The ethics of placebo-controlled trials: methodological justifications.
Millum, Joseph; Grady, Christine
2013-11-01
The use of placebo controls in clinical trials remains controversial. Ethical analysis and international ethical guidance permit the use of placebo controls in randomized trials when scientifically indicated in four cases: (1) when there is no proven effective treatment for the condition under study; (2) when withholding treatment poses negligible risks to participants; (3) when there are compelling methodological reasons for using placebo, and withholding treatment does not pose a risk of serious harm to participants; and, more controversially, (4) when there are compelling methodological reasons for using placebo, and the research is intended to develop interventions that can be implemented in the population from which trial participants are drawn, and the trial does not require participants to forgo treatment they would otherwise receive. The concept of methodological reasons is essential to assessing the ethics of placebo controls in these controversial last two cases. This article sets out key considerations relevant to considering whether methodological reasons for a placebo control are compelling. © 2013.
Ways with Data: Understanding Coding as Writing
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Lindgren, Chris
2017-01-01
In this dissertation, I report findings from an exploratory case-study about Ray, a web developer, who works on a data-driven news team that finds and tells compelling stories with large sets of data. I implicate this case of Ray's coding on a data team in a writing studies epistemology, which is guided by the following question: "What might…
A Compelling Desire for Deafness
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Veale, David
2006-01-01
A case is described of a patient who has a compelling and persistent desire to become deaf. She often kept cotton wool moistened with oil in her ears and was learning sign language. Living without sound appeared to be a severe form of avoidance behavior from hyperacusis and misophonia. She had a borderline personality disorder that was associated…
A Conceptual Model for Leadership Transition
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Manderscheid, Steven V.; Ardichvili, Alexandre
2008-01-01
The purpose of this study was to develop a model of leadership transition based on an integrative review of literature. The article establishes a compelling case for focusing on leadership transitions as an area for study and leadership development practitioner intervention. The proposed model in this study identifies important success factors…
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2010-03-19
.... ``Unusual and Compelling Urgency.'' In the event of a FAR subpart 6.3 exception for a single contract award over $100 million including an unusual and compelling urgency exception, the commenter expresses... work. In those situations, it does not make sense in terms of costs and efficiency to require the...
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Kao, Chen-Yao
2011-01-01
There has been a scarcity of research studies addressing the dilemmas of peer relationships confronting gifted adolescent females. In this study, the peer relationships of nine mathematically gifted adolescent females living in Taiwan are explored using a qualitative multicase study. Data analysis revealed six compelling themes: a proclivity for…
The Economic Education of Young People
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Prutchenkov, A.; Teriukova, T.
2010-01-01
Under the economic conditions that are new to Russia, young people are subjected to the influence of many factors. On the one hand, they are compelled to put up opposition to the economic system, while on the other hand they are compelled to be actively involved in it. In either case they have to solve the problem of how to survive in the system.…
The Science and Experimental Equipment for the 12 GeV Upgrade of CEBAF
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Arrington, John; Bernstein, Aron; Brooks, William
2005-01-10
This Conceptual Design Report (CDR) presents the compelling scientific case for upgrading the Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility (CEBAF) at Jefferson Lab to 12 GeV. Such a facility will make profound contributions to the study of hadronic matter.
Staples.com: Focus on Usability.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
McCann, Tom; Hynes, Colin
2002-01-01
Describes the Staples.com electronic commerce Web site; discusses its steady growth rate; and details two case studies in which data from a variety of sources were used to identify and resolve site usability issues and which are supported by compelling ROI (return on investment) figures. (Author/LRW)
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Denton, Edward A.
2011-01-01
Increased uses of educational technology by students and teachers in recent years have compelled elementary principals to expand educational technology resources and replace educational technology resources at the end of it's service life. The purpose of this study was to investigate strategies and practices employed by elementary principals…
Future Search in School District Change: Connection, Community, and Results
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Schweitz, Rita; Martens, Kim; Aronson, Nancy; Weisbord, Marvin; Janoff, Sandra
2005-01-01
This book contains sixteen compelling case studies that illustrate the power of future search to create lasting, whole system change. Future Search in School District Change: Connection, Community, and Results chronicles ways in which educational institutions have used broad-based stakeholder involvement to improve education. These experiences, by…
Designing and Using Software Tools for Educational Purposes: FLAT, a Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Castro-Schez, J. J.; del Castillo, E.; Hortolano, J.; Rodriguez, A.
2009-01-01
Educational software tools are considered to enrich teaching strategies, providing a more compelling means of exploration and feedback than traditional blackboard methods. Moreover, software simulators provide a more motivating link between theory and practice than pencil-paper methods, encouraging active and discovery learning in the students.…
Jupiter, Daniel C
2013-01-01
In a medical study, the goal is to convince readers that a compelling argument has been made to prove the investigators' case. The logic of how this proof is provided in medical studies can be confusing, and is discussed here in simple terms. Copyright © 2013 American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Transforming Undergraduate Education: Theory That Compels and Practices That Succeed
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Harward, Donald W., Ed.
2011-01-01
For those ready to participate in making transformative changes, "Transforming Undergraduate Education" provides evidence and case studies that suggest how steps can be taken and progress made. For those who are currently leading their campuses through a change in culture, this book offers support and encouragement. And for those who are…
e-Learning Risks: Why Universities Should NOT Go It Alone
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Matthews, Tim; Pickar, Gloria; Schneid, Tom
2007-01-01
With $1M, faculty support, and their reputation at risk, Eastern Kentucky University (EKU) sought a distance learning partner to assess the MS in Loss Prevention & Safety opportunity, and then market the program to qualified students ready to learn. This compelling case study demonstrates how marketplace demand and competitive advantage can…
Parental Migration and Children's Academic Engagement: The Case of China
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Chen, Shuang; Adams, Jennifer; Qu, Zhiyong; Wang, Xiaohua; Chen, Li
2013-01-01
In the context of China's increasing rural-urban migration, few studies have investigated how parental migration affects children's experience in school. The high cost of schooling, taken together with the institutional barriers in destination cities, have compelled many rural parents in China to migrate without their children, leaving them in the…
Immortality of Prejudice in Striving Ubuntu: Case Studies of Community Managed Schools in Nepal
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Rajbhandari, Mani Man Singh; Rajbhandari, Smriti
2016-01-01
The immortality of prejudice after the school management transfer has not been judged. This makes communities to take responsibility for schools further by compelling the government to mandate amendments of Community Managed Schools (CMS) Directives. The purpose was to explore the CMS enduring Ubuntu against immorality of prejudice, through…
Assessing the Positive Influence of Music Activities in Community Development Programs
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Dillon, Steve
2006-01-01
This article describes a framework for assessing the positive influence of music activities in community development programs. It examines hybrid music, health and rich media approaches to creative case study with the purpose of developing more compelling evidence based advocacy that examines the claims of a causal link. This preliminary study…
Student Misconceptions Caused by Misuse of Technology
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Paige, Robert
2007-01-01
Calculators used widely by students, teachers, scientists, engineers and many others provide an interesting case study of a compelling technology that has helped change the way many professionals work. They not only help in enhancing problem solving skills of most individuals, but also help visualise solutions to problems in a better way. Research…
The Custody Evaluation Handbook: Research-Based Solutions and Applications.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Bricklin, Barry
Three of the most challenging problems in the custody evaluation field follow from: (1) the difficulties involved in adapting data derived from group studies or traditional tests into a form for individual cases; (2) the absence of clear and compelling guidelines to aggregate the information collected in a comprehensive evaluation; and (3) the…
Articulating Aesthetic Understanding through Art Making
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Costantino, Tracie
2007-01-01
In this article I will present case study research of an elementary school art teacher who provided both verbal and visual means for students to respond to art while on a museum field trip. I will focus on how the students' drawings from memory and artwork in their sketchbooks present compelling articulations of their understandings of certain…
Convergent dysregulation of frontal cortical cognitive and reward systems in eating disorders.
Stefano, George B; Ptáček, Radek; Kuželová, Hana; Mantione, Kirk J; Raboch, Jiří; Papezova, Hana; Kream, Richard M
2013-05-10
A substantive literature has drawn a compelling case for the functional involvement of mesolimbic/prefrontal cortical neural reward systems in normative control of eating and in the etiology and persistence of severe eating disorders that affect diverse human populations. Presently, we provide a short review that develops an equally compelling case for the importance of dysregulated frontal cortical cognitive neural networks acting in concert with regional reward systems in the regulation of complex eating behaviors and in the presentation of complex pathophysiological symptoms associated with major eating disorders. Our goal is to highlight working models of major eating disorders that incorporate complementary approaches to elucidate functionally interactive neural circuits defined by their regulatory neurochemical phenotypes. Importantly, we also review evidence-based linkages between widely studied psychiatric and neurodegenerative syndromes (e.g., autism spectrum disorders and Parkinson's disease) and co-morbid eating disorders to elucidate basic mechanisms involving dopaminergic transmission and its regulation by endogenously expressed morphine in these same cortical regions.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Ferguson, Christopher Paul
2010-01-01
With increased competition among higher education institutions for best- fit students, the profession of college admissions is compelled to implement innovative recruiting strategies (e.g. online social networking sites), that may impact college access and persistence in the United States. This qualitative study examined the reasons why two…
Language Views on Social Networking Sites for Language Learning: The Case of Busuu
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Álvarez Valencia, José Aldemar
2016-01-01
Social networking has compelled the area of computer-assisted language learning (CALL) to expand its research palette and account for new virtual ecologies that afford language learning and socialization. This study focuses on Busuu, a social networking site for language learning (SNSLL), and analyzes the views of language that are enacted through…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Barndt, Deborah, Ed.
2011-01-01
This compelling collection of inspiring case studies from community arts projects in five countries will inform and inspire students, artists, and activists. "VIVA!" is the product of a five-year transnational research project that integrates place, politics, passion, and praxis. Framed by postcolonial theories of decolonization, the…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Sieber, Sam D.
An examination of case studies suggests that rational processes were not entirely at work in the planning and conception of new, innovative schools. The rational model that serves as the foundation of our information systems assumes that a compelling professional need triggers a search for solutions; and, therefore, school personnel are eager to…
Professional Learning Communities by Design: Putting the Learning Back into PLCs
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Easton, Lois Brown
2011-01-01
If you are looking for an organic approach to purpose-driven professional learning, this is the book for you. Award-winning educator Lois Brown Easton's latest work provides a compelling case study in narrative form, a chronological PLC planning outline, and first-hand "lessons learned" about how PLCs develop, mature, and sustain themselves. You…
Oxidative Damage in Diabetics: Insights from a Graduate Study in La Reunion University
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Girard, Dorothée; Rondeau, Philippe; Catan, Aurélie; Planesse, Cynthia; Giraud, Pierre; Bourdon, Emmanuel
2014-01-01
Due to the growing incidence of diabetes in developed nations, there is a compelling case to be made for teaching graduate students more deeply about mechanisms underlying this disease. Diabetes is associated with enhanced oxidative stress and protein glycation via the covalent binding of glucose molecules. Albumin represents the major plasmatic…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Milton, Penny
2008-01-01
The Canadian Education Association (CEA) was commissioned by Hewlett-Packard Canada to create a case study describing the development, implementation and outcomes of New Brunswick's Dedicated Notebook Research Project. The New Brunswick Department of Education designed its research project to assess impacts on teaching and learning of dedicated…
Wind Tunnel Data Fusion and Immersive Visualization: A Case Study
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Severance, Kurt; Brewster, Paul; Lazos, Barry; Keefe, Daniel
2001-01-01
This case study describes the process of fusing the data from several wind tunnel experiments into a single coherent visualization. Each experiment was conducted independently and was designed to explore different flow features around airplane landing gear. In the past, it would have been very difficult to correlate results from the different experiments. However, with a single 3-D visualization representing the fusion of the three experiments, significant insight into the composite flowfield was observed that would have been extremely difficult to obtain by studying its component parts. The results are even more compelling when viewed in an immersive environment.
Stewart, Rebecca E.; Chambless, Dianne L.
2010-01-01
It has been repeatedly demonstrated that clinicians rely more on clinical judgment than on research findings. We hypothesized that psychologists in practice might be more open to adopting empirically supported treatments (ESTs) if outcome results were presented with a case study. Psychologists in private practice (N = 742) were randomly assigned to receive a research review of data from randomized controlled trials of cognitive-behavioral treatment (CBT) and medication for bulimia, a case study of CBT for a fictional patient with bulimia, or both. Results indicated that the inclusion of case examples renders ESTs more compelling and interests clinicians in gaining training. Despite these participants’ training in statistics, the inclusion of the statistical information had no influence on attitudes or training willingness beyond that of the anecdotal case information. PMID:19899142
Coming to terms: a case study of hospice collaboration challenges.
Pietroburgo, Julie; Bush, Richard
Recent research has focused on the growing phenomenon of mergers, collaborations, and alliances among nonprofit organizations and what makes such arrangements work. Examination of failed collaborative efforts is perhaps just as instructive. This case study examines recent attempts at collaboration between 2 nonprofit hospice organizations. The study finds that despite compelling reasons for and significant commonalities on which to base collaboration, the organizations were initially unable to forge any ongoing and substantive collaborative arrangement because of insurmountable cultural factors and past history. Furthermore, without imminent external pressures to collaborate, these organizations had insufficient motivation to attempt to move beyond their differences. The case also reviews the changed circumstances and factors that later facilitated partnering attempts.
David Flores
2018-01-01
This case study describes the process and challenges of conducting qualitative research on two opposing military veteran political groups: Iraq Veterans Against the War and Vets for Freedom. The discussion is based on a dissertation project that compelled me to reflect on my simultaneous "insider" status as a military veteran and "outsider" status...
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Haigh, Neil
2012-01-01
When we conceptualize and undertake new research projects, a number of the associated activities require us to take on the role of an historian: there is historical research to do. Those activities include determining whether there is a compelling case for embarking on the project in the light of previous research, making design decisions that…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Ockert, David
2015-01-01
This paper reports the results of a small, longitudinal study involving a group of Japanese elementary school students (N = 29) involved in exploratory research using foreign language activities, including two Skype exchanges between these students and students in Australia. The purpose of the research was to test for the impact of a series of…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Patti, Charles H.
Compelling arguments have been offered supporting both the journalism/ communication school and the business school as the ideal setting for advertising education. While relatively few advertising programs now exist in business schools, a growing number of undergraduates are finding the study of advertising in a business school environment to be…
Panter-Brick, Catherine; Clarke, Sian E; Lomas, Heather; Pinder, Margaret; Lindsay, Steve W
2006-06-01
Behaviour change is notoriously difficult to initiate and sustain, and the reasons why efforts to promote healthy behaviours fail are coming under increasing scrutiny. To be successful, health interventions should build on existing practices, skills and priorities, recognise the constraints on human behaviour, and either feature community mobilisation or target those most receptive to change. Furthermore, interventions should strive to be culturally compelling, not merely culturally appropriate: they must engage local communities and nestle within social and ecological landscapes. In this paper, we propose a social ecology perspective to make explicit the links between intention to change, actual behaviour change, and subsequent health impact, as relating to both theory-based models and practical strategies for triggering behaviour change. A social ecology model focuses attention on the contexts of behaviour when designing, implementing or critically evaluating interventions. As a case study, we reflect on a community-directed intervention in rural Gambia designed to reduce malaria by promoting a relatively simple and low-cost behaviour: repairing holes in mosquito bednets. In phase 1, contextual information on bednet usage, transactions and repairs (the 'social lives' of nets) was documented. In phase 2 (intervention), songs were composed and posters displayed by community members to encourage repairs, creating a sense of ownership and a compelling medium for the transmission of health messages. In phase 3 (evaluation), qualitative and quantitative data showed that household responses were particularly rapid and extensive, with significant increase in bednet repairs (p<0.001), despite considerable constraints on human agency. We highlight a promising approach-using songs-as a vehicle for change, and present a framework to embed the design, implementation and critical evaluation of interventions within the larger context-or social ecology-of behaviour practices that are the bedrock of health interventions.
A compelling desire for deafness.
Veale, David
2006-01-01
A case is described of a patient who has a compelling and persistent desire to become deaf. She often kept cotton wool moistened with oil in her ears and was learning sign language. Living without sound appeared to be a severe form of avoidance behavior from hyperacusis and misophonia. She had a borderline personality disorder that was associated with a poor sense of self. Her desire to be deaf may be one aspect of gaining an identity for herself and to compensate for feeling like an alien and gaining acceptance in the Deaf community. Will a compelling desire for deafness ever become a recognized mental disorder one day for which hearing patients may be offered elective deafness after a period of assessment and living like a deaf person? Those working in the field of deafness should be aware that individuals may occasionally be seeking elective deafness or self-inflicting deafness to obtain a hearing aid.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Rosenberger, Patricia J.
2012-01-01
Since the 2008 implementation of Response to Intervention (RtI) plans in Illinois, rural schools in southern Illinois with a high percentage of low-income students have been compelled to implement school-wide reforms of their reading programs. Often, limited funding makes it difficult to sustain growth trends in Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP).…
5 CFR 2604.301 - Requests for records.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-01-01
... submit his request under the FOIA in writing. In the case of a written request, the envelope containing... requested records can be shown. (2) “Compelling need” means: (i) Circumstances in which failure to obtain...
First Amendment Limits on Compulsory Speech.
Barrella, Nigel
Government-mandated labeling requirements have a long history, and are used extensively by FDA in regulating the industries under its jurisdiction. All such requirements can be characterized as a form of “compelled speech,” opening the door to First Amendment challenges. And some of these challenges, depending on the nature of the labeling requirement, have even been successful. Under Zauderer v. Office of Disciplinary Counsel of Supreme Court of Ohio, regulations that compel disclosure of information will, in many cases, merit only very limited First Amendment scrutiny—less, even, than most other regulations of commercial speech, which receive a type of “intermediate scrutiny.” The labeling requirement that can best avoid or overcome a First Amendment challenge, therefore, will follow the example of the regulation described in Zauderer. For example, Zauderer applied its lower scrutiny by noting that the compelled speech at issue was a disclosure of “purely factual and uncontroversial information.” Conversely, a successful First Amendment challenge to a labeling requirement will often involve an argument that the labeling requirement is outside the scope of what the Zauderer Court contemplated: so, for example, one may argue that a compelled disclosure is either “not factual” or else “controversial,” putting it beyond Zauderer’s reach. After briefly reviewing the major Supreme Court cases that establish the levels of scrutiny for commercial speech and compelled disclosures, the paper will discuss how the various elements of Zauderer have been analyzed by several lower courts, and how some courts have distinguished Zauderer in the context of labeling and other mandatory disclosure laws. In particular, the paper will focus on cases involving First Amendment challenges to food, tobacco, and drug labeling requirements—some successful, some not, and some ongoing—including cases challenging FDA, USDA, and state-level labeling requirements. The decided cases do not all agree on how to understand the elements of Zauderer—for example, must a disclosure be factually controversial to fall outside of Zauderer’s limited review, or may it be factually unquestionable but relating to a controversial topic? What role, if any, should public acceptance, knowledge, and history play? What sorts of interests may the government invoke to justify a labeling requirement? Although some courts have taken (or at least hinted at) strict limits on the meaning of Zauderer, most courts have read Zauderer as applying somewhat more expansively to circumstances beyond its facts. The paper concludes that generally, courts have read Zauderer more expansively in part because such a reading is consistent with existing, familiar labeling requirements, and a narrow reading of Zauderer limited to its facts would rest on a slippery slope to abolishing many accepted and historically unquestioned labeling requirements. Any future attempts to expand judicial review of labeling requirements would do well to highlight limiting principles that address such concerns.
Lebanon: A Case of History Education in a Sectarian Society
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Yoder, Paul J.
2015-01-01
This paper synthesizes the extant literature on history education in Lebanon. The sectarian nature of the country and the recent civil war make the case of Lebanon a unique and compelling one. Three emerging understandings underscore the complexity of history education in Lebanon and demonstrate the ways in which history is used to undercut…
Sexually Transmitted Infections: Compelling Case for an Improved Screening Strategy.
Hull, Stephen; Kelley, Seán; Clarke, Janice L
2017-09-01
Sexually Transmitted Infections: Compelling Case for an Improved Screening Strategy Stephen Hull, MHS, Seán Kelley, MD, MSc, and Janice L. Clarke, RN, BBA Editorial: Sexually Transmitted Infections-A Fixable Problem: David B. Nash, MD, MBA S-3 Introduction S-3 Rising Prevalence of Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STIs) S-4 Current Screening Rates for Chlamydia and Gonorrhea S-4 The Human Toll and Economic Burden of STI-Related Illness S-5 Current Screening Guidelines for Chlamydia and Gonorrhea S-5 Factors Contributing to Inadequate Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment for STIs S-6 Methods Used to Improve Screening Rates S-7 Benefits of Opt-Out Screening Strategies for STIs S-8 Cost-Effectiveness of Screening for STIs S-8 Discussion S-9 Conclusion S-10.
Distinct Aqueous and Hydrocarbon Cryovolcanism on Titan and Other Icy Satellites (Invited)
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kargel, J. S.; Furfaro, R.; Candelaria, P.
2010-12-01
Almost as soon as low-temperature solar nebula condensation sequences were first computed, it was realized that icy satellites have an internal heat source in long-lived radioactivities and could undergo differentiation; furthermore, freezing-point depressants, such as ammonia, and apolar gases, such as methane, could enable icy satellites to undergo aqueous cryovolcanism. The subsequent recognition of tidal and gravitational potential energy sources increased expectations for cryovolcanism. Voyager imaging and discovery of apparent cryovolcanic landforms—best exhibited by Triton, more ambiguous elsewhere-- motivated studies of the phase relations, phase densities and other thermodynamic properties, solid- and liquid-state rheologies, and possible cryovolcanic eruptive behaviors and landform characteristics. Ironically, the closer we examined Jovian icy moons with Galileo, the rarer cryovolcanic landforms appeared to be, with only a few compelling and very well characterized cases found mainly on Europa. Compelling examples of effusive cryovolcanism mainly occupied local topographic lows, whereas cases not in low spots tended to exhibit signs of explosive emplacement. Spectacular evidence of explosive cryovolcanism or geyser-like behavior was found by Cassini on Enceladus, but most other icy Saturnian moons did not reveal any compelling indicators of eruptions. Titan has so far been a mixed case, where some indicators of cryovolcanism have been reported, but there is scant compelling evidence for the process. We think that the sparseness of compelling effusive cryovolcanic features on icy satellites is because free, unreacted ammonia is less common than previously thought, and the main aqueous liquids are salt-water solutions denser than ice I; hence, they tend not to erupt, or they erupt only if driven by gas exsolution; even then, a thin ice shell and high heat flow is needed to allow aqueous liquids near enough to the surface to erupt. On satellites with thick icy shells, stable aqueous liquids are mainly confined to deep levels and cryovolcanism does not occur unless ammonia is abundant, as it may be on Triton. On Titan, we think the icy shell is thick, ammonia might not be abundant, and aqueous cryovolcanism might occur rarely, if at all. However, many hydrocarbons are abundant on Titan—both photolytic and endogenic—and may melt in the icy crust and form low-temperature, buoyant liquids. Hydrocarbon cryovolcanism is likely. Hydrocarbon lavas may range from exceeding low viscosity unimolecular types to highly viscous and possibly asphalt-, wax-, or plastic-like solid-liquid mixtures of complex and highly polymerized compositions. Some hydrocarbons may melt just hundreds of meters to a few kilometers beneath Titan’s surface. Shallow hydrocarbon deposits may melt or crystallize when insulating surface hydrocarbon deposits are emplaced or removed by sublimation, fluvial, or eolian processes. Deep interior endogenic hydrocarbons may erupt if they evade a gauntlet of physical and chemical barriers during ascent. Hydrocarbon cryovolcanic landforms may resemble skating ponds, silicate lava flows, salt extrusions, asphalt flows, or glaciers.
The myth of Jocasta and maternal narcissism.
Butterfield, Ingrid
2012-04-01
This paper utilises the ancient Greek myth of Oedipus, and in particular the character's frequently overlooked mother Jocasta, to highlight some of the issues associated with maternal narcissism. A discussion of Jocasta forms the background to case studies where a mother's narcissism, along with an absent father, was pivotal to coping difficulties, which ultimately compelled the patient to seek therapy. Consideration of the Oedipus-Jocasta interpersonal dynamic can contribute to a greater understanding of these patients.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Hill, Tory C.
2013-01-01
The introduction of No Child Left Behind increased performance expectations for students across the United States and compelled teachers to focus on standardized assessments instead of frequent formative assessments to monitor instruction and promote student learning. Common formative assessments (CFAs) help teachers align curriculum, assessment,…
Multidisciplinary life cycle metrics and tools for green buildings.
Helgeson, Jennifer F; Lippiatt, Barbara C
2009-07-01
Building sector stakeholders need compelling metrics, tools, data, and case studies to support major investments in sustainable technologies. Proponents of green building widely claim that buildings integrating sustainable technologies are cost effective, but often these claims are based on incomplete, anecdotal evidence that is difficult to reproduce and defend. The claims suffer from 2 main weaknesses: 1) buildings on which claims are based are not necessarily "green" in a science-based, life cycle assessment (LCA) sense and 2) measures of cost effectiveness often are not based on standard methods for measuring economic worth. Yet, the building industry demands compelling metrics to justify sustainable building designs. The problem is hard to solve because, until now, neither methods nor robust data supporting defensible business cases were available. The US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Building and Fire Research Laboratory is beginning to address these needs by developing metrics and tools for assessing the life cycle economic and environmental performance of buildings. Economic performance is measured with the use of standard life cycle costing methods. Environmental performance is measured by LCA methods that assess the "carbon footprint" of buildings, as well as 11 other sustainability metrics, including fossil fuel depletion, smog formation, water use, habitat alteration, indoor air quality, and effects on human health. Carbon efficiency ratios and other eco-efficiency metrics are established to yield science-based measures of the relative worth, or "business cases," for green buildings. Here, the approach is illustrated through a realistic building case study focused on different heating, ventilation, air conditioning technology energy efficiency. Additionally, the evolution of the Building for Environmental and Economic Sustainability multidisciplinary team and future plans in this area are described.
50 CFR 221.41 - How may parties obtain discovery of information needed for the case?
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-10-01
... materials, it must show: (i) That it has substantial need of the materials in preparing its own case; and... legal theories of an attorney. (g) Experts. Unless restricted by the ALJ, a party may discover any facts...: (i) That it has a compelling need for the information; and (ii) That it cannot practicably obtain the...
Beyond bankable dollars: establishing a business case for improving health care.
Bailit, Michael; Dyer, Mary Beth
2004-09-01
To address widespread deficiencies in the quality of health care, the authors argue that health care organizations need to be able to make a "business case" for improving quality--a compelling rationale for financial investment in quality improvement programs. The authors' framework for such a business case is organized around three broad areas: direct financial considerations, strategic considerations, and internal organizational considerations. Within these categories, they offer a total of 10 specific business case arguments, with examples, for investing in quality improvement.
When concepts lose their color: A case of object color knowledge impairment
Stasenko, Alena; Garcea, Frank E.; Dombovy, Mary; Mahon, Bradford Z.
2014-01-01
Color is important in our daily interactions with objects, and plays a role in both low- and high-level visual processing. Previous neuropsychological studies have shown that color perception and object-color knowledge can doubly dissociate, and that both can dissociate from processing of object form. We present a case study of an individual who displayed an impairment for knowledge of the typical colors of objects, with preserved color perception and color naming. Our case also presented with a pattern of, if anything, worse performance for naming living items compared to nonliving things. The findings of the experimental investigation are evaluated in light of two theories of conceptual organization in the brain: the Sensory Functional Theory and the Domain-Specific Hypothesis. The dissociations observed in this case compel a model in which sensory/motor modality and semantic domain jointly constrain the organization of object knowledge. PMID:25058612
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Rizzo, Vincenzo; Cantasano, Nicola
2017-10-01
The study analyses possible parallels of the microbialite-known structures with a set of similar settings selected by a systematic investigation from the wide record and data set of images shot by NASA rovers. Terrestrial cases involve structures both due to bio-mineralization processes and those induced by bacterial metabolism, that occur in a dimensional field longer than 0.1 mm, at micro, meso and macro scales. The study highlights occurrence on Martian sediments of widespread structures like microspherules, often organized into some higher-order settings. Such structures also occur on terrestrial stromatolites in a great variety of `Microscopic Induced Sedimentary Structures', such as voids, gas domes and layer deformations of microbial mats. We present a suite of analogies so compelling (i.e. different scales of morphological, structural and conceptual relevance), to make the case that similarities between Martian sediment structures and terrestrial microbialites are not all cases of `Pareidolia'.
4 CFR 28.43 - Compelling discovery.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR
2011-01-01
... 4 Accounts 1 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Compelling discovery. 28.43 Section 28.43 Accounts... Procedures Discovery § 28.43 Compelling discovery. (a) Motion for an order compelling discovery. Motions for orders compelling discovery shall be submitted to the administrative judge as set forth at § 28.42(c)(2...
Motivation and Prospects for Spatio-spectral Interferometry in the Far-infrared
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Leisawitz, David
2013-01-01
Consensus developed through a series of workshops, starting in 1998. Compelling science case for high angular resolution imaging and spectroscopy, and mission concepts. A robust plan - it has evolved over the years, but has consistently called for high resolution.
Hasnain, Golam; Basher, Ariful; Nath, Proggananda; Ghosh, Prakash; Hossain, Faria; Hossain, Shakhawat; Mondal, Dinesh
2016-01-01
This report presents two cases of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) recurrence where the microscopy of the splenic smear failed in diagnosis. However, a strong clinical suspicion compelled further evaluation by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), which validated the etiology. This short report highlights the usefulness of PCR in diagnosing cases of suspected smear-negative VL recurrence. PMID:26556834
Gender and Decompression Sickness: A Critical Review and Analysis
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
2004-01-01
The author addressed the following questions: are women at greater risk of decompression sickness and venous gas emboli at certain times in their reproductive cycle, is risk modified by the use of birth control pills (BCP), and is there a difference in overall risk between men and women under the same decompression dose? The summary considers information from the few abstracts and reports that were available. Except for the observation of more Type II DCS in women, particularly in women who fly after diving, there was no compelling evidence of a difference in DCS risk between men and women SCUBA divers. Many women that presented with DCS symptoms seemed to be in or near menses, with statistically fewer cases reported as time increased from menses. There was no compelling evidence that the use of BCP in SCUBA divers increases the risk of DCS. There were insufficient data about VGE from SCUBA diving to make any conclusion about the incidence of VGE and gender. In contrast, there were ample data about VGE from research in altitude chambers. Women produced less VGE and less Grade IV VGE compared to men under the same decompression dose, certainly when resting oxygen prebreathe (PB) was performed prior to ascent to altitude. Dual-cycle ergometry exercise during PB tends to reduce the differences in VGE between men and women. There was no compelling evidence that the risk of altitude DCS was different between men and women. However, a large number of DCS cases were associated with menses, and the use of BCP did seem to put women at a slightly greater risk than those that did not use BCP. There were substantial observations that women comprised a larger number of difficult cases that required complicated medical management.
2004-06-01
Japanese, Chinese, and others, making up 3-percent; and the Amerindians, largely Quechua or Aymara-speaking, making up the remaining 45-percent and...feel compelled to change their identity and are expected to learn Spanish and deny their Quechua roots.19 Ethno-racial attributes still affect social...relaxed. Women did not receive the right to vote until 1956 and literacy requirements excluded the majority of the Quechua -speaking people until the
Sternick, I; Gomes, R D; Serra, M C; Radwanski, H N; Pitanguy, I
2000-08-01
The term "train surfers" describes a group of adolescents from the outskirts of the city of Rio de Janeiro, who are compelled by the overcrowded railway trains to travel on the roofs of the wagons. Collision with electrical high-tension wires is a relatively frequent occurrence, causing extensive and complex injuries. This study analyzes this clinical and surgical phenomenon which has caused over 100 fatalities in more than 200 registered accidents over the past 10 years.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Johnson-Oliver, Patrick
Workforce diversity is a growing concern at a global level and enlightened economic self-interest and corporate image compels industries to leverage it as a competitive advantage. The US aerospace and defense industry (US ADI) addresses workforce diversity through socially responsible diversity management. Prior research into the topic of approaching workforce diversity as a business rationale and a moral imperative has been limited. Scharmer and Kaufer's (2013) Theory U guided this longitudinal explanatory quantitative study, leading from the future as it emerged relative to socially responsible diversity management to compel industry to remove blind spots and co-create an economy that benefits all by promoting workforce diversity as a dual agenda. This study filled a research gap investigating the business case for diversity as a dual agenda in aerospace industry science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. The study also investigated the America COMPETES Act as a moderator of the relationship between historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and industry. Data was retrieved for secondary data analysis from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and other public government services and agency websites. Two hypotheses were tested using quantitative analysis including descriptive statistics, linear regression, ANOVA, and two factor analysis. The statistical results were analyzed and deductive logic employed to develop conclusions for the study. There was a significant relationship found between both predictors and socially responsible diversity management. The results reinforce the necessity for the aerospace defense industry to promote the dual agenda of the business case for diversity as complementary; not as competing mandates.
Diminished Status of Religious Liberty in Public Education: Interpreting Mozert and Smith.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Mawdsley, Ralph D.; Mawdsley, Alice S.
1988-01-01
Reviews contemporary court cases to show that free exercise claims are religious and therefore unenforceable under the Establishment Clause's "Lemon" test prohibiting religious activities in public schools. Discuses inadequacies in judicial perception involving compelling interest, a pattern of anti-theistic decisions, and lesser…
Learning To Teach Reading: Setting the Research Agenda.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Roller, Cathy M., Ed.
The reading-focused reform environment of the new millennium is fertile ground for strengthening the link between research and public policy. This compilation of papers by presenters at International Reading Association's Reading Research 2000 Conference offers a compelling case for increased investment in teacher preparation for reading…
Getting started with the model for improvement: psychology and leadership in quality improvement.
Pratap, J Nick; Varughese, Anna M; Adler, Elena; Kurth, C Dean
2013-02-01
Although the case for quality in hospitals is compelling, doctors are often uncertain how to achieve it. This article forms the third and final part of a series providing practical guidance on getting started with a first quality improvement project. Introduction.
Book review: Methods for catching beetles
USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database
Beetles are the most speciose animal group and found in virtually all habitats on Earth. Methods for Catching Beetles is a comprehensive general sourcebook about where and how to collect members of this diverse group. The book makes a compelling case in its Introduction about the value of scientif...
A Mixed-Methods Exploration of an Environment for Learning Computer Programming
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Mather, Richard
2015-01-01
A mixed-methods approach is evaluated for exploring collaborative behaviour, acceptance and progress surrounding an interactive technology for learning computer programming. A review of literature reveals a compelling case for using mixed-methods approaches when evaluating technology-enhanced-learning environments. Here, ethnographic approaches…
Challenges in Modeling and Measuring Learning Trajectories
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Confrey, Jere; Jones, R. Seth; Gianopulos, Garron
2015-01-01
Briggs and Peck make a compelling case for creating new, more intuitive measures of learning, based on creating vertical scales using learning trajectories (LT) in place of "domain sampling." We believe that the importance of creating measurement scales that coordinate recognizable landmarks in learning trajectories with interval scales…
Introduction: Are the Public Schools "Detectably" Safe?
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Zirkel, Perry A.
2000-01-01
In the April 1999 issue of this journal, Michael Ferraraccio argues that the justifications advanced for using metal detectors in schools are not sufficiently compelling to outweigh students' Fourth Amendment privacy rights. In the accompanying Counterpoint, Robert Johnson cites lower court cases to support the constitutionality of their used on a…
Hasnain, Golam; Basher, Ariful; Nath, Proggananda; Ghosh, Prakash; Hossain, Faria; Hossain, Shakhawat; Mondal, Dinesh
2016-01-01
This report presents two cases of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) recurrence where the microscopy of the splenic smear failed in diagnosis. However, a strong clinical suspicion compelled further evaluation by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), which validated the etiology. This short report highlights the usefulness of PCR in diagnosing cases of suspected smear-negative VL recurrence. © The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.
18 CFR 375.309 - Delegations to the General Counsel.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-04-01
..., compel their attendance and testimony, take evidence, compel the filing of special reports and... and affirmations, subpoena witnesses, compel their attendance and testimony, take evidence, compel the... Policy Act of 1978, 15 U.S.C. 3301-3432 (1982). (f) Deny or grant, in whole or in part, petitions for...
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Chang, V.
Blue Ocean Preservation Society vs. Watkins (BOPS), the subject of this casenote, exemplifies the need for consideration of the environmental consequences of an agency action. The geothermal energy project which was the subject of that litigation involved sensitive, highly controversial and cultural concerns. BOPS illustrates the most compelling case for requiring preparation of an EIS before the decision to undertake agency action. This article addresses the question of what constitutes a [open quotes]proposal[close quotes] for purposes of compelling federal agencies to prepare EIS's pursuant to NEPA. Specifically, this casenote examines the method by which the Court found a proposal formore » major federal action in BOPS.« less
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Luterbach, Kenneth J.; Rodriguez, Diane; Love, Lakecia
2012-01-01
This paper describes an instructional development effort to create effective and compelling instruction for eCommerce students. Results from a small field study inform the development project. Four high school students in an eCommerce course completed the standalone tutorial developed to teach them how to create a web page in the HyperText Markup…
24 CFR 180.540 - Motion to compel discovery.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR
2011-04-01
... 24 Housing and Urban Development 1 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Motion to compel discovery. 180.540....540 Motion to compel discovery. (a) If a deponent fails to answer a question propounded, or a party... order compelling discovery in accordance with the request. The motion shall: (1) State the nature of the...
Griffiths, R R; Chausmer, A L
2000-11-01
Caffeine is an excellent model compound for understanding drugs of abuse/dependence. The results of self-administration and choice studies in humans clearly demonstrate the reinforcing effects of low and moderate doses of caffeine. Caffeine reinforcement has been demonstrated in about 45% of normal subjects with histories of moderate and heavy caffeine use. Recent studies provide compelling evidence that caffeine physical dependence potentiates the reinforcing effects of caffeine through the mechanism of withdrawal symptom avoidance. Tolerance to the subjective and sleep-disrupting effects of caffeine in humans has been demonstrated. Physical dependence as reflected in a withdrawal syndrome in humans has been repeatedly demonstrated in adults and recently demonstrated in children. Withdrawal severity is an increasing function of caffeine maintenance dose, with withdrawal occurring at doses as low as 100 mg per day. Increased cerebral blood flow may be the physiological mechanism for caffeine withdrawal headache. Case studies in adults and adolescents clearly demonstrate that some individuals meet DSM-IV diagnostic criteria for a substance dependence syndrome on caffeine, including feeling compelled to continue caffeine use despite desires and recommendations to the contrary. Survey data suggest that 9% to 30% percent of caffeine consumers may be caffeine dependent according to DSM-IV criteria.
The Compelling Argument for Harassment Prevention Training: Implications for Instructional Designers
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Sample, John A.
2007-01-01
The purpose of this article is to inform instructional design and development specialists on the importance of harassment prevention training in organizations. The review includes a summary of relevant case law, a review of litigation costs associated with harassment litigation, and the value of return on investment for such instruction.…
Road Maps for Learning and Teacher Evaluation
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Gitomer, Drew H.
2011-01-01
Black, Wilson, and Yao (this issue) make a compelling case for a coherent model of curriculum, pedagogy, and assessment, all built around a well-specified theory of learning. Arguing that dominant assessment policies and practices tend to drive pedagogy and student attitudes toward learning in pernicious ways, Black et al. make an argument that is…
Transforming Teacher Leadership: A Conversation with Douglas Reeves
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Kinney, Patti
2008-01-01
This article presents an interview with Douglas Reeves, founder of The Leadership and Learning Center and author of a recent book, "Reframing Teacher Leadership to Improve Your School." In an interview, Reeves talks about his book and presents a compelling case that teacher leadership is key to implementing and sustaining effective school…
Generative Intersections: Supporting Honors through College Composition
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Camp, Heather C.
2014-01-01
Given the current emphasis on acceleration toward graduation, common sense might seem to argue against First-Year Composition (FYC) as a compelling course offering in an honors curriculum. Dual enrollment is changing the landscape of students' first two years of college, in many cases affecting their decision about whether to enroll in FYC. Trends…
ICT Integration in Schools: Where Are We Now and What Comes Next?
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Baskin, Colin; Williams, Michelle
2006-01-01
The case for more technology in schools is compelling. The leverage for a school based solution is traceable to the "Common and Agreed National Goals for Schooling" (AEC, 1989), namely that students will develop skills in "information processing and computing". Schools have wrestled with this "integration challenge"…
The "Living" Case: Structuring Storytelling to Increase Student Interest, Interaction, and Learning
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Fawcett, Stanley E; Fawcett, Amydee M.
2011-01-01
Storytelling has always been a powerful form of teaching and continues to be a compelling way to build and communicate theory. Storytelling brings learning to life, helping students grasp the intricacies and nuances of today's challenging decision-making environment. One form of classroom storytelling involves the use of guest speakers. Carefully…
Ecological Approaches to Transition Planning for Students with Autism and Asperger's Syndrome
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Dente, Claire L.; Parkinson Coles, Kallie
2012-01-01
This article presents a compelling case for the increased role of social workers in work with individuals with autism and Asperger's syndrome in secondary school settings, specifically in transition planning for postsecondary educational pursuits. Social work education prepares social workers to address micro, mezzo, and macro levels of practice…
One Team: Classroom Teachers and Specialists
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Gale, Sheila Levine
2016-01-01
This View from the Chalkboard article reflects my view of how today's classroom teacher and specialist have joined together to create "One Team" that benefits the student. This was not always the case but the trend, in my view, is clear and the benefits compelling. I highlight the "reading workshop model" as an approach with…
Moral and Instrumental Rationales for Affirmative Action in Five National Contexts
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Moses, Michele S.
2010-01-01
The author's primary aims are to clarify the differing rationales for affirmative action that have emerged in five nations--France, India, South Africa, the United States, and Brazil--and to make the case for the most compelling rationales, whether instrumentally or morally based. She examines the different social contexts surrounding the…
Market Failures and the Rationale for National Parks.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Turner, Robert W.
2002-01-01
Discusses how market failures can, in principle, be used to justify national parks. States the best rationale is based on existence or nonuse values instead of the recreational aspects. Shows more evidence (costs of providing and operating the parks and the magnitude of nonuse values) is needed before the case becomes compelling. (JEH)
Continuing Challenges for a Systemic Theory of Gifted Education
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Schorer, Jorg; Baker, Joseph
2012-01-01
Ziegler and Phillipson make a strong case for the need to reconsider traditional models of gifted education. Although their evidence and argument are compelling, the reviewers argue that several additional steps are needed to justify the theoretical foundation of the theory in order to facilitate its evaluation by researchers. First, Ziegler and…
On Campus With Women, Number 26, Spring 1980.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Association of American Colleges, Washington, DC. Project on the Status and Education of Women.
This issue of the "On Campus With Women" newsletter includes the following topics: a federal court case decision that student aid constitutes federal assistance, but that the Department of Health, Education and Welfare cannot compel Grove City College to sign a legally defective Title IX compliance form; a Department of Justice move to…
Spiritual Development in Adolescence: Toward Enriching Theories, Research, and Professional Practice
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Petersen, Anne C.
2008-01-01
The author notes that she finds the case for making spiritual development a priority surprisingly compelling--"surprisingly" because although she is an expert on adolescent development, she has not done research or previously written about spiritual development. She suggests that a systems analysis occur first, before engaging frontline youth…
Why Teachers Leave Teaching: The Case of Pretertiary Institutions in Ghana
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Agezo, Clement K.
2010-01-01
In Ghana, many professional teachers have been leaving teaching to seek employment in jobs that they think hold promise of better pay and prestige. This article critically examines the key factors that compel teachers to leave the teaching profession for other jobs. Thirty professionally trained teachers who had taught at pretertiary institutions…
Technology-Capable Teachers Transitioning to Technology-Challenged Schools
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Derbel, Faiza
2017-01-01
Developing countries lacking capabilities, funds and human resources are compelled to improve the digital literacy rates of their task force through educational initiatives. This is the case of Tunisia where a stand-alone in-service teacher education (Ted) initiative was implemented in 2014 and 2015. The aim of this project, the Tech Age Teacher…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Mendiburo, Maria; Williams, Laura; Henson, Robert; Hasselbring, Ted
2013-01-01
The fact that research has shown that fractions are among the most difficult mathematical concepts for elementary school students to master (Behr, Harel, Post, & Lesh, 1992; Bezuk & Cramer, 1989; Moss & Case, 1999) provides a compelling motivation for research and innovation focused on improving the available assessment and…
Large public display boards: a case study of an OR board and design implications.
Lasome, C E; Xiao, Y
2001-01-01
A compelling reason for studying artifacts in collaborative work is to inform design. We present a case study of a public display board (12 ft by 4 ft) in a Level-I trauma center operating room (OR) unit. The board has evolved into a sophisticated coordination tool for clinicians and supporting personnel. This paper draws on study findings about how the OR board is used and organizes the findings into three areas: (1) visual and physical properties of the board that are exploited for collaboration, (2) purposes the board was configured to serve, and (3) types of physical and perceptual interaction with the board. Findings and implications related to layout, size, flexibility, task management, problem-solving, resourcing, shared awareness, and communication are discussed in an effort to propose guidelines to facilitate the design of electronic, computer driven display boards in the OR environment.
Intermolecular artifacts in probe microscope images of C60 assemblies
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Jarvis, Samuel Paul; Rashid, Mohammad Abdur; Sweetman, Adam; Leaf, Jeremy; Taylor, Simon; Moriarty, Philip; Dunn, Janette
2015-12-01
Claims that dynamic force microscopy has the capability to resolve intermolecular bonds in real space continue to be vigorously debated. To date, studies have been restricted to planar molecular assemblies with small separations between neighboring molecules. Here we report the observation of intermolecular artifacts over much larger distances in 2D assemblies of C60 molecules, with compelling evidence that in our case the tip apex is terminated by a C60 molecule (rather than the CO termination typically exploited in ultrahigh resolution force microscopy). The complete absence of directional interactions such as hydrogen or halogen bonding, the nonplanar structure of C60, and the fullerene termination of the tip apex in our case highlight that intermolecular artifacts are ubiquitous in dynamic force microscopy.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Hoeltgen, Kristine A.
1976-01-01
In both these cases the Tenth Circuit continued the trend begun in earlier Title VII cases of giving a liberal interpretation to the scope of discovery. In these decisions the court began to speak more particularly of the factors to be considered in acting on motions to compel discovery. (Author/LBH)
Killing the bill online? Pathways to young people's protest engagement via social media.
Macafee, Timothy; De Simone, J J
2012-11-01
In spring 2011, thousands of Wisconsin residents protested a controversial bill spearheaded by Governor Scott Walker. Protest engagement via social media was popular, especially among young people. The current study examines the relationship between young people's informational and expressive uses of four social media-Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and Blogs-and their offline protest engagement. Survey results reveal that although college students used these social media to obtain information about the budget repair bill protests, only expressive uses related to offline protest engagement. We move research forward by examining the implications of multiple uses of political social media surrounding a compelling case study.
Johns, Merida L
2013-01-01
The business case for gender diversity in senior and executive positions is compelling. Studies show that companies that have the best records for promoting women outstrip their competition on every measure of profitability. Yet women disproportionately are failing to attain high-level positions. Reviewing current data on women in the workplace, findings of studies on the relationship between gender diversity in senior management and company performance, and the literature on gender behavioral differences and the workplace, this article explores the possible reasons for the persistent wage and gender gap between women and men in senior leadership positions and discusses possible remedies.
Raghavendran, Krishnan; Napolitano, Lena M
2011-07-01
Although acute lung injury (ALI) and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) are caused by different injuries and conditions, their similar clinical picture makes a compelling case for them to be studied as a single entity. An array of potential specific targets for pharmacologic intervention can be applied to ALI/ARDS as one disease. Although a working definition of ALI/ARDS that includes pulmonary and extrapulmonary causes can have benefit in standardizing supportive care, it can also complicate assessments of the efficacy of therapeutic interventions. In this article, definitions that have been recently used for ALI/ARDS in various clinical studies are discussed individually. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Professional Learning Communities as Drivers of Educational Change: The Case of Learning Rounds
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Philpott, Carey; Oates, Catriona
2017-01-01
Many researchers claim that there is a compelling weight of evidence for the effectiveness of PLCs in promoting teachers' learning and pupil achievement. However, others raise fundamental questions about their nature and purpose. Some of the uncertainties about the nature and purpose of PLCs relate to the ways in which the macro-context of…
Progress for Children: A Report Card on Adolescents. Number 10
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
UNICEF, 2012
2012-01-01
Adolescence is a formative period during which children grow into their rightful place as full citizens and agents of change in their own lives and the lives of their societies. This publication provides an overview of the situation of adolescents, including of their vulnerabilities in critical areas. It makes a compelling case for increased…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Watson, Vaughn W. M.; Marciano, Joanne E.
2015-01-01
At a time when youth are increasingly negotiating new media literacy practices across multiple contexts, literacy researchers are compelled to take notice and reconsider methodologies that centre the researcher, to purposefully engage youth's knowledge, identities and new media literacies as research methodologies. To that end, the authors…
The Contribution of Religious Education to the Well-Being of Pupils
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Pett, Stephen
2012-01-01
Religious education (RE) is under serious political and professional pressure to justify its existence and, for some, positive psychology seems to offer a more compelling route to well-being. In response, this article establishes a case for the inherent value of the subject whilst showing that the well-being of pupils, in the broader sense of…
Getting Teacher Evaluation Right: What Really Matters for Effectiveness and Improvement
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Darling-Hammond, Linda
2013-01-01
Teacher evaluation systems are being overhauled by states and districts across the United States. And, while intentions are admirable, the result for many new systems is that good--often excellent--teachers are lost in the process. In the end, students are the losers. In her new book, Linda Darling-Hammond makes a compelling case for a…
Behind the Curtain: Assessing the Case for National Curriculum Standards. Policy Analysis. No. 661
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
McCluskey, Neal
2010-01-01
The argument for national curriculum standards sounds simple: set high standards, make all schools meet them, and watch American students achieve at high levels. It is straightforward and compelling, and it is driving a sea change in American education policy. Unfortunately, setting high standards and getting American students to hit them is…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Fleig, Jeffrey
2016-01-01
Only 48.6% of University Council For Educational Administration (UCEA) institutions which focus on social justice in principal preparation programs address sexual orientation, this case describes how the completion of an equity audit for an educational leadership course compelled Principal Olson to reflect on his identity as a social justice…
Saleh, Suha M; Asi, Yara M; Hamed, Kastro M
2013-06-01
Due to growing demand from students and facilitated by innovations in educational technology, institutions of higher learning are increasingly offering online courses. Subjects in the hard sciences, such as pathophysiology, have traditionally been taught in the face-to-face format, but growing demand for preclinical science courses has compelled educators to incorporate online components into their classes to promote comprehension. Learning tools such as case studies are being integrated into such courses to aid in student interaction, engagement, and critical thinking skills. Careful assessment of pedagogical techniques is essential; hence, this study aimed to evaluate and compare student perceptions of the use of case studies in face-to-face and fully online pathophysiology classes. A series of case studies was incorporated into the curriculum of a pathophysiology class for both class modes (online and face to face). At the end of the semester, students filled out a survey assessing the effectiveness of the case studies. Both groups offered positive responses about the incorporation of case studies in the curriculum of the pathophysiology class. This study supports the argument that with proper use of innovative teaching tools, such as case studies, online pathophysiology classes can foster a sense of community and interaction that is typically only seen with face-to-face classes, based on student responses. Students also indicated that regardless of class teaching modality, use of case studies facilitates student learning and comprehension as well as prepares them for their future careers in health fields.
Edema associated with quetiapine
Koleva, Hristina K.; Erickson, Mark A.; Vanderlip, Erik R.; Tansey, Janeta; Mac, Joseph; Fiedorowicz, Jess G.
2010-01-01
Background Edema associated with quetiapine has been described in only one case report to date and represents a potentially serious adverse reaction. Methods We present a case series of three patients who developed bilateral leg edema following initiation of quetiapine. Results One of these patients had a recurrence of edema with subsequent rechallenge. Another patient developed quetiapine-induced edema following a prior episode of olanzapine-induced edema. All the cases present a compelling temporal relationship between the drug challenge and the adverse event. Conclusions Prompt recognition and intervention with discontinuation of the offending agent is important for this potentially serious, seemingly idiosyncratic, vascular complication. PMID:19439156
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Dunlap, Eloise; Golub, Andrew; Johnson, Bruce D.
2003-01-01
Child Sexual Abuse (CSA) has been linked to a wide variety of adverse psychological and behavioral outcomes. This paper describes girls' sexual development in the inner city based on qualitative material from a long-term ethnographic (observational) study. For many inner-city girls, early and then continued experiences of being compelled to have…
Grad Nation: A Guidebook to Help Communities Tackle the Dropout Crisis
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Balfanz, Robert; Fox, Joanna Hornig; Bridgeland, John M.; McNaught, Mary
2009-01-01
With more than one million students dropping out of high school each year, Grad Nation is specifically designed to offer solutions and tools for every size community and presents a compelling case for all sectors of society to get involved. The guidebook is part of the Alliance's Dropout Prevention Campaign. The guide brings together the nation's…
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2012-12-28
... and compel an accounting under State law. In the case of an organization that is supporting one or... III supporting organization from accepting a gift or contribution from a person who, alone or together... contributions from persons that control the governing body of a supported organization set forth in Sec. 1.509(a...
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Callanan, Maureen A.
2006-01-01
Harris and Koenig make a compelling case for the importance of adult "testimony" and its influence on children's developing conceptions of topics in science and religion. This commentary considers how their analysis relates to constructivist and sociocultural theories and discusses several ways in which Harris and Koenig's arguments help to debunk…
43 CFR 45.41 - How may parties obtain discovery of information needed for the case?
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-10-01
... a party wants to discover such materials, it must show: (i) That it has substantial need of the..., conclusions, opinions, or legal theories of an attorney. (g) Experts. Unless restricted by the ALJ, a party... the hearing, and the party shows: (i) That it has a compelling need for the information; and (ii) That...
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Wardle, Kent E.
2015-11-10
Comparative studies of multiphase operation of annular centrifugal contactors showing the impact of housing stationary mixing vane configuration. A number of experimental results for several different mixing vane options are reported with selected measurements in a lab-scale 5 cm contactor and 12.5 cm engineering-scale unit. Fewer straight vanes give greater mixingzone hold-up compared to curved vanes. Quantitative comparison of droplet size distribution also showed a significant decrease in mean diameter for four straight vanes versus eight curved vanes. This set of measurements gives a compelling case for careful consideration of mixing vane geometry when evaluating hydraulic operation and extraction processmore » efficiency of annular centrifugal contactors.« less
Johns, Merida L.
2013-01-01
The business case for gender diversity in senior and executive positions is compelling. Studies show that companies that have the best records for promoting women outstrip their competition on every measure of profitability. Yet women disproportionately are failing to attain high-level positions. Reviewing current data on women in the workplace, findings of studies on the relationship between gender diversity in senior management and company performance, and the literature on gender behavioral differences and the workplace, this article explores the possible reasons for the persistent wage and gender gap between women and men in senior leadership positions and discusses possible remedies. PMID:23346029
Wardle, Kent E.
2015-09-11
Comparative studies of multiphase operation of an annular centrifugal contactor show the impact of housing stationary mixing vane configuration. A number of experimental results for several different mixing vane options are reported for operation of a 12.5 cm engineering-scale contactor unit. Fewer straight vanes give greater mixing-zone hold-up compared to curved vanes. Quantitative comparison of droplet size distribution also showed a significant decrease in mean diameter for four straight vanes versus eight curved vanes. This set of measurements gives a compelling case for careful consideration of mixing vane geometry when evaluating hydraulic operation and extraction process efficiency of annular centrifugalmore » contactors.« less
Storyline Visualization: A Compelling Way to Understand Patterns over Time and Space
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
None
2017-10-16
Storyline visualization is a compelling way to understand patterns over time and space. Much effort has been spent developing efficient and aesthetically pleasing layout optimization algorithms. But what if those algorithms are optimizing the wrong things? To answer this question, we conducted a design study with different storyline layout algorithms. We found that users with our new design principles for storyline visualization outperform existing methods.
The practical equity implications of advanced metering infrastructure
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Felder, Frank A.
2010-07-15
Reductions in advanced metering costs and the efficiency benefits of dynamic pricing make a compelling case to adopt both, particularly for industrial and commercial facilities. Regulators should seriously consider such policies for residential households as well. Regulators can take meaningful steps to mitigate, if not entirely offset, the possibility that some low-income ratepayers may have higher electricity bills with AM and DP. (author)
A Compelling Solution to Guantanamo Bay
2013-03-01
military commission violated separation of powers because one branch of the government, namely the Executive, controlled all aspects of the case... separation of powers requirement. The conclusion that can be drawn from these legal decisions is that the military system is fundamentally...the Rule of Law and violates the separation of powers .111 The current system has even strained the United States’ relationship with close allies
Prevention: a key component to saving lives and money.
Brown, Steve
2009-03-01
It's no mystery that one of the chief culprits to our current economic crisis is skyrocketing costs of providing health care, particularly to our nation's growing baby boom population. This makes the case all the more compelling to practice as much preventative care as possible to avoid a myriad of conditions that could lead to lengthy and costly hospital stays, and potentially even death.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
McCain, Mary L.
2009-01-01
There is a highly compelling case for using technology on a large scale to increase access to and improve America's adult education and workforce skills enterprise. By the reckoning of the National Commission on Adult Literacy and others, the nation must reach many more millions of adults with effective college- and job-readiness skills programs…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Murphy, Tonia Hap
2009-01-01
This article is intended for business law and legal environment instructors who want to help students understand how they might react when presented with an ethical conflict, no matter how big or how small. The article discusses not only the compelling ethical issues that may arise in reneging cases, but also legal issues. The article provides…
Developing Cognitive Models for Social Simulation from Survey Data
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Alt, Jonathan K.; Lieberman, Stephen
The representation of human behavior and cognition continues to challenge the modeling and simulation community. The use of survey and polling instruments to inform belief states, issue stances and action choice models provides a compelling means of developing models and simulations with empirical data. Using these types of data to population social simulations can greatly enhance the feasibility of validation efforts, the reusability of social and behavioral modeling frameworks, and the testable reliability of simulations. We provide a case study demonstrating these effects, document the use of survey data to develop cognitive models, and suggest future paths forward for social and behavioral modeling.
The postmodern turn in group therapy.
O'Leary, J V
2001-10-01
The postmodern critique, often referred to as social constructionism, has influenced nearly all disciplines, including recently the domain of psychology--and most particularly psychoanalysis. This article presents an exposition of the "postmodern turn," including some historical perspective, a description of its theoretical elements as related to psychological practice, as well as standard objections to its theories. This author believes that many of the concepts inherent to a social constructionist approach are compelling for theory and practice in group therapy. Clinical case studies are cited in describing how postmodern theories present a natural fit for group therapy. Furthermore, specific implications of this model are delineated for the arduous task of leading groups.
Asymmetrical Integration: Lessons from a Railway Empire.
McDonald, Kate
2015-01-01
This article reexamines railway imperialism in Manchuria from the perspective of global network building. Through a case study of the Japanese-owned South Manchuria Railway Company (SMR), I trace how one railway empire used through traffic agreements to integrate Northeast Asian railways into a global network while at the same time installing itself as the necessary intermediary between European and Asian overland traffic. I argue that the SMR's pursuit of global reach and local dominance compels us to reconsider the traditional division of border-crossing railways into international and imperialist types, and instead to examine how border-crossing railways contributed to the uneven or "asymmetrical" integration of the global transportation infrastructure.
43 CFR 4.1135 - Motion to compel discovery.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR
2013-10-01
... a motion made pursuant to this section, the administrative law judge may make such a protective... 43 Public Lands: Interior 1 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Motion to compel discovery. 4.1135 Section... Motion to compel discovery. (a) If a deponent fails to answer a question propounded, or a party upon whom...
43 CFR 4.1135 - Motion to compel discovery.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR
2014-10-01
... a motion made pursuant to this section, the administrative law judge may make such a protective... 43 Public Lands: Interior 1 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Motion to compel discovery. 4.1135 Section... Motion to compel discovery. (a) If a deponent fails to answer a question propounded, or a party upon whom...
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Balve, Patrick; Krüger, Volker; Tolstrup Sørensen, Lene
2017-11-01
Problem-based learning (PBL) has proven to be highly effective for educating students in an active and self-motivated manner in various disciplines. Student projects carried out following PBL principles are very dynamic and carry a high level of uncertainty, both conditions under which agile project management approaches are assumed to be highly supportive. The paper describes an empirical case study carried out at Aalborg University Copenhagen involving students from two different semesters of a Bachelor of Science programme. While executing the study, compelling examples of how PBL and the agile project management method Kanban blend could be identified. A final survey reveals that applying Kanban produces noticeable improvements with respect to creating, assigning and coordinating project tasks. Other improvements were found in group communication, knowledge about the work progress with regards to both the individual and the collective and the students' way of continuously improving their own teamwork.
Stuckler, David; Ruskin, Gary; McKee, Martin
2018-02-01
Statements on conflicts of interest provide important information for readers of scientific papers. There is now compelling evidence from several fields that papers reporting funding from organizations that have an interest in the results often generate different findings from those that do not report such funding. We describe the findings of an analysis of correspondence between representatives of a major soft drinks company and scientists researching childhood obesity. Although the studies report no influence by the funder, the correspondence describes detailed exchanges on the study design, presentation of results and acknowledgement of funding. This raises important questions about the meaning of standard statements on conflicts of interest.
29 CFR 18.21 - Motion to compel discovery.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR
2011-07-01
... OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGES General § 18.21 Motion to compel discovery. (a) If a deponent fails... to answer or respond. (d) In ruling on a motion made pursuant to this section, the administrative law... 29 Labor 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Motion to compel discovery. 18.21 Section 18.21 Labor...
29 CFR 18.21 - Motion to compel discovery.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR
2012-07-01
... OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGES General § 18.21 Motion to compel discovery. (a) If a deponent fails... to answer or respond. (d) In ruling on a motion made pursuant to this section, the administrative law... 29 Labor 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Motion to compel discovery. 18.21 Section 18.21 Labor...
29 CFR 18.21 - Motion to compel discovery.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR
2013-07-01
... OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGES General § 18.21 Motion to compel discovery. (a) If a deponent fails... to answer or respond. (d) In ruling on a motion made pursuant to this section, the administrative law... 29 Labor 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Motion to compel discovery. 18.21 Section 18.21 Labor...
29 CFR 18.21 - Motion to compel discovery.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR
2014-07-01
... OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGES General § 18.21 Motion to compel discovery. (a) If a deponent fails... to answer or respond. (d) In ruling on a motion made pursuant to this section, the administrative law... 29 Labor 1 2014-07-01 2013-07-01 true Motion to compel discovery. 18.21 Section 18.21 Labor Office...
Planetary science. Europa's ocean--the case strengthens.
Stevenson, D
2000-08-25
The possibility of a subsurface ocean on Jupiter's moon Europa has been suggested on the basis of theoretical, geological, and spectroscopic arguments. But, as Stevenson explains in his Perspective, none of these arguments were compelling. In contrast, the magnetic field data obtained by the Galileo spacecraft and presented in the report by Kivelson et al., provide persuasive evidence for a conducting layer--most likely a global water ocean--near Europa's surface.
Introduction: Applying Clinical Psychological Science to Practice.
Cha, Christine B; DiVasto, Katherine A
2017-05-01
Mental illness is a prevalent and extraordinarily complex phenomenon. Psychologists have developed distinct approaches toward understanding and treating mental illness, rooted in divergent epistemology. This introduction to the Special Issue on Clinical Psychological Science and Practice provides a brief overview of the scientist-practitioner gap, and explores one step (of many) toward bridging this divide. Seven compelling case illustrations featured in this Special Issue apply empirical findings to case formulation, treatment selection, and assessment across complex and varied clinical presentations. This issue thereby demonstrates the feasibility of integrating research and clinical expertise in mental healthcare. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Arif, Tasleem; Adil, Mohammad; Amin, Syed Suhail; Mahtab, Alam
2018-06-01
Morphea and lichen sclerosus et atrophicus (LSA) are two diseases that show considerable clinical and histopathological similarity and have been known to coexist in the same patient. Whether the two conditions are different entities or part of the same spectrum has been a topic of debate. This article describes a very rare and interesting case of concomitant morphea and LSA in a 50-year-old female in the same plaque following intramuscular drug injection in the deltoid region of the right arm. The coexistence of morphea and LSA in the same lesion has rarely been reported, thus compelling us to report this case.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Gil, Maria José Alvarez; Kulcsar, Borbala; Aksoy, Dilan
The trends in the automotive industry changed radically from the beginning of the 80s. Increasing competition, new systems and developments compelled the companies to re-evaluate and re-design their investments and processes, by extending their networks to other parts of the world in order to gain more market. This trend could be observed first in the Western-European countries and later in Eastern-Europe. With entering new areas the companies had to face with several difficulties coming inter alia from the decisions of supplier network and information system implementation. In our study we analyze the strategic decisions of major carmaker companies entering the Eastern-European market. Our research includes two case studies of the Hungarian automotive sector.
FDA-Required Tobacco Product Inserts & Onserts–and the First Amendment.
Lindblom, Eric N; Berman, Micah L; Thrasher, James F
In 2012, a federal court of appeals struck down an FDA rule requiring graphic health warnings on cigarettes as violating First Amendment commercial speech protections. Tobacco product inserts and onserts can more readily avoid First Amendment constraints while delivering more extensive information to tobacco users, and can work effectively to support and encourage smoking cessation. This paper examines FDA’s authority to require effective inserts and onserts and shows how FDA could design and support them to avoid First Amendment problems. Through this process, the paper offers helpful insights regarding how key Tobacco Control Act provisions can and should be interpreted and applied to follow and promote the statute’s purposes and objectives. The paper’s rigorous analysis of existing First Amendment case law relating to compelled commercial speech also provides useful guidance for any government efforts either to compel product disclosures or to require government messaging in or on commercial products or their advertising, whether done for remedial, purely informational, or behavior modification purposes.
2003-02-01
In December 2001, the AAMC Task Force on Financial Conflicts of Interest in Clinical Research released this report, the first of two (both published in this issue of Academic Medicine). This report focuses on gaps in existing federal financial disclosure regulations of individual conflicts of interests, finding that additional scrutiny is recommended in two areas: human subjects research and privately sponsored research. The task force suggests that when potential conflicts exist, a conflicts of interest committee should apply a rebuttable presumption against engaging in human subjects research. The task force recommends that the circumstances giving rise to the presumption against the proposed activity be balanced against compelling circumstances in favor of the conduct of the research. The AAMC task force delineates core principles to guide institutional policy development. First, an institution should regard all significant financial interests in human subjects research as requiring close scrutiny. Second, in the event of compelling circumstances, an individual holding a significant financial interest may be permitted to conduct the research. Whether circumstances are deemed compelling will depend in each case upon the nature of the science, the nature of the interest, how closely the interest is related to the research, and the degree to which the interest may be affected by the research. Four other core principles for development of institutional policies are identified in the report, pertaining to reporting, monitoring, management of conflicts, and accountability.
Abortion and compelled physician speech.
Orentlicher, David
2015-01-01
Informed consent mandates for abortion providers may infringe the First Amendment's freedom of speech. On the other hand, they may reinforce the physician's duty to obtain informed consent. Courts can promote both doctrines by ensuring that compelled physician speech pertains to medical facts about abortion rather than abortion ideology and that compelled speech is truthful and not misleading. © 2015 American Society of Law, Medicine & Ethics, Inc.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
McEwen, Leah; Li, Ye
2014-10-01
There are compelling needs from a variety of camps for more chemistry data to be available. While there are funder and government mandates for depositing research data in the United States and Europe, this does not mean it will be done well or expediently. Chemists themselves do not appear overly engaged at this stage and chemistry librarians who work directly with chemists and their local information environments are interested in helping with this challenge. Our unique understanding of organizing data and information enables us to contribute to building necessary infrastructure and establishing standards and best practices across the full research data cycle. As not many support structures focused on chemistry currently exist, we are initiating explorations through a few case studies and focused pilot projects presented here, with an aim of identifying opportunities for increased collaboration among chemists, chemistry librarians, cheminformaticians and other chemistry professionals.
McEwen, Leah; Li, Ye
2014-10-01
There are compelling needs from a variety of camps for more chemistry data to be available. While there are funder and government mandates for depositing research data in the United States and Europe, this does not mean it will be done well or expediently. Chemists themselves do not appear overly engaged at this stage and chemistry librarians who work directly with chemists and their local information environments are interested in helping with this challenge. Our unique understanding of organizing data and information enables us to contribute to building necessary infrastructure and establishing standards and best practices across the full research data cycle. As not many support structures focused on chemistry currently exist, we are initiating explorations through a few case studies and focused pilot projects presented here, with an aim of identifying opportunities for increased collaboration among chemists, chemistry librarians, cheminformaticians and other chemistry professionals.
Knutsson, A
1986-01-01
For 10 years computerization in industry has advanced at a rapid pace. A problem which has not received attention is that of people with reading and writing difficulties who experience severe problems when they have to communicate with a computer monitor screen. These individuals are often embarrassed by their difficulties and conceal them from their fellow workers. A number of case studies are described which show the form the problems can take. In one case, an employee was compelled to move from department to department as each was computerized in turn. Computers transform a large number of manual tasks in industry into jobs which call for reading and writing skills. Better education at elementary school and at the workplace in connection with computerization are the most important means of overcoming this problem. Moreover, computer programs could be written in a more human way.
Medicinal products and consent by mentally capacitated patients.
Dimond, Bridgit
Case scenario: Roy Dawes has been diagnosed as having diabetes, but is not prepared to keep to the necessary diet which should have been able to control his condition. In particular he is a heavy drinker. He was therefore advised that he would require insulin and regular blood testing. He failed to comply with this regimen and the community nurse wondered if he could be compelled to have his medication. What is the law?
Graphic Narratives and Cancer Prevention: A Case Study of an American Cancer Society Comic Book.
Krakow, Melinda
2017-05-01
As the interest in graphic medicine grows, health communicators have started engaging readers with compelling visual and textual accounts of health and illness, including via comic books. One context where comics have shown promise is cancer communication. This brief report presents an early example of graphic medicine developed by the American Cancer Society. "Ladies … Wouldn't It Be Better to Know?" is a comic book produced in the 1960s to provide the public with lay information about the Pap test for cervical cancer prevention and detection. An analysis of a key narrative attribute, plot development, illustrates the central role that perceived barriers played in this midcentury public health message, a component that remains a consideration of cancer communication design today. This case study of an early graphic narrative identifies promising cancer message features that can be used to address and refute barriers to cervical cancer screening and connects contemporary research with historical efforts in public health communication.
Etter, John Lewis; Eng, Kevin; Cannioto, Rikki; Kaur, Jasmine; Almohanna, Hani; Alqassim, Emad; Szender, J Brian; Joseph, Janine M; Lele, Shashikant; Odunsi, Kunle; Moysich, Kirsten B
2018-04-01
Although family history of testicular cancer is well-established as a risk factor for testicular cancer, it is unknown whether family history of ovarian cancer is associated with risk of testicular cancer. Using data from the Familial Ovarian Cancer Registry on 2636 families with multiple cases of ovarian cancer, we systematically compared relative frequencies of ovarian cancer among relatives of men with testicular and non-testicular cancers. Thirty-one families with cases of both ovarian and testicular cancer were identified. We observed that, among men with cancer, those with testicular cancer were more likely to have a mother with ovarian cancer than those with non-testicular cancers (OR = 3.32, p = 0.004). Zero paternal grandmothers of men with testicular cancer had ovarian cancer. These observations provide compelling preliminary evidence for a familial association between ovarian and testicular cancers Future studies should be designed to further investigate this association and evaluate X-linkage. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Markelova, E V; Romanchuk, A L; Prosekova, E V; Krasnikov, V E; Beniova, S N
2017-01-01
The article considers the measured values of the level of MMP-1, MMP-8 and MMP-9, and of their tissue inhibitor Type I (TIMP-1) in the blood serum and mixed saliva samples of 78 patients (31 women - 36.2 %, 47 men - 63.8 %) suffering from odontogenic phlegmons in the oral and maxillofacial region. The study indicators were assessed through the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay using diagnostic sets RandD Diagnostics Inc. (USA). An uncontrolled hyperactivation of metal proteinases as one of the components of the systemic inflammatory response in case of phlegmon-related complications in the oral and maxillofacial region, as well as development of the sepsis syndrome were studied and it was determined that it results in distortion of the processes of reparative hystogeny and compel us to employ new approaches to the treatment of this type of patients (Tab. 2, Fig. 1, Ref. 13).
The physical and empirical basis for a specific clear-air turbulence risk index
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Keller, J. L.
1986-01-01
The fundamental emphasis of this research was to develop a technique which would be a significant improvement over those currently used for flight planning to avoid clear air turbulence (CAT). The technique should, ideally, be both quantitative in determining potential intensity and specific in locating regions of relatively high risk. Furthermore, it should not rely on specialized data but be functional using the currently available rawinsonde observation (raob) system. Encouraging results documented in an earlier investigation were considered compelling enough to warrant a closer look into the possibilities of a Specific Clear Air Turbulence Risk (SCATR) index approach to the clear air turbulence problem. Unlike that research, which considered sustained periods of flight in light to moderate clear air turbulence, this study focuses on several cases of documented severe CAT. Results of these case studies suggest that a SCATR index is not an unrealizable goal and that uses of such an index, event in its current prototype level of development, are also apparent.
Louw, Adriaan; Diener, Ina; Butler, David S; Puentedura, Emilio J
2011-12-01
To evaluate the evidence for the effectiveness of neuroscience education (NE) for pain, disability, anxiety, and stress in chronic musculoskeletal (MSK) pain. Systematic searches were conducted on Biomed Central, BMJ.com, CINAHL, the Cochrane Library, NLM Central Gateway, OVID, ProQuest (Digital Dissertations), PsycInfo, PubMed/Medline, ScienceDirect, and Web of Science. Secondary searching (PEARLing) was undertaken, whereby reference lists of the selected articles were reviewed for additional references not identified in the primary search. All experimental studies including randomized controlled trials (RCTs), nonrandomized clinical trials, and case series evaluating the effect of NE on pain, disability, anxiety, and stress for chronic MSK pain were considered for inclusion. Additional limitations: studies published in English, published within the last 10 years, and patients older than 18 years. No limitations were set on specific outcome measures of pain, disability, anxiety, and stress. Data were extracted using the participants, interventions, comparison, and outcomes (PICO) approach. Methodological quality was assessed by 2 reviewers using the Critical Review Form-Quantitative Studies. This review includes 8 studies comprising 6 high-quality RCTs, 1 pseudo-RCT, and 1 comparative study involving 401 subjects. Most articles were of good quality, with no studies rated as poor or fair. Heterogeneity across the studies with respect to participants, interventions evaluated, and outcome measures used prevented meta-analyses. Narrative synthesis of results, based on effect size, established compelling evidence that NE may be effective in reducing pain ratings, increasing function, addressing catastrophization, and improving movement in chronic MSK pain. For chronic MSK pain disorders, there is compelling evidence that an educational strategy addressing neurophysiology and neurobiology of pain can have a positive effect on pain, disability, catastrophization, and physical performance. Copyright © 2011 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Music and Early Language Acquisition
Brandt, Anthony; Gebrian, Molly; Slevc, L. Robert
2012-01-01
Language is typically viewed as fundamental to human intelligence. Music, while recognized as a human universal, is often treated as an ancillary ability – one dependent on or derivative of language. In contrast, we argue that it is more productive from a developmental perspective to describe spoken language as a special type of music. A review of existing studies presents a compelling case that musical hearing and ability is essential to language acquisition. In addition, we challenge the prevailing view that music cognition matures more slowly than language and is more difficult; instead, we argue that music learning matches the speed and effort of language acquisition. We conclude that music merits a central place in our understanding of human development. PMID:22973254
Music and early language acquisition.
Brandt, Anthony; Gebrian, Molly; Slevc, L Robert
2012-01-01
Language is typically viewed as fundamental to human intelligence. Music, while recognized as a human universal, is often treated as an ancillary ability - one dependent on or derivative of language. In contrast, we argue that it is more productive from a developmental perspective to describe spoken language as a special type of music. A review of existing studies presents a compelling case that musical hearing and ability is essential to language acquisition. In addition, we challenge the prevailing view that music cognition matures more slowly than language and is more difficult; instead, we argue that music learning matches the speed and effort of language acquisition. We conclude that music merits a central place in our understanding of human development.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Pinter, Nicholas; Hardiman, Mark; Scott, Andrew C.; Anderson, R. Scott
2018-01-01
Schumann et al. (2016) presented a field assessment of late Pleistocene to Holocene fluvial sediments preserved in the valleys of Santa Rosa Island, California. This is a rigorous study, based on stratigraphic descriptions of 54 sections and numerous radiocarbon ages. The paper makes important contributions that we would like to highlight, but other parts of the paper rely upon overly simplistic interpretations that lead to misleading conclusions. In one case, a conclusion of the Schumann et al. paper has important management implications for Santa Rosa Island and similar locations, compelling us to discuss and qualify this conclusion.
Aruin, A S; Hanke, T; Chaudhuri, G; Harvey, R; Rao, N
2000-01-01
The hypotheses have been tested that 1) symmetry of weightbearing in persons who have sustained a stroke could be improved by the addition of a lift to the shoe on the non-paretic lower limb and 2) compelled weightbearing resulting from the addition of a lift in conjunction with targeted exercise helps to overcome the learned disuse of the paretic limb. Weightbearing on the paretic side was measured in eight persons with hemiparesis during quiet standing and in conditions of compelled weight shift. Compelled weight shifts were applied with special lifts to the shoe on the non-paretic limb of the subjects. An increase in symmetrical weightbearing was recorded in conditions of compelled weight shifts: 10-mm lift provided the best symmetry of bipedal standing. We suggest that improved symmetry of bipedal standing obtained with the lift of the non-paretic limb would help in overcoming the learned disuse of the affected limb. Pre- and post-test results of a person with hemiparesis who was wearing a shoe lift on the non-paretic limb during a 6-week physical therapy program showed statistically significant improvement of walking speed, stride length, and weightbearing. Such findings support the idea of using compelled weightbearing via lifting and targeted exercise during treatment.
Indigenous Space and the Landscape of Settlement: A Historian as Expert Witness.
Gray, Susan E
2015-02-01
This essay examines my work as expert witness in the case of U.S. v. Michigan, a Indigenous use-rights case. I was charged with parsing the intention of a specific article of the 1836 Treaty of Washington compelling land cession by Anishinaabe peoples and with writing a history of land use in the area from that date to the present for the Chippewa Ottawa Resource Authority (my employer). The challenges were not only methodological (how do you estimate use from ownership?) and epistemological (what constitutes proof that will satisfy both historians and lawyers?), but also sociological and psychological: what happens when an associate professor puts her progress toward full professor on hold for the sake of a court case?
A problem for the idea of voluntary euthanasia.
Campbell, N
1999-01-01
I question whether, in those cases where physician-assisted suicide is invoked to alleviate unbearable pain and suffering, there can be such a thing as voluntary euthanasia. The problem is that when a patient asks to die under such conditions there is good reason to think that the decision to die is compelled by the pain, and hence not freely chosen. Since the choice to die was not made freely it is inadvisable for physicians to act in accordance with it, for this may be contrary to the patient's genuine wishes. Thus, what were thought to be cases of voluntary euthanasia might actually be instances of involuntary euthanasia. PMID:10390679
Manufacturing the Horns of Dilemma: A Theory of Operational Initiative
2015-05-21
Tsung offers insight, and offers the second compelling component to a theory of initiative. According to Mao, “Freedom of action is the very life of...unphased advances that might lead to entrapment by a numerically superior foe.”81 By conducting coordinated operations across the width of its front...doubtful whether firepower-based operations alone can in all cases unsettle an enemy and cause it to experience distress and defeat to the extent that it
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Rajagopalan, Kanavillil
2006-01-01
The objective of this response article is to think through some of what I see as the far-reaching implications of a recent paper by Eric Hauser (2005) entitled "Coding 'corrective recasts': the maintenance of meaning and more fundamental problems". Hauser makes a compelling, empirically-backed case for his contention that, contrary to widespread…
Preparing The U.S. Air Force for Military Operations Other Than War,
1997-01-01
Step 1: Detect and Identify WMD Facilities 70 5.5. Step 2: Neutralize WMD Facilities 71 5.6. Step 3: Conduct BDA Following Attack on...FUTURE It would generally appear that there is no way to predict whether global instability will mushroom . In any case, there is not necessarily a...serious enough problem, then the United States should do some- thing about it. Thus, policymakers often feel compelled by pubic and media pressures to
Defense Contracting: Complete Historical Data Not Available on Canceled DOD Solicitations
2016-06-29
Solicitations If a contractor believes that a solicitation has been canceled without meeting the standards to do so, it may file a formal bid protest with...its own merits and circumstances, as outlined in the examples of DOD cases below: • In 2015, a contractor filed a protest arguing that the Army...government. A contractor protested the cancelation claiming that the solicitation was not ambiguous; therefore, the USACE did not have a compelling reason
30 CFR 775.11 - Administrative review.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-07-01
... affirmations, subpoena witnesses and written or printed materials, compel attendance of witnesses or production of those materials, compel discovery, and take evidence, including, but not limited to, site...
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Hoebelheinrich, N. J.; Eckman, R.; Teng, W. L.; Beltz, C.
2016-12-01
The classic approach to scientific storytelling, especially for publication, is to establish the research problem, describe the potential solution and the efforts to solve the problem, and end with the results - whether "successful" or not - as the "Ta Da!" of the story. This classic approach, however, does not necessarily adapt well to the kind of storytelling that policy-making and general public end-users find more compelling, i.e., with the "Ta Da!" element of the story immediately evident. Working with the U.S. Climate Resilience Toolkit (CRT) staff, two collaborative groups of the Earth Science Information Partners (ESIP), Agriculture and Climate and Energy and Climate, have begun to assist agriculture and energy researchers in making the switch in story telling approach and, thus, get more easily understood and actionable information out to potential end-users about how the research data produced can help them. The CRT is a platform for telling stories based on both end-user needs and the data that are used to meet those needs. The ESIP groups are establishing an ESIP-wide process "pipeline," through which research results and data, with the help of group discussions and the use of CRT templates, are transformed into potential stories. When appropriate, the stories are handed off to the CRT staff to be fully developed. Two case studies that are in the process of being added to the CRT involve (1) the use of the RETScreen tool by Natural Resources Canada and (2) a fallow lands mapping project with the California Department of Water Resources to monitor ongoing drought conditions in California. These two case studies will be used to illustrate the process pipeline being developed, discuss lessons learned to date, and suggest future plans for further refining and expanding the process "pipeline."
The business case for building better hospitals through evidence-based design.
Sadler, Blair L; DuBose, Jennifer; Zimring, Craig
2008-01-01
After establishing the connection between building well-designed evidence-based facilities and improved safety and quality for patients, families, and staff, this article presents the compelling business case for doing so. It demonstrates why ongoing operating savings and initial capital costs must be analyzed and describes specific steps to ensure that design innovations are implemented effectively. Hospital leaders and boards are now beginning to face a new reality: They can no longer tolerate preventable hospital-acquired conditions such as infections, falls, and injuries to staff or unnecessary intra-hospital patient transfers that can increase errors. Nor can they subject patients and families to noisy, confusing environments that increase anxiety and stress. They must effectively deploy all reasonable quality improvement techniques available. To be optimally effective, a variety of tactics must be combined and implemented in an integrated way. Hospital leadership must understand the clear connection between building well-designed healing environments and improved healthcare safety and quality for patients, families, and staff, as well as the compelling business case for doing so. Emerging pay-for-performance (P4P) methodologies that reward hospitals for quality and refuse to pay hospitals for the harm they cause (e.g., infections and falls) further strengthen this business case. When planning to build a new hospital or to renovate an existing facility, healthcare leaders should address a key question: Will the proposed project incorporate all relevant and proven evidence-based design innovations to optimize patient safety, quality, and satisfaction as well as workforce safety, satisfaction, productivity, and energy efficiency? When conducting a business case analysis for a new project, hospital leaders should consider ongoing operating savings and the market share impact of evidence-based design interventions as well as initial capital costs. They should consider taking the 10 steps recommended to ensure an optimal, cost-effective hospital environment. A return-on-investment (ROI) framework is put forward for the use of individual organizations.
28 CFR 0.177a - Antitrust civil investigative demands.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-07-01
... JUSTICE Assigning Responsibility Concerning Applications for Orders Compelling Testimony or Production of..., United States Code, to compel testimony in response to antitrust civil investigative demands for oral...
The art of attorney interaction and courtroom testimony.
Davis, Gregory G
2006-09-01
In our society it is well for a physician to know something of the workings of court and how to interact with attorneys. One need not go to law school to successfully navigate a legal proceeding as a physician witness. To show that a physician skilled at interacting with colleagues and patients can successfully apply those skills to interacting with attorneys and testifying in court. This work is based primarily on the author's experience in interacting with attorneys and testifying in court, with supplemental contributions from textbooks. Skillful testifying is simply the transmission of medical information in court in a professional, polite, and compelling manner, an ability within the grasp of any physician who has mastered the art of working with colleagues and patients. Careful, honest assessment of the medical matters in a legal case places a physician in a strong position, which the physician can maintain by remaining polite, even in the face of attempts by an attorney to denigrate the physician's professional abilities. The best witnesses tell the truth in a manner that compels people in the courtroom to listen.
49 CFR 511.36 - Motions to compel discovery.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-10-01
... inspection or production of documents, or otherwise compelling discovery. For purposes of this subsection, an... a motion pursuant to § 511.31(d). When making oral examinations, the discovering party shall...
Learning Bridge Tool to Improve Student Learning, Preceptor Training, and Faculty Teamwork
Cawley, Pauline; Arendt, Cassandra S.
2011-01-01
Objectives To implement a Learning Bridge tool to improve educational outcomes for pharmacy students as well as for preceptors and faculty members. Design Pharmacy faculty members collaborated to write 9 case-based assignments that first-year pharmacy (P1) students worked with preceptors to complete while at experiential sites. Assessment Students, faculty members, and preceptors were surveyed about their perceptions of the Learning Bridge process. As in our pilot study,1 the Learning Bridge process promoted student learning. Additionally, the Learning Bridge assignments familiarized preceptors with the school's P1 curriculum and its content. Faculty teamwork also was increased through collaborating on the assignments. Conclusions The Learning Bridge assignments provided a compelling learning environment and benefited students, preceptors, and faculty members. PMID:21655400
Book Review: Water Diplomacy: A Negotiated Approach to Managing Complex Water Networks
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Hossain, Faisal
2013-01-01
All nations have built their economies around water that is naturally available. Almost all sectors of the economy depend on water. Yet there is conflict among various users for the finite amount of water that is available. Managers and practitioners have long held the notion that competition rather than collaboration is the solution when there is conflict. Water Diplomacy: A Negotiated Approach to Managing Complex Water Networks, by Shafiqul Islam and Lawrence Susskind, provides a refreshingly compelling alternative to overcoming water conflicts. The book argues that the dynamic sociopolitical and socioeconomic constraints of water resources are best addressed in a "diplomacy" framework. The book rebuts, using several case studies, the technically rigid competition approach of today's water sharing practice.
Learning bridge tool to improve student learning, preceptor training, and faculty teamwork.
Karimi, Reza; Cawley, Pauline; Arendt, Cassandra S
2011-04-11
To implement a Learning Bridge tool to improve educational outcomes for pharmacy students as well as for preceptors and faculty members. Pharmacy faculty members collaborated to write 9 case-based assignments that first-year pharmacy (P1) students worked with preceptors to complete while at experiential sites. Students, faculty members, and preceptors were surveyed about their perceptions of the Learning Bridge process. As in our pilot study,(1) the Learning Bridge process promoted student learning. Additionally, the Learning Bridge assignments familiarized preceptors with the school's P1 curriculum and its content. Faculty teamwork also was increased through collaborating on the assignments. The Learning Bridge assignments provided a compelling learning environment and benefited students, preceptors, and faculty members.
Virtual reality training improves students' knowledge structures of medical concepts.
Stevens, Susan M; Goldsmith, Timothy E; Summers, Kenneth L; Sherstyuk, Andrei; Kihmm, Kathleen; Holten, James R; Davis, Christopher; Speitel, Daniel; Maris, Christina; Stewart, Randall; Wilks, David; Saland, Linda; Wax, Diane; Panaiotis; Saiki, Stanley; Alverson, Dale; Caudell, Thomas P
2005-01-01
Virtual environments can provide training that is difficult to achieve under normal circumstances. Medical students can work on high-risk cases in a realistic, time-critical environment, where students practice skills in a cognitively demanding and emotionally compelling situation. Research from cognitive science has shown that as students acquire domain expertise, their semantic organization of core domain concepts become more similar to those of an expert's. In the current study, we hypothesized that students' knowledge structures would become more expert-like as a result of their diagnosing and treating a patient experiencing a hematoma within a virtual environment. Forty-eight medical students diagnosed and treated a hematoma case within a fully immersed virtual environment. Student's semantic organization of 25 case-related concepts was assessed prior to and after training. Students' knowledge structures became more integrated and similar to an expert knowledge structure of the concepts as a result of the learning experience. The methods used here for eliciting, representing, and evaluating knowledge structures offer a sensitive and objective means for evaluating student learning in virtual environments and medical simulations.
The New Law on Department of Defense Personnel Missing as a Result of Hostile Action
1996-04-01
that "compelling evidence" was meant to include such evidence as "post-incident letters written by the supposedly-dead person while in captivity or...wrangling, the British returned two of the four men, including Straughan. The other two men never returned; one died in captivity and the other was...while in captivity .121 During the American Civil War, these * laws allowed the Congress to appropriate routinely money to 120 Straughan’s Case, 1 Ct. Cl
China and the Splitting of Alliances: Historic Cases and Implications for North Korea
2014-03-01
life. Stalin was exposed and condemned at the Congress for having had hundreds of thousands of people shot and for his abuse of power. Mao Tse -tung...countries, to put the Mongolian people under the influence of Mao Tse -tung’s ideas, and to compel Mongolia to pursue a pro-Maoist policy.185 Additionally...needed Soviet support to do so. In mid-1975, Hanoi took control of Laos and then began prosecuting a war against the Chinese-backed Khmer Rouge.295
Basic Science of the Fundamentals and Dynamics of Social-Fringe Group Formation and Sustainment
2012-08-01
You’re not doing well, but you’re still free to consume. We’re all equal in the eyes of the market." - Stuart Hall 011 the 2011 London Riots Case 3...culture!to!another.!!!Overall,(it(focussed(on(the(persuasive(nature,( influence(and(propagation(of(compelling(ideas,(the(bases(for(group( receptiveness (and...recruitment&and&fringe&group&formation& o What!are!the!personality!and!social!characteristics!of!adherents!that! increase!their! receptiveness !to!fringe!ideas
Understanding the economics of succeeding in disease management.
Shulkin, D J
1999-04-01
If implemented with the proper resource commitment, disease management can have a significant effect on the health of an organization's patient population. However, it is unlikely that even the noblest of strategic initiatives will survive long without a compelling business imperative. After analyzing the business case, many organizations have committed large amounts of resources to building disease management programs. Yet these issues are still being formulated. The author discusses five issues that are key to understanding the economics of disease management.
Effectiveness of Different Models of Case Management for Substance-Abusing Populations
Vanderplasschen, Wouter; Wolf, Judith; Rapp, Richard C.; Broekaert, Eric
2007-01-01
Case management has been implemented in substance abuse treatment to improve (cost-) effectiveness, but controversy exists about its potential to realize this objective. A systematic and comprehensive review of peer-reviewed articles (n = 48) published between 1993 and 2003 is presented, focusing on the effects of different models of case management among various substance-abusing populations. Results show that several studies have reported positive effects, but only some randomized and controlled trials have demonstrated the effectiveness of case management compared with other interventions. Longitudinal effects of this intervention remain unclear. Although no compelling evidence was found for the effectiveness of case management, some evidence is available about the (differential) effectiveness of intensive case management and assertive community treatment for homeless and dually-diagnosed substance abusers. Strengths-based and generalist case management have proven to be relatively effective for substance abusers in general. Most positive effects concern reduced use of inpatient services and increased utilization of community-based services, prolonged treatment retention, improved quality of life, and high client satisfaction. Outcomes concerning drug use and psychosocial functioning are less consistent, but seem to be mediated by retention in treatment and case management. Further research is required to learn more about the extent of the effects of this intervention, how long these are sustained and what specific elements cause particular outcomes. PMID:17523588
Clinical governance breakdown: Australian cases of wilful blindness and whistleblowing.
Cleary, Sonja; Duke, Maxine
2017-01-01
After their attempts to have patient safety concerns addressed internally were ignored by wilfully blind managers, nurses from Bundaberg Base Hospital and Macarthur Health Service felt compelled to 'blow the whistle'. Wilful blindness is the human desire to prefer ignorance to knowledge; the responsibility to be informed is shirked. To provide an account of instances of wilful blindness identified in two high-profile cases of nurse whistleblowing in Australia. Critical case study methodology using Fay's Critical Social Theory to examine, analyse and interpret existing data generated by the Commissions of Inquiry held into Bundaberg Base Hospital and Macarthur Health Service patient safety breaches. All data was publicly available and assessed according to the requirements of unobtrusive research methods and secondary data analysis. Ethical considerations: Data collection for the case studies relied entirely on publicly available documentary sources recounting and detailing past events. Data from both cases reveal managers demonstrating wilful blindness towards patient safety concerns. Concerns were unaddressed; nurses, instead, experienced retaliatory responses leading to a 'social crisis' in the organisation and to whistleblowing. Managers tasked with clinical governance must be aware of mechanisms with the potential to blind them. The human tendency to favour positive news and avoid conflict is powerful. Understanding wilful blindness can assist managers' awareness of the competing emotions occurring in response to ethical challenges, such as whistleblowing.
24 CFR 180.540 - Motion to compel discovery.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-04-01
... order compelling discovery in accordance with the request. The motion shall: (1) State the nature of the... secondary evidence concerning the information sought; (6) Striking any appropriate part of the pleadings or...
Should physicians tell the truth without taking social complications into account? A striking case.
Avci, Ercan
2018-03-01
The principle of respect for autonomy requires informing patients adequately and appropriately about diagnoses, treatments, and prognoses. However, some clinical cases may cause ethical dilemmas regarding telling the truth. Under the existence especially of certain cultural, social, and religious circumstances, disclosing all the relevant information to all pertinent parties might create harmful effects. Even though the virtue of telling the truth is unquestionable, sometimes de facto conditions compel physicians to act paternalistically to protect the patient/patients from imminent dangers. This article, which aims to study the issue of whether a physician should always tell the truth, analyzes an interesting case that represents the detection of misattributed paternity during pre-transplant tests for a kidney transplant from the son to the father in Turkey, where social, cultural, and religious factors have considerable impact on marital infidelity. After analyzing the concept of telling the truth and its relationship with paternalism and two major ethical theories, consequentialism and deontology, it is concluded that the value of the integrity of life and survival overrides the value of telling the truth. For this reason, in the case of a high possibility of severe and imminent threats, withholding some information is ethically justifiable.
Moore, Jonathan S; Koerner, Roland J
2015-11-01
As laboratories move towards 24 h a day working patterns, we aim to evaluate if expediting the availability of provisional blood culture results outside of normal working hours would derive clinical benefit. 116 blood cultures flagging positive outside of conventional working hours (20:00-09:00) were studied. In each case, medical records were reviewed and cases discussed with clinicians to determine if earlier communication of results would have altered management and affected the outcome. Organisms were seen in 102/116 blood cultures. In total, 76/82 (92.7%) patients with cultures deemed to be significant were on an antibiotic. The isolate was sensitive to the prescribed antibiotic in 56/74 (76%) cases. Input from a microbiologist is likely to have altered management in 14 (13.7%) cases, but unlikely to have affected any outcomes. We found no compelling evidence that expediting the availability of Gram stain results from positive blood cultures alone improves patient outcome. 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.
Status of the chiral magnetic effect and collisions of isobars
Koch, Volker; Schlichting, Soeren; Skokov, Vladimir; ...
2017-04-30
Here, we examine the current theoretical and experimental status of the chiral magnetic effect. We discuss possible future strategies for resolving uncertainties in interpretation including recommendations for theoretical work, recommendations for measurements based on data collected in the past five years, and recommendations for beam use in the coming years of RHIC. We then investigate the case for colliding nuclear isobars (nuclei with the same mass but different charge) and find the case compelling. We recommend that a program of nuclear isobar collisions to isolate the chiral magnetic effect from background sources be placed as a high priority item inmore » the strategy for completing the RHIC mission.« less
Analysis of Agility Performance of Supply Chain: A Case Study on Indian Automotive Manufacturer
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Routroy, S.; Sharma, S.; Bhardwaj, A.
2018-04-01
Manufacturing companies should understand the changing customer needs and expectations, access and defend the competitive pressure, anticipate and manage the uncertain demand and supply chain risk, and implement the appropriate technology to survive and excel in today’s marketplace. Therefore, they are moving away from mass production (i.e. lean supply chain) to one based on fast-responsiveness and flexibility, capitalizing on the rapid advancement in internet technologies and factory-on-demand mode of production (i.e. agile supply chain). It is observed that manufacturing companies in India in general and automotive supply chain in specific are compelled to cultivate supply chain agility for enhancing its performance level on continuous basis and comparing its supply chain agility performance with competitors to survive and sustain in the competitive business environment. Therefore, a methodology is proposed to evaluate the supply chain agility of a manufacturing supply chain and compare its performance level with competitors using Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process and Taguchi Loss Function. A case study is developed and the proposed methodology is applied to Indian automotive supply chain for explaining the salient features of it.
Sevillano, C; Parafita-Fernández, A; Rodriguez-Lopez, V; Sampil, M; Moraña, N; Viso, E; Cores, F J
2016-07-01
To assess ocular involvement in the pathophysiology of autosomal dominant compelling helio-ophthalmic outburst syndrome (ACHOOs). An interview was conducted with a Caucasian family that showed clinical features of ACHOOs. Twelve of them had photic reflex and were recruited. A complete eye evaluation was made. A dominant autosomal inheritance with mild penetrance was demonstrated, with 67% of the studied subjects showing some degree of prominent corneal nerves. No other eye changes were found. Prominent corneal nerves may be associated with ACHOOs. The other eye structures studied do not seem to play a role in ACHOOs. Further studies are needed to understand the physiology of the ACHOOs. Copyright © 2016 Sociedad Española de Oftalmología. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.
The emergence of a health insurance system in a developing country: the case of South Korea.
Cho, S
1989-12-01
In an attempt to understand the social forces and the economic and political conditions under which new social policies emerge in developing countries, this study outlines factors affecting the introduction of the health insurance system in South Korea. The emergence of the South Korean health insurance system was influenced by changing labor needs of the industrial sector, increasing social expectations, external and international pressures, increasing medical costs, and class conflict. These pressures compelled the South Korean government to respond to demands for the introduction of new social welfare policies in the 1970s. In the case of South Korea, the new health insurance system resulted from the government's attempts to cope with political, economic, and social pressures rather than from an ideological commitment to the well-being of the population. The resulting insurance system was a way to maintain the social order and legitimacy of the regime, and a means to promote the health of groups important to defense or production.
Escriche, Isabel; Sobrino-Gregorio, Lara; Conchado, Andrea; Juan-Borrás, Marisol
2017-07-01
The proliferation of hybrid plant varieties without pollen, such as lavender, has complicated the classification of specific types of honey. This study evaluated the correlation between the proclaimed type of monofloral honey (lavender or thyme) as appears on the label with the actual percentage of pollen. In addition, physicochemical parameters, colour, olfacto-gustatory profile, and volatile compounds were tested. All of the samples labelled as lavender were wrongly classified according to the usual commercial criteria (minimum 10% of pollen Lavandula spp.). In the case of lavender honey, there was significant agreement between commercial labelling and classification through organoleptic perception (81.8%), and above all between the commercial labelling and the volatile compounds (90.9%). For thyme honey, agreement for both parameters was 90.0%. These results offer compelling evidence that the volatile compounds are useful for the classification of lavender honey with low levels of pollen since this technique agrees well with the organoleptic analysis. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
4 CFR 28.43 - Compelling discovery.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-01-01
... 4 Accounts 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Compelling discovery. 28.43 Section 28.43 Accounts GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE GENERAL PROCEDURES GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE PERSONNEL APPEALS BOARD; PROCEDURES APPLICABLE TO CLAIMS CONCERNING EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES AT THE GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE...
Compelling Research Opportunities using Isotopes
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
None
Isotopes are vital to the science and technology base of the US economy. Isotopes, both stable and radioactive, are essential tools in the growing science, technology, engineering, and health enterprises of the 21st century. The scientific discoveries and associated advances made as a result of the availability of isotopes today span widely from medicine to biology, physics, chemistry, and a broad range of applications in environmental and material sciences. Isotope issues have become crucial aspects of homeland security. Isotopes are utilized in new resource development, in energy from bio-fuels, petrochemical and nuclear fuels, in drug discovery, health care therapies andmore » diagnostics, in nutrition, in agriculture, and in many other areas. The development and production of isotope products unavailable or difficult to get commercially have been most recently the responsibility of the Department of Energy's Nuclear Energy program. The President's FY09 Budget request proposed the transfer of the Isotope Production program to the Department of Energy's Office of Science in Nuclear Physics and to rename it the National Isotope Production and Application program (NIPA). The transfer has now taken place with the signing of the 2009 appropriations bill. In preparation for this, the Nuclear Science Advisory Committee (NSAC) was requested to establish a standing subcommittee, the NSAC Isotope Subcommittee (NSACI), to advise the DOE Office of Nuclear Physics. The request came in the form of two charges: one, on setting research priorities in the short term for the most compelling opportunities from the vast array of disciplines that develop and use isotopes and two, on making a long term strategic plan for the NIPA program. This is the final report to address charge 1. NSACI membership is comprised of experts from the diverse research communities, industry, production, and homeland security. NSACI discussed research opportunities divided into three areas: (1) medicine, pharmaceuticals, and biology, (2) physical sciences and engineering, and (3) national security and other applications. In each area, compelling research opportunities were considered and the subcommittee as a whole determined the final priorities for research opportunities as the foundations for the recommendations. While it was challenging to prioritize across disciplines, our order of recommendations reflect the compelling research prioritization along with consideration of time urgency for action as well as various geopolitical market issues. Common observations to all areas of research include the needs for domestic availability of crucial stable and radioactive isotopes and the education of the skilled workforce that will develop new advances using isotopes in the future. The six recommendations of NSACI reflect these concerns and the compelling research opportunities for potential new discoveries. The science case for each of the recommendations is elaborated in the respective chapters.« less
Depression, Antidepressants, and Neurogenesis: A Critical Reappraisal
Hanson, Nicola D; Owens, Michael J; Nemeroff, Charles B
2011-01-01
The neurogenesis hypothesis of depression posits (1) that neurogenesis in the subgranular zone of the dentate gyrus is regulated negatively by stressful experiences and positively by treatment with antidepressant drugs and (2) that alterations in the rate of neurogenesis play a fundamental role in the pathology and treatment of major depression. This hypothesis is supported by important experimental observations, but is challenged by equally compelling contradictory reports. This review summarizes the phenomenon of adult hippocampal neurogenesis, the initial and continued evidence leading to the development of the neurogenesis hypothesis of depression, and the recent studies that have disputed and/or qualified those findings, to conclude that it can be affected by stress and antidepressants under certain conditions, but that these effects do not appear in all cases of psychological stress, depression, and antidepressant treatment. PMID:21937982
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Duller, Charles E.
1990-01-01
Satellite remote sensing technology is a tool with which archaeologists can, with relative ease, survey a region that is otherwise inaccessible. The northeast corner of the Yucatan Peninsula is such an area: it is isolated and sparsely inhabited, with dense forest and extensive swamps. From Cabo Catoche inland to Cancun, this remote corner of the ancient Maya world is virtually unexplored. Recent satellite images disclose evidence of past human activity in this unexplored region and offer a compelling argument for an archaeological reconnaissance.
Patient advocacy by rural emergency physicians after major service cuts: the case of Nelson, BC.
Fleet, Richard; Plant, Jeff; Ness, Rhonda; Moola, Shiraz
2013-01-01
Efforts at cost containment through regionalization have led to reduced services in several rural emergency departments (EDs) in Canada. As a result, questions have been raised about patient safety and equitable access to care, compelling physicians to advocate for their patients. Few published reports on physicians' advocacy experiences pertaining to rural EDs exist. We describe our experience of patient advocacy after major service cuts at Kootenay Lake Hospital in Nelson, BC. Despite mixed results, we suggest increased physician involvement in patient advocacy.
3D graphics hardware accelerator programming methods for real-time visualization systems
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Souetov, Andrew E.
2001-02-01
The paper deals with new approaches in software design for creating real-time applications that use modern graphics acceleration hardware. The growing complexity of such type of software compels programmers to use different types of CASE systems in design and development process. The subject under discussion is integration of such systems in a development process, their effective use, and the combination of these new methods with the necessity to produce optimal codes. A method of simulation integration and modeling tools in real-time software development cycle is described.
3D graphics hardware accelerator programming methods for real-time visualization systems
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Souetov, Andrew E.
2000-02-01
The paper deals with new approaches in software design for creating real-time applications that use modern graphics acceleration hardware. The growing complexity of such type of software compels programmers to use different types of CASE systems in design and development process. The subject under discussion is integration of such systems in a development process, their effective use, and the combination of these new methods with the necessity to produce optimal codes. A method of simulation integration and modeling tools in real-time software development cycle is described.
[The psychological analysis of patients with tinnitus].
Cai, Qing; Li, Jun; Tao, Zezhang; Huang, Zhiwu; Ma, Zhelan; Cao, Yongmao
2004-04-01
To investigate the psychological factor of tinnitus and assess the possible influenced aspects. To inspect the 95 cases with tinnitus by SCL-90, the 9 items were divided to 10 factors and compared to the Chinese normalizations. There were significant difference between 4 factors including: somatization, depression, anxiety, compel symptom and normalization (P<0.05). There were correlation between the emotion, age and educational level and psychological dysfunction of tinnitus. Psychoprophylaxis is the important factors to tinnitus, and the major influenced aspects are age, educational level and emotional stability.
Healthcare quality measurement in orthopaedic surgery: current state of the art.
Auerbach, Andrew
2009-10-01
Improving quality of care in arthroplasty is of increasing importance to payors, hospitals, surgeons, and patients. Efforts to compel improvement have traditionally focused measurement and reporting of data describing structural factors, care processes (or 'quality measures'), and clinical outcomes. Reporting structural measures (eg, surgical case volume) has been used with varying degrees of success. Care process measures, exemplified by initiatives such as the Surgical Care Improvement Project measures, are chosen based on the strength of randomized trial evidence linking the process to improved outcomes. However, evidence linking improved performance on Surgical Care Improvement Project measures with improved outcomes is limited. Outcome measures in surgery are of increasing importance as an approach to compel care improvement with prominent examples represented by the National Surgical Quality Improvement Project. Although outcomes-focused approaches are often costly, when linked to active benchmarking and collaborative activities, they may improve care broadly. Moreover, implementation of computerized data systems collecting information formerly collected on paper only will facilitate benchmarking. In the end, care will only be improved if these data are used to define methods for innovating care systems that deliver better outcomes at lower or equivalent costs.
40 CFR 1610.4 - Deposition Transcripts.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-07-01
... 40 Protection of Environment 32 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Deposition Transcripts. 1610.4 Section... INVESTIGATIONS § 1610.4 Deposition Transcripts. (a) Transcripts of depositions of witnesses compelled by subpoena... by the person conducting the deposition. (b) Such a witness, after completing the compelled testimony...
40 CFR 1610.4 - Deposition Transcripts.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR
2011-07-01
... 40 Protection of Environment 33 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Deposition Transcripts. 1610.4 Section... INVESTIGATIONS § 1610.4 Deposition Transcripts. (a) Transcripts of depositions of witnesses compelled by subpoena... by the person conducting the deposition. (b) Such a witness, after completing the compelled testimony...
Compelling Diversities, Educational Intersections: Policy, Practice, Parity
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Taylor, Yvette
2013-01-01
The ninth international Gender and Education Association Conference "Compelling Diversities, Educational Intersections" hosted by the Weeks Centre for Social and Policy Research, London South Bank University engages with key debates surrounding the interplay between dynamics of education, work, employment and society in the context of…
A novel spinal kinematic analysis using X-ray imaging and vicon motion analysis: a case study.
Noh, Dong K; Lee, Nam G; You, Joshua H
2014-01-01
This study highlights a novel spinal kinematic analysis method and the feasibility of X-ray imaging measurements to accurately assess thoracic spine motion. The advanced X-ray Nash-Moe method and analysis were used to compute the segmental range of motion in thoracic vertebra pedicles in vivo. This Nash-Moe X-ray imaging method was compared with a standardized method using the Vicon 3-dimensional motion capture system. Linear regression analysis showed an excellent and significant correlation between the two methods (R2 = 0.99, p < 0.05), suggesting that the analysis of spinal segmental range of motion using X-ray imaging measurements was accurate and comparable to the conventional 3-dimensional motion analysis system. Clinically, this novel finding is compelling evidence demonstrating that measurements with X-ray imaging are useful to accurately decipher pathological spinal alignment and movement impairments in idiopathic scoliosis (IS).
Compelled to do the right thing
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Fabiana Laguna, M.; Abramson, Guillermo; Iglesias, J. Roberto
2013-05-01
We use a model of opinion formation to study the consequences of some mechanisms attempting to enforce the right behaviour in a society. We start from a model where the possible choices are not equivalent (such is the case when the agents decide to comply or not with a law) and where an imitation mechanism allow the agents to change their behaviour based on the influence of a group of partners. In addition, we consider the existence of two social constraints: (a) an external authority, called monitor, that imposes the correct behaviour with infinite persuasion and (b) an educated group of agents that act upon their fellows but never change their own opinion, i.e., they exhibit infinite adamancy. We determine the minimum number of monitors to induce an effective change in the behaviour of the social group, and the size of the educated group that produces the same effect. Also, we compare the results for the cases of random social interactions and agents placed on a network. We have verified that a small number of monitors are enough to change the behaviour of the society. This also happens with a relatively small educated group in the case of random interactions.
Revealing W51C as a Cosmic-Ray source using Fermi-LAT data
Jogler, T.; Funk, S.
2016-01-10
Here, supernova remnants (SNRs) are commonly believed to be the primary sources of Galactic cosmic rays. Despite intensive study of the non-thermal emission of many SNRs the identification of the accelerated particle type relies heavily on assumptions of ambient-medium parameters that are only loosely constrained. Compelling evidence of hadronic acceleration can be provided by detecting a strong roll-off in the secondary γ-ray spectrum below themore » $${\\pi }^{0}$$ production threshold energy of about 135 MeV, the so called "pion bump." Here we use five years of Fermi-Large Area Telescope data to study the spectrum above 60 MeV of the middle-aged SNR W51C. A clear break in the power-law γ-ray spectrum at $${E}_{{\\rm{break}}}=290\\pm 20\\;{\\rm{MeV}}$$ is detected with $$9\\sigma $$ significance and we show that this break is most likely associated with the energy production threshold of $${\\pi }^{0}$$mesons. A high-energy break in the γ-ray spectrum at about 2.7 GeV is found with $$7.5\\sigma $$ significance. The spectral index at energies beyond this second break is $${{\\rm{\\Gamma }}}_{2}={2.52}_{-0.07}^{+0.06}$$ and closely matches the spectral index derived by the MAGIC Collaboration above 75 GeV. Therefore our analysis provides strong evidence to explain the γ-ray spectrum of W51C by a single particle population of protons with a momentum spectrum best described by a broken power law with break momentum $${p}_{{\\rm{break}}}\\sim 80\\;{\\rm{G}}{\\rm{e}}{\\rm{V}}/c.$$ W51C is the third middle-aged SNR that displays compelling evidence for cosmic-ray acceleration and thus strengthens the case of SNRs as the main source of Galactic cosmic rays.« less
Communicating the Needs of Climate Change Policy Makers to Scientists
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Brown, Molly E.; Escobar, Vanessa M.; Lovell, Heather
2012-01-01
This chapter will describe the challenges that earth scientists face in developing science data products relevant to decision maker and policy needs, and will describe strategies that can improve the two-way communication between the scientist and the policy maker. Climate change policy and decision making happens at a variety of scales - from local government implementing solar homes policies to international negotiations through the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Scientists can work to provide data at these different scales, but if they are not aware of the needs of decision makers or understand what challenges the policy maker is facing, they are likely to be less successful in influencing policy makers as they wished. This is because the science questions they are addressing may be compelling, but not relevant to the challenges that are at the forefront of policy concerns. In this chapter we examine case studies of science-policy partnerships, and the strategies each partnership uses to engage the scientist at a variety of scales. We examine three case studies: the global Carbon Monitoring System pilot project developed by NASA, a forest biomass mapping effort for Silvacarbon project, and a forest canopy cover project being conducted for forest management in Maryland. In each of these case studies, relationships between scientists and policy makers were critical for ensuring the focus of the science as well as the success of the decision-making.
34 CFR 31.7 - Hearing procedures.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-07-01
... authority to issue subpoenas to compel the production of documents or to compel the attendance of witnesses at an oral hearing under this part. The Secretary will attempt to make available during an oral... necessary, but that the official cannot attend an oral hearing to testify, the Secretary attempts to make...
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Sibille, L.; Mueller, R. P.; Niles, P. B.; Glotch, T.; Archer, P. D.; Bell, M. S.
2015-10-01
Aram Chaos is a 280-km-wide near-circular structure near the outflow channel Ares Vallis and Aureum Chaos. It is a compelling landing site for human explorers featuring multiple science ROIs with a compelling resource ROI with polyhydrated sulfates.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Childers, Gary L.; Ireland, Rebecca Weeks
2005-01-01
In education, there is no one best way to do anything. There are compelling reasons why some courses should be taught in longer segments of time, which the block schedule provides. There are also compelling reasons why some classes should be taught in shorter segments. At Watauga High School in Boone, North Carolina, an alternative schedule that…
Smith, Daniel L.; Robertson, Henry; Desmond, Renee; Nagy, Tim R.; Allison, David B.
2010-01-01
Objective The health and longevity effects of body weight reduction resulting from exercise and caloric restriction in rodents are well known, but less is known about whether similar effects occur with weight reduction from the use of a pharmaceutical agent such as sibutramine, a serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor. Results & Conclusion Using data from a two-year toxicology study of sibutramine in CD rats and CD-1 mice, despite a dose-dependent reduction in food intake and body weight in rats compared to controls, and a body weight reduction in mice at the highest dose, there was no compelling evidence for reductions in mortality rate. PMID:21079617
Criminal Evidence Act, 1992 [Excerpts. 7 July 1992].
1993-04-30
This Act amends Ireland's law on evidence to do the following among other things: a) in cases involving sexual or violent acts, allow a person under the age of 17 to give evidence by means of a live television link, unless the court sees good reason to the contrary; b) allow, upon a court's authorization, questions to be put to such a person in such a case by means of an intermediary; c) allow video recordings of interviews with children conducted by police officers or other competent persons to be admitted as evidence in such cases; and d) abolish the requirement that the unsworn evidence of a child must be corroborated and leave to the court's discretion whether to warn a jury about convicting a person on the basis of the uncorroborated evidence of a child. Additional provisions of the Act relate to the competence and compellability of spouses and former spouses to give evidence.
Pheochromocytoma: clinical review based on a rare case in adolescence
Alface, Marisa Maibel; Moniz, Patricia; Jesus, Susana; Fonseca, Cândida
2015-01-01
Pheochromocytomas are rare tumours originating in chromaffin cells, representing 0.1–1% of all secondary hypertension (HT) cases. The majority are benign and unilateral, characterised by the production of catecholamines and other neuropeptides. Mainly located in the adrenal gland, they are more frequent between the 3rd and 5th decades of life; however, 10–25% can be associated with genetic familial syndromes (multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2 (MEN 2), type 1 neurofibromatosis and Von-Hippel-Landau disease in younger ages. The authors present a rare case of secondary HT due to a pheochromocytoma in a 15-year-old patient, whose metanephrine assay confirmed the diagnosis, and abdominal ultrasound and CT localised the tumour in the adrenal gland. HT was controlled with α and β blockers, with posterior retroperitoneal laparoscopic surgical intervention and subsequent resolution of HT. Age and concomitant hyperparathyroidism compelled genetic testing for the exclusion of MEN 2, which was negative. PMID:26243750
Genomes in the cloud: balancing privacy rights and the public good.
Ohno-Machado, Lucila; Farcas, Claudiu; Kim, Jihoon; Wang, Shuang; Jiang, Xiaoqian
2013-01-01
The NIH-funded iDASH1 National Center for Biomedical Computing was created in 2010 with the goal of developing infrastructure, algorithms, and tools to integrate Data for Analysis, 'anonymization,' and SHaring. iDASH is based on the premise that, while a strong case for not sharing information to preserve individual privacy can be made, an equally compelling case for sharing genome information for the public good (i.e., to support new discoveries that promote health or alleviate the burden of disease) should also be made. In fact, these cases do not need to be mutually exclusive: genome data sharing on a cloud does not necessarily have to compromise individual privacy, although current practices need significant improvement. So far, protection of subject data from re-identification and misuse has been relying primarily on regulations such as HIPAA, the Common Rule, and GINA. However, protection of biometrics such as a genome requires specialized infrastructure and tools.
Teacher to Teacher: What Is Your Most Compelling Reason for Teaching Grammar?
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
English Journal, 2006
2006-01-01
This article presents compelling reasons from teachers why they teach grammar. Amy Benjamin from Hendrick Hudson High School says, she teaches grammar for two reasons. The first is that grammar instruction gives students metalanguage, "language about language." The second reason is that students are interested in language--its changes and…
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2010-05-25
... compelling need to attract order flow, imposed significant competitive pressure on that exchange's need to... competitive pressures on the ISE Order Feed and ISE's compelling need to attract order flow impose significant competitive pressure on the Exchange to act equitably, fairly, and reasonably in setting its fees. B. Self...
29 CFR 575.5 - Supporting data to accompany application.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR
2011-07-01
... REGULATIONS WAIVER OF CHILD LABOR PROVISIONS FOR AGRICULTURAL EMPLOYMENT OF 10 AND 11 YEAR OLD MINORS IN HAND... to the consequences of not meeting a compelling need for the employment of 10- and 11-year olds to... above, this would ordinarily demonstrate the compelling need for the employment of 10 and 11 year olds...
Eight Issues for Learning Scientists about Education and the Economy
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Roschelle, Jeremy; Bakia, Marianne; Toyama, Yukie; Patton, Charles
2011-01-01
Linking research to a compelling societal interest can build financial commitments to research, bring increased attention to findings, and grow support for scaling up impacts. Among many compelling societal interests that learning scientists can cite--such as increasing the quality of life, preparing citizens to make decisions in a complex world,…
Alaoui, I
2003-01-01
Neonatal and pediatric intensive care poses a major challenge in developing countries where the socio-economic level is low and health care resources are limited. Given the large size of the pediatric population as well as of great socio-cultural and symbolic importance of the child, there is a natural, compelling need for management of serious diseases in newborns and infants. The lack of timely disease prevention and treatment accounts in part for the frequency and severity of cases. Thus the status of intensive care units can exist in this setting is a pertinent question. The purpose of this study was to attempt to answer this question by surveying neonatal and pediatric care in developing countries based on experience in Morocco over the last 25 years.
Is Ego Depletion Real? An Analysis of Arguments.
Friese, Malte; Loschelder, David D; Gieseler, Karolin; Frankenbach, Julius; Inzlicht, Michael
2018-03-01
An influential line of research suggests that initial bouts of self-control increase the susceptibility to self-control failure (ego depletion effect). Despite seemingly abundant evidence, some researchers have suggested that evidence for ego depletion was the sole result of publication bias and p-hacking, with the true effect being indistinguishable from zero. Here, we examine (a) whether the evidence brought forward against ego depletion will convince a proponent that ego depletion does not exist and (b) whether arguments that could be brought forward in defense of ego depletion will convince a skeptic that ego depletion does exist. We conclude that despite several hundred published studies, the available evidence is inconclusive. Both additional empirical and theoretical works are needed to make a compelling case for either side of the debate. We discuss necessary steps for future work toward this aim.
Converging technologies in higher education: paradigm for the "new" liberal arts?
Balmer, Robert T
2006-12-01
This article discusses the historic relationship between the practical arts (technology) and the mental (liberal) arts, suggesting that Converging Technologies is a new higher education paradigm that integrates the arts, humanities, and sciences with modern technology. It explains that the paradigm really includes all fields in higher education from philosophy to art to music to modern languages and beyond. To implement a transformation of this magnitude, it is necessary to understand the psychology of change in academia. Union College in Schenectady, New York, implemented a Converging Technologies Educational Paradigm in five steps: (1) create a compelling vision, (2) communicate the vision, (3) empower the faculty, (4) create short-term successes, and (5) institutionalize the results. This case study of Union College demonstrates it is possible to build a pillar of educational excellence based on Converging Technologies.
Patterns of alcohol use and abuse among aging Civil War veterans, 1865-1920.
Achenbaum, W. A.; Howell, J. D.; Parker, M.
1993-01-01
Given the extent of alcoholism among elderly people, it is remarkable how little is known about the biomedical and social dimensions of alcohol use and abuse in late life. In the absence of compelling longitudinal data drawn from contemporary sources, a historical perspective may help to illuminate the incidence and consequences of alcohol abuse among the elderly. Based on a study of 370 case histories drawn from the National Military Home in Dayton, Ohio, which around the turn of the century was the nation's largest old-age home, it appears that alcohol's social ramifications were more important than its pathological or physiological manifestations in late 19th-century America. Drinking habits among aging Civil War veterans varied considerably: moderate consumption was acceptable; too much of a good thing caused problems. PMID:8472039
Empowerment Praxis: Community Organizing to Redress Systemic Health Disparities.
Douglas, Jason A; Grills, Cheryl T; Villanueva, Sandra; Subica, Andrew M
2016-12-01
Social and environmental determinants of childhood obesity present a public health dilemma, particularly in low-income communities of color. Case studies of two community-based organizations participating in the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Communities Creating Healthy Environments (CCHE) childhood obesity initiative demonstrate multilevel, culturally situated community organizing strategies to address the root causes of this public health disparity. Informed by a 3-lens prescription-Social Justice, Culture-Place, and Organizational Capacity-contained in the CCHE Change Model and Evaluation Frame, we present examples of individual, organizational, and community empowerment to redress systemic inequities that manifest in poor health outcomes for people of color. These case studies offer compelling evidence that public health disparities in these communities may effectively be abated through strategies that employ bottom-up, community-level approaches for (a) identifying proximal and distal determinants of public health disparities, and (b) empowering communities to directly redress these inequities. Guided by this ecological framework, application of the CCHE evaluation approach demonstrated the necessity to document the granularity of community organizing for community health, adding to the community psychology literature on empowering processes and outcomes. © Society for Community Research and Action 2016.
The forensic psychiatric report.
Norko, Michael A; Buchanan, Mar Alec
2015-01-01
The construction of a written forensic report is a core component of forensic practice, demonstrating the evaluator's skill in conducting the evaluation and in communicating relevant information to the legal audience in an effective manner. Although communication skills and quality of written documentation are important in clinical psychiatry generally, they form the sine qua non of successful forensic work, which consists in telling complex stories in a coherent and compelling fashion. High quality forensic reports require careful preparation from the earliest stages of work on a case. They generally follow an expected structure, which permits the evaluator to provide all the data necessary to form a carefully reasoned opinion that addresses the legal questions posed. Formats and content of reports vary according to the type of case and the circumstances of the evaluation and so require flexibility within customary frameworks. The style and quality of writing are critical to the crafting of forensic reports. The effects on legal decision-makers of various approaches to the presentation of information in reports has not been studied empirically, but guidance from experienced forensic psychiatrists is available. There is a small body of research on quality improvement in forensic writing, and further empiric study is warranted.
Assessing impacts of the WHO FCTC on national legislations: A case study of the Republic of Korea.
Lee, Sun Goo
2017-06-01
The World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) is an international treaty that was adopted in 2003 with the aim of addressing public health problems related to tobacco. The treaty is expected to bring substantial changes to global tobacco control because it has legally binding power over its signatory countries. However, its actual impact on national legislative processes, to date, has not been thoroughly examined. This article assesses the effect of the WHO FCTC on national tobacco legislation, with the Republic of Korea as a case study. This article also reviews whether and how lawmakers and government officials actually refer to the WHO FCTC as a justification for amending tobacco law after Korea ratified the WHO FCTC in 2005. This review shows that the WHO FCTC served as an important ground upon which to amend laws to strengthen tobacco control in Korea. The legally binding power of the WHO FCTC compelled lawmakers to comply with international standards. Furthermore, various tobacco control measures listed in the treaty have provided practical tips for Korean policymakers to refer to in designing tobacco control laws. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Bayer, Chris N; Luberda, Michael
2016-01-01
Incomprehension and denial of the theory of evolution among high school students has been observed to also occur when teachers are not equipped to deliver a compelling case also for human evolution based on fossil evidence. This paper assesses the outcomes of a novel inquiry-based paleoanthropology lab teaching human evolution to high-school students. The inquiry-based Be a Paleoanthropologist for a Day lab placed a dozen hominin skulls into the hands of high-school students. Upon measuring three variables of human evolution, students explain what they have observed and discuss findings. In the 2013/14 school year, 11 biology classes in 7 schools in the Greater New Orleans area participated in this lab. The interviewed teacher cohort unanimously agreed that the lab featuring hominin skull replicas and stimulating student inquiry was a pedagogically excellent method of delivering the subject of human evolution. First, the lab's learning path of transforming facts to data, information to knowledge, and knowledge to acceptance empowered students to themselves execute part of the science that underpins our understanding of deep time hominin evolution. Second, although challenging, the hands-on format of the lab was accessible to high-school students, most of whom were readily able to engage the lab's scientific process. Third, the lab's exciting and compelling pedagogy unlocked higher order thinking skills, effectively activating the cognitive, psychomotor and affected learning domains as defined in Bloom's taxonomy. Lastly, the lab afforded students a formative experience with a high degree of retention and epistemic depth. Further study is warranted to gauge the degree of these effects.
Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative—A case study in partnership development
D'Erchia, Frank
2016-10-21
The Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative (WLCI) is a successful example of collaboration between science and natural resource management at the landscape scale. In southwestern Wyoming, expanding energy and mineral development, urban growth, and other changes in land use over recent decades, combined with landscape-scale drivers such as climate change and invasive species, have presented compelling challenges to resource managers and a diverse group of Federal, State, industry, and non-governmental organizations, as well as citizen stakeholders. To address these challenges, the WLCI was established as a collaborative forum and interagency partnership to develop and implement science-based conservation actions. About a decade after being established, this report documents the establishment and history of the WLCI, focusing on the path to success of the initiative and providing insights and details that may be useful in developing similar partnerships in other locations. Not merely retrospective, the elements of the WLCI that are presented herein are still in play, still evolving, and still contributing to the resolution of compelling conservation challenges in the Western United States.The U.S. Geological Survey has developed many successful longstanding partnerships, of which the WLCI is one example.“As the Nation’s largest water, earth, and biological science and civilian mapping agency, the U.S. Geological Survey collects, monitors, analyzes, and provides scientific understanding about natural resource conditions, issues, and problems. The diversity of our scientific expertise enables us to carry out large-scale, multi-disciplinary investigations and provide impartial scientific information to resource managers, planners, and other customers” (U.S. Geological Survey, 2016).
De Wachter, Stefan; Wyndaele, Jean-Jacques
2008-04-01
To evaluate whether a compelling desire to void (CDV) is always perceived suddenly, or whether it can result from the gradual build-up of bladder-filling sensations. The pattern of filling sensations was evaluated during standard cystometric bladder filling in 75 patients who complained of urgency and showed detrusor overactivity during cystometry. Cystometric filling ended when a CDV was reported. The 'warning volume' is defined as the difference in volume between the first perception of filling and the volume at CDV. Different patterns of bladder-filling sensations were reported. A CDV occurred suddenly, without a preceding sensation in 13% of the patients, whereas 66% reported at least two normal preceding filling sensations before a CDV. The bladder volume at the CDV was significantly smaller in patients that reported no or just one preceding sensation compared with those that reported the normal pattern of two or three sensations (P < 0.005). The bladder volume at which the first filling perception was reported was not different regardless of whether it was described as a first sensation of filling, a first desire or a CDV (P = 0.42). The warning volumes were not different between patients with one or no standardized filling sensations (P = 0.7), but they were significantly smaller than in patients with two or three filling sensations (P = 0.85). A CDV can occur suddenly if normal filling sensation is disturbed, but also gradually if normal filling sensation is preserved. In cases of disturbed filling sensation, the volume at CDV and the warning volume are significantly lower.
Primack, Brian A.; Fine, Danielle; Yang, Christopher K.; Wickett, Dustin; Zickmund, Susan
2009-01-01
Although media literacy represents an innovative venue for school-based antismoking programming, studies have not systematically compared student impressions of these and traditional programs. This study utilized data from a randomized trial comparing these two types of programs. After each program, students responded to three open-ended questions related to their assigned curriculum. Two coders, blinded to student assignments, independently coded these data. Coders had strong inter-rater agreement (kappa = 0.77). Our primary measures were spontaneously noted overall assessment, enjoyment/interest and the likelihood of changing smoking behavior. Of the 531 participants, 255 (48.0%) were randomized to the intervention (media literacy) group. Intervention participants had more net positive responses [rate ratio (RR) = 1.27, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.05, 1.54], more responses rating the program as compelling (RR = 1.63, 95% CI = 1.16, 2.29) and fewer responses rating the program as non-compelling (RR = 0.62, 95% CI = 0.39, 0.97). However, the intervention group was not more likely to suggest that the curriculum was likely to change behavior positively (RR = 0.57, 95% CI = 0.30, 1.06). Findings suggest that although media literacy provides a compelling format for the delivery of antitobacco programming, integration of components of traditional programming may help media literacy programs achieve maximal efficacy. PMID:19052155
Compulsive overeating as an addiction disorder. A review of theory and evidence.
Davis, Caroline; Carter, Jacqueline C
2009-08-01
In this paper we argue that compulsive overeating has compelling similarities to conventional drug addiction. Our case is based on their comparable clinical features, the biological mechanisms they have in common, and on evidence that the two disorders have a shared diathesis. In making the argument for overeating as an addictive behaviour, it is clearly not appropriate to include all cases of excessive food consumption in this taxon. Nor are we claiming that obesity and addiction are one and the same. However, it is proposed that Binge Eating Disorder (BED) is a phenotype particularly well-suited to such a conceptualization, and that sound clinical and scientific evidence exists to support this viewpoint. We have provided some recommendations for treatment modifications that recognize the similarities between treating drug dependence and compulsive overeating.
Why History? Thinking about the Uses of the Past.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Stricker, Frank
1992-01-01
Discusses reasons for studying history. Suggests that compelling arguments for historical study will affect students' attitudes throughout life. Evaluates common rationales for studying history. Includes history as fun, tradition, great ideas, human folly, escapism, and nationalist legitimation. Urges that students be taught history as facts that…
Williams, Malcolm V; Lopez, Christian; Martin, Laurie T; Armstrong, Courtney
2017-01-01
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) laid the groundwork for a substantial increase in the number of people who have access to health insurance through Medicaid expansion or health insurance marketplaces. During the first open-enrollment season, states used a variety of strategies to reach out to and enroll newly eligible people. Typically, they used federal and state funding to develop navigator programs. Program design differed by location, and, although many stakeholders were involved in these efforts, state and local health departments (LHDs) were, and remain, a relatively untapped resource. This article is one in a series designed to highlight innovative models and best practices that leverage LHD involvement in ACA outreach and enrollment and to facilitate knowledge transfer to other geographic regions looking to leverage the full range of roles for LHDs in ACA outreach and enrollment. Each case study was designed to capture nuanced differences in how health departments support these efforts in their communities, identify facilitators and barriers to these approaches, and develop lessons learned from these activities. These studies identify compelling models for how state and local health departments can implement similar activities in their own communities. Further, they provide guidance and insight into the role LHDs can play now, and help redefine that role in the future, as states continue to enroll residents in health insurance coverage moving forward. This article focuses on a case study on New Orleans, Louisiana.
Design of Quasi-Terminator Orbits near Primitive Bodies
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Lantoine, Gregory; Broschart, Stephen B.; Grebow, Daniel J.
2013-01-01
Quasi-terminator orbits are a class of quasi-periodic orbits around a primitive body that exist in the vicinity of the well-known terminator orbits. The inherent stability of quasi-terminator trajectories and their wide variety of viewing geometries make them a very compelling option for primitive body mapping missions. In this paper, we discuss orbit design methodologies for selection of an appropriate quasi-terminator orbit that would meet the needs of a specific mission. Convergence of these orbits in an eccentric, higher-fidelity model is also discussed with an example case at Bennu, the target of the upcoming NASA's OSIRIS-REx mission.
Substance misuse prevention as corporate social responsibility.
Radacsi, Gergely; Hardi, Peter
2014-03-01
All sectors of society should be involved in reducing substance misuse, including businesses. However, the business sector is typically involved only to the extent that their products compel them to be (e.g., alcohol producers promoting responsible alcohol consumption). This article examines why business participation has been limited and how embedding prevention within a framework of health promotion could increase participation. It reviews both Hungarian and international cases, concluding that although corporate social responsibility (CSR) offers a framework to approach substance misuse reduction, a different perception of the role of the business sector is necessary to make it viable.
Dubbing SAGA unveils new epigenetic crosstalk.
Pijnappel, W W M Pim; Timmers, H Th Marc
2008-02-01
In a recent issue of Molecular Cell, two independent studies (Zhang et al., 2008; Zhao et al., 2008) provide compelling evidence that targeted deubiquitylation of histones is intimately linked to transcription activation, epigenetic regulation, and cancer progression.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Cassell, John A.; Nelson, Thomas
2010-01-01
This article discusses the contributions to this special issue of "Teacher Education Quarterly." At the core of all the contributions is the compellingly urgent realization that humanity is facing, and must deal with, enormous ecological and social problems and challenges. This situation has created an urgent and compelling need centered…
K-12 School Diversity and Social Cohesion: Evidence in Support of a Compelling State Interest
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Mikulyuk, Ashley B.; Braddock, Jomills H.
2018-01-01
Despite existing research that demonstrates the benefits of racial diversity in education, the Court has become increasingly disinclined to allow the use of race or ethnicity in education policy targeted to increase race/ethnic diversity, absent a compelling state interest. The debate over the merits of educational diversity has almost exclusively…
12 CFR 602.4 - How to make a request.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-01-01
... as we can. A compelling need means: (1) Someone's life or physical safety may be in danger if we do... Credit Administration. You may send it: (1) By mail to 1501 Farm Credit Drive, McLean, Virginia 22102..., that you have a “compelling need.” The FOIA Officer will tell you within 10 calendar days after...
Financial Considerations for Health and Safety in the Australian Dairy Industry.
Lower, Tony; Pollock, Kirrily
2017-01-01
This study aimed to quantify the burden of fatal and workers' compensation-related injuries on the dairy sector in Australia and to assess current financial inputs for work health and safety actions. The first and second phases entailed a review of the financial costs associated with fatal (2001-2013) and workers' compensation cases (2008-2009 to 2012-2013). The third element was a case-study approach focusing on actual production and cost data from a small sample of dairy farms (n = 6) to ascertain an estimate for current financial inputs to work health and safety. The estimated financial impact was approximately AUD$12.4 million each year, comprising AUD$6.8 million for fatalities and AUD$5.6 million for compensable injuries. All sample businesses were investing in health and safety initiatives; however, this was modest and on average represented 0.4% of total expenditure (AUD$4,472) or
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Behbahani, Siavosh R.; /SLAC /Stanford U., Phys. Dept. /Boston U.; Dymarsky, Anatoly
2012-06-06
We apply the Effective Field Theory of Inflation to study the case where the continuous shift symmetry of the Goldstone boson {pi} is softly broken to a discrete subgroup. This case includes and generalizes recently proposed String Theory inspired models of Inflation based on Axion Monodromy. The models we study have the property that the 2-point function oscillates as a function of the wavenumber, leading to oscillations in the CMB power spectrum. The non-linear realization of time diffeomorphisms induces some self-interactions for the Goldstone boson that lead to a peculiar non-Gaussianity whose shape oscillates as a function of the wavenumber.more » We find that in the regime of validity of the effective theory, the oscillatory signal contained in the n-point correlation functions, with n > 2, is smaller than the one contained in the 2-point function, implying that the signature of oscillations, if ever detected, will be easier to find first in the 2-point function, and only then in the higher order correlation functions. Still the signal contained in higher-order correlation functions, that we study here in generality, could be detected at a subleading level, providing a very compelling consistency check for an approximate discrete shift symmetry being realized during inflation.« less
Ultrafine carbon particle mediated cardiovascular impairment of aged spontaneously hypertensive rats
Background: Previous studies provided compelling evidences for particulate matter (PM) associated cardiovascular health effects. Elderly individuals, particularly those with preexisting conditions like hypertension are regarded to be vulnerable. Experimental data are warranted to...
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-04-01
... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Objections to discovery... RULES OF PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE Discovery Procedures for Matters Set for Hearing Under Subpart E § 385.410 Objections to discovery, motions to quash or to compel, and protective orders (Rule 410). (a...
Criminal enforcement of the Clean Water Act in the coal fields: United States vs. law and beyond
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Scott, P.B.; Bryant, S.B.
Criminal prosecution has become an integral part of federal enforcement of this nation's environmental laws. In fiscal year 1991, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reported record criminal fines. From 1987 to 1991, prison time and criminal fines imposed in cases investigated by EPA more than quadrupled. Many commentators have noted, often with chagrin, the trend toward more frequent criminal prosecution. The reasons for this upsurge are both straightforward and compelling. One is society's recognition that those who illegally despoil our environment for financial gain must be severely punished. The second and more compelling reason for prosecution is themore » dramatic deterrent effect that these cases can have. While civil fines undoubtedly affect corporate behavior, too often they can be dismissed as just another cost of doing business. Law stands for the proposition that a property owner's responsibilities under the Clean Water Act (CWA) are defined by the statute. There are no [open quotes]inherent[close quotes] preconditions to those responsibilities such as original production of the pollutants discharged or absolute knowledge of the discharge before purchase of the property. The important of Law for the CWA is that the statute's terms will be given their full force-even in criminal prosecutions. What does this mean for CWA enforcement in the coal fields Regulators and prosecutors now have the answers to questions that have plagued them for years. First, it is now beyond dispute that surface land owners are liable under the CWA for Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) discharged from point sources on their property. This is so even if the AMD is generated from abandoned sites or from subsurface property or other surface property in which the landowners have no interest.« less
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Olson, S. L.
2004-01-01
NASA's current method of material screening determines fire resistance under conditions representing a worst-case for normal gravity flammability - the Upward Flame Propagation Test (Test 1). Its simple pass-fail criteria eliminates materials that burn for more than 12 inches from a standardized ignition source. In addition, if a material drips burning pieces that ignite a flammable fabric below, it fails. The applicability of Test 1 to fires in microgravity and extraterrestrial environments, however, is uncertain because the relationship between this buoyancy-dominated test and actual extraterrestrial fire hazards is not understood. There is compelling evidence that the Test 1 may not be the worst case for spacecraft fires, and we don t have enough information to assess if it is adequate at Lunar or Martian gravity levels.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Olson, S. L.
2004-01-01
NASA s current method of material screening determines fire resistance under conditions representing a worst-case for normal gravity flammability - the Upward Flame Propagation Test (Test 1[1]). Its simple pass-fail criteria eliminates materials that burn for more than 12 inches from a standardized ignition source. In addition, if a material drips burning pieces that ignite a flammable fabric below, it fails. The applicability of Test 1 to fires in microgravity and extraterrestrial environments, however, is uncertain because the relationship between this buoyancy-dominated test and actual extraterrestrial fire hazards is not understood. There is compelling evidence that the Test 1 may not be the worst case for spacecraft fires, and we don t have enough information to assess if it is adequate at Lunar or Martian gravity levels.
Extraterrestrial Life: Life on Mars - Then and Now
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Arrhenius, Gustaf; Mojzsis, Stephen
1996-01-01
The recent claim to have identified possible signs of ancient life on Mars has been widely publicized and discussed. The authors conceded that none of the half-dozen pieces of evidence adduced in their paper individually provided strong support for extraterrestrial life, though they argued that the pieces added up to a case worth considering. Most - perhaps all - of the observed phenomena have counterparts in the inorganic world, so even the combination does not make a compelling case that there was ever life on Mars. Nevertheless, the importance of the problem has justified bringing the results to general attention. The paper has focussed interest on the origin and possible ubiquity of life, and on how we can design techniques capable of giving a more definitive answer to the question of whether there is, or has ever been, life elsewhere in the Universe.
Romani, R. W.; Kerr, M.; Craig, H. A.; ...
2011-08-17
Here, most pulsars observed by the Fermi Large Area Telescope have γ-ray luminosities scaling with spin-down powermore » $${\\dot{E}}$$ as $$L_\\gamma \\approx ({\\dot{E}}\\, \\times \\, 10^{33}\\,{\\rm erg \\,s^{-1}})^{1/2}$$. However, there exist one detection and several upper limits an order of magnitude or more fainter than this trend. We describe these "sub-luminous" γ-ray pulsars and discuss the case for this being an orientation effect. Of the 12 known young radio pulsars with $${\\dot{E}}>10^{34}\\, {\\rm erg\\,s^{-1}}$$ and d ≤ 2 kpc several are substantially sub-luminous. The limited available geometrical constraints favor aligned geometries for these pulsars, although no one case for alignment is compelling. In this scenario GeV emission detected from such sub-luminous pulsars can be due to a lower altitude, lower-power accelerator gap.« less
The business case for patient safety.
Hwang, Raymond W; Herndon, James H
2007-04-01
Recent trends have focused attention on improving patient safety in the United States healthcare system. Lapses in patient safety create undue, often preventable, morbidity. These include adverse drug events, adverse surgical events and nosocomial infections. From an organizational perspective, these events are both inefficient and expensive. Many safe practices and quality enhancing improvements, such as computer provider order entry, proper infection surveillance, telemedicine intensive care, and registered nurse staffing are in fact cost-effective. However, in order to fully achieve higher quality, better adverse event reporting and a culture of safety must first be developed. Increased provider recognition, models of success, public awareness and consumer demand are propelling improvements. As we will outline in this review of the current literature, the business case for patient safety is a compelling one, offering substantial economic incentives for achieving the necessary goal of improved patient outcomes.
Behavorial effects of subchronic inhalation of toluene in adult rats
Whereas the acute neurobehavioral effects oftoluene are robust and well characterized, evidence for persistent effects ofrepeated exposure to this industrial solvent is less compelling. The present studies sought to determine whether repeated inhalation oftoluene caused persist...
Incorporating leadership knowledge and skills into the dental education community.
Slavkin, Harold C; Lawrence, Lisa
2007-06-01
Leadership has been studied for the past four decades with an emphasis upon leadership and the transformation of various cultures, especially within the private sector. It is also becoming evident that leaders and leadership skills are often derived from core personal values and perceptions of what is and what could be. This summary describes an eleven-week selective course termed "Dean's Leadership Course" at the School of Dentistry at the University of Southern California. This selective course (a non-credit elective learning opportunity outside the formal curriculum) recruits a modest team of learners consisting of faculty, staff, and students and approaches leadership within the context of a "learning organization" coupled with case-based and problem-based learning. At the conclusion of this eleven-week course, participants are granted continuing education credit. This summary encourages others in dental education to consider the compelling opportunity to nurture and cultivate leadership within the university dental school environs.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Powell, John D.; Owens, David; Menzies, Tim
2004-01-01
The difficulty of how to test large systems, such as the one on board a NASA robotic remote explorer (RRE) vehicle, is fundamentally a search issue: the global state space representing all possible has yet to be solved, even after many decades of work. Randomized algorithms have been known to outperform their deterministic counterparts for search problems representing a wide range of applications. In the case study presented here, the LURCH randomized algorithm proved to be adequate to the task of testing a NASA RRE vehicle. LURCH found all the errors found by an earlier analysis of a more complete method (SPIN). Our empirical results are that LURCH can scale to much larger models than standard model checkers like SMV and SPIN. Further, the LURCH analysis was simpler than the SPIN analysis. The simplicity and scalability of LURCH are two compelling reasons for experimenting further with this tool.
An interdisciplinary approach to personalized medicine: case studies from a cardiogenetics clinic.
Erskine, Kathleen E; Griffith, Eleanor; Degroat, Nicole; Stolerman, Marina; Silverstein, Louise B; Hidayatallah, Nadia; Wasserman, David; Paljevic, Esma; Cohen, Lilian; Walsh, Christine A; McDonald, Thomas; Marion, Robert W; Dolan, Siobhan M
2013-01-01
In the genomic age, the challenges presented by various inherited conditions present a compelling argument for an interdisciplinary model of care. Cardiac arrhythmias with a genetic basis, such as long QT syndrome, require clinicians with expertise in many specialties to address the complex genetic, psychological, ethical and medical issues involved in treatment. The Montefiore-Einstein Center for CardioGenetics has been established to provide personalized, interdisciplinary care for families with a history of sudden cardiac death or an acute cardiac event. Four vignettes of patient care are presented to illustrate the unique capacity of an interdisciplinary model to address genetic, psychological, ethical and medical issues. Because interdisciplinary clinics facilitate collaboration among multiple specialties, they allow for individualized, comprehensive care to be delivered to families who experience complex inherited medical conditions. As the genetic basis of many complex conditions is discovered, the advantages of an interdisciplinary approach for delivering personalized medicine will become more evident.
Conservation Genetics of the Cheetah: Lessons Learned and New Opportunities.
O'Brien, Stephen J; Johnson, Warren E; Driscoll, Carlos A; Dobrynin, Pavel; Marker, Laurie
2017-09-01
The dwindling wildlife species of our planet have become a cause célèbre for conservation groups, governments, and concerned citizens throughout the world. The application of powerful new genetic technologies to surviving populations of threatened mammals has revolutionized our ability to recognize hidden perils that afflict them. We have learned new lessons of survival, adaptation, and evolution from viewing the natural history of genomes in hundreds of detailed studies. A single case history of one species, the African cheetah, Acinonyx jubatus, is here reviewed to reveal a long-term story of conservation challenges and action informed by genetic discoveries and insights. A synthesis of 3 decades of data, interpretation, and controversy, capped by whole genome sequence analysis of cheetahs, provides a compelling tale of conservation relevance and action to protect this species and other threatened wildlife. © The American Genetic Association 2017. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.
Lewkowicz, David J
2011-01-01
Since the time of the Greeks, philosophers and scientists have wondered about the origins of structure and function. Plato proposed that the origins of structure and function lie in the organism's nature whereas Aristotle proposed that they lie in its nurture. This nature/nurture dichotomy and the emphasis on the origins question has had a powerful effect on our thinking about development right into modern times. Despite this, empirical findings from various branches of developmental science have made a compelling case that the nature/nurture dichotomy is biologically implausible and, thus, that a search for developmental origins must be replaced by research into developmental processes. This change in focus recognizes that development is an immensely complex, dynamic, embedded, interdependent, and probabilistic process and, therefore, renders simplistic questions such as whether a particular behavioral capacity is innate or acquired scientifically uninteresting.
Lewkowicz, David J.
2011-01-01
Since the time of the Greeks, philosophers and scientists have wondered about the origins of structure and function. Plato proposed that the origins of structure and function lie in the organism's nature whereas Aristotle proposed that they lie in its nurture. This nature/nurture dichotomy and the emphasis on the origins question has had a powerful effect on our thinking about development right into modern times. Despite this, empirical findings from various branches of developmental science have made a compelling case that the nature/nurture dichotomy is biologically implausible and, thus, that a search for developmental origins must be replaced by research into developmental processes. This change in focus recognizes that development is an immensely complex, dynamic, embedded, interdependent, and probabilistic process and, therefore, renders simplistic questions such as whether a particular behavioral capacity is innate or acquired scientifically uninteresting. PMID:21709807
Do we need annotation experts? A case study in celiac disease classification.
Kwitt, Roland; Hegenbart, Sebastian; Rasiwasia, Nikhil; Vécsei, Andreas; Uhl, Andreas
2014-01-01
Inference of clinically-relevant findings from the visual appearance of images has become an essential part of processing pipelines for many problems in medical imaging. Typically, a sufficient amount labeled training data is assumed to be available, provided by domain experts. However, acquisition of this data is usually a time-consuming and expensive endeavor. In this work, we ask the question if, for certain problems, expert knowledge is actually required. In fact, we investigate the impact of letting non-expert volunteers annotate a database of endoscopy images which are then used to assess the absence/presence of celiac disease. Contrary to previous approaches, we are not interested in algorithms that can handle the label noise. Instead, we present compelling empirical evidence that label noise can be compensated by a sufficiently large corpus of training data, labeled by the non-experts.
Disease activity return after natalizumab cessation in multiple sclerosis.
Rasenack, Maria; Derfuss, Tobias
2016-05-01
Natalizumab (NAT) was the first monoclonal antibody to be approved for the treatment of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis. Its considerable and sustained efficacy has been demonstrated in two phase III studies. However, there are several reasons why its use is limited in clinical practice. The main argument for stopping use of the drug is the risk of the rare but serious progressive multifocal leukencephalopathy. Other reasons are neutralizing antibodies and pregnancy. There is compelling evidence from some clinical trials and many case series that disease activity returns upon suspension or cessation of NAT. Several therapeutic strategies that have been tested to prevent or reduce the recurrence of disease activity will be reviewed in this article. Considering these data, it is evident that the decision to stop NAT treatment has different implications and consequences. A subsequent therapy after cessation of NAT is needed to reduce the risk of disease recurrence.
Happier Together: Integrating a Wellness Application into a Social Network Site
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Munson, Sean A.; Lauterbach, Debra; Newman, Mark W.; Resnick, Paul
What are the benefits and drawbacks of integrating health and wellness interventions into existing online social network websites? In this paper, we report on a case study of deploying the Three Good Things positive psychology exercise as a Facebook application. Our experience shows that embedding a wellness intervention in an existing social website is a viable option. In particular, we find adherence rates on par with or better than many other Internet-based wellness interventions. We also gained insights about users' privacy and audience concerns that inform the design of social network-based wellness applications. Participants did not want all of their entries to be shared with all their Facebook friends, both because they did not want others to know some things and because they did not want to clutter others' newsfeeds. Users found it compelling, however, to interact with their friends around some "Good Things" they had posted.
A Journalist's View From the Bottom of the Earth
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Harris, R.
2003-12-01
Each year, a few journalists travel to Antarctica under the aegis of the National Science Foundation, to report about research at the ends of the earth. National Public Radio science correspondent Richard Harris took that trip in November, 2000. Listeners, readers and viewers are fascinated by exotic locales, so a trip to the ice provides an ideal backdrop to report on topics such as limnology and glaciology, which are otherwise unlikely to make the news. Journalists have to be flexible and creative - just as the researchers do - to overcome constraints imposed by weather and logistics. In this case, a trip to the West Antarctic Ice Sheet was canceled at the last minute and replaced with a trip to study the chemistry of an icebound lake in the McMurdo Dry Valleys. But the essential ingredient for a compelling story remained the same: Scientists, willing to endure hardship to pursue their passion.
Creating a Conference and Workshop Attendance Process with Teacher Collaboration
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Hironaka, Janet Hiroko
2009-01-01
This study aimed to build a professional learning community collaboratively among high school teachers for lifelong growth to minimize teacher isolation, discomfort, and fear. The study was driven by a compelling desire to extend personal learning in ways to impact the school learning community. The foundation for this study was the body of…
Developing Multiple Literacies in Academic English through Service-Learning and Community Engagement
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Askildson, Lance R.; Kelly, Annie Cahill; Mick, Connie Snyder
2013-01-01
Research on service-learning offers compelling evidence of the advances student learners make in moral development, orientation to prosocial behavior, and curricular content retention. But who are those student learners? Most studies focus on native, dominant-culture, dominant-language students serving marginalized populations. Studies of the…
Learning Outcomes Assessment: Extrapolating from Study Abroad to International Service-Learning
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Rubin, Donald L.; Matthews, Paul H.
2013-01-01
For international service-learning to thrive, it must document student learning outcomes that accrue to participants. The approaches to international service-learning assessment must be compelling to a variety of stakeholders. Recent large-scale projects in study abroad learning outcomes assessment--including the Georgia Learning Outcomes of…
The effects of two different incentives on recruitment rates of families into a prevention program.
Heinrichs, Nina
2006-07-01
This study experimentally manipulated two incentives for participation (monetary: paid participation for sessions and setting: group vs. individual) in a child behavior problem prevention program to analyze their effects on recruitment and retention of families. A population of 690 eligible families from 15 preschools located in socially disadvantaged neighborhoods was invited to participate in a parent training (PT) program. The study recruited parents by using advertisements that had information describing only the indicated condition (i.e., PT in group-unpaid, or PT individual-unpaid, or PT in group-paid, or PT individual-paid). Results demonstrate significant impact of payment on recruitment and initial attendance. Training setting alone (individual or group) did not significantly influence these rates. Editors' Strategic Implications: A compelling case is made for the utility of monetary incentives to increase proportions of low-income families in prevention research and programs. Evaluators and program designers should note the impressive use of the experimental design and hierarchical linear modeling to test the effects on recruitment.
Rayner, Peter J.; Burns, Michael J.; Olaru, Alexandra M.; Norcott, Philip; Fekete, Marianna; Green, Gary G. R.; Highton, Louise A. R.; Mewis, Ryan E.
2017-01-01
Hyperpolarization turns typically weak NMR and MRI responses into strong signals so that ordinarily impractical measurements become possible. The potential to revolutionize analytical NMR and clinical diagnosis through this approach reflect this area's most compelling outcomes. Methods to optimize the low-cost parahydrogen-based approach signal amplification by reversible exchange with studies on a series of biologically relevant nicotinamides and methyl nicotinates are detailed. These procedures involve specific 2H labeling in both the agent and catalyst and achieve polarization lifetimes of ca. 2 min with 50% polarization in the case of methyl-4,6-d2-nicotinate. Because a 1.5-T hospital scanner has an effective 1H polarization level of just 0.0005% this strategy should result in compressed detection times for chemically discerning measurements that probe disease. To demonstrate this technique’s generality, we exemplify further studies on a range of pyridazine, pyrimidine, pyrazine, and isonicotinamide analogs that feature as building blocks in biochemistry and many disease-treating drugs. PMID:28377523
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Flores-Koulish, Stephanie
2010-01-01
Media literacy compels us to look anew at the most mundane, that which surrounds us: the media and our popular culture. From there media literacy compels us to accept that the media are constructed and to seek various ways to analyze them, while considering our own beliefs to evaluate for ourselves an ultimate interpretation. This process has the…
Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR
2014-07-01
... reasonâ warranting extension of my authorized period for claiming an actual TQSE reimbursement? 302-6.105... is a “compelling reason” warranting extension of my authorized period for claiming an actual TQSE... problems (e.g., delay in settlement on the new residence, or short-term delay in construction of the...
Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR
2013-07-01
... reasonâ warranting extension of my authorized period for claiming an actual TQSE reimbursement? 302-6.105... is a “compelling reason” warranting extension of my authorized period for claiming an actual TQSE... problems (e.g., delay in settlement on the new residence, or short-term delay in construction of the...
Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR
2011-07-01
... reasonâ warranting extension of my authorized period for claiming an actual TQSE reimbursement? 302-6.105... is a “compelling reason” warranting extension of my authorized period for claiming an actual TQSE... problems (e.g., delay in settlement on the new residence, or short-term delay in construction of the...
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-07-01
... reasonâ warranting extension of my authorized period for claiming an actual TQSE reimbursement? 302-6.105... is a “compelling reason” warranting extension of my authorized period for claiming an actual TQSE... problems (e.g., delay in settlement on the new residence, or short-term delay in construction of the...
Nephrotic syndrome and neoplasm. The findings to date, with practical implications.
Papper, S
1984-11-01
The following points should be kept in mind in cases of nephrotic syndrome. Neoplasm (malignant or benign) occurs in approximately 10% of adults with nephrotic syndrome (15% of those over age 60). The neoplasm may be evident before, after, or simultaneously with the development of the nephrotic syndrome. Minimal change lesion in the kidney suggests possible Hodgkin's disease, while membranous nephropathy is more suggestive of possible carcinoma, although there are many exceptions to this generalization. Membrano-proliferative and focal sclerosis renal lesions also occur with diverse tumors. Strong evidence exists that in cases of carcinoma and nephrotic syndrome, the renal lesion is generally due to immune complexes--either tumor-associated antigens, fetal antigens, or viral antigens. In cases involving Hodgkin's disease, T-cell deficiency may be relevant in the genesis of the minimal change lesion and the nephrotic syndrome. Nephrotic syndrome often responds to effective treatment of the tumor and commonly recurs with relapse of the neoplasm. Nephrotic syndrome without apparent cause in an adult compels consideration of an associated neoplasm.
The investment case for folic acid fortification in developing countries
2018-01-01
Abstract There is compelling evidence that neural tube defects can be prevented through mandatory folic acid fortification. Why, then, is an investment case needed? At the core of the answer to this question is the notion that governments and individuals have limited resources for which there are many competing claims. An investment case compares the costs and benefits of folic acid fortification relative to alternative life‐saving investments and informs estimates of the financing required for implementation. Our best estimate is that the cost per death averted through mandatory folic acid fortification is $957 and the cost per disability‐adjusted life year is $14.90. Both compare favorably to recommended life‐saving interventions, such as the rotavirus vaccine and insecticide‐treated bed nets. Thus, there is a strong economic argument for mandatory folic acid fortification. Further improvements to these estimates will require better data on the costs of implementing fortification and on the costs of improving compliance where regulations are already in place. PMID:29363765
Risks and Benefits Associated With Antibiotic Use for Acute Respiratory Infections: A Cohort Study
Meropol, Sharon B.; Localio, A. Russell; Metlay, Joshua P.
2013-01-01
PURPOSE Antibiotics are frequently prescribed for acute nonspecific respiratory infections (ARIs), presumably to avoid small risks of progression to serious bacterial illness. However, even low risks of associated adverse drug events could result in many such events at the population level. Our objective was to assess the risks and benefits of antibiotic use in a cohort of patients with ARIs, comparing outcomes of patients who were prescribed antibiotics with outcomes of patients not receiving antibiotics. METHODS We used a June 1986 to August 2006 cohort of adult patients with ARI visits from a UK primary care database. Exposure was an antibiotic prescribed with the visit. Primary outcomes were hospitalization within 15 days for (1) severe adverse drug events (hypersensitivity, diarrhea, seizure, arrhythmia, hepatic or renal failure), and (2) community-acquired pneumonia. RESULTS The cohort included 1,531,019 visits with an ARI diagnosis; prescriptions for antibiotics were given in 65% of cases. The adjusted risk difference for treated vs untreated patients per 100,000 visits was 1.07 fewer adverse events (95% CI, −4.52 to 2.38; P = .54) and 8.16 fewer pneumonia hospitalizations (95% CI, −13.24 to −3.08; P = .002). The number needed to treat to prevent 1 hospitalization for pneumonia was 12,255. CONCLUSIONS Compared with patients with ARI who were not treated with antibiotics, patients who were treated with antibiotics were not at increased risk of severe adverse drug events and had a small decreased risk of pneumonia hospitalization. This small benefit from antibiotics for a common ambulatory diagnosis creates persistent tension; at the societal level, physicians are compelled to reduce antibiotic prescribing, thus minimizing future resistance, whereas at the encounter level, they are compelled to optimize the benefit-risk balance for that patient. PMID:23508604
Risks and benefits associated with antibiotic use for acute respiratory infections: a cohort study.
Meropol, Sharon B; Localio, A Russell; Metlay, Joshua P
2013-01-01
Antibiotics are frequently prescribed for acute nonspecific respiratory infections (ARIs), presumably to avoid small risks of progression to serious bacterial illness. However, even low risks of associated adverse drug events could result in many such events at the population level. Our objective was to assess the risks and benefits of antibiotic use in a cohort of patients with ARIs, comparing outcomes of patients who were prescribed antibiotics with outcomes of patients not receiving antibiotics. We used a June 1986 to August 2006 cohort of adult patients with ARI visits from a UK primary care database. Exposure was an antibiotic prescribed with the visit. Primary outcomes were hospitalization within 15 days for (1) severe adverse drug events (hypersensitivity, diarrhea, seizure, arrhythmia, hepatic or renal failure), and (2) community-acquired pneumonia. The cohort included 1,531,019 visits with an ARI diagnosis; prescriptions for antibiotics were given in 65% of cases. The adjusted risk difference for treated vs untreated patients per 100,000 visits was 1.07 fewer adverse events (95% CI, -4.52 to 2.38; P = .54) and 8.16 fewer pneumonia hospitalizations (95% CI, -13.24 to -3.08; P = .002). The number needed to treat to prevent 1 hospitalization for pneumonia was 12,255. Compared with patients with ARI who were not treated with antibiotics, patients who were treated with antibiotics were not at increased risk of severe adverse drug events and had a small decreased risk of pneumonia hospitalization. This small benefit from antibiotics for a common ambulatory diagnosis creates persistent tension; at the societal level, physicians are compelled to reduce antibiotic prescribing, thus minimizing future resistance, whereas at the encounter level, they are compelled to optimize the benefit-risk balance for that patient.
Luberda, Michael
2016-01-01
Incomprehension and denial of the theory of evolution among high school students has been observed to also occur when teachers are not equipped to deliver a compelling case also for human evolution based on fossil evidence. This paper assesses the outcomes of a novel inquiry-based paleoanthropology lab teaching human evolution to high-school students. The inquiry-based Be a Paleoanthropologist for a Day lab placed a dozen hominin skulls into the hands of high-school students. Upon measuring three variables of human evolution, students explain what they have observed and discuss findings. In the 2013/14 school year, 11 biology classes in 7 schools in the Greater New Orleans area participated in this lab. The interviewed teacher cohort unanimously agreed that the lab featuring hominin skull replicas and stimulating student inquiry was a pedagogically excellent method of delivering the subject of human evolution. First, the lab’s learning path of transforming facts to data, information to knowledge, and knowledge to acceptance empowered students to themselves execute part of the science that underpins our understanding of deep time hominin evolution. Second, although challenging, the hands-on format of the lab was accessible to high-school students, most of whom were readily able to engage the lab’s scientific process. Third, the lab’s exciting and compelling pedagogy unlocked higher order thinking skills, effectively activating the cognitive, psychomotor and affected learning domains as defined in Bloom’s taxonomy. Lastly, the lab afforded students a formative experience with a high degree of retention and epistemic depth. Further study is warranted to gauge the degree of these effects. PMID:27513927
Embryonic stem cells: testing the germ-cell theory.
Hochedlinger, Konrad
2011-10-25
The exact cellular origin of embryonic stem cells remains elusive. Now a new study provides compelling evidence that embryonic stem cells, established under conventional culture conditions, originate from a transient germ-cell state. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Fusarium mycotoxins: a trans-disciplinary overview
USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database
Due to health risks and economic losses associated with mycotoxins produced by plant pathogenic Fusarium species, there is a compelling need for improved understanding of these fungi from across diverse perspectives and disciplinary approaches. Phylogenetic studies have made tremendous progress in d...
Research of Simple Multi-Attribute Rating Technique for Decision Support
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Siregar, Dodi; Arisandi, Diki; Usman, Ari; Irwan, Dedy; Rahim, Robbi
2017-12-01
One of the roles of decision support system is that it can assist the decision maker in obtaining the appropriate alternative with the desired criteria, one of the methods that could apply for the decision maker is SMART method with multicriteria decision making. This multi-criteria decision-making theory has meaning where every alternative has criteria and has value and weight, and the author uses this approach to facilitate decision making with a compelling case. The problems discussed in this paper are classified into problems of a variety Multiobjective (multiple goals to be accomplished) and multicriteria (many of the decisive criteria in reaching such decisions).
The value of health care information exchange and interoperability.
Walker, Jan; Pan, Eric; Johnston, Douglas; Adler-Milstein, Julia; Bates, David W; Middleton, Blackford
2005-01-01
In this paper we assess the value of electronic health care information exchange and interoperability (HIEI) between providers (hospitals and medical group practices) and independent laboratories, radiology centers, pharmacies, payers, public health departments, and other providers. We have created an HIEI taxonomy and combined published evidence with expert opinion in a cost-benefit model. Fully standardized HIEI could yield a net value of dollar 77.8 billion per year once fully implemented. Nonstandardized HIEI offers smaller positive financial returns. The clinical impact of HIEI for which quantitative estimates cannot yet be made would likely add further value. A compelling business case exists for national implementation of fully standardized HIEI.
The Mysterious Illness of Dyce Sombre
Fisher, Michael H.; Haldipur, C.V.
2012-01-01
The alleged “madness” of the Anglo-Indian prince known as Dyce Sombre (1808–1851) has been attributed to anti-Asian prejudice, biased observations, and insensitivity to ethno-cultural variations in behavior. However, whereas all these factors may have contributed to misdiagnosis and mistreatment, there is compelling evidence pointing to an “organic” explanation for Dyce Sombre’s aberrant behavior. We posit that the interaction of drug toxicity and possible central nervous system infection were primarily responsible for Dyce Sombre’s clinical symptoms. The case provides an important lesson for modern-day psychiatrists confronting patients from other cultures who may also have underlying neuropsychiatric disorders. PMID:22567603
Occupational Exposures to Asbestos in Brazil.
Giannasi; Thébaud-Mony
1997-04-01
European and Canadian asbestos companies have long taken advantage of the lack of regulation of the asbestos industry in developing countries. Their activities exploit vulnerable workers whose lack of medical care may result in a silent epidemic of asbestos-related diseases. At this time, virtually all cases of asbestosis and asbestos-related cancers are not identified, reported, or compensated in developing countries. Brazil provides a compelling example of this growing problem. To stem the epidemic of asbestos-related diseases, Brazil, and many other countries, must adopt the total ban on asbestos use now in effect in more developed countries. Obstacles to accomplishing this in developing countries are daunting.
A new length scale for quantum gravity: A resolution of the black hole information loss paradox
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Singh, Tejinder P.
We show why and how Compton wavelength and Schwarzschild radius should be combined into one single new length scale, which we call the Compton-Schwarzschild length. Doing so offers a resolution of the black hole information loss paradox, and suggests Planck mass remnant black holes as candidates for dark matter. It also compels us to introduce torsion, and identify the Dirac field with a complex torsion field. Dirac equation and Einstein equations, are shown to be mutually dual limiting cases of an underlying gravitation theory which involves the Compton-Schwarzschild length scale, and includes a complex torsion field.
A 'compelling case' for bioliquids'.
Monaghan, Andrew
2015-04-01
Bioliquid is often overlooked by organisations when they look to reduce carbon emissions by moving heating or power generation away from fossil fuels to 'renewables'. According to Andrew Monaghan, commercial director at a specialist bioliquid producer, UK Renewable Fuels (UKRF), "although it doesn't have the glamour of some of the 'new' technologies, and bioliquids suffer something of a bad press from the environmental lobby, by any rational and informed reasoning, it really should be first on the list". Here he outlines why, as he puts it, 'second generation bioliquids should be the renewable of choice for many applications, as either the primary or a supplementary source of energy'.
Sathorn, C; Parashos, P; Messer, H
2008-02-01
The aim of this systematic review was to assess the evidence regarding postoperative pain and flare-up of single- or multiple-visit root canal treatment. CENTRAL, MEDLINE and EMBASE databases were searched. Reference lists from identified articles were scanned. A forward search was undertaken on the authors of the identified articles. Papers that had cited these articles were also identified through Science Citation Index to identify potentially relevant subsequent primary research. The included clinical studies compared the prevalence/severity of postoperative pain or flare-up in single- and multiple-visit root canal treatment. Data in those studies were extracted independently. Sixteen studies fitted the inclusion criteria in the review, with sample size varying from 60 to 1012 cases. The prevalence of postoperative pain ranged from 3% to 58%. The heterogeneity amongst included studies was far too great to conduct meta-analysis and yield meaningful results. Compelling evidence indicating a significantly different prevalence of postoperative pain/flare-up of either single- or multiple-visit root canal treatment is lacking.
Mohanty, Sachidananda; Tripathy, Radhamadhab; Palo, Subrat Kumar; Jena, Dhaneswari
2013-11-01
Currently there is an increasing trend of substance abuse in developing countries like India. This study attempted to identify the different predisposing factors, associated psycho-social and medical problems, prevalence and types of substance abuse in students. The study covered a cross-section of 720 students with an overall male to female ratio of 4.1:1. The majority of the sufferers were from middle socioeconomic class, aged between 15 and 19 years. Common substances of abuse were chewable tobacco and cannabis. The risk of abuse was more in hostellers hailing from broken families (62.5%). Friends had the highest influence (59%). Most of them (49.4%) tried multiple times to give up, but peer pressure (53%) compelled them to restart. In 60.8% cases the parents were completely unaware about this behavior. The commonly associated problems were psychological (34.3%) and medical (29.5%). Our study at the end points out major risk factors and their remedial measures to curb substance abuse. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd and Faculty of Forensic and Legal Medicine. All rights reserved.
Corina, David P.; Lawyer, Laurel A.; Cates, Deborah
2013-01-01
Studies of deaf individuals who are users of signed languages have provided profound insight into the neural representation of human language. Case studies of deaf signers who have incurred left- and right-hemisphere damage have shown that left-hemisphere resources are a necessary component of sign language processing. These data suggest that, despite frank differences in the input and output modality of language, core left perisylvian regions universally serve linguistic function. Neuroimaging studies of deaf signers have generally provided support for this claim. However, more fine-tuned studies of linguistic processing in deaf signers are beginning to show evidence of important differences in the representation of signed and spoken languages. In this paper, we provide a critical review of this literature and present compelling evidence for language-specific cortical representations in deaf signers. These data lend support to the claim that the neural representation of language may show substantive cross-linguistic differences. We discuss the theoretical implications of these findings with respect to an emerging understanding of the neurobiology of language. PMID:23293624
Large-Scale Discovery of Disease-Disease and Disease-Gene Associations
Gligorijevic, Djordje; Stojanovic, Jelena; Djuric, Nemanja; Radosavljevic, Vladan; Grbovic, Mihajlo; Kulathinal, Rob J.; Obradovic, Zoran
2016-01-01
Data-driven phenotype analyses on Electronic Health Record (EHR) data have recently drawn benefits across many areas of clinical practice, uncovering new links in the medical sciences that can potentially affect the well-being of millions of patients. In this paper, EHR data is used to discover novel relationships between diseases by studying their comorbidities (co-occurrences in patients). A novel embedding model is designed to extract knowledge from disease comorbidities by learning from a large-scale EHR database comprising more than 35 million inpatient cases spanning nearly a decade, revealing significant improvements on disease phenotyping over current computational approaches. In addition, the use of the proposed methodology is extended to discover novel disease-gene associations by including valuable domain knowledge from genome-wide association studies. To evaluate our approach, its effectiveness is compared against a held-out set where, again, it revealed very compelling results. For selected diseases, we further identify candidate gene lists for which disease-gene associations were not studied previously. Thus, our approach provides biomedical researchers with new tools to filter genes of interest, thus, reducing costly lab studies. PMID:27578529
State Department of Public Health v. Wells.
1989-09-07
The Alabama Court of Civil Appeals decided that under state law the results of an inmate's HIV-AIDS test remain confidential. The release of test results may be done by physicians or state health officers to third parties where the risk of disease transmittal is foreseeable, real, or probable. An inmate awaiting transfer from a county jail to a state prison voluntarily submitted to HIV testing, and the county sheriff sought to compel release of the results. Under the state Notifiable Diseases Act, the county could not compel testing of those inmates awaiting transfer, nor could it compel release of the results of that testing. The results are confidential unless the test is compulsory or the inmate gives written consent, and then the discretion to divulge the results resides in physicians or state health personnel rather than in the courts.
Aggarwal, M; Fisher, P; Hüser, A; Kluxen, F M; Parr-Dobrzanski, R; Soufi, M; Strupp, C; Wiemann, C; Billington, R
2015-06-01
Dermal absorption is a key parameter in non-dietary human safety assessments for agrochemicals. Conservative default values and other criteria in the EFSA guidance have substantially increased generation of product-specific in vitro data and in some cases, in vivo data. Therefore, data from 190 GLP- and OECD guideline-compliant human in vitro dermal absorption studies were published, suggesting EFSA defaults and criteria should be revised (Aggarwal et al., 2014). This follow-up article presents data from an additional 171 studies and also the combined dataset. Collectively, the data provide consistent and compelling evidence for revision of EFSA's guidance. This assessment covers 152 agrochemicals, 19 formulation types and representative ranges of spray concentrations. The analysis used EFSA's worst-case dermal absorption definition (i.e., an entire skin residue, except for surface layers of stratum corneum, is absorbed). It confirmed previously proposed default values of 6% for liquid and 2% for solid concentrates, irrespective of active substance loading, and 30% for all spray dilutions, irrespective of formulation type. For concentrates, absorption from solvent-based formulations provided reliable read-across for other formulation types, as did water-based products for solid concentrates. The combined dataset confirmed that absorption does not increase linearly beyond a 5-fold increase in dilution. Finally, despite using EFSA's worst-case definition for absorption, a rationale for routinely excluding the entire stratum corneum residue, and ideally the entire epidermal residue in in vitro studies, is presented. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Structuring U.S. Ground Forces to Meet All Threats
2008-04-30
After the Indians breeched the August 1868 treaty, Sheridan planned an offensive to gain control of the hostile tribes . He restricted operations...winter, compelled the majority to acquiesce45. Despite these major successes, a few tribes escaped and continued to attack white settlers through the...winter of 186946. Sheridan sent General George Custer with a small detachment of Indian scouts to find, meet with, and compel the remaining tribes
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-07-01
... 39 Postal Service 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false If an attempt is made to compel production of reports and records during the employee's testimony, what is an Office of Inspector General employee directed to do? 230.17 Section 230.17 Postal Service UNITED STATES POSTAL SERVICE ORGANIZATION AND ADMINISTRATION OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL Rules...
Do adult mental health services identify child abuse and neglect? A systematic review.
Read, John; Harper, David; Tucker, Ian; Kennedy, Angela
2018-02-01
Child abuse and neglect play a causal role in many mental health problems. Knowing whether users of mental health services were abused or neglected as children could be considered essential for developing comprehensive formulations and effective treatment plans. In the present study we report the findings of a systematic review, using independent searches of three databases designed to discover how often mental health staff find out whether their clients were abused or neglected as children. Twenty-one relevant studies were identified. Most people who use mental health services are never asked about child abuse or neglect. The majority of cases of child abuse or neglect are not identified by mental health services. Only 28% of abuse or neglect cases identified by researchers are found in the clients' files: emotional abuse, 44%; physical abuse, 33%; sexual abuse, 30%; emotional neglect, 17%; and physical neglect, 10%. Between 0% and 22% of mental health service users report being asked about child abuse. Men and people diagnosed with psychotic disorders are asked less than other people. Male staff ask less often than female staff. Some improvement over time was found. Policies compelling routine enquiry, training, and trauma-informed services are required. © 2017 Australian College of Mental Health Nurses Inc.
DNA barcoding in diverse educational settings: five case studies
Imondi, Ralph; James, Karen; Spencer, Diana; Steinke, Dirk
2016-01-01
Despite 250 years of modern taxonomy, there remains a large biodiversity knowledge gap. Most species remain unknown to science. DNA barcoding can help address this gap and has been used in a variety of educational contexts to incorporate original research into school curricula and informal education programmes. A growing body of evidence suggests that actively conducting research increases student engagement and retention in science. We describe case studies in five different educational settings in Canada and the USA: a programme for primary and secondary school students (ages 5–18), a year-long professional development programme for secondary school teachers, projects embedding this research into courses in a post-secondary 2-year institution and a degree-granting university, and a citizen science project. We argue that these projects are successful because the scientific content is authentic and compelling, DNA barcoding is conceptually and technically straightforward, the workflow is adaptable to a variety of situations, and online tools exist that allow participants to contribute high-quality data to the international research effort. Evidence of success includes the broad adoption of these programmes and assessment results demonstrating that participants are gaining both knowledge and confidence. There are exciting opportunities for coordination among educational projects in the future. This article is part of the themed issue ‘From DNA barcodes to biomes’. PMID:27481792
DNA barcoding in diverse educational settings: five case studies.
Henter, Heather J; Imondi, Ralph; James, Karen; Spencer, Diana; Steinke, Dirk
2016-09-05
Despite 250 years of modern taxonomy, there remains a large biodiversity knowledge gap. Most species remain unknown to science. DNA barcoding can help address this gap and has been used in a variety of educational contexts to incorporate original research into school curricula and informal education programmes. A growing body of evidence suggests that actively conducting research increases student engagement and retention in science. We describe case studies in five different educational settings in Canada and the USA: a programme for primary and secondary school students (ages 5-18), a year-long professional development programme for secondary school teachers, projects embedding this research into courses in a post-secondary 2-year institution and a degree-granting university, and a citizen science project. We argue that these projects are successful because the scientific content is authentic and compelling, DNA barcoding is conceptually and technically straightforward, the workflow is adaptable to a variety of situations, and online tools exist that allow participants to contribute high-quality data to the international research effort. Evidence of success includes the broad adoption of these programmes and assessment results demonstrating that participants are gaining both knowledge and confidence. There are exciting opportunities for coordination among educational projects in the future.This article is part of the themed issue 'From DNA barcodes to biomes'. © 2016 The Authors.
Folate and carcinogenesis-mechanisms
USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database
A large and growing body of both pre-clinical and clinical studies pertaining to colorectal neoplasms constitutes the most compelling evidence for the protective effect of folate against the development of cancer, although evidence is also accruing in this regard for cancers of the breast, lung, pan...
Innovation: Examining Workplace Learning in New Enterprises.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Fenwick, Tara
2003-01-01
A study of women entrepreneurs explored learning in the process of business start-up, conditions that foster innovative learning (challenge/variety, compelling social purpose, recognition and pride), and forms of innovative learning (generating multiple ideas, scanning, optimizing, problem solving, self-confidence). Innovative processes involved…
Cronin-Fenton, Deirdre P; Pedersen, Lars; Lash, Timothy L; Friis, Søren; Baron, John A; Sørensen, Henrik T
2010-01-01
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) prevent the growth of mammary tumours in animal models. Two population-based case-control studies suggest a reduced risk of breast cancer associated with selective cyclooxygenase-2 (sCox-2) inhibitor use, but data regarding the association between breast cancer occurrence and use of non-selective NSAIDs are conflicting. We conducted a population-based case-control study using Danish healthcare databases to examine if use of NSAIDs, including sCox-2 inhibitors, was associated with a reduced risk of breast cancer. We included 8,195 incident breast cancer cases diagnosed in 1991 through 2006 and 81,950 population controls. Overall, we found no reduced breast cancer risk in ever users (>2 prescriptions) of sCox-2 inhibitors (odds ratio (OR) = 1.08, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) = 0.99, 1.18), aspirin (OR = 0.98, 95% CI = 0.90-1.07), or non-selective NSAIDs OR = 1.04, (95% CI = 0.98, 1.10)). Recent use (>2 prescriptions within two years of index date) of sCox-2 inhibitors, aspirin, or non-selective NSAIDs was likewise not associated with breast cancer risk (Ors = 1.06 (95% CI = 0.96, 1.18), 0.96 (95% CI = 0.87, 1.06) and 0.99 (95% CI = 0.85, 1.16), respectively). Risk estimates by duration (<10, 10 to 15, 15+ years) or intensity (low/medium/high) of NSAID use were also close to unity. Regardless of intensity, shorter or long-term NSAID use was not significantly associated with breast cancer risk. Overall, we found no compelling evidence of a reduced risk of breast cancer associated with use of sCox-2 inhibitors, aspirin, or non-selective NSAIDs.
Anxiety Sensitivity and Panic Attacks: A 1-Year Longitudinal Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Li, Wen; Zinbarg, Richard E.
2007-01-01
The hypothesis that anxiety sensitivity (AS) is a risk factor for panic genesis has obtained compelling support, but the clinical/practical importance of AS in panic genesis has been questioned. In addition, the association between panic experience and AS increase has not been clearly demonstrated. Through this 1-year longitudinal study among…
Challenge-Based Learning: An Approach for Our Time
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Johnson, Laurence F.; Smith, Rachel S.; Smythe, J. Troy; Varon, Rachel K.
2009-01-01
Study after study documents the skills the American workforce needs to stay competitive in a global marketplace, yet increasingly employers are compelled to look overseas for those skills. The authors advocate for a different manner of thinking, focused on engaging students in work that is relevant to the world they see, encouraging them to take…
USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database
The responses of a selected soil microbial property to a single agricultural management practice are often inconsistent among field studies, possibly reflecting the site-specific nature of field studies. An equally compelling explanation is that in complex systems where outcomes are the result of n...
Relational Rurals: Some Thoughts on Relating Things and Theory in Rural Studies
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Heley, Jesse; Jones, Laura
2012-01-01
This paper considers how shifts within the social sciences towards conceptualising spatiality in relational terms have unfolded in rural studies in particular ways over the past decade or so. A period in which networks, connections, flows and mobility have all established themselves as compelling conceptual frames for research, the rural has…
Increased care demand and medical costs after falls in nursing homes: A Delphi study.
Sterke, Carolyn Shanty; Panneman, Martien J; Erasmus, Vicki; Polinder, Suzanne; van Beeck, Ed F
2018-04-21
To estimate the increased care demand and medical costs caused by falls in nursing homes. There is compelling evidence that falls in nursing homes are preventable. However, proper implementation of evidence-based guidelines to prevent falls is often hindered by insufficient management support, staff time and funding. A three-round Delphi study. A panel of 41 experts, all working in nursing homes in the Netherlands, received three online questionnaires to estimate the extra hours of care needed during the first year after the fall. This was estimated for ten falls categories with different levels of injury severity, in three scenarios, that is a best-case, a typical-case and a worst-case scenario. We calculated the costs of falls by multiplying the mean amount of extra hours that the participants spent on the care for a resident after a fall with their hourly wages. In case of a noninjurious fall, the extra time spent on the faller is on average almost 5 hr, expressed in euros that add to € 193. The extra staff time and costs of falls increased with increasing severity of injury. In the case of a fracture of the lower limb, the extra staff time increased to 132 hr, expressed in euros that is € 4,604. In the worst-case scenario of a fracture of the lower limb, the extra staff time increased to 284 hr, expressed in euros that is € 10,170. Falls in nursing homes result in a great deal of extra staff time spent on care, with extra costs varying between € 193 for a noninjurious fall and € 10,170 for serious falls. This study could aid decision-making on investing in appropriate implementation of falls prevention interventions in nursing homes. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Jones, Benedict C; Hahn, Amanda C; Fisher, Claire I; Wang, Hongyi; Kandrik, Michal; Han, Chengyang; Fasolt, Vanessa; Morrison, Danielle; Lee, Anthony J; Holzleitner, Iris J; O'Shea, Kieran J; Roberts, S Craig; Little, Anthony C; DeBruine, Lisa M
2018-06-01
Although widely cited as strong evidence that sexual selection has shaped human facial-attractiveness judgments, findings suggesting that women's preferences for masculine characteristics in men's faces are related to women's hormonal status are equivocal and controversial. Consequently, we conducted the largest-ever longitudinal study of the hormonal correlates of women's preferences for facial masculinity ( N = 584). Analyses showed no compelling evidence that preferences for facial masculinity were related to changes in women's salivary steroid hormone levels. Furthermore, both within-subjects and between-subjects comparisons showed no evidence that oral contraceptive use decreased masculinity preferences. However, women generally preferred masculinized over feminized versions of men's faces, particularly when assessing men's attractiveness for short-term, rather than long-term, relationships. Our results do not support the hypothesized link between women's preferences for facial masculinity and their hormonal status.
Clinic for Women, Inc. v. Brizzi.
2004-01-01
Court Decision: 814 North Eastern Reporter, 2d Series 1042; 2004 Sep 17 (date of decision). The Court of Appeals of Indiana held that a clinic's suit to enjoin the enforcement of an Indiana abortion law stated a valid claim with respect to violation of the state constitutional right to privacy, and also held that the abortion law did not violate the state constitutional right to freedom of speech. The Clinic for Women challenged the constitutionality of the law's informed consent and "two-trip" requirements. A lower court dismissed the suit for failure to state a claim. The Indiana Court of Appeals held that Indiana recognizes a right to privacy and remanded the case to a lower court to decide whether the "two trip requirement" materially burdened a woman's right to privacy. The Clinic claimed that the abortion law's informed consent requirement violated a constitutional right to freedom of speech because it compelled physicians to speak the state's message. The appellate court first found that the right to freedom of speech includes a right to refrain from speaking, also known as a right against compelled speech. Because the statute's informed consent requirement bore a reasonable and substantial relation to the legitimate state interest of promoting the health, safety, and welfare of women seeking an abortion, the requirement was a reasonable exercise of the state's police power and therefore did not violate the right to free speech.
On the shape of things: From holography to elastica
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Fonda, Piermarco; Jejjala, Vishnu; Veliz-Osorio, Alvaro
2017-10-01
We explore the question of which shape a manifold is compelled to take when immersed in another one, provided it must be the extremum of some functional. We consider a family of functionals which depend quadratically on the extrinsic curvatures and on projections of the ambient curvatures. These functionals capture a number of physical setups ranging from holography to the study of membranes and elastica. We present a detailed derivation of the equations of motion, known as the shape equations, placing particular emphasis on the issue of gauge freedom in the choice of normal frame. We apply these equations to the particular case of holographic entanglement entropy for higher curvature three dimensional gravity and find new classes of entangling curves. In particular, we discuss the case of New Massive Gravity where we show that non-geodesic entangling curves have always a smaller on-shell value of the entropy functional. Then we apply this formalism to the computation of the entanglement entropy for dual logarithmic CFTs. Nevertheless, the correct value for the entanglement entropy is provided by geodesics. Then, we discuss the importance of these equations in the context of classical elastica and comment on terms that break gauge invariance.
Impaired holistic processing of unfamiliar individual faces in acquired prosopagnosia.
Ramon, Meike; Busigny, Thomas; Rossion, Bruno
2010-03-01
Prosopagnosia is an impairment at individualizing faces that classically follows brain damage. Several studies have reported observations supporting an impairment of holistic/configural face processing in acquired prosopagnosia. However, this issue may require more compelling evidence as the cases reported were generally patients suffering from integrative visual agnosia, and the sensitivity of the paradigms used to measure holistic/configural face processing in normal individuals remains unclear. Here we tested a well-characterized case of acquired prosopagnosia (PS) with no object recognition impairment, in five behavioral experiments (whole/part and composite face paradigms with unfamiliar faces). In all experiments, for normal observers we found that processing of a given facial feature was affected by the location and identity of the other features in a whole face configuration. In contrast, the patient's results over these experiments indicate that she encodes local facial information independently of the other features embedded in the whole facial context. These observations and a survey of the literature indicate that abnormal holistic processing of the individual face may be a characteristic hallmark of prosopagnosia following brain damage, perhaps with various degrees of severity. Copyright (c) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Kistler, Amy L; Gancz, Ady; Clubb, Susan; Skewes-Cox, Peter; Fischer, Kael; Sorber, Katherine; Chiu, Charles Y; Lublin, Avishai; Mechani, Sara; Farnoushi, Yigal; Greninger, Alexander; Wen, Christopher C; Karlene, Scott B; Ganem, Don; DeRisi, Joseph L
2008-01-01
Background Proventricular dilatation disease (PDD) is a fatal disorder threatening domesticated and wild psittacine birds worldwide. It is characterized by lymphoplasmacytic infiltration of the ganglia of the central and peripheral nervous system, leading to central nervous system disorders as well as disordered enteric motility and associated wasting. For almost 40 years, a viral etiology for PDD has been suspected, but to date no candidate etiologic agent has been reproducibly linked to the disease. Results Analysis of 2 PDD case-control series collected independently on different continents using a pan-viral microarray revealed a bornavirus hybridization signature in 62.5% of the PDD cases (5/8) and none of the controls (0/8). Ultra high throughput sequencing was utilized to recover the complete viral genome sequence from one of the virus-positive PDD cases. This revealed a bornavirus-like genome organization for this agent with a high degree of sequence divergence from all prior bornavirus isolates. We propose the name avian bornavirus (ABV) for this agent. Further specific ABV PCR analysis of an additional set of independently collected PDD cases and controls yielded a significant difference in ABV detection rate among PDD cases (71%, n = 7) compared to controls (0%, n = 14) (P = 0.01; Fisher's Exact Test). Partial sequence analysis of a total of 16 ABV isolates we have now recovered from these and an additional set of cases reveals at least 5 distinct ABV genetic subgroups. Conclusion These studies clearly demonstrate the existence of an avian reservoir of remarkably diverse bornaviruses and provide a compelling candidate in the search for an etiologic agent of PDD. PMID:18671869
National Security Personnel System: An Optimization Strategy for Implementing Pay-for-Performance
2006-03-15
leaders who can be more nimble and more adaptive in an environment of unprecedented cultural change. Unfortunately, for Exelon, these were qualities...has been thrust upon them. Therefore, to effect a successful cultural change, DoD leaders will have to communicate a compelling reason for...additional level of risk perceived by their employees.30 Communication. Perhaps, the most important thing leaders can do is to articulate clear, compelling
Kirkemo, Harold; Newman, William L.; Ashley, Roger P.
1998-01-01
Through the ages, men and women have cherished gold, and many have had a compelling desire to amass great quantities of it -- so compelling a desire, in fact, that the frantic need to seek and hoard gold has been aptly named "gold fever." Gold was among the first metals to be mined because it commonly occurs in its native form -- that is, not combined with other elements -- because it is beautiful and imperishable, and because exquisite objects can be made from it.
'Innovation' in health care coverage decisions: all talk and no substance?
Bryan, Stirling; Lee, Helen; Mitton, Craig
2013-01-01
There has been much discussion recently about 'innovation', or more precisely the lack of it, in pharmaceuticals and devices in health care. The concern has been expressed by national guideline bodies, such as the Common Drugs Review in Canada and the National Institute for Health & Clinical Excellence in the UK, applying strict cost-effectiveness criteria in their decision-making and, therefore, failing adequately to recognize the full benefits that come from innovation. In order to explore the legitimacy of such claims, we first define innovation, and second, explore the basis for assuming an independent and separable social value associated with innovation. We conclude that demands relating to innovation, such as relaxation of thresholds and premium prices for innovatory products, remain hollow until we have a compelling case on the demand side for a separable social value on 'innovation'. We see no such case currently.
Gray, John R.; Gartner, Jeffrey W.
2010-01-01
Traditional methods for characterizing selected properties of suspended sediments in rivers are being augmented and in some cases replaced by cost-effective surrogate instruments and methods that produce a temporally dense time series of quantifiably accurate data for use primarily in sediment-flux computations. Turbidity is the most common such surrogate technology, and the first to be sanctioned by the U.S. Geological Survey for use in producing data used in concert with water-discharge data to compute sediment concentrations and fluxes for storage in the National Water Information System. Other technologies, including laser-diffraction, digital photo-optic, acoustic-attenuation and backscatter, and pressure-difference techniques are being evaluated for producing reliable sediment concentration and, in some cases, particle-size distribution data. Each technology addresses a niche for sediment monitoring. Their performances range from compelling to disappointing. Some of these technologies have the potential to revolutionize fluvial-sediment data collection, analysis, and availability.
Relative bioavailability of arsenic contaminated soils in a mouse model
Exposure to As contaminated soils compels extensive soil cleanups so that human health risks are minimized. In order to improve exposure estimates and potentially reduce remediation costs, determination of the bioavailability of As in soils is needed. The objective of this study ...
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Zeldovich, Yakov
1992-01-01
Reprinted from the original Russian manuscript of Yakov Zeldovich, this article chronicles his studies of the universe and his attempts to construct a theory of its evolution. He provides the high school student with compelling cosmological discussions about uniformity, galactic clusters, radiation, evolution, the big bang, and gravitational…
Teaching Qualitative Research to Practitioner-Researchers
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Cox, Rebecca D.
2012-01-01
Practitioner-researchers are well-positioned to apply qualitative methods to the study of significant problems of educational practice. However, while learning the skills of qualitative inquiry, practitioners may be compelled by forces outside of qualitative research classrooms to think quantitatively. In this article, the author considers two…
International Students' Confidence and Academic Success
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Telbis, Nicola Miky
2013-01-01
Research shows that the international student population is showing significant growth. Studies also show that foreign students are encountering difficulties such as social adaptability, language barriers, academic ability, and financial need. There is compelling evidence that establishes a correlation between a person's self-efficacy and his or…
A Demonstration of Sample Segregation
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Fritz, Mark D.; Brumbach, Stephen B.; Hartman, JudithAnn R.
2005-01-01
The demonstration of sample segregation, which is simple, and visually compelling illustrates the importance of sample handling for students studying analytical chemistry and environmental chemistry. The mixture used in this demonstration has two components, which have big particle size, and different colors, which makes the segregation graphic.
Compelling teaching with the four Cs: caring, comedy, creativity, and challenging.
Story, Lachel; Butts, Janie B
2010-05-01
The traditional classroom, particularly in nursing, often is stifling to students and teachers. A dynamic co-learning experience creates a potential to move students from merely obtaining knowledge to practice. This article presents an exemplar of the transformative learning process within the nursing education setting. The concepts forming this compelling teaching approach are caring, comedy, creativity, and challenging (the four Cs). Through this innovative teaching method, opportunities are created for authentic co-learning to occur.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Faginski-Stark, Erica; Casavant, Christopher; Collins, William; McCandless, Jason; Tencza, Marilyn
2012-01-01
Recent federal and state mandates have tasked school systems to move beyond principal evaluation as a bureaucratic function and to re-imagine it as a critical component to improve principal performance and compel school renewal. This qualitative study investigated the district leaders' and principals' perceptions of the performance evaluation…
Effects of Cooperative Writing with Embedded Multimedia: A Randomized Experiment
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Madden, Nancy A.; Slavin, Robert E.; Logan, Michele
2011-01-01
The present study represented an effort to improve on the outcomes of the Puma (2006) study by creating a writing process program that provided students with compelling video models of effective writing practices in small writing teams. In this method, called Writing Wings with Media (WWM), students worked in 4-member, heterogeneous writing groups…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Mitzman, Stephanie; Snyder, Lori Unruh; Schulze, Darrell G.; Owens, Phillip R.; Bracke, Marianne Stowell
2011-01-01
Recent National Research Council reports make compelling arguments for the need to incorporate spatial abilities and use spatial technologies throughout our educational system. We conducted a pilot study to determine the pedagogical effectiveness of teaching with geographic information systems (GIS) by using a web-based GIS tool of Indiana soils.…
National Qualification Frameworks: Developing Research Perspectives
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Fernie, Scott; Pilcher, Nick
2009-01-01
Arguments for National Qualification Frameworks (NQF) are compelling. Indeed, such frameworks are now an international phenomenon. Yet, few studies take a critical perspective and challenge the broad assumptions underpinning NQF. Arguments presented in this paper attempt to open a debate within the higher education community that draws attention…
Dimensions of Publicness and Performance in Substance Abuse Treatment Organizations
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Heinrich, Carolyn J.; Fournier, Elizabeth
2004-01-01
Changes in funding, clientele, and treatment practices of public and privately owned substance abuse treatment programs, compelled in part by increased cost containment pressures, have prompted researchers' investigations of the implications of organizational form for treatment programs. These studies primarily probe associations between ownership…
Nuclear Weapons and Communication Studies: A Review Essay.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Taylor, Bryan C.
1998-01-01
Reviews the body of work inspired by the late Cold War period, where nuclear weapons briefly became a compelling object for communication scholars. Considers the prospects for nuclear communication scholarship in post-Cold War culture. Discusses "nuclear criticism" and issues regarding the bomb in communication. (SC)
Emotion in Organizations: Resources for Business Educators
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Bowen, Janine L.
2014-01-01
The study of emotion in organizations has advanced considerably in recent years. Several aspects of this research area make calls for its translation into business curricula particularly compelling. First, potential benefits to students are significant. Second, important contributions to this scholarship often come from the classroom. Third,…
Follow-up of cases of Haemophilus influenzae type b meningitis to determine its long-term sequelae.
Ahmed, A S M Nawshad Uddin; Khan, Naila Z; Hussain, Manzoor; Amin, M Ruhul; Hanif, Mohammed; Mahbub, Mustafa; El-Arifeen, Shams; Baqui, Abdullah H; Qazi, Shamim A; Saha, Samir K
2013-07-01
To measure physical and neurologic impact of Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) meningitis on surviving children through short- and long-term follow-up. Cases of Hib meningitis, diagnosed at a tertiary level pediatric hospital, were subjected to short- and long-term follow-up and compared with age, sex, and area of residence matched healthy controls. Follow-up assessments included thorough physical and neurodevelopmental assessments using a standardized protocol by a multidisciplinary team. Assessments of short-term follow-up cohort (n = 64) revealed hearing, vision, mental, and psychomotor deficits in 7.8%, 3%, 20%, and 25% of the cases, respectively. Deficits were 10%, 1.4%, 21%, and 25% in long-term follow-up cohort (n = 71), in that order. Mental and psychomotor deficits were found in 2% of the controls, none of whom had vision or hearing deficits. In addition to risk of death, Hib meningitis in children causes severe disabilities in survivors. These data facilitated a comprehensive understanding of the burden of Hib meningitis, specifically in developing countries where disabled children remain incapacitated because of lack of resources and facilities. The evidence generated from this study is expected to provide a compelling argument in favor of introduction and continuation of Hib conjugate vaccine in the national immunization program for children. Copyright © 2013. Published by Mosby, Inc.
The Large Benefits of Small-Satellite Missions
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Baker, Daniel N.; Worden, S. Pete
2008-08-01
Small-spacecraft missions play a key and compelling role in space-based scientific and engineering programs [Moretto and Robinson, 2008]. Compared with larger satellites, which can be in excess of 2000 kilograms, small satellites range from 750 kilograms-roughly the size of a golf cart-to less than 1 kilogram, about the size of a softball. They have been responsible for greatly reducing the time needed to obtain science and technology results. The shorter development times for smaller missions can reduce overall costs and can thus provide welcome budgetary options for highly constrained space programs. In many cases, we contend that 80% (or more) of program goals can be achieved for 20% of the cost by using small-spacecraft solutions.
How intergenerational interaction affects attitude-behavior inconsistency.
Sekiguchi, Takuya; Nakamaru, Mayuko
2014-04-07
Social norms play an important role in maintaining social order, but at the same time, they can act as a constraint that compels people to take specific actions which run contrary to their attitudes. This paper treats the latter case: we investigate conditions in which attitude-behavior inconsistency persists, constructing mathematical models combining evolutionary games and cultural transmissions. In particular, we focus on the effect of intergenerational interactions. Our models show that both information about others' attitude (e.g., through social surveys) and the combination of intra- and inter-generational interactions are key factors to generate the situation where all people adopt the same behavior but different people have different attitudes. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Comorbidity of Asperger syndrome and gender identity disorder.
Kraemer, Bernd; Delsignore, Aba; Gundelfinger, Ronnie; Schnyder, Ulrich; Hepp, Urs
2005-08-01
The case of a 35-year-old biological woman with Asperger syndrome (AS) and gender identity disorder (GID) fulfilling DSM-IV criteria is reported. Against the background of recently emerging theories of cognitive male pattern underlying autism we present additional psychological assessments in order to discuss any possible interaction or discrimination between AS and GID. Whilst we explain GID as a secondary feature of AS, we examine the assumption of the necessity of treating GID in AS as a primary GID in accordance with international standards. We consider the treatment of GID as compelling, particularly because curative therapy for AS is lacking and with GID treatment in this vein, the patient gains psychosocial improvement.
Prejean, Stephanie G.; Haney, Matthew M.
2014-01-01
Most volcanic eruptions that occur shortly after a large distant earthquake do so by random chance. A few compelling cases for earthquake-triggered eruptions exist, particularly within 200 km of the earthquake, but this phenomenon is rare in part because volcanoes must be poised to erupt in order to be triggered by an earthquake (1). Large earthquakes often perturb volcanoes in more subtle ways by triggering small earthquakes and changes in spring discharge and groundwater levels (1, 2). On page 80 of this issue, Brenguier et al. (3) provide fresh insight into the interaction of large earthquakes and volcanoes by documenting a temporary change in seismic velocity beneath volcanoes in Honshu, Japan, after the devastating Tohoku-Oki earthquake in 2011.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Scowen, Paul A.; Tripp, Todd; Beasley, Matt; Ardila, David; Andersson, B.-G.; Maíz Apellániz, Jesús; Barstow, Martin; Bianchi, Luciana; Calzetti, Daniela; Clampin, Mark; Evans, Christopher J.; France, Kevin; García García, Miriam; Gomez de Castro, Ana; Harris, Walt; Hartigan, Patrick; Howk, J. Christopher; Hutchings, John; Larruquert, Juan; Lillie, Charles F.; Matthews, Gary; McCandliss, Stephan; Polidan, Ron; Perez, Mario R.; Rafelski, Marc; Roederer, Ian U.; Sana, Hugues; Sanders, Wilton T.; Schiminovich, David; Thronson, Harley; Tumlinson, Jason; Vallerga, John; Wofford, Aida
2017-07-01
We present the science cases and technological discussions that came from the workshop titled “Finding the ultraviolet (UV)-Visible Path Forward” held at NASA GSFC 2015 June 25-26. The material presented outlines the compelling science that can be enabled by a next generation space-based observatory dedicated for UV-visible science, the technologies that are available to include in that observatory design, and the range of possible alternative launch approaches that could also enable some of the science. The recommendations to the Cosmic Origins Program Analysis Group from the workshop attendees on possible future development directions are outlined.
Automatic Camera Orientation and Structure Recovery with Samantha
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Gherardi, R.; Toldo, R.; Garro, V.; Fusiello, A.
2011-09-01
SAMANTHA is a software capable of computing camera orientation and structure recovery from a sparse block of casual images without human intervention. It can process both calibrated images or uncalibrated, in which case an autocalibration routine is run. Pictures are organized into a hierarchical tree which has single images as leaves and partial reconstructions as internal nodes. The method proceeds bottom up until it reaches the root node, corresponding to the final result. This framework is one order of magnitude faster than sequential approaches, inherently parallel, less sensitive to the error accumulation causing drift. We have verified the quality of our reconstructions both qualitatively producing compelling point clouds and quantitatively, comparing them with laser scans serving as ground truth.
Insulin Pump Malfunction During Hospitalization: Two Case Reports.
Faulds, Eileen R; Wyne, Kathleen L; Buschur, Elizabeth O; McDaniel, Jodi; Dungan, Kathleen
2016-06-01
Insulin pump malfunctions and failures continue to occur; however, more severe malfunctions such as the "runaway pump" phenomenon are rarely reported. This article describes two cases of pump malfunction in which pump users appear to have received an unsolicited bolus of insulin resulting in severe episodes of hypoglycemia during hospitalization. Both cases of insulin pump malfunction occurred in the inpatient setting at a large academic medical center in the United States. An analysis of the corresponding insulin pump downloads was performed. The Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) Manufacturer and User Facility Device Experience (MAUDE) database was searched for similar cases involving Medtronic (Northridge, CA) insulin pumps using the terms "pump," "infusion," "insulin AND malfunction AND Medtronic." The two cases described show remarkable similarities, each demonstrating a severe hypoglycemic event preceded by an infusion site change followed by an alarm. In both cases a rapid spraying of insulin was reported. The insulin pump downloads validated much of the patients' and medical staff's descriptions of events. The FDA's MAUDE database search revealed 425 cases meeting our search term criteria. All cases were reviewed. Seven cases were identified involving independent movement of the reservoir piston. The cases detailed are the first to describe an insulin pump malfunction of this nature in the hospital setting involving unsolicited insulin boluses leading to severe hypoglycemia. The cases are particularly compelling in that they were witnessed by medical personnel. Providers and patients should receive instruction education on the recognition and management of insulin pump malfunction.
Compelled to Act: The Negotiation of Compassion Fatigue among Student Affairs Professionals
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Stoves, Douglas R.
2014-01-01
The purpose of the qualitative study was to identify the ways in which Student Affairs professionals in higher education in South Texas experienced and negotiated compassion fatigue through their everyday responsibilities. Research questions explored the development and experience of, and coping with, compassion fatigue. Grounded in Constructivist…
Burdened Children: Theory, Research, and Treatment of Parentification.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Chase, Nancy D., Ed.
Parentification is defined as compelling children to perform the role of parent at the expense of their own developmentally appropriate needs and pursuits. This book presents a comprehensive study of parentification in the family, covering both theoretical and clinical topics. Part 1 of the book details research related to parentification and…
Asian American Youth Language Use: Perspectives across Schools and Communities
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Shankar, Shalini
2011-01-01
Recent studies of Asian American youth language practices have presented compelling insights about the identities and migration experiences of young people of Asian descent. This article offers a detailed examination of the relationship between language use and select issues concerning Asian American youth, including social life, schooling,…
The Spatial-Numerical Congruity Effect in Preschoolers
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Patro, Katarzyna; Haman, Maciej
2012-01-01
Number-to-space mapping and its directionality are compelling topics in the study of numerical cognition. Usually, literacy and math education are thought to shape a left-to-right number line. We challenged this claim by analyzing performance of preliterate precounting preschoolers in a spatial-numerical task. In our experiment, children exhibited…
Counseling Psychology Trainees' Social Justice Interest and Commitment
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Miller, Matthew J.; Sendrowitz, Kerrin
2011-01-01
Scholars within the field of counseling psychology have for some time now articulated eloquent and compelling calls for attending to social justice in the social sciences. To date, counseling psychologists have been at the forefront of addressing social justice issues in research, practice, and professional development. The present study advances…
Virtual Learning: Is It Conducive to Student Achievement?
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Torain, Janie Mae Sheeley Johnson
2009-01-01
The use of technology to compel student learning has become an increasingly central component of teaching, learning, and school improvement efforts. What exactly does virtual learning entail? How does it integrate with curriculum and instruction? Does it present organizational challenges to educational institutions? This study examined unit test…
Conceptualizing Community Engagement: Starting a Campus-Wide Dialogue
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Starke, Anthony M., Jr.; Shenouda, Keristiena; Smith-Howell, Deborah
2017-01-01
Institutions of higher education are increasingly compelled to produce evidence that illustrates their contribution to society. In this age of demonstrating value, self-assessment is critical for urban and metropolitan universities. This study will explore the design and implementation of a landscape analysis--phase one of an in-depth…
The Impact of No Child Left Behind on Student Achievement
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Dee, Thomas S.; Jacob, Brian
2011-01-01
The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act compelled states to design school accountability systems based on annual student assessments. The effect of this federal legislation on the distribution of student achievement is a highly controversial but centrally important question. This study presents evidence on whether NCLB has influenced student…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Arteaga, Brenda
2011-01-01
Creating a healthier school in today's world of budget cuts and seemingly endless to-do lists is not only possible, but it is also imperative. Beyond the health implications, one of the most compelling reasons for creating healthier schools is that wellness serves as a power booster for learning. Numerous studies have documented what educators…
On the Importance of Coherence in the Study of Character Development
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Callina, Kristina Schmid; Lerner, Richard M.
2017-01-01
Nucci (this issue) gives a compelling conceptualization of the ideas needed to understand character as a multifaceted developmental system. In this article, we focus on the idea of coherence as it applies to understanding character development, education, and assessment. Using ideas from relational developmental systems (RDS) metatheory, we…
Medication Administration: Measuring Associate Degree Nursing Student Knowledge
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Crowell, Debra L.
2016-01-01
The American Nurse Association's (ANA) provisions outline the commitment expected of nurses to protect the community from harm. Medication administration coincides with patient safety as a compelling obligation in nursing practice. The study's purpose was to examine retention of medication safety knowledge among first year nursing students, after…
Engagement with Young Adult Literature: Outcomes and Processes
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Ivey, Gay; Johnston, Peter H.
2013-01-01
This study examines students' perceptions of the outcomes and processes of engaged reading in classrooms prioritizing engagement through self-selected, self-paced reading of compelling young adult literature. The primary data were 71 end-of-year student interviews, supported by end-of-year teacher interviews, biweekly observational data,…
The Challenge of Assessing Project-Based Learning
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Boss, Suzie
2012-01-01
For their ambitious project, called America at War, high school juniors at Da Vinci Charter Academy in the Davis (California) Joint Unified School District didn't just study history. They became historians. Their project offers compelling evidence of what students can accomplish through project-based learning (PBL), an instructional approach that…
Faculty Technology Adoption and Integration: Motivations and Consequences
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Mrabet, Khalid
2009-01-01
In recent years, technology integration has become one of the top priorities at higher education institutions. Consequently, faculty members found themselves compelled to integrate computers and other technology into their teaching, research, and public service. The purpose of this qualitative study was to gain an understanding of some of the…
Brazilian and Nigerian International Students' Conceptions of Learning in Higher Education
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Ashong, Carol; Commander, Nannette
2017-01-01
The growth of international students compels examination of introspective aspects of learning experiences such as conceptions of learning. Additionally, learning conceptions profoundly impact learning outcomes (Tsai, 2009). To address the lack of research on learning conceptions of students from Africa and South America, this study examines…
Affordance of English-Medium Instruction Contexts in Taiwan
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Huang, Yi-Ping; Jhuang, Wun-Ting
2015-01-01
The proliferation of English-medium instruction (EMI) in nonnative English-speaking (NNES) contexts has compelled researchers to explore the challenges students face in such environments. Mostly quantitative in nature with foci on language-related difficulties in one type of institution or curriculum, these studies obscure the complexity of NNES…
Family Stress and Coping for Mexican Origin Adolescents
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Liu, Freda F.; Gonzales, Nancy A.; Fernandez, Aida Cristina; Millsap, Roger E.; Dumka, Larry E.
2011-01-01
Family-related stressors pose special challenges for adolescents of Mexican origin, given traditional cultural norms that compel youths to get involved with family problems despite their limited ability to effect change. The current study examines the prospective effects of coping strategies (i.e., active, distraction, avoidance, support-seeking,…
Amante, Tariku Dingeta; Ahemed, Tekabe Abdosh
2015-01-01
Unsuccessful TB treatment outcome is a serious public health concern. It is compelling to identify, and deal with factors determining unsuccessful treatment outcome. Therefore, study was aimed to determine pattern of unsuccessful TB treatment outcome and associated factors in eastern Ethiopia. A case control study was used. Cases were records of TB patients registered as defaulter, dead and/or treatment failure where as controls were those cured or treatment complete. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to derive adjusted odds ratios (OR) at 95% CI to examine the relationship between the unsuccessful TB treatment outcome and patients' characteristics. A total of 990 sample size (330 cases and 660 controls) were included. Among cases (n = 330), majority 212(64.2%) were because of death, 100(30.3%) defaulters and 18(5.5%) were treatment failure. Lack of contact person(OR = 1.37; 95% CI 1.14-2.9, P, .024), sputum smear negative treatment category at initiation of treatment (OR = 1.8; 95% CI 1.3-5.5,P, .028), smear positive sputum test result at 2(nd) month after initiation treatment (OR = 14; 95% CI 5.5-36, P,0.001) and HIV positive status (OR = 2.5; 95% CI 1.34-5.7, P, 0.01) were independently associated with increased risk of unsuccessful TB treatment outcome. Death was the major cause of unsuccessful TB treatment outcome. TB patients do not have contact person, sputum smear negative treatment category at initiation of treatment, smear positive on 2(nd) month after treatment initiation and HIV positive were factors significantly associated unsuccessful treatment outcome. TB patients with sputum smear negative treatment category, HIV positive and smear positive on 2(nd) nd month of treatment initiation need strict follow up throughout DOTs period.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Richart, Adrienne F.
2015-01-01
Several compelling rationales have driven dramatic increases in the number of students that U.S. American postsecondary institutions send abroad each year. The rationales are political, academic, cultural/social, and economic in nature and undeniably integral to developing graduates who are prepared to compete in the global arena. This study was…
Individual differences: Case studies of rodent and primate intelligence.
Matzel, Louis D; Sauce, Bruno
2017-10-01
Early in the 20th century, individual differences were a central focus of psychologists. By the end of that century, studies of individual differences had become far less common, and attention to these differences played little role in the development of contemporary theory. To illustrate the important role of individual differences, here we consider variations in intelligence as a compelling example. General intelligence (g) has now been demonstrated in at least 2 distinct genera: primates (including humans, chimpanzees, bonobos, and tamarins) and rodents (mice and rats). The expression of general intelligence varies widely across individuals within a species; these variations have tremendous functional consequence, and are attributable to interactions of genes and environment. Here we provide evidence for these assertions, describe the processes that contribute to variations in general intelligence, as well as the methods that underlie the analysis of individual differences. We conclude by describing why consideration of individual differences is critical to our understanding of learning, cognition, and behavior, and illustrate how attention to individual differences can contribute to more effective administration of therapeutic strategies for psychological disorders. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).
Clinical presentation and manual therapy for lower quadrant musculoskeletal conditions.
Courtney, Carol A; Clark, Jeffrey D; Duncombe, Alison M; O'Hearn, Michael A
2011-11-01
Chronic lower quadrant injuries constitute a significant percentage of the musculoskeletal cases seen by clinicians. While impairments may vary, pain is often the factor that compels the patient to seek medical attention. Traumatic injury from sport is one cause of progressive chronic joint pain, particularly in the lower quarter. Recent studies have demonstrated the presence of peripheral and central sensitization mechanisms in different lower quadrant pain syndromes, such as lumbar spine related leg pain, osteoarthritis of the knee, and following acute injuries such as lateral ankle sprain and anterior cruciate ligament rupture. Proper management of lower quarter conditions should include assessment of balance and gait as increasing pain and chronicity may lead to altered gait patterns and falls. In addition, quantitative sensory testing may provide insight into pain mechanisms which affect management and prognosis of musculoskeletal conditions. Studies have demonstrated analgesic effects and modulation of spinal excitability with use of manual therapy techniques, with clinical outcomes of improved gait and functional ability. This paper will discuss the evidence which supports the use of manual therapy for lower quarter musculoskeletal dysfunction.
Evolution of a Materials Data Infrastructure
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Warren, James A.; Ward, Charles H.
2018-06-01
The field of materials science and engineering is writing a new chapter in its evolution, one of digitally empowered materials discovery, development, and deployment. The 2008 Integrated Computational Materials Engineering (ICME) study report helped usher in this paradigm shift, making a compelling case and strong recommendations for an infrastructure supporting ICME that would enable access to precompetitive materials data for both scientific and engineering applications. With the launch of the Materials Genome Initiative in 2011, which drew substantial inspiration from the ICME study, digital data was highlighted as a core component of a Materials Innovation Infrastructure, along with experimental and computational tools. Over the past 10 years, our understanding of what it takes to provide accessible materials data has matured and rapid progress has been made in establishing a Materials Data Infrastructure (MDI). We are learning that the MDI is essential to eliminating the seams between experiment and computation by providing a means for them to connect effortlessly. Additionally, the MDI is becoming an enabler, allowing materials engineering to tie into a much broader model-based engineering enterprise for product design.
Lehrer, Jocelyn A.; Lehrer, Evelyn L.; Zhao, Zhenxiang
2010-01-01
Numerous studies have documented high levels of intimate partner violence in Chile. Yet to date, research and prevention/ response programs have focused almost exclusively on cohabiting and married couples. This study presents a comparative analysis of dating violence prevalence in a sample of male and female college students in Chile and describes the contexts in which such violence takes place. Based on a survey of students enrolled in general education courses at a large, public university in Santiago during the Winter 2005 term (n= 484 women, 466 men), we find a high prevalence of physical and psychological dating violence, with patterns resembling those documented for other countries. We also find a high prevalence of having witnessed interparental violence during childhood. Our results present a compelling case for not continuing to neglect dating violence in Chile and other Latin-American countries: further research in this area, and the development and evaluation of prevention programs for youth, could go far in reducing the opportunity for aggression to become an established style of conflict resolution. PMID:20183699
Episodic memory, semantic memory, and amnesia.
Squire, L R; Zola, S M
1998-01-01
Episodic memory and semantic memory are two types of declarative memory. There have been two principal views about how this distinction might be reflected in the organization of memory functions in the brain. One view, that episodic memory and semantic memory are both dependent on the integrity of medial temporal lobe and midline diencephalic structures, predicts that amnesic patients with medial temporal lobe/diencephalic damage should be proportionately impaired in both episodic and semantic memory. An alternative view is that the capacity for semantic memory is spared, or partially spared, in amnesia relative to episodic memory ability. This article reviews two kinds of relevant data: 1) case studies where amnesia has occurred early in childhood, before much of an individual's semantic knowledge has been acquired, and 2) experimental studies with amnesic patients of fact and event learning, remembering and knowing, and remote memory. The data provide no compelling support for the view that episodic and semantic memory are affected differently in medial temporal lobe/diencephalic amnesia. However, episodic and semantic memory may be dissociable in those amnesic patients who additionally have severe frontal lobe damage.
A visualization framework for design and evaluation
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Blundell, Benjamin J.; Ng, Gary; Pettifer, Steve
2006-01-01
The creation of compelling visualisation paradigms is a craft often dominated by intuition and issues of aesthetics, with relatively few models to support good design. The majority of problem cases are approached by simply applying a previously evaluated visualisation technique. A large body of work exists covering the individual aspects of visualisation design such as the human cognition aspects visualisation methods for specific problem areas, psychology studies and so forth, yet most frameworks regarding visualisation are applied after-the-fact as an evaluation measure. We present an extensible framework for visualisation aimed at structuring the design process, increasing decision traceability and delineating the notions of function, aesthetics and usability. The framework can be used to derive a set of requirements for good visualisation design and evaluating existing visualisations, presenting possible improvements. Our framework achieves this by being both broad and general, built on top of existing works, with hooks for extensions and customizations. This paper shows how existing theories of information visualisation fit into the scheme, presents our experience in the application of this framework on several designs, and offers our evaluation of the framework and the designs studied.
Fish and robots swimming together: attraction towards the robot demands biomimetic locomotion
Marras, Stefano; Porfiri, Maurizio
2012-01-01
The integration of biomimetic robots in a fish school may enable a better understanding of collective behaviour, offering a new experimental method to test group feedback in response to behavioural modulations of its ‘engineered’ member. Here, we analyse a robotic fish and individual golden shiners (Notemigonus crysoleucas) swimming together in a water tunnel at different flow velocities. We determine the positional preference of fish with respect to the robot, and we study the flow structure using a digital particle image velocimetry system. We find that biomimetic locomotion is a determinant of fish preference as fish are more attracted towards the robot when its tail is beating rather than when it is statically immersed in the water as a ‘dummy’. At specific conditions, the fish hold station behind the robot, which may be due to the hydrodynamic advantage obtained by swimming in the robot's wake. This work makes a compelling case for the need of biomimetic locomotion in promoting robot–animal interactions and it strengthens the hypothesis that biomimetic robots can be used to study and modulate collective animal behaviour. PMID:22356819
Fish and robots swimming together: attraction towards the robot demands biomimetic locomotion.
Marras, Stefano; Porfiri, Maurizio
2012-08-07
The integration of biomimetic robots in a fish school may enable a better understanding of collective behaviour, offering a new experimental method to test group feedback in response to behavioural modulations of its 'engineered' member. Here, we analyse a robotic fish and individual golden shiners (Notemigonus crysoleucas) swimming together in a water tunnel at different flow velocities. We determine the positional preference of fish with respect to the robot, and we study the flow structure using a digital particle image velocimetry system. We find that biomimetic locomotion is a determinant of fish preference as fish are more attracted towards the robot when its tail is beating rather than when it is statically immersed in the water as a 'dummy'. At specific conditions, the fish hold station behind the robot, which may be due to the hydrodynamic advantage obtained by swimming in the robot's wake. This work makes a compelling case for the need of biomimetic locomotion in promoting robot-animal interactions and it strengthens the hypothesis that biomimetic robots can be used to study and modulate collective animal behaviour.
Chromium carcinogenicity: California strategies.
Alexeeff, G V; Satin, K; Painter, P; Zeise, L; Popejoy, C; Murchison, G
1989-10-01
Hexavalent chromium was identified by California as a toxic air contaminant (TAC) in January 1986. The California Department of Health Services (CDHS) concurred with the findings of the International Agency for Research on Cancer that there is sufficient evidence to demonstrate the carcinogenicity of chromium in both animals and humans. CDHS did not find any compelling evidence demonstrating the existence of a threshold with respect to chromium carcinogenesis. Experimental data was judged inadequate to assess potential human reproductive risks from ambient exposures. Other health effects were not expected to occur at ambient levels. The theoretically increased lifetime carcinogenic risk from a continuous lifetime exposure to hexavalent chromium fell within the range 12-146 cancer cases per nanogram hexavalent chromium per cubic meter of air per million people exposed, depending on the potency estimate used. The primary sources found to contribute significantly to the risk of exposure were chrome platers, chromic acid anodizing facilities and cooling towers utilizing hexavalent chromium as a corrosion inhibitor. Evaluation of genotoxicity data, animal studies and epidemiological studies indicates that further consideration should be given to the potential carcinogenicity of hexavalent chromium via the oral route.
Korean Air Lines Flight 007: Lessons from the Past and Insights for the Future
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Degani, Asaf; Shafto, M. (Technical Monitor)
2001-01-01
The majority of the problems pilot encounter when using automated systems center around two factors: (1) the pilot has an incomplete and inadequate model of how the autopilot works; and (2) the displays and flight manuals, provided to the pilot, are inadequate for the task. The tragic accident of Korean Air Lines Flight 007, a Boeing 747 that deviated from its intended flight path, provides a compelling case-study of problems related to pilots' use of automated systems. This paper describes what had happened and exposes two types of human-automation interaction problems: (1) The pilots of KAL were not provided with adequate information about the actual behavior of the autopilot and its mode transition logic; and (2) The autopilot onboard KAL 007 did not provide adequate information to the flight crew about its active and armed modes. Both factors, according to the International Civil Aviation Organization (1993) report on the accident, contributed to the aircraft's lethal navigation error.
Oxide Heteroepitaxy for Flexible Optoelectronics.
Bitla, Yugandhar; Chen, Ching; Lee, Hsien-Chang; Do, Thi Hien; Ma, Chun-Hao; Qui, Le Van; Huang, Chun-Wei; Wu, Wen-Wei; Chang, Li; Chiu, Po-Wen; Chu, Ying-Hao
2016-11-30
The emerging technological demands for flexible and transparent electronic devices have compelled researchers to look beyond the current silicon-based electronics. However, fabrication of devices on conventional flexible substrates with superior performance are constrained by the trade-off between processing temperature and device performance. Here, we propose an alternative strategy to circumvent this issue via the heteroepitaxial growth of transparent conducting oxides (TCO) on the flexible mica substrate with performance comparable to that of their rigid counterparts. With the examples of ITO and AZO as a case study, a strong emphasis is laid upon the growth of flexible yet epitaxial TCO relying muscovite's superior properties compared to those of conventional flexible substrates and its compatibility with the present fabrication methods. Besides excellent optoelectro-mechanical properties, an additional functionality of high-temperature stability, normally lacking in the current state-of-the-art transparent flexitronics, is provided by these heterostructures. These epitaxial TCO electrodes with good chemical and thermal stabilities as well as mechanical durability can significantly contribute to the field of flexible, light-weight, and portable smart electronics.
Norell, Jesper; Jay, Raphael M.; Hantschmann, Markus; ...
2018-02-20
Here, we describe how inversion symmetry separation of electronic state manifolds in resonant inelastic soft X-ray scattering (RIXS) can be applied to probe excited-state dynamics with compelling selectivity. In a case study of Fe L 3-edge RIXS in the ferricyanide complex Fe(CN) 6 3-, we demonstrate with multi-configurational restricted active space spectrum simulations how the information content of RIXS spectral fingerprints can be used to unambiguously separate species of different electronic configurations, spin multiplicities, and structures, with possible involvement in the decay dynamics of photo-excited ligand-to-metal charge-transfer. Specifically, we propose that this could be applied to confirm or reject themore » presence of a hitherto elusive transient Quartet species. Thus, RIXS offers a particular possibility to settle a recent controversy regarding the decay pathway, and we expect the technique to be similarly applicable in other model systems of photo-induced dynamics.« less
Implementation of consumer providers into mental health intensive case management teams.
Hamilton, Alison B; Chinman, Matthew; Cohen, Amy N; Oberman, Rebecca Shoai; Young, Alexander S
2015-01-01
In mental health care, consumer providers (CPs) are individuals with serious mental illness (SMI) who draw upon their lived experiences while providing services to others with SMI. Implementation of CPs has proven to be challenging in a variety of settings. The PEER project (Peers Enhancing Recovery) involved rolling out CPs using an implementation science model and evaluating implementation and impact in mental health treatment settings (three intervention, three control). In qualitative interviews, facilitators and challenges to implementation were described by the CPs, their team members, clients, and study researchers. Site preparation, external facilitation, and positive, reinforcing experiences with CPs facilitated implementation. Role definitions and deficiencies in CPs' technical knowledge posed challenges to implementation. Sustainability was not realized due to insufficient resources. However, implementation was positive overall, characterized by diffusion of innovation concepts of high relative advantage, strong trialability, compatibility with prevailing norms, compelling observability, and relatively low complexity. By preparing and working systematically with intervention sites to incorporate new services, implementation was strengthened and challenges were minimized.
Learning from failure in health care: frequent opportunities, pervasive barriers.
Edmondson, A C
2004-12-01
The notion that hospitals and medical practices should learn from failures, both their own and others', has obvious appeal. Yet, healthcare organisations that systematically and effectively learn from the failures that occur in the care delivery process, especially from small mistakes and problems rather than from consequential adverse events, are rare. This article explores pervasive barriers embedded in healthcare's organisational systems that make shared or organisational learning from failure difficult and then recommends strategies for overcoming these barriers to learning from failure, emphasising the critical role of leadership. Firstly, leaders must create a compelling vision that motivates and communicates urgency for change; secondly, leaders must work to create an environment of psychological safety that fosters open reporting, active questioning, and frequent sharing of insights and concerns; and thirdly, case study research on one hospital's organisational learning initiative suggests that leaders can empower and support team learning throughout their organisations as a way of identifying, analysing, and removing hazards that threaten patient safety.
Ki67 and proliferation in breast cancer.
Pathmanathan, Nirmala; Balleine, Rosemary L
2013-06-01
New approaches to the prognostic assessment of breast cancer have come from molecular profiling studies. A major feature of this work has been to emphasise the importance of cancer cell proliferation as a key discriminative indicator of recurrence risk for oestrogen receptor positive breast cancer in particular. Mitotic count scoring, as a component of histopathological grade, has long formed part of a routine evaluation of breast cancer biology. However, there is an increasingly compelling case to include a specific proliferation score in breast cancer pathology reports based on expression of the cell cycle regulated protein Ki67. Immunohistochemical staining for Ki67 is a widely available and economical test with good tolerance of pre-analytical variations and staining conditions. However, there is currently no evidence based protocol established to derive a reliable and informative Ki67 score for routine clinical use. In this circumstance, pathologists must establish a standardised framework for scoring Ki67 and communicating results to a multidisciplinary team.
Viswanathan, Mohan; Joshi, Shashank R.; Bhansali, Anil
2012-01-01
The epidemic of type 2 diabetes and the recognition that achieving specific glycemic goals can substantially reduce morbidity have made the effective treatment of hyperglycemia a top priority. Despite compelling evidence that tight glycemic control is crucial for delaying disease progression, increased risk of hypoglycemia associated with such control underscore the complexity of diabetes management. In most cases, hypoglycemia results from an excess of insulin, either absolute or relative to the available glucose substrate and the factors perhaps exacerbating the risk are pharmacokinetic imperfections, behavioral, co-morbidities etc. Additionally, many patients remain undiagnosed, and many diagnosed patients are not treated appropriately. In this article, the challenges of hypoglycemia, confronting health care providers and their patients with diabetes, are discussed for making treatment decisions that will help minimize risk of hypoglycemia and eventually overcome formidable barriers to optimal diabetes management. Strategies to treat and minimize the frequency and severity of hypoglycemia without compromising on glycemic goals are also presented. PMID:23226632
Learning from failure in health care: frequent opportunities, pervasive barriers
Edmondson, A
2004-01-01
The notion that hospitals and medical practices should learn from failures, both their own and others', has obvious appeal. Yet, healthcare organisations that systematically and effectively learn from the failures that occur in the care delivery process, especially from small mistakes and problems rather than from consequential adverse events, are rare. This article explores pervasive barriers embedded in healthcare's organisational systems that make shared or organisational learning from failure difficult and then recommends strategies for overcoming these barriers to learning from failure, emphasising the critical role of leadership. Firstly, leaders must create a compelling vision that motivates and communicates urgency for change; secondly, leaders must work to create an environment of psychological safety that fosters open reporting, active questioning, and frequent sharing of insights and concerns; and thirdly, case study research on one hospital's organisational learning initiative suggests that leaders can empower and support team learning throughout their organisations as a way of identifying, analysing, and removing hazards that threaten patient safety. PMID:15576689
Ritz method for transient response in systems having unsymmetric stiffness
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Butler, Thomas G.
1989-01-01
The DMAP coding was automated to such an extent by using the device of bubble vectors, that it is useable for analyses in its present form. This feasibility study demonstrates that the Ritz Method is so compelling as to warrant coding its modules in FORTRAN and organizing the resulting coding into a new Rigid Format. Even though this Ritz technique was developed for unsymmetric stiffness matrices, it offers advantages to problems with symmetric stiffnesses. If used for the symmetric case the solution would be simplified to one set of modes, because the adjoint would be the same as the primary. Its advantage in either type of symmetry over a classical eigenvalue modal expansion is that information density per Ritz mode is far richer than per eigenvalue mode; thus far fewer modes would be needed for the same accuracy and every mode would actively participate in the response. Considerable economy can be realized in adapting Ritz vectors for modal solutions. This new Ritz capability now makes NASTRAN even more powerful than before.
The Health and Safety in Employment Act and the influenza vaccination of healthcare workers.
McLennan, Stuart; Celi, Leo Anthony; Roth, Paul
2007-03-02
Despite studies demonstrating that the annual influenza vaccination of healthcare workers has a statistically significant reduction of morbidity and mortality among the patients they care for, and District Health Boards (DHBs) establishing voluntary programs to provide the influenza vaccine to healthcare workers free of charge, vaccination rates among healthcare workers are dismal, with only about 20%-40% coverage rates being achieved. With these low rates posing a serious health threat to the vulnerable patient populations that are entrusted into healthcare workers' care, and the current voluntary programmes clearly failing to adequately address this issue, we believe the time has come for the annual influenza vaccination to be made a mandatory requirement for all healthcare workers with direct patient contact unless a medical contraindication exists. Indeed, a compelling case may be made that the duties imposed on DHBs and healthcare workers under the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 requires making the annual influenza vaccination an occupational requirement.
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Norell, Jesper; Jay, Raphael M.; Hantschmann, Markus
Here, we describe how inversion symmetry separation of electronic state manifolds in resonant inelastic soft X-ray scattering (RIXS) can be applied to probe excited-state dynamics with compelling selectivity. In a case study of Fe L 3-edge RIXS in the ferricyanide complex Fe(CN) 6 3-, we demonstrate with multi-configurational restricted active space spectrum simulations how the information content of RIXS spectral fingerprints can be used to unambiguously separate species of different electronic configurations, spin multiplicities, and structures, with possible involvement in the decay dynamics of photo-excited ligand-to-metal charge-transfer. Specifically, we propose that this could be applied to confirm or reject themore » presence of a hitherto elusive transient Quartet species. Thus, RIXS offers a particular possibility to settle a recent controversy regarding the decay pathway, and we expect the technique to be similarly applicable in other model systems of photo-induced dynamics.« less
Daylighting in the workplace: Two new buildings offer a guiding light
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Jackaway, A.; Littler, J.
1996-10-01
As environmental pressures intensify and energy efficiency remains paramount, there has been renewed interest in daylighting the workplace. Interestingly, daylighting`s resurgence is being furthered by mounting evidence of occupant dissatisfaction with predominantly electrically-lit offices, and two recent reports support growing concern that the lack of daylighting in these interiors has led not only to unhappy workers, but to potentially significant reductions in workplace productivity. Clearly pressure is mounting on designers to produce buildings responding to these concerns, and as the role of precedents in the evolution of design practice is unquestioned, demand has been increasing for publication of office-based daylightingmore » case studies. In an attempt to address this need, this paper examines two recently completed British buildings in which daylight has explicitly informed the architecture, and although data concerning the resulting energy savings is not yet available, these projects currently offer the design community two excellent examples of workplace daylighting where compelling visual environments are generating noteworthy occupant satisfaction.« less
Molecular profiles of finasteride effects on prostate carcinogenesis.
Li, Jin; Kim, Jeri
2009-06-01
Our inability to distinguish between low-grade prostate cancers that pose no threat and those that can kill compels newly diagnosed early prostate cancer patients to make decisions that may negatively affect their lives needlessly for years afterward. To reliably stratify patients into different risk categories and apply appropriate treatment, we need a better molecular understanding of prostate cancer progression. Androgen ablation therapy and 5-alpha reductase inhibitors reduce dihydrotestosterone levels and increase apoptosis. Because of the differing biological potentials of tumor cells, however, these treatments may, in some cases, worsen outcome by selecting for or inducing adaptation of stronger androgen receptor signaling pathways. Reduced dihydrotestosterone also may be associated with altered survival pathways. Complicating treatment effects further, molecular adaptation may be accelerated by interactions between epithelial and stromal cells. The hypothesis that early prostate cancer cells with differing biological potential may respond differently to finasteride treatment is worth testing. Ongoing studies using a systems biology approach in a preoperative prostate cancer setting are testing this hypothesis toward developing more-rational clinical interventions.
Changing What You See by Changing What You Know: The Role of Attention
Lupyan, Gary
2017-01-01
Attending is a cognitive process that incorporates a person’s knowledge, goals, and expectations. What we perceive when we attend to one thing is different from what we perceive when we attend to something else. Yet, it is often argued that attentional effects do not count as evidence that perception is influenced by cognition. I investigate two arguments often given to justify excluding attention. The first is arguing that attention is a post-perceptual process reflecting selection between fully constructed perceptual representations. The second is arguing that attention as a pre-perceptual process that simply changes the input to encapsulated perceptual systems. Both of these arguments are highly problematic. Although some attentional effects can indeed be construed as post-perceptual, others operate by changing perceptual content across the entire visual hierarchy. Although there is a natural analogy between spatial attention and a change of input, the analogy falls apart when we consider other forms of attention. After dispelling these arguments, I make a case for thinking of attention not as a confound, but as one of the mechanisms by which cognitive states affect perception by going through cases in which the same or similar visual inputs are perceived differently depending on the observer’s cognitive state, and instances where cuing an observer using language affects what one sees. Lastly, I provide two compelling counter-examples to the critique that although cognitive influences on perception can be demonstrated in the laboratory, it is impossible to really experience them for oneself in a phenomenologically compelling way. Taken together, the current evidence strongly supports the thesis that what we know routinely influences what we see, that the same sensory input can be perceived differently depending on the current cognitive state of the viewer, and that phenomenologically salient demonstrations are possible if certain conditions are met. PMID:28507524
2016-01-01
The vast majority of infant formulas in the United States contain the long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) docosahexaenoic acid (22:6n–3) and arachidonic acid (20:4n–6), which were first permitted by the US Food and Drug Administration in 2001. As a scientific case study, preclinical animal studies of these nutrients definitively influenced the design and interpretation of human clinical studies. Early studies were tied to the availability of test substances, and in hindsight suggest re-evaluation of the essential fatty acid concept in light of the totality of available evidence. Research in the 1950s established the essentiality of n–6 PUFAs for skin integrity; however, widespread recognition of the essentiality of n–3 PUFAs came decades later despite compelling evidence of their significance. Barriers to an understanding of the essentiality of n–3 PUFAs were as follows: 1) their role is in neural function, which is measured only with difficulty compared with skin lesions and growth faltering that are apparent for n–6 PUFAs; 2) the experimental use of vegetable oils as PUFA sources that contain the inefficiently used C18 PUFAs rather than the operative C20 and C22 PUFAs; 3) the shift from reliance on high-quality animal studies to define mechanisms that established the required nutrients in the first part of the 20th century to inherently challenging human studies. Advances in nutrition of premature infants require the best practices and opinions available, taking into account the totality of preclinical and clinical evidence. PMID:26791188
Single- or multiple-visit endodontics: which technique results in fewest postoperative problems?
Balto, Khaled
2009-01-01
The Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Medline, Embase, six thesis databases (Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations, Proquest Digital Dissertations, OAIster, Index to Theses, Australian Digital Thesis Program and Dissertation.com) and one conference report database (BIOSIS Previews) were searched. There were no language restrictions. Studies were included if subjects had a noncontributory medical history; underwent nonsurgical root canal treatment during the study; there was comparison between single- and multiple-visit root canal treatment; and if outcome was measured in terms of pain degree or prevalence of flare-up. Data were extracted using a standard data extraction sheet. Because of variations in recorded outcomes and methodological and clinical heterogeneity, a meta-analysis was not carried out, although a qualitative synthesis was presented. Sixteen studies fitted the inclusion criteria in the review, with sample size varying from 60-1012 cases. The prevalence of postoperative pain ranged from 3-58%. The heterogeneity of the included studies was far too great to yield meaningful results from a meta-analysis. Compelling evidence is lacking to indicate any significantly different prevalence of postoperative pain or flare-up following either single- or multiple-visit root canal treatment.
Pathophysiology of primary burning mouth syndrome with special focus on taste dysfunction: a review.
Kolkka-Palomaa, M; Jääskeläinen, S K; Laine, M A; Teerijoki-Oksa, T; Sandell, M; Forssell, H
2015-11-01
Primary burning mouth syndrome (BMS) is a chronic oral condition characterized by burning pain often accompanied with taste dysfunction and xerostomia. The most compelling evidence concerning BMS pathophysiology comes from studies on the somatosensory system using neurophysiologic or psychophysical methods such as blink reflex, thermal quantitative sensory testing, as well as functional brain imaging. They have provided convincing evidence for neuropathic involvement at several levels of the somatosensory system in BMS pain pathophysiology. The number of taste function studies trying to substantiate the subjective taste disturbances or studies on salivary factors in BMS is much more limited, and most of them suffer from definitional and methodological problems. This review aims to critically evaluate the existing literature on the pathophysiology of BMS, paying special attention to the correctness of case selection and the methodology used in published studies, and to summarize the current state of knowledge. Based on the recognition of several gaps in the current understanding of the pathophysiology of BMS especially as regards taste and pain system interactions, the review ends with future scenarios for research in this area. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Words matter: implications of semantics and imagery in framing animal-welfare issues.
Croney, Candace C
2010-01-01
As criticisms of contemporary farm-animal production escalate, scholars have begun to scrutinize the imagery and linguistic techniques used to frame animal issues and their implications. Pro-animal rights groups typically present animal use as unnecessary, oppressive, and exploitive and adopt themes of compassion and protection to engage the public. In contrast, anti-animal rights groups represent animal use as necessary for human benefit and often situate animal and human interests as being incompatible. Overly simplistic, polarized representations of animal issues therefore emerge. Several analyses, however, have indicated that the discourse on farm-animal production fails to either make a compelling ethical argument for animal agriculture or address the ethical concerns raised by animal-rights activists. Proponents of animal agriculture are argued to consistently misrepresent animal production practices and portray animals as inanimate objects, reflecting lack of genuine concern for animal suffering or welfare. Thus far, the veterinary community has escaped this level of scrutiny. However, veterinarians are often viewed as being connected to animal agriculture. As veterinarians strive to assume leadership in animal welfare, it is useful for the profession to recognize that, as is the case for members of the animal sciences and industries, some aspects of its discourse may contradict its professed values and beliefs about animal care and welfare. Analysis of this discourse affords the opportunity to more effectively engage with the public on animal-welfare issues and to develop a compelling narrative of the role of animals in an increasingly urban society.
Software solutions alone cannot guarantee useful radiology requests.
Van Borsel, Mathias D; Devolder, Pieter Jd; Bosmans, Jan Ml
2016-11-01
Background The availability of clinical information and a pertinent clinical question can improve the diagnostic accuracy of the imaging process. Purpose To examine if an electronic request form forcing referring clinicians to provide separate input of both clinical information and a clinical question can improve the quality of the request. Material and Methods A total of 607 request forms in the clinical worklists for a computed tomography (CT) scan of the thorax, the abdomen or their combination, were examined. Using software of our own making, we examined the presence of clinical information and a clinical question before and after the introduction of a new, more compelling order method. We scored and compared the quality of the clinical information and the clinical question between the two systems and we examined the effect on productivity. Results Both clinical information and a clinical question were present in 76.7% of cases under the old system and in 95.3% under the new system ( P < 0.001). Individual characteristics of the clinical information and the clinical question however, with the exception of incompleteness, showed little improvement under the new system. There was also no significant difference between the two systems in the number of requests requiring further search. Conclusion The introduction of electronic radiology request forms compelling referring clinicians to provide separate input of clinical information and a clinical question provides only limited benefit to the quality of the request. Raising awareness among clinicians of the importance of a well-written request remains essential.
Gestural coupling and social cognition: Möbius Syndrome as a case study
Krueger, Joel; Michael, John
2012-01-01
Social cognition researchers have become increasingly interested in the ways that behavioral, physiological, and neural coupling facilitate social interaction and interpersonal understanding. We distinguish two ways of conceptualizing the role of such coupling processes in social cognition: strong and moderate interactionism. According to strong interactionism (SI), low-level coupling processes are alternatives to higher-level individual cognitive processes; the former at least sometimes render the latter superfluous. Moderate interactionism (MI) on the other hand, is an integrative approach. Its guiding assumption is that higher-level cognitive processes are likely to have been shaped by the need to coordinate, modulate, and extract information from low-level coupling processes. In this paper, we present a case study on Möbius Syndrome (MS) in order to contrast SI and MI. We show how MS—a form of congenital bilateral facial paralysis—can be a fruitful source of insight for research exploring the relation between high-level cognition and low-level coupling. Lacking a capacity for facial expression, individuals with MS are deprived of a primary channel for gestural coupling. According to SI, they lack an essential enabling feature for social interaction and interpersonal understanding more generally and thus ought to exhibit severe deficits in these areas. We challenge SI's prediction and show how MS cases offer compelling reasons for instead adopting MI's pluralistic model of social interaction and interpersonal understanding. We conclude that investigations of coupling processes within social interaction should inform rather than marginalize or eliminate investigation of higher-level individual cognition. PMID:22514529
Curriculum Management: "Driving the School Management Team Frantic"
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Lumadi, M. W.
2012-01-01
This study explores factors which have a negative impact, on the role of the School Management Team (SMT) that serves as the fulcrum of the curriculum management process. The SMT is compelled to execute its responsibilities in an efficient and effective manner thus keeping a delicate balance between the often-conflicting pressures from parents,…
The Achievement Consequences of the No Child Left Behind Act. Working Paper
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Dee, Thomas S.; Jacob, Brian A.
2009-01-01
The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act has compelled states to design school accountability systems based on annual student assessments. The effect of this Federal legislation on the distribution of student achievement is a highly controversial but centrally important question. This study presents evidence on whether NCLB has influenced student…
Learning To Value English: Cultural Capital in a Two-Way Bilingual Program.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
McCollum, Pam
1999-01-01
A 3-year ethnographic study of middle-school students in a two-way bilingual program found that Mexican-background students learned to value English over Spanish at school. The hidden curriculum, instructional practices, and assessment policy devalued the students' native linguistic cultural capital compelling them to use English in the classroom…
Is Literacy Enough? Pathways to Academic Success for Adolescents
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Snow, Catherine E.; Porche, Michelle V.; Tabors, Patton O.; Harris, Stephanie R.
2007-01-01
Four literacy experts lay out the evidence in this compelling book, based on the well-known Home-School Study of Language and Literacy Development that inspired the landmark resource "Beginning Literacy with Language." Following a group of children living in low-income families from preschool through high school, the authors charted the students'…
Asset-Based Assessment in Educational Psychology: Capturing Perceptions during a Paradigm Shift
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Lubbe, Carien; Eloff, Irma
2004-01-01
Several trends are compelling educational psychologists towards a philosophy of assessment that is asset-based and strength focused. This article shares the results from a study that explored perceptions about asset-based assessment in Educational Psychology in South Africa. Three focus groups were held and four main themes emerged from the…
An Effort to Close Achievement Gaps at Scale through Self-Affirmation
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Borman, Geoffrey D.; Grigg, Jeffrey
2013-01-01
This study addresses closing the academic performance gaps between African American and Latino students and their White counterparts, and between girls and boys in mathematics. Of the various models and theories of these social inequalities that have been advanced in literature, one particularly compelling line of research concerns the idea of…
The Politics of the ICT4ED (Fatih) Project in Turkey
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Tolu, Hüseyin
2014-01-01
Information and communications technology (ICT) is crucial in any contemporary society, especially if its online presence is to be widely significant, but, in a national context, it is important to investigate whether there is a compelling ICT "politic" in the education sector in Turkey. This study specifically focuses on the ICT for…
Teaching Problem-Solving Competency in Business Studies at Secondary School Level
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Meintjes, Aloe; Henrico, Alfred; Kroon, Japie
2015-01-01
The high unemployment rate in South Africa compels potential entrepreneurs to start their own businesses in order to survive. Often this is with little or no formal training or education in entrepreneurship. Since problem recognition and problem-solving are amongst the most crucial competencies required for a successful entrepreneurial career,…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Emery, Katherine; Harlow, Danielle; Whitmer, Ali; Gaines, Steven
2017-01-01
This study investigates how middle school students make hypothetical purchasing, consuming, and voting decisions about environmental and science-related issues--a key component of environmental literacy. Fifty-three female students were given a packet containing multiple excerpts of information from conflicting positions from stakeholders and…
Using Second Life to Teach about Marketing in Second Life
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Halvorson, Wade; Ewing, Mike; Windisch, Lydia
2011-01-01
There are compelling reasons for educators to consider incorporating virtual worlds (VWs) in their marketing curriculum. That said, the ways in which VWs can be implemented into the teaching curriculum are many and varied. This article reports on two studies in which notionally similar graduate classes are taught about marketing in Second Life…
USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database
Rapid detection of shifts in substrate utilization and energy balance would provide a compelling biofeedback tool to enable individuals to lose weight. In a pilot study, we tested whether the natural abundance of exhaled carbon stable isotope ratios (breath d13C values) reflects shifts between negat...
From the Fear of Death to the Fear of "Dissimilar Other": A Research in Elementary School Classrooms
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Leondari, A.; Magos, K.; Oikonomou, A.
2014-01-01
Social stereotyping and prejudice constitute pressing societal problems and have many causes. Terror Management Theory offers a compelling and heavily researched account of individuals' reactions towards "dissimilar others" when faced with thoughts of mortality. Building from previous research with adult samples, the present study aimed…
Women Pursuing Higher Education in Ultra-Orthodox Society
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Baum, Nehami; Yedidya, Tova; Schwartz, Chaya; Aran, Ofra
2014-01-01
The study reported in this article concerns the beginnings of higher education for women in the Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) enclave in Israel. Haredi Jews are a self-secluded fundamentalist group committed to particularly strict interpretation of Jewish religious law. In recent years, they have been compelled by poverty and other factors to allow…
Factors Influencing the Quality of EHR Performance: An Exploratory Qualitative Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Rhodes, Harry B.
2016-01-01
A significant amount of evidence existed in support of the positive effect on the quality of healthcare that resulted from transitioning to electronic health information systems, equally compelling evidence suggests that the development process for electronic health information systems falls short of achieving its potential. The objective of this…
Understanding Planned Change among Remote Nonfaculty Employees in Higher Education
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Lubin, Erin Heather
2017-01-01
Implementing planned change in online university divisions with remote nonfaculty employees is a unique challenge. The problem that compelled this study was the need to understand the challenges of implementing planned change for a group of geographically remote nonfaculty employees who served as field team members (FTM) in an online university's…
Place-Based Education and Teaching about Marin County Birds: Curriculum Development for Teachers
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Barnett, Sharon Anne
2009-01-01
Compelling evidence illustrates place-based education (PBE) as a catalyst for inspiring teachers to create dynamic curricula that energizes the student. PBE curriculum typically encompasses all traditional subjects and entails hands-on classroom and field studies utilizing the natural world and local community. The purpose of this literature…
A, B, CD, DVD: Marketing Higher Education to the Millennial Generation
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Furbeck, Lee F.; Harding, Marc L.; Wohlgemuth, Darin R.; Bousquet, David R.
2003-01-01
Based on compelling financial and strategic reasons, Iowa State University replaced its paper viewbook with a CD-ROM digital viewbook following the Fall 1998 recruiting cycle. The first interactive DVD viewbook debuted for the Fall 2003 recruiting cycle, following a qualitative research study designed to gauge the effectiveness of the medium.…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Gottlieb, Owen
2013-01-01
Israeli film and television have risen to international prominence, presenting compelling and complicating perspectives. Simultaneously, Web 2.0 technologies have accelerated the spread and immediacy of digital media. Following the work of Holtz (2003) and Levisohn (2010) in developing orientations for teaching Bible and Rabbinic Literature, this…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Bickford, John H., III; Rich, Cynthia W.
2015-01-01
State and national initiatives have compelled significant change in English language arts and social studies/history curricula. English language arts teachers are required to balance fiction (or literature) and nonfiction (or informational texts), which is a considerable change for a content area formerly occupied by fiction (National Governors…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Ertmer, Peggy A.; York, Cindy S.; Gedik, Nuray
2009-01-01
Understanding how experienced designers approach complex design problems provides new perspectives on how they translate instructional design (ID) models and processes into practice. In this article, the authors describe the results of a study in which 16 "seasoned" designers shared compelling stories from practice that offered insights into their…
The UARS (Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite): A program to study global ozone change
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
1989-01-01
NASA's Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS) program, its goals and objectives are described. Also included are its significance to upper atmosphere science, the experimental and theoretical investigations that comprise it, and the compelling issues of global change, driven by human activities, that led NASA to plan and implement it.
From Dissemination to Propagation: A New Paradigm for Education Developers
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Froyd, Jeffrey E.; Henderson, Charles; Cole, Renée S.; Friedrichsen, Debra; Khatri, Raina; Stanford, Courtney
2017-01-01
Scholarly studies and national reports document failure of current efforts to achieve broad, sustained adoption of research-based instructional practices, despite compelling bodies of evidence supporting efficacy of many of these practices. The authors of this paper argue that many change agents who are working to promote systemic adoption of…
Poverty and Brain Development in Children: Implications for Learning
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Dike, Victor E.
2017-01-01
Debates on the effect of poverty on brain development in children and its implications for learning have been raging for decades. Research suggests that poverty affects brain development in children and that the implications for learning are more compelling today given the attention the issue has attracted. For instance, studies in the fields of…
Parents' Decision on Child Labour and School Attendance: Evidence from Iranian Households
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Keshavarz Haddad, GholamReza
2017-01-01
In the framework of a household's collective decision processes, this study presents a structural empirical model to test the hypothesis that child labour is compelled by household's poverty and parent's bargaining power against one another. To this end, a measure for mother's intra-household bargaining power is developed. I use Iranian…
Political Influence and the Commander in Chief: Congress, the President, and War Powers
2006-01-01
consultation with congressional leaders. Framed against the background of the 2006 midterm elections, this study suggests that scholars and other observers...potential v presidential consultation with congressional leaders. Framed against the background of the 2006 midterm elections, this study suggests that...wonder, for war powers politics offers a compelling arena for studying a variety of political phenomena, running the conceptual gamut from American
The Role of Tobacco-Derived Carcinogens in Pancreas Cancer
Lochan, Rajiv; Reeves, Helen L.; Daly, Anne K.; Charnley, Richard M.
2011-01-01
The extremely poor outcome from pancreas cancer is well known. However, its aetiology less well appreciated, and the molecular mechanisms underlying this are poorly understood. Tobacco usage is one of the strongest risk factors for this disease, and this is a completely avoidable hazard. In addition, there are well described hereditary diseases which predispose, and familial pancreas cancer. We have sought here to summarise the role of tobacco-derived carcinogens and the mode of their tumorigenic action on the pancreas. There is compelling evidence from animal and human studies (laboratory including cell line studies and epidemiologic) that tobacco derived carcinogens cause pancreas cancer. However, the manner in which they do so is not entirely apparent. There is also compelling evidence that synergism with genetic and other life-style factors—like diet obesity—results in a multifactorial causation of the disease. Ascertaining the role of tobacco carcinogens in the development of this cancer and their interaction with other risk factors will enable novel therapeutic and preventative strategies to improve outcome from this appalling malignancy. PMID:22084727
Hopcraft, J Grant C; Bigurube, Gerald; Lembeli, James Daudi; Borner, Markus
2015-01-01
Developing countries often have rich natural resources but poor infrastructure to capitalize on them, which leads to significant challenges in terms of balancing poverty alleviation with conservation. The underlying premise in development strategies is to increase the socio-economic welfare of the people while simultaneously ensuring environmental sustainability, however these objectives are often in direct conflict. National progress is dependent on developing infrastructure such as effective transportation networks, however roads can be ecologically catastrophic in terms of disrupting habitat connectivity and facilitating illegal activity. How can national development and conservation be balanced? The proposed Serengeti road epitomizes the conflict between poverty alleviation on one hand, and the conservation of a critical ecosystem on the other. We use the Serengeti as an exemplar case-study in which the relative economic and social benefits of a road can be assessed against the ecological impacts. Specifically, we compare three possible transportation routes and ask which route maximizes the socio-economic returns for the people while minimizing the ecological costs. The findings suggest that one route in particular that circumnavigates the Serengeti links the greatest number of small and medium sized entrepreneurial businesses to the largest labour force in the region. Furthermore, this route connects the most children to schools, provisions the greatest access to hospitals, and opens the most fertile crop and livestock production areas, and does not compromise the ecology and tourism revenue of the Serengeti. This route would improve Tanzania's food security and self-reliance and would facilitate future infrastructure development which would not be possible if the road were to pass through the Serengeti. This case study provides a compelling example of how a detailed spatial analysis can balance the national objectives of poverty alleviation while maintaining ecological integrity.
Hopcraft, J. Grant C.; Bigurube, Gerald; Lembeli, James Daudi; Borner, Markus
2015-01-01
Developing countries often have rich natural resources but poor infrastructure to capitalize on them, which leads to significant challenges in terms of balancing poverty alleviation with conservation. The underlying premise in development strategies is to increase the socio-economic welfare of the people while simultaneously ensuring environmental sustainability, however these objectives are often in direct conflict. National progress is dependent on developing infrastructure such as effective transportation networks, however roads can be ecologically catastrophic in terms of disrupting habitat connectivity and facilitating illegal activity. How can national development and conservation be balanced? The proposed Serengeti road epitomizes the conflict between poverty alleviation on one hand, and the conservation of a critical ecosystem on the other. We use the Serengeti as an exemplar case-study in which the relative economic and social benefits of a road can be assessed against the ecological impacts. Specifically, we compare three possible transportation routes and ask which route maximizes the socio-economic returns for the people while minimizing the ecological costs. The findings suggest that one route in particular that circumnavigates the Serengeti links the greatest number of small and medium sized entrepreneurial businesses to the largest labour force in the region. Furthermore, this route connects the most children to schools, provisions the greatest access to hospitals, and opens the most fertile crop and livestock production areas, and does not compromise the ecology and tourism revenue of the Serengeti. This route would improve Tanzania’s food security and self-reliance and would facilitate future infrastructure development which would not be possible if the road were to pass through the Serengeti. This case study provides a compelling example of how a detailed spatial analysis can balance the national objectives of poverty alleviation while maintaining ecological integrity. PMID:26200107
[Sepsis caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus: the shadow of a persistent threat].
Sifuentes-Osornio, José; Pérez-Patrigeon, Santiago
2006-01-01
Clinical case. This 27 year-old male was referred admitted with severe acute pancreatitis (SAP) after heavy consumption of alcohol and sepsis (bacteremia and multilobar pneumonia) due to methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA); he required mechanical ventilation and haemodyalisis, and developed fungemia by fluconazol-resistant Candida albicans. He was treated with caspofungin for 20 days and vancomycin for six weeks, and he was discharged after 51 days of hospitalization. This case shows the painful evolution of a patient admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) with MRSA sepsis. According to the National Nosocomial Infections Study (USA), S. aureus is the cause of up to 35% of hospital-acquired pneumonia and bacteremia. Using molecular tools (e.g. pulse gel electrophoresis), different families of MRSA have been well described. Use of i.v. catheters, long-term hospitalization, surgery and previous use of antimicrobials are considered major risk factors for MRSA. In Mexico, Alpuche-Aranda, et al (1986) reported a prevalence of 5% in a pediatric hospital. However, a recent report from the National Resistance Network showed a MRSA prevalence of 36% in 2004. In this institution, we observed a rate of MRSA of 100% in the ICU during 2005. This case shows an episode of SAP after heavy alcohol consumption, complicated with severe infections such as candidemia and MRSA sepsis; fortunately he had a favorable outcome after a multidisciplinary and aggressive approach. This case fulfilled all the risk factors for an MRSA infection, in a setting with a very high rate of methicillin-resistance, which compels the medical community to implement adequate and efficacious epidemiological control measures.
The business case for quality improvement: oral anticoagulation for atrial fibrillation.
Rose, Adam J; Berlowitz, Dan R; Ash, Arlene S; Ozonoff, Al; Hylek, Elaine M; Goldhaber-Fiebert, Jeremy D
2011-07-01
The potential to save money within a short time frame provides a more compelling "business case" for quality improvement than merely demonstrating cost-effectiveness. Our objective was to demonstrate the potential for cost savings from improved control in patients anticoagulated for atrial fibrillation. Our population consisted of 67 077 Veterans Health Administration patients anticoagulated for atrial fibrillation between October 1, 2006, and September 30, 2008. We simulated the number of adverse events and their associated costs and utilities, both before and after various degrees of improvement in percent time in therapeutic range (TTR). The simulation had a 2-year time horizon, and costs were calculated from the perspective of the payer. In the base-case analysis, improving TTR by 5% prevented 1114 adverse events, including 662 deaths; it gained 863 quality-adjusted life-years and saved $15.9 million compared with the status quo, not accounting for the cost of the quality improvement program. Improving TTR by 10% prevented 2087 events, gained 1606 quality-adjusted life-years, and saved $29.7 million. In sensitivity analyses, costs were most sensitive to the estimated risk of stroke and the expected stroke reduction from improved TTR. Utilities were most sensitive to the estimated risk of death and the expected mortality benefit from improved TTR. A quality improvement program to improve anticoagulation control probably would be cost-saving for the payer, even if it were only modestly effective in improving control and even without considering the value of improved health. This study demonstrates how to make a business case for a quality improvement initiative.
Rapid spread of complex change: a case study in inpatient palliative care.
Della Penna, Richard; Martel, Helene; Neuwirth, Esther B; Rice, Jennifer; Filipski, Marta I; Green, Jennifer; Bellows, Jim
2009-12-29
Based on positive findings from a randomized controlled trial, Kaiser Permanente's national executive leadership group set an expectation that all Kaiser Permanente and partner hospitals would implement a consultative model of interdisciplinary, inpatient-based palliative care (IPC). Within one year, the number of IPC consultations program-wide increased almost tenfold from baseline, and the number of teams nearly doubled. We report here results from a qualitative evaluation of the IPC initiative after a year of implementation; our purpose was to understand factors supporting or impeding the rapid and consistent spread of a complex program. Quality improvement study using a case study design and qualitative analysis of in-depth semi-structured interviews with 36 national, regional, and local leaders. Compelling evidence of impacts on patient satisfaction and quality of care generated 'pull' among adopters, expressed as a remarkably high degree of conviction about the value of the model. Broad leadership agreement gave rise to sponsorship and support that permeated the organization. A robust social network promoted knowledge exchange and built on an existing network with a strong interest in palliative care. Resource constraints, pre-existing programs of a different model, and ambiguous accountability for implementation impeded spread. A complex, hospital-based, interdisciplinary intervention in a large health care organization spread rapidly due to a synergy between organizational 'push' strategies and grassroots-level pull. The combination of push and pull may be especially important when the organizational context or the practice to be spread is complex.
Zecevic, Aleksandra A; Salmoni, Alan W; Lewko, John H; Vandervoort, Anthoney A; Speechley, Mark
2009-10-01
As a highly heterogeneous group, seniors live in complex environments influenced by multiple physical and social structures that affect their safety. Until now, the major approach to falls research has been person centered. However, in industrial settings, the individuals involved in an accident are seen as the inheritors of system defects. The objective of the present study was to investigate safety deficiencies that contributed to falls in community-dwelling seniors using a systems approach. The investigations were conducted using the Seniors Falls Investigation Methodology (SFIM), an adapted version of a method used to examine transportation accidents, such as airplane crashes. Fifteen seniors, who experienced a fall or near fall, participated in multiple case studies. A cross-case synthesis was used to summarize findings and identify common patterns of causes and safety deficiencies. Falls and near falls are a result of latent unsafe conditions, and unsafe acts and decisions combined in a diverse set of circumstances. If not identified and removed, these unsafe conditions can cause falls for other seniors. This study provided compelling evidence that causes of falling are systemic and develop over time. It demonstrated that the systems approach is needed to expand the focus from the individual to multilayered organizational and supervisory causes. The SFIM demonstrated capability to identify causes of falls that will allow better prevention and management programs, hence advancing seniors' safety. SFIM shows great potential for implementation in organized settings, such as hospitals and long-term care homes.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Hanish, Laura D.; Barcelo, Helene; Martin, Carol Lynn; Fabes, Richard A.; Holmwall, Jennifer; Palermo, Francisco
2007-01-01
How, when, and under what conditions do peer interactions contribute to variations in developmental trajectories along dimensions that are important to children's well-being? These compelling and fundamental questions have piqued the interest of developmental scientists and led to studies of the ways in which peers socialize and affect such…
An Overview of Recent Developments in Computational Aeroelasticity
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Bennett, Robert M.; Edwards, John W.
2004-01-01
The motivation for Computational Aeroelasticity (CA) and the elements of one type of the analysis or simulation process are briefly reviewed. The need for streamlining and improving the overall process to reduce elapsed time and improve overall accuracy is discussed. Further effort is needed to establish the credibility of the methodology, obtain experience, and to incorporate the experience base to simplify the method for future use. Experience with the application of a variety of Computational Aeroelasticity programs is summarized for the transonic flutter of two wings, the AGARD 445.6 wing and a typical business jet wing. There is a compelling need for a broad range of additional flutter test cases for further comparisons. Some existing data sets that may offer CA challenges are presented.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Yochim, Michael J.; Lowry, William R.
2016-05-01
Public agencies face significant political obstacles when they try to change long-standing policies. This paper examines efforts by the U.S. National Park Service to change long-term policies in Yellowstone and Yosemite national parks. We argue that, to be successful, the agency and pro-change allies must expand the sphere of conflict to engage the support of the broader American public through positive framing, supportive science, compelling economic arguments, consistent goals, and the commitment of other institutional actors. We show that the agency is capable of creating these conditions, as in the reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone, but we argue that this is not always the outcome, as in reducing automobile congestion in Yosemite Valley.
Yochim, Michael J; Lowry, William R
2016-05-01
Public agencies face significant political obstacles when they try to change long-standing policies. This paper examines efforts by the U.S. National Park Service to change long-term policies in Yellowstone and Yosemite national parks. We argue that, to be successful, the agency and pro-change allies must expand the sphere of conflict to engage the support of the broader American public through positive framing, supportive science, compelling economic arguments, consistent goals, and the commitment of other institutional actors. We show that the agency is capable of creating these conditions, as in the reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone, but we argue that this is not always the outcome, as in reducing automobile congestion in Yosemite Valley.
Exploring the Potential Business Case for Synergies Between Natural Gas and Renewable Energy
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Cochran, Jaquelin; Zinaman, Owen; Logan, Jeffrey
2014-02-01
Natural gas and renewable energy each contribute to economic growth, energy independence, and carbon mitigation, sometimes independently and sometimes collectively. Often, natural gas and renewables are considered competitors in markets, such as those for bulk electricity. This paper attempts to address the question, 'Given near- and long-term needs for abundant, cleaner energy sources and decarbonization, how can more compelling business models be created so that these two domestic forms of energy work in greater concert?' This paper explores revenue opportunities that emerge from systems-level perspectives in 'bulk energy' (large-scale electricity and natural gas production, transmission, and trade) and four 'distributionmore » edge' subsectors: industrial, residential, commercial, and transportation end uses.« less
Does thalidomide have an analgesic effect? Current status and future directions.
Goli, Veeraindar
2007-04-01
Dramatic relief of pain and life-altering changes in quality of life in some patients treated with immunomodulators such as thalidomide compel us to look more closely at unconventional mechanisms that may be involved in propagation of persistent pain. Tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha, interleukin (IL)-1beta, IL-6, and IL-10 are the cytokines with the most evidence in pain modulation. TNF-alpha and IL-1beta seem to initiate neuropathic pain, IL-6 maintains such pain, and IL-10 inhibits this persistent pain. Thalidomide was found to be effective in animal models by inhibiting TNF-alpha production. Several case reports and case series in humans have demonstrated mixed results, with some patients having dramatic responses, especially in chronic intractable conditions such as complex regional pain syndrome. Thalidomide may be an alternative for some patients with intractable pain. However, use of thalidomide is limited by its neurotoxic and teratogenic effects. Newer analogues may significantly improve the risk/benefit of using such immunomodulators.
Kwon, Yeondae; Natori, Yukikazu
2017-01-01
The proportion of the elderly population in most countries worldwide is increasing dramatically. Therefore, social interest in the fields of health, longevity, and anti-aging has been increasing as well. However, the basic research results obtained from a reductionist approach in biology and a bioinformatic approach in genome science have limited usefulness for generating insights on future health, longevity, and anti-aging-related research on a case by case basis. We propose a new approach that uses our literature mining technique and bioinformatics, which lead to a better perspective on research trends by providing an expanded knowledge base to work from. We demonstrate that our approach provides useful information that deepens insights on future trends which differs from data obtained conventionally, and this methodology is already paving the way for a new field in aging-related research based on literature mining. One compelling example of this is how our new approach can be a useful tool in drug repositioning. PMID:28817730
Mankins, Michael; Brahm, Chris; Caimi, Gregory
2014-05-01
Most companies have elaborate procedures for managing capital. They require a compelling business case for any new capital investment. They set hurdle rates. They delegate authority carefully, prescribing spending limits for each level. An organization's time, by contrast, goes largely unmanaged. Bain & Company, with which all three authors are associated, used innovative people analytics tools to examine the time budgets of 17 large corporations. It discovered that companies are awash in e-communications; meeting time has skyrocketed; real collaboration is limited; dysfunctional meeting behavior is on the rise; formal controls are rare; and the consequences of all this are few. The authors outline eight practices for managing organizational time. Among them are: Make meeting agendas clear and selective; create a zero-based time budget; require business cases for all initiatives; and standardize the decision process. Some forward-thinking companies bring as much discipline to their time budgets as to their capital budgets. As a result, they have Liberated countless hours of previously unproductive time for executives and employees, fueling innovation and accelerating profitable growth.
Using patients' charts to assess medical trainees in the workplace: a systematic review.
Al-Wassia, Heidi; Al-Wassia, Rolina; Shihata, Shadi; Park, Yoon Soo; Tekian, Ara
2015-04-01
The objective of this review is to summarize and critically appraise existing evidence on the use of chart stimulated recall (CSR) and case-based discussion (CBD) as an assessment tool for medical trainees. Medline, Embase, CINAHL, PsycINFO, Educational Resources Information Centre (ERIC), Web of Science, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were searched for original articles on the use of CSR or CBD as an assessment method for trainees in all medical specialties. Four qualitative and three observational non-comparative studies were eligible for this review. The number of patient-chart encounters needed to achieve sufficient reliability varied across studies. None of the included studies evaluated the content validity of the tool. Both trainees and assessors expressed high level of satisfaction with the tool; however, inadequate training, different interpretation of the scoring scales and skills needed to give feedback were addressed as limitations for conducting the assessment. There is still no compelling evidence for the use of patient's chart to evaluate medical trainees in the workplace. A body of evidence that is valid, reliable, and documents the educational effect in support of the use of patients' charts to assess medical trainees is needed.
Missed and Delayed Diagnosis of Dementia in Primary Care: Prevalence and Contributing Factors
Bradford, Andrea; Kunik, Mark E.; Schulz, Paul; Williams, Susan P.; Singh, Hardeep
2009-01-01
Dementia is a growing public health problem for which early detection may be beneficial. Currently, the diagnosis of dementia in primary care is dependent mostly on clinical suspicion based on patient symptomsor caregivers’ concerns and is prone to be missed or delayed. We conducted a systematic review of the literature to ascertain the prevalence and contributing factors for missed and delayed dementia diagnoses in primary care. Prevalence of missed and delayed diagnosis was estimated by abstracting quantitative data from studies of diagnostic sensitivity among primary care providers. Possible predictors and contributory factors were determined from the text of quantitative and qualitative studies of patient-, caregiver-, provider-, and system-related barriers. Overall estimates of diagnostic sensitivity varied among studies and appeared to be in part a function of dementia severity, degree of patient impairment, dementia subtype, and frequency of patient-provider contact. Major contributory factors included problems with attitudes and patient-provider communication, educational deficits, and system resource constraints. The true prevalence of missed and delayed diagnoses of dementia is unknown but appears to be high. Until the case for dementia screening becomes more compelling, efforts to promote timely detection should focus on removing barriers to diagnosis. PMID:19568149
Smith, Colleen
On May 27, 2016, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that it was adopting a new rule that requires food manufacturers to list—on the already mandated Nutrition Facts label—how many grams of sugar have been added to a food product. Many opponents have criticized this “added sugars” rule on First Amendment grounds, arguing that the rule violates the commercial speech rights of food manufacturers. Whether the rule would survive constitutional scrutiny or not is an open question because the compelled commercial speech doctrine is anything but clear. Courts are split over whether Zauderer’s rational basis test, Central Hudson’s intermediate scrutiny, or some combination of the two should apply to a mandated disclosure like FDA’s added sugars rule. This Paper explains that the added sugars rule is unique in the history of mandated nutrition labeling in that the rule is motivated largely by public health concerns and backed by reports that assert that consumers should limit their intake of added sugars. In contrast, correcting and preventing consumer deception has been a major driving force behind the remainder of FDA’s mandated nutrition labeling. Because of this distinct rationale, the added sugars rule does not fit neatly into any currently existing compelled commercial speech test. This Paper uses the added sugars rule to highlight the deficiencies in the existing tests. Finally, this Paper proposes a new compelled commercial speech test that would adequately balance the interest of all of the effected parties: the government, the public, and food manufacturers.
Penn, Derek C; Povinelli, Daniel J
2007-04-29
After decades of effort by some of our brightest human and non-human minds, there is still little consensus on whether or not non-human animals understand anything about the unobservable mental states of other animals or even what it would mean for a non-verbal animal to understand the concept of a 'mental state'. In the present paper, we confront four related and contentious questions head-on: (i) What exactly would it mean for a non-verbal organism to have an 'understanding' or a 'representation' of another animal's mental state? (ii) What should (and should not) count as compelling empirical evidence that a non-verbal cognitive agent has a system for understanding or forming representations about mental states in a functionally adaptive manner? (iii) Why have the kind of experimental protocols that are currently in vogue failed to produce compelling evidence that non-human animals possess anything even remotely resembling a theory of mind? (iv) What kind of experiments could, at least in principle, provide compelling evidence for such a system in a non-verbal organism?
Frontal Midline Theta Reflects Anxiety and Cognitive Control: Meta-Analytic Evidence
Cavanagh, James F.; Shackman, Alexander J.
2014-01-01
Evidence from imaging and anatomical studies suggests that the midcingulate cortex (MCC) is a dynamic hub lying at the interface of affect and cognition. In particular, this neural system appears to integrate information about conflict and punishment in order to optimize behavior in the face of action-outcome uncertainty. In a series of meta-analyses, we show how recent human electrophysiological research provides compelling evidence that frontal-midline theta signals reflecting MCC activity are moderated by anxiety and predict adaptive behavioral adjustments. These findings underscore the importance of frontal theta activity to a broad spectrum of control operations. We argue that frontal-midline theta provides a neurophysiologically plausible mechanism for optimally adjusting behavior to uncertainty, a hallmark of situations that elicit anxiety and demand cognitive control. These observations compel a new perspective on the mechanisms guiding motivated learning and behavior and provide a framework for understanding the role of the MCC in temperament and psychopathology. PMID:24787485
Predictive Value of Performance Criteria for First-Time Sophomore Resident Assistants
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Severance, Dana A.
2015-01-01
Housing professionals are increasingly compelled to consider hiring resident assistants (RAs) from a pool of applicants that includes students with less college experience than has traditionally been expected. The purpose of the study is to determine if the success of first-time sophomore RAs differs from that of first-time upper-class RAs…
In Favour of Ethics Education, against Religious Education
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Tillson, John
2011-01-01
The questions that I address are: "What ought to become of Religious Education (RE)?" and "To what extent do non-religious beliefs belong in RE?" I will argue that there are compelling reasons for studying religious and non-religious views alongside each other, but that there are serious objections to doing this in the context of any subject…
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Akinosho, Hannah O.
Each study provided compelling reasoning to strongly consider lignin’s part in limiting CBP efficiencies at the laboratory and eventually the industrial scale. To make cellulosic ethanol production feasible with CBP, lignin structure and content must be manipulated with genetic modifications or carefully selected in natural variants to combat these difficulties.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-10-01
... served by a proposed rural water supply project has urgent and compelling water needs, Reclamation will... Regulations Relating to Public Lands BUREAU OF RECLAMATION, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR RECLAMATION RURAL WATER SUPPLY PROGRAM Overview § 404.28 Is it possible to expedite the completion of an appraisal investigation...
From Face-to-Face to Paired Oral Proficiency Interviews: The Nut Is yet to Be Cracked
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Birjandi, Parviz; Bagherkazemi, Marzieh
2011-01-01
The pressing need for English oral communication skills in multifarious contexts today is compelling impetus behind the large number of studies done on oral proficiency interviewing. Moreover, given the recently articulated concerns with the fairness and social dimension of such interviews, parallel concerns have been raised as to how most fairly…
The Impact of No Child Left Behind on Student Achievement. NBER Working Paper No. 15531
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Dee, Thomas; Jacob, Brian
2009-01-01
The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act compelled states to design school-accountability systems based on annual student assessments. The effect of this Federal legislation on the distribution of student achievement is a highly controversial but centrally important question. This study presents evidence on whether NCLB has influenced student…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Jaggers, Jeremiah W.; Bolland, Anneliese C.; Tomek, Sara; Bolland, Kathleen A.; Hooper, Lisa M.; Church, Wesley T., II; Bolland, John M.
2018-01-01
An extensive body of work shows that parental monitoring reduces the likelihood of risky behaviors among youth, yet little attention has been given to the factors compelling parents to engage in monitoring behaviors. The current study examines the association between non-familial, adolescent relationships (i.e., school connectedness, community…
Process Writing and the Internet: Blogs and Ning Networks in the Classroom
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Boas, Isabela Villas
2011-01-01
In contrast to the product approach to writing, which is based on studying and replicating textual models, the process approach involves multiple and repeated steps that compel the writer to closely consider the topic, language, purpose for writing, and social reality of an audience. In addition to discussing the benefits of the process approach…
Women in Line Administration: A Longitudinal Study in One State, 1972-2002
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Mertz, Norma T.
2003-01-01
Responding to compelling evidence of gender inequity and a systematic campaign of political pressure to redress these inequities, Congress passed Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681) prohibiting sex discrimination in all aspects of education in institutions receiving federal financial assistance. At the time Title IX was…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Pearson, Deborah A.; And Others
1996-01-01
This study compared children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and mental retardation with children with only mental retardation on tasks involving sustained and selective attention. No compelling evidence emerged for sustained attention deficits in the ADHD children, though evidence suggesting selective attention deficits was…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Gersten, Russell; Dimino, Joseph; Jayanthi, Madhavi; Newman-Gonchar, Rebecca; Taylor, Mary Jo
2013-01-01
The ESEA Blueprint for Reform states that teachers need "effective, ongoing, job-embedded, professional development that is targeted to student and school needs… [and] aligned with evidence of improvements in student learning." Unfortunately, the professional development approaches advocated, though sensible and compelling in theory,…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Mantzicopoulos, Panayota; French, Brian F.; Patrick, Helen; Watson, J. Samuel; Ahn, Inok
2018-01-01
To meet recent accountability mandates, school districts are implementing assessment frameworks to document teachers' effectiveness. Observational assessments play a key role in this process, albeit without compelling evidence of their psychometric rigor. Using a sample of kindergarten teachers, we employed Generalizability theory to investigate…
Young Women of Alaska Speak Out about Dropping Out.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Bruce, Lauren
This report is the result of taped interviews with 115 Alaskan teenage women who have dropped out of "regular" public school. Two results of the study stand out: first, the majority of the students wanted a diploma, but nonetheless felt compelled to drop out; second (the reason most girls gave for dropping out): no one cared. However,…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Jaquette, Ozan; Curs, Bradley R.
2015-01-01
This study investigates whether public universities respond to declines in state appropriations by increasing nonresident freshman enrollment. State higher education appropriations declined substantially during the 2000s, compelling public universities to become more dependent on net-tuition revenue. State policy controls often limit the growth of…
Teaching about Nature of Science through Short Lab Activities in Hong Kong Classroom
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Lau, Kwok-chi
2017-01-01
The study evaluated the effectiveness of using short, school lab investigations to teach about the nature of science (NOS). A manipulated lab inquiry approach was used, which modified the investigations in ways that students were compelled to experience certain NOS aspects. An investigation about apple browning was used to teach about the…
What Do Teenagers Want? What Do Teenagers Need?
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Strom, Kimberly; And Others
1995-01-01
Reports on the qualitative findings extracted from a study of over 3,700 teenagers from urban, suburban, and small city settings, describing the array of difficulties teenagers face today. The themes that emerged from the students' comments offer a compelling portrait of life as a teenager in the 1990s and help shape an agenda for understanding…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Bishop, Matthew J.; Bybee, Taige S.; Lambert, Michael J.; Burlingame, Gary M.; Wells, M. Gawain; Poppleton, Landon E.
2005-01-01
Psychotherapy outcome can be enhanced by early identification of potential treatment failures before they leave treatment. In adults, compelling data are emerging that provide evidence that an early warning system that identifies potential treatment failures can be developed and applied to enhance outcome. The present study reports an analysis of…
Nigam, Sanjay K
2012-09-01
The well-established techniques of the professional storyteller not only have the potential to model complex "truth" but also to dig deeply into that complexity, thereby perhaps getting closer to that truth. This applies not only to fiction, but also to medicine and even science. Compelling storytelling ability may have conferred an evolutionary survival advantage and, if so, is likely represented in the neural circuitry of the human brain. Functional imaging will likely point to a neuroanatomical basis for compelling storytelling ability; this will presumably reflect underlying cellular and molecular mechanisms.
Burton, Anya; Martin, Richard M; Holly, Jeff; Lane, J Athene; Donovan, Jenny L; Hamdy, Freddie C; Neal, David E; Tilling, Kate
2013-02-01
Obesity has been associated with an increased risk of advanced and fatal prostate cancer; adipokines may mediate this association. We examined associations of the adipokines leptin and adiponectin with the stage and grade of PSA-detected prostate cancer. We conducted a nested case-control study comparing 311 men with mainly locally advanced (≥T3, N1, or M1 cases) vs. 413 men with localized (T ≤2 & NX-0 & M0 controls) PSA-detected prostate cancer, recruited 2001-2009 from 9 UK regions to the ProtecT study. Associations of body mass index and adipokine levels with prostate cancer stage were determined by conditional logistic regression and with grade (Gleason score ≥7 vs. ≤6) by unconditional logistic regression. Adiponectin was inversely associated with prostate cancer stage in overweight and obese men (OR 0.62; 95 % CI 0.42-0.90; p = 0.01), but not in normal weight men (OR 1.48; 0.77-2.82; p = 0.24) (p for interaction 0.007), or all men (OR 0.86; 0.66-1.11; p = 0.24). There was no compelling evidence of associations between leptin or leptin to adiponectin ratio and prostate cancer stage. No strong associations of adiponectin, leptin, or leptin:adiponectin ratio with grade were seen. This study provides some evidence that adiponectin levels may be associated with prostate cancer stage, dependent on the degree of adiposity of the man. Our results are consistent with adiponectin countering the adverse effects of obesity on prostate cancer progression.
Byrne, L; Fisher, I; Peters, T; Mather, A; Thomson, N; Rosner, B; Bernard, H; McKeown, P; Cormican, M; Cowden, J; Aiyedun, V; Lane, C
2014-08-07
In November 2011, the presence of Salmonella Newport in a ready-to-eat watermelon slice was confirmed as part of a local food survey in England. In late December 2011, cases of S. Newport were reported in England, Wales, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Ireland and Germany. During the outbreak, 63 confirmed cases of S. Newport were reported across all six countries with isolates indistinguishable by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis from the watermelon isolate.A subset of outbreak isolates were whole-genome sequenced and were identical to, or one single nucleotide polymorphism different from the watermelon isolate.In total, 46 confirmed cases were interviewed of which 27 reported watermelon consumption. Further investigations confirmed the outbreak was linked to the consumption of watermelon imported from Brazil.Although numerous Salmonella outbreaks associated with melons have been reported in the United States and elsewhere, this is the first of its kind in Europe.Expansion of the melon import market from Brazil represents a potential threat for future outbreaks. Whole genome sequencing is rapidly becoming more accessible and can provide a compelling level of evidence of linkage between human cases and sources of infection,to support public health interventions in global food markets.
Byrne, L; Fisher, I; Peters, T; Mather, A; Thomson, N; Rosner, B; Bernard, H; McKeown, P; Cormican, M; Cowden, J; Aiyedun, V; Lane, C
2015-01-01
In November 2011, the presence of Salmonella Newport in a ready-to-eat watermelon slice was confirmed as part of a local food survey in England. In late December 2011, cases of S. Newport were reported in England, Wales, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Ireland and Germany. During the outbreak, 63 confirmed cases of S. Newport were reported across all six countries with isolates indistinguishable by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis from the watermelon isolate. A subset of outbreak isolates were whole-genome sequenced and were identical to, or one single nucleotide polymorphism different from the watermelon isolate. In total, 46 confirmed cases were interviewed of which 27 reported watermelon consumption. Further investigations confirmed the outbreak was linked to the consumption of watermelon imported from Brazil. Although numerous Salmonella outbreaks associated with melons have been reported in the United States and elsewhere, this is the first of its kind in Europe. Expansion of the melon import market from Brazil represents a potential threat for future outbreaks. Whole genome sequencing is rapidly becoming more accessible and can provide a compelling level of evidence of linkage between human cases and sources of infection, to support public health interventions in global food markets. PMID:25138971
Merchant, Michael L; Rood, Ilse M; Deegens, Jeroen K J; Klein, Jon B
2017-12-01
Urine is a valuable diagnostic medium and, with the discovery of urinary extracellular vesicles, is viewed as a dynamic bioactive fluid. Extracellular vesicles are lipid-enclosed structures that can be classified into three categories: exosomes, microvesicles (or ectosomes) and apoptotic bodies. This classification is based on the mechanisms by which membrane vesicles are formed: fusion of multivesicular bodies with the plasma membranes (exosomes), budding of vesicles directly from the plasma membrane (microvesicles) or those shed from dying cells (apoptotic bodies). During their formation, urinary extracellular vesicles incorporate various cell-specific components (proteins, lipids and nucleic acids) that can be transferred to target cells. The rigour needed for comparative studies has fueled the search for optimal approaches for their isolation, purification, and characterization. RNA, the newest extracellular vesicle component to be discovered, has received substantial attention as an extracellular vesicle therapeutic, and compelling evidence suggests that ex vivo manipulation of microRNA composition may have uses in the treatment of kidney disorders. The results of these studies are building the case that urinary extracellular vesicles act as mediators of renal pathophysiology. As the field of extracellular vesicle studies is burgeoning, this Review focuses on primary data obtained from studies of human urine rather than on data from studies of laboratory animals or cultured immortalized cells.
Brenna, J Thomas
2016-02-01
The vast majority of infant formulas in the United States contain the long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) docosahexaenoic acid (22:6n-3) and arachidonic acid (20:4n-6), which were first permitted by the US Food and Drug Administration in 2001. As a scientific case study, preclinical animal studies of these nutrients definitively influenced the design and interpretation of human clinical studies. Early studies were tied to the availability of test substances, and in hindsight suggest re-evaluation of the essential fatty acid concept in light of the totality of available evidence. Research in the 1950s established the essentiality of n-6 PUFAs for skin integrity; however, widespread recognition of the essentiality of n-3 PUFAs came decades later despite compelling evidence of their significance. Barriers to an understanding of the essentiality of n-3 PUFAs were as follows: 1) their role is in neural function, which is measured only with difficulty compared with skin lesions and growth faltering that are apparent for n-6 PUFAs; 2) the experimental use of vegetable oils as PUFA sources that contain the inefficiently used C18 PUFAs rather than the operative C20 and C22 PUFAs; 3) the shift from reliance on high-quality animal studies to define mechanisms that established the required nutrients in the first part of the 20th century to inherently challenging human studies. Advances in nutrition of premature infants require the best practices and opinions available, taking into account the totality of preclinical and clinical evidence. © 2016 American Society for Nutrition.
Shemilt, Ian; Hollands, Gareth J; Marteau, Theresa M; Nakamura, Ryota; Jebb, Susan A; Kelly, Michael P; Suhrcke, Marc; Ogilvie, David
2013-01-01
Unhealthy diet and low levels of physical activity are common behavioural factors in the aetiology of many non-communicable diseases. Recent years have witnessed an upsurge of policy and research interest in the use of taxes and other economic instruments to improve population health. To assemble, configure and analyse empirical research studies available to inform the public health case for using economic instruments to promote dietary and physical activity behaviour change. We conducted a systematic scoping review of evidence for the effects of specific interventions to change, or general exposure to variations in, prices or income on dietary and physical activity behaviours and corollary outcomes. Systematic electronic searches and parallel snowball searches retrieved >1 million study records. Text mining technologies were used to prioritise title-abstract records for screening. Eligible studies were selected, classified and analysed in terms of key characteristics and principal findings, using a narrative, configuring synthesis focused on implications for policy and further research. We identified 880 eligible studies, including 192 intervention studies and 768 studies that incorporated evidence for prices or income as correlates or determinants of target outcomes. Current evidence for the effects of economic instruments and exposures on diet and physical activity is limited in quality and equivocal in terms of its policy implications. Direct evidence for the effects of economic instruments is heavily skewed towards impacts on diet, with a relative lack of evidence for impacts on physical activity. The evidence-based case for using economic instruments to promote dietary and physical activity behaviour change may be less compelling than some proponents have claimed. Future research should include measurement of people's actual behavioural responses using study designs capable of generating reliable causal inferences regarding intervention effects. Policy implementation needs to be carefully aligned with evaluation planning and design.
Funding for U.S. biomedical research: the case for the scientist-advocate.
Nurse, J T D; Fox, C H
2012-07-01
The U.S. biomedical research community finds itself at a particularly consequential moment. Since the end of the Fiscal Year (FY) 1998-2003 NIH budget doubling period, brought to fruition with bipartisan leadership, the Federal investment in biomedical research has been declining. The NIH budget has actually decreased in constant dollars since FY 2004. Across-the-board cuts included in the Budget Control Act of 2011 would result in a loss of $2.4 billion and roughly 2,300 research project grants in FY 2013 alone, unless Congress acts to intervene before January 2013. Many of the beneficiaries of NIH support view advocacy for research funding as "someone else's job". The case to reverse this mindset must be made. Members of Congress and their staffers are open to consideration of the case for sustaining Federal investments in science, even during these difficult budget times. However, the advocacy effort must be broad-based and repeatedly presented to effect change. The figures on economic return from spending on biomedical research are compelling, but they do not tell the entire story. The results of biomedical research improve and save lives every single day, a fact that should not be lost on our elected leaders.
Journal of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Pakistan: Five Years Bibliometric Analysis.
Saeed Ullah, Saeed; Jan, Saeed Ullah; Jan, Tahir; Ahmad, Hafiz Nafees; Jan, Muhammad Yahya; Rauf, Muhammad Abdur
2016-11-01
To conduct the bibliometric analysis of the Journal of the College of Physicians and Surgeons Pakistan (JCPSP) from 2012 to 2014. The prime objectives of this report were to determine the number and percentage of articles by year, authorship pattern, gender and geographical affiliation, ranking by subject and citation analysis. A data collection instrument was developed as bibliometric form. The data was analysed using the Microsoft Excel spread sheet. Editorials and letters to editors were excluded. There were 1106 total research documents, including 721 original articles and 385 case reports. A rapid increase in number of articles per year was noticed, more original papers than case reports. Majority of the authors were male. The contribution of Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was less than the other provinces. JCPSP was the most cited document in the reference list of the research documents. The scholars of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan and female researchers should give more attention in writing quality articles eligible for consideration at this Journal. It is also suggested that writers should be compelled to address such fields of medical sciences as neurology, nephrology, anatomy and pharmacology, while writing original articles and case reports.
Call to Action: The Case for Advancing Disaster Nursing Education in the United States.
Veenema, Tener Goodwin; Lavin, Roberta Proffitt; Griffin, Anne; Gable, Alicia R; Couig, Mary Pat; Dobalian, Aram
2017-11-01
Climate change, human conflict, and emerging infectious diseases are inexorable actors in our rapidly evolving healthcare landscape that are triggering an ever-increasing number of disaster events. A global nursing workforce is needed that possesses the knowledge, skills, and abilities to respond to any disaster or large-scale public health emergency in a timely and appropriate manner. The purpose of this article is to articulate a compelling mandate for the advancement of disaster nursing education within the United States with clear action steps in order to contribute to the achievement of this vision. A national panel of invited disaster nursing experts was convened through a series of monthly semistructured conference calls to work collectively towards the achievement of a national agenda for the future of disaster nursing education. National nursing education experts have developed consensus recommendations for the advancement of disaster nursing education in the United States. This article proposes next steps and action items to achieve the desired vision of national nurse readiness. Novel action steps for expanding disaster educational opportunities across the continuum of nursing are proposed in response to the current compelling need to prepare for, respond to, and mitigate the impact of disasters on human health. U.S. educational institutions and health and human service organizations that employ nurses must commit to increasing access to a variety of quality disaster-related educational programs for nurses and nurse leaders. Opportunities exist to strengthen disaster readiness and enhance national health security by expanding educational programming and training for nurses. © 2017 Sigma Theta Tau International.
Psychostimulants: Concerns over Long-Term Adverse Side Effects.
Adams, James Gray
2015-11-01
The personal rewards are substantial for the healthcare provider who can make teachers and parents happy. There are evolving, alternative methods of dealing with ADHD, but PS are relatively cheap and quick when they work (roughly 70% of the time) and readily accessible. We have no social or educational structures currently to deal with the extreme ADHD cases. In cases of less dramatic, attention problems, poor grades, where PS boost attention, physicians are unlikely to abandon their patients willingly, unless compelled to sacrifice short-term goals over the unanswered questions about what is best in the long run. How can we know if it's the child and not the educational system that needs diagnosis and treatment? Psychiatric literature consistently suggests the prevalence of attention deficit in children is roughly 5% of the child population. Do 5% of our children need to take PS? This is where risks versus benefits enters the decision making process, and this is where this article aims to intentionally plant a healthy dose of scientific scrutiny. Ultimately, the doctor in charge makes a decision ... sometimes based on intangibles that cannot be legislated or defined by even the best scientific studies. It is not clear or scientifically established that the use of PS, especially in young, developing minds of children, is safe or meaningfully beneficial in the long run. There is much information in human and animal studies to question the wishful thinking that using mind altering drugs in children is the right thing to do. There are risks, and there are benefits. In this case, the risks are less obvious, cloaked in the inadequacy of our current state of knowledge, potentially threatening the quality of the lives we seek to enhance.
Testicular cancer and hormonally active agents.
Garner, Michael; Turner, Michelle C; Ghadirian, Parviz; Krewski, Daniel; Wade, Michael
2008-03-01
Testicular cancer (TC) is a rare form of cancer, accounting for 1% of all new cancer cases in Canadian males. TC is the most common malignancy among young men, aged 25-34 yr old. Over previous decades, the incidence of TC has increased in many Western countries. Countries with a sufficiently long period of cancer registration, such as Denmark, document this trend back to the first half of the 20th century. The etiology of TC remains poorly understood. Most of the established risk factors are likely related to in utero events, including some factors that are purported to be surrogate measures for exposure to endogenous estrogens. The correlation of TC with other testicular abnormalities and with pregnancy factors led to the proposal that these conditions are a constellation of sequelae of impairment of testicular development called testis dysgenesis syndrome. There is some limited evidence suggesting that exposure to pharmacological estrogens may contribute to some cases of TC. There is currently no compelling evidence that exposure to environmental estrogenic or other hormonally active substances is contributing to the rise in TC incidence observed in Western nations over the last several decades; however, this question has not been extensively studied. The (1) rarity of this condition in the population, (2) long lag time between the presumed sensitive period during fetal development and clinical appearance of the condition, and (3) lack of a good animal model to study the progression of the disease have greatly hindered the understanding of environmental influences on TC risk.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Patade, Sachin; Prabha, T. V.; Axisa, D.; Gayatri, K.; Heymsfield, A.
2015-10-01
A comprehensive analysis of particle size distributions measured in situ with airborne instrumentation during the Cloud Aerosol Interaction and Precipitation Enhancement Experiment (CAIPEEX) is presented. In situ airborne observations in the developing stage of continental convective clouds during premonsoon (PRE), transition, and monsoon (MON) period at temperatures from 25 to -22°C are used in the study. The PRE clouds have narrow drop size and particle size distributions compared to monsoon clouds and showed less development of size spectra with decrease in temperature. Overall, the PRE cases had much lower values of particle number concentrations and ice water content compared to MON cases, indicating large differences in the ice initiation and growth processes between these cloud regimes. This study provided compelling evidence that in addition to dynamics, aerosol and moisture are important for modulating ice microphysical processes in PRE and MON clouds through impacts on cloud drop size distribution. Significant differences are observed in the relationship of the slope and intercept parameters of the fitted particle size distributions (PSDs) with temperature in PRE and MON clouds. The intercept values are higher in MON clouds than PRE for exponential distribution which can be attributed to higher cloud particle number concentrations and ice water content in MON clouds. The PRE clouds tend to have larger values of dispersion of gamma size distributions than MON clouds, signifying narrower spectra. The relationships between PSDs parameters are presented and compared with previous observations.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Thapliyal, Nisha
2018-01-01
From Facebook-coordinated high-school walkouts to compelling Internet-based protest art that has accompanied recent teacher strikes, grassroots education activism in the USA has gone digital. Despite the proliferation of research on the mediatisation of education policy, few studies have explored the ways in which activists for public education…
The Role of "Family Snapshots" in Teaching Art History within a Dialogic Pedagogy
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Baxter, Kristin
2012-01-01
Studying images of families in works of art and in snapshots is compelling, and the author wondered if looking at both types of images side by side might help students understand both kinds of images more fully. Snapshots often prompt detailed and vivid stories among family members and friends. Therefore, she wondered if dialogue about snapshots…
Digital Storytelling in a Place-Based Composition Course
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Chisholm, James S.; Trent, Brandie
2014-01-01
Although the study of place in the fields of composition and education has a long and compelling history, the concept has taken on increased importance in today's digital landscape. As perceptions of places shift, we're challenged to understand how and which places shape who we are. Due to its potential power to leverage student choice,…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Kinney, Angela
2015-01-01
This study focused on household funds of knowledge or "historically accumulated bodies of knowledge and skills essential for household functioning and well-being" (Gonzalez, Andrade, Civil, & Moll, 2001). A Funds of Knowledge approach provides both a methodological and theoretical lens for educators to understand both themselves and…
On a Path to Success: Experiences of Hispanic High School Dropout Students
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Garza, Jorge L.
2010-01-01
This study is about the lives of three low-socioeconomic Hispanic students who dropped out of high school and felt compelled to return to the school setting to earn their high school diploma. This research focused on one research question: What are the life experiences of low socio-economic Hispanic students who successfully graduated from high…
Twin Data That Made a Big Difference, and That Deserve to Be Better-Known and Used in Teaching
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Campbell, Harlan; Hanley, James A.
2017-01-01
Because of their efficiency and ability to keep many other factors constant, twin studies have a special appeal for investigators. Just as with any teaching dataset, a "matched-sets" dataset used to illustrate a statistical model should be compelling, still relevant, and valid. Indeed, such a "model dataset" should meet the…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Abdullah, Sarimah Shaik; Yaacob, Aizan; Rahim, Fauziah Abdul
2013-01-01
Purpose: This paper is part of a larger study which explored postgraduate students talk around academic texts via Facebook (FB). Our exploration is largely guided by the idea of reading as a social practice. In this paper, we specifically focus on the students' reflections of their online experience of talking around academic texts. Method: The…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Mendonca, Goncalo V.; Pereira, Fernando D.; Fernhall, Bo
2013-01-01
Persons with Down syndrome (DS) are at high risk for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality, and there is compelling evidence of autonomic dysfunction in these individuals. The main purpose of this study was to determine whether a combined aerobic and resistance exercise intervention produces similar results in cardiac autonomic function between…
Who Gets to Be a Writer? Exploring Identity and Learning Issues in Becoming a Fiction Author
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Gouthro, Patricia A.
2014-01-01
Drawing upon a research study on lifelong learning, citizenship, and fiction writing, this paper explores issues around identity and learning in becoming a fiction author. Five main thematic areas are discussed: (1) envisioning a writing career, (2) compelled to write, (3) learning the craft, (4) getting published, and (5) online identity. The…
"I'm Still Here:" Black Female Undergraduates' Self-Definition Narratives
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Robinson, Subrina J.; Esquibel, Elena; Rich, Marc D.
2013-01-01
Drawing on Black feminism and oral narrative research, we examine how Black women undergraduates make sense of their identities as Black females. More specifically, we explore the dual impact of gender and race by considering what it means to be a Black woman on campus. The women in this study articulate compelling, and at times, diverging…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Thomas, Kristopher J.
2013-01-01
This study is an ethnographic exploration of organizational culture, work-life balance, and the use of information and communication technology ("ICT") in the work and home settings. The researcher was embedded for nine weeks within the Information Technology ("IT") department at the corporate headquarters of a mid-sized…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Meister, Denise G.
2011-01-01
With the demand for a demonstration of continuous progress as an accountability gauge in public schools, teachers are compelled to examine assessment data for each of their pupils. This data analysis, in turn, should help teachers gauge their instructional practices and differentiate instruction so that all can reach proficient levels of…
Response to Comartin, Kernsmith, and Miles' (2010) Michigan Sex Offender Registration Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Prescott, David S.
2010-01-01
Basic human respect compels everyone to ask about the effect of the current policies to prevent further abuse on family members of those who have abused. Sadly, only a handful of researchers are examining the effects of policies on the affected parties, such as victims, the abusers themselves, or their families. No one yet has asked a random…
2004-08-01
immunocompetant cells experience bidirectional communication with hormones and cytokines [35,40]. Thus, despite compelling experimental findings, HSD has not...hypertonic saline with 6% dextran-70 (HSD) has been shown in experimental studies to reduce shock/resuscitation-induced inflammatory reactions and...alterations have been described in clinical and experimental investigations of post-traumatic hemorrhagic shock [13]. The initial immunological
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Krakowsky, Lorenzo
2010-01-01
This paper tells the remarkable and compelling story of Leonard Covello, a ground breaking progressive educator who worked tirelessly to shape public education in New York City during the first half of the 20th century. Covello was the founding principal of Benjamin Franklin High School (BFHS) in East Harlem in the 1930s. The author invites…
Determinants of non-urgent Emergency Department attendance among females in Qatar.
Read, Jen'nan Ghazal; Varughese, Shinu; Cameron, Peter A
2014-01-01
The use of emergency department (ED) services for non-urgent conditions is well-studied in many Western countries but much less so in the Middle East and Gulf region. While the consequences are universal-a drain on ED resources and poor patient outcomes-the causes and solutions are likely to be region and country specific. Unique social and economic circumstances also create gender-specific motivations for patient attendance. Alleviating demand on ED services requires understanding these circumstances, as past studies have shown. We undertook this study to understand why female patients with low-acuity conditions choose the emergency department in Qatar over other healthcare options. Prospective study at Hamad General Hospital's (HGH) emergency department female "see-and-treat" unit that treats low-acuity cases. One hundred female patients were purposively recruited to participate in the study. Three trained physicians conducted semi-structured interviews with patients over a three-month period after they had been treated and given informed consent. The study found that motivations for ED attendance were systematically influenced by employment status as an expatriate worker. Forty percent of the sample had been directed to the ED by their employers, and the vast majority (89%) of this group cited employer preference as the primary reason for choosing the ED. The interviews revealed that a major obstacle to workers using alternative facilities was the lack of a government-issued health card, which is available to all citizens and residents at a nominal rate. Reducing the number of low-acuity cases in the emergency department at HGH will require interventions aimed at encouraging patients with non-urgent conditions to use alternative healthcare facilities. Potential interventions include policy changes that require employers to either provide workers with a health card or compel employees to acquire one for themselves.
[The potential contribution of adenovirus 36 to the development of obesity].
Villavicencio, Francisca; Valladares, Macarena
2017-08-01
The evidence of the last 20 years shows a link between viral infections and obesity in animals and humans. There are five adenovirus which have been associated with development of obesity in animals. SMAM-1 virus was the first studied in humans associated with obesity. There is compelling evidence that Ad-36 virus could contribute to the development of obesity in humans and it is related with body mass index (BMI). This manuscript reviews the association between Ad-36 and the other four virus infections with obesity. An electronic search of articles in the databases PubMed and Scielo, with use of key words: obesity, infection, adipose tissue, Ad-36, 3T3-L1 was performed. The search was restricted "human" and "animals". The importance of the relationship between virus infections and obesity has increased over the past two decades. Ad-36 shows more compelling evidence in humans. There are reports involving this virus in the enhancement of adipogenesis, adipocyte differentiation, a lower secretion of leptin and an increased insulin sensitivity. Future work should focus in larger cohort studies to confirm this association, which explains the global obesity epidemic from a new perspective.
The ubiquity of alpine plant radiations: from the Andes to the Hengduan Mountains.
Hughes, Colin E; Atchison, Guy W
2015-07-01
Alpine plant radiations are compared across the world's major mountain ranges and shown to be overwhelmingly young and fast, largely confined to the Pliocene and Pleistocene, and some of them apparently in the early explosive phase of radiation. Accelerated diversification triggered by island-like ecological opportunities following the final phases of mountain uplift, and in many cases enabled by the key adaptation of perennial habit, provides a general model for alpine plant radiations. Accelerated growth form evolution facilitated by perenniality provides compelling evidence of ecological release and suggests striking parallels between island-like alpine, and especially tropicalpine radiations, and island radiations more generally. These parallels suggest that the world's mountains offer an excellent comparative system for explaining evolutionary radiation. © 2015 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2015 New Phytologist Trust.
Transfer of perceptual adaptation to space sickness: What enhances an individual's ability to adapt?
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
1993-01-01
The objectives of this project were to explore systematically the determiners of transfer of perceptual adaptation as these principles might apply to the space adaptation syndrome. The perceptual experience of an astronaut exposed to the altered gravitational forces involved in spaceflight shares much with that of the subject exposed in laboratory experiments to optically induced visual rearrangement with tilt and dynamic motion illusions such as vection; and experiences and symptoms reported by the trainee who is exposed to the compellingly realistic visual imagery of flight simulators and virtual reality systems. In both of these cases the observer is confronted with a variety of inter- and intrasensory conflicts that initially disrupt perception, as well as behavior, and also produce symptoms of motion sickness.
Evidence for a Nematic Phase in La 1.75 Sr 0.25 NiO 4
Zhong, Ruidan; Winn, Barry L.; Gu, Genda; ...
2017-04-28
Determining the nature of electronic states in doped Mott insulators remains a challenging task. In the case of tetragonal La 2 - xSr xNiO 4, the occurrence of diagonal charge and spin stripe order in the ground state is now well established. In contrast, the nature of the high-temperature “disordered” state from which the stripe order develops has long been a subject of controversy, with considerable speculation regarding a polaronic liquid. Following the recent detection of dynamic charge stripes, in this paper we use neutron scattering measurements on an x = 0.25 crystal to demonstrate that the dispersion of themore » charge-stripe excitations is anisotropic. Finally, this observation provides compelling evidence for the presence of electronic nematic order.« less
Rosenthal, Erika
2003-01-01
The pesticide poisoning deaths of 24 children in an isolated Peruvian village make a compelling case that corporate accountability for pesticide poisonings in the developing south should be examined from a human rights perspective. Highly toxic pesticides cannot be used safely under prevailing socioeconomic conditions. The industry asserts that the deaths of these children were accidental, blaming misuse. Tragedies such as these poisonings are not accidents, but foreseeable, and therefore preventable. Sales of highly toxic pesticides that cause repeated and predictable poisonings violate the fundamental human rights to life, health, and security of person. The Tauccamarca tragedy is a clear example of the urgency of applying a precautionary, human rights approach to pesticide issues in the developing south.
Neonatal Diabetes: An Expanding List of Genes Allows for Improved Diagnosis and Treatment
Naylor, Rochelle N.; Philipson, Louis H.; Bell, Graeme I.
2011-01-01
There has been major progress in recent years uncovering the genetic causes of diabetes presenting in the first year of life. Twenty genes have been identified to date. The most common causes accounting for the majority of cases are mutations in the genes encoding the two subunits of the ATP-sensitive potassium channel (KATP), KCNJ11 and ABCC8, and the insulin gene (INS), as well as abnormalities in chromosome 6q24. Patients with activating mutations in KCNJ11 and ABCC8 can be treated with oral sulfonylureas in lieu of insulin injections. This compelling example of personalized genetic medicine leading to improved glucose regulation and quality of life may—with continued research—be repeated for other forms of neonatal diabetes in the future. PMID:21993633
Prevention Strategies Against HIV Transmission: A Proactive Approach.
Carrion, Antonio J; Miles, Jovan D; Mosley, Juan F; Smith, Lillian L; Prather, April S; Gurley, Marcus M; Phan, Linh D; Everton, Emily C
2018-02-01
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) has now transformed into a manageable chronic condition. Highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) has proven efficacious at controlling the disease progression. Based on compelling evidence, the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and the Infectious Disease Society of America (IDSA) developed guidelines for the management of persons infected with HIV. However, there are approximately 50 000 new cases of HIV in the United States each year. In this article, we review proactive methods to reduce the transmission of HIV, which include reinforcing patient education, gel-coated condoms that destroy HIV, HIV vaccinations, and adequately utilizing pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), and post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP). Further development and consistent utilization of innovative prevention tools can significantly reduce the incidence of HIV infections regardless of HIV status.
Evidence for a Nematic Phase in La 1.75 Sr 0.25 NiO 4
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Zhong, Ruidan; Winn, Barry L.; Gu, Genda
Determining the nature of electronic states in doped Mott insulators remains a challenging task. In the case of tetragonal La 2 - xSr xNiO 4, the occurrence of diagonal charge and spin stripe order in the ground state is now well established. In contrast, the nature of the high-temperature “disordered” state from which the stripe order develops has long been a subject of controversy, with considerable speculation regarding a polaronic liquid. Following the recent detection of dynamic charge stripes, in this paper we use neutron scattering measurements on an x = 0.25 crystal to demonstrate that the dispersion of themore » charge-stripe excitations is anisotropic. Finally, this observation provides compelling evidence for the presence of electronic nematic order.« less
The epidural trip: why are so many women taking dangerous drugs during labor?
Cohain, Judy Slome
2010-01-01
Two million American women will take an epidural trip this year during childbirth. In most cases, they'll be ill–informed as to possible side effects or alternate methods of pain relief. In many ways, epidurals are the drug trip of the current generation. Similar to street drug pushers, most anesthesiologists in the delivery rooms maintain a low profile, avoid making eye contact and threaten to walk out if they don't get total cooperation. Women get epidurals for one of the main reasons so many women smoked pot in the 1970s—their friends are doing it. This article examines why so many women in the Western world are compelled to take powerful drugs during their labor and exposes the risks epidurals pose to both mother and baby.
Seng, Darrien Mah Yau; Putuhena, Frederik Josep; Said, Salim; Ling, Law Puong
2009-03-01
A city consumes a large amount of water. Urban planning and development are becoming more compelling due to the fact of growing competition for water, which has lead to an increasing and conflicting demand. As such, investments in water supply, sanitation and water resources management is a strong potential for a solid return. A pilot project of greywater ecological treatment has been established in Kuching city since 2003. Such a treatment facility opens up an opportunity of wastewater reclamation for reuse as secondary sources of water for non-consumptive purposes. This paper aims to explore the potential of the intended purposes in the newly developed ecological treatment project. By utilizing the Wallingford Software model, InfoWorks WS (Water Supply) is employed to carry out a hydraulic modeling of a hypothetical greywater recycling system as an integrated part of the Kuching urban water supply, where the greywater is treated, recycled and reused in the domestic environment. The modeling efforts have shown water savings of about 40% from the investigated system reinstating that the system presents an alternative water source worth exploring in an urban environment.
Comparative phylogeography of oceanic archipelagos: Hotspots for inferences of evolutionary process
Shaw, Kerry L.; Gillespie, Rosemary G.
2016-01-01
Remote island archipelagos offer superb opportunities to study the evolution of community assembly because of their relatively young and simple communities where speciation contributes to the origin and evolution of community structure. There is great potential for common phylogeographic patterns among remote archipelagos that originate through hotspot volcanism, particularly when the islands formed are spatially isolated and linearly arranged. The progression rule is characterized by a phylogeographic concordance between island age and lineage age in a species radiation. Progression is most likely to arise when a species radiation begins on an older island before the emergence of younger islands of a hotspot archipelago. In the simplest form of progression, colonization of younger islands as they emerge and offer appropriate habitat, is coincident with cladogenesis. In this paper, we review recent discoveries of the progression rule on seven hotspot archipelagos. We then discuss advantages that progression offers to the study of community assembly, and insights that community dynamics may offer toward understanding the evolution of progression. We describe results from two compelling cases of progression where the mosaic genome may offer insights into contrasting demographic histories that shed light on mechanisms of speciation and progression on remote archipelagos. PMID:27432948
Handa, Robert J.; Pak, Toni R.; Kudwa, Andrea E.; Lund, Trent D.; Hinds, Laura
2008-01-01
The complexity of gonadal steroid hormone actions is reflected in their broad and diverse effects on a host of integrated systems including reproductive physiology, sexual behavior, stress responses, immune function, cognition, and neural protection. Understanding the specific contributions of androgens and estrogens in neurons that mediate these important biological processes is central to the study of neuroendocrinology. Of particular interest in recent years has been the biological role of androgen metabolites. The goal of this review is to highlight recent data delineating the specific brain targets for the dihydrotestosterone metabolite, 5α-androstane, 3β, 17β-diol (3β-Diol). Studies using both in vitro and in vivo approaches provide compelling evidence that 3β-Diol is an important modulator of the stress response mediated by the hypothalmo-pituitary-adrenal axis. Further, the actions of 3β-Diol are mediated by estrogen receptors, and not androgen receptors, often through a canonical estrogen response element in the promoter of a given target gene. These novel findings compel us to re-evaluate the interpretation of past studies and the design of future experiments aimed at elucidating the specific effects of androgen receptor signaling pathways. PMID:18067894
Youth masculinities: compelling male heterosexuality.
Richardson, Diane
2010-12-01
This article seeks to extend understandings of heterosexual masculine identities through an examination of young men's constructions of what motivates young men to engage in heterosexual practices and relationships, and what not having sex might mean for them. Using the masculinity literature and work on heterosexuality to frame the discussion and to contextualize the findings, it explores the complex dynamics that frame the relationship between masculinity and heterosexuality. Specifically, how dominant or 'hegemonic' discourses of heterosexuality shape young men's identities, beliefs and behaviour. It considers these questions using empirical data from a qualitative study of young people living in close-knit working-class communities in the North East of England, with a specific focus on cultural and social attitudes towards sexuality and sexual practices. Peer group networks are a key site for the construction and (re)production of masculinity and, therefore, an important arena within which gendered social approval and acceptance is both sought and gained. In this article, I explore the reasons why young men engage in specific types of heterosexual practice in order to gain social approval. A central question is the extent to which heterosexuality is compelling for young men. That young men do feel compelled to behave in certain ways sexually, behaviours that they may be uncomfortable with and/or dislike, and the fact that they feel they are restricted in terms of how they can talk about their experiences within their peer group networks, demonstrates the power of dominant discourses of masculinity in everyday life. This is addressed through an examination of the restrictive effects of normative discourses about male heterosexuality, including their privatizing effects, which suggest that youth masculinities are often experienced in ways that are highly contradictory requiring young men to adopt a range of strategies to deal with this.
Gallup, Gordon G; Anderson, James R
2018-03-01
The recent attempt by Horowitz (2017) to develop an "olfactory mirror" test of self-recognition in domestic dogs raises some important questions about the kinds of data that are required to provide definitive evidence for self-recognition in dogs and other species. We conclude that the "olfactory mirror" constitutes a compelling analog to the mark test for mirror self-recognition in primates, but despite claims to the contrary neither dogs, elephants, dolphins, magpies, horses, manta rays, squid, nor ants have shown compelling, reproducible evidence for self-recognition in any modality. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Can walking motions improve visually induced rotational self-motion illusions in virtual reality?
Riecke, Bernhard E; Freiberg, Jacob B; Grechkin, Timofey Y
2015-02-04
Illusions of self-motion (vection) can provide compelling sensations of moving through virtual environments without the need for complex motion simulators or large tracked physical walking spaces. Here we explore the interaction between biomechanical cues (stepping along a rotating circular treadmill) and visual cues (viewing simulated self-rotation) for providing stationary users a compelling sensation of rotational self-motion (circular vection). When tested individually, biomechanical and visual cues were similarly effective in eliciting self-motion illusions. However, in combination they yielded significantly more intense self-motion illusions. These findings provide the first compelling evidence that walking motions can be used to significantly enhance visually induced rotational self-motion perception in virtual environments (and vice versa) without having to provide for physical self-motion or motion platforms. This is noteworthy, as linear treadmills have been found to actually impair visually induced translational self-motion perception (Ash, Palmisano, Apthorp, & Allison, 2013). Given the predominant focus on linear walking interfaces for virtual-reality locomotion, our findings suggest that investigating circular and curvilinear walking interfaces offers a promising direction for future research and development and can help to enhance self-motion illusions, presence and immersion in virtual-reality systems. © 2015 ARVO.
Case study: Beauty and the Beast 3D: benefits of 3D viewing for 2D to 3D conversion
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Handy Turner, Tara
2010-02-01
From the earliest stages of the Beauty and the Beast 3D conversion project, the advantages of accurate desk-side 3D viewing was evident. While designing and testing the 2D to 3D conversion process, the engineering team at Walt Disney Animation Studios proposed a 3D viewing configuration that not only allowed artists to "compose" stereoscopic 3D but also improved efficiency by allowing artists to instantly detect which image features were essential to the stereoscopic appeal of a shot and which features had minimal or even negative impact. At a time when few commercial 3D monitors were available and few software packages provided 3D desk-side output, the team designed their own prototype devices and collaborated with vendors to create a "3D composing" workstation. This paper outlines the display technologies explored, final choices made for Beauty and the Beast 3D, wish-lists for future development and a few rules of thumb for composing compelling 2D to 3D conversions.
Miller, Gregory A; Crocker, Laura D; Spielberg, Jeffrey M; Infantolino, Zachary P; Heller, Wendy
2013-01-01
The appeal of simple, sweeping portraits of large-scale brain mechanisms relevant to psychological phenomena competes with a rich, complex research base. As a prominent example, two views of frontal brain organization have emphasized dichotomous lateralization as a function of either emotional valence (positive/negative) or approach/avoidance motivation. Compelling findings support each. The literature has struggled to choose between them for three decades, without success. Both views are proving untenable as comprehensive models. Evidence of other frontal lateralizations, involving distinctions among dimensions of depression and anxiety, make a dichotomous view even more problematic. Recent evidence indicates that positive valence and approach motivation are associated with different areas in the left-hemisphere. Findings that appear contradictory at the level of frontal lobes as the units of analysis can be accommodated because hemodynamic and electromagnetic neuroimaging studies suggest considerable functional differentiation, in specialization and activation, of subregions of frontal cortex, including their connectivity to each other and to other regions. Such findings contribute to a more nuanced understanding of functional localization that accommodates aspects of multiple theoretical perspectives.
Miller, Gregory A.; Crocker, Laura D.; Spielberg, Jeffrey M.; Infantolino, Zachary P.; Heller, Wendy
2013-01-01
The appeal of simple, sweeping portraits of large-scale brain mechanisms relevant to psychological phenomena competes with a rich, complex research base. As a prominent example, two views of frontal brain organization have emphasized dichotomous lateralization as a function of either emotional valence (positive/negative) or approach/avoidance motivation. Compelling findings support each. The literature has struggled to choose between them for three decades, without success. Both views are proving untenable as comprehensive models. Evidence of other frontal lateralizations, involving distinctions among dimensions of depression and anxiety, make a dichotomous view even more problematic. Recent evidence indicates that positive valence and approach motivation are associated with different areas in the left-hemisphere. Findings that appear contradictory at the level of frontal lobes as the units of analysis can be accommodated because hemodynamic and electromagnetic neuroimaging studies suggest considerable functional differentiation, in specialization and activation, of subregions of frontal cortex, including their connectivity to each other and to other regions. Such findings contribute to a more nuanced understanding of functional localization that accommodates aspects of multiple theoretical perspectives. PMID:23386814
Watson, C J; Pierach, C A; Bossenmaier, I; Cardinal, R
1977-01-01
There is compelling, indirect evidence of hepatic heme deficiency due primarily to the respective genetic errors of the three inducible hepatic porphyrias, acute intermittent porphyria, porphyria variegata, and hereditary coproporphyria. The induction is enhanced by exogenous inducers such as barbiturate, estrogens and other "porphyrogenic" chemicals and factors, including glucose deprivation. The newer knowledge of the induction of delta-aminolevulinic acid synthetase [delta-aminolevulinate synthase; succinyl--CoA:glycine C-succinyltransferase (decarboxylating), EC 2.3.1.37] in relation to inadequate heme, and repression by heme, stimulated early trials of hematin infusions to overcome the acute relapse in the foregoing inducible porphyrias. Recently this experience has been considerably expanded, 143 infusions of hematin having been given in 22 cases. Studies of the effect on the serum concentrations of delta-aminolevulinic acid and porphobilinogen have shown a highly significant decline, often to 0, especially of delta-aminolevulinic acid. A distinct relationship to the clinical severity of the attack has been evident in the frequency and magnitude of decline of serum delta-aminolevulinic acid and porphobilinogen. This was regularly associated with objective clinical improvement. PMID:266732
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Chirisa, Innocent; Bandauko, Elmond; Matamanda, Abraham; Mandisvika, Gladys
2017-06-01
Until recently there has been little, if any, concern over revamping let alone improving wastewater management system in Zimbabwe's urban areas given the dominance and institutionalised water-borne system. Yet, the current constraints in this system and the immensity of urbanisation in the country begs and compels planners, engineers and systems thinkers to rethink what best can work as a sustainable wastewater system. With particular reference to the ever-expanding Harare metropolitan region, this article provides an evaluative analysis on the potentiality, risks and strategies that can be adopted by Harare and its satellites in addressing the problems of the conventional wastewater management system. The suggested framework of operation is a decentralised domestic wastewater collection and treatment system which however has its own multifarious risks. Using systems dynamics conceptualisation of the potentiality, opportunities, risks and strategies, the paper seeks to model the path and outcomes of this decentralised domestic wastewater collection and treatment system and also suggests a number of policy measures and strategies that the city of Harare and its satellites can adopt.
2010-01-01
Needle exchange programs chase political as well as epidemiological dragons, carrying within them both implicit moral and political goals. In the exchange model of syringe distribution, injection drug users (IDUs) must provide used needles in order to receive new needles. Distribution and retrieval are co-existent in the exchange model. Likewise, limitations on how many needles can be received at a time compel addicts to have multiple points of contact with professionals where the virtues of treatment and detox are impressed upon them. The centre of gravity for syringe distribution programs needs to shift from needle exchange to needle distribution, which provides unlimited access to syringes. This paper provides a case study of the Washington Needle Depot, a program operating under the syringe distribution model, showing that the distribution and retrieval of syringes can be separated with effective results. Further, the experience of IDUs is utilized, through paid employment, to provide a vulnerable population of people with clean syringes to prevent HIV and HCV. PMID:20047690
Low dose radiation adaptive protection to control neurodegenerative diseases.
Doss, Mohan
2014-05-01
Concerns have been expressed recently regarding the observed increased DNA damage from activities such as thinking and exercise. Such concerns have arisen from an incomplete accounting of the full effects of the increased oxidative damage. When the effects of the induced adaptive protective responses such as increased antioxidants and DNA repair enzymes are taken into consideration, there would be less endogenous DNA damage during the subsequent period of enhanced defenses, resulting in improved health from the thinking and exercise activities. Low dose radiation (LDR), which causes oxidative stress and increased DNA damage, upregulates adaptive protection systems that may decrease diseases in an analogous manner. Though there are ongoing debates regarding LDR's carcinogenicity, with two recent advisory committee reports coming to opposite conclusions, data published since the time of the reports have overwhelmingly ruled out its carcinogenicity, paving the way for consideration of its potential use for disease reduction. LDR adaptive protection is a promising approach to control neurodegenerative diseases, for which there are no methods of prevention or cure. Preparation of a compelling ethics case would pave the way for LDR clinical studies and progress in dealing with neurodegenerative diseases.
Insights into Parkinson's disease from computational models of the basal ganglia.
Humphries, Mark D; Obeso, Jose Angel; Dreyer, Jakob Kisbye
2018-04-17
Movement disorders arise from the complex interplay of multiple changes to neural circuits. Successful treatments for these disorders could interact with these complex changes in myriad ways, and as a consequence their mechanisms of action and their amelioration of symptoms are incompletely understood. Using Parkinson's disease as a case study, we review here how computational models are a crucial tool for taming this complexity, across causative mechanisms, consequent neural dynamics and treatments. For mechanisms, we review models that capture the effects of losing dopamine on basal ganglia function; for dynamics, we discuss models that have transformed our understanding of how beta-band (15-30 Hz) oscillations arise in the parkinsonian basal ganglia. For treatments, we touch on the breadth of computational modelling work trying to understand the therapeutic actions of deep brain stimulation. Collectively, models from across all levels of description are providing a compelling account of the causes, symptoms and treatments for Parkinson's disease. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.
Moran, Timothy H
2009-06-01
A role for the increased intake of dietary fructose in general and high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) in particular in the current obesity epidemic has been proposed. Consumed fructose and glucose have different rates of gastric emptying, are differentially absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract, result in different endocrine profiles, and have different metabolic fates, providing multiple opportunities for the 2 saccharides to differentially affect food intake. The consequences of fructose and glucose on eating have been studied under a variety of experimental situations in both model systems and man. The results have been inconsistent, and the particular findings appear to depend on the timing of saccharide administration or ingestion relative to a test meal situation, whether the saccharides are administered as pure sugars or as components of a dietary preload, and the overall volume of the preload. These factors rather than intrinsic differences in the saccharides' ability to induce satiety appear to carry many of the differential effects on food intake that have been found. On balance, the case for fructose being less satiating than glucose or HFCS being less satiating than sucrose is not compelling.
WorldWide Telescope and Google Sky: New Technologies to Engage Students and the Public
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Landsberg, R. H.; Subbarao, M. U.; Dettloff, L.
2010-08-01
New, visually rich, astronomical software environments coupled with large web-accessible data sets hold the promise of new and exciting ways to teach, collaborate, and explore the universe. These freeware tools provide contextual views of astronomical objects, real time access to multi-wavelength sky surveys, and, most importantly, the ability to incorporate new data and to produce user created content. This interactive panel examined the capabilities of Google Sky and WorldWide Telescope, and explored case studies of how these tools have been used to create compelling and participatory educational experiences in both formal (i.e., K-12 and undergraduate non-science majors classrooms), and informal (e.g., museum) settings. The overall goal of this session was to stimulate a discussion about future uses of these technologies. Substantial time was allotted for participants to create conceptual designs of learning experiences for use at their home institutions, with feedback provided by the panel members. Activities included technical discussions (e.g., mechanisms for incorporating new data and dissemination tools), exercises in narrative preparation, and a brainstorming session to identify potential future uses of these technologies.
Evaluation of polygenic risk scores for predicting breast and prostate cancer risk.
Machiela, Mitchell J; Chen, Chia-Yen; Chen, Constance; Chanock, Stephen J; Hunter, David J; Kraft, Peter
2011-09-01
Recently, polygenic risk scores (PRS) have been shown to be associated with certain complex diseases. The approach has been based on the contribution of counting multiple alleles associated with disease across independent loci, without requiring compelling evidence that every locus had already achieved definitive genome-wide statistical significance. Whether PRS assist in the prediction of risk of common cancers is unknown. We built PRS from lists of genetic markers prioritized by their association with breast cancer (BCa) or prostate cancer (PCa) in a training data set and evaluated whether these scores could improve current genetic prediction of these specific cancers in independent test samples. We used genome-wide association data on 1,145 BCa cases and 1,142 controls from the Nurses' Health Study and 1,164 PCa cases and 1,113 controls from the Prostate Lung Colorectal and Ovarian Cancer Screening Trial. Ten-fold cross validation was used to build and evaluate PRS with 10 to 60,000 independent single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). For both BCa and PCa, the models that included only published risk alleles maximized the cross-validation estimate of the area under the ROC curve (0.53 for breast and 0.57 for prostate). We found no significant evidence that PRS using common variants improved risk prediction for BCa and PCa over replicated SNP scores. © 2011 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Williams, M. W.; Wireman, M.; Liu, F.; Gertson, J.
2008-12-01
A state of emergency was declared in February 2008 because of fears that a blocked drainage tunnel in the Leadville mining district of Colorado could cause a catastrophic flood. An estimated 1 billion gallons of metals-laden water poses an eminent threat to the city of Leadville and the headwaters of the Arkansas river. Within days of the declaration of a state of emergency, Governor Ritter and Senator Salazer of Colorado, along with a host of other local and statewide politicians, visited the site and emphasized the need to develop a fast yet safe mitigation plan. Here we provide information from a case study that illustrates how a suite of isotopic and hydrologic tools enables identification of critical, site-specific variables essential in developing a science plan to guide targeted remediation of the Leadville drainage tunnel. The isotopic tools, including both stable and radiogenic isotopes, provided clear and compelling evidence of water sources and flowpaths in an area that has undergone extensive perturbations, including the drilling of more than 2,000 mine shafts. This forensic evidence was the key information in developing a plan to plug the drainage tunnel several hundred feet underground, divert a major source of polluted water from reaching the collapsed tunnel and piping it to an existing treatment plant, and guidance on where to place pumps in additional mine shafts, and the drilling of new wells to pump water in case the plugging of the tunnel caused water to pool up and raise the water table to dangerous heights. This particular case of forensic hydrology using isotopic tools not only provides the scientific basis for an operational plan to defuse a life- and property-threatening situation, it also provides the basis for decommissioning an existing water treatment plant, which will result in savings of over 1 million annually in operational costs. Decommissioning the existing water treatment plant will pay for the tunnel mitigation within several years.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Keneman, Margaret Lynn
2017-01-01
The study of foreign languages has historically been a cornerstone in higher education for a variety of very good reasons, one being that it will help students develop a sensitivity to diversity. This rationale is compelling in theory, but requires a practical approach for instruction that actually guides students towards such a learning outcome.…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Miller, Gregory E.; Chen, Edith; Parker, Karen J.
2011-01-01
Among people exposed to major psychological stressors in early life, there are elevated rates of morbidity and mortality from chronic diseases of aging. The most compelling data come from studies of children raised in poverty or maltreated by their parents, who show heightened vulnerability to vascular disease, autoimmune disorders, and premature…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
DeBarger, Angela Haydel; Penuel, William R.; Harris, Christopher J.; Kennedy, Cathleen A.
2016-01-01
Evaluators must employ research designs that generate compelling evidence related to the worth or value of programs, of which assessment data often play a critical role. This article focuses on assessment design in the context of evaluation. It describes the process of using the Framework for K-12 Science Education and Next Generation Science…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Deke, John; Wei, Thomas; Kautz, Tim
2017-01-01
Evaluators of education interventions are increasingly designing studies to detect impacts much smaller than the 0.20 standard deviations that Cohen (1988) characterized as "small." While the need to detect smaller impacts is based on compelling arguments that such impacts are substantively meaningful, the drive to detect smaller impacts…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Hofer, Mark; Swan, Kathleen Owings
2005-01-01
With the importance of imagery in our culture and the increasing access to both digital images and the tools used to manipulate them, it is important that social studies teacher educators prepare preservice teachers to provide their students with opportunities to develop a critical lens through which to view images. As we strive to encourage the…
Desire for hastened death: exploring the emotions and the ethics.
Branigan, Monica
2015-03-01
As we approach the end of our lives, many of us will have a desire for hastened death (DHD). Fortunately, our ability to respond to suffering at the end of life is improving. At the same time, in many jurisdictions, changes are underway to legislate physician-assisted death. This compels us as clinicians to explore DHD in a compassionate way - to reduce suffering and reduce premature death. This challenge is becoming more compelling as a large cohort of individuals, who value autonomy and control, age and experience illness. Studies confirm that DHD is not always a request to die. Clarifying the intention behind the desire and exploring the individual factors and underlying reasons behind the wish have been described. Another theme questions our basic assumptions about these statements - a normal part of a human experience or an indicator of disease. This tension is also manifested in the appropriate balance between patient autonomy and preventing harm. We have a professional responsibility to mindfully explore with the patient the suffering that can be relieved and the suffering that remains.
Selection bias in studies of human reproduction-longevity trade-offs.
Helle, Samuli
2017-12-13
A shorter lifespan as a potential cost of high reproductive effort in humans has intrigued researchers for more than a century. However, the results have been inconclusive so far and despite strong theoretical expectations we do not currently have compelling evidence for the longevity costs of reproduction. Using Monte Carlo simulation, it is shown here that a common practice in human reproduction-longevity studies using historical data (the most relevant data sources for this question), the omission of women who died prior to menopausal age from the analysis, results in severe underestimation of the potential underlying trade-off between reproduction and lifespan. In other words, assuming that such a trade-off is expressed also during reproductive years, the strength of the trade-off between reproduction and lifespan is progressively weakened when women dying during reproductive ages are sequentially and non-randomly excluded from the analysis. In cases of small sample sizes (e.g. few hundreds of observations), this selection bias by reducing statistical power may even partly explain the null results commonly found in this field. Future studies in this field should thus apply statistical approaches that account for or avoid selection bias in order to recover reliable effect size estimates between reproduction and longevity. © 2017 The Author(s).
Closser, Svea; Cox, Kelly; Parris, Thomas M.; Landis, R. Matthew; Justice, Judith; Gopinath, Ranjani; Maes, Kenneth; Banteyerga Amaha, Hailom; Mohammed, Ismaila Zango; Dukku, Aminu Mohammed; Omidian, Patricia A.; Varley, Emma; Tedoff, Pauley; Koon, Adam D.; Nyirazinyoye, Laetitia; Luck, Matthew A.; Pont, W. Frank; Neergheen, Vanessa; Rosenthal, Anat; Nsubuga, Peter; Thacker, Naveen; Jooma, Rashid; Nuttall, Elizabeth
2014-01-01
Background. After 2 decades of focused efforts to eradicate polio, the impact of eradication activities on health systems continues to be controversial. This study evaluated the impact of polio eradication activities on routine immunization (RI) and primary healthcare (PHC). Methods. Quantitative analysis assessed the effects of polio eradication campaigns on RI and maternal healthcare coverage. A systematic qualitative analysis in 7 countries in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa assessed impacts of polio eradication activities on key health system functions, using data from interviews, participant observation, and document review. Results. Our quantitative analysis did not find compelling evidence of widespread and significant effects of polio eradication campaigns, either positive or negative, on measures of RI and maternal healthcare. Our qualitative analysis revealed context-specific positive impacts of polio eradication activities in many of our case studies, particularly disease surveillance and cold chain strengthening. These impacts were dependent on the initiative of policy makers. Negative impacts, including service interruption and public dissatisfaction, were observed primarily in districts with many campaigns per year. Conclusions. Polio eradication activities can provide support for RI and PHC, but many opportunities to do so remain missed. Increased commitment to scaling up best practices could lead to significant positive impacts. PMID:24690667
Whiplash and the compensation hypothesis.
Spearing, Natalie M; Connelly, Luke B
2011-12-01
Review article. To explain why the evidence that compensation-related factors lead to worse health outcomes is not compelling, either in general, or in the specific case of whiplash. There is a common view that compensation-related factors lead to worse health outcomes ("the compensation hypothesis"), despite the presence of important, and unresolved sources of bias. The empirical evidence on this question has ramifications for the design of compensation schemes. Using studies on whiplash, this article outlines the methodological problems that impede attempts to confirm or refute the compensation hypothesis. Compensation studies are prone to measurement bias, reverse causation bias, and selection bias. Errors in measurement are largely due to the latent nature of whiplash injuries and health itself, a lack of clarity over the unit of measurement (specific factors, or "compensation"), and a lack of appreciation for the heterogeneous qualities of compensation-related factors and schemes. There has been a failure to acknowledge and empirically address reverse causation bias, or the likelihood that poor health influences the decision to pursue compensation: it is unclear if compensation is a cause or a consequence of poor health, or both. Finally, unresolved selection bias (and hence, confounding) is evident in longitudinal studies and natural experiments. In both cases, between-group differences have not been addressed convincingly. The nature of the relationship between compensation-related factors and health is unclear. Current approaches to testing the compensation hypothesis are prone to several important sources of bias, which compromise the validity of their results. Methods that explicitly test the hypothesis and establish whether or not a causal relationship exists between compensation factors and prolonged whiplash symptoms are needed in future studies.
Moore, Gregory L; Chen, Hsing; Karki, Sher
2010-01-01
Engineering the antibody Fc region to enhance the cytotoxic activity of therapeutic antibodies is currently an active area of investigation. The contribution of complement to the mechanism of action of some antibodies that target cancers and pathogens makes a compelling case for its optimization. Here we describe the generation of a series of Fc variants with enhanced ability to recruit complement. Variants enhanced the cytotoxic potency of an anti-CD20 antibody up to 23-fold against tumor cells in CDC assays, and demonstrated a correlated increase in C1q binding affinity. Complementenhancing substitutions combined additively, and in one case synergistically, with substitutions previously engineered for improved binding to Fc gamma receptors. The engineered combinations provided a range of effector function activities, including simultaneously enhanced CDC, ADCC, and phagocytosis. Variants were also effective at boosting the effector function of antibodies targeting the antigens CD40 and CD19, in the former case enhancing CDC over 600-fold, and in the latter case imparting complement-mediated activity onto an IgG1 antibody that was otherwise incapable of it. This work expands the toolkit of modifications for generating monoclonal antibodies with improved therapeutic potential and enables the exploration of optimized synergy between Fc gamma receptors and complement pathways for the destruction of tumors and infectious pathogens. PMID:20150767
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Kaiser, Mary K.; Proffitt, Dennis R.
1992-01-01
Recent developments in microelectronics have encouraged the use of 3D data bases to create compelling volumetric renderings of graphical objects. However, even with the computational capabilities of current-generation graphical systems, real-time displays of such objects are difficult, particularly when dynamic spatial transformations are involved. In this paper we discuss a type of visual stimulus (the stereokinetic effect display) that is computationally far less complex than a true three-dimensional transformation but yields an equally compelling depth impression, often perceptually indiscriminable from the true spatial transformation. Several possible applications for this technique are discussed (e.g., animating contour maps and air traffic control displays so as to evoke accurate depth percepts).
Illusory inferences from a disjunction of conditionals: a new mental models account.
Barrouillet, P; Lecas, J F
2000-08-14
(Johnson-Laird, P.N., & Savary, F. (1999, Illusory inferences: a novel class of erroneous deductions. Cognition, 71, 191-229.) have recently presented a mental models account, based on the so-called principle of truth, for the occurrence of inferences that are compelling but invalid. This article presents an alternative account of the illusory inferences resulting from a disjunction of conditionals. In accordance with our modified theory of mental models of the conditional, we show that the way individuals represent conditionals leads them to misinterpret the locus of the disjunction and prevents them from drawing conclusions from a false conditional, thus accounting for the compelling character of the illusory inference.
Reconstruction and 3D visualisation based on objective real 3D based documentation.
Bolliger, Michael J; Buck, Ursula; Thali, Michael J; Bolliger, Stephan A
2012-09-01
Reconstructions based directly upon forensic evidence alone are called primary information. Historically this consists of documentation of findings by verbal protocols, photographs and other visual means. Currently modern imaging techniques such as 3D surface scanning and radiological methods (computer tomography, magnetic resonance imaging) are also applied. Secondary interpretation is based on facts and the examiner's experience. Usually such reconstructive expertises are given in written form, and are often enhanced by sketches. However, narrative interpretations can, especially in complex courses of action, be difficult to present and can be misunderstood. In this report we demonstrate the use of graphic reconstruction of secondary interpretation with supporting pictorial evidence, applying digital visualisation (using 'Poser') or scientific animation (using '3D Studio Max', 'Maya') and present methods of clearly distinguishing between factual documentation and examiners' interpretation based on three cases. The first case involved a pedestrian who was initially struck by a car on a motorway and was then run over by a second car. The second case involved a suicidal gunshot to the head with a rifle, in which the trigger was pushed with a rod. The third case dealt with a collision between two motorcycles. Pictorial reconstruction of the secondary interpretation of these cases has several advantages. The images enable an immediate overview, give rise to enhanced clarity, and compel the examiner to look at all details if he or she is to create a complete image.
Zaidi, Ali A
2017-12-01
This article applies various ethical frameworks to inform decision making about investment in two specific goods-strengthening public health and stabilizing the global climate. I begin by outlining how these goods traditionally competed for common and constrained resources. I then discuss how this view of competition has been rendered more problematic by emerging and compelling ethical justifications for investment in both goods based on utilitarian, Rawlsian, and communitarian analyses. I conclude by showing that these goods no longer compete head-to-head in a zero-sum way. Changes in science, technology, and society mean that investment in either good has the potential to advance both goods-that is, the goods have become synergistic. As a result, the case for investing in both is better. © 2017 American Medical Association. All Rights Reserved.
The Case for General Relativistic Effects in the Fe K(alpha) Profile of an Active Galaxy
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Turner, T. J.; Mushotzky, R.; Yaqoob, T.; George, I. M.; Snowden, S. L.; Netzer, H.; Kraemer, S. B.; Nandra, K.; Chelouche, D.; White, Nicholas E. (Technical Monitor)
2002-01-01
We present results from a simultaneous Chandra HETG (High Energy Transmission Grating) and XMM (X-ray Multi-mirror Mission)-Newton observation of NGC 3516. We find evidence for several narrow components of Fe K(alpha) along with a broad line. We consider the possibility that the lines arise in a blob of material ejected from the nucleus with velocity of approximately 0.25c. We also consider an origin in a neutral accretion disk, suffering enhanced illumination at 35 and 175 R(sub g), perhaps due to magnetic reconnection. The presence of these narrow features indicates there is no Comptonizing region along the line-of-sight to the nucleus. This in turn is compelling support for the hypothesis that broad Fe K(alpha) components are, in general, produced by strong gravity.
Response: Freedom from Pain as a Rawlsian Primary Good.
James Roberts, Adam
2016-11-01
In a recent article in this journal, Carl Knight and Andreas Albertsen argue that Rawlsian theories of distributive justice as applied to health and healthcare fail to accommodate both palliative care and the desirability of less painful treatments. The asserted Rawlsian focus on opportunities or capacities, as exemplified in Normal Daniels' developments of John Rawls' theory, results in a normative account of healthcare which is at best only indirectly sensitive to pain and so unable to account for the value of efforts of which the sole purpose is pain reduction. I argue that, far from undermining the Rawlsian project and its application to problems of health, what the authors' argument at most amounts to is a compelling case for the inclusion of freedom from physical pain within its index of primary goods. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Consumers' perceptions of health care: the case of Hong Kong.
Liu, S S; Dubinsky, A J
2000-01-01
The health care industry in Hong Kong has undergone major changes in organization as well as philosophy of operation since the 1970s. During this period, the Hong Kong government has also experienced a political transition from colonial status to a special administrative region of Mainland China. Because of the economic downturn in East Asia, including Hong Kong, contraction of public spending has compelled the government to reconsider the alternatives for health care provision in Hong Kong. A number of multinational health care providers have entered this market and operate mainly in the private sector, including solely-owned clinics and alliances with existing hospitals. This paper provides an understanding of the evolution and development of the health care industry in Hong Kong and, on that basis, suggests elements of quality health care from the findings of a survey of patients.