Validation of a Clinical Global Impression Scale for Aggression (CGI-A) in a sample of 558 psychiatric patients.

PubMed

Huber, Christian G; Lambert, Martin; Naber, Dieter; Schacht, Alexander; Hundemer, Hans-Peter; Wagner, Thomas T; Schimmelmann, Benno G

2008-03-01

Clinical management of aggression depends on the availability of easily administrable measurements allowing reliable evaluation. The present study's aim is to validate a Clinical Global Impression-Severity of Aggression scale (CGI-A). 558 inpatients with psychiatric disorders and an agitated-aggressive syndrome at baseline were continuously assessed over 5 days using CGI-A and the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale-Excited Component (PANSS-EC). Equipercentile linking, correlation analyses and linear regression were applied. Relationship between CGI-A and PANSS-EC total score was found to be linear. On a 5-level CGI-A scale, values of 1 to 5 points were found to correspond to PANSS-EC scores of 12.2, 16.7, 21.3, 25.8, and 30.4, respectively (average increase: 4.6). All findings remained stable when only data from patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders were analyzed. The CGI-A is proposed as a quickly administrable scale for the assessment of patients' aggressiveness.

77 FR 21766 - Access to Confidential Business Information by CGI Federal Inc.

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-04-11

... identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an EPA/DC badge that must be...

Understanding When and How Geoscientists Build Universal Skills and Competencies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Riggs, E. M.

2015-12-01

Geoscience educators and employers understand the pressing needs for the future workforce to be well-prepared in universal skills and competencies. At the undergraduate and graduate level today, most programs do a good job of this preparation, and employers are finding qualified applicants. However, with workforce needs in the geosciences projected to steadily outstrip supply in coming decades, and with many employers having to do substantial additional training on arrival for new hires, research informing curriculum design and skills development needs to be a priority. The projected retirement of seasoned professionals exacerbates this need and underscores the need to better understand the nature and structure of geoscience skills and competencies at the expert level. A workshop on Synthesizing Geoscience Education Research at the inaugural Earth Educator's Rendezvous began work on assembling a community-wide inventory of research progress. Groups began an assessment of our understanding of key skills in the geosciences as well as curricular approaches to maximize teaching effectiveness and recruitment and retention. It is clear that we have made basic progress on understanding spatial and temporal thinking, as well as systems thinking and geologic problem solving. However, most of this research is in early stages, limited to local populations, disciplines or contexts. Curricular innovations in the integration of quantitative, field-specific and computational techniques are also mostly local or limited in scope. Many programs also locally incorporate an explicit non-technical component, e.g. writing, business, and legal content or experience in team-based project-driven work. Despite much good practitioner wisdom, and a small but growing research base on effectiveness and best practices, we have much yet to learn about geoscience education, especially at the graduate and professional level. We remain far from a universal understanding of these skills and competencies, let alone how they should be most effectively taught to all geoscience students. We do understand universal geoscience skills and competencies better than ever before, but as a community we have a long way yet to go to construct and implement a broad strategy for meeting the geoscience workforce needs for the decades ahead.

Addressing Issues of Broadening Participation Highlighted in the Report on the Future of Undergraduate Geoscience Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McDaris, J. R.; Manduca, C. A.; Macdonald, H.; Iverson, E. A. R.

2015-12-01

The final report for the Summit on the Future of Geoscience Education lays out a consensus on issues that must be tackled by the geoscience community collectively if there are to be enough qualified people to fill the large number of expected geoscience job vacancies over the coming decade. Focus areas cited in the report include: Strengthening the connections between two-year colleges and four-year institutions Sharing and making use of successful recruitment and retention practices for students from underrepresented groups Making students aware of high-quality job prospects in the geosciences as well as its societal relevance The InTeGrate STEP Center for the Geosciences, the Supporting and Advancing Geoscience Education at Two-Year Colleges (SAGE 2YC) program, and the Building Strong Geoscience Departments (BSGD) project together have developed a suite of web resources to help faculty and program leaders begin to address these and other issues. These resources address practices that support the whole student, both in the classroom and as a part of the co-curriculum as well as information on geoscience careers, guidance for developing coherent degree programs, practical advice for mentoring and advising, and many others. In addition to developing web resources, InTeGrate has also undertaken an effort to profile successful program practices at a variety of institutions. An analysis of these data shows several common themes (e.g. proactive marketing, community building, research experiences) that align well with the existing literature on what works to support student success. But there are also indications of different approaches and emphases between Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs) and Primarily White Institutions (PWIs) as well as between different kinds of MSIs. Highlighting the different strategies in use can point both MSIs and PWIs to possible alternate solutions to the challenges their students face. InTeGrate - http://serc.carleton.edu/integrate/programs/diversity/index.html SAGE 2YC - http://serc.carleton.edu/sage2yc/index.html BSGD - http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/departments/degree_programs/index.html

SU-E-T-86: A Systematic Method for GammaKnife SRS Fetal Dose Estimation

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

Geneser, S; Paulsson, A; Sneed, P

Purpose: Estimating fetal dose is critical to the decision-making process when radiation treatment is indicated during pregnancy. Fetal doses less than 5cGy confer no measurable non-cancer developmental risks but can produce a threefold increase in developing childhood cancer. In this study, we estimate fetal dose for a patient receiving Gamma Knife stereotactic radiosurgery (GKSRS) treatment and develop a method to estimate dose directly from plan details. Methods: A patient underwent GKSRS on a Perfexion unit for eight brain metastases (two infratentorial and one brainstem). Dose measurements were performed using a CC13, head phantom, and solid water. Superficial doses to themore » thyroid, sternum, and pelvis were measured using MOSFETs during treatment. Because the fetal dose was too low to accurately measure, we obtained measurements proximally to the isocenter, fitted to an exponential function, and extrapolated dose to the fundus of the uterus, uterine midpoint, and pubic synthesis for both the preliminary and delivered plans. Results: The R-squared fit for the delivered doses was 0.995. The estimated fetal doses for the 72 minute preliminary and 138 minute delivered plans range from 0.0014 to 0.028cGy and 0.07 to 0.38cGy, respectively. MOSFET readings during treatment were just above background for the thyroid and negligible for all inferior positions. The method for estimating fetal dose from plan shot information was within 0.2cGy of the measured values at 14cm cranial to the fetal location. Conclusion: Estimated fetal doses for both the preliminary and delivered plan were well below the 5cGy recommended limit. Due to Pefexion shielding, internal dose is primarily governed by attenuation and drops off exponentially. This is the first work that reports fetal dose for a GK Perfexion unit. Although multiple lesions were treated and the duration of treatment was long, the estimated fetal dose remained very low.« less

Profile analysis and prediction of tissue-specific CpG island methylation classes

PubMed Central

2009-01-01

Background The computational prediction of DNA methylation has become an important topic in the recent years due to its role in the epigenetic control of normal and cancer-related processes. While previous prediction approaches focused merely on differences between methylated and unmethylated DNA sequences, recent experimental results have shown the presence of much more complex patterns of methylation across tissues and time in the human genome. These patterns are only partially described by a binary model of DNA methylation. In this work we propose a novel approach, based on profile analysis of tissue-specific methylation that uncovers significant differences in the sequences of CpG islands (CGIs) that predispose them to a tissue- specific methylation pattern. Results We defined CGI methylation profiles that separate not only between constitutively methylated and unmethylated CGIs, but also identify CGIs showing a differential degree of methylation across tissues and cell-types or a lack of methylation exclusively in sperm. These profiles are clearly distinguished by a number of CGI attributes including their evolutionary conservation, their significance, as well as the evolutionary evidence of prior methylation. Additionally, we assess profile functionality with respect to the different compartments of protein coding genes and their possible use in the prediction of DNA methylation. Conclusion Our approach provides new insights into the biological features that determine if a CGI has a functional role in the epigenetic control of gene expression and the features associated with CGI methylation susceptibility. Moreover, we show that the ability to predict CGI methylation is based primarily on the quality of the biological information used and the relationships uncovered between different sources of knowledge. The strategy presented here is able to predict, besides the constitutively methylated and unmethylated classes, two more tissue specific methylation classes conserving the accuracy provided by leading binary methylation classification methods. PMID:19383127

Imprinted genes and transpositions: epigenomic targets for low dose radiation effects. Final report

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

Jirtle, Randy L.

2012-10-11

The overall hypothesis of this grant application is that low dose ionizing radiation (LDIR) elicits adaptive responses in part by causing heritable DNA methylation changes in the epigenome. This novel postulate was tested by determining if the level of DNA methylation at the Agouti viable yellow (A{sup vy}) metastable locus is altered, in a dose-dependent manner, by low dose radiation exposure (<10 cGy) during early gestation. This information is particularly important to ascertain given the increased use of CT scans in disease diagnosis, increased number of people predicted to live and work in space, and the present concern about radiologicalmore » terrorism. We showed for the first time that LDIR significantly increased DNA methylation at the A{sup vy} locus in a sex-specific manner (p=0.004). Average DNA methylation was significantly increased in male offspring exposed to doses between 0.7 cGy and 7.6 cGy with maximum effects at 1.4 cGy and 3.0 cGy (p<0.01). Offspring coat color was concomitantly shifted towards pseudoagouti (p<0.01). Maternal dietary antioxidant supplementation mitigated both the DNA methylation changes and coat color shift in the irradiated offspring (p<0.05). Thus, LDIR exposure during gestation elicits epigenetic alterations that lead to positive adaptive phenotypic changes that are negated with antioxidants, indicating they are mediated in part by oxidative stress. These findings provide evidence that in the isogenic Avy mouse model epigenetic alterations resulting from LDIR play a role in radiation hormesis, bringing into question the assumption that every dose of radiation is harmful. Our findings not only have significant implications concerning the mechanism of hormesis, but they also emphasize the potential importance of this phenomenon in determining human risk at low radiation doses. Since the epigenetic regulation of genes varies markedly between species, the effect of LDIR on other epigenetically labile genes (e.g. imprinted genes) in animals and humans needs to be defined.« less

Research Reproducibility in Geosciences: Current Landscape, Practices and Perspectives

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yan, An

2016-04-01

Reproducibility of research can gauge the validity of its findings. Yet currently we lack understanding of how much of a problem research reproducibility is in geosciences. We developed an online survey on faculty and graduate students in geosciences, and received 136 responses from research institutions and universities in Americas, Asia, Europe and other parts of the world. This survey examined (1) the current state of research reproducibility in geosciences by asking researchers' experiences with unsuccessful replication work, and what obstacles that lead to their replication failures; (2) the current reproducibility practices in community by asking what efforts researchers made to try to reproduce other's work and make their own work reproducible, and what the underlying factors that contribute to irreproducibility are; (3) the perspectives on reproducibility by collecting researcher's thoughts and opinions on this issue. The survey result indicated that nearly 80% of respondents who had ever reproduced a published study had failed at least one time in reproducing. Only one third of the respondents received helpful feedbacks when they contacted the authors of a published study for data, code, or other information. The primary factors that lead to unsuccessful replication attempts are insufficient details of instructions in published literature, and inaccessibility of data, code and tools needed in the study. Our findings suggest a remarkable lack of research reproducibility in geoscience. Changing the incentive mechanism in academia, as well as developing policies and tools that facilitate open data and code sharing are the promising ways for geosciences community to alleviate this reproducibility problem.

EarthCube Activities: Community Engagement Advancing Geoscience Research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kinkade, D.

2015-12-01

Our ability to advance scientific research in order to better understand complex Earth systems, address emerging geoscience problems, and meet societal challenges is increasingly dependent upon the concept of Open Science and Data. Although these terms are relatively new to the world of research, Open Science and Data in this context may be described as transparency in the scientific process. This includes the discoverability, public accessibility and reusability of scientific data, as well as accessibility and transparency of scientific communication (www.openscience.org). Scientists and the US government alike are realizing the critical need for easy discovery and access to multidisciplinary data to advance research in the geosciences. The NSF-supported EarthCube project was created to meet this need. EarthCube is developing a community-driven common cyberinfrastructure for the purpose of accessing, integrating, analyzing, sharing and visualizing all forms of data and related resources through advanced technological and computational capabilities. Engaging the geoscience community in EarthCube's development is crucial to its success, and EarthCube is providing several opportunities for geoscience involvement. This presentation will provide an overview of the activities EarthCube is employing to entrain the community in the development process, from governance development and strategic planning, to technical needs gathering. Particular focus will be given to the collection of science-driven use cases as a means of capturing scientific and technical requirements. Such activities inform the development of key technical and computational components that collectively will form a cyberinfrastructure to meet the research needs of the geoscience community.

Insights on WWW-based geoscience teaching: Climbing the first year learning cliff

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lamberson, Michelle N.; Johnson, Mark; Bevier, Mary Lou; Russell, J. Kelly

1997-06-01

In early 1995, The University of British Columbia Department of Geological Sciences (now Earth and Ocean Sciences) initiated a project that explored the effectiveness of the World Wide Web as a teaching and learning medium. Four decisions made at the onset of the project have guided the department's educational technology plan: (1) over 90% of funding recieved from educational technology grants was committed towards personnel; (2) materials developed are modular in design; (3) a data-base approach was taken to resource development; and (4) a strong commitment to student involvement in courseware development. The project comprised development of a web site for an existing core course: Geology 202, Introduction to Petrology. The web site is a gateway to course information, content, resources, exercises, and several searchable data-bases (images, petrologic definitions, and minerals in thin section). Material was developed on either an IBM or UNIX machine, ported to a UNIX platform, and is accessed using the Netscape browser. The resources consist primarily of HTML files or CGI scripts with associated text, images, sound, digital movies, and animations. Students access the web site from the departmental student computer facility, from home or a computer station in the petrology laboratory. Results of a survey of the Geol 202 students indicate that they found the majority of the resources useful, and the site is being expanded. The Geology 202 project had a "trickle-up" effect throughout the department: prior to this project, there was minimal use of Internet resources in lower-level geology courses. By the end of the 1996-1997 academic year, we anticipate that at least 17 Earth and Ocean Science courses will have a WWW site for one or all of the following uses: (1) presenting basic information; (2) accessing lecture images; (3) providing a jumping-off point for exploring related WWW sites; (4) conducting on-line exercises; and/or (5) providing a communications forum for students and faculty via a Hypernews group. Url http://www.science.ubc.ca/

Time delays in flight simulator visual displays

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Crane, D. F.

1980-01-01

It is pointed out that the effects of delays of less than 100 msec in visual displays on pilot dynamic response and system performance are of particular interest at this time because improvements in the latest computer-generated imagery (CGI) systems are expected to reduce CGI displays delays to this range. Attention is given to data which quantify the effects of display delays in the range of 0-100 msec on system stability and performance, and pilot dynamic response for a particular choice of aircraft dynamics, display, controller, and task. The conventional control system design methods are reviewed, the pilot response data presented, and data for long delays, all suggest lead filter compensation of display delay. Pilot-aircraft system crossover frequency information guides compensation filter specification.

On-line access to geoscience bibliographic citations

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wild, Emily C.

2012-01-01

On-line geoscience bibliographic citations and access points to citations are exponentially increasing as commercial, non-profit, and government agencies worldwide publish materials electronically. On-line bibliographic tools capture cited works, and open access content allows for freely obtained citations and documents. For this newsletter, citations from the numerous journals and books listed in the "Recent Papers" section of the EXPLORE newsletters from 2008-2011 were used to provide freely-accessible web sites to determine the availability of bibliographic information.

Communicating Climate Change: the Problem of Knowing and Doing.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wildcat, D.

2008-12-01

The challenge of global warming and climate change may illustrate better than any recent phenomenon that quite independent of the science associated with our assessment, modeling, mitigation strategies and adaptation to the multiple complex processes that characterize this phenomenon, our greatest challenge resides in creating systems where knowledge can be usefully communicated to the general public. Knowledge transfer will pose significant challenges when addressing a topic that often leaves the ill-informed and non-scientist overwhelmed with pieces of information and paralyzed with a sense that there is nothing to be done to address this global problem. This communication problem is very acute in North American indigenous communities where a first-hand, on-the-ground, experience of climate change is indisputable, but where the charts, graphs and sophisticated models presented by scientists are treated with suspicion and often not explained very well. This presentation will discuss the efforts of the American Indian and Alaska Native Climate Change Working Group to prepare future generations of AI/AN geoscience professionals, educators, and a geoscience literate AI/AN workforce, while insuring that our Indigenous tribal knowledges of land- and sea-scapes, and climates are valued, used and incorporated into our tribal exercise of geoscience education and research. The Working Group's efforts are already suggesting the communication problem for Indigenous communities will best be solved by 'growing' our own culturally competent Indigenous geoscience professionals.

What Opportunities, When?: A Framework for Student Career Development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

MacDonald, H.

2007-12-01

Geoscience faculty and departments have an important role to play in the professional development of their students for careers in the geosciences or other fields. We can promote career development of students at different career stages (e.g., first year students, geoscience majors, and graduate students) and in various ways by 1) providing information about jobs and careers, 2) encouraging exploration of options, 3) providing experiences throughout their program that develop skills, knowledge, and attitudes, and 4) supporting students in their job search. For example, in teaching general education classes, we can provide information about jobs and careers in the geosciences, showing images of specific geoscientists and discussing what they do, providing examples of practical applications of course content, and describing job prospects and potential salaries. For majors, this type of information could be presented by seminar speakers, through career panels, and via alumni newsletters. Exploration of options could include research and/or teaching experiences, internships, informational interviews, and involvement with a campus career services center. Courses throughout the curriculum as well as co-curricular experiences serve to provide experiences that develop skills, knowledge, and attitudes that will be useful for a range of jobs. Departments can support the job search by providing networking opportunities for students and alumni, widely distributing job announcements and encouraging individual students, offering departmental sessions on graduate school, different career options, and /or the job search process, conducting mock interviews and resume review sessions, and fostering connections between students and alumni. In all of this, we need to be supportive of student choices. Overall, faculty can help students make more informed career decisions and develop skills that will be of value in their career through a variety of strategies, work with students as an advisor or mentor to help them explore career options, and collaborate with the career service center on campus.

Development of the Virginia Tech Department of Geosciences MEDL-CMC

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Glesener, G. B.

2016-12-01

In 2015 the Virginia Tech Department of Geosciences took a leading role in increasing the level of support for Geoscience instructors by investing in the development of the Geosciences Modeling and Educational Demonstrations Laboratory Curriculum Materials Center (MEDL-CMC). The MEDL-CMC is an innovative curriculum materials center designed to foster new collaborative teaching and learning environments by providing hands-on physical models combined with education technology for instructors and outreach coordinators. The mission of the MEDL-CMC is to provide advanced curriculum material resources for the purpose of increasing and sustaining high impact instructional capacity in STEM education for both formal and informal learning environments. This presentation describes the development methods being used to implement the MEDL-CMC. Major development methods include: (1) adopting a project management system to support collaborations with stakeholders, (2) using a diversified funding approach to achieve financial sustainability and the ability to evolve with the educational needs of the community, and (3) establishing a broad collection of systems-based physical analog models and data collection tools to support integrated sciences such as the geosciences. Discussion will focus on how these methods are used for achieving organizational capacity in the MEDL-CMC and on their intended role in reducing instructor workload in planning both classroom activities and research grant broader impacts.

Network-Centric Operations Support: Lessons Learned, Status, and Way-Ahead

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-06-01

34 Information Sharing Environment (ISE) Presentation, Enterprise Architecture Conference, 2011 (http://goveaconference.com/Events/2011/Sessions/ Tuesday ...cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?AD=ADA525312) [35] Morris , Michael, et al. Widget and Mobile Technologies a Forcing Function for Acquisition Change: Paradigm Shift

Transitioning from Faculty-Led Lecture to Student-Centered Field Learning Facilitated by Near-Peer Mentors: Preliminary Findings from the GeoFORCE/ STEMFORCE Program.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Berry, M.; Wright, V. D.; Ellins, K. K.; Browder, M. G. J.; Castillo, R.; Kotowski, A. J.; Libarkin, J. C.; Lu, J.; Maredia, N.; Butler, N.

2017-12-01

GeoFORCE Texas, a geology-based outreach program in the Jackson School of Geosciences, offers weeklong summer geology field based courses to secondary students from minority-serving high schools in Texas and the Bahamas. Students transitioning from eighth to ninth grade are recruited into the program and ideally remain in GeoFORCE for four years. The program aims to empower underrepresented students by exposing them to experiences intended to inspire them to pursue geoscience or other STEM careers. Since the program's inception in 2005, GeoFORCE Texas has relied on a mix of classroom lectures delivered by a geoscience faculty member and time in the field. Early research findings from a National Science Foundation-sponsored GeoPaths-IMPACT project are influencing the evolution of field instruction away from the faculty-led lecture model to student-centered learning that may improve students' grasp of key geological concepts. The eleventh and twelfth grade programs are shifting towards this strategy. Each trip is facilitated by a seven-person team comprised of a geoscience graduate student, master teachers, four undergraduate geology students, and preservice teachers. Members of the instructional team reflected the racial, ethnic, and cultural diversity that the geoscience strives to achieve; all are excellent role models for GeoFORCE students. The outcome of the most recent Central Texas twelfth grade trip, which used a student-centered, project-based approach, was especially noteworthy. Each group was given a topic to apply to what they saw in the field, such as fluvial systems, cultural significance, or geohazards, etc., and present in any manner in front of peers and a panel of geoscience experts. Students used the latest presentation technology available to them (e.g. Prezi, iMovies) and sketches and site notes from field stops. The final presentations were clear, informative, and entertaining. It can be concluded that the students were more engaged with the peer-teaching method than in prior years when they read the field manuals. Knowing they had to produce a presentation gave them motivation to focus and absorb information. They successfully took their new geological knowledge and applied existing skillsets that will be useful for college and, hopefully, a future career in geosciences or STEM field.

Dosimetric Evaluation Between Megavoltage Cone-Beam Computed Tomography and Body Mass Index for Intracranial, Thoracic, and Pelvic Localization

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

VanAntwerp, April E.; Raymond, Sarah M., E-mail: raymons9@ccf.org; Addington, Mark C.

2011-10-01

The aim of this study was to evaluate radiation dose for organs at risk (OAR) within the cranium, thorax, and pelvis from megavoltage cone-beam computed tomography (MV-CBCT). Using a clinical treatment planning system, CBCT doses were calculated from 60 patient datasets using 27.4 x 27.4 cm{sup 2} field size and 200{sup o} arc length. The body mass indices (BMIs) for these patients range from 17.2-48.4 kg/m{sup 2}. A total of 60 CBCT plans were created and calculated with heterogeneity corrections, with monitor units (MU) that varied from 8, 4, and 2 MU per plan. The isocenters of these plans weremore » placed at defined anatomical structures. The maximum dose, dose to the isocenter, and mean dose to the selected critical organs were analyzed. The study found that maximum and isocenter doses were weakly associated with BMI, but linearly associated with the total MU. Average maximum/isocenter doses in the cranium were 10.0 ({+-} 0.18)/7.0 ({+-} 0.08) cGy, 5.0 ({+-} 0.09)/3.5 ({+-} 0.05) cGy, and 2.5 ({+-} .04)/1.8 ({+-} 0.05) cGy for 8, 4, and 2 MU, respectively. Similar trends but slightly larger maximum/isocenter doses were found in the thoracic and pelvic regions. For the cranial region, the average mean doses with a total of 8 MU to the eye, lens, and brain were 9.7 ({+-} 0.12) cGy, 9.1 ({+-} 0.16) cGy, and 7.2 ({+-} 0.10) cGy, respectively. For the thoracic region, the average mean doses to the lung, heart, and spinal cord were 6.6 ({+-} 0.05) cGy, 6.9 ({+-} 1.2) cGy, and 4.7 ({+-} 0.8) cGy, respectively. For the pelvic region, the average mean dose to the femoral heads was 6.4 ({+-} 1.1) cGy. The MV-CBCT doses were linearly associated with the total MU but weakly dependent on patients' BMIs. Daily MV-CBCT has a cumulative effect on the total body dose and critical organs, which should be carefully considered for clinical impacts.« less

The Cognitive Assessment Interview (CAI): development and validation of an empirically derived, brief interview-based measure of cognition.

PubMed

Ventura, Joseph; Reise, Steven P; Keefe, Richard S E; Baade, Lyle E; Gold, James M; Green, Michael F; Kern, Robert S; Mesholam-Gately, Raquelle; Nuechterlein, Keith H; Seidman, Larry J; Bilder, Robert M

2010-08-01

Practical, reliable "real world" measures of cognition are needed to supplement neurocognitive performance data to evaluate possible efficacy of new drugs targeting cognitive deficits associated with schizophrenia. Because interview-based measures of cognition offer one possible approach, data from the MATRICS initiative (n=176) were used to examine the psychometric properties of the Schizophrenia Cognition Rating Scale (SCoRS) and the Clinical Global Impression of Cognition in Schizophrenia (CGI-CogS). We used classical test theory methods and item response theory to derive the 10-item Cognitive Assessment Interview (CAI) from the SCoRS and CGI-CogS ("parent instruments"). Sources of information for CAI ratings included the patient and an informant. Validity analyses examined the relationship between the CAI and objective measures of cognitive functioning, intermediate measures of cognition, and functional outcome. The rater's score from the newly derived CAI (10 items) correlate highly (r=.87) with those from the combined set of the SCoRS and CGI-CogS (41 items). Both the patient (r=.82) and the informant (r=.95) data were highly correlated with the rater's score. The CAI was modestly correlated with objectively measured neurocognition (r=-.32), functional capacity (r=-.44), and functional outcome (r=-.32), which was comparable to the parent instruments. The CAI allows for expert judgment in evaluating a patient's cognitive functioning and was modestly correlated with neurocognitive functioning, functional capacity, and functional outcome. The CAI is a brief, repeatable, and potentially valuable tool for rating cognition in schizophrenia patients who are participating in clinical trials. Copyright 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Cognitive Assessment Interview (CAI): Development and Validation of an Empirically Derived, Brief Interview-Based Measure of Cognition

PubMed Central

Ventura, Joseph; Reise, Steven P.; Keefe, Richard S. E.; Baade, Lyle E.; Gold, James M.; Green, Michael F.; Kern, Robert S.; Mesholam-Gately, Raquelle; Nuechterlein, Keith H.; Seidman, Larry J.; Bilder, Robert M.

2011-01-01

Background Practical, reliable “real world” measures of cognition are needed to supplement neurocognitive performance data to evaluate possible efficacy of new drugs targeting cognitive deficits associated with schizophrenia. Because interview-based measures of cognition offer one possible approach, data from the MATRICS initiative (n=176) were used to examine the psychometric properties of the Schizophrenia Cognition Rating Scale (SCoRS) and the Clinical Global Impression of Cognition in Schizophrenia (CGI-CogS). Method We used classical test theory methods and item response theory to derive the 10 item Cognitive Assessment Interview (CAI) from the SCoRS and CGI-Cogs (“parent instruments”). Sources of information for CAI ratings included the patient and an informant. Validity analyses examined the relationship between the CAI and objective measures of cognitive functioning, intermediate measures of cognition, and functional outcome. Results The rater’s score from the newly derived CAI (10-items) correlate highly (r = .87) with those from the combined set of the SCoRS and CGI-CogS (41 items). Both the patient (r= .82) and the informant (r= .95) data were highly correlated with the rater’s score. The CAI was modestly correlated with objectively measured neurocognition (r = −.32), functional capacity (r = −.44), and functional outcome (r = −.32), which was comparable to the parent instruments. Conclusions The CAI allows for expert judgment in evaluating a patient’s cognitive functioning and was modestly correlated with neurocognitive functioning, functional capacity, and functional outcome. The CAI is a brief, repeatable, and potentially valuable tool for rating cognition in schizophrenia patients who are participating in clinical trials. PMID:20542412

A Living Metaphor of Differentiation: A Meta-Ethnography of Cognitively Guided Instruction in the Elementary Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baker, Katherine; Harter, Meghan Evelynne

2015-01-01

This meta-ethnography explores qualitative studies around the Cognitively Guided Instruction (CGI) framework of mathematics and illustrates how CGI epitomizes differentiation. The meta-ethnographic process is used to synthesize CGI as differentiation, specifically within the elementary mathematics classroom. Thomas P. Carpenter is credited as one…

Technical Evaluation for the Determination of CGI Designation for Safety Class Items Incorporated in Hose-in-Hose Transfer Line Assemblies

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

BUCHANAN, J.R.

2000-05-16

The purpose of this technical evaluation is to determine whether the secondary hoses are to be categorized as Commercial Grade Items (CGI) or Engineered Equipment. This determination will identify whether or not use of the CGI Dedication process is appropriate.

Disruption of the Arabidopsis CGI-58 homologue produces Chanarin-Dorfman-like lipodystrophy in plants

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

CGI-58 is the defective gene in the human neutral lipid storage disease called Chanarin-Dorfman syndrome. This disorder causes intracellular lipid droplets to accumulate in nonadipose tissues, such as skin and blood cells. Here, disruption of the homologous CGI-58 gene in Arabidopsis thaliana result...

Successful pregnancy following very high-dose total body irradiation (1575 cGy) and bone marrow transplantation in a woman with acute myeloid leukemia.

PubMed

Wang, W S; Tzeng, C H; Hsieh, R K; Chiou, T J; Liu, J H; Yen, C C; Chen, P M

1998-02-01

A 22-year-old woman had a normal full-term delivery 6 years after a successful allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (BMT) for acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Conditioning therapy consisted of cyclophosphamide (120 mg/kg) and total body irradiation (TBI) to a total of 1575 cGy in seven fractions (225 cGy x 7, at a dose rate of 3.5 cGy/min). Graft-versus-host disease prophylaxis was with methotrexate and cyclosporin A. Grade I acute GVHD developed after BMT but there was no chronic GVHD. She became amenorrhoeic after BMT and serial gonadal testing indicated hypergonadotrophic hypogonadism. She became pregnant and delivered a full-term, healthy baby 6 years after BMT. Successful pregnancy after TBI of more than 1200 cGy is extremely rare. This case, to the best of our knowledge, is the second patient who received a higher dose of TBI (1575 cGy) to have a successful pregnancy. This and previous reports indicate that normal pregnancy is possible after BMT with TBI in excess of 1200 cGy.

Clozapine for Drug-Refractory Irritability in Individuals with Developmental Disability.

PubMed

Wink, Logan K; Badran, Ismail; Pedapati, Ernest V; Sorensen, Rena; Benton, Stacy C; Johnson, Mark C; Wissel, Gregory; Erickson, Craig A

2016-11-01

In this case series, we describe the acute clinical impact and tolerability of rapid titration of clozapine for treatment of refractory irritability in five hospitalized youth with developmental disability. We offer this descriptive report in an effort to expand the evidence base guiding treatment of refractory aggression in this population. Five youth with developmental disability and severe irritability were admitted to a 10-bed psychiatric crisis stabilization unit where they received thorough psychiatric and medical evaluation. Informed consent was obtained in each case, and each patient underwent rapid titration onto clozapine. Clozapine monitoring guidelines were followed for all patients throughout treatment, and clinical severity at baseline and improvement with treatment was measured by use of the Clinical Global Impressions-Severity scale (CGI-S) and the Clinical Global Impressions-Improvement scale (CGI-I). One female and four males diagnosed with developmental disability and at least one other psychiatric diagnosis, mean age of 13.1 ± 2.1 years, and mean CGI-S at baseline of 5.8, each received clozapine treatment by rapid titration. The mean therapeutic total daily dose of clozapine was 380 ± 200 mg. All patients demonstrated acute clinical improvement with the mean final CGI-I of 2.0, or "much improved." These initial results support the potential utility of clozapine rapid titration for treatment of severe refractory irritability in youth with developmental disability. These patients tolerated clozapine treatment in the short term. Future studies are needed to thoroughly evaluate the long-term safety of clozapine treatment in this population.

Sequence Analysis, Kinetic Constants, and Anion Inhibition Profile of the Nacrein-Like Protein (CgiNAP2X1) from the Pacific Oyster Magallana gigas (Ex-Crassostrea gigas).

PubMed

Perfetto, Rosa; Del Prete, Sonia; Vullo, Daniela; Sansone, Giovanni; Barone, Carmela M A; Rossi, Mosè; Supuran, Claudiu T; Capasso, Clemente

2017-08-28

The carbonic anhydrase (CA, EC 4.2.1.1) superfamily of metalloenzymes catalyzes the hydration of carbon dioxide to bicarbonate and protons. The catalytically active form of these enzymes incorporates a metal hydroxide derivative, the formation of which is the rate-determining step of catalytic reaction, being affected by the transfer of a proton from a metal-coordinated water molecule to the environment. Here, we report the cloning, expression, and purification of a particular CA, i.e., nacrein-like protein encoded in the genome of the Pacific oyster Magallana gigas (previously known as Crassostrea gigas ). Furthermore, the amino acid sequence, kinetic constants, and anion inhibition profile of the recombinant enzyme were investigated for the first time. The new protein, CgiNAP2X1, is highly effective as catalyst for the CO₂ hydration reaction, based on the measured kinetic parameters, i.e., k cat = 1.0 × 10⁶ s -1 and k cat / K M = 1.2 × 10⁸ M -1 ·s -1 . CgiNAP2X1 has a putative signal peptide, which probably allows an extracellular localization of the protein. The inhibition data demonstrated that the best anion inhibitors of CgiNAP2X1 were diethyldithiocarbamate, sulfamide, sulfamate, phenylboronic acid and phenylarsonic acid, which showed a micromolar affinity for this enzyme, with K I s in the range of 76-87 μM. These studies may add new information on the physiological role of the molluskan CAs in the biocalcification processes.

Cultivating Research Skills: An interdisciplinary approach in training and supporting energy research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Winkler, H.; Carbajales-Dale, P.; Alschbach, E.

2013-12-01

Geoscience and energy research has essentially separate and diverse tracks and traditions, making the education process labor-intensive and burdensome. Using a combined forces approach to training, a multidisciplinary workshop on information and data sources and research skills was developed and offered through several departments at Stanford University. The popular workshops taught required skills to scientists - giving training on new technologies, access to restricted energy-related scientific and government databases, search strategies for data-driven resources, and visualization and geospatial analytics. Feedback and data suggest these workshops were fundamental as they set the foundation for subsequent learning opportunities for students and faculty. This session looks at the integration of the information workshops within multiple energy and geoscience programs and the importance of formally cultivating research and information skills.

77 FR 24697 - Access to Confidential Business Information by CGI Federal Inc. and Its Identified Subcontractor...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-04-25

... identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an EPA/DC badge that must be...

76 FR 77817 - Access to Confidential Business Information by CGI Federal, Inc. and Subcontractor, Innovate, Inc.

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-12-14

... identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an EPA/DC badge that must be...

Effects of aripiprazole once-monthly on symptoms of schizophrenia in patients switched from oral antipsychotics.

PubMed

Peters-Strickland, Timothy; Zhao, Cathy; Perry, Pamela P; Eramo, Anna; Salzman, Phyllis M; McQuade, Robert D; Johnson, Brian R; Sanchez, Raymond

2016-12-01

To assess the effects of aripiprazole once-monthly 400 mg (AOM 400) on clinical symptoms and global improvement in schizophrenia after switching from an oral antipsychotic. In a multicenter, open-label, mirror-image, naturalistic study in patients with schizophrenia (>1 year, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision [DSM-IV-TR] criteria), changes in efficacy measures were assessed during prospective treatment (6 months) with AOM 400 after switching from standard-of-care oral antipsychotics. During prospective treatment, patients were cross-titrated to oral aripiprazole monotherapy (1-4) weeks followed by open-label AOM 400 (24 weeks). Mean change from baseline of the open-label AOM 400 phase in Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) scores (total, positive and negative subscales) and Clinical Global Impression-Severity (CGI-S) scores; mean CGI-Improvement (CGI-I) score; and proportion of responders (≥30% decrease from baseline in PANSS total score or CGI-I score of 1 [very much improved] or 2 [much improved]) were assessed. PANSS and CGI-S scores improved from baseline (P<0.0001) and CGI-I demonstrated improvement at all time points. By the end of the study, 49.0% of patients were PANSS or CGI-I responders. In a community setting, patients with schizophrenia who were stabilized at baseline and switched to AOM 400 from oral antipsychotics showed clear improvements in clinical symptoms.

Quantitative profiling of CpG island methylation in human stool for colorectal cancer detection.

PubMed

Elliott, Giles O; Johnson, Ian T; Scarll, Jane; Dainty, Jack; Williams, Elizabeth A; Garg, D; Coupe, Amanda; Bradburn, David M; Mathers, John C; Belshaw, Nigel J

2013-01-01

The aims of this study were to investigate the use of quantitative CGI methylation data from stool DNA to classify colon cancer patients and to relate stool CGI methylation levels to those found in corresponding tissue samples. We applied a quantitative methylation-specific PCR assay to determine CGI methylation levels of six genes, previously shown to be aberrantly methylated during colorectal carcinogenesis. Assays were performed on DNA from biopsies of "normal" mucosa and stool samples from 57 patients classified as disease-free, adenoma, or cancer by endoscopy, and in tumour tissue from cancer patients. Additionally, CGI methylation was analysed in stool DNA from an asymptomatic population of individuals covering a broad age range (mean = 47 ± 24 years) CGI methylation levels in stool DNA were significantly higher than in DNA from macroscopically normal mucosa, and a significant correlation between stool and mucosa was observed for ESR1 only. Multivariate statistical analyses using the methylation levels of each CGI in stool DNA as a continuous variable revealed a highly significant (p = 0.003) classification of cancer vs. non-cancer (adenoma + disease-free) patients (sensitivity = 65 %, specificity = 81 %). CGI methylation profiling of stool DNA successfully identified patients with cancer despite the methylation status of CGIs in stool DNA not generally reflecting those in DNA from the colonic mucosa.

Cloning and characterization of a new cold-adapted and thermo-tolerant ι-carrageenase from marine bacterium Flavobacterium sp. YS-80-122.

PubMed

Li, Shangyong; Hao, Jianhua; Sun, Mi

2017-09-01

ι-Carrageenases play a role in marine ι-carrageenan degradation, and their enzymatic hydrolysates are thought to be excellent antioxidants. In this study, we identified a new ι-carrageenase, encoded by cgiF, in psychrophilic bacterium Flavobacterium sp. YS-80-122. The deduced ι-carrageenase, CgiF, belongs to glycoside hydrolase family 82 and shows less than 40% amino acid identity with characterized ι-carrageenases. The activity of recombinant CgiF peaked at 30°C (1,207.8U/mg). Notably, CgiF is a cold-adapted ι-carrageenase, which showed 36.5% and 57% of the maximum activity at 10°C and 15°C, respectively. In addition, it is a thermo-tolerant enzyme that recovered 58.2% of its initial activity after heat shock. Furthermore, although the activity of CgiF was enhanced by NaCl, the enzyme is active in absence of NaCl. This study also shows that CgiF is an endo-type ι-carrageenase that hydrolyzes β-1,4-linkages of ι-carrageenan, yielding neo-ι-carratetraose as the main product. Its cold-adaptation, thermo-tolerance, NaCl independence and high neo-ι-carratetraose yield make CgiF an excellent candidate for industrial applications in production of ι-carrageen oligosaccharides from seaweed polysaccharides. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Facilitating Geoscience Education in Higher-Education Institutes Worldwide With GeoBrain -- An Online Learning and Research Environment for Classroom Innovations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deng, M.; di, L.

2006-12-01

Higher education in geosciences has imminent goals to prepare students with modern geoscience knowledge and skills to meet the increased demand on trained professionals for working on the big challenges faced by geoscience disciplines, such as the global environmental change, world energy supplies, sustainable development, etc. In order to reach the goal, the geoscience education in post-secondary institutes worldwide has to attract and retain enough students and to train students with knowledge and skills needed by the society. The classroom innovations that can encourage and support student investigations and research activities are key motivation mechanisms that help to reach the goal. This presentation describes the use of GeoBrain, an innovative geospatial knowledge system, as a powerful educating tool for motivating and facilitating innovative undergraduate and graduate teaching and research in geosciences. Developed in a NASA funded project, the GeoBrain system has adopted and implemented the latest Web services and knowledge management technologies for providing innovative methods in publishing, accessing, visualizing, and analyzing geospatial data and in building/sharing geoscience knowledge. It provides a data-rich online learning and research environment enabled by wealthy data and information available at NASA Earth Observing System (EOS) Data and Information System (EOSDIS). Students, faculty members, and researchers from institutes worldwide can easily access, analyze, and model with the huge amount of NASA EOS data just like they possess such vast resources locally at their desktops. The online environment provided by GeoBrain has brought significant positive changes to geosciences education in higher-education institutes because of its new concepts and technologies, motivation mechanisms, free exploration resources, and advanced geo- processing capabilities. With the system, the used-to-be very challenging or even impossible teaching tasks has become much easier or practical. For an instance, dynamic classroom demonstration and training for students to deal with data-intensive global climate and environment change issues in real-world applications through the system has become a very pleasant experience instead of the struggling efforts in the past. With GeoBrain, each student can be easily trained to handle multi-terabytes of EOS and other geospatial data in simulation and modeling for solving global-scale problems catering his own interests with a simple Internet connected computer. Preliminary classroom use of GeoBrain in multiple universities has demonstrated that the system is very useful for facilitating the transition of both undergraduate and graduate students from learners to investigators. It has also shown the system can improve teaching effectiveness, refine student's learning habit, and inspire students' interests in pursuing geoscience as their career. As an on-going project, GeoBrain has not reached its maturity. Surely it will improve its functionalities and make great advances in the above areas continuously.

Community Based Informatics: Geographical Information Systems, Remote Sensing and Ontology collaboration - A technical hands-on approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Branch, B. D.; Raskin, R. G.; Rock, B.; Gagnon, M.; Lecompte, M. A.; Hayden, L. B.

2009-12-01

With the nation challenged to comply with Executive Order 12906 and its needs to augment the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) pipeline, applied focus on geosciences pipelines issue may be at risk. The Geosciences pipeline may require intentional K-12 standard course of study consideration in the form of project based, science based and evidenced based learning. Thus, the K-12 to geosciences to informatics pipeline may benefit from an earth science experience that utilizes a community based “learning by doing” approach. Terms such as Community GIS, Community Remotes Sensing, and Community Based Ontology development are termed Community Informatics. Here, approaches of interdisciplinary work to promote and earth science literacy are affordable, consisting of low cost equipment that renders GIS/remote sensing data processing skills necessary in the workforce. Hence, informal community ontology development may evolve or mature from a local community towards formal scientific community collaboration. Such consideration may become a means to engage educational policy towards earth science paradigms and needs, specifically linking synergy among Math, Computer Science, and Earth Science disciplines.

Information Technology Research and Education at NSF

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wink, Donald J.

2000-11-01

The NSF has been a leader in the development of new information technologies, including support for work in education and technology. Often, opportunities for educators are found in larger efforts. This is the case for the Information Technology Research (ITR) program. It has now been extended to education areas, as announced in NSF Publication 00-126. Links to the program announcement in multiple formats are found at http://www.nsf.gov/cgi-bin/getpub?nsf00126.

Disruption of the human CGI-58 homologue in Arabidopsis results in lipid droplet accumulation in the cytosol of plant cells

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

CGI-58 has been identified as the causative gene in the human neutral lipid storage disease called Chanarin-Dorfman Syndrome. This disorder results in accumulation of intracellular lipid droplets in non-adipose tissues. Here we show that disruption of the homologous CGI-58 gene in Arabidopsis thal...

Communicating Geosciences with Policy-makers: a Grand Challenge for Academia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harrison, W. J.; Walls, M. R.; Boland, M. A.

2015-12-01

Geoscientists interested in the broader societal impacts of their research can make a meaningful contribution to policy making in our changing world. Nevertheless, policy and public decision making are the least frequently cited Broader Impacts in proposals and funded projects within NSF's Geosciences Directorate. Academic institutions can play a lead role by introducing this societal dimension of our profession to beginning students, and by enabling interdisciplinary research and promoting communication pathways for experienced career geoscientists. Within the academic environment, the public interface of the geosciences can be presented through curriculum content and creative programs. These include undergraduate minors in economics or public policy designed for scientists and engineers, and internships with policy makers. Federal research institutions and other organizations provide valuable policy-relevant experiences for students. Academic institutions have the key freedom of mission to tackle interdisciplinary research challenges at the interface of geoscience and policy. They develop long-standing relationships with research partners, including national laboratories and state geological surveys, whose work may support policy development and analysis at local, state, regional, and national levels. CSM's Payne Institute for Earth Resources awards mini-grants for teams of researchers to develop collaborative research efforts between engineering/science and policy researchers. Current work in the areas of nuclear generation and the costs of climate policy and on policy alternatives for capturing fugitive methane emissions are examples of work at the interface between the geosciences and public policy. With academic engagement, geoscientists can steward their intellectual output when non-scientists translate geoscience information and concepts into action through public policies.

"YouTube Geology" - Increasing Geoscience Visibility Through Short Films

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Piispa, E. J.; Lerner, G. A.

2016-12-01

Researchers have the responsibility to communicate their science to a broad audience: scientists, non-scientist, young and old. Effective ways of reaching these groups include using pathways that genuinely spark interest in the target audience. Communication techniques should evolve as the means of communication evolve. Here we talk about our experiences using short films to increase geoscience visibility and appreciation. At a time when brevity and quick engagement are vital to capturing people's attention, creating videos that fit popular formats is an effective way to draw and hold people's interest, and spreading these videos on popular sites is a good way to reach a non-academic audience. Creating videos that are fun, exciting, and catchy in order to initially increase awareness and interest is equally important as the educational content. The visual medium can also be powerful way to make complex scientific concepts seem less intimidating. We have experimented with this medium of geoscience communication by creating a number of short films that target a variety of audiences: short summaries of research topics, mock movie trailers, course advertisements, fieldwork highlight reels and geology lessons for elementary school children. Our two rules of thumb are to put the audience first and use style as a vital element. This allows for the creation of films that are more engaging and often less serious than standard informational (and longer-format) videos. Science does not need to be dry and dull - it can be humorous and entertaining while remaining highly accurate. Doing these short films has changed our own mindset as well - thinking about what to film while doing research helps keep the practical applications of our research in focus. We see a great deal of potential for collaboration between geoscientists and amateur or professional filmmakers creating hip and edgy videos that further raise awareness and interest. People like movies. We like movies. We like Geoscience. People should also like geoscience. We can boost the visibility and attention that geoscience receives by making interesting, informative and attention grabbing short films.

The impact of histology and delivered dose on local control of spinal metastases treated with stereotactic radiosurgery.

PubMed

Yamada, Yoshiya; Katsoulakis, Evangelia; Laufer, Ilya; Lovelock, Michael; Barzilai, Ori; McLaughlin, Lily A; Zhang, Zhigang; Schmitt, Adam M; Higginson, Daniel S; Lis, Eric; Zelefsky, Michael J; Mechalakos, James; Bilsky, Mark H

2017-01-01

OBJECTIVE An analysis of factors contributing to durable radiographic control of spinal metastases was undertaken, drawing from a large single-institution database in an attempt to elucidate indications and dose requirements for successful treatment. METHODS All patients treated at a single institution with stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) of the spine as first-line therapy were assessed for local progression of the treated site, defined as radiographic enlargement of the treated tumor and/or biopsy-proven evidence of active tumor cells. All patients were followed with CT, PET, or MR imaging every 3-6 months until death. Treatment decisions were made by a multidisciplinary team of radiation oncologists, neurosurgeons, and neuroradiologists. Target volumes were defined according to the international consensus guidelines and were reviewed in a multidisciplinary conference. Image-guided techniques and intensity modulation were used for every case. The tumor's histological type, gross tumor volume (GTV), dose that covers 95% of the GTV (GTV D95), percentage of GTV covered by 95% of the prescribed dose (GTV V95), planning target volume (PTV), dose that covers 95% of the PTV (PTV D95), and percentage of PTV covered by 95% of the prescribed dose (PTV V95) were analyzed for significance in relation to local control, based on time to local progression. RESULTS A total of 811 lesions were treated in 657 patients between 2003 and 2015 at a single institution. The mean follow-up and overall survival for the entire cohort was 26.9 months (range 2-141 months). A total of 28 lesions progressed and the mean time to failure was 26 months (range 9.7-57 months). The median prescribed dose was 2400 cGy (range 1600-2600 cGy). Both GTV D95 and PTV D95 were highly significantly associated with local failure in univariate analysis, but GTV and PTV and histological type did not reach statistical significance. The median GTV D95 for the cohort equal to or above the GTV D95 1830 cGy cut point (high dose) was 2356 cGy, and it was 1709 cGy for the cohort of patients who received less than 1830 cGy (low dose). In terms of PTV D95, the median dose for those equal to or above the cut point of 1740 cGy (high dose) was 2233 cGy, versus 1644 cGy for those lesions below the PTV D95 cut point of 1740 cGy (low dose). CONCLUSIONS High-dose single-session SRS provides durable long-term control, regardless of the histological findings or tumor size. In this analysis, the only significant factors predictive of local control were related to the actual dose of radiation given. Although the target volumes were well treated with the intended dose, those lesions irradiated to higher doses (median GTV D95 2356 cGy, minimum 1830 cGy) had a significantly higher probability of durable local control than those treated with lower doses (median PTV D95 2232 cGy, minimum of 1740 cGy) (p < 0.001). Patients in the high-dose cohort had a 2% cumulative rate of local failure. Histological findings were not associated with local failure, suggesting that radioresistant histological types benefit in particular from radiosurgery. For patients with a favorable prognosis, a higher dose of SRS is important for long-term outcomes.

The impact of histology and delivered dose on local control of spinal metastases treated with stereotactic radiosurgery

PubMed Central

Yamada, Yoshiya; Katsoulakis, Evangelia; Laufer, Ilya; Lovelock, Michael; Barzilai, Ori; McLaughlin, Lily A.; Zhang, Zhigang; Schmitt, Adam M.; Higginson, Daniel S.; Lis, Eric; Zelefsky, Michael J.; Mechalakos, James; Bilsky, Mark H.

2017-01-01

Objective An analysis of factors contributing to durable radiographic control of spinal metastases was undertaken, drawing from a large single-institution database in an attempt to elucidate indications and dose requirements for successful treatment. Methods All patients treated at a single institution with stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) of the spine as first-line therapy were assessed for local progression of the treated site, defined as radiographic enlargement of the treated tumor and/or biopsy-proven evidence of active tumor cells. All patients were followed with CT, PET, or MR imaging every 3–6 months until death. Treatment decisions were made by a multidisciplinary team of radiation oncologists, neurosurgeons, and neuroradiologists. Target volumes were defined according to the international consensus guidelines and were reviewed in a multidisciplinary conference. Image-guided techniques and intensity modulation were used for every case. The tumor’s histological type, gross tumor volume (GTV), dose that covers 95% of the GTV (GTV D95), percentage of GTV covered by 95% of the prescribed dose (GTV V95), planning target volume (PTV), dose that covers 95% of the PTV (PTV D95), and percentage of PTV covered by 95% of the prescribed dose (PTV V95) were analyzed for significance in relation to local control, based on time to local progression. Results A total of 811 lesions were treated in 657 patients between 2003 and 2015 at a single institution. The mean follow-up and overall survival for the entire cohort was 26.9 months (range 2–141 months). A total of 28 lesions progressed and the mean time to failure was 26 months (range 9.7–57 months). The median prescribed dose was 2400 cGy (range 1600–2600 cGy). Both GTV D95 and PTV D95 were highly significantly associated with local failure in univariate analysis, but GTV and PTV and histological type did not reach statistical significance. The median GTV D95 for the cohort equal to or above the GTV D95 1830 cGy cut point (high dose) was 2356 cGy, and it was 1709 cGy for the cohort of patients who received less than 1830 cGy (low dose). In terms of PTV D95, the median dose for those equal to or above the cut point of 1740 cGy (high dose) was 2233 cGy, versus 1644 cGy for those lesions below the PTV D95 cut point of 1740 cGy (low dose). Conclusions High-dose single-session SRS provides durable long-term control, regardless of the histological findings or tumor size. In this analysis, the only significant factors predictive of local control were related to the actual dose of radiation given. Although the target volumes were well treated with the intended dose, those lesions irradiated to higher doses (median GTV D95 2356 cGy, minimum 1830 cGy) had a significantly higher probability of durable local control than those treated with lower doses (median PTV D95 2232 cGy, minimum of 1740 cGy) (p < 0.001). Patients in the high-dose cohort had a 2% cumulative rate of local failure. Histological findings were not associated with local failure, suggesting that radioresistant histological types benefit in particular from radiosurgery. For patients with a favorable prognosis, a higher dose of SRS is important for long-term outcomes. PMID:28041329

Incidental Testicular Irradiation From Prostate IMRT: It All Adds Up

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

King, Christopher R., E-mail: crking@stanford.ed; Maxim, Peter G.; Hsu, Annie

Purpose: To identify the technical aspects of image-guided intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) for localized prostate cancer that could result in a clinically meaningful incidental dose to the testes. Methods and Materials: We examined three sources that contribute incidental dose to the testes, namely, from internal photon scattering from IMRT small field and large pelvic nodal fields with 6 or 15 MV, from neutrons when >10-MV photons are used, and from daily image-guided fiducial-based portal imaging. Using clinical data from 10 patients who received IMRT for prostate cancer, and thermo-luminescent dosimeter measurements in phantom, we estimated the dose to the testesmore » from each of these sources. Results: A mean testicular dose of 172 and 220 cGy results from internal photon scatter for pelvic nodal fields and 68 and 93 cGy for prostate-only fields, for 6- and 15-MV energies, respectively. For 15-MV photon energies, the mean testicular dose from neutrons is 60 cGy for pelvic fields and 31 cGy for prostate-only fields. From daily portal MV image guidance, the testes-in-field mean dose is 350 cGy, whereas the testes-out-of-field scatter dose is 16 cGy. Dosimetric comparisons between IMRT using 6-MV and 15-MV photon energies are not significantly different. Worst-case scenarios can potentially deliver cumulative incidental mean testicular doses of 630 cGy, whereas best-case scenarios can deliver only 84 cGy. Conclusions: Incidental dose to the testes from prostate IMRT can be minimized by opting to restrict the use of elective pelvic nodal fields, by choosing photon energies <10 MV, and by using the smallest port sizes necessary for daily image guidance.« less

Effect of OROS methylphenidate on encopresis in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

PubMed

Yılmaz, Savaş; Bilgiç, Ayhan; Hergüner, Sabri

2014-04-01

Although encopresis shows a high rate of comorbidity in patients with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), the etiologic origin of this relationship and the effect of ADHD drugs on encopresis are unclear. In this chart review, we explored the effect of OROS long-acting methylphenidate (MPH) treatment on encopresis in children with ADHD. We also evaluated the relationship between the clinical variables of ADHD and encopresis. The sample consisted of 21 children and adolescents (20 boys and 1 girl) with encopresis and coexisting ADHD 7-15 years of age. Their clinical characteristics and baseline (visit 1) and end of the second months' (visit 2) Conners' Parent Rating Scale (CPRS) subscores were recorded. Retrospective clinician determinations were made using the Clinical Global Impressions-Severity subscale (CGI-S) for encopresis severity and the Clinical Global Impressions-Improvement subscale (CGI-I) for encopresis response. According to the CGI-I, 14 subjects (71.4 %) showed much or very much improvement in their encopresis at the second visit. All of the CPRS scores showed a significant reduction during the second visit. No association was found between the CGI-I score and the changes in any of the CPRS scores. Baseline oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) and conduct disorder (CD) scores were correlated with the CGI-S score; however, no association was found between core ADHD symptom severity and the CGI-S score. With regard to the encopresis outcome, the baseline CD score was negatively correlated with the CGI-I score, and the baseline ODD score was prone to show a negative correlation with the CGI-I score. These results suggest that coexisting behavioral problems may be a vulnerability factor based on the severity of encopresis, and that MPH treatment may have a positive effect on encopresis in children and adolescents with ADHD.

What does the MADRS mean? Equipercentile linking with the CGI using a company database of mirtazapine studies.

PubMed

Leucht, Stefan; Fennema, Hein; Engel, Rolf R; Kaspers-Janssen, Marion; Lepping, Peter; Szegedi, Armin

2017-03-01

Little is known about the clinical relevance of the Montgomery Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) total scores. It is unclear how total scores translate into clinical severity, or how commonly used measures for response (reduction from baseline of ≥50% in the total score) translate into clinical relevance. Moreover, MADRS based definitions of remission vary. We therefore compared: a/ the MADRS total score with the Clinical Global Impression - Severity Score (CGI-S) b/ the percentage and absolute change in the MADRS total scores with Clinical Global Impression - Improvement (CGI-I); c/ the absolute and percentage change in the MADRS total scores with CGI-S absolute change. The method used was equipercentile linking of MADRS and CGI ratings from 22 drug trials in patients with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) (n=3288). Our results confirm the validity of the commonly used measures for response in MDD trials: a CGI-I score of 2 ('much improved') corresponded to a percentage MADRS reduction from baseline of 48-57%, and a CGI-I score of 1 ('very much improved') to a reduction of 80-84%. If a state of almost complete absence of symptoms were required for a definition of remission, a MADRS total score would be <8, because such scores corresponded to a CGI-S score of 2 ('borderline mentally ill'). Although our analysis is based on a large number of patients, the original trials were not specifically designed to examine our research question. The results might contribute to a better understanding and improved interpretation of clinical trial results in MDD. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Relationship between the clinical global impression of severity for schizoaffective disorder scale and established mood scales for mania and depression.

PubMed

Turkoz, Ibrahim; Fu, Dong-Jing; Bossie, Cynthia A; Sheehan, John J; Alphs, Larry

2013-08-15

This analysis explored the relationship between ratings on HAM-D-17 or YMRS and those on the depressive or manic subscale of CGI-S for schizoaffective disorder (CGI-S-SCA). This post hoc analysis used the database (N=614) from two 6-week, randomized, placebo-controlled studies of paliperidone ER versus placebo in symptomatic subjects with schizoaffective disorder assessed using HAM-D-17, YMRS, and CGI-S-SCA scales. Parametric and nonparametric regression models explored the relationships between ratings on YMRS and HAM-D-17 and on depressive and manic domains of the CGI-S-SCA from baseline to the 6-week end point. A clinically meaningful improvement was defined as a change of 1 point in the CGI-S-SCA score. No adjustment was made for multiplicity. Multiple linear regression models suggested that a 1-point change in the depressive domain of CGI-S-SCA corresponded to an average 3.6-point (SE=0.2) change in HAM-D-17 score. Similarly, a 1-point change in the manic domain of CGI-S-SCA corresponded to an average 5.8-point (SE=0.2) change in YMRS score. Results were confirmed using local and cumulative logistic regression models in addition to equipercentile linking. Lack of subjects scoring over the complete range of possible scores may limit broad application of the analyses. Clinically meaningful score changes in depressive and manic domains of CGI-S-SCA corresponded to approximately 4- and 6-point score changes on HAM-D-17 and YMRS, respectively, in symptomatic subjects with schizoaffective disorder. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

SU-F-T-17: A Feasibility Study for the Transit Dosimetry with a Glass Dosimeter in Brachytherapy

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

Moon, S; Yoon, M; Chung, W

Purpose: Confirming the dose delivered to a patient is important to make sure the treatment quality and safety of the radiotherapy. Measuring a transit dose of the patient during the radiotherapy could be an interesting way to confirm the patient dose. In this study, we evaluated the feasibility of the transit dosimetry with a glass dosimeter in brachytherapy. Methods: We made a phantom that inserted the glass dosimeters and placed under patient lying on a couch for cervix cancer brachytherapy. The 18 glass dosimeters were placed in the phantom arranged 6 per row. A point putting 1cm vertically from themore » source was prescribed as 500.00 cGy. Solid phantoms of 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 cm were placed between the source and the glass dosimeter. The transit dose was measured each thickness using the glass dosimeters and compared with a treatment planning system (TPS). Results: When the transit dose was smaller than 10 cGy, the average of the differences between measured values and calculated values by TPS was 0.50 cGy and the standard deviation was 0.69 cGy. If the transit dose was smaller than 100 cGy, the average of the error was 1.67 ± 4.01 cGy. The error to a point near the prescription point was −14.02 cGy per 500.00 cGy of the prescription dose. Conclusion: The distances from the sources to skin of the patient generally are within 10 cm for cervix cancer cases in brachytherapy. The results of this preliminary study showed the probability of the glass dosimeter as the transit dosimeter in brachytherapy.« less

The Public Acceptance of Biofuels and Bioethanol from Straw- how does this affect Geoscience

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jäger, Alexander; Ortner, Tina; Kahr, Heike

2015-04-01

The Public Acceptance of Biofuels and Bioethanol from Straw- how does this affect Geoscience The successful use of bioethanol as a fuel requires its widespread acceptance by consumers. Due to the planned introduction of a 10 per cent proportion of bioethanol in petrol in Austria, the University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria carried out a representative opinion poll to collect information on the population's acceptance of biofuels. Based on this survey, interviews with important stakeholders were held to discuss the results and collect recommendations on how to increase the information level and acceptance. The results indicate that there is a lack of interest and information about biofuels, especially among young people and women. First generation bioethanol is strongly associated with the waste of food resources, but the acceptance of the second generation, produced from agricultural remnants like straw from wheat or corn, is considerably higher. The interviewees see more transparent, objective and less technical information about biofuels as an essential way to raise the information level and acceptance rate. As the production of bioethanol from straw is now economically feasible, there is one major scientific question to answer: In which way does the withdrawal of straw from the fields affect the formation of humus and, therefore, the quality of the soil? An interdisciplinary approach of researchers in the fields of bioethanol production, geoscience and agriculture in combination with political decision makers are required to make the technologies of renewable bioenergy acceptable to the population.

Sandia National Laboratories: Locations: Kauai Test Facility

Science.gov Websites

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Geosciences Information Network (GIN): A modular, distributed, interoperable data network for the geosciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Allison, M.; Gundersen, L. C.; Richard, S. M.; Dickinson, T. L.

2008-12-01

A coalition of the state geological surveys (AASG), the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), and partners will receive NSF funding over 3 years under the INTEROP solicitation to start building the Geoscience Information Network (www.geoinformatics.info/gin) a distributed, interoperable data network. The GIN project will develop standardized services to link existing and in-progress components using a few standards and protocols, and work with data providers to implement these services. The key components of this network are 1) catalog system(s) for data discovery; 2) service definitions for interfaces for searching catalogs and accessing resources; 3) shared interchange formats to encode information for transmission (e.g. various XML markup languages); 4) data providers that publish information using standardized services defined by the network; and 5) client applications adapted to use information resources provided by the network. The GIN will integrate and use catalog resources that currently exist or are in development. We are working with the USGS National Geologic Map Database's existing map catalog, with the USGS National Geological and Geophysical Data Preservation Program, which is developing a metadata catalog (National Digital Catalog) for geoscience information resource discovery, and with the GEON catalog. Existing interchange formats will be used, such as GeoSciML, ChemML, and Open Geospatial Consortium sensor, observation and measurement MLs. Client application development will be fostered by collaboration with industry and academic partners. The GIN project will focus on the remaining aspects of the system -- service definitions and assistance to data providers to implement the services and bring content online - and on system integration of the modules. Initial formal collaborators include the OneGeology-Europe consortium of 27 nations that is building a comparable network under the EU INSPIRE initiative, GEON, Earthchem, and GIS software company ESRI. OneGeology-Europe and GIN have agreed to integrate their networks, effectively adopting global standards among geological surveys that are available across the entire field. ESRI is creating a Geology Data Model for ArcGIS software to be compatible with GIN, and other companies are expressing interest in adapting their services, applications, and clients to take advantage of the large data resources planned to become available through GIN.

GET21: Geoinformatics Training and Education for the 21st Century Geoscience Workforce

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baru, C.; Allison, L.; Fox, P.; Keane, C.; Keller, R.; Richard, S.

2012-04-01

The integration of advanced information technologies (referred to as cyberinfrastructure) into scientific research and education creates a synergistic situation. On the one hand, science begins to move at the speed of information technology, with science applications having to move rapidly to keep apace with the latest innovations in hardware and software. On the other hand, information technology moves at the pace of science, requiring rapid prototyping and rapid development of software and systems to serve the immediate needs of the application. The 21st century geoscience workforce must be adept at both sides of this equation to be able to make the best use of the available cyber-tools for their science and education endeavors. To reach different segments of the broad geosciences community, an education program in geoinformatics must be multi-faceted, ranging from areas dealing with modeling, computational science, and high performance computing, to those dealing with data collection, data science, and data-intensive computing. Based on our experience in geoinformatics and data science education, we propose a multi-pronged approach with a number of different components, including summer institutes typically aimed at graduate students, postdocs and researchers; graduate and undergraduate curriculum development in geoinformatics; development of online course materials to facilitate asynchronous learning, especially for geoscience professionals in the field; provision of internship at geoinformatics-related facilities for graduate students, so that they can observe and participate in geoinformatics "in action"; creation of online communities and networks to facilitate planned as well as serendipitous collaborations and for linking users with experts in the different areas of geoscience and geoinformatics. We will describe some of our experiences and the lessons learned over the years from the Cyberinfrastructure Summer Institute for Geoscientists (CSIG), which is a 1-week institute that has been held each summer (August) at the San Diego Supercomputer Center, University of California, San Diego, since 2005. We will also discuss these opportunities for GET21 and geoinformatics education in the context of the newly launched EarthCube initiative at the US National Science Foundation.

SU-F-T-448: Use of Mixed Photon Energy Beam in Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy (VMAT) Treatment Plan for Prostate Cancer

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

Manigandan, D; Kumar, M; Mohandas, P

Purpose: To study the impact of different photon beam combination during VMAT planning and treatment delivery. Methods: Five prostate patients with no nodal involvement were chosen for the study and only prostate was considered as target (7920cGy/44fractions). In each case, three different VMAT plans were generated with two arcs (200°–160°&160°–200°). First plan used only 6MV in both arcs (6X-6X) and second utilized 6MV&15MV (6X-15X), whereas third one used 15MV&15MV (15X-15X). For consistency, all the plans were generated by the same planner using Monaco− treatment planning system (V5.1) for Elekta Synergy− linear accelerator with 1cm leaf-width. For plan comparison, target meanmore » dose, conformity index (CI)=Planning target volume (PTV) covered by 95% of prescription dose/PTV were analyzed. Mean doses of bladder, rectum, left femur and right femur were analyzed. Integral dose (liter-Gray) to normal tissue (patient volume minus PTV), total monitor unit (MU) required to deliver a plan and gamma pass rate for each plan was analyzed. Results: The CI for PTV was 0.9937±0.0037, 0.9917±0.0033, and 0.9897±0.0048 for 6X-6X, 6X-15X and 15X-15X, respectively. Mean dose to target slightly increases with the decrease of energy. Mean doses to bladder were 3546.23±692.13cGy, 3487.43±715.53cGy and 3504.40±683.1cGy for 6X-6X, 6X-15X and 15X-15X, respectively. Mean doses to rectum were 4294.60±309.5cGy, 4277.07±279.93cGy and 4290.77±379.07cGy. Mean doses to left femur were 2737.13±545.93cGy, 2668.67±407.12cGy and 2416.77±300.73cGy and mean doses to the right femur were 2682.70±460.81cGy, 2722.58±541.92cGy and 2598.57±481.83cGy. Higher Integral doses to normal tissue observed for 6X-6X (163.06±24.6 Litre-Gray) followed by 6X-15X (154.35±24.74 Litre-Gray) and 15X-15X (145.84±26.03 Litre-Gray). Average MU required to deliver one fraction was 680.75±72.09, 634.81±95.07 and 605.06±114.65. Gamma pass rates were 99.83±0.21, 99.53±0.27 and 99.2±0.20. Conclusion: 6X-15X VMAT plan offer dosimetric advantage compared to 6X-6X in terms of lesser MU and integral dose without significant compromise in plan quality, where as in 15X-15X, neutron contamination risk is relatively higher.« less

Educating the Next Generation of Geoscientists: Strategies for Formal and Informal Settings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Burrell, S.

2013-12-01

ENGAGE, Educating the Next Generation of Geoscientists, is an effort funded by the National Science Foundation to provide academic opportunities for members of underrepresented groups to learn geology in formal and informal settings through collaboration with other universities and science organizations. The program design tests the hypothesis that developing a culture of on-going dialogue around science issues through special guest lectures and workshops, creating opportunities for mentorship through informal lunches, incorporating experiential learning in the field into the geoscience curriculum in lower division courses, partnership-building through the provision of paid summer internships and research opportunities, enabling students to participate in professional conferences, and engaging family members in science education through family science nights and special presentations, will remove the academic, social and economic obstacles that have traditionally hindered members of underrepresented groups from participation in the geosciences and will result in an increase in geoscience literacy and enrollment. Student feedback and anecdotal evidence indicate an increased interest in geology as a course of study and increased awareness of the relevance of geology everyday life. Preliminary statistics from two years of program implementation indicate increased student comprehension of Earth science concepts and ability to use data to identify trends in the natural environment.

Calculating Clinically Significant Change: Applications of the Clinical Global Impressions (CGI) Scale to Evaluate Client Outcomes in Private Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kelly, Peter James

2010-01-01

The Clinical Global Impressions (CGI) scale is a therapist-rated measure of client outcome that has been widely used within the research literature. The current study aimed to develop reliable and clinically significant change indices for the CGI, and to demonstrate its application in private psychological practice. Following the guidelines…

The simple neuroendocrine-immune regulatory network in oyster Crassostrea gigas mediates complex functions.

PubMed

Liu, Zhaoqun; Wang, Lingling; Zhou, Zhi; Sun, Ying; Wang, Mengqiang; Wang, Hao; Hou, Zhanhui; Gao, Dahai; Gao, Qiang; Song, Linsheng

2016-05-19

The neuroendocrine-immune (NEI) regulatory network is a complex system, which plays an indispensable role in the immunity of the host. In the present study, the bioinformatical analysis of the transcriptomic data from oyster Crassostrea gigas and further biological validation revealed that oyster TNF (CgTNF-1 CGI_10018786) could activate the transcription factors NF-κB and HSF (heat shock transcription factor) through MAPK signaling pathway, and then regulate apoptosis, redox reaction, neuro-regulation and protein folding in oyster haemocytes. The activated immune cells then released neurotransmitters including acetylcholine, norepinephrine and [Met(5)]-enkephalin to regulate the immune response by arising the expression of three TNF (CGI_10005109, CGI_10005110 and CGI_10006440) and translocating two NF-κB (Cgp65, CGI_10018142 and CgRel, CGI_10021567) between the cytoplasm and nuclei of haemocytes. Neurotransmitters exhibited the immunomodulation effects by influencing apoptosis and phagocytosis of oyster haemocytes. Acetylcholine and norepinephrine could down-regulate the immune response, while [Met(5)]-enkephalin up-regulate the immune response. These results suggested that the simple neuroendocrine-immune regulatory network in oyster might be activated by oyster TNF and then regulate the immune response by virtue of neurotransmitters, cytokines and transcription factors.

The simple neuroendocrine-immune regulatory network in oyster Crassostrea gigas mediates complex functions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Zhaoqun; Wang, Lingling; Zhou, Zhi; Sun, Ying; Wang, Mengqiang; Wang, Hao; Hou, Zhanhui; Gao, Dahai; Gao, Qiang; Song, Linsheng

2016-05-01

The neuroendocrine-immune (NEI) regulatory network is a complex system, which plays an indispensable role in the immunity of the host. In the present study, the bioinformatical analysis of the transcriptomic data from oyster Crassostrea gigas and further biological validation revealed that oyster TNF (CgTNF-1 CGI_10018786) could activate the transcription factors NF-κB and HSF (heat shock transcription factor) through MAPK signaling pathway, and then regulate apoptosis, redox reaction, neuro-regulation and protein folding in oyster haemocytes. The activated immune cells then released neurotransmitters including acetylcholine, norepinephrine and [Met5]-enkephalin to regulate the immune response by arising the expression of three TNF (CGI_10005109, CGI_10005110 and CGI_10006440) and translocating two NF-κB (Cgp65, CGI_10018142 and CgRel, CGI_10021567) between the cytoplasm and nuclei of haemocytes. Neurotransmitters exhibited the immunomodulation effects by influencing apoptosis and phagocytosis of oyster haemocytes. Acetylcholine and norepinephrine could down-regulate the immune response, while [Met5]-enkephalin up-regulate the immune response. These results suggested that the simple neuroendocrine-immune regulatory network in oyster might be activated by oyster TNF and then regulate the immune response by virtue of neurotransmitters, cytokines and transcription factors.

New Directions in Native American Earth Science Education in San Diego County

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Riggs, E. M.

2001-05-01

Founded in 1998, the Indigenous Earth Sciences Project (IESP) of San Diego State University aims to increase the access of local Native American tribal communities to geoscience education and to geoscience information, and to attract more Indian students into earth science careers. As tribes encounter earth and environmental science-related issues, it is important to increase 1) on-reservation geoscience expertise, 2) the quality and cultural accessibility of geoscience curricula for Native K-12 students, and 3) geoscience literacy in Native communities at large. We have established partnerships with local reservation learning centers and education councils with the goal of building programs for K-12 students, college students, adult learners and on-reservation field programs for the whole community which both enrich the resident scientific understanding of reservation settings and find ways to include the rich intellectual tradition of indigenous knowledge of earth processes in the San Diego region. This work has been greatly assisted by the construction of HPWREN, a wireless Internet backbone connection built by UCSD, which now delivers broadband Internet service to the reservation communities of Pala, Rincon, and La Jolla as well as providing high-speed access to a variety of locally-collected geoscience data. This new networking venture has allowed us to explore virtual classroom, tutoring, and interactive data analysis activities with the learning centers located on these reservations. Plans and funding are also in place to expand these connections to all of the 18 reservation communities within San Diego county. We are also actively working to establish earth science components to existing bridging programs to Palomar College, a community college with deep connections to the northern San Diego county American Indian communities. These students will be assisted in their transfer to SDSU and will also be connected with geoscience research opportunities at the collaborating institutions (SDSU, UCSD, Scripps Institute of Oceanography). By building a local K-Ph.D. collaboration, it is our goal that we can directly address the low representation of Native American students in the geosciences and simultaneously aid local tribes in their own efforts to ensure their own continued sovereignty.

The Non-traditional Student, a new Geoscience Resource

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ferrell, R.; Anderson, L.; Bart, P.; Lorenzo, J. M.; Tomkin, J.

2004-12-01

The LSU GAEMP (Geoscience Alliance to Enhance Minority Participation) program targets non-traditional students, those without an undergraduate degree in geoscience, in its efforts to attract African American and Hispanic students from minority serving institutions (MSIs) to pursue careers in geology and geophysics. Faculty collaborators at nine MSIs (seven HBCUs and two HSIs) work closely with LSU faculty to advertise the program and to select student participants. The enthusiastic cooperation of the MSI Professors is crucial to success. The ideal student is a junior-level, high academic achiever with a major in one of the basic sciences, mathematics, engineering or computer science. A special summer course uses a focus on research to introduce basic geoscience concepts. Students are encouraged to design a cooperative research project to complete during their last year at their home institution and to apply for GAEMP graduate fellowships leading directly to an M.S. or Ph.D. in Geoscience. There are several reasons for the emphasis on these students 1. They have special knowledge and skills to use in graduate programs in geophysics, geochemistry, geobiology, etc. 2. Third-year students have demonstrated their ability to succeed in the academic world and are ready to select a graduate program that will enhance their employment prospects. 3. The MSIs, especially some of the physics programs at the collaborating HBCUs, provide well-trained, highly motivated graduates who have compiled excellent records in highly ranked graduate programs. This pool of talent is not available in the geosciences because most MSIs do not have geoscience degree programs. 4. This group provides a unique niche for focus as there are many programs concentrating on K-12 students and the recruitment of traditional majors. In the first year of GAEMP, 12 students participated in the summer program, six elected to pursue research projects and expressed interest in applying for the fellowships, and one student entered the graduate program early. The paucity of information regarding career opportunities and rewards in geoscience is one of the major obstacles encountered. GAEMP is sponsored by a 5-year NSF award through the OEDG program

Resources for Designing, Selecting and Teaching with Visualizations in the Geoscience Classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kirk, K. B.; Manduca, C. A.; Ormand, C. J.; McDaris, J. R.

2009-12-01

Geoscience is a highly visual field, and effective use of visualizations can enhance student learning, appeal to students’ emotions and help them acquire skills for interpreting visual information. The On the Cutting Edge website, “Teaching Geoscience with Visualizations” presents information of interest to faculty who are teaching with visualizations, as well as those who are designing visualizations. The website contains best practices for effective visualizations, drawn from the educational literature and from experts in the field. For example, a case is made for careful selection of visualizations so that faculty can align the correct visualization with their teaching goals and audience level. Appropriate visualizations will contain the desired geoscience content without adding extraneous information that may distract or confuse students. Features such as labels, arrows and contextual information can help guide students through imagery and help to explain the relevant concepts. Because students learn by constructing their own mental image of processes, it is helpful to select visualizations that reflect the same type of mental picture that students should create. A host of recommended readings and presentations from the On the Cutting Edge visualization workshops can provide further grounding for the educational uses of visualizations. Several different collections of visualizations, datasets with visualizations and visualization tools are available on the website. Examples include animations of tsunamis, El Nino conditions, braided stream formation and mountain uplift. These collections are grouped by topic and range from simple animations to interactive models. A series of example activities that incorporate visualizations into classroom and laboratory activities illustrate various tactics for using these materials in different types of settings. Activities cover topics such as ocean circulation, land use changes, earthquake simulations and the use of Google Earth to explore geologic processes. These materials can be found at http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/visualization. Faculty and developers of visualization tools are encouraged to submit teaching activities, references or visualizations to the collections.

Design of Community Resource Inventories as a Component of Scalable Earth Science Infrastructure: Experience of the Earthcube CINERGI Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zaslavsky, I.; Richard, S. M.; Valentine, D. W., Jr.; Grethe, J. S.; Hsu, L.; Malik, T.; Bermudez, L. E.; Gupta, A.; Lehnert, K. A.; Whitenack, T.; Ozyurt, I. B.; Condit, C.; Calderon, R.; Musil, L.

2014-12-01

EarthCube is envisioned as a cyberinfrastructure that fosters new, transformational geoscience by enabling sharing, understanding and scientifically-sound and efficient re-use of formerly unconnected data resources, software, models, repositories, and computational power. Its purpose is to enable science enterprise and workforce development via an extensible and adaptable collaboration and resource integration framework. A key component of this vision is development of comprehensive inventories supporting resource discovery and re-use across geoscience domains. The goal of the EarthCube CINERGI (Community Inventory of EarthCube Resources for Geoscience Interoperability) project is to create a methodology and assemble a large inventory of high-quality information resources with standard metadata descriptions and traceable provenance. The inventory is compiled from metadata catalogs maintained by geoscience data facilities, as well as from user contributions. The latter mechanism relies on community resource viewers: online applications that support update and curation of metadata records. Once harvested into CINERGI, metadata records from domain catalogs and community resource viewers are loaded into a staging database implemented in MongoDB, and validated for compliance with ISO 19139 metadata schema. Several types of metadata defects detected by the validation engine are automatically corrected with help of several information extractors or flagged for manual curation. The metadata harvesting, validation and processing components generate provenance statements using W3C PROV notation, which are stored in a Neo4J database. Thus curated metadata, along with the provenance information, is re-published and accessed programmatically and via a CINERGI online application. This presentation focuses on the role of resource inventories in a scalable and adaptable information infrastructure, and on the CINERGI metadata pipeline and its implementation challenges. Key project components are described at the project's website (http://workspace.earthcube.org/cinergi), which also provides access to the initial resource inventory, the inventory metadata model, metadata entry forms and a collection of the community resource viewers.

Constructing a Cross-Domain Resource Inventory: Key Components and Results of the EarthCube CINERGI Project.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zaslavsky, I.; Richard, S. M.; Malik, T.; Hsu, L.; Gupta, A.; Grethe, J. S.; Valentine, D. W., Jr.; Lehnert, K. A.; Bermudez, L. E.; Ozyurt, I. B.; Whitenack, T.; Schachne, A.; Giliarini, A.

2015-12-01

While many geoscience-related repositories and data discovery portals exist, finding information about available resources remains a pervasive problem, especially when searching across multiple domains and catalogs. Inconsistent and incomplete metadata descriptions, disparate access protocols and semantic differences across domains, and troves of unstructured or poorly structured information which is hard to discover and use are major hindrances toward discovery, while metadata compilation and curation remain manual and time-consuming. We report on methodology, main results and lessons learned from an ongoing effort to develop a geoscience-wide catalog of information resources, with consistent metadata descriptions, traceable provenance, and automated metadata enhancement. Developing such a catalog is the central goal of CINERGI (Community Inventory of EarthCube Resources for Geoscience Interoperability), an EarthCube building block project (earthcube.org/group/cinergi). The key novel technical contributions of the projects include: a) development of a metadata enhancement pipeline and a set of document enhancers to automatically improve various aspects of metadata descriptions, including keyword assignment and definition of spatial extents; b) Community Resource Viewers: online applications for crowdsourcing community resource registry development, curation and search, and channeling metadata to the unified CINERGI inventory, c) metadata provenance, validation and annotation services, d) user interfaces for advanced resource discovery; and e) geoscience-wide ontology and machine learning to support automated semantic tagging and faceted search across domains. We demonstrate these CINERGI components in three types of user scenarios: (1) improving existing metadata descriptions maintained by government and academic data facilities, (2) supporting work of several EarthCube Research Coordination Network projects in assembling information resources for their domains, and (3) enhancing the inventory and the underlying ontology to address several complicated data discovery use cases in hydrology, geochemistry, sedimentology, and critical zone science. Support from the US National Science Foundation under award ICER-1343816 is gratefully acknowledged.

Prevention of hypothyroidism related to mantle irradiation for Hodgkin's disease: Preparative phantom study

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

Marcial-Vega, V.A.; Order, S.E.; Lastner, G.

1990-03-01

To decrease the incidence of hypothyroidism related to mantle irradiation for Hodgkin's disease, we initiated a study designed to protect the thyroid gland using a phantom. A thyroid phantom was filled with technetium-99m. The thyroid phantom was placed inside of its corresponding anterior neck position in a whole body phantom. An anterior scintiscan of the head and neck region demonstrated the radioactivity in the simulated thyroid. A mantle port included a focused block that would shield the thyroid from the anterior port. The phantom was exposed (4 MeV) to 180 cGy (AP-PA) at midplane with lithium fluoride dosimeters in themore » position of the thyroid. The thyroid received an average of 12 cGy from the anterior field and 48 cGy from the posterior field for a total of 60 cGy per treatment or 30% of the prescribed dose. A complete mantle field course of radiation of 4000 cGy would lead to a thyroid dose of 1200 cGy at a daily fractional dose of 60 cGy. We elected not to block the thyroid from the posterior field to prevent shielding and potential underdosage of involved nodal sites. The present study suggests a method of safe and effective thyroid shielding which needs to be tested clinically to determine whether it would reduce the incidence of chemical and clinical hypothyroidism or simply extend the period until occurrence.« less

Using Cloud-Hosted Real-time Data Services for the Geosciences (CHORDS) in a range of geoscience applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Daniels, M. D.; Kerkez, B.; Chandrasekar, V.; Graves, S. J.; Stamps, D. S.; Dye, M. J.; Keiser, K.; Martin, C. L.; Gooch, S. R.

2016-12-01

Cloud-Hosted Real-time Data Services for the Geosciences, or CHORDS, addresses the ever-increasing importance of real-time scientific data, particularly in mission critical scenarios, where informed decisions must be made rapidly. Part of the broader EarthCube initiative, CHORDS seeks to investigate the role of real-time data in the geosciences. Many of the phenomenon occurring within the geosciences, ranging from hurricanes and severe weather, to earthquakes, volcanoes and floods, can benefit from better handling of real-time data. The National Science Foundation funds many small teams of researchers residing at Universities whose currently inaccessible measurements could contribute to a better understanding of these phenomenon in order to ultimately improve forecasts and predictions. This lack of easy accessibility prohibits advanced algorithm and workflow development that could be initiated or enhanced by these data streams. Often the development of tools for the broad dissemination of their valuable real-time data is a large IT overhead from a pure scientific perspective, and could benefit from an easy to use, scalable, cloud-based solution to facilitate access. CHORDS proposes to make a very diverse suite of real-time data available to the broader geosciences community in order to allow innovative new science in these areas to thrive. We highlight the recently developed CHORDS portal tools and processing systems aimed at addressing some of the gaps in handling real-time data, particularly in the provisioning of data from the "long-tail" scientific community through a simple interface deployed in the cloud. Examples shown include hydrology, atmosphere and solid earth sensors. Broad use of the CHORDS framework will expand the role of real-time data within the geosciences, and enhance the potential of streaming data sources to enable adaptive experimentation and real-time hypothesis testing. CHORDS enables real-time data to be discovered and accessed using existing standards for straightforward integration into analysis, visualization and modeling tools.

Geoscience Diversity Experiential Simulations (GeoDES) Workshop Report

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Houlton, H. R.; Chen, J.; Brown, B.; Samuels, D.; Brinkworth, C.

2017-12-01

The geosciences have to solve increasingly complex problems relating to earth and society, as resources become limited, natural hazards and changes in climate impact larger communities, and as people interacting with Earth become more interconnected. However, the profession has dismally low representation from geoscientists who are from diverse racial, ethnic, or socioeconomic backgrounds, as well as women in leadership roles. This underrepresentation also includes individuals whose gender identity/expression is non-binary or gender-conforming, or those who have physical, cognitive, or emotional disabilities. This lack of diversity ultimately impacts our profession's ability to produce our best science and work with the communities that we strive to protect and serve as stewards of the earth. As part of the NSF GOLD solicitation, we developed a project (Geoscience Diversity Experiential Simulations) to train 30 faculty and administrators to be "champions for diversity" and combat the hostile climates in geoscience departments. We hosted a 3-day workshop in November that used virtual simulations to give participants experience in building the skills to react to situations regarding bias, discrimination, microaggressions, or bullying often cited in geoscience culture. Participants interacted with avatars on screen, who responded to participants' actions and choices, given certain scenarios. The scenarios are framed within a geoscience perspective; we integrated qualitative interview data from informants who experienced inequitable judgement, bias, discrimination, or harassment during their geoscience careers. The simulations gave learners a safe environment to practice and build self-efficacy in how to professionally and productively engage peers in difficult conversations. In addition, we obtained pre-workshop survey data about participants' understanding regarding Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion practices, as well as observation data of participants' responses during the simulations. Follow-up activities include monthly online meetings to engage problem solving and strategy-building skills for catalyzing institutional culture change within departments. This talk will specifically focus on workshop observations and preliminary reactions to the training.

Undergraduate Research in Earth Science Classes: Engaging Students in the First Two Years

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mogk, D. W.; Wysession, M. E.; Beauregard, A.; Reinen, L. A.; Surpless, K.; O'Connell, K.; McDaris, J. R.

2014-12-01

The recent PCAST report (2012), Engage to Excel, calls for a major shift in instructional modes in introductory (geo)science courses by "replacing standard laboratory courses with discovery-based research courses". An increased emphasis is recommended to engage students in experiments with the possibility of true discovery and expanded use of scientific research courses in the first two years. To address this challenge, the On the Cutting Edge program convened a workshop of geoscience faculty to explore the many ways that true research experiences can be built into introductory geoscience courses. The workshop goals included: consideration of the opportunities, strategies and methods used to provide research experiences for students in lower division geoscience courses; examination of ways to develop students' "geoscience habits of mind" through participation in authentic research activities; exploration of ways that student research projects can be designed to contribute to public science literacy with applications to a range of issues facing humanity; and development of strategies to obtain funding for these research projects, to make these programs sustainable in departments and institutions, and to scale-up these programs so that all students may participate. Access to Earth data, information technology, lab and field-based instrumentation, and field experiences provide unprecedented opportunities for students to engage in authentic research at early stages in their careers. Early exposure to research experiences has proven to be effective in the recruitment of students to the geoscience disciplines, improved retention and persistence in degree programs, motivation for students to learn and increase self-efficacy, improved attitudes and values about science, and overall increased student success. Workshop outcomes include an online collection of tested research projects currently being used in geoscience classes, resources related to effective design, implementation and assessment of student research projects, and all workshop activities are posted on the website: http://serc.carleton.edu/74960

77 FR 47856 - Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-08-10

... and development outcomes for at risk children through evidence-based home visiting programs. Under...: Proposed Project: Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program FY 2012 Competitive Grant Non... the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program, ( http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi...

77 FR 47855 - Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-08-10

... development outcomes for at- risk children through evidence-based home visiting programs. Under this program...: Proposed Project: Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program FY 2012 Non-Competing... Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program, ( http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin...

Promoting the Geosciences for Minority Students in the Urban Coastal Environment of New York City

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liou-Mark, J.; Blake, R.

2013-12-01

The 'Creating and Sustaining Diversity in the Geo-Sciences among Students and Teachers in the Urban Coastal Environment of New York City' project was awarded to New York City College of Technology (City Tech) by the National Science Foundation to promote the geosciences for students in middle and high schools and for undergraduates, especially for those who are underrepresented minorities in STEM. For the undergraduate students at City Tech, this project: 1) created and introduced geoscience knowledge and opportunities to its diverse undergraduate student population where geoscience is not currently taught at City Tech; and 2) created geoscience articulation agreements. For the middle and high schools, this project: 1) provided inquiry-oriented geoscience experiences (pedagogical and research) for students; 2) provided standards-based professional development (pedagogical and research) in Earth Science for teachers; 3) developed teachers' inquiry-oriented instructional techniques through the GLOBE program; 4) increased teacher content knowledge and confidence in the geosciences; 5) engaged and intrigued students in the application of geoscience activities in a virtual environment; 6) provided students and teachers exposure in the geosciences through trip visitations and seminars; and 7) created community-based geoscience outreach activities. Results from this program have shown significant increases in the students (grades 6-16) understanding, participation, appreciation, and awareness of the geosciences. Geoscience modules have been created and new geosciences courses have been offered. Additionally, students and teachers were engaged in state-of-the-art geoscience research projects, and they were involved in many geoscience events and initiatives. In summary, the activities combined geoscience research experiences with a robust learning community that have produced holistic and engaging stimuli for the scientific and academic growth and development of grades 6 - 12 student and teacher participants and undergraduates. (This program is supported by NSF OEDG grant #1108281.)

High speed turning of compacted graphite iron using controlled modulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stalbaum, Tyler Paul

Compacted graphite iron (CGI) is a material which emerged as a candidate material to replace cast iron (CI) in the automotive industry for engine block castings. Its thermal and mechanical properties allow the CGI-based engines to operate at higher cylinder pressures and temperatures than CI-based engines, allowing for lower fuel emissions and increased fuel economy. However, these same properties together with the thermomechanical wear mode in the CGI-CBN system result in poor machinability and inhibit CGI from seeing wide spread use in the automotive industry. In industry, machining of CGI is done only at low speeds, less than V = 200 m/min, to avoid encountering rapid wear of the cutting tools during cutting. Studies have suggested intermittent cutting operations such as milling suffer less severe tool wear than continuous cutting. Furthermore, evidence that a hard sulfide layer which forms over the cutting edge in machining CI at high speeds is absent during machining CGI is a major factor in the difference in machinability of these material systems. The present study addresses both of these issues by modification to the conventional machining process to allow intermittent continuous cutting. The application of controlled modulation superimposed onto the cutting process -- modulation-assisted machining (MAM) -- is shown to be quite effective in reducing the wear of cubic boron nitride (CBN) tools when machining CGI at high machining speeds (> 500 m/min). The tool life is at least 20 times greater than found in conventional machining of CGI. This significant reduction in wear is a consequence of reduction in the severity of the tool-work contact conditions with MAM. The propensity for thermochemical wear of CBN is thus reduced. It is found that higher cutting speed (> 700 m/min) leads to lower tool wear with MAM. The MAM configuration employing feed-direction modulation appears feasible for implementation at high speeds and offers a solution to this challenging class of industrial machining applications. This study's approach is by series of high speed turning tests of CGI with CBN tools, comparing conventional machining to MAM for similar parameters otherwise, by tool wear measurements and machinability observations.

Categorical improvements in disease severity in patients with major depressive disorder treated with vilazodone: post hoc analysis of four randomized, placebo-controlled trials.

PubMed

Durgam, Suresh; Chen, Changzheng; Gommoll, Carl P; Edwards, John; Citrome, Leslie

2016-01-01

In three 8-week studies of vilazodone 40 mg/d (NCT00285376, NCT00683592, and NCT01473394) and a 10-week study of vilazodone 20 or 40 mg/d (NCT01473381), adults with major depressive disorder (MDD) showed significantly greater improvement with vilazodone versus placebo in global disease severity as measured by mean change from baseline in Clinical Global Impression of Severity (CGI-S) score. To assess the proportion of patients achieving clinically meaningful improvement, a post hoc pooled analysis was conducted using categorical shifts in disease severity based on CGI-S scores at baseline and end of treatment (EOT). Analyses were conducted in the pooled intent-to-treat population (N=2,218). Definitions of categorical shifts included CGI-S ≥4 (moderately ill or worse) at baseline to CGI-S ≤2 (normal or borderline ill) at EOT; CGI-S ≥5 (markedly ill or worse) at baseline to CGI-S ≤2 at EOT; and CGI-S ≥6 (severely ill or worse) at baseline to CGI-S ≤3 (mildly ill or better) at EOT. At baseline, 2,217 patients were moderately ill or worse. The percentage who improved to normal or borderline ill was significantly higher with vilazodone than with placebo (40.0% versus 27.8%; odds ratio [OR] =1.7, P <0.001; number needed to treat [NNT] =9). In the 979 patients who were markedly ill or worse at baseline, the percentage who improved to normal or borderline ill was significantly higher with vilazodone than with placebo (36.8% versus 25.5%; OR =1.7, P <0.001; NNT =9). The small number of severely ill patients at baseline (n =43) provided inadequate power to detect statistically significant between-group differences, but an NNT =5 was found for improvement to mildly ill or better. Categorical shift analyses, defined using baseline and EOT CGI-S scores, showed that significantly higher proportions of patients had clinically meaningful improvements in global disease severity with vilazodone 20-40 mg/d versus placebo. This type of analysis may be useful for evaluating the effects of antidepressant treatment in adults with MDD.

The DLESE Evaluation Toolkit Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buhr, S. M.; Barker, L. J.; Marlino, M.

2002-12-01

The Evaluation Toolkit and Community project is a new Digital Library for Earth System Education (DLESE) collection designed to raise awareness of project evaluation within the geoscience education community, and to enable principal investigators, teachers, and evaluators to implement project evaluation more readily. This new resource is grounded in the needs of geoscience educators, and will provide a virtual home for a geoscience education evaluation community. The goals of the project are to 1) provide a robust collection of evaluation resources useful for Earth systems educators, 2) establish a forum and community for evaluation dialogue within DLESE, and 3) disseminate the resources through the DLESE infrastructure and through professional society workshops and proceedings. Collaboration and expertise in education, geoscience and evaluation are necessary if we are to conduct the best possible geoscience education. The Toolkit allows users to engage in evaluation at whichever level best suits their needs, get more evaluation professional development if desired, and access the expertise of other segments of the community. To date, a test web site has been built and populated, initial community feedback from the DLESE and broader community is being garnered, and we have begun to heighten awareness of geoscience education evaluation within our community. The web site contains features that allow users to access professional development about evaluation, search and find evaluation resources, submit resources, find or offer evaluation services, sign up for upcoming workshops, take the user survey, and submit calendar items. The evaluation resource matrix currently contains resources that have met our initial review. The resources are currently organized by type; they will become searchable on multiple dimensions of project type, audience, objectives and evaluation resource type as efforts to develop a collection-specific search engine mature. The peer review criteria and process for ensuring that the site contains robust and useful resources has been drafted and received initial feedback from the project advisory board, which consists of members of every segment of the target audience. The review criteria are based upon DLESE peer review criteria, the MERLOT digital library peer review criteria, digital resource evaluation criteria, and evaluation best practices. In geoscience education, as in most endeavors, improvements are made by asking questions and acting upon information about successes and failures; project evaluation can be thought of as the systematic process of asking these questions and gathering the right information. The Evaluation Toolkit seeks to help principal investigators, teachers, and evaluators use the evaluation process to improve our projects and our field.

A Retrospective Study of Long Acting Risperidone Use to Support Treatment Adherence in Youth with Conduct Disorder

PubMed Central

Demirkaya, Sevcan Karakoç; Aksu, Hatice; Özgür, Börte Gürbüz

2017-01-01

Objective Risperidone has been widely used to control aggression and conduct disorder (CD) in youth; however, treatment compliance is a major problem in CD. Our aim is to evaluate the effectiveness and tolerability of long-acting risperidone (LAR) in treating nonadherent cases. Methods The medical records of children and adolescents who had CD and were nonadherent to conventional drugs and psychosocial interventions (and therefore taking LAR) were reviewed. Informed consent on offlabel use of LAR was obtained from the parents. Clinical Global Impression (CGI) Severity (CGI-S) and CGI-Improvement scales were used and baseline and end points were compared. Results The study comprised 14 children and adolescents (5 girls, 9 boys). All had comorbid disorders: substance use disorder (n=8), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (n=6), and major depression (n=2). Mean duration of LAR use was 3.1 months (1.5–8 months). We observed significant improvements in the baseline and endpoint CGI-S scores for CD in all but one patient (Z=−3.198; p<0.001). Only mild adverse effects were observed: weight gain (n=2), sedation (n=1), leg cramps (n=1), and increased appetite with no weight gain (n=1). Conclusion LAR is effective and tolerable for patients with CD who can’t be medicated with oral preparations due to non-adherence to treatment. Even short-term LAR use is effective to get compliance. As CD predicts numerous problems in adulthood, appropriate treatment is crucial. To our knowledge, this is the first study on LAR use in youth with CD. The use of LAR deserves careful consideration and further controlled studies are needed to confirm our findings. PMID:29073744

ROME (Request Object Management Environment)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kong, M.; Good, J. C.; Berriman, G. B.

2005-12-01

Most current astronomical archive services are based on an HTML/ CGI architecture where users submit HTML forms via a browser and CGI programs operating under a web server process the requests. Most services return an HTML result page with URL links to the result files or, for longer jobs, return a message indicating that email will be sent when the job is done. This paradigm has a few serious shortcomings. First, it is all too common for something to go wrong and for the user to never hear about the job again. Second, for long and complicated jobs there is often important intermediate information that would allow the user to adjust the processing. Finally, unless some sort of custom queueing mechanism is used, background jobs are started immediately upon receiving the CGI request. When there are many such requests the server machine can easily be overloaded and either slow to a crawl or crash. Request Object Management Environment (ROME) is a collection of middleware components being developed under the National Virtual Observatory Project to provide mechanism for managing long jobs such as computationally intensive statistical analysis requests or the generation of large scale mosaic images. Written as EJB objects within the open-source JBoss applications server, ROME receives processing requests via a servelet interface, stores them in a DBMS using JDBC, distributes the processing (via queuing mechanisms) across multiple machines and environments (including Grid resources), manages realtime messages from the processing modules, and ensures proper user notification. The request processing modules are identical in structure to standard CGI-programs -- though they can optionally implement status messaging -- and can be written in any language. ROME will persist these jobs across failures of processing modules, network outages, and even downtime of ROME and the DBMS, restarting them as necessary.

NADM Conceptual Model 1.0 -- A Conceptual Model for Geologic Map Information

USGS Publications Warehouse

,

2004-01-01

Executive Summary -- The NADM Data Model Design Team was established in 1999 by the North American Geologic Map Data Model Steering Committee (NADMSC) with the purpose of drafting a geologic map data model for consideration as a standard for developing interoperable geologic map-centered databases by state, provincial, and federal geological surveys. The model is designed to be a technology-neutral conceptual model that can form the basis for a web-based interchange format using evolving information technology (e.g., XML, RDF, OWL), and guide implementation of geoscience databases in a common conceptual framework. The intended purpose is to allow geologic information sharing between geologic map data providers and users, independent of local information system implementation. The model emphasizes geoscience concepts and relationships related to information presented on geologic maps. Design has been guided by an informal requirements analysis, documentation of existing databases, technology developments, and other standardization efforts in the geoscience and computer-science communities. A key aspect of the model is the notion that representation of the conceptual framework (ontology) that underlies geologic map data must be part of the model, because this framework changes with time and understanding, and varies between information providers. The top level of the model distinguishes geologic concepts, geologic representation concepts, and metadata. The geologic representation part of the model provides a framework for representing the ontology that underlies geologic map data through a controlled vocabulary, and for establishing the relationships between this vocabulary and a geologic map visualization or portrayal. Top-level geologic classes in the model are Earth material (substance), geologic unit (parts of the Earth), geologic age, geologic structure, fossil, geologic process, geologic relation, and geologic event.

Optimal systems of geoscience surveying A preliminary discussion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shoji, Tetsuya

2006-10-01

In any geoscience survey, each survey technique must be effectively applied, and many techniques are often combined optimally. An important task is to get necessary and sufficient information to meet the requirement of the survey. A prize-penalty function quantifies effectiveness of the survey, and hence can be used to determine the best survey technique. On the other hand, an information-cost function can be used to determine the optimal combination of survey techniques on the basis of the geoinformation obtained. Entropy is available to evaluate geoinformation. A simple model suggests the possibility that low-resolvability techniques are generally applied at early stages of survey, and that higher-resolvability techniques should alternate with lower-resolvability ones with the progress of the survey.

Using the Geoscience Literacy Frameworks and Educational Technologies to Promote Science Literacy in Non-science Major Undergraduates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carley, S.; Tuddenham, P.; Bishop, K. O.

2008-12-01

In recent years several geoscience communities have been developing ocean, climate, atmosphere and earth science literacy frameworks as enhancements to the National Science Education Standards content standards. Like the older content standards these new geoscience literacy frameworks have focused on K-12 education although they are also intended for informal education and general public audiences. These geoscience literacy frameworks potentially provide a more integrated and less abstract approach to science literacy that may be more suitable for non-science major students that are not pursuing careers in science research or education. They provide a natural link to contemporary environmental issues - e.g., climate change, resource depletion, species and habitat loss, natural hazards, pollution, development of renewable energy, material recycling. The College of Exploration is an education research non-profit that has provided process and technical support for the development of most of these geoscience literacy frameworks. It has a unique perspective on their development. In the last ten years it has also gained considerable national and international expertise in facilitating web-based workshops that support in-depth conversations among educators and working scientists/researchers on important science topics. These workshops have been of enormous value to educators working in K-12, 4-year institutions and community colleges. How can these geoscience literacy frameworks promote more collaborative inquiry-based learning that enhances the appreciation of scientific thinking by non-majors? How can web- and mobile-based education technologies transform the undergraduate non-major survey course into a place where learners begin their passion for science literacy rather than end it? How do we assess science literacy in students and citizens?

MS PHD'S: A Successful Model Promoting Inclusion, Preparation and Engagement of Underrepresented Minorities within the Geosciences Workforce

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Padilla, E.; Scott, O.; Strickland, J. T.; Ricciardi, L.; Guzman, W. I.; Braxton, L.; Williamson, V.; Johnson, A.

2015-12-01

According to 2014 findings of the National Research Council, geoscience and related industries indicate an anticipated 48,000 blue-collar, scientific, and managerial positions to be filled by underrepresented minority (URM) workers in the next 15 years. An Information Handling Services (IHS) report prepared for the American Petroleum Institute forecasts even greater numbers estimating upward of 408,000 opportunities for URM workers related to growth in accelerated development of oil, gas and petroleum industries. However, many URM students lack the training in both the hard sciences and craft skills necessary to fill these positions. The Minorities Striving and Pursuing Higher Degrees of Success in Earth System Science (MS PHD'S) Professional Development Program uses integrative and holistic strategies to better prepare URM students for entry into all levels of the geoscience workforce. Through a three-phase program of mentoring, community building, networking and professional development activities, MS PHD'S promotes collaboration, critical thinking, and soft skills development for participants. Program activities expose URM students to education, training and real-life geoscience workforce experiences while maintaining a continuity of supportive mentoring and training networks via an active virtual community. MS PHD'S participants report increased self-confidence and self-efficacy in pursuing geoscience workforce goals. To date, the program supports 223 participants of who 57, 21 and 16 have received Doctorate, Masters and Baccalaureate degrees respectively and are currently employed within the geoscience and related industries workforce. The remaining 129 participants are enrolled in undergraduate and graduate programs throughout the U.S. Geographic representation of participants includes 35 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and two international postdoctoral appointments - one in Saudi Arabia and the other in France.

Effective Recruiting and Intrusive Retention Strategies for Diversifying the Geosciences through a Research Experiences for Undergraduate Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liou-Mark, J.; Blake, R.; Norouzi, H.; Yuen-Lau, L.; Ikramova, M.

2016-12-01

Worse than in most Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields, underrepresented minority (URM) groups in the geosciences are reported to be farthest beneath the national benchmarks. Even more alarming, the geosciences have the lowest diversity of all the STEM disciplines at all three levels of higher education. In order to increase the number of underrepresented groups in the geosciences, a National Science Foundation funded Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program at the New York City College of Technology has implemented effective recruitment strategies to attract and retain diverse student cohorts. Recruitment efforts include: 1) establishing partnership with the local community colleges; 2) forging collaborations with scientists of color; 3) reaching out to the geoscience departments; and 4) forming relationships with STEM organizations. Unlike the other REU programs which primarily provide a summer-only research experience, this REU program engages students in a year-long research experience. Students begin their research in the summer for nine weeks, and they continue their research one day a week in the fall and spring semesters. During the academic year, they present their projects at conferences. They also serve as STEM ambassadors to community and high school outreach events. This one-year triad connection of 1) professional organizations/conferences, 2) continual research experience, and 3) service constituent has resulted in higher retention and graduation rates of URMs in the STEM disciplines. Both formative and summative program assessment have uncovered and shown that strong recruitment efforts accompanied by intrusive retention strategies are essential to: a) sustain and support STEM URMs in developing confidence as scientists; b) create formal and informal STEM communities; and c) provide a clear pathway to advanced degrees and to the geoscience workforce. This project is supported by NSF REU Grant #1560050.

Archiving Spectral Libraries in the Planetary Data System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Slavney, S.; Guinness, E. A.; Scholes, D.; Zastrow, A.

2017-12-01

Spectral libraries are becoming popular candidates for archiving in PDS. With the increase in the number of individual investigators funded by programs such as NASA's PDART, the PDS Geosciences Node is receiving many requests for support from proposers wishing to archive various forms of laboratory spectra. To accommodate the need for a standardized approach to archiving spectra, the Geosciences Node has designed the PDS Spectral Library Data Dictionary, which contains PDS4 classes and attributes specifically for labeling spectral data, including a classification scheme for samples. The Reflectance Experiment Laboratory (RELAB) at Brown University, which has long been a provider of spectroscopy equipment and services to the science community, has provided expert input into the design of the dictionary. Together the Geosciences Node and RELAB are preparing the whole of the RELAB Spectral Library, consisting of many thousands of spectra collected over the years, to be archived in PDS. An online interface for searching, displaying, and downloading selected spectra is planned, using the Spectral Library metadata recorded in the PDS labels. The data dictionary and online interface will be extended to include spectral libraries submitted by other data providers. The Spectral Library Data Dictionary is now available from PDS at https://pds.nasa.gov/pds4/schema/released/. It can be used in PDS4 labels for reflectance spectra as well as for Raman, XRF, XRD, LIBS, and other types of spectra. Ancillary data such as images, chemistry, and abundance data are also supported. To help generate PDS4-compliant labels for spectra, the Geosciences Node provides a label generation program called MakeLabels (http://pds-geosciences.wustl.edu/tools/makelabels.html) which creates labels from a template, and which can be used for any kind of PDS4 label. For information, contact the Geosciences Node at geosci@wunder.wustl.edu.

AAPG forms environmental unit; Geosat moving

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

Not Available

1992-07-20

This paper reports that the American Association of Petroleum Geologists has established a new environmental geology division, while a geology related committee is moving from Oklahoma. AAPG set up a Division of Environmental Geosciences to provide services and information to its members working in environmental geosciences, the Bernold M. Bruno Hanson of Midland, Tex., the DEG's first president. The division will publish a newsletter in October, and plans are being set to solicit technical articles for consideration by the AAPG Bulletin and for a possible future separate DEG technical publication.

Making the Case for GeoSTEM Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moore, John

2014-05-01

As the national Science-Technology-Engineering-Mathematics (STEM) education policy makers in the United States work through reports, findings, forums, workshops, etc., there emerges an opportunity to present the strong case of why and how the role of the Geosciences community can and should be at the forefront of these discussions. Currently existing within the Geosciences scientific and educational community are policies, frameworks, guidance, innovative technology, and unique interdisciplinary Earth System data sets that will establish a pathway to the role of the Geosciences in the classroom, in the 21st Century workforce, and in society. The question may be raised, "Why GeoSTEM?" But the real question should be … "Why not?" Over the past several years the Geosciences have dominated the news cycle in the United States. As we face future natural and human generated hazards and disasters such as the Gulf Oil Spill, not to mention issues confronting society such as Climate Change, Sustainability and Energy, the Geosciences have a critical role in the public awareness, safety, and national security of our nation. In the past year we have experienced volcanic eruptions, earth¬quakes, tsunamis, hurricanes, tornadoes, wildfires, severe drought and flooding, outbreaks of severe weather. Planet Earth will be monitored, observed, and studied as an Earth System, in real or near real time. Policy-makers, decision-makers, scientists, teachers, students, and citizens will not only participate in the process, but come to use such information and data routinely in their daily lives. 3-D data visualizations, virtual field trips, and interactive imagery from space all will contribute to the doing of real science in real time. Policy-Makers have linked Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Education to United States' future economy and national security. The GeoSTEM community can deliver added value through leveraging current and future Geoscience-related resources that monitor our planet and protect the life and property of our citizens. The integration of a Geoscience and Remote Sensing Laboratory into an existing Earth Science program or a new Earth Systems Science course allows students to acquire the necessary rigorous laboratory skills as required by colleges or universities, while developing and becoming proficient in technological skills using industry standard analysis tools. With the accessibility of real-time or near real time data, students in a GeoSTEM driven course can engage in inquiry-based laboratory experiences focusing on real life applications, both local and global. Developing pathways between geoscientists, researchers, teachers, and students, will create an exchange of information, data, observations, and measurements that will lead to authentic science investigations through the monitoring of weather, water quality, sea surface temperature, coral reefs, marine wildlife, earthquakes, tsunamis, wildfires, air quality, land cover, and much more. Satellite, remote sensing, and geospatial technologies can introduce students and society to data that can inform policy makers and society both now and in the future.

"Commentary": Object and Spatial Visualization in Geosciences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kastens, Kim

2010-01-01

Cognitive science research shows that the brain has two systems for processing visual information, one specialized for spatial information such as position, orientation, and trajectory, and the other specialized for information used to identify objects, such as color, shape and texture. Some individuals seem to be more facile with the spatial…

Selected Sources on the Internet.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scott, Ralph Lee; And Others

1994-01-01

Five articles describe specific Internet resources, including geoscience and science databases; economic and statistical information; the JANET (Joint Academic Network) Bulletin Board for Librarians; and White House communications. A sixth article describes how practical applications of Internet information create new roles for reference…

Linking research, education and public engagement in geoscience: Leadership and strategic partnerships

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Laj, C. E.

2017-12-01

As a research scientist I have always been interested in sharing whatever I knew with the general public and with teachers, who have the responsibility of forming young people, our ambassadors to the future. The turning point in my educational activities was in 2002, when the European Geosciences Union (EGU) welcomed my proposition to develop a Committee on Education. One of the committee's main activities is the organisation of GIFT (Geosciences Information for Teachers) workshops, held annually during the EGU General Assembly. Typically, these workshops bring together about 80 teachers from 20-25 different countries around a general theme that changes every year. Teachers are offered a mixture of keynote presentations by renowned scientists, and participate to classroom hands-on activities led by high-class educators. They also participate to a poster session, open to every participant to the GA, in which they can show to everyone the activities they have developed in their classroom. Therefore, EGU GIFT workshops spread first-hand scientific information to science teachers, and also offer teachers an exceptional way to networking with fellow teachers worldwide. Speakers are chosen from the academic world, national geosciences organisations such as BGS (UK), BRGM (France), INGV (Italy), the European Space Agency (ESA), CEA (France), from private companies (Total), or from International Organizations for policy makers such as the International Energy Agency (IEA), and IPCC. Since 2010, EGU GIFT workshops have been organized beyond Europe, in connection with EGU Alexander von Humboldt Conferences and other major International Conferences, or in collaboration with local or international organisations. A `Teachers at Sea' program has also been developed for teachers to be able to take part in an Oceanographic cruise. Also, in collaboration with the media manager of EGU the Committee has participated in "Planet Press", a program of geoscience press releases for children.

The International Association for Promoting Geoethics: Mission, Organization, and Activities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kieffer, S. W.; Peppoloni, S.; Di Capua, G.

2017-12-01

The International Association for Promoting Geoethics (IAPG) was founded in 2012, during the 34th IGC in Brisbane (Australia), to provide a multidisciplinary platform for widening the discussion and creating awareness about principles and problems of ethics as applied to the geosciences. It is a scientific, non-governmental, non-political, non-profit, non-party institution, headquartered at the Italian Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology in Rome, Italy. IAPG focuses on behaviors and practices where human activities interact with the Earth system, and deals with the ethical, social and cultural implications of geoscience knowledge, education, research, practice and communication. Its goal is to enhance awareness of the social role and responsibility of geoscientists in conducting their activities such as geoeducation, sustainability, and risk prevention. IAPG is a legally recognized non-profit association with members in 115 countries on 5 continents, and currently has 26 national sections. As of the date of this abstract, IAPG has been involved with approximately 70 international meetings (scientific conferences, symposia, seminars, workshops, expositions, etc.). Other activities range from exchanging information with newsletters, blogs, social networks and publications; promoting the creation of working groups and encouraging the participation of geoscientists within universities and professional associations for the development of geoethics themes; and cooperating with national and international organizations whose aims are complementary, e.g., International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS), American Geosciences Institute (AGI), Geological Society of America (GSA), Geological Society of London (GSL), Geoscience Information in Africa - Network (GIRAF), American Geophysical Union (AGU), International Association for Engineering Geology and the Environment (IAEG), International Association of Hydrogeologists (IAH), Association of Environmental & Engineering Geologists (AEG), International Geoscience Education Organization (IGEO), etc. Finally, IAPG is involved in activities to disseminate geological knowledge in society through "ad hoc" events for the general public and courses for professionals and students. More about IAPG at www.geoethics.org.

The Place of Rock and Mineral Identification in Geoscience Programs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nicholls, J.

2011-12-01

Geoscience programs traditionally required a significant amount of class and laboratory time for students to learn to identify Earth materials: minerals, rocks, soils, and fossils. Two decades ago, courses devoted to the mineral sciences, mineralogy and petrology, constituted approximately 20% of a geoscience program. Today, they make up between 5% and 10% of the courses in such a program. Two decades ago students spent their laboratory time learning to identify Earth materials. Today, they do the same thing, even though the time set aside for students to achieve proficiency is limited. A typical learning objective for a geoscience program reads: Identify common Earth materials and interpret their composition, origin and uses. The three underlined words convey the essence of the objective: We ask students to identify and interpret common Earth materials, which begs the questions: Do the common Earth materials provide adequate information for interpreting the composition, origin, and use of Earth materials? Do modern curricula contain enough laboratory time for students to learn to identify Earth materials? Do all geoscientists need to be able to identify Earth materials? The assemblage kyanite plus sillimanite is crucial for interpreting metamorphic history yet they are not common minerals. The IUGS classification contains 179 rock names yet we expect students to identify only a handful of them. The upper mantle is dominated by peridotite yet do geophysicists need to be able to identify peridotite in order to study the upper mantle? All geoscientists should be able to interpret Earth materials, at least at some level, and deduce the information Earth materials provide about Earth history and processes. Only a subset of geoscientists needs to learn how to identify them. Identification skills can be learned in upper level courses designed for those who will become mineral scientists. Many of the interpretations derived from Earth materials can be learned in the lower level courses required of all geoscience students.

High-resolution computational ghost imaging and ghost diffraction through turbulence via a beam-shaping method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Luo, Chun-Ling; Zhuo, Ling-Qing

2017-01-01

Imaging through atmospheric turbulence is a topic with a long history and grand challenges still exist in the remote sensing and astro observation fields. In this letter, we try to propose a simple scheme to improve the resolution of imaging through turbulence based on the computational ghost imaging (CGI) and computational ghost diffraction (CGD) setup via the laser beam shaping techniques. A unified theory of CGI and CGD through turbulence with the multi-Gaussian shaped incoherent source is developed, and numerical examples are given to see clearly the effects of the system parameters to CGI and CGD. Our results show that the atmospheric effect to the CGI and CGD system is closely related to the propagation distance between the source and the object. In addition, by properly increasing the beam order of the multi-Gaussian source, we can improve the resolution of CGI and CGD through turbulence relative to the commonly used Gaussian source. Therefore our results may find applications in remote sensing and astro observation.

Role of Ovarian Transposition Based on the Dosimetric Effects of Craniospinal Irradiation on the Ovaries: A Case Report

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

Mitchell, James D.; Hitchen, Christine; Vlachaki, Maria T.

2007-10-01

In this study, we present a case of laparoscopic ovarian transposition to preserve ovarian function in an adult female patient treated with craniospinal irradiation for standard risk medulloblastoma. The prescribed dose to the craniospinal axis was 2340 cGy at 180 cGy per fraction and was delivered with 6-MV photons. Before ovarian transposition, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the pelvis was obtained for localization of the ovaries and was registered with the planning computed tomography (CT) scan. Surgical clips allowed for CT localization of the ovaries after transposition. As a result of ovarian transposition, mean and maximum radiation doses decreased frommore » 983 to 68 cGy and 1624 to 84 cGy for the left ovary and from 166 to 87 cGy and 723 to 103 cGy for the right ovary, respectively. Review of the literature indicates that such radiation doses are below the threshold that causes ovarian dysfunction and infertility. We conclude that ovarian localization with an MRI of the pelvis can be offered to females undergoing craniospinal irradiation. Transposition of the ovaries provides an option to preserve ovarian function in cases where the ovaries would otherwise be included within the radiation field.« less

Unique patterns of CpG island methylation in inflammatory bowel disease-associated colorectal cancers

PubMed Central

Olaru, Alexandru V.; Cheng, Yulan; Agarwal, Rachana; Yang, Jian; David, Stefan; Abraham, John M.; Yu, Wayne; Lazarev, Mark; Brant, Steven R.; Marohn, Michael R.; Hutcheon, David F.; Harpaz, Noam; Meltzer, Stephen J.; Mori, Yuriko

2011-01-01

Objective CpG island (CGI) hypermethylation at discrete loci is a prevalent cancer-promoting abnormality in sporadic colorectal carcinomas (S-CRCs). We investigated genome-wide CGI methylation in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)-associated CRCs (IBD-CRCs). Design Methylation microarray analyses were conducted on 7 IBD-CRCs, 17 S-CRCs, and 8 normal control colonic tissues from patients without CRC or IBD. CGI methylator phenotype (CIMP), a surrogate marker for widespread cancer-specific CGI hypermethylation, was examined in 30 IBD-CRCs and 43 S-CRCs. Results The genome-wide CGI methylation pattern of IBD-CRCs was CIMP status-dependent. Based on methylation array data profiling of all autosomal loci, CIMP+ IBD-CRCs grouped together with S-CRCs, while CIMP− IBD-CRCs grouped together with control tissues. CIMP− IBD-CRCs demonstrated less methylation than did age-matched CIMP− S-CRCs at all autosomal CGIs (z-score −0.17 vs. 0.09, p=3×10−3) and CRC-associated hypermethylation target CGIs (z-score −0.43 vs. 0.68, p=1×10-4). Age-associated hypermethylation target CGIs were significantly overrepresented in CGIs that were hypermethylated in S-CRCs (p=1×10−192), but not in CGIs that were hypermethylated in IBD-CRCs (p=0.11). In contrast, KRAS mutation prevalence were similar between IBD-CRCs and S-CRCs. Notably, CIMP+ prevalence was significantly higher in older than in younger IBD-CRC cases (4.2% vs. 50.0%, p=0.02), but not in S-CRC cases (16.7% vs. 9.7%, p=0.92). Conclusions Cancer-specific CGI hypermethylation and age-associated CGI hypermethylation are diminished in IBD-CRCs relative to S-CRCs, while KRAS mutation rate is comparable between these cancers. CGI hypermethylation appears to play only a minor role in IBD-associated carcinogenesis. We speculate that aging, rather than inflammation per se, promotes CIMP+ CRCs in IBD patients. PMID:21830278

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

Santoro, J; Witten, M; Haas, J

Purpose: Brachytherapy has been the standard of care for cervical cancer for 100 years. The treatment can be administered using an HDR (high dose rate) remote afterloader with a {sup 192}Ir source in an outpatient setting, a PDR afterloader with a {sup 192}Ir source, or with LDR manually loaded or a remote afterloader utilizing {sup 192}Ir or {sup 137}Cs sources in an inpatient setting. The procedure involves the placement of a tandem and ovoid, tandem and ring, or tandem and cylinder applicator in an operating room setting with the patient under general anesthesia. Inaccuracies introduced into the process occurring betweenmore » placement of the applicator and actual delivery can introduce uncertainty into the actual dose delivered to the tumor and critical organs. In this study we seek to investigate the dosimetric difference between an SBRT-based radiotherapy boost and conventional Brachytherapy in treating cervical cancer. Methods: Five HDR tandem and ovoid patients were planned using the Brachyvision treatment planning system and treated in four fractions using the Varian Varisource afterloader (Varian Medical Systems). For the same cohort, the patient planning CTs were imported into Multiplan (Accuray Inc) and a dose/fractionation-equivalent CyberKnife SBRT plan was retrospectively generated. Dosimetric quantities such as target/CTV D90, V90, D2cc for rectum, bladder, and bowel were measured and compared between the two modalities. Results: The CTV D90 for the tandem and ovoid was 2540cGy (90.7%) and 3009cGy (107.5%) for the CyberKnife plan. The D2cc for the rectum, bladder, and bowel were 1576cGy, 1641cGy, and 996cGy for the tandem and ovoid and 1374cGy, 1564cGy, and 1547cGy for CyberKnife. Conclusion: The D2cc doses to critical structures are comparable in both modalities. The CTV coverage is far superior for the CyberKnife plan. The dose distribution for CyberKnife has the advantage of increased conformality and lower maximum CTV dose.« less

XML — an opportunity for data standards in the geosciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Houlding, Simon W.

2001-08-01

Extensible markup language (XML) is a recently introduced meta-language standard on the Web. It provides the rules for development of metadata (markup) standards for information transfer in specific fields. XML allows development of markup languages that describe what information is rather than how it should be presented. This allows computer applications to process the information in intelligent ways. In contrast hypertext markup language (HTML), which fuelled the initial growth of the Web, is a metadata standard concerned exclusively with presentation of information. Besides its potential for revolutionizing Web activities, XML provides an opportunity for development of meaningful data standards in specific application fields. The rapid endorsement of XML by science, industry and e-commerce has already spawned new metadata standards in such fields as mathematics, chemistry, astronomy, multi-media and Web micro-payments. Development of XML-based data standards in the geosciences would significantly reduce the effort currently wasted on manipulating and reformatting data between different computer platforms and applications and would ensure compatibility with the new generation of Web browsers. This paper explores the evolution, benefits and status of XML and related standards in the more general context of Web activities and uses this as a platform for discussion of its potential for development of data standards in the geosciences. Some of the advantages of XML are illustrated by a simple, browser-compatible demonstration of XML functionality applied to a borehole log dataset. The XML dataset and the associated stylesheet and schema declarations are available for FTP download.

Making the Transition from Geoscience Geek to Policy Wonk

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rowan, L.

2013-12-01

Geoscientists are often drawn into policymaking, willingly or otherwise, because mapping a course of action for a specific outcome benefits from geoscientific expertise. Policy development, such as legislation or regulation regarding energy, water, minerals, soils, hazards, land use, and other Earth-based processes, is informed by the geosciences. Some geoscientists have moved fully into policymaking as full time policymakers for congressional offices, government agencies, think tanks, non-profits, foundations, industry, and other places. Geoscientists turned policymakers need good communication skills, patience, persistence, strategic forethought, agility, timing, an understanding of competing interests, and the courage to advance geoscientifically sound policy with the right people at the right time. Transitioning from the geeky world of geoscience to the wonky world of policy for a brief time or full time is possible, can be fulfilling as well as frustrating, and ultimately can have a profound impact on how society adapts to living with a dynamic Earth.

The Role of Geoscience Information in Reducing Catastrophic Loss Using a Web-Based Economics Experiment

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bernknopf, Richard L.; Brookshire, David S.; Ganderton, Philip T.

2003-01-01

What role can geoscience information play in the assessment of risk and the value of insurance, especially for natural hazard type risks? In an earlier, related paper Ganderton and others (2000) provided subjects with relatively simple geoscience information concerning natural hazard-type risks. Their research looked at how subjects purchase insurance when faced with relatively low probability but high loss risks of the kind that characterize natural hazards and now, increasingly, manmade disasters. They found evidence to support the expected utility theory (definitions of economics terms can be found in a glossary at the end of report), yet there remained the implication that subjects with excessive aversion to risk were willing to pay considerably more for insurance than the actuarially fair price plus any reasonable risk premium. Here, we report the results of additional experiments that provide further support for the basic postulates of expected utility theory. However, these new experiments add considerably to the decision environment facing subjects by offering an option to purchase geoscientific information that would assist them when calculating expected losses from hazards more accurately. Using an Internet-based mechanism to present information and gather data in an experimental setting, this research provided subjects with considerable textual and graphical information, and time to process it. Over a period of three months, almost 400 subjects participated in on-line experiments that generated approximately 22,000 usable data points for the empirical analysis discussed in this report. In the design of the experiment, we modeled the decisions to purchase (1) a detailed map giving subjects more information regarding the distribution of losses from a hazard and (2) insurance to indemnify them from any losses should they occur. On the basis of this design, we find strong evidence in support of the expected utility theory. Many of the findings reinforce those found in the early, similar study (Ganderton and others, 2000). However, this research also finds interactions between the decision to become better informed and the decision to insure. We chose an empirical framework that allows for both explicit and implicit (unobservable) correlations between the two decisions. The results suggest that at the end of the computer game subjects recognize the benefits of greater geoscience information. They take advantage of it, but are sensitive to its cost. When subjects use the more detailed information, they are more likely to purchase insurance when it offers a net benefit.

SU-E-T-365: Dosimetric Impact of Dental Amalgam CT Image Artifacts On IMRT and VMAT Head and Neck Plans

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

Cao, N; Young, L; Parvathaneni, U

Purpose: The presence of high density dental amalgam in patient CT image data sets causes dose calculation errors for head and neck (HN) treatment planning. This study assesses and compares dosimetric variations in IMRT and VMAT treatment plans due to dental artifacts. Methods: Sixteen HN patients with similar treatment sites (oropharynx), tumor volume and extensive dental artifacts were divided into two groups: IMRT (n=8, 6 to 9 beams) and VMAT (n=8, 2 arcs with 352° rotation). All cases were planned with the Pinnacle 9.2 treatment planning software using the collapsed cone convolution superposition algorithm and a range of prescription dosemore » from 60 to 72Gy. Two different treatment plans were produced, each based on one of two image sets: (a)uncorrected; (b)dental artifacts density overridden (set to 1.0g/cm{sup 3}). Differences between the two treatment plans for each of the IMRT and VMAT techniques were quantified by the following dosimetric parameters: maximum point dose, maximum spinal cord and brainstem dose, mean left and right parotid dose, and PTV coverage (V95%Rx). Average differences generated for these dosimetric parameters were compared between IMRT and VMAT plans. Results: The average absolute dose differences (plan a minus plan b) for the VMAT and IMRT techniques, respectively, caused by dental artifacts were: 2.2±3.3cGy vs. 37.6±57.5cGy (maximum point dose, P=0.15); 1.2±0.9cGy vs. 7.9±6.7cGy (maximum spinal cord dose, P=0.026); 2.2±2.4cGy vs. 12.1±13.0cGy (maximum brainstem dose, P=0.077); 0.9±1.1cGy vs. 4.1±3.5cGy (mean left parotid dose, P=0.038); 0.9±0.8cGy vs. 7.8±11.9cGy (mean right parotid dose, P=0.136); 0.021%±0.014% vs. 0.803%±1.44% (PTV coverage, P=0.17). Conclusion: For the HN plans studied, dental artifacts demonstrated a greater dose calculation error for IMRT plans compared to VMAT plans. Rotational arcs appear on the average to compensate dose calculation errors induced by dental artifacts. Thus, compared to VMAT, density overrides for dental artifacts are more important when planning IMRT of HN.« less

Facilitating Classroom Innovation in the Geosciences Through the NSF Transforming Undergraduate Education in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (TUES) Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Singer, J.; Ryan, J. G.

2012-12-01

The Transforming Undergraduate Education in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (TUES) program seeks to improve the quality of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education for all undergraduate students. Activities supported by the TUES program include the creation, adaptation, and dissemination of learning materials and teaching strategies, development of faculty expertise, implementation of educational innovations, and research on STEM teaching and learning. The TUES program especially encourages projects that have the potential to transform undergraduate STEM education and active dissemination and building a community of users are critical components of TUES projects. To raise awareness about the TUES program and increase both the quality and quantity of proposals submitted by geoscientists to the program, information sessions and proposal writing retreats are being conducted. Digital resources developed especially for the geosciences community are available at www.buffalostate.edu/RTUGeoEd to share information about the TUES program and the many ways this NSF program supports innovation in geoscience education. This presentation also addresses identified impediments to submitting a TUES proposal and strategies for overcoming reasons discouraging geoscientists from preparing a proposal and/or resubmitting a declined proposal.

Constructing Uniform Resource Locators (URLs) for Searching the Marine Realms Information Bank

USGS Publications Warehouse

Linck, Guthrie A.; Allwardt, Alan O.; Lightsom, Frances L.

2009-01-01

The Marine Realms Information Bank (MRIB) is a digital library that provides access to free online scientific information about the oceans and coastal regions. To search its collection, MRIB uses a Common Gateway Interface (CGI) program, which allows automated search requests using Uniform Resource Locators (URLs). This document provides an overview of how to construct URLs to execute MRIB queries. The parameters listed allow detailed control of which records are retrieved, how they are returned, and how their display is formatted.

Website Resources and Support for Two-Year College Geoscience Educators

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McDaris, J. R.; Macdonald, H.; Blodgett, R. H.; Manduca, C. A.; Maier, M.

2011-12-01

Geoscience faculty at two-year colleges (2YC) face a number of challenges, from the wide diversity of the student population to being isolated from other geoscience faculty. Several projects have developed web resources that address some of these issues by providing professional development, teaching materials, and opportunities to connect with their colleagues at other institutions. The Role of Two-Year Colleges in Geoscience Education and in Broadening Participation in the Geosciences project brought together 2YC faculty from across the country for a planning workshop to discuss these issues and propose strategies and mechanisms to strengthen the 2YC geoscience education community (http://serc.carleton.edu/geo2yc/index.html). The website now hosts more than 30 essays on the state of 2YC education, teaching activities, and course descriptions submitted by 2YC faculty as well as an email discussion list and other ways of networking and discussing important. One outcome of this work is that the National Association of Geoscience Teachers has created a division for 2YC faculty so that members can network with each other and discuss solutions to pressing issues. (http://nagt.org/nagt/divisions/2yc/index.html) The On the Cutting Edge program has an array of professional development resources available (http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/). Over its decade of work, the program has developed resources on topics of interest to 2YC faculty including: teaching introductory courses, the affective domain, teaching with data, metacognition, online courses, teaching about hazards, and many others. There are also extensive collections of teaching activities and visualizations. In addition, the program continues to hold face-to-face and virtual professional development workshops and webinars that are accessible to 2YC faculty and can help them feel less isolated The Starting Point: Teaching Introductory Geoscience (http://serc.carleton.edu/introgeo) website is specifically aimed at all those teaching introductory classes, including two-year college faculty. This website includes information about a variety of teaching strategies (e.g., lecture tutorials, service learning, just-in-time teaching) and a set of geoscience teaching examples. This is valuable for faculty interested in new approaches to teaching or who want to see examples of activities they can adopt or adapt. The interdisciplinary project Two-year College Outreach Across the Disciplines (http://serc.carleton.edu/econ/2yc/disciplines/index.html) summarizes best practices in nine disciplines, including the geosciences. At a 2011 workshop, sponsored by Economics at Community Colleges, faculty compared notes on what has worked and what hasn't in terms of strengthening disciplinary and interdisciplinary education at 2YCs. (http://serc.carleton.edu/econ/2yc/index.html) These and other projects have developed resources for supporting and enhancing the efforts of two-year college faculty in the geosciences. A variety of these materials is available via the Teach the Earth portal at http://serc.carleton.edu/teachearth/.

Oxidative Stress and Skeletal Health with Low-Dose, Low-LET (Linear Energy Transfer) Ionizing Radiation

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

Globus, Ruth K.

We performed in vivo and in vitro experiments to accomplish the following specific aims of this project: 1) determine if low dose, low LET radiation affects skeletal remodeling at structural, cellular and molecular levels and 2) determine if low dose, low LET radiation modulates skeletal health during aging via oxidative mechanisms. A third aim is supported by NASA supplement to this DOE grant focusing on the influence of high LET radiation on bone. A series of experiments were conducted at the NASA Space Radiation Laboratory at Brookhaven, NSRL-BNL, using iron (56Fe) or a sequential exposure to protons / iron /more » protons, and separate experiments at NASA Ames Research Center (ARC) using 137Cs. The following provides a summary of key findings. (1) Exposure of nine-week old female mice to priming doses of gamma radiation (10cGy x 5) did not significantly affect bone volume/total volume (BV/TV) or microarchitecture as analyzed by 3D microcomputed tomography. As expected, exposure to the challenge dose of 2 Gy gamma irradiation resulted in significant decreases in BV/TV. The priming dose combined with the 2Gy challenge dose had no further effect on BV/TV compared to challenge dose alone, with the sole exception of the Structural Model Index (SMI). SMI reflects the ratio of rods-to-plates in cancellous bone tissue, such that higher SMI values indicate a tendency toward a weaker structure compared to lower SMI values. Mice treated with both priming and challenge dose had 25% higher SMI values compared to sham-irradiated controls and 7% higher values compared to mice treated with the challenge dose alone. Thus, although this priming regimen had relatively modest effects on cancellous tissue, the difference in SMI suggests this fractionated priming doses have adverse, rather than beneficial, effects on bone structure. (2) In 10-week old male mice, a single exposure to 100cGy of 137Cs reduces trabecular bone number and connectivity density by 20% and 36% respectively one month after irradiation (IR). At four months post-IR, these animals were comparable to sham-treated controls with regards to the abovementioned structural parameters. Irradation at 1 or 10 cGy did not result in any significant changes in bone structural parameters. (3) Irradiation of 16-wk old male mice with high doses of 56Fe or proton (50 or 200cGy), but not at low doses (5 or 10cGy), showed a similar loss of cancellous BV/TV and trabecular number at five weeks post-IR. (4) Age-related bone loss overtook acute radiation-induced decrements in bone structure within four months post-IR with 100 cGy gamma and 12 months post-IR with 200 cGy iron. Transgenic mice globally overexpressing human catalase gene in mitochondria did not exhibit cancellous bone loss as assessed at four month post-IR with 10 cGy proton, 50 cGy iron, or in combination. (5) The cellular and molecular mechanisms responsible for loss of bone with radiation are mediated primarily through increased osteoclastogenesis. Our data provide evidence that there are increases in gene expression of TNF alpha and MCP1 in the bone marrow cells 24 hours post-IR and of osteoclastogenic differentiation factor RANKL by day 3. These cytokines in the marrow may stimulate mature osteoclasts or drive osteoclastogenesis from precursors. (6) Osteoblastogenesis from marrow progenitors evaluated ex vivo decreased following whole body 56Fe irradiation at a dose threshold between 20 and 50 cGy whereas osteoclastogenesis ex vivo increased with doses as low as 10cGy two days post-IR of mice. However, the latter finding was not observed in more than a single experiment. (7) Gamma irradiation of cells in vitro requires relatively high doses (200cGy) to disturb normal osteoblastogenesis and osteoclastogenesis as evidenced by decrements in mineralized nodule formation, osteoclast counts, and expression of osteoblast related genes such as runx2, col1a1. (8) We also investigated the effect of antioxidants on osteoblastogenesis following low dose in vitro gamma irradiation (15cGy) on day four bone marrow stromal cell cultures. Superoxide dismutase (SOD) was added to the cell culture medium for 2 or 3 days post-irradiation and cell colonies were counted on days 7 and 10. SOD treatment increased cell growth as measured by DNA content and colony forming units (CFU) in both irradiated cells and 0 cGy control groups. However, low dose radiation of 15cGy abolished SOD stimulatory effects on cell growth and CFU number. These results suggest that exogenous SOD increases osteoblast cell growth and colony formation and that low-dose radiation (15cGy) can interfere with the antioxidant effects. In summary, our findings indicate that acute, whole body irradiation at high doses (50-200 cGy) results in prompt tissue degradation and bone loss. Lower doses (<50 cGy) do not cause bone structural deterioration but may deplete stem/progenitor cell pools in the bone marrow.« less

Sandia National Laboratories: Careers: Hiring Process

Science.gov Websites

Suppliers iSupplier Account Accounts Payable Contract Information Construction & Facilities Contract Foundations Bioscience Computing & Information Science Electromagnetics Engineering Science Geoscience notifications. Visit our Careers tool to search for jobs and register for an account. Registering will enable

Using Scientific Visualizations to Enhance Scientific Thinking In K-12 Geoscience Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Robeck, E.

2016-12-01

The same scientific visualizations, animations, and images that are powerful tools for geoscientists can serve an important role in K-12 geoscience education by encouraging students to communicate in ways that help them develop habits of thought that are similar to those used by scientists. Resources such as those created by NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio (SVS), which are intended to inform researchers and the public about NASA missions, can be used in classrooms to promote thoughtful, engaged learning. Instructional materials that make use of those visualizations have been developed and are being used in K-12 classrooms in ways that demonstrate the vitality of the geosciences. For example, the Center for Geoscience and Society at the American Geosciences Institute (AGI) helped to develop a publication that outlines an inquiry-based approach to introducing students to the interpretation of scientific visualizations, even when they have had little to no prior experience with such media. To facilitate these uses, the SVS team worked with Center staff and others to adapt the visualizations, primarily by removing most of the labels and annotations. Engaging with these visually compelling resources serves as an invitation for students to ask questions, interpret data, draw conclusions, and make use of other processes that are key components of scientific thought. This presentation will share specific resources for K-12 teaching (all of which are available online, from NASA, and/or from AGI), as well as the instructional principles that they incorporate.

Collaboration and Perspectives on Identity Management and Access from two Geoscience Cyberinfrastructure Programs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ramamurthy, M. K.

2016-12-01

Increasingly, the conduct of science requires close international collaborations to share data, information, knowledge, expertise, and other resources. This is particularly true in the geosciences where the highly connected nature of the Earth system and the need to understand global environmental processes have heightened the importance of scientific partnerships. As geoscience studies become a team effort involving networked scientists and data providers, it is crucial that there is open and reliable access to earth system data of all types, software, tools, models, and other assets. That environment demands close attention to security-related matters, including the creation of trustworthy cyberinfrastructure to facilitate the efficient use of available resources and support the conduct of science. Unidata and EarthCube, both of which are NSF-funded and community-driven programs, recognize the importance of collaborations and the value of networked communities. Unidata, a cornerstone cyberinfrastructure facility for the geosciences, includes users in nearly 180 countries. The EarthCube initiative is aimed at transforming the conduct of geosciences research by creating a well-connected and facile environment for sharing data and in an open, transparent, and inclusive manner and to accelerate our ability to understand and predict the Earth system. We will present the Unidata and EarthCube community perspectives on the approaches to balancing an environment that promotes open and collaborative eScience with the needs for security and communication, including what works, what is needed, the challenges, and opportunities to advance science.

76 FR 22625 - Reporting of Security Issues

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-04-22

...) Accessing the Government Printing Office's Web page at http://www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/index.html ; or (3... violations, threat information or criminal activities, vulnerabilities and intelligence was put in place...://data.bls.gov/cgi-bin/print.pl/oes/2009/may/naics2_48-49.htm and http://www.bls.gov/cpi/cpid1012.pdf...

GIS prospectivity mapping and 3D modeling validation for potential uranium deposit targets in Shangnan district, China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xie, Jiayu; Wang, Gongwen; Sha, Yazhou; Liu, Jiajun; Wen, Botao; Nie, Ming; Zhang, Shuai

2017-04-01

Integrating multi-source geoscience information (such as geology, geophysics, geochemistry, and remote sensing) using GIS mapping is one of the key topics and frontiers in quantitative geosciences for mineral exploration. GIS prospective mapping and three-dimensional (3D) modeling can be used not only to extract exploration criteria and delineate metallogenetic targets but also to provide important information for the quantitative assessment of mineral resources. This paper uses the Shangnan district of Shaanxi province (China) as a case study area. GIS mapping and potential granite-hydrothermal uranium targeting were conducted in the study area combining weights of evidence (WofE) and concentration-area (C-A) fractal methods with multi-source geoscience information. 3D deposit-scale modeling using GOCAD software was performed to validate the shapes and features of the potential targets at the subsurface. The research results show that: (1) the known deposits have potential zones at depth, and the 3D geological models can delineate surface or subsurface ore-forming features, which can be used to analyze the uncertainty of the shape and feature of prospectivity mapping at the subsurface; (2) single geochemistry anomalies or remote sensing anomalies at the surface require combining the depth exploration criteria of geophysics to identify potential targets; and (3) the single or sparse exploration criteria zone with few mineralization spots at the surface has high uncertainty in terms of the exploration target.

Mathematics Prerequisites for Introductory Geoscience Courses: Using Technology to Help Solve the Problem

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Burn, H. E.; Wenner, J. M.; Baer, E. M.

2011-12-01

The quantitative components of introductory geoscience courses can pose significant barriers to students. Many academic departments respond by stripping courses of their quantitative components or by attaching prerequisite mathematics courses [PMC]. PMCs cause students to incur additional costs and credits and may deter enrollment in introductory courses; yet, stripping quantitative content from geoscience courses masks the data-rich, quantitative nature of geoscience. Furthermore, the diversity of math skills required in geoscience and students' difficulty with transferring mathematical knowledge across domains suggest that PMCs may be ineffective. Instead, this study explores an alternative strategy -- to remediate students' mathematical skills using online modules that provide students with opportunities to build contextual quantitative reasoning skills. The Math You Need, When You Need It [TMYN] is a set of modular online student resources that address mathematical concepts in the context of the geosciences. TMYN modules are online resources that employ a "just-in-time" approach - giving students access to skills and then immediately providing opportunities to apply them. Each module places the mathematical concept in multiple geoscience contexts. Such an approach illustrates the immediate application of a principle and provides repeated exposure to a mathematical skill, enhancing long-term retention. At the same time, placing mathematics directly in several geoscience contexts better promotes transfer of learning by using similar discourse (words, tools, representations) and context that students will encounter when applying mathematics in the future. This study uses quantitative and qualitative data to explore the effectiveness of TMYN modules in remediating students' mathematical skills. Quantitative data derive from ten geoscience courses that used TMYN modules during the fall 2010 and spring 2011 semesters; none of the courses had a PMC. In all courses, students completed a pretest, the assigned modules, and a posttest. Success in remediation was measured using normalized gain scores, which measures the change in score divided by the maximum possible increase: (posttest-pretest)/(1-pretest). To compare across courses, normalized gain scores were standardized. Additional analysis included disaggregating normalized gain scores by quartiles based on pretest scores. The results were supplemented by qualitative data from faculty interviews and information provided by faculty on a web form upon completion of the course. Results suggest TMYN modules remediate mathematical skills effectively, and that normalized gains tend to be higher for students in the lower quartiles on the pretest. Students indicate finding the modules helpful, though sometimes difficult. Faculty interview data triangulate these findings and provide further evidence that online, modularized remediation is an effective alternative to assigning prerequisite mathematical courses to remediate mathematical skills.

A Community Roadmap for Discovery of Geosciences Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baru, C.

2012-12-01

This talk will summarize on-going discussions and deliberations related to data discovery undertaken as part of the EarthCube initiative and in the context of current trends and technologies in search and discovery of scientific data and information. The goal of the EarthCube initiative is to transform the conduct of research by supporting the development of community-guided cyberinfrastructure to integrate data and information for knowledge management across the Geosciences. The vision of EarthCube is to provide a coherent framework for finding and using information about the Earth system across the entire research enterprise that will allow for substantial improved collaboration between specialties using each other's data (e.g. subdomains of geo- and biological sciences). Indeed, data discovery is an essential prerequisite to any action that an EarthCube user would undertake. The community roadmap activity addresses challenges in data discovery, beginning with an assessment of the state-of-the-art, and then identifying issues, challenges, and risks in reaching the data discovery vision. Many of the lessons learned are general and applicable not only to the geosciences but also to a variety of other science communities. The roadmap considers data discovery issues in Geoscience that include but are not limited to metadata-based discovery and the use of semantic information and ontologies; content-based discovery and integration with data mining activities; integration with data access services; and policy and governance issues. Furthermore, many geoscience use cases require access to heterogeneous data from multiple disciplinary sources in order to analyze and make intelligent connections between data to advance research frontiers. Examples include, say, assessing the rise of sea surface temperatures; modeling geodynamical earth systems from deep time to present; or, examining in detail the causes and consequences of global climate change. It has taken the past one to two decades for the community to arrive at a few commonly understood and commonly agreed upon standards for metadata and services. There have been significant advancements in the development of prototype systems in the area of metadata-based data discovery, including efforts such as OpenDAP and THREDDS catalogs, the GEON Portal and Catalog Services (www.geongrid.org), OGC standards, and development of systems like OneGeology (onegeology.org), the USGIN (usgin.org), the Earth System Grid, and EOSDIS. Such efforts have set the stage now for the development of next generation, production-quality, advanced discovery services. The next challenge is in converting these into robust, sustained services for the community and developing capabilities such as content-based search and ontology-enabled search, and ensuring that the long tail of geoscience data are fully included in any future discovery services. As EarthCube attempts to pursue these challenges, the key question to pose is whether we will be able to establish a cultural environment that is able to sustain, extend, and manage an infrastructure that will last 50, 100 years?

Visualization of semantic relations in geosicences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ritschel, Bernd; Pfeiffer, Sabine; Mende, Vivien

2010-05-01

The discovery of semantic relations related to the content and context of scientific geophysical and geodetic data and information is a fundamental concept for an integrated scientific approach for the research of multidisciplinary and complex questions of the permanent changing Earth system. Large high-quality and multi-domain geosciences datasets which are qualified by significant and standardized metadata describing the content and especially the context of the data are suitable for the search and discovery of semantic relations. Nowadays such data collections are ingested and provided by many national and international geoscientific data centers, such as e.g. the GFZ ISDC(1). Beside automatic and machine-based algorithm for the discovery of semantic relations, the graphical visualization of such relations are extremely capable for scientist in order to analyze complex datasets and to find sophisticated relations as well as for the public in order to understand the relations within geosciences and between geosciences and societal domains. There are different tools for the visualization of relations, especially in the object-oriented based analysis and development of systems and software. The tool eyePlorer(2) is an awarded program for the visualization of multi-domain semantic relations in the public world of Wikipedia. The data and information for the visualization of keyword based terms and concepts within one domain or topic as well as the relations to other topics are mainly based on wiki content and appropriate structures. eyePlorer's main topics structured and combined in super topics are Health, Species and Life Sciences, Persons and Organisations, Work and Society, Science & Technology as well as Time and Places. Considering the domains or topics of the conceptual model of the GFZ ISDC's data collection, such topics as geosciences-related project, platform, instrument, product type, publication and institution as well as space and time are disjunct and complement sets or subsets or intersections of eyePlorer's topics. The introduction of new topics and the enhancement of the conceptual data model of the eyePlorer as well as the transformation of GFZ ISDC's metadata into a wiki structure or into eyePlorer's internal data format are necessary for the use in eyePlorer for the visualization of geosciences and societal relations based on both, the Wikipedia information collection and the GFZ ISDC metadata. This paper deals with the analysis of eyePlorer's and GFZ ISDC's concepts for the creation of an integrated conceptual model. Furthermore, the transformation model for the conversion of ISDC's metadata into appropriate structures for the use of eyePlorer is described. Finally, the process of semantic visualization of geosciences and societal relations within eyePlorer and using eyePlorer's GUI are illustrated on a climate research related example which is capable to generate knowledge not only for geoscientists but also for the public. (1) GFZ ISDC: GFZ Information System and Data Center, http://isdc.gfz-potsdam.de (2) eyePlorer: http://en.eyeplorer.com/show/

Geology’s “Super Graphics” and the Public: Missed Opportunities for Geoscience Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Clary, R. M.; Wandersee, J. H.

2009-12-01

The geosciences are very visual, as demonstrated by the illustration density of maps, graphs, photographs, and diagrams in introductory textbooks. As geoscience students progress, they are further exposed to advanced graphics, such as phase diagrams and subsurface seismic data visualizations. Photographs provide information from distant sites, while multivariate graphics supply a wealth of data for viewers to access. When used effectively, geology graphics have exceptional educational potential. However, geological graphic data are often presented in specialized formats, and are not easily interpreted by an uninformed viewer. In the Howe-Russell Geoscience Complex at Louisiana State University, there is a very large graphic (~ 30 ft x 6 ft) exhibited in a side hall, immediately off the main entrance hall. The graphic, divided into two obvious parts, displays in its lower section seismic data procured in the Gulf of Mexico, from near offshore Louisiana to the end of the continental shelf. The upper section of the graphic reveals drilling block information along the seismic line. Using Tufte’s model of graphic excellence and Paivio’s dual-coding theory, we analyzed the graphic in terms of data density, complexity, legibility, format, and multivariate presentation. We also observed viewers at the site on 5 occasions, and recorded their interactions with the graphic. This graphic can best be described as a Tufte “super graphic.” Its data are high in density and multivariate in nature. Various data sources are combined in a large format to provide a powerful example of a multitude of information within a convenient and condensed presentation. However, our analysis revealed that the graphic misses an opportunity to educate the non-geologist. The information and seismic “language” of the graphic is specific to the geology community, and the information is not interpreted for the lay viewer. The absence of title, descriptions, and symbol keys are detrimental. Terms are not defined. The absence of color keys and annotations is more likely to lead to an appreciation of graphic beauty, without concomitant scientific understanding. We further concluded that in its current location, constraints of space and reflective lighting prohibit the viewer from simultaneously accessing all subsurface data in a “big picture” view. The viewer is not able to fully comprehend the macro/micro aspects of the graphic design within the limited viewing space. The graphic is an example of geoscience education possibility, a possibility that is currently undermined and unrealized by lack of interpretation. Our analysis subsequently informed the development of a model to maximize the graphic’s educational potential, which can be applied to similar geological super graphics for enhanced public scientific understanding. Our model includes interactive displays that apply the auditory-visual dual coding approach to learning. Notations and aural explanations for geological features should increase viewer understanding, and produce an effective informal educational display.

Geoscientific Vocabularies and Linked Data at The British Geological Survey - progress and pragmatism

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McCormick, T.; Heaven, R.

2013-12-01

The British Geological Survey makes extensive use of controlled vocabularies to promote standardisation and interoperability between its databases and other digital information systems. Many of our vocabularies are published and searchable at http://www.bgs.ac.uk/data/vocabularies/home.html/. There is a movement to ';open up' government data in both the US and UK. In the UK this is promoted by data.gov.uk. Some view linked data as the best way to share and connect disparate data, information and knowledge, in order to develop a ';Web of Data'. Linked data facilitate connections between data sets, and lower the barriers to accessing data that must otherwise be discovered and exploited using other methods. Recently there has been a rapid increase in the rate of publication of linked data, this increase currently being estimated at 300% per year. In the past 2 years we have undertaken a pilot study to publish some of our authoritative vocabularies as linked data. This study has focussed primarily on publishing BGS' 1:625 000 scale geologic map data for the UK, supported by development of linked data sets for: Earth materials - based on the BGS Rock Classification Scheme; lithostratigraphy - based on the BGS Lexicon of Named Rock Units; and geochronology - based on the International Commission on Stratigraphy. The BGS linked data sets are published at data.bgs.ac.uk. We have learned a number of lessons about the potential and limitations of linked data and associated technologies. We do not envisage SPARQL endpoints being the primary route for public access to linked data because the user would require technical knowledge of the data structure, and because it can be a security threat. Rather, SPARQL may lie behind a user-friendly API. Federated SPARQL queries that can interrogate distributed data sources are in reality too slow, and in practise the data sets would likely be combined in a single store. The data sets in our pilot study are all reasonably static and we solve performance and security issues by serving the linked data as pre-generated static files in a range of formats rather than using a triple-store. This also allows the data to be indexed by search engines. Wherever possible it is good practice to use predicates from well-known published sources, for example RDFS, SKOS, or Dublin Core, in preference to inventing new ones. This promotes re-use of the linked data by as many potential users as possible. Linked data do not directly address logical inference, which is supposed to be one of the aims of the ';Semantic Web'. This sort of ';calculating with knowledge' must be implemented using additional, possibly human-based rather than mechanical, reasoning. Linked data come with all the same issues surrounding provenance and authority of the data that any web resource is subject to. There are issues surrounding versioning and permanence of URIs. Our work on publishing BGS' vocabularies as linked data is proceeding in parallel with our work with the Commission of Geoscience Information (CGI) Geoscience Terminology Working Group which is jointly developing multilingual vocabularies in range of knowledge domains.

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

Safigholi, Habib; Meigooni, A S.; University of Nevada Las Vegas

Purpose: Recently, different applicators are designed for treatment of the skin cancer such as scalp and legs, using Ir-192 HDR Brachytherapy Sources (IR-HDRS), Miniature Electronic Brachytherapy Sources (MEBXS), and External Electron Beam Radiation Therapy (EEBRT). Although, all of these methodologies may deliver the desired radiation dose to the skin, the dose to the underlying bone may become the limiting factor for selection of the optimum treatment technique. In this project the radiation dose delivered to the underlying bone has been evaluated as a function of the radiation source and thickness of the underlying bone. Methods: MC simulations were performed usingmore » MCNP5 code. In these simulations, the mono-energetic and non-divergent photon beams of 30 keV, 50 keV, and 70 keV for MEBXS, 380 keV photons for IR-HDRS, and 6 MeV mono-energetic electron beam for EEBRT were modeled. A 0.5 cm thick soft tissue (0.3 cm skin and 0.2 cm adipose) with underlying 0.5 cm cortical bone followed by 14 cm soft tissue are utilized for simulations. Results: Dose values to bone tissue as a function of beam energy and beam type, for a delivery of 5000 cGy dose to skin, were compared. These results indicate that for delivery of 5000 cGy dose to the skin surface with 30 keV, 50 keV, 70 keV of MEBXS, IR-HDRS, and EEBRT techniques, bone will receive 31750 cGy, 27450 cGy, 18550 cGy, 4875 cGy, and 10450 cGy, respectively. Conclusion: The results of these investigations indicate that, for delivery of the same skin dose, average doses received by the underlying bone are 5.2 and 2.2 times larger with a 50 keV MEBXS and EEBRT techniques than IR-HDRS, respectively.« less

Comparison in vivo Study of Genotoxic Action of High- Versus Very Low Dose-Rate γ-Irradiation

PubMed Central

Osipov, A. N.; Klokov, D. Y.; Elakov, A. L.; Rozanova, O. M.; Zaichkina, S. I.; Aptikaeva, G. F.; Akhmadieva, A. Kh.

2004-01-01

The aim of the present study was to compare genotoxicity induced by high- versus very low dose-rate exposure of mice to γ-radiation within a dose range of 5 to 61 cGy using the single-cell gel electrophoresis (comet) assay and the micronucleus test. CBA/lac male mice were irradiated at a dose rate of 28.2 Gy/h (high dose rate) or 0.07 mGy/h (very low dose rate). The comet assay study on spleen lymphocytes showed that very low dose-rate irradiation resulted in a statistically significant increase in nucleoid relaxation (DNA breaks), starting from a dose of 20 cGy. Further prolongation of exposure time and, hence, increase of a total dose did not, however, lead to further increase in the extent of nucleoid relaxation. Doses of 20 and 61 cGy were equal in inducing DNA breaks in mouse spleen lymphocytes as assayed by the comet assay. Of note, the level of DNA damage by 20–61 cGy doses of chronic irradiation (0.07 mGy/h) was similar to that an induced by an acute (28.2 Gy/h) dose of 14 cGy. The bone marrow micronucleus test revealed that an increase in polychromatic erythrocytes with micronuclei over a background level was induced by very low-level γ-irradiation with a dose of 61 cGy only, with the extent of the cytogenetic effect being similar to that of 10 cGy high-dose-rate exposure. In summary, presented results support the hypothesis of the nonlinear threshold nature of mutagenic action of chronic low dose-rate irradiation. PMID:19330145

A norepinephrine-responsive miRNA directly promotes CgHSP90AA1 expression in oyster haemocytes during desiccation.

PubMed

Chen, Hao; Xin, Lusheng; Song, Xiaorui; Wang, Lin; Wang, Weilin; Liu, Zhaoqun; Zhang, Huan; Wang, Lingling; Zhou, Zhi; Qiu, Limei; Song, Linsheng

2017-05-01

Oyster Crassostrea gigas is one model mollusc inhabiting in the intertidal zone and is frequently stressed by desiccation. The adaptation mechanism of oyster to environmental stress involves multiple levels, and miRNA is one of the most important regulators in post-transcriptional level. In the present study, an oyster norepinephrine-responsive miRNA cgi-miR-365 was proved to contribute to the host adaptation against desiccation by directly promoting the expression of CgHSP90AA1. Briefly, a significant increase of cgi-miR-365 was observed from the first day after aerial exposure and the up-regulation was vigorously repressed when oysters were injected with adrenoceptors antagonists. A total of 15 genes involved in biological regulation, metabolic process and response to stimulus were predicted to be modulated by cgi-miR-365. Among these genes, CgHSP90AA1 was up-regulated significantly during desiccation and could be down-regulated after simultaneous injection of adrenoceptors antagonists. The interaction between cgi-miR-365 and CgHSP90AA1 was subsequently verified in vitro, and a significant promotion of CgHSP90AA1 transcripts was observed after overexpressing cgi-miR-365 in either in vitro luciferase reporter assay or primarily cultured haemocytes. Meanwhile, CgHSP90AA1 transcripts decreased in vivo when cgi-miR-365 was repressed by its inhibitor during desiccation. Collectively, it was suggested that cgi-miR-365 could be induced by norepinephrine during desiccation and promote CgHSP90AA1 expression directly after binding to its 3'-UTR, which would provide new evidence in miRNA-mediated adaptation mechanism in oysters against intertidal stress. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Ki-1/57 and CGI-55 ectopic expression impact cellular pathways involved in proliferation and stress response regulation.

PubMed

Costa, Fernanda C; Saito, Angela; Gonçalves, Kaliandra A; Vidigal, Pedro M; Meirelles, Gabriela V; Bressan, Gustavo C; Kobarg, Jörg

2014-12-01

Ki-1/57 (HABP4) and CGI-55 (SERBP1) are regulatory proteins and paralogs with 40.7% amino acid sequence identity and 67.4% similarity. Functionally, they have been implicated in the regulation of gene expression on both the transcriptional and mRNA metabolism levels. A link with tumorigenesis is suggested, since both paralogs show altered expression levels in tumor cells and the Ki-1/57 gene is found in a region of chromosome 9q that represents a haplotype for familiar colon cancer. However, the target genes regulated by Ki-1/57 and CGI-55 are unknown. Here, we analyzed the alterations of the global transcriptome profile after Ki-1/57 or CGI-55 overexpression in HEK293T cells by DNA microchip technology. We were able to identify 363 or 190 down-regulated and 50 or 27 up-regulated genes for Ki-1/57 and CGI-55, respectively, of which 20 were shared between both proteins. Expression levels of selected genes were confirmed by qRT-PCR both after protein overexpression and siRNA knockdown. The majority of the genes with altered expression were associated to proliferation, apoptosis and cell cycle control processes, prompting us to further explore these contexts experimentally. We observed that overexpression of Ki-1/57 or CGI-55 results in reduced cell proliferation, mainly due to a G1 phase arrest, whereas siRNA knockdown of CGI-55 caused an increase in proliferation. In the case of Ki-1/57 overexpression, we found protection from apoptosis after treatment with the ER-stress inducer thapsigargin. Together, our data give important new insights that may help to explain these proteins putative involvement in tumorigenic events. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Developing Geoscience Students' Quantitative Skills

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Manduca, C. A.; Hancock, G. S.

2005-12-01

Sophisticated quantitative skills are an essential tool for the professional geoscientist. While students learn many of these sophisticated skills in graduate school, it is increasingly important that they have a strong grounding in quantitative geoscience as undergraduates. Faculty have developed many strong approaches to teaching these skills in a wide variety of geoscience courses. A workshop in June 2005 brought together eight faculty teaching surface processes and climate change to discuss and refine activities they use and to publish them on the Teaching Quantitative Skills in the Geosciences website (serc.Carleton.edu/quantskills) for broader use. Workshop participants in consultation with two mathematics faculty who have expertise in math education developed six review criteria to guide discussion: 1) Are the quantitative and geologic goals central and important? (e.g. problem solving, mastery of important skill, modeling, relating theory to observation); 2) Does the activity lead to better problem solving? 3) Are the quantitative skills integrated with geoscience concepts in a way that makes sense for the learning environment and supports learning both quantitative skills and geoscience? 4) Does the methodology support learning? (e.g. motivate and engage students; use multiple representations, incorporate reflection, discussion and synthesis) 5) Are the materials complete and helpful to students? 6) How well has the activity worked when used? Workshop participants found that reviewing each others activities was very productive because they thought about new ways to teach and the experience of reviewing helped them think about their own activity from a different point of view. The review criteria focused their thinking about the activity and would be equally helpful in the design of a new activity. We invite a broad international discussion of the criteria(serc.Carleton.edu/quantskills/workshop05/review.html).The Teaching activities can be found on the Teaching Quantitative Skills in the Geosciences website (serc.Carleton.edu/quantskills/). In addition to the teaching activity collection (85 activites), this site contains a variety of resources to assist faculty with the methods they use to teach quantitative skills at both the introductory and advanced levels; information about broader efforts in quantitative literacy involving other science disciplines, and a special section of resources for students who are struggling with their quantitative skills. The site is part of the Digital Library for Earth Science Education and has been developed by geoscience faculty in collaboration with mathematicians and mathematics educators with funding from the National Science Foundation.

Building Strong Geoscience Departments Through the Visiting Workshop Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ormand, C. J.; Manduca, C. A.; Macdonald, H.; Bralower, T. J.; Clemens-Knott, D.; Doser, D. I.; Feiss, P. G.; Rhodes, D. D.; Richardson, R. M.; Savina, M. E.

2011-12-01

The Building Strong Geoscience Departments project focuses on helping geoscience departments adapt and prosper in a changing and challenging environment. From 2005-2009, the project offered workshop programs on topics such as student recruitment, program assessment, preparing students for the workforce, and strengthening geoscience programs. Participants shared their departments' challenges and successes. Building on best practices and most promising strategies from these workshops and on workshop leaders' experiences, from 2009-2011 the project ran a visiting workshop program, bringing workshops to 18 individual departments. Two major strengths of the visiting workshop format are that it engages the entire department in the program, fostering a sense of shared ownership and vision, and that it focuses on each department's unique situation. Departments applied to have a visiting workshop, and the process was highly competitive. Selected departments chose from a list of topics developed through the prior workshops: curriculum and program design, program elements beyond the curriculum, recruiting students, preparing students for the workforce, and program assessment. Two of our workshop leaders worked with each department to customize and deliver the 1-2 day programs on campus. Each workshop incorporated exercises to facilitate active departmental discussions, presentations incorporating concrete examples drawn from the leaders' experience and from the collective experiences of the geoscience community, and action planning to scaffold implementation. All workshops also incorporated information on building departmental consensus and assessing departmental efforts. The Building Strong Geoscience Departments website complements the workshops with extensive examples from the geoscience community. Of the 201 participants in the visiting workshop program, 140 completed an end of workshop evaluation survey with an overall satisfaction rating of 8.8 out of a possible 10 points. Workshops resulted in changes in faculty attitudes and planned changes in programming. Participants wrote that they felt a greater ownership of their curricula and had a deeper understanding of the importance of general education offerings; they recognized a need for improvement; and they recognized a need to communicate the value of the geosciences to their institutions. Planned programmatic changes focused on curriculum revision, program assessment, student recruitment, and interactions with the institutional administration and the public. Leaders noted that the most effective workshops were those where the faculty cancelled all other activities for the duration of the workshop to focus on workshop goals.

Process Hood Stand Support Steel

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

VAN KATWIJK, C.

2000-04-03

This package is written to comply with EN-6-035-00 for upgrade dedication of commercial grade items (CGI). The SNF-5953 CGI package provides the Technical evaluation to identify the critical characteristics and the acceptance criteria associated with the safety function of the Hood Stand Support Steel. Completion of the technical and quality requirements identified in the dedication package will provide enough data to be reasonably assured that CGI Hood Stand Support Steel will perform its SC function.

Comparison of the effectiveness of exposure to low LET helium particles (4He) and gamma rays (137Cs) on the disruption of cognitive performance

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Rats were exposed to either Helium (4He) particles (1000 MeV/n; 0.1 – 10 cGy; head-only) or Cesium 137Cs gamma rays (50 – 400 cGy; whole body) and the effects of irradiation on cognitive performance evaluated. The results indicated that exposure to doses of 4He particles as low as 0.1 cGy disrupted...

Relation between therapeutic response and side effects induced by methylphenidate as observed by parents and teachers of children with ADHD.

PubMed

Lee, James; Grizenko, Natalie; Bhat, Venkataramana; Sengupta, Sarojini; Polotskaia, Anna; Joober, Ridha

2011-04-21

The desired (therapeutic) and undesired (side) effects of methylphenidate might have underlying correlations. The aim of this study was to explore the strength and the possible sources of these correlations. One hundred and fifty-seven children with ADHD (6-12 years) were administered placebo and methylphenidate (0.5 mg/kg in a divided b.i.d. dose), each for a one-week period, in a double-blind, crossover trial. Therapeutic response was assessed using the Conners' Global Index for parents (CGI-Parents) and teachers (CGI-Teachers), while side effects were assessed using the Barkley Side Effects Rating Scale (SERS). The side effect profile as assessed by the SERS was similar to that of previous studies with insomnia, decreased appetite, and headaches showing significant treatment effects (p < 0.005). These "somatic/physical" side effects did not correlate with CGI-Parents or CGI-Teachers. However, the side effects of "irritability", "proneness to crying", and "anxiousness" showed significant relationships with CGI-Parents. These "mood/anxiety" side effects showed no significant correlations with the CGI-Teachers. The greater "mood/anxiety" side effects on methylphenidate and placebo, the less the parents observe improvement of their children while treated with methylphenidate. This suggests that the correlations between "mood/anxiety" side effects and poor response to treatment may be driven by observer effects rather than biological commonalities between therapeutic and side effects of methylphenidate.

Gene therapy/bone marrow transplantation in ADA-deficient mice: roles of enzyme-replacement therapy and cytoreduction.

PubMed

Carbonaro, Denise A; Jin, Xiangyang; Wang, Xingchao; Yu, Xiao-Jin; Rozengurt, Nora; Kaufman, Michael L; Wang, Xiaoyan; Gjertson, David; Zhou, Yang; Blackburn, Michael R; Kohn, Donald B

2012-11-01

Gene therapy (GT) for adenosine deaminase-deficient severe combined immune deficiency (ADA-SCID) can provide significant long-term benefit when patients are given nonmyeloablative conditioning and ADA enzyme-replacement therapy (ERT) is withheld before autologous transplantation of γ-retroviral vector-transduced BM CD34+ cells. To determine the contributions of conditioning and discontinuation of ERT to the therapeutic effects, we analyzed these factors in Ada gene knockout mice (Ada(-/-)). Mice were transplanted with ADA-deficient marrow transduced with an ADA-expressing γ-retroviral vector without preconditioning or after 200 cGy or 900 cGy total-body irradiation and evaluated after 4 months. In all tissues analyzed, vector copy numbers (VCNs) were 100- to 1000-fold greater in mice receiving 900 cGy compared with 200 cGy (P < .05). In mice receiving 200 cGy, VCN was similar whether ERT was stopped or given for 1 or 4 months after GT. In unconditioned mice, there was decreased survival with and without ERT, and VCN was very low to undetectable. When recipients were conditioned with 200 cGy and received transduced lineage-depleted marrow, only recipients receiving ERT (1 or 4 months) had detectable vector sequences in thymocytes. In conclusion, cytoreduction is important for the engraftment of gene-transduced HSC, and short-term ERT after GT did not diminish the capacity of gene-corrected cells to engraft and persist.

Broadening Awareness and Participation in the Geosciences Among Underrepresented Minorities in STEM

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blake, R.; Liou-Mark, J.

2012-12-01

An acute STEM crisis exists nationally, and the problem is even more dire among the geosciences. Since about the middle of the last century, fewer undergraduate and graduate degrees have been granted in the geosciences than in any other STEM fields. To help in ameliorating this geoscience plight, particularly from among members of racial and ethnic groups that are underrepresented in STEM fields, the New York City College of Technology (City Tech) launched a vibrant geoscience program and convened a community of STEM students who are interested in learning about the geosciences. This program creates and introduces geoscience knowledge and opportunities to a diverse undergraduate student population that was never before exposed to geoscience courses at City Tech. This geoscience project is funded by the NSF OEDG program, and it brings awareness, knowledge, and geoscience opportunities to City Tech's students in a variety of ways. Firstly, two new geoscience courses have been created and introduced. One course is on Environmental Remote Sensing, and the other course is an Introduction to the Physics of Natural Disasters. The Remote Sensing course highlights the physical and mathematical principles underlying remote sensing techniques. It covers the radiative transfer equation, atmospheric sounding techniques, interferometric and lidar systems, and an introduction to image processing. Guest lecturers are invited to present their expertise on various geoscience topics. These sessions are open to all City Tech students, not just to those students who enroll in the course. The Introduction to the Physics of Natural Disasters course is expected to be offered in Spring 2013. This highly relevant, fundamental course will be open to all students, especially to non-science majors. The course focuses on natural disasters, the processes that control them, and their devastating impacts to human life and structures. Students will be introduced to the nature, causes, risks, effects, and prediction of natural disasters including earthquakes, volcanoes, tsunamis, landslides, subsidence, global climate change, severe weather, coastal erosion, floods, mass extinctions, wildfires, and meteoroid impacts. In addition to the brand new geoscience course offerings, City Tech students participate in geoscience - seminars, guest lectures, lecture series, and geoscience internship and fellowship workshops. The students also participate in geoscience exposure trips to NASA/GISS Columbia University, NOAA-CREST, and the Brookhaven National Laboratory. Moreover, the undergrads are provided opportunities for paid research internships via two NSF grants - NSF REU and NSF STEP. Geoscience projects are also integrated into course work, and students make geoscience group project presentations in class. Students also participate in geoscience career and graduate school workshops. The program also creates geoscience articulation agreements with the City College of New York so that students at City Tech may pursue Bachelor's and advanced degrees in the geosciences. This program is supported by NSF OEDG grant #1108281.

Clinical relevance of findings in trials of CBT for depression.

PubMed

Lepping, P; Whittington, R; Sambhi, R S; Lane, S; Poole, R; Leucht, S; Cuijpers, P; McCabe, R; Waheed, W

2017-09-01

Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is beneficial in depression. Symptom scores can be translated into Clinical Global Impression (CGI) scale scores to indicate clinical relevance. We aimed to assess the clinical relevance of findings of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of CBT in depression. We identified RCTs of CBT that used the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAMD). HAMD scores were translated into Clinical Global Impression - Change scale (CGI-I) scores to measure clinical relevance. One hundred and seventy datasets from 82 studies were included. The mean percentage HAMD change for treatment arms was 53.66%, and 29.81% for control arms, a statistically significant difference. Combined active therapies showed the biggest improvement on CGI-I score, followed by CBT alone. All active treatments had better than expected HAMD percentage reduction and CGI-I scores. CBT has a clinically relevant effect in depression, with a notional CGI-I score of 2.2, indicating a significant clinical response. The non-specific or placebo effect of being in a psychotherapy trial was a 29% reduction of HAMD. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.

Specific Btk inhibition suppresses B cell- and myeloid cell-mediated arthritis.

PubMed

Di Paolo, Julie A; Huang, Tao; Balazs, Mercedesz; Barbosa, James; Barck, Kai H; Bravo, Brandon J; Carano, Richard A D; Darrow, James; Davies, Douglas R; DeForge, Laura E; Diehl, Lauri; Ferrando, Ronald; Gallion, Steven L; Giannetti, Anthony M; Gribling, Peter; Hurez, Vincent; Hymowitz, Sarah G; Jones, Randall; Kropf, Jeffrey E; Lee, Wyne P; Maciejewski, Patricia M; Mitchell, Scott A; Rong, Hong; Staker, Bart L; Whitney, J Andrew; Yeh, Sherry; Young, Wendy B; Yu, Christine; Zhang, Juan; Reif, Karin; Currie, Kevin S

2011-01-01

Bruton's tyrosine kinase (Btk) is a therapeutic target for rheumatoid arthritis, but the cellular and molecular mechanisms by which Btk mediates inflammation are poorly understood. Here we describe the discovery of CGI1746, a small-molecule Btk inhibitor chemotype with a new binding mode that stabilizes an inactive nonphosphorylated enzyme conformation. CGI1746 has exquisite selectivity for Btk and inhibits both auto- and transphosphorylation steps necessary for enzyme activation. Using CGI1746, we demonstrate that Btk regulates inflammatory arthritis by two distinct mechanisms. CGI1746 blocks B cell receptor-dependent B cell proliferation and in prophylactic regimens reduces autoantibody levels in collagen-induced arthritis. In macrophages, Btk inhibition abolishes FcγRIII-induced TNFα, IL-1β and IL-6 production. Accordingly, in myeloid- and FcγR-dependent autoantibody-induced arthritis, CGI1746 decreases cytokine levels within joints and ameliorates disease. These results provide new understanding of the function of Btk in both B cell- or myeloid cell-driven disease processes and provide a compelling rationale for targeting Btk in rheumatoid arthritis.

Specific Btk inhibition suppresses B cell- and myeloid cell-mediated arthritis

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

Di Paolo, Julie A; Huang, Tao; Balazs, Mercedesz

Bruton's tyrosine kinase (Btk) is a therapeutic target for rheumatoid arthritis, but the cellular and molecular mechanisms by which Btk mediates inflammation are poorly understood. Here we describe the discovery of CGI1746, a small-molecule Btk inhibitor chemotype with a new binding mode that stabilizes an inactive nonphosphorylated enzyme conformation. CGI1746 has exquisite selectivity for Btk and inhibits both auto- and transphosphorylation steps necessary for enzyme activation. Using CGI1746, we demonstrate that Btk regulates inflammatory arthritis by two distinct mechanisms. CGI1746 blocks B cell receptor–dependent B cell proliferation and in prophylactic regimens reduces autoantibody levels in collagen-induced arthritis. In macrophages, Btkmore » inhibition abolishes FcγRIII-induced TNFα, IL-1β and IL-6 production. Accordingly, in myeloid- and FcγR-dependent autoantibody-induced arthritis, CGI1746 decreases cytokine levels within joints and ameliorates disease. These results provide new understanding of the function of Btk in both B cell– or myeloid cell–driven disease processes and provide a compelling rationale for targeting Btk in rheumatoid arthritis.« less

Specific Btk inhibition suppresses B cell- and myeloid cell-mediated arthritis

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

Di Paolo, Julie A.; Huang, Tao; Balazs, Mercedesz

Bruton's tyrosine kinase (Btk) is a therapeutic target for rheumatoid arthritis, but the cellular and molecular mechanisms by which Btk mediates inflammation are poorly understood. Here we describe the discovery of CGI1746, a small-molecule Btk inhibitor chemotype with a new binding mode that stabilizes an inactive nonphosphorylated enzyme conformation. CGI1746 has exquisite selectivity for Btk and inhibits both auto- and transphosphorylation steps necessary for enzyme activation. Using CGI1746, we demonstrate that Btk regulates inflammatory arthritis by two distinct mechanisms. CGI1746 blocks B cell receptor-dependent B cell proliferation and in prophylactic regimens reduces autoantibody levels in collagen-induced arthritis. In macrophages, Btkmore » inhibition abolishes Fc{gamma}RIII-induced TNF{alpha}, IL-1{beta} and IL-6 production. Accordingly, in myeloid- and Fc{gamma}R-dependent autoantibody-induced arthritis, CGI1746 decreases cytokine levels within joints and ameliorates disease. These results provide new understanding of the function of Btk in both B cell- or myeloid cell-driven disease processes and provide a compelling rationale for targeting Btk in rheumatoid arthritis.« less

Flyover Country: A Plane Ride Could Be to Geoscience Outreach what a Planetarium is to Astronomy Outreach - the Perfect Venue for Sharing Big, Awe Inspiring Ideas, with a View to Match

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Loeffler, S.; Ai, S.; McEwan, R.; Myrbo, A.

2015-12-01

Rivaled only by the view from the International Space Station, the view from the airplane window spectacularly showcases the scale of Earth's geological features and the ways humans interact with and rely on them. With an average of eight million people flying every day, this view represents a major opportunity to engage a large and captive audience with the great insights that scientists have made through hundreds of years of investigation. Curating entire continents' worth of geological information covering any possible flight path would be impossible; fortunately, the NSF EarthCube initiative has facilitated the interoperability and accessibility of many geoscience databases full of rich scientific content ready to be exposed. Flyover Country (FC; fc.umn.edu) is an NSF funded mobile application leveraging hybrid mobile app technologies and data repositories to create a robust, offline, geoscience education and data discovery tool for both Android and iOS. Given a flight path, FC downloads a strip of relevant data from from geoscience databases including geological, paleobiological, Wikipedia, and map data that is saved to the device, allowing offline use during the journey without the need for in-flight wifi. Location, altitude, speed, and direction are provided by GPS in order to prompt the user with descriptions of points of interest that are visible from his or her current location. The app is not limited to use from the sky: its offline capabilities are also useful on roads and hiking trails, acting as a location aware and interactive version of something like the Roadside Geology book series. Using data spanning many domains, FC works as a data discovery tool for students and scientists in the field, bringing spatially referenced geoscience data into their hands and providing valuable location information in map view without the need for a cellular network signal. This context allows decisions to be made in the field based on the maximum amount of relevant information. A custom FC module created as part of outreach for Proyecto Lago Junín, an NSF/ICDP funded paleoclimate drilling project in the Central Peruvian Andes, is the first test case of the extensible nature of the application and custom content creation for specific projects.

The Virtual Geophysics Laboratory (VGL): Scientific Workflows Operating Across Organizations and Across Infrastructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cox, S. J.; Wyborn, L. A.; Fraser, R.; Rankine, T.; Woodcock, R.; Vote, J.; Evans, B.

2012-12-01

The Virtual Geophysics Laboratory (VGL) is web portal that provides geoscientists with an integrated online environment that: seamlessly accesses geophysical and geoscience data services from the AuScope national geoscience information infrastructure; loosely couples these data to a variety of gesocience software tools; and provides large scale processing facilities via cloud computing. VGL is a collaboration between CSIRO, Geoscience Australia, National Computational Infrastructure, Monash University, Australian National University and the University of Queensland. The VGL provides a distributed system whereby a user can enter an online virtual laboratory to seamlessly connect to OGC web services for geoscience data. The data is supplied in open standards formats using international standards like GeoSciML. A VGL user uses a web mapping interface to discover and filter the data sources using spatial and attribute filters to define a subset. Once the data is selected the user is not required to download the data. VGL collates the service query information for later in the processing workflow where it will be staged directly to the computing facilities. The combination of deferring data download and access to Cloud computing enables VGL users to access their data at higher resolutions and to undertake larger scale inversions, more complex models and simulations than their own local computing facilities might allow. Inside the Virtual Geophysics Laboratory, the user has access to a library of existing models, complete with exemplar workflows for specific scientific problems based on those models. For example, the user can load a geological model published by Geoscience Australia, apply a basic deformation workflow provided by a CSIRO scientist, and have it run in a scientific code from Monash. Finally the user can publish these results to share with a colleague or cite in a paper. This opens new opportunities for access and collaboration as all the resources (models, code, data, processing) are shared in the one virtual laboratory. VGL provides end users with access to an intuitive, user-centered interface that leverages cloud storage and cloud and cluster processing from both the research communities and commercial suppliers (e.g. Amazon). As the underlying data and information services are agnostic of the scientific domain, they can support many other data types. This fundamental characteristic results in a highly reusable virtual laboratory infrastructure that could also be used for example natural hazards, satellite processing, soil geochemistry, climate modeling, agriculture crop modeling.

Climate Discovery Online Courses for Educators from NCAR

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Henderson, S.; Ward, D. L.; Meymaris, K. K.; Johnson, R. M.; Gardiner, L.; Russell, R.

2008-12-01

The National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) has responded to the pressing need for professional development in climate and global change sciences by creating the Climate Discovery online course series. This series was designed with the secondary geoscience educator in mind. The online courses are based on current and credible climate change science. Interactive learning techniques are built into the online course designs with assignments that encourage active participation. A key element of the online courses is the creation of a virtual community of geoscience educators who exchange ideas related to classroom implementation, student assessment, and lessons plans. Geoscience educators from around the country have participated in the online courses. The ongoing interest from geoscience educators strongly suggests that the NCAR Climate Discovery online courses are a timely and needed professional development opportunity. The intent of NCAR Climate Discovery is to positively impact teachers' professional development scientifically authentic information, (2) experiencing guided practice in conducting activities and using ancillary resources in workshop venues, (3) gaining access to standards-aligned lesson plans, kits that promote hands-on learning, and scientific content that are easily implemented in their classrooms, and (4) becoming a part of a community of educators with whom they may continue to discuss the challenges of pedagogy and content comprehension in teaching climate change in the Earth system context. Three courses make up the Climate Discovery series: Introduction to Climate Change; Earth System Science - A Climate Change Perspective; and Understanding Climate Change Today. Each course, instructed by science education specialists, combines geoscience content, information about current climate research, hands-on activities, and group discussion. The online courses use the web-based Moodle courseware system (open- source software similar to Blackboard and webCT), utilizing its features to promote dialogue as well as provide rich online content and media. A key element of the online courses is the development and support of an online learning community, an essential component in successful online courses. Interactive learning techniques are built into the course designs with assignments that encourage active participation. Educators (both formal and informal) use the courses as a venue to exchange ideas and teaching resources. A unique feature of the courses is the emphasis on hands-on activities, a hallmark of our professional development efforts. This presentation will focus on the lessons learned in the development of the three online courses and our successful recruitment and retention efforts.

Micronucleus induction in Vicia faba roots. Part 2. Biological effects of neutrons below 1 cGy.

PubMed

Marshall, I; Bianchi, M

1983-08-01

A dose-effect relationship has been established for high-energy neutrons (maximum energy 600 MeV) within a dose range of 0.2 to 80 cGy and for low-energy neutrons produced by a 252Cf source (mean energy 2.35 MeV) for doses between 0.2 and 5 cGy. The frequency of micronuclei was found to increase linearly with dose. The relative biological effectiveness (r.b.e) values calculated using 60Co radiation as a reference were, in the high-dose region, 4.7 +/- 0.4 and 11.8 +/- 1.3 for the high- and low-energy neutrons, respectively. At doses below 1 cGy constant values of 25.4 +/- 4.4 and 63.7 +/- 12 were reached for the respective neutron energies.

Risk factors for scoliosis in children with neuroblastoma

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

Paulino, Arnold C.; Fowler, B. Zach

2005-03-01

Purpose: To determine the risk factors for scoliosis in children treated for neuroblastoma. Methods and materials: From 1957 to 1997, 58 children with neuroblastoma were treated at one institution and have survived a minimum of 5 years. There were 35 boys and 23 girls with a median age of 6 months (range, 2 weeks to 15 years) at initial diagnosis. Primary site was located in the adrenal gland in 25 (43.1%), abdominal/nonadrenal in 16 (27.6%), thoracic in 12 (20.7%), cervical in 3 (5.3%), and pelvic region in 2 (3.5%). The International Neuroblastoma Staging System (INSS) stage was Stage 1 inmore » 10 (17.2%), Stage 2A in 7 (12.1%), Stage 2B in 5 (8.6%), Stage 3 in 22 (37.9%), Stage 4 in 4 (6.9%), and Stage 4S in 10 (17.2%). Thirty-three (56.9%) received chemotherapy whereas 5 (8.6%) had a laminectomy as part of the surgical procedure. Twenty-seven (46.6%) received radiotherapy (RT). Beam energy was 1.25 MV in 11 (41%), 250 kV in 10 (37%), 4 MV in 4 (15%), and 6-MV photons in 1 patient. One patient received 300 cGy in 1 fraction total skin RT using 6-MeV electrons. For the remaining patients, fraction size was 100 cGy in 6 (22%), 150-180 cGy in 11 (41%), 200 cGy in 4 (15%), and 250-300 cGy in 3. Three patients had total body irradiation at 333 cGy for 3 fractions. For all children who received RT, median total dose was 2000 cGy (range, 300-3900 cGy). Patients who were treated with RT had plain films of the irradiated area every 1 to 2 years until at least the age of puberty. Median follow-up was 10 years (range, 5-46 years). Results: The overall 5-, 10-, and 15-year scoliosis-free rates were 87.6%, 79.0%, and 76.0% respectively. Twelve (21%) developed scoliosis at a median time of 51 months (range, 8-137 months). The degree of scoliosis was mild ({<=}20 deg ) in 8 (67%). Four had scoliosis ranging from 30 deg to 66 deg ; 3 of these patients required surgical intervention, whereas 1 had an underlying Duchenne muscular dystrophy which manifested itself 8 years after diagnosis of neuroblastoma. Median time to scoliosis was 23 months (range, 8-54 months) in children who had a laminectomy. On multivariate analysis, both history of laminectomy (p = 0.0005) and use of RT (p = 0.0284) were found to be risk factors for development of scoliosis. Gender, age at diagnosis, INSS stage, primary site, and use of chemotherapy were not found to be significant. Both RT fraction size and beam energy were also not significant, but increasing total RT dose was found to be significant (p = 0.0039). The 15-year scoliosis-free rates were 20% for children who had a laminectomy and 81.3% for those who did not have a laminectomy. The 15-year scoliosis-free rates for children treated with RT doses 0 cGy, 1-1750 cGy, 1751-2300 cGy, and >2300 cGy were 91.7%, 87.5%, 51.4%, and 44.4% respectively. Conclusions: Treatment-related factors, namely laminectomy and radiotherapy, were found to increase the risk of scoliosis in patients with neuroblastoma. Children who had a laminectomy were more likely to manifest scoliosis earlier. Increasing RT dose was found to impact adversely on the development of scoliosis.« less

Recently Identified Changes to the Demographics of the Current and Future Geoscience Workforce

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilson, C. E.; Keane, C. M.; Houlton, H. R.

2014-12-01

The American Geosciences Institute's (AGI) Geoscience Workforce Program collects and analyzes data pertaining to the changes in the supply, demand, and training of the geoscience workforce. Much of these trends are displayed in detail in AGI's Status of the Geoscience Workforce reports. In May, AGI released the Status of the Geoscience Workforce 2014, which updates these trends since the 2011 edition of this report. These updates highlight areas of change in the education of future geoscientists from K-12 through graduate school, the transition of geoscience graduates into early-career geoscientists, the dynamics of the current geoscience workforce, and the future predictions of the changes in the availability of geoscience jobs. Some examples of these changes include the increase in the number of states that will allow a high school course of earth sciences as a credit for graduation and the increasing importance of two-year college students as a talent pool for the geosciences, with over 25% of geoscience bachelor's graduates attending a two-year college for at least a semester. The continued increase in field camp hinted that these programs are at or reaching capacity. The overall number of faculty and research staff at four-year institutions increased slightly, but the percentages of academics in tenure-track positions continued to slowly decrease since 2009. However, the percentage of female faculty rose in 2013 for all tenure-track positions. Major geoscience industries, such as petroleum and mining, have seen an influx of early-career geoscientists. Demographic trends in the various industries in the geoscience workforce forecasted a shortage of approximately 135,000 geoscientists in the next decade—a decrease from the previously predicted shortage of 150,000 geoscientists. These changes and other changes identified in the Status of the Geoscience Workforce will be addressed in this talk.

Rocks, Landforms, and Landscapes vs. Words, Sentences, and Paragraphs: An Interdisciplinary Team Approach to Teaching the Tie Between Scientific Literacy and Inquiry-based Writing in a Community College's Geoscience Program and a University's' Geoscience Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thweatt, A. M.; Giardino, J. R.; Schroeder, C.

2014-12-01

Scientific literacy and inquiry-based writing go together like a hand and glove. Science literacy, defined by NRC in The NSF Standards, stresses the relationship between knowledge of science and skill in literacy so "a person can ask, find, or determine answers to questions derived from curiosity about everyday experiences. It means that a person has the ability to describe, explain, and predict natural phenomena. Scientific literacy entails being able to read with understanding articles about science in the popular press and to engage in social conversation about the validity of the conclusions. Scientific literacy implies that a person can identify scientific issues underlying national and local decisions and express positions that are scientifically and technologically informed." A growing body of research and practice in science instruction suggests language is essential in the practice of the geosciences. Writing and critical thinking are iterative processes. We use this approach to educate our geoscience students to learn, write, and think critically. One does not become an accomplished writer via one course. Proficiency is gained through continued exposure, guidance and tailored assignments. Inquiry-based geoscience makes students proficient in the tools of the geosciences and to develop explanations to questions about Earth events. We have scaffolded our courses from introductory geology, English composition, writing in the geosciences, introduction to field methods and report writing to do more critical thinking, research data gatherings, and in-depth analysis and synthesis. These learning experiences that encourage students to compare their reasoning models, communicate verbally, written and graphically. The English composition course sets the stage for creative assignments through formulation of original research questions, collection of primary data, analysis, and construction of written research papers. Proper use of language allows students to clarify their ideas, make claims, present arguments, and record and present findings. Students have acquired the skills to be considered scientifically literate and capable of learning. A poster demonstrating the tie between Scientific Literacy and Inquiry-Based Writing has been produced and distributed widely around campus.

Current science requirements and planned implementation for the WFIRST-CGI Integral Field Spectrograph (IFS)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mandell, Avi M.; Groff, Tyler D.; Gong, Qian; Rizzo, Maxime J.; Lupu, Roxana; Zimmerman, Neil T.; Saxena, Prabal; McElwain, Michael W.

2017-09-01

One of the key science goals of the Coronograph Instrument (CGI) on the WFIRST mission is to spectrally characterize the atmospheres of planets around other stars at extremely high contrast levels. To achieve this goal, the CGI instrument will include a integral field spectrograph (IFS) as one of the two science cameras. We present the current science requirements that pertain to the IFS design, describe how our design implementation flows from these requirements, and outline our current instrument design.

Current Science Requirements and Planned Implementation for the WFIRST-CGI Integral Field Spectrograph (IFS)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mandell, Avi M.; Groff, Tyler D.; Gong, Qian; Rizzo, Maxime J.; Lupu, Roxana; Zimmerman, Neil T.; Saxena, Prabal; McElwain, Michael W.

2017-01-01

One of the key science goals of the Coronograph Instrument (CGI) on the WFIRST mission is to spectrally characterize the atmospheres of planets around other stars at extremely high contrast levels. To achieve this goal, the CGI Instrument will include a integral field spectrograph (IFS) as one of the two science cameras. We present the current science requirements that pertain to the IFS design, describe how our design implementation flows from these requirements, and outline our current instrument design.

High Speed Computational Ghost Imaging via Spatial Sweeping

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Yuwang; Liu, Yang; Suo, Jinli; Situ, Guohai; Qiao, Chang; Dai, Qionghai

2017-03-01

Computational ghost imaging (CGI) achieves single-pixel imaging by using a Spatial Light Modulator (SLM) to generate structured illuminations for spatially resolved information encoding. The imaging speed of CGI is limited by the modulation frequency of available SLMs, and sets back its practical applications. This paper proposes to bypass this limitation by trading off SLM’s redundant spatial resolution for multiplication of the modulation frequency. Specifically, a pair of galvanic mirrors sweeping across the high resolution SLM multiply the modulation frequency within the spatial resolution gap between SLM and the final reconstruction. A proof-of-principle setup with two middle end galvanic mirrors achieves ghost imaging as fast as 42 Hz at 80 × 80-pixel resolution, 5 times faster than state-of-the-arts, and holds potential for one magnitude further multiplication by hardware upgrading. Our approach brings a significant improvement in the imaging speed of ghost imaging and pushes ghost imaging towards practical applications.

Effectiveness of Geosciences Exploration Summer Program (GeoX) for increasing awareness and Broadening Participation in the Geosciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Garcia, S. J.; Houser, C.

2013-12-01

Summer research experiences are an increasingly popular means to increase awareness of and develop interest in the Geosciences and other STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) programs. Here we describe and report the preliminary results of a new one-week program at Texas A&M University to introduce first generation, women, and underrepresented high school students to opportunities and careers in the Geosciences. Short-term indicators in the form of pre- and post-program surveys of participants and their parents suggest that there is an increase in participant understanding of geosciences and interest in pursuing a degree in the geosciences. At the start of the program, the participants and their parents had relatively limited knowledge of the geosciences and very few had a friend or acquaintance employed in the geosciences. Post-survey results suggest that the students had an improved and nuanced understanding of the geosciences and the career opportunities within the field. A survey of the parents several months after the program had ended suggests that the participants had effectively communicated their newfound understanding and that the parents now recognized the geosciences as a potentially rewarding career. With the support of their parents 42% of the participants are planning to pursue an undergraduate degree in the geosciences compared to 62% of participants who were planning to pursue a geosciences degree before the program. It is concluded that future offerings of this and similar programs should also engage the parents to ensure that the geosciences are recognized as a potential academic and career path.

International Convergence on Geoscience Cyberinfrastructure

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Allison, M. L.; Atkinson, R.; Arctur, D. K.; Cox, S.; Jackson, I.; Nativi, S.; Wyborn, L. A.

2012-04-01

There is growing international consensus on addressing the challenges to cyber(e)-infrastructure for the geosciences. These challenges include: Creating common standards and protocols; Engaging the vast number of distributed data resources; Establishing practices for recognition of and respect for intellectual property; Developing simple data and resource discovery and access systems; Building mechanisms to encourage development of web service tools and workflows for data analysis; Brokering the diverse disciplinary service buses; Creating sustainable business models for maintenance and evolution of information resources; Integrating the data management life-cycle into the practice of science. Efforts around the world are converging towards de facto creation of an integrated global digital data network for the geosciences based on common standards and protocols for data discovery and access, and a shared vision of distributed, web-based, open source interoperable data access and integration. Commonalities include use of Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) and ISO specifications and standardized data interchange mechanisms. For multidisciplinarity, mediation, adaptation, and profiling services have been successfully introduced to leverage the geosciences standards which are commonly used by the different geoscience communities -introducing a brokering approach which extends the basic SOA archetype. Principal challenges are less technical than cultural, social, and organizational. Before we can make data interoperable, we must make people interoperable. These challenges are being met by increased coordination of development activities (technical, organizational, social) among leaders and practitioners in national and international efforts across the geosciences to foster commonalities across disparate networks. In doing so, we will 1) leverage and share resources, and developments, 2) facilitate and enhance emerging technical and structural advances, 3) promote interoperability across scientific domains, 4) support the promulgation and institutionalization of agreed-upon standards, protocols, and practice, and 5) enhance knowledge transfer not only across the community, but into the domain sciences, 6) lower existing entry barriers for users and data producers, 7) build on the existing disciplinary infrastructures leveraging their service buses. . All of these objectives are required for establishing a permanent and sustainable cyber(e)-infrastructure for the geosciences. The rationale for this approach is well articulated in the AuScope mission statement: "Many of these problems can only be solved on a national, if not global scale. No single researcher, research institution, discipline or jurisdiction can provide the solutions. We increasingly need to embrace e-Research techniques and use the internet not only to access nationally distributed datasets, instruments and compute infrastructure, but also to build online, 'virtual' communities of globally dispersed researchers." Multidisciplinary interoperability can be successfully pursued by adopting a "system of systems" or a "Network of Networks" philosophy. This approach aims to: (a) supplement but not supplant systems mandates and governance arrangements; (b) keep the existing capacities as autonomous as possible; (c) lower entry barriers; (d) Build incrementally on existing infrastructures (information systems); (e) incorporate heterogeneous resources by introducing distribution and mediation functionalities. This approach has been adopted by the European INSPIRE (Infrastructure for Spatial Information in the European Community) initiative and by the international GEOSS (Global Earth Observation System of Systems) programme.

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

Guida, K; Qamar, K; Thompson, M

Purpose: The RTOG 1005 trial offered a hypofractionated arm in delivering WBRT+SIB. Traditionally, treatments were planned at our institution using field-in-field (FiF) tangents with a concurrent 3D conformal boost. With the availability of VMAT, it is possible that a hybrid VMAT-3D planning technique could provide another avenue in treating WBRT+SIB. Methods: A retrospective study of nine patients previously treated using RTOG 1005 guidelines was performed to compare FiF+3D plans with the hybrid technique. A combination of static tangents and partial VMAT arcs were used in base-dose optimization. The hybrid plans were optimized to deliver 4005cGy to the breast PTVeval andmore » 4800cGy to the lumpectomy PTVeval over 15 fractions. Plans were optimized to meet the planning goals dictated by RTOG 1005. Results: Hybrid plans yielded similar coverage of breast and lumpectomy PTVs (average D95 of 4013cGy compared to 3990cGy for conventional), while reducing the volume of high dose within the breast; the average D30 and D50 for the hybrid technique were 4517cGy and 4288cGy, compared to 4704cGy and 4377cGy for conventional planning. Hybrid plans increased conformity as well, yielding CI95% values of 1.22 and 1.54 for breast and lumpectomy PTVeval volumes; in contrast, conventional plans averaged 1.49 and 2.27, respectively. The nearby organs at risk (OARs) received more low dose with the hybrid plans due to low dose spray from the partial arcs, but all hybrid plans did meet the acceptable constraints, at a minimum, from the protocol. Treatment planning time was also reduced, as plans were inversely optimized (VMAT) rather than forward optimized. Conclusion: Hybrid-VMAT could be a solution in delivering WB+SIB, as plans yield very conformal treatment plans and maintain clinical standards in OAR sparing. For treating breast cancer patients with a simultaneously-integrated boost, Hybrid-VMAT offers superiority in dosimetric conformity and planning time as compared to FIF techniques.« less

Effectiveness of Geosciences Exploration Summer Program (GeoX) for Increasing Awareness and Knowledge of Geosciences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Houser, Chris; Garcia, Sonia; Torres, Janet

2015-01-01

Summer research experiences are an increasingly popular means of increasing awareness of, and developing interest in, the geosciences and other science, technology, engineering, and math programs. We describe and report the preliminary results of a 1-wk Geosciences Exploration Summer Program in the College of Geosciences at Texas A&M…

Reducing data friction through site-based data curation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thomer, A.; Palmer, C. L.

2017-12-01

Much of geoscience research takes place at "scientifically significant sites": localities which have attracted a critical mass of scientific interest, and thereby merit protection by government bodies, as well as the preservation of specimen and data collections and the development of site-specific permitting requirements for access to the site and its associated collections. However, many data standards and knowledge organization schemas do not adequately describe key characteristics of the sites, despite their centrality to research projects. Through work conducted as part of the IMLS-funded Site-Based Data Curation (SBDC) project, we developed a Minimum Information Framework (MIF) for site-based science, in which "information about a site's structure" is considered a core class of information. Here we present our empirically-derived information framework, as well as the methods used to create it. We believe these approaches will lead to the development of more effective data repositories and tools, and thereby will reduce "data friction" in interdisciplinary, yet site-based, geoscience workflows. The Minimum Information Framework for Site-based Research was developed through work at two scientifically significant sites: the hot springs at Yellowstone National Park, which are key to geobiology research; and the La Brea Tar Pits, an important paleontology locality in Southern California. We employed diverse methods of participatory engagement, in which key stakeholders at our sites (e.g. curators, collections managers, researchers, permit officers) were consulted through workshops, focus groups, interviews, action research methods, and collaborative information modeling and systems analysis. These participatory approaches were highly effective in fostering on-going partnership among a diverse team of domain scientists, information scientists, and software developers. The MIF developed in this work may be viewed as a "proto-standard" that can inform future repository development and data standards. Further, the approaches used to develop the MIF represent an important step toward systematic methods of developing geoscience data standards. Finally, we argue that organizing data around aspects of a site makes data collections more accessible to a range of scientific communities.

Creating a Linked Data Hub in the Geosciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Narock, T. W.; Rozell, E. A.; Robinson, E. M.

2012-12-01

Linked data is a paradigm for publishing data on the Web by using, among other things, non-proprietary data formats and resolvable identifiers for things in your dataset. One linked data initiative, DBPedia, is widely used as a "crystallization point" for linked data on the Web. It serves as a hub for links from external datasets covering a broad variety of domains. Within the Earth Science Information Partnership (ESIP) efforts have begun to create a similar crystallization point for linked data in the geosciences. The initial project was created by converting more than 100,000 abstracts from the American Geophysical Union (AGU) into linked data using the Resource Description Framework. Like the Wikipedia data DBPedia is derived from, AGU publications have extremely broad coverage of topics in the geosciences. To better characterize the network, we have linked this AGU data to ESIP meeting and membership data, as well as to National Science Foundation-funded research projects. In doing so, we can visualize connections between different collaborative clusters like the ESIP Community or NSF grantees within the broader Geosciences communities that attend AGU conferences. Efforts to extend this project include - the ability to annotate abstracts, provide links to referenced tools or datasets, and the enabling of a crowd-sourcing approach to co-reference resolution.

Creating Geoscience Leaders

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buskop, J.; Buskop, W.

2013-12-01

The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization recognizes 21 World Heritage in the United States, ten of which have astounding geological features: Wrangell St. Elias National Park, Olympic National Park, Mesa Verde National Park, Chaco Canyon, Glacier National Park, Carlsbad National Park, Mammoth Cave, Great Smokey Mountains National Park, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, and Everglades National Park. Created by a student frustrated with fellow students addicted to smart phones with an extreme lack of interest in the geosciences, one student visited each World Heritage site in the United States and created one e-book chapter per park. Each chapter was created with original photographs, and a geological discovery hunt to encourage teen involvement in preserving remarkable geological sites. Each chapter describes at least one way young adults can get involved with the geosciences, such a cave geology, glaciology, hydrology, and volcanology. The e-book describes one park per chapter, each chapter providing a geological discovery hunt, information on how to get involved with conservation of the parks, geological maps of the parks, parallels between archaeological and geological sites, and how to talk to a ranger. The young author is approaching UNESCO to publish the work as a free e-book to encourage involvement in UNESCO sites and to prove that the geosciences are fun.

A Personal Perspective on the Impact of Professional Development Workshops within the Geosciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Soule, D. C.

2014-12-01

In June of 2014 I attended the Cutting Edge workshop "Preparing for an Academic Career in the Geosciences," designed to mentor graduate students, post-doctoral fellows, and others who are interested in pursuing academic careers in the geosciences. Faculty members and administrators provided guidance and information that helped me become a stronger candidate for academic positions. Session topics focused on becoming both a successful teacher and researcher. In addition to the opportunity to network extensively with peers and academic leaders in the geosciences, I was helped to develop a plan for how to best use my final graduate school to optimize the transition to my next career stage. I will present both qualitative descriptions and quantitative measures of the effect this experience has had on my activities both pre- and post-participation. I will discuss how the workshop has impacted my perceptions on the job search process and my teaching beliefs. I will support my qualitative perceptions with the results of my pre- and post-workshop questionnaire "Beliefs About Reformed Science Teaching and Learning" (BARSTL). I will discuss the ways in which this experience has given me take home ideas that will improve my teaching immediately, supports my successful transition from school to career, and provides some of the tools needed to succeed in academic jobs.

Cloning and expression patterns of two Smad genes during embryonic development and shell formation of the Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Gang; Huan, Pin; Liu, Baozhong

2014-11-01

Increasing evidence indicates that transforming growth factor β (TGF-β) signaling pathways play many important roles in the early development of mollusks. However, limited information is known concerning their detailed mechanisms. Here, we describe the identification, cloning and characterization of two Smad genes, the key components of TGF-β signaling pathways, from the Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas. Sequence analysis of the two genes, designated as cgi-smad1/ 5/ 8 and cgi-smad4, revealed conserved functional characteristics. The two genes were widely expressed in embryos and larvae, suggesting multiple roles in the early development of C. gigas. The mRNA of the two genes aggregated in the D quadrant and cgi-smad4 was highly expressed on the dorsal side of the gastrula, indicating that TGF-β signaling pathways may be involved in dorsoventral patterning in C. gigas. Furthermore, high expression levels of the two genes in the shell fields of embryos at different stages suggested important roles for TGF-β signaling pathways in particular phases of shell development, including the formation of the initial shell field and the biomineralization of larval shells. The results of this study provide fundamental support for elucidating how TGF-β signaling pathways participate in the early development of bivalve mollusks, and suggest that further work is warranted to this end.

Post-graduation survey of the impact of geoscience service-learning courses at Wesleyan University

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

OConnell, S.; Ptacek, S.; Diver, K.; Ku, T. C.; Resor, P. G.; Royer, D. L.

2016-12-01

The benefits of service-learning courses are extolled in numerous papers and include increases in student: engagement with the material and the world, self-efficacy, and awareness of personal values. This approach to education allows students to develop skills that may not be part of many lecture-style or even laboratory class formats, such as problem solving, scientific communication, group work and reflection. Service learning requires students to move to the upper level of Bloom's taxonomy of cognitive skills: analyzing, evaluating, and creating. In a broader context, service learning offers two distinct benefits for the geosciences. First, service learning offers an opportunity for both the students and community to see the utility of geoscience in their lives and what geoscientists do. Considering the general lack of knowledge about geosciences this is an important public relations opportunity. Second, some studies have shown that the benefits of a service-learning approach to education results in higher performance by underrepresented minority students, students that the geosciences need to attract in an increasingly diverse society. Since 2006, four different service-learning courses have been offered by the Department of Earth & Environmental Sciences at Wesleyan University to both majors and non-majors. They are Environmental Geochemistry (core course), Geographic Information Systems (elective), Science on the Radio (first-year seminar), and Soils (elective). Almost 250 graduates have taken these courses. Graduates were surveyed to discover what they gained by taking a service-learning course and if, and how, they use the skills they learned in the course in their post-college careers.

Curricular Design for Intelligent Systems in Geosciences Using Urban Groundwater Studies.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cabral-Cano, E.; Pierce, S. A.; Fuentes-Pineda, G.; Arora, R.

2016-12-01

Geosciences research frequently focuses on process-centered phenomena, studying combinations of physical, geological, chemical, biological, ecological, and anthropogenic factors. These interconnected Earth systems can be best understood through the use of digital tools that should be documented as workflows. To develop intelligent systems, it is important that geoscientists and computing and information sciences experts collaborate to: (1) develop a basic understanding of the geosciences and computing and information sciences disciplines so that the problem and solution approach are clear to all stakeholders, and (2) implement the desired intelligent system with a short turnaround time. However, these interactions and techniques are seldom covered in traditional Earth Sciences curricula. We have developed an exchange course on Intelligent Systems for Geosciences to support workforce development and build capacity to facilitate skill-development at the undergraduate student-level. The first version of this course was offered jointly by the University of Texas at Austin and the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México as an intensive, study-abroad summer course. Content included: basic Linux introduction, shell scripting and high performance computing, data management, experts systems, field data collection exercises and basics of machine learning. Additionally, student teams were tasked to develop a term projects that centered on applications of Intelligent Systems applied to urban and karst groundwater systems. Projects included expert system and reusable workflow development for subsidence hazard analysis in Celaya, Mexico, a classification model to analyze land use change over a 30 Year Period in Austin, Texas, big data processing and decision support for central Texas groundwater case studies and 3D mapping with point cloud processing at three Texas field sites. We will share experiences and pedagogical insights to improve future versions of this course.

Comparison of testicular dose delivered by intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) and volumetric-modulated arc therapy (VMAT) in patients with prostate cancer

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

Martin, Jeffrey M.; Handorf, Elizabeth A.; Price, Robert A.

A small decrease in testosterone level has been documented after prostate irradiation, possibly owing to the incidental dose to the testes. Testicular doses from prostate external beam radiation plans with either intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) or volumetric-modulated arc therapy (VMAT) were calculated to investigate any difference. Testicles were contoured for 16 patients being treated for localized prostate cancer. For each patient, 2 plans were created: 1 with IMRT and 1 with VMAT. No specific attempt was made to reduce testicular dose. Minimum, maximum, and mean doses to the testicles were recorded for each plan. Of the 16 patients, 4 receivedmore » a total dose of 7800 cGy to the prostate alone, 7 received 8000 cGy to the prostate alone, and 5 received 8000 cGy to the prostate and pelvic lymph nodes. The mean (range) of testicular dose with an IMRT plan was 54.7 cGy (21.1 to 91.9) and 59.0 cGy (25.1 to 93.4) with a VMAT plan. In 12 cases, the mean VMAT dose was higher than the mean IMRT dose, with a mean difference of 4.3 cGy (p = 0.019). There was a small but statistically significant increase in mean testicular dose delivered by VMAT compared with IMRT. Despite this, it unlikely that there is a clinically meaningful difference in testicular doses from either modality.« less

Gene therapy/bone marrow transplantation in ADA-deficient mice: roles of enzyme-replacement therapy and cytoreduction

PubMed Central

Jin, Xiangyang; Wang, Xingchao; Yu, Xiao-Jin; Rozengurt, Nora; Kaufman, Michael L.; Wang, Xiaoyan; Gjertson, David; Zhou, Yang; Blackburn, Michael R.; Kohn, Donald B.

2012-01-01

Gene therapy (GT) for adenosine deaminase–deficient severe combined immune deficiency (ADA-SCID) can provide significant long-term benefit when patients are given nonmyeloablative conditioning and ADA enzyme-replacement therapy (ERT) is withheld before autologous transplantation of γ-retroviral vector-transduced BM CD34+ cells. To determine the contributions of conditioning and discontinuation of ERT to the therapeutic effects, we analyzed these factors in Ada gene knockout mice (Ada−/−). Mice were transplanted with ADA-deficient marrow transduced with an ADA-expressing γ-retroviral vector without preconditioning or after 200 cGy or 900 cGy total-body irradiation and evaluated after 4 months. In all tissues analyzed, vector copy numbers (VCNs) were 100- to 1000-fold greater in mice receiving 900 cGy compared with 200 cGy (P < .05). In mice receiving 200 cGy, VCN was similar whether ERT was stopped or given for 1 or 4 months after GT. In unconditioned mice, there was decreased survival with and without ERT, and VCN was very low to undetectable. When recipients were conditioned with 200 cGy and received transduced lineage-depleted marrow, only recipients receiving ERT (1 or 4 months) had detectable vector sequences in thymocytes. In conclusion, cytoreduction is important for the engraftment of gene-transduced HSC, and short-term ERT after GT did not diminish the capacity of gene-corrected cells to engraft and persist. PMID:22833548

Effects of Casting Size on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Spheroidal and Compacted Graphite Cast Irons: Experimental Results and Comparison with International Standards

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ceschini, L.; Morri, Alessandro; Morri, Andrea

2017-05-01

The aim of this research was to investigate the effects of casting size (10-210 mm) on the microstructure and mechanical properties of spheroidal (SGI) and compacted (CGI) graphite cast irons. A comparison of the experimental mechanical data with those specified by ISO standards is presented and discussed. The study highlighted that the microstructure and mechanical properties of SGI (also known as ductile or nodular cast iron) are more sensitive to casting size than CGI (also known as vermicular graphite cast irons). In particular, in both types of cast iron, hardness, yield strength and ultimate tensile strength decreased, with increasing casting size, by 27% in SGI and 17% in CGI. Elongation to failure showed, instead, an opposite trend, decreasing from 5 to 3% in CGI, while increasing from 5 to 11% in SGI. These results were related to different microstructures, the ferritic fraction being more sensitive to the casting size in SGI than CGI. Degeneration of spheroidal graphite was observed at casting size above 120 mm. The microstructural similarities between degenerated SGI and CGI suggested the proposal of a unified empirical constitutional law relating the most important microstructural parameters to the ultimate tensile strength. An outstanding result was also the finding that standard specifications underestimated the mechanical properties of both cast irons (in particular SGI) and, moreover, did not take into account their variation with casting size, at thicknesses over 60 mm.

Geoscience Workforce Development at UNAVCO: Leveraging the NSF GAGE Facility

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morris, A. R.; Charlevoix, D. J.; Miller, M.

2013-12-01

Global economic development demands that the United States remain competitive in the STEM fields, and developing a forward-looking and well-trained geoscience workforce is imperative. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the geosciences will experience a growth of 19% by 2016. Fifty percent of the current geoscience workforce is within 10-15 years of retirement, and as a result, the U.S. is facing a gap between the supply of prepared geoscientists and the demand for well-trained labor. Barring aggressive intervention, the imbalance in the geoscience workforce will continue to grow, leaving the increased demand unmet. UNAVCO, Inc. is well situated to prepare undergraduate students for placement in geoscience technical positions and advanced graduate study. UNAVCO is a university-governed consortium facilitating research and education in the geosciences and in addition UNAVCO manages the NSF Geodesy Advancing Geosciences and EarthScope (GAGE) facility. The GAGE facility supports many facets of geoscience research including instrumentation and infrastructure, data analysis, cyberinfrastructure, and broader impacts. UNAVCO supports the Research Experiences in the Solid Earth Sciences for Students (RESESS), an NSF-funded multiyear geoscience research internship, community support, and professional development program. The primary goal of the RESESS program is to increase the number of historically underrepresented students entering graduate school in the geosciences. RESESS has met with high success in the first 9 years of the program, as more than 75% of RESESS alumni are currently in Master's and PhD programs across the U.S. Building upon the successes of RESESS, UNAVCO is launching a comprehensive workforce development program that will network underrepresented groups in the geosciences to research and opportunities throughout the geosciences. This presentation will focus on the successes of the RESESS program and plans to expand on this success with broader workforce development efforts.

Web-based Academic Roadmaps for Careers in the Geosciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Murray, D. P.; Veeger, A. I.; Grossman-Garber, D.

2007-12-01

To a greater extent than most science programs, geology is underrepresented in K-12 curricula and the media. Thus potential majors have scant knowledge of academic requirements and career trajectories, and their idea of what geologists do--if they have one at all--is outdated. We have addressed these concerns by developing a dynamic, web-based academic roadmap for current and prospective students, their families, and others who are contemplating careers in the geosciences. The goals of this visually attractive "educational pathway" are to not only improve student recruitment and retention, but to empower student learning by creating better communication and advising tools that can render our undergraduate program transparent for learners and their families. Although we have developed academic roadmaps for four environmental and life science programs at the University of Rhode Island, we focus here on the roadmap for the geosciences, which illustrates educational pathways along the academic and early-career continuum for current and potential (i.e., high school) students who are considering the earth sciences. In essence, the Geosciences Academic Roadmap is a "one-stop'" portal to the discipline. It includes user- friendly information about our curriculum, outcomes (which at URI are tightly linked to performance in courses and the major), extracurricular activities (e.g., field camp, internships), careers, graduate programs, and training. In the presentation of this material extensive use is made of streaming video, interviews with students and earth scientists, and links to other relevant sites. Moreover, through the use of "Hot Topics", particular attention is made to insure that examples of geoscience activities are not only of relevance to today's students, but show geologists using the modern methods of the discipline in exciting ways. Although this is a "work-in-progress", evaluation of the sites, by high school through graduate students, has been strongly positive. Our presentation will include a demonstration of the Academic Roadmap, and a template that can be used by other geoscience departments to easily design websites.

Climate Science across the Liberal Arts Curriculum at Gustavus Adolphus College

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bartley, J. K.; Triplett, L.; Dontje, J.; Huber, T.; Koomen, M.; Jeremiason, J.; La Frenierre, J.; Niederriter, C.; Versluis, A.

2014-12-01

The human and social dimensions of climate change are addressed in courses in humanities, social sciences, and arts disciplines. However, faculty members in these disciplines are not climate science experts and thus may feel uncomfortable discussing the science that underpins our understanding of climate change. In addition, many students are interested in the connections between climate change and their program of study, but not all students take courses that address climate science as a principal goal. At Gustavus Adolphus College, the Climate Science Project aims to help non-geoscience faculty introduce climate science content in their courses in order to increase climate science literacy among students and inform discussions of the implications of climate change. We assembled an interdisciplinary team of faculty with climate science expertise to develop climate science modules for use in non-geoscience courses. Faculty from the social sciences, humanities, arts, education, and natural sciences attended workshops in which they developed plans to include climate science in their courses. Based on these workshops, members of the development team created short modules for use by participating faculty that introduce climate science concepts to a non-specialist audience. Each module was tested and modified prior to classroom implementation by a team of faculty and geoscience students. Faculty and student learning are assessed throughout the process, and participating faculty members are interviewed to improve the module development process. The Climate Science Project at Gustavus Adolphus College aims to increase climate science literacy in both faculty members and students by creating accessible climate science content and supporting non-specialist faculty in learning key climate science concepts. In this way, climate science becomes embedded in current course offerings, including non-science courses, reaching many more students than new courses or enhanced content in the geosciences can reach. In addition, this model can be adopted by institutions with limited geoscience course offerings to increase geoscience literacy among a broad cross-section of students.

Supporting Implementation of the Next Generation Science Standards: A Needs Assessment Outline

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sullivan, S. M.; Robeck, E.; Awad, A. A.

2015-12-01

The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) explicitly treat Earth and Space Science (ESS) content with the same level of priority as Physical Science, Life Science, and Engineering & Technology. Therefore, the geoscience community has a vested interest in the use of NGSS as it is being implemented in K-12 classrooms. Individuals and groups from all facets of the geosciences can take action to support the implementation of the NGSS. That action will be most effective if it is guided by a thorough understanding of the needs of teachers and other stakeholders who have a role to play in NGSS implementation. This session will describe qualitative and quantitative needs assessment data that was gathered in advance of the Summit Meeting on the Implementation of the NGSS at the State Level, which was jointly organized in April 2015 by the American Geosciences Institute (AGI) and the National Association of Geoscience Teachers (NAGT). The data to be discussed are from interviews and quantitative survey data, as well as data based on responses by the 50+ Summit attendees who represented a variety of perspectives in geoscience education. Particular attention will be given to areas where responses suggested points of tension, such as the fact that many survey respondents feel that they understand dimensions of the NGSS that their colleagues do not understand as well, making for a potentially difficult context in which to work to implement the NGSS. Actions suggested by the Summit attendees that are related to the different need areas will also be described, with the intent being to open discussion among session participants about additional actions that they can take individually and/or collectively. The overarching goal of this presentation will be to work in coordination with the other presentations in the session to expand the network of member of the geoscience community who are informed and committed to supporting NGSS implementation.

Building an International Collaboration for GeoInformatics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Snyder, W. S.; Lehnert, K.; Klump, J.

2005-12-01

Geoinformatics (cyberinfrastructure for the geosciences) is being developed as a linked system of sites that provide to the Earth science community a library of research data research-grade tools to manipulate, mine, analyze and model interdisciplinary data, and mechanisms to provide the necessary computational resources for these activities. Our science is global in scope and hence, geoinformatics (GI) must be an international effort. How do we build this international GI? What are the main challenges presented by the political, cultural, organizational, and technical diversity of the global science community that we need to address to achieve a truly global cyberinfrastructure for the Geosciences? GI needs to be developed in an internet-like fashion establishing connections among independent globally distributed sites (`nodes') that will share, link, and integrate their data holdings and services. Independence of the GI pieces with respect to goals, scope, and approaches is critical to sustain commitment from people to build a GI node for which they feel ownership and get credit. This should not be fought by funding agencies - and certainly not by state and federal agencies. Communication, coordination, and collaboration are the core efforts to build the connections, but incentives and resources are required to advance and support them. Part of the coordination effort is development and maintenance of standards. Who should set these standards and govern their modification? Do we need an official international body to do so, and should this be a "governing body" or an "advisory body"? What role should international commissions and bodies such as CODATA/ICSU or IUGS-CGI, international societies and unions, the national geological surveys and other federal agencies play? Guidance from the science community is key to construct a system that geo-researchers will want to use, and that meets their needs. Only when the community endorses GI as a fundamental platform to support science research will we be able to address the challenging question how to insure sustained funding of GI which will undoubtly be a costly effort, convincing governments and funding agencies to invest in a global effort. Perhaps the most challenging problems are cultural ones such as the "my data" issue, the reluctance to share data even if they were generated with public funding. This is slowly being resolved by some funding agencies through moratorium periods for use of data before they are available to everyone, but will require a sustained "education" effort of the geoscience research community. Geoinformatics is the platform for a new paradigm in how we conduct our research. The challenges to building an international GI are quite serious, some might say daunting, but the conveners of this session feel that the effort is not only worth it, but required for the sake of our science research.

Teaching students in place: the languages of third space learning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morawski, Cynthia M.

2017-09-01

With a perceptive eye cast on geoscience pedagogy for students labeled as disabled, Martinez-Álvarez makes important contributions to the existing conversation on placed-based learning. It is in our local backyards, from the corner basketball court, to the mud bank of a city lake, to the adjacent field where rocky outcrops spill down to a forgotten farmer's field, that we find rich working material for connecting self and community, moving students' out-of-school experiences that feature their cultural and linguistic knowledge, from misconceptions to "alternative conceptions." Informed by her insights regarding the learning of students whose literacy does not match conventional classroom practice, geoscience learning in the place of third space can act as a model of meaning making across the entire curriculum. In the pages that follow, I transact, both aesthetically and efferently, with Martinez-Álvarez's text as she presents her research on special ways of learning in placed-based geoscience explorations with bilingual children experiencing disabilities.

The ongoing educational anomaly of earth science placement

USGS Publications Warehouse

Messina, P.; Speranza, P.; Metzger, E.P.; Stoffer, P.

2003-01-01

The geosciences have traditionally been viewed with less "aCademic prTstige" than other science curricula. Among the results of this perception are depressed K-16 enrollments, Earth Science assignments to lower-performing students, and relegation of these classes to sometimes under-qualified educators, all of which serve to confirm the widely-held misconceptions. An Earth Systems course developed at San Jos??e State University demonstrates the difficulty of a standard high school Earth science curriculum, while recognizing the deficiencies in pre-college Earth science education. Restructuring pre-college science curricula so that Earth Science is placed as a capstone course would greatly improve student understanding of the geosciences, while development of Earth systems courses that infuse real-world and hands-on learning at the college level is critical to bridging the information gap for those with no prior exposure to the Earth sciences. Well-crafted workshops for pre-service and inservice teachers of Earth Science can heIp to reverse the trends and unfortunate "sTatus" in geoscience education.

Combination of methylated-DNA precipitation and methylation-sensitive restriction enzymes (COMPARE-MS) for the rapid, sensitive and quantitative detection of DNA methylation.

PubMed

Yegnasubramanian, Srinivasan; Lin, Xiaohui; Haffner, Michael C; DeMarzo, Angelo M; Nelson, William G

2006-02-09

Hypermethylation of CpG island (CGI) sequences is a nearly universal somatic genome alteration in cancer. Rapid and sensitive detection of DNA hypermethylation would aid in cancer diagnosis and risk stratification. We present a novel technique, called COMPARE-MS, that can rapidly and quantitatively detect CGI hypermethylation with high sensitivity and specificity in hundreds of samples simultaneously. To quantitate CGI hypermethylation, COMPARE-MS uses real-time PCR of DNA that was first digested by methylation-sensitive restriction enzymes and then precipitated by methyl-binding domain polypeptides immobilized on a magnetic solid matrix. We show that COMPARE-MS could detect five genome equivalents of methylated CGIs in a 1000- to 10,000-fold excess of unmethylated DNA. COMPARE-MS was used to rapidly quantitate hypermethylation at multiple CGIs in >155 prostate tissues, including benign and malignant prostate specimens, and prostate cell lines. This analysis showed that GSTP1, MDR1 and PTGS2 CGI hypermethylation as determined by COMPARE-MS could differentiate between malignant and benign prostate with sensitivities >95% and specificities approaching 100%. This novel technology could significantly improve our ability to detect CGI hypermethylation.

Synergies of Subaru and CGI

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Groff, Tyler D.

2017-01-01

Given the limited observing time and demanding scenarios of the WFIRST coronagraph instrument (CGI), it is critical to consider how Subaru observations can benefit its observing program. Subaru telescope has a suite of instruments with their adaptive optics (AO) and extreme adaptive optics modules (SCExAO). With SCExAO, the Subaru telescope is capable of detection and spectral characterization of binaries and bright (greater than 5(exp -6) contrast) companions in the near-infrared. This will enable the vetting of targets, disk detection and characterization, and potentially some additional science should CGI identify interesting targets during its technology demonstration and potential guest observer program. Additionally, large companions that are within the inner working angle of the coronagraph can be identified using the VAMPIRES aperture masking interferometer. With highly complementary target brightness and significantly overlapping fields of view, there is a great deal of potential for combined observations with Subaru and CGI. This will represent the first time single observations spanning the visible to near-infrared will be possible for high contrast imaging. We will discuss the overlap of instrumentation over time, the implication of instrument evolution as TMT comes online, and how this can be used to improve both science and technology demonstrations for CGI.

Fatty Acid-binding Proteins Interact with Comparative Gene Identification-58 Linking Lipolysis with Lipid Ligand Shuttling*

PubMed Central

Hofer, Peter; Boeszoermenyi, Andras; Jaeger, Doris; Feiler, Ursula; Arthanari, Haribabu; Mayer, Nicole; Zehender, Fabian; Rechberger, Gerald; Oberer, Monika; Zimmermann, Robert; Lass, Achim; Haemmerle, Guenter; Breinbauer, Rolf; Zechner, Rudolf; Preiss-Landl, Karina

2015-01-01

The coordinated breakdown of intracellular triglyceride (TG) stores requires the exquisitely regulated interaction of lipolytic enzymes with regulatory, accessory, and scaffolding proteins. Together they form a dynamic multiprotein network designated as the “lipolysome.” Adipose triglyceride lipase (Atgl) catalyzes the initiating step of TG hydrolysis and requires comparative gene identification-58 (Cgi-58) as a potent activator of enzyme activity. Here, we identify adipocyte-type fatty acid-binding protein (A-Fabp) and other members of the fatty acid-binding protein (Fabp) family as interaction partners of Cgi-58. Co-immunoprecipitation, microscale thermophoresis, and solid phase assays proved direct protein/protein interaction between A-Fabp and Cgi-58. Using nuclear magnetic resonance titration experiments and site-directed mutagenesis, we located a potential contact region on A-Fabp. In functional terms, A-Fabp stimulates Atgl-catalyzed TG hydrolysis in a Cgi-58-dependent manner. Additionally, transcriptional transactivation assays with a luciferase reporter system revealed that Fabps enhance the ability of Atgl/Cgi-58-mediated lipolysis to induce the activity of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors. Our studies identify Fabps as crucial structural and functional components of the lipolysome. PMID:25953897

Cloning, expression and characterization of a new ι-carrageenase from marine bacterium, Cellulophaga sp.

PubMed

Ma, Su; Tan, Yu-Long; Yu, Wen-Gong; Han, Feng

2013-10-01

The purpose of this study is to report a ι-carrageenase which degrades ι-carrageenan yielding neo-ι-carratetraose as the main product in the absence of NaCl. The gene for a new ι-carrageenase, CgiB_Ce, from Cellulophaga sp. QY3 was cloned and sequenced. It comprised an ORF of 1,386 bp encoding for a protein of 461 amino acid residues. From its sequence analysis, CgiB_Ce is a new member of GH family 82 and shared the highest identity of 32% in amino acids with ι-carrageenase CgiA2 from Zobellia galactanovorans indicating that it is a hitherto uncharacterized protein. The recombinant CgiB_Ce had maximum specific activity (1,870 U/mg) at 45 °C and pH 6.5. It was stable between pH 6.0-9.6 and below 40 °C. Although its activity was enhanced by NaCl, the enzyme was active in the absence of NaCl. CgiB_Ce is an endo-type ι-carrageenase that hydrolyzes β-1,4-linkages of ι-carrageenan, yielding neo-ι-carratetraose as the main product (more than 80% of the total product).

A Unique Partnership to Promote Diversity in the Geosciences, San Jose, California

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sedlock, R.; Metzger, E.; Johnson, D.

2006-12-01

We report here on a particularly satisfying partnership of academic institutions that focuses on enhancing the participation of underrepresented students in the geosciences. The Bay Area Earth Science Institute (BAESI) at San José State University (SJSU) has provided professional development opportunities to over 1,500 area teachers since 1990. BAESI offerings include summer and weekend workshops, field trips, classroom visits, and a lending library of curricula, sample sets, A/V materials, and equipment. The National Hispanic University (NHU) is a private, non-profit university that enrolls about 700 students, 80% of whom are of Hispanic descent. Another 13% are from other minority groups, 74% are from low-income families, and 70% are women. NHU houses the Latino College Preparatory Academy (LCPA), a charter high school that provides an alternative for students who struggle in traditional schools due to language issues. In the 1990s, administrators at SJSU and NHU set up formal agreements about course articulation, reciprocity, and joint degree programs. In 2002, informal discussions between BAESI and NHU staff led to collaboration on an NSF proposal to strengthen NHU's geoscience curriculum. Since then, the scope of BAESI-NHU actions has expanded greatly: (1) NHU and LCPA staff attended a week-long BAESI professional development workshop funded by NSF, and have attended numerous BAESI field trips. (2) BAESI staff visit NHU and LCPA classrooms to showcase SJSU's Geology Department and to enrich existing Chemistry and Physics classes with geoscience applications. (3) A nascent "Geologist-In-Residence" program pairs SJSU geology students with teachers at LCPA. (4) NHU students have interned with Metzger on local research projects. (5) BAESI brokered donation of an extensive USGS rock collection to NHU. (6) NHU, BAESI, and NASA-Ames staff collaborate on an online Earth Science curriculum for middle-school teachers. (7) We will adapt BAESI summer workshops to a one-week course in effective teaching of high-school science that will be taught during intersession in NHU's Teacher Education Department. We have recently received funding for a collaborative project from NSF's Geoscience Education program to create a joint degree program wherein NHU offers the lower division coursework and bestows an A.S. degree in mathematics and science with geoscience emphasis, and SJSU offers the upper-division coursework and the B.S. degree in geoscience. Our collaborations focus on providing teachers with professional development and educational resources to help underrepresented students receive quality instruction in the geosciences. Participation of NHU teachers- in-training provides a long-term means for spreading quality geoscience teaching to precollege classrooms throughout Santa Clara County, including the largely minority classrooms that NHU teachers are specially trained to staff.

Writing and Communicating in the Geosciences: A 1-credit required course to prepare undergraduates for independent research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

St John, K. K.; Courtier, A. M.; Pyle, E. J.

2013-12-01

With increasing numbers of majors (currently 130) and an independent research requirement of all undergraduates in our program, the Department of Geology and Environmental Science at James Madison University sought a means to streamline and formalize instruction of research practices we deem fundamental to all sub-disciplines in the geosciences. Therefore, in Fall 2010, we developed a research preparation course called 'Writing and Communicating in the Geosciences,' which is now required for all Geology BS and Earth Science BA undergraduate students. This 1-credit course must be completed prior to students' senior year, and is a pre-requisite to a minimum of 2-credits of independent research required of all majors. 'Writing and Communicating in the Geosciences' is designed to prepare students for independent research by providing them with opportunities to develop, practice, and gain feedback on a variety of writing and communication skills. It is our goal that after taking this course, students are able to identify primary literature using the library data-based systems, critically discuss peer-reviewed papers, write abstracts, use accepted referencing styles in bibliographies, and effectively make scientific posters and give oral presentations. The class is offered every semester and is always co-taught by two faculty members from the department. Curriculum and instruction is designed to balance student workload, faculty workload, and strategies toward meeting the course learning objectives. Students informally report at the time of enrollment that this is a perceived as a rigorous 'rite-of-passage' course. Informal feedback from past students has been positive, suggesting that the greatest benefits manifest later, as former students apply the course-developed skills to projects in their upper-level courses, their independent research projects, and their graduate research. Faculty feedback has been similarly positive, with department colleagues commenting that their research students are better prepared to conduct background research for their independent projects and are producing higher quality presentations and posters. These preliminary observations suggest that this course may be a good model for other geoscience programs. A formal qualitative and quantitative study is currently being designed to further assess the impact of this course on the development of students' research skills.

CINERGI: Community Inventory of EarthCube Resources for Geoscience Interoperability

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zaslavsky, Ilya; Bermudez, Luis; Grethe, Jeffrey; Gupta, Amarnath; Hsu, Leslie; Lehnert, Kerstin; Malik, Tanu; Richard, Stephen; Valentine, David; Whitenack, Thomas

2014-05-01

Organizing geoscience data resources to support cross-disciplinary data discovery, interpretation, analysis and integration is challenging because of different information models, semantic frameworks, metadata profiles, catalogs, and services used in different geoscience domains, not to mention different research paradigms and methodologies. The central goal of CINERGI, a new project supported by the US National Science Foundation through its EarthCube Building Blocks program, is to create a methodology and assemble a large inventory of high-quality information resources capable of supporting data discovery needs of researchers in a wide range of geoscience domains. The key characteristics of the inventory are: 1) collaboration with and integration of metadata resources from a number of large data facilities; 2) reliance on international metadata and catalog service standards; 3) assessment of resource "interoperability-readiness"; 4) ability to cross-link and navigate data resources, projects, models, researcher directories, publications, usage information, etc.; 5) efficient inclusion of "long-tail" data, which are not appearing in existing domain repositories; 6) data registration at feature level where appropriate, in addition to common dataset-level registration, and 7) integration with parallel EarthCube efforts, in particular focused on EarthCube governance, information brokering, service-oriented architecture design and management of semantic information. We discuss challenges associated with accomplishing CINERGI goals, including defining the inventory scope; managing different granularity levels of resource registration; interaction with search systems of domain repositories; explicating domain semantics; metadata brokering, harvesting and pruning; managing provenance of the harvested metadata; and cross-linking resources based on the linked open data (LOD) approaches. At the higher level of the inventory, we register domain-wide resources such as domain catalogs, vocabularies, information models, data service specifications, identifier systems, and assess their conformance with international standards (such as those adopted by ISO and OGC, and used by INSPIRE) or de facto community standards using, in part, automatic validation techniques. The main level in CINERGI leverages a metadata aggregation platform (currently Geoportal Server) to organize harvested resources from multiple collections and contributed by community members during EarthCube end-user domain workshops or suggested online. The latter mechanism uses the SciCrunch toolkit originally developed within the Neuroscience Information Framework (NIF) project and now being extended to other communities. The inventory is designed to support requests such as "Find resources with theme X in geographic area S", "Find datasets with subject Y using query concept expansion", "Find geographic regions having data of type Z", "Find datasets that contain property P". With the added LOD support, additional types of requests, such as "Find example implementations of specification X", "Find researchers who have worked in Domain X, dataset Y, location L", "Find resources annotated by person X", will be supported. Project's website (http://workspace.earthcube.org/cinergi) provides access to the initial resource inventory, a gallery of EarthCube researchers, collections of geoscience models, metadata entry forms, and other software modules and inventories being integrated into the CINERGI system. Support from the US National Science Foundation under award NSF ICER-1343816 is gratefully acknowledged.

Detrimental Effects of Helium Ion Irradiation on Cognitive Performance and Cortical Levels of MAP-2 in B6D2F1 Mice.

PubMed

Raber, Jacob; Torres, Eileen Ruth S; Akinyeke, Tunde; Lee, Joanne; Weber Boutros, Sydney J; Turker, Mitchell S; Kronenberg, Amy

2018-04-20

The space radiation environment includes helium (⁴He) ions that may impact brain function. As little is known about the effects of exposures to ⁴He ions on the brain, we assessed the behavioral and cognitive performance of C57BL/6J × DBA2/J F1 (B6D2F1) mice three months following irradiation with ⁴He ions (250 MeV/n; linear energy transfer (LET) = 1.6 keV/μm; 0, 21, 42 or 168 cGy). Sham-irradiated mice and mice irradiated with 21 or 168 cGy showed novel object recognition, but mice irradiated with 42 cGy did not. In the passive avoidance test, mice received a slight foot shock in a dark compartment, and latency to re-enter that compartment was assessed 24 h later. Sham-irradiated mice and mice irradiated with 21 or 42 cGy showed a higher latency on Day 2 than Day 1, but the latency to enter the dark compartment in mice irradiated with 168 cGy was comparable on both days. ⁴He ion irradiation, at 42 and 168 cGy, reduced the levels of the dendritic marker microtubule-associated protein-2 (MAP-2) in the cortex. There was an effect of radiation on apolipoprotein E (apoE) levels in the hippocampus and cortex, with higher apoE levels in mice irradiated at 42 cGy than 168 cGy and a trend towards higher apoE levels in mice irradiated at 21 than 168 cGy. In addition, in the hippocampus, there was a trend towards a negative correlation between MAP-2 and apoE levels. While reduced levels of MAP-2 in the cortex might have contributed to the altered performance in the passive avoidance test, it does not seem sufficient to do so. The higher hippocampal and cortical apoE levels in mice irradiated at 42 than 168 cGy might have served as a compensatory protective response preserving their passive avoidance memory. Thus, there were no alterations in behavioral performance in the open filed or depressive-like behavior in the forced swim test, while cognitive impairments were seen in the object recognition and passive avoidance tests, but not in the contextual or cued fear conditioning tests. Taken together, the results indicate that some aspects of cognitive performance are altered in male mice exposed to ⁴He ions, but that the response is task-dependent. Furthermore, the sensitive doses can vary within each task in a non-linear fashion. This highlights the importance of assessing the cognitive and behavioral effects of charged particle exposure with a variety of assays and at multiple doses, given the possibility that lower doses may be more damaging due to the absence of induced compensatory mechanisms at higher doses.

Correlation between changes in quality of life and symptomatic improvement in Chinese patients switched from typical antipsychotics to olanzapine.

PubMed

Montgomery, William; Kadziola, Zbigniew; Ye, Wenye; Xue, Hai Bo; Liu, Li; Treuer, Tamás

2015-01-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the correlation between changes in symptoms and changes in self-reported quality of life among Chinese patients with schizophrenia who were switched from a typical antipsychotic to olanzapine during usual outpatient care. This post hoc analysis was conducted using data from the Chinese subgroup (n=475) of a multicountry, 12-month, prospective, noninterventional, observational study. The primary publication previously reported the efficacy, safety, and quality of life among patients who switched from a typical antipsychotic to olanzapine. Patients with schizophrenia were included if their symptoms were inadequately controlled with a typical antipsychotic and they were switched to olanzapine. Symptom severity was measured using the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS) and the Clinical Global Impressions-Severity scale (CGI-S). Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQOL) was assessed using the World Health Organization Quality of Life-Abbreviated (WHOQOL-BREF). Paired t-tests were performed to assess changes from baseline to endpoint. Pearson's correlation coefficients (r) were used to assess the correlations between change in symptoms (BPRS and CGI-S scores) and change in HRQOL (WHOQOL-BREF scores). Symptoms and HRQOL both improved significantly over the 12 months of treatment (P<0.001). Significant correlations were observed between changes from baseline to end of study on the BPRS and the CGI-S and each of the WHOQOL-BREF four domain scores and two overall quality-of-life questions. The correlation coefficients ranged from r=-0.45 to r=-0.53 for the BPRS and WHOQOL-BREF. The correlation coefficients were slightly smaller between the CGI-S and WHOQOL-BREF, ranging from r=-0.33 to r=-0.40. For patients with schizophrenia, assessing quality of life has the potential to add valuable information to the clinical assessment that takes into account the patient's own perspective of well-being.

Peripheral dose measurements with diode and thermoluminescence dosimeters for intensity modulated radiotherapy delivered with conventional and un-conventional linear accelerator

PubMed Central

Kinhikar, Rajesh; Gamre, Poonam; Tambe, Chandrashekhar; Kadam, Sudarshan; Biju, George; Suryaprakash; Magai, C. S.; Dhote, Dipak; Shrivastava, Shyam; Deshpande, Deepak

2013-01-01

The objective of this paper was to measure the peripheral dose (PD) with diode and thermoluminescence dosimeter (TLD) for intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) with linear accelerator (conventional LINAC), and tomotherapy (novel LINAC). Ten patients each were selected from Trilogy dual-energy and from Hi-Art II tomotherapy. Two diodes were kept at 20 and 25 cm from treatment field edge. TLDs (LiF:MgTi) were also kept at same distance. TLDs were also kept at 5, 10, and 15 cm from field edge. The TLDs were read with REXON reader. The readings at the respective distance were recorded for both diode and TLD. The PD was estimated by taking the ratio of measured dose at the particular distance to the prescription dose. PD was then compared with diode and TLD for LINAC and tomotherapy. Mean PD for LINAC with TLD and diode was 2.52 cGy (SD 0.69), 2.07 cGy (SD 0.88) at 20 cm, respectively, while at 25 cm, it was 1.94 cGy (SD 0.58) and 1.5 cGy (SD 0.75), respectively. Mean PD for tomotherapy with TLD and diode was 1.681 cGy SD 0.53) and 1.58 (SD 0.44) at 20 cm, respectively. The PD was 1.24 cGy (SD 0.42) and 1.088 cGy (SD 0.35) at 25 cm, respectively, for tomotherapy. Overall, PD from tomotherapy was found lower than LINAC by the factor of 1.2-1.5. PD measurement is essential to find out the potential of secondary cancer. PD for both (conventional LINAC) and novel LINACs (tomotherapy) were measured and compared with each other. The comparison of the values for PD presented in this work and those published in the literature is difficult because of the different experimental conditions. The diode and TLD readings were reproducible and both the detector readings were comparable. PMID:23531765

What is the threshold for symptomatic response and remission for major depressive disorder, panic disorder, social anxiety disorder, and generalized anxiety disorder?

PubMed

Bandelow, Borwin; Baldwin, David S; Dolberg, Ornah T; Andersen, Henning Friis; Stein, Dan J

2006-09-01

Symptom-free remission is a goal for treatment in depression and anxiety disorders, but there is no consensus regarding the threshold for determining remission in individual disorders. We sought to determine these thresholds by comparing, in a post hoc analysis, scores on the Clinical Global Impressions scale (CGI) and disorder-specific symptom severity rating scales from all available studies of the treatment of major depressive disorder, panic disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and social anxiety disorder with the same medication (escitalopram). We also sought to compare the standardized effect sizes of escitalopram for these 4 psychiatric disorders. Raw data from all randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, acute treatment studies sponsored by H. Lundbeck A/S (Copenhagen, Denmark) or Forest Laboratories, Inc. (New York, N.Y.), published through March 1, 2004, with patients treated with escitalopram for DSM-IV major depressive disorder (5 studies), panic disorder (1 study), generalized anxiety disorder (4 studies), or social anxiety disorder (2 studies) were compared with regard to the standardized effect sizes of change in CGI score and scores on rating scales that represent the "gold standard" for assessment of these disorders (the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale, the Panic and Agoraphobia Scale, the Hamilton Rating Scale for Anxiety, and the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale, respectively). In all indications, treatment with escitalopram showed differences from placebo in treatment effect from 0.32 to 0.59 on the CGI-S and CGI-I and standardized effect sizes from 0.32 to 0.50 on the standard rating scales. There were no significant differences among the different disorders. Moderate to high correlations were found between scores on the CGI and the standard scales. The corresponding standard scale scores for CGI-defined "response" and "remission" were determined. Comparison of scores on the standard scales and scores on the CGI suggest that the traditional definition of response (i.e., a 50% reduction in a standard scale) may be too conservative.

TH-AB-201-04: Clinical Protocol for Reuse of Optically Stimulated Luminescence Detectors

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

Graeper, G; Pillai, S

Purpose: OSLDs made of Al2O3:C have many useful dosimetric characteristics including their ability to be reused. The signal on an OSLD can be removed through heat or light. The objective of this study was to characterize the change in sensitivity associated with annealing OSLDs with light and in doing so define a range through which reuse is viable. Methods: Four groups of nanoDot OSLDs were repeatedly irradiated and bleached to create accumulated dose history. Each group’s repeated irradiation remained constant at either 50, 100, 200, or 500 cGy. Before both irradiation and bleaching the OSLDs were read out, giving themore » dose reading and ensuring that ample bleaching had occurred, respectively. New and used OSLDs were compared in several clinical situations to verify accuracy. One final test involved correcting the readout dose based on the loss of sensitivity seen in the accumulated dose data. Results: In the first 40 Gy of accumulated dose the sensitivity can be broken into two regions: a region of sensitivity change and a region of no sensitivity change. From 0 cGy to an average of 1080 cGy the sensitivity does not change. After 1080 cGy the sensitivity begins to decrease linearly with an average slope of 0.00456 cGy lost per cGy accumulated after the cutoff point. The slope and cutoff point were used to correct readings in the final test, reducing the error from 6.8% to 3.9%. Conclusion: In the region of no sensitivity change OSLDs can be reused without concern to the validity of their result. Readings must be corrected if OSLDs are to be used in the region of sensitivity change, above 1080 cGy. After 40 Gy OSLDs must be retired because the sensitivity change reverses, making linear correction no longer feasible.« less

GaussianCpG: a Gaussian model for detection of CpG island in human genome sequences.

PubMed

Yu, Ning; Guo, Xuan; Zelikovsky, Alexander; Pan, Yi

2017-05-24

As crucial markers in identifying biological elements and processes in mammalian genomes, CpG islands (CGI) play important roles in DNA methylation, gene regulation, epigenetic inheritance, gene mutation, chromosome inactivation and nuclesome retention. The generally accepted criteria of CGI rely on: (a) %G+C content is ≥ 50%, (b) the ratio of the observed CpG content and the expected CpG content is ≥ 0.6, and (c) the general length of CGI is greater than 200 nucleotides. Most existing computational methods for the prediction of CpG island are programmed on these rules. However, many experimentally verified CpG islands deviate from these artificial criteria. Experiments indicate that in many cases %G+C is < 50%, CpG obs /CpG exp varies, and the length of CGI ranges from eight nucleotides to a few thousand of nucleotides. It implies that CGI detection is not just a straightly statistical task and some unrevealed rules probably are hidden. A novel Gaussian model, GaussianCpG, is developed for detection of CpG islands on human genome. We analyze the energy distribution over genomic primary structure for each CpG site and adopt the parameters from statistics of Human genome. The evaluation results show that the new model can predict CpG islands efficiently by balancing both sensitivity and specificity over known human CGI data sets. Compared with other models, GaussianCpG can achieve better performance in CGI detection. Our Gaussian model aims to simplify the complex interaction between nucleotides. The model is computed not by the linear statistical method but by the Gaussian energy distribution and accumulation. The parameters of Gaussian function are not arbitrarily designated but deliberately chosen by optimizing the biological statistics. By using the pseudopotential analysis on CpG islands, the novel model is validated on both the real and artificial data sets.

Risk of Radiation Retinopathy in Patients With Orbital and Ocular Lymphoma

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

Kaushik, Megha; Pulido, Jose S.; Schild, Steven E.

2012-12-01

Purpose: Radiation retinopathy is a potential long-term complication of radiation therapy to the orbit. The risk of developing this adverse effect is dose dependent; however, the threshold is unclear. The aim of this study was to identify the risk of developing radiation retinopathy at increasing radiation doses. Methods and Materials: A 40-year retrospective review was performed of patients who received external beam radiation therapy for ocular/orbital non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). Results: Sixty-seven patients who had at least one ophthalmic follow-up examination were included in this study. Most patients (52%) were diagnosed with NHL involving the orbit. Patients received external beam radiationmore » therapy at doses between 1886 and 5400 cGy (mean, 3033 {+-} 782 cGy). Radiation retinopathy developed in 12% of patients, and the median time to diagnosis was 27 months (range, 15-241months). The mean prescribed radiation dose in patients with retinopathy was 3309 {+-} 585 cGy, and the estimated retinal dose (derived by reviewing the dosimetry) was 3087 {+-} 1030 cGy. The incidence of retinopathy increased with dose. The average prescribed daily fractionated dose was higher in patients who developed retinopathy than in patients who did not (mean, 202 cGy vs 180 cGy, respectively; P = .04). More patients with radiation retinopathy had comorbid diabetes mellitus type 2 than patients without retinopathy (P = .015). In our study, the mean visual acuity of the eyes that received radiation was worse than that of the eyes that did not (P = .027). Other postradiotherapy ocular findings included keratitis (6%), dry eyes (39%), and cataract (33%). Conclusions: Radiation retinopathy, a known complication of radiotherapy for orbital tumors, relates to vascular comorbidities and dose. Higher total doses and larger daily fractions (>180 cGy) appear to be related to higher rates of retinopathy. Future larger studies are required to identify a statistically significant threshold for the development of retinopathy.« less

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

Jassal, K; Sarkar, B; Ganesh, T

Purpose: The study investigates the effect of fluence smoothing parameter on VMAT plans for ten head-neck cancer patients using Monaco5.00.04. Methods: VMAT plans were created using Monaco5.00.04 planning system for 10 head-neck patients. Four plans were generated for each patient using available smoothing parameters i.e. high, medium, low and off. The number of monitor units required to deliver 1 cGy was defined as a modulation degree; and was taken as a measure of plan complexity. Routinely used plan quality parameters Conformity index (CI) and Homogeneity index (HI) were used in the study. As a protocol our center, practices “medium” smoothingmore » for clinical implementation. Plans with medium smoothing were opted as reference plans due to the clinical acceptance and dosimetric verifications made on these plans. Plans were generated by varying the smoothing parameter and re-optimization was done. The PTV was evaluated for D98%, D95%, D50%, D1% and prescription isodose volume (PIV). For critical organs; spine and parotids the parameters recorded were D1cc and Dmean respectively. Results: The cohort had the median prescription as 6000 cGy in the range of 6600 cGy - 4500 cGy. The modulation degree was observed to increase up to 6% from reference to the most complex plan. High smoothing had about 11% increase in segments which marginally (0.5 to 1%) increased the homogeneity index while conformity index remains constant. For spine the maximum D1cc was observed in medium smoothing as 4639.8 cGy, this plan was clinically accepted and dosimetrically verified. Similarly for parotids, the Dmean was 2011.9 cGy and 1817.05 cGy. Conclusion: The sensitivity of plan quality in terms of smoothing options (high, medium, low and off) available in Monaco 5.00.04 was resulted in minimal difference in terms of target coverage, conformity index and homogeneity index. Similarly changing smoothing did not result in any enhanced advantage in sparing of critical organs.« less

A Foundational Approach to Designing Geoscience Ontologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brodaric, B.

2009-05-01

E-science systems are increasingly deploying ontologies to aid online geoscience research. Geoscience ontologies are typically constructed independently by isolated individuals or groups who tend to follow few design principles. This limits the usability of the ontologies due to conceptualizations that are vague, conflicting, or narrow. Advances in foundational ontologies and formal engineering approaches offer promising solutions, but these advanced techniques have had limited application in the geosciences. This paper develops a design approach for geoscience ontologies by extending aspects of the DOLCE foundational ontology and the OntoClean method. Geoscience examples will be presented to demonstrate the feasibility of the approach.

Highlighting Successful Strategies for Engaging Minority Students in the Geosciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liou-Mark, J.; Blake, R.; Norouzi, H.; Vladutescu, D. V.; Yuen-Lau, L.

2017-12-01

Igniting interest and creativity in students for the geosciences oftentimes require innovation, bold `outside-the-box' thinking, and perseverance, particularly for minority students for whom the preparation for the discipline and its lucrative pathways to the geoscience workforce are regrettably unfamiliar and woefully inadequate. The enrollment, retention, participation, and graduation rates of minority students in STEM generally and in the geosciences particularly remain dismally low. However, a coupled, strategic geoscience model initiative at the New York City College of Technology (City Tech) of the City University of New York has been making steady in-roads of progress, and it offers practical solutions to improve minority student engagement in the geosciences. Aided by funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF), two geoscience-centric programs were created from NSF REU and NSF IUSE grants, and these programs have been successfully implemented and administered at City Tech. This presentation shares the hybrid geoscience research initiatives, the multi-tiered mentoring structures, the transformative geoscience workforce preparation, and a plethora of other vital bastions of support that made the overall program successful. Minority undergraduate scholars of the program have either moved on to graduate school, to the geoscience workforce, or they persist with greater levels of success in their STEM disciplines.

Integration of potential-field and digital geologic data for two North American geoscience transects

USGS Publications Warehouse

Phillips, J.D.

1990-01-01

Two North American contributions to the Global Geoscience Transects Program, the Quebec-Maine-Gulf of Maine transect and the Great Lakes portion of the United States-Canadian Border transect, are among the first to produce digital geology in a form that can be combined with gridded gravity and aeromagnetic data. Maps of shaded relief and color-composite bandpass-filtered potential-field data combined with overlays of digitized geologic contacts and faults reveal significant new geologic information, including the relative thickness of plutons, the structure of poorly exposed or concealed magnetic units, and possible evidence for mineralized ground. -from Author

WFIRST: CGI Detection and Characterization of Circumstellar Disks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Debes, John; Chen, Christine; Dawson, Bekki; Douglas, Ewan S.; Duchene, Gaspard; Jang-Condell, Hannah; hines, Dean C.; Lewis, Nikole K.; Macintosh, Bruce; Mazoyer, Johan; Meshkat, Tiffany; Nemati, Bijan; Patel, Rahul; Perrin, Marshall; Poteet, Charles; Pueyo, Laurent; Ren, Bin; Rizzo, Maxime; Roberge, Aki; Stark, Chris; Turnbull, Margaret

2018-01-01

The WFIRST Coronagraphic Instrument (CGI) will be capable of obtaining up to 5×10-9 contrast to an inner working angle of ~150 mas for a selection of medium band visible light filters using shaped pupil coronagraph and hybrid Lyot coronagraph designs. We present initial work at defining the scientific capabilities of the CGI with respect to different types of circumstellar disks, including warm exo-zodiacal disks, cold debris disks, and protoplanetary disks. With the above designs, CGI will be able to detect bright protoplanetary and debris disks with sizes of >100 AU beyond 500 pc. Additionally, it will be able to discover warm exozodiacal dust disks ten times more massive than that of the Solar System for over 100 nearby solar-type stars. Finally, it will be able to characterize resolved circumstellar dust disks in multiple filters of visible light, providing constraints on the size, shape, and composition of the dust.

What do dendrites and their synapses tell the neuron?

PubMed

Segev, Idan

2006-03-01

This essay looks at the historical significance of four APS classic papers that are freely available online: Rall W. Distinguishing theoretical synaptic potentials computed for different soma-dendritic distributions of synaptic input. J Neurophysiol 30: 1138-1168, 1967 (http://jn.physiology.org/cgi/reprint/30/5/1138). Rall W, Burke RE, Smith TG, Nelson PG, and Frank K. Dendritic location of synapses and possible mechanisms for the monosynaptic EPSP in motoneurons. J Neurophysiol 30: 1169-1193, 1967 (http://jn.physiology.org/cgi/reprint/30/5/1169). Rall W and Shepherd GM. Theoretical reconstruction of field potentials and dendrodendritic synaptic interactions in olfactory bulb. J Neurophysiol 31: 884-915, 1968 (http://jn.physiology.org/cgi/reprint/31/6/884). Segev I and Rall W. Computational study of an excitable dendritic spine. J Neurophysiol 60: 499-523, 1988 (http://jn.physiology.org/cgi/reprint/60/2/499).

Effect of radiation on red cell membrane and intracellular oxidative defense systems.

PubMed

Katz, D; Mazor, D; Dvilansky, A; Meyerstein, N

1996-03-01

Ionizing radiation is currently used for prevention of transfusion associated graft versus host disease (TAGVHD). As radiation damage is associated with the production of activated oxygen species, the aim of this study was to observe the immediate effect of ionizing radiation on red cell membrane and intracellular oxidative defense systems. Neonatal and iron deficiency (IDA) cells, known for their increased sensitivity to oxidative stress, were chosen and compared with normal cells. Irradiation was performed in doses of 1500 cGy, 3000 cGy and 5000 cGy. GSH and methemoglobin levels and the activity of different antioxidant enzymes, measured under optimal in vitro conditions, were preserved in all cells after irradiation. Only radiation at the highest does of 5000 cGy, caused significant potassium leakage in neonatal cells and insignificant increase in IDA cells. Thus, cells with increased sensitivity to oxidative stress are more susceptible to damage by ionizing radiation than normal cells.

Resources to Transform Undergraduate Geoscience Education: Activities in Support of Earth, Oceans and Atmospheric Sciences Faculty, and Future Plans

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ryan, J. G.; Singer, J.

2013-12-01

The NSF offers funding programs that support geoscience education spanning atmospheric, oceans, and Earth sciences, as well as environmental science, climate change and sustainability, and research on learning. The 'Resources to Transform Undergraduate Geoscience Education' (RTUGeoEd) is an NSF Transforming Undergraduate Education in STEM (TUES) Type 2 special project aimed at supporting college-level geoscience faculty at all types of institutions. The project's goals are to carry out activities and create digital resources that encourage the geoscience community to submit proposals that impact their courses and classroom infrastructure through innovative changes in instructional practice, and contribute to making transformative changes that impact student learning outcomes and lead to other educational benefits. In the past year information sessions were held during several national and regional professional meetings, including the GSA Southeastern and South-Central Section meetings. A three-day proposal-writing workshop for faculty planning to apply to the TUES program was held at the University of South Florida - Tampa. During the workshop, faculty learned about the program and key elements of a proposal, including: the need to demonstrate awareness of prior efforts within and outside the geosciences and how the proposed project builds upon this knowledge base; need to fully justify budget and role of members of the project team; project evaluation and what matters in selecting a project evaluator; and effective dissemination practices. Participants also spent time developing their proposal benefitting from advice and feedback from workshop facilitators. Survey data gathered from workshop participants point to a consistent set of challenges in seeking grant support for a desired educational innovation, including poor understanding of the educational literature, of available funding programs, and of learning assessment and project evaluation. Many also noted that their institutions did not recognize the value of education-related scholarly activities, or undervaluing it compared to more traditional research activities. Given this reality, faculty desire strategies for balancing their time to allow time to pursue both. The current restructuring of NSF educational programs raises questions regarding future directions and the scale of support that may be available from the proposed Catalyzing Advances in Undergraduate STEM Education (CAUSE) Program. At the time of writing this abstract, specific details have not been communicated, but it appears that CAUSE could encompass components from several programs within the Division of Undergraduate Education's TUES, STEP, and WIDER programs, as well as the Geoscience Education and OEDG programs in the Geosciences Directorate. The RTUGeoEd project will continue to provide support to faculty seeking CAUSE (and other educational funding within DUE).

Geoscience communication in Namibia: YES Network Namibia spreading the message to young scientists

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mhopjeni, Kombada

2015-04-01

The Young Earth Scientists (YES) Network is an international association for early-career geoscientists under the age of 35 years that was formed as a result of the International Year of Planet Earth (IYPE) in 2007. YES Network aims to establish an interdisciplinary global network of early-career geoscientists to solve societal issues/challenges using geosciences, promote scientific research and interdisciplinary networking, and support professional development of early-career geoscientists. The Network has several National Chapters including one in Namibia. YES Network Namibia (YNN) was formed in 2009, at the closing ceremony of IYPE in Portugal and YNN was consolidated in 2013 with the current set-up. YNN supports the activities and goals of the main YES Network at national level providing a platform for young Namibian scientists with a passion to network, information on geoscience opportunities and promoting earth sciences. Currently most of the members are geoscientists from the Geological Survey of Namibia (GSN) and University of Namibia. In 2015, YNN plans to carry out two workshops on career guidance, establish a mentorship program involving alumni and experienced industry experts, and increase involvement in outreach activities, mainly targeting high school pupils. Network members will participate in a range of educational activities such as school career and science fairs communicating geoscience to the general public, learners and students. The community outreach programmes are carried out to increase awareness of the role geosciences play in society. In addition, YNN will continue to promote interactive collaboration between the University of Namibia, Geological Survey of Namibia (GSN) and Geological Society of Namibia. Despite the numerous potential opportunities YNN offers young scientists in Namibia and its presence on all major social media platforms, the Network faces several challenges. One notable challenge the Network faces is indifference among early-career geoscientists in the industry and university students to geoscience activities outside the confines of academia and the industry such as networking and outreach activities. This is compounded by the Network's perceived lack of relevance and appeal among young Namibian scientists. To become more 'popular' YNN needs to solve the issue of indifference among early-career geoscientists in the industry and University students by listening to their needs and actively engaging them in the process. Good communication skills are essential and YNN has to reformulate the way it reaches out to its audiences by developing more active ways to communicate geosciences. With this in mind, YNN plans to implement best practice methods to engage more young scientists in YNN and provide support and guidance on geoscience opportunities.

How semantics can inform the geological mapping process and support intelligent queries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lombardo, Vincenzo; Piana, Fabrizio; Mimmo, Dario

2017-04-01

The geologic mapping process requires the organization of data according to the general knowledge about the objects, namely the geologic units, and to the objectives of a graphic representation of such objects in a map, following an established model of geotectonic evolution. Semantics can greatly help such a process in two concerns: the provision of a terminological base to name and classify the objects of the map; on the other, the implementation of a machine-readable encoding of the geologic knowledge base supports the application of reasoning mechanisms and the derivation of novel properties and relations about the objects of the map. The OntoGeonous initiative has built a terminological base of geological knowledge in a machine-readable format, following the Semantic Web tenets and the Linked Data paradigm. The major knowledge sources of the OntoGeonous initiative are GeoScience Markup Language schemata and vocabularies (through its last version, GeoSciML 4, 2015, published by the IUGS CGI Commission) and the INSPIRE "Data Specification on Geology" directives (an operative simplification of GeoSciML, published by INSPIRE Thematic Working Group Geology of the European Commission). The Linked Data paradigm has been exploited by linking (without replicating, to avoid inconsistencies) the already existing machine-readable encoding for some specific domains, such as the lithology domain (vocabulary Simple Lithology) and the geochronologic time scale (ontology "gts"). Finally, for the upper level knowledge, shared across several geologic domains, we have resorted to NASA SWEET ontology. The OntoGeonous initiative has also produced a wiki that explains how the geologic knowledge has been encoded from shared geoscience vocabularies (https://www.di.unito.it/wikigeo/). In particular, the sections dedicated to axiomatization will support the construction of an appropriate data base schema that can be then filled with the objects of the map. This contribution will discuss how the formal encoding of the geological knowledge opens new perspectives for the analysis and representation of the geological systems. In fact, once that the major concepts are defined, the resulting formal conceptual model of the geologic system can hold across different technical and scientific communities. Furthermore, this would allow for a semi-automatic or automatic classification of the cartographic database, where a significant number of properties (attributes) of the recorded instances could be inferred through computational reasoning. So, for example, the system can be queried for showing the instances that satisfy some property (e.g., "Retrieve all the lithostratigraphic units composed of clastic sedimentary rock") or for classifying some unit according to the properties holding for that unit (e.g., "What is the class of the geologic unit composed of siltstone material?").

Investigation of pulsed IMRT and VMAT for re-irradiation treatments: dosimetric and delivery feasibilities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin, Mu-Han; Price, Robert A., Jr.; Li, Jinsheng; Kang, Shengwei; Li, Jie; Ma, C.-M.

2013-11-01

Many tumor cells demonstrate hyperradiosensitivity at doses below ˜50 cGy. Together with the increased normal tissue repair under low dose rate, the pulsed low dose rate radiotherapy (PLDR), which separates a daily fractional dose of 200 cGy into 10 pulses with 3 min interval between pulses (˜20 cGy/pulse and effective dose rate 6.7 cGy min-1), potentially reduces late normal tissue toxicity while still providing significant tumor control for re-irradiation treatments. This work investigates the dosimetric and technical feasibilities of intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) and volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT)-based PLDR treatments using Varian Linacs. Twenty one cases (12 real re-irradiation cases) including treatment sites of pancreas, prostate, pelvis, lung, head-and-neck, and breast were recruited for this study. The lowest machine operation dose rate (100 MU min-1) was employed in the plan delivery. Ten-field step-and-shoot IMRT and dual-arc VMAT plans were generated using the Eclipse TPS with routine planning strategies. The dual-arc plans were delivered five times to achieve a 200 cGy daily dose (˜20 cGy arc-1). The resulting plan quality was evaluated according to the heterogeneity and conformity indexes (HI and CI) of the planning target volume (PTV). The dosimetric feasibility of retaining the hyperradiosensitivity for PLDR was assessed based on the minimum and maximum dose in the target volume from each pulse. The delivery accuracy of VMAT and IMRT at the 100 MU min-1 machine operation dose rate was verified using a 2D diode array and ion chamber measurements. The delivery reproducibility was further investigated by analyzing the Dynalog files of repeated deliveries. A comparable plan quality was achieved by the IMRT (CI 1.10-1.38 HI 1.04-1.10) and the VMAT (CI 1.08-1.26 HI 1.05-1.10) techniques. The minimum/maximum PTV dose per pulse is 7.9 ± 5.1 cGy/33.7 ± 6.9 cGy for the IMRT and 12.3 ± 4.1 cGy/29.2 ± 4.7 cGy for the VMAT. Six out of the 186 IMRT pulses (fields) were found to exceed 50 cGy maximum PTV dose per pulse while the maximum PTV dose per pulse was within 40 cGy for all the VMAT pulses (arcs). However, for VMAT plans, the dosimetric quality of the entire treatment plan was less superior for the breast cases and large irregular targets. The gamma passing rates for both techniques at the 100 MU min-1 dose rate were at least 94.1% (3%/3 mm) and the point dose measurements agreed with the planned values to within 2.2%. The average root mean square error of the leaf position was 0.93 ± 0.83 mm for IMRT and 0.53 ± 0.48 mm for VMAT based on the Dynalog file analysis. The RMS error of the leaf position was nearly identical for the repeated deliveries of the same plans. In general, both techniques are feasible for PLDR treatments. VMAT was more advantageous for PLDR with more uniform target dose per pulse, especially for centrally located tumors. However, for large, irregular and/or peripheral tumors, IMRT could produce more favorable PLDR plans. By taking the biological benefit of PLDR delivery and the dosimetric benefit of IMRT and VMAT, the proposed methods have a great potential for those previously-irradiated recurrent patients.

Nature as a treasure map! Teaching geoscience with the help of earth caches?!

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zecha, Stefanie; Schiller, Thomas

2015-04-01

This presentation looks at how earth caches are influence the learning process in the field of geo science in non-formal education. The development of mobile technologies using Global Positioning System (GPS) data to point geographical location together with the evolving Web 2.0 supporting the creation and consumption of content, suggest a potential for collaborative informal learning linked to location. With the help of the GIS in smartphones you can go directly in nature, search for information by your smartphone, and learn something about nature. Earth caches are a very good opportunity, which are organized and supervised geocaches with special information about physical geography high lights. Interested people can inform themselves about aspects in geoscience area by earth caches. The main question of this presentation is how these caches are created in relation to learning processes. As is not possible, to analyze all existing earth caches, there was focus on Bavaria and a certain feature of earth caches. At the end the authors show limits and potentials for the use of earth caches and give some remark for the future.

Dose- and Ion-Dependent Effects in the Oxidative Stress Response to Space-Like Radiation Exposure in the Skeletal System

PubMed Central

Alwood, Joshua S.; Tran, Luan H.; Schreurs, Ann-Sofie; Shirazi-Fard, Yasaman; Kumar, Akhilesh; Hilton, Diane; Tahimic, Candice G. T.; Globus, Ruth K.

2017-01-01

Space radiation may pose a risk to skeletal health during subsequent aging. Irradiation acutely stimulates bone remodeling in mice, although the long-term influence of space radiation on bone-forming potential (osteoblastogenesis) and possible adaptive mechanisms are not well understood. We hypothesized that ionizing radiation impairs osteoblastogenesis in an ion-type specific manner, with low doses capable of modulating expression of redox-related genes. 16-weeks old, male, C57BL6/J mice were exposed to low linear-energy-transfer (LET) protons (150 MeV/n) or high-LET 56Fe ions (600 MeV/n) using either low (5 or 10 cGy) or high (50 or 200 cGy) doses at NASA’s Space Radiation Lab. Five weeks or one year after irradiation, tissues were harvested and analyzed by microcomputed tomography for cancellous microarchitecture and cortical geometry. Marrow-derived, adherent cells were grown under osteoblastogenic culture conditions. Cell lysates were analyzed by RT-PCR during the proliferative or mineralizing phase of growth, and differentiation was analyzed by imaging mineralized nodules. As expected, a high dose (200 cGy), but not lower doses, of either 56Fe or protons caused a loss of cancellous bone volume/total volume. Marrow cells produced mineralized nodules ex vivo regardless of radiation type or dose; 56Fe (200 cGy) inhibited osteoblastogenesis by more than 90% (5 weeks and 1 year post-IR). After 5 weeks, irradiation (protons or 56Fe) caused few changes in gene expression levels during osteoblastogenesis, although a high dose 56Fe (200 cGy) increased Catalase and Gadd45. The addition of exogenous superoxide dismutase (SOD) protected marrow-derived osteoprogenitors from the damaging effects of exposure to low-LET (137Cs γ) when irradiated in vitro, but had limited protective effects on high-LET 56Fe-exposed cells. In sum, either protons or 56Fe at a relatively high dose (200 cGy) caused persistent bone loss, whereas only high-LET 56Fe increased redox-related gene expression, albeit to a limited extent, and inhibited osteoblastogenesis. Doses below 50 cGy did not elicit widespread responses in any parameter measured. We conclude that high-LET irradiation at 200 cGy impaired osteoblastogenesis and regulated steady-state gene expression of select redox-related genes during osteoblastogenesis, which may contribute to persistent bone loss. PMID:28994728

Late Effects of Heavy Ion Irradiation on Ex Vivo Osteoblastogenesis and Cancellous Bone Microarchitecture

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tran, Luan Hoang; Alwood, Joshua; Kumar, Akhilesh; Limoli, C. L.; Globus, Ruth

2012-01-01

Prolonged spaceflight causes degeneration of skeletal tissue with incomplete recovery even after return to Earth. We hypothesize that heavy ion irradiation, a component of Galactic Cosmic Radiation, damages osteoblast progenitors and may contribute to bone loss during long duration space travel beyond the protection of the Earth's magnetosphere. Male, 16 week old C57BL6/J mice were exposed to high LET (56 Fe, 600MeV) radiation using either low (5 or 10cGy) or high (50 or 200cGy) doses at the NASA Space Radiation Lab and were euthanized 3 - 4, 7, or 35 days later. Bone structure was quantified by microcomputed tomography (6.8 micron pixel size) and marrow cell redox assessed using membrane permeable, free radical sensitive fluorogenic dyes. To assess osteoblastogenesis, adherent marrow cells were cultured ex vivo, then mineralized nodule formation quantified by imaging and gene expression analyzed by RT PCR. Interestingly, 3 - 4 days post exposure, fluorogenic dyes that reflect cytoplasmic generation of reactive nitrogen/oxygen species (DAF FM Diacetate or CM H2DCFDA) revealed irradiation (50cGy) reduced free radical generation (20-45%) compared to sham irradiated controls. Alternatively, use of a dye showing relative specificity for mitochondrial superoxide generation (MitoSOX) revealed an 88% increase compared to controls. One week after exposure, reactive oxygen/nitrogen levels remained lower(24%) relative to sham irradiated controls. After one month, high dose irradiation (200 cGy) caused an 86% decrement in ex vivo nodule formation and a 16-31% decrement in bone volume to total volume and trabecular number (50, 200cGy) compared to controls. High dose irradiation (200cGy) up regulated expression of a late osteoblast marker (BGLAP) and select genes related to oxidative metabolism (Catalase) and DNA damage repair (Gadd45). In contrast, lower doses (5, 10cGy) did not affect bone structure or ex vivo nodule formation, but did down regulate iNOS by 0.54 - 0.58 fold. Thus, both low and high doses of heavy ion irradiation cause time dependent, adaptive changes in redox state within marrow cells but only high doses (50, 200cGy) inhibit osteoblastogenesis and cause cancellous bone loss. We conclude space radiation has the potential to cause persistent damage to bone marrow derived stem and progenitor cells for osteoblasts despite adaptive changes in cellular redox state.

Do technological advances in linear accelerators improve dosimetric outcomes in stereotaxy? A head-on comparison of seven linear accelerators using volumetric modulated arc therapy-based stereotactic planning.

PubMed

Sarkar, B; Pradhan, A; Munshi, A

2016-01-01

Linear accelerator (Linac) based stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) and stereotactic radiotherapy (SRT) using volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) has been used for treating small intracranial lesions. Recent development in the Linacs such as inbuilt micro multileaf collimator (MLC) and flattening filter free (FFF) beam are intended to provide a better dose conformity and faster delivery when using VMAT technique. This study was aimed to compare the dosimetric outcomes and monitor units (MUs) of the stereotactic treatment plans for different commercially available MLC models and beam profiles. Ten patients having 12 planning target volume (PTV)/gross target volume's (GTVs) who received the SRS/SRT treatment in our clinic using Axesse Linac (considered reference arm gold standard) were considered for this study. The test arms comprised of plans using Elekta Agility with FFF, Elekta Agility with the plane beam, Elekta APEX, Varian Millennium 120, Varian Millennium 120HD, and Elekta Synergy in Monaco treatment planning system. Planning constraints and calculation grid spacing were not altered in the test plans. To objectively evaluate the efficacy of MLC-beam model, the resultant dosimetric outcomes were subtracted from the reference arm parameters. V95%, V100%, V105%, D1%, maximum dose, and mean dose of PTV/GTV showed a maximum inter MLC - beam model variation of 1.5% and 2% for PTV and GTV, respectively. Average PTV conformity index and heterogeneity index shows a variation in the range 0.56-0.63 and 1.08-1.11, respectively. Mean dose difference (excluding Axesse) for all organs varied between 1.1 cGy and 74.8 cGy (mean dose = 6.1 cGy standard deviation [SD] = 26.9 cGy) and 1.7 cGy-194.5 cGy (mean dose 16.1 cGy SD = 57.2 cGy) for single and multiple fraction, respectively. The dosimetry of VMAT-based SRS/SRT treatment plan had minimal dependence on MLC and beam model variations. All tested MLC and beam model could fulfil the desired PTV coverage and organs at risk dose constraints. The only notable difference was the halving of the MU for FFF beam as compared to the plane beam. This has the potential to reduce the total patient on couch time by 15% (approximately 2 min).

The discrepancy between patients and informants on clinician-rated measures in major depressive disorder: implications for clinical trials and clinical practice.

PubMed

Peselow, Eric D; Karamians, Reneh; Lord, Marie; Tobia, Gabriel; IsHak, Waguih William

2014-03-01

Clinician-rated measures are used in clinical trials and measurement-based clinical care settings to assess baseline symptoms and treatment outcomes of major depressive disorder (MDD), with a widely held dictum that they are sufficient in assessing the patient's clinical status. In this study, we examined clinician-rated measures of depressive and global symptom severity, obtained by interviewing patients as well as informants in an attempt to examine the potential difference or similarity between these two sources of information. The sample consisted of 89 treatment seeking, DSM-IV diagnosed MDD outpatients treated between 1995 and 2004. The clinician-rated measures used included the Montgomery Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS), and the Clinical Global Impression Scale (CGI) for Severity. The scores of the clinician-rated measures collected from patients' interviews were compared with those collected from informants' interviews. Clinician-rated scores, collected by interviewing patients, were significantly higher and indicative of greater symptom severity when compared with those collected by interviewing informants. This was true for both the MADRS before (P<0.0001) and after treatment scores (P<0.0001), as well as the CGI before (P<0.0001) and after treatment scores (P<0.0001). Consistently involving informants and the time/burden it takes for them to participate might not be practical in MDD clinical trials or everyday clinical care. The discrepancies observed between the clinician-rated scores obtained from patients and informants emphasize the importance of incorporating collateral information during the assessment and rating of depressive symptom severity in both clinical trials as well as in clinical practice.

Ka`Imi`Ike: Explorations in the Geosciences from an Indigenous Perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gibson, B. A.; Puniwai, N.; Sing, D.; Ziegler-Chong, S.

2006-12-01

The Ka `Imi `Ike Program is a recent initiative at the University of Hawai`i whose mission is to recruit and retain Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders (NHPI) to disciplines within the geosciences. The Program seeks to create pathways for NHPI students interested in geoscience disciplines through various venues and activities, including linking science with culture and community through a summer boarding experience for incoming freshman or sophomore University of Hawaii students. The 3-week institute, Explorations in Geosciences, was offered for the first time in Summer 2006. The 10 college students who participated were introduced to mentor geoscientists to learn more about the different disciplines and the pathways the scientists took in their careers. Hands-on activities trained students in current technology (such as GPS) and exposed them to how the technology was used in different research applications. A key and crucial component of the Explorations in Geosciences summer program was that "local" or Native Hawaiian role models were selected as the geoscience mentors whenever possible and mostly local and regional examples of geoscience phenomena were used. Moreover, the "science" learned throughout the summer program was linked to local Traditional Environmental Knowledge (TEK) by a Native Hawaiian kumu (teacher). The merging of "western" science with traditional knowledge reinforced geoscience concepts, and afforded the students an opportunity to better understand how a career in the geosciences could be beneficial to them and their community. At the end of the summer institute, the students had to give a final presentation of what geoscience concepts and careers they thought were most interesting to them, and how the program impacted their view of the geosciences. They also had to keep a daily journal which outlined their thoughts about the topics presented each day of the summer institute. Preliminary assessment reveals that several of the students came away from the summer program with a better understanding of the geosciences and are now considering a possible career in a geoscience discipline. The students also indicated that the linking of traditional knowledge with "western" science strengthened their perception of how the geosciences are a part of their cultural understanding of the environmental.

Quantitative Literacy: Geosciences and Beyond

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Richardson, R. M.; McCallum, W. G.

2002-12-01

Quantitative literacy seems like such a natural for the geosciences, right? The field has gone from its origin as a largely descriptive discipline to one where it is hard to imagine failing to bring a full range of mathematical tools to the solution of geological problems. Although there are many definitions of quantitative literacy, we have proposed one that is analogous to the UNESCO definition of conventional literacy: "A quantitatively literate person is one who, with understanding, can both read and represent quantitative information arising in his or her everyday life." Central to this definition is the concept that a curriculum for quantitative literacy must go beyond the basic ability to "read and write" mathematics and develop conceptual understanding. It is also critical that a curriculum for quantitative literacy be engaged with a context, be it everyday life, humanities, geoscience or other sciences, business, engineering, or technology. Thus, our definition works both within and outside the sciences. What role do geoscience faculty have in helping students become quantitatively literate? Is it our role, or that of the mathematicians? How does quantitative literacy vary between different scientific and engineering fields? Or between science and nonscience fields? We will argue that successful quantitative literacy curricula must be an across-the-curriculum responsibility. We will share examples of how quantitative literacy can be developed within a geoscience curriculum, beginning with introductory classes for nonmajors (using the Mauna Loa CO2 data set) through graduate courses in inverse theory (using singular value decomposition). We will highlight six approaches to across-the curriculum efforts from national models: collaboration between mathematics and other faculty; gateway testing; intensive instructional support; workshops for nonmathematics faculty; quantitative reasoning requirement; and individual initiative by nonmathematics faculty.

Tube Maps for Effective Geoscience Career Planning and Development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Keane, C. M.; Wilson, C. E.; Houlton, H. R.

2013-12-01

One of the greatest challenges faced by students and new graduates is the advice that they must take charge of their own career planning. This is ironic as new graduates are least prepared to understand the full spectrum of options and the potential pathways to meeting their personal goals. We will examine the rationale, tools, and utility of an approach aimed at assisting individuals in career planning nicknamed a "tube map." In particular, this approach has been used in support of geoscientist recruitment and career planning in major European energy companies. By utilizing information on the occupational sequences of geoscience professionals within an organization or a community, a student or new hire can quickly understand the proven pathways towards their eventual career goals. The tube map visualizes the career pathways of individuals in the form of a subway map, with specific occupations represented as "stations" and pathway interconnections represented as "transfers." The major application of this approach in the energy sector was to demonstrate both the logical career pathways to either senior management or senior technical positions, as well as present the reality that time must be invested in "lower level" jobs, thereby nullifying a persistent overinflated sense of the speed of upward mobility. To this end, we have run a similar occupational analysis on several geoscience employers, including one with somewhat non-traditional geoscience positions and another that would be considered a very traditional employer. We will examine the similarities and differences between the resulting 'tube maps,' critique the tools used to create the maps, and assess the utility of the product in career development planning for geoscience students and new hires.

Translational Geoscience: Converting Geoscience Innovation into Societal Impacts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schiffries, C. M.

2015-12-01

Translational geoscience — which involves the conversion of geoscience discovery into societal, economic, and environmental impacts — has significant potential to generate large benefits but has received little systematic attention or resources. In contrast, translational medicine — which focuses on the conversion of scientific discovery into health improvement — has grown enormously in the past decade and provides useful models for other fields. Elias Zerhouni [1] developed a "new vision" for translational science to "ensure that extraordinary scientific advances of the past decade will be rapidly captured, translated, and disseminated for the benefit of all Americans." According to Francis Collins, "Opportunities to advance the discipline of translational science have never been better. We must move forward now. Science and society cannot afford to do otherwise." On 9 July 2015, the White House issued a memorandum directing U.S. federal agencies to focus on translating research into broader impacts, including commercial products and decision-making frameworks [3]. Natural hazards mitigation is one of many geoscience topics that would benefit from advances in translational science. This paper demonstrates that natural hazards mitigation can benefit from advances in translational science that address such topics as improving emergency preparedness, communicating life-saving information to government officials and citizens, explaining false positives and false negatives, working with multiple stakeholders and organizations across all sectors of the economy and all levels of government, and collaborating across a broad range of disciplines. [1] Zerhouni, EA (2005) New England Journal of Medicine 353(15):1621-1623. [2] Collins, FS (2011) Science Translational Medicine 3(90):1-6. [3] Donovan, S and Holdren, JP (2015) Multi-agency science and technology priorities for the FY 2017 budget. Executive Office of the President of the United States, 5 pp.

Geology in the Movies: Using Hollywood Films as a Teaching Tool in Introductory Geosciences Courses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lawrence, K. T.; Malinconico, L. L.

2008-12-01

A common challenge in introductory Geoscience courses is engaging students who often do not have a long- standing interest in science. In recent years Hollywood has produced a number of geoscience-themed films (Dante's Peak, Deep Impact, Day After Tomorrow, Inconvenient Truth), most of which contain kernels of scientific truth as well as gross misrepresentations of scientific reality. In our introductory courses (Geological Disasters: Agents of Chaos and Earth's Climate: Past Present and Future) we have had great success using these films as a way of both engaging students and accomplishing many of our course goals. Even though most of the students in these courses will not become geoscience majors, it is important for them to realize that they can make informed judgments about concepts portrayed in the popular media. We have incorporated short written movie critiques into our suite of introductory course laboratory exercises. Through these movie-critique labs, students have an opportunity to apply their new geoscience expertise to examining the validity of the scientific concepts presented in the film. Along the way, students start to see the relevance of course materials to their everyday lives, think more critically about how science is portrayed by non-scientists, synthesize what they have learned by applying their knowledge to a new problem, and improve their ability to communicate what they have learned. Despite the fact that these movie-critique labs require significantly more out-of-lab effort that our other introductory lab assignments, in our course evaluations many students rate the movie critiques as not only one of the most interesting lab exercises of the semester, but also the lab exercise containing the most educational value.

The "Planet Earth Week": a National Scientific Festival helping Italy Discover Geosciences.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seno, S.; Coccioni, R.

2017-12-01

The "Planet Earth Week- Italy Discovering Geosciences: a More Informed Society is a More Engaged Society" (www.settimanaterra.org) is a science festival that involves the whole of the Italian Regions: founded in 2012, it has become the largest event of Italian Geosciences and one of the biggest European science festivals. During a week in October several locations distributed throughout the Country (see map) are animated by events, called "Geoeventi", to disseminate geosciences to the masses and deliver science education by means of a wide range of activities: hiking, walking in city and town centers, open-door at museums and research centers, guided tours, exhibitions, educational and experimental workshops for children and young people, music and art performances, food and wine events, lectures, conferences, round tables. Universities and colleges, research centers, local Authorities, cultural and scientific associations, parks and museums, professionals organize the Geoeventi. The festival aims at bringing adults and young people to Geosciences, conveying enthusiasm for scientific research and discoveries, promoting sustainable cultural tourism, aware of environmental values and distributed all over Italy. The Geoeventi shed light both on the most spectacular and on the less known geological sites, which are often a stone's throw from home. The Planet Earth Week is growing year after year: the 2016 edition proposed 310 Geoeventi, 70 more than in 2015. The number of places involved in the project also increased and rose from 180 in 2015 to 230 in 2016. This initiative, that is also becoming a significant economic driver for many small companies active in the field of science divulgation, is analyzed, evaluated and put in a transnational network perspective.

Geoscience Digital Data Resource and Repository Service

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mayernik, M. S.; Schuster, D.; Hou, C. Y.

2017-12-01

The open availability and wide accessibility of digital data sets is becoming the norm for geoscience research. The National Science Foundation (NSF) instituted a data management planning requirement in 2011, and many scientific publishers, including the American Geophysical Union and the American Meteorological Society, have recently implemented data archiving and citation policies. Many disciplinary data facilities exist around the community to provide a high level of technical support and expertise for archiving data of particular kinds, or for particular projects. However, a significant number of geoscience research projects do not have the same level of data facility support due to a combination of several factors, including the research project's size, funding limitations, or topic scope that does not have a clear facility match. These projects typically manage data on an ad hoc basis without limited long-term management and preservation procedures. The NSF is supporting a workshop to be held in Summer of 2018 to develop requirements and expectations for a Geoscience Digital Data Resource and Repository Service (GeoDaRRS). The vision for the prospective GeoDaRRS is to complement existing NSF-funded data facilities by providing: 1) data management planning support resources for the general community, and 2) repository services for researchers who have data that do not fit in any existing repository. Functionally, the GeoDaRRS would support NSF-funded researchers in meeting data archiving requirements set by the NSF and publishers for geosciences, thereby ensuring the availability of digital data for use and reuse in scientific research going forward. This presentation will engage the AGU community in discussion about the needs for a new digital data repository service, specifically to inform the forthcoming GeoDaRRS workshop.

Voluntarism, public engagement and the role of geoscience in radioactive waste management policy-making

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bilham, Nic

2014-05-01

In the UK, as elsewhere in Europe, there has been a move away from previous 'technocratic' approaches to radioactive waste management (RWM). Policy-makers have recognised that for any RWM programme to succeed, sustained engagement with stakeholders and the public is necessary, and any geological repository must be constructed and operated with the willing support of the community which hosts it. This has opened up RWM policy-making and implementation to a wider range of (often contested) expert inputs, ranging across natural and social sciences, engineering and even ethics. Geoscientists and other technical specialists have found themselves drawn into debates about how various types of expertise should be prioritised, and how they should be integrated with diverse public and stakeholder perspectives. They also have a vital role to play in communicating to the public the need for geological disposal of radioactive waste, and the various aspects of geoscience which will inform the process of implementing this, from identifying potential volunteer host communities, to finding a suitable site, developing the safety case, construction of a repository, emplacement of waste, closure and subsequent monitoring. High-quality geoscience, effectively communicated, will be essential to building and maintaining public confidence throughout the many decades such projects will take. Failure to communicate effectively the relevant geoscience and its central role in the UK's radioactive waste management programme arguably contributed to West Cumbria's January 2013 decision to withdraw from the site selection process, and may discourage other communities from coming forward in future. Across countries needing to deal with their radioactive waste, this unique challenge gives an unprecedented urgency to finding ways to engage and communicate effectively with the public about geoscience.

Global Unique Identification of Geoscience Samples: The International Geo Sample Number (IGSN) and the System for Earth Sample Registration (SESAR)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lehnert, K. A.; Goldstein, S. L.; Vinayagamoorthy, S.; Lenhardt, W. C.

2005-12-01

Data on samples represent a primary foundation of Geoscience research across disciplines, ranging from the study of climate change, to biogeochemical cycles, to mantle and continental dynamics and are key to our knowledge of the Earth's dynamical systems and evolution. Different data types are generated for individual samples by different research groups, published in different papers, and stored in different databases on a global scale. The utility of these data is critically dependent on their integration. Such integration can be achieved within a Geoscience Cyberinfrastructure, but requires unambiguous identification of samples. Currently, naming of samples is arbitrary and inconsistent and therefore severely limits our ability to share, link, and integrate sample-based data. Major problems include name duplication, and changing of names as a sample is passed along over many years to different investigators. SESAR, the System for Earth Sample Registration (http://www.geosamples.org), addresses this problem by building a registry that generates and administers globally unique identifiers for Geoscience samples: the International Geo Sample Number (IGSN). Implementation of the IGSN in data publication and digital data management will dramatically advance interoperability among information systems for sample-based data, opening an extensive range of new opportunities for discovery and for interdisciplinary approaches in research. The IGSN will also facilitate the ability of investigators to build on previously collected data on samples as new measurements are made or new techniques are developed. With potentially broad application to all types of Geoscience samples, SESAR is global in scope. It is a web-based system that can be easily accessed by individual users through an interactive web interface and by distributed client systems via standard web services. Samples can be registered individually or in batches and at various levels of granularity from entire cores or dredges or sample suites to individual samples to sub-samples such as splits and separates. Relationships between `parent' and `child' samples are tracked. The system generates bar codes that users can download as images for labeling purposes. SESAR released a beta version of the registry in April 2005 that allows users to register a limited range of sample types. Identifiers generated by the beta version will remain valid when SESAR moves into its operational stage. Since then more than 3700 samples have been registered in SESAR. Registration of samples at a central clearinghouse will automatically build a global catalog of Geoscience samples, which will become a hugely valuable resource for the Geoscience community that allows more efficient planning of field and laboratory projects and facilitates sharing of samples, which will help build more comprehensive data sets for individual samples. The SESAR catalog will provide links to sample profiles on external systems that hold data about samples, thereby enabling users to easily obtain complete information about samples.

Field Studies—Essential Cognitive Foundations for Geoscience Expertise

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goodwin, C.; Mogk, D. W.

2010-12-01

Learning in the field has traditionally been one of the fundamental components of the geoscience curriculum. Field experiences have been attributed to having positive impacts on cognitive, affective, metacognitive, mastery of skills and social components of learning geoscience. The development of geoscience thinking, and of geoscience expertise, encompasses a number of learned behaviors that contribute to the progress of Science and the development of scientists. By getting out into Nature, students necessarily engage active and experiential learning. The open, dynamic, heterogeneous and complex Earth system provides ample opportunities to learn by inquiry and discovery. Learning in this environment requires that students make informed decisions and to think critically about what is important to observe, and what should be excluded in the complex overload of information provided by Nature. Students must learn to employ the full range of cognitive skills that include observation, description, interpretation, analysis and synthesis that lead to “deep learning”. They must be able to integrate and rationalize observations of Nature with modern experimental, analytical, theoretical, and modeling approaches to studying the Earth system, and they must be able to iterate between what is known and what is yet to be discovered. Immersion in the field setting provides students with a sense of spatial and temporal scales of natural phenomena that can not be derived in other learning environments. The field setting provides strong sensory inputs that stimulate cognition and memories that will be available for future application. The field environment also stimulates strong affective responses related to motivation, curiosity, a sense of “ownership” of field projects, and inclusion in shared experiences that carry on throughout professional careers. The nature of field work also contains a strong metacognitive component, as students learn to be aware of what and how they are learning in the field, regulate and modify their activities, and plan for future work.Embodied practice in the field shows students how to explore and interrogate nature, and how to interact and learn from other scientists. Learning geoscience is a social enterprise, requiring a long apprenticeship through which newcomers learn about Nature by working with competent senior practitioners in the settings where relevant nature is systematically studied. Learned social practices include the ability to enhance understanding of natural phenomena by constructing appropriate representations (inscriptions), knowing how to select and use appropriate tools, engaging the accepted community of practice, adopting professional standards and values, and the ability to contribute to geoscience discourse about the complex world. Both tools and the ability to locate perspicuous sites in the environment must be mastered so that representations can be made of structures in the landscape that cannot actually be seen from any single point of view to obtain a holistic and integrated interpretation of Earth history and processes. Sustained development of these cognitive strategies and skills is essential to the professional development of all geoscientists.

Aeronautical Engineering: A continuing bibliography with indexes (supplement 175)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1984-01-01

This bibliography lists 467 reports, articles and other documents introduced into the NASA scientific and technical information system in May 1984. Topics cover varied aspects of aeronautical engineering, geoscience, physics, astronomy, computer science, and support facilities.

Teachers Explore Earth Science in South America

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Passow, Michael; Krusche, Nisia; Carneiro, Celso D. R.

2010-11-01

Rain, Rocks, and Climate: A Geophysical Information for Teachers Workshop; Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil, 8-9 August 2010; Classroom teachers and university professors from two continents joined to learn about “rocks, rain, and climate” in the Geophysical Information for Teachers (GIFT) workshop at the AGU Meeting of the Americas held in Brazil. This was the first GIFT workshop in South America. GIFT workshops have long been part of AGU Fall Meetings in San Francisco, European Geosciences Union Spring Meetings in Vienna, and other AGU conferences. Two Brazilian geoscience professors, Celso Dal Ré Carneiro of State University of Campinas and Nisia Krusche of Federal University of Rio Grande, organized the program, together with a high-school teacher from the United States, Michael J. Passow of Dwight Morrow High School, Englewood, N. J. Joining the presenters were 15 Brazilian teachers and another teacher from New Jersey.

Designing and Using Videos in Undergraduate Geoscience Education - a workshop and resource website review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wiese, K.; Mcconnell, D. A.

2014-12-01

Do you use video in your teaching? Do you make your own video? Interested in joining our growing community of geoscience educators designing and using video inside and outside the classroom? Over four months in Spring 2014, 22 educators of varying video design and development expertise participated in an NSF-funded On the Cutting Edge virtual workshop to review the best educational research on video design and use; to share video-development/use strategies and experiences; and to develop a website of resources for a growing community of geoscience educators who use video: http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/video/workshop2014/index.html. The site includes links to workshop presentations, teaching activity collections, and a growing collection of online video resources, including "How-To" videos for various video editing or video-making software and hardware options. Additional web resources support several topical themes including: using videos to flip classes, handling ADA access and copyright issues, assessing the effectiveness of videos inside and outside the classroom, best design principles for video learning, and lists and links of the best videos publicly available for use. The workshop represents an initial step in the creation of an informal team of collaborators devoted to the development and support of an ongoing network of geoscience educators designing and using video. Instructors who are interested in joining this effort are encouraged to contact the lead author.

Communicating geological hazards: assisting geoscientists in communication skills

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liverman, D. G. E.

2009-04-01

Communication is important in all aspects of the geosciences but is more prominent in the area of geological hazards, as the main audience for scientific information often lacks a geoscience background; and because the implications of not communicating results effectively can be very serious. Geoscientists working in the hazards area face particular challenges in communicating the concepts of risk, probability and uncertainty. Barriers to effective communication of geoscience include the complex language used by geoscientists, restriction of dissemination of results to traditional scientific media, identification of the target audience, inability to tailor products to a variety of audiences, and lack of institutional support for communication efforts. Geoscientists who work in the area of natural hazards need training in risk communication, media relations, and communicating to non-technical audiences. Institutions need to support the efforts of geoscientists in communicating their results through providing communications training; ensuring access to communications professionals; rewarding efforts to engage the public; and devoting sufficient staff and budget to the effort of disseminating results. Geoscientists themselves have to make efforts to change attitudes towards social science, and to become involved in decision making at a community level. The International Union of Geological Sciences Commission for "Geoscience for Environmental Management" established a working group to deal with these issues. This group is holding workshops, publishing collections of papers, and is looking at other means to aid geoscientists in addressing these problems.

Reaching Beyond the Geoscience Stigma: Strategies for Success

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Messina, P.; Metzger, E. P.

2004-12-01

The geosciences have traditionally been viewed with less "academic prestige" than other science curricula. Among the effects of this perception are depressed K-16 enrollments; state standards' relegation of Earth and space science concepts to earlier grades; Earth Science assignments to lower-performing students, and sometimes even to under-qualified teachers: all of which simply confirm the misconceptions. Restructuring pre-college science curricula so that Earth Science is placed as a capstone course is one way to enhance student understanding of the geosciences. Research demonstrates that reversing the traditional science course sequence (by offering Physics in the ninth grade) improves student success in subsequent science courses. The "Physics First" movement continues to gain momentum offering a possible niche for the Earth and space sciences beyond middle school. It is also critical to bridge the information gap for those with little or no prior exposure to the Earth sciences, particularly K-12 educators. An Earth systems course developed at San José State University is aligned to our state's standards; it is approved to satisfy geoscience subject matter competency by the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, making it a popular offering for pre- and in-service teachers. Expanding our audience beyond the Bay Area, the Earth Systems Science Education Alliance courses infuse real-world and hands-on learning in a cohesive online curriculum. Through these courses teachers gain knowledge, share effective pedagogies, and build geography-independent communities.

Enabling Science Integration through the Marine Geoscience Data System Media Bank

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leung, A.; Ferrini, V.; Arko, R.; Carbotte, S. M.; Goehring, L.; Simms, E.

2008-12-01

The Marine Geoscience Data System Media Bank (http://media.marine-geo.org) was constructed to enable the sharing of high quality images, illustrations and animations among members of the science community and to provide a new forum for education and public outreach (EPO). The initial focus of Media Bank was to serve Ridge 2000 research and EPO efforts, but it was constructed as a flexible system that could accommodate media from other multidisciplinary marine geoscience research initiatives. Media Bank currently contains digital photographs, maps, 3-D visualizations, and video clips from the Ridge 2000 and MARGINS focus sites as well as the Antarctic and Southern Ocean. We actively seek contributions of other high quality marine geoscience media for inclusion in Media Bank. Media Bank is driven by a relational database backend, enabling image browsing, sorting by category, keyword search functionality, and the creation of media galleries. All media are accompanied by a descriptive figure caption that provides easy access to expert knowledge to help foster data integration across disciplines as well as EPO efforts. In addition to access to high quality media, Media Bank also provides basic metadata including geographic position, investigator name and affiliation, as well as copyright information, and links to references and relevant data sets. Since media are tied to geospatial coordinates, a map-based interface is also provided for access to media.

Bibliography of NRL Publications - 1989

DTIC Science & Technology

1993-05-01

NRL/FR/5220--93-9376 Bibliography of NRL Publications-1989 E N A. PICKENPAUGH DIC ALICE B. Cox RICHARD W. PEACOCK CLr , KENNET L. THOENES r E 18...and roviewing the collection of Information. Send comments regarding thie bden e •tlamte or any other e •pect of the co=lction of Information, ncluding... communications ; computer sciences; cosmic rays; electronics and electricity; fluid mechanics; geosciences; information; instrumentation; laser

An Effective Model for Enhancing Underrepresented Minority Participation and Success in Geoscience Undergraduate Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blake, Reginald A.; Liou-Mark, Janet; Chukuigwe, Chinedu

2013-01-01

Geoscience research is a fundamental portal through which geoscience knowledge may be acquired and disseminated. A viable model to introduce, stimulate, and prolong geoscience education has been designed and implemented at the New York City College of Technology through a National Science Foundation (NSF) Research Experiences for Undergraduates…

Teachers' Geoscience Career Knowledge and Implications for Enhancing Diversity in the Geosciences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sherman-Morris, Kathleen; Brown, Michael E.; Dyer, Jamie L.; McNeal, Karen S.; Rodgers, John C., III

2013-01-01

This study examines discrepancies between geoscience career knowledge and biology career knowledge among Mississippi science teachers. Principals and in-service teachers were also surveyed about their perception of geoscience careers and majors. Scores were higher for knowledge of what biologists do (at work) than about what geoscientists do.…

Advances and Directions for the Intelligent Systems for Geosciences Research Community: Updates and Opportunities from the NSF EarthCube IS-GEO RCN

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pierce, S. A.

2017-12-01

The Earthcube Intelligent Systems for Geosciences Research Collaboration Network (IS-GEO RCN) represents an emerging community of interdisciplinary researchers aiming to create fundamental new capabilities for understanding Earth systems. Collaborative efforts across IS-GEO fields of study offer opportunities to accelerate scientific discovery and understanding. The IS-GEO community has an active membership of approximately 65 researchers and includes researchers from across the US, international members, and an early career committee. Current working groups are open to new participants and are focused on four thematic areas with regular coordination meetings and upcoming sessions at professional conferences. (1) The Sensor-based data Collection and Integration Working group looks at techniques for analyzing and integrating of information from heterogeneous sources, with a possible application for early warning systems. (2) The Geoscience Case Studies Working group is creating benchmark data sets to enable new collaborations between geoscientists and data scientists. (3) The Geo-Simulations Working group is evaluating the state of the art in practices for parametrizations, scales, and model integration. (4) The Education Working group is gathering, organizing and collecting all the materials from the different IS-GEO courses. Innovative IS-GEO applications will help researchers overcome common challenges while will redefining the frontiers of discovery across fields and disciplines. (Visit IS-GEO.org for more information or to sign up for any of the working groups.)

Advancing Earth System Science Literacy and Preparing the Future Geoscience Workforce Through Strategic Investments at the National Science Foundation (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Karsten, J. L.; Patino, L. C.; Rom, E. L.; Weiler, C. S.

2010-12-01

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency created 60 years ago by the U.S. Congress "to promote the progress of science; to advance the national health, prosperity, and welfare; to secure the national defense…" NSF is the primary funding agency in the U.S. to support basic, frontier research across all fields in science, engineering, and education, except for medical sciences. With a FY 2011 budget request of more than $955 million, the NSF Directorate for Geosciences (GEO) is the principle source of federal funding for university-based fundamental research in the geosciences and preparation of the next generation of geoscientists. Since its inception, GEO has supported the education and training of a diverse and talented pool of future scientists, engineers, and technicians in the Earth, Ocean, Atmospheric and Geospatial Sciences sub-fields, through support of graduate research assistants, post-doctoral fellows, and undergraduate research experiences. In the late 1990’s and early 2000’s, GEO initiated several programs that expanded these investments to also support improvements in pre-college and undergraduate geoscience education through a variety of mechanisms (e.g., professional development support for K-12 teachers, development of innovative undergraduate curricula, and scientist-mentored research experiences for elementary and secondary students). In addition to GEO’s Geoscience Education (GeoEd), Opportunities for Enhancing Diversity in the Geosciences (OEDG), Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE), and Geoscience Teacher Training (GEO-Teach) programs, GEO participates in a number of cross-Foundation programs, including the Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU), Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT), Ethics Education in Science and Engineering (EESE), NSF Graduate STEM Fellows in K-12 Education (GK-12), and Partnerships for International Research and Education (PIRE) programs, and the new Climate Change Education Partnership (CCEP) program. Many broader impact activities associated with individual research grants supported by GEO contribute to the mix, through integration of research and education. Improving access to high quality geoscience education, developing educational resources and pedagogies that reflect current understandings based on cognitive research on how people learn science in formal and informal settings, cultivating a diverse talent pool for the future, and developing robust mechanisms to evaluate the quality of these various approaches and tools are challenges faced by the entire geosciences research and education community, not just NSF/GEO. In the past two years, GEO has worked collaboratively with the Education and Human Resources (EHR) Directorate, and sister agencies NOAA and NASA, to establish a new GEO Education and Diversity Strategic Framework, that will guide our investments in the future, and identify opportunities for a more cohesive, collaborative, and synergistic approach across NSF and the federal government. Details of this new strategic framework, results of recent program evaluations, and their implications for future NSF/GEO education program funding will be discussed.

Isolation of novel biflavonoids from Cardiocrinum giganteum seeds and characterization of their antitussive activities.

PubMed

Shou, Jia-Wen; Zhang, Rong-Rong; Wu, Hoi-Yan; Xia, Xue; Nie, Hong; Jiang, Ren-Wang; Shaw, Pang-Chui

2018-08-10

Seeds of Cardiocrinum giganteum var. yunnanense (Leichtlin ex Elwes) Stearn (Liliaceae), also known as Doulingzi, have been used as a folk substitute for conventional antitussive herb "Madouling" (Aristolochia species) to treat chronic bronchitis and pertussis. The active antitussive phytochemicals in C. giganteum seeds are not known. The present work aims at isolating the active phytochemicals in C. giganteum seeds and confirming their antitussive effects. Active chemicals were isolated from C. giganteum seeds ethanol extract and identified their structures. Antitussive effects were evaluated with the cough frequency of guinea pigs exposed to citric acid. Electrical stimulation of the superior laryngeal nerve in guinea pigs was performed to differentiate the acting site of potential antitussives. Two racemic biflavonoids (CGY-1 and CGY-2) were isolated from C. giganteum seeds. CGY-1 was identified as (S)-2″R,3″R- and (R)-2″S,3″S-dihydro-3″-hydroxyamentoflavone-7- methyl ether, which are new compounds and firstly isolated from C. giganteum seeds. Racemic CGY-2 was identified as (S)-2″R,3″R- and (R)-2″S,3″S-dihydro-3″-hydroxyamentoflavone. Both CGY-1 and CGY-2 could significantly inhibit coughs induced by inhalation of citric acid. Further, they acted on the peripheral reflex pathway to inhibit cough after electrical stimulation of the superior laryngeal nerve in guinea pigs. These chemicals isolated from C. giganteum seeds showed good antitussive effects. The data provide scientific evidence to support the traditional use of C. giganteum seeds as an antitussive herbal medicine. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Identifying clinically meaningful symptom response cut-off values on the SANS in predominant negative symptoms.

PubMed

Levine, Stephen Z; Leucht, Stefan

2013-04-01

The treatment and measurement of negative symptoms are currently at issue in schizophrenia, but the clinical meaning of symptom severity and change is unclear. To offer a clinically meaningful interpretation of severity and change scores on the Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS). Patients were intention-to-treat participants (n=383) in two double-blind randomized placebo-controlled clinical trials that compared amisulpride with placebo for the treatment of predominant negative symptoms. Equipercentile linking was used to examine extrapolation from (a) CGI-S to SANS severity ratings, and (b) CGI-I to SANS percentage change (n=383). Linking was conducted at baseline, 8-14 days, 28-30 days, and 56-60 days of the trials. Across visits, CGI-S ratings of 'not ill' linked to SANS scores of 0-13, and ranged to 'extreme' ratings that linked to SANS scores of 102-105. The relationship between the CGI-S and the SANS severity scores assumed a linear trend (1=0-13, 2=15-56, 3=37-61, 4=49-66, 5=63-75, 6=79-89, 7=102-105). Similarly the relationship between CGI-I ratings and SANS percentage change followed a linear trend. For instance, CGI-I ratings of 'very much improved' were linked to SANS percent changes of -90 to -67, 'much improved' to -50 to -42, and 'minimally improved' to -21 to -13. The current results uniquely contribute to the debate surrounding negative symptoms by providing clinical meaning to SANS severity and change scores and so offer direction regarding clinically meaningful response cut-off scores to guide treatment targets of predominant negative symptoms. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Quantification of the kV X-ray imaging dose during real-time tumor tracking and from three- and four-dimensional cone-beam computed tomography in lung cancer patients using a Monte Carlo simulation.

PubMed

Nakamura, Mitsuhiro; Ishihara, Yoshitomo; Matsuo, Yukinori; Iizuka, Yusuke; Ueki, Nami; Iramina, Hiraku; Hirashima, Hideaki; Mizowaki, Takashi

2018-03-01

Knowledge of the imaging doses delivered to patients and accurate dosimetry of the radiation to organs from various imaging procedures is becoming increasingly important for clinicians. The purposes of this study were to calculate imaging doses delivered to the organs of lung cancer patients during real-time tumor tracking (RTTT) with three-dimensional (3D), and four-dimensional (4D) cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT), using Monte Carlo techniques to simulate kV X-ray dose distributions delivered using the Vero4DRT. Imaging doses from RTTT, 3D-CBCT and 4D-CBCT were calculated with the planning CT images for nine lung cancer patients who underwent stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) with RTTT. With RTTT, imaging doses from correlation modeling and from monitoring of imaging during beam delivery were calculated. With CBCT, doses from 3D-CBCT and 4D-CBCT were also simulated. The doses covering 2-cc volumes (D2cc) in correlation modeling were up to 9.3 cGy for soft tissues and 48.4 cGy for bone. The values from correlation modeling and monitoring were up to 11.0 cGy for soft tissues and 59.8 cGy for bone. Imaging doses in correlation modeling were larger with RTTT. On a single 4D-CBCT, the skin and bone D2cc values were in the ranges of 7.4-10.5 cGy and 33.5-58.1 cGy, respectively. The D2cc from 4D-CBCT was approximately double that from 3D-CBCT. Clinicians should Figure that the imaging dose increases the cumulative doses to organs.

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

Ferreira, C; Ahmad, S; Firestone, B

Purpose: To compare dosimetrically three plan calculation systems (Plato, Varian Brachytherapy, and in-house-made Excel) available for I-125 COMS eye plaque treatment with measurement. Methods: All systems assume homogeneous media and calculations are based on a three-dimensional Cartesian coordinates, Plato and Brachytherapy Planning are based on AAPM TG-43 and the in-house Excel program only on inverse square corrections. Doses at specific depths were measured with EBT3 Gafchromic film from a fully loaded and a partially loaded 16 mm plaque (13 and 8 seeds respectively, I-125, model 6711 GE, Oncura). Measurements took place in a water tank, utilizing solid water blocks andmore » a 3D-printed plaque holder. Taking advantage that gafchromic film has low energy dependence, a dose step wedge was delivered with 6 MV photon beam from a Varian 2100 EX linac for calibration. The gray-scale to dose in cGy was obtained with an Epson Expression 10000 XL scanner in the green channel. Treatment plans were generated for doses of 2200 cGy to a depth of 7 mm, and measurements were taken on a sagittal plane. Results: The calculated dose at the prescription point was 2242, 2344, and 2211 cGy with Excel, Brachyvision and Plato respectively for a fully loaded plaque, for the partially loaded plaque the doses were 2266, 2477, and 2193 cGy respectively. At 5 mm depth the doses for Brachyvision and Plato were comparable (3399 and 3267 cGy respectively), however, the measured dose in film was 3180 cGy which was lower by as much as 6.4% in the fully loaded plaque and 7.6% in the partially loaded plaque. Conclusion: Careful methodology and calibration are essential when measuring doses at specific depth due to the sensitivity and rapid dose fall off of I-125.« less

Detecting a Clinically Meaningful Change in Tic Severity in Tourette Syndrome: A Comparison of Three Methods

PubMed Central

Jeon, Sangchoon; Walkup, John T; Woods, Douglas W.; Peterson, Alan; Piacentini, John; Wilhelm, Sabine; Katsovich, Lily; McGuire, Joseph F.; Dziura, James; Scahill, Lawrence

2014-01-01

Objective To compare three statistical strategies for classifying positive treatment response based on a dimensional measure (Yale Global Tic Severity Scale [YGTSS]) and a categorical measure (Clinical Global Impression-Improvement [CGI-I]). Method Subjects (N=232; 69.4% male; ages 9-69 years) with Tourette syndrome or chronic tic disorder participated in one of two 10-week, randomized controlled trials comparing behavioral treatment to supportive therapy. The YGTSS and CGI-I were rated by clinicians blind to treatment assignment. We examined the percent reduction in the YGTSS-Total Tic Score (TTS) against Much Improved or Very Much Improved on the CGI-I, computed a signal detection analysis (SDA) and built a mixture model to classify dimensional response based on the change in the YGTSS-TTS. Results A 25% decrease on the YGTSS-TTS predicted positive response on the CGI-I during the trial. The SDA showed that a 25% reduction in the YGTSS-TTS provided optimal sensitivity (87%) and specificity (84%) for predicting positive response. Using a mixture model without consideration of the CGI-I, the dimensional response was defined by 23% (or greater) reduction on the YGTSS-TTS. The odds ratio (OR) of positive response (OR=5.68, 95% CI=[2.99, 10.78]) on the CGI-I for behavioral intervention was greater than the dimensional response (OR=2.86, 95% CI=[1.65, 4.99]). Conclusion A twenty five percent reduction on the YGTSS-TTS is highly predictive of positive response by all three analytic methods. For trained raters, however, tic severity alone does not drive the classification of positive response. PMID:24001701

Individual variations in dose response for spatial memory learning among outbred wistar rats exposed from 5 to 20 cGy of (56) Fe particles.

PubMed

Wyrobek, Andrew J; Britten, Richard A

2016-06-01

Exposures of brain tissue to ionizing radiation can lead to persistent deficits in cognitive functions and behaviors. However, little is known about the quantitative relationships between exposure dose and neurological risks, especially for lower doses and among genetically diverse individuals. We investigated the dose relationship for spatial memory learning among genetically outbred male Wistar rats exposed to graded doses of (56) Fe particles (sham, 5, 10, 15, and 20 cGy; 1 GeV/n). Spatial memory learning was assessed on a Barnes maze using REL3 ratios measured at three months after exposure. Irradiated animals showed dose-dependent declines in spatial memory learning that were fit by a linear regression (P for slope <0.0002). The irradiated animals showed significantly impaired learning at 10 cGy exposures, no detectable learning between 10 and 15 cGy, and worsened performances between 15 and 20 cGy. The proportions of poor learners and the magnitude of their impairment were fit by linear regressions with doubling doses of ∼10 cGy. In contrast, there were no detectable deficits in learning among the good learners in this dose range. Our findings suggest that genetically diverse individuals can vary substantially in their spatial memory learning, and that exposures at low doses appear to preferentially impact poor learners. This hypothesis invites future investigations of the genetic and physiological mechanisms of inter-individual variations in brain function related to spatial memory learning after low-dose HZE radiation exposures and to determine whether it also applies to physical trauma to brain tissue and exposures to chemical neurotoxicants. Environ. Mol. Mutagen. 57:331-340, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Cost-utility of a specific collaborative group intervention for patients with functional somatic syndromes.

PubMed

Konnopka, Alexander; König, Hans-Helmut; Kaufmann, Claudia; Egger, Nina; Wild, Beate; Szecsenyi, Joachim; Herzog, Wolfgang; Schellberg, Dieter; Schaefert, Rainer

2016-11-01

Collaborative group intervention (CGI) in patients with functional somatic syndromes (FSS) has been shown to improve mental quality of life. To analyse incremental cost-utility of CGI compared to enhanced medical care in patients with FSS. An economic evaluation alongside a cluster-randomised controlled trial was performed. 35 general practitioners (GPs) recruited 300 FSS patients. Patients in the CGI arm were offered 10 group sessions within 3months and 2 booster sessions 6 and 12months after baseline. Costs were assessed via questionnaire. Quality adjusted life years (QALYs) were calculated using the SF-6D index, derived from the 36-item short-form health survey (SF-36). We calculated patients' net-monetary-benefit (NMB), estimated the treatment effect via regression, and generated cost-effectiveness acceptability curves. Using intention-to-treat analysis, total costs during the 12-month study period were 5777EUR in the intervention, and 6858EUR in the control group. Controlling for possible confounders, we found a small, but significant positive intervention effect on QALYs (+0.017; p=0.019) and an insignificant cost saving resulting from a cost-increase in the control group (-10.5%; p=0.278). NMB regression showed that the probability of CGI to be cost-effective was 69% for a willingness to pay (WTP) of 0EUR/QALY, increased to 92% for a WTP of 50,000EUR/QALY and reached the level of 95% at a WTP of 70,375EUR/QALY. Subgroup analyses yielded that CGI was only cost-effective in severe somatic symptom severity (PHQ-15≥15). CGI has a high probability to be a cost-effective treatment for FSS, in particular for patients with severe somatic symptom severity. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Successful Treatment Response with Aripiprazole Augmentation of SSRIs in Refractory Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder in Childhood.

PubMed

Akyol Ardic, Ulku; Ercan, Eyup Sabri; Kutlu, Ayse; Yuce, Deniz; Ipci, Melis; Inci, Sevim Berrin

2017-10-01

The aim of this study is to evaluate the aripiprazole augmentation of selective seratonine reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) in children and adolescents with treatment-resistant OCD. Forty-eight children and adolescents (14 girls, 34 boys), who are non-responders to treatment with at least two types of SSRIs and CBT, were administered a 12-week of augmentation. Children's Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (CY-BOCS), and Clinical Global Impression-Severity and Improvement (CGI-S and CGI-I) sub-scales were used for evaluation of the treatment outcomes. The results showed that total CY-BOCS scores were decreased from 33.3 ± 7.5 to 11.7 ± 9.3 (p < 0.001), CGI-S scores decreased from 6.3 ± 0.9 to 2.7 ± 1.6 (p < 0.001), and CGI-I scores improved from 4.3 ± 0.6 to 2.2 ± 1.1 (p < 0.001). Sensitivity analyses in 29 patients without SSRI dose escalation along with aripiprazole augmentation have also revealed that improvement effect was still significant, and CY-BOCS scores were improved from 34.2 ± 7.9 to 13 ± 10.3, CGI-S improved from 6.4 ± 1.0 to 3.0 ± 1.7, and CGI-I improved from 4.4 ± 1.0 to 2.3 ± 1.1 (p < 0.001 for all). Analyses revealed that a significant clinical improvement has been observed with aripiprazole augmentation. Aripiprazole augmentation of SSRIs is a promising strategy in the management of treatment-refractory OCD children and adolescents.

Quantification of the kV X-ray imaging dose during real-time tumor tracking and from three- and four-dimensional cone-beam computed tomography in lung cancer patients using a Monte Carlo simulation

PubMed Central

Nakamura, Mitsuhiro; Ishihara, Yoshitomo; Matsuo, Yukinori; Iizuka, Yusuke; Ueki, Nami; Iramina, Hiraku; Hirashima, Hideaki; Mizowaki, Takashi

2018-01-01

Abstract Knowledge of the imaging doses delivered to patients and accurate dosimetry of the radiation to organs from various imaging procedures is becoming increasingly important for clinicians. The purposes of this study were to calculate imaging doses delivered to the organs of lung cancer patients during real-time tumor tracking (RTTT) with three-dimensional (3D), and four-dimensional (4D) cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT), using Monte Carlo techniques to simulate kV X-ray dose distributions delivered using the Vero4DRT. Imaging doses from RTTT, 3D-CBCT and 4D-CBCT were calculated with the planning CT images for nine lung cancer patients who underwent stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) with RTTT. With RTTT, imaging doses from correlation modeling and from monitoring of imaging during beam delivery were calculated. With CBCT, doses from 3D-CBCT and 4D-CBCT were also simulated. The doses covering 2-cc volumes (D2cc) in correlation modeling were up to 9.3 cGy for soft tissues and 48.4 cGy for bone. The values from correlation modeling and monitoring were up to 11.0 cGy for soft tissues and 59.8 cGy for bone. Imaging doses in correlation modeling were larger with RTTT. On a single 4D-CBCT, the skin and bone D2cc values were in the ranges of 7.4–10.5 cGy and 33.5–58.1 cGy, respectively. The D2cc from 4D-CBCT was approximately double that from 3D-CBCT. Clinicians should Figure that the imaging dose increases the cumulative doses to organs. PMID:29385514

Fasting hyperglycaemia blunts the reversal of impaired glucose tolerance after exercise training in obese older adults.

PubMed

Malin, S K; Kirwan, J P

2012-09-01

Lifestyle modification, consisting of exercise and weight loss, delays the progression from prediabetes to type 2 diabetes (T2D). However, no study has determined the efficacy of exercise training on glucose metabolism in the different prediabetes subtypes. Seventy-six older (65.1 ± 0.6 years) obese adults with impaired fasting glucose (IFG; n = 12), impaired glucose tolerance (IGT; n = 9) and combined glucose intolerance (IFG + IGT = CGI; n = 22) were compared with normal glucose tolerant (NGT; n = 15) and T2D (n = 18) groups after 12 weeks of exercise training (60 min/day for 5 days/week at ~85% HR(max)). An oral glucose tolerance test was used to assess glucose levels. Insulin sensitivity (IS; euglycaemic hyperinsulinaemic clamp at 40 mU/m(2)/min), β-cell function (glucose-stimulated insulin secretion corrected for IS), body composition (hydrostatic weighing/computed tomography scan) and cardiovascular fitness (treadmill VO(2) max) were also assessed. Exercise training reduced weight and increased cardiovascular fitness (p < 0.05). Exercise training lowered fasting glucose levels in IFG, CGI and T2D (p < 0.05) and 2-h glucose levels in IGT, CGI and T2D (p < 0.05). However, 2-h glucose levels were not normalized in adults with CGI compared with IGT (p < 0.05). β-Cell function improved similarly across groups (p < 0.05). Although not statistically significant, IS increased approximately 40% in IFG and IGT, but only 17% in CGI. The magnitude of improvement in glucose metabolism after 12 weeks of exercise training is not uniform across the prediabetes subtypes. Given the high risk of progressing to T2D, adults with CGI may require more aggressive therapies to prevent diabetes. © 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

The Effect of Maternal Stress during Pregnancy on IQ and ADHD Symptomatology.

PubMed

Grizenko, Natalie; Fortier, Marie-Ève; Gaudreau-Simard, Mathilde; Jolicoeur, Claude; Joober, Ridha

2015-01-01

Maternal stress during pregnancy (MSDP) has been linked to a decrease in Intelligence Quotient (IQ) in the general population. The purpose of this study is to first examine the association between MSDP and IQ in children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and second, to confirm, in a large sample, the link between MSDP and ADHD behavioral symptomatology. Four hundred ten children diagnosed with ADHD, ages six to 12, were consecutively recruited from the ADHD clinic and day hospital at the Douglas Institute from 1999 to 2013. IQ was assessed using the WISC III and IV. Symptom severity was evaluated using the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and Connor's Global Index for Parents (CGI-P) and Teachers (CGI-T). No significant effect of MSDP on full scale IQ was observed, but MSDP had a significant effect on CBCL and CGI scores. Elevated MSDP was significantly associated with increased CBCL internalizing scores (β=4.2, p<.01), CBCL externalizing scores (β=1.9, p=.04), CGI-P restless-impulsive scores (β=2.6, p=.01), CGI-P emotional lability scores (β=3.1, p=.02), and CGI-T restless-impulsive (β=2.2, p=.05) and emotional lability (β=3.4, p=.04) scores. MSDP increased the variance explained of ADHD symptomatology even after controlling for various factors (i.e. familial income, parental education, smoking and drinking during pregnancy, gender and age). The study demonstrates that in children with ADHD, MSDP does not have an impact on IQ but rather on ADHD symptomatology, highlighting the importance of potentially offering psychological and social support to mothers who experience stress during pregnancy.

Rare k-mer DNA: Identification of sequence motifs and prediction of CpG island and promoter.

PubMed

Mohamed Hashim, Ezzeddin Kamil; Abdullah, Rosni

2015-12-21

Empirical analysis on k-mer DNA has been proven as an effective tool in finding unique patterns in DNA sequences which can lead to the discovery of potential sequence motifs. In an extensive study of empirical k-mer DNA on hundreds of organisms, the researchers found unique multi-modal k-mer spectra occur in the genomes of organisms from the tetrapod clade only which includes all mammals. The multi-modality is caused by the formation of the two lowest modes where k-mers under them are referred as the rare k-mers. The suppression of the two lowest modes (or the rare k-mers) can be attributed to the CG dinucleotide inclusions in them. Apart from that, the rare k-mers are selectively distributed in certain genomic features of CpG Island (CGI), promoter, 5' UTR, and exon. We correlated the rare k-mers with hundreds of annotated features using several bioinformatic tools, performed further intrinsic rare k-mer analyses within the correlated features, and modeled the elucidated rare k-mer clustering feature into a classifier to predict the correlated CGI and promoter features. Our correlation results show that rare k-mers are highly associated with several annotated features of CGI, promoter, 5' UTR, and open chromatin regions. Our intrinsic results show that rare k-mers have several unique topological, compositional, and clustering properties in CGI and promoter features. Finally, the performances of our RWC (rare-word clustering) method in predicting the CGI and promoter features are ranked among the top three, in eight of the CGI and promoter evaluations, among eight of the benchmarked datasets. Crown Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

G.I.F.K. project: Geosciences Information For Kids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Merlini, Anna Elisabetta; Grieco, Giovanni; Evardi, Mara; Oneta, Cristina; Invernizzi, Nicoletta; Aiello, Caterina

2016-04-01

Our GIFK program was born after the GIFT experience in 2015 when "The Geco" association attended the workshop focused on mineral resources topics. With an extremely clear vision of the fragility of our planet in relation to our "exploiting" society, we felt the need to find a new way to expose young generations to geoscience topics. With this awareness, a new scientific path for young students, named GIFK -Geosciences Information for Kids- has been created. Thanks to this program, young generations of students are involved in geoscience topics in order to bring up a more eco-aware generation in the future. Particularly, in Italy, we do need new didactic tools to bring kids into science. As part of the classic science program, often teachers do not have time to discuss about the current facts related to our planet and often students do not receive any type of "contact" with the daily scientific events from the school. This program is aimed to introduce small kids, from kindergarten to primary school, to Earth related issues. The key for the educational success is to give children the possibility to get involved in recent scientific information and to plunge into science topics. The connection with up to date scientific research or even just scientific news allows us to use media as a reinforcing tool, and provides a strong link to everyday life. In particular, the first project developed within the GIFK program deals with the amazing recent Sentinel missions performed by ESA (European Space Agency), related to the observation of the Earth from space. The main aim of this project is to discuss about environmental and exploitation problems that the Earth is facing, using satellite images in order to observe direct changes to the Earth surface overtime. Pupils are led to notice and understand how close the relation between daily life and planet Earth is and how important our behavior is even in small acts. Observing the Earth from space and in the Solar System context will give the students the awareness of how the life-balance of our planet is in serious danger now.

High Demand, Core Geosciences, and Meeting the Challenges through Online Approaches

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Keane, Christopher; Leahy, P. Patrick; Houlton, Heather; Wilson, Carolyn

2014-05-01

As the geosciences has evolved over the last several decades, so too has undergraduate geoscience education, both from a standpoint of curriculum and educational experience. In the United States, we have been experiencing very strong growth in enrollments in geoscience, as well as employment demand for the last 7 years. That growth has been largely fueled by all aspects of the energy boom in the US, both from the energy production side and the environmental management side. Interestingly the portfolio of experiences and knowledge required are strongly congruent as evidenced from results of the American Geosciences Institute's National Geoscience Exit Survey. Likewise, the demand for new geoscientists in the US is outstripping even the nearly unprecedented growth in enrollments and degrees, which is calling into question the geosciences' inability to effectively reach into the largest growing segments of the U.S. College population - underrepresented minorities. We will also examine the results of the AGI Survey on Geoscience Online Learning and examine how the results of that survey are rectified with Peter Smith's "Middle Third" theory on "wasted talent" because of spatial, economic, and social dislocation. In particular, the geosciences are late to the online learning game in the United States and most faculty engaged in such activities are "lone wolves" in their department operating with little knowledge of the support structures that exist in such development. Yet the most cited barriers for faculty not engaging actively in online learning is the assertion that laboratory and field experiences will be lost and thus fight engaging in this medium. However, the survey shows that faculty are discovering novel approaches to address these issues, many of which have great application to enabling geoscience programs in the United States to meet the expanding demand for geoscience degrees.

WFIRST: Exoplanet Data Challenge. Atmospheric retrieval results

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hildebrandt, Sergi; Turnbull, Margaret; Exoplanet Data Challenge Team

2018-01-01

We present the results of the Exoplanet Data Challenge for its first 2016/17 cycle and the current cycle 2. Some input spectra for extra-solar systems are processed through the WFIRST IFS instrument model, producing simulated data representative of the flight data. Atmospheric properties are then recovered using complex atmospheric models and multidimensional optimization. The results inform about WFIRST CGI ability to characterize exo-planetray atmospheres.

Proton Therapy Dose Characterization and Verification

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-10-01

than recommended as these patients are on a separate UPENN research study where dose maximum accepted was 6700 cGy. 15... Research Protection Office. 8.0 Data Handling and Record Keeping All patients must have a signed Informed Consent Form and an On - study (confirmation...this award. Phase 1 concentrated on designing and building a Multi-leaf collimator for use in proton therapy. Phase 2 focused on studying the

Bridging the Geoscientist Workforce Gap: Advanced High School Geoscience Programs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schmidt, Richard William

The purpose of this participatory action research was to create a comprehensive evaluation of advanced geoscience education in Pennsylvania public high schools and to ascertain the possible impact of this trend on student perceptions and attitudes towards the geosciences as a legitimate academic subject and possible career option. The study builds on an earlier examination of student perceptions conducted at Northern Arizona University in 2008 and 2009 but shifts the focus to high school students, a demographic not explored before in this context. The study consisted of three phases each examining a different facet of the advanced geoscience education issue. Phase 1 examined 572 public high schools in 500 school districts across Pennsylvania and evaluated the health of the state's advanced geoscience education through the use of an online survey instrument where districts identified the nature of their geoscience programs (if any). Phase 2 targeted two groups of students at one suburban Philadelphia high school with an established advanced geoscience courses and compared the attitudes and perceptions of those who had been exposed to the curricula to a similar group of students who had not. Descriptive and statistically significant trends were then identified in order to assess the impact of an advanced geoscience education. Phase 3 of the study qualitatively explored the particular attitudes and perceptions of a random sampling of the advanced geoscience study group through the use of one-on-one interviews that looked for more in-depth patterns of priorities and values when students considered such topics as course enrollment, career selection and educational priorities. The results of the study revealed that advanced geoscience coursework was available to only 8% of the state's 548,000 students, a percentage significantly below that of the other typical K-12 science fields. It also exposed several statistically significant differences between the perceptions and attitudes of the two student research groups that could be contributing to the developing geoscience workforce crisis. However, the study also validated the notion that, in spite of significant blocking forces arrayed in front of them, advanced geoscience programs can be successful and offer viable curricula that serve to increase students' interest and opinions towards the field. By not only recognizing the existence of the geoscience workforce gap but also understanding its root causes, the role of advanced high school geoscience education emerges as an integral part of a solution to the problem.

The Role of Virtual Globes in Geoscience

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bailey, John E.; Chen, Aijun

2011-01-01

One of the difficulties faced by Earth scientists of all disciplines is how to effectively communicate their research to both other scientists and the general public. With increased attention paid to the health of the planet, the activities of geoscientists in particular are falling under the spotlight of public interest. In age where the internet availability has brought an expectation of information being instantly visible in a graphically rich format, the development of Virtual Globes --computer-based representations of the real-world--has become a natural progression for how best to view these data. In this special issue we bring together a cross-selection of the many examples of how Virtual Globe technologies are being used for geoscience.

14 CFR 1260.9 - Synopses requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... funding opportunities shall be synopsized. Synopses shall be prepared in the NASA Acquisition Internet Service (NAIS), located at: http://prod.nais.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/nais/index.cgi; by using the Electronic Posting System (EPS), and transmitted to http://www.Fedgrants.gov. Synopses shall be electronically posted...

14 CFR 1260.9 - Synopses requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... funding opportunities shall be synopsized. Synopses shall be prepared in the NASA Acquisition Internet Service (NAIS), located at: http://prod.nais.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/nais/index.cgi; by using the Electronic Posting System (EPS), and transmitted to http://www.Fedgrants.gov. Synopses shall be electronically posted...

Impact of salt form and molecular weight of chitosan on swelling and drug release from chitosan matrix tablets.

PubMed

Huanbutta, Kampanart; Cheewatanakornkool, Kamonrak; Terada, Katsuhide; Nunthanid, Jurairat; Sriamornsak, Pornsak

2013-08-14

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and gravimetric techniques were used to assess swelling and erosion behaviors of hydrophilic matrix tablets made of chitosan. The impact of salt form, molecular weight (MW) and dissolution medium on swelling behavior and drug (theophylline) release was studied. The matrix tablets made of chitosan glycolate (CGY) showed the greatest swelling in both acid and neutral media, compared to chitosan aspartate, chitosan glutamate and chitosan lactate. MRI illustrated that swelling region of CGY in both media was not different in the first 100 min but glassy region (dry core) in 0.1N HCl was less than in pH 6.8 buffer. The tablets prepared from chitosan with high MW swelled greater than those of low MW. Moreover, CGY can delay drug release in the acid condition due to thick swollen gel and low erosion rate. Therefore, CGY may be suitably applied as sustained drug release polymer or enteric coating material. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Role of Geoscience Education Research in the Consilience between Science of the Mind and Science of the Natural World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shipley, Thomas F.; Tikoff, Basil

2017-01-01

This manuscript addresses the potential role of geoscience education research in understanding geoscience expert practice. We note the similarity between the perception-action framework of Ulric Neisser (Neisser, 1976) and the observation-prediction framework used by geoscience practitioners. The consilience between these two approaches is that…

Engaging Undergraduates in the New York City S-SAFE Internship Program: An Impetus to Raise Geoscience Awareness

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blake, Reginald A.; Liou-Mark, Janet; Blackburn, Noel; Chan, Christopher; Yuen-Lau, Laura

2015-01-01

To engender and raise awareness to the geosciences, a geoscience research project and a corresponding geoscience internship program were designed around plume dispersion dynamics within and above the New York City subway system. Federal, regional, and local agencies partnered with undergraduate students from minority-serving institutions to…

Sediment-Hosted Zinc-Lead Deposits of the World - Database and Grade and Tonnage Models

USGS Publications Warehouse

Singer, Donald A.; Berger, Vladimir I.; Moring, Barry C.

2009-01-01

This report provides information on sediment-hosted zinc-lead mineral deposits based on the geologic settings that are observed on regional geologic maps. The foundation of mineral-deposit models is information about known deposits. The purpose of this publication is to make this kind of information available in digital form for sediment-hosted zinc-lead deposits. Mineral-deposit models are important in exploration planning and quantitative resource assessments: Grades and tonnages among deposit types are significantly different, and many types occur in different geologic settings that can be identified from geologic maps. Mineral-deposit models are the keystone in combining the diverse geoscience information on geology, mineral occurrences, geophysics, and geochemistry used in resource assessments and mineral exploration. Too few thoroughly explored mineral deposits are available in most local areas for reliable identification of the important geoscience variables, or for robust estimation of undiscovered deposits - thus, we need mineral-deposit models. Globally based deposit models allow recognition of important features because the global models demonstrate how common different features are. Well-designed and -constructed deposit models allow geologists to know from observed geologic environments the possible mineral-deposit types that might exist, and allow economists to determine the possible economic viability of these resources in the region. Thus, mineral-deposit models play the central role in transforming geoscience information to a form useful to policy makers. This publication contains a computer file of information on sediment-hosted zinc-lead deposits from around the world. It also presents new grade and tonnage models for nine types of these deposits and a file allowing locations of all deposits to be plotted in Google Earth. The data are presented in FileMaker Pro, Excel and text files to make the information available to as many as possible. The value of this information and any derived analyses depends critically on the consistent manner of data gathering. For this reason, we first discuss the rules applied in this compilation. Next, the fields of the data file are considered. Finally, we provide new grade and tonnage models that are, for the most part, based on a classification of deposits using observable geologic units from regional-scaled maps.

Bridging the Gap: Tailor-made Information Products for Decision Makers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mandler, B. E.; Rose, C. A.; Gonzales, L. M.; Boland, M. A.

2016-12-01

The American Geosciences Institute (AGI) is launching a new information platform designed to link decision makers with information generated by geoscientific research. Decision makers, especially those at the state and local level, frequently need scientific information but do not always have easy access to it, while scientists create new knowledge but often lack opportunities to communicate this knowledge more broadly to the people who need it the most. Major differences in communication styles and language can also hinder the use of scientific information by decision makers. AGI is building an online portfolio of case studies and fact sheets that are based on cutting-edge research presented in a format and style that meets the needs and expectations of decision makers. Based on discussions with state and local decision makers around the country, AGI has developed a template for these products. Scientists are invited to write short (500-700-word) summaries of their research and the ways in which it provides useful tools and information to decision makers. We are particularly interested in showcasing actionable information derived from basic or applied research. Researchers are encouraged to contact AGI to discuss topics that may be an appropriate basis for case studies or fact sheets, and AGI may also contact researchers based on scientific needs identified during our discussions with decision makers. All submissions will be edited and reviewed by AGI staff and an external peer review team before being published online and made available to decision makers through AGI's Critical Issues web platform and extensive professional networks. Publicizing the results of scientific research to key legislative, regulatory, advisory, and engaged citizen groups and individuals broadens the impact of scientists' research and highlights the value and importance of the geosciences to society. By presenting the information in a format that is designed with the end-user in mind, this initiative provides a much-needed service to decision makers at all levels and serves the geoscience community by increasing the distribution and dissemination of research findings. We will discuss early results and challenges from this program, and feedback from state and local decision makers.

Accuracy of Monte Carlo photon transport simulation in characterizing brachytherapy dosimeter energy-response artefacts.

PubMed

Das, R K; Li, Z; Perera, H; Williamson, J F

1996-06-01

Practical dosimeters in brachytherapy, such as thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLD) and diodes, are usually calibrated against low-energy megavoltage beams. To measure absolute dose rate near a brachytherapy source, it is necessary to establish the energy response of the detector relative to that of the calibration energy. The purpose of this paper is to assess the accuracy of Monte Carlo photon transport (MCPT) simulation in modelling the absolute detector response as a function of detector geometry and photon energy. We have exposed two different sizes of TLD-100 (LiF chips) and p-type silicon diode detectors to calibrated 60Co, HDR source (192Ir) and superficial x-ray beams. For the Scanditronix electron-field diode, the relative detector response, defined as the measured detector readings per measured unit of air kerma, varied from 38.46 V cGy-1 (40 kVp beam) to 6.22 V cGy-1 (60Co beam). Similarly for the large and small chips the same quantity varied from 2.08-3.02 nC cGy-1 and 0.171-0.244 nC cGy-1, respectively. Monte Carlo simulation was used to calculate the absorbed dose to the active volume of the detector per unit air kerma. If the Monte Carlo simulation is accurate, then the absolute detector response, which is defined as the measured detector reading per unit dose absorbed by the active detector volume, and is calculated by Monte Carlo simulation, should be a constant. For the diode, the absolute response is 5.86 +/- 0.15 (V cGy-1). For TLDs of size 3 x 3 x 1 mm3 the absolute response is 2.47 +/- 0.07 (nC cGy-1) and for TLDs of 1 x 1 x 1 mm3 it is 0.201 +/- 0.008 (nC cGy-1). From the above results we can conclude that the absolute response function of detectors (TLDs and diodes) is directly proportional to absorbed dose by the active volume of the detector and is independent of beam quality.

An in-house developed resettable MOSFET dosimeter for radiotherapy.

PubMed

Verellen, Dirk; Van Vaerenbergh, Sven; Tournel, Koen; Heuninckx, Karina; Joris, Laurent; Duchateau, Michael; Linthout, Nadine; Gevaert, Thierry; Reynders, Truus; Van de Vondel, Iwein; Coppens, Luc; Depuydt, Tom; De Ridder, Mark; Storme, Guy

2010-02-21

The purpose of this note is to report the feasibility and clinical validation of an in-house developed MOSFET dosimetry system and describe an integrated non-destructive reset procedure. Off-the-shelf MOSFETs are connected to a common PC using an 18 bit/analogue-input and 16 bit/output data acquisition card. A reading algorithm was developed defining the zero-temperature-coefficient point (ZTC) to determine the threshold voltage. A wireless interface was established for ease of use. The reset procedure consists of an internal circuit generating a local heating induced by an electrical current. Sensitivity has been investigated as a function of bias voltage (0-9 V) to the gate. Dosimetric properties have been evaluated for 6 MV and 15 MV clinical photon beams and in vivo benchmarking was performed against thermoluminescence dosimeters (TLD) for conventional treatments (two groups of ten patients for each energy) and total body irradiation (TBI). MOSFETS were pre-irradiated with 20 Gy. Sensitivity of 0.08 mV cGy(-1) can be obtained for 200 cGy irradiations at 5 V bias voltage. Ten consecutive measurements at 200 cGy yield a SD of 2.08 cGy (1.05%). Increasing the dose in steps from 5 cGy to 1000 cGy yields a 1.00 Pearson correlation coefficient and agreement within 2.0%. Dose rate dependence (160-800 cGy min(-1)) was within 2.5%, temperature dependence within 2.0% (25-37 degrees C). A strong angular dependence has been observed for gantry incidences exceeding +/-30 degrees C. Dose response is stable up to 50 Gy (saturation occurs at approximately 90 Gy), which is used as threshold dose before resetting the MOSFET. An average measured-over-calculated dose ratio within 1.05 (SD: 0.04) has been obtained in vivo. TBI midplane-dose assessed by entrance and exit dose measurements agreed within 1.9% with ionization chamber in phantom, and within 1.0% with TLD in vivo. An in-house developed resettable MOSFET-based dosimetry system is proposed. The system has been validated and is currently used for in vivo entrance dose measurement in clinical routine for simple (open field) treatment configurations.

NOTE: An in-house developed resettable MOSFET dosimeter for radiotherapy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Verellen, Dirk; Van Vaerenbergh, Sven; Tournel, Koen; Heuninckx, Karina; Joris, Laurent; Duchateau, Michael; Linthout, Nadine; Gevaert, Thierry; Reynders, Truus; Van de Vondel, Iwein; Coppens, Luc; Depuydt, Tom; De Ridder, Mark; Storme, Guy

2010-02-01

The purpose of this note is to report the feasibility and clinical validation of an in-house developed MOSFET dosimetry system and describe an integrated non-destructive reset procedure. Off-the-shelf MOSFETs are connected to a common PC using an 18 bit/analogue-input and 16 bit/output data acquisition card. A reading algorithm was developed defining the zero-temperature-coefficient point (ZTC) to determine the threshold voltage. A wireless interface was established for ease of use. The reset procedure consists of an internal circuit generating a local heating induced by an electrical current. Sensitivity has been investigated as a function of bias voltage (0-9 V) to the gate. Dosimetric properties have been evaluated for 6 MV and 15 MV clinical photon beams and in vivo benchmarking was performed against thermoluminescence dosimeters (TLD) for conventional treatments (two groups of ten patients for each energy) and total body irradiation (TBI). MOSFETS were pre-irradiated with 20 Gy. Sensitivity of 0.08 mV cGy-1 can be obtained for 200 cGy irradiations at 5 V bias voltage. Ten consecutive measurements at 200 cGy yield a SD of 2.08 cGy (1.05%). Increasing the dose in steps from 5 cGy to 1000 cGy yields a 1.00 Pearson correlation coefficient and agreement within 2.0%. Dose rate dependence (160-800 cGy min-1) was within 2.5%, temperature dependence within 2.0% (25-37° C). A strong angular dependence has been observed for gantry incidences exceeding ±30° C. Dose response is stable up to 50 Gy (saturation occurs at approximately 90 Gy), which is used as threshold dose before resetting the MOSFET. An average measured-over-calculated dose ratio within 1.05 (SD: 0.04) has been obtained in vivo. TBI midplane-dose assessed by entrance and exit dose measurements agreed within 1.9% with ionization chamber in phantom, and within 1.0% with TLD in vivo. An in-house developed resettable MOSFET-based dosimetry system is proposed. The system has been validated and is currently used for in vivo entrance dose measurement in clinical routine for simple (open field) treatment configurations.

Technical Note: Initial characterization of the new EBT-XD Gafchromic film.

PubMed

Grams, Michael P; Gustafson, Jon M; Long, Kenneth M; de los Santos, Luis E Fong

2015-10-01

To assess the dosimetric accuracy and energy dependence of the new EBT-eXtended Dose (XD) Gafchromic film and to compare the lateral response artifact (LRA) between EBT-XD and EBT3 film. EBT3 and EBT-XD calibration curves were created by exposing films to known doses from 0 to 3000 cGy using a 6 MV beam. To assess the accuracy and dynamic range of EBT-XD, a 60° enhanced dynamic wedge (EDW) was used to deliver a dose range of approximately 200-2900 cGy. Comparison to treatment planning system (TPS) calculation was made using a gamma analysis with 2%/2 mm passing criteria. To assess and compare the LRA between EBT3 and EBT-XD, 21 × 21 cm(2) open fields delivered doses of 1000, 2000, and 3000 cGy to both types of film. Films were placed at the center of the scanner, and ratios of measured to TPS predicted doses were calculated at 50 and 80 mm lateral from the scanner center in order to quantitatively assess the LRA. To evaluate the energy dependence of EBT-XD film, seven known doses ranging from 400 to 3000 cGy were delivered using both 6 and 18 MV beams and the resulting optical densities (ODs) compared. The gamma passing rate was 99.1% for the 6 MV EDW delivery. EBT-XD film exhibited minimal LRA (<1%) up to 3000 cGy. In contrast, EBT3 demonstrated an under-response of 11.3% and 22.7% at lateral positions of 50 and 80 mm, respectively, for the 3000 cGy exposure. Differences between ODs of the EBT-XD films exposed to known doses from 6 to 18 MV beams were <0.8% suggesting minimal energy dependence throughout this energy range. The LRA of EBT-XD is greatly reduced when compared to EBT3. This in combination with its accuracy from 0 to 3000 cGy and minimal energy dependence from 6 to 18 MV makes EBT-XD film well suited for dosimetric measurements in high dose SRS/SBRT applications.

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

Park, J; Kim, J; Park, S

Purpose: To investigate exposure outside the treatment field when treating breast cancer with tri-Co-60 magnetic resonance (MR) image guided radiation therapy (IGRT) system. Methods: A total of 7 patients who treated with accelerated partial breast irradiation (APBI) technique were selected prospectively for this study (prescription dose = 38.5 Gy in 10 fractions). Every patient treated with two plans, one was an initial plan and the other was an adaptive plan generated after finishing 5 fractions (a total of 14 plans). Every plan was calculated with and without magnetic field in the treatment planning system. The EBT3 films were attached onmore » the front and the back of 1 cm bolus, and then it was placed on the patient body vertically to cover patient’s jaw and shoulder. After measurements, the maximum point dose and the mean dose of whole area of EBT3 film were acquired. Results: In the treatment plan with magnetic field, low dose stream outside the patient body was observed, almost reaching the patient’s jaw or shoulder, while it was not observed without magnetic field. The average values of the measured maximum and mean doses at the front of bolus were 30.1 ± 11.1 cGy (7.8% of the daily dose) and 14.7 ± 3.3 cGy (3.8%), respectively. At the back of bolus, those values were 6.0 ± 1.9 cGy (1.6%) and 5.1 ± 1.6 cGy (1.3%), respectively. The largest maximum dose at the front was 54.2 cGy (14.1%) while it was 20.7 cGy (5.4%) at the back. The average decrease of the maximum dose by the bolus was 24.0 ± 11.0 cGy. Conclusion: Due to magnetic field, dose stream outside the patient body can be generated during breast cancer treatment with the tri-Co-60 MR-IGRT system. Since this dose stream irradiated skin outside the treatment field, it should be shielded. This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) grant funded by the Korea government (MSIP) (No. 2015R1C1A1A01054192).« less

SU-E-J-08: Comparison of Unintended Radiation Doses to Organs at Risk Resulting From the Out-Of-Field Therapeutic Beams and From Image-Guidance X-Ray Procedures

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

Ding, G; Wang, L

Purpose: The unintended radiation dose to organs at risk (OAR) can be contributed from imaging guidance procedures as well as from leakage and scatter of therapeutic beams. This study compares the imaging dose with the unintended out-of-field therapeutic dose to patient sensitive organs. Methods: The Monte Carlo EGSnrc user codes, BEAMnrc and DOSXYZnrc, were used to simulate kV X-ray sources from imaging devices as well as the therapeutic IMRT/VMAT beams and to calculate doses to target and OARs on patient treatment planning CT images. The accuracy of the Monte Carlo simulations was benchmarked against measurements in phantoms. The dose-volume histogrammore » was utilized in analyzing the patient organ doses. Results: The dose resulting from Standard Head kV-CBCT scans to bone and soft tissues ranges from 0.7 to 1.1 cGy and from 0.03 to 0.3 cGy, respectively. The dose resulting from Thorax scans on the chest to bone and soft tissues ranges from 1.1 to 1.8 cGy and from 0.3 to 0.6 cGy, respectively. The dose resulting from Pelvis scans on the abdomen to bone and soft tissues range from 3.2 to 4.2 cGy and from 1.2 to 2.2 cGy, respectively. The out-of-field doses to OAR are sensitive to the distance between the treated target and the OAR. For a typical Head-and-Neck IMRT/VMAT treatment the out-of-field doses to eyes are 1–3% of the target dose, or 2–6 cGy per fraction. Conclusion: The imaging doses to OAR are predictable based on the imaging protocols used when OARs are within the imaged volume and can be estimated and accounted for by using tabulated values. The unintended out-of-field doses are proportional to the target dose, strongly depend on the distance between the treated target and OAR, and are generally higher comparing to the imaging dose. This work was partially supported by Varian research grant VUMC40590.« less

WFIRST: Coronagraph Systems Engineering and Performance Budgets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Poberezhskiy, Ilya; cady, eric; Frerking, Margaret A.; Kern, Brian; Nemati, Bijan; Noecker, Martin; Seo, Byoung-Joon; Zhao, Feng; Zhou, Hanying

2018-01-01

The WFIRST coronagraph instrument (CGI) will be the first in-space coronagraph using active wavefront control to directly image and characterize mature exoplanets and zodiacal disks in reflected starlight. For CGI systems engineering, including requirements development, CGI performance is predicted using a hierarchy of performance budgets to estimate various noise components — spatial and temporal flux variations — that obscure exoplanet signals in direct imaging and spectroscopy configurations. These performance budgets are validated through a robust integrated modeling and testbed model validation efforts.We present the performance budgeting framework used by WFIRST for the flow-down of coronagraph science requirements, mission constraints, and observatory interfaces to measurable instrument engineering parameters.

Building Bridges Between Geoscience and Data Science through Benchmark Data Sets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thompson, D. R.; Ebert-Uphoff, I.; Demir, I.; Gel, Y.; Hill, M. C.; Karpatne, A.; Güereque, M.; Kumar, V.; Cabral, E.; Smyth, P.

2017-12-01

The changing nature of observational field data demands richer and more meaningful collaboration between data scientists and geoscientists. Thus, among other efforts, the Working Group on Case Studies of the NSF-funded RCN on Intelligent Systems Research To Support Geosciences (IS-GEO) is developing a framework to strengthen such collaborations through the creation of benchmark datasets. Benchmark datasets provide an interface between disciplines without requiring extensive background knowledge. The goals are to create (1) a means for two-way communication between geoscience and data science researchers; (2) new collaborations, which may lead to new approaches for data analysis in the geosciences; and (3) a public, permanent repository of complex data sets, representative of geoscience problems, useful to coordinate efforts in research and education. The group identified 10 key elements and characteristics for ideal benchmarks. High impact: A problem with high potential impact. Active research area: A group of geoscientists should be eager to continue working on the topic. Challenge: The problem should be challenging for data scientists. Data science generality and versatility: It should stimulate development of new general and versatile data science methods. Rich information content: Ideally the data set provides stimulus for analysis at many different levels. Hierarchical problem statement: A hierarchy of suggested analysis tasks, from relatively straightforward to open-ended tasks. Means for evaluating success: Data scientists and geoscientists need means to evaluate whether the algorithms are successful and achieve intended purpose. Quick start guide: Introduction for data scientists on how to easily read the data to enable rapid initial data exploration. Geoscience context: Summary for data scientists of the specific data collection process, instruments used, any pre-processing and the science questions to be answered. Citability: A suitable identifier to facilitate tracking the use of the benchmark later on, e.g. allowing search engines to find all research papers using it. A first sample benchmark developed in collaboration with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) deals with the automatic analysis of imaging spectrometer data to detect significant methane sources in the atmosphere.

"What's A Geoscientist Do?": A Student Recruitment And Education Tool

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hughes, C. G.

2015-12-01

Student perception of science, particularly the earth sciences, is not based on actual science jobs. Students have difficulty envisioning themselves as scientists, or in understanding the role of science in their lives as a result. Not all students can envision themselves as scientists when first enrolling in college. While student recruitment into geoscience programs starts before college enrollment at many universities, general education science requirements can act as a gateway into these majors as well. By providing students in general education science classes with more accurate insights into the scientific process and what it means to be a scientist, these classes can help students envision themselves as scientists. A short module, to be embedded within lectures, has been developed to improve recruitment from Clarion University's Introductory Earth Science classes entitled "What's A Geoscientist Do?". As this module aims to help students visualize themselves as geoscientists through examples, diversity of the examples is critical to recruiting students from underrepresented groups. Images and subjects within these modules are carefully selected to emphasize the fact that the geosciences are not, and should not be, the exclusive province of the stereotypical older, white, male scientist. Noteworthy individuals (e.g. John Wesley Powell, Roger Arliner Young) may be highlighted, or the discussion may focus on a particular career path (e.g. hydrologist) relevant to that day's material. While some students are initially attracted to the geosciences due to a love of the outdoors, many students have never spent a night outdoors, and do not find this aspect of the geosciences particularly appealing. "What's A Geoscientist Do?" has been designed to expose these students to the breadth of the field, including a number of geoscience jobs focused on laboratory (e.g. geochemistry) or computer (e.g. GIS, remote sensing, scientific illustration) work instead of focusing exclusively on fieldwork. As Clarion University students tend to be very job-oriented, information on careers includes average starting salaries with the hope of improving student's opinions of the position as possible future employment - helping students (and their families) realize they can support themselves in a geoscience career.

Understanding the Prevalence of Geo-Like Degree Programs at Minority Serving Institutions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McDaris, J. R.; Manduca, C. A.; Larsen, K.

2014-12-01

Over the decade 2002-12, the percentage of students from underrepresented minorities (URM) graduating with geoscience degrees has increased by 50%. In 2012, of the nearly 6,000 geoscience Bachelor's degrees, 8% were awarded to students from URM. But that same year across all of STEM, 18% of Bachelors went to these students, and URM made up 30% of the US population overall. Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs) play an important role in increasing the diversity of geoscience graduates where there are appropriate degree programs or pathways to programs. To better understand opportunities at these institutions, the InTeGrate project collected information on degree programs at MSIs. A summer 2013 survey of websites for three types of MSIs confirmed that, while stand-alone Geology, Geoscience, or Environmental Science departments are present, there are a larger number of degree programs that include elements of geoscience or related disciplines (geography, GIS, etc.) offered in interdisciplinary departments (e.g. Natural Sciences and Math) or cognate science departments (Physics, Engineering, etc.). Approximately one-third of Hispanic Serving Institutions and Tribal Colleges and one-fifth of Historically Black Colleges and Universities offer at least one degree that includes elements of geoscience. The most common programs were Geology and Environmental Science (94 and 88 degrees respectively), but 21 other types of program were also found. To better profile the nature of these programs, 11 interviews were conducted focusing on strategies for attracting, supporting, and preparing minority students for the workforce. In conjunction with the February 2014 Broadening Access to the Earth and Environmental Sciences workshop, an additional 6 MSI profiles were obtained as well as 22 profiles from non-MSIs. Several common strategies emerge: Proactive marketing and outreach to local high schools and two-year colleges Community building, mentoring and advising, academic support, and funding support Research experiences, internships, alumni or industry interactions, and real-world project These findings align with the literature on supporting students from underrepresented groups. The full set of profiles is available on the InTeGrate website. serc.carleton.edu/integrate/programs/diversity/

An Analysis of NSF Geosciences Research Experience for Undergraduate Site Programs from 2009 to 2012

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rom, E. L.; Patino, L. C.; Gonzales, J.; Weiler, C. S.; Antell, L.; Colon, Y.; Sanchez, S. C.

2012-12-01

The Research Experience for Undergraduate (REU) Program at the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) provides undergraduate students from across the nation the opportunity to conduct research at a different institution and in an area that may not be available at their home campus. REU Sites funded by the Directorate of Geosciences provide student research opportunities in earth, ocean, atmospheric and geospace research. This paper provides an overview of the Geosciences REU Site programs run from 2009 to 2012. Information was gathered from over 45 REU sites each year on recruitment methods, student demographics, enrichment activities, and fields of research. The internet is the most widely used mechanism to recruit participants. The admissions rate for REU Sites in Geosciences varies by discipline but averages between 6% to 18% each year, with the majority of participants being rising seniors and juniors. A few Sites include rising sophomores and freshmen. Most students attend PhD granting institutions. Among the participants, gender distribution depends on discipline, with atmospheric and geospace sciences having more male than female participants, but ocean and earth sciences having a majority of female participants. Regarding ethnic diversity, the REU Sites reflect the difficulty of attracting diverse students into Geosciences as a discipline; a large majority of the participants are Caucasian or Asian students. Furthermore, participants from minority-serving institutions or community colleges constitute a small percentage of those taking part in these research experiences. The enrichment activities are very similar across the REU Sites, and mimic well activities common to the scientific community, including intellectual exchange of ideas (lab meetings, seminars, and professional meetings), networking and social activities. Results from this study will be used to examine strengths in the REU Sites in the Geosciences and opportunities for improvement in the program. The data provided here also represent an excellent benchmark by which to measure future changes in student participation and program design that may result from 2012 changes in the REU program solicitation. For example, one important change is that REU programs are now required to include greater participation of students who are attending non-research institutions.

SU-E-T-216: TPS QC Supporting Program by a Third-Party Evaluation Agency in Japan.

PubMed

Fukata, K; Minemura, T; Kurokawa, C; Miyagishi, T; Itami, J

2012-06-01

To equalize the quality of radiation therapy in Japan by supporting quality control of radiation treatment planning system. Center for Cancer Control and Information Service in National Cancer Center supports the QA-QC of the cancer core hospitals in Japan as a third-party evaluation agency. Recently, a program for assessing the quality of treatment planning system (TPS) began as a part of our QA-QC supporting activities. In this program, a questionnaire about TPS was sent to 45 prefectural cancer core hospitals in Japan. The object of this questionnaire is to assess the proper commissioning, implement and applications of TPSs. The contents of the questionnaire are as follows; 1) calculate MUs which deliver 1000 cGy to the point of SSD = 100 cm, 10 cm depth with field sizes ranging from 5×5 to 30 × 30 cm 2 , and obtain doses at several depths for the calculated MUs, 2) calculate MUs which deliver 1000 cGy to the point of SSD = 100 cm, 10 cm depth for wedge fields whose angles are from 15 to 60 degrees, and obtain doses at several depths with the MUs, 3) calculate MU which deliver 1000 cGy to the point of STD = 100 cm, 10 cm depth with 10×10 cm 2 field size and obtain doses at several depths with the MU. In this program, 179 beam data from 44 facilities were collected. Data were compared in terms of dose per MU, output factor, wedge factor and TMR. It was found that 90% of the data agreed within 2%. The quality of the treatment planning system was investigated through the questionnaire including the information of essential beam data. We compared 179 beam data in TPSs sent from 44 facilities and 90% of the data showed good agreement. © 2012 American Association of Physicists in Medicine.

14 CFR § 1260.9 - Synopses requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... funding opportunities shall be synopsized. Synopses shall be prepared in the NASA Acquisition Internet Service (NAIS), located at: http://prod.nais.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/nais/index.cgi; by using the Electronic Posting System (EPS), and transmitted to http://www.Fedgrants.gov. Synopses shall be electronically posted...

14 CFR 1260.9 - Synopses requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... opportunities shall be synopsized. Synopses shall be prepared in the NASA Acquisition Internet Service (NAIS), located at: http://prod.nais.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/nais/index.cgi; by using the Electronic Posting System (EPS), and transmitted to http://www.Fedgrants.gov. Synopses shall be electronically posted to: http://www...

Estimation of utilities in attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder for economic evaluations.

PubMed

Lloyd, Andrew; Hodgkins, Paul; Sasane, Rahul; Akehurst, Ron; Sonuga-Barke, Edmund J S; Fitzgerald, Patrick; Nixon, Annabel; Erder, Haim; Brazier, John

2011-01-01

Attempts to estimate the cost effectiveness of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) treatments in the past have relied on classifying ADHD patients as responders or non-responders to treatment. Responder status has been associated with a small gain in health-related quality of life (HR-QOL) [or utility, as measured using the generic QOL measure EQ-5D] of 0.06 (on a scale from 0 being dead to 1.0 being full health). The goal of the present study was to develop and validate several ADHD-related health states, and to estimate utility values measured amongst the general public for those states and to re-estimate utility values associated with responder status. Detailed qualitative interview data were collected from 20 young ADHD patients to characterize their HR-QOL. In addition, item-by-item clinical and HR-QOL data from a clinical trial were used to define and describe four health states (normal; borderline to mildly ill; moderately to markedly ill; and severely ill). ADHD experts assessed the content validity of the descriptions. The states were rated by 100 members of the UK general public using the time trade-off (TTO) interview and visual analog scale. Statistical mapping was also undertaken to estimate Clinical Global Impression-Improvement (CGI-I) utilities (i.e. response status) from Clinical Global Impression-Severity (CGI-S) defined states. The mapping work estimated changes in utilities from study baseline to last visit for patients with a CGI-I score of ≤ 2 or ≤ 3. The validity of the four health states developed in this study was supported by in-depth interviews with ADHD experts and patients, and clinical trial data. TTO-derived utilities for the four health states ranged from 0.839 (CGI-S state 'normal') to 0.444 (CGI-S state 'severely ill'). From the mapping work, the change in utility for treatment responders was 0.19 for patients with a CGI-I score of ≤ 2 and 0.15 for patients with a CGI-I score of ≤ 3. The present study provides utilities for different severity levels of ADHD estimated in a TTO study. This approach provides a more granular assessment of the impact of ADHD on HR-QOL than binary approaches employed in previous economic analyses. Change in utility for responders and non-responders at different levels of CGI-I was estimated, and thus these utilities may be used to compare health gains of different ADHD interventions.

Radiotherapy changes salivary properties and impacts quality of life of children with Hodgkin disease.

PubMed

Marangoni-Lopes, L; Rodrigues, L P; Mendonça, R H; Nobre-Dos Santos, M

2016-12-01

We aimed to perform a longitudinal investigation of the effects of radiotherapy on salivary flow rate, pH, buffering capacity, and protein composition of saliva and on the quality of life of children with Hodgkin disease. Ten children (6-16-year-old) with Hodgkin disease and 10 matched healthy children were investigated. Stimulated and non-stimulated saliva samples were collected at baseline, after 1080 and 2160cGy of radiation, and 1, 2, and 3 months post-radiotherapy. The salivary flow rate was expressed as mL/min. Buffer capacity was determined by titration. Amylase activity, immunoglobulin A, mucin, and lactoferrin concentrations were determined by ELISA. Quality of life was assessed by Quality of Life - Head and Neck module 35 questionnaire. We found that radiotherapy caused hyposalivation at 1080cGy and 1 month after radiotherapy and reduced buffering capacity at 2160cGy. Mucin concentration and amylase activity in non-stimulated saliva increased 1 month after radiotherapy. Lactoferrin concentration increased during and after radiotherapy. Immunoglobulin A concentration increased at 1080cGy, 1 and 2 months, for non-stimulated saliva and at 2160cGy and 1 month for stimulated saliva. Children reported more pain after radiotherapy and more xerostomia during radiotherapy. We concluded that the radiotherapy protocol affected the children's salivary properties and children's quality of life. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Deficiency of liver Comparative Gene Identification-58 causes steatohepatitis and fibrosis in mice

PubMed Central

Guo, Feng; Ma, Yinyan; Kadegowda, Anil K. G.; Betters, Jenna L.; Xie, Ping; Liu, George; Liu, Xiuli; Miao, Hongming; Ou, Juanjuan; Su, Xiong; Zheng, Zhenlin; Xue, Bingzhong; Shi, Hang; Yu, Liqing

2013-01-01

Triglyceride (TG) accumulation in hepatocytes (hepatic steatosis) preludes the development of advanced nonalcoholic fatty liver diseases (NAFLDs) such as steatohepatitis, fibrosis, and cirrhosis. Mutations in human Comparative Gene Identification-58 (CGI-58) cause cytosolic TG-rich lipid droplets to accumulate in almost all cell types including hepatocytes. However, it is unclear if CGI-58 mutation causes hepatic steatosis locally or via altering lipid metabolism in other tissues. To directly address this question, we created liver-specific CGI-58 knockout (LivKO) mice. LivKO mice on standard chow diet displayed microvesicular and macrovesicular panlobular steatosis, and progressed to advanced NAFLD stages over time, including lobular inflammation and centrilobular fibrosis. Compared with CGI-58 floxed control littermates, LivKO mice showed 8-fold and 52-fold increases in hepatic TG content, which was associated with 40% and 58% decreases in hepatic TG hydrolase activity at 16 and 42 weeks, respectively. Hepatic cholesterol also increased significantly in LivKO mice. At 42 weeks, LivKO mice showed increased hepatic oxidative stress, plasma aminotransferases, and hepatic mRNAs for genes involved in fibrosis and inflammation, such as α-smooth muscle actin, collagen type 1 α1, tumor necrosis factor α, and interleukin-1β. In conclusion, CGI-58 deficiency in the liver directly causes not only hepatic steatosis but also steatohepatitis and fibrosis. PMID:23733885

Measurement of computed tomography dose profile with pitch variation using Gafchromic XR-QA2 and thermoluminescence dosimeter (TLD)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Purwaningsih, S.; Lubis, L. E.; Pawiro, S. A.; Soejoko, D. S.

2016-03-01

This research was aimed to check the patterns of dose profile on adult and pediatric head scan. We compared measurement result on dose profile along the z- axis rotation at peripheries and center phantom with a variety of pitch, i.e. 0.75, 1, 1.5 for adult and pediatric head protocol, keeping the rest of the scan parameters constant. Measurements were performed on homogeneous, cylindrical PMMA phantom with diameters of 16 and 10 cm using XR-QA2 Gafchromic film and TLD as dosimeters. The measurement result indicated a decrease in the dose about 50% and 47% for adult and pediatric head scan with the increase of pitch. For 0.75 value of pitch adult head scan, dose range for each position were (2.4 - 5.0) cGy, (3.1 - 5.3) cGy, (2.2 - 4.5) cGy, (2.8 - 5.3) cGy, and (3.3 - 5.6) cGy for position of center, 3, 6, 9 and 12 o'clock peripheral phantom position respectively. Dose profile for adult and pediatric head scan protocols has pattern curve with the maximum dose in the middle and tendency of symmetry near the edges, with different the plateau length along z- axis direction in accordance to the measurement position in the phantom.

Pencil beam scanning proton therapy vs rotational arc radiation therapy: A treatment planning comparison for postoperative oropharyngeal cancer

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

Apinorasethkul, Ontida, E-mail: Ontida.a@gmail.com; Kirk, Maura; Teo, Kevin

Patients diagnosed with head and neck cancer are traditionally treated with photon radiotherapy. Proton therapy is currently being used clinically and may potentially reduce treatment-related toxicities by minimizing the dose to normal organs in the treatment of postoperative oropharyngeal cancer. The finite range of protons has the potential to significantly reduce normal tissue toxicity compared to photon radiotherapy. Seven patients were planned with both proton and photon modalities. The planning goal for both modalities was achieving the prescribed dose to 95% of the planning target volume (PTV). Dose-volume histograms were compared in which all cases met the target coverage goals.more » Mean doses were significantly lower in the proton plans for the oral cavity (1771 cGy photon vs 293 cGy proton, p < 0.001), contralateral parotid (1796 cGy photon vs 1358 proton, p < 0.001), and the contralateral submandibular gland (3608 cGy photon vs 3251 cGy proton, p = 0.03). Average total integral dose was 9.1% lower in proton plans. The significant dosimetric sparing seen with proton therapy may lead to reduced side effects such as pain, weight loss, taste changes, and dry mouth. Prospective comparisons of protons vs photons for disease control, toxicity, and patient-reported outcomes are therefore warranted and currently being pursued.« less

Due Diligence for Students - Geoscience Skills and Demographic Data for Career Planning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Keane, C. M.

2001-05-01

A major focus of the American Geological Institute's Human Resources program has been providing demographic and employment data so that students and mentors can better understand the dynamics of a career in the geosciences. AGI has a long history of collecting these data for the geoscience community, including 46 years of geoscience enrollments, periodic comprehensive surveys of employment in the discipline, and working closely with other organizations that collect these data. AGI has launched a new suite of surveys to examine the skills desired by employers and the skills provided through a geoscience education. Historical demographic and enrollment data allow a number of the major trends to be examined. These trends include the dominance of industry as employer in the geosciences and how the cyclicity of geoscience employment has become more complex with the development of the environmental sector over the last 30 years. Additionally, demographics are changing rapidly, with a geoscience workforce that is changing rapidly in age, gender, and background. The discipline may also be facing a change in the nature of geoscience employment, with chronic shortages of skilled geoscientists, but will job opportunities actually increase. This may not be as paradoxical as it appears. The geoindustries are attempting to adjust their strategies to dampen business cycles, which then may lead to more stable employment levels for geoscientists, but they are also broadening their vision of who can become competent geoscientists.

Inquiring with Geoscience Datasets: Instruction and Assessment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zalles, D.; Quellmalz, E.; Gobert, J.

2005-12-01

This session will describe a new NSF-funded project in Geoscience education, Inquiring with Geoscience Data Sets. The goals of the project are to (1) Study the impacts on student learning of Web-based supplementary curriculum modules that engage secondary-level students in inquiry projects addressing important geoscience problems using an Earth System Science approach. Students will use technologies to access real data sets in the geosciences and to interpret, analyze, and communicate findings based on the data sets. The standards addressed will include geoscience concepts, inquiry abilities in NSES and Benchmarks for Science Literacy, data literacy, NCTM standards, and 21st-century skills and technology proficiencies (NETTS/ISTE). (2) Develop design principles, specification templates, and prototype exemplars for technology-based performance assessments that provide evidence of students' geoscientific knowledge and inquiry skills (including data literacy skills) and students' ability to access, use, analyze, and interpret technology-based geoscience data sets. (3) Develop scenarios based on the specification templates that describe curriculum modules and performance assessments that could be developed for other Earth Science standards and curriculum programs. Also to be described in the session are the project's efforts to differentiate among the dimensions of data literacy and scientific inquiry that are relevant for the geoscience discplines, and how recognition and awareness of the differences can be effectively channelled for the betterment of geoscience education.

From infotainment to tools of interaction - A critical perspective on the use of film/video in geoscience

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ickert, Johanna

2017-04-01

In times of omnipresent digitisation and interconnectedness, the way how we generate and experience knowledge on geo-related themes is strongly influenced by audiovisual media representations. Moving images are powerful tools and have significant potential to communicate science in novel ways. Major research frameworks such as Horizon 2020 strongly encourage the use of audiovisual media in order to communicate science "more effectively" to the public. An increasing number of geoscientists produce films themselves, while most of them still delegate this task to media professionals to whom they provide their scientific expert knowledge. Usually, the intention behind these outreach efforts is to take advantage of the suitability of the medium to convey "scientific facts", or to motivate certain cognitive/behavioural responses of different target audiences. Undoubtedly, film has a great potential for representing geoscientific knowledge and thus has become a key instrument for geoscience communication. However, the use of images also raises fundamental ethical and representational concerns. While the latter have provoked intense debates in sub-disciplines such as visual anthropology or film geography, the geosciences have paid only little attention to questions on how distinct practices and disciplinary paradigms create filmic representations. Given the fact that the use of scientific images and film is far from being "objective" and that the way how we create and experience images is always context-specific and strongly influenced by the relationship between film maker, film subjects/informants and audience, a series of important question arises: What do we know about the use of film in geosciences beyond the realm of information and representational purposes? What can we learn from using film as a reflexive, process-oriented and dialogue-based medium? How can film help us to better understand ethical and representational dimensions of our interaction with the public? What are the phenomenological qualities of film and how can they be made productive for science communication? This article explores the potential for novel approaches to use film in geology not only as outreach tool, but also as method of joint knowledge production in inter- and transdisciplinary collaboration. In order to provide evidence for the above-mentioned observations, a historical perspective on the use of film in geosciences as well as an in-depth analysis of recent art-science-collaborations will be given.

From The Horse's Mouth: Engaging With Geoscientists On Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Katzenberger, J.; Morrow, C. A.; Arnott, J. C.

2011-12-01

"From the Horse's Mouth" is a project of the Aspen Global Change Institute (AGCI) that utilizes selected short video clips of scientists presenting and discussing their research in an interdisciplinary setting at AGCI as the core of an online interactive set of learning modules in the geosciences for grades 9-12 and 1st and 2nd year undergraduate students. The video archive and associated material as is has limited utility, but here we illustrate how it can be leveraged for educational purposes by a systematic mining of the resource integrated with a variety of supplemental user experiences. The project furthers several broad goals to: (a) improve the quality of formal and informal geoscience education with an emphasis on 9-12 and early undergraduate, (b) encourage and facilitate the engagement of geoscientists to strengthen STEM education by leveraging AGCI's interdisciplinary science program for educational purposes, (c) explore science as a human endeavor by providing a unique view of how scientists communicate in a research setting, potentially stimulating students to consider traditional and non-traditional geoscience careers, (d) promote student understanding of scientific methodology and inquiry, and (e) further student appreciation of the role of science in society, particularly related to understanding Earth system science and global change. The resource material at the core of this project is a videotape record of presentation and discussion among leading scientists from 35 countries participating in interdisciplinary workshops at AGCI on a broad array of geoscience topics over a period of 22 years. The unique archive represents approximately 1200 hours of video footage obtained over the course of 43 scientific workshops and 62 hours of public talks. The full spectrum of material represents scientists active on all continents with a diverse set of backgrounds and academic expertise in both natural and social sciences. We report on the video database resource, our data acquisition protocols, conceptual design for the learning modules, excerpts from the video archive illustrating both geoscience content utilized in educational module development and examples of video clips that explore the process of science and its nature as a human endeavor. A prototype of the user interface featuring a navigational strategy, a discussion of both content and process goals represented in the pilot material and its use in both formal and informal settings are presented.

Geocognition Research: An International Discipline (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Libarkin, J.

2009-12-01

Geocognition and geoscience education research have experienced a dramatic increase in research productivity and graduate student training in the past decade. At this writing, over twelve U.S. graduate programs dedicated to geocognition and geoscience education research exist within geoscience departments, with numerous other programs housed within education. International research programs are experiencing similar increases in these research domains. This insurgence of graduate training opportunities is due in large part to several factors, including: An increased awareness of the importance of Earth Systems Science to public understanding of science, particularly in light of global concern about climate change; new funding opportunities for science education, cognitive science, and geoscience education research; and, engagement of a significant part of the geosciences and education communities in writing new standards for Earth Systems literacy. Existing research programs blend geoscience content knowledge with research expertise in education, cognitive science, psychology, sociology and related disciplines. Research projects reflect the diversity of interests in geoscience teaching and learning, from investigations of pedagogical impact and professional development to studies of fundamental geocognitive processes.

NAGT: Partnering to Expand and Improve the Teaching of Earth Sciences at all Levels of Instruction while Increasing Earth Literacy to the General Public

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Herbstrith, K. G.

2016-12-01

Now more than ever, we need an Earth literate public and a workforce that can develop and be engaged in viable solutions to current and future environmental and resource challenges. The National Association of Geoscience Teachers (NAGT) is a member driven organization dedicated to fostering improvement in the teaching of the Earth Sciences at all levels of formal and informal instruction, to emphasizing the cultural significance of the Earth sciences and to disseminating knowledge in this field to the general public. NAGT offers a number of ways to partner and collaborate including our sponsored sessions, events and programs; two publications; workshop programming; three topical focused divisions; educational advocacy; and website offerings hosted through the Science Education Resource Center (SERC). A growing number of associations, institutions, projects, and individual educators are strengthening their professional networks by partnering with NAGT. Locating and connecting members of the Earth education community with shared values and interest is an important part of collaborating and NAGT's topical divisions assist community members who wish to work on the topics of 2-year college faculty, geoscience education research, and teacher preparation. The NAGT website and the linked websites of its collaborating partners provides a peer reviewed venue for educators to showcase their pedagogy and to learn best practices of others. The annual Earth Educators' Rendezvous is an opportunity to network face-to-face with the Earth education community, strengthening our relationships while working with those who share our interests and challenges while also learning from those who have divergent experiences. NAGT is a non-profit organization that advocates for the advancement of the geosciences and supports the work of Earth educators and geoscience education researchers. For more information about NAGT, visit our website at www.nagt.org

14 CFR 1260.9 - Synopses requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... Service (NAIS), located at: http://prod.nais.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/nais/index.cgi; by using the Electronic Posting System (EPS), and transmitted to http://www.Fedgrants.gov. Synopses shall be electronically posted to: http://www.Fedgrants.gov no later than three business days after release of the full announcement...

Dynamic Web Pages: Performance Impact on Web Servers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kothari, Bhupesh; Claypool, Mark

2001-01-01

Discussion of Web servers and requests for dynamic pages focuses on experimentally measuring and analyzing the performance of the three dynamic Web page generation technologies: CGI, FastCGI, and Servlets. Develops a multivariate linear regression model and predicts Web server performance under some typical dynamic requests. (Author/LRW)

Geoscience Education Research: The Role of Collaborations with Education Researchers and Cognitive Scientists

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Manduca, C. A.; Mogk, D. W.; Kastens, K. A.; Tikoff, B.; Shipley, T. F.; Ormand, C. J.; Mcconnell, D. A.

2011-12-01

Geoscience Education Research aims to improve geoscience teaching and learning by understanding clearly the characteristics of geoscience expertise, the path from novice to expert, and the educational practices that can speed students along this path. In addition to expertise in geoscience and education, this research requires an understanding of learning -the domain of cognitive scientists. Beginning in 2002, a series of workshops and events focused on bringing together geoscientists, education researchers, and cognitive scientists to facilitate productive geoscience education research collaborations. These activities produced reports, papers, books, websites and a blog developing a research agenda for geoscience education research at a variety of scales: articulating the nature of geoscience expertise, and the overall importance of observation and a systems approach; focusing attention on geologic time, spatial skills, field work, and complex systems; and identifying key research questions in areas where new technology is changing methods in geoscience research and education. Cognitive scientists and education researchers played critical roles in developing this agenda. Where geoscientists ask questions that spring from their rich understanding of the discipline, cognitive scientists and education researchers ask questions from their experience with teaching and learning in a wide variety of disciplines and settings. These interactions tend to crystallize the questions of highest importance in addressing challenges of geoscience learning and to identify productive targets for collaborative research. Further, they serve as effective mechanisms for bringing research techniques and results from other fields into geoscience education. Working productively at the intersection of these fields requires teams of cognitive scientists, geoscientists, and education reserachers who share enough knowledge of all three domains to have a common articulation of the research problem, to make collaborative decisions, and to collectively problem solve. The development of this shared understanding is a primary result of the past decade of work. It has been developed through geoscience hosted events like the On the Cutting Edge emerging theme workshops and the Synthesis of Research on Thinking and Learning in the Geosciences project, complementary events in cognitive science and education that include geoscientists like the Gordon Conferences on Visualization in Science & Education or the Spatial Cognition conference series, and the interactions within and among geoscience education research projects like the Spatial Intelligence and Learning Center, the GARNET project, and many others. With this common ground in place, effective collaborations that bring together deep knowledge of psychology and brain function, of educational design and testing, and of time tested learning goals, teaching methods, and measures of success can flourish. A strong and accelerating research field has emerged that spans from work on basic cognitive skills important in geoscience, to studies of specific teaching strategies.

Porphyry copper deposits of the world: database, map, and grade and tonnage models

USGS Publications Warehouse

Singer, Donald A.; Berger, Vladimir Iosifovich; Moring, Barry C.

2005-01-01

Mineral deposit models are important in exploration planning and quantitative resource assessments for two reasons: (1) grades and tonnages among deposit types are significantly different, and (2) many types occur in different geologic settings that can be identified from geologic maps. Mineral deposit models are the keystone in combining the diverse geoscience information on geology, mineral occurrences, geophysics, and geochemistry used in resource assessments and mineral exploration. Too few thoroughly explored mineral deposits are available in most local areas for reliable identification of the important geoscience variables or for robust estimation of undiscovered deposits-thus we need mineral-deposit models. Globally based deposit models allow recognition of important features because the global models demonstrate how common different features are. Well-designed and -constructed deposit models allow geologists to know from observed geologic environments the possible mineral deposit types that might exist, and allow economists to determine the possible economic viability of these resources in the region. Thus, mineral deposit models play the central role in transforming geoscience information to a form useful to policy makers. The foundation of mineral deposit models is information about known deposits-the purpose of this publication is to make this kind of information available in digital form for porphyry copper deposits. This report is an update of an earlier publication about porphyry copper deposits. In this report we have added 84 new porphyry copper deposits and removed 12 deposits. In addition, some errors have been corrected and a number of deposits have had some information, such as grades, tonnages, locations, or ages revised. This publication contains a computer file of information on porphyry copper deposits from around the world. It also presents new grade and tonnage models for porphyry copper deposits and for three subtypes of porphyry copper deposits and a map showing the location of all deposits. The value of this information and any derived analyses depends critically on the consistent manner of data gathering. For this reason, we first discuss the rules used in this compilation. Next, the fields of the data file are considered. Finally, we provide new grade and tonnage models.

Strategic Roadmap for the U.S. Geoscience Information Network

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Allison, M. L.; Gallagher, K. T.; Richard, S. M.; Hutchison, V. B.

2012-04-01

An external advisory working group has prepared a 5-year strategic roadmap for the U.S. Geoscience Information Network (USGIN). USGIN is a partnership of the Association of American State Geologists (AASG) and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), who formally agreed in 2007 to develop a national geoscience information framework that is distributed, interoperable, uses open source standards and common protocols, respects and acknowledges data ownership, fosters communities of practice to grow, and develops new Web services and clients. The intention of the USGIN is to benefit the geological surveys by reducing the cost of online data publication and access provision, and to benefit society through easier (lower cost) access to public domain geoscience data. This information supports environmental planning, resource-development, hazard mitigation design, and decision-making. USGIN supposes that sharing resources for system development and maintenance, standardizing data discovery and creating better access mechanisms, causes cost of data access and maintenance to be reduced. Standardization in a wide variety of business domains provides economic benefits that range between 0.2 and 0.9% of the gross national product. We suggest that the economic benefits of standardization also apply in the informatics domain. Standardized access to rich data resources will create collaborative opportunities in science and business. Development and use of shared protocols and interchange formats for data publication will create a market for user applications, facilitating geoscience data discovery and utility for the benefit of society. The USGIN Working Group envisions further development of tools and capabilities, in addition to extending the community of practice that currently involves geoinformatics practitioners from the USGS and AASG. Promoting engagement and participation of the state geological surveys, and increasing communication between the states, USGS, and other stakeholders are prerequisites for community development. A key element of community building is personal interaction. The USGIN community can establish an identity for geological survey informatics practitioners, can assist in prioritizing technical development that is specific to the geological survey community, and can leverage development taking place in the larger community. Policies, protocols, and procedures for developing, reviewing, and distributing specifications can be adopted from established practices developed by existing organizations, such as the OGC. Documenting and promoting best practices through demonstrations, education, and outreach within the geological survey community is paramount for fostering deployment of interoperable services for data discovery and distribution. Evolution of the current Balkanized geoinformatics practice into a more cohesive and effective community has been and will continue to be an incremental process. The role of USGIN as an entity in this larger community requires organization, planning, promotion, and funding. As a member of a community activity, the role of USGIN as a leader in the community must be organic and emergent. Essential implementation activities include: • Establish a long-term governance model • Develop a business model • Explore testbed opportunities • Develop marketing strategy

Geosciences Information for Teachers (GIFT) in Catalonia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Camerlenghi, Angelo; Cacho, Isabel; Calvo, Eva; Demol, Ben; Sureda, Catalina; Artigas, Carme; Vilaplana, Miquel; Porbellini, Danilo; Rubio, Eduard

2010-05-01

CATAGIFT is the acronym of the project supported by the Catalan Government (trough the AGAUR agency) to support the activities of the EGU Committee on Education in Catalonia. The objective of this project is two-fold: 1) To establish a coordinated action to support the participation of three Catalan science teachers of primary and secondary schools in the GIFT Symposium, held each year during the General Assembly of the European Geosciences Union (EGU). 2) To produce a video documentary each year on hot topics in geosciences. The documentary is produced in Catalan, Spanish and English and is distributed to the Catalan science teachers attending the annual meeting organized by the Institute of Education Sciences and the Faculty of Geology of the University together with the CosmoCaixa Museum of Barcelona, to the international teachers attending the EGU GIFT Workshop, and to other schools in the Spanish territory. In the present-day context of science dissemination through documentaries and television programs there is a dominance of products of high technical quality and very high costs sold and broadcasted world wide. The wide spread of such products tends to standardize scientific information, not only in its content, but also in the format used for communicating science to the general public. In the field of geosciences in particular, there is a scarcity of products that combine high scientific quality and accessible costs to illustrate aspects of the natural life of our planet Earth through the results of the work of individual researchers and / or research groups. The scientific documentaries produced by CATAGIFT pursue the objective to support primary and secondary school teachers to critically interpret scientific information coming from the different media (television, newspapers, magazines, audiovisual products), in a way that they can transmit to their students. CataGIFT has created a series of documentaries called MARENOSTRUM TERRANOSTRA designed and produced by a team of researchers of the Marine Geosciences Research Group of the University of Barcelona, high school teachers, and professionals of multimedia communication. Key aspects of the documentaries are: - Easy language and international accessibility (Catalan, Spanish and English language); - Addressing of hot topics and highly debated issues in geosciences; - Use of the proximity of researchers to the citizens (the story is told with the help of real scientists accessible by the citizen); - Use of video footage recorded by scientists specifically trained to do so during their field work; - Avoidance of catastrophism and excessive dramatization of scientific problems; - Use of slow times and emphasis on the aspects of contemplation, beauty, and astonishment in the daily work of geoscientists. MARENOSTRUM TERRANOSTRA production to date: Ice: The historian of the Earth. 2008. DVD PAL, colour, 27 min. Directed by D. Porbellini (Cultormedia). Catalan, Castellan, English. 20 thousand years. The history of the last big natural climate change of the earth. 2009. DVD PAL, colour, 25 min. Directed by D. Porbellini (Cultormedia). Catalan, Castellan, English. Hidden Corals. 2010 (release date May 2010). DVD PAL, colour, 30 min. Directed by D. Porbellini (Cultormedia). Catalan, Castellan, English.

An Integrated Strategy for Promoting Geoscience Education and Research in Developing Countries through International Cooperation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aswathanarayana, U.

2007-12-01

Geoscience education and research in Developing countries should aim at achieving food, water and environmental security, and disaster preparedness, based on the synergetic application of earth (including atmospheric and oceanic realms), space and information sciences through economically-viable, ecologically- sustainable and people-participatory management of natural resources. The proposed strategy involves the integration of the following three principal elements: (i) What needs to be taught: Geoscience needs to be taught as earth system science incorporating geophysical, geochemical and geobiological approaches, with focus (say, 80 % of time) on surficial processes (e.g. dynamics of water, wind and waves, surface and groundwater, soil moisture, geomorphology, landuse, crops), and surficial materials (e.g. soils, water, industrial minerals, sediments, biota). Subjects such as the origin, structure and evolution of the earth, and deep-seated processes (e.g. dynamics of the crust-mantle interaction, plate tectonics) could be taught by way of background knowledge (say, 20 % of the time), (ii) How jobs are to be created: Jobs are to be created by merging geoscience knowledge with economic instruments (say, micro enterprises), and management structures at different levels (Policy level, Technology Transfer level and Implementation level), customized to the local biophysical and socioeconomic situations, and (iii) International cooperation: Web-based instruction (e.g. education portals, virtual laboratories) through South - South and North - South cooperation, customized to the local biophysical and socioeconomic situations, with the help of (say) UNDP, UNESCO, World Bank, etc.

Cloud-Hosted Real-time Data Services for the Geosciences (CHORDS)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Daniels, M. D.; Graves, S. J.; Vernon, F.; Kerkez, B.; Chandra, C. V.; Keiser, K.; Martin, C.

2014-12-01

Cloud-Hosted Real-time Data Services for the Geosciences (CHORDS) Access, utilization and management of real-time data continue to be challenging for decision makers, as well as researchers in several scientific fields. This presentation will highlight infrastructure aimed at addressing some of the gaps in handling real-time data, particularly in increasing accessibility of these data to the scientific community through cloud services. The Cloud-Hosted Real-time Data Services for the Geosciences (CHORDS) system addresses the ever-increasing importance of real-time scientific data, particularly in mission critical scenarios, where informed decisions must be made rapidly. Advances in the distribution of real-time data are leading many new transient phenomena in space-time to be observed, however real-time decision-making is infeasible in many cases that require streaming scientific data as these data are locked down and sent only to proprietary in-house tools or displays. This lack of accessibility to the broader scientific community prohibits algorithm development and workflows initiated by these data streams. As part of NSF's EarthCube initiative, CHORDS proposes to make real-time data available to the academic community via cloud services. The CHORDS infrastructure will enhance the role of real-time data within the geosciences, specifically expanding the potential of streaming data sources in enabling adaptive experimentation and real-time hypothesis testing. Adherence to community data and metadata standards will promote the integration of CHORDS real-time data with existing standards-compliant analysis, visualization and modeling tools.

Creating and maintaining a successful geoscience pathway from 2YC to 4YC for Native Hawaiian Students: First Steps

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guidry, M.; Eschenberg, A.; McCoy, F. W.; McManus, M. A.; Lee, K.; DeLay, J. K.; Taylor, S. V.; Dire, J.; Krupp, D.

2017-12-01

In the Fall of 2015, the two four year (4YC) institutions within the University of Hawaii (UH) system offering baccalaureate degrees in geosciences enrolled only six Native Hawaiian (NH) students out of a total of 194 students in geoscience degree programs. This percentage (3%) of NH students enrolled in geosciences is far lower than the percentage of NH students enrolled at any single institution in the UH system, which ranges from 14 to 42%. At the same time, only six (3%) of the 194 students enrolled in geoscience baccalaureate programs were transfer students from the UH community colleges. Of these six transfer students, three were NH. This reflects the need for increased transfer of NH in the geosciences from two year (2YC) to 4YC. In the Fall of 2015, UH Manoa's (UHM) School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST) accounted for only 0.14% of transfer students from UH community colleges. This compares to 5% in the UHM School of Engineering and 27% in the UHM College of Arts and Sciences. As part of the first year of a multi-institutional five-year NSF TCUP-PAGE (Tribal Colleges and Universities Program - PArtnerships for Geoscience Education) award, we review our first steps and strategies for building a successful and sustainable geoscience transfer pathway for Native Hawaiian and community college students into the three undergraduate geoscience programs (Atmospheric Sciences, Environmental Sciences, and Geology & Geophysics) within SOEST.

Incidence of late endocrine dysfunction following irradiation for childhood medulloblastoma

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

Abayomi, O.K.; Sadeghi-Nejad, A.

1986-06-01

A retrospective analysis of treatment in 20 patients who had received post-operative radiotherapy for medulloblastoma between 1969 and 1977 was completed. The patients were followed for a minimum of 60 months. Eleven patients survived for 5 or more years after treatment. The patients received 3600 cGy to the whole brain. The posterior fossa received 5600 cGY and the spinal axis 3600 cGY. Eight of eleven patients developed growth impairment; 6 of 7 patients had growth hormone deficiency. Since all endocrine gland failures are amenable to therapy, early attention to patients' growth rate and detection of hypothalamic-pituitary failure, would be ofmore » benefit to longterm survivors.« less

Augmented reality on poster presentations, in the field and in the classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hawemann, Friedrich; Kolawole, Folarin

2017-04-01

Augmented reality (AR) is the direct addition of virtual information through an interface to a real-world environment. In practice, through a mobile device such as a tablet or smartphone, information can be projected onto a target- for example, an image on a poster. Mobile devices are widely distributed today such that augmented reality is easily accessible to almost everyone. Numerous studies have shown that multi-dimensional visualization is essential for efficient perception of the spatial, temporal and geometrical configuration of geological structures and processes. Print media, such as posters and handouts lack the ability to display content in the third and fourth dimensions, which might be in space-domain as seen in three-dimensional (3-D) objects, or time-domain (four-dimensional, 4-D) expressible in the form of videos. Here, we show that augmented reality content can be complimentary to geoscience poster presentations, hands-on material and in the field. In the latter example, location based data is loaded and for example, a virtual geological profile can be draped over a real-world landscape. In object based AR, the application is trained to recognize an image or object through the camera of the user's mobile device, such that specific content is automatically downloaded and displayed on the screen of the device, and positioned relative to the trained image or object. We used ZapWorks, a commercially-available software application to create and present examples of content that is poster-based, in which important supplementary information is presented as interactive virtual images, videos and 3-D models. We suggest that the flexibility and real-time interactivity offered by AR makes it an invaluable tool for effective geoscience poster presentation, class-room and field geoscience learning.

Chair Talk: Resources to Maximize Administrative Efforts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

MacDonald, H.; Chan, M. A.; Bierly, E. W.; Manduca, C. A.; Ormand, C. J.

2009-12-01

Earth science department chairs are generally scientists who have little/no formal administrative training. The common rotation of faculty members in three-six year cycles distributes the heavy leadership responsibilities but involves little preparation beforehand to deal with budgets, fundraising, personnel issues, confrontations, and crises. The amount of information exchange and support upon exit and handoff to the next chair is variable. Resources for chairs include workshops, meetings (ranging from annual meetings of geoscience chairs to monthly meetings of small groups of chairs from various disciplines on a campus), discussions, and online resources. These resources, some of which we designed in the past several years, provide information and support for chairs, help them share best practices, and reduce time spent “reinventing the wheel”. Most of these resources involve groups of chairs in our discipline who meet together. The AGU Board of Heads and Chairs of Earth and Space Science Departments offers annual one-day workshops at the Fall AGU meeting. The specific topics vary from year to year; they have included goals and roles of heads and chairs, fundraising and Advisory Boards, student recruitment, interdisciplinarity, dual-career couples, and undergraduate research. The workshop provides ample opportunities for open discussion. Annual one-two day meetings of groups of geoscience department chairs (e.g., research universities in a particular region) provide an opportunity for chairs to share specific data about their departments (e.g., salaries, graduate student stipends, information about facilities) and discuss strategies. At the College of William and Mary, a small group of chairs meets monthly throughout the year; each session includes time for open discussion as well as a more structured discussion on a particular topic (e.g., merit review, development and fundraising, mentoring early career faculty and the tenure process, leadership styles, dealing with difficult situations, working with alumni). Through the Association for Women Geoscientists, we have offered annual one-hour lunch discussions at AGU and GSA meetings on issues facing women chairs and deans. Focusing on a different topic each year, these discussions include sharing good solutions, problem solving on various case scenarios, and so forth. In addition, the Building Strong Geoscience Departments program has offered workshops on different aspects of building strong geoscience departments, distributed reports, and made a variety of materials that would be useful to geoscience chairs available on their website. These programs and resources should continue and build to provide more continuity within departments and to increase a broader experience base of faculty. One of the greatest resources for chairs is to have personal connections with other chairs (via these programs), who can be called upon for advice, ideas, or general support. The sense of collective community could act in a powerful way to inspire and encourage more innovations and creative solutions to promote stronger departments.

Teaching and Training in Geoinformatics: Experiences from the Cyberinfrastructure Summer Institute for Geoscientists (CSIG)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smeekens, M.; Baru, C.; Keller, G. R.; Arrowsmith, R.; Crosby, C. J.

2009-12-01

The Cyberinfrastructure Summer Institute for Geoscientists (CSIG) has been conducted each year since 2004 under sponsorship of the GEON project that is funded by the NSF. The goal of the institute, which is broadly advertised to the Geoscience community, is to introduce geoscientists to Computer Science concepts and commonly-used as well as emergent information technology tools. The week-long program originally covered topics ranging from Data Modeling, Web Services, and Geographic Information Systems, to brief introductions to key concepts in Grid Computing, Parallel Programming, and Scientific Workflows. However, the program as well as the composition and expectations of the audience have evolved over time. Detailed course and instructor evaluations provide valuable feedback on course content and presentation approaches, and are used to plan future CSIG curriculum. From an initial emphasis on Geoscience graduate students and postdocs, the selection process has evolved to encourage participation by individuals with backgrounds in Geoscience as well as Computer Science from academia, government agencies, and industry. More recently, there has been an emphasis on selecting junior faculty and those interested in teaching Geoinformatics courses. While the initial objective of CSIG was to provide an overview of information technology topics via lectures and demonstrations, over time attendees have become more interested in specific instruction in how informatics and cyberinfrastructure (CI) capabilities could be utilized to address issues in Earth Science research and education. There have been requests over the years for more in-depth coverage on some topics and hands-on exercises. The program has now evolved to include a “Build Track”, focused on IT issues related to the development and implementation of Geoinformatics systems, and an “Education Track”, focused on use of Geoinformatics resources in education. With increasing awareness of CI projects, the audience is also becoming more interested in an introduction to the broader landscape of CI activities in the Geosciences and related areas. In the future, we plan a “demo” session to showcase various CI projects. Attendees will not only hear about such projects but will be able to use and experience the cyber-environments and tools in a hands-on session. The evolution of the CSIG program reflects major changes in the IT landscape since 2004. Where we once discussed Grid Computing, students are now learning about Cloud Computing and related concepts. An institute like CSIG play an important role in providing “cross-training” such that geoscientists gain insight into IT issues and solution approaches, while computer scientist gain a better appreciation of the needs and requirements of geoscience applications. In this presentation, we will summarize and analyze the trends over the years in program as well as audience composition; discuss lessons learnt over the years; and present our plan for future CSIG offerings.

Neurogenic Effects of Low-Dose Whole-Body HZE (Fe) Ion and Gamma Irradiation.

PubMed

Sweet, Tara B; Hurley, Sean D; Wu, Michael D; Olschowka, John A; Williams, Jacqueline P; O'Banion, M Kerry

2016-12-01

Understanding the dose-toxicity profile of radiation is critical when evaluating potential health risks associated with natural and man-made sources in our environment. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of low-dose whole-body high-energy charged (HZE) iron (Fe) ions and low-energy gamma exposure on proliferation and differentiation of adult-born neurons within the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus, cells deemed to play a critical role in memory regulation. To determine the dose-response characteristics of the brain to whole-body Fe-ion vs. gamma-radiation exposure, C57BL/6J mice were irradiated with 1 GeV/n Fe ions or a static 137 Cs source (0.662 MeV) at doses ranging from 0 to 300 cGy. The neurogenesis was analyzed at 48 h and one month postirradiation. These experiments revealed that whole-body exposure to either Fe ions or gamma radiation leads to: 1. An acute decrease in cell division within the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus, detected at doses as low as 30 and 100 cGy for Fe ions and gamma radiation, respectively; and 2. A reduction in newly differentiated neurons (DCX immunoreactivity) at one month postirradiation, with significant decreases detected at doses as low as 100 cGy for both Fe ions and gamma rays. The data presented here contribute to our understanding of brain responses to whole-body Fe ions and gamma rays and may help inform health-risk evaluations related to systemic exposure during a medical or radiologic/nuclear event or as a result of prolonged space travel.

Prescribing Patterns in a Psychiatrically Referred Sample of Youth With Autism Spectrum Disorder.

PubMed

Shekunov, Julia; Wozniak, Janet; Conroy, Kristina; Pinsky, Elizabeth; Fitzgerald, Maura; de Leon, Melissa F; Belser, Abigail; Biederman, Joseph; Joshi, Gagan

The aim of this study was to examine the pattern of psychopharmacologic interventions in a psychiatrically referred sample of youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This retrospective chart review aimed at collecting demographic and clinical information, including data on DSM-IV-TR criteria-based psychiatric disorders and related current medication treatment and response. Data were collected in December 2011. Clinicians identified the target disorder for each medication and any adverse events. Level of psychopathology and therapeutic response was assessed by the clinician-rated Clinical Global Impressions scale (CGI). Psychiatrically referred youth with ASD (n = 54) suffered from multiple psychopathologies (mean = 2.3) and had a marked level of morbidity (range of baseline CGI-Severity of Illness mean scores, 4.3-5.6). The most prevalent psychopathology was ADHD (83%), anxiety disorders (67%), bipolar spectrum disorder (43%), and mood disorder not otherwise specified (44%). The majority (80%) of the subjects received combination therapy (mean ± SD number of psychotropic medications = 3 ± 1.5). Forty percent of the participants responded on all treatment target symptoms (CGI-Improvement scale score ≤ 2), and an additional 10% experienced response versus nonresponse on a relatively greater number of target symptoms. Half of the subjects reported an adverse event, most commonly weight gain (28%) and sedation (12%), both from antipsychotic medication use. Psychiatrically referred youth with ASD suffer from multiple highly impairing psychiatric disorders that require combination pharmacotherapy. These findings highlight the need for further research to guide clinical decision-making and treatment. © Copyright 2017 Physicians Postgraduate Press, Inc.

CGI-58, a key regulator of lipid homeostasis and signaling in plants, also regulates polyamine metabolism

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Comparative Gene Identification-58 (CGI-58) is an alpha/beta hydrolase-type protein that regulates lipid homeostasis and signaling in eukaryotes by interacting with and stimulating the activity of several different types of proteins, including a lipase in mammalian cells and a peroxisomal ABC transp...

Development of a modified instrument to measure anticipatory grieving in Jordanian parents of children diagnosed with cancer: the Marwit and Meuser Caregiver Inventory Childhood Cancer.

PubMed

Al-Gamal, Ekhlas; Long, Tony; Livesley, Joan

2009-01-01

The purpose of this article is to report on the development and field testing for validity and reliability of a modified version of the Marwit and Meuser Caregiver Inventory (MM-CGI) for the assessment of anticipatory grief among Jordanian parents of children with cancer (the MM-CGI Childhood Cancer). In 2006, a 50-item MM-CGI Childhood Cancer was administered to 140 Jordanian parents living with a child with cancer. The Cronbach alpha coefficient for the total instrument was .95, and Cronbach alpha coefficients for each of the 3 subscales was .91 for personal sacrifice burden, .90 for heartfelt sadness and longing, and .86 for worry and felt isolation. The construct validity of this instrument was supported by demonstrating a significant and positive correlation with the Anticipatory Grief Scale. The MM-CGI Childhood Cancer demonstrated strong convergent validity and excellent internal consistency reliability. However, further testing with a larger sample to facilitate factor analysis is needed to complete the validation process.

A study of normoxic polymer gel using monomer 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ishak, Siti Atiqah; Mustafa, Iskandar Shahrim; Rahman, Azhar Abdul; Moktar, Mohd; Min, Ung Ngie

2015-04-01

The aim of this study is to determine the sensitivity of HEMA-polymer gel mixture consist of monomer 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) with different types of composition. Several composition of HEMA-polymer gel were fabricated and the gels were irradiated with radiation dose between 10 cGy to 100cGy by using x-ray machine and 100 cGy to 1400 cGy by using 6 MV photon beam energy of linear accelerator. The degree of polymerization was evaluated by using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with dependence of R2-dose response. Polymer gel consists of cross-linker, anti-oxidant Tetrakis(Hydroxymethyl)phosphonium chloride solution (THPC) and oxygen scavenger hydroquinone shows a stable sensitivity with highest dose dependency. Besides, the results shows the stage polymerization consist of induction, propagation, termination, and chain transfer were dependence with type of chemical mixture and radiation dose. Thus, normoxic HEMA-polymer gel with the different gel formulations can have a better dose resolution and an appropriate recipe must be selected to increase of the sensitivity required and the stability of the dosimeter.

A study of normoxic polymer gel using monomer 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA)

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

Ishak, Siti Atiqah; Mustafa, Iskandar Shahrim; Rahman, Azhar Abdul

2015-04-24

The aim of this study is to determine the sensitivity of HEMA-polymer gel mixture consist of monomer 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) with different types of composition. Several composition of HEMA-polymer gel were fabricated and the gels were irradiated with radiation dose between 10 cGy to 100cGy by using x-ray machine and 100 cGy to 1400 cGy by using 6 MV photon beam energy of linear accelerator. The degree of polymerization was evaluated by using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with dependence of R2-dose response. Polymer gel consists of cross-linker, anti-oxidant Tetrakis(Hydroxymethyl)phosphonium chloride solution (THPC) and oxygen scavenger hydroquinone shows a stable sensitivitymore » with highest dose dependency. Besides, the results shows the stage polymerization consist of induction, propagation, termination, and chain transfer were dependence with type of chemical mixture and radiation dose. Thus, normoxic HEMA-polymer gel with the different gel formulations can have a better dose resolution and an appropriate recipe must be selected to increase of the sensitivity required and the stability of the dosimeter.« less

WHODAS 2.0 as a Measure of Severity of Illness: Results of a FLDA Analysis

PubMed Central

Barahona, Igor; Aroca, Fuensanta; Peñuelas-Calvo, Inmaculada; Rodríguez-Jover, Alba; Amodeo-Escribano, Susana; González-Granado, Marta

2018-01-01

WHODAS 2.0 is the standard measure of disability promoted by World Health Organization whereas Clinical Global Impression (CGI) is a widely used scale for determining severity of mental illness. Although a close relationship between these two scales would be expected, there are no relevant studies on the topic. In this study, we explore if WHODAS 2.0 can be used for identifying severity of illness measured by CGI using the Fisher Linear Discriminant Analysis (FLDA) and for identifying which individual items of WHODAS 2.0 best predict CGI scores given by clinicians. One hundred and twenty-two patients were assessed with WHODAS 2.0 and CGI during three months in outpatient mental health facilities of four hospitals of Madrid, Spain. Compared with the traditional correction of WHODAS 2.0, FLDA improves accuracy in near 15%, and so, with FLDA WHODAS 2.0 classifying correctly 59.0% of the patients. Furthermore, FLDA identifies item 6.6 (illness effect on personal finances) and item 4.5 (damaged sexual life) as the most important items for clinicians to score the severity of illness. PMID:29770158

Enabling Big Geoscience Data Analytics with a Cloud-Based, MapReduce-Enabled and Service-Oriented Workflow Framework

PubMed Central

Li, Zhenlong; Yang, Chaowei; Jin, Baoxuan; Yu, Manzhu; Liu, Kai; Sun, Min; Zhan, Matthew

2015-01-01

Geoscience observations and model simulations are generating vast amounts of multi-dimensional data. Effectively analyzing these data are essential for geoscience studies. However, the tasks are challenging for geoscientists because processing the massive amount of data is both computing and data intensive in that data analytics requires complex procedures and multiple tools. To tackle these challenges, a scientific workflow framework is proposed for big geoscience data analytics. In this framework techniques are proposed by leveraging cloud computing, MapReduce, and Service Oriented Architecture (SOA). Specifically, HBase is adopted for storing and managing big geoscience data across distributed computers. MapReduce-based algorithm framework is developed to support parallel processing of geoscience data. And service-oriented workflow architecture is built for supporting on-demand complex data analytics in the cloud environment. A proof-of-concept prototype tests the performance of the framework. Results show that this innovative framework significantly improves the efficiency of big geoscience data analytics by reducing the data processing time as well as simplifying data analytical procedures for geoscientists. PMID:25742012

Enabling big geoscience data analytics with a cloud-based, MapReduce-enabled and service-oriented workflow framework.

PubMed

Li, Zhenlong; Yang, Chaowei; Jin, Baoxuan; Yu, Manzhu; Liu, Kai; Sun, Min; Zhan, Matthew

2015-01-01

Geoscience observations and model simulations are generating vast amounts of multi-dimensional data. Effectively analyzing these data are essential for geoscience studies. However, the tasks are challenging for geoscientists because processing the massive amount of data is both computing and data intensive in that data analytics requires complex procedures and multiple tools. To tackle these challenges, a scientific workflow framework is proposed for big geoscience data analytics. In this framework techniques are proposed by leveraging cloud computing, MapReduce, and Service Oriented Architecture (SOA). Specifically, HBase is adopted for storing and managing big geoscience data across distributed computers. MapReduce-based algorithm framework is developed to support parallel processing of geoscience data. And service-oriented workflow architecture is built for supporting on-demand complex data analytics in the cloud environment. A proof-of-concept prototype tests the performance of the framework. Results show that this innovative framework significantly improves the efficiency of big geoscience data analytics by reducing the data processing time as well as simplifying data analytical procedures for geoscientists.

The HR factor: codes of conduct and gender issues as levers of innovation in geosciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rubbia, Giuliana

2014-05-01

Professional geosciences organizations which support governments, industry and academic institutions in setting standards for communication, responsible use of geosciences information and continuing professional development do have codes of professional conduct, binding their members. "The geologist is responsible for the impression he gives of his profession in the opinion of those around him and of the public at large" reads one principle of the Code of Professional Conduct of the European Federation of Geologists. Several higher education institutions and public research bodies inspire their regulations to the European Charter of Researchers. In strengthening the relationships of professional organizations with industry, society and academy, it becomes interesting to highlight similarities and fruitful points of contacts between codes of professional ethics and the Charter of Researchers. Ethical principles, professional responsibility and attitude, accountability, dissemination and exploitation of results, public engagement, continuing professional development are some of the remarkable principles. Gender issues are also vital, as starting point to rethink processes in the knowledge society. Structural changes in institutions to improve excellence in research need more women in decision-making bodies, practices of work-family balance and codes of conduct which prevent hidden discriminations. In communication of natural hazards that have societal impact, the diversity management of both target public and communicators can make the difference between a generic communication and an effective one which is more tailored to information needs of women and men acting in the society.

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

Johnson, D.W.; Safai, C.; Goffinet, D.R.

Eleven patients with obstructive jaundice from unresectable cholangiocarcinoma, metastatic porta hepatis adenopathy, or direct compression from a pancreatic malignancy were treated at the Stanford University Medical Center from 1978-1983 with an external drainage procedure followed by high-dose external-beam radiotherapy and by an intracavitary boost to the site of obstruction with Iridium/sup 192/ (Ir/sup 192/). A median dose of 5000 cGy was delivered with 4-6 Mv photons to the tumor bed and regional lymphatics in 9 patients, 1 patient received 2100 cGy to the liver in accelerated fractions because of extensive intrahepatic disease, and 1 patient received 7000 equivalent cGy tomore » his pancreatic tumor bed and regional lymphatics with neon heavy particles. An Ir/sup 192/ wire source later delivered a 3100-10,647 cGy boost to the site of biliary obstruction in each patient, for a mean combined dose of 10,202 cGy to a point 5 mm from the line source. Few acute complications were noted, but 3/11 patients (27%) subsequently developed upper gastrointestinal bleeding from duodenitis or frank duodenal ulceration 4 weeks, 4 months, and 7.5 months following treatment. Eight patients died - 5 with local recurrence +/- distant metastasis, 2 with sepsis, and 1 with widespread systemic metastasis. Autopsies revealed no evidence of biliary tree obstruction in 3/3 patients. Evolution of radiation treatment technqiues for biliary obstruction in the literature is reviewed. High-dose external-beam therapy followed by high-dose Ir/sup 192/ intracavitary boost is well tolerated and provides significant palliation.« less

A CpG island methylator phenotype in acute myeloid leukemia independent of IDH mutations and associated with a favorable outcome.

PubMed

Kelly, A D; Kroeger, H; Yamazaki, J; Taby, R; Neumann, F; Yu, S; Lee, J T; Patel, B; Li, Y; He, R; Liang, S; Lu, Y; Cesaroni, M; Pierce, S A; Kornblau, S M; Bueso-Ramos, C E; Ravandi, F; Kantarjian, H M; Jelinek, J; Issa, J-Pj

2017-10-01

Genetic changes are infrequent in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) compared with other malignancies and often involve epigenetic regulators, suggesting that an altered epigenome may underlie AML biology and outcomes. In 96 AML cases including 65 pilot samples selected for cured/not-cured, we found higher CpG island (CGI) promoter methylation in cured patients. Expanded genome-wide digital restriction enzyme analysis of methylation data revealed a CGI methylator phenotype independent of IDH1/2 mutations we term AML-CGI methylator phenotype (CIMP) (A-CIMP + ). A-CIMP was associated with longer overall survival (OS) in this data set (median OS, years: A-CIMP + =not reached, CIMP - =1.17; P=0.08). For validation we used 194 samples from The Cancer Genome Atlas interrogated with Illumina 450k methylation arrays where we confirmed longer OS in A-CIMP (median OS, years: A-CIMP + =2.34, A-CIMP - =1.00; P=0.01). Hypermethylation in A-CIMP + favored CGIs (OR: CGI/non-CGI=5.21), and while A-CIMP + was enriched in CEBPA (P=0.002) and WT1 mutations (P=0.02), 70% of cases lacked either mutation. Hypermethylated genes in A-CIMP + function in pluripotency maintenance, and a gene expression signature of A-CIMP was associated with outcomes in multiple data sets. We conclude that CIMP in AML cannot be explained solely by gene mutations (for example, IDH1/2, TET2), and that curability in A-CIMP + AML should be validated prospectively.

Sandia National Laboratories: Exceptional Service in the National Interest

Science.gov Websites

Electromagnetics Engineering Science Geoscience Materials Science Nanodevices & Microsystems Radiation Effects Electromagnetics Engineering Science Geoscience Materials Science Nanodevices & Microsystems Radiation Effects Geoscience Materials Science Nanodevices & Microsystems Radiation Effects & High Energy Density

Climate Change: An Activity.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lewis, Garry

1995-01-01

Presents a segment of the Geoscience Education booklet, Climate Change, that contains information and activities that enable students to gain a better appreciation of the possible effects human activity has on the Earth's climate. Describes the Terrace Temperatures activity that leads students through an investigation using foraminifera data to…

The MM-CGI Cerebral Palsy: modification and pretesting of an instrument to measure anticipatory grief in parents whose child has cerebral palsy.

PubMed

Al-Gamal, Ekhlas; Long, Tony

2014-07-01

To establish the potential of a modified version of the MM-CGI Childhood Cancer to assess anticipatory grief in parents of children with cerebral palsy, to amend the existing scale for use with the specific patient group, to test the psychometric properties of the modified version (MM-CGI Cerebral Palsy) and to review the clinical potential of the new scale. Parents of children with cerebral palsy may experience reactions similar to parents of children with other enduring or life-limiting conditions, and anticipatory grief may be one such psychological reaction. While the burden of caring is sometimes balanced by positive perceptions of the child, which enhance coping ability, for many parents the outcome is damage to their physical and mental health and impaired family functioning. A cross-sectional, descriptive, correlational design. The MM-CGI Cerebral Palsy was administered in structured interviews with 204 parents. Standardised measures of caregivers' depression, stress and perceived social support were also administered. Mothers and fathers were recruited from healthcare centres and schools for special education. Cronbach's alpha was used to assess internal consistency, and Pearson's product-moment correlation was used to assess construct validity. The subscales were each found to measure a single dimension of anticipatory grief, and significant correlations were established with existing instruments. The instrument demonstrated excellent internal consistency reliability and good construct validity. The MM-CGI Cerebral Palsy could be useful for diagnosing anticipatory grief among parents of children with cerebral palsy. This preliminary work moves the programme on to testing in intervention studies. In the absence of an existing measure for the assessment of anticipatory grief, specifically in parents of children with cerebral palsy, the MM-CGI Cerebral Palsy could prove to be an effective assessment tool for clinicians and researchers. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Purification, cloning, characterization and essential amino acid residues analysis of a new ι-carrageenase from Cellulophaga sp. QY3.

PubMed

Ma, Su; Duan, Gaofei; Chai, Wengang; Geng, Cunliang; Tan, Yulong; Wang, Lushan; Le Sourd, Frédéric; Michel, Gurvan; Yu, Wengong; Han, Feng

2013-01-01

ι-Carrageenases belong to family 82 of glycoside hydrolases that degrade sulfated galactans in the red algae known as ι-carrageenans. The catalytic mechanism and some substrate-binding residues of family GH82 have been studied but the substrate recognition and binding mechanism of this family have not been fully elucidated. We report here the purification, cloning and characterization of a new ι-carrageenase CgiA_Ce from the marine bacterium Cellulophaga sp. QY3. CgiA_Ce was the most thermostable carrageenase described so far. It was most active at 50°C and pH 7.0 and retained more than 70% of the original activity after incubation at 50°C for 1 h at pH 7.0 or at pH 5.0-10.6 for 24 h. CgiA_Ce was an endo-type ι-carrageenase; it cleaved ι-carrageenan yielding neo-ι-carrabiose and neo-ι-carratetraose as the main end products, and neo-ι-carrahexaose was the minimum substrate. Sequence analysis and structure modeling showed that CgiA_Ce is indeed a new member of family GH82. Moreover, sequence analysis of ι-carrageenases revealed that the amino acid residues at subsites -1 and +1 were more conserved than those at other subsites. Site-directed mutagenesis followed by kinetic analysis identified three strictly conserved residues at subsites -1 and +1 of ι-carrageenases, G228, Y229 and R254 in CgiA_Ce, which played important roles for substrate binding. Furthermore, our results suggested that Y229 and R254 in CgiA_Ce interacted specifically with the sulfate groups of the sugar moieties located at subsites -1 and +1, shedding light on the mechanism of ι-carrageenan recognition in the family GH82.

Purification, Cloning, Characterization and Essential Amino Acid Residues Analysis of a New ι-Carrageenase from Cellulophaga sp. QY3

PubMed Central

Ma, Su; Duan, Gaofei; Chai, Wengang; Geng, Cunliang; Tan, Yulong; Wang, Lushan; Le Sourd, Frédéric; Michel, Gurvan; Yu, Wengong; Han, Feng

2013-01-01

ι-Carrageenases belong to family 82 of glycoside hydrolases that degrade sulfated galactans in the red algae known as ι-carrageenans. The catalytic mechanism and some substrate-binding residues of family GH82 have been studied but the substrate recognition and binding mechanism of this family have not been fully elucidated. We report here the purification, cloning and characterization of a new ι-carrageenase CgiA_Ce from the marine bacterium Cellulophaga sp. QY3. CgiA_Ce was the most thermostable carrageenase described so far. It was most active at 50°C and pH 7.0 and retained more than 70% of the original activity after incubation at 50°C for 1 h at pH 7.0 or at pH 5.0–10.6 for 24 h. CgiA_Ce was an endo-type ι-carrageenase; it cleaved ι-carrageenan yielding neo-ι-carrabiose and neo-ι-carratetraose as the main end products, and neo-ι-carrahexaose was the minimum substrate. Sequence analysis and structure modeling showed that CgiA_Ce is indeed a new member of family GH82. Moreover, sequence analysis of ι-carrageenases revealed that the amino acid residues at subsites −1 and +1 were more conserved than those at other subsites. Site-directed mutagenesis followed by kinetic analysis identified three strictly conserved residues at subsites −1 and +1 of ι-carrageenases, G228, Y229 and R254 in CgiA_Ce, which played important roles for substrate binding. Furthermore, our results suggested that Y229 and R254 in CgiA_Ce interacted specifically with the sulfate groups of the sugar moieties located at subsites −1 and +1, shedding light on the mechanism of ι-carrageenan recognition in the family GH82. PMID:23741363

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

Small, Katherine; Kelly, Chris; Beldham-Collins, Rachael

A comparative study was conducted comparing the difference between (1) conformal radiotherapy (CRT) to the whole breast with sequential boost excision cavity plans and (2) intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) to the whole breast with simultaneously integrated boost to the excision cavity. The computed tomography (CT) data sets of 25 breast cancer patients were used and the results analysed to determine if either planning method produced superior plans. CT data sets from 25 past breast cancer patients were planned using (1) CRT prescribed to 50 Gy in 25 fractions (Fx) to the whole-breast planning target volume (PTV) and 10 Gy inmore » 5Fx to the excision cavity and (2) IMRT prescribed to 60 Gy in 25Fx, with 60 Gy delivered to the excision cavity PTV and 50 Gy delivered to the whole-breast PTV, treated simultaneously. In total, 50 plans were created, with each plan evaluated by PTV coverage using conformity indices, plan maximum dose, lung dose, and heart maximum dose for patients with left-side lesions. CRT plans delivered the lowest plan maximum doses in 56% of cases (average CRT = 6314.34 cGy, IMRT = 6371.52 cGy). They also delivered the lowest mean lung dose in 68% of cases (average CRT = 1206.64 cGy, IMRT = 1288.37 cGy) and V20 in 88% of cases (average CRT = 20.03%, IMRT = 21.73%) and V30 doses in 92% of cases (average CRT = 16.82%, IMRT = 17.97%). IMRT created more conformal plans, using both conformity index and conformation number, in every instance, and lower heart maximum doses in 78.6% of cases (average CRT = 5295.26 cGy, IMRT = 5209.87 cGy). IMRT plans produced superior dose conformity and shorter treatment duration, but a slightly higher planning maximum and increased lung doses. IMRT plans are also faster to treat on a daily basis, with shorter fractionation.« less

Poster — Thur Eve — 64: Preliminary investigation of arc configurations for optimal sparing of normal tissue in hypofractionated stereotactic radiotherapy (HF-SRT) of multiple brain metastases using a 5mm interdigitating micro-multileaf collimator

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

Leavens, C; Wronski, M; Lee, YK

2014-08-15

Purpose: To evaluate normal tissue sparing in intra-cranial HF-SRT, comparing various arc configurations with the Synergy Beam Modulator (SynBM) and Agility linacs, the latter incorporating leaf interdigitation and backup jaws. Methods: Five patients with multiple brain metastases (BMs), (5 BMs (n=2), 3 BMs (n=3)) treated with HF-SRT using 25 Gy (n=2) or 30 Gy (n=3) in 5 fractions, were investigated. Clinical treatment plans used the SynBM. Each patient was retrospectively re-planned on Agility, employing three planning strategies: (A) one isocenter and dedicated arc for each BM; (B) a single isocenter, centrally placed with respect to BMs; (C) the isocenter andmore » arc configuration used in the SynBM plan, where closely spaced (<5cm) BMs used a dedicated isocenter and arcs. Agility plans were normalized for PTV coverage and heterogeneity. Results and Conclusion: Strategy A obtained the greatest improvements over the SynBM plan, where the maximum OAR dose, and mean dose to normal brain (averaged for all patients) were reduced by 55cGy and 25cGy, respectively. Strategy B was limited by having a single isocenter, hence less jaw shielding and increased MLC leakage. The maximum OAR dose was reduced by 13cGy, however mean dose to normal brain increased by 84cGy. Strategy C reduced the maximum OAR dose and mean dose to normal brain by 32cGy and 9cGy, respectively. The results from this study indicate that, for intra-cranial HF-SRT of multiple BMs, Agility plans are equal or better than SynBM plans. Further planning is needed to investigate dose sparing using Strategy A and the SynBM.« less

Summaries of physical research in the geosciences

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

Not Available

1990-10-01

The Department of Energy supports research in the geosciences in order to provide a sound foundation of fundamental knowledge in those areas of the geosciences which are germane to the Department of Energy's many missions. The Division of Engineering and Geosciences, part of the Office of Basic Energy Sciences of the Office of Energy Research, supports the Geosciences Research Program. The participants in this program include Department of Energy laboratories, industry, universities, and other governmental agencies. The summaries in this document, prepared by the investigators, briefly describe the scope of the individual programs. The Geosciences Research Program includes research inmore » geology, petrology, geophysics, geochemistry, solar physics, solar-terrestrial relationships, aeronomy, seismology, and natural resource modeling and analysis, including their various subdivisions and interdisciplinary areas. All such research is related either directly or indirectly to the Department of Energy's long-range technological needs.« less

Retention and Mentorship of Minority Students via Undergraduate Internship Experiences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cooper, P.

2004-12-01

The School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology at the University of Hawaii is undertaking an Undergraduate Research Internship project to address the lack of full representation of women and underrepresented minorities in the geosciences. The overarching educational objective is to provide education and career development guidance and opportunities for students from underrepresented minorities. In collaboration with industry partners, we hope to prepare undergraduate students for life and careers in today's complex and dynamic technological world by encouraging them to attain high standards in the geosciences, thereby enabling them to compete successfully for positions in graduate programs. To achieve his goal, the project focuses on the following objectives: (1) Creating a high-quality integrated on-campus teaching and off-campus learning environment, and (2) providing an intensive introduction to geoscience careers through the guidance of experienced faculty and workplace mentors. The program will start small, collaborating with one or two companies over the next two years, offering paid summer internships. Opportunities for students include participation in geoscience-related research, obtaining experience in interpreting observations and providing information to end-users, working to improve technology and field methods, and developing the expertise to maintain, operate and deploy equipment. Program participants are assigned individual projects that relate to their academic majors, their career goals, and the ongoing research missions of our industry partners. In addition to their research activities, participants attend a series of seminars and tours dealing with current topics in geoscience to expose them to the wide variety of scientific and technical activities that occur in the workplace. The expected outcomes of this experience will be scientific growth and career development. Given that a very small percentage of all students go on to graduate school, strong mentoring relationships with a special advisor and/or professor who recognizes scientific potential will both aid in student retention in the field and encourage more applications to graduate school.

The Elwha Science Education Project (ESEP): Engaging an Entire Community in Geoscience Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Young, R. S.; Kinner, F.

2008-12-01

Native Americans are poorly represented in all science, technology and engineering fields. This under- representation results from numerous cultural, economic, and historical factors. The Elwha Science Education Project (ESEP), initiated in 2007, strives to construct a culturally-integrated, geoscience education program for Native American young people through engagement of the entire tribal community. The ESEP has developed a unique approach to informal geoscience education, using environmental restoration as a centerpiece. Environmental restoration is an increasingly important goal for tribes. By integrating geoscience activities with community tradition and history, project stakeholders hope to show students the relevance of science to their day-to-day lives. The ESEP's strength lies in its participatory structure and unique network of partners, which include Olympic National Park; the non-profit, educational center Olympic Park Institute (OPI); a geologist providing oversight and technical expertise; and the Lower Elwha Tribe. Lower Elwha tribal elders and educators share in all phases of the project, from planning and implementation to recruitment of students and discipline. The project works collaboratively with tribal scientists and cultural educators, along with science educators to develop curriculum and best practices for this group of students. Use of hands-on, place-based outdoor activities engage students and connect them with the science outside their back doors. Preliminary results from this summer's middle school program indicate that most (75% or more) students were highly engaged approximately 90% of the time during science instruction. Recruitment of students has been particularly successful, due to a high degree of community involvement. Preliminary evaluations of the ESEP's outcomes indicate success in improving the outlook of the tribe's youth towards the geosciences and science, in general. Future evaluation will be likewise participatory, incorporating student, tribal educator, and OPI views while considering sound geological content to formatively contribute to program success.

Dosimetric comparison between Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy (VMAT) vs Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT) for radiotherapy of mid esophageal carcinoma.

PubMed

Kataria, Tejinder; Govardhan, H B; Gupta, Deepak; Mohanraj, U; Bisht, Shyam Singh; Sambasivaselli, R; Goyal, S; Abhishek, A; Srivatsava, A; Pushpan, L; Kumar, V; Vikraman, S

2014-01-01

Dosimetric comparison of VMAT with IMRT in middle third esophageal cancer for planning target volume (PTV) and organs at risk (OAR). Ten patients in various stages from I‒III were inducted in the neo-adjuvant chemoradiation protocol for this study. The prescribed dose was 4500 cGy in 25 fractions. Both VMAT and IMRT plan were generated in all cases and Dose Volume Histogram (DVH) comparative analysis was performed for PTV and OAR. Paired t-test was used for statistical analysis. The PTV Dmean and D95 in IMRT and VMAT plan were 4566.6±50.6 cGy vs 4462.8±81.8 cGy (P=0.1) and 4379.8±50.6 cGy Vs 4424.3±109.8 cGy (P=0.1), respectively. The CI and HI for PTV in IMRT vs VMAT plans were 0.96±0.02 vs 0.97±0.01 (P=0.4) and 10.58±3.07 vs 9.45±2.42 (P=0.2), respectively. Lung doses for VMAT vs IMRT were 4.19 vs 2.59% (P=0.03) for V35-7.63 vs 4.76% (P=0.01) for V30-13.6 vs 9.98% (P=0.01) for V25-24.77 vs 18.57% (P=0.04) for V20-46.5 vs 34.73% (P=0.002) for V15. The Mean Lung Dose (MLD) was reduced by VMAT technique compared to IMRT; 1524.6±308.37 cGy and 1353±186.32 cGy (P=0.012). There was no change in Dmax to spinal cord in both the techniques. There was a dose reduction by VMAT compared to IMRT to the heart but it was statistically insignificant; V35-6.75% vs 5.55% (P=0.223); V30-12.3% vs 10.91% (P=0.352); V25-21.81% vs 20.16% (P=0.459); V20-38.11% vs 32.88% (P=0.070); V15-61.05% vs 54.2% (P=0.10). VMAT can be a better option in treating mid esophageal carcinoma as compared to IMRT. The VMAT plans resulted in equivalent or superior dose distribution with a reduction in the dose to lung and heart.

How Global Science has yet to Bridge Global Differences - A Status Report of the IUGS Taskforce on Global Geoscience Workforce

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Keane, C. M.; Gonzales, L. M.

2010-12-01

The International Union of Geological Sciences, with endorsement by UNESCO, has established a taskforce on global geosciences workforce and has tasked the American Geological Institute to take a lead. Springing from a session on global geosciences at the IGC33 in Oslo, Norway, the taskforce is to address three issues on a global scale: define the geosciences, determine the producers and consumers of geoscientists, and frame the understandings to propose pathways towards improved global capacity building in the geosciences. With the combination of rapid retirements in the developed world, and rapid economic expansion and impact of resource and hazard issues in the developing world, the next 25 years will be a dynamic time for the geosciences. However, to date there has been little more than a cursory sense of who and what the geosciences are globally and whether we will be able to address the varied needs and issues in the developed and the developing worlds. Based on prior IUGS estimates, about 50% of all working geoscientists reside in the Unites States, and the US was also producing about 50% of all new geosciences graduate degrees globally. Work from the first year of the taskforce has elucidated the immense complexity of the issue of defining the geosciences, as it bring is enormous cultural and political frameworks, but also shed light on the status of the geosciences in each country. Likewise, this leads to issues of who is actually producing and consuming geoscience talent, and whether countries are meeting domestic demand, and if not, is external talent available to import. Many US-based assumptions about the role of various countries in the geosciences’ global community of people, namely China and India, appear to have been misplaced. In addition, the migration of geoscientists between countries raised enormous questions about what is nationality and if there is an ideal ‘global geoscientist.’ But more than anything, the taskforce is revealing clear global trends in geosciences education, both at the pre-college and university level and frame the state of health of geosciences education in the United States in a totally new light. But indicators are present that the developing world will likely overtake the developed world in the near future in the production of geoscientists, but a key question is will that fundamentally change the nature of the science given the social, cultural, and educational frameworks that the next global generation brings with them.

The pre-college teaching of geosciences in the USA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stewart, R.

2003-04-01

Most students in the USA learn about the earth in elementary and middle school, with most of the learning in middle schools (students who are 12 to 15 years old). A few students study geosciences in high school (ages 15 to 19). In some states, for example Texas, the high-school courses are being de-emphasized, and very few students take geoscience courses after they are 15 years old. As a result, most high-school graduates know little about such important issues as global warming, air pollution, or water quality. In the USA, the geoscience curriculum is guided by national and state standards for teaching mathematics and science. But the guidance is weak. Curricula are determined essentially by local school boards and teachers with some overview by state governments. For example, the State of Texas requires all students to pass standardized examinations in science at grades 5,10, and 11. The tests are based on the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills, the state's version of the national standards. The teaching of the geosciences, especially oceanography, is hindered by the weak guidance provided by the national standards. Because of the lack of strong guidance, textbooks include far too much material with very weak ties between the geosciences. As a result, students learn many disconnected facts, not earth system science. Improvements in the teaching of the geosciences requires a clear statement of the important in the geosciences. Why must they be taught? What must be taught? What are the major themes of geoscience research? What is important for all to know?

Porphyry copper deposits of the world: database, maps, and preliminary analysis

USGS Publications Warehouse

Singer, Donald A.; Berger, Vladimir I.; Moring, Barry C.

2002-01-01

Mineral deposit models are important in exploration planning and quantitative resource assessments for two reasons: (1) grades and tonnages among deposit types are significantly different, and (2) many types occur in different geologic settings that can be identified from geologic maps. Mineral deposit models are the keystone in combining the diverse geoscience information on geology, mineral occurrences, geophysics, and geochemistry used in resource assessments and mineral exploration. Far too few thoroughly explored mineral deposits are available in most local areas for reliable identification of the important geoscience variables or for robust estimation of undiscovered deposits—thus we need mineral-deposit models. Globally based deposit models, such as those presented here, allow recognition of important features because the global models demonstrate how common different features are. Well-designed and -constructed deposit models allow geologists to know from observed geologic environments the possible mineral deposit types that might exist, and allow economists to determine the possible economic viability of these resources in the region. Thus, mineral deposit models play the central role in transforming geoscience information to a form useful to policy makers. The foundation of mineral deposit models is information about known deposits—the purpose of this publication is to make this kind of information available in digital form for a group of porphyry copper deposits. This publication contains a computer file of information on porphyry copper deposits around the world. It also presents new grade and tonnage models for three subtypes of porphyry copper deposits, maps showing locations and general ages of these deposits, and a preliminary analysis with a number of figures summarizing many of the properties of these porphyry-style deposits. These summaries can be considered a new, quantified, form of most parts of descriptive models such as those in Cox and Singer (1986). The value of this information and analyses depends critically on the consistent manner of data gathering. For this reason, we first discuss the rules used in this compilation. Next the fields of the data file are considered. Finally, we discuss some of the things that can be done with the data.

Porphyry Copper Deposits of the World: Database and Grade and Tonnage Models, 2008

USGS Publications Warehouse

Singer, Donald A.; Berger, Vladimir I.; Moring, Barry C.

2008-01-01

This report is an update of earlier publications about porphyry copper deposits (Singer, Berger, and Moring, 2002; Singer, D.A., Berger, V.I., and Moring, B.C., 2005). The update was necessary because of new information about substantial increases in resources in some deposits and because we revised locations of some deposits so that they are consistent with images in GoogleEarth. In this report we have added new porphyry copper deposits and removed a few incorrectly classed deposits. In addition, some errors have been corrected and a number of deposits have had some information, such as grades, tonnages, locations, or ages revised. Colleagues have helped identify places where improvements were needed. Mineral deposit models are important in exploration planning and quantitative resource assessments for a number of reasons including: (1) grades and tonnages among deposit types are significantly different, and (2) many types occur in different geologic settings that can be identified from geologic maps. Mineral deposit models are the keystone in combining the diverse geoscience information on geology, mineral occurrences, geophysics, and geochemistry used in resource assessments and mineral exploration. Too few thoroughly explored mineral deposits are available in most local areas for reliable identification of the important geoscience variables or for robust estimation of undiscovered deposits?thus we need mineral-deposit models. Globally based deposit models allow recognition of important features because the global models demonstrate how common different features are. Well-designed and -constructed deposit models allow geologists to know from observed geologic environments the possible mineral deposit types that might exist, and allow economists to determine the possible economic viability of these resources in the region. Thus, mineral deposit models play the central role in transforming geoscience information to a form useful to policy makers. The foundation of mineral deposit models is information about known deposits. The purpose of this publication is to make this kind of information available in digital form for porphyry copper deposits. The consistently defined deposits in this file provide the foundation for grade and tonnage models included here and for mineral deposit density models (Singer and others, 2005: Singer, 2008).

The Best and the Brightest in Geosciences: Broadening Representation in the Field

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Myles, L.

2017-12-01

Geoscience research in government agencies and universities across the US is anchored by data collection from field and lab experiments. In these settings, the composition and the culture of the environment can be less welcoming for individuals from groups that are traditionally underrepresented in the geosciences. Ongoing efforts to address diversity and inclusion in the field and lab include top-down approaches that provide support and training for established geoscience leaders and bottom-up approaches that offer research internships and fellowships for students. To achieve success, effective strategies for broadening representation in the field must be developed and shared across the geosciences community to advance scientific innovation and create opportunities for success.

Ethnic differences in geoscience attitudes of college students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Whitney, David J.; Behl, Richard J.; Ambos, Elizabeth L.; Francis, R. Daniel; Holk, Gregory; Larson, Daniel O.; Lee, Christopher T.; Rodrique, Christine M.; Wechsler, Suzanne P.

While a gender balance remains elusive in the geosciences [de Wet et al., 2002], the underrepresentation of ethnic minorities in these fields is at least as great a concern.A number of cultural and social factors have been proposed to explain the poor ethnic minority representation in the geosciences, including limited exposure to nature, deficient academic preparation, inadequate financial resources to pursue higher education, ignorance of career opportunities in the geosciences, insufficient family support, and misconceptions of the field.

AMS Online Weather Studies: The National Dissemination of a Distance Learning Course for Enhancing Diversity in the Geosciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weinbeck, R. S.; Geer, I. W.; Mills, E. W.; Porter, W. A.; Moran, J. M.

2004-12-01

Our nation faces a serious challenge in attracting young people to science and science-related careers (including teaching). This is particularly true for members of groups underrepresented in science, mathematics, engineering, and technology and is especially acute in the number of minority college students majoring in the geosciences. A formidable obstacle in attracting undergraduates to the geosciences is lack of access, that is, no opportunity to enroll in geoscience courses simply because none is offered at their college or university. Often college-level introductory courses are a student's first exposure to the geosciences. To help alleviate this problem of access, the American Meteorological Society (AMS) has developed and implemented nationally an introductory weather and climate course, Online Weather Studies, which can be added to an institution's menu of general education course offerings. This highly successful course has been licensed by over 230 colleges and universities nationwide, among them 72 minority-serving institutions which have joined via the AMS Online Weather Studies Geosciences Diversity Program since 2002. This program designed to reach institutions serving large numbers of minority students has been made possible through support from the National Science Foundation (NSF) Opportunities for Enhancing Diversity in the Geosciences (OEDG) and Course, Curriculum and Laboratory Improvement-National Dissemination (CCLI-ND) programs. Online Weather Studies is an innovative, 12- to 15-week introductory college-level, online distance-learning course on the fundamentals of atmospheric science. Learner-formatted current weather data are delivered via the Internet and coordinated with investigations keyed to the day's weather. The principal innovation of Online Weather Studies is that students learn about weather as it happens in near real-time - a highly motivational learning experience. The AMS Education Program designed and services this course and makes it available to colleges and universities as a user-friendly turnkey package with electronic and printed components. The AMS Geosciences Diversity Program, in cooperation with the National Weather Service (NWS), facilitates institutional participation in Online Weather Studies. Prior to an instructor's initial offering of the course, he or she is invited to attend a one-week course implementation workshop at the NWS Training Center at Kansas City, MO. Participants are encouraged to share best practices ideas in science content and teaching strategies related to their offering of Online Weather Studies. Through the course homepage, students are provided with information on further studies in the atmospheric sciences, opportunities for internships and summer research, and career counseling. Meteorologists-in-Charge at NWS Weather Forecast Offices across the nation have interacted with minority-serving institutions to encourage adoption of the AMS weather course. Also, participating faculty members are invited to the Educational Symposium of the AMS Annual Meeting where they will attend a special Diversity Session and are encouraged to present posters.

Geoscience as an Agent for Change in Higher Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Manduca, C. A.; Orr, C. H.; Kastens, K.

2016-12-01

As our society becomes more aware of the realities of the resource and environmental challenges that face us, we have the opportunity to educate more broadly about the role of geoscience in addressing these challenges. The InTeGrate STEP Center is using three strategies to bring learning about the Earth to a wider population of undergraduate students: 1) infusing geoscience into disciplinary courses throughout the curriculum; 2) creating interdisciplinary or transdisciplinary courses with a strong geoscience component that draw a wide audience; and 3) embedding more opportunities to learn about the methods of geoscience and their application to societal challenges in courses for future teachers. InTeGrate is also bringing more emphasis on geoscience in service to societal challenges to geoscience students in introductory geoscience courses and courses for geoscience majors. Teaching science in a societal context is known to make science concepts more accessible for many learners, while learning to use geoscience to solve real world, interdisciplinary problems better prepares students for the 21stcentury workforce and for the decisions they will make as individuals and citizens. InTeGrate has developed materials and models that demonstrate a wide variety of strategies for increasing opportunities to learn about the Earth in a societal context that are freely available on the project website (http://serc.carleton.edu/integrate) and that form the foundation of ongoing professional development opportunities nationwide. The strategies employed by InTeGrate reflect a systems approach to educational transformation, the importance of networks and communities in supporting change, and the need for resources designed for adaptability and use. The project is demonstrating how geoscience can play a larger role in higher education addressing topics of wide interest including 1) preparing a competitive workforce by increasing the STEM skills of students regardless of their major, 2) making higher education more equitable by reducing gaps in participation and achievement in STEM; and 3) using liberal education to prepare students to deal with the complexity, diversity and change that characterize our time.

Portrayal of the Geosciences in the New York Times

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wysession, M. E.; Lindstrom, A.

2017-12-01

An analysis of the portrayal of science, including the geosciences, in the New York Times shows that geoscience topics dominate front-page science coverage, appearing significantly more often than articles concerning biology, chemistry, or physics. This is significant because the geosciences are sometimes portrayed (in most high schools, for example) as being of less significance or importance than the other sciences, yet their portrayal in what is arguably the leading U.S. newspaper shows just the opposite - that the geosciences are the most relevant and newsworthy of the sciences. We analyzed NY Times front pages and Tuesday "Science Times" sections for 2012 - 2015, and looked at many parameters including science discipline, the kind of article (research, policy, human-interest, etc.), correlations to the "big ideas" of the Next Generation Science Standards, and for the geosciences, a break-down of sub-disciplines. For the front pages, we looked at both full articles and call-outs to articles on later pages. For front-page full articles, geoscience-related articles were more frequent (almost 60%) than biology, chemistry, and physics combined. Including call-outs to later articles, the geosciences still made the most front-page appearances (almost 40%), and this included the fact that 1/3 of front-page science articles were medicine-related, which accounted for nearly all of the biology and chemistry articles. Interestingly, what the NY Times perceived as "science" differed significantly: 60% of all Tuesday "Science Times" articles were medicine-related, and even removing these, biology (40%) edged the geosciences (35%) as the most frequent Science Times articles. Of the front-page geoscience articles, the topics were dominated each year by natural hazards, natural resources, and human impacts, with the percentage of human-impact-related articles almost doubling over the 4 years. The most significant 4-year trend was in the attention paid to climate change. For example, between 2012-2015, the number of articles dealing with energy resources remained roughly constant (22% to 26%), but the number of climate change-related articles grew significantly, going from 6% of all geoscience articles to 27%.

The Geosciences Institute for Research and Education: Bringing awareness of the geosciences to minorities in Detroit MI

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nalepa, N. A.; Murray, K. S.; Napieralski, J. A.

2009-12-01

According to recent studies, more than 40% of students within the Detroit Public Schools (DPS) drop out and only 21% graduate within 4 years. In an attempt to improve these statistics, The Geosciences Institute for Research and Education was developed by the University of Michigan-Dearborn (UM-D) and funded by two grants from the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) OEDG Program. The Geosciences Institute, a collaboration between the UM-D, DPS, and local corporations, aims to generate awareness of the geosciences to middle school students, facilitate an enthusiastic learning environment, encourage underrepresented minorities to stay in school, and consider the geosciences as a viable career option. This is accomplished by involving their teachers, UM-D faculty and students, and local geoscience professionals in community-based research problems relevant to SE Michigan. Students use the geosciences as a tool in which they are actively participating in research that is in their backyards. Through a mixture of field trips, participation, and demonstrational activities the students become aware of local environmental and social problems and how a background in the geosciences can prepare them. As part of the Geosciences Institute, students participate in three ongoing research projects with UM-D faculty: (1) build, install, and monitor groundwater wells along the Lower Rouge River, (2) collect soil samples from and mapping brownfields in SW Detroit, and (3) learn basic GPS and GIS skills to map local natural resources. The students also work with faculty on creating video diaries that record ideas, experiences, and impressions throughout the Institute, including during fieldtrips, modules, research, and editing. Finally, small teams of students collaborate to design and print a poster that summarizes their experience in the Institute. The Geosciences Institute concludes with a ceremony that celebrates student efforts (posters and videos) and involves school administrators and teachers, faculty, and family. It is expected that this experience will generate enthusiasm for learning before entering high school and might lead some of these underrepresented students to pursue their education at UM-D, and possibly for a career in geology.

The Johns Hopkins RTR Consortium: A Collaborative Approach to Advance Translational Science and Standardize Clinical Monitoring of Restorative Transplantation

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-10-01

received non-myeloablative conditioning with 50cGy total body and 350cGy thymic irradiation for induction. Aim1: Group I was treated with high-dose...regimen of non-myeloablative irradiation and peritransplant tacrolimus. The long-term graft survival off of immunosuppression for animals treated

Hypothalamic control of body temperature: insights from the past.

PubMed

Mack, Gary W

2004-11-01

This essay looks at the historical significance of three APS classic papers that are freely available online: Hammel HT, Hardy JD, and Fusco MM. Thermoregulatory responses to hypothalamic cooling in unanesthetized dogs. Am J Physiol 198: 481-486, 1960 (http://ajplegacy.physiology.org/cgi/reprint/198/3/481). Hammel HT, Jackson DC, Stolwijk JAJ, Hardy JD, and Stromme SB. Temperature regulation by hypothalamic proportional control with an adjustable set point. J Appl Physiol 18: 1146-1154, 1963 (http://jap.physiology.org/cgi/reprint/18/6/1146). Hellstrom B and Hammel HT. Some characteristics of temperature regulation in the unanesthetized dog. Am J Physiol 213: 547-556, 1967 (http://ajplegacy.physiology.org/cgi/reprint/213/2/547). Copyright 2004 American Physiological Society

Impacting earthquake science and geoscience education: Educational programming to earthquake relocation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carrick, Tina Louise

This dissertation is comprised of four studies: three related to research on geoscience education and another seismological study of the South Island of New Zealand. The geoscience education research is grounded in 10 years of data collection and its implications for best practices for recruitment and retention of underrepresented minority students into higher education in the geosciences. The seismological component contains results from the relocation of earthquakes from the 2009 Dusky Sound Mw 7.8 event, South Island, New Zealand. In recent years, many have cited a major concern that U.S. is not producing enough STEM graduates to fit the forecasted economic need. This situation is exacerbated by the fact that underrepresented minorities are becoming a growing portion of the population, and people in these groups enter STEM careers at rates much smaller than their proportion of the populations. Among the STEM disciplines the Geosciences are the worst at attracting young people from underrepresented minorities. This dissertation reports on results the Pathways program at the University of Texas at El Paso Pathways which sought to create a geoscience recruitment and training network in El Paso, Texas to increase the number of Hispanic Americans students to attain higher degrees and increase the awareness of the geosciences from 2002-2012. Two elements of the program were a summer program for high school students and an undergraduate research program conducted during the academic year, called PREP. Data collected from pre- and post-surveys from the summer program showed statistically significant positive changes in attitudes towards the geosciences. Longitudinal data shows a strong positive correlation of the program with retention of participants in the geoscience pipeline. Results from the undergraduate research program show that it produced far more women and minority geoscience professionals than national norms. Combination of the institutional data, focus groups results, and career outcomes strongly suggest the program cultivated an environment in which not only were students expected to enter graduate school, but they were successful in pursuing a graduate degree and entering the geoscience workforce. The third study was a critical incident study conducted to develop a taxonomy for geoscience recruitment at the more pre-college age. Analysis of 20 interviews with undergraduate geoscience majors produce an independent taxonomy with many similarities to a previous study garnered from interviews with geoscience professionals. Use of the taxonomy in program design will enhance the effectiveness of the recruitment of underrepresented minorities to major in the geosciences and enter careers in the geosciences. New Zealand is one the most seismically active places in the world. July 15th, 2009 Dusky Sound, South Island, New Zealand encountered a Mw 7.8 earthquake. In order to gain insight into partitioning of the slip on the subduction zone, a relocation study from the 2009 events was performed. Using the software program hypoDD, events were relocated and formed 4 major clusters. Results from the relocation indicate that 1) the events are all located above the subduction interface; 2) the events appear to have occurred in a transitional zone between the Australian and Pacific plates; and 3) the northernmost cluster appears to have partially filled a seismic gap between the 2009 Dusky Sound event and a previous event in 2003.

InTeGrate: Transforming the Teaching of Geoscience and Sustainability

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blockstein, D.; Manduca, C. A.; Bralower, T. J.; Castendyk, D.; Egger, A. E.; Gosselin, D. C.; Iverson, E. A.; Matson, P. A.; MacGregor, J.; Mcconnell, D. A.; Mogk, D. W.; Nevle, R. J.; Oches, E. A.; Steer, D. N.; Wiese, K.

2012-12-01

InTeGrate is an NSF-funded community project to improve geoscience literacy and build a workforce that can apply geoscience principles to address societal issues. Three workshops offered this year by InTeGrate and its partner, On the Cutting Edge, addressed strategies for bringing together geoscience and sustainability within geoscience courses and programs, in interdisciplinary courses and programs, and in courses and programs in other disciplines or schools including arts and humanities, health science, and business. Participants in all workshops described the power of teaching geoscience in the context of sustainability and the utility of this approach in engaging students with geoscience, including student populations not traditionally represented in the sciences. Faculty involved in both courses and programs seek to teach important skills including the ability to think about systems and to make connections between local observations and challenges and global phenomena and issues. Better articulation of these skills, including learning outcomes and assessments, as well as documenting the relationship between these skills and employment opportunities were identified as important areas for further work. To support widespread integration of geoscience and sustainability concepts, these workshops initiated collections describing current teaching activities, courses, and programs. InTeGrate will continue to build these collections in collaboration with On the Cutting Edge and Building Strong Geoscience Departments, and through open contributions by individual faculty and programs. In addition, InTeGrate began developing new teaching modules and courses. Materials for use in introductory geoscience and environmental science/studies courses, distance learning courses, and courses for education majors are being developed and tested by teams of faculty drawn from at least three institutions, including several members from two-year colleges. An assessment team is assisting the development teams in incorporation of research-based teaching methods and embedded assessments to document learning. The assessment team will also evaluate the success of these materials in meeting learning outcomes prior to broad dissemination. Additional opportunities for faculty to propose and develop needed materials are currently available.

Universal Skills and Competencies for Geoscientists

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mosher, S.

2015-12-01

Geoscience students worldwide face a changing future workforce, but all geoscience work has universal cross-cutting skills and competencies that are critical for success. A recent Geoscience Employers Workshop, and employers' input on the "Future of Undergraduate Geoscience Education" survey, identified three major areas. Geoscience work requires spatial and temporal (3D & 4D) thinking, understanding that the Earth is a system of interacting parts and processes, and geoscience reasoning and synthesis. Thus, students need to be able to solve problems in the context of an open and dynamic system, recognizing that most geoscience problems have no clear, unambiguous answers. Students must learn to manage uncertainty, work by analogy and inference, and make predations with limited data. Being able to visualize and solve problems in 3D, incorporate the element of time, and understand scale is critical. Additionally students must learn how to tackle problems using real data, including understand the problems' context, identify appropriate questions to ask, and determine how to proceed. Geoscience work requires integration of quantitative, technical, and computational skills and the ability to be intellectually flexible in applying skills to new situations. Students need experience using high-level math and computational methods to solve geoscience problems, including probability and statistics to understand risk. Increasingly important is the ability to use "Big Data", GIS, visualization and modeling tools. Employers also agree a strong field component in geoscience education is important. Success as a geoscientist also requires non-technical skills. Because most work environments involve working on projects with a diverse team, students need experience with project management in team settings, including goal setting, conflict resolution, time management and being both leader and follower. Written and verbal scientific communication, as well as public speaking and listening skills, are important. Success also depends on interpersonal skills and professionalism, including business acumen, risk management, ethical conduct, and leadership. A global perspective is increasingly important, including cultural literacy and understanding societal relevance.

Pedagogies in Action: A Community Resource Linking Teaching Methods to Examples of their Use

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Manduca, C. A.; Fox, S. P.; Iverson, E. A.; Kirk, K.; Ormand, C. J.

2009-12-01

The Pedagogies in Action portal (http://serc.carleton.edu/sp) provides access to information on more than 40 teaching methods with examples of their use in geoscience and beyond. Each method is described with pages addressing what the method is, why or when it is useful, and how it can be implemented. New methods added this year include Teaching with Google Earth, Jigsaw, Teaching the Process of Science, Guided Discovery Problems, Teaching Urban Students, and Using ConceptTests. Examples then show specifically how the method has been used to teach concepts in a variety of disciplines. The example collection now includes 775 teaching activities of which more than 550 are drawn from the geosciences. Geoscience faculty are invited to add their own examples to this collection or to test examples in the collection and provide a review. Evaluation results show that the combination of modules and activities inspires teachers at all levels to use a new pedagogy and increases their confidence that they can use it successfully. In addition, submitting activities to the collection, including writing summary information for other instructors, helps them think more carefully about the design of their activity. The activity collections are used both for ready to use activities and to find ideas for new activities. The portal provides overarching access to materials developed by a wide variety of collaborating partners each of which uses the service to create a customized pedagogic portal addressing a more specific audience. Of interest to AGU members are pedagogic portals on Starting Point: Teaching Introductory Geoscience (http://serc.carleton.edu/introgeo); On the Cutting Edge (http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops); Enduring Resources for Earth System Education (http://earthref.org/ERESE) Microbial Life Educational Resources (http://serc.carleton.edu/microbe_life); the National Numeracy Network (http://serc.carleton.edu/nnn/index.html); CAUSE: The Consortium for Undergraduate Statistics Education (http://causeweb.org); ComPADRE: Digital Resources for Physics and Astronomy Education (http://www.compadre.org) and Project Kaleidoscope (http://pkal.org). Pedagogies in Action is part of the National Science Digital Library (http://nsdl.org). Projects or groups interested in exploring use of the service can find information about using the service on the project website or contact the authors.

Enhancing Diversity in the Geosciences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wechsler, Suzanne P.; Whitney, David J.; Ambos, Elizabeth L.; Rodrigue, Christine M.; Lee, Christopher T.; Behl, Richard J.; Larson, Daniel O.; Francis, Robert D.; Hold, Gregory

2005-01-01

An innovative interdisciplinary project at California State University, Long Beach, was designed to increase the attractiveness of the geosciences (physical geography, geology, and archaeology) to underrepresented groups. The goal was to raise awareness of the geosciences by providing summer research opportunities for underrepresented high school…

Planetary geosciences, 1988

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zuber, Maria T. (Editor); Plescia, Jeff L. (Editor); James, Odette B. (Editor); Macpherson, Glenn (Editor)

1989-01-01

Research topics within the NASA Planetary Geosciences Program are presented. Activity in the fields of planetary geology, geophysics, materials, and geochemistry is covered. The investigator's current research efforts, the importance of that work in understanding a particular planetary geoscience problem, the context of that research, and the broader planetary geoscience effort is described. As an example, theoretical modelling of the stability of water ice within the Martian regolith, the applicability of that work to understanding Martian volatiles in general, and the geologic history of Mars is discussed.

Tackling Strategies for Thriving Geoscience Departments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wuebbles, Donald J.; Takle, Eugene S.

2005-05-01

Special sessions on thriving geosciences departments and on cyberinfrastructure in the geosciences highlighted the recent 5th AGU Meeting of Heads and Chairs of Earth and Space Science Departments. ``From Surviving to Thriving: Strategies for Advancing University Geoscience Programs in Times of Change'' was a topic that drew intense interest. This panel discussion, led by Don Wuebbles (University of Illinois), included panelists Eric Betterton (University of Arizona), Judy Curry (Georgia Institute of Technology), Heather MacDonald (College of William and Mary), and Jim Kirkpatrick (University of Illinois).

Teaching All Geoscience Students: Lessons Learned From Two-Year Colleges

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baer, Eric; Blodgett, Robert H.; Macdonald, R. Heather

2013-11-01

Geoscience faculty at 2-year colleges (2YCs) are at the forefront of efforts to improve student learning and success while at the same time broadening participation in the geosciences. Faculty of 2YCs instruct large numbers of students from underrepresented minority groups and many students who are the first in their families to pursue higher education. Geoscience classes at 2YCs also typically have large enrollments of nontraditional students, English language learners, and students with learning disabilities.

FID GEO: Digital transformation and Open Access in Germany's geoscience research community

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hübner, Andreas; Martinson, Guntars; Bertelmann, Roland; Elger, Kirsten; Pfurr, Norbert; Schüler, Mechthild

2017-04-01

The 'Specialized Information Service for Solid Earth Sciences' (FID GEO) supports Germany's geoscience research community in 1) electronic publishing of i) institutional and "grey" literature not released in publishing houses and ii) pre- and postprints of research articles 2) digitising geoscience literature and maps and 3) addressing the publication of research data associated with peer-reviewed research articles (data supplements). Established in 2016, FID GEO is funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and is run by the Göttingen State and University Library (SUB Göttingen) and the GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences. Here we present recent success stories and lessons learned. With regard to digitisation, FID GEO received a request from one of the most prestigious geoscience societies in Germany to digitise back-issues of its journals that are so far only available in print. Aims are to ensure long-term availability in Open Access and high visibility by DOI-referenced electronic publication via the FID GEO repository. While digitisation will be financed by FID GEO funds, major challenges are to identify the copyright holders (journals date back to 1924) and negotiate digitisation and publication rights. With respect to research data publishing, we present how we target scientists to integrate the publication of research data into their workflows and institutions to promote the topic. For the latter, we successfully take advantage of existing networks as entry points to the community, like the research network Geo.X in the Berlin-Brandenburg area, individual learned societies as well as their overarching structures DV Geo and GeoUnion. FID GEO promotes the Statement of Commitment of the Coalition for Publishing Data in the Earth and Space Sciences (COPDESS) as well as the FAIR Data Principles in presentations to the above-mentioned groups and institutions. Our aim is to eventually transfer the positive feedback from the geoscience community into pilot model workflows for the publication of data supplements. Data publication partner of FID GEO is the data repository of GFZ Data Services, hosted at GFZ. Since the technical infrastructure for data publication is already in place, clearly, the focus of this subtask is on raising awareness at the level of individual researchers as well as of research projects and institutions.

Assessing Quantitative Learning With The Math You Need When You Need It

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wenner, J. M.; Baer, E. M.; Burn, H.

2008-12-01

We present new data from a pilot project using the The Math You Need, When You Need It (TMYN) web resources in conjunction with several introductory geoscience courses. TMYN is a series of NSF-supported, NAGT-sponsored, web-based modular resources designed to help students learn (or relearn) mathematical skills essential for success in introductory geoscience courses. TMYN presents mathematical topics that are relevant to introductory geoscience based on a survey of more than 75 geoscience faculty members. To date, modules include unit conversions, many aspects of graphing, density calculations, rearranging equations and other simple mathematical concepts commonly used in the geosciences. The modular nature of the resources make it simple to select the units that are appropriate for a given course. In the fall of 2008, nine TMYN modules were tested in three courses taught at Highline Community College (Geology 101) and University of Wisconsin Oshkosh (Physical and Environmental Geology). Over 300 students participated in the study by taking pre- and post-tests and completing modules relevant to their course. Feedback about the use of these modules has been mixed. Initial results confirm anecdotal evidence that students initially have difficulty applying mathematical concepts to geologic problems. Furthermore, pre- test results indicate that, although instructors assume that students can perform simple mathematical manipulations, many students arrive in courses without the skills to apply mathematical concepts in problem solving situations. TMYN resources effectively provide support for learning quantitative problem solving and a mechanism for students to engage in self-teaching. Although we have seen mixed results due to a range of instructor engagement with the material, TMYN can have significant effect on students who are math phobic or "can't do math" because they can work at their own pace to overcome affective obstacles such as fear and dislike of mathematics. TMYN is most effective when instructors make explicit connections between material in the modules and course content. Instructors who participated in the study in Fall 2008 reacted positively to the use of TMYN in introductory geoscience courses because the resources require minimal class and prep time. Furthermore, when instructors can hold students responsible for the quantitative concepts covered with TMYN, they feel more comfortable including quantitative information without significant loss of geologic content.

On the Cutting Edge Professional Development Program: Workshop and Web Resources for Current and Future Geoscience Faculty

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

MacDonald, R.; Manduca, C. A.; Mogk, D. W.; Tewksbury, B. J.

2004-12-01

Recognizing that many college and university faculty receive little formal training in teaching, are largely unaware of advances in research on teaching and learning, and face a variety of challenges in advancing in academic careers, the National Science Foundation-funded program On the Cutting Edge provides professional development for current and future faculty in the geosciences at various stages in their careers. The program includes a series of six multi-day workshops, sessions and one-day workshops at professional meetings, and a website with information about workshop opportunities and a variety of resources that bring workshop content to faculty (http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops). The program helps faculty improve their teaching and their job satisfaction by providing resources on instructional methods, geoscience content, and strategies for career planning. Workshop and website resources address innovative and effective practices in teaching, course design, delivery of instructional materials, and career planning, as well as approaches for teaching particular topics and strategies for starting and maintaining a research program in various institutional settings. Each year, special workshops for graduate students and post-doctoral fellows interested in academic careers and for early career faculty complement offerings on course design and emerging topics that are open to the full geoscience community. These special workshops include sessions on topics such as dual careers, gender issues, family-work balance, interviewing and negotiating strategies. The workshops serve as opportunities for networking and community building, with participants building connections with other participants as well as workshop leaders. Workshop participants reflect the full range of institutional diversity as well as ethnic and racial diversity beyond that of the geoscience faculty workforce. More than 40 percent of the faculty participants are female. Of the faculty participants in workshops offered July 2002 through June 2004, workshop participants have come from more than 250 colleges and universities in 49 states and the District of Columbia. Workshop evaluations indicate that the workshops are well received with faculty particularly appreciating the content of the workshops and the opportunities for networking. An important aspect of the program is involvement of the geoscience community in workshop leadership. Leadership roles include serving as co-conveners, invited speakers, demonstration leaders, working group leaders, co-conveners of post-workshop sessions at professional meetings, and contributors to the website.

The "Week Of Planet Earth" Italy Discovering Geosciences: a More Informed Society is a More Engaged Society.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seno, S.; Coccioni, R.

2016-12-01

The "Week of Planet Earth" (www.settimanaterra.org) is a science festival that involves the whole of the Italian Regions: founded in 2012, it has become the largest event of Italian Geosciences and one of the biggest European science festivals. During a week in October several locations distributed throughout the Country are animated by events, called "Geoeventi", to disseminate geosciences to the masses and deliver science education by means of a wide range of activities: hiking, walking in city and town centers, open-door at museums and research centers, guided tours, exhibitions, educational and experimental workshops for children and young people, music and art performances, food and wine events, lectures, conferences, round tables. Universities and colleges, research centers, local Authorities, cultural and scientific associations, parks and museums, professionals organize the Geoeventi. The festival aims at bringing adults and young people to Geosciences, conveying enthusiasm for scientific research and discoveries, promoting sustainable cultural tourism, aware of environmental values and distributed all over Italy. The Geoeventi shed light both on the most spectacular and on the less known geological sites, which are often a stone's throw from home. The Week of Planet Earth is growing year after year: the 2016 edition proposes 310 Geoeventi, 70 more than in 2015. The number of places involved in the project also increased and rose from 180 in 2015 to 230 in 2016. This initiative, that is also becoming a significant economic driver for many small companies active in the field of science divulgation, is analyzed, evaluated and put in a transnational network perspective.

The IUGS Task Group on Global Geoscience Professionalism - promoting professional skills professionalism in the teaching, research and application of geoscience for the protection and education of the public

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Allington, Ruth; Fernandez-Fuentes, Isabel

2013-04-01

A new IUGS Task Group entitled the Task Group on Global Geoscience Professionalism was formed in 2012 and launched at a symposium at the 341GC in Brisbane on strengthening communication between fundamental and applied geosciences and between geoscientists and public. The Task Group aims to ensure that the international geoscience community is engaged in a transformation of its profession so as to embed the need for a professional skills base alongside technical and scientific skills and expertise, within a sound ethical framework in all arenas of geoscience practice. This needs to be established during training and education and reinforced as CPD throughout a career in geoscience as part of ensuring public safety and effective communication of geoscience concepts to the public. The specific objective of the Task Group on Global Geoscience Professionalism that is relevant to this poster session is: • To facilitate a more 'joined up' geoscience community fostering better appreciation by academics and teachers of the professional skills that geoscientists need in the workplace, and facilitate better communication between academic and applied communities leading to more effective application of research findings and technology to applied practitioners and development of research programmes that truly address urgent issues. Other Task Group objectives are: • To provide a specific international forum for discussion of matters of common concern and interest among geoscientists and geoscientific organizations involved in professional affairs, at the local, national and international level; • To act as a resource to IUGS on professional affairs in the geosciences as they may influence and impact "Earth Science for the Global Community" in general - both now and in the future; • To offer and provide leadership and knowledge transfer services to countries and geoscientist communities around the world seeking to introduce systems of professional governance and self-regulation in the Earth sciences; • To provide geoscientists in all areas of professional practice and at all stages of their careers with practical guidance and support on professional matters; • To continue and increase over time the provision of symposia and technical sessions to allow for exchange and knowledge transfer at IGCs and other events for those involved in, and impacted by, the evolution of professionalism in the geosciences. • To act as a resource to members of IUGS, and others, of material and speakers to present to geoscience groups - in particular young Earth scientists - around the world on professional practice and registration matters (including geoscience practice standards and guidelines, and reporting standards, codes of ethics and conduct, and professional registration.) The sponsors of the new TG are: • European Federation of Geologists (EFG) • Geoscientists Canada • American Institute of Professional Geologists (AIPG) • Australian Institute of Geoscientists (AIG) • South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions (SACNSP) • El Colegio de Geólogos de Bolivia (College of Geologists of Bolivia)

Validation of the 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale definition of response for adults with major depressive disorder using equipercentile linking to Clinical Global Impression scale ratings: analysis of Pharmacogenomic Research Network Antidepressant Medication Pharmacogenomic Study (PGRN-AMPS) data.

PubMed

Bobo, William V; Angleró, Gabriela C; Jenkins, Gregory; Hall-Flavin, Daniel K; Weinshilboum, Richard; Biernacka, Joanna M

2016-05-01

The study aimed to define thresholds of clinically significant change in 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS-17) scores using the Clinical Global Impression-Improvement (CGI-I) Scale as a gold standard. We conducted a secondary analysis of individual patient data from the Pharmacogenomic Research Network Antidepressant Medication Pharmacogenomic Study, an 8-week, single-arm clinical trial of citalopram or escitalopram treatment of adults with major depression. We used equipercentile linking to identify levels of absolute and percent change in HDRS-17 scores that equated with scores on the CGI-I at 4 and 8 weeks. Additional analyses equated changes in the HDRS-7 and Bech-6 scale scores with CGI-I scores. A CGI-I score of 2 (much improved) corresponded to an absolute decrease (improvement) in HDRS-17 total score of 11 points and a percent decrease of 50-57%, from baseline values. Similar results were observed for percent change in HDRS-7 and Bech-6 scores. Larger absolute (but not percent) decreases in HDRS-17 scores equated with CGI-I scores of 2 in persons with higher baseline depression severity. Our results support the consensus definition of response based on HDRS-17 scores (>50% decrease from baseline). A similar definition of response may apply to the HDRS-7 and Bech-6. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Charged-Iron-Particles Found in Galactic Cosmic Rays are Potent Inducers of Epithelial Ovarian Tumors.

PubMed

Mishra, Birendra; Lawson, Gregory W; Ripperdan, Ryan; Ortiz, Laura; Luderer, Ulrike

2018-05-21

Astronauts traveling in deep space are exposed to high-charge and energy (HZE) particles from galactic cosmic rays. We have previously determined that irradiation of adult female mice with iron HZE particles induces DNA double-strand breaks, oxidative damage and apoptosis in ovarian follicles, causing premature ovarian failure. These effects occur at lower doses than with conventional photon irradiation. Ovarian failure with resultant loss of negative feedback and elevated levels of gonadotropin hormones is thought to play a role in the pathophysiology of ovarian cancer. Therefore, we hypothesized that charged-iron-particle irradiation induces ovarian tumorigenesis in mice. In this study, three-month-old female mice were exposed to 0 cGy (sham) or 50 cGy iron ions and aged to 18 months. The 50 cGy irradiated mice had increased weight gain with age and lack of estrous cycling, consistent with ovarian failure. A total of 47% and 7% of mice irradiated with 50 cGy had unilateral and bilateral ovarian tumors, respectively, whereas 14% of mice in the 0 cGy group had unilateral tumors. The tumors contained multiple tubular structures, which were lined with cells positive for the epithelial marker cytokeratin, and had few proliferating cells. In some tumors, packets of cells between the tubular structures were immunopositive for the granulosa cell marker FOXL2. Based on these findings, tumors were diagnosed as tubular adenomas or mixed tubular adenoma/granulosa cell tumors. In conclusion, charged-iron-particle-radiation induces ovarian tumors in mice, raising concerns about ovarian tumors as late sequelae of deep space travel in female astronauts.

An Ontology for Representing Geoscience Theories and Related Knowledge

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brodaric, B.

2009-12-01

Online scientific research, or e-science, is increasingly reliant on machine-readable representations of scientific data and knowledge. At present, much of the knowledge is represented in ontologies, which typically contain geoscience categories such as ‘water body’, ‘aquifer’, ‘granite’, ‘temperature’, ‘density’, ‘Co2’. While extremely useful for many e-science activities, such categorical representations constitute only a fragment of geoscience knowledge. Also needed are online representations of elements such as geoscience theories, to enable geoscientists to pose and evaluate hypotheses online. To address this need, the Science Knowledge Infrastructure ontology (SKIo) specializes the DOLCE foundational ontology with basic science knowledge primitives such as theory, model, observation, and prediction. Discussed will be SKIo as well as its implementation in the geosciences, including case studies from marine science, environmental science, and geologic mapping. These case studies demonstrate SKIo’s ability to represent a wide spectrum of geoscience knowledge types, to help fuel next generation e-science.

Current trends in geomathematics

USGS Publications Warehouse

Griffiths, J.C.

1970-01-01

Geoscience has extended its role and improved its applications by the development of geophysics since the nineteen-thirties, geochemistry since the nineteen-fifties and now, in the late nineteen-sixties, a new synergism leads to geomathematics; again the greatest pressure for change arises from areas of application of geoscience and, as the problems to which geoscience is applied increase in complexity, the analytical tools become more sophisticated, a development which is accelerated by growth in the use of computers in geological problem-solving. In the next decade the problems with greatest public impact appear to be the ones which will receive greatest emphasis and support. This will require that the geosciences comprehend exceedingly complex probabilistic systems and these, in turn, demand the use of operations research, cybernetics and systems analysis. Such a development may well lead to a change in the paradigms underlying geoscience; they will certainly include more realistic models of "real-world" systems and the tool of simulation with cybernetic models may well become the basis for rejuvenation of experimentation in the geosciences. ?? 1970.

The British Geological Survey and the petroleum industry

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

Chesher, J.A.

1995-08-01

The British Geological Survey is the UK`s national centre for earth science information with a parallel remit to operate internationally. The Survey`s work covers the full geoscience spectrum in energy, mineral and groundwater resources and associated implications for land use, geological hazards and environmental impact. Much of the work is conducted in collaboration with industry and academia, including joint funding opportunities. Activities relating directly to hydrocarbons include basin analysis, offshore geoscience mapping, hazard assessment, fracture characterization, biostratigraphy, sedimentology, seismology, geomagnetism and frontier data acquisition techniques, offshore. The BGS poster presentation illustrates the value of the collaborative approach through consortia supportmore » for regional offshore surveys, geotechnical hazard assessments and state-of-the-art R & D into multicomponent seismic imaging techniques, among others.« less

Enabling Global Collaboration in the Geosciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klump, Jens; Allison, Lee; Asch, Kristine; Fox, Peter; Gundersen, Linda; Jackson, Ian; Loewe, Peter; Snyder, Walter S.; Ritschel, Bernd

2008-12-01

Geoinformatics 2008; Potsdam, Germany, 11-13 June 2008; Scientists are facing an increasing flood of data and information in the Earth sciences from which they try to distill knowledge. The emerging discipline of geoinformatics brings together the tools necessary to create and make accessible the knowledge needed to respond to society's complex challenges, such as climate change, new energy and mineral resources, new sources of water, and protecting environmental and human health. Globalization of geoinformatics-based research and education in support of meeting societal challenges was the theme for the Geoinformatics 2008 conference, which was held at the German Research Centre for Geosciences, in Potsdam, Germany. Participants came from China, France, Germany, Japan, Netherlands, Russia, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States, representing academic institutions, national research centers, and government agencies.

Beliefs and Gender Differences: A New Model for Research in Mathematics Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Li, Qing

2004-01-01

The major focus of this study is to propose a new research model, namely the Modified CGI gender model, for the study of gender differences in mathematics. This model is developed based on Fennema, Carpenter, and Peterson's (1989) CGI model. To examine the validity of this new model, this study also examines the gender differences in teacher and…

Estimation of computed tomography dose index in cone beam computed tomography: MOSFET measurements and Monte Carlo simulations.

PubMed

Kim, Sangroh; Yoshizumi, Terry; Toncheva, Greta; Yoo, Sua; Yin, Fang-Fang; Frush, Donald

2010-05-01

To address the lack of accurate dose estimation method in cone beam computed tomography (CBCT), we performed point dose metal oxide semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) measurements and Monte Carlo (MC) simulations. A Varian On-Board Imager (OBI) was employed to measure point doses in the polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) CT phantoms with MOSFETs for standard and low dose modes. A MC model of the OBI x-ray tube was developed using BEAMnrc/EGSnrc MC system and validated by the half value layer, x-ray spectrum and lateral and depth dose profiles. We compared the weighted computed tomography dose index (CTDIw) between MOSFET measurements and MC simulations. The CTDIw was found to be 8.39 cGy for the head scan and 4.58 cGy for the body scan from the MOSFET measurements in standard dose mode, and 1.89 cGy for the head and 1.11 cGy for the body in low dose mode, respectively. The CTDIw from MC compared well to the MOSFET measurements within 5% differences. In conclusion, a MC model for Varian CBCT has been established and this approach may be easily extended from the CBCT geometry to multi-detector CT geometry.

Energy Education Resources: Kindergarten through 12th Grade.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Energy Information Administration (DOE), Washington, DC.

This resource guide provides students, educators, and other information users with a list of generally available free or low-cost energy-related educational materials. The 163 organizations listed are each related to the subject fields of coal, electricity, energy efficiency/energy conservation, the environment, geosciences/earth sciences, natural…

Readability and usability of scientific information in the poster presentation format

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The European Geosciences Union convenes an annual international conference that boasts over 13,000 academic presentations of which more than half are poster presentations. This research effort studied a sample of more than 500 posters presented during the 2012 conference to identify best practices f...

An Integrated Field-Based Approach to Building Teachers' Geoscience Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Almquist, Heather; Stanley, George; Blank, Lisa; Hendrix, Marc; Rosenblatt, Megan; Hanfling, Seymour; Crews, Jeffrey

2011-01-01

The Paleo Exploration Project was a professional development program for K-12 teachers from rural eastern Montana. The curriculum was designed to incorporate geospatial technologies, including Global Positioning Systems (GPS), Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and total station laser surveying, with authentic field experiences in geology and…

Preparing Future Geoscience Professionals: Needs, Strategies, Programs, and Online Resources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Macdonald, H.; Manduca, C. A.; Ormand, C. J.; Dunbar, R. W.; Beane, R. J.; Bruckner, M.; Bralower, T. J.; Feiss, P. G.; Tewksbury, B. J.; Wiese, K.

2011-12-01

Geoscience faculty, departments, and programs play an important role in preparing future geoscience professionals. One challenge is supporting the diversity of student goals for future employment and the needs of a wide range of potential employers. Students in geoscience degree programs pursue careers in traditional geoscience industries; in geoscience education and research (including K-12 teaching); and opportunities at the intersection of geoscience and other fields (e.g., policy, law, business). The Building Strong Geoscience Departments project has documented a range of approaches that departments use to support the development of geoscience majors as professionals (serc.carleton.edu/departments). On the Cutting Edge, a professional development program, supports graduate students and post-doctoral fellows interested in pursuing an academic career through workshops, webinars, and online resources (serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/careerprep). Geoscience departments work at the intersection of student interests and employer needs. Commonly cited program goals that align with employer needs include mastery of geoscience content; field experience; skill in problem solving, quantitative reasoning, communication, and collaboration; and the ability to learn independently and take a project from start to finish. Departments and faculty can address workforce issues by 1) implementing of degree programs that develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes that students need, while recognizing that students have a diversity of career goals; 2) introducing career options to majors and potential majors and encouraging exploration of options; 3) advising students on how to prepare for specific career paths; 4) helping students develop into professionals, and 5) supporting students in the job search. It is valuable to build connections with geoscience employers, work with alumni and foster connections between students and alumni with similar career interests, collaborate with campus career centers, incorporate career advising and mentoring throughout the degree program, and recognize that co-curricular experiences are also important avenues through which students can also develop as professionals. Graduate students and post-doctoral fellows have many questions about academic jobs and the academic job search process and many are uncertain about the nature of academic positions at different kinds of educational institutions (two-year colleges, primarily undergraduate institutions, and research universities). On the Cutting Edge workshops and webinars provide insights into academic careers in different institutional settings, various teaching strategies and course design, strategies for moving research forward, effective teaching and research statements, the job search process, and negotiation. The website provides resources on these topics as well as others and includes screen casts of the webinar sessions, making these resources available to all.

Enhnacing the science of the WFIRST coronagraph instrument with post-processing.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pueyo, Laurent; WFIRST CGI data analysis and post-processing WG

2018-01-01

We summarize the results of a three years effort investigating how to apply to the WFIRST coronagraph instrument (CGI) modern image analysis methods, now routinely used with ground-based coronagraphs. In this post we quantify the gain associated post-processing for WFIRST-CGI observing scenarios simulated between 2013 and 2017. We also show based one simulations that spectrum of planet can be confidently retrieved using these processing tools with and Integral Field Spectrograph. We then discuss our work using CGI experimental data and quantify coronagraph post-processing testbed gains. We finally introduce stability metrics that are simple to define and measure, and place useful lower bound and upper bounds on the achievable RDI post-processing contrast gain. We show that our bounds hold in the case of the testbed data.

The Learning Curve: MACVs Grasp of Intelligence, PSYOP, and Their Coordination, 1965-1971

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-06-01

demonstrations break out on a number of US college campuses 4 May 1970 - Four students fatally shot during protest at Kent State University...Operational Art and Science from the Air Command and Staff College , and a Master’s of Philosophy in Military Strategy from the School of Advanced...Turned a Tactical Victory into a Political Defeat”, (Ft. Belvoir: Defense Technical Information Center, 2009), www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?AD

Systems, Society, Sustainability and the Geosciences: A Workshop to Create New Curricular Materials to Integrate Geosciences into the Teaching of Sustainability

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gosselin, D. C.; Manduca, C. A.; Oches, E. A.; MacGregor, J.; Kirk, K. B.

2012-12-01

Sustainability is emerging as a central theme for teaching about the environment, whether it be from the perspective of science, economics, or society. The Systems, Society, Sustainability and the Geosciences workshop provided 48 undergraduate faculty from 46 institutions a forum to discuss the challenges and possibilities for integrating geoscience concepts with a range of other disciplines to teach about the fundamentals of sustainability. Participants from community college to doctorate-granting universities had expertise that included geosciences, agriculture, biological sciences, business, chemistry, economics, ethnic studies, engineering, environmental studies, environmental education, geography, history, industrial technology, landscape design, philosophy, physics, and political science. The workshop modeled a range of teaching strategies that encouraged participants to network and collaborate, share successful strategies and materials for teaching sustainability, and identify opportunities for the development of new curricular materials that will have a major impact on the integration of geosciences into the teaching of sustainability. The workshop design provided participants an opportunity to reflect upon their teaching, learning, and curriculum. Throughout the workshop, participants recorded their individual and collective ideas in a common online workspace to which all had access. A preliminary synthesis of this information indicates that the concept of sustainability is a strong organizing principle for modern, liberal education requiring systems thinking, synthesis and contributions from all disciplines. Sustainability is inherently interdisciplinary and provides a framework for educational collaboration between and among geoscientists, natural/physical scientists, social scientists, humanists, engineers, etc.. This interdisciplinary framework is intellectually exciting and productive for educating students at all levels of higher education. Sustainability also provides a productive bridge from global to local issues, and vice versa. It has the potential to raise the value placed on faculty engagement with local resources and research questions, and to bring community-based stakeholders outside of academia into the classroom. There are many challenges that participants from geographically diverse parts of the country have in common, including the creation of new courses, and teaching interdisciplinary material beyond one's area of expertise. However, one of the greatest opportunities of using a sustainability theme is that it can be integrated into existing courses. It was also clear that incorporating one module on a sustainability topic can be stimulating and powerful mechanism for linking course content to real world issues. Two of the most important outcomes from the workshop were the creation of an online collection of activities and courses (http://serc.carleton.edu/integrate/workshops/sustainability2012/index.html) as well as the development of a community that can support integration of geoscience and issues of sustainability across the curriculum.

Recruitment Strategies for Geoscience Majors: Conceptual Framework and Practical Suggestions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Richardson, R. M.; Eyles, C.; Ormand, C. J.

2009-12-01

One characteristic of strong geoscience departments is that they recruit and retain quality students. In a survey to over 900 geoscience departments in the US and Canada several years ago nearly 90% of respondents indicated that recruiting and retaining students was important. Two years ago we offered a pre-GSA workshop on recruiting and retaining students that attracted over 30 participants from over 20 different institutions, from liberal arts colleges to state universities to research intensive universities. Since then we have sought additional feedback from a presentation to the AGU Heads & Chairs at a Fall AGU meeting, and most recently from a workshop on strengthening geoscience programs in June 2009. In all of these settings, a number of themes and concrete strategies have emerged. Key themes included strategies internal to the department/institution; strategies that reach beyond the department/institution; determining how scalable/transferable strategies that work in one setting are to your own setting; identifying measures of success; and developing or improving on an existing action plan specific to your departmental/institutional setting. The full results of all of these efforts to distill best practices in recruiting students will be shared at the Fall AGU meeting, but some of the best practices for strategies local to the department/institution include: 1) focusing on introductory classes (having the faculty who are most successful in that setting teach them, having one faculty member make a common presentation to all classes about what one can do with a geoscience major, offering topical seminars, etc.); 2) informing students of career opportunities (inviting alumni back to talk to students, using AGI resources, etc.,); 3) creating common space for students to work, study, and be a community; 4) inviting all students earning an ‘A’ (or ‘B’) in introductory classes to a departmental event just for them; and 5) creating a field trip for incoming freshmen, whether they are planning to major in geoscience or not. Some of the best practices for strategies reaching beyond the department include: 1) working with college/university academic advisors, admissions, career services, especially for undecided students; 2) working with local high schools and community colleges, especially for underrepresented students; and 3) advertising where students communicate (Facebook, Twitter, etc.). As important as recruitment strategies are, it is critical to have an assessment plan in place to measure the success of recruitment efforts. It takes effort and resources, often human capital, to recruit students. If enrollments increase, regardless of recruitment efforts, then scarce resources have been wasted. Some of the best assessment practices include: 1) surveying students, especially those who have recently declared a geoscience major; and 2) surveying students who have been recruited but who have not become majors.

Cazymes Analysis Toolkit (CAT): Webservice for searching and analyzing carbohydrateactive enzymes in a newly sequenced organism using CAZy database

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

Karpinets, Tatiana V; Park, Byung; Syed, Mustafa H

2010-01-01

The Carbohydrate-Active Enzyme (CAZy) database provides a rich set of manually annotated enzymes that degrade, modify, or create glycosidic bonds. Despite rich and invaluable information stored in the database, software tools utilizing this information for annotation of newly sequenced genomes by CAZy families are limited. We have employed two annotation approaches to fill the gap between manually curated high-quality protein sequences collected in the CAZy database and the growing number of other protein sequences produced by genome or metagenome sequencing projects. The first approach is based on a similarity search against the entire non-redundant sequences of the CAZy database. Themore » second approach performs annotation using links or correspondences between the CAZy families and protein family domains. The links were discovered using the association rule learning algorithm applied to sequences from the CAZy database. The approaches complement each other and in combination achieved high specificity and sensitivity when cross-evaluated with the manually curated genomes of Clostridium thermocellum ATCC 27405 and Saccharophagus degradans 2-40. The capability of the proposed framework to predict the function of unknown protein domains (DUF) and of hypothetical proteins in the genome of Neurospora crassa is demonstrated. The framework is implemented as a Web service, the CAZymes Analysis Toolkit (CAT), and is available at http://cricket.ornl.gov/cgi-bin/cat.cgi.« less

CAZymes Analysis Toolkit (CAT): web service for searching and analyzing carbohydrate-active enzymes in a newly sequenced organism using CAZy database.

PubMed

Park, Byung H; Karpinets, Tatiana V; Syed, Mustafa H; Leuze, Michael R; Uberbacher, Edward C

2010-12-01

The Carbohydrate-Active Enzyme (CAZy) database provides a rich set of manually annotated enzymes that degrade, modify, or create glycosidic bonds. Despite rich and invaluable information stored in the database, software tools utilizing this information for annotation of newly sequenced genomes by CAZy families are limited. We have employed two annotation approaches to fill the gap between manually curated high-quality protein sequences collected in the CAZy database and the growing number of other protein sequences produced by genome or metagenome sequencing projects. The first approach is based on a similarity search against the entire nonredundant sequences of the CAZy database. The second approach performs annotation using links or correspondences between the CAZy families and protein family domains. The links were discovered using the association rule learning algorithm applied to sequences from the CAZy database. The approaches complement each other and in combination achieved high specificity and sensitivity when cross-evaluated with the manually curated genomes of Clostridium thermocellum ATCC 27405 and Saccharophagus degradans 2-40. The capability of the proposed framework to predict the function of unknown protein domains and of hypothetical proteins in the genome of Neurospora crassa is demonstrated. The framework is implemented as a Web service, the CAZymes Analysis Toolkit, and is available at http://cricket.ornl.gov/cgi-bin/cat.cgi.

The hospital anxiety and depression rating scale: A cross-sectional study of psychometrics and case finding abilities in general practice

PubMed Central

Olssøn, Ingrid; Mykletun, Arnstein; Dahl, Alv A

2005-01-01

Background General practitioners' (GPs) diagnostic skills lead to underidentification of generalized anxiety disorders (GAD) and major depressive episodes (MDE). Supplement of brief questionnaires could improve the diagnostic accuracy of GPs for these common mental disorders. The aims of this study were to examine the usefulness of The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Rating Scale (HADS) for GPs by: 1) Examining its psychometrics in the GPs' setting; 2) Testing its case-finding properties compared to patient-rated GAD and MDE (DSM-IV); and 3) Comparing its case finding abilities to that of the GPs using Clinical Global Impression-Severity (CGI-S) rating. Methods In a cross-sectional survey study 1,781 patients in three consecutive days in September 2001 attended 141 GPs geographically spread in Norway. Sensitivity, specificity, optimal cut off score, and Area under the curve (AUC) for the HADS and the CGI-S were calculated with Generalized Anxiety Questionnaire (GAS-Q) as reference standard for GAD, and Depression Screening Questionnaire (DSQ) for MDE. Results The HADS-A had optimal cut off ≥8 (sensitivity 0.89, specificity 0.75), AUC 0.88 and 76% of patients were correctly classified in relation to GAD. The HADS-D had by optimal cut off ≥8 (sensitivity 0.80 and specificity 0.88) AUC 0.93 and 87% of the patients were correctly classified in relation to MDE. Proportions of the total correctly classified at the CGI-S optimal cut-off ≥3 were 83% of patients for GAD and 81% for MDE. Conclusion The results indicate that addition of the patients' HADS scores to GPs' information could improve their diagnostic accuracy of GAD and MDE. PMID:16351733

Neurogenic Effects of Low-Dose Whole-Body HZE (Fe) Ion and Gamma Irradiation

PubMed Central

Sweet, Tara B.; Hurley, Sean D.; Wu, Michael D.; Olschowka, John A.; Williams, Jacqueline P.; O’Banion, M. Kerry

2017-01-01

Understanding the dose-toxicity profile of radiation is critical when evaluating potential health risks associated with natural and man-made sources in our environment. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of low-dose whole-body high-energy charged (HZE) iron (Fe) ions and low-energy gamma exposure on proliferation and differentiation of adult-born neurons within the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus, cells deemed to play a critical role in memory regulation. To determine the dose-response characteristics of the brain to whole-body Fe-ion vs. gamma-radiation exposure, C57BL/6J mice were irradiated with 1 GeV/n Fe ions or a static 137Cs source (0.662 MeV) at doses ranging from 0 to 300 cGy. The neurogenesis was analyzed at 48 h and one month postirradiation. These experiments revealed that whole-body exposure to either Fe ions or gamma radiation leads to: 1. An acute decrease in cell division within the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus, detected at doses as low as 30 and 100 cGy for Fe ions and gamma radiation, respectively; and 2. A reduction in newly differentiated neurons (DCX immunoreactivity) at one month postirradiation, with significant decreases detected at doses as low as 100 cGy for both Fe ions and gamma rays. The data presented here contribute to our understanding of brain responses to whole-body Fe ions and gamma rays and may help inform health-risk evaluations related to systemic exposure during a medical or radiologic/nuclear event or as a result of prolonged space travel. PMID:27905869

SU-E-T-492: Influence of Clipping PTV in Build-Up Region On IMRT Plan Quality and Deliverability

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

Sharma, S; Manigandan, D; Sahai, P

2015-06-15

Purpose: To study the influence of clipping PTV from body contour on plan quality and deliverability in build-up region for superficial target. Methods: Five previously treated patients of post-operative carcinoma of parotid were re-planned for IMRT (6MV X-rays, sliding window technique, five fields and 60Gy/30 fractions) using eclipse treatment planning system (TPS) by keeping dose volume constraints and all other parameters constant, only PTV was clipped from body contour by 0mm, 1mm, 2mm and 3mm respectively. Planned fluence was transferred to previously scanned solid water phantom by placing I’matriXX array at 0.5cm depth (2mm slab+3mm inherent). Fluence was delivered bymore » Varian CL2300C/D linac at 99.5cm source to detector distance. Measured fluence was compared with TPS dose plane using 2D gamma evaluation using 3%/3mm DTA criteria. Total MU (monitor unit) required to deliver a plan was also noted. For plan quality, PTV, maximum-dose, minimum-dose, coverage index (CI=PTV volume covered by prescription dose/PTV) and heterogeneity index HI=D5/D95 were analyzed using dose volume histogram (DVH). Results: The Result of gamma function analysis for I’matriXX and TPS were 97.63±1.79%, 97.48±0.99, 98.08±0.89% and 98.01±0.78% at 0.5cm build-up depth for 0, 1, 2 and 3mm PTV clipping, respectively. I’matriXX measured dose was higher compared to TPS. Total MU required for delivering a plan were 552±61, 503±47, 436±24 and 407±22. Maximum-dose to PTV was 6635.80±62.01cGy, 6635.80±40.60cGy, 6608.43±51.07cGy and 6564.20±28.51cGy. Similarly, minimum-dose to PTV was 3306.23±458.56cGy, 3546.57±721.01cGy, 4591.43±298.81cGy and 4861.90±412.40cGy. CI was 0.9347±0.020, 0.9398±0.021, 0.9448±0.022 and 0.9481±0.021. Similarly, HI was 1.089±0.015, 1.084±0.014, 1.078±0.009 and 1.074±0.008 for 0, 1, 2 and 3mm PTV clipping, respectively. Conclusion: Gamma function analysis resulted in almost similar results. However, I’matriXX was overestimating the dose compared to TPS. MU required to deliver a plan decreases with increase in PTV clipping. CI, PTV minimum-dose and plan homogeneity increases with increase in PTV clipping from skin.« less

Geoscience Diversity Enhancement Project: Student Responses.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rodrigue, Christine M.; Wechsler, Suzanne P.; Whitney, David J.; Ambos, Elizabeth L.; Ramirez-Herrera, Maria Teresa; Behl, Richard; Francis, Robert D.; Larson, Daniel O.; Hazen, Crisanne

This paper describes an interdisciplinary project at California State University (Long Beach) designed to increase the attractiveness of the geosciences to underrepresented groups. The project is called the Geoscience Diversity Enhancement Project (GDEP). It is a 3-year program which began in the fall of 2001 with funding from the National Science…

Building an Outdoor Classroom for Field Geology: The Geoscience Garden

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Waldron, John W. F.; Locock, Andrew J.; Pujadas-Botey, Anna

2016-01-01

Many geoscience educators have noted the difficulty that students experience in transferring their classroom knowledge to the field environment. The Geoscience Garden, on the University of Alberta North Campus, provides a simulated field environment in which Earth Science students can develop field observation skills, interpret features of Earth's…

Nurturing a growing field: Computers & Geosciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mariethoz, Gregoire; Pebesma, Edzer

2017-10-01

Computational issues are becoming increasingly critical for virtually all fields of geoscience. This includes the development of improved algorithms and models, strategies for implementing high-performance computing, or the management and visualization of the large datasets provided by an ever-growing number of environmental sensors. Such issues are central to scientific fields as diverse as geological modeling, Earth observation, geophysics or climatology, to name just a few. Related computational advances, across a range of geoscience disciplines, are the core focus of Computers & Geosciences, which is thus a truly multidisciplinary journal.

Striving to Diversify the Geosciences Workforce

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Velasco, Aaron A.; Jaurrieta de Velasco, Edith

2010-08-01

The geosciences continue to lag far behind other sciences in recruiting and retaining diverse populations [Czujko and Henley, 2003; Huntoon and Lane, 2007]. As a result, the U.S. capacity for preparedness in natural geohazards mitigation, natural resource management and development, national security, and geosciences education is being undermined and is losing its competitive edge in the global market. Two key populations must be considered as the United States looks to build the future geosciences workforce and optimize worker productivity: the nation's youth and its growing underrepresented minority (URM) community. By focusing on both of these demographics, the United States can address the identified shortage of high-quality candidates for knowledge-intensive jobs in the geosciences, helping to develop the innovative enterprises that lead to discovery and new technology [see National Research Council (NRCd), 2007].

EarthConnections: Integrating Community Science and Geoscience Education Pathways for More Resilient Communities.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Manduca, C. A.

2017-12-01

To develop a diverse geoscience workforce, the EarthConnections collective impact alliance is developing regionally focused, Earth education pathways. These pathways support and guide students from engagement in relevant, Earth-related science at an early age through the many steps and transitions to geoscience-related careers. Rooted in existing regional activities, pathways are developed using a process that engages regional stakeholders and community members with EarthConnections partners. Together they connect, sequence, and create multiple learning opportunities that link geoscience education and community service to address one or more local geoscience issues. Three initial pilots are demonstrating different starting points and strategies for creating pathways that serve community needs while supporting geoscience education. The San Bernardino pilot is leveraging existing academic relationships and programs; the Atlanta pilot is building into existing community activities; and the Oklahoma Tribal Nations pilot is co-constructing a pathway focus and approach. The project is using pathway mapping and a collective impact framework to support and monitor progress. The goal is to develop processes and activities that can help other communities develop similar community-based geoscience pathways. By intertwining Earth education with local community service we aspire to increase the resilience of communities in the face of environmental hazards and limited Earth resources.