Sample records for identification evaluation procedures

  1. Laboratory study of the response of select insecticides to toxicity identification evaluation procedures

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Kuivila, Kathryn; Crepeau, Kathryn L.

    1999-01-01

    A laboratory study was used to evaluate the response of select insecticides to toxicity identification evaluation procedures. Fourteen insecticides, one degradation product, and one synergist were spiked into organic-grade water and carried through toxicity identification evaluation procedures. Concentrations of each compound were analyzed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. During Phase I, the water sample was pumped through a C-8 solid-phase extraction cartridge and then eluted with methanol. Dimethoate was not removed by the extraction, but remained in the rinsate. In contrast, permethrin was removed by the extraction, but was not recovered by the methanol elution, and 80 percent of the permethrin remained on the cartridge, teflon tubing, and glassware. Chlorpyrifos also was not recovered completely with the methanol elution (only 62 percent was recovered). The other insecticides were extracted by C-8 solid-phase extraction cartridge and recovered by elution with methanol (80 percent or greater). During Phase II, a new spiked water sample was extracted by C-8 solid-phase extraction cartridge and then eluted with varying concentrations of methanol and water into different fractions. Each methanol:water fraction was analyzed for the added compounds. Most of the insecticides eluted in two fractions, with concentrations of 10 percent or greater. The largest number of insecticides eluted in the 75 percent methanol:water fraction.

  2. 14 CFR 1212.202 - Identification procedures.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 5 2011-01-01 2010-01-01 true Identification procedures. 1212.202 Section 1212.202 Aeronautics and Space NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION PRIVACY ACT-NASA REGULATIONS Access to Records § 1212.202 Identification procedures. (a) The system manager will release...

  3. 14 CFR 1212.202 - Identification procedures.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 5 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Identification procedures. 1212.202 Section 1212.202 Aeronautics and Space NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION PRIVACY ACT-NASA REGULATIONS Access to Records § 1212.202 Identification procedures. (a) The system manager will release...

  4. Development of a toxicity identification evaluation procedure for characterizing metal toxicity in marine sediments

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

    Burgess, R.M.; Cantwell, M.G.; Pelletier, M.C.

    2000-04-01

    A multiagency effort is underway to develop whole sediment toxicity identification evaluation (TIE) methods. Whole sediment TIE methods will be critical tools for characterizing toxicity at hazardous waste sites and in the conduct of environmental risk assessments. The research approach is based on the predominance of three classes of toxicants in sediments: ammonia, nonpolar organic chemicals, and metals. Here the authors describe a procedure for characterizing acute toxicity caused by metals in whole marine sediments. The procedure involves adding a chelating resin to sediments, resulting in the sequestration of bioavailable metal while not stressing testing organisms. Within the testing chambers,more » the presence of resin resulted in statistically significant reductions in the overlying and interstitial water concentrations of five metals (cadmium, copper, nickel, lead, and zinc) generally by factors of 40 and 200. Toxicity to both the amphipod Ampelisca abdita and mysid Americamysis bahia (formerly Mysidopsis bahia) of sediments spiked with the five metals was decreased by approximately a factor of four when resin was present. While very effective at reducing the concentrations and toxicity of metals, the resin has only minor ameliorative effects on the toxicity of ammonia and a representative nonpolar toxicant (Endosulfan). Resin and accumulated metal were easily isolated from the testing system following exposures allowing for the initiation of phase II TIE (identification) procedures. This procedure using the addition of a chelating resin provides an approach for determining the importance of metals to the toxicity of marine sediments. Work is continuing to validate the method with environmentally contaminated sediments.« less

  5. Viewing videotaped identification procedure increases juror sensitivity to single-blind photo-array administration.

    PubMed

    Modjadidi, Karima; Kovera, Margaret Bull

    2018-06-01

    We investigated whether watching a videotaped photo array administration or expert testimony could sensitize jurors to the suggestiveness of single-blind eyewitness identification procedures. Mock jurors recruited from the community (N = 231) watched a videotaped simulation of a robbery trial in which the primary evidence against the defendant was an eyewitness identification. We varied whether the witness made an identification from a single- or double-blind photo array, the evidence included a videotape of the photo array procedure, and an expert testified about the effects of single-blind identification procedures on administrators' behaviors and witness accuracy. Watching the videotaped photo array administration sensitized mock jurors to the suggestiveness of the single-blind procedure, causing them to be less likely to convict a defendant identified through single-rather than double-blind procedures. Exposure to the videotaped procedure also decreased the favorability of mock jurors' ratings of the eyewitness, irrespective of whether the lineup was conducted by a single-blind administrator. Expert testimony did not sensitize jurors to administrator bias. Thus, videotaping identification procedures could serve as an important procedural reform that both preserves a record of whether the lineup administration was suggestive and might improve jurors' evaluations of eyewitness evidence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

  6. Face-off: A new identification procedure for child eyewitnesses.

    PubMed

    Price, Heather L; Fitzgerald, Ryan J

    2016-09-01

    In 2 experiments, we introduce a new "face-off" procedure for child eyewitness identifications. The new procedure, which is premised on reducing the stimulus set size, was compared with the showup and simultaneous procedures in Experiment 1 and with modified versions of the simultaneous and elimination procedures in Experiment 2. Several benefits of the face-off procedure were observed: it was significantly more diagnostic than the showup procedure; it led to significantly more correct rejections of target-absent lineups than the simultaneous procedures in both experiments, and it led to greater information gain than the modified elimination and simultaneous procedures. The face-off procedure led to consistently more conservative responding than the simultaneous procedures in both experiments. Given the commonly cited concern that children are too lenient in their decision criteria for identification tasks, the face-off procedure may offer a concrete technique to reduce children's high choosing rates. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

  7. Mock-juror evaluations of traditional and ratings-based eyewitness identification evidence.

    PubMed

    Sauer, James D; Palmer, Matthew A; Brewer, Neil

    2017-08-01

    Compared to categorical identifications, culprit likelihood ratings (having the witness rate, for each lineup member, the likelihood that the individual is the culprit) provide a promising alternative for assessing a suspect's likely guilt. Four experiments addressed 2 broad questions about the use of culprit likelihood ratings evidence by mock-jurors. First, are mock-jurors receptive to noncategorical forms of identification evidence? Second, does the additional information provided by ratings (relating to discrimination) affect jurors' evaluations of the identification evidence? Experiments 1 and 1A manipulated confidence (90% vs. 50%) and discrimination (good, poor, no information) between participants. Evaluations were influenced by confidence, but not discrimination. However, a within-participant manipulation of discrimination (Experiment 2) demonstrated that evidence of good discrimination enhanced the persuasiveness of moderate levels of confidence, while poor discrimination reduced the persuasiveness of high levels of confidence. Thus, participants can interpret ratings-based evidence, but may not intuit the discrimination information when evaluating ratings for a single identification procedure. Providing detailed instructions about interpreting ratings produced clear discrimination effects when evaluating a single identification procedure (Experiment 3). Across 4 experiments, we found no evidence that mock-jurors perceived noncategorical identification evidence to be less informative than categorical evidence. However, jurors will likely benefit from instruction when interpreting ratings provided by a single witness. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

  8. Non-intrusive parameter identification procedure user's guide

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hanson, G. D.; Jewell, W. F.

    1983-01-01

    Written in standard FORTRAN, NAS is capable of identifying linear as well as nonlinear relations between input and output parameters; the only restriction is that the input/output relation be linear with respect to the unknown coefficients of the estimation equations. The output of the identification algorithm can be specified to be in either the time domain (i.e., the estimation equation coefficients) or in the frequency domain (i.e., a frequency response of the estimation equation). The frame length ("window") over which the identification procedure is to take place can be specified to be any portion of the input time history, thereby allowing the freedom to start and stop the identification procedure within a time history. There also is an option which allows a sliding window, which gives a moving average over the time history. The NAS software also includes the ability to identify several assumed solutions simultaneously for the same or different input data.

  9. A survey on the utility of the USEPA CADDIS stressor identification procedure.

    PubMed

    Harwood, John J; Stroud, Robert Adam

    2012-06-01

    The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has made available on the worldwide web a systematic stream stressor identification procedure, the "Causal Analysis/Diagnosis Decision Information System" or CADDIS. We report here the results of a survey of regulators and scientists in 11 states who use CADDIS or another stressor identification procedure in their work. The 13 survey questions address guidelines as to what impairment scenarios to approach with stressor identification, what information is needed to perform stressor identification, and what the stakeholder role is in performing stressor identification. At the time of this survey (the summer of 2009), the EPA CADDIS website was less commonly used among the state regulators surveyed than the published EPA stressor identification document on which it is based. The respondents generally find the EPA stressor identification procedure useful and capable of being adapted to their individual needs. Survey respondents all use stressor identification in their Total Maximum Daily Load work, but also in a wide variety of other applications. All the "types of evidence" included in the CADDIS stressor identification procedure are used by the practitioners surveyed with the exception of the results of ecological simulation models. While the CADDIS documentation encourages the involvement of stakeholders in stressor identification, most respondents do not assemble stakeholder teams of local officials and citizens to participate in stressor analyses.

  10. [Rapid identification of microorganisms by mass spectrometry in a blood culture system. Comparison of two procedures].

    PubMed

    Cattani, María E; Posse, Tamara; Hermes, Ricardo L; Kaufman, Sara C

    2015-01-01

    Rapid identification of microorganisms is critical in hospitalized infected patients. Blood culture is currently the gold standard for detecting and identifying microorganisms causing bacteremia or sepsis. The introduction of mass spectrometry by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF MS) in microbiology laboratories, especially in microorganisms growing in blood culture bottles, provides rapid identification. This study evaluates the performance of the Maldi Sepsityper Biotyper procedure (hereinafter, MS) compared to that of an in-home method (hereinafter, HF). Eight hundred and forty (840) positive blood culture bottles were processed using the HF procedure, 542 of which were also processed using MS. The organisms were identified in 670 (79.76%) and 391 (72.14%) bottles respectively (p = 0,0013). This study demonstrates the effectiveness of both procedures for identifying microorganisms directly from positive blood culture bottles. However, the HF procedure proved to be more effective than MS, especially in the presence of Gram positive organisms. Copyright © 2015 Asociación Argentina de Microbiología. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

  11. Identification procedure for epistemic uncertainties using inverse fuzzy arithmetic

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Haag, T.; Herrmann, J.; Hanss, M.

    2010-10-01

    For the mathematical representation of systems with epistemic uncertainties, arising, for example, from simplifications in the modeling procedure, models with fuzzy-valued parameters prove to be a suitable and promising approach. In practice, however, the determination of these parameters turns out to be a non-trivial problem. The identification procedure to appropriately update these parameters on the basis of a reference output (measurement or output of an advanced model) requires the solution of an inverse problem. Against this background, an inverse method for the computation of the fuzzy-valued parameters of a model with epistemic uncertainties is presented. This method stands out due to the fact that it only uses feedforward simulations of the model, based on the transformation method of fuzzy arithmetic, along with the reference output. An inversion of the system equations is not necessary. The advancement of the method presented in this paper consists of the identification of multiple input parameters based on a single reference output or measurement. An optimization is used to solve the resulting underdetermined problems by minimizing the uncertainty of the identified parameters. Regions where the identification procedure is reliable are determined by the computation of a feasibility criterion which is also based on the output data of the transformation method only. For a frequency response function of a mechanical system, this criterion allows a restriction of the identification process to some special range of frequency where its solution can be guaranteed. Finally, the practicability of the method is demonstrated by covering the measured output of a fluid-filled piping system by the corresponding uncertain FE model in a conservative way.

  12. Effect of zeolite on toxicity of ammonia in freshwater sediments: Implications for toxicity identification evaluation procedures

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Besser, J.M.; Ingersoll, C.G.; Leonard, E.N.; Mount, D.R.

    1998-01-01

    Techniques for reducing ammonia toxicity in freshwater sediments were investigated as part of a project to develop toxicity identification and evaluation (TIE) procedures for whole sediments. Although ammonia is a natural constituent of freshwater sediments, pollution can lead to ammonia concentrations that are toxic to benthic invertebrates, and ammonia can also contribute to the toxicity of sediments that contain more persistent contaminants. We investigated the use of amendments of a natural zeolite mineral, clinoptilolite, to reduce concentrations of ammonia in sediment pore water. Zeolites have been widely used for removal of ammonia in water treatment and in aqueous TIE procedures. The addition of granulated zeolite to ammonia-spiked sediments reduced pore-water ammonia concentrations and reduced ammonia toxicity to invertebrates. Amendments of 20% zeolite (v/v) reduced ammonia concentrations in pore water by ???70% in spiked sediments with ammonia concentrations typical of contaminated freshwater sediments. Zeolite amendments reduced toxicity of ammonia-spiked sediments to three taxa of benthic invertebrates (Hyalella azteca, Lumbriculus variegatus, and Chironomus tentans), despite their widely differing sensitivity to ammonia toxicity. In contrast, zeolite amendments did not reduce acute toxicity of sediments containing high concentrations of cadmium or copper or reduce concentrations of these metals in pore waters. These studies suggest that zeolite amendments, used in conjunction with toxicity tests with sensitive taxa such as H. azteca, may be an effective technique for selective reduction of ammonia toxicity in freshwater sediments.

  13. Assessment of Supercritical Fluid Extraction Use in Whole Sediment Toxicity Identification Evaluations

    EPA Science Inventory

    In this investigation, supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) with pure CO2 was assessed as a confirmatory tool in Phase III of whole sediment toxicity identification evaluations (TIEs). The SFE procedure was assessed on two reference sediments and three contaminated sediments usi...

  14. Application of GIS-based Procedure on Slopeland Use Classification and Identification

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    KU, L. C.; LI, M. C.

    2016-12-01

    In Taiwan, the "Slopeland Conservation and Utilization Act" regulates the management of the slopelands. It categorizes the slopeland into land suitable for agricultural or animal husbandry, land suitable for forestry and land for enhanced conservation, according to the environmental factors of average slope, effective soil depth, soil erosion and parental rock. Traditionally, investigations of environmental factors require cost-effective field works. It has been confronted with many practical issues such as non-evaluated cadastral parcels, evaluation results depending on expert's opinion, difficulties in field measurement and judgment, and time consuming. This study aimed to develop a GIS-based procedure involved in the acceleration of slopeland use classification and quality improvement. First, the environmental factors of slopelands were analyzed by GIS and SPSS software. The analysis involved with the digital elevation model (DEM), soil depth map, land use map and satellite images. Second, 5% of the analyzed slopelands were selected to perform the site investigations and correct the results of classification. Finally, a 2nd examination was involved by randomly selected 2% of the analyzed slopelands to perform the accuracy evaluation. It was showed the developed procedure is effective in slopeland use classification and identification. Keywords: Slopeland Use Classification, GIS, Management

  15. 18 CFR 701.304 - Procedures for identification of individuals making requests.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 2 2013-04-01 2012-04-01 true Procedures for identification of individuals making requests. 701.304 Section 701.304 Conservation of Power and Water Resources WATER RESOURCES COUNCIL COUNCIL ORGANIZATION Protection of Privacy § 701.304 Procedures for...

  16. 18 CFR 701.304 - Procedures for identification of individuals making requests.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 2 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Procedures for identification of individuals making requests. 701.304 Section 701.304 Conservation of Power and Water Resources WATER RESOURCES COUNCIL COUNCIL ORGANIZATION Protection of Privacy § 701.304 Procedures for...

  17. 18 CFR 701.304 - Procedures for identification of individuals making requests.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Procedures for identification of individuals making requests. 701.304 Section 701.304 Conservation of Power and Water Resources WATER RESOURCES COUNCIL COUNCIL ORGANIZATION Protection of Privacy § 701.304 Procedures for...

  18. 18 CFR 701.304 - Procedures for identification of individuals making requests.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 2 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Procedures for identification of individuals making requests. 701.304 Section 701.304 Conservation of Power and Water Resources WATER RESOURCES COUNCIL COUNCIL ORGANIZATION Protection of Privacy § 701.304 Procedures for...

  19. 18 CFR 701.304 - Procedures for identification of individuals making requests.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 2 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Procedures for identification of individuals making requests. 701.304 Section 701.304 Conservation of Power and Water Resources WATER RESOURCES COUNCIL COUNCIL ORGANIZATION Protection of Privacy § 701.304 Procedures for...

  20. APPLYING TOXICITY IDENTIFICATION PROCEDURES TO FIELD COLLECTED SEDIMENTS

    EPA Science Inventory

    Identification of specific causes of sediment toxicity can allow for much more focused risk assessment and management decision making. We have been developing toxicity identification evaluation (TIE) methods for contaminated sediments and focusing on three toxicant groups (ammoni...

  1. 48 CFR 45.202 - Evaluation procedures.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Evaluation procedures. 45... MANAGEMENT GOVERNMENT PROPERTY Solicitation and Evaluation Procedures 45.202 Evaluation procedures. (a) The... evaluation purposes only, a rental equivalent evaluation factor. (b) The contracting officer shall ensure the...

  2. An Evaluation of Alternative Screening Procedures.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Reid, Carol; Romanoff, Brenda; Algozzine, Bob; Udall, Ann

    2000-01-01

    This study compared the Problem Solving Assessment (PSA) procedure, an application based on Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences, with more traditional criteria for the identification of minority students for gifted education programs. Although positive correlations among approaches and intelligences were observed, different groups of…

  3. Evaluation of concrete cover by surface wave technique: Identification procedure

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Piwakowski, Bogdan; Kaczmarek, Mariusz; Safinowski, Paweł

    2012-05-01

    Concrete cover degradation is induced by aggressive agents in ambiance, such as moisture, chemicals or temperature variations. Due to degradation usually a thin (a few millimeters thick) surface layer has porosity slightly higher than the deeper sound material. The non destructive evaluation of concrete cover is vital to monitor the integrity of concrete structures and prevent their irreversible damage. In this paper the methodology applied by the classical technique used for ground structure recovery called Multichanel Analysis of Surface Waves is discussed as the NDT tool in civil engineering domain to characterize the concrete cover. In order to obtain the velocity as a function of sample depth the dispersion of surface waves is used as an input for solving inverse problem. The paper describes the inversion procedure and provides the practical example of use of developed system.

  4. Written Identification of Errors to Learn Professional Procedures in VET

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Boldrini, Elena; Cattaneo, Alberto

    2013-01-01

    Research has demonstrated that the use of worked-out examples to present errors has great potential for procedural knowledge acquirement. Nevertheless, the identification of errors alone does not directly enhance a deep learning process if it is not adequately scaffolded by written self-explanations. We hypothesised that in learning a professional…

  5. 34 CFR 300.304 - Evaluation procedures.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... Educational Placements Evaluations and Reevaluations § 300.304 Evaluation procedures. (a) Notice. The public... conducting the evaluation, the public agency must— (1) Use a variety of assessment tools and strategies to... evaluation procedures. Each public agency must ensure that— (1) Assessments and other evaluation materials...

  6. RESULTS OF APPLYING TOXICITY IDENTIFICATION PROCEDURES TO FIELD COLLECTED SEDIMENTS

    EPA Science Inventory

    Identification of specific causes of sediment toxicity can allow for much more focused risk assessment and management decision making. We have been developing toxicity identification evaluation TIE) methods for contaminated sediments and are focusing on three toxicant groups (amm...

  7. 34 CFR 300.304 - Evaluation procedures.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... Placements Evaluations and Reevaluations § 300.304 Evaluation procedures. (a) Notice. The public agency must... evaluation, the public agency must— (1) Use a variety of assessment tools and strategies to gather relevant... procedures. Each public agency must ensure that— (1) Assessments and other evaluation materials used to...

  8. Linking information needs with evaluation: the role of task identification.

    PubMed Central

    Weir, C. R.

    1998-01-01

    Action Identification Theory was used to explore user's subjective constructions of information tasks in a primary care setting. The first part of the study involved collecting clinician's descriptions of their information tasks. These items were collated and then rated by another larger group of clinicians. Results clearly identified 6 major information tasks, including communication, patient assessment, work monitoring, seeking science information, compliance with policies and procedures, and data integration. Results discussed in terms of implications for evaluation and assessing information needs in a clinical setting. PMID:9929232

  9. Evaluation of a methodology for model identification in the time domain

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Beck, R. T.; Beck, J. L.

    1988-01-01

    A model identification methodology for structural dynamics has been applied to simulated vibrational data as a first step in evaluating its accuracy. The evaluation has taken into account a wide variety of factors which affect the accuracy of the procedure. The effects of each of these factors were observed in both the response time histories and the estimates of the parameters of the model by comparing them with the exact values of the system. Each factor was varied independently but combinations of these have also been considered in an effort to simulate real situations. The results of the tests have shown that for the chain model, the procedure yields robust estimates of the stiffness parameters under the conditions studied whenever uniqueness is ensured. When inaccuracies occur in the results, they are intimately related to non-uniqueness conditions inherent in the inverse problem and not to shortcomings in the methodology.

  10. Evaluation of patient wristbands and patient identification process in a training hospital in Turkey.

    PubMed

    Cengiz, Canan; Celik, Yusuf; Hikmet, Neset

    2016-10-10

    Purpose The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the utilisation of patient wristbands (PWs) and patient identification (PI) process in a training hospital in Ankara, Turkey. Design/methodology/approach This descriptive and cross-sectional study was conducted in a training hospital with 640 beds, accreditied by Joint Commission International. The views of 348 patients and 419 hospital personnel on the implementation of patient wristbands and identification process were evaluated. Findings The results indicated that lack of information among patients about the importance of PWs and the misknowledge among staff participants on when, where, and by whom PWs should be put on and verified were the weakest points in this hospital. Research limitations/implications PI process must be strictly implemented according to the standard procedures of patient safety. Both patients and hospital personnel should be trained continuously, and training sessions must be held to increase their awareness about the importance of PWs and identification process. Practical implications Finding new ways and using new methods for increasing knowledge about PI and PWs are necessary. Hospital management should prepare a written PI and PW policy and procedure documents by taking the views of patients and hospital personnel and share these with them. Originality/value This study incorporates the views and attitudes of patients and health care personnel in improving health care quality by increasing awareness about PI and wristbands.

  11. Evaluative procedures to detect, characterize, and assess the severity of diabetic neuropathy.

    PubMed

    Dyck, P J

    1991-01-01

    Minimal criteria for diabetic neuropathy need to be defined and universally applied. Standardized evaluative procedures need to be agreed and normal ranges determined from healthy volunteers. Types and stages of neuropathy should be established and assessments performed on representative populations of both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetic patients. Potential minimal criteria include absent ankle reflexes and vibratory sensation, and abnormalities of nerve conduction. However, the preferred criterion is the identification of more than two statistically defined abnormalities among symptoms and deficits, nerve conduction, quantitative sensory examination or quantitative autonomic examination. Various evaluative procedures are available. Symptoms should be assessed and scores can be assigned to neurological deficits. However, assessments of nerve conduction provide the most specific, objective, sensitive, and repeatable procedures, although these may be the least meaningful. Many techniques are available for quantitative sensory examination, but are poorly standardized and normal values are not available. For quantitative autonomic examination, tests are available for the adequacy of cardiovascular and peripheral vascular reflexes and increasingly for other autonomic functions. In any assessment of nerve function the conditions should be optimized and standardized, and stimuli defined. Specific instructions should be given and normal ranges established in healthy volunteers.

  12. Modified extraction procedure for gas-liquid chromatography applied to the identification of anaerobic bacteria.

    PubMed Central

    Thomann, W R; Hill, G B

    1986-01-01

    Chloroform and ether commonly are used as solvents to extract metabolic organic acids for analysis by gas-liquid chromatography in the identification of anaerobic bacteria. Because these solvents are potentially hazardous to personnel, modified extraction procedures involving the use of a safer solvent, methyl tert-butyl ether were developed which remained both simple to perform and effective for organism identification. PMID:3700623

  13. The grain-size lineup: A test of a novel eyewitness identification procedure.

    PubMed

    Horry, Ruth; Brewer, Neil; Weber, Nathan

    2016-04-01

    When making a memorial judgment, respondents can regulate their accuracy by adjusting the precision, or grain size, of their responses. In many circumstances, coarse-grained responses are less informative, but more likely to be accurate, than fine-grained responses. This study describes a novel eyewitness identification procedure, the grain-size lineup, in which participants eliminated any number of individuals from the lineup, creating a choice set of variable size. A decision was considered to be fine-grained if no more than 1 individual was left in the choice set or coarse-grained if more than 1 individual was left in the choice set. Participants (N = 384) watched 2 high-quality or low-quality videotaped mock crimes and then completed 4 standard simultaneous lineups or 4 grain-size lineups (2 target-present and 2 target-absent). There was some evidence of strategic regulation of grain size, as the most difficult lineup was associated with a greater proportion of coarse-grained responses than the other lineups. However, the grain-size lineup did not outperform the standard simultaneous lineup. Fine-grained suspect identifications were no more diagnostic than suspect identifications from standard lineups, whereas coarse-grained suspect identifications carried little probative value. Participants were generally reluctant to provide coarse-grained responses, which may have hampered the utility of the procedure. For a grain-size approach to be useful, participants may need to be trained or instructed to use the coarse-grained option effectively. (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

  14. Evaluation of site plan review procedures.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    1988-01-01

    The site plan review procedures of the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) were evaluated. The objectives of the evaluation were to recommend (1) a set of site plan review procedures including a checklist, (2) definitions of the roles and re...

  15. Army Blast Claims Evaluation Procedures

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1994-03-01

    ARMY RESEARCH LABORATORY ARL-MR-131 Army Blast Claims Evaluation Procedures William P. Wright APPROVED FOR PUBUC RELEASE; DISTRIBtmON IS...NUMBERS Anny Blast Claims Evaluation Procedures 4G061-304-U2 6. AUTHOR(S) William P. Wrisht 1. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) 8...of the technical review process which bas been instituted to develop an opinion as to Army responsibility. 14. SUBJECT TERMS blast effects. muzzle

  16. Major System Source Evaluation and Selection Procedures.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1987-04-02

    A-RIBI I" MAJOR SYSTEM SOURCE EVALUATION AND SELECTION PROCEDURES / (U) BUSINESS MANAGEMENT RESEARCH ASSOCIATES INC ARLINGTON VA 02 APR 6? ORMC-5...BRMC-85-5142-1 0 I- MAJOR SYSTEM SOURCE EVALUATION AND SELECTION PROCEDURES o I Business Management Research Associates, Inc. 1911 Jefferson Davis...FORCE SOURCE EVALUATION AND SELECTI ON PROCEDURES Prepared by Business Management Research Associates, Inc., 1911 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington

  17. USE OF POWDERED COCONUT CHARCOAL AS A TOXICITY IDENTIFICATION AND EVALUATION MANIPULATION FOR ORGANIC TOXICANTS IN MARINE SEDIMENTS

    EPA Science Inventory

    We report on a procedure using powdered coconut charcoal to sequester organic contaminants and reduce toxicity in sediments as part of a series of toxicity identification and evaluation (TIE) methods. Powdered coconut charcoal (PCC) was effective in reducing the toxicity of endos...

  18. Evaluation of multiple comparison correction procedures in drug assessment studies using LORETA maps.

    PubMed

    Alonso, Joan Francesc; Romero, Sergio; Mañanas, Miguel Ángel; Rojas, Mónica; Riba, Jordi; Barbanoj, Manel José

    2015-10-01

    The identification of the brain regions involved in the neuropharmacological action is a potential procedure for drug development. These regions are commonly determined by the voxels showing significant statistical differences after comparing placebo-induced effects with drug-elicited effects. LORETA is an electroencephalography (EEG) source imaging technique frequently used to identify brain structures affected by the drug. The aim of the present study was to evaluate different methods for the correction of multiple comparisons in the LORETA maps. These methods which have been commonly used in neuroimaging and also simulated studies have been applied on a real case of pharmaco-EEG study where the effects of increasing benzodiazepine doses on the central nervous system measured by LORETA were investigated. Data consisted of EEG recordings obtained from nine volunteers who received single oral doses of alprazolam 0.25, 0.5, and 1 mg, and placebo in a randomized crossover double-blind design. The identification of active regions was highly dependent on the selected multiple test correction procedure. The combined criteria approach known as cluster mass was useful to reveal that increasing drug doses led to higher intensity and spread of the pharmacologically induced changes in intracerebral current density.

  19. [Evaluation of mass spectrometry: MALDI-TOF MS for fast and reliable yeast identification].

    PubMed

    Relloso, María S; Nievas, Jimena; Fares Taie, Santiago; Farquharson, Victoria; Mujica, María T; Romano, Vanesa; Zarate, Mariela S; Smayevsky, Jorgelina

    2015-01-01

    The matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry technique known as MALDI-TOF MS is a tool used for the identification of clinical pathogens by generating a protein spectrum that is unique for a given species. In this study we assessed the identification of clinical yeast isolates by MALDI-TOF MS in a university hospital from Argentina and compared two procedures for protein extraction: a rapid method and a procedure based on the manufacturer's recommendations. A short protein extraction procedure was applied in 100 isolates and the rate of correct identification at genus and species level was 98.0%. In addition, we analyzed 201 isolates, previously identified by conventional methods, using the methodology recommended by the manufacturer and there was 95.38% coincidence in the identification at species level. MALDI TOF MS showed to be a fast, simple and reliable tool for yeast identification. Copyright © 2014 Asociación Argentina de Microbiología. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

  20. A unified framework for evaluating the risk of re-identification of text de-identification tools.

    PubMed

    Scaiano, Martin; Middleton, Grant; Arbuckle, Luk; Kolhatkar, Varada; Peyton, Liam; Dowling, Moira; Gipson, Debbie S; El Emam, Khaled

    2016-10-01

    It has become regular practice to de-identify unstructured medical text for use in research using automatic methods, the goal of which is to remove patient identifying information to minimize re-identification risk. The metrics commonly used to determine if these systems are performing well do not accurately reflect the risk of a patient being re-identified. We therefore developed a framework for measuring the risk of re-identification associated with textual data releases. We apply the proposed evaluation framework to a data set from the University of Michigan Medical School. Our risk assessment results are then compared with those that would be obtained using a typical contemporary micro-average evaluation of recall in order to illustrate the difference between the proposed evaluation framework and the current baseline method. We demonstrate how this framework compares against common measures of the re-identification risk associated with an automated text de-identification process. For the probability of re-identification using our evaluation framework we obtained a mean value for direct identifiers of 0.0074 and a mean value for quasi-identifiers of 0.0022. The 95% confidence interval for these estimates were below the relevant thresholds. The threshold for direct identifier risk was based on previously used approaches in the literature. The threshold for quasi-identifiers was determined based on the context of the data release following commonly used de-identification criteria for structured data. Our framework attempts to correct for poorly distributed evaluation corpora, accounts for the data release context, and avoids the often optimistic assumptions that are made using the more traditional evaluation approach. It therefore provides a more realistic estimate of the true probability of re-identification. This framework should be used as a basis for computing re-identification risk in order to more realistically evaluate future text de-identification tools

  1. 34 CFR 303.323 - Nondiscriminatory procedures.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... Services Identification and Evaluation § 303.323 Nondiscriminatory procedures. Each lead agency shall adopt... qualified personnel. (Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control number 1820-0550...

  2. 28 CFR 513.11 - Procedures for requesting a FBI identification record or a NCIC/III record.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Procedures for requesting a FBI..., DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE GENERAL MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION ACCESS TO RECORDS Production or Disclosure of FBI/NCIC Information § 513.11 Procedures for requesting a FBI identification record or a NCIC/III record...

  3. 28 CFR 513.11 - Procedures for requesting a FBI identification record or a NCIC/III record.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Procedures for requesting a FBI..., DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE GENERAL MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION ACCESS TO RECORDS Production or Disclosure of FBI/NCIC Information § 513.11 Procedures for requesting a FBI identification record or a NCIC/III record...

  4. 28 CFR 513.11 - Procedures for requesting a FBI identification record or a NCIC/III record.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Procedures for requesting a FBI..., DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE GENERAL MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION ACCESS TO RECORDS Production or Disclosure of FBI/NCIC Information § 513.11 Procedures for requesting a FBI identification record or a NCIC/III record...

  5. 28 CFR 513.11 - Procedures for requesting a FBI identification record or a NCIC/III record.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Procedures for requesting a FBI..., DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE GENERAL MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION ACCESS TO RECORDS Production or Disclosure of FBI/NCIC Information § 513.11 Procedures for requesting a FBI identification record or a NCIC/III record...

  6. 28 CFR 513.11 - Procedures for requesting a FBI identification record or a NCIC/III record.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Procedures for requesting a FBI..., DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE GENERAL MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION ACCESS TO RECORDS Production or Disclosure of FBI/NCIC Information § 513.11 Procedures for requesting a FBI identification record or a NCIC/III record...

  7. Evaluation of the Microbial Identification System for identification of clinically isolated yeasts.

    PubMed Central

    Crist, A E; Johnson, L M; Burke, P J

    1996-01-01

    The Microbial Identification System (MIS; Microbial ID, Inc., Newark, Del.) was evaluated for the identification of 550 clinically isolated yeasts. The organisms evaluated were fresh clinical isolates identified by methods routinely used in our laboratory (API 20C and conventional methods) and included Candida albicans (n = 294), C. glabrata (n = 145), C. tropicalis (n = 58), C. parapsilosis (n = 33), and other yeasts (n = 20). In preparation for fatty acid analysis, yeasts were inoculated onto Sabouraud dextrose agar and incubated at 28 degrees C for 24 h. Yeasts were harvested, saponified, derivatized, and extracted, and fatty acid analysis was performed according to the manufacturer's instructions. Fatty acid profiles were analyzed, and computer identifications were made with the Yeast Clinical Library (database version 3.8). Of the 550 isolates tested, 374 (68.0%) were correctly identified to the species level, with 87 (15.8%) being incorrectly identified and 89 (16.2%) giving no identification. Repeat testing of isolates giving no identification resulted in an additional 18 isolates being correctly identified. This gave the MIS an overall identification rate of 71.3%. The most frequently misidentified yeast was C. glabrata, which was identified as Saccharomyces cerevisiae 32.4% of the time. On the basis of these results, the MIS, with its current database, does not appear suitable for the routine identification of clinically important yeasts. PMID:8880489

  8. Evaluation of the utility of a glycemic pattern identification system.

    PubMed

    Otto, Erik A; Tannan, Vinay

    2014-07-01

    With the increasing prevalence of systems allowing automated, real-time transmission of blood glucose data there is a need for pattern recognition techniques that can inform of deleterious patterns in glycemic control when people test. We evaluated the utility of pattern identification with a novel pattern identification system named Vigilant™ and compared it to standard pattern identification methods in diabetes. To characterize the importance of an identified pattern we evaluated the relative risk of future hypoglycemic and hyperglycemic events in diurnal periods following identification of a pattern in a data set of 536 patients with diabetes. We evaluated events 2 days, 7 days, 30 days, and 61-90 days from pattern identification, across diabetes types and cohorts of glycemic control, and also compared the system to 6 pattern identification methods consisting of deleterious event counts and percentages over 5-, 14-, and 30-day windows. Episodes of hypoglycemia, hyperglycemia, severe hypoglycemia, and severe hyperglycemia were 120%, 46%, 123%, and 76% more likely after pattern identification, respectively, compared to periods when no pattern was identified. The system was also significantly more predictive of deleterious events than other pattern identification methods evaluated, and was persistently predictive up to 3 months after pattern identification. The system identified patterns that are significantly predictive of deleterious glycemic events, and more so relative to many pattern identification methods used in diabetes management today. Further study will inform how improved pattern identification can lead to improved glycemic control. © 2014 Diabetes Technology Society.

  9. 29 CFR 1956.22 - Procedures for evaluation and monitoring.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 29 Labor 9 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Procedures for evaluation and monitoring. 1956.22 Section 1956.22 Labor Regulations Relating to Labor (Continued) OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION..., Change, Evaluation and Withdrawal of Approval Procedures § 1956.22 Procedures for evaluation and...

  10. Evaluation of Automated Yeast Identification System

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    McGinnis, M. R.

    1996-01-01

    One hundred and nine teleomorphic and anamorphic yeast isolates representing approximately 30 taxa were used to evaluate the accuracy of the Biolog yeast identification system. Isolates derived from nomenclatural types, environmental, and clinica isolates of known identity were tested in the Biolog system. Of the isolates tested, 81 were in the Biolog database. The system correctly identified 40, incorrectly identified 29, and was unable to identify 12. Of the 28 isolates not in the database, 18 were given names, whereas 10 were not. The Biolog yeast identification system is inadequate for the identification of yeasts originating from the environment during space program activities.

  11. TOXICITY IDENTIFICATION EVALUATION (TIE) RESULTS FOR METAL CONTAMINATED SEDIMENTS

    EPA Science Inventory

    Identification of contaminants in sediment is necessary for sound management decisions on sediment disposal, remediation, determination of ecological risk, and source identification. We have been developing sediment toxicity identification evaluation (TIE) techniques that allow ...

  12. Automatic Car Identification - an Evaluation

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    1972-03-01

    In response to a Federal Railroad Administration request, the Transportation Systems Center evaluated the Automatic Car Identification System (ACI) used on the nation's railroads. The ACI scanner was found to be adequate for reliable data output whil...

  13. Development and evaluation of a de-identification procedure for a case register sourced from mental health electronic records.

    PubMed

    Fernandes, Andrea C; Cloete, Danielle; Broadbent, Matthew T M; Hayes, Richard D; Chang, Chin-Kuo; Jackson, Richard G; Roberts, Angus; Tsang, Jason; Soncul, Murat; Liebscher, Jennifer; Stewart, Robert; Callard, Felicity

    2013-07-11

    Electronic health records (EHRs) provide enormous potential for health research but also present data governance challenges. Ensuring de-identification is a pre-requisite for use of EHR data without prior consent. The South London and Maudsley NHS Trust (SLaM), one of the largest secondary mental healthcare providers in Europe, has developed, from its EHRs, a de-identified psychiatric case register, the Clinical Record Interactive Search (CRIS), for secondary research. We describe development, implementation and evaluation of a bespoke de-identification algorithm used to create the register. It is designed to create dictionaries using patient identifiers (PIs) entered into dedicated source fields and then identify, match and mask them (with ZZZZZ) when they appear in medical texts. We deemed this approach would be effective, given high coverage of PI in the dedicated fields and the effectiveness of the masking combined with elements of a security model. We conducted two separate performance tests i) to test performance of the algorithm in masking individual true PIs entered in dedicated fields and then found in text (using 500 patient notes) and ii) to compare the performance of the CRIS pattern matching algorithm with a machine learning algorithm, called the MITRE Identification Scrubber Toolkit - MIST (using 70 patient notes - 50 notes to train, 20 notes to test on). We also report any incidences of potential breaches, defined by occurrences of 3 or more true or apparent PIs in the same patient's notes (and in an additional set of longitudinal notes for 50 patients); and we consider the possibility of inferring information despite de-identification. True PIs were masked with 98.8% precision and 97.6% recall. As anticipated, potential PIs did appear, owing to misspellings entered within the EHRs. We found one potential breach. In a separate performance test, with a different set of notes, CRIS yielded 100% precision and 88.5% recall, while MIST yielded a 95.1% and

  14. 40 CFR Appendix Xviii to Part 86 - Statistical Outlier Identification Procedure for Light-Duty Vehicles and Light Light-Duty Trucks...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 19 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Statistical Outlier Identification... (CONTINUED) Pt. 86, App. XVIII Appendix XVIII to Part 86—Statistical Outlier Identification Procedure for..., but suffer theoretical deficiencies if statistical significance tests are required. Consequently, the...

  15. 40 CFR Appendix Xviii to Part 86 - Statistical Outlier Identification Procedure for Light-Duty Vehicles and Light Light-Duty Trucks...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 19 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Statistical Outlier Identification... (CONTINUED) Pt. 86, App. XVIII Appendix XVIII to Part 86—Statistical Outlier Identification Procedure for..., but suffer theoretical deficiencies if statistical significance tests are required. Consequently, the...

  16. An automatic identification procedure to promote the use of FES-cycling training for hemiparetic patients.

    PubMed

    Ambrosini, Emilia; Ferrante, Simona; Schauer, Thomas; Ferrigno, Giancarlo; Molteni, Franco; Pedrocchi, Alessandra

    2014-01-01

    Cycling induced by Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) training currently requires a manual setting of different parameters, which is a time-consuming and scarcely repeatable procedure. We proposed an automatic procedure for setting session-specific parameters optimized for hemiparetic patients. This procedure consisted of the identification of the stimulation strategy as the angular ranges during which FES drove the motion, the comparison between the identified strategy and the physiological muscular activation strategy, and the setting of the pulse amplitude and duration of each stimulated muscle. Preliminary trials on 10 healthy volunteers helped define the procedure. Feasibility tests on 8 hemiparetic patients (5 stroke, 3 traumatic brain injury) were performed. The procedure maximized the motor output within the tolerance constraint, identified a biomimetic strategy in 6 patients, and always lasted less than 5 minutes. Its reasonable duration and automatic nature make the procedure usable at the beginning of every training session, potentially enhancing the performance of FES-cycling training.

  17. 29 CFR 1956.22 - Procedures for evaluation and monitoring.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ..., Change, Evaluation and Withdrawal of Approval Procedures § 1956.22 Procedures for evaluation and... enforcement authority under section 18(e) of the Act is not relevant to Phase II and III monitoring under...

  18. 42 CFR 422.502 - Evaluation and determination procedures.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... SERVICES (CONTINUED) MEDICARE PROGRAM MEDICARE ADVANTAGE PROGRAM Application Procedures and Contracts for Medicare Advantage Organizations § 422.502 Evaluation and determination procedures. (a) Basis for...

  19. 28 CFR 104.31 - Procedure for claims evaluation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Procedure for claims evaluation. 104.31 Section 104.31 Judicial Administration DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE (CONTINUED) SEPTEMBER 11TH VICTIM... any required documents. (b) Procedural tracks. Each claim will be placed on a procedural track...

  20. 28 CFR 104.31 - Procedure for claims evaluation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Procedure for claims evaluation. 104.31 Section 104.31 Judicial Administration DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE (CONTINUED) SEPTEMBER 11TH VICTIM... any required documents. (b) Procedural tracks. Each claim will be placed on a procedural track...

  1. A framework for the evaluation of new interventional procedures.

    PubMed

    Lourenco, Tania; Grant, Adrian M; Burr, Jennifer M; Vale, Luke

    2012-03-01

    The introduction of new interventional procedures is less regulated than for other health technologies such as pharmaceuticals. Decisions are often taken on evidence of efficacy and short-term safety from small-scale usually observational studies. This reflects the particular challenges of evaluating interventional procedures - the extra facets of skill and training and the difficulty defining a 'new' technology. Currently, there is no framework to evaluate new interventional procedures before they become available in clinical practice as opposed to new pharmaceuticals. This paper proposes a framework to guide the evaluation of a new interventional procedure. A framework was developed consisting of a four-stage progressive evaluation for a new interventional procedure: Stage 1: Development; Stage 2: Efficacy and short-term safety; Stage 3: Effectiveness and cost-effectiveness; and Stage 4: Implementation. The framework also suggests the types of studies or data collection methods that can be used to satisfy each stage. This paper makes a first step on a framework for generating evidence on new interventional procedures. The difficulties and limitations of applying such a framework are discussed. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. Preschoolers' Person Description and Identification Accuracy: A Comparison of the Simultaneous and Elimination Lineup Procedures

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pozzulo, Joanna D.; Dempsey, Julie; Crescini, Charmagne

    2009-01-01

    Preschoolers' (3- to 6-year-olds) person description and identification abilities were examined using the simultaneous and elimination lineup procedures. Participants (N = 100) were exposed to a 20-minute mask-making session conducted by a female confederate who acted as the mask-making teacher. After a brief delay (20 min), participants were…

  3. [Evaluation of ergonomic load of clinical nursing procedures].

    PubMed

    Yan, P; Zhang, L; Li, F Y; Yang, Y; Wang, Y N; Huang, A M; Dai, Y L; Yao, H

    2017-08-20

    Objective: To evaluate the ergonomic load of clinical nursing procedures and to provide evidence for the prevention and management of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) in nurses. Methods: Based on the nursing unit characteristics and the common departments involving patient-turning procedures, 552 nurses were selected from 6 clinical departments from July to September, 2016. The ergonomic load of four types of patient-turning procedures, i.e., turning the patient's body, changing the bed linen of in-bed patients, moving patients, and chest physiotherapy, was evaluated by the on-site inspectors and self-evaluated by the operators using the Quick Exposure Check. The exposure value, exposure level, and exposure rate of WMSDs were assessed based on the procedure-related physical loads on the back, shoulders/arms, wrists/hands and neck, as well as the loads from work rhythm and work pressure. Results: All surveyed subjects were females who were aged mostly between 26-30 years (49.46%) , with a mean age of 29.66±5.28 years. These nurses were mainly from the Department of Infection (28.99%) and Spine Surgery (21.56%) . There were significant differences in the back, shoulders/arms, neck, work rhythm, and work pressure scores between different nursing procedures ( F =16.613, 5.884, 3.431, 3.222, and 5.085, respectively; P <0.05) . Patient-turning nursing procedures resulted in high to intermediate physical load in nurses. Procedures with high to low level of WMSDs exposure were patient turning (72.69%) , bed linen changing (67.15%) , patient transfer (65.82%) , and chest physiotherapy (58.34%) . In particular, patient turning was considered as very high-risk procedure, whereas others were considered as high-risk procedures. Conclusion: Patient-turning nursing procedures result in high ergonomic load in the operators. Therefore, more focus should be placed on the ergonomics of the caretakers and nurses.

  4. A new tool for the evaluation of the analytical procedure: Green Analytical Procedure Index.

    PubMed

    Płotka-Wasylka, J

    2018-05-01

    A new means for assessing analytical protocols relating to green analytical chemistry attributes has been developed. The new tool, called GAPI (Green Analytical Procedure Index), evaluates the green character of an entire analytical methodology, from sample collection to final determination, and was created using such tools as the National Environmental Methods Index (NEMI) or Analytical Eco-Scale to provide not only general but also qualitative information. In GAPI, a specific symbol with five pentagrams can be used to evaluate and quantify the environmental impact involved in each step of an analytical methodology, mainly from green through yellow to red depicting low, medium to high impact, respectively. The proposed tool was used to evaluate analytical procedures applied in the determination of biogenic amines in wine samples, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon determination by EPA methods. GAPI tool not only provides an immediately perceptible perspective to the user/reader but also offers exhaustive information on evaluated procedures. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  5. SEDIMENT TOXICITY IDENTIFICATION EVALUATION (TIE) ...

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    Sediment contamination in the United States has been amply documented and, in order to comply with the 1972 Clean Water Act, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency must address the issue of toxic sediments. Contaminated sediments from a number of freshwater and marine sites have demonstrated acute and/or chronic toxicity to a variety of test species, as well as adverse ecological effects such as population declines and changes in community structure. However, simply knowing that a sediment is toxic has limited use. This document provides guidance on the performance of sediment Toxicity Identification and Evaluation (TIE). TIE methods allow for the identification of toxic chemicals or chemical classes causing observed toxicity. The identification of pollutants responsible for toxicity of contaminated sediments has broad application in a number of EPA programs as the methods can be used within the total maximum daily load (TMDL) framework, to link sediment toxicity to specific dischargers, to design cost-effective remediation programs, and to identify environmentally protective options for dredged material disposal. In addition, the identification of specific problem contaminants in sediments could prove to be very useful to EPA programs involved in the development of water or sediment quality guidelines, and the registration of new products such as pesticides. Finally, knowledge of the causes of toxicity that influence ecological changes such as community struc

  6. Evaluation of (GTG)5-PCR for identification of Enterococcus spp.

    PubMed

    Svec, Pavel; Vancanneyt, Marc; Seman, Milan; Snauwaert, Cindy; Lefebvre, Karen; Sedlácek, Ivo; Swings, Jean

    2005-06-01

    A set of reference strains and a group of previously unidentified enterococci were analysed by rep-PCR with the (GTG)(5) primer to evaluate the discriminatory power and suitability of this method for typing and identification of enterococcal species. A total of 49 strains representing all validly described species were obtained from bacterial collections. For more extensive evaluation of this identification approach 112 well-defined and identified enterococci isolated from bryndza cheese were tested. The (GTG)(5)-PCR fingerprinting assigned all strains into well-differentiated clusters representing individual species. Subsequently, a group including 44 unidentified enterococci isolated from surface waters was analysed to evaluate this method for identification of unknown isolates. Obtained band patterns allowed us to identify all the strains clearly to the species level. This study proved that rep-PCR with (GTG)(5) primer is a reliable and fast method for species identification of enterococci.

  7. Evaluation of phase II toxicity identification evaluation methods for freshwater whole sediment and interstitial water.

    PubMed

    Phillips, Bryn M; Anderson, Brian S; Hunt, John W; Clark, Sara L; Voorhees, Jennifer P; Tjeerdema, Ron S; Casteline, Jane; Stewart, Margaret

    2009-02-01

    Phase I whole sediment toxicity identification evaluation (TIE) methods have been developed to characterize the cause of toxicity as organic chemicals, metals, or ammonia. In Phase II identification treatments, resins added to whole sediment to reduce toxicity caused by metals and organics can be separated and eluted much like solid-phase extraction (SPE) columns are eluted for interstitial water. In this study, formulated reference sediments spiked with toxic concentrations of copper, fluoranthene, and nonylphenol were subjected to whole sediment and interstitial water TIE treatments to evaluate Phase I and II TIE procedures for identifying the cause of toxicity to Hyalella azteca. Phase I TIE treatments consisted of adding adsorbent resins to whole sediment, and using SPE columns to remove spiked chemicals from interstitial water. Phase II treatments consisted of eluting resins and SPE columns and the preparation and testing of eluates for toxicity and chemistry. Whole sediment resins and SPE columns significantly reduced toxicity, and the eluates from all treatments contained toxic concentrations of the spiked chemical except for interstitial water fluoranthene. Toxic unit analysis based on median lethal concentrations (LC50s) allowed for the comparison of chemical concentrations among treatments, and demonstrated that the bioavailability of some chemicals was reduced in some samples and treatments. The concentration of fluoranthene in the resin eluate closely approximated the original interstitial water concentration, but the resin eluate concentrations of copper and nonylphenol were much higher than the original interstitial water concentrations. Phase II whole sediment TIE treatments provided complementary lines of evidence to the interstitial water TIE results.

  8. [Research progress on identification and quality evaluation of glues medicines].

    PubMed

    Li, Hui-Hu; Ren, Gang; Chen, Li-Min; Zhong, Guo-Yue

    2018-01-01

    Glues medicines is a special kind of traditional Chinese medicine.As the market demand is large, the raw materials are in short supply and lacks proper quality evaluation technology, which causes inconsistent quality of products on the market. Its authentic identification and evaluation stay a problem to be solved. In this paper, the research progress of the methods and techniques of the evaluation of the identification and quality of glues medicines were reviewed. The researches of medicinal glue type identification and quality evaluation mainly concentrated in four aspects of medicinal materials of physical and chemical properties, trace elements, organic chemicals and biological genetic methods and techniques. The methods of physicochemical properties include thermal analysis, gel electrophoresis, isoelectric focusing electrophoresis, infrared spectroscopy, gel exclusion chromatography, and circular dichroism. The methods including atomic absorption spectrometry, X-ray fluorescence spectrometry, plasma emission spectrometry and visible spectrophotometry were used for the study of the trace elements of glues medicines. The organic chemical composition was studied by methods of composition of amino acids, content detection, odor detection, lipid soluble component, organic acid detection. Methods based on the characteristics of biogenetics include DNA, polypeptide and amino acid sequence difference analysis. Overall, because of relative components similarity of the glues medicines (such as amino acids, proteins and peptides), its authenticity and quality evaluation index is difficult to judge objectively, all sorts of identification evaluation methods have different characteristics, but also their limitations. It indicates that further study should focus on identification of evaluation index and various technology integrated application combining with the characteristics of the production process. Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.

  9. From the patient to the clinical mycology laboratory: how can we optimise microscopy and culture methods for mould identification?

    PubMed

    Vyzantiadis, Timoleon-Achilleas A; Johnson, Elizabeth M; Kibbler, Christopher C

    2012-06-01

    The identification of fungi relies mainly on morphological criteria. However, there is a need for robust and definitive phenotypic identification procedures in order to evaluate continuously evolving molecular methods. For the future, there is an emerging consensus that a combined (phenotypic and molecular) approach is more powerful for fungal identification, especially for moulds. Most of the procedures used for phenotypic identification are based on experience rather than comparative studies of effectiveness or performance and there is a need for standardisation among mycology laboratories. This review summarises and evaluates the evidence for the major existing phenotypic identification procedures for the predominant causes of opportunistic mould infection. We have concentrated mainly on Aspergillus, Fusarium and mucoraceous mould species, as these are the most important clinically and the ones for which there are the most molecular taxonomic data.

  10. Procedural justice, supervisor autonomy support, work satisfaction, organizational identification and job performance: the mediating role of need satisfaction and perceived organizational support.

    PubMed

    Gillet, Nicolas; Colombat, Philippe; Michinov, Estelle; Pronost, Anne-Marie; Fouquereau, Evelyne

    2013-11-01

    To test a model linking procedural justice, supervisor autonomy support, need satisfaction, organizational support, work satisfaction, organizational identification and job performance. Research in industrial and organizational psychology has shown that procedural justice and supervisor autonomy support lead to positive outcomes. However, very little research related to this subject has been conducted in healthcare settings. Moreover, few studies have examined mechanisms that could account for these positive relationships. A cross-sectional correlational design was used. Convenience sampling was used and a sample of 500 nurses working in haematology, oncology and haematology/oncology units in France was surveyed in 2011. The final sample consisted of 323 nurses (64.6% response rate). The hypothesized model was tested using structural equation modelling. Procedural justice and supervisor autonomy support significantly and positively influenced need satisfaction and perceived organizational support, which in turn positively predicted work satisfaction, organizational identification and job performance. Organizations could deliver training programmes for their managers aimed at enhancing the use of fair procedures in allocating outcomes and developing their autonomy-supportive behaviours to improve nurses' work satisfaction, organizational identification and job performance. © 2013 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

  11. Evaluation of two commercial procedures for rapid identification of Neisseria gonorrhoeae using a reference panel of antigenically diverse gonococci.

    PubMed Central

    Boehm, D M; Bernhardt, M; Kurzynski, T A; Pennell, D R; Schell, R F

    1990-01-01

    Two commercial tests for the rapid identification of Neisseria gonorrhoeae were evaluated. Two hundred seventy-nine organisms were tested, including 202 strains of N. gonorrhoeae. The Syva MicroTrak test results were less subjective but required a fluorescence microscope. The Phadebact Monoclonal GC OMNI Test required modification of the manufacturer's interpretive instructions in order to avoid cross-reactions, but it was a practical test. Specificities of both tests were 100%. Sensitivities of the Phadebact Monoclonal GC OMNI and Syva MicroTrak tests were 100% and approximately 100%, respectively. PMID:2121792

  12. Audit of transfusion procedures in 660 hospitals. A College of American Pathologists Q-Probes study of patient identification and vital sign monitoring frequencies in 16494 transfusions.

    PubMed

    Novis, David A; Miller, Karen A; Howanitz, Peter J; Renner, Stephen W; Walsh, Molly K

    2003-05-01

    Hemolytic transfusion reactions are often the result of failure to follow established identification and monitoring procedures. To measure the frequencies with which health care workers completed specific transfusion procedures required for laboratory and blood bank accreditation. In 2 separate studies, participants in the College of American Pathologists Q-Probes laboratory quality improvement program audited nonemergent red blood cell transfusions prospectively and completed questionnaires profiling their institutions' transfusion policies. A total of 660 institutions, predominantly in the United States, at which transfusion medicine services are provided. The percentages of transfusions for which participants completed 4 specific components of patient and blood unit identifications, and for which participants monitored vital signs at 3 specific intervals during transfusions. In the first study, all components of patient identification procedures were performed in 62.3%, and all required patient vital sign monitoring was performed in 81.6% of 12 448 transfusions audited. The median frequencies with which institutions participating in the first study performed all patient identification and monitoring procedures were 69.0% and 90.2%, respectively. In the second study, all components of patient identification were performed in 25.4% and all patient vital sign monitoring was performed in 88.3% of 4046 transfusions audited. The median frequencies with which institutions participating in the second study performed all patient identification and monitoring procedures were 10.0% and 95.0%, respectively. Individual practices and/or institutional policies associated with greater frequencies of patient identification and/or vital sign monitoring included transporting units of blood directly to patient bedsides, having no more than 1 individual handle blood units in route, checking unit labels against physicians' orders, having patients wear identification tags (wristbands

  13. NHEXAS PHASE I MARYLAND STUDY--STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE FOR IDENTIFICATION NUMBERS FOR SAMPLES AND FORMS (G03)

    EPA Science Inventory

    The purpose of this SOP is to indicate the proper method for assigning unique Identification Numbers for all samples taken and forms used in the collection of NHEXAS Pilot Studies. All data tracking procedures were built upon these ID numbers. Inspection of these ID numbers pro...

  14. 22 CFR 96.100 - Procedures for evaluating applicants for temporary accreditation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ...) Procedures and Standards Relating to Temporary Accreditation § 96.100 Procedures for evaluating applicants... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Procedures for evaluating applicants for... entity must: (1) Review the agency's written application and supporting documentation; and (2) Verify the...

  15. Bus service evaluation procedures : a review

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    1979-03-01

    The report presents the results of a literature review and survey of 71 transit properties in the U. S. and Canada regarding bus service evaluation procedures currently in use. The focus of the study was to identify service performance indicators and...

  16. Exploration of Terminal Procedures Enabled by NASA Wake VAS Technologies

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Lunsford, Clark R.; Smith, Arthur P., III; Cooper, Wayne W., Jr.; Mundra, Anand D.; Gross, Amy E.; Audenaerd, Laurence F.; Killian, Bruce E.

    2004-01-01

    The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) tasked The MITRE Corporation's Center for Advanced Aviation System Development (CAASD) to investigate potential air traffic control (ATC) procedures that could benefit from technology used or developed in NASA's Wake Vortex Advisory System (WakeVAS). The task also required developing an estimate of the potential benefits of the candidate procedures. The main thrust of the investigation was to evaluate opportunities for improved capacity and efficiency in airport arrival and departure operations. Other procedures that would provide safety enhancements were also considered. The purpose of this investigation was to provide input to the WakeVAS program office regarding the most promising areas of development for the program. A two-fold perspective was desired: First, identification of benefits from possible procedures enabled by both incremental components and the mature state of WakeVAS technology; second identification of procedures that could be expected to evolve from the current Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) procedures. The evolution of procedures should provide meaningful increments of benefit and a low risk implementation of the WakeVAS technologies.

  17. Systematic Evaluation of Professional Performance: Legally Supported Procedure and Process.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kerl, Stella Beatriz; Garcia, John L.; McCullough, C. Sue; Maxwell, Melissa Elaine

    2002-01-01

    Legal challenges to counseling students' dismissal that are based on interpersonal or clinical incompetence require sound systematic academic evaluation and adherence to procedural and substantive due process. Presents an examination of professional competency from counselor education and legal perspectives, an evaluation procedure and process,…

  18. Considerations for Incorporating Bioavailability in Effect-Directed Analysis and Toxicity Identification Evaluation.

    EPA Science Inventory

    In order to avoid a bias toward highly toxic but poorly bioavailable compounds in the effect-directed analysis (EDA) of soils and sediments, approaches are discussed to consider bioavailability in EDA procedures. In parallel, complimentary approaches for making toxicity identific...

  19. Evaluating common de-identification heuristics for personal health information.

    PubMed

    El Emam, Khaled; Jabbouri, Sam; Sams, Scott; Drouet, Youenn; Power, Michael

    2006-11-21

    With the growing adoption of electronic medical records, there are increasing demands for the use of this electronic clinical data in observational research. A frequent ethics board requirement for such secondary use of personal health information in observational research is that the data be de-identified. De-identification heuristics are provided in the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act Privacy Rule, funding agency and professional association privacy guidelines, and common practice. The aim of the study was to evaluate whether the re-identification risks due to record linkage are sufficiently low when following common de-identification heuristics and whether the risk is stable across sample sizes and data sets. Two methods were followed to construct identification data sets. Re-identification attacks were simulated on these. For each data set we varied the sample size down to 30 individuals, and for each sample size evaluated the risk of re-identification for all combinations of quasi-identifiers. The combinations of quasi-identifiers that were low risk more than 50% of the time were considered stable. The identification data sets we were able to construct were the list of all physicians and the list of all lawyers registered in Ontario, using 1% sampling fractions. The quasi-identifiers of region, gender, and year of birth were found to be low risk more than 50% of the time across both data sets. The combination of gender and region was also found to be low risk more than 50% of the time. We were not able to create an identification data set for the whole population. Existing Canadian federal and provincial privacy laws help explain why it is difficult to create an identification data set for the whole population. That such examples of high re-identification risk exist for mainstream professions makes a strong case for not disclosing the high-risk variables and their combinations identified here. For professional subpopulations with published

  20. Evaluating Common De-Identification Heuristics for Personal Health Information

    PubMed Central

    Jabbouri, Sam; Sams, Scott; Drouet, Youenn; Power, Michael

    2006-01-01

    Background With the growing adoption of electronic medical records, there are increasing demands for the use of this electronic clinical data in observational research. A frequent ethics board requirement for such secondary use of personal health information in observational research is that the data be de-identified. De-identification heuristics are provided in the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act Privacy Rule, funding agency and professional association privacy guidelines, and common practice. Objective The aim of the study was to evaluate whether the re-identification risks due to record linkage are sufficiently low when following common de-identification heuristics and whether the risk is stable across sample sizes and data sets. Methods Two methods were followed to construct identification data sets. Re-identification attacks were simulated on these. For each data set we varied the sample size down to 30 individuals, and for each sample size evaluated the risk of re-identification for all combinations of quasi-identifiers. The combinations of quasi-identifiers that were low risk more than 50% of the time were considered stable. Results The identification data sets we were able to construct were the list of all physicians and the list of all lawyers registered in Ontario, using 1% sampling fractions. The quasi-identifiers of region, gender, and year of birth were found to be low risk more than 50% of the time across both data sets. The combination of gender and region was also found to be low risk more than 50% of the time. We were not able to create an identification data set for the whole population. Conclusions Existing Canadian federal and provincial privacy laws help explain why it is difficult to create an identification data set for the whole population. That such examples of high re-identification risk exist for mainstream professions makes a strong case for not disclosing the high-risk variables and their combinations identified here

  1. Issues and Recommendations: A Report of the Learning Disabilities Task Force on Definition, Criteria and Identification Procedures.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Iowa State Dept. of Education, Des Moines. Bureau of Special Education.

    The report, developed by a special Iowa task force, examined issues of definition, criteria, and identification procedures for learning disabilities as a point of departure for the examination of current practices affecting learning disabled students in Iowa. The committee's working definintion of learning disabilities is presented as a basis for…

  2. Identification of microbes from the surfaces of food-processing lines based on the flow cytometric evaluation of cellular metabolic activity combined with cell sorting.

    PubMed

    Juzwa, W; Duber, A; Myszka, K; Białas, W; Czaczyk, K

    2016-09-01

    In this study the design of a flow cytometry-based procedure to facilitate the detection of adherent bacteria from food-processing surfaces was evaluated. The measurement of the cellular redox potential (CRP) of microbial cells was combined with cell sorting for the identification of microorganisms. The procedure enhanced live/dead cell discrimination owing to the measurement of the cell physiology. The microbial contamination of the surface of a stainless steel conveyor used to process button mushrooms was evaluated in three independent experiments. The flow cytometry procedure provided a step towards monitoring of contamination and enabled the assessment of microbial food safety hazards by the discrimination of active, mid-active and non-active bacterial sub-populations based on determination of their cellular vitality and subsequently single cell sorting to isolate microbial strains from discriminated sub-populations. There was a significant correlation (r = 0.97; p < 0.05) between the bacterial cell count estimated by the pour plate method and flow cytometry, despite there being differences in the absolute number of cells detected. The combined approach of flow cytometric CRP measurement and cell sorting allowed an in situ analysis of microbial cell vitality and the identification of species from defined sub-populations, although the identified microbes were limited to culturable cells.

  3. Evaluation of a procedure for reducing vehicle-tree accidents.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    1987-01-01

    A procedure for reducing vehicle-tree accidents was evaluated. The procedure, developed by the Michigan Department of Transportation, consists of five steps: (1) preparing a base map and plotting roadway information, (2) assigning priorities for fiel...

  4. Learning Disability Identification Consistency: The Impact of Methodology and Student Evaluation Data

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Maki, Kathrin E.; Burns, Matthew K.; Sullivan, Amanda

    2017-01-01

    Learning disability (LD) identification has long been controversial and has undergone substantive reform. This study examined the consistency of school psychologists' LD identification decisions across three identification methods and across student evaluation data conclusiveness levels. Data were collected from 376 practicing school psychologists…

  5. Evaluation and treatment of failed shoulder instability procedures.

    PubMed

    Ho, Anthony G; Gowda, Ashok L; Michael Wiater, J

    2016-09-01

    Management of the unstable shoulder after a failed stabilization procedure can be difficult and challenging. Detailed understanding of the native shoulder anatomy, including its static and dynamic restraints, is necessary for determining the patient's primary pathology. In addition, evaluation of the patient's history, physical exam, and imaging is important for identifying the cause for failure after the initial procedure. Common mistakes include under-appreciation of bony defects, failure to recognize capsular laxity, technical errors, and missed associated pathology. Many potential treatment options exist for revision surgery, including open or arthroscopic Bankart repair, bony augmentation procedures, and management of Hill Sachs defects. The aim of this narrative review is to discuss in-depth the common risk factors for post-surgical failure, components for appropriate evaluation, and the different surgical options available for revision stabilization. Level of evidence Level V.

  6. Identification of Printed Nonsense Words for an Individual with Autism: A Comparison of Constant Time Delay and Stimulus Fading

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Redhair, Emily

    2011-01-01

    This study compared a stimulus fading (SF) procedure with a constant time delay (CTD) procedure for identification of consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC) nonsense words for a participant with autism. An alternating treatments design was utilized through a computer-based format. Receptive identification of target words was evaluated using a computer…

  7. Identification of Printed Nonsense Words for an Individual with Autism: A Comparison of Constant Time Delay and Stimulus Fading

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Redhair, Emily I.; McCoy, Kathleen M.; Zucker, Stanley H.; Mathur, Sarup R.; Caterino, Linda

    2013-01-01

    This study compared a stimulus fading (SF) procedure with a constant time delay (CTD) procedure for identification of consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC) nonsense words for a participant with autism. An alternating treatments design was utilized through a computer-based format. Receptive identification of target words was evaluated using a computer…

  8. IMBLMS phase B4, additional tasks 5.0. Microbial identification system

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1971-01-01

    A laboratory study was undertaken to provide simplified procedures leading to the presumptive identification (I/D) of defined microorganisms on-board an orbiting spacecraft. Identifications were to be initiated by nonprofessional bacteriologists, (crew members) on a contingency basis only. Key objectives/constraints for this investigation were as follows:(1) I/D procedures based on limited, defined diagnostic tests, (2) testing oriented about ten selected microorganisms, (3) provide for definitive I/D key and procedures per selected organism, (4) define possible occurrences of false positives for the resulting I/D key by search of the appropriate literature, and (5) evaluation of the I/D key and procedure through a limited field trial on randomly selected subjects using the I/D key.

  9. Performance Evaluation and Parameter Identification on DROID III

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Plumb, Julianna J.

    2011-01-01

    The DROID III project consisted of two main parts. The former, performance evaluation, focused on the performance characteristics of the aircraft such as lift to drag ratio, thrust required for level flight, and rate of climb. The latter, parameter identification, focused on finding the aerodynamic coefficients for the aircraft using a system that creates a mathematical model to match the flight data of doublet maneuvers and the aircraft s response. Both portions of the project called for flight testing and that data is now available on account of this project. The conclusion of the project is that the performance evaluation data is well-within desired standards but could be improved with a thrust model, and that parameter identification is still in need of more data processing but seems to produce reasonable results thus far.

  10. Evaluation Procedures in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Career Ladder Plan.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Schlechty, Phillip C.

    1985-01-01

    Describes faculty evaluation procedures used in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg (North Carolina) Public Schools in conjunction with career development. Covers the program's philosophy, purposes, and special characteristics; expectations set and competencies sought; the areas evaluation; evaluator characteristics; the observation process; teachers'…

  11. False discovery rates in spectral identification.

    PubMed

    Jeong, Kyowon; Kim, Sangtae; Bandeira, Nuno

    2012-01-01

    Automated database search engines are one of the fundamental engines of high-throughput proteomics enabling daily identifications of hundreds of thousands of peptides and proteins from tandem mass (MS/MS) spectrometry data. Nevertheless, this automation also makes it humanly impossible to manually validate the vast lists of resulting identifications from such high-throughput searches. This challenge is usually addressed by using a Target-Decoy Approach (TDA) to impose an empirical False Discovery Rate (FDR) at a pre-determined threshold x% with the expectation that at most x% of the returned identifications would be false positives. But despite the fundamental importance of FDR estimates in ensuring the utility of large lists of identifications, there is surprisingly little consensus on exactly how TDA should be applied to minimize the chances of biased FDR estimates. In fact, since less rigorous TDA/FDR estimates tend to result in more identifications (at higher 'true' FDR), there is often little incentive to enforce strict TDA/FDR procedures in studies where the major metric of success is the size of the list of identifications and there are no follow up studies imposing hard cost constraints on the number of reported false positives. Here we address the problem of the accuracy of TDA estimates of empirical FDR. Using MS/MS spectra from samples where we were able to define a factual FDR estimator of 'true' FDR we evaluate several popular variants of the TDA procedure in a variety of database search contexts. We show that the fraction of false identifications can sometimes be over 10× higher than reported and may be unavoidably high for certain types of searches. In addition, we further report that the two-pass search strategy seems the most promising database search strategy. While unavoidably constrained by the particulars of any specific evaluation dataset, our observations support a series of recommendations towards maximizing the number of resulting

  12. Rotorcraft system identification techniques for handling qualities and stability and control evaluation

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hall, W. E., Jr.; Gupta, N. K.; Hansen, R. S.

    1978-01-01

    An integrated approach to rotorcraft system identification is described. This approach consists of sequential application of (1) data filtering to estimate states of the system and sensor errors, (2) model structure estimation to isolate significant model effects, and (3) parameter identification to quantify the coefficient of the model. An input design algorithm is described which can be used to design control inputs which maximize parameter estimation accuracy. Details of each aspect of the rotorcraft identification approach are given. Examples of both simulated and actual flight data processing are given to illustrate each phase of processing. The procedure is shown to provide means of calibrating sensor errors in flight data, quantifying high order state variable models from the flight data, and consequently computing related stability and control design models.

  13. 76 FR 27016 - Evaluating Test Procedures for Voting Systems

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-05-10

    ...-02] Evaluating Test Procedures for Voting Systems AGENCY: National Institute of Standards and... Assistance Commission for use by NIST in research to develop and assess NIST's test procedures for voting... develop and assess NIST test protocols for voting equipment. NIST research is designed to: (1) Develop...

  14. A 1.5 hour procedure for identification of Enterococcus Species directly from blood cultures.

    PubMed

    Morgan, Margie A; Marlowe, Elizabeth; Novak-Weekly, Susan; Miller, J M; Painter, T M; Salimnia, Hossein; Crystal, Benjamin

    2011-02-10

    Enterococci are a common cause of bacteremia with E. faecalis being the predominant species followed by E. faecium. Because resistance to ampicillin and vancomycin in E. faecalis is still uncommon compared to resistance in E. faecium, the development of rapid tests allowing differentiation between enterococcal species is important for appropriate therapy and resistance surveillance. The E. faecalis OE PNA FISH assay (AdvanDx, Woburn, MA) uses species-specific peptide nucleic acid (PNA) probes in a fluorescence in situ hybridization format and offers a time to results of 1.5 hours and the potential of providing important information for species-specific treatment. Multicenter studies were performed to assess the performance of the 1.5 hour E. faecalis/OE PNA FISH procedure compared to the original 2.5 hour assay procedure and to standard bacteriology methods for the identification of enterococci directly from a positive blood culture bottle.

  15. A 1.5 Hour Procedure for Identification of Enterococcus Species Directly from Blood Cultures

    PubMed Central

    Morgan, Margie A.; Marlowe, Elizabeth; Novak-Weekly, Susan; Miller, J.M.; Painter, T.M.; Salimnia, Hossein; Crystal, Benjamin

    2011-01-01

    Enterococci are a common cause of bacteremia with E. faecalis being the predominant species followed by E. faecium. Because resistance to ampicillin and vancomycin in E. faecalis is still uncommon compared to resistance in E. faecium, the development of rapid tests allowing differentiation between enterococcal species is important for appropriate therapy and resistance surveillance. The E. faecalis OE PNA FISH assay (AdvanDx, Woburn, MA) uses species-specific peptide nucleic acid (PNA) probes in a fluorescence in situ hybridization format and offers a time to results of 1.5 hours and the potential of providing important information for species-specific treatment. Multicenter studies were performed to assess the performance of the 1.5 hour E. faecalis/OE PNA FISH procedure compared to the original 2.5 hour assay procedure and to standard bacteriology methods for the identification of enterococci directly from a positive blood culture bottle. PMID:21339730

  16. Identification and evaluation of software measures

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Card, D. N.

    1981-01-01

    A large scale, systematic procedure for identifying and evaluating measures that meaningfully characterize one or more elements of software development is described. The background of this research, the nature of the data involved, and the steps of the analytic procedure are discussed. An example of the application of this procedure to data from real software development projects is presented. As the term is used here, a measure is a count or numerical rating of the occurrence of some property. Examples of measures include lines of code, number of computer runs, person hours expended, and degree of use of top down design methodology. Measures appeal to the researcher and the manager as a potential means of defining, explaining, and predicting software development qualities, especially productivity and reliability.

  17. Student Services Program Planning and Evaluation: Responsibility, Procedures, Instrument, and Guidelines.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Repp, Charles A.; Brach, Ronald C.

    The manual provides a rationale, procedural guidelines, time-schedules, instruments, and supporting documentation for student services program evaluation at SUNY Agricultural and Technical College, Delhi. Six procedural guidelines include: (1) all programs and services should be evaluated at least once every four years, with provision for annual…

  18. Robust uncertainty evaluation for system identification on distributed wireless platforms

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Crinière, Antoine; Döhler, Michael; Le Cam, Vincent; Mevel, Laurent

    2016-04-01

    Health monitoring of civil structures by system identification procedures from automatic control is now accepted as a valid approach. These methods provide frequencies and modeshapes from the structure over time. For a continuous monitoring the excitation of a structure is usually ambient, thus unknown and assumed to be noise. Hence, all estimates from the vibration measurements are realizations of random variables with inherent uncertainty due to (unknown) process and measurement noise and finite data length. The underlying algorithms are usually running under Matlab under the assumption of large memory pool and considerable computational power. Even under these premises, computational and memory usage are heavy and not realistic for being embedded in on-site sensor platforms such as the PEGASE platform. Moreover, the current push for distributed wireless systems calls for algorithmic adaptation for lowering data exchanges and maximizing local processing. Finally, the recent breakthrough in system identification allows us to process both frequency information and its related uncertainty together from one and only one data sequence, at the expense of computational and memory explosion that require even more careful attention than before. The current approach will focus on presenting a system identification procedure called multi-setup subspace identification that allows to process both frequencies and their related variances from a set of interconnected wireless systems with all computation running locally within the limited memory pool of each system before being merged on a host supervisor. Careful attention will be given to data exchanges and I/O satisfying OGC standards, as well as minimizing memory footprints and maximizing computational efficiency. Those systems are built in a way of autonomous operations on field and could be later included in a wide distributed architecture such as the Cloud2SM project. The usefulness of these strategies is illustrated on

  19. Modeling procedures for handling qualities evaluation of flexible aircraft

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Govindaraj, K. S.; Eulrich, B. J.; Chalk, C. R.

    1981-01-01

    This paper presents simplified modeling procedures to evaluate the impact of flexible modes and the unsteady aerodynamic effects on the handling qualities of Supersonic Cruise Aircraft (SCR). The modeling procedures involve obtaining reduced order transfer function models of SCR vehicles, including the important flexible mode responses and unsteady aerodynamic effects, and conversion of the transfer function models to time domain equations for use in simulations. The use of the modeling procedures is illustrated by a simple example.

  20. Maintenance Procedure Display: Head Mounted Display (HMD) Evaluations

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Whitmore, Milrian; Litaker, Harry L., Jr.; Solem, Jody A.; Holden, Kritina L.; Hoffman, Ronald R.

    2007-01-01

    A viewgraph presentation describing maintenance procedures for head mounted displays is shown. The topics include: 1) Study Goals; 2) Near Eye Displays (HMDs); 3) Design; 4) Phase I-Evaluation Methods; 5) Phase 1 Results; 6) Improved HMD Mounting; 7) Phase 2 -Evaluation Methods; 8) Phase 2 Preliminary Results; and 9) Next Steps.

  1. Integration of genomic endpoints into toxicity identification evaluations

    EPA Science Inventory

    Toxicity identification and evaluations (TIEs) use physical/chemical manipulation of a sample to isolate or change the potency of different groups of toxicants potentially present in a sample. Organisms are then exposed to these fractions to determine if their toxicity has change...

  2. Evaluation of the PCR method for identification of Bifidobacterium species.

    PubMed

    Youn, S Y; Seo, J M; Ji, G E

    2008-01-01

    Bifidobacterium species are known for their beneficial effects on health and their wide use as probiotics. Although various polymerase chain reaction (PCR) methods for the identification of Bifidobacterium species have been published, the reliability of these methods remains open to question. In this study, we evaluated 37 previously reported PCR primer sets designed to amplify 16S rDNA, 23S rDNA, intergenic spacer regions, or repetitive DNA sequences of various Bifidobacterium species. Ten of 37 experimental primer sets showed specificity for B. adolescentis, B. angulatum, B. pseudocatenulatum, B. breve, B. bifidum, B. longum, B. longum biovar infantis and B. dentium. The results suggest that published Bifidobacterium primer sets should be re-evaluated for both reproducibility and specificity for the identification of Bifidobacterium species using PCR. Improvement of existing PCR methods will be needed to facilitate identification of other Bifidobacterium strains, such as B. animalis, B. catenulatum, B. thermophilum and B. subtile.

  3. Cross-national research on contractor evaluation procedures in public works procurement

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kinoshita, Seiya; Sato, Naoyoshi; Matsumoto, Naoya

    Contractor evaluation methods in Japan's public works procurement, beginning with construction business licensure, going through biennial preliminary firm rating, up to project-by-project prequalification and comprehensive point rating, were developed during the period when public works were mostly procured through designated competitive bidding. It is essential to focus attention on contractor evaluation methods for introducing different types of procurement procedures which enhance the use of technological capabilities held by private businesses. An overall review of contractor evaluation procedures should be conducted in view of the present situation, where the open competitive bidding has become mainly used in combination with comprehensive evaluation, as well as to allow for further diversification of procurement methods. In Western countries, improvements have been made for the past several years in contractor evaluation procedures with more emphasis on "Value for Money." Advanced efforts made by these countries will be useful as a reference for overhauling Japan's contractor evaluation system. This study conducts a comparative review of contractor evaluation procedures for public procurement in Western countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom and France by identifying similarities and differences between those of Japan and the above mentioned countries. This reveals that a contractor's technical or professional ability is looked at separately from its economic and financial standing in those countries studied, and there is no case like Japan in which those two factors are integrated into one for evaluation.

  4. Evaluation of molecular markers for Phytophthora ramorum detection and identification: testing for specificity using a standardized library of isolates.

    PubMed

    Martin, F N; Coffey, M D; Zeller, K; Hamelin, R C; Tooley, P; Garbelotto, M; Hughes, K J D; Kubisiak, T; Bilodeau, G J; Levy, L; Blomquist, C; Berger, P H

    2009-04-01

    Given the importance of Phytophthora ramorum from a regulatory standpoint, it is imperative that molecular markers for pathogen detection are fully tested to evaluate their specificity in detection of the pathogen. In an effort to evaluate 11 reported diagnostic techniques, we assembled a standardized DNA library using accessions from the World Phytophthora Genetic Resource Collection for 315 isolates representing 60 described Phytophthora spp. as well as 11 taxonomically unclassified isolates. These were sent blind to collaborators in seven laboratories to evaluate published diagnostic procedures using conventional (based on internal transcribed spacer [ITS] and cytochrome oxidase gene [cox]1 and 2 spacer regions) and real-time polymerase chain reaction (based on ITS and cox1 and 2 spacer regions as well as beta-tubulin and elicitin genes). Single-strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP) analysis using an automated sequencer for data collection was also evaluated for identification of all species tested. In general, the procedures worked well, with varying levels of specificity observed among the different techniques. With few exceptions, all assays correctly identified all isolates of P. ramorum and low levels of false positives were observed for the mitochondrial cox spacer markers and most of the real-time assays based on nuclear markers (diagnostic specificity between 96.9 and 100%). The highest level of false positives was obtained with the conventional nested ITS procedure; however, this technique is not stand-alone and is used in conjunction with two other assays for diagnostic purposes. The results indicated that using multiple assays improved the accuracy of the results compared with looking at a single assay alone, in particular when the markers represented different genetic loci. The SSCP procedure accurately identified P. ramorum and was helpful in classification of a number of isolates to a species level. With one exception, all procedures accurately

  5. Consensus-based cross-European recommendations for the identification, measurement and valuation of costs in health economic evaluations: a European Delphi study.

    PubMed

    van Lier, Lisanne I; Bosmans, Judith E; van Hout, Hein P J; Mokkink, Lidwine B; van den Hout, Wilbert B; de Wit, G Ardine; Dirksen, Carmen D; Nies, Henk L G R; Hertogh, Cees M P M; van der Roest, Henriëtte G

    2017-12-19

    Differences between country-specific guidelines for economic evaluations complicate the execution of international economic evaluations. The aim of this study was to develop cross-European recommendations for the identification, measurement and valuation of resource use and lost productivity in economic evaluations using a Delphi procedure. A comprehensive literature search was conducted to identify European guidelines on the execution of economic evaluations or costing studies as part of economic evaluations. Guideline recommendations were extracted by two independent reviewers and formed the basis for the first round of the Delphi study, which was conducted among European health economic experts. During three written rounds, consensus (agreement of 67% or higher) was sought on items concerning the identification, measurement and valuation of costs. Recommendations from 18 guidelines were extracted. Consensus among 26 panellists from 17 European countries was reached on 61 of 68 items. The recommendations from the Delphi study are to adopt a societal perspective, to use patient report for measuring resource use and lost productivity, to value both constructs with use of country-specific standardized/unit costs and to use country-specific discounting rates. This study provides consensus-based cross-European recommendations on how to measure and value resource use and lost productivity in economic evaluations. These recommendations are expected to support researchers, healthcare professionals, and policymakers in executing and appraising economic evaluations performed in international contexts.

  6. Evaluation Procedures for Training Psychotherapists in Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT).

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chevron, Eve S.; And Others

    The training of psychotherapists has been an ongoing process in psychiatry and clinical psychology. Recently, however, a growing demand to operationalize competence criteria to enable independent evaluation of therapists' skills in specifically defined psychotherapies has occurred. To examine this phenomenon, evaluation procedures were developed…

  7. The AME2016 atomic mass evaluation (I). Evaluation of input data; and adjustment procedures

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Huang, W. J.; Audi, G.; Wang, Meng; Kondev, F. G.; Naimi, S.; Xu, Xing

    2017-03-01

    This paper is the first of two articles (Part I and Part II) that presents the results of the new atomic mass evaluation, AME2016. It includes complete information on the experimental input data (also including unused and rejected ones), as well as details on the evaluation procedures used to derive the tables of recommended values given in the second part. This article describes the evaluation philosophy and procedures that were implemented in the selection of specific nuclear reaction, decay and mass-spectrometric results. These input values were entered in the least-squares adjustment for determining the best values for the atomic masses and their uncertainties. Details of the calculation and particularities of the AME are then described. All accepted and rejected data, including outweighted ones, are presented in a tabular format and compared with the adjusted values obtained using the least-squares fit analysis. Differences with the previous AME2012 evaluation are discussed and specific information is presented for several cases that may be of interest to AME users. The second AME2016 article gives a table with the recommended values of atomic masses, as well as tables and graphs of derived quantities, along with the list of references used in both the AME2016 and the NUBASE2016 evaluations (the first paper in this issue). AMDC: http://amdc.impcas.ac.cn/ Contents The AME2016 atomic mass evaluation (I). Evaluation of input data; and adjustment proceduresAcrobat PDF (1.2 MB) Table I. Input data compared with adjusted valuesAcrobat PDF (1.3 MB)

  8. Manufacturing Phenomena or Preserving Phenomena? Core Issues in the Identification of Peer Social Groups with Social Cognitive Mapping Procedures

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Farmer, Thomas W.; Xie, Hongling

    2013-01-01

    In this commentary on the "Multiple Meanings of Peer Groups in Social Cognitive Mapping," Thomas W. Farmer and Hongling Xie discuss core issues in the identification of peer social groups in natural settings using the social cognitive mapping (SCM) procedures. Farmer and Xie applaud the authors for their efforts to advance the study of…

  9. New procedures to evaluate visually lossless compression for display systems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Stolitzka, Dale F.; Schelkens, Peter; Bruylants, Tim

    2017-09-01

    Visually lossless image coding in isochronous display streaming or plesiochronous networks reduces link complexity and power consumption and increases available link bandwidth. A new set of codecs developed within the last four years promise a new level of coding quality, but require new techniques that are sufficiently sensitive to the small artifacts or color variations induced by this new breed of codecs. This paper begins with a summary of the new ISO/IEC 29170-2, a procedure for evaluation of lossless coding and reports the new work by JPEG to extend the procedure in two important ways, for HDR content and for evaluating the differences between still images, panning images and image sequences. ISO/IEC 29170-2 relies on processing test images through a well-defined process chain for subjective, forced-choice psychophysical experiments. The procedure sets an acceptable quality level equal to one just noticeable difference. Traditional image and video coding evaluation techniques, such as, those used for television evaluation have not proven sufficiently sensitive to the small artifacts that may be induced by this breed of codecs. In 2015, JPEG received new requirements to expand evaluation of visually lossless coding for high dynamic range images, slowly moving images, i.e., panning, and image sequences. These requirements are the basis for new amendments of the ISO/IEC 29170-2 procedures described in this paper. These amendments promise to be highly useful for the new content in television and cinema mezzanine networks. The amendments passed the final ballot in April 2017 and are on track to be published in 2018.

  10. Identification of Aurally Handicapped Children and Methods and Procedures of Developing a Program.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Colorado State Dept. of Education, Denver. Div. of Special Education Services.

    An article on identification of preschool and school age aurally handicapped children and program development by John J. O'Neill precedes discussions of the role of the audiologist in evaluation of these children by Jack A. Willeford, and educational aspects of planning by John J. O'Neill. Three articles are presented on the role of the teacher in…

  11. 40 CFR Appendix Xviii to Part 86 - Statistical Outlier Identification Procedure for Light-Duty Vehicles and Light Light-Duty Trucks...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 20 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Statistical Outlier Identification Procedure for Light-Duty Vehicles and Light Light-Duty Trucks Certifying to the Provisions of Part 86... (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF EMISSIONS FROM NEW AND IN-USE HIGHWAY VEHICLES AND ENGINES...

  12. 40 CFR Appendix Xviii to Part 86 - Statistical Outlier Identification Procedure for Light-Duty Vehicles and Light Light-Duty Trucks...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 20 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Statistical Outlier Identification Procedure for Light-Duty Vehicles and Light Light-Duty Trucks Certifying to the Provisions of Part 86... (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF EMISSIONS FROM NEW AND IN-USE HIGHWAY VEHICLES AND ENGINES...

  13. Teacher Evaluation: Practices and Procedures. ERS Report.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Educational Research Service, Arlington, VA.

    This report presents findings of the 1988 Educational Research Service survey of teacher evaluation practices and procedures in U.S. schools. The survey instrument was mailed to a random sample of 1,730 superintendents of school districts of varying size. The response rate was 52.5 percent. The first section discusses the purposes of teacher…

  14. A Self-Assessment Procedure for Use in Evaluation Training

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Stufflebeam, Daniel L.; Wingate, Lori A.

    2005-01-01

    This article describes the Self-Assessment of Program Evaluation Expertise instrument and procedure developed to help participants assess their learning gains in a 3-week evaluation institute. Participants completed the instrument in a pre- and posttest format. To reduce both the threat of embarrassment from individual results and the temptation…

  15. Head-camera video recordings of trauma core competency procedures can evaluate surgical resident's technical performance as well as colocated evaluators.

    PubMed

    Mackenzie, Colin F; Pasley, Jason; Garofalo, Evan; Shackelford, Stacy; Chen, Hegang; Longinaker, Nyaradzo; Granite, Guinevere; Pugh, Kristy; Hagegeorge, George; Tisherman, Samuel A

    2017-07-01

    Unbiased evaluation of trauma core competency procedures is necessary to determine if residency and predeployment training courses are useful. We tested whether a previously validated individual procedure score (IPS) for individual procedure vascular exposure and fasciotomy (FAS) performance skills could discriminate training status by comparing IPS of evaluators colocated with surgeons to blind video evaluations. Performance of axillary artery (AA), brachial artery (BA), and femoral artery (FA) vascular exposures and lower extremity FAS on fresh cadavers by 40 PGY-2 to PGY-6 residents was video-recorded from head-mounted cameras. Two colocated trained evaluators assessed IPS before and after training. One surgeon in each pretraining tertile of IPS for each procedure was randomly identified for blind video review. The same 12 surgeons were video-recorded repeating the procedures less than 4 weeks after training. Five evaluators independently reviewed all 96 randomly arranged deidentified videos. Inter-rater reliability/consistency, intraclass correlation coefficients were compared by colocated versus video review of IPS, and errors. Study methodology and bias were judged by Medical Education Research Study Quality Instrument and the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies criteria. There were no differences (p ≥ 0.5) in IPS for AA, FA, FAS, whether evaluators were colocated or reviewed video recordings. Evaluator consistency was 0.29 (BA) - 0.77 (FA). Video and colocated evaluators were in total agreement (p = 1.0) for error recognition. Intraclass correlation coefficient was 0.73 to 0.92, dependent on procedure. Correlations video versus colocated evaluations were 0.5 to 0.9. Except for BA, blinded video evaluators discriminated (p < 0.002) whether procedures were performed before training versus after training. Study methodology by Medical Education Research Study Quality Instrument criteria scored 15.5/19, Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy

  16. 33 CFR 337.9 - Identification and use of disposal areas.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ...) evaluation and environmental assessment or environmental impact statement should also address long-term... ARMY, DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE § 337.9 Identification and use of disposal areas. (a... life of existing disposal areas. Requests for water quality certification and/or coastal zone...

  17. Evaluation of Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization−Time of Flight Mass Spectrometry for Identification of Mycobacterium species, Nocardia species, and Other Aerobic Actinomycetes

    PubMed Central

    Buckwalter, S. P.; Olson, S. L.; Connelly, B. J.; Lucas, B. C.; Rodning, A. A.; Walchak, R. C.; Deml, S. M.; Wohlfiel, S. L.

    2015-01-01

    The value of matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization−time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) for the identification of bacteria and yeasts is well documented in the literature. Its utility for the identification of mycobacteria and Nocardia spp. has also been reported in a limited scope. In this work, we report the specificity of MALDI-TOF MS for the identification of 162 Mycobacterium species and subspecies, 53 Nocardia species, and 13 genera (totaling 43 species) of other aerobic actinomycetes using both the MALDI-TOF MS manufacturer's supplied database(s) and a custom database generated in our laboratory. The performance of a simplified processing and extraction procedure was also evaluated, and, similar to the results in an earlier literature report, our viability studies confirmed the ability of this process to inactivate Mycobacterium tuberculosis prior to analysis. Following library construction and the specificity study, the performance of MALDI-TOF MS was directly compared with that of 16S rRNA gene sequencing for the evaluation of 297 mycobacteria isolates, 148 Nocardia species isolates, and 61 other aerobic actinomycetes isolates under routine clinical laboratory working conditions over a 6-month period. MALDI-TOF MS is a valuable tool for the identification of these groups of organisms. Limitations in the databases and in the ability of MALDI-TOF MS to rapidly identify slowly growing mycobacteria are discussed. PMID:26637381

  18. Evaluating current automatic de-identification methods with Veteran's health administration clinical documents.

    PubMed

    Ferrández, Oscar; South, Brett R; Shen, Shuying; Friedlin, F Jeffrey; Samore, Matthew H; Meystre, Stéphane M

    2012-07-27

    The increased use and adoption of Electronic Health Records (EHR) causes a tremendous growth in digital information useful for clinicians, researchers and many other operational purposes. However, this information is rich in Protected Health Information (PHI), which severely restricts its access and possible uses. A number of investigators have developed methods for automatically de-identifying EHR documents by removing PHI, as specified in the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act "Safe Harbor" method.This study focuses on the evaluation of existing automated text de-identification methods and tools, as applied to Veterans Health Administration (VHA) clinical documents, to assess which methods perform better with each category of PHI found in our clinical notes; and when new methods are needed to improve performance. We installed and evaluated five text de-identification systems "out-of-the-box" using a corpus of VHA clinical documents. The systems based on machine learning methods were trained with the 2006 i2b2 de-identification corpora and evaluated with our VHA corpus, and also evaluated with a ten-fold cross-validation experiment using our VHA corpus. We counted exact, partial, and fully contained matches with reference annotations, considering each PHI type separately, or only one unique 'PHI' category. Performance of the systems was assessed using recall (equivalent to sensitivity) and precision (equivalent to positive predictive value) metrics, as well as the F(2)-measure. Overall, systems based on rules and pattern matching achieved better recall, and precision was always better with systems based on machine learning approaches. The highest "out-of-the-box" F(2)-measure was 67% for partial matches; the best precision and recall were 95% and 78%, respectively. Finally, the ten-fold cross validation experiment allowed for an increase of the F(2)-measure to 79% with partial matches. The "out-of-the-box" evaluation of text de-identification

  19. Application of identification techniques to remote manipulator system flight data

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Shepard, G. D.; Lepanto, J. A.; Metzinger, R. W.; Fogel, E.

    1983-01-01

    This paper addresses the application of identification techniques to flight data from the Space Shuttle Remote Manipulator System (RMS). A description of the remote manipulator, including structural and control system characteristics, sensors, and actuators is given. A brief overview of system identification procedures is presented, and the practical aspects of implementing system identification algorithms are discussed. In particular, the problems posed by desampling rate, numerical error, and system nonlinearities are considered. Simulation predictions of damping, frequency, and system order are compared with values identified from flight data to support an evaluation of RMS structural and control system models. Finally, conclusions are drawn regarding the application of identification techniques to flight data obtained from a flexible space structure.

  20. Evaluation of the FAA Advanced Flow Control Procedures.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    1972-01-01

    The report is an evaluation of the present FAA Advanced Flow Control Procedures (AFCP), based on data gathered from its implementation on February 5, 1971 and on a fast-time digital simulation of traffic feeding into the NY airports on that day. The ...

  1. Evaluation of Bacto TB hydrolysis reagent (Tween 80) for the identification of Branhamella catarrhalis.

    PubMed Central

    Weiner, M; Penha, P D

    1990-01-01

    An investigation of the hydrolysis of Tween 80 reagent by Branhamella catarrhalis and related organisms (Neisseria and Moraxella species) revealed that only B. catarrhalis gave a positive result. A total of 226 strains, including reference organisms and clinical isolates, were studied. B. catarrhalis changed the color of the reagent from amber to pink-red after overnight incubation. We recommend this simple and cost-effective test as an alternative procedure to DNase testing or tributyrin hydrolysis or as a supplemental procedure for the identification of B. catarrhalis in clinical specimens. PMID:2105335

  2. Evaluation of combinations of procedures in cesarean section.

    PubMed

    Stark, M; Chavkin, Y; Kupfersztain, C; Guedj, P; Finkel, A R

    1995-03-01

    To evaluate a procedure for cesarean section, consisting of a number of surgical techniques adopted from various sources and further developed. The principal elements of the cesarean section procedure followed were: the Joel-Cohen method for opening the abdomen, suturing the uterus in one layer, and non-closure of the visceral and parietal peritoneal layers. The postoperative recovery of women who underwent this procedure (JCl--group) was compared with that of women who had undergone a Pfannenstiel incision, in which the uterus is sutured in two layers, and both peritoneal layers sutured (Pf2++ group). The incidence of postoperative febrile morbidity was 7.7% in the JCl--group compared with 19.8% in the Pf2++ group (P < 0.05). Adhesions were found in 6.3% of repeat operations after the JCl--operation compared with 28.8% after the Pf2++ operation (P < 0.05), and there was a non-significant trend toward fewer postoperative analgesics in the JCl--group. The cesarean section procedure we have devised is not only safe, but has a lower risk of long- and short-term complications.

  3. Incorporation of Radio Frequency Identification Tag in Dentures to Facilitate Recognition and Forensic Human Identification

    PubMed Central

    Nuzzolese, E; Marcario, V; Di Vella, G

    2010-01-01

    Forensic identification using odontology is based on the comparison of ante-mortem and post mortem dental records. The insertion of a radio frequency identification (RFId) tag into dentures could be used as an aid to identify decomposed bodies, by storing personal identification data in a small transponder that can be radio-transmitted to a reader connected to a computer. A small passive, 12 x 2,1 mm, read-only RFId-tag was incorporated into the manufacture of three trial complete upper dentures and tested for a signal. The aim of this article is to demonstrate the feasibility of manufacturing such a dental prosthesis, the technical protocols for its implantation in the denture resin and its working principles. Future research and tests are required in order to verify human compatibility of the tagged denture and also to evaluate any potential deterioration in strength when subjected to high temperatures, or for damage resulting from everyday wear and tear. It should also be able to withstand the extreme conditions resulting from major accidents or mass disasters and procedures used to perform a forensic identification. PMID:20657641

  4. JUPITER PROJECT - JOINT UNIVERSAL PARAMETER IDENTIFICATION AND EVALUATION OF RELIABILITY

    EPA Science Inventory

    The JUPITER (Joint Universal Parameter IdenTification and Evaluation of Reliability) project builds on the technology of two widely used codes for sensitivity analysis, data assessment, calibration, and uncertainty analysis of environmental models: PEST and UCODE.

  5. Medical Service Clinical Laboratory Procedures--Bacteriology.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Department of the Army, Washington, DC.

    This manual presents laboratory procedures for the differentiation and identification of disease agents from clinical materials. Included are procedures for the collection of specimens, preparation of culture media, pure culture methods, cultivation of the microorganisms in natural and simulated natural environments, and procedures in…

  6. Test and evaluation procedures for Sandia's Teraflops Operating System (TOS) on Janus.

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

    Barnette, Daniel Wayne

    This report describes the test and evaluation methods by which the Teraflops Operating System, or TOS, that resides on Sandia's massively-parallel computer Janus is verified for production release. Also discussed are methods used to build TOS before testing and evaluating, miscellaneous utility scripts, a sample test plan, and a proposed post-test method for quickly examining the large number of test results. The purpose of the report is threefold: (1) to provide a guide to T&E procedures, (2) to aid and guide others who will run T&E procedures on the new ASCI Red Storm machine, and (3) to document some ofmore » the history of evaluation and testing of TOS. This report is not intended to serve as an exhaustive manual for testers to conduct T&E procedures.« less

  7. Evaluation of Procedures for Backcalculation of Airfield Pavement Moduli

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2015-08-01

    to develop pavement design and structural evaluation criteria, procedures, and software to ensure that its airfield pavements can support mission...aircraft. As tire pressures and aircraft weights have increased steadily during this time, the design and evaluation software– Pavement -Transportation...the remaining life for the pavement in terms of remaining pavement life (passes-to-failure) or allowable gross aircraft loads and also to design

  8. Evaluation of prototype air carrier instrument approach procedure charts.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    1995-07-31

    The objective of this study was to evaluate the design features of two prototype Instrument Approach Procedure (IAP) charts. The John A. Volpe National Transportation System's Center in cooperation with the Air Transport Association's Chart and Data ...

  9. Procedures for evaluating corrosion-inhibiting admixtures for structural concrete

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2000-06-01

    The objectives of this research were to (1) develop procedures for evaluating and qualifying corrosion-inhibiting admixtures (CIAs) and (2) recommend performance criteria for their acceptance. Phase I work included a literature review of CIAs, the re...

  10. 34 CFR 303.342 - Procedures for IFSP development, review, and evaluation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... PROGRAM FOR INFANTS AND TODDLERS WITH DISABILITIES Child Find, Evaluations and Assessments, and... development, review, and evaluation. (a) Meeting to develop initial IFSP—timelines. For a child referred to... 34 Education 2 2014-07-01 2013-07-01 true Procedures for IFSP development, review, and evaluation...

  11. 34 CFR 303.342 - Procedures for IFSP development, review, and evaluation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... PROGRAM FOR INFANTS AND TODDLERS WITH DISABILITIES Child Find, Evaluations and Assessments, and... development, review, and evaluation. (a) Meeting to develop initial IFSP—timelines. For a child referred to... 34 Education 2 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Procedures for IFSP development, review, and evaluation...

  12. 34 CFR 303.342 - Procedures for IFSP development, review, and evaluation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... PROGRAM FOR INFANTS AND TODDLERS WITH DISABILITIES Child Find, Evaluations and Assessments, and... development, review, and evaluation. (a) Meeting to develop initial IFSP—timelines. For a child referred to... 34 Education 2 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Procedures for IFSP development, review, and evaluation...

  13. Evaluation of prototype air carrier instrument approach procedure charts

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    1995-07-01

    The objective of this study was to evaluate the design features of two prototype Instrument Approach Procedure (IAP) charts. The John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center in cooperation with the Air Transport Association's Chart and Data D...

  14. Performance evaluation of three automated identification systems in detecting carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae.

    PubMed

    He, Qingwen; Chen, Weiyuan; Huang, Liya; Lin, Qili; Zhang, Jingling; Liu, Rui; Li, Bin

    2016-06-21

    Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) is prevalent around the world. Rapid and accurate detection of CRE is urgently needed to provide effective treatment. Automated identification systems have been widely used in clinical microbiology laboratories for rapid and high-efficient identification of pathogenic bacteria. However, critical evaluation and comparison are needed to determine the specificity and accuracy of different systems. The aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of three commonly used automated identification systems on the detection of CRE. A total of 81 non-repetitive clinical CRE isolates were collected from August 2011 to August 2012 in a Chinese university hospital, and all the isolates were confirmed to be resistant to carbapenems by the agar dilution method. The potential presence of carbapenemase genotypes of the 81 isolates was detected by PCR and sequencing. Using 81 clinical CRE isolates, we evaluated and compared the performance of three automated identification systems, MicroScan WalkAway 96 Plus, Phoenix 100, and Vitek 2 Compact, which are commonly used in China. To identify CRE, the comparator methodology was agar dilution method, while the PCR and sequencing was the comparator one to identify CPE. PCR and sequencing analysis showed that 48 of the 81 CRE isolates carried carbapenemase genes, including 23 (28.4 %) IMP-4, 14 (17.3 %) IMP-8, 5 (6.2 %) NDM-1, and 8 (9.9 %) KPC-2. Notably, one Klebsiella pneumoniae isolate produced both IMP-4 and NDM-1. One Klebsiella oxytoca isolate produced both KPC-2 and IMP-8. Of the 81 clinical CRE isolates, 56 (69.1 %), 33 (40.7 %) and 77 (95.1 %) were identified as CRE by MicroScan WalkAway 96 Plus, Phoenix 100, and Vitek 2 Compact, respectively. The sensitivities/specificities of MicroScan WalkAway, Phoenix 100 and Vitek 2 were 93.8/42.4 %, 54.2/66.7 %, and 75.0/36.4 %, respectively. The MicroScan WalkAway and Viteck2 systems are more reliable in clinical identification of

  15. Evaluation of Hands-Free Devices for the Display of Maintenance Procedures

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Whitmore, Mihriban; Hoffman, Ronald B.; Litaker, Harry, Jr.; Solem, Jody; Holden, Kritina; Twyford, Evan; Conlee, Carl

    2007-01-01

    Over the past year, NASA's focus has turned to crewed long duration and exploration missions. On these journeys, crewmembers will be required to execute thousands of procedures to maintain life support systems, check out space suits, conduct science experiments, and perform medical exams. To support the many complex tasks crewmembers undertake in microgravity, NASA is interested in providing crewmembers a hands-free work environment to promote more efficient operations. The overarching objective is to allow crewmembers to use both of their hands for tasks related to their mission, versus holding a paper manual or interacting with a display. The use of advanced, hands-free tools will undoubtedly make the crewmembers task easier, but they can also add to overall task complexity if not properly designed. A leading candidate technology for supporting a hands-free environment is the Head-Mounted Display (HMD). A more recent technology (e-book reader) that could be easily temp-stowed near the work area is also a potential hands-free solution. Previous work at NASA involved the evaluation of several commercially available HMDs for visual quality, comfort, and fit, as well as suitability for use in microgravity. Based on results from this work, three HMDs were selected for further evaluation (along with an e-book reader), using International Space Station (ISS)-like maintenance procedures. Two evaluations were conducted in the Space Station Mockup and Trainer Facility (SSMTF) located at the NASA Johnson Space Center (building 9). The SSMTF is a full scale, medium fidelity replica of the pressurized portions of the ISS. It supports crew training such as ingress and egress, habitability, and emergency procedures. In each of the two evaluations, the participants performed two maintenance procedures. One maintenance procedure involved inspecting air filters in a life support system and replacing them with a clean filter if one were found to be contaminated. The second

  16. Post-procedural evaluation of catheter contact force characteristics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Koch, Martin; Brost, Alexander; Kiraly, Atilla; Strobel, Norbert; Hornegger, Joachim

    2012-03-01

    Minimally invasive catheter ablation of electric foci, performed in electrophysiology labs, is an attractive treatment option for atrial fibrillation (AF) - in particular if drug therapy is no longer effective or tolerated. There are different strategies to eliminate the electric foci inducing the arrhythmia. Independent of the particular strategy, it is essential to place transmural lesions. The impact of catheter contact force on the generated lesion quality has been investigated recently, and first results are promising. There are different approaches to measure catheter-tissue contact. Besides traditional haptic feedback, there are new technologies either relying on catheter tip-to-tissue contact force or on local impedance measurements at the tip of the catheter. In this paper, we present a novel tool for post-procedural ablation point evaluation and visualization of contact force characteristics. Our method is based on localizing ablation points set during AF ablation procedures. The 3-D point positions are stored together with lesion specific catheter contact force (CF) values recorded during the ablation. The force records are mapped to the spatial 3-D positions, where the energy has been applied. The tracked positions of the ablation points can be further used to generate a 3-D mesh model of the left atrium (LA). Since our approach facilitates visualization of different force characteristics for post-procedural evaluation and verification, it has the potential to improve outcome by highlighting areas where lesion quality may be less than desired.

  17. [Examination of diagnosis procedure combination survey data that influence function evaluation coefficient II].

    PubMed

    Nakajima, Hisato; Yano, Kouya; Nagasawa, Kaoko; Kobayashi, Eiji; Yokota, Kuninobu

    2015-01-01

    On the basis of Diagnosis Procedure Combination (DPC) survey data, the factors that increase the value of function evaluation coefficient II were considered. A total of 1,505 hospitals were divided into groups I, II, and III, and the following items were considered. 1. Significant differences in function evaluation coefficient II and DPC survey data. 2. Examination of using the Mahalanobis-Taguchi (MT) method. 3. Correlation between function evaluation coefficient II and each DPC survey data item. 1. Function evaluation coefficient II was highest in group II. Group I hospitals showed the highest bed capacity, and numbers of hospitalization days, operations, chemotherapies, radiotherapies and general anesthesia procedures. 2. Using the MT method, we found that the number of ambulance conveyances was effective factor in group I hospitals, the number of general anesthesia procedures was effective factor in group II hospitals, and the bed capacity was effective factor in group III hospitals. 3. In group I hospitals, function evaluation coefficient II significantly correlated to the numbers of ambulance conveyances and chemotherapies. In group II hospitals, function evaluation coefficient II significantly correlated to bed capacity, the numbers of ambulance conveyances, hospitalization days, operations, general anesthesia procedures, and mean hospitalization days. In group III hospitals, function evaluation coefficient II significantly correlated to all items. The factors that improve the value of function evaluation coefficient II were the increases in the numbers of ambulance conveyances, chemotherapies and radiotherapies in group I hospitals, increases in the numbers of hospitalization days, operations, ambulance conveyances and general anesthesia procedures in group II hospitals, and increases in the numbers of hospitalization days, operations and ambulance conveyances. These results indicate that the profit of a hospital will increase, which will lead to medical

  18. Place Evaluation and Self-Esteem at School: The Mediated Effect of Place Identification

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fleury-Bahi, Ghozlane; Marcouyeux, Aurore

    2010-01-01

    Like neighbourhoods, companies or housing, schools are considered a location for which the student must develop feelings of attachment and identification. The purpose of this research is to test a path model in which the evaluation of the image of the scholastic institution plays a role in the process of sociospatial identification in the school…

  19. The Evaluation of Published Indexes, and Abstract Journals:, Criteria and Possible Procedures

    PubMed Central

    Lancaster, F. W.

    1971-01-01

    This paper describes possible criteria by which the effectiveness of a published index may be evaluated and suggest procedures that might be used to conduct an evaluation of a published index. The procedures were developed for the National Library of Medicine and relate specifically to the recurring bibliographies produced by MEDLARS in various specialized areas of biomedicine. The methods described should, however, be applicable to other printed indexes and abstract journals. Factors affecting the performance of a published index are also discussed and some research projects relevant to the evaluation of published indexes are reviewed. PMID:5146770

  20. A Baseline Evaluation Procedure for Federal Standards on the Prevention, Identification and Treatment of Child Abuse and Neglect. Volume I: Development, Field Testing and Recommended Procedure. Volume II: State of Washington Field Test.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Seaberg, James R.; And Others

    The National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect funded a project to develop and field-test an evaluation procedure that could be used by interested states or communities to determine the extent of congruity between (1) their provisions for responding to the problems of child abuse and neglect, and (2) provisions prescribed in the Federal Standards…

  1. Department of Defense (DOD) Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS) Version 1.2: Initial Operational Test and Evaluation Report

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2015-05-01

    Director, Operational Test and Evaluation Department of Defense (DOD) Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS) Version 1.2 Initial...Operational Test and Evaluation Report May 2015 This report on the Department of Defense (DOD) Automated Biometric Identification System...COVERED - 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Department of Defense (DOD) Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS) Version 1.2 Initial Operational Test

  2. Issues Involved in the Evaluation of Gifted Programmes.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ali, A. Sidiq

    2001-01-01

    This article discusses the purpose of gifted program evaluation and identifies some of the pertinent issues involved in evaluating gifted programs. The gifted program delivered by the Peel District Board of Education in Ontario, Canada, is used to illustrate key evaluation considerations, including gifted identification procedures and gifted…

  3. Enhancing patient understanding of medical procedures: evaluation of an interactive multimedia program with in-line exercises.

    PubMed

    Tait, Alan R; Voepel-Lewis, Terri; Chetcuti, Stanley J; Brennan-Martinez, Colleen; Levine, Robert

    2014-05-01

    Standard print and verbal information provided to patients undergoing treatments are often difficult to understand and may impair their ability to be truly informed. This study examined the effect of an interactive multimedia informational program with in-line exercises and corrected feedback on patients' real-time understanding of their cardiac catheterization procedure. 151 adult patients scheduled for diagnostic cardiac catheterization were randomized to receive information about their procedure using either the standard institutional verbal and written information (SI) or an interactive iPad-based informational program (IPI). Subject understanding was evaluated using semi-structured interviews at baseline, immediately following catheterization, and 2 weeks after the procedure. In addition, for those randomized to the IPI, the ability to respond correctly to several in-line exercises was recorded. Subjects' perceptions of, and preferences for the information delivery were also elicited. Subjects randomized to the IPI program had significantly better understanding following the intervention compared with those randomized to the SI group (8.3±2.4 vs 7.4±2.5, respectively, 0-12 scale where 12=complete understanding, P<0.05). First-time correct responses to the in-line exercises ranged from 24.3% to 100%. Subjects reported that the in-line exercises were very helpful (9.1±1.7, 0-10 scale, where 10=extremely helpful) and the iPad program very easy to use (9.0±1.6, 0-10 scale, where 10=extremely easy) suggesting good clinical utility. Results demonstrated the ability of an interactive multimedia program to enhance patients' understanding of their medical procedure. Importantly, the incorporation of in-line exercises permitted identification of knowledge deficits, provided corrected feedback, and confirmed the patients' understanding of treatment information in real-time when consent was sought. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. A scoring scheme for evaluating magnetofossil identifications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kopp, R. E.; Kirschvink, J. L.

    2007-12-01

    In many Quaternary lacustrine and marine settings, fossil magnetotactic bacteria are a major contributor to sedimentary magnetization [1]. Magnetite particles produced by magnetotactic bacteria have traits, shaped by natural selection, that increase the efficiency with which the bacteria utilize iron and also facilitate the recognition of the particles' biological origin. In particular, magnetotactic bacteria generally produce particles with characteristic shapes and narrow size and shape distributions that lie within the single domain stability field. The particles have effective positive magnetic anisotropy, produced by alignment in chains and frequently by particle elongation. In addition, the crystals are often nearly stochiometric and have few crystallographic defects. Yet, despite these distinctive traits, there are few identified magnetofossils that predate the Quaternary, and many putative identifications are highly controversial. We propose a six-criteria scoring scheme for evaluating identifications based on the quality of the geological, magnetic, and electron microscopic evidence. Our criteria are: (1) whether the geological context is well-constrained stratigraphically, and whether paleomagnetic evidence suggests a primary magnetization; (2) whether magnetic or microscopic evidence support the presence of significant single-domain magnetite; (3) whether magnetic or ferromagnetic resonance evidence indicates narrow size and shape distributions, and whether microscopic evidence reveals single-domain particles with truncated edges, elongate single-domain particles, and/or narrow size and shape distributions; (4) whether ferromagnetic resonance, low-temperature magnetic, or electron microscopic evidence reveals the presence of chains; (5) whether low-temperature magnetometry, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, or other techniques demonstrate the near-stochiometry of the particles; and (6) whether high-resolution TEM indicates the near- absence of

  5. 26 CFR 301.7701-12 - Employer identification number.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 18 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Employer identification number. 301.7701-12 Section 301.7701-12 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY (CONTINUED) PROCEDURE AND ADMINISTRATION PROCEDURE AND ADMINISTRATION Definitions § 301.7701-12 Employer identification...

  6. Application of Toxicity Identification and Evaluation Procedures for Dredged Material Management

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2017-02-01

    that may pose a risk to human health and the environment. The potential for risk ultimately depends on the final disposition of the dredged material... human health and ecological receptors. This information is also useful when evaluating dredged material for open water disposal since it could eliminate...and potential for exposure to humans or ecological receptors. The Inland Testing and Ocean Disposal Manuals establish a multi-step testing protocol

  7. 23 CFR 669.21 - Procedure for evaluating state compliance.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... 23 Highways 1 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Procedure for evaluating state compliance. 669.21 Section 669.21 Highways FEDERAL HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING AND... FHWA. The State may develop a software system to maintain copies or images of this proof-of-payment...

  8. 23 CFR 669.21 - Procedure for evaluating state compliance.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... 23 Highways 1 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Procedure for evaluating state compliance. 669.21 Section 669.21 Highways FEDERAL HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING AND... FHWA. The State may develop a software system to maintain copies or images of this proof-of-payment...

  9. 23 CFR 669.21 - Procedure for evaluating state compliance.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 23 Highways 1 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Procedure for evaluating state compliance. 669.21 Section 669.21 Highways FEDERAL HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING AND... FHWA. The State may develop a software system to maintain copies or images of this proof-of-payment...

  10. 23 CFR 669.21 - Procedure for evaluating state compliance.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... 23 Highways 1 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Procedure for evaluating state compliance. 669.21 Section 669.21 Highways FEDERAL HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING AND... FHWA. The State may develop a software system to maintain copies or images of this proof-of-payment...

  11. The AME2016 atomic mass evaluation (I). Evaluation of input data; and adjustment procedures

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

    Huang, W. J.; Audi, G.; Wang, Meng

    This paper is the first of two articles (Part I and Part II) that presents the results of the new atomic mass evaluation, Ame2016. It includes complete information on the experimental input data (also including unused and rejected ones), as well as details on the evaluation procedures used to derive the tables of recommended values given in the second part. This article describes the evaluation philosophy and procedures that were implemented in the selection of specific nuclear reaction, decay and mass-spectrometric results. These input values were entered in the least-squares adjustment for determining the best values for the atomic massesmore » and their uncertainties. Details of the calculation and particularities of the Ame are then described. All accepted and rejected data, including outweighted ones, are presented in a tabular format and compared with the adjusted values obtained using the least-squares fit analysis. Differences with the previous Ame2012 evaluation are discussed and specific information is presented for several cases that may be of interest to Ame users. The second Ame2016 article gives a table with the recommended values of atomic masses, as well as tables and graphs of derived quantities, along with the list of references used in both the Ame2016 and the Nubase2016 evaluations (the first paper in this issue). Amdc: http://amdc.impcas.ac.cn/« less

  12. Evaluating re-identification risks with respect to the HIPAA privacy rule

    PubMed Central

    Benitez, Kathleen

    2010-01-01

    Objective Many healthcare organizations follow data protection policies that specify which patient identifiers must be suppressed to share “de-identified” records. Such policies, however, are often applied without knowledge of the risk of “re-identification”. The goals of this work are: (1) to estimate re-identification risk for data sharing policies of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy Rule; and (2) to evaluate the risk of a specific re-identification attack using voter registration lists. Measurements We define several risk metrics: (1) expected number of re-identifications; (2) estimated proportion of a population in a group of size g or less, and (3) monetary cost per re-identification. For each US state, we estimate the risk posed to hypothetical datasets, protected by the HIPAA Safe Harbor and Limited Dataset policies by an attacker with full knowledge of patient identifiers and with limited knowledge in the form of voter registries. Results The percentage of a state's population estimated to be vulnerable to unique re-identification (ie, g=1) when protected via Safe Harbor and Limited Datasets ranges from 0.01% to 0.25% and 10% to 60%, respectively. In the voter attack, this number drops for many states, and for some states is 0%, due to the variable availability of voter registries in the real world. We also find that re-identification cost ranges from $0 to $17 000, further confirming risk variability. Conclusions This work illustrates that blanket protection policies, such as Safe Harbor, leave different organizations vulnerable to re-identification at different rates. It provides justification for locally performed re-identification risk estimates prior to sharing data. PMID:20190059

  13. Improved False Discovery Rate Estimation Procedure for Shotgun Proteomics.

    PubMed

    Keich, Uri; Kertesz-Farkas, Attila; Noble, William Stafford

    2015-08-07

    Interpreting the potentially vast number of hypotheses generated by a shotgun proteomics experiment requires a valid and accurate procedure for assigning statistical confidence estimates to identified tandem mass spectra. Despite the crucial role such procedures play in most high-throughput proteomics experiments, the scientific literature has not reached a consensus about the best confidence estimation methodology. In this work, we evaluate, using theoretical and empirical analysis, four previously proposed protocols for estimating the false discovery rate (FDR) associated with a set of identified tandem mass spectra: two variants of the target-decoy competition protocol (TDC) of Elias and Gygi and two variants of the separate target-decoy search protocol of Käll et al. Our analysis reveals significant biases in the two separate target-decoy search protocols. Moreover, the one TDC protocol that provides an unbiased FDR estimate among the target PSMs does so at the cost of forfeiting a random subset of high-scoring spectrum identifications. We therefore propose the mix-max procedure to provide unbiased, accurate FDR estimates in the presence of well-calibrated scores. The method avoids biases associated with the two separate target-decoy search protocols and also avoids the propensity for target-decoy competition to discard a random subset of high-scoring target identifications.

  14. Improved False Discovery Rate Estimation Procedure for Shotgun Proteomics

    PubMed Central

    2016-01-01

    Interpreting the potentially vast number of hypotheses generated by a shotgun proteomics experiment requires a valid and accurate procedure for assigning statistical confidence estimates to identified tandem mass spectra. Despite the crucial role such procedures play in most high-throughput proteomics experiments, the scientific literature has not reached a consensus about the best confidence estimation methodology. In this work, we evaluate, using theoretical and empirical analysis, four previously proposed protocols for estimating the false discovery rate (FDR) associated with a set of identified tandem mass spectra: two variants of the target-decoy competition protocol (TDC) of Elias and Gygi and two variants of the separate target-decoy search protocol of Käll et al. Our analysis reveals significant biases in the two separate target-decoy search protocols. Moreover, the one TDC protocol that provides an unbiased FDR estimate among the target PSMs does so at the cost of forfeiting a random subset of high-scoring spectrum identifications. We therefore propose the mix-max procedure to provide unbiased, accurate FDR estimates in the presence of well-calibrated scores. The method avoids biases associated with the two separate target-decoy search protocols and also avoids the propensity for target-decoy competition to discard a random subset of high-scoring target identifications. PMID:26152888

  15. An evaluation of periodontal assessment procedures among Indiana dental hygienists.

    PubMed

    Stephan, Christine A

    2014-01-01

    Using a descriptive correlational design, this study surveyed periodontal assessment procedures currently performed by Indiana dental hygienists in general dentistry practices to reveal if deficiencies in assessment exist. Members (n = 354) of the Indiana Dental Hygienists' Association (IDHA) were invited to participate in the survey. A 22 multiple choice question survey, using Likert scales for responses, was open to participants for three weeks. Descriptive and non-parametric inferential statistics analyzed questions related to demographics and assessment procedures practiced. In addition, an evaluation of the awareness of periodontal assessment procedures recommended by the American Academy of Periodontology (AAP) was examined. Of the 354 Indiana dental hygienists surveyed, a 31.9% response rate was achieved. Participants were asked to identify the recommended AAP periodontal assessment procedures they perform. The majority of respondents indicated either frequently or always performing the listed assessment procedures. Additionally, significant relationships were found between demographic factors and participants' awareness and performance of recommended AAP assessment procedures. While information gathered from this study is valuable to the body of literature regarding periodontal disease assessment, continued research with larger survey studies should be conducted to obtain a more accurate national representation of what is being practiced by dental hygienists.

  16. Application and Evaluation of an Expert Judgment Elicitation Procedure for Correlations.

    PubMed

    Zondervan-Zwijnenburg, Mariëlle; van de Schoot-Hubeek, Wenneke; Lek, Kimberley; Hoijtink, Herbert; van de Schoot, Rens

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of the current study was to apply and evaluate a procedure to elicit expert judgments about correlations, and to update this information with empirical data. The result is a face-to-face group elicitation procedure with as its central element a trial roulette question that elicits experts' judgments expressed as distributions. During the elicitation procedure, a concordance probability question was used to provide feedback to the experts on their judgments. We evaluated the elicitation procedure in terms of validity and reliability by means of an application with a small sample of experts. Validity means that the elicited distributions accurately represent the experts' judgments. Reliability concerns the consistency of the elicited judgments over time. Four behavioral scientists provided their judgments with respect to the correlation between cognitive potential and academic performance for two separate populations enrolled at a specific school in the Netherlands that provides special education to youth with severe behavioral problems: youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and youth with diagnoses other than ASD. Measures of face-validity, feasibility, convergent validity, coherence, and intra-rater reliability showed promising results. Furthermore, the current study illustrates the use of the elicitation procedure and elicited distributions in a social science application. The elicited distributions were used as a prior for the correlation, and updated with data for both populations collected at the school of interest. The current study shows that the newly developed elicitation procedure combining the trial roulette method with the elicitation of correlations is a promising tool, and that the results of the procedure are useful as prior information in a Bayesian analysis.

  17. Screening and Diagnostic Procedure for Identification of Adult Learning Problems. 309 Demonstration Project.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    International Labour Office, Islamabad (Pakistan). Asian and Pacific Skill Development Programme.

    This screening and diagnostic procedure is intended to identify Level 1 adults with specific learning problems. The adults not meeting criteria on the assessments for visual and auditory functions should be referred to proper medical services for full evaluations. A prescriptive teaching program should be specifically designed to meet needs of…

  18. Special Education Program Evaluation: A Planning Guide. An Overview. CASE Commissioned Series.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McLaughlin, John A.

    This resource guide is intended to help in planning special education program evaluations. It focuses on: basic evaluation concepts, identification of special education decision makers and their information needs, specific evaluation questions, procedures for gathering relevant information, and evaluation of the evaluation process itself.…

  19. A Procedure for Evaluation of Dust Potential in Desert Terrains,

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1985-01-01

    Surficial Deposits, Silt, Clay, Sand. ABSTRACT ^•The evaluation of dust potential in hot deserts is based on the association of well de - fined dust...late Quaternary, which la heat understood, the efectiveaeas of climatic changes and the identification of euch •«ctuatioa in soils may he only roughly...ridges - ballenas . Nahal Roded, southern Arava Valley. „ ’ *m V J c^> ^ Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmw iu .......... . ^ ^^ - - _^^_^_m_ mm, PLATE S

  20. Qualitative Parameters for Evaluation Procedures of Non-Formal and Informal Learning Achievements

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Stasiunaitiene, Egle; Kaminskiene, Lina

    2009-01-01

    The article introduces evaluation principles of non-formal and informal learning that determine the quality of evaluation, describes stages of the evaluation procedure, differentiates their qualitative parameters and defines their criteria and indicators. It also brings in the discussion that consideration of qualitative parameters for the…

  1. 40 CFR 265.11 - Identification number.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 27 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Identification number. 265.11 Section... FACILITIES General Facility Standards § 265.11 Identification number. Every facility owner or operator must apply to EPA for an EPA identification number in accordance with the EPA notification procedures (45 FR...

  2. 40 CFR 265.11 - Identification number.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 26 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Identification number. 265.11 Section... FACILITIES General Facility Standards § 265.11 Identification number. Every facility owner or operator must apply to EPA for an EPA identification number in accordance with the EPA notification procedures (45 FR...

  3. 40 CFR 265.11 - Identification number.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 26 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Identification number. 265.11 Section... FACILITIES General Facility Standards § 265.11 Identification number. Every facility owner or operator must apply to EPA for an EPA identification number in accordance with the EPA notification procedures (45 FR...

  4. 40 CFR 265.11 - Identification number.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 27 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Identification number. 265.11 Section... FACILITIES General Facility Standards § 265.11 Identification number. Every facility owner or operator must apply to EPA for an EPA identification number in accordance with the EPA notification procedures (45 FR...

  5. 40 CFR 265.11 - Identification number.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 25 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Identification number. 265.11 Section... FACILITIES General Facility Standards § 265.11 Identification number. Every facility owner or operator must apply to EPA for an EPA identification number in accordance with the EPA notification procedures (45 FR...

  6. Testing a potential alternative to traditional identification procedures: Reaction time-based concealed information test does not work for lineups with cooperative witnesses.

    PubMed

    Sauerland, Melanie; Wolfs, Andrea C F; Crans, Samantha; Verschuere, Bruno

    2017-11-27

    Direct eyewitness identification is widely used, but prone to error. We tested the validity of indirect eyewitness identification decisions using the reaction time-based concealed information test (CIT) for assessing cooperative eyewitnesses' face memory as an alternative to traditional lineup procedures. In a series of five experiments, a total of 401 mock eyewitnesses watched one of 11 different stimulus events that depicted a breach of law. Eyewitness identifications in the CIT were derived from longer reaction times as compared to well-matched foil faces not encountered before. Across the five experiments, the weighted mean effect size d was 0.14 (95% CI 0.08-0.19). The reaction time-based CIT seems unsuited for testing cooperative eyewitnesses' memory for faces. The careful matching of the faces required for a fair lineup or the lack of intent to deceive may have hampered the diagnosticity of the reaction time-based CIT.

  7. Administrator Evaluation--Planning and Process.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sweeney, Jim

    1981-01-01

    Discusses five tasks basic to effective administrator evaluation: development of district philosophy; identification of activities crucial to school success; determination of operational procedures; utilization of forms and records which reflect district philosophy; and examination of the components of the system during a trial period. (JD)

  8. Evaluation of DOTD's Existing Queue Estimation Procedures : Research Project Capsule

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2017-10-01

    The primary objective of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of DOTDs queue estimation procedures by comparing results with those obtained directly from site observations through video camera footage or other means. Actual queue start time...

  9. Evaluation of intranuclear BrdU detection procedures for use in multicolor flow cytometry*

    PubMed Central

    Rothaeusler, Kristina; Baumgarth, Nicole

    2010-01-01

    Background Measurement of cell proliferation via BrdU incorporation in combination with multicolor cell surface staining would facilitate studies on cell subsets that require multiple markers for their identification. However, the extent to which the often harsh cell preparation procedures required affect the staining quality of more recently developed fluorescent dyes has not been assessed. Methods Three cell preparation protocols for BrdU measurement were compared for their ability to maintain fluorescent surface staining and scatter parameters of in vivo BrdU-labeled cells by flow cytometry. A 10-color fluorescent panel was developed to test the quality of surface staining following cell treatment and the ability to perform BrdU measurements on even small B lymphocyte subsets. Results All cell preparation procedures affected the quality of fluorescent and/or scatter parameters to varying degrees. Paraformaldehyde / saponin-based procedures preserved sufficient fluorescent surface staining to determine BrdU incorporation rates among all splenic B cell subsets, including B-1a cells, which constitute roughly 0.5% of cells. Turnover rates of B-1a cells were similar to immature B cells and higher than those of the other mature B cell subsets. Conclusion Paraformaldehyde / saponin-based cell preparation procedures facilitate detailed cell turnover studies on small cell subsets in vivo, revealing new functional information on rare cell populations. PMID:16538653

  10. 34 CFR 303.342 - Procedures for IFSP development, review, and evaluation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... development, review, and evaluation. (a) Meeting to develop initial IFSP—timelines. For a child who has been... 34 Education 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Procedures for IFSP development, review, and evaluation... PROGRAM FOR INFANTS AND TODDLERS WITH DISABILITIES Program and Service Components of a Statewide System of...

  11. 34 CFR 303.342 - Procedures for IFSP development, review, and evaluation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... development, review, and evaluation. (a) Meeting to develop initial IFSP—timelines. For a child who has been... 34 Education 2 2011-07-01 2010-07-01 true Procedures for IFSP development, review, and evaluation... PROGRAM FOR INFANTS AND TODDLERS WITH DISABILITIES Program and Service Components of a Statewide System of...

  12. 40 CFR 264.11 - Identification number.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 25 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Identification number. 264.11 Section... Facility Standards § 264.11 Identification number. Every facility owner or operator must apply to EPA for an EPA identification number in accordance with the EPA notification procedures (45 FR 12746). [45 FR...

  13. 40 CFR 264.11 - Identification number.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 27 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Identification number. 264.11 Section... Facility Standards § 264.11 Identification number. Every facility owner or operator must apply to EPA for an EPA identification number in accordance with the EPA notification procedures (45 FR 12746). [45 FR...

  14. 40 CFR 264.11 - Identification number.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 26 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Identification number. 264.11 Section... Facility Standards § 264.11 Identification number. Every facility owner or operator must apply to EPA for an EPA identification number in accordance with the EPA notification procedures (45 FR 12746). [45 FR...

  15. 40 CFR 264.11 - Identification number.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 27 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Identification number. 264.11 Section... Facility Standards § 264.11 Identification number. Every facility owner or operator must apply to EPA for an EPA identification number in accordance with the EPA notification procedures (45 FR 12746). [45 FR...

  16. 40 CFR 264.11 - Identification number.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 26 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Identification number. 264.11 Section... Facility Standards § 264.11 Identification number. Every facility owner or operator must apply to EPA for an EPA identification number in accordance with the EPA notification procedures (45 FR 12746). [45 FR...

  17. 23 CFR 669.21 - Procedure for evaluating state compliance.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... automated file as evidence that proof of payment has been received before vehicles subject to the Federal... TRAFFIC OPERATIONS ENFORCEMENT OF HEAVY VEHICLE USE TAX § 669.21 Procedure for evaluating state compliance.... In lieu of retention of Schedule 1, states may make an appropriate entry in an automated file or on...

  18. Integration of gene expression biomarkers and whole sediment toxicity identification evaluations

    EPA Science Inventory

    Toxicity identification and evaluations (TIEs) use physical/chemical manipulation of a sample to isolate or change the potency of different groups of chemicals potentially toxic in a sample. Organisms are then exposed to these fractions pre- and post-manipulation to determine if ...

  19. Flat panel display test and evaluation: procedures, standards, and facilities

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jackson, Timothy W.; Daniels, Reginald; Hopper, Darrel G.

    1997-07-01

    This paper addresses flat panel display test and evaluation via a discussion of procedures, standards and facilities. Procedures need to be carefully developed and documented to ensure that test accomplished in separate laboratories produce comparable results. The tests themselves must not be a source of inconsistency in test results when such comparisons are made in the course of procurements or new technology prototype evaluations. Standards are necessary to expedite the transition of the new display technologies into applications and to lower the costs of custom parts applied across disparate applications. The flat panel display industry is in the course of ascertaining and formulating such standards as they are of value to designers, manufacturers, marketers and users of civil and military products and equipment. Additionally, in order to inform the DoD and industry, the test and evaluation facilities of the Air Force Research Laboratory Displays Branch are described. These facilities are available to support procurements involving flat panel displays and to examine new technology prototypes. Finally, other government display testing facilities within the Navy and the Army are described.

  20. Field evaluation of flight deck procedures for flying CTAS descents

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    1997-01-01

    Flight deck descent procedures were developed for a field evaluation of the CTAS Descent Advisor conducted in the fall of 1995. During this study, CTAS descent clearances were issued to 185 commercial flights at Denver International Airport. Data col...

  1. Suggested Procedures For Evaluating The Effectiveness Of Freeway Hov Facilities

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    1991-02-01

    THIS REPORT PRESENTS THE RESULTS OF THE STATE-OF-THE-ART REVIEW OF EVALUATION PRACTICES USED WITH DIFFERENT HIGH-OCCUPANCY VEHICLE (HOV) LANE PROJECTS IN NORTH AMERICA. BASED ON THIS REVIEW, SUGGESTED PROCEDURES ARE OUTLINED FOR CONDUCTING BEFORE-AND...

  2. Evaluation of a New System, VITEK 2, for Identification and Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing of Enterococci

    PubMed Central

    Garcia-Garrote, Fernando; Cercenado, Emilia; Bouza, Emilio

    2000-01-01

    We evaluated the new automated VITEK 2 system (bioMérieux) for the identification and antimicrobial susceptibility testing of enterococci. The results obtained with the VITEK 2 system were compared to those obtained by reference methods: standard identification by the scheme of Facklam and Sahm [R. R. Facklam and D. F. Sahm, p. 308–314, in P. R. Murray et al., ed., Manual of Clinical Microbiology, 6th ed., 1995] and with the API 20 STREP system and, for antimicrobial susceptibility testing, broth microdilution and agar dilution methods by the procedures of the National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards. The presence of vanA and vanB genes was determined by PCR. A total of 150 clinical isolates were studied, corresponding to 60 Enterococcus faecalis, 55 Enterococcus faecium, 26 Enterococcus gallinarum, 5 Enterococcus avium, 2 Enterococcus durans, and 2 Enterococcus raffinosus isolates. Among those isolates, 131 (87%) were correctly identified to the species level with the VITEK 2 system. Approximately half of the misidentifications were for E. faecium with low-level resistance to vancomycin, identified as E. gallinarum or E. casseliflavus; however, a motility test solved the discrepancies and increased the agreement to 94%. Among the strains studied, 66% were vancomycin resistant (57 VanA, 16 VanB, and 26 VanC strains), 23% were ampicillin resistant (MICs, ≥16 μg/ml), 31% were high-level gentamicin resistant, and 45% were high-level streptomycin resistant. Percentages of agreement for susceptibility and resistance to ampicillin, vancomycin, and teicoplanin and for high-level gentamicin resistance and high-level streptomycin resistance were 93, 95, 97, 97, and 96%, respectively. The accuracy of identification and antimicrobial susceptibility testing of enterococci with the VITEK 2 system, together with the significant reduction in handling time, will have a positive impact on the work flow of the clinical microbiology laboratory. PMID:10834961

  3. Forensic interlaboratory evaluation of the ForFLUID kit for vaginal fluids identification.

    PubMed

    Giampaoli, Saverio; Alessandrini, Federica; Berti, Andrea; Ripani, Luigi; Choi, Ajin; Crab, Roselien; De Vittori, Elisabetta; Egyed, Balazs; Haas, Cordula; Lee, Hwan Young; Korabecná, Marie; Noel, Fabrice; Podini, Daniele; Tagliabracci, Adriano; Valentini, Alessio; Romano Spica, Vincenzo

    2014-01-01

    Identification of vaginal fluids is an important step in the process of sexual assaults confirmation. Advances in both microbiology and molecular biology defined technical approaches allowing the discrimination of body fluids. These protocols are based on the identification of specific bacterial communities by microfloraDNA (mfDNA) amplification. A multiplex real time-PCR assay (ForFLUID kit) has been developed for identifying biological fluids and for discrimination among vaginal, oral and fecal samples. In order to test its efficacy and reliability of the assay in the identification of vaginal fluids, an interlaboratory evaluation has been performed on homogeneous vaginal swabs. All the involved laboratories were able to correctly recognize all the vaginal swabs, and no false positives were identified when the assay was applied on non-vaginal samples. The assay represents an useful molecular tool that can be easily adopted by forensic geneticists involved in vaginal fluid identification. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd and Faculty of Forensic and Legal Medicine. All rights reserved.

  4. Evaluation of a radiation protection cabin for invasive electrophysiological procedures.

    PubMed

    Dragusin, Octavian; Weerasooriya, Rukshen; Jaïs, Pierre; Hocini, Mélèze; Ector, Joris; Takahashi, Yoshihide; Haïssaguerre, Michel; Bosmans, Hilde; Heidbüchel, Hein

    2007-01-01

    Complex invasive electrophysiological procedures may result in high cumulative operator radiation exposure. Classical protection with lead aprons results in discomfort while radioprotection is still incomplete. This study evaluated the usefulness of a radiation protection cabin (RPC) that completely surrounds the operator. The evaluation was performed independently in two electrophysiology laboratories (E1-Leuven, Belgium; E2-Bordeaux, France), comparing operator radiation exposure using the RPC vs. a 0.5 mm lead-equivalent apron (total of 135 procedures). E1 used thermoluminiscent dosimeters (TLDs) placed at 16 positions in and out of the RPC and nine positions in and out of the apron. E2 used more sensitive electronic personal dosimeters (EPD), placed at waist and neck. The sensitivity thresholds of the TLDs and EPDs were 10-20 microSv and 1-1.5 microSv, respectively. All procedures could be performed unimpeded with the RPC. Median TLD dose values outside protected areas were in the range of 57-452 microSv, whereas doses under the apron or inside the RPC were all at the background radiation level, irrespective of procedure and fluoroscopy duration and of radiation energy delivered. In addition, the RPC was protecting the entire body (except the hands), whereas lead apron protection is incomplete. Also with the more sensitive EPDs, the radiation dose within the RPC was at the sensitivity threshold/background level (1.3+/-0.6 microSv). Again, radiation to the head was significantly lower within the RPC (1.9+/-1.2 microSv) than with the apron (102+/-23 microSv, P<0.001). The use of the RPC allows performing catheter ablation procedures without compromising catheter manipulation, and with negligible radiation exposure for the operator.

  5. On evaluating clustering procedures for use in classification

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Pore, M. D.; Moritz, T. E.; Register, D. T.; Yao, S. S.; Eppler, W. G. (Principal Investigator)

    1979-01-01

    The problem of evaluating clustering algorithms and their respective computer programs for use in a preprocessing step for classification is addressed. In clustering for classification the probability of correct classification is suggested as the ultimate measure of accuracy on training data. A means of implementing this criterion and a measure of cluster purity are discussed. Examples are given. A procedure for cluster labeling that is based on cluster purity and sample size is presented.

  6. Improving child protection: a systematic review of training and procedural interventions.

    PubMed

    Carter, Y H; Bannon, M J; Limbert, C; Docherty, A; Barlow, J

    2006-09-01

    To synthesise published evidence regarding the effectiveness of training and procedural interventions aimed at improving the identification and management of child abuse and neglect by health professionals. Systematic review for the period 1994 to 2005 of studies that evaluated child protection training and procedural interventions. Main outcome measures were learning achievement, attitudinal change, and clinical behaviour. Seven papers that examined the effectiveness of procedural interventions and 15 papers that evaluated training programmes met the inclusion criteria. Critical appraisal showed that evaluation of interventions was on the whole poor. It was found that certain procedural interventions (such as the use of checklists and structured forms) can result in improved recording of important clinical information and may also alert clinical staff to the possibility of abuse. While a variety of innovative training programmes were identified, there was an absence of rigorous evaluation of their impact. However a small number of one-group pre- and post-studies suggest improvements in a range of attitudes necessary for successful engagement in the child protection process. Current evidence supports the use of procedural changes that improve the documentation of suspected child maltreatment and that enhance professional awareness. The lack of an evidence based approach to the implementation of child protection training may restrict the ability of all health professionals to fulfil their role in the child protection process. Formal evaluation of a variety of models for the delivery of this training is urgently needed with subsequent dissemination of results that highlight those found to be most effective.

  7. Test Procedures for Characterizing, Evaluating, and Managing Separator Materials used in Secondary Alkaline Batteries

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Guasp, Edwin; Manzo, Michelle A.

    1997-01-01

    Secondary alkaline batteries, such as nickel-cadmium and silver-zinc, are commonly used for aerospace applications. The uniform evaluation and comparison of separator properties for these systems is dependent upon the measurement techniques. This manual presents a series of standard test procedures that can be used to evaluate, compare, and select separator materials for use in alkaline batteries. Detailed test procedures evaluating the following characteristics are included in this manual: physical measurements of thickness and area weight, dimensional stability measurements, electrolyte retention, resistivity, permeability as measured via bubble pressure, surface evaluation via SEM, chemical stability, and tensile strength.

  8. [Evaluation of mass spectrometry for the identification of clinically interesting yeasts].

    PubMed

    Galán, Fátima; García-Agudo, Lidia; Guerrero, Inmaculada; Marín, Pilar; García-Tapia, Ana; García-Martos, Pedro; Rodríguez-Iglesias, Manuel

    2015-01-01

    Identification of yeasts is based on morphological, biochemical and nutritional characteristics, and using molecular methods. Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry, a new method for the identification of microorganisms, has demonstrated to be very useful. The aim of this study is to evaluate this new method in the identification of yeasts. A total of 600 strains of yeasts isolated from clinical specimens belonging to 9 genera and 43 species were tested. Identification was made by sequencing of the ITS regions of ribosomal DNA, assimilation of carbon compounds (ID 32C), and mass spectrometry on a Microflex spectrometer (Bruker Daltonics GmbH, Germany). A total of 569 strains (94.8%) were identified to species level by ID 32C, and 580 (96.7%) by MALDI-TOF. Concordance between both methods was observed for 553 strains (92.2%), with 100% in clinically relevant species: C. albicans, C. glabrata, C. parapsilosis, C. tropicalis, and almost 100% in C. krusei. MALDI-TOF identified species requiring molecular methods: Candida dubliniensis, C. nivariensis, C. metapsilosis and C. orthopsilosis. Some irregularities were observed in the identification of arthroconidia yeast and basidiomycetes. MALDI-TOF is a rapid, effective and economic method, which enables the identification of most clinically important yeasts and the differentiation of closely related species. It would be desirable to include more species in its database to expand its performance. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier España, S.L.U. y Sociedad Española de Enfermedades Infecciosas y Microbiología Clínica. All rights reserved.

  9. 21 CFR 58.81 - Standard operating procedures.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... LABORATORY PRACTICE FOR NONCLINICAL LABORATORY STUDIES Testing Facilities Operation § 58.81 Standard operating procedures. (a) A testing facility shall have standard operating procedures in writing setting... following: (1) Animal room preparation. (2) Animal care. (3) Receipt, identification, storage, handling...

  10. 21 CFR 58.81 - Standard operating procedures.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... LABORATORY PRACTICE FOR NONCLINICAL LABORATORY STUDIES Testing Facilities Operation § 58.81 Standard operating procedures. (a) A testing facility shall have standard operating procedures in writing setting... following: (1) Animal room preparation. (2) Animal care. (3) Receipt, identification, storage, handling...

  11. 21 CFR 58.81 - Standard operating procedures.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... LABORATORY PRACTICE FOR NONCLINICAL LABORATORY STUDIES Testing Facilities Operation § 58.81 Standard operating procedures. (a) A testing facility shall have standard operating procedures in writing setting... following: (1) Animal room preparation. (2) Animal care. (3) Receipt, identification, storage, handling...

  12. 21 CFR 58.81 - Standard operating procedures.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... LABORATORY PRACTICE FOR NONCLINICAL LABORATORY STUDIES Testing Facilities Operation § 58.81 Standard operating procedures. (a) A testing facility shall have standard operating procedures in writing setting... following: (1) Animal room preparation. (2) Animal care. (3) Receipt, identification, storage, handling...

  13. Evaluation of a technique to simplify depictions of visually complex aeronautical procedures for NextGen

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2013-10-04

    Performance based navigation supports the design of more precise flight procedures. However, these new procedures can be visually complex, which may impact the usability of charts that depict the procedures. The purpose of the study was to evaluate w...

  14. Identification, Characterization, and Evaluation Criteria for Systems Engineering Agile Enablers

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2015-01-16

    Identification, Characterization, and Evaluation Criteria for Systems Engineering Agile Enablers Technical Report SERC -2015-TR-049-1...Task Order 024, RT 124 Report No. SERC -2015-TR-049-1 Report Documentation Page Form ApprovedOMB No. 0704-0188 Public reporting burden for the...Technology The Systems Engineering Research Center ( SERC ) is a federally funded University Affiliated Research Center managed by Stevens Institute of

  15. 20 CFR 422.112 - Employer identification numbers.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Employer identification numbers. 422.112... Procedures § 422.112 Employer identification numbers. (a) General. Most employers are required by section...)-1 to obtain an employer identification number (EIN) and to include it on wage reports filed with SSA...

  16. 20 CFR 422.112 - Employer identification numbers.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Employer identification numbers. 422.112... Procedures § 422.112 Employer identification numbers. (a) General. Most employers are required by section...)-1 to obtain an employer identification number (EIN) and to include it on wage reports filed with SSA...

  17. A decision support system-based procedure for evaluation and monitoring of protected areas sustainability for the Mediterranean region

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pediaditi, K.; Buono, F.; Pompigna, F.; Bogliotti, C.; Nurlu, E.; Ladisa, G.; Petropoulos, G. P.

    2011-10-01

    Despite common acknowledgement of the value of protected areas as instruments in ensuring sustainability, and their promotion for the achievement of policies on halting the loss of biodiversity, there is no common approach today for monitoring and evaluating them. This paper presents a novel integrated nature conservation management procedure developed to monitor and evaluate the sustainability of Mediterranean protected areas. This procedure was successfully implemented and formally evaluated by protected area managers in six Mediterranean countries, results of which are presented here together with an overview of the web-based Decision Support System (DSS) developed to facilitate its wide adoption. The DSS and procedure has been designed and evaluated by managers as a useful tool, which facilitates and provides needed procedural guidance for protected area monitoring whilst minimizing input requirements to do so. The procedure and DSS were developed following a review of existing protected area assessment tools and a detailed primary investigation of the needs and capacity of its intended users. Essentially, the procedure and DSS guides provide the facilities for protected area managers, in following a participatory approach to develop a context-specific sustainability monitoring strategy, for their protected area. Consequently, the procedure is, by design, participatory, context specific, holistic and relevant to protected area management and institutional procedures. The procedure was piloted and formally evaluated in Greece, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, Malta and Cyprus. Feedback collected from the pilot evaluations is also summarised herein.

  18. Towards incorporating epigenetic mechanisms into carcinogen identification and evaluation

    PubMed Central

    Herceg, Zdenko

    2013-01-01

    Remarkable progress in the field of epigenetics has turned academic, medical and public attention to the potential applications of these new advances in medicine and various fields of biomedical research. The result is a broader appreciation of epigenetic phenomena in the a etiology of common human diseases, most notably cancer. These advances also represent an exciting opportunity to incorporate epigenetics and epigenomics into carcinogen identification and safety assessment. Current epigenetic studies, including major international sequencing projects, are expected to generate information for establishing the ‘normal’ epigenome of tissues and cell types as well as the physiological variability of the epigenome against which carcinogen exposure can be assessed. Recently, epigenetic events have emerged as key mechanisms in cancer development, and while our search of the Monograph Volume 100 revealed that epigenetics have played a modest role in evaluating human carcinogens by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) Monographs so far, epigenetic data might play a pivotal role in the future. Here, we review (i) the current status of incorporation of epigenetics in carcinogen evaluation in the IARC Monographs Programme, (ii) potential modes of action for epigenetic carcinogens, (iii) current in vivo and in vitro technologies to detect epigenetic carcinogens, (iv) genomic regions and epigenetic modifications and their biological consequences and (v) critical technological and biological issues in assessment of epigenetic carcinogens. We also discuss the issues related to opportunities and challenges in the application of epigenetic testing in carcinogen identification and evaluation. Although the application of epigenetic assays in carcinogen evaluation is still in its infancy, important data are being generated and valuable scientific resources are being established that should catalyse future applications of epigenetic testing. PMID:23749751

  19. Identification and Evaluation of Deepwater Port Hose Inspection Methods

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    1979-01-01

    The work contained in this report consists of a review of deepwater port hose failures to date, and the causes leading to these failures, as well as an evaluation of current hose inspection techniques and procedures, and an examination of available n...

  20. [Assessment of the implementation of an unambiguous patient identification system in an acute care hospital].

    PubMed

    Martínez-Ochoa, Eva M; Cestafe-Martínez, Adolfo; Martínez-Sáenz, M Soledad; Belío-Blasco, Cristina; Caro-Berguilla, Yolanda; Rivera-Sanz, Félix

    2010-07-01

    To achieve implantation of unequivocal identification of all admitted patients, to ensure the identification of patients with an individual bracelet integrated into the clinical record, and to involve health professionals in this process. A working group was created, which analyzed the current situation in the hospital, selected materials, and designed the patient identification procedure and support material for patients and health professionals. After the system was implemented, coverage was assessed through direct observation. Implementation and satisfaction among patients and health professionals was evaluated through specifically designed questionnaires. Coverage was 79.4%. Most (82.8%) professionals knew why the identification bracelet was used and 57.8% thought it helped to avoid patient identification errors. Twenty percent used the bracelet data when administering medication, 29.2% when taking blood samples and 25.6% on entry to the operating room. Nearly all (88.3%) patients reported that the bracelet was not uncomfortable and 62.8% reported they received no information when the bracelet was placed. Acceptable coverage of the patient identification bracelets was achieved. However, the involvement of health professionals in the identification process was low, since the bracelets were not routinely used in established procedures and patients were only infrequently provided with information when the bracelets were placed. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier España S.L. All rights reserved.

  1. Feature Binding in Visual Working Memory Evaluated by Type Identification Paradigm

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Saiki, Jun; Miyatsuji, Hirofumi

    2007-01-01

    Memory for feature binding comprises a key ingredient in coherent object representations. Previous studies have been equivocal about human capacity for objects in the visual working memory. To evaluate memory for feature binding, a type identification paradigm was devised and used with a multiple-object permanence tracking task. Using objects…

  2. Automated identification and predictive tools to help identify high-risk heart failure patients: pilot evaluation.

    PubMed

    Evans, R Scott; Benuzillo, Jose; Horne, Benjamin D; Lloyd, James F; Bradshaw, Alejandra; Budge, Deborah; Rasmusson, Kismet D; Roberts, Colleen; Buckway, Jason; Geer, Norma; Garrett, Teresa; Lappé, Donald L

    2016-09-01

    Develop and evaluate an automated identification and predictive risk report for hospitalized heart failure (HF) patients. Dictated free-text reports from the previous 24 h were analyzed each day with natural language processing (NLP), to help improve the early identification of hospitalized patients with HF. A second application that uses an Intermountain Healthcare-developed predictive score to determine each HF patient's risk for 30-day hospital readmission and 30-day mortality was also developed. That information was included in an identification and predictive risk report, which was evaluated at a 354-bed hospital that treats high-risk HF patients. The addition of NLP-identified HF patients increased the identification score's sensitivity from 82.6% to 95.3% and its specificity from 82.7% to 97.5%, and the model's positive predictive value is 97.45%. Daily multidisciplinary discharge planning meetings are now based on the information provided by the HF identification and predictive report, and clinician's review of potential HF admissions takes less time compared to the previously used manual methodology (10 vs 40 min). An evaluation of the use of the HF predictive report identified a significant reduction in 30-day mortality and a significant increase in patient discharges to home care instead of to a specialized nursing facility. Using clinical decision support to help identify HF patients and automatically calculating their 30-day all-cause readmission and 30-day mortality risks, coupled with a multidisciplinary care process pathway, was found to be an effective process to improve HF patient identification, significantly reduce 30-day mortality, and significantly increase patient discharges to home care. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Medical Informatics Association. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  3. Procedural justice, occupational identification, and organizational commitment.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    1992-06-01

    Extending Tyler's (1989) group-value model, the present study tested the hypothesis that procedural justice may be of differential salience in the development of organizational commitment among individuals who identify primarily with their employing ...

  4. An Automated Procedure for Evaluating Song Imitation

    PubMed Central

    Mandelblat-Cerf, Yael; Fee, Michale S.

    2014-01-01

    Songbirds have emerged as an excellent model system to understand the neural basis of vocal and motor learning. Like humans, songbirds learn to imitate the vocalizations of their parents or other conspecific “tutors.” Young songbirds learn by comparing their own vocalizations to the memory of their tutor song, slowly improving until over the course of several weeks they can achieve an excellent imitation of the tutor. Because of the slow progression of vocal learning, and the large amounts of singing generated, automated algorithms for quantifying vocal imitation have become increasingly important for studying the mechanisms underlying this process. However, methodologies for quantifying song imitation are complicated by the highly variable songs of either juvenile birds or those that learn poorly because of experimental manipulations. Here we present a method for the evaluation of song imitation that incorporates two innovations: First, an automated procedure for selecting pupil song segments, and, second, a new algorithm, implemented in Matlab, for computing both song acoustic and sequence similarity. We tested our procedure using zebra finch song and determined a set of acoustic features for which the algorithm optimally differentiates between similar and non-similar songs. PMID:24809510

  5. Scientific evaluation and pricing of medical devices and associated procedures in France.

    PubMed

    Gilard, Martine; Debroucker, Frederique; Dubray, Claude; Allioux, Yves; Aper, Eliane; Barat-Leonhardt, Valérie; Brami, Michèle; Carbonneil, Cédric; Chartier-Kastler, Emmanuel; Coqueblin, Claire; Fare, Sandrine; Giri, Isabelle; Goehrs, Jean-Marie; Levesque, Karine; Maugendre, Philippe; Parquin, François; Sales, Jean-Patrick; Szwarcensztein, Karine

    2013-01-01

    Medical devices are many and various, ranging from tongue spatulas to implantable or invasive devices and imaging machines; their lifetimes are short, between 18 months and 5 years, due to incessant incremental innovation; and they are operator-dependent: in general, the clinical user performs a fitting procedure (hip implant or pacemaker), a therapeutic procedure using a non-implantable invasive device (arrhythmic site ablation probe, angioplasty balloon, extension spondyloplasty system, etc.) or follow-up of an active implanted device (long-term follow-up of an implanted cardiac defibrillator or of a deep brain stimulator in Parkinson's patients). A round-table held during the XXVIII(th) Giens Workshops meeting focused on the methodology of scientific evaluation of medical devices and the associated procedures with a view to their pricing and financing by the French National Health Insurance system. The working hypothesis was that the available data-set was sufficient for and compatible with scientific evaluation with clinical benefit. Post-registration studies, although contributing to the continuity of assessment, were not dealt with. Moreover, the focus was restricted to devices used in health establishments, where the association between devices and technical medical procedures is optimally representative. An update of the multiple regulatory protocols governing medical devices and procedures is provided. Issues more specifically related to procedures as such, to non-implantable devices and to innovative devices are then dealt with, and the proposals and discussion points raised at the round-table for each of these three areas are presented. © 2013 Société Française de Pharmacologie et de Thérapeutique.

  6. Evaluation of two matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) systems for the identification of Candida species.

    PubMed

    Lacroix, C; Gicquel, A; Sendid, B; Meyer, J; Accoceberry, I; François, N; Morio, F; Desoubeaux, G; Chandenier, J; Kauffmann-Lacroix, C; Hennequin, C; Guitard, J; Nassif, X; Bougnoux, M-E

    2014-02-01

    Candida spp. are responsible for severe infections in immunocompromised patients and those undergoing invasive procedures. The accurate identification of Candida species is important because emerging species can be associated with various antifungal susceptibility spectra. Conventional methods have been developed to identify the most common pathogens, but have often failed to identify uncommon species. Several studies have reported the efficiency of matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) for the identification of clinically relevant Candida species. In this study, we evaluated two commercially available MALDI-TOF systems, Andromas™ and Bruker Biotyper™, for Candida identification in routine diagnosis. For this purpose, we investigated 1383 Candida isolates prospectively collected in eight hospital laboratories during routine practice. MALDI-TOF MS results were compared with those obtained using conventional phenotypic methods. Analysis of rDNA gene sequences with internal transcribed regions or D1-D2 regions is considered the reference standard for identification. Both MALDI-TOF MS systems could accurately identify 98.3% of the isolates at the species level (1359/1383 for Andromas™; 1360/1383 for Bruker Biotyper™) vs. 96.5% for conventional techniques. Furthermore, whereas conventional methods failed to identify rare or emerging species, these were correctly identified by MALDI-TOF MS. Both MALDI-TOF MS systems are accurate and cost-effective alternatives to conventional methods for mycological identification of clinically relevant Candida species and should improve the diagnosis of fungal infections as well as patient management. © 2013 The Authors Clinical Microbiology and Infection © 2013 European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases.

  7. Identification of quasi-steady compressor characteristics from transient data

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Nunes, K. B.; Rock, S. M.

    1984-01-01

    The principal goal was to demonstrate that nonlinear compressor map parameters, which govern an in-stall response, can be identified from test data using parameter identification techniques. The tasks included developing and then applying an identification procedure to data generated by NASA LeRC on a hybrid computer. Two levels of model detail were employed. First was a lumped compressor rig model; second was a simplified turbofan model. The main outputs are the tools and procedures generated to accomplish the identification.

  8. 47 CFR 90.425 - Station identification.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... MOBILE RADIO SERVICES Operating Requirements § 90.425 Station identification. Stations licensed under... disabled. Permissible alternative identification procedures are as follows: (1) A mobile relay stations call sign may be used to identify the associated control and mobile stations, except in the Public...

  9. 47 CFR 90.425 - Station identification.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... MOBILE RADIO SERVICES Operating Requirements § 90.425 Station identification. Stations licensed under... disabled. Permissible alternative identification procedures are as follows: (1) A mobile relay stations call sign may be used to identify the associated control and mobile stations, except in the Public...

  10. Evaluating the risk of patient re-identification from adverse drug event reports

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Background Our objective was to develop a model for measuring re-identification risk that more closely mimics the behaviour of an adversary by accounting for repeated attempts at matching and verification of matches, and apply it to evaluate the risk of re-identification for Canada’s post-marketing adverse drug event database (ADE).Re-identification is only demonstrably plausible for deaths in ADE. A matching experiment between ADE records and virtual obituaries constructed from Statistics Canada vital statistics was simulated. A new re-identification risk is considered, it assumes that after gathering all the potential matches for a patient record (all records in the obituaries that are potential matches for an ADE record), an adversary tries to verify these potential matches. Two adversary scenarios were considered: (a) a mildly motivated adversary who will stop after one verification attempt, and (b) a highly motivated adversary who will attempt to verify all the potential matches and is only limited by practical or financial considerations. Methods The mean percentage of records in ADE that had a high probability of being re-identified was computed. Results Under scenario (a), the risk of re-identification from disclosing the province, age at death, gender, and exact date of the report is quite high, but the removal of province brings down the risk significantly. By only generalizing the date of reporting to month and year and including all other variables, the risk is always low. All ADE records have a high risk of re-identification under scenario (b), but the plausibility of that scenario is limited because of the financial and practical deterrent even for highly motivated adversaries. Conclusions It is possible to disclose Canada’s adverse drug event database while ensuring that plausible re-identification risks are acceptably low. Our new re-identification risk model is suitable for such risk assessments. PMID:24094134

  11. Clinical evaluation of the Vitek ANI card for identification of anaerobic bacteria.

    PubMed Central

    Schreckenberger, P C; Celig, D M; Janda, W M

    1988-01-01

    An evaluation of the Vitek Anaerobe Identification (ANI) card was performed with 341 bacterial isolates, including 313 clinical isolates and 28 stock strains of anaerobic microorganisms. Identifications obtained with the ANI card were compared with those determined by conventional methods. The card identified 73.2% of 149 anaerobic gram-negative bacilli, 63.6% of 44 Clostridium spp., 65.8% of 38 anaerobic nonsporeforming gram-positive bacilli, and 69.1% of 110 anaerobic cocci, with no further testing required. When genus-level identifications were included, 83.9% of the anaerobic gram-negative bacilli, 70.5% of Clostridium spp., 73.7% of the anaerobic nonsporeforming gram-positive bacilli, and 73.6% of the anaerobic cocci were identified. Nineteen isolates (5.6%) produced identifications of good confidence but marginal separation or questionable biotype, in which the correct identification was listed with one or two other possible choices and extra tests were required and suggested. A total of 28 (8.2%) were not identified and 29 isolates (8.5%) were misidentified by the ANI card. Among the commonly isolated clinically significant anaerobes, the ANI card identified 100% of 55 Bacteroides fragilis and 100% of 8 Clostridium perfringens. Use of supplemental tests and expansion of the data base to include additional strains of organisms that are difficult to separate even with conventional methods may improve the accuracy of the ANI card as a method for identification of anaerobic bacteria in the clinical laboratory. PMID:3343321

  12. [Benchmarking in patient identification: An opportunity to learn].

    PubMed

    Salazar-de-la-Guerra, R M; Santotomás-Pajarrón, A; González-Prieto, V; Menéndez-Fraga, M D; Rocha Hurtado, C

    To perform a benchmarking on the safe identification of hospital patients involved in "Club de las tres C" (Calidez, Calidad y Cuidados) in order to prepare a common procedure for this process. A descriptive study was conducted on the patient identification process in palliative care and stroke units in 5medium-stay hospitals. The following steps were carried out: Data collection from each hospital; organisation and data analysis, and preparation of a common procedure for this process. The data obtained for the safe identification of all stroke patients were: hospital 1 (93%), hospital 2 (93.1%), hospital 3 (100%), and hospital 5 (93.4%), and for the palliative care process: hospital 1 (93%), hospital 2 (92.3%), hospital 3 (92%), hospital 4 (98.3%), and hospital 5 (85.2%). The aim of the study has been accomplished successfully. Benchmarking activities have been developed and knowledge on the patient identification process has been shared. All hospitals had good results. The hospital 3 was best in the ictus identification process. The benchmarking identification is difficult, but, a useful common procedure that collects the best practices has been identified among the 5 hospitals. Copyright © 2017 SECA. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

  13. Field experiments on eyewitness identification: towards a better understanding of pitfalls and prospects.

    PubMed

    Wells, Gary L

    2008-02-01

    The Illinois pilot program on lineup procedures has helped sharpen the focus on the types of controls that are needed in eyewitness field experiments and the limits that exist for interpreting outcome measures (rates of suspect and filler identifications). A widely-known limitation of field experiments is that, unlike simulated crime experiments, the guilt or innocence of the suspects is not easily known independently of the behavior of the eyewitnesses. Less well appreciated is that the rate of identification of lineup fillers, although clearly errors, can be a misleading measure if the filler identification rate is used to assess which of two or more lineup procedures is the better procedure. Several examples are used to illustrate that there are clearly improper procedures that would yield fewer identifications of fillers than would their proper counterparts. For example, biased lineup structure (e.g., using poorly matched fillers) as well as suggestive lineup procedures (that can result from non-blind administration of lineups) would reduce filler identification errors compared to unbiased and non-suggestive procedures. Hence, under many circumstances filler identification rates can be misleading indicators of preferred methods. Comparisons of lineup procedures in future field experiments will not be easily accepted in the absence of double-blind administration methods in all conditions plus true random assignment to conditions.

  14. Toxicity Identification and Evaluation for the Effluent from Wastewater Treatment Plant in Industrial Complex using D.magna

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lee, S.; Keum, H.; Chun Sang, H.

    2015-12-01

    In recent years, the interests on the impacts of industrial wastewater on aquatic ecosystem have increased with concern about ecosystem protection and human health. Whole effluent toxicity tests are used to monitor toxicity by unknown toxic chemicals as well as conventional pollutants from industrial effluent discharges. This study describes the application of TIE (toxicity identification evaluation) procedures to an acutely toxic effluent from a wastewater treatment plant in industrial complex which was toxic to Daphnia magna. In TIE phase I (characterization step), the toxic effects by heavy metals, organic compounds, oxidants, volatile organic compounds, suspended solids and ammonia were screened and revealed that the source of toxicity is far from these toxicants group. Chemical analysis (TIE phase II) on TDS showed that the concentration of chloride ion (6,900 mg/L) was substantially higher than that predicted from EC50 for D. magna. In confirmation step (TIE phase III), chloride ion was demonstrated to be main toxicant in this effluent by the spiking approach, species sensitivity approach and deletion approach. Calcium, potassium, magnesium, sodium, fluorine, sulfate ion concentration (450, 100, 80, 5,300, 0.66, 2,200mg/L) was not shown toxicity from D. magna. Finally, we concluded that chloride was the most contributing toxicant in the waste water treatment plant. Further research activities are needed for technical support of toxicity identification and evaluation on the various types of wastewater treatment plant discharge in Korea. Keywords : TIE, D. magna, Industrial waste water Acknowledgement This research was supported by a grant (15IFIP-B089908-02) from Plant Research Program funded by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport of Korean government

  15. Loudness judgment procedures for evaluating hearing aid preselection decisions for severely and profoundly hearing-impaired listeners.

    PubMed

    Gottermeier, L; De Filippo, C L; Block, M G

    1991-08-01

    Hearing aid fitting involves a two-phase process of preselection and evaluation (Seewald RC and Ross M. Amplification for the Hearing Impaired 1988:213-271). The purpose of the present study was to examine alternative procedures that clinicians might use in the evaluation phase to verify the adequacy of hearing aid preselection decisions for severely and profoundly hearing-impaired listeners. Bekesy tracking, loudness rating, and conventional bracketing procedures were used to determine threshold, most comfortable listening level, and uncomfortable listening level for 10 hearing-impaired young adults. Stimuli were pulsed pure tones of 500, 1000, and 2000 Hz and filtered words. Means and standard deviations of most comfortable listening levels and uncomfortable listening levels derived from loudness judgments of the 10 subjects showed only nominal differences across procedures. However, correlation analysis (Pearson r) indicated that individuals responded to the three procedures in varying ways, producing different loudness judgments and overall dynamic ranges. Thus, test procedure may influence the clinician's final evaluation of a preselected hearing aid. Initial work suggests that closed-set response categories such as loudness rating can limit measurement variability and potentially guide the clinician's evaluation of hearing aid preselection decisions.

  16. Proceduralism and its role in economic evaluation and priority setting in health.

    PubMed

    Jan, Stephen

    2014-05-01

    This paper provides a critical overview of Gavin Mooney's proceduralist approach to economic evaluation and priority setting in health. Proceduralism is the notion that the social value attached to alternative courses of action should be determined not only by outcomes, but also processes. Mooney's brand of proceduralism was unique and couched within a broader critique of 'neo-liberal' economics. It operated on a number of levels. At the micro level of the individual program, he pioneered the notion that 'process utility' could be valued and measured within economic evaluation. At a macro level, he developed a framework in which the social objective of equity was defined by procedural justice in which communitarian values were used as the basis for judging how resources should be allocated across the health system. Finally, he applied the notion of procedural justice to further our understanding of the political economy of resource allocation; highlighting how fairness in decision making processes can overcome the sometimes intractable zero-sum resource allocation problem. In summary, his contributions to this field have set the stage for innovative programs of research to help in developing health policies and programs that are both in alignment with community values and implementable. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  17. Guide for Developing and Evaluating an SFAR 36 Engineering Procedures Manual

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    1997-05-22

    This advisory circular (AC) sets forth an acceptable means, but not the only : means, for developing and evaluating a 14 Code of Federal Regulations (14CFR) : Special Federal Aviaton Regulation (SFAR)36 engineering procedures manual. As : such, the t...

  18. Gain-Scheduled Fault Tolerance Control Under False Identification

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Shin, Jong-Yeob; Belcastro, Christine (Technical Monitor)

    2006-01-01

    An active fault tolerant control (FTC) law is generally sensitive to false identification since the control gain is reconfigured for fault occurrence. In the conventional FTC law design procedure, dynamic variations due to false identification are not considered. In this paper, an FTC synthesis method is developed in order to consider possible variations of closed-loop dynamics under false identification into the control design procedure. An active FTC synthesis problem is formulated into an LMI optimization problem to minimize the upper bound of the induced-L2 norm which can represent the worst-case performance degradation due to false identification. The developed synthesis method is applied for control of the longitudinal motions of FASER (Free-flying Airplane for Subscale Experimental Research). The designed FTC law of the airplane is simulated for pitch angle command tracking under a false identification case.

  19. Evaluation of Hands-Free Devices for Space Habitat Maintenance Procedures

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hoffman, R. B.; Twyford, E.; Conlee, C. S.; Litaker, H. L.; Solemn, J. A.; Holden

    2007-01-01

    Currently, International Space Station (ISS) crews use a laptop computer to display procedures for performing onboard maintenance tasks. This approach has been determined to be suboptimal. A heuristic evaluation and two studies have been completed to test commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) "near-eye" heads up displays (HUDs) for support of these types of maintenance tasks. In both studies, subjects worked through electronic procedures to perform simple maintenance tasks. As a result of the Phase I study, three HUDs were down-selected to one. In the Phase II study, the HUD was compared against two other electronic display devices - a laptop computer and an e-book reader. Results suggested that adjustability and stability of the HUD display were the most significant acceptability factors to consider for near-eye displays. The Phase II study uncovered a number of advantages and disadvantages of the HUD relative to the laptop and e-book reader for interacting with electronic procedures.

  20. 49 CFR 1542.211 - Identification systems.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... secured area or SIDA continuously displays the identification medium issued to that individual on the... individual who has authorized unescorted access to secured areas and SIDA's to ascertain the authority of any... approved identification media. The procedure must— (1) Apply uniformly in secured areas, SIDAs, and...

  1. 49 CFR 1542.211 - Identification systems.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... secured area or SIDA continuously displays the identification medium issued to that individual on the... individual who has authorized unescorted access to secured areas and SIDA's to ascertain the authority of any... approved identification media. The procedure must— (1) Apply uniformly in secured areas, SIDAs, and...

  2. 49 CFR 1542.211 - Identification systems.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... secured area or SIDA continuously displays the identification medium issued to that individual on the... individual who has authorized unescorted access to secured areas and SIDA's to ascertain the authority of any... approved identification media. The procedure must— (1) Apply uniformly in secured areas, SIDAs, and...

  3. 49 CFR 1542.211 - Identification systems.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... secured area or SIDA continuously displays the identification medium issued to that individual on the... individual who has authorized unescorted access to secured areas and SIDA's to ascertain the authority of any... approved identification media. The procedure must— (1) Apply uniformly in secured areas, SIDAs, and...

  4. 49 CFR 1542.211 - Identification systems.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... secured area or SIDA continuously displays the identification medium issued to that individual on the... individual who has authorized unescorted access to secured areas and SIDA's to ascertain the authority of any... approved identification media. The procedure must— (1) Apply uniformly in secured areas, SIDAs, and...

  5. A grass molecular identification system for forensic botany: a critical evaluation of the strengths and limitations.

    PubMed

    Ward, Jodie; Gilmore, Simon R; Robertson, James; Peakall, Rod

    2009-11-01

    Plant material is frequently encountered in criminal investigations but often overlooked as potential evidence. We designed a DNA-based molecular identification system for 100 Australian grasses that consisted of a series of polymerase chain reaction assays that enabled the progressive identification of grasses to different taxonomic levels. The identification system was based on DNA sequence variation at four chloroplast and two mitochondrial loci. Seventeen informative indels and 68 single-nucleotide polymorphisms were utilized as molecular markers for subfamily to species-level identification. To identify an unknown sample to subfamily level required a minimum of four markers or nine markers for species identification. The accuracy of the system was confirmed by blind tests. We have demonstrated "proof of concept" of a molecular identification system for trace botanical samples. Our evaluation suggests that the adoption of a system that combines this approach with DNA sequencing could assist the morphological identification of grasses found as forensic evidence.

  6. Procedures for testing and evaluating spacecraft-type heat pipes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tower, L. K.; Kaufman, W. B.

    1984-04-01

    This report describes part of an effort to develop dependable, cost effective spacecraft thermal control heat pipes. In the program the reliability and performance of 30 commercially available heat pipes were assessed. The pipes comprised 10 groups of varying design, with aluminum and stainless steel as structural materials, and methanol and ammonia as working fluids. The factors studied were noncondensible gas accumulation and heat transfer capability in one g. The present report supplements a brief earlier report by describing in detail the procedures required to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of heat pipes for thermal control. It discusses the test facilities and testing procedures. The manner in which data may be taken for estimating useful life and comparing performance is described. Some of the pitfalls in making such judgments are illustrated. Originator supplied keywords include: heat transfer, and corrosion.

  7. Immunity-based detection, identification, and evaluation of aircraft sub-system failures

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Moncayo, Hever Y.

    This thesis describes the design, development, and flight-simulation testing of an integrated Artificial Immune System (AIS) for detection, identification, and evaluation of a wide variety of sensor, actuator, propulsion, and structural failures/damages including the prediction of the achievable states and other limitations on performance and handling qualities. The AIS scheme achieves high detection rate and low number of false alarms for all the failure categories considered. Data collected using a motion-based flight simulator are used to define the self for an extended sub-region of the flight envelope. The NASA IFCS F-15 research aircraft model is used and represents a supersonic fighter which include model following adaptive control laws based on non-linear dynamic inversion and artificial neural network augmentation. The flight simulation tests are designed to analyze and demonstrate the performance of the immunity-based aircraft failure detection, identification and evaluation (FDIE) scheme. A general robustness analysis is also presented by determining the achievable limits for a desired performance in the presence of atmospheric perturbations. For the purpose of this work, the integrated AIS scheme is implemented based on three main components. The first component performs the detection when one of the considered failures is present in the system. The second component consists in the identification of the failure category and the classification according to the failed element. During the third phase a general evaluation of the failure is performed with the estimation of the magnitude/severity of the failure and the prediction of its effect on reducing the flight envelope of the aircraft system. Solutions and alternatives to specific design issues of the AIS scheme, such as data clustering and empty space optimization, data fusion and duplication removal, definition of features, dimensionality reduction, and selection of cluster/detector shape are also

  8. Development of unauthorized airborne emission source identification procedure

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shtripling, L. O.; Bazhenov, V. V.; Varakina, N. S.; Kupriyanova, N. P.

    2018-01-01

    The paper presents the procedure for searching sources of unauthorized airborne emissions. To make reasonable regulation decisions on airborne pollutant emissions and to ensure the environmental safety of population, the procedure provides for the determination of a pollutant mass emission value from the source being the cause of high pollution level and the search of a previously unrecognized contamination source in a specified area. To determine the true value of mass emission from the source, the minimum of the mean-root-square mismatch criterion between the computed and measured pollutant concentration in the given location is used.

  9. Forensic identification of CITES protected slimming cactus (Hoodia) using DNA barcoding.

    PubMed

    Gathier, Gerard; van der Niet, Timotheus; Peelen, Tamara; van Vugt, Rogier R; Eurlings, Marcel C M; Gravendeel, Barbara

    2013-11-01

    Slimming cactus (Hoodia), found only in southwestern Africa, is a well-known herbal product for losing weight. Consequently, Hoodia extracts are sought-after worldwide despite a CITES Appendix II status. The failure to eradicate illegal trade is due to problems with detecting and identifying Hoodia using morphological and chemical characters. Our aim was to evaluate the potential of molecular identification of Hoodia based on DNA barcoding. Screening of nrITS1 and psbA-trnH DNA sequences from 26 accessions of Ceropegieae resulted in successful identification, while conventional chemical profiling using DLI-MS led to inaccurate detection and identification of Hoodia. The presence of Hoodia in herbal products was also successfully established using DNA sequences. A validation procedure of our DNA barcoding protocol demonstrated its robustness to changes in PCR conditions. We conclude that DNA barcoding is an effective tool for Hoodia detection and identification which can contribute to preventing illegal trade. © 2013 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

  10. Do Toxicity Identification and Evaluation Laboratory-Based Methods Reflect Causes of Field Impairment?

    EPA Science Inventory

    Sediment Toxicity Identification and Evaluation (TIE) methods have been developed for both interstitial waters and whole sediments. These relatively simple laboratory methods are designed to identify specific toxicants or classes of toxicants in sediments; however, the question ...

  11. Is it possible to eliminate patient identification errors in medical imaging?

    PubMed

    Danaher, Luke A; Howells, Joan; Holmes, Penny; Scally, Peter

    2011-08-01

    The aim of this article is to review a system that validates and documents the process of ensuring the correct patient, correct site and side, and correct procedure (commonly referred to as the 3 C's) within medical imaging. A 4-step patient identification and procedure matching process was developed using health care and aviation models. The process was established in medical imaging departments after a successful interventional radiology pilot program. The success of the project was evaluated using compliance audit data, incident reporting data before and after the implementation of the process, and a staff satisfaction survey. There was 95% to 100% verification of site and side and 100% verification of correct patient, procedure, and consent. Correct patient data and side markers were present in 82% to 95% of cases. The number of incidents before and after the implementation of the 3 C's was difficult to assess because of a change in reporting systems and incident underreporting. More incidents are being reported, particularly "near misses." All near misses were related to incorrect patient identification stickers being placed on request forms. The majority of staff members surveyed found the process easy (55.8%), quick (47.7%), relevant (51.7%), and useful (60.9%). Although identification error is difficult to eliminate, practical initiatives can engender significant systems improvement in complex health care environments. Crown Copyright © 2011. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  12. Probability of identification: a statistical model for the validation of qualitative botanical identification methods.

    PubMed

    LaBudde, Robert A; Harnly, James M

    2012-01-01

    A qualitative botanical identification method (BIM) is an analytical procedure that returns a binary result (1 = Identified, 0 = Not Identified). A BIM may be used by a buyer, manufacturer, or regulator to determine whether a botanical material being tested is the same as the target (desired) material, or whether it contains excessive nontarget (undesirable) material. The report describes the development and validation of studies for a BIM based on the proportion of replicates identified, or probability of identification (POI), as the basic observed statistic. The statistical procedures proposed for data analysis follow closely those of the probability of detection, and harmonize the statistical concepts and parameters between quantitative and qualitative method validation. Use of POI statistics also harmonizes statistical concepts for botanical, microbiological, toxin, and other analyte identification methods that produce binary results. The POI statistical model provides a tool for graphical representation of response curves for qualitative methods, reporting of descriptive statistics, and application of performance requirements. Single collaborator and multicollaborative study examples are given.

  13. A hybrid approach to parameter identification of linear delay differential equations involving multiple delays

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Marzban, Hamid Reza

    2018-05-01

    In this paper, we are concerned with the parameter identification of linear time-invariant systems containing multiple delays. The approach is based upon a hybrid of block-pulse functions and Legendre's polynomials. The convergence of the proposed procedure is established and an upper error bound with respect to the L2-norm associated with the hybrid functions is derived. The problem under consideration is first transformed into a system of algebraic equations. The least squares technique is then employed for identification of the desired parameters. Several multi-delay systems of varying complexity are investigated to evaluate the performance and capability of the proposed approximation method. It is shown that the proposed approach is also applicable to a class of nonlinear multi-delay systems. It is demonstrated that the suggested procedure provides accurate results for the desired parameters.

  14. 42 CFR 493.1232 - Standard: Specimen identification and integrity.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 42 Public Health 5 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Standard: Specimen identification and integrity... Nonwaived Testing General Laboratory Systems § 493.1232 Standard: Specimen identification and integrity. The laboratory must establish and follow written policies and procedures that ensure positive identification and...

  15. 47 CFR 87.107 - Station identification.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... aircraft followed by the characters of the registration marking (“N” number) of the aircraft, omitting the... type of aircraft followed by the last three characters of the registration marking. Notwithstanding any... Operating Requirements and Procedures Operating Procedures § 87.107 Station identification. (a) Aircraft...

  16. 47 CFR 87.107 - Station identification.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... aircraft followed by the characters of the registration marking (“N” number) of the aircraft, omitting the... type of aircraft followed by the last three characters of the registration marking. Notwithstanding any... Operating Requirements and Procedures Operating Procedures § 87.107 Station identification. (a) Aircraft...

  17. 47 CFR 87.107 - Station identification.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... aircraft followed by the characters of the registration marking (“N” number) of the aircraft, omitting the... type of aircraft followed by the last three characters of the registration marking. Notwithstanding any... Operating Requirements and Procedures Operating Procedures § 87.107 Station identification. (a) Aircraft...

  18. 47 CFR 87.107 - Station identification.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... aircraft followed by the characters of the registration marking (“N” number) of the aircraft, omitting the... type of aircraft followed by the last three characters of the registration marking. Notwithstanding any... Operating Requirements and Procedures Operating Procedures § 87.107 Station identification. (a) Aircraft...

  19. 47 CFR 87.107 - Station identification.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... aircraft followed by the characters of the registration marking (“N” number) of the aircraft, omitting the... type of aircraft followed by the last three characters of the registration marking. Notwithstanding any... Operating Requirements and Procedures Operating Procedures § 87.107 Station identification. (a) Aircraft...

  20. Identification of Polymers in University Class Experiments.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bowen, Humphry J. M.

    1990-01-01

    The apparatus, reagents, preliminary classification, nomenclature, acquisition, and procedures used in the identification of synthetic polymers are described. Specific tests for the identification of the presence of hydrocarbons, chlorine, fluorine, sulfur, and nitrogen and the absence of halogens and sulfur are discussed. (CW)

  1. Recent Developments in Whole Sediment Toxicity Identification Evaluations: Innovations in Manipulations and Endpoints

    EPA Science Inventory

    Whole sediment Toxicity Identification Evaluation (TIE) methods were developed primarily in the late 1990s and early 2000s in research programs dedicated to developing manipulations and endpoints to characterize and identify causes of toxicity to benthic freshwater and marine org...

  2. Identification of volatiles by headspace gas chromatography with simultaneous flame ionization and mass spectrometric detection.

    PubMed

    Tiscione, Nicholas B; Yeatman, Dustin Tate; Shan, Xiaoqin; Kahl, Joseph H

    2013-10-01

    Volatiles are frequently abused as inhalants. The methods used for identification are generally nonspecific if analyzed concurrently with ethanol or require an additional analytical procedure that employs mass spectrometry. A previously published technique utilizing a capillary flow technology splitter to simultaneously quantitate and confirm ethyl alcohol by flame ionization and mass spectrometric detection after headspace sampling and gas chromatographic separation was evaluated for the detection of inhalants. Methanol, isopropanol, acetone, acetaldehyde, toluene, methyl ethyl ketone, isoamyl alcohol, isobutyl alcohol, n-butyl alcohol, 1,1-difluoroethane, 1,1,1-trifluoroethane, 1,1,1,2-tetrafluoroethane (Norflurane, HFC-134a), chloroethane, trichlorofluoromethane (Freon®-11), dichlorodifluoromethane (Freon®-12), dichlorofluoromethane (Freon®-21), chlorodifluoromethane (Freon®-22) and 1,2-dichlorotetrafluoroethane (Freon®-114) were validated for qualitative identification by this method. The validation for qualitative identification included evaluation of matrix effects, sensitivity, carryover, specificity, repeatability and ruggedness/robustness.

  3. Evaluation of chromogenic media and seminested PCR in the identification of Candida species

    PubMed Central

    Daef, Enas; Moharram, Ahmed; Eldin, Salwa Seif; Elsherbiny, Nahla; Mohammed, Mona

    2014-01-01

    Identification of Candida cultured from various clinical specimens to the species level is increasingly necessary for clinical laboratories. Although sn PCR identifies the species within hours but its cost-effectiveness is to be considered. So there is always a need for media which help in the isolation and identification at the species level. The study aimed to evaluate the performance of different chromogenic media and to compare the effectiveness of the traditional phenotypic methods vs. seminested polymerase chain reaction (sn PCR) for identification of Candida species. One hundred and twenty seven Candida strains isolated from various clinical specimens were identified by conventional methods, four different chromogenic media and sn PCR. HiCrome Candida Differential and CHROMagar Candida media showed comparably high sensitivities and specificities in the identification of C. albicans, C. tropicalis, C. glabrata and C. krusei. CHROMagar Candida had an extra advantage of identifying all C. parapsilosis isolates. CHROMagar-Pal’s medium identified C. albicans, C. tropicalis and C. krusei with high sensitivities and specificities, but couldn’t identify C. glabrata or C. parapsilosis. It was the only medium that identified C. dubliniensis with a sensitivity and specificity of 100%. Biggy agar showed the least sensitivities and specificities. The overall concordance of the snPCR compared to the conventional tests including CHROMAgar Candida in the identification of Candida species was 97.5%. The use of CHROMAgar Candida medium is an easy and accurate method for presumptive identification of the most commonly encountered Candida spp. PMID:24948942

  4. Evaluation of the VITEK 2 System for Identification and Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing of Medically Relevant Gram-Positive Cocci

    PubMed Central

    Ligozzi, Marco; Bernini, Cinzia; Bonora, Maria Grazia; de Fatima, Maria; Zuliani, Jessica; Fontana, Roberta

    2002-01-01

    A study was conducted to evaluate the new VITEK 2 system (bioMérieux) for identification and antibiotic susceptibility testing of gram-positive cocci. Clinical isolates of Staphylococcus aureus (n = 100), coagulase-negative staphylococci (CNS) (n = 100), Enterococcus spp. (n = 89), Streptococcus agalactiae (n = 29), and Streptococcus pneumoniae (n = 66) were examined with the ID-GPC identification card and with the AST-P515 (for staphylococci), AST-P516 (for enterococci and S. agalactiae) and AST-P506 (for pneumococci) susceptibility cards. The identification comparison methods were the API Staph for staphylococci and the API 20 Strep for streptococci and enterococci; for antimicrobial susceptibility testing, the agar dilution method according to the procedure of the National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards (NCCLS) was used. The VITEK 2 system correctly identified to the species level (only one choice or after simple supplementary tests) 99% of S. aureus, 96.5% of S. agalactiae, 96.9% of S. pneumoniae, 92.7% of Enterococcus faecalis, 91.3% of Staphylococcus haemolyticus, and 88% of Staphylococcus epidermidis but was least able to identify Enterococcus faecium (71.4% correct). More than 90% of gram-positive cocci were identified within 3 h. According to the NCCLS breakpoints, antimicrobial susceptibility testing with the VITEK 2 system gave 96% correct category agreement, 0.82% very major errors, 0.17% major errors, and 2.7% minor errors. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing showed category agreement from 94 to 100% for S. aureus, from 90 to 100% for CNS, from 91 to 100% for enterococci, from 96 to 100% for S. agalactiae, and from 91 to 100% for S. pneumoniae. Microorganism-antibiotic combinations that gave very major errors were CNS-erythromycin, CNS-oxacillin, enterococci-teicoplanin, and enterococci-high-concentration gentamicin. Major errors were observed for CNS-oxacillin and S. agalactiae-tetracycline combinations. In conclusion the results of

  5. Radiographic evaluation of pancreatico-jejunal shunts.

    PubMed Central

    Miller, E W; Goldberg, H I; Goldberg, S B; Shapiro, H

    1976-01-01

    This paper describes opacification and identification of two surgically constructed pancreatico-jujunal shunts. A fibreoptic panendoscope was used with retrograde injection via the ampulla of Vater (ERCP). This procedure makes possible more accurate anatomical evaluation and so more precise clinical appraisal of both pre- and post-surgical states. Images Fig. 1 Fig. 2 PMID:955500

  6. FBI fingerprint identification automation study: AIDS 3 evaluation report. Volume 5: Current system evaluation

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Mulhall, B. D. L.

    1980-01-01

    The performance, costs, organization and other characteristics of both the manual system and AIDS 2 were used to establish a baseline case. The results of the evaluation are to be used to determine the feasibility of the AIDS 3 System, as well as provide a basis for ranking alternative systems during the second phase of the JPL study. The results of the study were tabulated by subject, scope and methods, providing a descriptive, quantitative and qualitative analysis of the current operating systems employed by the FBI Identification Division.

  7. Evaluation of modified crystal violet chromoendoscopy procedure using new mucosal pit pattern classification for detection of Barrett's dysplastic lesions.

    PubMed

    Yuki, T; Amano, Y; Kushiyama, Y; Takahashi, Y; Ose, T; Moriyama, I; Fukuhara, H; Ishimura, N; Koshino, K; Furuta, K; Ishihara, S; Adachi, K; Kinoshita, Y

    2006-05-01

    Pit pattern diagnosis is important for endoscopic detection of dysplastic Barrett's lesions, though using magnification endoscopy can be difficult and laborious. We investigated the usefulness of a modified crystal violet chromoendoscopy procedure and utilised a new pit pattern classification for diagnosis of dysplastic Barrett's lesions. A total of 1,030 patients suspected of having a columnar lined oesophagus were examined, of whom 816 demonstrated a crystal violet-stained columnar lined oesophagus. The early group of patients underwent 0.05% crystal violet chromoendoscopy, while the later group was examined using 0.03% crystal violet with 3.0% acetate. A targeted biopsy of the columnar lined oesophagus was performed using crystal violet staining after making a diagnosis of closed or open type pit pattern with a newly proposed system of classification. The relationship between type of pit pattern and histologically identified dysplastic Barrett's lesions was evaluated. Dysplastic Barrett's lesions were identified in biopsy samples with an open type pit pattern with a sensitivity of 96.0%. Further, Barrett's mucosa with the intestinal predominant mucin phenotype was closely associated with the open type pit pattern (sensitivity 81.9%, specificity 95.6%). The new pit pattern classification for diagnosis of Barrett's mucosa was found to be useful for identification of cases with dysplastic lesions and possible malignant potential using a crystal violet chromoendoscopic procedure.

  8. Designing Flightdeck Procedures

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Barshi, Immanuel; Mauro, Robert; Degani, Asaf; Loukopoulou, Loukia

    2016-01-01

    The primary goal of this document is to provide guidance on how to design, implement, and evaluate flight deck procedures. It provides a process for developing procedures that meet clear and specific requirements. This document provides a brief overview of: 1) the requirements for procedures, 2) a process for the design of procedures, and 3) a process for the design of checklists. The brief overview is followed by amplified procedures that follow the above steps and provide details for the proper design, implementation and evaluation of good flight deck procedures and checklists.

  9. Evaluation of the Polyethylene Reverse Sampler as a Dosing System in Marine Phase II Whole Sediment Toxicity Identification Evaluations (TIEs)

    EPA Science Inventory

    Contaminated marine sediments can cause acute and chronic impairments to benthic organisms. Nonionic organic contaminants (NOCs) are often a primary cause of impairment. Toxicity Identification Evaluations (TIEs) are used to identify chemicals causing toxicity in sediments. Ph...

  10. An improved filter elution and cell culture assay procedure for evaluating public groundwater systems for culturable enteroviruses.

    PubMed

    Dahling, Daniel R

    2002-01-01

    Large-scale virus studies of groundwater systems require practical and sensitive procedures for both sample processing and viral assay. Filter adsorption-elution procedures have traditionally been used to process large-volume water samples for viruses. In this study, five filter elution procedures using cartridge filters were evaluated for their effectiveness in processing samples. Of the five procedures tested, the third method, which incorporated two separate beef extract elutions (one being an overnight filter immersion in beef extract), recovered 95% of seeded poliovirus compared with recoveries of 36 to 70% for the other methods. For viral enumeration, an expanded roller bottle quantal assay was evaluated using seeded poliovirus. This cytopathic-based method was considerably more sensitive than the standard plaque assay method. The roller bottle system was more economical than the plaque assay for the evaluation of comparable samples. Using roller bottles required less time and manipulation than the plaque procedure and greatly facilitated the examination of large numbers of samples. The combination of the improved filter elution procedure and the roller bottle assay for viral analysis makes large-scale virus studies of groundwater systems practical. This procedure was subsequently field tested during a groundwater study in which large-volume samples (exceeding 800 L) were processed through the filters.

  11. A ruggedness evaluation of procedures for damage threshold testing optical materials

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hooker, Matthew W.; Thomas, Milfred E.; Wise, Stephanie A.; Tappan, Nina D.

    1995-01-01

    A ruggedness evaluation of approaches to damage threshold testing was performed to determine the influence of three procedural variables on damage threshold data. The differences between the number of test sites evaluated at an applied fluence level (1 site versus 10 sites), the number of laser pulses at each test site (1 pulse versus 200 pulses), and the beam diameter (0.35 mm versus 0.70 mm) were all found to significantly influence the damage threshold data over a 99-percent confidence interval.

  12. Evaluation of a Noise Reduction Procedure for Chest Radiography

    PubMed Central

    Fukui, Ryohei; Ishii, Rie; Kodani, Kazuhiko; Kanasaki, Yoshiko; Suyama, Hisashi; Watanabe, Masanari; Nakamoto, Masaki; Fukuoka, Yasushi

    2013-01-01

    Background The aim of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of noise reduction procedure (NRP), a function in the new image processing for chest radiography. Methods A CXDI-50G Portable Digital Radiography System (Canon) was used for X-ray detection. Image noise was analyzed with a noise power spectrum (NPS) and a burger phantom was used for evaluation of density resolution. The usefulness of NRP was evaluated by chest phantom images and clinical chest radiography. We employed the Bureau of Radiological Health Method for scoring chest images while carrying out our observations. Results NPS through the use of NRP was improved compared with conventional image processing (CIP). The results in image quality showed high-density resolution through the use of NRP, so that chest radiography examination can be performed with a low dose of radiation. Scores were significantly higher than for CIP. Conclusion In this study, use of NRP led to a high evaluation in these so we are able to confirm the usefulness of NRP for clinical chest radiography. PMID:24574577

  13. 9 CFR 147.16 - Procedure for the evaluation of mycoplasma reactors by in vivo bio-assay (enrichment).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... 9 Animals and Animal Products 1 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Procedure for the evaluation of mycoplasma reactors by in vivo bio-assay (enrichment). 147.16 Section 147.16 Animals and Animal Products... the evaluation of mycoplasma reactors by in vivo bio-assay (enrichment). This procedure has been shown...

  14. 49 CFR Appendix C to Part 242 - Procedures for Obtaining and Evaluating Motor Vehicle Driving Record Data

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 4 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Procedures for Obtaining and Evaluating Motor Vehicle Driving Record Data C Appendix C to Part 242 Transportation Other Regulations Relating to... CERTIFICATION OF CONDUCTORS Pt. 242, App. C Appendix C to Part 242—Procedures for Obtaining and Evaluating Motor...

  15. 49 CFR Appendix C to Part 242 - Procedures for Obtaining and Evaluating Motor Vehicle Driving Record Data

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 4 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Procedures for Obtaining and Evaluating Motor Vehicle Driving Record Data C Appendix C to Part 242 Transportation Other Regulations Relating to... CERTIFICATION OF CONDUCTORS Pt. 242, App. C Appendix C to Part 242—Procedures for Obtaining and Evaluating Motor...

  16. Non invasive evaluation of cardiomechanics in patients undergoing MitrClip procedure

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Background In the last recent years a new percutaneous procedure, the MitraClip, has been validated for the treatment of mitral regurgitation. MitraClip procedure is a promising alternative for patients unsuitable for surgery as it reduces the risk of death related to surgery ensuring a similar result. Few data are present in literature about the variation of hemodynamic parameters and ventricular coupling after Mitraclip implantation. Methods Hemodynamic data of 18 patients enrolled for MitraClip procedure were retrospectively reviewed and analyzed. Echocardiographic measurements were obtained the day before the procedure (T0) and 21 ± 3 days after the procedure (T1), including evaluation of Ejection Fraction, mitral valve regurgitation severity and mechanism, forward Stroke Volume, left atrial volume, estimated systolic pulmonary pressure, non invasive echocardiographic estimation of single beat ventricular elastance (Es(sb)), arterial elastance (Ea) measured as systolic pressure • 0.9/ Stroke Volume, ventricular arterial coupling (Ea/Es(sb) ratio). Data were expressed as median and interquartile range. Measures obtained before and after the procedure were compared using Wilcoxon non parametric test for paired samples. Results Mitraclip procedure was effective in reducing regurgitation. We observed an amelioration of echocardiographic parameters with a reduction of estimated systolic pulmonary pressure (45 to 37,5 p = 0,0002) and left atrial volume (110 to 93 p = 0,0001). Despite a few cases decreasing in ejection fraction (37 to 35 p = 0,035), the maintained ventricular arterial coupling after the procedure (P = 0,67) was associated with an increasing in forward stroke volume (60,3 to 78 p = 0,05). Conclusion MitraClip is effective in reducing mitral valve regurgitation and determines an amelioration of hemodynamic parameters with preservation of ventricular arterial coupling. PMID:23642140

  17. Identification and robust control of an experimental servo motor.

    PubMed

    Adam, E J; Guestrin, E D

    2002-04-01

    In this work, the design of a robust controller for an experimental laboratory-scale position control system based on a dc motor drive as well as the corresponding identification and robust stability analysis are presented. In order to carry out the robust design procedure, first, a classic closed-loop identification technique is applied and then, the parametrization by internal model control is used. The model uncertainty is evaluated under both parametric and global representation. For the latter case, an interesting discussion about the conservativeness of this description is presented by means of a comparison between the uncertainty disk and the critical perturbation radius approaches. Finally, conclusions about the performance of the experimental system with the robust controller are discussed using comparative graphics of the controlled variable and the Nyquist stability margin as a robustness measurement.

  18. Evaluation of microarray data normalization procedures using spike-in experiments

    PubMed Central

    Rydén, Patrik; Andersson, Henrik; Landfors, Mattias; Näslund, Linda; Hartmanová, Blanka; Noppa, Laila; Sjöstedt, Anders

    2006-01-01

    Background Recently, a large number of methods for the analysis of microarray data have been proposed but there are few comparisons of their relative performances. By using so-called spike-in experiments, it is possible to characterize the analyzed data and thereby enable comparisons of different analysis methods. Results A spike-in experiment using eight in-house produced arrays was used to evaluate established and novel methods for filtration, background adjustment, scanning, channel adjustment, and censoring. The S-plus package EDMA, a stand-alone tool providing characterization of analyzed cDNA-microarray data obtained from spike-in experiments, was developed and used to evaluate 252 normalization methods. For all analyses, the sensitivities at low false positive rates were observed together with estimates of the overall bias and the standard deviation. In general, there was a trade-off between the ability of the analyses to identify differentially expressed genes (i.e. the analyses' sensitivities) and their ability to provide unbiased estimators of the desired ratios. Virtually all analysis underestimated the magnitude of the regulations; often less than 50% of the true regulations were observed. Moreover, the bias depended on the underlying mRNA-concentration; low concentration resulted in high bias. Many of the analyses had relatively low sensitivities, but analyses that used either the constrained model (i.e. a procedure that combines data from several scans) or partial filtration (a novel method for treating data from so-called not-found spots) had with few exceptions high sensitivities. These methods gave considerable higher sensitivities than some commonly used analysis methods. Conclusion The use of spike-in experiments is a powerful approach for evaluating microarray preprocessing procedures. Analyzed data are characterized by properties of the observed log-ratios and the analysis' ability to detect differentially expressed genes. If bias is not a

  19. Procedures to evaluate the efficiency of protective clothing worn by operators applying pesticide.

    PubMed

    Espanhol-Soares, Melina; Nociti, Leticia A S; Machado-Neto, Joaquim Gonçalves

    2013-10-01

    The evaluation of the efficiency of whole-body protective clothing against pesticides has already been carried out through field tests and procedures defined by international standards, but there is a need to determine the useful life of these garments to ensure worker safety. The aim of this article is to compare the procedures for evaluating efficiency of two whole-body protective garments, both new and previously used by applicators of herbicides, using a laboratory test with a mannequin and in the field with the operator. The evaluation of the efficiency of protective clothing used both quantitative and qualitative methodologies, leading to a proposal for classification according to efficiency, and determination of the useful life of protective clothing for use against pesticides, based on a quantitative assessment. The procedures used were in accordance with the standards of the modified American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) F 1359:2007 and International Organization for Standardization 17491-4. The protocol used in the field was World Health Organization Vector Biology and Control (VBC)/82.1. Clothing tested was personal water repellent and pesticide protective. Two varieties of fabric were tested: Beige (100% cotton) and Camouflaged (31% polyester and 69% cotton). The efficiency in exposure control of the personal protective clothing was measured before use and after 5, 10, 20, and 30 uses and washes under field conditions. Personal protective clothing was worn by workers in the field during the application of the herbicide glyphosate on weed species in mature sugar cane plantations using a knapsack sprayer. The modified ASTM 1359:2007 procedure was chosen as the most appropriate due to its greater repeatability (lower coefficient of variation). This procedure provides quantitative evaluation needed to determine the efficiency and useful life of individual protective clothing, not just at specific points of failure, but according to dermal

  20. The medical practice of euthanasia in Belgium and The Netherlands: legal notification, control and evaluation procedures.

    PubMed

    Smets, Tinne; Bilsen, Johan; Cohen, Joachim; Rurup, Mette L; De Keyser, Els; Deliens, Luc

    2009-05-01

    To describe and compare current legal procedures for notifying, controlling and evaluating (NCE-procedures) euthanasia in Belgium and the Netherlands, and to discuss the implications for a safe and controllable euthanasia practice. We systematically studied and compared official documents relating to the Belgian and the Dutch NCE-procedures for euthanasia. In both countries, physicians are required to notify their cases to a review Committee, stimulating them to safeguard the quality of their euthanasia practice and to make societal control over the practice of euthanasia possible. However, the procedures in both countries differ. The main differences are that the Dutch notification and control procedures are more elaborate and transparent than the Belgian, and that the Belgian procedures are primarily anonymous, whereas the Dutch are not. Societal evaluation is made in both countries through the Committees' summary reports to Parliament. Transparent procedures like the Dutch may better facilitate societal control. Informing physicians about the law and the due care requirements for euthanasia, and systematic feedback about their medical actions are both pivotal to achieving efficient societal control and engendering the level of care needed when performing such far-reaching medical acts.

  1. Closed-Loop Evaluation of an Integrated Failure Identification and Fault Tolerant Control System for a Transport Aircraft

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Shin, Jong-Yeob; Belcastro, Christine; Khong, thuan

    2006-01-01

    Formal robustness analysis of aircraft control upset prevention and recovery systems could play an important role in their validation and ultimate certification. Such systems developed for failure detection, identification, and reconfiguration, as well as upset recovery, need to be evaluated over broad regions of the flight envelope or under extreme flight conditions, and should include various sources of uncertainty. To apply formal robustness analysis, formulation of linear fractional transformation (LFT) models of complex parameter-dependent systems is required, which represent system uncertainty due to parameter uncertainty and actuator faults. This paper describes a detailed LFT model formulation procedure from the nonlinear model of a transport aircraft by using a preliminary LFT modeling software tool developed at the NASA Langley Research Center, which utilizes a matrix-based computational approach. The closed-loop system is evaluated over the entire flight envelope based on the generated LFT model which can cover nonlinear dynamics. The robustness analysis results of the closed-loop fault tolerant control system of a transport aircraft are presented. A reliable flight envelope (safe flight regime) is also calculated from the robust performance analysis results, over which the closed-loop system can achieve the desired performance of command tracking and failure detection.

  2. Linkage of genomic biomarkers to whole organism endpoints in a Toxicity Identification Evaluation (TIE).

    EPA Science Inventory

    Aquatic organisms are exposed to many toxic chemicals and interpreting the cause and effect relationships between occurrence and impairment is difficult. Toxicity Identification Evaluation (TIE) provides a systematic approach for identifying responsible toxicants. TIE relies on ...

  3. Post-procedural Care in Interventional Radiology: What Every Interventional Radiologist Should Know-Part II: Catheter Care and Management of Common Systemic Post-procedural Complications.

    PubMed

    Taslakian, Bedros; Sridhar, Divya

    2017-09-01

    Interventional radiology (IR) has evolved into a full-fledged clinical specialty with attendant comprehensive patient care responsibilities. Providing excellent and thorough clinical care is as essential to the practice of IR as achieving technical success in procedures. Basic clinical skills that every interventional radiologist should learn include routine management of percutaneously inserted drainage and vascular catheters and rapid effective management of common systemic post-procedural complications. A structured approach to post-procedural care, including routine follow-up and early identification and management of complications, facilitates efficient and thorough management with an emphasis on quality and patient safety. The aim of this second part, in conjunction with part 1, is to complete the comprehensive review of post-procedural care in patients undergoing interventional radiology procedures. We discuss common problems encountered after insertion of drainage and vascular catheters and describe effective methods of troubleshooting these problems. Commonly encountered systemic complications in IR are described, and ways for immediate identification and management of these complications are provided.

  4. A survey of computational methods and error rate estimation procedures for peptide and protein identification in shotgun proteomics

    PubMed Central

    Nesvizhskii, Alexey I.

    2010-01-01

    This manuscript provides a comprehensive review of the peptide and protein identification process using tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) data generated in shotgun proteomic experiments. The commonly used methods for assigning peptide sequences to MS/MS spectra are critically discussed and compared, from basic strategies to advanced multi-stage approaches. A particular attention is paid to the problem of false-positive identifications. Existing statistical approaches for assessing the significance of peptide to spectrum matches are surveyed, ranging from single-spectrum approaches such as expectation values to global error rate estimation procedures such as false discovery rates and posterior probabilities. The importance of using auxiliary discriminant information (mass accuracy, peptide separation coordinates, digestion properties, and etc.) is discussed, and advanced computational approaches for joint modeling of multiple sources of information are presented. This review also includes a detailed analysis of the issues affecting the interpretation of data at the protein level, including the amplification of error rates when going from peptide to protein level, and the ambiguities in inferring the identifies of sample proteins in the presence of shared peptides. Commonly used methods for computing protein-level confidence scores are discussed in detail. The review concludes with a discussion of several outstanding computational issues. PMID:20816881

  5. Evaluation of standardized sample collection, packaging, and decontamination procedures to assess cross-contamination potential during Bacillus anthracis incident response operations

    PubMed Central

    Calfee, M. Worth; Tufts, Jenia; Meyer, Kathryn; McConkey, Katrina; Mickelsen, Leroy; Rose, Laura; Dowell, Chad; Delaney, Lisa; Weber, Angela; Morse, Stephen; Chaitram, Jasmine; Gray, Marshall

    2016-01-01

    Sample collection procedures and primary receptacle (sample container and bag) decontamination methods should prevent contaminant transfer between contaminated and non-contaminated surfaces and areas during bio-incident operations. Cross-contamination of personnel, equipment, or sample containers may result in the exfiltration of biological agent from the exclusion (hot) zone and have unintended negative consequences on response resources, activities and outcomes. The current study was designed to: (1) evaluate currently recommended sample collection and packaging procedures to identify procedural steps that may increase the likelihood of spore exfiltration or contaminant transfer; (2) evaluate the efficacy of currently recommended primary receptacle decontamination procedures; and (3) evaluate the efficacy of outer packaging decontamination methods. Wet- and dry-deposited fluorescent tracer powder was used in contaminant transfer tests to qualitatively evaluate the currently-recommended sample collection procedures. Bacillus atrophaeus spores, a surrogate for Bacillus anthracis, were used to evaluate the efficacy of spray- and wipe-based decontamination procedures. Both decontamination procedures were quantitatively evaluated on three types of sample packaging materials (corrugated fiberboard, polystyrene foam, and polyethylene plastic), and two contamination mechanisms (wet or dry inoculums). Contaminant transfer results suggested that size-appropriate gloves should be worn by personnel, templates should not be taped to or removed from surfaces, and primary receptacles should be selected carefully. The decontamination tests indicated that wipe-based decontamination procedures may be more effective than spray-based procedures; efficacy was not influenced by material type but was affected by the inoculation method. Incomplete surface decontamination was observed in all tests with dry inoculums. This study provides a foundation for optimizing current B. anthracis

  6. Evaluation of standardized sample collection, packaging, and decontamination procedures to assess cross-contamination potential during Bacillus anthracis incident response operations.

    PubMed

    Calfee, M Worth; Tufts, Jenia; Meyer, Kathryn; McConkey, Katrina; Mickelsen, Leroy; Rose, Laura; Dowell, Chad; Delaney, Lisa; Weber, Angela; Morse, Stephen; Chaitram, Jasmine; Gray, Marshall

    2016-12-01

    Sample collection procedures and primary receptacle (sample container and bag) decontamination methods should prevent contaminant transfer between contaminated and non-contaminated surfaces and areas during bio-incident operations. Cross-contamination of personnel, equipment, or sample containers may result in the exfiltration of biological agent from the exclusion (hot) zone and have unintended negative consequences on response resources, activities and outcomes. The current study was designed to: (1) evaluate currently recommended sample collection and packaging procedures to identify procedural steps that may increase the likelihood of spore exfiltration or contaminant transfer; (2) evaluate the efficacy of currently recommended primary receptacle decontamination procedures; and (3) evaluate the efficacy of outer packaging decontamination methods. Wet- and dry-deposited fluorescent tracer powder was used in contaminant transfer tests to qualitatively evaluate the currently-recommended sample collection procedures. Bacillus atrophaeus spores, a surrogate for Bacillus anthracis, were used to evaluate the efficacy of spray- and wipe-based decontamination procedures. Both decontamination procedures were quantitatively evaluated on three types of sample packaging materials (corrugated fiberboard, polystyrene foam, and polyethylene plastic), and two contamination mechanisms (wet or dry inoculums). Contaminant transfer results suggested that size-appropriate gloves should be worn by personnel, templates should not be taped to or removed from surfaces, and primary receptacles should be selected carefully. The decontamination tests indicated that wipe-based decontamination procedures may be more effective than spray-based procedures; efficacy was not influenced by material type but was affected by the inoculation method. Incomplete surface decontamination was observed in all tests with dry inoculums. This study provides a foundation for optimizing current B. anthracis

  7. Communications device identification methods, communications methods, wireless communications readers, wireless communications systems, and articles of manufacture

    DOEpatents

    Steele, Kerry D [Kennewick, WA; Anderson, Gordon A [Benton City, WA; Gilbert, Ronald W [Morgan Hill, CA

    2011-02-01

    Communications device identification methods, communications methods, wireless communications readers, wireless communications systems, and articles of manufacture are described. In one aspect, a communications device identification method includes providing identification information regarding a group of wireless identification devices within a wireless communications range of a reader, using the provided identification information, selecting one of a plurality of different search procedures for identifying unidentified ones of the wireless identification devices within the wireless communications range, and identifying at least some of the unidentified ones of the wireless identification devices using the selected one of the search procedures.

  8. Evaluation of the diagnostic yield of dental radiography and cone-beam computed tomography for the identification of anatomic landmarks in small to medium-sized brachycephalic dogs.

    PubMed

    Döring, Sophie; Arzi, Boaz; Barich, Catherine R; Hatcher, David C; Kass, Philip H; Verstraete, Frank J M

    2018-01-01

    OBJECTIVE To evaluate the diagnostic yield of dental radiography (Rad method) and 3 cone-beam CT (CBCT) methods for the identification of predefined anatomic landmarks in brachycephalic dogs. ANIMALS 19 client-owned brachycephalic dogs admitted for evaluation and treatment of dental disease. PROCEDURES 26 predefined anatomic landmarks were evaluated separately by use of the RAD method and 3 CBCT software modules (serial CBCT slices and custom cross sections, tridimensional rendering, and reconstructed panoramic views). A semiquantitative scoring system was used, and mean scores were calculated for each anatomic landmark and imaging method. The Friedman test was used to evaluate values for significant differences in diagnostic yield. For values that were significant, the Wilcoxon signed rank test was used with the Bonferroni-Holm multiple comparison adjustment to determine significant differences among each of the 6 possible pairs of diagnostic methods. RESULTS Differences of diagnostic yield among the Rad and 3 CBCT methods were significant for 19 of 26 anatomic landmarks. For these landmarks, Rad scores were significantly higher than scores for reconstructed panoramic views for 4 of 19 anatomic landmarks, but Rad scores were significantly lower than scores for reconstructed panoramic views for 8 anatomic landmarks, tridimensional rendering for 18 anatomic landmarks, and serial CBCT slices and custom cross sections for all 19 anatomic landmarks. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE CBCT methods were better suited than dental radiography for the identification of anatomic landmarks in brachycephalic dogs. Results of this study can serve as a basis for CBCT evaluation of dental disorders in brachycephalic dogs.

  9. Variation in Microbial Identification System Accuracy for Yeast Identification Depending on Commercial Source of Sabouraud Dextrose Agar

    PubMed Central

    Kellogg, James A.; Bankert, David A.; Chaturvedi, Vishnu

    1999-01-01

    The accuracy of the Microbial Identification System (MIS; MIDI, Inc.) for identification of yeasts to the species level was compared by using 438 isolates grown on prepoured BBL Sabouraud dextrose agar (SDA) and prepoured Remel SDA. Correct identification was observed for 326 (74%) of the yeasts cultured on BBL SDA versus only 214 (49%) of yeasts grown on Remel SDA (P < 0.001). The commercial source of the SDA used in the MIS procedure significantly influences the system’s accuracy. PMID:10325387

  10. Evaluation of suitable DNA regions for molecular identification of high value medicinal plants in genus Kaempferia.

    PubMed

    Osathanunkul, Maslin; Dheeranupattana, Srisulak; Rotarayanont, Siriphron; Sookkhee, Siriwoot; Osathanunkul, Khukrit; Madesis, Panagiotis

    2017-12-02

    DNA barcoding coupled high resolution melting (Bar-HRM) is an emerging method for species discrimination based on DNA dissociation kinetics. The aim of this work was to evaluate the suitability of different primer sets, derived from selected DNA regions, for Bar-HRM analysis of species in Kaempferia (Zingiberaceae). Four primer pairs were evaluated (rbcL, rpoC, trnL and ITS1). It was observed that the ITS1 barcode was the most useful DNA barcoding region overall for species discrimination out of all of the regions and primers assessed. Thus, the primer pair derived from the ITS1 region was the single most effective region for the identification of the tested species, whereas the rbcL primer pair gave the lowest resolution. Our Bar-HRM developed here would not only be useful for identification of Kaempferia plant specimens lacking essential parts for morphological identification but will be useful for authenticating products in powdered form of a high value medicinal species Kaempferia parviflora, in particular.

  11. Radiofrequency-Based Identification Medical Device: An Evaluable Solution for Surgical Sponge Retrieval?

    PubMed

    Lazzaro, Alessandra; Corona, Arianna; Iezzi, Luca; Quaresima, Silvia; Armisi, Luca; Piccolo, Ilaria; Medaglia, Carlo Maria; Sbrenni, Sergio; Sileri, Pierpaolo; Rosato, Nicola; Gaspari, Achille Lucio; Di Lorenzo, Nicola

    2017-06-01

    A retained surgical item in patients (gossypiboma) is a persisting problem, despite consistent improvements and existing guidelines in counting instruments and sponges. Previous experiences with radiofrequency identification technology (RFID) tracking sponges show that it could represent an innovation, in order to reduce the criticism and increase the effectiveness during surgical procedures. We present an automated system that allows reduction of errors and improves safety in the operating room. The system consists of 3 antennas, surgical sponges containing RFID tags, and dedicated software applications, with Wi-Fi real-time communication between devices. The first antenna provides the initial count of gauzes; the second a real-time counting during surgery, including the sponges thrown into the kick-bucket; and the third can be used in the event of uneven sponge count. The software allows management at all stages of the process. In vitro and in vivo tests were performed: the system provided excellent results in detecting sponges in patients' body. Hundred percent retained sponges were detected correctly, even when they were overlapped. No false positive or false negative was recorded. The counting procedure turned out to be more streamlined and efficient and it could save time in a standard procedure. The RFID system for sponge tracking was shown to be experimentally a reliable and feasible method to track sponges with a full detection accuracy in the operating room. The results indicate the system to be safe and effective with acceptable cost-effective parameters.

  12. Evaluation of Bias-Variance Trade-Off for Commonly Used Post-Summarizing Normalization Procedures in Large-Scale Gene Expression Studies

    PubMed Central

    Qiu, Xing; Hu, Rui; Wu, Zhixin

    2014-01-01

    Normalization procedures are widely used in high-throughput genomic data analyses to remove various technological noise and variations. They are known to have profound impact to the subsequent gene differential expression analysis. Although there has been some research in evaluating different normalization procedures, few attempts have been made to systematically evaluate the gene detection performances of normalization procedures from the bias-variance trade-off point of view, especially with strong gene differentiation effects and large sample size. In this paper, we conduct a thorough study to evaluate the effects of normalization procedures combined with several commonly used statistical tests and MTPs under different configurations of effect size and sample size. We conduct theoretical evaluation based on a random effect model, as well as simulation and biological data analyses to verify the results. Based on our findings, we provide some practical guidance for selecting a suitable normalization procedure under different scenarios. PMID:24941114

  13. Integrating Program Theory and Systems-Based Procedures in Program Evaluation: A Dynamic Approach to Evaluate Educational Programs

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Grammatikopoulos, Vasilis

    2012-01-01

    The current study attempts to integrate parts of program theory and systems-based procedures in educational program evaluation. The educational program that was implemented, called the "Early Steps" project, proposed that physical education can contribute to various educational goals apart from the usual motor skills improvement. Basic…

  14. The University of Michigan Campus Identification Signs.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Michigan Univ., Ann Arbor.

    Specific information, identification, and direction to and within the campus as factors determining a campus sign system are discussed in terms of--(1) needs requiring an identification sign system, (2) recommendations for initiating a comprehensive sign system for the university, and (3) application procedures as they relate to streets, walkways,…

  15. 19 CFR 24.5 - Filing identification number.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 19 Customs Duties 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Filing identification number. 24.5 Section 24.5... TREASURY CUSTOMS FINANCIAL AND ACCOUNTING PROCEDURE § 24.5 Filing identification number. (a) Generally..., Notification of Importer's Number or Application for Importer's Number, or Notice of Change of Name or Address...

  16. 19 CFR 24.5 - Filing identification number.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... 19 Customs Duties 1 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Filing identification number. 24.5 Section 24.5... TREASURY CUSTOMS FINANCIAL AND ACCOUNTING PROCEDURE § 24.5 Filing identification number. (a) Generally..., Notification of Importer's Number or Application for Importer's Number, or Notice of Change of Name or Address...

  17. 19 CFR 24.5 - Filing identification number.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 19 Customs Duties 1 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Filing identification number. 24.5 Section 24.5... TREASURY CUSTOMS FINANCIAL AND ACCOUNTING PROCEDURE § 24.5 Filing identification number. (a) Generally..., Notification of Importer's Number or Application for Importer's Number, or Notice of Change of Name or Address...

  18. [MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry: Evaluation of the preanalytical phase for identification of molds].

    PubMed

    Maldonado, Ivana; García Ramírez, Dolores; Striebeck, Pablo; Lafage, Marcelo; Fernández Canigia, Liliana

    In order to optimize the identification of molds with MALDI-TOF MS, three protein extraction-methodologies were evaluated against 44 isolates: water extraction (WE), zirconium extraction (ZE) and the provider's recommended method (PRM). Two data bases were compared, Bruker (BK) and Bruker+National Institutes of Health. Considering both databases, results were respectively as follows: correct identification (CI) at gender level, 10 and 16 by WE; 27 and 32 by ZE and 18 and 23 by PRM; CI at species level, 5 and 7 by WE; 17 and 20 by ZE and 11 and 14 by PRM; non-reliable identification, 18 and 12 by WE; 9 and 4 by ZE and by PRM. No peaks were observed in 16 by WE, 8 by ZE and 17 by PRM. ZE showed the best perfomance (p<0.05). Copyright © 2016 Asociación Argentina de Microbiología. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

  19. Routine use of PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis for identification of mycobacteria growing in liquid media.

    PubMed Central

    Taylor, T B; Patterson, C; Hale, Y; Safranek, W W

    1997-01-01

    A PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) procedure capable of rapidly identifying 28 species of clinically encountered mycobacteria was evaluated for use in the routine identification of acid-fast isolates growing in BACTEC 12B and 13A liquid media. PCR-RFLP identified 100 of 103 acid-fast isolates recovered from 610 patient specimens submitted for culture during the study. The three isolates unidentifiable by PCR-RFLP produced restriction patterns not included in the PCR-RFLP algorithm and could therefore not be assigned to a species. These isolates were characterized by their morphologic and biochemical characteristics. Two of the isolates were identified as M. terrae complex and M. gordonae. The third isolate could not be definitively identified and could only be characterized as a Mycobacterium sp. most closely resembling M. chelonae. PCR-RFLP identifications agreed with the conventional identifications for 96 of the 100 isolates identified by PCR-RFLP. Subsequent identification of the four discordant isolates by gas chromatography analysis supported the PCR-RFLP identification of each isolate. Amplification products were also obtained from isolates of Streptococcus albus and Rhodococcus equi recovered from patient specimens; however, the restriction patterns of these nonmycobacterial species did not resemble the patterns of any mycobacterial species included in the PCR-RFLP algorithm. PCR-RFLP seems to be a reliable procedure for the routine identification of mycobacteria and has the potential for providing identifications of mycobacterial isolates which are more accurate than conventional identification techniques based on morphologic and biochemical characteristics. PMID:8968884

  20. Identification of dynamic load for prosthetic structures.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Dequan; Han, Xu; Zhang, Zhongpu; Liu, Jie; Jiang, Chao; Yoda, Nobuhiro; Meng, Xianghua; Li, Qing

    2017-12-01

    Dynamic load exists in numerous biomechanical systems, and its identification signifies a critical issue for characterizing dynamic behaviors and studying biomechanical consequence of the systems. This study aims to identify dynamic load in the dental prosthetic structures, namely, 3-unit implant-supported fixed partial denture (I-FPD) and teeth-supported fixed partial denture. The 3-dimensional finite element models were constructed through specific patient's computerized tomography images. A forward algorithm and regularization technique were developed for identifying dynamic load. To verify the effectiveness of the identification method proposed, the I-FPD and teeth-supported fixed partial denture structures were investigated to determine the dynamic loads. For validating the results of inverse identification, an experimental force-measuring system was developed by using a 3-dimensional piezoelectric transducer to measure the dynamic load in the I-FPD structure in vivo. The computationally identified loads were presented with different noise levels to determine their influence on the identification accuracy. The errors between the measured load and identified counterpart were calculated for evaluating the practical applicability of the proposed procedure in biomechanical engineering. This study is expected to serve as a demonstrative role in identifying dynamic loading in biomedical systems, where a direct in vivo measurement may be rather demanding in some areas of interest clinically. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  1. Sodium pentothal hypnosis: a procedure for evaluating medical patients with suspected psychiatric co-morbidity.

    PubMed

    Russo, M B; Brooks, F R; Fontenot, J P; Dopler, B M; Neely, E T; Halliday, A W

    1997-03-01

    The cases presented here were patients referred for neurologic disability evaluations. They met the three selection criteria presented and underwent the four-phase pentothal hypnosis procedure described and at the conclusion were diagnosed as having psychiatric morbidity. We recommend that the sodium pentothal hypnosis procedure be considered for use whenever there is concern for psychiatric co-morbidity in a patient with presumed physiologic disease.

  2. TOXICITY IDENTIFICATION EVALUATION WORKSHOP-PART II: WHAT WORKS, WHAT DOESN'T, AND DEVELOPMENTS FOR EFFLUENTS AND AQUEOUS MEDIA

    EPA Science Inventory

    Toxicity reduction evaluations (TRE) and Toxicity Identification Evaluations (TIE) case examples were the basis of a technical workshop held by SETAC. Techniques to evaluate the mixtures of toxicants by using acute and chronic toxicity endpoints that incorporate marine, estuarine...

  3. How Identification Facilitates Effective Learning: The Evaluation of Generic versus Localized Professionalization Training

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bjerregaard, Kirstien; Haslam, S. Alexander; Morton, Thomas

    2016-01-01

    Worldwide, organizations are keen to ensure that they achieve a performance return from the large investment they make in employee training. This study examines the way in which workgroup identification facilitates trainees' motivation to transfer learning into workplace performance. A 2 × 2 longitudinal study evaluated the effects of a new…

  4. Evaluation of the Vitek 2 ANC card for identification of clinical isolates of anaerobic bacteria.

    PubMed

    Lee, E H L; Degener, J E; Welling, G W; Veloo, A C M

    2011-05-01

    An evaluation of the Vitek 2 ANC card (bioMérieux, Marcy l'Etoile, France) was performed with 301 anaerobic isolates. Each strain was identified by 16S rRNA gene sequencing, which is considered to be the reference method. The Vitek 2 ANC card correctly identified 239 (79.4%) of the 301 clinical isolates to the genus level, including 100 species that were not represented in the database. Correct species identification was obtained for 60.1% (181/301) of the clinical isolates. For the isolates not identified to the species level, a correct genus identification was obtained for 47.0% of them (47/100), and 16 were accurately designated not identified. Although the Vitek 2 ANC card allows the rapid and acceptable identification of the most common clinically important anaerobic bacteria within 6 h, improvement is required for the identification of members of the genera Fusobacterium, Prevotella, and Actinomyces and certain Gram-positive anaerobic cocci (GPAC).

  5. Evaluation of speaker de-identification based on voice gender and age conversion

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Přibil, Jiří; Přibilová, Anna; Matoušek, Jindřich

    2018-03-01

    Two basic tasks are covered in this paper. The first one consists in the design and practical testing of a new method for voice de-identification that changes the apparent age and/or gender of a speaker by multi-segmental frequency scale transformation combined with prosody modification. The second task is aimed at verification of applicability of a classifier based on Gaussian mixture models (GMM) to detect the original Czech and Slovak speakers after applied voice deidentification. The performed experiments confirm functionality of the developed gender and age conversion for all selected types of de-identification which can be objectively evaluated by the GMM-based open-set classifier. The original speaker detection accuracy was compared also for sentences uttered by German and English speakers showing language independence of the proposed method.

  6. Automating concept identification in the electronic medical record: an experiment in extracting dosage information.

    PubMed Central

    Evans, D. A.; Brownlow, N. D.; Hersh, W. R.; Campbell, E. M.

    1996-01-01

    We discuss the development and evaluation of an automated procedure for extracting drug-dosage information from clinical narratives. The process was developed rapidly using existing technology and resources, including categories of terms from UMLS96. Evaluations over a large training and smaller test set of medical records demonstrate an approximately 80% rate of exact and partial matches' on target phrases, with few false positives and a modest rate of false negatives. The results suggest a strategy for automating general concept identification in electronic medical records. PMID:8947694

  7. 30 CFR 281.14 - OCS mining area identification.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 30 Mineral Resources 2 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false OCS mining area identification. 281.14 Section 281.14 Mineral Resources BUREAU OF OCEAN ENERGY MANAGEMENT, REGULATION, AND ENFORCEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF... SHELF Leasing Procedures § 281.14 OCS mining area identification. The Secretary, after considering the...

  8. Integration of a Low-Cost Introductory Ultrasound Curriculum Into Existing Procedural Skills Education for Preclinical Medical Students.

    PubMed

    Maloney, Lauren; Zach, Kristen; Page, Christopher; Tewari, Neera; Tito, Matthew; Seidman, Peggy

    2017-02-01

    We evaluated integration of an introductory ultrasound curriculum into our existing mandatory procedural skills program for preclinical medical students. Phantoms consisting of olives, pimento olives, and grapes embedded in opaque gelatin were developed. Four classes encouraged progressive refinement of phantom-scanning and object identification skills. Students improved their ability to identify hidden objects, although each object type achieved a statistically significant improvement in correct identification at different time points. The total phantom cost per student was $0.76. Our results suggest that short repeated experiences scanning simple, low-cost ultrasound phantoms confer basic ultrasound skills. © 2016 by the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine.

  9. HIGH-THROUGHPUT IDENTIFICATION OF CATALYTIC REDOX-ACTIVE CYSTEINE RESIDUES

    EPA Science Inventory

    Cysteine (Cys) residues often play critical roles in proteins; however, identification of their specific functions has been limited to case-by-case experimental approaches. We developed a procedure for high-throughput identification of catalytic redox-active Cys in proteins by se...

  10. 42 CFR 493.1232 - Standard: Specimen identification and integrity.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) STANDARDS AND CERTIFICATION LABORATORY REQUIREMENTS Quality System for Nonwaived Testing General Laboratory Systems § 493.1232 Standard: Specimen identification and integrity. The laboratory must establish and follow written policies and procedures that ensure positive identification and...

  11. An evaluation of procedures to estimate monthly precipitation probabilities

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Legates, David R.

    1991-01-01

    Many frequency distributions have been used to evaluate monthly precipitation probabilities. Eight of these distributions (including Pearson type III, extreme value, and transform normal probability density functions) are comparatively examined to determine their ability to represent accurately variations in monthly precipitation totals for global hydroclimatological analyses. Results indicate that a modified version of the Box-Cox transform-normal distribution more adequately describes the 'true' precipitation distribution than does any of the other methods. This assessment was made using a cross-validation procedure for a global network of 253 stations for which at least 100 years of monthly precipitation totals were available.

  12. Identification and evaluation of the cost-effectiveness of highway design features to reduce nonrecurrent congestion.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2014-01-01

    This research report presents the findings on the identification and evaluation of the use of highway geometric design features on freeways to reduce nonrecurrent congestion and improve travel time reliability. General guidance is provided on the ran...

  13. Evaluation of signal timing and coordination procedures.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    1985-01-01

    Based on a review of available literature, recommended procedures for timing the various types of signals are provided. Specifically, procedures are included for both pretimed and vehicle-actuated controllers located at isolated intersections and at ...

  14. Evaluating the Effects of a Video Prompt in a System of Least Prompts Procedure

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Smith, Katie A.; Ayres, Kevin M.; Mechling, Linda C.; Alexander, Jennifer L.; Mataras, Theologia K.; Shepley, Sally B.

    2015-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of a system of least prompts procedure with a video prompt serving as the model in teaching office tasks to three high school students with moderate intellectual disability. A multiple probe across behaviors design replicated across participants was used to evaluate the intervention. The…

  15. Multicenter Study Evaluating the Vitek MS System for Identification of Medically Important Yeasts

    PubMed Central

    Westblade, Lars F.; Jennemann, Rebecca; Branda, John A.; Bythrow, Maureen; Ferraro, Mary Jane; Garner, Omai B.; Ginocchio, Christine C.; Lewinski, Michael A.; Manji, Ryhana; Mochon, A. Brian; Procop, Gary W.; Richter, Sandra S.; Rychert, Jenna A.; Sercia, Linda

    2013-01-01

    The optimal management of fungal infections is correlated with timely organism identification. Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization–time of flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry (MS) is revolutionizing the identification of yeasts isolated from clinical specimens. We present a multicenter study assessing the performance of the Vitek MS system (bioMérieux) in identifying medically important yeasts. A collection of 852 isolates was tested, including 20 Candida species (626 isolates, including 58 C. albicans, 62 C. glabrata, and 53 C. krusei isolates), 35 Cryptococcus neoformans isolates, and 191 other clinically relevant yeast isolates; in total, 31 different species were evaluated. Isolates were directly applied to a target plate, followed by a formic acid overlay. Mass spectra were acquired using the Vitek MS system and were analyzed using the Vitek MS v2.0 database. The gold standard for identification was sequence analysis of the D2 region of the 26S rRNA gene. In total, 823 isolates (96.6%) were identified to the genus level and 819 isolates (96.1%) were identified to the species level. Twenty-four isolates (2.8%) were not identified, and five isolates (0.6%) were misidentified. Misidentified isolates included one isolate of C. albicans (n = 58) identified as Candida dubliniensis, one isolate of Candida parapsilosis (n = 73) identified as Candida pelliculosa, and three isolates of Geotrichum klebahnii (n = 6) identified as Geotrichum candidum. The identification of clinically relevant yeasts using MS is superior to the phenotypic identification systems currently employed in clinical microbiology laboratories. PMID:23658267

  16. Multicenter study evaluating the Vitek MS system for identification of medically important yeasts.

    PubMed

    Westblade, Lars F; Jennemann, Rebecca; Branda, John A; Bythrow, Maureen; Ferraro, Mary Jane; Garner, Omai B; Ginocchio, Christine C; Lewinski, Michael A; Manji, Ryhana; Mochon, A Brian; Procop, Gary W; Richter, Sandra S; Rychert, Jenna A; Sercia, Linda; Burnham, Carey-Ann D

    2013-07-01

    The optimal management of fungal infections is correlated with timely organism identification. Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry (MS) is revolutionizing the identification of yeasts isolated from clinical specimens. We present a multicenter study assessing the performance of the Vitek MS system (bioMérieux) in identifying medically important yeasts. A collection of 852 isolates was tested, including 20 Candida species (626 isolates, including 58 C. albicans, 62 C. glabrata, and 53 C. krusei isolates), 35 Cryptococcus neoformans isolates, and 191 other clinically relevant yeast isolates; in total, 31 different species were evaluated. Isolates were directly applied to a target plate, followed by a formic acid overlay. Mass spectra were acquired using the Vitek MS system and were analyzed using the Vitek MS v2.0 database. The gold standard for identification was sequence analysis of the D2 region of the 26S rRNA gene. In total, 823 isolates (96.6%) were identified to the genus level and 819 isolates (96.1%) were identified to the species level. Twenty-four isolates (2.8%) were not identified, and five isolates (0.6%) were misidentified. Misidentified isolates included one isolate of C. albicans (n = 58) identified as Candida dubliniensis, one isolate of Candida parapsilosis (n = 73) identified as Candida pelliculosa, and three isolates of Geotrichum klebahnii (n = 6) identified as Geotrichum candidum. The identification of clinically relevant yeasts using MS is superior to the phenotypic identification systems currently employed in clinical microbiology laboratories.

  17. Evaluation of Approval Request 47; Call for Release Procedures for Charlotte Douglas International Airport

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Stevens, Lindsay; Martin, Lynne; Jobe, Kimberly; Parke, Bonny; Chevalley, Eric; Lee, Hanbong; Verma, Savita; Dulchinos, Victoria

    2017-01-01

    NASA is collaborating with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and aviation industry partners to develop and demonstrate new concepts and technologies for Integrated Arrival, Departure, and Surface (IADS) traffic management capabilities under the Airspace Technology Demonstration 2 (ATD-2) project. One of the goals of the IADS capabilities in the ATD-2 project is to increase predictability and throughput of airspace operations by improving Traffic Management Initiative (TMI) compliance. This paper focuses on the Approval Request (APREQ) procedures developed for the ATD-2 project between the Air Traffic Control (ATC) Tower at Charlotte Douglas International Airport and Washington Center. In March 2017, NASA conducted a Human-in-the-Loop (HITL) simulation to evaluate the operational procedures and information requirements for the APREQ procedures in the ATD-2 IADS system between ATC Tower and Center. The findings from the HITL are used to compare ATD-2 APREQ procedures with information about current day APREQ procedures.

  18. Evaluation of Approval Request/Call for Release Coordination Procedures for Charlotte Douglas International Airport

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Stevens, Lindsay; Martin, Lynne; Jobe, Kimberly; Parke, Bonny; Chevalley, Eric; Lee, Hanbong; Verma, Savita; Dulchinos, Victoria

    2017-01-01

    NASA is collaborating with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and aviation industry partners to develop and demonstrate new concepts and technologies for Integrated Arrival, Departure, and Surface (IADS) traffic management capabilities under the Airspace Technology Demonstration 2 (ATD-2) project. One of the goals of the IADS capabilities in the ATD-2 project is to increase predictability and throughput of airspace operations by improving Traffic Management Initiative (TMI) compliance. This paper focuses on the Approval Request (APREQ) procedures developed for the ATD-2 project between the Air Traffic Control (ATC) Tower at Charlotte Douglas International Airport and Washington Center. In March 2017, NASA conducted a Human-in-the-Loop (HITL) simulation to evaluate the operational procedures and information requirements for the APREQ procedures in the ATD-2 IADS system between ATC Tower and Center. The findings from the HITL are used to compare ATD-2 APREQ procedures with information about current day APREQ procedures.

  19. Combat Identification Systems COMO Integrated Air Defense Model Evaluation (CISE) Study

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1989-02-01

    use K or IR , whichever one applies) E-6 CAA-SR-89- 3 Subroutine PDECLR 1/21/88 Before label 1000 Insert: IF (IR.GT.10) IR a 10 These changes were made...Internal Distribution: Unclassified Library 2 F-2 CAA-SR-89- 3 GLOSSARY 1. ABBREVIATIONS, ACRONYMS, AND SHORT TERMS ADM2 Air Defense Models Modification...STUDY REPORT ’ , CAA-Sn-89- 3 i , .- CD o COMBAT IDENTIFICATION SYSTEMS N COMO INTEGRATED AIR DEFENSE MODEL EVALUATION (CISE) STUDY FEBRUARY 1989

  20. Evaluation of an Enhanced Stimulus-Stimulus Pairing Procedure to Increase Early Vocalizations of Children with Autism

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Esch, Barbara E.; Carr, James E.; Grow, Laura L.

    2009-01-01

    Evidence to support stimulus-stimulus pairing (SSP) in speech acquisition is less than robust, calling into question the ability of SSP to reliably establish automatically reinforcing properties of speech and limiting the procedure's clinical utility for increasing vocalizations. We evaluated the effects of a modified SSP procedure on…

  1. Evaluation of a procedure to assess the adverse effects of illicit drugs.

    PubMed

    van Amsterdam, J G C; Best, W; Opperhuizen, A; de Wolff, F A

    2004-02-01

    The assessment procedure of new synthetic illicit drugs that are not documented in the UN treaty on psychotropic drugs was evaluated using a modified Electre model. Drugs were evaluated by an expert panel via the open Delphi approach, where the written score was discussed on 16 items, covering medical, health, legal, and criminalistic issues of the drugs. After this face-to-face discussion the drugs were scored again. Taking the assessment of ketamine as an example, it appeared that each expert used its own scale to score, and that policymakers do not score deviant from experts trained in the medical-biological field. Of the five drugs evaluated by the panel, p-methoxy-metamphetamine (PMMA), gamma-hydroxybutyric acid (GHB), and 4-methylthio-amphetamine (MTA) were assessed as more adverse than ketamine and psilocine and psilocybine-containing mushrooms. Whereas some experts slightly adjusted during the assessment procedure their opinion on ketamine and PMMA, the opinion on mushrooms was not affected by the discussion held between the two scoring rounds. All experts rank the five drugs in a similar way on the adverse effect scale i.e., concordance scale of the Electre model, indicating unanimity in the expert panel with respect to the risk classification of these abused drugs.

  2. A procedure to evaluate environmental rehabilitation in limestone quarries.

    PubMed

    Neri, Ana Claudia; Sánchez, Luis Enrique

    2010-11-01

    A procedure to evaluate mine rehabilitation practices during the operational phase was developed and validated. It is based on a comparison of actually observed or documented practices with internationally recommended best practices (BP). A set of 150 BP statements was derived from international guides in order to establish the benchmark. The statements are arranged in six rehabilitation programs under three categories: (1) planning (2) operational and (3) management, corresponding to the adoption of the plan-do-check-act management systems model to mine rehabilitation. The procedure consists of (i) performing technical inspections guided by a series of field forms containing BP statements; (ii) classifying evidences in five categories; and (iii) calculating conformity indexes and levels. For testing and calibration purposes, the procedure was applied to nine limestone quarries and conformity indexes were calculated for the rehabilitation programs in each quarry. Most quarries featured poor planning practices, operational practices reached high conformity levels in 50% of the cases and management practices scored moderate conformity. Despite all quarries being ISO 14001 certified, their management systems pay low attention to issues pertaining to land rehabilitation and biodiversity. The best results were achieved by a quarry whose expansion was recently submitted to the environmental impact assessment process, suggesting that public scrutiny may play a positive role in enhancing rehabilitation practices. Conformity indexes and levels can be used to chart the evolution of rehabilitation practices at regular intervals, to establish corporate goals and for communication with stakeholders. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. [Evaluation of Vitek 2 for the identification of Candida yeasts].

    PubMed

    Ochiuzzi, María E; Cataldi, Silvana; Guelfand, Liliana; Maldonado, Ivana; Arechavala, Alicia

    2014-01-01

    The aim of this investigation was to evaluate the performance of Vitek 2 YST cards (bioMérieux, Inc., Hazelwood, MO, USA) for the identification of yeasts of the genus Candida. A total of 168 isolates were analyzed and the results were compared to those of the API 20 C AUX (24%) o API ID 32 C (76%) kits (bioMérieux, Marcy L'Etoile, France). Each isolate was grown in chromogenic agar and in corn meal agar (Oxoid, UK) to observe its micromorphology. C. albicans and C. dublininesis were identified by additional biochemical and molecular tests. The agreement observed was 98.3%. Only three isolates were incorrectly identified by Vitek 2: one strain of C .tropicalis and one strain of C. krusei were identified as C. parapsilosis by YST while one strain of C. krusei was identified with low discrimination. The average time for obtaining results was 18.25 h. Vitek 2 is a simple, safe and useful system for the identification of significant Candida species. Copyright © 2014 Asociación Colombiana de Psiquiatría. Publicado por Elsevier España. All rights reserved.

  4. Manual LANDSAT data analysis for crop type identification

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hay, C. M. (Principal Investigator)

    1979-01-01

    The process of manual identification of crop type by human analysts and problems associated in LACIE that were associated with manual crop identification measurement procedures are described. Research undertaken in cooperation with LACIE operations by the supporting research community to effect solutions to, or obtain greater understanding of the problems is discussed.

  5. Utilizing formative evaluation to enhance the understanding of chemistry and the methods and procedures of science

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pizzini, Edward L.; Treagust, David F.; Cody, John

    The purpose of this study was to determine whether or not formative evaluation could facilitate goal attainment in a biochemistry course and produce desired learning outcomes consistently by altering course materials and/or instruction. Formative evaluation procedures included the administration of the Inorganic-Organic-Biological Chemistry Test Form 1974 and the Methods and Procedures of Science test to course participants over three consecutive years. A one group pretest-post-test design was used. The statistical analysis involved the use of the Wilcoxon matched-pairs signed-ranks test. The study involved 64 participants. The findings indicate that the use of formative evaluation can be effective in producing desired learning outcomes to facilitate goal attainment.

  6. Method for evaluation of predictive models of microwave ablation via post-procedural clinical imaging

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Collins, Jarrod A.; Brown, Daniel; Kingham, T. Peter; Jarnagin, William R.; Miga, Michael I.; Clements, Logan W.

    2015-03-01

    Development of a clinically accurate predictive model of microwave ablation (MWA) procedures would represent a significant advancement and facilitate an implementation of patient-specific treatment planning to achieve optimal probe placement and ablation outcomes. While studies have been performed to evaluate predictive models of MWA, the ability to quantify the performance of predictive models via clinical data has been limited to comparing geometric measurements of the predicted and actual ablation zones. The accuracy of placement, as determined by the degree of spatial overlap between ablation zones, has not been achieved. In order to overcome this limitation, a method of evaluation is proposed where the actual location of the MWA antenna is tracked and recorded during the procedure via a surgical navigation system. Predictive models of the MWA are then computed using the known position of the antenna within the preoperative image space. Two different predictive MWA models were used for the preliminary evaluation of the proposed method: (1) a geometric model based on the labeling associated with the ablation antenna and (2) a 3-D finite element method based computational model of MWA using COMSOL. Given the follow-up tomographic images that are acquired at approximately 30 days after the procedure, a 3-D surface model of the necrotic zone was generated to represent the true ablation zone. A quantification of the overlap between the predicted ablation zones and the true ablation zone was performed after a rigid registration was computed between the pre- and post-procedural tomograms. While both model show significant overlap with the true ablation zone, these preliminary results suggest a slightly higher degree of overlap with the geometric model.

  7. CASE STUDY 6.26: UNSUCCESSFUL TOXICITY IDENTIFICATION AND EVALUATIONS MANIPULATIONS: SEAWATER BUFFERS AND STERILIZATION METHODS

    EPA Science Inventory

    This paper summarizes several unsuccessful attempts to develop Toxicity Identification and Evaluation (TIE) manipulations for aqueous samples during the first 5 years of our research. The first part of the paper explores irradiation as a sterilization technique to discern if sam...

  8. Dispersant approval procedures in France and Italy: A comparative ecotoxicity study.

    PubMed

    Manfra, Loredana; Tornambè, Andrea; Guyomarch, Julien; Le Guerrogue, Pascale; Kerambrun, Loïc; Rotini, Alice; Savorelli, Federica; Onorati, Fulvio; Magaletti, Erika

    2017-09-01

    A research project has been performed to the request of the RAMOGE Executive Secretariat to identify differences between dispersant approval procedures in France and Italy and propose ways to harmonize them. A collaborative study has been conducted by CEDRE (Centre of Documentation, Research and Experimentation on Accidental Water Pollution) and ISPRA (Italian Institute for Environmental Protection and Research) to: a) compare current approval procedures in Italy and France with identification of differences and commonalities; b) carry out toxicity tests using both procedures on two selected dispersants; c) propose a common approach between Italy and France. The results showed that, because of the differences in ecotoxicological tests and in the evaluation criteria used, the outcomes on the same products could be different in Italy and in France. Both tested dispersants met the French requirements for approval (LC 50 ≥ 10 times reference toxicant), while only one dispersant met the Italian approval criterion (EC 50 > 10mg/L). A possible way of harmonizing the approval procedures could be to increase the number of test organisms in the French procedure, which currently only uses one crustacean species. Furthermore, a common criterion for toxicity assessment should be discussed and agreed. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  9. Evaluation and "PACE": A Study of Procedures and Effectiveness of Evaluation Sections in Approved PACE Project, with Recommendations for Improvement.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Miller, Richard I.

    This report is based upon an analysis of the evaluation procedures outlined in 21 funded Title III proposals. The proposals were analyzed from a number of points of view. (1) Using the Stufflabeam model as a guide, they were examined to determine what, if any, provisions had been made for each of the four classes of evaluation: context, input,…

  10. 49 CFR 220.27 - Identification.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 4 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Identification. 220.27 Section 220.27 Transportation Other Regulations Relating to Transportation (Continued) FEDERAL RAILROAD ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION RAILROAD COMMUNICATIONS Radio and Wireless Communication Procedures § 220.27...

  11. 49 CFR 220.27 - Identification.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 4 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Identification. 220.27 Section 220.27 Transportation Other Regulations Relating to Transportation (Continued) FEDERAL RAILROAD ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION RAILROAD COMMUNICATIONS Radio and Wireless Communication Procedures § 220.27...

  12. 49 CFR 220.27 - Identification.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Identification. 220.27 Section 220.27 Transportation Other Regulations Relating to Transportation (Continued) FEDERAL RAILROAD ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION RAILROAD COMMUNICATIONS Radio and Wireless Communication Procedures § 220.27...

  13. 18 CFR 50.5 - Pre-filing procedures.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... ELECTRIC TRANSMISSION FACILITIES § 50.5 Pre-filing procedures. (a) Introduction. Any applicant seeking a... consultations, project engineering, route planning, environmental and engineering contractor engagement... proceeding. This description also must include the identification of the environmental and engineering firms...

  14. Continuously Variable Rating: a new, simple and logical procedure to evaluate original scientific publications

    PubMed Central

    Silva, Mauricio Rocha e

    2011-01-01

    OBJECTIVE: Impact Factors (IF) are widely used surrogates to evaluate single articles, in spite of known shortcomings imposed by cite distribution skewness. We quantify this asymmetry and propose a simple computer-based procedure for evaluating individual articles. METHOD: (a) Analysis of symmetry. Journals clustered around nine Impact Factor points were selected from the medical “Subject Categories” in Journal Citation Reports 2010. Citable items published in 2008 were retrieved and ranked by granted citations over the Jan/2008 - Jun/2011 period. Frequency distribution of cites, normalized cumulative cites and absolute cites/decile were determined for each journal cluster. (b) Positive Predictive Value. Three arbitrarily established evaluation classes were generated: LOW (1.3≤IF<2.6); MID: (2.6≤IF<3.9); HIGH: (IF≥3.9). Positive Predictive Value for journal clusters within each class range was estimated. (c) Continuously Variable Rating. An alternative evaluation procedure is proposed to allow the rating of individually published articles in comparison to all articles published in the same journal within the same year of publication. The general guiding lines for the construction of a totally dedicated software program are delineated. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: Skewness followed the Pareto Distribution for (1procedure capable of accurately providing a valid rating for each article within the journal and time frame in which it was published. PMID:22189736

  15. Rapid Identification of Microorganisms from Positive Blood Culture by MALDI-TOF MS After Short-Term Incubation on Solid Medium.

    PubMed

    Curtoni, Antonio; Cipriani, Raffaella; Marra, Elisa Simona; Barbui, Anna Maria; Cavallo, Rossana; Costa, Cristina

    2017-01-01

    Matrix-assisted laser-desorption/ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry (MS) is a useful tool for rapid identification of microorganisms. Unfortunately, its direct application to positive blood culture is still lacking standardized procedures. In this study, we evaluated an easy- and rapid-to-perform protocol for MALDI-TOF MS direct identification of microorganisms from positive blood culture after a short-term incubation on solid medium. This protocol was used to evaluate direct identification of microorganisms from 162 positive monomicrobial blood cultures; at different incubation times (3, 5, 24 h), MALDI-TOF MS assay was performed from the growing microorganism patina. Overall, MALDI-TOF MS concordance with conventional methods at species level was 60.5, 80.2, and 93.8% at 3, 5, and 24 h, respectively. Considering only bacteria, the identification performances at species level were 64.1, 85.0, and 94.1% at 3, 5, and 24 h, respectively. This protocol applied to a commercially available MS typing system may represent, a fast and powerful diagnostic tool for pathogen direct identification and for a promptly and pathogen-driven antimicrobial therapy in selected cases.

  16. Eyewitness Identification Reform: Data, Theory, and Due Process.

    PubMed

    Clark, Steven E

    2012-05-01

    Some commentators view my analyses (Clark, 2012, this issue) as an important step forward in assessing the costs and benefits of eyewitness identification reform. Others suggest that the trade-off between correct identifications lost and false identifications avoided is well-known; that the expected utility model is misspecified; and that the loss of correct identifications due to the use of reformed eyewitness identification procedures is irrelevant to policy decisions, as those correct identifications are the illegitimate product of suggestion and lucky guesses. Contrary to these criticisms, the loss of correct identifications has not been adequately considered in theoretical or policy matters, criticisms regarding the various utilities do not substantively change the nature of the trade-off, and the dismissal of lost correct identifications is based not on data but on an outdated theory of recognition memory. © The Author(s) 2012.

  17. The effectiveness of vane-aileron excitation in the experimental determination of flutter speed by parameter identification

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Nissim, Eli

    1990-01-01

    The effectiveness of aerodynamic excitation is evaluated analytically in conjunction with the experimental determination of flutter dynamic pressure by parameter identification. Existing control surfaces were used, with an additional vane located at the wingtip. The equations leading to the identification of the equations of motion were reformulated to accommodate excitation forces of aerodynamic origin. The aerodynamic coefficients of the excitation forces do not need to be known since they are determined by the identification procedure. The 12 degree-of-freedom numerical example treated in this work revealed the best wingtip vane locations, and demonstrated the effectiveness of the aileron-vane excitation system. Results from simulated data gathered at much lower dynamic pressures (approximately half the value of flutter dynamic pressure) predicted flutter dynamic pressures with 2-percent errors.

  18. TOXICITY REDUCTION AND TOXICITY IDENTIFICATION EVALUATIONS (TIE) FOR EFFLUENTS, AMBIENT WATERS AND OTHER AQUEOUS MEDIA

    EPA Science Inventory

    This publication is the result of a workshop and it is intended for publication through the SETAC Special Publication Series based on the proceedings from the SETAC sponsored workshop that was titles "Toxicity Identification Evaluation (TIE) Forum: What Works, What Doesn't, ...

  19. Bureau of Indian Education (BIE), Albuquerque Service Center (ASC) Due Process Hearing Officer Manual. Resolution Session and Due Process Hearing Procedures in Special Education. Revised

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Copenhaver, John

    2007-01-01

    Due process is a set of procedures that seeks to ensure fairness of education decisions and accountability, for both parents and educational professionals. The due process hearing provides a forum where disagreements about the identification, evaluation, educational placement, and provision of a free appropriate public education for students with…

  20. Extension Procedures for Confirmatory Factor Analysis

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nagy, Gabriel; Brunner, Martin; Lüdtke, Oliver; Greiff, Samuel

    2017-01-01

    We present factor extension procedures for confirmatory factor analysis that provide estimates of the relations of common and unique factors with external variables that do not undergo factor analysis. We present identification strategies that build upon restrictions of the pattern of correlations between unique factors and external variables. The…

  1. A standardized procedure for using human corpus cavernosum strips to evaluate drug activity.

    PubMed

    Mirone, V; Sorrentino, R; di Villa Bianca, R; Imbimbo, C; Palmieri, A; Fusco, F; Tajana, G; Cirino, G

    2000-01-01

    The main problem of using human corpus cavernosum (HCC) tissue to perform bioassay is linked to its limited availability further complicated by the heterogeneous source of the tissues used. Here, we show that gender reassignment is a reliable source of human tissue without major ethical problems. Indeed, the entire corpus cavernosum is obtained from the surgery procedure, which allows creating a standardized procedure to prepare HCC strip. In addition, human tissue, if kept in the fridge in the condition described, does not loose its ability to contract to phenylephrine (PE; alpha agonist), angiotensin II (AG II) and KCl up to 4 days. Furthermore, once contracted with PE, HCC relaxes to acetylcholine (endothelium-dependent mechanism); sodium nitroprusside (endothelium-independent mechanism); cromakalim (CRK), a K(ATP) channel opener; or alprostadil, a synthetic PGE2 (ALPR). In conclusion, we have standardized a procedure that allows the use of HCC strips to evaluate drug activity and/or to study pathophysiological mechanisms with an intact functional human tissue up to 4 days from the surgery procedure.

  2. Towards developing standard operating procedures for pre-clinical testing in the mdx mouse model of Duchenne muscular dystrophy

    PubMed Central

    Grounds, Miranda D.; Radley, Hannah G.; Lynch, Gordon S.; Nagaraju, Kanneboyina; De Luca, Annamaria

    2008-01-01

    This review discusses various issues to consider when developing standard operating procedures for pre-clinical studies in the mdx mouse model of Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). The review describes and evaluates a wide range of techniques used to measure parameters of muscle pathology in mdx mice and identifies some basic techniques that might comprise standardised approaches for evaluation. While the central aim is to provide a basis for the development of standardised procedures to evaluate efficacy of a drug or a therapeutic strategy, a further aim is to gain insight into pathophysiological mechanisms in order to identify other therapeutic targets. The desired outcome is to enable easier and more rigorous comparison of pre-clinical data from different laboratories around the world, in order to accelerate identification of the best pre-clinical therapies in the mdx mouse that will fast-track translation into effective clinical treatments for DMD. PMID:18499465

  3. Evaluation of Verigene Blood Culture Test Systems for Rapid Identification of Positive Blood Cultures.

    PubMed

    Kim, Jae-Seok; Kang, Go-Eun; Kim, Han-Sung; Kim, Hyun Soo; Song, Wonkeun; Lee, Kyu Man

    2016-01-01

    The performance of molecular tests using the Verigene Gram-Positive and Gram-Negative Blood Culture nucleic acid tests (BC-GP and BC-GN, resp.; Naosphere, Northbrook, IL, USA) was evaluated for the identification of microorganisms detected from blood cultures. Ninety-nine blood cultures containing Gram-positive bacteria and 150 containing Gram-negative bacteria were analyzed using the BC-GP and BC-GN assays, respectively. Blood cultures were performed using the Bactec blood culture system (BD Diagnostic Systems, Franklin Lakes, NJ, USA) and conventional identification and antibiotic-susceptibility tests were performed using a MicroScan system (Siemens, West Sacramento, CA, USA). When a single strain of bacteria was isolated from the blood culture, Verigene assays correctly identified 97.9% (94/96) of Gram-positive bacteria and 93.8% (137/146) of Gram-negative bacteria. Resistance genes mecA and vanA were correctly detected by the BC-GP assay, while the extended-spectrum β-lactamase CTX-M and the carbapenemase OXA resistance gene were detected from 30 cases cultures by the BC-GN assay. The BC-GP and BC-GN assays showed high agreement with conventional identification and susceptibility tests. These tests are useful for rapid identification of microorganisms and the detection of clinically important resistance genes from positive Bactec blood cultures.

  4. Tactile and Visual Identification of the XM106 Bursting Smoke Grenade: Limited User Evaluation

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2010-12-01

    situations representing the typical handwear and eyewear configurations of dismounted Warfighters. Thirty-six test Soldiers participated in the evaluation...all handwear and eyewear conditions. 15. SUBJECT TERMS XM106, smoke grenade, tactile/visual identification 16. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION OF: 17...1.3.2  Eyewear Compatibility ........................................................................................3  1.3.3  Physical Load

  5. The critical evaluation of stellar data

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Underhill, A. B.; Mead, J. M.; Nagy, T. A.

    1977-01-01

    The paper discusses the importance of evaluating a catalog of stellar data, whether it is an old catalog being made available in machine-readable form, or a new catalog written expressly in machine-readable form, and discusses some principles to be followed in the evaluation of such data. A procedure to be followed when checking out an astronomical catalog on magnetic tape is described. A cross index system which relates the different identification numbers of a star or other astronomical object as they appear in different catalogs in machine-readable form is described.

  6. Crop identification technology assessment for remote sensing (CITARS). Volume 10: Interpretation of results

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Bizzell, R. M.; Feiveson, A. H.; Hall, F. G.; Bauer, M. E.; Davis, B. J.; Malila, W. A.; Rice, D. P.

    1975-01-01

    The CITARS was an experiment designed to quantitatively evaluate crop identification performance for corn and soybeans in various environments using a well-defined set of automatic data processing (ADP) techniques. Each technique was applied to data acquired to recognize and estimate proportions of corn and soybeans. The CITARS documentation summarizes, interprets, and discusses the crop identification performances obtained using (1) different ADP procedures; (2) a linear versus a quadratic classifier; (3) prior probability information derived from historic data; (4) local versus nonlocal recognition training statistics and the associated use of preprocessing; (5) multitemporal data; (6) classification bias and mixed pixels in proportion estimation; and (7) data with differnt site characteristics, including crop, soil, atmospheric effects, and stages of crop maturity.

  7. Evaluating the utility of 3D TRUS image information in guiding intra-procedure registration for motion compensation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    De Silva, Tharindu; Cool, Derek W.; Romagnoli, Cesare; Fenster, Aaron; Ward, Aaron D.

    2014-03-01

    In targeted 3D transrectal ultrasound (TRUS)-guided biopsy, patient and prostate movement during the procedure can cause target misalignments that hinder accurate sampling of pre-planned suspicious tissue locations. Multiple solutions have been proposed for motion compensation via registration of intra-procedural TRUS images to a baseline 3D TRUS image acquired at the beginning of the biopsy procedure. While 2D TRUS images are widely used for intra-procedural guidance, some solutions utilize richer intra-procedural images such as bi- or multi-planar TRUS or 3D TRUS, acquired by specialized probes. In this work, we measured the impact of such richer intra-procedural imaging on motion compensation accuracy, to evaluate the tradeoff between cost and complexity of intra-procedural imaging versus improved motion compensation. We acquired baseline and intra-procedural 3D TRUS images from 29 patients at standard sextant-template biopsy locations. We used the planes extracted from the 3D intra-procedural scans to simulate 2D and 3D information available in different clinically relevant scenarios for registration. The registration accuracy was evaluated by calculating the target registration error (TRE) using manually identified homologous fiducial markers (micro-calcifications). Our results indicate that TRE improves gradually when the number of intra-procedural imaging planes used in registration is increased. Full 3D TRUS information helps the registration algorithm to robustly converge to more accurate solutions. These results can also inform the design of a fail-safe workflow during motion compensation in a system using a tracked 2D TRUS probe, by prescribing rotational acquisitions that can be performed quickly and easily by the physician immediately prior to needle targeting.

  8. WHAT’S CAUSING TOXICITY IN SEDIMENTS? RESULTS OF 20 YEARS OF TOXICITY IDENTIFICATION AND EVALUATIONS

    EPA Science Inventory

    Sediment toxicity identification and evaluation (TIE) methods have been used for 20 yr to identify the causes of toxicity in sediments around the world. In the present study, the authors summarize and categorize results of 36 peer-reviewed TIE studies (67 sediments) into nonioni...

  9. BUILDING MODEL ANALYSIS APPLICATIONS WITH THE JOINT UNIVERSAL PARAMETER IDENTIFICATION AND EVALUATION OF RELIABILITY (JUPITER) API

    EPA Science Inventory

    The open-source, public domain JUPITER (Joint Universal Parameter IdenTification and Evaluation of Reliability) API (Application Programming Interface) provides conventions and Fortran-90 modules to develop applications (computer programs) for analyzing process models. The input ...

  10. Evaluation of the Biotyper MALDI-TOF MS system for identification of Staphylococcus species.

    PubMed

    Zhu, Wenming; Sieradzki, Krzysztof; Albrecht, Valerie; McAllister, Sigrid; Lin, Wen; Stuchlik, Olga; Limbago, Brandi; Pohl, Jan; Kamile Rasheed, J

    2015-10-01

    The Bruker Biotyper MALDI-TOF MS (Biotyper) system, with a modified 30 minute formic acid extraction method, was evaluated by its ability to identify 216 clinical Staphylococcus isolates from the CDC reference collection comprising 23 species previously identified by conventional biochemical tests. 16S rDNA sequence analysis was used to resolve discrepancies. Of these, 209 (96.8%) isolates were correctly identified: 177 (84.7%) isolates had scores ≥2.0, while 32 (15.3%) had scores between 1.70 and 1.99. The Biotyper identification was inconsistent with the biochemical identification for seven (3.2%) isolates, but the Biotyper identifications were confirmed by 16S rDNA analysis. The distribution of low scores was strongly species-dependent, e.g. only 5% of Staphylococcus epidermidis and 4.8% of Staphylococcus aureus isolates scored below 2.0, while 100% of Staphylococcus cohnii, 75% of Staphylococcus sciuri, and 60% of Staphylococcus caprae produced low but accurate Biotyper scores. Our results demonstrate that the Biotyper can reliably identify Staphylococcus species with greater accuracy than conventional biochemicals. Broadening of the reference database by inclusion of additional examples of under-represented species could further optimize Biotyper results. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  11. Mould routine identification in the clinical laboratory by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Cassagne, Carole; Ranque, Stéphane; Normand, Anne-Cécile; Fourquet, Patrick; Thiebault, Sandrine; Planard, Chantal; Hendrickx, Marijke; Piarroux, Renaud

    2011-01-01

    MALDI-TOF MS recently emerged as a valuable identification tool for bacteria and yeasts and revolutionized the daily clinical laboratory routine. But it has not been established for routine mould identification. This study aimed to validate a standardized procedure for MALDI-TOF MS-based mould identification in clinical laboratory. First, pre-extraction and extraction procedures were optimized. With this standardized procedure, a 143 mould strains reference spectra library was built. Then, the mould isolates cultured from sequential clinical samples were prospectively subjected to this MALDI-TOF MS based-identification assay. MALDI-TOF MS-based identification was considered correct if it was concordant with the phenotypic identification; otherwise, the gold standard was DNA sequence comparison-based identification. The optimized procedure comprised a culture on sabouraud-gentamicin-chloramphenicol agar followed by a chemical extraction of the fungal colonies with formic acid and acetonitril. The identification was done using a reference database built with references from at least four culture replicates. For five months, 197 clinical isolates were analyzed; 20 were excluded because they were not identified at the species level. MALDI-TOF MS-based approach correctly identified 87% (154/177) of the isolates analyzed in a routine clinical laboratory activity. It failed in 12% (21/177), whose species were not represented in the reference library. MALDI-TOF MS-based identification was correct in 154 out of the remaining 156 isolates. One Beauveria bassiana was not identified and one Rhizopus oryzae was misidentified as Mucor circinelloides. This work's seminal finding is that a standardized procedure can also be used for MALDI-TOF MS-based identification of a wide array of clinically relevant mould species. It thus makes it possible to identify moulds in the routine clinical laboratory setting and opens new avenues for the development of an integrated MALDI-TOF MS

  12. Evaluation of the Biolog automated microbial identification system

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Klingler, J. M.; Stowe, R. P.; Obenhuber, D. C.; Groves, T. O.; Mishra, S. K.; Pierson, D. L.

    1992-01-01

    Biolog's identification system was used to identify 39 American Type Culture Collection reference taxa and 45 gram-negative isolates from water samples. Of the reference strains, 98% were identified to genus level and 76% to species level within 4 to 24 h. Identification of some authentic strains of Enterobacter, Klebsiella, and Serratia was unreliable. A total of 93% of the water isolates were identified.

  13. [Evaluation of a rapid trehalase test for the identification of Candida glabrata].

    PubMed

    Kirdar, Sevin; Gültekin, Berna; Evcil, Gonca; Ozkütük, Aydan; Sener, Asli Gamze; Aydin, Neriman

    2009-04-01

    Candida species which cause local infections, may also lead to fatal systemic infections. The increasing incidence of non-albicans Candida, especially fluconazole susceptible or resistant dose-dependent C. glabrata, increased the importance of rapid and accurate species level identification for Candida. Rapid and correct identification of C. glabrata is essential for the initiation of the appropriate antifungal therapy. This study was conducted to evaluate the performance of the rapid trehalase test in the diagnosis of C. glabrata isolates. A total of 173 Candida strains isolated from various clinical specimens and identified according to germ tube test, growth on cornmeal Tween 80 agar and the colony morphologies on Mast-CHROMagar Candida medium (Mast Diagnostics, UK), were included to the study. The identification of non-albicans Candida species were also confirmed by API 20CAUX (BioMerieux, France) system. Accordingly 86 (50%) of the isolates were identified as C. glabrata, 48 (28%) C. albicans, 17 (10%) C. krusei, 13 (8%) C. tropicalis, 5 (3%) C. parapsilosis, 3 (2%) C. kefyr and 1 (1%) Cutilis. In order to detect the presence of trehalase enzyme in Condida strains, all isolates were grown on Sabouraud dextrose agar containing 4% glucose and then one yeast colony was emulsified in 50 microl of citrate buffer containing 4% (wt/vol) trehalose for 3 h at 37 degrees C. Presence of glucose which emerged after the action of trehalase on trehalose, was detected by a commercial "urinary glucose detection dipstick" (Spinreacta, Spain). All C. glabrata strains yielded positive result by trehalase test. None C. glabrata isolates were found negative by trehalase test except for one strain of C. tropicalis. In this study, the trehalase test allowed identification of C. globrata with 100% sensitivity and 98.9% specificity. It was concluded that trehalase test is a rapid, cost-effective and simple test that can be used for the accurate identification of C. glabrata.

  14. Multicenter Evaluation of the Vitek MS v3.0 System for the Identification of Filamentous Fungi.

    PubMed

    Rychert, Jenna; Slechta, E Sue; Barker, Adam P; Miranda, Edwin; Babady, N Esther; Tang, Yi-Wei; Gibas, Connie; Wiederhold, Nathan; Sutton, DeAnna; Hanson, Kimberly E

    2018-02-01

    Invasive fungal infections are an important cause of morbidity and mortality affecting primarily immunocompromised patients. While fungal identification to the species level is critical to providing appropriate therapy, it can be slow and laborious and often relies on subjective morphological criteria. The use of matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry has the potential to speed up and improve the accuracy of identification. In this multicenter study, we evaluated the accuracy of the Vitek MS v3.0 system in identifying 1,601 clinical mold isolates compared to identification by DNA sequence analysis and supported by morphological and phenotypic testing. Among the 1,519 isolates representing organisms in the v3.0 database, 91% ( n = 1,387) were correctly identified to the species level. An additional 27 isolates (2%) were correctly identified to the genus level. Fifteen isolates were incorrectly identified, due to either a single incorrect identification ( n = 13) or multiple identifications from different genera ( n = 2). In those cases, when a single identification was provided that was not correct, the misidentification was within the same genus. The Vitek MS v3.0 was unable to identify 91 (6%) isolates, despite repeat testing. These isolates were distributed among all the genera. When considering all isolates tested, even those that were not represented in the database, the Vitek MS v3.0 provided a single correct identification 98% of the time. These findings demonstrate that the Vitek MS v3.0 system is highly accurate for the identification of common molds encountered in the clinical mycology laboratory. Copyright © 2018 American Society for Microbiology.

  15. 47 CFR 80.104 - Identification of radar transmissions not authorized.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 5 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Identification of radar transmissions not... Procedures-General § 80.104 Identification of radar transmissions not authorized. This section applies to all maritime radar transmitters except radar beacon stations. (a) Radar transmitters must not transmit station...

  16. 47 CFR 80.104 - Identification of radar transmissions not authorized.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 5 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Identification of radar transmissions not... Procedures-General § 80.104 Identification of radar transmissions not authorized. This section applies to all maritime radar transmitters except radar beacon stations. (a) Radar transmitters must not transmit station...

  17. 47 CFR 80.104 - Identification of radar transmissions not authorized.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 5 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Identification of radar transmissions not... Procedures-General § 80.104 Identification of radar transmissions not authorized. This section applies to all maritime radar transmitters except radar beacon stations. (a) Radar transmitters must not transmit station...

  18. 47 CFR 80.104 - Identification of radar transmissions not authorized.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 5 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Identification of radar transmissions not... Procedures-General § 80.104 Identification of radar transmissions not authorized. This section applies to all maritime radar transmitters except radar beacon stations. (a) Radar transmitters must not transmit station...

  19. 47 CFR 80.104 - Identification of radar transmissions not authorized.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 5 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Identification of radar transmissions not... Procedures-General § 80.104 Identification of radar transmissions not authorized. This section applies to all maritime radar transmitters except radar beacon stations. (a) Radar transmitters must not transmit station...

  20. State-of-the-practice : evaluation of sediment basin design, construction, maintenance, and inspection procedures.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2012-08-01

    The following document is the summary of results from a survey that was conducted to evaluate the state-of-the-practice for sediment basin design, construction, maintenance, and inspection procedures by State Highway Agencies (SHAs) across the nation...

  1. State-of-the-practice : evaluation of sediment basin design, construction, maintenance, and inspection procedures.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2012-08-01

    The following document is the summary of results from a survey that was conducted to evaluate : the state-of-the-practice for sediment basin design, construction, maintenance, and inspection : procedures by State Highway Agencies (SHAs) across the na...

  2. Evaluation of left ventricular scar identification from contrast enhanced magnetic resonance imaging for guidance of ventricular catheter ablation therapy

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rettmann, M. E.; Lehmann, H. I.; Johnson, S. B.; Packer, D. L.

    2016-03-01

    Patients with ventricular arrhythmias typically exhibit myocardial scarring, which is believed to be an important anatomic substrate for reentrant circuits, thereby making these regions a key target in catheter ablation therapy. In ablation therapy, a catheter is guided into the left ventricle and radiofrequency energy is delivered into the tissue to interrupt arrhythmic electrical pathways. Low bipolar voltage regions are typically localized during the procedure through point-by-point construction of an electroanatomic map by sampling the endocardial surface with the ablation catheter and are used as a surrogate for myocardial scar. This process is time consuming, requires significant skill, and has the potential to miss low voltage sites. This has led to efforts to quantify myocardial scar preoperatively using delayed, contrast-enhanced MRI. In this paper, we evaluate the utility of left ventricular scar identification from delayed contrast enhanced magnetic resonance imaging for guidance of catheter ablation of ventricular arrhythmias. Myocardial infarcts were created in three canines followed by a delayed, contrast enhanced MRI scan and electroanatomic mapping. The left ventricle and myocardial scar is segmented from preoperative MRI images and sampled points from the procedural electroanatomical map are registered to the segmented endocardial surface. Sampled points with low bipolar voltage points visually align with the segmented scar regions. This work demonstrates the potential utility of using preoperative delayed, enhanced MRI to identify myocardial scarring for guidance of ventricular catheter ablation therapy.

  3. Medical Evaluation Before Operation

    PubMed Central

    Elliot, Diane L.; Linz, Douglas H.; Kane, Joseph A.

    1982-01-01

    Surgical outcome can be optimized by anticipation and prevention of medical complications. General considerations that apply to all patients include evaluation for coagulation disorders, prior anesthetic complications and drug history. Evaluation for organ-specific risk factors allows identification of patients at high surgical risk, minimization of risk and anticipation of postoperative complications. Review of the recent literature and a practical guide to therapy is presented for the major medical considerations before surgical procedures: cardiac disease, hypertension, pulmonary disease, endocrine considerations and hepatic disease. Attention to these areas and communication among internists, anesthesiologists and surgeons should provide optimal treatment of surgical patients with medical disease. PMID:7179956

  4. 21 CFR 58.81 - Standard operating procedures.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... quality and integrity of the data generated in the course of a study. All deviations in a study from... data. Significant changes in established standard operating procedures shall be properly authorized in... following: (1) Animal room preparation. (2) Animal care. (3) Receipt, identification, storage, handling...

  5. A review of mammalian carcinogenicity study design and potential effects of alternate test procedures on the safety evaluation of food ingredients.

    PubMed

    Hayes, A W; Dayan, A D; Hall, W C; Kodell, R L; Williams, G M; Waddell, W D; Slesinski, R S; Kruger, C L

    2011-06-01

    Extensive experience in conducting long term cancer bioassays has been gained over the past 50 years of animal testing on drugs, pesticides, industrial chemicals, food additives and consumer products. Testing protocols for the conduct of carcinogenicity studies in rodents have been developed in Guidelines promulgated by regulatory agencies, including the US EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), the US FDA (Food and Drug Administration), the OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) for the EU member states and the MAFF (Ministries of Agriculture, Forestries and Fisheries) and MHW (Ministry of Health and Welfare) in Japan. The basis of critical elements of the study design that lead to an accepted identification of the carcinogenic hazard of substances in food and beverages is the focus of this review. The approaches used by entities well-known for carcinogenicity testing and/or guideline development are discussed. Particular focus is placed on comparison of testing programs used by the US National Toxicology Program (NTP) and advocated in OECD guidelines to the testing programs of the European Ramazzini Foundation (ERF), an organization with numerous published carcinogenicity studies. This focus allows for a good comparison of differences in approaches to carcinogenicity testing and allows for a critical consideration of elements important to appropriate carcinogenicity study designs and practices. OECD protocols serve as good standard models for carcinogenicity testing protocol design. Additionally, the detailed design of any protocol should include attention to the rationale for inclusion of particular elements, including the impact of those elements on study interpretations. Appropriate interpretation of study results is dependent on rigorous evaluation of the study design and conduct, including differences from standard practices. Important considerations are differences in the strain of animal used, diet and housing practices, rigorousness

  6. People's Need for Additional Job Training: Development and Evaluation of an Assessment Procedure.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Copa, George H.; Maurice, Clyde F.

    A procedure was developed and evaluated for assessing the self-perceived educational needs of people as one input to the process of planning, approving, and implementing relevant educational programs. The method of data collection involved selecting samples of people by randomly selecting households in a given geographic area, and then contacting…

  7. Evaluation of the RapID-ANA system for identification of anaerobic bacteria of veterinary origin.

    PubMed

    Adney, W S; Jones, R L

    1985-12-01

    This study evaluated the ability of the RapID-ANA system (Innovative Diagnostic Systems, Inc., Atlanta, Ga.) to accurately identify a spectrum of freshly isolated veterinary anaerobes. A total of 183 isolates were tested and included 7 Actinomyces spp., 53 Bacteroides spp., 32 Clostridium spp., 2 Eubacterium spp., 65 Fusobacterium spp., 1 Peptococcus spp., 22 Peptostreptococcus spp., and 1 Propionibacterium spp. All isolates were initially identified by conventional biochemical testing and gas-liquid chromatography of short-chain fatty acid metabolites. Additional tests were performed as required by the RapID-ANA system. Of these isolates, 81.4% were correctly identified to the genus level, including 59.6% to the species level, 14.2% were incorrectly identified at the genus level, and 4.4% were not identified. Initially, 20.2% of the strains were not identified because the microcodes were not in the code book. The majority of the incorrect identifications were caused by the misidentification of Fusobacterium spp. as Bacteroides spp. Errors also occurred when veterinary anaerobes not included in the data base were assigned an identification from the existing data base. The RapID-ANA system appears to be a promising new method for rapid identification of veterinary anaerobes; however, further evaluation with an extended data base is needed before the system can accurately identify all clinically significant anaerobes.

  8. [Measures to prevent patient identification errors in blood collection/physiological function testing utilizing a laboratory information system].

    PubMed

    Shimazu, Chisato; Hoshino, Satoshi; Furukawa, Taiji

    2013-08-01

    We constructed an integrated personal identification workflow chart using both bar code reading and an all in-one laboratory information system. The information system not only handles test data but also the information needed for patient guidance in the laboratory department. The reception terminals at the entrance, displays for patient guidance and patient identification tools at blood-sampling booths are all controlled by the information system. The number of patient identification errors was greatly reduced by the system. However, identification errors have not been abolished in the ultrasound department. After re-evaluation of the patient identification process in this department, we recognized that the major reason for the errors came from excessive identification workflow. Ordinarily, an ultrasound test requires patient identification 3 times, because 3 different systems are required during the entire test process, i.e. ultrasound modality system, laboratory information system and a system for producing reports. We are trying to connect the 3 different systems to develop a one-time identification workflow, but it is not a simple task and has not been completed yet. Utilization of the laboratory information system is effective, but is not yet perfect for patient identification. The most fundamental procedure for patient identification is to ask a person's name even today. Everyday checks in the ordinary workflow and everyone's participation in safety-management activity are important for the prevention of patient identification errors.

  9. Risk analysis procedure for post-wildfire natural hazards in British Columbia

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jordan, Peter

    2010-05-01

    Following a severe wildfire season in 2003, and several subsequent damaging debris flow and flood events, the British Columbia Forest Service developed a procedure for analysing risks to public safety and infrastructure from such events. At the same time, the Forest Service undertook a research program to determine the extent of post-wildfire hazards, and examine the hydrologic and geomorphic processes contributing to the hazards. The risk analysis procedure follows the Canadian Standards Association decision-making framework for risk management (which in turn is based on international standards). This has several steps: identification of risk, risk analysis and estimation, evaluation of risk tolerability, developing control or mitigation strategies, and acting on these strategies. The Forest Service procedure deals only with the first two steps. The results are passed on to authorities such as the Provincial Emergency Program and local government, who are responsible for evaluating risks, warning residents, and applying mitigation strategies if appropriate. The objective of the procedure is to identify and analyse risks to public safety and infrastructure. The procedure is loosely based on the BAER (burned area emergency response) program in the USA, with some important differences. Our procedure focuses on identifying risks and warning affected parties, not on mitigation activities such as broadcast erosion control measures. Partly this is due to limited staff and financial resources. Also, our procedure is not multi-agency, but is limited to wildfires on provincial forest land; in British Columbia about 95% of forest land is in the publicly-owned provincial forest. Each fire season, wildfires are screened by size and proximity to values at risk such as populated areas. For selected fires, when the fire is largely contained, the procedure begins with an aerial reconnaissance of the fire, and photography with a hand-held camera, which can be used to make a

  10. Financial and testamentary capacity evaluations: procedures and assessment instruments underneath a functional approach.

    PubMed

    Sousa, Liliana B; Simões, Mário R; Firmino, Horácio; Peisah, Carmelle

    2014-02-01

    Mental health professionals are frequently involved in mental capacity determinations. However, there is a lack of specific measures and well-defined procedures for these evaluations. The main purpose of this paper is to provide a review of financial and testamentary capacity evaluation procedures, including not only the traditional neuropsychological and functional assessment but also the more recently developed forensic assessment instruments (FAIs), which have been developed to provide a specialized answer to legal systems regarding civil competencies. Here the main guidelines, papers, and other references are reviewed in order to achieve a complete and comprehensive selection of instruments used in the assessment of financial and testamentary capacity. Although some specific measures for financial abilities have been developed recently, the same is not true for testamentary capacity. Here are presented several instruments or methodologies for assessing financial and testamentary capacity, including neuropsychological assessment, functional assessment scales, performance based functional assessment instruments, and specific FAIs. FAIs are the only specific instruments intended to provide a specific and direct answer to the assessment of financial capacity based on legal systems. Considering the need to move from a diagnostic to a functional approach in financial and testamentary capacity evaluations, it is essential to consider both general functional examination as well as cognitive functioning.

  11. Manual of Procedures for Evaluation Visits under Standards for Accreditation, 1972. Revised 1977.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    American Library Association, Chicago, IL. Committee on Accreditation.

    This fully revised manual of procedures for evaluation visits presents guidelines for site visits to library schools seeking accreditation for their programs of study. Visits to such schools provide the Committee on Accreditation with data to assist in reaching a judgment whether to grant accredited status. The area of responsibility for the…

  12. Automated identification of brain tumors from single MR images based on segmentation with refined patient-specific priors

    PubMed Central

    Sanjuán, Ana; Price, Cathy J.; Mancini, Laura; Josse, Goulven; Grogan, Alice; Yamamoto, Adam K.; Geva, Sharon; Leff, Alex P.; Yousry, Tarek A.; Seghier, Mohamed L.

    2013-01-01

    Brain tumors can have different shapes or locations, making their identification very challenging. In functional MRI, it is not unusual that patients have only one anatomical image due to time and financial constraints. Here, we provide a modified automatic lesion identification (ALI) procedure which enables brain tumor identification from single MR images. Our method rests on (A) a modified segmentation-normalization procedure with an explicit “extra prior” for the tumor and (B) an outlier detection procedure for abnormal voxel (i.e., tumor) classification. To minimize tissue misclassification, the segmentation-normalization procedure requires prior information of the tumor location and extent. We therefore propose that ALI is run iteratively so that the output of Step B is used as a patient-specific prior in Step A. We test this procedure on real T1-weighted images from 18 patients, and the results were validated in comparison to two independent observers' manual tracings. The automated procedure identified the tumors successfully with an excellent agreement with the manual segmentation (area under the ROC curve = 0.97 ± 0.03). The proposed procedure increases the flexibility and robustness of the ALI tool and will be particularly useful for lesion-behavior mapping studies, or when lesion identification and/or spatial normalization are problematic. PMID:24381535

  13. Testing contamination source identification methods for water distribution networks

    DOE PAGES

    Seth, Arpan; Klise, Katherine A.; Siirola, John D.; ...

    2016-04-01

    In the event of contamination in a water distribution network (WDN), source identification (SI) methods that analyze sensor data can be used to identify the source location(s). Knowledge of the source location and characteristics are important to inform contamination control and cleanup operations. Various SI strategies that have been developed by researchers differ in their underlying assumptions and solution techniques. The following manuscript presents a systematic procedure for testing and evaluating SI methods. The performance of these SI methods is affected by various factors including the size of WDN model, measurement error, modeling error, time and number of contaminant injections,more » and time and number of measurements. This paper includes test cases that vary these factors and evaluates three SI methods on the basis of accuracy and specificity. The tests are used to review and compare these different SI methods, highlighting their strengths in handling various identification scenarios. These SI methods and a testing framework that includes the test cases and analysis tools presented in this paper have been integrated into EPA’s Water Security Toolkit (WST), a suite of software tools to help researchers and others in the water industry evaluate and plan various response strategies in case of a contamination incident. Lastly, a set of recommendations are made for users to consider when working with different categories of SI methods.« less

  14. Meta-analysis of the technical performance of an imaging procedure: guidelines and statistical methodology.

    PubMed

    Huang, Erich P; Wang, Xiao-Feng; Choudhury, Kingshuk Roy; McShane, Lisa M; Gönen, Mithat; Ye, Jingjing; Buckler, Andrew J; Kinahan, Paul E; Reeves, Anthony P; Jackson, Edward F; Guimaraes, Alexander R; Zahlmann, Gudrun

    2015-02-01

    Medical imaging serves many roles in patient care and the drug approval process, including assessing treatment response and guiding treatment decisions. These roles often involve a quantitative imaging biomarker, an objectively measured characteristic of the underlying anatomic structure or biochemical process derived from medical images. Before a quantitative imaging biomarker is accepted for use in such roles, the imaging procedure to acquire it must undergo evaluation of its technical performance, which entails assessment of performance metrics such as repeatability and reproducibility of the quantitative imaging biomarker. Ideally, this evaluation will involve quantitative summaries of results from multiple studies to overcome limitations due to the typically small sample sizes of technical performance studies and/or to include a broader range of clinical settings and patient populations. This paper is a review of meta-analysis procedures for such an evaluation, including identification of suitable studies, statistical methodology to evaluate and summarize the performance metrics, and complete and transparent reporting of the results. This review addresses challenges typical of meta-analyses of technical performance, particularly small study sizes, which often causes violations of assumptions underlying standard meta-analysis techniques. Alternative approaches to address these difficulties are also presented; simulation studies indicate that they outperform standard techniques when some studies are small. The meta-analysis procedures presented are also applied to actual [18F]-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) test-retest repeatability data for illustrative purposes. © The Author(s) 2014 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav.

  15. Meta-analysis of the technical performance of an imaging procedure: Guidelines and statistical methodology

    PubMed Central

    Huang, Erich P; Wang, Xiao-Feng; Choudhury, Kingshuk Roy; McShane, Lisa M; Gönen, Mithat; Ye, Jingjing; Buckler, Andrew J; Kinahan, Paul E; Reeves, Anthony P; Jackson, Edward F; Guimaraes, Alexander R; Zahlmann, Gudrun

    2017-01-01

    Medical imaging serves many roles in patient care and the drug approval process, including assessing treatment response and guiding treatment decisions. These roles often involve a quantitative imaging biomarker, an objectively measured characteristic of the underlying anatomic structure or biochemical process derived from medical images. Before a quantitative imaging biomarker is accepted for use in such roles, the imaging procedure to acquire it must undergo evaluation of its technical performance, which entails assessment of performance metrics such as repeatability and reproducibility of the quantitative imaging biomarker. Ideally, this evaluation will involve quantitative summaries of results from multiple studies to overcome limitations due to the typically small sample sizes of technical performance studies and/or to include a broader range of clinical settings and patient populations. This paper is a review of meta-analysis procedures for such an evaluation, including identification of suitable studies, statistical methodology to evaluate and summarize the performance metrics, and complete and transparent reporting of the results. This review addresses challenges typical of meta-analyses of technical performance, particularly small study sizes, which often causes violations of assumptions underlying standard meta-analysis techniques. Alternative approaches to address these difficulties are also presented; simulation studies indicate that they outperform standard techniques when some studies are small. The meta-analysis procedures presented are also applied to actual [18F]-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) test–retest repeatability data for illustrative purposes. PMID:24872353

  16. Application and testing of a procedure to evaluate transferability of habitat suitability criteria

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Thomas, Jeff A.; Bovee, Ken D.

    1993-01-01

    A procedure designed to test the transferability of habitat suitability criteria was evaluated in the Cache la Poudre River, Colorado. Habitat suitability criteria were developed for active adult and juvenile rainbow trout in the South Platte River, Colorado. These criteria were tested by comparing microhabitat use predicted from the criteria with observed microhabitat use by adult rainbow trout in the Cache la Poudre River. A one-sided X2 test, using counts of occupied and unoccupied cells in each suitability classification, was used to test for non-random selection for optimum habitat use over usable habitat and for suitable over unsuitable habitat. Criteria for adult rainbow trout were judged to be transferable to the Cache la Poudre River, but juvenile criteria (applied to adults) were not transferable. Random subsampling of occupied and unoccupied cells was conducted to determine the effect of sample size on the reliability of the test procedure. The incidence of type I and type II errors increased rapidly as the sample size was reduced below 55 occupied and 200 unoccupied cells. Recommended modifications to the procedure included the adoption of a systematic or randomized sampling design and direct measurement of microhabitat variables. With these modifications, the procedure is economical, simple and reliable. Use of the procedure as a quality assurance device in routine applications of the instream flow incremental methodology was encouraged.

  17. 40 CFR 792.81 - Standard operating procedures.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... data generated in the course of a study. All deviations in a study from standard operating procedures shall be authorized by the study director and shall be documented in the raw data. Significant changes...) Test system room preparation. (2) Test system care. (3) Receipt, identification, storage, handling...

  18. 40 CFR 792.81 - Standard operating procedures.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... data generated in the course of a study. All deviations in a study from standard operating procedures shall be authorized by the study director and shall be documented in the raw data. Significant changes...) Test system room preparation. (2) Test system care. (3) Receipt, identification, storage, handling...

  19. In vitro evaluation of a passive radio frequency identification microchip implanted in human molars subjected to compression forces, for forensic purposes of human identification

    PubMed Central

    Moreno, Freddy; Vallejo, Diego; Garzón, Herney; Moreno, Sandra

    2013-01-01

    Objective: To evaluate the in vitro behavior of a passive Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) microchip implanted in human molars subjected to compression forces to determine its technical and clinical viability. Materials and Methods: In vitro experimental study to evaluate the physical behavior of a passive RFID microchip (VeriChip™) implanted in human molars through resin restoration (Filtek P90™ Silorane 3M-ESPE®) to determine the clinical and technical possibilities of the implant and the viability to withstand compression forces exerted by the stomatognathic system during mastication. Results: Through the ANOVA test, it was found that the teeth on which a microchip was implanted show great resistance to compressive forces. It was also evident that teeth with microchips implanted in Class V cavities are more resistant than those implanted in Class I cavities. Conclusions: Although microchip dimensions are big, requiring a sufficiently large cavity, from the biomechanical point of view it is plausible to implant a microchip in a Class V cavity employing restoration material based on resin for forensic purposes of human identification. PMID:24255554

  20. A simplified protocol for molecular identification of Eimeria species in field samples.

    PubMed

    Haug, Anita; Thebo, Per; Mattsson, Jens G

    2007-05-15

    This study aimed to find a fast, sensitive and efficient protocol for molecular identification of chicken Eimeria spp. in field samples. Various methods for each of the three steps of the protocol were evaluated: oocyst wall rupturing methods, DNA extraction methods, and identification of species-specific DNA sequences by PCR. We then compared and evaluated five complete protocols. Three series of oocyst suspensions of known number of oocysts from Eimeria mitis, Eimeria praecox, Eimeria maxima and Eimeria tenella were prepared and ground using glass beads or mini-pestle. DNA was extracted from ruptured oocysts using commercial systems (GeneReleaser, Qiagen Stoolkit and Prepman) or phenol-chloroform DNA extraction, followed by identification of species-specific ITS-1 sequences by optimised single species PCR assays. The Stoolkit and Prepman protocols showed insufficient repeatability, and the former was also expensive and relatively time-consuming. In contrast, both the GeneReleaser protocol and phenol-chloroform protocols were robust and sensitive, detecting less than 0.4 oocysts of each species per PCR. Finally, we evaluated our new protocol on 68 coccidia positive field samples. Our data suggests that rupturing the oocysts by mini-pestle grinding, preparing the DNA with GeneReleaser, followed by optimised single species PCR assays, makes a robust and sensitive procedure for identifying chicken Eimeria species in field samples. Importantly, it also provides minimal hands-on-time in the pre-PCR process, lower contamination risk and no handling of toxic chemicals.

  1. Instruments Used in the Identification of Gifted and Talented Students.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Callahan, Carolyn M.; Hunsaker, Scott L.; Adams, Cheryll M.; Moore, Sara D.; Bland, Lori C.

    This report presents findings of a study of instruments used in the identification of gifted and talented students. The study first examined the published literature, both standardized and locally developed identification instruments and procedures, and strategies used to identify underserved populations. These data were catalogued in the National…

  2. Reward, cost, and self-evaluation procedures for disruptive adolescents in a psychiatric hospital school1

    PubMed Central

    Kaufman, Kenneth F.; O'Leary, K. Daniel

    1972-01-01

    Sixteen pupils in a psychiatric hospital were assigned to two tutorial reading classes and balanced on six pupil characteristics and teacher preferences for the children. The effects of reward and cost procedures in a token program were assessed using both within- and between-subject comparisons in the following phases: (1) Baseline; (2) Token I, teacher evaluated and reinforced children for appropriate behavior; (3) Withdrawal of Tokens; (4) Token II, same as Token I; (5) Token III, same as Token I and II, but switched order of class meeting time; and (6) Self-Evaluation, students rated their own behavior and received prizes based on their rating, rather than the teacher's rating. The token program was markedly successful in reducing disruptive behavior and in increasing reading skills in both the Reward and Cost Classes, but there were no significant differences in the effects of the reward versus the cost procedure. While cost may be seen as a punishment procedure, there were no adverse side effects observed in the Cost Class at any time when the token program was in effect. The order of the classes was unrelated to the level of disruptive behavior or academic progress. The Self-Evaluative Phase, in which the students rated their own behavior, was included as an alternative to the abrupt withdrawal of tokens. In this phase, disruptive behavior remained at the previous low level. PMID:16795351

  3. Evaluating the Risk of Re-identification of Patients from Hospital Prescription Records.

    PubMed

    Emam, Khaled El; Dankar, Fida K; Vaillancourt, Régis; Roffey, Tyson; Lysyk, Mary

    2009-07-01

    Pharmacies often provide prescription records to private research firms, on the assumption that these records are de-identified (i.e., identifying information has been removed). However, concerns have been expressed about the potential that patients can be re-identified from such records. Recently, a large private research firm requested prescription records from the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO), as part of a larger effort to develop a database of hospital prescription records across Canada. To evaluate the ability to re-identify patients from CHEO'S prescription records and to determine ways to appropriately de-identify the data if the risk was too high. The risk of re-identification was assessed for 18 months' worth of prescription data. De-identification algorithms were developed to reduce the risk to an acceptable level while maintaining the quality of the data. The probability of patients being re-identified from the original variables and data set requested by the private research firm was deemed quite high. A new de-identified record layout was developed, which had an acceptable level of re-identification risk. The new approach involved replacing the admission and discharge dates with the quarter and year of admission and the length of stay in days, reporting the patient's age in weeks, and including only the first character of the patient's postal code. Additional requirements were included in the data-sharing agreement with the private research firm (e.g., audit requirements and a protocol for notification of a breach of privacy). Without a formal analysis of the risk of re-identification, assurances of data anonymity may not be accurate. A formal risk analysis at one hospital produced a clinically relevant data set that also protects patient privacy and allows the hospital pharmacy to explicitly manage the risks of breach of patient privacy.

  4. What’s Causing Toxicity in Sediments? Results of Twenty Years of Toxicity Identification and Evaluations (TIEs)

    EPA Science Inventory

    Sediment Toxicity Identification and Evaluation (TIEs) methods have been used for twenty years to identify the causes of toxicity in sediments around the world. We summarized and categorized results of more than 80 peer-reviewed TIE studies into non-ionic organic, cationic, ammo...

  5. A simplified ingestion procedure for esophageal capsule endoscopy: initial evaluation in healthy volunteers.

    PubMed

    Gralnek, I M; Rabinovitz, R; Afik, D; Eliakim, R

    2006-09-01

    Initial studies on esophageal capsule endoscopy (PillCam ESO) reported excellent sensitivity and specificity, but these were followed by mixed results in several subsequent studies, probably due to deviations from the recommended ingestion protocol and the inconvenience of capsule ingestion in the supine position. The aim of this study was therefore to test a simplified ingestion procedure (SIP) for PillCam ESO. Using a cross-over study design, the SIP was prospectively compared with the original ingestion procedure for PillCam ESO in 24 healthy volunteers (15 men, nine women; mean age 44, range 27 - 70) and evaluated for: bubbles/saliva interference at the Z-line, Z-line circumferential visualization (quadrants), and convenience and ease of the ingestion procedure. All Rapid 4 videos were reviewed in a randomized manner and read by an experienced PillCam ESO reader blinded to the ingestion procedure used. It was found that the SIP significantly improved visualization in comparison with the original ingestion procedure, with less interference due to bubbles/saliva observed at the gastroesophageal junction ( P = 0.002) and improved visualization of the Z-line ( P = 0.025). Although the esophageal transit time was significantly faster with the SIP (3 : 45 min vs. 0 : 38 min; P = 0.0001), there were no differences in the number of Z-line frames/images captured. This new, simplified ingestion procedure for PillCam ESO provides significantly improved visualization of the Z-line in healthy volunteers. The overall test characteristics of PillCam ESO using SIP should be tested in patients with esophageal disease.

  6. Probability of identification (POI): a statistical model for the validation of qualitative botanical identification methods

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    A qualitative botanical identification method (BIM) is an analytical procedure which returns a binary result (1 = Identified, 0 = Not Identified). A BIM may be used by a buyer, manufacturer, or regulator to determine whether a botanical material being tested is the same as the target (desired) mate...

  7. FBI fingerprint identification automation study. AIDS 3 evaluation report. Volume 4: Economic feasibility

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Mulhall, B. D. L.

    1980-01-01

    The results of the economic analysis of the AIDS 3 system design are presented. AIDS 3 evaluated a set of economic feasibility measures including life cycle cost, implementation cost, annual operating expenditures and annual capital expenditures. The economic feasibility of AIDS 3 was determined by comparing the evaluated measures with the same measures, where applicable, evaluated for the current system. A set of future work load scenarios was constructed using JPL's environmental evaluation study of the fingerprint identification system. AIDS 3 and the current system were evaluated for each of the economic feasibility measures for each of the work load scenarios. They were compared for a set of performance measures, including response time and accuracy, and for a set of cost/benefit ratios, including cost per transaction and cost per technical search. Benefit measures related to the economic feasibility of the system are also presented, including the required number of employees and the required employee skill mix.

  8. Implications of cost-effectiveness analysis of medical technology. background paper number 5. four common x-ray procedures: problems and prospects for economic evaluation

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

    Wagner, J.L.; Krieger, M.J.

    This paper is about the economic evaluation of diagnostic procedures. The issue of economic evaluation is explored in the context of four common diagnostic X-ray procedures: the chest X-ray, the skull X-ray, the barium enema study, and the excretory urogram. The paper is divided into two parts. The first part summarizes the different evaluative models underlying studies of the four diagnostic X-ray procedures and to lay out the strengths and weaknesses of each method. The second part contains four separate chapters summarizing what is known about the utilization, costs, risks, and benefits of each procedure, with particular emphasis on themore » evaluative methods employed.« less

  9. Automatic source camera identification using the intrinsic lens radial distortion

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Choi, Kai San; Lam, Edmund Y.; Wong, Kenneth K. Y.

    2006-11-01

    Source camera identification refers to the task of matching digital images with the cameras that are responsible for producing these images. This is an important task in image forensics, which in turn is a critical procedure in law enforcement. Unfortunately, few digital cameras are equipped with the capability of producing watermarks for this purpose. In this paper, we demonstrate that it is possible to achieve a high rate of accuracy in the identification by noting the intrinsic lens radial distortion of each camera. To reduce manufacturing cost, the majority of digital cameras are equipped with lenses having rather spherical surfaces, whose inherent radial distortions serve as unique fingerprints in the images. We extract, for each image, parameters from aberration measurements, which are then used to train and test a support vector machine classifier. We conduct extensive experiments to evaluate the success rate of a source camera identification with five cameras. The results show that this is a viable approach with high accuracy. Additionally, we also present results on how the error rates may change with images captured using various optical zoom levels, as zooming is commonly available in digital cameras.

  10. On-line identification of fermentation processes for ethanol production.

    PubMed

    Câmara, M M; Soares, R M; Feital, T; Naomi, P; Oki, S; Thevelein, J M; Amaral, M; Pinto, J C

    2017-07-01

    A strategy for monitoring fermentation processes, specifically, simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) of corn mash, was developed. The strategy covered the development and use of first principles, semimechanistic and unstructured process model based on major kinetic phenomena, along with mass and energy balances. The model was then used as a reference model within an identification procedure capable of running on-line. The on-line identification procedure consists on updating the reference model through the estimation of corrective parameters for certain reaction rates using the most recent process measurements. The strategy makes use of standard laboratory measurements for sugars quantification and in situ temperature and liquid level data. The model, along with the on-line identification procedure, has been tested against real industrial data and have been able to accurately predict the main variables of operational interest, i.e., state variables and its dynamics, and key process indicators. The results demonstrate that the strategy is capable of monitoring, in real time, this complex industrial biomass fermentation. This new tool provides a great support for decision-making and opens a new range of opportunities for industrial optimization.

  11. In situ impulse test: an experimental and analytical evaluation of data interpretation procedures

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

    Not Available

    1975-08-01

    Special experimental field testing and analytical studies were undertaken at Fort Lawton in Seattle, Washington, to study ''close-in'' wave propagation and evaluate data interpretation procedures for a new in situ impulse test. This test was developed to determine the shear wave velocity and dynamic modulus of soils underlying potential nuclear power plant sites. The test is different from conventional geophysical testing in that the velocity variation with strain is determined for each test. In general, strains between 10/sup -1/ and 10/sup -3/ percent are achieved. The experimental field work consisted of performing special tests in a large test sand fillmore » to obtain detailed ''close-in'' data. Six recording transducers were placed at various points on the energy source, while approximately 37 different transducers were installed within the soil fill, all within 7 feet of the energy source. Velocity measurements were then taken simultaneously under controlled test conditions to study shear wave propagation phenomenology and help evaluate data interpretation procedures. Typical test data are presented along with detailed descriptions of the results.« less

  12. 9 CFR 147.12 - Procedures for collection, isolation, and identification of Salmonella from environmental samples...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ..., and identification of Salmonella from environmental samples, cloacal swabs, chick box papers, and... identification of Salmonella from environmental samples, cloacal swabs, chick box papers, and meconium samples... chickens, waterfowl, exhibition poultry, and game birds. All samples and swabs described in this paragraph...

  13. 9 CFR 147.12 - Procedures for collection, isolation, and identification of Salmonella from environmental samples...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ..., and identification of Salmonella from environmental samples, cloacal swabs, chick box papers, and... identification of Salmonella from environmental samples, cloacal swabs, chick box papers, and meconium samples... chickens, waterfowl, exhibition poultry, and game birds. All samples and swabs described in this paragraph...

  14. 9 CFR 147.12 - Procedures for collection, isolation, and identification of Salmonella from environmental samples...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ..., and identification of Salmonella from environmental samples, cloacal swabs, chick box papers, and... identification of Salmonella from environmental samples, cloacal swabs, chick box papers, and meconium samples... chickens, waterfowl, exhibition poultry, and game birds. All samples and swabs described in this paragraph...

  15. 9 CFR 147.12 - Procedures for collection, isolation, and identification of Salmonella from environmental samples...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ..., and identification of Salmonella from environmental samples, cloacal swabs, chick box papers, and... identification of Salmonella from environmental samples, cloacal swabs, chick box papers, and meconium samples... chickens, waterfowl, exhibition poultry, and game birds. All samples and swabs described in this paragraph...

  16. 9 CFR 147.12 - Procedures for collection, isolation, and identification of Salmonella from environmental samples...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ..., and identification of Salmonella from environmental samples, cloacal swabs, chick box papers, and... identification of Salmonella from environmental samples, cloacal swabs, chick box papers, and meconium samples... chickens, waterfowl, exhibition poultry, and game birds. All samples and swabs described in this paragraph...

  17. Proposal and evaluation of FASDIM, a Fast And Simple De-Identification Method for unstructured free-text clinical records.

    PubMed

    Chazard, Emmanuel; Mouret, Capucine; Ficheur, Grégoire; Schaffar, Aurélien; Beuscart, Jean-Baptiste; Beuscart, Régis

    2014-04-01

    Medical free-text records enable to get rich information about the patients, but often need to be de-identified by removing the Protected Health Information (PHI), each time the identification of the patient is not mandatory. Pattern matching techniques require pre-defined dictionaries, and machine learning techniques require an extensive training set. Methods exist in French, but either bring weak results or are not freely available. The objective is to define and evaluate FASDIM, a Fast And Simple De-Identification Method for French medical free-text records. FASDIM consists in removing all the words that are not present in the authorized word list, and in removing all the numbers except those that match a list of protection patterns. The corresponding lists are incremented in the course of the iterations of the method. For the evaluation, the workload is estimated in the course of records de-identification. The efficiency of the de-identification is assessed by independent medical experts on 508 discharge letters that are randomly selected and de-identified by FASDIM. Finally, the letters are encoded after and before de-identification according to 3 terminologies (ATC, ICD10, CCAM) and the codes are compared. The construction of the list of authorized words is progressive: 12h for the first 7000 letters, 16 additional hours for 20,000 additional letters. The Recall (proportion of removed Protected Health Information, PHI) is 98.1%, the Precision (proportion of PHI within the removed token) is 79.6% and the F-measure (harmonic mean) is 87.9%. In average 30.6 terminology codes are encoded per letter, and 99.02% of those codes are preserved despite the de-identification. FASDIM gets good results in French and is freely available. It is easy to implement and does not require any predefined dictionary. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  18. A Teaching Exercise for the Identification of Bacteria Using An Interactive Computer Program.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bryant, Trevor N.; Smith, John E.

    1979-01-01

    Describes an interactive Fortran computer program which provides an exercise in the identification of bacteria. Provides a way of enhancing a student's approach to systematic bacteriology and numerical identification procedures. (Author/MA)

  19. Evaluating North Carolina Food Pantry Food Safety-Related Operating Procedures.

    PubMed

    Chaifetz, Ashley; Chapman, Benjamin

    2015-11-01

    Almost one in seven American households were food insecure in 2012, experiencing difficulty in providing enough food for all family members due to a lack of resources. Food pantries assist a food-insecure population through emergency food provision, but there is a paucity of information on the food safety-related operating procedures used in the pantries. Food pantries operate in a variable regulatory landscape; in some jurisdictions, they are treated equivalent to restaurants, while in others, they operate outside of inspection regimes. By using a mixed methods approach to catalog the standard operating procedures related to food in 105 food pantries from 12 North Carolina counties, we evaluated their potential impact on food safety. Data collected through interviews with pantry managers were supplemented with observed food safety practices scored against a modified version of the North Carolina Food Establishment Inspection Report. Pantries partnered with organized food bank networks were compared with those that operated independently. In this exploratory research, additional comparisons were examined for pantries in metropolitan areas versus nonmetropolitan areas and pantries with managers who had received food safety training versus managers who had not. The results provide a snapshot of how North Carolina food pantries operate and document risk mitigation strategies for foodborne illness for the vulnerable populations they serve. Data analysis reveals gaps in food safety knowledge and practice, indicating that pantries would benefit from more effective food safety training, especially focusing on formalizing risk management strategies. In addition, new tools, procedures, or policy interventions might improve information actualization by food pantry personnel.

  20. Grey-box state-space identification of nonlinear mechanical vibrations

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Noël, J. P.; Schoukens, J.

    2018-05-01

    The present paper deals with the identification of nonlinear mechanical vibrations. A grey-box, or semi-physical, nonlinear state-space representation is introduced, expressing the nonlinear basis functions using a limited number of measured output variables. This representation assumes that the observed nonlinearities are localised in physical space, which is a generic case in mechanics. A two-step identification procedure is derived for the grey-box model parameters, integrating nonlinear subspace initialisation and weighted least-squares optimisation. The complete procedure is applied to an electrical circuit mimicking the behaviour of a single-input, single-output (SISO) nonlinear mechanical system and to a single-input, multiple-output (SIMO) geometrically nonlinear beam structure.

  1. Dynamic Stiffness Transfer Function of an Electromechanical Actuator Using System Identification

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kim, Sang Hwa; Tahk, Min-Jea

    2018-04-01

    In the aeroelastic analysis of flight vehicles with electromechanical actuators (EMAs), an accurate prediction of flutter requires dynamic stiffness characteristics of the EMA. The dynamic stiffness transfer function of the EMA with brushless direct current (BLDC) motor can be obtained by conducting complicated mathematical calculations of control algorithms and mechanical/electrical nonlinearities using linearization techniques. Thus, system identification approaches using experimental data, as an alternative, have considerable advantages. However, the test setup for system identification is expensive and complex, and experimental procedures for data collection are time-consuming tasks. To obtain the dynamic stiffness transfer function, this paper proposes a linear system identification method that uses information obtained from a reliable dynamic stiffness model with a control algorithm and nonlinearities. The results of this study show that the system identification procedure is compact, and the transfer function is able to describe the dynamic stiffness characteristics of the EMA. In addition, to verify the validity of the system identification method, the simulation results of the dynamic stiffness transfer function and the dynamic stiffness model were compared with the experimental data for various external loads.

  2. An evaluation of risk estimation procedures for mixtures of carcinogens

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

    Hwang, J.S.; Chen, J.J.

    1999-12-01

    The estimation of health risks from exposure to a mixture of chemical carcinogens is generally based on the combination of information from several available single compound studies. The current practice of directly summing the upper bound risk estimates of individual carcinogenic components as an upper bound on the total risk of a mixture is known to be generally too conservative. Gaylor and Chen (1996, Risk Analysis) proposed a simple procedure to compute an upper bound on the total risk using only the upper confidence limits and central risk estimates of individual carcinogens. The Gaylor-Chen procedure was derived based on anmore » underlying assumption of the normality for the distributions of individual risk estimates. IN this paper the authors evaluated the Gaylor-Chen approach in terms the coverages of the upper confidence limits on the true risks of individual carcinogens. In general, if the coverage probabilities for the individual carcinogens are all approximately equal to the nominal level, then the Gaylor-Chen approach should perform well. However, the Gaylor-Chen approach can be conservative or anti-conservative if some of all individual upper confidence limit estimates are conservative or anti-conservative.« less

  3. 48 CFR 243.170 - Identification of foreign military sale (FMS) requirements.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 3 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Identification of foreign military sale (FMS) requirements. 243.170 Section 243.170 Federal Acquisition Regulations System DEFENSE....170 Identification of foreign military sale (FMS) requirements. Follow the procedures at PGI 243.170...

  4. Phenomenological reports diagnose accuracy of eyewitness identification decisions.

    PubMed

    Palmer, Matthew A; Brewer, Neil; McKinnon, Anna C; Weber, Nathan

    2010-02-01

    This study investigated whether measuring the phenomenology of eyewitness identification decisions aids evaluation of their accuracy. Witnesses (N=502) viewed a simulated crime and attempted to identify two targets from lineups. A divided attention manipulation during encoding reduced the rate of remember (R) correct identifications, but not the rates of R foil identifications or know (K) judgments in the absence of recollection (i.e., K/[1-R]). Both RK judgments and recollection ratings (a novel measure of graded recollection) distinguished correct from incorrect positive identifications. However, only recollection ratings improved accuracy evaluation after identification confidence was taken into account. These results provide evidence that RK judgments for identification decisions function in a similar way as for recognition decisions; are consistent with the notion of graded recollection; and indicate that measures of phenomenology can enhance the evaluation of identification accuracy. Copyright 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  5. A procedure for evaluating environmental impact

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Leopold, Luna Bergere; Clarke, Frank Eldridge; Hanshaw, Bruce B.; Balsley, James R.

    1971-01-01

    The procedure does not limit the development of detail in any specific aspect of the environment; a separate expanded matrix for any environmental aspect can easily be developed within the framework provided.

  6. Symbolic dynamic filtering and language measure for behavior identification of mobile robots.

    PubMed

    Mallapragada, Goutham; Ray, Asok; Jin, Xin

    2012-06-01

    This paper presents a procedure for behavior identification of mobile robots, which requires limited or no domain knowledge of the underlying process. While the features of robot behavior are extracted by symbolic dynamic filtering of the observed time series, the behavior patterns are classified based on language measure theory. The behavior identification procedure has been experimentally validated on a networked robotic test bed by comparison with commonly used tools, namely, principal component analysis for feature extraction and Bayesian risk analysis for pattern classification.

  7. Best Practices in Intellectual Disability Identification

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fiorello, Catherine A.; Jenkins, Tiffany K.

    2018-01-01

    This article is an overview of identification of intellectual disabilities (ID), with a focus on meeting legal and ethical requirements when assessing children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds and those living in poverty. Specific procedures and recommended instruments will be reviewed.

  8. Utility of preclinical drug versus food choice procedures to evaluate candidate medications for methamphetamine use disorder.

    PubMed

    Banks, Matthew L

    2017-04-01

    Substance use disorders are diagnosed as a manifestation of inappropriate behavioral allocation toward abused drugs and away from other behaviors maintained by more adaptive nondrug reinforcers (e.g., money and social relationships). Substance use disorder treatment goals include not only decreasing drug-maintained behavior but also promoting behavioral reallocation toward these socially adaptive alternative reinforcers. Preclinical drug self-administration procedures that offer concurrent access to both drug and nondrug reinforcers provide a translationally relevant dependent measure of behavioral allocation that may be useful for candidate medication evaluation. In contrast to other abused drugs, such as heroin or cocaine, preclinical methamphetamine versus food choice procedures have been a more recent development. We hypothesize that preclinical to clinical translatability would be improved by the evaluation of repeated pharmacological treatment effects on methamphetamine self-administration under a methamphetamine versus food choice procedure. In support of this hypothesis, a literature review suggests strong concordance between preclinical pharmacological treatment effects on methamphetamine versus food choice in nonhuman primates and clinical medication treatment effects on methamphetamine self-administration in human laboratory studies or methamphetamine abuse metrics in clinical trials. In conclusion, this literature suggests preclinical methamphetamine versus food choice procedures may be useful in developing innovative pharmacotherapies for methamphetamine use disorder. © 2016 New York Academy of Sciences.

  9. Utility of preclinical drug versus food choice procedures to evaluate candidate medications for methamphetamine use disorder

    PubMed Central

    Banks, Matthew L.

    2016-01-01

    Substance use disorders are diagnosed as a manifestation of inappropriate behavioral allocation towards abused drugs and away from other behaviors maintained by more adaptive nondrug reinforcers (e.g., work and social relationships). Substance use disorder treatment goals include not only decreasing drug-maintained behavior but also promoting behavioral reallocation toward these socially adaptive alternative reinforcers. Preclinical drug self-administration procedures that offer concurrent access to both drug and nondrug reinforcers provide a translationally relevant dependent measure of behavioral allocation that may be useful for candidate medication evaluation. In contrast to other abused drugs, such as heroin or cocaine, preclinical methamphetamine versus food choice procedures have been a more recent development. We hypothesize that preclinical to clinical translatability would be improved by the evaluation of repeated pharmacological treatment effects on methamphetamine self-administration under a methamphetamine versus food choice procedure. In support of this hypothesis, a literature review suggests strong concordance between preclinical pharmacological treatment effects on methamphetamine versus food choice in nonhuman primates and clinical medication treatment effects on methamphetamine self-administration in human laboratory studies or methamphetamine abuse metrics in clinical trials. In conclusion, this literature suggests preclinical methamphetamine versus food choice procedures may be useful in developing innovative pharmacotherapies for methamphetamine use disorder. PMID:27936284

  10. Direct structural parameter identification by modal test results

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Chen, J.-C.; Kuo, C.-P.; Garba, J. A.

    1983-01-01

    A direct identification procedure is proposed to obtain the mass and stiffness matrices based on the test measured eigenvalues and eigenvectors. The method is based on the theory of matrix perturbation in which the correct mass and stiffness matrices are expanded in terms of analytical values plus a modification matrix. The simplicity of the procedure enables real time operation during the structural testing.

  11. The evaluation of a new apheresis device for automated red blood cell exchange procedures in patients with sickle cell disease.

    PubMed

    Quirolo, Keith; Bertolone, Salvatore; Hassell, Kathryn; Howard, Thomas; King, Karen E; Rhodes, Diane K; Bill, Jerry

    2015-04-01

    The Spectra Optia apheresis system (SO), a blood component separator, can be used to perform red blood cell exchange (RBCX) procedures for the transfusion management of sickle cell disease (SCD) in adults and children. This study was designed to evaluate the performance of the SO RBCX protocols (exchange and depletion/exchange) in patients with SCD. Patients with SCD and a need for an RBCX procedure as part of a chronic program or as a single procedure were enrolled in this multicenter, single-arm, open-label study. The primary goal of the study was to confirm that the predicted percentage of the patient's original RBCs remaining at the end of the procedure (FCRp) reflects the actual cell fraction remaining, as measured by %HbS (FCRa). Secondary endpoints included ability of the SO to achieve the desired final hematocrit (Hct) and device-related serious adverse events (SAEs). Seventy-two patients 12 years of age or older were enrolled in the study; 60 were evaluable. The ratio of FCRa to FCRp after the RBCX procedure was 0.90, well within the prespecified range of 0.75 to 1.25. The SO was able to achieve the desired final Hct in the evaluable population. The safety profile was favorable, and no patients had an SAE or unexpected adverse device effect or withdrew from the procedure or treatment due to an adverse event. The SO performed effectively and safely for both the RBCX procedure and the RBCX depletion/exchange procedure. © 2014 AABB.

  12. 40 CFR 255.23 - Joint identification of agencies.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... solid waste and water quality management planning agencies, and all areawide agencies and the state... IDENTIFICATION OF REGIONS AND AGENCIES FOR SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT Procedures for Identifying Regions and Agencies...

  13. Eyewitness Identification Reforms: Are Suggestiveness-Induced Hits and Guesses True Hits?

    PubMed

    Wells, Gary L; Steblay, Nancy K; Dysart, Jennifer E

    2012-05-01

    Research-based reforms for collecting eyewitness identification evidence (e.g., unbiased pre-lineup instructions, double-blind administration) have been proposed by psychologists and adopted in increasing numbers of jurisdictions across the United States. It is well known that reducing rates of mistaken identifications can also reduce accurate identification rates (hits). But the reforms are largely designed to reduce the suggestiveness of the procedures they are meant to replace. Accordingly, we argue that it is misleading to label any hits obtained because of suggestive procedures as "hits" and then saddle reforms with the charge that they reduce the rate of these illegitimate hits. Eyewitness identification evidence should be based solely on the independent memory of the witness, not aided by biased instructions, cues from lineup administrators, or the use of lineup fillers who make the suspect stand out. Failure to call out these hits as being illegitimate can give solace to those who are motivated to preserve the status quo. © The Author(s) 2012.

  14. Habitat Evaluation Procedures Report; Carl Property - Yakama Nation.

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

    Ashley, Paul; Muse, Anthony

    A baseline habitat evaluation procedures (HEP) analysis was conducted on the Carl property (160 acres) in June 2007 to determine the number of habitat units to credit Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) for providing funds to acquire the property as partial mitigation for habitat losses associated with construction of McNary Dam. HEP surveys also helped assess the general ecological condition of the property. The Carl property appeared damaged from livestock grazing and exhibited a high percentage of invasive forbs. Exotic grasses, while present, did not comprise a large percentage of the available cover in most areas. Cover types were primarily grassland/shrubsteppemore » with a limited emergent vegetation component. Baseline HEP surveys generated 356.11 HUs or 2.2 HUs per acre. Habitat units were associated with the following HEP models: California quail (47.69 HUs), western meadowlark (114.78 HUs), mallard (131.93 HUs), Canada goose (60.34 HUs), and mink (1.38 HUs).« less

  15. Application of statistical process control and process capability analysis procedures in orbiter processing activities at the Kennedy Space Center

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Safford, Robert R.; Jackson, Andrew E.; Swart, William W.; Barth, Timothy S.

    1994-01-01

    Successful ground processing at KSC requires that flight hardware and ground support equipment conform to specifications at tens of thousands of checkpoints. Knowledge of conformance is an essential requirement for launch. That knowledge of conformance at every requisite point does not, however, enable identification of past problems with equipment, or potential problem areas. This paper describes how the introduction of Statistical Process Control and Process Capability Analysis identification procedures into existing shuttle processing procedures can enable identification of potential problem areas and candidates for improvements to increase processing performance measures. Results of a case study describing application of the analysis procedures to Thermal Protection System processing are used to illustrate the benefits of the approaches described in the paper.

  16. Identification of Carboxypeptidase Substrates by C-Terminal COFRADIC.

    PubMed

    Tanco, Sebastian; Aviles, Francesc Xavier; Gevaert, Kris; Lorenzo, Julia; Van Damme, Petra

    2017-01-01

    We here present a detailed procedure for studying protein C-termini and their posttranslational modifications by C-terminal COFRADIC. In fact, this procedure can enrich for both C-terminal and N-terminal peptides through a combination of a strong cation exchange fractionation step at low pH, which removes the majority of nonterminal peptides in whole-proteome digests, while the actual COFRADIC step segregates C-terminal peptides from N-terminal peptides. When used in a differential mode, C-terminal COFRADIC allows for the identification of neo-C-termini generated by the action of proteases, which in turn leads to the identification of protease substrates. More specifically, this technology can be applied to determine the natural substrate repertoire of carboxypeptidases on a proteome-wide scale.

  17. A unified procedure for meta-analytic evaluation of surrogate end points in randomized clinical trials

    PubMed Central

    Dai, James Y.; Hughes, James P.

    2012-01-01

    The meta-analytic approach to evaluating surrogate end points assesses the predictiveness of treatment effect on the surrogate toward treatment effect on the clinical end point based on multiple clinical trials. Definition and estimation of the correlation of treatment effects were developed in linear mixed models and later extended to binary or failure time outcomes on a case-by-case basis. In a general regression setting that covers nonnormal outcomes, we discuss in this paper several metrics that are useful in the meta-analytic evaluation of surrogacy. We propose a unified 3-step procedure to assess these metrics in settings with binary end points, time-to-event outcomes, or repeated measures. First, the joint distribution of estimated treatment effects is ascertained by an estimating equation approach; second, the restricted maximum likelihood method is used to estimate the means and the variance components of the random treatment effects; finally, confidence intervals are constructed by a parametric bootstrap procedure. The proposed method is evaluated by simulations and applications to 2 clinical trials. PMID:22394448

  18. Evaluation of SOC for the presumptive identification of Candida albicans and Cryptococcus neoformans.

    PubMed

    Fleming, W H; Knezek, K L; Dorn, G L

    1987-01-01

    SOC, a fungal growth medium composed of Solryth, oxgall, and caffeic acid, was evaluated as a medium to provide rapid, differential identification of Candida albicans and Cryptococcus neoformans. Using a variety of common isolation media to produce the yeast inocula, the germ tube methods tested ranked in the following order of decreasing sensitivity: SOC (97% +/- 1), serum (92% +/- 5), rabbit coagulase plasma with EDTA in combination with tryptic soy broth (89% +/- 5), TOC (89% +/- 6), and rabbit coagulase plasma with EDTA (83% +/- 4). In chlamydospore production, SOC also proved to be the most sensitive after 24 h incubation: SOC (96% +/- 2), TOC (80% +/- 2), and cornmeal-Tween 80 agar (14% +/- 3). Other medically important yeasts showed normal patterns of growth within 24 h on SOC, thus assisting in their identification. Eighty strains of Cryptococcus neoformans showed characteristic brown pigmentation on SOC and TOC within 18 h, while all other species of the genus Cryptococcus and 229 Candida isolates did not show a change in pigmentation.

  19. Evaluation of a Blocked-Trials Procedure to Establish Complex Stimulus Control over Intraverbal Responses in Children with Autism

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ingvarsson, Einar T.; Kramer, Rachel L.; Carp, Charlotte L.; Pétursdóttir, Anna I.; Macias, Heather

    2016-01-01

    We evaluated the use of a blocked-trials procedure to establish complex stimulus control over intraverbal responses. The participants were four young boys with a diagnosis of autism who had struggled to master intraverbals. The blocked-trials procedures involved presentation of stimuli in separate trial blocks. The trial blocks gradually reduced…

  20. Identification of Intellectually Able Disadvantaged Filipino Children.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Naval-Severino, Teresita

    1992-01-01

    Preschool Filipino children from disadvantaged urban communities were assessed for giftedness. This article describes the identification procedures and tools used and presents a profile of the children in terms of socioeconomic, intellectual, and personality variables. (Author/JDD)

  1. Predictors of eyewitness identification decisions from video lineups in England: a field study.

    PubMed

    Horry, Ruth; Memon, Amina; Wright, Daniel B; Milne, Rebecca

    2012-08-01

    Eyewitness identification decisions from 1,039 real lineups in England were analysed. Identification procedures have undergone dramatic change in the United Kingdom over recent years. Video lineups are now standard procedure, in which each lineup member is seen sequentially. The whole lineup is seen twice before the witness can make a decision, and the witness can request additional viewings of the lineup. A key aim of this paper was to investigate the association between repeated viewing and eyewitness decisions. Repeated viewing was strongly associated with increased filler identification rates, suggesting that witnesses who requested additional viewings were more willing to guess. In addition, several other factors were associated with lineup outcomes, including the age difference between the suspect and the witness, the type of crime committed, and delay. Overall, the suspect identification rate was 39%, the filler identification rate was 26% and the lineup rejection rate was 35%. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved).

  2. A signal-detection-based diagnostic-feature-detection model of eyewitness identification.

    PubMed

    Wixted, John T; Mickes, Laura

    2014-04-01

    The theoretical understanding of eyewitness identifications made from a police lineup has long been guided by the distinction between absolute and relative decision strategies. In addition, the accuracy of identifications associated with different eyewitness memory procedures has long been evaluated using measures like the diagnosticity ratio (the correct identification rate divided by the false identification rate). Framed in terms of signal-detection theory, both the absolute/relative distinction and the diagnosticity ratio are mainly relevant to response bias while remaining silent about the key issue of diagnostic accuracy, or discriminability (i.e., the ability to tell the difference between innocent and guilty suspects in a lineup). Here, we propose a signal-detection-based model of eyewitness identification, one that encourages the use of (and helps to conceptualize) receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis to measure discriminability. Recent ROC analyses indicate that the simultaneous presentation of faces in a lineup yields higher discriminability than the presentation of faces in isolation, and we propose a diagnostic feature-detection hypothesis to account for that result. According to this hypothesis, the simultaneous presentation of faces allows the eyewitness to appreciate that certain facial features (viz., those that are shared by everyone in the lineup) are non-diagnostic of guilt. To the extent that those non-diagnostic features are discounted in favor of potentially more diagnostic features, the ability to discriminate innocent from guilty suspects will be enhanced.

  3. Report of the Federation of European Laboratory Animal Science Associations Working Group on animal identification.

    PubMed

    Dahlborn, K; Bugnon, P; Nevalainen, T; Raspa, M; Verbost, P; Spangenberg, E

    2013-01-01

    The primary aim of this report is to assist scientists in selecting more reliable/suitable identification (ID) methods for their studies. This is especially true for genetically altered (GA) animals where individual identification is strictly necessary to link samples, research design and genotype. The aim of this Federation of European Laboratory Animal Science Associations working group was to provide an update of the methods used to identify rodents in different situations and to assess their implications for animal welfare. ID procedures are an indispensable prerequisite for conducting good science but the degree of invasiveness differs between the different methods; therefore, one needs to make a good ethical evaluation of the method chosen. Based on the scientific literature the advantages and disadvantages of various methods have been presented comprehensively and this report is intended as a practical guide for researchers. New upcoming methods have been included next to the traditional techniques. Ideally, an ID method should provide reliable identification, be technically easy to apply and not inflict adverse effects on animals while taking into account the type of research. There is no gold standard method because each situation is unique; however, more studies are needed to better evaluate ID systems and the desirable introduction of new and modern approaches will need to be assessed by detailed scientific evaluation.

  4. Estimating the reliability of eyewitness identifications from police lineups

    PubMed Central

    Wixted, John T.; Mickes, Laura; Dunn, John C.; Clark, Steven E.; Wells, William

    2016-01-01

    Laboratory-based mock crime studies have often been interpreted to mean that (i) eyewitness confidence in an identification made from a lineup is a weak indicator of accuracy and (ii) sequential lineups are diagnostically superior to traditional simultaneous lineups. Largely as a result, juries are increasingly encouraged to disregard eyewitness confidence, and up to 30% of law enforcement agencies in the United States have adopted the sequential procedure. We conducted a field study of actual eyewitnesses who were assigned to simultaneous or sequential photo lineups in the Houston Police Department over a 1-y period. Identifications were made using a three-point confidence scale, and a signal detection model was used to analyze and interpret the results. Our findings suggest that (i) confidence in an eyewitness identification from a fair lineup is a highly reliable indicator of accuracy and (ii) if there is any difference in diagnostic accuracy between the two lineup formats, it likely favors the simultaneous procedure. PMID:26699467

  5. Estimating the reliability of eyewitness identifications from police lineups.

    PubMed

    Wixted, John T; Mickes, Laura; Dunn, John C; Clark, Steven E; Wells, William

    2016-01-12

    Laboratory-based mock crime studies have often been interpreted to mean that (i) eyewitness confidence in an identification made from a lineup is a weak indicator of accuracy and (ii) sequential lineups are diagnostically superior to traditional simultaneous lineups. Largely as a result, juries are increasingly encouraged to disregard eyewitness confidence, and up to 30% of law enforcement agencies in the United States have adopted the sequential procedure. We conducted a field study of actual eyewitnesses who were assigned to simultaneous or sequential photo lineups in the Houston Police Department over a 1-y period. Identifications were made using a three-point confidence scale, and a signal detection model was used to analyze and interpret the results. Our findings suggest that (i) confidence in an eyewitness identification from a fair lineup is a highly reliable indicator of accuracy and (ii) if there is any difference in diagnostic accuracy between the two lineup formats, it likely favors the simultaneous procedure.

  6. Evaluating the statistical power of DNA-based identification, exemplified by 'The missing grandchildren of Argentina'.

    PubMed

    Kling, Daniel; Egeland, Thore; Piñero, Mariana Herrera; Vigeland, Magnus Dehli

    2017-11-01

    Methods and implementations of DNA-based identification are well established in several forensic contexts. However, assessing the statistical power of these methods has been largely overlooked, except in the simplest cases. In this paper we outline general methods for such power evaluation, and apply them to a large set of family reunification cases, where the objective is to decide whether a person of interest (POI) is identical to the missing person (MP) in a family, based on the DNA profile of the POI and available family members. As such, this application closely resembles database searching and disaster victim identification (DVI). If parents or children of the MP are available, they will typically provide sufficient statistical evidence to settle the case. However, if one must resort to more distant relatives, it is not a priori obvious that a reliable conclusion is likely to be reached. In these cases power evaluation can be highly valuable, for instance in the recruitment of additional family members. To assess the power in an identification case, we advocate the combined use of two statistics: the Probability of Exclusion, and the Probability of Exceedance. The former is the probability that the genotypes of a random, unrelated person are incompatible with the available family data. If this is close to 1, it is likely that a conclusion will be achieved regarding general relatedness, but not necessarily the specific relationship. To evaluate the ability to recognize a true match, we use simulations to estimate exceedance probabilities, i.e. the probability that the likelihood ratio will exceed a given threshold, assuming that the POI is indeed the MP. All simulations are done conditionally on available family data. Such conditional simulations have a long history in medical linkage analysis, but to our knowledge this is the first systematic forensic genetics application. Also, for forensic markers mutations cannot be ignored and therefore current models and

  7. EMQN Best Practice Guidelines for molecular and haematology methods for carrier identification and prenatal diagnosis of the haemoglobinopathies.

    PubMed

    Traeger-Synodinos, Joanne; Harteveld, Cornelis L; Old, John M; Petrou, Mary; Galanello, Renzo; Giordano, Piero; Angastioniotis, Michael; De la Salle, Barbara; Henderson, Shirley; May, Alison

    2015-04-01

    Haemoglobinopathies constitute the commonest recessive monogenic disorders worldwide, and the treatment of affected individuals presents a substantial global disease burden. Carrier identification and prenatal diagnosis represent valuable procedures that identify couples at risk for having affected children, so that they can be offered options to have healthy offspring. Molecular diagnosis facilitates prenatal diagnosis and definitive diagnosis of carriers and patients (especially 'atypical' cases who often have complex genotype interactions). However, the haemoglobin disorders are unique among all genetic diseases in that identification of carriers is preferable by haematological (biochemical) tests rather than DNA analysis. These Best Practice guidelines offer an overview of recommended strategies and methods for carrier identification and prenatal diagnosis of haemoglobinopathies, and emphasize the importance of appropriately applying and interpreting haematological tests in supporting the optimum application and evaluation of globin gene DNA analysis.

  8. EMQN Best Practice Guidelines for molecular and haematology methods for carrier identification and prenatal diagnosis of the haemoglobinopathies

    PubMed Central

    Traeger-Synodinos, Joanne; Harteveld, Cornelis L; Old, John M; Petrou, Mary; Galanello, Renzo; Giordano, Piero; Angastioniotis, Michael; De la Salle, Barbara; Henderson, Shirley; May, Alison

    2015-01-01

    Haemoglobinopathies constitute the commonest recessive monogenic disorders worldwide, and the treatment of affected individuals presents a substantial global disease burden. Carrier identification and prenatal diagnosis represent valuable procedures that identify couples at risk for having affected children, so that they can be offered options to have healthy offspring. Molecular diagnosis facilitates prenatal diagnosis and definitive diagnosis of carriers and patients (especially ‘atypical' cases who often have complex genotype interactions). However, the haemoglobin disorders are unique among all genetic diseases in that identification of carriers is preferable by haematological (biochemical) tests rather than DNA analysis. These Best Practice guidelines offer an overview of recommended strategies and methods for carrier identification and prenatal diagnosis of haemoglobinopathies, and emphasize the importance of appropriately applying and interpreting haematological tests in supporting the optimum application and evaluation of globin gene DNA analysis. PMID:25052315

  9. Community-Based Efforts to Increase the Identification of the Number of Gifted Minority Children.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Davis, Paul I.

    The document reports on a study of community-based identification of gifted and talented Black middle-school students, as an adjunct to formal identification procedures. A developmental framework for the identification of the gifted minority child was distributed to 17 known leaders in the Black community (including ministers, youth leaders in…

  10. 48 CFR 42.1503 - Procedures.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION AND AUDIT SERVICES Contractor Performance Information 42.1503 Procedures. (a) Agency procedures for the past performance evaluation system shall generally provide for input to the.... Those individuals identified may obtain information for the evaluation of performance from the program...

  11. Advanced crew procedures development techniques

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Arbet, J. D.; Benbow, R. L.; Mangiaracina, A. A.; Mcgavern, J. L.; Spangler, M. C.; Tatum, I. C.

    1975-01-01

    The development of an operational computer program, the Procedures and Performance Program (PPP), is reported which provides a procedures recording and crew/vehicle performance monitoring capability. The PPP provides real time CRT displays and postrun hardcopy of procedures, difference procedures, performance, performance evaluation, and training script/training status data. During post-run, the program is designed to support evaluation through the reconstruction of displays to any point in time. A permanent record of the simulation exercise can be obtained via hardcopy output of the display data, and via magnetic tape transfer to the Generalized Documentation Processor (GDP). Reference procedures data may be transferred from the GDP to the PPP.

  12. A study of the stress wave factor technique for evaluation of composite materials

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Duke, J. C., Jr.; Henneke, E. G., II; Kiernan, M. T.; Grosskopf, P. P.

    1989-01-01

    The acousto-ultrasonic approach for nondestructive evaluation provides a measurement procedure for quantifying the integrated effect of globally distributed damage characteristic of fiber reinforced composite materials. The evaluation procedure provides a stress wave factor that correlates closely with several material performance parameters. The procedure was investigated for a variety of materials including advanced composites, hybrid structure bonds, adhesive bonds, wood products, and wire rope. The research program focused primarily on development of fundamental understanding and applications advancements of acousto-ultrasonics for materials characterization. This involves characterization of materials for which detection, location, and identification of imperfections cannot at present be analyzed satisfactorily with mechanical performance prediction models. In addition to presenting definitive studies on application potentials, the understanding of the acousto-ultrasonic method as applied to advanced composites is reviewed.

  13. 34 CFR 75.224 - What are the procedures for using a multiple tier review process to evaluate applications?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 34 Education 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false What are the procedures for using a multiple tier... applications received. (d) The Secretary may, in any tier— (1) Use more than one group of experts to gain... procedures for using a multiple tier review process to evaluate applications? (a) The Secretary may use a...

  14. A prospective clinical evaluation of augmented Anderson procedure for idiopathic infantile nystagmus.

    PubMed

    Gupta, Ritesh; Sharma, Pradeep; Menon, Vimala

    2006-08-01

    To evaluate the efficacy of the augmented Anderson procedure in idiopathic infantile nystagmus (IIN). Twelve consecutive patients older than 5 years having IIN with eccentric null position and anomalous head position were enrolled in an institution-based study. Best-corrected visual acuity (uniocular and binocular and in both null position and primary position), slit-lamp examination, fundus examination, ocular motility examination, and stereopsis using TNO were recorded. In all cases the augmented Anderson procedure, that is, recession of the yoke muscles (9-mm medial rectus and 12-mm lateral rectus), was performed. Eye movements were recorded before and 3 months after surgery in the primary position, right gaze 15 and 30 degrees, and left gaze 15 and 30 degrees. All patients had improvement in their anomalous head posture after surgery (p = 0.0001). The nystagmus intensity in the primary position decreased from 22.0 +/- 15.9 degrees cycles/s preoperatively to 10.6 +/- 10.2 degrees cycles/s at 3 months postoperatively. The change was statistically significant (p = 0.006). After surgery, binocular visual acuity using the Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study chart improved in primary position (p = 0.007). No patient developed more than mild limitation of horizontal movements after surgery. The augmented Anderson procedure is successful in correcting face turn in patients having IIN with eccentric null position, resulting in an increase in visual acuity and a decrease in nystagmus intensity in primary position. Further studies with a longer follow-up are required to assess the long-term efficacy of this procedure.

  15. Double-blind photo lineups using actual eyewitnesses: an experimental test of a sequential versus simultaneous lineup procedure.

    PubMed

    Wells, Gary L; Steblay, Nancy K; Dysart, Jennifer E

    2015-02-01

    Eyewitnesses (494) to actual crimes in 4 police jurisdictions were randomly assigned to view simultaneous or sequential photo lineups using laptop computers and double-blind administration. The sequential procedure used in the field experiment mimicked how it is conducted in actual practice (e.g., using a continuation rule, witness does not know how many photos are to be viewed, witnesses resolve any multiple identifications), which is not how most lab experiments have tested the sequential lineup. No significant differences emerged in rates of identifying lineup suspects (25% overall) but the sequential procedure produced a significantly lower rate (11%) of identifying known-innocent lineup fillers than did the simultaneous procedure (18%). The simultaneous/sequential pattern did not significantly interact with estimator variables and no lineup-position effects were observed for either the simultaneous or sequential procedures. Rates of nonidentification were not significantly different for simultaneous and sequential but nonidentifiers from the sequential procedure were more likely to use the "not sure" response option than were nonidentifiers from the simultaneous procedure. Among witnesses who made an identification, 36% (41% of simultaneous and 32% of sequential) identified a known-innocent filler rather than a suspect, indicating that eyewitness performance overall was very poor. The results suggest that the sequential procedure that is used in the field reduces the identification of known-innocent fillers, but the differences are relatively small.

  16. Toxicity identification evaluation of cosmetics industry wastewater.

    PubMed

    de Melo, Elisa Dias; Mounteer, Ann H; Leão, Lucas Henrique de Souza; Bahia, Renata Cibele Barros; Campos, Izabella Maria Ferreira

    2013-01-15

    The cosmetics industry has shown steady growth in many developing countries over the past several years, yet little research exists on toxicity of wastewaters it generates. This study describes a toxicity identification evaluation conducted on wastewater from a small Brazilian hair care products manufacturing plant. Physicochemical and ecotoxicological analyses of three wastewater treatment plant inlet and outlet samples collected over a six month period revealed inefficient operation of the treatment system and thus treated wastewater organic matter, suspended solids and surfactants contents consistently exceeded discharge limits. Treated wastewater also presented high acute toxicity to Daphnia similis and chronic toxicity to Ceriodaphnia dubia and Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata. This toxicity was associated with suspended solids, volatile or sublatable and non-polar to moderately polar organic compounds that could be recovered in filtration and aeration residues. Seven surfactants used in the largest quantities in the production process were highly toxic to P. subcapitata and D. similis. These results indicated that surfactants, important production raw materials, are a probable source of toxicity, although other possible sources, such as fragrances, should not be discarded. Improved treatment plant operational control may reduce toxicity and lower impact of wastewater discharge to receiving waters. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  17. Use of the QR Reader to Provide Real-Time Evaluation of Residents' Skills Following Surgical Procedures.

    PubMed

    Reynolds, Kellin; Barnhill, Danny; Sias, Jamie; Young, Amy; Polite, Florencia Greer

    2014-12-01

    A portable electronic method of providing instructional feedback and recording an evaluation of resident competency immediately following surgical procedures has not previously been documented in obstetrics and gynecology. This report presents a unique electronic format that documents resident competency and encourages verbal communication between faculty and residents immediately following operative procedures. The Microsoft Tag system and SurveyMonkey platform were linked by a 2-D QR code using Microsoft QR code generator. Each resident was given a unique code (TAG) embedded onto an ID card. An evaluation form was attached to each resident's file in SurveyMonkey. Postoperatively, supervising faculty scanned the resident's TAG with a smartphone and completed the brief evaluation using the phone's screen. The evaluation was reviewed with the resident and automatically submitted to the resident's educational file. The evaluation system was quickly accepted by residents and faculty. Of 43 residents and faculty in the study, 38 (88%) responded to a survey 8 weeks after institution of the electronic evaluation system. Thirty (79%) of the 38 indicated it was superior to the previously used handwritten format. The electronic system demonstrated improved utilization compared with paper evaluations, with a mean of 23 electronic evaluations submitted per resident during a 6-month period versus 14 paper assessments per resident during an earlier period of 6 months. This streamlined portable electronic evaluation is an effective tool for direct, formative feedback for residents, and it creates a longitudinal record of resident progress. Satisfaction with, and use of, this evaluation system was high.

  18. Use of the QR Reader to Provide Real-Time Evaluation of Residents' Skills Following Surgical Procedures

    PubMed Central

    Reynolds, Kellin; Barnhill, Danny; Sias, Jamie; Young, Amy; Polite, Florencia Greer

    2014-01-01

    Background A portable electronic method of providing instructional feedback and recording an evaluation of resident competency immediately following surgical procedures has not previously been documented in obstetrics and gynecology. Objective This report presents a unique electronic format that documents resident competency and encourages verbal communication between faculty and residents immediately following operative procedures. Methods The Microsoft Tag system and SurveyMonkey platform were linked by a 2-D QR code using Microsoft QR code generator. Each resident was given a unique code (TAG) embedded onto an ID card. An evaluation form was attached to each resident's file in SurveyMonkey. Postoperatively, supervising faculty scanned the resident's TAG with a smartphone and completed the brief evaluation using the phone's screen. The evaluation was reviewed with the resident and automatically submitted to the resident's educational file. Results The evaluation system was quickly accepted by residents and faculty. Of 43 residents and faculty in the study, 38 (88%) responded to a survey 8 weeks after institution of the electronic evaluation system. Thirty (79%) of the 38 indicated it was superior to the previously used handwritten format. The electronic system demonstrated improved utilization compared with paper evaluations, with a mean of 23 electronic evaluations submitted per resident during a 6-month period versus 14 paper assessments per resident during an earlier period of 6 months. Conclusions This streamlined portable electronic evaluation is an effective tool for direct, formative feedback for residents, and it creates a longitudinal record of resident progress. Satisfaction with, and use of, this evaluation system was high. PMID:26140128

  19. Enhancing lineup identification accuracy: two codes are better than one.

    PubMed

    Melara, R D; DeWitt-Rickards, T S; O'Brien, T P

    1989-10-01

    Ways of improving identification accuracy were explored by comparing the conventional visual lineup with an auditory/visual lineup, one that paired color photographs with voice recordings. This bimodal lineup necessitated sequential presentation of lineup members; Experiment 1 showed that performance in sequential lineups was better than performance in traditional simultaneous lineups. In Experiments 2A and 2B unimodal and bimodal lineups were compared by using a multiple-lineup paradigm: Ss viewed 3 videotaped episodes depicting standard police procedures and were tested in 4 sequential lineups. Bimodal lineups were more diagnostic than either visual or auditory lineups alone. The bimodal lineup led to a 126% improvement in number of correct identifications over the conventional visual lineup, with no concomitant increase in number of false identifications. These results imply strongly that bimodal procedures should be adopted in real-world lineups. The nature of memorial processes underlying this bimodal advantage is discussed.

  20. USE OF TOXICITY IDENTIFICATION EVALUATION METHODS TO CHARACTERIZE IDENTIFY, AND CONFIRM HEXAVALENT CHROMIUM TOXICITY IN AN INDUSTRIAL EFFLUENT

    EPA Science Inventory

    A toxicity identification evaluation (TIE) was conducted on effluent from a major industrial discharger. Initial monitoring showed slight chronic toxicity to Ceriodaphnia dubia; later sample showed substantial toxicity to C. dubia. Chemical analysis detected hexavalent chromium ...

  1. 20 CFR 422.112 - Employer identification numbers.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Employer identification numbers. 422.112 Section 422.112 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION ORGANIZATION AND PROCEDURES General..., and domestic corporations which elect social security coverage for employees of foreign subsidiaries...

  2. Relationship of procedural numbers with meaningful procedural autonomy in general surgery residents.

    PubMed

    Stride, Herbert P; George, Brian C; Williams, Reed G; Bohnen, Jordan D; Eaton, Megan J; Schuller, Mary C; Zhao, Lihui; Yang, Amy; Meyerson, Shari L; Scully, Rebecca; Dunnington, Gary L; Torbeck, Laura; Mullen, John T; Mandell, Samuel P; Choti, Michael; Foley, Eugene; Are, Chandrakanth; Auyang, Edward; Chipman, Jeffrey; Choi, Jennifer; Meier, Andreas; Smink, Douglas; Terhune, Kyla P; Wise, Paul; DaRosa, Debra; Soper, Nathaniel; Zwischenberger, Jay B; Lillemoe, Keith; Fryer, Jonathan P

    2018-03-01

    Concerns exist regarding the competency of general surgery graduates with performing core general surgery procedures. Current competence assessment incorporates minimal procedural numbers requirements. Based on the Zwisch scale we evaluated the level of autonomy achieved by categorical PGY1-5 general surgery residents at 14 U.S. general surgery resident training programs between September 1, 2015 and December 31, 2016. With 5 of the most commonly performed core general surgery procedures, we correlated the level of autonomy achieved by each resident with the number of procedures they had performed before the evaluation period, with the intent of identifying specific target numbers that would correlate with the achievement of meaningful autonomy for each procedure with most residents. Whereas a definitive target number was identified for laparoscopic appendectomy (i.e. 25), for the other 4 procedures studied (i.e. laparoscopic cholecystectomy, 52; open inguinal hernia repair, 42; ventral hernia repair, 35; and partial colectomy, 60), target numbers identified were less definitive and/or were higher than many residents will experience during their surgical residency training. We conclude that procedural target numbers are generally not effective in predicting procedural competence and should not be used as the basis for determining residents' readiness for independent practice. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  3. 42 CFR 420.304 - Procedures for obtaining access to books, documents, and records.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 42 Public Health 3 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Procedures for obtaining access to books, documents... Books, Documents, and Records of Subcontractors § 420.304 Procedures for obtaining access to books... following elements: (1) Reasonable identification of the books, documents, and records to which access is...

  4. Evaluation of Operational Procedures for Using a Time-Based Airborne Inter-arrival Spacing Tool

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Oseguera-Lohr, Rosa M.; Lohr, Gary W.; Abbott, Terence S.; Eischeid, Todd M.

    2002-01-01

    An airborne tool has been developed based on the concept of an aircraft maintaining a time-based spacing interval from the preceding aircraft. The Advanced Terminal Area Approach Spacing (ATAAS) tool uses Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) aircraft state data to compute a speed command for the ATAAS-equipped aircraft to obtain a required time interval behind another aircraft. The tool and candidate operational procedures were tested in a high-fidelity, full mission simulator with active airline subject pilots flying an arrival scenario using three different modes for speed control. The objectives of this study were to validate the results of a prior Monte Carlo analysis of the ATAAS algorithm and to evaluate the concept from the standpoint of pilot acceptability and workload. Results showed that the aircraft was able to consistently achieve the target spacing interval within one second (the equivalent of approximately 220 ft at a final approach speed of 130 kt) when the ATAAS speed guidance was autothrottle-coupled, and a slightly greater (4-5 seconds), but consistent interval with the pilot-controlled speed modes. The subject pilots generally rated the workload level with the ATAAS procedure as similar to that with standard procedures, and also rated most aspects of the procedure high in terms of acceptability. Although pilots indicated that the head-down time was higher with ATAAS, the acceptability of head-down time was rated high. Oculometer data indicated slight changes in instrument scan patterns, but no significant change in the amount of time spent looking out the window between the ATAAS procedure versus standard procedures.

  5. Evaluation of protein spectra cluster analysis for Streptococcus spp. identification from various swine clinical samples.

    PubMed

    Matajira, Carlos E C; Moreno, Luisa Z; Gomes, Vasco T M; Silva, Ana Paula S; Mesquita, Renan E; Doto, Daniela S; Calderaro, Franco F; de Souza, Fernando N; Christ, Ana Paula G; Sato, Maria Inês Z; Moreno, Andrea M

    2017-03-01

    Traditional microbiological methods enable genus-level identification of Streptococcus spp. isolates. However, as the species of this genus show broad phenotypic variation, species-level identification or even differentiation within the genus is difficult. Herein we report the evaluation of protein spectra cluster analysis for the identification of Streptococcus species associated with disease in swine by means of matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS). A total of 250 S. suis-like isolates obtained from pigs with clinical signs of encephalitis, arthritis, pneumonia, metritis, and urinary or septicemic infection were studied. The isolates came from pigs in different Brazilian states from 2001 to 2014. The MALDI-TOF MS analysis identified 86% (215 of 250) as S. suis and 14% (35 of 250) as S. alactolyticus, S. dysgalactiae, S. gallinaceus, S. gallolyticus, S. gordonii, S. henryi, S. hyointestinalis, S. hyovaginalis, S. mitis, S. oralis, S. pluranimalium, and S. sanguinis. The MALDI-TOF MS identification was confirmed in 99.2% of the isolates by 16S rDNA sequencing, with MALDI-TOF MS misidentifying 2 S. pluranimalium as S. hyovaginalis. Isolates were also tested by a biochemical automated system that correctly identified all isolates of 8 of the 10 species in the database. Neither the isolates of the 3 species not in the database ( S. gallinaceus, S. henryi, and S. hyovaginalis) nor the isolates of 2 species that were in the database ( S. oralis and S. pluranimalium) could be identified. The topology of the protein spectra cluster analysis appears to sustain the species phylogenetic similarities, further supporting identification by MALDI-TOF MS examination as a rapid and accurate alternative to 16S rDNA sequencing.

  6. Implicit affective evaluation bias in hypochondriasis: findings from the Affect Misattribution Procedure.

    PubMed

    Schreiber, Franziska; Neng, Julia M B; Heimlich, Christiane; Witthöft, Michael; Weck, Florian

    2014-10-01

    Cognitive theories of hypochondriasis (HYP) suggest that catastrophic misinterpretations of benign body sensations are a core feature for the maintenance of the disorder. There is tentative support from an analog sample that the interpretation of illness-related information also involves an implicit affective component. This is the first study to examine this negative affective evaluation bias implicitly in patients with HYP. An adapted version of the Affect Misattribution Procedure (AMP) with illness, symptom and neutral primes was used in 80 patients with HYP, and compared to 83 patients with an anxiety disorder (AD), as well as 90 healthy controls (CG). The HYP group showed significantly more negative affective reactions in illness prime trials, compared to both control groups, as well as more negative implicit evaluations on symptom prime trials, compared to the CG. Significant inverse relationships were observed only between the implicit evaluations of illness words and health anxiety questionnaires. Thus, an implicit negative affective evaluation bias of serious illnesses rather than symptoms is a unique feature of HYP. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. 41 CFR 109-27.5011 - Identification marking of metals and metal products.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 41 Public Contracts and Property Management 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Identification marking of metals and metal products. 109-27.5011 Section 109-27.5011 Public Contracts and Property..., Procedures, and Guidelines § 109-27.5011 Identification marking of metals and metal products. ...

  8. 41 CFR 109-27.5011 - Identification marking of metals and metal products.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... 41 Public Contracts and Property Management 3 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Identification marking of metals and metal products. 109-27.5011 Section 109-27.5011 Public Contracts and Property..., Procedures, and Guidelines § 109-27.5011 Identification marking of metals and metal products. ...

  9. The use of high-fidelity human patient simulation as an evaluative tool in the development of clinical research protocols and procedures.

    PubMed

    Wright, Melanie C; Taekman, Jeffrey M; Barber, Linda; Hobbs, Gene; Newman, Mark F; Stafford-Smith, Mark

    2005-12-01

    Errors in clinical research can be costly, in terms of patient safety, data integrity, and data collection. Data inaccuracy in early subjects of a clinical study may be associated with problems in the design of the protocol, procedures, and data collection tools. High-fidelity patient simulation centers provide an ideal environment to apply human-centered design to clinical trial development. A draft of a complex clinical protocol was designed, evaluated and modified using a high-fidelity human patient simulator in the Duke University Human Simulation and Patient Safety Center. The process included walk-throughs, detailed modifications of the protocol and development of procedural aids. Training of monitors and coordinators provided an opportunity for observation of performance that was used to identify further improvements to the protocol. Evaluative steps were used to design the research protocol and procedures. Iterative modifications were made to the protocol and data collection tools. The success in use of human simulation in the preparation of a complex clinical drug trial suggests the benefits of human patient simulation extend beyond training and medical equipment evaluation. Human patient simulation can provide a context for informal expert evaluation of clinical protocol design and for formal "rehearsal" to evaluate the efficacy of procedures and support tools.

  10. 31 CFR 1024.220 - Customer identification programs for mutual funds.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... Identification Program (“CIP”) appropriate for its size and type of business that, at a minimum, includes each of the requirements of paragraphs (a)(1) through (5) of this section. The CIP must be a part of the...). (2) Identity verification procedures. The CIP must include risk-based procedures for verifying the...

  11. 31 CFR 1024.220 - Customer identification programs for mutual funds.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... Identification Program (“CIP”) appropriate for its size and type of business that, at a minimum, includes each of the requirements of paragraphs (a)(1) through (5) of this section. The CIP must be a part of the...). (2) Identity verification procedures. The CIP must include risk-based procedures for verifying the...

  12. 31 CFR 1024.220 - Customer identification programs for mutual funds.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... Identification Program (“CIP”) appropriate for its size and type of business that, at a minimum, includes each of the requirements of paragraphs (a)(1) through (5) of this section. The CIP must be a part of the...). (2) Identity verification procedures. The CIP must include risk-based procedures for verifying the...

  13. A management system for evaluating the Virginia periodic motor vehicle inspection program : software manual and implementation procedures : final report.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    1978-01-01

    This report deals with the Periodic Motor Vehicle Inspection Management Evaluation System software documentation and implementation procedures. A companion report entitled "A Management System for Evaluating the Virginia Periodic Motor Vehicle Inspec...

  14. Evaluation of matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-fight mass spectrometry for identification of 345 clinical isolates of Aspergillus species from 11 Korean hospitals: comparison with molecular identification.

    PubMed

    Park, Ju Heon; Shin, Jong Hee; Choi, Min Ji; Choi, Jin Un; Park, Yeon-Joon; Jang, Sook Jin; Won, Eun Jeong; Kim, Soo Hyun; Kee, Seung Jung; Shin, Myung Geun; Suh, Soon Pal

    2017-01-01

    We evaluated the ability of the Filamentous Fungi Library 1.0 of the MALDI-TOF MS Biotyper system to identify 345 clinical Aspergillus isolates from 11 Korean hospitals. Compared with results of the internal transcribed spacer region sequencing, the frequencies of correct identification at the species-complex level were 94.5% and 98.8% with cutoff values of 2.0 and 1.7, respectively. Compared with results of β-tubulin gene sequencing, the frequencies of correct identification at the species level were 96.0% (cutoff 2.0) and 100% (cutoff 1.7) for 303 Aspergillus isolates of five common, non-cryptic species, but only 4.8% (cutoff 1.7) and 0% (cutoff 2.0) for 42 Aspergillus isolates of six cryptic species (identifiable by β-tubulin or calmodulin sequencing). These results show that the MALDI Biotyper using the Filamentous Fungi Library version 1.0 enables reliable identification of the majority of common clinical Aspergillus isolates, although the database should be expanded to facilitate identification of cryptic species. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  15. A universal procedure for evaluation and application of surge-protective devices

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1980-01-01

    The source, nature, and frequency of occurrence of transients must be identified and a representative standard test wave chosen for proof testing. The performance of candidate suppressor devices then can be evaluated against the withstand goals set for the equipment. The various suppressors divide into two classes of generic behavior. The key to a universal procedure for evaluating both classes lies in representing transients as quasi-current sources of defined current impulse duration. The available surge current is established by the Thevenin equivalent transient voltage and source impedance. A load line drawn on the V-I characteristic graph of the suppressor quickly determines the clamping voltage and peak current. These values then can be compared to the requirement. The deposited energy and average power dissipation for multiple transients also can be calculated. The method is illustrated with a design example for motor vehicle alternator load dump suppression.

  16. Jersey number detection in sports video for athlete identification

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ye, Qixiang; Huang, Qingming; Jiang, Shuqiang; Liu, Yang; Gao, Wen

    2005-07-01

    Athlete identification is important for sport video content analysis since users often care about the video clips with their preferred athletes. In this paper, we propose a method for athlete identification by combing the segmentation, tracking and recognition procedures into a coarse-to-fine scheme for jersey number (digital characters on sport shirt) detection. Firstly, image segmentation is employed to separate the jersey number regions with its background. And size/pipe-like attributes of digital characters are used to filter out candidates. Then, a K-NN (K nearest neighbor) classifier is employed to classify a candidate into a digit in "0-9" or negative. In the recognition procedure, we use the Zernike moment features, which are invariant to rotation and scale for digital shape recognition. Synthetic training samples with different fonts are used to represent the pattern of digital characters with non-rigid deformation. Once a character candidate is detected, a SSD (smallest square distance)-based tracking procedure is started. The recognition procedure is performed every several frames in the tracking process. After tracking tens of frames, the overall recognition results are combined to determine if a candidate is a true jersey number or not by a voting procedure. Experiments on several types of sports video shows encouraging result.

  17. Evaluation of matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time of flight mass spectrometry for the identification of ceratopogonid and culicid larvae.

    PubMed

    Steinmann, I C; Pflüger, V; Schaffner, F; Mathis, A; Kaufmann, C

    2013-03-01

    Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) was evaluated for the rapid identification of ceratopogonid larvae. Optimal sample preparation as evaluated with laboratory-reared biting midges Culicoides nubeculosus was the homogenization of gut-less larvae in 10% formic acid, and analysis of 0.2 mg/ml crude protein homogenate mixed with SA matrix at a ratio of 1:1.5. Using 5 larvae each of 4 ceratopogonid species (C. nubeculosus, C. obsoletus, C. decor, and Dasyhelea sp.) and of 2 culicid species (Aedes aegypti, Ae. japonicus), biomarker mass sets between 27 and 33 masses were determined. In a validation study, 67 larvae belonging to the target species were correctly identified by automated database-based identification (91%) or manual full comparison (9%). Four specimens of non-target species did not yield identification. As anticipated for holometabolous insects, the biomarker mass sets of adults cannot be used for the identification of larvae, and vice versa, because they share only very few similar masses as shown for C. nubeculosus, C. obsoletus, and Ae. japonicus. Thus, protein profiling by MALDI-TOF as a quick, inexpensive and accurate alternative tool is applicable to identify insect larvae of vector species collected in the field.

  18. 6 CFR 5.45 - Procedure when testimony or production of documents is sought; general.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... 6 Domestic Security 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Procedure when testimony or production of... Procedure when testimony or production of documents is sought; general. (a) If official information is... requiring oral testimony, and identification of potentially relevant documents. (c) The appropriate...

  19. Improving needle tip identification during ultrasound-guided procedures in anaesthetic practice.

    PubMed

    Scholten, H J; Pourtaherian, A; Mihajlovic, N; Korsten, H H M; A Bouwman, R

    2017-07-01

    Ultrasound guidance is becoming standard practice for needle-based interventions in anaesthetic practice, such as vascular access and peripheral nerve blocks. However, difficulties in aligning the needle and the transducer can lead to incorrect identification of the needle tip, possibly damaging structures not visible on the ultrasound screen. Additional techniques specifically developed to aid alignment of needle and probe or identification of the needle tip are now available. In this scoping review, advantages and limitations of the following categories of those solutions are presented: needle guides; alterations to needle or needle tip; three- and four-dimensional ultrasound; magnetism, electromagnetic or GPS systems; optical tracking; augmented (virtual) reality; robotic assistance; and automated (computerised) needle detection. Most evidence originates from phantom studies, case reports and series, with few randomised clinical trials. Improved first-pass success and reduced performance time are the most frequently cited benefits, whereas the need for additional and often expensive hardware is the greatest limitation to widespread adoption. Novice ultrasound users seem to benefit most and great potential lies in education. Future research should focus on reporting relevant clinical parameters to learn which technique will benefit patients most in terms of success and safety. © 2017 The Association of Anaesthetists of Great Britain and Ireland.

  20. 37 CFR 212.5 - Recordation of distinctive identification of vessel hull designer.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... identification of vessel hull designer. 212.5 Section 212.5 Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights COPYRIGHT OFFICE, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS COPYRIGHT OFFICE AND PROCEDURES PROTECTION OF VESSEL HULL DESIGNS § 212.5 Recordation of distinctive identification of vessel hull designer. (a) General. Any owner of a vessel hull may...

  1. EVALUATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARD ASSESSMENT PROCEDURES FOR NEAR-COASTAL AREAS OF THE GULF OF MEXICO

    EPA Science Inventory

    Lewis, Michael A. In press. Evaluation of Environmental Hazard Assessment Procedures for Near-Coastal Areas of the Gulf of Mexico (Abstract). To be presented at the Annual Meeting of the the Australasian Society of Ecotoxicology, July 2004, Gold Coast, Australia. 1 p. (ERL,GB R98...

  2. TOXICITY CHARACTERIZATION PROCEDURES FOR ORGANIC TOXICANTS IN BULK SEDIMENTS

    EPA Science Inventory

    We have been pursuing development of toxicant characterization, isolation, and identification procedures for organic toxicants that can be applied in the context of 10-d solid-phase sediment tests measuring survival and growth of freshwater in the context of 10-d solid-phase sedi...

  3. Comparative Evaluation of Small Molecular Additives and Their Effects on Peptide/Protein Identification.

    PubMed

    Gao, Jing; Zhong, Shaoyun; Zhou, Yanting; He, Han; Peng, Shuying; Zhu, Zhenyun; Liu, Xing; Zheng, Jing; Xu, Bin; Zhou, Hu

    2017-06-06

    Detergents and salts are widely used in lysis buffers to enhance protein extraction from biological samples, facilitating in-depth proteomic analysis. However, these detergents and salt additives must be efficiently removed from the digested samples prior to LC-MS/MS analysis to obtain high-quality mass spectra. Although filter-aided sample preparation (FASP), acetone precipitation (AP), followed by in-solution digestion, and strong cation exchange-based centrifugal proteomic reactors (CPRs) are commonly used for proteomic sample processing, little is known about their efficiencies at removing detergents and salt additives. In this study, we (i) developed an integrative workflow for the quantification of small molecular additives in proteomic samples, developing a multiple reaction monitoring (MRM)-based LC-MS approach for the quantification of six additives (i.e., Tris, urea, CHAPS, SDS, SDC, and Triton X-100) and (ii) systematically evaluated the relationships between the level of additive remaining in samples following sample processing and the number of peptides/proteins identified by mass spectrometry. Although FASP outperformed the other two methods, the results were complementary in terms of peptide/protein identification, as well as the GRAVY index and amino acid distributions. This is the first systematic and quantitative study of the effect of detergents and salt additives on protein identification. This MRM-based approach can be used for an unbiased evaluation of the performance of new sample preparation methods. Data are available via ProteomeXchange under identifier PXD005405.

  4. Characterization of identification errors and uses in localization of poor modal correlation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Martin, Guillaume; Balmes, Etienne; Chancelier, Thierry

    2017-05-01

    While modal identification is a mature subject, very few studies address the characterization of errors associated with components of a mode shape. This is particularly important in test/analysis correlation procedures, where the Modal Assurance Criterion is used to pair modes and to localize at which sensors discrepancies occur. Poor correlation is usually attributed to modeling errors, but clearly identification errors also occur. In particular with 3D Scanning Laser Doppler Vibrometer measurement, many transfer functions are measured. As a result individual validation of each measurement cannot be performed manually in a reasonable time frame and a notable fraction of measurements is expected to be fairly noisy leading to poor identification of the associated mode shape components. The paper first addresses measurements and introduces multiple criteria. The error measures the difference between test and synthesized transfer functions around each resonance and can be used to localize poorly identified modal components. For intermediate error values, diagnostic of the origin of the error is needed. The level evaluates the transfer function amplitude in the vicinity of a given mode and can be used to eliminate sensors with low responses. A Noise Over Signal indicator, product of error and level, is then shown to be relevant to detect poorly excited modes and errors due to modal property shifts between test batches. Finally, a contribution is introduced to evaluate the visibility of a mode in each transfer. Using tests on a drum brake component, these indicators are shown to provide relevant insight into the quality of measurements. In a second part, test/analysis correlation is addressed with a focus on the localization of sources of poor mode shape correlation. The MACCo algorithm, which sorts sensors by the impact of their removal on a MAC computation, is shown to be particularly relevant. Combined with the error it avoids keeping erroneous modal components

  5. Blind sequential lineup administration reduces both false identifications and confidence in those false identifications.

    PubMed

    Charman, Steve D; Quiroz, Vanessa

    2016-10-01

    One of the most recommended procedures proposed by eyewitness experts is the use of double-blind lineups, in which the administrator does not know the identity of the suspect in the lineup. But despite the near universality of this recommendation, there is surprisingly little empirical research to support the claim that nonblind administration inflates false identifications. What little research has been conducted has shown conflicting findings with regard to the conditions under which nonblind administration affects false identifications, as well as its effects on witness confidence. The current study attempts to elucidate this effect. Student-participants (n = 312) were randomly assigned to play the role of either a lineup administrator (who were either told the identity of the suspect in the lineup or not) or a mock crime witness. Following unbiased instructions, administrators presented either a target-present or target-absent sequential lineup to the witness while being surreptitiously videorecorded. Nonblind administration significantly inflated false, but not correct, identifications, and significantly inflated witness confidence in those false identifications. Video recordings indicated that nonblind administrators were significantly more likely than blind administrators to smile (a) while the witness was viewing a photograph of the suspect, and (b) after a suspect identification. Results provide stronger support for the use of blind lineup administration by broadening the conditions under which nonblind administration is shown to inflate false identifications. Possible reconciliations for conflicting findings in the literature are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

  6. A pragmatics' view of patient identification.

    PubMed

    Lichtner, Valentina; Galliers, Julia R; Wilson, Stephanie

    2010-10-01

    Patient identification is a central safety critical aspect of healthcare work. Most healthcare activities require identification of patients by healthcare staff, often in connection with the use of patient records. Indeed, the increasing reliance on electronic systems makes the correct matching of patients with their records a keystone for patient safety. Most research on patient identification has been carried out in hospital settings. The aim was to investigate the process of identification of patients and their records in the context of a primary healthcare clinic. A qualitative field study was carried out at a Walk-In Centre in London (UK). The identification of patients and their records was found to be a context-dependent process, both when formalised in procedures and when relying on informal practices. The authors discovered a range of formal and informal patient identifiers were used in this setting, depending on the task at hand. The theoretical lens of Pragmatics was applied to offer an explanation of this identification process. Context provides the cognitive scaffolding for a process of 'suitably constrained guesswork' about the identity of patients and their records. Implications for practice and for system design are discussed. Practitioners and technology designers should be aware of the risk for misidentifications inherent in this natural information processing activity.

  7. Computer method for identification of boiler transfer functions

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Miles, J. H.

    1972-01-01

    Iterative computer aided procedure was developed which provides for identification of boiler transfer functions using frequency response data. Method uses frequency response data to obtain satisfactory transfer function for both high and low vapor exit quality data.

  8. A Standardized Procedure for a Pre-evaluation of the IED Instance

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Panepinto, Deborah; Ruffino, Barbara; Zanetti, Mariachiara; Genon, Giuseppe

    2016-04-01

    This study presents a procedure, called EICS (Enterprise IPPC Compatibility Study) aimed at evaluating, by means of the calculation of three indexes, the compliance of the processes performed in an industrial plant with the guidelines provided by BREFs (BAT References) Documents. In fact, according to European Directive 2010/75/EU (concerning the Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control and repealing European Directive 2008/01/EC), industrial plants must require authorizations to the competent authority stating the conformity of their activity, in order to obtain this conformity they are advised to Best Available Technologies (BAT). The aim of the BATs is to avoid or minimize the impact of an industrial activity on the environment through the prevention of the atmospheric emissions, wastewater discharge and energetic consumption, and the correct waste management thus improving the efficiency of the plant. The procedure shown in the present paper has been tested on several types of industrial plant (cement plants, secondary smelt foundries, paper-mill, and automotive industries as regards their paint lines). In this paper, the application of EICS method to a cement plant is presented: the obtained results highlight a good correlation between the index values and the real situation of the plant.

  9. Crew procedures development techniques

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Arbet, J. D.; Benbow, R. L.; Hawk, M. L.; Mangiaracina, A. A.; Mcgavern, J. L.; Spangler, M. C.

    1975-01-01

    The study developed requirements, designed, developed, checked out and demonstrated the Procedures Generation Program (PGP). The PGP is a digital computer program which provides a computerized means of developing flight crew procedures based on crew action in the shuttle procedures simulator. In addition, it provides a real time display of procedures, difference procedures, performance data and performance evaluation data. Reconstruction of displays is possible post-run. Data may be copied, stored on magnetic tape and transferred to the document processor for editing and documentation distribution.

  10. Evaluation of hospital complications and costs associated with using ultrasound guidance during abdominal paracentesis procedures.

    PubMed

    Patel, Pankaj A; Ernst, Frank R; Gunnarsson, Candace L

    2012-01-01

    Abdominal paracentesis is commonly performed for diagnostic, therapeutic, and palliative indications, but the use of ultrasound guidance for these procedures is relatively recent, variable, and not well documented. A retrospective database analysis of abdominal paracentesis procedures was performed to determine whether ultrasound guidance was associated with differences in adverse events (AEs) or hospital costs, compared to procedures without ultrasound guidance. The hospital database maintained by Premier was used to identify patients with abdominal paracentesis International Classification of Diseases - 9th Revision - Clinical Modification (ICD-9 code 54.9, Common Procedural Terminology CPT-4 codes 49080, 49081) in 2008. Use of ultrasound guidance was determined via patient billing data. The incidence of selected AEs and patients' hospitalization costs were calculated for two groups: procedures with ultrasound guidance and those without. Univariate and multivariable analyses were performed to evaluate differences between groups. This study identified 1297 abdominal paracentesis procedures, 723 (56%) with ultrasound and 574 (44%) without. The indications for paracentesis were similar between the two groups. The incidence of AEs was lower in ultrasound-guided procedures: all AEs (1.4% vs 4.7%, p = 0.01), post-paracentesis infection (0.41% vs 2.44%, p = 0.01), hematoma (0.0% vs 0.87%, p = 0.01), and seroma (0.14% vs 1.05%, p = 0.03). Analyses adjusted for patient and hospital covariates revealed significant reductions in AEs (OR = 0.349, 95% CI = 0.165, 0.739, p = 0.0059) and hospitalization costs ($8761 ± $5956 vs $9848 ± $6581, p < 0.001) for procedures with ultrasound guidance vs those without. There are several limitations to using claims data for clinical analyses; causality cannot be determined, the possibility of miscoded or missing data, and the inability to control for elements not captured in claims data that may

  11. A Study of the Identification, Monitoring and Tracking of Potential High School Student Dropouts for the New York City Board of Education. Executive Summary. Final Report.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    1985

    This study evaluates the process and procedures of the New York City Board of Education in the definition, identification, tracking, and monitoring of student dropouts in selected New York City high schools. The full report is organized in three parts. Part One provides a summary of data obtained (through observations and interviews) from visits…

  12. Identification and evaluation of competencies of public health nutritionists.

    PubMed Central

    Sims, L S

    1979-01-01

    The Delphi Technique was used to elicit a number of essential competencies expected of the "entry-level" public health nutritionist from members of Graduate Faculties of Programs in Public Health Nutrition. Questionnaires composed of "competency statements" were constructed from these responses and sent to practitioners in public health nutrition. The questionnaire requested evaluation of the "necessity" of each competency. Responses served as the basis for "factor analysis" procedures, employed to obtain clusters of competency functions expected of the nutritionist. From the 109 competency items originally identified, 17 competency scales were derived from the factor analysis. A ranking from both faculties and practitioners revealed that both groups highly rated competencies to communicate, to counsel and deal with clients/patients, and to interpret scientific data in "lay language." Less important in the ranking were competencies which dealt with administrative abilities, program planning, legislative activism, and consumer advocacy. These findings have cimplications for the practitioner in public health nutrition as well as for academic groups who must plan and evaluate curricula in public health nutrition and in other fields of public health. PMID:507240

  13. Evaluation of API 20E strips for identification of coagulase-negative staphylococci from the urinary tract.

    PubMed

    Anderson, D Y; Vredeveld, G N; Brake, S R; Buchanan, T F; Lewis, J F

    1983-12-01

    A previous study indicated that the API 230E system can identify coagulase-negative Staphylococcus species. A study was devised to evaluate the use of the API 20E system for this purpose. Because of the current interest in Staphylococcus saprophyticus the relationship of the API 20E results to novobiocin susceptibility was also examined. One hundred forty-nine isolates of coagulase-negative staphylococci from urine cultures were tested with the API 20E system. The identification of 49 isolates was confirmed by Kloos and Schleifer method. We found that the routine API 20E system did not provide more information than novobiocin susceptibility studies alone, and that there was good but not absolute correlation between novobiocin resistance and identification of S. saprophyticus.

  14. Evaluation of the Vitek MS Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization-Time of Flight Mass Spectrometry System for Identification of Clinically Relevant Filamentous Fungi.

    PubMed

    McMullen, Allison R; Wallace, Meghan A; Pincus, David H; Wilkey, Kathy; Burnham, C A

    2016-08-01

    Invasive fungal infections have a high rate of morbidity and mortality, and accurate identification is necessary to guide appropriate antifungal therapy. With the increasing incidence of invasive disease attributed to filamentous fungi, rapid and accurate species-level identification of these pathogens is necessary. Traditional methods for identification of filamentous fungi can be slow and may lack resolution. Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) has emerged as a rapid and accurate method for identification of bacteria and yeasts, but a paucity of data exists on the performance characteristics of this method for identification of filamentous fungi. The objective of our study was to evaluate the accuracy of the Vitek MS for mold identification. A total of 319 mold isolates representing 43 genera recovered from clinical specimens were evaluated. Of these isolates, 213 (66.8%) were correctly identified using the Vitek MS Knowledge Base, version 3.0 database. When a modified SARAMIS (Spectral Archive and Microbial Identification System) database was used to augment the version 3.0 Knowledge Base, 245 (76.8%) isolates were correctly identified. Unidentified isolates were subcultured for repeat testing; 71/319 (22.3%) remained unidentified. Of the unidentified isolates, 69 were not in the database. Only 3 (0.9%) isolates were misidentified by MALDI-TOF MS (including Aspergillus amoenus [n = 2] and Aspergillus calidoustus [n = 1]) although 10 (3.1%) of the original phenotypic identifications were not correct. In addition, this methodology was able to accurately identify 133/144 (93.6%) Aspergillus sp. isolates to the species level. MALDI-TOF MS has the potential to expedite mold identification, and misidentifications are rare. Copyright © 2016, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

  15. Evaluation of solution procedures for material and/or geometrically nonlinear structural analysis by the direct stiffness method.

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Stricklin, J. A.; Haisler, W. E.; Von Riesemann, W. A.

    1972-01-01

    This paper presents an assessment of the solution procedures available for the analysis of inelastic and/or large deflection structural behavior. A literature survey is given which summarized the contribution of other researchers in the analysis of structural problems exhibiting material nonlinearities and combined geometric-material nonlinearities. Attention is focused at evaluating the available computation and solution techniques. Each of the solution techniques is developed from a common equation of equilibrium in terms of pseudo forces. The solution procedures are applied to circular plates and shells of revolution in an attempt to compare and evaluate each with respect to computational accuracy, economy, and efficiency. Based on the numerical studies, observations and comments are made with regard to the accuracy and economy of each solution technique.

  16. A critical review of variables affecting the accuracy and false-negative rate of sentinel node biopsy procedures in early breast cancer.

    PubMed

    Vijayakumar, Vani; Boerner, Philip S; Jani, Ashesh B; Vijayakumar, Srinivasan

    2005-05-01

    Radionuclide sentinel lymph node localization and biopsy is a staging procedure that is being increasingly used to evaluate patients with invasive breast cancer who have clinically normal axillary nodes. The most important prognostic indicator in patients with invasive breast cancer is the axillary node status, which must also be known for correct staging, and influences the selection of adjuvant therapies. The accuracy of sentinel lymph node localization depends on a number of factors, including the injection method, the operating surgeon's experience and the hospital setting. The efficacy of sentinel lymph node mapping can be determined by two measures: the sentinel lymph node identification rate and the false-negative rate. Of these, the false-negative rate is the most important, based on a review of 92 studies. As sentinel lymph node procedures vary widely, nuclear medicine physicians and radiologists must be acquainted with the advantages and disadvantages of the various techniques. In this review, the factors that influence the success of different techniques are examined, and studies which have investigated false-negative rates and/or sentinel lymph node identification rates are summarized.

  17. The vehicle design evaluation program - A computer-aided design procedure for transport aircraft

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Oman, B. H.; Kruse, G. S.; Schrader, O. E.

    1977-01-01

    The vehicle design evaluation program is described. This program is a computer-aided design procedure that provides a vehicle synthesis capability for vehicle sizing, external load analysis, structural analysis, and cost evaluation. The vehicle sizing subprogram provides geometry, weight, and balance data for aircraft using JP, hydrogen, or methane fuels. The structural synthesis subprogram uses a multistation analysis for aerodynamic surfaces and fuselages to develop theoretical weights and geometric dimensions. The parts definition subprogram uses the geometric data from the structural analysis and develops the predicted fabrication dimensions, parts material raw stock buy requirements, and predicted actual weights. The cost analysis subprogram uses detail part data in conjunction with standard hours, realization factors, labor rates, and material data to develop the manufacturing costs. The program is used to evaluate overall design effects on subsonic commercial type aircraft due to parameter variations.

  18. 24 CFR 5.216 - Disclosure and verification of Social Security and Employer Identification Numbers.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... Social Security and Employer Identification Numbers. 5.216 Section 5.216 Housing and Urban Development...; WAIVERS Disclosure and Verification of Social Security Numbers and Employer Identification Numbers; Procedures for Obtaining Income Information Disclosure and Verification of Social Security Numbers and...

  19. 24 CFR 5.216 - Disclosure and verification of Social Security and Employer Identification Numbers.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... Social Security and Employer Identification Numbers. 5.216 Section 5.216 Housing and Urban Development...; WAIVERS Disclosure and Verification of Social Security Numbers and Employer Identification Numbers; Procedures for Obtaining Income Information Disclosure and Verification of Social Security Numbers and...

  20. 24 CFR 5.216 - Disclosure and verification of Social Security and Employer Identification Numbers.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... Social Security and Employer Identification Numbers. 5.216 Section 5.216 Housing and Urban Development...; WAIVERS Disclosure and Verification of Social Security Numbers and Employer Identification Numbers; Procedures for Obtaining Income Information Disclosure and Verification of Social Security Numbers and...

  1. 24 CFR 5.216 - Disclosure and verification of Social Security and Employer Identification Numbers.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... Social Security and Employer Identification Numbers. 5.216 Section 5.216 Housing and Urban Development...; WAIVERS Disclosure and Verification of Social Security Numbers and Employer Identification Numbers; Procedures for Obtaining Income Information Disclosure and Verification of Social Security Numbers and...

  2. 24 CFR 5.216 - Disclosure and verification of Social Security and Employer Identification Numbers.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... Social Security and Employer Identification Numbers. 5.216 Section 5.216 Housing and Urban Development...; WAIVERS Disclosure and Verification of Social Security Numbers and Employer Identification Numbers; Procedures for Obtaining Income Information Disclosure and Verification of Social Security Numbers and...

  3. 47 CFR 74.783 - Station identification.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... originating local programming as defined by § 74.701(h) operating over 0.001 kw peak visual power (0.002 kw... visual presentation or a clearly understandable aural presentation of the translator station's call... identification procedures given in § 73.1201 when locally originating programming, as defined by § 74.701(h). The...

  4. 27 CFR 53.186 - Accounting procedures for like articles.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... like articles. 53.186 Section 53.186 Alcohol, Tobacco Products and Firearms ALCOHOL AND TOBACCO TAX AND... Accounting procedures for like articles. (a) Identification of manufacturer. In applying section 6416 of the Code and the regulations thereunder, a person who has purchased like articles from various...

  5. 27 CFR 53.186 - Accounting procedures for like articles.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... like articles. 53.186 Section 53.186 Alcohol, Tobacco Products and Firearms ALCOHOL AND TOBACCO TAX AND... Accounting procedures for like articles. (a) Identification of manufacturer. In applying section 6416 of the Code and the regulations thereunder, a person who has purchased like articles from various...

  6. 27 CFR 53.186 - Accounting procedures for like articles.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... like articles. 53.186 Section 53.186 Alcohol, Tobacco Products and Firearms ALCOHOL AND TOBACCO TAX AND... Accounting procedures for like articles. (a) Identification of manufacturer. In applying section 6416 of the Code and the regulations thereunder, a person who has purchased like articles from various...

  7. 27 CFR 53.186 - Accounting procedures for like articles.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... like articles. 53.186 Section 53.186 Alcohol, Tobacco Products and Firearms ALCOHOL AND TOBACCO TAX AND... Accounting procedures for like articles. (a) Identification of manufacturer. In applying section 6416 of the Code and the regulations thereunder, a person who has purchased like articles from various...

  8. A Procedure for Evaluating Environmental Impact.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Leopold, Luna B.; And Others

    This report contains one of the first procedures available to environmental impact statements. The heart of the system is a matrix which is general enough to be used as a reference checklist or a reminder of the full range of actions and impacts on the environment that may relate to any proposed action. This comparatively simple system is intended…

  9. Development of a safety evaluation procedure for identifying high-risk signalized intersections in the Virginia Department of Transportation's Northern Virginia district.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2007-01-01

    This research was undertaken to develop an evaluation procedure to identify high-risk four-legged signalized intersections in VDOT's Northern Virginia district by traffic movements and times of day. By using the developed procedure, traffic engineers...

  10. Evaluation of a culture-based pathogen identification kit for bacterial causes of bovine mastitis.

    PubMed

    Viora, L; Graham, E M; Mellor, D J; Reynolds, K; Simoes, P B A; Geraghty, T E

    2014-07-26

    Accurate identification of mastitis-causing bacteria supports effective management and can be used to implement selective use of antimicrobials for treatment. The objectives of this study were to compare the results from a culture-based mastitis pathogen detection test kit ('VetoRapid', Vétoquinol) with standard laboratory culture and to evaluate the potential suitability of the test kit to inform a selective treatment programme. Overall 231 quarter milk samples from five UK dairy farms were collected. The sensitivity and specificity of the test kit for the identification of Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, coagulase-negative staphylococci, Streptococcus uberis and Enterococcus spp. ranged from 17 per cent to 84 per cent and 92 per cent to 98 per cent, respectively. In total, 23 of 68 clinical samples were assigned as meeting the requirement for antimicrobial treatment (Gram-positive organism cultured) according to standard culture results, with the test kit results having sensitivity and specificity of 91 per cent and 78 per cent, respectively. Several occurrences of misidentification are reported, including S. aureus being misidentified as coagulase-negative staphylococci and vice versa. The test kit provides rapid preliminary identification of five common causes of bovine mastitis under UK field conditions and is likely to be suitable for informing selective treatment of clinical mastitis caused by Gram-positive organisms. British Veterinary Association.

  11. Evaluation of measurement data from a sensor system for breath control

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Seifert, Rolf; Keller, Hubert B.; Conrad, Thorsten; Peter, Jens

    2017-03-01

    Binary ethanol-H2 gas samples were measured by an innovative mobile sensor system for the alcohol control in the respiratory air. The measurements were performed by a gas sensor operated by cyclic variation of the working temperature at the sensor head. The evaluation of the data, using an updated version of the evaluation procedure ProSens, results in a very good substance identification and concentration determination of the components of the gas mixture. The relative analysis errors were in all cases less than 9%.

  12. 42 CFR 431.412 - Application procedures.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... authorities that the State believes to be necessary to authorize the demonstration. (vii) The research... testing the hypotheses in the context of an evaluation, and, if a quantitative evaluation design is..., identification of research hypotheses related to the changes and an evaluation design for addressing the proposed...

  13. 42 CFR 431.412 - Application procedures.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... authorities that the State believes to be necessary to authorize the demonstration. (vii) The research... testing the hypotheses in the context of an evaluation, and, if a quantitative evaluation design is..., identification of research hypotheses related to the changes and an evaluation design for addressing the proposed...

  14. 42 CFR 431.412 - Application procedures.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... authorities that the State believes to be necessary to authorize the demonstration. (vii) The research... testing the hypotheses in the context of an evaluation, and, if a quantitative evaluation design is..., identification of research hypotheses related to the changes and an evaluation design for addressing the proposed...

  15. 37 CFR 212.5 - Recordation of distinctive identification of vessel hull designer.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ..., LIBRARY OF CONGRESS COPYRIGHT OFFICE AND PROCEDURES PROTECTION OF VESSEL HULL DESIGNS § 212.5 Recordation... distinctive identification in a design protection notice required by 17 U.S.C. 1306. A distinctive identification of an owner may not be used in a design notice before it has first been recorded with the Register...

  16. 37 CFR 212.5 - Recordation of distinctive identification of vessel hull designer.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ..., LIBRARY OF CONGRESS COPYRIGHT OFFICE AND PROCEDURES PROTECTION OF VESSEL HULL DESIGNS § 212.5 Recordation... distinctive identification in a design protection notice required by 17 U.S.C. 1306. A distinctive identification of an owner may not be used in a design notice before it has first been recorded with the Register...

  17. 37 CFR 212.5 - Recordation of distinctive identification of vessel hull designer.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ..., LIBRARY OF CONGRESS COPYRIGHT OFFICE AND PROCEDURES PROTECTION OF VESSEL HULL DESIGNS § 212.5 Recordation... distinctive identification in a design protection notice required by 17 U.S.C. 1306. A distinctive identification of an owner may not be used in a design notice before it has first been recorded with the Register...

  18. 37 CFR 212.5 - Recordation of distinctive identification of vessel hull designer.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... OFFICE, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS COPYRIGHT OFFICE AND PROCEDURES PROTECTION OF VESSEL HULL DESIGNS § 212.5... distinctive identification in a design protection notice required by 17 U.S.C. 1306. A distinctive identification of an owner may not be used in a design notice before it has first been recorded with the Register...

  19. Models and Procedures for Improving the Planning, Management, and Evaluation of Cooperative Education Programs. Final Report. Volume I.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Blaschke, Charles L.; Steiger, JoAnn

    This report of a project to design a set of training guidelines for planning, managing, and evaluating cooperative education programs describes briefly the procedures used in developing the guidelines and model; discusses the various components of the planning, management, and evaluation process; and presents guidelines and criteria for designing…

  20. A New Zero-Inflated Negative Binomial Methodology for Latent Category Identification

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Blanchard, Simon J.; DeSarbo, Wayne S.

    2013-01-01

    We introduce a new statistical procedure for the identification of unobserved categories that vary between individuals and in which objects may span multiple categories. This procedure can be used to analyze data from a proposed sorting task in which individuals may simultaneously assign objects to multiple piles. The results of a synthetic…

  1. Identification of cracks in thick beams with a cracked beam element model

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hou, Chuanchuan; Lu, Yong

    2016-12-01

    The effect of a crack on the vibration of a beam is a classical problem, and various models have been proposed, ranging from the basic stiffness reduction method to the more sophisticated model involving formulation based on the additional flexibility due to a crack. However, in the damage identification or finite element model updating applications, it is still common practice to employ a simple stiffness reduction factor to represent a crack in the identification process, whereas the use of a more realistic crack model is rather limited. In this paper, the issues with the simple stiffness reduction method, particularly concerning thick beams, are highlighted along with a review of several other crack models. A robust finite element model updating procedure is then presented for the detection of cracks in beams. The description of the crack parameters is based on the cracked beam flexibility formulated by means of the fracture mechanics, and it takes into consideration of shear deformation and coupling between translational and longitudinal vibrations, and thus is particularly suitable for thick beams. The identification procedure employs a global searching technique using Genetic Algorithms, and there is no restriction on the location, severity and the number of cracks to be identified. The procedure is verified to yield satisfactory identification for practically any configurations of cracks in a beam.

  2. Teacher Evaluation, Pay for Performance, and Learning around Instruction: Between Dissonant Incentives and Resonant Procedures

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mintrop, Rick; Ordenes, Miguel; Coghlan, Erin; Pryor, Laura; Madero, Cristobal

    2018-01-01

    Purpose: The study examines why the logic of a performance management system, supported by the federal Teacher Incentive Fund, might be faulty. It does this by exploring the nuances of the interplay between teaching evaluations as formative and summative, the use of procedures, tools, and artifacts obligated by the local Teacher Incentive Fund…

  3. Performance metrics for the evaluation of hyperspectral chemical identification systems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Truslow, Eric; Golowich, Steven; Manolakis, Dimitris; Ingle, Vinay

    2016-02-01

    Remote sensing of chemical vapor plumes is a difficult but important task for many military and civilian applications. Hyperspectral sensors operating in the long-wave infrared regime have well-demonstrated detection capabilities. However, the identification of a plume's chemical constituents, based on a chemical library, is a multiple hypothesis testing problem which standard detection metrics do not fully describe. We propose using an additional performance metric for identification based on the so-called Dice index. Our approach partitions and weights a confusion matrix to develop both the standard detection metrics and identification metric. Using the proposed metrics, we demonstrate that the intuitive system design of a detector bank followed by an identifier is indeed justified when incorporating performance information beyond the standard detection metrics.

  4. Activities identification for activity-based cost/management applications of the diagnostics outpatient procedures.

    PubMed

    Alrashdan, Abdalla; Momani, Amer; Ababneh, Tamador

    2012-01-01

    One of the most challenging problems facing healthcare providers is to determine the actual cost for their procedures, which is important for internal accounting and price justification to insurers. The objective of this paper is to find suitable categories to identify the diagnostic outpatient medical procedures and translate them from functional orientation to process orientation. A hierarchal task tree is developed based on a classification schema of procedural activities. Each procedure is seen as a process consisting of a number of activities. This makes a powerful foundation for activity-based cost/management implementation and provides enough information to discover the value-added and non-value-added activities that assist in process improvement and eventually may lead to cost reduction. Work measurement techniques are used to identify the standard time of each activity at the lowest level of the task tree. A real case study at a private hospital is presented to demonstrate the proposed methodology. © 2011 National Association for Healthcare Quality.

  5. Radiometric responsivity determination for Feature Identification and Location Experiment (FILE) flown on space shuttle mission

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Wilson, R. G.; Davis, R. E.; Wright, R. E., Jr.; Sivertson, W. E., Jr.; Bullock, G. F.

    1986-01-01

    A procedure was developed to obtain the radiometric (radiance) responsivity of the Feature Identification and Local Experiment (FILE) instrument in preparation for its flight on Space Shuttle Mission 41-G (November 1984). This instrument was designed to obtain Earth feature radiance data in spectral bands centered at 0.65 and 0.85 microns, along with corroborative color and color-infrared photographs, and to collect data to evaluate a technique for in-orbit autonomous classification of the Earth's primary features. The calibration process incorporated both solar radiance measurements and radiative transfer model predictions in estimating expected radiance inputs to the FILE on the Shuttle. The measured data are compared with the model predictions, and the differences observed are discussed. Application of the calibration procedure to the FILE over an 18-month period indicated a constant responsivity characteristic. This report documents the calibration procedure and the associated radiometric measurements and predictions that were part of the instrument preparation for flight.

  6. Habitat Evaluation Procedures (HEP) Report : Grand Coulee Dam Mitigation, 1996-1999 Technical Report.

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

    Kieffer, B.; Singer, Kelly; Abrahamson, Twa-le

    1999-07-01

    The purpose of this Habitat Evaluation Procedures (HEP) study was to determine baseline habitat units and to estimate future habitat units for Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) mitigation projects on the Spokane Indian Reservation. The mitigation between BPA and the Spokane Tribe of Indians (STOI) is for wildlife habitat losses on account of the construction of Grand Coulee Dam. Analysis of the HEP survey data will assist in mitigation crediting and appropriate management of the mitigation lands.

  7. Endoscopic Sex Identification in Chelonians and Birds (Psittacines, Passerines, and Raptors).

    PubMed

    Divers, Stephen J

    2015-09-01

    Despite the advent of DNA probes for sex identification of many avian and some reptile species, clinicians involved with zoos, conservation projects, or breeders may still be asked to perform "surgical sexing." This article describes the practical approach to performing endoscopic sex identification in psittacines and chelonians, including patient preparation, anesthesia, and endoscopic procedure. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  8. 18 CFR 1314.8 - Identification of accounts.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 2 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Identification of accounts. 1314.8 Section 1314.8 Conservation of Power and Water Resources TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY BOOK-ENTRY PROCEDURES FOR TVA POWER SECURITIES ISSUED THROUGH THE FEDERAL RESERVE BANKS § 1314.8...

  9. Medical Operations Console Procedure Evaluation: BME Response to Crew Call Down for an Emergency

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Johnson-Troop; Pettys, Marianne; Hurst, Victor, IV; Smaka, Todd; Paul, Bonnie; Rosenquist, Kevin; Gast, Karin; Gillis, David; McCulley, Phyllis

    2006-01-01

    International Space Station (ISS) Mission Operations are managed by multiple flight control disciplines located at the lead Mission Control Center (MCC) at NASA-Johnson Space Center (JSC). ISS Medical Operations are supported by the complementary roles of Flight Surgeons (Surgeon) and Biomedical Engineer (BME) flight controllers. The Surgeon, a board certified physician, oversees all medical concerns of the crew and the BME provides operational and engineering support for Medical Operations Crew Health Care System. ISS Medical Operations is currently addressing the coordinated response to a crew call down for an emergent medical event, in particular when the BME is the only Medical Operations representative in MCC. In this case, the console procedure BME Response to Crew Call Down for an Emergency will be used. The procedure instructs the BME to contact a Surgeon as soon as possible, coordinate with other flight disciplines to establish a Private Medical Conference (PMC) for the crew and Surgeon, gather information from the crew if time permits, and provide Surgeon with pertinent console resources. It is paramount that this procedure is clearly written and easily navigated to assist the BME to respond consistently and efficiently. A total of five BME flight controllers participated in the study. Each BME participant sat in a simulated MCC environment at a console configured with resources specific to the BME MCC console and was presented with two scripted emergency call downs from an ISS crew member. Each participant used the procedure while interacting with analog MCC disciplines to respond to the crew call down. Audio and video recordings of the simulations were analyzed and each BME participant's actions were compared to the procedure. Structured debriefs were conducted at the conclusion of both simulations. The procedure was evaluated for its ability to elicit consistent responses from each BME participant. Trials were examined for deviations in procedure task

  10. IDENTIFICATION AND EVALUATION OF STRESSORS IN TOXIC SEDIMENTS AND DREDGED MATERIALS

    EPA Science Inventory

    Identification of stressors in aquatic systems is critical to sound assessment and management of our nation's waterways for a number of reasons. Identification of specific classes of toxicants (or stressors) can be useful in designing effective sediment remediation methods and re...

  11. Generalized approach for identification and evaluation of technology-insertion options for military avionics systems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Harkness, Linda L.; Sjoberg, Eric S.

    1996-06-01

    The Georgia Tech Research Institute, sponsored by the Warner Robins Air Logistics Center, has developed an approach for efficiently postulating and evaluating methods for extending the life of radars and other avionics systems. The technique identified specific assemblies for potential replacement and evaluates the system level impact, including performance, reliability and life-cycle cost of each action. The initial impetus for this research was the increasing obsolescence of integrated circuits contained in the AN/APG-63 system. The operational life of military electronics is typically in excess of twenty years, which encompasses several generations of IC technology. GTRI has developed a systems approach to inserting modern technology components into older systems based upon identification of those functions which limit the system's performance or reliability and which are cost drivers. The presentation will discuss the above methodology and a technique for evaluating and ranking the different potential system upgrade options.

  12. Filtrates and Residues: Chlorophyll Separation and Spectral Identification.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Diehl-Jones, Susan M.

    1984-01-01

    Describes an experiment in which students become familiar with the organic chemistry extraction process, perform analyses by thin layer and column chromatography, and use the absorption spectrum (obtained from a spectrophotometer) for identification. List of materials needed and procedures used are provided. (JN)

  13. Computational procedures for evaluating the sensitivity derivatives of vibration frequencies and Eigenmodes of framed structures

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Fetterman, Timothy L.; Noor, Ahmed K.

    1987-01-01

    Computational procedures are presented for evaluating the sensitivity derivatives of the vibration frequencies and eigenmodes of framed structures. Both a displacement and a mixed formulation are used. The two key elements of the computational procedure are: (a) Use of dynamic reduction techniques to substantially reduce the number of degrees of freedom; and (b) Application of iterative techniques to improve the accuracy of the derivatives of the eigenmodes. The two reduction techniques considered are the static condensation and a generalized dynamic reduction technique. Error norms are introduced to assess the accuracy of the eigenvalue and eigenvector derivatives obtained by the reduction techniques. The effectiveness of the methods presented is demonstrated by three numerical examples.

  14. Evaluation of results of US corn and soybeans exploratory experiment: Classification procedures verification test. [Missouri, Iowa, Indiana, and Illinois

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Carnes, J. G.; Baird, J. E. (Principal Investigator)

    1980-01-01

    The classification procedure utilized in making crop proportion estimates for corn and soybeans using remotely sensed data was evaluated. The procedure was derived during the transition year of the Large Area Crop Inventory Experiment. Analysis of variance techniques were applied to classifications performed by 3 groups of analysts who processed 25 segments selected from 4 agrophysical units (APU's). Group and APU effects were assessed to determine factors which affected the quality of the classifications. The classification results were studied to determine the effectiveness of the procedure in producing corn and soybeans proportion estimates.

  15. Screening Procedures Used to Identify Children with Hearing Loss.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Barringer, Donald G.; And Others

    1993-01-01

    Analysis of data on 1,404 young children with hearing losses indicated that 80% of the children were identified via informal hearing-screening procedures, such as parental suspicion and referral. Auditory brainstem response technology provided the lowest mean identification age. The study concludes that formal screening programs are not locating…

  16. Identification of (antioxidative) plants in herbal pharmaceutical preparations and dietary supplements.

    PubMed

    Deconinck, Eric; Custers, Deborah; De Beer, Jacques Omer

    2015-01-01

    The standard procedures for the identification, authentication, and quality control of medicinal plants and herbs are nowadays limited to pure herbal products. No guidelines or procedures, describing the detection or identification of a targeted plant or herb in pharmaceutical preparations or dietary supplements, can be found. In these products the targeted plant is often present together with other components of herbal or synthetic origin. This chapter describes a strategy for the fast development of a chromatographic fingerprint approach that allows the identification of a targeted plant in herbal preparations and dietary supplements. The strategy consists of a standard chromatographic gradient that is tested for the targeted plant with different extraction solvents and different mobile phases. From the results obtained, the optimal fingerprint is selected. Subsequently the samples are analyzed according to the selected methodological parameters, and the obtained fingerprints can be compared with the one obtained for the pure herbal product or a standard preparation. Calculation of the dissimilarity between these fingerprints will result in a probability of presence of the targeted plant. Optionally mass spectrometry can be used to improve specificity, to confirm identification, or to identify molecules with a potential medicinal or antioxidant activity.

  17. Experimental Identification and Characterization of Multirotor UAV Propulsion

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kotarski, Denis; Krznar, Matija; Piljek, Petar; Simunic, Nikola

    2017-07-01

    In this paper, an experimental procedure for the identification and characterization of multirotor Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) propulsion is presented. Propulsion configuration needs to be defined precisely in order to achieve required flight performance. Based on the accurate dynamic model and empirical measurements of multirotor propulsion physical parameters, it is possible to design diverse configurations with different characteristics for various purposes. As a case study, we investigated design considerations for a micro indoor multirotor which is suitable for control algorithm implementation in structured environment. It consists of open source autopilot, sensors for indoor flight, “take off the shelf” propulsion components and frame. The series of experiments were conducted to show the process of parameters identification and the procedure for analysis and propulsion characterization. Additionally, we explore battery performance in terms of mass and specific energy. Experimental results show identified and estimated propulsion parameters through which blade element theory is verified.

  18. Development of an ELISA for evaluation of swab recovery efficiencies of bovine serum albumin.

    PubMed

    Sparding, Nadja; Slotved, Hans-Christian; Nicolaisen, Gert M; Giese, Steen B; Elmlund, Jón; Steenhard, Nina R

    2014-01-01

    After a potential biological incident the sampling strategy and sample analysis are crucial for the outcome of the investigation and identification. In this study, we have developed a simple sandwich ELISA based on commercial components to quantify BSA (used as a surrogate for ricin) with a detection range of 1.32-80 ng/mL. We used the ELISA to evaluate different protein swabbing procedures (swabbing techniques and after-swabbing treatments) for two swab types: a cotton gauze swab and a flocked nylon swab. The optimal swabbing procedure for each swab type was used to obtain recovery efficiencies from different surface materials. The surface recoveries using the optimal swabbing procedure ranged from 0-60% and were significantly higher from nonporous surfaces compared to porous surfaces. In conclusion, this study presents a swabbing procedure evaluation and a simple BSA ELISA based on commercial components, which are easy to perform in a laboratory with basic facilities. The data indicate that different swabbing procedures were optimal for each of the tested swab types, and the particular swab preference depends on the surface material to be swabbed.

  19. Evaluation of procedures for quality assurance specifications

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2004-10-01

    The objective of this project was to develop a comprehensive quality assurance (QA) manual, supported by scientific evidence and statistical theory, which provides step-by-step procedures and instructions for developing effective and efficient QA spe...

  20. Results from the Crop Identification Technology Assessment for Remote Sensing (CITARS) project

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Bauer, M. E. (Principal Investigator); Davis, B. J.; Bizzell, R. M.; Hall, F. G.; Feiveson, A. H.; Malila, W. A.; Rice, D. P.

    1976-01-01

    The author has identified the following significant results. It was found that several factors had a significant effect on crop identification performance: (1) crop maturity and site characteristics, (2) which of several different single date automatic data processing procedures was used for local recognition, (3) nonlocal recognition, both with and without preprocessing for the extension of recognition signatures, and (4) use of multidate data. It also was found that classification accuracy for field center pixels was not a reliable indicator of proportion estimation performance for whole areas, that bias was present in proportion estimates, and that training data and procedures strongly influenced crop identification performance.