Array data extractor (ADE): a LabVIEW program to extract and merge gene array data.
Kurtenbach, Stefan; Kurtenbach, Sarah; Zoidl, Georg
2013-12-01
Large data sets from gene expression array studies are publicly available offering information highly valuable for research across many disciplines ranging from fundamental to clinical research. Highly advanced bioinformatics tools have been made available to researchers, but a demand for user-friendly software allowing researchers to quickly extract expression information for multiple genes from multiple studies persists. Here, we present a user-friendly LabVIEW program to automatically extract gene expression data for a list of genes from multiple normalized microarray datasets. Functionality was tested for 288 class A G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) and expression data from 12 studies comparing normal and diseased human hearts. Results confirmed known regulation of a beta 1 adrenergic receptor and further indicate novel research targets. Although existing software allows for complex data analyses, the LabVIEW based program presented here, "Array Data Extractor (ADE)", provides users with a tool to retrieve meaningful information from multiple normalized gene expression datasets in a fast and easy way. Further, the graphical programming language used in LabVIEW allows applying changes to the program without the need of advanced programming knowledge.
Array data extractor (ADE): a LabVIEW program to extract and merge gene array data
2013-01-01
Background Large data sets from gene expression array studies are publicly available offering information highly valuable for research across many disciplines ranging from fundamental to clinical research. Highly advanced bioinformatics tools have been made available to researchers, but a demand for user-friendly software allowing researchers to quickly extract expression information for multiple genes from multiple studies persists. Findings Here, we present a user-friendly LabVIEW program to automatically extract gene expression data for a list of genes from multiple normalized microarray datasets. Functionality was tested for 288 class A G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) and expression data from 12 studies comparing normal and diseased human hearts. Results confirmed known regulation of a beta 1 adrenergic receptor and further indicate novel research targets. Conclusions Although existing software allows for complex data analyses, the LabVIEW based program presented here, “Array Data Extractor (ADE)”, provides users with a tool to retrieve meaningful information from multiple normalized gene expression datasets in a fast and easy way. Further, the graphical programming language used in LabVIEW allows applying changes to the program without the need of advanced programming knowledge. PMID:24289243
GeMS: an advanced software package for designing synthetic genes.
Jayaraj, Sebastian; Reid, Ralph; Santi, Daniel V
2005-01-01
A user-friendly, advanced software package for gene design is described. The software comprises an integrated suite of programs-also provided as stand-alone tools-that automatically performs the following tasks in gene design: restriction site prediction, codon optimization for any expression host, restriction site inclusion and exclusion, separation of long sequences into synthesizable fragments, T(m) and stem-loop determinations, optimal oligonucleotide component design and design verification/error-checking. The output is a complete design report and a list of optimized oligonucleotides to be prepared for subsequent gene synthesis. The user interface accommodates both inexperienced and experienced users. For inexperienced users, explanatory notes are provided such that detailed instructions are not necessary; for experienced users, a streamlined interface is provided without such notes. The software has been extensively tested in the design and successful synthesis of over 400 kb of genes, many of which exceeded 5 kb in length.
Rot, Gregor; Parikh, Anup; Curk, Tomaz; Kuspa, Adam; Shaulsky, Gad; Zupan, Blaz
2009-08-25
Bioinformatics often leverages on recent advancements in computer science to support biologists in their scientific discovery process. Such efforts include the development of easy-to-use web interfaces to biomedical databases. Recent advancements in interactive web technologies require us to rethink the standard submit-and-wait paradigm, and craft bioinformatics web applications that share analytical and interactive power with their desktop relatives, while retaining simplicity and availability. We have developed dictyExpress, a web application that features a graphical, highly interactive explorative interface to our database that consists of more than 1000 Dictyostelium discoideum gene expression experiments. In dictyExpress, the user can select experiments and genes, perform gene clustering, view gene expression profiles across time, view gene co-expression networks, perform analyses of Gene Ontology term enrichment, and simultaneously display expression profiles for a selected gene in various experiments. Most importantly, these tasks are achieved through web applications whose components are seamlessly interlinked and immediately respond to events triggered by the user, thus providing a powerful explorative data analysis environment. dictyExpress is a precursor for a new generation of web-based bioinformatics applications with simple but powerful interactive interfaces that resemble that of the modern desktop. While dictyExpress serves mainly the Dictyostelium research community, it is relatively easy to adapt it to other datasets. We propose that the design ideas behind dictyExpress will influence the development of similar applications for other model organisms.
Rot, Gregor; Parikh, Anup; Curk, Tomaz; Kuspa, Adam; Shaulsky, Gad; Zupan, Blaz
2009-01-01
Background Bioinformatics often leverages on recent advancements in computer science to support biologists in their scientific discovery process. Such efforts include the development of easy-to-use web interfaces to biomedical databases. Recent advancements in interactive web technologies require us to rethink the standard submit-and-wait paradigm, and craft bioinformatics web applications that share analytical and interactive power with their desktop relatives, while retaining simplicity and availability. Results We have developed dictyExpress, a web application that features a graphical, highly interactive explorative interface to our database that consists of more than 1000 Dictyostelium discoideum gene expression experiments. In dictyExpress, the user can select experiments and genes, perform gene clustering, view gene expression profiles across time, view gene co-expression networks, perform analyses of Gene Ontology term enrichment, and simultaneously display expression profiles for a selected gene in various experiments. Most importantly, these tasks are achieved through web applications whose components are seamlessly interlinked and immediately respond to events triggered by the user, thus providing a powerful explorative data analysis environment. Conclusion dictyExpress is a precursor for a new generation of web-based bioinformatics applications with simple but powerful interactive interfaces that resemble that of the modern desktop. While dictyExpress serves mainly the Dictyostelium research community, it is relatively easy to adapt it to other datasets. We propose that the design ideas behind dictyExpress will influence the development of similar applications for other model organisms. PMID:19706156
Zhang, Qingzhou; Yang, Bo; Chen, Xujiao; Xu, Jing; Mei, Changlin; Mao, Zhiguo
2014-01-01
We present a bioinformatics database named Renal Gene Expression Database (RGED), which contains comprehensive gene expression data sets from renal disease research. The web-based interface of RGED allows users to query the gene expression profiles in various kidney-related samples, including renal cell lines, human kidney tissues and murine model kidneys. Researchers can explore certain gene profiles, the relationships between genes of interests and identify biomarkers or even drug targets in kidney diseases. The aim of this work is to provide a user-friendly utility for the renal disease research community to query expression profiles of genes of their own interest without the requirement of advanced computational skills. Availability and implementation: Website is implemented in PHP, R, MySQL and Nginx and freely available from http://rged.wall-eva.net. Database URL: http://rged.wall-eva.net PMID:25252782
Zhang, Qingzhou; Yang, Bo; Chen, Xujiao; Xu, Jing; Mei, Changlin; Mao, Zhiguo
2014-01-01
We present a bioinformatics database named Renal Gene Expression Database (RGED), which contains comprehensive gene expression data sets from renal disease research. The web-based interface of RGED allows users to query the gene expression profiles in various kidney-related samples, including renal cell lines, human kidney tissues and murine model kidneys. Researchers can explore certain gene profiles, the relationships between genes of interests and identify biomarkers or even drug targets in kidney diseases. The aim of this work is to provide a user-friendly utility for the renal disease research community to query expression profiles of genes of their own interest without the requirement of advanced computational skills. Website is implemented in PHP, R, MySQL and Nginx and freely available from http://rged.wall-eva.net. http://rged.wall-eva.net. © The Author(s) 2014. Published by Oxford University Press.
Multimodal approaches for emotion recognition: a survey
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Sebe, Nicu; Cohen, Ira; Gevers, Theo; Huang, Thomas S.
2004-12-01
Recent technological advances have enabled human users to interact with computers in ways previously unimaginable. Beyond the confines of the keyboard and mouse, new modalities for human-computer interaction such as voice, gesture, and force-feedback are emerging. Despite important advances, one necessary ingredient for natural interaction is still missing-emotions. Emotions play an important role in human-to-human communication and interaction, allowing people to express themselves beyond the verbal domain. The ability to understand human emotions is desirable for the computer in several applications. This paper explores new ways of human-computer interaction that enable the computer to be more aware of the user's emotional and attentional expressions. We present the basic research in the field and the recent advances into the emotion recognition from facial, voice, and physiological signals, where the different modalities are treated independently. We then describe the challenging problem of multimodal emotion recognition and we advocate the use of probabilistic graphical models when fusing the different modalities. We also discuss the difficult issues of obtaining reliable affective data, obtaining ground truth for emotion recognition, and the use of unlabeled data.
Multimodal approaches for emotion recognition: a survey
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Sebe, Nicu; Cohen, Ira; Gevers, Theo; Huang, Thomas S.
2005-01-01
Recent technological advances have enabled human users to interact with computers in ways previously unimaginable. Beyond the confines of the keyboard and mouse, new modalities for human-computer interaction such as voice, gesture, and force-feedback are emerging. Despite important advances, one necessary ingredient for natural interaction is still missing-emotions. Emotions play an important role in human-to-human communication and interaction, allowing people to express themselves beyond the verbal domain. The ability to understand human emotions is desirable for the computer in several applications. This paper explores new ways of human-computer interaction that enable the computer to be more aware of the user's emotional and attentional expressions. We present the basic research in the field and the recent advances into the emotion recognition from facial, voice, and physiological signals, where the different modalities are treated independently. We then describe the challenging problem of multimodal emotion recognition and we advocate the use of probabilistic graphical models when fusing the different modalities. We also discuss the difficult issues of obtaining reliable affective data, obtaining ground truth for emotion recognition, and the use of unlabeled data.
ExpressionDB: An open source platform for distributing genome-scale datasets.
Hughes, Laura D; Lewis, Scott A; Hughes, Michael E
2017-01-01
RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) and microarrays are methods for measuring gene expression across the entire transcriptome. Recent advances have made these techniques practical and affordable for essentially any laboratory with experience in molecular biology. A variety of computational methods have been developed to decrease the amount of bioinformatics expertise necessary to analyze these data. Nevertheless, many barriers persist which discourage new labs from using functional genomics approaches. Since high-quality gene expression studies have enduring value as resources to the entire research community, it is of particular importance that small labs have the capacity to share their analyzed datasets with the research community. Here we introduce ExpressionDB, an open source platform for visualizing RNA-seq and microarray data accommodating virtually any number of different samples. ExpressionDB is based on Shiny, a customizable web application which allows data sharing locally and online with customizable code written in R. ExpressionDB allows intuitive searches based on gene symbols, descriptions, or gene ontology terms, and it includes tools for dynamically filtering results based on expression level, fold change, and false-discovery rates. Built-in visualization tools include heatmaps, volcano plots, and principal component analysis, ensuring streamlined and consistent visualization to all users. All of the scripts for building an ExpressionDB with user-supplied data are freely available on GitHub, and the Creative Commons license allows fully open customization by end-users. We estimate that a demo database can be created in under one hour with minimal programming experience, and that a new database with user-supplied expression data can be completed and online in less than one day.
Lost in Interaction in IMS Learning Design Runtime Environments
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Derntl, Michael; Neumann, Susanne; Oberhuemer, Petra
2014-01-01
Educators are exploiting the advantages of advanced web-based collaboration technologies and massive online interactions. Interactions between learners and human or nonhuman resources therefore play an increasingly important pedagogical role, and the way these interactions are expressed in the user interface of virtual learning environments is…
Lotus Base: An integrated information portal for the model legume Lotus japonicus
Mun, Terry; Bachmann, Asger; Gupta, Vikas; Stougaard, Jens; Andersen, Stig U.
2016-01-01
Lotus japonicus is a well-characterized model legume widely used in the study of plant-microbe interactions. However, datasets from various Lotus studies are poorly integrated and lack interoperability. We recognize the need for a comprehensive repository that allows comprehensive and dynamic exploration of Lotus genomic and transcriptomic data. Equally important are user-friendly in-browser tools designed for data visualization and interpretation. Here, we present Lotus Base, which opens to the research community a large, established LORE1 insertion mutant population containing an excess of 120,000 lines, and serves the end-user tightly integrated data from Lotus, such as the reference genome, annotated proteins, and expression profiling data. We report the integration of expression data from the L. japonicus gene expression atlas project, and the development of tools to cluster and export such data, allowing users to construct, visualize, and annotate co-expression gene networks. Lotus Base takes advantage of modern advances in browser technology to deliver powerful data interpretation for biologists. Its modular construction and publicly available application programming interface enable developers to tap into the wealth of integrated Lotus data. Lotus Base is freely accessible at: https://lotus.au.dk. PMID:28008948
JEDI for Advanced Users | Jobs and Economic Development Impact Models |
NREL for Advanced Users JEDI for Advanced Users The Jobs and Economic Development Impact (JEDI discussion. Users with more experience with power generation projects and/or economic impact analysis can Economic Analysis provides data for more than 400 economic sectors. Advanced users can refer to these
Chemical applications of synchrotron radiation: Workshop report
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Not Available
1989-04-01
The most recent in a series of topical meetings for Advanced Photon Source user subgroups, the Workshop on Chemical Applications of Synchrotron Radiation (held at Argonne National Laboratory, October 3-4, 1988) dealt with surfaces and kinetics, spectroscopy, small-angle scattering, diffraction, and topography and imaging. The primary objectives were to provide an educational resource for the chemistry community on the scientific research being conducted at existing synchrotron sources and to indicate some of the unique opportunities that will be made available with the Advanced Photon Source. The workshop organizers were also interested in gauging the interest of chemists in the fieldmore » of synchrotron radiation. Interest expressed at the meeting has led to initial steps toward formation of a Chemistry Users Group at the APS. Individual projects are processed separately for the data bases.« less
FaceTOON: a unified platform for feature-based cartoon expression generation
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Zaharia, Titus; Marre, Olivier; Prêteux, Françoise; Monjaux, Perrine
2008-02-01
This paper presents the FaceTOON system, a semi-automatic platform dedicated to the creation of verbal and emotional facial expressions, within the applicative framework of 2D cartoon production. The proposed FaceTOON platform makes it possible to rapidly create 3D facial animations with a minimum amount of user interaction. In contrast with existing commercial 3D modeling softwares, which usually require from the users advanced 3D graphics skills and competences, the FaceTOON system is based exclusively on 2D interaction mechanisms, the 3D modeling stage being completely transparent for the user. The system takes as input a neutral 3D face model, free of any facial feature, and a set of 2D drawings, representing the desired facial features. A 2D/3D virtual mapping procedure makes it possible to obtain a ready-for-animation model which can be directly manipulated and deformed for generating expressions. The platform includes a complete set of dedicated tools for 2D/3D interactive deformation, pose management, key-frame interpolation and MPEG-4 compliant animation and rendering. The proposed FaceTOON system is currently considered for industrial evaluation and commercialization by the Quadraxis company.
Semantic framework for mapping object-oriented model to semantic web languages
Ježek, Petr; Mouček, Roman
2015-01-01
The article deals with and discusses two main approaches in building semantic structures for electrophysiological metadata. It is the use of conventional data structures, repositories, and programming languages on one hand and the use of formal representations of ontologies, known from knowledge representation, such as description logics or semantic web languages on the other hand. Although knowledge engineering offers languages supporting richer semantic means of expression and technological advanced approaches, conventional data structures and repositories are still popular among developers, administrators and users because of their simplicity, overall intelligibility, and lower demands on technical equipment. The choice of conventional data resources and repositories, however, raises the question of how and where to add semantics that cannot be naturally expressed using them. As one of the possible solutions, this semantics can be added into the structures of the programming language that accesses and processes the underlying data. To support this idea we introduced a software prototype that enables its users to add semantically richer expressions into a Java object-oriented code. This approach does not burden users with additional demands on programming environment since reflective Java annotations were used as an entry for these expressions. Moreover, additional semantics need not to be written by the programmer directly to the code, but it can be collected from non-programmers using a graphic user interface. The mapping that allows the transformation of the semantically enriched Java code into the Semantic Web language OWL was proposed and implemented in a library named the Semantic Framework. This approach was validated by the integration of the Semantic Framework in the EEG/ERP Portal and by the subsequent registration of the EEG/ERP Portal in the Neuroscience Information Framework. PMID:25762923
Semantic framework for mapping object-oriented model to semantic web languages.
Ježek, Petr; Mouček, Roman
2015-01-01
The article deals with and discusses two main approaches in building semantic structures for electrophysiological metadata. It is the use of conventional data structures, repositories, and programming languages on one hand and the use of formal representations of ontologies, known from knowledge representation, such as description logics or semantic web languages on the other hand. Although knowledge engineering offers languages supporting richer semantic means of expression and technological advanced approaches, conventional data structures and repositories are still popular among developers, administrators and users because of their simplicity, overall intelligibility, and lower demands on technical equipment. The choice of conventional data resources and repositories, however, raises the question of how and where to add semantics that cannot be naturally expressed using them. As one of the possible solutions, this semantics can be added into the structures of the programming language that accesses and processes the underlying data. To support this idea we introduced a software prototype that enables its users to add semantically richer expressions into a Java object-oriented code. This approach does not burden users with additional demands on programming environment since reflective Java annotations were used as an entry for these expressions. Moreover, additional semantics need not to be written by the programmer directly to the code, but it can be collected from non-programmers using a graphic user interface. The mapping that allows the transformation of the semantically enriched Java code into the Semantic Web language OWL was proposed and implemented in a library named the Semantic Framework. This approach was validated by the integration of the Semantic Framework in the EEG/ERP Portal and by the subsequent registration of the EEG/ERP Portal in the Neuroscience Information Framework.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
1992-01-01
CBR Express software solves problems by adapting sorted solutions to new problems specified by a user. It is applicable to a wide range of situations. The technology was originally developed by Inference Corporation for Johnson Space Center's Advanced Software Development Workstation. The project focused on the reuse of software designs, and Inference used CBR as part of the ACCESS prototype software. The commercial CBR Express is used as a "help desk" for customer support, enabling reuse of existing information when necessary. It has been adopted by several companies, among them American Airlines, which uses it to solve reservation system software problems.
Becnel, Lauren B; Ochsner, Scott A; Darlington, Yolanda F; McOwiti, Apollo; Kankanamge, Wasula H; Dehart, Michael; Naumov, Alexey; McKenna, Neil J
2017-04-25
We previously developed a web tool, Transcriptomine, to explore expression profiling data sets involving small-molecule or genetic manipulations of nuclear receptor signaling pathways. We describe advances in biocuration, query interface design, and data visualization that enhance the discovery of uncharacterized biology in these pathways using this tool. Transcriptomine currently contains about 45 million data points encompassing more than 2000 experiments in a reference library of nearly 550 data sets retrieved from public archives and systematically curated. To make the underlying data points more accessible to bench biologists, we classified experimental small molecules and gene manipulations into signaling pathways and experimental tissues and cell lines into physiological systems and organs. Incorporation of these mappings into Transcriptomine enables the user to readily evaluate tissue-specific regulation of gene expression by nuclear receptor signaling pathways. Data points from animal and cell model experiments and from clinical data sets elucidate the roles of nuclear receptor pathways in gene expression events accompanying various normal and pathological cellular processes. In addition, data sets targeting non-nuclear receptor signaling pathways highlight transcriptional cross-talk between nuclear receptors and other signaling pathways. We demonstrate with specific examples how data points that exist in isolation in individual data sets validate each other when connected and made accessible to the user in a single interface. In summary, Transcriptomine allows bench biologists to routinely develop research hypotheses, validate experimental data, or model relationships between signaling pathways, genes, and tissues. Copyright © 2017, American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Advancements in text-to-speech technology and implications for AAC applications
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Syrdal, Ann K.
2003-10-01
Intelligibility was the initial focus in text-to-speech (TTS) research, since it is clearly a necessary condition for the application of the technology. Sufficiently high intelligibility (approximating human speech) has been achieved in the last decade by the better formant-based and concatenative TTS systems. This led to commercially available TTS systems for highly motivated users, particularly the blind and vocally impaired. Some unnatural qualities of TTS were exploited by these users, such as very fast speaking rates and altered pitch ranges for flagging relevant information. Recently, the focus in TTS research has turned to improving naturalness, so that synthetic speech sounds more human and less robotic. Unit selection approaches to concatenative synthesis have dramatically improved TTS quality, although at the cost of larger and more complex systems. This advancement in naturalness has made TTS technology more acceptable to the general public. The vocally impaired appreciate a more natural voice with which to represent themselves when communicating with others. Unit selection TTS does not achieve such high speaking rates as the earlier TTS systems, however, which is a disadvantage to some AAC device users. An important new research emphasis is to improve and increase the range of emotional expressiveness of TTS.
Personalized summarization using user preference for m-learning
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Lee, Sihyoung; Yang, Seungji; Ro, Yong Man; Kim, Hyoung Joong
2008-02-01
As the Internet and multimedia technology is becoming advanced, the number of digital multimedia contents is also becoming abundant in learning area. In order to facilitate the access of digital knowledge and to meet the need of a lifelong learning, e-learning could be the helpful alternative way to the conventional learning paradigms. E-learning is known as a unifying term to express online, web-based and technology-delivered learning. Mobile-learning (m-learning) is defined as e-learning through mobile devices using wireless transmission. In a survey, more than half of the people remarked that the re-consumption was one of the convenient features in e-learning. However, it is not easy to find user's preferred segmentation from a full version of lengthy e-learning content. Especially in m-learning, a content-summarization method is strongly required because mobile devices are limited to low processing power and battery capacity. In this paper, we propose a new user preference model for re-consumption to construct personalized summarization for re-consumption. The user preference for re-consumption is modeled based on user actions with statistical model. Based on the user preference model for re-consumption with personalized user actions, our method discriminates preferred parts over the entire content. Experimental results demonstrated successful personalized summarization.
Wu, Shao-Min; Liu, Hsuan; Huang, Po-Jung; Chang, Ian Yi-Feng; Lee, Chi-Ching; Yang, Chia-Yu; Tsai, Wen-Sy; Tan, Bertrand Chin-Ming
2018-01-01
Despite their lack of protein-coding potential, long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) and circular RNAs (circRNAs) have emerged as key determinants in gene regulation, acting to fine-tune transcriptional and signaling output. These noncoding RNA transcripts are known to affect expression of messenger RNAs (mRNAs) via epigenetic and post-transcriptional regulation. Given their widespread target spectrum, as well as extensive modes of action, a complete understanding of their biological relevance will depend on integrative analyses of systems data at various levels. While a handful of publicly available databases have been reported, existing tools do not fully capture, from a network perspective, the functional implications of lncRNAs or circRNAs of interest. Through an integrated and streamlined design, circlncRNAnet aims to broaden the understanding of ncRNA candidates by testing in silico several hypotheses of ncRNA-based functions, on the basis of large-scale RNA-seq data. This web server is implemented with several features that represent advances in the bioinformatics of ncRNAs: (1) a flexible framework that accepts and processes user-defined next-generation sequencing-based expression data; (2) multiple analytic modules that assign and productively assess the regulatory networks of user-selected ncRNAs by cross-referencing extensively curated databases; (3) an all-purpose, information-rich workflow design that is tailored to all types of ncRNAs. Outputs on expression profiles, co-expression networks and pathways, and molecular interactomes, are dynamically and interactively displayed according to user-defined criteria. In short, users may apply circlncRNAnet to obtain, in real time, multiple lines of functionally relevant information on circRNAs/lncRNAs of their interest. In summary, circlncRNAnet provides a "one-stop" resource for in-depth analyses of ncRNA biology. circlncRNAnet is freely available at http://app.cgu.edu.tw/circlnc/. © The Authors 2017. Published by Oxford University Press.
Sun, Shulei; Chen, Jing; Li, Weizhong; Altintas, Ilkay; Lin, Abel; Peltier, Steve; Stocks, Karen; Allen, Eric E.; Ellisman, Mark; Grethe, Jeffrey; Wooley, John
2011-01-01
The Community Cyberinfrastructure for Advanced Microbial Ecology Research and Analysis (CAMERA, http://camera.calit2.net/) is a database and associated computational infrastructure that provides a single system for depositing, locating, analyzing, visualizing and sharing data about microbial biology through an advanced web-based analysis portal. CAMERA collects and links metadata relevant to environmental metagenome data sets with annotation in a semantically-aware environment allowing users to write expressive semantic queries against the database. To meet the needs of the research community, users are able to query metadata categories such as habitat, sample type, time, location and other environmental physicochemical parameters. CAMERA is compliant with the standards promulgated by the Genomic Standards Consortium (GSC), and sustains a role within the GSC in extending standards for content and format of the metagenomic data and metadata and its submission to the CAMERA repository. To ensure wide, ready access to data and annotation, CAMERA also provides data submission tools to allow researchers to share and forward data to other metagenomics sites and community data archives such as GenBank. It has multiple interfaces for easy submission of large or complex data sets, and supports pre-registration of samples for sequencing. CAMERA integrates a growing list of tools and viewers for querying, analyzing, annotating and comparing metagenome and genome data. PMID:21045053
Sun, Shulei; Chen, Jing; Li, Weizhong; Altintas, Ilkay; Lin, Abel; Peltier, Steve; Stocks, Karen; Allen, Eric E; Ellisman, Mark; Grethe, Jeffrey; Wooley, John
2011-01-01
The Community Cyberinfrastructure for Advanced Microbial Ecology Research and Analysis (CAMERA, http://camera.calit2.net/) is a database and associated computational infrastructure that provides a single system for depositing, locating, analyzing, visualizing and sharing data about microbial biology through an advanced web-based analysis portal. CAMERA collects and links metadata relevant to environmental metagenome data sets with annotation in a semantically-aware environment allowing users to write expressive semantic queries against the database. To meet the needs of the research community, users are able to query metadata categories such as habitat, sample type, time, location and other environmental physicochemical parameters. CAMERA is compliant with the standards promulgated by the Genomic Standards Consortium (GSC), and sustains a role within the GSC in extending standards for content and format of the metagenomic data and metadata and its submission to the CAMERA repository. To ensure wide, ready access to data and annotation, CAMERA also provides data submission tools to allow researchers to share and forward data to other metagenomics sites and community data archives such as GenBank. It has multiple interfaces for easy submission of large or complex data sets, and supports pre-registration of samples for sequencing. CAMERA integrates a growing list of tools and viewers for querying, analyzing, annotating and comparing metagenome and genome data.
Shapiro, Gilla K; Surian, Didi; Dunn, Adam G; Perry, Ryan; Kelaher, Margaret
2017-01-01
Objective Opposition to human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination is common on social media and has the potential to impact vaccine coverage. This study aims to conduct an international comparison of the proportions of tweets about HPV vaccines that express concerns, the types of concerns expressed and the social connections among users posting about HPV vaccines in Australia, Canada and the UK. Design Using a cross-sectional design, an international comparison of English language tweets about HPV vaccines and social connections among Twitter users posting about HPV vaccines between January 2014 and April 2016 was conducted. The Health Belief Model, one of the most widely used theories in health psychology, was used as the basis for coding the types of HPV vaccine concerns expressed on Twitter. Setting The content of tweets and the social connections between users who posted tweets about HPV vaccines from Australia, Canada and the UK. Population 16 789 Twitter users who posted 43 852 tweets about HPV vaccines. Main outcome measures The proportions of tweets expressing concern, the type of concern expressed and the proportions of local and international social connections between users. Results Tweets expressing concerns about HPV vaccines made up 14.9% of tweets in Canada, 19.4% in Australia and 22.6% in the UK. The types of concerns expressed were similar across the three countries, with concerns related to ‘perceived barriers’ being the most common. Users expressing concerns about HPV vaccines in each of the three countries had a relatively high proportion of international followers also expressing concerns. Conclusions The proportions and types of HPV vaccine concerns expressed on Twitter were similar across the three countries. Twitter users who mostly expressed concerns about HPV vaccines were better connected to international users who shared their concerns compared with users who did not express concerns about HPV vaccines. PMID:28982821
Shapiro, Gilla K; Surian, Didi; Dunn, Adam G; Perry, Ryan; Kelaher, Margaret
2017-10-05
Opposition to human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination is common on social media and has the potential to impact vaccine coverage. This study aims to conduct an international comparison of the proportions of tweets about HPV vaccines that express concerns, the types of concerns expressed and the social connections among users posting about HPV vaccines in Australia, Canada and the UK. Using a cross-sectional design, an international comparison of English language tweets about HPV vaccines and social connections among Twitter users posting about HPV vaccines between January 2014 and April 2016 was conducted. The Health Belief Model, one of the most widely used theories in health psychology, was used as the basis for coding the types of HPV vaccine concerns expressed on Twitter. The content of tweets and the social connections between users who posted tweets about HPV vaccines from Australia, Canada and the UK. 16 789 Twitter users who posted 43 852 tweets about HPV vaccines. The proportions of tweets expressing concern, the type of concern expressed and the proportions of local and international social connections between users. Tweets expressing concerns about HPV vaccines made up 14.9% of tweets in Canada, 19.4% in Australia and 22.6% in the UK. The types of concerns expressed were similar across the three countries, with concerns related to 'perceived barriers' being the most common. Users expressing concerns about HPV vaccines in each of the three countries had a relatively high proportion of international followers also expressing concerns. The proportions and types of HPV vaccine concerns expressed on Twitter were similar across the three countries. Twitter users who mostly expressed concerns about HPV vaccines were better connected to international users who shared their concerns compared with users who did not express concerns about HPV vaccines. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.
GenoCAD Plant Grammar to Design Plant Expression Vectors for Promoter Analysis.
Coll, Anna; Wilson, Mandy L; Gruden, Kristina; Peccoud, Jean
2016-01-01
With the rapid advances in prediction tools for discovery of new promoters and their cis-elements, there is a need to improve plant expression methodologies in order to facilitate a high-throughput functional validation of these promoters in planta. The promoter-reporter analysis is an indispensible approach for characterization of plant promoters. It requires the design of complex plant expression vectors, which can be challenging. Here, we describe the use of a plant grammar implemented in GenoCAD that will allow the users to quickly design constructs for promoter analysis experiments but also for other in planta functional studies. The GenoCAD plant grammar includes a library of plant biological parts organized in structural categories to facilitate their use and management and a set of rules that guides the process of assembling these biological parts into large constructs.
CellLineNavigator: a workbench for cancer cell line analysis
Krupp, Markus; Itzel, Timo; Maass, Thorsten; Hildebrandt, Andreas; Galle, Peter R.; Teufel, Andreas
2013-01-01
The CellLineNavigator database, freely available at http://www.medicalgenomics.org/celllinenavigator, is a web-based workbench for large scale comparisons of a large collection of diverse cell lines. It aims to support experimental design in the fields of genomics, systems biology and translational biomedical research. Currently, this compendium holds genome wide expression profiles of 317 different cancer cell lines, categorized into 57 different pathological states and 28 individual tissues. To enlarge the scope of CellLineNavigator, the database was furthermore closely linked to commonly used bioinformatics databases and knowledge repositories. To ensure easy data access and search ability, a simple data and an intuitive querying interface were implemented. It allows the user to explore and filter gene expression, focusing on pathological or physiological conditions. For a more complex search, the advanced query interface may be used to query for (i) differentially expressed genes; (ii) pathological or physiological conditions; or (iii) gene names or functional attributes, such as Kyoto Encyclopaedia of Genes and Genomes pathway maps. These queries may also be combined. Finally, CellLineNavigator allows additional advanced analysis of differentially regulated genes by a direct link to the Database for Annotation, Visualization and Integrated Discovery (DAVID) Bioinformatics Resources. PMID:23118487
Toward visual user interfaces supporting collaborative multimedia content management
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Husein, Fathi; Leissler, Martin; Hemmje, Matthias
2000-12-01
Supporting collaborative multimedia content management activities, as e.g., image and video acquisition, exploration, and access dialogues between naive users and multi media information systems is a non-trivial task. Although a wide variety of experimental and prototypical multimedia storage technologies as well as corresponding indexing and retrieval engines are available, most of them lack appropriate support for collaborative end-user oriented user interface front ends. The development of advanced user adaptable interfaces is necessary for building collaborative multimedia information- space presentations based upon advanced tools for information browsing, searching, filtering, and brokering to be applied on potentially very large and highly dynamic multimedia collections with a large number of users and user groups. Therefore, the development of advanced and at the same time adaptable and collaborative computer graphical information presentation schemes that allow to easily apply adequate visual metaphors for defined target user stereotypes has to become a key focus within ongoing research activities trying to support collaborative information work with multimedia collections.
Advanced Query Formulation in Deductive Databases.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Niemi, Timo; Jarvelin, Kalervo
1992-01-01
Discusses deductive databases and database management systems (DBMS) and introduces a framework for advanced query formulation for end users. Recursive processing is described, a sample extensional database is presented, query types are explained, and criteria for advanced query formulation from the end user's viewpoint are examined. (31…
The ARL 2030 Scenarios: A User's Guide for Research Libraries
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Association of Research Libraries, 2010
2010-01-01
This user's guide was developed to advance local planning at ARL member libraries. It is written for library leaders writ large and for anyone leading or contributing to research library planning processes. Users do not need advanced facilitation skills to benefit from this guide, but facilitators charged with supporting scenario planning will…
Advanced Displays and Natural User Interfaces to Support Learning
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Martin-SanJose, Juan-Fernando; Juan, M. -Carmen; Mollá, Ramón; Vivó, Roberto
2017-01-01
Advanced displays and natural user interfaces (NUI) are a very suitable combination for developing systems to provide an enhanced and richer user experience. This combination can be appropriate in several fields and has not been extensively exploited. One of the fields that this combination is especially suitable for is education. Nowadays,…
Blend Shape Interpolation and FACS for Realistic Avatar
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Alkawaz, Mohammed Hazim; Mohamad, Dzulkifli; Basori, Ahmad Hoirul; Saba, Tanzila
2015-03-01
The quest of developing realistic facial animation is ever-growing. The emergence of sophisticated algorithms, new graphical user interfaces, laser scans and advanced 3D tools imparted further impetus towards the rapid advancement of complex virtual human facial model. Face-to-face communication being the most natural way of human interaction, the facial animation systems became more attractive in the information technology era for sundry applications. The production of computer-animated movies using synthetic actors are still challenging issues. Proposed facial expression carries the signature of happiness, sadness, angry or cheerful, etc. The mood of a particular person in the midst of a large group can immediately be identified via very subtle changes in facial expressions. Facial expressions being very complex as well as important nonverbal communication channel are tricky to synthesize realistically using computer graphics. Computer synthesis of practical facial expressions must deal with the geometric representation of the human face and the control of the facial animation. We developed a new approach by integrating blend shape interpolation (BSI) and facial action coding system (FACS) to create a realistic and expressive computer facial animation design. The BSI is used to generate the natural face while the FACS is employed to reflect the exact facial muscle movements for four basic natural emotional expressions such as angry, happy, sad and fear with high fidelity. The results in perceiving the realistic facial expression for virtual human emotions based on facial skin color and texture may contribute towards the development of virtual reality and game environment of computer aided graphics animation systems.
The intelligent user interface for NASA's advanced information management systems
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Campbell, William J.; Short, Nicholas, Jr.; Rolofs, Larry H.; Wattawa, Scott L.
1987-01-01
NASA has initiated the Intelligent Data Management Project to design and develop advanced information management systems. The project's primary goal is to formulate, design and develop advanced information systems that are capable of supporting the agency's future space research and operational information management needs. The first effort of the project was the development of a prototype Intelligent User Interface to an operational scientific database, using expert systems and natural language processing technologies. An overview of Intelligent User Interface formulation and development is given.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Anderson, B. H.
1983-01-01
A broad program to develop advanced, reliable, and user oriented three-dimensional viscous design techniques for supersonic inlet systems, and encourage their transfer into the general user community is discussed. Features of the program include: (1) develop effective methods of computing three-dimensional flows within a zonal modeling methodology; (2) ensure reasonable agreement between said analysis and selective sets of benchmark validation data; (3) develop user orientation into said analysis; and (4) explore and develop advanced numerical methodology.
Do Facebook Status Updates Reflect Subjective Well-Being?
Liu, Pan; Tov, William; Kosinski, Michal; Stillwell, David J; Qiu, Lin
2015-07-01
Nowadays, millions of people around the world use social networking sites to express everyday thoughts and feelings. Many researchers have tried to make use of social media to study users' online behaviors and psychological states. However, previous studies show mixed results about whether self-generated contents on Facebook reflect users' subjective well-being (SWB). This study analyzed Facebook status updates to determine the extent to which users' emotional expression predicted their SWB-specifically their self-reported satisfaction with life. It was found that positive emotional expressions on Facebook did not correlate with life satisfaction, whereas negative emotional expressions within the past 9-10 months (but not beyond) were significantly related to life satisfaction. These findings suggest that both the type of emotional expressions and the time frame of status updates determine whether emotional expressions in Facebook status updates can effectively reflect users' SWB. The findings shed light on the characteristics of online social media and improve the understanding of how user-generated contents reflect users' psychological states.
Platt, Bradley; Kamboj, Sunjeev; Morgan, Celia J A; Curran, H Valerie
2010-11-01
While heavy cannabis-users seem to show various cognitive impairments, it remains unclear whether they also experience significant deficits in affective functioning. Evidence of such deficits may contribute to our understanding of the interpersonal difficulties in cannabis-users, and the link between cannabis-use and psychological disorders (Moore et al., 2007). Emotion recognition performance of heavy cannabis-users and non-using controls was compared. A measure of emotion recognition was used in which participants identified facial expressions as they changed from neutral (open-mouth) to gradually more intense expressions of sadness, neutral, anger or happiness (open or closed mouth). Reaction times and accuracy were recorded as the facial expressions changed. Participants also completed measures of 'theory of mind,' depression and impulsivity. Cannabis-users were significantly slower than controls at identifying all three emotional expressions. There was no difference between groups in identifying facial expressions changing from open-mouth neutral expressions to closed-mouth neutral expressions suggesting that differences in emotion recognition were not due to a general slowing of reaction times. Cannabis-users were also significantly more liberal in their response criterion for recognising sadness. Heavy cannabis-use may be associated with affect recognition deficits. In particular, a greater intensity of emotion expression was required before identification of positive and negative emotions. This was found using stimuli which simulated dynamic changes in emotion expression, and in turn, suggests that cannabis-users may experience generalised problems in decoding basic emotions during social interactions. The implications of these findings are discussed for vulnerability to psychological and interpersonal difficulties in cannabis-users. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
ZBIT Bioinformatics Toolbox: A Web-Platform for Systems Biology and Expression Data Analysis
Römer, Michael; Eichner, Johannes; Dräger, Andreas; Wrzodek, Clemens; Wrzodek, Finja; Zell, Andreas
2016-01-01
Bioinformatics analysis has become an integral part of research in biology. However, installation and use of scientific software can be difficult and often requires technical expert knowledge. Reasons are dependencies on certain operating systems or required third-party libraries, missing graphical user interfaces and documentation, or nonstandard input and output formats. In order to make bioinformatics software easily accessible to researchers, we here present a web-based platform. The Center for Bioinformatics Tuebingen (ZBIT) Bioinformatics Toolbox provides web-based access to a collection of bioinformatics tools developed for systems biology, protein sequence annotation, and expression data analysis. Currently, the collection encompasses software for conversion and processing of community standards SBML and BioPAX, transcription factor analysis, and analysis of microarray data from transcriptomics and proteomics studies. All tools are hosted on a customized Galaxy instance and run on a dedicated computation cluster. Users only need a web browser and an active internet connection in order to benefit from this service. The web platform is designed to facilitate the usage of the bioinformatics tools for researchers without advanced technical background. Users can combine tools for complex analyses or use predefined, customizable workflows. All results are stored persistently and reproducible. For each tool, we provide documentation, tutorials, and example data to maximize usability. The ZBIT Bioinformatics Toolbox is freely available at https://webservices.cs.uni-tuebingen.de/. PMID:26882475
Transterm—extended search facilities and improved integration with other databases
Jacobs, Grant H.; Stockwell, Peter A.; Tate, Warren P.; Brown, Chris M.
2006-01-01
Transterm has now been publicly available for >10 years. Major changes have been made since its last description in this database issue in 2002. The current database provides data for key regions of mRNA sequences, a curated database of mRNA motifs and tools to allow users to investigate their own motifs or mRNA sequences. The key mRNA regions database is derived computationally from Genbank. It contains 3′ and 5′ flanking regions, the initiation and termination signal context and coding sequence for annotated CDS features from Genbank and RefSeq. The database is non-redundant, enabling summary files and statistics to be prepared for each species. Advances include providing extended search facilities, the database may now be searched by BLAST in addition to regular expressions (patterns) allowing users to search for motifs such as known miRNA sequences, and the inclusion of RefSeq data. The database contains >40 motifs or structural patterns important for translational control. In this release, patterns from UTRsite and Rfam are also incorporated with cross-referencing. Users may search their sequence data with Transterm or user-defined patterns. The system is accessible at . PMID:16381889
Khomtchouk, Bohdan B; Van Booven, Derek J; Wahlestedt, Claes
2014-01-01
The graphical visualization of gene expression data using heatmaps has become an integral component of modern-day medical research. Heatmaps are used extensively to plot quantitative differences in gene expression levels, such as those measured with RNAseq and microarray experiments, to provide qualitative large-scale views of the transcriptonomic landscape. Creating high-quality heatmaps is a computationally intensive task, often requiring considerable programming experience, particularly for customizing features to a specific dataset at hand. Software to create publication-quality heatmaps is developed with the R programming language, C++ programming language, and OpenGL application programming interface (API) to create industry-grade high performance graphics. We create a graphical user interface (GUI) software package called HeatmapGenerator for Windows OS and Mac OS X as an intuitive, user-friendly alternative to researchers with minimal prior coding experience to allow them to create publication-quality heatmaps using R graphics without sacrificing their desired level of customization. The simplicity of HeatmapGenerator is that it only requires the user to upload a preformatted input file and download the publicly available R software language, among a few other operating system-specific requirements. Advanced features such as color, text labels, scaling, legend construction, and even database storage can be easily customized with no prior programming knowledge. We provide an intuitive and user-friendly software package, HeatmapGenerator, to create high-quality, customizable heatmaps generated using the high-resolution color graphics capabilities of R. The software is available for Microsoft Windows and Apple Mac OS X. HeatmapGenerator is released under the GNU General Public License and publicly available at: http://sourceforge.net/projects/heatmapgenerator/. The Mac OS X direct download is available at: http://sourceforge.net/projects/heatmapgenerator/files/HeatmapGenerator_MAC_OSX.tar.gz/download. The Windows OS direct download is available at: http://sourceforge.net/projects/heatmapgenerator/files/HeatmapGenerator_WINDOWS.zip/download.
General-Purpose Electronic System Tests Aircraft
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Glover, Richard D.
1989-01-01
Versatile digital equipment supports research, development, and maintenance. Extended aircraft interrogation and display system is general-purpose assembly of digital electronic equipment on ground for testing of digital electronic systems on advanced aircraft. Many advanced features, including multiple 16-bit microprocessors, pipeline data-flow architecture, advanced operating system, and resident software-development tools. Basic collection of software includes program for handling many types of data and for displays in various formats. User easily extends basic software library. Hardware and software interfaces to subsystems provided by user designed for flexibility in configuration to meet user's requirements.
Gene expression in thiazide diuretic or statin users in relation to incident type 2 diabetes.
Suchy-Dicey, Astrid; Heckbert, Susan R; Smith, Nicholas L; McKnight, Barbara; Rotter, Jerome I; Chen, Yd Ida; Psaty, Bruce M; Enquobahrie, Daniel A
2014-01-01
Thiazide diuretics and statins are used to improve cardiovascular outcomes, but may also cause type 2 diabetes (T2DM), although mechanisms are unknown. Gene expression studies may facilitate understanding of these associations. Participants from ongoing population-based studies were sampled for these longitudinal studies of peripheral blood microarray gene expression, and followed to incident diabetes. All sampled subjects were statin or thiazide users. Those who developed diabetes during follow-up comprised cases (44 thiazide users; 19 statin users), and were matched to drug-using controls who did not develop diabetes on several factors. Supervised normalization, surrogate variable analyses removed technical bias and confounding. Differentially-expressed genes were those with a false discovery rate Q-value<0.05. Among thiazide users, diabetes cases had significantly different expression of CCL14 (down-regulated 6%, Q-value=0.0257), compared with controls. Among statin users, diabetes cases had marginal but insignificantly different expression of ZNF532 (up-regulated 15%, Q-value=0.0584), CXORF21 (up-regulated 11%, Q-value=0.0584), and ZNHIT3 (up-regulated 19%, Q-value=0.0959), compared with controls. These genes comprise potential targets for future expression or mechanistic research on medication-related diabetes development.
Display-based communications for advanced transport aircraft
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Lee, Alfred T.
1989-01-01
The next generation of civil transport aircraft will depend increasingly upon ground-air-ground and satellite data link for information critical to safe and efficient air transportation. Previous studies which examined the concept of display-based communications in addition to, or in lieu of, conventional voice transmissions are reviewed. A full-mission flight simulation comparing voice and display-based communication modes in an advanced transport aircraft is also described. The results indicate that a display-based mode of information transfer does not result in significantly increased aircrew workload, but does result in substantially increased message acknowledgment times when compared to conventional voice transmissions. User acceptance of the display-based communication system was generally high, replicating the findings of previous studies. However, most pilots tested expressed concern over the potential loss of information available from frequency monitoring which might result from the introduction of discrete address communications. Concern was expressed by some pilots for the reduced time available to search for conflicting traffic when using the communications display system. The implications of the findings for the design of display-based communications are discussed.
Advanced Avalanche Safety Equipment of Backcountry Users: Current Trends and Perceptions.
Ng, Pearlly; Smith, William R; Wheeler, Albert; McIntosh, Scott E
2015-09-01
Backcountry travelers should carry a standard set of safety gear (transceiver, shovel, and probe) to improve rescue chances and reduce mortality risk. Many backcountry enthusiasts are using other advanced equipment such as an artificial air pocket (eg, the AvaLung) or an avalanche air bag. Our goal was to determine the numbers of backcountry users carrying advanced equipment and their perceptions of mortality and morbidity benefit while carrying this gear. A convenience sample of backcountry skiers, snowboarders, snowshoers, and snowmobilers was surveyed between February and April 2014. Participants of this study were backcountry mountain users recruited at trailheads in the Wasatch and Teton mountain ranges of Utah and Wyoming, respectively. Questions included prior avalanche education, equipment carried, and perceived safety benefit derived from advanced equipment. In all, 193 surveys were collected. Skiers and snowboarders were likely to have taken an avalanche safety course, whereas snowshoers and snowmobilers were less likely to have taken a course. Most backcountry users (149, 77.2%), predominantly skiers and snowboarders, carried standard safety equipment. The AvaLung was carried more often (47 users) than an avalanche air bag (10 users). The avalanche air bag had a more favorable perceived safety benefit. A majority of participants reported cost as the barrier to obtaining advanced equipment. Standard avalanche safety practices, including taking an avalanche safety course and carrying standard equipment, remain the most common safety practices among backcountry users in the Wasatch and Tetons. Snowshoers remain an ideal target for outreach to increase avalanche awareness and safety. Copyright © 2015 Wilderness Medical Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Gene expression in thiazide diuretic or statin users in relation to incident type 2 diabetes
Suchy-Dicey, Astrid; Heckbert, Susan R; Smith, Nicholas L; McKnight, Barbara; Rotter, Jerome I; Chen, YD Ida; Psaty, Bruce M; Enquobahrie, Daniel A
2014-01-01
Thiazide diuretics and statins are used to improve cardiovascular outcomes, but may also cause type 2 diabetes (T2DM), although mechanisms are unknown. Gene expression studies may facilitate understanding of these associations. Participants from ongoing population-based studies were sampled for these longitudinal studies of peripheral blood microarray gene expression, and followed to incident diabetes. All sampled subjects were statin or thiazide users. Those who developed diabetes during follow-up comprised cases (44 thiazide users; 19 statin users), and were matched to drug-using controls who did not develop diabetes on several factors. Supervised normalization, surrogate variable analyses removed technical bias and confounding. Differentially-expressed genes were those with a false discovery rate Q-value<0.05. Among thiazide users, diabetes cases had significantly different expression of CCL14 (down-regulated 6%, Q-value=0.0257), compared with controls. Among statin users, diabetes cases had marginal but insignificantly different expression of ZNF532 (up-regulated 15%, Q-value=0.0584), CXORF21 (up-regulated 11%, Q-value=0.0584), and ZNHIT3 (up-regulated 19%, Q-value=0.0959), compared with controls. These genes comprise potential targets for future expression or mechanistic research on medication-related diabetes development. PMID:24596594
Reading Emotion From Mouse Cursor Motions: Affective Computing Approach.
Yamauchi, Takashi; Xiao, Kunchen
2018-04-01
Affective computing research has advanced emotion recognition systems using facial expressions, voices, gaits, and physiological signals, yet these methods are often impractical. This study integrates mouse cursor motion analysis into affective computing and investigates the idea that movements of the computer cursor can provide information about emotion of the computer user. We extracted 16-26 trajectory features during a choice-reaching task and examined the link between emotion and cursor motions. Participants were induced for positive or negative emotions by music, film clips, or emotional pictures, and they indicated their emotions with questionnaires. Our 10-fold cross-validation analysis shows that statistical models formed from "known" participants (training data) could predict nearly 10%-20% of the variance of positive affect and attentiveness ratings of "unknown" participants, suggesting that cursor movement patterns such as the area under curve and direction change help infer emotions of computer users. Copyright © 2017 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.
Rural applications of advanced traveler information systems : user needs and technology assessment
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
1997-07-01
The User Needs and Technology Assessment Report is one in a series of interim documents for the Rural Applications of Advanced Traveler Information Systems (ATIS) project. The document describes the research design and findings from rural traveler su...
2013-05-01
environmental objects are used to immerse the user in a 3D visualisation of the simulated war game. ADFStealthViewer has several ADF produced 3D models...OpenGL, audio , and networking devices. Some advanced functionality of the engine relies on modern graphics pixel and vertex shaders. These advanced
Engineering synthetic TALE and CRISPR/Cas9 transcription factors for regulating gene expression.
Kabadi, Ami M; Gersbach, Charles A
2014-09-01
Engineered DNA-binding proteins that can be targeted to specific sites in the genome to manipulate gene expression have enabled many advances in biomedical research. This includes generating tools to study fundamental aspects of gene regulation and the development of a new class of gene therapies that alter the expression of endogenous genes. Designed transcription factors have entered clinical trials for the treatment of human diseases and others are in preclinical development. High-throughput and user-friendly platforms for designing synthetic DNA-binding proteins present innovative methods for deciphering cell biology and designing custom synthetic gene circuits. We review two platforms for designing synthetic transcription factors for manipulating gene expression: Transcription activator-like effectors (TALEs) and the RNA-guided clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/Cas9 system. We present an overview of each technology and a guide for designing and assembling custom TALE- and CRISPR/Cas9-based transcription factors. We also discuss characteristics of each platform that are best suited for different applications. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Automated Structural Optimization System (ASTROS). Volume 2. User’s Manual
1988-04-07
preparation and on the use of advanced features that permit the user to modify the standard execution of ASTROS. f^Q^S*. ) I I J...software in considera- ble detail to direct the procedure to perform these alternative functions. The mechanisms by which these more advanced features are...grossly modify the existing capabilities of the system. These more advanced topics are treated in the Programmer’s and Application Manuals which
The AR Sandbox: Augmented Reality in Geoscience Education
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kreylos, O.; Kellogg, L. H.; Reed, S.; Hsi, S.; Yikilmaz, M. B.; Schladow, G.; Segale, H.; Chan, L.
2016-12-01
The AR Sandbox is a combination of a physical box full of sand, a 3D (depth) camera such as a Microsoft Kinect, a data projector, and a computer running open-source software, creating a responsive and interactive system to teach geoscience concepts in formal or informal contexts. As one or more users shape the sand surface to create planes, hills, or valleys, the 3D camera scans the surface in real-time, the software creates a dynamic topographic map including elevation color maps and contour lines, and the projector projects that map back onto the sand surface such that real and projected features match exactly. In addition, users can add virtual water to the sandbox, which realistically flows over the real surface driven by a real-time fluid flow simulation. The AR Sandbox can teach basic geographic and hydrologic skills and concepts such as reading topographic maps, interpreting contour lines, formation of watersheds, flooding, or surface wave propagation in a hands-on and explorative manner. AR Sandbox installations in more than 150 institutions have shown high audience engagement and long dwell times of often 20 minutes and more. In a more formal context, the AR Sandbox can be used in field trip preparation, and can teach advanced geoscience skills such as extrapolating 3D sub-surface shapes from surface expression, via advanced software features such as the ability to load digital models of real landscapes and guiding users towards recreating them in the sandbox. Blueprints, installation instructions, and the open-source AR Sandbox software package are available at http://arsandbox.org .
Rudowski, R; Frostell, C; Gill, H
1989-09-01
The KUSIVAR is an expert system for mechanical ventilation of adult patients suffering from respiratory insufficiency. Its main objective is to provide guidance in respirator management. The knowledge base includes both qualitative, rule-based knowledge and quantitative knowledge expressed in the form of mathematical models (expert control) which is used for prediction of arterial gas tensions and optimization purposes. The system is data driven and uses a forward chaining mechanism for rule invocation. The interaction with the user will be performed in advisory, critiquing, semi-automatic and automatic modes. The system is at present in an advanced prototype stage. Prototyping is performed using KEE (Knowledge Engineering Environment) on a Sperry Explorer workstation. For further development and clinical use the expert system will be downloaded to an advanced PC. The system is intended to support therapy with a Siemens-Elema Servoventilator 900 C.
Structural tailoring of advanced turboprops (STAT): User's manual
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Brown, K. W.
1991-01-01
This user's manual describes the Structural Tailoring of Advanced Turboprops program. It contains instructions to prepare the input for optimization, blade geometry and analysis, geometry generation, and finite element program control. In addition, a sample input file is provided as well as a section describing special applications (i.e., non-standard input).
Computer program user's manual for advanced general aviation propeller study
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Worobel, R.
1972-01-01
A user's manual is presented for a computer program for predicting the performance (static, flight, and reverse), noise, weight and cost of propellers for advanced general aviation aircraft of the 1980 time period. Complete listings of this computer program with detailed instructions and samples of input and output are included.
Advance reservation access control using software-defined networking and tokens
Chung, Joaquin; Jung, Eun-Sung; Kettimuthu, Rajkumar; ...
2017-03-09
Advance reservation systems allow users to reserve dedicated bandwidth connection resources from advanced high-speed networks. A common use case for such systems is data transfers in distributed science environments in which a user wants exclusive access to the reservation. However, current advance network reservation methods cannot ensure exclusive access of a network reservation to the specific flow for which the user made the reservation. We present in this paper a novel network architecture that addresses this limitation and ensures that a reservation is used only by the intended flow. We achieve this by leveraging software-defined networking (SDN) and token-based authorization.more » We use SDN to orchestrate and automate the reservation of networking resources, end-to-end and across multiple administrative domains, and tokens to create a strong binding between the user or application that requested the reservation and the flows provisioned by SDN. Finally, we conducted experiments on the ESNet 100G SDN testbed, and demonstrated that our system effectively protects authorized flows from competing traffic in the network.« less
Advance reservation access control using software-defined networking and tokens
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Chung, Joaquin; Jung, Eun-Sung; Kettimuthu, Rajkumar
Advance reservation systems allow users to reserve dedicated bandwidth connection resources from advanced high-speed networks. A common use case for such systems is data transfers in distributed science environments in which a user wants exclusive access to the reservation. However, current advance network reservation methods cannot ensure exclusive access of a network reservation to the specific flow for which the user made the reservation. We present in this paper a novel network architecture that addresses this limitation and ensures that a reservation is used only by the intended flow. We achieve this by leveraging software-defined networking (SDN) and token-based authorization.more » We use SDN to orchestrate and automate the reservation of networking resources, end-to-end and across multiple administrative domains, and tokens to create a strong binding between the user or application that requested the reservation and the flows provisioned by SDN. Finally, we conducted experiments on the ESNet 100G SDN testbed, and demonstrated that our system effectively protects authorized flows from competing traffic in the network.« less
Advance reservation access control using software-defined networking and tokens
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Chung, Joaquin; Jung, Eun-Sung; Kettimuthu, Rajkumar
Advance reservation systems allow users to reserve dedicated bandwidth connection resources from advanced high-speed networks. A common use case for such systems is data transfers in distributed science environments in which a user wants exclusive access to the reservation. However, current advance network reservation methods cannot ensure exclusive access of a network reservation to the specific flow for which the user made the reservation. We present here a novel network architecture that addresses this limitation and ensures that a reservation is used only by the intended flow. We achieve this by leveraging software-defined networking (SDN) and token-based authorization. We usemore » SDN to orchestrate and automate the reservation of networking resources, end-to-end and across multiple administrative domains, and tokens to create a strong binding between the user or application that requested the reservation and the flows provisioned by SDN. We conducted experiments on the ESNet 100G SDN testbed, and demonstrated that our system effectively protects authorized flows from competing traffic in the network. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.« less
Advanced Materials Laboratory User Test Planning Guide
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Orndoff, Evelyne
2012-01-01
Test process, milestones and inputs are unknowns to first-time users of the Advanced Materials Laboratory. The User Test Planning Guide aids in establishing expectations for both NASA and non-NASA facility customers. The potential audience for this guide includes both internal and commercial spaceflight hardware/software developers. It is intended to assist their test engineering personnel in test planning and execution. Material covered includes a roadmap of the test process, roles and responsibilities of facility and user, major milestones, facility capabilities, and inputs required by the facility. Samples of deliverables, test article interfaces, and inputs necessary to define test scope, cost, and schedule are included as an appendix to the guide.
First Prototype of a Web Map Interface for ESA's Planetary Science Archive (PSA)
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Manaud, N.; Gonzalez, J.
2014-04-01
We present a first prototype of a Web Map Interface that will serve as a proof of concept and design for ESA's future fully web-based Planetary Science Archive (PSA) User Interface. The PSA is ESA's planetary science archiving authority and central repository for all scientific and engineering data returned by ESA's Solar System missions [1]. All data are compliant with NASA's Planetary Data System (PDS) Standards and are accessible through several interfaces [2]: in addition to serving all public data via FTP and the Planetary Data Access Protocol (PDAP), a Java-based User Interface provides advanced search, preview, download, notification and delivery-basket functionality. It allows the user to query and visualise instrument observations footprints using a map-based interface (currently only available for Mars Express HRSC and OMEGA instruments). During the last decade, the planetary mapping science community has increasingly been adopting Geographic Information System (GIS) tools and standards, originally developed for and used in Earth science. There is an ongoing effort to produce and share cartographic products through Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) Web Services, or as standalone data sets, so that they can be readily used in existing GIS applications [3,4,5]. Previous studies conducted at ESAC [6,7] have helped identify the needs of Planetary GIS users, and define key areas of improvement for the future Web PSA User Interface. Its web map interface shall will provide access to the full geospatial content of the PSA, including (1) observation geometry footprints of all remote sensing instruments, and (2) all georeferenced cartographic products, such as HRSC map-projected data or OMEGA global maps from Mars Express. It shall aim to provide a rich user experience for search and visualisation of this content using modern and interactive web mapping technology. A comprehensive set of built-in context maps from external sources, such as MOLA topography, TES infrared maps or planetary surface nomenclature, provided in both simple cylindrical and polar stereographic projections, shall enhance this user experience. In addition, users should be able to import and export data in commonly used open- GIS formats. It is also intended to serve all PSA geospatial data through OGC-compliant Web Services so that they can be captured, visualised and analysed directly from GIS software, along with data from other sources. The following figure illustrates how the PSA web map interface and services shall fit in a typical Planetary GIS user working environment.
Efficient and Privacy-Preserving Online Medical Prediagnosis Framework Using Nonlinear SVM.
Zhu, Hui; Liu, Xiaoxia; Lu, Rongxing; Li, Hui
2017-05-01
With the advances of machine learning algorithms and the pervasiveness of network terminals, the online medical prediagnosis system, which can provide the diagnosis of healthcare provider anywhere anytime, has attracted considerable interest recently. However, the flourish of online medical prediagnosis system still faces many challenges including information security and privacy preservation. In this paper, we propose an e fficient and privacy-preserving online medical prediagnosis framework, called eDiag, by using nonlinear kernel support vector machine (SVM). With eDiag, the sensitive personal health information can be processed without privacy disclosure during online prediagnosis service. Specifically, based on an improved expression for the nonlinear SVM, an efficient and privacy-preserving classification scheme is introduced with lightweight multiparty random masking and polynomial aggregation techniques. The encrypted user query is directly operated at the service provider without decryption, and the diagnosis result can only be decrypted by user. Through extensive analysis, we show that eDiag can ensure that users' health information and healthcare provider's prediction model are kept confidential, and has significantly less computation and communication overhead than existing schemes. In addition, performance evaluations via implementing eDiag on smartphone and computer demonstrate eDiag's effectiveness in term of real online environment.
Studying User Income through Language, Behaviour and Affect in Social Media.
Preoţiuc-Pietro, Daniel; Volkova, Svitlana; Lampos, Vasileios; Bachrach, Yoram; Aletras, Nikolaos
2015-01-01
Automatically inferring user demographics from social media posts is useful for both social science research and a range of downstream applications in marketing and politics. We present the first extensive study where user behaviour on Twitter is used to build a predictive model of income. We apply non-linear methods for regression, i.e. Gaussian Processes, achieving strong correlation between predicted and actual user income. This allows us to shed light on the factors that characterise income on Twitter and analyse their interplay with user emotions and sentiment, perceived psycho-demographics and language use expressed through the topics of their posts. Our analysis uncovers correlations between different feature categories and income, some of which reflect common belief e.g. higher perceived education and intelligence indicates higher earnings, known differences e.g. gender and age differences, however, others show novel findings e.g. higher income users express more fear and anger, whereas lower income users express more of the time emotion and opinions.
Studying User Income through Language, Behaviour and Affect in Social Media
Preoţiuc-Pietro, Daniel; Volkova, Svitlana; Lampos, Vasileios; Bachrach, Yoram; Aletras, Nikolaos
2015-01-01
Automatically inferring user demographics from social media posts is useful for both social science research and a range of downstream applications in marketing and politics. We present the first extensive study where user behaviour on Twitter is used to build a predictive model of income. We apply non-linear methods for regression, i.e. Gaussian Processes, achieving strong correlation between predicted and actual user income. This allows us to shed light on the factors that characterise income on Twitter and analyse their interplay with user emotions and sentiment, perceived psycho-demographics and language use expressed through the topics of their posts. Our analysis uncovers correlations between different feature categories and income, some of which reflect common belief e.g. higher perceived education and intelligence indicates higher earnings, known differences e.g. gender and age differences, however, others show novel findings e.g. higher income users express more fear and anger, whereas lower income users express more of the time emotion and opinions. PMID:26394145
Lekschas, Fritz; Stachelscheid, Harald; Seltmann, Stefanie; Kurtz, Andreas
2015-03-01
Advancing technologies generate large amounts of molecular and phenotypic data on cells, tissues and organisms, leading to an ever-growing detail and complexity while information retrieval and analysis becomes increasingly time-consuming. The Semantic Body Browser is a web application for intuitively exploring the body of an organism from the organ to the subcellular level and visualising expression profiles by means of semantically annotated anatomical illustrations. It is used to comprehend biological and medical data related to the different body structures while relying on the strong pattern recognition capabilities of human users. The Semantic Body Browser is a JavaScript web application that is freely available at http://sbb.cellfinder.org. The source code is provided on https://github.com/flekschas/sbb. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.
Volkova, Svitlana; Bachrach, Yoram
2015-12-01
Social media services such as Twitter and Facebook are virtual environments where people express their thoughts, emotions, and opinions and where they reveal themselves to their peers. We analyze a sample of 123,000 Twitter users and 25 million of their tweets to investigate the relation between the opinions and emotions that users express and their predicted psychodemographic traits. We show that the emotions that we express on online social networks reveal deep insights about ourselves. Our methodology is based on building machine learning models for inferring coarse-grained emotions and psychodemographic profiles from user-generated content. We examine several user attributes, including gender, income, political views, age, education, optimism, and life satisfaction. We correlate these predicted demographics with the emotional profiles emanating from user tweets, as captured by Ekman's emotion classification. We find that some users tend to express significantly more joy and significantly less sadness in their tweets, such as those predicted to be in a relationship, with children, or with a higher than average annual income or educational level. Users predicted to be women tend to be more opinionated, whereas those predicted to be men tend to be more neutral. Finally, users predicted to be younger and liberal tend to project more negative opinions and emotions. We discuss the implications of our findings to online privacy concerns and self-disclosure behavior.
An Overview of Starfish: A Table-Centric Tool for Interactive Synthesis
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Tsow, Alex
2008-01-01
Engineering is an interactive process that requires intelligent interaction at many levels. My thesis [1] advances an engineering discipline for high-level synthesis and architectural decomposition that integrates perspicuous representation, designer interaction, and mathematical rigor. Starfish, the software prototype for the design method, implements a table-centric transformation system for reorganizing control-dominated system expressions into high-level architectures. Based on the digital design derivation (DDD) system a designer-guided synthesis technique that applies correctness preserving transformations to synchronous data flow specifications expressed as co- recursive stream equations Starfish enhances user interaction and extends the reachable design space by incorporating four innovations: behavior tables, serialization tables, data refinement, and operator retiming. Behavior tables express systems of co-recursive stream equations as a table of guarded signal updates. Developers and users of the DDD system used manually constructed behavior tables to help them decide which transformations to apply and how to specify them. These design exercises produced several formally constructed hardware implementations: the FM9001 microprocessor, an SECD machine for evaluating LISP, and the SchemEngine, garbage collected machine for interpreting a byte-code representation of compiled Scheme programs. Bose and Tuna, two of DDD s developers, have subsequently commercialized the design derivation methodology at Derivation Systems, Inc. (DSI). DSI has formally derived and validated PCI bus interfaces and a Java byte-code processor; they further executed a contract to prototype SPIDER-NASA's ultra-reliable communications bus. To date, most derivations from DDD and DRS have targeted hardware due to its synchronous design paradigm. However, Starfish expressions are independent of the synchronization mechanism; there is no commitment to hardware or globally broadcast clocks. Though software back-ends for design derivation are limited to the DDD stream-interpreter, targeting synchronous or real-time software is not substantively different from targeting hardware.
Context-based user grouping for multi-casting in heterogeneous radio networks
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Mannweiler, C.; Klein, A.; Schneider, J.; Schotten, H. D.
2011-08-01
Along with the rise of sophisticated smartphones and smart spaces, the availability of both static and dynamic context information has steadily been increasing in recent years. Due to the popularity of social networks, these data are complemented by profile information about individual users. Making use of this information by classifying users in wireless networks enables targeted content and advertisement delivery as well as optimizing network resources, in particular bandwidth utilization, by facilitating group-based multi-casting. In this paper, we present the design and implementation of a web service for advanced user classification based on user, network, and environmental context information. The service employs simple and advanced clustering algorithms for forming classes of users. Available service functionalities include group formation, context-aware adaptation, and deletion as well as the exposure of group characteristics. Moreover, the results of a performance evaluation, where the service has been integrated in a simulator modeling user behavior in heterogeneous wireless systems, are presented.
Maxwell, Jessica Hooton; Kumar, Bhavna; Feng, Felix Y.; Worden, Francis P.; Lee, Julia; Eisbruch, Avraham; Wolf, Gregory T.; Prince, Mark E.; Moyer, Jeffrey S.; Teknos, Theodoros N.; Chepeha, Douglas B.; McHugh, Jonathan B.; Urba, Susan; Stoerker, Jay; Walline, Heather; Kurnit, David; Cordell, Kitrina G.; Davis, Samantha J.; Ward, Preston D.; Bradford, Carol R.; Carey, Thomas E.
2009-01-01
Purpose The goal of this study was to examine the effect of tobacco use on disease recurrence (local/regional recurrence, distant metastasis, or second primary) among HPV-positive patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the oropharynx (SCCOP) following a complete response to chemoradiation therapy. Experimental Design Between 1999 and 2007, 124 patients with advanced SCCOP (86% with stage IV) and adequate tumor tissue for HPV analysis who were enrolled in one of two consecutive University of Michigan treatment protocols were prospectively included in this study. Patients were categorized as never, former, or current tobacco users. The primary end-points were risk of disease recurrence and time to recurrence; secondary end-points were disease-specific survival and overall survival. Results One hundred and two patients (82.3%) had HPV-positive tumors. Over two-thirds (68%) of patients with HPV-positive tumors were tobacco users. Among HPV-positive patients, current tobacco users were at significantly higher risk of disease recurrence than never-tobacco users (hazard ratio = 5.2; confidence interval [1.1-24.4]; p=0.038). Thirty-five percent of HPV-positive ever tobacco users recurred compared to only 6% of HPV-positive never users and 50% of HPV-negative patients. All HPV-negative patients were tobacco users and had significantly shorter times to recurrence (p=0.002) and reduced disease-specific survival (p=0.004) and overall survival (p<0.001) compared to HPV-positive patients. Compared to HPV-positive never-tobacco users, those with a tobacco history showed a trend for reduced disease-specific survival (p=0.064) but not overall survival (p=0.221). Conclusion Current tobacco users with advanced, HPV-positive SCCOP are at higher risk of disease recurrence compared to never-tobacco users. PMID:20145161
Payload Technologies for Remotely Piloted Aircraft
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Wegener, Steve
2000-01-01
Matching the capabilities of Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) to the needs of users defines the direction of future investment. These user needs and advances in payload capabilities are driving the evolution of a commercially viable RPA aerospace industry. New perspectives are needed to realize the potential of RPAs. Advances in payload technologies and the impact on RPA design and operations will be explored.
Payload Technologies For Remotely Piloted Aircraft
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Wegener, Steve; Condon, Estelle (Technical Monitor)
2001-01-01
Matching the capabilities of Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) to the needs of users defines the direction of future investment. These user needs and advances in payload capabilities are driving the evolution of a commercially viable RPA aerospace industry. New perspectives are needed to realize the potential of RPAs. Advances in payload technologies and the impact on RPA design and operations will be explored.
Practical and Secure Recovery of Disk Encryption Key Using Smart Cards
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Omote, Kazumasa; Kato, Kazuhiko
In key-recovery methods using smart cards, a user can recover the disk encryption key in cooperation with the system administrator, even if the user has lost the smart card including the disk encryption key. However, the disk encryption key is known to the system administrator in advance in most key-recovery methods. Hence user's disk data may be read by the system administrator. Furthermore, if the disk encryption key is not known to the system administrator in advance, it is difficult to achieve a key authentication. In this paper, we propose a scheme which enables to recover the disk encryption key when the user's smart card is lost. In our scheme, the disk encryption key is not preserved anywhere and then the system administrator cannot know the key before key-recovery phase. Only someone who has a user's smart card and knows the user's password can decrypt that user's disk data. Furthermore, we measured the processing time required for user authentication in an experimental environment using a virtual machine monitor. As a result, we found that this processing time is short enough to be practical.
Enhanced In-Pile Instrumentation at the Advanced Test Reactor
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Rempe, Joy L.; Knudson, Darrell L.; Daw, Joshua E.; Unruh, Troy; Chase, Benjamin M.; Palmer, Joe; Condie, Keith G.; Davis, Kurt L.
2012-08-01
Many of the sensors deployed at materials and test reactors cannot withstand the high flux/high temperature test conditions often requested by users at U.S. test reactors, such as the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) at the Idaho National Laboratory. To address this issue, an instrumentation development effort was initiated as part of the ATR National Scientific User Facility in 2007 to support the development and deployment of enhanced in-pile sensors. This paper provides an update on this effort. Specifically, this paper identifies the types of sensors currently available to support in-pile irradiations and those sensors currently available to ATR users. Accomplishments from new sensor technology deployment efforts are highlighted by describing new temperature and thermal conductivity sensors now available to ATR users. Efforts to deploy enhanced in-pile sensors for detecting elongation and real-time flux detectors are also reported, and recently-initiated research to evaluate the viability of advanced technologies to provide enhanced accuracy for measuring key parameters during irradiation testing are noted.
GEsture: an online hand-drawing tool for gene expression pattern search.
Wang, Chunyan; Xu, Yiqing; Wang, Xuelin; Zhang, Li; Wei, Suyun; Ye, Qiaolin; Zhu, Youxiang; Yin, Hengfu; Nainwal, Manoj; Tanon-Reyes, Luis; Cheng, Feng; Yin, Tongming; Ye, Ning
2018-01-01
Gene expression profiling data provide useful information for the investigation of biological function and process. However, identifying a specific expression pattern from extensive time series gene expression data is not an easy task. Clustering, a popular method, is often used to classify similar expression genes, however, genes with a 'desirable' or 'user-defined' pattern cannot be efficiently detected by clustering methods. To address these limitations, we developed an online tool called GEsture. Users can draw, or graph a curve using a mouse instead of inputting abstract parameters of clustering methods. GEsture explores genes showing similar, opposite and time-delay expression patterns with a gene expression curve as input from time series datasets. We presented three examples that illustrate the capacity of GEsture in gene hunting while following users' requirements. GEsture also provides visualization tools (such as expression pattern figure, heat map and correlation network) to display the searching results. The result outputs may provide useful information for researchers to understand the targets, function and biological processes of the involved genes.
On English Speakers' Ability to Communicate Emotion in Mandarin
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Jian, Hua-Li
2015-01-01
The ability of Mandarin learners to express emotion in Mandarin has received little attention. This study examines how English L1 users express emotions in Mandarin and how this expression differs from that of Mandarin L1 users. Scenarios were adopted to elicit joy, anger, sadness, fear, and neutrality. Both groups articulated anger, joy, and fear…
GammaKnife surgery: safety and the identity of users.
Dinka, David; Nyce, James M; Timpka, Toomas
2005-01-01
In this study we investigated safety-related usability issues of an advanced medical technology, a radiosurgery system. We were interested in which criteria are important for users when a system's usability and safety is to be improved. The data collection was based on interviews and observations at three different sites where the Leksell GammaKnife is used. The analysis was qualitative. The main finding was that the user's identity or professional background has a significant impact both on how he or she views his or her role in the clinical setting, and on how he or she defines what improvements are necessary and general safety issues. In fact, the opinion even of users experienced in safety-related problems was highly influenced by how they related to the technology and its development. None of the users actually considered Leksell GammaKnife as lacking in safety, instead, their assessment was directed towards potential future system improvements. Our findings suggest that the importance of user identity or professional background cannot be neglected during the development of advanced technology. They also suggest that the user feedback should always be related to user background and identity in order to understand how important different issues are for particular users.
Too Soon to Give Up? Re-examining the Value of Advance Directives
Levi, Benjamin H.; Green, Michael J.
2013-01-01
In the face of mounting criticism against advance directives, we describe how a novel, computer-based decision aid addresses some of these important concerns. This decision aid, Making Your Wishes Known: Planning Your Medical Future, translates an individual’s values and goals into a meaningful advance directive that explicitly reflects their healthcare wishes and outlines a plan for how they wish to be treated. It does this by 1) educating users about advance care planning; 2) helping individuals identify, clarify, and prioritize factors that influence their decision-making about future medical conditions; 3) explaining common end-of-life medical conditions and life-sustaining treatment; 4) helping users articulate a coherent set of wishes with regard to advance care planning—in the form of an advance directive readily interpretable by physicians; and 5) helping individuals both choose a spokesperson, and prepare to engage family, friends, and healthcare providers in discussions about advance care planning. PMID:20379910
Semantic technologies in a decision support system
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Wasielewska, K.; Ganzha, M.; Paprzycki, M.; Bǎdicǎ, C.; Ivanovic, M.; Lirkov, I.
2015-10-01
The aim of our work is to design a decision support system based on ontological representation of domain(s) and semantic technologies. Specifically, we consider the case when Grid / Cloud user describes his/her requirements regarding a "resource" as a class expression from an ontology, while the instances of (the same) ontology represent available resources. The goal is to help the user to find the best option with respect to his/her requirements, while remembering that user's knowledge may be "limited." In this context, we discuss multiple approaches based on semantic data processing, which involve different "forms" of user interaction with the system. Specifically, we consider: (a) ontological matchmaking based on SPARQL queries and class expression, (b) graph-based semantic closeness of instances representing user requirements (constructed from the class expression) and available resources, and (c) multicriterial analysis based on the AHP method, which utilizes expert domain knowledge (also ontologically represented).
Middle Mississippi River decision support system: user's manual
Rohweder, Jason J.; Zigler, Steven J.; Fox, Timothy J.; Hulse, Steven N.
2005-01-01
This user's manual describes the Middle Mississippi River Decision Support System (MMRDSS) and gives detailed examples on its use. The MMRDSS provides a framework to assist decision makers regarding natural resource issues in the Middle Mississippi River floodplain. The MMRDSS is designed to provide users with a spatially explicit tool for tasks, such as inventorying existing knowledge, developing models to investigate the potential effects of management decisions, generating hypotheses to advance scientific understanding, and developing scientifically defensible studies and monitoring. The MMRDSS also includes advanced tools to assist users in evaluating differences in complexity, connectivity, and structure of aquatic habitats among river reaches. The Environmental Systems Research Institute ArcView 3.x platform was used to create and package the data and tools of the MMRDSS.
Proceedings of the Third International Mobile Satellite Conference (IMSC 1993)
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Kwan, Robert (Compiler); Rigley, Jack (Compiler); Cassingham, Randy (Editor)
1993-01-01
Satellite-based mobile communications systems provide voice and data communications to users over a vast geographic area. The users may communicate via mobile or hand-held terminals, which may also provide access to terrestrial cellular communications services. While the first and second International Mobile Satellite Conferences (IMSC) mostly concentrated on technical advances, this Third IMSC also focuses on the increasing worldwide commercial activities in Mobile Satellite Services. Because of the large service areas provided by such systems, it is important to consider political and regulatory issues in addition to technical and user requirements issues. Topics covered include: the direct broadcast of audio programming from satellites; spacecraft technology; regulatory and policy considerations; advanced system concepts and analysis; propagation; and user requirements and applications.
User's manual for PEPSIG NASA tip vortex version
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Tsai, Tommy M.; Dejong, Frederick J.; Levy, Ralph
1988-01-01
The tip vortex flowfield plays a significant role in the performance of advanced aircraft propellers. The flowfield in the tip region is complex, three-dimensional and viscous with large secondary velocities. A computer code was developed to predict the tip vortex flowfield of advanced aircraft propellers. This document is the user's manual. The analysis and a series of test cases are presented in NASA-CR-182179.
QUADrATiC: scalable gene expression connectivity mapping for repurposing FDA-approved therapeutics.
O'Reilly, Paul G; Wen, Qing; Bankhead, Peter; Dunne, Philip D; McArt, Darragh G; McPherson, Suzanne; Hamilton, Peter W; Mills, Ken I; Zhang, Shu-Dong
2016-05-04
Gene expression connectivity mapping has proven to be a powerful and flexible tool for research. Its application has been shown in a broad range of research topics, most commonly as a means of identifying potential small molecule compounds, which may be further investigated as candidates for repurposing to treat diseases. The public release of voluminous data from the Library of Integrated Cellular Signatures (LINCS) programme further enhanced the utilities and potentials of gene expression connectivity mapping in biomedicine. We describe QUADrATiC ( http://go.qub.ac.uk/QUADrATiC ), a user-friendly tool for the exploration of gene expression connectivity on the subset of the LINCS data set corresponding to FDA-approved small molecule compounds. It enables the identification of compounds for repurposing therapeutic potentials. The software is designed to cope with the increased volume of data over existing tools, by taking advantage of multicore computing architectures to provide a scalable solution, which may be installed and operated on a range of computers, from laptops to servers. This scalability is provided by the use of the modern concurrent programming paradigm provided by the Akka framework. The QUADrATiC Graphical User Interface (GUI) has been developed using advanced Javascript frameworks, providing novel visualization capabilities for further analysis of connections. There is also a web services interface, allowing integration with other programs or scripts. QUADrATiC has been shown to provide an improvement over existing connectivity map software, in terms of scope (based on the LINCS data set), applicability (using FDA-approved compounds), usability and speed. It offers potential to biological researchers to analyze transcriptional data and generate potential therapeutics for focussed study in the lab. QUADrATiC represents a step change in the process of investigating gene expression connectivity and provides more biologically-relevant results than previous alternative solutions.
iGC-an integrated analysis package of gene expression and copy number alteration.
Lai, Yi-Pin; Wang, Liang-Bo; Wang, Wei-An; Lai, Liang-Chuan; Tsai, Mong-Hsun; Lu, Tzu-Pin; Chuang, Eric Y
2017-01-14
With the advancement in high-throughput technologies, researchers can simultaneously investigate gene expression and copy number alteration (CNA) data from individual patients at a lower cost. Traditional analysis methods analyze each type of data individually and integrate their results using Venn diagrams. Challenges arise, however, when the results are irreproducible and inconsistent across multiple platforms. To address these issues, one possible approach is to concurrently analyze both gene expression profiling and CNAs in the same individual. We have developed an open-source R/Bioconductor package (iGC). Multiple input formats are supported and users can define their own criteria for identifying differentially expressed genes driven by CNAs. The analysis of two real microarray datasets demonstrated that the CNA-driven genes identified by the iGC package showed significantly higher Pearson correlation coefficients with their gene expression levels and copy numbers than those genes located in a genomic region with CNA. Compared with the Venn diagram approach, the iGC package showed better performance. The iGC package is effective and useful for identifying CNA-driven genes. By simultaneously considering both comparative genomic and transcriptomic data, it can provide better understanding of biological and medical questions. The iGC package's source code and manual are freely available at https://www.bioconductor.org/packages/release/bioc/html/iGC.html .
Framework and prototype for a secure XML-based electronic health records system.
Steele, Robert; Gardner, William; Chandra, Darius; Dillon, Tharam S
2007-01-01
Security of personal medical information has always been a challenge for the advancement of Electronic Health Records (EHRs) initiatives. eXtensible Markup Language (XML), is rapidly becoming the key standard for data representation and transportation. The widespread use of XML and the prospect of its use in the Electronic Health (e-health) domain highlights the need for flexible access control models for XML data and documents. This paper presents a declarative access control model for XML data repositories that utilises an expressive XML role control model. The operational semantics of this model are illustrated by Xplorer, a user interface generation engine which supports search-browse-navigate activities on XML repositories.
Envisioning the Educational Possibilities of User-Created Virtual Worlds
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Antonacci, David M.; Modaress, Nellie
2008-01-01
Educational games and simulations can engage students in higher-level cognitive thinking, such as interpreting, analyzing, discovering, evaluating, acting, and problem solving. Recent technical advances in multiplayer, user-created virtual worlds have significantly expanded the capabilities of user interaction and development within these…
Freedman, Rachel A; Viswanath, Kasisomayajula; Vaz-Luis, Ines; Keating, Nancy L
2016-07-01
Past examinations of breast cancer treatment barriers have typically included registry, claims-based, and smaller survey studies. We examined treatment barriers using a novel, comprehensive, social media analysis of online, candid discussions about breast cancer. Using an innovative toolset to search postings on social networks, message boards, patient communities, and topical sites, we performed a large-scale qualitative analysis. We examined the sentiments and barriers expressed about breast cancer treatments by Internet users during 1 year (2/1/14-1/31/15). We categorized posts based on thematic patterns and examined trends in discussions by race/ethnicity (white/black/Hispanic) when this information was available. We identified 1,024,041 unique posts related to breast cancer treatment. Overall, 57 % of posts expressed negative sentiments. Using machine learning software, we assigned treatment barriers for 387,238 posts (38 %). Barriers included emotional (23 % of posts), preferences and spiritual/religious beliefs (21 %), physical (18 %), resource (15 %), healthcare perceptions (9 %), treatment processes/duration (7 %), and relationships (7 %). Black and Hispanic (vs. white) users more frequently reported barriers related to healthcare perceptions, beliefs, and pre-diagnosis/diagnosis organizational challenges and fewer emotional barriers. Using a novel analysis of diverse social media users, we observed numerous breast cancer treatment barriers that differed by race/ethnicity. Social media is a powerful tool, allowing use of real-world data for qualitative research, capitalizing on the rich discussions occurring spontaneously online. Future research should focus on how to further employ and learn from this type of social intelligence research across all medical disciplines.
Real-Time Distributed Algorithms for Visual and Battlefield Reasoning
2006-08-01
High-Level Task Definition Language, Graphical User Interface (GUI), Story Analysis, Story Interpretation, SensIT Nodes 16. SECURITY...or more actions to be taken in the event the conditions are satisfied. We developed graphical user interfaces that may be used to express such...actions to be taken in the event the conditions are satisfied. We developed graphical user interfaces that may be used to express such task
Envisioning Advanced User Interfaces for E-Government Applications: A Case Study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Calvary, Gaëlle; Serna, Audrey; Coutaz, Joëlle; Scapin, Dominique; Pontico, Florence; Winckler, Marco
The increasing use of the Web as a software platform together with the advance of technology has promoted Web applications as a starting point for improving communication between citizens and administration. Currently, several e-government Web portals propose applications for accessing information regarding healthcare, taxation, registration, housing, agriculture, education, and social services, which otherwise may be difficult to obtain. However, the adoption of services provided to citizens depends upon how such applications comply with the users' needs. Unfortunately, building an e-government website doesn't guarantee that all citizens who come to use it can access its contents. These services need to be accessible to all citizens/customers equally to ensure wider reach and subsequent adoption of the e-government services. User disabilities, computer or language illiteracy (e.g., foreign language), flexibility on information access (e.g., user remotely located in rural areas, homeless, mobile users), and ensuring user privacy on sensitive data are some of the barriers that must be taken into account when designing the User Interface (UI) of e-government applications.
Wen, Qing; Kim, Chang-Sik; Hamilton, Peter W; Zhang, Shu-Dong
2016-05-11
Gene expression connectivity mapping has gained much popularity recently with a number of successful applications in biomedical research testifying its utility and promise. Previously methodological research in connectivity mapping mainly focused on two of the key components in the framework, namely, the reference gene expression profiles and the connectivity mapping algorithms. The other key component in this framework, the query gene signature, has been left to users to construct without much consensus on how this should be done, albeit it has been an issue most relevant to end users. As a key input to the connectivity mapping process, gene signature is crucially important in returning biologically meaningful and relevant results. This paper intends to formulate a standardized procedure for constructing high quality gene signatures from a user's perspective. We describe a two-stage process for making quality gene signatures using gene expression data as initial inputs. First, a differential gene expression analysis comparing two distinct biological states; only the genes that have passed stringent statistical criteria are considered in the second stage of the process, which involves ranking genes based on statistical as well as biological significance. We introduce a "gene signature progression" method as a standard procedure in connectivity mapping. Starting from the highest ranked gene, we progressively determine the minimum length of the gene signature that allows connections to the reference profiles (drugs) being established with a preset target false discovery rate. We use a lung cancer dataset and a breast cancer dataset as two case studies to demonstrate how this standardized procedure works, and we show that highly relevant and interesting biological connections are returned. Of particular note is gefitinib, identified as among the candidate therapeutics in our lung cancer case study. Our gene signature was based on gene expression data from Taiwan female non-smoker lung cancer patients, while there is evidence from independent studies that gefitinib is highly effective in treating women, non-smoker or former light smoker, advanced non-small cell lung cancer patients of Asian origin. In summary, we introduced a gene signature progression method into connectivity mapping, which enables a standardized procedure for constructing high quality gene signatures. This progression method is particularly useful when the number of differentially expressed genes identified is large, and when there is a need to prioritize them to be included in the query signature. The results from two case studies demonstrate that the approach we have developed is capable of obtaining pertinent candidate drugs with high precision.
Kim, Taemook; Seo, Hogyu David; Hennighausen, Lothar; Lee, Daeyoup
2018-01-01
Abstract Octopus-toolkit is a stand-alone application for retrieving and processing large sets of next-generation sequencing (NGS) data with a single step. Octopus-toolkit is an automated set-up-and-analysis pipeline utilizing the Aspera, SRA Toolkit, FastQC, Trimmomatic, HISAT2, STAR, Samtools, and HOMER applications. All the applications are installed on the user's computer when the program starts. Upon the installation, it can automatically retrieve original files of various epigenomic and transcriptomic data sets, including ChIP-seq, ATAC-seq, DNase-seq, MeDIP-seq, MNase-seq and RNA-seq, from the gene expression omnibus data repository. The downloaded files can then be sequentially processed to generate BAM and BigWig files, which are used for advanced analyses and visualization. Currently, it can process NGS data from popular model genomes such as, human (Homo sapiens), mouse (Mus musculus), dog (Canis lupus familiaris), plant (Arabidopsis thaliana), zebrafish (Danio rerio), fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster), worm (Caenorhabditis elegans), and budding yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) genomes. With the processed files from Octopus-toolkit, the meta-analysis of various data sets, motif searches for DNA-binding proteins, and the identification of differentially expressed genes and/or protein-binding sites can be easily conducted with few commands by users. Overall, Octopus-toolkit facilitates the systematic and integrative analysis of available epigenomic and transcriptomic NGS big data. PMID:29420797
Proceedings of the Second Annual NASA Science Internet User Working Group Conference
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Jackson, Lenore A. (Editor); Gary, J. Patrick (Editor)
1991-01-01
Copies of the agenda, list of attendees, meeting summaries, and all presentations and exhibit material are contained. Included are plenary sessions, exhibits of advanced networking applications, and user subgroup meetings on NASA Science Internet policy, networking, security, and user services and applications topics.
Galindo, Liliana; Moreno, Estefanía; López-Armenta, Fernando; Guinart, Daniel; Cuenca-Royo, Aida; Izquierdo-Serra, Mercè; Xicota, Laura; Fernandez, Cristina; Menoyo, Esther; Fernández-Fernández, José M; Benítez-King, Gloria; Canela, Enric I; Casadó, Vicent; Pérez, Víctor; de la Torre, Rafael; Robledo, Patricia
2018-01-02
Cannabinoid CB1 receptors (CB 1 R) and serotonergic 2A receptors (5HT 2A R) form heteromers in the brain of mice where they mediate the cognitive deficits produced by delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol. However, it is still unknown whether the expression of this heterodimer is modulated by chronic cannabis use in humans. In this study, we investigated the expression levels and functionality of CB 1 R-5HT 2A R heteromers in human olfactory neuroepithelium (ON) cells of cannabis users and control subjects, and determined their molecular characteristics through adenylate cyclase and the ERK 1/2 pathway signaling studies. We also assessed whether heteromer expression levels correlated with cannabis consumption and cognitive performance in neuropsychological tests. ON cells from controls and cannabis users expressed neuronal markers such as βIII-tubulin and nestin, displayed similar expression levels of genes related to cellular self-renewal, stem cell differentiation, and generation of neural crest cells, and showed comparable Na + currents in patch clamp recordings. Interestingly, CB 1 R-5HT 2A R heteromer expression was significantly increased in cannabis users and positively correlated with the amount of cannabis consumed, and negatively with age of onset of cannabis use. In addition, a negative correlation was found between heteromer expression levels and attention and working memory performance in cannabis users and control subjects. Our findings suggest that cannabis consumption regulates the formation of CB 1 R-5HT 2A R heteromers, and may have a key role in cognitive processing. These heterodimers could be potential new targets to develop treatment alternatives for cognitive impairments.
Learning Analytics for Natural User Interfaces
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Martinez-Maldonado, Roberto; Shum, Simon Buckingham; Schneider, Bertrand; Charleer, Sven; Klerkx, Joris; Duval, Erik
2017-01-01
The continuous advancement of natural user interfaces (NUIs) allows for the development\tof novel and creative ways to support collocated collaborative work in a wide range of areas, including teaching and learning. The use of NUIs, such as those based on interactive multi-touch surfaces and tangible user interfaces (TUIs), can offer unique…
A Domain Specific Modeling Approach for Coordinating User-Centric Communication Services
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Wu, Yali
2011-01-01
Rapid advances in electronic communication devices and technologies have resulted in a shift in the way communication applications are being developed. These new development strategies provide abstract views of the underlying communication technologies and lead to the so-called "user-centric communication applications." One user-centric…
Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR
2014-07-01
...) Definitions. (1) Bypass means the intentional diversion of wastestreams from any portion of an Industrial User... applicable Pretreatment Standards or Requirements. An Industrial User may allow any bypass to occur which... paragraphs (c) and (d) of this section. (c) Notice. (1) If an Industrial User knows in advance of the need...
Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR
2012-07-01
...) Definitions. (1) Bypass means the intentional diversion of wastestreams from any portion of an Industrial User... applicable Pretreatment Standards or Requirements. An Industrial User may allow any bypass to occur which... paragraphs (c) and (d) of this section. (c) Notice. (1) If an Industrial User knows in advance of the need...
Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR
2011-07-01
...) Definitions. (1) Bypass means the intentional diversion of wastestreams from any portion of an Industrial User... applicable Pretreatment Standards or Requirements. An Industrial User may allow any bypass to occur which... paragraphs (c) and (d) of this section. (c) Notice. (1) If an Industrial User knows in advance of the need...
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-07-01
...) Definitions. (1) Bypass means the intentional diversion of wastestreams from any portion of an Industrial User... applicable Pretreatment Standards or Requirements. An Industrial User may allow any bypass to occur which... paragraphs (c) and (d) of this section. (c) Notice. (1) If an Industrial User knows in advance of the need...
Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR
2013-07-01
...) Definitions. (1) Bypass means the intentional diversion of wastestreams from any portion of an Industrial User... applicable Pretreatment Standards or Requirements. An Industrial User may allow any bypass to occur which... paragraphs (c) and (d) of this section. (c) Notice. (1) If an Industrial User knows in advance of the need...
Fischer, Steve; Aurrecoechea, Cristina; Brunk, Brian P.; Gao, Xin; Harb, Omar S.; Kraemer, Eileen T.; Pennington, Cary; Treatman, Charles; Kissinger, Jessica C.; Roos, David S.; Stoeckert, Christian J.
2011-01-01
Web sites associated with the Eukaryotic Pathogen Bioinformatics Resource Center (EuPathDB.org) have recently introduced a graphical user interface, the Strategies WDK, intended to make advanced searching and set and interval operations easy and accessible to all users. With a design guided by usability studies, the system helps motivate researchers to perform dynamic computational experiments and explore relationships across data sets. For example, PlasmoDB users seeking novel therapeutic targets may wish to locate putative enzymes that distinguish pathogens from their hosts, and that are expressed during appropriate developmental stages. When a researcher runs one of the approximately 100 searches available on the site, the search is presented as a first step in a strategy. The strategy is extended by running additional searches, which are combined with set operators (union, intersect or minus), or genomic interval operators (overlap, contains). A graphical display uses Venn diagrams to make the strategy’s flow obvious. The interface facilitates interactive adjustment of the component searches with changes propagating forward through the strategy. Users may save their strategies, creating protocols that can be shared with colleagues. The strategy system has now been deployed on all EuPathDB databases, and successfully deployed by other projects. The Strategies WDK uses a configurable MVC architecture that is compatible with most genomics and biological warehouse databases, and is available for download at code.google.com/p/strategies-wdk. Database URL: www.eupathdb.org PMID:21705364
User Interface Technology for Formal Specification Development
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Lowry, Michael; Philpot, Andrew; Pressburger, Thomas; Underwood, Ian; Lum, Henry, Jr. (Technical Monitor)
1994-01-01
Formal specification development and modification are an essential component of the knowledge-based software life cycle. User interface technology is needed to empower end-users to create their own formal specifications. This paper describes the advanced user interface for AMPHION1 a knowledge-based software engineering system that targets scientific subroutine libraries. AMPHION is a generic, domain-independent architecture that is specialized to an application domain through a declarative domain theory. Formal specification development and reuse is made accessible to end-users through an intuitive graphical interface that provides semantic guidance in creating diagrams denoting formal specifications in an application domain. The diagrams also serve to document the specifications. Automatic deductive program synthesis ensures that end-user specifications are correctly implemented. The tables that drive AMPHION's user interface are automatically compiled from a domain theory; portions of the interface can be customized by the end-user. The user interface facilitates formal specification development by hiding syntactic details, such as logical notation. It also turns some of the barriers for end-user specification development associated with strongly typed formal languages into active sources of guidance, without restricting advanced users. The interface is especially suited for specification modification. AMPHION has been applied to the domain of solar system kinematics through the development of a declarative domain theory. Testing over six months with planetary scientists indicates that AMPHION's interactive specification acquisition paradigm enables users to develop, modify, and reuse specifications at least an order of magnitude more rapidly than manual program development.
A Comprehensive Review of Sensors and Instrumentation Methods in Devices for Musical Expression
Medeiros, Carolina Brum; Wanderley, Marcelo M.
2014-01-01
Digital Musical Instruments (DMIs) are musical instruments typically composed of a control surface where user interaction is measured by sensors whose values are mapped to sound synthesis algorithms. These instruments have gained interest among skilled musicians and performers in the last decades leading to artistic practices including musical performance, interactive installations and dance. The creation of DMIs typically involves several areas, among them: arts, design and engineering. The balance between these areas is an essential task in DMI design so that the resulting instruments are aesthetically appealing, robust, and allow responsive, accurate and repeatable sensing. In this paper, we review the use of sensors in the DMI community as manifested in the proceedings of the International Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression (NIME 2009–2013). Focusing on the sensor technologies and signal conditioning techniques used by the NIME community. Although it has been claimed that specifications for artistic tools are harder than those for military applications, this study raises a paradox showing that in most of the cases, DMIs are based on a few basic sensors types and unsophisticated engineering solutions, not taking advantage of more advanced sensing, instrumentation and signal processing techniques that could dramatically improve their response. We aim to raise awareness of limitations of any engineering solution and to assert the benefits of advanced electronics instrumentation design in DMIs. For this, we propose the use of specialized sensors such as strain gages, advanced conditioning circuits and signal processing tools such as sensor fusion. We believe that careful electronic instrumentation design may lead to more responsive instruments. PMID:25068865
A comprehensive review of sensors and instrumentation methods in devices for musical expression.
Medeiros, Carolina Brum; Wanderley, Marcelo M
2014-07-25
Digital Musical Instruments (DMIs) are musical instruments typically composed of a control surface where user interaction is measured by sensors whose values are mapped to sound synthesis algorithms. These instruments have gained interest among skilled musicians and performers in the last decades leading to artistic practices including musical performance, interactive installations and dance. The creation of DMIs typically involves several areas, among them: arts, design and engineering. The balance between these areas is an essential task in DMI design so that the resulting instruments are aesthetically appealing, robust, and allow responsive, accurate and repeatable sensing. In this paper, we review the use of sensors in the DMI community as manifested in the proceedings of the International Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression (NIME 2009-2013). Focusing on the sensor technologies and signal conditioning techniques used by the NIME community. Although it has been claimed that specifications for artistic tools are harder than those for military applications, this study raises a paradox showing that in most of the cases, DMIs are based on a few basic sensors types and unsophisticated engineering solutions, not taking advantage of more advanced sensing, instrumentation and signal processing techniques that could dramatically improve their response. We aim to raise awareness of limitations of any engineering solution and to assert the benefits of advanced electronics instrumentation design in DMIs. For this, we propose the use of specialized sensors such as strain gages, advanced conditioning circuits and signal processing tools such as sensor fusion. We believe that careful electronic instrumentation design may lead to more responsive instruments.
Evolution or Entropy? Changing Reference/User Culture and the Future of Reference Librarians.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Wilson, Myoung C.
2000-01-01
This article addresses issues that relate to the changing functional relationship between the reference librarian and the user, based on the observation that the advance of information technology, particularly the Internet, has altered the values, attitudes, and beliefs of library users, and, as a consequence, their micro-culture. (Author/LRW)
75 FR 25763 - Addition to the List of Validated End-Users: Advanced Micro Devices China, Inc.
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2010-05-10
.... Additional Validated End-User in the PRC and Its Respective ``Eligible Items (By ECCN)'' and ``Eligible... to the ``development'' of products under ECCN 4A003). This authorization was made based on an... Country Validated end-user Eligible items (by ECCN) Eligible destination China (People's Republic of...
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
1993-12-01
It is the purpose of this report to outline operational tests which address Advanced Technology Information Systems (ATIS) and to examine how operational tests can be used to provide information on user response to ATIS. The objectives are to: outlin...
Proceedings of the Fifth International Mobile Satellite Conference 1997
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Jedrey, T. (Compiler); Rigley, J. (Compiler); Anderson, Louise (Editor)
1997-01-01
Satellite-based mobile communications systems provide voice and data communications to users over a vast geographic area. The users may communicate via mobile or hand-held terminals, which may also provide access to terrestrial communications services. While previous International Mobile Satellite Conferences have concentrated on technical advances and the increasing worldwide commercial activities, this conference focuses on the next generation of mobile satellite services. The approximately 80 papers included here cover sessions in the following areas: networking and protocols; code division multiple access technologies; demand, economics and technology issues; current and planned systems; propagation; terminal technology; modulation and coding advances; spacecraft technology; advanced systems; and applications and experiments.
Planetary Data Systems (PDS) Imaging Node Atlas II
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Stanboli, Alice; McAuley, James M.
2013-01-01
The Planetary Image Atlas (PIA) is a Rich Internet Application (RIA) that serves planetary imaging data to the science community and the general public. PIA also utilizes the USGS Unified Planetary Coordinate system (UPC) and the on-Mars map server. The Atlas was designed to provide the ability to search and filter through greater than 8 million planetary image files. This software is a three-tier Web application that contains a search engine backend (MySQL, JAVA), Web service interface (SOAP) between server and client, and a GWT Google Maps API client front end. This application allows for the search, retrieval, and download of planetary images and associated meta-data from the following missions: 2001 Mars Odyssey, Cassini, Galileo, LCROSS, Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, Mars Exploration Rover, Mars Express, Magellan, Mars Global Surveyor, Mars Pathfinder, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, MESSENGER, Phoe nix, Viking Lander, Viking Orbiter, and Voyager. The Atlas utilizes the UPC to translate mission-specific coordinate systems into a unified coordinate system, allowing the end user to query across missions of similar targets. If desired, the end user can also use a mission-specific view of the Atlas. The mission-specific views rely on the same code base. This application is a major improvement over the initial version of the Planetary Image Atlas. It is a multi-mission search engine. This tool includes both basic and advanced search capabilities, providing a product search tool to interrogate the collection of planetary images. This tool lets the end user query information about each image, and ignores the data that the user has no interest in. Users can reduce the number of images to look at by defining an area of interest with latitude and longitude ranges.
BATS: a Bayesian user-friendly software for analyzing time series microarray experiments.
Angelini, Claudia; Cutillo, Luisa; De Canditiis, Daniela; Mutarelli, Margherita; Pensky, Marianna
2008-10-06
Gene expression levels in a given cell can be influenced by different factors, namely pharmacological or medical treatments. The response to a given stimulus is usually different for different genes and may depend on time. One of the goals of modern molecular biology is the high-throughput identification of genes associated with a particular treatment or a biological process of interest. From methodological and computational point of view, analyzing high-dimensional time course microarray data requires very specific set of tools which are usually not included in standard software packages. Recently, the authors of this paper developed a fully Bayesian approach which allows one to identify differentially expressed genes in a 'one-sample' time-course microarray experiment, to rank them and to estimate their expression profiles. The method is based on explicit expressions for calculations and, hence, very computationally efficient. The software package BATS (Bayesian Analysis of Time Series) presented here implements the methodology described above. It allows an user to automatically identify and rank differentially expressed genes and to estimate their expression profiles when at least 5-6 time points are available. The package has a user-friendly interface. BATS successfully manages various technical difficulties which arise in time-course microarray experiments, such as a small number of observations, non-uniform sampling intervals and replicated or missing data. BATS is a free user-friendly software for the analysis of both simulated and real microarray time course experiments. The software, the user manual and a brief illustrative example are freely available online at the BATS website: http://www.na.iac.cnr.it/bats.
The 30/20 GHz mixed user architecture development study
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
1979-01-01
A mixed-user system is described which provides cost-effective communications services to a wide range of user terminal classes, ranging from one or two voice channel support in a direct-to-user mode, to multiple 500 mbps trunking channel support. Advanced satellite capabilities are utilized to minimize the cost of small terminals. In a system with thousands of small terminals, this approach results in minimum system cost.
Advanced display object selection methods for enhancing user-computer productivity
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Osga, Glenn A.
1993-01-01
The User-Interface Technology Branch at NCCOSC RDT&E Division has been conducting a series of studies to address the suitability of commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) graphic user-interface (GUI) methods for efficiency and performance in critical naval combat systems. This paper presents an advanced selection algorithm and method developed to increase user performance when making selections on tactical displays. The method has also been applied with considerable success to a variety of cursor and pointing tasks. Typical GUI's allow user selection by: (1) moving a cursor with a pointing device such as a mouse, trackball, joystick, touchscreen; and (2) placing the cursor on the object. Examples of GUI objects are the buttons, icons, folders, scroll bars, etc. used in many personal computer and workstation applications. This paper presents an improved method of selection and the theoretical basis for the significant performance gains achieved with various input devices tested. The method is applicable to all GUI styles and display sizes, and is particularly useful for selections on small screens such as notebook computers. Considering the amount of work-hours spent pointing and clicking across all styles of available graphic user-interfaces, the cost/benefit in applying this method to graphic user-interfaces is substantial, with the potential for increasing productivity across thousands of users and applications.
Joyce, Blake L.; Haug-Baltzell, Asher K.; Hulvey, Jonathan P.; McCarthy, Fiona; Devisetty, Upendra Kumar; Lyons, Eric
2017-01-01
This workflow allows novice researchers to leverage advanced computational resources such as cloud computing to carry out pairwise comparative transcriptomics. It also serves as a primer for biologists to develop data scientist computational skills, e.g. executing bash commands, visualization and management of large data sets. All command line code and further explanations of each command or step can be found on the wiki (https://wiki.cyverse.org/wiki/x/dgGtAQ). The Discovery Environment and Atmosphere platforms are connected together through the CyVerse Data Store. As such, once the initial raw sequencing data has been uploaded there is no more need to transfer large data files over an Internet connection, minimizing the amount of time needed to conduct analyses. This protocol is designed to analyze only two experimental treatments or conditions. Differential gene expression analysis is conducted through pairwise comparisons, and will not be suitable to test multiple factors. This workflow is also designed to be manual rather than automated. Each step must be executed and investigated by the user, yielding a better understanding of data and analytical outputs, and therefore better results for the user. Once complete, this protocol will yield de novo assembled transcriptome(s) for underserved (non-model) organisms without the need to map to previously assembled reference genomes (which are usually not available in underserved organism). These de novo transcriptomes are further used in pairwise differential gene expression analysis to investigate genes differing between two experimental conditions. Differentially expressed genes are then functionally annotated to understand the genetic response organisms have to experimental conditions. In total, the data derived from this protocol is used to test hypotheses about biological responses of underserved organisms. PMID:28518075
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Philip, Bobby
2012-06-01
The Advanced Multi-Physics (AMP) code, in its present form, will allow a user to build a multi-physics application code for existing mechanics and diffusion operators and extend them with user-defined material models and new physics operators. There are examples that demonstrate mechanics, thermo-mechanics, coupled diffusion, and mechanical contact. The AMP code is designed to leverage a variety of mathematical solvers (PETSc, Trilinos, SUNDIALS, and AMP solvers) and mesh databases (LibMesh and AMP) in a consistent interchangeable approach.
Advancing MEMS Technology Usage through the MUMPS (Multi-User MEMS Processes) Program
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Koester, D. A.; Markus, K. W.; Dhuler, V.; Mahadevan, R.; Cowen, A.
1995-01-01
In order to help provide access to advanced micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) technologies and lower the barriers for both industry and academia, the Microelectronic Center of North Carolina (MCNC) and ARPA have developed a program which provides users with access to both MEMS processes and advanced electronic integration techniques. The four distinct aspects of this program, the multi-user MEMS processes (MUMP's), the consolidated micro-mechanical element library, smart MEMS, and the MEMS technology network are described in this paper. MUMP's is an ARPA-supported program created to provide inexpensive access to MEMS technology in a multi-user environment. It is both a proof-of-concept and educational tool that aids in the development of MEMS in the domestic community. MUMP's technologies currently include a 3-layer poly-silicon surface micromachining process and LIGA (lithography, electroforming, and injection molding) processes that provide reasonable design flexibility within set guidelines. The consolidated micromechanical element library (CaMEL) is a library of active and passive MEMS structures that can be downloaded by the MEMS community via the internet. Smart MEMS is the development of advanced electronics integration techniques for MEMS through the application of flip chip technology. The MEMS technology network (TechNet) is a menu of standard substrates and MEMS fabrication processes that can be purchased and combined to create unique process flows. TechNet provides the MEMS community greater flexibility and enhanced technology accessibility.
Jarvis, Benjamin; Johnson, Tricia; Butler, Peter; O'Shaughnessy, Kathryn; Fullam, Francis; Tran, Lac; Gupta, Richa
2013-10-01
To assess the impact of using an advanced electronic health record (EHR) on hospital quality and patient satisfaction. This retrospective, cross-sectional analysis was conducted in 2012 to evaluate the association between advanced EHR use (Healthcare Information Management Systems Society [HIMSS] Stage 6 or 7 as of December 2012) and estimated process and experience of care scores for hospitals under the Medicare Hospital Value-Based Purchasing Program, using data from the American Hospital Association for 2008 to 2010. Generalized linear regression models were fit to test the association between advanced EHR use with process of care and experience of care, controlling for hospital characteristics. In a second analysis, the models included variables to account for HIMSS stage of advanced EHR use. The study included 2,988 hospitals, with 248 (8.3%) classified as advanced EHR users (HIMSS Stage 6 or 7). After controlling for hospital characteristics, advanced EHR use was associated with a 4.2-point-higher process of care score (P < .001). Hospitals with Stage 7 EHRs had 11.7 points higher process of care scores, but Stage 6 users had scores that were not substantially different from those of nonadvanced users. There was no significant difference in estimated experience of care scores by level of advanced EHR use. This study evaluated the effectiveness of the U.S. federal government's investment in hospital information technology infrastructure. Results suggest that the most advanced EHRs have the greatest payoff in improving clinical process of care scores, without detrimentally impacting the patient experience.
Fast-responder: Rapid mobile-phone access to recent remote sensing imagery for first responders
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Talbot, L. M.; Talbot, B. G.
We introduce Fast-Responder, a novel prototype data-dissemination application and architecture concept to rapidly deliver remote sensing imagery to smartphones to enable situational awareness. The architecture implements a Fast-Earth image caching system on the phone and interacts with a Fast-Earth server. Prototype evaluation successfully demonstrated that National Guard users could select a location, download multiple remote sensing images, and flicker between images, all in less than a minute on a 3G mobile commercial link. The Fast-Responder architecture is a significant advance that is designed to meet the needs of mobile users, such as National Guard response units, to rapidly access information during a crisis, such as a natural or man-made disaster. This paper focuses on the architecture design and advanced user interface concepts for small-screens for highly active mobile users. Novel Fast-Responder concepts can also enable rapid dissemination and evaluation of imagery on the desktop, opening new technology horizons for both desktop and mobile users.
minepath.org: a free interactive pathway analysis web server.
Koumakis, Lefteris; Roussos, Panos; Potamias, George
2017-07-03
( www.minepath.org ) is a web-based platform that elaborates on, and radically extends the identification of differentially expressed sub-paths in molecular pathways. Besides the network topology, the underlying MinePath algorithmic processes exploit exact gene-gene molecular relationships (e.g. activation, inhibition) and are able to identify differentially expressed pathway parts. Each pathway is decomposed into all its constituent sub-paths, which in turn are matched with corresponding gene expression profiles. The highly ranked, and phenotype inclined sub-paths are kept. Apart from the pathway analysis algorithm, the fundamental innovation of the MinePath web-server concerns its advanced visualization and interactive capabilities. To our knowledge, this is the first pathway analysis server that introduces and offers visualization of the underlying and active pathway regulatory mechanisms instead of genes. Other features include live interaction, immediate visualization of functional sub-paths per phenotype and dynamic linked annotations for the engaged genes and molecular relations. The user can download not only the results but also the corresponding web viewer framework of the performed analysis. This feature provides the flexibility to immediately publish results without publishing source/expression data, and get all the functionality of a web based pathway analysis viewer. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Boman, Erik G.
This LDRD project was a campus exec fellowship to fund (in part) Donald Nguyen’s PhD research at UT-Austin. His work has focused on parallel programming models, and scheduling irregular algorithms on shared-memory systems using the Galois framework. Galois provides a simple but powerful way for users and applications to automatically obtain good parallel performance using certain supported data containers. The naïve user can write serial code, while advanced users can optimize performance by advanced features, such as specifying the scheduling policy. Galois was used to parallelize two sparse matrix reordering schemes: RCM and Sloan. Such reordering is important in high-performancemore » computing to obtain better data locality and thus reduce run times.« less
NASA Advanced Supercomputing (NAS) User Services Group
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Pandori, John; Hamilton, Chris; Niggley, C. E.; Parks, John W. (Technical Monitor)
2002-01-01
This viewgraph presentation provides an overview of NAS (NASA Advanced Supercomputing), its goals, and its mainframe computer assets. Also covered are its functions, including systems monitoring and technical support.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Denning, P. J.; Adams, G. B., III; Brown, R. L.; Kanerva, P.; Leiner, B. M.; Raugh, M. R.
1986-01-01
Large, complex computer systems require many years of development. It is recognized that large scale systems are unlikely to be delivered in useful condition unless users are intimately involved throughout the design process. A mechanism is described that will involve users in the design of advanced computing systems and will accelerate the insertion of new systems into scientific research. This mechanism is embodied in a facility called the Center for Advanced Architectures (CAA). CAA would be a division of RIACS (Research Institute for Advanced Computer Science) and would receive its technical direction from a Scientific Advisory Board established by RIACS. The CAA described here is a possible implementation of a center envisaged in a proposed cooperation between NASA and DARPA.
Yagi, Shunya; Drewczynski, Dimka; Wainwright, Steven R; Barha, Cindy K; Hershorn, Olivia; Galea, Liisa A M
2017-01-01
The hippocampus and dorsal striatum are important structures involved in place and response learning strategies respectively. Both sex and estrous cycle phase differences in learning strategy preference exist following cue competition paradigms. Furthermore, significant effects of sex and learning strategy on hippocampal neural plasticity have been reported. However, associations between learning strategy and immediate early gene (IEG) expression in the hippocampus and dorsal striatum are not completely understood. In the current study we investigated the effects of sex and estrous cycle phase on strategy choice and IEG expression in the hippocampus and dorsal striatum of rats following cue competition training in the Morris water maze. We found that proestrous rats were more likely to choose a place strategy than non-proestrous or male rats. Although male cue strategy users travelled greater distances than the other groups on the first day of training, there were no other sex or strategy differences in the ability to reach a hidden or a visible platform. Female place strategy users exhibited greater zif268 expression and male place strategy users exhibited greater cFos expression compared to all other groups in CA3. Furthermore, cue strategy users had greater expression of cFos in the dorsal striatum than place strategy users. Shorter distances to reach a visible platform were associated with less activation of cFos in CA3 and CA1 of male place strategy users. Our findings indicate multiple differences in brain activation with sex and strategy use, despite limited behavioral differences between the sexes on this cue competition paradigm. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Advanced user support programme—TEMPUS IML-2
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Diefenbach, A.; Kratz, M.; Uffelmann, D.; Willnecker, R.
1995-05-01
The DLR Microgravity User Support Centre (MUSC) in Cologne has supported microgravity experiments in the field of materials and life sciences since 1979. In the beginning of user support activities, MUSC tasks comprised the basic ground and mission support, whereas present programmes are expanded on, for example, powerful telescience and advanced real time data acquisition capabilities for efficient experiment operation and monitoring. In view of the Space Station era, user support functions will increase further. Additional tasks and growing responsibilities must be covered, e.g. extended science support as well as experiment and facility operations. The user support for TEMPUS IML-2, under contract of the German Space Agency DARA, represents a further step towards the required new-generation of future ground programme. TEMPUS is a new highly sophisticated Spacelab multi-user facility for containerless processing of metallic samples. Electromagnetic levitation technique is applied and various experiment diagnosis tools are offered. Experiments from eight U.S. and German investigator groups have been selected for flight on the second International Microgravity Laboratory Mission IML-2 in 1994. Based on the experience gained in the research programme of the DLR Institute for Space Simulation since 1984, MUSC is performing a comprehensive experiment preparation programme in close collaboration with the investigator teams. Complex laboratory equipment has been built up for technology and experiment preparation development. New experiment techniques have been developed for experiment verification tests. The MUSC programme includes thorough analysis and testing of scientific requirements of every proposed experiment with respect to the facility hard- and software capabilities. In addition, studies on the experiment-specific operation requirements have been performed and suitable telescience scenarios were analysed. The present paper will give a survey of the TEMPUS user support tasks emphasizing the advanced science support activities, which are considered significant for future ground programmes.
Moving through MOOCs: Understanding the Progression of Users in Massive Open Online Courses
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Perna, Laura W.; Ruby, Alan; Boruch, Robert F.; Wang, Nicole; Scull, Janie; Ahmad, Seher; Evans, Chad
2014-01-01
This paper reports on the progress of users through 16 Coursera courses taught by University of Pennsylvania faculty for the first time between June 2012 and July 2013. Using descriptive analyses, this study advances knowledge by considering two definitions of massive open online course (MOOC) users (registrants and starters), comparing two…
Users' Perceptions of the Web As Revealed by Transaction Log Analysis.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Moukdad, Haidar; Large, Andrew
2001-01-01
Describes the results of a transaction log analysis of a Web search engine, WebCrawler, to analyze user's queries for information retrieval. Results suggest most users do not employ advanced search features, and the linguistic structure often resembles a human-human communication model that is not always successful in human-computer communication.…
Usage of Thin-Client/Server Architecture in Computer Aided Education
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Cimen, Caghan; Kavurucu, Yusuf; Aydin, Halit
2014-01-01
With the advances of technology, thin-client/server architecture has become popular in multi-user/single network environments. Thin-client is a user terminal in which the user can login to a domain and run programs by connecting to a remote server. Recent developments in network and hardware technologies (cloud computing, virtualization, etc.)…
Making Advanced Scientific Algorithms and Big Scientific Data Management More Accessible
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Venkatakrishnan, S. V.; Mohan, K. Aditya; Beattie, Keith
2016-02-14
Synchrotrons such as the Advanced Light Source (ALS) at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory are known as user facilities. They are sources of extremely bright X-ray beams, and scientists come from all over the world to perform experiments that require these beams. As the complexity of experiments has increased, and the size and rates of data sets has exploded, managing, analyzing and presenting the data collected at synchrotrons has been an increasing challenge. The ALS has partnered with high performance computing, fast networking, and applied mathematics groups to create a"super-facility", giving users simultaneous access to the experimental, computational, and algorithmic resourcesmore » to overcome this challenge. This combination forms an efficient closed loop, where data despite its high rate and volume is transferred and processed, in many cases immediately and automatically, on appropriate compute resources, and results are extracted, visualized, and presented to users or to the experimental control system, both to provide immediate insight and to guide decisions about subsequent experiments during beam-time. In this paper, We will present work done on advanced tomographic reconstruction algorithms to support users of the 3D micron-scale imaging instrument (Beamline 8.3.2, hard X-ray micro-tomography).« less
Fengler, Ineke; Delfau, Pia-Céline; Röder, Brigitte
2018-04-01
It is yet unclear whether congenitally deaf cochlear implant (CD CI) users' visual and multisensory emotion perception is influenced by their history in sign language acquisition. We hypothesized that early-signing CD CI users, relative to late-signing CD CI users and hearing, non-signing controls, show better facial expression recognition and rely more on the facial cues of audio-visual emotional stimuli. Two groups of young adult CD CI users-early signers (ES CI users; n = 11) and late signers (LS CI users; n = 10)-and a group of hearing, non-signing, age-matched controls (n = 12) performed an emotion recognition task with auditory, visual, and cross-modal emotionally congruent and incongruent speech stimuli. On different trials, participants categorized either the facial or the vocal expressions. The ES CI users more accurately recognized affective prosody than the LS CI users in the presence of congruent facial information. Furthermore, the ES CI users, but not the LS CI users, gained more than the controls from congruent visual stimuli when recognizing affective prosody. Both CI groups performed overall worse than the controls in recognizing affective prosody. These results suggest that early sign language experience affects multisensory emotion perception in CD CI users.
Emotional persistence in online chatting communities
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Garas, Antonios; Garcia, David; Skowron, Marcin; Schweitzer, Frank
2012-05-01
How do users behave in online chatrooms, where they instantaneously read and write posts? We analyzed about 2.5 million posts covering various topics in Internet relay channels, and found that user activity patterns follow known power-law and stretched exponential distributions, indicating that online chat activity is not different from other forms of communication. Analysing the emotional expressions (positive, negative, neutral) of users, we revealed a remarkable persistence both for individual users and channels. I.e. despite their anonymity, users tend to follow social norms in repeated interactions in online chats, which results in a specific emotional ``tone'' of the channels. We provide an agent-based model of emotional interaction, which recovers qualitatively both the activity patterns in chatrooms and the emotional persistence of users and channels. While our assumptions about agent's emotional expressions are rooted in psychology, the model allows to test different hypothesis regarding their emotional impact in online communication.
Emotional persistence in online chatting communities
Garas, Antonios; Garcia, David; Skowron, Marcin; Schweitzer, Frank
2012-01-01
How do users behave in online chatrooms, where they instantaneously read and write posts? We analyzed about 2.5 million posts covering various topics in Internet relay channels, and found that user activity patterns follow known power-law and stretched exponential distributions, indicating that online chat activity is not different from other forms of communication. Analysing the emotional expressions (positive, negative, neutral) of users, we revealed a remarkable persistence both for individual users and channels. I.e. despite their anonymity, users tend to follow social norms in repeated interactions in online chats, which results in a specific emotional “tone” of the channels. We provide an agent-based model of emotional interaction, which recovers qualitatively both the activity patterns in chatrooms and the emotional persistence of users and channels. While our assumptions about agent's emotional expressions are rooted in psychology, the model allows to test different hypothesis regarding their emotional impact in online communication. PMID:22577512
Assembly of Customized TAL Effectors Through Advanced ULtiMATE System.
Yang, Junjiao; Guo, Shengjie; Yuan, Pengfei; Wei, Wensheng
2016-01-01
Transcription activator-like effectors (TALEs) have been widely applied in gene targeting. Here we describe an advanced ULtiMATE (USER-based Ligation-Mediated Assembly of TAL Effector) system that utilizes USER fusion technique and archive of 512 tetramer templates to achieve highly efficient construction of TALEs, which takes only half a day to accomplish the assembly of any given TALE construct. This system is also suitable for large-scale assembly of TALENs and any other TALE-based constructions.
ATR National Scientific User Facility 2013 Annual Report
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Ulrich, Julie A.; Robertson, Sarah
2015-03-01
This is the 2013 Annual Report for the Advanced Test Reactor National Scientific User Facility. This report includes information on university-run research projects along with a description of the program and the capabilities offered researchers.
Browsing Space Weather Data and Models with the Integrated Space Weather Analysis (iSWA) System
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Maddox, Marlo M.; Mullinix, Richard E.; Berrios, David H.; Hesse, Michael; Rastaetter, Lutz; Pulkkinen, Antti; Hourcle, Joseph A.; Thompson, Barbara J.
2011-01-01
The Integrated Space Weather Analysis (iSWA) System is a comprehensive web-based platform for space weather information that combines data from solar, heliospheric and geospace observatories with forecasts based on the most advanced space weather models. The iSWA system collects, generates, and presents a wide array of space weather resources in an intuitive, user-configurable, and adaptable format - thus enabling users to respond to current and future space weather impacts as well as enabling post-impact analysis. iSWA currently provides over 200 data and modeling products, and features a variety of tools that allow the user to browse, combine, and examine data and models from various sources. This presentation will consist of a summary of the iSWA products and an overview of the customizable user interfaces, and will feature several tutorial demonstrations highlighting the interactive tools and advanced capabilities.
GESearch: An Interactive GUI Tool for Identifying Gene Expression Signature.
Ye, Ning; Yin, Hengfu; Liu, Jingjing; Dai, Xiaogang; Yin, Tongming
2015-01-01
The huge amount of gene expression data generated by microarray and next-generation sequencing technologies present challenges to exploit their biological meanings. When searching for the coexpression genes, the data mining process is largely affected by selection of algorithms. Thus, it is highly desirable to provide multiple options of algorithms in the user-friendly analytical toolkit to explore the gene expression signatures. For this purpose, we developed GESearch, an interactive graphical user interface (GUI) toolkit, which is written in MATLAB and supports a variety of gene expression data files. This analytical toolkit provides four models, including the mean, the regression, the delegate, and the ensemble models, to identify the coexpression genes, and enables the users to filter data and to select gene expression patterns by browsing the display window or by importing knowledge-based genes. Subsequently, the utility of this analytical toolkit is demonstrated by analyzing two sets of real-life microarray datasets from cell-cycle experiments. Overall, we have developed an interactive GUI toolkit that allows for choosing multiple algorithms for analyzing the gene expression signatures.
Song, Wen; Teng, Wenhui; Shi, Xinyan; Liu, Xiaozhen; Cui, Zheng; Tian, Zibin
2017-06-01
The aim of this study was to explore the relationship between nutritional status and expression of RUNX3 in gastric cancer cells and to investigate the effects of nursing strategies on the nutritional status of elderly patients with advanced gastric cancer. Forty-eight elderly patients admitted at Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University with advanced gastric cancer and 30 healthy controls were selected as subjects from 2014-15. The correlation between RNX3 gene expression and nutritional status of the gastric cancer patients was investigated. The patients with advanced gastric cancer who had low expression of RUNX3 gene were treated with holistic nursing while routine nursing was taken for those patients who had normal or high expression of RUNX3 gene. The nutritional statuses of these patients were evaluated after 3 months of nursing. After a follow-up of 1 year, the influence of different nursing methods on the survival time was evaluated. Compared with normal gastric tissue, the expression of RUNX3 gene and protein in tissues of advanced gastric cancer were significantly decreased ( P <0.01). Compared with patients with normal or high expressions of RUNX3, the nutritional statuses of advanced gastric cancer patients with low expressions of RUNX3 were lower ( P <0.01). The nutritional statuses of patients with low expressions of RUNX3 were notably improved after holistic nursing, becoming equivalent to those with normal or high expression of RUNX3 who received routine nursing ( P >0.05). The survival time of patients with low expression of RUNX3 who received holistic nursing were similar to patients with normal or high expression of RUNX3 who received routine nursing ( P >0.05). RUNX3 is correlated with the occurrence and development of advanced gastric cancer. The low nutritional status of elderly advanced gastric cancer patients with low expressions of RUNX3 can be significantly enhanced by holistic nursing, thereby prolonging survival time.
Intellectual property and networked health information: issues and principles.
Cate, F H
1996-04-01
Information networks offer enormous potential for improving the delivery of health care services, facilitating health-related decision-making, and contributing to better health. In addition, advanced information technologies offer important opportunities for new markets, targeted information products and services, greater accessibility, lower costs and prices, and more rapid and efficient distribution. Realizing the full potential of those information resources requires the resolution of significant intellectual property issues, some of which may be affected by special features of health information. For example, the government is a significant funder and originator of health-related information. In addition, much of that information is of great importance to the population and benefits not only individual users, but also employers, insurance companies, the government, and society as a whole. The government must therefore continue to provide particularly important health information to the public, and facilitate that information's accessibility and reliability, while avoiding unnecessary competition with private information providers. Congress and courts must modify or interpret current copyright law as necessary to guarantee that it does not interfere with innovation in tailored health information or exceed its constitutional boundaries and restrict access to information, as opposed to expression. Both producers and users of information must work with the government to educate the public about the availability of health information and the rights of and limitations upon users under copyright law.
Intellectual property and networked health information: issues and principles.
Cate, F H
1996-01-01
Information networks offer enormous potential for improving the delivery of health care services, facilitating health-related decision-making, and contributing to better health. In addition, advanced information technologies offer important opportunities for new markets, targeted information products and services, greater accessibility, lower costs and prices, and more rapid and efficient distribution. Realizing the full potential of those information resources requires the resolution of significant intellectual property issues, some of which may be affected by special features of health information. For example, the government is a significant funder and originator of health-related information. In addition, much of that information is of great importance to the population and benefits not only individual users, but also employers, insurance companies, the government, and society as a whole. The government must therefore continue to provide particularly important health information to the public, and facilitate that information's accessibility and reliability, while avoiding unnecessary competition with private information providers. Congress and courts must modify or interpret current copyright law as necessary to guarantee that it does not interfere with innovation in tailored health information or exceed its constitutional boundaries and restrict access to information, as opposed to expression. Both producers and users of information must work with the government to educate the public about the availability of health information and the rights of and limitations upon users under copyright law. PMID:8826629
Web-TCGA: an online platform for integrated analysis of molecular cancer data sets.
Deng, Mario; Brägelmann, Johannes; Schultze, Joachim L; Perner, Sven
2016-02-06
The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) is a pool of molecular data sets publicly accessible and freely available to cancer researchers anywhere around the world. However, wide spread use is limited since an advanced knowledge of statistics and statistical software is required. In order to improve accessibility we created Web-TCGA, a web based, freely accessible online tool, which can also be run in a private instance, for integrated analysis of molecular cancer data sets provided by TCGA. In contrast to already available tools, Web-TCGA utilizes different methods for analysis and visualization of TCGA data, allowing users to generate global molecular profiles across different cancer entities simultaneously. In addition to global molecular profiles, Web-TCGA offers highly detailed gene and tumor entity centric analysis by providing interactive tables and views. As a supplement to other already available tools, such as cBioPortal (Sci Signal 6:pl1, 2013, Cancer Discov 2:401-4, 2012), Web-TCGA is offering an analysis service, which does not require any installation or configuration, for molecular data sets available at the TCGA. Individual processing requests (queries) are generated by the user for mutation, methylation, expression and copy number variation (CNV) analyses. The user can focus analyses on results from single genes and cancer entities or perform a global analysis (multiple cancer entities and genes simultaneously).
Guan, Li; Hao, Bibo; Liu, Tianli; Cheng, Qijin; Yip, Paul Siu Fai; Zhu, Tingshao
2015-05-01
To investigate how suicide microblog users in China "act" and "speak" differently from other microblog users without suicide idea. The suicide group consisted of 31 Chinese microblog users identified as suicide via online information provided by a Sina microblog user, and the control group consisted of 30 active microblog users without suicide idea screened by using suicide-related psychological scales. The differences in 10 microblog use behavioral characteristics and 88 linguistic characteristics between the suicide group and the control group were compared with normality test and rank sum test respectively. In the behavioral characteristics, the suicide group used hyperlinks and "@" less frequently than the control group [0.04 (0.04) vs. 0.06 (0.04), P=0.029; 0.60 (0.27) vs. 0.69 (0.18), P=0.028], and was more self-focused [0.47 (0.25) vs. 0.30 (0.10), P=0.010]. In the linguistic characteristics, the suicide group showed less frequency in using measure word, work related word and apostrophe than the control group (P<0.05), and showed more frequency in using pronoun, personal pronoun, third person singular, non-specific pronoun, word expressing social experience, word expressing anxiety, word expressing exclusion, sexual word, religious word, second person singular, human being related word, negative emotion related word, anger related word, sadness or death related word (P<0.05). Suicides seemed to interact less with others, showed more self-concern and more negative expressions, use more cognitively exclusive, death-related, religion-related words, and use less work-related words. The results of this study might be helpful for the research on suicide among netizen.
Implications of the Social Web Environment for User Story Education
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Fancott, Terrill; Kamthan, Pankaj; Shahmir, Nazlie
2012-01-01
In recent years, user stories have emerged in academia, as well as industry, as a notable approach for expressing user requirements of interactive software systems that are developed using agile methodologies. There are social aspects inherent to software development, in general, and user stories, in particular. This paper presents directions and…
Generalized Advanced Propeller Analysis System (GAPAS). Volume 2: Computer program user manual
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Glatt, L.; Crawford, D. R.; Kosmatka, J. B.; Swigart, R. J.; Wong, E. W.
1986-01-01
The Generalized Advanced Propeller Analysis System (GAPAS) computer code is described. GAPAS was developed to analyze advanced technology multi-bladed propellers which operate on aircraft with speeds up to Mach 0.8 and altitudes up to 40,000 feet. GAPAS includes technology for analyzing aerodynamic, structural, and acoustic performance of propellers. The computer code was developed for the CDC 7600 computer and is currently available for industrial use on the NASA Langley computer. A description of all the analytical models incorporated in GAPAS is included. Sample calculations are also described as well as users requirements for modifying the analysis system. Computer system core requirements and running times are also discussed.
A large scale software system for simulation and design optimization of mechanical systems
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Dopker, Bernhard; Haug, Edward J.
1989-01-01
The concept of an advanced integrated, networked simulation and design system is outlined. Such an advanced system can be developed utilizing existing codes without compromising the integrity and functionality of the system. An example has been used to demonstrate the applicability of the concept of the integrated system outlined here. The development of an integrated system can be done incrementally. Initial capabilities can be developed and implemented without having a detailed design of the global system. Only a conceptual global system must exist. For a fully integrated, user friendly design system, further research is needed in the areas of engineering data bases, distributed data bases, and advanced user interface design.
PINTA: a web server for network-based gene prioritization from expression data
Nitsch, Daniela; Tranchevent, Léon-Charles; Gonçalves, Joana P.; Vogt, Josef Korbinian; Madeira, Sara C.; Moreau, Yves
2011-01-01
PINTA (available at http://www.esat.kuleuven.be/pinta/; this web site is free and open to all users and there is no login requirement) is a web resource for the prioritization of candidate genes based on the differential expression of their neighborhood in a genome-wide protein–protein interaction network. Our strategy is meant for biological and medical researchers aiming at identifying novel disease genes using disease specific expression data. PINTA supports both candidate gene prioritization (starting from a user defined set of candidate genes) as well as genome-wide gene prioritization and is available for five species (human, mouse, rat, worm and yeast). As input data, PINTA only requires disease specific expression data, whereas various platforms (e.g. Affymetrix) are supported. As a result, PINTA computes a gene ranking and presents the results as a table that can easily be browsed and downloaded by the user. PMID:21602267
Rice-Map: a new-generation rice genome browser.
Wang, Jun; Kong, Lei; Zhao, Shuqi; Zhang, He; Tang, Liang; Li, Zhe; Gu, Xiaocheng; Luo, Jingchu; Gao, Ge
2011-03-30
The concurrent release of rice genome sequences for two subspecies (Oryza sativa L. ssp. japonica and Oryza sativa L. ssp. indica) facilitates rice studies at the whole genome level. Since the advent of high-throughput analysis, huge amounts of functional genomics data have been delivered rapidly, making an integrated online genome browser indispensable for scientists to visualize and analyze these data. Based on next-generation web technologies and high-throughput experimental data, we have developed Rice-Map, a novel genome browser for researchers to navigate, analyze and annotate rice genome interactively. More than one hundred annotation tracks (81 for japonica and 82 for indica) have been compiled and loaded into Rice-Map. These pre-computed annotations cover gene models, transcript evidences, expression profiling, epigenetic modifications, inter-species and intra-species homologies, genetic markers and other genomic features. In addition to these pre-computed tracks, registered users can interactively add comments and research notes to Rice-Map as User-Defined Annotation entries. By smoothly scrolling, dragging and zooming, users can browse various genomic features simultaneously at multiple scales. On-the-fly analysis for selected entries could be performed through dedicated bioinformatic analysis platforms such as WebLab and Galaxy. Furthermore, a BioMart-powered data warehouse "Rice Mart" is offered for advanced users to fetch bulk datasets based on complex criteria. Rice-Map delivers abundant up-to-date japonica and indica annotations, providing a valuable resource for both computational and bench biologists. Rice-Map is publicly accessible at http://www.ricemap.org/, with all data available for free downloading.
Forcing Interoperability: An Intentionally Fractured Approach
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Gallaher, D. W.; Brodzik, M.; Scambos, T.; Stroeve, J.
2008-12-01
The NSIDC is attempting to rebuild a significant portion of its public-facing cyberinfrastructure to better meet the needs expressed by the cryospheric community. The project initially addresses a specific science need - understanding Greenland's contribution to global sea level rise through comparison and analysis of variables such as temperature, albedo, melt, ice velocity and surface elevation. This project will ultimately be expanded to cover most of NSIDC's cryospheric data. Like many organizations, we need to provide users with data discovery interfaces, collaboration tools and mapping services. Complicating this effort is the need to reduce the volume of raw data delivered to the user. Data growth, especially with time-series data, will overwhelm our software, processors and network like never before. We need to provide the users the ability to perform first level analysis directly on our site. In order to accomplish this, the users should be free to modify the behavior of these tools as well as incorporate their own tools and analysis to meet their needs. Rather than building one monolithic project to build this system, we have chosen to build three semi-independent systems. One team is building a data discovery and web based distribution system, the second is building an advanced analysis and workflow system and the third is building a customized web mapping service. These systems will use the same underlying data structures and services but will employ different technologies and teams to build their objectives, schedules and user interfaces. Obviously, we are adding complexity and risk to the overall project however this may be the best method to achieve interoperability because the development teams will be required to build off each others work. The teams will be forced to design with other users in mind as opposed to building interoperability as an afterthought, which a tendency in monolithic systems. All three teams will take advantage of preexisting software and standards whenever possible. We present this topic to stimulate discussion within the development, operational and research communities on how best to proceed.
Automated Help System For A Supercomputer
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Callas, George P.; Schulbach, Catherine H.; Younkin, Michael
1994-01-01
Expert-system software developed to provide automated system of user-helping displays in supercomputer system at Ames Research Center Advanced Computer Facility. Users located at remote computer terminals connected to supercomputer and each other via gateway computers, local-area networks, telephone lines, and satellite links. Automated help system answers routine user inquiries about how to use services of computer system. Available 24 hours per day and reduces burden on human experts, freeing them to concentrate on helping users with complicated problems.
Office of Science User Facilities Summary Report, Fiscal Year 2015
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
None
2015-01-01
The U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science provides the Nation’s researchers with worldclass scientific user facilities to propel the U.S. to the forefront of science and innovation. A user facility is a federally sponsored research facility available for external use to advance scientific or technical knowledge under the following conditions: open, accessible, free, collaborative, competitive, and unique.
Multicentre evaluation of music perception in adult users of Advanced Bionics cochlear implants.
Adams, Doris; Ajimsha, Khalid Mohamed; Barberá, Manuel Tomás; Gazibegovic, Dzemal; Gisbert, Javier; Gómez, Justo; Raveh, Eyal; Rocca, Christine; Romanet, Philipe; Seebens, Yvonne; Zarowski, Andrzej
2014-01-01
To document musical listening and enjoyment in recipients of Advanced Bionics cochlear implants (CIs) and to compare musical perception in those using early coding strategies with subjects using the newer HiRes and HiRes 120 strategies. A questionnaire was completed by 136 adult subjects, including questions on the ability to identify specific musical features. The subjects were in three groups: those using early coding strategies (n = 29), HiRes (n = 59), and HiRes 120 (n = 48), and results were compared with a group of 84 normally hearing (NH) subjects. Of the CI users, 79% reported listening to music. The NH group rated listening frequency and enjoyment higher than the CI users. Thirty-five users reported that they sang and this group had significantly higher overall performance. There were no significant differences in overall perception of specific musical features among the strategy groups, though some individual questions showed significantly higher performance in the HiRes 120 users. Users of current CI technology show a high level of musical appreciation, though still significantly less than NH subjects. Frequency of listening and enjoyment were significantly correlated and active participation in musical activities, specifically singing, resulted in significantly higher overall performance scores.
Perspectives on Physical Activity Among People with Multiple Sclerosis Who Are Wheelchair Users
Learmonth, Yvonne C.; Rice, Ian M.; Ostler, Teresa; Rice, Laura A.
2015-01-01
Background: People with advanced multiple sclerosis (MS) are less physically active than those with milder forms of the disease, and wheelchair use has a negative association with physical activity participation. Thus, wheelchair users with MS are doubly disadvantaged for accruing the benefits of physical activity and exercise. Appropriate physical activity and exercise interventions are needed for this population. Methods: We undertook a qualitative study to explore the meanings, motivations, and outcomes of physical activity in wheelchair users with MS. We sought to understand daily opportunities to accumulate physical activity and exercise, and to identify perceived barriers, facilitators, and benefits that might inform the design of future interventions. Results: We interviewed 15 wheelchair users (mean age, 52 ± 8.8 years; n = 12 women). Data were transcribed and analyzed to identify and explore common themes. Our first theme was the reduced opportunity to participate in physical activity due to participants' dependence on mobility devices, environmental adaptations, and tangible support. Our second theme was the importance of incorporating physical activity and exercise into the everyday environment, highlighting the need for adaptive exercise and accessible environments. This indicated the need to incorporate behavior change modulators into physical activity and exercise interventions for those with advanced MS. Health-care professionals played an important role in promoting increased physical activity and exercise participation in those with advanced MS. Conclusions: Our findings may inform future interventions to increase initiation and maintenance of physical activity and exercise among people with advanced MS. PMID:26052256
Helping Users Help Themselves.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
O'Malley, Claire E.
This discussion of the design of user-initiated help systems in computers focuses on the information that users actively seek to help them with their tasks, with emphasis on how to help users ask the questions that will bridge the gap between the initial internal (mental) form of the query and their information need as expressed by the system.…
Mosier, Annika
2018-01-22
Annika Mosier, graduate student from Stanford University presents a talk titled "In Situ Expression of Acidic and Thermophilic Carbohydrate Active Enzymes by Filamentous Fungi" at the JGI User 7th Annual Genomics of Energy & Environment Meeting on March 22, 2012 in Walnut Creek, CA.
Error assessment for emerging traffic data collection devices.
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
2014-09-01
Providing accurate and reliable travel time information to roadway users is a critical part of Advanced Traffic Management Systems (ATMS) and : Advanced Travelers Information Systems (ATIS). Access to travel time information can significantly influen...
Freight advanced traveler information system : concept of operations.
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
2012-08-01
This report describes a Concept of Operations (ConOps) for a Freight Advanced Traveler Information System (FRATIS). The ConOps describes the goals, functions, key concepts, user classes, high-level architecture, operational scenarios, operational pol...
Metabolic engineering of Saccharomyces cerevisiae for production of fatty acid-derived hydrocarbons.
Zhang, Yiming; Nielsen, Jens; Liu, Zihe
2018-06-05
Fatty acid-derived hydrocarbons attract increasing attention as biofuels due to their immiscibility with water, high-energy content, low freezing point, and high compatibility with existing refineries and end-user infrastructures. Yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae has advantages for production of fatty acid-derived hydrocarbons as its native routes toward fatty acid synthesis involve only a few reactions that allow more efficient conversion of carbon substrates. Here we describe major biosynthetic pathways of fatty acid-derived hydrocarbons in yeast, and summarize key metabolic engineering strategies, including enhancing precursor supply, eliminating competing pathways, and expressing heterologous pathways. With recent advances in yeast production of fatty acid-derived hydrocarbons, our review identifies key research challenges and opportunities for future optimization, and concludes with perspectives and outlooks for further research directions. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
What Searches Do Users Run on PEDro? An Analysis of 893,971 Search Commands Over a 6-Month Period.
Stevens, Matthew L; Moseley, Anne; Elkins, Mark R; Lin, Christine C-W; Maher, Chris G
2016-08-05
Clinicians must be able to search effectively for relevant research if they are to provide evidence-based healthcare. It is therefore relevant to consider how users search databases of evidence in healthcare, including what information users look for and what search strategies they employ. To date such analyses have been restricted to the PubMed database. Although the Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro) is searched millions of times each year, no studies have investigated how users search PEDro. To assess the content and quality of searches conducted on PEDro. Searches conducted on the PEDro website over 6 months were downloaded and the 'get' commands and page-views extracted. The following data were tabulated: the 25 most common searches; the number of search terms used; the frequency of use of simple and advanced searches, including the use of each advanced search field; and the frequency of use of various search strategies. Between August 2014 and January 2015, 893,971 search commands were entered on PEDro. Fewer than 18 % of these searches used the advanced search features of PEDro. 'Musculoskeletal' was the most common subdiscipline searched, while 'low back pain' was the most common individual search. Around 20 % of all searches contained errors. PEDro is a commonly used evidence resource, but searching appears to be sub-optimal in many cases. The effectiveness of searches conducted by users needs to improve, which could be facilitated by methods such as targeted training and amending the search interface.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Carsughi, Flavio; Fonseca, Luis
2017-06-01
NFFA-EUROPE is an European open access resource for experimental and theoretical nanoscience and sets out a platform to carry out comprehensive projects for multidisciplinary research at the nanoscale extending from synthesis to nanocharacterization to theory and numerical simulation. Advanced infrastructures specialized on growth, nano-lithography, nano-characterization, theory and simulation and fine-analysis with Synchrotron, FEL and Neutron radiation sources are integrated in a multi-site combination to develop frontier research on methods for reproducible nanoscience research and to enable European and international researchers from diverse disciplines to carry out advanced proposals impacting science and innovation. NFFA-EUROPE will enable coordinated access to infrastructures on different aspects of nanoscience research that is not currently available at single specialized ones and without duplicating their specific scopes. Approved user projects will have access to the best suited instruments and support competences for performing the research, including access to analytical large scale facilities, theory and simulation and high-performance computing facilities. Access is offered free of charge to European users and users will receive a financial contribution for their travel, accommodation and subsistence costs. The users access will include several "installations" and will be coordinated through a single entry point portal that will activate an advanced user-infrastructure dialogue to build up a personalized access programme with an increasing return on science and innovation production. The own research activity of NFFA-EUROPE will address key bottlenecks of nanoscience research: nanostructure traceability, protocol reproducibility, in-operando nano-manipulation and analysis, open data.
Advanced graphical user interface for multi-physics simulations using AMST
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Hoffmann, Florian; Vogel, Frank
2017-07-01
Numerical modelling of particulate matter has gained much popularity in recent decades. Advanced Multi-physics Simulation Technology (AMST) is a state-of-the-art three dimensional numerical modelling technique combining the eX-tended Discrete Element Method (XDEM) with Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) and Finite Element Analysis (FEA) [1]. One major limitation of this code is the lack of a graphical user interface (GUI) meaning that all pre-processing has to be made directly in a HDF5-file. This contribution presents the first graphical pre-processor developed for AMST.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Tung, Ting-Chun; Chen, Hung-Yuan
2017-01-01
With the advance of mobile computing and wireless technology, a user's intent to interact with the interface of a mobile device is motivated not only by its intuitional operation, but also by the emotional perception induced by its aesthetic appeal. A graphical interface employing icons with suitable visual effect based on the users' emotional…
A Distributed User Information System
1990-03-01
NOE08 Department of Computer Science NOVO 8 1990 University of Maryland S College Park, MD 20742 D Abstract Current user information database technology ...Transactions on Computer Systems, May 1988. [So189] K. Sollins. A plan for internet directory services. Technical report, DDN Network Information Center...2424 A Distributed User Information System DTiC Steven D. Miller, Scott Carson, and Leo Mark DELECTE Institute for Advanced Computer Studies and
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Huang, Wen-Hao David; Lin, Meng-Fen Grace; Shen, Wendi
2012-01-01
The open educational resource (OER) movement has reached a critical mass due to recent technology advancements. In Taiwan, to overcome the language barrier, the Opensource Opencourse Prototype System (OOPS) plays a significant role in enabling Chinese-speaking users to benefit from this global education movement. However, our understanding about…
Visual Information for the Desktop, version 1.0
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
2006-03-29
VZIN integrates visual analytics capabilities into popular desktop tools to aid a user in searching and understanding an information space. VZIN allows users to Drag-Drop-Visualize-Explore-Organize information within tools such as Microsoft Office, Windows Explorer, Excel, and Outlook. VZIN is tailorable to specific client or industry requirements. VZIN follows the desktop metaphors so that advanced analytical capabilities are available with minimal user training.
Modeling the User for Education, Training, and Performance Aiding
2003-11-01
Eds.) Technology applications in education : A learning view (pp. 79–99). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Fletcher, J.D. and Johnston, R...2003 symposium on Advanced Technologies for Military Training. v CONTENTS MODELING THE USER FOR EDUCATION , TRAINING, AND PERFORMANCE AIDING EXECUTIVE...using computer technology for education , training, decision-making, and performance aiding. Our focus is on the digital representation of these users
Emotion Estimation Algorithm from Facial Image Analyses of e-Learning Users
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Shigeta, Ayuko; Koike, Takeshi; Kurokawa, Tomoya; Nosu, Kiyoshi
This paper proposes an emotion estimation algorithm from e-Learning user's facial image. The algorithm characteristics are as follows: The criteria used to relate an e-Learning use's emotion to a representative emotion were obtained from the time sequential analysis of user's facial expressions. By examining the emotions of the e-Learning users and the positional change of the facial expressions from the experiment results, the following procedures are introduce to improve the estimation reliability; (1) some effective features points are chosen by the emotion estimation (2) dividing subjects into two groups by the change rates of the face feature points (3) selection of the eigenvector of the variance-co-variance matrices (cumulative contribution rate>=95%) (4) emotion calculation using Mahalanobis distance.
DAKOTA JAGUAR 3.0 user's manual.
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Adams, Brian M.; Bauman, Lara E; Chan, Ethan
2013-05-01
JAGUAR (JAva GUi for Applied Research) is a Java software tool providing an advanced text editor and graphical user interface (GUI) to manipulate DAKOTA (Design Analysis Kit for Optimization and Terascale Applications) input specifications. This document focuses on the features necessary to use JAGUAR.
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
1999-06-01
This report summarizes the results of a phone survey that evaluated the user satisfaction of the telephone traveler information service, ARTIMIS (Advanced Regional Traffic Interactive Management and Information System), in Cincinnati / Northern Kentu...
NETL - Supercomputing: NETL Simulation Based Engineering User Center (SBEUC)
None
2018-02-07
NETL's Simulation-Based Engineering User Center, or SBEUC, integrates one of the world's largest high-performance computers with an advanced visualization center. The SBEUC offers a collaborative environment among researchers at NETL sites and those working through the NETL-Regional University Alliance.
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2010-12-03
... reasonable taxation at the State and Federal levels on highway users; and to engage in any and all activities that will advance the interests of highway transportation and highway users generally. The Port...
NETL - Supercomputing: NETL Simulation Based Engineering User Center (SBEUC)
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
None
2013-09-30
NETL's Simulation-Based Engineering User Center, or SBEUC, integrates one of the world's largest high-performance computers with an advanced visualization center. The SBEUC offers a collaborative environment among researchers at NETL sites and those working through the NETL-Regional University Alliance.
Blight, Michael G; Ruppel, Erin K; Schoenbauer, Kelsea V
2017-05-01
Although research has explored the ways in which people form virtual communities to converse about media figures, television shows, and similar topics, little research has examined the link between virtual communities and the parasocial relationships (PSRs) that are often the focus of these conversations and users' experiences in those virtual communities. We examined sense of community (SOC) on Twitter and Instagram as a function of users' motives for use and users' PSR on the sites. In addition to examining the relative importance of different motives for using Twitter and Instagram, we predicted that PSR would mediate the association between motives for use and SOC. Results of an online survey revealed that Instagram users (n = 276) reported stronger social interaction motives than did Twitter users (n = 223). Social interaction and expressive information sharing motives were directly positively associated with SOC for users of both sites. Instagram users also exhibited indirect effects of expressive information sharing and companionship motives on SOC, through PSR. These findings suggest potentially influential differences between Twitter and Instagram, particularly regarding the role of PSR in fostering a general SOC.
Liu, Pan; Chan, David; Qiu, Lin; Tov, William; Tong, Victor Joo Chuan
2018-05-01
Using data from 13,789 Facebook users across U.S. states, this study examined the main effects of societal-level cultural tightness-looseness and its interaction effects with individuals' social network density on impression management (IM) in terms of online emotional expression. Results showed that individuals from culturally tight (vs. loose) states were more likely to express positive emotions and less likely to express negative emotions. Meanwhile, for positive emotional expression, there was a tightness-looseness by social network density interaction effect. In culturally tight states, individuals with dense (vs. sparse) networks were more likely to express positive emotions, while in culturally loose states this pattern was reversed. For negative emotional expression, however, no such interaction was observed. Our findings highlight the influence of cultural norms and social network structure on emotional expressions as IM strategies.
expVIP: a Customizable RNA-seq Data Analysis and Visualization Platform1[OPEN
2016-01-01
The majority of transcriptome sequencing (RNA-seq) expression studies in plants remain underutilized and inaccessible due to the use of disparate transcriptome references and the lack of skills and resources to analyze and visualize these data. We have developed expVIP, an expression visualization and integration platform, which allows easy analysis of RNA-seq data combined with an intuitive and interactive interface. Users can analyze public and user-specified data sets with minimal bioinformatics knowledge using the expVIP virtual machine. This generates a custom Web browser to visualize, sort, and filter the RNA-seq data and provides outputs for differential gene expression analysis. We demonstrate expVIP’s suitability for polyploid crops and evaluate its performance across a range of biologically relevant scenarios. To exemplify its use in crop research, we developed a flexible wheat (Triticum aestivum) expression browser (www.wheat-expression.com) that can be expanded with user-generated data in a local virtual machine environment. The open-access expVIP platform will facilitate the analysis of gene expression data from a wide variety of species by enabling the easy integration, visualization, and comparison of RNA-seq data across experiments. PMID:26869702
Bioclipse: an open source workbench for chemo- and bioinformatics.
Spjuth, Ola; Helmus, Tobias; Willighagen, Egon L; Kuhn, Stefan; Eklund, Martin; Wagener, Johannes; Murray-Rust, Peter; Steinbeck, Christoph; Wikberg, Jarl E S
2007-02-22
There is a need for software applications that provide users with a complete and extensible toolkit for chemo- and bioinformatics accessible from a single workbench. Commercial packages are expensive and closed source, hence they do not allow end users to modify algorithms and add custom functionality. Existing open source projects are more focused on providing a framework for integrating existing, separately installed bioinformatics packages, rather than providing user-friendly interfaces. No open source chemoinformatics workbench has previously been published, and no successful attempts have been made to integrate chemo- and bioinformatics into a single framework. Bioclipse is an advanced workbench for resources in chemo- and bioinformatics, such as molecules, proteins, sequences, spectra, and scripts. It provides 2D-editing, 3D-visualization, file format conversion, calculation of chemical properties, and much more; all fully integrated into a user-friendly desktop application. Editing supports standard functions such as cut and paste, drag and drop, and undo/redo. Bioclipse is written in Java and based on the Eclipse Rich Client Platform with a state-of-the-art plugin architecture. This gives Bioclipse an advantage over other systems as it can easily be extended with functionality in any desired direction. Bioclipse is a powerful workbench for bio- and chemoinformatics as well as an advanced integration platform. The rich functionality, intuitive user interface, and powerful plugin architecture make Bioclipse the most advanced and user-friendly open source workbench for chemo- and bioinformatics. Bioclipse is released under Eclipse Public License (EPL), an open source license which sets no constraints on external plugin licensing; it is totally open for both open source plugins as well as commercial ones. Bioclipse is freely available at http://www.bioclipse.net.
Optical Multiple Access Network (OMAN) for advanced processing satellite applications
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Mendez, Antonio J.; Gagliardi, Robert M.; Park, Eugene; Ivancic, William D.; Sherman, Bradley D.
1991-01-01
An OMAN breadboard for exploring advanced processing satellite circuit switch applications is introduced. Network architecture, hardware trade offs, and multiple user interference issues are presented. The breadboard test set up and experimental results are discussed.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR
2014-10-01
... communications services in an accessible format, if achievable. Signal compression technologies shall not remove... Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION GENERAL ACCESS TO ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS SERVICES AND EQUIPMENT... this part, a manufacturer of equipment used for advanced communications services, including end user...
Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR
2013-10-01
... communications services in an accessible format, if achievable. Signal compression technologies shall not remove... Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION GENERAL ACCESS TO ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS SERVICES AND EQUIPMENT... this part, a manufacturer of equipment used for advanced communications services, including end user...
Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR
2012-10-01
... communications services in an accessible format, if achievable. Signal compression technologies shall not remove... Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION GENERAL ACCESS TO ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS SERVICES AND EQUIPMENT... this part, a manufacturer of equipment used for advanced communications services, including end user...
Vali, Faisal; Hong, Robert
2007-10-11
With the evolution of AJAX, ruby on rails, advanced dynamic XHTML technologies and the advent of powerful user interface libraries for javascript (EXT, Yahoo User Interface Library), developers now have the ability to provide truly rich interfaces within web browsers, with reasonable effort and without third-party plugins. We designed and developed an example of such a solution. The User Interface allows radiation oncology practices to intuitively manage different dose fractionation schemes by helping estimate total dose to irradiated organs.
AQBE — QBE Style Queries for Archetyped Data
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Sachdeva, Shelly; Yaginuma, Daigo; Chu, Wanming; Bhalla, Subhash
Large-scale adoption of electronic healthcare applications requires semantic interoperability. The new proposals propose an advanced (multi-level) DBMS architecture for repository services for health records of patients. These also require query interfaces at multiple levels and at the level of semi-skilled users. In this regard, a high-level user interface for querying the new form of standardized Electronic Health Records system has been examined in this study. It proposes a step-by-step graphical query interface to allow semi-skilled users to write queries. Its aim is to decrease user effort and communication ambiguities, and increase user friendliness.
Addendum to the Proceedings of the Third International Mobile Satellite Conference (IMSC 1993)
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Kwan, Robert (Compiler); Rigley, Jack (Compiler); Cassingham, Randy (Editor)
1993-01-01
Satellite-based mobile communications systems provide voice and data communications to users over a vast geographic area. The users may communicate via mobile or hand-held terminals, which may also provide access to terrestrial cellular communications services. This Third IMSC focuses on the increasing worldwide commercial activities in Mobile Satellite Services, along with technical advances in the field. Because of the large service areas provided by such systems, it is important to consider political and regulatory issues in addition to technical and user requirements issues. The official Proceedings presented in 11 sessions include: direct broadcast of audio programming from satellites; spacecraft technology; regulatory and policy considerations; hybrid networks for personal and mobile applications; advanced system concepts and analysis; propagation; and mobile terminal technology; and mobile antenna technology.
Hripcsak, George
1997-01-01
Abstract An information system architecture defines the components of a system and the interfaces among the components. A good architecture is essential for creating an Integrated Advanced Information Management System (IAIMS) that works as an integrated whole yet is flexible enough to accommodate many users and roles, multiple applications, changing vendors, evolving user needs, and advancing technology. Modularity and layering promote flexibility by reducing the complexity of a system and by restricting the ways in which components may interact. Enterprise-wide mediation promotes integration by providing message routing, support for standards, dictionary-based code translation, a centralized conceptual data schema, business rule implementation, and consistent access to databases. Several IAIMS sites have adopted a client-server architecture, and some have adopted a three-tiered approach, separating user interface functions, application logic, and repositories. PMID:9067884
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Benford, Steve; Bowers, John; Fahlen, Lennart E.; Greenhalgh, Chris; Snowdon, Dave
1994-01-01
This paper explores the issue of user embodiment within collaborative virtual environments. By user embodiment we mean the provision of users with appropriate body images so as to represent them to others and also to themselves. By collaborative virtual environments we mean multi-user virtual reality systems which support cooperative work (although we argue that the results of our exploration may also be applied to other kinds of collaborative systems). The main part of the paper identifies a list of embodiment design issues including: presence, location, identity, activity, availability, history of activity, viewpoint, action point, gesture, facial expression, voluntary versus involuntary expression, degree of presence, reflecting capabilities, manipulating the user's view of others, representation across multiple media, autonomous and distributed body parts, truthfulness and efficiency. Following this, we show how these issues are reflected in our own DIVE and MASSIVE prototype collaborative virtual environments.
Real-time Avatar Animation from a Single Image.
Saragih, Jason M; Lucey, Simon; Cohn, Jeffrey F
2011-01-01
A real time facial puppetry system is presented. Compared with existing systems, the proposed method requires no special hardware, runs in real time (23 frames-per-second), and requires only a single image of the avatar and user. The user's facial expression is captured through a real-time 3D non-rigid tracking system. Expression transfer is achieved by combining a generic expression model with synthetically generated examples that better capture person specific characteristics. Performance of the system is evaluated on avatars of real people as well as masks and cartoon characters.
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
2003-12-01
This study explores the on-time reliability benefits to potential users of a personalized advanced traveler information system (ATIS) providing real-time pre-trip roadway information for the Seattle morning peak period through the application of Heur...
ESPVI 4.0 ELECTROSTATIS PRECIPITATOR V-1 AND PERFORMANCE MODEL: USER'S MANUAL
The manual is the companion document for the microcomputer program ESPVI 4.0, Electrostatic Precipitation VI and Performance Model. The program was developed to provide a user- friendly interface to an advanced model of electrostatic precipitation (ESP) performance. The program i...
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
1993-12-01
This report presents a comprehensive modeling framework for user responses to Advanced Traveler Information Systems (ATIS) services and identifies the data needs for the validation of such a framework. The authors present overviews of the framework b...
Home media server content management
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Tokmakoff, Andrew A.; van Vliet, Harry
2001-07-01
With the advent of set-top boxes, the convergence of TV (broadcasting) and PC (Internet) is set to enter the home environment. Currently, a great deal of activity is occurring in developing standards (TV-Anytime Forum) and devices (TiVo) for local storage on Home Media Servers (HMS). These devices lie at the heart of convergence of the triad: communications/networks - content/media - computing/software. Besides massive storage capacity and being a communications 'gateway', the home media server is characterised by the ability to handle metadata and software that provides an easy to use on-screen interface and intelligent search/content handling facilities. In this paper, we describe a research prototype HMS that is being developed within the GigaCE project at the Telematica Instituut . Our prototype demonstrates advanced search and retrieval (video browsing), adaptive user profiling and an innovative 3D component of the Electronic Program Guide (EPG) which represents online presence. We discuss the use of MPEG-7 for representing metadata, the use of MPEG-21 working draft standards for content identification, description and rights expression, and the use of HMS peer-to-peer content distribution approaches. Finally, we outline explorative user behaviour experiments that aim to investigate the effectiveness of the prototype HMS during development.
Tensoral for post-processing users and simulation authors
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Dresselhaus, Eliot
1993-01-01
The CTR post-processing effort aims to make turbulence simulations and data more readily and usefully available to the research and industrial communities. The Tensoral language, which provides the foundation for this effort, is introduced here in the form of a user's guide. The Tensoral user's guide is presented in two main sections. Section one acts as a general introduction and guides database users who wish to post-process simulation databases. Section two gives a brief description of how database authors and other advanced users can make simulation codes and/or the databases they generate available to the user community via Tensoral database back ends. The two-part structure of this document conforms to the two-level design structure of the Tensoral language. Tensoral has been designed to be a general computer language for performing tensor calculus and statistics on numerical data. Tensoral's generality allows it to be used for stand-alone native coding of high-level post-processing tasks (as described in section one of this guide). At the same time, Tensoral's specialization to a minute task (namely, to numerical tensor calculus and statistics) allows it to be easily embedded into applications written partly in Tensoral and partly in other computer languages (here, C and Vectoral). Embedded Tensoral, aimed at advanced users for more general coding (e.g. of efficient simulations, for interfacing with pre-existing software, for visualization, etc.), is described in section two of this guide.
Mini-beam collimator applications at the Advanced Photon Source
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Xu, Shenglan; Keefe, Lisa J.; Mulichak, Anne; Yan, Lifen; Alp, Ercan E.; Zhao, Jiyong; Fischetti, Robert F.
2011-09-01
In 2007, the General Medicine and Cancer Institutes Collaborative Access Team (GM/CA CAT, Sector 23, Advanced Photon Source) began providing mini-beam collimators to its users. These collimators contained individual, 5- or 10-μm pinholes and were rapidly exchangeable, thereby allowing users to tailor the beam size to their experimental needs. The use of these collimators provided a reduction in background noise, and thus improved the signal-to-noise ratio [1,2]. Recent improvements in the collimator design include construction of the device from a monolithic piece of molybdenum with multiple pinholes mounted inside [3]. This allows users to select from various size options from within the beamline control software without the realignment that was previously necessary. In addition, a new, 20-μm pinhole has been added to create a "quad-collimator", resulting in greater flexibility for the users. The mini-beam collimator is now available at multiple crystallographic beamlines and also is a part of the first Mössbauer Microscopic system at sector 3-ID.
Oh, Yun Jung; Kim, Sun Moon; Shin, Byung Chul; Kim, Hyun Lee; Chung, Jong Hoon; Kim, Ae Jin; Ro, Han; Chang, Jae Hyun; Lee, Hyun Hee; Chung, Wookyung; Lee, Chungsik; Jung, Ji Yong
2017-01-01
Renin-angiotensin-system (RAS) blockade is thought to slow renal progression in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). However, it remains uncertain if the habitual use of RAS inhibitors affects renal progression and outcomes in pre-dialysis patients with advanced CKD. In this multicenter retrospective cohort study, we identified 2,076 pre-dialysis patients with advanced CKD (stage 4 or 5) from a total of 33,722 CKD patients. RAS blockade users were paired with non-users for analyses using inverse probability of treatment-weighted (IPTW) and propensity score (PS) matching. The outcomes were renal death, all-cause mortality, hospitalization for hyperkalemia, and interactive factors as composite outcomes. RAS blockade users showed an increased risk of renal death in PS-matched analysis (hazard ratio [HR], 1.381; 95% CI, 1.071-1.781; P = 0.013), which was in agreement with the results of IPTW analysis (HR, 1.298; 95% CI, 1.123-1.500; P < 0.001). The risk of composite outcomes was higher in RAS blockade users in IPTW (HR, 1.154; 95% CI, 1.016-1.310; P = 0.027), but was marginal significance in PS matched analysis (HR, 1.243; 95% CI, 0.996-1.550; P = 0.054). The habitual use of RAS blockades in pre-dialysis patients with advanced CKD may have a detrimental effect on renal outcome without improving all-cause mortality. Further studies are warranted to determine whether withholding RAS blockade may lead to better outcomes in these patients.
Woolfe, Tyron; Herman, Rosalind; Roy, Penny; Woll, Bencie
2010-03-01
There is a dearth of assessments of sign language development in young deaf children. This study gathered age-related scores from a sample of deaf native signing children using an adapted version of the MacArthur-Bates CDI (Fenson et al., 1994). Parental reports on children's receptive and expressive signing were collected longitudinally on 29 deaf native British Sign Language (BSL) users, aged 8-36 months, yielding 146 datasets. A smooth upward growth curve was obtained for early vocabulary development and percentile scores were derived. In the main, receptive scores were in advance of expressive scores. No gender bias was observed. Correlational analysis identified factors associated with vocabulary development, including parental education and mothers' training in BSL. Individual children's profiles showed a range of development and some evidence of a growth spurt. Clinical and research issues relating to the measure are discussed. The study has developed a valid, reliable measure of vocabulary development in BSL. Further research is needed to investigate the relationship between vocabulary acquisition in native and non-native signers.
Advancing the Power and Utility of Server-Side Aggregation
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Fulker, Dave; Gallagher, James
2016-01-01
During the upcoming Summer 2016 meeting of the ESIP Federation (July 19-22), OpenDAP will hold a Developers and Users Workshop. While a broad set of topics will be covered, a key focus is capitalizing on recent EOSDIS-sponsored advances in Hyrax, OPeNDAPs own software for server-side realization of the DAP2 and DAP4 protocols. These Hyrax advances are as important to data users as to data providers, and the workshop will include hands-on experiences of value to both. Specifically, a balanced set of presentations and hands-on tutorials will address advances in1.server installation,2.server configuration,3.Hyrax aggregation capabilities,4.support for data-access from clients that are HTTP-based, JSON-based or OGC-compliant (especially WCS and WMS),5.support for DAP4,6.use and extension of server-side computational capabilities, and7.several performance-affecting matters.Topics 2 through 7 will be relevant to data consumers, data providers andnotably, due to the open-source nature of all OPeNDAP softwareto developers wishing to extend Hyrax, to build compatible clients and servers, andor to employ Hyrax as middleware that enables interoperability across a variety of end-user and source-data contexts. A session for contributed talks will elaborate the topics listed above and embrace additional ones.
Midtlin, Hanne Sofie; Næss, Kari-Anne B; Taxt, Tone; Karlsen, Asgjerd Vea
2015-01-01
This study aims to investigate which communication strategies the people, who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), want their communication partners to use. We interviewed eight children using Talking Mats to examine the AAC users' own opinion. The results showed that they wanted their communication partners to take the initiative, to repair the breaks when communication breakdowns occurred, and to invest time in understanding what AAC users wanted to express. These results underlined the significant responsibility of communication partners and revealed the need for AAC user interventions to help them be active communicators. More research needs to emphasise AAC users' opinions about communication partner strategies to improve the communication processes for AAC-users and thereby promote social inclusion in natural environment. Implications for Rehabilitation Communication partner strategies can affect communication as well as personal development and life quality for augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) users. In AAC-users opinion, their communication partners should take the communicative initiative, repair the breaks when communication breakdowns occurred, and invest time in understanding what AAC-users want to express. There is a need to inform and educate communication partners, especially those unfamiliar to AAC users. Practical training sessions, clinician modelling and written materials may be helpful. A communication partner guide can be adapted to each individual AAC user who explains his or her communication preferences. Additionally, there is a need that the clinicians promote active rather than passive communication from AAC users, which requires that they have access to the necessary symbols.
WE-H-BRA-04: Biological Geometries for the Monte Carlo Simulation Toolkit TOPASNBio
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
McNamara, A; Held, K; Paganetti, H
2016-06-15
Purpose: New advances in radiation therapy are most likely to come from the complex interface of physics, chemistry and biology. Computational simulations offer a powerful tool for quantitatively investigating radiation interactions with biological tissue and can thus help bridge the gap between physics and biology. The aim of TOPAS-nBio is to provide a comprehensive tool to generate advanced radiobiology simulations. Methods: TOPAS wraps and extends the Geant4 Monte Carlo (MC) simulation toolkit. TOPAS-nBio is an extension to TOPAS which utilizes the physics processes in Geant4-DNA to model biological damage from very low energy secondary electrons. Specialized cell, organelle and molecularmore » geometries were designed for the toolkit. Results: TOPAS-nBio gives the user the capability of simulating biological geometries, ranging from the micron-scale (e.g. cells and organelles) to complex nano-scale geometries (e.g. DNA and proteins). The user interacts with TOPAS-nBio through easy-to-use input parameter files. For example, in a simple cell simulation the user can specify the cell type and size as well as the type, number and size of included organelles. For more detailed nuclear simulations, the user can specify chromosome territories containing chromatin fiber loops, the later comprised of nucleosomes on a double helix. The chromatin fibers can be arranged in simple rigid geometries or within factual globules, mimicking realistic chromosome territories. TOPAS-nBio also provides users with the capability of reading protein data bank 3D structural files to simulate radiation damage to proteins or nucleic acids e.g. histones or RNA. TOPAS-nBio has been validated by comparing results to other track structure simulation software and published experimental measurements. Conclusion: TOPAS-nBio provides users with a comprehensive MC simulation tool for radiobiological simulations, giving users without advanced programming skills the ability to design and run complex simulations.« less
Advanced Visualization and Interactive Displays (AVID)
2009-04-01
decision maker. The ACESViewer architecture allows the users to pull data from databases, flat files, or user generated via scripting. The...of the equation and is of critical concern as it scales the needs of the polygon fill operations. Numerous users are now using two 30” cinema ...6 module configuration. Based on the architecture of the lab there was only one location that would be suitable without any viewing obstructions
Freight advanced traveler information system : functional requirements.
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
2012-08-01
This report describes the System Requirement Specifications (SyRS) for a Freight Advanced Traveler Information System (FRATIS). The SyRS is based on user needs described in the FRATIS Concept of Operations (ConOps), which cover the essential function...
Rural applications of advanced traveler information systems : recommended actions
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
1997-07-01
The Recommended Action Plan is one in a series of interim documents for the Rural Applications of Advanced Traveler Information Systems (ATIS) project. Based on the investigation of user needs, a technology review, and concept development and assessm...
Internet use and its impact on engagement in leisure activities in China.
Zhou, Ronggang; Fong, Patrick S W; Tan, Peking
2014-01-01
Internet use has become an increasingly common leisure time activity among Chinese citizens. The association between Internet use and engagement in leisure activities is especially unclear among China population. This study aims to investigate Internet usage and to determine whether active Internet use is a marker for low or high levels of leisure time activities. With the use of a face-to-face structured questionnaire interview, a total of 2,400 respondents who met all screening requirements were surveyed to answer the questions in eight major cities in China. 66.2% (n = 1,589) of all respondents were identified as Internet users. Of these Internet users, 30.0%, 24.1%, 26.4%, and 19.6% were clustered as "informative or instrumental users," "entertainment users," "communication users," and "advanced users," respectively. Regarding time spent on Internet use in leisure time, more than 96% reported going online in non-work situations, and 26.2% (n = 416) were classified as "heavy Internet users." A logistic regression analysis revealed that there were significant differences in some leisure activities between non-Internet users and Internet users, with an observed one-unit increase in the leisure time dependence category increasing the probability of engaging in mental or social activities. In contrast, Internet users were less engaged in physical exercise-related activities. In addition, advanced Internet users were generally more active in leisure time activities than non-Internet users and other types of users. Internet use is one of very common leisure activities in Chinese citizens, and age, gender, income, and education are the key factors affecting Internet access. According to different types of leisure activities, Internet usage has different impacts on leisure activity engagement. High Internet dependence has no significant negative influence on engagement in mental or social leisure activities, but this group respondent tended to be less engaged in physical activities.
Internet Use and Its Impact on Engagement in Leisure Activities in China
Zhou, Ronggang; Fong, Patrick S. W.; Tan, Peking
2014-01-01
Introduction Internet use has become an increasingly common leisure time activity among Chinese citizens. The association between Internet use and engagement in leisure activities is especially unclear among China population. This study aims to investigate Internet usage and to determine whether active Internet use is a marker for low or high levels of leisure time activities. Methods/Principal Findings With the use of a face-to-face structured questionnaire interview, a total of 2,400 respondents who met all screening requirements were surveyed to answer the questions in eight major cities in China. 66.2% (n = 1,589) of all respondents were identified as Internet users. Of these Internet users, 30.0%, 24.1%, 26.4%, and 19.6% were clustered as “informative or instrumental users,” “entertainment users,” “communication users,” and “advanced users,” respectively. Regarding time spent on Internet use in leisure time, more than 96% reported going online in non-work situations, and 26.2% (n = 416) were classified as “heavy Internet users.” A logistic regression analysis revealed that there were significant differences in some leisure activities between non-Internet users and Internet users, with an observed one-unit increase in the leisure time dependence category increasing the probability of engaging in mental or social activities. In contrast, Internet users were less engaged in physical exercise-related activities. In addition, advanced Internet users were generally more active in leisure time activities than non-Internet users and other types of users. Conclusion/Significance Internet use is one of very common leisure activities in Chinese citizens, and age, gender, income, and education are the key factors affecting Internet access. According to different types of leisure activities, Internet usage has different impacts on leisure activity engagement. High Internet dependence has no significant negative influence on engagement in mental or social leisure activities, but this group respondent tended to be less engaged in physical activities. PMID:24586902
Adaptive Dialogue Systems for Assistive Living Environments
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Papangelis, Alexandros
2013-01-01
Adaptive Dialogue Systems (ADS) are intelligent systems, able to interact with users via multiple modalities, such as speech, gestures, facial expressions and others. Such systems are able to make conversation with their users, usually on a specific, narrow topic. Assistive Living Environments are environments where the users are by definition not…
Improvement of emotional healthcare system with stress detection from ECG signal.
Tivatansakul, S; Ohkura, M
2015-01-01
Our emotional healthcare system is designed to cope with users' negative emotions in daily life. To make the system more intelligent, we integrated emotion recognition by facial expression to provide appropriate services based on user's current emotional state. Our emotion recognition by facial expression has confusion issue to recognize some positive, neutral and negative emotions that make the emotional healthcare system provide a relaxation service even though users don't have negative emotions. Therefore, to increase the effectiveness of the system to provide the relaxation service, we integrate stress detection from ECG signal. The stress detection might be able to address the confusion issue of emotion recognition by facial expression to provide the service. Indeed, our results show that integration of stress detection increases the effectiveness and efficiency of the emotional healthcare system to provide services.
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
1974-02-01
The volume presents a description of the services a generic Advanced Air Traffic Management System (AATMS) should provide to the useres of the system to facilitate the safe, efficient flow of traffic. It provides a definition of the functions which t...
An Analysis of Student Model Portability
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Valdés Aguirre, Benjamín; Ramírez Uresti, Jorge A.; du Boulay, Benedict
2016-01-01
Sharing user information between systems is an area of interest for every field involving personalization. Recommender Systems are more advanced in this aspect than Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITSs) and Intelligent Learning Environments (ILEs). A reason for this is that the user models of Intelligent Tutoring Systems and Intelligent Learning…
Adaptive User Model for Web-Based Learning Environment.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Garofalakis, John; Sirmakessis, Spiros; Sakkopoulos, Evangelos; Tsakalidis, Athanasios
This paper describes the design of an adaptive user model and its implementation in an advanced Web-based Virtual University environment that encompasses combined and synchronized adaptation between educational material and well-known communication facilities. The Virtual University environment has been implemented to support a postgraduate…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Fengler, Ineke; Delfau, Pia-Céline; Röder, Brigitte
2018-01-01
It is yet unclear whether congenitally deaf cochlear implant (CD CI) users' visual and multisensory emotion perception is influenced by their history in sign language acquisition. We hypothesized that early-signing CD CI users, relative to late-signing CD CI users and hearing, non-signing controls, show better facial expression recognition and…
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Smith, K. R.; Boness, F. H.
1972-01-01
The impact of advanced satellite meteorology on long range weather forecasts, agriculture, commerce, and resource utilization are examined. All data are geared to obtaining a picture of various user needs and possible benefits.
ADVANCED REMOTE SENSING MONITORING OF MINE WASTE
The OEI-EAD and NERL-ESD have been cooperating on development of monitoring technologies and research to better use remote sensor-derived information and to ultimately disseminate that information to users. This work has focused on NASA'S airborne advanced remote sensor systems ...
Achievable degrees of freedom of MIMO two-way relay interference channel with delayed CSIT
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Li, Qingyun; Wu, Gang; Li, Shaoqian
2016-10-01
In this paper, assuming each node has delayed channel state information at the transmitter (CSIT), we investigate the achievable degrees of freedom (DOF) of MIMO two-way relay interference channel in frequency division duplex (FDD) systems, where there are K user pairs (i.e., 2K users) and each user in a user pair exchanges messages with the other user in the same user pair simultaneously via an intermediate relay. We propose a two-stage transmission scheme and derive the closed-form expressions for its achievable DOF.
A wearable device for emotional recognition using facial expression and physiological response.
Jangho Kwon; Da-Hye Kim; Wanjoo Park; Laehyun Kim
2016-08-01
This paper introduces a glasses-typed wearable system to detect user's emotions using facial expression and physiological responses. The system is designed to acquire facial expression through a built-in camera and physiological responses such as photoplethysmogram (PPG) and electrodermal activity (EDA) in unobtrusive way. We used video clips for induced emotions to test the system suitability in the experiment. The results showed a few meaningful properties that associate emotions with facial expressions and physiological responses captured by the developed wearable device. We expect that this wearable system with a built-in camera and physiological sensors may be a good solution to monitor user's emotional state in daily life.
Third International Workshop on Ion Mobility Spectrometry
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Cross, John H. (Editor)
1995-01-01
Basic research in ion mobility spectrometry has given rise to rapid advancement in hardware development and applications. The Third International Workshop on Ion Mobility Spectrometry (IMS) was held October 16-19, 1994, at Johnson Space Center to provide a forum for investigators to present the most recent results of both basic and applied IMS research. Presenters included manufacturers and various users, including military research organizations and drug enforcement agencies. Thirty papers were given in the following five sessions: Fundamental IMS Studies, Instrument Development, Hyphenated IMS Techniques, Applications, and Data Reduction and Signal Processing. Advances in hardware development, software development, and user applications are described.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Caron, R. H.; Rifman, S. S.; Simon, K. W.
1974-01-01
The development of an ERTS/MSS image processing system responsive to the needs of the user community is discussed. An overview of the TRW ERTS/MSS processor is presented, followed by a more detailed discussion of image processing functions satisfied by the system. The particular functions chosen for discussion are evolved from advanced signal processing techniques rooted in the areas of communication and control. These examples show how classical aerospace technology can be transferred to solve the more contemporary problems confronting the users of spaceborne imagery.
Advanced Query and Data Mining Capabilities for MaROS
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Wang, Paul; Wallick, Michael N.; Allard, Daniel A.; Gladden, Roy E.; Hy, Franklin H.
2013-01-01
The Mars Relay Operational Service (MaROS) comprises a number of tools to coordinate, plan, and visualize various aspects of the Mars Relay network. These levels include a Web-based user interface, a back-end "ReSTlet" built in Java, and databases that store the data as it is received from the network. As part of MaROS, the innovators have developed and implemented a feature set that operates on several levels of the software architecture. This new feature is an advanced querying capability through either the Web-based user interface, or through a back-end REST interface to access all of the data gathered from the network. This software is not meant to replace the REST interface, but to augment and expand the range of available data. The current REST interface provides specific data that is used by the MaROS Web application to display and visualize the information; however, the returned information from the REST interface has typically been pre-processed to return only a subset of the entire information within the repository, particularly only the information that is of interest to the GUI (graphical user interface). The new, advanced query and data mining capabilities allow users to retrieve the raw data and/or to perform their own data processing. The query language used to access the repository is a restricted subset of the structured query language (SQL) that can be built safely from the Web user interface, or entered as freeform SQL by a user. The results are returned in a CSV (Comma Separated Values) format for easy exporting to third party tools and applications that can be used for data mining or user-defined visualization and interpretation. This is the first time that a service is capable of providing access to all cross-project relay data from a single Web resource. Because MaROS contains the data for a variety of missions from the Mars network, which span both NASA and ESA, the software also establishes an access control list (ACL) on each data record in the database repository to enforce user access permissions through a multilayered approach.
Settanni, Michele; Marengo, Davide
2015-01-01
Digital traces of activity on social network sites represent a vast source of ecological data with potential connections with individual behavioral and psychological characteristics. The present study investigates the relationship between user-generated textual content shared on Facebook and emotional well-being. Self-report measures of depression, anxiety, and stress were collected from 201 adult Facebook users from North Italy. Emotion-related textual indicators, including emoticon use, were extracted form users' Facebook posts via automated text analysis. Correlation analyses revealed that individuals with higher levels of depression, anxiety expressed negative emotions on Facebook more frequently. In addition, use of emoticons expressing positive emotions correlated negatively with stress level. When comparing age groups, younger users reported higher frequency of both emotion-related words and emoticon use in their posts. Also, the relationship between online emotional expression and self-report emotional well-being was generally stronger in the younger group. Overall, findings support the feasibility and validity of studying individual emotional well-being by means of examination of Facebook profiles. Implications for online screening purposes and future research directions are discussed.
Databases post-processing in Tensoral
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Dresselhaus, Eliot
1994-01-01
The Center for Turbulent Research (CTR) post-processing effort aims to make turbulence simulations and data more readily and usefully available to the research and industrial communities. The Tensoral language, introduced in this document and currently existing in prototype form, is the foundation of this effort. Tensoral provides a convenient and powerful protocol to connect users who wish to analyze fluids databases with the authors who generate them. In this document we introduce Tensoral and its prototype implementation in the form of a user's guide. This guide focuses on use of Tensoral for post-processing turbulence databases. The corresponding document - the Tensoral 'author's guide' - which focuses on how authors can make databases available to users via the Tensoral system - is currently unwritten. Section 1 of this user's guide defines Tensoral's basic notions: we explain the class of problems at hand and how Tensoral abstracts them. Section 2 defines Tensoral syntax for mathematical expressions. Section 3 shows how these expressions make up Tensoral statements. Section 4 shows how Tensoral statements and expressions are embedded into other computer languages (such as C or Vectoral) to make Tensoral programs. We conclude with a complete example program.
Chang, Polun; Tzeng, Yuann-Meei; Wu, Shiao-Chi; Sang, Ying-Yang; Chen, Shih-Shin
2003-01-01
An advanced PDA support system for the triage was designed to evaluate users inverted exclamation mark | acceptance of this system compared with a traditional terminal system. Davis inverted exclamation mark | Technology Acceptance Model was used to evaluate users inverted exclamation mark | acceptance. All 72 ER nurses in a 2700-bed medical center were invited for the study. The results showed that the PDA system was easier to operate than the terminal one, but had worse interface. The subjects showed significantly greater willingness to accept the terminal system instead of the PDA system. The comparative acceptance of PDA, compared with that of the old system, might still be marginally too low if its interface couldn inverted exclamation mark |t be improved or no other unique practical benefits could be verified.
Oostenveld, Robert; Fries, Pascal; Maris, Eric; Schoffelen, Jan-Mathijs
2011-01-01
This paper describes FieldTrip, an open source software package that we developed for the analysis of MEG, EEG, and other electrophysiological data. The software is implemented as a MATLAB toolbox and includes a complete set of consistent and user-friendly high-level functions that allow experimental neuroscientists to analyze experimental data. It includes algorithms for simple and advanced analysis, such as time-frequency analysis using multitapers, source reconstruction using dipoles, distributed sources and beamformers, connectivity analysis, and nonparametric statistical permutation tests at the channel and source level. The implementation as toolbox allows the user to perform elaborate and structured analyses of large data sets using the MATLAB command line and batch scripting. Furthermore, users and developers can easily extend the functionality and implement new algorithms. The modular design facilitates the reuse in other software packages.
Younger and Older Users’ Recognition of Virtual Agent Facial Expressions
Beer, Jenay M.; Smarr, Cory-Ann; Fisk, Arthur D.; Rogers, Wendy A.
2015-01-01
As technology advances, robots and virtual agents will be introduced into the home and healthcare settings to assist individuals, both young and old, with everyday living tasks. Understanding how users recognize an agent’s social cues is therefore imperative, especially in social interactions. Facial expression, in particular, is one of the most common non-verbal cues used to display and communicate emotion in on-screen agents (Cassell, Sullivan, Prevost, & Churchill, 2000). Age is important to consider because age-related differences in emotion recognition of human facial expression have been supported (Ruffman et al., 2008), with older adults showing a deficit for recognition of negative facial expressions. Previous work has shown that younger adults can effectively recognize facial emotions displayed by agents (Bartneck & Reichenbach, 2005; Courgeon et al. 2009; 2011; Breazeal, 2003); however, little research has compared in-depth younger and older adults’ ability to label a virtual agent’s facial emotions, an import consideration because social agents will be required to interact with users of varying ages. If such age-related differences exist for recognition of virtual agent facial expressions, we aim to understand if those age-related differences are influenced by the intensity of the emotion, dynamic formation of emotion (i.e., a neutral expression developing into an expression of emotion through motion), or the type of virtual character differing by human-likeness. Study 1 investigated the relationship between age-related differences, the implication of dynamic formation of emotion, and the role of emotion intensity in emotion recognition of the facial expressions of a virtual agent (iCat). Study 2 examined age-related differences in recognition expressed by three types of virtual characters differing by human-likeness (non-humanoid iCat, synthetic human, and human). Study 2 also investigated the role of configural and featural processing as a possible explanation for age-related differences in emotion recognition. First, our findings show age-related differences in the recognition of emotions expressed by a virtual agent, with older adults showing lower recognition for the emotions of anger, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness, and neutral. These age-related difference might be explained by older adults having difficulty discriminating similarity in configural arrangement of facial features for certain emotions; for example, older adults often mislabeled the similar emotions of fear as surprise. Second, our results did not provide evidence for the dynamic formation improving emotion recognition; but, in general, the intensity of the emotion improved recognition. Lastly, we learned that emotion recognition, for older and younger adults, differed by character type, from best to worst: human, synthetic human, and then iCat. Our findings provide guidance for design, as well as the development of a framework of age-related differences in emotion recognition. PMID:25705105
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Garg, Manoj
2010-01-01
Negative consequences follow when an expensive technological implementation fails to accomplish expected benefits and results instead in interrupted business, lost revenues, and dissatisfied and demoralized users. The problem researched in this study was how an organization should introduce advanced technology to system users to optimize…
A Test of Strategies for Enhanced Learning of AP Descriptive Chemistry
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Kotcherlakota, Suhasini; Brooks, David W.
2008-01-01
The Advanced Placement (AP) Descriptive Chemistry Website allows users to practice chemistry problems. This study involved the redesign of the Website using worked examples to enhance learner performance. The population sample for the study includes users (students and teachers) interested in learning descriptive chemistry materials. The users…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Rollo, J. Michael; Marmarchev, Helen L.
1999-01-01
The explosion of computer applications in the modern workplace has required student affairs professionals to keep pace with technological advances for office productivity. This article recommends establishing an administrative computer user groups, utilizing coordinated web site development, and enhancing working relationships as ways of dealing…
The Librarian and the Library User: What the Future Holds.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Electronic Library, 1997
1997-01-01
Discusses the role of information professionals in the future, based on a session at the Online Information 96 conference in London (England). Topics include equipment and software needs; technological advances; a trend toward distance education; how library users are adapting to change; interlibrary loans; online public access catalogs; and…
18 CFR 37.8 - Obligations of OASIS users.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-04-01
..., DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY REGULATIONS UNDER THE FEDERAL POWER ACT OPEN ACCESS SAME-TIME INFORMATION SYSTEMS § 37.8... initiating a significant amount of automated queries. The OASIS user must also notify the Responsible Party one month in advance of expected significant increases in the volume of automated queries. [Order 605...
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-07-01
... 32 National Defense 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Collections. 204.6 Section 204.6 National... USER FEES § 204.6 Collections. (a) Collections of fees will be made in advance or simultaneously with..., and managing cash and debt collections. (b) Unless a statute provides otherwise, user fee collections...
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
1993-12-01
Increasing attention has been paid in recent years to the use of Advanced Traveler Information Systems (ATIS) for alleviating traffic congestion. Understanding user response to traffic, transit, and parking information is important both for designing...
Mining Feedback in Ranking and Recommendation Systems
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Zhuang, Ziming
2009-01-01
The amount of online information has grown exponentially over the past few decades, and users become more and more dependent on ranking and recommendation systems to address their information seeking needs. The advance in information technologies has enabled users to provide feedback on the utilities of the underlying ranking and recommendation…
Chen, Ming; Henry, Nathan; Almsaeed, Abdullah; Zhou, Xiao; Wegrzyn, Jill; Ficklin, Stephen
2017-01-01
Abstract Tripal is an open source software package for developing biological databases with a focus on genetic and genomic data. It consists of a set of core modules that deliver essential functions for loading and displaying data records and associated attributes including organisms, sequence features and genetic markers. Beyond the core modules, community members are encouraged to contribute extension modules to build on the Tripal core and to customize Tripal for individual community needs. To expand the utility of the Tripal software system, particularly for RNASeq data, we developed two new extension modules. Tripal Elasticsearch enables fast, scalable searching of the entire content of a Tripal site as well as the construction of customized advanced searches of specific data types. We demonstrate the use of this module for searching assembled transcripts by functional annotation. A second module, Tripal Analysis Expression, houses and displays records from gene expression assays such as RNA sequencing. This includes biological source materials (biomaterials), gene expression values and protocols used to generate the data. In the case of an RNASeq experiment, this would reflect the individual organisms and tissues used to produce sequencing libraries, the normalized gene expression values derived from the RNASeq data analysis and a description of the software or code used to generate the expression values. The module will load data from common flat file formats including standard NCBI Biosample XML. Data loading, display options and other configurations can be controlled by authorized users in the Drupal administrative backend. Both modules are open source, include usage documentation, and can be found in the Tripal organization’s GitHub repository. Database URL: Tripal Elasticsearch module: https://github.com/tripal/tripal_elasticsearch Tripal Analysis Expression module: https://github.com/tripal/tripal_analysis_expression PMID:29220446
Dupl'áková, Nikoleta; Renák, David; Hovanec, Patrik; Honysová, Barbora; Twell, David; Honys, David
2007-07-23
Microarray technologies now belong to the standard functional genomics toolbox and have undergone massive development leading to increased genome coverage, accuracy and reliability. The number of experiments exploiting microarray technology has markedly increased in recent years. In parallel with the rapid accumulation of transcriptomic data, on-line analysis tools are being introduced to simplify their use. Global statistical data analysis methods contribute to the development of overall concepts about gene expression patterns and to query and compose working hypotheses. More recently, these applications are being supplemented with more specialized products offering visualization and specific data mining tools. We present a curated gene family-oriented gene expression database, Arabidopsis Gene Family Profiler (aGFP; http://agfp.ueb.cas.cz), which gives the user access to a large collection of normalised Affymetrix ATH1 microarray datasets. The database currently contains NASC Array and AtGenExpress transcriptomic datasets for various tissues at different developmental stages of wild type plants gathered from nearly 350 gene chips. The Arabidopsis GFP database has been designed as an easy-to-use tool for users needing an easily accessible resource for expression data of single genes, pre-defined gene families or custom gene sets, with the further possibility of keyword search. Arabidopsis Gene Family Profiler presents a user-friendly web interface using both graphic and text output. Data are stored at the MySQL server and individual queries are created in PHP script. The most distinguishable features of Arabidopsis Gene Family Profiler database are: 1) the presentation of normalized datasets (Affymetrix MAS algorithm and calculation of model-based gene-expression values based on the Perfect Match-only model); 2) the choice between two different normalization algorithms (Affymetrix MAS4 or MAS5 algorithms); 3) an intuitive interface; 4) an interactive "virtual plant" visualizing the spatial and developmental expression profiles of both gene families and individual genes. Arabidopsis GFP gives users the possibility to analyze current Arabidopsis developmental transcriptomic data starting with simple global queries that can be expanded and further refined to visualize comparative and highly selective gene expression profiles.
Almutairi, Nasser; Alhabash, Saleem; Hellmueller, Lea; Willis, Erin
2018-01-01
In this study, male and female participants were exposed to identical news stories covering obesity topics paired with tweets from Twitter users. Our study aimed at understanding how obesity-related news combined with user-generated social media posts (i.e., tweets) affect consumers' evaluations of online content and viral behavioral intentions (the intentions to like, share, and comment). An experiment (N = 316) explored how gender and weight of a Twitter user (tweeter) affect participants' evaluations and viral behavioral intentions toward news stories. Participants differed in their evaluations of and viral behavioral intentions for news stories as a function of Twitter users' gender and weight, as well as participants' gender. While participants expressed more favorable attitudes toward news stories paired with tweets by overweight than healthy females (with the opposite true for tweets by male users), participants expressed greater viral behavioral intentions for news stories paired with tweets by healthy weight than overweight user. These effects were more pronounced among male than female participants. Findings are discussed within the context of social media posts and their persuasive effects in relation to attitude and behavior changes.
Directed module detection in a large-scale expression compendium.
Fu, Qiang; Lemmens, Karen; Sanchez-Rodriguez, Aminael; Thijs, Inge M; Meysman, Pieter; Sun, Hong; Fierro, Ana Carolina; Engelen, Kristof; Marchal, Kathleen
2012-01-01
Public online microarray databases contain tremendous amounts of expression data. Mining these data sources can provide a wealth of information on the underlying transcriptional networks. In this chapter, we illustrate how the web services COLOMBOS and DISTILLER can be used to identify condition-dependent coexpression modules by exploring compendia of public expression data. COLOMBOS is designed for user-specified query-driven analysis, whereas DISTILLER generates a global regulatory network overview. The user is guided through both web services by means of a case study in which condition-dependent coexpression modules comprising a gene of interest (i.e., "directed") are identified.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
deNoyelles, Aimee; Seo, Kay Kyeong-Ju
2012-01-01
A 3D multi-user virtual environment holds promise to support and enhance student online learning communities due to its ability to promote global synchronous interaction and collaboration, rich multisensory experience and expression, and elaborate design capabilities. Second Life[R], a multi-user virtual environment intended for adult users 18 and…
Klein, M S; Ross, F
1997-01-01
Using the results of the 1993 Medical Library Association (MLA) Hospital Libraries Section survey of hospital-based end-user search services, this article describes how end-user search services can become an impetus for an expanded information management and technology role for the hospital librarian. An end-user services implementation plan is presented that focuses on software, hardware, finances, policies, staff allocations and responsibilities, educational program design, and program evaluation. Possibilities for extending end-user search services into information technology and informatics, specialized end-user search systems, and Internet access are described. Future opportunities are identified for expanding the hospital librarian's role in the face of changing health care management, advances in information technology, and increasing end-user expectations. PMID:9285126
Automation Applications in an Advanced Air Traffic Management System : Volume 1. Summary.
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
1974-08-01
The Advanced Air Traffic Management System (AATMS) program is a long-range investigation of new concepts and techniques for controlling air traffic and providing services to the growing number of commercial, military, and general aviation users of th...
2012-01-01
Background It is known from recent studies that more than 90% of human multi-exon genes are subject to Alternative Splicing (AS), a key molecular mechanism in which multiple transcripts may be generated from a single gene. It is widely recognized that a breakdown in AS mechanisms plays an important role in cellular differentiation and pathologies. Polymerase Chain Reactions, microarrays and sequencing technologies have been applied to the study of transcript diversity arising from alternative expression. Last generation Affymetrix GeneChip Human Exon 1.0 ST Arrays offer a more detailed view of the gene expression profile providing information on the AS patterns. The exon array technology, with more than five million data points, can detect approximately one million exons, and it allows performing analyses at both gene and exon level. In this paper we describe BEAT, an integrated user-friendly bioinformatics framework to store, analyze and visualize exon arrays datasets. It combines a data warehouse approach with some rigorous statistical methods for assessing the AS of genes involved in diseases. Meta statistics are proposed as a novel approach to explore the analysis results. BEAT is available at http://beat.ba.itb.cnr.it. Results BEAT is a web tool which allows uploading and analyzing exon array datasets using standard statistical methods and an easy-to-use graphical web front-end. BEAT has been tested on a dataset with 173 samples and tuned using new datasets of exon array experiments from 28 colorectal cancer and 26 renal cell cancer samples produced at the Medical Genetics Unit of IRCCS Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza. To highlight all possible AS events, alternative names, accession Ids, Gene Ontology terms and biochemical pathways annotations are integrated with exon and gene level expression plots. The user can customize the results choosing custom thresholds for the statistical parameters and exploiting the available clinical data of the samples for a multivariate AS analysis. Conclusions Despite exon array chips being widely used for transcriptomics studies, there is a lack of analysis tools offering advanced statistical features and requiring no programming knowledge. BEAT provides a user-friendly platform for a comprehensive study of AS events in human diseases, displaying the analysis results with easily interpretable and interactive tables and graphics. PMID:22536968
BIG: a large-scale data integration tool for renal physiology.
Zhao, Yue; Yang, Chin-Rang; Raghuram, Viswanathan; Parulekar, Jaya; Knepper, Mark A
2016-10-01
Due to recent advances in high-throughput techniques, we and others have generated multiple proteomic and transcriptomic databases to describe and quantify gene expression, protein abundance, or cellular signaling on the scale of the whole genome/proteome in kidney cells. The existence of so much data from diverse sources raises the following question: "How can researchers find information efficiently for a given gene product over all of these data sets without searching each data set individually?" This is the type of problem that has motivated the "Big-Data" revolution in Data Science, which has driven progress in fields such as marketing. Here we present an online Big-Data tool called BIG (Biological Information Gatherer) that allows users to submit a single online query to obtain all relevant information from all indexed databases. BIG is accessible at http://big.nhlbi.nih.gov/.
Expressions Module for the Satellite Orbit Analysis Program
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Edmonds, Karina
2008-01-01
The Expressions Module is a software module that has been incorporated into the Satellite Orbit Analysis Program (SOAP). The module includes an expressions- parser submodule built on top of an analytical system, enabling the user to define logical and numerical variables and constants. The variables can capture output from SOAP orbital-prediction and geometric-engine computations. The module can combine variables and constants with built-in logical operators (such as Boolean AND, OR, and NOT), relational operators (such as >, <, or =), and mathematical operators (such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, modulus, exponentiation, differentiation, and integration). Parentheses can be used to specify precedence of operations. The module contains a library of mathematical functions and operations, including logarithms, trigonometric functions, Bessel functions, minimum/ maximum operations, and floating- point-to-integer conversions. The module supports combinations of time, distance, and angular units and has a dimensional- analysis component that checks for correct usage of units. A parser based on the Flex language and the Bison program looks for and indicates errors in syntax. SOAP expressions can be built using other expressions as arguments, thus enabling the user to build analytical trees. A graphical user interface facilitates use.
NCBI GEO: mining tens of millions of expression profiles--database and tools update.
Barrett, Tanya; Troup, Dennis B; Wilhite, Stephen E; Ledoux, Pierre; Rudnev, Dmitry; Evangelista, Carlos; Kim, Irene F; Soboleva, Alexandra; Tomashevsky, Maxim; Edgar, Ron
2007-01-01
The Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) repository at the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) archives and freely disseminates microarray and other forms of high-throughput data generated by the scientific community. The database has a minimum information about a microarray experiment (MIAME)-compliant infrastructure that captures fully annotated raw and processed data. Several data deposit options and formats are supported, including web forms, spreadsheets, XML and Simple Omnibus Format in Text (SOFT). In addition to data storage, a collection of user-friendly web-based interfaces and applications are available to help users effectively explore, visualize and download the thousands of experiments and tens of millions of gene expression patterns stored in GEO. This paper provides a summary of the GEO database structure and user facilities, and describes recent enhancements to database design, performance, submission format options, data query and retrieval utilities. GEO is accessible at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/
Parkin protein expression and its impact on survival of patients with advanced colorectal cancer.
da Silva-Camargo, Claudia Caroline Veloso; Svoboda Baldin, Rosimeri Kuhl; Costacurta Polli, Nayanne Louise; Agostinho, Amanda Pereira; Olandosk, Marcia; de Noronha, Lúcia; Sotomaior, Vanessa Santos
2018-02-01
Features of colorectal cancer such as natural history, molecular, chromosomal, and epigenetic alterations have been well described. However, there is still a lack of accurate prognostic markers, which is evident by the lower overall survival rates of patients with advanced cancer. Although alterations in parkin protein expression have been described in colorectal cancer, the functional significance of this protein remains unknown. The present study aimed to investigate the involvement of parkin expression in colorectal adenocarcinoma development and progression by evaluating the association between its expression, clinicopathological parameters, and expression of known proteins involved in colorectal cancer. Tissue microarrays consisting of 73 tumor and 64 normal tissue samples were generated to examine parkin expression and localization by immunohistochemistry. A positive correlation of parkin and APC expression was observed in the superficial, intermediate, and profound regions of all cases (ρ = 0.37; P = 0.001). Parkin expression was also significantly associated with tumors in men ( P = 0.049), those of the mucinous subtype ( P = 0.028), and of advanced stage (III + IV, P = 0.041). In addition, increased parkin expression was observed in the invasive front tumor region ( P = 0.013). More importantly, a positive correlation was found between parkin expression and the overall survival of patients with advanced colorectal cancer ( P = 0.019). Multivariate analysis showed that parkin expression was independent of any of the clinicopathological parameters evaluated in relation to patient survival. These results suggest that parkin expression status can be used as a potential independent prognostic marker of survival in advanced colorectal cancer.
User Needs and Advances in Space Wireless Sensing and Communications
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Kegege, Obadiah
2017-01-01
Decades of space exploration and technology trends for future missions show the need for new approaches in space/planetary sensor networks, observatories, internetworking, and communications/data delivery to Earth. The User Needs to be discussed in this talk includes interviews with several scientists and reviews of mission concepts for the next generation of sensors, observatories, and planetary surface missions. These observatories, sensors are envisioned to operate in extreme environments, with advanced autonomy, whereby sometimes communication to Earth is intermittent and delayed. These sensor nodes require software defined networking capabilities in order to learn and adapt to the environment, collect science data, internetwork, and communicate. Also, some user cases require the level of intelligence to manage network functions (either as a host), mobility, security, and interface data to the physical radio/optical layer. For instance, on a planetary surface, autonomous sensor nodes would create their own ad-hoc network, with some nodes handling communication capabilities between the wireless sensor networks and orbiting relay satellites. A section of this talk will cover the advances in space communication and internetworking to support future space missions. NASA's Space Communications and Navigation (SCaN) program continues to evolve with the development of optical communication, a new vision of the integrated network architecture with more capabilities, and the adoption of CCSDS space internetworking protocols. Advances in wireless communications hardware and electronics have enabled software defined networking (DVB-S2, VCM, ACM, DTN, Ad hoc, etc.) protocols for improved wireless communication and network management. Developing technologies to fulfil these user needs for wireless communications and adoption of standardized communication/internetworking protocols will be a huge benefit to future planetary missions, space observatories, and manned missions to other planets.
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
1974-08-01
Volume 4 describes the automation requirements. A presentation of automation requirements is made for an advanced air traffic management system in terms of controller work for-e, computer resources, controller productivity, system manning, failure ef...
Concept for a Satellite-Based Advanced Air Traffic Management System : Volume 7. System Cost.
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
1973-02-01
The volume presents estimates of the federal government and user costs for the Satellite-Based Advanced Air Traffic Management System and the supporting rationale. The system configuration is that presented in volumes II and III. The cost estimates a...
Interfaces for Advanced Computing.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Foley, James D.
1987-01-01
Discusses the coming generation of supercomputers that will have the power to make elaborate "artificial realities" that facilitate user-computer communication. Illustrates these technological advancements with examples of the use of head-mounted monitors which are connected to position and orientation sensors, and gloves that track finger and…
Evaluation of Five Microcomputer CAD Packages.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Leach, James A.
1987-01-01
Discusses the similarities, differences, advanced features, applications and number of users of five microcomputer computer-aided design (CAD) packages. Included are: "AutoCAD (V.2.17)"; "CADKEY (V.2.0)"; "CADVANCE (V.1.0)"; "Super MicroCAD"; and "VersaCAD Advanced (V.4.00)." Describes the…
Technical and economic feasibility of integrated video service by satellite
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Price, K. M.; Kwan, R. K.; White, L. W.; Garlow, R. K.; Henderson, T. R.
1992-01-01
A feasibility study is presented of utilizing modern satellite technology, or more advanced technology, to create a cost-effective, user-friendly, integrated video service, which can provide videophone, video conference, or other equivalent wideband service on demand. A system is described that permits a user to select a desired audience and establish the required links similar to arranging a teleconference by phone. Attention is given to video standards, video traffic scenarios, satellite system architecture, and user costs.
Space Communication Artificial Intelligence for Link Evaluation Terminal (SCAILET)
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Shahidi, Anoosh K.; Schlegelmilch, Richard F.; Petrik, Edward J.; Walters, Jerry L.
1992-01-01
A software application to assist end-users of the high burst rate (HBR) link evaluation terminal (LET) for satellite communications is being developed. The HBR LET system developed at NASA Lewis Research Center is an element of the Advanced Communications Technology Satellite (ACTS) Project. The HBR LET is divided into seven major subsystems, each with its own expert. Programming scripts, test procedures defined by design engineers, set up the HBR LET system. These programming scripts are cryptic, hard to maintain and require a steep learning curve. These scripts were developed by the system engineers who will not be available for the end-users of the system. To increase end-user productivity a friendly interface needs to be added to the system. One possible solution is to provide the user with adequate documentation to perform the needed tasks. With the complexity of this system the vast amount of documentation needed would be overwhelming and the information would be hard to retrieve. With limited resources, maintenance is another reason for not using this form of documentation. An advanced form of interaction is being explored using current computer techniques. This application, which incorporates a combination of multimedia and artificial intelligence (AI) techniques to provided end-users with an intelligent interface to the HBR LET system, is comprised of an intelligent assistant, intelligent tutoring, and hypermedia documentation. The intelligent assistant and tutoring systems address the critical programming needs of the end-user.
The Semantic eScience Framework
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
McGuinness, Deborah; Fox, Peter; Hendler, James
2010-05-01
The goal of this effort is to design and implement a configurable and extensible semantic eScience framework (SESF). Configuration requires research into accommodating different levels of semantic expressivity and user requirements from use cases. Extensibility is being achieved in a modular approach to the semantic encodings (i.e. ontologies) performed in community settings, i.e. an ontology framework into which specific applications all the way up to communities can extend the semantics for their needs.We report on how we are accommodating the rapid advances in semantic technologies and tools and the sustainable software path for the future (certain) technical advances. In addition to a generalization of the current data science interface, we will present plans for an upper-level interface suitable for use by clearinghouses, and/or educational portals, digital libraries, and other disciplines.SESF builds upon previous work in the Virtual Solar-Terrestrial Observatory. The VSTO utilizes leading edge knowledge representation, query and reasoning techniques to support knowledge-enhanced search, data access, integration, and manipulation. It encodes term meanings and their inter-relationships in ontologies anduses these ontologies and associated inference engines to semantically enable the data services. The Semantically-Enabled Science Data Integration (SESDI) project implemented data integration capabilities among three sub-disciplines; solar radiation, volcanic outgassing and atmospheric structure using extensions to existingmodular ontolgies and used the VSTO data framework, while adding smart faceted search and semantic data registrationtools. The Semantic Provenance Capture in Data Ingest Systems (SPCDIS) has added explanation provenance capabilities to an observational data ingest pipeline for images of the Sun providing a set of tools to answer diverseend user questions such as ``Why does this image look bad?. http://tw.rpi.edu/portal/SESF
The Semantic eScience Framework
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Fox, P. A.; McGuinness, D. L.
2009-12-01
The goal of this effort is to design and implement a configurable and extensible semantic eScience framework (SESF). Configuration requires research into accommodating different levels of semantic expressivity and user requirements from use cases. Extensibility is being achieved in a modular approach to the semantic encodings (i.e. ontologies) performed in community settings, i.e. an ontology framework into which specific applications all the way up to communities can extend the semantics for their needs.We report on how we are accommodating the rapid advances in semantic technologies and tools and the sustainable software path for the future (certain) technical advances. In addition to a generalization of the current data science interface, we will present plans for an upper-level interface suitable for use by clearinghouses, and/or educational portals, digital libraries, and other disciplines.SESF builds upon previous work in the Virtual Solar-Terrestrial Observatory. The VSTO utilizes leading edge knowledge representation, query and reasoning techniques to support knowledge-enhanced search, data access, integration, and manipulation. It encodes term meanings and their inter-relationships in ontologies anduses these ontologies and associated inference engines to semantically enable the data services. The Semantically-Enabled Science Data Integration (SESDI) project implemented data integration capabilities among three sub-disciplines; solar radiation, volcanic outgassing and atmospheric structure using extensions to existingmodular ontolgies and used the VSTO data framework, while adding smart faceted search and semantic data registrationtools. The Semantic Provenance Capture in Data Ingest Systems (SPCDIS) has added explanation provenance capabilities to an observational data ingest pipeline for images of the Sun providing a set of tools to answer diverseend user questions such as ``Why does this image look bad?.
Intro and Recent Advances: Remote Data Access via OPeNDAP Web Services
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Fulker, David
2016-01-01
During the upcoming Summer 2016 meeting of the ESIP Federation (July 19-22), OpenDAP will hold a Developers and Users Workshop. While a broad set of topics will be covered, a key focus is capitalizing on recent EOSDIS-sponsored advances in Hyrax, OPeNDAPs own software for server-side realization of the DAP2 and DAP4 protocols. These Hyrax advances are as important to data users as to data providers, and the workshop will include hands-on experiences of value to both. Specifically, a balanced set of presentations and hands-on tutorials will address advances in1.server installation,2.server configuration,3.Hyrax aggregation capabilities,4.support for data-access from clients that are HTTP-based, JSON-based or OGC-compliant (especially WCS and WMS),5.support for DAP4,6.use and extension of server-side computational capabilities, and7.several performance-affecting matters. Topics 2 through 7 will be relevant to data consumers, data providers and notably, due to the open-source nature of all OPeNDAP software to developers wishing to extend Hyrax, to build compatible clients and servers, and/or to employ Hyrax as middleware that enables interoperability across a variety of end-user and source-data contexts. A session for contributed talks will elaborate the topics listed above and embrace additional ones.
Advances in anesthesia technology are improving patient care, but many challenges remain.
John Doyle, D; Dahaba, Ashraf; LeManach, Yannick
2018-04-13
Although significant advances in clinical monitoring technology and clinical practice development have taken place in the last several decades, in this editorial we argue that much more still needs to be done. We begin by identifying many of the improvements in perioperative technology that have become available in recent years; these include electroencephalographic depth of anesthesia monitoring, bedside ultrasonography, advanced neuromuscular transmission monitoring systems, and other developments. We then discuss some of the perioperative technical challenges that remain to be satisfactorily addressed, such as products that incorporate poor software design or offer a confusing user interface. Finally we suggest that the journal support initiatives to help remedy this problem by publishing reports on the evaluation of medical equipment as a means to restore the link between clinical research and clinical end-users.
Efficacy of Online Social Networks on Language Teaching: A Bangladeshi Perspective
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Shams, Shaila
2014-01-01
It is now an established fact that the use of technology facilitates teaching and learning in language classrooms. With the advancement of technology, social networking websites have emerged too. Social networking sites have been quite popular among various age group users particularly the young users since their invention. Also, they are…
Using R in Introductory Statistics Courses with the pmg Graphical User Interface
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Verzani, John
2008-01-01
The pmg add-on package for the open source statistics software R is described. This package provides a simple to use graphical user interface (GUI) that allows introductory statistics students, without advanced computing skills, to quickly create the graphical and numeric summaries expected of them. (Contains 9 figures.)
Effect of oral anticoagulants on the outcome of faecal immunochemical test
Bujanda, L; Sarasqueta, C; Lanas, Á; Quintero, E; Cubiella, J; Hernandez, V; Morillas, J D; Perez-Fernández, T; Salas, D; Andreu, M; Carballo, F; Bessa, X; Portillo, I; Jover, R; Balaguer, F; Cosme, A; Castells, A
2014-01-01
Background: We aimed to evaluate whether oral anticoagulants (OACs) alter faecal immunochemical test (FIT) performance in average-risk colorectal cancer (CRC) screening. Methods: Individuals aged 50–69 years were invited to receive one FIT sample (cutoff 75 ng ml–1) between November 2008 and June 2011. Results: Faecal immunochemical test was positive in 9.3% (21 out of 224) of users of OAC and 6.2% (365 out of 5821) of non-users (P-trend=0.07). The positive predictive value (PPV) for advanced neoplasia (AN) in non-users was 50.4% vs 47.6% in users (odds ratio, 0.70; 95% CI, 0.3–1.8; P=0.5). The PPV for AN in OAC more antiplatelets (aspirin or clopidogrel) was 75% (odds ratio, 2; 95% CI, 0.4–10.8; P=0.4). Conclusions: Oral anticoagulant did not significantly modify the PPV for AN in this population-based colorectal screening program. The detection rate of advanced adenoma was higher in the combination OAC more antiplatelets. PMID:24496455
Exploiting co-adaptation for the design of symbiotic neuroprosthetic assistants.
Sanchez, Justin C; Mahmoudi, Babak; DiGiovanna, Jack; Principe, Jose C
2009-04-01
The success of brain-machine interfaces (BMI) is enabled by the remarkable ability of the brain to incorporate the artificial neuroprosthetic 'tool' into its own cognitive space and use it as an extension of the user's body. Unlike other tools, neuroprosthetics create a shared space that seamlessly spans the user's internal goal representation of the world and the external physical environment enabling a much deeper human-tool symbiosis. A key factor in the transformation of 'simple tools' into 'intelligent tools' is the concept of co-adaptation where the tool becomes functionally involved in the extraction and definition of the user's goals. Recent advancements in the neuroscience and engineering of neuroprosthetics are providing a blueprint for how new co-adaptive designs based on reinforcement learning change the nature of a user's ability to accomplish tasks that were not possible using conventional methodologies. By designing adaptive controls and artificial intelligence into the neural interface, tools can become active assistants in goal-directed behavior and further enhance human performance in particular for the disabled population. This paper presents recent advances in computational and neural systems supporting the development of symbiotic neuroprosthetic assistants.
Influence of age on androgen deprivation therapy-associated Alzheimer’s disease
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Nead, Kevin T.; Gaskin, Greg; Chester, Cariad; Swisher-McClure, Samuel; Dudley, Joel T.; Leeper, Nicholas J.; Shah, Nigam H.
2016-10-01
We recently found an association between androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) and Alzheimer’s disease. As Alzheimer’s disease is a disease of advanced age, we hypothesize that older individuals on ADT may be at greatest risk. We conducted a retrospective multi-institutional analysis among 16,888 individuals with prostate cancer using an informatics approach. We tested the effect of ADT on Alzheimer’s disease using Kaplan-Meier age stratified analyses in a propensity score matched cohort. We found a lower cumulative probability of remaining Alzheimer’s disease-free between non-ADT users age ≥70 versus those age <70 years (p < 0.001) and between ADT versus non-ADT users ≥70 years (p = 0.034). The 5-year probability of developing Alzheimer’s disease was 2.9%, 1.9% and 0.5% among ADT users ≥70, non-ADT users ≥70 and individuals <70 years, respectively. Compared to younger individuals older men on ADT may have the greatest absolute Alzheimer’s disease risk. Future work should investigate the ADT Alzheimer’s disease association in advanced age populations given the greater potential clinical impact.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Szczur, Martha R.
1991-01-01
The Transportable Applications Environment (TAE) Plus, developed at GSFC, is an advanced portable user interface development environment which simplifies the process of creating and managing complex application graphical user interfaces (GUI's), supports prototyping, allows applications to be ported easily between different platforms and encourages appropriate levels of user interface consistency between applications. The following topics are discussed: the capabilities of the TAE Plus tool; how the implementation has utilized state-of-the-art technologies within graphic workstations; and how it has been used both within and outside of NASA.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Pop, Florin; Dobre, Ciprian; Mocanu, Bogdan-Costel; Citoteanu, Oana-Maria; Xhafa, Fatos
2016-11-01
Managing the large dimensions of data processed in distributed systems that are formed by datacentres and mobile devices has become a challenging issue with an important impact on the end-user. Therefore, the management process of such systems can be achieved efficiently by using uniform overlay networks, interconnected through secure and efficient routing protocols. The aim of this article is to advance our previous work with a novel trust model based on a reputation metric that actively uses the social links between users and the model of interaction between them. We present and evaluate an adaptive model for the trust management in structured overlay networks, based on a Mobile Cloud architecture and considering a honeycomb overlay. Such a model can be useful for supporting advanced mobile market-share e-Commerce platforms, where users collaborate and exchange reliable information about, for example, products of interest and supporting ad-hoc business campaigns
Oostenveld, Robert; Fries, Pascal; Maris, Eric; Schoffelen, Jan-Mathijs
2011-01-01
This paper describes FieldTrip, an open source software package that we developed for the analysis of MEG, EEG, and other electrophysiological data. The software is implemented as a MATLAB toolbox and includes a complete set of consistent and user-friendly high-level functions that allow experimental neuroscientists to analyze experimental data. It includes algorithms for simple and advanced analysis, such as time-frequency analysis using multitapers, source reconstruction using dipoles, distributed sources and beamformers, connectivity analysis, and nonparametric statistical permutation tests at the channel and source level. The implementation as toolbox allows the user to perform elaborate and structured analyses of large data sets using the MATLAB command line and batch scripting. Furthermore, users and developers can easily extend the functionality and implement new algorithms. The modular design facilitates the reuse in other software packages. PMID:21253357
Hazan, Lynn; Zugaro, Michaël; Buzsáki, György
2006-09-15
Recent technological advances now allow for simultaneous recording of large populations of anatomically distributed neurons in behaving animals. The free software package described here was designed to help neurophysiologists process and view recorded data in an efficient and user-friendly manner. This package consists of several well-integrated applications, including NeuroScope (http://neuroscope.sourceforce.net), an advanced viewer for electrophysiological and behavioral data with limited editing capabilities, Klusters (http://klusters.sourceforge.net), a graphical cluster cutting application for manual and semi-automatic spike sorting, NDManager (GPL,see http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl.html), an experimental parameter and data processing manager. All of these programs are distributed under the GNU General Public License (GPL, see ), which gives its users legal permission to copy, distribute and/or modify the software. Also included are extensive user manuals and sample data, as well as source code and documentation.
Towards a Ubiquitous User Model for Profile Sharing and Reuse
de Lourdes Martinez-Villaseñor, Maria; Gonzalez-Mendoza, Miguel; Hernandez-Gress, Neil
2012-01-01
People interact with systems and applications through several devices and are willing to share information about preferences, interests and characteristics. Social networking profiles, data from advanced sensors attached to personal gadgets, and semantic web technologies such as FOAF and microformats are valuable sources of personal information that could provide a fair understanding of the user, but profile information is scattered over different user models. Some researchers in the ubiquitous user modeling community envision the need to share user model's information from heterogeneous sources. In this paper, we address the syntactic and semantic heterogeneity of user models in order to enable user modeling interoperability. We present a dynamic user profile structure based in Simple Knowledge Organization for the Web (SKOS) to provide knowledge representation for ubiquitous user model. We propose a two-tier matching strategy for concept schemas alignment to enable user modeling interoperability. Our proposal is proved in the application scenario of sharing and reusing data in order to deal with overweight and obesity. PMID:23201995
Context-Enabled Business Intelligence
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Troy Hiltbrand
To truly understand context and apply it in business intelligence, it is vital to understand what context is and how it can be applied in addressing organizational needs. Context describes the facets of the environment that impact the way that end users interact with the system. Context includes aspects of location, chronology, access method, demographics, social influence/ relationships, end-user attitude/ emotional state, behavior/ past behavior, and presence. To be successful in making Business Intelligence content enabled, it is important to be able to capture the context of use user. With advances in technology, there are a number of ways inmore » which this user based information can be gathered and exposed to enhance the overall end user experience.« less
Web accessibility support for visually impaired users using link content analysis.
Iwata, Hajime; Kobayashi, Naofumi; Tachibana, Kenji; Shirogane, Junko; Fukazawa, Yoshiaki
2013-12-01
Web pages are used for a variety of purposes. End users must understand dynamically changing content and sequentially follow page links to find desired material, requiring significant time and effort. However, for visually impaired users using screen readers, it can be difficult to find links to web pages when link text and alternative text descriptions are inappropriate. Our method supports the discovery of content by analyzing 8 categories of link types, and allows visually impaired users to be aware of the content represented by links in advance. This facilitates end users access to necessary information on web pages. Our method of classifying web page links is therefore effective as a means of evaluating accessibility.
Conceptual design study for an advanced cab and visual system, volume 2
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Rue, R. J.; Cyrus, M. L.; Garnett, T. A.; Nachbor, J. W.; Seery, J. A.; Starr, R. L.
1980-01-01
The performance, design, construction and testing requirements are defined for developing an advanced cab and visual system. The rotorcraft system integration simulator is composed of the advanced cab and visual system and the rotorcraft system motion generator, and is part of an existing simulation facility. User's applications for the simulator include rotorcraft design development, product improvement, threat assessment, and accident investigation.
Advanced 3-dimensional planning in neurosurgery.
Ferroli, Paolo; Tringali, Giovanni; Acerbi, Francesco; Schiariti, Marco; Broggi, Morgan; Aquino, Domenico; Broggi, Giovanni
2013-01-01
During the past decades, medical applications of virtual reality technology have been developing rapidly, ranging from a research curiosity to a commercially and clinically important area of medical informatics and technology. With the aid of new technologies, the user is able to process large amounts of data sets to create accurate and almost realistic reconstructions of anatomic structures and related pathologies. As a result, a 3-diensional (3-D) representation is obtained, and surgeons can explore the brain for planning or training. Further improvement such as a feedback system increases the interaction between users and models by creating a virtual environment. Its use for advanced 3-D planning in neurosurgery is described. Different systems of medical image volume rendering have been used and analyzed for advanced 3-D planning: 1 is a commercial "ready-to-go" system (Dextroscope, Bracco, Volume Interaction, Singapore), whereas the others are open-source-based software (3-D Slicer, FSL, and FreesSurfer). Different neurosurgeons at our institution experienced how advanced 3-D planning before surgery allowed them to facilitate and increase their understanding of the complex anatomic and pathological relationships of the lesion. They all agreed that the preoperative experience of virtually planning the approach was helpful during the operative procedure. Virtual reality for advanced 3-D planning in neurosurgery has achieved considerable realism as a result of the available processing power of modern computers. Although it has been found useful to facilitate the understanding of complex anatomic relationships, further effort is needed to increase the quality of the interaction between the user and the model.
The Third Annual NASA Science Internet User Working Group Conference
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Lev, Brian S. (Editor); Gary, J. Patrick (Editor)
1993-01-01
The NASA Science Internet (NSI) User Support Office (USO) sponsored the Third Annual NSI User Working Group (NSIUWG) Conference March 30 through April 3, 1992, in Greenbelt, MD. Approximately 130 NSI users attended to learn more about the NSI, hear from projects which use NSI, and receive updates about new networking technologies and services. This report contains material relevant to the conference; copies of the agenda, meeting summaries, presentations, and descriptions of exhibitors. Plenary sessions featured a variety of speakers, including NSI project management, scientists, and NSI user project managers whose projects and applications effectively use NSI, and notable citizens of the larger Internet community. The conference also included exhibits of advanced networking applications; tutorials on internetworking, computer security, and networking technologies; and user subgroup meetings on the future direction of the conference, networking, and user services and applications.
The Stanford Automated Mounter: Enabling High-Throughput Protein Crystal Screening at SSRL
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Smith, C.A.; Cohen, A.E.
2009-05-26
The macromolecular crystallography experiment lends itself perfectly to high-throughput technologies. The initial steps including the expression, purification, and crystallization of protein crystals, along with some of the later steps involving data processing and structure determination have all been automated to the point where some of the last remaining bottlenecks in the process have been crystal mounting, crystal screening, and data collection. At the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory, a National User Facility that provides extremely brilliant X-ray photon beams for use in materials science, environmental science, and structural biology research, the incorporation of advanced robotics has enabled crystals to be screenedmore » in a true high-throughput fashion, thus dramatically accelerating the final steps. Up to 288 frozen crystals can be mounted by the beamline robot (the Stanford Auto-Mounting System) and screened for diffraction quality in a matter of hours without intervention. The best quality crystals can then be remounted for the collection of complete X-ray diffraction data sets. Furthermore, the entire screening and data collection experiment can be controlled from the experimenter's home laboratory by means of advanced software tools that enable network-based control of the highly automated beamlines.« less
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Faculjak, D.A.
1988-03-01
Graphics Manager (GFXMGR) is menu-driven, user-friendly software designed to interactively create, edit, and delete graphics displays on the Advanced Electronics Design (AED) graphics controller, Model 767. The software runs on the VAX family of computers and has been used successfully in security applications to create and change site layouts (maps) of specific facilities. GFXMGR greatly benefits graphics development by minimizing display-development time, reducing tedium on the part of the user, and improving system performance. It is anticipated that GFXMGR can be used to create graphics displays for many types of applications. 8 figs., 2 tabs.
Molecules to maps: tools for visualization and interaction in support of computational biology.
Kraemer, E T; Ferrin, T E
1998-01-01
The volume of data produced by genome projects, X-ray crystallography, NMR spectroscopy, and electron and confocal microscopy present the bioinformatics community with new challenges for analyzing, understanding, and exchanging this data. At the 1998 Pacific Symposium on Biocomputing, a track entitled 'Molecules to Maps: Tools for Visualization and Interaction in Computational Biology' provided tool developers and users with the opportunity to discuss advances in tools and techniques to assist scientists in evaluating, absorbing, navigating, and correlating this sea of information, through visualization and user interaction. In this paper we present these advances and discuss some of the challenges that remain to be solved.
A Renewal Plan for the Advanced Photon Source
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Fischetti, Robert F.; Fuoss, Paul H.; Gerig, Rodney E.
2010-06-23
With coordination from the APS Renewal Steering Committee (the members of which are the co-authors of this paper), staff and users of the U.S. Department of Energy's Advanced Photon Source (APS) at Argonne National Laboratory are in the process of developing a renewal plan for the facility. The renewal is a coordinated upgrade of the accelerator, beamlines, and associated technical structure that will enable users of the APS to address key scientific challenges in the coming decades. The cost of the renewal is estimated to be from $300M to $400M and to take approximately six years from start to finish.
Zheng, Hua; Rosal, Milagros C; Li, Wenjun; Borg, Amy; Yang, Wenyun; Ayers, David C
2018-01-01
Background Data-driven surgical decisions will ensure proper use and timing of surgical care. We developed a Web-based patient-centered treatment decision and assessment tool to guide treatment decisions among patients with advanced knee osteoarthritis who are considering total knee replacement surgery. Objective The aim of this study was to examine user experience and acceptance of the Web-based treatment decision support tool among older adults. Methods User-centered formative and summative evaluations were conducted for the tool. A sample of 28 patients who were considering total knee replacement participated in the study. Participants’ responses to the user interface design, the clarity of information, as well as usefulness, satisfaction, and acceptance of the tool were collected through qualitative (ie, individual patient interviews) and quantitative (ie, standardized Computer System Usability Questionnaire) methods. Results Participants were older adults with a mean age of 63 (SD 11) years. Three-quarters of them had no technical questions using the tool. User interface design recommendations included larger fonts, bigger buttons, less colors, simpler navigation without extra “next page” click, less mouse movement, and clearer illustrations with simple graphs. Color-coded bar charts and outcome-specific graphs with positive action were easiest for them to understand the outcomes data. Questionnaire data revealed high satisfaction with the tool usefulness and interface quality, and also showed ease of use of the tool, regardless of age or educational status. Conclusions We evaluated the usability of a patient-centered decision support tool designed for advanced knee arthritis patients to facilitate their knee osteoarthritis treatment decision making. The lessons learned can inform other decision support tools to improve interface and content design for older patients’ use. PMID:29712620
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
1997-01-01
In 1993 the SmarTraveler advanced traveler information system (ATIS) was introduced to travelers in the greater Boston area as part of an operational test jointly funded by FHWA and the Massachusetts Executive Office of Transportation and Constructio...
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Messerotti, M.
2009-04-01
Earth and Space Science research, as well as many other disciplines, can nowadays benefit from advanced data handling techniques and tools capable to significantly relieve the scientist of the burden of data search, retrieval, visualization and manipulation, and to exploit the data information content. Some typical examples are Virtual Observatories (VO) specific to a variety of sub-disciplines but anyway interlinked, a feature intrinsic to the VO architecture, Virtual Globes as advanced 3D selection and visualization interfaces to distributed data repositories, and the Global Earth Observation System of Systems. These information systems are proving also effective in education and outreach activities as they are usable via web interfaces to give access to, to display and to download nonhomogeneous datasets in order to raise the awareness of the students and the public on the relevant disciplines. Despite of that, all of this effective machineries are still poorly used both by the scientific community and by the community active in education and outreach. All such infrastructures are designed and developed according to the state-of-the-art information and computer engineering techniques and are provided with top features such as ontology- and semantics-based data management, and advanced unified web-based interfaces. Anyway, a careful analysis of the issue mentioned above indicates a key aspect that play a major role, i.e., the inadequate interaction with the users' communities during the design, the development, the deployment and the test phases. Even the best technical tool can appear inadequate to the final user when it does not meet the user's requirements in terms of achievable goals and use friendliness. In this work, we consider the user-side features to be taken into account for the optimum exploitation of an information system in the framework of the interaction among the design engineers and the target communities towards the setting of a good practice for minimizing the developer-user divide.
Capturing User Reading Behaviors for Personalized Document Summarization
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Xu, Songhua; Jiang, Hao; Lau, Francis
2011-01-01
We propose a new personalized document summarization method that observes a user's personal reading preferences. These preferences are inferred from the user's reading behaviors, including facial expressions, gaze positions, and reading durations that were captured during the user's past reading activities. We compare the performance of our algorithm with that of a few peer algorithms and software packages. The results of our comparative study show that our algorithm can produce more superior personalized document summaries than all the other methods in that the summaries generated by our algorithm can better satisfy a user's personal preferences.
Kim, Taemin; Kim, Okhyun
2016-05-01
This study investigated the roles of self- and social motivation in interacting with a brand on Facebook. An online survey was conducted using 11 familiar global brands randomly selected from Interbrand's 100 Best Global Brands. The result demonstrated that congruence between actual/ideal self and personality of a brand (i.e., self-motivation) positively influenced users' interaction with a brand on Facebook. In this relationship, self-expressive motivation and brand engagement emerged as moderators. Additionally, social identity as a social motivation positively affected users' interaction with a brand. Although not all components of social motivation influenced users' interaction with a brand, this study showed that two exclusive motivations, self and social, positively influenced users' interaction with a brand on Facebook. Managerial and practical implications were also proposed for marketing a brand on Facebook.
Three-dimensional user interfaces for scientific visualization
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
VanDam, Andries (Principal Investigator)
1996-01-01
The focus of this grant was to experiment with novel user interfaces for scientific visualization applications using both desktop and virtual reality (VR) systems, and thus to advance the state of the art of user interface technology for this domain. This technology has been transferred to NASA via periodic status reports and papers relating to this grant that have been published in conference proceedings. This final report summarizes the research completed over the past three years, and subsumes all prior reports.
Implementation of virtual LANs over ATM WANs
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Braun, Torsten; Maehler, Martin
1998-09-01
Virtual LANs (VLANs) allow to interconnect users over campus or wide area networks and gives the users the impression as they would be connected to the same local area network (LAN). The implementation of VLANs is based on ATM Forum's LAN Emulation and LAN/ATM switches providing interconnection of emulated LANs over ATM and the LAN ports to which the user's end systems are attached to. The paper discusses possible implementation architectures and describes advanced features such as ATM short-cuts, QoS, and redundancy concepts.
Nakagawa, Tateo; Shimada, Mitsuo; Kurita, Nobuhiro; Iwata, Takashi; Nishioka, Masanori; Yoshikawa, Kozo; Higashijima, Jun; Utsunomiya, Tohru
2012-06-01
The role of intratumoral thymidylate synthase (TS) mRNA or protein expression is still controversial and little has been reported regarding relation of them in colorectal cancer. Forty-six patients with advanced colorectal cancer who underwent surgical resection were included. TS mRNA expression was determined by the Danenberg tumor profile method based on laser-captured micro-dissection of the tumor cells. TS protein expression was evaluated using immunohistochemical staining. TS mRNA expression tended to relate TS protein expression. Statistical significance was not found in overall survival between the TS mRNA high group and low group regardless of performing adjuvant chemotherapy. The overall survival in the TS protein negative group was significantly higher than that in positive group in all and the patients without adjuvant chemotherapy. Multivariate analysis showed TS protein expression was as an independent prognostic factor. TS protein expression tends to be related TS mRNA expression and is an independent prognostic factor in advanced colorectal cancer.
Baptiste, B; Dawson, D R; Streiner, D
2015-01-01
To determine factors associated with case management (CM) service use in people with traumatic brain injury (TBI), using a published model for service use. A retrospective cohort, with nested case-control design. Correlational and logistic regression analyses of questionnaires from a longitudinal community data base. Questionnaires of 203 users of CM services and 273 non-users, complete for all outcome and predictor variables. Individuals with TBI, 15 years of age and older. Out of a dataset of 1,960 questionnaires, 476 met the inclusion criteria. Eight predictor variables and one outcome variable (use or non-use of the service). Predictor variables considered the framework of the Behaviour Model of Health Service Use (BMHSU); specifically, pre-disposing, need and enabling factor groups as these relate to health service use and access. Analyses revealed significant differences between users and non-users of CM services. In particular, users were significantly younger than non-users as the older the person the less likely to use the service. Also, users had less education and more severe activity limitations and lower community integration. Persons living alone are less likely to use case management. Funding groups also significantly impact users. This study advances an empirical understanding of equity of access to health services usage in the practice of CM for persons living with TBI as a fairly new area of research, and considers direct relevance to Life Care Planning (LCP). Many life care planers are CM and the genesis of LCP is CM. The findings relate to health service use and access, rather than health outcomes. These findings may assist with development of a modified model for prediction of use to advance future cost of care predictions.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Woodard, Colin
2006-01-01
This article describes the latest advancement in the development of prosthetic arms. Bionic researchers are making significant advances in creating more agile prosthetics that users can control via their own nervous system. The bionic arm, which is still under development, can not only execute complex, thought-controlled movements, but also can…
An Evaluative Methodology for Virtual Communities Using Web Analytics
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Phippen, A. D.
2004-01-01
The evaluation of virtual community usage and user behaviour has its roots in social science approaches such as interview, document analysis and survey. Little evaluation is carried out using traffic or protocol analysis. Business approaches to evaluating customer/business web site usage are more advanced, in particular using advanced web…
A Template-Based Short Course Concept on Android Application Development
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Akopian, David; Melkonyan, Arsen; Golgani, Santosh C.; Yuen, Timothy T.; Saygin, Can
2013-01-01
Smartphones are a common accessory to provide rich user experience due to superior memory, advanced software-hardware support, fast processing, and multimedia capabilities. Responding to this trend, advanced engineering systems tend to integrate mobile devices with their solutions to facilitate usability. With many young students showing interest…
Eijssen, Lars M T; Goelela, Varshna S; Kelder, Thomas; Adriaens, Michiel E; Evelo, Chris T; Radonjic, Marijana
2015-06-30
Illumina whole-genome expression bead arrays are a widely used platform for transcriptomics. Most of the tools available for the analysis of the resulting data are not easily applicable by less experienced users. ArrayAnalysis.org provides researchers with an easy-to-use and comprehensive interface to the functionality of R and Bioconductor packages for microarray data analysis. As a modular open source project, it allows developers to contribute modules that provide support for additional types of data or extend workflows. To enable data analysis of Illumina bead arrays for a broad user community, we have developed a module for ArrayAnalysis.org that provides a free and user-friendly web interface for quality control and pre-processing for these arrays. This module can be used together with existing modules for statistical and pathway analysis to provide a full workflow for Illumina gene expression data analysis. The module accepts data exported from Illumina's GenomeStudio, and provides the user with quality control plots and normalized data. The outputs are directly linked to the existing statistics module of ArrayAnalysis.org, but can also be downloaded for further downstream analysis in third-party tools. The Illumina bead arrays analysis module is available at http://www.arrayanalysis.org . A user guide, a tutorial demonstrating the analysis of an example dataset, and R scripts are available. The module can be used as a starting point for statistical evaluation and pathway analysis provided on the website or to generate processed input data for a broad range of applications in life sciences research.
TechWriter: An Evolving System for Writing Assistance for Advanced Learners of English
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Napolitano, Diane M.; Stent, Amanda
2009-01-01
Writing assistance systems, from simple spelling checkers to more complex grammar and readability analyzers, can be helpful aids to nonnative writers of English. However, many writing assistance systems have two disadvantages. First, they are not designed to encourage skills learning and independence in their users; instead, users may begin to use…
Civic Participation among Seventh-Grade Social Studies Students in Multi-User Virtual Environments
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Zieger, Laura; Farber, Matthew
2012-01-01
Technological advances on the Internet now enable students to develop participation skills in virtual worlds. Similar to controlling a character in a video game, multi-user virtual environments, or MUVEs, allow participants to interact with others in synchronous, online settings. The authors of this study created a link between MUVEs and…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Miller, Ruth A.; Luse, Donna W.
2004-01-01
Although research indicates communication is important among information systems (IS) staff, users, and managers to ensure successful development projects, the ineffective communication skills of IS staff are often cited as a possible cause of failed IS projects. To develop effective systems, communication between IS users and systems developers…
Computerized Placement Management Software (CPMS): User Manual, Version 3.0.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
College Entrance Examination Board, Princeton, NJ.
This guide is designed to enable the beginner, as well as the advanced user, to understand and use the Computerized Placement Management Software (CPMS). The CPMS is a system for evaluating information about students and recommending their placement into courses best suited for them. It also tracks their progress and maintains their records. The…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Khemaja, Maha; Taamallah, Aroua
2016-01-01
Current advances in portable devices and wireless technologies had drastically impacted mobile and pervasive computing development and use. Nowadays, mobile and or pervasive applications, are increasingly being used to support users' everyday activities. These apps either distributed or standalone are characterized by the variability of the…
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2013-12-12
... and export control violations involving abuse of human rights. Certain exports, reexports, and... (Control Policy: End-User and End-Use Based) of the EAR. The End-user Review Committee (ERC), composed of... Assets Control regulations and the EAR: Anvik Technologies Sdn. Bhd., Montana Advanced Engineering Sdn...
Correcting Erroneous N+N Structures in the Productions of French Users of English
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Garnier, Marie
2012-01-01
This article presents the preliminary steps to the implementation of detection and correction strategies for the erroneous use of N+N structures in the written productions of French-speaking advanced users of English. This research is carried out as part of the grammar checking project "CorrecTools", in which errors are detected and corrected…
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Kitchell, J.
1984-01-01
Satellite communication is by far the most advanced of all commercial applications of space technology. The past, present, and some future possibilities for the field of public communications are considered. Some serious concerns that are becoming apparent to the user of this technology are examined. Among the specific topics mentioned are digital television, electronic mail, cable television, and systems security.
Trial, Adoption, Usage and Diffusion of Social Media
2011-12-01
Gaming Users Online Forums Users Podcasting Users Ease of use 15 20 3 0 0 0 To stay in contact 11 0 1 0 0 0 Pressure from friends 10 1 2 0 0 0...focused 2 0 0 0 0 0 Ease of use 2 3 0 0 0 0 Kill boredom 2 0 0 0 0 0 Content (self- expression) 1 0 1 0 0 0 Catch people’s attention 1 0 0 0 0 0...Users Online Forums Users Podcasting Users Stay in contact with friends 20 0 0 0 0 0 Ease of use 6 2 0 0 0 0 Technology features 6 8 0 0
The Unidata LDM Data Distribution System
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Emmerson, S.; Yoksas, T. C.; Weber, W. J.; Schmidt, M.
2010-12-01
The Unidata LDM is a near real-time, event-driven system for transmitting frequently-generated data-products, 24/7, from a producer to multiple subscribers using the Internet. Once received, a data-product is processed according to user specifications. A data-product can be anything up to 4 gigabytes in size. Downstream LDM-s register a regular expression based selection predicate with upstream LDM-s. Network topologies include point-to-point, star, and tree. Based on ONC RPC, the LDM system is extremely robust and efficient. Since its initial release in 1994, a network of LDM-s called the Internet Data Distribution (IDD) system has been the primary means by which many if not most Earth Sciences departments in the US obtain and process meteorological data (up to 20 GB/hour and 250k products/hour) with latencies measured in seconds or less. Data-products include numerical model output, radar data, WMO bulletins, and lightning data. Users of the LDM also include the international atmospheric science university community, NOAA, NASA, USGS, the US military, ECMWF, and the meteorological agencies of China, Australia, Brazil, South Korea, and Vietnam. The LDM is the highest volume advanced application on Internet-2 (currently averaging 27 terabytes per week). The LDM history and architecture is presented together with an analysis of its strengths and weaknesses.
Guest editorial: Introduction to the special issue on modern control for computer games.
Argyriou, Vasileios; Kotsia, Irene; Zafeiriou, Stefanos; Petrou, Maria
2013-12-01
A typical gaming scenario, as developed in the past 20 years, involves a player interacting with a game using a specialized input device, such as a joystic, a mouse, a keyboard, etc. Recent technological advances and new sensors (for example, low cost commodity depth cameras) have enabled the introduction of more elaborated approaches in which the player is now able to interact with the game using his body pose, facial expressions, actions, and even his physiological signals. A new era of games has already started, employing computer vision techniques, brain-computer interfaces systems, haptic and wearable devices. The future lies in games that will be intelligent enough not only to extract the player's commands provided by his speech and gestures but also his behavioral cues, as well as his/her emotional states, and adjust their game plot accordingly in order to ensure more realistic and satisfactory gameplay experience. This special issue on modern control for computer games discusses several interdisciplinary factors that influence a user's input to a game, something directly linked to the gaming experience. These include, but are not limited to, the following: behavioral affective gaming, user satisfaction and perception, motion capture and scene modeling, and complete software frameworks that address several challenges risen in such scenarios.
ASTROS Enhancements. Volume I- ASTRO User’s Manual
1993-03-01
alternative functions. The mechanisms by which these more advanced features are invoked are included in this manual but no attempt is made to provide... advanced topics are treated in the Programmer’s and Application Manuals which document the individual modules in the system and their interactions...of the more advanced features of the system without cluttering the discussion with details of the input structures. The detailed documentation of the
Daniulaityte, Raminta; Lamy, Francois R; Smith, G Alan; Nahhas, Ramzi W; Carlson, Robert G; Thirunarayan, Krishnaprasad; Martins, Silvia S; Boyer, Edward W; Sheth, Amit
2017-11-01
Twitter data offer new possibilities for tracking health-related communications. This study is among the first to apply advanced information processing to identify geographic and content features of cannabis-related tweeting in the United States. Tweets were collected using streaming Application Programming Interface (March-May 2016) and were processed by eDrugTrends to identify geolocation and classify content by source (personal communication, media, retail) and sentiment (positive, negative, neutral). States were grouped by cannabis legalization policies into "recreational," "medical, less restrictive," "medical, more restrictive," and "illegal." Permutation tests were performed to analyze differences among four groups in adjusted percentages of all tweets, unique users, personal communications only, and positive-to-negative sentiment ratios. About 30% of all 13,233,837 cannabis-related tweets had identifiable state-level geo-information. Among geolocated tweets, 76.2% were personal communications, 21.1% media, and 2.7% retail. About 71% of personal communication tweets expressed positive sentiment toward cannabis; 16% expressed negative sentiment. States in the recreational group had significantly greater average adjusted percentage of cannabis tweets (3.01%) compared with other groups. For personal communication tweets only, the recreational group (2.47%) was significantly greater than the medical, more restrictive (1.84%) and illegal (1.85%) groups. Similarly, the recreational group had significantly greater average positive-to-negative sentiment ratio (4.64) compared with the medical, more restrictive (4.15) and illegal (4.19) groups. Average adjusted percentages of unique users showed similar differences between recreational and other groups. States with less restrictive policies displayed greater cannabis-related tweeting and conveyed more positive sentiment. The study demonstrates the potential of Twitter data to become a valuable indicator of drug-related communications in the context of varying policy environments.
Wald, David J.; Lin, Kuo-wan; Kircher, C.A.; Jaiswal, Kishor; Luco, Nicolas; Turner, L.; Slosky, Daniel
2017-01-01
The ShakeCast system is an openly available, near real-time post-earthquake information management system. ShakeCast is widely used by public and private emergency planners and responders, lifeline utility operators and transportation engineers to automatically receive and process ShakeMap products for situational awareness, inspection priority, or damage assessment of their own infrastructure or building portfolios. The success of ShakeCast to date and its broad, critical-user base mandates improved software usability and functionality, including improved engineering-based damage and loss functions. In order to make the software more accessible to novice users—while still utilizing advanced users’ technical and engineering background—we have developed a “ShakeCast Workbook”, a well documented, Excel spreadsheet-based user interface that allows users to input notification and inventory data and export XML files requisite for operating the ShakeCast system. Users will be able to select structure based on a minimum set of user-specified facility (building location, size, height, use, construction age, etc.). “Expert” users will be able to import user-modified structural response properties into facility inventory associated with the HAZUS Advanced Engineering Building Modules (AEBM). The goal of the ShakeCast system is to provide simplified real-time potential impact and inspection metrics (i.e., green, yellow, orange and red priority ratings) to allow users to institute customized earthquake response protocols. Previously, fragilities were approximated using individual ShakeMap intensity measures (IMs, specifically PGA and 0.3 and 1s spectral accelerations) for each facility but we are now performing capacity-spectrum damage state calculations using a more robust characterization of spectral deamnd.We are also developing methods for the direct import of ShakeMap’s multi-period spectra in lieu of the assumed three-domain design spectrum (at 0.3s for constant acceleration; 1s or 3s for constant velocity and constant displacement at very long response periods). As part of ongoing ShakeCast research and development, we will also explore the use of ShakeMap IM uncertainty estimates and evaluate the assumption of employing multiple response spectral damping values rather than the single 5%-damped value currently employed. Developing and incorporating advanced fragility assignments into the ShakeCast Workbook requires related software modifications and database improvements; these enhancements are part of an extensive rewrite of the ShakeCast application.
Online handwritten mathematical expression recognition
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Büyükbayrak, Hakan; Yanikoglu, Berrin; Erçil, Aytül
2007-01-01
We describe a system for recognizing online, handwritten mathematical expressions. The system is designed with a user-interface for writing scientific articles, supporting the recognition of basic mathematical expressions as well as integrals, summations, matrices etc. A feed-forward neural network recognizes symbols which are assumed to be single-stroke and a recursive algorithm parses the expression by combining neural network output and the structure of the expression. Preliminary results show that writer-dependent recognition rates are very high (99.8%) while writer-independent symbol recognition rates are lower (75%). The interface associated with the proposed system integrates the built-in recognition capabilities of the Microsoft's Tablet PC API for recognizing textual input and supports conversion of hand-drawn figures into PNG format. This enables the user to enter text, mathematics and draw figures in a single interface. After recognition, all output is combined into one LATEX code and compiled into a PDF file.
Design of Launcher Towards Spacecraft Comfort: Ariane 6 Objectives
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Mourey, Patrick; Lambare, Hadrien; Valbuena, Matias F.
2014-06-01
Preliminary advanced studies were performed recently to select the possible concepts for a launcher that could succeed to Ariane 5. During the end of 2012 Space Ministry Conference, a configuration defining the propellant of the stages and the coarse staging ("PPH") was frozen in order to engage the preliminary selection concept studies. The first phase consisted to select the main features of the architecture in order to go deeper in the different matters or the advanced studies. The concept was selected mid of 2013.During all these phases of the preliminary project, different criteria (such as the recurring cost which is a major one) were used to quote the different concepts, among which the "payload comfort", ie the minimization of the environment generated by the launcher toward the satellites.The minimization of the environment was first expressed in term of objectives in the Mission Requirement Document (MRD) for the different mechanical environment such as quasi-static loads, dynamic loads, acoustics, shocks... Criteria such as usable volume, satellites frequency requirement and interface requirement are also expressed in the MRD.The definition of these different criteria was of course fixed taking benefit from the launcher operator experience based on a long story of dealing with spacecraft-launcher interface issues on Ariane, Soyouz and Vega. The general idea is to target improved or similar levels than those currently applicable for Ariane 5. For some environment for which a special need is anticipated from the potential end users, a special effort is aimed.The preliminary advanced study phase is currently running and has to address specific topics such as the definition of the upper part layout including geometry ofthe fairing, the definition of the launch pad with preliminary ideas to minimize acoustics and blast wave or first calculations on dimensioning dynamic load- cases such as thrust oscillations of the solid rocket motors (SRM).The present paper will give a very preliminary overview of the different topics in relation with these general launcher-spacecraft issues.
Mobile patient applications within diabetes - from few and easy to advanced functionalities.
Årsand, Eirik; Skrøvseth, Stein Olav; Hejlesen, Ole; Horsch, Alexander; Godtliebsen, Fred; Grøttland, Astrid; Hartvigsen, Gunnar
2013-01-01
Patient diaries as apps on mobile phones are becoming increasingly common, and can be a good support tool for patients who need to organize information relevant for their disease. Self-management is important to achieving diabetes treatment goals and can be a tool for lifestyle changes for patients with Type 2 diabetes. The autoimmune disease Type 1 diabetes requires a more intensive management than Type 2 - thus more advanced functionalities is desirable for users. Both simple and easy-to-use and more advanced diaries have their respective benefits, depending on the target user group and intervention. In this poster we summarize main findings and experience from more than a decade of research and development in the diabetes area. Several versions of the mobile health research platform-the Few Touch Application (FTA) are presented to illustrate the different approaches and results.
Conceptual spacecraft systems design and synthesis
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Wright, R. L.; Deryder, D. D.; Ferebee, M. J., Jr.
1984-01-01
An interactive systems design and synthesis is performed on future spacecraft concepts using the Interactive Design and Evaluation of Advanced Systems (IDEAS) computer-aided design and analysis system. The capabilities and advantages of the systems-oriented interactive computer-aided design and analysis system are described. The synthesis of both large antenna and space station concepts, and space station evolutionary growth designs is demonstrated. The IDEAS program provides the user with both an interactive graphics and an interactive computing capability which consists of over 40 multidisciplinary synthesis and analysis modules. Thus, the user can create, analyze, and conduct parametric studies and modify earth-orbiting spacecraft designs (space stations, large antennas or platforms, and technologically advanced spacecraft) at an interactive terminal with relative ease. The IDEAS approach is useful during the conceptual design phase of advanced space missions when a multiplicity of parameters and concepts must be analyzed and evaluated in a cost-effective and timely manner.
Interactive systems design and synthesis of future spacecraft concepts
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Wright, R. L.; Deryder, D. D.; Ferebee, M. J., Jr.
1984-01-01
An interactive systems design and synthesis is performed on future spacecraft concepts using the Interactive Design and Evaluation of Advanced spacecraft (IDEAS) computer-aided design and analysis system. The capabilities and advantages of the systems-oriented interactive computer-aided design and analysis system are described. The synthesis of both large antenna and space station concepts, and space station evolutionary growth is demonstrated. The IDEAS program provides the user with both an interactive graphics and an interactive computing capability which consists of over 40 multidisciplinary synthesis and analysis modules. Thus, the user can create, analyze and conduct parametric studies and modify Earth-orbiting spacecraft designs (space stations, large antennas or platforms, and technologically advanced spacecraft) at an interactive terminal with relative ease. The IDEAS approach is useful during the conceptual design phase of advanced space missions when a multiplicity of parameters and concepts must be analyzed and evaluated in a cost-effective and timely manner.
Information filtering via biased random walk on coupled social network.
Nie, Da-Cheng; Zhang, Zi-Ke; Dong, Qiang; Sun, Chongjing; Fu, Yan
2014-01-01
The recommender systems have advanced a great deal in the past two decades. However, most researchers focus their attentions on mining the similarities among users or objects in recommender systems and overlook the social influence which plays an important role in users' purchase process. In this paper, we design a biased random walk algorithm on coupled social networks which gives recommendation results based on both social interests and users' preference. Numerical analyses on two real data sets, Epinions and Friendfeed, demonstrate the improvement of recommendation performance by taking social interests into account, and experimental results show that our algorithm can alleviate the user cold-start problem more effectively compared with the mass diffusion and user-based collaborative filtering methods.
Gromita: a fully integrated graphical user interface to gromacs 4.
Sellis, Diamantis; Vlachakis, Dimitrios; Vlassi, Metaxia
2009-09-07
Gromita is a fully integrated and efficient graphical user interface (GUI) to the recently updated molecular dynamics suite Gromacs, version 4. Gromita is a cross-platform, perl/tcl-tk based, interactive front end designed to break the command line barrier and introduce a new user-friendly environment to run molecular dynamics simulations through Gromacs. Our GUI features a novel workflow interface that guides the user through each logical step of the molecular dynamics setup process, making it accessible to both advanced and novice users. This tool provides a seamless interface to the Gromacs package, while providing enhanced functionality by speeding up and simplifying the task of setting up molecular dynamics simulations of biological systems. Gromita can be freely downloaded from http://bio.demokritos.gr/gromita/.
Information Filtering via Biased Random Walk on Coupled Social Network
Dong, Qiang; Fu, Yan
2014-01-01
The recommender systems have advanced a great deal in the past two decades. However, most researchers focus their attentions on mining the similarities among users or objects in recommender systems and overlook the social influence which plays an important role in users' purchase process. In this paper, we design a biased random walk algorithm on coupled social networks which gives recommendation results based on both social interests and users' preference. Numerical analyses on two real data sets, Epinions and Friendfeed, demonstrate the improvement of recommendation performance by taking social interests into account, and experimental results show that our algorithm can alleviate the user cold-start problem more effectively compared with the mass diffusion and user-based collaborative filtering methods. PMID:25147867
Nikfarjam, Azadeh; Sarker, Abeed; O'Connor, Karen; Ginn, Rachel; Gonzalez, Graciela
2015-05-01
Social media is becoming increasingly popular as a platform for sharing personal health-related information. This information can be utilized for public health monitoring tasks, particularly for pharmacovigilance, via the use of natural language processing (NLP) techniques. However, the language in social media is highly informal, and user-expressed medical concepts are often nontechnical, descriptive, and challenging to extract. There has been limited progress in addressing these challenges, and thus far, advanced machine learning-based NLP techniques have been underutilized. Our objective is to design a machine learning-based approach to extract mentions of adverse drug reactions (ADRs) from highly informal text in social media. We introduce ADRMine, a machine learning-based concept extraction system that uses conditional random fields (CRFs). ADRMine utilizes a variety of features, including a novel feature for modeling words' semantic similarities. The similarities are modeled by clustering words based on unsupervised, pretrained word representation vectors (embeddings) generated from unlabeled user posts in social media using a deep learning technique. ADRMine outperforms several strong baseline systems in the ADR extraction task by achieving an F-measure of 0.82. Feature analysis demonstrates that the proposed word cluster features significantly improve extraction performance. It is possible to extract complex medical concepts, with relatively high performance, from informal, user-generated content. Our approach is particularly scalable, suitable for social media mining, as it relies on large volumes of unlabeled data, thus diminishing the need for large, annotated training data sets. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Medical Informatics Association.
Cresswell, Kathrin M; Bates, David W; Williams, Robin; Morrison, Zoe; Slee, Ann; Coleman, Jamie; Robertson, Ann; Sheikh, Aziz
2014-01-01
Objective To understand the medium-term consequences of implementing commercially procured computerized physician order entry (CPOE) and clinical decision support (CDS) systems in ‘early adopter’ hospitals. Materials and methods In-depth, qualitative case study in two hospitals using a CPOE or a CDS system for at least 2 years. Both hospitals had implemented commercially available systems. Hospital A had implemented a CPOE system (with basic decision support), whereas hospital B invested additional resources in a CDS system that facilitated order entry but which was integrated with electronic health records and offered more advanced CDS. We used a combination of documentary analysis of the implementation plans, audiorecorded semistructured interviews with system users, and observations of strategic meetings and systems usage. Results We collected 11 documents, conducted 43 interviews, and conducted a total of 21.5 h of observations. We identified three major themes: (1) impacts on individual users, including greater legibility of prescriptions, but also some accounts of increased workloads; (2) the introduction of perceived new safety risks related to accessibility and usability of hardware and software, with users expressing concerns that some problems such as duplicate prescribing were more likely to occur; and (3) realizing organizational benefits through secondary uses of data. Conclusions We identified little difference in the medium-term consequences of a CPOE and a CDS system. It is important that future studies investigate the medium- and longer-term consequences of CPOE and CDS systems in a wider range of hospitals. PMID:24431334
BIG: a large-scale data integration tool for renal physiology
Zhao, Yue; Yang, Chin-Rang; Raghuram, Viswanathan; Parulekar, Jaya
2016-01-01
Due to recent advances in high-throughput techniques, we and others have generated multiple proteomic and transcriptomic databases to describe and quantify gene expression, protein abundance, or cellular signaling on the scale of the whole genome/proteome in kidney cells. The existence of so much data from diverse sources raises the following question: “How can researchers find information efficiently for a given gene product over all of these data sets without searching each data set individually?” This is the type of problem that has motivated the “Big-Data” revolution in Data Science, which has driven progress in fields such as marketing. Here we present an online Big-Data tool called BIG (Biological Information Gatherer) that allows users to submit a single online query to obtain all relevant information from all indexed databases. BIG is accessible at http://big.nhlbi.nih.gov/. PMID:27279488
Designing a Software Tool for Fuzzy Logic Programming
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Abietar, José M.; Morcillo, Pedro J.; Moreno, Ginés
2007-12-01
Fuzzy Logic Programming is an interesting and still growing research area that agglutinates the efforts for introducing fuzzy logic into logic programming (LP), in order to incorporate more expressive resources on such languages for dealing with uncertainty and approximated reasoning. The multi-adjoint logic programming approach is a recent and extremely flexible fuzzy logic paradigm for which, unfortunately, we have not found practical tools implemented so far. In this work, we describe a prototype system which is able to directly translate fuzzy logic programs into Prolog code in order to safely execute these residual programs inside any standard Prolog interpreter in a completely transparent way for the final user. We think that the development of such fuzzy languages and programing tools might play an important role in the design of advanced software applications for computational physics, chemistry, mathematics, medicine, industrial control and so on.
Remote control of therapeutic T cells through a small molecule-gated chimeric receptor.
Wu, Chia-Yung; Roybal, Kole T; Puchner, Elias M; Onuffer, James; Lim, Wendell A
2015-10-16
There is growing interest in using engineered cells as therapeutic agents. For example, synthetic chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) can redirect T cells to recognize and eliminate tumor cells expressing specific antigens. Despite promising clinical results, these engineered T cells can exhibit excessive activity that is difficult to control and can cause severe toxicity. We designed "ON-switch" CARs that enable small-molecule control over T cell therapeutic functions while still retaining antigen specificity. In these split receptors, antigen-binding and intracellular signaling components assemble only in the presence of a heterodimerizing small molecule. This titratable pharmacologic regulation could allow physicians to precisely control the timing, location, and dosage of T cell activity, thereby mitigating toxicity. This work illustrates the potential of combining cellular engineering with orthogonal chemical tools to yield safer therapeutic cells that tightly integrate cell-autonomous recognition and user control. Copyright © 2015, American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Conceptual search in electronic patient record.
Baud, R H; Lovis, C; Ruch, P; Rassinoux, A M
2001-01-01
Search by content in a large corpus of free texts in the medical domain is, today, only partially solved. The so-called GREP approach (Get Regular Expression and Print), based on highly efficient string matching techniques, is subject to inherent limitations, especially its inability to recognize domain specific knowledge. Such methods oblige the user to formulate his or her query in a logical Boolean style; if this constraint is not fulfilled, the results are poor. The authors present an enhancement to string matching search by the addition of a light conceptual model behind the word lexicon. The new system accepts any sentence as a query and radically improves the quality of results. Efficiency regarding execution time is obtained at the expense of implementing advanced indexing algorithms in a pre-processing phase. The method is described and commented and a brief account of the results illustrates this paper.
Autonomous system for Web-based microarray image analysis.
Bozinov, Daniel
2003-12-01
Software-based feature extraction from DNA microarray images still requires human intervention on various levels. Manual adjustment of grid and metagrid parameters, precise alignment of superimposed grid templates and gene spots, or simply identification of large-scale artifacts have to be performed beforehand to reliably analyze DNA signals and correctly quantify their expression values. Ideally, a Web-based system with input solely confined to a single microarray image and a data table as output containing measurements for all gene spots would directly transform raw image data into abstracted gene expression tables. Sophisticated algorithms with advanced procedures for iterative correction function can overcome imminent challenges in image processing. Herein is introduced an integrated software system with a Java-based interface on the client side that allows for decentralized access and furthermore enables the scientist to instantly employ the most updated software version at any given time. This software tool is extended from PixClust as used in Extractiff incorporated with Java Web Start deployment technology. Ultimately, this setup is destined for high-throughput pipelines in genome-wide medical diagnostics labs or microarray core facilities aimed at providing fully automated service to its users.
Guan, Yangbo; Wu, You; Liu, Yifei; Ni, Jian; Nong, Shaojun
2016-08-01
Despite androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) remains the mainstay therapy for advanced prostate cancer (PCa), the patients have widely variable durations of response to ADT. Unfortunately, there is limited knowledge of pre-treatment prognostic factors for response to ADT. Recently, microRNA-21 (miR-21) has been reported to play an important role in development of castration resistance of CaP. However, little is known about the expression of miR-21 in advanced PCa biopsy tissues, and data on its potential predictive value in advanced PCa are completely lacking. In this study, paraffin-embedded prostate carcinoma tissues obtained by needle biopsy from 85 advanced PCa patients were evaluated for the expression levels of miR-21 by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR). In situ hybridization (ISH) analysis was performed to further confirm the qRT-PCR results. Kaplan-Meier analysis and Cox proportional hazards regression models were performed to investigate the correlation between miR-21 expression and time to progression of advanced PCa patients. Compared with adjacent non-cancerous prostate tissues, the expression level of miR-21 was significantly increased in PCa tissues (PCa vs. non-cancerous prostate: 1.3273 ± 0.3207 vs. 0.9970 ± 0.2054, P < 0.001). By and large, in ISH analysis miR-21 was expressed at a higher level in tumor areas than in adjacent non-cancerous areas. Additionally, PCa patients with higher expression of miR-21 were significantly more likely to be of high Gleason score and high clinical stage (P < 0.05). There was no significant association between miR-21 expression and the initial prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level or age at diagnosis. Moreover, Kaplan-Meier survival analysis found that PCa patients with high miR-21 expression have shorter progression-free survival than those with low miR-21 expression. Furthermore, Multivariate Cox analysis revealed both miR-21 expression status (P = 0.040) and clinical stage (P = 0.042) were all independent predictive factor for progression-free survival for advanced PCa. These findings suggest for the first time that the up-regulation of miR-21 may serve as an independent predictor of progress-free survival in patients with advanced PCa. Prostate 76:986-993, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
miRDeep2 accurately identifies known and hundreds of novel microRNA genes in seven animal clades.
Friedländer, Marc R; Mackowiak, Sebastian D; Li, Na; Chen, Wei; Rajewsky, Nikolaus
2012-01-01
microRNAs (miRNAs) are a large class of small non-coding RNAs which post-transcriptionally regulate the expression of a large fraction of all animal genes and are important in a wide range of biological processes. Recent advances in high-throughput sequencing allow miRNA detection at unprecedented sensitivity, but the computational task of accurately identifying the miRNAs in the background of sequenced RNAs remains challenging. For this purpose, we have designed miRDeep2, a substantially improved algorithm which identifies canonical and non-canonical miRNAs such as those derived from transposable elements and informs on high-confidence candidates that are detected in multiple independent samples. Analyzing data from seven animal species representing the major animal clades, miRDeep2 identified miRNAs with an accuracy of 98.6-99.9% and reported hundreds of novel miRNAs. To test the accuracy of miRDeep2, we knocked down the miRNA biogenesis pathway in a human cell line and sequenced small RNAs before and after. The vast majority of the >100 novel miRNAs expressed in this cell line were indeed specifically downregulated, validating most miRDeep2 predictions. Last, a new miRNA expression profiling routine, low time and memory usage and user-friendly interactive graphic output can make miRDeep2 useful to a wide range of researchers.
Mourning and Grief on Facebook: An Examination of Motivations for Interacting With the Deceased.
Willis, Erin; Ferrucci, Patrick
2017-12-01
Facebook not only changed the way we communicate but also the way we mourn and express grief. The social networking site allows users to interact with deceased users' walls after death. This study utilized textual analysis to categorize Facebook posts ( N = 122) on 30 deceased users' walls according to uses and gratifications theory. Most posts were found to be motivated by entertainment, followed by integration and social interaction. Facebook users posted memories, condolences, and interacted with friends and family members in the deceased user's network. Implications and potential future research are discussed.
Enhanced hybrid TV platform with multiscreen, advanced EPG and recommendation enablers
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kovacik, Tomas; Bencel, Rastislav; Mato, Jan; Bronis, Roman; Truchly, Peter; Kotuliak, Ivan
2017-05-01
TV watching dramatically changes with introduction of new technologies such as Internet-connected TVs, enriched digital broadcasting (DVB), on-demand content, additional programme information, mobile phones and tablets enabling multiscreen functions etc that offer added values to content consumers. In this paper we propose modular advanced TV platform and its enablers enhancing TV watching. They allow users to receive aside of EPG also additional information about broadcasted content, to be reminded of requested programme, to utilize recommendation and search features, thanks to multiscreen functionality to allow users to take watched content with them or transfer it onto another device. The modularity of the platform allows new features to be added in future.
Genic insights from integrated human proteomics in GeneCards.
Fishilevich, Simon; Zimmerman, Shahar; Kohn, Asher; Iny Stein, Tsippi; Olender, Tsviya; Kolker, Eugene; Safran, Marilyn; Lancet, Doron
2016-01-01
GeneCards is a one-stop shop for searchable human gene annotations (http://www.genecards.org/). Data are automatically mined from ∼120 sources and presented in an integrated web card for every human gene. We report the application of recent advances in proteomics to enhance gene annotation and classification in GeneCards. First, we constructed the Human Integrated Protein Expression Database (HIPED), a unified database of protein abundance in human tissues, based on the publically available mass spectrometry (MS)-based proteomics sources ProteomicsDB, Multi-Omics Profiling Expression Database, Protein Abundance Across Organisms and The MaxQuant DataBase. The integrated database, residing within GeneCards, compares favourably with its individual sources, covering nearly 90% of human protein-coding genes. For gene annotation and comparisons, we first defined a protein expression vector for each gene, based on normalized abundances in 69 normal human tissues. This vector is portrayed in the GeneCards expression section as a bar graph, allowing visual inspection and comparison. These data are juxtaposed with transcriptome bar graphs. Using the protein expression vectors, we further defined a pairwise metric that helps assess expression-based pairwise proximity. This new metric for finding functional partners complements eight others, including sharing of pathways, gene ontology (GO) terms and domains, implemented in the GeneCards Suite. In parallel, we calculated proteome-based differential expression, highlighting a subset of tissues that overexpress a gene and subserving gene classification. This textual annotation allows users of VarElect, the suite's next-generation phenotyper, to more effectively discover causative disease variants. Finally, we define the protein-RNA expression ratio and correlation as yet another attribute of every gene in each tissue, adding further annotative information. The results constitute a significant enhancement of several GeneCards sections and help promote and organize the genome-wide structural and functional knowledge of the human proteome. Database URL:http://www.genecards.org/. © The Author(s) 2016. Published by Oxford University Press.
: + Advanced Search à Advanced Search All Fields: Title: Full Text: Bibliographic Data: Creator / Author: Name discoverable at no charge to users. DOE PAGES offers free public access to the best available full-text version and distributed content, with PAGES maintaining a permanent archive of all full text and metadata. In
Traffic model for advanced satellite designs and experiments for ISDN services
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Pepin, Gerard R.; Hager, E. Paul
1991-01-01
The data base structure and fields for categorizing and storing Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) user characteristics is outlined. This traffic model data base will be used to exercise models of the ISDN Advanced Communication Satellite to determine design parameters and performance for the NASA Satellite Communications Applications Research (SCAR) Program.
Diverse applications of advanced man-telerobot interfaces
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Mcaffee, Douglas A.
1991-01-01
Advancements in man-machine interfaces and control technologies used in space telerobotics and teleoperators have potential application wherever human operators need to manipulate multi-dimensional spatial relationships. Bilateral six degree-of-freedom position and force cues exchanged between the user and a complex system can broaden and improve the effectiveness of several diverse man-machine interfaces.
Weiss, Eve; Fisher Thiel, Megan; Sultana, Nahida; Hannan, Chloe; Seacrist, Thomas
2018-02-28
From the advent of airbags to electronic stability control, technological advances introduced into automobile design have significantly reduced injury and death from motor vehicle crashes. These advances are especially pertinent among teen drivers, a population whose leading cause of death is motor vehicle crashes. Recently developed advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) have the potential to compensate for skill deficits and reduce overall crash risk. Yet, ADAS is only effective if drivers are willing to use it. Limited research has been conducted on the suitability of ADAS for teen drivers. The goal of this study is to identify teen drivers' perceived need for ADAS, receptiveness to in-vehicle technology, and intervention preferences. The long-term goal is to understand public perceptions and barriers to ADAS use and to help determine how these systems must evolve to meet the needs of the riskiest driving populations. Three focus groups (N = 24) were conducted with licensed teen drivers aged 16-19 years and 2 focus groups with parents of teen drivers (N = 12). Discussion topics included views on how ADAS might influence driving skills and behaviors; trust in technology; and data privacy. Discussions were transcribed; the team used conventional content analysis and open coding methods to identify 12 coding domains and code transcripts with NVivo 10. Interrater reliability testing showed moderate to high kappa scores. Overall, participants recognized potential benefits of ADAS, including improved safety and crash reduction. Teens suggested that ADAS is still developing and therefore has potential to malfunction. Many teens reported a greater trust in their own driving ability over vehicle technology. They expressed that novice drivers should learn to drive on non-ADAS-equipped cars and that ADAS should be considered a supplemental aid. Many teens felt that overreliance on ADAS may increase distracted driving or risky behaviors among teens. Parents also expressed skepticism for the technology but felt that it would likely be a useful support for teen drivers after the initial learning phase. This study elicited important end-user viewpoints by exploring the intersection between advanced automobile safety technology and human perception for the particular use case of teen drivers. For example, despite evidence that teens are the highest risk driving population, teens trust their own driving skills and competence more than in-vehicle technology. This understanding will ultimately advance the safety of teen drivers by identifying barriers to effective ADAS use.
Health literacy: a study of internet-based information on advance directives.
Stuart, Peter
2017-11-28
The aim of this study was to evaluate the quality and value of web-based information on advance directives. Internet-based information on advance directives was selected because, if it is inaccurate or difficult to understand, patients risk making decisions about their care that may not be followed in practice. Two validated health information evaluation tools, the Suitability Assessment of Materials and DISCERN, and a focus group were used to assess credibility, user orientation and effectiveness. Only one of the 34 internet-based information items on advance directives reviewed fulfilled the study criteria and 30% of the sites were classed as unreadable. In terms of learning and informing, 79% of the sites were considered unsuitable. Using health literacy tools to evaluate internet-based health information highlights that often it is not at a functional literacy level and neither informs nor empowers users to make independent and valid healthcare decisions. ©2017 RCN Publishing Company Ltd. All rights reserved. Not to be copied, transmitted or recorded in any way, in whole or part, without prior permission of the publishers.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Musoke, Maria G. N.
2008-01-01
The paper presents a Sub-Saharan African academic Librarian's experience in trying to address the changing needs and practices of university library users. Special reference is made to Makerere University Library. Most of the changes have been brought about by the various paradigm shifts in teaching, learning and research, as well as advances in…
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
1977-01-01
An outline is given of the mission objectives and requirements, system elements, system concepts, technology requirements and forecasting, and priority analysis for LANDSAT D. User requirements and mission analysis and technological forecasting are emphasized. Mission areas considered include agriculture, range management, forestry, geology, land use, water resources, environmental quality, and disaster assessment.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
1984-01-01
The Spacelab Payload Development Support System PDSS Image Motion Compensator (IMC) computer interface simulation (CIS) user's manual is given. The software provides a real time interface simulation for the following IMC subsystems: the Dry Rotor Reference Unit, the Advanced Star/Target Reference Optical sensor, the Ultra Violet imaging telescope, the Wisconson Ultraviolet Photopolarimetry Experiment, the Cruciform Power distributor, and the Spacelab Experiment Computer Operating System.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
MacDonald, Amy Joy
2017-01-01
Despite advances in smartphone technologies and development of myriad apps that can support self-management efforts for chronic disease like diabetes, initial acceptance of such apps by actual users was characterized by low consistent use by these users. Few studies conducted by researchers on acceptance and use outcomes of mobile apps focused on…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Huang, Tony Cheng-Kui; Huang, Chih-Hong
2010-01-01
With advances in information and network technologies, lots of data have been digitized to reveal information for users by the construction of Web sites. Unfortunately, they are both overloading and overlapping in Internet so that users cannot distinguish their quality. To address this issue in education, Hwang, Huang, and Tseng proposed a group…
Advanced scanners and imaging systems for earth observations. [conferences
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
1973-01-01
Assessments of present and future sensors and sensor related technology are reported along with a description of user needs and applications. Five areas are outlined: (1) electromechanical scanners, (2) self-scanned solid state sensors, (3) electron beam imagers, (4) sensor related technology, and (5) user applications. Recommendations, charts, system designs, technical approaches, and bibliographies are included for each area.
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
NONE
1999-01-01
This report summarizes research at the Laboratory for Laser Energetics (LLE), the operation of the National Laser Users` Facility (NLUF), and programs involving the education of high school, undergraduate, and graduate students for FY98. Research summaries cover: progress in laser fusion; diagnostic development; laser and optical technology; and advanced technology for laser targets.
Simple explanations and reasoning: From philosophy of science to expert systems
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Rochowiak, Daniel
1988-01-01
A preliminary prototype of a simple explanation system was constructed. Although the system, based on the idea of storytelling, did not incorporate all of the principles of simple explanation, it did demonstrate the potential of the approach. The system incorporated a hypertext system, an inference engine, and facilities for constructing contrast type explanations. The continued development of such a system should prove to be valuable. By extending the resources of the expert system paradigm, the knowledge engineer is not forced to learn a new set of skills, and the domain knowledge already acquired by him is not lost. Further, both the beginning user and the more advanced user can be accommodated. For the beginning user, corrective explanations and ES explanations provide facilities for more clearly understanding the way in which the system is functioning. For the more advanced user, the instance and state explanations allow him to focus on the issues at hand. The simple model of explanation attempts to exploit and show how the why and how facilities of the expert system paradigm can be extended by attending to the pragmatics of explanation and adding texture to the ordinary pattern of reasoning in a rule based system.
mESAdb: microRNA Expression and Sequence Analysis Database
Kaya, Koray D.; Karakülah, Gökhan; Yakıcıer, Cengiz M.; Acar, Aybar C.; Konu, Özlen
2011-01-01
microRNA expression and sequence analysis database (http://konulab.fen.bilkent.edu.tr/mirna/) (mESAdb) is a regularly updated database for the multivariate analysis of sequences and expression of microRNAs from multiple taxa. mESAdb is modular and has a user interface implemented in PHP and JavaScript and coupled with statistical analysis and visualization packages written for the R language. The database primarily comprises mature microRNA sequences and their target data, along with selected human, mouse and zebrafish expression data sets. mESAdb analysis modules allow (i) mining of microRNA expression data sets for subsets of microRNAs selected manually or by motif; (ii) pair-wise multivariate analysis of expression data sets within and between taxa; and (iii) association of microRNA subsets with annotation databases, HUGE Navigator, KEGG and GO. The use of existing and customized R packages facilitates future addition of data sets and analysis tools. Furthermore, the ability to upload and analyze user-specified data sets makes mESAdb an interactive and expandable analysis tool for microRNA sequence and expression data. PMID:21177657
mESAdb: microRNA expression and sequence analysis database.
Kaya, Koray D; Karakülah, Gökhan; Yakicier, Cengiz M; Acar, Aybar C; Konu, Ozlen
2011-01-01
microRNA expression and sequence analysis database (http://konulab.fen.bilkent.edu.tr/mirna/) (mESAdb) is a regularly updated database for the multivariate analysis of sequences and expression of microRNAs from multiple taxa. mESAdb is modular and has a user interface implemented in PHP and JavaScript and coupled with statistical analysis and visualization packages written for the R language. The database primarily comprises mature microRNA sequences and their target data, along with selected human, mouse and zebrafish expression data sets. mESAdb analysis modules allow (i) mining of microRNA expression data sets for subsets of microRNAs selected manually or by motif; (ii) pair-wise multivariate analysis of expression data sets within and between taxa; and (iii) association of microRNA subsets with annotation databases, HUGE Navigator, KEGG and GO. The use of existing and customized R packages facilitates future addition of data sets and analysis tools. Furthermore, the ability to upload and analyze user-specified data sets makes mESAdb an interactive and expandable analysis tool for microRNA sequence and expression data.
Code Optimization and Parallelization on the Origins: Looking from Users' Perspective
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Chang, Yan-Tyng Sherry; Thigpen, William W. (Technical Monitor)
2002-01-01
Parallel machines are becoming the main compute engines for high performance computing. Despite their increasing popularity, it is still a challenge for most users to learn the basic techniques to optimize/parallelize their codes on such platforms. In this paper, we present some experiences on learning these techniques for the Origin systems at the NASA Advanced Supercomputing Division. Emphasis of this paper will be on a few essential issues (with examples) that general users should master when they work with the Origins as well as other parallel systems.
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Scholtz, Jean; Burtner, Edwin R.; Cook, Kristin A.
This course will introduce the field of Visual Analytics to HCI researchers and practitioners highlighting the contributions they can make to this field. Topics will include a definition of visual analytics along with examples of current systems, types of tasks and end users, issues in defining user requirements, design of visualizations and interactions, guidelines and heuristics, the current state of user-centered evaluations, and metrics for evaluation. We encourage designers, HCI researchers, and HCI practitioners to attend to learn how their skills can contribute to advancing the state of the art of visual analytics
Huang, Jin; Hu, Huabin; Xie, Yangchun; Tang, Youhong; Liu, Wei; Zhong, Meizuo
2013-06-01
To analyze the impact of β-tubulin-III (TUBB3), thymidylate synthase (TS) and excision repair cross complementation group 1 (ERCC1) mRNA expression on chemoresponse and clinical outcome of patients with advanced gastric cancer treated with TXT/CDDP/FU (DCF) regimen chemotherapy. The study population consisted of 48 patients with advanced gastric cancer. All patients were treated with DCF regimen palliative chemotherapy. The mRNA expressions of TUBB3, TS and ERCC1 of primary tumors were examined by multiplex branched-DNA liquid chip technology. The patients with low TUBB3 mRNA expression had higher response rate to chemotherapy than patients with high TUBB3 expression (P=0.011). There were no significant differences between response rate and TS or ERCC1 expression pattern. Median overall survival (OS) and median time to progression (TTP) were significantly longer in patients with low TUBB3 mRNA expression (P=0.002, P<0.001). TS or ERCC1 expression was not correlated with TTP and OS. In the combined analysis including TUBB3, TS and ERCC1, the patients with 0 or 1 high expression gene had better response rate, TTP and OS than the remaining patients (all P<0.001). Multivariate analysis revealed that ECOG (Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group)≥2 (HR=2.42, P=0.009) and TUBB3 (HR=2.34, P=0.036) mRNA expression significantly impacted on OS. High TUBB3 mRNA expression is correlated with resistance to DCF regimen chemotherapy. TUBB3 might be a predictive and prognostic factor in patients with advanced gastric cancer treated with TXT-based chemotherapy. The combined evaluation of TUBB3, TS and ERCC1 expression can promote the individual treatment in advanced gastric cancer.
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Ebert, D.
1997-07-01
This is a report on the CSNI Workshop on Transient Thermal-Hydraulic and Neutronic Codes Requirements held at Annapolis, Maryland, USA November 5-8, 1996. This experts` meeting consisted of 140 participants from 21 countries; 65 invited papers were presented. The meeting was divided into five areas: (1) current and prospective plans of thermal hydraulic codes development; (2) current and anticipated uses of thermal-hydraulic codes; (3) advances in modeling of thermal-hydraulic phenomena and associated additional experimental needs; (4) numerical methods in multi-phase flows; and (5) programming language, code architectures and user interfaces. The workshop consensus identified the following important action items tomore » be addressed by the international community in order to maintain and improve the calculational capability: (a) preserve current code expertise and institutional memory, (b) preserve the ability to use the existing investment in plant transient analysis codes, (c) maintain essential experimental capabilities, (d) develop advanced measurement capabilities to support future code validation work, (e) integrate existing analytical capabilities so as to improve performance and reduce operating costs, (f) exploit the proven advances in code architecture, numerics, graphical user interfaces, and modularization in order to improve code performance and scrutibility, and (g) more effectively utilize user experience in modifying and improving the codes.« less
Share Data with OPeNDAP Hyrax: New Features and Improvements
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Gallagher, James
2016-01-01
During the upcoming Summer 2016 meeting of the ESIP Federation (July 19-22), OpenDAP will hold a Developers and Users Workshop. While a broad set of topics will be covered, a key focus is capitalizing on recent EOSDIS-sponsored advances in Hyrax, OPeNDAPs own software for server-side realization of the DAP2 and DAP4 protocols. These Hyrax advances are as important to data users as to data providers, and the workshop will include hands-on experiences of value to both. Specifically, a balanced set of presentations and hands-on tutorials will address advances in 1. server installation, 2. server configuration, 3. Hyrax aggregation capabilities, 4. support for data-access from clients that are HTTP-based, JSON-based or OGC-compliant (especially WCS and WMS), 5. support for DAP4,6.use and extension of server-side computational capabilities, and7.several performance-affecting matters. Topics 2 through 7 will be relevant to data consumers, data providers and notably, due to the open-source nature of all OPeNDAP software to developers wishing to extend Hyrax, to build compatible clients and servers, and/or to employ Hyrax as middleware that enables interoperability across a variety of end-user and source-data contexts. A session for contributed talks will elaborate the topics listed above and embrace additional ones.
Integrated Instrument Simulator Suites for Earth Science
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Tanelli, Simone; Tao, Wei-Kuo; Matsui, Toshihisa; Hostetler, Chris; Hair, Johnathan; Butler, Carolyn; Kuo, Kwo-Sen; Niamsuwan, Noppasin; Johnson, Michael P.; Jacob, Joseph C.;
2012-01-01
The NASA Earth Observing System Simulators Suite (NEOS3) is a modular framework of forward simulations tools for remote sensing of Earth's Atmosphere from space. It was initiated as the Instrument Simulator Suite for Atmospheric Remote Sensing (ISSARS) under the NASA Advanced Information Systems Technology (AIST) program of the Earth Science Technology Office (ESTO) to enable science users to perform simulations based on advanced atmospheric and simple land surface models, and to rapidly integrate in a broad framework any experimental or innovative tools that they may have developed in this context. The name was changed to NEOS3 when the project was expanded to include more advanced modeling tools for the surface contributions, accounting for scattering and emission properties of layered surface (e.g., soil moisture, vegetation, snow and ice, subsurface layers). NEOS3 relies on a web-based graphic user interface, and a three-stage processing strategy to generate simulated measurements. The user has full control over a wide range of customizations both in terms of a priori assumptions and in terms of specific solvers or models used to calculate the measured signals.This presentation will demonstrate the general architecture, the configuration procedures and illustrate some sample products and the fundamental interface requirements for modules candidate for integration.
Yagi, Shunya; Chow, Carmen; Lieblich, Stephanie E; Galea, Liisa A M
2016-01-01
Adult neurogenesis in the dentate gyrus (DG) plays a crucial role for pattern separation, and there are sex differences in the regulation of neurogenesis. Although sex differences, favoring males, in spatial navigation have been reported, it is not known whether there are sex differences in pattern separation. The current study was designed to determine whether there are sex differences in the ability for separating similar or distinct patterns, learning strategy choice, adult neurogenesis, and immediate early gene (IEG) expression in the DG in response to pattern separation training. Male and female Sprague-Dawley rats received a single injection of the DNA synthesis marker, bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU), and were tested for the ability of separating spatial patterns in a spatial pattern separation version of delayed nonmatching to place task using the eight-arm radial arm maze. Twenty-seven days following BrdU injection, rats received a probe trial to determine whether they were idiothetic or spatial strategy users. We found that male spatial strategy users outperformed female spatial strategy users only when separating similar, but not distinct, patterns. Furthermore, male spatial strategy users had greater neurogenesis in response to pattern separation training than all other groups. Interestingly, neurogenesis was positively correlated with performance on similar pattern trials during pattern separation in female spatial strategy users but negatively correlated with performance in male idiothetic strategy users. These results suggest that the survival of new neurons may play an important positive role for pattern separation of similar patterns in females. Furthermore, we found sex and strategy differences in IEG expression in the CA1 and CA3 regions in response to pattern separation. These findings emphasize the importance of studying biological sex on hippocampal function and neural plasticity. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Perceptions of genetic testing and genomic medicine among drug users.
Perlman, David C; Gelpí-Acosta, Camila; Friedman, Samuel R; Jordan, Ashly E; Hagan, Holly
2015-01-01
Genetic testing will soon enter care for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV), and for addiction. There is a paucity of data on how to disseminate genetic testing into healthcare for marginalized populations. We explored drug users' perceptions of genetic testing. Six focus groups were conducted with 34 drug users recruited from syringe exchange programmes and an HIV clinic between May and June 2012. Individual interviews were conducted with participants reporting previous genetic testing. All participants expressed acceptance of genetic testing to improve care, but most had concerns regarding confidentiality and implications for law enforcement. Most expressed more comfort with genetic testing based on individual considerations rather than testing based on race/ethnicity. Participants expressed comfort with genetic testing in medical care rather than drug treatment settings and when specifically asked permission, with peer support, and given a clear rationale. Although participants understood the potential value of genetic testing, concerns regarding breaches in confidentiality and discrimination may reduce testing willingness. Safeguards against these risks, peer support, and testing in medical settings based on individual factors and with clear rationales provided may be critical in efforts to promote acceptance of genetic testing among drug users. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
AEOSS design guide for system analysis on Advanced Earth-Orbital Spacecraft Systems
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Lee, Hwa-Ping
1990-01-01
Advanced Earth Orbital Spacecraft System (AEOSS) enables users to project the requried power, weight, and cost for a generic earth-orbital spacecraft system. These variables are calculated on the component and subsystem levels, and then the system level. The included six subsystems are electric power, thermal control, structure, auxillary propulsion, attitude control, and communication, command, and data handling. The costs are computed using statistically determined models that were derived from the flown spacecraft in the past and were categorized into classes according to their functions and structural complexity. Selected design and performance analyses for essential components and subsystems are also provided. AEOSS has the feature permitting a user to enter known values of these parameters, totally and partially, at all levels. All information is of vital importance to project managers of subsystems or a spacecraft system. AEOSS is a specially tailored software coded from the relational database program of the Acius; 4th Dimension with a Macintosh version. Because of the licensing agreement, two versions of the AEOSS documents were prepared. This version AEOSS Design Guide, is for users to exploit the full capacity of the 4th Dimension. It is for a user who wants to alter or expand the program structures, the program statements, and the program procedures. The user has to possess a 4th Dimension first.
Facial expressions recognition with an emotion expressive robotic head
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Doroftei, I.; Adascalitei, F.; Lefeber, D.; Vanderborght, B.; Doroftei, I. A.
2016-08-01
The purpose of this study is to present the preliminary steps in facial expressions recognition with a new version of an expressive social robotic head. So, in a first phase, our main goal was to reach a minimum level of emotional expressiveness in order to obtain nonverbal communication between the robot and human by building six basic facial expressions. To evaluate the facial expressions, the robot was used in some preliminary user studies, among children and adults.
Real-time data-intensive computing
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Parkinson, Dilworth Y., E-mail: dyparkinson@lbl.gov; Chen, Xian; Hexemer, Alexander
2016-07-27
Today users visit synchrotrons as sources of understanding and discovery—not as sources of just light, and not as sources of data. To achieve this, the synchrotron facilities frequently provide not just light but often the entire end station and increasingly, advanced computational facilities that can reduce terabytes of data into a form that can reveal a new key insight. The Advanced Light Source (ALS) has partnered with high performance computing, fast networking, and applied mathematics groups to create a “super-facility”, giving users simultaneous access to the experimental, computational, and algorithmic resources to make this possible. This combination forms an efficientmore » closed loop, where data—despite its high rate and volume—is transferred and processed immediately and automatically on appropriate computing resources, and results are extracted, visualized, and presented to users or to the experimental control system, both to provide immediate insight and to guide decisions about subsequent experiments during beamtime. We will describe our work at the ALS ptychography, scattering, micro-diffraction, and micro-tomography beamlines.« less
Operational Philosophy for the Advanced Test Reactor National Scientific User Facility
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
J. Benson; J. Cole; J. Jackson
2013-02-01
In 2007, the Department of Energy (DOE) designated the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) as a National Scientific User Facility (NSUF). At its core, the ATR NSUF Program combines access to a portion of the available ATR radiation capability, the associated required examination and analysis facilities at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL), and INL staff expertise with novel ideas provided by external contributors (universities, laboratories, and industry). These collaborations define the cutting edge of nuclear technology research in high-temperature and radiation environments, contribute to improved industry performance of current and future light-water reactors (LWRs), and stimulate cooperative research between user groupsmore » conducting basic and applied research. To make possible the broadest access to key national capability, the ATR NSUF formed a partnership program that also makes available access to critical facilities outside of the INL. Finally, the ATR NSUF has established a sample library that allows access to pre-irradiated samples as needed by national research teams.« less
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Not Available
1978-05-01
The Transient Reactor Analysis Code (TRAC) is being developed at the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory (LASL) to provide an advanced ''best estimate'' predictive capability for the analysis of postulated accidents in light water reactors (LWRs). TRAC-Pl provides this analysis capability for pressurized water reactors (PWRs) and for a wide variety of thermal-hydraulic experimental facilities. It features a three-dimensional treatment of the pressure vessel and associated internals; two-phase nonequilibrium hydrodynamics models; flow-regime-dependent constitutive equation treatment; reflood tracking capability for both bottom flood and falling film quench fronts; and consistent treatment of entire accident sequences including the generation of consistent initial conditions.more » The TRAC-Pl User's Manual is composed of two separate volumes. Volume I gives a description of the thermal-hydraulic models and numerical solution methods used in the code. Detailed programming and user information is also provided. Volume II presents the results of the developmental verification calculations.« less
Modified Dynamic Decode-and-Forward Relaying Protocol for Type II Relay in LTE-Advanced and Beyond
Nam, Sung Sik; Alouini, Mohamed-Slim; Choi, Seyeong
2016-01-01
In this paper, we propose a modified dynamic decode-and-forward (MoDDF) relaying protocol to meet the critical requirements for user equipment (UE) relays in next-generation cellular systems (e.g., LTE-Advanced and beyond). The proposed MoDDF realizes the fast jump-in relaying and the sequential decoding with an application of random codeset to encoding and re-encoding process at the source and the multiple UE relays, respectively. A subframe-by-subframe decoding based on the accumulated (or buffered) messages is employed to achieve energy, information, or mixed combining. Finally, possible early termination of decoding at the end user can lead to the higher spectral efficiency and more energy saving by reducing the frequency of redundant subframe transmission and decoding. These attractive features eliminate the need of directly exchanging control messages between multiple UE relays and the end user, which is an important prerequisite for the practical UE relay deployment. PMID:27898712
Modified Dynamic Decode-and-Forward Relaying Protocol for Type II Relay in LTE-Advanced and Beyond.
Nam, Sung Sik; Alouini, Mohamed-Slim; Choi, Seyeong
2016-01-01
In this paper, we propose a modified dynamic decode-and-forward (MoDDF) relaying protocol to meet the critical requirements for user equipment (UE) relays in next-generation cellular systems (e.g., LTE-Advanced and beyond). The proposed MoDDF realizes the fast jump-in relaying and the sequential decoding with an application of random codeset to encoding and re-encoding process at the source and the multiple UE relays, respectively. A subframe-by-subframe decoding based on the accumulated (or buffered) messages is employed to achieve energy, information, or mixed combining. Finally, possible early termination of decoding at the end user can lead to the higher spectral efficiency and more energy saving by reducing the frequency of redundant subframe transmission and decoding. These attractive features eliminate the need of directly exchanging control messages between multiple UE relays and the end user, which is an important prerequisite for the practical UE relay deployment.
Advanced data management system architectures testbed
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Grant, Terry
1990-01-01
The objective of the Architecture and Tools Testbed is to provide a working, experimental focus to the evolving automation applications for the Space Station Freedom data management system. Emphasis is on defining and refining real-world applications including the following: the validation of user needs; understanding system requirements and capabilities; and extending capabilities. The approach is to provide an open, distributed system of high performance workstations representing both the standard data processors and networks and advanced RISC-based processors and multiprocessor systems. The system provides a base from which to develop and evaluate new performance and risk management concepts and for sharing the results. Participants are given a common view of requirements and capability via: remote login to the testbed; standard, natural user interfaces to simulations and emulations; special attention to user manuals for all software tools; and E-mail communication. The testbed elements which instantiate the approach are briefly described including the workstations, the software simulation and monitoring tools, and performance and fault tolerance experiments.
Supporting Empathy in Online Learning with Artificial Expressions
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Lyons, Michael J.; Kluender, Daniel; Tetsutani, Nobuji
2005-01-01
Motivated by a consideration of the machine-mediated nature of human interaction in web-based tutoring, we propose the construction of artificial expressions, displays which reflect users' felt bodily experience, to support the development of greater empathy in remote interaction. To demonstrate the concept of artificial expressions we have…
Hydraulophones: Acoustic musical instruments and expressive user interfaces
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Janzen, Ryan E.
Fluid flow creates an expansive range of acoustic possibilities, particularly in the case of water, which has unique turbulence and vortex shedding properties as compared with the air of ordinary wind instruments. Sound from water flow is explained with reference to a new class of musical instruments, hydraulophones, in which oscillation originates directly from matter in its liquid state. Several hydraulophones which were realized in practical form are described. A unique user-interface consisting of a row of water jets is presented, in terms of its expressiveness, tactility, responsiveness to derivatives and integrals of displacement, and in terms of the direct physical interaction between a user and the physical process of sound production. Signal processing algorithms are introduced, which extract further information from turbulent water flow, for industrial applications as well as musical applications.
New Literacies Practices of Teenage "Twitter" Users
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Gleason, Benjamin
2016-01-01
This study is an empirical study into the new literacy practices of five teenage "Twitter" users on Twitter. Qualitative methods were used to describe the most prominent ways of participating on "Twitter." Results indicate that teenagers used "Twitter" for self-expression, communication, friendship maintenance, and…
32 CFR 842.133 - Claims by customers, members, participants, or authorized users.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-07-01
... more than expressions of customer dissatisfactions. The activity manager is responsible for... 32 National Defense 6 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Claims by customers, members, participants, or... by customers, members, participants, or authorized users. (a) Customer complaints. Do not...
32 CFR 842.133 - Claims by customers, members, participants, or authorized users.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR
2011-07-01
... more than expressions of customer dissatisfactions. The activity manager is responsible for... 32 National Defense 6 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Claims by customers, members, participants, or... by customers, members, participants, or authorized users. (a) Customer complaints. Do not...
Variational Trajectory Optimization Tool Set: Technical description and user's manual
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Bless, Robert R.; Queen, Eric M.; Cavanaugh, Michael D.; Wetzel, Todd A.; Moerder, Daniel D.
1993-01-01
The algorithms that comprise the Variational Trajectory Optimization Tool Set (VTOTS) package are briefly described. The VTOTS is a software package for solving nonlinear constrained optimal control problems from a wide range of engineering and scientific disciplines. The VTOTS package was specifically designed to minimize the amount of user programming; in fact, for problems that may be expressed in terms of analytical functions, the user needs only to define the problem in terms of symbolic variables. This version of the VTOTS does not support tabular data; thus, problems must be expressed in terms of analytical functions. The VTOTS package consists of two methods for solving nonlinear optimal control problems: a time-domain finite-element algorithm and a multiple shooting algorithm. These two algorithms, under the VTOTS package, may be run independently or jointly. The finite-element algorithm generates approximate solutions, whereas the shooting algorithm provides a more accurate solution to the optimization problem. A user's manual, some examples with results, and a brief description of the individual subroutines are included.
User interface user's guide for HYPGEN
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Chiu, Ing-Tsau
1992-01-01
The user interface (UI) of HYPGEN is developed using Panel Library to shorten the learning curve for new users and provide easier ways to run HYPGEN for casual users as well as for advanced users. Menus, buttons, sliders, and type-in fields are used extensively in UI to allow users to point and click with a mouse to choose various available options or to change values of parameters. On-line help is provided to give users information on using UI without consulting the manual. Default values are set for most parameters and boundary conditions are determined by UI to further reduce the effort needed to run HYPGEN; however, users are free to make any changes and save it in a file for later use. A hook to PLOT3D is built in to allow graphics manipulation. The viewpoint and min/max box for PLOT3D windows are computed by UI and saved in a PLOT3D journal file. For large grids which take a long time to generate on workstations, the grid generator (HYPGEN) can be run on faster computers such as Crays, while UI stays at the workstation.
INCA- INTERACTIVE CONTROLS ANALYSIS
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Bauer, F. H.
1994-01-01
The Interactive Controls Analysis (INCA) program was developed to provide a user friendly environment for the design and analysis of linear control systems, primarily feedback control systems. INCA is designed for use with both small and large order systems. Using the interactive graphics capability, the INCA user can quickly plot a root locus, frequency response, or time response of either a continuous time system or a sampled data system. The system configuration and parameters can be easily changed, allowing the INCA user to design compensation networks and perform sensitivity analysis in a very convenient manner. A journal file capability is included. This stores an entire sequence of commands, generated during an INCA session into a file which can be accessed later. Also included in INCA are a context-sensitive help library, a screen editor, and plot windows. INCA is robust to VAX-specific overflow problems. The transfer function is the basic unit of INCA. Transfer functions are automatically saved and are available to the INCA user at any time. A powerful, user friendly transfer function manipulation and editing capability is built into the INCA program. The user can do all transfer function manipulations and plotting without leaving INCA, although provisions are made to input transfer functions from data files. By using a small set of commands, the user may compute and edit transfer functions, and then examine these functions by using the ROOT_LOCUS, FREQUENCY_RESPONSE, and TIME_RESPONSE capabilities. Basic input data, including gains, are handled as single-input single-output transfer functions. These functions can be developed using the function editor or by using FORTRAN- like arithmetic expressions. In addition to the arithmetic functions, special functions are available to 1) compute step, ramp, and sinusoid functions, 2) compute closed loop transfer functions, 3) convert from S plane to Z plane with optional advanced Z transform, and 4) convert from Z plane to W plane and back. These capabilities allow the INCA user to perform block diagram algebraic manipulations quickly for functions in the S, Z, and W domains. Additionally, a versatile digital control capability has been included in INCA. Special plane transformations allow the user to easily convert functions from one domain to another. Other digital control capabilities include: 1) totally independent open loop frequency response analyses on a continuous plant, discrete control system with a delay, 2) advanced Z-transform capability for systems with delays, and 3) multirate sampling analyses. The current version of INCA includes Dynamic Functions (which change when a parameter changes), standard filter generation, PD and PID controller generation, incorporation of the QZ-algorithm (function addition, inverse Laplace), and describing functions that allow the user to calculate the gain and phase characteristics of a nonlinear device. The INCA graphic modes provide the user with a convenient means to document and study frequency response, time response, and root locus analyses. General graphics features include: 1) zooming and dezooming, 2) plot documentation, 3) a table of analytic computation results, 4) multiple curves on the same plot, and 5) displaying frequency and gain information for a specific point on a curve. Additional capabilities in the frequency response mode include: 1) a full complement of graphical methods Bode magnitude, Bode phase, Bode combined magnitude and phase, Bode strip plots, root contour plots, Nyquist, Nichols, and Popov plots; 2) user selected plot scaling; and 3) gain and phase margin calculation and display. In the time response mode, additional capabilities include: 1) support for inverse Laplace and inverse Z transforms, 2) support for various input functions, 3) closed loop response evaluation, 4) loop gain sensitivity analyses, 5) intersample time response for discrete systems using the advanced Z transform, and 6) closed loop time response using mixed plane (S, Z, W) operations with delay. A Graphics mode command was added to the current version of INCA, version 3.13, to produce Metafiles (graphic files) of the currently displayed plot. The metafile can be displayed and edited using the QPLOT Graphics Editor and Replotter for Metafiles (GERM) program included with the INCA package. The INCA program is written in Pascal and FORTRAN for interactive or batch execution and has been implemented on a DEC VAX series computer under VMS. Both source code and executable code are supplied for INCA. Full INCA graphics capabilities are supported for various Tektronix 40xx and 41xx terminals; DEC VT graphics terminals; many PC and Macintosh terminal emulators; TEK014 hardcopy devices such as the LN03 Laserprinter; and bit map graphics external hardcopy devices. Also included for the TEK4510 rasterizer users are a multiple copy feature, a wide line feature, and additional graphics fonts. The INCA program was developed in 1985, Version 2.04 was released in 1986, Version 3.00 was released in 1988, and Version 3.13 was released in 1989. An INCA version 2.0X conversion program is included.
Multi-modal virtual environment research at Armstrong Laboratory
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Eggleston, Robert G.
1995-01-01
One mission of the Paul M. Fitts Human Engineering Division of Armstrong Laboratory is to improve the user interface for complex systems through user-centered exploratory development and research activities. In support of this goal, many current projects attempt to advance and exploit user-interface concepts made possible by virtual reality (VR) technologies. Virtual environments may be used as a general purpose interface medium, an alternative display/control method, a data visualization and analysis tool, or a graphically based performance assessment tool. An overview is given of research projects within the division on prototype interface hardware/software development, integrated interface concept development, interface design and evaluation tool development, and user and mission performance evaluation tool development.
SEAPAK user's guide, version 2.0. Volume 2: Descriptions of programs
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Mcclain, Charles R.; Darzi, Michael; Firestone, James K.; Fu, Gary; Yeh, Eueng-Nan; Endres, Daniel L.
1991-01-01
The SEAPAK is a user-interactive satellite data analysis package that was developed for the processing and interpretation of Nimbus-7/Coastal Zone Color Scanner (CZCS) and the NOAA Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) data. Significant revisions were made since version 1.0, and the ancillary environmental data analysis module was greatly expanded. The package continues to be user friendly and user interactive. Also, because the scientific goals of the ocean color research being conducted have shifted to large space and time scales, batch processing capabilities for both satellite and ancillary environmental data analyses were enhanced, thus allowing for large quantities of data to be ingested and analyzed.
Service composition towards increasing end-user accessibility.
Kaklanis, Nikolaos; Votis, Konstantinos; Tzovaras, Dimitrios
2015-01-01
This paper presents the Cloud4all Service Synthesizer Tool, a framework that enables efficient orchestration of accessibility services, as well as their combination into complex forms, providing more advanced functionalities towards increasing the accessibility of end-users with various types of functional limitations. The supported services are described formally within an ontology, enabling, thus, semantic service composition. The proposed service composition approach is based on semantic matching between services specifications on the one hand and user needs/preferences and current context of use on the other hand. The use of automatic composition of accessibility services can significantly enhance end-users' accessibility, especially in cases where assistive solutions are not available in their device.
Gellenbeck, Dorinda J.; Oblinger, Carolyn J.; Runkle, Donna L.; Schertz, Terry L.; Scott, Jonathon C.; Stoker, Yvonne E.; Taylor, Robert L.
2006-01-01
This user documentation is designed to be a reference for the Water-Quality System (QWDATA) within the National Water Information System (NWIS). For the new user, the 'Introduction' and 'Getting Started' sections are the recommended places to begin. The experienced user may want to go straight to the details provided in the program section (section 3). Code lists and some miscellaneous reference materials are provided in the Appendices. The last section, 'Tip Sheets,' is a collection of suggestions for accomplishing selected tasks, some of which are basic and some of which are advanced. Where appropriate, these Tip Sheets are referenced in the main text of the documentation.
Gellenbeck, Dorinda; Oblinger, Carolyn J.; Runkle, Donna L.; Schertz, Terry L.; Scott, Jonathon C.; Taylor, Robert L.
2005-01-01
This user documentation is designed to be a reference for the Water-Quality System (QWDATA) within the National Water Information System (NWIS). For the new user, the 'Introduction' and 'Getting Started' sections are the recommended places to begin. The experienced user may want to go straight to the details provided in the program section (section 3). Code lists and some miscellaneous reference materials are provided in the Appendices. The last section, 'Tip Sheets,' is a collection of suggestions for accomplishing selected tasks, some of which are basic and some of which are advanced. Where appropriate, these Tip Sheets are referenced in the main text of the documentation.
SEAPAK user's guide, version 2.0. Volume 1: System description
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Mcclain, Charles R.; Darzi, Michael; Firestone, James K.; Fu, Gary; Yeh, Eueng-Nan; Endres, Daniel L.
1991-01-01
The SEAPAK is a user interactive satellite data analysis package that was developed for the processing and interpretation of Nimbus-7/Coastal Zone Color Scanner (CZCS) and the NOAA Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) data. Significant revisions were made to version 1.0 of the guide, and the ancillary environmental data analysis module was expanded. The package continues to emphasize user friendliness and user interactive data analyses. Additionally, because the scientific goals of the ocean color research being conducted have shifted to large space and time scales, batch processing capabilities for both satellite and ancillary environmental data analyses were enhanced, thus allowing large quantities of data to be ingested and analyzed in background.
Statistical modeling for visualization evaluation through data fusion.
Chen, Xiaoyu; Jin, Ran
2017-11-01
There is a high demand of data visualization providing insights to users in various applications. However, a consistent, online visualization evaluation method to quantify mental workload or user preference is lacking, which leads to an inefficient visualization and user interface design process. Recently, the advancement of interactive and sensing technologies makes the electroencephalogram (EEG) signals, eye movements as well as visualization logs available in user-centered evaluation. This paper proposes a data fusion model and the application procedure for quantitative and online visualization evaluation. 15 participants joined the study based on three different visualization designs. The results provide a regularized regression model which can accurately predict the user's evaluation of task complexity, and indicate the significance of all three types of sensing data sets for visualization evaluation. This model can be widely applied to data visualization evaluation, and other user-centered designs evaluation and data analysis in human factors and ergonomics. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Not in Love, or Not in the Know? Graduate Student and Faculty Use (and Non-Use) of E-Books
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Cassidy, Erin Dorris; Martinez, Michelle; Shen, Lisa
2012-01-01
This study focuses on usage of electronic books (e-books) among advanced researchers, including graduate students and faculty, at a four-year academic institution. The researchers aimed to highlight differences in behavior, perception, and attitude between users and non-users of e-books. The survey findings suggest that, while a majority of these…
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Yamada, Masanori; Kitamura, Satoshi; Matsukawa, Hideya; Misono, Tadashi; Kitani, Noriko; Yamauchi, Yuhei
2014-01-01
In recent years, collaborative filtering, a recommendation algorithm that incorporates a user's data such as interest, has received worldwide attention as an advanced learning support system. However, accurate recommendations along with a user's interest cannot be ideal as an effective learning environment. This study aims to develop and…
Advances in Sterilization and Decontamination: a Survey
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
1978-01-01
Recent technical advances made in the field of sterilization and decontamination and their applicability to private and commercial interests are discussed. Government-sponsored programs by NASA produced the bulk of material presented in this survey. The summary of past and current research discussed is detailed to enhance an effective transfer of technology from NASA to potential users.
Advanced Ground Systems Maintenance Cryogenics Test Lab Control System Upgrade Project
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Harp, Janice Leshay
2014-01-01
This project will outfit the Simulated Propellant Loading System (SPLS) at KSC's Cryogenics Test Laboratory with a new programmable logic control system. The control system upgrade enables the Advanced Ground Systems Maintenace Element Integration Team and other users of the SPLS to conduct testing in a controls environment similar to that used at the launch pad.
Background: There is an urgent need to provide access to cleaner end user energy technolo-gies for the nearly 40% of the world’s population who currently depend on rudimentary cooking and heating systems. Advanced cookstoves (CS) are de¬signed to cut emissions and soli...
ORBIT: an integrated environment for user-customized bioinformatics tools.
Bellgard, M I; Hiew, H L; Hunter, A; Wiebrands, M
1999-10-01
There are a large number of computational programs freely available to bioinformaticians via a client/server, web-based environment. However, the client interface to these tools (typically an html form page) cannot be customized from the client side as it is created by the service provider. The form page is usually generic enough to cater for a wide range of users. However, this implies that a user cannot set as 'default' advanced program parameters on the form or even customize the interface to his/her specific requirements or preferences. Currently, there is a lack of end-user interface environments that can be modified by the user when accessing computer programs available on a remote server running on an intranet or over the Internet. We have implemented a client/server system called ORBIT (Online Researcher's Bioinformatics Interface Tools) where individual clients can have interfaces created and customized to command-line-driven, server-side programs. Thus, Internet-based interfaces can be tailored to a user's specific bioinformatic needs. As interfaces are created on the client machine independent of the server, there can be different interfaces to the same server-side program to cater for different parameter settings. The interface customization is relatively quick (between 10 and 60 min) and all client interfaces are integrated into a single modular environment which will run on any computer platform supporting Java. The system has been developed to allow for a number of future enhancements and features. ORBIT represents an important advance in the way researchers gain access to bioinformatics tools on the Internet.
Opiate users' knowledge about overdose prevention and naloxone in New York City: a focus group study
Worthington, Nancy; Markham Piper, Tinka; Galea, Sandro; Rosenthal, David
2006-01-01
Background Drug-induced and drug-related deaths have been increasing for the past decade throughout the US. In NYC, drug overdose accounts for nearly 900 deaths per year, a figure that exceeds the number of deaths each year from homicide. Naloxone, a highly effective opiate antagonist, has for decades been used by doctors and paramedics during emergency resuscitation after an opiate overdose. Following the lead of programs in Europe and the US who have successfully distributed take-home naloxone, the Overdose Prevention and Reversal Program at the Lower East Side Harm Reduction Center (LESHRC) has started providing a similar resource for opiate users in NYC. Participants in the program receive a prescription for two doses of naloxone, with refills as needed, and comprehensive training to reduce overdose risk, administer naloxone, perform rescue breathing, and call 911. As of September 2005, 204 participants have received naloxone and been trained, and 40 have revived an overdosing friend or family member. While naloxone accessibility stands as a proven life-saving measure, some opiates users at LESHRC have expressed only minimal interest in naloxone use, due to past experiences and common misconceptions. Methods In order to improve the naloxone distribution program two focus groups were conducted in December 2004 with 13 opiate users at LESHRC to examine knowledge about overdose and overdose prevention. The focus groups assessed participants' (i) experiences with overdose response, specifically naloxone (ii) understanding and perceptions of naloxone, (iii) comfort level with naloxone administration and (iv) feedback about increasing the visibility and desirability of the naloxone distribution program. Results Analyses suggest that there is both support for and resistance to take-home naloxone, marked by enthusiasm for its potential role in reviving an overdosing individual, numerous misconceptions and negative views of its impact and use. Conclusion Focus group results will be used to increase participation in the program and reshape perceptions about naloxone among opiate users, also targeting those already prescribed naloxone to increase their comfort using it. Since NYC is advancing toward a citywide naloxone distribution program, the LESHRC program will play an important role in establishing protocol for effective and wide-reaching naloxone availability. PMID:16822302
The Profile-Query Relationship.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Shepherd, Michael A.; Phillips, W. J.
1986-01-01
Defines relationship between user profile and user query in terms of relationship between clusters of documents retrieved by each, and explores the expression of cluster similarity and cluster overlap as linear functions of similarity existing between original pairs of profiles and queries, given the desired retrieval threshold. (23 references)…
Information services and information processing
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
1975-01-01
Attempts made to design and extend space system capabilities are reported. Special attention was given to establishing user needs for information or services which might be provided by space systems. Data given do not attempt to detail scientific, technical, or economic bases for the needs expressed by the users.
Decision-Guided Recommenders with Composite Alternatives
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Alodhaibi, Khalid
2011-01-01
Recommender systems aim to support users in their decision-making process while interacting with large information spaces and recommend items of interest to users based on preferences they have expressed, either explicitly or implicitly. Recommender systems are increasingly used with product and service selection over the Internet. Although…
User Participation in Coproduction of Health Innovation: Proposal for a Synergy Project
Zukauskaite, Elena; Westberg, Niklas
2018-01-01
Background This project concerns advancing knowledge, methods, and logic for user participation in coproduction of health innovations. Such advancement is vital for several reasons. From a user perspective, participation in coproduction provides an opportunity to gain real influence over goal definition, design, and implementation of health innovations, ensuring that the solution developed solves real problems in right ways. From a societal perspective, it’s a mean to improve the efficiency of health care and the implementation of the Patient Act. As for industry, frameworks and knowledge of coproduction offer tools to operate in a complex sector, with great potential for innovation of services and products. Objective The fundamental objective of this project is to advance knowledge and methods of how user participation in the coproduction of health innovations can be applied in order to benefit users, industry, and public sector. Methods This project is a synergy project, which means that the objective will be accomplished through collaboration and meta-analysis between three subprojects that address different user groups, apply different strategies to promote human health, and relate to different parts of the health sector. Furthermore, subprojects focus on distinctive stages in the spectrum of innovation, with the objective to generate knowledge of the innovation process as a whole. The project is organized around three work packages related to three challenges—coproduction, positioning, and realization. Each subproject is designed such that it has its own field of study with clearly identified objectives but also targets work packages to contribute to the project as a whole. The work on the work packages will use case methodology for data collection and analysis based on the subprojects as data sources. More concretely, logic of multiple case studies will be applied with each subproject representing a separate case which is similar to each other in its attention to user participation in coproduction, but different regarding, for example, context and target groups. At the synergy level, the framework methodology will be used to handle and analyze the vast amount of information generated within the subprojects. Results The project period is from July 1, 2018 to June 30, 2022. Conclusions By addressing the objective of this project, we will create new knowledge on how to manage challenges to health innovation associated with the coproduction process, the positioning of solutions, and realization. PMID:29743159
Individual fertility assessment and counselling in women of reproductive age.
Petersen, Kathrine Birch
2016-10-01
The overall aim of this thesis was to validate the new concept of the Fertility Assessment and Counselling (FAC) Clinic at Rigshospitalet. The intention was to: explore the prognostic value of fertility risk factors by a risk score and provide an estimate of female fecundity, to quantify the impact of oral contraception (OC) on ovarian reserve parameters defined as Anti Müllerian Hormone (AMH), Antral Follicle Count (AFC) and ovarian volume, and to gain knowledge of attitudes and considerations toward family formation in women of advanced age. The thesis is based on the following four manuscripts: Manuscript I describes the predictive value of individual fertility assessment and counselling in terms of subsequent time to pregnancy within two years after the initial consultation at the FAC Clinic. The follow up study comprised 519 women, of which 352 had tried to conceive. At the time of follow-up, 259/352 had achieved a pregnancy, 74/352 were still trying and 19/352 had given up. The remaining 167 women had no attempts to conceive. The risk assessment provided a score based on the appearance of fertility risk factors: green (low), yellow (low), orange (medium) and red (high). Two-thirds of the women with only low risk scores conceived spontaneously within 12 months (65%), while this figure was only 32% for women with at least one high risk score (n=82). Accordingly, presence of at least one high risk score reduced the odds of achieving a pregnancy within 12 months by 73% (OR 0.27, 95%CI 0.13-0.57). The FAC Clinic concept seems as a usable tool for fertility experts to guide women on how to fulfil their reproductive life-plan, but longer follow-up studies are needed. Manuscript II describes the impact of OC on ovarian reserve parameters in 887 women at the FAC Clinic. Of the 887 women, 244 (27.5%) used OC. The 244 users of OC were significantly younger than non-users with a mean age of 31.5 (SD 4.3) vs. 34.1 (SD 4.3) years (p < 0.001). Overall, there was no difference between the two groups in relation to bodyweight, BMI, smoking habits, gestational age at birth, prenatal exposure to maternal smoking or maternal age at menopause. In linear regression analyses adjusted for age, ovarian volume was 50% lower, AMH was 19% lower, and AFC was 18% lower in OC-users compared to non-users. Among the OC users there was a significant decrease in antral follicles sized 5-7 and 8-10 mm and an increase in the number of small follicles sized 2-4 mm. Physicians have to be aware of the impact of OC use on ovarian reserve parameters and possible concealment of premature ovarian insufficiency, when assessing the fertility status and estimating the reproductive lifespan in OC users. Manuscript III describes the family intentions and personal considerations on postponing childbearing in 340 childless women of advanced age. The study comprised 140 cohabiting and 200 single women aged 35-43 seeking fertility assessment and counselling at the FAC Clinic. The majority (82%) was well-educated and in employment. Despite their mean age of 37.4 years, the main reasons for attending the FAC Clinic were to gain knowledge on the possibility of postponing pregnancy (63%) and due to a concern about their fecundity (52%). Both the cohabiting and single women expressed a wish for two or more children (60%). The most important benefits were "personal development" (89%) and "to give and receive love" (86%). The main concerns about childbearing were "less time to myself" (82%) and "less time to job and career" (76%). The single women were more positive regarding the use of donor sperm (70%) compared to the cohabiting women (25%). Our results indicated a general overestimation of the women´s own reproductive capacity and an underestimation of their risk of future infertility and childlessness with continuous postponement of pregnancies. Manuscript IV describes attitudes toward family formation in ten single and ten cohabiting childless women of advanced age. The women were interviewed one week before their consultation at the FAC Clinic about their family formation intentions, considerations and concerns. The interviews were analysed and condensed into four categories: ''The biological clock'', ''The difficult choice'', ''The dream of the nuclear family'', and ''Mother without a father''. The categories were condensed into two subthemes; `Fear´ and `Expectations´ and gathered into one main theme 'The conflict of choosing', which reflected the women's attitudes toward family formation prior to individual fertility counselling. The women attended the FAC Clinic due to a concern about their fecundity and a fear for infertility. Overall, the women expressed a dream of the nuclear family and finding "Mr. Right" and many with the wish of buying more time. Both groups would consider solo motherhood due to their advanced age, although it was considered to be Plan B, as it was not "natural".
The design and development of a third generation OSEE instrument
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Perey, D. F.; Yost, W. T.; Stone, F. D.; Welch, C. S.; Scales, E.; Gasser, E. S.; Joe, E.; Goodman, T.; Pascual, X.; Hefner, B.
1995-01-01
Optically Stimulated Electron Emission (OSEE) has been used to quantify surface contamination in the aerospace community. As advances are made towards the understanding of OSEE, it is desirable to incorporate technological advances with succeeding generations of instrumentation, so that improvements in the practical application of OSEE may be disseminated among the user community. Several studies undertaken by Yost, Welch, Abedin and others have expanded the knowledge base related to the underlying principles of OSEE. The conclusions of these studies, together with inputs from the user community were the foundation upon which the development of a third generation OSEE instrument was based. This manuscript describes the significant improvements incorporated into a third generation OSEE instrument as well as the elements unique to its design.
Remote gaming on resource-constrained devices
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Reza, Waazim; Kalva, Hari; Kaufman, Richard
2010-08-01
Games have become important applications on mobile devices. A mobile gaming approach known as remote gaming is being developed to support games on low cost mobile devices. In the remote gaming approach, the responsibility of rendering a game and advancing the game play is put on remote servers instead of the resource constrained mobile devices. The games rendered on the servers are encoded as video and streamed to mobile devices. Mobile devices gather user input and stream the commands back to the servers to advance game play. With this solution, mobile devices with video playback and network connectivity can become game consoles. In this paper we present the design and development of such a system and evaluate the performance and design considerations to maximize the end user gaming experience.
Toward Usable Interactive Analytics: Coupling Cognition and Computation
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Endert, Alexander; North, Chris; Chang, Remco
Interactive analytics provide users a myriad of computational means to aid in extracting meaningful information from large and complex datasets. Much prior work focuses either on advancing the capabilities of machine-centric approaches by the data mining and machine learning communities, or human-driven methods by the visualization and CHI communities. However, these methods do not yet support a true human-machine symbiotic relationship where users and machines work together collaboratively and adapt to each other to advance an interactive analytic process. In this paper we discuss some of the inherent issues, outlining what we believe are the steps toward usable interactive analyticsmore » that will ultimately increase the effectiveness for both humans and computers to produce insights.« less
The Evolvable Advanced Multi-Mission Operations System (AMMOS): Making Systems Interoperable
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Ko, Adans Y.; Maldague, Pierre F.; Bui, Tung; Lam, Doris T.; McKinney, John C.
2010-01-01
The Advanced Multi-Mission Operations System (AMMOS) provides a common Mission Operation System (MOS) infrastructure to NASA deep space missions. The evolution of AMMOS has been driven by two factors: increasingly challenging requirements from space missions, and the emergence of new IT technology. The work described in this paper focuses on three key tasks related to IT technology requirements: first, to eliminate duplicate functionality; second, to promote the use of loosely coupled application programming interfaces, text based file interfaces, web-based frameworks and integrated Graphical User Interfaces (GUI) to connect users, data, and core functionality; and third, to build, develop, and deploy AMMOS services that are reusable, agile, adaptive to project MOS configurations, and responsive to industrially endorsed information technology standards.
Gene Expression Dynamics Inspector (GEDI): for integrative analysis of expression profiles
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Eichler, Gabriel S.; Huang, Sui; Ingber, Donald E.
2003-01-01
Genome-wide expression profiles contain global patterns that evade visual detection in current gene clustering analysis. Here, a Gene Expression Dynamics Inspector (GEDI) is described that uses self-organizing maps to translate high-dimensional expression profiles of time courses or sample classes into animated, coherent and robust mosaics images. GEDI facilitates identification of interesting patterns of molecular activity simultaneously across gene, time and sample space without prior assumption of any structure in the data, and then permits the user to retrieve genes of interest. Important changes in genome-wide activities may be quickly identified based on 'Gestalt' recognition and hence, GEDI may be especially useful for non-specialist end users, such as physicians. AVAILABILITY: GEDI v1.0 is written in Matlab, and binary Matlab.dll files which require Matlab to run can be downloaded for free by academic institutions at http://www.chip.org/ge/gedihome.html Supplementary information: http://www.chip.org/ge/gedihome.html.
Lau, Tze Pheng; Roslani, April Camilla; Lian, Lay Hoong; Chai, Hwa Chia; Lee, Ping Chin; Hilmi, Ida; Goh, Khean Lee; Chua, Kek Heng
2014-01-01
Objectives To characterise the mRNA expression patterns of early and advanced stage colorectal adenocarcinomas of Malaysian patients. Design Comparative expression analysis. Setting and participants We performed a combination of annealing control primer (ACP)-based PCR and reverse transcription-quantitative real-time PCR for the identification of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) associated with early and advanced stage primary colorectal tumours. We recruited four paired samples from patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) of Dukes’ A and B for the preliminary differential expression study, and a total of 27 paired samples, ranging from CRC stages I to IV, for subsequent confirmatory test. The tumouric samples were obtained from the patients with CRC undergoing curative surgical resection without preoperative chemoradiotherapy. The recruited patients with CRC were newly diagnosed with CRC, and were not associated with any hereditary syndromes, previously diagnosed cancer or positive family history of CRC. The paired non-cancerous tissue specimens were excised from macroscopically normal colonic mucosa distally located from the colorectal tumours. Primary and secondary outcome measures The differential mRNA expression patterns of early and advanced stage colorectal adenocarcinomas compared with macroscopically normal colonic mucosa were characterised by ACP-based PCR and reverse transcription-quantitative real-time PCR. Results The RPL35, RPS23 and TIMP1 genes were found to be overexpressed in both early and advanced stage colorectal adenocarcinomas (p<0.05). However, the ARPC2 gene was significantly underexpressed in early colorectal adenocarcinomas, while the advanced stage primary colorectal tumours exhibited an additional overexpression of the C6orf173 gene (p<0.05). Conclusions We characterised two distinctive gene expression patterns to aid in the stratification of primary colorectal neoplasms among Malaysian patients with CRC. Further work can be done to assess and compare the mRNA expression levels of these identified DEGs between each CRC stage group, stages I–IV. PMID:25107436
From Data to Knowledge: GEOSS experience and the GEOSS Knowledge Base contribution to the GCI
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Santoro, M.; Nativi, S.; Mazzetti, P., Sr.; Plag, H. P.
2016-12-01
According to systems theory, data is raw, it simply exists and has no significance beyond its existence; while, information is data that has been given meaning by way of relational connection. The appropriate collection of information, such that it contributes to understanding, is a process of knowledge creation.The Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS) developed by the Group on Earth Observations (GEO) is a set of coordinated, independent Earth observation, information and processing systems that interact and provide access to diverse information for a broad range of users in both public and private sectors. GEOSS links these systems to strengthen the monitoring of the state of the Earth. In the past ten years, the development of GEOSS has taught several lessons dealing with the need to move from (open) data to information and knowledge sharing. Advanced user-focused services require to move from a data-driven framework to a knowledge sharing platform. Such a platform needs to manage information and knowledge, in addition to datasets linked to them. For this scope, GEO has launched a specific task called "GEOSS Knowledge Base", which deals with resources, like user requirements, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), observation and processing ontologies, publications, guidelines, best practices, business processes/algorithms, definition of advanced concepts like Essential Variables (EVs), indicators, strategic goals, etc. In turn, information and knowledge (e.g. guidelines, best practices, user requirements, business processes, algorithms, etc.) can be used to generate additional information and knowledge from shared datasets. To fully utilize and leverage the GEOSS Knowledge Base, the current GEOSS Common Infrastructure (GCI) model will be extended and advanced to consider important concepts and implementation artifacts, such as data processing services and environmental/economic models as well as EVs, Primary Indicators, and SDGs. The new GCI model will link these concepts to the present dataset, observation and sensor concepts, enabling a set of very important new capabilities to be offered to GEOSS users.
Project Ukko - Design of a climate service visualisation interface for seasonal wind forecasts
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Hemment, Drew; Stefaner, Moritz; Makri, Stephann; Buontempo, Carlo; Christel, Isadora; Torralba-Fernandez, Veronica; Gonzalez-Reviriego, Nube; Doblas-Reyes, Francisco; de Matos, Paula; Dykes, Jason
2016-04-01
Project Ukko is a prototype climate service to visually communicate probabilistic seasonal wind forecasts for the energy sector. In Project Ukko, an interactive visualisation enhances the accessibility and readability to the latests advances in seasonal wind speed predictions developed as part of the RESILIENCE prototype of the EUPORIAS (EC FP7) project. Climate services provide made-to-measure climate information, tailored to the specific requirements of different users and industries. In the wind energy sector, understanding of wind conditions in the next few months has high economic value, for instance, for the energy traders. Current energy practices use retrospective climatology, but access to reliable seasonal predictions based in the recent advances in global climate models has potential to improve their resilience to climate variability and change. Despite their potential benefits, a barrier to the development of commercially viable services is the complexity of the probabilistic forecast information, and the challenge of communicating complex and uncertain information to decision makers in industry. Project Ukko consists of an interactive climate service interface for wind energy users to explore probabilistic wind speed predictions for the coming season. This interface enables fast visual detection and exploration of interesting features and regions likely to experience unusual changes in wind speed in the coming months.The aim is not only to support users to better understand the future variability in wind power resources, but also to bridge the gap between practitioners' traditional approach and the advanced prediction systems developed by the climate science community. Project Ukko is presented as a case study of cross-disciplinary collaboration between climate science and design, for the development of climate services that are useful, usable and effective for industry users. The presentation will reflect on the challenge of developing a climate service for industry users in the wind energy sector, the background to this challenge, our approach, and the evaluation of the visualisation interface.
Teaching an Old Client New Tricks - the GloVIS Global Visualization Viewer after 14 Years
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Meyer, D. J.; Steinwand, D.; Lemig, K.; Davis, B.; Werpy, J.; Quenzer, R.
2014-12-01
The US Geological Survey's Global Visualization Viewer (GloVIS) is a web-based, visual search and discovery tool used to access imagery from aircraft and space-based imaging systems. GloVIS was introduced shortly after the launch of Landsat 7 to provide a visual client to select images squired by the Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus. Since then, it has been expanded to search on other Landsat imagery (Multi-spectral Scanner, Thematic Mapper, Operational Land Imager), imagery from a variety of NASA instruments (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer, Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emissions and Reflection Radiometer, Advanced Land Imager, Hyperion), along with images from high-resolution airborne photography and special collections representing decades-long observations. GloVIS incorporated a number of features considered novel at its original release, such as rapid visual browse, and the ability to use one type of satellite observation (e.g., vegetation seasonality curves derived from the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer) to assist in the selection of another (e.g., Landsat). After 14 years, the GloVIS client has gained a large following, having served millions of images to hundreds of thousands of users, but is due for a major re-design. Described here are a set of guiding principles driving the re-design, the methodology used to understand how users discover and retrieve imagery, and candidate technologies to be leveraged in the re-design. The guiding principles include (1) visual co-discovery - the ability to browse and select imagery from diverse sources simultaneously; (2) user-centric design - understanding user needs prior to design and involving users throughout the design process; (3) adaptability - the use of flexible design to permit rapid incorporation of new capabilities, and (4) interoperability - the use of services, conventions and protocols to permit interaction with external sources of Earth science imagery.
Zheng, Hua; Rosal, Milagros C; Li, Wenjun; Borg, Amy; Yang, Wenyun; Ayers, David C; Franklin, Patricia D
2018-04-30
Data-driven surgical decisions will ensure proper use and timing of surgical care. We developed a Web-based patient-centered treatment decision and assessment tool to guide treatment decisions among patients with advanced knee osteoarthritis who are considering total knee replacement surgery. The aim of this study was to examine user experience and acceptance of the Web-based treatment decision support tool among older adults. User-centered formative and summative evaluations were conducted for the tool. A sample of 28 patients who were considering total knee replacement participated in the study. Participants' responses to the user interface design, the clarity of information, as well as usefulness, satisfaction, and acceptance of the tool were collected through qualitative (ie, individual patient interviews) and quantitative (ie, standardized Computer System Usability Questionnaire) methods. Participants were older adults with a mean age of 63 (SD 11) years. Three-quarters of them had no technical questions using the tool. User interface design recommendations included larger fonts, bigger buttons, less colors, simpler navigation without extra "next page" click, less mouse movement, and clearer illustrations with simple graphs. Color-coded bar charts and outcome-specific graphs with positive action were easiest for them to understand the outcomes data. Questionnaire data revealed high satisfaction with the tool usefulness and interface quality, and also showed ease of use of the tool, regardless of age or educational status. We evaluated the usability of a patient-centered decision support tool designed for advanced knee arthritis patients to facilitate their knee osteoarthritis treatment decision making. The lessons learned can inform other decision support tools to improve interface and content design for older patients' use. ©Hua Zheng, Milagros C Rosal, Wenjun Li, Amy Borg, Wenyun Yang, David C Ayers, Patricia D Franklin. Originally published in JMIR Human Factors (http://humanfactors.jmir.org), 30.04.2018.
Rule-Based Design of Plant Expression Vectors Using GenoCAD.
Coll, Anna; Wilson, Mandy L; Gruden, Kristina; Peccoud, Jean
2015-01-01
Plant synthetic biology requires software tools to assist on the design of complex multi-genic expression plasmids. Here a vector design strategy to express genes in plants is formalized and implemented as a grammar in GenoCAD, a Computer-Aided Design software for synthetic biology. It includes a library of plant biological parts organized in structural categories and a set of rules describing how to assemble these parts into large constructs. Rules developed here are organized and divided into three main subsections according to the aim of the final construct: protein localization studies, promoter analysis and protein-protein interaction experiments. The GenoCAD plant grammar guides the user through the design while allowing users to customize vectors according to their needs. Therefore the plant grammar implemented in GenoCAD will help plant biologists take advantage of methods from synthetic biology to design expression vectors supporting their research projects.
iCOSSY: An Online Tool for Context-Specific Subnetwork Discovery from Gene Expression Data
Saha, Ashis; Jeon, Minji; Tan, Aik Choon; Kang, Jaewoo
2015-01-01
Pathway analyses help reveal underlying molecular mechanisms of complex biological phenotypes. Biologists tend to perform multiple pathway analyses on the same dataset, as there is no single answer. It is often inefficient for them to implement and/or install all the algorithms by themselves. Online tools can help the community in this regard. Here we present an online gene expression analytical tool called iCOSSY which implements a novel pathway-based COntext-specific Subnetwork discoverY (COSSY) algorithm. iCOSSY also includes a few modifications of COSSY to increase its reliability and interpretability. Users can upload their gene expression datasets, and discover important subnetworks of closely interacting molecules to differentiate between two phenotypes (context). They can also interactively visualize the resulting subnetworks. iCOSSY is a web server that finds subnetworks that are differentially expressed in two phenotypes. Users can visualize the subnetworks to understand the biology of the difference. PMID:26147457
Kim, Mihee
2016-12-01
This study investigated how Facebook's spiral of silence influences political participation. For doing so, this study focused on the roles of politically expressive activities on Facebook and individuals' levels of partisan strength. An online survey (N = 277) was conducted with Facebook users. Results showed that a perceived hostile opinion climate on Facebook was negatively associated with political expression on Facebook, which, in turn, was positively related with political participation. This indirect relationship was conditioned by the degree of Facebook users' partisan strength. Those with weak or moderate levels of partisan strength were less likely to express their minority views, which led to decrease their political participation in the real world. Such indirect relationship was not the case for those with high levels of partisan strength. Theoretical and political implications of these findings were discussed.
Multisensory emotion perception in congenitally, early, and late deaf CI users
Nava, Elena; Villwock, Agnes K.; Büchner, Andreas; Lenarz, Thomas; Röder, Brigitte
2017-01-01
Emotions are commonly recognized by combining auditory and visual signals (i.e., vocal and facial expressions). Yet it is unknown whether the ability to link emotional signals across modalities depends on early experience with audio-visual stimuli. In the present study, we investigated the role of auditory experience at different stages of development for auditory, visual, and multisensory emotion recognition abilities in three groups of adolescent and adult cochlear implant (CI) users. CI users had a different deafness onset and were compared to three groups of age- and gender-matched hearing control participants. We hypothesized that congenitally deaf (CD) but not early deaf (ED) and late deaf (LD) CI users would show reduced multisensory interactions and a higher visual dominance in emotion perception than their hearing controls. The CD (n = 7), ED (deafness onset: <3 years of age; n = 7), and LD (deafness onset: >3 years; n = 13) CI users and the control participants performed an emotion recognition task with auditory, visual, and audio-visual emotionally congruent and incongruent nonsense speech stimuli. In different blocks, participants judged either the vocal (Voice task) or the facial expressions (Face task). In the Voice task, all three CI groups performed overall less efficiently than their respective controls and experienced higher interference from incongruent facial information. Furthermore, the ED CI users benefitted more than their controls from congruent faces and the CD CI users showed an analogous trend. In the Face task, recognition efficiency of the CI users and controls did not differ. Our results suggest that CI users acquire multisensory interactions to some degree, even after congenital deafness. When judging affective prosody they appear impaired and more strongly biased by concurrent facial information than typically hearing individuals. We speculate that limitations inherent to the CI contribute to these group differences. PMID:29023525
Multisensory emotion perception in congenitally, early, and late deaf CI users.
Fengler, Ineke; Nava, Elena; Villwock, Agnes K; Büchner, Andreas; Lenarz, Thomas; Röder, Brigitte
2017-01-01
Emotions are commonly recognized by combining auditory and visual signals (i.e., vocal and facial expressions). Yet it is unknown whether the ability to link emotional signals across modalities depends on early experience with audio-visual stimuli. In the present study, we investigated the role of auditory experience at different stages of development for auditory, visual, and multisensory emotion recognition abilities in three groups of adolescent and adult cochlear implant (CI) users. CI users had a different deafness onset and were compared to three groups of age- and gender-matched hearing control participants. We hypothesized that congenitally deaf (CD) but not early deaf (ED) and late deaf (LD) CI users would show reduced multisensory interactions and a higher visual dominance in emotion perception than their hearing controls. The CD (n = 7), ED (deafness onset: <3 years of age; n = 7), and LD (deafness onset: >3 years; n = 13) CI users and the control participants performed an emotion recognition task with auditory, visual, and audio-visual emotionally congruent and incongruent nonsense speech stimuli. In different blocks, participants judged either the vocal (Voice task) or the facial expressions (Face task). In the Voice task, all three CI groups performed overall less efficiently than their respective controls and experienced higher interference from incongruent facial information. Furthermore, the ED CI users benefitted more than their controls from congruent faces and the CD CI users showed an analogous trend. In the Face task, recognition efficiency of the CI users and controls did not differ. Our results suggest that CI users acquire multisensory interactions to some degree, even after congenital deafness. When judging affective prosody they appear impaired and more strongly biased by concurrent facial information than typically hearing individuals. We speculate that limitations inherent to the CI contribute to these group differences.
[The trajectory of a public service for alcohol and drug addicts in Vitória: the case of the CPTT].
Dos Reis, Rossana; Garcia, Maria Lúcia Teixeira
2008-01-01
The aim of this case study is to analyze the Center for Prevention and Treatment of Alcohol and Drug Addiction (CPTT)/Psychosocial Care Center in Drugs and Alcohol (CAPS ad), and to reflect about the implementation process of the local addiction recovery policy for drug users and alcoholics. A document research was performed using as sources the CPTTs mid-year/annual and/or management reports and articles about the service. Data were analyzed using a priori and a posteriori content analysis. The CPTT, a health service of the government of the city of Vitória, was created in 1992 as a psychosocial service. The services provided by the CPTT include individual care, daily group activities and reception and follow-up groups. Today, the situation in the CPTT is characterized by precarious employment relations for most of the professionals working there. The trajectory of the implementation of the CPTT in the city of Vitória expresses two contradictory features: on one hand the advances made in the implementation of the public policy for prevention and treatment of drug and alcohol abuse, and on the other hand the challenge posed by the lack of a human resources policy capable of putting in effect the advances proposed by the policy.
Baptiste, B.; Dawson, D.R.; Streiner, D.
2015-01-01
Abstract OBJECTIVE: To determine factors associated with case management (CM) service use in people with traumatic brain injury (TBI), using a published model for service use. DESIGN: A retrospective cohort, with nested case-control design. Correlational and logistic regression analyses of questionnaires from a longitudinal community data base. STUDY SAMPLE: Questionnaires of 203 users of CM services and 273 non-users, complete for all outcome and predictor variables. Individuals with TBI, 15 years of age and older. Out of a dataset of 1,960 questionnaires, 476 met the inclusion criteria. METHODOLOGY: Eight predictor variables and one outcome variable (use or non-use of the service). Predictor variables considered the framework of the Behaviour Model of Health Service Use (BMHSU); specifically, pre-disposing, need and enabling factor groups as these relate to health service use and access. RESULTS: Analyses revealed significant differences between users and non-users of CM services. In particular, users were significantly younger than non-users as the older the person the less likely to use the service. Also, users had less education and more severe activity limitations and lower community integration. Persons living alone are less likely to use case management. Funding groups also significantly impact users. CONCLUSIONS: This study advances an empirical understanding of equity of access to health services usage in the practice of CM for persons living with TBI as a fairly new area of research, and considers direct relevance to Life Care Planning (LCP). Many life care planers are CM and the genesis of LCP is CM. The findings relate to health service use and access, rather than health outcomes. These findings may assist with development of a modified model for prediction of use to advance future cost of care predictions. PMID:26409333
Cognitive Modeling of Individual Variation in Reference Production and Comprehension
Hendriks, Petra
2016-01-01
A challenge for most theoretical and computational accounts of linguistic reference is the observation that language users vary considerably in their referential choices. Part of the variation observed among and within language users and across tasks may be explained from variation in the cognitive resources available to speakers and listeners. This paper presents a computational model of reference production and comprehension developed within the cognitive architecture ACT-R. Through simulations with this ACT-R model, it is investigated how cognitive constraints interact with linguistic constraints and features of the linguistic discourse in speakers’ production and listeners’ comprehension of referring expressions in specific tasks, and how this interaction may give rise to variation in referential choice. The ACT-R model of reference explains and predicts variation among language users in their referential choices as a result of individual and task-related differences in processing speed and working memory capacity. Because of limitations in their cognitive capacities, speakers sometimes underspecify or overspecify their referring expressions, and listeners sometimes choose incorrect referents or are overly liberal in their interpretation of referring expressions. PMID:27092101
Sharing feelings online: studying emotional well-being via automated text analysis of Facebook posts
Settanni, Michele; Marengo, Davide
2015-01-01
Digital traces of activity on social network sites represent a vast source of ecological data with potential connections with individual behavioral and psychological characteristics. The present study investigates the relationship between user-generated textual content shared on Facebook and emotional well-being. Self-report measures of depression, anxiety, and stress were collected from 201 adult Facebook users from North Italy. Emotion-related textual indicators, including emoticon use, were extracted form users’ Facebook posts via automated text analysis. Correlation analyses revealed that individuals with higher levels of depression, anxiety expressed negative emotions on Facebook more frequently. In addition, use of emoticons expressing positive emotions correlated negatively with stress level. When comparing age groups, younger users reported higher frequency of both emotion-related words and emoticon use in their posts. Also, the relationship between online emotional expression and self-report emotional well-being was generally stronger in the younger group. Overall, findings support the feasibility and validity of studying individual emotional well-being by means of examination of Facebook profiles. Implications for online screening purposes and future research directions are discussed. PMID:26257692
Turning publicly available gene expression data into discoveries using gene set context analysis.
Ji, Zhicheng; Vokes, Steven A; Dang, Chi V; Ji, Hongkai
2016-01-08
Gene Set Context Analysis (GSCA) is an open source software package to help researchers use massive amounts of publicly available gene expression data (PED) to make discoveries. Users can interactively visualize and explore gene and gene set activities in 25,000+ consistently normalized human and mouse gene expression samples representing diverse biological contexts (e.g. different cells, tissues and disease types, etc.). By providing one or multiple genes or gene sets as input and specifying a gene set activity pattern of interest, users can query the expression compendium to systematically identify biological contexts associated with the specified gene set activity pattern. In this way, researchers with new gene sets from their own experiments may discover previously unknown contexts of gene set functions and hence increase the value of their experiments. GSCA has a graphical user interface (GUI). The GUI makes the analysis convenient and customizable. Analysis results can be conveniently exported as publication quality figures and tables. GSCA is available at https://github.com/zji90/GSCA. This software significantly lowers the bar for biomedical investigators to use PED in their daily research for generating and screening hypotheses, which was previously difficult because of the complexity, heterogeneity and size of the data. © The Author(s) 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.
Martin, Elizabeth M; Clapp, Phillip W; Rebuli, Meghan E; Pawlak, Erica A; Glista-Baker, Ellen; Benowitz, Neal L; Fry, Rebecca C; Jaspers, Ilona
2016-07-01
Exposure to cigarette smoke is known to result in impaired host defense responses and immune suppressive effects. However, the effects of new and emerging tobacco products, such as e-cigarettes, on the immune status of the respiratory epithelium are largely unknown. We conducted a clinical study collecting superficial nasal scrape biopsies, nasal lavage, urine, and serum from nonsmokers, cigarette smokers, and e-cigarette users and assessed them for changes in immune gene expression profiles. Smoking status was determined based on a smoking history and a 3- to 4-wk smoking diary and confirmed using serum cotinine and urine 4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanol (NNAL) levels. Total RNA from nasal scrape biopsies was analyzed using the nCounter Human Immunology v2 Expression panel. Smoking cigarettes or vaping e-cigarettes resulted in decreased expression of immune-related genes. All genes with decreased expression in cigarette smokers (n = 53) were also decreased in e-cigarette smokers. Additionally, vaping e-cigarettes was associated with suppression of a large number of unique genes (n = 305). Furthermore, the e-cigarette users showed a greater suppression of genes common with those changed in cigarette smokers. This was particularly apparent for suppressed expression of transcription factors, such as EGR1, which was functionally associated with decreased expression of 5 target genes in cigarette smokers and 18 target genes in e-cigarette users. Taken together, these data indicate that vaping e-cigarettes is associated with decreased expression of a large number of immune-related genes, which are consistent with immune suppression at the level of the nasal mucosa. Copyright © 2016 the American Physiological Society.
Conceptual mapping of user's queries to medical subject headings.
Zieman, Y. L.; Bleich, H. L.
1997-01-01
This paper describes a way to map users' queries to relevant Medical Subject Headings (MeSH terms) used by the National Library of Medicine to index the biomedical literature. The method, called SENSE (SEarch with New SEmantics), transforms words and phrases in the users' queries into primary conceptual components and compares these components with those of the MeSH vocabulary. Similar to the way in which most numbers can be split into numerical factors and expressed as their product--for example, 42 can be expressed as 2*21, 6*7, 3*14, 2*3*7,--so most medical concepts can be split into "semantic factors" and expressed as their juxtaposition. Note that if we split 42 into its primary factors, the breakdown is unique: 2*3*7. Similarly, when we split medical concepts into their "primary semantic factors" the breakdown is also unique. For example, the MeSH term 'renovascular hypertension' can be split morphologically into reno, vascular, hyper, and tension--morphemes that can then be translated into their primary semantic factors--kidney, blood vessel, high, and pressure. By "factoring" each MeSH term in this way, and by similarly factoring the user's query, we can match query to MeSH term by searching for combinations of common factors. Unlike UMLS and other methods that match at the level of words or phrases, SENSE matches at the level of concepts; in this way, a wide variety of words and phrases that have the same meaning produce the same match. Now used in PaperChase, the method is surprisingly powerful in matching users' queries to Medical Subject Headings. PMID:9357680
Role Modelling in MOOC Discussion Forums
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Hecking, Tobias; Chounta, Irene-Angelica; Hoppe, H. Ulrich
2017-01-01
To further develop rich and expressive ways of modelling roles of contributors in discussion forums of online courses, particularly in MOOCs, networks of forum users are analyzed based on the relations of information-giving and information-seeking. Specific connection patterns that appear in the information exchange networks of forum users are…
A Review and Reappraisal of Adaptive Human-Computer Interfaces in Complex Control Systems
2006-08-01
maneuverability measures. The cost elements were expressed as fuzzy membership functions. Figure 9 shows the flowchart of the route planner. A fuzzy navigator...and updating of the user model, which contains information about three generic stereotypes ( beginner , intermediate and expert users) plus an
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Smith, Joy Selby
In vocational education and training (VET), user choice is a means of achieving a more client-responsive training system by allowing clients to have greater choice over how their training needs are met. Funding arrangements linked in some direct way to the expressed demands of individual clients are essential for effective operation of a user…
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Crook, Andrew J.; Delaney, Robert A.
1991-01-01
A procedure is studied for generating three-dimensional grids for advanced turbofan engine fan section geometries. The procedure constructs a discrete mesh about engine sections containing the fan stage, an arbitrary number of axisymmetric radial flow splitters, a booster stage, and a bifurcated core/bypass flow duct with guide vanes. The mesh is an h-type grid system, the points being distributed with a transfinite interpolation scheme with axial and radial spacing being user specified. Elliptic smoothing of the grid in the meridional plane is a post-process option. The grid generation scheme is consistent with aerodynamic analyses utilizing the average-passage equation system developed by Dr. John Adamczyk of NASA Lewis. This flow solution scheme requires a series of blade specific grids each having a common axisymmetric mesh, but varying in the circumferential direction according to the geometry of the specific blade row.
The advanced software development workstation project
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Fridge, Ernest M., III; Pitman, Charles L.
1991-01-01
The Advanced Software Development Workstation (ASDW) task is researching and developing the technologies required to support Computer Aided Software Engineering (CASE) with the emphasis on those advanced methods, tools, and processes that will be of benefit to support all NASA programs. Immediate goals are to provide research and prototype tools that will increase productivity, in the near term, in projects such as the Software Support Environment (SSE), the Space Station Control Center (SSCC), and the Flight Analysis and Design System (FADS) which will be used to support the Space Shuttle and Space Station Freedom. Goals also include providing technology for development, evolution, maintenance, and operations. The technologies under research and development in the ASDW project are targeted to provide productivity enhancements during the software life cycle phase of enterprise and information system modeling, requirements generation and analysis, system design and coding, and system use and maintenance. On-line user's guides will assist users in operating the developed information system with knowledge base expert assistance.
A Global User-Driven Model for Tile Prefetching in Web Geographical Information Systems.
Pan, Shaoming; Chong, Yanwen; Zhang, Hang; Tan, Xicheng
2017-01-01
A web geographical information system is a typical service-intensive application. Tile prefetching and cache replacement can improve cache hit ratios by proactively fetching tiles from storage and replacing the appropriate tiles from the high-speed cache buffer without waiting for a client's requests, which reduces disk latency and improves system access performance. Most popular prefetching strategies consider only the relative tile popularities to predict which tile should be prefetched or consider only a single individual user's access behavior to determine which neighbor tiles need to be prefetched. Some studies show that comprehensively considering all users' access behaviors and all tiles' relationships in the prediction process can achieve more significant improvements. Thus, this work proposes a new global user-driven model for tile prefetching and cache replacement. First, based on all users' access behaviors, a type of expression method for tile correlation is designed and implemented. Then, a conditional prefetching probability can be computed based on the proposed correlation expression mode. Thus, some tiles to be prefetched can be found by computing and comparing the conditional prefetching probability from the uncached tiles set and, similarly, some replacement tiles can be found in the cache buffer according to multi-step prefetching. Finally, some experiments are provided comparing the proposed model with other global user-driven models, other single user-driven models, and other client-side prefetching strategies. The results show that the proposed model can achieve a prefetching hit rate in approximately 10.6% ~ 110.5% higher than the compared methods.
WAATS: A computer program for Weights Analysis of Advanced Transportation Systems
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Glatt, C. R.
1974-01-01
A historical weight estimating technique for advanced transportation systems is presented. The classical approach to weight estimation is discussed and sufficient data is presented to estimate weights for a large spectrum of flight vehicles including horizontal and vertical takeoff aircraft, boosters and reentry vehicles. A computer program, WAATS (Weights Analysis for Advanced Transportation Systems) embracing the techniques discussed has been written and user instructions are presented. The program was developed for use in the ODIN (Optimal Design Integration System) system.
2013-01-01
Background Surrogate variable analysis (SVA) is a powerful method to identify, estimate, and utilize the components of gene expression heterogeneity due to unknown and/or unmeasured technical, genetic, environmental, or demographic factors. These sources of heterogeneity are common in gene expression studies, and failing to incorporate them into the analysis can obscure results. Using SVA increases the biological accuracy and reproducibility of gene expression studies by identifying these sources of heterogeneity and correctly accounting for them in the analysis. Results Here we have developed a web application called SVAw (Surrogate variable analysis Web app) that provides a user friendly interface for SVA analyses of genome-wide expression studies. The software has been developed based on open source bioconductor SVA package. In our software, we have extended the SVA program functionality in three aspects: (i) the SVAw performs a fully automated and user friendly analysis workflow; (ii) It calculates probe/gene Statistics for both pre and post SVA analysis and provides a table of results for the regression of gene expression on the primary variable of interest before and after correcting for surrogate variables; and (iii) it generates a comprehensive report file, including graphical comparison of the outcome for the user. Conclusions SVAw is a web server freely accessible solution for the surrogate variant analysis of high-throughput datasets and facilitates removing all unwanted and unknown sources of variation. It is freely available for use at http://psychiatry.igm.jhmi.edu/sva. The executable packages for both web and standalone application and the instruction for installation can be downloaded from our web site. PMID:23497726
[An Introduction to Methods for Evaluating Health Care Technology].
Lee, Ting-Ting
2015-06-01
The rapid and continual advance of healthcare technology makes ensuring that this technology is used effectively to achieve its original goals a critical issue. This paper presents three methods that may be applied by healthcare professionals in the evaluation of healthcare technology. These methods include: the perception/experiences of users, user work-pattern changes, and chart review or data mining. The first method includes two categories: using interviews to explore the user experience and using theory-based questionnaire surveys. The second method applies work sampling to observe the work pattern changes of users. The last method conducts chart reviews or data mining to analyze the designated variables. In conclusion, while evaluative feedback may be used to improve the design and development of healthcare technology applications, the informatics competency and informatics literacy of users may be further explored in future research.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
1991-01-01
The Engineering Scripting Language (ESL) is a language designed to allow nonprogramming users to write Higher Order Language (HOL) programs by drawing directed graphs to represent the program and having the system generate the corresponding program in HOL. The ESL system supports user generation of HOL programs through the manipulation of directed graphs. The components of this graphs (nodes, ports, and connectors) are objects each of which has its own properties and property values. The purpose of the ESL graphical editor is to allow the user to create or edit graph objects which represent programs.
Three-Dimensional User Interfaces for Immersive Virtual Reality
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
vanDam, Andries
1997-01-01
The focus of this grant was to experiment with novel user interfaces for immersive Virtual Reality (VR) systems, and thus to advance the state of the art of user interface technology for this domain. Our primary test application was a scientific visualization application for viewing Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) datasets. This technology has been transferred to NASA via periodic status reports and papers relating to this grant that have been published in conference proceedings. This final report summarizes the research completed over the past year, and extends last year's final report of the first three years of the grant.
Digital Environment for Movement Control in Surgical Skill Training.
Juanes, Juan A; Gómez, Juan J; Peguero, Pedro D; Ruisoto, Pablo
2016-06-01
Intelligent environments are increasingly becoming useful scenarios for handling computers. Technological devices are practical tools for learning and acquiring clinical skills as part of the medical training process. Within the framework of the advanced user interface, we present a technological application using Leap Motion, to enhance interaction with the user in the process of a laparoscopic surgical intervention and integrate the navigation through augmented reality images using manual gestures. Thus, we intend to achieve a more natural interaction with the objects that participate in a surgical intervention, which are augmented and related to the user's hand movements.
Computer-assisted instruction and diagnosis of radiographic findings.
Harper, D; Butler, C; Hodder, R; Allman, R; Woods, J; Riordan, D
1984-04-01
Recent advances in computer technology, including high bit-density storage, digital imaging, and the ability to interface microprocessors with videodisk, create enormous opportunities in the field of medical education. This program, utilizing a personal computer, videodisk, BASIC language, a linked textfile system, and a triangulation approach to the interpretation of radiographs developed by Dr. W. L. Thompson, can enable the user to engage in a user-friendly, dynamic teaching program in radiology, applicable to various levels of expertise. Advantages include a relatively more compact and inexpensive system with rapid access and ease of revision which requires little instruction to the user.
Zeng, H Z; Qu, Y Q; Liang, A B; Deng, A M; Zhang, W J; Xiu, B; Wang, H; Wang, H
2011-01-01
CD147, a widely expressed cell surface glycoprotein in cancer, is associated with tumor invasiveness and chemotherapy resistance. Recently, CD147 is also regarded as a potential therapeutic target for cancer therapy. The aim of the study was to investigate CD147 expression in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), and evaluate its correlation with cisplatin-based chemotherapy resistance. In this study, we examined immunohistochemically the expression of CD147 in 118 advanced NSCLC cases treated with cisplatin-based chemotherapy, and then the association of CD147 expression with clinicopathological characteristics was analyzed. Furthermore, RNA interference approach was used to silence CD147 expression in a cisplatin-resistant human lung cancer cell line A549/DDP, and the inhibition effect of cisplatin on tumor cells was assayed by MTT. In the overall series, positive CD147 expression was observed in 101/118 (85.6%) cases. A membranous CD147 pattern was identified in 76/101 (75.2%) of CD147 positive tumors. CD147 membranous expression,but not the overall CD147 expression, was associated with poor response to cisplatin-based chemotherapies and a poor prognosis in advanced NSCLC patients. In vitro results showed that silencing CD147 increased the proliferation inhibitory effect of cisplatin to A549/DDP cells. In conclusion, our study indicated that membranous CD147 expression is a predictive factor of the response to cisplatin-based chemotherapies, and the use of CD147-targeted therapeutic adjuvants might be considered in the treatment of advanced NSCLC patients.
Developing a Graphical User Interface for the ALSS Crop Planning Tool
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Koehlert, Erik
1997-01-01
The goal of my project was to create a graphical user interface for a prototype crop scheduler. The crop scheduler was developed by Dr. Jorge Leon and Laura Whitaker for the ALSS (Advanced Life Support System) program. The addition of a system-independent graphical user interface to the crop planning tool will make the application more accessible to a wider range of users and enhance its value as an analysis, design, and planning tool. My presentation will demonstrate the form and functionality of this interface. This graphical user interface allows users to edit system parameters stored in the file system. Data on the interaction of the crew, crops, and waste processing system with the available system resources is organized and labeled. Program output, which is stored in the file system, is also presented to the user in performance-time plots and organized charts. The menu system is designed to guide the user through analysis and decision making tasks, providing some help if necessary. The Java programming language was used to develop this interface in hopes of providing portability and remote operation.
System architecture for an advanced Canadian communications satellite demonstration mission
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Takats, P.; Irani, S.
1992-03-01
An advanced communications satellite system that provides single hop interconnectivity and interworking for both a personal communications network and an advanced private business network in the Ka and Ku bands respectively, is presented. An overall network perspective is discussed that studies the interface of such an advanced satellite communication system to the terrestrial network in the context of the Open Systems Interconnection model. It is shown that this proposed satellite system can dynamically establish links and efficiently allocate the satellite resource amongst the user terminal population for a mix of data and voice traffic.
Bollaerts, Kaatje; De Smedt, Tom; Donegan, Katherine; Titievsky, Lina; Bauchau, Vincent
2018-03-26
New vaccines are launched based on their benefit-risk (B/R) profile anticipated from clinical development. Proactive post-marketing surveillance is necessary to assess whether the vaccination uptake and the B/R profile are as expected and, ultimately, whether further public health or regulatory actions are needed. There are several, typically not integrated, facets of post-marketing vaccine surveillance: the surveillance of vaccination coverage, vaccine safety, effectiveness and impact. With this work, we aim to assess the feasibility and added value of using an interactive dashboard as a potential methodology for near real-time monitoring of vaccine coverage and pre-specified health benefits and risks of vaccines. We developed a web application with an interactive dashboard for B/R monitoring. The dashboard is demonstrated using simulated electronic healthcare record data mimicking the introduction of rotavirus vaccination in the UK. The interactive dashboard allows end users to select certain parameters, including expected vaccine effectiveness, age groups, and time periods and allows calculation of the incremental net health benefit (INHB) as well as the incremental benefit-risk ratio (IBRR) for different sets of preference weights. We assessed the potential added value of the dashboard by user testing amongst a range of stakeholders experienced in the post-marketing monitoring of vaccines. The dashboard was successfully implemented and demonstrated. The feedback from the potential end users was generally positive, although reluctance to using composite B/R measures was expressed. The use of interactive dashboards for B/R monitoring is promising and received support from various stakeholders. In future research, the use of such an interactive dashboard will be further tested with real-life data as opposed to simulated data.
Price-Haywood, Eboni G; Harden-Barrios, Jewel; Ulep, Robin; Luo, Qingyang
2017-12-01
Innovations in chronic disease management are growing rapidly as advancements in technology broaden the scope of tools. Older adults are less likely to be willing or able to use patient portals or smartphone apps for health-related tasks. The authors conducted a cross-sectional survey of older adults (ages ≥50) with hypertension or diabetes to examine relationships between portal usage, interest in health-tracking tools, and eHealth literacy, and to solicit practical solutions to encourage technology adoption. Among 247 patients surveyed in a large integrated delivery health system between August 2015 and January 2016, eHealth literacy was positively associated with portal usage (OR [95% CI]: 1.3 [1.2-1.5]) and interest in health-tracking tools (1.2 [1.1-1.3]). Portal users compared to nonusers (N = 137 vs.110) had higher rates of interest in using websites/smartphone apps to track blood pressure (55% vs. 36%), weight (53% vs. 35%), exercise (53% vs. 32%), or medication (46% vs 33%, all P < 0.05). Portal users noted cumbersome processes for accessing portals and variations in provider availability for online scheduling and response times to messages. Portal nonusers expressed concerns about data security, lack of personalization, and limited perceived value of using portals. Both groups noted the importance of computer literacy and technical support. Patient stakeholders recommended marketing initiatives that capture patient stories demonstrating real-life applications of what patients can do with digital technology, how to use it, and why it may be useful. Health systems also must screen for eHealth literacy, provide training, promote proxy users, and institute quality assurance that ensures patients' experiences will not vary across the system.
Arneson, Douglas; Bhattacharya, Anindya; Shu, Le; Mäkinen, Ville-Petteri; Yang, Xia
2016-09-09
Human diseases are commonly the result of multidimensional changes at molecular, cellular, and systemic levels. Recent advances in genomic technologies have enabled an outpour of omics datasets that capture these changes. However, separate analyses of these various data only provide fragmented understanding and do not capture the holistic view of disease mechanisms. To meet the urgent needs for tools that effectively integrate multiple types of omics data to derive biological insights, we have developed Mergeomics, a computational pipeline that integrates multidimensional disease association data with functional genomics and molecular networks to retrieve biological pathways, gene networks, and central regulators critical for disease development. To make the Mergeomics pipeline available to a wider research community, we have implemented an online, user-friendly web server ( http://mergeomics. idre.ucla.edu/ ). The web server features a modular implementation of the Mergeomics pipeline with detailed tutorials. Additionally, it provides curated genomic resources including tissue-specific expression quantitative trait loci, ENCODE functional annotations, biological pathways, and molecular networks, and offers interactive visualization of analytical results. Multiple computational tools including Marker Dependency Filtering (MDF), Marker Set Enrichment Analysis (MSEA), Meta-MSEA, and Weighted Key Driver Analysis (wKDA) can be used separately or in flexible combinations. User-defined summary-level genomic association datasets (e.g., genetic, transcriptomic, epigenomic) related to a particular disease or phenotype can be uploaded and computed real-time to yield biologically interpretable results, which can be viewed online and downloaded for later use. Our Mergeomics web server offers researchers flexible and user-friendly tools to facilitate integration of multidimensional data into holistic views of disease mechanisms in the form of tissue-specific key regulators, biological pathways, and gene networks.
HypoxiaDB: a database of hypoxia-regulated proteins
Khurana, Pankaj; Sugadev, Ragumani; Jain, Jaspreet; Singh, Shashi Bala
2013-01-01
There has been intense interest in the cellular response to hypoxia, and a large number of differentially expressed proteins have been identified through various high-throughput experiments. These valuable data are scattered, and there have been no systematic attempts to document the various proteins regulated by hypoxia. Compilation, curation and annotation of these data are important in deciphering their role in hypoxia and hypoxia-related disorders. Therefore, we have compiled HypoxiaDB, a database of hypoxia-regulated proteins. It is a comprehensive, manually-curated, non-redundant catalog of proteins whose expressions are shown experimentally to be altered at different levels and durations of hypoxia. The database currently contains 72 000 manually curated entries taken on 3500 proteins extracted from 73 peer-reviewed publications selected from PubMed. HypoxiaDB is distinctive from other generalized databases: (i) it compiles tissue-specific protein expression changes under different levels and duration of hypoxia. Also, it provides manually curated literature references to support the inclusion of the protein in the database and establish its association with hypoxia. (ii) For each protein, HypoxiaDB integrates data on gene ontology, KEGG (Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes) pathway, protein–protein interactions, protein family (Pfam), OMIM (Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man), PDB (Protein Data Bank) structures and homology to other sequenced genomes. (iii) It also provides pre-compiled information on hypoxia-proteins, which otherwise requires tedious computational analysis. This includes information like chromosomal location, identifiers like Entrez, HGNC, Unigene, Uniprot, Ensembl, Vega, GI numbers and Genbank accession numbers associated with the protein. These are further cross-linked to respective public databases augmenting HypoxiaDB to the external repositories. (iv) In addition, HypoxiaDB provides an online sequence-similarity search tool for users to compare their protein sequences with HypoxiaDB protein database. We hope that HypoxiaDB will enrich our knowledge about hypoxia-related biology and eventually will lead to the development of novel hypothesis and advancements in diagnostic and therapeutic activities. HypoxiaDB is freely accessible for academic and non-profit users via http://www.hypoxiadb.com. Database URL: http://www.hypoxiadb.com PMID:24178989
OpenGL in Multi-User Web-Based Applications
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Szostek, K.; Piórkowski, A.
In this article construction and potential of OpenGL multi-user web-based application are presented. The most common technologies like: .NET ASP, Java and Mono were used with specific OpenGL libraries to visualize tree-dimensional medical data. The most important conclusion of this work is that server side applications can easily take advantage of fast GPU and produce efficient results of advanced computation just like the visualization.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Izygon, Michel
1992-01-01
This report summarizes the findings and lessons learned from the development of an intelligent user interface for a space flight planning simulation program, in the specific area related to constraint-checking. The different functionalities of the Graphical User Interface part and of the rule-based part of the system have been identified. Their respective domain of applicability for error prevention and error checking have been specified.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Ramsay, Judith; Terras, Melody M.
2015-01-01
The use of technology to support learning is well recognised. One generation ago a major strand of human--computer interaction research focussed on the development of forms of instruction in how to interact with computers. Today, however, the advanced usability of modern technologies has all but removed the presence of many user manuals. Learners,…
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Buntine, Wray
1994-01-01
IND computer program introduces Bayesian and Markov/maximum-likelihood (MML) methods and more-sophisticated methods of searching in growing trees. Produces more-accurate class-probability estimates important in applications like diagnosis. Provides range of features and styles with convenience for casual user, fine-tuning for advanced user or for those interested in research. Consists of four basic kinds of routines: data-manipulation, tree-generation, tree-testing, and tree-display. Written in C language.
Advanced Simulation in Undergraduate Pilot Training: Automatic Instructional System
1975-10-01
an addressable reel-to--reel audio tape recorder, a random access audio memory drum , and an interactive software package which permits the user to...audio memory drum , and an interactive software package which permits the user to develop preptogtahmed exercises. Figure 2 illustrates overall...Data Recprding System consists of two elements; an overlay program which performs the real-time sampling of specified variables and stores data to disc
THE BRAIN (The Harvard Experimental Basic Reckoning and Instructional Network)
1968-10-01
shown to be flexible enough to be serviceable, at least initially, for most users. As the user grows in experience and his programs in...and firmly established of the two. The advance of science has been marked by a progressive and rapidly accelerating separation of observable...impossible for them to distinguish incorrect reasoning or calculation from errors in graphing. " The bridge crossed, the instrument grows more
Akuna: An Open Source User Environment for Managing Subsurface Simulation Workflows
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Freedman, V. L.; Agarwal, D.; Bensema, K.; Finsterle, S.; Gable, C. W.; Keating, E. H.; Krishnan, H.; Lansing, C.; Moeglein, W.; Pau, G. S. H.; Porter, E.; Scheibe, T. D.
2014-12-01
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is investing in development of a numerical modeling toolset called ASCEM (Advanced Simulation Capability for Environmental Management) to support modeling analyses at legacy waste sites. ASCEM is an open source and modular computing framework that incorporates new advances and tools for predicting contaminant fate and transport in natural and engineered systems. The ASCEM toolset includes both a Platform with Integrated Toolsets (called Akuna) and a High-Performance Computing multi-process simulator (called Amanzi). The focus of this presentation is on Akuna, an open-source user environment that manages subsurface simulation workflows and associated data and metadata. In this presentation, key elements of Akuna are demonstrated, which includes toolsets for model setup, database management, sensitivity analysis, parameter estimation, uncertainty quantification, and visualization of both model setup and simulation results. A key component of the workflow is in the automated job launching and monitoring capabilities, which allow a user to submit and monitor simulation runs on high-performance, parallel computers. Visualization of large outputs can also be performed without moving data back to local resources. These capabilities make high-performance computing accessible to the users who might not be familiar with batch queue systems and usage protocols on different supercomputers and clusters.
Statin and NSAID Use and Prostate Cancer Risk
Coogan, Patricia F.; Kelly, Judith Parsells; Strom, Brian L.; Rosenberg, Lynn
2010-01-01
Purpose Some studies have reported reduced risks of advanced, but not early, prostate cancer among statin users, and one study found a reduced risk only among statin users who had also used nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). We have previously reported no association between statin use and prostate cancer in our hospital-based Case Control Surveillance Study. The purpose of the present analyses was to update the findings by cancer stage and to evaluate the joint use of statins and NSAIDs. Methods Cases were 1367 men with prostate cancer and controls were 2007 men with diagnoses unrelated to statin or NSAID use. We used multivariable logistic regression analyses to estimate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for statin use compared with no use, and joint use of statin and NSAIDs compared with use of neither. Results The odds ratio among regular statin users was 1.1 (95% CI 0.9–1.5), and odds ratios were similar among early and late stage cancers. The odds ratio among joint statin and NSAID users was 1.1 (95% CI 0.7–1.6). Conclusion The present results do not support a protective effect of statin use, or statin and NSAID use, on the risk of advanced prostate cancer. PMID:20582910
Dogrusoz, U; Erson, E Z; Giral, E; Demir, E; Babur, O; Cetintas, A; Colak, R
2006-02-01
Patikaweb provides a Web interface for retrieving and analyzing biological pathways in the Patika database, which contains data integrated from various prominent public pathway databases. It features a user-friendly interface, dynamic visualization and automated layout, advanced graph-theoretic queries for extracting biologically important phenomena, local persistence capability and exporting facilities to various pathway exchange formats.
Do-It-Yourself Learning Games: Software That Lets You Pick the Questions--and Answers.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Hively, Wells
1984-01-01
Reviews user-adaptable learning games that can be customized for any subject, including Tic Tac Show and the Game Show from Computer Advanced Ideas, which are question-answer learning programs based on game shows, and Master Match from Computer Advanced Ideas and Square Pairs from Scholastic Inc., which are based on the card game Concentration.…
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Elfman, Mikael; Ros, Linus; Kristiansson, Per; Nilsson, E. J. Charlotta; Pallon, Jan
2016-03-01
With the recent advances towards modern Ion Beam Analysis (IBA), going from one- or few-parameter detector systems to multi-parameter systems, it has been necessary to expand and replace the more than twenty years old CAMAC based system. A new VME multi-parameter (presently up to 200 channels) data acquisition and control system has been developed and implemented at the Lund Ion Beam Analysis Facility (LIBAF). The system is based on the VX-511 Single Board Computer (SBC), acting as master with arbiter functionality and consists of standard VME modules like Analog to Digital Converters (ADC's), Charge to Digital Converters (QDC's), Time to Digital Converters (TDC's), scaler's, IO-cards, high voltage and waveform units. The modules have been specially selected to support all of the present detector systems in the laboratory, with the option of future expansion. Typically, the detector systems consist of silicon strip detectors, silicon drift detectors and scintillator detectors, for detection of charged particles, X-rays and γ-rays. The data flow of the raw data buffers out from the VME bus to the final storage place on a 16 terabyte network attached storage disc (NAS-disc) is described. The acquisition process, remotely controlled over one of the SBCs ethernet channels, is also discussed. The user interface is written in the Kmax software package, and is used to control the acquisition process as well as for advanced online and offline data analysis through a user-friendly graphical user interface (GUI). In this work the system implementation, layout and performance are presented. The user interface and possibilities for advanced offline analysis are also discussed and illustrated.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Weinberg, Aaron
1989-01-01
The Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS) is an integral part of the overall NASA Space Network (SN) that will continue to evolve into the 1990's. Projections for the first decade of the 21st century indicate the need for an SN evolution that must accommodate growth int he LEO user population and must further support the introduction of new/improved user services. A central ingredient of this evolution is an Advanced TDRSS (ATDRSS) follow-on to the current TDRSS that must initiate operations by the late 1990's in a manner that permits an orderly transition from the TDRSS to the ATDRSS era. An SN/ATDRSS architectural and operational concept that will satisfy the above goals is being developed. To this date, an SN/ATDRSS baseline concept was established that provides users with an end-to-end data transport (ENDAT) service. An expanded description of the baseline ENDAT concept, from the user perspective, is provided with special emphasis on the TDRSS/ATDRSS evolution. A high-level description of the end-to-end system that identifies the role of ATDRSS is presented; also included is a description of the baseline ATDRSS architecture and its relationship with the TDRSS 1996 baseline. Other key features of the ENDAT service are then expanded upon, including the multiple grades of service, and the RF telecommunications/tracking services to be available. The ATDRSS service options are described.
The development of augmented video system on postcards
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Chen, Chien-Hsu; Chou, Yin-Ju
2013-03-01
This study focuses on development of augmented video system on traditional picture postcards. The system will provide users to print out the augmented reality marker on the sticker to stick on the picture postcard, and it also allows users to record their real time image and video to augment on that stick marker. According dynamic image, users can share travel moods, greeting, and travel experience to their friends. Without changing in the traditional picture postcards, we develop augmented video system on them by augmented reality (AR) technology. It not only keeps the functions of traditional picture postcards, but also enhances user's experience to keep the user's memories and emotional expression by augmented digital media information on them.
ATR NSUF Instrumentation Enhancement Efforts
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Joy L. Rempe; Mitchell K. Meyer; Darrell L. Knudson
A key component of the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) National Scientific User Facility (NSUF) effort is to expand instrumentation available to users conducting irradiation tests in this unique facility. In particular, development of sensors capable of providing real-time measurements of key irradiation parameters is emphasized because of their potential to increase data fidelity and reduce posttest examination costs. This paper describes the strategy for identifying new instrumentation needed for ATR irradiations and the program underway to develop and evaluate new sensors to address these needs. Accomplishments from this program are illustrated by describing new sensors now available to users ofmore » the ATR NSUF. In addition, progress is reported on current research efforts to provide improved in-pile instrumentation to users.« less
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Szczur, Martha R.
1991-01-01
The Transportable Applications Environment (TAE) Plus, developed at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, is an advanced portable user interface development environment which simplifies the process of creating and managing complex application graphical user interfaces (GUIs), supports prototyping, allows applications to be oported easily between different platforms, and encourages appropriate levels of user interface consistency between applications. This paper discusses the capabilities of the TAE Plus tool, and how it makes the job of designing and developing GUIs easier for the application developers. The paper also explains how tools like TAE Plus provide for reusability and ensure reliability of UI software components, as well as how they aid in the reduction of development and maintenance costs.
Cnossen, Ingrid C; van Uden-Kraan, Cornelia F; Eerenstein, Simone E J; Rinkel, Rico N P M; Aalders, Ijke J; van den Berg, Klaske; de Goede, Cees J T; van Stijgeren, Ans J; Cruijff-Bijl, Yvonne; de Bree, Remco; Leemans, C René; Verdonck-de Leeuw, Irma M
2015-01-01
To develop a Web-based self-care program for patients after total laryngectomy according to a participatory design approach. We conducted a needs assessment with laryngectomees (n = 9) and their partners (n = 3) by means of a focus group interview. In 4 focus group sessions, a requirement plan was formulated by a team of health care professionals (n = 10) and translated into a prototype. An e-health application was built including illustrated information on functional changes after total laryngectomy as well as video demonstrations of skills and exercises. Usability of the prototype was tested by end users (n = 4) and expert users (n = 10). Interviews were held to elicit the intention to use and the desired implementation strategy. Six main self-care topics were identified: (1) nutrition, (2) tracheostomy care, (3) voice prosthesis care, (4) speech rehabilitation, (5) smell rehabilitation, and (6) mobility of head, neck, and shoulder muscles. Expert users expressed concerns regarding tailored exercises, indicated a positive intent to implement the intervention in routine care, and expressed a need for guidance when implementing the intervention. End users and expert users appreciated the content completeness and multimedia-based information built into the application. The participatory design is a valuable approach to develop a self-care program to help meet users' needs. © 2016 S. Karger AG, Basel.
Wilson, Eleanor; Seymour, Jane E; Perkins, Paul
2010-06-01
Since October 2007 staff across health and social care services in England and Wales have been guided by the Mental Capacity Act (2005) in the provision of care for those who may lack capacity to make some decisions for themselves. This paper reports on the findings from a study with 26 staff members working in three palliative and three neurological care centres. Semistructured interviews were used to gain an understanding of their knowledge of the Mental Capacity Act, the issue of capacity itself and the documentation processes associated with the introduction of the Act and in line with advance care planning. Within this setting advance care planning is a key part of care provision and the mental capacity of service users is a regular issue. Findings show that staff generally had a good understanding of issues around capacity but felt unclear about some of the terminology related to the Mental Capacity Act, impacting on their confidence to discuss issues with service users and complete the documentation. Many felt the Act and its associated documentation had aided record-keeping in an area staff already delivered well in practice. Advance care planning in the context of the Mental Capacity Act is not as well embedded in practice as providers would like and consideration needs to be given to how and when staff should approach these issues with service users.
Feng, Ling; Wang, Ru; Lian, Meng; Ma, Hongzhi; He, Ning; Liu, Honggang; Wang, Haizhou; Fang, Jugao
2016-01-01
Long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) plays an important role in tumorigenesis. However, the expression pattern and function of lncRNAs in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC) are still unclear. To investigate the aberrantly expressed lncRNAs and mRNAs in advanced LSCC, we screened lncRNA and mRNA expression profiles in 9 pairs of primary Stage IVA LSCC tissues and adjacent non-neoplastic tissues by lncRNA and mRNA integrated microarrays. Gene Ontology and pathway analysis were performed to find out the significant function and pathway of the differentially expressed mRNAs, gene-gene functional interaction network and ceRNA network were constructed to select core mRNAs, and lncRNA-mRNA expression correlation network was built to identify the interactions between lncRNA and mRNA. qRT-PCR was performed to further validate the expressions of selected lncRNAs and mRNAs in advanced LSCC. We found 1459 differentially expressed lncRNAs and 2381 differentially expressed mRNAs, including 846 up-regulated lncRNAs and 613 down-regulated lncRNAs, 1542 up-regulated mRNAs and 839 down-regulated mRNAs. The mRNAs ITGB1, HIF1A, and DDIT4 were selected as core mRNAs, which are mainly involved in biological processes, such as matrix organization, cell cycle, adhesion, and metabolic pathway. LncRNA-mRNA expression correlation network showed LncRNA NR_027340, MIR31HG were positively correlated with ITGB1, HIF1A respectively. LncRNA SOX2-OT was negatively correlated with DDIT4. qRT-PCR further validated the expression of these lncRNAs and mRNAs. The work provides convincing evidence that the identified lncRNAs and mRNAs are potential biomarkers in advanced LSCC for further future studies.
Su, Hengchuan; Wang, Hongkai; Shi, Guohai; Zhang, Hailiang; Sun, Fukang; Ye, Dingwei
2018-06-01
In order to identify potential novel biomarkers of advanced clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC), we re-evaluated published long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) expression profiling data. The lncRNA expression profiles in ccRCC microarray dataset GSE47352 were analyzed and an independent cohort of 61 clinical samples including 21 advanced and 40 localized ccRCC patients was used to confirm the most statistically significant lncRNAs by real time PCR. Next, the relationships between the selected lncRNAs and ccRCC patients' clinicopathological features were investigated. The effects of LncRNAs on the invasion and proliferation of renal carcinoma cells were also investigated. The PCR results in a cohort of 21 advanced ccRCC and 40 localized ccRCC tissues were used for confirmation of the selected lncRNAs which were statistically most significant. The PCR results showed that the expression of three LncRNA (ENSG00000241684, ENSG00000231721 and NEAT1) were significantly downregulated in advanced ccRCC. Kaplan-Meier analysis revealed that reduced expression of LncRNA ENSG00000241684 and NEAT1 were significantly associated with poor overall survival. The univariate and multivariate Cox regression indicated LncRNA ENSG00000241684 had significant hazard ratios for predicting clinical outcome. LncRNA ENSG00000241684 expression was negatively correlated with pTNM stage. Overexpression of ENSG00000241684 significantly impaired cell proliferation and reduced the invasion ability in 786-O and ACHN cells. lncRNAs are involved in renal carcinogenesis and decreased lncRNA ENSG00000241684 expression may be an independent adverse prognostic factor in advanced ccRCC patients. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd, BASO ~ The Association for Cancer Surgery, and the European Society of Surgical Oncology. All rights reserved.
GECKO: a complete large-scale gene expression analysis platform.
Theilhaber, Joachim; Ulyanov, Anatoly; Malanthara, Anish; Cole, Jack; Xu, Dapeng; Nahf, Robert; Heuer, Michael; Brockel, Christoph; Bushnell, Steven
2004-12-10
Gecko (Gene Expression: Computation and Knowledge Organization) is a complete, high-capacity centralized gene expression analysis system, developed in response to the needs of a distributed user community. Based on a client-server architecture, with a centralized repository of typically many tens of thousands of Affymetrix scans, Gecko includes automatic processing pipelines for uploading data from remote sites, a data base, a computational engine implementing approximately 50 different analysis tools, and a client application. Among available analysis tools are clustering methods, principal component analysis, supervised classification including feature selection and cross-validation, multi-factorial ANOVA, statistical contrast calculations, and various post-processing tools for extracting data at given error rates or significance levels. On account of its open architecture, Gecko also allows for the integration of new algorithms. The Gecko framework is very general: non-Affymetrix and non-gene expression data can be analyzed as well. A unique feature of the Gecko architecture is the concept of the Analysis Tree (actually, a directed acyclic graph), in which all successive results in ongoing analyses are saved. This approach has proven invaluable in allowing a large (approximately 100 users) and distributed community to share results, and to repeatedly return over a span of years to older and potentially very complex analyses of gene expression data. The Gecko system is being made publicly available as free software http://sourceforge.net/projects/geckoe. In totality or in parts, the Gecko framework should prove useful to users and system developers with a broad range of analysis needs.
Intelligent user interface concept for space station
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Comer, Edward; Donaldson, Cameron; Bailey, Elizabeth; Gilroy, Kathleen
1986-01-01
The space station computing system must interface with a wide variety of users, from highly skilled operations personnel to payload specialists from all over the world. The interface must accommodate a wide variety of operations from the space platform, ground control centers and from remote sites. As a result, there is a need for a robust, highly configurable and portable user interface that can accommodate the various space station missions. The concept of an intelligent user interface executive, written in Ada, that would support a number of advanced human interaction techniques, such as windowing, icons, color graphics, animation, and natural language processing is presented. The user interface would provide intelligent interaction by understanding the various user roles, the operations and mission, the current state of the environment and the current working context of the users. In addition, the intelligent user interface executive must be supported by a set of tools that would allow the executive to be easily configured and to allow rapid prototyping of proposed user dialogs. This capability would allow human engineering specialists acting in the role of dialog authors to define and validate various user scenarios. The set of tools required to support development of this intelligent human interface capability is discussed and the prototyping and validation efforts required for development of the Space Station's user interface are outlined.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Manipon, G. J. M.; Hua, H.; Owen, S. E.; Sacco, G. F.; Agram, P. S.; Moore, A. W.; Yun, S. H.; Fielding, E. J.; Lundgren, P.; Rosen, P. A.; Webb, F.; Liu, Z.; Smith, A. T.; Wilson, B. D.; Simons, M.; Poland, M. P.; Cervelli, P. F.
2014-12-01
The Hybrid Science Data System (HySDS) scalably powers the ingestion, metadata extraction, cataloging, high-volume data processing, and publication of the geodetic data products for the Advanced Rapid Imaging & Analysis for Monitoring Hazard (ARIA-MH) project at JPL. HySDS uses a heterogeneous set of worker nodes from private & public clouds as well as virtual & bare-metal machines to perform every aspect of the traditional science data system. For our science data users, the forefront of HySDS is the facet search interface, FacetView, which allows them to browse, filter, and access the published products. Users are able to explore the collection of product metadata information and apply multiple filters to constrain the result set down to their particular interests. It allows them to download these faceted products for further analysis and generation of derived products. However, we have also employed a novel approach to faceting where it is also used to apply constraints for custom monitoring of products, system resources, and triggers for automated data processing. The power of the facet search interface is well documented across various domains and its usefulness is rooted in the current state of existence of metadata. However, user needs usually extend beyond what is currently present in the data system. A user interested in synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data over Kilauea will download them from FacetView but would also want email notification of future incoming scenes. The user may even want that data pushed to a remote workstation for automated processing. Better still, these future products could trigger HySDS to run the user's analysis on its array of worker nodes, on behalf of the user, and ingest the resulting derived products. We will present our findings in integrating an ancillary, user-defined, system-driven processing system for HySDS that allows users to define faceted rules based on facet constraints and triggers actions when new SAR data products arrive that match the constraints. We will discuss use cases where users have defined rules for the automated generation of InSAR derived products: interferograms for California and Kilauea, time-series analyses, and damage proxy maps. These findings are relevant for science data system development of the proposed NASA-ISRO SAR mission.
Figure 1 from Integrative Genomics Viewer: Visualizing Big Data | Office of Cancer Genomics
A screenshot of the IGV user interface at the chromosome view. IGV user interface showing five data types (copy number, methylation, gene expression, and loss of heterozygosity; mutations are overlaid with black boxes) from approximately 80 glioblastoma multiforme samples. Adapted from Figure S1; Robinson et al. 2011
The role of assistive robotics in the lives of persons with disability.
Brose, Steven W; Weber, Douglas J; Salatin, Ben A; Grindle, Garret G; Wang, Hongwu; Vazquez, Juan J; Cooper, Rory A
2010-06-01
Robotic assistive devices are used increasingly to improve the independence and quality of life of persons with disabilities. Devices as varied as robotic feeders, smart-powered wheelchairs, independent mobile robots, and socially assistive robots are becoming more clinically relevant. There is a growing importance for the rehabilitation professional to be aware of available systems and ongoing research efforts. The aim of this article is to describe the advances in assistive robotics that are relevant to professionals serving persons with disabilities. This review breaks down relevant advances into categories of Assistive Robotic Systems, User Interfaces and Control Systems, Sensory and Feedback Systems, and User Perspectives. An understanding of the direction that assistive robotics is taking is important for the clinician and researcher alike; this review is intended to address this need.
A system architecture for an advanced Canadian wideband mobile satellite system
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Takats, P.; Keelty, M.; Moody, H.
1993-01-01
In this paper, the system architecture for an advanced Canadian ka-band geostationary mobile satellite system is described, utilizing hopping spot beams to support a 256 kbps wideband service for both N-ISDN and packet-switched interconnectivity to small briefcase-size portable and mobile terminals. An assessment is given of the technical feasibility of the satellite payload and terminal design in the post year 2000 timeframe. The satellite payload includes regeneration and on-board switching to permit single hop interconnectivity between mobile terminals. The mobile terminal requires antenna tracking and platform stabilization to ensure acquisition of the satellite signal. The potential user applications targeted for this wideband service includes: home-office, multimedia, desk-top (PC) videoconferencing, digital audio broadcasting, single and multi-user personal communications.
Advancements in RNASeqGUI towards a Reproducible Analysis of RNA-Seq Experiments
Russo, Francesco; Righelli, Dario
2016-01-01
We present the advancements and novelties recently introduced in RNASeqGUI, a graphical user interface that helps biologists to handle and analyse large data collected in RNA-Seq experiments. This work focuses on the concept of reproducible research and shows how it has been incorporated in RNASeqGUI to provide reproducible (computational) results. The novel version of RNASeqGUI combines graphical interfaces with tools for reproducible research, such as literate statistical programming, human readable report, parallel executions, caching, and interactive and web-explorable tables of results. These features allow the user to analyse big datasets in a fast, efficient, and reproducible way. Moreover, this paper represents a proof of concept, showing a simple way to develop computational tools for Life Science in the spirit of reproducible research. PMID:26977414
Visualization and characterization of users in a citizen science project
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Morais, Alessandra M. M.; Raddick, Jordan; Coelho dos Santos, Rafael D.
2013-05-01
Recent technological advances allowed the creation and use of internet-based systems where many users can collaborate gathering and sharing information for specific or general purposes: social networks, e-commerce review systems, collaborative knowledge systems, etc. Since most of the data collected in these systems is user-generated, understanding of the motivations and general behavior of users is a very important issue. Of particular interest are citizen science projects, where users without scientific training are asked for collaboration labeling and classifying information (either automatically by giving away idle computer time or manually by actually seeing data and providing information about it). Understanding behavior of users of those types of data collection systems may help increase the involvement of the users, categorize users accordingly to different parameters, facilitate their collaboration with the systems, design better user interfaces, and allow better planning and deployment of similar projects and systems. Behavior of those users could be estimated through analysis of their collaboration track: registers of which user did what and when can be easily and unobtrusively collected in several different ways, the simplest being a log of activities. In this paper we present some results on the visualization and characterization of almost 150.000 users with more than 80.000.000 collaborations with a citizen science project - Galaxy Zoo I, which asked users to classify galaxies' images. Basic visualization techniques are not applicable due to the number of users, so techniques to characterize users' behavior based on feature extraction and clustering are used.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Reinhart, Richard C.
1992-01-01
The Experiment Control and Monitor (EC&M) software was developed at NASA Lewis Research Center to support the Advanced Communications Technology Satellite (ACTS) High Burst Rate Link Evaluation Terminal (HBR-LET). The HBR-LET is an experimenter's terminal to communicate with the ACTS for various investigations by government agencies, universities, and industry. The EC&M software is one segment of the Control and Performance Monitoring (C&PM) software system of the HBR-LET. The EC&M software allows users to initialize, control, and monitor the instrumentation within the HBR-LET using a predefined sequence of commands. Besides instrument control, the C&PM software system is also responsible for computer communication between the HBR-LET and the ACTS NASA Ground Station and for uplink power control of the HBR-LET to demonstrate power augmentation during rain fade events. The EC&M Software User's Guide, Version 1.0 (NASA-CR-189160) outlines the commands required to install and operate the EC&M software. Input and output file descriptions, operator commands, and error recovery procedures are discussed in the document.
Force Rendering and its Evaluation of a Friction-Based Walking Sensation Display for a Seated User.
Kato, Ginga; Kuroda, Yoshihiro; Kiyokawa, Kiyoshi; Takemura, Haruo
2018-04-01
Most existing locomotion devices that represent the sensation of walking target a user who is actually performing a walking motion. Here, we attempted to represent the walking sensation, especially a kinesthetic sensation and advancing feeling (the sense of moving forward) while the user remains seated. To represent the walking sensation using a relatively simple device, we focused on the force rendering and its evaluation of the longitudinal friction force applied on the sole during walking. Based on the measurement of the friction force applied on the sole during actual walking, we developed a novel friction force display that can present the friction force without the influence of body weight. Using performance evaluation testing, we found that the proposed method can stably and rapidly display friction force. Also, we developed a virtual reality (VR) walk-through system that is able to present the friction force through the proposed device according to the avatar's walking motion in a virtual world. By evaluating the realism, we found that the proposed device can represent a more realistic advancing feeling than vibration feedback.
Fusing visual and behavioral cues for modeling user experience in games.
Shaker, Noor; Asteriadis, Stylianos; Yannakakis, Georgios N; Karpouzis, Kostas
2013-12-01
Estimating affective and cognitive states in conditions of rich human-computer interaction, such as in games, is a field of growing academic and commercial interest. Entertainment and serious games can benefit from recent advances in the field as, having access to predictors of the current state of the player (or learner) can provide useful information for feeding adaptation mechanisms that aim to maximize engagement or learning effects. In this paper, we introduce a large data corpus derived from 58 participants that play the popular Super Mario Bros platform game and attempt to create accurate models of player experience for this game genre. Within the view of the current research, features extracted both from player gameplay behavior and game levels, and player visual characteristics have been used as potential indicators of reported affect expressed as pairwise preferences between different game sessions. Using neuroevolutionary preference learning and automatic feature selection, highly accurate models of reported engagement, frustration, and challenge are constructed (model accuracies reach 91%, 92%, and 88% for engagement, frustration, and challenge, respectively). As a step further, the derived player experience models can be used to personalize the game level to desired levels of engagement, frustration, and challenge as game content is mapped to player experience through the behavioral and expressivity patterns of each player.
PlantAPA: A Portal for Visualization and Analysis of Alternative Polyadenylation in Plants
Wu, Xiaohui; Zhang, Yumin; Li, Qingshun Q.
2016-01-01
Alternative polyadenylation (APA) is an important layer of gene regulation that produces mRNAs that have different 3′ ends and/or encode diverse protein isoforms. Up to 70% of annotated genes in plants undergo APA. Increasing numbers of poly(A) sites collected in various plant species demand new methods and tools to access and mine these data. We have created an open-access web service called PlantAPA (http://bmi.xmu.edu.cn/plantapa) to visualize and analyze genome-wide poly(A) sites in plants. PlantAPA provides various interactive and dynamic graphics and seamlessly integrates a genome browser that can profile heterogeneous cleavage sites and quantify expression patterns of poly(A) sites across different conditions. Particularly, through PlantAPA, users can analyze poly(A) sites in extended 3′ UTR regions, intergenic regions, and ambiguous regions owing to alternative transcription or RNA processing. In addition, it also provides tools for analyzing poly(A) site selections, 3′ UTR lengthening or shortening, non-canonical APA site switching, and differential gene expression between conditions, making it more powerful for the study of APA-mediated gene expression regulation. More importantly, PlantAPA offers a bioinformatics pipeline that allows users to upload their own short reads or ESTs for poly(A) site extraction, enabling users to further explore poly(A) site selection using stored PlantAPA poly(A) sites together with their own poly(A) site datasets. To date, PlantAPA hosts the largest database of APA sites in plants, including Oryza sativa, Arabidopsis thaliana, Medicago truncatula, and Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. As a user-friendly web service, PlantAPA will be a valuable addition to the community of biologists studying APA mechanisms and gene expression regulation in plants. PMID:27446120
RAP: RNA-Seq Analysis Pipeline, a new cloud-based NGS web application.
D'Antonio, Mattia; D'Onorio De Meo, Paolo; Pallocca, Matteo; Picardi, Ernesto; D'Erchia, Anna Maria; Calogero, Raffaele A; Castrignanò, Tiziana; Pesole, Graziano
2015-01-01
The study of RNA has been dramatically improved by the introduction of Next Generation Sequencing platforms allowing massive and cheap sequencing of selected RNA fractions, also providing information on strand orientation (RNA-Seq). The complexity of transcriptomes and of their regulative pathways make RNA-Seq one of most complex field of NGS applications, addressing several aspects of the expression process (e.g. identification and quantification of expressed genes and transcripts, alternative splicing and polyadenylation, fusion genes and trans-splicing, post-transcriptional events, etc.). In order to provide researchers with an effective and friendly resource for analyzing RNA-Seq data, we present here RAP (RNA-Seq Analysis Pipeline), a cloud computing web application implementing a complete but modular analysis workflow. This pipeline integrates both state-of-the-art bioinformatics tools for RNA-Seq analysis and in-house developed scripts to offer to the user a comprehensive strategy for data analysis. RAP is able to perform quality checks (adopting FastQC and NGS QC Toolkit), identify and quantify expressed genes and transcripts (with Tophat, Cufflinks and HTSeq), detect alternative splicing events (using SpliceTrap) and chimeric transcripts (with ChimeraScan). This pipeline is also able to identify splicing junctions and constitutive or alternative polyadenylation sites (implementing custom analysis modules) and call for statistically significant differences in genes and transcripts expression, splicing pattern and polyadenylation site usage (using Cuffdiff2 and DESeq). Through a user friendly web interface, the RAP workflow can be suitably customized by the user and it is automatically executed on our cloud computing environment. This strategy allows to access to bioinformatics tools and computational resources without specific bioinformatics and IT skills. RAP provides a set of tabular and graphical results that can be helpful to browse, filter and export analyzed data, according to the user needs.
"Those edibles hit hard": Exploration of Twitter data on cannabis edibles in the U.S.
Lamy, Francois R; Daniulaityte, Raminta; Sheth, Amit; Nahhas, Ramzi W; Martins, Silvia S; Boyer, Edward W; Carlson, Robert G
2016-07-01
Several states in the U.S. have legalized cannabis for recreational or medical uses. In this context, cannabis edibles have drawn considerable attention after adverse effects were reported. This paper investigates Twitter users' perceptions concerning edibles and evaluates the association edibles-related tweeting activity and local cannabis legislation. Tweets were collected between May 1 and July 31, 2015, using Twitter API and filtered through the eDrugTrends/Twitris platform. A random sample of geolocated tweets was manually coded to evaluate Twitter users' perceptions regarding edibles. Raw state proportions of Twitter users mentioning edibles were ajusted relative to the total number of Twitter users per state. Differences in adjusted proportions of Twitter users mentioning edibles between states with different cannabis legislation status were assesed via a permutation test. We collected 100,182 tweets mentioning cannabis edibles with 26.9% (n=26,975) containing state-level geolocation. Adjusted percentages of geolocated Twitter users posting about edibles were significantly greater in states that allow recreational and/or medical use of cannabis. The differences were statistically significant. Overall, cannabis edibles were generally positively perceived among Twitter users despite some negative tweets expressing the unreliability of edible consumption linked to variability in effect intensity and duration. Our findings suggest that Twitter data analysis is an important tool for epidemiological monitoring of emerging drug use practices and trends. Results tend to indicate greater tweeting activity about cannabis edibles in states where medical THC and/or recreational use are legal. Although the majority of tweets conveyed positive attitudes about cannabis edibles, analysis of experiences expressed in negative tweets confirms the potential adverse effects of edibles and calls for educating edibles-naïve users, improving edibles labeling, and testing their THC content. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
[Assessing user satisfaction, an objective for quality of care].
Séné-Bourgeois, Martine; Mathieu-Chakroun, Isabelle; Margat, Aurore
The assessment of user satisfaction constitutes a key indicator of the quality of care. It can be envisaged either as part of an internal strategy which favours the improvement of practices, an external strategy whose focus is more commercial and/or an exploratory strategy to develop care models. User satisfaction is expressed in particular through complaint letters and discharge questionnaires. These regulated schemes enable quality to be approached on an individual and collective level. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.
Classification of Indonesian quote on Twitter using Naïve Bayes
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Rachmadany, A.; Pranoto, Y. M.; Gunawan; Multazam, M. T.; Nandiyanto, A. B. D.; Abdullah, A. G.; Widiaty, I.
2018-01-01
Quote is sentences made in the hope that someone can become strong personalities, individuals who always improve themselves to move forward and achieve success. Social media is a place for people to express his heart to the world that sometimes the expression of the heart is quotes. Here, the purpose of this study was to classify Indonesian quote on Twitter using Naïve Bayes. This experiment uses text classification from Twitter data written by Twitter users which are quote then classification again grouped into 6 categories (Love, Life, Motivation, Education, Religion, Others). The language used is Indonesian. The method used is Naive Bayes. The results of this experiment are a web application collection of Indonesian quote that have been classified. This classification gives the user ease in finding quote based on class or keyword. For example, when a user wants to find a 'motivation' quote, this classification would be very useful.
Effective Product Recommendation using the Real-Time Web
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Esparza, Sandra Garcia; O'Mahony, Michael P.; Smyth, Barry
The so-called real-time web (RTW) is a web of opinions, comments, and personal viewpoints, often expressed in the form of short, 140-character text messages providing abbreviated and highly personalized commentary in real-time. Today, Twitter is undoubtedly the king of the RTW. It boasts 190 million users and generates in the region of 65m tweets per day1. This RTW data is far from the structured data (movie ratings, product features, etc.) that is familiar to recommender systems research but it is useful to consider its applicability to recommendation scenarios. In this paper we consider harnessing the real-time opinions of users, expressed through the Twitter-like short textual reviews available on the Blippr service (www.blippr.com). In particular we describe how users and products can be represented from the terms used in their associated reviews and describe experiments to highlight the recommendation potential of this RTW data-source and approach.
Chan, Michael; Wu, Xuan; Hao, Yinqi; Xi, Rui; Jin, Tian
2012-07-01
In 2011, China's Internet population reached over half a billion users and the popular Twitter-like social networking service, Weibo, has been adopted by half of the users since its launch in August 2009. Given the potential of the Internet to facilitate a civic culture in the authoritarian state, the use of Weibo and its effects on citizens' political attitudes and behaviors are of important concern. A survey of 499 Weibo users found that intensity of use was related to increased willingness to express opinions about government and politics, the perception that one has the ability to participate in politics, and feelings that the government is not responsive to the demands of citizens. Moreover, the above relationships were moderated by the motivations of Weibo use, such that information motives strengthened the relationships while entertainment motives weakened the relationships.
Error correcting code with chip kill capability and power saving enhancement
Gara, Alan G [Mount Kisco, NY; Chen, Dong [Croton On Husdon, NY; Coteus, Paul W [Yorktown Heights, NY; Flynn, William T [Rochester, MN; Marcella, James A [Rochester, MN; Takken, Todd [Brewster, NY; Trager, Barry M [Yorktown Heights, NY; Winograd, Shmuel [Scarsdale, NY
2011-08-30
A method and system are disclosed for detecting memory chip failure in a computer memory system. The method comprises the steps of accessing user data from a set of user data chips, and testing the user data for errors using data from a set of system data chips. This testing is done by generating a sequence of check symbols from the user data, grouping the user data into a sequence of data symbols, and computing a specified sequence of syndromes. If all the syndromes are zero, the user data has no errors. If one of the syndromes is non-zero, then a set of discriminator expressions are computed, and used to determine whether a single or double symbol error has occurred. In the preferred embodiment, less than two full system data chips are used for testing and correcting the user data.
Finding and Exploring Health Information with a Slider-Based User Interface.
Pang, Patrick Cheong-Iao; Verspoor, Karin; Pearce, Jon; Chang, Shanton
2016-01-01
Despite the fact that search engines are the primary channel to access online health information, there are better ways to find and explore health information on the web. Search engines are prone to problems when they are used to find health information. For instance, users have difficulties in expressing health scenarios with appropriate search keywords, search results are not optimised for medical queries, and the search process does not account for users' literacy levels and reading preferences. In this paper, we describe our approach to addressing these problems by introducing a novel design using a slider-based user interface for discovering health information without the need for precise search keywords. The user evaluation suggests that the interface is easy to use and able to assist users in the process of discovering new information. This study demonstrates the potential value of adopting slider controls in the user interface of health websites for navigation and information discovery.
Advanced Software Development Workstation Project, phase 3
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
1991-01-01
ACCESS provides a generic capability to develop software information system applications which are explicitly intended to facilitate software reuse. In addition, it provides the capability to retrofit existing large applications with a user friendly front end for preparation of input streams in a way that will reduce required training time, improve the productivity even of experienced users, and increase accuracy. Current and past work shows that ACCESS will be scalable to much larger object bases.
Intelligent Advanced Communications IP Telephony Feasibility for the U.S. Navy: Phase 2
2009-03-31
PDAs) and smart phones. In addition, it considers how solutions integrate on-premise enterprise functions with the functions of mobile operators...and Control System GIG Global Information Grid GigE Gigabit Ethernet GIPS Global IP Solutions Inc. GMSK Gaussian Minimum Shift Keying GPHY Gigabit...Feasibility for the U.S. Navy – Phase 2 UAC User Agent Client UART Universal Asynchronous Receiver/Transmitter UAS User Agent Server UCR
JPRS Report, Science & Technology, Japan, Key Tech Center Advanced Communications Research
1990-02-26
networks. 27 b. Fuzzy access Even when correct information regarding the connection destination is not available, this makes it possible to establish...a connection based on the stored fuzzy information. c. Logical accessing Makes it possible to effect a connection based on the logical name (indivi...understand fuzzy indications from the user. (b) Normality check tests The following tests should be conducted to check the normality of user- defined services
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Redmann, G. H.
1976-01-01
Recent advances in image processing and new applications are presented to the user community to stimulate the development and transfer of this technology to industrial and commercial applications. The Proceedings contains 37 papers and abstracts, including many illustrations (some in color) and provides a single reference source for the user community regarding the ordering and obtaining of NASA-developed image-processing software and science data.
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Shilling, J.
1984-02-01
FRED, the friendly editor, is a screen-based structured editor. This manual is intended to serve the needs of a wide range of users of the FRED text editor. Most users will find it sufficient to read the introductory material in section 2, supplemented with the full command set description in section 3. Advanced users may wish to change the keystroke sequences which invoke editor commands. Section 4 describes how to change key bindings and how to define command macros. Some users may need to modify a language description or create an entirely new language description for use with FRED. Sectionmore » 5 describes the format of the language descriptions used by the editor, and describes how to construct a language grammar. Section 6 describes known portability problems of the FRED editor and should concern only system installation personnel. The editor points out syntax errors in the file being edited and does automatic pretty printing.« less
Dynamic User Interfaces for Service Oriented Architectures in Healthcare.
Schweitzer, Marco; Hoerbst, Alexander
2016-01-01
Electronic Health Records (EHRs) play a crucial role in healthcare today. Considering a data-centric view, EHRs are very advanced as they provide and share healthcare data in a cross-institutional and patient-centered way adhering to high syntactic and semantic interoperability. However, the EHR functionalities available for the end users are rare and hence often limited to basic document query functions. Future EHR use necessitates the ability to let the users define their needed data according to a certain situation and how this data should be processed. Workflow and semantic modelling approaches as well as Web services provide means to fulfil such a goal. This thesis develops concepts for dynamic interfaces between EHR end users and a service oriented eHealth infrastructure, which allow the users to design their flexible EHR needs, modeled in a dynamic and formal way. These are used to discover, compose and execute the right Semantic Web services.
User participation in the development of the human/computer interface for control centers
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Broome, Richard; Quick-Campbell, Marlene; Creegan, James; Dutilly, Robert
1996-01-01
Technological advances coupled with the requirements to reduce operations staffing costs led to the demand for efficient, technologically-sophisticated mission operations control centers. The control center under development for the earth observing system (EOS) is considered. The users are involved in the development of a control center in order to ensure that it is cost-efficient and flexible. A number of measures were implemented in the EOS program in order to encourage user involvement in the area of human-computer interface development. The following user participation exercises carried out in relation to the system analysis and design are described: the shadow participation of the programmers during a day of operations; the flight operations personnel interviews; and the analysis of the flight operations team tasks. The user participation in the interface prototype development, the prototype evaluation, and the system implementation are reported on. The involvement of the users early in the development process enables the requirements to be better understood and the cost to be reduced.
Andersen, Synnøve Thomassen; Jansen, Arild
2012-01-01
The paper addresses an ICT-based, user-driven innovation process in the health sector in rural areas in Norway. The empirical base is the introduction of a new model for psychiatric health provision. This model is supported by a technical solution based on mobile phones that is aimed to help the communication between professional health personnel and patients. This innovation was made possible through the use of standard mobile technology rather than more sophisticated systems. The users were heavily involved in the development work. Our analysis shows that by thinking simple and small-scale solutions, including to take the user's needs and premises as a point of departure rather than focusing on advanced technology, the implementation process was made possible. We show that by combining theory on information infrastructures, user-oriented system development, and innovation in a three-layered analytical framework, we can explain the interrelationship between technical, organizational, and health professional factors that made this innovation a success. PMID:23304134
Advanced software development workstation project ACCESS user's guide
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
1990-01-01
ACCESS is a knowledge based software information system designed to assist the user in modifying retrieved software to satisfy user specifications. A user's guide is presented for the knowledge engineer who wishes to create for ACCESS a knowledge base consisting of representations of objects in some software system. This knowledge is accessible to an end user who wishes to use the catalogued software objects to create a new application program or an input stream for an existing system. The application specific portion of an ACCESS knowledge base consists of a taxonomy of object classes, as well as instances of these classes. All objects in the knowledge base are stored in an associative memory. ACCESS provides a standard interface for the end user to browse and modify objects. In addition, the interface can be customized by the addition of application specific data entry forms and by specification of display order for the taxonomy and object attributes. These customization options are described.
Structural Molecular Biology 2017 | SSRL
sustain and enhance the general user program through excellent support, training and dissemination. Close à Acknowledgement The SSRL SMB Resource supports the development of advanced methodologies and
Bache, Matthias; Holzapfel, Daniel; Kappler, Matthias; Holzhausen, Hans-Jürgen; Taubert, Helge; Dunst, Jürgen; Hänsgen, Gabriele
2007-01-01
Survivin is strongly overexpressed in the vast majority of cancers. Initial investigations suggest a role for Survivin in radiation resistance. In this study, we investigate the effect of Survivin expression on clinical outcome and its relationship to tumor oxygenation parameters, expression of Hif-1alpha and anemia in patients with advanced cervical cancers treated with radiotherapy. Biopsies of 44 patients with cervical cancers (Stage IIB: n=9; Stage IIIB: n=31; Stage IVA: n=4) treated with radiotherapy were assessed by immunochemistry for expression of Survivin. Relation of Survivin to pretreatment tumor oxygenation parameters (HF5, pO(2)), hemoglobin (hb) level, Hif-1alpha expression and clinical parameters were investigated. Survivin expression was detected in all tumors of the 44 patients. Seven showed a strong expression and 37 have moderate Survivin expression. Patients whose tumors showed moderate Survivin expression had a 5-year overall survival of 66%. However, only one of the seven patients with strong Survivin expression was alive 45 months after treatment. In a Cox regression analysis, Survivin expression was correlated to poor overall survival (p=0.02, RR=3.3). There was no relationship between Survivin expression and pO(2) or HF5, but rather an inverse correlation with hemoglobin level (p=0.04). Furthermore, for six of the seven tumors with a high Survivin expression, Hif-1alpha was detected. Survivin protein expression is linked with anemia and prognosis in advanced cervical carcinoma of patients treated by radiotherapy.
The use of advanced medical technologies at home: a systematic review of the literature.
Ten Haken, Ingrid; Ben Allouch, Somaya; van Harten, Wim H
2018-02-26
The number of medical technologies used in home settings has increased substantially over the last 10-15 years. In order to manage their use and to guarantee quality and safety, data on usage trends and practical experiences are important. This paper presents a literature review on types, trends and experiences with the use of advanced medical technologies at home. The study focused on advanced medical technologies that are part of the technical nursing process and 'hands on' processes by nurses, excluding information technology such as domotica. The systematic review of literature was performed by searching the databases MEDLINE, Scopus and Cinahl. We included papers from 2000 to 2015 and selected articles containing empirical material. The review identified 87 relevant articles, 62% was published in the period 2011-2015. Of the included studies, 45% considered devices for respiratory support, 39% devices for dialysis and 29% devices for oxygen therapy. Most research has been conducted on the topic 'user experiences' (36%), mainly regarding patients or informal caregivers. Results show that nurses have a key role in supporting patients and family caregivers in the process of homecare with advanced medical technologies and in providing information for, and as a member of multi-disciplinary teams. However, relatively low numbers of articles were found studying nurses perspective. Research on medical technologies used at home has increased considerably until 2015. Much is already known on topics, such as user experiences; safety, risks, incidents and complications; and design and technological development. We also identified a lack of research exploring the views of nurses with regard to medical technologies for homecare, such as user experiences of nurses with different technologies, training, instruction and education of nurses and human factors by nurses in risk management and patient safety.
Web-based metabolic network visualization with a zooming user interface
2011-01-01
Background Displaying complex metabolic-map diagrams, for Web browsers, and allowing users to interact with them for querying and overlaying expression data over them is challenging. Description We present a Web-based metabolic-map diagram, which can be interactively explored by the user, called the Cellular Overview. The main characteristic of this application is the zooming user interface enabling the user to focus on appropriate granularities of the network at will. Various searching commands are available to visually highlight sets of reactions, pathways, enzymes, metabolites, and so on. Expression data from single or multiple experiments can be overlaid on the diagram, which we call the Omics Viewer capability. The application provides Web services to highlight the diagram and to invoke the Omics Viewer. This application is entirely written in JavaScript for the client browsers and connect to a Pathway Tools Web server to retrieve data and diagrams. It uses the OpenLayers library to display tiled diagrams. Conclusions This new online tool is capable of displaying large and complex metabolic-map diagrams in a very interactive manner. This application is available as part of the Pathway Tools software that powers multiple metabolic databases including Biocyc.org: The Cellular Overview is accessible under the Tools menu. PMID:21595965
Manned spacecraft automation and robotics
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Erickson, Jon D.
1987-01-01
The Space Station holds promise of being a showcase user and driver of advanced automation and robotics technology. The author addresses the advances in automation and robotics from the Space Shuttle - with its high-reliability redundancy management and fault tolerance design and its remote manipulator system - to the projected knowledge-based systems for monitoring, control, fault diagnosis, planning, and scheduling, and the telerobotic systems of the future Space Station.
Corrosion Prevention and Control Planning Guidebook for Military Systems and Equipment
2014-04-02
corrosion to applying advanced materials, coatings, inhibitors, and cathodic protection for corrosion control over many years, well before the DoD...requiring the delivery of the Contractor CPCP. Further, MIL-HDBK-1568 is for aerospace systems. Consider this when tailoring your Contract Data...Corrosion personnel from the user command; o Information Analysis Center personnel, such as Advanced Materials, Manufacturing, and Testing Information
Similar Squamous Cell Carcinoma Epithelium microRNA Expression in Never Smokers and Ever Smokers
Kolokythas, Antonia; Zhou, Yalu; Schwartz, Joel L.; Adami, Guy R.
2015-01-01
The incidence of oral tumors in patients who never used mutagenic agents such as tobacco is increasing. In an effort to better understand these tumors we studied microRNA (miRNA) expression in tumor epithelium of never tobacco users, tumor epithelium of ever tobacco users, and nonpathological control oral epithelium. A comparison of levels among 372 miRNAs in 12 never tobacco users with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) versus 10 healthy controls was made using the reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction. A similar analysis was done with 8 ever tobacco users with OSCC. These comparisons revealed miR-10b-5p, miR-196a-5p, and miR-31-5p as enriched in the tumor epithelium in OSCC of both never and ever tobacco users. Examination of The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) project miRNA data on 305 OSCCs and 30 controls revealed 100% of those miRNAs enriched in never smoker OSCCs in this patient group were also enriched in ever smoker OSCCs. Nonsupervised clustering of TCGA OSCCs was suggestive of two or four subgroups of tumors based on miRNA levels with limited evidence for differences in tobacco exposure among the groups. Results from both patient groups together stress the importance of miR196a-5p in OSCC malignancy in both never and ever smokers, and emphasize the overall similarity of miRNA expression in OSCCs in these two risk groups. It implies that there may be great similarity in etiology of OSCC in never and ever smokers and that classifying OSCC based on tobacco exposure may not be helpful in the clinic. PMID:26544609
A Multimodal Emotion Detection System during Human-Robot Interaction
Alonso-Martín, Fernando; Malfaz, María; Sequeira, João; Gorostiza, Javier F.; Salichs, Miguel A.
2013-01-01
In this paper, a multimodal user-emotion detection system for social robots is presented. This system is intended to be used during human–robot interaction, and it is integrated as part of the overall interaction system of the robot: the Robotics Dialog System (RDS). Two modes are used to detect emotions: the voice and face expression analysis. In order to analyze the voice of the user, a new component has been developed: Gender and Emotion Voice Analysis (GEVA), which is written using the Chuck language. For emotion detection in facial expressions, the system, Gender and Emotion Facial Analysis (GEFA), has been also developed. This last system integrates two third-party solutions: Sophisticated High-speed Object Recognition Engine (SHORE) and Computer Expression Recognition Toolbox (CERT). Once these new components (GEVA and GEFA) give their results, a decision rule is applied in order to combine the information given by both of them. The result of this rule, the detected emotion, is integrated into the dialog system through communicative acts. Hence, each communicative act gives, among other things, the detected emotion of the user to the RDS so it can adapt its strategy in order to get a greater satisfaction degree during the human–robot dialog. Each of the new components, GEVA and GEFA, can also be used individually. Moreover, they are integrated with the robotic control platform ROS (Robot Operating System). Several experiments with real users were performed to determine the accuracy of each component and to set the final decision rule. The results obtained from applying this decision rule in these experiments show a high success rate in automatic user emotion recognition, improving the results given by the two information channels (audio and visual) separately. PMID:24240598
Areal, Lorena Bianchine; Herlinger, Alice Laschuk; Pelição, Fabrício Souza; Martins-Silva, Cristina; Pires, Rita Gomes Wanderley
2017-08-01
Crack cocaine (crack) addiction represents a major social and health burden, especially seeing as users are more prone to engage in criminal and violent acts. Crack users show a higher prevalence of psychiatric comorbidities - particularly antisocial personality disorders - when compared to powder cocaine users. They also develop cognitive deficits related mainly to executive functions, including working memory. It is noteworthy that stimulant drugs can induce psychotic states, which appear to mimic some symptoms of schizophrenia among users. Social withdraw and executive function deficits are, respectively, negative and cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia mediated by reduced dopamine (DA) tone in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) of patients. That could be explained by an increased expression of D2R short isoform (D2S) in the PFC of such patients and/or by hypofunctioning NMDA receptors in this region. Reduced DA tone has already been described in the PFC of mice exposed to crack smoke. Therefore, it is possible that behavioral alterations presented by crack users result from molecular and biochemical neuronal alterations akin to schizophrenia. Accordingly, we found that upon crack inhalation mice have shown decreased social interaction and working memory deficits analogous to schizophrenia's symptoms, along with increased D2S/D2L expression ratio and decreased expression of NR1, NR2A and NR2B NMDA receptor subunits in the PFC. Herein we propose two possible mechanisms to explain the reduced DA tone in the PFC elicited by crack consumption in mice, bringing also the first direct evidence that crack use may result in schizophrenia-like neurochemical, molecular and behavioral alterations. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Lalor, Joan G; Casey, Dympna; Elliott, Naomi; Coyne, Imelda; Comiskey, Catherine; Higgins, Agnes; Murphy, Kathy; Devane, Declan; Begley, Cecily
2013-04-08
The role of the clinical nurse/midwife specialist and advanced nurse/midwife practitioner is complex not least because of the diversity in how the roles are operationalised across health settings and within multidisciplinary teams. This aim of this paper is to use The SCAPE Study: Specialist Clinical and Advanced Practitioner Evaluation in Ireland to illustrate how case study was used to strengthen a Sequential Explanatory Design. In Phase 1, clinicians identified indicators of specialist and advanced practice which were then used to guide the instrumental case study design which formed the second phase of the larger study. Phase 2 used matched case studies to evaluate the effectiveness of specialist and advanced practitioners on clinical outcomes for service users. Data were collected through observation, documentary analysis, and interviews. Observations were made of 23 Clinical Specialists or Advanced Practitioners, and 23 matched clinicians in similar matched non-postholding sites, while they delivered care. Forty-one service users, 41 clinicians, and 23 Directors of Nursing or Midwifery were interviewed, and 279 service users completed a survey based on the components of CS and AP practice identified in Phase 1. A coding framework, and the generation of cross tabulation matrices in NVivo, was used to make explicit how the outcome measures were confirmed and validated from multiple sources. This strengthened the potential to examine single cases that seemed 'different', and allowed for cases to be redefined. Phase 3 involved interviews with policy-makers to set the findings in context. Case study is a powerful research strategy to use within sequential explanatory mixed method designs, and adds completeness to the exploration of complex issues in clinical practice. The design is flexible, allowing the use of multiple data collection methods from both qualitative and quantitative paradigms. Multiple approaches to data collection are needed to evaluate the impact of complex roles and interventions in health care outcomes and service delivery. Case study design is an appropriate methodology to use when study outcomes relate to clinical practice.
Computation of emotions in man and machines.
Robinson, Peter; el Kaliouby, Rana
2009-12-12
The importance of emotional expression as part of human communication has been understood since Aristotle, and the subject has been explored scientifically since Charles Darwin and others in the nineteenth century. Advances in computer technology now allow machines to recognize and express emotions, paving the way for improved human-computer and human-human communications. Recent advances in psychology have greatly improved our understanding of the role of affect in communication, perception, decision-making, attention and memory. At the same time, advances in technology mean that it is becoming possible for machines to sense, analyse and express emotions. We can now consider how these advances relate to each other and how they can be brought together to influence future research in perception, attention, learning, memory, communication, decision-making and other applications. The computation of emotions includes both recognition and synthesis, using channels such as facial expressions, non-verbal aspects of speech, posture, gestures, physiology, brain imaging and general behaviour. The combination of new results in psychology with new techniques of computation is leading to new technologies with applications in commerce, education, entertainment, security, therapy and everyday life. However, there are important issues of privacy and personal expression that must also be considered.
Computation of emotions in man and machines
Robinson, Peter; el Kaliouby, Rana
2009-01-01
The importance of emotional expression as part of human communication has been understood since Aristotle, and the subject has been explored scientifically since Charles Darwin and others in the nineteenth century. Advances in computer technology now allow machines to recognize and express emotions, paving the way for improved human–computer and human–human communications. Recent advances in psychology have greatly improved our understanding of the role of affect in communication, perception, decision-making, attention and memory. At the same time, advances in technology mean that it is becoming possible for machines to sense, analyse and express emotions. We can now consider how these advances relate to each other and how they can be brought together to influence future research in perception, attention, learning, memory, communication, decision-making and other applications. The computation of emotions includes both recognition and synthesis, using channels such as facial expressions, non-verbal aspects of speech, posture, gestures, physiology, brain imaging and general behaviour. The combination of new results in psychology with new techniques of computation is leading to new technologies with applications in commerce, education, entertainment, security, therapy and everyday life. However, there are important issues of privacy and personal expression that must also be considered. PMID:19884138
Finding user personal interests by tweet-mining using advanced machine learning algorithm in R
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Krithika, L. B.; Roy, P.; Asha Jerlin, M.
2017-11-01
The social-media plays a key role in every individual’s life by anyone’s personal views about their liking-ness/disliking-ness. This methodology is a sharp departure from the traditional techniques of inferring interests of a user from the tweets that he/she posts or receives. It is showed that the topics of interest inferred by the proposed methodology are far superior than the topics extracted by state-of-the-art techniques such as using topic models (Labelled LDA) on tweets. Based upon the proposed methodology, a system has been built, “Who is interested in what”, which can infer the interests of millions of Twitter users. A novel mechanism is proposed to infer topics of interest of individual users in the twitter social network. It has been observed that in twitter, a user generally follows experts on various topics of his/her interest in order to acquire information on those topics. A methodology based on social annotations is used to first deduce the topical expertise of popular twitter users and then transitively infer the interests of the users who follow them.
Sun, Huey-Min; Li, Shang-Phone; Zhu, Yu-Qian; Hsiao, Bo
2015-09-01
Technological advance in human-computer interaction has attracted increasing research attention, especially in the field of virtual reality (VR). Prior research has focused on examining the effects of VR on various outcomes, for example, learning and health. However, which factors affect the final outcomes? That is, what kind of VR system design will achieve higher usability? This question remains largely. Furthermore, when we look at VR system deployment from a human-computer interaction (HCI) lens, does user's attitude play a role in achieving the final outcome? This study aims to understand the effect of immersion and involvement, as well as users' regulatory focus on usability for a somatosensory VR learning system. This study hypothesized that regulatory focus and presence can effectively enhance user's perceived usability. Survey data from 78 students in Taiwan indicated that promotion focus is positively related to user's perceived efficiency, whereas involvement and promotion focus are positively related to user's perceived effectiveness. Promotion focus also predicts user satisfaction and overall usability perception. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd and The Ergonomics Society. All rights reserved.
Flexible and Transparent User Authentication for Mobile Devices
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Clarke, Nathan; Karatzouni, Sevasti; Furnell, Steven
The mobile device has become a ubiquitous technology that is capable of supporting an increasingly large array of services, applications and information. Given their increasing importance, it is imperative to ensure that such devices are not misused or abused. Unfortunately, a key enabling control to prevent this, user authentication, has not kept up with the advances in device technology. This paper presents the outcomes of a 2 year study that proposes the use of transparent and continuous biometric authentication of the user: providing more comprehensive identity verification; minimizing user inconvenience; and providing security throughout the period of use. A Non-Intrusive and Continuous Authentication (NICA) system is described that maintains a continuous measure of confidence in the identity of the user, removing access to sensitive services and information with low confidence levels and providing automatic access with higher confidence levels. An evaluation of the framework is undertaken from an end-user perspective via a trial involving 27 participants. Whilst the findings raise concerns over education, privacy and intrusiveness, overall 92% of users felt the system offered a more secure environment when compared to existing forms of authentication.
Exploring User Acceptance of FOSS: The Role of the Age of the Users
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Gallego, M. Dolores; Bueno, Salvador
Free and open source software (FOSS) movement essentially arises like answer to the evolution occurred in the market from the software, characterized by the closing of the source code. Furthermore, some FOSS characteristics, such as (1) the advance of this movement and (2) the attractiveness that contributes the voluntary and cooperative work, have increased the interest of the users towards free software. Traditionally, research in FOSS has focused on identifying individual personal motives for participating in the development of a FOSS project, analyzing specific FOSS solutions, or the FOSS movement itself. Nevertheless, the advantages of the FOSS for users and the effect of the demographic dimensions on user acceptance for FOSS have been two research topics with little attention. Specifically, this paper's aim is to focus on the influence of the userś age with FOSS the FOSS acceptance. Based on the literature, userś age is an essential demographic dimension for explaining the Information Systems acceptance. With this purpose, the authors have developed a research model based on the Technological Acceptance Model (TAM).
Takemura, Kosuke; Suzuki, Satoko
2017-06-01
This study proposes that self-expression motivation, an aspect of independent/individualistic psychological tendencies, aids in the formation of social relationships when social relationships are open and mobile. In societies characterised by high relational mobility (e.g., North America), which creates market-like competition in social relationships, individuals must express their uniqueness and worthiness to form new social relationships. Self-expression motivation has a relatively weak effect on relationship formation in low relational mobility societies (e.g., Japan), where social relationships are generally predetermined. This hypothesis was examined and supported through a study on dual users of two social networking sites-Facebook and Mixi (the "Facebook of Japan"). As expected, relational mobility was higher on Facebook than on Mixi. Moreover, the association between self-expression motivation and the number of new friends met on Facebook/Mixi was more positive for Facebook than it was for Mixi. The social functionality of independent tendencies is then discussed. © 2015 International Union of Psychological Science.
Modelling information dissemination under privacy concerns in social media
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Zhu, Hui; Huang, Cheng; Lu, Rongxing; Li, Hui
2016-05-01
Social media has recently become an important platform for users to share news, express views, and post messages. However, due to user privacy preservation in social media, many privacy setting tools are employed, which inevitably change the patterns and dynamics of information dissemination. In this study, a general stochastic model using dynamic evolution equations was introduced to illustrate how privacy concerns impact the process of information dissemination. Extensive simulations and analyzes involving the privacy settings of general users, privileged users, and pure observers were conducted on real-world networks, and the results demonstrated that user privacy settings affect information differently. Finally, we also studied the process of information diffusion analytically and numerically with different privacy settings using two classic networks.
CIAO: A Modern Data Analysis System for X-Ray Astronomy
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Fruscione, Antonella
2017-08-01
It is now eighteen years after launch and Chandra continues to produce spectacular results!A portion of the success is to be attributed to the data analysis software CIAO (Chandra Interactive Analysis of Observations) that the Chandra X-Ray Center (CXC) continues to improve and release year after year.CIAO is downloaded more than 1200 times a year and it is used by a wide variety of users around the world: from novice to experienced X-ray astronomers, high school, undergraduate and graduate students, archival users (many new to X-ray or Chandra data), users with extensive resources and others from smaller countries and institutions.The scientific goals and kinds of datasets and analysis cover a wide range: observations spanning from days to years, different instrument configurations and different kinds of targets, from pointlike stars and quasars, to fuzzy galaxies and clusters, to moving solar objects. These different needs and goals require a variety of specialized software and careful and detailed documentation which is what the CIAO software provides. In general, we strive to build a software system which is easy for beginners, yet powerful for advanced users.The complexity of the Chandra data require a flexible data analysis system which provides an environment where the users can apply our tools, but can also explore and construct their own applications. The main purpose of this talk is to present CIAO as a modern data analysis system for X-ray data analysis.CIAO has grown tremendously over the years and we will highlight (a) the most recent advancements with a particular emphasis on the newly developed high-level scripts which simplify the analysis steps for the most common cases making CIAO more accessible to all users - including beginners and users who are not X-ray astronomy specialists, (b) the python-based Sherpa modelling and fitting application and the new stand-alone version openly developed and distributed on Github and (c) progress on methods to characterize the Chandra PSF.
Advances of NOAA Training Program in Climate Services
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Timofeyeva, M. M.
2012-12-01
Since 2002, NOAA's National Weather Service (NWS) Climate Services Division (CSD) has offered numerous training opportunities to NWS staff. After eight-years of development, the training program offers three instructor-led courses and roughly 25 online (distance learning) modules covering various climate topics, such as: climate data and observations, climate variability and change, and NWS national / local climate products (tools, skill, and interpretation). Leveraging climate information and expertise available at all NOAA line offices and partners allows for the delivery of the most advanced knowledge and is a very critical aspect of the training program. The emerging NOAA Climate Service (NCS) requires a well-trained, climate-literate workforce at the local level capable of delivering NOAA's climate products and services as well as providing climate-sensitive decision support. NWS Weather Forecast Offices and River Forecast Centers presently serve as local outlets for the NCS climate services. Trained NWS climate service personnel use proactive and reactive approaches and professional education methods in communicating climate variability and change information to local users. Both scientifically-sound messages and amiable communication techniques are important in developing an engaged dialog between the climate service providers and users. Several pilot projects have been conducted by the NWS CSD this past year that apply the program's training lessons and expertise to specialized external user group training. The technical user groups included natural resources managers, engineers, hydrologists, and planners for transportation infrastructure. Training of professional user groups required tailoring instructions to the potential applications for each group of users. Training technical users identified the following critical issues: (1) knowledge of target audience expectations, initial knowledge status, and potential use of climate information; (2) leveraging partnership with climate services providers; and, (3) applying 3H training approach, where the first H stands for Head (trusted science), the second H stands for Heart (make it easy), and the third H for Hand (support with applications).
State Energy Policy Newsletter
This page allows users to sign up for a weekly summary of state energy policy news for state agency staff involved in advancing clean energy opportunities and developing climate change mitigation policies and programs.
Telemetry and Science Data Software System
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Bates, Lakesha; Hong, Liang
2011-01-01
The Telemetry and Science Data Software System (TSDSS) was designed to validate the operational health of a spacecraft, ease test verification, assist in debugging system anomalies, and provide trending data and advanced science analysis. In doing so, the system parses, processes, and organizes raw data from the Aquarius instrument both on the ground and while in space. In addition, it provides a user-friendly telemetry viewer, and an instant pushbutton test report generator. Existing ground data systems can parse and provide simple data processing, but have limitations in advanced science analysis and instant report generation. The TSDSS functions as an offline data analysis system during I&T (integration and test) and mission operations phases. After raw data are downloaded from an instrument, TSDSS ingests the data files, parses, converts telemetry to engineering units, and applies advanced algorithms to produce science level 0, 1, and 2 data products. Meanwhile, it automatically schedules upload of the raw data to a remote server and archives all intermediate and final values in a MySQL database in time order. All data saved in the system can be straightforwardly retrieved, exported, and migrated. Using TSDSS s interactive data visualization tool, a user can conveniently choose any combination and mathematical computation of interesting telemetry points from a large range of time periods (life cycle of mission ground data and mission operations testing), and display a graphical and statistical view of the data. With this graphical user interface (GUI), the data queried graphs can be exported and saved in multiple formats. This GUI is especially useful in trending data analysis, debugging anomalies, and advanced data analysis. At the request of the user, mission-specific instrument performance assessment reports can be generated with a simple click of a button on the GUI. From instrument level to observatory level, the TSDSS has been operating supporting functional and performance tests and refining system calibration algorithms and coefficients, in sync with the Aquarius/SAC-D spacecraft. At the time of this reporting, it was prepared and set up to perform anomaly investigation for mission operations preceding the Aquarius/SAC-D spacecraft launch on June 10, 2011.
Advanced light source: Compendium of user abstracts and technical reports,1993-1996
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
None, None
1997-04-01
This compendium contains abstracts written by users summarizing research completed or in progress from 1993-1996, ALS technical reports describing ongoing efforts related to improvement in machine operations and research and development projects, and information on ALS beamlines planned through 1998. Two tables of contents organize the user abstracts by beamline and by area of research, and an author index makes abstracts accessible by author and by principal investigator. Technical details for each beamline including whom to contact for additional information can be found in the beamline information section. Separate abstracts have been indexed into the database for contributions to thismore » compendium.« less
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Szczur, Martha R.
1993-01-01
The Transportable Applications Environment (TAE) Plus, developed at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, is an advanced portable user interface development which simplifies the process of creating and managing complex application graphical user interfaces (GUI's). TAE Plus supports the rapid prototyping of GUI's and allows applications to be ported easily between different platforms. This paper will discuss the capabilities of the TAE Plus tool, and how it makes the job of designing and developing GUI's easier for application developers. TAE Plus is being applied to many types of applications, and this paper discusses how it has been used both within and outside NASA.
Paradiso, A; Rabinovich, M; Vallejo, C; Machiavelli, M; Romero, A; Perez, J; Lacava, J; Cuevas, M A; Rodriquez, R; Leone, B; Sapia, M G; Simone, G; De Lena, M
1996-12-20
In a series of 71 patients with advanced colorectal cancer treated with biochemically modulated 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) and methotrexate (MTX), we investigated the relationship between the proliferating-cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) (PC10) and p53 (Pab1801) primary-tumor immunohistochemical expression with respect to clinical response and long-term prognosis. Nuclear p53 expression was demonstrated in 44% of samples (any number of positive tumor cells) while all tumors showed a certain degree of PCNA immunostaining. PCNA immunostaining was correlated with histopathologic grade and p53 expression, while p53 was not correlated with any of the parameters considered. The probability of clinical response to biochemically modulated 5-FU was independent of p53 and PCNA expression. p53 expression (all cut-off values) was not associated with short- or long-term clinical prognosis, whereas patients with higher PCNA primary-tumor expression showed longer survival from treatment and survival from diagnosis, according to univariate and multivariate analysis, particularly in the sub-set of colon-cancer patients. We conclude that the clinical response of advanced-colorectal-cancer patients to biochemically modulated 5-FU and MTX cannot be predicted by PCNA and p53 primary-tumor expression, but high PCNA expression appears to be independently related to long-term prognosis.
Asynchronous transfer mode link performance over ground networks
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Chow, E. T.; Markley, R. W.
1993-01-01
The results of an experiment to determine the feasibility of using asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) technology to support advanced spacecraft missions that require high-rate ground communications and, in particular, full-motion video are reported. Potential nodes in such a ground network include Deep Space Network (DSN) antenna stations, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and a set of national and international end users. The experiment simulated a lunar microrover, lunar lander, the DSN ground communications system, and distributed science users. The users were equipped with video-capable workstations. A key feature was an optical fiber link between two high-performance workstations equipped with ATM interfaces. Video was also transmitted through JPL's institutional network to a user 8 km from the experiment. Variations in video depending on the networks and computers were observed, the results are reported.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Aldhaibani, Jaafar A.; Ahmad, R. B.; Yahya, A.; Azeez, Suzan A.
2015-05-01
Wireless multi-hop relay networks have become very important technologies in mobile communications. These networks ensure high throughput and coverage extension with a low cost. The poor capacity at cell edges is not enough to meet with growing demand of high capacity and throughput irrespective of user's placement in the cellular network. In this paper we propose optimal placement of relay node that provides maximum achievable rate at users and enhances the throughput and coverage at cell edge region. The proposed scheme is based on the outage probability at users and taken on account the interference between nodes. Numerical analyses along with simulation results indicated there are an improvement in capacity for users at the cell edge is 40% increment from all cell capacity.
Command and control interfaces for advanced neuroprosthetic applications.
Scott, T R; Haugland, M
2001-10-01
Command and control interfaces permit the intention and situation of the user to influence the operation of the neural prosthesis. The wishes of the user are communicated via command interfaces to the neural prosthesis and the situation of the user by feedback control interfaces. Both these interfaces have been reviewed separately and are discussed in light of the current state of the art and projections for the future. It is apparent that as system functional complexity increases, the need for simpler command interfaces will increase. Such systems will demand more information to function effectively in order not to unreasonably increase user attention overhead. This will increase the need for bioelectric and biomechanical signals in a comprehensible form via elegant feedback control interfaces. Implementing such systems will also increase the computational demand on such neural prostheses.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Smith, P.
1986-01-01
The Pilot Climate Data System (PCDS) was designed to support a variety of users that have been arbitrarily categorized into four groups: researchers, data producers, occasional users, and management. The expanding capabilities of the system are attracting the attention of both academic and other scientific institutions worldwide. Highlighted by progress in networking capabilities, hardware acquisitions, software developments, data set additions, and tutorial developments, exciting advances have taken place since the First PCDS Workshop. In the plans for the 1986 fiscal year, recommendations from an ad hoc users' group meeting in May 1985 and from the First PCDS workshop are apparent. This year's plans are listed, along with comments made at the users' group meeting. Although the PCDS is presently considered to be in a developmental phase, plans for making the transition to an operational phase are being implemented.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Douma, M.; Ligierko, G.; Angelov, I.
2008-10-01
The need for information has increased exponentially over the past decades. The current systems for constructing, exploring, classifying, organizing, and searching information face the growing challenge of enabling their users to operate efficiently and intuitively in knowledge-heavy environments. This paper presents SpicyNodes, an advanced user interface for difficult interaction contexts. It is based on an underlying structure known as a radial map, which allows users to manipulate and interact in a natural manner with entities called nodes. This technology overcomes certain limitations of existing solutions and solves the problem of browsing complex sets of linked information. SpicyNodes is also an organic system that projects users into a living space, stimulating exploratory behavior and fostering creative thought. Our interactive radial layout is used for educational purposes and has the potential for numerous other applications.
An assessment of future computer system needs for large-scale computation
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Lykos, P.; White, J.
1980-01-01
Data ranging from specific computer capability requirements to opinions about the desirability of a national computer facility are summarized. It is concluded that considerable attention should be given to improving the user-machine interface. Otherwise, increased computer power may not improve the overall effectiveness of the machine user. Significant improvement in throughput requires highly concurrent systems plus the willingness of the user community to develop problem solutions for that kind of architecture. An unanticipated result was the expression of need for an on-going cross-disciplinary users group/forum in order to share experiences and to more effectively communicate needs to the manufacturers.
User Participation in Coproduction of Health Innovation: Proposal for a Synergy Project.
Nygren, Jens; Zukauskaite, Elena; Westberg, Niklas
2018-05-09
This project concerns advancing knowledge, methods, and logic for user participation in coproduction of health innovations. Such advancement is vital for several reasons. From a user perspective, participation in coproduction provides an opportunity to gain real influence over goal definition, design, and implementation of health innovations, ensuring that the solution developed solves real problems in right ways. From a societal perspective, it's a mean to improve the efficiency of health care and the implementation of the Patient Act. As for industry, frameworks and knowledge of coproduction offer tools to operate in a complex sector, with great potential for innovation of services and products. The fundamental objective of this project is to advance knowledge and methods of how user participation in the coproduction of health innovations can be applied in order to benefit users, industry, and public sector. This project is a synergy project, which means that the objective will be accomplished through collaboration and meta-analysis between three subprojects that address different user groups, apply different strategies to promote human health, and relate to different parts of the health sector. Furthermore, subprojects focus on distinctive stages in the spectrum of innovation, with the objective to generate knowledge of the innovation process as a whole. The project is organized around three work packages related to three challenges-coproduction, positioning, and realization. Each subproject is designed such that it has its own field of study with clearly identified objectives but also targets work packages to contribute to the project as a whole. The work on the work packages will use case methodology for data collection and analysis based on the subprojects as data sources. More concretely, logic of multiple case studies will be applied with each subproject representing a separate case which is similar to each other in its attention to user participation in coproduction, but different regarding, for example, context and target groups. At the synergy level, the framework methodology will be used to handle and analyze the vast amount of information generated within the subprojects. The project period is from July 1, 2018 to June 30, 2022. By addressing the objective of this project, we will create new knowledge on how to manage challenges to health innovation associated with the coproduction process, the positioning of solutions, and realization. ©Jens Nygren, Elena Zukauskaite, Niklas Westberg. Originally published in JMIR Research Protocols (http://www.researchprotocols.org), 09.05.2018.
Oral contraceptives may alter the detection of emotions in facial expressions.
Hamstra, Danielle A; De Rover, Mischa; De Rijk, Roel H; Van der Does, Willem
2014-11-01
A possible effect of oral contraceptives on emotion recognition was observed in the context of a clinical trial with a corticosteroid. Users of oral contraceptives detected significantly fewer facial expressions of sadness, anger and disgust than non-users. This was true for trial participants overall as well as for those randomized to placebo. Although it is uncertain whether this is an effect of oral contraceptives or a pre-existing difference, future studies on the effect of interventions should control for the effects of oral contraceptives on emotional and cognitive outcomes. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. and ECNP. All rights reserved.
Fuzzy logic control of telerobot manipulators
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Franke, Ernest A.; Nedungadi, Ashok
1992-01-01
Telerobot systems for advanced applications will require manipulators with redundant 'degrees of freedom' (DOF) that are capable of adapting manipulator configurations to avoid obstacles while achieving the user specified goal. Conventional methods for control of manipulators (based on solution of the inverse kinematics) cannot be easily extended to these situations. Fuzzy logic control offers a possible solution to these needs. A current research program at SRI developed a fuzzy logic controller for a redundant, 4 DOF, planar manipulator. The manipulator end point trajectory can be specified by either a computer program (robot mode) or by manual input (teleoperator). The approach used expresses end-point error and the location of manipulator joints as fuzzy variables. Joint motions are determined by a fuzzy rule set without requiring solution of the inverse kinematics. Additional rules for sensor data, obstacle avoidance and preferred manipulator configuration, e.g., 'righty' or 'lefty', are easily accommodated. The procedure used to generate the fuzzy rules can be extended to higher DOF systems.
CULTURAL INTELLIGENCE ASSISTANCE FOR CROSS-CULTURE UNDERSTANDING AND ACTION RECOMMENDATION
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Cui, Xiaohui; Potok, Thomas E; Xu, Songhua
2011-01-01
When traveling or working in a culturally diverse environment, it is demanding for a new comer to quickly notice, understand, and adapt to different culture norms to avoid cultural misunderstanding, and further to establish friendship with the local people. The main challenges include both correctly understanding the intent behind behaviors from people with a different cultural background, and effectively adjusting one s own behaviors to a local cultural setting to express one s intention without ambiguity. Quality cross-cultural assistance can help us accurately recognize the true purpose behind behaviors of a person from a different cultural background, and also advisemore » us to act properly in a new cultural setting. In this project, we aim at providing an advanced cultural intelligence assistance tool, implemented as a mobile application, to facilitate individual users to understand behaviors, norms, and conventions in a new culture, as well as to change their behaviors appropriately in the new cultural environment.« less
Genetic circuit design automation.
Nielsen, Alec A K; Der, Bryan S; Shin, Jonghyeon; Vaidyanathan, Prashant; Paralanov, Vanya; Strychalski, Elizabeth A; Ross, David; Densmore, Douglas; Voigt, Christopher A
2016-04-01
Computation can be performed in living cells by DNA-encoded circuits that process sensory information and control biological functions. Their construction is time-intensive, requiring manual part assembly and balancing of regulator expression. We describe a design environment, Cello, in which a user writes Verilog code that is automatically transformed into a DNA sequence. Algorithms build a circuit diagram, assign and connect gates, and simulate performance. Reliable circuit design requires the insulation of gates from genetic context, so that they function identically when used in different circuits. We used Cello to design 60 circuits forEscherichia coli(880,000 base pairs of DNA), for which each DNA sequence was built as predicted by the software with no additional tuning. Of these, 45 circuits performed correctly in every output state (up to 10 regulators and 55 parts), and across all circuits 92% of the output states functioned as predicted. Design automation simplifies the incorporation of genetic circuits into biotechnology projects that require decision-making, control, sensing, or spatial organization. Copyright © 2016, American Association for the Advancement of Science.
[Gene doping--current possibilities, risks and means of prevention].
Pleger, N; Vitzthum, K; Schöffel, N; Quarcoo, D; Uibel, S; Groneberg, D A
2011-03-01
With the advances in gene therapy fears of an abuse in sports arise. The WADA's definition of the term strictly differentiates between gene doping and gene therapy. There are in vivo and ex vivo practices to manipulate the different phases of gene expression in the organism, with viral vectors being looked upon as the most efficient ones. IGF-1, PPARδ, MSTN and EPO play the most important roles in today's scientific research. Their potential was proven in various animal studies, showing a significant improvement of performances. Potential risks for human users include severe immune reactions, mutagenesis, and raised risk for cancer. Big efforts are being put into the development of ways of detection, however until now there are neither practicable methods of control nor any reported cases of manipulated humans. Still, a usage of gene doping that has already taken place cannot be ruled out and is highly likely. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.
Alvarez, Bruno; Barra, Carolina; Nielsen, Morten; Andreatta, Massimo
2018-01-12
Recent advances in proteomics and mass-spectrometry have widely expanded the detectable peptide repertoire presented by major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules on the cell surface, collectively known as the immunopeptidome. Finely characterizing the immunopeptidome brings about important basic insights into the mechanisms of antigen presentation, but can also reveal promising targets for vaccine development and cancer immunotherapy. This report describes a number of practical and efficient approaches to analyze immunopeptidomics data, discussing the identification of meaningful sequence motifs in various scenarios and considering current limitations. Guidelines are provided for the filtering of false hits and contaminants, and to address the problem of motif deconvolution in cell lines expressing multiple MHC alleles, both for the MHC class I and class II systems. Finally, it is demonstrated how machine learning can be readily employed by non-expert users to generate accurate prediction models directly from mass-spectrometry eluted ligand data sets. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.
Do users ruin design intentions?
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kantrowitz, M.
1983-11-01
The approach to examining the relationship between occupants and energy use currently being implemented through the U.S. Department of Energy Passive Solar Commercial Buildings Program is described. Preliminary findings related to how occupant behavior influences energy use and how users respond to these passive solar commercial buildings are presented. Most building users seem to be satisfied with conditions in the buildings-the patterns of the relatively few complaints about comfort reveal cool, sometimes drafty mornings and warm afternoons. Some concern about acoustics was also expressed. The issue of user operations in the buildings is a more pervasive one-there are many instances of improper operations of the buildings, due to a variety of factors. There is a need for clear, well managed user orientation programs, and an explicit transfer of responsibility for certain building operations to the users.
Yong, Chin W
2016-08-22
DL_F Notation is an easy-to-understand, standardized atom typesetting expression for molecular simulations for a range of organic force field (FF) schemes such as OPLSAA, PCFF, and CVFF. It is implemented within DL_FIELD, a software program that facilitates the setting up of molecular FF models for DL_POLY molecular dynamics simulation software. By making use of the Notation, a single core conversion module (the DL_F conversion Engine) implemented within DL_FIELD can be used to analyze a molecular structure and determine the types of atoms for a given FF scheme. Users only need to provide the molecular input structure in a simple xyz format and DL_FIELD can produce the necessary force field file for DL_POLY automatically. In commensurate with the development concept of DL_FIELD, which placed emphasis on robustness and user friendliness, the Engine provides a single-step solution to setup complex FF models. This allows users to switch from one of the above-mentioned FF seamlessly to another while at the same time provides a consistent atom typing that is expressed in a natural chemical sense.
A Risk Management Approach to the "Insider Threat"
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Bishop, Matt; Engle, Sophie; Frincke, Deborah A.; Gates, Carrie; Greitzer, Frank L.; Peisert, Sean; Whalen, Sean
Recent surveys indicate that the financial impact and operating losses due to insider intrusions are increasing. But these studies often disagree on what constitutes an "insider;" indeed, manydefine it only implicitly. In theory, appropriate selection of, and enforcement of, properly specified security policies should prevent legitimate users from abusing their access to computer systems, information, and other resources. However, even if policies could be expressed precisely, the natural mapping between the natural language expression of a security policy, and the expression of that policyin a form that can be implemented on a computer system or network, createsgaps in enforcement. This paper defines "insider" precisely, in termsof thesegaps, andexploresan access-based modelfor analyzing threats that include those usually termed "insider threats." This model enables an organization to order its resources based on thebusinessvalue for that resource andof the information it contains. By identifying those users with access to high-value resources, we obtain an ordered list of users who can cause the greatest amount of damage. Concurrently with this, we examine psychological indicators in order to determine which usersareatthe greatestriskofacting inappropriately. We concludebyexamining how to merge this model with one of forensic logging and auditing.
OSG-GEM: Gene Expression Matrix Construction Using the Open Science Grid.
Poehlman, William L; Rynge, Mats; Branton, Chris; Balamurugan, D; Feltus, Frank A
2016-01-01
High-throughput DNA sequencing technology has revolutionized the study of gene expression while introducing significant computational challenges for biologists. These computational challenges include access to sufficient computer hardware and functional data processing workflows. Both these challenges are addressed with our scalable, open-source Pegasus workflow for processing high-throughput DNA sequence datasets into a gene expression matrix (GEM) using computational resources available to U.S.-based researchers on the Open Science Grid (OSG). We describe the usage of the workflow (OSG-GEM), discuss workflow design, inspect performance data, and assess accuracy in mapping paired-end sequencing reads to a reference genome. A target OSG-GEM user is proficient with the Linux command line and possesses basic bioinformatics experience. The user may run this workflow directly on the OSG or adapt it to novel computing environments.