishment of native grasslands, wetlands, and riparian communities. The undisturbed native plant communities that occur at the site also require active management to maintain the high-quality wetlands and other habitats that are home to numerous species of birds and other wildlife such as elk and deer, rare plant communities, and the federally listed threatened Preble's meadow jumping mouse. Over the past several decades, an increase of Noxious weeds has impacted much of Colorado's Front Range. As a result, weed control is a key component of the land stewardship program at Rocky Flats. Thirty-three species of state-listed Noxious weeds are known to occur in the Central and Peripheral Operable Units at Rocky Flats, along with another five species that are considered invasive at the site. Early detection and rapid response to control new invasive species is crucial to the program. An integrated weed control/vegetation management approach is key to maintaining healthy, sustainable plant communities that are able to resist Noxious weed invasions. Weed mapping, field surveys, and field-staff training sessions (to learn how to identify new potential problem species) are conducted to help detect and prevent new weed problems. The integrated approach at Rocky Flats includes administrative and cultural techniques (prevention), mechanical controls, biological controls, and chemical controls. Several

Materials Sciences Programs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1977-01-01

A compilation and index of the ERDA materials sciences program is presented. This compilation is intended for use by administrators, managers, and scientists to help coordinate research and as an aid in selecting new programs

FY 2015 - Stockpile Stewardship and Management Plan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

None

2014-04-01

This Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) Fiscal Year Stockpile Stewardship and Management Plan (SSMP) is a key planning document for the nuclear security enterprise.

FY 2016 - Stockpile Stewardship and Management Plan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

None

2015-03-01

This Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) Fiscal Year Stockpile Stewardship and Management Plan (SSMP) is a key planning document for the nuclear security enterprise.

76 FR 11243 - Solicitation of Input From Stakeholders To Inform the National Framework for Electronics Stewardship

Science.gov (United States)

2011-03-01

... Stakeholders To Inform the National Framework for Electronics Stewardship AGENCY: Environmental Protection... inform the national framework for electronics stewardship that is being developed by the Interagency Task Force on Electronics Stewardship. On November 15, 2010, President Obama signed a presidential...

Stewardship of climate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brown, P.G.

1997-01-01

A trustee is someone who cares for a resource on behalf of another. In the case of climate, one generation cares for the climate and the myriad things climate effects on behalf of subsequent generations. This article offers reasons for accepting trusteeship as a framework for thinking about climate change; discusses what trustee duties are: considers their implications for the construction of an economics of stewardship; shows how tradeoffs would be assessed within this framework, and points towards a reconceptualization of international relations based on these ideas. 1 ref

Without Testing: Stockpile Stewardship in the Second Nuclear Age

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Martz, Joseph C. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)

2014-01-07

Stockpile stewardship is a topic dear to my heart. I’ve been fascinated by it, and I’ve lived it—mostly on the technical side but also on the policy side from 2009 to 2010 at Stanford University as a visiting scholar and the inaugural William J. Perry Fellow. At Stanford I worked with Perry, former secretary of defense, and Sig Hecker, former Los Alamos Lab director (1986–1997), looking at nuclear deterrence, nuclear policy, and stockpile stewardship and at where all this was headed.

Collaboration in Long-Term Stewardship at DOE's Hanford Site - 13019

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Moren, Rick; Brown, David [Mission Support Alliance, LLC, Richland, WA (United States); Feist, Ella [Washington Closure Hanford, LLC, Richland WA (United States); Grindstaff, Keith; Zeisloft, Jamie [US Department of Energy, Richland Operations, Richland WA (United States)

2013-07-01

The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Hanford Site comprises approximately 1,517 km{sup 2} (586 mi{sup 2}) of land in southeastern Washington. The site was established in 1943 as part of the Manhattan Project to produce plutonium for the nation's nuclear weapons program. As the Cold War era came to an end, the mission of the site transitioned from weapons production to environmental cleanup. As the River Corridor area of the site cleanup is completed, the mission for that portion of the site will transition from active cleanup to continued protection of environment through the Long-Term Stewardship (LTS) Program. The key to successful transition from cleanup to LTS is the unique collaboration among three (3) different DOE Programs and three (3) different prime contractors with each contractor having different contracts. The LTS Program at the site is a successful model of collaboration resulting in efficient resolution of issues and accelerated progress that supports DOE's Richland Office 2015 Vision for the Hanford Site. The 2015 Vision for the Hanford Site involves shrinking the active cleanup footprint of the surface area of the site to approximately 20 mi{sup 2} on the Central Plateau. Hanford's LTS Program is defined in DOE's planning document, Hanford Long-Term Stewardship Program Plan [1]. The Plan defines the relationship and respective responsibilities between the federal cleanup projects and the LTS Program along with their respective contractors. The LTS Program involves these different parties (cleanup program and contractors) who must work together to achieve the objective for transition of land parcels. Through the collaborative efforts with the prime contractors on site over the past two years,, 253.8 km{sup 2} (98 mi{sup 2}) of property has been successfully transitioned from the cleanup program to the LTS Program upon completion of active surface cleanup. Upcoming efforts in the near term will include transitioning another

RIS4E Science Journalism Program

Science.gov (United States)

Whelley, N.; Bleacher, L.; Jones, A. P.; Bass, E.; Bleacher, J. E.; Firstman, R.; Glotch, T. D.; Young, K.

2017-12-01

NASA's Remote, In-Situ, and Synchrotron Studies for Science and Exploration (RIS4E) team addresses the goals of the Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute via four themes, one of which focuses on evaluating the role of handheld and portable field instruments for human exploration. The RIS4E Science Journalism Program highlights science in an innovative way: by instructing journalism students in the basics of science reporting and then embedding them with scientists in the field. This education program is powerful because it is deeply integrated within a science program, strongly supported by the science team and institutional partners, and offers an immersive growth experience for learners, exposing them to cutting edge NASA research and field technology. This program is preparing the next generation of science journalists to report on complex science accurately and effectively. The RIS4E Science Journalism Program consists of two components: a semester-long science journalism course and a reporting trip in the field. First, students participate in the RIS4E Science Journalism Practicum offered by the Stony Brook University School of Journalism. Throughout the semester, students learn about RIS4E science from interactions with the RIS4E science team, through classroom visits, one-on-one interviews, and tours of laboratories. At the conclusion of the course, several students, along with a professor and a teaching assistant, join the RIS4E team during the field season. The journalism students observe the entire multi-day field campaign, from set-up, to data collection and analysis, and investigation of questions that arise as a result of field discoveries. They watch the scientists formulate and test hypotheses in real time. The field component for the 2017 RIS4E Science Journalism Program took journalism students to the Potrillo Volcanic Field in New Mexico for a 10-day field campaign. Student feedback was overwhelmingly positive. They gained experience

The Global Alliance for Infections in Surgery: defining a model for antimicrobial stewardship-results from an international cross-sectional survey

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sartelli, M.; Labricciosa, F.M.; Barbadoro, P.; Pagani, L.; Ansaloni, L.; Brink, A.J.; Carlet, J.; Khanna, A.; Chichom-Mefire, A.; Coccolini, F.; Saverio, S. Di; May, A.K.; Viale, P.; Watkins, R.R.; Scudeller, L.; Abbo, L.M.; Abu-Zidan, F.M.; Adesunkanmi, A.K.; Al-Dahir, S.; Al-Hasan, M.N.; Alis, H.; Alves, C.; Araujo da Silva, A.R.; Augustin, G.; Bala, M.; Barie, P.S.; Beltran, M.A.; Bhangu, A.; Bouchra, B.; Brecher, S.M.; Cainzos, M.A.; Camacho-Ortiz, A.; Catani, M.; Chandy, S.J.; Jusoh, A.C.; Cherry-Bukowiec, J.R.; Chiara, O.; Colak, E.; Cornely, O.A.; Cui, Y.; Demetrashvili, Z.; Simone, B. De; Waele, J.J. De; Dhingra, S.; Marzo, F. Di; Dogjani, A.; Dorj, G.; Dortet, L.; Duane, T.M.; Elmangory, M.M.; Enani, M.A.; Ferrada, P.; Esteban Foianini, J.; Gachabayov, M.; Gandhi, C.; Ghnnam, W.M.; Giamarellou, H.; Gkiokas, G.; Gomi, H.; Goranovic, T.; Griffiths, E.A.; Guerra Gronerth, R.I.; Haidamus Monteiro, J.C.; Hardcastle, T.C.; Hecker, A.; Hodonou, A.M.; Ioannidis, O.; Isik, A.; Iskandar, K.A.; Kafil, H.S.; Kanj, S.S.; Kaplan, L.J.; Kapoor, G.; Karamarkovic, A.R.; Kenig, J.; Kerschaever, I.; Khamis, F.; Khokha, V.; Kiguba, R.; Kim, H.B.; Ko, W.C.; Koike, K.; Kozlovska, I.; Kumar, A.; Lagunes, L.; Latifi, R.; Lee, J.G.; Lee, Y.R.; Leppaniemi, A.; Li, Y.; Liang, S.Y.; Lowman, W.; Machain, G.M.; Maegele, M.; Major, P.; Malama, S.; Manzano-Nunez, R.; Marinis, A.; Casas, I.; Goor, H. van; Zuidema, W.P.; Catena, F.

2017-01-01

BACKGROUND: Antimicrobial Stewardship Programs (ASPs) have been promoted to optimize antimicrobial usage and patient outcomes, and to reduce the emergence of antimicrobial-resistant organisms. However, the best strategies for an ASP are not definitively established and are likely to vary based on

Communicating the value and benefits of silviculture through partnerships and collaborative stewardship

Science.gov (United States)

1997-01-01

Opening comments to this session share observations on the current management climate within the USDA Forest Service. Partnerships and collaborative stewardship as agency philosophy are discussed. Silviculturists roles, as scientists and managers are compared, and the need for internal and external cooperation stressed as we strive to meet forest stewardship goals....

Strategies and challenges of antimicrobial stewardship in long-term care facilities.

Science.gov (United States)

Dyar, O J; Pagani, L; Pulcini, C

2015-01-01

As people are living longer the demand for long-term care facilities (LTCFs) continues to rise. For many reasons, antimicrobials are used intensively in LTCFs, with up to a half of this use considered inappropriate or unnecessary. Over-use of antimicrobials can have direct adverse consequences for LTCF residents and promotes the development and spread of resistant bacteria. It is therefore critical that LTCFs are able to engage in antimicrobial stewardship programmes, which have the potential to minimize the antibiotic selective pressure, while improving the quality of care received by LTCF residents. To date, no antimicrobial stewardship guidelines specific to LTCF settings have been published. Here we outline the scale of antimicrobial use in LTCFs and the underlying drivers for antibiotic over-use. We further describe the particular challenges of antimicrobial stewardship in LTCFs, and review the interventional studies that have aimed to improve antibiotic use in these settings. Practical recommendations are then drawn from this research to help guide the development and implementation of antimicrobial stewardship programmes. Copyright © 2014 European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Antecedents and consequences of environmental stewardship in boundary-spanning B2B teams

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ruyter, de J.C.; Jong, de A.; Wetzels, M.G.M.

2009-01-01

The authors examine antecedents and consequences of environmental stewardship in frontline business-to-business teams. On the basis of data from members of 34 teams organized into regional networks, they demonstrate the differential impact of team environmental stewardship on customer satisfaction

Current evidence on hospital antimicrobial stewardship objectives : A systematic review and meta-analysis

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Schuts, Emelie C.; Hulscher, Marlies E J L; Mouton, Johan W.; Verduin, Cees M.; Stuart, James W T Cohen; Overdiek, Hans W P M; van der Linden, Paul D.; Natsch, Stephanie; Hertogh, Cees M P M; Wolfs, Tom F W; Schouten, Jeroen A.; Kullberg, Bart Jan; Prins, Jan M.

2016-01-01

BACKGROUND: Antimicrobial stewardship is advocated to improve the quality of antimicrobial use. We did a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess whether antimicrobial stewardship objectives had any effects in hospitals and long-term care facilities on four predefined patients' outcomes:

Current evidence on hospital antimicrobial stewardship objectives: a systematic review and meta-analysis

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Schuts, E.C.; Hulscher, M.E.J.L.; Mouton, J.W.; Verduin, C.M.; Stuart, J.W.; Overdiek, H.W.; Linden, P.D. van der; Natsch, S.S.; Hertogh, C.M.; Wolfs, T.F.; Schouten, J.A.; Kullberg, B.J.; Prins, J.M.

2016-01-01

BACKGROUND: Antimicrobial stewardship is advocated to improve the quality of antimicrobial use. We did a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess whether antimicrobial stewardship objectives had any effects in hospitals and long-term care facilities on four predefined patients' outcomes:

ICMR programme on Antibiotic Stewardship, Prevention of Infection & Control (ASPIC).

Science.gov (United States)

Chandy, Sujith J; Michael, Joy Sarojini; Veeraraghavan, Balaji; Abraham, O C; Bachhav, Sagar S; Kshirsagar, Nilima A

2014-02-01

Antimicrobial resistance and hospital infections have increased alarmingly in India. Antibiotic stewardship and hospital infection control are two broad strategies which have been employed globally to contain the problems of resistance and infections. For this to succeed, it is important to bring on board the various stakeholders in hospitals, especially the clinical pharmacologists. The discipline of clinical pharmacology needs to be involved in themes such as antimicrobial resistance and hospital infection which truly impact patient care. Clinical pharmacologists need to collaborate with faculty in other disciplines such as microbiology to achieve good outcomes for optimal patient care in the hospital setting. The ASPIC programme was initiated by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) in response to the above need and was designed to bring together faculty from clinical pharmacology, microbiology and other disciplines to collaborate on initiating and improving antibiotic stewardship and concurrently curbing hospital infections through feasible infection control practices. This programme involves the participation of 20 centres per year throughout the country which come together for a training workshop. Topics pertaining to the above areas are discussed in addition to planning a project which helps to improve antibiotic stewardship and infection control practices in the various centres. It is hoped that this programme would empower hospitals and institutions throughout the country to improve antibiotic stewardship and infection control and ultimately contain antimicrobial resistance.

Promoting Environmental Stewardship through Project Based Learning (PBL)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Borhan, Mohamad Termizi Bin; Ismail, Zurida

2011-01-01

of our fellow communities: human, plant or animal. It is grounded in an understanding of the importance of environmental quality and natural resources to the human race and the effects of human actions on the environment. Thus, it is important to provide relevant educational experiences that involve......Environmental stewardship is living responsibly as a caretaker of the environment for the benefit of present and future generations and is quickly becoming one of the most pressing public priorities for communities today. As stewards, we are personally responsible for the care and preservation......-service teachers enrolled in a chemistry teaching methods course participated in this study. The pre-service teachers were in their third year of the teacher education program. Data were collected through questionnaires containing Likert-type items designed to assess the degree of environmental concern...

Current evidence on hospital antimicrobial stewardship objectives: a systematic review and meta-analysis

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Schuts, Emelie C.; Hulscher, Marlies E. J. L.; Mouton, Johan W.; Verduin, Cees M.; Stuart, James W. T. Cohen; Overdiek, Hans W. P. M.; van der Linden, Paul D.; Natsch, Stephanie; Hertogh, Cees M. P. M.; Wolfs, Tom F. W.; Schouten, Jeroen A.; Kullberg, Bart Jan; Prins, Jan M.

2016-01-01

Antimicrobial stewardship is advocated to improve the quality of antimicrobial use. We did a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess whether antimicrobial stewardship objectives had any effects in hospitals and long-term care facilities on four predefined patients' outcomes: clinical outcomes,

Towards Materials Sustainability through Materials Stewardship

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christopher D. Taylor

2016-10-01

Full Text Available Materials sustainability requires a concerted change in philosophy across the entire materials lifecycle, orienting around the theme of materials stewardship. In this paper, we address the opportunities for improved materials conservation through dematerialization, durability, design for second life, and diversion of waste streams through industrial symbiosis.

A Unified Framework for Measuring Stewardship Practices Applied to Digital Environmental Datasets

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ge Peng

2015-01-01

Full Text Available This paper presents a stewardship maturity assessment model in the form of a matrix for digital environmental datasets. Nine key components are identified based on requirements imposed on digital environmental data and information that are cared for and disseminated by U.S. Federal agencies by U.S. law, i.e., Information Quality Act of 2001, agencies’ guidance, expert bodies’ recommendations, and users. These components include: preservability, accessibility, usability, production sustainability, data quality assurance, data quality control/monitoring, data quality assessment, transparency/traceability, and data integrity. A five-level progressive maturity scale is then defined for each component associated with measurable practices applied to individual datasets, representing Ad Hoc, Minimal, Intermediate, Advanced, and Optimal stages. The rationale for each key component and its maturity levels is described. This maturity model, leveraging community best practices and standards, provides a unified framework for assessing scientific data stewardship. It can be used to create a stewardship maturity scoreboard of dataset(s and a roadmap for scientific data stewardship improvement or to provide data quality and usability information to users, stakeholders, and decision makers.

Effect of antibiotic stewardship on the incidence of infection and colonisation with antibiotic-resistant bacteria and Clostridium difficile infection: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Baur, David; Gladstone, Beryl Primrose; Burkert, Francesco; Carrara, Elena; Foschi, Federico; Döbele, Stefanie; Tacconelli, Evelina

2017-09-01

Antibiotic stewardship programmes have been shown to reduce antibiotic use and hospital costs. We aimed to evaluate evidence of the effect of antibiotic stewardship on the incidence of infections and colonisation with antibiotic-resistant bacteria. For this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched PubMed, the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and Web of Science for studies published from Jan 1, 1960, to May 31, 2016, that analysed the effect of antibiotic stewardship programmes on the incidence of infection and colonisation with antibiotic-resistant bacteria and Clostridium difficile infections in hospital inpatients. Two authors independently assessed the eligibility of trials and extracted data. Studies involving long-term care facilities were excluded. The main outcomes were incidence ratios (IRs) of target infections and colonisation per 1000 patient-days before and after implementation of antibiotic stewardship. Meta-analyses were done with random-effect models and heterogeneity was calculated with the I 2 method. We included 32 studies in the meta-analysis, comprising 9 056 241 patient-days and 159 estimates of IRs. Antibiotic stewardship programmes reduced the incidence of infections and colonisation with multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (51% reduction; IR 0·49, 95% CI 0·35-0·68; pdifficile infections (32%; 0·68, 0·53-0·88; p=0·0029). Antibiotic stewardship programmes were more effective when implemented with infection control measures (IR 0·69, 0·54-0·88; p=0·0030), especially hand-hygiene interventions (0·34, 0·21-0·54; pinfections and colonisation with antibiotic-resistant bacteria and C difficile infections in hospital inpatients. These results provide stakeholders and policy makers with evidence for implementation of antibiotic stewardship interventions to reduce the burden of infections from antibiotic-resistant bacteria. German Center for Infection Research

Defining antimicrobial stewardship competencies for undergraduate health professional education in the United Kingdom: A study protocol.

Science.gov (United States)

Courtenay, Molly; Castro-Sánchez, Enrique; Deslandes, Rhian; Hodson, Karen; Lim, Rosemary; Morris, Gary; Reeves, Scott; Weiss, Marjorie

2018-04-16

Multi-drug resistant infections have been identified as one of the greatest threats to human health. Healthcare professionals are involved in an array of patient care activities for which an understanding of antimicrobial stewardship is important. Although antimicrobial prescribing and stewardship competencies have been developed for healthcare professionals who adopt the role of a prescriber, competencies do not exist for other medicine-related stewardship activities. Undergraduate education provides an ideal opportunity to prepare healthcare professionals for these roles and activities. This report presents a protocol for a study designed to provide national consensus on antimicrobial stewardship competencies appropriate for undergraduate healthcare professional education. A modified Delphi process will be used in which a panel of Experts, comprising members from across the United Kingdom, with expertise in prescribing and medicines management with regard to the education and practice of healthcare professionals, and antimicrobial prescribing and stewardship, will be invited to take part in two survey rounds. The competencies developed will be applicable to all undergraduate healthcare professional education programmes. They will help to standardise curricula content and enhance the impact of antimicrobial stewardship education.

Framework for Springs Stewardship Program and proposed action development: Spring Mountains National Recreation Area, Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest

Science.gov (United States)

Marc Coles-Ritchie; Stephen J. Solem; Abraham E. Springer; Burton Pendleton

2014-01-01

In the desert Southwest, springs are an important ecological feature and serve as a focal point for both biological and human interactions on the landscape. As a result, attention has been placed on the stewardship and protection of these important resources. Management has traditionally focused on the more accessible and heavily used eastern canyons within the Spring...

Sandia Dynamic Materials Program Strategic Plan.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Flicker, Dawn Gustine [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Benage, John F. [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Desjarlais, Michael P. [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Knudson, Marcus D. [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Leifeste, Gordon T. [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Lemke, Raymond W. [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Mattsson, Thomas [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Wise, Jack L. [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)

2017-05-01

Materials in nuclear and conventional weapons can reach multi-megabar pressures and 1000s of degree temperatures on timescales ranging from microseconds to nanoseconds. Understanding the response of complex materials under these conditions is important for designing and assessing changes to nuclear weapons. In the next few decades, a major concern will be evaluating the behavior of aging materials and remanufactured components. The science to enable the program to underwrite decisions quickly and confidently on use, remanufacturing, and replacement of these materials will be critical to NNSA’s new Stockpile Responsiveness Program. Material response is also important for assessing the risks posed by adversaries or proliferants. Dynamic materials research, which refers to the use of high-speed experiments to produce extreme conditions in matter, is an important part of NNSA’s Stockpile Stewardship Program.

FY 2014 - Stockpile and Stewardship and Management Plan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

None

2013-06-01

This Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) Fiscal Year Stockpile Stewardship and Management Plan (SSMP) is a key planning document for the nuclear security enterprise.

Optimizing adherence to advice from antimicrobial stewardship audit and feedback rounds.

Science.gov (United States)

Rawlins, Matthew D M; Sanfilippo, Frank M; Ingram, Paul R; McLellan, Duncan G J; Crawford, Colin; D'Orsogna, Luca; Dyer, John

2018-02-01

We examined adherence to antimicrobial stewardship prospective audit and feedback rounds in a rehabilitation service compared with the remainder of the acute hospital, and explored the reasons for this. Between October 2014 and December 2015, we retrospectively assessed the rate of non-adherence to advice from antimicrobial stewardship prospective audit and feedback rounds between the rehabilitation service and the acute hospital, along with the source of the patient referral. Compared with the rehabilitation service, acute hospital medical staff were almost twice as likely to not adhere to advice provided on antimicrobial stewardship prospective audit and feedback rounds (13.8% vs. 7.6%, p risk 1.8 [95% confidence interval 1.3, 2.5]). In the rehabilitation service, referrals were more likely to come from medical staff (61.9% vs. 16.3%, p model potentially applicable to other settings.

Sustained pediatric antimicrobial stewardship program with consultation to infectious diseases reduced carbapenem resistance and infection-related mortality.

Science.gov (United States)

Horikoshi, Yuho; Suwa, Junichi; Higuchi, Hiroshi; Kaneko, Tetsuji; Furuichi, Mihoko; Aizawa, Yuta; Fukuoka, Kahoru; Okazaki, Kaoru; Ito, Kenta; Shoji, Takayo

2017-11-01

The impact of pediatric antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASP) on antimicrobial resistance (AMR) remains largely unknown. This study aimed to evaluate the AMR for carbapenem of Gram-negative bacilli (GNB) and carbapenem use with infectious diseases consultation after the implementation of an ASP. This quasi-experimental study was conducted at Tokyo Metropolitan Children's Medical Center in Japan. The pre- and post-intervention periods were April 2010 to September 2011 and October 2011 to March 2017, respectively. The pre-intervention phase consisted of consultations with the infectious diseases service alone. The ASP was implemented during the post-intervention phase. The carbapenem resistance rates of GNB were calculated. The correlation between carbapenem resistance rates and carbapenem day of therapy (DOT) was examined. The outcome metrics were compared by average length of hospitalization, all-cause mortality, and infection-related mortality. A positive correlation was observed between the carbapenem resistance rate in Pseudomonas aeruginosa and DOT (0.76, p=0.04). The carbapenem resistance rate in P. aeruginosa (pcarbapenem use and resistance in P. aeruginosa, leading to favorable outcomes in terms of length of hospitalization and infection-related mortality. Copyright © 2017 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

NASA's computer science research program

Science.gov (United States)

Larsen, R. L.

1983-01-01

Following a major assessment of NASA's computing technology needs, a new program of computer science research has been initiated by the Agency. The program includes work in concurrent processing, management of large scale scientific databases, software engineering, reliable computing, and artificial intelligence. The program is driven by applications requirements in computational fluid dynamics, image processing, sensor data management, real-time mission control and autonomous systems. It consists of university research, in-house NASA research, and NASA's Research Institute for Advanced Computer Science (RIACS) and Institute for Computer Applications in Science and Engineering (ICASE). The overall goal is to provide the technical foundation within NASA to exploit advancing computing technology in aerospace applications.

Materials sciences programs, Fiscal year 1997

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1998-10-01

The Division of Materials Sciences is responsible for basic research and research facilities in materials science topics important to the mission of the Department of Energy. The programmatic divisions under the Office of Basic Energy Sciences are Chemical Sciences, Engineering and Geosciences, and Energy Biosciences. Materials Science is an enabling technology. The performance parameters, economics, environmental acceptability and safety of all energy generation, conversion, transmission and conservation technologies are limited by the properties and behavior of materials. The Materials Sciences programs develop scientific understanding of the synergistic relationship among synthesis, processing, structure, properties, behavior, performance and other characteristics of materials. Emphasis is placed on the development of the capability to discover technologically, economically, and environmentally desirable new materials and processes, and the instruments and national user facilities necessary for achieving such progress. Materials Sciences subfields include: physical metallurgy, ceramics, polymers, solid state and condensed matter physics, materials chemistry, surface science and related disciplines where the emphasis is on the science of materials. This report includes program descriptions for 517 research programs including 255 at 14 DOE National Laboratories, 262 research grants (233 of which are at universities), and 29 Small Business Innovation Research Grants. Five cross-cutting indices located at the rear of this book identify all 517 programs according to principal investigator(s), materials, techniques, phenomena, and environment.

Product Stewardship in Uranium: A Way for the Industry to Demonstrate its High Performance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Harris, Frank

2014-01-01

Conclusions: • Product stewardship is an means for communicating the high performance on health, safety and environment of the nuclear fuel cycle including uranium mining. • It has been effective with other products and is appropriate for uranium. • Can be a vehicle for addressing public concerns across the industry. • Due to uranium’s unique characteristics it has the potential to be a best practice example of product stewardship. • Work is underway in the international arena to progress uranium product stewardship and it represent a unique opportunity to provide whole of industry benefits

Program overview: Subsurface science program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-03-01

The OHER Subsurface Science Program is DOE's core basic research program concerned with subsoils and groundwater. These practices have resulted in contamination by mixtures of organic chemicals, inorganic chemicals, and radionuclides. A primary long-term goal is to provide a foundation of knowledge that will lead to the reduction of environmental risks and to cost-effective cleanup strategies. Since the Program was initiated in 1985, a substantial amount of research in hydrogeology, subsurface microbiology, and the geochemistry of organically complexed radionuclides has been completed, leading to a better understanding of contaminant transport in groundwater and to new insights into microbial distribution and function in the subsurface environments. The Subsurface Science Program focuses on achieving long-term scientific advances that will assist DOE in the following key areas: providing the scientific basis for innovative in situ remediation technologies that are based on a concept of decontamination through benign manipulation of natural systems; understanding the complex mechanisms and process interactions that occur in the subsurface; determining the influence of chemical and geochemical-microbial processes on co-contaminant mobility to reduce environmental risks; improving predictions of contaminant transport that draw on fundamental knowledge of contaminant behavior in the presence of physical and chemical heterogeneities to improve cleanup effectiveness and to predict environmental risks

Data Stewardship in the Ocean Sciences Needs to Include Physical Samples

Science.gov (United States)

Carter, M.; Lehnert, K.

2016-02-01

Across the Ocean Sciences, research involves the collection and study of samples collected above, at, and below the seafloor, including but not limited to rocks, sediments, fluids, gases, and living organisms. Many domains in the Earth Sciences have recently expressed the need for better discovery, access, and sharing of scientific samples and collections (EarthCube End-User Domain workshops, 2012 and 2013, http://earthcube.org/info/about/end-user-workshops), as has the US government (OSTP Memo, March 2014). iSamples (Internet of Samples in the Earth Sciences) is a Research Coordination Network within the EarthCube program that aims to advance the use of innovative cyberinfrastructure to support and advance the utility of physical samples and sample collections for science and ensure reproducibility of sample-based data and research results. iSamples strives to build, grow, and foster a new community of practice, in which domain scientists, curators of sample repositories and collections, computer and information scientists, software developers and technology innovators engage in and collaborate on defining, articulating, and addressing the needs and challenges of physical samples as a critical component of digital data infrastructure. A primary goal of iSamples is to deliver a community-endorsed set of best practices and standards for the registration, description, identification, and citation of physical specimens and define an actionable plan for implementation. iSamples conducted a broad community survey about sample sharing and has created 5 different working groups to address the different challenges of developing the internet of samples - from metadata schemas and unique identifiers to an architecture for a shared cyberinfrastructure to manage collections, to digitization of existing collections, to education, and ultimately to establishing the physical infrastructure that will ensure preservation and access of the physical samples. Repositories that curate

A state-stewardship view on executive compensation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Liang, Hao; Renneboog, Luc; Li Sun, Sunny; Choi, J.; Powers, M.; Zhang, X.

2016-01-01

We take a state-stewardship view on the corporate governance model and executive compensation policies in economies with strong political involvement. In such a highly politically-oriented institutional environment, the business elites are not just professional managers but are also de facto

FWP executive summaries: Basic energy sciences materials sciences programs

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Samara, G.A.

1996-02-01

This report provides an Executive Summary of the various elements of the Materials Sciences Program which is funded by the Division of Materials Sciences, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, U.S. Department of Energy at Sandia National Laboratories, New Mexico.

Antimicrobial Stewardship and Urinary Tract Infections

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lilian M. Abbo

2014-05-01

Full Text Available Urinary tract infections are the most common bacterial infections encountered in ambulatory and long-term care settings in the United States. Urine samples are the largest single category of specimens received by most microbiology laboratories and many such cultures are collected from patients who have no or questionable urinary symptoms. Unfortunately, antimicrobials are often prescribed inappropriately in such patients. Antimicrobial use, whether appropriate or inappropriate, is associated with the selection for antimicrobial-resistant organisms colonizing or infecting the urinary tract. Infections caused by antimicrobial-resistant organisms are associated with higher rates of treatment failures, prolonged hospitalizations, increased costs and mortality. Antimicrobial stewardship consists of avoidance of antimicrobials when appropriate and, when antimicrobials are indicated, use of strategies to optimize the selection, dosing, route of administration, duration and timing of antimicrobial therapy to maximize clinical cure while limiting the unintended consequences of antimicrobial use, including toxicity and selection of resistant microorganisms. This article reviews successful antimicrobial stewardship strategies in the diagnosis and treatment of urinary tract infections.

Airport Capital Improvement Planning: Stewardship for Airport Development

Science.gov (United States)

1997-09-01

"Airport Capital Improvement Planning: Stewardship for Airport Development", was : originally written in October, 1995. It documented an effort to implement the : concept of capital improvement planning with the airport development industry. : Airpor...

The Changing Role of Data Stewardship in Creating Trustworthy, Interdisciplinary High Performance Data Platforms for the Future.

Science.gov (United States)

Richards, C. J.; Evans, B. J. K.; Wyborn, L. A.; Wang, J.; Trenham, C. E.; Druken, K. A.

2016-12-01

The Australian National Computational Infrastructure (NCI) has ingested over 10PB of national and international environmental, Earth systems science and geophysics reference data onto a single platform to advance high performance data (HPD) techniques that enable interdisciplinary Data-intensive Science. Improved Data Stewardship is critical to evolve both data and data services that support the increasing need for programmatic usability and that prioritises interoperability rather than just traditional data download or portal access. A data platform designed for programmatic access requires quality checked collections that better utilise interoperable data formats and standards. Achieving this involves strategies to meet both the technical and `social' challenges. Aggregating datasets used by different communities and organisations requires satisfying multiple use cases for the broader research community, whilst addressing existing BAU requirements. For NCI, this requires working with data stewards to manage the process of replicating data to the common platform, community representatives and developers to confirm their requirements, and with international peers to better enable globally integrated data communities. It is particularly important to engage with representatives from each community who can work collaboratively to a common goal, as well as capture their community needs, apply quality assurance, determine any barriers to change and to understand priorities. This is critical when managing the aggregation of data collections from multiple producers with different levels of stewardship maturity, technologies and standards, and where organisational barriers can impact the transformation to interoperable and performant data access. To facilitate the management, development and operation of the HPD platform, NCI coordinates technical and domain committees made up of user representatives, data stewards and informatics experts to provide a forum to discuss

Program summaries for 1979: energy sciences programs

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1979-12-01

This report describes the objectives of the various research programs being conducted by the Chemical Sciences, Metallurgy and Materials Science, and Process Science divisions of the BNL Dept. of Energy and Environment. Some of the more significant accomplishments during 1979 are also reported along with plans for 1980. Some of the topics under study include porphyrins, combustion, coal utilization, superconductors, semiconductors, coal, conversion, fluidized-bed combustion, polymers, etc. (DLC)

Exploring Girls' Science Affinities Through an Informal Science Education Program

Science.gov (United States)

Todd, Brandy; Zvoch, Keith

2017-10-01

This study examines science interests, efficacy, attitudes, and identity—referred to as affinities, in the context of an informal science outreach program for girls. A mixed methods design was used to explore girls' science affinities before, during, and after participation in a cohort-based summer science camp. Multivariate analysis of survey data revealed that girls' science affinities varied as a function of the joint relationship between family background and number of years in the program, with girls from more affluent families predicted to increase affinities over time and girls from lower income families to experience initial gains in affinities that diminish over time. Qualitative examination of girls' perspectives on gender and science efficacy, attitudes toward science, and elements of science identities revealed a complex interplay of gendered stereotypes of science and girls' personal desires to prove themselves knowledgeable and competent scientists. Implications for the best practice in fostering science engagement and identities in middle school-aged girls are discussed.

Integrating human and natural systems in community psychology: an ecological model of stewardship behavior.

Science.gov (United States)

Moskell, Christine; Allred, Shorna Broussard

2013-03-01

Community psychology (CP) research on the natural environment lacks a theoretical framework for analyzing the complex relationship between human systems and the natural world. We introduce other academic fields concerned with the interactions between humans and the natural environment, including environmental sociology and coupled human and natural systems. To demonstrate how the natural environment can be included within CP's ecological framework, we propose an ecological model of urban forest stewardship action. Although ecological models of behavior in CP have previously modeled health behaviors, we argue that these frameworks are also applicable to actions that positively influence the natural environment. We chose the environmental action of urban forest stewardship because cities across the United States are planting millions of trees and increased citizen participation in urban tree planting and stewardship will be needed to sustain the benefits provided by urban trees. We used the framework of an ecological model of behavior to illustrate multiple levels of factors that may promote or hinder involvement in urban forest stewardship actions. The implications of our model for the development of multi-level ecological interventions to foster stewardship actions are discussed, as well as directions for future research to further test and refine the model.

The DOE/NREL Environmental Science Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Douglas R. Lawson; Michael Gurevich

2001-01-01

This paper summarizes the several of the studies in the Environmental Science Program being sponsored by DOE's Office of Heavy Vehicle Technologies (OHVT) through the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). The goal of the Environmental Science Program is to understand atmospheric impacts and potential health effects that may be caused by the use of petroleum-based fuels and alternative transportation fuels from mobile sources. The Program is regulatory-driven, and focuses on ozone, airborne particles, visibility and regional haze, air toxics, and health effects of air pollutants. Each project in the Program is designed to address policy-relevant objectives. Current projects in the Environmental Science Program have four areas of focus: improving technology for emissions measurements; vehicle emissions measurements; emission inventory development/improvement; ambient impacts, including health effects

The DOE/NREL Environmental Science Program

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Douglas R. Lawson; Michael Gurevich

2001-05-14

This paper summarizes the several of the studies in the Environmental Science Program being sponsored by DOE's Office of Heavy Vehicle Technologies (OHVT) through the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). The goal of the Environmental Science Program is to understand atmospheric impacts and potential health effects that may be caused by the use of petroleum-based fuels and alternative transportation fuels from mobile sources. The Program is regulatory-driven, and focuses on ozone, airborne particles, visibility and regional haze, air toxics, and health effects of air pollutants. Each project in the Program is designed to address policy-relevant objectives. Current projects in the Environmental Science Program have four areas of focus: improving technology for emissions measurements; vehicle emissions measurements; emission inventory development/improvement; ambient impacts, including health effects.

[REDUCTION OF ANTIBIOTIC CONSUMPTION IN RAMBAM HEALTH CARE CAMPUS - THE ROLE OF AN ANTIBIOTIC STEWARDSHIP PROGRAM].

Science.gov (United States)

Bitterman, Roni; Raz-Pasteur, Ayelet; Azzam, Zaher S; Karban, Amir; Levy, Yishai; Hayek, Tony; Braun, Eyal; Oren, Ilana; Bar-Lavi, Yaron; Kassis, Imad; Hussein, Khetam; Paul, Mical

2017-09-01

Antibiotic stewardship programs (ASP) are designed to optimize antibiotic use in hospitals. Antibiotic consumption is one of the measures assessing the effects of ASPs. To evaluate the effect of an ASP on antibiotic consumption in our hospital and compare it to hospitals in Israel and worldwide. Between October 2012 and March 2013 an ASP was implemented in Rambam Hospital. The program included educational activities, publication of local guidelines for empirical antibiotic treatment, structured infectious diseases consultations, pre-authorization antibiotic restrictions and stop orders. We compared antibacterial antibiotic consumption in defined daily doses (DDD)/100 hospital days (HD) between the periods before (1/2010-3/2013) and after (4/2013-9/2014) implementing the ASP. The study was conducted in the medical departments, hematology, the intensive care unit (ICU) and all pediatric wards. Total antibiotic consumption before implementing the ASP was 96±11.2 DDD/100 HD in medical departments, 186.4±42.8 in the ICU and 185.5±59 in hematology; all values were higher than the worldwide-reported averages for these departments. Following the ASP, total antibiotic consumption decreased by 12% (p=0.008) in the medical departments and by 26% (p=0.002) in hematology, mostly due to reductions in non-restricted antibiotics. No significant changes were observed overall in the ICU and in pediatric wards. There was a significant reduction in consumption of vancomycin and carbapenems in all settings, the latter was reduced to nearly half. Amikacin use quadrupled in the medical departments. Implementation of an ASP lead to a reduction in non-restricted and restricted antibiotic consumption, especially carbapenems.

Resilience design: toward a synthesis of cognition, learning, and collaboration for adaptive problem solving in conservation and natural resource stewardship

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Charles G. Curtin

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Through the resilience design approach, I propose to extend the resilience paradigm by re-examining the components of adaptive decision-making and governance processes. The approach can be divided into three core components: (1 equity design, i.e., the integration of collaborative approaches to conservation and adaptive governance that generates effective self-organization and emergence in conservation and natural resource stewardship; (2 process design, i.e., the generation of more effective knowledge through strategic development of information inputs; and (3 outcome design, i.e., the pragmatic synthesis of the previous two approaches, generating a framework for developing durable and dynamic conservation and stewardship. The design of processes that incorporate perception and learning is critical to generating durable solutions, especially in developing linkages between wicked social and ecological challenges. Starting from first principles based on human cognition, learning, and collaboration, coupled with nearly two decades of practical experience designing and implementing ecosystem-level conservation and restoration programs, I present how design-based approaches to conservation and stewardship can be achieved. This context is critical in helping practitioners and resources managers undertake more effective policy and practice.

Environmental Management Science Program Workshop. Proceedings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

None

1998-07-01

The Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management (EM), in partnership with the Office of Energy Research (ER), designed, developed, and implemented the Environmental Management Science Program as a basic research effort to fund the scientific and engineering understanding required to solve the most challenging technical problems facing the government's largest, most complex environmental cleanup program. The intent of the Environmental Management Science Program is to: (1) Provide scientific knowledge that will revolutionize technologies and cleanup approaches to significantly reduce future costs, schedules, and risks. (2) Bridge the gap between broad fundamental research that has wide-ranging applications such as that performed in the Department's Office of Energy Research and needs-driven applied technology development that is conducted in Environmental Management's Office of Science and Technology. (3) Focus the nation's science infrastructure on critical Department of Energy environmental problems. In an effort to share information regarding basic research efforts being funded by the Environmental Management Science Program and the Environmental Management/Energy Research Pilot Collaborative Research Program (Wolf-Broido Program), this CD includes summaries for each project. These project summaries, available in portable document format (PDF), were prepared in the spring of 1998 by the principal investigators and provide information about their most recent project activities and accomplishments.

Planning for the Transition to Long-Term Stewardship at Three U.S. Department of Energy-Chicago Operations Office Facilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moos, L. P.; Ditmars, J. D.; Heston, S. L.; Granzen, G. A.; Holzemer, M. J.; Bennett, D. B.

2003-01-01

This paper describes a pilot study that resulted in the generation of draft planning documents for the upcoming transition from remediation construction to long-term stewardship at three national laboratories managed by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)-Chicago Operations Office (CH). The remediation construction work at these facilities is being completed under the DOE's Office of Environmental Management (EM) Program. Once the remediation is complete, the responsibility for long-term stewardship (LTS) of the closed waste sites is expected to be transferred to the DOE organization responsible for managing each of the three facilities (i.e., the site landlord). To prepare for this transfer, an extensive planning effort is required. This pilot study utilized the DOE guidance in effect at the time to (1) develop a series of documents identifying applicable requirements that the LTS Programs will need to satisfy, issues that need to be resolved before the transfer can proceed, and criteria to be used to determine when active remediation is complete and a given site is ready for transfer to the LTS Program; (2) examine alternate structures for possible LTS Programs; and (3) develop draft LTS Implementation Plans. This advanced planning effort yielded a number of observations and lessons learned that are applicable to any facility approaching the end of its remediation construction phase

Predicting volunteer commitment in environmental stewardship programmes

Science.gov (United States)

Robert L. Ryan; Rachel Kaplan; Robert E. Grese

2001-01-01

The natural environment benefits greatly from the work of volunteers in environmental stewardship programmes. However, little is known about volunteers' motivations for continued participation in these programmes. This study looked at the relationship between volunteer commitment and motivation, as well as the effect that volunteering has on participants'...

Livermore Accelerator Source for Radionuclide Science (LASRS)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Anderson, Scott [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Bleuel, Darren [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Johnson, Micah [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Rusnak, Brian [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Soltz, Ron [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Tonchev, Anton [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)

2016-05-05

The Livermore Accelerator Source for Radionuclide Science (LASRS) will generate intense photon and neutron beams to address important gaps in the study of radionuclide science that directly impact Stockpile Stewardship, Nuclear Forensics, and Nuclear Material Detection. The co-location of MeV-scale neutral and photon sources with radiochemical analytics provides a unique facility to meet current and future challenges in nuclear security and nuclear science.

Changes in antimicrobial prescribing behavior after the introduction of the antimicrobial stewardship program: A pre- and post-intervention survey

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ruchir Chavada

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The introduction of an antimicrobial stewardship (AMS program is associated with a change in antimicrobial prescribing behavior. A proposed mechanism for this change is by impacting the prescribing etiquette described in qualitative studies. This study sought to detect a change in prescribing attitudes 12 months after the introduction of AMS and gauge utility of various AMS interventions. Surveys were distributed to doctors in two regional Australian hospitals on a convenience basis 6 months before, and 12 months after, the introduction of AMS. Agreement with 20 statements describing attitudes (cultural, behavioral and knowledge towards antimicrobial prescribing was assessed on a 4-point Likert scale. Mean response scores were compared using the Wilcoxon Rank sum test. 155 responses were collected before the introduction of AMS, and 144 afterwards. After the introduction of AMS, an increase was observed in knowledge about available resources such as electronic decision support systems (EDSS and therapeutic guidelines, with raised awareness about the support available through AMS rounds and the process to be followed when prescribing restricted antimicrobials. Additionally, doctors were less likely to rely on pharmacy to ascertain when an antimicrobial was restricted, depend on infectious diseases consultant advice and use past experience to guide antimicrobial prescribing. Responses to this survey indicate that positive changes to the antimicrobial prescribing etiquette may be achieved with the introduction of an AMS program. Use of EDSS and other resources such as evidence-based guidelines are perceived to be important to drive rational antimicrobial prescribing within AMS programs.

Integrating different understandings of landscape stewardship into the design of agri-environmental schemes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Raymond, Christopher Mark; Reed, Mark; Bieling, Claudia

2016-01-01

While multiple studies have identified land managers’ preferences for agri-environmental schemes (AES), few approaches exist for integrating different understandings of landscape stewardship into the design of these measures. We compared and contrasted rural land managers’ attitudes toward AES...... to the reduced amount of funding available for entry-level and higher-level stewardship schemes in the UK since 2008, changing funding priorities, perceived overstrict compliance and lack of support for farm succession and new entrants into farming. However, there were differences in concerns across...... understandings of landscape stewardship, with production respondents citing that AES do not encourage food production, whereas environmental and holistic farmers citing that AES do not support the development of a local green food culture and associated social infrastructure. These differences also emerged...

Volunteer Environmental Stewardship and Affective Labour in Philadelphia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alec Foster

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Recent research has critically evaluated the rapid growth of volunteer urban environmental stewardship. Framings of this phenomenon have largely focused upon environmentality and/or neoliberal environments, unfortunately often presenting a totalising picture of the state and/or market utilising power from above to create environmental subjects with limited agency available to local citizens. Based upon qualitative research with volunteer urban environmental stewards in Philadelphia, affective labour is proposed as an alternative explanation for participation. Stewards volunteered their time and labour due to the intense emotional attachments they formed with their neighbourhoods, neighbours, and nonhuman others in relationships of affective labour. Volunteer urban environmental stewardship as affective labour provides room for agency on the part of individuals and groups involved in volunteer urban environmental reproduction and opens up new ways of relating to and being with human and nonhuman others.

Materials sciences programs, fiscal year 1994

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-04-01

The Division of Materials Sciences is located within the DOE in the Office of Basic Energy Sciences. The Division of Materials Sciences is responsible for basic research and research facilities in strategic materials science topics of critical importance to the mission of the Department and its Strategic Plan. Materials Science is an enabling technology. The performance parameters, economics, environmental acceptability and safety of all energy generation, conversion, transmission and conservation technologies are limited by the properties and behavior of materials. The Materials Sciences programs develop scientific understanding of the synergistic relationship amongst the synthesis, processing, structure, properties, behavior, performance and other characteristics of materials. Emphasis is placed on the development of the capability to discover technologically, economically, and environmentally desirable new materials and processes, and the instruments and national user facilities necessary for achieving such progress. Materials Sciences sub-fields include physical metallurgy, ceramics, polymers, solid state and condensed matter physics, materials chemistry, surface science and related disciplines where the emphasis is on the science of materials. This report includes program descriptions for 458 research programs including 216 at 14 DOE National Laboratories, 242 research grants (233 for universities), and 9 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Grants. The report is divided into eight sections. Section A contains all Laboratory projects, Section B has all contract research projects, Section C has projects funded under the SBIR Program, Section D describes the Center of Excellence for the Synthesis and Processing of Advanced Materials and E has information on major user facilities. F contains descriptions of other user facilities; G, a summary of funding levels; and H, indices characterizing research projects

Materials sciences programs: Fiscal year 1994

Science.gov (United States)

1995-04-01

The Division of Materials Sciences is located within the DOE in the Office of Basic Energy Sciences. The Division of Materials Sciences is responsible for basic research and research facilities in strategic materials science topics of critical importance to the mission of the Department and its Strategic Plan. Materials Science is an enabling technology. The performance parameters, economics, environmental acceptability and safety of all energy generation, conversion, transmission and conservation technologies are limited by the properties and behavior of materials. The Materials Sciences programs develop scientific understanding of the synergistic relationship amongst the synthesis, processing, structure, properties, behavior, performance and other characteristics of materials. Emphasis is placed on the development of the capability to discover technologically, economically, and environmentally desirable new materials and processes, and the instruments and national user facilities necessary for achieving such progress. Materials Sciences sub-fields include physical metallurgy, ceramics, polymers, solid state and condensed matter physics, materials chemistry, surface science and related disciplines where the emphasis is on the science of materials. This report includes program descriptions for 458 research programs including 216 at 14 DOE National Laboratories, 242 research grants (233 for universities), and 9 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Grants. The report is divided into eight sections. Section A contains all Laboratory projects, Section B has all contract research projects, Section C has projects funded under the SBIR Program, Section D describes the Center of Excellence for the Synthesis and Processing of Advanced Materials and E has information on major user facilities. F contains descriptions of other user facilities; G, a summary of funding levels; and H, indices characterizing research projects.

Materials sciences programs, fiscal year 1994

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1995-04-01

The Division of Materials Sciences is located within the DOE in the Office of Basic Energy Sciences. The Division of Materials Sciences is responsible for basic research and research facilities in strategic materials science topics of critical importance to the mission of the Department and its Strategic Plan. Materials Science is an enabling technology. The performance parameters, economics, environmental acceptability and safety of all energy generation, conversion, transmission and conservation technologies are limited by the properties and behavior of materials. The Materials Sciences programs develop scientific understanding of the synergistic relationship amongst the synthesis, processing, structure, properties, behavior, performance and other characteristics of materials. Emphasis is placed on the development of the capability to discover technologically, economically, and environmentally desirable new materials and processes, and the instruments and national user facilities necessary for achieving such progress. Materials Sciences sub-fields include physical metallurgy, ceramics, polymers, solid state and condensed matter physics, materials chemistry, surface science and related disciplines where the emphasis is on the science of materials. This report includes program descriptions for 458 research programs including 216 at 14 DOE National Laboratories, 242 research grants (233 for universities), and 9 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Grants. The report is divided into eight sections. Section A contains all Laboratory projects, Section B has all contract research projects, Section C has projects funded under the SBIR Program, Section D describes the Center of Excellence for the Synthesis and Processing of Advanced Materials and E has information on major user facilities. F contains descriptions of other user facilities; G, a summary of funding levels; and H, indices characterizing research projects.

Stewardship, Learning, and Memory in Disaster Resilience

Science.gov (United States)

Tidball, Keith G.; Krasny, Marianne E.; Svendsen, Erika; Campbell, Lindsay; Helphand, Kenneth

2010-01-01

In this contribution, we propose and explore the following hypothesis: civic ecology practices, including urban community forestry, community gardening, and other self-organized forms of stewardship of green spaces in cities, are manifestations of how memories of the role of greening in healing can be instrumentalized through social learning to…

Pesticide Environmental Stewardship Program (PESP)

Science.gov (United States)

PESP is an EPA partnership program that works with the nation's pesticide-user community to promote IPM practices. Pesticide users can reduce the risks from pests and pesticides. Members include organizations and companies in the pesticide-user community.

The science experience: The relationship between an inquiry-based science program and student outcomes

Science.gov (United States)

Poderoso, Charie

Science education reforms in U.S. schools emphasize the importance of students' construction of knowledge through inquiry. Organizations such as the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Research Council (NRC), and the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) have demonstrated a commitment to searching for solutions and renewed efforts to improve science education. One suggestion for science education reform in U.S. schools was a transition from traditional didactic, textbook-based to inquiry-based instructional programs. While inquiry has shown evidence for improved student learning in science, what is needed is empirical evidence of those inquiry-based practices that affect student outcomes in a local context. This study explores the relationship between instructional programs and curricular changes affecting student outcomes in the Santa Ana Unified District (SAUSD): It provides evidence related to achievement and attitudes. SAUSD employs two approaches to teaching in the middle school science classrooms: traditional and inquiry-based approaches. The Leadership and Assistance for Science Education Reform (LASER) program is an inquiry-based science program that utilizes resources for implementation of the University of California Berkeley's Lawrence Hall of Science Education for Public Understanding Program (SEPUP) to support inquiry-based teaching and learning. Findings in this study provide empirical support related to outcomes of seventh-grade students, N = 328, in the LASER and traditional science programs in SAUSD.

Research Methods in Healthcare Epidemiology and Antimicrobial Stewardship-Mathematical Modeling.

Science.gov (United States)

Barnes, Sean L; Kasaie, Parastu; Anderson, Deverick J; Rubin, Michael

2016-11-01

Mathematical modeling is a valuable methodology used to study healthcare epidemiology and antimicrobial stewardship, particularly when more traditional study approaches are infeasible, unethical, costly, or time consuming. We focus on 2 of the most common types of mathematical modeling, namely compartmental modeling and agent-based modeling, which provide important advantages-such as shorter developmental timelines and opportunities for extensive experimentation-over observational and experimental approaches. We summarize these advantages and disadvantages via specific examples and highlight recent advances in the methodology. A checklist is provided to serve as a guideline in the development of mathematical models in healthcare epidemiology and antimicrobial stewardship. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2016;1-7.

Stewardship of NASA's Earth Science Data and Ensuring Long-Term Active Archives

Science.gov (United States)

Ramapriyan, Hampapuram K.; Behnke, Jeanne

2016-01-01

Program, NASA has followed an open data policy, with non-discriminatory access to data with no period of exclusive access. NASA has well-established processes for assigning and or accepting datasets into one of 12 Distributed Active Archive Centers (DAACs) that are parts of EOSDIS. EOSDIS has been evolving through several information technology cycles, adapting to hardware and software changes in the commercial sector. NASA is responsible for maintaining Earth science data as long as users are interested in using them for research and applications, which is well beyond the life of the data gathering missions. For science data to remain useful over long periods of time, steps must be taken to preserve: (1) Data bits with no corruption, (2) Discoverability and access, (3) Readability, (4) Understandability, (5) Usability' and (6). Reproducibility of results. NASAs Earth Science data and Information System (ESDIS) Project, along with the 12 EOSDIS Distributed Active Archive Centers (DAACs), has made significant progress in each of these areas over the last decade, and continues to evolve its active archive capabilities. Particular attention is being paid in recent years to ensure that the datasets are published in an easily accessible and citable manner through a unified metadata model, a common metadata repository (CMR), a coherent view through the earthdata.gov website, and assignment of Digital Object Identifiers (DOI) with well-designed landing product information pages.

Stewardship, learning, and memory in disaster resilience

Science.gov (United States)

Keith G. Tidball; Marianne E. Krasny; Erika Svendsen; Lindsay Campbell; Kenneth. Helphand

2010-01-01

In this contribution, we propose and explore the following hypothesis: civic ecology practices, including urban community forestry, community gardening, and other self-organized forms of stewardship of green spaces in cities, are manifestations of how memories of the role of greening in healing can be instrumentalized through social learning to foster social-ecological...

Antimicrobial stewardship in wound care

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lipsky, Benjamin A; Dryden, Matthew; Gottrup, Finn

2016-01-01

BACKGROUND: With the growing global problem of antibiotic resistance it is crucial that clinicians use antibiotics wisely, which largely means following the principles of antimicrobial stewardship (AMS). Treatment of various types of wounds is one of the more common reasons for prescribing...... of experts in infectious diseases/clinical microbiology (from the British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy) and wound management (from the European Wound Management Association) who, after thoroughly reviewing the available literature and holding teleconferences, jointly produced this guidance document...

FWP executive summaries, Basic Energy Sciences Materials Sciences Programs (SNL/NM)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Samara, G.A.

1997-05-01

The BES Materials Sciences Program has the central theme of Scientifically Tailored Materials. The major objective of this program is to combine Sandia`s expertise and capabilities in the areas of solid state sciences, advanced atomic-level diagnostics and materials synthesis and processing science to produce new classes of tailored materials as well as to enhance the properties of existing materials for US energy applications and for critical defense needs. Current core research in this program includes the physics and chemistry of ceramics synthesis and processing, the use of energetic particles for the synthesis and study of materials, tailored surfaces and interfaces for materials applications, chemical vapor deposition sciences, artificially-structured semiconductor materials science, advanced growth techniques for improved semiconductor structures, transport in unconventional solids, atomic-level science of interfacial adhesion, high-temperature superconductors, and the synthesis and processing of nano-size clusters for energy applications. In addition, the program includes the following three smaller efforts initiated in the past two years: (1) Wetting and Flow of Liquid Metals and Amorphous Ceramics at Solid Interfaces, (2) Field-Structured Anisotropic Composites, and (3) Composition-Modulated Semiconductor Structures for Photovoltaic and Optical Technologies. The latter is a joint effort with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Separate summaries are given of individual research areas.

Enhancing Ecosystem Stewardship in Small-Scale Fisheries: Prospects for Latin America and the Caribbean

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rodrigo Pereira Medeiros

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Despite recognition of small-scale fisheries (SSF contribution to livelihood diversity and food security worldwide, a better understanding of their social and ecological dynamics is required. This paper is a synthesis of the main findings from the special issue “Enhancing ecosystem stewardship in small-scale fisheries” published in this journal. Contributors explored ecosystem stewardship in three dimensions: impacts, monitoring and stewardship. Results suggested that ecosystem stewardship encompasses collaborative action to foster: i new perspectives on SSF management; ii a broader perspective on managers and stakeholders – as stewards for implementing these new perspectives; and iii enabling environments through partnership, networking, communication and collective action. This special issue is an output from the Too Big to Ignore (TBTI Working Group 4 - “Enhancing the Stewardship”. TBTI is a global research network and knowledge mobilization partnership intended to better comprehend SSF contributions on issues such as food security and poverty alleviation, as well as the associated impacts of global changes, through the efforts of diverse partners around the world.

Fostering science literacy, environmental stewardship, and collaboration: Assessing a garden-based approach to teaching life science

Science.gov (United States)

Fisher-Maltese, Carley B.

Recently, schools nationwide have expressed a renewed interest in school gardens (California School Garden Network, 2010), viewing them as innovative educational tools. Most of the scant studies on these settings investigate the health/nutritional impacts, environmental attitudes, or emotional dispositions of students. However, few studies examine the science learning potential of a school garden from an informal learning perspective. Those studies that do examine learning emphasize individual learning of traditional school content (math, science, etc.) (Blaire, 2009; Dirks & Orvis, 2005; Klemmer, Waliczek & Zajicek, 2005a & b; Smith & Mostenbocker, 2005). My study sought to demonstrate the value of school garden learning through a focus on measures of learning typically associated with traditional learning environments, as well as informal learning environments. Grounded in situated, experiential, and contextual model of learning theories, the purpose of this case study was to examine the impacts of a school garden program at a K-3 elementary school. Results from pre/post tests, pre/post surveys, interviews, recorded student conversations, and student work reveal a number of affordances, including science learning, cross-curricular lessons in an authentic setting, a sense of school community, and positive shifts in attitude toward nature and working collaboratively with other students. I also analyzed this garden-based unit as a type curriculum reform in one school in an effort to explore issues of implementing effective practices in schools. Facilitators and barriers to implementing a garden-based science curriculum at a K-3 elementary school are discussed. Participants reported a number of implementation processes necessary for success: leadership, vision, and material, human, and social resources. However, in spite of facilitators, teachers reported barriers to implementing the garden-based curriculum, specifically lack of time and content knowledge.

Bringing Science to Life for Students, Teachers and the Community

Science.gov (United States)

Pratt, K.

2012-04-01

Bringing Science to Life for Students, Teachers and the Community Prior to 2008, 5th grade students at two schools of the New Haven Unified School District consistently scored in the bottom 20% of the California State Standards Test for science. Teachers in the upper grades reported not spending enough time teaching science, which is attributed to lack of time, resources or knowledge of science. A proposal was written to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Bay Watershed Education Grant program and funding was received for Bringing Science to Life for Students, Teachers and the Community to address these concerns and instill a sense of stewardship in our students. This program engages and energizes students in learning science and the protection of the SF Bay Watershed, provides staff development for teachers, and educates the community about conservation of our local watershed. The project includes a preparation phase, outdoor phase, an analysis and reporting phase, and teacher training and consists of two complete units: 1) The San Francisco Bay Watershed Unit and 2) the Marine Environment Unit. At the end of year 5, our teachers were teaching more science, the community was engaged in conservation of the San Francisco Bay Watershed and most importantly, student scores increased on the California Science Test at one site by over 121% and another site by 152%.

Thinking about television science: How students understand the nature of science from different program genres

Science.gov (United States)

Dhingra, Koshi

2003-02-01

Student views on the nature of science are shaped by a variety of out-of-school forces and television-mediated science is a significant force. To attempt to achieve a science for all, we need to recognize and understand the diverse messages about science that students access and think about on a regular basis. In this work I examine how high school students think about science that is mediated by four different program genres on television: documentary, magazine-format programming, network news, and dramatic or fictional programming. The following categories of findings are discussed: the ethics and validity of science, final form science, science as portrayed by its practitioners, and school science and television science. Student perceptions of the nature of science depicted on the program sample used in this study ranged from seeing science as comprising tentative knowledge claims to seeing science as a fixed body of facts.

Identifying and Predicting Profiles of Medical Noncompliance: Pediatric Caregivers' Antibiotic Stewardship.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Rachel A; Kim, Youllee; M'Ikanatha, Nkuchia M

2018-05-14

Sometimes compliance with medical recommendations is problematic. We investigated pediatric caregivers' (N = 606) patterns of noncompliance with antibiotic stewardship based on the obstacle hypothesis. We tested predictors of noncompliance framed by the obstacle hypothesis, dissonance theory, and psychological reactance. The results revealed four profiles of caregivers' stewardship: one marked by compliance (Stewards) and three marked by types of noncompliance (Stockers, Persuaders, and Dissenters). The covariate analysis showed that, although psychological reactance predicted being noncompliant, it was types of obstacles and discrepant experiences that predicted caregivers' patterns of noncompliance with antibiotic stewardship. Campaign planning often focuses on identifying the belief most associated with the targeted outcome, such as compliance. Noncompliance research, however, points out that persuaders may be successful to the extent to which they anticipate obstacles to compliance and address them in their influence attempts. A shift from medical noncompliance to patient engagement also affords an opportunity to consider how some recommendations create obstacles for others and to find positive ways to embrace conflicting needs, tensions, and reasons for refusal in order to promote collective goals.

Local Government Implementation of Long-Term Stewardship at Two DOE Facilities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

John Pendergrass; Roman Czebiniak; Kelly Mott; Seth Kirshenberg; Audrey Eidelman; Zachary Lamb; Erica Pencak; Wendy Sandoz

2003-08-13

The Department of Energy (DOE) is responsible for cleaning up the radioactive and chemical contamination that resulted from the production of nuclear weapons. At more than one hundred sites throughout the country DOE will leave some contamination in place after the cleanup is complete. In order to protect human health and the environment from the remaining contamination DOE, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), state environmental regulatory agencies, local governments, citizens and other entities will need to undertake long-term stewardship of such sites. Long-term stewardship includes a wide range of actions needed to protect human health in the environment for as long as the risk from the contamination remains above acceptable levels, such as barriers, caps, and other engineering controls and land use controls, signs, notices, records, and other institutional controls. In this report the Environmental Law Institute (ELI) and the Energy Communities Alliance (ECA) examine how local governments, state environmental agencies, and real property professionals implement long-term stewardship at two DOE facilities, Losa Alamos National Laboratory and Oak Ridge Reservation.

The Los Alamos Space Science Outreach (LASSO) Program

Science.gov (United States)

Barker, P. L.; Skoug, R. M.; Alexander, R. J.; Thomsen, M. F.; Gary, S. P.

2002-12-01

The Los Alamos Space Science Outreach (LASSO) program features summer workshops in which K-14 teachers spend several weeks at LANL learning space science from Los Alamos scientists and developing methods and materials for teaching this science to their students. The program is designed to provide hands-on space science training to teachers as well as assistance in developing lesson plans for use in their classrooms. The program supports an instructional model based on education research and cognitive theory. Students and teachers engage in activities that encourage critical thinking and a constructivist approach to learning. LASSO is run through the Los Alamos Science Education Team (SET). SET personnel have many years of experience in teaching, education research, and science education programs. Their involvement ensures that the teacher workshop program is grounded in sound pedagogical methods and meets current educational standards. Lesson plans focus on current LANL satellite projects to study the solar wind and the Earth's magnetosphere. LASSO is an umbrella program for space science education activities at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) that was created to enhance the science and math interests and skills of students from New Mexico and the nation. The LASSO umbrella allows maximum leveraging of EPO funding from a number of projects (and thus maximum educational benefits to both students and teachers), while providing a format for the expression of the unique science perspective of each project.

Specialist trainees on rotation cannot replace dedicated consultant clinicians for antimicrobial stewardship of specialty disciplines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yeo Chay Leng

2012-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Our prospective-audit-and-feedback antimicrobial stewardship (AS program for hematology and oncology inpatients was switched from one led by dedicated clinicians to a rotating team of infectious diseases trainees in order to provide learning opportunities and attempt a “de-escalation” of specialist input towards a more protocol-driven implementation. However, process indicators including the number of recommendations and recommendation acceptance rates fell significantly during the year, with accompanying increases in broad-spectrum antibiotic prescription. The trends were reversed only upon reverting to the original setup. Dedicated clinicians play a crucial role in AS programs involving immunocompromised patients. Structured training and adequate succession/contingency planning is critical for sustainability.

A global call from five countries to collaborate in antibiotic stewardship: united we succeed, divided we might fail.

Science.gov (United States)

Goff, Debra A; Kullar, Ravina; Goldstein, Ellie J C; Gilchrist, Mark; Nathwani, Dilip; Cheng, Allen C; Cairns, Kelly A; Escandón-Vargas, Kevin; Villegas, Maria Virginia; Brink, Adrian; van den Bergh, Dena; Mendelson, Marc

2017-02-01

In February, 2016, WHO released a report for the development of national action plans to address the threat of antibiotic resistance, the catastrophic consequences of inaction, and the need for antibiotic stewardship. Antibiotic stewardship combined with infection prevention comprises a collaborative, multidisciplinary approach to optimise use of antibiotics. Efforts to mitigate overuse will be unsustainable without learning and coordinating activities globally. In this Personal View, we provide examples of international collaborations to address optimal prescribing, focusing on five countries that have developed different approaches to antibiotic stewardship-the USA, South Africa, Colombia, Australia, and the UK. Although each country's approach differed, when nurtured, individual efforts can positively affect local and national antimicrobial stewardship programmes. Government advocacy, national guidelines, collaborative research, online training programmes, mentoring programmes, and social media in stewardship all played a role. Personal relationships and willingness to learn from each other's successes and failures continues to foster collaboration. We recommend that antibiotic stewardship models need to evolve from infection specialist-based teams to develop and use cadres of health-care professionals, including pharmacists, nurses, and community health workers, to meet the needs of the global population. We also recommend that all health-care providers who prescribe antibiotics take ownership and understand the societal burden of suboptimal antibiotic use, providing examples of how countries can learn, act globally, and share best antibiotic stewardship practices. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Investigating the ways in which health information technology can promote antimicrobial stewardship: a conceptual overview.

Science.gov (United States)

King, Abby; Cresswell, Kathrin M; Coleman, Jamie J; Pontefract, Sarah K; Slee, Ann; Williams, Robin; Sheikh, Aziz

2017-08-01

Antimicrobial resistance is now recognised as a threat to health worldwide. Antimicrobial stewardship aims to promote the responsible use of antibiotics and is high on international and national policy agendas. Health information technology has the potential to support antimicrobial stewardship in a number of ways, but this field is still poorly characterised and understood. Building on a recent systematic review and expert roundtable discussions, we take a lifecycle perspective of antibiotic use in hospitals and identify potential targets for health information technology-based interventions to support antimicrobial stewardship. We aim for this work to help chart a future research agenda in this critically important area.

Emergence of a global science–business initiative for ocean stewardship

Science.gov (United States)

Jouffray, Jean-Baptiste; Folke, Carl; Rockström, Johan

2017-01-01

The ocean represents a fundamental source of micronutrients and protein for a growing world population. Seafood is a highly traded and sought after commodity on international markets, and is critically dependent on healthy marine ecosystems. A global trend of wild stocks being overfished and in decline, as well as multiple sustainability challenges associated with a rapid growth of aquaculture, represent key concerns in relation to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Existing efforts aimed to improve the sustainability of seafood production have generated important progress, primarily at the local and national levels, but have yet to effectively address the global challenges associated with the ocean. This study highlights the importance of transnational corporations in enabling transformative change, and thereby contributes to advancing the limited understanding of large-scale private actors within the sustainability science literature. We describe how we engaged with large seafood producers to coproduce a global science–business initiative for ocean stewardship. We suggest that this initiative is improving the prospects for transformative change by providing novel links between science and business, between wild-capture fisheries and aquaculture, and across geographical space. We argue that scientists can play an important role in facilitating change by connecting knowledge to action among global actors, while recognizing risks associated with such engagement. The methods developed through this case study contribute to identifying key competences in sustainability science and hold promises for other sectors as well. PMID:28784792

Urban ecological stewardship: understanding the structure, function and network of community-based urban land management

Science.gov (United States)

Erika s. Svendsen; Lindsay K. Campbell

2008-01-01

Urban environmental stewardship activities are on the rise in cities throughout the Northeast. Groups participating in stewardship activities range in age, size, and geography and represent an increasingly complex and dynamic arrangement of civil society, government and business sectors. To better understand the structure, function and network of these community-based...

A Review of Quality Measures for Assessing the Impact of Antimicrobial Stewardship Programs in Hospitals

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mary Richard Akpan

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The growing problem of antimicrobial resistance (AMR has led to calls for antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASP to control antibiotic use in healthcare settings. Key strategies include prospective audit with feedback and intervention, and formulary restriction and preauthorization. Education, guidelines, clinical pathways, de-escalation, and intravenous to oral conversion are also part of some programs. Impact and quality of ASP can be assessed using process or outcome measures. Outcome measures are categorized as microbiological, patient or financial outcomes. The objective of this review was to provide an overview of quality measures for assessing ASP and the reported impact of ASP in peer-reviewed studies, focusing particularly on patient outcomes. A literature search of papers published in English between 1990 and June 2015 was conducted in five databases using a combination of search terms. Primary studies of any design were included. A total of 63 studies were included in this review. Four studies defined quality metrics for evaluating ASP. Twenty-one studies assessed the impact of ASP on antimicrobial utilization and cost, 25 studies evaluated impact on resistance patterns and/or rate of Clostridium difficile infection (CDI. Thirteen studies assessed impact on patient outcomes including mortality, length of stay (LOS and readmission rates. Six of these 13 studies reported non-significant difference in mortality between pre- and post-ASP intervention, and five reported reductions in mortality rate. On LOS, six studies reported shorter LOS post intervention; a significant reduction was reported in one of these studies. Of note, this latter study reported significantly (p < 0.001 higher unplanned readmissions related to infections post-ASP. Patient outcomes need to be a key component of ASP evaluation. The choice of metrics is influenced by data and resource availability. Controlling for confounders must be considered in the design of

Designing behaviourally informed policies for land stewardship: A new paradigm

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Don W Hine

2015-06-01

Full Text Available This paper argues the case for a new approach to the stewardship of land resources that uses behavioural science theory to support the design and application of policies that facilitate changes in behaviour by those who develop policy and the farmers who implement it. Current approaches have: focused on legally-based expert system; and have been devised by national and international bureaucracies with little or no knowledge of how land owners and managers are motivated, and how they think, behave and operate as stewards of their natural resources. A review of current approaches from the social scientific literature is provided, with a particular focus on principles from social psychology. This is followed by an examination of how these principles can be applied to influence behaviour related to land restoration and soil conservation. Examples of the problems with traditional approaches and the evolution of new approaches with full engagement of farmers as the delivery agents are provided from within the European Union, Iceland and Scotland. In the light of these examples and emerging thinking in other parts of the world, the paper sets out the basis for a new approach based on behavioural science theory and application, reinforcing the arguments already made in the literature for a social license for farming.

Nosocomial Candidiasis: Antifungal Stewardship and the Importance of Rapid Diagnosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Pfaller, Michael A; Castanheira, Mariana

2016-01-01

Candidemia and other forms of candidiasis are associated with considerable excess mortality and costs. Despite the addition of several new antifungal agents with improved spectrum and potency, the frequency of Candida infection and associated mortality have not decreased in the past two decades. The lack of rapid and sensitive diagnostic tests has led to considerable overuse of antifungal agents resulting in increased costs, selection pressure for resistance, unnecessary drug toxicity, and adverse drug interactions. Both the lack of timely diagnostic tests and emergence of antifungal resistance pose considerable problems for antifungal stewardship. Whereas antifungal stewardship with a focus on nosocomial candidiasis should be able to improve the administration of antifungal therapy in terms of drug selection, proper dose and duration, source control and de-escalation therapy, an important parameter, timeliness of antifungal therapy, remains a victim of slow and insensitive diagnostic tests. Fortunately, new proteomic and molecular diagnostic tools are improving the time to species identification and detection. In this review we will describe the potential impact that rapid diagnostic testing and antifungal stewardship can have on the management of nosocomial candidiasis. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The International Society for Human and Animal Mycology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

36 CFR 230.6 - Landowner forest stewardship plan.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... manage soil, water, aesthetic qualities, recreation, timber, and fish and wildlife resources in a manner... sells or otherwise conveys land covered by a landowner forest stewardship plan, such plan shall remain... plan. 230.6 Section 230.6 Parks, Forests, and Public Property FOREST SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE...

Science informs stewardship: Committing to a national wilderness science agenda

Science.gov (United States)

Susan A. Fox; Beth A. Hahn

2016-01-01

The National Wilderness Preservation System (NWPS) is a vital component of the national and international infrastructure for science, education, and information. The NWPS serves as an important resource for advancing research, from discovering new dinosaurs (Arbour et al. 2014, Landon 2016) to understanding human history on the American landscape (Rasic 2003). The NWPS...

Measuring Science Inquiry Skills in Youth Development Programs: The Science Process Skills Inventory

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mary E. Arnold

2013-03-01

Full Text Available In recent years there has been an increased emphasis on science learning in 4-H and other youth development programs. In an effort to increase science capacity in youth, it is easy to focus only on developing the concrete skills and knowledge that a trained scientist must possess. However, when science learning is presented in a youth-development setting, the context of the program also matters. This paper reports the development and testing of the Science Process Skills Inventory (SPSI and its usefulness for measuring science inquiry skill development in youth development science programs. The results of the psychometric testing of the SPSI indicated the instrument is reliable and measures a cohesive construct called science process skills, as reflected in the 11 items that make up this group of skills. The 11 items themselves are based on the cycle of science inquiry, and represent the important steps of the complete inquiry process.

The Howard University Program in Atmospheric Sciences (HUPAS): A Program Exemplifying Diversity and Opportunity

Science.gov (United States)

Morris, Vernon R.; Joseph, Everette; Smith, Sonya; Yu, Tsann-wang

2012-01-01

This paper discusses experiences and lessons learned from developing an interdisciplinary graduate program (IDP) during the last 10 y: The Howard University Graduate Program in Atmospheric Sciences (HUPAS). HUPAS is the first advanced degree program in the atmospheric sciences, or related fields such as meteorology and earth system sciences,…

Point-of-care Beta-lactam Allergy Skin Testing by Antimicrobial Stewardship Programs: A Pragmatic Multicenter Prospective Evaluation.

Science.gov (United States)

Leis, Jerome A; Palmay, Lesley; Ho, Grace; Raybardhan, Sumit; Gill, Suzanne; Kan, Tiffany; Campbell, Jackie; Kiss, Alex; McCready, Janine B; Das, Pavani; Minnema, Brian; Powis, Jeff E; Walker, Sandra A N; Ferguson, Heather; Wong, Benny; Weber, Elizabeth

2017-06-01

Beta-lactam allergy skin testing (BLAST) is recommended by antimicrobial stewardship program (ASP) guidelines, yet few studies have systematically evaluated its impact when delivered at point-of-care. We conducted a pragmatic multicenter prospective evaluation of the use of point-of-care BLAST by ASPs. In staggered 3-month intervals, ASP teams at three hospitals received training by allergists to offer BLAST for eligible patients with infectious diseases receiving non-preferred beta-lactam therapy due to severity of their allergy. The primary outcome was the proportion of patients receiving the preferred beta-lactam therapy. Of 827 patients with reported beta-lactam allergy over 15-months, beta-lactam therapy was preferred among 632(76%). During baseline periods, 50% (124/246) received preferred beta-lactam therapy based on history, compared with 60% (232/386) during the intervention periods (p=0.02), which improved further to 81% (313/386) upon provision of BLAST (pcare across three hospital ASPs resulted in greater use of preferred beta-lactam therapy without increasing the risk of adverse drug reactions. Longer term studies are needed to better assess the safety and clinical impact of this ASP intervention. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press for the Infectious Diseases Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Report of the Integrated Program Planning Activity for the DOE Fusion Energy Sciences Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

None

2000-01-01

This report of the Integrated Program Planning Activity (IPPA) has been prepared in response to a recommendation by the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board that, ''Given the complex nature of the fusion effort, an integrated program planning process is an absolute necessity.'' We, therefore, undertook this activity in order to integrate the various elements of the program, to improve communication and performance accountability across the program, and to show the inter-connectedness and inter-dependency of the diverse parts of the national fusion energy sciences program. This report is based on the September 1999 Fusion Energy Sciences Advisory Committee's (FESAC) report ''Priorities and Balance within the Fusion Energy Sciences Program''. In its December 5,2000, letter to the Director of the Office of Science, the FESAC has reaffirmed the validity of the September 1999 report and stated that the IPPA presents a framework and process to guide the achievement of the 5-year goals listed in the 1999 report. The National Research Council's (NRC) Fusion Assessment Committee draft final report ''An Assessment of the Department of Energy's Office of Fusion Energy Sciences Program'', reviewing the quality of the science in the program, was made available after the IPPA report had been completed. The IPPA report is, nevertheless, consistent with the recommendations in the NRC report. In addition to program goals and the related 5-year, 10-year, and 15-year objectives, this report elaborates on the scientific issues associated with each of these objectives. The report also makes clear the relationships among the various program elements, and cites these relationships as the reason why integrated program planning is essential. In particular, while focusing on the science conducted by the program, the report addresses the important balances between the science and energy goals of the program, between the MFE and IFE approaches, and between the domestic and international aspects

Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Program Science Plan. Current Status and Future Directions of the ARM Science Program

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ackerman, Thomas P.; Del Genio, Anthony D.; Ellingson, Robert G.; Ferrare, Richard A.; Klein, Steve A.; McFarquhar, Gregory M.; Lamb, Peter J.; Long, Charles M.; Verlinde, Johannes

2004-10-30

The Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Program has matured into one of the key programs in the U.S. Climate Change Science Program. The ARM Program has achieved considerable scientific success in a broad range of activities, including site and instrument development, atmospheric radiative transfer, aerosol science, determination of cloud properties, cloud modeling, and cloud parameterization testing and development. The focus of ARM science has naturally shifted during the last few years to an increasing emphasis on modeling and parameterization studies to take advantage of the long time series of data now available. During the next 5 years, the principal focus of the ARM science program will be to: Maintain the data record at the fixed ARM sites for at least the next five years; Improve significantly our understanding of and ability to parameterize the 3-D cloud-radiation problem at scales from the local atmospheric column to the global climate model (GCM) grid square; Continue developing techniques to retrieve the properties of all clouds, with a special focus on ice clouds and mixed-phase clouds; Develop a focused research effort on the indirect aerosol problem that spans observations, physical models, and climate model parameterizations; Implement and evaluate an operational methodology to calculate broad-band heating rates in the atmospheric columns at the ARM sites; Develop and implement methodologies to use ARM data more effectively to test atmospheric models, both at the cloud-resolving model scale and the GCM scale; and, Use these methodologies to diagnose cloud parameterization performance and then refine these parameterizations to improve the accuracy of climate model simulations. In addition, the ARM Program is actively developing a new ARM Mobile Facility (AMF) that will be available for short deployments (several months to a year or more) in climatically important regions. The AMF will have much of the same instrumentation as the remote

Little Book, Big Waves: The Epistle of James and Global Stewardship in Bioethics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lora Jean Brake

2016-03-01

Full Text Available At first glance the twenty-first century arena of biotechnology and bioethics seems worlds away from the practical concerns of the first century outlook of the New Testament book of James. A closer look, however, reveals that the issues that James addresses have applications to challenges in bioethics. This article will give an overview of James and examine James’ teaching on wealth, poverty, and generosity and its import for the issue of global stewardship in bioethics.  Stewardship concerns both a Christian’s care and management of time, talents, and treasures.  Faithful use of the resources God has given demonstrates the fruitful faith that James writes of in his epistle. The idea of global stewardship, though “stewardship” is grounded in a distinctly Christian ethic, reflects an emerging discussion in bioethics regarding the need to address the inequities present between the money and time spent on biotechnology in some of the world in proportion to the money spent on meeting the basic healthcare needs of the poor of the entire world.  This New Testament epistle gives clear indications of how the Christian is to view wealth and how the Christian is to respond to poverty.  James, though a comparatively small book, sends a crucial message across the years that should greatly impact how Christians view stewardship in terms of global healthcare needs. 

Defense, basic, and industrial research at the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center: Proceedings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Longshore, A.; Salgado, K. [comps.

1995-10-01

The Workshop on Defense, Basic, and Industrial Research at the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center gathered scientists from Department of Energy national laboratories, other federal institutions, universities, and industry to discuss the use of neutrons in science-based stockpile stewardship, The workshop began with presentations by government officials, senior representatives from the three weapons laboratories, and scientific opinion leaders. Workshop participants then met in breakout sessions on the following topics: materials science and engineering; polymers, complex fluids, and biomaterials; fundamental neutron physics; applied nuclear physics; condensed matter physics and chemistry; and nuclear weapons research. They concluded that neutrons can play an essential role in science-based stockpile stewardship and that there is overlap and synergy between defense and other uses of neutrons in basic, applied, and industrial research from which defense and civilian research can benefit. This proceedings is a collection of talks and papers from the plenary, technical, and breakout session presentations. Selected papers are indexed separately for inclusion in the Energy Science and Technology Database.

Effects of Group 1 versus Group 2 carbapenems on the susceptibility of Acinetobacter baumannii to carbapenems: a before and after intervention study of carbapenem-use stewardship.

Science.gov (United States)

Yoon, Young Kyung; Yang, Kyung Sook; Lee, Seung Eun; Kim, Hyun Jeong; Sohn, Jang Wook; Kim, Min Ja

2014-01-01

Antimicrobial stewardship programs have been proposed for reducing bacterial resistance in the hospital environment. The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of a carbapenem-use stewardship program on the susceptibility of Acinetobacter baumannii to Group 2 carbapenems. A before and after intervention study was conducted at a university hospital from September 2008 to February 2013. Three study periods were defined: Phase I, pre-intervention (months 1-18); Phase II, a postintervention period during which ertapenem use was mandated but carbapenem use was not restricted (months 19-36); and Phase III, a postintervention period during which Group 2 carbapenem use was restricted (months 37-54). During the study period, intervention resulted in diminished consumption of Group 2 carbapenems (antimicrobial use density (AUD): 21.3±6.0 in Phase I, 18.8±6.0 in Phase II, 16.1±4.4 in Phase III; P = 0.028) and increased consumption of ertapenem (AUD: 2.7±1.7 in Phase I, 7.2±4.5 in Phase II, 9.1±5.3 in Phase III; Pcarbapenem during the previous one month was positively and significantly associated with a subsequent increase in the proportion of carbapenem-resistant A. baumannii (CRAB) (P = 0.031). Implementing a carbapenem-use stewardship program featuring the preferential use of ertapenem for treating appropriate indications of infection resulted in reduced use of Group 2 carbapenems and had a positive impact on the susceptibility of A. baumannii to carbapenems. This approach could be integrated into CRAB-control strategies in hospitals.

Longitudinal evaluation of a World Wide Web-based antimicrobial stewardship program: assessing factors associated with approval patterns and trends over time.

Science.gov (United States)

Venugopal, Vidya; Lehmann, Christoph U; Diener-West, Marie; Agwu, Allison L

2014-02-01

The Johns Hopkins Children's Medical and Surgery Center developed a Web-based Antimicrobial Stewardship Program (ASP) in 2005. The present study aimed to assess longitudinal antimicrobial request and approval patterns for this ASP. We analyzed a total of 16,229 antimicrobial requests for 3,542 patients between June 1, 2005, and June 30, 2009. Antimicrobial approval was the outcome of interest. We assessed gaming by studying trends in automatically approved requests. Nonparametric tests for trend were performed to detect changes in approval patterns. Multiple logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with approval. The vast majority (91.3%) of antimicrobial requests were approved, with an increase of 6.1% over time (P Web-based ASP allows management of a large number of antimicrobial requests, without apparent gaming. Observed differences in approval patterns based on patient, requestor, and antimicrobial factors may inform the development of ASPs and evaluation of provider education and training. Copyright © 2014 Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc. Published by Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

Antimicrobial stewardship through telemedicine and its impact on multi-drug resistance.

Science.gov (United States)

Dos Santos, Rodrigo P; Dalmora, Camila H; Lukasewicz, Stephani A; Carvalho, Otávio; Deutschendorf, Caroline; Lima, Raquel; Leitzke, Tiago; Correa, Nilson C; Gambetta, Marcelo V

2018-01-01

Introduction Telemedicine technologies are increasingly being incorporated into infectious disease practice. We aimed to demonstrate the impact of antimicrobial stewardship through telemedicine on bacterial resistance rates. Methods We conducted a quasi-experimental study in a 220-bed hospital in southern Brazil. An antimicrobial stewardship program incorporating the use of telemedicine was implemented. Resistance and antimicrobial consumption rates were determined and analysed using a segmented regression model. Results After the intervention, the rate of appropriate antimicrobial prescription increased from 51.4% at baseline to 81.4%. Significant reductions in the consumption of fluoroquinolones (level change, β = -0.80; P change, β = -0.01; P = 0.98), first-generation cephalosporins (level change, β = -0.91; P change, β = +0.01; P = 0.96), vancomycin (level change, β = -0.47; P = 0.04; trend change, β = +0.17; P = 0.66) and polymyxins (level change, β = -0.15; P = 0.56; trend change, β = -1.75; P change, β = +0.84; P change, β = +0.14; P = 0.41) and cefuroxime (level change, β = +0.21; P = 0.17; trend change, β = +0.66; P = 0.02). A significant decrease in the rate of carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter spp. isolation (level change, β = +0.66; P = 0.01; trend change, β = -1.26; P resistance.

Programming Paradigms in Computer Science Education

OpenAIRE

Bolshakova, Elena

2005-01-01

Main styles, or paradigms of programming – imperative, functional, logic, and object-oriented – are shortly described and compared, and corresponding programming techniques are outlined. Programming languages are classified in accordance with the main style and techniques supported. It is argued that profound education in computer science should include learning base programming techniques of all main programming paradigms.

Stewardship - De nieuwe facilitaire werkelijkheid, Facto Magazine, nr. 12

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kok, H.B.

2011-01-01

Voor het succesvol besturen van organisaties bestaan in de managementliteratuur diverse modellen en theorieën. Het lijkt er op dat de stewardship-theorie, die uitgaat van wederzijds vertrouwen, beter past bij de ontwikkeling die FM op dit moment doormaakt dan de agencytheorie

Antimicrobial Stewardship Initiatives Throughout Europe: Proven Value for Money

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Oberje, E.J.M.; Tanke, M.A.C.; Jeurissen, P.P.T.

2017-01-01

Antimicrobial stewardship is recognized as a key component to stop the current European spread of antimicrobial resistance. It has also become evident that antimicrobial resistance is a problem that cannot be tackled by single institutions or physicians. Prevention of antimicrobial resistance needs

Principles and principals : do customer stewardship and agency control compete or complement when shaping frontline employee behavior?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Schepers, J.J.L.; Falk, T.; Ruyter, de J.C.; Jong, de A.; Hammerschmidt, M.

2012-01-01

This article introduces customer stewardship control to the marketing field. This concept represents a frontline employee’s felt ownership of and moral responsibility for customers’ overall welfare. In two studies, the authors show that customer stewardship control is a more encompassing construct

Development and Implementation of Science and Technology Ethics Education Program for Prospective Science Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Rhee, Hyang-yon; Choi, Kyunghee

2014-01-01

The purposes of this study were (1) to develop a science and technology (ST) ethics education program for prospective science teachers, (2) to examine the effect of the program on the perceptions of the participants, in terms of their ethics and education concerns, and (3) to evaluate the impact of the program design. The program utilized…

Fusion Energy Sciences Program at LANL

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Leeper, Ramon J. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)

2017-10-15

This presentation provides a strategic plan and description of investment areas; LANL vision for existing programs; FES portfolio and other specifics related to the Fusion Energy Sciences program at LANL.

The Roles of the Accountant and Auditor in Stewardship and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

While much attention has been given to accountability in public sector which has not even yielded the desired result, the same can not be said of organised private sector. ... Keywords: Stewardship, corporate governance, accountability,

Preparing Science Teachers: Strong Emphasis on Science Content Course Work in a Master's Program in Education

Science.gov (United States)

Ajhar, Edward A.; Blackwell, E.; Quesada, D.

2010-05-01

In South Florida, science teacher preparation is often weak as a shortage of science teachers often prompts administrators to assign teachers to science classes just to cover the classroom needs. This results is poor preparation of students for college science course work, which, in turn, causes the next generation of science teachers to be even weaker than the first. This cycle must be broken in order to prepare better students in the sciences. At St. Thomas University in Miami Gardens, Florida, our School of Science has teamed with our Institute for Education to create a program to alleviate this problem: A Master of Science in Education with a Concentration in Earth/Space Science. The Master's program consists of 36 total credits. Half the curriculum consists of traditional educational foundation and instructional leadership courses while the other half is focused on Earth and Space Science content courses. The content area of 18 credits also provides a separate certificate program. Although traditional high school science education places a heavy emphasis on Earth Science, this program expands that emphasis to include the broader context of astronomy, astrophysics, astrobiology, planetary science, and the practice and philosophy of science. From this contextual basis the teacher is better prepared to educate and motivate middle and high school students in all areas of the physical sciences. Because hands-on experience is especially valuable to educators, our program uses materials and equipment including small optical telescopes (Galileoscopes), several 8-in and 14-in Celestron and Meade reflectors, and a Small Radio Telescope installed on site. (Partial funding provided by the US Department of Education through Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program grant P120A050062.)

Assessment of the Fusion Energy Sciences Program. Final Report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2001-01-01

An assessment of the Office of Fusion Energy Sciences (OFES) program with guidance for future program strategy. The overall objective of this study is to prepare an independent assessment of the scientific quality of the Office of Fusion Energy Sciences program at the Department of Energy. The Fusion Science Assessment Committee (FuSAC) has been appointed to conduct this study

Lessons from NASA Applied Sciences Program: Success Factors in Applying Earth Science in Decision Making

Science.gov (United States)

Friedl, L. A.; Cox, L.

2008-12-01

The NASA Applied Sciences Program collaborates with organizations to discover and demonstrate applications of NASA Earth science research and technology to decision making. The desired outcome is for public and private organizations to use NASA Earth science products in innovative applications for sustained, operational uses to enhance their decisions. In addition, the program facilitates the end-user feedback to Earth science to improve products and demands for research. The Program thus serves as a bridge between Earth science research and technology and the applied organizations and end-users with management, policy, and business responsibilities. Since 2002, the Applied Sciences Program has sponsored over 115 applications-oriented projects to apply Earth observations and model products to decision making activities. Projects have spanned numerous topics - agriculture, air quality, water resources, disasters, public health, aviation, etc. The projects have involved government agencies, private companies, universities, non-governmental organizations, and foreign entities in multiple types of teaming arrangements. The paper will examine this set of applications projects and present specific examples of successful use of Earth science in decision making. The paper will discuss scientific, organizational, and management factors that contribute to or impede the integration of the Earth science research in policy and management. The paper will also present new methods the Applied Sciences Program plans to implement to improve linkages between science and end users.

Antibiotic stewardship and empirical antibiotic treatment: How can they get along?

Science.gov (United States)

Zuccaro, Valentina; Columpsi, Paola; Sacchi, Paolo; Lucà, Maria Grazia; Fagiuoli, Stefano; Bruno, Raffaele

2017-06-01

The aim of this review is to focus on the recent knowledge on antibiotic stewardship and empiric antibiotic treatment in cirrhotic patients. The application of antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) rules appears to be the most appropriate strategy to globally manage cirrhotic patients with infectious complications: indeed they represent a unique way to provide both early diagnosis and appropriate therapy in order to avoid not only antibiotic over-prescription but, more importantly, selection and spread of antimicrobial resistance. Moreover, cirrhotic patients must be considered "frail" and susceptible to healthcare associated infections: applying AMS policies would assure a cost reduction and thus contribute to the improvement of public health strategies. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Space Life Sciences Research and Education Program

Science.gov (United States)

Coats, Alfred C.

2001-01-01

Since 1969, the Universities Space Research Association (USRA), a private, nonprofit corporation, has worked closely with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to advance space science and technology and to promote education in those areas. USRA's Division of Space Life Sciences (DSLS) has been NASA's life sciences research partner for the past 18 years. For the last six years, our Cooperative Agreement NCC9-41 for the 'Space Life Sciences Research and Education Program' has stimulated and assisted life sciences research and education at NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC) - both at the Center and in collaboration with outside academic institutions. To accomplish our objectives, the DSLS has facilitated extramural research, developed and managed educational programs, recruited and employed visiting and staff scientists, and managed scientific meetings.

The Global Alliance for Infections in Surgery: defining a model for antimicrobial stewardship-results from an international cross-sectional survey

OpenAIRE

Sartelli, M.; Labricciosa, F.M.; Barbadoro, P.; Pagani, L.; Ansaloni, L.; Brink, A.J.; Carlet, J.; Khanna, A.; Chichom-Mefire, A.; Coccolini, F.; Saverio, S. Di; May, A.K.; Viale, P.; Watkins, R.R.; Scudeller, L.

2017-01-01

BACKGROUND: Antimicrobial Stewardship Programs (ASPs) have been promoted to optimize antimicrobial usage and patient outcomes, and to reduce the emergence of antimicrobial-resistant organisms. However, the best strategies for an ASP are not definitively established and are likely to vary based on local culture, policy, and routine clinical practice, and probably limited resources in middle-income countries. The aim of this study is to evaluate structures and resources of antimicrobial steward...

Exploring Art and Science Integration in an Afterschool Program

Science.gov (United States)

Bolotta, Alanna

Science, technology, engineering, arts and math (STEAM) education integrates science with art, presenting a unique and interesting opportunity to increase accessibility in science for learners. This case study examines an afterschool program grounded in art and science integration. Specifically, I studied the goals of the program, it's implementation and the student experience (thinking, feeling and doing) as they participated in the program. My findings suggest that these programs can be powerful methods to nurture scientific literacy, creativity and emotional development in learners. To do so, this program made connections between disciplines and beyond, integrated holistic teaching and learning practices, and continually adapted programming while also responding to challenges. The program is therefore specially suited to engage the heads, hands and hearts of learners, and can make an important contribution to their learning and development. To conclude, I provide some recommendations for STEAM implementation in both formal and informal learning settings.

Science in the city: Urban trees, forests, and people

Science.gov (United States)

Kathleen L. Wolf

2016-01-01

The article, intended for professional and manager audiences, is an overview of current research in urban forestry. Topics include tree science, forest risks, forest management and assessment, ecosystem services, and urban socio-ecological systems (including governance and stewardship).

The Howard University Program in Atmospheric Sciences: A Program Exemplifying Diversity and Excellence

Science.gov (United States)

Morria, V. R.; Demoz, B.; Joseph, E.

2017-12-01

The Howard University Graduate Program in Atmospheric Sciences (HUPAS) is the first advanced degree program in the atmospheric sciences instituted at a Historically Black College/University (HBCU) or at a Minority-Serving Institution (MSI). MSI in this context refers to academic institutions whose histories are grounded in serving minority students from their inception, rather than institutions whose student body demographics have evolved along with the "browning of America" and now meet recent Federal criteria for "minority-serving". HUPAS began in 1996 when initiatives within the Howard University Graduate School overlapped with the motivations of investigators within a NASA-funded University research center for starting a sustainable interdisciplinary program. After twenty years, the results have been the production of greater institutional depth and breadth of research in the geosciences and significant production of minority scientists contributing to the atmospheric sciences enterprise in various sectors. This presentation will highlight the development of the Howard University graduate program in atmospheric sciences, its impact on the national statistics for the production of underrepresented minority (URM) advanced degree holders in the atmospheric sciences, and some of the program's contributions to the diversity in geosciences and the National pipeline of talent from underrepresented groups. Over the past decade, Howard University is leading producer of African American and Hispanic female doctorates in atmospheric sciences - producing nearly half of all degree holders in the Nation. Specific examples of successful partnerships between this program and federal funding agencies such as NASA and NOAA which have been critical in the development process will also be highlighted. Finally, some of the student recruitment and retention strategies that have enabled the success of this program and statistics of student graduation will also be shared and

75 FR 31609 - Conservation Stewardship Program

Science.gov (United States)

2010-06-03

... producers who are members of the protected groups have participated in NRCS conservation programs at parity..., color, national origin, gender, sex, or disability status. Therefore, the CSP rule portends no adverse...

Teachers' participation in research programs improves their students' achievement in science.

Science.gov (United States)

Silverstein, Samuel C; Dubner, Jay; Miller, Jon; Glied, Sherry; Loike, John D

2009-10-16

Research experience programs engage teachers in the hands-on practice of science. Program advocates assert that program participation enhances teachers' skills in communicating science to students. We measured the impact of New York City public high-school science teachers' participation in Columbia University's Summer Research Program on their students' academic performance in science. In the year before program entry, students of participating and nonparticipating teachers passed a New York State Regents science examination at the same rate. In years three and four after program entry, participating teachers' students passed Regents science exams at a rate that was 10.1% higher (P = 0.049) than that of nonparticipating teachers' students. Other program benefits include decreased teacher attrition from classroom teaching and school cost savings of U.S. $1.14 per $1 invested in the program.

Story - Science - Solutions: A new middle school science curriculum that promotes climate-stewardship

Science.gov (United States)

Cordero, E.; Centeno Delgado, D. C.

2017-12-01

Over the last five years, Green Ninja has been developing educational media to help motivate student interest and engagement around climate science and solutions. The adoption of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) offers a unique opportunity where schools are changing both what they teach in a science class and how they teach. Inspired by the new emphasis in NGSS on climate change, human impact and engineering design, Green Ninja developed a technology focused, integrative, and yearlong science curriculum (6th, 7th and 8th grade) focused broadly around solutions to environmental problems. The use of technology supports the development of skills valuable for students, while also offering real-time metrics to help measure both student learning and environmental impact of student actions. During the presentation, we will describe the design philosophy around our middle school curriculum and share data from a series of classes that have created environmental benefits that transcend the traditional classroom. The notion that formal education, if done correctly, can be leveraged as a viable climate mitigation strategy will be discussed.

Materials Sciences programs, Fiscal Year 1983

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1983-09-01

The Materials Sciences Division constitutes one portion of a wide range of research supported by the DOE Office of Basic Energy Sciences. This report contains a listing of research underway in FY 1983 together with a convenient index to the program

Development and Implementation of Science and Technology Ethics Education Program for Prospective Science Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Rhee, Hyang-yon; Choi, Kyunghee

2014-05-01

The purposes of this study were (1) to develop a science and technology (ST) ethics education program for prospective science teachers, (2) to examine the effect of the program on the perceptions of the participants, in terms of their ethics and education concerns, and (3) to evaluate the impact of the program design. The program utilized problem-based learning (PBL) which was performed as an iterative process during two cycles. A total of 23 and 29 prospective teachers in each cycle performed team activities. A PBL-based ST ethics education program for the science classroom setting was effective in enhancing participants' perceptions of ethics and education in ST. These perceptions motivated prospective science teachers to develop and implement ST ethics education in their future classrooms. The change in the prospective teachers' perceptions of ethical issues and the need for ethics education was greater when the topic was controversial.

Considering a new domain for antimicrobial stewardship: Topical antibiotics in the open surgical wound.

Science.gov (United States)

Edmiston, Charles E; Leaper, David; Spencer, Maureen; Truitt, Karen; Litz Fauerbach, Loretta; Graham, Denise; Johnson, Helen Boehm

2017-11-01

The global push to combat the problem of antimicrobial resistance has led to the development of antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs), which were recently mandated by The Joint Commission and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. However, the use of topical antibiotics in the open surgical wound is often not monitored by these programs nor is it subject to any evidence-based standardization of care. Survey results indicate that the practice of using topical antibiotics intraoperatively, in both irrigation fluids and powders, is widespread. Given the risks inherent in their use and the lack of evidence supporting it, the practice should be monitored as a core part of ASPs, and alternative agents, such as antiseptics, should be considered. Copyright © 2017 Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Experimental Physical Sciences Vitae 2017

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kippen, Karen Elizabeth [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Del Mauro, Diana [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Patterson, Eileen Frances [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Fronzak, Hannah Kristina [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Cruz, James Michael [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Kramer, Robert W. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Martin, Genevieve [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Robinson, Richard Cecil [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Trujillo, Carlos Genaro [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Valdez, Sandra M. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)

2017-01-18

Frequently our most basic research experiments stimulate solutions for some of the most intractable national security problems, such as nuclear weapons stewardship, homeland security, intelligence and information analysis, and nuclear and alternative energy. This publication highlights our talented and creative staff who deliver solutions to these complex scientific and technological challenges by conducting cutting-edge multidisciplinary physical science research.

Program on ecosystem change and society

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Carpenter, Stephen R.; Folke, Carl; Norström, Albert

2012-01-01

The Program on Ecosystem Change and Society (PECS), a new initiative within the ICSU global change programs, aims to integrate research on the stewardship of social-ecological systems, the services they generate, and the relationships among natural capital, human wellbeing, livelihoods, inequality...

Partner-built ecosystem science - The National Ocean Partnership Program as a builder of EBM Tools and Data

Science.gov (United States)

Hoffman, P. L.; Green, R. E.; Kohanowich, K. M.

2016-12-01

The National Ocean Partnership Program (NOPP) was created in 1997 by federal public law to identify "and carry out partnerships among federal agencies, academia, industry, and other members of the oceanographic scientific community in the areas of data, resources, education, and communications." Since that time, numerous federal agencies have pooled talent, funding, and scientific resources (e.g. ships, aircraft, remote sensors and computing capability) to address pressing ocean science needs which no one entity can manage alone. In this presentation, we will address the ways the National Ocean Policy identifies ecosystem-based management (EBM) as a foundation for providing sound science-based and adaptable management to maintain the health, productivity, and resilience of U.S. ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes ecosystems. Because EBM is an important approach for efficient and effective interagency, multi-jurisdictional, and cross-sectoral marine planning and management, ocean science partnerships such as those provided by NOPP create a pool of regionally-pertinent, nationally-available data from which EBM decision makers can draw to address critical management issues. Specifically, we will provide examples drawn from the last five years of funding to illustrate how the NOPP process works, how it is managed by a federal Interagency Working Group (IWG-OP), and how EBM practitioners can both partner with others through the NOPP and offer guidance on the implementation of projects beneficial to the regional needs of the EBM community. Projects to be discussed have been carried out under the following themes: Arctic Cumulative Impacts: Marine Arctic Ecosystem Study (MARES) - Ecosystem Dynamics and Monitoring of the Beaufort Sea: An Integrated Science Approach. Biodiversity Indicators: Demonstration of a U.S. Marine Biodiversity Observation Network (Marine BON) Long-Term Observations: Coordinated Regional Efforts That Further the U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System

Teachers' voices: A comparison of two secondary science teacher preparation programs

Science.gov (United States)

Kohlhaas Labuda, Kathryn

This dissertation, using cross-case qualitative methodology, investigates the salient and latent features of two philosophically different university-based secondary science teacher preparation programs. Written documents from the two programs and from the Salish I Research project provided the salient data. New teachers' interview transcripts provided the latent data. This study provides the opportunity to hear teachers voice their perceptions of preparation programs. Three questions were investigated in this research study. First, What are the salient features of two different secondary science teacher preparation programs? Second, What are the latent features of two different secondary science teacher programs as perceived by new teachers? Third, How do new secondary science teachers from different programs perceive their preservice programs? The last question incorporates teachers' perceptions of gaps and coherence in the programs and teachers' recommendations to improve their preservice programs. Salient features of the programs revealed differences in the types of certification, and the amounts and types of required course work. Both programs certified teachers at the secondary science level, but only M program certified their teachers as elementary science specialists. Program M required more semester hours of education and science course work than Program S. Although teachers from both programs perceived little coherence between their science and education courses, S-teachers presented a more fragmented picture of their education program and perceived fewer benefits from the program. Lack of relevance and courses that focused on elementary teaching were perceived as part of the problem. M-teachers perceived some cohesion through the use of cohorts in three consecutive semesters of science methods courses that provided multiple field experiences prior to student teaching. S-teachers did not perceive an organized philosophy of their program. M

Magnetic Fusion Science Fellowship program: Summary of program activities for calendar year 1986

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1986-01-01

This report describes the 1985-1986 progress of the Magnetic Fusion Science Fellowship program (MFSF). The program was established in January of 1985 by the Office of Fusion Energy (OFE) of the US Department of Energy (DOE) to encourage talented undergraduate and first-year graduate students to enter qualified graduate programs in the sciences related to fusion energy development. The program currently has twelve fellows in participating programs. Six new fellows are being appointed during each of the program's next two award cycles. Appointments are for one year and are renewable for two additional years with a three year maximum. The stipend level also continues at a $1000 a month or $12,000 a year. The program pays all tuition and fee expenses for the fellows. Another important aspect of the fellowship program is the practicum. During the practicum fellows receive three month appointments to work at DOE designated fusion science research and development centers. The practicum allows the MFSF fellows to directly participate in on-going DOE research and development programs

75 FR 22576 - Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-29

... DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION [CFDA No. 84.120A] Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program... the fiscal year (FY) 2009 grant slate for the Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program. SUMMARY: The Secretary intends to use the grant slate developed in FY 2009 for the Minority Science and...

An integrated stewardship model : Antimicrobial, infection prevention and diagnostic (AID)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dik, Jan-Willem H.; Poelman, Randy; Friedrich, Alexander W.; Panday, Prashant Nannan; Lo-Ten-Foe, Jerome R.; van Assen, Sander; van Gemert-Pijnen, Julia E. W. C.; Niesters, Hubert G. M.; Hendrix, Ron; Sinha, Bhanu

2016-01-01

Considering the threat of antimicrobial resistance and the difficulties it entails in treating infections, it is necessary to cross borders and approach infection management in an integrated, multidisciplinary manner. We propose the antimicrobial, infection prevention and diagnostic stewardship

An integrated stewardship model: antimicrobial, infection prevention and diagnostic (AID)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dik, Jan-Willem H.; Poelman, Randy; Friedrich, Alexander W.; Panday, Prashant N.; Lo-Ten-Foe, Jerome R.; van Assen, Sander; van Gemert-Pijnen, Julia E.W.C.; Niesters, Hubert G.M.; Hendrix, Ron; Sinha, Bhanu

2015-01-01

Considering the threat of antimicrobial resistance and the difficulties it entails in treating infections, it is necessary to cross borders and approach infection management in an integrated, multidisciplinary manner. We propose the antimicrobial, infection prevention and diagnostic stewardship

Incorporating Geographic Information Science in the BSc Environ-mental Science Program in Botswana

Science.gov (United States)

Akinyemi, Felicia O.

2018-05-01

Critical human capacity in Geographic Information Science (GISc) is developed at the Botswana International University of Science and Technology, a specialized, research university. Strategies employed include GISc courses offered each semester to students from various programs, the conduct of field-based projects, enrolment in online courses, geo-spatial initiatives with external partners, and final year research projects utilizing geospatial technologies. A review is made of available GISc courses embedded in the Bachelor of Science Environmental Science program. GISc courses are incorporated in three Bachelor degree programs as distinct courses. Geospatial technologies are employed in several other courses. Student researches apply GIS and Remote Sensing methods to environmental and geological themes. The overarching goals are to equip students in various disciplines to utilize geospatial technologies, and enhance their spatial thinking and reasoning skills.

Leveraging best practices to promote health, safety, sustainability, and stewardship.

Science.gov (United States)

Weiss, Marjorie D

2013-08-01

Strategically leveraging health and safety initiatives with sustainability and stewardship helps organizations improve profitability and positively impact team member and customer attachment to the organization. Collective efficacy enhances the triple bottom line: healthy people, healthy planet, and healthy profits. The HS(3)™ Best Practice Exchanges group demonstrated that collective efficacy can leverage the social cohesion, communication channels, and activities within workplaces to promote a healthy, sustainable work culture. This in turn (1) protects the health and safety of workers, (2) preserves the natural environment, and (3) increases attachment to the organization. Community-based participatory research using the Attach21 survey assessed the progress of these companies in their efforts to integrate health, safety, sustainability, and stewardship. Monthly Best Practice Exchanges promoted collective efficacy by providing support, encouragement, and motivation to share and adopt new ideas. Copyright 2013, SLACK Incorporated.

Climate Science Program at California State University, Northridge

Science.gov (United States)

Steele Cox, H.; Klein, D.; Cadavid, A. C.; Foley, B.

2012-12-01

Due to its interdisciplinary nature, climate science poses wide-ranging challenges for science and mathematics students seeking careers in this field. There is a compelling need for universities to provide coherent programs in climate science in order to train future climate scientists. With funding from NASA Innovations in Climate Education (NICE), California State University, Northridge (CSUN), is creating the CSUN Climate Science Program. An interdisciplinary team of faculty members is working in collaboration with UCLA, Santa Monica College and NASA/JPL partners to create a new curriculum in climate science. The resulting sequence of climate science courses, or Pathway for studying the Mathematics of Climate Change (PMCC), is integrated into a Bachelor of Science degree program in the Applied Mathematical Sciences offered by the Mathematics Department at CSUN. The PMCC consists of courses offered by the departments of Mathematics, Physics, and Geography and is designed to prepare students for Ph.D. programs in technical fields relevant to global climate change and related careers. The students who choose to follow this program will be guided to enroll in the following sequence of courses for their 12 units of upper division electives: 1) A newly created course junior level course, Math 396CL, in applied mathematics which will introduce students to applications of vector calculus and differential equations to the study of thermodynamics and atmospheric dynamics. 2) An already existing course, Math 483, with new content on mathematical modeling specialized for this program; 3) An improved version of Phys 595CL on the mathematics and physics of climate change with emphasis on Radiative Transfer; 4) A choice of Geog 407 on Remote Sensing or Geog 416 on Climate Change with updated content to train the students in the analysis of satellite data obtained with the NASA Earth Observing System and instruction in the analysis of data obtained within a Geographical

Strategic Petroleum Reserve Program stewardship report No. 1

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

None

1978-11-03

This report is a managerial evaluation of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) Program conducted by the SPR program director and project manager. Current capabilities and goals of the program have been assessed resulting in an achievable SPR baseline for performance and measurement of this program. Projections and recommendations are based on available technical, schedule, and cost information, taking into account known influencing factors. The SPR Baseline incorporates current critical factors and deviations from the FY 1980 budget data bases. Data on existing sites, expansion sites, turnkey sites, program cost, and withdrawal are included.

The Specification of Science Education Programs in the Local Public Library: Focusing on the Programs In G-city

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

In-Ja Ahn*

2012-06-01

Full Text Available The city of 'G' has been made a number of achievements with its science program as a part of public library's cultural program during the last 5 years. Recently, the national science centre has been established in the same city, the debate is now needed whether the science program in the public library have reasons to be maintained or to be reduced. The aim of this research is on the operating strategies of the science program in the public library. The research methods include case studies of operational strategies in domestic and foreign science centre, the level of satisfaction of local citizen on the science program, the vision of science program in the advancement of public library in the century. In results, the research proposes that the science program in public library should be maintained, but with locally characterised programs. In addition, the study also advised on the provision of scientific information, the strengthened search functions, and the development of user-centred services for those in science fields.

Laboratory Animal Sciences Program (LASP)

Data.gov (United States)

Federal Laboratory Consortium — The Laboratory Animal Sciences Program (LASP) is a comprehensive resource for scientists performing animal-based research to gain a better understanding of cancer,...

[The absence of stewardship in the Chilean health authority after the 2004 health reform].

Science.gov (United States)

Herrera, Tania; Sánchez, Sergio

2014-11-26

Stewardship is the most important political function of a health system. It is a government responsibility carried out by the health authority. Among other dimensions, it is also a meta-function that includes conduction and regulation. The Health Authority and Management Act, which came about from the health reform of 2004, separated the functions of service provision and stewardship with the aim of strengthening the role of the health authority. However, the current structure of the health system contains overlapping functions between the different entities that leads to lack of coordination and inconsistencies, and a greater weight on individual health actions at the expense of collective ones. Consequently, a properly funded national health strategy to improve the health of the population is missing. Additionally, the components of citizen participation and governance are weak. It is necessary, therefore, to revisit the Chilean health structure in order to develop one that truly enables the exercise of the health authority’s stewardship role.

The absence of stewardship in the Chilean health authority after the 2004 health reform

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tania Herrera

2014-11-01

Full Text Available Stewardship is the most important political function of a health system. It is a government responsibility carried out by the health authority. Among other dimensions, it is also a meta-function that includes conduction and regulation. The Health Authority and Management Act, which came about from the health reform of 2004, separated the functions of service provision and stewardship with the aim of strengthening the role of the health authority. However, the current structure of the health system contains overlapping functions between the different entities that leads to lack of coordination and inconsistencies, and a greater weight on individual health actions at the expense of collective ones. Consequently, a properly funded national health strategy to improve the health of the population is missing. Additionally, the components of citizen participation and governance are weak. It is necessary, therefore, to revisit the Chilean health structure in order to develop one that truly enables the exercise of the health authority’s stewardship role

Advanced Science for Kids: Multicultural Assessment and Programming.

Science.gov (United States)

Bettac, Teresa; Huckabee, Colleen; Musser, Louise; Patton, Paulette; Yates, Joyce

1997-01-01

Describes Advanced Science for Kids (ASK), a multicultural approach to assessment and programming for a middle school advanced science program. ASK is designed to provide alternative approaches to identification and assessment, facilitate authentic instruction and assessment, and provide minority students with academic and social support as they…

Fermilab Friends for Science Education | Programs

Science.gov (United States)

Fermilab Friends for Science Education FFSE Home About Us Join Us Support Us Contact Us Programs Donors Board of Directors Board Tools Calendar Join Us Donate Now Get FermiGear! Education Office Search photo Fermilab Friends for Science Education, in partnership with Fermilab and area educators, designs

Stockpile stewardship and management programmatic environmental impact statement data for the no action and phase-out alternatives at the Oak Ridge Reservation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-07-01

Alternatives for the Oak Ridge Y-12 Plant are being considered under the Stockpile Stewardship and Management Program (SSM). The three alternatives under consideration include: continuing the secondary manufacturing operations in a down-sized footprint; no action; and phasing out the secondary manufacturing operations at Y-12. This report provides specific environmental data requested for the Y-12 Plant alternatives of no action and phase out

US antibiotic stewardship and penicillin allergy.

Science.gov (United States)

Wada, Kara J; Calhoun, Karen H

2017-06-01

The purpose of this review is to improve otolaryngologists' antibiotic stewardship by detailing current approaches to penicillin allergy. Although up to 15% of hospitalized patients in the United States have a penicillin allergy recorded on their charts, fewer than 10% of these have a true penicillin allergy. Using a combination of a detailed allergy history, skin testing and graded-dose administration, many patients whose charts say 'penicillin-allergic' can safely be treated with penicillin and cross-reacting antibiotics. This permits use of narrower-spectrum antibiotics and saves money.

The LSSTC Data Science Fellowship Program

Science.gov (United States)

Miller, Adam; Walkowicz, Lucianne; LSSTC DSFP Leadership Council

2017-01-01

The Large Synoptic Survey Telescope Corporation (LSSTC) Data Science Fellowship Program (DSFP) is a unique professional development program for astronomy graduate students. DSFP students complete a series of six, one-week long training sessions over the course of two years. The sessions are cumulative, each building on the last, to allow an in-depth exploration of the topics covered: data science basics, statistics, image processing, machine learning, scalable software, data visualization, time-series analysis, and science communication. The first session was held in Aug 2016 at Northwestern University, with all materials and lectures publicly available via github and YouTube. Each session focuses on a series of technical problems which are written in iPython notebooks. The initial class of fellows includes 16 students selected from across the globe, while an additional 14 fellows will be added to the program in year 2. Future sessions of the DSFP will be hosted by a rotating cast of LSSTC member institutions. The DSFP is designed to supplement graduate education in astronomy by teaching the essential skills necessary for dealing with big data, serving as a resource for all in the LSST era. The LSSTC DSFP is made possible by the generous support of the LSST Corporation, the Data Science Initiative (DSI) at Northwestern, and CIERA.

Gail Harlamoff: Executive Director, Life Lab Science Program

OpenAIRE

Rabkin, Sarah

2010-01-01

Gail Harlamoff is Executive Director of the Life Lab Science Program, a nationally recognized, award-winning nonprofit science and environmental organization located on the UC Santa Cruz campus. Founded in 1979, Life Lab helps schools develop gardens and implement curricula to enhance students’ learning about science, math, and the natural world. The program has trained tens of thousands of educators in more than 1400 schools across the country. Life Lab’s specialized initiatives inc...

Ecosystem stewardship: sustainability strategies for a rapidly changing planet

Science.gov (United States)

F. Stuart Chapin; Stephen R. Carpenter; Gary P. Kofinas; Carl Folke; Nick Abel; William C. Clark; Per Olsson; D. Mark Stafford Smith; Brian Walker; Oran R. Young; Fikret Berkes; Reinette Biggs; J. Morgan Grove; Rosamond L. Naylor; Evelyn Pinkerton; Will Steffen; Frederick J. Swanson

2010-01-01

Ecosystem stewardship is an action-oriented framework intended to foster the social-ecological sustainability of a rapidly changing planet. Recent developments identify three strategies that make optimal use of current understanding in an environment of inevitable uncertainty and abrupt change: reducing the magnitude of, and exposure and sensitivity to, known stresses...

Life Sciences Program Tasks and Bibliography

Science.gov (United States)

1996-01-01

This document includes information on all peer reviewed projects funded by the Office of Life and Microgravity Sciences and Applications, Life Sciences Division during fiscal year 1995. Additionally, this inaugural edition of the Task Book includes information for FY 1994 programs. This document will be published annually and made available to scientists in the space life sciences field both as a hard copy and as an interactive Internet web page

General Atomics Sciences Education Foundation Outreach Programs

Science.gov (United States)

Winter, Patricia S.

1997-11-01

Scientific literacy for all students is a national goal. The General Atomics (GA) Foundation Outreach Program is committed to playing a major role in enhancing pre-college education in science, engineering and new technologies. GA has received wide recognition for its Sciences Education Program, a volunteer effort of GA employees and San Diego science teachers. GA teacher/scientist teams have developed inquiry-based education modules and associated workshops based on areas of core competency at GA: Fusion -- Energy of the Stars; Explorations in Materials Science; Portrait of an Atom; DNA Technology. [http://www.sci-ed-ga.org]. Workshops [teachers receive printed materials and laboratory kits for ``hands-on" modules] have been presented for 700+ teachers from 200+ area schools. Additional workshops include: University of Denver for Denver Public Schools; National Educators Workshop; Standard Experiments in Engineering Materials; Update '96 in Los Alamos; Newspapers in Education Workshop (LA Times); American Chemical Society Regional/National meetings, and California Science Teachers Association Conference. Other outreach includes High School Science Day, school partnerships, teacher and student mentoring and the San Diego Science Alliance [http://www.sdsa.org].

On learning science and pseudoscience from prime-time television programming

Science.gov (United States)

Whittle, Christopher Henry

The purpose of the present dissertation is to determine whether the viewing of two particular prime-time television programs, ER and The X-Files, increases viewer knowledge of science and to identify factors that may influence learning from entertainment television programming. Viewer knowledge of scientific dialogue from two science-based prime-time television programs, ER, a serial drama in a hospital emergency room and The X-Files, a drama about two Federal Bureau of Investigation agents who pursue alleged extraterrestrial life and paranormal activity, is studied. Level of viewing, education level, science education level, experiential factors, level of parasocial interaction, and demographic characteristics are assessed as independent variables affecting learning from entertainment television viewing. The present research involved a nine-month long content analysis of target television program dialogue and data collection from an Internet-based survey questionnaire posted to target program-specific on-line "chat" groups. The present study demonstrated that entertainment television program viewers incidentally learn science from entertainment television program dialogue. The more they watch, the more they learn. Viewing a pseudoscientific fictional television program does necessarily influence viewer beliefs in pseudoscience. Higher levels of formal science study are reflected in more science learning and less learning of pseudoscience from entertainment television program viewing. Pseudoscience learning from entertainment television programming is significantly related to experience with paranormal phenomena, higher levels of viewer parasocial interaction, and specifically, higher levels of cognitive parasocial interaction. In summary, the greater a viewer's understanding of science the more they learn when they watch their favorite science-based prime-time television programs. Viewers of pseudoscience-based prime-time television programming with higher levels

Girls in Engineering, Mathematics and Science, GEMS: A Science Outreach Program for Middle-School Female Students

Science.gov (United States)

Dubetz, Terry A.; Wilson, Jo Ann

2013-01-01

Girls in Engineering, Mathematics and Science (GEMS) is a science and math outreach program for middle-school female students. The program was developed to encourage interest in math and science in female students at an early age. Increased scientific familiarity may encourage girls to consider careers in science and mathematics and will also help…

Case Studies of Liberal Arts Computer Science Programs

Science.gov (United States)

Baldwin, D.; Brady, A.; Danyluk, A.; Adams, J.; Lawrence, A.

2010-01-01

Many undergraduate liberal arts institutions offer computer science majors. This article illustrates how quality computer science programs can be realized in a wide variety of liberal arts settings by describing and contrasting the actual programs at five liberal arts colleges: Williams College, Kalamazoo College, the State University of New York…

SCICEX: Submarine Arctic Science Program

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Submarine Arctic Science Program, SCICEX, is a federal interagency collaboration among the operational Navy, research agencies, and the marine research community...

Environmental Management Science Program Workshop

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

None

1998-07-01

This program summary book is a compendium of project summaries submitted by principal investigators in the Environmental Management Science Program and Environmental Management/Energy Research Pilot Collaborative Research Program (Wolf-Broido Program). These summaries provide information about the most recent project activities and accomplishments. All projects will be represented at the workshop poster sessions, so you will have an opportunity to meet with the researchers. The projects will be presented in the same order at the poster session as they are presented in this summary book. Detailed questions about an individual project may be directed to the investigators involved.

The National Ocean Sciences Bowl: An Effective Model for Engaging High School Students in Ocean Science

Science.gov (United States)

Holloway, A. E.

2016-02-01

The National Ocean Sciences Bowl (NOSB) is an informal high school education program that engages students in ocean and environmental science and exposes them to the breadth of ocean-related careers. The NOSB strives to train the next generation of interdisciplinary capable scientists and build a STEM-literate society that harnesses the power of ocean and climate science to address environmental, economic, and societal issues. Through the NOSB, students not only learn scientific principles, but also apply them to compelling real-world problems. The NOSB provides a richer STEM education and exposes students to ocean science topics they may not otherwise study through classroom curriculum. A longitudinal study that began in 2007 has shown that NOSB participants have an enhanced interest in ocean-related hobbies and environmental stewardship and an increasing number of these students have remained in the STEM pipeline and workforce.While the NOSB is primarily an academic competition, it has evolved since its creation in 1998 to include a variety of practical and professional development components. One of the program enhancements, the Scientific Expert Briefing (SEB), gives students the opportunity to apply what they have studied and think critically about current and ongoing ocean science challenges. The SEB helps students connect their knowledge of ocean science with current and proposed policy initiatives. Students gain significant research, writing, and presentation skills, while enhancing their ability for collaboration and consensus building, all vital workforce skills. Ultimately, the SEB teaches students how to communicate complex scientific research into digestible information for decision-makers and the general public.This poster will examine the impact of the NOSB and its role in strengthening the workforce pipeline through a combination of independent learning, competition, and opportunities for communication skills development.

Antimicrobial stewardship initiatives throughout Europe: proven value for money

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Edwin J.M. Oberjé

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Antimicrobial stewardship is recognized as a key component to stop the current European spread of antimicrobial resistance. It has also become evident that antimicrobial resistance is a problem that cannot be tackled by single institutions or physicians. Prevention of antimicrobial resistance needs rigorous actions at ward level, institution level, national level and at supra-national levels. Countries can learn from each other and possibly transplant best practices across borders to prevent antimicrobial resistance. The aim of this study is to highlight some of the success stories of proven cost-effective interventions, and to describe the actions that have been taken, the outcomes that have been found, and the difficulties that have been met. In some cases we came across substantial scope for real-life cost savings. Although the best approach to effectively hinder the spread of antimicrobial resistance remains unclear and may vary significantly among settings, several EU-wide examples demonstrate that cost-effective antimicrobial stewardship is possible. Such examples can encourage others to implement (the most cost-effective elements in their system.

Effects of Group 1 versus Group 2 carbapenems on the susceptibility of Acinetobacter baumannii to carbapenems: a before and after intervention study of carbapenem-use stewardship.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Young Kyung Yoon

Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: Antimicrobial stewardship programs have been proposed for reducing bacterial resistance in the hospital environment. The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of a carbapenem-use stewardship program on the susceptibility of Acinetobacter baumannii to Group 2 carbapenems. METHODS: A before and after intervention study was conducted at a university hospital from September 2008 to February 2013. Three study periods were defined: Phase I, pre-intervention (months 1-18; Phase II, a postintervention period during which ertapenem use was mandated but carbapenem use was not restricted (months 19-36; and Phase III, a postintervention period during which Group 2 carbapenem use was restricted (months 37-54. RESULTS: During the study period, intervention resulted in diminished consumption of Group 2 carbapenems (antimicrobial use density (AUD: 21.3±6.0 in Phase I, 18.8±6.0 in Phase II, 16.1±4.4 in Phase III; P = 0.028 and increased consumption of ertapenem (AUD: 2.7±1.7 in Phase I, 7.2±4.5 in Phase II, 9.1±5.3 in Phase III; P<0.001. The use of autoregressive-error models showed that in contrast with ertapenem use, the use of Group 2 carbapenem during the previous one month was positively and significantly associated with a subsequent increase in the proportion of carbapenem-resistant A. baumannii (CRAB (P = 0.031. CONCLUSIONS: Implementing a carbapenem-use stewardship program featuring the preferential use of ertapenem for treating appropriate indications of infection resulted in reduced use of Group 2 carbapenems and had a positive impact on the susceptibility of A. baumannii to carbapenems. This approach could be integrated into CRAB-control strategies in hospitals.

Strategic plan for the restructured US fusion energy sciences program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-08-01

This plan reflects a transition to a restructured fusion program, with a change in focus from an energy technology development program to a fusion energy sciences program. Since the energy crisis of the early 1970's, the U.S. fusion program has presented itself as a goal- oriented fusion energy development program, with milestones that required rapidly increasing budgets. The Energy Policy Act of 1992 also called for a goal-oriented development program consistent with the Department's planning. Actual funding levels, however, have forced a premature narrowing of the program to the tokamak approach. By 1995, with no clear, immediate need driving the schedule for developing fusion energy and with enormous pressure to reduce discretionary spending, Congress cut fusion program funding for FY 1996 by one-third and called for a major restructuring of the program. Based on the recommendations of the Fusion Energy Advisory Committee (FEAC), the Department has decided to pursue a program that concentrates on world-class plasma, science, and on maintaining an involvement in fusion energy science through international collaboration. At the same time, the Japanese and Europeans, with energy situations different from ours, are continuing with their goal- oriented fusion programs. Collaboration with them provides a highly leveraged means of continued involvement in fusion energy science and technology, especially through participation in the engineering and design activities of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor program, ITER. This restructured fusion energy sciences program, with its focus on fundamental fusion science and technology, may well provide insights that lead to more attractive fusion power plants, and will make use of the scientific infrastructure that will allow the United States to launch a fusion energy development program at some future date

Programs of the Office of the Science Advisor (OSA)

Science.gov (United States)

Office of the Science Advisor provides leadership in cross-Agency science and science policy. Program areas: Risk Assessment, Science and Technology Policy, Human Subjects Research, Environmental Measurement and Modeling, Scientific Integrity.

Climate Change Science Program Collection

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Climate Change Science Program (CCSP) Collection consists of publications and other resources produced between 2007 and 2009 by the CCSP with the intention of...

Antibiotic Usage Profile after Antibiotic Stewardship Program Implementation in Intensive Care Unit of dr. Ramelan Naval Hospital Surabaya

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stefanie Setiawan

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Antibiotic Stewardship Program (ASP is mandatory to all Indonesian hospitals, in accordance to the 2015 Minister of Health Decree No. 8. Dr. Ramelan Naval Hospital Surabaya is one among the many hospitals in Indonesia that has implemented the ASP. The study objective was to describe quantitative-qualitatively the use of antibiotics, along with clinical and microbiological outcomes observed in an Intensive Care Unit (ICU after ASP implementation in dr. Ramelan Naval Hospital Surabaya. The design was a 3-month (February–May 2016 cross-sectional observational study. Quantitative description was reported using Days of Therapy (DOT/100 patient-days, the qualitative description was reviewed using Gyssens’ flowchart. Clinical outcomes observed include nosocomial infection, infection-related mortality, and average length of stay (LOS. Microbiological outcome was observed through the occurences of multi-drug resistant organism. The results showed overall antibiotic use was 151.63 DOT/100 patient-days. Quality of antibiotic use were 52.73% definitely appropriate; 8.18% inappropriate regarding dose, intervals, durations, and timing; 7.27% no indication; and no mutual agreement in 31.82% (κ=0.59; p<0.05. Hospital Acquired Pneumonias (HAPs/Ventilator Associated Pneumonias (VAPs were the most observed nosocomial infection, infection-related mortality rate was 44.68%; and average LOS were 7.17±1.9 days (p<0.05. No incidents of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA or Extended Spectrum Beta-Lactamase (ESBL have been found, but there were two cases of Multi Drug Resistant (MDR Acinetobacter baumannii.

Math and science education programs from the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1991-01-01

This booklet reviews math and science education programs at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL). The programs can be categorized into six groups: teacher programs; science laboratories for students; student programs; education outreach programs; INEL Public Affairs Office; and programs for college faculty and students

A Program to Prepare Graduate Students for Careers in Climate Adaptation Science

Science.gov (United States)

Huntly, N.; Belmont, P.; Flint, C.; Gordillo, L.; Howe, P. D.; Lutz, J. A.; Null, S. E.; Reed, S.; Rosenberg, D. E.; Wang, S. Y.

2017-12-01

We describe our experiences creating a graduate program that addresses the need for a next generation of scientists who can produce, communicate, and help implement actionable science. The Climate Adaptation Science (CAS) graduate program, funded by the National Science Foundation Research Traineeship (NRT) program, prepares graduate students for careers at the interfaces of science with policy and management in the field of climate adaptation, which is a major 21st-century challenge for science and society. The program is interdisciplinary, with students and faculty from natural, social, and physical sciences, engineering, and mathematics, and is based around interdisciplinary team research in collaboration with partners from outside of academia who have climate adaptation science needs. The program embeds students in a cycle of creating and implementing actionable science through a two-part internship, with partners from government, non-governmental organizations, and industry, that brackets and informs a year of interdisciplinary team research. The program is communication-rich, with events that foster information exchange and understanding across disciplines and workplaces. We describe the CAS program, our experiences in developing it, the research and internship experiences of students in the program, and initial metrics and feedback on the effectiveness of the program.

The second workshop of neutron science research program

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yasuda, Hideshi [Japan Atomic Energy Research Inst., Tokai, Ibaraki (Japan). Tokai Research Establishment; Tone, Tatsuzo [eds.

1997-11-01

The Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute(JAERI) has been proposing the Neutron Science Research Program to explore a broad range of basic research and the nuclear technology including actinide transmutation with use of powerful spallation neutron sources. For this purpose, the JAERI is conducting the research and development of an intense proton linac, the development of targets, as well as the conceptual design study of experimental facilities required for applications of spallation neutrons and secondary particle beams. The Special Task Force for Neutron Science Initiative was established in May 1996 to promote aggressively and systematically the Neutron Science Research Program. The second workshop on neutron science research program was held at the JAERI Tokai Research Establishment on 13 and 14 March 1997 for the purpose of discussing the results obtained since the first workshop in March 1996. The 27 of the presented papers are indexed individually. (J.P.N.)

Stewardship to tackle global phosphorus inefficiency: The case of Europe.

Science.gov (United States)

Withers, Paul J A; van Dijk, Kimo C; Neset, Tina-Simone S; Nesme, Thomas; Oenema, Oene; Rubæk, Gitte H; Schoumans, Oscar F; Smit, Bert; Pellerin, Sylvain

2015-03-01

The inefficient use of phosphorus (P) in the food chain is a threat to the global aquatic environment and the health and well-being of citizens, and it is depleting an essential finite natural resource critical for future food security and ecosystem function. We outline a strategic framework of 5R stewardship (Re-align P inputs, Reduce P losses, Recycle P in bioresources, Recover P in wastes, and Redefine P in food systems) to help identify and deliver a range of integrated, cost-effective, and feasible technological innovations to improve P use efficiency in society and reduce Europe's dependence on P imports. Their combined adoption facilitated by interactive policies, co-operation between upstream and downstream stakeholders (researchers, investors, producers, distributors, and consumers), and more harmonized approaches to P accounting would maximize the resource and environmental benefits and help deliver a more competitive, circular, and sustainable European economy. The case of Europe provides a blueprint for global P stewardship.

Department of Energy - Office of Science Early Career Research Program

Science.gov (United States)

Horwitz, James

The Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science Early Career Program began in FY 2010. The program objectives are to support the development of individual research programs of outstanding scientists early in their careers and to stimulate research careers in the disciplines supported by the DOE Office of Science. Both university and DOE national laboratory early career scientists are eligible. Applicants must be within 10 years of receiving their PhD. For universities, the PI must be an untenured Assistant Professor or Associate Professor on the tenure track. DOE laboratory applicants must be full time, non-postdoctoral employee. University awards are at least 150,000 per year for 5 years for summer salary and expenses. DOE laboratory awards are at least 500,000 per year for 5 years for full annual salary and expenses. The Program is managed by the Office of the Deputy Director for Science Programs and supports research in the following Offices: Advanced Scientific and Computing Research, Biological and Environmental Research, Basic Energy Sciences, Fusion Energy Sciences, High Energy Physics, and Nuclear Physics. A new Funding Opportunity Announcement is issued each year with detailed description on the topical areas encouraged for early career proposals. Preproposals are required. This talk will introduce the DOE Office of Science Early Career Research program and describe opportunities for research relevant to the condensed matter physics community. http://science.energy.gov/early-career/

The Stewardship Role of Analyst Forecasts, and Discretionary Versus Non-Discretionary Accruals

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christensen, Peter Ove; Frimor, Hans; Sabac, Florin

We examine the interaction between discretionary and non-discretionary accruals in a stewardship setting. Contracting includes multiple rounds of renegotiation based on contractible accounting information and non-contractible but more timely non-accounting information. We show that accounting...... timely non-accounting information (analyst earnings forecasts) increases the ex ante value of the firm and reduces costly earnings management. There is an optimal level of reversible non-discretionary accrual noise introduced through revenue recognition policies. Tight rules-based accounting regulation...... regulation aimed at increasing earnings quality from a valuation perspective (earnings persistence) may have a significant impact on how firms rationally respond in terms of allowing accrual discretion in order to alleviate the impact on the stewardship role of earnings. Increasing the precision of more...

The Stewardship Role of Analyst Forecasts, and Discretionary Versus Non-Discretionary Accruals

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christensen, Peter Ove; Frimor, Hans; Sabac, Florin

2013-01-01

We examine the interaction between discretionary and non-discretionary accruals in a stewardship setting. Contracting includes multiple rounds of renegotiation based on contractible accounting information and non-contractible but more timely non-accounting information. We show that accounting...... timely non-accounting information (analyst earnings forecasts) increases the ex ante value of the firm and reduces costly earnings management. There is an optimal level of reversible non-discretionary accrual noise introduced through revenue recognition policies. Tight rules-based accounting regulation...... regulation aimed at increasing earnings quality from a valuation perspective (earnings persistence) may have a significant impact on how firms rationally respond in terms of allowing accrual discretion in order to alleviate the impact on the stewardship role of earnings. Increasing the precision of more...

A concept for performance management for Federal science programs

Science.gov (United States)

Whalen, Kevin G.

2017-11-06

The demonstration of clear linkages between planning, funding, outcomes, and performance management has created unique challenges for U.S. Federal science programs. An approach is presented here that characterizes science program strategic objectives by one of five “activity types”: (1) knowledge discovery, (2) knowledge development and delivery, (3) science support, (4) inventory and monitoring, and (5) knowledge synthesis and assessment. The activity types relate to performance measurement tools for tracking outcomes of research funded under the objective. The result is a multi-time scale, integrated performance measure that tracks individual performance metrics synthetically while also measuring progress toward long-term outcomes. Tracking performance on individual metrics provides explicit linkages to root causes of potentially suboptimal performance and captures both internal and external program drivers, such as customer relations and science support for managers. Functionally connecting strategic planning objectives with performance measurement tools is a practical approach for publicly funded science agencies that links planning, outcomes, and performance management—an enterprise that has created unique challenges for public-sector research and development programs.

Evaluating the Effectiveness of the 2002-2003 NASA SCIence Files(TM) Program

Science.gov (United States)

Pinelli, Thomas E.; Lambert, Matthew A.; Williams, Amy C.

2004-01-01

NASA SCIence Files (tm) is a research-, inquiry-, and standards-based, integrated mathematics, science, and technology series of 60-minute instructional distance learning (television and web-based) programs for students in grades 3-5. Respondents who evaluated the programs in the 2002-2003 NASA SCIence Files (tm) series reported that (1) they used the programs in the series; (2) the goals and objectives for the series were met; (3) the programs were aligned with the national mathematics, science, and technology standards; (4) the program content was developmentally appropriate for grade level; and (5) the programs in the series enhanced and enriched the teaching of mathematics, science, and technology.

The NASA computer science research program plan

Science.gov (United States)

1983-01-01

A taxonomy of computer science is included, one state of the art of each of the major computer science categories is summarized. A functional breakdown of NASA programs under Aeronautics R and D, space R and T, and institutional support is also included. These areas were assessed against the computer science categories. Concurrent processing, highly reliable computing, and information management are identified.

BURECS: An Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Climate Science Program

Science.gov (United States)

Dennis, D. P.; Marchant, D. R.; Christ, A. J.; Ehrenfeucht, S.

2017-12-01

The current structure of many undergraduate programs, particularly those at large research universities, requires students to engage with a major or academic emphasis early in their university careers. This oftentimes curbs exploration outside the major and can inhibit interdisciplinary collaboration. The Boston University Research Education and Communication of Science (BURECS) program seeks to bridge this institutional divide by fostering interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary collaboration on climate change-related issues by students from across Boston University (B.U.). Every year, approximately fifteen first-year students from B.U.'s College of Arts and Sciences, College of Communication, and School of Education are selected to join BURECS, which includes a climate science seminar, a hands-on lab course, a supported summer internship with Boston-area researchers, and the opportunity to participate in Antarctic field work during subsequent B.U. Antarctic Research Group expeditions. Currently in its third year, BURECS is funded through the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Professors Program.

Idaho National Laboratory Comprehensive Land Use and Environmental Stewardship Report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

No name listed on publication

2011-08-01

Land and facility use planning and decisions at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) Site are guided by a comprehensive site planning process in accordance with Department of Energy Policy 430.1, 'Land and Facility Use Policy,' that integrates mission, economic, ecologic, social, and cultural factors. The INL Ten-Year Site Plan, prepared in accordance with Department of Energy Order 430.1B, 'Real Property Asset Management,' outlines the vision and strategy to transform INL to deliver world-leading capabilities that will enable the Department of Energy to accomplish its mission. Land use planning is the overarching function within real property asset management that integrates the other functions of acquisition, recapitalization, maintenance, disposition, real property utilization, and long-term stewardship into a coordinated effort to ensure current and future mission needs are met. All land and facility use projects planned at the INL Site are considered through a formal planning process that supports the Ten-Year Site Plan. This Comprehensive Land Use and Environmental Stewardship Report describes that process. The land use planning process identifies the current condition of existing land and facility assets and the scope of constraints across INL and in the surrounding region. Current land use conditions are included in the Comprehensive Land Use and Environmental Stewardship Report and facility assets and scope of constraints are discussed in the Ten-Year Site Plan. This report also presents the past, present, and future uses of land at the INL Site that are considered during the planning process, as well as outlining the future of the INL Site for the 10, 30, and 100-year timeframes.

Subsurface Science Program Bibliography, 1985--1992

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-08-01

The Subsurface Science Program sponsors long-term basic research on (1) the fundamental physical, chemical, and biological mechanisms that control the reactivity, mobilization, stability, and transport of chemical mixtures in subsoils and ground water; (2) hydrogeology, including the hydraulic, microbiological, and geochemical properties of the vadose and saturated zones that control contaminant mobility and stability, including predictive modeling of coupled hydraulic-geochemical-microbial processes; and (3) the microbiology of deep sediments and ground water. TWs research, focused as it is on the natural subsurface environments that are most significantly affected by the more than 40 years of waste generation and disposal at DOE sites, is making important contributions to cleanup of DOE sites. Past DOE waste-disposal practices have resulted in subsurface contamination at DOE sites by unique combinations of radioactive materials and organic and inorganic chemicals (including heavy metals), which make site cleanup particularly difficult. The long- term (10- to 30-year) goal of the Subsurface Science Program is to provide a foundation of fundamental knowledge that can be used to reduce environmental risks and to provide a sound scientific basis for cost-effective cleanup strategies. The Subsurface Science Program is organized into nine interdisciplinary subprograms, or areas of basic research emphasis. The subprograms currently cover the areas of Co-Contaminant Chemistry, Colloids/Biocolloids, Multiphase Fluid Flow, Biodegradation/ Microbial Physiology, Deep Microbiology, Coupled Processes, Field-Scale (Natural Heterogeneity and Scale), and Environmental Science Research Center

A Mentoring Program in Environmental Science for Underrepresented Groups

Science.gov (United States)

Stevens, L.; Rizzo, D. M.

2009-12-01

We developed a four-year program, combining educational and career support and research activities, to recruit and retain students from underrepresented groups in environmental sciences. Specifically, the program: ○ Assigns each student a faculty or graduate student mentor with whom the student conducts research activities. ○ Includes a weekly group meeting for team building and to review professional development and academic topics, such as time management and research ethics. ○ Requires students to make multiple formal presentations of their research proposals and results. ○ Provides scholarships and stipends for both the academic year and to engage students in summer research. The program seeks to achieve several goals including: ● Enhance academic performance. ● Encourage continued study in environmental science. ● Facilitate students completing their studies at UVM. ● Increase students’ interest in pursuing science careers. ● Create a more welcoming academic environment. To assess progress toward achievement of these goals, we conducted individual structured interviews with participating undergraduate students, graduate students, and faculty members at two points in time. First, interviews were conducted in the fall of 2007 after two years, and again in spring 2009, after four years. An independent research consultant, Dr. Livingston, conducted the interviews. In 2009, over the course of three days, the interviews included three graduate student and two faculty mentors, and six of the seven undergraduate students. Of the six students, three were juniors and three were graduating seniors. Results of the 2009 interviews echoed those of 2007. Both students and their mentors are quite satisfied with the program. The student presentations, weekly meetings, mentoring relationships, and summer research experiences all get high ratings from program participants. Students give high praise to their mentors and the program directors for providing

FWP executive summaries: basic energy sciences materials sciences and engineering program (SNL/NM).

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Samara, George A.; Simmons, Jerry A.

2006-07-01

This report presents an Executive Summary of the various elements of the Materials Sciences and Engineering Program which is funded by the Division of Materials Sciences and Engineering, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, U.S. Department of Energy at Sandia National Laboratories, New Mexico. A general programmatic overview is also presented.

Science Educational Outreach Programs That Benefit Students and Scientists.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Greg Clark

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Both scientists and the public would benefit from improved communication of basic scientific research and from integrating scientists into education outreach, but opportunities to support these efforts are limited. We have developed two low-cost programs--"Present Your PhD Thesis to a 12-Year-Old" and "Shadow a Scientist"--that combine training in science communication with outreach to area middle schools. We assessed the outcomes of these programs and found a 2-fold benefit: scientists improve their communication skills by explaining basic science research to a general audience, and students' enthusiasm for science and their scientific knowledge are increased. Here we present details about both programs, along with our assessment of them, and discuss the feasibility of exporting these programs to other universities.

Response to science education reforms: The case of three science education doctoral programs in the United States

Science.gov (United States)

Gwekwerere, Yovita Netsai

Doctoral programs play a significant role in preparing future leaders. Science Education doctoral programs play an even more significant role preparing leaders in a field that is critical to maintaining national viability in the face of global competition. The current science education reforms have the goal of achieving science literacy for all students and for this national goal to be achieved; we need strong leadership in the field of science education. This qualitative study investigated how doctoral programs are preparing their graduates for leadership in supporting teachers to achieve the national goal of science literacy for all. A case study design was used to investigate how science education faculty interpreted the national reform goal of science literacy for all and how they reformed their doctoral courses and research programs to address this goal. Faculty, graduate students and recent graduates of three science education doctoral programs participated in the study. Data collection took place through surveys, interviews and analysis of course documents. Two faculty members, three doctoral candidates and three recent graduates were interviewed from each of the programs. Data analysis involved an interpretive approach. The National Research Council Framework for Investigating Influence of the National Standards on student learning (2002) was used to analyze interview data. Findings show that the current reforms occupy a significant part of the doctoral coursework and research in these three science education doctoral programs. The extent to which the reforms are incorporated in the courses and the way they are addressed depends on how the faculty members interpret the reforms and what they consider to be important in achieving the goal of science literacy for all. Whereas some faculty members take a simplistic critical view of the reform goals as a call to achieve excellence in science teaching; others take a more complex critical view where they question

A human-centered framework for innovation in conservation incentive programs.

Science.gov (United States)

Sorice, Michael G; Donlan, C Josh

2015-12-01

The promise of environmental conservation incentive programs that provide direct payments in exchange for conservation outcomes is that they enhance the value of engaging in stewardship behaviors. An insidious but important concern is that a narrow focus on optimizing payment levels can ultimately suppress program participation and subvert participants' internal motivation to engage in long-term conservation behaviors. Increasing participation and engendering stewardship can be achieved by recognizing that participation is not simply a function of the payment; it is a function of the overall structure and administration of the program. Key to creating innovative and more sustainable programs is fitting them within the existing needs and values of target participants. By focusing on empathy for participants, co-designing program approaches, and learning from the rapid prototyping of program concepts, a human-centered approach to conservation incentive program design enhances the propensity for discovery of novel and innovative solutions to pressing conservation issues.

The ASI science program

Science.gov (United States)

Musso, Carlo

2002-03-01

Italy came in the space business in 1963, being the third nation in the world, after the Soviet Union and the United States, to put an artificial satellite into orbit. In 1988 the Italian Space Agency (ASI) was constituted, with the mandate of planning, coordinating and executing civil space activities in Italy. The core of national space activities is science, for which Italy spends about 25% of the ASI budget, both in national and international programs. The community served by the scientific directorate of ASI is a very wide one, ranging from the science of the Universe and the exploration of the Solar System to life sciences, from Earth observation to the development of new technologies. The success of Italian space research appears under many different points of view. The national satellite BeppoSAX, named after Giuseppe Beppo Occhialini, widely contributed to solve the γ-ray burst puzzle, obtaining the relevant acknowledgment of the ``Bruno Rossi Prize''. Italian researchers kept the PI-ship of various payloads on board ESA missions, such as Epic for XMM-Newton, Ibis for Integral, Virtis and Giada for Rosetta, PFS and Marsis for Mars Express. Also in the field of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) two important experiments are foreseen in the next future, with Italian PIs: SPOrt on board the International Space Station, dedicated to the polarization of CMB, and LFI (Low Frequency Instrument) on board the ESA Planck satellite, to study CMB anisotropy. Meanwhile, a great success has been obtained with the balloon experiment Boomerang. Moreover, ASI started a national scientific and technological small mission program. The first three missions are on their way: Agile (a γ-ray observatory), David (an experiment to test very high frequency data transmission), and a third one, devoted to Earth science. .

Integration of Cloud Technologies for Data Stewardship at the NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI)

Science.gov (United States)

Casey, K. S.; Hausman, S. A.

2016-02-01

In the last year, the NOAA National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC) and its siblings, the National Climatic Data Center and National Geophysical Data Center, were merged into one organization, the NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI). Combining its expertise under one management has helped NCEI accelerate its efforts to embrace and integrate private, public, and hybrid cloud environments into its range of data stewardship services. These services span a range of tiers, from basic, long-term preservation and access, through enhanced access and scientific quality control, to authoritative product development and international-level services. Throughout these tiers of stewardship, partnerships and pilot projects have been launched to identify technological and policy-oriented challenges, to establish solutions to these problems, and to highlight success stories for emulation during operational integration of the cloud into NCEI's data stewardship activities. Some of these pilot activities including data storage, access, and reprocessing in Amazon Web Services, the OneStop data discovery and access framework project, and a set of Cooperative Research and Development Agreements under the Big Data Project with Amazon, Google, IBM, Microsoft, and the Open Cloud Consortium. Progress in these efforts will be highlighted along with a future vision of how NCEI could leverage hybrid cloud deployments and federated systems across NOAA to enable effective data stewardship for its oceanographic, atmospheric, climatic, and geophysical Big Data.

1998 Environmental Management Science Program Annual Report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1999-01-01

The Environmental Management Science Program (EMSP) is a collaborative partnership between the DOE Office of Environmental Management (EM), Office of Science (DOE-SC), and the Idaho Operations Office (DOE-ID) to sponsor basic environmental and waste management related research. Results are expected to lead to reduction of the costs, schedule, and risks associated with cleaning up the nation's nuclear complex. The EMSP research portfolio addresses the most challenging technical problems of the EM program related to high level waste, spent nuclear fuel, mixed waste, nuclear materials, remedial action, decontamination and decommissioning, and health, ecology, or risk. The EMSP was established in response to a mandate from Congress in the fiscal year 1996 Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act. Congress directed the Department to ''provide sufficient attention and resources to longer-term basic science research which needs to be done to ultimately reduce cleanup costs, develop a program that takes advantage of laboratory and university expertise, and seek new and innovative cleanup methods to replace current conventional approaches which are often costly and ineffective''. This mandate followed similar recommendations from the Galvin Commission to the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board. The EMSP also responds to needs identified by National Academy of Sciences experts, regulators, citizen advisory groups, and other stakeholders

Ocean Acidification Scientific Data Stewardship: An approach for end-to-end data management and integration

Science.gov (United States)

Arzayus, K. M.; Garcia, H. E.; Jiang, L.; Michael, P.

2012-12-01

As the designated Federal permanent oceanographic data center in the United States, NOAA's National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC) has been providing scientific stewardship for national and international marine environmental and ecosystem data for over 50 years. NODC is supporting NOAA's Ocean Acidification Program and the science community by providing end-to-end scientific data management of ocean acidification (OA) data, dedicated online data discovery, and user-friendly access to a diverse range of historical and modern OA and other chemical, physical, and biological oceanographic data. This effort is being catalyzed by the NOAA Ocean Acidification Program, but the intended reach is for the broader scientific ocean acidification community. The first three years of the project will be focused on infrastructure building. A complete ocean acidification data content standard is being developed to ensure that a full spectrum of ocean acidification data and metadata can be stored and utilized for optimal data discovery and access in usable data formats. We plan to develop a data access interface capable of allowing users to constrain their search based on real-time and delayed mode measured variables, scientific data quality, their observation types, the temporal coverage, methods, instruments, standards, collecting institutions, and the spatial coverage. In addition, NODC seeks to utilize the existing suite of international standards (including ISO 19115-2 and CF-compliant netCDF) to help our data producers use those standards for their data, and help our data consumers make use of the well-standardized metadata-rich data sets. These tools will be available through our NODC Ocean Acidification Scientific Data Stewardship (OADS) web page at http://www.nodc.noaa.gov/oceanacidification. NODC also has a goal to provide each archived dataset with a unique ID, to ensure a means of providing credit to the data provider. Working with partner institutions, such as the

Undergraduates' Perceived Gains and Ideas about Teaching and Learning Science from Participating in Science Education Outreach Programs

Science.gov (United States)

Carpenter, Stacey L.

2015-01-01

This study examined what undergraduate students gain and the ideas about science teaching and learning they develop from participating in K-12 science education outreach programs. Eleven undergraduates from seven outreach programs were interviewed individually about their experiences with outreach and what they learned about science teaching and…

Right Size Determining the Staff Necessary to Sustain Simulation and Computing Capabilities for Nuclear Security

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nikkel, Daniel J. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Meisner, Robert [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)

2010-09-10

The Advanced Simulation and Computing Campaign, herein referred to as the ASC Program, is a core element of the science-based Stockpile Stewardship Program (SSP), which enables assessment, certification, and maintenance of the safety, security, and reliability of the U.S. nuclear stockpile without the need to resume nuclear testing. The use of advanced parallel computing has transitioned from proof-of-principle to become a critical element for assessing and certifying the stockpile. As the initiative phase of the ASC Program came to an end in the mid-2000s, the National Nuclear Security Administration redirected resources to other urgent priorities, and resulting staff reductions in ASC occurred without the benefit of analysis of the impact on modern stockpile stewardship that is dependent on these new simulation capabilities. Consequently, in mid-2008 the ASC Program management commissioned a study to estimate the essential size and balance needed to sustain advanced simulation as a core component of stockpile stewardship. The ASC Program requires a minimum base staff size of 930 (which includes the number of staff necessary to maintain critical technical disciplines as well as to execute required programmatic tasks) to sustain its essential ongoing role in stockpile stewardship.

Revolutions in Science and Technology: Future Threats to US National Security

Science.gov (United States)

2011-04-01

to Iran, the Stuxnet virus is known to have affected computers in Indonesia, India, Australia, Malaysia , Pakistan, the United Kingdom, and the United...Bioterrorism: Biodefense Strategy, Practice, and Science , Vol. 4, No.3, 2006. "’ Julie E. Fischer, Stewardship or Censorship : Balancing Biosecurity

The Intersections of Science and Practice: Examples From FitnessGram® Programming.

Science.gov (United States)

Welk, Gregory J

2017-12-01

The FitnessGram® program has provided teachers with practical tools to enhance physical education programming. A key to the success of the program has been the systematic application of science to practice. Strong research methods have been used to develop assessments and standards for use in physical education, but consideration has also been given to ensure that programming meets the needs of teachers, students, parents, and other stakeholders. This essay summarizes some of these complex and nuanced intersections between science and practice with the FitnessGram® program. The commentaries are organized into 5 brief themes: science informing practice; practice informing science; balancing science and practice; promoting evidence-based practice; and the integration of science and practice. The article draws on personal experiences with the FitnessGram® program and is prepared based on comments shared during the 37th Annual C. H. McCloy Research Lecture at the 2017 SHAPE America - Society of Health and Physical Educators Convention.

Inspiring science achievement: a mixed methods examination of the practices and characteristics of successful science programs in diverse high schools

Science.gov (United States)

Scogin, Stephen C.; Cavlazoglu, Baki; LeBlanc, Jennifer; Stuessy, Carol L.

2017-08-01

While the achievement gap in science exists in the US, research associated with our investigation reveals some high school science programs serving diverse student bodies are successfully closing the gap. Using a mixed methods approach, we identified and investigated ten high schools in a large Southwestern state that fit the definition of "highly successful, highly diverse". By conducting interviews with science liaisons associated with each school and reviewing the literature, we developed a rubric identifying specific characteristics associated with successful science programs. These characteristics and practices included setting high expectations for students, providing extensive teacher support for student learning, and utilizing student-centered pedagogy. We used the rubric to assess the successful high school science programs and compare them to other high school science programs in the state (i.e., less successful and less diverse high school science programs). Highly successful, highly diverse schools were very different in their approach to science education when compared to the other programs. The findings from this study will help schools with diverse students to strengthen hiring practices, enhance teacher support mechanisms, and develop student-focused strategies in the classroom that increase science achievement.

Mapping Out-of-School-Time Youth Science Programs: Organizational Patterns and Possibilities

Science.gov (United States)

Laursen, S. L.; Archie, T.; Thiry, H.

2012-12-01

Out-of-school-time (OST) experiences promise to enrich young (K-12) people's experience of science, technology and engineering. Belief is widespread that OST programs are ideal locations to learn science, and that youth participation may enhance the science workforce and increase access to science for girls and minorities. Yet we know little about the scope or nature of science-focused OST youth programming. Variety poses a challenge for researchers, with OST sites in schools, museums, zoos, science and nature centers, aquariums, planetariums, and community centers; and formats including after-school clubs, camps, workshops, festivals, research apprenticeships, and more. Moreover, there is no single national network through which researchers might reach and recruit nationally representative samples of programs. Thus, to date there has been no systematic study of the broader national landscape of OST STEM programming. Our national study, Mapping Out-of-School-Time Science (MOST-Science), examines a national sample of OST programs focused on science, engineering, and/or technology. Here we describe first findings about the characteristics of these programs and their home organizations, including aspects of program design, structure, funding, staffing, and youth audience. Using an electronic survey, we collected data from 417 programs and classified their host institutions into eight organizational types: aquariums and zoos, museums, non-profits, national youth organizations, K-12 school districts, colleges and universities, government labs, and private sector organizations. We then examine key attributes of the youth programs hosted by these institution and discuss differences based on organizational types, including scientific organizations that are especially well equipped to offer research and field experiences. Programs engaging youth in research and field experiences are offered across all organizational types. Yet they vary notably in the size and demographics

Evaluation of Penicillin Allergy in the Hospitalized Patient: Opportunities for Antimicrobial Stewardship.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Justin R; Khan, David A

2017-06-01

Penicillin allergy is often misdiagnosed and is associated with adverse consequences, but testing is infrequently done in the hospital setting. This article reviews historical and contemporary innovations in inpatient penicillin allergy testing and its impact on antimicrobial stewardship. Adoption of the electronic medical record allows rapid identification of admitted patients carrying a penicillin allergy diagnosis. Collaboration with clinical pharmacists and the development of computerized clinical guidelines facilitates increased testing and appropriate use of penicillin and related β-lactams. Education of patients and their outpatient providers is the key to retaining the benefits of penicillin allergy de-labeling. Penicillin allergy testing is feasible in the hospital and offers tangible benefits towards antimicrobial stewardship. Allergists should take the lead in this endeavor and work towards overcoming personnel limitations by partnering with other health care providers and incorporating technology that improves the efficiency of allergy evaluation.

Tapping into the Forest Management Assistance Programs

Science.gov (United States)

John L. Greene; Terry K. Haines

1998-01-01

Use of federal and state forest management assistance programs can enable nonindustial private forest owners to reduce their management expenses and practice better stewardship. This paper summarizes six federal and twelve state assistance programs available to owners in the North Central states. It also describes how to calculate the amount of a government...

Evolution of data stewardship over two decades at a NASA data center

Science.gov (United States)

Armstrong, E. M.; Moroni, D. F.; Hausman, J.; Tsontos, V. M.

2013-12-01

physical domain was still critical, especially relevant to assessments of data quality, additional skills in computer science, statistics and system engineering also became necessary. Furthermore, the level of effort to implement data curation has not expanded linearly either. Management of ongoing data operations demands increased productivity on a continual basis and larger volumes of data, with constraints on funding, must be managed with proportionately less human resources. The role of data curation has also changed within the perspective of satellite missions. In many early missions, data management and curation was an afterthought (since there were no explicit data management plans written into the proposals), while current NASA mission proposals must have explicit data management plans to identify resources and funds for archiving, distribution and implementing overall data stewardship. In conclusion, the role of the data scientist/engineer at the PO.DAAC has shifted from supporting singular missions and primarily representing a point of contact for the science community to complete end-to-end stewardship through the implementation of a robust set of dataset lifecycle policies from ingest, to archiving, including data quality assessment for a broad swath of parameter based datasets that can number in the hundreds.

A new program in earth system science education

Science.gov (United States)

Huntress, Wesley; Kalb, Michael W.; Johnson, Donald R.

1990-01-01

A program aimed at accelerating the development of earth system science curricula at the undergraduate level and at seeding the establishment of university-based mechanisms for cooperative research and education among universities and NASA has been initiated by the Universities Space Research Association (USRA) in conjunction with NASA. Proposals were submitted by 100 U.S. research universities which were selected as candidates to participate in a three-year pilot program to develop undergraduate curricula in earth system science. Universities were then selected based upon peer review and considerations of overall scientific balance among proposed programs. The program will also aim to integrate a number of universities with evolving earth system programs, linking them with a cooperative curriculum, shared faculty, and NASA scientists in order to establish a stronger base for earth systems related education and interdisciplinary research collaboration.

Antibiotic stewardship er etableret på Herlev Hospital

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Arpi, Magnus; Gjørup, Ida; Boel, Jonas Bredtoft

2014-01-01

A high incidence of Clostridium difficile and multiresistant organisms and increasing consumption of cephalosporins and quinolones have required an antibiotic stewardship programme, and antibiotic audits with feedback, revised guidelines and stringent prescription rules have been successful....... The hospital intervention was managed by an antibiotic team combined with contact persons in all departments, a pocket edition of the guideline was available, and monthly commented reports about antibiotic consumption in each department were presented on the intranet. Declining use of restricted antibiotics...

The Reliable Replacement Warhead Program: Background and Current Developments

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Medalia, Jonathan

2008-01-01

...), part of a larger Stockpile Stewardship Program (SSP), replaces components. Modifying some components would require a nuclear test, but the United States has observed a test moratorium since 1992...

Water appropriation and ecosystem stewardship in the Baja desert

OpenAIRE

de las Heras Alejandro; Rodriguez Mario A.; Islas-Espinoza Marina

2014-01-01

The UNESCO San Francisco Rock Paintings polygon within El Vizcaino Biosphere Reserve in the Baja California Peninsula derives its moisture from the North American monsoon. There, ranchers have depended on the desert since the 18th century. More recently, the desert has depended on the environmental stewardship of the ranchers who have allayed mining exploitation and archaeological looting. Using a Rapid Assessment Procedure (RAP), climate data, and geographical informa...

Mexico's Program for Science and Technology, 1978 to 1982.

Science.gov (United States)

Flores, Edmundo

1979-01-01

Describes briefly the National Council for Science and Technology (CONACYT) of Mexico, and outlines Mexico's Program for Science and Technology which includes 2,489 projects in basic and applied sciences at a cost of $260 million from 1978 to 1982. (HM)

Place-Based Stewardship Education: Nurturing Aspirations to Protect the Rural Commons

Science.gov (United States)

Gallay, Erin; Marckini-Polk, Lisa; Schroeder, Brandon; Flanagan, Constance

2016-01-01

In this mixed-methods study, we examine the potential of place-based stewardship education (PBSE) for nurturing rural students' community attachment and aspirations to contribute to the preservation of the environmental "commons." Analyzing pre- and post-experience surveys (n = 240) and open-ended responses (n = 275) collected from…

77 FR 6820 - Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request: Creating Stewardship Through Biodiversity...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-02-09

... Information Collection; Comment Request: Creating Stewardship Through Biodiversity Discovery in National Parks... collection (IC) described below. This collection will survey participants of Biodiversity Discovery efforts... Biodiversity Discovery refers to a variety of efforts to discover living organisms through public involvement...

Science Educational Outreach Programs That Benefit Students and Scientists

Science.gov (United States)

Enyeart, Peter; Gracia, Brant; Wessel, Aimee; Jarmoskaite, Inga; Polioudakis, Damon; Stuart, Yoel; Gonzalez, Tony; MacKrell, Al; Rodenbusch, Stacia; Stovall, Gwendolyn M.; Beckham, Josh T.; Montgomery, Michael; Tasneem, Tania; Jones, Jack; Simmons, Sarah; Roux, Stanley

2016-01-01

Both scientists and the public would benefit from improved communication of basic scientific research and from integrating scientists into education outreach, but opportunities to support these efforts are limited. We have developed two low-cost programs—"Present Your PhD Thesis to a 12-Year-Old" and "Shadow a Scientist”—that combine training in science communication with outreach to area middle schools. We assessed the outcomes of these programs and found a 2-fold benefit: scientists improve their communication skills by explaining basic science research to a general audience, and students' enthusiasm for science and their scientific knowledge are increased. Here we present details about both programs, along with our assessment of them, and discuss the feasibility of exporting these programs to other universities. PMID:26844991

Experience With Rapid Microarray-Based Diagnostic Technology and Antimicrobial Stewardship for Patients With Gram-Positive Bacteremia.

Science.gov (United States)

Neuner, Elizabeth A; Pallotta, Andrea M; Lam, Simon W; Stowe, David; Gordon, Steven M; Procop, Gary W; Richter, Sandra S

2016-11-01

OBJECTIVE To describe the impact of rapid diagnostic microarray technology and antimicrobial stewardship for patients with Gram-positive blood cultures. DESIGN Retrospective pre-intervention/post-intervention study. SETTING A 1,200-bed academic medical center. PATIENTS Inpatients with blood cultures positive for Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecalis, E. faecium, Streptococcus pneumoniae, S. pyogenes, S. agalactiae, S. anginosus, Streptococcus spp., and Listeria monocytogenes during the 6 months before and after implementation of Verigene Gram-positive blood culture microarray (BC-GP) with an antimicrobial stewardship intervention. METHODS Before the intervention, no rapid diagnostic technology was used or antimicrobial stewardship intervention was undertaken, except for the use of peptide nucleic acid fluorescent in situ hybridization and MRSA agar to identify staphylococcal isolates. After the intervention, all Gram-positive blood cultures underwent BC-GP microarray and the antimicrobial stewardship intervention consisting of real-time notification and pharmacist review. RESULTS In total, 513 patients with bacteremia were included in this study: 280 patients with S. aureus, 150 patients with enterococci, 82 patients with stretococci, and 1 patient with L. monocytogenes. The number of antimicrobial switches was similar in the pre-BC-GP (52%; 155 of 300) and post-BC-GP (50%; 107 of 213) periods. The time to antimicrobial switch was significantly shorter in the post-BC-GP group than in the pre-BC-GP group: 48±41 hours versus 75±46 hours, respectively (P<.001). The most common antimicrobial switch was de-escalation and time to de-escalation, was significantly shorter in the post-BC-GP group than in the pre-BC-GP group: 53±41 hours versus 82±48 hours, respectively (P<.001). There was no difference in mortality or hospital length of stay as a result of the intervention. CONCLUSIONS The combination of a rapid microarray diagnostic test with an antimicrobial

Trail Crews: Developing a Service Component to Your Program.

Science.gov (United States)

Boehringer, Brad; Merrill, Kurt

Through wilderness stewardship programs, service projects, or trail crews, college outdoor programs can help land management agencies with their maintenance needs and provide student participants with rewarding service learning opportunities. Trail crews are usually composed of volunteer outdoor enthusiasts who take part in a multitude of…

The NASA Space Life Sciences Training Program: Accomplishments Since 2013

Science.gov (United States)

Rask, Jon; Gibbs, Kristina; Ray, Hami; Bridges, Desireemoi; Bailey, Brad; Smith, Jeff; Sato, Kevin; Taylor, Elizabeth

2017-01-01

The NASA Space Life Sciences Training Program (SLSTP) provides undergraduate students entering their junior or senior years with professional experience in space life science disciplines. This challenging ten-week summer program is held at NASA Ames Research Center. The primary goal of the program is to train the next generation of scientists and engineers, enabling NASA to meet future research and development challenges in the space life sciences. Students work closely with NASA scientists and engineers on cutting-edge research and technology development. In addition to conducting hands-on research and presenting their findings, SLSTP students attend technical lectures given by experts on a wide range of topics, tour NASA research facilities, participate in leadership and team building exercises, and complete a group project. For this presentation, we will highlight program processes, accomplishments, goals, and feedback from alumni and mentors since 2013. To date, 49 students from 41 different academic institutions, 9 staffers, and 21 mentors have participated in the program. The SLSTP is funded by Space Biology, which is part of the Space Life and Physical Sciences Research and Application division of NASA's Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate. The SLSTP is managed by the Space Biology Project within the Science Directorate at Ames Research Center.

Materials Sciences Programs. Fiscal Year 1980, Office of Basic Energy Sciences

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1980-09-01

This report provides a convenient compilation index of the DOE Materials Sciences Division programs. This compilation is intended for use by administrators, managers, and scientists to help coordinate research and as an aid in selecting new programs and is divided into Sections A and B, listing all the projects, Section C, a summary of funding levels, and Section D, an index

Optical Science Discovery Program: Pre-College Outreach and So Much More

Science.gov (United States)

Deutsch, Miriam

2010-03-01

Recruiting and retaining women into the physical sciences is an ongoing struggle for universities, with the gap between men and women in physics remaining strong. Research shows a precipitous drop in female participation in the physical sciences around the 7th grade year of primary education, where girls begin losing interest during middle school, the drain continuing throughout high school with another significant drop at the bachelors level. To combat the loss of women in the physical sciences, the Oregon Center for Optics at the University of Oregon has created the Optical Science Discovery Program (OSDP), a precollege outreach program that targets girls in middle and high school. This program uses optical sciences as the medium through which girls explore experimental science. The program consists of a one-week intensive summer camp, a mentored monthly science club, summer internships and mentoring opportunities for camp alumni. By utilizing media often at the core of teenage life (e.g. Facebook, MySpace) we also aim to interact with program participants in a familiar and informal environment. Mentoring of OSDP activities is carried out by faculty and students of all levels. This in turn allows other education and outreach efforts at the University of Oregon to incorporate OSDP activities into their own, contributing to our broader university goals of surmounting barriers to higher education and creating a more scientifically literate populace. This talk will describe the OSDP program and its incorporation into the broader spectrum of outreach and education efforts.

Hybrid-Mentoring Programs for Beginning Elementary Science Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Bang, EunJin

2013-01-01

This study examines four induction models and teacher changes in science teaching practices, as a result of several mentoring programs. It explores three different computer-mediated mentoring programs, and a traditional offline induction program--in terms of interactivity, inquiry-based teaching, and topics of knowledge. Fifteen elementary science…

NCDC International Best Track Archive for Climate Stewardship (IBTrACS) Project, Version 3

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The International Best Track Archive for Climate Stewardship (IBTrACS) dataset was developed by the NOAA National Climatic Data Center, which took the initial step...

Scottish Antimicrobial Prescribing Group (SAPG): development and impact of the Scottish National Antimicrobial Stewardship Programme.

Science.gov (United States)

Nathwani, Dilip; Sneddon, Jacqueline; Malcolm, William; Wiuff, Camilla; Patton, Andrea; Hurding, Simon; Eastaway, Anne; Seaton, R Andrew; Watson, Emma; Gillies, Elizabeth; Davey, Peter; Bennie, Marion

2011-07-01

In 2008, the Scottish Management of Antimicrobial Resistance Action Plan (ScotMARAP) was published by the Scottish Government. One of the key actions was initiation of the Scottish Antimicrobial Prescribing Group (SAPG), hosted within the Scottish Medicines Consortium, to take forward national implementation of the key recommendations of this action plan. The primary objective of SAPG is to co-ordinate and deliver a national framework or programme of work for antimicrobial stewardship. This programme, led by SAPG, is delivered by NHS National Services Scotland (Health Protection Scotland and Information Services Division), NHS Quality Improvement Scotland, and NHS National Education Scotland as well as NHS board Antimicrobial Management Teams. Between 2008 and 2010, SAPG has achieved a number of early successes, which are the subject of this review: (i) through measures to optimise prescribing in hospital and primary care, combined with infection prevention measures, SAPG has contributed significantly to reducing Clostridium difficile infection rates in Scotland; (ii) there has been engagement of all key stakeholders at local and national levels to ensure an integrated approach to antimicrobial stewardship within the wider healthcare-associated infection agenda; (iii) development and implementation of data management systems to support quality improvement; (iv) development of training materials on antimicrobial stewardship for healthcare professionals; and (v) improving clinical management of infections (e.g. community-acquired pneumonia) through quality improvement methodology. The early successes achieved by SAPG demonstrate that this delivery model is effective and provides the leadership and focus required to implement antimicrobial stewardship to improve antimicrobial prescribing and infection management across NHS Scotland. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. and the International Society of Chemotherapy. All rights reserved.

Materials Sciences programs, Fiscal Year 1984

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1984-09-01

This report provides a convenient compilation and index of the DOE Materials Sciences Division programs. The report is divided into six sections. Section A contains all Laboratory projects, Section B has all contract research projects, Section C has projects funded under the Small Business Innovation Research program, Section D has information on DOE collaborative research centers, Section E gives distributions of funding, and Section F has various indexes

25 CFR 170.500 - What program reviews do the Secretaries conduct?

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... planning; (3) Design; (4) Contract administration; (5) Construction; (6) Financial management; and (7) Systems management and existing stewardship agreements. (c) After the IRR process review, the review team... RESERVATION ROADS PROGRAM Planning, Design, and Construction of Indian Reservation Roads Program Facilities...

Monitoring, documenting and reporting the quality of antibiotic use in the Netherlands: a pilot study to establish a national antimicrobial stewardship registry

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Berrevoets, M.A.H.; Oever, J. ten; Sprong, T.; Hest, R.M. van; Groothuis, I.; Heijl, I. van; Schouten, J.A.; Hulscher, M.E.J.L.; Kullberg, B.J.

2017-01-01

BACKGROUND: The Dutch Working Party on Antibiotic Policy is developing a national antimicrobial stewardship registry. This registry will report both the quality of antibiotic use in hospitals in the Netherlands and the stewardship activities employed. It is currently unclear which aspects of the

Food, Environment, Engineering and Life Sciences Program (Invited)

Science.gov (United States)

Mohtar, R. H.; Whittaker, A.; Amar, N.; Burgess, W.

2009-12-01

Food, Environment, Engineering and Life Sciences Program Nadia Amar, Wiella Burgess, Rabi H. Mohtar, and Dale Whitaker Purdue University Correspondence: mohtar@purdue.edu FEELS, the Food, Environment, Engineering and Life Sciences Program is a grant of the National Science Foundation for the College of Agriculture at Purdue University. FEELS’ mission is to recruit, retain, and prepare high-achieving students with financial difficulties to pursue STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) careers. FEELS achieves its goals offering a scholarship of up to 10,000 per student each year, academic, research and industrial mentors, seminars, study tables, social and cultural activities, study abroad and community service projects. In year one, nine low-income, first generation and/or ethnic minority students joined the FEELS program. All 9 FEELS fellows were retained in Purdue’s College of Agriculture (100%) with 7 of 9 (77.7%) continuing to pursue STEM majors. FEELS fellows achieved an average GPA in their first year of 3.05, compared to the average GPA of 2.54 for low-income non- FEELS students in the College of Agriculture. A new cohort of 10 students joined the program in August 2009. FEELS fellows received total scholarships of nearly 50,000 for the 2008-2009 academic year. These scholarships were combined with a holistic program that included the following key elements: FEELS Freshman Seminars I and II, 2 study tables per week, integration activities and frequent meetings with FEELS academic mentors and directors. Formative assessments of all FEELS activities were used to enhance the first year curriculum for the second cohort. Cohort 1 will continue into their second year where the focus will be on undergraduate research. More on FEELS programs and activities: www.purdue.edu/feels.

AAAS Communicating Science Program: Reflections on Evaluation

Science.gov (United States)

Braha, J.

2015-12-01

The AAAS Center for Public Engagement (Center) with science builds capacity for scientists to engage public audiences by fostering collaboration among natural or physical scientists, communication researchers, and public engagement practitioners. The recently launched Leshner Leadership Institute empowers cohorts of mid-career scientists to lead public engagement by supporting their networks of scientists, researchers, and practitioners. The Center works closely with social scientists whose research addresses science communication and public engagement with science to ensure that the Communicating Science training program builds on empirical evidence to inform best practices. Researchers ( Besley, Dudo, & Storkdieck 2015) have helped Center staff and an external evaluator develop pan instrument that measures progress towards goals that are suggested by the researcher, including internal efficacy (increasing scientists' communication skills and confidence in their ability to engage with the public) and external efficacy (scientists' confidence in engagement methods). Evaluation results from one year of the Communicating Science program suggest that the model of training yields positive results that support scientists in the area that should lead to greater engagement. This talk will explore the model for training, which provides a context for strategic communication, as well as the practical factors, such as time, access to public engagement practitioners, and technical skill, that seems to contribute to increased willingness to engage with public audiences. The evaluation program results suggest willingness by training participants to engage directly or to take preliminary steps towards engagement. In the evaluation results, 38% of trained scientists reported time as a barrier to engagement; 35% reported concern that engagement would distract from their work as a barrier. AAAS works to improve practitioner-researcher-scientist networks to overcome such barriers.

The Changing Roles of Science Specialists during a Capacity Building Program for Primary School Science

Science.gov (United States)

Herbert, Sandra; Xu, Lihua; Kelly, Leissa

2017-01-01

Science education starts at primary school. Yet, recent research shows primary school teachers lack confidence and competence in teaching science (Prinsley & Johnston, 2015). A Victorian state government science specialist initiative responded to this concern by providing professional learning programs to schools across Victoria. Drawing on…

The Research Library and the E-Science Challenge: New Roles Building on Expanding Responsibilities in Service of the Science Community

Science.gov (United States)

Neal, J. G.

2008-12-01

Research libraries provide a set of core services to the scholarly and educational communities. This includes: information acquisition, synthesis, navigation, discovery, dissemination, interpretation, presentation, understanding and archiving. Researchers across the science disciplines and increasingly in multi disciplinary projects are producing massive amounts of data, and they seek the infrastructure, the strategies and the partnerships that will enable rigorous and sustained tools for extraction, distribution, collaboration, application and permanent availability. This paper will address the role of the research library from three perspectives. First, the view of scientific datasets as information assets that would benefit from traditional library collection development practice will be explored. Second, the agenda on e-science developed by the Association of Research Libraries will be outlined with a focus on the need for policy and standards development, for resources assessment and allocation, for new approaches to the preparation of the library professional, and library leadership in campus planning and innovative collaborations for research cyberinfrastructure. And third, the responses to the call for proposals from the National Science Foundation's DataNet program will be analyzed and the role of the research library in these project plans will be summarized as an indicator of the expanding responsibility of the library for research data stewardship.

Improving epistemological beliefs and moral judgment through an STS-based science ethics education program.

Science.gov (United States)

Han, Hyemin; Jeong, Changwoo

2014-03-01

This study develops a Science-Technology-Society (STS)-based science ethics education program for high school students majoring in or planning to major in science and engineering. Our education program includes the fields of philosophy, history, sociology and ethics of science and technology, and other STS-related theories. We expected our STS-based science ethics education program to promote students' epistemological beliefs and moral judgment development. These psychological constructs are needed to properly solve complicated moral and social dilemmas in the fields of science and engineering. We applied this program to a group of Korean high school science students gifted in science and engineering. To measure the effects of this program, we used an essay-based qualitative measurement. The results indicate that there was significant development in both epistemological beliefs and moral judgment. In closing, we briefly discuss the need to develop epistemological beliefs and moral judgment using an STS-based science ethics education program.

Successful control of resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa using antibiotic stewardship and infection control programs at a Chinese university hospital: a 6-year prospective study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Liu L

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Lei Liu,1 Bin Liu,1 Yu Li,2 Wei Zhang1 1Department of Respiratory Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, 2Department of Respiratory Medicine, The Fourth Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin, People’s Republic of China Objective: Pseudomonas aeruginosa is emerging as a highly multidrug-resistant (MDR nosocomial pathogen. Data on the efficacy of infection control measures in endemic situations are lacking. We investigated the effect of antimicrobial stewardship (AMS and infection control programs (ICPs in controlling the resistance of P. aeruginosa at a tertiary hospital center.Methods: Susceptibility and resistance were investigated using broth microdilution, as per the guidelines of the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute. Antibiotic use was restricted through AMS, which included a classification management system for antibiotic use. The ICPs included environmental cleaning and disinfection, hand hygiene, active surveillance of P. aeruginosa, and education about infection control.Results: A total of 2,241 P. aeruginosa isolates were evaluated between 2012 and 2017. Sensitivity and resistance of the isolates to the antipseudomonal antimicrobials colistin and tigecycline were stable. The sensitivity and resistance to other antipseudomonal antimicrobials improved after 2014, after the AMS and ICPs were implemented in 2013. The use of alcohol-based hand gel significantly increased from 0.6 to 10.9 L per 1,000 patient-days (PD during the study period (P=0.005. The incidence rates of extensively drug-resistant (XDR and MDR P. aeruginosa showed a sustained decrease from 2013 (4.9 and 22% to 2017 (1 and 15%, respectively. The yearly consumption of antimicrobial agents also showed a sustained and significant decrease from 45 defined daily doses (DDDs per 1,000 PD to 38.15 DDDs per 1,000 PD (P=0.04. A significant correlation was found between the incidence rate of MDR P. aeruginosa and the

Functional Programming in Computer Science

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Anderson, Loren James [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Davis, Marion Kei [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)

2016-01-19

We explore functional programming through a 16-week internship at Los Alamos National Laboratory. Functional programming is a branch of computer science that has exploded in popularity over the past decade due to its high-level syntax, ease of parallelization, and abundant applications. First, we summarize functional programming by listing the advantages of functional programming languages over the usual imperative languages, and we introduce the concept of parsing. Second, we discuss the importance of lambda calculus in the theory of functional programming. Lambda calculus was invented by Alonzo Church in the 1930s to formalize the concept of effective computability, and every functional language is essentially some implementation of lambda calculus. Finally, we display the lasting products of the internship: additions to a compiler and runtime system for the pure functional language STG, including both a set of tests that indicate the validity of updates to the compiler and a compiler pass that checks for illegal instances of duplicate names.

Monitoring, documenting and reporting the quality of antibiotic use in the Netherlands: a pilot study to establish a national antimicrobial stewardship registry

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Berrevoets, Marvin Ah; ten Oever, Jaap; Sprong, Tom; van Hest, Reinier M.; Groothuis, Ingeborg; van Heijl, Inger; Schouten, Jeroen A.; Hulscher, Marlies E.; Kullberg, Bart-Jan

2017-01-01

The Dutch Working Party on Antibiotic Policy is developing a national antimicrobial stewardship registry. This registry will report both the quality of antibiotic use in hospitals in the Netherlands and the stewardship activities employed. It is currently unclear which aspects of the quality of

Data Stewardship: Environmental Data Curation and a Web-of-Repositories

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Karen S. Baker

2009-10-01

Full Text Available Scientific researchers today frequently package measurements and associated metadata as digital datasets in anticipation of storage in data repositories. Through the lens of environmental data stewardship, we consider the data repository as an organizational element central to data curation. One aspect of non-commercial repositories, their distance-from-origin of the data, is explored in terms of near and remote categories. Three idealized repository types are distinguished – local, center, and archive - paralleling research, resource, and reference collection categories respectively. Repository type characteristics such as scope, structure, and goals are discussed. Repository similarities in terms of roles, activities and responsibilities are also examined. Data stewardship is related to care of research data and responsible scientific communication supported by an infrastructure that coordinates curation activities; data curation is defined as a set of repeated and repeatable activities focusing on tending data and creating data products within a particular arena. The concept of “sphere-of-context” is introduced as an aid to distinguishing repository types. Conceptualizing a “web-of-repositories” accommodates a variety of repository types and represents an ecologically inclusive approach to data curation.

The Glory Program: Global Science from a Unique Spacecraft Integration

Science.gov (United States)

Bajpayee Jaya; Durham, Darcie; Ichkawich, Thomas

2006-01-01

The Glory program is an Earth and Solar science mission designed to broaden science community knowledge of the environment. The causes and effects of global warming have become a concern in recent years and Glory aims to contribute to the knowledge base of the science community. Glory is designed for two functions: one is solar viewing to monitor the total solar irradiance and the other is observing the Earth s atmosphere for aerosol composition. The former is done with an active cavity radiometer, while the latter is accomplished with an aerosol polarimeter sensor to discern atmospheric particles. The Glory program is managed by NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) with Orbital Sciences in Dulles, VA as the prime contractor for the spacecraft bus, mission operations, and ground system. This paper will describe some of the more unique features of the Glory program including the integration and testing of the satellite and instruments as well as the science data processing. The spacecraft integration and test approach requires extensive analysis and additional planning to ensure existing components are successfully functioning with the new Glory components. The science mission data analysis requires development of mission unique processing systems and algorithms. Science data analysis and distribution will utilize our national assets at the Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) and the University of Colorado's Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP). The Satellite was originally designed and built for the Vegetation Canopy Lidar (VCL) mission, which was terminated in the middle of integration and testing due to payload development issues. The bus was then placed in secure storage in 2001 and removed from an environmentally controlled container in late 2003 to be refurbished to meet the Glory program requirements. Functional testing of all the components was done as a system at the start of the program, very different from a traditional program

Materials Sciences programs, fiscal year 1986

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1986-09-01

Purpose of this report is to provide a convenient compilation and index of the DOE Materials Sciences Division programs. The report is divided into six sections. Section A contains all Laboratory projects, Section B has all contract research projects, Section C has projects funded under the Small Business Innovation Research Program, Sections D and E have information on DOE collaborative research centers, Section F gives distribution of funding, and Section G has various indexes

Effects of Fishing Education Programs on Antecedents of Responsible Environmental Behavior.

Science.gov (United States)

Siemer, William F.; Knuth, Barbara A.

2001-01-01

Investigates fishing and aquatic stewardship outcomes associated with different levels of program exposure among n=619 participants in a national fishing education program (Hooked on Fishing-Not on Drugs) designed for youth in Grades 6-8. Supports the assumption that such programs are more likely to influence antecedents to environmentally…

Suborbital Science Program: Dryden Flight Research Center

Science.gov (United States)

DelFrate, John

2008-01-01

This viewgraph presentation reviews the suborbital science program at NASA Dryden Flight Research Center. The Program Objectives are given in various areas: (1) Satellite Calibration and Validation (Cal/val)--Provide methods to perform the cal/val requirements for Earth Observing System satellites; (2) New Sensor Development -- Provide methods to reduce risk for new sensor concepts and algorithm development prior to committing sensors to operations; (3) Process Studies -- Facilitate the acquisition of high spatial/temporal resolution focused measurements that are required to understand small atmospheric and surface structures which generate powerful Earth system effects; and (4) Airborne Networking -- Develop disruption-tolerant networking to enable integrated multiple scale measurements of critical environmental features. Dryden supports the NASA Airborne Science Program and the nation in several elements: ER-2, G-3, DC-8, Ikhana (Predator B) & Global Hawk and Reveal. These are reviewed in detail in the presentation.

Science in the General Educational Development (GED) curriculum: Analyzing the science portion of GED programs and exploring adult students' attitudes toward science

Science.gov (United States)

Hariharan, Joya Reena

The General Educational Development (GED) tests enable people to earn a high school equivalency diploma and help them to qualify for more jobs and opportunities. Apart from this main goal, GED courses aim at enabling adults to improve the condition of their lives and to cope with a changing society. In today's world, science and technology play an exceedingly important role in helping people better their lives and in promoting the national goals of informed citizenship. Despite the current efforts in the field of secondary science education directed towards scientific literacy and the concept of "Science for all Americans", the literature does not reflect any corresponding efforts in the field of adult education. Science education research appears to have neglected a population that could possibly benefit from it. The purpose of this study is to explore: the science component of GED programs, significant features of the science portion of GED curricula and GED science materials, and adult learners' attitudes toward various aspects of science. Data collection methods included interviews with GED students and instructors, content analysis of relevant materials, and classroom observations. Data indicate that the students in general feel that the science they learn should be relevant to their lives and have direct applications in everyday life. Student understanding of science and interest in it appears to be contingent to their perceiving it as relevant to their lives and to society. Findings indicate that the instructional approaches used in GED programs influence students' perceptions about the relevance of science. Students in sites that use strategies such as group discussions and field trips appear to be more aware of science in the world around them and more enthusiastic about increasing this awareness. However, the dominant strategy in most GED programs is individual reading. The educational strategies used in GED programs generally focus on developing reading

The effects of a science intervention program on the attitudes and achievement of high school girls in science

Science.gov (United States)

Steakley, Carrie Capers

This study investigated the effects of a high school science intervention program that included hands-on activities, science-related career information and exposure, and real-world experiences on girls' attitudes and achievement in science. Eighty-four girls, 44 ninth-graders and 40 tenth-graders, and 105 parents participated in the study. Survey data was collected to assess the girls' attitudes toward science in seven distinct areas: social implications of science, normality of scientists, attitude toward scientific inquiry, adoption of scientific attitudes, enjoyment of science lessons, leisure interest in science, and career interest in science. Additional questionnaires were used to determine the extent of the girls' participation in sports and the attitudes of their parents toward science. The girls' cumulative science semester grade point averages since the seventh grade were used to assess academic science achievement. This study found no evidence that participation in the program improved the girls' attitudes or achievement in science. Parent attitudes and years of participation in sports were not accurate predictors of science achievement. Additionally, no significant relationship was detected between the girls' and their parents' perceptions of science. However, the study did suggest that extended participation in sports may positively affect science achievement for girls. This study holds implications for educational stakeholders who seek to implement intervention methods and programs that may improve student attitudes and achievement in science and attract more youth to future science-related careers.

NASA Life Sciences Program

Science.gov (United States)

1995-01-01

This Life Science Program video examines the variety of projects that study both the physiological and psychological impacts on astronauts due to extended space missions. The hazards of space radiation and microgravity effects on the human body are described, along with these effects on plant growth, and the performance of medical procedures in space. One research technique, which is hoped to provide help for future space travel, is the study of aquanauts and their life habits underwater.

Science and students: Yucca Mountain project's education outreach program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gil, A.V.; Larkin, E.L.; Reilly, B.; Austin, P.

1992-01-01

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is very concerned about the lack of understanding of basic science. Increasingly, critical decisions regarding the use of energy, technology, and the environment are being made. A well-educated and science-literate public is vital to the success of these decisions. Science education and school instruction are integral parts of the DOE's public outreach program on the Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project (YMP). Project staff and scientists speak to elementary, junior high, high school, and university students, accepting all speaking invitations. The objectives of this outreach program include the following: (1) educating Nevada students about the concept of a high-level nuclear waste repository; (2) increasing awareness of energy and environmental issues; (3) helping students understand basic concepts of earth science and geology in relation to siting a potential repository; and (4) giving students information about careers in science and engineering

Evaluating a Graduate Professional Development Program for Informal Science Educators

Science.gov (United States)

Lake, Jeremy Paul

This study is an examination and evaluation of the outcomes of a series of courses that I helped build to create a graduate certificate. Specifically, I wanted to evaluate whether or not the online iteration of the Informal Science Institutions Environmental Education Graduate Certificate Program truly provided the long term professional development needed to enhance the skills of the formal and informal educators participating so that they could contribute meaningfully to the improvement of science literacy in their respective communities. My role as an internal evaluator provided an extraordinary opportunity to know the intent of the learning opportunities and why they were constructed in a particular fashion. Through the combination of my skills, personal experiences both within the certificate's predecessor and as an educator, I was uniquely qualified to explore the outcomes of this program and evaluate its effectiveness in providing a long-term professional development for participants. After conducting a literature review that emphasized a need for greater scientific literacy in communities across America, it was evident that the formal education enterprise needs the support of informal educators working on the ground in myriad different settings in ways that provide science as both content and process, learning science facts and doing real science. Through a bridging of informal science educators with formal teachers, it was thought each could learn the culture of the other, making each more fluent in accessing community resources to help make these educators more collaborative and able to bridge the classroom with the outside world. This bridge promotes ongoing, lifelong learning, which in turn can help the national goal of greater scientific literacy. This study provided insight into the thinking involved in the learners' growth as they converted theory presented in course materials into practice. Through an iterative process of reviewing the course

The perspectives and experiences of African American students in an informal science program

Science.gov (United States)

Bulls, Domonique L.

Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields are the fastest growing sectors of the economy, nationally and globally. In order for the United States (U.S.) to maintain its competitiveness, it is important to address STEM experiences at the precollege level. In early years, science education serves as a foundation and pipeline for students to pursue STEM in college and beyond. Alternative approaches to instruction in formal classrooms have been introduced to engage more students in science. One alternative is informal science education. Informal science education is an avenue used to promote science education literacy. Because it is less regulated than science teaching in formal classroom settings, it allows for the incorporation of culture into science instruction. Culturally relevant science teaching is one way to relate science to African American students, a population that continually underperforms in K-12 science education. This study explores the science perspectives and experiences of African American middle school students participating in an informal science program. The research is framed by the tenets of culturally relevant pedagogy and shaped by the following questions: (1) What specific aspects of the Carver Program make it unique to African American students? (2) How is culturally relevant pedagogy incorporated into the informal science program? (3) How does the incorporation of culturally relevant pedagogy into the informal science program influence African American students' perceptions about science? The findings to the previously stated questions add to the limited research on African American students in informal science learning environments and contribute to the growing research on culturally relevant science. This study is unique in that it explores the cultural components of an informal science program.

Minnesota anglers' fisheries-related value orientations and their stewardship of fish resources

Science.gov (United States)

Bruskotter, J.T.; Fulton, D.C.

2008-01-01

Research on natural resource-related values and value orientations has grown substantially over the past decade. However, existing studies have focused almost exclusively on value orientations related to wildlife and forests. This article reports data from two mail surveys of Minnesota anglers used to develop scales for measuring fisheries-related value orientations. We report results of regression analyses examining the relationship between anglers' value orientations and norms concerning fisheries stewardship and the use of technological aids to angling. Results indicate 10 items reliably measure three value orientations we termed utilitarianism, dominance, and protectionism. Regression analyses suggest anglers' stewardship norms are influenced by all three value orientation types, while support for the use of technological aids was related with protectionism and utilitarianism, but not dominance. Results suggest anglers' fisheries-related value orientations cannot be adequately captured using single domain scales. Implications for the study of natural resources-related value orientations are discussed. Copyright ?? Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

Customizing Process to Align with Purpose and Program: The 2003 MS PHD'S in Ocean Sciences Program Evaluative Case Study

Science.gov (United States)

Williamson, V. A.; Pyrtle, A. J.

2004-12-01

How did the 2003 Minorities Striving and Pursuing Higher Degrees of Success (MS PHD'S) in Ocean Sciences Program customize evaluative methodology and instruments to align with program goals and processes? How is data captured to document cognitive and affective impact? How are words and numbers utilized to accurately illustrate programmatic outcomes? How is compliance with implicit and explicit funding regulations demonstrated? The 2003 MS PHD'S in Ocean Sciences Program case study provides insightful responses to each of these questions. MS PHD'S was developed by and for underrepresented minorities to facilitate increased and sustained participation in Earth system science. Key components of this initiative include development of a community of scholars sustained by face-to-face and virtual mentoring partnerships; establishment of networking activities between and among undergraduate, graduate, postgraduate students, scientists, faculty, professional organization representatives, and federal program officers; and provision of forums to address real world issues as identified by each constituent group. The evaluative case study of the 2003 MS PHD'S in Ocean Sciences Program consists of an analysis of four data sets. Each data set was aligned to document progress in the achievement of the following program goals: Goal 1: The MS PHD'S Ocean Sciences Program will successfully market, recruit, select, and engage underrepresented student and non-student participants with interest/ involvement in Ocean Sciences; Goal 2: The MS PHD'S Ocean Sciences Program will provide meaningful engagement for participants as determined by quantitative analysis of user-feedback; Goal 3: The MS PHD'S Ocean Sciences Program will provide meaningful engagement for participants as determined by qualitative analysis of user-feedback, and; Goal 4: The MS PHD'S Ocean Sciences Program will develop a constituent base adequate to demonstrate evidence of interest, value, need and sustainability in

The Maryland nuclear science baccalaureate degree program: The university perspective

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Janke, T.A.

1989-01-01

Nuclear utilities' efforts in response to industry-wide pressures to provide operations staff with degree opportunities have encountered formidable barriers. This paper describes, from the university's perspective, the development and operation of the University of Maryland University College (UMUC) special baccalaureate program in nuclear science. This program has successfully overcome these problems to provide degree education on-site, on-line, and on time. Program delivery began in 1984 with one utility and a single site. It is currently delivered at eight sites under contract to six utilities with a total active student count of over 500. The first graduates are expected in 1989. The program is an accredited university program and enjoys licensure approval from the six states within which it operates. In addition to meeting US Nuclear Regulatory Commission proposed guidelines for degreed operators, the program increasingly appears as part of utility management development programs for all plant personnel and a factor in employee retention. The owner utilities, the University of Maryland, and the growing user's group are committed to the academic integrity, technical capability, and responsiveness of the program. The full support of this partnership speaks well for the long-term service of the Bachelor of Science in Nuclear Science program to the nuclear power industry

Understanding micro-processes of institutionalization: stewardship contracting and national forest management

Science.gov (United States)

Cassandra Moseley; Susan Charnley

2014-01-01

This paper examines micro-processes of institutionalization, using the case of stewardship contracting within the US Forest Service. Our basic premise is that, until a new policy becomes an everyday practice among local actors, it will not become institutionalized at the macro-scale. We find that micro-processes of institutionalization are driven by a mixture of large-...

Gardening with Children: My Summers at Beanstalk Children's Garden

Science.gov (United States)

Stoecklin, Vicki L.

2009-01-01

There has been increased interest in recent years on gardening with children and a variety of programs have been started to support different types of programmatic goals. Goals of gardening programs include environmental stewardship, personal growth/social skills, an integrated learning environment, nutrition/health, science education, practical…

An Interdisciplinary Program in Materials Science at James Madison University.

Science.gov (United States)

Hughes, Chris

2008-03-01

Over the past decade a core group of faculty at James Madison University has created an interdisciplinary program in materials science that provides our students with unique courses and research experiences that augment the existing, high-quality majors in physics and astronomy, chemistry and biochemistry, geology and environmental science, mathematics and statistics, and integrated science and technology. The university started this program by creating a Center for Materials Science whose budget is directly allocated by the provost. This source of funds acts as seed money for research, support for students, and a motivating factor for each of the academic units to support the participation of their faculty in the program. Courses were created at the introductory and intermediate level that are cross-listed by the departments to encourage students to enroll in them as electives toward their majors. Furthermore, the students are encouraged to participate in undergraduate research in materials since this is the most fundamental unifying theme across the disciplines. This talk will cover some of the curricular innovations that went into the design of the program to make it successful, examples of faculty and student research and how that feeds back into the classroom, and success stories of the interactions that have developed between departments because of this program. Student outcomes and future plans to improve the program will also be discussed.

Improving Stewardship of Marine Resources: Linking Strategy to Opportunity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Franciska von Heland

2014-07-01

Full Text Available The need for improved stewardship of coastal and marine resources is evident worldwide. However, complex ecosystem dynamics, institutional inertia, and budgetary constraints impede such action. This study explores how networks of change-oriented individuals or “institutional entrepreneurs” can introduce new types of human-environment interaction. The focus is on investigating the interplay between the strategies of institutional entrepreneurs and broader system dynamics that shape the context in which they are working, and possible impacts of institutional entrepreneurship on marine governance. We explore these issues in the context of Wakatobi National Park in eastern Indonesia. We suggest that creating links between different social spheres, such as between marine resource management and spirituality or between marine resource management and education, may accelerate the development of a new ecosystem stewardship. We further suggest that the use of media has significant power to show alternative futures, but that media may also serve to objectify certain resource users and increase the complexity of marine resource management. In general, institutional entrepreneurs play an important role in capturing and managing opportunity to open up space for experimentation and novel ideas, for example by linking their ideas to broader political priorities. Yet, such strategies bear the risk of institutional capture. Finally, institutional entrepreneurs sometimes have vested interests in certain solutions that may forsake experimentation toward a sustainable future.

A Mathematical Sciences Program at an Upper-Division Campus.

Science.gov (United States)

Swetz, Frank J.

1978-01-01

The conception, objectives, contents, and limitations of a degree program in the mathematical sciences at Pennsylvania State University, Capitol Campus, are discussed. Career goals that may be pursued include: managerial, science, education, actuarial, and computer. (MP)

Multimedia Bootcamp: a health sciences library provides basic training to promote faculty technology integration.

Science.gov (United States)

Ramsey, Ellen C

2006-04-25

Recent research has shown a backlash against the enthusiastic promotion of technological solutions as replacements for traditional educational content delivery. Many institutions, including the University of Virginia, have committed staff and resources to supporting state-of-the-art, showpiece educational technology projects. However, the Claude Moore Health Sciences Library has taken the approach of helping Health Sciences faculty be more comfortable using technology in incremental ways for instruction and research presentations. In July 2004, to raise awareness of self-service multimedia resources for instructional and professional development needs, the Library conducted a "Multimedia Bootcamp" for nine Health Sciences faculty and fellows. Case study. Program stewardship by a single Library faculty member contributed to the delivery of an integrated learning experience. The amount of time required to attend the sessions and complete homework was the maximum fellows had to devote to such pursuits. The benefit of introducing technology unfamiliar to most fellows allowed program instructors to start everyone at the same baseline while not appearing to pass judgment on the technology literacy skills of faculty. The combination of wrapping the program in the trappings of a fellowship and selecting fellows who could commit to a majority of scheduled sessions yielded strong commitment from participants as evidenced by high attendance and a 100% rate of assignment completion. Response rates to follow-up evaluation requests, as well as continued use of Media Studio resources and Library expertise for projects begun or conceived during Bootcamp, bode well for the long-term success of this program. An incremental approach to integrating technology with current practices in instruction and presentation provided a supportive yet energizing environment for Health Sciences faculty. Keys to this program were its faculty focus, traditional hands-on instruction, unrestricted

Student Science Training Program in Mathematics, Physics and Computer Science. Final Report to the National Science Foundation. Artificial Intelligence Memo No. 393.

Science.gov (United States)

Abelson, Harold; diSessa, Andy

During the summer of 1976, the MIT Artificial Intelligence Laboratory sponsored a Student Science Training Program in Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science for high ability secondary school students. This report describes, in some detail, the style of the program, the curriculum and the projects the students under-took. It is hoped that this…

Contacts in the Office of Pesticide Programs, Biopesticides and Pollution Prevention Division

Science.gov (United States)

Contact the Biopesticides and Pollution Prevention Division (BPPD) about regulatory activities associated with biologically-based pesticides, implementation of integrated pest management and the Pesticide Environmental Stewardship Program.

To each participatory sciences. Conditions for a participatory biodiversity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Denis SALLES

2014-07-01

Full Text Available This paper considers the social and scientific requirements for a citizen science monitoring programme on biodiversity in Arcachon Bay (France. The sociological study reveals tensions between different conceptions of what a citizen science programme should be: a means for storing oriented-data; a new way to co-create scientific knowledge; a political communication tool; a way to develop citizen stewardship; or a place for expressing activist environmental demands. Citizen science programmes also tend to reveal tensions between participatory governance and classical management of environmental issues. Despite a seeming consensus amongst actors on biodiversity conservation, in practice contests over different citizen science conceptions have the potential to re-define environmental issues, to re-specify relationships between science and society and outline new management priorities.

The women in science and engineering scholars program

Science.gov (United States)

Falconer, Etta Z.; Guy, Lori Ann

1989-01-01

The Women in Science and Engineering Scholars Program provides scientifically talented women students, including those from groups underrepresented in the scientific and technical work force, with the opportunity to pursue undergraduate studies in science and engineering in the highly motivating and supportive environment of Spelman College. It also exposes students to research training at NASA Centers during the summer. The program provides an opportunity for students to increase their knowledge of career opportunities at NASA and to strengthen their motivation through exposure to NASA women scientists and engineers as role models. An extensive counseling and academic support component to maximize academic performance supplements the instructional and research components. The program is designed to increase the number of women scientists and engineers with graduate degrees, particularly those with an interest in a career with NASA.

Angling into the Future: Ten Commandments for Recreational Fisheries Science, Management, and Stewardship in a Good Anthropocene

Science.gov (United States)

Elmer, Laura K.; Kelly, Lisa A.; Rivest, Stephanie; Steell, S. Clay; Twardek, William M.; Danylchuk, Andy J.; Arlinghaus, Robert; Bennett, Joseph R.; Cooke, Steven J.

2017-08-01

A new geological epoch, the "Anthropocene", has been defined as the period in which humans have had substantial geological and ecological influence on the planet. A positive future for this epoch can be referred to as the "good Anthropocene" and would involve effective management strategies and changes in human behavior that promote the sustainability and restoration of ecosystems. Recreational fisheries hold significant social, cultural, and economic value and can generate many benefits when managed sustainably and thus be an integral part of a "good Anthropocene". Here, we list ten commandments to facilitate persistence and long-term sustainability of recreational fisheries in the "good Anthropocene". This list includes fostering aquatic stewardship, promoting education, using appropriate capture gear, adopting evidence-based management approaches, promoting the concept of resilience, obtaining and using effort data in management, embracing the ecosystem approach, engaging in multilevel collaboration, enhancing accessibility, and embracing optimism. When used singly, or simultaneously, these ten commandments will contribute to the harmonization of sustainable fish populations and angling practices, to create recreational fisheries' "bright spots".

Integration of environmental stewardship and local economic development to enhance community health.

Science.gov (United States)

Levine, Jay F

2011-01-01

Environmental groups working to preserve natural ecosystems and groups working to enhance local economic development often find themselves on philosophically opposite sides of the negotiation table. Case histories of cooperative engagement are provided that serve as examples of how environmental stewardship is compatible with local economic development and community health.

Assessment and Evaluation of the Utah Master Naturalist Program: Implications for Targeting Audiences

Science.gov (United States)

Larese-Casanova, Mark

2011-01-01

The Utah Master Naturalist Program trains citizens who provide education, outreach, and service to promote citizen stewardship of natural resources within their communities. In 2007-2008, the Watersheds module of the program was evaluated for program success, and participant knowledge was assessed. Assessment and evaluation results indicated that…

Relational responsibility, and not only stewardship, a Roman Catholic view on voluntary euthanasia for dying and non-dying patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Schotsmans, Paul T

2003-01-01

The Roman Catholic theological approach to euthanasia is radically prohibitive. The main theological argument for this prohibition is the so-called "stewardship argument": Christians cannot escape accounting to God for stewardship of the bodies given them on earth. This contribution presents an alternative approach based on European existentialist and philosophical traditions. The suggestion is that exploring the fullness of our relational responsibility is more apt for a pluralist--and even secular--debate on the legitimacy of euthanasia.

Overview of NASA's Microgravity Materials Science Program

Science.gov (United States)

Downey, James Patton

2012-01-01

The microgravity materials program was nearly eliminated in the middle of the aughts due to budget constraints. Hardware developments were eliminated. Some investigators with experiments that could be performed using ISS partner hardware received continued funding. Partnerships were established between US investigators and ESA science teams for several investigations. ESA conducted peer reviews on the proposals of various science teams as part of an ESA AO process. Assuming he or she was part of a science team that was selected by the ESA process, a US investigator would submit a proposal to NASA for grant funding to support their part of the science team effort. In a similar manner, a US materials investigator (Dr. Rohit Trivedi) is working as a part of a CNES selected science team. As funding began to increase another seven materials investigators were selected in 2010 through an NRA mechanism to perform research related to development of Materials Science Research Rack investigations. One of these has since been converted to a Glovebox investigation.

NASA's Earth Science Flight Program Meets the Challenges of Today and Tomorrow

Science.gov (United States)

Ianson, Eric E.

2016-01-01

NASA's Earth science flight program is a dynamic undertaking that consists of a large fleet of operating satellites, an array of satellite and instrument projects in various stages of development, a robust airborne science program, and a massive data archiving and distribution system. Each element of the flight program is complex and present unique challenges. NASA builds upon its successes and learns from its setbacks to manage this evolving portfolio to meet NASA's Earth science objectives. NASA fleet of 16 operating missions provide a wide range of scientific measurements made from dedicated Earth science satellites and from instruments mounted to the International Space Station. For operational missions, the program must address issues such as an aging satellites operating well beyond their prime mission, constellation flying, and collision avoidance with other spacecraft and orbital debris. Projects in development are divided into two broad categories: systematic missions and pathfinders. The Earth Systematic Missions (ESM) include a broad range of multi-disciplinary Earth-observing research satellite missions aimed at understanding the Earth system and its response to natural and human-induced forces and changes. Understanding these forces will help determine how to predict future changes, and how to mitigate or adapt to these changes. The Earth System Science Pathfinder (ESSP) program provides frequent, regular, competitively selected Earth science research opportunities that accommodate new and emerging scientific priorities and measurement capabilities. This results in a series of relatively low-cost, small-sized investigations and missions. Principal investigators whose scientific objectives support a variety of studies lead these missions, including studies of the atmosphere, oceans, land surface, polar ice regions, or solid Earth. This portfolio of missions and investigations provides opportunity for investment in innovative Earth science that enhances

Science Teaching Experiences in Informal Settings: One Way to Enrich the Preparation Program for Preservice Science Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Hsu, Pei-Ling

2016-01-01

The high attrition rate of new science teachers demonstrates the urgent need to incorporate effective practices in teacher preparation programs to better equip preservice science teachers. The purpose of the study is to demonstrate a way to enrich preservice science teachers' preparation by incorporating informal science teaching practice into…

Development and impact of a massive open online course (MOOC) for antimicrobial stewardship.

Science.gov (United States)

Sneddon, Jacqueline; Barlow, Gavin; Bradley, Sally; Brink, Adrian; Chandy, Sujith J; Nathwani, Dilip

2018-04-01

The University of Dundee and the BSAC developed a massive open online course (MOOC) to address the global need for education to support antimicrobial stewardship in low- and middle-income countries. An interactive course, Antimicrobial Stewardship: Managing Antibiotic Resistance, was developed and delivered via the FutureLearn© platform. The course ran over four 6 week periods during 2015 and 2016 supported by educators and was evaluated via data on uptake and feedback from learners on impact on clinical practice. In total, 32 944 people, 70% of them healthcare professionals, from 163 countries joined the course from Europe (49%), Asia (16%), Africa (13%), North America (9%), Australia (8%) and South America (5%). Between 33% and 37% of joiners in each run completed at least one step in any week of the course and 219 participants responded to a post-course survey. The course was rated good or excellent by 208 (95%) of the participants, and 83 (38%) intended to implement stewardship interventions in their own setting. A follow-up survey 6 months later suggested that 49% had implemented such interventions. The MOOC has addressed a global learning need by providing education free at the point of access, and learning from its development will help others embarking upon similar educational solutions. Initial quantitative and qualitative feedback suggests it has engaged participants and complements traditional educational methods. Measuring its real impact on clinical practice remains a challenge. The FutureLearn© platform offers flexibility for MOOCs to be sustainable through modification to remove educator facilitation but maintain active participant discussion.

NASA's Earth science flight program status

Science.gov (United States)

Neeck, Steven P.; Volz, Stephen M.

2010-10-01

NASA's strategic goal to "advance scientific understanding of the changing Earth system to meet societal needs" continues the agency's legacy of expanding human knowledge of the Earth through space activities, as mandated by the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958. Over the past 50 years, NASA has been the world leader in developing space-based Earth observing systems and capabilities that have fundamentally changed our view of our planet and have defined Earth system science. The U.S. National Research Council report "Earth Observations from Space: The First 50 Years of Scientific Achievements" published in 2008 by the National Academy of Sciences articulates those key achievements and the evolution of the space observing capabilities, looking forward to growing potential to address Earth science questions and enable an abundance of practical applications. NASA's Earth science program is an end-to-end one that encompasses the development of observational techniques and the instrument technology needed to implement them. This includes laboratory testing and demonstration from surface, airborne, or space-based platforms; research to increase basic process knowledge; incorporation of results into complex computational models to more fully characterize the present state and future evolution of the Earth system; and development of partnerships with national and international organizations that can use the generated information in environmental forecasting and in policy, business, and management decisions. Currently, NASA's Earth Science Division (ESD) has 14 operating Earth science space missions with 6 in development and 18 under study or in technology risk reduction. Two Tier 2 Decadal Survey climate-focused missions, Active Sensing of CO2 Emissions over Nights, Days and Seasons (ASCENDS) and Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT), have been identified in conjunction with the U.S. Global Change Research Program and initiated for launch in the 2019

Materials Sciences programs. Fiscal year 1982

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1982-09-01

The purpose of this report is to provide a convenient compilation and index of the DOE Materials Sciences Division programs. This compilation is intended for use by administrators, managers, and scientists to help coordinate research and as an aid in selecting new programs. The report is divided into five sections. Section A contains all laboratory projects, Section B has all contract research projects, Section C has information on DOE collaborative research centers, Section D shows distribution of funding, and Section E has various indices

Wilderness stewardship challenges in the uKhahlamba Drakensberg Park World Heritage Site

Science.gov (United States)

Sonja Krüger

2007-01-01

The location of the uKhahlamba Drakensberg Park wilderness areas along an international border and within a World Heritage Site and Transfrontier Conservation Area, provides unique opportunities and challenges for the stewardship of these areas. Although the wilderness areas were proclaimed more than 30 years ago, wilderness-specific planning, management and monitoring...

Ten-year decrease of acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA bacteremia at a single institution: the result of a multifaceted program combining cross-transmission prevention and antimicrobial stewardship

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chalfine Annie

2012-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background In France, the proportion of MRSA has been over 25% since 2000. Prevention of hospital-acquired (HA MRSA spread is based on isolation precautions and antibiotic stewardship. At our institution, before 2000, the Infection Disease and the Infection Control teams had failed to reduce HA-MRSA rates. Objectives and methods We implemented a multifaceted hospital-wide prevention program and measured the effects on HA-MRSA colonization and bacteremia rates between 2000 and 2009. From 2000 to 2003, active screening and decontamination of ICU patients, hospital wide alcohol based hand rubs (ABHR use, control of specific classes of antibiotics, compliance audits, and feed-backs to the care providers were successively implemented. The efficacy of the program was assessed by HA-MRSA colonized and bacteremic patient rates per 1000 patient-days in patients hospitalized for more than twenty-four hours. Results Compliance with the isolation practices increased between 2000 and 2009. Consumption of ABHR increased from 6.8 L to 27.5 L per 1000 patient-days. The use of antibiotic Defined Daily Doses (DDD per 1000 patient-days decreased by 31%. HA-MRSA colonization decreased by 84% from 1.09 to 0.17 per 1000 patient-days and HA-MRSA bacteremia by 93%, from 0.15 to 0.01 per 1000 patient-days (p −7 for each rate. Conclusions In an area highly endemic for MRSA, a multifaceted prevention program allows for sustainable reduction in HA-MRSA bacteremia rates.

The design and evaluation of a master of science program in anatomical sciences at Queen's University Canada.

Science.gov (United States)

Kolomitro, Klodiana; MacKenzie, Leslie W; Wiercigroch, David; Godden, Lorraine

2018-05-15

The purpose of this study was to describe the design and evolution of a unique and successful Master of Science program in anatomical sciences at one Canadian post-secondary institution and to evaluate its long-term impact on student learning. This program prepares students to teach anatomy and design curricula in the anatomical sciences and is structured around three pillars of competency-content (disciplinary knowledge and transferable skills), pedagogy, and inquiry. Graduates of the program from the last ten years were surveyed, to better understand the knowledge, skills, and habits of mind they have adopted and implemented since completion. Interest was taken in identifying aspects of the program that students found particularly beneficial and areas that needed to be further developed. Based on the findings, this program has been a highly valuable experience for the graduates especially in helping them develop transferable skills, and grow as individuals. The hope is that other institutions that have similar programs in place or are considering developing them would benefit from this description of the program design and the sharing of the lessons learned. Anat Sci Educ. © 2018 American Association of Anatomists. © 2018 American Association of Anatomists.

Psychology or Psychological Science?: A Survey of Graduate Psychology Faculty Regarding Program Names

Science.gov (United States)

Collisson, Brian; Rusbasan, David

2018-01-01

The question of renaming graduate psychology programs to psychological science is a timely and contentious issue. To better understand why some programs, but not others, are changing names, we surveyed chairpersons (Study 1) and faculty (Study 2) within graduate psychology and psychological science programs. Within psychology programs, a name…

Bringing Up Girls in Science (BUGS): The Effectiveness of an Afterschool Environmental Science Program for Increasing Female Students' Interest in Science Careers

Science.gov (United States)

Tyler-Wood, Tandra; Ellison, Amber; Lim, Okyoung; Periathiruvadi, Sita

2012-02-01

Bringing Up Girls in Science (BUGS) was an afterschool program for 4th and 5th grade girls that provided authentic learning experiences in environmental science as well as valuable female mentoring opportunities in an effort to increase participants' academic achievement in science. BUGS participants demonstrated significantly greater amounts of gain in science knowledge as measured by the Iowa Test of Basic Skills in Science (ITBS-S). The original BUGS participants and contrasts have now completed high school and entered college, allowing researchers to assess the long-term impact of the BUGS program. Fourteen former BUGS participants completed two instruments to assess their perceptions of science and science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers. Their results were compared to four contrast groups composed entirely of females: 12 former BUGS contrasts, 10 college science majors, 10 non-science majors, and 9 current STEM professionals. Results indicate that BUGS participants have higher perceptions of science careers than BUGS contrasts. There were no significant differences between BUGS participants, Science Majors, and STEM professionals in their perceptions of science and STEM careers, whereas the BUGS contrast group was significantly lower than BUGS participants, Science Majors, and STEM Professionals. Additional results and implications are discussed within.

Integration of Local Ecological Knowledge and Conventional Science: a Study of Seven Community-Based Forestry Organizations in the USA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Heidi L. Ballard

2008-12-01

Full Text Available Natural resource management decisions can be based on incomplete knowledge when they lack scientific research, monitoring, and assessment and/or simultaneously fail to draw on local ecological knowledge. Many community-based forestry organizations in the United States attempt to address these knowledge gaps with an integrated ecological stewardship approach that balances ecological, social, and economic goals. This paper examines the use and integration of local knowledge and conventional science in ecological stewardship and monitoring by seven community-based forestry demonstration projects. Through document reviews and interviews with both participants and partners of all of these community-based organizations, we found that all the community-based forestry groups incorporated local ecological knowledge into many aspects of their management or monitoring activities, such as collaboratively designing monitoring programs with local ranchers, forest workers, and residents; involving local people in collecting data and interpreting results; and documenting the local ecological knowledge of private forest landowners, long-time residents, and harvesters of nontimber forest products. We found that all the groups also used conventional science to design or conduct ecological assessments, monitoring, or research. We also found evidence, in the form of changes in attitudes on the part of local people and conventional scientists and jointly produced reports, that the two types of knowledge were integrated by all groups. These findings imply that community-based forestry groups are redistributing the power of conventional science through the use of diverse knowledge sources. Still, several obstacles prevented some local, traditionally under-represented groups from being significantly involved in monitoring and management decisions, and their knowledge has not yet been consistently incorporated.

Developing science policy capacity at the state government level: Planning a science and technology policy fellowship program for Colorado and beyond

Science.gov (United States)

Druckenmiller, M. L.

2017-12-01

There is growing recognition of the potential to advance science policy capacity within state legislatures, where there is most often a shortage of professional backgrounds in the natural sciences, technology, engineering, and medicine. Developing such capacity at the state level should be considered a vital component of any comprehensive national scale strategy to strengthen science informed governance. Toward this goal, the Center for Science and Technology Policy Research at the University of Colorado Boulder is leading a strategic planning process for a Science and Technology Policy Fellowship Program within the Colorado state legislature and executive branch agencies. The intended program will place PhD-level scientists and engineers in one-year placements with decision-makers to provide an in-house resource for targeted policy-relevant research. Fellows will learn the intricacies of the state policymaking process, be exposed to opportunities for science to inform decisions, and develop a deeper understanding of key science and technology topics in Colorado, including water resources, wildfire management, and energy. The program's ultimate goals are to help foster a decision-making arena informed by evidence-based information, to develop new leaders adept at bridging science and policymaking realms, and to foster governance that champions the role of science in society. Parallel to efforts in Colorado, groups from nine other states are preparing similar plans, providing opportunities to share approaches across states and to set the stage for increased science and technology input to state legislative agendas nationwide. Importantly, highly successful and sustainable models exist; the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) has implemented a federally based fellowship program for over 43 years and the California Council for Science and Technology (CCST) has directed a fellowship program for their state's legislature since 2009. AAAS and CCST

A Graduate Academic Program in Medical Information Science.

Science.gov (United States)

Blois, Marsden S., Jr.; Wasserman, Anthony I.

A graduate academic program in medical information science has been established at the University of California, San Francisco, for the education of scientists capable of performing research and development in information technology in the health care setting. This interdisciplinary program, leading to a Doctor of Philosophy degree, consists of an…

DOE's Stewardship of Government-Owned Uranium Materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jackson, J. Dale; Donaldson, Dale E.

2002-01-01

Beginning in the 1980's, a significant number of Department of Energy facilities have been shut down and are in the decommissioning process. The shutdown of additional facilities is planned. In addition, during the past several decades, the Department of Energy has loaned nuclear material to a wide variety of private and governmental institutions for research and educational purposes. Subsequent changes in the Department's priorities have reduced the need for nuclear materials to support the Department's programs. Similarly, there has been a reduction in the need for borrowed nuclear materials by organizations and institutions using nuclear materials 'on loan' from the Department. As a result, inventories of uranium material from the Department's facilities and 'on loan' must be removed and returned to the Department. This material is in the form of low enriched uranium (LEU), normal uranium (NU), and depleted uranium (DU) in various forms. This uranium material is located at over one hundred sites within the United States and overseas, including universities and laboratories. Much of this uranium is not needed to support national priorities and programs. The Department of Energy has assumed a stewardship role in managing nuclear materials throughout their life cycle, from acquisition to storage. Surplus uranium has created challenges for DOE in managing and storing the material as well as identifying opportunities for its further use. On behalf of the Department, the Oak Ridge Operations Office has been given the responsibility to implement the Department responsibilities in meeting these challenges and managing the Department's uranium materials. To support this effort, the Office of Nuclear Fuel Security and Uranium Technology within the ORO complex coordinates uranium management functions across the Department of Energy. This coordination provides DOE with a number of important benefits, among which are: consolidated management and storage of uranium; improved

Girls on Ice: An Inquiry-Based Wilderness Science Education Program

Science.gov (United States)

Pettit, E. C.; Koppes, M. N.

2001-12-01

We developed a wilderness science education program for high school girls. The program offers opportunities for students to explore and learn about mountain glaciers and the alpine landscape through scientific field studies with geologists and glaciologists. Our purpose is to give students a feeling for the natural processes that create the alpine world and provide an environment that fosters the critical thinking necessary to all scientific inquiry. The program is currently being offered through the North Cascades Institute, a non-profit organization offering outdoor education programs for the general public. We lead eight girls for a weeklong expedition to the remote USGS South Cascade Glacier Research Station in Washington's North Cascades. For four days, we explore the glacier and the nearby alpine valleys. We encourage the girls to observe and think like scientists through making observations and inferences. They develop their own experiments to test ideas about glacier dynamics and geomorphology. In addition to scientific exploration, we engage the students in discussions about the philosophy of science and its role in our everyday lives. Our program exemplifies the success of hands-on, inquiry-based teaching in small groups for science education in the outdoors. The wilderness setting and single gender field team inspires young women's interest in science and provides a challenging environment that increases their physical and intellectual self-confidence.

Teaching implementation science in a new Master of Science Program in Germany: a survey of stakeholder expectations

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ullrich, C.; Mahler, C.; Forstner, J.; Szecsenyi, J.; Wensing, M.

2017-01-01

BACKGROUND: Implementation science in healthcare is an evolving discipline in German-speaking countries. In 2015, the Medical Faculty of the University of Heidelberg, Germany, implemented a two-year full-time Master of Science program Health Services Research and Implementation Science. The

Science team participation in the ARM program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cess, R.D.

1993-01-01

This progress report discusses the Science Team participation in the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Program for the period of October 31, 1992 to November 1, 1993. This report summarized the research accomplishments of six papers

The aurora, Mars, and more! Increasing science content in elementary grades through art and literacy programs in earth and space science

Science.gov (United States)

Renfrow, S.; Wood, E. L.

2011-12-01

Although reading, writing, and math examinations are often conducted early in elementary school, science is not typically tested until 4th or 5th grade. The result is a refocus on the tested topics at the expense of the untested ones, despite that standards exist for each topic at all grades. On a national level, science instruction is relegated to a matter of a few hours per week. A 2007 Education Policy study states that elementary school students spend an average of 178 minutes a week on science while spending 500 minutes on literacy. A recent NSTA report in July of elementary and middle school teachers confirms that teachers feel pressured to teach math and literacy at the expense of other programs. One unintended result is that teachers in grades where science is tested must play catch-up with students for them to be successful on the assessment. A unique way to combat the lack of science instruction at elementary grades is to combine literacy, social studies, and math into an integrated science program, thereby increasing the number of science contact hours. The Dancing Lights program, developed at the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, is a science, art, and literacy program about the aurora designed to easily fit into a typical 3rd-5th grade instructional day. It mirrors other successful literacy programs and will provide a basis for the literacy program being developed for the upcoming MAVEN mission to Mars. We will present early findings, as well as "lessons learned" during our development and implementation of the Dancing Lights program and will highlight our goals for the MAVEN mission literacy program.

Strategic Plan for Sustainable Energy Management and Environmental Stewardship for Los Angeles Unified School District

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Walker, A.; Beattie, D.; Thomas, K.; Davis, K.; Sim, M.; Jhaveri, A.

2007-11-01

This Strategic Plan for Sustainable Energy Management and Environmental Stewardship states goals, measures progress toward goals and how actions are monitored to achieve continuous improvement for the Los Angeles Unified School District.

Materials Sciences Programs. Fiscal Year 1985

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1985-09-01

The purpose of this report is to provide a convenient compilation and index of the DOE Materials Sciences Division programs. This compilation is primarily intended for use by administrators, managers, and scientists to help coordinate research. The report is divided into six sections. Section A contains all Laboratory projects, Section B has all contract research projects, Section C has projects funded under the Small Business Innovation Research Program, Sections D and E have information on DOE collaborative research centers, Section F gives distribution of funding, and Section G has various indexes

National Science Resources Center Project for Improving Science Teaching in Elementary Schools. Appendix A. School Systems With Exemplary Elementary Science Programs. Appendix B. Elementary Science Network

Science.gov (United States)

1988-12-01

Glass, Lawrence, Deer Park High School Glass, Millard, K-12 Science Supervisor Bloomfield Municipal School District Glassman, Neil, Gleason, Steve...Superientendent Vaughn Municipal Schools Knop, Ronald N., Teacher Grissom Junior High School Knox, Amie, Director of Master Teacher Program W. Wilson...Science Supervisor Pequannock Township Public Schools Mercado , Roberto, Science Coordinator Colegio Radians, Inc. Merchant, Edwin, K-12 Science

Pair Programming as a Modern Method of Teaching Computer Science

OpenAIRE

Irena Nančovska Šerbec; Branko Kaučič; Jože Rugelj

2008-01-01

At the Faculty of Education, University of Ljubljana we educate future computer science teachers. Beside didactical, pedagogical, mathematical and other interdisciplinary knowledge, students gain knowledge and skills of programming that are crucial for computer science teachers. For all courses, the main emphasis is the absorption of professional competences, related to the teaching profession and the programming profile. The latter are selected according to the well-known document, the ACM C...

Computer program design specifications for the Balloon-borne Ultraviolet Stellar Spectrometer (BUSS) science data decommutation program (BAPS48)

Science.gov (United States)

Rodriguez, R. M.

1975-01-01

The Balloon-Borne Ultraviolet Stellar Spectrometer (BUSS) Science Data Docummutation Program (BAPS48) is a pulse code modulation docummutation program that will format the BUSS science data contained on a one inch PCM tracking tape into a seven track serial bit stream formatted digital tape.

Faith community nursing demonstrates good stewardship of community benefit dollars through cost savings and cost avoidance.

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Ameldia R; Coppola, Patricia; Giacona, Marian; Petriches, Anne; Stockwell, Mary Ann

2009-01-01

Health systems seeking responsible stewardship of community benefit dollars supporting Faith Community Nursing Networks require demonstration of positive measurable health outcomes. Faith Community Nurses (FCNs) answer the call for measurable outcomes by documenting cost savings and cost avoidances to families, communities, and health systems associated with their interventions. Using a spreadsheet tool based on Medicare reimbursements and diagnostic-related groupings, 3 networks of FCNs have together shown more than 600 000 (for calendar year 2008) healthcare dollars saved by avoidance of unnecessary acute care visits and extended care placements. The cost-benefit ratio of support dollars to cost savings and cost avoidance demonstrates that support of FCNs is good stewardship of community benefit dollars.

AECL's research and development program in environmental science and technology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cornett, R.J.

1998-07-01

AECL's radiological research and development (R and D) program encompasses work on sources of radiation exposure, radionuclide transport through the environment and potential impacts on biota and on human health. The application of the radiation protection knowledge and technology developed in this program provides cradle-to-grave management for CANDU and related nuclear technologies. This document provides an overview of the Environmental Science and Technology (ES and T) program which is one of the technical areas of R and D within the radiological R and D program. The ES and T program uses science from three main areas: radiochemistry, mathematical modelling and environmental assessment. In addition to providing an overview of the program, this summary also gives specific examples of recent technical work in each of the three areas. These technical examples illustrate the applied nature of the ES and T program and the close coupling of the program to CANDU customer requirements. (author)

A framework for evaluating and designing citizen science programs for natural resources monitoring.

Science.gov (United States)

Chase, Sarah K; Levine, Arielle

2016-06-01

We present a framework of resource characteristics critical to the design and assessment of citizen science programs that monitor natural resources. To develop the framework we reviewed 52 citizen science programs that monitored a wide range of resources and provided insights into what resource characteristics are most conducive to developing citizen science programs and how resource characteristics may constrain the use or growth of these programs. We focused on 4 types of resource characteristics: biophysical and geographical, management and monitoring, public awareness and knowledge, and social and cultural characteristics. We applied the framework to 2 programs, the Tucson (U.S.A.) Bird Count and the Maui (U.S.A.) Great Whale Count. We found that resource characteristics such as accessibility, diverse institutional involvement in resource management, and social or cultural importance of the resource affected program endurance and success. However, the relative influence of each characteristic was in turn affected by goals of the citizen science programs. Although the goals of public engagement and education sometimes complimented the goal of collecting reliable data, in many cases trade-offs must be made between these 2 goals. Program goals and priorities ultimately dictate the design of citizen science programs, but for a program to endure and successfully meet its goals, program managers must consider the diverse ways that the nature of the resource being monitored influences public participation in monitoring. © 2016 Society for Conservation Biology.

Strategies Employed by Citizen Science Programs to Increase the Credibility of Their Data

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Amy Freitag

2016-05-01

Full Text Available The success of citizen science in producing important and unique data is attracting interest from scientists and resource managers. Nonetheless, questions remain about the credibility of citizen science data. Citizen science programs desire to meet the same standards of credibility as academic science, but they usually work within a different context, for example, training and managing significant numbers of volunteers with limited resources. We surveyed the credibility-building strategies of 30 citizen science programs that monitor environmental aspects of the California coast. We identified a total of twelve strategies: Three that are applied during training and planning; four that are applied during data collection; and five that are applied during data analysis and program evaluation. Variation in the application of these strategies by program is related to factors such as the number of participants, the focus on group or individual work, and the time commitment required of volunteers. The structure of each program and available resources require program designers to navigate tradeoffs in the choices of their credibility strategies. Our results illustrate those tradeoffs and provide a framework for the necessary discussions between citizen science programs and potential users of their data—including scientists and decision makers—about shared expectations for credibility and practical approaches for meeting those expectations. This article has been corrected here: http://dx.doi.org/10.5334/cstp.91

Controversies in Antimicrobial Stewardship: Focus on New Rapid Diagnostic Technologies and Antimicrobials

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eric Wenzler

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs are challenged with ensuring appropriate antimicrobial use while minimizing expenditures. ASPs have consistently demonstrated improved patient outcomes and significant cost reductions but are continually required to justify the costs of their existence and interventions due to the silo mentality often adopted by hospital administrators. As new technologies and antimicrobials emerge, ASPs are in a constant tug-of-war between providing optimal clinical outcomes and ensuring cost containment. Additionally, robust data on cost-effectiveness of new rapid diagnostic technologies and antimicrobials with subsequent ASP interventions to provide justification are lacking. As the implementation of an ASP will soon be mandatory for acute care hospitals in the United States, ASPs must find ways to justify novel interventions to align themselves with healthcare administrators. This review provides a framework for the justification of implementing a rapid diagnostic test or adding a new antimicrobial to formulary with ASP intervention, reviews approaches to demonstrating cost-effectiveness, and proposes methods for which ASPs may reduce healthcare expenditures via alternative tactics.

Campaign Preparation for Complex Initiatives: A Person-Centered Approach to Audience Segmentation of Parents' Antibiotic Stewardship.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Rachel A; MacGeorge, Erina L; Hackman, Nicole M; M'ikanatha, Nkuchia M

2017-10-25

The evolution of antibiotic resistance is outpacing the speed at which new antibiotics will reach the marketplace. To slow the rate of resistance, people need to engage in antibiotic stewardship, which includes acts to prevent the spread of bacteria and judicious use of antibiotics to treat infections. This study identified the patterns and predictors of antibiotic stewardship behaviors of parents (N = 516) related to their children. The latent class analysis revealed three profiles of parental stewardship, labeled Stewards, Requesters, and Non-Stewards. The findings implied different campaign goals: to encourage Stewards to follow through on their intentions, to encourage Requesters to stop asking providers for antibiotics when their children have ear infections, and to influence Non-Stewards to accept medical advice when an antibiotic is not indicated and to dispose of leftover antibiotics. The covariate analysis provided theoretical insight into the strategies to pursue in campaigns targeting these three groups. For example, parents who perceived antibiotic-resistant infections as less serious health conditions, felt less worry when thinking about their child getting an antibiotic-resistant infection, and had stronger misattributions of antibiotics' efficacy to treat multiple symptoms were more likely to be Requesters and Non-Stewards, instead of Stewards.

Mapping Antimicrobial Stewardship in Undergraduate Medical, Dental, Pharmacy, Nursing and Veterinary Education in the United Kingdom.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Enrique Castro-Sánchez

Full Text Available To investigate the teaching of antimicrobial stewardship (AS in undergraduate healthcare educational degree programmes in the United Kingdom (UK.Cross-sectional survey of undergraduate programmes in human and veterinary medicine, dentistry, pharmacy and nursing in the UK. The main outcome measures included prevalence of AS teaching; stewardship principles taught; estimated hours apportioned; mode of content delivery and teaching strategies; evaluation methodologies; and frequency of multidisciplinary learning.80% (112/140 of programmes responded adequately. The majority of programmes teach AS principles (88/109, 80.7%. 'Adopting necessary infection prevention and control precautions' was the most frequently taught principle (83/88, 94.3%, followed by 'timely collection of microbiological samples for microscopy, culture and sensitivity' (73/88, 82.9% and 'minimisation of unnecessary antimicrobial prescribing' (72/88, 81.8%. The 'use of intravenous administration only to patients who are severely ill, or unable to tolerate oral treatment' was reported in ~50% of courses. Only 32/88 (36.3% programmes included all recommended principles.Antimicrobial stewardship principles are included in most undergraduate healthcare and veterinary degree programmes in the UK. However, future professionals responsible for using antimicrobials receive disparate education. Education may be boosted by standardisation and strengthening of less frequently discussed principles.

The Deep River Science Academy: a unique and innovative program for engaging students in science

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Turner, C.W.; Didsbury, R.; Ingram, M.

2014-01-01

For 28 years, the Deep River Science Academy (DRSA) has been offering high school students the opportunity to engage in the excitement and challenge of professional scientific research to help nurture their passion for science and to provide them with the experience and the knowledge to make informed decisions regarding possible future careers in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The venue for the DRSA program has been a six-week summer science camp where students, working in pairs under the guidance of a university undergraduate tutor, contribute directly to an on-going research program under the supervision of a professional scientist or engineer. This concept has been expanded in recent years to reach students in classrooms year round by engaging students via the internet over a 12-week term in a series of interactive teaching sessions based on an on-going research project. Although the research projects for the summer program are offered primarily from the laboratories of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited at its Chalk River Laboratories site, projects for the year-round program can be based, in principle, in laboratories at universities and other research institutes located anywhere in Canada. This paper will describe the program in more detail using examples illustrating how the students become engaged in the research and the sorts of contributions they have been able to make over the years. The impact of the program on the students and the degree to which the DRSA has been able to meet its objective of encouraging students to choose careers in the fields of STEM and equipping them with the skills and experience to be successful will be assessed based on feedback from the students themselves. Finally, we will examine the program in the context of how well it helps to address the challenges faced by educators today in meeting the demands of students in a world where the internet provides instant access to information. (author)

The Deep River Science Academy: a unique and innovative program for engaging students in science

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Turner, C.W., E-mail: carlrhonda.turner@sympatico.ca [Deep River Science Academy, Deep River, Ontario (Canada); Didsbury, R. [Atomic Energy of Canada Limited, Chalk River, Ontario (Canada); Ingram, M. [Deep River Science Academy, Deep River, Ontario (Canada)

2014-06-15

For 28 years, the Deep River Science Academy (DRSA) has been offering high school students the opportunity to engage in the excitement and challenge of professional scientific research to help nurture their passion for science and to provide them with the experience and the knowledge to make informed decisions regarding possible future careers in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The venue for the DRSA program has been a six-week summer science camp where students, working in pairs under the guidance of a university undergraduate tutor, contribute directly to an on-going research program under the supervision of a professional scientist or engineer. This concept has been expanded in recent years to reach students in classrooms year round by engaging students via the internet over a 12-week term in a series of interactive teaching sessions based on an on-going research project. Although the research projects for the summer program are offered primarily from the laboratories of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited at its Chalk River Laboratories site, projects for the year-round program can be based, in principle, in laboratories at universities and other research institutes located anywhere in Canada. This paper will describe the program in more detail using examples illustrating how the students become engaged in the research and the sorts of contributions they have been able to make over the years. The impact of the program on the students and the degree to which the DRSA has been able to meet its objective of encouraging students to choose careers in the fields of STEM and equipping them with the skills and experience to be successful will be assessed based on feedback from the students themselves. Finally, we will examine the program in the context of how well it helps to address the challenges faced by educators today in meeting the demands of students in a world where the internet provides instant access to information. (author)

TRADITIONS OF SCIENCE POPULARIZATION IN RUSSIA AS A METHODOLOGICAL BASIS TO DEVELOP THE NEW MASTER’S PROGRAM “POPULAR SCIENCE JOURNALISM”

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Balashova, Y.B.

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The article discusses the new master’s program “Popular science journalism”, which started three years ago at Saint Petersburg State University, Russia. The author of this article is the creator, developer and head of this program. The goal of this article is to characterize historical and cultural grounds of the master’s program, and their reflection in the curriculum. Installation for the commonwealth of sciences, targeting a broad audience comprised a profiling installation of the classical system of Russian popular science journalism. In accordance with this, the master’s program was designed as an interdisciplinary, with the incorporated idea of the sciences convergence, which based on the Russian history of scientific enlightenment. The article aims to show productivity of the interdisciplinary educational programs, combined into modules.

The Technology in the Programs of Life Sciences in Turkey and Sachunterricht in Germany

Science.gov (United States)

Keskin, Tuba

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study is to compare the gains of the Life Sciences program in Turkey and the Life sciences program (Sachunterricht) used in the state of Niedersachsen in Germany. The study aiming to compare the technology-related acquisitions in Life sciences program in Turkey and Germany is a comparative education research that used…

Enhancing stewardship in Latin America and Caribbean small-scale fisheries : challenges and opportunities

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Gasalla, M.A.; de Castro, F.

2016-01-01

This thematic series, entitled “Enhancing Stewardship in Latin America and Caribbean Small-Scale Fisheries”, emerged as part of a joint effort to bridge Latin-American scholars interested in networking on small-scale fisheries in the region. Built on results presented at two meetings (‘Too Big to

An Update on the NASA Planetary Science Division Research and Analysis Program

Science.gov (United States)

Richey, Christina; Bernstein, Max; Rall, Jonathan

2015-01-01

Introduction: NASA's Planetary Science Division (PSD) solicits its Research and Analysis (R&A) programs each year in Research Opportunities in Space and Earth Sciences (ROSES). Beginning with the 2014 ROSES solicitation, PSD will be changing the structure of the program elements under which the majority of planetary science R&A is done. Major changes include the creation of five core research program elements aligned with PSD's strategic science questions, the introduction of several new R&A opportunities, new submission requirements, and a new timeline for proposal submissionROSES and NSPIRES: ROSES contains the research announcements for all of SMD. Submission of ROSES proposals is done electronically via NSPIRES: http://nspires.nasaprs.com. We will present further details on the proposal submission process to help guide younger scientists. Statistical trends, including the average award size within the PSD programs, selections rates, and lessons learned, will be presented. Information on new programs will also be presented, if available.Review Process and Volunteering: The SARA website (http://sara.nasa.gov) contains information on all ROSES solicitations. There is an email address (SARA@nasa.gov) for inquiries and an area for volunteer reviewers to sign up. The peer review process is based on Scientific/Technical Merit, Relevance, and Level of Effort, and will be detailed within this presentation.ROSES 2014 submission changes: All PSD programs will use a two-step proposal submission process. A Step-1 proposal is required and must be submitted electronically by the Step-1 due date. The Step-1 proposal should include a description of the science goals and objectives to be addressed by the proposal, a brief description of the methodology to be used to address the science goals and objectives, and the relevance of the proposed research to the call submitted to.Additional Information: Additional details will be provided on the Cassini Data Analysis Program, the

Dartmouth College Earth Sciences Mobile Field Program

Science.gov (United States)

Meyer, E. E.; Osterberg, E. C.; Dade, W. B.; Sonder, L. J.; Renshaw, C. E.; Kelly, M. A.; Hawley, R. L.; Chipman, J. W.; Mikucki, J.; Posmentier, E. S.; Moore, J. R.

2011-12-01

For the last 50 years the Department of Earth Sciences at Dartmouth College has offered a term-long, undergraduate field program, informally called "the Stretch". A student typically enrolls during fall quarter of his or her junior year soon after choosing a major or minor. The program thus provides valuable field context for courses that a student will take during the remainder of his or her undergraduate career. Unlike many traditional field camps that focus on one particular region, the Stretch is a mobile program that currently travels through Western North America, from the Canadian Rockies to the Grand Canyon. The program spans two and a half months, during which time undergraduates, graduate TAs, and faculty live, work, and learn collaboratively. Dartmouth College faculty members sequentially teach individual 1- to 2-week segments that focus on their interests and expertise; currently, there are a total of eight segments led by eleven faculty members. Consequently, topics are diverse and include economic geology, geobiology, geomorphology, glaciology, glacial geology, geophysics, hydrogeology, paleontology, stratigraphy, structure and tectonics, and volcanology. The field localities are equally varied, including the alpine glaciers of western Alberta, the national parks of Montana, Wyoming and Utah, the eastern Sierra Nevada, the southern Great Basin, and highlight such classic geological field locales as Sheep Mountain in Wyoming's Bighorn Basin, Death Valley, and the Grand Canyon. Overall, the program aims to: 1) give students a broad perspective on the timing and nature of the processes that resulted in the landscape and underlying geology of western North America; and 2) introduce students to a wide variety of geological environments, field techniques, and research equipment. Students emerge from the program with wide-ranging exposure to active research questions as well as a working knowledge of core field skills in the earth sciences. Stretch students

Materials Sciences programs, Fiscal year 1993

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1994-02-01

This report provides a compilation and index of the DOE Materials Sciences Division programs; the compilation is to assist administrators, managers, and scientists to help coordinate research. The report is divided into 7 sections: laboratory projects, contract research projects, small business innovation research, major user facilities, other user facilities, funding level distributions, and indexes.

Museum nuclear science programs during the past 30 years

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marsee, M.D.

1990-01-01

The American Museum of Atomic Energy was opened as a program of the Atomic Energy Commission. The name was changed in 1977 to the American Museum of Science and Energy to reflect an expanded roll of the Department of Energy. From 1954 until 1980 the museum was the base for a Traveling Exhibit Program that visited schools, state fairs, shopping centers and malls, libraries, summer camps, and science museums throughout the United States. Today the museum transfers information on the research and development of all the energy sources, the environmental impact of these sources and possible solutions to these impacts. The museum also manages an Outreach Program to area schools and coordinates several special events for student visits to the museum

Alliance for Earth Sciences, Engineering and Development in Africa

Science.gov (United States)

Barron, E. J.; Adewumi, M.

2004-12-01

Penn State University, with a significant number of African University partners (University of Ibadan, University of Lagos, University of Cape Town, University of Witwatersrand, and Agustino Neto University) as well as HBCUs (Howard University and the Mississippi Consortium for International Development - a consortium of four HBCUs in Mississippi), has established the Alliance for Earth Sciences, Engineering and Development in Africa (AESEDA). AESEDA is designed to enable the integration of science, engineering, and social sciences in order to develop human resources, promote economic vitality and enable environmental stewardship in Africa. The Alliance has a coherent and significant multidisciplinary focus, namely African georesources. Education is a central focus, with research collaboration as one element of the vehicle for education. AESEDA is focused on building an environment of intellectual discourse and pooled intellectual capital and developing innovative and enabling educational programs and enhancing existing ones. AESEDA also has unique capabilities to create role models for under-represented groups to significantly enable the utilization of human potential. The efforts of the Alliance center around specific activities in support of its objectives: (1) Focused research collaboration among partner institutions, (2) Development of an international community of scholars, and (3) Joint development of courses and programs and instructional innovation. Penn State has a unique ability to contribute to the success of this program. The College of Earth and Mineral Sciences contains strong programs in the areas of focus. More than 25 faculty in the College have active research and educational efforts in Africa. Hence, the Alliance has natural and vigorous support within the College. The College is also providing strong institutional support for AESEDA, by establishing a Director and support staff and creating permanent funds for a unique set of new faculty hires

GLAS Long-Term Archive: Preservation and Stewardship for a Vital Earth Observing Mission

Science.gov (United States)

Fowler, D. K.; Moses, J. F.; Zwally, J.; Schutz, B. E.; Hancock, D.; McAllister, M.; Webster, D.; Bond, C.

2012-12-01

Data Stewardship, preservation, and reproducibility are fast becoming principal parts of a data manager's work. In an era of distributed data and information systems, it is of vital importance that organizations make a commitment to both current and long-term goals of data management and the preservation of scientific data. Satellite missions and instruments go through a lifecycle that involves pre-launch calibration, on-orbit data acquisition and product generation, and final reprocessing. Data products and descriptions flow to the archives for distribution on a regular basis during the active part of the mission. However there is additional information from the product generation and science teams needed to ensure the observations will be useful for long term climate studies. Examples include ancillary input datasets, product generation software, and production history as developed by the team during the course of product generation. These data and information will need to be archived after product data processing is completed. NASA has developed a set of Earth science data and information content requirements for long term preservation that is being used for all the EOS missions as they come to completion. Since the ICESat/GLAS mission was one of the first to end, NASA and NSIDC, in collaboration with the science team, are collecting data, software, and documentation, preparing for long-term support of the ICESat mission. For a long-term archive, it is imperative to preserve sufficient information about how products were prepared in order to ensure future researchers that the scientific results are accurate, understandable, and useable. Our experience suggests data centers know what to preserve in most cases. That is, the processing algorithms along with the Level 0 or Level 1a input and ancillary products used to create the higher-level products will be archived and made available to users. In other cases, such as pre-launch, calibration/validation, and test

Library exhibits and programs boost science education

Science.gov (United States)

Dusenbery, Paul B.; Curtis, Lisa

2012-05-01

Science museums let visitors explore and discover, but for many families there are barriers—such as cost or distance—that prevent them from visiting museums and experiencing hands-on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) learning. Now educators are reaching underserved audiences by developing STEM exhibits and programs for public libraries. With more than 16,000 outlets in the United States, public libraries serve almost every community in the country. Nationwide, they receive about 1.5 billion visits per year, and they offer their services for free.

2010 Annual Progress Report: DOE Hydrogen Program

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

2011-02-01

In the past year, the DOE Hydrogen Program (the Program) made substantial progress toward its goals and objectives. The Program has conducted comprehensive and focused efforts to enable the widespread commercialization of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies in diverse sectors of the economy. With emphasis on applications that will effectively strengthen our nation's energy security and improve our stewardship of the environment, the Program engages in research, development, and demonstration of critical improvements in the technologies. Highlights of the Program's accomplishments can be found in the sub-program chapters of this report.

77 FR 37016 - Applications for New Awards: Upward Bound Math and Science Program

Science.gov (United States)

2012-06-20

... DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Applications for New Awards: Upward Bound Math and Science Program AGENCY... Bound Math and Science Program. Notice inviting applications for new awards for fiscal year (FY) 2012.... There are three types of grants under the UB Program: regular UB grants, Veterans UB grants, and UB Math...

Science and technology disclosure in the state of Queretaro: Science and Technology for Children program

Science.gov (United States)

Contreras Flores, Rubén; Villeda Muñoz, Gabriel

2007-03-01

Science and technology disclosure is an integral part of our scientific work as researches; it is an induction process for children, young people and teachers of primary and secondary schools in the state of Queretaro. Education must be offered in a clear and objective way, it allows to the students apply the acquired knowledge to understand the world and improve his quality of life. Nowadays, the Centro de Investigacion en Ciencia Aplicada y Tecnologia Avanzada of the Instituto Politecnico Nacional Unidad Queretaro (CICATA-IPN Queretaro) together with the Consejo de Ciencia y Tecnologia del Estado de Queretaro (CONCYTEQ) have implemented the "Science and Technology for Children" program (Ciencia y Tecnologia para Ninos - CTN), it allows to the educative sector obtain information through the CONCYTEQ web page. The fist stage of the program was the development of two subjects: the brochure titled "Petroleum, Nonrenewable Natural Resource that Moves the World" and the manual "Experiments of Physics". At the moment we are working with the second stage of the program, it is about the energy generation using renewable sources such as: geothermal, aeolian, solar and biomass. The CTN program allows to students and teachers to create conscience about the importance of the development of the science of technology in our country.

Student science enrichment training program. Progress report, June 1, 1991--May 31, 1992

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sandhu, S.S.

1992-04-21

Historically Black Colleges and Universities wing of the United States Department of Energy (DOE) provided funds to Claflin College, Orangeburg, S.C. To conduct a student Science Enrichment Training Program for a period of six weeks during 1991 summer. Thirty participants were selected from a pool of applicants, generated by the High School Seniors and Juniors and the Freshmen class of 1990-1991 at Claflin College. The program primarily focused on high ability students, with potential for Science, Mathematics and Engineering Careers. The major objectives of the program were W to increase the pool of well qualified college entering minority students who will elect to go in Physical Sciences and Engineering and (II) to increase the enrollment in Chemistry and Preprofessional-Pre-Med, Pre-Dent, etc.-majors at Claflin College by including the Claflin students to participate in summer academic program. The summer academic program consisted of Chemistry and Computer Science training. The program placed emphasis upon laboratory experience and research. Visits to Scientific and Industrial laboratories were arranged. Guest speakers which were drawn from academia, industry and several federal agencies, addressed the participants on the future role of Science in the industrial growth of United States of America. The guest speakers also acted as role models for the participants. Several videos and films, emphasizing the role of Science in human life, were also screened.

The implementation of a discovery-oriented science education program in a rural elementary school

Science.gov (United States)

Liddell, Martha Sue

2000-10-01

This study focused on the implementation of a discovery-oriented science education program at a rural elementary school in Mississippi. The instructional leadership role of the principal was examined in the study through identification and documentation of processes undertaken by the principal to implement a discovery-oriented science education program school. The goal of the study was to develop a suggested approach for implementing a discovery-oriented science education program for principals who wish to become instructional leaders in the area of science education at their schools. Mixed methods were used to collect, analyze, and interpret data. Subjects for the study consisted of teachers, students, and parents. Data were collected through field observation; observations of science education being taught by classroom teachers; examination of the principal's log describing actions taken to implement a discovery-oriented science education program; conducting semi-structured interviews with teachers as the key informants; and examining attitudinal data collected by the Carolina Biological Supply Company for the purpose of measuring attitudes of teachers, students, and parents toward the proposed science education program and the Science and Technology for Children (STC) program piloted at the school. To develop a suggested approach for implementing a discovery-oriented science education program, data collected from field notes, classroom observations, the principal's log of activities, and key informant interviews were analyzed and group into themes pertinent to the study. In addition to descriptive measures, chi-square goodness-of-fit tests were used to determine whether the frequency distribution showed a specific pattern within the attitudinal data collected by the Carolina Biological Supply Company. The pertinent question asked in analyzing data was: Are the differences significant or are they due to chance? An alpha level of .01 was selected to determine

STEM Enrichment Programs and Graduate School Matriculation: The Role of Science Identity Salience

Science.gov (United States)

Merolla, David M.; Serpe, Richard T.

2013-01-01

Improving the state of science education in the United States has become a national priority. One response to this problem has been the implementation of STEM enrichment programs designed to increase the number of students that enter graduate programs in science. Current research indicates enrichment programs have positive effects for student…

Implementing an Applied Science Program