Design of Microstrip Bandpass Filters Using SIRs with Even-Mode Harmonics Suppression for Cellular Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Theerawisitpong, Somboon; Suzuki, Toshitatsu; Morita, Noboru; Utsumi, Yozo

The design of microstrip bandpass filters using stepped-impedance resonators (SIRs) is examined. The passband center frequency for the WCDMA-FDD (uplink band) Japanese cellular system is 1950MHz with a 60-MHz bandwidth. The SIR physical characteristic can be designed using a SIR characteristic chart based on second harmonic suppression. In our filter design, passband design charts were obtained through the design procedure. Tchebycheff and maximally flat bandpass filters of any bandwidth and any number of steps can be designed using these passband design charts. In addition, sharp skirt characteristics in the passband can be realized by having two transmission zeros at both adjacent frequency bands by using open-ended quarter-wavelength stubs at input and output ports. A new even-mode harmonics suppression technique is proposed to enable a wide rejection band having a high suppression level. The unloaded quality factor of the resonator used in the proposed filters is greater than 240.

Computer-aided design of high-contact-ratio gears for minimum dynamic load and stress

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lin, Hsiang Hsi; Lee, Chinwai; Oswald, Fred B.; Townsend, Dennis P.

1990-01-01

A computer aided design procedure is presented for minimizing dynamic effects on high contact ratio gears by modification of the tooth profile. Both linear and parabolic tooth profile modifications of high contact ratio gears under various loading conditions are examined and compared. The effects of the total amount of modification and the length of the modification zone were systematically studied at various loads and speeds to find the optimum profile design for minimizing the dynamic load and the tooth bending stress. Parabolic profile modification is preferred over linear profile modification for high contact ratio gears because of its lower sensitivity to manufacturing errors. For parabolic modification, a greater amount of modification at the tooth tip and a longer modification zone are required. Design charts are presented for high contact ratio gears with various profile modifications operating under a range of loads. A procedure is illustrated for using the charts to find the optimum profile design.

Tactile Acuity Charts: A Reliable Measure of Spatial Acuity

PubMed Central

Bruns, Patrick; Camargo, Carlos J.; Campanella, Humberto; Esteve, Jaume; Dinse, Hubert R.; Röder, Brigitte

2014-01-01

For assessing tactile spatial resolution it has recently been recommended to use tactile acuity charts which follow the design principles of the Snellen letter charts for visual acuity and involve active touch. However, it is currently unknown whether acuity thresholds obtained with this newly developed psychophysical procedure are in accordance with established measures of tactile acuity that involve passive contact with fixed duration and control of contact force. Here we directly compared tactile acuity thresholds obtained with the acuity charts to traditional two-point and grating orientation thresholds in a group of young healthy adults. For this purpose, two types of charts, using either Braille-like dot patterns or embossed Landolt rings with different orientations, were adapted from previous studies. Measurements with the two types of charts were equivalent, but generally more reliable with the dot pattern chart. A comparison with the two-point and grating orientation task data showed that the test-retest reliability of the acuity chart measurements after one week was superior to that of the passive methods. Individual thresholds obtained with the acuity charts agreed reasonably with the grating orientation threshold, but less so with the two-point threshold that yielded relatively distinct acuity estimates compared to the other methods. This potentially considerable amount of mismatch between different measures of tactile acuity suggests that tactile spatial resolution is a complex entity that should ideally be measured with different methods in parallel. The simple test procedure and high reliability of the acuity charts makes them a promising complement and alternative to the traditional two-point and grating orientation thresholds. PMID:24504346

Visualizing a Procedure with Nassi-Schneiderman Charts.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weiss, Edmond H.

1990-01-01

Argues that Nassi-Schneiderman (NS) charts, when used to diagram human procedures, can eliminate prose ambiguities. Asserts that these devices provide most of the advantages of decision tables and trees. Suggests using NS charts in testing the logic and completeness of traditional procedures, or even in place of many traditional publications. (SG)

Optimally analyzing and implementing of bolt fittings in steel structure based on ANSYS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Han, Na; Song, Shuangyang; Cui, Yan; Wu, Yongchun

2018-03-01

ANSYS simulation software for its excellent performance become outstanding one in Computer-aided Engineering (CAE) family, it is committed to the innovation of engineering simulation to help users to shorten the design process. First, a typical procedure to implement CAE was design. The framework of structural numerical analysis on ANSYS Technology was proposed. Then, A optimally analyzing and implementing of bolt fittings in beam-column join of steel structure was implemented by ANSYS, which was display the cloud chart of XY-shear stress, the cloud chart of YZ-shear stress and the cloud chart of Y component of stress. Finally, ANSYS software simulating results was compared with the measured results by the experiment. The result of ANSYS simulating and analyzing is reliable, efficient and optical. In above process, a structural performance's numerical simulating and analyzing model were explored for engineering enterprises' practice.

Using Statistical Process Control to Make Data-Based Clinical Decisions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pfadt, Al; Wheeler, Donald J.

1995-01-01

Statistical process control (SPC), which employs simple statistical tools and problem-solving techniques such as histograms, control charts, flow charts, and Pareto charts to implement continual product improvement procedures, can be incorporated into human service organizations. Examples illustrate use of SPC procedures to analyze behavioral data…

Human Factors Considerations for Performance-Based Navigation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Barhydt, Richard; Adams, Catherine A.

2006-01-01

A transition toward a performance-based navigation system is currently underway in both the United States and around the world. Performance-based navigation incorporates Area Navigation (RNAV) and Required Navigation Performance (RNP) procedures that do not rely on the location of ground-based navigation aids. These procedures offer significant benefits to both operators and air traffic managers. Under sponsorship from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has undertaken a project to document human factors issues that have emerged during RNAV and RNP operations and propose areas for further consideration. Issues were found to include aspects of air traffic control and airline procedures, aircraft systems, and procedure design. Major findings suggest the need for human factors-specific instrument procedure design guidelines. Ongoing industry and government activities to address air-ground communication terminology, procedure design improvements, and chart-database commonality are strongly encouraged.

Designing Preclinical Instruction for Psychomotor Skills (II)--Instructional Engineering: Task Analysis.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Knight, G. William; And Others

1994-01-01

The first step in engineering the instruction of dental psychomotor skills, task analysis, is explained. A chart details the procedural, cognitive, desired-criteria, and desired-performance analysis of a single task, occlusal preparation for amalgam restoration with carious lesion. (MSE)

Estimating anesthesia and surgical procedure times from medicare anesthesia claims.

PubMed

Silber, Jeffrey H; Rosenbaum, Paul R; Zhang, Xuemei; Even-Shoshan, Orit

2007-02-01

Procedure times are important variables that often are included in studies of quality and efficiency. However, due to the need for costly chart review, most studies are limited to single-institution analyses. In this article, the authors describe how well the anesthesia claim from Medicare can estimate chart times. The authors abstracted information on time of induction and entrance to the recovery room ("anesthesia chart time") from the charts of 1,931 patients who underwent general and orthopedic surgical procedures in Pennsylvania. The authors then merged the associated bills from claims data supplied from Medicare (Part B data) that included a variable denoting the time in minutes for the anesthesia service. The authors also investigated the time from incision to closure ("surgical chart time") on a subset of 1,888 patients. Anesthesia claim time from Medicare was highly predictive of anesthesia chart time (Kendall's rank correlation tau = 0.85, P < 0.0001, median absolute error = 5.1 min) but somewhat less predictive of surgical chart time (Kendall's tau = 0.73, P < 0.0001, median absolute error = 13.8 min). When predicting chart time from Medicare bills, variables reflecting procedure type, comorbidities, and hospital type did not significantly improve the prediction, suggesting that errors in predicting the chart time from the anesthesia bill time are not related to these factors; however, the individual hospital did have some influence on these estimates. Anesthesia chart time can be well estimated using Medicare claims, thereby facilitating studies with vastly larger sample sizes and much lower costs of data collection.

Occupational Programs in California Public Community Colleges, 1976-77.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

California Community Colleges, Sacramento. Office of the Chancellor.

This directory is divided into four major sections. The first section, "General Information About California Community Colleges," presents information concerning costs, admission procedures, and special student services. Section II, "Program Location Charts," is designed to help those interested in finding the names of those…

MCPS Curriculum Development Planning Process.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Montgomery County Public Schools, Rockville, MD. Dept. of Instructional Planning and Development.

The procedure documented is used for the systemwide planning of curriculum development in Montgomery County, Maryland, and consists of three parts: a planning and review process; an instructional design and development model; and a proposed calendar for cyclical review of programs. Specific position responsibilities, organizational charts, and…

Human Factors Design Principles for Instrument Approach Procedure Charts. Volume 1. Readability

DTIC Science & Technology

1992-08-01

discovery of mechanical type (Spencer, 1969). Not surprisingly, there is a substantial body of research and accepted practice that addresses...Swey for Automotive Engieer ARP4032 (April, 1988). Human engineering considerations in the application of cobr to electronic aircmjl dLspkp. Warrenlale

Study of design constraints on helicopter noise

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sternfeld, H., Jr.; Wiedersum, C. W.

1979-01-01

A means of estimating the noise generated by a helicopter main rotor using information which is generally available during the preliminary design phase of aircraft development is presented. The method utilizes design charts and tables which do not require an understanding of acoustical theory or computational procedures in order to predict the perceived noise level, a weighted sound pressure level, or C weighted sound pressure level of a single hovering rotor. A method for estimating the effective perceived noise level in forward flight is also included. In order to give the designer an assessment of the relative rotor performance, which may be traded off against noise, an additional chart for estimating the percent of available rotor thrust which must be expended in lifting the rotor and drive system, is included as well as approach for comparing the subjective acceptability of various rotors once the absolute sound pressure levels are predicted.

Human Factors Considerations for Area Navigation Departure and Arrival Procedures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Barhydt, Richard; Adams, Catherine A.

2006-01-01

Area navigation (RNAV) procedures are being implemented in the United States and around the world as part of a transition to a performance-based navigation system. These procedures are providing significant benefits and have also caused some human factors issues to emerge. Under sponsorship from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has undertaken a project to document RNAV-related human factors issues and propose areas for further consideration. The component focusing on RNAV Departure and Arrival Procedures involved discussions with expert users, a literature review, and a focused review of the NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS) database. Issues were found to include aspects of air traffic control and airline procedures, aircraft systems, and procedure design. Major findings suggest the need for specific instrument procedure design guidelines that consider the effects of human performance. Ongoing industry and government activities to address air-ground communication terminology, design improvements, and chart-database commonality are strongly encouraged. A review of factors contributing to RNAV in-service errors would likely lead to improved system design and operational performance.

NAEP Design.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Opinion Research Center, Chicago, IL.

To fulfill its mandate and its potential the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) must be a multi-content annual assessment of priority learning areas. This report describes a procedure under which measures of attainment can be charted over time in a broad range of skill domains, on item-invariant item response theory scales, using…

Direct method of design and stress analysis of rotating disks with temperature gradient

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Manson, S S

1950-01-01

A method is presented for the determination of the contour of disks, typified by those of aircraft gas turbines, to incorporate arbitrary elastic-stress distributions resulting from either centrifugal or combined centrifugal and thermal effects. The specified stress may be radial, tangential, or any combination of the two. Use is made of the finite-difference approach in solving the stress equations, the amount of computation necessary in the evolution of a design being greatly reduced by the judicious selection of point stations by the aid of a design chart. Use of the charts and of a preselected schedule of point stations is also applied to the direct problem of finding the elastic and plastic stress distribution in disks of a given design, thereby effecting a great reduction in the amount of calculation. Illustrative examples are presented to show computational procedures in the determination of a new design and in analyzing an existing design for elastic stress and for stresses resulting from plastic flow.

Towards sensible toxicity testing for nanomaterials: proposal for the specification of test design.

PubMed

Potthoff, Annegret; Weil, Mirco; Meißner, Tobias; Kühnel, Dana

2015-12-01

During the last decade, nanomaterials (NM) were extensively tested for potential harmful effects towards humans and environmental organisms. However, a sound hazard assessment was so far hampered by uncertainties and a low comparability of test results. The reason for the low comparability is a high variation in the (1) type of NM tested with regard to raw material, size and shape and (2) procedures before and during the toxicity testing. This calls for tailored, nanomaterial-specific protocols. Here, a structured approach is proposed, intended to lead to test protocols not only tailored to specific types of nanomaterials, but also to respective test system for toxicity testing. There are existing standards on single procedures involving nanomaterials, however, not all relevant procedures are covered by standards. Hence, our approach offers a detailed way of weighting several plausible alternatives for e.g. sample preparation, in order to decide on the procedure most meaningful for a specific nanomaterial and toxicity test. A framework of several decision trees (DT) and flow charts to support testing of NM is proposed as a basis for further refinement and in-depth elaboration. DT and flow charts were drafted for (1) general procedure-physicochemical characterisation, (2) choice of test media, (3) decision on test scenario and application of NM to liquid media, (4) application of NM to the gas phase, (5) application of NM to soil and sediments, (6) dose metrics, (S1) definition of a nanomaterial, and (S2) dissolution. The applicability of the proposed approach was surveyed by using experimental data retrieved from studies on nanoscale CuO. This survey demonstrated the DT and flow charts to be a convenient tool to systematically decide upon test procedures and processes, and hence pose an important step towards harmonisation of NM testing.

46 CFR 502.206 - Production of documents and things and entry upon land for inspection and other purposes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... GENERAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS RULES OF PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE Depositions, Written Interrogatories... inspect and copy any designated documents (including writings, drawings, graphs, charts, photographs... of § 502.203(a) and which are in the possession, custody or control of the party upon whom the...

Concordance of chart and billing data with direct observation in dental practice.

PubMed

Demko, Catherine A; Victoroff, Kristin Zakariasen; Wotman, Stephen

2008-10-01

The commonly used methods of chart review, billing data summaries and practitioner self-reporting have not been examined for their ability to validly and reliably represent time use and service delivery in routine dental practice. A more thorough investigation of these data sources would provide insight into the appropriateness of each approach for measuring various clinical behaviors. The aim of this study was to assess the validity of commonly used methods such as dental chart review, billing data, or practitioner self-report compared with a 'gold standard' of information derived from direct observation of routine dental visits. A team of trained dental hygienists directly observed 3751 patient visits in 120 dental practices and recorded the behaviors and procedures performed by dentists and hygienists during patient contact time. Following each visit, charts and billing records were reviewed for the performed and billed procedures. Dental providers characterized their frequency of preventive service delivery through self-administered surveys. We standardized the observation and abstraction methods to obtain optimal measures from each of the multiple data sources. Multi-rater kappa coefficients were computed to monitor standardization, while sensitivity, specificity, and kappa coefficients were calculated to compare the various data sources with direct observation. Chart audits were more sensitive than billing data for all observed procedures and demonstrated higher agreement with directly observed data. Chart and billing records were not sensitive for several prevention-related tasks (oral cancer screening and oral hygiene instruction). Provider self-reports of preventive behaviors were always over-estimated compared with direct observation. Inter-method reliability kappa coefficients for 13 procedures ranged from 0.197 to 0.952. These concordance findings suggest that strengths and weaknesses of data collection sources should be considered when investigating delivery of dental services especially when using practitioner survey data. Future investigations can more fully rely on charted information rather than billing data and provider self-report for most dental procedures, but nonbillable procedures and most counseling interactions will not be captured with routine charting and billing practices.

Validation of Living Donor Nephrectomy Codes

PubMed Central

Lam, Ngan N.; Lentine, Krista L.; Klarenbach, Scott; Sood, Manish M.; Kuwornu, Paul J.; Naylor, Kyla L.; Knoll, Gregory A.; Kim, S. Joseph; Young, Ann; Garg, Amit X.

2018-01-01

Background: Use of administrative data for outcomes assessment in living kidney donors is increasing given the rarity of complications and challenges with loss to follow-up. Objective: To assess the validity of living donor nephrectomy in health care administrative databases compared with the reference standard of manual chart review. Design: Retrospective cohort study. Setting: 5 major transplant centers in Ontario, Canada. Patients: Living kidney donors between 2003 and 2010. Measurements: Sensitivity and positive predictive value (PPV). Methods: Using administrative databases, we conducted a retrospective study to determine the validity of diagnostic and procedural codes for living donor nephrectomies. The reference standard was living donor nephrectomies identified through the province’s tissue and organ procurement agency, with verification by manual chart review. Operating characteristics (sensitivity and PPV) of various algorithms using diagnostic, procedural, and physician billing codes were calculated. Results: During the study period, there were a total of 1199 living donor nephrectomies. Overall, the best algorithm for identifying living kidney donors was the presence of 1 diagnostic code for kidney donor (ICD-10 Z52.4) and 1 procedural code for kidney procurement/excision (1PC58, 1PC89, 1PC91). Compared with the reference standard, this algorithm had a sensitivity of 97% and a PPV of 90%. The diagnostic and procedural codes performed better than the physician billing codes (sensitivity 60%, PPV 78%). Limitations: The donor chart review and validation study was performed in Ontario and may not be generalizable to other regions. Conclusions: An algorithm consisting of 1 diagnostic and 1 procedural code can be reliably used to conduct health services research that requires the accurate determination of living kidney donors at the population level. PMID:29662679

Towards sensible toxicity testing for nanomaterials: proposal for the specification of test design

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Potthoff, Annegret; Weil, Mirco; Meißner, Tobias; Kühnel, Dana

2015-12-01

During the last decade, nanomaterials (NM) were extensively tested for potential harmful effects towards humans and environmental organisms. However, a sound hazard assessment was so far hampered by uncertainties and a low comparability of test results. The reason for the low comparability is a high variation in the (1) type of NM tested with regard to raw material, size and shape and (2) procedures before and during the toxicity testing. This calls for tailored, nanomaterial-specific protocols. Here, a structured approach is proposed, intended to lead to test protocols not only tailored to specific types of nanomaterials, but also to respective test system for toxicity testing. There are existing standards on single procedures involving nanomaterials, however, not all relevant procedures are covered by standards. Hence, our approach offers a detailed way of weighting several plausible alternatives for e.g. sample preparation, in order to decide on the procedure most meaningful for a specific nanomaterial and toxicity test. A framework of several decision trees (DT) and flow charts to support testing of NM is proposed as a basis for further refinement and in-depth elaboration. DT and flow charts were drafted for (1) general procedure—physicochemical characterisation, (2) choice of test media, (3) decision on test scenario and application of NM to liquid media, (4) application of NM to the gas phase, (5) application of NM to soil and sediments, (6) dose metrics, (S1) definition of a nanomaterial, and (S2) dissolution. The applicability of the proposed approach was surveyed by using experimental data retrieved from studies on nanoscale CuO. This survey demonstrated the DT and flow charts to be a convenient tool to systematically decide upon test procedures and processes, and hence pose an important step towards harmonisation of NM testing.

Estimating Anesthesia Time Using the Medicare Claim: A Validation Study

PubMed Central

Silber, Jeffrey H.; Rosenbaum, Paul R.; Even-Shoshan, Orit; Mi, Lanyu; Kyle, Fabienne; Teng, Yun; Bratzler, Dale W.; Fleisher, Lee A.

2012-01-01

Introduction Procedure length is a fundamental variable associated with quality of care, though seldom studied on a large scale. We sought to estimate procedure length through information obtained in the anesthesia claim submitted to Medicare to validate this method for future studies. Methods The Obesity and Surgical Outcomes Study enlisted 47 hospitals located across New York, Texas and Illinois to study patients undergoing hip, knee, colon and thoracotomy procedures. 15,914 charts were abstracted to determine body mass index and initial patient physiology. Included in this abstraction were induction, cut, close and recovery room times. This chart information was merged to Medicare claims which included anesthesia Part B billing information. Correlations between chart times and claim times were analyzed, models developed, and median absolute differences in minutes calculated. Results Of the 15,914 eligible patients, there were 14,369 where both chart and claim times were available for analysis. In these 14,369, the Spearman correlation between chart and claim time was 0.94 (95% CI 0.94, 0.95) and the median absolute difference between chart and claim time was only 5 minutes (95% CI: 5.0, 5.5). The anesthesia claim can also be used to estimate surgical procedure length, with only a modest increase in error. Conclusion The anesthesia bill found in Medicare claims provides an excellent source of information for studying operative time on a vast scale throughout the United States. However, errors in both chart abstraction and anesthesia claims can occur. Care must be taken in the handling of outliers in this data. PMID:21720242

49 CFR 1180.8 - Operational data.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 49 Transportation 8 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Operational data. 1180.8 Section 1180.8..., TRACKAGE RIGHTS, AND LEASE PROCEDURES General Acquisition Procedures § 1180.8 Operational data. (a... chart. Data shown in the density chart shall be for the latest available full calendar year preceding...

49 CFR 1180.8 - Operational data.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 49 Transportation 8 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Operational data. 1180.8 Section 1180.8..., TRACKAGE RIGHTS, AND LEASE PROCEDURES General Acquisition Procedures § 1180.8 Operational data. (a... chart. Data shown in the density chart shall be for the latest available full calendar year preceding...

Time-saving impact of an algorithm to identify potential surgical site infections.

PubMed

Knepper, B C; Young, H; Jenkins, T C; Price, C S

2013-10-01

To develop and validate a partially automated algorithm to identify surgical site infections (SSIs) using commonly available electronic data to reduce manual chart review. Retrospective cohort study of patients undergoing specific surgical procedures over a 4-year period from 2007 through 2010 (algorithm development cohort) or over a 3-month period from January 2011 through March 2011 (algorithm validation cohort). A single academic safety-net hospital in a major metropolitan area. Patients undergoing at least 1 included surgical procedure during the study period. Procedures were identified in the National Healthcare Safety Network; SSIs were identified by manual chart review. Commonly available electronic data, including microbiologic, laboratory, and administrative data, were identified via a clinical data warehouse. Algorithms using combinations of these electronic variables were constructed and assessed for their ability to identify SSIs and reduce chart review. The most efficient algorithm identified in the development cohort combined microbiologic data with postoperative procedure and diagnosis codes. This algorithm resulted in 100% sensitivity and 85% specificity. Time savings from the algorithm was almost 600 person-hours of chart review. The algorithm demonstrated similar sensitivity on application to the validation cohort. A partially automated algorithm to identify potential SSIs was highly sensitive and dramatically reduced the amount of manual chart review required of infection control personnel during SSI surveillance.

Methods to achieve high interrater reliability in data collection from primary care medical records.

PubMed

Liddy, Clare; Wiens, Miriam; Hogg, William

2011-01-01

We assessed interrater reliability (IRR) of chart abstractors within a randomized trial of cardiovascular care in primary care. We report our findings, and outline issues and provide recommendations related to determining sample size, frequency of verification, and minimum thresholds for 2 measures of IRR: the κ statistic and percent agreement. We designed a data quality monitoring procedure having 4 parts: use of standardized protocols and forms, extensive training, continuous monitoring of IRR, and a quality improvement feedback mechanism. Four abstractors checked a 5% sample of charts at 3 time points for a predefined set of indicators of the quality of care. We set our quality threshold for IRR at a κ of 0.75, a percent agreement of 95%, or both. Abstractors reabstracted a sample of charts in 16 of 27 primary care practices, checking a total of 132 charts with 38 indicators per chart. The overall κ across all items was 0.91 (95% confidence interval, 0.90-0.92) and the overall percent agreement was 94.3%, signifying excellent agreement between abstractors. We gave feedback to the abstractors to highlight items that had a κ of less than 0.70 or a percent agreement less than 95%. No practice had to have its charts abstracted again because of poor quality. A 5% sampling of charts for quality control using IRR analysis yielded κ and agreement levels that met or exceeded our quality thresholds. Using 3 time points during the chart audit phase allows for early quality control as well as ongoing quality monitoring. Our results can be used as a guide and benchmark for other medical chart review studies in primary care.

Self Instructional Manual for Tumor Registrars: Book 1, Objectives and Functions of a Tumor Registry.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Cancer Inst. (NIH), Bethesda, MD.

The programed text is designed to provide tumor registrars with a means of learning the procedures for abstracting charts of cancer patients and for carrying out the other functions of a tumor registry. It was developed as an adjunct to on-the-job training for use without direct instructor supervision. Directions and suggestions for using the…

[Hydrotherapy equipment].

PubMed

Tsibikov, V B; Ragozin, S I; Mikheeva, L V

1985-01-01

A flow-chart is developed demonstrating the relation between medical and prophylactic institutions within the organizational structure of the rehabilitation system and main types of rehabilitation procedures. In order to ascertain the priority in equipping rehabilitation services with adequate hardware the special priority criterion is introduced. The highest priority is assigned to balneotherapeutic and fangotherapeutic services. Based on the operation-by-operation analysis of clinical processes related to service and performance of balneologic procedures the preliminary set of clinical devices designed for baths, basins and showers in hospitals and rehabilitation departments is defined in a generalized form.

Automated Methodologies for the Design of Flow Diagrams for Development and Maintenance Activities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shivanand M., Handigund; Shweta, Bhat

The Software Requirements Specification (SRS) of the organization is a text document prepared by strategic management incorporating the requirements of the organization. These requirements of ongoing business/ project development process involve the software tools, the hardware devices, the manual procedures, the application programs and the communication commands. These components are appropriately ordered for achieving the mission of the concerned process both in the project development and the ongoing business processes, in different flow diagrams viz. activity chart, workflow diagram, activity diagram, component diagram and deployment diagram. This paper proposes two generic, automatic methodologies for the design of various flow diagrams of (i) project development activities, (ii) ongoing business process. The methodologies also resolve the ensuing deadlocks in the flow diagrams and determine the critical paths for the activity chart. Though both methodologies are independent, each complements other in authenticating its correctness and completeness.

Influence of form structure on the anesthesia preoperative evaluation.

PubMed

Marco, Alan P; Buchman, Debra; Lancz, Colleen

2003-09-01

To determine the impact of changes in form design on the capture of administrative and clinical data elements. Randomized retrospective chart review. Academic health center. Patients undergoing surgical procedures in the operating rooms at Medical College Hospital. The principal intervention was the implementation of a newly designed anesthesiology preoperative evaluation form with the intent to improve data capture. Charts were reviewed for the presence or absence of the following indicators: Addressograph Stamp, Proposed Surgery, Current Medications, Medication Doses/Frequency, Allergies, ASA Physical Status, Anesthesia Plan, Attending Note, and fasting (NPO) Status. Completion of Proposed Surgery and ASA Physical Status was lower for the structured form. Completion of Attending Notes was higher with the new form. Medication Doses were more often completed, but they remained below desired levels on the new form. Design of a form can have a significant impact on the completion rate of form elements. Visual cues such as a labeled space for medication doses may improve the completion of these elements. Design layout can also have an influence on completion. In this case, changes to the layout may have impeded the completion rate for ASA Physical Status.

The construction of control chart for PM10 functional data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shaadan, Norshahida; Jemain, Abdul Aziz; Deni, Sayang Mohd

2014-06-01

In this paper, a statistical procedure to construct a control chart for monitoring air quality (PM10) using functional data is proposed. A set of daily indices that represent the daily PM10 curves were obtained using Functional Principal Component Analysis (FPCA). By means of an iterative charting procedure, a reference data set that represented a stable PM10 process was obtained. The data were then used as a reference for monitoring future data. The application of the procedure was conducted using seven-year (2004-2010) period of recorded data from the Klang air quality monitoring station located in the Klang Valley region of Peninsular Malaysia. The study showed that the control chart provided a useful visualization tool for monitoring air quality and was capable in detecting abnormality in the process system. As in the case of Klang station, the results showed that with reference to 2004-2008, the air quality (PM10) in 2010 was better than that in 2009.

Key Cognitive Issues in the Design of Electronic Displays of Instrument Approach Procedure Charts

DTIC Science & Technology

1993-11-01

from heavy workload, the effects of divided attention , and the need to take account of the pilot’s expectations are discussed, the morits of color...information, kontral of clutter, and weyu of overcoming the harmful effect of interruptions to attention or to perforoance of seqentidt actions. 14. SUBJECT...14 4. AITENTION AND PERFORMANCE LIMITATIONS ................... 17 4.1 Focused Attention

A simple signaling rule for variable life-adjusted display derived from an equivalent risk-adjusted CUSUM chart.

PubMed

Wittenberg, Philipp; Gan, Fah Fatt; Knoth, Sven

2018-04-17

The variable life-adjusted display (VLAD) is the first risk-adjusted graphical procedure proposed in the literature for monitoring the performance of a surgeon. It displays the cumulative sum of expected minus observed deaths. It has since become highly popular because the statistic plotted is easy to understand. But it is also easy to misinterpret a surgeon's performance by utilizing the VLAD, potentially leading to grave consequences. The problem of misinterpretation is essentially caused by the variance of the VLAD's statistic that increases with sample size. In order for the VLAD to be truly useful, a simple signaling rule is desperately needed. Various forms of signaling rules have been developed, but they are usually quite complicated. Without signaling rules, making inferences using the VLAD alone is difficult if not misleading. In this paper, we establish an equivalence between a VLAD with V-mask and a risk-adjusted cumulative sum (RA-CUSUM) chart based on the difference between the estimated probability of death and surgical outcome. Average run length analysis based on simulation shows that this particular RA-CUSUM chart has similar performance as compared to the established RA-CUSUM chart based on the log-likelihood ratio statistic obtained by testing the odds ratio of death. We provide a simple design procedure for determining the V-mask parameters based on a resampling approach. Resampling from a real data set ensures that these parameters can be estimated appropriately. Finally, we illustrate the monitoring of a real surgeon's performance using VLAD with V-mask. Copyright © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Effects of trimming weight-for-height data on growth-chart percentiles1–3

PubMed Central

Flegal, Katherine M; Carroll, Margaret D; Ogden, Cynthia L

2016-01-01

Background Before estimating smoothed percentiles of weight-for-height and BMI-for-age to construct the WHO growth charts, WHO excluded observations that were considered to represent unhealthy weights for height. Objective The objective was to estimate the effects of similar data trimming on empirical percentiles from the CDC growth-chart data set relative to the smoothed WHO percentiles for ages 24–59 mo. Design We used the nationally representative US weight and height data from 1971 to 1994, which was the source data for the 2000 CDC growth charts. Trimming cutoffs were calculated on the basis of weight-for-height for 9722 children aged 24–71 mo. Empirical percentiles for 7315 children aged 24–59 mo were compared with the corresponding smoothed WHO percentiles. Results Before trimming, the mean empirical percentiles for weight-for-height in the CDC data set were higher than the corresponding smoothed WHO percentiles. After trimming, the mean empirical 95th and 97th percentiles of weight-for-height were lower than the WHO percentiles, and the proportion of children in the CDC data set above the WHO 95th percentile decreased from 7% to 5%. The findings were similar for BMI-for-age. However, for weight-for-age, which had not been trimmed by the WHO, the empirical percentiles before trimming agreed closely with the upper percentiles from the WHO charts. Conclusion WHO data-trimming procedures may account for some of the differences between the WHO growth charts and the 2000 CDC growth charts. PMID:22990032

Limited Documentation and Treatment Quality of Glycemic Inpatient Care in Relation to Structural Deficits of Heterogeneous Insulin Charts at a Large University Hospital.

PubMed

Kopanz, Julia; Lichtenegger, Katharina M; Sendlhofer, Gerald; Semlitsch, Barbara; Cuder, Gerald; Pak, Andreas; Pieber, Thomas R; Tax, Christa; Brunner, Gernot; Plank, Johannes

2018-02-09

Insulin charts represent a key component in the inpatient glycemic management process. The aim was to evaluate the quality of structure, documentation, and treatment of diabetic inpatient care to design a new standardized insulin chart for a large university hospital setting. Historically grown blank insulin charts in use at 39 general wards were collected and evaluated for quality structure features. Documentation and treatment quality were evaluated in a consecutive snapshot audit of filled-in charts. The primary end point was the percentage of charts with any medication error. Overall, 20 different blank insulin charts with variable designs and significant structural deficits were identified. A medication error occurred in 55% of the 102 audited filled-in insulin charts, consisting of prescription and management errors in 48% and 16%, respectively. Charts of insulin-treated patients had more medication errors relative to patients treated with oral medication (P < 0.01). Chart design did support neither clinical authorization of individual insulin prescription (10%), nor insulin administration confirmed by nurses' signature (25%), nor treatment of hypoglycemia (0%), which resulted in a reduced documentation and treatment quality in clinical practice 7%, 30%, 25%, respectively. A multitude of charts with variable design characteristics and structural deficits were in use across the inpatient wards. More than half of the inpatients had a chart displaying a medication error. Lack of structure quality features of the charts had an impact on documentation and treatment quality. Based on identified deficits and international standards, a new insulin chart was developed to overcome these quality hurdles.

Crew Procedures for Continuous Descent Arrivals Using Conventional Guidance

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Oseguera-Lohr, Rosa M.; Williams, David H.; Lewis, Elliot T,

2007-01-01

This paper presents results from a simulation study which investigated the use of Continuous Descent Arrival (CDA) procedures for conducting a descent through a busy terminal area, using conventional transport-category automation. This research was part of the Low Noise Flight Procedures (LNFP) element within the Quiet Aircraft Technology (QAT) Project, that addressed development of flight guidance, and supporting pilot and Air Traffic Control (ATC) procedures for low noise operations. The procedures and chart were designed to be easy to understand, and to make it easy for the crew to make changes via the Flight Management Computer Control-Display Unit (FMC-CDU) to accommodate changes from ATC. The test runs were intended to represent situations typical of what exists in many of today's terminal areas, including interruptions to the descent in the form of clearances issued by ATC.

Energy Navigation: Simulation Evaluation and Benefit Analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Williams, David H.; Oseguera-Lohr, Rosa M.; Lewis, Elliot T.

2011-01-01

This paper presents results from two simulation studies investigating the use of advanced flight-deck-based energy navigation (ENAV) and conventional transport-category vertical navigation (VNAV) for conducting a descent through a busy terminal area, using Continuous Descent Arrival (CDA) procedures. This research was part of the Low Noise Flight Procedures (LNFP) element within the Quiet Aircraft Technology (QAT) Project, and the subsequent Airspace Super Density Operations (ASDO) research focus area of the Airspace Project. A piloted simulation study addressed development of flight guidance, and supporting pilot and Air Traffic Control (ATC) procedures for high density terminal operations. The procedures and charts were designed to be easy to understand, and to make it easy for the crew to make changes via the Flight Management Computer Control-Display Unit (FMC-CDU) to accommodate changes from ATC.

System Study at SUNY College Bookstore/Oswego

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

DeVita, Richard; And Others

1975-01-01

A system study of the textbook ordering department is presented including systems flow chart, chart of activities, and description of operations and procedures for utilizing the computer system. Changes based on the study are noted. (JT)

Research and emulation of ranging in BPON system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Guangxiang; Tao, Dexin; He, Yan

2005-12-01

Ranging is one of the key technologies in Broadband Passive Optical Network based on the ATM (BPON) system. It is complex for software designers and difficult to test. In order to simplify the ranging procedure, enhance its efficiency, and find an appropriate method to verify it, a new ranging procedure that completely satisfies the requirements specified in ITU-T G.983.1 and one verifying method is proposed in this paper. A kind of ranging procedure without serial number (SN) searching function, called one-by-one ranging are developed under the condition of cold PON, cold Optical Network Termination (ONU). The ranging procedure includes the use of OLT and ONU flow charts respectively. By using the network emulation software OPNET, the BPON system is modeled and the ranging procedure is simulated. The emulation experimental results show that the presented ranging procedure can effectively eliminate the collision of burst mode signals between ONUs, which can be ranged one-by-one under the controlling of OLT, while also enhancing the ranging efficiency. As all of the message formats used in this research conform with the ITU-T G.983.1, the ranging procedure can meet the protocol specifications with good interoperability, and is very compatible with products of other manufacturer. According to the present study of ranging procedures, guidelines and principles are provided, Also some design difficulties are eliminated in the software design.

Evaluation of audit-based performance measures for dental care plans.

PubMed

Bader, J D; Shugars, D A; White, B A; Rindal, D B

1999-01-01

Although a set of clinical performance measures, i.e., a report card for dental plans, has been designed for use with administrative data, most plans do not have administrative data systems containing the data needed to calculate the measures. Therefore, we evaluated the use of a set of proxy clinical performance measures calculated from data obtained through chart audits. Chart audits were conducted in seven dental programs--three public health clinics, two dental health maintenance organizations (DHMO), and two preferred provider organizations (PPO). In all instances audits were completed by clinical staff who had been trained using telephone consultation and a self-instructional audit manual. The performance measures were calculated for the seven programs, audit reliability was assessed in four programs, and for one program the audit-based proxy measures were compared to the measures calculated using administrative data. The audit-based measures were sensitive to known differences in program performance. The chart audit procedures yielded reasonably reliable data. However, missing data in patient charts rendered the calculation of some measures problematic--namely, caries and periodontal disease assessment and experience. Agreement between administrative and audit-based measures was good for most, but not all, measures in one program. The audit-based proxy measures represent a complex but feasible approach to the calculation of performance measures for those programs lacking robust administrative data systems. However, until charts contain more complete diagnostic information (i.e., periodontal charting and diagnostic codes or reason-for-treatment codes), accurate determination of these aspects of clinical performance will be difficult.

Congestive Heart Failure Cardiopoietic Regenerative Therapy (CHART-1) trial design.

PubMed

Bartunek, Jozef; Davison, Beth; Sherman, Warren; Povsic, Thomas; Henry, Timothy D; Gersh, Bernard; Metra, Marco; Filippatos, Gerasimos; Hajjar, Roger; Behfar, Atta; Homsy, Christian; Cotter, Gad; Wijns, William; Tendera, Michal; Terzic, Andre

2016-02-01

Cardiopoiesis is a conditioning programme that aims to upgrade the cardioregenerative aptitude of patient-derived stem cells through lineage specification. Cardiopoietic stem cells tested initially for feasibility and safety exhibited signs of clinical benefit in patients with ischaemic heart failure (HF) warranting definitive evaluation. Accordingly, CHART-1 is designed as a large randomized, sham-controlled multicentre study aimed to validate cardiopoietic stem cell therapy. Patients (n = 240) with chronic HF secondary to ischaemic heart disease, reduced LVEF (<35%), and at high risk for recurrent HF-related events, despite optimal medical therapy, will be randomized 1:1 to receive 600 × 10(6) bone marrow-derived and lineage-directed autologous cardiopoietic stem cells administered via a retention-enhanced intramyocardial injection catheter or a sham procedure. The primary efficacy endpoint is a hierarchical composite of mortality, worsening HF, Minnesota Living with Heart Failure Questionnaire score, 6 min walk test, LV end-systolic volume, and LVEF at 9 months. The secondary efficacy endpoint is the time to cardiovascular death or worsening HF at 12 months. Safety endpoints include mortality, readmissions, aborted sudden deaths, and serious adverse events at 12 and 24 months. The CHART-1 clinical trial is powered to examine the therapeutic impact of lineage-directed stem cells as a strategy to achieve cardiac regeneration in HF populations. On completion, CHART-1 will offer a definitive evaluation of the efficacy and safety of cardiopoietic stem cells in the treatment of chronic ischaemic HF. NCT01768702. © 2015 The Authors European Journal of Heart Failure © 2015 European Society of Cardiology.

Optimization and validation of moving average quality control procedures using bias detection curves and moving average validation charts.

PubMed

van Rossum, Huub H; Kemperman, Hans

2017-02-01

To date, no practical tools are available to obtain optimal settings for moving average (MA) as a continuous analytical quality control instrument. Also, there is no knowledge of the true bias detection properties of applied MA. We describe the use of bias detection curves for MA optimization and MA validation charts for validation of MA. MA optimization was performed on a data set of previously obtained consecutive assay results. Bias introduction and MA bias detection were simulated for multiple MA procedures (combination of truncation limits, calculation algorithms and control limits) and performed for various biases. Bias detection curves were generated by plotting the median number of test results needed for bias detection against the simulated introduced bias. In MA validation charts the minimum, median, and maximum numbers of assay results required for MA bias detection are shown for various bias. Their use was demonstrated for sodium, potassium, and albumin. Bias detection curves allowed optimization of MA settings by graphical comparison of bias detection properties of multiple MA. The optimal MA was selected based on the bias detection characteristics obtained. MA validation charts were generated for selected optimal MA and provided insight into the range of results required for MA bias detection. Bias detection curves and MA validation charts are useful tools for optimization and validation of MA procedures.

Observation chart design features affect the detection of patient deterioration: a systematic experimental evaluation.

PubMed

Christofidis, Melany J; Hill, Andrew; Horswill, Mark S; Watson, Marcus O

2016-01-01

To systematically evaluate the impact of several design features on chart-users' detection of patient deterioration on observation charts with early-warning scoring-systems. Research has shown that observation chart design affects the speed and accuracy with which abnormal observations are detected. However, little is known about the contribution of individual design features to these effects. A 2 × 2 × 2 × 2 mixed factorial design, with data-recording format (drawn dots vs. written numbers), scoring-system integration (integrated colour-based system vs. non-integrated tabular system) and scoring-row placement (grouped vs. separate) varied within-participants and scores (present vs. absent) varied between-participants by random assignment. 205 novice chart-users, tested between March 2011-March 2014, completed 64 trials where they saw real patient data presented on an observation chart. Each participant saw eight cases (four containing abnormal observations) on each of eight designs (which represented a factorial combination of the within-participants variables). On each trial, they assessed whether any of the observations were physiologically abnormal, or whether all observations were normal. Response times and error rates were recorded for each design. Participants responded faster (scores present and absent) and made fewer errors (scores absent) using drawn-dot (vs. written-number) observations and an integrated colour-based (vs. non-integrated tabular) scoring-system. Participants responded faster using grouped (vs. separate) scoring-rows when scores were absent, but separate scoring-rows when scores were present. Our findings suggest that several individual design features can affect novice chart-users' ability to detect patient deterioration. More broadly, the study further demonstrates the need to evaluate chart designs empirically. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Improving preventive health services training in chiropractic colleges part II: enhancing outcomes through improved training and accountability processes.

PubMed

Globe, Gary; Redwood, Daniel; Brantingham, James W; Hawk, Cheryl; Terre, Lisa; Globe, Denise; Mayer, Stephan

2009-01-01

Over the past decade, chiropractic colleges have introduced clinical prevention services (CPS) training. This has included an updated public health curriculum and procedures for student interns to determine the need for preventive services and to provide these services directly or through referral to other health professionals. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of a program to train chiropractic interns to deliver CPS to patients. Program evaluation used retrospective chart review, comparing the proportion of patients receiving CPS recommendations before and after implementation of the program. The main outcome measures were the percentage of appropriate CPS recommendations based upon chart reviews. Chart reviews in 2006 indicated appropriate CPS recommendations in 47.4% of cases (295/623). Chart reviews in 2007, after an additional year of sustained implementation of procedures to ensure intern and faculty accountability, showed appropriate counseling recommendations in 87% of files (137/156). Requiring interns to attend didactic presentations on CPS had no measurable effect on their performance. Major improvements occurred after a series of clinically relevant training interventions; new forms and audit procedures were implemented to increase intern and clinical faculty accountability.

Clinical growth charts for pre-school children.

PubMed

Al-Amoud, Maysoon M; Al-Mazrou, Yagob Y; El-Gizouli, Sirrag E; Khoja, Tawfik A; Al-Turki, Khalid A

2004-11-01

Growth standards are indicators for normal growth of the children and growth charts are important tools for their growth monitoring. Children from different populations are different in their growth pattern, it is important to create national standards for the growth of children in each population to develop local growth charts, and since these were not available in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), the aim of this study was to construct national growth standards and to develop growth charts for 0-5-years Saudi children. A cross-sectional study following World Health Organization (WHO) criteria in determining sample size was adopted, where by 24000 children from 5 regions in the KSA were selected during the period 1992 to 1995 to be the desired sample. One hundred and two Primary Health Care centers (PHCCs) were selected randomly from the 5 regions, from where the sample was drawn, and a special questionnaire was designed. Weight, height and head circumference were measured by standard procedures. The total number of children examined was 23821 (11913 boys and 11908 girls). Saudi (0-5-years) boys weight and height for age measurements were significantly different from girls. The same difference was found between urban and rural boys and girls and between boys and girls from the different regions of the country (p<0.05). These national standards derived from this study were used to develop national growth charts that are currently utilized to monitor growth in all Saudi health institutes.

Effect of automatic record keeping on vigilance and record keeping time.

PubMed

Allard, J; Dzwonczyk, R; Yablok, D; Block, F E; McDonald, J S

1995-05-01

We have evaluated the effect of an automatic anaesthesia record keeper (AARK) on record keeping time and vigilance. With informed patient consent and institutional approval, we videotaped the attending anaesthetist and his/her immediate surroundings during 66 surgical procedures. Thirty-seven cases were charted manually and the remaining 29 were charted with a commercially available AARK. In order to evaluate vigilance, a physician examiner entered the operating room unannounced once during 33 of the manually charted cases and during 22 of the automatically charted cases and asked the anaesthetist to turn away from the monitors and recall the current value of eight patient physiological variables. The examiner recorded the recalled values and also the actual current monitor values of these variables. The videotapes were reviewed and the anaesthetist's intraoperative time was categorized into 15 predefined activities, including intraoperative anaesthesia record keeping time. We compared recalled and actual variable values to determine if the recalled values were within clinically relevant error limits. There was no statistical difference between the mean percentage case time spent recording manually (14.11 (SD 3.98)%) and automatically (12.39 (3.92)%). Moreover, use of the AARK did not significantly affect vigilance. Despite major advances in monitoring technology over the past 14 years, record keeping still occupies 10-15% of the anaesthetist's intraoperative time. It appears that in using an AARK, the anaesthetist reallocates intraoperative record keeping time from manual charting to dealing with problems in the anaesthetist machine interface caused by inadequate design.

Color Charts, Esthetics, and Subjective Randomness

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sanderson, Yasmine B.

2012-01-01

Color charts, or grids of evenly spaced multicolored dots or squares, appear in the work of modern artists and designers. Often the artist/designer distributes the many colors in a way that could be described as "random," that is, without an obvious pattern. We conduct a statistical analysis of 125 "random-looking" art and design color charts and…

21 CFR 113.40 - Equipment and procedures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... the processing temperature. Each chart shall have a working scale of not more than 55 °F per inch.... Each chart shall have a working scale of not more than 55 °F per inch within a range of 20 °F of the.... Each chart shall have a working scale of not more than 55 °F per inch within a range of 20 °F of the...

Construction and validation of logMAR visual acuity charts in seven Indian languages.

PubMed

Negiloni, Kalpa; Mazumdar, Deepmala; Neog, Aditya; Das, Biman; Medhi, Jnanankar; Choudhury, Mitalee; George, Ronnie Jacob; Ramani, Krishna Kumar

2018-05-01

The evaluation of visual impairment requires the measurement of visual acuity with a validated and standard logMAR visual acuity chart. We aimed to construct and validate new logMAR visual acuity chart in Indian languages (Hindi, Bengali, Telugu, Urdu, Kannada, Malayalam, and Assamese). The commonly used font in each language was chosen as the reference and designed to fit the 5 × 5 grid (Adobe Photoshop). Ten letters (easiest to difficult) around median legibility score calculated for each language based on the results of legibility experiment and differing by 10% were selected. The chart was constructed based on the standard recommendations. The repeatability of charts was tested and also compared with a standard English Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) logMAR chart for validation. A total of 14 rows (1.0 to -0.3 logMAR) with five letters in each line were designed with the range of row legibility between 4.7 and 5.3 for all the language charts. Each chart showed good repeatability, and a maximum difference of four letters was noted. The median difference in visual acuity was 0.16 logMAR for Urdu and Assamese chart compared to ETDRS English chart. Hindi and Malayalam chart had a median difference of 0.12 logMAR. When compared to the English chart a median difference of 0.14 logMAR was noted in Telugu, Kannada, and Bengali chart. The newly developed Indian language visual acuity charts are designed based on the standard recommendations and will help to assess visual impairment in people of these languages across the country.

Solar energy system economic evaluation for IBM System 3, Glendo, Wyoming

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1980-01-01

This analysis was based on the technical and economic models in f-chart design procedures with inputs based on the characteristics of the parameters of present worth of system cost over a projected twenty year life: life cycle savings, year of positive savings, and year of payback for the optimized solar energy system at each of the analysis sites. The sensitivity of the economic evaluation to uncertainties in constituent system and economic variables was also investigated.

Evaluation of Shiryaev-Roberts procedure for on-line environmental radiation monitoring.

PubMed

Watson, Mara M; Seliman, Ayman F; Bliznyuk, Valery N; DeVol, Timothy A

2018-04-30

Water can become contaminated as a result of a leak from a nuclear facility, such as a waste facility, or from clandestine nuclear activity. Low-level on-line radiation monitoring is needed to detect these events in real time. A Bayesian control chart method, Shiryaev-Roberts (SR) procedure, was compared with classical methods, 3-σ and cumulative sum (CUSUM), for quantifying an accumulating signal from an extractive scintillating resin flow-cell detection system. Solutions containing 0.10-5.0 Bq/L of 99 Tc, as T99cO 4 - were pumped through a flow cell packed with extractive scintillating resin used in conjunction with a Beta-RAM Model 5 HPLC detector. While T99cO 4 - accumulated on the resin, time series data were collected. Control chart methods were applied to the data using statistical algorithms developed in MATLAB. SR charts were constructed using Poisson (Poisson SR) and Gaussian (Gaussian SR) probability distributions of count data to estimate the likelihood ratio. Poisson and Gaussian SR charts required less volume of radioactive solution at a fixed concentration to exceed the control limit in most cases than 3-σ and CUSUM control charts, particularly solutions with lower activity. SR is thus the ideal control chart for low-level on-line radiation monitoring. Once the control limit was exceeded, activity concentrations were estimated from the SR control chart using the control chart slope on a semi-logarithmic plot. A linear regression fit was applied to averaged slope data for five activity concentration groupings for Poisson and Gaussian SR control charts. A correlation coefficient (R 2 ) of 0.77 for Poisson SR and 0.90 for Gaussian SR suggest this method will adequately estimate activity concentration for an unknown solution. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Development of Growth Charts of Pakistani Children Aged 4-15 Years Using Quantile Regression: A Cross-sectional Study

PubMed Central

Khan, Nazeer; Siddiqui, Junaid S; Baig-Ansari, Naila

2018-01-01

Background Growth charts are essential tools used by pediatricians as well as public health researchers in assessing and monitoring the well-being of pediatric populations. Development of these growth charts, especially for children above five years of age, is challenging and requires current anthropometric data and advanced statistical analysis. These growth charts are generally presented as a series of smooth centile curves. A number of modeling approaches are available for generating growth charts and applying these on national datasets is important for generating country-specific reference growth charts. Objective To demonstrate that quantile regression (QR) as a viable statistical approach to construct growth reference charts and to assess the applicability of the World Health Organization (WHO) 2007 growth standards to a large Pakistani population of school-going children. Methodology This is a secondary data analysis using anthropometric data of 9,515 students from a Pakistani survey conducted between 2007 and 2014 in four cities of Pakistan. Growth reference charts were created using QR as well as the LMS (Box-Cox transformation (L), the median (M), and the generalized coefficient of variation (S)) method and then compared with WHO 2007 growth standards. Results Centile values estimated by the LMS method and QR procedure had few differences. The centile values attained from QR procedure of BMI-for-age, weight-for-age, and height-for-age of Pakistani children were lower than the standard WHO 2007 centile. Conclusion QR should be considered as an alternative method to develop growth charts for its simplicity and lack of necessity to transform data. WHO 2007 standards are not suitable for Pakistani children. PMID:29632748

Development of Growth Charts of Pakistani Children Aged 4-15 Years Using Quantile Regression: A Cross-sectional Study.

PubMed

Iftikhar, Sundus; Khan, Nazeer; Siddiqui, Junaid S; Baig-Ansari, Naila

2018-02-02

Background Growth charts are essential tools used by pediatricians as well as public health researchers in assessing and monitoring the well-being of pediatric populations. Development of these growth charts, especially for children above five years of age, is challenging and requires current anthropometric data and advanced statistical analysis. These growth charts are generally presented as a series of smooth centile curves. A number of modeling approaches are available for generating growth charts and applying these on national datasets is important for generating country-specific reference growth charts. Objective To demonstrate that quantile regression (QR) as a viable statistical approach to construct growth reference charts and to assess the applicability of the World Health Organization (WHO) 2007 growth standards to a large Pakistani population of school-going children. Methodology This is a secondary data analysis using anthropometric data of 9,515 students from a Pakistani survey conducted between 2007 and 2014 in four cities of Pakistan. Growth reference charts were created using QR as well as the LMS (Box-Cox transformation (L), the median (M), and the generalized coefficient of variation (S)) method and then compared with WHO 2007 growth standards. Results Centile values estimated by the LMS method and QR procedure had few differences. The centile values attained from QR procedure of BMI-for-age, weight-for-age, and height-for-age of Pakistani children were lower than the standard WHO 2007 centile. Conclusion QR should be considered as an alternative method to develop growth charts for its simplicity and lack of necessity to transform data. WHO 2007 standards are not suitable for Pakistani children.

Trainee competence in thoracoscopic esophagectomy in the prone position: evaluation using cumulative sum techniques.

PubMed

Oshikiri, Taro; Yasuda, Takashi; Yamamoto, Masashi; Kanaji, Shingo; Yamashita, Kimihiro; Matsuda, Takeru; Sumi, Yasuo; Nakamura, Tetsu; Fujino, Yasuhiro; Tominaga, Masahiro; Suzuki, Satoshi; Kakeji, Yoshihiro

2016-09-01

Minimally invasive esophagectomy (MIE) has less morbidity than the open approach. In particular, thoracoscopic esophagectomy in the prone position (TEP) has been performed worldwide. Using the cumulative sum control chart (CUSUM) method, this study aimed to confirm whether a trainee surgeon who learned established standards would become skilled in TEP with a shorter learning curve than that of the mentoring surgeon. Surgeon A performed TEP in 100 patients; the first 22 patients comprised period 1. His learning curve, defined based on the operation time (OT) of the thoracic procedure, was evaluated using the CUSUM method, and short-term outcomes were assessed. Another 22 patients underwent TEP performed by surgeon B, with outcomes compared to those of surgeon A's period 1. Using the CUSUM chart, the peak point of the thoracic procedure OT occurred at the 44th case in surgeon A's experience of 100 cases. With surgeon A's first 22 cases (period 1), the peak point of the thoracic procedure OT could not be confirmed and graph is expanding soaring at CUSUM chart. The CUSUM chart of surgeon B's experience of 22 cases clearly indicated that the peak point of the thoracic procedure OT occurred at the 17th case. The rate of recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy for surgeon B (9 %) was significantly lower than for surgeon A in period 1 (36 %) (p = 0.0266). There is some possibility for a trainee surgeon to attain the required basic skills to perform TEP in a relatively short period of time using a standardized procedure developed by a mentoring surgeon. The CUSUM method should be useful in evaluating trainee competence during an initial series of procedures, by assessing the learning curve defined by OT.

Evaluating a de-cluttering technique for NextGen RNAV and RNP charts

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2012-10-14

The authors propose a de-cluttering technique to simplify the depiction of visually complex Area Navigation (RNAV) and Required Navigation Performance (RNP) procedures by reducing the number of paths shown on a single chart page. An experiment was co...

Preliminary Solar Sail Design and Fabrication Assessment: Spinning Sail Blade, Square Sail Sheet

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Daniels, J. B.; Dowdle, D. M.; Hahn, D. W.; Hildreth, E. N.; Lagerquist, D. R.; Mahaonoul, E. J.; Munson, J. B.; Origer, T. F.

1977-01-01

Blade design aspects most affecting producibility and means of measurement and control of length, scallop, fullness and straightness requirements and tolerances were extensively considered. Alternate designs of the panel seams and edge reinforcing members are believed to offer advantages of seam integrity, producibility, reliability, cost and weight. Approaches to and requirements for highly specialized metalizing methods, processes and equipment were studied and identified. Alternate methods of sail blade fabrication and related special machinery, tooling, fixtures and trade offs were examined. A preferred and recommended approach is also described. Quality control plans, inspection procedures, flow charts and special test equipment associated with the preferred manufacturing method were analyzed and are discussed.

Charts for the minimum-weight design of 24s-t aluminum-alloy flat compression panels with longitudinal z-section stiffeners

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schuette, Evan H

1945-01-01

Design charts are developed for 24s-t aluminum-alloy flat compression panels with longitudinal z-section stiffeners. These charts make possible the design of the lightest panels of this type for a wide range of design requirements. Examples of the use of the charts are given and it is pointed out on the basis of these examples that, over a wide range of design conditions, the maintenance of buckle-free surfaces does not conflict with the achievement of high structural efficiency. The achievement of the maximum possible structural efficiency with 24s-t aluminum-alloy panels, however, requires closer stiffener spacings than those now in common use.

Automated Measurement of Visual Acuity in Pediatric Ophthalmic Patients Using Principles of Game Design and Tablet Computers.

PubMed

Aslam, Tariq M; Tahir, Humza J; Parry, Neil R A; Murray, Ian J; Kwak, Kun; Heyes, Richard; Salleh, Mahani M; Czanner, Gabriela; Ashworth, Jane

2016-10-01

To report on the utility of a computer tablet-based method for automated testing of visual acuity in children based on the principles of game design. We describe the testing procedure and present repeatability as well as agreement of the score with accepted visual acuity measures. Reliability and validity study. Setting: Manchester Royal Eye Hospital Pediatric Ophthalmology Outpatients Department. Total of 112 sequentially recruited patients. For each patient 1 eye was tested with the Mobile Assessment of Vision by intERactIve Computer for Children (MAVERIC-C) system, consisting of a software application running on a computer tablet, housed in a bespoke viewing chamber. The application elicited touch screen responses using a game design to encourage compliance and automatically acquire visual acuity scores of participating patients. Acuity was then assessed by an examiner with a standard chart-based near ETDRS acuity test before the MAVERIC-C assessment was repeated. Reliability of MAVERIC-C near visual acuity score and agreement of MAVERIC-C score with near ETDRS chart for visual acuity. Altogether, 106 children (95%) completed the MAVERIC-C system without assistance. The vision scores demonstrated satisfactory reliability, with test-retest VA scores having a mean difference of 0.001 (SD ±0.136) and limits of agreement of 2 SD (LOA) of ±0.267. Comparison with the near EDTRS chart showed agreement with a mean difference of -0.0879 (±0.106) with LOA of ±0.208. This study demonstrates promising utility for software using a game design to enable automated testing of acuity in children with ophthalmic disease in an objective and accurate manner. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Structured Analysis/Design - LSA Task 101, Early Logistic Support Analysis Strategy, Subtask 101.2.1, Develop Early LSA Strategy

DTIC Science & Technology

1990-07-01

replacing "logic diagrams" or "flow charts") to aid in coordinating the functions to be performed by a computer program and its associated Inputs...ADDRESS (City, State, and ZIP Code) 10. SOURCE OF FUNDING NUMBERS PROGRAM PROJECT ITASK IWORK UNIT ELEMENT NO. NO. NO. ACCESSION NO. 11. TITLE...the analysis. Both the logical model and detailed procedures are used to develop the application software programs which will be provided to Government

Traction of elastohydrodynamic contacts with thermal shearing flow

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jakobsen, J.; Winer, W. O.

1974-01-01

The formulation and solution for the shear stress and temperature in heavily loaded sliding elastohydrodynamic contacts is presented. The solutions are presented in dimensionless design charts. Integration over the contact area will yield the traction. Accuracy is expected to be very good over the nearly flat part of the contact area where the majority of the sliding traction is generated. The procedure presented is not appropriate for thick film lubrication, for the inlet region, or for the rolling friction of elastohydrodynamic contacts.

Systems Design and Pilot Operation of a Regional Center for Technical Processing for the Libraries of the New England State Universities. NELINET, New England Library Information Network. Progress Report, July 1, 1967 - March 30, 1968, Volume II, Appendices.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Agenbroad, James E.; And Others

Included in this volume of appendices to LI 000 979 are acquisitions flow charts; a current operations questionnaire; an algorithm for splitting the Library of Congress call number; analysis of the Machine-Readable Cataloging (MARC II) format; production problems and decisions; operating procedures for information transmittal in the New England…

Economic design of control charts considering process shift distributions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vommi, Vijayababu; Kasarapu, Rukmini V.

2014-09-01

Process shift is an important input parameter in the economic design of control charts. Earlier control chart designs considered constant shifts to occur in the mean of the process for a given assignable cause. This assumption has been criticized by many researchers since it may not be realistic to produce a constant shift whenever an assignable cause occurs. To overcome this difficulty, in the present work, a distribution for the shift parameter has been considered instead of a single value for a given assignable cause. Duncan's economic design model for chart has been extended to incorporate the distribution for the process shift parameter. It is proposed to minimize total expected loss-cost to obtain the control chart parameters. Further, three types of process shifts namely, positively skewed, uniform and negatively skewed distributions are considered and the situations where it is appropriate to use the suggested methodology are recommended.

A monitoring tool for performance improvement in plastic surgery at the individual level.

PubMed

Maruthappu, Mahiben; Duclos, Antoine; Orgill, Dennis; Carty, Matthew J

2013-05-01

The assessment of performance in surgery is expanding significantly. Application of relevant frameworks to plastic surgery, however, has been limited. In this article, the authors present two robust graphic tools commonly used in other industries that may serve to monitor individual surgeon operative time while factoring in patient- and surgeon-specific elements. The authors reviewed performance data from all bilateral reduction mammaplasties performed at their institution by eight surgeons between 1995 and 2010. Operative time was used as a proxy for performance. Cumulative sum charts and exponentially weighted moving average charts were generated using a train-test analytic approach, and used to monitor surgical performance. Charts mapped crude, patient case-mix-adjusted, and case-mix and surgical-experience-adjusted performance. Operative time was found to decline from 182 minutes to 118 minutes with surgical experience (p < 0.001). Cumulative sum and exponentially weighted moving average charts were generated using 1995 to 2007 data (1053 procedures) and tested on 2008 to 2010 data (246 procedures). The sensitivity and accuracy of these charts were significantly improved by adjustment for case mix and surgeon experience. The consideration of patient- and surgeon-specific factors is essential for correct interpretation of performance in plastic surgery at the individual surgeon level. Cumulative sum and exponentially weighted moving average charts represent accurate methods of monitoring operative time to control and potentially improve surgeon performance over the course of a career.

76 FR 53530 - Government/Industry Aeronautical Charting Forum Meeting

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-08-26

... Charting Forum Meeting AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT. ACTION: Notice of public meeting...) Aeronautical Charting Forum (ACF) to discuss informational content and design of aeronautical charts and... Charting Forum to be held from October 25 through October 27, 2011, from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at FAA AeroNav...

Orbit Selection for Earth Observation Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

King, J. C.

1978-01-01

The orbit selection process is simplified for most earth-oriented satellite missions by a restriction to circular orbits, which reduces the primary orbit characteristics to be determined to only two: altitude and inclination. A number of important mission performance characteristics depend on these choices, however, so a major part of the orbit selection task is concerned with developing the correlating relationships in clear and convenient forms to provide a basis for rational orbit selection procedures. The present approach to that task is organized around two major areas of mission performance, orbit plane precession and coverage pattern development, whose dependence on altitude and inclination is delineated graphically in design chart form. These charts provide a visual grasp of the relationships between the quantities cited above, as well as other important mission performance parameters including viewing time of day (solar), sensor swath width (and fields of view), swath sequencing, and pattern repeat condition and repeat periods.

40 CFR 86.343-79 - Chart reading.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... Gasoline-Fueled and Diesel-Fueled Heavy-Duty Engines; Gaseous Exhaust Test Procedures § 86.343-79 Chart... responses corresponding to the end of each mode. (c) For gasoline-fueled engines, determine whether the test... gasoline-fueled engine mode); or (3) 5 percent of maximum torque during the remainder of the mode...

40 CFR 86.343-79 - Chart reading.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Gasoline-Fueled and Diesel-Fueled Heavy-Duty Engines; Gaseous Exhaust Test Procedures § 86.343-79 Chart... responses corresponding to the end of each mode. (c) For gasoline-fueled engines, determine whether the test... gasoline-fueled engine mode); or (3) 5 percent of maximum torque during the remainder of the mode...

WINDOWAC (Wing Design Optimization With Aeroelastic Constraints): Program manual

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Haftka, R. T.; Starnes, J. H., Jr.

1974-01-01

User and programer documentation for the WIDOWAC programs is given. WIDOWAC may be used for the design of minimum mass wing structures subjected to flutter, strength, and minimum gage constraints. The wing structure is modeled by finite elements, flutter conditions may be both subsonic and supersonic, and mathematical programing methods are used for the optimization procedure. The user documentation gives general directions on how the programs may be used and describes their limitations; in addition, program input and output are described, and example problems are presented. A discussion of computational algorithms and flow charts of the WIDOWAC programs and major subroutines is also given.

A method of setting limits for the purpose of quality assurance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sanghangthum, Taweap; Suriyapee, Sivalee; Kim, Gwe-Ya; Pawlicki, Todd

2013-10-01

The result from any assurance measurement needs to be checked against some limits for acceptability. There are two types of limits; those that define clinical acceptability (action limits) and those that are meant to serve as a warning that the measurement is close to the action limits (tolerance limits). Currently, there is no standard procedure to set these limits. In this work, we propose an operational procedure to set tolerance limits and action limits. The approach to establish the limits is based on techniques of quality engineering using control charts and a process capability index. The method is different for tolerance limits and action limits with action limits being categorized into those that are specified and unspecified. The procedure is to first ensure process control using the I-MR control charts. Then, the tolerance limits are set equal to the control chart limits on the I chart. Action limits are determined using the Cpm process capability index with the requirements that the process must be in-control. The limits from the proposed procedure are compared to an existing or conventional method. Four examples are investigated: two of volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) point dose quality assurance (QA) and two of routine linear accelerator output QA. The tolerance limits range from about 6% larger to 9% smaller than conventional action limits for VMAT QA cases. For the linac output QA, tolerance limits are about 60% smaller than conventional action limits. The operational procedure describe in this work is based on established quality management tools and will provide a systematic guide to set up tolerance and action limits for different equipment and processes.

User acceptance of observation and response charts with a track and trigger system: a multisite staff survey.

PubMed

Elliott, Doug; Allen, Emily; McKinley, Sharon; Perry, Lin; Duffield, Christine; Fry, Margaret; Gallagher, Robyn; Iedema, Rick; Roche, Michael

2016-08-01

To examine user acceptance with a new format of charts for recording observations and as a prompt for responding to episodes of clinical deterioration in adult medical-surgical patients. Improving recognition and response to clinical deterioration remains a challenge for acute healthcare institutions globally. Five chart templates were developed in Australia, combining human factors design principles with a track and trigger system for escalation of care. Two chart templates were previously tested in simulations, but none had been evaluated in clinical practice. Prospective multisite survey of user acceptance of the charts in practice. New observation and response charts were trialled in parallel with existing charts for 24 hours across 36 adult acute medical-surgical wards, covering 108 shifts, in five Australian states. Surveys were completed by 477 staff respondents, with open-ended comments and narrative from short informal feedback groups providing elaboration and context of user experiences. Respondents were broadly supportive of the chart format and content for monitoring patients, and as a prompt for escalating care. Some concerns were noted for chart size and style, use of ranges to graph vital signs and with specific human factors design features. Information and training issues were identified to improve usability and adherence to chart guidelines and to support improved detection and response for patients with clinical deterioration. This initial evaluation demonstrated that the charts were perceived as appropriate for documenting observations and as a prompt to detect clinical deterioration. Further evaluation after some minor modifications to the chart is recommended. Explicit training on the principles and rationale of human factors chart design, use of embedded change management strategies and addressing practical issues will improve authentic engagement, staff acceptance and adoption by all clinical users when implementing a similar observation and response chart into practice. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Clinical user experiences of observation and response charts: focus group findings of using a new format chart incorporating a track and trigger system.

PubMed

Elliott, Doug; Allen, Emily; Perry, Lin; Fry, Margaret; Duffield, Christine; Gallagher, Robyn; Iedema, Rick; McKinley, Sharon; Roche, Michael

2015-01-01

Optimising clinical responses to deteriorating patients is an international indicator of acute healthcare quality. Observation charts incorporating track and trigger systems are an initiative to improve early identification and response to clinical deterioration. A suite of track and trigger 'Observation and Response Charts' were designed in Australia and initially tested in simulated environments. This paper reports initial clinical user experiences and views following implementation of these charts in adult general medical-surgical wards. Across eight trial sites, 44 focus groups were conducted with 218 clinical ward staff, mostly nurses, who received training and had used the charts in routine clinical practice for the preceding 2-6 weeks. Transcripts of audio recordings were analysed for emergent themes using an inductive approach. In this exploration of initial user experiences, key emergent themes were: tensions between vital sign 'ranges versus precision' to support decision making; using a standardised 'generalist chart in a range of specialist practice' areas; issues of 'clinical credibility', 'professional autonomy' and 'influences of doctors' when communicating abnormal signs; and 'permission and autonomy' when escalating care according to the protocol. Across themes, participants presented a range of positive, negative or mixed views. Benefits were identified despite charts not always being used up to their optimal design function. Participants reported tensions between chart objectives and clinical practices, revealing mismatches between design characteristics and human staff experiences. Overall, an initial view of 'increased activity/uncertain benefit' was uncovered. Findings particularly reinforced the significant influences of organisational work-based cultures, disciplinary boundaries and interdisciplinary communication on implementation of this new practice chart. Optimal use of all chart design characteristics will be possible when these broader cultural issues are addressed. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

Risk-adjusted monitoring of survival times

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sego, Landon H.; Reynolds, Marion R.; Woodall, William H.

2009-02-26

We consider the monitoring of clinical outcomes, where each patient has a di®erent risk of death prior to undergoing a health care procedure.We propose a risk-adjusted survival time CUSUM chart (RAST CUSUM) for monitoring clinical outcomes where the primary endpoint is a continuous, time-to-event variable that may be right censored. Risk adjustment is accomplished using accelerated failure time regression models. We compare the average run length performance of the RAST CUSUM chart to the risk-adjusted Bernoulli CUSUM chart, using data from cardiac surgeries to motivate the details of the comparison. The comparisons show that the RAST CUSUM chart is moremore » efficient at detecting a sudden decrease in the odds of death than the risk-adjusted Bernoulli CUSUM chart, especially when the fraction of censored observations is not too high. We also discuss the implementation of a prospective monitoring scheme using the RAST CUSUM chart.« less

Smart Aeronautical Chart Management System Design

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pakdil, M. E.; Celik, R. N.; Kaya, Ö.; Konak, Y. C.; Guney, C.

2015-10-01

Civil aviation is developing rapidly, and the number of domestic and international operations is increasing exponentially every year than the previous one. Airline companies with increased air traffic and the number of passengers increase the demand of new aircrafts. An aircraft needs not only fuel but also pilot and aeronautical information (charts, digital navigation information, flight plan, and etc.) to perform flight operation. One of the most important components in aeronautical information is the terminal chart. Authorized institution in every state is responsible to publish their terminal charts for certain periods. Although these charts are produced in accordance with ICAO's Annex 4 and Annex 15, cartographic representation and page layout differs in each state's publication. This situation makes difficult to read them by pilots. In this paper, standard instrument departure (SID) charts are analysed to produce by use of cutting-edge and competitive technologies instead of classical computer-aided drawing and vector based graphic applications that are currently used by main chart producers. The goal is to design efficient and commercial chart management system that is able to produce aeronautical charts with same cartographic representation for all states.

Fatigue design procedure for the American SST prototype

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Doty, R. J.

1972-01-01

For supersonic airline operations, significantly higher environmental temperature is the primary new factor affecting structural service life. Methods for incorporating the influence of temperature in detailed fatigue analyses are shown along with current test indications. Thermal effects investigated include real-time compared with short-time testing, long-time temperature exposure, and stress-temperature cycle phasing. A method is presented which allows designers and stress analyzers to check fatigue resistance of structural design details. A communicative rating system is presented which defines the relative fatigue quality of the detail so that the analyst can define cyclic-load capability of the design detail by entering constant-life charts for varying detail quality. If necessary then, this system allows the designer to determine ways to improve the fatigue quality for better life or to determine the operating stresses which will provide the required service life.

TU-D-201-02: Medical Physics Practices for Plan and Chart Review: Results of AAPM Task Group 275 Survey

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Fong de los Santos, L; Dong, L; Greener, A

Purpose: AAPM Task Group (TG) 275 is charged with developing riskbased guidelines for plan and chart review clinical processes. As part of this work an AAPM-wide survey was conducted to gauge current practices. Methods: The survey consisted of 103 multiple-choice questions covering the following review processes for external beam including protons: 1) Initial Plan Check, 2) On-Treatment and 3) End-of-Treatment Chart Check. The survey was designed and validated by TG members with the goal of providing an efficient and easy response process. The survey, developed and deployed with the support of AAPM headquarters, was released to all AAPM members whomore » have self-reported as working in the radiation oncology field and it was kept open for 7 weeks. Results: There are an estimated 4700 eligible participants. At the time of writing, 962 completed surveys have been collected with an average completion time of 24 minutes. Participants are mainly from community hospitals (40%), academicaffiliated hospitals (31%) and free-standing clinics (18%). Among many other metrics covered on the survey, results so far indicate that manual review is an important component on the plan and chart review process (>90%) and that written procedures and checklists are widely used (>60%). However, the details of what is reviewed or checked are fairly heterogeneous among the sampled medical physics community. Conclusion: The data gathered from the survey gauging current practices will be used by TG 275 to develop benchmarks and recommendations for the type and extent of checks to perform effective physics plan and chart review processes.« less

Cartographic projection procedures for the UNIX environment; a user's manual

USGS Publications Warehouse

Evenden, Gerald I.

1990-01-01

A tutorial description of the general usage of the cartographic projection program proj (release 3) along with specic cartographic parameters and illustrations of the ap- proximately 70 cartographic projections supported by the program is presented. The program is designed as a standard Unix lter utility to be employed with other pro- grams in the generation of maps and charts and, in many cases, used in map digitizing applications. Tables and shell scripts are also provided for conversion of State Plane Coordinate Systems to and from geographic coordinates.

The Two-By-Two Array: An Aid in Conceptualization and Problem Solving

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Eberhart, James

2004-01-01

The fields of mathematics, science, and engineering are replete with diagrams of many varieties. They range in nature from the Venn diagrams of symbolic logic to the Periodic Chart of the Elements; and from the fault trees of risk assessment to the flow charts used to describe laboratory procedures, industrial processes, and computer programs. All…

75 FR 11225 - Government/Industry Aeronautical Charting Forum Meeting

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-03-10

... Charting Forum Meeting AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT. ACTION: Notice of public meeting...) Government/Industry Aeronautical Charting Forum (ACF 10-01) to discuss informational content and design of... Aeronautical Charting Forum to be held from April 27 through April 29, 2010 from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Air...

Tool for reading psychrometric charts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

De Angelo, F. T.

1969-01-01

Three-legged, clear plastic tool is designed so that the angles of each leg correspond with the angles of psychometric chart construction for each of the three required scales. The appropriate edges are tapered to the chart surface.

Charts for Estimating Tail-rotor Contribution to Helicopter Directional Stability and Control in Low-Speed Flight

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Amer, Kenneth B; Gessow, Alfred

1955-01-01

Theoretically derived charts and equations are presented by which tail-rotor design studies of directional trim and control response at low forward speed can be conveniently made. The charts can also be used to obtain the main-rotor stability derivatives of thrust with respect to collective pitch and angle of attack at low forward speeds. The use of the charts and equations for tail-rotor design studies is illustrated. Comparisons between theoretical and experimental results are presented. The charts indicate, and flight tests confirm, that the region of vortex roughness which is familiar for the main rotor is also encountered by the tail rotor and that prolonged operation at the corresponding flight conditions would be difficult.

Flexible Design and Operation of a Smart Charging Microgrid (Briefing Charts)

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-04-08

release; distribution unlimited 13. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES Briefing Charts for SAE World Congress 2014 14. ABSTRACT A microgrid is a controllable ...UNCLASSIFIED Distribution Statement A: Approved for Public Release Flexible Design and Operation of a Smart Charging Microgrid Annette G... control number. 1. REPORT DATE 08 APR 2014 2. REPORT TYPE Briefing Charts 3. DATES COVERED 08-01-2014 to 09-03-2014 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE

Current Issues in the Design and Information Content of Instrument Approach Charts

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1995-03-01

This report documents an analysis and interview effort conducted to identify common operational errors made using : current Instrument Approach Plates (IAP), Standard Terminal Arrival Route (STAR) charts. Standard Instrument Departure : (SID) charts,...

Clinical integration of billing for a pediatric nephrology and transplant program.

PubMed

Tietjen, Andrea L; Orsini, Jenoveva; Mulgaonkar, Shamkant; Morgan, Debbie

2003-09-01

To develop and implement a billing process that fully integrates all activities of a pediatric nephrology and transplant program, by facilitating and coordinating data from patients, physicians, hospitals, and third-party billing services to maximize revenues. Financial operations were analyzed via a randomized audit of patient charts that focused on office procedures and revenue collection. Results based on monthly reports documenting revenue received and outstanding, procedures billed, and patient registration accuracy. The combination of improvements in patient registration, chart documentation, new billing sheets with procedure and diagnosis codes, physician in-service education, upgraded charges, and the recredentialing of all practice physicians realized an increase in revenue collections from 18% in 2000 to 89% in 2001. The need to integrate and coordinate information is vital for both billing accuracy and revenue collections. Integration of clinical services and billing procedures has maximized performance, profitability, and accuracy while decreasing administrative time and costs.

Real time monitoring of risk-adjusted paediatric cardiac surgery outcomes using variable life-adjusted display: implementation in three UK centres

PubMed Central

Pagel, Christina; Utley, Martin; Crowe, Sonya; Witter, Thomas; Anderson, David; Samson, Ray; McLean, Andrew; Banks, Victoria; Tsang, Victor; Brown, Katherine

2013-01-01

Objective To implement routine in-house monitoring of risk-adjusted 30-day mortality following paediatric cardiac surgery. Design Collaborative monitoring software development and implementation in three specialist centres. Patients and methods Analyses incorporated 2 years of data routinely audited by the National Institute of Cardiac Outcomes Research (NICOR). Exclusion criteria were patients over 16 or undergoing non-cardiac or only catheter procedures. We applied the partial risk adjustment in surgery (PRAiS) risk model for death within 30 days following surgery and generated variable life-adjusted display (VLAD) charts for each centre. These were shared with each clinical team and feedback was sought. Results Participating centres were Great Ormond Street Hospital, Evelina Children's Hospital and The Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Glasgow. Data captured all procedures performed between 1 January 2010 and 31 December 2011. This incorporated 2490 30-day episodes of care, 66 of which were associated with a death within 30 days.The VLAD charts generated for each centre displayed trends in outcomes benchmarked to recent national outcomes. All centres ended the 2-year period within four deaths from what would be expected. The VLAD charts were shared in multidisciplinary meetings and clinical teams reported that they were a useful addition to existing quality assurance initiatives. Each centre is continuing to use the prototype software to monitor their in-house surgical outcomes. Conclusions Timely and routine monitoring of risk-adjusted mortality following paediatric cardiac surgery is feasible. Close liaison with hospital data managers as well as clinicians was crucial to the success of the project. PMID:23564473

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tan, J; Pompos, A; Jiang, S

Purpose: To put forth an innovative clinical paradigm for weekly chart checking so that treatment status is periodically checked accurately and efficiently. This study also aims to help optimize the chart checking clinical workflow in a busy radiation therapy clinic. Methods: It is mandated by the Texas Administrative code to check patient charts of radiation therapy once a week or every five fractions, however it varies drastically among institutions in terms of when and how it is done. Some do it every day, but a lot of efforts are wasted on opening ineligible charts; some do it on a fixedmore » day but the distribution of intervals between subsequent checks is not optimal. To establish an optimal chart checking procedure, a new paradigm was developed to achieve 1) charts are checked more accurately and more efficiently; 2) charts are checked on optimal days without any miss; 3) workload is evened out throughout a week when multiple physicists are involved. All active charts will be accessed by querying the R&V system. Priority is assigned to each chart based on the number of days before the next due date followed by sorting and workload distribution steps. New charts are also taken into account when distributing the workload so it is reasonably even throughout the week. Results: Our clinical workflow became more streamlined and smooth. In addition, charts get checked in a more timely fashion so that errors would get caught earlier should they occur. Conclusion: We developed a new weekly chart checking diagram. It helps physicists check charts in a timely manner, saves their time in busy clinics, and consequently reduces possible errors.« less

40 CFR 53.32 - Test procedures for methods for SO2, CO, O3, and NO2.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... shall have a chart width of at least 25 centimeters, a response time of 1 second or less, a deadband of... appropriate time intervals such that trend plots similar to a strip chart recording may be constructed with a... facilitate visual evaluation of data submitted. (3) Allow adequate warmup or stabilization time as indicated...

9. Photocopy of command flow chart of NIKE Battalion, Headquarters ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

9. Photocopy of command flow chart of NIKE Battalion, Headquarters Battery and Missile Battery from Procedures and Drills for NIKE Ajax System, Department of the Army Field Manual, FM-44-80 from Institute for Military History, Carlisle Barracks, Carlisle, PA 1956 - NIKE Missile Battery PR-79, East Windsor Road south of State Route 101, Foster, Providence County, RI

Direct-reading design charts for 75S-T6 aluminum-alloy flat compression panels having longitudinal extruded Z-section stiffeners

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hickman, William A; Dow, Norris F

1951-01-01

Direct-reading design charts are presented for 75S-T6 aluminum-alloy flat compression panels having longitudinal extruded Z-section stiffeners. These charts, which cover a wide range of proportions, make possible the direct determination of the stress and all panel dimensions required to carry a given intensity of loading with a given skin thickness and effective length of panel.

75 FR 42310 - Standard Instrument Approach Procedures, and Takeoff Minimums and Obstacle Departure Procedures...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-07-21

... graphic depiction on charts printed by publishers of aeronautical materials. Thus, the advantages of... the availability of this material at NARA, call 202-741- 6030, or go to: http://www.archives.gov...

76 FR 77113 - Standard Instrument Approach Procedures, and Takeoff Minimums and Obstacle Departure Procedures...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-12-12

... graphic depiction on charts printed by publishers of aeronautical materials. Thus, the advantages of... information on the availability of this material at NARA, call (202) 741-6030, or go to: http://www.archives...

An automatic holographic adaptive phoropter

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Amirsolaimani, Babak; Peyghambarian, N.; Schwiegerling, Jim; Bablumyan, Arkady; Savidis, Nickolaos; Peyman, Gholam

2017-08-01

Phoropters are the most common instrument used to detect refractive errors. During a refractive exam, lenses are flipped in front of the patient who looks at the eye chart and tries to read the symbols. The procedure is fully dependent on the cooperation of the patient to read the eye chart, provides only a subjective measurement of visual acuity, and can at best provide a rough estimate of the patient's vision. Phoropters are difficult to use for mass screenings requiring a skilled examiner, and it is hard to screen young children and the elderly etc. We have developed a simplified, lightweight automatic phoropter that can measure the optical error of the eye objectively without requiring the patient's input. The automatic holographic adaptive phoropter is based on a Shack-Hartmann wave front sensor and three computercontrolled fluidic lenses. The fluidic lens system is designed to be able to provide power and astigmatic corrections over a large range of corrections without the need for verbal feedback from the patient in less than 20 seconds.

Synthetic-Type Control Charts for Time-Between-Events Monitoring

PubMed Central

Yen, Fang Yen; Chong, Khoo Michael Boon; Ha, Lee Ming

2013-01-01

This paper proposes three synthetic-type control charts to monitor the mean time-between-events of a homogenous Poisson process. The first proposed chart combines an Erlang (cumulative time between events, Tr) chart and a conforming run length (CRL) chart, denoted as Synth-Tr chart. The second proposed chart combines an exponential (or T) chart and a group conforming run length (GCRL) chart, denoted as GR-T chart. The third proposed chart combines an Erlang chart and a GCRL chart, denoted as GR-Tr chart. By using a Markov chain approach, the zero- and steady-state average number of observations to signal (ANOS) of the proposed charts are obtained, in order to evaluate the performance of the three charts. The optimal design of the proposed charts is shown in this paper. The proposed charts are superior to the existing T chart, Tr chart, and Synth-T chart. As compared to the EWMA-T chart, the GR-T chart performs better in detecting large shifts, in terms of the zero- and steady-state performances. The zero-state Synth-T4 and GR-Tr (r = 3 or 4) charts outperform the EWMA-T chart for all shifts, whereas the Synth-Tr (r = 2 or 3) and GR-T 2 charts perform better for moderate to large shifts. For the steady-state process, the Synth-Tr and GR-Tr charts are more efficient than the EWMA-T chart in detecting small to moderate shifts. PMID:23755231

Scaling of Two-Phase Flows to Partial-Earth Gravity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hurlbert, Kathryn M.; Witte, Larry C.

2003-01-01

A report presents a method of scaling, to partial-Earth gravity, of parameters that describe pressure drops and other characteristics of two-phase (liquid/ vapor) flows. The development of the method was prompted by the need for a means of designing two-phase flow systems to operate on the Moon and on Mars, using fluid-properties and flow data from terrestrial two-phase-flow experiments, thus eliminating the need for partial-gravity testing. The report presents an explicit procedure for designing an Earth-based test bed that can provide hydrodynamic similarity with two-phase fluids flowing in partial-gravity systems. The procedure does not require prior knowledge of the flow regime (i.e., the spatial orientation of the phases). The method also provides for determination of pressure drops in two-phase partial-gravity flows by use of a generalization of the classical Moody chart (previously applicable to single-phase flow only). The report presents experimental data from Mars- and Moon-activity experiments that appear to demonstrate the validity of this method.

Charts designate probable future oceanographic research fields

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1968-01-01

Charts outline the questions and problems of oceanographic research in the future. NASA uses the charts to estimate the probable requirements for instrumentation carried by satellites engaged in cooperative programs with other agencies concerned with identification, analysis, and solution of many of these problems.

77 FR 15576 - Standard Instrument Approach Procedures, and Takeoff Minimums and Obstacle Departure Procedures...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-03-16

... instead refer to their depiction on charts printed by publishers of aeronautical materials. The advantages... information on the availability of this material at NARA, call 202-741- 6030, or go to: http://www.archives...

Automatic exposure control systems designed to maintain constant image noise: effects on computed tomography dose and noise relative to clinically accepted technique charts.

PubMed

Favazza, Christopher P; Yu, Lifeng; Leng, Shuai; Kofler, James M; McCollough, Cynthia H

2015-01-01

To compare computed tomography dose and noise arising from use of an automatic exposure control (AEC) system designed to maintain constant image noise as patient size varies with clinically accepted technique charts and AEC systems designed to vary image noise. A model was developed to describe tube current modulation as a function of patient thickness. Relative dose and noise values were calculated as patient width varied for AEC settings designed to yield constant or variable noise levels and were compared to empirically derived values used by our clinical practice. Phantom experiments were performed in which tube current was measured as a function of thickness using a constant-noise-based AEC system and the results were compared with clinical technique charts. For 12-, 20-, 28-, 44-, and 50-cm patient widths, the requirement of constant noise across patient size yielded relative doses of 5%, 14%, 38%, 260%, and 549% and relative noises of 435%, 267%, 163%, 61%, and 42%, respectively, as compared with our clinically used technique chart settings at each respective width. Experimental measurements showed that a constant noise-based AEC system yielded 175% relative noise for a 30-cm phantom and 206% relative dose for a 40-cm phantom compared with our clinical technique chart. Automatic exposure control systems that prescribe constant noise as patient size varies can yield excessive noise in small patients and excessive dose in obese patients compared with clinically accepted technique charts. Use of noise-level technique charts and tube current limits can mitigate these effects.

Differences in presenting advance directives in the chart, in the minimum data set, and through the staff's perceptions.

PubMed

Cohen-Mansfield, Jiska; Libin, Alexander; Lipson, Steven

2003-06-01

Decisions concerning end-of-life care depend on information contained in advance directives that are documented in residents' charts in the nursing home. The availability of that information depends on the quality of the chart and on the location of the information in the chart. No research was found that compared directives by the manner in which they are collected and summarized in the chart. The goal of the proposed study was to clarify how advance directives are summarized in the patient's record and to clarify how physicians perceive the same advance directives and formal orders. The study involved 122 elderly persons who reside in one large (587 beds) nursing home. The authors collected data regarding the advance directives from three sources-Minimum Data Set (MDS), the front cover of the resident's chart, and from inside the chart. The rates of documented advance directives found in this study are higher than those reported in the literature. Agreement rates between sources varied as a function of which sources were compared, as well as on the basis of which directive was examined. More specifically, the authors found higher rates of agreement between the information inside the chart and on the cover of the chart than between the MDS and the other two sources. The reasons for discrepancies may lie in the different functions and procedures pertaining to these source documents.

Passive UHF RFID Tag for Multispectral Assessment

PubMed Central

Escobedo, Pablo; Carvajal, Miguel A.; Capitán-Vallvey, Luis F.; Fernández-Salmerón, José; Martínez-Olmos, Antonio; Palma, Alberto J.

2016-01-01

This work presents the design, fabrication, and characterization of a passive printed radiofrequency identification tag in the ultra-high-frequency band with multiple optical sensing capabilities. This tag includes five photodiodes to cover a wide spectral range from near-infrared to visible and ultraviolet spectral regions. The tag antenna and circuit connections have been screen-printed on a flexible polymeric substrate. An ultra-low-power microcontroller-based switch has been included to measure the five magnitudes issuing from the optical sensors, providing a spectral fingerprint of the incident electromagnetic radiation from ultraviolet to infrared, without requiring energy from a battery. The normalization procedure has been designed applying illuminants, and the entire system was tested by measuring cards from a colour chart and sensing fruit ripening. PMID:27428973

Passive UHF RFID Tag for Multispectral Assessment.

PubMed

Escobedo, Pablo; Carvajal, Miguel A; Capitán-Vallvey, Luis F; Fernández-Salmerón, José; Martínez-Olmos, Antonio; Palma, Alberto J

2016-07-14

This work presents the design, fabrication, and characterization of a passive printed radiofrequency identification tag in the ultra-high-frequency band with multiple optical sensing capabilities. This tag includes five photodiodes to cover a wide spectral range from near-infrared to visible and ultraviolet spectral regions. The tag antenna and circuit connections have been screen-printed on a flexible polymeric substrate. An ultra-low-power microcontroller-based switch has been included to measure the five magnitudes issuing from the optical sensors, providing a spectral fingerprint of the incident electromagnetic radiation from ultraviolet to infrared, without requiring energy from a battery. The normalization procedure has been designed applying illuminants, and the entire system was tested by measuring cards from a colour chart and sensing fruit ripening.

Economic Statistical Design of Integrated X-bar-S Control Chart with Preventive Maintenance and General Failure Distribution

PubMed Central

Caballero Morales, Santiago Omar

2013-01-01

The application of Preventive Maintenance (PM) and Statistical Process Control (SPC) are important practices to achieve high product quality, small frequency of failures, and cost reduction in a production process. However there are some points that have not been explored in depth about its joint application. First, most SPC is performed with the X-bar control chart which does not fully consider the variability of the production process. Second, many studies of design of control charts consider just the economic aspect while statistical restrictions must be considered to achieve charts with low probabilities of false detection of failures. Third, the effect of PM on processes with different failure probability distributions has not been studied. Hence, this paper covers these points, presenting the Economic Statistical Design (ESD) of joint X-bar-S control charts with a cost model that integrates PM with general failure distribution. Experiments showed statistically significant reductions in costs when PM is performed on processes with high failure rates and reductions in the sampling frequency of units for testing under SPC. PMID:23527082

Synthesis of feedback systems with large plant ignorance for prescribed time domain tolerances

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Horowitz, I. M.; Sidi, M.

1971-01-01

There is given a minimum-phase plant transfer function, with prescribed bounds on its parameter values. The plant is imbedded in a two-degree-of freedom feedback system, which is to be designed such that the system time response to a deterministic input lies within specified boundaries. Subject to the above, the design should be such as to minimize the effect of sensor noise at the input to the plant. This report presents a design procedure for this purpose, based on frequency response concepts. The time-domain tolerances are translated into equivalent frequency response tolerances. The latter lead to bounds on the loop transmission function in the form of continuous curves on the Nichols chart. The properties of the loop transmission function which satisfy these bounds with minimum effect of sensor noise, are derived.

Surgical management of Dupuytren's contracture in Europe: regional analysis of a surgeon survey and patient chart review.

PubMed

Dias, J; Bainbridge, C; Leclercq, C; Gerber, R A; Guerin, D; Cappelleri, J C; Szczypa, P P; Dahlin, L B

2013-03-01

We explored regional variations in the surgical management of patients with Dupuytren's contracture (DC) in 12 European countries using a surgeon survey and patient chart review. Twelve countries participated: Denmark, Finland, Sweden (Nordic region); Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland (East); France, Germany, the Netherlands, UK (West); Italy, Spain (Mediterranean). For the survey, a random sample of orthopaedic/plastic surgeons (n = 687) with 3-30 years' experience was asked about DC procedures performed during the previous 12 months. For the chart review (n = 3357), information from up to five consecutive patients was extracted. Descriptive statistics are reported. Ninety-five per cent of all surgeons used fasciectomy for DC, followed by fasciotomy (70%), dermofasciectomy (38%) and percutaneous needle fasciotomy (35%). Most surgeons were satisfied with fasciectomy over other procedures. Recommended time away from work and duration of physical therapy increased with the invasiveness of the procedure. The intra-operative complication rate was 4.0%; the postoperative complication rate was 34%. Overall, ≥ 97% of the procedures were rated by surgeons as having a positive outcome. Across all regions, 54% of patients had no nodules or contracture after the procedures. Only 2% of patients required retreatment within the first year of surgery. Important inter- and intraregional differences in these aspects of patient management are described. Understanding current regional treatment patterns and their relationships to country-specific health systems may facilitate earlier identification of, and intervention for, DD and help to optimise the overall treatment for patients with this chronic condition. © 2013 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

BASIC Language Flow Charting Program (BASCHART). Technical Note 3-82.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Charles C.; And Others

This document describes BASCHART, a computer aid designed to decipher and automatically flow chart computer program logic; it also provides the computer code necessary for this process. Developed to reduce the labor intensive manual process of producing a flow chart for an undocumented or inadequately documented program, BASCHART will…

Automatic Exposure Control Systems Designed to Maintain Constant Image Noise: Effects on Computed Tomography Dose and Noise Relative to Clinically Accepted Technique Charts

PubMed Central

Favazza, Christopher P.; Yu, Lifeng; Leng, Shuai; Kofler, James M.; McCollough, Cynthia H.

2015-01-01

Objective To compare computed tomography dose and noise arising from use of an automatic exposure control (AEC) system designed to maintain constant image noise as patient size varies with clinically accepted technique charts and AEC systems designed to vary image noise. Materials and Methods A model was developed to describe tube current modulation as a function of patient thickness. Relative dose and noise values were calculated as patient width varied for AEC settings designed to yield constant or variable noise levels and were compared to empirically derived values used by our clinical practice. Phantom experiments were performed in which tube current was measured as a function of thickness using a constant-noise-based AEC system and the results were compared with clinical technique charts. Results For 12-, 20-, 28-, 44-, and 50-cm patient widths, the requirement of constant noise across patient size yielded relative doses of 5%, 14%, 38%, 260%, and 549% and relative noises of 435%, 267%, 163%, 61%, and 42%, respectively, as compared with our clinically used technique chart settings at each respective width. Experimental measurements showed that a constant noise–based AEC system yielded 175% relative noise for a 30-cm phantom and 206% relative dose for a 40-cm phantom compared with our clinical technique chart. Conclusions Automatic exposure control systems that prescribe constant noise as patient size varies can yield excessive noise in small patients and excessive dose in obese patients compared with clinically accepted technique charts. Use of noise-level technique charts and tube current limits can mitigate these effects. PMID:25938214

Evaluation of Shiryaev-Roberts Procedure for On-line Environmental Radiation Monitoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Watson, Mara Mae

An on-line radiation monitoring system that simultaneously concentrates and detects radioactivity is needed to detect an accidental leakage from a nuclear waste disposal facility or clandestine nuclear activity. Previous studies have shown that classical control chart methods can be applied to on-line radiation monitoring data to quickly detect these events as they occur; however, Bayesian control chart methods were not included in these studies. This work will evaluate the performance of a Bayesian control chart method, the Shiryaev-Roberts (SR) procedure, compared to classical control chart methods, Shewhart 3-sigma and cumulative sum (CUSUM), for use in on-line radiation monitoring of 99Tc in water using extractive scintillating resin. Measurements were collected by pumping solutions containing 0.1-5 Bq/L of 99Tc, as 99T cO4-, through a flow cell packed with extractive scintillating resin coupled to a Beta-RAM Model 5 HPLC detector. While 99T cO4- accumulated on the resin, simultaneous measurements were acquired in 10-s intervals and then re-binned to 100-s intervals. The Bayesian statistical method, Shiryaev-Roberts procedure, and classical control chart methods, Shewhart 3-sigma and cumulative sum (CUSUM), were applied to the data using statistical algorithms developed in MATLAB RTM. Two SR control charts were constructed using Poisson distributions and Gaussian distributions to estimate the likelihood ratio, and are referred to as Poisson SR and Gaussian SR to indicate the distribution used to calculate the statistic. The Poisson and Gaussian SR methods required as little as 28.9 mL less solution at 5 Bq/L and as much as 170 mL less solution at 0.5 Bq/L to exceed the control limit than the Shewhart 3-sigma method. The Poisson SR method needed as little as 6.20 mL less solution at 5 Bq/L and up to 125 mL less solution at 0.5 Bq/L to exceed the control limit than the CUSUM method. The Gaussian SR and CUSUM method required comparable solution volumes for test solutions containing at least 1.5 Bq/L of 99T c. For activity concentrations less than 1.5 Bq/L, the Gaussian SR method required as much as 40.8 mL less solution at 0.5 Bq/L to exceed the control limit than the CUSUM method. Both SR methods were able to consistently detect test solutions containing 0.1 Bq/L, unlike the Shewhart 3-sigma and CUSUM methods. Although the Poisson SR method required as much as 178 mL less solution to exceed the control limit than the Gaussian SR method, the Gaussian SR false positive of 0% was much lower than the Poisson SR false positive rate of 1.14%. A lower false positive rate made it easier to differentiate between a false positive and an increase in mean count rate caused by activity accumulating on the resin. The SR procedure is thus the ideal tool for low-level on-line radiation monitoring using extractive scintillating resin, because it needed less volume in most cases to detect an upward shift in the mean count rate than the Shewhart 3-sigma and CUSUM methods and consistently detected lower activity concentrations. The desired results for the monitoring scheme, however, need to be considered prior to choosing between the Poisson and Gaussian distribution to estimate the likelihood ratio, because each was advantageous under different circumstances. Once the control limit was exceeded, activity concentrations were estimated from the SR control chart using the slope of the control chart on a semi-logarithmic plot. Five of nine test solutions for the Poisson SR control chart produced concentration estimates within 30% of the actual value, but the worst case was 263.2% different than the actual value. The estimations for the Gaussian SR control chart were much more precise, with six of eight solutions producing estimates within 30%. Although the activity concentrations estimations were only mediocre for the Poisson SR control chart and satisfactory for the Gaussian SR control chart, these results demonstrate that a relationship exists between activity concentration and the SR control chart magnitude that can be exploited to determine the activity concentration from the SR control chart. More complex methods should be investigated to improve activity concentration estimations from the SR control charts.

AMPS data management requirements study, appendix 1. [user manuals (computer programs)/display devices - computerized simulation/experimentation/ionosphere

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1975-01-01

Flow charts and display formats for the simulation of five experiments are given. The experiments are: (1) electromagnetic wave transmission; (2) passive observations of ambient plasma; (3) ionospheric measurements with subsatellite; (4) electron accelerator beam measurements; and (5) measurement of acoustical gravity waves in the sodium layer using lasers. A detailed explanation of the simulation procedure, definition of variables, and an explanation of how the experimenter makes display choices is also presented. A functional description is included on each flow chart and the assumptions and definitions of terms and scope of the flow charts and displays are presented.

Pilot identification of symbols and an exploration of symbol design issues for electronic displays of aeronautical charting information

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2007-06-01

This report describes a study designed to address four research questions about symbology for electronic displays of charting information. The main research question was whether pilots could identify a set of test symbols. Three other research questi...

Simplified hydrodynamic analysis on the general shape of the hill charts of Francis turbines using shroud-streamline modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Iliev, I.; Trivedi, C.; Dahlhaug, O. G.

2018-06-01

The paper presents a simplified one-dimensional calculation of the efficiency hill-chart for Francis turbines, based on the velocity triangles at the inlet and outlet of the runner’s blade. Calculation is done for one streamline, namely the shroud streamline in the meridional section, where an efficiency model is established and iteratively approximated in order to satisfy the Euler equation for turbomachines at a wide operating range around the best efficiency point (BEP). Using the presented method, hill charts are calculated for one splitter-bladed Francis turbine runner and one Reversible Pump-Turbine (RPT) runner operated in the turbine mode. Both turbines have similar and relatively low specific speeds of nsQ = 23.3 and nsQ = 27, equal inlet and outlet diameters and are designed to fit in the same turbine rig for laboratory measurements (i.e. spiral casing and draft tube are the same). Calculated hill charts are compared against performance data obtained experimentally from model tests according to IEC standards for both turbines. Good agreement between theoretical and experimental results is observed when comparing the shapes of the efficiency contours in the hill-charts. The simplified analysis identifies the design parameters that defines the general shape and inclination of the turbine’s hill charts and, with some additional improvements in the loss models used, it can be used for quick assessment of the performance at off-design conditions during the design process of hydraulic turbines.

Health Indicators: A Tool for Program Review

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abou-Sayf, Frank K.

2006-01-01

A visual tool used to evaluate instructional program performance has been designed by the University of Hawaii Community College system. The tool combines features from traffic lights, blood-chemistry test reports, and industry production control charts, and is labeled the Program Health-Indicator Chart. The tool was designed to minimize the labor…

A collection of the collapsed results of general tank tests of miscellaneous flying-boat-hull models

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Locke, F W S , Jr

1947-01-01

Presented here are the summary charts of the collapsed results of general tank tests of about 100 flying boat hull models. These summary charts are intended to be used as an engineering tool to enable a flying boat designer to grasp more quickly the significance of various hull form parameters as they influence his particular airplane. The form in which the charts are prepared is discussed in some detail in order to make them clearer to the designer. This is a data report, and no attempt has been made to produce conclusions or correlations of the usual sort. However, some generalizations are put forward on the various methods in which summary charts may be used.

Operational Control Procedures for the Activated Sludge Process: Appendix.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

West, Alfred W.

This document is the appendix for a series of documents developed by the National Training and Operational Technology Center describing operational control procedures for the activated sludge process used in wastewater treatment. Categories discussed include: control test data, trend charts, moving averages, semi-logarithmic plots, probability…

[A project to improve the validity rate for nursing staff operating single door autoclave sterilizers].

PubMed

Chen, Chun-Hung; Li, Cheng-Chang; Chou, Chuan-Yu; Chen, Shu-Hwa

2009-08-01

This project was designed to improve the low validity rate for nurses responsible to operate single door autoclave sterilizers in the operating room. By investigating the current status, we found that the nursing staff validity rate of cognition on the autoclave sterilizer was 85%, and the practice operating check validity rate was only 80%. Such was due to a lack of in-service education. Problems with operation included: 1. Unsafe behaviors - not following standard procedure, lacking relevant operating knowledge and absence of a check form; 2. Unsafe environment - the conveying steam piping was typically not covered and lacked operation marks. Recommended improvement measures included: 1. holding in-service education; 2. generating an operation procedure flow chart; 3. implementing obstacle eliminating procedures; 4. covering piping to prevent fire and burns; 5. performing regular checks to ensure all procedures are followed. Following intervention, nursing staff cognition rose from 85% to 100%, while the operation validity rate rose from 80% to 100%. These changes ensure a safer operating room environment, and helps facilities move toward a zero accident rate in the healthcare environment.

Internal quality control: planning and implementation strategies.

PubMed

Westgard, James O

2003-11-01

The first essential in setting up internal quality control (IQC) of a test procedure in the clinical laboratory is to select the proper IQC procedure to implement, i.e. choosing the statistical criteria or control rules, and the number of control measurements, according to the quality required for the test and the observed performance of the method. Then the right IQC procedure must be properly implemented. This review focuses on strategies for planning and implementing IQC procedures in order to improve the quality of the IQC. A quantitative planning process is described that can be implemented with graphical tools such as power function or critical-error graphs and charts of operating specifications. Finally, a total QC strategy is formulated to minimize cost and maximize quality. A general strategy for IQC implementation is recommended that employs a three-stage design in which the first stage provides high error detection, the second stage low false rejection and the third stage prescribes the length of the analytical run, making use of an algorithm involving the average of normal patients' data.

Validating abortion procedure coding in Canadian administrative databases.

PubMed

Samiedaluie, Saied; Peterson, Sandra; Brant, Rollin; Kaczorowski, Janusz; Norman, Wendy V

2016-07-12

The British Columbia (BC) Ministry of Health collects abortion procedure data in the Medical Services Plan (MSP) physician billings database and in the hospital information Discharge Abstracts Database (DAD). Our study seeks to validate abortion procedure coding in these databases. Two randomized controlled trials enrolled a cohort of 1031 women undergoing abortion. The researcher collected database includes both enrollment and follow up chart review data. The study cohort was linked to MSP and DAD data to identify all abortions events captured in the administrative databases. We compared clinical chart data on abortion procedures with health administrative data. We considered a match to occur if an abortion related code was found in administrative data within 30 days of the date of the same event documented in a clinical chart. Among 1158 abortion events performed during enrollment and follow-up period, 99.1 % were found in at least one of the administrative data sources. The sensitivities for the two databases, evaluated using a gold standard, were 97.7 % (95 % confidence interval (CI): 96.6-98.5) for the MSP database and 91.9 % (95 % CI: 90.0-93.4) for the DAD. Abortion events coded in the BC health administrative databases are highly accurate. Single-payer health administrative databases at the provincial level in Canada have the potential to offer valid data reflecting abortion events. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier NCT01174225 , Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN19506752 .

Monitoring the Level of Students' GPAs over Time

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bakir, Saad T.; McNeal, Bob

2010-01-01

A nonparametric (or distribution-free) statistical quality control chart is used to monitor the cumulative grade point averages (GPAs) of students over time. The chart is designed to detect any statistically significant positive or negative shifts in student GPAs from a desired target level. This nonparametric control chart is based on the…

Factors to Consider in Designing Aerosol Inlet Systems for Engine Exhaust Plume Sampling

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, Bruce

2004-01-01

This document consists of viewgraphs of charts and diagrams of considerations to take when sampling the engine exhaust plume. It includes a chart that compares the emissions from various fuels, a diagram and charts of the various processes and conditions that influence the particulate size and concentration,

Dental Charting. Learning Activities, Unit Tests, Progress Chart, and Work Sheet.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Texas Univ., Austin. Center for Occupational Curriculum Development.

These materials are part of a series dealing with skills and information needed by students in dental assisting. The individualized student materials are suitable for classroom, laboratory, or cooperative training programs. These student materials, designed to be used with the Dental Charting Student Manual, consist of learning activities, unit…

Construction and validation of a Tamil logMAR chart.

PubMed

Varadharajan, Srinivasa; Srinivasan, Krithica; Kumaresan, Brindha

2009-09-01

To design, construct and validate a new Tamil logMAR visual acuity chart based on current recommendations. Ten Tamil letters of equal legibility were identified experimentally and were used in the chart. Two charts, one internally illuminated and one externally illuminated, were constructed for testing at 4 m distance. The repeatability of the two charts was tested. For validation, the two charts were compared with a standard English logMAR chart (ETDRS). When compared to the ETDRS chart, a difference of 0.06 +/- 0.07 and 0.07 +/- 0.07 logMAR was found for the internally and externally illuminated charts respectively. Limits of agreement between the internally illuminated Tamil logMAR chart and ETDRS chart were found to be (-0.08, 0.19), and (-0.07, 0.20) for the externally illuminated chart. The test - retest results showed a difference of 0.02 +/- 0.04 and 0.02 +/- 0.06 logMAR for the internally and externally illuminated charts respectively. Limits of agreement for repeated measurements for the internally illuminated Tamil logMAR chart were found to be (-0.06, 0.10), and (-0.10, 0.14) for the externally illuminated chart. The newly constructed Tamil logMAR charts have good repeatability. The difference in visual acuity scores between the newly constructed Tamil logMAR chart and the standard English logMAR chart was within acceptable limits. This new chart can be used for measuring visual acuity in the literate Tamil population.

Administrative Plans. STIP II (Skill Training Improvement Programs Round II).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Los Angeles Community Coll. District, CA.

Personnel policies, job responsibilities, and accounting procedures are summarized for the Los Angeles Community College District's Skill Training Improvement Programs (STIP II). This report first cites references to the established personnel and affirmative action procedures governing the program and then presents an organizational chart for the…

Control of Technology Transfer at JPL

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Oliver, Ronald

2006-01-01

Controlled Technology: 1) Design: preliminary or critical design data, schematics, technical flow charts, SNV code/diagnostics, logic flow diagrams, wirelist, ICDs, detailed specifications or requirements. 2) Development: constraints, computations, configurations, technical analyses, acceptance criteria, anomaly resolution, detailed test plans, detailed technical proposals. 3) Production: process or how-to: assemble, operated, repair, maintain, modify. 4) Manufacturing: technical instructions, specific parts, specific materials, specific qualities, specific processes, specific flow. 5) Operations: how-to operate, contingency or standard operating plans, Ops handbooks. 6) Repair: repair instructions, troubleshooting schemes, detailed schematics. 7) Test: specific procedures, data, analysis, detailed test plan and retest plans, detailed anomaly resolutions, detailed failure causes and corrective actions, troubleshooting, trended test data, flight readiness data. 8) Maintenance: maintenance schedules and plans, methods for regular upkeep, overhaul instructions. 9) Modification: modification instructions, upgrades kit parts, including software

Problematics of Time and Timing in the Longitudinal Study of Human Development: Theoretical and Methodological Issues

PubMed Central

Lerner, Richard M.; Schwartz, Seth J; Phelps, Erin

2009-01-01

Studying human development involves describing, explaining, and optimizing intraindividual change and interindividual differences in such change and, as such, requires longitudinal research. The selection of the appropriate type of longitudinal design requires selecting the option that best addresses the theoretical questions asked about developmental process and the use of appropriate statistical procedures to best exploit data derived from theory-predicated longitudinal research. This paper focuses on several interrelated problematics involving the treatment of time and the timing of observations that developmental scientists face in creating theory-design fit and in charting in change-sensitive ways developmental processes across life. We discuss ways in which these problematics may be addressed to advance theory-predicated understanding of the role of time in processes of individual development. PMID:19554215

Auditing psychiatric out-patient records.

PubMed

Pillay, Selena; O'Dwyer, Sarah; McCarthy, Marguerite

2010-01-01

Up-to-date patient records are essential for safe and professional practice. They are an intrinsic component for providing adequate care and ensuring appropriate and systematic treatment 2009 plans. Furthermore, accurate and contemporaneous notes are essential for achieving professional standards from a medico-legal perspective. The study's main aim was to investigate current record-keeping practices by looking at whether out-patient communication pathways to general practitioners, from letter dictation to insertion in the chart, were being satisfied. From current out-patient attendees over six months, 100 charts were chosen randomly, and reviewed. A pro-forma was used to collect data and this information was also checked against electronic records. Of the charts reviewed, 15 per cent had no letter. If one considers that one-month is an acceptable time for letters to be inserted into the chart, then only 11 per cent satisfied this condition. Electronic data were also missing. It is impossible to discern whether letters to GPs were dictated by the out-patient doctor for each patient reviewed. Another limitation was that some multidisciplinary hospital teams have different out-patient note-keeping procedures, which makes some findings difficult to interpret. The review drew attention to current record-keeping discrepancies, highlighting the need for medical record-keeping procedures and polices to be put in place. Also brought to light was the importance of providing a workforce sufficient to meet the out-patient team's administrative needs. An extended audit of other medical record-keeping aspects should be carried out to determine whether problems occur in other areas. The study highlights the importance of establishing agreed policies and procedures for out-patient record keeping and the need to have a checking mechanism to identify system weaknesses.

Design charts for arbitrarily pivoted, liquid-lubricated flat-sector-pad thrust bearing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Etsion, I.

1977-01-01

A flat, sector-shaped geometry for a liquid-lubricated thrust bearing is analyzed considering both the pitch and roll of the pad. Results are presented in design charts that enable a direct approach to the design of point- and line-pivoted, tilting pad bearings. A comparison is made with the Mitchell bearing approximation and it is found that this approximation always overestimates load capacity.

A comparison of multiprocessor scheduling methods for iterative data flow architectures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Storch, Matthew

1993-01-01

A comparative study is made between the Algorithm to Architecture Mapping Model (ATAMM) and three other related multiprocessing models from the published literature. The primary focus of all four models is the non-preemptive scheduling of large-grain iterative data flow graphs as required in real-time systems, control applications, signal processing, and pipelined computations. Important characteristics of the models such as injection control, dynamic assignment, multiple node instantiations, static optimum unfolding, range-chart guided scheduling, and mathematical optimization are identified. The models from the literature are compared with the ATAMM for performance, scheduling methods, memory requirements, and complexity of scheduling and design procedures.

A flight test design for studying airborne applications of air to ground duplex data link communications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Scanlon, Charles H.

1988-01-01

The Automatic En Route Air Traffic Control (AERA) and the Advanced Automated System (AAS) of the NAS plan, call for utilization of data links for such items as computer generated flight clearances, enroute minimum safe altitude warnings, sector probes, out of conformance check, automated flight services, and flow management of advisories. A major technical challenge remaining is the integration, flight testing, and validation of data link equipment and procedures in the aircraft cockpit. The flight test organizational chart, was designed to have the airplane side of data link experiments implemented in the NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) experimental Boeing 737 airplane. This design would enable investigations into implementation of data link equipment and pilot interface, operations, and procedures. The illustrated ground system consists of a work station with links to a national weather database and a data link transceiver system. The data link transceiver system could be a Mode-S transponder, ACARS, AVSAT, or another type of radio system such as the military type HF data link. The airborne system was designed so that a data link transceiver, workstation, and touch panel could be interfaced with an input output processor to the aircraft system bus and thus have communications access to other digital airplane systems.

Improving DoD Logistics: Perspectives from Rand Research, Volume 1,

DTIC Science & Technology

1995-01-01

strategic lift, and a more dynamic environment in which plans and priorities rapidly changed and units frequently moved. As in the previous chart...legislation, regulations, or local procedures.5 4 Many of these limits are imposed on DoD by Congress, with the explicit or implicit intent to protect DoD...propagate process improvements more widely. This chart lists elements of some of these programs. The intent is not to evaluate or to be exhaustive but to

Planar Poincare chart - A planar graphic representation of the state of light polarization

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tedjojuwono, Ken K.; Hunter, William W., Jr.; Ocheltree, Stewart L.

1989-01-01

The planar Poincare chart, which represents the complete planar equivalence of the Poincare sphere, is proposed. The four sets of basic lines are drawn on two separate charts for the generalization and convenience of reading the scale. The chart indicates the rotation of the principal axes of linear birefringent material. The relationships between parameters of the two charts are given as 2xi-2phi (orientation angle of the major axis-ellipticity angle) pair and 2alpha-delta (angle of amplitude ratio-phase difference angle) pair. The results are useful for designing and analyzing polarization properties of optical components with birefringent properties.

Portable device technology in organ donation: new "app" for procurement coordinators.

PubMed

Cavallin, M; Bertini, P; Lopane, P; Guarracino, F

2014-09-01

Portable devices are commonly used at bedside in everyday practice. Transplant procurement coordinators routinely have to deal with protocols and flow charts and need to assess the donor condition several times. In our experience, a great part of the organ procurement management work is provided by nurses "on call." We developed an application for iOS devices to facilitate their approach to relatives and procedures for organ donation. The application, which includes algorithms, tutorials, and simple calculators, has been designed by transplant procurement coordinators to speed up the process of organ donation and at the same time to be as accurate as possible for the process. It can be used alongside all of the procedures for procurement in the emergency room, intensive care unit, operating room, and morgue in both brainstem-dead and cadaver organ donors. The application could be effective in organ procurement management for everyday practice. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

User's manual for rocket combustor interactive design (ROCCID) and analysis computer program. Volume 2: Appendixes A-K

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Muss, J. A.; Nguyen, T. V.; Johnson, C. W.

1991-01-01

The appendices A-K to the user's manual for the rocket combustor interactive design (ROCCID) computer program are presented. This includes installation instructions, flow charts, subroutine model documentation, and sample output files. The ROCCID program, written in Fortran 77, provides a standardized methodology using state of the art codes and procedures for the analysis of a liquid rocket engine combustor's steady state combustion performance and combustion stability. The ROCCID is currently capable of analyzing mixed element injector patterns containing impinging like doublet or unlike triplet, showerhead, shear coaxial and swirl coaxial elements as long as only one element type exists in each injector core, baffle, or barrier zone. Real propellant properties of oxygen, hydrogen, methane, propane, and RP-1 are included in ROCCID. The properties of other propellants can be easily added. The analysis models in ROCCID can account for the influences of acoustic cavities, helmholtz resonators, and radial thrust chamber baffles on combustion stability. ROCCID also contains the logic to interactively create a combustor design which meets input performance and stability goals. A preliminary design results from the application of historical correlations to the input design requirements. The steady state performance and combustion stability of this design is evaluated using the analysis models, and ROCCID guides the user as to the design changes required to satisfy the user's performance and stability goals, including the design of stability aids. Output from ROCCID includes a formatted input file for the standardized JANNAF engine performance prediction procedure.

Modified Exponential Weighted Moving Average (EWMA) Control Chart on Autocorrelation Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Herdiani, Erna Tri; Fandrilla, Geysa; Sunusi, Nurtiti

2018-03-01

In general, observations of the statistical process control are assumed to be mutually independence. However, this assumption is often violated in practice. Consequently, statistical process controls were developed for interrelated processes, including Shewhart, Cumulative Sum (CUSUM), and exponentially weighted moving average (EWMA) control charts in the data that were autocorrelation. One researcher stated that this chart is not suitable if the same control limits are used in the case of independent variables. For this reason, it is necessary to apply the time series model in building the control chart. A classical control chart for independent variables is usually applied to residual processes. This procedure is permitted provided that residuals are independent. In 1978, Shewhart modification for the autoregressive process was introduced by using the distance between the sample mean and the target value compared to the standard deviation of the autocorrelation process. In this paper we will examine the mean of EWMA for autocorrelation process derived from Montgomery and Patel. Performance to be investigated was investigated by examining Average Run Length (ARL) based on the Markov Chain Method.

Students Chart Their Own IA Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lavender, John; Ross, John

1973-01-01

Junior high school industrial arts students learn in a program in which they select their area of learning, manage their activities, supervise themselves in procedures, and investigate career opportunities. (DS)

Project on Teaching Charts and Graphs to ABE Students. Part I: Teacher's Guide [and] Part II: Transparency Assembly Package.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Renton Vocational Inst., WA.

The teacher's guide and collection of transparency masters are designed for use in teaching adult basic education (ABE) students how to read and interpret graphs and charts. Covered in the individual lessons of the instructional unit are the reading and interpretation of charts as well as picture, line, bar, and circle graphs. Each unit contains a…

Surgery for vertigo: 10-year audit from a contemporary vertigo clinic.

PubMed

Patnaik, U; Srivastava, A; Sikka, K; Thakar, A

2015-12-01

To present the profile of patients undergoing surgical treatment for vertigo at a contemporary institutional vertigo clinic. A retrospective analysis of clinical charts. The charts of 1060 patients, referred to an institutional vertigo clinic from January 2003 to December 2012, were studied. The clinical profile and long-term outcomes of patients who underwent surgery were analysed. Of 1060 patients, 12 (1.13 per cent) were managed surgically. Of these, disease-modifying surgical procedures included perilymphatic fistula repair (n = 7) and microvascular decompression of the vestibular nerve (n = 1). Labyrinth destructive procedures included transmastoid labyrinthectomy (n = 2) and labyrinthectomy with vestibular nerve section (n = 1). One patient with vestibular schwannoma underwent both a disease-modifying and destructive procedure (translabyrinthine excision). All patients achieved excellent vertigo control, classified as per the American Academy of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery 1995 criteria. With the advent of intratympanic treatments, surgical treatments for vertigo have become further limited. However, surgery with directed intent, in select patients, can give excellent results.

Human factors flight trial analysis for 3D SVS: part II

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schiefele, Jens; Howland, Duncan; Maris, John; Pschierer, Christian; Wipplinger, Patrick; Meuter, Michael

2005-05-01

This paper describes flight trials performed in Centennial, CO using a Piper Cheyenne owned and operated by Marinvent. The goal of the flight trial was to evaluate the objective performance of pilots using conventional paper charts or a 3D SVS display. Six pilots flew thirty-six approaches to the Colorado Springs airport to accomplish this goal. As dependent variables, positional accuracy and situational awareness probe (SAP) statistics were measured while analysis was conducted by an ANOVA test. In parallel, all pilots answered subjective Cooper-Harper, NASA TLX, situation awareness rating technique (SART), Display Readability Rating, Display Flyability Rating and debriefing questionnaires. Three different settings (paper chart, electronic navigation chart, 3D SVS display) were evaluated in a totally randomized manner. This paper describes the comparison between the conventional paper chart and the 3D SVS display. The 3D SVS primary flight display provides a depiction of primary flight data as well as a 3D depiction of airports, terrain and obstacles. In addition, a 3D dynamic channel visualizing the selected approach procedure can be displayed. The result shows that pilots flying the 3D SVS display perform no worse than pilots with the conventional paper chart. Flight technical error and workload are lower, situational awareness is equivalent with conventional paper charts.

Sherlock Holmes in the Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Faia, Jean E.

1988-01-01

Describes a three-day classroom activity combining criminal investigations and scientific skills, especially observation skills. Provides detailed classroom procedures with an illustration of eight basic fingerprint patterns and a classification chart. (YP)

75 FR 42308 - Standard Instrument Approach Procedures, and Takeoff Minimums and Obstacle Departure Procedures...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-07-21

... previously by the FAA in a Flight Data Center (FDC) Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) as an emergency action of immediate flight safety relating directly to published aeronautical charts. The circumstances which created... Locks, CT, Bradley Intl, RNAV (RNP) Z RWY 15, Orig-A Orlando, FL, Kissimmee Gateway, ILS OR LOC RWY 15...

Temporary Arterial Balloon Occlusion as an Adjunct to Yttrium-90 Radioembolization

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hagspiel, Klaus D., E-mail: kdh2n@virginia.edu; Nambiar, Ashwin, E-mail: uvashwin@gmail.com; Hagspiel, Lauren M., E-mail: lmh4gg@virginia.edu

2013-06-15

Purpose. This study was designed to describe the technique of arterial occlusion using a temporary occlusion balloon system as an alternative to coil occlusion during Yttrium-90 radioembolization of hepatic tumors. Methods. Review of charts, angiography, and follow-up imaging studies of consecutive patients undergoing oncological embolization procedures in which a HyperForm system (ev3 Neurovascular, Irvine, CA) was used. Intraprocedural target vessel occlusion and patency of the target vessel on follow-up were recorded. Clinical data and Bremsstrahlung scans were reviewed for evidence of nontarget embolization. Results. Four radioembolization procedures were performed in three patients (all female, age 48-54 (mean 52) years). Fivemore » arteries were temporarily occluded (three gastroduodenal arteries, one right gastric artery, and one cystic artery). All radioembolization procedures were successfully completed. Follow-up imaging (either digital subtraction angiography (DSA) or computed tomography angiography (CTA)) was available for all patients between 28-454 (mean 183) days following the procedure, demonstrating all five vessels to be patent. No clinical or imaging evidence for nontarget embolization was found. Conclusions. Temporary balloon occlusion of small and medium-sized arteries during radioembolization allows safe therapy with preserved postprocedural vessel patency on early and midterm follow-up.« less

Design charts for predicting downwash angles and wake characteristics behind plain and flapped wings

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Silverstein, Abe; Katzoff, S

1939-01-01

Equations and design charts are given for predicting the downwash angles and the wake characteristics for power-off conditions behind plain and flapped wings of the types used in modern design practice. The downwash charts cover the cases of elliptical wings and wings of taper ratios 1, 2, 3, and 5, with aspect ratios of 6, 9, and 12, having flaps covering 0, 40, 70, and 100 percent of the span. Curves of the span load distributions for all these cases are included. Data on the lift and the drag of flapped airfoil sections and curves for finding the contribution of the flap to the total wing lift for different types of flap and for the entire range of flap spans are also included. The wake width and the distribution of dynamic pressure across the wake are given in terms of the profile-drag coefficient and the distance behind the wing. A method of estimating the wake position is also given. The equations and charts are based on theory that has been shown in a previous report to be in agreement with experiment.

Diagrams: A Visual Survey of Graphs, Maps, Charts and Diagrams for the Graphic Designer.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lockwood, Arthur

Since the ultimate success of any diagram rests in its clarity, it is important that the designer select a method of presentation which will achieve this aim. He should be aware of the various ways in which statistics can be shown diagrammatically, how information can be incorporated in maps, and how events can be plotted in chart or graph form.…

Designing Shelter in New Buildings. A Manual for Architects on the Preliminary Designing of Shielding from Fallout Gamma Radiation in Normally Functioning Spaces in New Buildings.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Knott, Albert

Analysis of radiation fallout prevention factors in new construction is presented with emphasis on architectural shielding principles. Numerous diagrams and charts illustrate--(1) radiation and fallout properties, (2) building protection principles, (3) details and planning suggestions, and (4) tabular data interpretation. A series of charts is…

Validity of diagnoses, procedures, and laboratory data in Japanese administrative data.

PubMed

Yamana, Hayato; Moriwaki, Mutsuko; Horiguchi, Hiromasa; Kodan, Mariko; Fushimi, Kiyohide; Yasunaga, Hideo

2017-10-01

Validation of recorded data is a prerequisite for studies that utilize administrative databases. The present study evaluated the validity of diagnoses and procedure records in the Japanese Diagnosis Procedure Combination (DPC) data, along with laboratory test results in the newly-introduced Standardized Structured Medical Record Information Exchange (SS-MIX) data. Between November 2015 and February 2016, we conducted chart reviews of 315 patients hospitalized between April 2014 and March 2015 in four middle-sized acute-care hospitals in Shizuoka, Kochi, Fukuoka, and Saga Prefectures and used them as reference standards. The sensitivity and specificity of DPC data in identifying 16 diseases and 10 common procedures were identified. The accuracy of SS-MIX data for 13 laboratory test results was also examined. The specificity of diagnoses in the DPC data exceeded 96%, while the sensitivity was below 50% for seven diseases and variable across diseases. When limited to primary diagnoses, the sensitivity and specificity were 78.9% and 93.2%, respectively. The sensitivity of procedure records exceeded 90% for six procedures, and the specificity exceeded 90% for nine procedures. Agreement between the SS-MIX data and the chart reviews was above 95% for all 13 items. The validity of diagnoses and procedure records in the DPC data and laboratory results in the SS-MIX data was high in general, supporting their use in future studies. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Solar energy system economic evaluation: IBM System 4, Clinton, Mississippi

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1980-01-01

An economic analysis of the solar energy system was developed for five sites, typical of a wide range of environmental and economic conditions in the continental United States. The analysis was based on the technical and economic models in the F-chart design procedure, with inputs based on the characteristic of the installed system and local conditions. The results are of the economic parameters of present worth of system cost over a 20 year time span: life cycle savings, year of positive savings and year of payback for the optimized solar energy system at each of the analysis sites. The sensitivity of the economic evaluation to uncertainties in constituent system and economic variables is also investigated.

A general panel sizing computer code and its application to composite structural panels

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, M. S.; Stroud, W. J.

1978-01-01

A computer code for obtaining the dimensions of optimum (least mass) stiffened composite structural panels is described. The procedure, which is based on nonlinear mathematical programming and a rigorous buckling analysis, is applicable to general cross sections under general loading conditions causing buckling. A simplified method of accounting for bow-type imperfections is also included. Design studies in the form of structural efficiency charts for axial compression loading are made with the code for blade and hat stiffened panels. The effects on panel mass of imperfections, material strength limitations, and panel stiffness requirements are also examined. Comparisons with previously published experimental data show that accounting for imperfections improves correlation between theory and experiment.

Multidisciplinary approach for in-deep assessment of joint prosthesis failure.

PubMed

Tessarolo, F; Caola, I; Piccoli, F; Dorigotti, P; Demattè, E; Molinari, M; Malavolta, M; Barbareschi, M; Caciagli, P; Nollo, G

2009-01-01

In spite of advancement in biomaterials and biomechanics, in development of new osteo-integrative materials and coatings, and in macro- micro- component design, a non negligible fraction of the implanted prosthesis fails before the expected lifetime. A prospective observational clinical study has been conducted to define and apply a set of experimental techniques to in-deep assess the failure of joint prosthesis. Microbiological, histological and micro-structural techniques were implemented to specifically address phenomena occurring at the tissue-implant interface. Results obtained from 27 cases of prosthetic joint failure are discussed in terms of sensitivity and specificity. A procedural flow-chart is finally proposed for the assessment of joint prosthesis failure.

Design Considerations for IAP Charts Approach Course Track and Communication Frequencies

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1991-08-01

This report describes two experiments evaluating format changes on instrument approach : plates (IAPs). The study used a simple chart reading task to assess information : transfer in IAPs. : The first experiment addressed different methods of display...

Sticker charts: a method for improving adherence to treatment of chronic diseases in children.

PubMed

Luersen, Kara; Davis, Scott A; Kaplan, Sebastian G; Abel, Troy D; Winchester, Woodrow W; Feldman, Steven R

2012-01-01

Poor adherence is a common problem and may be an underlying cause of poor clinical outcomes. In pediatric populations, positive reinforcement techniques such as sticker charts may increase motivation to adhere to treatment regimens. To review the use of sticker charts to improve adherence in children with chronic disease, Medline and PsycINFO searches were conducted using the key words "positive reinforcement OR behavior therapy" and "adherence OR patient compliance" and "child." Randomized controlled retrospective cohort or single-subject-design studies were selected. Studies reporting adherence to the medical treatment of chronic disease in children using positive reinforcement techniques were included in the analysis. The systematic search was supplemented by identifying additional studies identified through the reference lists and authors of the initial articles found. Positive reinforcement techniques such as sticker charts increase adherence to medical treatment regimens. In several studies, this effect was maintained for months after the initial intervention. Better adherence correlated with better clinical outcomes in some, but not all, studies. Few studies examining the use of sticker charts were identified. Although single-subject-design studies are useful in establishing the effect of a behavioral intervention, larger randomized controlled trials would help determine the precise efficacy of sticker chart interventions. Adherence to medical treatments in children can be increased using sticker charts or other positive reinforcement techniques. This may be an effective means to encourage children with atopic dermatitis to apply their medications and improve clinical outcomes. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Absorption of infrared radiation by carbon monoxide at elevated temperatures and pressures: Part B. Total emissivity charts and correlations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alberti, Michael; Weber, Roman; Mancini, Marco

2017-10-01

The line-by-line procedure developed in the associated paper (Part A ) has been used to generate the total emissivity chart for pure CO and CO -N2 /air mixtures at 1 bar total pressure, in the 300 to 3000 K temperature and 0.01 to 3000 bar cm pressure path length range. Methods of scaling the emissivity to pressures different to 1 bar, in the range 0.1 to 40 bar, are provided through pressure correction graphs and EXCEL interpolator (Supplementary Material). The interpolated emissivities are within ± 2% margin from the line-by-line calculated values. The newly developed emissivity graphs are substantially more accurate than the existing Ulrich (1936) & Hottel (1954) and Abu-Romia & Tien (1966) charts.

Prompting a consumer behavior for pollution control1

PubMed Central

Geller, E. Scott; Farris, John C.; Post, David S.

1973-01-01

A field application of behavior modification studied the relative effectiveness of different prompting procedures for increasing the probability that customers entering a grocery store would select their soft drinks in returnable rather than nonreturnable containers. Six different 2-hr experimental conditions during which bottle purchases were recorded were (1) No Prompt (i.e., control), (2) one student gave incoming customers a handbill urging the purchase of soft drinks in returnable bottles, (3) distribution of the handbill by one student and public charting of each customer's bottle purchases by another student, (4) handbill distribution and charting by a five-member group, (5) handbills distributed and purchases charted by three females. The variant prompting techniques were equally effective, and in general increased the percentage of returnable-bottle customers by an average of 25%. PMID:16795418

Prompting a consumer behavior for pollution control.

PubMed

Geller, E S; Farris, J C; Post, D S

1973-01-01

A field application of behavior modification studied the relative effectiveness of different prompting procedures for increasing the probability that customers entering a grocery store would select their soft drinks in returnable rather than nonreturnable containers. Six different 2-hr experimental conditions during which bottle purchases were recorded were (1) No Prompt (i.e., control), (2) one student gave incoming customers a handbill urging the purchase of soft drinks in returnable bottles, (3) distribution of the handbill by one student and public charting of each customer's bottle purchases by another student, (4) handbill distribution and charting by a five-member group, (5) handbills distributed and purchases charted by three females. The variant prompting techniques were equally effective, and in general increased the percentage of returnable-bottle customers by an average of 25%.

46 CFR Appendix III to Part 150 - Testing Procedures for Determining Exceptions to the Chart

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... provided with shields. Testing chemicals other than liquids—The procedure outlined below was developed for... test tube to a stand behind a safety shield (in a hood). Carefully add from a dropper 0.5ml of the... mixture. The Dewar flask is equipped with a magnetic stirrer having a stirring bar coated with an inert...

46 CFR Appendix III to Part 150 - Testing Procedures for Determining Exceptions to the Chart

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... provided with shields. Testing chemicals other than liquids—The procedure outlined below was developed for... test tube to a stand behind a safety shield (in a hood). Carefully add from a dropper 0.5ml of the... mixture. The Dewar flask is equipped with a magnetic stirrer having a stirring bar coated with an inert...

46 CFR Appendix III to Part 150 - Testing Procedures for Determining Exceptions to the Chart

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... provided with shields. Testing chemicals other than liquids—The procedure outlined below was developed for... test tube to a stand behind a safety shield (in a hood). Carefully add from a dropper 0.5ml of the... mixture. The Dewar flask is equipped with a magnetic stirrer having a stirring bar coated with an inert...

Alternative Methods for Calculating Intercoder Reliability in Content Analysis: Kappa, Weighted Kappa and Agreement Charts Procedures.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kang, Namjun

If content analysis is to satisfy the requirement of objectivity, measures and procedures must be reliable. Reliability is usually measured by the proportion of agreement of all categories identically coded by different coders. For such data to be empirically meaningful, a high degree of inter-coder reliability must be demonstrated. Researchers in…

Control Chart on Semi Analytical Weighting

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miranda, G. S.; Oliveira, C. C.; Silva, T. B. S. C.; Stellato, T. B.; Monteiro, L. R.; Marques, J. R.; Faustino, M. G.; Soares, S. M. V.; Ulrich, J. C.; Pires, M. A. F.; Cotrim, M. E. B.

2018-03-01

Semi-analytical balance verification intends to assess the balance performance using graphs that illustrate measurement dispersion, trough time, and to demonstrate measurements were performed in a reliable manner. This study presents internal quality control of a semi-analytical balance (GEHAKA BG400) using control charts. From 2013 to 2016, 2 weight standards were monitored before any balance operation. This work intended to evaluate if any significant difference or bias were presented on weighting procedure over time, to check the generated data reliability. This work also exemplifies how control intervals are established.

Management Control Systems in Not-for-Profit Organizations: A Case Study.

DTIC Science & Technology

1982-12-01

UNCLASSIFIED F/G 5/1 NL mhmmhhhhhmhmmum IEIIEEIIIIIEEE EIIIIIIIIIIIIl Diiit 1.1_I220 H- M141116 MICROCOPY RESOLUION4 TEST CHART 14ATIONAL BUREAU Of... test case. C. RESEARCH RET HODS The first phase of the study was a review of current literature on management control procedures and systems in...RESOLUTION TEST CHART NATIONAL BUREAU 0f SIANDARD 96% A I II a U a .1 ii IiU- I! IA i -~ - U I -..................... I I ~ 3 ,’u!nAA~~ -~~j ~; Eu ~ II 8I~ ~B

HAL/SM system functional design specification. [systems analysis and design analysis of central processing units

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ross, C.; Williams, G. P. W., Jr.

1975-01-01

The functional design of a preprocessor, and subsystems is described. A structure chart and a data flow diagram are included for each subsystem. Also a group of intermodule interface definitions (one definition per module) is included immediately following the structure chart and data flow for a particular subsystem. Each of these intermodule interface definitions consists of the identification of the module, the function the module is to perform, the identification and definition of parameter interfaces to the module, and any design notes associated with the module. Also described are compilers and computer libraries.

Hitler's Death Camps.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wieser, Paul

1995-01-01

Presents a high school lesson on Hitler's death camps and the widespread policy of brutality and oppression against European Jews. Includes student objectives, instructional procedures, and a chart listing the value of used clothing taken from the Jews. (CFR)

CPM and PERT in Library Management.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Main, Linda

1989-01-01

Discusses two techniques of systems analysis--Critical Path Method (CPM) and Program Evaluation Review Techniques (PERT)--and their place in library management. An overview of CPM and PERT charting procedures is provided. (11 references) (Author/MES)

Utah geothermal institutional handbook

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wagstaff, L.W.; Green, S.

1982-01-01

Included in the Handbook are lists of the main permits required and the names of agencies and persons associated with the permits; a summary of pertinent laws, regulations, and permits; and charts outlining typical development and permitting procedures.

Systems safety monitoring using the National Full-Scale Aerodynamic Complex Bar Chart Monitor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jung, Oscar

1990-01-01

Attention is given to the Bar Chart Monitor system designed for safety monitoring of all model and facility test-related articles in wind tunnels. The system's salient features and its integration into the data acquisition system are discussed.

Infection and natural history of emergency department-placed central venous catheters.

PubMed

LeMaster, Christopher H; Schuur, Jeremiah D; Pandya, Darshan; Pallin, Daniel J; Silvia, Jennifer; Yokoe, Deborah; Agrawal, Ashish; Hou, Peter C

2010-11-01

Central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI, hereafter referred to in this paper as "bloodstream infection") is a leading cause of hospital-acquired infection. To our knowledge, there are no previously published studies designed to determine the rate of bloodstream infection among central venous catheters placed in the emergency department (ED). We design a retrospective chart review methodology to determine bloodstream infection and duration of catheterization for central venous catheters placed in the ED. Using hospital infection control, administrative, and ED billing databases, we identified patients with central venous catheters placed in the ED between January 1, 2007, and December 31, 2008, at one academic, urban ED with an annual census of 57,000. We performed a structured, explicit chart review to determine duration of catheterization and confirm bloodstream infection. We screened 4,251 charts and identified 656 patients with central venous catheters inserted in the ED, 3,622 catheter-days, and 7 bloodstream infections. The rate of bloodstream infection associated with central venous catheters placed in the ED was 1.93 per 1,000 catheter-days (95% confidence interval 0.50 to 3.36). The mean duration of catheterization was 5.5 days (median 4; range 1 to 29 days). Among infected central venous catheters, the mean duration of catheterization was 8.6 days (median 7; range 2 to 19 days). A total of 667 central venous catheters were placed in the internal jugular (392; 59%), subclavian (145; 22%), and femoral (130; 19%) veins. The sensitivity of using ED procedural billing code for identifying ED-placed central venous catheters among patients subsequently admitted to any ICU was 74.9% (95% confidence interval 71.4% to 78.3%). The rate of ED bloodstream infection at our institution is similar to current rates in ICUs. Central venous catheters placed in the ED remain in admitted patients for a substantial period. Copyright © 2010 American College of Emergency Physicians. Published by Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

Bar-Chart-Monitor System For Wind Tunnels

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jung, Oscar

1993-01-01

Real-time monitor system provides bar-chart displays of significant operating parameters developed for National Full-Scale Aerodynamic Complex at Ames Research Center. Designed to gather and process sensory data on operating conditions of wind tunnels and models, and displays data for test engineers and technicians concerned with safety and validation of operating conditions. Bar-chart video monitor displays data in as many as 50 channels at maximum update rate of 2 Hz in format facilitating quick interpretation.

Representativeness comparisons of nurse and computer charting of heart rate across nursing-intensity protocols.

PubMed

Luna, Jorge M; Yip, Natalie; Pivovarov, Rimma; Vawdrey, David K

2016-08-01

Clinical teams in acute inpatient settings can greatly benefit from automated charting technologies that continuously monitor patient vital status. NewYork-Presbyterian has designed and developed a real-time patient monitoring system that integrates vital signs sensors, networking, and electronic health records, to allow for automatic charting of patient status. We evaluate the representativeness (a combination of agreement, safety and timing) of a core vital sign across nursing intensity care protocols for preliminary feasibility assessment. Our findings suggest an automated way of summarizing heart rate provides representation of true heart rate status and can facilitate alternatives approaches to burdensome manual nurse charting of physiological parameters.

Flowcharting with D-charts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Meyer, D.

1985-01-01

A D-Chart is a style of flowchart using control symbols highly appropriate to modern structured programming languages. The intent of a D-Chart is to provide a clear and concise one-for-one mapping of control symbols to high-level language constructs for purposes of design and documentation. The notation lends itself to both high-level and code-level algorithmic description. The various issues that may arise when representing, in D-Chart style, algorithms expressed in the more popular high-level languages are addressed. In particular, the peculiarities of mapping control constructs for Ada, PASCAL, FORTRAN 77, C, PL/I, Jovial J73, HAL/S, and Algol are discussed.

Flowcharting with D-charts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Meyer, D. D.

1985-01-01

A D-Chart is a style of flowchart using control symbols highly appropriate to modern structured programming languages. The intent of a D-Chart is to provide a clear and concise one-for-one mapping of control symbols to high-level language constructs for purposes of design and documentation. The notation lends itself to both high-level and code-level algorithmic description. The various issues that may arise when representing, in D-Chart style, algorithms expressed in the more popular high-level languages are addressed. In particular, the peculiarities of mapping control constructs for Ada, PASCAL, FORTRAN 77, C, PL/I, Joviai J73, HAL/S, and Algol are discussed.

Decision support tool for diagnosing the source of variation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Masood, Ibrahim; Azrul Azhad Haizan, Mohamad; Norbaya Jumali, Siti; Ghazali, Farah Najihah Mohd; Razali, Hazlin Syafinaz Md; Shahir Yahya, Mohd; Azlan, Mohd Azwir bin

2017-08-01

Identifying the source of unnatural variation (SOV) in manufacturing process is essential for quality control. The Shewhart control chart patterns (CCPs) are commonly used to monitor the SOV. However, a proper interpretation of CCPs associated to its SOV requires a high skill industrial practitioner. Lack of knowledge in process engineering will lead to erroneous corrective action. The objective of this study is to design the operating procedures of computerized decision support tool (DST) for process diagnosis. The DST is an embedded tool in CCPs recognition scheme. Design methodology involves analysis of relationship between geometrical features, manufacturing process and CCPs. The DST contents information about CCPs and its possible root cause error and description on SOV phenomenon such as process deterioration in tool bluntness, offsetting tool, loading error, and changes in materials hardness. The DST will be useful for an industrial practitioner in making effective troubleshooting.

Monitoring radiation use in cardiac fluoroscopy imaging procedures

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Stevens, Nathaniel T.; Steiner, Stefan H.; Smith, Ian R.

2011-01-15

Purpose: Timely identification of systematic changes in radiation delivery of an imaging system can lead to a reduction in risk for the patients involved. However, existing quality assurance programs involving the routine testing of equipment performance using phantoms are limited in their ability to effectively carry out this task. To address this issue, the authors propose the implementation of an ongoing monitoring process that utilizes procedural data to identify unexpected large or small radiation exposures for individual patients, as well as to detect persistent changes in the radiation output of imaging platforms. Methods: Data used in this study were obtainedmore » from records routinely collected during procedures performed in the cardiac catheterization imaging facility at St. Andrew's War Memorial Hospital, Brisbane, Australia, over the period January 2008-March 2010. A two stage monitoring process employing individual and exponentially weighted moving average (EWMA) control charts was developed and used to identify unexpectedly high or low radiation exposure levels for individual patients, as well as detect persistent changes in the radiation output delivered by the imaging systems. To increase sensitivity of the charts, we account for variation in dose area product (DAP) values due to other measured factors (patient weight, fluoroscopy time, and digital acquisition frame count) using multiple linear regression. Control charts are then constructed using the residual values from this linear regression. The proposed monitoring process was evaluated using simulation to model the performance of the process under known conditions. Results: Retrospective application of this technique to actual clinical data identified a number of cases in which the DAP result could be considered unexpected. Most of these, upon review, were attributed to data entry errors. The charts monitoring the overall system radiation output trends demonstrated changes in equipment performance associated with relocation of the equipment to a new department. When tested under simulated conditions, the EWMA chart was capable of detecting a sustained 15% increase in average radiation output within 60 cases (<1 month of operation), while a 33% increase would be signaled within 20 cases. Conclusions: This technique offers a valuable enhancement to existing quality assurance programs in radiology that rely upon the testing of equipment radiation output at discrete time frames to ensure performance security.« less

Graphic Organizers: Outlets for Your Thoughts.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ekhaml, Leticia

1998-01-01

Graphs, bars, charts, and diagrams have been used by designers, writers, and scientists to communicate. Now, research suggests that graphic organizers benefit teaching and learning. This article describes graphic organizers: sequential, conceptual, hierarchical, cyclical, Venn, fishbone or Ishikawa, squeeze and stretch, why-why, t-chart, KWL…

Wisconsin Recertification Manual for Public Librarians.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fox, Robert; And Others

Designed to assist public librarians certified after May 1, 1979, this manual explains Wisconsin recertification requirements based on continuing education. It provides continuing education guidelines, a flow chart of the recertification process, an individual learning activity form, an annual report form, a conversion chart for assignment of…

A Survey of Research Methods to Study Design

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-06-01

Integrated Computer-Aided Manufacturing (ICAM) Definition Languages (IDEFO, IDEF 1, and IDEF 2) Nijssen’s Information Analysis Method (NIAM) * Michael ... Jackson Diagrams 1I-1 • Warnier-Orr Di.grams Hierarchical Input Process Output (HIPO) charts * Nassi Schneiderman Charts. These techniques were intended

78 FR 59810 - Standard Instrument Approach Procedures, and Takeoff Minimums and Obstacle Departure Procedures...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-09-30

... appropriate FAA Form 8260, as modified by the National Flight Data Center (FDC)/Permanent Notice to Airmen (P... published aeronautical charts. The circumstances which created the need for all these SIAP amendments... 8/29/13 ILS OR LOC RWY 4, Amdt 3B 10/17/13 IA Sioux City Sioux Gateway/Col. 3/6352 9/10/13 ILS OR...

Recording Adverse Events Following Joint Arthroplasty: Financial Implications and Validation of an Adverse Event Assessment Form.

PubMed

Lee, Matthew J; Mohamed, Khalid M S; Kelly, John C; Galbraith, John G; Street, John; Lenehan, Brian J

2017-09-01

In Ireland, funding of joint arthroplasty procedures has moved to a pay-by-results national tariff system. Typically, adverse clinical events are recorded via retrospective chart-abstraction methods by administrative staff. Missed or undocumented events not only affect the quality of patient care but also may unrealistically skew budgetary decisions that impact fiscal viability of the service. Accurate recording confers clinical benefits and financial transparency. The aim of this study was to compare a prospectively implemented adverse events form with the current national retrospective chart-abstraction method in terms of pay-by-results financial implications. An adverse events form adapted from a similar validated model was used to prospectively record complications in 51 patients undergoing total hip or knee arthroplasties. Results were compared with the same cohort using an existing data abstraction method. Both data sets were coded in accordance with current standards for case funding. Overall, 114 events were recorded during the study through prospective charting of adverse events, compared with 15 events documented by customary method (a significant discrepancy). Wound drainage (15.8%) was the most common complication, followed by anemia (7.9%), lower respiratory tract infections (7.9%), and cardiac events (7%). A total of €61,956 ($67,778) in missed funding was calculated as a result. This pilot study demonstrates the ability to improve capture of adverse events through use of a well-designed assessment form. Proper perioperative data handling is a critical aspect of financial subsidies, enabling optimal allocation of funds. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

User compliance with documenting on a track and trigger-based observation and response chart: a two-phase multi-site audit study.

PubMed

Elliott, Doug; Allen, Emily; McKinley, Sharon; Perry, Lin; Duffield, Christine; Fry, Margaret; Gallagher, Robyn; Iedema, Rick; Roche, Michael

2017-12-01

To examine user compliance and completeness of documentation with a newly designed observation and response chart and whether a rapid response system call was triggered when clinically indicated. Timely recognition and responses to patient deterioration in hospital general wards remain a challenge for healthcare systems globally. Evaluating practice initiatives to improve recognition and response are required. Two-phase audit. Following introduction of the charts in ten health service sites in Australia, an audit of chart completion was conducted during a short trial for initial usability (Phase 1; 2011). After chart adoption as routine use in practice, retrospective and prospective chart audits were conducted (Phase 2; 2012). Overall, 818 and 1,058 charts were audited during the two phases respectively. Compliance was mixed but improved with the new chart (4%-14%). Contrary to chart guidelines, numbers rather than dots were written in the graphing section in 60% of cases. Rates of recognition of abnormal vital signs improved slightly with new charts in use, particularly for higher levels of surveillance and clinical review. Based on local calling criteria, an emergency call was initiated in 33% of cases during the retrospective audit and in 41% of cases with the new chart. User compliance was less than optimal, limiting full function of the chart sections and compliance with local calling criteria. Overcoming apparent behavioural and work culture barriers may improve chart completion, aiding identification of abnormal vital signs and triggering a rapid response system activation when clinical deterioration is detected. © 2017 The Authors. Journal of Advanced Nursing Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Ince-Strutt stability charts for ship parametric roll resonance in irregular waves

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Xiao; Yang, He-zhen; Xiao, Fei; Xu, Pei-ji

2017-08-01

Ince-Strutt stability chart of ship parametric roll resonance in irregular waves is conducted and utilized for the exploration of the parametric roll resonance in irregular waves. Ship parametric roll resonance will lead to large amplitude roll motion and even wreck. Firstly, the equation describing the parametric roll resonance in irregular waves is derived according to Grim's effective theory and the corresponding Ince-Strutt stability charts are obtained. Secondly, the differences of stability charts for the parametric roll resonance in irregular and regular waves are compared. Thirdly, wave phases and peak periods are taken into consideration to obtain a more realistic sea condition. The influence of random wave phases should be taken into consideration when the analyzed points are located near the instability boundary. Stability charts for different wave peak periods are various. Stability charts are helpful for the parameter determination in design stage to better adapt to sailing condition. Last, ship variables are analyzed according to stability charts by a statistical approach. The increase of the metacentric height will help improve ship stability.

Dynamic probability control limits for risk-adjusted Bernoulli CUSUM charts.

PubMed

Zhang, Xiang; Woodall, William H

2015-11-10

The risk-adjusted Bernoulli cumulative sum (CUSUM) chart developed by Steiner et al. (2000) is an increasingly popular tool for monitoring clinical and surgical performance. In practice, however, the use of a fixed control limit for the chart leads to a quite variable in-control average run length performance for patient populations with different risk score distributions. To overcome this problem, we determine simulation-based dynamic probability control limits (DPCLs) patient-by-patient for the risk-adjusted Bernoulli CUSUM charts. By maintaining the probability of a false alarm at a constant level conditional on no false alarm for previous observations, our risk-adjusted CUSUM charts with DPCLs have consistent in-control performance at the desired level with approximately geometrically distributed run lengths. Our simulation results demonstrate that our method does not rely on any information or assumptions about the patients' risk distributions. The use of DPCLs for risk-adjusted Bernoulli CUSUM charts allows each chart to be designed for the corresponding particular sequence of patients for a surgeon or hospital. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Visual accumulation tube for size analysis of sands

USGS Publications Warehouse

Colby, B.C.; Christensen, R.P.

1956-01-01

The visual-accumulation-tube method was developed primarily for making size analyses of the sand fractions of suspended-sediment and bed-material samples. Because the fundamental property governing the motion of a sediment particle in a fluid is believed to be its fall velocity. the analysis is designed to determine the fall-velocity-frequency distribution of the individual particles of the sample. The analysis is based on a stratified sedimentation system in which the sample is introduced at the top of a transparent settling tube containing distilled water. The procedure involves the direct visual tracing of the height of sediment accumulation in a contracted section at the bottom of the tube. A pen records the height on a moving chart. The method is simple and fast, provides a continuous and permanent record, gives highly reproducible results, and accurately determines the fall-velocity characteristics of the sample. The apparatus, procedure, results, and accuracy of the visual-accumulation-tube method for determining the sedimentation-size distribution of sands are presented in this paper.

Design and performance of a large vocabulary discrete word recognition system. Volume 2: Appendixes. [flow charts and users manual

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1973-01-01

The users manual for the word recognition computer program contains flow charts of the logical diagram, the memory map for templates, the speech analyzer card arrangement, minicomputer input/output routines, and assembly language program listings.

Statistical monitoring of the hand, foot and mouth disease in China.

PubMed

Zhang, Jingnan; Kang, Yicheng; Yang, Yang; Qiu, Peihua

2015-09-01

In a period starting around 2007, the Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease (HFMD) became wide-spreading in China, and the Chinese public health was seriously threatened. To prevent the outbreak of infectious diseases like HFMD, effective disease surveillance systems would be especially helpful to give signals of disease outbreaks as early as possible. Statistical process control (SPC) charts provide a major statistical tool in industrial quality control for detecting product defectives in a timely manner. In recent years, SPC charts have been used for disease surveillance. However, disease surveillance data often have much more complicated structures, compared to the data collected from industrial production lines. Major challenges, including lack of in-control data, complex seasonal effects, and spatio-temporal correlations, make the surveillance data difficult to handle. In this article, we propose a three-step procedure for analyzing disease surveillance data, and our procedure is demonstrated using the HFMD data collected during 2008-2009 in China. Our method uses nonparametric longitudinal data and time series analysis methods to eliminate the possible impact of seasonality and temporal correlation before the disease incidence data are sequentially monitored by a SPC chart. At both national and provincial levels, our proposed method can effectively detect the increasing trend of disease incidence rate before the disease becomes wide-spreading. © 2015, The International Biometric Society.

Epidemiology and management of painful procedures in children in Canadian hospitals

PubMed Central

Stevens, Bonnie J.; Abbott, Laura K.; Yamada, Janet; Harrison, Denise; Stinson, Jennifer; Taddio, Anna; Barwick, Melanie; Latimer, Margot; Scott, Shannon D.; Rashotte, Judith; Campbell, Fiona; Finley, G. Allen

2011-01-01

Background Children being cared for in hospital undergo multiple painful procedures daily. However, little is known about the frequency of these procedures and associated interventions to manage the pain. We undertook this study to determine, for children in Canadian hospitals, the frequency of painful procedures, the types of pain management interventions associated with painful procedures and the influence of the type of hospital unit on procedural pain management. Methods We reviewed medical charts for infants and children up to 18 years of age who had been admitted to 32 inpatient units at eight Canadian pediatric hospitals between October 2007 and April 2008. We recorded all of the painful procedures performed and the pain management interventions that had been implemented in the 24-hour period preceding data collection. We performed descriptive and comparative (analysis of variance, χ2) analyses. Results Of the 3822 children included in the study, 2987 (78.2%) had undergone at least one painful procedure in the 24-hour period preceding data collection, for a total of 18 929 painful procedures (mean 6.3 per child who had any painful procedure). For 2334 (78.1%) of the 2987 children who had a painful procedure, a pain management intervention in the previous 24 hours was documented in the chart: 1980 (84.8%) had a pharmacologic intervention, 609 (26.1%) a physical intervention, 584 (25.0%) a psychologic intervention and 753 (32.3%) a combination of interventions. However, for only 844 (28.3%) of the 2987 children was one or more pain management interventions administered and documented specifically for a painful procedure. Pediatric intensive care units reported the highest proportion of painful procedures and analgesics administered. Interpretation For less than one-third of painful procedures was there documentation of one or more specific pain management interventions. Strategies for implementing changes in pain management must be tailored to the type of hospital unit. PMID:21464171

Shakedown and Preliminary Calibration Tests for the Fuel Engine Evaluation System Using the KM914A Sachs Rotary Combustion Engine.

DTIC Science & Technology

1981-12-01

obtained recommendations are made to improve the system. FEES was designed to handle spark ignition and compression ignition research engines of...Thermometer T W OF Temperature Web Bulb Sling Psychrometer % Relative Humidity Psychrometric chart mm Hg Vapor Pressure Vapor Pressure chart - Correction...results obtained recommendations are made to improve the system. FEES was designed to handle spark ignition and compression ignition research engines of

Electronic growth charts: watching our patients grow.

PubMed

Murphy, Cynthia A; Carstens, Kimberly; Villamayor, Precy

2005-01-01

Pediatric Growth Charts have been used in the pediatric community since 1977. The first growth charts were developed by the National Center for Health Statistics as a clinical tool for health care professionals. The growth charts, revised in 2000, by the Center for Disease Control consists of a series of percentile curves for selected body measurements in children [1]. Capitalizing on the benefits of our Electronic Medical Record (EMR), and as a byproduct of nursing electronic documentation of routine heights, weights, and frontal occipital circumferences, our system plots the routine measurements without additional intervention by the staff. Clinicians can view the graphs online or generate printed reports as needed during routine examination for outpatient or hospitalized care. This abstract outlines the background, design process, programming rules utilized to plot growth curves, and the evaluation of the electronic CDC growth charts in our organization.

(W)righting women: constructions of gender, sexuality and race in the psychiatric chart.

PubMed

Daley, Andrea; Costa, Lucy; Ross, Lori

2012-01-01

This paper examines the interpretative nature of psychiatry in relation to gender, sexuality and race within the particular time and place of one urban, Canadian, clinical psychiatric setting. We bring women's psychiatric inpatient charts and a critical feminist perspective into dialogue in an effort to focus on gender, sexuality and race in psychiatric narratives on women's madness. The research used a qualitative, retrospective research design to examine the psychiatric narrative as a technique of power as it operates on women. This paper focuses on the overarching theme of 'medicalisation', identified from the analysis of women's psychiatric inpatient charts, including two subthemes: (1) language and composition and (2) decontextualisation. Our analysis suggests that psychiatric chart documentation practices that reproduce gendered, sexualised, and racialised biases and assumptions and decontextualise the social and structural context of women's experiences of madness serve to create the paradox of women's visibility/erasure in psychiatric charts. The paper concludes with an exploration of the significance of women's authorship legitimacy in psychiatric chart documentation.

Charting Early Trajectories of Executive Control with the Shape School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Clark, Caron A. C.; Sheffield, Tiffany D.; Chevalier, Nicolas; Nelson, Jennifer Mize; Wiebe, Sandra A.; Espy, Kimberly Andrews

2013-01-01

Despite acknowledgement of the importance of executive control for learning and behavior, there is a dearth of research charting its developmental trajectory as it unfolds against the background of children's sociofamilial milieus. Using a prospective, cohort-sequential design, this study describes growth trajectories for inhibitory control…

Alternative Routes for Teacher Certification.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Education Commission of the States, Denver, CO.

This publication presents a series of charts, designed for quick reference, which describe the status of alternative teacher certification routes in each of the 50 states. The charts were prepared in response to an increasing number of inquiries from educators, policy makers, and the public. Information was gathered by telephone surveys of state…

Mobile Phone Mood Charting for Adolescents

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Matthews, Mark; Doherty, Gavin; Sharry, John; Fitzpatrick, Carol

2008-01-01

Mobile phones may provide a useful and engaging platform for supporting therapeutic services working with adolescents. This paper examines the potential benefits of the mobile phone for self-charting moods in comparison to existing methods in current practice. The paper describes a mobile phone application designed by the authors which allows…

Electromagnet Weight Reduction in a Magnetic Levitation System for Contactless Delivery Applications

PubMed Central

Hong, Do-Kwan; Woo, Byung-Chul; Koo, Dae-Hyun; Lee, Ki-Chang

2010-01-01

This paper presents an optimum design of a lightweight vehicle levitation electromagnet, which also provides a passive guide force in a magnetic levitation system for contactless delivery applications. The split alignment of C-shaped electromagnets about C-shaped rails has a bad effect on the lateral deviation force, therefore, no-split positioning of electromagnets is better for lateral performance. This is verified by simulations and experiments. This paper presents a statistically optimized design with a high number of the design variables to reduce the weight of the electromagnet under the constraint of normal force using response surface methodology (RSM) and the kriging interpolation method. 2D and 3D magnetostatic analysis of the electromagnet are performed using ANSYS. The most effective design variables are extracted by a Pareto chart. The most desirable set is determined and the influence of each design variable on the objective function can be obtained. The generalized reduced gradient (GRG) algorithm is adopted in the kriging model. This paper’s procedure is validated by a comparison between experimental and calculation results, which shows that the predicted performance of the electromagnet designed by RSM is in good agreement with the simulation results. PMID:22163572

The Use of Statistical Process Control-Charts for Person-Fit Analysis on Computerized Adaptive Testing. LSAC Research Report Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meijer, Rob R.; van Krimpen-Stoop, Edith M. L. A.

In this study a cumulative-sum (CUSUM) procedure from the theory of Statistical Process Control was modified and applied in the context of person-fit analysis in a computerized adaptive testing (CAT) environment. Six person-fit statistics were proposed using the CUSUM procedure, and three of them could be used to investigate the CAT in online test…

A Tale of Two Methods: Chart and Interview Methods for Identifying Delirium

PubMed Central

Saczynski, Jane S.; Kosar, Cyrus M.; Xu, Guoquan; Puelle, Margaret R.; Schmitt, Eva; Jones, Richard N.; Marcantonio, Edward R.; Wong, Bonnie; Isaza, Ilean; Inouye, Sharon K.

2014-01-01

Background Interview and chart-based methods for identifying delirium have been validated. However, relative strengths and limitations of each method have not been described, nor has a combined approach (using both interviews and chart), been systematically examined. Objectives To compare chart and interview-based methods for identification of delirium. Design, Setting and Participants Participants were 300 patients aged 70+ undergoing major elective surgery (majority were orthopedic surgery) interviewed daily during hospitalization for delirium using the Confusion Assessment Method (CAM; interview-based method) and whose medical charts were reviewed for delirium using a validated chart-review method (chart-based method). We examined rate of agreement on the two methods and patient characteristics of those identified using each approach. Predictive validity for clinical outcomes (length of stay, postoperative complications, discharge disposition) was compared. In the absence of a gold-standard, predictive value could not be calculated. Results The cumulative incidence of delirium was 23% (n= 68) by the interview-based method, 12% (n=35) by the chart-based method and 27% (n=82) by the combined approach. Overall agreement was 80%; kappa was 0.30. The methods differed in detection of psychomotor features and time of onset. The chart-based method missed delirium in CAM-identified patients laacking features of psychomotor agitation or inappropriate behavior. The CAM-based method missed chart-identified cases occurring during the night shift. The combined method had high predictive validity for all clinical outcomes. Conclusions Interview and chart-based methods have specific strengths for identification of delirium. A combined approach captures the largest number and the broadest range of delirium cases. PMID:24512042

A national clinical quality program for Veterans Affairs catheterization laboratories (from the Veterans Affairs clinical assessment, reporting, and tracking program).

PubMed

Maddox, Thomas M; Plomondon, Mary E; Petrich, Megan; Tsai, Thomas T; Gethoffer, Hans; Noonan, Gregory; Gillespie, Brian; Box, Tamara; Fihn, Stephen D; Jesse, Robert L; Rumsfeld, John S

2014-12-01

A "learning health care system", as outlined in a recent Institute of Medicine report, harnesses real-time clinical data to continuously measure and improve clinical care. However, most current efforts to understand and improve the quality of care rely on retrospective chart abstractions complied long after the provision of clinical care. To align more closely with the goals of a learning health care system, we present the novel design and initial results of the Veterans Affairs (VA) Clinical Assessment, Reporting, and Tracking (CART) program-a national clinical quality program for VA cardiac catheterization laboratories that harnesses real-time clinical data to support clinical care and quality-monitoring efforts. Integrated within the VA electronic health record, the CART program uses a specialized software platform to collect real-time patient and procedural data for all VA patients undergoing coronary procedures in VA catheterization laboratories. The program began in 2005 and currently contains data on 434,967 catheterization laboratory procedures, including 272,097 coronary angiograms and 86,481 percutaneous coronary interventions, performed by 801 clinicians on 246,967 patients. We present the initial data from the CART program and describe 3 quality-monitoring programs that use its unique characteristics-procedural and complications feedback to individual labs, coronary device surveillance, and major adverse event peer review. The VA CART program is a novel approach to electronic health record design that supports clinical care, quality, and safety in VA catheterization laboratories. Its approach holds promise in achieving the goals of a learning health care system. Published by Elsevier Inc.

The Accordion Sign in the Transplant Ureter: Ramifications During Balloon Dilation of Strictures

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kriegshauser, J. Scott, E-mail: skriegshauser@mayo.edu; Naidu, Sailen G.; Chang, Yu-Hui H.

PurposeThis study was designed to demonstrate the accordion sign within the transplant ureter and evaluate its ramifications during balloon dilation of strictures.MethodsA retrospective electronic chart and imaging review included demographic characteristics, procedure reports, and complications of 28 renal transplant patients having ureteral strictures treated with percutaneous balloon dilation reported in our transplant nephrology database during an 8-year period. The accordion sign was deemed present or absent on the basis of an imaging review and was defined as present when a tortuous ureter became kinked and irregular when foreshortened after placement of a wire or a catheter. Procedure-related urine leaks weremore » categorized as occurring at the stricture if within 2 cm; otherwise, they were considered away from the stricture.ResultsThe accordion sign was associated with a significantly greater occurrence of leaks away from the stricture (P = 0.001) but not at the stricture (P = 0.34).ConclusionsThe accordion sign is an important consideration when performing balloon dilation procedures on transplant ureteral strictures, given the increased risk of leak away from the stricture. Its presence should prompt additional care during wire and catheter manipulations.« less

The acquisition, storage, and dissemination of LANDSAT and other LACIE support data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Abbotts, L. F.; Nelson, R. M. (Principal Investigator)

1979-01-01

Activities performed at the LACIE physical data library are described. These include the researching, acquisition, indexing, maintenance, distribution, tracking, and control of LACIE operational data and documents. Much of the data available can be incorporated into an Earth resources data base. Elements of the data collection that can support future remote sensing programs include: (1) the LANDSAT full-frame image files; (2) the microfilm file of aerial and space photographic and multispectral maps and charts that encompasses a large portion of the Earth's surface; (3) the map/chart collection that includes various scale maps and charts for a good portion of the U.S. and the LACIE area in foreign countries; (4) computer-compatible tapes of good quality LANDSAT scenes; (5) basic remote sensing data, project data, reference material, and associated publications; (6) visual aids to support presentation on remote sensing projects; and (7) research acquisition and handling procedures for managing data.

Dormitory Solar-Energy-System Economics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1982-01-01

102-page report analyzes long-term economic performance of a prepackaged solar energy assembly system at a dormitory installation and extrapolates to four additional sites about the U.S. Method of evaluation is f-chart procedure for solar-heating and domestic hotwater systems.

Life Cycle Costs in Education: Operations & Maintenance Considered.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moussatche, Helena; Languell-Urquhart, Jennifer; Woodson, Carol

2000-01-01

Discusses life cycle cost analysis when deciding on flooring finishes and examines operations and maintenance cost effectiveness relative to hard, resilient, and soft flooring. A chart of evaluated flooring materials' characteristics, appropriate maintenance procedures, and recommended frequency is included. (GR)

Statistical methods for the quality control of steam cured concrete : final report.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1971-01-01

Concrete strength test results from three prestressing plants utilizing steam curing were evaluated statistically in terms of the concrete as received and the effectiveness of the plants' steaming procedures. Control charts were prepared to show tren...

Charts Showing Relations Among Primary Aerodynamic Variables for Helicopter-performance Estimation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Talkin, Herbert W

1947-01-01

In order to facilitate solutions of the general problem of helicopter selection, the aerodynamic performance of rotors is presented in the form of charts showing relations between primary design and performance variables. By the use of conventional helicopter theory, certain variables are plotted and other variables are considered fixed. Charts constructed in such a manner show typical results, trends, and limits of helicopter performance. Performance conditions considered include hovering, horizontal flight, climb, and ceiling. Special problems discussed include vertical climb and the use of rotor-speed-reduction gears for hovering.

Dynamic probability control limits for risk-adjusted CUSUM charts based on multiresponses.

PubMed

Zhang, Xiang; Loda, Justin B; Woodall, William H

2017-07-20

For a patient who has survived a surgery, there could be several levels of recovery. Thus, it is reasonable to consider more than two outcomes when monitoring surgical outcome quality. The risk-adjusted cumulative sum (CUSUM) chart based on multiresponses has been developed for monitoring a surgical process with three or more outcomes. However, there is a significant effect of varying risk distributions on the in-control performance of the chart when constant control limits are applied. To overcome this disadvantage, we apply the dynamic probability control limits to the risk-adjusted CUSUM charts for multiresponses. The simulation results demonstrate that the in-control performance of the charts with dynamic probability control limits can be controlled for different patient populations because these limits are determined for each specific sequence of patients. Thus, the use of dynamic probability control limits for risk-adjusted CUSUM charts based on multiresponses allows each chart to be designed for the corresponding patient sequence of a surgeon or a hospital and therefore does not require estimating or monitoring the patients' risk distribution. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

State-Chart Autocoder

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Clark, Kenneth; Watney, Garth; Murray, Alexander; Benowitz, Edward

2007-01-01

A computer program translates Unified Modeling Language (UML) representations of state charts into source code in the C, C++, and Python computing languages. ( State charts signifies graphical descriptions of states and state transitions of a spacecraft or other complex system.) The UML representations constituting the input to this program are generated by using a UML-compliant graphical design program to draw the state charts. The generated source code is consistent with the "quantum programming" approach, which is so named because it involves discrete states and state transitions that have features in common with states and state transitions in quantum mechanics. Quantum programming enables efficient implementation of state charts, suitable for real-time embedded flight software. In addition to source code, the autocoder program generates a graphical-user-interface (GUI) program that, in turn, generates a display of state transitions in response to events triggered by the user. The GUI program is wrapped around, and can be used to exercise the state-chart behavior of, the generated source code. Once the expected state-chart behavior is confirmed, the generated source code can be augmented with a software interface to the rest of the software with which the source code is required to interact.

A Graphic Chi-Square Test For Two-Class Genetic Segregation Ratios

Treesearch

A.E. Squillace; D.J. Squillace

1970-01-01

A chart is presented for testing the goodness of fit of observed two-class genetic segregation ratios against hypothetical ratios, eliminating the need of computing chi-square. Although designed mainly for genetic studies, the chart can also be used for other types of studies involving two-class chi-square tests.

Problem Solving in a Middle School Robotics Design Classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Norton, Stephen J.; McRobbie, Campbell J.; Ginns, Ian S.

2007-07-01

Little research has been conducted on how students work when they are required to plan, build and evaluate artefacts in technology rich learning environments such as those supported by tools including flow charts, Labview programming and Lego construction. In this study, activity theory was used as an analytic tool to examine the social construction of meaning. There was a focus on the effect of teachers’ goals and the rules they enacted upon student use of the flow chart planning tool, and the tools of the programming language Labview and Lego construction. It was found that the articulation of a teacher’s goals via rules and divisions of labour helped to form distinct communities of learning and influenced the development of different problem solving strategies. The use of the planning tool flow charting was associated with continuity of approach, integration of problem solutions including appreciation of the nexus between construction and programming, and greater educational transformation. Students who flow charted defined problems in a more holistic way and demonstrated more methodical, insightful and integrated approaches to their use of tools. The findings have implications for teaching in design dominated learning environments.

Presentation of a quality management program in off-pump coronary bypass surgery.

PubMed

Bougioukakis, Petros; Kluegl, Stefan J; Babin-Ebell, Joerg; Tagarakis, Giorgios I; Mandewirth, Martin; Zacher, Michael; Diegeler, Anno

2014-01-01

To increase the number of off-pump coronary procedures at our institution, a new surgical team was formed. The first 3 years of "learning period" were accompanied by a quality management program aimed to control and adjust the surgical process and to ensure the safety and quality of the procedure. All patients were operated on by the same surgeon between January 2004 and December 2006; all procedures were performed under the following quality management protocol. First, a flow chart regulated surgical and anesthetic details. Second, an online file, named "disturbance file," was used to report work flow interruption, disturbance, and intraoperative events, that is, myocardial ischemia, hypotension, conversion to cardiopulmonary bypass, and any violation of the protocol. Each event was coded with 1 point and added to a score (the higher the score is, the greater the disturbance). Outcome parameters known as major events-major cardiac and cerebral events: mortality within 30 days/myocardial infarction confirmed by electrocardiogram or significantly high levels of total creatine kinase-myocardial muscle creatine kinase/reintervention within 30 days/stroke--and new-onset dialysis were also measured. Success was defined as freedom from any of those events and depicted in a cumulative sum control (CUSUM) chart. Outcome data and CUSUM were correlated with the intraoperative Disturbance Index. In total, 490 off-pump coronary bypass operations were performed by the named surgeon during the study period. The 30-day mortality was reduced from 4.0% to 1.9%. Disturbance Index score of greater than 1 declined from 41.6% to 23.3%. All major cardiac and cerebral events declined. The CUSUM chart showed two critical periods during the learning period, which made an adjustment of the protocol necessary. Quality management control is efficient in improving the postoperative results of a surgical procedure. A learning period is of cardinal importance for any new team wishing to engage in a novel surgical technique.

A METHOD FOR DETERMINING THE COMPATIBILITY OF HAZARDOUS WASTES

EPA Science Inventory

This report describes a method for determining the compatibility of the binary combinations of hazardous wastes. The method consists of two main parts, namely: (1) the step-by-step compatibility analysis procedures, and (2) the hazardous wastes compatibility chart. The key elemen...

A Computer-Managed Instruction Support System for Large Group Individualized Instruction.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Countermine, Terry; Singh, Jane M.

1977-01-01

The Pennsylvania State University College of Education's Instruction Support System (ISS) was developed to manage the logistical operation of large group individualized competency-based instruction. Software and hardware charting, operational procedures, and data from student opinion questionnaires are cited. (RAO)

Decisions, Decisions....

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

White, Owen Roberts

1985-01-01

The author reviews systems providing objective guidelines to facilitate ongoing, daily instructional decisions, focusing on those which utilize the sensitive datum and uniform charting procedures of precision teaching. Potential users are warned that the special education teacher must remain a critical and vigilant analyst of the learning process.…

Research Initiatives and Preliminary Results In Automation Design In Airspace Management in Free Flight

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Corker, Kevin; Lebacqz, J. Victor (Technical Monitor)

1997-01-01

The NASA and the FAA have entered into a joint venture to explore, define, design and implement a new airspace management operating concept. The fundamental premise of that concept is that technologies and procedures need to be developed for flight deck and ground operations to improve the efficiency, the predictability, the flexibility and the safety of airspace management and operations. To that end NASA Ames has undertaken an initial development and exploration of "key concepts" in the free flight airspace management technology development. Human Factors issues in automation aiding design, coupled aiding systems between air and ground, communication protocols in distributed decision making, and analytic techniques for definition of concepts of airspace density and operator cognitive load have been undertaken. This paper reports the progress of these efforts, which are not intended to definitively solve the many evolving issues of design for future ATM systems, but to provide preliminary results to chart the parameters of performance and the topology of the analytic effort required. The preliminary research in provision of cockpit display of traffic information, dynamic density definition, distributed decision making, situation awareness models and human performance models is discussed as they focus on the theme of "design requirements".

Exploring the Energy Landscapes of Protein Folding Simulations with Bayesian Computation

PubMed Central

Burkoff, Nikolas S.; Várnai, Csilla; Wells, Stephen A.; Wild, David L.

2012-01-01

Nested sampling is a Bayesian sampling technique developed to explore probability distributions localized in an exponentially small area of the parameter space. The algorithm provides both posterior samples and an estimate of the evidence (marginal likelihood) of the model. The nested sampling algorithm also provides an efficient way to calculate free energies and the expectation value of thermodynamic observables at any temperature, through a simple post processing of the output. Previous applications of the algorithm have yielded large efficiency gains over other sampling techniques, including parallel tempering. In this article, we describe a parallel implementation of the nested sampling algorithm and its application to the problem of protein folding in a Gō-like force field of empirical potentials that were designed to stabilize secondary structure elements in room-temperature simulations. We demonstrate the method by conducting folding simulations on a number of small proteins that are commonly used for testing protein-folding procedures. A topological analysis of the posterior samples is performed to produce energy landscape charts, which give a high-level description of the potential energy surface for the protein folding simulations. These charts provide qualitative insights into both the folding process and the nature of the model and force field used. PMID:22385859

Documentation of medication changes in inpatient clinical notes: an audit to support quality improvement.

PubMed

Peusschers, Elsie; Twine, Jaryth; Wheeler, Amanda; Moudgil, Vikas; Patterson, Sue

2015-04-01

To describe completeness and accuracy of recording medication changes in progress notes during psychiatric inpatient admissions. A retrospective audit of records of 54 randomly selected psychiatric admissions at a metropolitan tertiary hospital. Medication changes recorded on National Inpatient Medication Chart (NIMC) were compared to documentation in the clinical progress records and assessed for completeness against seven quality criteria. With between one and 32 medication changes per admission, a total of 519 changes were recorded in NIMCs. Just over half were documented in progress notes. Psychotropic and regular medications were more frequently charted than 'other' and 'if required' medications. Documentation was seldom comprehensive. Medication name was most frequently documented; desired therapeutic effect or potential adverse effects were rarely documented. Evidence of patient involvement in, and an explicit rationale for, a change were infrequently recorded. Revealing substantial gaps in communication about medication changes during psychiatric admission, this audit sheds light on a previously undescribed source of medication error, warranting attention. Further research is needed to examine barriers to best practice, to support design and implementation of quality improvement activities but in the interim, attention should be addressed to development and articulation of content and procedures for documentation. © The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists 2015.

Exploring the energy landscapes of protein folding simulations with Bayesian computation.

PubMed

Burkoff, Nikolas S; Várnai, Csilla; Wells, Stephen A; Wild, David L

2012-02-22

Nested sampling is a Bayesian sampling technique developed to explore probability distributions localized in an exponentially small area of the parameter space. The algorithm provides both posterior samples and an estimate of the evidence (marginal likelihood) of the model. The nested sampling algorithm also provides an efficient way to calculate free energies and the expectation value of thermodynamic observables at any temperature, through a simple post processing of the output. Previous applications of the algorithm have yielded large efficiency gains over other sampling techniques, including parallel tempering. In this article, we describe a parallel implementation of the nested sampling algorithm and its application to the problem of protein folding in a Gō-like force field of empirical potentials that were designed to stabilize secondary structure elements in room-temperature simulations. We demonstrate the method by conducting folding simulations on a number of small proteins that are commonly used for testing protein-folding procedures. A topological analysis of the posterior samples is performed to produce energy landscape charts, which give a high-level description of the potential energy surface for the protein folding simulations. These charts provide qualitative insights into both the folding process and the nature of the model and force field used. Copyright © 2012 Biophysical Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Updating the Nomographical Diagrams for Dimensioning the Beams

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pop, Maria T.

2015-12-01

In order to reduce the time period needed for structures design it is strongly recommended to use nomographical diagrams. The base for formation and updating the nomographical diagrams, stands on the charts presented by different technical publications. The updated charts use the same algorithm and calculation elements as the former diagrams in accordance to the latest prescriptions and European standards. The result consists in a chart, having the same properties, similar with the nomogragraphical diagrams already in us. As a general conclusion, even in our days, the nomographical diagrams are very easy to use. Taking into consideration the value of the moment it's easy to find out the necessary reinforcement area and vice-verse, having the reinforcement area you can find out the capable moment. It still remains a useful opportunity for pre-sizing and designs the reinforced concrete sections.

Complete Versus Staged Repair for Neonates With Tetralogy of Fallot: Establishment and Validation of a Cohort of 2235 Patients Using Detailed Surgery Sequence Review of Health Care Administrative Data.

PubMed

Savla, Jill J; Fisher, Brian T; Faerber, Jennifer A; Huang, Yuan-Shung V; Mercer-Rosa, Laura

2017-12-12

The surgical strategy for neonates with tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) consists of complete or staged repair. Assessing the comparative effectiveness of these approaches is facilitated by a large multicenter cohort. We propose a novel process for cohort assembly using the Pediatric Health Information System (PHIS), an administrative database that contains clinical and billing data for inpatient and emergency department stays from tertiary children's hospitals. A 4-step process was used to identify neonates with TOF: (1) screen neonates in PHIS with International Classification of Diseases-9 (ICD-9) diagnosis or procedure codes for TOF; (2) include patients with TOF procedures before 30 days of age; (3) exclude patients with missing 2-year follow-up data; (4) analyze patients' 2-year surgery sequence patterns, exclude patients inconsistent with a treatment strategy for TOF, and designate patients as complete or staged repair. Manual chart review at 1 PHIS center was performed to validate this process. Between January 2004 and March 2015, 5862 patients were identified in step 1. Step 2 of cohort assembly excluded 3425 patients (58%); step 3 excluded 148 patients (3%); and step 4 excluded 54 patients (1%). The final cohort consisted of 2235 neonates with TOF from 45 hospitals. Manual chart review of 336 patients showed a positive predictive value for accurate PHIS identification of 44% after step 1 and 97% after step 4. This systematic cohort identification algorithm resulted in a high positive predictive value to appropriately categorize patients. This carefully assembled cohort offers a unique opportunity for future studies in neonatal TOF outcomes.

Normalization of Complete Genome Characteristics: Application to Evolution from Primitive Organisms to Homo sapiens.

PubMed

Sorimachi, Kenji; Okayasu, Teiji; Ohhira, Shuji

2015-04-01

Normalized nucleotide and amino acid contents of complete genome sequences can be visualized as radar charts. The shapes of these charts depict the characteristics of an organism's genome. The normalized values calculated from the genome sequence theoretically exclude experimental errors. Further, because normalization is independent of both target size and kind, this procedure is applicable not only to single genes but also to whole genomes, which consist of a huge number of different genes. In this review, we discuss the applications of the normalization of the nucleotide and predicted amino acid contents of complete genomes to the investigation of genome structure and to evolutionary research from primitive organisms to Homo sapiens. Some of the results could never have been obtained from the analysis of individual nucleotide or amino acid sequences but were revealed only after the normalization of nucleotide and amino acid contents was applied to genome research. The discovery that genome structure was homogeneous was obtained only after normalization methods were applied to the nucleotide or predicted amino acid contents of genome sequences. Normalization procedures are also applicable to evolutionary research. Thus, normalization of the contents of whole genomes is a useful procedure that can help to characterize organisms.

Chart Card: feasibility of a tool for improving emergency department care in sickle cell disease.

PubMed

Neumayr, Lynne; Pringle, Steven; Giles, Stephen; Quirolo, Keith C; Paulukonis, Susan; Vichinsky, Elliott P; Treadwell, Marsha J

2010-11-01

Patients with sickle cell disease (SCD) are concerned with emergency department care, including time to treatment and staff attitudes and knowledge. Providers are concerned about rapid access to patient information and SCD treatment protocols. A software application that stores and retrieves encrypted personal medical information on a plastic credit card-sized Chart Card was designed. To determine the applicability and feasibility of the Chart Card on patient satisfaction with emergency department care and provider accessibility to patient information and care protocols. One-half of 44 adults (aged -18 years) and 50 children with SCD were randomized to either the Chart Card or usual care. Patient satisfaction was surveyed pre and post implementation of the Chart Card program, and emergency department staff was surveyed about familiarity with SCD treatment protocols. Patient satisfaction with emergency department care and efficacy in health care increased post Chart Card implementation. Providers valued immediate access to patient information and SCD treatment guidelines. The technology has potential for application in the treatment of other illnesses in other settings.

Software tool for physics chart checks.

PubMed

Li, H Harold; Wu, Yu; Yang, Deshan; Mutic, Sasa

2014-01-01

Physics chart check has long been a central quality assurance (QC) measure in radiation oncology. The purpose of this work is to describe a software tool that aims to accomplish simplification, standardization, automation, and forced functions in the process. Nationally recognized guidelines, including American College of Radiology and American Society for Radiation Oncology guidelines and technical standards, and the American Association of Physicists in Medicine Task Group reports were identified, studied, and summarized. Meanwhile, the reported events related to physics chart check service were analyzed using an event reporting and learning system. A number of shortfalls in the chart check process were identified. To address these problems, a software tool was designed and developed under Microsoft. Net in C# to hardwire as many components as possible at each stage of the process. The software consists of the following 4 independent modules: (1) chart check management; (2) pretreatment and during treatment chart check assistant; (3) posttreatment chart check assistant; and (4) quarterly peer-review management. The users were a large group of physicists in the author's radiation oncology clinic. During over 1 year of use the tool has proven very helpful in chart checking management, communication, documentation, and maintaining consistency. The software tool presented in this work aims to assist physicists at each stage of the physics chart check process. The software tool is potentially useful for any radiation oncology clinics that are either in the process of pursuing or maintaining the American College of Radiology accreditation.

Readability of New Aviation Chart Symbology in Day and NVG Reading Conditions.

PubMed

Wagstaff, Anthony S; Larsen, Terje

2017-11-01

The Swedish Air Force (SwAF) conducted a study in 2010 to harmonize portrayal of aeronautical info (AI) on SwAF charts with NATO standards. A mismatch was found concerning vertical obstructions (VO). Norway regarded Sweden's existing symbology as a way to solve the problem of overcrowded air charts and the two countries started to cooperate. The result of this development was a new set of symbology for obstacles. The aim of this study was to test the readability of the new obstacle and power line symbols compared to the old symbols. We also wished to assess the readability in NVG illumination conditions, particularly regarding the new symbols compared to the old. In a randomized controlled study design, 21 volunteer military pilots from the Norwegian and Swedish Air Force were asked to perform tracking and chart-reading tests. The chart-reading test scored both errors and readability using a predefined score index. Subjective scoring was also done at the end of the test day. Overall response time improved by approximately 20% using the new symbology and error rate decreased by approximately 30-90% where statistically significant differences were found. The tracking test turned out to be too difficult due to several factors in the experimental design. Even though some caution should be shown in drawing conclusions from this study, the general trends seem well supported with the number of aircrew subjects we were able to recruit.Wagstaff AS, Larsen T. Readability of new aviation chart symbology in day and NVG reading conditions. Aerosp Med Hum Perform. 2017; 88(11):978-984.

Using statistical process control to make data-based clinical decisions.

PubMed

Pfadt, A; Wheeler, D J

1995-01-01

Applied behavior analysis is based on an investigation of variability due to interrelationships among antecedents, behavior, and consequences. This permits testable hypotheses about the causes of behavior as well as for the course of treatment to be evaluated empirically. Such information provides corrective feedback for making data-based clinical decisions. This paper considers how a different approach to the analysis of variability based on the writings of Walter Shewart and W. Edwards Deming in the area of industrial quality control helps to achieve similar objectives. Statistical process control (SPC) was developed to implement a process of continual product improvement while achieving compliance with production standards and other requirements for promoting customer satisfaction. SPC involves the use of simple statistical tools, such as histograms and control charts, as well as problem-solving techniques, such as flow charts, cause-and-effect diagrams, and Pareto charts, to implement Deming's management philosophy. These data-analytic procedures can be incorporated into a human service organization to help to achieve its stated objectives in a manner that leads to continuous improvement in the functioning of the clients who are its customers. Examples are provided to illustrate how SPC procedures can be used to analyze behavioral data. Issues related to the application of these tools for making data-based clinical decisions and for creating an organizational climate that promotes their routine use in applied settings are also considered.

ROMPS critical design review. Volume 3: Furnace module design documentation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dobbs, M. E.

1992-01-01

As part of the furnace module design documentation, the furnace module Easylab programs definitions and command variables are described. Also included are Easylab commands flow charts and fault conditions.

33 CFR 209.325 - Navigation lights, aids to navigation, navigation charts, and related data policy, practices and...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... Engineers will consult with the Coast Guard District Commander during design of channel and harbor...) District Engineers responsible for harbors and waterways shown on charts of the National Ocean Survey (NOAA... Administration, ATTN: National Ocean Survey C-32, Rockville, Md. 20852. Commandant and District Commanders, U.S...

33 CFR 209.325 - Navigation lights, aids to navigation, navigation charts, and related data policy, practices and...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... Engineers will consult with the Coast Guard District Commander during design of channel and harbor...) District Engineers responsible for harbors and waterways shown on charts of the National Ocean Survey (NOAA... Administration, ATTN: National Ocean Survey C-32, Rockville, Md. 20852. Commandant and District Commanders, U.S...

33 CFR 209.325 - Navigation lights, aids to navigation, navigation charts, and related data policy, practices and...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... Engineers will consult with the Coast Guard District Commander during design of channel and harbor...) District Engineers responsible for harbors and waterways shown on charts of the National Ocean Survey (NOAA... Administration, ATTN: National Ocean Survey C-32, Rockville, Md. 20852. Commandant and District Commanders, U.S...

33 CFR 209.325 - Navigation lights, aids to navigation, navigation charts, and related data policy, practices and...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Engineers will consult with the Coast Guard District Commander during design of channel and harbor...) District Engineers responsible for harbors and waterways shown on charts of the National Ocean Survey (NOAA... Administration, ATTN: National Ocean Survey C-32, Rockville, Md. 20852. Commandant and District Commanders, U.S...

Low visibility operations/surface movement guidance and control system (LVO/SMGCS) chart usability : an examination of flightcrew position awareness in homogeneous 300 ft/75 m RVR conditions

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2014-09-01

Two studies were conducted to identify best practices for the design of Low Visibility Operations/Surface Movement Guidance and Control System (LVO/SMGCS) paper charts and flightcrew use of them in extremely low visibility surface conditions. In the ...

The Impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences on an Urban Pediatric Population

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Burke, Nadine J.; Hellman, Julia L.; Scott, Brandon G.; Weems, Carl F.; Carrion, Victor G.

2011-01-01

Objective: The goal of this study was to investigate the adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) in youth in a low-income, urban community. Study design: Data from a retrospective chart review of 701 subjects from the Bayview Child Health Center in San Francisco are presented. Medical chart documentation of ACEs as defined in previous studies were…

An ex ante control chart for project monitoring using earned duration management observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mortaji, Seyed Taha Hossein; Noori, Siamak; Noorossana, Rassoul; Bagherpour, Morteza

2017-12-01

In the past few years, there has been an increasing interest in developing project control systems. The primary purpose of such systems is to indicate whether the actual performance is consistent with the baseline and to produce a signal in the case of non-compliance. Recently, researchers have shown an increased interest in monitoring project's performance indicators, by plotting them on the Shewhart-type control charts over time. However, these control charts are fundamentally designed for processes and ignore project-specific dynamics, which can lead to weak results and misleading interpretations. By paying close attention to the project baseline schedule and using statistical foundations, this paper proposes a new ex ante control chart which discriminates between acceptable (as-planned) and non-acceptable (not-as-planned) variations of the project's schedule performance. Such control chart enables project managers to set more realistic thresholds leading to a better decision making for taking corrective and/or preventive actions. For the sake of clarity, an illustrative example has been presented to show how the ex ante control chart is constructed in practice. Furthermore, an experimental investigation has been set up to analyze the performance of the proposed control chart. As expected, the results confirm that, when a project starts to deflect significantly from the project's baseline schedule, the ex ante control chart shows a respectable ability to detect and report right signals while avoiding false alarms.

Improving blood pressure control in diabetes: limitations of a clinical reminder in influencing physician behavior.

PubMed

Sanders, Karen M; Satyvavolu, Anuradha

2002-01-01

Hypertension should be aggressively treated, especially in diabetic patients. But studies of physician prescribing habits reveal that physicians often delay making medication changes or initiating antihypertensive therapy. A chart-based reminder was designed to improve physician medication prescribing in this clinical situation. A randomized controlled trial was conducted at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Richmond, Virginia. Patients with diabetes and hypertension were selected. A highly visible chart reminder was applied to the front of outpatient charts in the intervention group practice. A chart review was conducted to assess physician-directed medication changes. A successful outcome was defined as any antihypertensive medication increase or addition at that same visit. Physicians were more likely to intensify antihypertensive medication as the blood pressure increased regardless of the reminder. Overall, only 33% of visits resulted in a medication change, even though 93% of patients had elevations over target blood pressure at the follow-up visit. Physicians in the intervention and control groups made changes to medication at similar rates (chi 2 = 0.621, p = .511). In this study, a chart reminder failed to improve physician compliance with the clinical guideline for hypertension management in diabetics, Sixth Report of the Joint National Committee on the Detection, Evaluation, Prevention and Treatment of High Blood Pressure. To inform the design of effective intervention strategies, further research should explore specific barriers to guideline adherence in this clinical situation.

Crowding in central vision in normally sighted and visually impaired [corrected] children aged 4 to 8 years: the influence of age and test design.

PubMed

Huurneman, Bianca; Boonstra, F Nienke; Cillessen, Antonius H N; van Rens, Ger; Cox, Ralf F A

2012-06-01

To investigate crowding ratios in children with a visual impairment due to ocular disease (n = 58) and normally sighted children (n = 75) aged 4 to 8 years using several variants of two clinically available tests with different optotype spacing (fixed or proportional to the optotype size). Crowding ratios, calculated by dividing the single acuity by the linear acuity, were measured binocularly with the C-test and the LH line chart. Ratios >1.00 indicate crowding. The charts with fixed spacing revealed significantly higher crowding ratios for visually impaired children than normally sighted children (both for measurements at 40 cm and 5 m). The age-related reduction of the crowding ratios seen in normally sighted children when tested with near-vision charts with fixed spacing was not present in the visually impaired group. Visually impaired children with nystagmus showed higher crowding ratios than visually impaired children without nystagmus. The chart with proportional intersymbol spacing (ISS) did not reveal differences between the normally sighted and visually impaired children; nor did it show group, age, or nystagmus effects. Visually impaired children showed higher crowding ratios than normally sighted children when measured with charts with fixed ISS. This study illustrates that test design and target/flanker interference as a manifestation of crowding are critical issues to bear in mind when assessing crowding ratios in children.

Development of dental charts according to tooth development and eruption for Turkish children and young adults

PubMed Central

Afşin, Hüseyin; Ozaslan, Abdi; Karadayı, Şükriye

2014-01-01

Purpose In this study, we aimed to develop dental charts for Turkish children and young adults of both genders within the age group of 4.5-22.5 years according to tooth mineralization and eruption in a format similar to that proposed by AlQahtani et al. Materials and Methods In total, 753 digital panoramic radiographs from 350 males and 403 females were assessed. The permanent teeth were evaluated according to the classification system described by Demirjian et al. The eruption stage was assessed with Bengston's system, which was modified by AlQahtani et al at four points. Results Teeth generally developed earlier in females than in males. This was particularly notable in the age group of 5-14 years. However, this difference was usually visible in only one stage, not in all teeth. It has been determined that the mixed dentition period ended with the shedding of the second deciduous molars in both genders. Conclusion The dental charts presented here included information that could be beneficial to dental clinicians in making appropriate diagnosis and planning orthodontic and surgical procedures. These charts also provided datasets for preliminary dental age estimation in Turkish children and young adults. PMID:24944959

Solar energy system economic evaluation for Seeco Lincoln, Lincoln, Nebraska

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1980-01-01

The economic analysis of the solar energy system that was installed at Lincoln, Nebraska is developed for this and four other sites typical of a wide range of environmental and economic conditions in the continental United States. This analysis is accomplished based on the technical and economic models in the f chart design procedure with inputs based on the characteristics of the installed system and local conditions. The results are expressed in terms of the economic parameters of present worth of system cost over projected twenty year life: life cycle savings, year of positive savings and year of payback for the optimized solar energy system at each of the analysis sites. The sensitivity of the economic evaluation to uncertainties in constituent system and economic variables is also investigated.

Microgravity science experiment integration - When the PI and the PED differ

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Baer-Peckham, M. S.; Mccarley, K. S.

1991-01-01

This paper addresses issues related to the integration of principal investigators (PIs) and payload-element developers (PEDs) for conducting effective microgravity experiments. The Crystal Growth Furnace (CGF) is used as an example to demonstrate the key issues related to the integration of a PI's sample into a facility run by a different organization. Attention is given to the typical preflight timeline, documentation required for experimental implementation, and hardware deliverables. A flow chart delineates the payload-integration process flow, and PI inputs required for an experiment include equipment and procedure definitions, detailed design and fabrication of the experiment-specific equipment, and specifications of the contract-end item. The present analysis is of interest to the coordination of effective microgravity experiments on the Space Station Freedom that incorporate PIs and PEDs from different organizations.

Payroll Records, Business Education: 7734.31.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mitz, Rochelle

This brief pamphlet offers a course description to acquaint students with different types of payroll records, and provides experience in the preparation of time cards, the use of charts to figure taxes, making deductions, and completing records to government requirements. Enrollment guidelines; objectives; course content; procedures; learning…

Crackdown on Attendance--The Word Is Out.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

DuFour, Richard

1983-01-01

Procedures successful for one school in establishing good attendance include phone calls on all unexplained absences, discipline for unexcused absences, incentives for good attendance, charting attendance patterns, and staff coordination for monitoring attendance. Increased state aid, a more positive school climate, and greater student achievement…

A Study of Adverse Occurrences and Major Functional Impairment Following Surgery

DTIC Science & Technology

2005-05-01

elderly population, such as pulmonary embolism or wrong site surgery. We included only those surgical procedures with a prevalence of 1 percent or...disability, bedridden , incontinent, and requiring constant nursing care and attention (5). Based on information in the medical charts, nurses

45 CFR 602.22 - Allowable costs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... CFR part 31. Contract Cost Principles and Procedures, or uniform cost accounting standards that comply.... (b) Applicable cost principles. For each kind of organization, there is a set of Federal principles... principles applicable to the organization incurring the costs. The following chart lists the kinds of...

14 CFR 15.103 - Exclusions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Exclusions. 15.103 Section 15.103 Aeronautics and Space FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION PROCEDURAL RULES... chart or map; (3) Was not accurately displayed on a visual display in the cockpit, or (4) Was obviously...

Achieving a precise color chart with common computer software for excellence in anterior composite restorations.

PubMed

Salat, Anna; Devoto, Walter; Manauta, Jordi

2011-01-01

Achieving similar features to those on natural teeth is a common problem with esthetic restorations. Color matching is a fundamental procedure required to perform a predictable composite resin restoration. It is no longer enough to measure these criteria with conventional shade guides, which provide the hue and chroma, but do not take into account other dimensions of the tooth such as value, intensives, opalescence and characterizations. The present article presents a simple and effective technique for color selection using a digital photograph of the tooth and an image-editing program such as Adobe Photoshop or Picture Project. The digital editing of the photograph with two simple steps described in this paper reveals the internal structures of the tooth easily. The modified photographs highlight the opalescence, white spots, shape of the internal mammelons and other features that are not visible at first glance. This procedure provides an accurate color chart with which the clinician can begin an esthetic restoration process.

Comparison of resource utilization of pulmonary vein isolation: cryoablation versus RF ablation with three-dimensional mapping in the Value PVI Study.

PubMed

DeVille, J Brian; Svinarich, J Thomas; Dan, Dan; Wickliffe, Andrew; Kantipudi, Charan; Lim, Hae W; Plummer, Lisa; Baker, James; Kowalski, Marcin; Baydoun, Hassan; Jenkins, Mark; Chang-Sing, Peter

2014-06-01

Point-to-point focal radiofrequency (RF) catheter ablation for aberrant pulmonary vein triggers that manifest into atrial fibrillation (AF) is the traditional method for treating symptomatic drug-resistant paroxysmal AF (PAF) when an ablation procedure is warranted. More recently, pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) using the cryoballoon has been demonstrated to be safe and effective (STOP AF clinical trial). Currently, two small studies have reviewed the procedural efficiency when comparing cryoballoon to focal RF catheter ablation procedures; however, no multicenter study has yet reported on this comparison of the two types of ablation catheters. A multicenter retrospective chart extraction and evaluation was conducted at seven geographically mixed cardiac care centers. The study examined procedural variables during ablation for PVI in PAF patients. In several procedural measurements, the two modalities were comparable in efficiencies, including: acute PVI >96%; length of hospital stay at approximately 27 hours; and about 30% usage of adenosine after procedural testing. However, when compared to RF catheters, the cryoballoon procedure demonstrated a 13% reduction in laboratory occupancy time (247 min vs 283 min), a 13% reduction in procedure time (174 min vs 200 min), and a 21% reduction in fluoroscopy time (33 min vs 42 min). Additionally, when comparing the material usage of both cryoballoon and RF catheters, the cryoballoon used more radiopaque contrast agent (78 cc vs 29 cc) while using less intraprocedural saline (1234 cc vs 2386 cc), intracardiac echocardiography (88% vs 99%), three-dimensional electroanatomic mapping (30% vs 87%), and fewer transseptal punctures (1.5 vs 1.9). This study is the first United States multicenter examination to report the procedural comparisons between the cryoballoon and focal RF catheters when used for the treatment of PAF patients. In this hospital chart review study, potential advantages were found when operating the cryoballoon with regard to hospital resource allocation. There was no statistical difference between cryoballoon and RF catheters for acute PVI success during the ablation procedure.

Establishing a standardized dental record-keeping system for a small investigational colony of rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta).

PubMed

Gibson, B W; McGuffey, L; Raflo, C P; Niemiec, B A

2008-02-01

Dental hygiene is becoming an increasingly important component of quality health care for laboratory animals, especially non-human primates (NHPs). One key to a successful health care program is an effective and efficient record-keeping system. To standardize a dental hygiene program for a small colony of NHPs, we developed a dental recording chart specific for rhesus monkeys. This dental chart was developed using the modified Triadan system. This system numbers teeth across species according to location. An illustrative case report was presented to demonstrate the accurate record keeping and spatial relationship generated from this Old World NHP dental chart design. The development and implementation of a standardized dental chart, as part of a dental hygiene program will help minimize variables that may affect research data.

On designing a new cumulative sum Wilcoxon signed rank chart for monitoring process location

PubMed Central

Nazir, Hafiz Zafar; Tahir, Muhammad; Riaz, Muhammad

2018-01-01

In this paper, ranked set sampling is used for developing a non-parametric location chart which is developed on the basis of Wilcoxon signed rank statistic. The average run length and some other characteristics of run length are used as the measures to assess the performance of the proposed scheme. Some selective distributions including Laplace (or double exponential), logistic, normal, contaminated normal and student’s t-distributions are considered to examine the performance of the proposed Wilcoxon signed rank control chart. It has been observed that the proposed scheme shows superior shift detection ability than some of the competing counterpart schemes covered in this study. Moreover, the proposed control chart is also implemented and illustrated with a real data set. PMID:29664919

Small-for-gestational age and large-for-gestational age thresholds to predict infants at risk of adverse delivery and neonatal outcomes: are current charts adequate? An observational study from the Born in Bradford cohort

PubMed Central

Norris, T; Johnson, W; Farrar, D; Tuffnell, D; Wright, J; Cameron, N

2015-01-01

Objectives Construct an ethnic-specific chart and compare the prediction of adverse outcomes using this chart with the clinically recommended UK-WHO and customised birth weight charts using cut-offs for small-for-gestational age (SGA: birth weight <10th centile) and large-for-gestational age (LGA: birth weight >90th centile). Design Prospective cohort study. Setting Born in Bradford (BiB) study, UK. Participants 3980 White British and 4448 Pakistani infants with complete data for gestational age, birth weight, ethnicity, maternal height, weight and parity. Main outcome measures Prevalence of SGA and LGA, using the three charts and indicators of diagnostic utility (sensitivity, specificity and area under the receiver operating characteristic (AUROC)) of these chart-specific cut-offs to predict delivery and neonatal outcomes and a composite outcome. Results In White British and Pakistani infants, the prevalence of SGA and LGA differed depending on the chart used. Increased risk of SGA was observed when using the UK-WHO and customised charts as opposed to the ethnic-specific chart, while the opposite was apparent when classifying LGA infants. However, the predictive utility of all three charts to identify adverse clinical outcomes was poor, with only the prediction of shoulder dystocia achieving an AUROC>0.62 on all three charts. Conclusions Despite being recommended in national clinical guidelines, the UK-WHO and customised birth weight charts perform poorly at identifying infants at risk of adverse neonatal outcomes. Being small or large may increase the risk of an adverse outcome; however, size alone is not sensitive or specific enough with current detection to be useful. However, a significant amount of missing data for some of the outcomes may have limited the power needed to determine true associations. PMID:25783424

Connecting the Dots and Merging Meaning: Using Mixed Methods to Study Primary Care Delivery Transformation

PubMed Central

Scammon, Debra L; Tomoaia-Cotisel, Andrada; Day, Rachel L; Day, Julie; Kim, Jaewhan; Waitzman, Norman J; Farrell, Timothy W; Magill, Michael K

2013-01-01

Objective. To demonstrate the value of mixed methods in the study of practice transformation and illustrate procedures for connecting methods and for merging findings to enhance the meaning derived. Data Source/Study Setting. An integrated network of university-owned, primary care practices at the University of Utah (Community Clinics or CCs). CC has adopted Care by Design, its version of the Patient Centered Medical Home. Study Design. Convergent case study mixed methods design. Data Collection/Extraction Methods. Analysis of archival documents, internal operational reports, in-clinic observations, chart audits, surveys, semistructured interviews, focus groups, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services database, and the Utah All Payer Claims Database. Principal Findings. Each data source enriched our understanding of the change process and understanding of reasons that certain changes were more difficult than others both in general and for particular clinics. Mixed methods enabled generation and testing of hypotheses about change and led to a comprehensive understanding of practice change. Conclusions. Mixed methods are useful in studying practice transformation. Challenges exist but can be overcome with careful planning and persistence. PMID:24279836

Air Traffic Forecasting at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Augustine, J. G.

1972-01-01

Procedures for conducting air traffic forecasts with specific application to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey are discussed. The procedure relates air travel growth to detailed socio-economic and demographic characteristics of the U.S. population rather than to aggregate economic data such as Gross National Product, personal income, and industrial production. Charts are presented to show the relationship between various selected characteristics and the use of air transportation facilities.

40 CFR 91.405 - Recorded information.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... addition to a pre- and post-test measurement. (4) Recorder chart or equivalent. Identify for each test... each mode, if applicable. (8) Exhaust sample line temperature, if applicable. (e) Test data; post-test...) CONTROL OF EMISSIONS FROM MARINE SPARK-IGNITION ENGINES Gaseous Exhaust Test Procedures § 91.405 Recorded...

40 CFR 91.405 - Recorded information.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... addition to a pre- and post-test measurement. (4) Recorder chart or equivalent. Identify for each test... each mode, if applicable. (8) Exhaust sample line temperature, if applicable. (e) Test data; post-test...) CONTROL OF EMISSIONS FROM MARINE SPARK-IGNITION ENGINES Gaseous Exhaust Test Procedures § 91.405 Recorded...

40 CFR 91.405 - Recorded information.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... addition to a pre- and post-test measurement. (4) Recorder chart or equivalent. Identify for each test... each mode, if applicable. (8) Exhaust sample line temperature, if applicable. (e) Test data; post-test...) CONTROL OF EMISSIONS FROM MARINE SPARK-IGNITION ENGINES Gaseous Exhaust Test Procedures § 91.405 Recorded...

40 CFR 91.405 - Recorded information.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... addition to a pre- and post-test measurement. (4) Recorder chart or equivalent. Identify for each test... each mode, if applicable. (8) Exhaust sample line temperature, if applicable. (e) Test data; post-test...) CONTROL OF EMISSIONS FROM MARINE SPARK-IGNITION ENGINES Gaseous Exhaust Test Procedures § 91.405 Recorded...

40 CFR 91.405 - Recorded information.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... addition to a pre- and post-test measurement. (4) Recorder chart or equivalent. Identify for each test... each mode, if applicable. (8) Exhaust sample line temperature, if applicable. (e) Test data; post-test...) CONTROL OF EMISSIONS FROM MARINE SPARK-IGNITION ENGINES Gaseous Exhaust Test Procedures § 91.405 Recorded...

Project Physics Teacher Guide 1, Concepts of Motion.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harvard Univ., Cambridge, MA. Harvard Project Physics.

Teaching procedures of Project Physics Unit 1 are presented in this manual to help teachers make effective use of learning materials. Curriculum objectives are discussed in connection with instructional materials, suggested year time schedules, multi-media schedules, schedule blocks, resource charts, and experiment summaries. Brief analyses are…

Microflora in soils of desert regions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cameron, R. E.

1970-01-01

Desert soil samples, collected using aseptic techniques, are low in organic matter and cation exchange capacity. Aerobic and microaerophilic bacteria are most abundant, next are algae and molds. Chemical and physical properties are determined by standard procedures, including the Kjeldahl method and the use of Munsell soil color charts.

Endoscopic Cold Incision, Balloon Dilation, Mitomycin C Application, and Steroid Injection for Adult Laryngotracheal Stenosis

PubMed Central

Parker, Noah P.; Bandyopadhyay, Dipankar; Misono, Stephanie; Goding, George S.

2017-01-01

Objectives/Hypothesis To describe the presentation, stenosis characteristics, etiological differences, and outcomes of adult laryngotracheal stenosis treated with endoscopic cold incision, balloon dilation, topical mitomycin C application, and steroid injection. Study Design Retrospective chart review. Methods Demographic and clinical data were extracted for patients treated between March 2000 and December 2010. Prolonged intubation and idiopathic patient data were utilized for comparative analysis. Results Eighty patients (65 females; 15 males; 220 procedures; 2.9 years mean follow-up) presented with dyspnea (81%) and/or exercise intolerance (40%). Most commonly, etiologies were idiopathic (53 of 80; 66%) or prolonged intubation (14 of 80; 18%). Mean procedures per patient and interval between procedures were 2.8 procedures and 405 days, respectively. Mean stenosis length and distance from the caudal phonating edge of the true vocal folds were 9 mm and 19 mm. Complication, tracheotomy, and open-procedure rates were 1.8%, 1.4%, and 10.0%, respectively. Patients with more than two procedures demonstrated a mean 4-mm reduction in stenosis length and a 2-mm cephalad progression of stenosis over time. More caudal stenoses required more frequent procedures. Procedures were less frequent as more procedures were performed. Stenosis characteristics, interval between procedures, and total procedures were similar between idiopathic patients with or without intubation histories, but different between idiopathic and prolonged intubation patients. Conclusions This procedure was shown to be a viable option in adult laryngotracheal stenosis. Repeat dilation was likely, but was performed without adversely affecting stenosis characteristics. Stenoses farther from the vocal folds required procedures more frequently. Idiopathic patients with a history of brief, elective intubation had stenosis characteristics and responses to therapy similar to idiopathic patients without an intubation history. Both idiopathic groups together demonstrated stenosis characteristics and responses to therapy dissimilar to patients with a history of prolonged intubation. PMID:23086662

Illinois Community Colleges: Expanding Opportunities. A Guide to Quality, Affordable, Educational Opportunities...Very Close to Home.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Illinois Community Coll. Board, Springfield.

Designed as a recruitment pamphlet and general information guide for prospective students, this booklet contains two comprehensive charts on the 240 programs offered, and the degrees and certificates available at each of the 49 campuses in the Illinois Community College system. The first chart indicates which campuses in the system offer Associate…

Technological Change and the Material Conditions of the Literate Practice of Medicine.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dutcher, Violet A.

A study, to support the need for exploratory research, was designed to elicit a description of the medical chart located in its setting--the chart was looked "through" as a tool (as a means to an end to effect particular medical goals) and looked "at" itself as technology. This could provide a way to understand the relationship…

The Use of Graphics to Communicate Findings of Longitudinal Data in Design-Based Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Francis, Krista; Jacobsen, Michele; Friesen, Sharon

2014-01-01

Visuals and graphics have been used for communicating complex ideas since 1786 when William Playfair first invented the line graph and bar chart. Graphs and charts are useful for interpretation and making sense of data. For instance, John Snow's scatter plot helped pinpoint the source of a cholera outbreak in London in 1854 and also changed…

Calculation methods for externally pressurised (hydrostatic) journal bearings with capillary restrictor control

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

1992-09-01

ESDU 92026 provides a procedure for the design and performance analysis of the bearings with five or more identical equally-spaced rectangular recesses (or pockets) fed by identical capillary restrictors from a constant pressure supply. The method takes account of stiffness and overload capacity requirements and determines the bearing overall size and proportions from the required load, speed and shaft diameter, recommends the clearance and supply pressure, and defines the recess dimensions and capillary restrictor size from the properties of the chosen lubricant. Equations and charts allow prediction of the journal displacement under load, the power loss, the lubricant flow rate, and the bearing and lubricant temperatures. The method applies to laminar flow and guidance is given for assessing the onset of non-laminar flow in the bearing and restrictors. Guidance is also given on the likelihood of bearing-induced instability. The user is assisted by flowcharts in applying the method, and two practical worked examples illustrate the procedure. ESDU 92037 introduces a FORTRAN program that implements the method, and magnetic media are available in ESDUpac A9237.

Delivery of pharmaceutical services at ward level in a teaching hospital.

PubMed

Schellack, N; Martins, V; Botha, N; Meyer, J C

2009-03-01

Poor management of pharmaceuticals could lead to wastage of financial resources and poor services in the public sector. The main aim of the study was to investigate the quality of pharmaceutical services at ward level in a teaching hospital. The design of the study was descriptive. Three data collection instruments were designed and pilot-tested prior to the actual data collection. Two structured questionnaires were used to interview the sister-in-charge of each ward and the stock and drug controller at the pharmacy. A checklist for the management of pharmaceuticals was completed for each ward. Descriptive statistics were used to describe and summarise the data. Sisters-in-charge of 30 wards and the stock and drug controller at the pharmacy participated in the study. The relationship with the pharmacy was perceived to be average by 54% (n = 30) of the sisters-in-charge of the wards. Communication with the pharmacy was mainly by telephone and 57% of the sisters-in-charge mentioned that they experienced difficulties in conveying messages to the pharmacy. Ten of the wards received regular ward visits by a pharmacist. Expiry dates were checked by all wards but at different intervals. The majority of the wards (90%) used patient cards, which refer to prescription charts, for stock control and ordering from the pharmacy. Fridge temperatures were checked and charted on a daily basis by 30% of the wards. Written standard operating procedures (SOPs) were used by the pharmacy for issuing ward stock. Although 83% of the wards indicated that they used SOPs, evidence of written SOPs was not available. The results indicated that the management of pharmaceutical services at ward level could be improved. Implementation of appropriate communication systems will enhance cooperation between the pharmacy and the wards. A uniform ward stock control system, either by computer or stock cards, should be introduced. Regular ward visits by a pharmacist to oversee ward stock management are recommended. Standard operating procedures for use in the wards should be developed and implemented.

Preliminary Structural Design Considerations and Mass Efficiencies for Lunar Surface Manipulator Concepts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dorsey, John T.; Mikulas, Martin M.; Doggett, William R.

2008-01-01

The mass and sizing characteristics of manipulators for Lunar and Mars planetary surface applications are investigated by analyzing three structural configurations: a simple cantilevered boom with a square tubular cross-section; a hybrid cable/boom configuration with a square tubular cross-section support structure; and a hybrid cable/boom configuration with a square truss cross-section support structure. Design procedures are developed for the three configurations and numerical examples are given. A new set of performance parameters are developed that relate the mass of manipulators and cranes to a loading parameter. These parameters enable the masses of different manipulator configurations to be compared over a wide range of design loads and reach envelopes (radii). The use of these parameters is demonstrated in the form of a structural efficiency chart using the newly considered manipulator configurations. To understand the performance of Lunar and Mars manipulators, the design procedures were exercised on the three manipulator configurations assuming graphite/epoxy materials for the tubes and trusses. It is also assumed that the actuators are electric motor, gear reduction systems. Numerical results for manipulator masses and sizes are presented for a variety of manipulator reach and payload mass capabilities. Results are presented that demonstrate the sensitivity of manipulator mass to operational radius, tip force, and actuator efficiency. The effect of the value of gravitational force on the ratio of manipulator-mass to payload-mass is also shown. Finally, results are presented to demonstrate the relative mass reduction for the use of graphite/epoxy compared to aluminum for the support structure.

Nursing diagnosis taxonomy across the Atlantic Ocean: congruence between nurses' charting and the NANDA taxonomy.

PubMed

Thoroddsen, Asta; Thorsteinsson, Hrund Sch

2002-02-01

The purpose of this study was to analyse expressions or terms used by nurses in Iceland to describe patient problems. The classification of NANDA was used as reference. The research questions were: (a) Does NANDA terminology represent patient problems documented by Icelandic nurses? (b) If so, what kind of nursing diagnoses does it represent? (c) What kind of patient problems are not represented by NANDA terminology? (d) What are the most frequent nursing diagnoses used? A retrospective chart review was conducted in a 400 bed acute care hospital in Iceland. The sample was defined as nursing diagnosis statements in charts of patients hospitalized in two 6-month periods in two separate years. The data were analysed according to a predefined grading system based on the PES format or Problem -- (A)aetiology -- Signs and symptoms. A total of 1217 charts were used for the study, which yielded 2171 nursing diagnoses statements for analysis. Charts with at least one nursing diagnosis documented were 60.1% and the number of diagnoses per patient ranged from 0 to 10, with 65% of charts with three diagnoses or less. The number of diagnoses correlated with patients' length of stay, but not with increased age of the patients. The average number of statements per patient was 3.28. Almost 60% of the diagnoses were according to NANDA terminology, another 20% were stated as procedures, medical diagnoses or risks for complications. The 20 most frequently used nursing diagnoses accounted for 80% of all diagnoses documented. Discrepancy between nurses' documentation on emotional problems and availability of diagnosis in the NANDA taxonomy was evident. It can be concluded that the NANDA taxonomy seems to be culturally relevant for nurses in different cultures.

Revised IAP growth charts for height, weight and body mass index for 5- to 18-year-old Indian children.

PubMed

Khadilkar, Vaman; Yadav, Sangeeta; Agrawal, K K; Tamboli, Suchit; Banerjee, Monidipa; Cherian, Alice; Goyal, Jagdish P; Khadilkar, Anuradha; Kumaravel, V; Mohan, V; Narayanappa, D; Ray, I; Yewale, Vijay

2015-01-01

The need to revise Indian Academy of Pediatrics (IAP) growth charts for 5- to 18-year-old Indian children and adolescents was felt as India is in nutrition transition and previous IAP charts are based on data which are over two decades old. The Growth Chart Committee was formed by IAP in January 2014 to design revised growth charts. Consultative meeting was held in November 2014 in Mumbai. Studies performed on Indian children's growth, nutritional assessment and anthropometry from upper and middle socioeconomic classes in last decade were identified. Committee contacted 13 study groups; total number of children in the age group of 5 to 18 years were 87022 (54086 boys). Data from fourteen cities (Agartala, Ahmadabad, Chandigarh, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkata, Madurai, Mumbai, Mysore, Pune, Raipur and Surat) in India were collated. Data of children with weight for height Z scores >2 SD were removed from analyses. Data on 33148 children (18170 males, 14978 females) were used to construct growth charts using Cole's LMS method. To construct revised IAP growth charts for 5-18 year old Indian children based on collated national data from published studies performed on apparently healthy children and adolescents in the last 10 years. The IAP growth chart committee recommends these revised growth charts for height, weight and body mass index (BMI) for assessment of growth of 5-18 year old Indian children to replace the previous IAP charts; rest of the recommendations for monitoring height and weight remain as per the IAP guidelines published in 2007. To define overweight and obesity in children from 5-18 years of age, adult equivalent of 23 and 27 cut-offs presented in BMI charts may be used. IAP recommends use of WHO standards for growth assessment of children below 5 years of age.

Project Physics Teacher Guide 3, The Triumph of Mechanics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harvard Univ., Cambridge, MA. Harvard Project Physics.

Teaching procedures of Project Physics Unit 3 are presented to help teachers make effective use of learning materials. Unit contents are discussed in connection with teaching aid perspective, multi-media schedules, schedule blocks, and resource charts. Brief analyses are made for transparencies, 16mm films, and reader articles. Included is…

Project Physics Teacher Guide 2, Motion in the Heavens.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harvard Univ., Cambridge, MA. Harvard Project Physics.

Teaching procedures of Project Physics Unit 2 are presented to help teachers make effective use of learning materials. The unit contents are discussed in connection with teaching aid perspectives, multi-media schedules, schedule blocks, and resource charts. Analyses are made for transparencies, 16mm films, and reader articles. Included is…

Project Physics Teacher Guide 6, The Nucleus.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harvard Univ., Cambridge, MA. Harvard Project Physics.

Teaching procedures of Project Physics Unit 6 are presented to help teachers make effective use of learning materials. Unit contents are discussed in connection with teaching aid lists, multi-media schedules, schedule blocks, and resource charts. Brief summaries are made for transparencies, 16mm films, and reader articles. Included is information…

Hello! Are You Registered?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Institute for Political/Legal Education, Sewell, NJ.

Organizational procedures and appropriate forms for high school students to conduct a community survey of non-registered voters are provided. Duties for student coordinator, field staff, and clerical staff are described and a flow chart depicts the relationship of personnel to one another and to the community. Students are instructed to notify…

Project Physics Teacher Guide 4, Light and Electromagnetism.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harvard Univ., Cambridge, MA. Harvard Project Physics.

Teaching procedures of Project Physics Unit 4 are presented to help teachers make effective use of learning materials. Unit contents are discussed in connection with teaching aid lists, multi-media schedules, schedule blocks, and resources charts. Brief summaries are made for transparencies, 16mm films, and reader articles. Included is information…

40 CFR 86.540-90 - Exhaust sample analysis.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

..., if appropriate, NOX: (1) Zero the analyzers and obtain a stable zero reading. Recheck after tests. (2... actual concentrations on chart. (3) Check zeros; repeat the procedure in paragraphs (a) (1) and (2) of... appropriate, NOX. concentrations of samples. (6) Check zero and span points. If difference is greater than 2...

78 FR 63966 - Notice of Change to the Nation's Tidal Datums With the Adoption of a Modified Procedure for...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-10-25

... boundary determinations, coastal engineering, storm warnings and hazard mitigation, emergency management... shoreline depiction may need to be updated on the next regularly scheduled chart edition. Although... Web site ( http://www.tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov ) or contact the Center for Operational Oceanographic...

Remote sensing utility in a disaster struck urban environment. [technology utilization

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rush, M.; Holguin, A.

1975-01-01

Standard operating procedures, utilizing remote sensing, are outlined for public health assistance during natural disaster relief operations. A manual to aid decision making for public health authorities is included. Flow charts which show the procedures that need to be implemented during a natural disaster are also included. Emphasis is placed on a preventive approach to the effects of disasters, and specifically to post-disaster problems that relate to public health concerns during the emergency phase of relief.

Simplified sonic-boom prediction. [using aerodynamic configuration charts and calculators or slide rules

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Carlson, H. W.

1978-01-01

Sonic boom overpressures and signature duration may be predicted for the entire affected ground area for a wide variety of supersonic airplane configurations and spacecraft operating at altitudes up to 76 km in level flight or in moderate climbing or descending flight paths. The outlined procedure relies to a great extent on the use of charts to provide generation and propagation factors for use in relatively simple expressions for signature calculation. Computational requirements can be met by hand-held scientific calculators, or even by slide rules. A variety of correlations of predicted and measured sonic-boom data for airplanes and spacecraft serve to demonstrate the applicability of the simplified method.

Design of secondary and subdivision roads in Virginia based on thickness equivalency values.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1971-01-01

The design of secondary and subdivision roads in Virginia is based on the design charts recommended by the Highway Department. In view of recently gained knowledge of materials and design techniques, the Pavement Research Advisory Committee requested...

A graphics-oriented personal computer-based microscope charting system for neuroanatomical and neurochemical studies.

PubMed

Tourtellotte, W G; Lawrence, D T; Getting, P A; Van Hoesen, G W

1989-07-01

This report describes a computerized microscope charting system based on the IBM personal computer or compatible. Stepping motors are used to control the movement of the microscope stage and to encode its position by hand manipulation of a joystick. Tissue section contours and the location of cells labeled with various compounds are stored by the computer, plotted at any magnification and manipulated into composites created from several charted sections. The system has many advantages: (1) it is based on an industry standardized computer that is affordable and familiar; (2) compact and commercially available stepping motor microprocessors control the stage movement. These controllers increase reliability, simplify implementation, and increase efficiency by relieving the computer of time consuming control tasks; (3) the system has an interactive graphics interface allowing the operator to view the image during data collection. Regions of the graphics display can be enlarged during the charting process to provide higher resolution and increased accuracy; (4) finally, the digitized data are stored at 0.5 micron resolution and can be routed directly to a multi-pen plotter or exported to a computer-aided design (CAD) program to generate a publication-quality montage composed of several computerized chartings. The system provides a useful tool for the acquisition and qualitative analysis of data representing stained cells or chemical markers in tissue. The modular design, together with data storage at high resolution, allows for potential analytical enhancements involving planimetric, stereologic and 3-D serial section reconstruction.

Charts and approximate formulas for the estimation of aeroelastic effects of the lateral control of swept and unswept wings

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Foss, Kenneth A; Diederich, Franklin W

1953-01-01

Charts and approximate formulas are presented for the estimation of static aeroelastic effects on the spanwise lift distribution, rolling-moment coefficient, and rate of roll due to the deflection of ailerons on swept and unswept wings at subsonic and supersonic speeds. Some design considerations brought out by the results of this report are discussed. This report treats the lateral-control case in a manner similar to that employed in NACA Report 1140 for the symmetric-flight case, and is intended to be used in conjunction with NACA Report 1140 and the charts and formulas presented therein.

Development of a weight/sizing design synthesis computer program. Volume 2: Program Description

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Garrison, J. M.

1973-01-01

The program for the computerized analysis of weight estimation relationships for those elements of the space shuttle vehicle which contribute a significant portion of the inert weight is discussed. A listing of each module and subroutine of the program is presented. Included are a generalized flow chart describing the subroutine linkage of the complete program and detailed flow charts for each subprogram.

Automation of Command and Data Entry in a Glovebox Work Volume: An Evaluation of Data Entry Devices

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Steele, Marianne K.; Nakamura, Gail; Havens, Cindy; LeMay, Moira

1996-01-01

The present study was designed to examine the human-computer interface for data entry while performing experimental procedures within a glovebox work volume in order to make a recommendation to the Space Station Biological Research Project for a data entry system to be used within the Life Sciences Glovebox. Test subjects entered data using either a manual keypad, similar to a standard computer numerical keypad located within the glovebox work volume, or a voice input system using a speech recognition program with a microphone headset. Numerical input and commands were programmed in an identical manner between the two systems. With both electronic systems, a small trackball was available within the work volume for cursor control. Data, such as sample vial identification numbers, sample tissue weights, and health check parameters of the specimen, were entered directly into procedures that were electronically displayed on a video monitor within the glovebox. A pen and paper system with a 'flip-chart' format for procedure display, similar to that currently in use on the Space Shuttle, was used as a baseline data entry condition. Procedures were performed by a single operator; eight test subjects were used in the study. The electronic systems were tested under both a 'nominal' or 'anomalous' condition. The anomalous condition was introduced into the experimental procedure to increase the probability of finding limitations or problems with human interactions with the electronic systems. Each subject performed five test runs during a test day: two procedures each with voice and keypad, one with and one without anomalies, and one pen and paper procedure. The data collected were both quantitative (times, errors) and qualitative (subjective ratings of the subjects).

Economic evaluation of three surgical interventions for menorrhagia.

PubMed

Fernandez, Hervé; Kobelt, Giséla; Gervaise, Amélie

2003-03-01

The study was carried out to compare the overall effectiveness and direct economic costs of vaginal hysterectomy (VH), endometrial ablation (EA) and thermo-coagulation (TC) for the treatment menorrhagia. We treated 50, 50 and 47 women with menorrhagia (>150 points on the Higham pictorial chart) by VH, EA and TC respectively. The patients were treated consecutively by the same surgeon and the choice between the three procedures depended on the desire of the patients. Resource utilization for the interventions was collected retrospectively from the hospital charts. A study questionnaire was mailed to the patients 24-36 months after the primary surgery. Patients who reported that they had undergone a second procedure or who were still menorrhagic were considered as treatment failures. As expected, the failure rate was lowest for VH. The total cost (without re-intervention for persistent menorrhagia) was 5315 Euros for VH, 1098 Euros for EA and 921 Euros for TC. The total cost with re-intervention was calculated based on therapeutic strategies used in 2001 and estimated at 5321 Euros for VH, 1263 Euros for EA and 1320 Euros for TC. The two out-patient procedures are very comparable in terms of success rates and costs. Choices will depend on budgeting considerations, surgeon skill and patient preference. The results may give guidance to investment decisions.

Do Gender-Specific and High-Resolution Three Dimensional Body Charts Facilitate the Communication of Pain for Women? A Quantitative and Qualitative Study

PubMed Central

Egsgaard, Line Lindhardt

2016-01-01

Background Chronic pain is more prevalent among women; however, the majority of standardized pain drawings are often collected using male-like androgynous body representations. Objective The purpose of this study was to assess whether gender-specific and high-resolution three-dimensional (3D) body charts facilitate the communication of pain for women. Methods Using mixed-methods and a cross-over design, female patients with chronic pain were asked to provide detailed drawings of their current pain on masculine and feminine two-dimensional (2D) body schemas (N=41, Part I) or on female 2D and 3D high-resolution body schemas (N=41, Part II) on a computer tablet. The consistency of the drawings between body charts were assessed by intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and Bland-Altman plots. Semistructured interviews and a preference questionnaire were then used to obtain qualitative and quantitative responses of the drawing experience. Results The consistency between body charts were high (Part I: ICC=0.980, Part II: ICC=0.994). The preference ratio for the masculine to feminine body schemas were 6:35 and 18:23 for the 2D to 3D female body charts. Patients reported that the 3D body chart enabled a more accurate expression of their pain due to the detailed contours of the musculature and bone structure, however, patients also reported the 3D body chart was too human and believed that skin-like appearance limited ‘deep pain’ expressions. Conclusions Providing gender-specific body charts may facilitate the communication of pain and the level of detail (2D vs 3D body charts) should be used according to patients’ needs. PMID:27440737

Steam automobile analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Peoples, J. A.

1975-01-01

Report includes many charts that present graphically the effects of design parameters on performance. Equations and data are given which can assist designer in selecting among such factors as working medium, horsepower, and engine components.

Solar energy system economic evaluation for Solaron Akron, Akron, Ohio

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1980-01-01

The economic analysis of the solar energy system that was installed at Akron, Ohio is developed for this and four other sites typical of a wide range of environmental and economic conditions. The analysis is accomplished based on the technical and economic models in the f chart design procedure with inputs based on the characteristics of the installed parameters of present worth of system cost over a projected twenty year life: life cycle savings, year of positive savings and year of payback for the optimized solar energy system at each of the analysis sites. The sensitivity of the economic evaluation to uncertainties in constituent system and economic variables is also investigated. Results show that only in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where insolation is 1828 Btu/sq ft/day and the conventional energy cost is high, is this solar energy system marginally profitable.

Solar energy system economic evaluation for Seeco Lincoln, Lincoln, Nebraska. Final report

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Not Available

1980-09-01

The economic analysis of the solar energy system that was installed at Lincoln, Nebraska is developed for this and four other sites typical of a wide range of environmental and economic conditions in the continental United States. This analysis is accomplished based on the technical and economic models in the f chart design procedure with inputs based on the characteristics of the installed system and local conditions. The results are expressed in terms of the economic parameters of present worth of system cost over projected twenty year life: life cycle savings, year of positive savings and year of payback formore » the optimized solar energy system at each of the analysis sites. The sensitivity of the economic evaluation to uncertainties in constituent system and economic variables is also investigated.« less

NASA Human Integration Design Handbook (HIDH): Revitalization of Space-Related Human Factors, Environmental and Habitability Data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Russo, Dane; Pickett, Lynn; Tillman, Barry; Foley, Tico

2007-01-01

This chart illustrates the contents for NASA's Human Integration Design Handbook, which is being developed as a new reference handbook for designing systems which accomodate the capabilities and limitations of the human crew.

Spacesuit guidebook

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1991-01-01

This guidebook is designed to supplement the Spacesuit wall chart (WAL-114) published by the Education Affairs Division, January 1990. The wall chart depicts Astronaut Bruce McCandless on his historic first untethered spacewalk using the manned maneuvering unit. He flew on Shuttle mission 41-B, and ventured 100 meters for the Shuttle's cargo bay and returned safely. This guidebook explains in depth the elements depicted on the wall chart in see-through and cut-away perspectives. Together the wall chart and guidebook show as well as explain the inside workings of the spacesuit and its various components. Forty separate elements are identified with an accompanying numerical legend. Those elements are further explained in this guidebook along with their functions and how they work in relation to other elements. Additional chapters discuss essential components of the spacesuit such as the primary life support system and the manned maneuvering unit, and the method for donning the spacesuit.

Administration order of midazolam/fentanyl for moderate dental sedation.

PubMed

Lobb, Douglas; Clarke, Alix; Lai, Hollis

2018-02-01

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of administration order when a sedative drug (midazolam) and an opioid analgesic drug (fentanyl) is applied for moderate intravenous (IV) sedation in dentistry. A retrospective chart review was conducted in one dental clinic during its transition from a midazolam-first to a fentanyl-first protocol for dental procedures requiring moderate IV sedation. Physiological parameters, drug administration times, patient recovery times, drug dosages, and patient recall and satisfaction were investigated for differences. A total of 76 charts (40 midazolam-first and 36 fentanyl-first administrations), were used in the analysis. Administering midazolam first resulted in an average 4.38 min (52%) decrease in administration times (P < 0.001), and a decrease in procedural recollection immediately following the procedure (P = 0.03), and 24 to 48 hours later (P = 0.009). Administering fentanyl first required an average of 2.43 mg (29%) less midazolam (P < 0.001). No significant differences were found for change in vital signs, minimum oxygen saturation levels, recovery times, and patient satisfaction (P > 0.05). Oxygen saturation levels did not drop below 90% for either group; however, 5 cases in the fentanyl-first group fell to between 90% and 92%, compared with 0 cases in the midazolam-first group. The administration order of fentanyl and midazolam may have different effects on patients and the sedation procedure. Findings from this study should be used to facilitate discussion among dental practitioners and to guide additional research investigating this topic.

Implementing self sustained quality control procedures in a clinical laboratory.

PubMed

Khatri, Roshan; K C, Sanjay; Shrestha, Prabodh; Sinha, J N

2013-01-01

Quality control is an essential component in every clinical laboratory which maintains the excellence of laboratory standards, supplementing to proper disease diagnosis, patient care and resulting in overall strengthening of health care system. Numerous quality control schemes are available, with combinations of procedures, most of which are tedious, time consuming and can be "too technical" whereas commercially available quality control materials can be expensive especially for laboratories in developing nations like Nepal. Here, we present a procedure performed at our centre with self prepared control serum and use of simple statistical tools for quality assurance. The pooled serum was prepared as per guidelines for preparation of stabilized liquid quality control serum from human sera. Internal Quality Assessment was performed on this sample, on a daily basis which included measurement of 12 routine biochemical parameters. The results were plotted on Levey-Jennings charts and analysed with quality control rules, for a period of one month. The mean levels of biochemical analytes in self prepared control serum were within normal physiological range. This serum was evaluated every day along with patients' samples. The results obtained were plotted on control charts and analysed using common quality control rules to identify possible systematic and random errors. Immediate mitigation measures were taken and the dispatch of erroneous reports was avoided. In this study we try to highlight on a simple internal quality control procedure which can be performed by laboratories, with minimum technology, expenditure, and expertise and improve reliability and validity of the test reports.

Pilot study on the feasibility of a computerized speech recognition charting system.

PubMed

Feldman, C A; Stevens, D

1990-08-01

The objective of this study was to determine the feasibility of developing and using a voice recognition computerized charting system to record dental clinical examination data. More specifically, the study was designed to analyze the time and error differential between the traditional examiner/recorder method (ASSISTANT) and computerized voice recognition method (VOICE). DMFS examinations were performed twice on 20 patients using the traditional ASSISTANT and the VOICE charting system. A statistically significant difference was found when comparing the mean ASSISTANT time of 2.69 min to the VOICE time of 3.72 min (P less than 0.001). No statistically significant difference was found when comparing the mean ASSISTANT recording errors of 0.1 to VOICE recording errors of 0.6 (P = 0.059). 90% of the patients indicated they felt comfortable with the dentist talking to a computer and only 5% of the sample indicated they opposed VOICE. Results from this pilot study indicate that a charting system utilizing voice recognition technology could be considered a viable alternative to traditional examiner/recorder methods of clinical charting.

Construction of a General Purpose Command Language for Use in Computer Dialog.

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-09-01

Page 1 Skeletal Command Action File...............35 2 Sample from Cyber Action File.................36 3 Program MONITOR Structure Chart...return indicates subroutine call and no return Fig 3. Program MONITOR Structure Chart 48 IV. Validation The general purpose command language was...executive control of these functions, in C addition to its role as interpreter. C C The structure , concept, design, and implementation of program C

Defense Manufacturing Management Guide for Program Managers, Third Edition

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-04-01

Crosby (Quality goals of quality, cost, schedule, mission need, College), Genechi Taguchi (Experimental 5-1 Design), Dr. Kaoru Ishikawa (Cause/Effect...the remaining problems were resolved. 5-7 6. Ishikawa Diagram 7. Control Charts This technique was developed by Dr. In the minds of some quality Kaoru ... Ishikawa , one of the foremost professionals and nonprofesslonals alike, the authorities on quality control in Japan. The control chart is synonymous

Getting Along with Others: An Activity Book. Charts and Tips To Help You Teach Social Skills to Children and Reward Their Good Behavior. Grades Pre K-6.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Herron, Ron

Noting that children need to learn to cooperate with peers, older children, adults, and parents, this activity book presents 30 charts to help parents help their children learn and practice social skills. The illustrations, coloring activities, and rewards for parents to offer are designed to keep children entertained and motivated. The book…

The stability of the compression cover of box beams stiffened by posts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Seide, Paul; Barrett, Paul F

1951-01-01

An investigation is made of the buckling of the compression cover of post-stiffened box beams subjected to end moments. Charts are presented for the determination of the minimum post axial stiffnesses and the corresponding compressive buckling loads required for the compression cover to buckle with nodes through the posts. Application of the charts to design and analysis and the limitations of their use are discussed.

Decision Support Systems: Applications in Statistics and Hypothesis Testing.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Olsen, Christopher R.; Bozeman, William C.

1988-01-01

Discussion of the selection of appropriate statistical procedures by educators highlights a study conducted to investigate the effectiveness of decision aids in facilitating the use of appropriate statistics. Experimental groups and a control group using a printed flow chart, a computer-based decision aid, and a standard text are described. (11…

Rating Lift Cranes Operating on Platforms in the Ocean Environment SAE J-1366--Proposed SAE Recommended Practice (Version 4.0)

DTIC Science & Technology

1992-03-01

Hueneme, CA 93043-5003 9. SPONSORING/MiONITORING AGENCY NAME(S) AND ADDRESSE(S) 10 . SPONSORINGINMONITORING AGENZY REPORT NUMBER Naval Facilities...8 6. Calculation Procedure .. .. ....... ...... ...... 10 7. Marine Crane Rating Chart Format .. ..... ...... ... 15 8...Rating for List. .. .... ....... ....... .... 16 9. Pendulation .. .. ....... ...... ....... ... 17 10 . References

Project Physics Teacher Guide 5, Models of the Atom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harvard Univ., Cambridge, MA. Harvard Project Physics.

Teaching procedures of Project Physics Unit 5 are presented to help teachers make effective use of learning materials. Unit contents are discussed in connection with teaching aid lists, multi-media schedules, schedule blocks, and resource charts. Brief summaries are made for transparencies, 16mm films, and reader articles. Included is information…

THE EFFECTS OF VIDEO-TAPING PROCEDURES IN AN EXPERIMENTAL READING PROGRAM.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

SCHWARTZ-LITTMANN, CAROLE

THE EXPERIMENTAL USE OF VIDEO AND TAPE RECORDINGS IN TEACHING THREE NEUROLOGICALLY DISABLED BOYS AGED 8, 9, AND 10 TO READ IS REPORTED. EXPERIENCE CHARTS WERE USED TO PRESENT BOTH UNCONTROLLED AND CONTROLLED VOCABULARY. THREE SPACES VIDEO-TAPED DEMONSTRATIONS WITH THE CHILDREN WERE USED TO DIAGNOSE PROGRESS AND AS MOTIVATIONAL DEVICES. THE…

Nutritional Screening of Children: A Manual for Screening & Followup.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bureau of Community Health Services (DHHS/PHS), Rockville, MD.

This manual shows health providers how to perform precisely and expertly each step of several procedures used in screening children for nutritional problems. It is intended for all health providers who are involved in weighing and measuring children, recording and plotting measurements on growth charts, taking blood samples to test for iron…

9 CFR 381.305 - Equipment and procedures for heat processing systems.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... control unit. A nonreturn valve shall be provided in the air supply line to prevent water from entering... control unit. A nonreturn valve shall be provided in the air supply line to prevent water from entering... supply of clean, dry air. The recorder timing mechanism shall be accurate. (i) Chart-type devices...

Guidelines for Aviation Education in Schools of Pennsylvania with Annotated Teacher's Course of Study and Planning Chart.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Butler, Richard T.; Smith, William J.

The guidelines for an aviation education program give directions and provide coordination and correlation for the program in Pennsylvania's schools. Chapter 1 discusses the approach to aviation education--the problem, procedure, and definition of terms. Chapter 2 briefly outlines teacher responsibilities and student advantages. Focusing on…

[Economics] Introductory Lesson (Begin Day One). Lesson Plan.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lewin, Roland

This introductory lesson on teaching economics concepts contains sections on the following: purpose; objectives; time; materials needed; and step-by-step classroom procedures. The focus is on the economic problem of scarcity and opportunity costs. Attached is an original skit, "There's no such thing as a free lunch," and a chart that…

How-to-Do-It: A Simulation of the Blood Type Test.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sharp, John D., Sr.; Smailes, Deborah L.

1989-01-01

Explains an activity that allows students to visualize antigen-antibody type reactions and learn about antibodies and antigens without performing blood typing tests. Provides directions for students and a comparison chart of a blood typing simulation with procedure which is based on the reactions of certain ionic solutions when mixed. (RT)

One Pragmatist Looks Back: Some Views on Functional Literacy Programmes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leven, C. S.

1971-01-01

The author recounts problems he encountered in industrial vocational training in functional literacy programs. He stresses the acquisition of attitudes, habits, and principles more than specific technical facts or procedures, and recommends the use of visual aids and group discussion, and giving students ability to read and understand charts and…

A Frequency-List of Sentence Structures: Distribution of Kernel Sentences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Geens, Dirk

1974-01-01

A corpus of 10,000 sentences extracted from British theatrical texts was used to construct a frequency list of kernel sentence structures. Thirty-one charts illustrate the analyzed results. The procedures used and an interpretation of the frequencies are given. Such lists might aid foreign language teachers in course organization. Available from…

9 CFR 318.305 - Equipment and procedures for heat processing systems.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... ensure a supply of clean, dry air. The recorder timing mechanism shall be accurate. (i) Chart-type... filter systems to ensure a supply of clean, dry air. (ii) Pressure recording device. Each retort shall be... section. (2) Cooling canal water shall be chlorinated or treated with a chemical approved by the...

9 CFR 381.305 - Equipment and procedures for heat processing systems.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... supply of clean, dry air. The recorder timing mechanism shall be accurate. (i) Chart-type devices... filter systems to ensure a supply of clean, dry air. (ii) Pressure recording device. Each retort shall be... cooling except as provided for in paragraphs (h) (2) and (3) of this section. (2) Cooling canal water...

Collection Development Organization and Committees. SPEC Kit 11.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Association of Research Libraries, Washington, DC. Office of Management Studies.

This kit focuses on information that is useful for starting a collection development program. It contains 7 position descriptions, 10 documents on the role of committees, 4 organization charts, 5 documents on the organization of functions, and an analysis of a Systems and Procedures Exchange Center (SPEC) collection development survey. The survey,…

Establishment of quality assurance procedures for aquatic toxicity testing with the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Freeman, M.N.; Marse, T.J.; Williams, P.L.

1998-12-31

In this study initial data were generated to develop laboratory control charts for aquatic toxicity testing using the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. Tests were performed using two reference toxicants: CdCl{sub 2} and CuCl{sub 2}. All tests were performed for 24 h without a food source and of 48 h with a food source in a commonly used nematode aquatic medium. Each test was replicated 6 times with each replicate having 6 wells per concentration with 10 {+-} 1 worms per well. Probit analysis was used to estimate LC{sub 50} values for each test. The data were used to construct a meanmore » ({bar x}) laboratory control chart for each reference toxicant. The coefficient of variation (CV) for three of the four reference toxicant tests was less than 20%, which demonstrates an excellent degree of reproducibility. These CV values are well within suggested standards for determination of organism sensitivity and overall test system credibility. A standardized procedure for performing 24 h and 48 h aquatic toxicity studies with C. elegans is proposed.« less

Quality Assurance: Patient Chart Reviews

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oginni, B. M.; Odero, D. O.

2009-07-01

Recent developments in radiation therapy have immensely impacted the way the radiation dose is delivered to patients undergoing radiation treatments. However, the fundamental quality assurance (QA) issues underlying the radiation therapy still remain the accuracy of the radiation dose and the radiation safety. One of the major duties of clinical medical physicists in the radiation therapy departments still revolves around ensuring the accuracy of dose delivery to the planning target volume (PTV), the reduction of unintended radiation to normal organs and minimization of the radiation exposure to the medical personnel based on ALARA (as low as reasonably achievable) principle. Many of the errors in radiation therapy can be minimized through a comprehensive program of periodic checks. One of the QA procedures on the patient comes in the form of chart reviews which could be in either electronic or paper-based format. We present the quality assurance procedures that have to be performed on the patient records from the beginning and periodically to the end of the treatment, based on the guidelines from the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) and American College of Physicians (ACP).

Descriptive study of perioperative analgesic medications associated with general anesthesia for dental rehabilitation of children.

PubMed

Carter, Laura; Wilson, Stephen; Tumer, Erwin G

2010-01-01

The purpose of this retrospective chart review was to document sedation and analgesic medications administered preoperotively, intraoperatively, and during postanesthesia care for children undergoing dental rehabilitation using general anesthesia (GA). Patient gender, age, procedure type performed, and ASA status were recorded from the medical charts of children undergoing GA for dental rehabilitation. The sedative and analgesic drugs administered pre-, intra-, and postoperatively were recorded. Statistical analysis included descriptive statistics and cross-tabulation. A sample of 115 patients with a mean age of 64 (+/-30) months was studied; 47% were females, and 71% were healthy. Over 80% of the patients were administered medications primarily during pre- and intraoperative phases, with fewer than 25% receiving medications postoperatively. Morphine and fentanyl were the most frequently administered agents intraoperatively. The procedure type, gender, and health status were not statistically associated with the number of agents administered. Younger patients, however, were statistically more likely to receive additional analgesic medications. Our study suggests that a minority of patients have postoperative discomfort in the postanesthesia care unit; mild to moderate analgesics were administered during intraoperative phases of dental rehabilitation.

Characteristics of patients with autistic disorder (AD) presenting for dental treatment: a survey and chart review.

PubMed

Klein, U; Nowak, A J

1999-01-01

A group of 43 patients with AD (mean age, 13.5; SD, 5.9 yrs) was identified from the University Hospital School Pediatric Dentistry Clinic. We reviewed the patients' charts to obtain demographic data, dental findings, and the management techniques used for treatment. The patients were divided into groups according to Frankl's categories of behavior, ranging from definitely negative to positive. Descriptive data are provided for each group. Commonly used communications and pharmacological management techniques, as well as physical restraints, enabled us to treat all the patients in the traditional dental setting, when simple procedures were planned. Treatment under general anesthesia in the operating room was necessary in 37% of all patients when comprehensive care was required or difficult procedures were carried out. A questionnaire was also sent out to the caregivers to gather data on patients' nutrition and eating/chewing habits. In the sample surveyed, two-thirds of the individuals reportedly exhibited a normal eating pattern, while 14% pouched food. Soft, sweet, or sticky foods were preferred by 41% of the patients.

Design and application of process control charting methodologies to gamma irradiation practices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saylor, M. C.; Connaghan, J. P.; Yeadon, S. C.; Herring, C. M.; Jordan, T. M.

2002-12-01

The relationship between the contract irradiation facility and the customer has historically been based upon a "PASS/FAIL" approach with little or no quality metrics used to gage the control of the irradiation process. Application of process control charts, designed in coordination with mathematical simulation of routine radiation processing, can provide a basis for understanding irradiation events. By using tools that simulate the physical rules associated with the irradiation process, end-users can explore process-related boundaries and the effects of process changes. Consequently, the relationship between contractor and customer can evolve based on the derived knowledge. The resulting level of mutual understanding of the irradiation process and its resultant control benefits both the customer and contract operation, and provides necessary assurances to regulators. In this article we examine the complementary nature of theoretical (point kernel) and experimental (dosimetric) process evaluation, and the resulting by-product of improved understanding, communication and control generated through the implementation of effective process control charting strategies.

Development and assessment of a fiber-optic liquid level sensor with long-period fiber grating and Shewhart control charts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Jian-Neng; Jan, Chen-Han; Tang, Jaw-Luen; Wu, Wei-Te; Chen, Der-Cheng; Chen, Chien-Hsing; Syu, Jial-Yan; Luo, Ching-Ying

2011-12-01

This paper presents the development and assessment of a liquid level sensor using long-period fiber grating (LPFG) technology and Shewhart control charts. The 22-mm LPFGs were fabricated with the point-by-point CO2 laser engraving method. This sensor was designed in such a way that it could be moved up and down with a position controller. The experimental section covered LPFG position sensing test, liquid level detection capacity and reliability measurements, and sensing resolution evaluation. LPFG position sensing test was studied and confirmed by the resonance wavelength shifts which were significantly generated when 75% of the LPFG was immersed in water. There were ten groups of different liquid level capacity testing and each group underwent ten repeated measurements. Based on Shewhart control charts including an X-bar chart, s chart, and R chart, the results showed all measurands within the upper and lower control limits. This sensor was reliable and the liquid level could be measured at least 1000 mm. The transmission loss versus the percent of immersion of the LPFG sensor for water and green tea was used to study the sensing resolution. The findings show the LPFG-based liquid sensor had at least 1000-mm level measurement capacity and about 2-mm resolution.

An analysis of lateral stability in power-off flight with charts for use in design

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zimmerman, Charles H

1937-01-01

The aerodynamic and mass factors governing lateral stability are discussed and formulas are given for their estimation. Relatively simple relationships between the governing factors and the resulting stability characteristics are presented. A series of charts is included with which approximate stability characteristics may be rapidly estimated. The effects of the various governing factors upon the stability characteristics are discussed in detail. It is pointed out that much additional research is necessary both to correlate stability characteristics with riding, flying, and handling qualities and to provide suitable data for accurate estimates of those characteristics of an airplane while it is in the design stage.

The Measurement of the Field of View from Airplane Cockpits

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gough, Melvin N

1936-01-01

A method has been devised for the angular measurement and graphic portrayal of the view obtained from the pilot's cockpit of an airplane. The assumption upon which the method is based and a description of the instrument, designated a "visiometer", used in the measurement are given. Account is taken of the fact that the pilot has two eyes and two separate sources of vision. The view is represented on charts using an equal-area polar projection, a description and proof of which are given. The use of this chart, aside from its simplicity, may make possible the establishment of simple criterions of the field of view. Charts of five representative airplanes with various cockpit arrangements are included.

A Comparative Study of Outcomes for Endoscopic Diverticulotomy versus External Diverticulectomy

PubMed Central

Shahawy, Sarrah; Janisiewicz, Agnieszka M.; Annino, Don; Shapiro, Jo

2014-01-01

Objectives Current literature on the treatment of Zenker's Diverticulum (ZD) favors the use of various endoscopic procedures over external surgical techniques for patients, arguing that endoscopic approaches reduce intraoperative time and anesthesia, length of hospital stay, and days until oral diet is restarted. However, such techniques often have higher symptomatic recurrence rates and require further interventions. Because of our experience with both endoscopic diverticulotomy (ENDO) and external diverticulectomy (EXT) using the GIA-stapler, we sought to compare these two procedures in terms of in-hospital parameters, complications, return to normal diet, and rates of symptom recurrence. Study Design Case series with chart review. Setting Academic tertiary care hospital. Subjects Patients with Zenker's diverticulum who underwent surgical repair. Methods Retrospective analysis of 67 patients seen at Brigham and Women's Hospital between 1990 and 2012 with Zenker's diverticulum who underwent either an endoscopic Zenker's procedure (36) or an external stapler-assisted diverticulectomy with cricopharyngeal myotomy (31). Results Although the external stapler-assisted procedure for ZD does carry a longer intra-operative time and a slightly longer hospital stay than the endoscopic approach, it provides similar days until initiation of an oral diet and a similar incidence of post-operative complications. Further, it is superior to the endoscopic approach when one considers its much lower rate of symptomatic recurrence and need for revision procedures. Conclusion We argue that the external stapler-assisted diverticulectomy with cricopharyngeal myotomy should be considered as a viable treatment in patients who need definitive, single-session treatment for ZD, especially to prevent life-threatening aspiration pneumonia. PMID:24990870

Women's views of two interventions designed to assist in the prophylactic oophorectomy decision: a qualitative pilot evaluation

PubMed Central

Bhavnani, Vanita; Clarke, Aileen; Dowie, Jack; Kennedy, Andrew; Pell, Ian

2002-01-01

Abstract Introduction  A qualitative pilot evaluation of two different decision interventions for the prophylactic oophorectomy (PO) decision: a Decision Chart and a computerized clinical guidance programme (CGP) was undertaken. The Decision Chart, representing current practice in decision interventions, presents population‐based information. The CGP elicits individual values to allow for quality‐adjusted life years to be calculated and an explicit guidance statement is given. Prophylactic oophorectomy involves removal of the ovaries as an adjunct to hysterectomy to prevent ovarian cancer. The decision is complex because the operation can affect a number of long‐term outcomes including breast cancer, coronary heart disease and osteoporosis. Methods  Both interventions were based on the evidence and were administered by a facilitator. The Decision Chart is a file, which progressively reveals information in the form of bar charts. The CGP is a decision‐analysis based program integrating the results from a cluster of Markov cycle trees. The research evidence is incorporated with woman's individual risk factors, values and preferences. A purposive sample of 19 women awaiting hysterectomy used the decision interventions (10 CGP, nine Decision Chart). In‐depth semi‐structured interviews were undertaken. Interviews were transcribed and analysed to derive themes. Results  Reactions to the different decision interventions were mixed. Both were seen as clarifying the decision. Some women found some of the tasks difficult (e.g. rating health status). Some were surprised by the ‘individualized’ guidance, which the CGP offered. The Decision Chart provided some with a sense of empowerment, although some found that it provided too much information. Conclusions  Women were able to use both decision interventions. Both provided decision clarification. Problems were evident with both interventions, which give useful pointers for future development. These included the possibility for women to see how their individual risks of different outcomes are affected in the Decision Chart and enhanced explanation of the CGP tasks. Future design and evaluation of decision aids, will need to accommodate differences between patients in the desire for amount and type of information and level of involvement in the decision‐making process. PMID:12031056

Data Mining to Chart the Arctic: Analysis of Approaches to Incorporate Outside Source Data into NOAA Office of Coast Survey Workflow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rennoll, V.

2016-02-01

The National Centers for Environmental Information provide public access to a wealth of seafloor mapping data, both from National Ocean Service hydrographic surveys and outside source collections. Utilizing the outside source data to improve nautical charts created by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is an appealing alternative to traditional surveys, largely in areas with significant data gaps where hydrographic surveys are not planned. However, much of the outside data are collected in transit lines and lack traditional overlapping main scheme lines and crosslines. Spanning multiple years and vessels, these transit line data collections were obtained using disparate operating procedures and have inconsistent qualities. Here, a workflow was developed to ingest these variable depth data within a defined region by assessing their quality and utility for nautical charting. The workflow was evaluated with a navigationally significant area in the Bering Sea, where bathymetric data collected from ten vessels over a period of twelve years were available. The outside data were shown to be of sufficient quality through comparisons with existing NOAA surveys and then used to demonstrate where the data could provide new or updated information on nautical charts, and provide reconnaissance for future hydrographic planning. The utility assessment of the data, however, was hindered by lack of a verified survey-scale sounding database, against which the outside source data could be compared. Having developed the workflow, it is recommended that further outside data is ingested by NOAA's Office of Coast Survey and that a database is developed with full-scale chart soundings for outside data comparisons.

Continuous-infusion local anesthetic pain pump use and seroma formation with abdominal procedures: is there a correlation?

PubMed

Smith, Melissa M; Hovsepian, Raffi V; Markarian, Mark K; Degelia, Amber L; Paul, Malcolm D; Evans, Gregory R D; Wirth, Garrett A

2008-11-01

Seroma formation is the most commonly occurring complication in plastic surgery abdominal procedures. Continuous local anesthetic pain pump delivery systems are often used to decrease postoperative pain. An unreported concern with use of these devices in abdominal procedures is the effect of continuous fluid infiltration of the surgical site and a possible increase in the incidence of seroma formation. The authors performed a retrospective chart review to evaluate all patients (n = 159) who underwent abdominal procedures (abdominoplasty, panniculectomy, and transverse rectus abdominis myocutaneous flap harvest) over a 3-year period. Patient charts were evaluated for sex, age, body mass index, procedure performed, surgeon, operation length, pain pump use, postoperative seroma formation, and any complications. In cases with pain pump use, catheter placement location, anesthetic medication and strength, continuous-infusion rate, and duration of pain pump use were also reviewed. If a postoperative seroma formation was identified, treatment and outcomes were also recorded. The overall seroma formation rate was 11.3 percent (18 of 159 patients). Other complications occurred at a rate of 2.5 percent (four of 159). The incidence of seroma was 11.0 percent (11 of 100) in patients with pain pump use versus 11.9 percent (7 of 59) in those who did not use a pain pump. There was no statistically significant difference (p = 0.9) in the incidence of seroma formation between those who did and did not use a pain pump device. There was no correlation between increased rate of seroma formation and use of a continuous-infusion local anesthetic pain pump system in our patient population.

Sampling design for spatially distributed hydrogeologic and environmental processes

USGS Publications Warehouse

Christakos, G.; Olea, R.A.

1992-01-01

A methodology for the design of sampling networks over space is proposed. The methodology is based on spatial random field representations of nonhomogeneous natural processes, and on optimal spatial estimation techniques. One of the most important results of random field theory for physical sciences is its rationalization of correlations in spatial variability of natural processes. This correlation is extremely important both for interpreting spatially distributed observations and for predictive performance. The extent of site sampling and the types of data to be collected will depend on the relationship of subsurface variability to predictive uncertainty. While hypothesis formulation and initial identification of spatial variability characteristics are based on scientific understanding (such as knowledge of the physics of the underlying phenomena, geological interpretations, intuition and experience), the support offered by field data is statistically modelled. This model is not limited by the geometric nature of sampling and covers a wide range in subsurface uncertainties. A factorization scheme of the sampling error variance is derived, which possesses certain atttactive properties allowing significant savings in computations. By means of this scheme, a practical sampling design procedure providing suitable indices of the sampling error variance is established. These indices can be used by way of multiobjective decision criteria to obtain the best sampling strategy. Neither the actual implementation of the in-situ sampling nor the solution of the large spatial estimation systems of equations are necessary. The required values of the accuracy parameters involved in the network design are derived using reference charts (readily available for various combinations of data configurations and spatial variability parameters) and certain simple yet accurate analytical formulas. Insight is gained by applying the proposed sampling procedure to realistic examples related to sampling problems in two dimensions. ?? 1992.

Color-coding and human factors engineering to improve patient safety characteristics of paper-based emergency department clinical documentation.

PubMed

Kobayashi, Leo; Boss, Robert M; Gibbs, Frantz J; Goldlust, Eric; Hennedy, Michelle M; Monti, James E; Siegel, Nathan A

2011-01-01

Investigators studied an emergency department (ED) physical chart system and identified inconsistent, small font labeling; a single-color scheme; and an absence of human factors engineering (HFE) cues. A case study and description of the methodology with which surrogate measures of chart-related patient safety were studied and subsequently used to reduce latent hazards are presented. Medical records present a challenge to patient safety in EDs. Application of HFE can improve specific aspects of existing medical chart organization systems as they pertain to patient safety in acute care environments. During 10 random audits over 5 consecutive days (573 data points), 56 (9.8%) chart binders (range 0.0-23%) were found to be either misplaced or improperly positioned relative to other chart binders; 12 (21%) were in the critical care area. HFE principles were applied to develop an experimental chart binder system with alternating color-based chart groupings, simple and prominent identifiers, and embedded visual cues. Post-intervention audits revealed significant reductions in chart binder location problems overall (p < 0.01), for Urgent Care A and B pods (6.4% to 1.2%; p < 0.05), Fast Track C pod (19.3% to 0.0%; p < 0.05) and Behavioral/Substance Abuse D pod (15.7% to 0.0%; p < 0.05) areas of the ED. The critical care room area did not display an improvement (11.4% to 13.2%; p = 0.40). Application of HFE methods may aid the development, assessment, and modification of acute care clinical environments through evidence-based design methodologies and contribute to safe patient care delivery.

Three-in-one weight, height and body mass index charts for children and adults.

PubMed

Elizabeth, K E; Muraleedharan, Manu

2003-08-01

The aim of the study was to develop four appropriate three-in-one weight, height and built in body mass index (BMI) charts, for under-fives, 0-5-year-olds, > 5-10-year-olds, > 10-18-year-olds, and adults and to delineate the normal range, underweight, overweight and obesity on the above charts. Four different charts were designed for the various age groups as indicated above. Height was made available on the x-axis, weight on the y-axis, and corresponding BMI values on the right margin. Shading of the normal range to denote the health path and marking of the cut-off curves to denote normal status, overweight, and obesity were done selecting appropriate round figures to suit both sexes in accordance with the International Obesity Task Force (IOTF) recommendations for the various age groups. Field trials were done on appropriate subjects belonging to various age groups. 500 in each group with equal male to female ratio. The field trials showed that all the studied subjects belonging to both sexes came within the purview of the chart and those with normal nutritional status, underweight, overweight, and obesity could easily be identified looking at the chart without doing any further calculation. Early intervention also could be advised as the chart could demonstrate how much weight should be gained or reduced to come within the health path. In conclusion, the charts are applicable to both sexes and are user friendly. These are appropriate for general screening of nutritional status and to determine underweight, overweight, and obesity from birth to adulthood. They give a visual display of the ideal health path with respect to weight, height, and BMI and the adjustment in weight required to reach the normal range.

Development of electronic medical record charting for hospital-based transfusion and apheresis medicine services: Early adoption perspectives

PubMed Central

Levy, Rebecca; Pantanowitz, Liron; Cloutier, Darlene; Provencher, Jean; McGirr, Joan; Stebbins, Jennifer; Cronin, Suzanne; Wherry, Josh; Fenton, Joseph; Donelan, Eileen; Johari, Vandita; Andrzejewski, Chester

2010-01-01

Background: Electronic medical records (EMRs) provide universal access to health care information across multidisciplinary lines. In pathology departments, transfusion and apheresis medicine services (TAMS) involved in direct patient care activities produce data and documentation that typically do not enter the EMR. Taking advantage of our institution's initiative for implementation of a paperless medical record, our TAMS division set out to develop an electronic charting (e-charting) strategy within the EMR. Methods: A focus group of our hospital's transfusion committee consisting of transfusion medicine specialists, pathologists, residents, nurses, hemapheresis specialists, and information technologists was constituted and charged with the project. The group met periodically to implement e-charting TAMS workflow and produced electronic documents within the EMR (Cerner Millenium) for various service line functions. Results: The interdisciplinary working group developed and implemented electronic versions of various paper-based clinical documentation used by these services. All electronic notes collectively gather and reside within a unique Transfusion Medicine Folder tab in the EMR, available to staff with access to patient charts. E-charting eliminated illegible handwritten notes, resulted in more consistent clinical documentation among staff, and provided greater realered. However, minor updates and corrections to documents as well as select work re-designs were required for optimal use of e-charting-time review/access of hemotherapy practices. No major impediments to workflow or inefficiencies have been encount by these services. Conclusion: Documentation of pathology subspecialty activities such as TAMS can be successfully incorporated into the EMR. E-charting by staff enhances communication and helps promote standardized documentation of patient care within and across service lines. Well-constructed electronic documents in the EMR may also enhance data mining, quality improvement, and biovigilance monitoring activities. PMID:20805955

Dupuytren's disease presentation, referral pathways and resource utilisation in Europe: regional analysis of a surgeon survey and patient chart review.

PubMed

Dahlin, L B; Bainbridge, C; Leclercq, C; Gerber, R A; Guerin, D; Cappelleri, J C; Szczypa, P P; Dias, J

2013-03-01

We explored the management of Dupuytren's disease (DD) using a surgeon survey and patient chart review. Twelve countries participated: Denmark, Finland, Sweden (Nordic region); Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland (East); France, Germany, the Netherlands, United Kingdom (West); Italy, Spain (Mediterranean). A random sample of orthopaedic/plastic surgeons (N = 687) with 3-30 years' experience was asked about Dupuytren's contracture procedures performed during the previous 12 months. Information ≤ 5 consecutive patients per surgeon was extracted from patient charts (N = 3357). Overall, 84% of participants were orthopaedic surgeons; 56% of surgeons were hand specialists. Deciding factors for fasciectomy and dermofasciectomy were consistent across regions: metacarpophalangeal (MP) or proximal interphalangeal contracture > 45°, recurrent contracture, and high expectations for success. Deciding factors for percutaneous needle fasciotomy were less consistent across regions, but the leading factor was MP flexion < 20°. Overall, 49% of diagnoses and 55% of referrals were made by a general practitioner (GP), with regional variation: 31-77% for GP diagnoses and 36-81% for GP referrals. There were also differences in admission status (e.g. 9% of Nordic patients and 80% of Eastern patients were treated as inpatients). Most patients were treated in public hospitals and most procedures were covered by public health insurance. We found regional variations in surgical practice, patient characteristics and referral patterns. Understanding current diagnosis and treatment patterns, in relation to regional differences in health economics, may improve physicians' diagnosis of DD and guide patients towards appropriate, customised management plans. © 2013 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Validation of Carotid Artery Revascularization Coding in Ontario Health Administrative Databases.

PubMed

Hussain, Mohamad A; Mamdani, Muhammad; Saposnik, Gustavo; Tu, Jack V; Turkel-Parrella, David; Spears, Julian; Al-Omran, Mohammed

2016-04-02

The positive predictive value (PPV) of carotid endarterectomy (CEA) and carotid artery stenting (CAS) procedure and post-operative complication coding were assessed in Ontario health administrative databases. Between 1 April 2002 and 31 March 2014, a random sample of 428 patients were identified using Canadian Classification of Health Intervention (CCI) procedure codes and Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP) billing codes from administrative data. A blinded chart review was conducted at two high-volume vascular centers to assess the level of agreement between the administrative records and the corresponding patients' hospital charts. PPV was calculated with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) to estimate the validity of CEA and CAS coding, utilizing hospital charts as the gold standard. Sensitivity of CEA and CAS coding were also assessed by linking two independent databases of 540 CEA-treated patients (Ontario Stroke Registry) and 140 CAS-treated patients (single-center CAS database) to administrative records. PPV for CEA ranged from 99% to 100% and sensitivity ranged from 81.5% to 89.6% using CCI and OHIP codes. A CCI code with a PPV of 87% (95% CI, 78.8-92.9) and sensitivity of 92.9% (95% CI, 87.4-96.1) in identifying CAS was also identified. PPV for post-admission complication diagnosis coding was 71.4% (95% CI, 53.7-85.4) for stroke/transient ischemic attack, and 82.4% (95% CI, 56.6-96.2) for myocardial infarction. Our analysis demonstrated that the codes used in administrative databases accurately identify CEA and CAS-treated patients. Researchers can confidently use administrative data to conduct population-based studies of CEA and CAS.

Design and feasibility of integrating personalized PRO dashboards into prostate cancer care

PubMed Central

Izard, Jason P; Dalkin, Bruce L; Mikles, Sean P; Gore, John L

2016-01-01

Objective Patient-reported outcomes (PROs) are a valued source of health information, but prior work focuses largely on data capture without guidance on visual displays that promote effective PRO use in patient-centered care. We engaged patients, providers, and design experts in human-centered design of “PRO dashboards” that illustrate trends in health-related quality of life (HRQOL) reported by patients following prostate cancer treatment. Materials and Methods We designed and assessed the feasibility of integrating dashboards into care in 3 steps: (1) capture PRO needs of patients and providers through focus groups and interviews; (2) iteratively build and refine a prototype dashboard; and (3) pilot test dashboards with patients and their provider during follow-up care. Results Focus groups (n = 60 patients) prioritized needs for dashboards that compared longitudinal trends in patients’ HRQOL with “men like me.” Of the candidate dashboard designs, 50 patients and 50 providers rated pictographs less helpful than bar charts, line graphs, or tables (P < .001) and preferred bar charts and line graphs most. Given these needs and the design recommendations from our Patient Advisory Board (n = 7) and design experts (n = 7), we built and refined a prototype that charts patients’ HRQOL compared with age- and treatment-matched patients in personalized dashboards. Pilot testing dashboard use (n = 12 patients) improved compliance with quality indicators for prostate cancer care (P < .01). Conclusion PRO dashboards are a promising approach for integrating patient-generated data into prostate cancer care. Informed by human-centered design principles, this work establishes guidance on dashboard content, tailoring, and clinical use that patients and providers find meaningful. PMID:26260247

Experiences in integrating auto-translated state-chart designs for model checking

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pingree, P. J.; Benowitz, E. G.

2003-01-01

In the complex environment of JPL's flight missions with increasing dependency on advanced software designs, traditional software validation methods of simulation and testing are being stretched to adequately cover the needs of software development.

Integrated Project Management: A Case Study in Integrating Cost, Schedule, Technical, and Risk Areas

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, Greg

2004-01-01

This viewgraph presentation describes a case study as a model for integrated project management. The ISS Program Office (ISSPO) developed replacement fluid filtration cartridges in house for the International Space Station (ISS). The presentation includes a step-by-step procedure and organizational charts for how the fluid filtration problem was approached.

9 CFR 318.305 - Equipment and procedures for heat processing systems.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... control unit. A nonreturn valve shall be provided in the air supply line to prevent water from entering... control unit. A nonreturn valve shall be provided in the air supply line to prevent water from entering... ensure a supply of clean, dry air. The recorder timing mechanism shall be accurate. (i) Chart-type...

Cook's Helper. DOT No. 317.687-010. Restaurant Occupations. Coordinator's Guide. First Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hohhertz, Durwin

This coordinator's guide for a module on cook's helpers, one of seven individualized units about restaurant occupations, has been developed for students enrolled in cooperative part-time training and employed in a commercial restaurant. Included in the first part of the guide are a progress chart, suggested teaching procedures, answers to the…

Summary of State Policy Regulations for Public Sector Labor Relations: Statutes, Attorney Generals' Opinions and Selected Court Decisions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Labor Management Services Administration (DOL), Washington, DC. Div. of Public Employee Labor Relations.

This chart represents a state-by-state compilation of the numerous statutes, executive orders, attorney general opinions, and court decisions which govern state and local government labor relations. Where available, information on each authority includes: (1) administrative body, (2) bargaining rights, (3) recognition rights and procedure, (4)…

46 CFR Appendix III to Part 150 - Testing Procedures for Determining Exceptions to the Chart

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... reactions can be safely contained. All tests should be performed in a well-ventilated laboratory hood... other substance (B). Shake to induce mixing. If no immediate reaction occurs, retain the mixture for at least 10 minutes to check for a delayed reaction. Results—If a violent reaction occurs, such as...

46 CFR Appendix III to Part 150 - Testing Procedures for Determining Exceptions to the Chart

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... reactions can be safely contained. All tests should be performed in a well-ventilated laboratory hood... other substance (B). Shake to induce mixing. If no immediate reaction occurs, retain the mixture for at least 10 minutes to check for a delayed reaction. Results—If a violent reaction occurs, such as...

Kitchen Helper. DOT No. 318.687-010. Restaurant Occupations. Coordinator's Guide. First Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hohhertz, Durwin

This coordinator's guide for a module on kitchen helpers, one of seven individualized units about restaurant occupations, has been developed for students enrolled in cooperative part-time training and employed in a commercial restaurant. Included in the first part of the guide are a progress chart, suggested teaching procedures, answers to the…

Life Skills for the Developmentally Disabled: An Approach to Accountability in Deinstitutionalization. Volume III: Manual for Training Clients.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Folsom, Geneva S.; And Others

The third and final volume of the Life Skills for the Developmentally Disabled Project is a manual for assessing and training institutionalized clients for deinstitutionalization and community living. Charts for goal setting and objective plans with information on materials, setting, instructional plans, procedures, evaluation and followup methods…

Air Navigation. Flying Training. AFM 51-40. NAVAIR 00-80V-49.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Air Training Command, Randolph AFB, TX.

This manual provides information on all phases of air navigation for navigators and student navigators in training. It develops the art of navigation from the simplest concepts to the most advanced procedures and techniques. The text contains explanations on how to measure, map, and chart the earth; how to use basic instruments to obtain…

40 CFR 53.23 - Test procedures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... up and stabilize. Determine measurement noise at each of two fixed concentrations, first using zero.... Note to § 53.23(b)(2): Use of a chart recorder in addition to the DM is optional. (iii) Measure zero... atmosphere concentration of 80 ±5 percent of the URL instead of zero air, and let S at 80 percent of the URL...

40 CFR 53.23 - Test procedures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... up and stabilize. Determine measurement noise at each of two fixed concentrations, first using zero.... Note to § 53.23(b)(2): Use of a chart recorder in addition to the DM is optional. (iii) Measure zero... atmosphere concentration of 80 ±5 percent of the URL instead of zero air, and let S at 80 percent of the URL...

40 CFR 53.23 - Test procedures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... up and stabilize. Determine measurement noise at each of two fixed concentrations, first using zero.... Note to § 53.23(b)(2): Use of a chart recorder in addition to the DM is optional. (iii) Measure zero... atmosphere concentration of 80 ±5 percent of the URL instead of zero air, and let S at 80 percent of the URL...

Reiki as a pain management adjunct in screening colonoscopy.

PubMed

Bourque, Alda L; Sullivan, Mary E; Winter, Michael R

2012-09-01

The purpose of this study was to determine whether the use of Reiki decreases the amount of meperidine administered to patients undergoing screening colonoscopy. The literature review reveals limited studies to show whether Reiki has been able to decrease the amount of opioid the patient receives during screening colonoscopy. A chart review of 300 patients was conducted to obtain baseline average doses of meperidine patients received as the control. Following the chart review, 30 patients were recruited to the Reiki study. Twenty-five of the study arm patients received Reiki in conjunction with meperidine. Five randomly chosen study arm patients received placebo Reiki in conjunction with meperidine in an attempt to blind the clinicians to the treatment received by the patients. Results showed that there were no significant differences in meperidine administration between the patients in the chart review group (control) and the Reiki group. The study revealed that 16% who received Reiki, together with intravenous administration of conscious sedation, received less than 50 mg of meperidine. All the patients in the chart review group received more than 50 mg of meperidine. Results from this pilot study suggest that there may be a decrease in meperidine needed during screening colonoscopy when patients receive Reiki treatments before the procedure. A larger study powered to detect smaller medication differences is the next step in more accurately determining the effect of Reiki on pain management.

The rate of epinephrine administration associated with allergy skin testing in a suburban allergy practice from 1997 to 2010.

PubMed

Swender, David A; Chernin, Leah R; Mitchell, Chris; Sher, Theodore; Hostoffer, Robert; Tcheurekdjian, Haig

2012-01-01

Allergy skin testing is considered a safe method for testing for IgE-mediated allergic responses although anaphylactic events can occur. Reported rates of anaphylaxis per patient are not consistent and range from 0.008 to 4%. The aim of this study was to determine the rate of epinephrine use associated with allergy skin-prick testing (SPT) and intradermal testing (IDT) in a suburban practice over 13 years. This retrospective chart review used billing and procedure coding records during the time period from January 1997 to June 2010 to identify encounters where epinephrine was administered after SPT or IDT. Patient encounters with procedure codes for skin testing plus either parenteral epinephrine, corticosteroid, antihistamine, or i.v. fluid administration were identified. These patient charts were reviewed to determine if epinephrine was administered, whether systemic reactions developed, and rates of epinephrine administration were calculated. There were 28,907 patient encounters for SPT and 18,212 for IDT. Epinephrine was administered in six patient encounters (0.02%) where SPT was performed; no IDT encounters led to epinephrine administration. There were no fatalities. Allergy skin testing to a variety of allergens, when administered by well-trained personnel, is a safe procedure. This study, involving the largest population to date, showed a rate of systemic reactions requiring epinephrine of 20 per 100,000 SPT visits. No epinephrine was given after IDT.

The rate of epinephrine administration associated with allergy skin testing in a suburban allergy practice from 1997 to 2010

PubMed Central

Chernin, Leah R.; Mitchell, Chris; Sher, Theodore; Hostoffer, Robert; Tcheurekdjian, Haig

2012-01-01

Allergy skin testing is considered a safe method for testing for IgE-mediated allergic responses although anaphylactic events can occur. Reported rates of anaphylaxis per patient are not consistent and range from 0.008 to 4%. The aim of this study was to determine the rate of epinephrine use associated with allergy skin-prick testing (SPT) and intradermal testing (IDT) in a suburban practice over 13 years. This retrospective chart review used billing and procedure coding records during the time period from January 1997 to June 2010 to identify encounters where epinephrine was administered after SPT or IDT. Patient encounters with procedure codes for skin testing plus either parenteral epinephrine, corticosteroid, antihistamine, or i.v. fluid administration were identified. These patient charts were reviewed to determine if epinephrine was administered, whether systemic reactions developed, and rates of epinephrine administration were calculated. There were 28,907 patient encounters for SPT and 18,212 for IDT. Epinephrine was administered in six patient encounters (0.02%) where SPT was performed; no IDT encounters led to epinephrine administration. There were no fatalities. Allergy skin testing to a variety of allergens, when administered by well-trained personnel, is a safe procedure. This study, involving the largest population to date, showed a rate of systemic reactions requiring epinephrine of 20 per 100,000 SPT visits. No epinephrine was given after IDT. PMID:23342290

[Prospective comparison of the flow chart for laboratory investigations for anaemia from the Dutch College of General Practitioners' guideline 'Anaemia' with a self-developed, substantive and logistical alternative flow chart].

PubMed

Oosterhuis, W P; van der Horst, M; van Dongen, K; Ulenkate, H J L M; Volmer, M; Wulkan, R W

2007-10-20

To compare the flow diagram for the diagnosis of anaemia from the guideline 'Anaemia' from the Dutch College of General Practitioners (NHG) with a substantive and logistical alternative protocol. Prospective. For evaluation of anaemia, 124 patients from primary care reported to the laboratories of the St. Elisabeth Hospital in Tilburg (n = 94) and the Scheper Hospital in Emmen (n = 30), the Netherlands. Two flow charts were used: the NHG's flow chart and a self-developed chart in which not mean corpuscular volume, but ferritin concentration occupies the central position. All the laboratory tests mentioned in both flow charts were carried out in every patient with, for practical reasons, the exception of Hgb electrophoresis and bone marrow investigations. General practitioners were approached and patient dossiers were consulted to obtain further clinical data. According to the NHG protocol, on the grounds of the laboratory investigations, 64 (52%) of patients could not be put in a specific category. The majority were patients with normocytary anaemia who did not fulfil the criteria for iron deficiency anaemia or the anaemia of chronic disease. According to the alternative chart, in 36 (29%) patients no diagnosis was made. These were patients in whom no abnormal laboratory findings were observed, other than low haemoglobin values. The majority of the patients had normocytary anaemia, in some cases this was interpreted as the anaemia of chronic disease, but more often the anaemia could not be assigned to a particular category. A large number ofpatients had a raised creatinine value. This value did not appear in the NHG protocol. In 15% of patients, more than one cause for anaemia was found. The NHG protocol did not enable these multiple diagnoses to be made. Accordingly, the NHG protocol was difficult to implement in the laboratory. Using the NHG flow diagram a large percentage of patients could not be assigned to a particular category. Using the alternative flow diagram, which procedure is easier to carry out in the laboratory, it was possible to make multiple diagnoses.

Connecting the dots and merging meaning: using mixed methods to study primary care delivery transformation.

PubMed

Scammon, Debra L; Tomoaia-Cotisel, Andrada; Day, Rachel L; Day, Julie; Kim, Jaewhan; Waitzman, Norman J; Farrell, Timothy W; Magill, Michael K

2013-12-01

To demonstrate the value of mixed methods in the study of practice transformation and illustrate procedures for connecting methods and for merging findings to enhance the meaning derived. An integrated network of university-owned, primary care practices at the University of Utah (Community Clinics or CCs). CC has adopted Care by Design, its version of the Patient Centered Medical Home. Convergent case study mixed methods design. Analysis of archival documents, internal operational reports, in-clinic observations, chart audits, surveys, semistructured interviews, focus groups, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services database, and the Utah All Payer Claims Database. Each data source enriched our understanding of the change process and understanding of reasons that certain changes were more difficult than others both in general and for particular clinics. Mixed methods enabled generation and testing of hypotheses about change and led to a comprehensive understanding of practice change. Mixed methods are useful in studying practice transformation. Challenges exist but can be overcome with careful planning and persistence. © Health Research and Educational Trust.

Solar energy system economic evaluation. Final report for SEECO Lincoln, Lincoln, Nebraska

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

None

1980-09-01

The economic analysis of the solar energy system that was installed at Lincoln, Nebraska is developed for this and four other sites typical of a wide range of environmental and economic conditions in the continental United States. This analysis is accomplished based on the technical and economic models in the f-chart design procedure with inputs based on the characteristics of the installed system and local conditions. The results are expressed in terms of the economic parameters of present worth of system cost over a projected twenty year life: life cycle savings, year of positive savings and year of payback formore » the optimized solar energy system at each of the analysis sites. The sensitivity of the economic evaluation to uncertainties in constituent system and economic variables is also investigated. Although budget constraints preclude an economic reevaluation of each of the sites, a similar site, Carlsbad, New Nexico, was done. When 1985 escalated values for fuel, costs, mass production, and improved design and installation techniques were applied, a significantly higher degree of savings was realized.« less

Design of experiments enhanced statistical process control for wind tunnel check standard testing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Phillips, Ben D.

The current wind tunnel check standard testing program at NASA Langley Research Center is focused on increasing data quality, uncertainty quantification and overall control and improvement of wind tunnel measurement processes. The statistical process control (SPC) methodology employed in the check standard testing program allows for the tracking of variations in measurements over time as well as an overall assessment of facility health. While the SPC approach can and does provide researchers with valuable information, it has certain limitations in the areas of process improvement and uncertainty quantification. It is thought by utilizing design of experiments methodology in conjunction with the current SPC practices that one can efficiently and more robustly characterize uncertainties and develop enhanced process improvement procedures. In this research, methodologies were developed to generate regression models for wind tunnel calibration coefficients, balance force coefficients and wind tunnel flow angularities. The coefficients of these regression models were then tracked in statistical process control charts, giving a higher level of understanding of the processes. The methodology outlined is sufficiently generic such that this research can be applicable to any wind tunnel check standard testing program.

Solar energy system economic evaluation final report for SEMCO-Loxahatchee, Loxahatchee National Wildlife refuge, Palm Beach County, Florida

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1980-01-01

Economic analysis of the solar energy system installed at Loxahatchee, was developed for Loxahatchee and four other sites typical of a wide range of environmental and economic conditions in the continental United States. This analysis was accomplished based on the technical and economic models in the f Chart design procedure with inputs based on the characteristics of the installed system and local conditions. The results are expressed in terms of the economic parameters of present worth of system costs over a projected twenty year life, life cycle savings, year of positive savings and year of payback for the optimized solar energy system at each of the analysis sites. The sensitivity of the economic evaluation to uncertainties in constituent system and economic variables was also investigated. The results demonstrate that the solar energy system is economically viable at all of the five sites for which the analysis was conducted.

Solar energy system economic evaluation: IBM System 2, Togus, Maine

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1980-01-01

The economic analysis of the solar energy system, is developed for Torgus and four other sites typical of a wide range of environmental and economic conditions in the continental United States. This analysis is accomplished based on the technical and economic models in the f-chart design procedure with inputs taken on the characteristics of the installed system and local conditions. The results are expressed in terms of the economic parameters of present worth of system cost over a projected twenty year life, life cycle savings, year of positive savings and year of payback for the optimized solar energy system at each of the analysis sites. The sensitivity of the economic evaluation to uncertainties in constituent system and economic variables is also investigated. Results demonstrate that the solar energy system is economically viable at all of the five sites for which the analysis was conducted.

Psychobiography Training in Psychology in North America: Mapping the Field and Charting a Course

PubMed Central

Ponterotto, Joseph G.; Reynolds, Jason D.; Morel, Samantha; Cheung, Linda

2015-01-01

Psychobiography holds an important position in the history of psychology, yet little is known about the status of psychobiographical training and dissertation research in psychology departments. This brief report identified psychobiography courses throughout North America and content analyzed a sample of 65 psychobiography dissertations to discern the theories and methods that have most commonly anchored this research. Results identified few psychology courses specifically in psychobiography, with a larger number of courses incorporating psychobiographical and/or narrative elements. With regard to psychobiography dissertations, the majority focused on artists, pioneering psychologists, and political leaders. Theories undergirding psychobiographical studies were most frequently psychoanalytic and psychodynamic. Methodologically, a majority of the dissertations were anchored in constructivist (discovery-oriented) qualitative procedures, with a minority incorporating mixed methods designs. The authors highlight the value of psychobiographical training to psychology students and present avenues and models for incorporating psychobiography into psychology curriculums. PMID:27247670

Digital map databases in support of avionic display systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Trenchard, Michael E.; Lohrenz, Maura C.; Rosche, Henry, III; Wischow, Perry B.

1991-08-01

The emergence of computerized mission planning systems (MPS) and airborne digital moving map systems (DMS) has necessitated the development of a global database of raster aeronautical chart data specifically designed for input to these systems. The Naval Oceanographic and Atmospheric Research Laboratory''s (NOARL) Map Data Formatting Facility (MDFF) is presently dedicated to supporting these avionic display systems with the development of the Compressed Aeronautical Chart (CAC) database on Compact Disk Read Only Memory (CDROM) optical discs. The MDFF is also developing a series of aircraft-specific Write-Once Read Many (WORM) optical discs. NOARL has initiated a comprehensive research program aimed at improving the pilots'' moving map displays current research efforts include the development of an alternate image compression technique and generation of a standard set of color palettes. The CAC database will provide digital aeronautical chart data in six different scales. CAC is derived from the Defense Mapping Agency''s (DMA) Equal Arc-second (ARC) Digitized Raster Graphics (ADRG) a series of scanned aeronautical charts. NOARL processes ADRG to tailor the chart image resolution to that of the DMS display while reducing storage requirements through image compression techniques. CAC is being distributed by DMA as a library of CDROMs.

Conception preliminaire de disques de turbine axiale pour moteurs d'aeronefs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ouellet, Yannick

The preliminary design phase of a turbine rotor has an important impact on the architecture of a new engine definition, as it sets the technical orientation right from start and provides a good estimate of product performance, weight and cost. In addition, the execution speed at this preliminary phase has become critical into capturing business opportunities. Improving upfront accuracy also alleviates downstream detailed design work and therefore reduces overall product development cycle time. This preliminary phase contains elements slowing down its process, including low interoperability of currently used systems, incompatibility of software and ineffective management of data. In order to overcome these barriers, we have developed the first module of a new Design and Analysis (D&A) platform for the rotor disc. This complete platform ensures integration of different tools processing in batch mode, and is driven from a single graphical user interface. The platform developed has been linked with different optimization methods (algorithms, configuration) in order to automate the disc design and propose best practices for rotor structural optimization. This methodology allowed reduction in design cycle time and improvement of performance. It was applied on two reference P&WC axial discs. The platform's architecture was also used in the development of reference charts to better understand disc performance within given design space. Four high pressure rotor discs of P&WC turbofan and turboprop engines were used to generate the technical charts and understand the effect of various parameters. The new tools supporting disc D&A, combined with the optimization process and reference charts, has proven to be profitable in terms of component performance and engineering effort inputs.

Beyond simple charts: Design of visualizations for big health data

PubMed Central

Ola, Oluwakemi; Sedig, Kamran

2016-01-01

Health data is often big data due to its high volume, low veracity, great variety, and high velocity. Big health data has the potential to improve productivity, eliminate waste, and support a broad range of tasks related to disease surveillance, patient care, research, and population health management. Interactive visualizations have the potential to amplify big data’s utilization. Visualizations can be used to support a variety of tasks, such as tracking the geographic distribution of diseases, analyzing the prevalence of disease, triaging medical records, predicting outbreaks, and discovering at-risk populations. Currently, many health visualization tools use simple charts, such as bar charts and scatter plots, that only represent few facets of data. These tools, while beneficial for simple perceptual and cognitive tasks, are ineffective when dealing with more complex sensemaking tasks that involve exploration of various facets and elements of big data simultaneously. There is need for sophisticated and elaborate visualizations that encode many facets of data and support human-data interaction with big data and more complex tasks. When not approached systematically, design of such visualizations is labor-intensive, and the resulting designs may not facilitate big-data-driven tasks. Conceptual frameworks that guide the design of visualizations for big data can make the design process more manageable and result in more effective visualizations. In this paper, we demonstrate how a framework-based approach can help designers create novel, elaborate, non-trivial visualizations for big health data. We present four visualizations that are components of a larger tool for making sense of large-scale public health data. PMID:28210416

Beyond simple charts: Design of visualizations for big health data.

PubMed

Ola, Oluwakemi; Sedig, Kamran

2016-01-01

Health data is often big data due to its high volume, low veracity, great variety, and high velocity. Big health data has the potential to improve productivity, eliminate waste, and support a broad range of tasks related to disease surveillance, patient care, research, and population health management. Interactive visualizations have the potential to amplify big data's utilization. Visualizations can be used to support a variety of tasks, such as tracking the geographic distribution of diseases, analyzing the prevalence of disease, triaging medical records, predicting outbreaks, and discovering at-risk populations. Currently, many health visualization tools use simple charts, such as bar charts and scatter plots, that only represent few facets of data. These tools, while beneficial for simple perceptual and cognitive tasks, are ineffective when dealing with more complex sensemaking tasks that involve exploration of various facets and elements of big data simultaneously. There is need for sophisticated and elaborate visualizations that encode many facets of data and support human-data interaction with big data and more complex tasks. When not approached systematically, design of such visualizations is labor-intensive, and the resulting designs may not facilitate big-data-driven tasks. Conceptual frameworks that guide the design of visualizations for big data can make the design process more manageable and result in more effective visualizations. In this paper, we demonstrate how a framework-based approach can help designers create novel, elaborate, non-trivial visualizations for big health data. We present four visualizations that are components of a larger tool for making sense of large-scale public health data.

Selecting Statistical Quality Control Procedures for Limiting the Impact of Increases in Analytical Random Error on Patient Safety.

PubMed

Yago, Martín

2017-05-01

QC planning based on risk management concepts can reduce the probability of harming patients due to an undetected out-of-control error condition. It does this by selecting appropriate QC procedures to decrease the number of erroneous results reported. The selection can be easily made by using published nomograms for simple QC rules when the out-of-control condition results in increased systematic error. However, increases in random error also occur frequently and are difficult to detect, which can result in erroneously reported patient results. A statistical model was used to construct charts for the 1 ks and X /χ 2 rules. The charts relate the increase in the number of unacceptable patient results reported due to an increase in random error with the capability of the measurement procedure. They thus allow for QC planning based on the risk of patient harm due to the reporting of erroneous results. 1 ks Rules are simple, all-around rules. Their ability to deal with increases in within-run imprecision is minimally affected by the possible presence of significant, stable, between-run imprecision. X /χ 2 rules perform better when the number of controls analyzed during each QC event is increased to improve QC performance. Using nomograms simplifies the selection of statistical QC procedures to limit the number of erroneous patient results reported due to an increase in analytical random error. The selection largely depends on the presence or absence of stable between-run imprecision. © 2017 American Association for Clinical Chemistry.

Administration order of midazolam/fentanyl for moderate dental sedation

PubMed Central

2018-01-01

Background The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of administration order when a sedative drug (midazolam) and an opioid analgesic drug (fentanyl) is applied for moderate intravenous (IV) sedation in dentistry. Methods A retrospective chart review was conducted in one dental clinic during its transition from a midazolam-first to a fentanyl-first protocol for dental procedures requiring moderate IV sedation. Physiological parameters, drug administration times, patient recovery times, drug dosages, and patient recall and satisfaction were investigated for differences. Results A total of 76 charts (40 midazolam-first and 36 fentanyl-first administrations), were used in the analysis. Administering midazolam first resulted in an average 4.38 min (52%) decrease in administration times (P < 0.001), and a decrease in procedural recollection immediately following the procedure (P = 0.03), and 24 to 48 hours later (P = 0.009). Administering fentanyl first required an average of 2.43 mg (29%) less midazolam (P < 0.001). No significant differences were found for change in vital signs, minimum oxygen saturation levels, recovery times, and patient satisfaction (P > 0.05). Oxygen saturation levels did not drop below 90% for either group; however, 5 cases in the fentanyl-first group fell to between 90% and 92%, compared with 0 cases in the midazolam-first group. Conclusions The administration order of fentanyl and midazolam may have different effects on patients and the sedation procedure. Findings from this study should be used to facilitate discussion among dental practitioners and to guide additional research investigating this topic. PMID:29556559

User-Centered Design Practices to Redesign a Nursing e-Chart in Line with the Nursing Process.

PubMed

Schachner, María B; Recondo, Francisco J; González, Zulma A; Sommer, Janine A; Stanziola, Enrique; Gassino, Fernando D; Simón, Mariana; López, Gastón E; Benítez, Sonia E

2016-01-01

Regarding the user-centered design (UCD) practices carried out at Hospital Italiano of Buenos Aires, nursing e-chart user interface was redesigned in order to improve records' quality of nursing process based on an adapted Virginia Henderson theoretical model and patient safety standards to fulfil Joint Commission accreditation requirements. UCD practices were applied as standardized and recommended for electronic medical records usability evaluation. Implementation of these practices yielded a series of prototypes in 5 iterative cycles of incremental improvements to achieve goals of usability which were used and perceived as satisfactory by general care nurses. Nurses' involvement allowed balance between their needs and institution requirements.

Study on the quality of FRP fishing vessel based on improved Fishbone Chart

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sui, J. H.; Yu, Y. F.; Du, Q. F.; Jiang, D. W.

2018-01-01

The construction quality of FRP fishing vessels influences their production, use and industry development. In order to explore the factors that affect the construction quality of FRP fishing vessels, key factors affecting the construction quality of FRP fishing vessels are determined based on the quality problems of FRP fishing vessels constructed. The improved Fishbone Chart is used to analyze the eight factors of “human, machine, material, process, environment, inspection, design and information”. Taking the factors that affect the construction quality of FRP fishing vessels as the central target, the eight influencing factors were condensed into five aspects and a composite Fishbone Chart is drawn. The Fishbone Chart is used as the basic model, the influencing factors are sorted, screened and discriminated, and the system model convenient for construction site management and control is established. Finally, the causes of poor construction of FRP fishing vessels are analyzed and discussed, and relevant suggestions are put forward.

Best Practices in Shift Handover Communication: Mars Exploration Rover Surface Operations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parke, Bonny; Mishkin, Andrew

2005-12-01

During its prime mission, Mars Exploration Rover (MER) had many shift handovers in its surface operations. Because of the increased rates of accidents and errors historically associated with shift handovers, MER Mission management paid close attention to shift handovers and, when possible, developed them in accordance with best handover practices.We review the most important of these best practices, and include a generic "Checklist for Effective Handovers" to aid in the development of handovers.We present charts that depict structured information transfer across shifts. These charts show personnel schedules, meetings attended, handovers, and hand-offs on both the MER and on the earlier Mars Pathfinder Mission (MPF). It is apparent from these charts that although the MER Mission had a much larger number of surface operations personnel than MPF (approximately 300 vs. 178), and had three shifts instead of two, that it used many of the successful MPF communication strategies. Charts such as these can be helpful to those designing complicated and unique mission surface operations.

Correlation of patient entry rates and physician documentation errors in dictated and handwritten emergency treatment records.

PubMed

Dawdy, M R; Munter, D W; Gilmore, R A

1997-03-01

This study was designed to examine the relationship between patient entry rates (a measure of physician work load) and documentation errors/omissions in both handwritten and dictated emergency treatment records. The study was carried out in two phases. Phase I examined handwritten records and Phase II examined dictated and transcribed records. A total of 838 charts for three common chief complaints (chest pain, abdominal pain, asthma/chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) were retrospectively reviewed and scored for the presence or absence of 11 predetermined criteria. Patient entry rates were determined by reviewing the emergency department patient registration logs. The data were analyzed using simple correlation and linear regression analysis. A positive correlation was found between patient entry rates and documentation errors in handwritten charts. No such correlation was found in the dictated charts. We conclude that work load may negatively affect documentation accuracy when charts are handwritten. However, the use of dictation services may minimize or eliminate this effect.

A Brief Study of the Speed Reduction of Overtaking Airplanes by Means of Air Brakes, Special Report

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pearson, H. A.; Amderspm. R. F.

1942-01-01

As an aid to airplane designers interested in providing pursuit airplanes with decelerating devices intended to increase the firing time when overtaking another airplane, formulas are given relating the pertinent distances and speeds in horizontal flight to the drag increase required. Charts are given for a representative parasite-drag coefficient from which the drag increase, the time gained, and the closing distance may be found. The charts are made up for three values of the ratio of the final speed of the pursuing airplane to the speed of the pursued airplane and for several values of the ratio of the speed of the pursued airplane to the initial speed of the pursuing airplane. Charts are also given indicating the drag increases obtainable with double split flaps and with conventional propellers. The use of the charts is illustrated by an example in which it is indicated that either double split flaps or, under certain ideal conditions, reversible propellers should provide the speed reductions required.

How well do commonly used data presentation formats support comparative effectiveness evaluations?

PubMed Central

Dolan, James G.; Qian, Feng; Veazie, Peter J.

2012-01-01

Background Good decisions depend on an accurate understanding of the comparative effectiveness of decision alternatives. The best way convey data needed to support these comparisons is unknown. Objective To determine how well five commonly used data presentation formats convey comparative effectiveness information. Design Internet survey using a factorial design. Subjects 279 members of an online survey panel. Intervention Study participants compared outcomes associated with three hypothetical screening test options relative to five possible outcomes with probabilities ranging from 2 per 5,000 (0.04%) to 500 per 1,000 (50%). Data presentation formats included a table, a “magnified” bar chart, a risk scale, a frequency diagram, and an icon array. Measurements Outcomes included the number of correct ordinal judgments regarding the more likely of two outcomes, the ratio of perceived versus actual relative likelihoods of the paired outcomes, the inter-subject consistency of responses, and perceived clarity. Results The mean number of correct ordinal judgments was 12 of 15 (80%), with no differences among data formats. On average, there was a 3.3-fold difference between perceived and actual likelihood ratios,95%CI: 3.0 to 3.6. Comparative judgments based on flow charts, icon arrays, and tables were all significantly more accurate and consistent than those based on risk scales and bar charts, p < 0.001. The most clearly perceived formats were the table and the flow chart. Low subjective numeracy was associated with less accurate and more variable data interpretations and lower perceived clarity for icon displays, bar charts, and flow diagrams. Conclusions None of the data presentation formats studied can reliably provide patients, especially those with low subjective numeracy, with an accurate understanding of comparative effectiveness information. PMID:22618998

Correlations between M-CHARTS and PHP findings and subjective perception of metamorphopsia in patients with macular diseases.

PubMed

Arimura, Eiko; Matsumoto, Chota; Nomoto, Hiroki; Hashimoto, Shigeki; Takada, Sonoko; Okuyama, Sachiko; Shimomura, Yoshikazu

2011-01-05

To assess the correlations between a patient's subjective perception of metamorphopsia and the clinical measurements of metamorphopsia by M-CHARTS and PreView PHP (PHP). The authors designed a 10-item questionnaire focusing on the symptoms of metamorphopsia and verified its validity with a Rasch analysis. M-CHARTS measured the minimum visual angle of a dotted line needed to detect metamorphopsia, and PHP used the hyperacuity function for detection. Subjects were 39 patients with idiopathic epiretinal membrane (ERM), 22 patients with idiopathic macular hole (M-hole), 19 patients with age-related macular degeneration (AMD), and 51 healthy controls. Rasch analysis suggested the elimination of one question. The nine-item questionnaire score significantly correlated to the M-CHARTS score in ERM (r = 0.59; P = 0.0004) but not in M-hole and to the PHP result in AMD (r = -0.29; P = 0.04) but not in ERM. Eighty percent of ERM patients with greater horizontal M-CHARTS score subjectively perceived horizontal metamorphopsia more often. M-CHARTS showed better sensitivities than PHP in both ERM (89% vs. 42%) and AMD (74% vs. 68%) and better specificity (100% vs. 71%) in healthy controls. Rasch analysis indicated that the present form of the questionnaire is better suited for moderate to severe cases of metamorphopsia than for mild cases. The questionnaire appears to be a valid assessment of patient subjective perception of metamorphopsia and can be used to supplement the clinical measurements of metamorphopsia by M-CHARTS and PHP in patients with macular diseases.

Software Requirements Engineering Methodology (Development)

DTIC Science & Technology

1979-06-01

Higher Order Software [20]; and the Michael Jackson Design Methodology [21]. Although structured programming constructs have proven to be more useful...reviewed here. Similarly, the manual techniques for software design (e.g., HIPO Diagrams, Nassi-Schneidermann charts, Top-Down Design, the Michael ... Jackson Design Methodology, Yourdon’s Structured Design) are not addressed. 6.1.3 Research Programs There are a number of research programs underway

Severe postpartum haemorrhage after vaginal delivery: a statistical process control chart to report seven years of continuous quality improvement.

PubMed

Dupont, Corinne; Occelli, Pauline; Deneux-Tharaux, Catherine; Touzet, Sandrine; Duclos, Antoine; Bouvier-Colle, Marie-Hélène; Rudigoz, René-Charles; Huissoud, Cyril

2014-07-01

Severe postpartum haemorrhage after vaginal delivery: a statistical process control chart to report seven years of continuous quality improvement To use statistical process control charts to describe trends in the prevalence of severe postpartum haemorrhage after vaginal delivery. This assessment was performed 7 years after we initiated a continuous quality improvement programme that began with regular criteria-based audits Observational descriptive study, in a French maternity unit in the Rhône-Alpes region. Quarterly clinical audit meetings to analyse all cases of severe postpartum haemorrhage after vaginal delivery and provide feedback on quality of care with statistical process control tools. The primary outcomes were the prevalence of severe PPH after vaginal delivery and its quarterly monitoring with a control chart. The secondary outcomes included the global quality of care for women with severe postpartum haemorrhage, including the performance rate of each recommended procedure. Differences in these variables between 2005 and 2012 were tested. From 2005 to 2012, the prevalence of severe postpartum haemorrhage declined significantly, from 1.2% to 0.6% of vaginal deliveries (p<0.001). Since 2010, the quarterly rate of severe PPH has not exceeded the upper control limits, that is, been out of statistical control. The proportion of cases that were managed consistently with the guidelines increased for all of their main components. Implementation of continuous quality improvement efforts began seven years ago and used, among other tools, statistical process control charts. During this period, the prevalence of severe postpartum haemorrhage after vaginal delivery has been reduced by 50%. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tan, J; Yan, Y; Hager, F

Purpose: Radiation therapy has evolved to become not only more precise and potent, but also more complicated to monitor and deliver. More rigorous and comprehensive quality assurance is needed to safeguard ever advancing radiation therapy. ICRU standards dictate that an ever growing set of treatment parameters are manually checked weekly by medical physicists. This “weekly chart check” procedure is laborious and subject to human errors or other factors. A computer-assisted chart checking process will enable more complete and accurate human review of critical parameters, reduce the risk of medical errors, and improve the efficiency. Methods: We developed a web-based softwaremore » system that enables a thorough weekly quality assurance checks. In the backend, the software retrieves all machine parameters from a Treatment Management System (TMS) and compares them against the corresponding ones from the treatment planning system. They are also checked for validity against preset rules. The results are displayed as a web page in the front-end for physicists to review. Then a summary report is generated and uploaded automatically to the TMS as a record for weekly chart checking. Results: The software system has been deployed on a web server in our department’s intranet, and has been tested thoroughly by our clinical physicists. A plan parameter would be highlighted when it is off the preset limit. The developed system has changed the way of checking charts with significantly improved accuracy, efficiency, and completeness. It has been shown to be robust, fast, and easy to use. Conclusion: A computer-assisted system has been developed for efficient, accurate, and comprehensive weekly chart checking. The system has been extensively validated and is being implemented for routine clinical use.« less

Performance assessment. Family physicians in Montreal meet the mark!

PubMed Central

Goulet, François; Jacques, André; Gagnon, Robert; Bourbeau, Denis; Laberge, Denis; Melanson, Jacques; Ménard, Claude; Racette, Pierre; Rivest, Raymond

2002-01-01

OBJECTIVE: To assess the clinical performance of a representative non-volunteer sample of family physicians in metropolitan Montreal, Que. DESIGN: Assessment of clinical performance was based on inspection visits to offices, peer review of medical records, and chart-stimulated recall interviews. The procedure was the one usually followed by the Professional Inspection Committee of the Collège des médecins du Québec. SETTING: Family physicians' practices in metropolitan Montreal. PARTICIPANTS: One hundred randomly selected family physicians. INTERVENTIONS: For each physician, 30 randomly chosen patient charts with data on three to five previous visits were reviewed using explicit criteria and a standard scale using global scores from 1 to 5 (unacceptable to excellent). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Scores were assigned for office practices; record keeping; number of continuing medical education (CME) activities; and quality of clinical performance assessed in terms of investigation plan, diagnostic accuracy, treatment plan, and relevance of care. RESULTS: Overall performance was judged to be good to excellent for 98% of physicians in their private practices; for 90% of physicians concerning CME activities; for 94% of physicians concerning their clinical performance in terms of quality of care; and for 75% of physicians as to record keeping. There was a link between record keeping and quality of care as well as between the number of CME activities and quality of care. CONCLUSION: The overall clinical performance of family physicians in the greater Montreal region is excellent. PMID:12228963

Kpelle: A Reference Handbook of Phonetics, Grammar, Lexicon and Learning Procedures.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thach, Sharon V.; Dwyer, David J.

This book is intended for the person who has had 100-200 hours of language training in Kpelle, a language of Liberia. The text has six parts: (1) an introduction to the languages of Liberia, including charts and maps showing the distribution of African languages, the location of Liberian languages, and indications on the relatedness of the…

Installation, operation, and maintenance for the pyramidal optics solar system installed at Yacht Cover, Columbia, South Carolina

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1980-01-01

Information concerning the installation, operation, and maintenance of the pyramidal Solar System for space heating and domestic hot water is presented. Principles of operation, sequence of installation, and procedures for the operation and maintenance of each subsystem making up the solar system are presented. Troubleshooting charts and maintenance schedules are presented.

9 CFR 318.19 - Compliance procedure for cured pork products.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... Group as defined in paragraph (a)(2) of this section and which purports to meet the criteria for a... § 319.104 or the chart in § 319.105. (2) A Product Group or a Group means one of the following: Group I... into the Group will be placed in this Group regardless of any other considerations. Group II...

9 CFR 318.19 - Compliance procedure for cured pork products.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... Group as defined in paragraph (a)(2) of this section and which purports to meet the criteria for a... § 319.104 or the chart in § 319.105. (2) A Product Group or a Group means one of the following: Group I... into the Group will be placed in this Group regardless of any other considerations. Group II...

9 CFR 318.19 - Compliance procedure for cured pork products.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... Group as defined in paragraph (a)(2) of this section and which purports to meet the criteria for a... § 319.104 or the chart in § 319.105. (2) A Product Group or a Group means one of the following: Group I... into the Group will be placed in this Group regardless of any other considerations. Group II...

9 CFR 318.19 - Compliance procedure for cured pork products.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... Group as defined in paragraph (a)(2) of this section and which purports to meet the criteria for a... § 319.104 or the chart in § 319.105. (2) A Product Group or a Group means one of the following: Group I... into the Group will be placed in this Group regardless of any other considerations. Group II...

Get on Board the Underground Railroad: A Sample Unit for Fifth-Grade History Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ferguson, Phyllis M.; Young, Terrell A.

1996-01-01

Reviews the materials and procedures used in a fifth-grade history unit on the Underground Railroad. The unit integrated a variety of teaching methods and materials making extensive use of historical literature, K-W-L (what we Know, what we Want to find out, what we Learned) charts, and activities aimed at different learning styles. (MJP)

Installation, operation, and maintenance for the pyramidal optics solar system installed at Yacht Cover, Columbia, South Carolina

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

1980-09-01

Information concerning the installation, operation, and maintenance of the pyramidal Solar System for space heating and domestic hot water is presented. Principles of operation, sequence of installation, and procedures for the operation and maintenance of each subsystem making up the solar system are presented. Troubleshooting charts and maintenance schedules are presented.

Calculations for interpretation of solar vector magnetograph data. [sunspots - spectrum analysis/data correlation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dunn, A. R.

1975-01-01

Computer techniques for data analysis of sunspot observations are presented. Photographic spectra were converted to digital form and analyzed. Methods of determining magnetic field strengths, i.e., the Zeeman effect, are discussed. Errors originating with telescope equipment and the magnetograph are treated. Flow charts of test programs and procedures of the data analysis are shown.

Mapping intended spinal site of care from the upright to prone position: an interexaminer reliability study.

PubMed

Cooperstein, Robert; Young, Morgan

2014-01-01

Upright examination procedures like radiology, thermography, manual muscle testing, and spinal motion palpation may lead to spinal interventions with the patient prone. The reliability and accuracy of mapping upright examination findings to the prone position is unknown. This study had 2 primary goals: (1) investigate how erroneous spine-scapular landmark associations may lead to errors in treating and charting spine levels; and (2) study the interexaminer reliability of a novel method for mapping upright spinal sites to the prone position. Experiment 1 was a thought experiment exploring the consequences of depending on the erroneous landmark association of the inferior scapular tip with the T7 spinous process upright and T6 spinous process prone (relatively recent studies suggest these levels are T8 and T9, respectively). This allowed deduction of targeting and charting errors. In experiment 2, 10 examiners (2 experienced, 8 novice) used an index finger to maintain contact with a mid-thoracic spinous process as each of 2 participants slowly moved from the upright to the prone position. Interexaminer reliability was assessed by computing Intraclass Correlation Coefficient, standard error of the mean, root mean squared error, and the absolute value of the mean difference for each examiner from the 10 examiner mean for each of the 2 participants. The thought experiment suggesting that using the (inaccurate) scapular tip landmark rule would result in a 3 level targeting and charting error when radiological findings are mapped to the prone position. Physical upright exam procedures like motion palpation would result in a 2 level targeting error for intervention, and a 3 level error for charting. The reliability experiment showed examiners accurately maintained contact with the same thoracic spinous process as the participant went from upright to prone, ICC (2,1) = 0.83. As manual therapists, the authors have emphasized how targeting errors may impact upon manual care of the spine. Practitioners in other fields that need to accurately locate spinal levels, such as acupuncture and anesthesiology, would also be expected to draw important conclusions from these findings.

Mapping intended spinal site of care from the upright to prone position: an interexaminer reliability study

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Background Upright examination procedures like radiology, thermography, manual muscle testing, and spinal motion palpation may lead to spinal interventions with the patient prone. The reliability and accuracy of mapping upright examination findings to the prone position is unknown. This study had 2 primary goals: (1) investigate how erroneous spine-scapular landmark associations may lead to errors in treating and charting spine levels; and (2) study the interexaminer reliability of a novel method for mapping upright spinal sites to the prone position. Methods Experiment 1 was a thought experiment exploring the consequences of depending on the erroneous landmark association of the inferior scapular tip with the T7 spinous process upright and T6 spinous process prone (relatively recent studies suggest these levels are T8 and T9, respectively). This allowed deduction of targeting and charting errors. In experiment 2, 10 examiners (2 experienced, 8 novice) used an index finger to maintain contact with a mid-thoracic spinous process as each of 2 participants slowly moved from the upright to the prone position. Interexaminer reliability was assessed by computing Intraclass Correlation Coefficient, standard error of the mean, root mean squared error, and the absolute value of the mean difference for each examiner from the 10 examiner mean for each of the 2 participants. Results The thought experiment suggesting that using the (inaccurate) scapular tip landmark rule would result in a 3 level targeting and charting error when radiological findings are mapped to the prone position. Physical upright exam procedures like motion palpation would result in a 2 level targeting error for intervention, and a 3 level error for charting. The reliability experiment showed examiners accurately maintained contact with the same thoracic spinous process as the participant went from upright to prone, ICC (2,1) = 0.83. Conclusions As manual therapists, the authors have emphasized how targeting errors may impact upon manual care of the spine. Practitioners in other fields that need to accurately locate spinal levels, such as acupuncture and anesthesiology, would also be expected to draw important conclusions from these findings. PMID:24904747

Evaluation of the marginal fit of metal copings fabricated on three different marginal designs using conventional and accelerated casting techniques: an in vitro study.

PubMed

Vaidya, Sharad; Parkash, Hari; Bhargava, Akshay; Gupta, Sharad

2014-01-01

Abundant resources and techniques have been used for complete coverage crown fabrication. Conventional investing and casting procedures for phosphate-bonded investments require a 2- to 4-h procedure before completion. Accelerated casting techniques have been used, but may not result in castings with matching marginal accuracy. The study measured the marginal gap and determined the clinical acceptability of single cast copings invested in a phosphate-bonded investment with the use of conventional and accelerated methods. One hundred and twenty cast coping samples were fabricated using conventional and accelerated methods, with three finish lines: Chamfer, shoulder and shoulder with bevel. Sixty copings were prepared with each technique. Each coping was examined with a stereomicroscope at four predetermined sites and measurements of marginal gaps were documented for each. A master chart was prepared for all the data and was analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version. Evidence of marginal gap was then evaluated by t-test. Analysis of variance and Post-hoc analysis were used to compare two groups as well as to make comparisons between three subgroups . Measurements recorded showed no statistically significant difference between conventional and accelerated groups. Among the three marginal designs studied, shoulder with bevel showed the best marginal fit with conventional as well as accelerated casting techniques. Accelerated casting technique could be a vital alternative to the time-consuming conventional casting technique. The marginal fit between the two casting techniques showed no statistical difference.

Discussion on LDPC Codes and Uplink Coding

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Andrews, Ken; Divsalar, Dariush; Dolinar, Sam; Moision, Bruce; Hamkins, Jon; Pollara, Fabrizio

2007-01-01

This slide presentation reviews the progress that the workgroup on Low-Density Parity-Check (LDPC) for space link coding. The workgroup is tasked with developing and recommending new error correcting codes for near-Earth, Lunar, and deep space applications. Included in the presentation is a summary of the technical progress of the workgroup. Charts that show the LDPC decoder sensitivity to symbol scaling errors are reviewed, as well as a chart showing the performance of several frame synchronizer algorithms compared to that of some good codes and LDPC decoder tests at ESTL. Also reviewed is a study on Coding, Modulation, and Link Protocol (CMLP), and the recommended codes. A design for the Pseudo-Randomizer with LDPC Decoder and CRC is also reviewed. A chart that summarizes the three proposed coding systems is also presented.

29 CFR 2550.404a-5 - Fiduciary requirements for disclosure in participant-directed individual account plans.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... participants and beneficiaries pursuant to paragraph (d)(1) of this section. (2) Comparative format. (i... a chart or similar format that is designed to facilitate a comparison of such information for each... employer securities. In the case of designated investment alternatives designed to invest in, or primarily...

29 CFR 2550.404a-5 - Fiduciary requirements for disclosure in participant-directed individual account plans.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... participants and beneficiaries pursuant to paragraph (d)(1) of this section. (2) Comparative format. (i... a chart or similar format that is designed to facilitate a comparison of such information for each... employer securities. In the case of designated investment alternatives designed to invest in, or primarily...

29 CFR 2550.404a-5 - Fiduciary requirements for disclosure in participant-directed individual account plans.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... participants and beneficiaries pursuant to paragraph (d)(1) of this section. (2) Comparative format. (i... a chart or similar format that is designed to facilitate a comparison of such information for each... employer securities. In the case of designated investment alternatives designed to invest in, or primarily...

29 CFR 2550.404a-5 - Fiduciary requirements for disclosure in participant-directed individual account plans.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... participants and beneficiaries pursuant to paragraph (d)(1) of this section. (2) Comparative format. (i... a chart or similar format that is designed to facilitate a comparison of such information for each... employer securities. In the case of designated investment alternatives designed to invest in, or primarily...

STEADY-STATE DESIGN OF VERTICAL WELLS FOR LIQUIDS ADDITION AT BIOREACTOR LANDFILLS

EPA Science Inventory

This paper presents design charts that a landfill engineer can use for the design of a vertical well system for liquids addition at bioreactor landfills. The flow rate and lateral and vertical zones of impact of a vertical well were estimated as a function of input variables su...

ROMPS critical design review. Volume 2: Robot module design documentation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dobbs, M. E.

1992-01-01

The robot module design documentation for the Remote Operated Materials Processing in Space (ROMPS) experiment is compiled. This volume presents the following information: robot module modifications; Easylab commands definitions and flowcharts; Easylab program definitions and flowcharts; robot module fault conditions and structure charts; and C-DOC flow structure and cross references.

Common Graphics Library (CGL). Volume 2: Low-level user's guide

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Taylor, Nancy L.; Hammond, Dana P.; Theophilos, Pauline M.

1989-01-01

The intent is to instruct the users of the Low-Level routines of the Common Graphics Library (CGL). The Low-Level routines form an application-independent graphics package enabling the user community to construct and design scientific charts conforming to the publication and/or viewgraph process. The Low-Level routines allow the user to design unique or unusual report-quality charts from a set of graphics utilities. The features of these routines can be used stand-alone or in conjunction with other packages to enhance or augment their capabilities. This library is written in ANSI FORTRAN 77, and currently uses a CORE-based underlying graphics package, and is therefore machine-independent, providing support for centralized and/or distributed computer systems.

Chart Card: Feasibility of a Tool for Improving Emergency Department Care in Sickle Cell Disease

PubMed Central

Neumayr, Lynne; Pringle, Steven; Giles, Stephen; Quirolo, Keith C.; Paulukonis, Susan; Vichinsky, Elliott P.; Treadwell, Marsha J.

2016-01-01

Background Patients with sickle cell disease (SCD) are concerned with emergency department care, including time to treatment and staff attitudes and knowledge. Providers are concerned about rapid access to patient information and SCD treatment protocols. A software application that stores and retrieves encrypted personal medical information on a plastic credit card–sized Chart Card was designed. Objective To determine the applicability and feasibility of the Chart Card on patient satisfaction with emergency department care and provider accessibility to patient information and care protocols. Methods One-half of 44 adults (aged ~18 years) and 50 children with SCD were randomized to either the Chart Card or usual care. Patient satisfaction was surveyed pre and post implementation of the Chart Card program, and emergency department staff was surveyed about familiarity with SCD treatment protocols. Results Fifty-two percent of patients were female (mean age, 18.8 ± 15.6); 61% had SCD SS. Adults visited an emergency department 4.2 ± 4.0 times in the year prior to enrollment vs 2.7 ± 3.7 (p = .06) visits for children, most commonly for pain. Patient emergency department care ratings of very good or excellent increased from 47% to 66% (p < .05), and ratings of staff knowledge improved. Qualitative data reflected positive comments about patient and staff experiences with the Chart Card. Conclusion Patient satisfaction with emergency department care and efficacy in health care increased post Chart Card implementation. Providers valued immediate access to patient information and SCD treatment guidelines. The technology has potential for application in the treatment of other illnesses in other settings. PMID:21141289

Synthesizing 3D Surfaces from Parameterized Strip Charts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Robinson, Peter I.; Gomez, Julian; Morehouse, Michael; Gawdiak, Yuri

2004-01-01

We believe 3D information visualization has the power to unlock new levels of productivity in the monitoring and control of complex processes. Our goal is to provide visual methods to allow for rapid human insight into systems consisting of thousands to millions of parameters. We explore this hypothesis in two complex domains: NASA program management and NASA International Space Station (ISS) spacecraft computer operations. We seek to extend a common form of visualization called the strip chart from 2D to 3D. A strip chart can display the time series progression of a parameter and allows for trends and events to be identified. Strip charts can be overlayed when multiple parameters need to visualized in order to correlate their events. When many parameters are involved, the direct overlaying of strip charts can become confusing and may not fully utilize the graphing area to convey the relationships between the parameters. We provide a solution to this problem by generating 3D surfaces from parameterized strip charts. The 3D surface utilizes significantly more screen area to illustrate the differences in the parameters and the overlayed strip charts, and it can rapidly be scanned by humans to gain insight. The selection of the third dimension must be a parallel or parameterized homogenous resource in the target domain, defined using a finite, ordered, enumerated type, and not a heterogeneous type. We demonstrate our concepts with examples from the NASA program management domain (assessing the state of many plans) and the computers of the ISS (assessing the state of many computers). We identify 2D strip charts in each domain and show how to construct the corresponding 3D surfaces. The user can navigate the surface, zooming in on regions of interest, setting a mark and drilling down to source documents from which the data points have been derived. We close by discussing design issues, related work, and implementation challenges.

Development of a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) based client/server NICU patient data and charting system.

PubMed

Carroll, A E; Saluja, S; Tarczy-Hornoch, P

2001-01-01

Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) offer clinicians the ability to enter and manage critical information at the point of care. Although PDAs have always been designed to be intuitive and easy to use, recent advances in technology have made them even more accessible. The ability to link data on a PDA (client) to a central database (server) allows for near-unlimited potential in developing point of care applications and systems for patient data management. Although many stand-alone systems exist for PDAs, none are designed to work in an integrated client/server environment. This paper describes the design, software and hardware selection, and preliminary testing of a PDA based patient data and charting system for use in the University of Washington Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). This system will be the subject of a subsequent study to determine its impact on patient outcomes and clinician efficiency.

Detecting and addressing adolescent issues and concerns: evaluating the efficacy of a primary care previsit questionnaire.

PubMed

Lewin, Warren; Knäuper, Bärbel; Roseman, Michelle; Adler, Perry; Malus, Michael

2009-07-01

To assess the efficacy of a previsit questionnaire (PVQ), implemented without formal training, that was designed to screen for biomedical and psychosocial health issues and concerns among adolescent patients in a hospital-based primary care clinic, and to examine the subsequent action taken for health issues and concerns identified with the PVQ. Retrospective review of adolescent medical charts, using a pre-post design. An outpatient primary care clinic located in an urban teaching hospital in Montreal, Que. A total of 210 adolescent patients aged 13 to 19 who visited the clinic between 2000 and 2004. The type (medical vs psychosocial) and number of issues detected and actions taken by physicians in one-to-one consultations with adolescent patients 2 years before (2000-2002) and 2 years after (2002-2004) PVQ implementation, as noted in the patients' medical charts. In total, 105 charts were reviewed for each group. An increase in the number of psychosocial issues was detected following the introduction of the PVQ. An increase in the frequency of action taken for psychosocial concerns and a decrease in the frequency of medical action taken by physicians were found after PVQ implementation. More notations related to psychosocial concerns were also found in the adolescents' charts after introduction of the PVQ. A PVQ is an effective strategy to improve adolescent screening for psychosocial issues and concerns. Implementing such a questionnaire requires no training and can therefore be easily incorporated into clinical practice.

Technique charts for Kodak EC-L film screen system for portal localization in a 6MV X-ray beam.

PubMed

Sandilos, P; Antypas, C; Paraskevopoulou, C; Kouvaris, J; Vlachos, L

2006-01-01

Port films are used in radiotherapy for visual evaluation of the radiation fields and subsequent quantitative analysis. Common port films suffer from poor image quality compared to the simulator-diagnostic films and is desirable to determine the appropriate exposure required for the best image contrast. The aim of this work is to generate technique charts for the Kodak EC-L film screen system for use in a 6MV x-ray beam. Three homogeneous water phantoms were used to simulate head-neck, thorax and abdomen dimensions of adult human, correspondingly. The film screen system was calibrated in a 6MV x-ray beam and under various irradiation conditions. The film screen system behavior was studied as a function of phantom thickness, field size and air gap between the phantom and the film screen system. In each case the optimum film exposure which produces the maximum image contrast was determined. The generated technique charts for the EC-L film screen system and for a 6 MV x-ray beam are used in our radiotherapy department for daily quality assurance of the radiotherapy procedure.

Job Analysis and Workplace Design Resources for Rehabilitation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Priest, John W.; Roessler, Richard T.

1983-01-01

The authors stress the role of the multidisciplinary team in vocational rehabilitation, particularly the industrial engineer, in performing job analysis and workplace design to accommodate disabled persons in industry. Steps to effective job adaptation are charted, and methods of job analysis are discussed. (Author/MC)

Expert Review of Cervical Cytology: Does it Affect Patient Care?

PubMed

Mark, Jaron; Morrell, Kayla; Eng, Kevin; Alfiero, Alexandra; Frederick, Peter J

2018-04-01

The aim of the study was to evaluate whether expert review of outside cervical cytology affects patient care. A retrospective study was conducted of 424 new patient referrals for cervical dysplasia between 2004 and 2016 at Roswell Park Cancer Institute. Records were analyzed for outside cervical cytology reports and compared with expert cervical cytology review. Differences between expert review and outside reports were documented. Charts with a difference were then assessed for additional evaluation and procedures performed. We specifically analyzed the data for cytology being upgraded or downgraded after expert review. Two hundred forty-six patient charts were eligible for this study. We identified 165 patients with congruent pathology reports. Of the 81 different reports, 41 led to significant pathologic differences. Twenty-four reports with different pathology were low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (LSIL) upgraded to high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (HSIL). Six were HSIL downgraded to LSIL, 4 LSIL downgraded to negative, 3 AGC upgraded to HSIL, 2 AGC upgraded to cancer, 1 each for HSIL downgraded to negative, and AGC downgraded to negative. Of the 24 patients whose cytology changed from low grade to high grade, 17 underwent an excisional procedure and 1 had a laser ablative procedure. Cervical intraepithelial neoplasia 2 or 3 was found in 11 specimens. Cervical intraepithelial neoplasia 1 was found in 4 of excisional specimens and no dysplasia found in 2. Expert review of cervical cytology significantly impacts patient management at a tertiary referral center, resulting in both upgrading and downgrading of community cytology reports.

Effect of introduction of a new electronic anesthesia record (Epic) system on the safety and efficiency of patient care in a gastrointestinal endoscopy suite-comparison with historical cohort.

PubMed

Goudra, B; Singh, P M; Borle, A; Gouda, G

2016-01-01

Use of electronic medical record systems has increased in the recent years. Epic is one such system gaining popularity in the USA. Epic is a private company, which invented the electronic documentation system adopted in our hospital. In spite of many presumed advantages, its use is not critically analyzed. Some of the perceived advantages are increased efficiency and protection against litigation as a result of accurate documentation. In this study, retrospective data of 305 patients who underwent endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (wherein electronic charting was used - "Epic group") were compared with 288 patients who underwent the same procedure with documentation saved on a paper chart ("paper group"). Time of various events involved in the procedure such as anesthesia start, endoscope insertion, endoscope removal, and transfer to the postanesthesia care unit were routinely documented. From this data, the various time durations were calculated. Both "anesthesia start to scope insertion" times and "scope removal to transfer" times were significantly less in the Epic group compared to the paper group. Use of Epic system led to a saving of 4 min of procedure time per patient. However, the mean oxygen saturation was significantly less in the Epic group. In spite of perceived advantages of Epic documentation system, significant hurdles remain with its use. Although the system allows seamless flow of patients, failure to remove all artifacts can lead to errors and become a source of potential litigation hazard.

Revision Zenker diverticulum: laser versus stapler outcomes following initial endoscopic failure.

PubMed

Adam, Stewart I; Paskhover, Boris; Sasaki, Clarence T

2013-04-01

We used a retrospective chart review to analyze revision endoscopic carbon dioxide (CO2) laser and staple repairs of recurrent Zenker diverticulum (ZD). The medical records of patients with recurrent ZD after primary endoscopic repair were selected. The chart data included method of repair (CO2 laser or stapler), demographics (age and sex), defect size (in centimeters), preoperative and postoperative symptoms, and complications. Patients' dysphagia was graded on a modified Functional Oral Intake Scale from 1 to 4 (1 being normal intake and 4 being severely limited intake or gastrostomy tube dependence). Regurgitation was also graded on a 1-to-4 scale (1 being no regurgitation and 4 being aspiration). A total of 148 consecutive patients with ZD were treated with endoscopic repair between 2000 and 2010. Twelve of these patients had revisions after failed primary endoscopic management procedures, all done with the stapler. Eight revision surgeries were performed by CO2 laser, and 4 by stapler repair. No difference was noted in patient age or defect size (laser, 3.06-cm defects; stapler, 2.75-cm defects). The length of hospital stay and the time to oral intake for the patients who had a revision stapler procedure were significantly greater (p values of 0.029 and 0.009) than those for the patients in the primary stapler procedure group. Better postoperative regurgitation scores were noted for patients who had a CO2 laser procedure. Secondary endoscopic repair for ZD recurrence is an effective treatment method. Better symptom outcomes were observed with secondary CO2 laser repair than with stapler revision. Patients with revision stapling had longer hospital stays and a longer time to oral intake than did patients with primary staple repairs.

Automatic Extraction of High-Resolution Rainfall Series from Rainfall Strip Charts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saa-Requejo, Antonio; Valencia, Jose Luis; Garrido, Alberto; Tarquis, Ana M.

2015-04-01

Soil erosion is a complex phenomenon involving the detachment and transport of soil particles, storage and runoff of rainwater, and infiltration. The relative magnitude and importance of these processes depends on a host of factors, including climate, soil, topography, cropping and land management practices among others. Most models for soil erosion or hydrological processes need an accurate storm characterization. However, this data are not always available and in some cases indirect models are generated to fill this gap. In Spain, the rain intensity data known for time periods less than 24 hours back to 1924 and many studies are limited by it. In many cases this data is stored in rainfall strip charts in the meteorological stations but haven't been transfer in a numerical form. To overcome this deficiency in the raw data a process of information extraction from large amounts of rainfall strip charts is implemented by means of computer software. The method has been developed that largely automates the intensive-labour extraction work based on van Piggelen et al. (2011). The method consists of the following five basic steps: 1) scanning the charts to high-resolution digital images, 2) manually and visually registering relevant meta information from charts and pre-processing, 3) applying automatic curve extraction software in a batch process to determine the coordinates of cumulative rainfall lines on the images (main step), 4) post processing the curves that were not correctly determined in step 3, and 5) aggregating the cumulative rainfall in pixel coordinates to the desired time resolution. A colour detection procedure is introduced that automatically separates the background of the charts and rolls from the grid and subsequently the rainfall curve. The rainfall curve is detected by minimization of a cost function. Some utilities have been added to improve the previous work and automates some auxiliary processes: readjust the bands properly, merge bands when those have been scanned in two parts, detect and cut the borders of bands not used (demanded by the software). Also some variations in which colour system is tried basing in HUE or RGB colour have been included. Thanks to apply this digitization rainfall strip charts 209 station-years of three locations in the centre of Spain have been transformed to long-term rainfall time series with 5-min resolution. References van Piggelen, H.E., T. Brandsma, H. Manders, and J. F. Lichtenauer, 2011: Automatic Curve Extraction for Digitizing Rainfall Strip Charts. J. Atmos. Oceanic Technol., 28, 891-906. Acknowledgements Financial support for this research by DURERO Project (Env.C1.3913442) is greatly appreciated.

Integrated Analytical Evaluation and Optimization of Model Parameters against Preprocessed Measurement Data

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-06-23

Iterations .......................... 86 3.2 Comparison between MACH and POLAR ......................... 90 3.3 Flow Chart for VSTS Algorithm...The most recent changes are: a) development of the VSTS (velocity space topology search) algorithm for calculating particle densities b) extension...with simple analytic models. The largest modification of the MACH code was the implementation of the VSTS procedure, which constituted a complete

A Profile of Puerto Rican Health in the United States: Data from the Hispanic Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1982-84.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Munoz, Eric; And Others

The health conditions and health status of Hispanic Americans will assume increased importance as their population increases. The goal of this book of charts is to present data from the Hispanic Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (HHANES) on Puerto Ricans. The Puerto Rican HHANES sampling procedure is a multi-stage probability sample of…

A Retrospective Chart Review of Dietary Diversity and Feeding Behavior of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder before and after Admission to a Day-Treatment Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sharp, William G.; Jaquess, David L.; Morton, Jane F.; Miles, Aida G.

2011-01-01

The nutritional status and mealtime performance among a group of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) were examined before and after admission to an intensive feeding day-treatment program. Treatment involved escape extinction, reinforcement, and stimulus fading procedures. Outcomes focused on dietary diversity and mealtime performance,…

Skylab

NASA Image and Video Library

1973-01-01

This chart lists the various experiments that flew on Skylab, along with their assigned numerical designations. The Marshall Space Flight Center had program management responsibility for the development of Skylab hardware and experiments.

Charts relating the compressive buckling stress of longitudinally supported plates to the effective deflectional and rotational stiffness of the supports

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, Roger A; Semonian, Joseph W

1954-01-01

A stability analysis is made of a long flat rectangular plate subjected to a uniform longitudinal compressive stress and supported along its longitudinal edges and along one or more longitudinal lines by elastic line supports. The elastic supports possess deflectional and rotational stiffness. Such configuration is an idealization of the compression cover skin and internal structure of a wing and tail surfaces. The results of the analysis are presented in the form of charts in which the buckling-stress coefficient is plotted against the buckle length of the plate for a wide range of support stiffnesses. The charts make possible the determination of the compressive buckling stress of plates supported by members whose stiffness may or may not be defined by elementary beam bending and twisting theory but yet whose effective restraint is amenable to evaluation. The deflectional and rotational stiffness provided by longitudinal stiffeners and full-depth webs is discussed and numerical examples are given to illustrate the application of the charts to the design of wing structures.

Bipolar disorder recurrence prevention using self-monitoring daily mood charts: case reports from a 5 year period.

PubMed

Yasui-Furukori, Norio; Nakamura, Kazuhiko

2017-01-01

Mood symptoms in bipolar disorders are significantly related to psychosocial events, and the personalized identification of symptom triggers is important. Ecological momentary assessments have been used in paper-and-pencil form to explore emotional reactivity to daily life stress in patients with bipolar disorder. However, there are few data on long-term recurrence prevention effects using ecological momentary assessments. Subjects were three outpatients with bipolar disorder who had a history of at least one admission. They recorded self-monitoring daily mood charts using a 5-point Likert scale. Paper-and-pencil mood charts included mood, motivation, thinking speed, and impulsivity. Additionally, they recorded waking time, bedtime, and medication compliance. Fewer manic or depressive episodes including admissions occurred after self-monitoring daily mood charts compared to patients' admissions in the past 3 years. This study suggests that self-monitoring daily mood in addition to mood stabilizing medication has some effect on recurrence prevention in follow-up periods of at least 5 years. Further studies with rigorous designs and large sample sizes are needed.

Space bioreactor: Design/process flow

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cross, John H.

1987-01-01

The design of the space bioreactor stems from three considerations. First, and foremost, it must sustain cells in microgravity. Closely related is the ability to take advantage of the weightlessness and microgravity. Lastly, it should fit into a bioprocess. The design of the space bioreactor is described in view of these considerations. A flow chart of the bioreactor is presented and discussed.

The Design of Adult Acute Care Units in U.S. Hospitals

PubMed Central

Catrambone, Cathy; Johnson, Mary E.; Mion, Lorraine C.; Minnick, Ann F.

2010-01-01

Purpose To describe the current state of design characteristics determined to be desirable by the Agency for Health Research and Quality (AHRQ) in U.S. adult medical, surgical, and intensive care units (ICUs). Design Descriptive study of patient visibility; distance to hygiene, toileting, charting, and supplies; unit configuration; percentage of private rooms; and presence or absence of carpeting in 56 ICUs and 81 medical-surgical units in six metropolitan areas. Methods Data were collected via observation, measurement, and interviews. Unit configurations were classified via an iterative process. Descriptive data were analyzed according to ICU and non-ICU status using SPSS (Version 15). Findings Analysis of unit configurations indicated eight unit designs. Statistical analysis showed inter- and intrahospital variation in unit configurations, percentage private rooms, carpeting, visibility, and distance to supplies and charting. Few units met the AHRQ designated design elements studied. Conclusions A wide gap exists between desirable characteristics in ICUs and medical-surgical units. Future research is needed to explore operationalization of unit design elements as risk adjustments, how design elements contribute to patient outcomes, and how design elements influence one another. Clinical Relevance There is room for improvement on almost every design variable, particularly on medical-surgical units. Future planning should take into consideration the interaction of bed capacity and unit configuration. PMID:19335681

HiVy automated translation of stateflow designs for model checking verification

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pingree, Paula

2003-01-01

tool set enables model checking of finite state machines designs. This is acheived by translating state-chart specifications into the input language of the Spin model checker. An abstract syntax of hierarchical sequential automata (HSA) is provided as an intermediate format tool set.

NOVA Fall 1998 Teacher's Guide.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Colombo, Luann

This teacher's guide is designed to accompany the PBS television program "NOVA." Six science activities correspond to: (1) "Lost at Sea: The Search for Longitude,, which researches and charts the shortest course to circumnavigate the globe; (2) "Chasing El Nino," which formulates a question and designs an experiment to…

Design Document. EKG Interpretation Program.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Webb, Sandra M.

This teaching plan is designed to assist nursing instructors assigned to advanced medical surgical nursing courses in acquainting students with the basic skills needed to perform electrocardiographic (ECG or EKG) interpretations. The first part of the teaching plan contains a statement of purpose; audience recommendations; a flow chart detailing…

Impact of pregnancy on autograft dilatation and aortic valve function following the Ross procedure.

PubMed

Carvajal, Horacio G; Lindley, Kathryn J; Shah, Trupti; Brar, Anoop K; Barger, Philip M; Billadello, Joseph J; Eghtesady, Pirooz

2018-03-01

The effects of pregnancy on autograft dilatation and neoaortic valve function in patients with a Ross procedure have not been studied. We sought to evaluate the effect of pregnancy on autograft dilatation and valve function in these patients with the goal of determining whether pregnancy is safe after the Ross procedure. A retrospective chart review of female patients who underwent a Ross procedure was conducted. Medical records for 51 patients were reviewed. Among the 33 patients who met inclusion criteria, 11 became pregnant after surgery and 22 did not. Echocardiographic reports were used to record aortic root diameter and aortic insufficiency before, during, and after pregnancy. Patient's charts were reviewed for reinterventions and complications. Primary endpoints included reinterventions, aortic root dilation of ≥5 cm, aortic insufficiency degree ≥ moderate, and death. There were 18 pregnancies carried beyond 20 weeks in 11 patients. There was no significant difference in aortic root diameter between nulliparous patients and parous patients prior to their first pregnancy (3.53 ± 0.44 vs 3.57 ± 0.69 cm, P = .74). There was no significant change in aortic root diameter after first pregnancy (3.7 ± 0.4 cm, P = .056) although there was significant dilatation after the second (4.3 ± 0.7 cm, P = .009) and third (4.5 ± 0.7 cm, P = .009) pregnancies. Freedom from combined endpoints was significantly higher for patients in the pregnancy group than those in the nonpregnancy group (P = .002). Pregnancy was not associated with significantly increased adverse events in patients following the Ross procedure. Special care should be taken after the first pregnancy, as multiparity may lead to increased neoaortic dilatation. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Unravel Spurious Bathymetric Highs on the Western Continental Margin of India

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mahale, V. P.

2017-12-01

Swath mapping multibeam echosounder systems (MBES) have become a de-facto-standard component on today's research vessel (RV). Modern MBES provide high temporal and spatial resolution for mapping the seabed morphology. Improved resolution capabilities requires large hull mounted transceivers, which after installation undergoes calibration procedure during the sea acceptance test (SAT). To accurately estimate various vessel offsets and lever-arm corrections, the installer runs calibration lines over a prominent seabed feature. In the year 2014, while conducting SAT for the RV Sindhu Sadhana and calibrate the ATLAS make MBES system, a hunt was on to find suitable bathymetric highs in the region of operation. Regional hydrographic charts published by the National Hydrographic Office, in India were referred to locate such features. Two bathymetric highs were spotted on the chart that are 20 km apart and 40 km west of the shelf-edge on the Western Continental Margin of India. The charted depth on these highs are 252 m and 343 m on a relatively even but moderately sloppy seabed, representing an isolated elevations of 900 m. The geographic locations of these knolls were verified with the GEBCO's 30-arc second gridded bathymetry, before heading out for the waypoints. There were no signs of knolls at those locations, indicating erroneous georeferencing. Hence, the region was subsequently revisited in the following years until an area of 3000 sq. km was mapped. Failing to locate the bathymetric highs they are referred to as 'spurious'. Investigation was planned to unravel the rationale of existence and sustenance of these knolls in the hydrographic charts since historic time. Tweaking the MBES settings reveals existence of strong acoustic scattering layer, to which even the depth tracking gate gets locked-on and is documented. Analogically, in the past, ships transecting the region equipped with single beam echosounder tuned for shallow depth operations might have charted the scattering layer and contributed to crowdsourced bathymetry eventually. Literature study indicates deepsea scattering layer (DSL) prevalent in the study region, having diurnal variation with depths similar to those on the chart. The author thus hypothesize that DSL would have been the rationale behind the existence of spurious bathymetric highs.

Finite difference model for aquifer simulation in two dimensions with results of numerical experiments

USGS Publications Warehouse

Trescott, Peter C.; Pinder, George Francis; Larson, S.P.

1976-01-01

The model will simulate ground-water flow in an artesian aquifer, a water-table aquifer, or a combined artesian and water-table aquifer. The aquifer may be heterogeneous and anisotropic and have irregular boundaries. The source term in the flow equation may include well discharge, constant recharge, leakage from confining beds in which the effects of storage are considered, and evapotranspiration as a linear function of depth to water. The theoretical development includes presentation of the appropriate flow equations and derivation of the finite-difference approximations (written for a variable grid). The documentation emphasizes the numerical techniques that can be used for solving the simultaneous equations and describes the results of numerical experiments using these techniques. Of the three numerical techniques available in the model, the strongly implicit procedure, in general, requires less computer time and has fewer numerical difficulties than do the iterative alternating direction implicit procedure and line successive overrelaxation (which includes a two-dimensional correction procedure to accelerate convergence). The documentation includes a flow chart, program listing, an example simulation, and sections on designing an aquifer model and requirements for data input. It illustrates how model results can be presented on the line printer and pen plotters with a program that utilizes the graphical display software available from the Geological Survey Computer Center Division. In addition the model includes options for reading input data from a disk and writing intermediate results on a disk.

Development of flexible rotor balancing criteria

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Walter, W. W.; Rieger, N. F.

1979-01-01

Several studies in which analytical procedures were used to obtain balancing criteria for flexible rotors are described. General response data for a uniform rotor in damped flexible supports were first obtained for plain cylindrical bearings, tilting pad bearings, axial groove bearings, and partial arc bearings. These data formed the basis for the flexible rotor balance criteria presented. A procedure by which a practical rotor in bearings could be reduced to an equivalent uniform rotor was developed and tested. It was found that the equivalent rotor response always exceeded to practical rotor response by more than sixty percent for the cases tested. The equivalent rotor procedure was then tested against six practical rotor configurations for which data was available. It was found that the equivalent rotor method offered a procedure by which balance criteria could be selected for practical flexible rotors, using the charts given for the uniform rotor.

Design prediction for long term stress rupture service of composite pressure vessels

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Robinson, Ernest Y.

1992-01-01

Extensive stress rupture studies on glass composites and Kevlar composites were conducted by the Lawrence Radiation Laboratory beginning in the late 1960's and extending to about 8 years in some cases. Some of the data from these studies published over the years were incomplete or were tainted by spurious failures, such as grip slippage. Updated data sets were defined for both fiberglass and Kevlar composite stand test specimens. These updated data are analyzed in this report by a convenient form of the bivariate Weibull distribution, to establish a consistent set of design prediction charts that may be used as a conservative basis for predicting the stress rupture life of composite pressure vessels. The updated glass composite data exhibit an invariant Weibull modulus with lifetime. The data are analyzed in terms of homologous service load (referenced to the observed median strength). The equations relating life, homologous load, and probability are given, and corresponding design prediction charts are presented. A similar approach is taken for Kevlar composites, where the updated stand data do show a turndown tendency at long life accompanied by a corresponding change (increase) of the Weibull modulus. The turndown characteristic is not present in stress rupture test data of Kevlar pressure vessels. A modification of the stress rupture equations is presented to incorporate a latent, but limited, strength drop, and design prediction charts are presented that incorporate such behavior. The methods presented utilize Cartesian plots of the probability distributions (which are a more natural display for the design engineer), based on median normalized data that are independent of statistical parameters and are readily defined for any set of test data.

Main Engine Prototype Development for 2nd Generation RLV RS-83

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vilja, John; Fisher, Mark; Lyles, Garry M. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

This presentation reports on the NASA project to develop a prototype for RS-83 engine designed for use on reusable launch vehicles (RLV). Topics covered include: program objectives, overview schedule, organizational chart, integrated systems engineering processes, requirement analysis, catastrophic engine loss, maintainability analysis tools, and prototype design analysis.

A Review of Literacy Frameworks for Learning Environments Design

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rebmann, Kristen Radsliff

2013-01-01

This article charts the development of three literacy research frameworks: multiliteracies, new literacies, and popular literacies. By reviewing the literature surrounding three current conceptions of literacy, an attempt is made to form an integrative grouping that captures the most relevant elements of each for learning environments design.…

Best strategies to implement clinical pathways in an emergency department setting: study protocol for a cluster randomized controlled trial

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background The clinical pathway is a tool that operationalizes best evidence recommendations and clinical practice guidelines in an accessible format for ‘point of care’ management by multidisciplinary health teams in hospital settings. While high-quality, expert-developed clinical pathways have many potential benefits, their impact has been limited by variable implementation strategies and suboptimal research designs. Best strategies for implementing pathways into hospital settings remain unknown. This study will seek to develop and comprehensively evaluate best strategies for effective local implementation of externally developed expert clinical pathways. Design/methods We will develop a theory-based and knowledge user-informed intervention strategy to implement two pediatric clinical pathways: asthma and gastroenteritis. Using a balanced incomplete block design, we will randomize 16 community emergency departments to receive the intervention for one clinical pathway and serve as control for the alternate clinical pathway, thus conducting two cluster randomized controlled trials to evaluate this implementation intervention. A minimization procedure will be used to randomize sites. Intervention sites will receive a tailored strategy to support full clinical pathway implementation. We will evaluate implementation strategy effectiveness through measurement of relevant process and clinical outcomes. The primary process outcome will be the presence of an appropriately completed clinical pathway on the chart for relevant patients. Primary clinical outcomes for each clinical pathway include the following: Asthma—the proportion of asthmatic patients treated appropriately with corticosteroids in the emergency department and at discharge; and Gastroenteritis—the proportion of relevant patients appropriately treated with oral rehydration therapy. Data sources include chart audits, administrative databases, environmental scans, and qualitative interviews. We will also conduct an overall process evaluation to assess the implementation strategy and an economic analysis to evaluate implementation costs and benefits. Discussion This study will contribute to the body of evidence supporting effective strategies for clinical pathway implementation, and ultimately reducing the research to practice gaps by operationalizing best evidence care recommendations through effective use of clinical pathways. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01815710 PMID:23692634

Robotic general surgery experience: a gradual progress from simple to more complex procedures.

PubMed

Al-Naami, M; Anjum, M N; Aldohayan, A; Al-Khayal, K; Alkharji, H

2013-12-01

Robotic surgery was introduced at our institution in 2003, and we used a progressive approach advancing from simple to more complex procedures. A retrospective chart review. Cases included totalled 129. Set-up and operative times have improved over time and with experience. Conversion rates to standard laparoscopic or open techniques were 4.7% and 1.6%, respectively. Intraoperative complications (6.2%), blood loss and hospital stay were directly proportional to complexity. There were no mortalities and the postoperative complication rate (13.2%) was within accepted norms. Our findings suggest that robot technology is presently most useful in cases tailored toward its advantages, i.e. those confined to a single space, those that require performance of complex tasks, and re-do procedures. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Best strategies to implement clinical pathways in an emergency department setting: study protocol for a cluster randomized controlled trial.

PubMed

Jabbour, Mona; Curran, Janet; Scott, Shannon D; Guttman, Astrid; Rotter, Thomas; Ducharme, Francine M; Lougheed, M Diane; McNaughton-Filion, M Louise; Newton, Amanda; Shafir, Mark; Paprica, Alison; Klassen, Terry; Taljaard, Monica; Grimshaw, Jeremy; Johnson, David W

2013-05-22

The clinical pathway is a tool that operationalizes best evidence recommendations and clinical practice guidelines in an accessible format for 'point of care' management by multidisciplinary health teams in hospital settings. While high-quality, expert-developed clinical pathways have many potential benefits, their impact has been limited by variable implementation strategies and suboptimal research designs. Best strategies for implementing pathways into hospital settings remain unknown. This study will seek to develop and comprehensively evaluate best strategies for effective local implementation of externally developed expert clinical pathways. We will develop a theory-based and knowledge user-informed intervention strategy to implement two pediatric clinical pathways: asthma and gastroenteritis. Using a balanced incomplete block design, we will randomize 16 community emergency departments to receive the intervention for one clinical pathway and serve as control for the alternate clinical pathway, thus conducting two cluster randomized controlled trials to evaluate this implementation intervention. A minimization procedure will be used to randomize sites. Intervention sites will receive a tailored strategy to support full clinical pathway implementation. We will evaluate implementation strategy effectiveness through measurement of relevant process and clinical outcomes. The primary process outcome will be the presence of an appropriately completed clinical pathway on the chart for relevant patients. Primary clinical outcomes for each clinical pathway include the following: Asthma--the proportion of asthmatic patients treated appropriately with corticosteroids in the emergency department and at discharge; and Gastroenteritis--the proportion of relevant patients appropriately treated with oral rehydration therapy. Data sources include chart audits, administrative databases, environmental scans, and qualitative interviews. We will also conduct an overall process evaluation to assess the implementation strategy and an economic analysis to evaluate implementation costs and benefits. This study will contribute to the body of evidence supporting effective strategies for clinical pathway implementation, and ultimately reducing the research to practice gaps by operationalizing best evidence care recommendations through effective use of clinical pathways. ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01815710.

Developing leadership capacity for guideline use: a pilot cluster randomized control trial.

PubMed

Gifford, Wendy A; Davies, Barbara L; Graham, Ian D; Tourangeau, Ann; Woodend, A Kirsten; Lefebre, Nancy

2013-02-01

The importance of leadership to influence nurses' use of clinical guidelines has been well documented. However, little is known about how to develop and evaluate leadership interventions for guideline use. The purpose of this study was to pilot a leadership intervention designed to influence nurses' use of guideline recommendations when caring for patients with diabetic foot ulcers in home care nursing. This paper reports on the feasibility of implementing the study protocol, the trial findings related to nursing process outcomes, and leadership behaviors. A mixed methods pilot study was conducted with a post-only cluster randomized controlled trial and descriptive qualitative interviews. Four units were randomized to control or experimental groups. Clinical and management leadership teams participated in a 12-week leadership intervention (workshop, teleconferences). Participants received summarized chart audit data, identified goals for change, and created a team leadership action. Criteria to assess feasibility of the protocol included: design, intervention, measures, and data collection procedures. For the trial, chart audits compared differences in nursing process outcomes. 8-item nursing assessments score. Secondary outcome: 5-item score of nursing care based on goals for change identified by intervention participants. Qualitative interviews described leadership behaviors that influenced guideline use. Conducting this pilot showed some aspects of the study protocol were feasible, while others require further development. Trial findings observed no significant difference in the primary outcome. A significant increase was observed in the 5-item score chosen by intervention participants (p = 0.02). In the experimental group more relations-oriented leadership behaviors, audit and feedback and reminders were described as leadership strategies. Findings suggest that a leadership intervention has the potential to influence nurses' use of guideline recommendations, but further work is required to refine the intervention and outcome measures. A taxonomy of leadership behaviors is proposed to inform future research. © 2012 The authors. World Views on Evidence-Based Nursing © Sigma Theta Tau International.

The Contrast Sensitivity of the Newborn Human Infant

PubMed Central

Brown, Angela M.; Lindsey, Delwin T.; Cammenga, Joanna G.; Giannone, Peter J.; Stenger, Michael R.

2015-01-01

Purpose. To measure the binocular contrast sensitivity (CS) of newborn infants using a fixation-and-following card procedure. Methods. The CS of 119 healthy newborn infants was measured using stimuli printed on cards under the descending method of limits (93 infants) and randomized/masked designs (26 infants). One experienced and one novice adult observer tested the infants using vertical square-wave gratings (0.06 and 0.10 cyc/deg; 20/10,000 and 20/6000 nominal Snellen equivalent); the experienced observer also tested using horizontal gratings (0.10 cyc/deg) and using the Method of Constant Stimuli while being kept unaware of the stimulus values. Results. The CS of the newborn infant was 2.0 (contrast threshold = 0.497; 95% confidence interval: 0.475–0.524) for vertically oriented gratings and 1.74 (threshold = 0.575; 95% confidence interval: 0.523–0.633) for horizontally oriented gratings (P < 0.0006). The standard deviation of infant CS was comparable to that obtained by others on adults using the Pelli-Robson chart. The two observers showed similar practice effects. Randomization of stimulus order and masking of the adult observer had no effect on CS. Conclusions. The CS of individual newborn human infants can be measured using a fixation-and-following card procedure. PMID:25564453

Solar energy system economic evaluation for Elcam-Tempe, Tempe, Arizona and Elcam-San Diego, San Diego, California

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1980-01-01

The long term economic performance of the solar energy system at its installation site is analyzed and four additional locations selected to demonstrate the viability of the design over a broad range of environmental and economic conditions. The economic analysis of the solar energy systems that were installed at Tempe, Arizona and San Diego, California, is developed for these and four other sites typical of a wide range of environmental and economic conditions in the continental United States. This analysis is accomplished based on the technical and economic models in the f Chart design procedure with inputs based on the characteristics of the installed system and local conditions. The results are expressed in terms of the economic parameters of present worth of system cost over a projected twenty year life: life cycle savings; year of positive savings; and year of payback for the optimized solar energy system at each of the analysis sites. The sensitivity of the economic evaluation to uncertainites in constituent system and economic variables is also investigated. The results demonstrate that the solar energy system is economically viable at all of the sites for which the analysis was conducted.

Tolerance design of patient-specific range QA using the DMAIC framework in proton therapy.

PubMed

Rah, Jeong-Eun; Shin, Dongho; Manger, Ryan P; Kim, Tae Hyun; Oh, Do Hoon; Kim, Dae Yong; Kim, Gwe-Ya

2018-02-01

To implement the DMAIC (Define-Measure-Analyze-Improve-Control) can be used for customizing the patient-specific QA by designing site-specific range tolerances. The DMAIC framework (process flow diagram, cause and effect, Pareto chart, control chart, and capability analysis) were utilized to determine the steps that need focus for improving the patient-specific QA. The patient-specific range QA plans were selected according to seven treatment site groups, a total of 1437 cases. The process capability index, C pm was used to guide the tolerance design of patient site-specific range. For prostate field, our results suggested that the patient range measurements were capable at the current tolerance level of ±1 mm in clinical proton plans. For other site-specific ranges, we analyzed that the tolerance tends to be overdesigned to insufficient process capability calculated by the patient-specific QA data. The customized tolerances were calculated for treatment sites. Control charts were constructed to simulate the patient QA time before and after the new tolerances were implemented. It is found that the total simulation QA time was decreased on average of approximately 20% after establishing new site-specific range tolerances. We simulated the financial impact of this project. The QA failure for whole process in proton therapy would lead up to approximately 30% increase in total cost. DMAIC framework can be used to provide an effective QA by setting customized tolerances. When tolerance design is customized, the quality is reasonably balanced with time and cost demands. © 2017 American Association of Physicists in Medicine.

Fastener Design Course [Workbook

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Barrett, Richart T.

1997-01-01

Richard T. Barrett, Senior Aerospace Engineer of NASA Lewis Research Center presents a comprehensive course on fastener design. A recognized expert in the field of fastener technology Mr. Barrett combines lecture, charts, illustrations with real-world experiences. Topics covered include: materials, plantings and coatings, locking methods threads, joint stiffness, rivets, inserts, nut plates, thread lubricants, design criteria, etc. These presentation slides accompany the DVD.

SOCR Motion Charts: An Efficient, Open-Source, Interactive and Dynamic Applet for Visualizing Longitudinal Multivariate Data

PubMed Central

Al-Aziz, Jameel; Christou, Nicolas; Dinov, Ivo D.

2011-01-01

The amount, complexity and provenance of data have dramatically increased in the past five years. Visualization of observed and simulated data is a critical component of any social, environmental, biomedical or scientific quest. Dynamic, exploratory and interactive visualization of multivariate data, without preprocessing by dimensionality reduction, remains a nearly insurmountable challenge. The Statistics Online Computational Resource (www.SOCR.ucla.edu) provides portable online aids for probability and statistics education, technology-based instruction and statistical computing. We have developed a new Java-based infrastructure, SOCR Motion Charts, for discovery-based exploratory analysis of multivariate data. This interactive data visualization tool enables the visualization of high-dimensional longitudinal data. SOCR Motion Charts allows mapping of ordinal, nominal and quantitative variables onto time, 2D axes, size, colors, glyphs and appearance characteristics, which facilitates the interactive display of multidimensional data. We validated this new visualization paradigm using several publicly available multivariate datasets including Ice-Thickness, Housing Prices, Consumer Price Index, and California Ozone Data. SOCR Motion Charts is designed using object-oriented programming, implemented as a Java Web-applet and is available to the entire community on the web at www.socr.ucla.edu/SOCR_MotionCharts. It can be used as an instructional tool for rendering and interrogating high-dimensional data in the classroom, as well as a research tool for exploratory data analysis. PMID:21479108

Energy efficiency façade design in high-rise apartment buildings using the calculation of solar heat transfer through windows with shading devices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ha, P. T. H.

2018-04-01

The architectural design orientation at the first design stage plays a key role and has a great impact on the energy consumption of a building throughout its life-cycle. To provide designers with a simple and useful tool in quantitatively determining and simply optimizing the energy efficiency of a building at the very first stage of conceptual design, a factor namely building envelope energy efficiency (Khqnl ) should be investigated and proposed. Heat transfer through windows and other glazed areas of mezzanine floors accounts for 86% of overall thermal transfer through building envelope, so the factor Khqnl of high-rise buildings largely depends on shading solutions. The author has established tables and charts to make reference to the values of Khqnl factor in certain high-rise apartment buildings in Hanoi calculated with a software program subject to various inputs including: types and sizes of shading devices, building orientations and at different points of time to be respectively analyzed. It is possible and easier for architects to refer to these tables and charts in façade design for a higher level of energy efficiency.

Outcomes after salvage procedures for the painful dislocated hip in cerebral palsy.

PubMed

Wright, Patrick B; Ruder, John; Birnbaum, Mark A; Phillips, Jonathan H; Herrera-Soto, Jose A; Knapp, Dennis R

2013-01-01

The painful dislocated hip in the setting of cerebral palsy is a challenging problem. Many surgical procedures have been reported to treat this condition with varying success rates. The purpose of this study is to retrospectively evaluate and compare the outcomes of 3 different surgical procedures performed at our institution for pain relief in patients with spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy and painful dislocated hips. A retrospective chart review of the surgical procedures performed by 5 surgeons for spastic, painful dislocated hips from 1997 to 2010 was performed. The procedures identified were (1) proximal femoral resection arthroplasty (PFRA); (2) subtrochanteric valgus osteotomy (SVO) with femoral head resection; and (3) proximal femur prosthetic interposition arthroplasty (PFIA) using a humeral prosthesis. Outcomes based on pain and range of motion were determined to be excellent, good, fair, or poor by predetermined criteria. Forty-four index surgeries and 14 revision surgeries in 33 patients with an average follow-up of 49 months met the inclusion criteria. Of the index surgeries, 12 hips were treated with a PFRA, 21 with a SVO, and 11 with a PFIA. An excellent or good result was noted in 67% of PFRAs, 67% of SVOs, and 73% of PFIAs. No statistical significance between these procedures was achieved. The 14 revisions were performed because of a poor result from previous surgery, demonstrating a 24% reoperation rate overall. No patients classified as having a fair result underwent revision surgery. All patients receiving revision surgery were eventually classified as having an excellent or good result. Surgical treatment for the painful, dislocated hip in the setting of spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy remains unsettled. There continue to be a large percentage of failures despite the variety of surgical techniques designed to treat this problem. These failures can be managed, however, and eventually resulted in a good outcome. We demonstrated a trend toward better outcomes with a PFIA, but further study should be conducted to prove statistical significance. III.

Calibration and evaluation of a dispersant application system

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Shum, J.S.

1987-05-01

The report presents recommended methods for calibrating and operating boat-mounted dispersant application systems. Calibration of one commercially-available system and several unusual problems encountered in calibration are described. Charts and procedures for selecting pump rates and other operating parameters in order to achieve a desired dosage are provided. The calibration was performed at the EPA's Oil and Hazardous Materials Simulated Environmental Test Tank (OHMSETT) facility in Leonardo, New Jersey.

The risk of midgut volvulus in patients with abdominal wall defects: A multi-institutional study.

PubMed

Fawley, Jason A; Abdelhafeez, Abdelhafeez H; Schultz, Jessica A; Ertl, Allison; Cassidy, Laura D; Peter, Shawn St; Wagner, Amy J

2017-01-01

The management of malrotation in patients with congenital abdominal wall defects has varied among surgeons. We were interested in investigating the risk of midgut volvulus in patients with gastroschisis and omphalocele to help determine if these patients may benefit from undergoing a Ladd procedure. A retrospective chart review was performed for all patients managed at three institutions born between 1/1/2000 and 12/31/2008 with a diagnosis of gastroschisis or omphalocele. Patient charts were reviewed through 12/31/2012 for occurrence of midgut volvulus or need for second laparotomy. Of the 414 patients identified with abdominal wall defects, 299 patients (72%) had gastroschisis, and 115 patients (28%) had omphalocele. The mean gestational age at birth was 36.1±2.3weeks, and the mean birth weight was 2.57±0.7kg. There were a total of 8 (1.9%) cases of midgut volvulus: 3 (1.0%) patients with gastroschisis compared to 5 patients (4.4%) with omphalocele (p=0.04). Patients with omphalocele have a greater risk of developing midgut volvulus, and a Ladd procedure should be considered during definitive repair to mitigate these risks. III; retrospective comparative study. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Accidents and complications associated to third molar surgeries performed by dentistry students.

PubMed

Azenha, Marcelo Rodrigues; Kato, Rogerio Bentes; Bueno, Renan Barros Lima; Neto, Patricio Jose Oliveira; Ribeiro, Michel Campos

2014-12-01

The aim of this work is to demonstrate the accidents and complications rates on third molars surgeries performed by senior dentistry students. A retrospective study of 122 patient charts submitted to third molars surgeries was done. Patient age, gender, dental in arch position, and accidents/complications were considered with the charts presenting incomplete dates being excluded from the study. After all, 88 patients (210 surgeries) were included. The majority of the patients were female (70.4 %), with the average age of 24 years. Mandibular molars represented more than half of the surgical procedures (56.2 %), with teeth at vertical position the most found (60.3 %). The cases of accidents and complications totalized 10.4 % of all performed procedures, being hemorrhage (1.9 %), root fractures (1.9 %), and maxillary tuberosity fracture (1.9 %) the most found. Suture dehiscence (1.4 %), dry socket (1.4 %), oroantral communications (0.9 %), paresthesia (0.9 %), and infection (0.4 %) were also observed. Surgeons' inexperience was not considered a determinant factor to modify the rates of accidents and complications at third molars surgeries when compared to previous works developed by experienced surgeons. It is important to highlight the necessity of the students' knowledge of the most adequate treatments of each of the accidents and complications.

Diagnosis and Management of Intraoperative Colorectal Anastomotic Leaks: A Global Retrospective Patient Chart Review Study.

PubMed

Schiff, A; Roy, S; Pignot, M; Ghosh, S K; Fegelman, E J

2017-01-01

This targeted chart review study reports the first ever detailed global account of clinical approaches adopted to detect and manage anastomotic leaks identified during surgery in routine clinical practice. 156 surgeons from eight countries retrospectively extracted data from surgical records of 458 patients who underwent colorectal surgery with an identified intraoperative leak at the circular anastomosis. Demographic details, procedures, and outcomes were analyzed descriptively, by country. Most surgeries were performed laparoscopically (57.6%), followed by open surgeries (35.8%). The burden of intraoperative leaks on the healthcare system is driven in large part by the additional interventions such as using a sealant, recreating the anastomosis, and diverting the anastomosis to a colostomy bag, undertaken to manage the leak. The mean duration of hospitalization was 19.9 days. Postoperative anastomotic leaks occurred in 62 patients (13.5%), most frequently 4 to 7 days after surgery. Overall, country-specific differences were observed in patient characteristics, surgical procedures, method of diagnosis of intraoperative leak, interventions, and length of hospital stay. The potential cost of time and material needed to repair intraoperative leaks during surgery is substantial and often hidden to the healthcare system, potentially leading to an underestimation of the impact of this complication.

Possible misdiagnosis of HIV associated lymphoma as tuberculosis among patients attending Uganda Cancer Institute.

PubMed

Buyego, Paul; Nakiyingi, Lydia; Ddungu, Henry; Walimbwa, Stephen; Nalwanga, Damalie; Reynolds, Steven J; Parkes-Ratanshi, Rosalind

2017-03-14

Early diagnosis of HIV associated lymphoma is challenging because the definitive diagnostic procedure of biopsy, requires skills and equipment that are not readily available. As a consequence, diagnosis may be delayed increasing the risk of mortality. We set out to determine the frequency and risk factors associated with the misdiagnosis of HIV associated lymphoma as tuberculosis (TB) among patients attending the Uganda Cancer Institute (UCI). A retrospective cohort study design was used among HIV patients with associated lymphoma patients attending the UCI, Kampala, Uganda between February and March 2015. Eligible patient charts were reviewed for information on TB treatment, socio-demographics, laboratory parameters (Hemoglobin, CD4cells count and lactate dehydrogenase) and clinical presentation using a semi structured data extraction form. A total of 183 charts were reviewed; 106/183 were males (57.9%), the median age was 35 (IQR, 28-45). Fifty six (30.6%) patients had a possible misdiagnosis as TB and their median time on TB treatment was 3.5 (1-5.3) months. In multivariate analysis the presence of chest pain had an odd ratio (OR) of 4.4 (95% CI 1.89-10.58, p < 0.001) and stage III and IV lymphoma disease had an OR of 3.22 (95% CI 1.08-9.63, p < 0.037) for possible misdiagnosis of lymphoma as TB. A high proportion of patients with HIV associated lymphoma attending UCI are misdiagnosed and treated as TB. Chest pain and stage III and IV of lymphoma were associated with an increased risk of a possible misdiagnosis of lymphoma as TB.

33 CFR 62.21 - General.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... for a given area. (b) The U.S. Aids to Navigation System is designed for use with nautical charts... Logistics Agency, Defense Supply Center Richmond, ATTN: JNB, 8000 Jefferson Davis Highway, Richmond, VA...

33 CFR 62.21 - General.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... for a given area. (b) The U.S. Aids to Navigation System is designed for use with nautical charts... Logistics Agency, Defense Supply Center Richmond, ATTN: JNB, 8000 Jefferson Davis Highway, Richmond, VA...

33 CFR 62.21 - General.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... for a given area. (b) The U.S. Aids to Navigation System is designed for use with nautical charts... Logistics Agency, Defense Supply Center Richmond, ATTN: JNB, 8000 Jefferson Davis Highway, Richmond, VA...

33 CFR 62.21 - General.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... for a given area. (b) The U.S. Aids to Navigation System is designed for use with nautical charts... Logistics Agency, Defense Supply Center Richmond, ATTN: JNB, 8000 Jefferson Davis Highway, Richmond, VA...

33 CFR 62.21 - General.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... for a given area. (b) The U.S. Aids to Navigation System is designed for use with nautical charts... Logistics Agency, Defense Supply Center Richmond, ATTN: JNB, 8000 Jefferson Davis Highway, Richmond, VA...

Implementing and integrating a clinically driven electronic medical record for radiation oncology in a large medical enterprise.

PubMed

Kirkpatrick, John P; Light, Kim L; Walker, Robyn M; Georgas, Debra L; Antoine, Phillip A; Clough, Robert W; Cozart, Heidi B; Yin, Fang-Fang; Yoo, Sua; Willett, Christopher G

2013-01-01

While our department is heavily invested in computer-based treatment planning, we historically relied on paper-based charts for management of Radiation Oncology patients. In early 2009, we initiated the process of conversion to an electronic medical record (EMR) eliminating the need for paper charts. Key goals included the ability to readily access information wherever and whenever needed, without compromising safety, treatment quality, confidentiality, or productivity. In February, 2009, we formed a multi-disciplinary team of Radiation Oncology physicians, nurses, therapists, administrators, physicists/dosimetrists, and information technology (IT) specialists, along with staff from the Duke Health System IT department. The team identified all existing processes and associated information/reports, established the framework for the EMR system and generated, tested and implemented specific EMR processes. Two broad classes of information were identified: information which must be readily accessed by anyone in the health system versus that used solely within the Radiation Oncology department. Examples of the former are consultation reports, weekly treatment check notes, and treatment summaries; the latter includes treatment plans, daily therapy records, and quality assurance reports. To manage the former, we utilized the enterprise-wide system, which required an intensive effort to design and implement procedures to export information from Radiation Oncology into that system. To manage "Radiation Oncology" data, we used our existing system (ARIA, Varian Medical Systems.) The ability to access both systems simultaneously from a single workstation (WS) was essential, requiring new WS and modified software. As of January, 2010, all new treatments were managed solely with an EMR. We find that an EMR makes information more widely accessible and does not compromise patient safety, treatment quality, or confidentiality. However, compared to paper charts, time required by clinicians to access/enter patient information has substantially increased. While productivity is improving with experience, substantial growth will require better integration of the system components, decreased access times, and improved user interfaces. $127K was spent on new hardware and software; elimination of paper yields projected savings of $21K/year. One year after conversion to an EMR, more than 90% of department staff favored the EMR over the previous paper charts. Successful implementation of a Radiation Oncology EMR required not only the effort and commitment of all functions of the department, but support from senior health system management, corporate IT, and vendors. Realization of the full benefits of an EMR will require experience, faster/better integrated software, and continual improvement in underlying clinical processes.

Hepatic Microwave Ablation Zone Size: Correlation with Total Energy, Net Energy, and Manufacturer-Provided Chart Predictions.

PubMed

Shyn, Paul B; Bird, Jeffery R; Koch, R Marie; Tatli, Servet; Levesque, Vincent M; Catalano, Paul J; Silverman, Stuart G

2016-09-01

To determine whether total energy (TE) reaching the microwave (MW) applicator or net energy (NE) exiting the applicator (after correcting for reflectivity) correlates better with hepatic MW ablation zone dimensions than manufacturer-provided chart predictions. Single-applicator, nonoverlapping ablations of 93 liver tumors (0.7-5.9 cm) were performed in 52 adult patients. TE and NE were recorded for each ablation. Long axis diameter (LAD), short axis diameter (SAD), and volume (V) of each ablation zone were measured on magnetic resonance imaging or computed tomography after the procedure and retrospectively compared with TE; NE; and manufacturer-provided chart predictions of LAD, SAD, and V using correlation and regression analyses. For treated tumors, mean (± SD) TE and NE were 49.8 kJ (± 22.7) and 36.4 kJ (± 19.4). Mean LAD, SAD, and V were 5.8 cm (± 1.3), 3.7 cm (± 0.8), and 44.1 cm(3) (± 25.4). Correlation coefficients (95% confidence interval) with LAD, SAD, and V were 0.46 (0.28, 0.61), 0.52 (0.36, 0.66), and 0.52 (0.36, 0.66) for TE; 0.42 (0.24, 0.58), 0.55 (0.39, 0.68), and 0.53 (0.36, 0.66) for NE; and 0.51 (0.34, 0.65), 0.63 (0.49, 0.74), and 0.60 (0.45, 0.73) for chart predictions. Using regression analysis and controlling for TE, SAD was 0.34 cm larger in patients with cirrhosis than in patients without cirrhosis. Correcting for reflectivity did not substantially improve correlation of energy values with MW ablation zone size parameters and did not outperform manufacturer-provided chart predictions. Correlations were moderate and variable using all methods. The results suggest a disproportionate influence of tissue factors on MW ablation results. Copyright © 2016 SIR. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Progress in color reflection holography

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bjelkhagen, Hans I.; Huang, Qiang; Jeong, Tung H.

1998-02-01

The recording technique of Denisyuk color reflection holograms has been simplified by using `white' laser light. The Slavich red-green-blue (RGB) sensitized ultra-high resolution silver halide emulsion was used for the hologram recording. The employed laser wavelengths were 633 nm, 531 nm, and 476 nm, generated by a helium-neon, a mixed argon- krypton ion, and an argon ion laser, respectively. A beam combination mechanism with dichroic filters enabled a simultaneously RGB exposure, which made the color balance and overall exposure energy easy to control as well as simplifying the recording procedure. Various approaches have been investigated in generating color hologram which have sufficiently high diffraction efficiency combined with improved color saturation. A specially designed test object consisting of the 1931 CIE chromaticity diagram, a rainbow ribbon cable, pure yellow dots, and a cloisonne elephant was used for color recording experiments. In addition, the Macbeth Color Checker chart was used. Both colorimetric evaluation and scattering noise measurements were performed using the PR-650 Photo Research SpectraScan SpectraCalorimeter.

Inquiry-Based Approach to a Carbohydrate Analysis Experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Senkbeil, Edward G.

1999-01-01

The analysis of an unknown carbohydrate in an inquiry-based learning format has proven to be a valuable and interesting undergraduate biochemistry laboratory experiment. Students are given a list of carbohydrates and a list of references for carbohydrate analysis. The references contain a variety of well-characterized wet chemistry and instrumental techniques for carbohydrate identification, but the students must develop an appropriate sequential protocol for unknown identification. The students are required to provide a list of chemicals and procedures and a flow chart for identification before the lab. During the 3-hour laboratory period, they utilize their accumulated information and knowledge to classify and identify their unknown. Advantages of the inquiry-based format are (i) students must be well prepared in advance to be successful in the laboratory, (ii) students feel a sense of accomplishment in both designing and carrying out a successful experiment, and (iii) the carbohydrate background information digested by the students significantly decreases the amount of lecture time required for this topic.

Recruitment of black women with type 2 diabetes into a self-management intervention trial.

PubMed

Newlin, Kelley; Melkus, Gail D'Eramo; Jefferson, Vanessa; Langerman, Susan; Womack, Julie; Chyun, Deborah

2006-01-01

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship of recruitment methods to enrollment status in Black women with type 2 diabetes screened for entry into a randomized clinical trial (RCT). Using a cross-sectional study design with convenience sampling procedures, data were collected on recruitment methods to which the women responded (N=236). Results demonstrated that the RCT had a moderate overall recruitment rate of 46% and achieved only 84% of its projected accrual goal (N=109). Chi-square analysis demonstrated that enrollment outcomes varied significantly according to recruitment methods (P=.05). Recruitment methods such as community health fairs (77.8%), private practice referrals (75.0%), participant referrals (61.5%), community clinic referrals (44.6%), community advertising and marketing (40.9%), and chart review (40.4%) demonstrated variable enrollment yields. Results confirm previous findings that indicate that Black Americans may be successfully recruited into research studies at moderate rates when traditional recruitment methods are enhanced and integrated with more culturally sensitive methods. Lessons learned are considered.

1 CFR 20.7 - Deadline dates.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... published on a schedule designed to provide the public with information about their Government on a timely... Federal Register for transmittal of statements and charts and for the verification of proofs. Failure to...

AIDS Therapies.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yarchoan, Robert; And Others

1988-01-01

Reports on one drug which is already in clinical use and the possibility of designing others that interrupt specific phases of the life cycle of the virus. Uses a chart, pictures, and diagrams to accompany explanations. (RT)

[Growth standardized values and curves based on weight, length/height and head circumference for Chinese children under 7 years of age].

PubMed

Li, Hui

2009-03-01

To construct the growth standardized data and curves based on weight, length/height, head circumference for Chinese children under 7 years of age. Random cluster sampling was used. The fourth national growth survey of children under 7 years in the nine cities (Beijing, Harbin, Xi'an, Shanghai, Nanjing, Wuhan, Fuzhou, Guangzhou and Kunming) of China was performed in 2005 and from this survey, data of 69 760 urban healthy boys and girls were used to set up the database for weight-for-age, height-for-age (length was measured for children under 3 years) and head circumference-for-age. Anthropometric data were ascribed to rigorous methods of data collection and standardized procedures across study sites. LMS method based on BOX-COX normal transformation and cubic splines smoothing technique was chosen for fitting the raw data according to study design and data features, and standardized values of any percentile and standard deviation were obtained by the special formulation of L, M and S parameters. Length-for-age and height-for-age standards were constructed by fitting the same model but the final curves reflected the 0.7 cm average difference between these two measurements. A set of systematic diagnostic tools was used to detect possible biases in estimated percentiles or standard deviation curves, including chi2 test, which was used for reference to evaluate to the goodness of fit. The 3rd, 10th, 25th, 50th, 75th, 90th, 97th smoothed percentiles and -3, -2, -1, 0, +1, +2, +3 SD values and curves of weight-for-age, length/height-for-age and head circumference-for-age for boys and girls aged 0-7 years were made out respectively. The Chinese child growth charts was slightly higher than the WHO child growth standards. The newly established growth charts represented the growth level of healthy and well-nourished Chinese children. The sample size was very large and national, the data were high-quality and the smoothing method was internationally accepted. The new Chinese growth charts are recommended as the Chinese child growth standards in 21st century used in China.

Interactive SIGHT: textual access to simple bar charts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Demir, Seniz; Oliver, David; Schwartz, Edward; Elzer, Stephanie; Carberry, Sandra; Mccoy, Kathleen F.; Chester, Daniel

2010-12-01

Information graphics, such as bar charts and line graphs, are an important component of many articles from popular media. The majority of such graphics have an intention (a high-level message) to communicate to the graph viewer. Since the intended message of a graphic is often not repeated in the accompanying text, graphics together with the textual segments contribute to the overall purpose of an article and cannot be ignored. Unfortunately, these visual displays are provided in a format which is not readily accessible to everyone. For example, individuals with sight impairments who use screen readers to listen to documents have limited access to the graphics. This article presents a new accessibility tool, the Interactive SIGHT (Summarizing Information GrapHics Textually) system, that is intended to enable visually impaired users to access the knowledge that one would gain from viewing information graphics found on the web. The current system, which is implemented as a browser extension that works on simple bar charts, can be invoked by a user via a keystroke combination while navigating the web. Once launched, Interactive SIGHT first provides a brief summary that conveys the underlying intention of a bar chart along with the chart's most significant and salient features, and then produces history-aware follow-up responses to provide further information about the chart upon request from the user. We present two user studies that were conducted with sighted and visually impaired users to determine how effective the initial summary and follow-up responses are in conveying the informational content of bar charts, and to evaluate how easy it is to use the system interface. The evaluation results are promising and indicate that the system responses are well-structured and enable visually impaired users to answer key questions about bar charts in an easy-to-use manner. Post-experimental interviews revealed that visually impaired participants were very satisfied with the system offering different options to access the content of a chart to meet their specific needs and that they would use Interactive SIGHT if it was publicly available so as not to have to ignore graphics on the web. Being a language based assistive technology designed to compensate for the lack of sight, our work paves the road for a stronger acceptance of natural language interfaces to graph interpretation that we believe will be of great benefit to the visually impaired community.

Regular tracheostomy tube changes to prevent formation of granulation tissue.

PubMed

Yaremchuk, Kathleen

2003-01-01

Tracheostomy is a commonly performed operative procedure that has been described since 2000 B.C. The early indications for tracheostomy were for upper airway obstruction, usually occurring in young people as a result of an infectious process. Recently, tracheostomies are more commonly performed in the critically ill patient to assist in long-term ventilatory support. Granulation tissue at the stoma and the trachea has been described as a late complication resulting in bleeding, drainage, and difficulty with maintaining mechanical ventilatory support. The present report is of an observational study of a newly implemented policy that required regular changing of tracheostomy tubes. Comparable groups of patients were compared before and after this procedural change to document complications. Data collection consisted of chart reviews of all admissions for 1 year before the policy change and the subsequent 2 years. Complication rates were compared using standard statistical techniques. A policy change was instituted that required all tracheostomy tubes to be changed every 2 weeks in conjunction with a detailed evaluation of the tracheostomy stoma. Charts were reviewed the year before the change in policy and in the subsequent 2 years to determine the incidence of granulation tissue requiring operative intervention. The number of patients requiring surgical intervention secondary to granulation tissue showed a statistically significant decrease (P =.02). A review of policies and procedures from the six largest hospitals in southeastern Michigan had no recommendations for routine tracheostomy tube changes. A policy requiring a routine change of tracheostomy tubes results in fewer complications from granulation tissue. Tracheostomy tube changes to prevent granulation tissue and its complications.

Improving the timeliness of procedures in a pediatric endoscopy suite.

PubMed

Tomer, Gitit; Choi, Steven; Montalvo, Andrea; Sutton, Sheila; Thompson, John; Rivas, Yolanda

2014-02-01

Pediatric endoscopic procedures are essential in the evaluation and treatment of gastrointestinal diseases in children. Although pediatric endoscopists are greatly interested in increasing efficiency and through-put in pediatric endoscopy units, there is scarcely any literature on this critical process. The goal of this study was to improve the timeliness of pediatric endoscopy procedures at Children's Hospital at Montefiore. In June 2010, a pediatric endoscopy quality improvement initiative was formed at Children's Hospital at Montefiore. We identified patient-, equipment-, and physician-related causes for case delays. Pareto charts, cause and effect diagrams, process flow mapping, and statistical process control charts were used for analysis. From June 2010 to December 2012, we were able to significantly decrease the first case endoscopy delay from an average of 17 to 10 minutes (P < .001), second case delay from 39 to 25 minutes (P = .01), third case delay from 61 to 45 minutes (P = .05), and fourth case delay from 79 to 51 minutes (P = .05). Total delay time decreased from 196 to 131 minutes, resulting in a reduction of 65 minutes (P = .02). From June 2010 to August 2011 (preintervention period), an average of 36% of first endoscopy cases started within 5 minutes, 51% within 10 minutes, and 61% within 15 minutes of the scheduled time. From September 2011 to December 2012 (postintervention period), the percentage of cases starting within 5 minutes, 10 minutes, and 15 minutes increased to 47% (P = .07), 61% (P = .04), and 79% (P = .01), respectively. Applying quality improvement methods and tools helped improve pediatric endoscopy timeliness and significantly decreased total delays.

Winds over Japan.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Plumley, William J.

1994-01-01

Before World War II, weather forecasters had little knowledge of upper-air wind patterns above 20000 feet. Data were seldom avai able at these heights, and the need was not great because commercial aircraft seldom flew at these altitudes. The war in the Pacific changed all that. Wind forecasts for 30000 feet plus became urgent to support the XXI Bomber Command in its bombing mission over Japan.The U.S. Army Air Force Pacific Ocean Area (AAFPOA) placed a Weather Central in the Marianas Islands in 1944 (Saipan in 1944 and Guam in 1945) to provide forecasting support for this mission. A forecasting procedure was put into operation that combined the elements known as "single-station forecasting" and an advanced procedure that used "altirmeter corrections" to analyze upper-airdata and make prognoses. Upper-air charts were drawn for constant pressure surfaces rather than constant height surfaces. The constant pressure surfaces were tied together by means of the atmospheric temperature field represented by specific temperature anomalies between pressure surfaces. Wind forecasts over the Marianas-Japan route made use of space cross sections that provided the data to forecast winds at each 5000-ft level to 35000 ft along the mission flight path. The new procedures allowed the forecaster to construct internally consistent meteorological charts in three dimensions in regions of sparse data.Army air force pilots and their crews from the Marianas were among the first to experience the extreme wind conditions now known as the "jet stream". Air force forecasters demonstrated that, with experience, such winds could reasonably be forecast under difficult operational conditions.

An Analysis of Africa Command’s Organizational Structure

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-03-01

Richard L. Daft , Organizational Theory and Design Seventh...www.africom.mil/pdfFiles/ AFRICOM%20Org%20Chart.pdf (accessed February 15, 2010). 64 Richard L. Daft , Organizational Theory and Design Seventh Edition, 101. 65...current organization theory .22 Contemporary organization theory proposes such a “strategic management” relationship between collaborating organizations

Feasibility study of an Integrated Program for Aerospace-vehicle Design (IPAD) system. Volume 3: Engineering creative/evaluation processes, phase 1, task 2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Garrocq, C. A.; Hosek, J. J.

1973-01-01

A series of functional flow charts are considered that were developed to properly identify and record the degree of participation of the disciplines considered in this feasibility study and the type of data required in the design process.

A Process Chart to Design Experiential Learning Projects

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhu, Suning; Wu, Yun; Sankar, Chetan S.

2016-01-01

A high-impact practice is to incorporate experiential learning projects when teaching difficulty subject matters so as to enhance students' understanding and interest in the course content. But, there is limited research on how to design and execute such projects. Therefore, we propose a framework based on the processes described by the Project…

The Eyes Have It!

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Klopak, Ken

2008-01-01

The seventh- and eight-grade students in the author's art program sharpened up their eyesight and their use of color charts in preparation for an op art project. Op art is short for "optical patterns and designs." The goal of the project is to create and organize line and color into shapes, patterns, and design in symmetrical and asymmetrical…

Automotive Technician. A Competency-Based Curriculum Designed To Prepare Students for Entry-Level Employment.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vocational Curriculum Resource Center of Maine, Fairfield.

This curriculum guide is designed to assist instructors in the development and implementation of a comprehensive, competency-based automotive curriculum. It contains an instructional unit for each task listed on the enclosed job analysis or DACUM (Developing a Curriculum) chart. These units include introduction, performance objectives, suggested…

LSI (Large Scale Integrated) Design for Testability. Final Report of Design, Demonstration, and Testability Analysis.

DTIC Science & Technology

1983-11-01

compound operations, with status. (h) Pre-programmed CRC and double-precision multiply/divide algo- rithms. (i) Double length accumulator with full...IH1.25 _ - MICROCOP ’ RESOLUTION TEST CHART NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS-1963-A .4 ’* • • . - . .. •. . . . . . . . . . . . . . • - -. .• ,. o. . . .- "o

Charting a Path Toward a Sustainable ROK Space Program

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-12-01

16 E. RESEARCH DESIGN ...terms of sustainability－by maintaining a certain level of cooperation and engagement with its major ally, the United States. E. RESEARCH DESIGN ...headcount of personnel engaged in R&D is 14,693 persons, and researchers were 10,669 persons at that time .99 Among those researchers , 221 persons have

Math Problems for Water Quality Control Personnel, Instructor's Manual. Second Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Delvecchio, Fred; Brutsch, Gloria

This document is the instructor's manual for a course in mathematics for water quality control personnel. It is designed so a program may be designed for a specific facility. The problem structures are arranged alphabetically by treatment process. Charts, graphs and/or drawings representing familiar data forms contain the necessary information to…

75 FR 59411 - Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement; Patents, Data, and Copyrights (DFARS Case 2010...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-09-27

....'' The items ``design details, algorithms, processes, flow charts, formulas, and related material that describe the design, organization, or structure'' of computer software had been added to the current... 252.227-7018, which serves as the post-award complement to the pre-award identification and assertion...

A novel decision-making process for tooth retention or extraction.

PubMed

Avila, Gustavo; Galindo-Moreno, Pablo; Soehren, Stephen; Misch, Carl E; Morelli, Thiago; Wang, Hom-Lay

2009-03-01

Implant-supported restorations have become the most popular therapeutic option for professionals and patients for the treatment of total and partial edentulism. When implants are placed in an ideal position, with adequate prosthetic loading and proper maintenance, they can have success rates >90% over 15 years of function. Implants may be considered a better therapeutic alternative than performing more extensive conservative procedures in an attempt to save or maintain a compromised tooth. Inadequate indication for tooth extraction has resulted in the sacrifice of many sound savable teeth. This article presents a chart that can assist clinicians in making the right decision when they are deciding which route to take. Articles published in peer-reviewed English journals were selected using several scientific databases and subsequently reviewed. Book sources were also searched. Individual tooth- and patient-related features were thoroughly analyzed, particularly when determining if a tooth should be indicated for extraction. A color-based decision-making chart with six different levels, including several factors, was developed based upon available scientific literature. The rationale for including these factors is provided, and its interpretation is justified with literature support. The decision-making chart provided may serve as a reference guide for dentists when making the decision to save or extract a compromised tooth.

[An Introduction to Methods for Evaluating Health Care Technology].

PubMed

Lee, Ting-Ting

2015-06-01

The rapid and continual advance of healthcare technology makes ensuring that this technology is used effectively to achieve its original goals a critical issue. This paper presents three methods that may be applied by healthcare professionals in the evaluation of healthcare technology. These methods include: the perception/experiences of users, user work-pattern changes, and chart review or data mining. The first method includes two categories: using interviews to explore the user experience and using theory-based questionnaire surveys. The second method applies work sampling to observe the work pattern changes of users. The last method conducts chart reviews or data mining to analyze the designated variables. In conclusion, while evaluative feedback may be used to improve the design and development of healthcare technology applications, the informatics competency and informatics literacy of users may be further explored in future research.

Common angle plots as perception-true visualizations of categorical associations.

PubMed

Hofmann, Heike; Vendettuoli, Marie

2013-12-01

Visualizations are great tools of communications-they summarize findings and quickly convey main messages to our audience. As designers of charts we have to make sure that information is shown with a minimum of distortion. We have to also consider illusions and other perceptual limitations of our audience. In this paper we discuss the effect and strength of the line width illusion, a Muller-Lyer type illusion, on designs related to displaying associations between categorical variables. Parallel sets and hammock plots are both affected by line width illusions. We introduce the common-angle plot as an alternative method for displaying categorical data in a manner that minimizes the effect from perceptual illusions. Results from user studies both highlight the need for addressing line-width illusions in displays and provide evidence that common angle charts successfully resolve this issue.

Statistical process control: a practical application for hospitals.

PubMed

VanderVeen, L M

1992-01-01

A six-step plan based on using statistics was designed to improve quality in the central processing and distribution department of a 223-bed hospital in Oakland, CA. This article describes how the plan was implemented sequentially, starting with the crucial first step of obtaining administrative support. The QI project succeeded in overcoming beginners' fear of statistics and in training both managers and staff to use inspection checklists, Pareto charts, cause-and-effect diagrams, and control charts. The best outcome of the program was the increased commitment to quality improvement by the members of the department.

RF multicoupler design techniques to minimize problems of corona, multipaction, and stability

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hurley, H. S.; Kozakoff, D. J.

1971-01-01

A mathematical expression was derived describing multipacting and corona effects in a coaxial cavity. Both mechanical and electrical design techniques were investigated to minimize the susceptibility of coaxial cavity to corona and multipacting-type breakdown. To assist in the design of a multicoupler free from corona and multipactor breakdown, a flow chart obtained from the derived mathematical expression is included.

SiC Design Guide: Manufacture of Silicon Carbide Products (Briefing charts)

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-06-08

DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT A: Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited. 13. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES Presented at Mirror Technology Days, Boulder...coatings. 15. SUBJECT TERMS Mirrors , structures, silicon carbide, design, inserts, coatings, pockets, ribs, bonding, threads 16. SECURITY...Prescribed by ANSI Std. 239.18 purify protect transport SiC Design Guide Manufacture of Silicon Carbide Products Mirror Technology Days June 7 to 9, 2010

Relative Efficiencies and Design Charts for Various Engine-Propeller Combinations, Special Report

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Biermann, David

1936-01-01

The relative efficiencies of various engine-propeller combinations were the subject of a study that covered the important flight conditions, particularly the take-off. Design charts that graphically correlate the various propeller parameters were prepared to facilitate the solution of problems and also to c1arify the conception of the relationships of the various engine-propeller design factors. It is shown that, among the many methods for improving the take-off thrust, the use of high-pitch, large-diameter controllable propellers turning at low rotational speeds is probably the most generally promising. With such a combination the take-off thrust may be further increased, at the expense of a small loss in cruising efficiency, by compromise designs wherein the pitch setting is slightly reduced and the diameter is further increased. The degree of compromise necessary to accomplish the maximum possible take-off improvement depends on such design factors as overspeeding and overboosting at take-off as well as depending on the design altitude. Both overspeeding and designing for altitude operation have the same effect on the take-off thrust as compromising in that the propulsive efficiency is increased thereby; boosting the engine, however, has the reverse effect on the propulsive efficiency, although the brake horsepower is increased.

Creating Learning Environment Connecting Engineering Design and 3D Printing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pikkarainen, Ari; Salminen, Antti; Piili, Heidi

Engineering education in modern days require continuous development in didactics, pedagogics and used practical methods. 3D printing provides excellent opportunity to connect different engineering areas into practice and produce learning by doing applications. The 3D-printing technology used in this study is FDM (Fused deposition modeling). FDM is the most used 3D-printing technology by commercial numbers at the moment and the qualities of the technology makes it popular especially in academic environments. For achieving the best result possible, students will incorporate the principles of DFAM (Design for additive manufacturing) into their engineering design studies together with 3D printing. This paper presents a plan for creating learning environment for mechanical engineering students combining the aspects of engineering design, 3D-CAD learning and AM (additive manufacturing). As a result, process charts for carrying out the 3D printing process from technological point of view and design process for AM from engineering design point of view were created. These charts are used in engineering design education. The learning environment is developed to work also as a platform for Bachelor theses, work-training environment for students, prototyping service centre for cooperation partners and source of information for mechanical engineering education in Lapland University of Applied Sciences.

Desktop publishing and validation of custom near visual acuity charts.

PubMed

Marran, Lynn; Liu, Lei; Lau, George

2008-11-01

Customized visual acuity (VA) assessment is an important part of basic and clinical vision research. Desktop computer based distance VA measurements have been utilized, and shown to be accurate and reliable, but computer based near VA measurements have not been attempted, mainly due to the limited spatial resolution of computer monitors. In this paper, we demonstrate how to use desktop publishing to create printed custom near VA charts. We created a set of six near VA charts in a logarithmic progression, 20/20 through 20/63, with multiple lines of the same acuity level, different letter arrangements in each line and a random noise background. This design allowed repeated measures of subjective accommodative amplitude without the potential artifact of familiarity of the optotypes. The background maintained a constant and spatial frequency rich peripheral stimulus for accommodation across the six different acuity levels. The paper describes in detail how pixel-wise accurate black and white bitmaps of Sloan optotypes were used to create the printed custom VA charts. At all acuity levels, the physical sizes of the printed custom optotypes deviated no more than 0.034 log units from that of the standard, satisfying the 0.05 log unit ISO criterion we used to demonstrate physical equivalence. Also, at all acuity levels, log unit differences in the mean target distance for which reliable recognition of letters first occurred for the printed custom optotypes compared to the standard were found to be below 0.05, satisfying the 0.05 log unit ISO criterion we used to demonstrate functional equivalence. It is possible to use desktop publishing to create custom near VA charts that are physically and functionally equivalent to standard VA charts produced by a commercial printing process.

Impact of graphic format on perception of change in biological data: implications for health monitoring in conditions such as asthma.

PubMed

Jansen, Jesse; McCaffery, Kirsten J; Hayen, Andrew; Ma, David; Reddel, Helen K

2012-03-01

Variation in graphic format can substantially influence interpretation of data. Despite a large body of literature on the optimal design of graphs, little attention has been paid to the format of charts for health monitoring. This study assessed the effect of aspect ratio (x:y ratio) and interconnecting lines on visual identification of change in biological data, such as during asthma exacerbations. Eighty volunteers viewed 72 sets of six consecutive blocks of unidentified biological data, recording if each block of data was increasing, decreasing, or the same as the previous block. Three chart aspect ratios were examined (A, 5.2:1; B, 3.0:1; C, 1.1:1), with or without lines between data points. Datasets from lung function monitoring by asthma patients included a mild/moderate/severe fall ('exacerbation') or no exacerbation. False negative (missing true exacerbations) and false positive (identifying non-existent exacerbations) responses were calculated. 84% of exacerbation blocks were correctly identified. There was a significant interaction between exacerbation severity and aspect ratio (p=0.0048). The most compressed chart (C) had the fewest false negative responses. Moderate falls were missed in 24%, 12%, and 5% of trials on charts A, B, and C, respectively (C vs A: adjusted relative risk 0.19 (95% CI 0.12 to 0.30)). False positive responses were infrequent (A, 2.5%; B, 3.8%; C, 8.3%), increasing slightly if data points were joined with lines (4.3% vs 5.1%, p=0.004) . Compressed charts can improve the visual detection of change in biological data by up to 80%. The aspect ratio of charts should be standardised to facilitate clinical pattern recognition.

Requirements for emergent neurosurgical procedures among patients undergoing neuroendovascular procedures in contemporary practice.

PubMed

Khatri, R; Ansar, M; Sultan, F; Chaudhry, S A; Khan, A A; Rodriguez, G J; Tummala, R P; Qureshi, A I

2012-03-01

Provisions for an emergent neurosurgical procedure have been a mandatory component of centers that perform neuroendovascular procedures. We sought to determine the need for emergent neurosurgical procedures following neuroendovascular interventions in 2 comprehensive stroke centers in settings with such provisions. Analysis of retrospectively collected data from procedure logs and patient charts was performed to identify patients who required immediate (before the termination of the intervention) or adjunctive (within 24 hours of the intervention) neurosurgical procedures related to a neuroendovascular intervention complication. The types of neurosurgical procedures and in-hospital outcomes of identified patients are reported as an aggregate and per endovascular procedure-type analyses. We reviewed a total of 933 neuroendovascular procedures performed during 3.5 years (2006-2010). A total of 759 intracranial procedures were performed. There was a need for emergent neurosurgical procedures in 8 patients (0.85% cumulative incidence and 1.05% for major intracranial procedures) (mean age, 46 years; 7 were women); the procedures were categorized as 3 immediate and 5 adjunctive procedures. There were 5 in-hospital deaths (62.5%) among these 8 patients. Neurosurgical procedures performed were external ventricular drainage placement in 6 (6 of 8, 75%) patients, decompressive craniectomy in 1 (12.5%) patient, and both surgical procedures in 1 (12.5%) patient. The need for emergent neurosurgical procedures is very low among patients undergoing intracranial neuroendovascular procedures. Survival in such patients despite emergent neurosurgical procedures is quite low.

The Preliminary Pollutant Limit Value Approach: Procedures and Data Base.

DTIC Science & Technology

1984-06-01

IIllfllfflfflffllfllf IIIIIIIIIIIEI 41. ILE. 1 . 0 * n I s . 8c .5 11111 * 1 .6 flu IL MICROCOPY RESOLUTION TEST CHART NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS...AMEW,&A PROMS wD VE.OIWT coWma PAWIKIOK MARYAI 21701 *. ~~0 1 U..... .~-N:\\W-***- NOTICE * Disclaimer The findings in this report are not to be...APPENDIX HI: NOTATION. .. . .. ...................................... 106.- FIGURE S 1 . Model to derive SPPPLV for pathway 7 (meat consumption

Arizona in . . . 16mm Films, 8mm Films, Filmloops, Filmstrips, Slides, Transparencies, Cassettes, Records, Photos, Prints, Posters, Charts, Study Prints, Maps, Flags, Book Returns, Bookmarks, Foods, Microfilm, Place Mats, Relief Model Kits, Stereo Picture Reels.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Choncoff, Mary, Comp.

The product of a year's search through numerous selection aids, catalogs, conference exhibits, book stores, shops at Arizona historical sites, etc., this compilation presents both instructional and promotional non-print materials relative to Arizona. Procedures for procuring materials, annotations, and bibliographic information (source, date of…

The Utility of Recurrent Laryngeal Nerve Monitoring During Open Pharyngeal Diverticula Procedures.

PubMed

Coughlan, Carolyn A; Verma, Sunil P

2016-08-01

The recurrent laryngeal nerve is at risk of injury during open pharyngeal diverticula operations. The utility of recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) monitoring during these procedures was investigated. A retrospective chart review was performed of 8 open pharyngeal diverticulectomies completed between 2009 and 2014. Intraoperative RLN monitoring took place during all operations. Open pharyngectomy and myotomy was successfully performed in all cases. In two cases the RLN was encountered outside of its normal course. The identity of the nerve was confirmed with electrical stimulation and normal EMG response. Vocal fold motion was preserved in all cases. Use of intraoperative nerve monitoring in pharyngeal diverticula procedures may be beneficial, especially during open operations for Killian-Jamieson diverticulum (KJD) and large Zenker diverticulum (ZD), where the RLN is typically encountered outside of its normal course. © The Author(s) 2016.

Design and Methods of the Mood Disorder Cohort Research Consortium (MDCRC) Study

PubMed Central

Cho, Chul-Hyun; Ahn, Yong-Min; Kim, Se Joo; Ha, Tae Hyun; Jeon, Hong Jin; Cha, Boseok; Moon, Eunsoo; Park, Dong Yeon; Baek, Ji Hyun; Kang, Hee-Ju; Ryu, Vin; An, Hyonggin

2017-01-01

The Mood Disorder Cohort Research Consortium (MDCRC) study is designed as a naturalistic observational prospective cohort study for early-onset mood disorders (major depressive disorders, bipolar disorders type 1 and 2) in South Korea. The study subjects consist of two populations: 1) patients with mood disorders under 25 years old and 2) patients with mood disorders within 2 years of treatment under 35 years old. After successful screening, the subjects are evaluated using baseline assessments and serial follow-up assessments at 3-month intervals. Between the follow-up assessments, subjects are dictated to check their own daily mood status before bedtime using the eMood chart application or a paper mood diary. At the regular visits every 3 months, inter-visit assessments are evaluated based on daily mood charts and interviews with patients. In addition to the daily mood chart, sleep quality, inter-visit major and minor mood episodes, stressful life events, and medical usage pattern with medical expenses are also assessed. Genomic DNA from blood is obtained for genomic analyses. From the MDCRC study, the clinical course, prognosis, and related factors of early-onset mood disorders can be clarified. The MDCRC is also able to facilitate translational research for mood disorders and provide a resource for the convergence study of mood disorders. PMID:28096882

Agile Task Tracking Tool

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Duke, Roger T.; Crump, Thomas Vu

The work was created to provide a tool for the purpose of improving the management of tasks associated with Agile projects. Agile projects are typically completed in an iterative manner with many short duration tasks being performed as part of iterations. These iterations are generally referred to as sprints. The objective of this work is to create a single tool that enables sprint teams to manage all of their tasks in multiple sprints and automatically produce all standard sprint performance charts with minimum effort. The format of the printed work is designed to mimic a standard Kanban board. The workmore » is developed as a single Excel file with worksheets capable of managing up to five concurrent sprints and up to one hundred tasks. It also includes a summary worksheet providing performance information from all active sprints. There are many commercial project management systems typically designed with features desired by larger organizations with many resources managing multiple programs and projects. The audience for this work is the small organizations and Agile project teams desiring an inexpensive, simple, user-friendly, task management tool. This work uses standard readily available software, Excel, requiring minimum data entry and automatically creating summary charts and performance data. It is formatted to print out and resemble standard flip charts and provide the visuals associated with this type of work.« less

Endoscopic colloid cyst excision: surgical techniques and nuances.

PubMed

Azab, Waleed Abdelfattah; Najibullah, Mustafa; Yosef, Waleed

2017-06-01

Endoscopic excision of colloid cysts is currently well established as a minimally invasive and highly effective technique that is associated with less morbidity in comparison to microsurgical resection. Operative charts and videos of patients undergoing endoscopic colloid cyst excision were retrieved from the senior author's database of endoscopic procedures and reviewed. This revealed nine trans-foraminal and three trans-septal procedures. Description of the surgical techniques was then formulated. Variation of the technique is based on the specific patho-anatomical features of the colloid cyst being resected. For the trans-foraminal approach, we think that the rotational technique is associated with a more complete removal of the cyst wall and consequently lower recurrence rate.

A software tool to automatically assure and report daily treatment deliveries by a cobalt‐60 radiation therapy device

PubMed Central

Wooten, H. Omar; Green, Olga; Li, Harold H.; Liu, Shi; Li, Xiaoling; Rodriguez, Vivian; Mutic, Sasa; Kashani, Rojano

2016-01-01

The aims of this study were to develop a method for automatic and immediate verification of treatment delivery after each treatment fraction in order to detect and correct errors, and to develop a comprehensive daily report which includes delivery verification results, daily image‐guided radiation therapy (IGRT) review, and information for weekly physics reviews. After systematically analyzing the requirements for treatment delivery verification and understanding the available information from a commercial MRI‐guided radiotherapy treatment machine, we designed a procedure to use 1) treatment plan files, 2) delivery log files, and 3) beam output information to verify the accuracy and completeness of each daily treatment delivery. The procedure verifies the correctness of delivered treatment plan parameters including beams, beam segments and, for each segment, the beam‐on time and MLC leaf positions. For each beam, composite primary fluence maps are calculated from the MLC leaf positions and segment beam‐on time. Error statistics are calculated on the fluence difference maps between the plan and the delivery. A daily treatment delivery report is designed to include all required information for IGRT and weekly physics reviews including the plan and treatment fraction information, daily beam output information, and the treatment delivery verification results. A computer program was developed to implement the proposed procedure of the automatic delivery verification and daily report generation for an MRI guided radiation therapy system. The program was clinically commissioned. Sensitivity was measured with simulated errors. The final version has been integrated into the commercial version of the treatment delivery system. The method automatically verifies the EBRT treatment deliveries and generates the daily treatment reports. Already in clinical use for over one year, it is useful to facilitate delivery error detection, and to expedite physician daily IGRT review and physicist weekly chart review. PACS number(s): 87.55.km PMID:27167269

Environmentally friendly microwave-assisted sequential extraction method followed by ICP-OES and ion-chromatographic analysis for rapid determination of sulphur forms in coal samples.

PubMed

Mketo, Nomvano; Nomngongo, Philiswa N; Ngila, J Catherine

2018-05-15

A rapid three-step sequential extraction method was developed under microwave radiation followed by inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectroscopic (ICP-OES) and ion-chromatographic (IC) analysis for the determination of sulphur forms in coal samples. The experimental conditions of the proposed microwave-assisted sequential extraction (MW-ASE) procedure were optimized by using multivariate mathematical tools. Pareto charts generated from 2 3 full factorial design showed that, extraction time has insignificant effect on the extraction of sulphur species, therefore, all the sequential extraction steps were performed for 5 min. The optimum values according to the central composite designs and counter plots of the response surface methodology were 200 °C (microwave temperature) and 0.1 g (coal amount) for all the investigated extracting reagents (H 2 O, HCl and HNO 3 ). When the optimum conditions of the proposed MW-ASE procedure were applied in coal CRMs, SARM 18 showed more organic sulphur (72%) and the other two coal CRMs (SARMs 19 and 20) were dominated by sulphide sulphur species (52-58%). The sum of the sulphur forms from the sequential extraction steps have shown consistent agreement (95-96%) with certified total sulphur values on the coal CRM certificates. This correlation, in addition to the good precision (1.7%) achieved by the proposed procedure, suggests that the sequential extraction method is reliable, accurate and reproducible. To safe-guard the destruction of pyritic and organic sulphur forms in extraction step 1, water was used instead of HCl. Additionally, the notorious acidic mixture (HCl/HNO 3 /HF) was replaced by greener reagent (H 2 O 2 ) in the last extraction step. Therefore, the proposed MW-ASE method can be applied in routine laboratories for the determination of sulphur forms in coal and coal related matrices. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Evaluation of Reading Performance with Minnesota Low Vision Reading Charts in Patients with Age-related Macular Degeneration.

PubMed

Altinbay, Deniz; Adibelli, Fatih Mehmet; Taskin, Ibrahim; Tekin, Adil

2016-01-01

To evaluate the reading performance using the Minnesota low vision reading (MNREAD) charts, of patients with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) who use low vision aid (LVA) devices. This prospective study enrolled 27 patients with AMD. Distance visual acuity (VA) was evaluated with a distance chart designed for patients with low vision. Near vision and reading performance were evaluated with the Turkish version of the MNREAD charts. Unaided vision and vision with LVA devices and high spherical add near glasses was measured. P <0.05 was considered statistically significant. The mean unaided near VA was 1.05 ± 0.27 log of the minimum angle of resolution (LogMAR). The mean VA with the LVA devices was 0.71 ± 0.41 LogMAR. Reading acuity ranged between 1.15 and 0.21 LogMAR, critical print size was between - 1.2 and 0.2 LogMAR. Maximum reading speeds were between 0 and 103 words/min. The cases are divided into groups in terms of reading speed according to age, gender, diagnosis, and education. Reading speed was negatively correlated to increasing age. MNREAD reading charts can be used to evaluate reading performance in patients with AMD with low vision. The outcomes of the present study indicate that optical correction is adequate for near VA requirements in this patient population. However, optical correction was inadequate for improving reading performance. Appropriate rehabilitation programs can be used to increase reading speed.

Emergency department documentation of alleged excessive use of force.

PubMed

Strote, Jared; Verzemnieks, Erik; Walsh, Mimi

2013-12-01

Patients' complaints of excessive use of force (EUOF) by police occur frequently in emergency departments (EDs). Limited, if any, education or guidelines exist for documenting alleged EUOF despite extensive instruction for other forms of potential abuse or assault. Our objective was to examine the documentation by ED staff when patients complained of EUOF. A retrospective cohort design was used, identifying every use of force over a 1-year period by a single law enforcement agency that was followed by an ED visit within 24 hours. Charts were then analyzed for complaints of excessive force. For these cases, documentation was evaluated using standards for other forms of abuse and assault. Of 187 ED visits, 32 (17%) involved patients who were unable to give a history and 20 (11%) had nontrauma evaluations only. Of the remaining 135, there were 13 documented complaints (10%) of EUOF. Of these, 8 complaints (62%) described the mechanism of injury completely and 10 complaints (77%) had a complete description of the injury. No charts discussed whether the examination was consistent with the history. Inappropriate subjective terminology was used in 7 charts (54%), and the police description of events was described as fact in 7 charts (54%). Guilt was assigned in 5 charts (39%). In one ED, EUOF complaints were not documented to the standards for other forms of alleged assault and abuse. There may be a benefit to further education and guidelines on how to deal with ED presentations of EUOF.

Symptomatology and health care utilization of women primary care patients who experienced childhood sexual abuse.

PubMed

Hulme, P A

2000-11-01

The purpose of this study was to (1) determine the symptomatology of women primary care patients who experienced childhood sexual abuse (CSA), using both a self-report survey and a chart review, and (2) determine their health care utilization patterns, using chart and information system reviews. An ex post facto research design was used. Women primary care patients who experienced CSA were compared with those who reported no CSA. Participants were recruited from a random sample of women patients from a large primary care clinic. They were mailed the survey; chart and information system reviews were conducted on those who returned surveys. Of the 395 participants, 23% reported past CSA on the survey. Women who experienced CSA reported 44 out of 51 physical and psychosocial symptoms more frequently than their counterparts who reported no past CSA. Further, they experienced these symptoms more intensely and in greater number. In their charts, however, far fewer differences in symptoms between groups were found. Nonetheless, women who experienced CSA visited the primary care clinic an average of 1.33 more times than women with no CSA, and they incurred an average of $150 more in primary care charges over a 2-year period. The findings indicate that many women primary care patients who experienced CSA suffer multiple symptoms that are not reflected in their charts. In addition, the findings demonstrate that not only is CSA associated with increased primary care visits, but also increased primary care costs, as measured by charges.

Chart biopsy: an emerging medical practice enabled by electronic health records and its impacts on emergency department-inpatient admission handoffs.

PubMed

Hilligoss, Brian; Zheng, Kai

2013-01-01

To examine how clinicians on the receiving end of admission handoffs use electronic health records (EHRs) in preparation for those handoffs and to identify the kinds of impacts such usage may have. This analysis is part of a two-year ethnographic study of emergency department (ED) to internal medicine admission handoffs at a tertiary teaching and referral hospital. Qualitative data were gathered and analyzed iteratively, following a grounded theory methodology. Data collection methods included semi-structured interviews (N = 48), observations (349 hours), and recording of handoff conversations (N = 48). Data analyses involved coding, memo writing, and member checking. The use of EHRs has enabled an emerging practice that we refer to as pre-handoff "chart biopsy": the activity of selectively examining portions of a patient's health record to gather specific data or information about that patient or to get a broader sense of the patient and the care that patient has received. Three functions of chart biopsy are identified: getting an overview of the patient; preparing for handoff and subsequent care; and defending against potential biases. Chart biopsies appear to impact important clinical and organizational processes. Among these are the nature and quality of handoff interactions, and the quality of care, including the appropriateness of dispositioning of patients. Chart biopsy has the potential to enrich collaboration and to enable the hospital to act safely, efficiently, and effectively. Implications for handoff research and for the design and evaluation of EHRs are also discussed.

A distributed lumped active all-pass network configuration.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Huelsman, L. P.; Raghunath, S.

1972-01-01

In this correspondence a new and interesting distributed lumped active network configuration that realizes an all-pass network function is described. A design chart for determining the values of the network elements is included.

Design of control system based on SCM music fountain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Biqing; Li, Zhao; Jiang, Suping

2018-06-01

The design of the design of a microprocessor controlled by simple circuit, introduced this design applied to the components, and draw the main flow chart presentation. System is the use of an external music source, the intensity of the input audio signal lights will affect the light off, the fountain spray of water level will be based on changes in the lantern light off. This design uses a single-chip system is simple, powerful, good reliability and low cost.

SU-D-BRD-01: An Automated Physics Weekly Chart Checking System Supporting ARIA

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chang, X; Yang, D

Purpose: A software tool was developed in this study to perform automatic weekly physics chart check on the patient data in ARIA. The tool accesses the electronic patient data directly from ARIA server and checks the accuracy of treatment deliveries, and generates reports which summarize the delivery history and highlight the errors. Methods: The tool has four modules. 1) The database interface is designed to directly access treatment delivery data from the ARIA database before reorganizing the data into the patient chart tree (PCT). 2) PCT is a core data structure designed to store and organize the data in logicalmore » hierarchies, and to be passed among functions. 3) The treatment data check module analyzes the organized data in PCT and stores the checking results into PCT. 4) Report generation module generates reports containing the treatment delivery summary, chart checking results and plots of daily treatment setup parameters (couch table positions, shifts of image guidance). The errors that are found by the tool are highlighted with colors. Results: The weekly check tool has been implemented in MATLAB and clinically tested at two major cancer centers. Javascript, cascading style sheets (CSS) and dynamic HTML were employed to create the user-interactive reports. It takes 0.06 second to search the delivery records of one beam with PCT and compare the delivery records with beam plan. The reports, saved in the HTML files on shared network folder, can be accessed by web browser on computers and mobile devices. Conclusion: The presented weekly check tool is useful to check the electronic patient treatment data in Varian ARIA system. It could be more efficient and reliable than the manually check by physicists. The work was partially supported by a research grant from Varian Medical System.« less

Comparison of reading speed with 3 different log-scaled reading charts.

PubMed

Buari, Noor Halilah; Chen, Ai-Hong; Musa, Nuraini

2014-01-01

A reading chart that resembles real reading conditions is important to evaluate the quality of life in terms of reading performance. The purpose of this study was to compare the reading speed of UiTM Malay related words (UiTM-Mrw) reading chart with MNread Acuity Chart and Colenbrander Reading Chart. Fifty subjects with normal sight were randomly recruited through randomized sampling in this study (mean age=22.98±1.65 years). Subjects were asked to read three different near charts aloud and as quickly as possible at random sequence. The charts were the UiTM-Mrw Reading Chart, MNread Acuity Chart and Colenbrander Reading Chart, respectively. The time taken to read each chart was recorded and any errors while reading were noted. Reading performance was quantified in terms of reading speed as words per minute (wpm). The mean reading speed for UiTM-Mrw Reading Chart, MNread Acuity Chart and Colenbrander Reading Chart was 200±30wpm, 196±28wpm and 194±31wpm, respectively. Comparison of reading speed between UiTM-Mrw Reading Chart and MNread Acuity Chart showed no significant difference (t=-0.73, p=0.72). The same happened with the reading speed between UiTM-Mrw Reading Chart and Colenbrander Reading Chart (t=-0.97, p=0.55). Bland and Altman plot showed good agreement between reading speed of UiTM-Mrw Reading Chart with MNread Acuity Chart with the Colenbrander Reading Chart. UiTM-Mrw Reading Chart in Malay language is highly comparable with standardized charts and can be used for evaluating reading speed. Copyright © 2013 Spanish General Council of Optometry. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

Comparison of reading speed with 3 different log-scaled reading charts

PubMed Central

Buari, Noor Halilah; Chen, Ai-Hong; Musa, Nuraini

2014-01-01

Background A reading chart that resembles real reading conditions is important to evaluate the quality of life in terms of reading performance. The purpose of this study was to compare the reading speed of UiTM Malay related words (UiTM-Mrw) reading chart with MNread Acuity Chart and Colenbrander Reading Chart. Materials and methods Fifty subjects with normal sight were randomly recruited through randomized sampling in this study (mean age = 22.98 ± 1.65 years). Subjects were asked to read three different near charts aloud and as quickly as possible at random sequence. The charts were the UiTM-Mrw Reading Chart, MNread Acuity Chart and Colenbrander Reading Chart, respectively. The time taken to read each chart was recorded and any errors while reading were noted. Reading performance was quantified in terms of reading speed as words per minute (wpm). Results The mean reading speed for UiTM-Mrw Reading Chart, MNread Acuity Chart and Colenbrander Reading Chart was 200 ± 30 wpm, 196 ± 28 wpm and 194 ± 31 wpm, respectively. Comparison of reading speed between UiTM-Mrw Reading Chart and MNread Acuity Chart showed no significant difference (t = −0.73, p = 0.72). The same happened with the reading speed between UiTM-Mrw Reading Chart and Colenbrander Reading Chart (t = −0.97, p = 0.55). Bland and Altman plot showed good agreement between reading speed of UiTM-Mrw Reading Chart with MNread Acuity Chart with the Colenbrander Reading Chart. Conclusion UiTM-Mrw Reading Chart in Malay language is highly comparable with standardized charts and can be used for evaluating reading speed. PMID:25323642

Methods of Formation of Students Technological Competence in the Speciality "Garment Industry and Fashion Design"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zholdasbekova, S.; Karataev, G.; Yskak, A.; Zholdasbekov, A.; Nurzhanbaeva, J.

2015-01-01

This article describes the major components of required technological skills (TS) for future designers taught during the academic process of a college. It considers the choices in terms of the various logical operations required by the fashion industry including fabric processing, assembly charts, performing work operations, etc. The article…

New York State Educational Information System (NYSEIS) Systems Design. Volume I, Phase II. Final Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Price Waterhouse and Co., New York, NY.

This volume on Phase II of the New York State Educational Information System (NYSEIS) describes the Gross Systems Analysis and Design, which includes the general flow diagram and processing chart for each of the student, personnel, and financial subsystems. Volume II, Functional Specifications, includes input/output requirements and file…

COMMIX-PPC: A three-dimensional transient multicomponent computer program for analyzing performance of power plant condensers

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chien, T.H.; Domanus, H.M.; Sha, W.T.

1993-02-01

The COMMIX-PPC computer pregrain is an extended and improved version of earlier COMMIX codes and is specifically designed for evaluating the thermal performance of power plant condensers. The COMMIX codes are general-purpose computer programs for the analysis of fluid flow and heat transfer in complex Industrial systems. In COMMIX-PPC, two major features have been added to previously published COMMIX codes. One feature is the incorporation of one-dimensional equations of conservation of mass, momentum, and energy on the tube stile and the proper accounting for the thermal interaction between shell and tube side through the porous-medium approach. The other added featuremore » is the extension of the three-dimensional conservation equations for shell-side flow to treat the flow of a multicomponent medium. COMMIX-PPC is designed to perform steady-state and transient. Three-dimensional analysis of fluid flow with heat transfer tn a power plant condenser. However, the code is designed in a generalized fashion so that, with some modification, it can be used to analyze processes in any heat exchanger or other single-phase engineering applications. Volume I (Equations and Numerics) of this report describes in detail the basic equations, formulation, solution procedures, and models for a phenomena. Volume II (User's Guide and Manual) contains the input instruction, flow charts, sample problems, and descriptions of available options and boundary conditions.« less

Decentralization: The Corridor Is the Problem, Not the Alcove.

PubMed

Hamilton, D Kirk; Swoboda, Sandra M; Lee, Jin-Ting; Anderson, Diana C

There is controversy today about whether decentralized intensive care unit (ICU) designs featuring alcoves and multiple sites for charting are effective. There are issues relating to travel distance, visibility of patients, visibility of staff colleagues, and communications among caregivers, along with concerns about safety risk. When these designs became possible and popular, many ICU designs moved away from the high-visibility circular, semicircular, or box-like shapes and began to feature units with more linear shapes and footprints similar to acute bed units. Critical care nurses on the new, linear units have expressed concerns. This theory and opinion article relies upon field observations in unrelated research studies and consulting engagements, along with material from the relevant literature. It leads to a challenging hypothesis that criticism of decentralized charting alcoves may be misplaced, and that the associated problem may stem from corridor design and unit size in contemporary ICU design. The authors conclude that reliable data from research investigations are needed to confirm the anecdotal reports of nurses. If problems are present in current facilities, organizations may wish to consider video monitoring, expanded responsibilities in the current buddy system, and use of greater information sharing during daily team huddles. New designs need to involve nurses and carefully consider these issues.

Radiation Awareness for Endovascular Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Repair in the Hybrid Operating Room. An Instant Patient Risk Chart for Daily Practice.

PubMed

de Ruiter, Quirina M; Gijsberts, Crystel M; Hazenberg, Constantijn E; Moll, Frans L; van Herwaarden, Joost A

2017-06-01

To determine which patient and C-arm characteristics are the strongest predictors of intraoperative patient radiation dose rates (DRs) during endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) procedures and create a patient risk chart. A retrospective analysis was performed of 74 EVAR procedures, including 16,889 X-ray runs using fixed C-arm imaging equipment. Four multivariate log-linear mixed models (with patient as a random effect) were constructed. Mean air kerma DR (DR AK , mGy/s) and the mean dose area product DR (DR DAP , mGycm 2 /s) were the outcome variables utilized for fluoroscopy as differentiated from digital subtraction angiography (DSA). These models were used to predict the maximum radiation duration allowed before a 2-Gy skin threshold (for DR AK ) or a 500-Gycm 2 threshold (for DR DAP ) was reached. The strongest predictor of DR AK and DR DAP for fluoroscopy imaging was the radiation protocol, with an increase of 200% when changing from "low" to "medium" and 410% from "low" to "normal." The strongest predictors of DR AK and DR DAP for DSA were C-arm angulation, with an increase of 47% per 30° of angulation, and body mass index (BMI), with an increase of 58% for every 5-point increase in BMI. Based on these models, a patient with a BMI of 30 kg/m 2 , combined with 45° of rotation and a field size of 800 cm 2 in the medium fluoroscopy protocol has a predicted DR AK of 0.39 mGy/s (or 85.5 minutes until the 2-Gy skin threshold is reached). While using comparable settings but switching the acquisition to a DSA with a "2 frames per second" protocol, the predicted DR AK will be 6.6 mGy/s (or 5.0 minutes until the 2-Gy threshold is reached). X-ray radiation DRs are constantly fluctuating during and between patients based on BMI, the protocols, C-arm position, and the image acquisitions that are used. An instant patient risk chart visualizes these radiation dose fluctuations and provides an overview of the expected duration of X-ray radiation, which can be used to predict when follow-up dose thresholds are reached during abdominal endovascular procedures.

Validity of Administrative Data in Identifying Cancer-related Events in Adolescents and Young Adults: A Population-based Study Using the IMPACT Cohort.

PubMed

Gupta, Sumit; Nathan, Paul C; Baxter, Nancy N; Lau, Cindy; Daly, Corinne; Pole, Jason D

2018-06-01

Despite the importance of estimating population level cancer outcomes, most registries do not collect critical events such as relapse. Attempts to use health administrative data to identify these events have focused on older adults and have been mostly unsuccessful. We developed and tested administrative data-based algorithms in a population-based cohort of adolescents and young adults with cancer. We identified all Ontario adolescents and young adults 15-21 years old diagnosed with leukemia, lymphoma, sarcoma, or testicular cancer between 1992-2012. Chart abstraction determined the end of initial treatment (EOIT) date and subsequent cancer-related events (progression, relapse, second cancer). Linkage to population-based administrative databases identified fee and procedure codes indicating cancer treatment or palliative care. Algorithms determining EOIT based on a time interval free of treatment-associated codes, and new cancer-related events based on billing codes, were compared with chart-abstracted data. The cohort comprised 1404 patients. Time periods free of treatment-associated codes did not validly identify EOIT dates; using subsequent codes to identify new cancer events was thus associated with low sensitivity (56.2%). However, using administrative data codes that occurred after the EOIT date based on chart abstraction, the first cancer-related event was identified with excellent validity (sensitivity, 87.0%; specificity, 93.3%; positive predictive value, 81.5%; negative predictive value, 95.5%). Although administrative data alone did not validly identify cancer-related events, administrative data in combination with chart collected EOIT dates was associated with excellent validity. The collection of EOIT dates by cancer registries would significantly expand the potential of administrative data linkage to assess cancer outcomes.