Reviewing Work-Based Learning Opportunities in the Community for Physiotherapy Students: An Action Research Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stainsby, Kate; Bannigan, Katrina

2012-01-01

Physiotherapy became a graduate profession in the 1990s marking a shift from "training" to "education". This means students are required to develop as reflective, innovative and autonomous practitioners. Traditional work-based learning has remained a key component in the curricula of physiotherapy programmes in higher…

Calvin Brainerd Cady: Thought and Feeling in the Study of Music.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shiraishi, Fumiko

1999-01-01

Presents the life and work of Calvin Brainerd Cady, an influential U.S. music educator who developed a theory of music education that emphasized the unification of children's thoughts and feelings. Discusses Cady's educational practices in depth and how his work remains relevant to current music-education practices. (DSK)

Possibilities of the ErgoScope high fidelity work simulator in skill assessment, skill development and vocational aptitude tests of physically disabled persons.

PubMed

Izsó, Lajos; Székely, Ildikó; Dános, László

2015-01-01

The aim of this paper - based on the extensive experiences of the authors gained by using one particular work simulator - is to present some promising possibilities of the application of this (and any other similar) work simulator in the field of skill assessment, skill development and vocational aptitude tests of physically disabled persons. During skill assessment and development, as parts of the therapy, the focus is on the disabled functions. During vocational aptitude tests, however, the focus is already on the functions that remained intact and therefore can be the basis of returning to work. Some factual examples are provided to realize the proposed possibilities in practice.

Knowledge Translation in Job Development: Strategies for Involving Families

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hall, Allison; Bose, Jennifer; Winsor, Jean; Migliore, Alberto

2014-01-01

Background: Although United States employment policies have increased support for people with disabilities working in community settings, the unemployment rate for this population remains very high, particularly for people with intellectual or developmental disabilities. Research shows that job developers (direct support professionals who assist…

Role of Institutions of Higher Learning in Enhancing Sustainable Development in Kenya

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ekene, Osuji Gregory; Oluoch-Suleh, Everlyn

2015-01-01

Education brings about a change in the individual which promotes greater productivity and work efficiency. It remains a major component in the development of human resources and it accounts for much improvements in population quality and environmental resource management; hence, sustainable development. Improvement of human resources is not…

Putting Principles into Practice: Addressing Historical Trauma, Mistrust, and Apprehension in Research Methods Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Henderson, Zuleka; Acquaye-Doyle, Lucinda A.; Waites, Shayna; Howard, Tyriesa

2016-01-01

The social work profession has articulated commitments to acknowledging and affirming how diversity and culture shape the human experience and to developing social workers who can competently engage in research-informed practice and practice-informed research. However, there remains a need in social work education for more widespread use of…

Building a Better Teenager: A Summary of "What Works" in Adolescent Development. American Teens Series. Child Trends Research Brief.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moore, Kristin Anderson; Zaff, Jonathan F.

Although most American adolescents are psychologically, socially, and physically healthy, adolescence remains a time of considerable change and risk. To examine what works to promote well-being among America's adolescents, Child Trends reviewed contributing influences and programs that lead to positive behavior in seven areas: mental health,…

Theoretical Concerns: Vygotsky on Imagination Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gajdamaschko, Natalia

2006-01-01

Lev Vygotsky (1986-1934) was an educational theorist and psychologist of extraordinarily wide knowledge whose major writings deal with the entire learning-teaching-development experience. Despite a wide-ranging interest in Vygotskian theory, the issue of imagination remains outside of the main line of general inquiries into his work. Thus, there…

Vygotsky's Legacy: A Foundation for Research and Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gredler, Margaret E.; Shields, Carolyn Claytor

2007-01-01

Most educators are familiar with Lev Vygotsky's concept of the "zone of proximal development," yet the bulk of Vygotsky's pioneering theory of cognitive development largely remains unknown. This volume provides a systematic, authoritative overview of Vygotsky's work and its implications for educational research and practice. Major topics include…

Installation Management Command: Preparing Civilians for the Army of 2020

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-03-01

fewer people who remain are asked to do more. The White Paper identified the Civilian Work Force Transformation ( CWT ), a program initiative for a...6-22, ADRP 7-0, CWT and the Army Strategic Planning Guidance of 2013. Development should occur in alignment with the leader development pillars and

Climate Informatics: Accelerating Discovering in Climate Science with Machine Learning

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Monteleoni, Claire; Schmidt, Gavin A.; McQuade, Scott

2014-01-01

The goal of climate informatics, an emerging discipline, is to inspire collaboration between climate scientists and data scientists, in order to develop tools to analyze complex and ever-growing amounts of observed and simulated climate data, and thereby bridge the gap between data and understanding. Here, recent climate informatics work is presented, along with details of some of the field's remaining challenges. Given the impact of climate change, understanding the climate system is an international priority. The goal of climate informatics is to inspire collaboration between climate scientists and data scientists, in order to develop tools to analyze complex and ever-growing amounts of observed and simulated climate data, and thereby bridge the gap between data and understanding. Here, recent climate informatics work is presented, along with details of some of the remaining challenges.

Telehealth and Indian healthcare: moving to scale and sustainability.

PubMed

Carroll, Mark; Horton, Mark B

2013-05-01

Telehealth innovation has brought important improvements in access to quality healthcare for American Indian and Alaska Native communities. Despite these improvements, substantive work remains before telehealth capability can be more available and sustainable across Indian healthcare. Some of this work will rely on system change guided by new care model development. Such care model development depends on expansion of telehealth reimbursement. The U.S. Indian healthcare system is an ideal framework for implementing and evaluating large-scale change in U.S. telehealth reimbursement policy.

[When history meets molecular medicine: molecular history of human tuberculosis].

PubMed

Ottini, Laura; Falchetti, Mario

2010-01-01

Tuberculosis represents one of the humankind's most socially devastating diseases. Despite a long history of medical research and the development of effective therapies, this disease remains a global health danger even in the 21st century. Tuberculosis may cause death but infected people with effective immunity may remain healthy for years, suggesting long-term host-pathogen co-existence. Because of its antiquity, a supposed association with human settlements and the tendency to leave typical lesions on skeletal and mummified remains, tuberculosis has been the object of intensive multidisciplinary studies, including paleo-pathological research. During the past 10 years molecular paleo-pathology developed as a new scientific discipline allowing the study of ancient pathogens by direct detection of their DNA. In this work, we reviewed evidences for tuberculosis in ancient human remains, current methods for identifying ancient mycobacterial DNA and explored current theories of Mycobacterium tuberculosis evolution and their implications in the global development of tuberculosis looking into the past and present at the same time.

Our Changing Planet: The U.S. Climate Change Science Program for Fiscal Year 2006

DTIC Science & Technology

2005-11-01

any remaining uncertainties for the Amazon region of South America.These results are expected to greatly reduce errors and uncertainties concerning...changing the concentration of atmospheric CO2 are fossil -fuel burning, deforestation, land-use change, and cement production.These processes have...the initial phases of work on the remaining products. Specific plans for enhanced decision-support resources include: – Developing decision-support

CFD Code Development for Combustor Flows

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Norris, Andrew

2003-01-01

During the lifetime of this grant, work has been performed in the areas of model development, code development, code validation and code application. For model development, this has included the PDF combustion module, chemical kinetics based on thermodynamics, neural network storage of chemical kinetics, ILDM chemical kinetics and assumed PDF work. Many of these models were then implemented in the code, and in addition many improvements were made to the code, including the addition of new chemistry integrators, property evaluation schemes, new chemistry models and turbulence-chemistry interaction methodology. Validation of all new models and code improvements were also performed, while application of the code to the ZCET program and also the NPSS GEW combustor program were also performed. Several important items remain under development, including the NOx post processing, assumed PDF model development and chemical kinetic development. It is expected that this work will continue under the new grant.

Teaching Data Analysis to the Data-Averse: A Framework for Educators

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fouché, Christa; Bartley, Allen

2016-01-01

It remains a dilemma for social work educators to teach research so that it can be embraced by students as an integral part of social work practice. This article reports on an initiative to design a research course focused on the integration of research with practice. Drawing on developments in data mining and techniques in secondary data…

What Is "Continuity" in English Teaching? Working Party Paper No. 2; Response; Plenary Session; Report; Record of Group Discussion; and Supporting Papers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Whitehead, Frank; And Others

Children's language abilities develop in a predetermined order, one stage necessarily preceding the next. The rate of this development remains relatively the same for physiologically normal human beings. Through research it is becoming possible to identify critical periods in linguistic development. Teachers could utilize and exploit these growth…

Partnerships for Improving Literacy in Urban Schools: Advanced Reading Development Demonstration Project

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reading Teacher, 2008

2008-01-01

How many times have researchers and professional developers approached you or your school with "the answer" to improving literacy achievement? How did it work out? If changes occurred during the engagement with these outside partners, what remained after the project ended? Did such efforts lead to lasting change and improvement in…

Coach Education and Continuing Professional Development: Experience and Learning to Coach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cushion, Christopher J.; Armour, Kathy M.; Jones, Robyn L.

2003-01-01

Research over the last decade has demonstrated that it is experience and the observation of other coaches that remain the primary sources of knowledge for coaches. Despite this, coach education and continuing professional development fail to draw effectively on this experience. Using the work of Pierre Bourdieu, this paper attempts to understand…

Developing Digital Information Literacy in Higher Education: Obstacles and Supports

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jeffrey, Lynn; Hegarty, Bronwyn; Kelly, Oriel; Penman, Merrolee; Coburn, Dawn; McDonald, Jenny

2011-01-01

The development of digital information literacy (DIL) has been slow in comparison to changes in information communication technologies, and this remains an issue for the higher education sector. Competency in such skills is essential to full participation in society and work. In addition, these skills are regarded as underpinning the ability to…

Linking Student Evaluations to Institutional Goals: A Change Story

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Palermo, Josephine

2013-01-01

For the past 30?years, beginning with the seminal work of Herbert Marsh in Australia and New Zealand, institutions of higher education have developed internal practices and procedures to collect and analyse student evaluations of teaching and learning. However, the question remains: has this development resulted in the achievement of institutional…

But Does It Work? Reflective Activities, Learning Outcomes and Instrumental Learning in Continuing Professional Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roessger, Kevin M.

2015-01-01

This paper examines the relationship between reflective practice and instrumental learning within the context of continuing professional development (CPD). It is argued that instrumental learning is a unique process of adult learning, and reflective practice's impact on learning outcomes in instrumental learning contexts remains unclear. A…

A Latent Variables Examination of Processing Speed, Response Inhibition, and Working Memory during Typical Development

PubMed Central

McAuley, Tara; White, Desirée

2010-01-01

The present study addressed three related aims: (1) to replicate and extend previous work regarding the non-unitary nature of processing speed, response inhibition, and working memory during development, (2) to quantify the rate at which processing speed, response inhibition, and working memory develop and the extent to which the development of these latter abilities reflect general changes in processing speed, and (3) to evaluate whether commonly used tasks of processing speed, response inhibition, and working memory are valid and reliable when used with a developmentally diverse group. To address these aims, a latent variables approach was used to analyze data from 147 participants 6 to 24 years of age. Results showed that processing speed, response inhibition, and working memory were separable abilities and that the extent of this separability was stable cross the age range of participants. All three constructs improved as a function of age; however, only the effect of age on working memory remained significant after processing speed was controlled. The psychometric properties of tasks used to assess the constructs were age invariant, thus validating their use in studies of executive development. PMID:20888572

Suicide: Across the Life Span.

PubMed

Ramirez, Jeffery

2016-06-01

Suicide remains a major public health issue. There have been more than 40,000 deaths by suicide in 2014. Understanding both the neuroscience and psychological development is key for nursing care so adequate interventions and treatment strategies are developed when working with people thinking about suicide. It is critical to assess and recognize risk and protective factors to ensure patient safety. The older adult, children, and adolescent populations remain vulnerable to suicide. A discussion regarding the psychiatric, psychosocial, and treatment considerations for these populations is included. An overview of communication, suicide assessment, and safety planning is discussed. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Two-stage dilute-acid and organic-solvent lignocellulosic pretreatment for enhanced bioprocessing.

PubMed

Brodeur, G; Telotte, J; Stickel, J J; Ramakrishnan, S

2016-11-01

A two stage pretreatment approach for biomass is developed in the current work in which dilute acid (DA) pretreatment is followed by a solvent based pretreatment (N-methyl morpholine N oxide - NMMO). When the combined pretreatment (DAWNT) is applied to sugarcane bagasse and corn stover, the rates of hydrolysis and overall yields (>90%) are seen to dramatically improve and under certain conditions 48h can be taken off the time of hydrolysis with the additional NMMO step to reach similar conversions. DAWNT shows a 2-fold increase in characteristic rates and also fractionates different components of biomass - DA treatment removes the hemicellulose while the remaining cellulose is broken down by enzymatic hydrolysis after NMMO treatment to simple sugars. The remaining residual solid is high purity lignin. Future work will focus on developing a full scale economic analysis of DAWNT for use in biomass fractionation. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Two-stage dilute-acid and organic-solvent lignocellulosic pretreatment for enhanced bioprocessing

DOE PAGES

Brodeur, G.; Telotte, J.; Stickel, J. J.; ...

2016-08-26

A two stage pretreatment approach for biomass is developed in the current work in which dilute acid (DA) pretreatment is followed by a solvent based pretreatment (N-methyl morpholine N oxide -- NMMO). When the combined pretreatment (DAWNT) is applied to sugarcane bagasse and corn stover, the rates of hydrolysis and overall yields (>90%) are seen to dramatically improve and under certain conditions 48 h can be taken off the time of hydrolysis with the additional NMMO step to reach similar conversions. DAWNT shows a 2-fold increase in characteristic rates and also fractionates different components of biomass -- DA treatment removesmore » the hemicellulose while the remaining cellulose is broken down by enzymatic hydrolysis after NMMO treatment to simple sugars. The remaining residual solid is high purity lignin. Lastly, future work will focus on developing a full scale economic analysis of DAWNT for use in biomass fractionation.« less

A comprehensive review on cold work of AISI D2 tool steel

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abdul Rahim, Mohd Aidil Shah bin; Minhat, Mohamad bin; Hussein, Nur Izan Syahriah Binti; Salleh, Mohd Shukor bin

2017-11-01

As a common material in mould and die application, AISI D2 cold work tool steel has proven to be a promising chosen material in the industries. However, challenges remain in using AISI D2 through a modified version with a considerable progress having been made in recent years. This paper provides a critical review of the original as-cast AISI D2 cold work tool steel up to the modified version. The main purpose is to develop an understanding of current modified tool steel trend; the machinability of AISI D2 (drilling, milling, turning, grinding and EDM/WEDM; and the microstructure evolution and mechanical properties of these cold work tool steels due to the presence of alloy materials in the steel matrix. The doping of rare earth alloy element, new steel fabrication processes, significant process parameter in machinability and surface treatment shows that there have been few empirical investigations into these cold work tool steel alloys. This study has discovered that cold work tool steel will remain to be explored in order to survive in the steel industries.

Effect of different light-dark schedules on estrous cycle in mice, and implications for mitigating the adverse impact of night work.

PubMed

Yoshinaka, Kiichi; Yamaguchi, Ai; Matsumura, Ritsuko; Node, Koichi; Tokuda, Isao; Akashi, Makoto

2017-10-01

Approximately 20% of workers in developed countries are involved in night work. Nevertheless, many studies have strongly suggested that night-work-induced chronic circadian misalignment increases the risk of a diverse range of health problems. Although a relation between night work and irregular menstrual cycles has been indicated epidemiologically, a direct causal link remains elusive. Here, we report that repetitive reversal of light-dark (LD) cycles triggers irregular estrous cycles in mice. The findings showed that the estrous cycle remained irregular for more than four weeks after the mice were returned to regular LD cycles. Importantly, the magnitude of the negative impact of reversed LD cycles on the estrous cycle, or more specifically the decreased number of normal estrous cycles during the observation period, was dependent on the difference in the frequency of LD reversal. Presently, no clear solution to prevent night-work-mediated menstrual abnormalities is available, and reducing night work in modern society is difficult. Our findings indicate that optimizing work schedules could significantly prevent menstrual problems without reducing total night-work time. © 2017 Molecular Biology Society of Japan and John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.

Wind Powering America FY07 Activities Summary

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

Not Available

2008-02-01

The Wind Powering America FY07 Activities Summary reflects the accomplishments of our state wind working groups, our programs at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, and our partner organizations. The national WPA team remains a leading force for moving wind energy forward in the United States. WPA continues to work with its national, regional, and state partners to communicate the opportunities and benefits of wind energy to a diverse set of stakeholders. WPA now has 30 state wind working groups (welcoming Georgia and Wisconsin in 2007) that form strategic alliances to communicate wind's benefits to the state stakeholders. More than 140more » members of national and state public and private sector organizations from 39 U.S. states and Canada attended the 6th Annual WPA All-States Summit in Los Angeles in June. WPA's emphasis remains on the rural agricultural sector, which stands to reap the significant economic development benefits of wind energy development. Additionally, WPA continues its program of outreach, education, and technical assistance to Native American communities, public power entities, and regulatory and legislative bodies.« less

Biomechanical implications of lumbar spinal ligament transection.

PubMed

Von Forell, Gregory A; Bowden, Anton E

2014-11-01

Many lumbar spine surgeries either intentionally or inadvertently damage or transect spinal ligaments. The purpose of this work was to quantify the previously unknown biomechanical consequences of isolated spinal ligament transection on the remaining spinal ligaments (stress transfer), vertebrae (bone remodelling stimulus) and intervertebral discs (disc pressure) of the lumbar spine. A finite element model of the full lumbar spine was developed and validated against experimental data and tested in the primary modes of spinal motion in the intact condition. Once a ligament was removed, stress increased in the remaining spinal ligaments and changes occurred in vertebral strain energy, but disc pressure remained similar. All major biomechanical changes occurred at the same spinal level as the transected ligament, with minor changes at adjacent levels. This work demonstrates that iatrogenic damage to spinal ligaments disturbs the load sharing within the spinal ligament network and may induce significant clinically relevant changes in the spinal motion segment.

Education: Past, Present and Future Global Challenges. Policy Research Working Paper 5616

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Patrinos, Harry Anthony; Psacharopoulos, George

2011-01-01

Progress in educational development in the world since 1900 has been slow and uneven between countries. Providing basic education for all children in developing countries has been and remains an unmet challenge of governments and international organizations alike. This is in sharp contrast to recent findings in the economics literature on the…

The Development and Validation of the School-Based Counseling Self-Efficacy Scale

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Boughfman, Erica M.

2010-01-01

The purpose of this study was to develop and validate the School-Based Counseling Self-Efficacy Scale (SB-SES). Two hundred sixty-five (N = 265) licensed mental health professionals participated in this study. Fifty-eight percent of the participants reported experience working as a school-based counselor with the remaining 42% reporting no…

Identifying Research Topic Development in Business and Management Education Research Using Legitimation Code Theory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arbaugh, J. B.; Fornaciari, Charles J.; Hwang, Alvin

2016-01-01

Although the volume of business and management education (BME) research has expanded substantially, concerns remain about the field's legitimacy and its ability to attract new and dedicated scholars. An obstacle that may impede field development is lack of knowledge about influential works and authors to frame topical areas of inquiry and future…

Performance Values: Why They Matter and What Schools Can Do to Foster Their Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Character Education Partnership, 2008

2008-01-01

This position paper sets forth an expanded view of character and character education that recognizes the importance of performance character (needed for best work) as well as moral character (needed for ethical behavior). While core ethical values remain foundational in a life of character, character education must also develop students'…

Records of Practice and the Development of Collective Professional Knowledge

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ball, Deborah Loewenberg; Ben-Peretz, Miriam; Cohen, Rhonda B.

2014-01-01

Although recent years have seen an increase in professional learning communities, use of video and lesson study groups, most teachers still work and learn in isolation. What they know is personal and remains private; little opportunity exists for most teachers to develop shared knowledge or language. The scale of the teaching force, and the rapid…

A static organization in a dynamic context--A qualitative study of changes in working conditions for Swedish engine officers.

PubMed

Lundh, Monica; Rydstedt, Leif W

2016-07-01

During the last decades the shipping industry has undergone rapid technical developments and experienced hard economic conditions and increased striving for profitability. This has led to reduced staffing and changes in task performance, which has been reported to increase workload for the remaining seafarers. The working conditions on board have a number of distinct and in many ways unique characteristics, which makes the job demands and resources for seafarers unique in several ways. The purpose of this study was to assess how engine room staff perceives how these major technical and organizational changes in the shipping industry have affected job demands as well as resources. The study compiled individual interviews and focus groups interviews with engine crew members where they were asked to elaborate on the psychosocial work environment and the major changes in the working conditions on board. Engine crew describes a work situation where they feel a lack of resources. The content of the work has changed, staffing has been reduced, new tasks are being added but the organization of the crew and the design of the work place remains unaltered. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd and The Ergonomics Society. All rights reserved.

The Medical Gopher — A Microcomputer Based Physician Work Station

PubMed Central

McDonald, Clement J.

1984-01-01

We've developed a microcomputer medical work station intended to reduce the physician's “gopher” work of fetching, reviewing, organizing and writing that consumes his day. The system requires extensive physician interaction; so we have developed a fast and consistent menu-oriented user interface. It provides facilities for entering prescriptions, orders, problems and other medical record information and for generating flowsheets, executing reminder rules, providing ad hoc retrievals and reporting facts about drugs, tests and differential diagnoses. Each work station is connected to a central server (currently a VAX 117/80) in a network configuration, but carries all of its own programs, tables and medical records for a few hundred patients, locally. This system is tested but not yet tried. Questions remain about physician's acceptance and the true usefullness of such a work station.

Preparing Tomorrow’s Nursing Home Nurses: The Wisconsin-Long Term Care Clinical Scholars Program

PubMed Central

Nolet, Kim; Roberts, Tonya; Gilmore-Bykovskyi, Andrea; Roiland, Rachel; Gullickson, Colleen; Ryther, Brenda; Bowers, Barbara J.

2014-01-01

Preparing future nurses to care for the growing population of older adults has become a national priority. The demand for long term care services is expected to double between 2000 and 2040, yet the field remains stigmatized as an undesirable place for highly-skilled nurses to work. Recent efforts to increase student preparation in geriatrics have been shown to improve student attitudes toward working with older adults and increase knowledge, but long term care settings remain unattractive to students. This paper reports on development, implementation and evaluation of The Wisconsin Long Term Care Clinical Scholars Program, a nursing home internship for baccalaureate nursing students. The program couples a paid nursing home work experience with an evidence-based long term care nursing curriculum. The program increased student preparation and interest in working with older adults and in nursing homes, while concurrently increasing the capacity of nursing homes to provide a positive student experience. PMID:25162659

[Charcot and hysteria].

PubMed

Widlöcher, D; Dantchev, N

1994-01-01

Charcot's work on hysteria has always been controversial. All his attitudes, whether on the theory of the ovary, the hysteroepileptic seizure or the use of hypnosis, have always been charicatured, misunderstood and separated from the wider context of his overall approach. Rereading Charcot's works shows that he developed his approach progressively over a period of more than 20 years before coming to his psychological model of hysteria. This model explains the formation of the symptom and the hysterical conversion via a mechanism of being ignorant of the motor representation. This concept has never been disproven and remains the only theory explaining the formation of the hysteria symptom. Based on Charcot's fundamental contribution, Freud and Janet further developed their work on the psychopathology of hysteria.

Shanghai Cooperation Organization: Paper Tiger or Regional Powerhouse

DTIC Science & Technology

2005-09-01

reflecting the codification of these interests in the development of a common working institution. In truth, a combination of the events cited above has...states can reinforce cooperation as the best long-term strategy for reducing security competition . 26 This “conditional cooperation among states may...Alignment,” 244. 24 Ibid., 238. 25 The seminal work remains Robert O. Keohane and Joseph S. Nye, Power and Interdependence: World Politics in

Occupational exposure to municipal solid wastes and development of toxic neuropathies: possible role of nutrient supplementation, complementary and alternative medicines in chemoprevention.

PubMed

Ekor, Martins; Odewabi, Adesina O

2014-09-01

Achieving effective municipal solid waste (MSW) management remains a major challenge and waste generation and accumulation continue to constitute important environmental and public health concern, particularly in most developing countries. Although the general population is at risk of adverse health consequences and hazards associated with exposure to MSW, the waste management workers (WMWs) are the most vulnerable because of their direct involvement in the disposal of waste, with increasing evidence of work-related health and safety risks among these individuals. Among the numerous work-related health hazards prevalent in WMWs, development of toxic neuropathies following chronic occupational exposure remains poorly recognized. However, the risk or predisposition to toxic neuropathies is becoming evident considering the increasing recognition of large amount of neurotoxic heavy metals and hazardous industrial materials present in MSW in most parts of the world. The present review seeks to draw attention to the continuous vulnerability of the WMWs to developing toxic neuropathies. This is aimed at facilitating conscious efforts by relevant governmental and nongovernmental agencies towards promoting risk reduction and ensuring adequate protection against possible toxic polyneuropathies associated with occupational exposure to solid wastes. While continuous education of the WMWs on the need for adequate compliance to safety regulations and practice remains sacrosanct towards achieving significant reduction in toxic neuropathies and related adverse health consequences of waste handling, it is also our intention in this review to underscore the possible relevance of nutrient supplementation and alternative medicines in chemoprevention.

Personality Trait Development and Social Investment in Work

PubMed Central

Hudson, Nathan W.; Roberts, Brent W.; Lodi-Smith, Jennifer

2012-01-01

A longitudinal study of employed individuals was used to test the relationship between social investment at work—the act of cognitively and emotionally committing to one’s job—and longitudinal and cross-sectional personality trait development. Participants provided ratings of personality traits and social investment at work at two time-points, separated by approximately three years. Data were analyzed using latent change models. Cross-sectional results showed that extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness and emotional stability were related to social investment at work. Additionally, a positive association was found between longitudinal change in social investment in work and change in personality traits—especially conscientiousness. Finally, the correlated changes in social investment and personality traits were invariant across age groups, suggesting that personality traits remain malleable across the lifespan. PMID:22822278

Factors affecting retention of allied health professionals working with people with disability in rural New South Wales, Australia: discrete choice experiment questionnaire development.

PubMed

Gallego, Gisselle; Dew, Angela; Bulkeley, Kim; Veitch, Craig; Lincoln, Michelle; Bundy, Anita; Brentnall, Jennie

2015-04-21

This paper describes the development of a discrete choice experiment (DCE) questionnaire to identify the factors (attributes) that allied health professionals (AHPs) working with people with disability identify as important to encouraging them to remain practising in rural areas. Focus groups and semi-structured interviews were conducted with 97 purposively selected service providers working with people with disability in rural New South Wales, Australia. Focus groups and interviews were digitally recorded, transcribed, and analysed using a modified grounded theory approach involving thematic analysis and constant comparison. Six attributes that may influence AHPs working with people with disability in rural areas to continue to do so were inductively identified: travel arrangements, work flexibility, professional support, professional development, remuneration, and autonomy of practice. The qualitative research information was combined with a policy review to define these retention factors and ensure that they are amenable to policy changes. The use of various qualitative research methods allowed the development of a policy-relevant DCE questionnaire that was grounded in the experience of the target population (AHPs).

Investigation and simulation of lateral buckling in trains

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1999-04-13

One of the philosophies of crash energy management for passenger trains is to ensure that the vehicles remain in line during a collision so that the crush zones are fully utilized and impacts with wayside objects is prevented. Our work to develop met...

A critical needs assessment for collaborative ecotourism development linked to protected areas in Cross River State, Nigeria

Treesearch

Jeffrey J. Brooks; John Neary; Blessing E. Asuquo

2007-01-01

Nigeria has abundant natural resources, and the nation, working with its partners over the years, has made large strides toward conservation of this natural wealth, but the future of Nigeria's natural resources remains uncertain.

Real-Time Prognostics of a Rotary Valve Actuator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Daigle, Matthew

2015-01-01

Valves are used in many domains and often have system-critical functions. As such, it is important to monitor the health of valves and their actuators and predict remaining useful life. In this work, we develop a model-based prognostics approach for a rotary valve actuator. Due to limited observability of the component with multiple failure modes, a lumped damage approach is proposed for estimation and prediction of damage progression. In order to support the goal of real-time prognostics, an approach to prediction is developed that does not require online simulation to compute remaining life, rather, a function mapping the damage state to remaining useful life is found offline so that predictions can be made quickly online with a single function evaluation. Simulation results demonstrate the overall methodology, validating the lumped damage approach and demonstrating real-time prognostics.

Occupational Stigma as a Primary Barrier To Health Care For Street-Based Sex Workers in Canada

PubMed Central

Lazarus, Lisa; Deering, Kathleen N; Nabess, Rose; Gibson, Kate; Tyndall, Mark W; Shannon, Kate

2011-01-01

Individuals working in the sex industry continue to experience many negative health outcomes. As such, disentangling the factors shaping poor health access remains a critical public health priority. Within a quasi-criminalised prostitution environment, this study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of occupational stigma associated with sex work and its relationship to barriers to accessing health services. Analyses draw on baseline questionnaire data from a community-based cohort of women in street-based sex work in Vancouver, Canada (2006–8). Of a total of 252 women, 141 (58.5%) reported occupational sex work stigma (defined as hiding occupational sex work status from family, friends and/or home community), while 125 (49.6%) reported barriers to accessing health services in the previous six months. In multivariable analysis, adjusting for socio-demographic, interpersonal and work environment risks, occupational sex work stigma remained independently associated with an elevated likelihood of experiencing barriers to health access. Study findings indicate the critical need for policy and societal shifts in views of sex work as a legitimate occupation, combined with improved access to innovative, accessible and non-judgmental health care delivery models for street-based sex workers that include the direct involvement of sex workers in development and implementation. PMID:22084992

Rationale, design and methods of the Study of Work and Pain (SWAP): a cluster randomised controlled trial testing the addition of a vocational advice service to best current primary care for patients with musculoskeletal pain (ISRCTN 52269669)

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Background Musculoskeletal pain is a major contributor to short and long term work absence. Patients seek care from their general practitioner (GP) and yet GPs often feel ill-equipped to deal with work issues. Providing a vocational case management service in primary care, to support patients with musculoskeletal problems to remain at or return to work, is one potential solution but requires robust evaluation to test clinical and cost-effectiveness. Methods/Design This protocol describes a cluster randomised controlled trial, with linked qualitative interviews, to investigate the effect of introducing a vocational advice service into general practice, to provide a structured approach to managing work related issues in primary care patients with musculoskeletal pain who are absent from work or struggling to remain in work. General practices (n = 6) will be randomised to offer best current care or best current care plus a vocational advice service. Adults of working age who are absent from or struggling to remain in work due to a musculoskeletal pain problem will be invited to participate and 330 participants will be recruited. Data collection will be through patient completed questionnaires at baseline, 4 and 12 months. The primary outcome is self-reported work absence at 4 months. Incremental cost-utility analysis will be undertaken to calculate the cost per additional QALY gained and incremental net benefits. A linked interview study will explore the experiences of the vocational advice service from the perspectives of GPs, nurse practitioners (NPs), patients and vocational advisors. Discussion This paper presents the rationale, design, and methods of the Study of Work And Pain (SWAP) trial. The results of this trial will provide evidence to inform primary care practice and guide the development of services to provide support for musculoskeletal pain patients with work-related issues. Trial registration Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN52269669. PMID:25012813

Rationale, design and methods of the Study of Work and Pain (SWAP): a cluster randomised controlled trial testing the addition of a vocational advice service to best current primary care for patients with musculoskeletal pain (ISRCTN 52269669).

PubMed

Bishop, Annette; Wynne-Jones, Gwenllian; Lawton, Sarah A; van der Windt, Danielle; Main, Chris; Sowden, Gail; Burton, A Kim; Lewis, Martyn; Jowett, Sue; Sanders, Tom; Hay, Elaine M; Foster, Nadine E

2014-07-10

Musculoskeletal pain is a major contributor to short and long term work absence. Patients seek care from their general practitioner (GP) and yet GPs often feel ill-equipped to deal with work issues. Providing a vocational case management service in primary care, to support patients with musculoskeletal problems to remain at or return to work, is one potential solution but requires robust evaluation to test clinical and cost-effectiveness. This protocol describes a cluster randomised controlled trial, with linked qualitative interviews, to investigate the effect of introducing a vocational advice service into general practice, to provide a structured approach to managing work related issues in primary care patients with musculoskeletal pain who are absent from work or struggling to remain in work. General practices (n = 6) will be randomised to offer best current care or best current care plus a vocational advice service. Adults of working age who are absent from or struggling to remain in work due to a musculoskeletal pain problem will be invited to participate and 330 participants will be recruited. Data collection will be through patient completed questionnaires at baseline, 4 and 12 months. The primary outcome is self-reported work absence at 4 months. Incremental cost-utility analysis will be undertaken to calculate the cost per additional QALY gained and incremental net benefits. A linked interview study will explore the experiences of the vocational advice service from the perspectives of GPs, nurse practitioners (NPs), patients and vocational advisors. This paper presents the rationale, design, and methods of the Study of Work And Pain (SWAP) trial. The results of this trial will provide evidence to inform primary care practice and guide the development of services to provide support for musculoskeletal pain patients with work-related issues. Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN52269669.

Chain of care development in Sweden: results of a national study

PubMed Central

Åhgren, Bengt

2003-01-01

Abstract Chains of Care are today an important counterbalance to the ever-increasing fragmentation of Swedish health care, and the ongoing development work has high priority. Improved quality of care is the most important reason for developing Chains of Care. Despite support in the form of goals and activity plans, seven out of ten county councils are uncertain whether they have been quite successful in the development work. Strong departmentalisation of responsibilities between different medical professions and departments, types of responsibilities and power still remaining in the vertical organisation structure, together with limited participation from the local authorities, are some of the most commonly mentioned reasons for the lack of success. Even though there is hesitation regarding the development work up to today, all county councils will continue developing Chains of Care. The main reason is, as was the case with Chain of Care development up to today, to improve quality of care. Although one of the main purposes is to make health care more patient-focused, patients in general seem to have limited impact on the development work. Therefore, the challenge is to design Chains of Care, which regards patients as partners instead of objects. PMID:16896423

Using practice development methodology to develop children's centre teams: ideas for the future.

PubMed

Hemingway, Ann; Cowdell, Fiona

2009-09-01

The Children's Centre Programme is a recent development in the UK and brings together multi-agency teams to work with disadvantaged families. Practice development methods enable teams to work together in new ways. Although the term practice development remains relatively poorly defined, its key properties suggest that it embraces engagement, empowerment, evaluation and evolution. This paper introduces the Children's Centre Programme and practice development methods and aims to discuss the relevance of using this method to develop teams in children's centres through considering the findings from an evaluation of a two-year project to develop inter-agency public health teams. The evaluation showed that practice development methods can enable successful team development and showed that through effective facilitation, teams can change their practice to focus on areas of local need. The team came up with their own process to develop a strategy for their locality.

Doctoral Student Learning and Development: A Shared Responsibility

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bair, Carolyn R.; Haworth, Jennifer Grant; Sandfort, Melissa

2004-01-01

Historically, student affairs professionals focused their work almost exclusively on undergraduate students. Doctoral faculty remained focused on the comprehensive needs of doctoral students. However, this situation is changing. Due largely to growth in numbers and diversity of graduate students, student affairs professionals at colleges and…

An alternative analytical method based on ultrasound micro bath hydrolysis and GC-MS analysis for the characterization of organic biomarkers in archaeological ceramics.

PubMed

Blanco-Zubiaguirre, Laura; Olivares, Maitane; Castro, Kepa; Iñañez, Javier G; Madariaga, Juan Manuel

2016-11-01

The analysis of organic biomarkers in ancient and valuable archaeological remains provides a worthwhile source of information regarding their management. This work was focused on the development of an analytical procedure to characterize organic residues that have remained in archaeological ceramic samples. A novel analytical approach based on an alkaline hydrolysis by means of an ultrasound micro bath followed by liquid extraction was proposed to isolate saturated and unsaturated fatty acids, degradation products such as dihydroxy acids or dienoic fatty acids, isoprenoid fatty acids, and many other biomarkers from archaeological remains. This main goal has been achieved after the optimization of the main parameters affecting the hydrolysis step, the extraction procedure, and the derivatization step prior to the gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis. In this work, archaeological ceramic remains suspected to have been used by Basque Whalers to store whale oil in the period from the sixteenth to the seventeenth century were studied. Nevertheless, the proposed method is useful to determine the organic remains preserved in many other archaeological ceramic remains. Moreover, this methodology can be used to determine organic remains in any porous ceramic, archaeological or not. The preliminary results of the analysis of ceramic vessels led to the determination of some interesting unsaturated compounds such as 11-eicosenoic acid, an important biomarker of marine commodities, and several saturated fatty acids, which could be indicative of having used the vessels to store whale oil. Graphical abstract ᅟ.

Lab-on-a-Chip Application Development-Portable Test System (LOCAD) Phase 2

NASA Image and Video Library

2009-03-21

ISS018-E-041370 (21 March 2009) --- Astronaut Sandra Magnus, STS-119 mission specialist, prepares to work with the Lab-on-a-Chip Application Development-Portable Test System (LOCAD-PTS) experiment in the Destiny laboratory while Space Shuttle Discovery remains docked with the International Space Station. LOCAD-PTS is a handheld device for rapid detection of biological and chemical substances onboard the station.

Determining the efficacy of national strategies aimed at addressing the challenges facing health personnel working in rural areas in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

PubMed Central

2017-01-01

Background Shortages of Human Resources for Health (HRH) in rural areas are often driven by poor working and living conditions, inadequate salaries and benefits, lack of training and career development opportunities amongst others. The South African government has adopted a human resource strategy for the health sector in 2011 aimed at addressing these challenges. Aim This study reviews the challenges faced by health personnel against government strategies aimed at attracting and retaining health personnel in these underserved areas. Setting The study was conducted in six primary health care service sites in the Hlabisa sub-district of Umkhanyakude, located in northern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Methods The study population comprised 25 health workers including 11 professional nurses, 4 staff nurses and 10 doctors (4 medical doctors, 3 foreign medical doctors and 3 doctors undertaking community service). Qualitative data were collected from semi-structured interviews and analysed using thematic analysis. Results Government initiatives including the rural allowance, deployment of foreign medical doctors and the presence of health personnel undertaking their community service in rural areas are positively viewed by health personnel working in rural health facilities. However, poor living and working conditions, together with inadequate personal development opportunities, remain unresolved challenges. It is these challenges that will continue to dissuade experienced health personnel from remaining in these underserved areas. Conclusion South Africa’s HRH strategy for the Health Sector 2012/13–2015/16 had highlighted the key challenges raised by respondents and identified strategies aimed at addressing these challenges. Implementation of these strategies is key to improving both living and working conditions, and providing health personnel with opportunities for further development will require inter-ministerial collaboration if the HRH 2030 objectives are to be realised. PMID:28828878

Determining the efficacy of national strategies aimed at addressing the challenges facing health personnel working in rural areas in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

PubMed

Mburu, Grace; George, Gavin

2017-07-31

Shortages of Human Resources for Health (HRH) in rural areas are often driven by poor working and living conditions, inadequate salaries and benefits, lack of training and career development opportunities amongst others. The South African government has adopted a human resource strategy for the health sector in 2011 aimed at addressing these challenges. This study reviews the challenges faced by health personnel against government strategies aimed at attracting and retaining health personnel in these underserved areas. The study was conducted in six primary health care service sites in the Hlabisa sub-district of Umkhanyakude, located in northern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The study population comprised 25 health workers including 11 professional nurses, 4 staff nurses and 10 doctors (4 medical doctors, 3 foreign medical doctors and 3 doctors undertaking community service). Qualitative data were collected from semi-structured interviews and analysed using thematic analysis. Government initiatives including the rural allowance, deployment of foreign medical doctors and the presence of health personnel undertaking their community service in rural areas are positively viewed by health personnel working in rural health facilities. However, poor living and working conditions, together with inadequate personal development opportunities, remain unresolved challenges. It is these challenges that will continue to dissuade experienced health personnel from remaining in these underserved areas. South Africa's HRH strategy for the Health Sector 2012/13-2015/16 had highlighted the key challenges raised by respondents and identified strategies aimed at addressing these challenges. Implementation of these strategies is key to improving both living and working conditions, and providing health personnel with opportunities for further development will require inter-ministerial collaboration if the HRH 2030 objectives are to be realised.

Biological Oxidation of DCE through Manganese Addition

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-08-01

indication that remediation has been incomplete and some environmental and human health risk may remain. Therefore, developing, testing and...Alamac) site in Lumberton, Robeson County, NC. Solutions-IES has worked on this site for ten years conducting groundwater assessment , remediation ...44 5.1.4 Site Remediation Efforts

Prospects for repellent in pest control: current developments and future challenges

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The overall interest for environmentally safe pest control methods and the increased frequency of insecticide resistance in pest populations have stimulated research on insect repellents in the recent decades in medical and agricultural entomology. However, there remains a great deal of work to be ...

Charter Authorizers Face Challenges

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gustafson, Joey

2013-01-01

Since the first charter school opened 20 years ago in Minnesota, charters have been a focus of school reform advocates and the subject of substantial research. Yet the regulators of the charter industry (called "authorizers" or "sponsors") remain a mystery to many. In fact, many authorizers work in isolation, developing their…

Research and organizational issues for the implementation of family work in community psychiatric services.

PubMed

Jones, Adrian; Scannell, Tony

2002-04-01

The need for evidence-based practice (EBP) to guide and develop mental health services remains fundamental for modern services. Aim. To discuss issues that impact upon implementation of EBP and practice development using family work (FW) as an example. A selection of the FW literature was reviewed drawing on sources including the Cochrane Library, Cinahl and Medline. Keywords used were FW, community mental health team and research design. Centralized policy initiatives and guidelines that are themselves guided by evidence of randomized controlled trials predominantly risk alienating practitioners and clients/carers. Family work has some demonstrable clinical benefits although models differ and the active therapeutic agent remains unclear. Its adoption into routine care is also hindered by a productivity management outlook that seeks to maximize stretched resources and whose values are likely to be internalized by practitioners. The dichotomous position of previous research and practice development make implementation of EBP difficult and highlights the need for strategic planning that embraces both factors. The current drive to increase EBP requires a bi-directional process of influence that allows individual practitioners and clients/carers to become producers of evidence and not simply recipients. The authors support wider adoption of case study research designs to reflect the unpredictable nature of mental health care. Adoption of assertive community treatment models within community services is most likely to promote the excellence management model and accommodate EBP such as FW.

Nursing work life in acute care.

PubMed

Brooks, Beth A; Anderson, Mary Ann

2004-01-01

The purpose of this project was to explore how acute care nurses in a midwestern state rate the quality of their work life. A simple random sample of 1500 registered nurses was surveyed. Data were collected using Brooks' Quality of Nursing Worklife Survey (Brooks BA. Development of an Instrument to Measure Quality of Nursing Work Life [unpublished doctoral dissertation]. Chicago: University of Illinois at Chicago; 2001). Findings suggested that nursing workload was too heavy, and there was not enough time todo the job well. This study revealed that there remain ongoing and fundamental work life concerns for staff nurses that the profession has neither addressed nor resolved in any meaningful, long-term way.

Focus: the elusive icon: Einstein, 1905-2005. Introduction.

PubMed

Galison, Peter

2004-12-01

As Einstein's portrait comes increasingly to resemble an icon, we lose more than detail--his writings and actions lose all reference. This is as true for his physics as it is for his philosophy and his politics; the best of recent work aims to remove Einstein's interventions from the abstract sphere of Delphic pronouncements and to insert them in the stream of real events, real arguments. Politically, this means attending to McCarthyism, Paul Robeson, the Arab-Israeli conflict. Philosophically, it means tying his concerns, for example, to late nineteenth-century neo-Kantian debates and to his own struggles inside science. And where physics is concerned, it means attending both in the narrow to his responses to others' work and his reactions to his own sometimes misfired early work on, for example, general relativity and to the wider context of technological developments. Einstein remains and will remain a magnet for historians, philosophers, and scientists; the essays assembled here represent a strong sampling--but only a sampling--of a fascinating new generation of work on this perennial figure.

Focus: The elusive icon: Einstein, 1905-2005 - Introduction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Galison, Peter

2004-12-01

As Einstein's portrait comes increasingly to resemble an icon, we lose more than detail - his writings and actions lose all reference. This is as true for his physics as it is for his philosophy and his politics; the best of recent work aims to remove Einstein's interventions from the abstract sphere of Delphic pronouncements and to insert them in the stream of real events, real arguments. Politically, this means attending to McCarthyism, Paul Robeson, the Arab-Israeli conflict. Philosophically, it means tying his concerns, for example, to late nineteenth-century neo-Kantian debates and to his own struggles inside science. And where physics is concerned, it means attending both in the narrow to his reponses to others' work and his reactions to this own sometimes misfired early work on, for example, general relativity and to the wider context of technological developments. Einstein remains and will remain a magnet for historians, philosophers, and scientists; the essays assembled here represent a strong sampling - but only a sampling - of a fascinating new generation of work on this perennial figure.

Epidemiology of low back pain.

PubMed

Skovron, M L

1992-10-01

At present, although there have been many epidemiological studies of risk factors for low back pain, there are few risk factors established in prospective studies; and our understanding of them remains relatively crude. Individuals in jobs requiring manual materials handling, particularly repeated heavy lifting and lifting while twisting, are at increased risk of back pain leading to work absence. In addition, exposure to whole-body vibration and job requirements for static postures are associated with back pain. Individual trunk strength has not been consistently demonstrated as associated with back pain; although there is some suggestion that when work requirements for heavy lifting exceed individual capacities, back pain is more likely to occur. The pattern of peak age at onset in the 20's is consistent with back pain development early in working life. Among other individual characteristics, only cigarette smoking has consistently been associated with back pain; and the biological mechanism for this finding is not understood. Evidence with respect to spinal flexibility, aerobic capacity, educational attainment and other variables is suggestive but not consistent. There is some evidence that the individual's relation to work, expressed as job satisfaction or supervisor rating, is also related to work absence due to back pain. While it is possible to describe, however crudely, the characteristics placing people at risk for back pain leading to work absence and/or medical attention, the problem of predicting chronicity and thus identifying patients for more intensive clinical intervention remains unresolved. At this time, only age of the patient and certain clinical features of the back pain such as the presence of sciatic symptoms, duration of the current episode, and history of prior episodes are consistently demonstrated predictors. In chronic patients, there is suggestive evidence that spinal flexibility, trunk strength, and certain psychological characteristics such as coping skills, fear and avoidance of pain or movement, job satisfaction, attribution of fault and hysterical or hypochondriacal features are associated with treatment failure. In addition, there is suggestive evidence that the availability of alternative work placement may allow for earlier return to work than otherwise. While the availability of disability compensation in excess of usual wages may serve as a disincentive to return to work. The latter-cited remain to be verified, while findings in chronic patients remain to be tested in acute. Further, the role of physical demands of work in duration of back pain episodes has not been well studied.

Anatomy of the Spinal Meninges.

PubMed

Sakka, Laurent; Gabrillargues, Jean; Coll, Guillaume

2016-06-01

The spinal meninges have received less attention than the cranial meninges in the literature, although several points remain debatable and poorly understood, like their phylogenesis, their development, and their interactions with the spinal cord. Their constancy among the chordates shows their crucial importance in central nervous system homeostasis and suggests a role far beyond mechanical protection of the neuraxis. This work provides an extensive study of the spinal meninges, from an overview of their phylogenesis and embryology to a descriptive and topographic anatomy with clinical implications. It examines their involvement in spinal cord development, functioning, and repair. This work is a review of the literature using PubMed as a search engine on Medline. The stages followed by the meninges along the phylogenesis could not be easily compared with their development in vertebrates for methodological aspects and convergence processes throughout evolution. The distinction between arachnoid and pia mater appeared controversial. Several points of descriptive anatomy remain debatable: the functional organization of the arterial network, and the venous and lymphatic drainages, considered differently by classical anatomic and neuroradiological approaches. Spinal meninges are involved in neurodevelopment and neurorepair producing neural stem cells and morphogens, in cerebrospinal fluid dynamics and neuraxis functioning by the synthesis of active molecules, and the elimination of waste products of central nervous system metabolism. The spinal meninges should be considered as dynamic functional formations evolving over a lifetime, with ultrastructural features and functional interactions with the neuraxis remaining not fully understood.

Work-related factors influencing home care nurse intent to remain employed.

PubMed

Tourangeau, Ann E; Patterson, Erin; Saari, Margaret; Thomson, Heather; Cranley, Lisa

Health care is shifting out of hospitals into community settings. In Ontario, Canada, home care organizations continue to experience challenges recruiting and retaining nurses. However, factors influencing home care nurse retention that can be modified remain largely unexplored. Several groups of factors have been identified as influencing home care nurse intent to remain employed including job characteristics, work structures, relationships and communication, work environment, responses to work, and conditions of employment. The aim of this study was to test and refine a model that identifies which factors are related to home care nurse intentions to remain employed for the next 5 years with their current home care employer organization. A cross-sectional survey design was implemented to test and refine a hypothesized model of home care nurse intent to remain employed. Logistic regression was used to determine which factors influence home care nurse intent to remain employed. Home care nurse intent to remain employed for the next 5 years was associated with increasing age, higher nurse-evaluated quality of care, having greater variety of patients, experiencing greater meaningfulness of work, having greater income stability, having greater continuity of client care, experiencing more positive relationships with supervisors, experiencing higher work-life balance, and being more satisfied with salary and benefits. Home care organizations can promote home care nurse intent to remain employed by (a) ensuring nurses have adequate training and resources to provide quality client care, (b) improving employment conditions to increase income stability and satisfaction with pay and benefits, (c) ensuring manageable workloads to facilitate improved work-life balance, and (d) ensuring leaders are accessible and competent.

Language Lateralization in Individuals with Callosal Agenesis: An fMRI Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pelletier, Isabelle; Paquette, Natacha; Lepore, Franco; Rouleau, Isabelle; Sauerwein, Catherine H.; Rosa, Christine; Leroux, Jean-Maxime; Gravel, Pierre; Valois, Katja; Andermann, Frederick; Saint-Amour, Dave; Lassonde, Maryse

2011-01-01

Since the seminal work of Broca in 1861, it is well established that language is essentially processed in the left hemisphere. However, the origin of hemispheric specialization remains controversial. Some authors posit that language lateralization is genetically determined, while others have suggested that hemispheric specialization develops with…

Open Source 2010: Reflections on 2007

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wheeler, Brad

2007-01-01

Colleges and universities and commercial firms have demonstrated great progress in realizing the vision proffered for "Open Source 2007," and 2010 will mark even greater progress. Although much work remains in refining open source for higher education applications, the signals are now clear: the collaborative development of software can provide…

Defense Experimentation and Stockpile Stewardship

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

None

2014-10-28

A primary mission of the site is to help ensure that the nation's nuclear weapon stockpile remains safe, secure and reliable. The stockpile stewardship program, working with the national weapons laboratories conducts a wide range of experiments using advanced diagnostic technologies, many of which were developed right here at the NNSS.

Numerical visitor capacity: a guide to its use in wilderness

Treesearch

David Cole; Thomas Carlson

2010-01-01

Despite decades of academic work and practical management applications, the concept of visitor capacity remains controversial and inconsistently operationalized. Nevertheless, there are situations where development of a numerical estimate of capacity is important and where not doing so has resulted in land management agencies being successfully litigated. This report...

Postgraduate Students as OER Capacitators

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

King, Thomas William

2017-01-01

A comprehensive theoretical, legal and practical basis for OER has been developed over the past fifteen years, supported by the expansion of open source curation platforms and the work of advocacy groups and international bodies. OER's potential has been sufficiently documented; the question remains how best to support, integrate and normalise OER…

Sensory Impairments and Autism: A Re-Examination of Causal Modelling

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gerrard, Sue; Rugg, Gordon

2009-01-01

Sensory impairments are widely reported in autism, but remain largely unexplained by existing models. This article examines Kanner's causal reasoning and identifies unsupported assumptions implicit in later empirical work. Our analysis supports a heterogeneous causal model for autistic characteristics. We propose that the development of a…

Local Communities and Schools Tackling Sustainability and Climate Change

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Flowers, Rick; Chodkiewicz, Andrew

2009-01-01

Local communities and their schools remain key sites for actions tackling issues of sustainability and climate change. A government-funded environmental education initiative, the Australian Sustainable Schools Initiative (AuSSI), working together with state based Sustainable Schools Programs (SSP), has the ability to support the development of…

Epigenetics and the Social Work Imperative

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Combs-Orme, Terri

2013-01-01

"Epigenesis" is the biochemical process through which some genes are expressed and others remain silent, and it reinforces and explains the powerful impact that the environment has on human development. Epigenetic effects occur not only through diet, chemical exposure, and high levels of environmental stress, but also through chronic poverty and…

Transverse vibration technique to identify deteriorated wood floor systems

Treesearch

R.J. Ross; X. Wang; M.O. Hunt; L.A. Soltis

2002-01-01

The Forest Products Laboratory, USDA Forest Service, has been developing nondestructive evaluation (NDE) techniques to identify degradation of wood in structures and the performance characteristics that remain in the structure. This work has focused on using dynamic testing techniques, particularly stress wave and ultrasonic transmission NDE techniques for both...

Defense Experimentation and Stockpile Stewardship

ScienceCinema

None

2018-01-16

A primary mission of the site is to help ensure that the nation's nuclear weapon stockpile remains safe, secure and reliable. The stockpile stewardship program, working with the national weapons laboratories conducts a wide range of experiments using advanced diagnostic technologies, many of which were developed right here at the NNSS.

School Leadership and Counselors Working Together to Address Bullying

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Austin, Sheila M.; Reynolds, Glenda P.; Barnes, Shirley L.

2012-01-01

School bullying remains a serious issue although it has been the subject of national news, government agencies, schools and community organizations since the school shootings at Columbine. School administrators must implement school policies concerning bullying and harassment. The authors describe how administrators can develop a school-wide…

Vocational Education: Guam 1991-1992. Annual Performance Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guam Community Coll., Agana. Office of the State Agency for Vocational and Adult Education.

To remain current and provide support for vocational programs, Guam's State Director of Vocational and Adult Education worked closely with mainland agencies and organizations in 1991-92. A committee of practitioners developed a statewide system of core performance measures and standards. Leadership training kept program administrators up-to-date.…

Re-Conceptualising Graduate Employability: The Importance of Pre-Professional Identity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jackson, Denise

2016-01-01

Despite efforts to broaden the concept of graduate employability, there remains an overarching focus on developing industry-relevant employability skills. The skills-based approach is, however, too narrow and does not fully capture the complexity of graduate work-readiness. This paper argues for the redefining of graduate employability by…

Relationship of working mothers' parenting style and consistency to early childhood development: a longitudinal investigation.

PubMed

Tong, Lian; Shinohara, Ryoji; Sugisawa, Yuka; Tanaka, Emiko; Maruyama, Akiko; Sawada, Yuko; Ishi, Yukiko; Anme, Tokie

2009-10-01

This paper is a report of a longitudinal study of the relationship of working mothers' parenting style to their children's social competence and vocabulary/ motor/intellectual development. With an increasing number of women choosing to remain in the workforce after starting a family, there has been a concomitant increase in use of non-parental childcare facilities to help look after the child while the mother is at work. This increase in non-parental care has led to a dramatic change in the traditional child-rearing environment. Long-term investigations were conducted over a period of 2 years in 41 Japanese government-licensed childcare facilities. Child development was evaluated by childcare professionals and parenting style was assessed by questionnaire. A total of 504 children and their mothers participated in the study. Data collection was carried out in 2004 and 2006. We found that the changes in parenting style were statistically significantly related to children's development after 2 years. For instance, changes in the parent-child playing routine contributed to the child's social competence (odds ratio = 11.088). Variation in working mothers' disciplinary practices was also associated with children's vocabulary development after 2 years (odds ratio = 2246). Working mothers should increase interactions with their children in their free time to reduce the risk of developmental delay. Daily childcare support provided by family members or social organizations for long-term working mothers is helpful in mediating the negative relationship of mothers' working with children's development.

Investigation of type-I interferon dysregulation by arenaviruses : a multidisciplinary approach.

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

Kozina, Carol L.; Moorman, Matthew Wallace; Branda, Catherine

2011-09-01

This report provides a detailed overview of the work performed for project number 130781, 'A Systems Biology Approach to Understanding Viral Hemorrhagic Fever Pathogenesis.' We report progress in five key areas: single cell isolation devices and control systems, fluorescent cytokine and transcription factor reporters, on-chip viral infection assays, molecular virology analysis of Arenavirus nucleoprotein structure-function, and development of computational tools to predict virus-host protein interactions. Although a great deal of work remains from that begun here, we have developed several novel single cell analysis tools and knowledge of Arenavirus biology that will facilitate and inform future publications and funding proposals.

Investigating Viruses during the Transformation of Molecular Biology

PubMed Central

2017-01-01

This Reflections article describes my early work on viral enzymes and the discovery of mRNA capping, how my training in medicine and biochemistry merged as I evolved into a virologist, the development of viruses as vaccine vectors, and how scientific and technological developments during the 1970s and beyond set the stage for the interrogation of nearly every step in the reproductive cycle of vaccinia virus (VACV), a large DNA virus with about 200 genes. The reader may view this article as a work in progress, because I remain actively engaged in research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) notwithstanding 50 memorable years there. PMID:28154190

Modeling Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy: The Way Forward for Future Discovery.

PubMed

Turner, Ryan C; Lucke-Wold, Brandon P; Logsdon, Aric F; Robson, Matthew J; Lee, John M; Bailes, Julian E; Dashnaw, Matthew L; Huber, Jason D; Petraglia, Anthony L; Rosen, Charles L

2015-01-01

Despite the extensive media coverage associated with the diagnosis of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), our fundamental understanding of the disease pathophysiology remains in its infancy. Only recently have scientific laboratories and personnel begun to explore CTE pathophysiology through the use of preclinical models of neurotrauma. Some studies have shown the ability to recapitulate some aspects of CTE in rodent models, through the use of various neuropathological, biochemical, and/or behavioral assays. Many questions related to CTE development, however, remain unanswered. These include the role of impact severity, the time interval between impacts, the age at which impacts occur, and the total number of impacts sustained. Other important variables such as the location of impacts, character of impacts, and effect of environment/lifestyle and genetics also warrant further study. In this work, we attempt to address some of these questions by exploring work previously completed using single- and repetitive-injury paradigms. Despite some models producing some deficits similar to CTE symptoms, it is clear that further studies are required to understand the development of neuropathological and neurobehavioral features consistent with CTE-like features in rodents. Specifically, acute and chronic studies are needed that characterize the development of tau-based pathology.

Modeling Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy: The Way Forward for Future Discovery

PubMed Central

Turner, Ryan C.; Lucke-Wold, Brandon P.; Logsdon, Aric F.; Robson, Matthew J.; Lee, John M.; Bailes, Julian E.; Dashnaw, Matthew L.; Huber, Jason D.; Petraglia, Anthony L.; Rosen, Charles L.

2015-01-01

Despite the extensive media coverage associated with the diagnosis of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), our fundamental understanding of the disease pathophysiology remains in its infancy. Only recently have scientific laboratories and personnel begun to explore CTE pathophysiology through the use of preclinical models of neurotrauma. Some studies have shown the ability to recapitulate some aspects of CTE in rodent models, through the use of various neuropathological, biochemical, and/or behavioral assays. Many questions related to CTE development, however, remain unanswered. These include the role of impact severity, the time interval between impacts, the age at which impacts occur, and the total number of impacts sustained. Other important variables such as the location of impacts, character of impacts, and effect of environment/lifestyle and genetics also warrant further study. In this work, we attempt to address some of these questions by exploring work previously completed using single- and repetitive-injury paradigms. Despite some models producing some deficits similar to CTE symptoms, it is clear that further studies are required to understand the development of neuropathological and neurobehavioral features consistent with CTE-like features in rodents. Specifically, acute and chronic studies are needed that characterize the development of tau-based pathology. PMID:26579067

Deconstructing the Drug Development Process: The New Face of Innovation

PubMed Central

Kaitin, KI

2010-01-01

Forged in the early 1960s, the paradigm for pharmaceutical innovation has remained virtually unchanged for nearly 50 years. During a period when most other research-based industries have made frequent and often sweeping modifications to their R&D processes, the pharmaceutical sector continues to utilize a drug development process that is slow, inefficient, risky, and expensive. Few who work in or follow the activities of the pharmaceutical industry question whether change is coming. They know that the pharmaceutical sector, as currently structured, is unable to deliver enough new products to market to generate revenues sufficient to sustain its own growth. Nearly all major drug developers are critically examining current R&D practices and, in some cases, considering a radical overhaul of their R&D models. But key questions remain. What will the landscape for pharmaceutical innovation look like in the future? And, who will develop tomorrow’s medicines? PMID:20130565

The Economic and Budget Outlook: An Update

DTIC Science & Technology

1994-08-01

Given the postwar downtrend ifacturers and manufact -irng output would in hours worked per week, this development is u4refore slow. The increase in...consumer services, food , and other nondurable confident about the growth in their future income. goods came on the heels of strong increases in the...estimate, excess demand developed consumer price index excluding food and energy) near the end of 1987--that is, the actual unemploy- remained virtually

Large Eddy Simulations of Transverse Combustion Instability in a Multi-Element Injector

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-07-27

plagued the development of liquid rocket engines and remains a large riskin the development and acquisition of new liquid rocket engines. Combustion...simulations to better understand the physics that can lead combustion instability in liquid rocket engines. Simulations of this type are able to...instabilities found in liquid rocket engines are transverse. The motivating of the experiment behind the current work is to subject the CVRC injector

Occupational asthma in the developing and industrialised world: a review.

PubMed

Jeebhay, M F; Quirce, S

2007-02-01

Occupational asthma is the most common occupational lung disease in industrialised countries, and the second most common occupational lung disease reported after pneumoconioses in developing countries. The median proportion of adult cases of asthma attributable to occupational exposure is between 10% and 15%. The population attributable fraction appears to be similar in industrialised and developing countries characterised by rapid industrialisation (13-15%), but lower in less industrialised developing countries (6%). The high-risk occupations and industries associated with the development of occupational asthma vary depending on the dominant industrial sectors in a particular country. High-risk exposure to cleaning agents and pesticide exposure in developing countries appear to be as important as exposure to isocyanates, cereal flour/grain dust, welding fumes, wood dust and, more recently, hairdressing chemicals, commonly reported in industrialised countries. The reported mean annual incidence of occupational asthma in developing countries is less than 2 per 100 000 population, compared to very high rates of up to 18/100 000 in Scandinavian countries. While occupational asthma remains under-recognised, especially in developing countries, it remains poorly diagnosed and managed and inadequately compensated worldwide. Primary and secondary preventive strategies should be directed at controlling workplace exposures, accompanied by intense educational and managerial improvements. Appropriate treatment remains early removal from exposure to ensure that the worker has no further exposure to the causal agent, with preservation of income. However, up to one third of workers with occupational asthma continue to remain exposed to the causative agent or suffer prolonged work disruption, discrimination and risk of unemployment.

Nurse manager perceptions of role satisfaction and retention at an academic medical center.

PubMed

Zwink, Jennifer E; Dzialo, Maureen; Fink, Regina M; Oman, Kathleen S; Shiskowsky, Kaycee; Waite, Kathi; DeVine, Deborah; Sanders, Carolyn L; Le-Lazar, Jamie T T

2013-03-01

The aim of this study was to explore the perceptions of inpatient acute care nurse managers (NM) employed at an academic Magnet® hospital about factors that influence NM retention, including current work environment, satisfaction, work-life balance, sucssful NM traits, and personal development and educational needs. Nurse managers are challenged with increased workloads impacting their ability to implement all role components. A qualitative descriptive study design used focus group methodology to explore perceptions of the NM role. Nurse managers identified staff recognition, support, peer relationships, collaboration, and ability to make positive change as factors influencing their decision to remain in the role. Burnout factors included workload issues, work-life imbalance, and difficulty sustaining positive relationships. Traits supporting success were communication, resiliency, integrity, and a visionary outlook. Suggestions for NM development and education were identified. Findings can be used to improve NM satisfaction, work-life balance, recruitment, retention, and succession planning.

Work ability, age and intention to leave aged care work.

PubMed

Austen, Siobhan; Jefferson, Therese; Lewin, Gill; Ong, Rachel; Sharp, Rhonda

2016-03-01

To describe the work ability of mature age women workers in Australia's aged care sector, and to explore the relationship between ageing, work ability and intention to leave. Logistic regression techniques were applied to a sample of 2721 responses to a survey of mature age women workers in the aged care sector. Mature age women working in the Australian aged care sector have relatively high levels of work ability by international standards. Furthermore, their work ability remains high in their 50s and 60s, in contrast to some prevailing stereotypes. However, work ability is a key determinant of intention to leave in key occupational groups. Our findings challenge some prevailing stereotypes about the work ability of mature age workers. However, they lend support for the development of retention strategies, which incorporate programs that target low work ability. © 2015 AJA Inc.

Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle Active Thermal Control and Environmental Control and Life Support Development Status

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lewis, John F.; Barido, Richard A.; Boehm, Paul; Cross, Cynthia D.; Rains, George Edward

2014-01-01

The Orion Multi Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV) is the first crew transport vehicle to be developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in the last thirty years. Orion is currently being developed to transport the crew safely beyond Earth orbit. This year, the vehicle focused on building the Exploration Flight Test 1 (EFT1) vehicle to be launched in September of 2014. The development of the Orion Active Thermal Control (ATCS) and Environmental Control and Life Support (ECLS) System, focused on the integrating the components into the EFT1 vehicle and preparing them for launch. Work also has started on preliminary design reviews for the manned vehicle. Additional development work is underway to keep the remaining component progressing towards implementation on the flight tests of EM1 in 2017 and of EM2 in 2020. This paper covers the Orion ECLS development from April 2013 to April 2014.

Multi Purpose Crew Vehicle Active Thermal Control and Environmental Control and Life Support Development Status

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lewis, John F.; Barido, Richard A.; Boehm, Paul; Cross, Cynthia D.; Rains, George Edward

2014-01-01

The Orion Multi Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV) is the first crew transport vehicle to be developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in the last thirty years. Orion is currently being developed to transport the crew safely beyond Earth orbit. This year, the vehicle focused on building the Exploration Flight Test 1 (EFT1) vehicle to be launched in September of 2014. The development of the Orion Active Thermal Control (ATCS) and Environmental Control and Life Support (ECLS) System, focused on the integrating the components into the EFT1 vehicle and preparing them for launch. Work also has started on preliminary design reviews for the manned vehicle. Additional development work is underway to keep the remaining component progressing towards implementation on the flight tests of EM1 in 2017 and of EM2 in 2020. This paper covers the Orion ECLS development from April 2013 to April 2014

Assessment of U.S. and Coalition Efforts to Develop Leaders in the Afghan National Army

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-06-24

Literacy remains an enabler for soldier and NCO development, and creates a more discerning citizen for Afghan society . Despite challenges, the...level and economic capacity of the society as a whole. In terms of its importance to professional development, both ANA and NTM-A senior...available in the account, nor if the account is actuarially sound. The NTM-A/CSTC-A lnsp.ector General continues to work with the MoD to resolve a

Psychosocial work exposures among European employees: explanations for occupational inequalities in mental health.

PubMed

Schütte, Stefanie; Chastang, Jean-François; Parent-Thirion, Agnès; Vermeylen, Greet; Niedhammer, Isabelle

2015-09-01

Social inequalities in mental health have been demonstrated but understanding the mechanisms remains unclear. This study aims at exploring the role of psychosocial work factors in explaining occupational inequalities in mental health among European employees. The study sample covered 33,443 employees coming from the European Working Conditions Survey 2010. Mental health was measured by the WHO-5 well-being index and socioeconomic position by occupation. Twenty-five psychosocial work factors were constructed including job demands, job influence and development, role stressors, social support, quality of leadership, discrimination, violence at work, working hours, job promotion, job insecurity and work-life imbalance. Multilevel linear regressions and bootstrap analyses were performed. Occupational differences were observed for poor mental health and almost all psychosocial work factors. Factors related to job demands, influence and development at work, social relationships and leadership, working hours and other factors contributed to explain the occupational inequalities in mental health. In particular, factors related to influence and development contributed substantially. Among men, workplace violences were found to contribute little whereas among women these factors did not play a role. Future prevention interventions should have a broad and comprehensive focus in order to reduce social inequalities in mental health. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Faculty of Public Health. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Associations Between White Matter Microstructure and Infants’ Working Memory

PubMed Central

Short, Sarah J.; Elison, Jed T.; Goldman, Barbara Davis; Styner, Martin; Gu, Hongbin; Connelly, Mark; Maltbie, Eric; Woolson, Sandra; Lin, Weili; Gerig, Guido; Reznick, J. Steven; Gilmore, John H.

2013-01-01

Working memory emerges in infancy and plays a privileged role in subsequent adaptive cognitive development. The neural networks important for the development of working memory during infancy remain unknown. We used diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and deterministic fiber tracking to characterize the microstructure of white matter fiber bundles hypothesized to support working memory in 12-month-old infants (n=73). Here we show robust associations between infants’ visuospatial working memory performance and microstructural characteristics of widespread white matter. Significant associations were found for white matter tracts that connect brain regions known to support working memory in older children and adults (genu, anterior and superior thalamic radiations, anterior cingulum, arcuate fasciculus, and the temporal-parietal segment). Better working memory scores were associated with higher FA and lower RD values in these selected white matter tracts. These tract-specific brain-behavior relationships accounted for a significant amount of individual variation above and beyond infants’ gestational age and developmental level, as measured with the Mullen Scales of Early Learning. Working memory was not associated with global measures of brain volume, as expected, and few associations were found between working memory and control white matter tracts. To our knowledge, this study is among the first demonstrations of brain-behavior associations in infants using quantitative tractography. The ability to characterize subtle individual differences in infant brain development associated with complex cognitive functions holds promise for improving our understanding of normative development, biomarkers of risk, experience-dependent learning and neuro-cognitive periods of developmental plasticity. PMID:22989623

Tuberculosis care: Olympics 1948 vs 2012.

PubMed

Karim, Kelvin

Tuberculosis (TB) is a multi-faceted illness associated with a long and fascinating history. Although much has changed in the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of TB over the past six decades, many of the challenges remain remarkably similar. In developing solutions to these challenges, key stakeholders and politicians would do well to learn from some of the more effective strategies from the pre-chemotherapy era. Despite working with insufficient resources, nurses have historically contributed significantly to the work of the multidisciplinary teams in delivering care to patients and families, as well as in implementing national TB control and prevention programmes. The current resurgence of TB in the UK makes it imperative to achieve consistently and appropriately-funded TB services across the country. Whether NHS commissioners and politicians will engage with nurses and others in the reconfigured NHS to achieve this, however, remains to be seen.

Developing Eastern Africa's resilience to flood and drought through multi-functional ecosystem-based management strategies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lyon, Steve W.

2017-04-01

The rapid urbanization and agricultural expansion of Eastern Africa puts people in direct conflict with nature. Nowhere is this more obvious than for water resources where the delicate balance of too much water (flood) or too little water (drought) is a matter of life and death for millions. This work tackles this apparent conflict head-on by considering ecosystem service trade-offs relevant for water-based disasters as populations transition from rural to more intensive agricultural/urban lifestyles. Specifically, recent work from the Kilombero Valley of Tanzania, a region which has been targeted for development investment but where potential impacts (not to mention sustainability) associated with various development scenarios remain largely unresolved, will be presented as relevant case study. Our efforts on modelling and data synthesis for this region have shown promise as we seek to advance science in more and more remote (and in particular developing) regions while allowing important improvements for management of less and less available resources. Thus, in spite of large uncertainties the work highlights how research may still provide an improved system understanding of resource flows even when working under less than perfect conditions. Subsequently, such understanding feeds into development of frameworks for quantifying socio-hydrological impacts of land-water management. To ensure relevance regionally, we consider Kilombero Valley in the context of existing nature-based approaches dealing with disaster risk reduction. Such context potentially facilitates transfer of knowledge across country borders. Our goal here is to empower planners and stakeholders throughout the region by helping translate their knowledge into optimized adaptation strategies and linking their experiences through South-South transfer. There remains an open (and fundamental) question of how to best define management recommendations and activities that not only achieve climate resiliency but also are acceptable for stakeholders without compromising ecosystem service supplies.

Shift Work and Shift Work Sleep Disorder: Clinical and Organizational Perspectives.

PubMed

Wickwire, Emerson M; Geiger-Brown, Jeanne; Scharf, Steven M; Drake, Christopher L

2017-05-01

Throughout the industrialized world, nearly one in five employees works some form of nontraditional shift. Such shift work is associated with numerous negative health consequences, ranging from cognitive complaints to cancer, as well as diminished quality of life. Furthermore, a substantial percentage of shift workers develop shift work disorder, a circadian rhythm sleep disorder characterized by excessive sleepiness, insomnia, or both as a result of shift work. In addition to adverse health consequences and diminished quality of life at the individual level, shift work disorder incurs significant costs to employers through diminished workplace performance and increased accidents and errors. Nonetheless, shift work will remain a vital component of the modern economy. This article reviews seminal and recent literature regarding shift work, with an eye toward real-world application in clinical and organizational settings. Copyright © 2016 American College of Chest Physicians. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Internal desynchronization in a model of night-work by forced activity in rats.

PubMed

Salgado-Delgado, R; Angeles-Castellanos, M; Buijs, M R; Escobar, C

2008-06-26

Individuals engaged in shift- or night-work show disturbed diurnal rhythms, out of phase with temporal signals associated to the light/dark (LD) cycle, resulting in internal desynchronization. The mechanisms underlying internal desynchrony have been mainly investigated in experimental animals with protocols that induce phase shifts of the LD cycle and thus modify the activity of the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN). In this study we developed an animal model of night-work in which the light-day cycle remained stable and rats were required to be active in a rotating wheel for 8 h daily during their sleeping phase (W-SP). This group was compared with rats that were working in the wheel during their activity phase (W-AP) and with undisturbed rats (C). We provide evidence that forced activity during the sleeping phase (W-SP group) alters not only activity, but also the temporal pattern of food intake. In consequence W-SP rats showed a loss of glucose rhythmicity and a reversed rhythm of triacylglycerols. In contrast W-AP rats did not show such changes and exhibited metabolic rhythms similar to those of the controls. The three groups exhibited the nocturnal corticosterone increase, in addition the W-SP and W-AP groups showed increase of plasma corticosterone associated with the start of the working session. Forced activity during the sleep phase did not modify SCN activity characterized by the temporal patterns of PER1 and PER2 proteins, which remained in phase with the LD cycle. These observations indicate that a working regimen during the sleeping period elicits internal desynchronization in which activity combined with feeding uncouples metabolic functions from the biological clock which remains fixed to the LD cycle. The present data suggest that in the night worker the combination of work and eating during working hours may be the cause of internal desynchronization.

Journalism Education in Brazil: Developments and Neglected Issues

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moreira, Sonia Virgínia; Lago, Cláudia

2017-01-01

Journalism education started in Brazil in 1947. Today, it comes under the field of Social Communication, along with Advertising, Public Relations, Film, and Radio & TV. For almost 40 years, from 1970 to 2009, a journalism diploma was mandatory to work in a newsroom. As part of the field of Applied Social Sciences, journalism remains popular…

A Small War: The Development of the Russian-Chechen Conflict, 1994-2010

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-04-01

joined America and other nations as a member of the Financial Action Task Force ( FATF ./36 By 2004, a Central Asian FATF regional body formed to focus...assisting or working with FATF labeled terrorist groups. Althotlgh Chechnya remains a high criine area, 139 the combination of high profile worldwide

EARTHWATCH Expeditions Impact Science Education: Exposing Teachers to Science and Technology in the Field and in the Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nixon, Rachel A.

1997-01-01

Presents six case studies of EARTHWATCH expeditions which provide teachers with opportunities to work with scientists, participate in scientific discovery, and employ new technology. Educators join EARTHWATCH teams to explore tropical and dry forests, monitor ecosystems and species, unearth remains, and consequently develop innovative classroom…

Developing Argumentation Skills in Mathematics through Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning: The Role of Transactivity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vogel, Freydis; Kollar, Ingo; Ufer, Stefan; Reichersdorfer, Elisabeth; Reiss, Kristina; Fischer, Frank

2016-01-01

Collaboration scripts and heuristic worked examples are effective means to scaffold university freshmen's mathematical argumentation skills. Yet, which collaborative learning processes are responsible for these effects has remained unclear. Learners presumably will gain the most out of collaboration if the collaborators refer to each other's…

A Progression of Fraction Schemes Common to Chinese and U.S. Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Norton, Anderson; Wilkins, Jesse L. M.; Xu, Cong ze

2018-01-01

Through their work on the Fractions Project, Steffe and Olive (2010) identified a progression of fraction schemes that describes students' development toward more and more sophisticated ways of operating with fractions. Although several quantitative studies have affirmed this progression, the question has remained open as to whether it is specific…

Collection Development: Our World of Work

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Easton, Bonnie

2010-01-01

The current recession has hit American workers hard. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, ten percent of the U.S. workforce is unemployed (as of November 2009), the highest rate since April 1983. In addition, the labor market is experiencing record rates in the length of time job hunters remain unemployed, while companies receive hundreds…

DNA Methylation: A Mechanism for Embedding Early Life Experiences in the Genome

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Szyf, Moshe; Bick, Johanna

2013-01-01

Although epidemiological data provide evidence that early life experience plays a critical role in human development, the mechanism of how this works remains in question. Recent data from human and animal literature suggest that epigenetic changes, such as DNA methylation, are involved not only in cellular differentiation but also in the…

Turning an Extension Aide into an Extension Agent

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Seevers, Brenda; Dormody, Thomas J.

2010-01-01

For any organization to remain sustainable, a renewable source of faculty and staff needs to be available. The Extension Internship Program for Juniors and Seniors in High School is a new tool for recruiting and developing new Extension agents. Students get "hands on" experience working in an Extension office and earn college credit…

Changes in Situational and Dispositional Factors as Predictors of Job Satisfaction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Keller, Anita C.; Semmer, Norbert K.

2013-01-01

Arguably, job satisfaction is one of the most important variables with regard to work. When explaining job satisfaction, research usually focuses on predictor variables in terms of levels but neglects growth rates. Therefore it remains unclear how potential predictors evolve over time and how their development affects job satisfaction. Using…

"Bush Law 101": Realising Place Conscious Pedagogy in the Law Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kennedy, Amanda; Mundy, Trish; Nielsen, Jennifer M.

2016-01-01

In 2012, a team of academics from six universities worked on an OLT-funded project, "Rethinking Law Curriculum: developing strategies to prepare law graduates for practice in rural and regional Australia." The project was motivated by the declining proportion of lawyers being attracted to and remaining in practice in rural and regional…

To Mother or Matter: Can Women Do Both?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schultheiss, Donna E. Palladino

2009-01-01

Despite a burgeoning interest in the interface between work and relationships, and its origins in feminist thought, crucial aspects of women's experiences have remained invisible in the face of mainstream discourse in the career field. Many women have and will continue to define motherhood as a career, yet none of our career development theories…

Vance Berger, PhD | Division of Cancer Prevention

Cancer.gov

Dr. Vance Berger completed his PhD in statistics at Rutgers University in 1995, and then began working at the FDA. This is where he developed his research focus on biases and threats to the validity of medical studies, especially clinical trials. In 1999, Dr. Berger joined the NCI, and has remained ever since. |

Ireland's Generic Repeat Design Schools Programme

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sheppard, Tony

2011-01-01

The Irish Department of Education and Skills (DoE) is strongly committed to energy efficiency and to reducing CO[subscript 2] by developing and implementing energy level ceilings in relation to school design that aim to remain below half of the accepted good practice in the field. This approach works within normal departmental budgetary limits to…

21st Century Teachers: How Non-Traditional Pre-Service Teachers Navigate Their Initial Experiences of Contemporary Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Crosswell, Leanne; Beutel, Denise

2017-01-01

In the twenty-first century, teachers' work has become more complex with high levels of accountability, increased bureaucratic responsibilities and unprecedented levels of public scrutiny. However, teaching fundamentally remains a caring profession, requiring well-developed social skills and emotional labour to successfully engage and motivate…

Improving Special Education Teacher Retention: Implications from a Decade of Research.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Billingsley, Bonnie S.

2002-01-01

A review of the research on the shortage of special education teachers and the role of attrition leads to eight recommendations to improve special educators' work environments and increase retention. Four of these recommendations are: hire certified teachers; use salaries and bonuses as incentives to remain; develop responsive induction programs…

Seriously Considering Design in Educational Games

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gaydos, Matthew

2015-01-01

Research suggests that well-designed games can be good for learning under the right conditions. How such games are designed remains poorly understood, as studies have focused more on "whether" games can produce learning than on how such games work or how they can be reliably developed. That is, though the design of a game is considered…

U.S. Productivity: The Challenges Ahead.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Workforce Economics, 1999

1999-01-01

Despite the soaring stock market, low unemployment, and low inflation rate, the long-term prospects for U.S. economic health remain a cause for concern. Labor productivity has slowed since 1973. As a result of this slowdown, many companies are investing in work force development and new equipment to boost productivity. Long-term economic health…

Microscale Gas Chemistry

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mattson, Bruce; Anderson, Michael P.

2011-01-01

The development of syringes having free movement while remaining gas-tight enabled methods in chemistry to be changed. Successfully containing and measuring volumes of gas without the need to trap them using liquids made it possible to work with smaller quantities. The invention of the LuerLok syringe cap also allowed the gas to be stored for a…

Adult Basic Education Methodology and Curriculum.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pierce, W. Lee; And Others

As Mississippi approaches the 21st century and an increasingly more competitive business climate, the state should be prepared to develop its most precious business asset--its work force. According to 1990 data, Mississippi contributes only 8.5 percent of funding for adult education (the remaining 91.5 percent comes from federal sources) to serve…

Fully developed turbulence in slugs of pipe flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cerbus, Rory; Liu, Chien-Chia; Sakakibara, Jun; Gioia, Gustavo; Chakraborty, Pinaki

2015-11-01

Despite over a century of research, transition to turbulence in pipe flows remains a mystery. In theory the flow remains laminar for arbitrarily large Reynolds number, Re. In practice, however, the flow transitions to turbulence at a finite Re whose value depends on the disturbance, natural or artificial, in the experimental setup. The flow remains in the transition state for a range of Re ~ 0 (1000) ; for larger Re the flow becomes fully developed. The transition state for Re > 3000 consists of axially segregated regions of laminar and turbulent patches. These turbulent patches, known as slugs, grow as they move downstream. Their lengths span anywhere between a few pipe diameters to the whole length of the pipe. Here we report Stereo Particle Image Velocimetry measurements in the cross-section of the slugs. Notwithstanding the continuous growth of the slugs, we find that the mean velocity and stress profiles in the slugs are indistinguishable from that of statistically-stationary fully-developed turbulent flows. Our results are independent of the length of the slugs. We contrast our results with the well-known work of Wygnanski & Champagne (1973), whose measurements, we argue, are insufficient to draw a clear conclusion regarding fully developed turbulence in slugs.

Mental Objects in Working Memory: Development of Basic Capacity or of Cognitive Completion?

PubMed Central

Cowan, Nelson

2018-01-01

Working memory is the small amount of information that we hold in mind and use to carry out cognitive processes such as language comprehension and production, problem-solving, and decision-making. In order to understand cognitive development, it would be helpful to know whether working memory increases in capacity with development and, if so, how and why. I will focus on two major stumbling blocks toward understanding working memory development, namely that (1) many potentially relevant aspects of the mind change in parallel during development, obscuring the role of any one change; and (2) one cannot use the same test procedure from infancy to adulthood, complicating comparisons across age groups. With regard to the first stumbling block, the parallel development of different aspects of the mind, we discuss research in which attempts were made to hold constant some factors (knowledge, strategies, direction of attention) to investigate whether developmental differences remain. With regard to the second stumbling block, procedural differences in tests at different age groups, I suggest ways in which the results might be reconciled across procedures. I highlight the value of pursuing research that could distinguish between two different key hypotheses that emerge: that there is a developmental increase in the number of working memory slots (or in a basic resource that holds items in working memory), and that there is a developmental increase in the amount of detail that each of these slots can hold. PMID:28215289

Mental Objects in Working Memory: Development of Basic Capacity or of Cognitive Completion?

PubMed

Cowan, N

2017-01-01

Working memory is the small amount of information that we hold in mind and use to carry out cognitive processes such as language comprehension and production, problem solving, and decision making. In order to understand cognitive development, it would be helpful to know whether working memory increases in capacity with development and, if so, how and why. I will focus on two major stumbling blocks toward understanding working memory development, namely that (1) many potentially relevant aspects of the mind change in parallel during development, obscuring the role of any one change; and (2) one cannot use the same test procedure from infancy to adulthood, complicating comparisons across age groups. With regard to the first stumbling block, the parallel development of different aspects of the mind, we discuss research in which attempts were made to hold constant some factors (knowledge, strategies, direction of attention) to investigate whether developmental differences remain. With regard to the second stumbling block, procedural differences in tests for different age groups, I suggest ways in which the results might be reconciled across procedures. I highlight the value of pursuing research that could distinguish between two different key hypotheses that emerge: that there is a developmental increase in the number of working memory slots (or in a basic resource that holds items in working memory), and that there is a developmental increase in the amount of detail that each of these slots can hold. © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Mobile Building Energy Audit and Modeling Tools: Cooperative Research and Development Final Report, CRADA Number CRD-11-00441

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

Brackney, L.

Broadly accessible, low cost, accurate, and easy-to-use energy auditing tools remain out of reach for managers of the aging U.S. building population (over 80% of U.S. commercial buildings are more than 10 years old*). concept3D and NREL's commercial buildings group will work to translate and extend NREL's existing spreadsheet-based energy auditing tool for a browser-friendly and mobile-computing platform. NREL will also work with concept3D to further develop a prototype geometry capture and materials inference tool operable on a smart phone/pad platform. These tools will be developed to interoperate with NREL's Building Component Library and OpenStudio energy modeling platforms, and willmore » be marketed by concept3D to commercial developers, academic institutions and governmental agencies. concept3D is NREL's lead developer and subcontractor of the Building Component Library.« less

Experimental investigation on the development characteristics of initial electrons in a gas pressurized closing switch under DC voltage

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rongxiao, ZHAI; Mengtong, QIU; Weixi, LUO; Peitian, CONG; Tao, HUANG; Jiahui, YIN; Tianyang, ZHANG

2018-04-01

As one of the most important elements in linear transformer driver (LTD) based systems, the gas pressurized closing switches are required to operate with a very low prefire probability during the DC-charging process to ensure reliable operation and stable output of the whole pulsed power system. The most direct and effective way to control the prefire probability is to select a suitable working coefficient. The study of the development characteristics of the initially generated electrons is useful for optimizing the working coefficient and improving the prefire characteristic of the switches. In this paper an ultraviolet pulsed laser is used to generate initial electrons inside the gap volume. A current measuring system is used to measure the time-dependent current generated by the growth of the initial electrons so as to study the development characteristics of the electrons under different working coefficients. Experimental results show that the development characteristics of the initial electrons are influenced obviously by the working coefficient. With the increase of the working coefficient, the development degree of the electrons increases consequently. At the same times, there is a threshold of working coefficient which produces the effect of ionization on electrons. The range of the threshold has a slow growth but remains close to 65% with the gas pressure increase. When the working coefficient increases further, γ processes are starting to be generated inside the gap volume. In addition, an optimal working coefficient beneficial for improving the prefire characteristic is indicated and further tested.

Dehydroepiandrosterone impacts working memory by shaping cortico-hippocampal structural covariance during development.

PubMed

Nguyen, Tuong-Vi; Wu, Mia; Lew, Jimin; Albaugh, Matthew D; Botteron, Kelly N; Hudziak, James J; Fonov, Vladimir S; Collins, D Louis; Campbell, Benjamin C; Booij, Linda; Herba, Catherine; Monnier, Patricia; Ducharme, Simon; McCracken, James T

2017-12-01

Existing studies suggest that dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) may be important for human brain development and cognition. For example, molecular studies have hinted at the critical role of DHEA in enhancing brain plasticity. Studies of human brain development also support the notion that DHEA is involved in preserving cortical plasticity. Further, some, though not all, studies show that DHEA administration may lead to improvements in working memory in adults. Yet these findings remain limited by an incomplete understanding of the specific neuroanatomical mechanisms through which DHEA may impact the CNS during development. Here we examined associations between DHEA, cortico-hippocampal structural covariance, and working memory (216 participants [female=123], age range 6-22 years old, mean age: 13.6 +/-3.6 years, each followed for a maximum of 3 visits over the course of 4 years). In addition to administering performance-based, spatial working memory tests to these children, we also collected ecological, parent ratings of working memory in everyday situations. We found that increasingly higher DHEA levels were associated with a shift toward positive insular-hippocampal and occipito-hippocampal structural covariance. In turn, DHEA-related insular-hippocampal covariance was associated with lower spatial working memory but higher overall working memory as measured by the ecological parent ratings. Taken together with previous research, these results support the hypothesis that DHEA may optimize cortical functions related to general attentional and working memory processes, but impair the development of bottom-up, hippocampal-to-cortical connections, resulting in impaired encoding of spatial cues. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Transportable Applications Environment Plus, Version 5.1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1994-01-01

Transportable Applications Environment Plus (TAE+) computer program providing integrated, portable programming environment for developing and running application programs based on interactive windows, text, and graphical objects. Enables both programmers and nonprogrammers to construct own custom application interfaces easily and to move interfaces and application programs to different computers. Used to define corporate user interface, with noticeable improvements in application developer's and end user's learning curves. Main components are; WorkBench, What You See Is What You Get (WYSIWYG) software tool for design and layout of user interface; and WPT (Window Programming Tools) Package, set of callable subroutines controlling user interface of application program. WorkBench and WPT's written in C++, and remaining code written in C.

Investigating Viruses during the Transformation of Molecular Biology.

PubMed

Moss, Bernard

2017-03-10

This Reflections article describes my early work on viral enzymes and the discovery of mRNA capping, how my training in medicine and biochemistry merged as I evolved into a virologist, the development of viruses as vaccine vectors, and how scientific and technological developments during the 1970s and beyond set the stage for the interrogation of nearly every step in the reproductive cycle of vaccinia virus (VACV), a large DNA virus with about 200 genes. The reader may view this article as a work in progress, because I remain actively engaged in research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) notwithstanding 50 memorable years there. © 2017 by The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

Regenerative endodontics and tissue engineering: what the future holds?

PubMed

Goodis, Harold E; Kinaia, Bassam Michael; Kinaia, Atheel M; Chogle, Sami M A

2012-07-01

The work performed by researchers in regenerative endodontics and tissue engineering over the last decades has been superb; however, many questions remain to be answered. The basic biologic mechanisms must be elucidated that will allow the development of dental pulp and dentin in situ. Stress must be placed on the many questions that will lead to the design of effective, safe treatment options and therapies. This article discusses those questions, the answers to which may become the future of regenerative endodontics. The future remains bright, but proper support and patience are required. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Mothers' work patterns and Children's cognitive achievement: Evidence from the India Human Development survey.

PubMed

Vikram, Kriti; Chen, Feinian; Desai, Sonalde

2018-05-01

As female labor force participation increases globally, the relationship between maternal employment and children's development remains unclear. Using data from the India Human Development Survey (2005), we investigate the link between maternal employment and children's arithmetic and reading achievement. We develop a work pattern typology that goes beyond standard measures of employment and captures work intensity and its compatibility with child-rearing in a transitional economy. We find that the relationship between maternal employment and children's outcomes is not unidimensional. For example, children of self-employed mothers are not disadvantaged compared to those with stay-at-home mothers, but maternal employment in salaried jobs or wage work outside the home is negatively associated with cognitive skills in children. However, this negative association is reversed at higher levels of maternal education, suggesting greater access to resources and flexibility associated with better jobs mitigate the negative aspects of maternal employment posed by time constraints. Additionally, maternal employment is associated with maternal involvement in schoolwork and financial investment in academic activities, providing evidence that both time and resources devoted to children's education are significant. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Methods for Prediction of High-Speed Reacting Flows in Aerospace Propulsion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Drummond, J. Philip

2014-01-01

Research to develop high-speed airbreathing aerospace propulsion systems was underway in the late 1950s. A major part of the effort involved the supersonic combustion ramjet, or scramjet, engine. Work had also begun to develop computational techniques for solving the equations governing the flow through a scramjet engine. However, scramjet technology and the computational methods to assist in its evolution would remain apart for another decade. The principal barrier was that the computational methods needed for engine evolution lacked the computer technology required for solving the discrete equations resulting from the numerical methods. Even today, computer resources remain a major pacing item in overcoming this barrier. Significant advances have been made over the past 35 years, however, in modeling the supersonic chemically reacting flow in a scramjet combustor. To see how scramjet development and the required computational tools finally merged, we briefly trace the evolution of the technology in both areas.

A History of Social Work in Public Health

PubMed Central

Ruth, Betty J.

2017-01-01

Social work is a core health profession with origins deeply connected to the development of contemporary public health in the United States. Today, many of the nation’s 600 000 social workers practice broadly in public health and in other health settings, drawing on a century of experience in combining clinical, intermediate, and population approaches for greater health impact. Yet, the historic significance of this long-standing interdisciplinary collaboration—and its current implications—remains underexplored in the present era. This article builds on primary and contemporary sources to trace the historic arc of social work in public health, providing examples of successful collaborations. The scope and practices of public health social work practice are explored, and we articulate a rationale for an expanded place for social work in the public health enterprise. PMID:29236533

A History of Social Work in Public Health.

PubMed

Ruth, Betty J; Marshall, Jamie Wyatt

2017-12-01

Social work is a core health profession with origins deeply connected to the development of contemporary public health in the United States. Today, many of the nation's 600 000 social workers practice broadly in public health and in other health settings, drawing on a century of experience in combining clinical, intermediate, and population approaches for greater health impact. Yet, the historic significance of this long-standing interdisciplinary collaboration-and its current implications-remains underexplored in the present era. This article builds on primary and contemporary sources to trace the historic arc of social work in public health, providing examples of successful collaborations. The scope and practices of public health social work practice are explored, and we articulate a rationale for an expanded place for social work in the public health enterprise.

System Architecture for a Military Weapon System Development Process to Integrate Design and the Manufacturing Process for Use by a Government Technical Development Agency

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-09-01

elements of functional structure. Frequently the requirement for this is to ensure long- term retention of skilled people through the provision of an...operational and manufacturable, greatly reducing the design work remaining for Milestone C. 14. SUBJECT TERMS System Architecture, manufacturing...specialized ammunition technology item such as a fuze takes too long, from initial concept through final production design, which is approved for

75 FR 56653 - Suspension of Preparation of Environmental Impact Statement for the George Bush Intercontinental...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-09-16

... development needs for the airport. HAS has determined that reevaluation of the Airport Master Plan (AMP.... Based on the results of the AMP, the airfield improvements being analyzed in the EIS included the... that additional planning work is necessary to ensure that the assumptions used in the AMP remain valid...

Passing through the Halls: Relationships and Organizational Structures in the Work of a School Granted Autonomy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Szczesny, Thomas Joseph

2017-01-01

Though much is known about the school environments that increase students' access to opportunity, the process for developing conditions that presage such outcomes remains a pertinent area of study. The reality that widespread school performance has yet to realize the promise of true educational equity, particularly in urban settings, attests to…

Psychotherapy in an International Setting: A Malaysian Perspective.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kumaraswamy, N.

In spite of the development of medical services in Asian countries, mental illness and mental health services remain a stigma. An awareness of the causes and consequences of mental illness is also lacking. Since the 1990s, much work has been done in Malaysia to advance the people's concepts about the scientific approach to mental illness and to…

Windows into the forest: extending long-term small-watershed research

Treesearch

Sally Duncan

2004-01-01

Interactions among forests, forestry, and water remain a critical aspect of Forest Service land stewardship. Small, experimental watershed studies managed by Forest Service Research and Development have a long history of advancing science and management and have resulted in a rich collection of long-term data. Early work addressed effects of forestry practices in...

Using Systems Theory to Understand the Identity of Academic Advising: A Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bridgen, Sean

2017-01-01

For decades, advising practitioners and scholars have worked toward developing an identity for advising as a unique field of scholarly inquiry and practice. To date, the identity crisis in advising remains. This study presents an examination and description of the function, purpose, and identity of a university advising system through comparisons…

Innovation and the Future of e-Books. Reprints

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Warren, John

2009-01-01

The technological development and cultural acceptance of e-books today parallels the state of the printed book in the 15th century. E-books are increasingly available from a variety of distributors and retailers, and work on a myriad of devices, but the majority remain simply digitized versions of print books. Some devices or platforms include…

Learning to Make Sense: What Works in Entrepreneurial Education?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Higgins, David; Elliott, Chris

2011-01-01

Purpose: The paper aims to explore the changing influences and relevance of passive and experiential methods of learning within what can be described as a new era of entrepreneurial education. What still largely remains unaddressed in the literature is how are entrepreneur's best educated and developed in a manner which can have a direct impact on…

Skills Development for a Diverse Older Workforce

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ferrier, Fran; Burke, Gerald; Selby Smith, Chris

2008-01-01

In the context of aging populations, governments in Australia and in other Western nations fear that slower growth in the numbers of people of working age (15-64 years) will have a dampening effect on economic growth. They are thus considering how to encourage older workers to remain in the workforce beyond the point at which many currently…

Working for Quality Child Care: Good Child Care Jobs Equals Good Care for Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bellm, Dan; Haack, Peggy

Although child caregivers make a major contribution to children's development and to the health and well-being of their communities, they remain underpaid and undervalued. Written for entry-level and experienced child care teachers and providers, this book presents information on the child care occupation and includes tools to help teachers and…

The Crucible: Adding Complexity to the Question of Social Justice in Early Childhood Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mevawalla, Zinnia

2013-01-01

As an ideology, the concept of social justice has long been a worthy, if slightly volatile, companion of early childhood theorists and researchers. Whilst the majority of the literature has valorised social justice, discontented questions regarding "what" the construct entails and "how" it might be tamed to work still remain.…

Success for All[R]. What Works Clearinghouse Intervention Report

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

What Works Clearinghouse, 2007

2007-01-01

"Success for All" ("SFA")[R] is a comprehensive school reform model that includes a reading, writing, and oral language development program for students in pre-kindergarten through grade eight. Its underlying premise is that all children can and should be reading at grade level by the end of third grade and then remain at grade…

Cross-Domain Information Exchange Framework (CIEF): Road Map to Web 2.0

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-06-22

open to debate, and some technology experts, notably Tim Berners - Lee , have questioned whether the term has meaning. developerWorks Interviews So the...better the more people use them." Tim O’Reilly (2006-12-10). Web 2.0 Compact Definition: Trying Again Problem: Its (Web 2.0) exact meaning remains

'I'm a bad mum': pregnant presenteeism and poor health at work.

PubMed

Gatrell, Caroline Jane

2011-02-01

This paper contributes to research on women's health by challenging the 'common belief' that pregnant employees are prone to take sick leave. Conversely, it shows how some pregnant employees are so determined to appear 'well' that they remain at work when they are ill. The paper coins the phrase 'pregnant presenteeism' to describe pregnant employees who resist taking sick leave. The paper first acknowledges previous studies which show how employers associate pregnancy with incompetence and sickness absence. It then examines why (in contrast to employers' assumptions), some pregnant employees remain at work when they are ill. It does this through a qualitative study of 15 employed mothers in the UK, each of whom was working in a managerial/professional role at the time of her interview. Of these 15 women, three remained at work during pregnancy despite serious health problems. In order to understand the experiences of these 'pregnant presentees', the paper draws upon Annandale and Clark's (1996) concept of a 'binary opposition' which articulates the tendency within medicine to polarize women's and men's health as if at opposite ends of a scale, with women's health classified as 'poor' and men's health as 'good'. The paper argues that the conceptual principles of 'binary opposition' spill over into workplace contexts especially in relation to pregnancy. It then proposes that some employed pregnant women deny their own ill health due to fear of being identified with the female, 'poor health' end of the binary opposition scale. It articulates such denial as a potentially serious health issue for pregnant workers. The paper develops new and more explicit links between 'socio-cultural' feminist studies on the employed maternal body, and health research. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index: An updated review and recommendations for use.

PubMed

Swiger, Pauline A; Patrician, Patricia A; Miltner, Rebecca S Susie; Raju, Dheeraj; Breckenridge-Sproat, Sara; Loan, Lori A

2017-09-01

The Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index (PES-NWI) is an instrument, which measures the nursing practice environment - defined as factors that enhance or attenuate a nurse's ability to practice nursing skillfully and deliver high quality care. The purpose of this paper is to provide an updated review of the Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index's use to date and provide recommendations that may be helpful to nursing leaders and researchers who plan to use this instrument. A narrative review of quantitative studies. PubMed, EMBASE, and the Cumulative Index to Nursing & Allied Health Literature were searched to identify relevant literature using the search terms, Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index and PES-NWI. Studies were included if they were published in English between 2010 and 2016 and focused on the relationship between the Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index and patient, nurse, or organizational outcomes. Data extraction focused on the reported survey scores and the significance and strength of the reported associations. Forty-six articles, from 28 countries, were included in this review. The majority reported significant findings between the nursing practice environment and outcomes. Although some modifications have been made, the instrument has remained primarily unchanged since its development. Most often, the scores regarding staffing and resource adequacy remained the lowest. The frequency of use of this instrument has remained high. Many researchers advocate for a move beyond the study of the connection between the Practice Environment Scale and nurse, patient, and organizational outcomes. Research should shift toward identifying interventions that improve the environment in which nurses practice and determining if changing the environment results in improved care quality. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Code Modernization of VPIC

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bird, Robert; Nystrom, David; Albright, Brian

2017-10-01

The ability of scientific simulations to effectively deliver performant computation is increasingly being challenged by successive generations of high-performance computing architectures. Code development to support efficient computation on these modern architectures is both expensive, and highly complex; if it is approached without due care, it may also not be directly transferable between subsequent hardware generations. Previous works have discussed techniques to support the process of adapting a legacy code for modern hardware generations, but despite the breakthroughs in the areas of mini-app development, portable-performance, and cache oblivious algorithms the problem still remains largely unsolved. In this work we demonstrate how a focus on platform agnostic modern code-development can be applied to Particle-in-Cell (PIC) simulations to facilitate effective scientific delivery. This work builds directly on our previous work optimizing VPIC, in which we replaced intrinsic based vectorisation with compile generated auto-vectorization to improve the performance and portability of VPIC. In this work we present the use of a specialized SIMD queue for processing some particle operations, and also preview a GPU capable OpenMP variant of VPIC. Finally we include a lessons learnt. Work performed under the auspices of the U.S. Dept. of Energy by the Los Alamos National Security, LLC Los Alamos National Laboratory under contract DE-AC52-06NA25396 and supported by the LANL LDRD program.

An Update on the VAMOS Extremes Working Group Activities

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schubert, Siegfried; Cavalcanti, Iracema

2011-01-01

We review here the progress of the Variability of the American MOnsoon Systems (VAMOS) extremes working group since it was formed in February of 2010. The goals of the working group are to 1) develop an atlas of warm-season extremes over the Americas, 2) evaluate existing and planned simulations, and 3) suggest new model runs to address mechanisms and predictability of extremes. Substantial progress has been made in the development of an extremes atlas based on gridded observations and several reanalysis products including Modern Era Retrospective-Analysis for Research and Applications (MERRA) and Climate Forecast System Reanalysis (CFSR). The status of the atlas, remaining issues and plans for its expansion to include model data will be discussed. This includes the possibility of adding a companion atlas based on station observations based on the software developed under the World Climate Research Programme (WCRP) Expert Team on Climate Change. Detection and Indices (ETCCDI) activity. We will also review progress on relevant research and plans for the use and validation of the atlas results.

The international phosphate resource data base; development and maintenance

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bridges, Nancy J.

1983-01-01

The IPRDB (International Phosphate Resource Data Base) was developed to provide a single computerized source of geologic information about phosphate deposits worldwide. It is expected that this data base will encourage more thorough scientific analyses of phosphate deposits and assessments of undiscovered phosphate resources, and that methods of data collection and storage will be streamlined. Because the database was intended to serve as a repository for diverse and detailed data, a large amount of the early research effort was devoted to the design and development of the system. To date (1982), the file remains incomplete. All development work and file maintenance work on IPRDB was suspended as of October 1, 1982; this paper is intended to document the steps taken up to that date. The computer programs listed in the appendices were written specifically for the IPRDB phosbib file and are of limited future use.

AIM - Agile Instrumented Monitoring for Improving User Experience of Participation in HealthIT Development.

PubMed

Pitkänen, Janne; Nieminen, Marko

2017-01-01

Participation of healthcare professionals in information technology development has emerged as an important challenge. As end-users, the professionals are willing to participate in the development activities, but their experiences on the current methods of participation remain mostly negative. There is lack of applicable methods for meeting the needs of agile development approach and scaling up to the largest implementation projects, while maintaining the interest of the professional users to participate in development activities and keeping up their ability to continue working in a productive manner. In this paper, we describe the Agile Instrumented Monitoring as a methodology, based on the methods of instrumented usability evaluation, for improving user experience in HealthIT development. The contribution of the proposed methodology is analyzed in relation to activities of whole iteration cycle and chosen usability evaluation methods, while the user experience of participation is addressed regarding healthcare professionals. Prospective weak and strong market tests for AIM are discussed in the conclusions for future work.

How executive functions are related to intelligence in Williams syndrome.

PubMed

Osório, Ana; Cruz, Raquel; Sampaio, Adriana; Garayzábal, Elena; Martínez-Regueiro, Rocío; Gonçalves, Óscar F; Carracedo, Ángel; Fernández-Prieto, Montse

2012-01-01

Williams syndrome is characterized by impairments in executive functions (EFs). However, it remains unknown how distinct types of EFs relate to intelligence in this syndrome. The present study analyzed performance on working memory, inhibiting and shifting, and its links to IQ in a sample of 17 individuals with WS, and compared them with a group of 17 typically developing individuals matched on chronological age and gender. In conclusion, our results suggest that working memory, inhibiting, and shifting relate differently to intelligence in WS as well as in typical development, with working memory being the EF most closely related to intelligence in both groups. Notably, the magnitude of the associations between the three EFs and IQ was substantially higher in the WS group than in the TD group, bringing further confirmation to the notion that frontal lobe impairments may produce a general compromise of several EFs. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[Application of multiple-attribute utility technology (MAUT) to decisions about a work-site stress-control intervention for public-sector office workers].

PubMed

Hagihara, Akihito; Tarumi, Kimio

2013-01-01

The reasons behind the establishment of particular health-promotion programs in community or work settings are often unclear, and such programs are rarely evaluated from a broad perspective after they are implemented. Thus, multiattribute utility technology (MAUT) was used to design a work-site stress-control program. The sample consisted of public-sector workers in B City in Japan. Stakeholders in the work-site stress-control program included employers (municipal authorities), employees (public workers), and healthcare personnel. Six goals and three strategies (i.e., personnel, self-care, and staff) related to stress-control programs were considered. The results showed that the self-care strategy received the highest score for overall utility (i.e., 96.2), and the overall-utility score for the remaining two strategies was approximately 70. The self-care strategy emerged as the most useful of the three strategies for developing a stress-control program in a target work place. The application of MAUT may be useful for developing an effective stress-control program in occupational settings.

Computer ergonomics: the medical practice guide to developing good computer habits.

PubMed

Hills, Laura

2011-01-01

Medical practice employees are likely to use computers for at least some of their work. Some sit several hours each day at computer workstations. Therefore, it is important that members of your medical practice team develop good computer work habits and that they know how to align equipment, furniture, and their bodies to prevent strain, stress, and computer-related injuries. This article delves into the field of computer ergonomics-the design of computer workstations and work habits to reduce user fatigue, discomfort, and injury. It describes practical strategies medical practice employees can use to improve their computer work habits. Specifically, this article describes the proper use of the computer workstation chair, the ideal placement of the computer monitor and keyboard, and the best lighting for computer work areas and tasks. Moreover, this article includes computer ergonomic guidelines especially for bifocal and progressive lens wearers and offers 10 tips for proper mousing. Ergonomically correct posture, movements, positioning, and equipment are all described in detail to enable the frequent computer user in your medical practice to remain healthy, pain-free, and productive.

Developing the JPL Engineering Processes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Linick, Dave; Briggs, Clark

2004-01-01

This paper briefly recounts the recent history of process reengineering at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, with a focus on the engineering processes. The JPL process structure is described and the process development activities of the past several years outlined. The main focus of the paper is on the current process structure, the emphasis on the flight project life cycle, the governance approach that lead to Flight Project Practices, and the remaining effort to capture process knowledge at the detail level of the work group.

Implementation Process of 5S for a Company in Real Life - Problems, Solutions, Successes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Czifra, György

2017-09-01

Developed in Japan, 5S is a system of organizing workplace for efficiency, effectiveness and safety. Is 5s important? The answer is: "YES", because the implementation is about empowering employees to control their work area and create an environment where they want to work every day. It is a program that only works with grass roots level engagement. With commitment to safety, we are equally committed to 5S to ensure a safe place to work. It enabled us to indicate where waste was occurring and thus improve the work area sustainably. We recognized real problems, found solutions and ultimately we were successful in our endeavors. Throughout different companies, various words of similar meaning are used. No matter what specific words are used to identify the steps in 5S, the purpose remains the same: create a clean, organized and efficient work environment.

Determinants of Workplace Injuries and Violence Among Newly Licensed RNs.

PubMed

Unruh, Lynn; Asi, Yara

2018-06-01

Workplace injuries, such as musculoskeletal injuries, needlestick injuries, and emotional and physical violence, remain an issue in U.S. hospitals. To develop meaningful safety programs, it is important to identify workplace factors that contribute to injuries. This study explored factors that affect injuries in a sample of newly licensed registered nurses (NLRNs) in Florida. Regressions were run on models in which the dependent variable was the degree to which the respondent had experienced needlesticks, work-related musculoskeletal injuries, cuts or lacerations, contusions, verbal violence, physical violence, and other occupational injuries. A higher probability of these injuries was associated with greater length of employment, working evening or night shifts, working overtime, and reporting job difficulties and pressures. A lower probability was associated with working in a teaching hospital and working more hours. Study findings suggest that work environment issues must be addressed for safety programs to be effective.

Doing the same and earning less: male and female physicians in a new medical specialty.

PubMed

Hoff, Timothy J

2004-01-01

This study presents findings from a national survey of physicians working in the emerging career of hospital medicine. It finds that female hospitalists earn significantly less annually than male hospitalists, despite similar work schedules and commitments; that these similarities in work and differences in pay remain even for male and female hospitalists who are married and have children; and that female hospitalists maintain positive feelings toward their work careers despite assuming multiple work and nonwork roles simultaneously. The results present a unique picture of female physicians' career experiences in toto. They have implications for how health care organizations and managers should think about the contemporary female physician (e.g., her career development needs and workplace challenges);for female physicians' need to gain greater equity vis-à-vis men within the profession; and for the kinds of questions researchers should raise around physician gender in their work.

Work-based learning: making a difference in practice.

PubMed

Chapman, Linda; Howkins, Elizabeth

Nurses play an increasingly crucial role in ensuring that patients receive the best possible care, and strive to lead innovations in health care. Changing practice is not easy and many nurses do not have the leadership skills or confidence to push for change. Therefore, they need to know that they are supported and encouraged to bring about change in nursing practice. Primary care trusts in the west of Berkshire and a university based in Reading have worked together to respond to this challenge by developing and implementing a flexible, accredited, work-based educational programme. The programme ensures that patients remain at the heart of learning by enabling nurses to lead and influence practice.

Utah's 1988-93 Vocational-Technical Education Master Plan: A Powerful Resource for Human and Economic Development.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Utah State Board of Higher Education, Salt Lake City.

For Utah residents to remain in the forefront or even stay competitive economically, the state's work force must acquire the knowledge and skills that match or exceed those of their most technically advanced competitors. A powerful engine for economic growth is a high-quality system of vocational-technical education. The majority of Utah public…

"Nothing Works!" A Case Study Using Cognitive-Behavioral Interventions to Engage Parents, Educators, and Children in the Management of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Levine, Eva S.; Anshel, Daphne J.

2011-01-01

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) remains one of the most prevalent mental health diagnoses identified in school-age children. Affected children show an increased risk for school failure, social difficulties, and the development of psychiatric comorbidities. Despite the availability of evidence-based behavioral protocols for managing…

Toward a Science of Creativity: Considerable Progress but Much Work to Be Done

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Plucker, Jonathan A.

2017-01-01

The past 50 years have seen a tremendous strengthening of the field of creativity studies. Developments over the past couple decades, in particular, have led to a burgeoning science of creativity. But major methodological and substantive issues remain and must be addressed in order for the science of creativity to reach its potential to improve…

NDEO Works: From NDEO Goals to NDEO Priorities for Dance Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McGreevy-Nichols, Susan; Gingrasso, Susan

2017-01-01

From its inception in 1998, the National Dance Education Organization (NDEO) Board used ever-evolving versions of an Applied Strategic Plan (ASP). Each ASP consisted of goals and related objectives to develop and grow the organization. While the wording and order changed as NDEO grew, the essential nature of the goals remained the same. From 2011…

The Role of Curriculum in Fostering National Cohesion and Integration: Opportunities and Challenges. IBE Working Papers on Curriculum Issues No. 11

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Njeng'ere, David

2014-01-01

Curriculum planning emphasizes that education should serve to enable society to achieve its needs and aspirations. One such need in Kenya, which has remained largely elusive, is national cohesion and integration. Research has revealed that education contributes to the development of social capital by increasing individual propensity to trust and…

Leadership Strategies for Community College Effectiveness: Outcomes of the North Carolina Community College Presidents' Leadership Institute. A Technical Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Campbell, Dale F.; And Others

Developed as a result of the North Carolina Community College President's Leadership Institute, this volume discusses the successful use of selected adaptive strategies to enhance community college effectiveness. Following information on the Institute and an overview of the volume, most of the remaining chapters review the work of prominent…

The UCSF AIDS Health Project Guide to Counseling: Perspectives on Psychotherapy, Prevention, and Therapeutic Practice.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dilley, James W., Ed.; Marks, Robert, Ed.

The University of California San Francisco AIDS Health Project has more than 15 years' experience in working with thousands of people with AIDS. This guide, developed by the Project, provides practical, state-of-the-art resources in the field. Part 1, "Risk and Behavior: Helping Clients Remain Uninfected," covers the following topics:…

The Meta-Aggregative Approach to Qualitative Evidence Synthesis: A Worked Example on Experiences of Pupils with Special Educational Needs in Inclusive Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hannes, Karin; Petry, Katja; Heyvaert, Mieke

2018-01-01

The present article focuses on the meta-aggregative approach to qualitative evidence synthesis. Originally developed in Australia by the Joanna Briggs Institute, it mirrors the review process for reviews of effectiveness outlined by the international Cochrane and Campbell Collaboration, while remaining sensitive to the specific characteristics of…

Spiraling through the Glass Ceiling: Seven Critical Lessons for Negotiating a Leadership Position in Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Crutcher, Ronald A.

2006-01-01

In this article, the author discusses seven critical lessons for navigating a leadership position in higher education. The author focuses on developing a personal means of remaining centered regardless of circumstances or situations as well as building an ethical foundation for one's work. He uses spiraling as a metaphor to describe his own…

Agricultural biotechnology. Monsanto donates its share of golden rice.

PubMed

Normile, D

2000-08-11

Monsanto Co. has agreed to provide royalty-free licenses to speed up work on a genetically modified rice that could alleviate vitamin A deficiency around the world. Researchers welcomed last week's announcement, but warn that a thicket of intellectual property claims surrounds the technology and that significant legal hurdles remain before the rice can become widely available to farmers in developing countries.

Improving Usage Statistics Processing for a Library Consortium: The Virtual Library of Virginia's Experience

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Matthews, Tansy E.

2009-01-01

This article describes the development of the Virtual Library of Virginia (VIVA). The VIVA statistics-processing system remains a work in progress. Member libraries will benefit from the ability to obtain the actual data from the VIVA site, rather than just the summaries, so a project to make these data available is currently being planned. The…

X-33 Development History

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Butrica, Andrew J.

1997-01-01

The problem of dealing with various types of proprietary documents, whether from the Lockheed Martin, the Skunk Works, McDonnell Douglas, Rockwell, and other corporations extant or extinct, remains unresolved. The computerized archive finding aid has over 100 records at present. These records consist of X-33 photographs, press releases, media clippings, and the small number of X-33 project records collected to date.

Different Executive Functions Support Different Kinds of Cognitive Flexibility: Evidence from 2-, 3-, and 4-Year-Olds

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blakey, Emma; Visser, Ingmar; Carroll, Daniel J.

2016-01-01

Improvements in cognitive flexibility during the preschool years have been linked to developments in both working memory and inhibitory control, though the precise contribution of each remains unclear. In the current study, one hundred and twenty 2-, 3-, and 4-year-olds completed two rule-switching tasks. In one version, children switched rules in…

Illustrating Relevance, Questioning Norms, and Creating Space: Three Steps for Teaching Critical Perspectives in the HRD Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Collins, Joshua C.

2013-01-01

Scholarly dialogue in HRD (Human Resource Development) has become gradually more accepting of essential conversations regarding equity and social justice in research. However, much work remains in bridging the gaps between this scholarship and the practice of HRD. One way to create change is through teaching, as the ways in which we choose to…

Building a local medical workforce in Tasmania: where are international fee-paying medical graduates likely to work?

PubMed

Cheek, Colleen; Hays, Richard; Allen, Penny; Walker, Gary; Shires, Lizzi

2017-01-01

Much of regional Australia continues to face challenges in recruitment and retention of medical practitioners, despite the apparently successful rural medical education initiatives funded by the Commonwealth Government. International fee-paying (IFP) medical students are a significant component of Australian medical education, contributing additional income and more diverse learning environments for universities. Their contribution to the Australian medical workforce is harder to determine. After obtaining registration, IFP graduates may apply to remain in Australia as skilled migrants. Since 1999 there has been a 325% increase in the number of international medical students in Australia, with approximately 73% of IFP graduates remaining in Australia for at least some postgraduate training. Recognising the potential contribution of IFP students to the Tasmanian medical workforce, the authors sought better understanding of the career intentions and work locations of IFP graduates from the medical program in Tasmania, Australia, through two studies. Firstly, a quantitative study was conducted of the locations of all IFP graduates from the Tasmanian medical program, and then a qualitative study exploring graduating students' intentions and factors that contribute to their decisions about work location choices. This was a cohort study of IFP students who graduated from the University of Tasmania School of Medicine over the period 2000-2015. Work locations for 2016 were mapped to a Modified Monash rurality classification. Semi-structured interviews were held with 15 final year IFP medical students, exploring career intentions and location preferences. There were 261 IFP graduates, 54.4% male. The most common country of origin was Malaysia (55.2%). In 2016, 189 (72.4 %) were working in Australia, 42 (16.1%) in Tasmania and 126 (66.7%) in areas categorised as Modified Monash 1. Recent graduates in postgraduate year 1/2 (71.3%) were more likely to be working in Tasmania but most left for specialty training. All 15 interview participants intended to remain in Australia for at least their intern year, although at enrolment only six had planned to remain. Factors influencing workplace location decisions were (1) 'professional': greater appeal of Australian medical workplaces, intention to pursue a speciality, and to complete this at an Australian metropolitan hospital; (2) 'social': proximity to family/partner or opportunity to meet a prospective partner, family obligations, positive rural experiences; and (3) 'location': direct travel access to family. IFP graduates from the Tasmanian medical program make an important contribution to the Australian mainland metropolitan medical workforce, but play only a small role in workforce development for both Tasmania and the broader Australian rural and remote context. Most IFPs do not choose to work rurally. Rurally focused medical programs need to consider how they place IFP students to meet both the learning and career needs of IFP students and the goal of the rural medical programs in developing a rural workforce.

Opioid analgesics and P-glycoprotein efflux transporters: a potential systems-level contribution to analgesic tolerance.

PubMed

Mercer, Susan L; Coop, Andrew

2011-01-01

Chronic clinical pain remains poorly treated. Despite attempts to develop novel analgesic agents, opioids remain the standard analgesics of choice in the clinical management of chronic and severe pain. However, mu opioid analgesics have undesired side effects including, but not limited to, respiratory depression, physical dependence and tolerance. A growing body of evidence suggests that P-glycoprotein (P-gp), an efflux transporter, may contribute a systems-level approach to the development of opioid tolerance. Herein, we describe current in vitro and in vivo methodology available to analyze interactions between opioids and P-gp and critically analyze P-gp data associated with six commonly used mu opioids to include morphine, methadone, loperamide, meperidine, oxycodone, and fentanyl. Recent studies focused on the development of opioids lacking P-gp substrate activity are explored, concentrating on structure-activity relationships to develop an optimal opioid analgesic lacking this systems-level contribution to tolerance development. Continued work in this area will potentially allow for delineation of the mechanism responsible for opioid-related P-gp up-regulation and provide further support for evidence based medicine supporting clinical opioid rotation.

Indicators of healthy work environments--a systematic review.

PubMed

Lindberg, Per; Vingård, Eva

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to systematically review the scientific literature and search for indicators of healthy work environments. A number of major national and international databases for scientific publication were searched for research addressing indicators of healthy work environments. Altogether 19,768 publications were found. After excluding duplicates, non-relevant publications, or publications that did not comply with the inclusion criteria 24 peer-reviewed publications remained to be included in this systematic review. Only one study explicitly addressing indicators of healthy work environments was found. That study suggested that the presence of stress management programs in an organization might serve as indicator of a 'good place to work', as these organizations were more likely to offer programs that encouraged employee well-being, safety and skill development than those without stress management programs. The other 23 studies either investigated employee's views of what constitute a healthy workplace or were guidelines for how to create such a workplace. Summarizing, the nine most pronounced factors considered as important for a healthy workplace that emerged from these studies were, in descending order: collaboration/teamwork: growth and development of the individual; recognition; employee involvement; positive, accessible and fair leader; autonomy and empowerment; appropriate staffing; skilled communication; and safe physical work.

A South-East Asian perspective.

PubMed

Koh, D; Chia, S E; Jeyaratnam, J

2000-01-01

In order to discuss the subject of occupational medicine in the next century, changes in the present demographic profile and work activity must be considered first. Only then can the challenges be identified, and appropriate strategies be formulated to respond to them. In the diverse countries of South-East Asia, improved health and work conditions, the advent of new technology, a redistribution of work activity, and an ageing workforce can be expected. Two other factors that have specific impact in the region are the recent financial crisis and the occurrence of an international environmental haze from forest fires. The various countries in South-East Asia, which are in different stages of development, and have different problems and priorities, will respond differently to the demands for occupational health. It is likely that there will be a shift in the focus of current health care activities towards specific work sectors, the recognition of new hazards at work, the identification of newly emerging work related diseases, and an increase in health promotion in the workplace. Hopefully, there will be improved training of health professionals to ensure that there are adequate numbers and that they are well prepared to face these changes. Responsive, appropriate and well enforced labour legislation to protect the health of all workers, and international cooperation in occupational and environmental health are also required. As global and regional economic conditions continue to remain unstable and the impact of the crisis further takes its course, the final effect on occupational health in South-East Asia remains to be seen.

School Locale and Teachers' Perceptions of School Leadership as a Working Condition

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blackwell, Dara Hayes

2015-01-01

To improve teacher retention, many scholars have set out to identify which teacher working conditions influence teachers' decisions to remain in the profession or stay in a particular school or district. School leadership has been identified as one of the most important working conditions affecting teachers' decisions to remain in a school.…

A Desire for Love: Considerations on Sexuality and Sexual Education of People With Intellectual Disability in Poland.

PubMed

Kijak, Remigiusz J

2011-03-01

This article is intended to attract public attention to the fact that people with intellectual disability, despite their delayed sexual development, still remain sexual beings, which is connected with many individual and social consequences. The empirical data collected in this work provides knowledge about biological and psychological conditioning of sexual development of individuals with intellectual disability. However, the problem of sexuality for this population should be further analyzed. One should also think about the possibility of supporting the psychological and sexual development of people with more severe intellectual disability.

[Hypothyroidism during pregnancy risks the child's neurocognitive development. New guidelines and remaining knowledge gaps].

PubMed

Skalkidou, Alkistis; Bixo, Marie; Sköldebrand Sparre, Ann-Charlotte; Strandell, Annika; Lindén Hirschberg, Angelica; Filipsson Nyström, Helena

2016-02-05

Thyroid abnormalities are common during pregnancy and can affect pregnancy outcome. In 2012, the working group for endocrinology was assigned by SFOG to develop evidence based guidelines for their management. There is high quality evidence that untreated clinical hypothyroidism increases the risk of pregnancy and fetal complications. Subclinical hypothyroidism is associated with pregnancy complications. The presence of TPO-antibodies is linked to miscarriage and premature birth. It is uncertain whether subclinical hypothyroidism/maternal TPO-antibodies adversely affect the child's neurocognitive development. Reference intervals for TSH among pregnant women in Sweden need to be established.

Psychosocial work environment and retirement age: a prospective study of 1876 senior employees.

PubMed

Thorsen, Sannie Vester; Jensen, Per H; Bjørner, Jakob Bue

2016-08-01

Retention of senior employees is a challenge for most developed countries. We aimed to identify psychosocial work environment factors of importance for the retention of older employees by evaluating the association between the psychosocial work environment and voluntary early retirement in a longitudinal study. Data about work environment, health, and background factors came from the DANES 2008 questionnaire survey. We followed members of the Danish early retirement scheme for up to 4 years in national registers-focusing on the age range, 60-64 years, where early retirement was possible. We used Cox proportional hazard regression to analyze the rate of early retirement. The study included 16 psychosocial work environment factors. The following 10 psychosocial factors were significant predictors of early retirement in covariate adjusted analyses: Low job satisfaction, low influence in job, low possibilities for development, low role clarity, perceived age discrimination, low recognition from management, low workplace justice, poor trust in management, poor leadership quality, and poor predictability. No significant association with early retirement was found for work pace, quantitative demands, emotional demands, role conflicts, social community between colleagues, and trust between colleagues. Older employees with high job satisfaction, influence, possibilities for development, positive management relations, and jobs with no age discrimination remained longer at the labor market. However, we found no evidence that low demands or good relations between colleagues could influence older employees' decision on early retirement.

Systematic Review of Prognostic Factors for Return to Work in Workers with Sub Acute and Chronic Low Back Pain.

PubMed

Steenstra, Ivan A; Munhall, Claire; Irvin, Emma; Oranye, Nelson; Passmore, Steven; Van Eerd, Dwayne; Mahood, Quenby; Hogg-Johnson, Sheilah

2017-09-01

Purpose We systematically reviewed the evidence on factors that predict duration of sick leave in workers after 6 weeks low back pain (LBP) related sick leave. We hypothesized that different factors affect the duration of the leave depending on the time away from work. Methods The review occurred in seven phases: (1) developing the central question, (2) conducting the literature search, (3) identifying relevant publications, (4) quality appraisal, (5) data extraction, (6) evidence synthesis, and (7) knowledge translation. We searched for studies that reported episodes of LBP and sick leave that lasted more than 6 weeks. All included studies reported at least one prognostic factor where return to work was the outcome. Results We identified twenty-two relevant publications. The impact of pain, functional status and radiating pain seems to change with duration of work disability. Workers' recovery expectations remain important after 6 weeks. Modified duties are rarely studied in later phases of work disability. Depression/mental health did not appear to be an important factor in later phases. Workplace physical factors remain important. There is insufficient evidence that pain catastrophising and fear avoidance are predictive factors in later phases. There was moderate evidence for age in the later phases. Functional capacity and claim related factors were supported by some evidence. Discusion Physical demands in the workplace are preventing workers from getting back to work in a timely fashion across phases. The psychosocial work environment is understudied in later phases. Overall, we cannot conclude that prognostic factors change over time.

Work, work environments and other factors influencing nurse faculty intention to remain employed: a cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Tourangeau, Ann; Saari, Margaret; Patterson, Erin; Ferron, Era Mae; Thomson, Heather; Widger, Kimberley; MacMillan, Kathleen

2014-06-01

Given the role nurse faculty have in educating nurses, little is known about what influences their intention to remain employed (ITR) in academic settings. Findings from a nurse faculty survey administered to test a conceptual model of factors hypothesized as influencing nurse faculty ITR are reported. A cross-sectional survey design was employed. We included colleges and universities in Ontario, Canada. The population of Ontario nurse faculty who reported being employed as nurse faculty with the College of Nurses of Ontario (Canada) was included. Of the 1328 nurse faculty who were surveyed, 650 participated. Participants completed a questionnaire with measures of work, work environment, job satisfaction, burnout and ITR. Regression analyses were conducted to test the model. Ten of 26 independent variables explained 25.4% of variance in nurse faculty ITR for five years. These variables included: proximity to retirement, quality of relationships with colleagues, being employed full time, having dependents, satisfaction with work-life balance, quality of education, satisfaction with job status, access to financial support for education from organization, access to required human resources and being unionized. Although not all influencing factors are modifiable, academic leadership should develop strategies that encourage nurse faculty ITR. Strategies that support collegial relationships among faculty, increase the number of full time positions, promote work-life balance, engage faculty in assessing and strengthening education quality, support faculty choice between full-time and part-time work, and ensure adequate human resources required to teach effectively will lead to heightened nurse faculty ITR. © 2013.

Polymer adhesion predictions for oral dosage forms to enhance drug administration safety. Part 3: Review of in vitro and in vivo methods used to predict esophageal adhesion and transit time.

PubMed

Drumond, Nélio; Stegemann, Sven

2018-05-01

The oral cavity is frequently used to administer pharmaceutical drug products. This route of administration is seen as the most accessible for the majority of patients and supports an independent therapy management. For current oral dosage forms under development, the prediction of their unintended mucoadhesive properties and esophageal transit profiles would contribute for future administration safety, as concerns regarding unintended adhesion of solid oral dosage forms (SODF) during oro-esophageal transit still remain. Different in vitro methods that access mucoadhesion of polymers and pharmaceutical preparations have been proposed over the years. The same methods might be used to test non-adhesive systems and contribute for developing safe-to-swallow technologies. Previous works have already investigated the suitability of non-animal derived in vitro methods to assess such properties. The aim of this work was to review the in vitro methodology available in the scientific literature that used animal esophageal tissue to evaluate mucoadhesion and esophageal transit of pharmaceutical preparations. Furthermore, in vivo methodology is also discussed. Since none of the in vitro methods developed are able to mimic the complex swallowing process and oro-esophageal transit, in vivo studies in humans remain as the gold standard. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Early but not late blindness leads to enhanced arithmetic and working memory abilities.

PubMed

Dormal, Valérie; Crollen, Virginie; Baumans, Christine; Lepore, Franco; Collignon, Olivier

2016-10-01

Behavioural and neurophysiological evidence suggest that vision plays an important role in the emergence and development of arithmetic abilities. However, how visual deprivation impacts on the development of arithmetic processing remains poorly understood. We compared the performances of early (EB), late blind (LB) and sighted control (SC) individuals during various arithmetic tasks involving addition, subtraction and multiplication of various complexities. We also assessed working memory (WM) performances to determine if they relate to a blind person's arithmetic capacities. Results showed that EB participants performed better than LB and SC in arithmetic tasks, especially in conditions in which verbal routines and WM abilities are needed. Moreover, EB participants also showed higher WM abilities. Together, our findings demonstrate that the absence of developmental vision does not prevent the development of refined arithmetic skills and can even trigger the refinement of these abilities in specific tasks. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Targeting Acceptance, Mindfulness, and Values-Based Action in Chronic Pain: Findings of Two Preliminary Trials of an Outpatient Group-Based Intervention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vowles, Kevin E.; Wetherell, Julie Loebach; Sorrell, John T.

2009-01-01

Cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) for chronic pain is effective, although a number of issues in need of clarification remain, including the processes by which CBT works, the role of cognitive changes in the achievement of outcomes, and the formulation of a coherent theoretical model. Recent developments in psychology have attempted to address these…

The Global Citizen as an Agent of Change: Ideals of the Global Citizen in the Narratives of Polish NGO Employees

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kuleta-Hulboj, Magdalena

2016-01-01

One of the main goals of global education is to develop students as global citizens working for social change, equality and justice. However, the notion of the global citizen remains a subject of debate because of its various theoretical and ideological underpinnings, as well as diverse meanings associated with it. Non-critical ways of…

Technology Transfer: Use of Federally Funded Research and Development

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-07-19

technology to the private sector and to state and local governments. Despite this, use of federal R&D results has remained restrained, although there has...been a significant increase in private sector interest and activities over the past several years. Critics argue that working with the agencies and...technology transfer, or if the responsibility to use the available resources now rests with the private sector .

Project Air Force Annual Report 2007

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-01-01

China has developed options that would make it a formidable adversary, particularly in a conflict over Taiwan , which the United States remains...he focused on China’s relationship with Taiwan . Since then, he has worked with other RAND analysts, such as David Orletsky, Evan Medeiros, Keith Crane...Hamilton, engineers Jeff Hagen and David Vaughan, Air Force Fellow Michelle Grace, behavioral scientist Larry Hanser, and information scientist Herb Shukiar

JPRS Report, China

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-07-07

a number of rehabilitated comrades went all-out to get an invitation card to attend the memorial service. Many old people went to Yaobang’s...residence to express their mourning for the deceased. At the memorial service, they wept bitterly before the remains of comrade Yaobang. Facing the...cul- ture is to cope with the development of commodity economy, to strengthen ideological and political work, to enchance the level of commercial

Animal models for microbicide studies.

PubMed

Veazey, Ronald S; Shattock, Robin J; Klasse, Per Johan; Moore, John P

2012-01-01

There have been encouraging recent successes in the development of safe and effective topical microbicides to prevent vaginal or rectal HIV-1 transmission, based on the use of anti-retroviral drugs. However, much work remains to be accomplished before a microbicide becomes a standard element of prevention science strategies. Animal models should continue to play an important role in pre-clinical testing, with emphasis on safety, pharmacokinetic and efficacy testing.

Current problems and working status of female anesthesiologists in Japan.

PubMed

Komori, Makiko; Nishiyama, Keiko; Ichikawa, Junko; Kodaka, Mitsuharu; Tomizawa, Yasuko

2014-05-01

The rapid growth of the elderly population and the progress in surgical techniques in Japan have led to increased numbers of patients who undergo surgery. Anesthetics are essential for surgery. A survey conducted by the Japanese Society of Anesthesiologists showed that, during the past 10 years, the proportion of females among all the members has increased from 27 to 35 %, and the proportion of female councilors has risen from 3.9 to 6.7 %. However, the conditions of full-time employment remain inadequate for female physicians. Therefore, many female physicians in their 30s or older do not work as anesthesiologists. To support female anesthesiologists and their vital roles in surgical diagnosis and treatment, return-to-work assistance programs have been developed. It is also necessary to improve the working conditions for female anesthesiologists to allow them to continue their work, and to provide education for young female physicians to enhance their professional pride.

The European Working Time Directive: effect on education and clinical care.

PubMed

Waurick, René; Weber, Thomas; Bröking, Katrin; Van Aken, Hugo

2007-12-01

In 2009 the European Working Time Directive limits the weekly working hours to an average of 48 in all European Union member states. The recent published effects on education and patient care are discussed. In European Union member states with traditional long working hours for hospital doctors the reduced working hours led to a decrease in trainee case loads. A negative effect on patients care is only suspected, but not yet measured. In particular, British anesthetists started a discussion about the required changes in training and assessment to counterbalance the lack of practice. European Surgical Disciplines demand for 48 h working time and 12 h teaching and education time per week for trainees. So far many member states have delayed the implementation of European laws in national laws. There are less measured clinical facts than political statements published. The actual working time directives in the European Union member states are inconsistent and further political development on this topic across the European Union remains unclear.

Genetic Algorithm Optimization of a Cost Competitive Hybrid Rocket Booster

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Story, George

2015-01-01

Performance, reliability and cost have always been drivers in the rocket business. Hybrid rockets have been late entries into the launch business due to substantial early development work on liquid rockets and solid rockets. Slowly the technology readiness level of hybrids has been increasing due to various large scale testing and flight tests of hybrid rockets. One remaining issue is the cost of hybrids versus the existing launch propulsion systems. This paper will review the known state-of-the-art hybrid development work to date and incorporate it into a genetic algorithm to optimize the configuration based on various parameters. A cost module will be incorporated to the code based on the weights of the components. The design will be optimized on meeting the performance requirements at the lowest cost.

International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation working formulation of a standardized nomenclature for cardiac allograft vasculopathy-2010.

PubMed

Mehra, Mandeep R; Crespo-Leiro, Maria G; Dipchand, Anne; Ensminger, Stephan M; Hiemann, Nicola E; Kobashigawa, Jon A; Madsen, Joren; Parameshwar, Jayan; Starling, Randall C; Uber, Patricia A

2010-07-01

The development of cardiac allograft vasculopathy remains the Achilles heel of cardiac transplantation. Unfortunately, the definitions of cardiac allograft vasculopathy are diverse, and there are no uniform international standards for the nomenclature of this entity. This consensus document, commissioned by the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation Board, is based on best evidence and clinical consensus derived from critical analysis of available information pertaining to angiography, intravascular ultrasound imaging, microvascular function, cardiac allograft histology, circulating immune markers, non-invasive imaging tests, and gene-based and protein-based biomarkers. This document represents a working formulation for an international nomenclature of cardiac allograft vasculopathy, similar to the development of the system for adjudication of cardiac allograft rejection by histology.

Genetic Algorithm Optimization of a Cost Competitive Hybrid Rocket Booster

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Story, George

2014-01-01

Performance, reliability and cost have always been drivers in the rocket business. Hybrid rockets have been late entries into the launch business due to substantial early development work on liquid rockets and later on solid rockets. Slowly the technology readiness level of hybrids has been increasing due to various large scale testing and flight tests of hybrid rockets. A remaining issue is the cost of hybrids vs the existing launch propulsion systems. This paper will review the known state of the art hybrid development work to date and incorporate it into a genetic algorithm to optimize the configuration based on various parameters. A cost module will be incorporated to the code based on the weights of the components. The design will be optimized on meeting the performance requirements at the lowest cost.

Dynamic Impact Testing and Model Development in Support of NASA's Advanced Composites Program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Melis, Matthew E.; Pereira, J. Michael; Goldberg, Robert; Rassaian, Mostafa

2018-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to provide an executive overview of the HEDI effort for NASA's Advanced Composites Program and establish the foundation for the remaining papers to follow in the 2018 SciTech special session NASA ACC High Energy Dynamic Impact. The paper summarizes the work done for the Advanced Composites Program to advance our understanding of the behavior of composite materials during high energy impact events and to advance the ability of analytical tools to provide predictive simulations. The experimental program carried out at GRC is summarized and a status on the current development state for MAT213 will be provided. Future work will be discussed as the HEDI effort transitions from fundamental analysis and testing to investigating sub-component structural concept response to impact events.

A Taxonomy of Fatigue Concepts and Their Relation to Hearing Loss

PubMed Central

Hornsby, Benjamin W.Y.; Naylor, Graham; Bess, Fred H.

2016-01-01

Fatigue is common in individuals with a variety of chronic health conditions and can have significant negative effects on quality of life. Although limited in scope, recent work suggests persons with hearing loss may be at increased risk for fatigue, in part due to effortful listening that is exacerbated by their hearing impairment. However, the mechanisms responsible for hearing loss-related fatigue, and the efficacy of audiologic interventions for reducing fatigue, remain unclear. To improve our understanding of hearing loss-related fatigue, as a field it is important to develop a common conceptual understanding of this construct. In this paper the broader fatigue literature is reviewed to identify and describe core constructs, consequences and methods for assessing fatigue and related constructs. Finally, our current knowledge linking hearing loss and fatigue is described and may be summarised as follows: Hearing impairment increases the risk of subjective fatigue and vigor deficits.Adults with hearing loss require more time to recover from fatigue after work, and have more work absences.Sustained, effortful, listening can be fatiguing.Optimal methods for eliciting and measuring fatigue in persons with hearing loss remain unclear and may vary with listening condition.Amplification may minimize decrements in cognitive processing speed during sustained effortful listening. Future research is needed to develop reliable measurement methods to quantify hearing loss-related fatigue; explore factors responsible for modulating fatigue in people with hearing loss; and identify and evaluate potential interventions for reducing hearing loss-related fatigue. PMID:27355763

Back to Hegel? On Gillian Rose's critique of sociological reason.

PubMed

Fuller, Brian W

2017-08-22

Thirty-five years ago, Gillian Rose articulated a significant critique of classical sociological reason, emphasizing its relationship to its philosophical forebears. In a series of works, but most significantly in her Hegel contra Sociology, Rose worked to specify the implications of sociology's failure, both in its critical Marxist and its 'scientific' forms, to move beyond Kant and to fully come to terms with the thought of Hegel. In this article, I unpack and explain the substance of her criticisms, developing the necessary Hegelian philosophical background on which she founded them. I argue that Rose's attempted recuperation of 'speculative reason' for social theory remains little understood, despite its continued relevance to contemporary debates concerning the nature and scope of sociological reason. As an illustration, I employ Rose to critique Chernilo's recent call for a more philosophically sophisticated sociology. From the vantage point of Rose, this particular account of a 'philosophical sociology' remains abstract and rooted in the neo-Kantian contradictions that continue to characterize sociology. © London School of Economics and Political Science 2017.

["Purified empiricism": Johann Christian Reil's (1759-1813) attempts at a foundation of medicine in relation to its tradition, kantianism, and speculative philosophy].

PubMed

Steinmann, Michael

2013-01-01

Johann Christian Reil's (1759-1813) importance lies in his theoretical approach to medicine. Following Kant in his early work, he attempts to combine medical experience with an underlying conceptual structure. This attempt is directed against both the chaotic empiricism of traditional medicine and speculative theories such as vitalism. The paper starts from his early reflections on the concept of a life force, which he interprets in the way of a non-reductive materialism. In the following, the basic outlines of his Theory of Fever will be shown. The Theory is a systematic attempt at finding a new foundation for diagnosis and therapy on the basis of the concept of fever, which is understood as modification of vital processes. The paper ends with a discussion of his later work, which has remained controversial so far. It shows that the combination of practical empiricism and scientific theory remained rather unstable in this early phase of the development of modern medicine.

Occupational Health Research in Developing Countries: A Partner for Social Justice

PubMed Central

Nuwayhid, Iman A.

2004-01-01

Occupational health remains neglected in developing countries because of competing social, economic, and political challenges. Occupational health research in developing countries should recognize the social and political context of work relations, especially the fact that the majority of developing countries lack the political mechanisms to translate scientific findings into effective policies. Researchers in the developing world can achieve tangible progress in promoting occupational health only if they end their professional isolation and examine occupational health in the broader context of social justice and national development in alliance with researchers from other disciplines. An occupational health research paradigm in developing countries should focus less on the workplace and more on the worker in his or her social context. PMID:15514227

Opioid Analgesics and P-glycoprotein Efflux Transporters: A Potential Systems-Level Contribution to Analgesic Tolerance

PubMed Central

Mercer, Susan L.; Coop, Andrew

2012-01-01

Chronic clinical pain remains poorly treated. Despite attempts to develop novel analgesic agents, opioids remain the standard analgesics of choice in the clinical management of chronic and severe pain. However, mu opioid analgesics have undesired side effects including, but not limited to, respiratory depression, physical dependence and tolerance. A growing body of evidence suggests that P-glycoprotein (P-gp), an efflux transporter, may contribute a systems-level approach to the development of opioid tolerance. Herein, we describe current in vitro and in vivo methodology available to analyze interactions between opioids and P-gp and critically analyze P-gp data associated with six commonly used mu opioids to include morphine, methadone, loperamide, meperidine, oxycodone, and fentanyl. Recent studies focused on the development of opioids lacking P-gp substrate activity are explored, concentrating on structure-activity relationship development to develop an optimal opioid analgesic lacking this systems-level contribution to tolerance development. Continued work in this area will potentially allow for delineation of the mechanism responsible for opioid-related P-gp up-regulation and provide further support for evidence based medicine supporting clinical opioid rotation. PMID:21050174

Generation-specific incentives and disincentives for nurse faculty to remain employed.

PubMed

Tourangeau, Ann E; Wong, Matthew; Saari, Margaret; Patterson, Erin

2015-05-01

The aims of this paper are to: (1) describe work characteristics that nurse faculty report encourage them to remain in or leave their academic positions; and (2) determine if there are generational differences in work characteristics selected. Nurse faculty play key roles in preparing new nurses and graduate nurses. However, educational institutions are challenged to maintain full employment in faculty positions. A cross-sectional, descriptive survey design was employed. Ontario nurse faculty were asked to select, from a list, work characteristics that entice them to remain in or leave their faculty positions. Respondent data (n = 650) were collected using mailed surveys over four months in 2011. While preferred work characteristics differed across generations, the most frequently selected incentives enticing nurse faculty to stay were having: a supportive director/dean, reasonable workloads, supportive colleagues, adequate resources, manageable class sizes and work/life balance. The most frequently selected disincentives included: unmanageable workloads, unsupportive organizations, poor work environments, exposure to bullying, belittling and other types of incivility in the workplace and having an unsupportive director/dean. This research yields new and important knowledge about work characteristics that nurse faculty report shape their decisions to remain in or leave their current employment. Certain work characteristics were rated as important among all generations. Where similarities exist, broad strategies addressing work characteristics may effectively promote nurse faculty retention. However, where generational differences exist, retention-promoting strategies should target generation-specific preferences. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

The Use of Logistic Model in RUL Assessment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gumiński, R.; Radkowski, S.

2017-12-01

The paper takes on the issue of assessment of remaining useful life (RUL). The goal of the paper was to develop a method, which would enable use of diagnostic information in the task of reducing the uncertainty related to technical risk. Prediction of the remaining useful life (RUL) of the system is a very important task for maintenance strategy. In the literature RUL of an engineering system is defined as the first future time instant in which thresholds of conditions (safety, operational quality, maintenance cost, etc) are violated. Knowledge of RUL offers the possibility of planning the testing and repair activities. Building models of damage development is important in this task. In the presented work, logistic function will be used to model fatigue crack development. It should be remembered that modeling of every phase of damage development is very difficult, yet modeling of every phase of damage separately, especially including on-line diagnostic information is more effective. Particular attention was paid to the possibility of forecasting the occurrence of damage due to fatigue while relying on the analysis of the structure of a vibroacoustic signal.

Diabetes Mellitus Following Renal Transplantation: Clinical and Pharmacological Considerations for the Elderly Patient.

PubMed

Langsford, David; Steinberg, Adam; Dwyer, Karen M

2017-08-01

Post-transplant diabetes mellitus occurs in 30-50% of cases during the first year post-renal transplantation. It is associated with increased morbidity, mortality and healthcare costs. Risk factors include age and specific immunosuppression regimens. At the same time, renal transplantation is increasingly indicated in elderly (aged >65 years) patients as this proportion of older patients in the prevalent dialysis population has increased. The immune system and β cells undergo senescence and this impacts on the risk for developing post-transplant diabetes and our ability to prevent such development. It may, however, be possible to identify patients at risk of developing post-transplant diabetes, enabling treatment protocols that prevent or reduce the impact of post-transplant diabetes. Much work remains to be completed in this area and is facilitated by the growing base of knowledge regarding the pathophysiology of post-transplant diabetes. Should post-transplant diabetes develop, there are a range of treatment options available. There is increasing interest in using newer agents, although their safety and efficacy in transplant recipients remains to be conclusively established.

Oxide nanomaterials: synthetic developments, mechanistic studies, and technological innovations.

PubMed

Patzke, Greta R; Zhou, Ying; Kontic, Roman; Conrad, Franziska

2011-01-24

Oxide nanomaterials are indispensable for nanotechnological innovations, because they combine an infinite variety of structural motifs and properties with manifold morphological features. Given that new oxide materials are almost reported on a daily basis, considerable synthetic and technological work remains to be done to fully exploit this ever increasing family of compounds for innovative nano-applications. This calls for reliable and scalable preparative approaches to oxide nanomaterials and their development remains a challenge for many complex nanostructured oxides. Oxide nanomaterials with special physicochemical features and unusual morphologies are still difficult to access by classic synthetic pathways. The limitless options for creating nano-oxide building blocks open up new technological perspectives with the potential to revolutionize areas ranging from data processing to biocatalysis. Oxide nanotechnology of the 21st century thus needs a strong interplay of preparative creativity, analytical skills, and new ideas for synergistic implementations. Copyright © 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Meristem identity and phyllotaxis in inflorescence development

PubMed Central

Bartlett, Madelaine E.; Thompson, Beth

2014-01-01

Inflorescence morphology is incredibly diverse. This diversity of form has been a fruitful source of inquiry for plant morphologists for more than a century. Work in the grasses (Poaceae), the tomato family (Solanaceae), and Arabidopsis thaliana (Brassicaceae) has led to a richer understanding of the molecular genetics underlying this diversity. The character of individual meristems, a combination of the number (determinacy) and nature (identity) of the products a meristem produces, is key in the development of plant form. A framework that describes inflorescence development in terms of shifting meristem identities has emerged and garnered empirical support in a number of model systems. We discuss this framework and highlight one important aspect of meristem identity that is often considered in isolation, phyllotaxis. Phyllotaxis refers to the arrangement of lateral organs around a central axis. The development and evolution of phyllotaxis in the inflorescence remains underexplored, but recent work analyzing early inflorescence development in the grasses identified an evolutionary shift in primary branch phyllotaxis in the Pooideae. We discuss the evidence for an intimate connection between meristem identity and phyllotaxis in both the inflorescence and vegetative shoot, and touch on what is known about the establishment of phyllotactic patterns in the meristem. Localized auxin maxima are instrumental in determining the position of lateral primordia. Upstream factors that regulate the position of these maxima remain unclear, and how phyllotactic patterns change over the course of a plant's lifetime and evolutionary time, is largely unknown. A more complete understanding of the molecular underpinnings of phyllotaxis and architectural diversity in inflorescences will require capitalizing on the extensive resources available in existing genetic systems, and developing new model systems that more fully represent the diversity of plant morphology. PMID:25352850

Meristem identity and phyllotaxis in inflorescence development.

PubMed

Bartlett, Madelaine E; Thompson, Beth

2014-01-01

Inflorescence morphology is incredibly diverse. This diversity of form has been a fruitful source of inquiry for plant morphologists for more than a century. Work in the grasses (Poaceae), the tomato family (Solanaceae), and Arabidopsis thaliana (Brassicaceae) has led to a richer understanding of the molecular genetics underlying this diversity. The character of individual meristems, a combination of the number (determinacy) and nature (identity) of the products a meristem produces, is key in the development of plant form. A framework that describes inflorescence development in terms of shifting meristem identities has emerged and garnered empirical support in a number of model systems. We discuss this framework and highlight one important aspect of meristem identity that is often considered in isolation, phyllotaxis. Phyllotaxis refers to the arrangement of lateral organs around a central axis. The development and evolution of phyllotaxis in the inflorescence remains underexplored, but recent work analyzing early inflorescence development in the grasses identified an evolutionary shift in primary branch phyllotaxis in the Pooideae. We discuss the evidence for an intimate connection between meristem identity and phyllotaxis in both the inflorescence and vegetative shoot, and touch on what is known about the establishment of phyllotactic patterns in the meristem. Localized auxin maxima are instrumental in determining the position of lateral primordia. Upstream factors that regulate the position of these maxima remain unclear, and how phyllotactic patterns change over the course of a plant's lifetime and evolutionary time, is largely unknown. A more complete understanding of the molecular underpinnings of phyllotaxis and architectural diversity in inflorescences will require capitalizing on the extensive resources available in existing genetic systems, and developing new model systems that more fully represent the diversity of plant morphology.

Increasing the reliability of labor of railroad engineers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Genes, V. S.; Madiyevskiy, Y. M.

1975-01-01

It has been shown that the group of problems related to temporary overloads still require serious development with respect to further automating the basic control operation - programmed selection of speed and braking. The problem of systems for warning the engineer about the condition of the unseen track segments remains a very serious one. Systems of hygenic support of the engineer also require constructive development. The problems of ensuring the reliability of work of engineers in periods of low information load, requiring motor acts, can basically be considered theoretically solved.

The work of the American emergency physician.

PubMed Central

Wyatt, J P; Weber, J E; Chudnofsky, C

1998-01-01

The organisation of the American emergency health care system has changed rapidly during recent years, but it remains very different to the system in the United Kingdom. American emergency departments are organised around an attending physician based service, rather than a consultant led service. As a result, the work of the American emergency physician differs considerably from that of the United Kingdom A&E consultant. The problems associated with working in an attending physician based service include antisocial hours of work, sleep deprivation, decreased job satisfaction, and "burn out," all in the context of a relatively hostile medicolegal climate. Although there appear to be no easy answers to some of these problems, the A&E specialist should be aware of the potential future difficulties for A&E medicine as it develops within the United Kingdom. PMID:9639179

The relative contributions of processing speed and cognitive load to working memory accuracy in multiple sclerosis.

PubMed

Leavitt, Victoria M; Lengenfelder, Jean; Moore, Nancy B; Chiaravalloti, Nancy D; DeLuca, John

2011-06-01

Cognitive symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS) include processing-speed deficits and working memory impairment. The precise manner in which these deficits interact in individuals with MS remains to be explicated. We hypothesized that providing more time on a complex working memory task would result in performance benefits for individuals with MS relative to healthy controls. Fifty-three individuals with clinically definite MS and 36 matched healthy controls performed a computerized task that systematically manipulated cognitive load. The interval between stimuli presentations was manipulated to provide increasing processing time. The results confirmed that individuals with MS who have processing-speed deficits significantly improve in performance accuracy when given additional time to process the information in working memory. Implications of these findings for developing appropriate cognitive rehabilitation interventions are discussed.

The 21st century faculty member in the educational process--what should be on the horizon?

PubMed

Nora, Lois Margaret

2010-09-01

One of Abraham Flexner's legacies was the concept of a professional faculty community responsible for teaching, scholarly work, and the creation and nurturing of the academic environment in medical schools. Dramatic shifts in society, health care, and educational practice have occurred over the century since Flexner's report, and these shifts have resulted in changes and challenges for medical school faculty. Fundamental principles that were articulated in Flexner's work remain relevant today: medicine is a profession, and as such is responsible for the education of the next generation of physicians; and the essential work of the medical school is the education of current and future generations of physicians. Medical schools must reconsider and restate the required characteristics and work of faculty members. Furthermore, we must develop a core faculty with primary responsibility for the educational program, the teaching of students, and the creation and nurturing of the academic environment. Enhancing the diversity of the faculty community, providing necessary faculty development, and further clarifying the forms of scholarly work in medicine are three ways that individual schools and national organizations can advance the educational mission through support of the faculty.

Deliberations on the dissemination of PORT products: translating research findings into improved patient outcomes.

PubMed

Goldberg, H I; Cummings, M A; Steinberg, E P; Ricci, E M; Shannon, T; Soumerai, S B; Mittman, B S; Eisenberg, J; Heck, D A; Kaplan, S

1994-07-01

This report outlines the activities undertaken by the Inter-PORT Dissemination work group during its first 2 years of operation. The work group's initial purpose was to assist the individual PORTs in developing their plans for both disseminating research findings and evaluating the effectiveness of these strategies. However, it became quickly apparent that in a discipline little more than a decade old, a commonly understood vocabulary had yet to be adopted. Even the term "dissemination" held different meaning for different constituencies. Consequently, the work group has tried to encourage the development of both a definitional framework and a set of common data elements of importance to all dissemination programs. The work group has analogously attempted to agree on minimum standards of methodologic rigor as a starting point for coordination of evaluations across PORTs. To help determine the potential for further coordination, a matrix of each individual PORT's target audiences, intervention strategies, and evaluation designs has been constructed. Much remains to be learned before we can know with any certainty how best to translate research findings into useful behavior change and improved patient outcomes. Our goal is that the efforts of the work group will serve to catalyze this process.

Development of electromagnetic welding facility of flat plates for nuclear industry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kumar, Rajesh; Sahoo, Subhanarayan; Sarkar, Biswanath; Shyam, Anurag

2017-04-01

Electromagnetic pulse welding (EMPW) process, one of high speed welding process uses electromagnetic force from discharged current through working coil, which develops a repulsive force between the induced current flowing parallel and in opposite direction. For achieving the successful weldment using this process the design of working coil is the most important factor due to high magnetic field on surface of work piece. In case of high quality flat plate welding factors such as impact velocity, angle of impact standoff distance, thickness of flyer and overlap length have to be chosen carefully. EMPW has wide applications in nuclear industry, automotive industry, aerospace, electrical industries. However formability and weldability still remain major issues. Due to ease in controlling the magnetic field enveloped inside tubes, the EMPW has been widely used for tube welding. In case of flat components control of magnetic field is difficult. Hence the application of EMPW gets restricted. The present work attempts to make a novel contribution by investigating the effect of process parameters on welding quality of flat plates. The work emphasizes the approaches and engineering calculations required to effectively use of actuator in EMPW of flat components.

Association between illness perceptions and return-to-work expectations in workers with common mental health symptoms.

PubMed

Løvvik, Camilla; Øverland, Simon; Hysing, Mari; Broadbent, Elizabeth; Reme, Silje E

2014-03-01

Mental health symptoms (MHSs) may affect people's work capacity and lead to sickness absence and disability. Expectations and perceptions of illness have been shown to influence return to work (RTW) across health conditions, but we know little about illness perceptions and RTW-expectations in MHSs. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between illness perceptions and RTW-expectations in a group struggling with work participation due to MHSs. Cross-sectional associations between illness perceptions and return to work expectations at baseline were analyzed for 1,193 participants who reported that MHSs affected their work participation. The study was part of a randomized controlled trial evaluating the effect of job focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) combined with supported employment (IPS). Participants were from a working age population with diverse job status. There was a strong and salient relationship between illness perceptions and RTW-expectations. When adjusting for demographic and clinical variables, the components consequences, personal control, identity and illness concern remained significantly associated with uncertain and negative RTW-expectations. Less illness understanding remained significantly associated with uncertain RTW-expectations, while timeline and emotional representations remained significantly associated with negative RTW-expectations. In the fully adjusted model only the consequences component (believing that illness has more severe consequences) remained significantly associated with RTW-expectations. Openly asked, participants reported work, personal relationships and stress as main causes of their illness. In people with MHSs who struggle with work participation, perceptions and beliefs about their problems are strongly associated with their expectations to return to work.

The management of advanced practitioner preparation: a work-based challenge.

PubMed

Livesley, Joan; Waters, Karen; Tarbuck, Paul

2009-07-01

This paper explores the collaborative development of a Master's level advanced practice programme in the context of the radical reform and remodelling of the UK's National Health Service. Some of the educational, managerial and practice challenges are discussed. Changes to education and training in response to key strategic reviews undertaken by the Greater Manchester Strategic Health Authority (North West of England) established a need to develop nurses and allied health care practitioners to advanced practitioner level. This paper considers how employers, commissioners and educationalists worked together to produce a Master's level programme to prepare nurses and other health care practitioners for sustainable advanced practice roles. Developing innovative and effective curricula to meet the needs of post graduate students from varied backgrounds preparing to practice in different contexts with different client groups is challenging. However, the development of individual learning pathways and work-based learning ensures that the student's work and intended advanced practice role remains at the centre of their learning. Analysis of each student's knowledge and skill deficits alongside an analysis of the organization's readiness to support them as qualified advanced practitioners (APs) is instrumental in ensuring that organizations are ready to support practitioners in new roles. Work-based learning and collaboration between students, employers and higher education institutions can be used to enable managers and students to unravel the network of factors which affect advanced practice in health and social care. Additionally, collaborative working can help to create opportunities to develop strategies that will facilitate change. Implications for nursing management Sustainable change concerned with the introduction of advanced practitioner roles present a real challenge for managers at a strategic and operational level. Commissioning flexible, collaborative and service-led educational programmes can assist in ensuring that change is sustainable and produce practitioners who are fit for practice, purpose and award.

Genetic, physiologic and ecogeographic factors contributing to variation in Homo sapiens: Homo floresiensis reconsidered.

PubMed

Richards, Gary D

2006-11-01

A new species, Homo floresiensis, was recently named for Pleistocene hominid remains on Flores, Indonesia. Significant controversy has arisen regarding this species. To address controversial issues and refocus investigations, I examine the affinities of these remains with Homo sapiens. Clarification of problematic issues is sought through an integration of genetic and physiological data on brain ontogeny and evolution. Clarification of the taxonomic value of various 'primitive' traits is possible given these data. Based on this evidence and using a H. sapiens morphological template, models are developed to account for the combination of features displayed in the Flores fossils. Given this overview, I find substantial support for the hypothesis that the remains represent a variant of H. sapiens possessing a combined growth hormone-insulin-like growth factor I axis modification and mutation of the MCPH gene family. Further work will be required to determine the extent to which this variant characterized the population.

What are the factors that affect band 5 nurses' career development and progression?

PubMed

Balls, Paula

Continuing professional development (CPD) and career progression opportunities have been linked with job satisfaction and intent to remain in nursing. To provide an insight into band 5 registered nurses' perceptions of development opportunities and their ability to change posts. A hermeneutic phenomenological approach was used, collecting data through semi structured interviews with six RNs. Seven themes emerged, including the thirst for knowledge and the importance of structured learning and career advice. Barriers to career development were perceived as the working environment and the trust not enabling and facilitating development through funding and release time. Ward and team culture can inhibit career development and progression by failing to nurture staff and promote self confidence. In addition, organisational changes can facilitate career mobility.

The impact of work-life balance on intention to stay in academia: Results from a national survey of pharmacy faculty.

PubMed

Lindfelt, Tristan; Ip, Eric J; Gomez, Alejandra; Barnett, Mitchell J

2018-04-01

Border-Crossing theory suggests work-life balance and career satisfaction are inter-related and disappointment in work-life balance may predict changes in one's career path. Application of this theory to health profession faculty is plausible but has not been fully explored. The purpose of this study is to examine factors related to reported career change intention among United States pharmacy school faculty and to determine if Border-Crossing theory fits these observations. Results from a national web-based survey administered via Qualtrics ® to American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) members were utilized. Bivariate analyses were conducted to compare differences among faculty stating an intention to stay or leave academia. A logistic multivariate model was used to determine if work-life balance remains significant when controlling for other variables and if survey results support the Border-Crossing theory. Nearly all (seven hundred of 811 responders, or 86.3%) stated a desire to stay in academia. Faculty with higher work-life balance were more likely to report an intent to remain in academia. Male, older, full-professor and non-pharmacy practice faculty (social or administrative science, pharmacology, medicinal chemistry and others) were more likely to state an intention to remain in academia relative to their counterparts. Lower stress, as measured by the validated Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) scores, was seen among faculty stating a desire to remain in academia. Work-life balance remained significantly inversely related to career change intention after controlling for all other factors. A significant factor related to pharmacy faculty's stated intention to remain in academia was work-life balance. Other factors such as gender, age, rank, stress level and department may also play a role. These results support the application of the Border-Crossing theory in health profession faculty and may provide pharmacy school administrators and stakeholders with insight to foster faculty retention and decrease faculty turnover. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Ultrahigh-sensitive sensing platform based on p-type dumbbell-like Co3O4 network

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Tingting; Zhang, Tong; Zhang, Rui; Lou, Zheng; Deng, Jianan; Wang, Lili

2017-12-01

Development of high performance room temperature sensors remains a grand challenge for high demand of practical application. Metal oxide semiconductors (MOSs) have many advantages over others due to their easy functionalization, high surface area, and low cost. However, they typically need a high work temperature during sensing process. Here, p-type sensing layer is reported, consisting of pore-rich dumbbell-like Co3O4 particles (DP-Co3O4) with intrinsic high catalytic activity. The gas sensor (GS) based DP-Co3O4 catalyst exhibits ultrahigh NH3 sensing activity along with excellent stability over other structure based NH3 GSs in room temperature work environment. In addition, the unique structure of DP-Co3O4 with pore-rich and high catalytic activity endows fast gas diffusion rate and high sensitivity at room temperature. Taken together, the findings in this work highlight the merit of integrating highly active materials in p-type materials, offering a framework to develop high-sensitivity room temperature sensing platforms.

Development of a Human Behavior and Performance Training Curriculum for ISS Astronauts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

VanderArk, Steve; Tomi, Leena; Vassin, Alexander; Inoue, Natsuhiko; Bessone, Lorendana; OConnor, Sharon; Mukai, Chiaki; Coffee, Emily; Sipes, Walter; Salnitskiy, Vyecheslav;

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) Research (AIDS)

DTIC Science & Technology

1993-07-15

Alamos, New Mexico . The Technical Working Group for HIV Isolation and Characterization, Vaccine Development Unit, Global Program on AIDS, World Health...remaining virus isolation positive. RVA 5 - IHIV-2 infection of rhesus macaques’- This study was initiated at another facility, the New Mexico Primate... Mexico were part of a previous titration study with SIVc 25 1 , a virus isolate which was proposed for use in future MMCARR vaccine and pathogenesis

Technology Transfer: Use of Federally Funded Research and Development

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-04-24

flows from new commercialization in the private sector ; the government’s requirements for products and processes to operate effectively and...technology to the private sector and to state and local governments. Despite this, use of federal R&D results has remained restrained, although there has...been a significant increase in private sector interest and activities over the past several years. Critics argue that working with the agencies and

Animal models for microbicide studies

PubMed Central

Veazey, Ronald S.; Shattock, Robin J; Klasse, Per Johan; Moore, John P.

2013-01-01

There have been encouraging recent successes in the development of safe and effective topical microbicides to prevent vaginal or rectal HIV-1 transmission, based on the use of anti-retroviral drugs. However, much work remains to be accomplished before a microbicide becomes a standard element of prevention science strategies. Animal models should continue to play an important role in pre-clinical testing, with emphasis on safety, pharmacokinetic and efficacy testing. PMID:22264049

Achievers, Confidence-Builders, Advocates, Relationship-Developers and System-Changers: What "Making a Difference" Means to Those Who Work with Children with Special Educational Needs -- A Typology of Rewards

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mackenzie, Suzanne

2013-01-01

Previous research on the rewards found that teachers gain satisfaction in a sense of vocation, "making a difference", and the emotional rewards of "care" and "love", especially in whole-class teaching. The meaning of "making a difference" often remains unexplored however, and this article is an attempt to…

A consideration of the nature of work and the consequences for the human-oriented design of production and products.

PubMed

Bubb, Heiner

2006-07-01

In this article, it is shown that human work can be understood as a process of creating order, and that order can be seen as a form of information. Since information can be considered as negative entropy, work is associated with energy consumption. Therefore, it is important to investigate the nature of human necessities in more detail in order to meet the desire for comfort through the efficient application of energy. Temporary increases of information cause accelerated increases in entropy. This explains the appearance of living organisms, and the historic development of increasingly complex technology. Through technical progress, repetitive human work is being replaced by automation, so that primarily creative work remains. Now the question arises of how much creative work a human can manage. In addition, one goal of automation should be the reduction of human errors, but in doing so, an optimal balance should be found between supporting the operator both during normal procedures and during unforeseen circumstances.

Job embeddedness factors and retention of nurses with 1 to 3 years of experience.

PubMed

Halfer, Diana

2011-10-01

An aging work force, predictions of job growth in health care, and an eventual economic recovery suggest that the current reprieve from the national nursing shortage is temporary. New graduate nurses are an important part of the work force and are needed to replace nurses who will retire in the next decade. Organizational leaders can address the forecasted work force demand by proactively investing in programs for workplace development and retention. Recent literature reports an increased focus on understanding the work experience and career support needed for new graduate nurses. Several studies report improvements in job satisfaction and retention after implementation of structured mentoring programs for new graduate nurses. However, despite successful transition programs, turnover for these same nurses after 1 to 3 years of organizational tenure remains high. Studying factors that contribute to retention and supporting careers beyond the first year of practice may have a significant effect on improving retention and will contribute new knowledge to the nursing literature. This study, undertaken at a Midwestern pediatric academic medical center, examined job factors and career development support that lead to retention of nurses with 1 to 3 years of experience. Understanding these issues may guide nursing leaders and staff development educators in investing in focused retention and career development plans during an economic recession. Copyright 2011, SLACK Incorporated.

Determination on Damage Mechanism of the Planet Gear of Heavy Vehicle Final Drive

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ramdan, RD; Setiawan, R.; Sasmita, F.; Suratman, R.; Taufiqulloh

2018-02-01

The works focus on the investigation of damage mechanism of fractured in the form of spalling of the planet gears from the final drive assembly of 160-ton heavy vehicles. The objective of this work is to clearly understand the mechanism of damage. The work is the first stage of the on-going research on the remaining life estimation of such gears. The understanding of the damage mechanism is critical in order to provide accurate estimate of the gear’s remaining life with observed initial damage. The analysis was performed based on the metallurgy laboratory works, including visual observation, macro-micro fractography by optical stereo and optical microscope and micro-vickers hardness test. From visual observation it was observed pitting that form lining defect at common position, which is at gear flank position. From spalling sample it was observed ratchet mark at the boundary between macro pitting and the edge of fractured parts. Further observation on the cross-section of the samples by optical microscope confirm that initial micro pitting occur without spalling of the case hardened surface. Spalling occur when pitting achieve certain critical size, and occur at multiple initiation site of crack propagation. From the present research it was concluded that pitting was resulted due to repeated contact fatigue. In addition, development of micro to macro pitting as well as spalling occur at certain direction towards the top of the gear teeth.

Fourteen Years of R/qtl: Just Barely Sustainable

PubMed Central

Broman, Karl W.

2014-01-01

R/qtl is an R package for mapping quantitative trait loci (genetic loci that contribute to variation in quantitative traits) in experimental crosses. Its development began in 2000. There have been 38 software releases since 2001. The latest release contains 35k lines of R code and 24k lines of C code, plus 15k lines of code for the documentation. Challenges in the development and maintenance of the software are discussed. A key to the success of R/qtl is that it remains a central tool for the chief developer's own research work, and so its maintenance is of selfish importance. PMID:25364504

Why Agricultural Educators Remain in the Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Crutchfield, Nina; Ritz, Rudy; Burris, Scott

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study was to identify and describe factors that are related to agricultural educator career retention and to explore the relationships between work engagement, work-life balance, occupational commitment, and personal and career factors as related to the decision to remain in the teaching profession. The target population for…

7 CFR 305.6 - Cold treatment requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

...) The cold treatment facility must remain locked during non-working hours. (v) Black light or sticky... hours. (vi) Black light or sticky paper must be used within the cold treatment facility, and other... remain locked during non-working hours. (viii) Black lights or sticky paper must be used within the cold...

Development of an instrument designed to measure employees' perceptions of workplace breastfeeding support.

PubMed

Greene, Sally W; Olson, Beth H

2008-09-01

Breastfeeding rates remain low in the United States, especially among working women. Unfortunately, no quantitative instrument exists to facilitate the examination of why women who return to work discontinue breastfeeding sooner than the general population. The objective of this study was to develop an instrument to measure female employees' perceptions of breastfeeding support in the workplace, which would be suitable for piloting with the target population. Examination of the literature, reviews with experts, and one-on-one interviews with women who had experience combining breastfeeding and work were used to create the instrument subscales and items. Examination of the literature was used to develop four subscales: company policies/work culture, manager support, co-worker support, and workflow. Expert review resulted in the addition of a fifth subscale, the physical environment of the breastfeeding space. One-on-one interviews were used to ensure that the item wording was appropriate for the target population. Eighteen items were added, and 15 were reworded based on comments from the expert review and from the interviews. The resulting survey contained 54 items that required either categorical yes/no or Likert scale responses. Results from this process indicate the survey subscales and items adequately reflect women's perceptions of breastfeeding support in the workplace and the instrument is appropriate for piloting with new mother employees.

Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy: an update on the current understanding.

PubMed

Addington, James; Freimer, Miriam

2016-01-01

Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy is a common side effect of selected chemotherapeutic agents. Previous work has suggested that patients often under report the symptoms of chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy and physicians fail to recognize the presence of such symptoms in a timely fashion. The precise pathophysiology that underlies chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy, in both the acute and the chronic phase, remains complex and appears to be medication specific. Recent work has begun to demonstrate and further clarify potential pathophysiological processes that predispose and, ultimately, lead to the development of chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy. There is increasing evidence that the pathway to neuropathy varies with each agent. With a clearer understanding of how these agents affect the peripheral nervous system, more targeted treatments can be developed in order to optimize treatment and prevent long-term side effects.

PSO-based PID Speed Control of Traveling Wave Ultrasonic Motor under Temperature Disturbance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arifin Mat Piah, Kamal; Yusoff, Wan Azhar Wan; Azmi, Nur Iffah Mohamed; Romlay, Fadhlur Rahman Mohd

2018-03-01

Traveling wave ultrasonic motors (TWUSMs) have a time varying dynamics characteristics. Temperature rise in TWUSMs remains a problem particularly in sustaining optimum speed performance. In this study, a PID controller is used to control the speed of TWUSM under temperature disturbance. Prior to developing the controller, a linear approximation model which relates the speed to the temperature is developed based on the experimental data. Two tuning methods are used to determine PID parameters: conventional Ziegler-Nichols(ZN) and particle swarm optimization (PSO). The comparison of speed control performance between PSO-PID and ZN-PID is presented. Modelling, simulation and experimental work is carried out utilizing Fukoku-Shinsei USR60 as the chosen TWUSM. The results of the analyses and experimental work reveal that PID tuning using PSO-based optimization has the advantage over the conventional Ziegler-Nichols method.

Poverty, development, and Himalayan ecosystems.

PubMed

Sandhu, Harpinder; Sandhu, Sukhbir

2015-05-01

The Himalayas are rich in biodiversity but vulnerable to anthropogenic pressures. They are also host to growing number of rural poor who are dependent on forest and ecosystem services for their livelihood. Local and global efforts to integrate poverty alleviation and biodiversity conservation in the Himalayas remain elusive so far. In this work, we highlight two key impediments in achieving sustainable development in the Himalayas. On the positive side, we also highlight the work of Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), a research organization based in India that seeks to integrate biodiversity concerns with livelihood security. For impediments, we draw on two examples from the Darjeeling district, India, in Eastern Himalayan region to illustrate how development organizations are failing to simultaneously address poverty and environmental issues. Based on the success of ATREE, we then propose a conceptual framework to integrate livelihood generating activities with sustainable and equitable development agenda. We recommend developing a Hindu-Kush Himalayan Ecosystem Services Network in the region to formulate a strategy for further action. We conclude by offering measures to address the challenge of integrating livelihood and environment issues through this network.

CFD Research, Parallel Computation and Aerodynamic Optimization

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ryan, James S.

1995-01-01

During the last five years, CFD has matured substantially. Pure CFD research remains to be done, but much of the focus has shifted to integration of CFD into the design process. The work under these cooperative agreements reflects this trend. The recent work, and work which is planned, is designed to enhance the competitiveness of the US aerospace industry. CFD and optimization approaches are being developed and tested, so that the industry can better choose which methods to adopt in their design processes. The range of computer architectures has been dramatically broadened, as the assumption that only huge vector supercomputers could be useful has faded. Today, researchers and industry can trade off time, cost, and availability, choosing vector supercomputers, scalable parallel architectures, networked workstations, or heterogenous combinations of these to complete required computations efficiently.

Development and Preliminary In vitro Evaluation of Nanomicelles Laden In situ Gel of Dexamethasone for Ophthalmic Delivery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chowdhury, Pallabita

In our previous work we developed and characterized 0.1% dexamethasone mixed nanomicelles (DMN). DMN were prepared using surfactants polyoxyl 40 stearate (P40S) and polysorbate 80 (P80), which are approved by the FDA for ocular use. The present study builds on the previous work by developing and evaluating nanomicelles laden in situ gel of 0.1% dexamethasone (DMN-ISG) with potential for treating anterior segment eye inflammations. DMN-ISG was prepared by mixing the basic 2X formulation of DMN with appropriate concentrations of gellan gum, mannitol, benzododecinium bromide and tromethamine. DMN-ISG was characterized for gelation, viscosity, transparency, morphology using Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), thermoanalysis using Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), in vitro drug release and sterility. DMN prepared with an optimized composition of P40S/P80=7/3 by weight were used in the preparation of DMN-ISG. TEM image of DMN-ISG showed the presence of dexamethasone nanomicelles in the size range between 20-40 nm entrapped in the gel structure. More than 50% of the drug was released from DMN-ISG in the first few hours and the remaining drug was released in a sustained manner for up to 30 h. Aseptically prepared DMN-ISG formulation remained sterile for up to 14 days. The preliminary findings of our investigation suggest that DMN-ISG has the potential for use in treating anterior segment eye inflammations. Further in vivo evaluation is warranted.

[Bell's palsy and facial pain associated with toxocara infection].

PubMed

Bachtiar, Arian; Auer, Herbert; Finsterer, Josef

2012-10-01

Toxocarosis involving cranial nerves is extremely rare and almost exclusively concerns the optic nerve. Toxocarosis involving the seventh cranial nerve has not been reported. A 33y male developed left-sided Bell's palsy two days after left-sided otalgia 6y before. Despite extensive diagnostic work-up at that time the cause of Bell's palsy remained unknown. During the following years Bell's palsy slightly improved but retromandibular pain remained almost unchanged and he developed enlarged lymph nodes along the jugular veins, submandibularly, and in the trigonum caroticum. Re-evaluation 6y later revealed an increased titer of serum antibodies against Toxocara canis and a positive Westernblot for Toxocara canis ES-antigen. Despite absent eosinophilia in the serum, toxocarosis was diagnosed and a therapy with albendazole initiated, with benefit for retromandibular pain, but hardly for Bell's palsy or enlarged lymph nodes. CSF investigations after albendazole revealed a positive Westernblot for antibodies against toxocara but absent pleocytosis or eosinophilia, and negative PCR for Toxocara canis. Visceral larva migrans due to Toxocara canis may be associated with Bell's palsy, retromandibular pain, and lymphadenopathy. A causal relation between Bell's palsy and the helminthosis remains speculative. Adequate therapy years after onset of the infestation may be of limited benefit.

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

Lynch, Kevin; Popp, James

This DOE grant award for was for the period June 1, 2013 to March 31, 2016. Popp was awarded an internship in the Visiting Faculty Program at FNAL in summer of 2015; consequently the unused portion of summer salary funds allowed us to apply for a no-cost extension with our remaining funds until March 31, 2017. That support furnished us with the means to carry out numerous successful projects for Mu2e for nearly four years. Up to now, the driving force to our work has been dictated primarily by the Mu2e Project cost and schedule needs. Our work has beenmore » under the purview of three of the Working Groups to which we belong: Target Station, Electron Tracker, and Stopping Target Monitor. We have carried out a mix of bench-top testing tasks locally, more elaborate work at Fermilab every summer, and extensive software development and simulation studies.« less

Job sharing for women pharmacists in academia.

PubMed

Rogers, Kelly C; Finks, Shannon W

2009-11-12

The pharmacist shortage, increasing numbers of female pharmacy graduates, more pharmacy schools requiring faculty members, and a lower percentage of female faculty in academia are reasons to develop unique arrangements for female academic pharmacists who wish to work part-time. Job sharing is an example of a flexible alternative work arrangement that can be successful for academic pharmacists who wish to continue in a part-time capacity. Such partnerships have worked for other professionals but have not been widely adopted in pharmacy academia. Job sharing can benefit the employer through retention of experienced employees who collectively offer a wider range of skills than a single employee. Benefits to the employee include balanced work and family lives with the ability to maintain their knowledge and skills by remaining in the workforce. We discuss the additional benefits of job-sharing as well as our experience in a non-tenure track job-sharing position at the University of Tennessee College of Pharmacy.

Small business development: who pays?

PubMed

Hellinger, D

1985-11-01

This article traces the trends in the aid community towards income generation and small business projects in developing countries since the 1950s. 1 of the great weakness of the development assistance community in the area of income generation remains the lack of analysis of population differentiation in the communities in which they work. A very different approach to the problem of the informal sector and income generation is one that responds directly to the needs of poor communities. Institutions working within poor communities and supporting multi-sectoral development while strengthening local organizations are much better situated to respond to the diverse needs of the community than are single-sector organizations with only 1 skill or service to offer. To assist significant numbers of poor people, particularly women, grouping of some sort is essential. This is not to say that group enterprise development is an easy process. The intensive and costly organizational and management assistance required to prepare a poor group for credit must be weighed along with the potential for creating a basis of long-range change within the community. To work with individual family enterprizes in a community can also have important social and economic effects, although the long-range impact may be more limited. Today, more than ever, the poor face the challenge of creating new survival mechanisms within their communities. Development agencies and assistance programs have the responsibility to help rather than hinder this process.

Updating the OMERACT filter: implications for patient-reported outcomes.

PubMed

Kirwan, John R; Bartlett, Susan J; Beaton, Dorcas E; Boers, Maarten; Bosworth, Ailsa; Brooks, Peter M; Choy, Ernest; de Wit, Maarten; Guillemin, Francis; Hewlett, Sarah; Kvien, Tore K; Landewé, Robert B; Leong, Amye L; Lyddiatt, Anne; March, Lyn; May, James; Montie, Pamela Lesley; Nikaï, Enkeleida; Richards, Pam; Voshaar, Marieke M J H; Smeets, Wilma; Strand, Vibeke; Tugwell, Peter; Gossec, Laure

2014-05-01

At a previous Outcome Measures in Rheumatology (OMERACT) meeting, participants reflected on the underlying methods of patient-reported outcome (PRO) instrument development. The participants requested proposals for more explicit instrument development protocols that would contribute to an enhanced version of the "Truth" statement in the OMERACT Filter, a widely used guide for outcome validation. In the present OMERACT session, we explored to what extent these new Filter 2.0 proposals were practicable, feasible, and already being applied. Following overview presentations, discussion groups critically reviewed the extent to which case studies of current OMERACT Working Groups complied with or negated the proposed PRO development framework, whether these observations had a more general application, and what issues remained to be resolved. Several aspects of PRO development were recognized as particularly important, and the need to directly involve patients at every stage of an iterative PRO development program was endorsed. This included recognition that patients contribute as partners in the research and not merely as subjects. Correct communication of concepts with the words used in questionnaires was central to their performance as measuring instruments, and ensuring this understanding crossed cultural and linguistic boundaries was important in international studies or comparisons. Participants recognized, endorsed, and were generally already putting into practice the principles of PRO development presented in the plenary session. Further work is needed on some existing instruments and on establishing widespread good practice for working in close collaboration with patients.

Creating a Global Consciousness by Embracing a World of Women: A Pedagogical Strategy Dedicated to Regaining the Momentum for Women's Rights

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Edmonds, Regina M.

2007-01-01

If we are to regain some of the energy which characterized the Women's Movement during its earliest years and again during the 1960's and 1970's, we must endeavor to raise awareness among young people about the work for social justice that remains undone and we must find ways to inspire them to re-embrace activism and to develop, what Smyser…

Working after a metastatic cancer diagnosis: Factors affecting employment in the metastatic setting from ECOG-ACRIN's Symptom Outcomes and Practice Patterns study.

PubMed

Tevaarwerk, Amye J; Lee, Ju-Whei; Terhaar, Abigail; Sesto, Mary E; Smith, Mary Lou; Cleeland, Charles S; Fisch, Michael J

2016-02-01

Improved survival for individuals with metastatic cancer accentuates the importance of employment for cancer survivors. A better understanding of how metastatic cancer affects employment is a necessary step toward the development of tools for assisting survivors in this important realm. The ECOG-ACRIN Symptom Outcomes and Practice Patterns study was analyzed to investigate what factors were associated with the employment of 680 metastatic cancer patients. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were conducted to compare patients stably working with patients no longer working. There were 668 metastatic working-age participants in the analysis: 236 (35%) worked full- or part-time, whereas 302 (45%) had stopped working because of illness. Overall, 58% reported some change in employment due to illness. A better performance status and non-Hispanic white ethnicity/race were significantly associated with continuing to work despite a metastatic cancer diagnosis in the multivariate analysis. The disease type, time since metastatic diagnosis, number of metastatic sites, location of metastatic disease, and treatment status had no significant impact. Among the potentially modifiable factors, receiving hormonal treatment (if a viable option) and decreasing symptom interference were associated with continuing to work. A significant percentage of the metastatic patients remained employed; increased symptom burden was associated with a change to no longer working. Modifiable factors resulting in work interference should be minimized so that patients with metastatic disease may continue working if this is desired. Improvements in symptom control and strategies developed to help address workplace difficulties have promise for improving this aspect of survivorship. © 2015 American Cancer Society.

Thrill and adventure seeking in risky driving at work: The moderating role of safety climate.

PubMed

Wishart, Darren; Somoray, Klaire; Evenhuis, Amanda

2017-12-01

Introduction Within many industrialized countries, the leading cause of worker fatalities and serious injuries can be attributed to road trauma. In non-occupational research, high levels of sensation seeking personality, and specifically thrill and adventure seeking, have been associated with risky driving behaviors. In work driving literature, high organizational safety climate has been associated with reduced risky driving in work drivers. However, the extent that factors such as safety climate and thrill seeking interact in regard to work driving safety remains unclear, and the current research examined this interaction. Methods A total of 1,011 work drivers from four organizations participated in the research. Surveys were distributed online and hardcopies were sent via mail. The survey included measures of thrill and adventure seeking, safety climate and work-related driving behaviors, as well as questions relating to participant demographics and information about their work driving. Results The results demonstrated that safety climate significantly moderated the effect of thrill and adventure seeking trait on driving errors, driving violations, and driving while fatigued. Conclusion These results suggest that the development of a strong safety climate has the potential to improve work driving safety outcomes by reducing the impact of particular personality traits such as thrill seeking within an organizational context. Practical application To improve work driving safety, organizations and management need to develop strategies to encourage and foster positive work driving safety climate, particularly within work settings that may attract thrill and adventure seeking employees. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Multi Purpose Crew Vehicle Environmental Control and Life Support Development Status

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lewis, John F.; Barido, Richard A.; Cross, Cynthia D.; Rains, George Edward

2012-01-01

The Orion Multi Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV) is the first crew transport vehicle to be developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in the last thirty years. Orion is currently being developed to transport the crew safely beyond Earth orbit. This year, the vehicle focused on building the Exploration Flight Test 1 (EFT1) vehicle to be launched in 2014. The development of the Orion Environmental Control and Life Support (ECLS) System, focused on the completing the components which are on EFT1. Additional development work has been done to keep the remaining component progressing towards implementation for a flight tests in of EM1 in 2017 and in and EM2 in 2020. This paper covers the Orion ECLS development from April 2012 to April 2013.

Crew Exploration Vehicle Environmental Control and Life Support Development Status

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lewis, John F.; Barido, Richard A.; Cross, Cynthia D.; Carrasquillo, Robyn; Rains, George Edward

2011-01-01

The Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) is the first crew transport vehicle to be developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in the last thirty years. The CEV is currently being developed to transport the crew safely from the Earth to the Moon and back again. This year, the vehicle focused on building the Orion Flight Test 1 (OFT1) vehicle to be launched in 2013. The development of the Orion Environmental Control and Life Support (ECLS) System, focused on the components which are on OFT1 which includes pressure control and active thermal control systems, is progressing through the design stage into manufacturing. Additional development work was done to keep the remaining component progressing towards implementation. This paper covers the Orion ECLS development from April 2010 to April 2011.

Process modelling for materials preparation experiments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rosenberger, Franz; Alexander, J. Iwan D.

1993-01-01

The main goals of the research under this grant consist of the development of mathematical tools and measurement of transport properties necessary for high fidelity modeling of crystal growth from the melt and solution, in particular, for the Bridgman-Stockbarger growth of mercury cadmium telluride (MCT) and the solution growth of triglycine sulphate (TGS). Of the tasks described in detail in the original proposal, two remain to be worked on: (1) development of a spectral code for moving boundary problems; and (2) diffusivity measurements on concentrated and supersaturated TGS solutions. Progress made during this seventh half-year period is reported.

Process modelling for materials preparation experiments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rosenberger, Franz; Alexander, J. Iwan D.

1993-01-01

The main goals of the research consist of the development of mathematical tools and measurement of transport properties necessary for high fidelity modeling of crystal growth from the melt and solution, in particular for the Bridgman-Stockbarger growth of mercury cadmium telluride (MCT) and the solution growth of triglycine sulphate (TGS). Of the tasks described in detail in the original proposal, two remain to be worked on: development of a spectral code for moving boundary problems, and diffusivity measurements on concentrated and supersaturated TGS solutions. During this eighth half-year period, good progress was made on these tasks.

Mechanisms of sibling socialization in normative family development.

PubMed

Whiteman, Shawn D; Becerra, Julia M; Killoren, Sarah E

2009-01-01

Siblings are important sources of social influence throughout childhood and adolescence. Nevertheless, the processes by which siblings influence one another remain relatively unexplored. We highlight two theories of sibling influence-sibling deidentification and social learning-that offer insights as to how and why siblings develop similar and different attributes, attitudes, and behaviors. Recognizing the need to move past post hoc explanations, we suggest several directions for how these two influence processes can be measured directly in future work. Research on sibling influence also can be improved by integrating these theories and attending to their domains of influence.

Proceedings of the Airframe Icing Workshop

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Colantonio, Ron O. (Editor)

2009-01-01

The NASA Glenn Research Center (GRC) has a long history of working with its partners towards the understanding of ice accretion formation and its associated degradation of aerodynamic performance. The June 9, 2009, Airframe Icing Workshop held at GRC provided an opportunity to examine the current NASA airframe icing research program and to dialogue on remaining and emerging airframe icing issues and research with the external community. Some of the airframe icing gaps identified included, but are not limited to, ice accretion simulation enhancements, three-dimensional benchmark icing database development, three-dimensional iced aerodynamics modeling, and technology development for a smart icing system.

Fabrics Protect Sensitive Skin from UV Rays

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2009-01-01

Late Johnson Space Center engineer Dr. Robert Dotts headed a team to develop cool suits for children suffering from life-threatening sun sensitivities. Dotts hoped to develop ultraviolet-blocking technology in a fabric that -- unlike in a bulky space suit -- could remain comfortable, light, and breathable in the sun and heat. The team worked with SPF 4 US LLC (SPF) of Madison, Wisconsin to design ultraviolet-blocking cool suits, which protect sun-sensitive patients and enable them to experience life outdoors safely. Using knowledge gained during the NASA collaboration, SPF created an entire line of ultraviolet-blocking apparel.

Investigations into the behaviour of Plasma surrounding Pulsars: DYMPHNA3D

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rochford, Ronan; Mc Donald, John; Shearer, Andy

2011-08-01

We report on a new 3D fully relativistic, modular, parallel and scalable Particle-In-Cell (PIC) code currently being developed at the Computational Astrophysics Laboratory in the National University of Ireland, Galway and its initial test applications to the plasma distribution in the vicinity of a rapidly rotating neutron star. We find that Plasma remains confined by trapping surfaces close to the star as opposed to propagating to a significant portion of the light-cylinder distance as predicted in this early work. We discuss planned future modifications and applications of the developed code.

Job enrichment: creating meaningful career development opportunities for nurses.

PubMed

Duffield, Christine; Baldwin, Richard; Roche, Michael; Wise, Sarah

2014-09-01

This paper presents an evaluation of a career development policy in South Australia which increased the number of senior staff nurse positions and provided senior registered nurses with time away from clinical duties to undertake agreed projects. We use Kanter's model of structural power and commitment theory to understand the dimensions of this policy. Development strategies for experienced staff who wish to remain at the bedside are needed, especially in smaller health services with limited opportunities for horizontal or vertical mobility. Face-to-face semistructured interviews were conducted with 54 senior staff nurses who participated in the career structure arrangements. The policy enhanced the structure of opportunity in three ways: by increasing the number of senior staff nurse positions, the ladder steps were improved; undertaking strategic projects developed new skills; and the job enrichment approach facilitated time out from the immediate pressures of ward work and challenged nurses in a different way. Through job enrichment, South Australia has found a novel way of providing meaningful career development opportunities for experienced nurses. Methods of job enrichment need to be considered as part of career development policy, especially where movement between clinical facilities is limited and staff wish to remain at the bedside. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Getting the big picture: the macro-politics of information system development (and failure) in a Canadian hospital.

PubMed

Balka, E

2003-01-01

While recognized that global actors influence health information system design, studies of health informatics have largely focused on micro politics of technology design and implementation. Here a problematic patient care information system (PCIS) is discussed in relation to federal and provincial policies and corporate strategies to demonstrate that our understanding of health informatics can be enhanced by linking micro studies of health informatics to larger macro contexts. Interviews and document study. Although the extent to which federal initiatives influenced (or failed to influence) provincial and hospital initiatives remains debateable, events initiated at one level (the hospital's decision to implement software, initiated at the organizational level) are influenced (perhaps indirectly) by developments in other contexts (federal/macro changes gave an initiative more weight; provincial initiatives such as the Labour Accord altered the industrial relations environment in which system development occurred). Micro-studies of work practice, invaluable in addressing interactions between technologies, users and work practices, often fail to account for the historic reach of global actors, although it is often these historic circumstances that contribute to present-day interactions between user, information system and organization, and that find expression - often indirectly - in daily work practices.

Development and Engineering Design in Support of "Rover Ranch": A K-12 Outreach Software Project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pascali, Raresh

2003-01-01

A continuation of the initial development started in the summer of 1999, the body of work performed in support of 'ROVer Ranch' Project during the present fellowship dealt with the concrete concept implementation and resolution of the related issues. The original work performed last summer focused on the initial examination and articulation of the concept treatment strategy, audience and market analysis for the learning technologies software. The presented work focused on finalizing the set of parts to be made available for building an AERCam Sprint type robot and on defining, testing and implementing process necessary to convert the design engineering files to VRML files. Through reverse engineering, an initial set of mission critical systems was designed for beta testing in schools. The files were created in ProEngineer, exported to VRML 1.0 and converted to VRML 97 (VRML 2.0) for final integration in the software. Attributes for each part were assigned using an in-house developed JAVA based program. The final set of attributes for each system, their mutual interaction and the identification of the relevant ones to be tracked, still remain to be decided.

A comprehensive approach to environmental and human factors into product/service design and development. A review from an ergoecological perspective.

PubMed

Saravia-Pinilla, Martha H; Daza-Beltrán, Carolina; García-Acosta, Gabriel

2016-11-01

This article presents the results of a documentary-exploratory review of design methods and concepts associated with human and environmental factors, based on a qualitative-quantitative analysis of coincidences with the fundamentals of ergoecology and in line with sustainable dynamics, with a view to putting the principles of ergoecology into practice in product/service design and development. 61.6% of 696 documents found represent work on conceptual developments, while the remaining 38.4% refer to design methods. Searches were refined using Nvivo-10 software, and 101 documents were obtained about theoretical aspects while 17 focused on the application of methods, and these formed the analysis universe. The results show how little concern there is for working comprehensively on human and environmental aspects, and a trend toward segmentation of human and environmental aspects in the field of product/service design and development can be seen, at both concept and application/methodology levels. It was concluded from the above that comprehensive, simultaneous work is needed on human and environmental aspects, clarity and conceptual unity, in order to achieve sustainability in practical matters and ensure that ergoecology-compatible design methods are applied. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Non-US electrodynamic launchers research and development

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

Parker, J.V.; Batteh, J.H.; Greig, J.R.

Electrodynamic launcher research and development work of scientists outside the United States is analyzed and assessed by six internationally recognized US experts in the field of electromagnetic and electrothermal launchers. The assessment covers five broad technology areas: (1) Experimental railguns; (2) Railgun theory and design; (3) Induction launchers; (4) Electrothermal guns; (5) Energy storage and power supplies. The overall conclusion is that non-US work on electrodynamic launchers is maturing rapidly after a relatively late start in many countries. No foreign program challenges the US efforts in scope, but it is evident that the United States may be surpassed in somemore » technologies within the next few years. Until recently, published Russian work focused on hypervelocity for research purposes. Within the last two years, large facilities have been described where military-oriented development has been underway since the mid-1980s. Financial support for these large facilities appears to have collapsed, leaving no effective effort to develop practical launchers for military or civilian applications. Electrodynamic launcher research in Europe is making rapid progress by focusing on a single application, tactical launchers for the military. Four major laboratories, in Britain, France, Germany, and the Netherlands, are working on this problem. Though narrower in scope than the US effort, the European work enjoys a continuity of support that has accelerated its progress. The next decade will see the deployment of electrodynamic launcher technology, probably in the form of an electrothermal-chemical upgrade for an existing gun system. The time scale for deployment of electromagnetic launchers is entirely dependent on the level of research-and-development effort. If resources remain limited, the advantage will lie with cooperative efforts that have reasonably stable funding such as the present French-German program.« less

Unmanned Aircraft Systems in the National Airspace System: A Formal Methods Perspective

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Munoz, Cesar A.; Dutle, Aaron; Narkawicz, Anthony; Upchurch, Jason

2016-01-01

As the technological and operational capabilities of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) have grown, so too have international efforts to integrate UAS into civil airspace. However, one of the major concerns that must be addressed in realizing this integration is that of safety. For example, UAS lack an on-board pilot to comply with the legal requirement that pilots see and avoid other aircraft. This requirement has motivated the development of a detect and avoid (DAA) capability for UAS that provides situational awareness and maneuver guidance to UAS operators to aid them in avoiding and remaining well clear of other aircraft in the airspace. The NASA Langley Research Center Formal Methods group has played a fundamental role in the development of this capability. This article gives a selected survey of the formal methods work conducted in support of the development of a DAA concept for UAS. This work includes specification of low-level and high-level functional requirements, formal verification of algorithms, and rigorous validation of software implementations.

Interactions Between Modality of Working Memory Load and Perceptual Load in Distractor Processing.

PubMed

Koshino, Hideya; Olid, Pilar

2015-01-01

The present study investigated interactions between working memory load and perceptual load. The load theory (Lavie, Hirst, de Fockert, & Viding, 2004 ) claims that perceptual load decreases distractor interference, whereas working memory load increases interference. However, recent studies showed that effects of working memory might depend on the relationship between modalities of working memory and task stimuli. Here, we examined whether the relationship between working memory load and perceptual load would remain the same across modalities. The results of Experiment 1 showed that verbal working memory load did not affect a compatibility effect for low perceptual load, whereas it increased the compatibility effect for high perceptual load. In Experiment 2, the compatibility effect remained the same regardless of visual working memory load. These results suggest that the effects of working memory load and perceptual load depend on the relationship between the modalities of working memory and stimuli.

Coming and staying: a qualitative exploration of Registered Nurses' experiences working in nursing homes.

PubMed

Prentice, Dawn; Black, Margaret

2007-09-01

Aim. This paper reports on a qualitative study that explored the reasons why Registered Nurses (RNs) chose to work in nursing homes in Southern Ontario, Canada and what factors attracted them to remain. Background.  There is a paucity of information about factors associated with the recruitment and retention of RNs within long-term care (LTC) in Canada. As the population of older people is growing in Canada and elsewhere, it is essential that we better understand what attracts RNs to work and remain in this setting. Design and method. A case study approach was used in this study of nine RNs working in three nursing homes. Data were collected through in-depth interviews. Findings. Six sub-themes were identified: 'Job of Choice', 'Job of Convenience', 'Caring for the Residents', 'A Supportive Environment', 'Heavy Workload' and 'Supervisory Role of the RN'. Conclusion. Nurses chose to work in the nursing home because it was a 'Job of Convenience'. However, characteristics of the organizational environment played a major role in their remaining. Also, the caring relationship with residents played a role in the nurses remaining in this setting. Relevance to clinical practice. Strategies are provided that nurse managers may consider when planning recruitment and retention activities for LTC settings.

Work-related limitations and return-to-work experiences in prolonged fatigue: workers' perspectives before and after vocational treatment.

PubMed

Joosen, Margot C W; Frings-Dresen, Monique H W; Sluiter, Judith K

2011-01-01

To gain insight into fatigued workers' perspectives regarding work experience before and after receiving vocational rehabilitation (VR) treatments. A qualitative survey was conducted using semi-structured interviews with 21 fatigued workers who attended an outpatient multi-component VR treatment. Six months after treatment, work-related limitations and employed VR strategies at work before treatment were explored. Next, VR treatment experiences regarding return-to-work (RTW) were explored. Two researchers performed partially independent, qualitative analyses that revealed topics, discussed by the project team, and organised into domains, categories and sub-categories. Work-related limitations were: symptoms of prolonged fatigue, personal limitations (e.g. lack of self-reflection on individual capacity and limitations), interpersonal factors, activities and conditions at work and life/work imbalance. Before the treatment, VR strategies such as work adaptations, well-intentioned advice and support, and/or referral to psychological or physical care were employed. VR treatment experiences on RTW were: personal challenges (e.g. gained awareness and coping skills), improved activities during work, work adaptations and unresolved problems (e.g. remaining fatigue symptoms and sickness absence). New information about work experiences before and after multi-component VR treatments in workers with prolonged fatigue may help employers, occupational physicians and other caregivers to develop VR strategies that better meet individuals' needs.

Access to treatment for HIV in developing countries; statement from international seminar on access to treatment for HIV in developing countries, London, June 5 and 6, 1998. UK NGO AIDS Consortium Working Group on Access to Treatment for HIV in Developing Countries.

PubMed

1998-10-24

Compared with those in industrialised countries, people in developing countries have little access to treatment for HIV infection, or for many other diseases including cancer, tuberculosis, and malaria. Although attention has been paid to areas such as provision of essential drugs, strengthening of infrastructures and service delivery, human rights, and appropriate health technologies, great inequalities remain. The HIV epidemic has highlighted these differences, because technological advances and the response of people infected with HIV have enabled the sharing of experiences across regions and brought the contrast into focus.

Lessons from comparative effectiveness research methods development projects funded under the Recovery Act.

PubMed

Zurovac, Jelena; Esposito, Dominick

2014-11-01

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) directed nearly US$29.2 million to comparative effectiveness research (CER) methods development. To help inform future CER methods investments, we describe the ARRA CER methods projects, identify barriers to this research and discuss the alignment of topics with published methods development priorities. We used several existing resources and held discussions with ARRA CER methods investigators. Although funded projects explored many identified priority topics, investigators noted that much work remains. For example, given the considerable investments in CER data infrastructure, the methods development field can benefit from additional efforts to educate researchers about the availability of new data sources and about how best to apply methods to match their research questions and data.

Heat pipe with dual working fluids

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shlosinger, A. P. (Inventor)

1973-01-01

A heat pipe design is offered that utilizes an auxiliary working fluid. The fluid, although being less efficient than the main working fluid, remains liquid at low heat loads when the main working fluid freezes.

Talent identification and development programmes in sport : current models and future directions.

PubMed

Vaeyens, Roel; Lenoir, Matthieu; Williams, A Mark; Philippaerts, Renaat M

2008-01-01

Many children strive to attain excellence in sport. However, although talent identification and development programmes have gained popularity in recent decades, there remains a lack of consensus in relation to how talent should be defined or identified and there is no uniformly accepted theoretical framework to guide current practice. The success rates of talent identification and development programmes have rarely been assessed and the validity of the models applied remains highly debated. This article provides an overview of current knowledge in this area with special focus on problems associated with the identification of gifted adolescents. There is a growing agreement that traditional cross-sectional talent identification models are likely to exclude many, especially late maturing, 'promising' children from development programmes due to the dynamic and multidimensional nature of sport talent. A conceptual framework that acknowledges both genetic and environmental influences and considers the dynamic and multidimensional nature of sport talent is presented. The relevance of this model is highlighted and recommendations for future work provided. It is advocated that talent identification and development programmes should be dynamic and interconnected taking into consideration maturity status and the potential to develop rather than to exclude children at an early age. Finally, more representative real-world tasks should be developed and employed in a multidimensional design to increase the efficacy of talent identification and development programmes.

Knowledge translation in job development: strategies for involving families.

PubMed

Hall, Allison; Bose, Jennifer; Winsor, Jean; Migliore, Alberto

2014-09-01

Although United States employment policies have increased support for people with disabilities working in community settings, the unemployment rate for this population remains very high, particularly for people with intellectual or developmental disabilities. Research shows that job developers (direct support professionals who assist people with disabilities to secure, maintain, and advance in employment) are critical to achieving quality employment outcomes. However, the extent to which job developers use practices that are considered promising in their field (such as engaging families) is not well known. This brief report summarizes findings from a qualitative study about the extent to which job developers use the recommended promising practices when working with individuals and family members. Qualitative analysis identified the following themes among job developers: factors affecting family involvement, perceptions of family involvement, and the influence of expectation on strategies. The field of job development faces a challenge common to many professions: translating research on best practices to those who need this knowledge the most and can use it to greatest effect. Future research should address how community rehabilitation providers (CRPs) communicate about and instill best practices, including effective family engagement, within their organizations. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Group 2 Pulmonary Hypertension: Pulmonary Venous Hypertension: Epidemiology and Pathophysiology.

PubMed

Clark, Craig B; Horn, Evelyn M

2016-08-01

Pulmonary hypertension from left heart disease (PH-LHD) is the most common form of PH, defined as mean pulmonary artery pressure ≥25 mm Hg and pulmonary artery wedge pressure ≥15 mm Hg. PH-LHD development is associated with more severe left-sided disease and its presence portends a poor prognosis, particularly once right ventricular failure develops. Treatment remains focused on the underlying LHD and despite initial enthusiasm for PH-specific therapies, most studies have been disappointing and their routine clinical use cannot be recommended. More work is urgently needed to better understand the pathophysiology underlying this disease and to develop effective therapeutic strategies. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Rethinking the early history of post-Vygotskian psychology: the case of the Kharkov school.

PubMed

Yasnitsky, Anton; Ferrari, Michel

2008-05-01

Between the death of Vygotsky in 1934 and the discovery of Vygotsky's work in the West in 1962, Vygotskian psychology was developed through research done by the first generation of Vygotsky's students and their followers, primarily associated with the Kharkov School. Surprisingly, these studies carried out in the 1930s, of great importance for the development of virtually all subsequent Vygotskian psychology, still remain largely unknown; this represents a significant gap in understanding the history of Vygotskian psychology as an empirical study of consciousness. This paper provides a systematic overview of the research agenda of the Kharkov group between 1931 and 1941 and provides new insights into the early development of Vygotskian psychology.

Multiplying Electrons With Diamond

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2003-01-01

As researchers in the Space Communications Division of NASA s Glenn Research Center in 1992, Dr. Gerald Mearini, Dr. Isay Krainsky, and Dr. James Dayton made a secondary electron emission discovery that became the foundation for Mearini s company, GENVAC AeroSpace Corporation. Even after Mearini departed Glenn, then known as Lewis Research Center, his contact with NASA remained strong as he was awarded Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contracts to further develop his work. Mearini s work for NASA began with the investigation of diamond as a material for the suppression of secondary electron emissions. The results of his research were the opposite of what was expected diamond proved to be an excellent emitter rather than absorber. Mearini, Krainsky, and Dayton discovered that laboratory-grown diamond films can produce up to 45 electrons from a single incident electron. Having built an electron multiplier prototype at NASA, Mearini decided to start his own company to develop diamond structures usable in electron beam devices.

Chemical Sensors Based on Metal Oxide Nanostructures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hunter, Gary W.; Xu, Jennifer C.; Evans, Laura J.; VanderWal, Randy L.; Berger, Gordon M.; Kulis, Mike J.; Liu, Chung-Chiun

2006-01-01

This paper is an overview of sensor development based on metal oxide nanostructures. While nanostructures such as nanorods show significan t potential as enabling materials for chemical sensors, a number of s ignificant technical challenges remain. The major issues addressed in this work revolve around the ability to make workable sensors. This paper discusses efforts to address three technical barriers related t o the application of nanostructures into sensor systems: 1) Improving contact of the nanostructured materials with electrodes in a microse nsor structure; 2) Controling nanostructure crystallinity to allow co ntrol of the detection mechanism; and 3) Widening the range of gases that can be detected by using different nanostructured materials. It is concluded that while this work demonstrates useful tools for furt her development, these are just the beginning steps towards realizati on of repeatable, controlled sensor systems using oxide based nanostr uctures.

After 65 years, research is still fun.

PubMed

Hansel, William

2013-01-01

In 1946, at the end of World War II, I entered graduate school at Cornell University, where I remained for 44 years. During that time, my laboratory produced more than 300 publications in the field of reproductive biology, including studies on nutrition and reproduction, the role of the hypothalamus in pituitary gonadotropin release, corpus luteum formation and function, hormone assays, and estrous cycle synchronization. At age seventy, I retired from Cornell and accepted the Gordon Cain Endowed Professorship at Louisiana State University, where I continued my work on the bovine corpus luteum and added research on the collection, maturation, in vitro fertilization, and culture of bovine oocytes. In 1994, I moved to the Pennington Biomedical Research Center and soon thereafter started the research that led to development of the lytic peptide-gonadotropin conjugates, which target and destroy cancer cell membranes. I am continuing my work on the development of targeted cancer cell drugs and, yes, research is still fun!

It's a goal!: Basing a community psychiatric nursing service in a local football stadium.

PubMed

Pringle, Alan; Sayers, Pete

2004-09-01

This paper describes the development of a community mental health project in a local football stadium. Funded for three years by the Laureus Foundation's 'Sport for Good' initiative, the project provides mental health promotion and mental health awareness input targeted initially at young men, a group who are often very difficult to engage in this type work. Using group interventions and utilising football as a metaphor, the project helps young men address issues around depression, self-esteem and inclusion, and addresses the subject of suicide which remains the second biggest cause of death in young men in Britain. The paper describes the development of the project, the structure of the groups and the evaluation of the first two groups to complete the process. The work takes place in the Moss Rose stadium, home of Macclesfield Town, a team in the English Football League.

Cost-effectiveness of PET and PET/computed tomography: a systematic review.

PubMed

Gerke, Oke; Hermansson, Ronnie; Hess, Søren; Schifter, Søren; Vach, Werner; Høilund-Carlsen, Poul Flemming

2015-01-01

The development of clinical diagnostic procedures comprises early-phase and late-phase studies to elucidate diagnostic accuracy and patient outcome. Economic assessments of new diagnostic procedures compared with established work-ups indicate additional cost for 1 additional unit of effectiveness measure by means of incremental cost-effectiveness ratios when considering the replacement of the standard regimen by a new diagnostic procedure. This article discusses economic assessments of PET and PET/computed tomography reported until mid-July 2014. Forty-seven studies on cancer and noncancer indications were identified but, because of the widely varying scope of the analyses, a substantial amount of work remains to be done. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A descriptive inquiry of the definitions of critical thinking and enhancers and barriers reported by nurses working in long-term care facilities.

PubMed

Raterink, Ginger

2008-09-01

Critical thinking has been an outcome of nursing education since the 1980s. There remains a lack of agreement on definitions, methods of teaching, and methods of evaluation among practicing nurses. This study asked practicing nurses to define critical thinking. It also asked nurses to describe what work-related factors enhanced or posed barriers to the use of critical thinking in practice. Elements of the definitions presented were found to be consistent with current nursing definitions of critical thinking. Enhancers and barriers overlapped and were found to be consistent among the nurses at all facilities studied, with implications for continuing education and staff development.

Renal in-patient ward nurse experience and job satisfaction: A qualitative study.

PubMed

McKenzie, Aisha Tamika; Addis, Gulen

2018-06-13

The aim of this study was to examine the experience of registered nurses working in renal inpatients wards at an acute National Health Service (NHS) hospital Trust. Nurse perceptions of their experience particularly in relation to job satisfaction was analysed. Increased understanding of workplace organisation and culture can contribute to improved nurse work experience and better patient care. Worldwide many studies conducted on nurse experience and job satisfaction show that job satisfaction level varies across work settings so analysis of job satisfaction at a local level such as in a ward is important for producing useful analysis and recommendations. Using purposive sampling, semi structured individual interviews were conducted on twelve registered nurses working on renal inpatient wards. The study identified three themes: safe care, organisational culture and work environment. Although staffing was identified as a key element to providing safe care maintaining adequate staffing levels remained a challenge. Whilst there were opportunities for professional development more support is needed for newly qualified nurses. Findings highlighted that renal patients were complex. It is important to maintain adequate staffing levels. Good clinical leadership is required to support and develop the positive experience of nurses. The high turnover of newly qualified nurses is a particular problem and nurse managers need to develop strategies to retain such nurses. Regular audits on staffing levels as part of improving workforce planning and patient safety need to be conducted. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Aid effectiveness and women's empowerment: practices of governance in the funding of international development.

PubMed

Campbell, Marie L; Teghtsoonian, Katherine

2010-01-01

Although the empowerment of women is a prominent goal in international development, feminist development professionals, activists, and scholars remain deeply dissatisfied with the limited extent to which women's empowerment is actually achieved. Their experiences and analyses raise questions about the connections and disjunctions between discourse, institutional practices, and everyday life. A major effort to reform development aid guided by the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness raises new questions about the place of gender in development practice. Drawing on recently conducted research on women and development in Kyrgyzstan and using a range of institutional texts, we interrogate how development professionals and activists engage with the aid effectiveness discourse. Our analytic approach, institutional ethnography, shares with work on governmentality an empirical focus on practices undertaken by diversely situated people and how these practices constitute a particular field of action. Institutional ethnography directs analytic attention to the operation of texts as local and translocal coordinators of people's everyday activities. The product of this coordinated work is what we call, in this case, the development institution. For those concerned about women and development, we see the usefulness of making visible how global governance is accomplished in both enactments of and resistance to institutional practices, but in ways that do not necessarily benefit women.

An examination of retention factors among registered nurses in Northeastern Ontario, Canada: Nurses intent to stay in their current position.

PubMed

Nowrouzi, Behdin; Rukholm, Ellen; Lariviere, Michel; Carter, Lorraine; Koren, Irene; Mian, Oxana; Giddens, Emilia

2016-03-10

The purpose of the study was to examine factors related to the retention of registered nurses in northeastern Ontario, Canada. A cross-sectional survey of registered nurses working in northeastern Ontario, Canada was conducted. Logistic regression analyses were used to consider intent to stay in current employment in relation to the following: 1) demographic factors, and 2) occupation and career satisfaction factors. A total of 459 (29.8% response rate) questionnaires were completed. The adjusted odds logistic regression analysis of RNs who intended to remain in their current position for the next five years, demonstrated that respondents in the 46 to 56 age group (OR: 2.65; 95% CI: 1.50 to 4.69), the importance of staff development in the organization (OR: 3.04; 95% CI: 1.13 to 8.13) northeastern Ontario lifestyle (OR: 2.61; 95% CI: 1.55 to 4.40), working in nursing for 14 to 22.5 years (OR: 2.55; 95% CI: 1.10 to 5.93), and working between 0 to 1 hour of overtime per week (OR: 1.20; 95% CI: 1.20 to 4.64) were significant factors in staying in their current position for the next five years. This study shows that a further understanding of the work environment could assist with developing retention for rural nurses. Furthermore, employers may use such information to ameliorate the working conditions of nurses, while researchers may use such evidence to develop interventions that are applicable to improving the working conditions of nurses.

Development and Implementation of a Mental Health Work Rehabilitation Program: Results of a Developmental Evaluation.

PubMed

Sylvain, Chantal; Durand, Marie-José; Velasquez Sanchez, Astrid; Lessard, Nathalie; Maillette, Pascale

2018-05-23

Purpose Long-term work disability due to common mental disorders (CMDs) is a growing problem. Yet optimal interventions remain unclear and little is known about implementation challenges in everyday practice. This study aimed to support and evaluate, in real time, the development and implementation of a work rehabilitation program (WRP) designed to promote post-CMD return-to-work (RTW). Methods A 2-year developmental evaluation was performed using a participatory approach. At program outset, the researchers held five work meetings to revise the program's logic model and discuss its underlying change theory with clinicians. Data collection tools used throughout the study period were structured charts of activities conducted with workers (n = 41); in-depth interviews with program clinicians and managers (n = 9); and participant observation during work meetings. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Qualitative data underwent thematic analysis using a processual approach. Results Three types of activity were developed and implemented: individual and group interventions targeting workers, and joint activities targeting partners (physicians, employers, others). While worker-targeted activities were generally implemented as planned, joint activities were sporadic. Analysis of the implementation process revealed five challenges faced by clinicians. Determinants included clinicians, host organization, sociopolitical context and resources provided by the evaluation. Conclusion The program studied is original in that it is based on the best available scientific knowledge, yet adapted to contextual particularities. The identified implementation challenges highlight the need for greater importance to be placed on the external, non-program context to ensure sustainable implementation in everyday practice.

Transitioning Towards New Ways of Working: Do Job Demands, Job Resources, Burnout, and Engagement Change?

PubMed

Van Steenbergen, Elianne F; van der Ven, Cilia; Peeters, Maria C W; Taris, Toon W

2017-01-01

Purpose The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of a mandatory transition to New Ways of Working (NWW) on employees' job demands (i.e., mental demands, workload, and task ambiguity), job resources (i.e., autonomy, supervisor support, coworker support, and possibilities for development), and their levels of burnout and work engagement. Additionally, it was investigated whether the effects of the transition depended on employees' personal resources (Psychological Capital-PsyCap). Design/methodology/approach We investigated an organization in transition. In three waves (one before and two after the transition), data were collected via online surveys among 126 employees of a large Dutch provider of financial services. Findings NWW were beneficial in reducing mental demands and workload and did not harm the relationships with supervisor and coworkers. However, autonomy and possibilities for professional development decreased. Burnout and work engagement remained stable over time. The effects of the transition did not depend on employees' PsyCap. Implications NWW have received a very positive popular press. Scientific evidence for its beneficial and/or adverse effects on worker well-being can help organizations making an informed decision when considering NWW. Moreover, this can help to develop targeted interventions that alleviate the negative consequences (e.g., paying extra attention to professional development). Originality/value This is one of the first longitudinal studies in which employees were followed who transitioned to NWW. Building on the Job Demands-Resources model, this study provides a comprehensive picture of the effects of NWW.

Working after a metastatic cancer diagnosis: factors affecting employment in the metastatic setting from ECOG’s Symptom Outcomes and Practice Patterns (SOAPP) study

PubMed Central

Tevaarwerk, Amye; Lee, Ju-Whei; Terhaar, Abigail; Sesto, Mary; Smith, Mary Lou; Cleeland, Charles; Fisch, Michael

2015-01-01

Background Improved survival for individuals with metastatic cancer accentuates the importance of employment for cancer survivors. Better understanding of how metastatic cancer affects employment is a necessary step towards the development of tools to assist survivors in this important realm. Methods We analyzed the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group’s “Symptom Outcomes and Practice Patterns (SOAPP)” study to investigate what factors were associated with employment of 680 metastatic cancer patients. Univariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses were conducted to compare patients stably working (Group A) to patients no longer working (Group B). Results There were 668 metastatic working-age participants in our analysis; 236 (35%) worked full or part-time while 302 (45%) stopped working due to illness. Overall, 58% reported some change in employment due to illness. Better performance status and non-Hispanic White ethnicity/race were significantly associated with continuing to work despite a metastatic cancer diagnosis on multivariable analysis. Disease type, time since metastatic diagnosis, number of metastatic sites, location of metastatic disease, and treatment status had no significant impact. Among the potentially modifiable factors, receiving hormonal treatment (if a viable option) and decreasing symptom interference were associated with continuing to work. Conclusions A significant percentage of metastatic patients remain employed; symptom burden was associated with change to no longer working. Modifiable factors resulting in work interference should be minimized so that patients with metastatic disease may continue working, if desired. Improvements in symptom control and strategies developed to help address work place difficulties have promise to improve this aspect of survivorship. PMID:26687819

Editorial: Computational Creativity, Concept Invention, and General Intelligence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Besold, Tarek R.; Kühnberger, Kai-Uwe; Veale, Tony

2015-12-01

Over the last decade, computational creativity as a field of scientific investigation and computational systems engineering has seen growing popularity. Still, the levels of development between projects aiming at systems for artistic production or performance and endeavours addressing creative problem-solving or models of creative cognitive capacities is diverging. While the former have already seen several great successes, the latter still remain in their infancy. This volume collects reports on work trying to close the accrued gap.

Building intuitive 3D interfaces for virtual reality systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vaidya, Vivek; Suryanarayanan, Srikanth; Seitel, Mathias; Mullick, Rakesh

2007-03-01

An exploration of techniques for developing intuitive, and efficient user interfaces for virtual reality systems. Work seeks to understand which paradigms from the better-understood world of 2D user interfaces remain viable within 3D environments. In order to establish this a new user interface was created that applied various understood principles of interface design. A user study was then performed where it was compared with an earlier interface for a series of medical visualization tasks.

Learning style theories: matching preceptors, learners, and teaching strategies in the perioperative setting.

PubMed

Chase, C R

2001-10-01

Individuals have unique learning styles that develop in childhood and remain constant throughout adulthood. One approach to orienting and training staff and students is to match individuals with a preceptor with a similar learning style. Benefits of matching learning styles and using appropriate teaching strategies for each learning style include decreased anxiety and increased staff and student satisfaction. This is a US government work. There are no restrictions on its use.

Solar Mirror Fabrication in the Technical Services Building

NASA Image and Video Library

1966-02-21

Daniel Bernatowicz, Chief of the Advanced Power Systems Branch at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Lewis Research Center, examines a 20-foot section of a solar mirror being fabricated in the Jig Bore Room of the Technical Services Building. NASA Lewis was conducting a wide-ranging effort to explore methods of generating electrical power for spacecraft. One method employed a large parabolic mirror to concentrate the sun’s energy. The mirror had to remain rigid and withstand micrometeoroids, but remain light and compact enough to be easily launched. In 1963 Bernatowicz and his researchers undertook a program to design a solar mirror to work with the Brayton cycle system on a space station. The mirror in this photograph was prepared for a conference on Advanced Technology in Space Power Systems held at Lewis in late August 1966. Lewis experts discussed advances with batteries, fuel cells, isotope and thermoelectric generators, and the SNAP-8 space power system. Lewis was developing several types of solar mirrors to work with a Brayton cycle electric generating system. The mirror’s 12 sections were shaped using a unique forming process developed at Lewis, coated with an epoxy, and plated with aluminum. The mirror concentrated the Sun's rays on a heat storage receiver containing lithium fluoride. This material was heated to produce power in a turbogenerator system, while additional heat was stored for use when the unit was in the Earth's shadow.

Return of overseas contract workers and their rehabilitation and development in Kerala (India). A critical account of policies, performance and prospects.

PubMed

Nair, P R

1999-01-01

This article reviews the situation of labor migrants from Kerala state, India, who were 40-60% of all contract workers in the Middle East and who returned after the mid-1980s. Descriptions are provided of the characteristics of return migrants, the Kerala economy, return migration policies, and impact studies of returnees. About 500,000 returned to Kerala. Returnees were middle aged, with low levels of education, skills, and experience. About 50% of returnees remained unemployed. The other 50% either retired or sought self-employment or other wage labor. Surveys conducted in 1985, 1987, 1993-93, and 1997 reveal that returnees peaked during the 1990s. By 1997, returnees to the Kadinamkulam panchayat included about one-sixth who were women. Most returnees had worked in Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and Kuwait. The reasons for return were poor working and living conditions, lack of opportunity or contract for staying longer, or forced repatriation. Upon return, 50% of the women and about 16% of the men remained unemployed. Return wages were about the same as before the migration. Returnees complained about the lack of support from government and society. Impact studies do not differentiate migration effects from development effects in general. Evaluation should focus on multidimensional impacts and individual attainment of emigration goals.

Associations between work-related stress in late midlife, educational attainment, and serious health problems in old age: a longitudinal study with over 20 years of follow-up.

PubMed

Nilsen, Charlotta; Andel, Ross; Fors, Stefan; Meinow, Bettina; Darin Mattsson, Alexander; Kåreholt, Ingemar

2014-08-27

People spend a considerable amount of time at work over the course of their lives, which makes the workplace important to health and aging. However, little is known about the potential long-term effects of work-related stress on late-life health. This study aims to examine work-related stress in late midlife and educational attainment in relation to serious health problems in old age. Data from nationally representative Swedish surveys were used in the analyses (n = 1,502). Follow-up time was 20-24 years. Logistic regressions were used to examine work-related stress (self-reported job demands, job control, and job strain) in relation to serious health problems measured as none, serious problems in one health domain, and serious problems in two or three health domains (complex health problems). While not all results were statistically significant, high job demands were associated with higher odds of serious health problems among women but lower odds of serious health problems among men. Job control was negatively associated with serious health problems. The strongest association in this study was between high job strain and complex health problems. After adjustment for educational attainment some of the associations became statistically nonsignificant. However, high job demands, remained related to lower odds of serious problems in one health domain among men, and low job control remained associated with higher odds of complex health problems among men. High job demands were associated with lower odds of complex health problems among men with low education, but not among men with high education, or among women regardless of level of education. The results underscore the importance of work-related stress for long-term health. Modification to work environment to reduce work stress (e.g., providing opportunities for self-direction/monitoring levels of psychological job demands) may serve as a springboard for the development of preventive strategies to improve public health both before and after retirement.

Becoming and remaining community health workers: perspectives from Ethiopia and Mozambique.

PubMed

Maes, Kenneth; Kalofonos, Ippolytos

2013-06-01

Many global health practitioners are currently reaffirming the importance of recruiting and retaining effective community health workers (CHWs) in order to achieve major public health goals. This raises policy-relevant questions about why people become and remain CHWs. This paper addresses these questions, drawing on ethnographic work in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, between 2006 and 2009, and in Chimoio, a provincial town in central Mozambique, between 2003 and 2010. Participant observation and in-depth interviews were used to understand the life histories that lead people to become CHWs, their relationships with intended beneficiaries after becoming CHWs, and their social and economic aspirations. People in Ethiopia and Mozambique have faced similar political and economic challenges in the last few decades, involving war, structural adjustment, and food price inflation. Results suggest that these challenges, as well as the socio-moral values that people come to uphold through the example of parents and religious communities, influence why and how men and women become CHWs. Relationships with intended beneficiaries strongly influence why people remain CHWs, and why some may come to experience frustration and distress. There are complex reasons why CHWs come to seek greater compensation, including desires to escape poverty and to materially support families and other community members, a sense of deservingness given the emotional and social work involved in maintaining relationships with beneficiaries, and inequity vis-à-vis higher-salaried elites. Ethnographic work is needed to engage CHWs in the policy process, help shape new standards for CHW programs based on rooting out social and economic inequities, and develop appropriate solutions to complex CHW policy problems. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Becoming and remaining community health workers: Perspectives from Ethiopia and Mozambique

PubMed Central

Maes, Kenneth; Kalofonos, Ippolytos

2013-01-01

Many global health practitioners are currently reaffirming the importance of recruiting and retaining effective community health workers (CHWs) in order to achieve major public health goals. This raises policy-relevant questions about why people become and remain CHWs. This paper addresses these questions, drawing on ethnographic work in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, between 2006 and 2009, and in Chimoio, a provincial town in central Mozambique, between 2003 and 2010. Participant observation and in-depth interviews were used to understand the life histories that lead people to become CHWs, their relationships with intended beneficiaries after becoming CHWs, and their social and economic aspirations. People in Ethiopia and Mozambique have faced similar political and economic challenges in the last few decades, involving war, structural adjustment, and food price inflation. Results suggest that these challenges, as well as the socio-moral values that people come to uphold through the example of parents and religious communities, influence why and how men and women become CHWs. Relationships with intended beneficiaries strongly influence why people remain CHWs, and why some may come to experience frustration and distress. There are complex reasons why CHWs come to seek greater compensation, including desires to escape poverty and to materially support families and other community members, a sense of deservingness given the emotional and social work involved in maintaining relationships with beneficiaries, and inequity vis-à-vis higher-salaried elites. Ethnographic work is needed to engage CHWs in the policy process, help shape new standards for CHW programs based on rooting out social and economic inequities, and develop appropriate solutions to complex CHW policy problems. PMID:23631778

Working with a child's envy in the transference.

PubMed

Gericke, Renate

2006-10-01

In literature, envy has long been written of as one of the seven cardinal sins. In biblical mythology, envy as a consequence of vanity can be understood to be the reason for archangel Lucifer's fall from a state of heavenly grace and unionship. Freud was the first psychoanalytic theorist to introduce the idea of envy, albeit through his controversial concept of penis envy. Karl Abrahams and Melanie Klein later placed envy at the crucial developing stages of the relationship between primary caregiver and infant. Klein boldly identified envy as a primary constitutional emotion. However, the presence and difficulties of envy in clinical work remain largely underreported, more so in work with children. This paper asks whether an attachment base can be secure if envy is dominant. The analysis of a nine-year-old girl ('Kirsten') and her envious transference with her therapist will be examined, to explore the relationship between envy and attachment security. While contemporary research focuses on developing attachment theory in relation to specific psychiatric conditions, this paper will discuss affect as the binding link or disruptive force between self and object representations, that then determine attachment security.

Work reality perceived by individuals with impairments: a biopsychosocial experience.

PubMed

Coelho, Cecília Martins; Sampaio, Rosana Ferreira; Luz, Madel Therezinha; Mancini, Marisa Cotta

2013-01-01

Individuals with different impairments are working in the formal and/or informal market despite physical and attitudinal barriers. To date, few studies have addressed this situation from the perspective of the individuals. Apprehend factors that restrict work performance in the perspective of workers with impairments and identify the strategies employed and the difficulties faced. Individuals with impairment who exercised paid activities. Thirty semi-structured interviews and eleven observations of individuals in work activities. Limitations stemming from participants' disability and health status had an influence over their execution of tasks, but did not compromise work performance. Environmental factors that impacted as facilitators or barriers were: lack of preparation of colleagues, employers, education and rehabilitation systems; attitudes and coexistence; accessibility, implementation of land use policies, urban structures and transportation; products and technology; and distributive policies. Personal factors (upbringing, self-esteem, good mood, outgoingness, communicability, willpower, age and how the disability was acquired) also influenced participation at work. Important strategies included recognizing and sharing capabilities and needs, which minimized or eliminated difficulties at work. Workers with impairments developed effective strategies for dealing with adverse situations, which remained in the individual realm. Working with impairments is a complex experience that demands overcoming old paradigms.

Work experiences, professional development and career prospects of New Zealand dental house surgeons.

PubMed

Kim, Jenny J; Antoun, Joseph S

2010-12-01

New dental graduates compete for house surgeon positions every year, despite little being known about the work experience gained from such posts. The main objectives of this study were to identify the nature of house surgeons' work experiences, their continued professional development (CPD) opportunities and the impact of hospital experience on their future career pathways. A questionnaire was mailed to all 31 New Zealand dental house surgeons (response rate 100%). The majority of house surgeons (77.4%) found hospital work enjoyable, with nearly all (93.5%) perceiving themselves as better clinicians from their experience. Oral surgery, restorative dentistry, special needs dentistry and removable prosthodontics were the most commonly practised areas. The average weekly number of working hours was 42.3 hours for a normal week and 61.8 hours for an on-call week. Stress levels during on-call work were significantly higher than during day-to-day hospital work (p < 0.05). Departmental seminars were reported to be the most common form of CPD available at hospitals (74.2%), followed by hands-on clinical training (61.3%). More than half of the house surgeons (58.1%) planned to pursue a specialist career, with nearly 13% wishing to return to a New Zealand hospital in the future. A dental house surgeon position remains an attractive choice and offers an enjoyable experience for young graduates. Hospitals provide ample CPD opportunities and appear to play an influential role in a house surgeon's career pathway.

Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle Active Thermal Control and Environmental Control and Life Support Development Status

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lewis, John F.; Barido, Richard A.; Cross, Cynthia D.; Rains, George Edward

2013-01-01

The Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV) is the first crew transport vehicle to be developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in the last thirty years. Orion is currently being developed to transport the crew safely beyond Earth orbit. This year, the vehicle focused on building the Exploration Flight Test 1 (EFT1) vehicle to be launched in 2014. The development of the Orion Environmental Control and Life Support (ECLS) System, focused on the completing the components which are on EFT1. Additional development work has been done to keep the remaining component progressing towards implementation for a flight tests in of EM1 in 2017 and in and EM2 in 2020. This paper covers the Orion ECLS development from April 2012 to April 2013.

Orion Multi Purpose Crew Vehicle Environmental Control and Life Support Development Status

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lewis, John F.; Barido, Richard A.; Cross, Cynthia D.; Carrasquillo, Robyn; Rains, George Edward

2012-01-01

The Orion Multi Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV) is the first crew transport vehicle to be developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in the last thirty years. Orion is currently being developed to transport the crew safely from the Earth beyond Earth orbit. This year, the vehicle focused on building the Exploration Flight Test 1 (EFT1) vehicle to be launched in 2014. The development of the Orion Environmental Control and Life Support (ECLS) System, focused on the components which are on EFT1 which includes pressure control and active thermal control systems, is progressing through the design stage into manufacturing. Additional development work was done to keep the remaining component progressing towards implementation for a flight tests in 2017 and in 2020. This paper covers the Orion ECLS development from April 2011 to April 2012.

Multi Purpose Crew Vehicle Environmental Control and Life Support Development Status

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lewis, John F.; Barido, Richard A.; Cross, Cynthia D.; Carrasquillo, Robyn; Rains, George Edward

2011-01-01

The Orion Multi Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV) is the first crew transport vehicle to be developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in the last thirty years. Orion is currently being developed to transport the crew safely from the Earth beyond Earth orbit. This year, the vehicle focused on building the Orion Flight Test 1 (OFT1) vehicle to be launched in 2013. The development of the Orion Environmental Control and Life Support (ECLS) System, focused on the components which are on OFT1 which includes pressure control and active thermal control systems, is progressing through the design stage into manufacturing. Additional development work was done to keep the remaining component progressing towards implementation for a flight test in 2017. This paper covers the Orion ECLS development from April 2011 to April 2012.

Space fabrication demonstration system. [beam builder and induction fastening

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1980-01-01

The development effort on the composite beam cap fabricator was completed within cost and close to abbreviated goals. The design and analysis of flight weight primary and secondary beam builder structures proceeded satisfactorily but remains curtailed until further funding is made available to complete the work. The induction fastening effort remains within cost and schedule constraints. Tests of the LARC prototype induction welder is continuing in an instrumented test stand comprised of a Dumore drill press (air over oil feed for variable applied loads) and a dynamometer to measure actual welding loads. Continued testing shows that the interface screening must be well impregnated with resin to ensure proper flow when bonding graphite-acrylic lap shear samples. Specimens prepared from 0.030 inch thick graphite-polyethersulfone are also available for future induction fastening evaluation.

Enhanced, targeted sampling of high-dimensional free-energy landscapes using variationally enhanced sampling, with an application to chignolin

PubMed Central

Shaffer, Patrick; Valsson, Omar; Parrinello, Michele

2016-01-01

The capabilities of molecular simulations have been greatly extended by a number of widely used enhanced sampling methods that facilitate escaping from metastable states and crossing large barriers. Despite these developments there are still many problems which remain out of reach for these methods which has led to a vigorous effort in this area. One of the most important problems that remains unsolved is sampling high-dimensional free-energy landscapes and systems that are not easily described by a small number of collective variables. In this work we demonstrate a new way to compute free-energy landscapes of high dimensionality based on the previously introduced variationally enhanced sampling, and we apply it to the miniprotein chignolin. PMID:26787868

Infant motor and cognitive abilities and subsequent executive function.

PubMed

Wu, Meng; Liang, Xi; Lu, Shan; Wang, Zhengyan

2017-11-01

Although executive function (EF) is widely considered crucial to several aspects of life, the mechanisms underlying EF development remain largely unexplored, especially for infants. From a behavioral or neurodevelopmental perspective, motor and general cognitive abilities are linked with EF. EF development is a multistage process that starts with sensorimotor interactive behaviors, which become basic cognitive abilities and, in turn, mature EF. This study aims to examine how infant motor and general cognitive abilities are linked with their EF at 3 years of age. This work also aims to explore the potential processes of EF development from early movement. A longitudinal study was conducted with 96 infants (55 girls and 41 boys). The infants' motor and general cognitive abilities were assessed at 1 and 2 years of age with Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development, Second and Third Editions, respectively. Infants' EFs were assessed at 3 years of age with Working Memory Span task, Day-Night task, Wrapped Gift task, and modified Gift-in-Bag task. Children with higher scores for cognitive ability at 2 years of age performed better in working memory, and children with higher scores for gross motor ability at 2 years performed better in cognitive inhibitory control (IC). Motor ability at 1 year and fine/gross motor ability at 2 years indirectly affected cognitive IC via general cognitive ability at 2 years and working memory. EF development is a multistage process that originates from physical movement to simple cognitive function, and then to complex cognitive function. Infants and toddlers can undergo targeted motor training to promote EF development. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Welfare reform and health insurance: consequences for parents.

PubMed

Holl, Jane L; Slack, Kristen Shook; Stevens, Amy Bush

2005-02-01

We assessed the relation between the work promotion, welfare reduction, and marriage goals of welfare reform and the stability of health insurance of parents in transition from welfare to work. We analyzed a panel survey (1999-2002) of a stratified random sample of Illinois families receiving welfare in 1998 (n=1363). Medicaid remains the foremost source of health insurance despite a significant decline in the proportion of parents with Medicaid. Regardless of work/welfare status in year 1, transitioning to work only or no work/no welfare increased the likelihood of having unstable health insurance in years 2 and 3 compared with those who remained on welfare only. Parents who meet the welfare reform goals of work promotion and reduction of welfare dependence experience significant loss and instability of health insurance.

Why work in perioperative nursing? Baby boomers and Generation Xers tell all.

PubMed

Thompson, Julia A

2007-10-01

This quantitative and qualitative study explored factors that influence nurses of different age groups to choose to work in and remain in the specialty of OR nursing, including the effect of work environment perceptions. Baby boomer nurses (n = 130) and Generation X nurses (n = 117) were surveyed, and seven RNs from each group also participated in semistructured interviews. Results showed that nurses of both age groups were more alike than different in the factors that influence them to choose and remain in OR nursing and in their perceptions of their work environment. Baby Boomers indicated a higher level of commitment to their jobs than did Generation Xers.

Retaining vets in farm animal practice: a cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Adam, K; Baillie, S; Rushton, J

2015-06-20

Concerns have been raised about a potential shortage of farm animal vets in the UK. There is no apparent lack of new graduates willing to work with farm animals, but practices report difficulties in recruiting and retaining experienced farm animal vets. Retention of vets in farm animal practice has been identified as a key issue for the sustainability of veterinary businesses and livestock health. A cross-sectional study design was used to identify factors associated with vets remaining in farm animal practice. Data were collected via an online questionnaire covering employment, education, personal background and future plans. The target population was vets with experience of farm animal work in the UK. 380 responses were included in the analysis. Working in a practice where accommodation was provided and an increasing number of years since graduation were associated with significantly lower odds of remaining in farm animal practice, while working in a practice where staff appraisals were carried out; coming from a family with a commercial farm; spending more time on farm work and being on call with an experienced vet in the first job after graduation increased the odds of remaining in farm work. Gender was not significantly associated with retention. British Veterinary Association.

Training Substance Use Disorder Counselors in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Depression: Development and Initial Exploration of an Online Training Program.

PubMed

Curran, Geoffrey M; Woo, Stephanie M; Hepner, Kimberly A; Lai, Wen Pin; Kramer, Teresa L; Drummond, Karen L; Weingardt, Ken

2015-11-01

Evidence based psychotherapies (EBPs) remain underutilized. Models for EBP training and implementation that are cost-effective, minimally disruptive, and sufficiently flexible are needed. Internet-based technology is a promising platform, but questions remain about how this technology can address the barriers to implementation. We developed and examined the implementation of an online training for the Building Recovery by Improving Goals, Habits, and Thoughts (BRIGHT) intervention-a manualized, sixteen-session group depression treatment for individuals with substance use disorders (SUDs). We explored the feasibility of replacing in-person BRIGHT training with a self-paced, online training. A highly partnered and iterative process was followed to translate the written BRIGHT manual and associated didactic training materials into a media rich, interactive, and detailed (12-16 h) online training. Subsequently, 8 volunteer counselors across 7 Veterans' Affairs SUD programs completed the training. Semi-structured interviews focused on the counselors' experiences and their plans for implementing BRIGHT groups. A template approach, using a mixture of deductive and inductive coding, was used for data analyses. The most important barrier to completing training was a lack of protected time. Most counselors were not afforded protected time and reported a sometimes frustrating and fragmented training experience. Many used personal time at work and at home to complete the work. Facilitators to completing the training included positive reactions/attitudes towards the training modules, supervisor support, counselor dedication, and strong beliefs supporting providing services for depression. Many counselors were also concerned about the feasibility of fitting 16 group sessions (2h each) into their program's clinical schedule, but many had devised potential solutions or "work-arounds" to accommodate or approximate the recommended treatment course (e.g., using lunch times, reducing some content/exercises). This work contributes to the literature on implementation of complex EBPs and addresses the strengths and limitations of web-based technologies in supporting the implementation of EBPs. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Socioeconomic status and executive function: developmental trajectories and mediation.

PubMed

Hackman, Daniel A; Gallop, Robert; Evans, Gary W; Farah, Martha J

2015-09-01

Childhood socioeconomic status (SES) predicts executive function (EF), but fundamental aspects of this relation remain unknown: the developmental course of the SES disparity, its continued sensitivity to SES changes during that course, and the features of childhood experience responsible for the SES-EF relation. Regarding course, early disparities would be expected to grow during development if caused by accumulating stressors at a given constant level of SES. Alternatively, they would narrow if schooling partly compensates for the effects of earlier deprivation, allowing lower-SES children to 'catch up'. The potential for later childhood SES change to affect EF is also unknown. Regarding mediating factors, previous analyses produced mixed answers, possibly due to correlation amongst candidate mediators. We address these issues with measures of SES, working memory and planning, along with multiple candidate mediators, from the NICHD Study of Early Childcare (n = 1009). Early family income-to-needs and maternal education predicted planning by first grade, and income-to-needs predicted working memory performance at 54 months. Effects of early SES remained consistent through middle childhood, indicating that the relation between early indicators of SES and EF emerges in childhood and persists without narrowing or widening across early and middle childhood. Changes in family income-to-needs were associated with significant changes in planning and trend-level changes in working memory. Mediation analyses supported the role of early childhood home characteristics in explaining the association between SES and EF, while early childhood maternal sensitivity was specifically implicated in the association between maternal education and planning. Early emerging and persistent SES-related differences in EF, partially explained by characteristics of the home and family environment, are thus a potential source of socioeconomic disparities in achievement and health across development. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Effective implementation of work-hour limits and systemic improvements.

PubMed

Landrigan, Christopher P; Czeisler, Charles A; Barger, Laura K; Ayas, Najib T; Rothschild, Jeffrey M; Lockley, Steven W

2007-11-01

Sleep deprivation, ubiquitous among nurses and physicians, recently has been shown to greatly increase rates of serious medical errors and occupational injuries among health care workers in the United States. The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education's current work-hour limits for physicians-in-training allow work hours well in excess of those proven safe. No regulations limit the work hours of other groups of health care providers in the United States. Consequently, nursing work shifts exceeding 12 hours remain common. Physician-in-training shifts of 30 consecutive hours continue to be endorsed officially, and data demonstrate that even the 30-hour limit is exceeded routinely. By contrast, European health care workers are limited by law to 13 consecutive hours of work and to 48-56 hours of work per week. Except for a few institutions that have eliminated 24-hour shifts, as a whole, the United States lags far behind other industrialized nations in ensuring safe work hours. Preventing health care provider sleep deprivation could be an extremely powerful means of addressing the epidemic of medical errors in the United States. Implementation of evidence-based work-hour limits, scientifically designed work schedules, and infrastructural changes, such as the development of standardized handoff systems, are urgently needed.

[Morphological verification problems of Chernobyl factor influence on the testis of coal miners of Donbas-liquidators of Chernobyl accident].

PubMed

Danylov, Iu V; Motkov, K V; Shevchenko, T I

2013-01-01

Problem of a diagnostic of Chernobyl factor influences on different organs and systems of Chernobyl accident liquidators are remain actually until now. Though morbidly background which development at unfavorable work conditions in underground coalminers prevents from objective identification features of Chernobyl factor influences. The qualitative and quantitative histological and immunohistochemical law of morphogenesis changes in testis of Donbas's coalminer - non-liquidators Chernobyl accident in comparison with the group of Donbas's coalminers-liquidators Chernobyl accident, which we were stationed non determined problem. This reason stipulates to development and practical use of mathematical model of morphogenesis of a testis changes.

[Morphological verification problems of Chernobyl factor influence on the prostate of coalminers of Donbas--liquidators of Chernobyl accident].

PubMed

Danylov, Iu V; Motkov, K V; Shevchenko, T I

2013-12-01

Problem of a diagnostic of Chernobyl factor influences on different organs and systems of Chernobyl accident liquidators are remain actually until now. Though morbidly background which development at unfavorable work conditions in underground coalminers prevents from objective identification features of Chernobyl factor influences. The qualitative and quantitative histological and immunohistochemical law of morphogenesis changes in prostate of Donbas's coalminer-non-liquidators Chernobyl accident in comparison with the group of Donbas's coalminers-liquidators Chernobyl accident which we were stationed non determined problem. This reason stipulates to development and practical use of mathematical model of morphogenesis of a prostatic gland changes.

Recent advances in our understanding of human host responses to tuberculosis

PubMed Central

Schluger, Neil W

2001-01-01

Tuberculosis remains one of the world's greatest public health challenges: 2 billion persons have latent infection, 8 million people develop active tuberculosis annually, and 2–3 million die. Recently, significant advances in our understanding of the human immune response against tuberculosis have occurred. The present review focuses on recent work in macrophage and T-cell biology that sheds light on the human immune response to tuberculosis. The role of key cytokines such as interferon-γ is discussed, as is the role of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells in immune regulation in tuberculosis, particularly with regard to implications for vaccine development and evaluation. PMID:11686880

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories Perspective on Code Development and High Performance Computing Resources in Support of the National HED/ICF Effort

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

Clouse, C. J.; Edwards, M. J.; McCoy, M. G.

2015-07-07

Through its Advanced Scientific Computing (ASC) and Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF) code development efforts, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) provides a world leading numerical simulation capability for the National HED/ICF program in support of the Stockpile Stewardship Program (SSP). In addition the ASC effort provides high performance computing platform capabilities upon which these codes are run. LLNL remains committed to, and will work with, the national HED/ICF program community to help insure numerical simulation needs are met and to make those capabilities available, consistent with programmatic priorities and available resources.

Development of a Behavioral Sleep Intervention as a Novel Approach for Pediatric Obesity in School-aged Children.

PubMed

Hart, Chantelle N; Hawley, Nicola L; Wing, Rena R

2016-06-01

Despite being the focus of widespread public health efforts, childhood obesity remains an epidemic worldwide. Given the now well-documented consequences of obesity for childhood health and psychosocial functioning, as well as associated morbidity in adulthood, identifying novel, modifiable behaviors that can be targeted to improve weight control is imperative. Enhancing children's sleep may show promise in assisting with weight regulation. The present paper describes the development of a brief behavioral sleep intervention for school-aged children, including preliminary findings of this work as well as areas for future study. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Factors affecting job satisfaction and retention of medical laboratory professionals in seven countries of Sub-Saharan Africa

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Effective implementation and sustainability of quality laboratory programmes in Sub-Saharan Africa relies on the development of appropriate staff retention strategies. Assessing the factors responsible for job satisfaction and retention is key for tailoring specific interventions aiming at improving the overall impact of health programmes. A survey was developed to assess these factors among 224 laboratorians working in the laboratory programme the University of Maryland implemented in seven Sub-Saharan African countries. Lack of professional development was the major reason for leaving the previous job for 28% of interviewees who changed jobs in the past five years. Professional development/training opportunities was indicated by almost 90% (195/224) of total interviewees as the most important or a very important factor for satisfaction at their current job. Similarly, regular professional development/opportunities for training was the highest rated incentive to remain at their current job by 80% (179/224). Laboratory professionals employed in the private sector were more likely to change jobs than those working in the public sector (P = 0.002). The findings were used for developing specific strategies for human resources management, in particular targeting professional development, aiming at improving laboratory professionals within the University of Maryland laboratory programme and hence its long-term sustainability. PMID:23958152

Factors affecting job satisfaction and retention of medical laboratory professionals in seven countries of Sub-Saharan Africa.

PubMed

Marinucci, Francesco; Majigo, Mtebe; Wattleworth, Matthew; Paterniti, Antonio Damiano; Hossain, Mian Bazle; Redfield, Robert

2013-08-17

Effective implementation and sustainability of quality laboratory programmes in Sub-Saharan Africa relies on the development of appropriate staff retention strategies. Assessing the factors responsible for job satisfaction and retention is key for tailoring specific interventions aiming at improving the overall impact of health programmes. A survey was developed to assess these factors among 224 laboratorians working in the laboratory programme the University of Maryland implemented in seven Sub-Saharan African countries. Lack of professional development was the major reason for leaving the previous job for 28% of interviewees who changed jobs in the past five years. Professional development/training opportunities was indicated by almost 90% (195/224) of total interviewees as the most important or a very important factor for satisfaction at their current job. Similarly, regular professional development/opportunities for training was the highest rated incentive to remain at their current job by 80% (179/224). Laboratory professionals employed in the private sector were more likely to change jobs than those working in the public sector (P = 0.002). The findings were used for developing specific strategies for human resources management, in particular targeting professional development, aiming at improving laboratory professionals within the University of Maryland laboratory programme and hence its long-term sustainability.

Development of Macroscale Models of UO 2 Fuel Sintering and Densification using Multiscale Modeling and Simulation

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

Greenquist, Ian; Tonks, Michael

2016-10-01

Light water reactor fuel pellets are fabricated using sintering to final densities of 95% or greater. During reactor operation, the porosity remaining in the fuel after fabrication decreases further due to irradiation-assisted densification. While empirical models have been developed to describe this densification process, a mechanistic model is needed as part of the ongoing work by the NEAMS program to develop a more predictive fuel performance code. In this work we will develop a phase field model of sintering of UO 2 in the MARMOT code, and validate it by comparing to published sintering data. We will then add themore » capability to capture irradiation effects into the model, and use it to develop a mechanistic model of densification that will go into the BISON code and add another essential piece to the microstructure-based materials models. The final step will be to add the effects of applied fields, to model field-assisted sintering of UO 2. The results of the phase field model will be validated by comparing to data from field-assisted sintering. Tasks over three years: 1. Develop a sintering model for UO 2 in MARMOT 2. Expand model to account for irradiation effects 3. Develop a mechanistic macroscale model of densification for BISON« less

Summary Report of the Summer Conference DARPA-Materials Research Council Held in La Jolla, California on 10 July thru 4 August 1989

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-08-04

ceramic substrate and a multilayer thin film metal (copper) and polymer ( polyimide ) overlays. 73 The MCM technology was pioneered by IBM, which has made...packaging. The first is the use of polymeric dielectric layers such as polyimides . In fact, the current MCP’s 3 being developed for the DoD use... polyimide dielectrics. Nonetheless, much work remains to be done before these organic dielectrics can be regarded as Isatisfactory. Polyimides have a

U.S. Strategic Nuclear Forces: Background, Developments, and Issues

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-03-18

5d. PROJECT NUMBER 5e. TASK NUMBER 5f. WORK UNIT NUMBER 7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) Congressional Research Service,The...extend the life of the missiles and warheads so that they and the submarines can remain in the fleet past 2020. It is designing a new submarine and...modifying and extending the life of the B61 bomb carried on B-2 bombers and fighter aircraft. The Obama Administration completed a review of the size and

U.S. Strategic Nuclear Forces: Background, Developments, and Issues

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-09-05

S) 5d. PROJECT NUMBER 5e. TASK NUMBER 5f. WORK UNIT NUMBER 7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) Congressional Research Service,The...Pacific Ocean and five are in the Atlantic, to better cover targets in and around Asia. It also has undertaken efforts to extend the life of the...serve as test assets for the remaining force. He noted that the Air Force had to “keep a robust test program all the way through the life of the

Coal conversion systems design and process modeling. Volume 2: Installation of MPPM on the Signal 9 computer

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1981-01-01

Relevant differences between the MPPM resident IBM 370computer and the NASA Sigma 9 computer are described as well as the MPPM system itself and its development. Problems encountered and solutions used to overcome these difficulties during installation of the MPPM system at MSFC are discussed. Remaining work on the installation effort is summarized. The relevant hardware features incorporated in the program are described and their implications on the transportability of the MPPM source code are examined.

The cell biology of mammalian fertilization.

PubMed

Okabe, Masaru

2013-11-01

Fertilization is the process by which eggs and spermatozoa interact, achieve mutual recognition, and fuse to create a zygote, which then develops to form a new individual, thus allowing for the continuity of a species. Despite numerous studies on mammalian fertilization, the molecular mechanisms underpinning the fertilization event remain largely unknown. However, as I summarize here, recent work using both gene-manipulated animals and in vitro studies has begun to elucidate essential sperm and egg molecules and to establish predictive models of successful fertilization.

Hierarchical Modelling Of Mobile, Seeing Robots

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Luh, Cheng-Jye; Zeigler, Bernard P.

1990-03-01

This paper describes the implementation of a hierarchical robot simulation which supports the design of robots with vision and mobility. A seeing robot applies a classification expert system for visual identification of laboratory objects. The visual data acquisition algorithm used by the robot vision system has been developed to exploit multiple viewing distances and perspectives. Several different simulations have been run testing the visual logic in a laboratory environment. Much work remains to integrate the vision system with the rest of the robot system.

Hierarchical modelling of mobile, seeing robots

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Luh, Cheng-Jye; Zeigler, Bernard P.

1990-01-01

This paper describes the implementation of a hierarchical robot simulation which supports the design of robots with vision and mobility. A seeing robot applies a classification expert system for visual identification of laboratory objects. The visual data acquisition algorithm used by the robot vision system has been developed to exploit multiple viewing distances and perspectives. Several different simulations have been run testing the visual logic in a laboratory environment. Much work remains to integrate the vision system with the rest of the robot system.

[Diverticular disease of the large bowel - surgical treatment].

PubMed

Levý, M; Herdegen, P; Sutoris, K; Simša, J

2013-07-01

Surgical treatment, despite the rapid development of the numerous modern miniinvasive intervention techniques, remains essential in the treatment of complicated diverticular disease. The aim of this work is to summarize indications for surgical treatment in both acute and elective patients suffering from diverticular disease of the large bowel. Review of the literature and recent findings concerning indications for surgical intervention in patients with diverticulosis of the colon. The article describes indications, types of procedures, techniques and postoperative care in patients undergoing surgical intervention for diverticular disease.

Concerning modeling of double-stage water evaporation cooling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shatskiy, V. P.; Fedulova, L. I.; Gridneva, I. V.

2018-03-01

The matter of need for setting technical norms for production, as well as acceptable microclimate parameters, such as temperature and humidity, at the work place, remains urgent. Use of certain units should be economically sound and that should be taken into account for construction, assembly, operation, technological, and environmental requirements. Water evaporation coolers are simple to maintain, environmentally friendly, and quite cheap, but the development of the most efficient solutions requires mathematical modeling of the heat and mass transfer processes that take place in them.

Presidential Address 2004: A celebration of women in astronomy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Burnell, Jocelyn Bell

2004-12-01

Women have made significant contributions to the development of astronomy as a science, yet their work has been restricted, unregarded and little recognized. Here I outline some significant careers and show how these talented and determined women overcame the restrictions on their lives to make their marks. Their solid achievements came at considerable cost and attracted little professional recognition. I then consider how far astronomy has progressed at the present day. There remain limited numbers of professional women astronomers; what still stops women choosing this career?

Indications of pleistocene man on Sardinia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hofmeijer, G. Klein; Sondaar, P. Y.; Alderliesten, C.; Van Der Borg, K.; De Jong, A. F. M.

1987-11-01

Human fossils found in a Pre-Neolithic cave deposit (Corbeddu cave, Sardinia) represent the first human remains associated with an endemic impoverished island fauna. Radiocarbon dating by AMS in Utrecht provided the chronological framework of the cave sediments for better understanding of the time-related human activities. The aberrant morphology of the human fossils and the unique character of worked deer bones discovered, suggest the development of an endemic Pleistocene human culture, adapted to the restricted island conditions and the hunting of ochotonids and deer.

Manatee County government's commitment to Florida's water resources

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

Hunsicker, C.

1998-07-01

With ever increasing development demands in coastal areas and subsequent declines in natural resources, especially water, coastal communities must identify creative options for sustaining remaining water resources and an accepted standard of living. The Manatee County agricultural reuse project, using reclaimed wastewater is part of a water resource program, is designed to meet these challenges. The reuse system works in concert with consumer conservation practices and efficiency of use measures which are being implemented by all public and private sector water users in this southwest Florida community.

Searching the soil: forensic importance of edaphic fauna after the removal of a corpse.

PubMed

Saloña, Marta I; Moraza, M Lourdes; Carles-Tolrá, Miguel; Iraola, Victor; Bahillo, Pablo; Yélamos, Tomás; Outerelo, Raimundo; Alcaraz, Rafael

2010-11-01

Arthropods at different stages of development collected from human remains in an advanced stage of decomposition (following autopsy) and from the soil at the scene are reported. The corpse was found in a mixed deciduous forest of Biscay (northern Spain). Soil fauna was extracted by sieving the soil where the corpse lay and placing the remains in Berlese-Tullgren funnels. Necrophagous fauna on the human remains was dominated by the fly Piophilidae: Stearibia nigriceps (Meigen, 1826), mites Ascidae: Proctolaelaps epuraeae (Hirschmann, 1963), Laelapidae: Hypoaspis (Gaeolaelaps) aculeifer (Canestrini, 1884), and the beetle Cleridae: Necrobia rufipes (de Geer, 1775). We confirm the importance of edaphic fauna, especially if the deceased is discovered in natural environs. Related fauna may remain for days after corpse removal and reveal information related to the circumstances of death. The species Nitidulidae: Omosita depressa (Linnaeus, 1758), Acaridae: Sancassania berlesei (Michael, 1903), Ascidae: Zerconopsis remiger (Kramer, 1876) and P. epuraeae, Urodinychidae: Uroobovella pulchella (Berlese, 1904), and Macrochelidae: Glyptholaspis americana (Berlese, 1888) were recorded for the first time in the Iberian Peninsula. 2010 American Academy of Forensic Sciences. Published 2010. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the U.S.A.

Developing models of how cognitive improvements change functioning: Mediation, moderation and moderated mediation

PubMed Central

Wykes, Til; Reeder, Clare; Huddy, Vyv; Taylor, Rumina; Wood, Helen; Ghirasim, Natalia; Kontis, Dimitrios; Landau, Sabine

2012-01-01

Background Cognitive remediation (CRT) affects functioning but the extent and type of cognitive improvements necessary are unknown. Aim To develop and test models of how cognitive improvement transfers to work behaviour using the data from a current service. Method Participants (N49) with a support worker and a paid or voluntary job were offered CRT in a Phase 2 single group design with three assessments: baseline, post therapy and follow-up. Working memory, cognitive flexibility, planning and work outcomes were assessed. Results Three models were tested (mediation — cognitive improvements drive functioning improvement; moderation — post treatment cognitive level affects the impact of CRT on functioning; moderated mediation — cognition drives functioning improvements only after a certain level is achieved). There was evidence of mediation (planning improvement associated with improved work quality). There was no evidence that cognitive flexibility (total Wisconsin Card Sorting Test errors) and working memory (Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale III digit span) mediated work functioning despite significant effects. There was some evidence of moderated mediation for planning improvement if participants had poorer memory and/or made fewer WCST errors. The total CRT effect on work quality was d = 0.55, but the indirect (planning-mediated CRT effect) was d = 0.082 Conclusion Planning improvements led to better work quality but only accounted for a small proportion of the total effect on work outcome. Other specific and non-specific effects of CRT and the work programme are likely to account for some of the remaining effect. This is the first time complex models have been tested and future Phase 3 studies need to further test mediation and moderated mediation models. PMID:22503640

The benefit of forgetting.

PubMed

Williams, Melonie; Hong, Sang W; Kang, Min-Suk; Carlisle, Nancy B; Woodman, Geoffrey F

2013-04-01

Recent research using change-detection tasks has shown that a directed-forgetting cue, indicating that a subset of the information stored in memory can be forgotten, significantly benefits the other information stored in visual working memory. How do these directed-forgetting cues aid the memory representations that are retained? We addressed this question in the present study by using a recall paradigm to measure the nature of the retained memory representations. Our results demonstrated that a directed-forgetting cue leads to higher-fidelity representations of the remaining items and a lower probability of dropping these representations from memory. Next, we showed that this is made possible by the to-be-forgotten item being expelled from visual working memory following the cue, allowing maintenance mechanisms to be focused on only the items that remain in visual working memory. Thus, the present findings show that cues to forget benefit the remaining information in visual working memory by fundamentally improving their quality relative to conditions in which just as many items are encoded but no cue is provided.

Examining practical nursing experiences to discover ways in which to retain and invigorate the remaining functions of the elderly with a demented and complex disability in nursing homes.

PubMed

Park, Min-Sun; Lim, Sun-Young; Kim, Eun-Young; Lee, Su-Jung; Chang, Sung-Ok

2018-01-01

The bedridden elderly with moderate-to-severe dementia account for a large proportion of the residents in nursing homes and form a specialized group requiring customized care in order to encourage their remaining functions, which determine the quality of their residual life. The purpose of this study was to search for ways to invigorate and foster the remaining functions of this complex-disability group, based on practical nursing strategies in nursing homes. The qualitative thematic analysis was done by conducting in-depth interviews with 29 nurses working at 11 different nursing homes in South Korea. This study proposed four main themes and 19 sub themes as keys for providing specialized nursing care to the elderly with physical and cognitive disabilities. The main themes encourage the residents' remaining functions: (i) accurate identification of an elderly resident's physical, cognitive, and behavioral baseline is necessary in order to determine their functional levels; (ii) nurses provide meticulous management to support the remaining functions in order to prevent further deterioration; (iii) optimized know-how, based on accumulated experience and knowledge, is reflected in nursing strategies that maximize the effects of nursing interventions; and (iv) steady compliance with nursing guidelines and standards in nursing homes creates the best therapeutic environment and brings unexpected positive changes in the elderly's status. A practical nursing strategy to target the group with a demented and complex disability in nursing homes was developed through thematic analysis of the empirical knowledge of nurses. The findings provide new insights for developing specialized nursing interventions and practical nursing models in long-term care facilities. © 2017 Japan Academy of Nursing Science.

Job leaving intentions and occupation-related beliefs amongst preregistered dental nurses in Scotland: the mediating role of work engagement and personal accomplishment.

PubMed

Forbes, Gillian; Freeman, Ruth; McCombes, Wendy; Humphris, Gerry

2014-02-01

To identify the job resource beliefs of preregistration dental nurses and subsequently investigate their relationship with work engagement, personal accomplishment and intention to leave amongst this occupational group in Scotland. A cross-sectional survey design was used. The Utrecht Work Engagement Scale, Personal accomplishment (a subscale of Maslach Burnout Inventory) and author-developed questions for job resource beliefs and intention to leave were the measuring instruments used. Two hundred and thirty-one dental nurses participated (82% response rate). Mean age was 25 and mean job tenure was 17.5 months. The job resource belief most valued was 'good working relationship'. A multiple mediated path analytical model was explored. Work engagement adjusted for job resource beliefs was very strongly negatively associated with intention to leave (-0.93). There was an indirect relationship between job resource beliefs and intention to leave (-0.28) mediated via work engagement and personal accomplishment. Dental nurses under training held job resource beliefs about their profession that were associated with work engagement, personal accomplishment and their stability of remaining in the job. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

The status of research ethics in social work.

PubMed

Ferguson, Aidan; Clark, James J

2018-01-01

Research ethics provide important and necessary standards related to the conduct and dissemination of research. To better understand the current state of research ethics discourse in social work, a systematic literature search was undertaken and numbers of publications per year were compared between STEM, social science, and social work disciplines. While many professions have embraced the need for discipline-specific research ethics subfield development, social work has remained absent. Low publication numbers, compared to other disciplines, were noted for the years (2006-2016) included in the study. Social work published 16 (1%) of the 1409 articles included in the study, contributing 3 (>1%) for each of the disciplines highest producing years (2011 and 2013). Comparatively, psychology produced 75 (5%) articles, psychiatry produced 64 (5%) articles, and nursing added 50 (4%) articles. The STEM disciplines contributed 956 (68%) articles between 2006 and 2016, while social science produced 453 (32%) articles. Examination of the results is provided in an extended discussion of several misconceptions about research ethics that may be found in the social work profession. Implications and future directions are provided, focusing on the need for increased engagement, education, research, and support for a new subfield of social work research ethics.

Disability, employment and work performance among people with ICD-10 anxiety disorders.

PubMed

Waghorn, Geoff; Chant, David; White, Paul; Whiteford, Harvey

2005-01-01

To ascertain at a population level, patterns of disability, labour force participation, employment and work performance among people with ICD-10 anxiety disorders in comparison to people without disability or long-term health conditions. A secondary analysis was conducted of a probability sample of 42 664 individuals collected in an Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) national survey in 1998. Trained lay interviewers using ICD-10 computer-assisted interviews identified household residents with anxiety disorders. Anxiety disorders were associated with: reduced labour force participation, degraded employment trajectories and impaired work performance compared to people without disabilities or long-term health conditions. People with anxiety disorders may need more effective treatments and assistance with completing education and training, joining and rejoining the workforce, developing career pathways, remaining in the workforce and sustaining work performance. A whole-of-government approach appears needed to reduce the burden of disease and increase community labour resources. Implications for clinicians, vocational professionals and policy makers are discussed.

Why would I help my coworker? Exploring asymmetric task dependence and the self-determination theory internalization process.

PubMed

Poile, Christopher

2017-09-01

Research on power suggests asymmetric task dependence (sending work resources to a coworker and receiving little in return) should create a power imbalance and promote selfishness. In contrast, work design theory suggests asymmetry can lead to felt responsibility, but this link has not been tested and its theory remains underdeveloped. Drawing on self-determination theory (SDT), this article argues that work design characteristics can encourage the SDT internalization process-the transformation of external reasons for behavior into internal reasons. Two experiments demonstrate asymmetry encourages felt responsibility for the dependent's task, which helps explain the amount of help provided to the dependent. The author proposes felt responsibility indicates the extent to which an external task has been internalized as a self-directed motivation. This article clarifies how task dependence is different from power and develops an important and understudied aspect of SDT: how work design characteristics are transformed into internalized motivations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

Community-based training and employment: an effective program for persons with traumatic brain injury.

PubMed

Wall, J R; Niemczura, J G; Rosenthal, M

1998-01-01

Occupational entry is an important issue for persons with disabilities, as many become or remain unemployed after their injury. After traumatic brain injury (TBI), individuals exhibit high unemployment rates, especially those persons with injuries of greater severity, a limited premorbid work history and/or persons from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. Vocational rehabilitation programs have been developed to improve employability. Traditional vocational rehabilitation approaches, based on integrating work skills with cognitive rehabilitation models have proven only minimally effective with TBI. The supported employment model has been demonstrated to be much more effective with this group, as has an approach that combines vocational and psychosocial skills training along with job support. Even with these generally successful approaches, the literature on vocational rehabilitation in clients from economically disadvantaged environments who are diagnosed with TBI is limited. An approach for the economically disadvantaged, which combines work skills training in a real work community along with supported employment is presented.

Foreseeing fates: a commentary on Manton (1928) 'On the embryology of a mysid crustacean, Hemimysis lamornae'.

PubMed

Akam, Michael

2015-04-19

Sidnie Manton became best known for her work on arthropod locomotion, and for proposing radical views on the evolution of arthropods that were accepted for a generation. However, her early training was as an embryologist, and the work that she carried out at the beginning of her career still stands as one of the major twentieth century contributions to the study of crustacean embryology. Here, I review her first major paper, largely completed while she was a graduate student, describing embryonic development in Hemimysis lamornae, a small shrimp-like animal found in the seas around the UK. The clarity of her writing and the quality of her figures set a standard that laid the basis for subsequent work, and although not all of her conclusions have stood the test of time, they remain a standard reference for work today. This commentary was written to celebrate the 350th anniversary of the journal Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society.

Foreseeing fates: a commentary on Manton (1928) ‘On the embryology of a mysid crustacean, Hemimysis lamornae’

PubMed Central

Akam, Michael

2015-01-01

Sidnie Manton became best known for her work on arthropod locomotion, and for proposing radical views on the evolution of arthropods that were accepted for a generation. However, her early training was as an embryologist, and the work that she carried out at the beginning of her career still stands as one of the major twentieth century contributions to the study of crustacean embryology. Here, I review her first major paper, largely completed while she was a graduate student, describing embryonic development in Hemimysis lamornae, a small shrimp-like animal found in the seas around the UK. The clarity of her writing and the quality of her figures set a standard that laid the basis for subsequent work, and although not all of her conclusions have stood the test of time, they remain a standard reference for work today. This commentary was written to celebrate the 350th anniversary of the journal Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society. PMID:25750244

Job Sharing for Women Pharmacists in Academia

PubMed Central

Finks, Shannon W.

2009-01-01

The pharmacist shortage, increasing numbers of female pharmacy graduates, more pharmacy schools requiring faculty members, and a lower percentage of female faculty in academia are reasons to develop unique arrangements for female academic pharmacists who wish to work part-time. Job sharing is an example of a flexible alternative work arrangement that can be successful for academic pharmacists who wish to continue in a part-time capacity. Such partnerships have worked for other professionals but have not been widely adopted in pharmacy academia. Job sharing can benefit the employer through retention of experienced employees who collectively offer a wider range of skills than a single employee. Benefits to the employee include balanced work and family lives with the ability to maintain their knowledge and skills by remaining in the workforce. We discuss the additional benefits of job-sharing as well as our experience in a non-tenure track job-sharing position at the University of Tennessee College of Pharmacy. PMID:19960092

[Life and work of Dr. Jovan Jovanović Zmaj].

PubMed

Lesić, Aleksandar; Bumbasirević, Marko; Zizić-Borjanović, Slavica

2006-10-01

The year of 2004 was the 100th anniversary of death of the poet and physician Dr. Jovan Jovanović Zmaj. Jovan Jovanović Zmaj was born in 1833 in Novi Sad, and died in 1904 in Sremska Kamenica J.J. Zmaj himself studied law and worked in the Novi Sad magistrate court. It was not until he turned 30 that he began practicing medicine. He developed as a poet as early as during his studies. He remained loyal to the vocations of physician and poet throughout his life. He wrote over 5000 poems, ranging from those for children through those for adults and those with which he addressed the rulers satirically. He was a founder of a number of magazines (Javor, Neven, Komarac, Danica). At that time of Romanticism, the work of J.J. Zmaj also had a national character. However, he succeeded in achieving something more: he introduced a literary genre till then unknown in Serb literature--literature for children. Through his genre he promoted not only Serbian language but also hygiene, by which he played a significant health care role, similar to that played by his friend Milan Jovanović Batut, only from a different aspect. He also used to draw, and his drawing of the emblem of the Serbian Literary Association has remained on the cover of every book published by it until these days.

Characterization of Nanoreinforcement Dispersion in Inorganic Nanocomposites: A Review

PubMed Central

Saheb, Nouari; Qadir, Najam Ul; Siddiqui, Muhammad Usama; Arif, Abul Fazl Muhammad; Akhtar, Syed Sohail; Al-Aqeeli, Nasser

2014-01-01

Metal and ceramic matrix composites have been developed to enhance the stiffness and strength of metals and alloys, and improve the toughness of monolithic ceramics, respectively. It is possible to further improve their properties by using nanoreinforcement, which led to the development of metal and ceramic matrix nanocomposites, in which case, the dimension of the reinforcement is on the order of nanometer, typically less than 100 nm. However, in many cases, the properties measured experimentally remain far from those estimated theoretically. This is mainly due to the fact that the properties of nanocomposites depend not only on the properties of the individual constituents, i.e., the matrix and reinforcement as well as the interface between them, but also on the extent of nanoreinforcement dispersion. Therefore, obtaining a uniform dispersion of the nanoreinforcement in the matrix remains a key issue in the development of nanocomposites with the desired properties. The issue of nanoreinforcement dispersion was not fully addressed in review papers dedicated to processing, characterization, and properties of inorganic nanocomposites. In addition, characterization of nanoparticles dispersion, reported in literature, remains largely qualitative. The objective of this review is to provide a comprehensive description of characterization techniques used to evaluate the extent of nanoreinforcement dispersion in inorganic nanocomposites and critically review published work. Moreover, methodologies and techniques used to characterize reinforcement dispersion in conventional composites, which may be used for quantitative characterization of nanoreinforcement dispersion in nanocomposites, is also presented. PMID:28788670

Putting women at center of programs. Sadik says women remain at center of UNFPA population and development programming.

PubMed

1996-04-01

The Nihon University International Symposium in Tokyo held March 4-7 was about life on earth in the 21st century. It was attended by 300 people. Dr. Nafis Sadik, executive director of UNFPA, gave an overview of the global population situation, noting that environmental degradation is closely linked to population issues as well as the issues of uneven development, poverty, income disparities, wasteful consumption, and gender inequality. The consumption of natural resources, which varies from country to country, is at the heart of the population-environment relationship. The UNFPA has always placed women at the center of its population and development programming. Dr. Sadik explained that the UNFPA's work in developing countries reflects an awareness of the interactions between women's status and environmental, population, and development factors.

X-33/RLV Program Aerospike Engines

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1999-01-01

Substantial progress was made during the past year in support of the X-33/RLV program. X-33 activity was directed towards completing the remaining design work and building hardware to support test activities. RLV work focused on the nozzle ramp and powerpack technology tasks and on supporting vehicle configuration studies. On X-33, the design activity was completed to the detail level and the remainder of the drawings were released. Component fabrication and engine assembly activity was initiated, and the first two powerpacks and the GSE and STE needed to support powerpack testing were completed. Components fabrication is on track to support the first engine assembly schedule. Testing activity included powerpack testing and component development tests consisting of thrust cell single cell testing, CWI system spider testing, and EMA valve flow and vibration testing. Work performed for RLV was divided between engine system and technology development tasks. Engine system activity focused on developing the engine system configuration and supporting vehicle configuration studies. Also, engine requirements were developed, and engine performance analyses were conducted. In addition, processes were developed for implementing reliability, mass properties, and cost controls during design. Technology development efforts were divided between powerpack and nozzle ramp technology tasks. Powerpack technology activities were directed towards the development of a prototype powerpack and a ceramic turbine technology demonstrator (CTTD) test article which will allow testing of ceramic turbines and a close-coupled gas generator design. Nozzle technology efforts were focused on the selection of a composite nozzle supplier and on the fabrication and test of composite nozzle coupons.

Finite-element analysis of NiTi wire deflection during orthodontic levelling treatment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Razali, M. F.; Mahmud, A. S.; Mokhtar, N.; Abdullah, J.

2016-02-01

Finite-element analysis is an important product development tool in medical devices industry for design and failure analysis of devices. This tool helps device designers to quickly explore various design options, optimizing specific designs and providing a deeper insight how a device is actually performing. In this study, three-dimensional finite-element models of superelastic nickel-titanium arch wire engaged in a three brackets system were developed. The aim was to measure the effect of binding friction developed on wire-bracket interaction towards the remaining recovery force available for tooth movement. Uniaxial and three brackets bending test were modelled and validated against experimental works. The prediction made by the three brackets bending models shows good agreement with the experimental results.

Édouard Manet's Tabes Dorsalis: From Painful Ataxia to Phantom Limb.

PubMed

Bogousslavsky, Julien; Tatu, Laurent

2016-01-01

Édouard Manet (1832-1883) is considered the 'father' of Impressionism and even of XXth century modern art. Manet's genius involved getting away from the classical narrative or historical topics and replacing them by the banality of daily life. Technically, he erased volumes into flat two-dimensional coloured planes, and distorted conventional perspective with often gross brushstrokes intentionally giving an 'unfinished' aspect to the work. It is little known that Manet had a very painful second part of his life, due to excruciating limb and chest pains, which developed in parallel with proprioceptive ataxia and gait imbalance. Manet always remained discreet about his private life, and we mainly know that his future wife was his family piano teacher, with whom he had a liaison already at age 17. Later, the great but platonic passion of his life was the painter Berthe Morisot (1841-1895), who got married to Manet's brother Eugène. In fact, we do not know whether he had any mistress at all, although he had several elegant 'flirts' in the mundane and artistic milieu. Thus, while Manet's progressive painful ataxia from age 40 yields little doubt on its tabetic origin, how he contracted syphilis at least 15-20 years before will probably remain a mystery. It is fascinating that Manet's daily struggle against pain and poor coordination may have led his art to become one of the most significant of modern times, opening the way to XXth century avant-gardes, along with another victim of syphilis, Paul Gauguin (1848-1903). Manet never showed any sign of General Paresis, and like his contemporary the writer Alphonse Daudet, his clinical picture remained dominated by paroxysmal pain and walking impairment. Difficult hand coordination made him quit watercolor painting, and during the last 2 years of his life, he had to focus on small format oil works, whose subject was nearly limited to modest bunches of fresh flowers, now often considered to be his maturity masterpieces. Having become bedridden, he had to be amputated of one leg, which was developing gangrene probably associated with ergot overuse. While he died shortly thereafter, we have some witness anecdotes suggesting that he experienced a phantom limb: when Claude Monet (1840-1926) visited him and sat down on his bed, Manet violently shouted at him that he was just sitting on his (absent) leg, which provoked terrible pains. With its facts and mysteries, the subtle interaction between Manet's illness and his work output remains one of the most intriguing stories in neurology of art. © 2016 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Vocational rehabilitation after traumatic brain injury: models and services.

PubMed

Tyerman, Andy

2012-01-01

A recent systematic review suggests that around 40% of people with traumatic brain injury (TBI) return to work (RTW). Yet in the U.K. currently only a small minority of people with TBI receive vocational rehabilitation (VR) to enable a RTW. Agencies with an interest in developing such services are likely to favour different models of VR. The primary objective of this paper was to review models of specialist VR after TBI and their outcomes to inform service development across relevant agencies. A literature review on VR after TBI was undertaken in MEDLINE, EMBASE and PsychINFO (from 1967 to date). Papers reporting models of VR were selected for more detailed consideration. Illustrative examples of VR models are outlined: brain injury rehabilitation programmes with added VR elements, VR models adapted for TBI, case coordination/resource facilitation models, and consumer-directed models. Models differ, both within and across these four broad categories, in provision of core TBI rehabilitation, work preparation, work trials and supported placements. Methodological variation limits direct comparison of outcomes across models with few comparative or controlled studies. There is evidence to support the benefits of a wide range of models of specialist VR after TBI. However, there remains a need for controlled studies to inform service development and more evidence on cost-effectiveness to inform funding decisions.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Endeavour backs out of the Orbiter Processing Facility for temporary transfer to the Vehicle Assembly Building. The move allows work to be performed in the OPF that can only be accomplished while the bay is empty. Work scheduled in the OPF includes annual validation of the bay’s cranes, work platforms, lifting mechanisms and jack stands. Endeavour will remain in the VAB for approximately 12 days, then return to the OPF.

NASA Image and Video Library

2004-01-09

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Endeavour backs out of the Orbiter Processing Facility for temporary transfer to the Vehicle Assembly Building. The move allows work to be performed in the OPF that can only be accomplished while the bay is empty. Work scheduled in the OPF includes annual validation of the bay’s cranes, work platforms, lifting mechanisms and jack stands. Endeavour will remain in the VAB for approximately 12 days, then return to the OPF.

Welfare Reform and Health Insurance: Consequences for Parents

PubMed Central

Holl, Jane L.; Slack, Kristen Shook; Stevens, Amy Bush

2005-01-01

Objectives. We assessed the relation between the work promotion, welfare reduction, and marriage goals of welfare reform and the stability of health insurance of parents in transition from welfare to work. Methods. We analyzed a panel survey (1999–2002) of a stratified random sample of Illinois families receiving welfare in 1998 (n=1363). Results. Medicaid remains the foremost source of health insurance despite a significant decline in the proportion of parents with Medicaid. Regardless of work/welfare status in year 1, transitioning to work only or no work/no welfare increased the likelihood of having unstable health insurance in years 2 and 3 compared with those who remained on welfare only. Conclusions. Parents who meet the welfare reform goals of work promotion and reduction of welfare dependence experience significant loss and instability of health insurance. PMID:15671465

Assessing and addressing moral distress and ethical climate Part II: neonatal and pediatric perspectives.

PubMed

Sauerland, Jeanie; Marotta, Kathleen; Peinemann, Mary Anne; Berndt, Andrea; Robichaux, Catherine

2015-01-01

Moral distress remains a pervasive and, at times, contested concept in nursing and other health care disciplines. Ethical climate, the conditions and practices in which ethical situations are identified, discussed, and decided, has been shown to exacerbate or ameliorate perceptions of moral distress. The purpose of this mixed-methods study was to explore perceptions of moral distress, moral residue, and ethical climate among registered nurses working in an academic medical center. Two versions of the Moral Distress Scale in addition to the Hospital Ethical Climate Survey were used, and participants were invited to respond to 2 open-ended questions. Part I reported the findings among nurses working in adult acute and critical care units. Part II presents the results from nurses working in pediatric/neonatal units. Significant differences in findings between the 2 groups are discussed. Subsequent interventions developed are also presented.

Older women's perceptions of independence versus dependence in food-related work.

PubMed

Gustafsson, Kerstin; Andersson, Ingegerd; Andersson, Jenny; Fjellström, Christina; Sidenvall, Birgitta

2003-01-01

This qualitative study aims to explore the cultural meaning of accomplishing food-related work by older women, when disease has diminished their abilities and threatens to make them dependent. Seventy-two women with stroke, rheumatoid arthritis, and Parkinson's disease, as well as women without those diseases, were interviewed. All were living at home. Results showed that older women valued independence and feared dependence when declining ability threatened performance of food-related work. They also had strong beliefs about living a "normal life," managing by oneself as long as possible, and becoming their own masters again. To remain independent, participants used three kinds of strategies: Public Health Service Support, self-managing, and adaptation. Their beliefs about dependence included not becoming a burden, retaining self-determination, and maintaining order in life. Implications for nursing include supporting independent cooking, developing care plans with the care recipient, and demonstrating respect for the women's self-determination.

Recovery of thebaine and cryptopine from Indian opium.

PubMed

Ramanathan, V S; Chandra, P

1980-01-01

The thebaine content of the opium collected in the Madhya Pradesh region of India has been estimated and reported to range from 1.5 to 2.0 per cent. A technological process for the recovery of thebaine from the mother liquor remaining after the separation of natural codeine in the Government Opium and Alkaloid Works, Neemuch, has been developed in the laboratory and stepped up to an industrial scale. A method for the recovery to thebaine from the waste slaked-lime residues obtained from crude alkaloid cake mother liquor in the Government Opium and Alkaloid Works at Ghazipur has been worked out and the technical details of the process described. The recovery of thebaine would help to increase the production of codeine, and thebaine can also be used as a raw material for the manufacture of other drugs. Cryptopine has also been recovered from the mother liquor after the separation of thebaine.

Modification of electron beam ion source instability by longitudinal kinetic effects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krafft, G. A.; Mark, J. W.-K.

1982-07-01

The electron beam ion source (EBIS) was proposed and subsequently realized by Donets. Further development has been done by the Orsay group and by the Berkeley group. Much theoretical work has been done on EBIS and, in particular, Litwin, Vella, and Sessler find that an electrostatic mode of the electron beam-ion system is unstable using a fluid calculation. The present work indicates that the inclusion of a longitudinal velocity spread in the electron beam decreases the instability growth rate, but their conclusions are not significantly modified. Numerically it is shown that substantial linear instability remains, even when sizeable longitudinal velocity spread is included. The principal result of the work is fig. 1; it gives the complex frequency of the mode as a function of σ/ υ0 z, σ being the spread and υ0 z being the average electron axial velocity.

Irrational beliefs at work and their implications for workaholism.

PubMed

van Wijhe, Corine; Peeters, Maria; Schaufeli, Wilmar

2013-09-01

This study examined the associations between work-related irrational cognitions and workaholism. For this purpose, a 16-item work-related irrational beliefs questionnaire (WIB-Q) was developed. Employees (n = 913) completed an online survey that included, besides the irrational cognitions scale, measures of negative affect and workaholism. The results show that four factors could be distinguished, which represent irrational beliefs concerning (1) performance demands, (2) co-workers' approval (3) failure and (4) control. All scales showed good internal consistency. Furthermore, it was found that, after controlling for negative affect, performance demands were associated with workaholism, whereas the remaining types of irrationality were unrelated to workaholism. In other words, the findings suggest that interventions for workaholism should target irrational self-oriented performance demands and negative emotions. As Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy focuses on identifying and replacing irrational cognitions, it appears a useful intervention technique for the treatment of workaholics.

Homeodomains, Hedgehogs, and Happiness.

PubMed

Scott, Matthew P

2016-01-01

Developmental biologists have had a spectacular quarter century of discoveries, building on many decades of work earlier, discovering molecular, cellular, and genetic mechanisms that underlie the magical process by which an egg becomes a plant or animal. Among the discoveries were homeodomains, DNA-binding domains that allow transcription factors to recognize their target genes, and the Hedgehog signaling pathway, which is used in many organs and tissues for communication among cells. The experience of unveiling the mechanisms and molecules connected to both of these findings has been remarkable, joyful, difficult, and a time of great teamwork and collaboration within and between laboratory groups. More than ever it is possible to discern the evolutionary processes, and their mechanisms, that led to the diversity of life on earth. A huge amount of work remains to be done to obtain a broad understanding of what happened and how development works. © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Reliable Detection and Smart Deletion of Malassez Counting Chamber Grid in Microscopic White Light Images for Microbiological Applications.

PubMed

Denimal, Emmanuel; Marin, Ambroise; Guyot, Stéphane; Journaux, Ludovic; Molin, Paul

2015-08-01

In biology, hemocytometers such as Malassez slides are widely used and are effective tools for counting cells manually. In a previous work, a robust algorithm was developed for grid extraction in Malassez slide images. This algorithm was evaluated on a set of 135 images and grids were accurately detected in most cases, but there remained failures for the most difficult images. In this work, we present an optimization of this algorithm that allows for 100% grid detection and a 25% improvement in grid positioning accuracy. These improvements make the algorithm fully reliable for grid detection. This optimization also allows complete erasing of the grid without altering the cells, which eases their segmentation.

Epileptic Seizure Forewarning by Nonlinear Techniques

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

Hively, L.M.

2002-04-19

This report describes work that was performed under a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) between UT-Battelle, LLC (Contractor) and a commercial participant, VIASYS Healthcare Inc. (formerly Nicolet Biomedical, Inc.). The Contractor has patented technology that forewarns of impending epileptic events via scalp electroencephalograph (EEG) data and successfully demonstrated this technology on 20 datasets from the Participant under pre-CRADA effort. This CRADA sought to bridge the gap between the Contractor's existing research-class software and a prototype medical device for subsequent commercialization by the Participant. The objectives of this CRADA were (1) development of a combination of existing computer hardware andmore » Contractor-patented software into a clinical process for warning of impending epileptic events in human patients, and (2) validation of the epilepsy warning methodology. This work modified the ORNL research-class FORTRAN for forewarning to run under a graphical user interface (GUI). The GUI-FORTRAN software subsequently was installed on desktop computers at five epilepsy monitoring units. The forewarning prototypes have run for more than one year without any hardware or software failures. This work also reported extensive analysis of model and EEG datasets to demonstrate the usefulness of the methodology. However, the Participant recently chose to stop work on the CRADA, due to a change in business priorities. Much work remains to convert the technology into a commercial clinical or ambulatory device for patient use, as discussed in App. H.« less

"Will my work affect my pregnancy?" Resources for anticipating and answering patients' questions.

PubMed

Grajewski, Barbara; Rocheleau, Carissa M; Lawson, Christina C; Johnson, Candice Y

2016-05-01

Authoritative information on occupational reproductive hazards is scarce and complex because exposure levels vary, multiple exposures may be present, and the reproductive toxicity of many agents remains unknown. For these reasons, women's health providers may find it challenging to effectively address workplace reproductive health issues with their patients who are pregnant, breast-feeding, or considering pregnancy. Reproductive epidemiologists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health answered >200 public requests for occupational reproductive health information during 2009 through 2013. The most frequent occupations represented were health care (41%) and laboratory work (18%). The most common requests for exposure information concerned solvents (14%), anesthetic gases (10%), formaldehyde (7%), infectious agents in laboratories (7%) or health care settings (7%), and physical agents (14%), including ionizing radiation (6%). Information for developing workplace policies or guidelines was sought by 12% of the requestors. Occupational exposure effects on breast-feeding were an increasing concern among working women. Based on information developed in response to these requestors, information is provided for discussing workplace exposures with patients, assessing potential workplace reproductive hazards, and helping patients determine the best options for safe work in pregnancy. Appendices provide resources to address specific occupational exposures, employee groups, personal protective equipment, breast-feeding, and workplace regulations regarding work and pregnancy. These tools can help identify those most at risk of occupational reproductive hazards and improve workers' reproductive health. The information can also be used to inform research priorities and assist the development of workplace reproductive health policies. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Occupational exposure and risk of breast cancer

PubMed Central

FENGA, CONCETTINA

2016-01-01

Breast cancer is a multifactorial disease and the most commonly diagnosed cancer in women. Traditional risk factors for breast cancer include reproductive status, genetic mutations, family history and lifestyle. However, increasing evidence has identified an association between breast cancer and occupational factors, including environmental stimuli. Epidemiological and experimental studies demonstrated that ionizing and non-ionizing radiation exposure, night-shift work, pesticides, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and metals are defined environmental factors for breast cancer, particularly at young ages. However, the mechanisms by which occupational factors can promote breast cancer initiation and progression remains to be elucidated. Furthermore, the evaluation of occupational factors for breast cancer, particularly in the workplace, also remains to be explained. The present review summarizes the occupational risk factors and the associated mechanisms involved in breast cancer development, in order to highlight new environmental exposures that could be correlated to breast cancer and to provide new insights for breast cancer prevention in the occupational settings. Furthermore, this review suggests that there is a requirement to include, through multidisciplinary approaches, different occupational exposure risks among those associated with breast cancer development. Finally, the design of new epigenetic biomarkers may be useful to identify the workers that are more susceptible to develop breast cancer. PMID:26998264

Interprofessional Education and Practice Guide No. 6: Developing practice-based interprofessional learning using a short placement model.

PubMed

Anderson, Elizabeth Susan; Ford, Jenny; Kinnair, Daniel James

2016-07-01

Offering undergraduate and post-qualified learners opportunities to take part in, and reflect on, the nature of interprofessional working when in practice remains an important goal for interprofessional educators. There are a plethora of opportunities within hospital and community care for learners to actively participate in health and social care delivery where collaborative practice prevails. However, it remains challenging to know how to establish and sustain meaningful interprofessional practice-based learning. This is because profession-specific teaching is prioritised and many teams are under-resourced, leaving little time for additional teaching activities. In some instances, practitioners lack the knowledge concerning how to design meaningful interprofessional learning and often feel unprepared for this teaching because of limited interprofessional faculty development. Others are simply unaware of the presence of the different students within their practice area. This guide offers key lessons developed over many years for setting up practice-based interprofessional education. The learning model has been adapted and adopted in different settings and countries and offers a method for engaging clinical front-line practitioners in learning with, and from learners who can help support and in some instances advance care delivery.

Emerging concepts and future challenges in innate lymphoid cell biology

PubMed Central

Artis, David

2016-01-01

Innate lymphoid cells (ILCs) are innate immune cells that are ubiquitously distributed in lymphoid and nonlymphoid tissues and enriched at mucosal and barrier surfaces. Three major ILC subsets are recognized in mice and humans. Each of these subsets interacts with innate and adaptive immune cells and integrates cues from the epithelium, the microbiota, and pathogens to regulate inflammation, immunity, tissue repair, and metabolic homeostasis. Although intense study has elucidated many aspects of ILC development, phenotype, and function, numerous challenges remain in the field of ILC biology. In particular, recent work has highlighted key new questions regarding how these cells communicate with their environment and other cell types during health and disease. This review summarizes new findings in this rapidly developing field that showcase the critical role ILCs play in directing immune responses through their ability to interact with a variety of hematopoietic and nonhematopoietic cells. In addition, we define remaining challenges and emerging questions facing the field. Finally, this review discusses the potential application of basic studies of ILC biology to the development of new treatments for human patients with inflammatory and infectious diseases in which ILCs play a role. PMID:27811053

Impacts of Intensified Agriculture Developments on Marsh Wetlands

PubMed Central

Luan, Zhaoqing; Zhou, Demin

2013-01-01

A spatiotemporal analysis on the changes in the marsh landscape in the Honghe National Nature Reserve, a Ramsar reserve, and the surrounding farms in the core area of the Sanjiang Plain during the past 30 years was conducted by integrating field survey work with remote sensing techniques. The results indicated that intensified agricultural development had transformed a unique natural marsh landscape into an agricultural landscape during the past 30 years. Ninety percent of the natural marsh wetlands have been lost, and the areas of the other natural landscapes have decreased very rapidly. Most dry farmland had been replaced by paddy fields during the progressive change of the natural landscape to a farm landscape. Attempts of current Chinese institutions in preserving natural wetlands have achieved limited success. Few marsh wetlands have remained healthy, even after the establishment of the nature reserve. Their ecological qualities have been declining in response to the increasing threats to the remaining wetland habitats. Irrigation projects play a key role in such threats. Therefore, the sustainability of the natural wetland ecosystems is being threatened by increased regional agricultural development which reduced the number of wetland ecotypes and damaged the ecological quality. PMID:24027441

Contributive research in compound semiconductor material and related devices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Twist, James R.

1988-05-01

The objective of this program was to provide the Electronic Device Branch (AFWAL/AADR) with the support needed to perform state of the art electronic device research. In the process of managing and performing on the project, UES has provided a wide variety of scientific and engineering talent who worked in-house for the Avionics Laboratory. These personnel worked on many different types of research programs from gas phase microwave driven lasers, CVD and MOCVD of electronic materials to Electronic Device Technology for new devices. The fields of research included MBE and theoretical research in this novel growth technique. Much of the work was slanted towards the rapidly developing technology of GaAs and the general thrust of the research that these tasks started has remained constant. This work was started because the Avionics Laboratory saw a chance to advance the knowledge and level of the current device technology by working in the compounds semiconductor field. UES is pleased to have had the opportunity to perform on this program and is looking forward to future efforts with the Avionics Laboratory.

Combining microdialysis and near-infrared spectroscopy for studying effects of low-load repetitive work on the intramuscular chemistry in trapezius myalgia.

PubMed

Flodgren, Gerd M; Crenshaw, Albert G; Hellström, Fredrik; Fahlström, Martin

2010-01-01

Epidemiological research provides strong evidence for a link between repetitive work (RW) and the development of chronic trapezius myalgia (TM). The aims were to further elucidate if an accumulation of sensitising substances or impaired oxygenation is evident in painful muscles during RW. Females with TM (n = 14) were studied during rest, 30 minutes RW and 60 minutes recovery. Microdialysate samples were obtained to determine changes in intramuscular microdialysate (IMMD) [glutamate], [PGE(2)], [lactate], and [pyruvate] (i.e., [concentration]) relative to work. Muscle oxygenation (%StO(2)) was assessed using near-infrared spectroscopy. During work, all investigated substances, except PGE(2), increased significantly: [glutamate] (54%, P < .0001), [lactate] (26%, P < .005), [pyruvate] (19%, P < .0001), while the %StO(2) decreased (P < .05). During recovery [PGE(2)] decreased (P < .005), [lactate] remained increased (P < .001), [pyruvate] increased progressively (P < .0001), and %StO(2) had returned to baseline. Changes in substance concentrations and oxygenation in response to work indicate normal increase in metabolism but no ongoing inflammation in subjects with TM.

Chemical Industry, the Environment, and Russian Provincial Society: The Case of the Kokshan Chemical Works (1850-1925).

PubMed

Vinogradov, Andrei; Petriashin, Stanislav

2018-05-01

This article explores interactions between the chemical industry, the environment, and Russian provincial society in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, using the example of the Kokshan chemical works, in the Elabuga District, Viatka Province, Russian Empire (today Mendeleevsk District, Republic of Tatarstan, Russian Federation). The plant's location facilitated its rapid development due to a number of factors, including a cheap labour force, the availability of raw materials, and the absence of local competition. However, the factory's development came in conjunction with the deterioration of the environment and subsequent health problems for employees and the surrounding population. Conflicts connected with the Kokshan works illustrate differences between this case and similar examples in Russia and Europe. In Viatka Province, the local community remained mostly silent regarding these issues, and made no demands for improving sanitary control and working conditions or reducing pollution; rather, it was distant activists who personally suffered no harm who intervened in the interest of social justice. The history of the company reflects the contrast between the transfer of European technological innovations to Russia and laborious efforts to increase national wealth on the one hand, and the exploitation of the environment and endangerment of workers' health on the other.

Motivation of human resources for health: a case study at rural district level in Tanzania.

PubMed

Zinnen, Véronique; Paul, Elisabeth; Mwisongo, Aziza; Nyato, Daniel; Robert, Annie

2012-01-01

An increasing number of studies explore the association between financial and non-financial incentives and the retention of health workers in developing countries. This study aims to contribute to empirical evidence on human resource for health motivation factors to assist policy makers in promoting effective and realistic interventions. A cross-sectional survey was conducted in four rural Tanzanian districts to explore staff stability and health workers' motivation. Data were collected using qualitative and quantitative techniques, covering all levels and types of health facilities. Stability of staff was found to be quite high. Public institutions remained very attractive with better job security, salary and retirement benefits. Satisfaction over working conditions was very low owing to inadequate working equipment, work overload, lack of services, difficult environment, favouritism and 'empty promotions'. Positive incentives mentioned were support for career development and supportive supervision. Attracting new staff in rural areas appeared to be more difficult than retaining staff in place. The study concluded that strategies to better motivate health personnel should focus on adequate remuneration, positive working and living environment and supportive management. However, by multiplying health facilities, the latest Tanzanian human resource for health plan could jeopardize current positive results. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The Role of Executive Functions in Social Cognition among Children with Down Syndrome: Relationship Patterns

PubMed Central

Amadó, Anna; Serrat, Elisabet; Vallès-Majoral, Eduard

2016-01-01

Many studies show a link between social cognition, a set of cognitive and emotional abilities applied to social situations, and executive functions in typical developing children. Children with Down syndrome (DS) show deficits both in social cognition and in some subcomponents of executive functions. However this link has barely been studied in this population. The aim of this study is to investigate the links between social cognition and executive functions among children with DS. We administered a battery of social cognition and executive function tasks (six theory of mind tasks, a test of emotion comprehension, and three executive function tasks) to a group of 30 participants with DS between 4 and 12 years of age. The same tasks were administered to a chronological-age control group and to a control group with the same linguistic development level. Results showed that apart from deficits in social cognition and executive function abilities, children with DS displayed a slight improvement with increasing chronological age and language development in those abilities. Correlational analysis suggested that working memory was the only component that remained constant in the relation patterns of the three groups of participants, being the relation patterns similar among participants with DS and the language development control group. A multiple linear regression showed that working memory explained above 50% of the variability of social cognition in DS participants and in language development control group, whereas in the chronological-age control group this component only explained 31% of the variability. These findings, and specifically the link between working memory and social cognition, are discussed on the basis of their theoretical and practical implications for children with DS. We discuss the possibility to use a working memory training to improve social cognition in this population. PMID:27679588

The nature of working memory for Braille.

PubMed

Cohen, Henri; Voss, Patrice; Lepore, Franco; Scherzer, Peter

2010-05-26

Blind individuals have been shown on multiple occasions to compensate for their loss of sight by developing exceptional abilities in their remaining senses. While most research has been focused on perceptual abilities per se in the auditory and tactile modalities, recent work has also investigated higher-order processes involving memory and language functions. Here we examined tactile working memory for Braille in two groups of visually challenged individuals (completely blind subjects, CBS; blind with residual vision, BRV). In a first experimental procedure both groups were given a Braille tactile memory span task with and without articulatory suppression, while the BRV and a sighted group performed a visual version of the task. It was shown that the Braille tactile working memory (BrWM) of CBS individuals under articulatory suppression is as efficient as that of sighted individuals' visual working memory in the same condition. Moreover, the results suggest that BrWM may be more robust in the CBS than in the BRV subjects, thus pointing to the potential role of visual experience in shaping tactile working memory. A second experiment designed to assess the nature (spatial vs. verbal) of this working memory was then carried out with two new CBS and BRV groups having to perform the Braille task concurrently with a mental arithmetic task or a mental displacement of blocks task. We show that the disruption of memory was greatest when concurrently carrying out the mental displacement of blocks, indicating that the Braille tactile subsystem of working memory is likely spatial in nature in CBS. The results also point to the multimodal nature of working memory and show how experience can shape the development of its subcomponents.

The Nature of Working Memory for Braille

PubMed Central

Cohen, Henri; Voss, Patrice; Lepore, Franco; Scherzer, Peter

2010-01-01

Blind individuals have been shown on multiple occasions to compensate for their loss of sight by developing exceptional abilities in their remaining senses. While most research has been focused on perceptual abilities per se in the auditory and tactile modalities, recent work has also investigated higher-order processes involving memory and language functions. Here we examined tactile working memory for Braille in two groups of visually challenged individuals (completely blind subjects, CBS; blind with residual vision, BRV). In a first experimental procedure both groups were given a Braille tactile memory span task with and without articulatory suppression, while the BRV and a sighted group performed a visual version of the task. It was shown that the Braille tactile working memory (BrWM) of CBS individuals under articulatory suppression is as efficient as that of sighted individuals' visual working memory in the same condition. Moreover, the results suggest that BrWM may be more robust in the CBS than in the BRV subjects, thus pointing to the potential role of visual experience in shaping tactile working memory. A second experiment designed to assess the nature (spatial vs. verbal) of this working memory was then carried out with two new CBS and BRV groups having to perform the Braille task concurrently with a mental arithmetic task or a mental displacement of blocks task. We show that the disruption of memory was greatest when concurrently carrying out the mental displacement of blocks, indicating that the Braille tactile subsystem of working memory is likely spatial in nature in CBS. The results also point to the multimodal nature of working memory and show how experience can shape the development of its subcomponents. PMID:20520807

Retrogressive development: transcendental anatomy and teratology in nineteenth-century Britain.

PubMed

Bates, Alan W H

2014-01-01

In 1855 the leading British transcendental anatomist Robert Knox proposed a theory of retrogressive development according to which the human embryo could give rise to ancestral types or races and the animal embryo to other species within the same family. Unlike monsters attributed to the older theory of arrested development, new forms produced by retrogression were neither imperfect nor equivalent to a stage in the embryo's development. Instead, Knox postulated that embryos contained all possible specific forms in potentia. Retrogressive development could account for examples of atavism or racial throwbacks, and formed part of Knox's theory of rapid (saltatory) species change. Knox's evolutionary theorizing was soon eclipsed by the better presented and more socially acceptable Darwinian gradualism, but the concept of retrogressive development remained influential in anthropology and the social sciences, and Knox's work can be seen as the scientific basis for theories of physical, mental and cultural degeneracy.

Simulated night shift work induces circadian misalignment of the human peripheral blood mononuclear cell transcriptome.

PubMed

Kervezee, Laura; Cuesta, Marc; Cermakian, Nicolas; Boivin, Diane B

2018-05-22

Misalignment of the endogenous circadian timing system leads to disruption of physiological rhythms and may contribute to the development of the deleterious health effects associated with night shift work. However, the molecular underpinnings remain to be elucidated. Here, we investigated the effect of a 4-day simulated night shift work protocol on the circadian regulation of the human transcriptome. Repeated blood samples were collected over two 24-hour measurement periods from eight healthy subjects under highly controlled laboratory conditions before and 4 days after a 10-hour delay of their habitual sleep period. RNA was extracted from peripheral blood mononuclear cells to obtain transcriptomic data. Cosinor analysis revealed a marked reduction of significantly rhythmic transcripts in the night shift condition compared with baseline at group and individual levels. Subsequent analysis using a mixed-effects model selection approach indicated that this decrease is mainly due to dampened rhythms rather than to a complete loss of rhythmicity: 73% of transcripts rhythmically expressed at baseline remained rhythmic during the night shift condition with a similar phase relative to habitual bedtimes, but with lower amplitudes. Functional analysis revealed that key biological processes are affected by the night shift protocol, most notably the natural killer cell-mediated immune response and Jun/AP1 and STAT pathways. These results show that 4 days of simulated night shifts leads to a loss in temporal coordination between the human circadian transcriptome and the external environment and impacts biological processes related to the adverse health effects associated to night shift work.

Nursing theory: everything the artist spits is art?

PubMed

Timpson, J

1996-05-01

This paper explores the concept and utility of nursing theory in and for the practice of nursing. Working from the premise that many nurse practitioners appear uncertain as to the value of theory in relation to their everyday working experience, the paper investigates the contribution nursing theory makes in terms of sustaining and developing nursing as a practice discipline. The fact that nursing theory remains at once poorly evaluated, articulated or understood appears to be compounded by a general perception of nurse theorists as being removed from the realities of the practice setting and by the confusion precipitated, not least, by the semantic ambiguity engendered by their writings. The paper reviews the complex relationships extant between the development of nursing theory in regard to its utility for nursing practice, and concludes by suggesting a practice-led perspective by which nursing theory may be better articulated and assimilated within the discipline. In order to facilitate the study, it has been necessary to investigate the historical, theoretical and philosophical imperatives pertaining not only to the development of nursing theory but to nursing research and nursing practice per se.

Development of a Mapped Diabetes Community Program Guide for a Safety Net Population

PubMed Central

Zallman, Leah; Ibekwe, Lynn; Thompson, Jennifer W.; Ross-Degnan, Dennis; Oken, Emily

2014-01-01

Purpose Enhancing linkages between patients and community programs is increasingly recognized as a method for improving physical activity, nutrition and weight management. Although interactive mapped community program guides may be beneficial, there remains a dearth of articles that describe the processes and practicalities of creating such guides. This article describes the development of an interactive, web-based mapped community program guide at a safety net institution and the lessons learned from that process. Conclusions This project demonstrated the feasibility of creating two maps – a program guide and a population health map. It also revealed some key challenges and lessons for future work in this area, particularly within safety-net institutions. Our work underscores the need for developing partnerships outside of the health care system and the importance of employing community-based participatory methods. In addition to facilitating improvements in individual wellness, mapping community programs also has the potential to improve population health management by healthcare delivery systems such as hospitals, health centers, or public health systems, including city and state departments of health. PMID:24752180

Understanding pressurized metered dose inhaler performance.

PubMed

Ivey, James W; Vehring, Reinhard; Finlay, Warren H

2015-06-01

Deepening the current understanding of the factors governing the performance of the pressurized metered dose inhaler (pMDI) has the potential to benefit patients by providing improved drugs for current indications as well as by enabling new areas of therapy. Although a great deal of work has been conducted to this end, our knowledge of the physical mechanisms that drive pMDI performance remains incomplete. This review focuses on research into the influence of device and formulation variables on pMDI performance metrics. Literature in the areas of dose metering, atomization and aerosol evolution and deposition is covered, with an emphasis on studies of a more fundamental nature. Simple models which may be of use to those developing pMDI products are summarized. Although researchers have had good success utilizing an empirically developed knowledge base to predict pMDI performance, such knowledge may not be applicable when pursuing innovations in device or formulation technology. Developing a better understanding of the underlying mechanisms is a worthwhile investment for those working to enable the next generation of pMDI products.

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

Aalseth, Craig E.; Day, Anthony R.; Fuller, Erin S.

Abstract A new ultra-low-background proportional counter (ULBPC) design was recently developed at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). This design, along with an ultra-low-background counting system (ULBCS) which provides passive and active shielding with radon exclusion, has been developed to complement a new shallow underground laboratory (~30 meters water-equivalent) constructed at PNNL. After these steps to mitigate dominant backgrounds (cosmic rays, external gamma-rays, radioactivity in materials), remaining background events do not exclusively arise from ionization of the proportional counter gas. Digital pulse-shape discrimination (PSD) is thus employed to further improve measurement sensitivity. In this work, a template shape is generated formore » each individual sample measurement of interest, a "self-calibrating" template. Differences in event topology can also cause differences in pulse shape. In this work, the temporal region analyzed for each event is refined to maximize background discrimination while avoiding unwanted sensitivity to event topology. This digital PSD method is applied to sample and background data, and initial measurement results from a biofuel methane sample are presented in the context of low-background measurements currently being developed.« less

Part of the job: the role of physical work conditions in the nurse turnover process.

PubMed

Vardaman, James M; Cornell, Paul T; Allen, David G; Gondo, Maria B; Muslin, Ivan S; Mobley, Robin N; Brock, Meagan E; Sigmon, Tracy L

2014-01-01

Retention of nursing staff remains an important issue for health care managers. Turnover research has focused primarily on motivational and social factors as keys to retention, whereas the role of the physical work conditions has received considerably less attention. However, work design theory suggests that physical work conditions may be an important factor in fostering retention among nursing staff. The aim of this study was to integrate work design theory with turnover process models to explore the influence of perceptions of physical work conditions on the development of turnover intentions among nursing staff. Drawing on two samples of registered nurses working in cancer units in metropolitan hospitals in the southeastern United States, this study explores the impact of perceptions of physical work conditions on turnover intentions using ordinary least squares regression. Hypotheses are tested in Study 1 and replicated in Study 2. A measure of perceptions of physical work conditions is also developed and validated using exploratory (Study 1) and confirmatory (Study 2) factor analyses. Perceptions of physical work conditions explain variance in turnover intentions above than that explained by motivational and social factors. Specifically, employee perceptions of noisy work conditions are found to significantly increase turnover intentions, whereas perceptions that work conditions facilitate tasks were found to significantly reduce turnover intentions. Perceptions of temperature and health hazard did not show significant effects. Results suggest that health care managers and scholars should re-examine the role of physical work conditions in the turnover process. Investments in upgrades that facilitate tasks may foster retention better than investments that simply improve employee comfort. Negative perceptions of work conditions may have no impact if they are considered a normal "part of the job," although negative perceptions of conditions that are viewed as under the organization's control may be important in creating a desire to leave.

State of emergency medicine in Rwanda 2015: an innovative trainee and trainer model.

PubMed

Mbanjumucyo, Gabin; DeVos, Elizabeth; Pulfrey, Simon; Epino, Henry M

2015-01-01

The 1994 Rwandan war and genocide left more than 1 million people dead; millions displaced; and the country's economic, social, and health infrastructure destroyed. Despite remaining one of the poorest countries in the world, Rwanda has made remarkable gains in health, social, and economic development over the last 20 years, but modern emergency care has been slow to progress. Rwanda has recently established the Human Resources for Health program to rapidly build capacity in multiple sectors of its healthcare delivery system, including emergency medicine. This project involves multiple medical and surgical residencies, nursing programs, allied health professional trainings, and hospital administrative support. A real strength of the program is that trainers work with international faculty at Rwanda's referral hospital, but also as emergency medicine specialty trainers when returning to their respective district hospitals. Rwanda's first emergency medicine trainees are playing a unique and important role in the implementation of emergency care systems and education in the country's district hospitals. While there has been early vital progress in building emergency medicine's foundations in Rwanda, there remains much work to be done. This will be accomplished with careful planning and strong commitment from the country's healthcare and emergency medicine leaders.

Work stress among newly graduated nurses in relation to workplace and clinical group supervision.

PubMed

Blomberg, Karin; Isaksson, Ann-Kristin; Allvin, Renée; Bisholt, Birgitta; Ewertsson, Mona; Kullén Engström, Agneta; Ohlsson, Ulla; Sundler Johansson, Annelie; Gustafsson, Margareta

2016-01-01

The aim was to investigate occupational stress among newly graduated nurses in relation to the workplace and clinical group supervision. Being a newly graduated nurse is particularly stressful. What remains unclear is whether the workplace and clinical group supervision affect the stress. A cross-sectional comparative study was performed in 2012. Data were collected by means of a numerical scale measuring occupational stress, questions about workplace and clinical group supervision. One hundred and thirteen nurses who had recently graduated from three Swedish universities were included in the study. The stress was high among the newly graduated nurses but it differed significantly between workplaces, surgical departments generating the most stress. Nurses who had received clinical group supervision reported significantly less stress. The stress between workplaces remained significant also when participation in clinical group supervision was taken into account. Newly graduated nurses experience great stress and need support, especially those in surgical departments. Nurses participating in clinical group supervision reported significantly less stress. It is important to develop strategies that help to adapt the work situation so as to give nurses the necessary support. Clinical group supervision should be considered as an option for reducing stress. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Blood Donation, Payment, and Non-Cash Incentives: Classical Questions Drawing Renewed Interest

PubMed Central

Buyx, Alena M.

2009-01-01

Summary Blood is scarce, and ensuring a sufficient blood supply remains difficult for many countries. Payment for blood as a strategy to increase donations has remained highly controversial for decades, and the debate about ethical issues in paying donors has become somewhat stuck. At least from a policy perspective, it is important to find a compromise which allows for devising and implementing acceptable and successful policies to increase the blood supply. In this paper, such a compromise is developed both from a theoretical and empirical perspective, namely implementing well-designed non-cash incentives which cut across the rigid dichotomy of altruistic donations versus payment for donations. In order for this compromise to work, more attention to donation motives, the choice architecture, and the setting in blood donation needs to be paid. PMID:21076552

Reanalysis of Korean War Anthropological Records to Support the Resolution of Cold Cases.

PubMed

Wilson, Emily K

2017-09-01

Re-investigation of previously unidentified remains from the Korean War has yielded 55 new identifications, each with corresponding records of prior anthropological analyses. This study compares biological assessments for age at death, stature, and ancestry across (i) anthropological analyses from the 1950s, (ii) recent anthropological analyses of those same sets of remains, and (iii) the reported antemortem biological information for the identified individual. A comparison of long bone measurements from both the 1950s and during reanalysis is also presented. These comparisons demonstrate commonalities and continuing patterns of errors that are useful in refining both research on Korean War cold case records and forensic anthropological analyses performed using methods developed from the 1950s identifications. Published 2017. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.

Developing positive attitudes toward geriatric nursing among Millennials and Generation Xers.

PubMed

Heise, Barbara A; Johnsen, Vickie; Himes, Deborah; Wing, Debra

2012-01-01

Despite the increase of the older adult population, there exists a shortage of health care professionals trained to help this population remain independent as long as possible. Ageism, common among younger adults, affects the capacity building of health care for older adults. Research has indicated that increased knowledge about older adults, as well as exposure to the elderly, may alter nursing students' attitudes regarding careers in gerontological nursing. However, questions remain as to what are the most effective ways to provide gerontological content in nursing programs and enhance attitudes toward older adults.With the understanding that younger adults see a need to balance work and play, a baccalaureate nursing program provides examples of ways to accomplish this through integration of courses, simulations, positive images of aging, and learning activities that enhance empathy for both frail and healthy older adults.

Intelligent energy allocation strategy for PHEV charging station using gravitational search algorithm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rahman, Imran; Vasant, Pandian M.; Singh, Balbir Singh Mahinder; Abdullah-Al-Wadud, M.

2014-10-01

Recent researches towards the use of green technologies to reduce pollution and increase penetration of renewable energy sources in the transportation sector are gaining popularity. The development of the smart grid environment focusing on PHEVs may also heal some of the prevailing grid problems by enabling the implementation of Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) concept. Intelligent energy management is an important issue which has already drawn much attention to researchers. Most of these works require formulation of mathematical models which extensively use computational intelligence-based optimization techniques to solve many technical problems. Higher penetration of PHEVs require adequate charging infrastructure as well as smart charging strategies. We used Gravitational Search Algorithm (GSA) to intelligently allocate energy to the PHEVs considering constraints such as energy price, remaining battery capacity, and remaining charging time.

Low vision rehabilitation and ocular problems among industrial workers in a developing country.

PubMed

Omar, R; Knight, V F; Aziz Mohammed, M A

2014-01-01

Work-related ocular injuries and illnesses were among the major causes of job absenteeism. This study was conducted to determine if low vision rehabilitation was provided following work-related ocular problems among industrial workers in a developing country. This was a retrospective analysis of case records. Randomly selected records of all employees from the Social Security Organization (SOCSO) Medical Board for 2004 who suffered from ocular injuries and illnesses were selected. Rates of ocular injuries and illnesses according to age, gender, races, types of injuries, types of industries, visual rehabilitation and types of medical interventions were tabulated and analysed. A total of 26 cases of ocular injuries and illnesses were identified where 46.2% suffered from ocular injuries. The remaining 53.8% had ocular and/or systemic diseases. The 40-49-yearold age group suffered the greatest number of injuries (26.92%). Ocular perforating injuries (66.67%) and ocular contusions (33.33%) were the most common types of ocular injury among industrial workers in Kuala Lumpur. Most injuries occurred among workers in the service industry (50%). Almost 60% of these injured workers did not receive any low vision rehabilitation after medical intervention while 25% were given contact lenses or spectacles as rehabilitation and remaining had surgery. The low vision rehabilitation is still unexplored in the management of ocular injuries and illnesses among industrial workers. Introducing low vision rehabilitation can benefit both workers and employers as it provides care beyond spectacles or contact lens prescriptions.

Low–Cost Bio-Based Carbon Fiber for High-Temperature Processing

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

Naskar, Amit K.; Akato, Kokouvi M.; Tran, Chau D.

GrafTech International Holdings Inc. (GTI), worked with Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) under CRADA No. NFE-15-05807 to develop lignin-based carbon fiber (LBCF) technology and to demonstrate LBCF performance in high-temperature products and applications. This work was unique and different from other reported LBCF work in that this study was application-focused and scalability-focused. Accordingly, the executed work was based on meeting criteria based on technology development, cost, and application suitability. The focus of this work was to demonstrate lab-scale LBCF from at least 4 different precursor feedstock sources that could meet the estimated production cost of $5.00/pound and have ash levelmore » of less than 500 ppm in the carbonized insulation-grade fiber. Accordingly, a preliminary cost model was developed based on publicly available information. The team demonstrated that 4 lignin samples met the cost criteria, as highlighted in Table 1. In addition, the ash level for the 4 carbonized lignin samples were below 500 ppm. Processing asreceived lignin to produce a high purity lignin fiber was a significant accomplishment in that most industrial lignin, prior to purification, had greater than 4X the ash level needed for this project, and prior to this work there was not a clear path of how to achieve the purity target. The lab scale development of LBCF was performed with a specific functional application in mind, specifically for high temperature rigid insulation. GTI is currently a consumer of foreignsourced pitch and rayon based carbon fibers for use in its high temperature insulation products, and the motivation was that LBCF had potential to decrease costs and increase product competitiveness in the marketplace through lowered raw material costs, lowered energy costs, and decreased environmental footprint. At the end of this project, the Technology Readiness Level (TRL) remained at 5 for LBCF in high temperature insulation.« less

Women and changes in the Chilean economy: some questions.

PubMed

Smiaroski, M S

1996-10-01

The author argues that a new development model that encourages greater participation of women in the work force in domestic piecework, temporary work, and subcontracting may further lead to the exploitation of women in Chile. The importance of women in economic development in Chile should be based on building skills, providing support child care services, reorienting women's education, and tax incentives. Chile over the past decade has achieved relatively stable economic growth and increased employment of women. During 1990-93 the growth of women in the work force increased at a rate of 16.8%, while men's presence increased by only 9.8%. The Chilean economy is based on a sophisticated modern sector and a labor-intensive informal sector. The Chilean model of development relies on cheap, flexible labor and a government approval of this model. Increased participation of women in the labor force is usually perceived as increased economic empowerment. A 1994 Oxfam study found that women were being forced into the labor market due to declines in family income and low wages. 46% of men and women received wages that did not cover basic necessities. The Chilean labor market is gender-stratified. Men are paid better than women for the same work. Men are in more permanent positions. Labor laws are either inadequate or violated, particularly for hours of work and overtime pay and conditions of employment and benefits. Traditional female jobs are those that rely on women's natural attributes. These unskilled attributes are rewarded with low wages. Little opportunity is provided for upgrading skills or acquiring new skills. Some women turn down advancement because of a lack of role models. Women have little opportunity to develop their self-image as workers. Poor self-images affect women's work attitudes and motivation. Some firms use competition between women to boost production. Chilean women remain in subordinate roles.

On the Reconstruction of Palaeo-Ice Sheets: Recent Advances and Future Challenges

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stokes, Chris R.; Tarasov, Lev; Blomdin, Robin; Cronin, Thomas M.; Fisher, Timothy G.; Gyllencreutz, Richard; Hattestrand, Clas; Heyman, Jacob; Hindmarsh, Richard C. A.; Hughes, Anna L. C.;

On the reconstruction of palaeo-ice sheets: Recent advances and future challenges

USGS Publications Warehouse

Stokes, Chris R.; Tarasov, Lev; Blomdin, Robin; Cronin, Thomas M.; Fisher, Timothy G.; Gyllencreutz, Richard; Hattestrand, Clas; Heyman, Jakob; Hindmarsh, Richard C. A.; Hughes, Anna L. C.; Jakobsson, Martin; Kirchner, Nina; Livingstone, Stephen J.; Margold, Martin; Murton, Julian B.; Noormets, Riko; Peltier, W. Richard; Peteet, Dorothy M.; Piper, David J. W.; Preusser, Frank; Renssen, Hans; Roberts, David H.; Roche, Didier M.; Saint-Ange, Francky; Stroeven, Arjen P.; Teller, James T.

2015-01-01

Reconstructing the growth and decay of palaeo-ice sheets is critical to understanding mechanisms of global climate change and associated sea-level fluctuations in the past, present and future. The significance of palaeo-ice sheets is further underlined by the broad range of disciplines concerned with reconstructing their behaviour, many of which have undergone a rapid expansion since the 1980s. In particular, there has been a major increase in the size and qualitative diversity of empirical data used to reconstruct and date ice sheets, and major improvements in our ability to simulate their dynamics in numerical ice sheet models. These developments have made it increasingly necessary to forge interdisciplinary links between sub-disciplines and to link numerical modelling with observations and dating of proxy records. The aim of this paper is to evaluate recent developments in the methods used to reconstruct ice sheets and outline some key challenges that remain, with an emphasis on how future work might integrate terrestrial and marine evidence together with numerical modelling. Our focus is on pan-ice sheet reconstructions of the last deglaciation, but regional case studies are used to illustrate methodological achievements, challenges and opportunities. Whilst various disciplines have made important progress in our understanding of ice-sheet dynamics, it is clear that data-model integration remains under-used, and that uncertainties remain poorly quantified in both empirically-based and numerical ice-sheet reconstructions. The representation of past climate will continue to be the largest source of uncertainty for numerical modelling. As such, palaeo-observations are critical to constrain and validate modelling. State-of-the-art numerical models will continue to improve both in model resolution and in the breadth of inclusion of relevant processes, thereby enabling more accurate and more direct comparison with the increasing range of palaeo-observations. Thus, the capability is developing to use all relevant palaeo-records to more strongly constrain deglacial (and to a lesser extent pre-LGM) ice sheet evolution. In working towards that goal, the accurate representation of uncertainties is required for both constraint data and model outputs. Close cooperation between modelling and data-gathering communities is essential to ensure this capability is realised and continues to progress.

[Night work, shift work: Breast cancer risk factor?].

PubMed

Benabu, J-C; Stoll, F; Gonzalez, M; Mathelin, C

2015-12-01

The aim of this review was to determine the link between night/shift work and breast cancer. The analysed articles were taken from the PUBMED database between 1996 and 2015. The keywords used were "breast cancer risk", "night work" and "shift work". In total, 25 articles were selected. Night/shift workers are more at risk to develop a breast cancer (relative risk (RR) between 1.09; 95% CI: 1.02-1.20 and 1.48; 95% CI: 1.36-1.61 in the meta-analyses). However, this risk is not found by some cohort and case-control studies. The circadian rhythm disruption, responsible of disorderliness of melatonin secretion, could be one of the mechanisms involved in the increase of that risk. Hormonal status of night/shift workers, their geographic origin, their lifestyle and their vitamin D deficiency appear as other mechanisms potentially responsible for increased risk of cancer in this professional population. Moreover, a dose-effect connection may exist, with an increase of the risk with the number of years of night/shift work. Night/shift work is associated with a moderate increased risk of breast cancer, especially among women who worked over 20 years. Recommendations concerning the breast monitoring in this population could be diffused. The benefit of melatonin supplementation remains to be assessed. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier SAS.

Managing pain in the workplace: a focus group study of challenges, strategies and what matters most to workers with low back pain.

PubMed

Tveito, Torill Helene; Shaw, William S; Huang, Yueng-Hsiang; Nicholas, Michael; Wagner, Gregory

2010-01-01

Most working adults with low back pain (LBP) continue to work despite pain, but few studies have assessed self-management strategies in this at-work population. The purpose of this study was to identify workplace challenges and self-management strategies reported by workers remaining at work despite recurrent or persistent LBP, to be used as a framework for the development of a workplace group intervention to prevent back disability. Workers with LBP (n = 38) participated in five focus groups, and audio recordings of sessions were analysed to assemble lists of common challenges and coping strategies. A separate analysis provided a general categorisation of major themes. Workplace pain challenges fell within four domains: activity interference, negative self-perceptions, interpersonal challenges and inflexibility of work. Self-management strategies consisted of modifying work activities and routines, reducing pain symptoms, using cognitive strategies and communicating pain effectively. Theme extraction identified six predominant themes: knowing your work setting, talking about pain, being prepared for a bad day, thoughts and emotions, keeping moving and finding leeway. To retain workers with LBP, this qualitative investigation suggests future intervention efforts should focus on worker communication and cognitions related to pain, pacing of work and employer efforts to provide leeway for altered job routines.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Endeavour settles into place inside the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) where it has been moved for temporary storage. It left the Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF) to allow work to be performed in the OPF that can only be accomplished while the bay is empty. Work scheduled in the OPF includes annual validation of the bay’s cranes, work platforms, lifting mechanisms and jack stands. Endeavour will remain in the VAB for approximately 12 days, then return to the OPF.

NASA Image and Video Library

2004-01-09

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Endeavour settles into place inside the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) where it has been moved for temporary storage. It left the Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF) to allow work to be performed in the OPF that can only be accomplished while the bay is empty. Work scheduled in the OPF includes annual validation of the bay’s cranes, work platforms, lifting mechanisms and jack stands. Endeavour will remain in the VAB for approximately 12 days, then return to the OPF.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Endeavour begins rolling out of the Orbiter Processing Facility for temporary transfer to the Vehicle Assembly Building. The move allows work to be performed in the OPF that can only be accomplished while the bay is empty. Work scheduled in the OPF includes annual validation of the bay’s cranes, work platforms, lifting mechanisms and jack stands. Endeavour will remain in the VAB for approximately 12 days, then return to the OPF.

NASA Image and Video Library

2004-01-09

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Endeavour begins rolling out of the Orbiter Processing Facility for temporary transfer to the Vehicle Assembly Building. The move allows work to be performed in the OPF that can only be accomplished while the bay is empty. Work scheduled in the OPF includes annual validation of the bay’s cranes, work platforms, lifting mechanisms and jack stands. Endeavour will remain in the VAB for approximately 12 days, then return to the OPF.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Endeavour rolls into the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) for temporary storage. The orbiter has been moved from the Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF) to allow work to be performed in the OPF that can only be accomplished while the bay is empty. Work scheduled in the OPF includes annual validation of the bay’s cranes, work platforms, lifting mechanisms and jack stands. Endeavour will remain in the VAB for approximately 12 days, then return to the OPF.

NASA Image and Video Library

2004-01-09

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Endeavour rolls into the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) for temporary storage. The orbiter has been moved from the Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF) to allow work to be performed in the OPF that can only be accomplished while the bay is empty. Work scheduled in the OPF includes annual validation of the bay’s cranes, work platforms, lifting mechanisms and jack stands. Endeavour will remain in the VAB for approximately 12 days, then return to the OPF.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Endeavour is towed toward the Vehicle Assembly Building for temporary storage. The orbiter has been moved from the Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF) to allow work to be performed in the OPF that can only be accomplished while the bay is empty. Work scheduled in the OPF includes annual validation of the bay’s cranes, work platforms, lifting mechanisms and jack stands. Endeavour will remain in the VAB for approximately 12 days, then return to the OPF.

NASA Image and Video Library

2004-01-09

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Endeavour is towed toward the Vehicle Assembly Building for temporary storage. The orbiter has been moved from the Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF) to allow work to be performed in the OPF that can only be accomplished while the bay is empty. Work scheduled in the OPF includes annual validation of the bay’s cranes, work platforms, lifting mechanisms and jack stands. Endeavour will remain in the VAB for approximately 12 days, then return to the OPF.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Endeavour is ready to be rolled out of the Orbiter Processing Facility for temporary transfer to the Vehicle Assembly Building. The move allows work to be performed in the OPF that can only be accomplished while the bay is empty. Work scheduled in the OPF includes annual validation of the bay’s cranes, work platforms, lifting mechanisms and jack stands. Endeavour will remain in the VAB for approximately 12 days, then return to the OPF.

NASA Image and Video Library

2004-01-09

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Endeavour is ready to be rolled out of the Orbiter Processing Facility for temporary transfer to the Vehicle Assembly Building. The move allows work to be performed in the OPF that can only be accomplished while the bay is empty. Work scheduled in the OPF includes annual validation of the bay’s cranes, work platforms, lifting mechanisms and jack stands. Endeavour will remain in the VAB for approximately 12 days, then return to the OPF.

Cancer and heart attack survivors' expectations of employment status: results from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing.

PubMed

Duijts, Saskia F A; van der Beek, Allard J; Bleiker, Eveline M A; Smith, Lee; Wardle, Jane

2017-08-07

Sociodemographic, health- and work-related factors have been found to influence return to work in cancer survivors. It is feasible though that behavioural factors, such as expectation of being at work, could also affect work-related outcomes. Therefore, the effect of earlier identified factors and expectation of being at work on future employment status in cancer survivors was explored. To assess the degree to which these factors specifically concern cancer survivors, a comparison with heart attack survivors was made. Data from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing were used. Cancer and heart attack survivors of working age in the UK were included and followed up for 2 years. Baseline characteristics of both cancer and heart attack survivors were compared regarding employment status. Univariate and multivariate regression analyses were performed in survivors at work, and the interaction between independent variables and diagnose group was assessed. In cancer survivors at work (N = 159), alcohol consumption, participating in moderate or vigorous sport activities, general health and participation were univariate associated with employment status at two-year follow-up. Only fair general health (compared to very good general health) remained statistically significant in the multivariate model (OR 0.31; 95% CI 0.13-0.76; p = 0.010). In heart attack survivors at work (N = 78), gender, general health and expectation of being at work were univariate associated with employment status at follow-up. Female gender (OR 0.03; 95% CI 0.00-0.57; p = 0.018) and high expectation of being at work (OR 10.68; 95% CI 1.23-93.92; p = 0.033) remained significant in the multivariate model. The influence of gender (p = 0.066) and general health (p = 0.020) regarding employment status was found to differ significantly between cancer and heart attack survivors. When predicting future employment status in cancer survivors in the UK, general health is the most relevant factor to consider. While expectation of being at work did not show any significant influence in cancer survivors, in heart attack survivors, it should not be disregarded though, when developing interventions to affect their employment status. Future research should focus on more specific measures for expectation, and additional behavioural factors, such as self-efficacy, and their effect on employment status.

Interleukin-6 Level among Shift and Night Workers in Japan: Cross-Sectional Analysis of the J-HOPE Study.

PubMed

Amano, Hoichi; Fukuda, Yoshiharu; Yokoo, Takashi; Yamaoka, Kazue

2018-03-27

Shift workers have a high risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Systemic inflammation measured has been associated with the risk of CVD onset, in addition to classical risk factors. However, the association between work schedule and inflammatory cytokine levels remains unclear. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between work schedule and interleukin-6 (IL-6)/high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) levels among Japanese workers. The present cross-sectional study was a part of the Japanese Study of Health, Occupation and Psychosocial Factors Related Equity (J-HOPE). A total of 5259 persons who measured inflammatory cytokine were analyzed in this study. One-way analysis of variance was used to test log-transformed IL-6/hs-CRP differences by work schedule. Multiple regression analysis was used to examine the difference adjusted for other possible CVD risk factors. There were 3660 participants who had a regular work schedule; the remaining schedules were shift work without night work for 181 participants, shift work with night work for 1276 participants, and only night work for 142 participants. The unadjusted model showed that only night workers were significantly related to high levels of IL-6 compared with regular workers. Even in the multiple regression analysis, the higher level of IL-6 among only night workers remained significant (β=0.058, P=0.01). On the contrary, hs-CRP was not. The present study revealed that only night shift work is significantly associated with high levels of IL-6 in Japanese workers. These observations help us understand the mechanism for the association between work schedule and CVD onset.

Fatigue Risk Management: A Maritime Framework

PubMed Central

Grech, Michelle Rita

2016-01-01

It is evident that despite efforts directed at mitigating the risk of fatigue through the adoption of hours of work and rest regulations and development of codes and guidelines, fatigue still remains a concern in shipping. Lack of fatigue management has been identified as a contributory factor in a number of recent accidents. This is further substantiated through research reports with shortfalls highlighted in current fatigue management approaches. These approaches mainly focus on prescriptive hours of work and rest and include an individualistic approach to managing fatigue. The expectation is that seafarers are responsible to manage and tolerate fatigue as part of their working life at sea. This attitude is an accepted part of a seafarer’s role. Poor compliance is one manifest of this problem with shipboard demands making it hard for seafarers to follow hours of work and rest regulations, forcing them into this “poor compliance” trap. This makes current fatigue management approaches ineffective. This paper proposes a risk based approach and way forward for the implementation of a fatigue risk management framework for shipping, aiming to support the hours of work and rest requirements. This forms part of the work currently underway to review and update the International Maritime Organization, Guidelines on Fatigue. PMID:26840326

Measuring presenteeism: which questionnaire to use in physical activity research?

PubMed

Brown, Helen Elizabeth; Burton, Nicola; Gilson, Nicholas David; Brown, Wendy

2014-02-01

An emerging area of interest in workplace health is presenteeism; the measurable extent to which physical or psychosocial symptoms, conditions and disease adversely affect the work productivity of those who choose to remain at work. Given established links between presenteeism and health, and health and physical activity, presenteeism could be an important outcome in workplace physical activity research. This study provides a narrative review of questionnaires for use in such research. Eight self-report measures of presenteeism were identified. Information regarding development, constructs measured and psychometric properties was extracted from relevant articles. Questionnaires were largely self-administered, had 4-44 items, and recall periods ranging from 1 week to 1 year. Items were identified as assessing work performance, physical tolerance, psychological well-being and social or role functioning. Samples used to test questionnaires were predominantly American male employees, with an age range of 30-59 years. All instruments had undergone psychometric assessment, most commonly discriminant and construct validity. Based on instrument characteristics, the range of conceptual foci covered and acceptable measurement properties, the Health and Work Questionnaire, Work Ability Index, and Work Limitations Questionnaire are suggested as most suitable for further exploring the relationship between physical activity and presenteeism.

Fatigue Risk Management: A Maritime Framework.

PubMed

Grech, Michelle Rita

2016-01-29

It is evident that despite efforts directed at mitigating the risk of fatigue through the adoption of hours of work and rest regulations and development of codes and guidelines, fatigue still remains a concern in shipping. Lack of fatigue management has been identified as a contributory factor in a number of recent accidents. This is further substantiated through research reports with shortfalls highlighted in current fatigue management approaches. These approaches mainly focus on prescriptive hours of work and rest and include an individualistic approach to managing fatigue. The expectation is that seafarers are responsible to manage and tolerate fatigue as part of their working life at sea. This attitude is an accepted part of a seafarer's role. Poor compliance is one manifest of this problem with shipboard demands making it hard for seafarers to follow hours of work and rest regulations, forcing them into this "poor compliance" trap. This makes current fatigue management approaches ineffective. This paper proposes a risk based approach and way forward for the implementation of a fatigue risk management framework for shipping, aiming to support the hours of work and rest requirements. This forms part of the work currently underway to review and update the International Maritime Organization, Guidelines on Fatigue.

"Working towards being ready": A grounded theory study of how practising midwives maintain their ongoing competence to practise their profession.

PubMed

Calvert, Susan; Smythe, Elizabeth; McKenzie-Green, Barbara

2017-07-01

to present a grounded theory research study explaining how New Zealand midwives maintain their ongoing competence to practise their profession. grounded theory, an interpretive emergent research methodology was used to examine the process of maintaining competence in midwifery practice. New Zealand urban and rural practice settings. twenty-six midwives from across New Zealand were interviewed and asked about maintaining their competence to practise. Five midwives were interviewed twice, to explore the emerging findings and as one method of member checking. the grounded theory of 'working towards being ready' describes a continuous process in which midwives engage as they work to maintain practice competence. The component parts comprise professional positioning, identifying needs, strategizing solutions and reflecting on practice. The process is contextual, diverse and is influenced by the practice setting where the salient conditions of resourcing, availability and opportunity for engagement in activities are significant. across the midwifery profession, midwives in New Zealand are currently working under the generic umbrella of midwifery practice. Midwives work across a range of practice arenas in diverse ways focussed on providing safe care and require a range of professional development activities germane to their area of practice. When the midwife has access to professional development pertinent to their practice, women and the profession benefit. As there is diversity of practice, then mandated processes for ongoing competence need to have flexibility to reflect that diversity. midwives engage in development that allows them to remain current in practice and that enables them to provide appropriate care to women and their babies. As a consequence they can develop expertise in certain aspects of midwifery. Mandated processes that require engagement in activities aimed at demonstration of competence should be evaluated and tailored to ensure they meet the needs of the developing profession. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Scale effect challenges in urban hydrology highlighted with a distributed hydrological model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ichiba, Abdellah; Gires, Auguste; Tchiguirinskaia, Ioulia; Schertzer, Daniel; Bompard, Philippe; Ten Veldhuis, Marie-Claire

2018-01-01

Hydrological models are extensively used in urban water management, development and evaluation of future scenarios and research activities. There is a growing interest in the development of fully distributed and grid-based models. However, some complex questions related to scale effects are not yet fully understood and still remain open issues in urban hydrology. In this paper we propose a two-step investigation framework to illustrate the extent of scale effects in urban hydrology. First, fractal tools are used to highlight the scale dependence observed within distributed data input into urban hydrological models. Then an intensive multi-scale modelling work is carried out to understand scale effects on hydrological model performance. Investigations are conducted using a fully distributed and physically based model, Multi-Hydro, developed at Ecole des Ponts ParisTech. The model is implemented at 17 spatial resolutions ranging from 100 to 5 m. Results clearly exhibit scale effect challenges in urban hydrology modelling. The applicability of fractal concepts highlights the scale dependence observed within distributed data. Patterns of geophysical data change when the size of the observation pixel changes. The multi-scale modelling investigation confirms scale effects on hydrological model performance. Results are analysed over three ranges of scales identified in the fractal analysis and confirmed through modelling. This work also discusses some remaining issues in urban hydrology modelling related to the availability of high-quality data at high resolutions, and model numerical instabilities as well as the computation time requirements. The main findings of this paper enable a replacement of traditional methods of model calibration by innovative methods of model resolution alteration based on the spatial data variability and scaling of flows in urban hydrology.

The Virtual Observatory: Retrospective and Prospectus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hanisch, R. J.

2010-12-01

At the ADASS XV in San Lorenzo de El Escorial, Spain, in October 2005, I gave an overview of the accomplishments of the Virtual Observatory initiatives and discussed the imminent transition from development to operations. That transition remains on the horizon for the US Virtual Observatory, and VO projects worldwide have encountered various programmatic challenges. The successes of the Virtual Observatory are many, but thus far are primarily of a technical nature. We have developed a data discovery and data access infrastructure that has been taken up by data centers and observatories around the world. We have web-based interfaces, downloadable toolkits and applications, a security and restricted access capability, standard vocabularies, a sophisticated messaging and alert system for transient events, and the ability for applications to exchange messages and work together seamlessly. This has been accomplished through a strong collaboration between astronomers and information technology specialists. We have been less successful engaging the astronomical researcher. Relatively few papers have been published based on VO-enabled research, and many astronomers remain unfamiliar with the capabilities of the VO despite active training and tutorial programs hosted by several of the major VO projects. As we (finally!) enter the operational phase of the VO, we need to focus on areas that have contributed to the limited take-up of the VO amongst active scientists, such as ease of use, reliability, and consistency. We need to routinely test VO services for aliveness and adherence to standards, working with data providers to fix errors and otherwise removing non-compliant services from those seen by end-users. Technical developments will need to be motivated and prioritized based on scientific utility. We need to continue to embrace new technology and employ it in a context that focuses on research productivity.

The future of surgery: autonomy or employment?

PubMed

Liepert, Amy; Babu, Maya; Leichtle, Stefan

2011-08-01

History has shown that the professions of medicine and surgery have been in constant evolution. Physicians, including the historical barber surgeons, often remained focused only on medical practice and patient care. As a result, the medical profession had a reactionary response to the financial and political circumstances that developed over time. Subsequently, physicians have worked in environments designed by nonphysicians lacking the benefit of medical insight. The most poignant example of this in the U.S. was the rapid development of private insurance and Medicare. Due to the surrounding financial and political forces, these programs rapidly changed the practice environment of medicine. Physicians found that they needed to participate in these programs to remain financially solvent. Various countries around the world have faced similar challenges of increasing health care cost. As populations expand, the need for care increases, but is limited by available resources. These global experiences can lend insight into the effects of different models and how variations may or may not work within the U.S. The effects of those systems demonstrate the importance of physician input into the development of new models. A long-standing unwritten rule in medicine has taught generations of physicians to avoid discussing reimbursement and health care politics. Yet, in order to recruit the brightest minds with a compassionate bedside manner, excellent judgment, and high vigilance toward patient care, medical professionals need to discuss topics related to reimbursement. The government, insurance company administrations, and other lobby interest groups freely express their interests in these issues. Physicians must engage in health care politics to ensure an adequate physician pool in the future to take care of patients. By influencing the structure of the health care system, including physician reimbursement, all patient care can be positively influenced.

A multi-country perspective on nurses' tasks below their skill level: reports from domestically trained nurses and foreign trained nurses from developing countries.

PubMed

Bruyneel, Luk; Li, Baoyue; Aiken, Linda; Lesaffre, Emmanuel; Van den Heede, Koen; Sermeus, Walter

2013-02-01

Several studies have concluded that the use of nurses' time and energy is often not optimized. Given widespread migration of nurses from developing to developed countries, it is important for human resource planning to know whether nursing education in developing countries is associated with more exaggerated patterns of inefficiency. First, to describe nurses' reports on tasks below their skill level. Second, to examine the association between nurses' migratory status (domestically trained nurse or foreign trained nurse from a developing country) and reports on these tasks. The Registered Nurse Forecasting Study used a cross-sectional quantitative research design to gather data from 33,731 nurses (62% response rate) in 486 hospitals in Belgium, England, Finland, Germany, Greece, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. For this analysis, nurse-reported information on migratory status and tasks below their skill level performed during their last shift was used. Random effects models estimated the effect of nurses' migratory status on reports of these tasks. 832 nurses were trained in a developing country (2.5% of total sample). Across countries, a high proportion of both domestically trained and foreign trained nurses from developing countries reported having performed tasks below their skill level during their last shift. After adjusting for nurses' type of last shift worked, years of experience, and level of education, there remained a pronounced overall effect of being a foreign trained nurse from a developing country and an increase in reports of tasks below skill level performed during the last shift. The findings suggest that there remains much room for improvement to optimize the use of nurses' time and energy. Special attention should be given to raising the professional level of practice of foreign trained nurses from developing countries. Further research is needed to understand the influence of professional practice standards, skill levels of foreign trained nurses from developing countries and values attached to these tasks resulting from previous work experiences in their home countries. This will allow us to better understand the conditions under which foreign trained nurses from developing countries can optimally contribute to professional nursing practice in developed country contexts. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Consensus Paper: The Cerebellum's Role in Movement and Cognition

PubMed Central

Koziol, Leonard F.; Budding, Deborah; Andreasen, Nancy; D'Arrigo, Stefano; Bulgheroni, Sara; Imamizu, Hiroshi; Ito, Masao; Manto, Mario; Marvel, Cherie; Parker, Krystal; Pezzulo, Giovanni; Ramnani, Narender; Riva, Daria; Schmahmann, Jeremy; Vandervert, Larry; Yamazaki, Tadashi

2014-01-01

While the cerebellum's role in motor function is well recognized, the nature of its concurrent role in cognitive function remains considerably less clear. The current consensus paper gathers diverse views on a variety of important roles played by the cerebellum across a range of cognitive and emotional functions. This paper considers the cerebellum in relation to neurocognitive development, language function, working memory, executive function, and the development of cerebellar internal control models and reflects upon some of the ways in which better understanding the cerebellum's status as a “supervised learning machine” can enrich our ability to understand human function and adaptation. As all contributors agree that the cerebellum plays a role in cognition, there is also an agreement that this conclusion remains highly inferential. Many conclusions about the role of the cerebellum in cognition originate from applying known information about cerebellar contributions to the coordination and quality of movement. These inferences are based on the uniformity of the cerebellum's compositional infrastructure and its apparent modular organization. There is considerable support for this view, based upon observations of patients with pathology within the cerebellum. PMID:23996631

Burden of surgical disease: does the literature reflect the scope of the international crisis?

PubMed

Taira, Breena R; Kelly McQueen, K A; Burkle, Frederick M

2009-05-01

Little is factually known about the burden of surgical disease and less is known about global surgical provision of care for diseases that may be treated, cured, or palliated by a surgical intervention. Despite the lack of information, surgical interventions are provided by a variety of agencies every day in the developing world. This literature review represents the first published comprehensive review of the global surgical literature. The primary goal was to collect and summarize what has been published on the current global burden of surgical disease and thereby encourage and promote the allocation of further research and resources. A systematic review of English language publications on Pubmed or Medline was performed. This report summarizes what little is known in terms of numeric estimates for the global burden of surgical disease. Globally, access and availability of surgical care in developing countries remains scarce, but the problem is receiving more attention for the first time in surgical circles. Much work remains in the effort to obtain reliable estimates of the global burden of surgical disease.

Understanding Scientific Methodology in the Historical and Experimental Sciences via Language Analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dodick, Jeff; Argamon, Shlomo; Chase, Paul

2009-08-01

A key focus of current science education reforms involves developing inquiry-based learning materials. However, without an understanding of how working scientists actually do science, such learning materials cannot be properly developed. Until now, research on scientific reasoning has focused on cognitive studies of individual scientific fields. However, the question remains as to whether scientists in different fields fundamentally rely on different methodologies. Although many philosophers and historians of science do indeed assert that there is no single monolithic scientific method, this has never been tested empirically. We therefore approach this problem by analyzing patterns of language used by scientists in their published work. Our results demonstrate systematic variation in language use between types of science that are thought to differ in their characteristic methodologies. The features of language use that were found correspond closely to a proposed distinction between Experimental Sciences (e.g., chemistry) and Historical Sciences (e.g., paleontology); thus, different underlying rhetorical and conceptual mechanisms likely operate for scientific reasoning and communication in different contexts.

Mina: A Th2 response regulator meets TGFβ

PubMed Central

Pillai, Meenu R.; Lian, Shangli; Bix, Mark

2014-01-01

The JmjC protein Mina is an important immune response regulator. Classical forward genetics first discovered its immune role in 2009 in connection with the development of T helper 2 (Th2) cells. This prompted investigation into Mina’s role in the two best-studied contexts where Th2 responses are essential: atopic asthma and helminth expulsion. In work focused on a mouse model of atopic asthma, Mina deficiency was found to ameliorate airway hyper-resistance and pulmonary inflammation. And, in a case-control study genetic variation at the human MINA locus was found to be associated with the development of childhood atopic asthma. Although the underlying cellular and molecular mechanism of Mina’s involvement in pulmonary inflammation remains unknown, our recent work on parasitic helminth expulsion suggests the possibility that, rather than T cells, epithelial cells responding to TGFβ may play the dominant role. Here we review the growing body of literature on the emerging Mina pathway in T cells and epithelial cells and attempt to set these into a broader context. PMID:25282476

New 'patent accelerated care environment' aims to facilitate work flow, free up ED for acute care needs.

PubMed

2012-02-01

Faced with rising acuity levels and surging demand, Virginia Mason Medical Center modified the Clinical Decision Unit concept used in many EDs, and developed a new Patient Accelerated Care Environment (PACE) to care for observation patients, process patients for discharge, and to prepare patients for admission.The approach is designed to utilize ED beds for initial processing of patients, allowing resuscitative care if needed, and treating and releasing the patients with quick care needs. Using the Virginia Mason Production System, a methodology that is modeled after Toyota production techniques, developers designed an optimal work flow pattern and then built infrastructure to facilitate that process. All patients who present to the ED for care are seen by the ED team through a "team greet" approach. Approximately 35% to 40% of patients who come to the ED for care are transferred to the PACE unit. Patients assigned to the PACE unit typically remain there for 4 to 48 hours, depending on their care needs.

ACTIVIS: Visual Exploration of Industry-Scale Deep Neural Network Models.

PubMed

Kahng, Minsuk; Andrews, Pierre Y; Kalro, Aditya; Polo Chau, Duen Horng

2017-08-30

While deep learning models have achieved state-of-the-art accuracies for many prediction tasks, understanding these models remains a challenge. Despite the recent interest in developing visual tools to help users interpret deep learning models, the complexity and wide variety of models deployed in industry, and the large-scale datasets that they used, pose unique design challenges that are inadequately addressed by existing work. Through participatory design sessions with over 15 researchers and engineers at Facebook, we have developed, deployed, and iteratively improved ACTIVIS, an interactive visualization system for interpreting large-scale deep learning models and results. By tightly integrating multiple coordinated views, such as a computation graph overview of the model architecture, and a neuron activation view for pattern discovery and comparison, users can explore complex deep neural network models at both the instance- and subset-level. ACTIVIS has been deployed on Facebook's machine learning platform. We present case studies with Facebook researchers and engineers, and usage scenarios of how ACTIVIS may work with different models.

Zero-gyro control of the International Ultraviolet Explorer

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

O'Donnell, James R., Jr.; Hoffman, Henry C.

1993-01-01

The IUE was built for an anticipated lifespan of three years with a goal of five. It has been operating for over 15 years, even though it has had only two working gyros since August 17, 1985, through the use of a two-gyro attitude control system that uses information from IUE's fine sun sensor (FSS) and the two remaining gyros to provide three-axis control. A one-gyro control system that uses an additional axis of information from the FSS has been developed and tested on-orbit. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the work in progress towards the development of a zero-gyro control law for IUE. Motion about the sunline, which cannot be measured by the FSS, is measured and controlled in the zero-gyro system by applying a momentum bias perpendicular to the sunline and measuring the transfer of this momentum between the spacecraft reaction wheels, while the spacecraft is held in the other two axes using position and derived-rate information from the FSS.

Building the United States National Vegetation Classification

USGS Publications Warehouse

Franklin, S.B.; Faber-Langendoen, D.; Jennings, M.; Keeler-Wolf, T.; Loucks, O.; Peet, R.; Roberts, D.; McKerrow, A.

2012-01-01

The Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) Vegetation Subcommittee, the Ecological Society of America Panel on Vegetation Classification, and NatureServe have worked together to develop the United States National Vegetation Classification (USNVC). The current standard was accepted in 2008 and fosters consistency across Federal agencies and non-federal partners for the description of each vegetation concept and its hierarchical classification. The USNVC is structured as a dynamic standard, where changes to types at any level may be proposed at any time as new information comes in. But, because much information already exists from previous work, the NVC partners first established methods for screening existing types to determine their acceptability with respect to the 2008 standard. Current efforts include a screening process to assign confidence to Association and Group level descriptions, and a review of the upper three levels of the classification. For the upper levels especially, the expectation is that the review process includes international scientists. Immediate future efforts include the review of remaining levels and the development of a proposal review process.

Foreword to the Special Issue on Ejecta

DOE PAGES

Buttler, William Tillman; Williams, Robin J. R.; Najjar, Fady M.

2017-05-22

We report that ejecta physics is a young field, having developed over the last 60 years or so. Essentially, ejecta forms as a spray of dense particles generated from the free surface of metals subjected to strong shocks, but the detailed mechanisms controlling the properties of this particulate ejecta are only now being fully elucidated. The field is dynamic and rapidly growing, with military and industrial applications, and applications to areas such as fusion research. This Special Issue on Ejecta reports the current state of the art in ejecta physics, describing experimental, theoretical and computational work by research groups aroundmore » the world. While much remains to be done, the dramatic recent progress in the field, some of it first reported here, means that this volume provides a particularly timely review. In this foreword, we provide a brief historical overview of the development of ejecta physics, to define the context for the work in the rest of this Special Issue.« less

The "Prince of Medicine": Yūhannā ibn Māsawayh and the foundations of the western pharmaceutical tradition.

PubMed

De Vos, Paula

2013-12-01

This essay examines three medieval pharmaceutical treatises purportedly authored by Yūhannā ibn Māsawayh (anglicized to John Mesue) and traces their immense influence on the development of pharmacy in early modem Europe and the Hispanic world. Despite the importance of these works throughout the early modern period, Mesue is relatively unknown in the history of pharmacy and medicine, and his exact identity remains unclear. This essay argues that "Mesue" was most likely a pseudonym used by an unknown author of the Latin West and that the three works were crafted to meet the demands of the developing "medical marketplace" of late thirteenth-century Europe, where the manuscripts first appeared. At the same time, however, as the Arabic reference of the pseudonym suggests, these treatises were clearly products of the medieval Islamic world, including many innovations that would provide the basis for the theory and practice of pharmacy for centuries and arguably formed part of the artisanal epistemological influence on the Scientific Revolution.

Open Data, Open Source and Open Standards in chemistry: The Blue Obelisk five years on

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background The Blue Obelisk movement was established in 2005 as a response to the lack of Open Data, Open Standards and Open Source (ODOSOS) in chemistry. It aims to make it easier to carry out chemistry research by promoting interoperability between chemistry software, encouraging cooperation between Open Source developers, and developing community resources and Open Standards. Results This contribution looks back on the work carried out by the Blue Obelisk in the past 5 years and surveys progress and remaining challenges in the areas of Open Data, Open Standards, and Open Source in chemistry. Conclusions We show that the Blue Obelisk has been very successful in bringing together researchers and developers with common interests in ODOSOS, leading to development of many useful resources freely available to the chemistry community. PMID:21999342

The Psychosocial Work Environment, Employee Mental Health and Organizational Interventions: Improving Research and Practice by Taking a Multilevel Approach.

PubMed

Martin, Angela; Karanika-Murray, Maria; Biron, Caroline; Sanderson, Kristy

2016-08-01

Although there have been several calls for incorporating multiple levels of analysis in employee health and well-being research, studies examining the interplay between individual, workgroup, organizational and broader societal factors in relation to employee mental health outcomes remain an exception rather than the norm. At the same time, organizational intervention research and practice also tends to be limited by a single-level focus, omitting potentially important influences at multiple levels of analysis. The aims of this conceptual paper are to help progress our understanding of work-related determinants of employee mental health by the following: (1) providing a rationale for routine multilevel assessment of the psychosocial work environment; (2) discussing how a multilevel perspective can improve related organizational interventions; and (3) highlighting key theoretical and methodological considerations relevant to these aims. We present five recommendations for future research, relating to using appropriate multilevel research designs, justifying group-level constructs, developing group-level measures, expanding investigations to the organizational level and developing multilevel approaches to intervention design, implementation and evaluation. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Influence of visual clutter on the effect of navigated safety inspection: a case study on elevator installation.

PubMed

Liao, Pin-Chao; Sun, Xinlu; Liu, Mei; Shih, Yu-Nien

2018-01-11

Navigated safety inspection based on task-specific checklists can increase the hazard detection rate, theoretically with interference from scene complexity. Visual clutter, a proxy of scene complexity, can theoretically impair visual search performance, but its impact on the effect of safety inspection performance remains to be explored for the optimization of navigated inspection. This research aims to explore whether the relationship between working memory and hazard detection rate is moderated by visual clutter. Based on a perceptive model of hazard detection, we: (a) developed a mathematical influence model for construction hazard detection; (b) designed an experiment to observe the performance of hazard detection rate with adjusted working memory under different levels of visual clutter, while using an eye-tracking device to observe participants' visual search processes; (c) utilized logistic regression to analyze the developed model under various visual clutter. The effect of a strengthened working memory on the detection rate through increased search efficiency is more apparent in high visual clutter. This study confirms the role of visual clutter in construction-navigated inspections, thus serving as a foundation for the optimization of inspection planning.

Formation of magnetic discontinuities through viscous relaxation

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

Kumar, Sanjay; Bhattacharyya, R.; Smolarkiewicz, P. K.

2014-05-15

According to Parker's magnetostatic theorem, tangential discontinuities in magnetic field, or current sheets (CSs), are generally unavoidable in an equilibrium magnetofluid with infinite electrical conductivity and complex magnetic topology. These CSs are due to a failure of a magnetic field in achieving force-balance everywhere and preserving its topology while remaining in a spatially continuous state. A recent work [Kumar, Bhattacharyya, and Smolarkiewicz, Phys. Plasmas 20, 112903 (2013)] demonstrated this CS formation utilizing numerical simulations in terms of the vector magnetic field. The magnetohydrodynamic simulations presented here complement the above work by demonstrating CS formation by employing a novel approach ofmore » describing the magnetofluid evolution in terms of magnetic flux surfaces instead of the vector magnetic field. The magnetic flux surfaces being the possible sites on which CSs develop, this approach provides a direct visualization of the CS formation, helpful in understanding the governing dynamics. The simulations confirm development of tangential discontinuities through a favorable contortion of magnetic flux surfaces, as the magnetofluid undergoes a topology-preserving viscous relaxation from an initial non-equilibrium state with twisted magnetic field. A crucial finding of this work is in its demonstration of CS formation at spatial locations away from the magnetic nulls.« less

Not just a talking shop: practitioner perspectives on how communities of practice work to improve outcomes for people experiencing multiple exclusion homelessness.

PubMed

Cornes, Michelle; Manthorpe, Jill; Hennessy, Catherine; Anderson, Sarah; Clark, Michael; Scanlon, Christopher

2014-11-01

Within homelessness services recent policy developments have highlighted the need for integration and improved collaborative working and also, the need for "Psychologically Informed Environments" (PIES) in which workers are better equipped to manage the "complex trauma" associated with homelessness. Drawing on the findings of an evaluation of a multi-site development programme, this paper demonstrates how both these policy aspirations might be implemented through a single delivery vehicle (a community of practice). The paper describes how organizational, educational and psychosocial theory was used to inform programme design and reflects on the utility of these approaches in the light of the evaluation findings. It is reported that communities of practice can deliver significant performance gains in terms of building collaborative relationships and opening-up opportunities for interprofessional education and learning. Filling an important knowledge gap, it also suggested how (professional) participation in a community of practice might work to improve outcomes for service users. Most likely we see those outcomes as being linked to tackling exclusion by sustaining the workforce itself, that is in motivating workers to remain engaged and thinking positively in what is an emotionally challenging and stressful job role.

Genetic identification of missing persons: DNA analysis of human remains and compromised samples.

PubMed

Alvarez-Cubero, M J; Saiz, M; Martinez-Gonzalez, L J; Alvarez, J C; Eisenberg, A J; Budowle, B; Lorente, J A

2012-01-01

Human identification has made great strides over the past 2 decades due to the advent of DNA typing. Forensic DNA typing provides genetic data from a variety of materials and individuals, and is applied to many important issues that confront society. Part of the success of DNA typing is the generation of DNA databases to help identify missing persons and to develop investigative leads to assist law enforcement. DNA databases house DNA profiles from convicted felons (and in some jurisdictions arrestees), forensic evidence, human remains, and direct and family reference samples of missing persons. These databases are essential tools, which are becoming quite large (for example the US Database contains 10 million profiles). The scientific, governmental and private communities continue to work together to standardize genetic markers for more effective worldwide data sharing, to develop and validate robust DNA typing kits that contain the reagents necessary to type core identity genetic markers, to develop technologies that facilitate a number of analytical processes and to develop policies to make human identity testing more effective. Indeed, DNA typing is integral to resolving a number of serious criminal and civil concerns, such as solving missing person cases and identifying victims of mass disasters and children who may have been victims of human trafficking, and provides information for historical studies. As more refined capabilities are still required, novel approaches are being sought, such as genetic testing by next-generation sequencing, mass spectrometry, chip arrays and pyrosequencing. Single nucleotide polymorphisms offer the potential to analyze severely compromised biological samples, to determine the facial phenotype of decomposed human remains and to predict the bioancestry of individuals, a new focus in analyzing this type of markers. Copyright © 2012 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Observations from Space: A Unique Vantage Point for the Study of the Environment and Possible Associations with Disease Occurrence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Estes, S.; Haynes, J.; Hamdan, M. Al; Estes, M.; Sprigg, W.

2009-01-01

Health providers/researchers need environmental data to study and understand the geographic, environmental, and meteorological differences in disease. Satellite remote sensing of the environment offers a unique vantage point that can fill in the gaps of environmental, spatial, and temporal data for tracking disease. The field of geospatial health remains in its infancy, and this program will demonstrate the need for collaborations between multi-disciplinary research groups to develop the full potential. NASA will discuss the Public Health Projects developed to work with Grantees and the CDC while providing them with information on opportunities for future collaborations with NASA for future research.

Children's inequity aversion depends on culture: a cross-cultural comparison.

PubMed

Paulus, Markus

2015-04-01

Recent work showed the presence of strong forms of inequity aversion in young children. When presented with an uneven number of items, children would rather tend to throw one item away than to distribute them unequally between two anonymous others. The current study examined whether or not this pattern is a universal part of typical development by investigating 6- and 7-year-old Ugandan children. Results revealed that the Ugandan children, in contrast to their U.S. peers, tended to distribute the resources unequally rather than to throw the remaining resource away. This points to cross-cultural differences in the development of children's fairness-related decision making. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Genepleio software for effective estimation of gene pleiotropy from protein sequences.

PubMed

Chen, Wenhai; Chen, Dandan; Zhao, Ming; Zou, Yangyun; Zeng, Yanwu; Gu, Xun

2015-01-01

Though pleiotropy, which refers to the phenomenon of a gene affecting multiple traits, has long played a central role in genetics, development, and evolution, estimation of the number of pleiotropy components remains a hard mission to accomplish. In this paper, we report a newly developed software package, Genepleio, to estimate the effective gene pleiotropy from phylogenetic analysis of protein sequences. Since this estimate can be interpreted as the minimum pleiotropy of a gene, it is used to play a role of reference for many empirical pleiotropy measures. This work would facilitate our understanding of how gene pleiotropy affects the pattern of genotype-phenotype map and the consequence of organismal evolution.

Measurements of Immune Responses for Establishing Correlates of Vaccine Protection Against HIV

PubMed Central

Burgers, Wendy A.; Manrique, Amapola; McKinnon, Lyle R.; Reynolds, Matthew R.; Rolland, Morgane; Blish, Catherine; Chege, Gerald K.; Curran, Rhonda; Fischer, William; Herrera, Carolina; Sather, D. Noah

2012-01-01

Abstract Well-defined correlates of protective immunity are an essential component of rational vaccine development. Despite years of basic science and three HIV vaccine efficacy trials, correlates of immunological protection from HIV infection remain undefined. In December 2010, a meeting of scientists engaged in basic and translational work toward developing HIV-1 vaccines was convened. The goal of this meeting was to discuss current opportunities and optimal approaches for defining correlates of protection, both for ongoing and future HIV-1 vaccine candidates; specific efforts were made to engage young scientists. We discuss here the highlights from the meeting regarding the progress made and the way forward for a protective HIV-1 vaccine. PMID:21861777

Biotelemetry: could technological developments assist healthcare in rural India.

PubMed

Singh, Kanika

2005-01-01

In India 60-70% of the population live in rural villages. The rural population suffers from a burden of disease and disorders due to the non-availability of appropriate healthcare personnel and facilities. Since 1950, the Indian Government has responded with a series of five-year plans but has been unable to address the lack of healthcare professionals prepared to work in isolated and rural areas. The use of biotelemetry is proposed as a solution, its advantages and disadvantages are discussed. The development of biotelemetry in India will improve healthcare for the rural and remote population and ease the effects of the shortage of rural healthcare professionals. However, a number of questions remain and require further consideration.

Performance of the Falling Snow Retrieval Algorithms for the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Skofronick-Jackson, Gail; Munchak, Stephen J.; Ringerud, Sarah

2016-01-01

Retrievals of falling snow from space represent an important data set for understanding the Earth's atmospheric, hydrological, and energy cycles, especially during climate change. Estimates of falling snow must be captured to obtain the true global precipitation water cycle, snowfall accumulations are required for hydrological studies, and without knowledge of the frozen particles in clouds one cannot adequately understand the energy and radiation budgets. While satellite-based remote sensing provides global coverage of falling snow events, the science is relatively new and retrievals are still undergoing development with challenges remaining). This work reports on the development and testing of retrieval algorithms for the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) mission Core Satellite, launched February 2014.

Art, surgery and transplantation.

PubMed

Toledo-Pereyra, Luis H

2009-01-01

Roy Calne (1930-) has elegantly cultivated the science and art of transplantation. Throughout his medical and artistic career his eyes have remained fully open not only to science and scientific advances but to any new developments that would enhance his art of painting as applied to his patients, colleagues, events and surgical operations related to transplantation. Calne contributed to and developed a new field through art in the understanding of the lives of his patients, the working of his colleagues and the application of surgical principles to the specialty in which he labours, surgical transplantation. The application of "Art, Surgery and Transplantation" should in many ways be the fountain of information and support for those seeking this way of therapy.

Molecular Dissection of Neuroligin 2 and Slitrk3 Reveals an Essential Framework for GABAergic Synapse Development.

PubMed

Li, Jun; Han, Wenyan; Pelkey, Kenneth A; Duan, Jingjing; Mao, Xia; Wang, Ya-Xian; Craig, Michael T; Dong, Lijin; Petralia, Ronald S; McBain, Chris J; Lu, Wei

2017-11-15

In the brain, many types of interneurons make functionally diverse inhibitory synapses onto principal neurons. Although numerous molecules have been identified to function in inhibitory synapse development, it remains unknown whether there is a unifying mechanism for development of diverse inhibitory synapses. Here we report a general molecular mechanism underlying hippocampal inhibitory synapse development. In developing neurons, the establishment of GABAergic transmission depends on Neuroligin 2 (NL2), a synaptic cell adhesion molecule (CAM). During maturation, inhibitory synapse development requires both NL2 and Slitrk3 (ST3), another CAM. Importantly, NL2 and ST3 interact with nanomolar affinity through their extracellular domains to synergistically promote synapse development. Selective perturbation of the NL2-ST3 interaction impairs inhibitory synapse development with consequent disruptions in hippocampal network activity and increased seizure susceptibility. Our findings reveal how unique postsynaptic CAMs work in concert to control synaptogenesis and establish a general framework for GABAergic synapse development. Published by Elsevier Inc.

The Development of Metal Oxide Chemical Sensing Nanostructures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hunter, G. W.; VanderWal,R. L.; Xu, J. C.; Evans, L. J.; Berger, G. M.; Kulis, M. J.

2008-01-01

This paper discusses sensor development based on metal oxide nanostructures and microsystems technology. While nanostructures such as nanowires show significant potential as enabling materials for chemical sensors, a number of significant technical challenges remain. This paper discusses development to address each of these technical barriers: 1) Improved contact and integration of the nanostructured materials with microsystems in a sensor structure; 2) Control of nanostructure crystallinity to allow control of the detection mechanism; and 3) Widening the range of gases that can be detected by fabricating multiple nanostructured materials. A sensor structure composed of three nanostructured oxides aligned on a single microsensor has been fabricated and tested. Results of this testing are discussed and future development approaches are suggested. It is concluded that while this work lays the foundation for further development, these are the beginning steps towards realization of repeatable, controlled sensor systems using oxide based nanostructures.

What Touched Your Heart? Collaborative Story Analysis Emerging From an Apsáalooke Cultural Context.

PubMed

Hallett, John; Held, Suzanne; McCormick, Alma Knows His Gun; Simonds, Vanessa; Real Bird, Sloane; Martin, Christine; Simpson, Colleen; Schure, Mark; Turnsplenty, Nicole; Trottier, Coleen

2017-07-01

Community-based participatory research and decolonizing research share some recommendations for best practices for conducting research. One commonality is partnering on all stages of research; co-developing methods of data analysis is one stage with a deficit of partnering examples. We present a novel community-based and developed method for analyzing qualitative data within an Indigenous health study and explain incompatibilities of existing methods for our purposes and community needs. We describe how we explored available literature, received counsel from community Elders and experts in the field, and collaboratively developed a data analysis method consonant with community values. The method of analysis, in which interview/story remained intact, team members received story, made meaning through discussion, and generated a conceptual framework to inform intervention development, is detailed. We offer the development process and method as an example for researchers working with communities who want to keep stories intact during qualitative data analysis.

Structural violence: a barrier to achieving the millennium development goals for women.

PubMed

Mukherjee, Joia S; Barry, Donna J; Satti, Hind; Raymonville, Maxi; Marsh, Sarah; Smith-Fawzi, Mary Kay

2011-04-01

In 2000, all 191 United Nations member states agreed to work toward the achievement of a set of health and development goals by 2015. The achievement of these eight goals, the Millennium Development goals (MDGs) is highly dependent on improving the status of women, who play a key role in health and education in families and communities around the world. Yet structural violence, defined as the systematic exclusion of a group from the resources needed to develop their full human potential, remains a significant barrier against women's development and threatens the achievement of the MDGs. Although sound evidence has long existed for improving women's survival, the will to address women's health concretely and holistically is only recently gaining the advocacy needed to change policy. Concrete examples of the integration of approaches to mitigate structural violence within the delivery of health services do exist and should be incorporated into global advocacy for women's health.

Network Analysis: Applications for the Developing Brain

PubMed Central

Chu-Shore, Catherine J.; Kramer, Mark A.; Bianchi, Matt T.; Caviness, Verne S.; Cash, Sydney S.

2011-01-01

Development of the human brain follows a complex trajectory of age-specific anatomical and physiological changes. The application of network analysis provides an illuminating perspective on the dynamic interregional and global properties of this intricate and complex system. Here, we provide a critical synopsis of methods of network analysis with a focus on developing brain networks. After discussing basic concepts and approaches to network analysis, we explore the primary events of anatomical cortical development from gestation through adolescence. Upon this framework, we describe early work revealing the evolution of age-specific functional brain networks in normal neurodevelopment. Finally, we review how these relationships can be altered in disease and perhaps even rectified with treatment. While this method of description and inquiry remains in early form, there is already substantial evidence that the application of network models and analysis to understanding normal and abnormal human neural development holds tremendous promise for future discovery. PMID:21303762

Getting "What Works" Working: Building Blocks for the Integration of Experimental and Improvement Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Peterson, Amelia

2016-01-01

As a systemic approach to improving educational practice through research, "What Works" has come under repeated challenge from alternative approaches, most recently that of improvement science. While "What Works" remains a dominant paradigm for centralized knowledge-building efforts, there is need to understand why this…

Equity and working time: a challenge to achieve.

PubMed

Fischer, Frida Marina; Rotenberg, Lúcia; de Castro Moreno, Claudia Roberta

2004-01-01

Equity is a humanitarian issue that gained strength during the transition from the 20th to the 21st century due to the mounting global discussion and social crisis involving human rights, health, and work. This article aims at (1) introducing the concept of equity as it applies to work environments, particularly to situations involving demanding work schedules, (2) discussing the role of science in equity issues related to work, (3) introducing a new scientific society dedicated to working-time issues, and (4) presenting an overview of new research on working time and health as addressed by the series of manuscripts published in this special issue of Chronobiology International devoted to the XVIth International Symposium on Night and Shiftwork, held in Santos, Brazil, November 2003. The concept of equity has a political as a well as a scientific dimension. Many worldwide organizations, e.g., civil society, academia, and occupational health research institutions, advocate prompt actions toward equity as a strategy to attain sustainable development and to reduce poverty. The analyses of current tendencies in work settings reveal a general situation of disrespect for equity principles, which is expressed by heavy workloads, long work hours, poor work conditions, and deregulation of established labor laws, mainly in (but not restricted to) developing countries. In spite of the great contribution of science in the past five decades, obstacles stand in the way of effectively improving good working conditions, particularly in times of precarious employment. The Working Time Society is a new scientific society that aims at promoting research into working time and health and offers practical advice on how to minimize adverse effects of working hours on workers' health and well-being. An updated view of the research on working times and health includes studies on the relationship between work schedules, worker health, and well-being; effects of night and shiftwork on the internal synchronization of circadian rhythms and laboratory and field interventions; new methods of investigation or new approaches in shift-work studies; and prediction of risks in night and shift work. Current tendencies of work organization contribute to the amplification of inequality across groups and populations, revealing that equity remains a challenge to achieve.

Work Disability among Women: The Role of Divorce in a Retrospective Cohort Study.

PubMed

Tamborini, Christopher R; Reznik, Gayle L; Couch, Kenneth A

2016-03-01

We assess how divorce through midlife affects the subsequent probability of work-limiting health among U.S. women. Using retrospective marital and work disability histories from the Survey of Income and Program Participation matched to Social Security earnings records, we identify women whose first marriage dissolved between 1975 and 1984 (n = 1,214) and women who remain continuously married (n = 3,394). Probit and propensity score matching models examine the cumulative probability of a work disability over a 20-year follow-up period. We find that divorce is associated with a significantly higher cumulative probability of a work disability, controlling for a range of factors. This association is strongest among divorced women who do not remarry. No consistent relationships are observed among divorced women who remarry and remained married. We find that economic hardship, work history, and selection into divorce influence, but do not substantially alter, the lasting impact of divorce on work-limiting health. © American Sociological Association 2016.

Meeting the challenges of medical countermeasure development.

PubMed

Maher, Carmen; Hu-Primmer, Jean; MacGill, Tracy; Courtney, Brooke; Borio, Luciana

2012-09-01

Despite substantial investments since the events of 2001, much work remains to prepare the nation for a chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear (CBRN) attack or to respond to an emerging infectious disease threat. Following a 2010 review of the US Public Health Emergency Medical Countermeasures Enterprise, FDA launched its Medical Countermeasures initiative (MCMi) to facilitate the development and availability of medical products to counter CBRN and emerging disease threats. As a regulatory agency, FDA has a unique and critical part to play in this national undertaking. Using a three-pillar approach, FDA is addressing key challenges associated with the regulatory review process for medical countermeasures; gaps in regulatory science for MCM development and evaluation; and issues related to the legal, regulatory and policy framework for an effective public health response. Filling the gaps in the MCM Enterprise is a huge national undertaking, requiring the collaboration of all stakeholders, including federal partners, current and prospective developers of medical countermeasures, relevant research organizations, and state and local responders. Especially critical to success are an appreciation of the long timelines, risks and high costs associated with developing medical countermeasures - and the systems to deliver them - and the requisite support of all stakeholders, including national leadership. Published 2012. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.

US-RERTR Advanced Fuel Development Plans : 1999.

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

Meyer, M. K.

1998-10-22

Twelve fuel alloys were included in the very-high-density RERTR-1 and RERTR-2 microplate irradiation experiments. Experience gained during fabrication and results from the post-irradiation examination of these fuels has allowed us to narrow the focus of our fuel development efforts in preparation for the next set of irradiation experiments. Specific technical problems in both the areas of fuel fabrication and irradiation performance remain to be addressed. Examples of these are powder fabrication, fuel phase gamma stability versus density, and fuel-matrix interaction. In order to more efficiently address metal alloy fuel performance issues, work will continue on establishing a theoretical basis formore » alloy stability and metal alloy dispersion fuel irradiation performance. Plans to address these fuel development issues in the coming year will be presented.« less

Oxidative Stress, Unfolded Protein Response, and Apoptosis in Developmental Toxicity

PubMed Central

Kupsco, Allison; Schlenk, Daniel

2016-01-01

Physiological development requires precise spatiotemporal regulation of cellular and molecular processes. Disruption of these key events can generate developmental toxicity in the form of teratogenesis or mortality. The mechanism behind many developmental toxicants remains unknown. While recent work has focused on the unfolded protein response (UPR), oxidative stress, and apoptosis in the pathogenesis of disease, few studies have addressed their relationship in developmental toxicity. Redox regulation, UPR, and apoptosis are essential for physiological development and can be disturbed by a variety of endogenous and exogenous toxicants to generate lethality and diverse malformations. This review examines the current knowledge of the role of oxidative stress, UPR, and apoptosis in physiological development as well as in developmental toxicity, focusing on studies and advances in vertebrates model systems. PMID:26008783

Telepresence work station system definition study, part 2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1987-01-01

This study effort has shown that the development of a space robotic servicing system is totally feasible. More importantly, many of the key elements of such a system are currently available as the result of previous and ongoing technical efforts. In many cases, decisions remain to be made concerning tradeoffs between options available to satisfy system technology requirements. The primary recommendation resulting from this study is for the development of a flight test bed system that could be used to establish a performance database to assist some of the necessary technical decisions described in the study package. A properly design flight test bed system would prove tremendously useful in terms of rapidly evaluating technology in a realistic setting and would be a great benefit in the development of the operational system.

Disability, Work and Cash Benefits.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mashaw, Jerry L., Ed.; And Others

This book contains 13 papers from a workshop convened to explore the causes of work disability and the types of interventions that might enable individuals to remain at work, return to work, or enter the work force for the first time, despite having chronic health conditions or impairments. Following an overview of the papers by editors Jerry L.…

Alternative Work Schedules: Changing Times for a Changing Workforce. The National Report on Work & Family. Special Report #5.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bureau of National Affairs, Inc., Washington, DC.

Though the traditional 9:00-to-5:00 work week remains the predominant scheduling choice of most employers, companies in all industries increasingly are using alternative scheduling methods that allow employees to balance their work and family responsibilities. Alternative work schedules for permanent employees frequently are advocated as a…

From theory to 'measurement' in complex interventions: methodological lessons from the development of an e-health normalisation instrument.

PubMed

Finch, Tracy L; Mair, Frances S; O'Donnell, Catherine; Murray, Elizabeth; May, Carl R

2012-05-17

Although empirical and theoretical understanding of processes of implementation in health care is advancing, translation of theory into structured measures that capture the complex interplay between interventions, individuals and context remain limited. This paper aimed to (1) describe the process and outcome of a project to develop a theory-based instrument for measuring implementation processes relating to e-health interventions; and (2) identify key issues and methodological challenges for advancing work in this field. A 30-item instrument (Technology Adoption Readiness Scale (TARS)) for measuring normalisation processes in the context of e-health service interventions was developed on the basis on Normalization Process Theory (NPT). NPT focuses on how new practices become routinely embedded within social contexts. The instrument was pre-tested in two health care settings in which e-health (electronic facilitation of healthcare decision-making and practice) was used by health care professionals. The developed instrument was pre-tested in two professional samples (N=46; N=231). Ratings of items representing normalisation 'processes' were significantly related to staff members' perceptions of whether or not e-health had become 'routine'. Key methodological challenges are discussed in relation to: translating multi-component theoretical constructs into simple questions; developing and choosing appropriate outcome measures; conducting multiple-stakeholder assessments; instrument and question framing; and more general issues for instrument development in practice contexts. To develop theory-derived measures of implementation process for progressing research in this field, four key recommendations are made relating to (1) greater attention to underlying theoretical assumptions and extent of translation work required; (2) the need for appropriate but flexible approaches to outcomes measurement; (3) representation of multiple perspectives and collaborative nature of work; and (4) emphasis on generic measurement approaches that can be flexibly tailored to particular contexts of study.

[Marjorie Brierley and the beginnings of the London Middle Group].

PubMed

Huppke, Andrea

2014-01-01

This article presents an introduction to the life and work of Marjory Brierley (1893-1984) who, but for her paper on affects published in 1936, is nowadays relatively unknown. A member of the British Psychoanalytical Society since 1927, she withdrew from active work around 1950. In the 30s, she developed her psychoanalytic and scientific approach, centered on metapsychological issues. In the early 40s she played an important role in the Controversial Discussions between the groups around Melanie Klein and Anna Freud. She remained independent, refusing any idealization, bound only by her obligation to her scientific principles. With this attitude, she can be regarded as a typical pioneer of the later Middle Group or the Independents. After the controversy, Brierley elaborated her metapsychological and ethical ideas in four major papers.

Occupational health and safety of merchant seafarers from Kiribati and Tuvalu.

PubMed

Borovnik, Maria

2011-01-01

Intensifying international competition in the shipping industry in response to global pressures makes seafarers' jobs increasingly difficult. Challenging conditions in ship employment are problematic, particularly in a development context where home communities' dependence on seafarers' income is high and social protection is low. Qualitative fieldwork revealed that seafarers from Kiribati and Tuvalu endure exceptionally lengthy work periods at sea to remain competitive. Absence from home while working in constrained and mobile spaces with multinational crews, frequent security controls and speedy turnarounds impacting on sleep deprivation and decreased shore time have implications for physical and emotional health and can become safety matters. Hence, there is a growing need to address mechanisms to protect seafarers from the physical and emotional effects of global demands in the shipping industry.

Thrombosis in Cancer: Research Priorities Identified by a National Cancer Institute/National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Strategic Working Group.

PubMed

Key, Nigel S; Khorana, Alok A; Mackman, Nigel; McCarty, Owen J T; White, Gilbert C; Francis, Charles W; McCrae, Keith R; Palumbo, Joseph S; Raskob, Gary E; Chan, Andrew T; Sood, Anil K

2016-07-01

The risk for venous thromboembolism (VTE) is increased in cancer and particularly with chemotherapy, and it portends poorer survival among patients with cancer. However, many fundamental questions about cancer-associated VTE, or Trousseau syndrome, remain unanswered. This report summarizes the proceedings of a working group assembled by the NCI and NHLBI in August 2014 to explore the state of the science in cancer-associated VTE, identify clinically important research gaps, and develop consensus on priorities for future research. Representing a convergence of research priorities between the two NIH Institutes, the workshop addressed epidemiologic, basic science, clinical, and translational issues in cancer-associated VTE. Cancer Res; 76(13); 3671-5. ©2016 AACR. ©2016 American Association for Cancer Research.

Current Trends in Retirement: Implications for Career Counseling and Vocational Psychology

PubMed Central

Lytle, Megan C.; Clancy, Megan E.; Foley, Pamela F.; Cotter, Elizabeth W.

2015-01-01

This paper provides an overview of emerging trends in retirement, examines demographic trends in the labor force, and provides practical recommendations for working with older workers across cultures (e.g., women and racial/ethnic minorities, among others). Increasingly, older workers in the United States remain in the workforce for reasons related to financial security, healthcare, and personal fulfillment. Although retirement trends have become more complex, there is limited empirical literature addressing this issue and the research available does not attend to the needs of a diverse workforce. Therefore, implications for training, practice, advocacy, and research with regards to working with older workers across cultures (e.g., women and racial/ethnic minorities, among others) are provided. Keywords: Cross-cultural/multicultural career issues, career development stages, elderly employees, career/vocational education/guidance PMID:26034345

DETAIL VIEW OF LOWER CYANIDE PROCESSING WORKS, LOOKING SOUTHWEST FROM ...

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

DETAIL VIEW OF LOWER CYANIDE PROCESSING WORKS, LOOKING SOUTHWEST FROM LARGE TAILINGS PILE. THE REMAINS OF THREE TEN FOOT DIAMETER SETTLING TANKS ARE AT CENTER. THE SCATTER IN THE CENTER FOREGROUND IS THE REMAINS OF A LARGE RECTANGULAR HOLDING TANK POSSIBLY A SETTLING TANK. THIS AREA WAS MOST LIKELY CONSTRUCTED LATER IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY AFTER MINING HAD CEASED AND ONLY TAILINGS WERE BEING RECLAIMED. AN EXACT DATE CANNOT BE DETERMINED HOWEVER THESE WORKS ARE DISTINCTLY DIFFERENT THAN THE ORIGINAL LAYOUT. THE SANDY AREA THAT OCCUPIES THE FOREGROUND AND THE CENTER ARE TAILINGS. - Keane Wonder Mine, Park Route 4 (Daylight Pass Cutoff), Death Valley Junction, Inyo County, CA

Earthquake stress triggers, stress shadows, and seismic hazard

USGS Publications Warehouse

Harris, R.A.

2000-01-01

Many aspects of earthquake mechanics remain an enigma at the beginning of the twenty-first century. One potential bright spot is the realization that simple calculations of stress changes may explain some earthquake interactions, just as previous and ongoing studies of stress changes have begun to explain human- induced seismicity. This paper, which is an update of Harris1, reviews many published works and presents a compilation of quantitative earthquake-interaction studies from a stress change perspective. This synthesis supplies some clues about certain aspects of earthquake mechanics. It also demonstrates that much work remains to be done before we have a complete story of how earthquakes work.

Development of a Polymerase Chain Reaction Assay for the Specific Identification of Burkholderia mallei and Differentiation from Burkholderia pseudomallei and Other Closely Related Burkholderiaceae

DTIC Science & Technology

2005-11-29

used in this work were grown in LB broth. C . violaceum and Y. pestis were propagated at 25 8C, whereas the remaining bacterial isolates were cultured...reference panel, which includ- ed B. cepacia, B. cenocepacia, B. stabilis, B. multivorans, B. vietnamiensis, E. coli, C . violaceum , Y. pestis, and P...19a. NAME OF RESPONSIBLE PERSON a. REPORT unclassified b. ABSTRACT unclassified c . THIS PAGE unclassified Standard Form 298 (Rev. 8-98

Thailand's Work and Health Transition.

PubMed

Kelly, Matthew; Strazdins, Lyndall; Dellora, Tarie; Khamman, Suwanee; Seubsman, Sam-Ang; Sleigh, Adrian C

2010-09-01

Thailand has experienced a rapid economic transition from agriculture to industry and services, and from informal to formal employment. It has much less state regulation and worker representation relative to developed nations, who underwent these transitions more slowly and sequentially, decades earlier. We examine the strengthening of Thai government policy and legislation affecting worker's health, responding to international norms, a new democratic constitution, fear of foreign importer embargos and several fatal workplace disasters. We identify key challenges remaining for Thai policy makers, including legislation enforcement and the measurement of impacts on worker's mental and physical health.

CAD/CAM Technology Working Group Report IDA/OSD R&M (Institute for Defense Analyses/Office of the Secretary of Defense Research and Maintainability) Study.

DTIC Science & Technology

1983-08-01

remain a major force in the military tracked vehicle market . ABC Corporation is about to begin a sixteen-month effort to design a new amphibious tracked...in industry and efforts within DOD itself. Each system, many proprietary and very marketable , has been developed with major investments in dollars...A good systems person will tell you very quickly the solution is to go through a data base. The problem then simplifies 5 like this. 75 CAE . .’-.M

Dance participation and academic performance in youth girls

PubMed

Higueras-Fresnillo, Sara; Martínez-Gómez, David; Padilla-Moledo, Carmen; Conde-Caveda, Julio; Esteban-Cornejo, Irene

2016-06-30

Dance is a predominant type of physical activity among girls. Dance characteristics imply skills associated to health-related physical fitness, as well as others such as learning and memory, mental representation, imagination and creativity, which are related to cognitive development. Although dance has been shown to influence physical health among youth girls, whether dance may influence academic performance and cognition in youth remains to be elucidated. The objective of this work was to examine the association between participation in dance and academic performance in youth girls.

Defining and assessing organizational culture.

PubMed

Bellot, Jennifer

2011-01-01

Using theories from several disciplines, the concept of organizational culture remains controversial. Conflicting definitions, lack of semantic clarity, and debate over the most appropriate methods for assessing organizational culture have led to disagreement over the value and validity of such inquiry. This paper reviews development of the concept of organizational culture and methods for assessing organizational culture, focusing on the healthcare environment. Most work on organizational culture concerns the traditional corporation. Therefore, some adaptation to the central goals and focus of a human services organization are necessary before application to healthcare settings. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

[The adaptive pharmacological correction of functional disorders in young recruits with hypotrophy].

PubMed

Buchnov, A D; Grechko, A T; Murga, Ia T

2000-04-01

Low level of physical development, physiologic reserves, signs of psychical disadaptation, frequent functional disorders in cardiovascular system and gastrointestinal tract are noted in recruits with hypotrophy. Using of rapidly acting adaptogenes during 1 month (phytopreparation elixir "Altai" and "Vitavis" in tablets) significantly improves body state: increase in the level of physiologic reserves, physical working capacity, IMT, body unspecific resistance; improvement in indices of hemodynamics, metabolism and immunity; decrease in asthenization and psychical disadaptation. The state of adaptation and increased resistance in this recruit group remains during the following months of service.

Development of self-control in children aged 3 to 9 years: Perspective from a dual-systems model

PubMed Central

Tao, Ting; Wang, Ligang; Fan, Chunlei; Gao, Wenbin

2014-01-01

The current study tested a set of interrelated theoretical propositions based on a dual-systems model of self-control. Data were collected from 2135 children aged 3 to 9 years. The results suggest that (a) there was positive growth in good self-control, whereas poor control remained relatively stable; and (b) girls performed better than boys on tests of good self-control. The results are discussed in terms of their implications for a dual-systems model of self-control theory and future empirical work. PMID:25501669

Scenarios, personas and user stories from design ethnography: Evidence-based design representations of communicable disease investigations

PubMed Central

Turner, Anne M; Reeder, Blaine; Ramey, Judith

2014-01-01

Purpose Despite years of effort and millions of dollars spent to create a unified electronic communicable disease reporting systems, the goal remains elusive. A major barrier has been a lack of understanding by system designers of communicable disease (CD) work and the public health workers who perform this work. This study reports on the application of User Center Design representations, traditionally used for improving interface design, to translate the complex CD work identified through ethnographic studies to guide designers and developers of CD systems. The purpose of this work is to: (1) better understand public health practitioners and their information workflow with respect to communicable disease (CD) monitoring and control at a local health department, and (2) to develop evidence-based design representations that model this CD work to inform the design of future disease surveillance systems. Methods We performed extensive onsite semi-structured interviews, targeted work shadowing and a focus group to characterize local health department communicable disease workflow. Informed by principles of design ethnography and user-centered design (UCD) we created persona, scenarios and user stories to accurately represent the user to system designers. Results We sought to convey to designers the key findings from ethnographic studies: 1) that public health CD work is mobile and episodic, in contrast to current CD reporting systems, which are stationary and fixed 2) health department efforts are focused on CD investigation and response rather than reporting and 3) current CD information systems must conform to PH workflow to ensure their usefulness. In an effort to illustrate our findings to designers, we developed three contemporary design-support representations: persona, scenario, and user story. Conclusions Through application of user centered design principles, we were able to create design representations that illustrate complex public health communicable disease workflow and key user characteristics to inform the design of CD information systems for public health. PMID:23618996

Scenarios, personas and user stories: user-centered evidence-based design representations of communicable disease investigations.

PubMed

Turner, Anne M; Reeder, Blaine; Ramey, Judith

2013-08-01

Despite years of effort and millions of dollars spent to create unified electronic communicable disease reporting systems, the goal remains elusive. A major barrier has been a lack of understanding by system designers of communicable disease (CD) work and the public health workers who perform this work. This study reports on the application of user-centered design representations, traditionally used for improving interface design, to translate the complex CD work identified through ethnographic studies to guide designers and developers of CD systems. The purpose of this work is to: (1) better understand public health practitioners and their information workflow with respect to CD monitoring and control at a local health agency, and (2) to develop evidence-based design representations that model this CD work to inform the design of future disease surveillance systems. We performed extensive onsite semi-structured interviews, targeted work shadowing and a focus group to characterize local health agency CD workflow. Informed by principles of design ethnography and user-centered design we created persona, scenarios and user stories to accurately represent the user to system designers. We sought to convey to designers the key findings from ethnographic studies: (1) public health CD work is mobile and episodic, in contrast to current CD reporting systems, which are stationary and fixed, (2) health agency efforts are focused on CD investigation and response rather than reporting and (3) current CD information systems must conform to public health workflow to ensure their usefulness. In an effort to illustrate our findings to designers, we developed three contemporary design-support representations: persona, scenario, and user story. Through application of user-centered design principles, we were able to create design representations that illustrate complex public health communicable disease workflow and key user characteristics to inform the design of CD information systems for public health. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

New Vaccines for the World's Poorest People.

PubMed

Hotez, Peter J; Bottazzi, Maria Elena; Strych, Ulrich

2016-01-01

The 2000 Millennium Development Goals helped stimulate the development of life-saving childhood vaccines for pneumococcal and rotavirus infections while greatly expanding coverage of existing vaccines. However, there remains an urgent need to develop new vaccines for HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis, as well as for respiratory syncytial virus and those chronic and debilitating (mostly parasitic) infections known as neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). The NTDs represent the most common diseases of people living in extreme poverty and are the subject of this review. The development of NTD vaccines, including those for hookworm infection, schistosomiasis, leishmaniasis, and Chagas disease, is being led by nonprofit product development partnerships (PDPs) working in consortia of academic and industrial partners, including vaccine manufacturers in developing countries. NTD vaccines face unique challenges with respect to their product development and manufacture, as well as their preclinical and clinical testing. We emphasize global efforts to accelerate the development of NTD vaccines and some of the hurdles to ensuring their availability to the world's poorest people.

A prospective study of managers' turnover and health in a healthcare organization.

PubMed

Skagert, Katrin; Dellve, Lotta; Ahlborg, Gunnar

2012-10-01

To assess turnover and health of Swedish healthcare managers, and identify important supporting factors relating to work and individual resources. Individual managers' own sustainability in terms of turnover and health may be influenced by managerial working conditions and individual resources. A 4-year prospective questionnaire study of 216 healthcare managers. Turnover and indicators of good health (healthy work attendance and no burnout) were related to work factors and individual resources using Cox regressions with constant time at risk. Forty per cent of the healthcare managers had left after 4 years. Fifty-two per cent had a healthy work attendance record and the proportion with no burnout had increased. Experiencing moderate/high job control was a predictor of remaining in the managerial position. Good health was predicted by having energy left for domestic work and being thoroughly rested after sleep. Managerial turnover seems high in Swedish healthcare and linked to working conditions, while sustained health are linked to individual resources. Healthcare organizations should focus not only on developing individuals in their managerial role but also on strengthening the conditions that allow managers to exercise their leadership and to ensuring that the managers most suitable for their posts do not leave. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Another development with Women.

PubMed

Ahooja-patel, K

1982-01-01

The objective of this discussion of "Another Development with Women" is to add some thoughts to the scientific approach, which combines survey techniques and computer style data analysis (measurability, detachment, and objectivity). Its purpose is to tilt the balance of the development process a bit further towards women, and it proposes to introduce another element into the discussion on development with women--that of experiential knowledge (knowledge based on collective experience). Women researchers have a double consciousness, similar to that of the black or other discriminated minority, an awareness of the motives and strategies of the oppressor as well as the inner view of the oppressed. To find some answers to the question why the development debate is sometimes obscure, sometimes sterile, and usually frustrating, and to understand why the goals of development remain distant oases, it is necessary to turn attention to the actual contribution women are making to development. Fundamentally, most of women's activities seem to fall outside the definition of "gainful employment." The activities are labeled "nonmarket" or "nonmonetized" activities. It is the differential between work and creativity that fundamentally affects women and erodes their economic and social status. Another unperceived dimension to women's work, which further conceals their efforts and prevents them from surfacing, is the fact that until recently socioeconomic series and indicators were not desegregated by sex. Consequently, the available data on key economic and social questions could not answer the fundamental questions of where are women working, in what numbers, in which activities, and at what wage levels. During the last 2 years some global data for an international information base on women has become available, and the new data will make it possible to follow much more closely, and on a comparative basis for a much larger number of countries, new developments concerning women's employment, working conditions, and their contributions to society. To gain some insights into the processes of development, 4 different economic and social indicators are examined: agriculture, industry, health, and education. Also examined are women's main roles in food production, industrial work, health provision, and education. It is clear that in any theory of power and its distribution, women bear the brunt of inequality in terms of income and rewards, assets, and resources. Another Development will have to find ways by which the unexplored creative energies of women are released.

Analysis and Design of Novel Nanophotonic Structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shugayev, Roman

Nanophotonic devices hold promise to revolutionize the fields of optical communications, quantum computing and bioimaging. Designing viable solutions to these pressing problems require developing accurate models of the relevant systems. While a great deal of work has been performed in terms of developing individual models with varying levels of fidelity, some of these more complex systems still require improved links between scales to allow for accurate design and optimization within a reasonable amount of computing time. For instance, color centers in nanocrystals appear to be a promising platform for room-temperature scalable quantum information science, but questions still remain about the optimal structures to control single-photon emitter rates, coupling fidelity, and suitable scaling architectures. In this work, a method for efficient optical access and readout of nanocrystal states via magnetic transitions was demonstrated. Separately novel Mie resonant devices that guarantee on-demand enhancement of emission from the single vacancy sources were shown. To improve addressability of the crystal-based impurities, a new approach for realization of single photon electro-optical devices is also proposed in this work. Furthermore, this work on color centers in nanocrystals has been shown to be sensitive to the local refractive index environment. This allows this system to be adapted to biomedical applications, such as sensitive, minimally invasive cancer detection. In this work, a novel scheme for propagation loss-free sensing of local refractive index using nanocrystal probes with broken symmetry is carefully investigated. In conclusion, this thesis develops several novel simulation and optimization techniques that combine existing nanophotonic modeling tools into a unique multi-scale modeling tool. It has been successfully applied to nanophotonically-tuned color vacancy centers. Potential applications span optical communications, quantum information processing, and biomedical sensing.

Materials science tools for regenerative medicine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Richardson, Wade Nicholas

Regenerative therapies originating from recent technological advances in biology could revolutionize medicine in the coming years. In particular, the advent of human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs), with their ability to become any cell in the adult body, has opened the door to an entirely new way of treating disease. However, currently these medical breakthroughs remain only a promise. To make them a reality, new tools must be developed to surmount the new technical hurdles that have arisen from dramatic departure from convention that this field represents. The collected work presented in this dissertation covers several projects that seek to apply the skills and knowledge of materials science to this tool synthesizing effort. The work is divided into three chapters. The first deals with our work to apply Raman spectroscopy, a tool widely used for materials characterization, to degeneration in cartilage. We have shown that Raman can effectively distinguish the matrix material of healthy and diseased tissue. The second area of work covered is the development of a new confocal image analysis for studying hPSC colonies that are chemical confined to uniform growth regions. This tool has important application in understanding the heterogeneity that may slow the development of hPSC -based treatment, as well as the use of such confinement in the eventually large-scale manufacture of hPSCs for therapeutic use. Third, the use of structural templating in tissue engineering scaffolds is detailed. We have utilized templating to tailor scaffold structures for engineering of constructs mimicking two tissues: cartilage and lung. The work described here represents several important early steps towards large goals in regenerative medicine. These tools show a great deal of potential for accelerating progress in this field that seems on the cusp of helping a great many people with otherwise incurable disease.

Visual working memory is more tolerant than visual long-term memory.

PubMed

Schurgin, Mark W; Flombaum, Jonathan I

2018-05-07

Human visual memory is tolerant, meaning that it supports object recognition despite variability across encounters at the image level. Tolerant object recognition remains one capacity in which artificial intelligence trails humans. Typically, tolerance is described as a property of human visual long-term memory (VLTM). In contrast, visual working memory (VWM) is not usually ascribed a role in tolerant recognition, with tests of that system usually demanding discriminatory power-identifying changes, not sameness. There are good reasons to expect that VLTM is more tolerant; functionally, recognition over the long-term must accommodate the fact that objects will not be viewed under identical conditions; and practically, the passive and massive nature of VLTM may impose relatively permissive criteria for thinking that two inputs are the same. But empirically, tolerance has never been compared across working and long-term visual memory. We therefore developed a novel paradigm for equating encoding and test across different memory types. In each experiment trial, participants saw two objects, memory for one tested immediately (VWM) and later for the other (VLTM). VWM performance was better than VLTM and remained robust despite the introduction of image and object variability. In contrast, VLTM performance suffered linearly as more variability was introduced into test stimuli. Additional experiments excluded interference effects as causes for the observed differences. These results suggest the possibility of a previously unidentified role for VWM in the acquisition of tolerant representations for object recognition. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Description of plastic remains found in the stomach contents of the jumbo squid Dosidicus gigas landed in Ecuador during 2014.

PubMed

Rosas-Luis, Rigoberto

2016-12-15

Squids are active and opportunistic predators that feed on a wide range of prey. Their active movements in the water column and their voracity promote a high consumption of food. In the pelagic environment off Ecuador, marine pollution is characterized by plastic debris with a mainland origin, including plastics trash of fishing gears. The objective of this work was to describe the presence of plastic remains in the stomach contents of Dosidicus gigas caught off the coast of Ecuador. Results demonstrated that 12% of the stomachs contained plastic remains. These plastics were identified as multifilament of polyethylene lines and polyvinyl chloride remains. Findings of this work could be related to an increase in the discharge of solid materials in the water column, increasing the probability to be ingested by the jumbo squid. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Internal evaluation of the European network for health technology assessment project.

PubMed

Håheim, Lise Lund; Imaz, Iñaki; Loud, Marlène Läubli; Gasparetto, Teresa; González-Enriquez, Jesús; Dahlgren, Helena; Trofimovs, Igor; Berti, Elena; Mørland, Berit

2009-12-01

The internal evaluation studied the development of the European network for Health Technology Assessment (EUnetHTA) Project in achieving the general objective of establishing an effective and a sustainable network of health technology assessment (HTA) in Europe. The Work Package 3 group was dedicated to this task and performed the work. Information on activities during the project was collected from three sources. First, three yearly cross-sectional studies surveyed the participants' opinions. Responses were by individuals or by institutions. The last round included surveys to the Steering Committee, the Stakeholder Forum, and the Secretariat. Second, the Work Package Lead Partners were interviewed bi-annually, five times in total, to update the information on the Project's progress. Third, additional information was sought in available documents. The organizational structure remained stable. The Project succeeded in developing tools aimed at providing common methodology with intent to establish a standard of conducting and reporting HTA and to facilitate greater collaboration among agencies. The participants/agencies expressed their belief in a network and in maintaining local/national autonomy. The Work Package Leaders expressed a strong belief in the solid base of the Project for a future network on which to build, but were aware of the need for funding and governmental support. Participants and Work Package Leaders have expressed support for a future network that will improve national and international collaboration in HTA based on the experience from the EUnetHTA project.

Relationship between Periodontal Diseases and Preterm Birth: Recent Epidemiological and Biological Data

PubMed Central

Huck, O.; Tenenbaum, H.; Davideau, J.-L.

2011-01-01

For ten years, the incidence of preterm birth does not decrease in developed countries despite the promotion of public health programs. Many risk factors have been identified including ethnicity, age, tobacco, and infection. However, almost 50% of preterm birth causes remain unknown. The periodontal diseases are highly prevalent inflammatory and infectious diseases of tooth supporting tissues leading to an oral disability. They influence negatively general health worsening cardiovascular diseases and diabetes. Periodontal diseases have been also suspected to increase the rate of preterm birth, but data remain contradictory. The objective of this review is to present the principal results of epidemiological, biological, and interventional studies on the link between periodontal diseases and preterm birth. The conclusions of this work underline the importance for the physician/obstetrician to identify women at risk for preterm birth and to address these patients to dentist for periodontal examination and treatment in order to limit adverse pregnancy outcomes. PMID:22132334

Rearing the Fruit Fly Drosophila melanogaster Under Axenic and Gnotobiotic Conditions.

PubMed

Koyle, Melinda L; Veloz, Madeline; Judd, Alec M; Wong, Adam C-N; Newell, Peter D; Douglas, Angela E; Chaston, John M

2016-07-30

The influence of microbes on myriad animal traits and behaviors has been increasingly recognized in recent years. The fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster is a model for understanding microbial interactions with animal hosts, facilitated by approaches to rear large sample sizes of Drosophila under microorganism-free (axenic) conditions, or with defined microbial communities (gnotobiotic). This work outlines a method for collection of Drosophila embryos, hypochlorite dechorionation and sterilization, and transfer to sterile diet. Sterilized embryos are transferred to sterile diet in 50 ml centrifuge tubes, and developing larvae and adults remain free of any exogenous microbes until the vials are opened. Alternatively, flies with a defined microbiota can be reared by inoculating sterile diet and embryos with microbial species of interest. We describe the introduction of 4 bacterial species to establish a representative gnotobiotic microbiota in Drosophila. Finally, we describe approaches for confirming bacterial community composition, including testing if axenic Drosophila remain bacteria-free into adulthood.

Better informed in clinical practice - a brief overview of dental informatics.

PubMed

Reynolds, P A; Harper, J; Dunne, S

2008-03-22

Uptake of dental informatics has been hampered by technical and user issues. Innovative systems have been developed, but usability issues have affected many. Advances in technology and artificial intelligence are now producing clinically useful systems, although issues still remain with adapting computer interfaces to the dental practice working environment. A dental electronic health record has become a priority in many countries, including the UK. However, experience shows that any dental electronic health record (EHR) system cannot be subordinate to, or a subset of, a medical record. Such a future dental EHR is likely to incorporate integrated care pathways. Future best dental practice will increasingly depend on computer-based support tools, although disagreement remains about the effectiveness of current support tools. Over the longer term, future dental informatics tools will incorporate dynamic, online evidence-based medicine (EBM) tools, and promise more adaptive, patient-focused and efficient dental care with educational advantages in training.

Optranet: a European project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jeanjean, Marie

2003-10-01

In a situation where curricula did not adjust at the required pace and many students are getting attracted out of science and technology, the shortage of skilled workers at the technician and engineer level is known to be a threat to development. In spite of a serious crisis in 2001, the trend of an increased presence of optical technologies remains unchanged and is bound to remain part of the landscape for decades. The level of investment required and the markets make Europe the best scale to plan for unified curricula and a global analysis of the human resources needs. There is no agreement on the definition of a trained optician, and European countries differ in the way they educate opticians, source of a lack of clarity and visibility which is detrimental to attracting good students and to the job market. Through its closely work with companies, OPTRANET will propose measures to enhance the adequacy and the visibility of the training offer.

Strengthening laboratory systems in resource-limited settings.

PubMed

Olmsted, Stuart S; Moore, Melinda; Meili, Robin C; Duber, Herbert C; Wasserman, Jeffrey; Sama, Preethi; Mundell, Ben; Hilborne, Lee H

2010-09-01

Considerable resources have been invested in recent years to improve laboratory systems in resource-limited settings. We reviewed published reports, interviewed major donor organizations, and conducted case studies of laboratory systems in 3 countries to assess how countries and donors have worked together to improve laboratory services. While infrastructure and the provision of services have seen improvement, important opportunities remain for further advancement. Implementation of national laboratory plans is inconsistent, human resources are limited, and quality laboratory services rarely extend to lower tier laboratories (eg, health clinics, district hospitals). Coordination within, between, and among governments and donor organizations is also frequently problematic. Laboratory standardization and quality control are improving but remain challenging, making accreditation a difficult goal. Host country governments and their external funding partners should coordinate their efforts effectively around a host country's own national laboratory plan to advance sustainable capacity development throughout a country's laboratory system.

Social Influence and Individual Risk Factors of HIV Unsafe Sex among Female Entertainment Workers in China

PubMed Central

Yang, Xiushi; Xia, Guomei; Li, Xiaoming; Latkin, Carl; Celentano, David

2010-01-01

Female entertainment workers in China are at increased sexual risk of HIV, but causes of their unprotected sex remain poorly understood. We develop a model that integrates information-motivation-behavioral skills (IMB) with social influences and test the model in a venue-based sample of 732 female entertainment workers in Shanghai. Most IMB and social influence measures are statistically significant in bivariate relationships to condom use; only HIV prevention motivation and behavioral self-efficacy remain significant in the multiple regressions. Self-efficacy in condom use is the most proximate correlate, mediating the relationship between information and motivation and condom use. Both peer and venue supports are important, but their influences over condom use are indirect and mediated through prevention motivation and/or self-efficacy. Behavioral intervention is urgently needed and should take a multi-level approach, emphasizing behavioral skills training and promoting a supportive social/working environment. PMID:20166789

Working with Students with Psychiatric Disabilities or Other Emotional Problems

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mazza, Elena T.

2015-01-01

The professional literature on gatekeeping in social work education has grown; however, there remains a dearth in the literature regarding how educators truly work to engage students who are experiencing a psychiatric disability or other emotional problem. This qualitative study explored the experiences of 26 social work educators from 22 colleges…

Research Note--Engaged Scholarship: A Signature Research Methodology for Social Work

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Delavega, Elena; Lennon-Dearing, Robin; Neely-Barnes, Susan; Soifer, Steve; Crawford, Cicely

2017-01-01

Social work has a rich tradition of engagement. Throughout its history, social work scholars have taken up questions that link knowledge production to its application in practice. Recently, other higher education fields have expressed interest in engagement. Yet, social work scholars have remained relatively silent about what they have to offer…

Status of Women in Social Work Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sakamoto, Izumi; Anastas, Jeane W.; McPhail, Beverly M.; Colarossi, Lisa G.

2008-01-01

This invited study sought to determine the current status of women in social work education for the special section of the "Journal of Social Work Education." Analysis of the latest data available indicate that gender differences remain pervasive across many aspects of social work education, including pay, rank, job duties, and tenure.…

LGBT-Competence in Social Work Education: The Relationship of School Factors to Professional Competence

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McCarty-Caplan, David

2015-01-01

Background: In recent years, social work has become increasingly concerned with efforts to produce professionals capable of effectively supporting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) clients. Research examining LGBT-competence in social work remains limited, however, because it often neglects to address the role social work education…

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The Space Shuttle orbiter Atlantis approaches the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB). It is being towed from the Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF) to allow work to be performed in the bay that can only be accomplished while it is empty. Work scheduled in the processing facility includes annual validation of the bay's cranes, work platforms, lifting mechanisms, and jack stands. Atlantis will remain in the VAB for about 10 days, then return to the OPF as work resumes to prepare it for launch in September 2004 on the first return-to-flight mission, STS-114.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-12-05

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The Space Shuttle orbiter Atlantis approaches the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB). It is being towed from the Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF) to allow work to be performed in the bay that can only be accomplished while it is empty. Work scheduled in the processing facility includes annual validation of the bay's cranes, work platforms, lifting mechanisms, and jack stands. Atlantis will remain in the VAB for about 10 days, then return to the OPF as work resumes to prepare it for launch in September 2004 on the first return-to-flight mission, STS-114.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The Space Shuttle orbiter Atlantis is towed from the Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF) to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB). The move will allow work to be performed in the OPF that can only be accomplished while the bay is empty. Work scheduled in the processing facility includes annual validation of the bay's cranes, work platforms, lifting mechanisms, and jack stands. Atlantis will remain in the VAB for about 10 days, then return to the OPF as work resumes to prepare it for launch in September 2004 on the first return-to-flight mission, STS-114.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-12-05

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The Space Shuttle orbiter Atlantis is towed from the Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF) to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB). The move will allow work to be performed in the OPF that can only be accomplished while the bay is empty. Work scheduled in the processing facility includes annual validation of the bay's cranes, work platforms, lifting mechanisms, and jack stands. Atlantis will remain in the VAB for about 10 days, then return to the OPF as work resumes to prepare it for launch in September 2004 on the first return-to-flight mission, STS-114.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The Space Shuttle orbiter Atlantis nears the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB). It is being towed from the Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF) to allow work to be performed in the bay that can only be accomplished while it is empty. Work scheduled in the processing facility includes annual validation of the bay's cranes, work platforms, lifting mechanisms, and jack stands. Atlantis will remain in the VAB for about 10 days, then return to the OPF as work resumes to prepare it for launch in September 2004 on the first return-to-flight mission, STS-114.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-12-05

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The Space Shuttle orbiter Atlantis nears the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB). It is being towed from the Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF) to allow work to be performed in the bay that can only be accomplished while it is empty. Work scheduled in the processing facility includes annual validation of the bay's cranes, work platforms, lifting mechanisms, and jack stands. Atlantis will remain in the VAB for about 10 days, then return to the OPF as work resumes to prepare it for launch in September 2004 on the first return-to-flight mission, STS-114.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The Space Shuttle orbiter Atlantis awaits transport from the Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF) to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB). The move will allow work to be performed in the OPF that can only be accomplished while the bay is empty. Work scheduled in the processing facility includes annual validation of the bay's cranes, work platforms, lifting mechanisms, and jack stands. Atlantis will remain in the VAB for about 10 days, then return to the OPF as work resumes to prepare it for launch in September 2004 on the first return-to-flight mission, STS-114.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-12-05

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The Space Shuttle orbiter Atlantis awaits transport from the Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF) to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB). The move will allow work to be performed in the OPF that can only be accomplished while the bay is empty. Work scheduled in the processing facility includes annual validation of the bay's cranes, work platforms, lifting mechanisms, and jack stands. Atlantis will remain in the VAB for about 10 days, then return to the OPF as work resumes to prepare it for launch in September 2004 on the first return-to-flight mission, STS-114.

A review of sea ice proxy information from polar ice cores

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abram, Nerilie J.; Wolff, Eric W.; Curran, Mark A. J.

2013-11-01

Sea ice plays an important role in Earth's climate system. The lack of direct indications of past sea ice coverage, however, means that there is limited knowledge of the sensitivity and rate at which sea ice dynamics are involved in amplifying climate changes. As such, there is a need to develop new proxy records for reconstructing past sea ice conditions. Here we review the advances that have been made in using chemical tracers preserved in ice cores to determine past changes in sea ice cover around Antarctica. Ice core records of sea salt concentration show promise for revealing patterns of sea ice extent particularly over glacial-interglacial time scales. In the coldest climates, however, the sea salt signal appears to lose sensitivity and further work is required to determine how this proxy can be developed into a quantitative sea ice indicator. Methane sulphonic acid (MSA) in near-coastal ice cores has been used to reconstruct quantified changes and interannual variability in sea ice extent over shorter time scales spanning the last ˜160 years, and has potential to be extended to produce records of Antarctic sea ice changes throughout the Holocene. However the MSA ice core proxy also requires careful site assessment and interpretation alongside other palaeoclimate indicators to ensure reconstructions are not biased by non-sea ice factors, and we summarise some recommended strategies for the further development of sea ice histories from ice core MSA. For both proxies the limited information about the production and transfer of chemical markers from the sea ice zone to the Antarctic ice sheets remains an issue that requires further multidisciplinary study. Despite some exploratory and statistical work, the application of either proxy as an indicator of sea ice change in the Arctic also remains largely unknown. As information about these new ice core proxies builds, so too does the potential to develop a more comprehensive understanding of past changes in sea ice and its role in both long and short-term climate changes.

Determinants of work among older adults in urban China.

PubMed

Ling, Davina C; Chi, Iris

2008-09-01

We examined the role of personal, family and institutional factors on the work status of older adults in urban China. The analysis was based on data from a large population survey (N = 7381) of community-dwelling urban Chinese aged 60 years and older. Multivariate logistic regression was used to model work status. Demographic variables such as gender, ethnicity, age and self-perceived health status were identified as important determinants of work status. Having material assets, savings, a public pension and health insurance were all negatively correlated with remaining in the workforce, whereas earning a high income was positively correlated. Our findings have implications regarding the impact of health policy and pension reform on employment retention. While economic growth may create an incentive for some to continue working, the lack of widespread public and private old-age support may force others to remain in the workforce out of economic necessity.

The Arthasastra: Assessing the Contemporary Relevance of an Ancient Indian Treatise on Statecraft

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-06-10

the midst of scholars such as Sun - Tzu and Thucydides, Kautilya’s Arthaśāstra remains a lesser-known work from ancient India. This thesis researches...scholars such as Sun - Tzu and Thucydides, Kautilya’s Arthaśāstra remains a lesser-known work from ancient India. This thesis researches Kautilya’s...Peloponnesian War Overview Strategists’ respect for Thucydides and Sun Tzu as eminent strategic thinkers of the ancient world rests in the fact that

Strengthening the Signature Pedagogy of Social Work: Conceptualizing Field Coordination as a Negotiated Social Work Pedagogy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Asakura, Kenta; Todd, Sarah; Eagle, Brooke; Morris, Brenda

2018-01-01

Although field education is considered the signature pedagogy of social work, the work of field coordinators appear to remain peripheral to other aspects of social work education, such as coursework and research. In this article, we suggest that field coordination requires a far more complex set of knowledge and skills than merely matching…

Views of Australian dental practitioners towards rural recruitment and retention: a descriptive study.

PubMed

Godwin, Diana; Hoang, Ha; Crocombe, Leonard

2016-06-01

Despite an increase in the supply of dental practitioners in Australia in recent years, there remains an unequal distribution of dental practitioners with more dental practitioners working in city areas. This is in part due to difficulties in attracting and retaining dental practitioners to rural practice. The aim of this study was to investigate the attitudes of Australian dental practitioners towards what may attract them to rural areas and why they may remain in them. A descriptive study, utilising telephone, semi-structured interviews with dental practitioners across Australia. Dental practitioners were recruited through their professional associations. Data were analysed using content and thematic analysis. Fifty participants; 34 dentists, eight oral health therapists, and eight dental prosthetists working in rural and urban areas of Australia. Four main themes were identified: Business Case: concerns related to income and employment security, Differences in Clinical Practices: differences in clinical treatments and professional work, Community: fitting in and belonging in the area in which you live and work, and Individual Factors: local area provision for lifestyle choices and circumstances. The most influential of these themes were business case and individual factors. Smaller rural areas, due to low populations and being unable to provide individuals with their lifestyle needs were considered unappealing for dental practitioners to live. Previous experience of rural areas was highly influential. The main factors influencing rural recruitment and retention were income sustainability and employment security, and individual factors. Dental practitioners felt that it was harder to earn a sustainable income and provide quality lifestyles for their family in rural areas. Previous experience of rural areas was influential towards long-term rural retention. These factors should be considered in order to develop effective strategies to address the unequal distribution of dental practitioners.

Gender bias in nineteenth-century England: Evidence from factory children.

PubMed

Horrell, Sara; Oxley, Deborah

2016-09-01

Gender bias against girls in nineteenth-century England has received much interest but establishing its existence has proved difficult. We utilise data on heights of 16,402 children working in northern textile factories in 1837 to examine whether gender bias was evident. Current interpretations argue against any difference. Here our comparisons with modern height standards reveal greater deprivation for girls than for boys. Discrimination is measured in girls' height-for-age score (HAZ) falling eight standard errors below boys' at ages 11, 11.5 and 12 years of age, capturing the very poor performance of factory girls. But this result cannot be taken at face value. We query whether modern standards require adjustment to account for the later timing of puberty in historical populations and develop an alternative. We also test the validity of the age data, considering whether parents were more prone to lie about the ages of their daughters, and question whether the supply of girls was fundamentally different from that of boys. We conclude that neither proposition is justified. Disadvantage to girls remains, although its absence amongst younger children precludes an indictment of culturally founded gender bias. The height data must remain mute on the source of this discrimination but we utilise additional information to examine some hypotheses: occupational sorting, differential susceptibility to disease, poorer nutrition for girls, disproportionate stunting from the effects of nutritional deprivation, and type and amount of work undertaken. Of these we suggest that girls had to do arduous physical labour in the home alongside their factory work. The only (unsubstantiated) alternative is that girls were more likely than boys to be put into factory work below the legal age limit. Both represent forms of gender bias. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.