The Program Evaluator's Role in Cross-Project Pollination.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yasgur, Bruce J.

An expanded duties role of the multiple-program evaluator as an integral part of the ongoing decision-making process in all projects served is defended. Assumptions discussed included that need for projects with related objectives to pool resources and avoid duplication of effort and the evaluator's unique ability to provide an objective…

Management and integration of engineering and construction activities: Lessons learned from the AP1000{sup R} nuclear power plant China project

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

McCullough, M. C.; Ebeling-Koning, D.; Evans, M. C.

2012-07-01

The lessons learned during the early phase of design engineering and construction activities for the AP1000 China Project can be applied to any project involving multiple disciplines and multiple organizations. Implementation of a first-of-a-kind design to directly support construction activities utilizing resources assigned to design development and design delivery creates challenges with prioritization of activities, successful closure of issues, and communication between site organizations and the home office. To ensure successful implementation, teams were assigned and developed to directly support construction activities including prioritization of activities, site communication and ensuring closure of site emergent issues. By developing these teams, themore » organization is better suited to meet the demands of the construction schedule while continuing with design evolution of a standard plant and engineering delivery for multiple projects. For a successful project, proper resource utilization and prioritization are key for overcoming obstacles and ensuring success of the engineering organization. (authors)« less

Method and apparatus for multiple-projection, dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry scanning

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Feldmesser, Howard S. (Inventor); Magee, Thomas C. (Inventor); Charles, Jr., Harry K. (Inventor); Beck, Thomas J. (Inventor)

2007-01-01

Methods and apparatuses for advanced, multiple-projection, dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry scanning systems include combinations of a conical collimator; a high-resolution two-dimensional detector; a portable, power-capped, variable-exposure-time power supply; an exposure-time control element; calibration monitoring; a three-dimensional anti-scatter-grid; and a gantry-gantry base assembly that permits up to seven projection angles for overlapping beams. Such systems are capable of high precision bone structure measurements that can support three dimensional bone modeling and derivations of bone strength, risk of injury, and efficacy of countermeasures among other properties.

Hunting down the chimera of multiple disciplinarity in conservation science.

PubMed

Pooley, Simon P; Mendelsohn, J Andrew; Milner-Gulland, E J

2014-02-01

The consensus is that both ecological and social factors are essential dimensions of conservation research and practice. However, much of the literature on multiple disciplinary collaboration focuses on the difficulties of undertaking it. This review of the challenges of conducting multiple disciplinary collaboration offers a framework for thinking about the diversity and complexity of this endeavor. We focused on conceptual challenges, of which 5 main categories emerged: methodological challenges, value judgments, theories of knowledge, disciplinary prejudices, and interdisciplinary communication. The major problems identified in these areas have proved remarkably persistent in the literature surveyed (c.1960-2012). Reasons for these failures to learn from past experience include the pressure to produce positive outcomes and gloss over disagreements, the ephemeral nature of many such projects and resulting lack of institutional memory, and the apparent complexity and incoherence of the endeavor. We suggest that multiple disciplinary collaboration requires conceptual integration among carefully selected multiple disciplinary team members united in investigating a shared problem or question. We outline a 9-point sequence of steps for setting up a successful multiple disciplinary project. This encompasses points on recruitment, involving stakeholders, developing research questions, negotiating power dynamics and hidden values and conceptual differences, explaining and choosing appropriate methods, developing a shared language, facilitating on-going communications, and discussing data integration and project outcomes. Although numerous solutions to the challenges of multiple disciplinary research have been proposed, lessons learned are often lost when projects end or experienced individuals move on. We urge multiple disciplinary teams to capture the challenges recognized, and solutions proposed, by their researchers while projects are in process. A database of well-documented case studies would showcase theories and methods from a variety of disciplines and their interactions, enable better comparative study and evaluation, and provide a useful resource for developing future projects and training multiple disciplinary researchers. © 2013 The Authors. Conservation Biology published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of Society for Conservation Biology.

Hunting Down the Chimera of Multiple Disciplinarity in Conservation Science

PubMed Central

POOLEY, SIMON P; MENDELSOHN, J ANDREW; MILNER-GULLAND, E J

2014-01-01

The consensus is that both ecological and social factors are essential dimensions of conservation research and practice. However, much of the literature on multiple disciplinary collaboration focuses on the difficulties of undertaking it. This review of the challenges of conducting multiple disciplinary collaboration offers a framework for thinking about the diversity and complexity of this endeavor. We focused on conceptual challenges, of which 5 main categories emerged: methodological challenges, value judgments, theories of knowledge, disciplinary prejudices, and interdisciplinary communication. The major problems identified in these areas have proved remarkably persistent in the literature surveyed (c.1960–2012). Reasons for these failures to learn from past experience include the pressure to produce positive outcomes and gloss over disagreements, the ephemeral nature of many such projects and resulting lack of institutional memory, and the apparent complexity and incoherence of the endeavor. We suggest that multiple disciplinary collaboration requires conceptual integration among carefully selected multiple disciplinary team members united in investigating a shared problem or question. We outline a 9-point sequence of steps for setting up a successful multiple disciplinary project. This encompasses points on recruitment, involving stakeholders, developing research questions, negotiating power dynamics and hidden values and conceptual differences, explaining and choosing appropriate methods, developing a shared language, facilitating on-going communications, and discussing data integration and project outcomes. Although numerous solutions to the challenges of multiple disciplinary research have been proposed, lessons learned are often lost when projects end or experienced individuals move on. We urge multiple disciplinary teams to capture the challenges recognized, and solutions proposed, by their researchers while projects are in process. A database of well-documented case studies would showcase theories and methods from a variety of disciplines and their interactions, enable better comparative study and evaluation, and provide a useful resource for developing future projects and training multiple disciplinary researchers. PMID:24299167

Research on Comprehensive Evaluation Method for Heating Project Based on Analytic Hierarchy Processing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Han, Shenchao; Yang, Yanchun; Liu, Yude; Zhang, Peng; Li, Siwei

2018-01-01

It is effective to reduce haze in winter by changing the distributed heat supply system. Thus, the studies on comprehensive index system and scientific evaluation method of distributed heat supply project are essential. Firstly, research the influence factors of heating modes, and an index system with multiple dimension including economic, environmental, risk and flexibility was built and all indexes were quantified. Secondly, a comprehensive evaluation method based on AHP was put forward to analyze the proposed multiple and comprehensive index system. Lastly, the case study suggested that supplying heat with electricity has great advantage and promotional value. The comprehensive index system of distributed heating supply project and evaluation method in this paper can evaluate distributed heat supply project effectively and provide scientific support for choosing the distributed heating project.

GSBPP CAPSTONE REVIEW

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-12-01

including the GSBPP exit survey , archived GSBPP capstones, faculty advisement data, faculty interviews, and a new GSBPP student survey in order to detail...analysis from multiple sources, including the GSBPP exit survey , archived GSBPP capstones, faculty advisement data, faculty interviews, and a new...GSBPP student survey in order to detail the capstone’s process, content, and value to multiple stakeholders. The project team also employs the Plan-Do

Student Questionnaire. [Harvard Project Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Welch, Wayne W.; Ahlgren, Andrew

This 60-item questionnaire was designed to gather general background information from students who had used the Harvard Project Physics curriculum. The instrument includes three 20-item subscales: (1) attitude toward physics, (2) career interest, and (3) student characteristics. Items are multiple choice (5 options), and the introductory material…

Description of the supporting factors of final project in Mathematics and Natural Sciences Faculty of Syiah Kuala University with multiple correspondence analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rusyana, Asep; Nurhasanah; Maulizasari

2018-05-01

Syiah Kuala University (Unsyiah) is hoped to have graduates who are qualified for working or creating a field of work. A final project course implementation process must be effective. This research uses data from the evaluation conducted by Mathematics and Natural Sciences Faculty (FMIPA) of Unsyiah. Some of the factors that support the completion of the final project are duration, guidance, the final project seminars, facility, public impact, and quality. This research aims to know the factors that have a relationship with the completion of the final project and identify similarities among variables. The factors that support the completion of the final project at every study program in FMIPA are (1) duration, (2) guidance and (3) facilities. These factors are examined for the correlations by chi-square test. After that, the variables are analyzed with multiple correspondence analysis. Based on the plot of correspondence, the activities of the guidance and facilities in Informatics Study Program are included in the fair category, while the guidance and facilities in the Chemistry are included in the best category. Besides that, students in Physics can finish the final project with the fastest completion duration, while students in Pharmacy finish for the longest time.

Project Physics Tests 6, The Nucleus.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harvard Univ., Cambridge, MA. Harvard Project Physics.

Test items relating to Project Physics Unit 6 are presented in this booklet. Included are 70 multiple-choice and 24 problem-and-essay questions. Nuclear physics fundamentals are examined with respect to the shell model, isotopes, neutrons, protons, nuclides, charge-to-mass ratios, alpha particles, Becquerel's discovery, gamma rays, cyclotrons,…

Project Physics Tests 5, Models of the Atom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harvard Univ., Cambridge, MA. Harvard Project Physics.

Test items relating to Project Physics Unit 5 are presented in this booklet. Included are 70 multiple-choice and 23 problem-and-essay questions. Concepts of atomic model are examined on aspects of relativistic corrections, electron emission, photoelectric effects, Compton effect, quantum theories, electrolysis experiments, atomic number and mass,…

Project Physics Tests 4, Light and Electromagnetism.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harvard Univ., Cambridge, MA. Harvard Project Physics.

Test items relating to Project Physics Unit 4 are presented in this booklet. Included are 70 multiple-choice and 22 problem-and-essay questions. Concepts of light and electromagnetism are examined on charges, reflection, electrostatic forces, electric potential, speed of light, electromagnetic waves and radiations, Oersted's and Faraday's work,…

CATSKILL AREA PROJECT IN SMALL SCHOOL DESIGN.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Catskill Area Project in Small School Design, Oneonta, NY.

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SMALL SCHOOL, AS PROPOSED BY THE PROJECT, ARE LISTED. FIVE AREAS OF SCHOOL OPERATION ARE DISCUSSED IN DETAIL--(1) MULTIPLE CLASSES, INCLUDING SUPERVISED CORRESPONDENCE COURSES, (2) FLEXIBLE SCHEDULES, (3) USE OF SCHOOL AIDES, (4) USES OF ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION, AND (5) SHARED SERVICES AND TALENTED YOUTH. A MAP LOCATING THE…

Partners in Inquiry: A Collaborative Life Science Investigation with Preservice Teachers and Kindergarten Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Eckhoff, Angela

2017-01-01

This article documents a collaborative project involving preservice early childhood education students' development of inquiry-based learning experiences alongside kindergarten students within a science methods course. To document this project, I utilized a multiple methods approach and data included classroom observations, transcripts from lesson…

Project Physics Tests 3, The Triumph of Mechanics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harvard Univ., Cambridge, MA. Harvard Project Physics.

Test items relating to Project Physics Unit 3 are presented in this booklet. Included are 70 multiple-choice and 20 problem-and-essay questions. Concepts of mechanics are examined on energy, momentum, kinetic theory of gases, pulse analyses, "heat death," water waves, power, conservation laws, normal distribution, thermodynamic laws, and…

Project management tool

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Maluf, David A. (Inventor); Bell, David G. (Inventor); Gurram, Mohana M. (Inventor); Gawdiak, Yuri O. (Inventor)

2009-01-01

A system for managing a project that includes multiple tasks and a plurality of workers. Input information includes characterizations based upon a human model, a team model and a product model. Periodic reports, such as a monthly report, a task plan report, a budget report and a risk management report, are generated and made available for display or further analysis. An extensible database allows searching for information based upon context and upon content.

The FORE-SCE model: a practical approach for projecting land cover change using scenario-based modeling

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sohl, Terry L.; Sayler, Kristi L.; Drummond, Mark A.; Loveland, Thomas R.

2007-01-01

A wide variety of ecological applications require spatially explicit, historic, current, and projected land use and land cover data. The U.S. Land Cover Trends project is analyzing contemporary (1973–2000) land-cover change in the conterminous United States. The newly developed FORE-SCE model used Land Cover Trends data and theoretical, statistical, and deterministic modeling techniques to project future land cover change through 2020 for multiple plausible scenarios. Projected proportions of future land use were initially developed, and then sited on the lands with the highest potential for supporting that land use and land cover using a statistically based stochastic allocation procedure. Three scenarios of 2020 land cover were mapped for the western Great Plains in the US. The model provided realistic, high-resolution, scenario-based land-cover products suitable for multiple applications, including studies of climate and weather variability, carbon dynamics, and regional hydrology.

Enhanced project management tool

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hsu, Chen-Jung (Inventor); Patel, Hemil N. (Inventor); Maluf, David A. (Inventor); Moh Hashim, Jairon C. (Inventor); Tran, Khai Peter B. (Inventor)

2012-01-01

A system for managing a project that includes multiple tasks and a plurality of workers. Input information includes characterizations based upon a human model, a team model and a product model. Periodic reports, such as one or more of a monthly report, a task plan report, a schedule report, a budget report and a risk management report, are generated and made available for display or further analysis or collection into a customized report template. An extensible database allows searching for information based upon context and upon content. Seven different types of project risks are addressed, including non-availability of required skill mix of workers. The system can be configured to exchange data and results with corresponding portions of similar project analyses, and to provide user-specific access to specified information.

Exploring Stakeholder Definitions within the Aerospace Industry: A Qualitative Case Study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hebert, Jonathan R.

A best practice in the discipline of project management is to identify all key project stakeholders prior to the execution of a project. When stakeholders are properly identified, they can be consulted to provide expert advice on project activities so that the project manager can ensure the project stays within the budget and schedule constraints. The problem addressed by this study is that managers fail to properly identify key project stakeholders when using stakeholder theory because there are multiple conflicting definitions for the term stakeholder. Poor stakeholder identification has been linked to multiple negative project outcomes such as budget and schedules overruns, and this problem is heightened in certain industries such as aerospace. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore project managers' and project stakeholders' perceptions of how they define and use the term stakeholder within the aerospace industry. This qualitative exploratory single-case study had two embedded units of analysis: project managers and project stakeholders. Six aerospace project managers and five aerospace project stakeholders were purposively selected for this study. Data were collected through individual semi-structured interviews with both project managers and project stakeholders. All data were analyzed using Yin's (2011) five-phased cycle approach for qualitative research. The results indicated that the aerospace project managers and project stakeholder define the term stakeholder as "those who do the work of a company." The participants build upon this well-known concept by adding that, "a company should list specific job titles" that correspond to their company specific-stakeholder definition. Results also indicated that the definition of the term stakeholder is used when management is assigning human resources to a project to mitigate or control project risk. Results showed that project managers tended to include the customer in their stakeholder definitions while project stakeholders included a wider range of stakeholders from young employees to union workers. Practical application recommendations, based on the study's findings, include that companies start to develop company-specific definitions of the term stakeholder. Recommendations for future research should focus on exploring how CEOs, executive members, new hires, and hourly workers define and use the term stakeholder in the aerospace industry.

Heat pipe with improved wick structures

DOEpatents

Benson, David A.; Robino, Charles V.; Palmer, David W.; Kravitz, Stanley H.

2000-01-01

An improved planar heat pipe wick structure having projections formed by micromachining processes. The projections form arrays of interlocking, semi-closed structures with multiple flow paths on the substrate. The projections also include overhanging caps at their tops to increase the capillary pumping action of the wick structure. The capped projections can be formed in stacked layers. Another layer of smaller, more closely spaced projections without caps can also be formed on the substrate in between the capped projections. Inexpensive materials such as Kovar can be used as substrates, and the projections can be formed by electrodepositing nickel through photoresist masks.

Using a Multiple Intelligences Assessment To Facilitate Teacher Development.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shearer, C. Branton

In phase 1 of this study, development and validation studies of a new assessment for the multiple intelligences were conducted. The second phase of the study was a pilot implementation project during a single academic year in collaboration with several public school teachers. Phase 1 involved a series of activities including initial instrument…

Coordinating a Large, Amalgamated REU Program with Multiple Funding Sources

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fiorini, Eugene; Myers, Kellen; Naqvi, Yusra

2017-01-01

In this paper, we discuss the challenges of organizing a large REU program amalgamated from multiple funding sources, including diverse participants, mentors, and research projects. We detail the program's structure, activities, and recruitment, and we hope to demonstrate that the organization of this REU is not only beneficial to its…

The North American Regional Climate Change Assessment Program (NARCCAP): Status and results

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arritt, R.

2009-04-01

NARCCAP is an international program that is generating projections of climate change for the U.S., Canada, and northern Mexico at decision-relevant regional scales. NARCCAP uses multiple limited-area regional climate models (RCMs) nested within multiple atmosphere-ocean general circulation models (AOGCMs). The use of multiple regional and global models allows us to investigate the uncertainty in model responses to future emissions (here, the A2 SRES scenario). The project also includes global time-slice experiments at the same discretization (50 km) using the GFDL atmospheric model (AM2.1) and the NCAR atmospheric model (CAM3). Phase I of the experiment uses the regional models nested within reanalysis in order to establish uncertainty attributable to the RCMs themselves. Phase II of the project then nests the RCMs within results from the current and future runs of the AOGCMs to explore the cascade of uncertainty from the global to the regional models. Phase I has been completed and the results to be shown include findings that spectral nudging is beneficial in some regions but not in others. Phase II is nearing completion and some preliminary results will be shown.

Expedited Permanency Planning: Evaluation of the Kentucky Adoptions Opportunities Project.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martin, Mavin H.; Barbee, Anita P.; Antle, Becky F.; Sar, Bibhuti

2002-01-01

Presents evaluation findings of a 3-year Kentucky Adoptions Opportunities Project. Notes that a majority of children had one or both parents coping with multiple risk factors including mental illness, substance abuse, mental retardation, or family violence. Discusses major barriers to permanency, as well as policy and practice implications in the…

A Study on the Perceived Risk of Surface Sample Collection Systems in Proposal Formulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sunday, Cecily M.

2012-01-01

This project compares design and proposal elements from multiple proposals and presents conclusions and recommendations for sampling systems. Contributions from this project include a list of common evaluation themes, concept and proposal-related strengths and weaknesses and ways in which self-identified risks relate the evaluation of the mission.

Starting with Their Strengths: Using the Project Approach in Early Childhood Special Education. Early Childhood Education Series

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lickey, Deborah C.; Powers, Denise J.

2011-01-01

This book provides a comprehensive and practical guide to using the project approach when teaching young children with special needs. While focusing on children's individual strengths, which include their interests, intelligences, and unique styles of learning, this resource demonstrates teaching strategies that address multiple areas of…

Project Physics Tests 2, Motion in the Heavens.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harvard Univ., Cambridge, MA. Harvard Project Physics.

Test items relating to Project Physics Unit 2 are presented in this booklet. Included are 70 multiple-choice and 22 problem-and-essay questions. Concepts of motion in the heavens are examined for planetary motions, heliocentric theory, forces exerted on the planets, Kepler's laws, gravitational force, Galileo's work, satellite orbits, Jupiter's…

User's operating procedures. Volume 1: Scout project information programs

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Harris, C. G.; Harris, D. K.

1985-01-01

A review of the user's operating procedures for the Scout Project Automatic Data System, called SPADS is given. SPADS is the result of the past seven years of software development on a Prime minicomputer located at the Scout Project Office. SPADS was developed as a single entry, multiple cross reference data management and information retrieval system for the automation of Project office tasks, including engineering, financial, managerial, and clerical support. The instructions to operate the Scout Project Information programs in data retrieval and file maintenance via the user friendly menu drivers is presented.

Designs for Evaluating the Community-Level Impact of Comprehensive Prevention Programs: Examples from the CDC Centers of Excellence in Youth Violence Prevention.

PubMed

Farrell, Albert D; Henry, David; Bradshaw, Catherine; Reischl, Thomas

2016-04-01

This article discusses the opportunities and challenges of developing research designs to evaluate the impact of community-level prevention efforts. To illustrate examples of evaluation designs, we describe six projects funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to evaluate multifaceted approaches to reduce youth violence in high-risk communities. Each of these projects was designed to evaluate the community-level impact of multiple intervention strategies to address individual and contextual factors that place youth at risk for violent behavior. Communities differed across projects in their setting, size, and how their boundaries were defined. Each project is using multiple approaches to compare outcomes in one or more intervention communities to those in comparison communities. Five of the projects are using comparative interrupted time-series designs to compare outcomes in an intervention community to matched comparison communities. A sixth project is using a multiple baseline design in which the order and timing of intervention activities is randomized across three communities. All six projects are also using regression point displacement designs to compare outcomes within intervention communities to those within broader sets of similar communities. Projects are using a variety of approaches to assess outcomes including archival records, surveys, and direct observations. We discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the designs of these projects and illustrate the challenges of designing high-quality evaluations of comprehensive prevention approaches implemented at the community level.

The value of demonstration projects for new interventions: The case of human papillomavirus vaccine introduction in low- and middle-income countries.

PubMed

Howard, N; Mounier-Jack, S; Gallagher, K E; Kabakama, S; Griffiths, U K; Feletto, M; LaMontagne, D S; Burchett, H E D; Watson-Jones, D

2016-09-01

Demonstration projects or pilots of new public health interventions aim to build learning and capacity to inform country-wide implementation. Authors examined the value of HPV vaccination demonstration projects and initial national programmes in low-income and lower-middle-income countries, including potential drawbacks and how value for national scale-up might be increased. Data from a systematic review and key informant interviews, analyzed thematically, included 55 demonstration projects and 8 national programmes implemented between 2007-2015 (89 years' experience). Initial demonstration projects quickly provided consistent lessons. Value would increase if projects were designed to inform sustainable national scale-up. Well-designed projects can test multiple delivery strategies, implementation for challenging areas and populations, and integration with national systems. Introduction of vaccines or other health interventions, particularly those involving new target groups or delivery strategies, needs flexible funding approaches to address specific questions of scalability and sustainability, including learning lessons through phased national expansion.

The Iodine Satellite (iSAT) Hall Thruster Demonstration Mission Concept and Development

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dankanich, John W.; Polzin, Kurt A.; Calvert, Derek; Kamhawi, Hani

2014-01-01

The use of iodine propellant for Hall thrusters has been studied and proposed by multiple organizations due to the potential mission benefits over xenon. In 2013, NASA Marshall Space Flight Center competitively selected a project for the maturation of an iodine flight operational feed system through the Technology Investment Program. Multiple partnerships and collaborations have allowed the team to expand the scope to include additional mission concept development and risk reduction to support a flight system demonstration, the iodine Satellite (iSAT). The iSAT project was initiated and is progressing towards a technology demonstration mission preliminary design review. The current status of the mission concept development and risk reduction efforts in support of this project is presented.

A Global Repository for Planet-Sized Experiments and Observations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Williams, Dean; Balaji, V.; Cinquini, Luca; Denvil, Sebastien; Duffy, Daniel; Evans, Ben; Ferraro, Robert D.; Hansen, Rose; Lautenschlager, Michael; Trenham, Claire

2016-01-01

Working across U.S. federal agencies, international agencies, and multiple worldwide data centers, and spanning seven international network organizations, the Earth System Grid Federation (ESGF) allows users to access, analyze, and visualize data using a globally federated collection of networks, computers, and software. Its architecture employs a system of geographically distributed peer nodes that are independently administered yet united by common federation protocols and application programming interfaces (APIs). The full ESGF infrastructure has now been adopted by multiple Earth science projects and allows access to petabytes of geophysical data, including the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP) output used by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change assessment reports. Data served by ESGF not only include model output (i.e., CMIP simulation runs) but also include observational data from satellites and instruments, reanalyses, and generated images. Metadata summarize basic information about the data for fast and easy data discovery.

Supporting Concrete Visual Thinking in Multiplicative Reasoning: Difficulties and Opportunities. Technical Report 88-16.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kaput, James J.

The Educational Technology Center has attempted to develop a series of computer based learning environments to support the learning and application of multiplicative reasoning. The work and software described in this paper, including the teaching experiment that generated the error phenomena examined, is part of a larger ongoing research project.…

The use of process mapping in healthcare quality improvement projects.

PubMed

Antonacci, Grazia; Reed, Julie E; Lennox, Laura; Barlow, James

2018-05-01

Introduction Process mapping provides insight into systems and processes in which improvement interventions are introduced and is seen as useful in healthcare quality improvement projects. There is little empirical evidence on the use of process mapping in healthcare practice. This study advances understanding of the benefits and success factors of process mapping within quality improvement projects. Methods Eight quality improvement projects were purposively selected from different healthcare settings within the UK's National Health Service. Data were gathered from multiple data-sources, including interviews exploring participants' experience of using process mapping in their projects and perceptions of benefits and challenges related to its use. These were analysed using inductive analysis. Results Eight key benefits related to process mapping use were reported by participants (gathering a shared understanding of the reality; identifying improvement opportunities; engaging stakeholders in the project; defining project's objectives; monitoring project progress; learning; increased empathy; simplicity of the method) and five factors related to successful process mapping exercises (simple and appropriate visual representation, information gathered from multiple stakeholders, facilitator's experience and soft skills, basic training, iterative use of process mapping throughout the project). Conclusions Findings highlight benefits and versatility of process mapping and provide practical suggestions to improve its use in practice.

Integration and Testing Challenges of Small, Multiple Satellite Missions: Experiences From The Space Technology 5 Project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sauerwein, Timothy A.; Gostomski, Thomas

2007-01-01

This brief presentation describes the mechanical and electrical integration activities and environmental testing challenges of the Space Technology 5 (ST5) Project. Lessons learned during this process are highlighted, including performing mechanical activities serially to gain efficiency through repetition and performing electrical activities based on the level of subsystem expertise available.

Sold to Dominic for 1 Troy and 3 (24) Fin: An Economic Money System.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Williams, Sandra L.

Arranged in two sections, this paper details a project for incorporating ongoing economics study into a sixth-grade curriculum by creating an imaginary economic system. Section 1 highlights the main activities of the project, which include the following. A money system, based on units of 12 to enhance multiplication skills, was instituted, with…

Projects for increasing job satisfaction and creating a healthy work environment.

PubMed

Brunges, Michele; Foley-Brinza, Christine

2014-12-01

Workplace culture is one of the biggest factors driving employee commitment and engagement. Multiple studies have shown that hospitals will perform better over time if employees are committed to their jobs and engaged in what they do. By creating and implementing multiple projects during a three-year period, a team at the University of Florida Health Shands Hospital, Gainesville, increased job satisfaction. Projects included ensuring meal breaks were offered, creating a serenity area, developing the patient ambassador role, actively addressing bullying and unprofessional behavior, assigning a student mentee to work with staff members on culture change, offering regular fun activities, redesigning the unit, reorganizing schedules to reduce stress, implementing education and training initiatives, establishing a Unit Practice Council, and implementing reward and recognition programs. Survey results and anecdotal evidence suggest that these projects combined to increase employee satisfaction and employee retention rates. Copyright © 2014 AORN, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Manufacturing Technology Support (MATES). Task Order 0021: Air Force Technology and Industrial Base Research and Analysis, Subtask Order 06: Direct Digital Manufacturing

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-08-01

industries and key players providing equipment include Flow and OMAX. The decision tree for waterjet machining is shown in Figure 28. Figure 28...about the melt pool. Process parameters including powder flow , laser power, and scan speed are adjusted accordingly • Multiple materials o BD...project.eu.com/home/home_page_static.jsp o Working with multiple partners; one is Cochlear . Using LMD or SLM to fabricate cochlear implants with 10

Swamp Works- Multiple Projects

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Carelli, Jonathan M.

2013-01-01

My Surface Systems internship over the summer 2013 session covered a broad range of projects that ranged multiple aspects and fields of engineering and technology. This internship included a project to create a command center for a 120 ton regolith bin, a design and build for a blast shield to add further protection for the Surface Systems engineers, a design for a portable four monitor hyper wall that can extend as large as needed, research and programming a nano drill for a next generation robot, and social media tasks including the making of videos, posting to social networking websites and implementation of a new weekly outreach program to help spread the word about the Swamp Works laboratory. The objectives for the command center were to create a central computer controlled area for the still in production lunar regolith bin. It needed to be easy to use and the operating systems had to be Linux. The objectives for the hyper wall were to build a mobile transport of monitors that could potentially attach to one another. It needed to be light but sturdy, and have the ability to last. The objectives for the blast shield included a robust design that could withstand a small equipment malfunction, while also being convenient for use. The objectives for the nano-drill included the research and implementation of programming for vertical and horizontal movement. The hyper wall and blasts shield project were designed by me in the Pro/Engineer/Creo2 software. Each project required a meeting with the Swamp Works engineers and was declared successful.

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

Melton, Ron

The Pacific Northwest Smart Grid Demonstration (PNWSGD), a $179 million project that was co-funded by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) in late 2009, was one of the largest and most comprehensive demonstrations of electricity grid modernization ever completed. The project was one of 16 regional smart grid demonstrations funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. It was the only demonstration that included multiple states and cooperation from multiple electric utilities, including rural electric co-ops, investor-owned, municipal, and other public utilities. No fewer than 55 unique instantiations of distinct smart grid systems were demonstrated at the projects’ sites. Themore » local objectives for these systems included improved reliability, energy conservation, improved efficiency, and demand responsiveness. The demonstration developed and deployed an innovative transactive system, unique in the world, that coordinated many of the project’s distributed energy resources and demand-responsive components. With the transactive system, additional regional objectives were also addressed, including the mitigation of renewable energy intermittency and the flattening of system load. Using the transactive system, the project coordinated a regional response across the 11 utilities. This region-wide connection from the transmission system down to individual premises equipment was one of the major successes of the project. The project showed that this can be done and assets at the end points can respond dynamically on a wide scale. In principle, a transactive system of this type might eventually help coordinate electricity supply, transmission, distribution, and end uses by distributing mostly automated control responsibilities among the many distributed smart grid domain members and their smart devices.« less

User's operating procedures. Volume 3: Projects directorate information programs

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Haris, C. G.; Harris, D. K.

1985-01-01

A review of the user's operating procedures for the scout project automatic data system, called SPADS is presented. SPADS is the results of the past seven years of software development on a prime mini-computer. SPADS was developed as a single entry, multiple cross-reference data management and information retrieval system for the automation of Project office tasks, including engineering, financial, managerial, and clerical support. This volume, three of three, provides the instructions to operate the projects directorate information programs in data retrieval and file maintenance via the user friendly menu drivers.

Developing an approach to effectively use super ensemble experiments for the projection of hydrological extremes under climate change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Watanabe, S.; Kim, H.; Utsumi, N.

2017-12-01

This study aims to develop a new approach which projects hydrology under climate change using super ensemble experiments. The use of multiple ensemble is essential for the estimation of extreme, which is a major issue in the impact assessment of climate change. Hence, the super ensemble experiments are recently conducted by some research programs. While it is necessary to use multiple ensemble, the multiple calculations of hydrological simulation for each output of ensemble simulations needs considerable calculation costs. To effectively use the super ensemble experiments, we adopt a strategy to use runoff projected by climate models directly. The general approach of hydrological projection is to conduct hydrological model simulations which include land-surface and river routing process using atmospheric boundary conditions projected by climate models as inputs. This study, on the other hand, simulates only river routing model using runoff projected by climate models. In general, the climate model output is systematically biased so that a preprocessing which corrects such bias is necessary for impact assessments. Various bias correction methods have been proposed, but, to the best of our knowledge, no method has proposed for variables other than surface meteorology. Here, we newly propose a method for utilizing the projected future runoff directly. The developed method estimates and corrects the bias based on the pseudo-observation which is a result of retrospective offline simulation. We show an application of this approach to the super ensemble experiments conducted under the program of Half a degree Additional warming, Prognosis and Projected Impacts (HAPPI). More than 400 ensemble experiments from multiple climate models are available. The results of the validation using historical simulations by HAPPI indicates that the output of this approach can effectively reproduce retrospective runoff variability. Likewise, the bias of runoff from super ensemble climate projections is corrected, and the impact of climate change on hydrologic extremes is assessed in a cost-efficient way.

LINKING REGIONAL AEROSOL EMISSION CHANGES WITH MULTIPLE IMPACT MEASURES THROUGH DIRECT AND CLOUD-RELATED FORCING ESTIMATES

EPA Science Inventory

Outputs expected from this project include improved confidence in direct radiative forcing and cloud radiative forcing, particularly over the United States and with regard to United States emissions publicly available, documented data sets including emission inventories of siz...

Proposal for a Library Project for Severely-Profoundly Retarded, Multiple Handicapped Individuals.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

South Dakota State Library, Pierre.

A proposal for a library project for mentally and physically handicapped persons at Custer State Hospital includes a listening library for the residents of the hospital with a cassette player in each resident's room. Tape storage would be at the nurse's station on each floor, and the charge nurse on that floor would be responsible for the tapes.…

Implementation of Multiple Intelligences Supported Project-Based Learning in EFL/ESL Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bas, Gokhan

2008-01-01

This article deals with the implementation of Multiple Intelligences supported Project-Based learning in EFL/ESL Classrooms. In this study, after Multiple Intelligences supported Project-based learning was presented shortly, the implementation of this learning method into English classrooms. Implementation process of MI supported Project-based…

Systems Engineering in NASA's R&TD Programs

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jones, Harry

2005-01-01

Systems engineering is largely the analysis and planning that support the design, development, and operation of systems. The most common application of systems engineering is in guiding systems development projects that use a phased process of requirements, specifications, design, and development. This paper investigates how systems engineering techniques should be applied in research and technology development programs for advanced space systems. These programs should include anticipatory engineering of future space flight systems and a project portfolio selection process, as well as systems engineering for multiple development projects.

Applications of the 1000 Genomes Project resources

PubMed Central

Zheng-Bradley, Xiangqun

2017-01-01

Abstract The 1000 Genomes Project created a valuable, worldwide reference for human genetic variation. Common uses of the 1000 Genomes dataset include genotype imputation supporting Genome-wide Association Studies, mapping expression Quantitative Trait Loci, filtering non-pathogenic variants from exome, whole genome and cancer genome sequencing projects, and genetic analysis of population structure and molecular evolution. In this article, we will highlight some of the multiple ways that the 1000 Genomes data can be and has been utilized for genetic studies. PMID:27436001

User's operating procedures. Volume 2: Scout project financial analysis program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Harris, C. G.; Haris, D. K.

1985-01-01

A review is presented of the user's operating procedures for the Scout Project Automatic Data system, called SPADS. SPADS is the result of the past seven years of software development on a Prime mini-computer located at the Scout Project Office, NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, Virginia. SPADS was developed as a single entry, multiple cross-reference data management and information retrieval system for the automation of Project office tasks, including engineering, financial, managerial, and clerical support. This volume, two (2) of three (3), provides the instructions to operate the Scout Project Financial Analysis program in data retrieval and file maintenance via the user friendly menu drivers.

Curriculum Adaptation in Special Schools for Students with Intellectual Disabilities (SID): A Case Study of Project Learning in One SID School in Hong Kong

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhang, Jia-Wei; Wong, Lam; Chan, Tak-Hang; Chiu, Chi-Shing

2014-01-01

Using a qualitative case study approach, the authors analyzed the curriculum adaptation process for one project learning activity in School K, which is a SID school in the context of school-university collaboration. Multiple sources of data were collected for triangulation, including interviews, documents and observations. Curriculum adaptation…

Project LEAP: The Labor Education Achievement Program. A Program To Improve the Literacy Level and Productivity of the Workforce. Final Project Report. April 1, 1991-September 30, 1992.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Metropolitan Baltimore Council of AFL-CIO Unions, MD.

Maryland's Labor Education Achievement Program (LEAP) worked with a wide diversity of union workers in multiple industries and within numerous private companies and public agencies over a dispersed geographic area. Staff development included a workshop for local coordinators and a teacher inservice training session. LEAP provided…

Faculty Student Mentoring of First Year Traditional Baccalaureate Degree Nursing Students to Increase Retention and Decrease Attrition Rates

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Michalski, Melissa S.

2013-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the results of a faculty mentoring program of first year traditional baccalaureate degree nursing students at a university in the mid-west with multiple campuses, including three nursing campuses. One campus site was chosen for this project. The students were asked to participate in the project and informed…

Three-dimensional volume containing multiple two-dimensional information patterns

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nakayama, Hirotaka; Shiraki, Atsushi; Hirayama, Ryuji; Masuda, Nobuyuki; Shimobaba, Tomoyoshi; Ito, Tomoyoshi

2013-06-01

We have developed an algorithm for recording multiple gradated two-dimensional projection patterns in a single three-dimensional object. When a single pattern is observed, information from the other patterns can be treated as background noise. The proposed algorithm has two important features: the number of patterns that can be recorded is theoretically infinite and no meaningful information can be seen outside of the projection directions. We confirmed the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm by performing numerical simulations of two laser crystals: an octagonal prism that contained four patterns in four projection directions and a dodecahedron that contained six patterns in six directions. We also fabricated and demonstrated an actual prototype laser crystal from a glass cube engraved by a laser beam. This algorithm has applications in various fields, including media art, digital signage, and encryption technology.

Scalable Open Science Approach for Mutation Calling of Tumor Exomes Using Multiple Genomic Pipelines.

PubMed

Ellrott, Kyle; Bailey, Matthew H; Saksena, Gordon; Covington, Kyle R; Kandoth, Cyriac; Stewart, Chip; Hess, Julian; Ma, Singer; Chiotti, Kami E; McLellan, Michael; Sofia, Heidi J; Hutter, Carolyn; Getz, Gad; Wheeler, David; Ding, Li

2018-03-28

The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) cancer genomics dataset includes over 10,000 tumor-normal exome pairs across 33 different cancer types, in total >400 TB of raw data files requiring analysis. Here we describe the Multi-Center Mutation Calling in Multiple Cancers project, our effort to generate a comprehensive encyclopedia of somatic mutation calls for the TCGA data to enable robust cross-tumor-type analyses. Our approach accounts for variance and batch effects introduced by the rapid advancement of DNA extraction, hybridization-capture, sequencing, and analysis methods over time. We present best practices for applying an ensemble of seven mutation-calling algorithms with scoring and artifact filtering. The dataset created by this analysis includes 3.5 million somatic variants and forms the basis for PanCan Atlas papers. The results have been made available to the research community along with the methods used to generate them. This project is the result of collaboration from a number of institutes and demonstrates how team science drives extremely large genomics projects. Copyright © 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Education and Public Outreach at The Pavilion Lake Research Project: Fusion of Science and Education using Web 2.0

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cowie, B. R.; Lim, D. S.; Pendery, R.; Laval, B.; Slater, G. F.; Brady, A. L.; Dearing, W. L.; Downs, M.; Forrest, A.; Lees, D. S.; Lind, R. A.; Marinova, M.; Reid, D.; Seibert, M. A.; Shepard, R.; Williams, D.

2009-12-01

The Pavilion Lake Research Project (PLRP) is an international multi-disciplinary science and exploration effort to explain the origin and preservation potential of freshwater microbialites in Pavilion Lake, British Columbia, Canada. Using multiple exploration platforms including one person DeepWorker submersibles, Autonomous Underwater Vehicles, and SCUBA divers, the PLRP acts as an analogue research site for conducting science in extreme environments, such as the Moon or Mars. In 2009, the PLRP integrated several Web 2.0 technologies to provide a pilot-scale Education and Public Outreach (EPO) program targeting the internet savvy generation. The seamless integration of multiple technologies including Google Earth, Wordpress, Youtube, Twitter and Facebook, facilitated the rapid distribution of exciting and accessible science and exploration information over multiple channels. Field updates, science reports, and multimedia including videos, interactive maps, and immersive visualization were rapidly available through multiple social media channels, partly due to the ease of integration of these multiple technologies. Additionally, the successful application of videoconferencing via a readily available technology (Skype) has greatly increased the capacity of our team to conduct real-time education and public outreach from remote locations. The improved communication afforded by Web 2.0 has increased the quality of EPO provided by the PLRP, and has enabled a higher level of interaction between the science team and the community at large. Feedback from these online interactions suggest that remote communication via Web 2.0 technologies were effective tools for increasing public discourse and awareness of the science and exploration activity at Pavilion Lake.

Effort to Accelerate MBSE Adoption and Usage at JSC

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wang, Lui; Izygon, Michel; Okron, Shira; Garner, Larry; Wagner, Howard

2016-01-01

This paper describes the authors' experience in adopting Model Based System Engineering (MBSE) at the NASA/Johnson Space Center (JSC). Since 2009, NASA/JSC has been applying MBSE using the Systems Modeling Language (SysML) to a number of advanced projects. Models integrate views of the system from multiple perspectives, capturing the system design information for multiple stakeholders. This method has allowed engineers to better control changes, improve traceability from requirements to design and manage the numerous interactions between components. As the project progresses, the models become the official source of information and used by multiple stakeholders. Three major types of challenges that hamper the adoption of the MBSE technology are described. These challenges are addressed by a multipronged approach that includes educating the main stakeholders, implementing an organizational infrastructure that supports the adoption effort, defining a set of modeling guidelines to help engineers in their modeling effort, providing a toolset that support the generation of valuable products, and providing a library of reusable models. JSC project case studies are presented to illustrate how the proposed approach has been successfully applied.

First-line nurse leaders' health-care change management initiatives.

PubMed

Macphee, Maura; Suryaprakash, Nitya

2012-03-01

To examine nurse leaders' change management projects within British Columbia, Canada. British Columbia Nursing Leadership Institute 2007-10 attendees worked on year-long change management initiatives/projects of importance to their respective health-care institutions. Most leaders were in first-line positions with <3 years' experience. Consenting leaders' project reports (N = 133) were content analysed for specific themes: types of projects; scope of projects (e.g. unit or local level, departmental, institutional); influence targets or key stakeholder groups targeted by the projects; leadership successes and challenges. Of study participants, 77% successfully completed their projects. Staff tool and resource development and existing services improvement were major project types. Care delivery teams were the major influence targets. Only 25% of projects were at the unit level. Many projects had broader scopes, such as institutional levels. Participants cited multiple leadership successes, including enhanced leadership styles and organizational skills. First-line nurse leaders were able to successfully manage projects beyond their traditional scope of responsibilities. The majority of projects dealt with staff needs and healthcare restructuring initiatives. Constant change is a global reality. Change management, a universal competency, must be included in leadership development programmes. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Multiconstrained gene clustering based on generalized projections

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

Background Gene clustering for annotating gene functions is one of the fundamental issues in bioinformatics. The best clustering solution is often regularized by multiple constraints such as gene expressions, Gene Ontology (GO) annotations and gene network structures. How to integrate multiple pieces of constraints for an optimal clustering solution still remains an unsolved problem. Results We propose a novel multiconstrained gene clustering (MGC) method within the generalized projection onto convex sets (POCS) framework used widely in image reconstruction. Each constraint is formulated as a corresponding set. The generalized projector iteratively projects the clustering solution onto these sets in order to find a consistent solution included in the intersection set that satisfies all constraints. Compared with previous MGC methods, POCS can integrate multiple constraints from different nature without distorting the original constraints. To evaluate the clustering solution, we also propose a new performance measure referred to as Gene Log Likelihood (GLL) that considers genes having more than one function and hence in more than one cluster. Comparative experimental results show that our POCS-based gene clustering method outperforms current state-of-the-art MGC methods. Conclusions The POCS-based MGC method can successfully combine multiple constraints from different nature for gene clustering. Also, the proposed GLL is an effective performance measure for the soft clustering solutions. PMID:20356386

MSeq-CNV: accurate detection of Copy Number Variation from Sequencing of Multiple samples.

PubMed

Malekpour, Seyed Amir; Pezeshk, Hamid; Sadeghi, Mehdi

2018-03-05

Currently a few tools are capable of detecting genome-wide Copy Number Variations (CNVs) based on sequencing of multiple samples. Although aberrations in mate pair insertion sizes provide additional hints for the CNV detection based on multiple samples, the majority of the current tools rely only on the depth of coverage. Here, we propose a new algorithm (MSeq-CNV) which allows detecting common CNVs across multiple samples. MSeq-CNV applies a mixture density for modeling aberrations in depth of coverage and abnormalities in the mate pair insertion sizes. Each component in this mixture density applies a Binomial distribution for modeling the number of mate pairs with aberration in the insertion size and also a Poisson distribution for emitting the read counts, in each genomic position. MSeq-CNV is applied on simulated data and also on real data of six HapMap individuals with high-coverage sequencing, in 1000 Genomes Project. These individuals include a CEU trio of European ancestry and a YRI trio of Nigerian ethnicity. Ancestry of these individuals is studied by clustering the identified CNVs. MSeq-CNV is also applied for detecting CNVs in two samples with low-coverage sequencing in 1000 Genomes Project and six samples form the Simons Genome Diversity Project.

Systems-Level Synthetic Biology for Advanced Biofuel Production

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

Ruffing, Anne; Jensen, Travis J.; Strickland, Lucas Marshall

2015-03-01

Cyanobacteria have been shown to be capable of producing a variety of advanced biofuels; however, product yields remain well below those necessary for large scale production. New genetic tools and high throughput metabolic engineering techniques are needed to optimize cyanobacterial metabolisms for enhanced biofuel production. Towards this goal, this project advances the development of a multiple promoter replacement technique for systems-level optimization of gene expression in a model cyanobacterial host: Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002. To realize this multiple-target approach, key capabilities were developed, including a high throughput detection method for advanced biofuels, enhanced transformation efficiency, and genetic tools for Synechococcusmore » sp. PCC 7002. Moreover, several additional obstacles were identified for realization of this multiple promoter replacement technique. The techniques and tools developed in this project will help to enable future efforts in the advancement of cyanobacterial biofuels.« less

Applications of the 1000 Genomes Project resources.

PubMed

Zheng-Bradley, Xiangqun; Flicek, Paul

2017-05-01

The 1000 Genomes Project created a valuable, worldwide reference for human genetic variation. Common uses of the 1000 Genomes dataset include genotype imputation supporting Genome-wide Association Studies, mapping expression Quantitative Trait Loci, filtering non-pathogenic variants from exome, whole genome and cancer genome sequencing projects, and genetic analysis of population structure and molecular evolution. In this article, we will highlight some of the multiple ways that the 1000 Genomes data can be and has been utilized for genetic studies. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press.

The Deep Space Network

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1975-01-01

Work accomplished on the Deep Space Network (DSN) was described, including the following topics: supporting research and technology, advanced development and engineering, system implementation, and DSN operations pertaining to mission-independent or multiple-mission development as well as to support of flight projects.

SAMPLING LARGE RIVERS FOR ALGAE, BENTHIC MACROINVERTEBRATES AND FISH

EPA Science Inventory

Multiple projects are currently underway to increase our understanding of the effects of different sampling methods and designs used for the biological assessment and monitoring of large (boatable) rivers. Studies include methods used to assess fish, benthic macroinvertebrates, ...

Status of development of LCOS projection displays for F-22A, F/A-18E/F, and JSF cockpits

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kalmanash, Michael H.

2001-09-01

Projection display technology has been found to be an attractive alternative to direct view flat panel displays in many avionics applications. The projection approach permits compact high performance systems to be tailored to specific platform needs while using a complement of commercial off the shelf (COTS) components, including liquid crystal on silicon (LCOS) microdisplay imagers. A common projection engine used on multiple platforms enables improved performance, lower cost and shorter development cycles. This paper provides a status update for projection displays under development for the F-22A, the F/A-18E/F and the Lockheed Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) aircraft.

DYNAMIC PROJECT COLLABORATION TOOLS FOR UNEXPLODED ORDNANCE (UXO) REMOVAL Case Study: Jefferson Proving Ground UXO Removal Projector

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

Daffron, James Y.

2003-02-27

Unexploded Ordnance (UXO) removal and investigation projects typically involve multiple organizations including Government entities, private contractors, and technical experts. Resources are split into functional ''teams'' who perform the work and interface with the clients. The projects typically generate large amounts of data that must be shared among the project team members, the clients, and the public. The ability to efficiently communicate and control information is essential to project success. Web-based project collaboration is an effective management and communication tool when applied to ordnance and explosives (OE) projects. During a recent UXO/OE removal project at the Jefferson Proving Ground (JPG) inmore » Madison, IN, American Technologies, Inc. (ATI) successfully used the Project Commander(reg sign) (www.ProCommander.com) project collaboration website as a dynamic project and information management tool.« less

Ames Engineering Directorate

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Phillips, Veronica J.

2017-01-01

The Ames Engineering Directorate is the principal engineering organization supporting aerospace systems and spaceflight projects at NASA's Ames Research Center in California's Silicon Valley. The Directorate supports all phases of engineering and project management for flight and mission projects-from R&D to Close-out-by leveraging the capabilities of multiple divisions and facilities.The Mission Design Center (MDC) has full end-to-end mission design capability with sophisticated analysis and simulation tools in a collaborative concurrent design environment. Services include concept maturity level (CML) maturation, spacecraft design and trades, scientific instruments selection, feasibility assessments, and proposal support and partnerships. The Engineering Systems Division provides robust project management support as well as systems engineering, mechanical and electrical analysis and design, technical authority and project integration support to a variety of programs and projects across NASA centers. The Applied Manufacturing Division turns abstract ideas into tangible hardware for aeronautics, spaceflight and science applications, specializing in fabrication methods and management of complex fabrication projects. The Engineering Evaluation Lab (EEL) provides full satellite or payload environmental testing services including vibration, temperature, humidity, immersion, pressure/altitude, vacuum, high G centrifuge, shock impact testing and the Flight Processing Center (FPC), which includes cleanrooms, bonded stores and flight preparation resources. The Multi-Mission Operations Center (MMOC) is composed of the facilities, networks, IT equipment, software and support services needed by flight projects to effectively and efficiently perform all mission functions, including planning, scheduling, command, telemetry processing and science analysis.

Multiple Intelligences: Curriculum and Assessment Project. Final Report

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hyland, Aine, Ed.

2011-01-01

The "Multiple Intelligences, Curriculum and Assessment Project" at University College Cork was a collaborative project carried out between 1995 and 1999. The key research question focused on whether Howard Gardner's theory of Multiple Intelligences could be applied to, and enhance, aspects of curriculum and assessment at primary and…

Using Photovoice to Include People with Profound and Multiple Learning Disabilities in Inclusive Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cluley, Victoria

2017-01-01

Background: It is now expected that projects addressing the lives of people with learning disabilities include people with learning disabilities in the research process. In the past, such research often excluded people with learning disabilities, favouring the opinions of family members, carers and professionals. The inclusion of the voices of…

LARGE RIVER ASSESSMENT METHODS FOR BENTHIC MACROINVERTEBRATES AND FISH

EPA Science Inventory

Multiple projects are currently underway to increase our understanding of the varying results of different sampling methods and designs used for the biological assessment and monitoring of large (boatable) rivers. Studies include methods used to assess fish, benthic macroinverte...

ANALYTICAL STRATEGIES FOR ASSESSING CUMULATIVE EFFECTS OF CHEMICAL AND NONCHEMICAL STRESSORS

EPA Science Inventory

The project will assess the relative impact of community-level and individual-level stressors – including multiple chemical, social and psychosocial stressors -- on biologic markers of health effects across neighborhoods and vulnerable populations in Texas City, Texas...

The micronutrient genomics project: a community-driven knowledge base for micronutrient research

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Micronutrients influence multiple metabolic pathways including oxidative and inflammatory processes. Optimum micronutrient supply is important for the maintenance of homeostasis in metabolism and, ultimately, for maintaining good health. With advances in systems biology and genomics technologies, it...

Multi-criteria decision analysis in conservation planning: Designing conservation area networks in San Diego County

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

MacDonald, Garrick Richard

To limit biodiversity loss caused by human activity, conservation planning must protect biodiversity while considering socio-economic cost criteria. This research aimed to determine the effects of socio-economic criteria and spatial configurations on the development of CANs for three species with different distribution patterns, while simultaneously attempting to address the uncertainty and sensitivity of CANs produced by ConsNet. The socio-economic factors and spatial criteria included the cost of land, population density, agricultural output value, area, average cluster area, number of clusters, shape, and perimeter. Three sensitive mammal species with different distribution patterns were selected and included the Bobcat, Ringtail, and a custom created mammal distribution. Forty problems and the corresponding number of CANs were formulated and computed by running each predicted presence species model with and without the four different socioeconomic threshold groups at two different resolutions. Thirty-two percent less area was conserved after considering multiple socio-economic constraints and spatial configurations in comparison to CANs that did not consider multiple socio-economic constraints and spatial configurations. Without including socio-economic costs, ConsNet's ALL_CELLS heuristic solution was the highest ranking CAN. After considering multiple socio-economic costs, the number one ranking CAN was no longer the ALL_CELLS heuristic solution, but a spatially different meta-heuristic solution. The effects of multiple constraints and objectives on the design of CANs with different distribution patterns did not vary significantly across the criteria. The CANs produced by ConsNet appeared to demonstrate some uncertainty surrounding particular criteria, but did not demonstrate substantial uncertainty across all criteria used to rank the CANs. Similarly, the range of socio-economic criteria thresholds did not have a substantial impact. ConsNet was very applicable to the research project, however, it did exhibit a few limitations. Both the advantages and disadvantages of ConsNet should be considered before using ConsNet for future conservation planning projects. The research project is an example of a large data scenario undertaken with a multiple criteria decision analysis (MCDA) approach.

Integrating Engineering Data Systems for NASA Spaceflight Projects

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Carvalho, Robert E.; Tollinger, Irene; Bell, David G.; Berrios, Daniel C.

2012-01-01

NASA has a large range of custom-built and commercial data systems to support spaceflight programs. Some of the systems are re-used by many programs and projects over time. Management and systems engineering processes require integration of data across many of these systems, a difficult problem given the widely diverse nature of system interfaces and data models. This paper describes an ongoing project to use a central data model with a web services architecture to support the integration and access of linked data across engineering functions for multiple NASA programs. The work involves the implementation of a web service-based middleware system called Data Aggregator to bring together data from a variety of systems to support space exploration. Data Aggregator includes a central data model registry for storing and managing links between the data in disparate systems. Initially developed for NASA's Constellation Program needs, Data Aggregator is currently being repurposed to support the International Space Station Program and new NASA projects with processes that involve significant aggregating and linking of data. This change in user needs led to development of a more streamlined data model registry for Data Aggregator in order to simplify adding new project application data as well as standardization of the Data Aggregator query syntax to facilitate cross-application querying by client applications. This paper documents the approach from a set of stand-alone engineering systems from which data are manually retrieved and integrated, to a web of engineering data systems from which the latest data are automatically retrieved and more quickly and accurately integrated. This paper includes the lessons learned through these efforts, including the design and development of a service-oriented architecture and the evolution of the data model registry approaches as the effort continues to evolve and adapt to support multiple NASA programs and priorities.

Mapping habitat for multiple species in the Desert Southwest

USGS Publications Warehouse

Inman, Richard D.; Nussear, Kenneth E.; Esque, Todd C.; Vandergast, Amy G.; Hathaway, Stacie A.; Wood, Dustin A.; Barr, Kelly R.; Fisher, Robert N.

2014-01-01

Many utility scale renewable energy projects are currently proposed across the Mojave Ecoregion. Agencies that manage biological resources throughout this region need to understand the potential impacts of these renewable energy projects and their associated infrastructure (for example, transmission corridors, substations, access roads, etc.) on species movement, genetic exchange among populations, and species’ abilities to adapt to changing environmental conditions. Understanding these factors will help managers’ select appropriate project sites and possibly mitigate for anticipated effects of management activities. We used species distribution models to map habitat for 15 species across the Mojave Ecoregion to aid regional land-use management planning. Models were developed using a common 1 × 1 kilometer resolution with maximum entropy and generalized additive models. Occurrence data were compiled from multiple sources, including VertNet (http://vertnet.org/), HerpNET (http://www.herpnet.org), and MaNIS (http://manisnet.org), as well as from internal U.S. Geological Survey databases and other biologists. Background data included 20 environmental covariates representing terrain, vegetation, and climate covariates. This report summarizes these environmental covariates and species distribution models used to predict habitat for the 15 species across the Mojave Ecoregion.

DESIGN AND PROTOTYPE OF A SUSTAINABLE EGG-WASHER

EPA Science Inventory

This project is part of the senior design course for Engineering Science and Mechanics at Virginia Tech. Anticipated results will be a working prototype chosen from multiple designs. We will include test results supporting our selection. We will characterize the stresses ex...

HiveScience: A Citizen Science Project for Beekeepers

EPA Science Inventory

Honey bee health is affected by multiple factors including parasites, disease, poor nutrition, pesticides and agronomic practices. The value of honey bees goes far beyond providing honey; honey bees pollinate 90 commercial crops and add $11.5 billion in value to agricultural cro...

Multicore Education through Simulation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ozturk, O.

2011-01-01

A project-oriented course for advanced undergraduate and graduate students is described for simulating multiple processor cores. Simics, a free simulator for academia, was utilized to enable students to explore computer architecture, operating systems, and hardware/software cosimulation. Motivation for including this course in the curriculum is…

A quality improvement project to reduce the intraoperative use of single-dose fentanyl vials across multiple patients in a pediatric institution.

PubMed

Buck, David; Subramanyam, Rajeev; Varughese, Anna

2016-01-01

The use of a single-dose vial across multiple patients presents a risk to sterility and is against CDC guidelines. We initiated a quality improvement (QI) project to reduce the intraoperative use of single-dose vials of fentanyl across multiple patients at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center (CCHMC). The initial step of the improvement project was the development of a Key Driver Diagram. The diagram has the SMART aim of the project, key drivers inherent to the process we are trying to improve, and specific interventions targeting the key drivers. The number of patients each week receiving an IV dose of fentanyl, from a vial previously accessed for another patient was tracked in a high turnover operating room (OR). The improvement model used was based on the concept of building Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycles. Tests of change included provider education, provision of an increased number of fentanyl vials, alternate wasting processes, and provision of single-use fentanyl syringes by the pharmacy. Prior to initiation of this project, it was common for a single fentanyl vial to be accessed for multiple patients. Our data showed an average percentage of failures of just over 50%. During the end of the project, after 7 months, the mean percentage failures had dropped to 5%. Preparation of 20 mcg single-use fentanyl syringes by pharmacy, combined with education of providers on appropriate use, was successful in reducing failures to below our goal of 25%. Appropriately sized fentanyl syringes prepared by pharmacy, education on correct use of single-dose vials, and reminders in the OR, reduced the percentage of patients receiving a dose of fentanyl from a vial previously accessed for another patient in a high-volume otolaryngology room. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

EpiCollect+: linking smartphones to web applications for complex data collection projects

PubMed Central

Aanensen, David M.; Huntley, Derek M.; Menegazzo, Mirko; Powell, Chris I.; Spratt, Brian G.

2014-01-01

Previously, we have described the development of the generic mobile phone data gathering tool, EpiCollect, and an associated web application, providing two-way communication between multiple data gatherers and a project database. This software only allows data collection on the phone using a single questionnaire form that is tailored to the needs of the user (including a single GPS point and photo per entry), whereas many applications require a more complex structure, allowing users to link a series of forms in a linear or branching hierarchy, along with the addition of any number of media types accessible from smartphones and/or tablet devices (e.g., GPS, photos, videos, sound clips and barcode scanning). A much enhanced version of EpiCollect has been developed (EpiCollect+). The individual data collection forms in EpiCollect+ provide more design complexity than the single form used in EpiCollect, and the software allows the generation of complex data collection projects through the ability to link many forms together in a linear (or branching) hierarchy. Furthermore, EpiCollect+ allows the collection of multiple media types as well as standard text fields, increased data validation and form logic. The entire process of setting up a complex mobile phone data collection project to the specification of a user (project and form definitions) can be undertaken at the EpiCollect+ website using a simple ‘drag and drop’ procedure, with visualisation of the data gathered using Google Maps and charts at the project website. EpiCollect+ is suitable for situations where multiple users transmit complex data by mobile phone (or other Android devices) to a single project web database and is already being used for a range of field projects, particularly public health projects in sub-Saharan Africa. However, many uses can be envisaged from education, ecology and epidemiology to citizen science. PMID:25485096

EpiCollect+: linking smartphones to web applications for complex data collection projects.

PubMed

Aanensen, David M; Huntley, Derek M; Menegazzo, Mirko; Powell, Chris I; Spratt, Brian G

2014-01-01

Previously, we have described the development of the generic mobile phone data gathering tool, EpiCollect, and an associated web application, providing two-way communication between multiple data gatherers and a project database. This software only allows data collection on the phone using a single questionnaire form that is tailored to the needs of the user (including a single GPS point and photo per entry), whereas many applications require a more complex structure, allowing users to link a series of forms in a linear or branching hierarchy, along with the addition of any number of media types accessible from smartphones and/or tablet devices (e.g., GPS, photos, videos, sound clips and barcode scanning). A much enhanced version of EpiCollect has been developed (EpiCollect+). The individual data collection forms in EpiCollect+ provide more design complexity than the single form used in EpiCollect, and the software allows the generation of complex data collection projects through the ability to link many forms together in a linear (or branching) hierarchy. Furthermore, EpiCollect+ allows the collection of multiple media types as well as standard text fields, increased data validation and form logic. The entire process of setting up a complex mobile phone data collection project to the specification of a user (project and form definitions) can be undertaken at the EpiCollect+ website using a simple 'drag and drop' procedure, with visualisation of the data gathered using Google Maps and charts at the project website. EpiCollect+ is suitable for situations where multiple users transmit complex data by mobile phone (or other Android devices) to a single project web database and is already being used for a range of field projects, particularly public health projects in sub-Saharan Africa. However, many uses can be envisaged from education, ecology and epidemiology to citizen science.

Climate Science's Globally Distributed Infrastructure

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Williams, D. N.

2016-12-01

The Earth System Grid Federation (ESGF) is primarily funded by the Department of Energy's (DOE's) Office of Science (the Office of Biological and Environmental Research [BER] Climate Data Informatics Program and the Office of Advanced Scientific Computing Research Next Generation Network for Science Program), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and the National Science Foundation (NSF), the European Infrastructure for the European Network for Earth System Modeling (IS-ENES), and the Australian National University (ANU). Support also comes from other U.S. federal and international agencies. The federation works across multiple worldwide data centers and spans seven international network organizations to provide users with the ability to access, analyze, and visualize data using a globally federated collection of networks, computers, and software. Its architecture employs a series of geographically distributed peer nodes that are independently administered and united by common federation protocols and application programming interfaces (APIs). The full ESGF infrastructure has now been adopted by multiple Earth science projects and allows access to petabytes of geophysical data, including the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP; output used by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change assessment reports), multiple model intercomparison projects (MIPs; endorsed by the World Climate Research Programme [WCRP]), and the Accelerated Climate Modeling for Energy (ACME; ESGF is included in the overarching ACME workflow process to store model output). ESGF is a successful example of integration of disparate open-source technologies into a cohesive functional system that serves the needs the global climate science community. Data served by ESGF includes not only model output but also observational data from satellites and instruments, reanalysis, and generated images.

Prioritizing sewer rehabilitation projects using AHP-PROMETHEE II ranking method.

PubMed

Kessili, Abdelhak; Benmamar, Saadia

2016-01-01

The aim of this paper is to develop a methodology for the prioritization of sewer rehabilitation projects for Algiers (Algeria) sewer networks to support the National Sanitation Office in its challenge to make decisions on prioritization of sewer rehabilitation projects. The methodology applies multiple-criteria decision making. The study includes 47 projects (collectors) and 12 criteria to evaluate them. These criteria represent the different issues considered in the prioritization of the projects, which are structural, hydraulic, environmental, financial, social and technical. The analytic hierarchy process (AHP) is used to determine weights of the criteria and the Preference Ranking Organization Method for Enrichment Evaluations (PROMETHEE II) method is used to obtain the final ranking of the projects. The model was verified using the sewer data of Algiers. The results have shown that the method can be used for prioritizing sewer rehabilitation projects.

Apparatus and method for variable angle slant hole collimator

DOEpatents

Lee, Seung Joon; Kross, Brian J.; McKisson, John E.

2017-07-18

A variable angle slant hole (VASH) collimator for providing collimation of high energy photons such as gamma rays during radiological imaging of humans. The VASH collimator includes a stack of multiple collimator leaves and a means of quickly aligning each leaf to provide various projection angles. Rather than rotate the detector around the subject, the VASH collimator enables the detector to remain stationary while the projection angle of the collimator is varied for tomographic acquisition. High collimator efficiency is achieved by maintaining the leaves in accurate alignment through the various projection angles. Individual leaves include unique angled cuts to maintain a precise target collimation angle. Matching wedge blocks driven by two actuators with twin-lead screws accurately position each leaf in the stack resulting in the precise target collimation angle. A computer interface with the actuators enables precise control of the projection angle of the collimator.

Studies in Teaching: 2005 Research Digest. Research Projects Presented at Annual Research Forum (Winston-Salem, North Carolina, December 7, 2005)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McCoy, Leah P., Ed.

2005-01-01

These Proceedings document an educational research forum held at Wake Forest University (Winston-Salem, North Carolina) on December 7, 2005. Table of contents and 26 research studies of high school teaching are included. Studies include: (1) Mathematical Reasoning in Multiple Representations: Connections and Confidence (Justin Allman); (2) The…

The Water Erosion Prediction Project (WEPP) model for saturation excess conditions: application to an agricultural and a forested watershed.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crabtree, B.; Brooks, E.; Ostrowski, K.; Elliot, W. J.; Boll, J.

2006-12-01

We incorporated saturation excess overland flow processes in the Water Erosion Prediction Project (WEPP) model for the evaluation of human disturbances in watersheds. In this presentation, we present results of the modified WEPP model to two watersheds: an agricultural watershed with mixed land use, and a forested watershed. The agricultural watershed is Paradise Creek, an intensively monitored watershed with continuous climate, flow and sediment data collection at multiple locations. Restoration efforts in Paradise Creek watershed include changing to minimal tillage or no-tillage sytems, and implementation of structural practices. The forested watershed is the 28 km2 Mica Creek Experimental Watershed (MCEW) where disturbances include clear and partial cutting, and road building. The MCEW has a nested study design, which allows for the analysis of cumulative effects as well as the traditional comparison of treatment versus control. Mica Creek watershed is a high elevation watershed where streamflow is generated mostly by snowmelt. Treatments include road building in 1997, and clearcut and partial-cut logging in 2001. Our results include the simulation of streamflow and sediment delivery at multiple locations within each watershed, and evaluation of the human disturbances.

The Impact of Project ECHO on Participant and Patient Outcomes: A Systematic Review.

PubMed

Zhou, Carrol; Crawford, Allison; Serhal, Eva; Kurdyak, Paul; Sockalingam, Sanjeev

2016-10-01

Project Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes (ECHO) uses tele-education to bridge knowledge gaps between specialists at academic health centers and primary care providers from remote areas. It has been implemented to address multiple medical conditions. The authors examined evidence of the impact of all Project ECHO programs on participant and patient outcomes. The authors searched PubMed, MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, and ProQuest from January 2000 to August 2015 and the reference lists of identified reviews. Included studies were limited to those published in English, peer-reviewed articles or indexed abstracts, and those that primarily focused on Project ECHO. Editorials, commentaries, gray literature, and non-peer-reviewed articles were excluded. The authors used Moore's evaluation framework to organize study outcomes for quality assessment. The authors identified 39 studies describing Project ECHO's involvement in addressing 17 medical conditions. Evaluations of Project ECHO programs generally were limited to outcomes from Levels 1 (number of participants) to 4 (providers' competence) of Moore's framework (n = 22 studies, with some containing data from multiple levels). Studies also suggested that Project ECHO changed provider behavior (n = 1), changed patient outcomes (n = 6), and can be cost-effective (n = 2). Project ECHO is an effective and potentially cost-saving model that increases participant knowledge and patient access to health care in remote locations, but further research examining its efficacy is needed. Identifying and addressing potential barriers to Project ECHO's implementation will support the dissemination of this model as an education and practice improvement initiative.

Hardware Implementation of Multiple Fan Beam Projection Technique in Optical Fibre Process Tomography

PubMed Central

Rahim, Ruzairi Abdul; Fazalul Rahiman, Mohd Hafiz; Leong, Lai Chen; Chan, Kok San; Pang, Jon Fea

2008-01-01

The main objective of this project is to implement the multiple fan beam projection technique using optical fibre sensors with the aim to achieve a high data acquisition rate. Multiple fan beam projection technique here is defined as allowing more than one emitter to transmit light at the same time using the switch-mode fan beam method. For the thirty-two pairs of sensors used, the 2-projection technique and 4-projection technique are being investigated. Sixteen sets of projections will complete one frame of light emission for the 2-projection technique while eight sets of projection will complete one frame of light emission for the 4-projection technique. In order to facilitate data acquisition process, PIC microcontroller and the sample and hold circuit are being used. This paper summarizes the hardware configuration and design for this project. PMID:27879885

WV R-EMAP STUDY: MULTIPLE-OBJECTIVE SAMPLING DESIGN FRAMEWORK

EPA Science Inventory

A multi-objective sampling design has been implemented through Regional Monitoring and Assessment Program (R-EMAP) support of a cooperative agreement with the state of West Virginia. Goals of the project include: 1) development and testing of a temperature-adjusted fish IBI for t...

CHALLENGES OF PROCESSING BIOLOGICAL DATA FOR INCORPORATION INTO A LAKE EUTROPHICATION MODEL

EPA Science Inventory

A eutrophication model is in development as part of the Lake Michigan Mass Balance Project (LMMBP). Successful development and calibration of this model required the processing and incorporation of extensive biological data. Data were drawn from multiple sources, including nutrie...

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

Agalgaonkar, Yashodhan P.; Hammerstrom, Donald J.

The Pacific Northwest Smart Grid Demonstration (PNWSGD) was a smart grid technology performance evaluation project that included multiple U.S. states and cooperation from multiple electric utilities in the northwest region. One of the local objectives for the project was to achieve improved distribution system reliability. Toward this end, some PNWSGD utilities automated their distribution systems, including the application of fault detection, isolation, and restoration and advanced metering infrastructure. In light of this investment, a major challenge was to establish a correlation between implementation of these smart grid technologies and actual improvements of distribution system reliability. This paper proposes using Welch’smore » t-test to objectively determine and quantify whether distribution system reliability is improving over time. The proposed methodology is generic, and it can be implemented by any utility after calculation of the standard reliability indices. The effectiveness of the proposed hypothesis testing approach is demonstrated through comprehensive practical results. It is believed that wider adoption of the proposed approach can help utilities to evaluate a realistic long-term performance of smart grid technologies.« less

A VLT/NACO survey for triple and quadruple systems among visual pre-main sequence binaries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Correia, S.; Zinnecker, H.; Ratzka, Th.; Sterzik, M. F.

2006-12-01

Aims.This paper describes a systematic search for high-order multiplicity among wide visual Pre-Main Sequence (PMS) binaries. Methods: .We conducted an Adaptive Optics survey of a sample of 58 PMS wide binaries from various star-forming regions, which include 52 T Tauri systems with mostly K- and M-type primaries, with the NIR instrument NACO at the VLT. Results: .Of these 52 systems, 7 are found to be triple (2 new) and 7 quadruple (1 new). The new close companions are most likely physically bound based on their probability of chance projection and, for some of them, on their position on a color-color diagram. The corresponding degree of multiplicity among wide binaries (number of triples and quadruples divided by the number of systems) is 26.9 ± 7.2% in the projected separation range ~0.07 arcsec -12'', with the largest contribution from the Taurus-Auriga cloud. We also found that this degree of multiplicity is twice in Taurus compared to Ophiuchus and Chamaeleon for which the same number of sources are present in our sample. Considering a restricted sample composed of systems at distance 140-190 pc, the degree of multiplicity is 26.8 ± 8.1%, in the separation range 10/14 AU-1700/2300 AU (30 binaries, 5 triples, 6 quadruples). The observed frequency agrees with results from previous multiplicity surveys within the uncertainties, although a significant overabundance of quadruple systems compared to triple systems is apparent. Tentatively including the spectroscopic pairs in our restricted sample and comparing the multiplicity fractions to those measured for solar-type main-sequence stars in the solar neighborhood leads to the conclusion that both the ratio of triples to binaries and the ratio of quadruples to triples seems to be in excess among young stars. Most of the current numerical simulations of multiple star formation, and especially smoothed particles hydrodynamics simulations, over-predict the fraction of high-order multiplicity when compared to our results. The circumstellar properties around the individual components of our high-order multiple systems tend to favor mixed systems (i.e. systems including components of wTTS and cTTS type), which is in general agreement with previous studies of disks in binaries, with the exception of Taurus, where we find a preponderance of similar type of components among the multiples studied.

Success in large high-technology projects: What really works?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crosby, P.

2014-08-01

Despite a plethora of tools, technologies and management systems, successful execution of big science and engineering projects remains problematic. The sheer scale of globally funded projects such as the Large Hadron Collider and the Square Kilometre Array telescope means that lack of project success can impact both on national budgets, and collaborative reputations. In this paper, I explore data from contemporary literature alongside field research from several current high-technology projects in Europe and Australia, and reveal common `pressure points' that are shown to be key influencers of project control and success. I discuss the how mega-science projects sit between being merely complicated, and chaotic, and explain the importance of understanding multiple dimensions of project complexity. Project manager/leader traits are briefly discussed, including capability to govern and control such enterprises. Project structures are examined, including the challenge of collaborations. I show that early attention to building project resilience, curbing optimism, and risk alertness can help prepare large high-tech projects against threats, and why project managers need to understand aspects of `the silent power of time'. Mission assurance is advanced as a critical success function, alongside the deployment of task forces and new combinations of contingency plans. I argue for increased project control through industrial-style project reviews, and show how post-project reviews are an under-used, yet invaluable avenue of personal and organisational improvement. Lastly, I discuss the avoidance of project amnesia through effective capture of project knowledge, and transfer of lessons-learned to subsequent programs and projects.

A new cognitive rehabilitation programme for patients with multiple sclerosis: the 'MS-line! Project'.

PubMed

Gich, Jordi; Freixenet, Jordi; Garcia, Rafael; Vilanova, Joan Carles; Genís, David; Silva, Yolanda; Montalban, Xavier; Ramió-Torrentà, Lluís

2015-09-01

Cognitive rehabilitation is often delayed in multiple sclerosis (MS). To develop a free and specific cognitive rehabilitation programme for MS patients to be used from early stages that does not interfere with daily living activities. MS-line!, cognitive rehabilitation materials consisting of written, manipulative and computer-based materials with difficulty levels developed by a multidisciplinary team. Mathematical, problem-solving and word-based exercises were designed. Physical materials included spatial, coordination and reasoning games. Computer-based material included logic and reasoning, working memory and processing speed games. Cognitive rehabilitation exercises that are specific for MS patients have been successfully developed. © The Author(s), 2014.

Full Duplex, Spread Spectrum Radio System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Harvey, Bruce A.

2000-01-01

The goal of this project was to support the development of a full duplex, spread spectrum voice communications system. The assembly and testing of a prototype system consisting of a Harris PRISM spread spectrum radio, a TMS320C54x signal processing development board and a Zilog Z80180 microprocessor was underway at the start of this project. The efforts under this project were the development of multiple access schemes, analysis of full duplex voice feedback delays, and the development and analysis of forward error correction (FEC) algorithms. The multiple access analysis involved the selection between code division multiple access (CDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA) and time division multiple access (TDMA). Full duplex voice feedback analysis involved the analysis of packet size and delays associated with full loop voice feedback for confirmation of radio system performance. FEC analysis included studies of the performance under the expected burst error scenario with the relatively short packet lengths, and analysis of implementation in the TMS320C54x digital signal processor. When the capabilities and the limitations of the components used were considered, the multiple access scheme chosen was a combination TDMA/FDMA scheme that will provide up to eight users on each of three separate frequencies. Packets to and from each user will consist of 16 samples at a rate of 8,000 samples per second for a total of 2 ms of voice information. The resulting voice feedback delay will therefore be 4 - 6 ms. The most practical FEC algorithm for implementation was a convolutional code with a Viterbi decoder. Interleaving of the bits of each packet will be required to offset the effects of burst errors.

More robust regional precipitation projection from selected CMIP5 models based on multiple-dimensional metrics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qian, Y.; Wang, L.; Leung, L. R.; Lin, G.; Lu, J.; Gao, Y.; Zhang, Y.

2017-12-01

Projecting precipitation changes is challenging because of incomplete understanding of the climate system and biases and uncertainty in climate models. In East Asia where summer precipitation is dominantly influenced by the monsoon circulation and the global models from Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5), however, give various projection of precipitation change for 21th century. It is critical for community to know which models' projection are more reliable in response to natural and anthropogenic forcings. In this study we defined multiple-dimensional metrics, measuring the model performance in simulating the present-day of large-scale circulation, regional precipitation and relationship between them. The large-scale circulation features examined in this study include the lower tropospheric southwesterly winds, the western North Pacific subtropical high, the South China Sea Subtropical High, and the East Asian westerly jet in the upper troposphere. Each of these circulation features transport moisture to East Asia, enhancing the moist static energy and strengthening the Meiyu moisture front that is the primary mechanism for precipitation generation in eastern China. Based on these metrics, 30 models in CMIP5 ensemble are classified into three groups. Models in the top performing group projected regional precipitation patterns that are more similar to each other than the bottom or middle performing group and consistently projected statistically significant increasing trends in two of the large-scale circulation indices and precipitation. In contrast, models in the bottom or middle performing group projected small drying or no trends in precipitation. We also find the models that only reasonably reproduce the observed precipitation climatology does not guarantee more reliable projection of future precipitation because good simulation skill could be achieved through compensating errors from multiple sources. Herein the potential for more robust projections of precipitation changes at regional scale is demonstrated through the use of discriminating metric to subsample the multi-model ensemble. The results from this study provides insights for how to select models from CMIP ensemble to project regional climate and hydrological cycle changes.

Use of NASA Satellite Data in Aiding Mississippi Barrier Island Restoration Projects

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Giardino, Marco; Spruce, Joseph; Kalcic, Maria; Fletcher, Rose

2009-01-01

This presentation discusses a NASA Stennis Space Center project in which NASA-supported satellite and aerial data is being used to aid state and federal agencies in restoring the Mississippi barrier islands. Led by the Applied Science and Technology Project Office (ASTPO), this project will produce geospatial information products from multiple NASA-supported data sources, including Landsat, ASTER, and MODIS satellite data as well as ATLAS multispectral, CAMS multispectral, AVIRIS hyperspectral, EAARL, and other aerial data. Project objectives include the development and testing of a regional sediment transport model and the monitoring of barrier island restoration efforts through remote sensing. Barrier islands provide invaluable benefits to the State of Mississippi, including buffering the mainland from storm surge impacts, providing habitats for valuable wildlife and fisheries habitat, offering accessible recreational opportunities, and preserving natural environments for educating the public about coastal ecosystems and cultural resources. Unfortunately, these highly valued natural areas are prone to damage from hurricanes. For example, Hurricane Camille in 1969 split Ship Island into East and West Ship Island. Hurricane Georges in 1998 caused additional land loss for the two Ship Islands. More recently, Hurricanes Ivan, Katrina, Rita, Gustav, and Ike impacted the Mississippi barrier islands. In particular, Hurricane Katrina caused major damage to island vegetation and landforms, killing island forest overstories, overwashing entire islands, and causing widespread erosion. In response, multiple state and federal agencies are working to restore damaged components of these barrier islands. Much of this work is being implemented through federally funded Coastal Impact Assessment and Mississippi Coastal Improvement programs. One restoration component involves the reestablishment of the island footprints to that in 1969. Our project will employ NASA remote sensing data and products to support these federally funded efforts on multiple fronts. Landsat and ASTER data is being analyzed to assess changes in barrier island land cover over the last 35 years. ASTER, SRTM, and EAARL terrain products and other NASA airborne imagery are being applied in assessing changes in barrier island geomorphology and geospatial extent. MODIS data is being examined as a tool for sediment transport modeling by supplying geospatial data that quantifies in-water sediment concentrations. MODIS satellite data is being assessed for monitoring changes in the spatial extent of individual barrier islands. Results thus far indicate that NASA data products are useful in assessing barrier island conditions and changes. This value is enhanced with additional historical geospatial data, commercial high resolution satellite data, other non-NASA aerial imagery, and field survey data. The project s products are relevant to the Gulf of Mexico Alliance priority issues, including coastal habitat conservation, restoration and coastal community resilience. Such products will be available to state and federal agencies involved with coastal restoration. Potential end-users of these products include the National Park Service, U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Environmental Protection Agency, Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality, and Mississippi Department of Marine Resources.

Toward Improved CFD Predictions of Slender Airframe Aerodynamics Using the F-16XL Aircraft (CAWAPI-2)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Luckring, James M.; Rizzi, Arthur; Davis, M. Bruce

2014-01-01

A coordinated project has been underway to improve CFD predictions of slender airframe aerodynamics. The work is focused on two flow conditions and leverages a unique flight data set obtained with an F-16XL aircraft. These conditions, a low-speed high angleof- attack case and a transonic low angle-of-attack case, were selected from a prior prediction campaign wherein the CFD failed to provide acceptable results. In this paper the background, objectives and approach to the current project are presented. The work embodies predictions from multiple numerical formulations that are contributed from multiple organizations, and the context of this campaign to other multi-code, multiorganizational efforts is included. The relevance of this body of work toward future supersonic commercial transport concepts is also briefly addressed.

Multiple piece turbine rotor blade

DOEpatents

Jones, Russell B; Fedock, John A

2013-05-21

A multiple piece turbine rotor blade with a shell having an airfoil shape and secured between a spar and a platform with the spar including a tip end piece. a snap ring fits around the spar and abuts against the spar tip end piece on a top side and abuts against a shell on the bottom side so that the centrifugal loads from the shell is passed through the snap ring and into the spar and not through a tip cap dovetail slot and projection structure.

Audiovisual Fundamentals; Basic Equipment Operation and Simple Materials Production.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bullard, John R.; Mether, Calvin E.

A guide illustrated with simple sketches explains the functions and step-by-step uses of audiovisual (AV) equipment. Principles of projection, audio, AV equipment, lettering, limited-quantity and quantity duplication, and materials preservation are outlined. Apparatus discussed include overhead, opaque, slide-filmstrip, and multiple-loading slide…

Combining Formal, Non-Formal and Informal Learning for Workforce Skill Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Misko, Josie

2008-01-01

This literature review, undertaken for Australian Industry Group, shows how multiple variations and combinations of formal, informal and non-formal learning, accompanied by various government incentives and organisational initiatives (including job redesign, cross-skilling, multi-skilling, diversified career pathways, action learning projects,…

Managing Headship Transitions in U.S. Independent Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kane, Pearl Rock; Barbaro, Justin

2016-01-01

Headship transitions in U.S. independent schools represent critical organizational events that affect multiple school constituencies, including faculty, staff, and students. With recent projections forecasting a high level of impending headship transitions in independent schools, this paper seeks to capture how second-year U.S. independent school…

76 FR 8371 - Notice Correction; Generic Submission of Technology Transfer Center (TTC) External Customer...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-02-14

... Submission of Technology Transfer Center (TTC) External Customer Satisfaction Surveys (NCI) The Federal... project titled, ``Technology Transfer Center (TTC) External Customer Satisfaction Survey (NCI)'' was... will include multiple customer satisfaction surveys over the course of three years. At this time, only...

Report: Multiple Actions Taken to Address Electronic Waste, But EPA Needs to Provide Clear National Direction

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Report #2004-P-00028, September 1, 2004. EPA’s Office of Solid Waste (OSW) has implemented or participated in many recent projects that have enhanced the general awareness of E-waste issues and included a wide range of stakeholders.

Chapter 14: Chiller Evaluation Protocol. The Uniform Methods Project: Methods for Determining Energy Efficiency Savings for Specific Measures

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

Kurnik, Charles W; Tiessen, Alex

This protocol defines a chiller measure as a project that directly impacts equipment within the boundary of a chiller plant. A chiller plant encompasses a chiller - or multiple chillers - and associated auxiliary equipment. This protocol primarily covers electric-driven chillers and chiller plants. It does not include thermal energy storage and absorption chillers fired by natural gas or steam, although a similar methodology may be applicable to these chilled water system components.

Research in Computational Astrobiology

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chaban, Galina; Colombano, Silvano; Scargle, Jeff; New, Michael H.; Pohorille, Andrew; Wilson, Michael A.

2003-01-01

We report on several projects in the field of computational astrobiology, which is devoted to advancing our understanding of the origin, evolution and distribution of life in the Universe using theoretical and computational tools. Research projects included modifying existing computer simulation codes to use efficient, multiple time step algorithms, statistical methods for analysis of astrophysical data via optimal partitioning methods, electronic structure calculations on water-nuclei acid complexes, incorporation of structural information into genomic sequence analysis methods and calculations of shock-induced formation of polycylic aromatic hydrocarbon compounds.

FY04 Advanced Life Support Architecture and Technology Studies: Mid-Year Presentation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lange, Kevin; Anderson, Molly; Duffield, Bruce; Hanford, Tony; Jeng, Frank

2004-01-01

Long-Term Objective: Identify optimal advanced life support system designs that meet existing and projected requirements for future human spaceflight missions. a) Include failure-tolerance, reliability, and safe-haven requirements. b) Compare designs based on multiple criteria including equivalent system mass (ESM), technology readiness level (TRL), simplicity, commonality, etc. c) Develop and evaluate new, more optimal, architecture concepts and technology applications.

Making grandma's data secure: a security architecture for home telemedicine.

PubMed Central

Starren, J.; Sengupta, S.; Hripcsak, G.; Ring, G.; Klerer, R.; Shea, S.

2001-01-01

Home telemedicine presents special challenges for data security and privacy. Experience in the Informatics for Diabetes Education And Telemedicine (IDEATel) project has demonstrated that data security is not a one-size-fits-all problem. The IDEATel users include elderly patients in their homes, nurse case managers, physicians, and researchers. The project supports multiple computer systems that require a variety of user interactions, including: data entry, data review, patient education, videoconferencing, and electronic monitoring. To meet these various needs, a number of different of security solutions were utilized, including: UserID/Password, PKI certificates, time-based tokens, IP filtering, VPNs, symmetric and asymmetric encryption schemes, firewalls and dedicated connections. These were combined in different ways to meet the needs of each user groups. PMID:11825267

Implementing the Patient-Centered Medical Home: Observation and Description of the National Demonstration Project

PubMed Central

Stewart, Elizabeth E.; Nutting, Paul A.; Crabtree, Benjamin F.; Stange, Kurt C.; Miller, William L.; Jaén, Carlos Roberto

2010-01-01

PURPOSE We provide an overall description of the National Demonstration Project (NDP) intervention to transform family practices into patient-centered medical homes. METHODS An independent evaluation team used multiple data sources and methods to describe the design and implementation of the NDP. These included direct observation of the implementation team and project meetings, site visits to practices, depth interviews with practice members and implementation team members, access to practice communications (eg, telephone calls, e-mails), and public domain materials (eg, the NDP Web site). RESULTS The American Academy of Family Physicians created a new division called TransforMED, which launched the 24-month NDP in June 2006. From 337 family medicine practices completing an extensive online application, 36 were selected and randomized to a facilitated group, which received tailored, intensive assistance and services from TransforMED, or a self-directed group, which received very limited assistance. Three facilitators from diverse backgrounds in finance, practice management, and organizational psychology used multiple practice change strategies including site visits, e-mails, metrics, and learning sessions. The self-directed practices worked primarily on their own, but self-organized a retreat midway through the project. The intervention model for the project evolved to be consistent with the emerging national consensus principles of the patient-centered medical home. The independent evaluation team studied the NDP and provided ongoing feedback to inform the implementation process. CONCLUSIONS The NDP illustrates that complex practice change interventions must combine flexibility in the intervention model, implementation strategy, and the evaluation, in order to maximize ongoing learning. PMID:20530392

Implementing the patient-centered medical home: observation and description of the national demonstration project.

PubMed

Stewart, Elizabeth E; Nutting, Paul A; Crabtree, Benjamin F; Stange, Kurt C; Miller, William L; Jaén, Carlos Roberto

2010-01-01

We provide an overall description of the National Demonstration Project (NDP) intervention to transform family practices into patient-centered medical homes. An independent evaluation team used multiple data sources and methods to describe the design and implementation of the NDP. These included direct observation of the implementation team and project meetings, site visits to practices, depth interviews with practice members and implementation team members, access to practice communications (eg, telephone calls, e-mails), and public domain materials (eg, the NDP Web site). The American Academy of Family Physicians created a new division called TransforMED, which launched the 24-month NDP in June 2006. From 337 family medicine practices completing an extensive online application, 36 were selected and randomized to a facilitated group, which received tailored, intensive assistance and services from TransforMED, or a self-directed group, which received very limited assistance. Three facilitators from diverse backgrounds in finance, practice management, and organizational psychology used multiple practice change strategies including site visits, e-mails, metrics, and learning sessions. The self-directed practices worked primarily on their own, but self-organized a retreat midway through the project. The intervention model for the project evolved to be consistent with the emerging national consensus principles of the patient-centered medical home. The independent evaluation team studied the NDP and provided ongoing feedback to inform the implementation process. The NDP illustrates that complex practice change interventions must combine flexibility in the intervention model, implementation strategy, and the evaluation, in order to maximize ongoing learning.

[HIV prevention program for young people--the WYSH Project as a model of "combination prevention"].

PubMed

Ono-Kihara, Masako

2010-03-01

In face of the HIV pandemic that still grows, unsuccessful efforts of developing biomedical control measures or the failure of cognitive-behavioral approach to show sustained social level effectiveness, behavioral strategy is now expected to evolve into a structural prevention ("combination prevention") that involves multiple behavioral goals and multilevel approaches. WYSH Project is a combination prevention project for youth developed through socio-epidemiological approach that integrates epidemiology with social science such as social marketing and mixed method. WYSH Project includes mass education programs for youth in schools and programs for out-of-school youth through cyber network and peer communication. Started in 2002, it expanded nationwide with supports from related ministries and parent-teacher associations and has grown into a single largest youth prevention project in Japan.

Multi-pinhole SPECT Imaging with Silicon Strip Detectors

PubMed Central

Peterson, Todd E.; Shokouhi, Sepideh; Furenlid, Lars R.; Wilson, Donald W.

2010-01-01

Silicon double-sided strip detectors offer outstanding instrinsic spatial resolution with reasonable detection efficiency for iodine-125 emissions. This spatial resolution allows for multiple-pinhole imaging at low magnification, minimizing the problem of multiplexing. We have conducted imaging studies using a prototype system that utilizes a detector of 300-micrometer thickness and 50-micrometer strip pitch together with a 23-pinhole collimator. These studies include an investigation of the synthetic-collimator imaging approach, which combines multiple-pinhole projections acquired at multiple magnifications to obtain tomographic reconstructions from limited-angle data using the ML-EM algorithm. Sub-millimeter spatial resolution was obtained, demonstrating the basic validity of this approach. PMID:20953300

Synopsis of Past Stimulation Methods in Enhanced (Engineered) Geothermal Systems, Boreholes, and Existing Hydrothermal Systems with Success Analysis and Recommendations for Future Projects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Broadhurst, T.; Mattson, E.

2017-12-01

Enhanced geothermal systems (EGS) are gaining in popularity as a technology that can be used to increase areas for geothermal resource procurement. One of the most important factors in the success of an EGS system is the success of the subsurface reservoir that is used for fluid flow and heat mining through advection. There are numerous challenges in stimulating a successful reservoir, including maintaining flow rates, minimizing leak off, preventing short-circuiting, and reducing the risk of microseismicity associated with subsurface activity. Understanding past examples of stimulation can be invaluable in addressing these challenges. This study provides an overview of stimulation methods that have been employed in EGS systems from 1974-2017. We include all geothermal reservoirs and demonstration projects that have experienced hydrofracturing, chemical stimulation, and induced thermal stress for a comprehensive list. We also examine different metrics and measures of success in geothermal reservoir stimulation to draw conclusions and provide recommendations for future projects. Multiple project characteristics are reported including geologic setting, stress conditions, reservoir temperature, injection specifics, resulting microseismicity, and overall project goals. Insight into optimal and unproductive stimulation methods is crucial to conserving mental capital, utilizing project funding, and ensuring EGS technology advances as efficiently as possible.

Groundwater-quality data associated with abandoned underground coal mine aquifers in West Virginia, 1973-2016: Compilation of existing data from multiple sources

USGS Publications Warehouse

McAdoo, Mitchell A.; Kozar, Mark D.

2017-11-14

This report describes a compilation of existing water-quality data associated with groundwater resources originating from abandoned underground coal mines in West Virginia. Data were compiled from multiple sources for the purpose of understanding the suitability of groundwater from abandoned underground coal mines for public supply, industrial, agricultural, and other uses. This compilation includes data collected for multiple individual studies conducted from July 13, 1973 through September 7, 2016. Analytical methods varied by the time period of data collection and requirements of the independent studies.This project identified 770 water-quality samples from 294 sites that could be attributed to abandoned underground coal mine aquifers originating from multiple coal seams in West Virginia.

Citizen Science: Data Sharing For, By, and With the Public

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wiggins, A.

2017-12-01

Data sharing in citizen science is just as challenging as it is for any other type of science, except that there are more parties involved, with more diverse needs and interests. This talk provides an overview of the challenges and current efforts to advance data sharing in citizen science, and suggests refocusing data management activities on supporting the needs of multiple audiences. Early work on data sharing in citizen science advocated applying the standards and practices of academia, which can only address the needs of one of several audiences for citizen science data, and academics are not always the primary audience. Practitioners still need guidance on how to better share data other key parties, such as participants and policymakers, and which data management practices to prioritize for addressing the needs of multiple audiences. The benefits to the project of investing scarce resources into data products and dissemination strategies for each target audience still remain variable, unclear, or unpredictable. And as projects mature and change, the importance of data sharing activities and audiences are likely to change as well. This combination of multiple diverse audiences, shifting priorities, limited resources, and unclear benefits creates a perfect storm of conditions to suppress data sharing. Nonetheless, many citizen science projects make the effort, with exemplars showing substantial returns on data stewardship investments, and international initiatives are underway to bolster the data sharing capacity of the field. To improve the state of data sharing in citizen science, strategic use of limited resources suggests prioritizing data management activities that support the needs of multiple audiences. These may include better transparency about data access and usage, and standardized reporting of broader impacts from secondary data users, to both reward projects and incentivize further data sharing.

Team Leader: Tom Peters--TAP Information Services

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Library Journal, 2005

2005-01-01

Tom Peters packs 36 hours of work into the confines of a 24-hour day. Without breaking a sweat, he juggles multiple collaborative projects, which currently include an Illinois academic library shared storage facility; a multistate virtual reference and instruction service for blind and visually impaired individuals (InfoEyes); a virtual meeting…

CFRP Renewal of Prestressed Concrete Cylinder Pipe (WaterRF Report 4352)

EPA Science Inventory

The project completed and reported on multiple tasks, including: Review literature and data on degradation of CFRP to determine the material adjustment and time effect factors that should be used in design of CFRP liners for design lives of five and fifty years; Review literatu...

78 FR 54873 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for Multiple Projects in Support of...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-09-06

... standards, life safety, sustainability, and energy efficiency, and Anti-Terrorism and Force Protection (AT.../FP and life safety standards, improve space utilization, and meet sustainability goals. The... public services for DC residents, to include public housing, education, or public recreation services...

Investigation of Macrophage Differentiation and Cytokine Production in an Undergraduate Immunology Laboratory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berkes, Charlotte; Chan, Leo Li-Ying

2015-01-01

We have developed a semester-long laboratory project for an undergraduate immunology course in which students study multiple aspects of macrophage biology including differentiation from progenitors in the bone marrow, activation upon stimulation with microbial ligands, expression of cell surface markers, and modulation of cytokine production. In…

Elevating the Importance of Teaching. National Project III. Final Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Owens, Richard E.

An in-depth study was conducted of instructional improvement activities at Kansas State University, including a student evaluation instrument of teacher performance, called Instructional Development and Effectiveness Assessment (IDEA). Faculty reactions to the total evaluation system, the use of results for multiple purposes, and the current…

Online Testing: The Dog Sat on My Keyboard.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

White, Jacci

This paper will highlight some advantages and disadvantages of several online models for student assessment. These models will include: live exams, multiple choice tests, essay exams, and student projects. In addition, real student responses and "problems" will be used as prompts to improve models of authentic online assessment in mathematics.…

Runoff and sediment reduction from integration of native prairie filter strips into row-crop agriculture

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Agroecosystems provide multiple benefits including food, fiber, fuel, clean water and air, habitat, carbon sequestration, recreation, and aesthetics. But most agricultural landscapes are managed for only a few of these benefits. This project aimed to evaluate how the integration of diverse perennial...

The Language Question: Considering Three Somali American Students with Autism

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baker, Diana

2017-01-01

Little research addresses the experiences of students with autism living in multilingual families. This multiple case study project examines the language-development-related knowledge and beliefs of paired mothers and educators of three Somali American boys with autism. Data include serial interviews, observations, and analysis of educational…

76 FR 13137 - Equity Assistance Centers Program; Office of Elementary and Secondary Education; Overview...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-03-10

... uses multiple measures, that, in the case of teachers, may include observations for determining teacher...) training designed to improve the ability of teachers, supervisors, counselors, parents, community members... Effectiveness and Distribution of Effective Teachers or Principals. Projects that are designed to address the...

Multiple Learning Strategies Project. Medical Assistant. [Regular Vocational. Vol. 1.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Varney, Beverly; And Others

This instructional package, one of four designed for regular vocational students, focuses on the vocational area of medical assistant. Contained in this document are twenty-six learning modules organized into three units: language; receptioning; and asepsis. Each module includes these elements: a performance objective page telling what will be…

Multiple Learning Strategies Project. Medical Assistant. [Regular Vocational. Vol. 3.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Varney, Beverly; And Others

This instructional package, one of four designed for regular vocational students, focuses on the vocational area of medical assistant. Contained in this document are forty learning modules organized into four units: office surgery; telephoning; bandaging; and medications and treatments. Each module includes these elements: a performance objective…

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

Chaubey, Indrajeet; Cibin, Raj; Bowling, Laura

The overall goal of this project was to conduct a watershed-scale sustainability assessment of multiple species of energy crops and removal of crop residues within two watersheds (Wildcat Creek, and St. Joseph River) representative of conditions in the Upper Midwest. The sustainability assessment included bioenergy feedstock production impacts on environmental quality, economic costs of production, and ecosystem services.

Building the School Nutrition Program Brand Personality within the School Setting

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rushing, Keith; Asperin, Amelia Estepa

2012-01-01

Purpose/Objectives: The objectives of this project were to investigate the application of brand personality concepts in the school nutrition (SN) setting and to explore high school students' awareness and acceptance of these branding initiatives. Methods: An embedded, multiple-case replication design included structured interviews with SN…

Research for Improved Health: Variability and Impact of Structural Characteristics in Federally Funded Community Engaged Research

PubMed Central

Pearson, Cythina R.; Duran, Bonnie; Oetzel, John; Margarati, Maya; Villegas, Malia; Lucero, Julie; Wallerstein, Nina

2016-01-01

Background Although there is strong scientific, policy, and community support for community-engaged research (CEnR)—including community-based participatory research (CBPR)—the science of CEnR is still developing. Objective To describe structural differences in federally funded CEnR projects by type of research (i.e., descriptive, intervention, or dissemination/policy change) and race/ethnicity of the population served. Methods We identified 333 federally funded projects in 2009 that potentially involved CEnR, 294 principal investigators/project directors (PI/PD) were eligible to participate in a key informant (KI) survey from late 2011 to early 2012 that asked about partnership structure (68% response rate). Results The National Institute on Minority Health & Health Disparities (19.1%), National Cancer Institute (NCI; 13.3%), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC; 12.6%) funded the most CEnR projects. Most were intervention projects (66.0%). Projects serving American Indian or Alaskan Native (AIAN) populations (compared with other community of color or multiple-race/unspecified) were likely to be descriptive projects (p < .01), receive less funding (p < .05), and have higher rates of written partnership agreements (p < .05), research integrity training (p < .05), approval of publications (p < .01), and data ownership (p < .01). AIAN-serving projects also reported similar rates of research productivity and greater levels of resource sharing compared with those serving multiple-race/unspecified groups. Conclusions There is clear variability in the structure of CEnR projects with future research needed to determine the impact of this variability on partnering processes and outcomes. In addition, projects in AIAN communities receive lower levels of funding yet still have comparable research productivity to those projects in other racial/ethnic communities. PMID:25981421

Multiple Intelligences Theory, Action Research, and Teacher Professional Development: The Irish MI Project

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hanafin, Joan

2014-01-01

This paper presents findings from an action research project that investigated the application of Multiple Intelligences (MI) theory in classrooms and schools. It shows how MI theory was used in the project as a basis for suggestions to generate classroom practices; how participating teachers evaluated the project; and how teachers responded to…

Agile Task Tracking Tool

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

Duke, Roger T.; Crump, Thomas Vu

The work was created to provide a tool for the purpose of improving the management of tasks associated with Agile projects. Agile projects are typically completed in an iterative manner with many short duration tasks being performed as part of iterations. These iterations are generally referred to as sprints. The objective of this work is to create a single tool that enables sprint teams to manage all of their tasks in multiple sprints and automatically produce all standard sprint performance charts with minimum effort. The format of the printed work is designed to mimic a standard Kanban board. The workmore » is developed as a single Excel file with worksheets capable of managing up to five concurrent sprints and up to one hundred tasks. It also includes a summary worksheet providing performance information from all active sprints. There are many commercial project management systems typically designed with features desired by larger organizations with many resources managing multiple programs and projects. The audience for this work is the small organizations and Agile project teams desiring an inexpensive, simple, user-friendly, task management tool. This work uses standard readily available software, Excel, requiring minimum data entry and automatically creating summary charts and performance data. It is formatted to print out and resemble standard flip charts and provide the visuals associated with this type of work.« less

An Optimizing Compiler for Petascale I/O on Leadership Class Architectures

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

Choudhary, Alok; Kandemir, Mahmut

In high-performance computing systems, parallel I/O architectures usually have very complex hierarchies with multiple layers that collectively constitute an I/O stack, including high-level I/O libraries such as PnetCDF and HDF5, I/O middleware such as MPI-IO, and parallel file systems such as PVFS and Lustre. Our project explored automated instrumentation and compiler support for I/O intensive applications. Our project made significant progress towards understanding the complex I/O hierarchies of high-performance storage systems (including storage caches, HDDs, and SSDs), and designing and implementing state-of-the-art compiler/runtime system technology that targets I/O intensive HPC applications that target leadership class machine. This final report summarizesmore » the major achievements of the project and also points out promising future directions.« less

Locally-Adaptive, Spatially-Explicit Projection of U.S. Population for 2030 and 2050

DOE PAGES

McKee, Jacob J.; Rose, Amy N.; Bright, Eddie A.; ...

2015-02-03

Localized adverse events, including natural hazards, epidemiological events, and human conflict, underscore the criticality of quantifying and mapping current population. Moreover, knowing the spatial distribution of future population allows for increased preparation in the event of an emergency. Building on the spatial interpolation technique previously developed for high resolution population distribution data (LandScan Global and LandScan USA), we have constructed an empirically-informed spatial distribution of the projected population of the contiguous U.S. for 2030 and 2050. Whereas most current large-scale, spatially explicit population projections typically rely on a population gravity model to determine areas of future growth, our projection modelmore » departs from these by accounting for multiple components that affect population distribution. Modelled variables, which included land cover, slope, distances to larger cities, and a moving average of current population, were locally adaptive and geographically varying. The resulting weighted surface was used to determine which areas had the greatest likelihood for future population change. Population projections of county level numbers were developed using a modified version of the U.S. Census s projection methodology with the U.S. Census s official projection as the benchmark. Applications of our model include, but are not limited to, suitability modelling, service area planning for governmental agencies, consequence assessment, mitigation planning and implementation, and assessment of spatially vulnerable populations.« less

Locally-Adaptive, Spatially-Explicit Projection of U.S. Population for 2030 and 2050

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

McKee, Jacob J.; Rose, Amy N.; Bright, Eddie A.

Localized adverse events, including natural hazards, epidemiological events, and human conflict, underscore the criticality of quantifying and mapping current population. Moreover, knowing the spatial distribution of future population allows for increased preparation in the event of an emergency. Building on the spatial interpolation technique previously developed for high resolution population distribution data (LandScan Global and LandScan USA), we have constructed an empirically-informed spatial distribution of the projected population of the contiguous U.S. for 2030 and 2050. Whereas most current large-scale, spatially explicit population projections typically rely on a population gravity model to determine areas of future growth, our projection modelmore » departs from these by accounting for multiple components that affect population distribution. Modelled variables, which included land cover, slope, distances to larger cities, and a moving average of current population, were locally adaptive and geographically varying. The resulting weighted surface was used to determine which areas had the greatest likelihood for future population change. Population projections of county level numbers were developed using a modified version of the U.S. Census s projection methodology with the U.S. Census s official projection as the benchmark. Applications of our model include, but are not limited to, suitability modelling, service area planning for governmental agencies, consequence assessment, mitigation planning and implementation, and assessment of spatially vulnerable populations.« less

Integrated multi-sensor package (IMSP) for unmanned vehicle operations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crow, Eddie C.; Reichard, Karl; Rogan, Chris; Callen, Jeff; Seifert, Elwood

2007-10-01

This paper describes recent efforts to develop integrated multi-sensor payloads for small robotic platforms for improved operator situational awareness and ultimately for greater robot autonomy. The focus is on enhancements to perception through integration of electro-optic, acoustic, and other sensors for navigation and inspection. The goals are to provide easier control and operation of the robot through fusion of multiple sensor outputs, to improve interoperability of the sensor payload package across multiple platforms through the use of open standards and architectures, and to reduce integration costs by embedded sensor data processing and fusion within the sensor payload package. The solutions investigated in this project to be discussed include: improved capture, processing and display of sensor data from multiple, non-commensurate sensors; an extensible architecture to support plug and play of integrated sensor packages; built-in health, power and system status monitoring using embedded diagnostics/prognostics; sensor payload integration into standard product forms for optimized size, weight and power; and the use of the open Joint Architecture for Unmanned Systems (JAUS)/ Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) AS-4 interoperability standard. This project is in its first of three years. This paper will discuss the applicability of each of the solutions in terms of its projected impact to reducing operational time for the robot and teleoperator.

Multiple Intelligences Centers and Projects.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chapman, Carolyn; Freeman, Lynn

Based upon Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences, this book guides elementary school teachers through the process of using classroom learning centers and projects by providing choices for students. The guide is divided into two sections, providing the theoretical background and information on how to develop multiple intelligences learning…

Performance evaluation of restaurant food waste and biowaste to biogas pilot projects in China and implications for national policy.

PubMed

De Clercq, Djavan; Wen, Zongguo; Fan, Fei

2017-03-15

The objective of this research was to conduct a performance evaluation of three food waste/biowaste-to-biogas pilot projects across 7 scenarios in China based on multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) methodology. The projects ranked included a food waste-biogas project in Beijing, a food waste-biogas project in Suzhou and a co-digestion project producing biomethane in Hainan. The projects were ranked from best to worst based on technical, economic and environmental criteria under the MCDA framework. The results demonstrated that some projects are encountering operational problems. Based on these findings, six national policy recommendations were provided: (1) shift away from capital investment subsidies to performance-based subsidies; (2) re-design feed in tariffs; (3) promote bio-methane and project clustering; (4) improve collection efficiency by incentivizing FW producers to direct waste to biogas projects; (5) incentivize biogas projects to produce multiple outputs; (6) incentivize food waste-based projects to co-digest food waste with other substrates for higher gas output. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

UNC Collaboratory Project: Overview

DTIC Science & Technology

1990-11-01

technical, and other expository documents. Crucial to our success has been the selection of driving problems whose solutions have been of significance not...systems, and with the growing necessity for "team science", we believe the time is right to select a new driving problem -- support for multiple...the WE computer system. The WE system includes sensors imbedded within it that record each users’ action These records include each menu selection

What to do with a Dead Research Code

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nemiroff, Robert J.

2016-01-01

The project has ended -- should all of the computer codes that enabled the project be deleted? No. Like research papers, research codes typically carry valuable information past project end dates. Several possible end states to the life of research codes are reviewed. Historically, codes are typically left dormant on an increasingly obscure local disk directory until forgotten. These codes will likely become any or all of: lost, impossible to compile and run, difficult to decipher, and likely deleted when the code's proprietor moves on or dies. It is argued here, though, that it would be better for both code authors and astronomy generally if project codes were archived after use in some way. Archiving is advantageous for code authors because archived codes might increase the author's ADS citable publications, while astronomy as a science gains transparency and reproducibility. Paper-specific codes should be included in the publication of the journal papers they support, just like figures and tables. General codes that support multiple papers, possibly written by multiple authors, including their supporting websites, should be registered with a code registry such as the Astrophysics Source Code Library (ASCL). Codes developed on GitHub can be archived with a third party service such as, currently, BackHub. An important code version might be uploaded to a web archiving service like, currently, Zenodo or Figshare, so that this version receives a Digital Object Identifier (DOI), enabling it to found at a stable address into the future. Similar archiving services that are not DOI-dependent include perma.cc and the Internet Archive Wayback Machine at archive.org. Perhaps most simply, copies of important codes with lasting value might be kept on a cloud service like, for example, Google Drive, while activating Google's Inactive Account Manager.

Student Ownership of Projects in an Upper-Division Optics Laboratory Course: A Multiple Case Study of Successful Experiences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dounas-Frazer, Dimitri R.; Stanley, Jacob T.; Lewandowski, H. J.

2017-01-01

We investigate students' sense of ownership of multiweek final projects in an upper-division optics lab course. Using a multiple case study approach, we describe three student projects in detail. Within-case analyses focused on identifying key issues in each project, and constructing chronological descriptions of those events. Cross-case analysis…

New Jersey Technical Assistance Project (N.J. TAP): "Educational Resources and Support Services on Behalf of Children with Multiple Sensory Impairment." Final Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

New Jersey State Dept. of Education, Trenton.

This final report describes activities and accomplishments of the New Jersey Technical Assistance Project, a project to improve educational resources and support services for students with multiple sensory impairment (deaf-blindness). Activities and accomplishments are presented in a tabular format for each project goal and objective. The project…

Toward Improved Predictions of Slender Airframe Aerodynamics Using the F-16XL Aircraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Luckring, James M.; Rizzi, Arthur; Davis, M. Bruce

2016-01-01

A coordinated project has been underway to improve computational fluid dynamics predictions of slender airframe aerodynamics. The work is focused on two flow conditions and leverages a unique flight data set obtained with an F-16XL aircraft. These conditions, a low-speed high angle-of-attack case and a transonic low angle-of-attack case, were selected from a prior prediction campaign wherein the computational fluid dynamics failed to provide acceptable results. In this paper, the background, objectives, and approach to the current project are presented. The work embodies predictions from multiple numerical formulations that are contributed from multiple organizations, and the context of this campaign to other multicode, multi-organizational efforts is included. The relevance of this body of work toward future supersonic commercial transport concepts is also briefly addressed.

Using Scrum Practices in GSD Projects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Paasivaara, Maria; Lassenius, Casper

In this chapter we present advice for applying Scrum practices to globally distributed software development projects. The chapter is based on a multiple-case study of four distributed Scrum projects. We discuss the use of distributed daily Scrums, Scrum-of-Scrums, Sprints, Sprint planning meetings, Sprint Demos, Retrospective meetings, and Backlogs. Moreover, we present lessons that distributed Scrum projects can benefit from non-agile globally distributed software development projects: frequent visits and multiple communication modes.

Student-to-Scientist (S2S) via the PACA Project: Connecting Astronomers, Educators and Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yanamandra-Fisher, P. A.

2015-12-01

Student to Scientist (S2S), provides pathways for observational and research tools for K-12 and undergraduate students to improve science proficiency through conducting real scientific observations. Our approach lies in the integration of professional and amateur astronomers, educators, students, and communicators to identify multiple paths for the student to become a scientist. I report on the ensuing project, also known as the PACA Project, which is an ecosystem of various activities that take advantage of the social media and immediate connectivity amongst amateur astronomers worldwide and that can be galvanized to participate in a given observing campaign. The PACA Project has participated in organized campaigns such as NASA Comet ISON Observing Campaign in 2013; NASA Comet Integrated Observations Campaign to observe Comet Siding Spring as it flew by very close to Mars on 19 October 2014. Currently the PACA Project is involved in the Ground-based Amateur campaign to observer ESA/Rosetta mission's target, 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko (CG) that is en route to its perihelion on 13 August 2015 (at the time of abstract submission). The PACA Project provides access to the professional community and the student/educator and informal/public communities via various social media like Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, Pinterest, Vimeo, Google+. With the popularity of mobile platforms and instant connections with other peers globally, the multi-faceted social universe has become a vital part of engagement of multiple communities. The PACA project currently has initiated a Comet Tails and Disconnection Events campaign to relate to the changing solar wind conditions. Other PACA projects include Saturn Solstice 2017 and outreach projects with Astroproject (India). These and other citizen-science enabled activities and their integration with S2S project will be discussed.

Development of the Oxford Hills Healthy Moms Project using a social marketing process: a community-based physical activity and nutrition intervention for low-socioeconomic-status mothers in a rural area in Maine.

PubMed

Dharod, Jigna M; Drewette-Card, Rebecca; Crawford, David

2011-03-01

A physical activity and nutrition community intervention called the Oxford Hills Healthy Moms (OHHM) Project was developed using a multifaceted social marketing process, including review of state surveillance results, key informant interviews, and a survey and focus group discussions with low-socioeconomic-status (low-SES) mothers. This formative work was used to make key decisions on the selection of the intervention region, segmentation of the audience, and design of intervention strategies addressing multiple levels of the socioecological model. The OHHM Project aims to increase fruit and vegetable consumption and physical activity levels among low-SES mothers in the Oxford Hills region of Maine. The OHHM Project includes five components: (a) physical activity buddy program, (b) cooking club with education, (c) fruit and vegetable discount buying club with education, (d) increased access to produce vendors, and (e) increased access to places for physical activity.

Research Project Evaluation-Learnings from the PATHWAYS Project Experience.

PubMed

Galas, Aleksander; Pilat, Aleksandra; Leonardi, Matilde; Tobiasz-Adamczyk, Beata

2018-05-25

Every research project faces challenges regarding how to achieve its goals in a timely and effective manner. The purpose of this paper is to present a project evaluation methodology gathered during the implementation of the Participation to Healthy Workplaces and Inclusive Strategies in the Work Sector (the EU PATHWAYS Project). The PATHWAYS project involved multiple countries and multi-cultural aspects of re/integrating chronically ill patients into labor markets in different countries. This paper describes key project's evaluation issues including: (1) purposes, (2) advisability, (3) tools, (4) implementation, and (5) possible benefits and presents the advantages of a continuous monitoring. Project evaluation tool to assess structure and resources, process, management and communication, achievements, and outcomes. The project used a mixed evaluation approach and included Strengths (S), Weaknesses (W), Opportunities (O), and Threats (SWOT) analysis. A methodology for longitudinal EU projects' evaluation is described. The evaluation process allowed to highlight strengths and weaknesses and highlighted good coordination and communication between project partners as well as some key issues such as: the need for a shared glossary covering areas investigated by the project, problematic issues related to the involvement of stakeholders from outside the project, and issues with timing. Numerical SWOT analysis showed improvement in project performance over time. The proportion of participating project partners in the evaluation varied from 100% to 83.3%. There is a need for the implementation of a structured evaluation process in multidisciplinary projects involving different stakeholders in diverse socio-environmental and political conditions. Based on the PATHWAYS experience, a clear monitoring methodology is suggested as essential in every multidisciplinary research projects.

Task Description Language

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Simmons, Reid; Apfelbaum, David

2005-01-01

Task Description Language (TDL) is an extension of the C++ programming language that enables programmers to quickly and easily write complex, concurrent computer programs for controlling real-time autonomous systems, including robots and spacecraft. TDL is based on earlier work (circa 1984 through 1989) on the Task Control Architecture (TCA). TDL provides syntactic support for hierarchical task-level control functions, including task decomposition, synchronization, execution monitoring, and exception handling. A Java-language-based compiler transforms TDL programs into pure C++ code that includes calls to a platform-independent task-control-management (TCM) library. TDL has been used to control and coordinate multiple heterogeneous robots in projects sponsored by NASA and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). It has also been used in Brazil to control an autonomous airship and in Canada to control a robotic manipulator.

Design Experimentation with Multiple Perspectives: The GenScope Assessment Project.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hickey, Daniel T.; Kruger, Ann Cale; Frederick, Laura D.; Schafer, Nancy Jo; Zuiker, Steven

The GenScope Assessment Project is studying assessment in the context of a month-long computer-supported learning environment for introductory genetics. Across three annual iterations with multiple teachers, project researchers manipulated the materials, incentives, and contexts in which students were invited to use formative feedback on…

LabVIEW Task Manager v. 1.10.0

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

Vargo, Timothy D.

LabVIEW Task Manager is a debugging tool for use during code development in the National Instruments (NI) LabVIEW® IDE. While providing a dynamic & big-picture view of running code, an expandable/collapsible tree diagram displays detailed information (both static and dynamic) on all VIs in memory, belonging to a selected project/target. It allows for interacting with single or multiple selected VIs at a time, providing significant benefits while troubleshooting, and has the following features: Look & Feel similar to Windows® Task Manager; Selection of project/target; Lists all VIs in memory, grouped by class/library; Searches for and enumerates clones in memory; DropInmore » VI for including dynamically referenced clones (Clone Beacon); 'Refresh Now' (F5) re-reads all VIs in memory and adds new ones to the tree; Displays VI name, owning class/library, state, path, data size & code size; Displays VI FP Behavior, Reentrant?, Reentrancy Type, Paused? & Highlight?; Sort by any column, including by library name; Filter by item types vi, ctl, and vit/ctt; Filter out vi.lib and global VIs; Tracking of, and ability to toggle, execution highlighting on multiple selected VIs; Tracking of paused VIs with ability to Pause/Resume/TogglePause multiple selected VIs; DropIn VI for pausing on a condition; If a clone initiates a pause, a different pause symbol is used for all clones of that same reentrant original VI; Select multiple VIs and open or close their FPs or BDs; Double Click a VI from the tree to bring the BD (first choice) or FP to front, if already open; and Select multiple top-level VIs and Abort them.« less

Flexibility and Project Value: Interactions and Multiple Real Options

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Čulík, Miroslav

2010-06-01

This paper is focused on a project valuation with embedded portfolio of real options including their interactions. Valuation is based on the criterion of Net Present Value on the simulation basis. Portfolio includes selected types of European-type real options: option to expand, contract, abandon and temporarily shut down and restart a project. Due to the fact, that in reality most of the managerial flexibility takes the form of portfolio of real options, selected types of options are valued not only individually, but also in combination. The paper is structured as follows: first, diffusion models for forecasting of output prices and variable costs are derived. Second, project value is estimated on the assumption, that no real options are present. Next, project value is calculated with the presence of selected European-type options; these options and their impact on project value are valued first in isolation and consequently in different combinations. Moreover, intrinsic value evolution of given real options with respect to the time of exercising is analysed. In the end, results are presented graphically; selected statistics and risk measures (Value at Risk, Expected Shortfall) of the NPV's distributions are calculated and commented.

Extreme ultraviolet lithography machine

DOEpatents

Tichenor, Daniel A.; Kubiak, Glenn D.; Haney, Steven J.; Sweeney, Donald W.

2000-01-01

An extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUVL) machine or system for producing integrated circuit (IC) components, such as transistors, formed on a substrate. The EUVL machine utilizes a laser plasma point source directed via an optical arrangement onto a mask or reticle which is reflected by a multiple mirror system onto the substrate or target. The EUVL machine operates in the 10-14 nm wavelength soft x-ray photon. Basically the EUV machine includes an evacuated source chamber, an evacuated main or project chamber interconnected by a transport tube arrangement, wherein a laser beam is directed into a plasma generator which produces an illumination beam which is directed by optics from the source chamber through the connecting tube, into the projection chamber, and onto the reticle or mask, from which a patterned beam is reflected by optics in a projection optics (PO) box mounted in the main or projection chamber onto the substrate. In one embodiment of a EUVL machine, nine optical components are utilized, with four of the optical components located in the PO box. The main or projection chamber includes vibration isolators for the PO box and a vibration isolator mounting for the substrate, with the main or projection chamber being mounted on a support structure and being isolated.

The Stirling Project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1987-01-01

Stirling Engine's advanced technology engine offers multiple advantages, principal among them reduced fuel consumption and lower exhaust emissions than comparable internal combustion auto engines, plus multifuel capability. Stirling can use gasoline, kerosene, diesel fuel, jet fuel, alcohol, methanol, butane and that's not the whole list. Applications include irrigation pumping, heat pumps, and electricity generation for submarine, Earth and space systems.

Growth and demography of Pinaleno high elevation forests

Treesearch

Christopher O' Connor; Donald A. Falk; Ann M. Lynch; Craig P. Wilcox; Thomas W. Swetnam; Tyson L. Swetnam

2010-01-01

The project goal is to understand how multiple disturbance events including fire, insect outbreaks, and climate variability interact in space and time, and how they combine to influence forest species composition, spatial structure, and tree population dynamics in high elevation forests of the Pinaleno Mountains. Information from each of these components is needed in...

Integration of e-Management, e-Development and e-Learning Technologies for Blended Course Delivery

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Lynn E.; Tang, Michael

2005-01-01

This paper describes and assesses a pre-engineering curriculum development project called Foundations of Engineering, Science and Technology (FEST). FEST integrates web-based technologies into an inter-connected system to enable delivery of a blended program at multiple institutions. Tools and systems described include 1) technologies to deliver…

Studies in Teaching 2000 Research Digest. Research Projects Presented at Annual Research Forum (Winston-Salem, North Carolina, December 2000).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McCoy, Leah P., Ed.

This collection of papers includes: "Cheating: Ethics and Honor of High School Students" (Nick Bender); "Assessing Listening Proficiency in High School Spanish Classes" (Michelle Bennett); "Multiple Intelligences, Assessment and Achievement in Traditional High School Classes" (Kathryn Byrnes); "Who Wants To Be a…

A Two-Parameter Latent Trait Model. Methodology Project.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Choppin, Bruce

On well-constructed multiple-choice tests, the most serious threat to measurement is not variation in item discrimination, but the guessing behavior that may be adopted by some students. Ways of ameliorating the effects of guessing are discussed, especially for problems in latent trait models. A new item response model, including an item parameter…

Guidelines for Reliable DC/DC Converters for Space Use

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Plante, Jeannette; Shue, Jack

2008-01-01

NESC saw the need to study the persistent failure of DC/DC Converters during ground testing and in flight, motivated investigation of causes and mitigation options. Research indicated misapplication and device quality to be root causes. The study took 20 months. Team included multiple NASA Centers : JPL, JSC, MSFC, GSFC Project Background

Use of Aerial Hyperspectral Imaging For Monitoring Forest Health

Treesearch

Milton O. Smith; Nolan J. Hess; Stephen Gulick; Lori G. Eckhardt; Roger D. Menard

2004-01-01

This project evaluates the effectiveness of aerial hyperspectral digital imagery in the assessment of forest health of loblolly stands in central Alabama. The imagery covers 50 square miles, in Bibb and Hale Counties, south of Tuscaloosa, AL, which includes intensive managed forest industry sites and National Forest lands with multiple use objectives. Loblolly stands...

Developing Computer-Interactive Tape Exercises for Intermediate-Level Business French.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Garnett, Mary Anne

One college language teacher developed computer-interactive audiotape exercises for an intermediate-level class in business French. The project was undertaken because of a need for appropriate materials at that level. The use of authoring software permitted development of a variety of activity types, including multiple-choice, fill-in-the-blank,…

Development of a community sustainability visualization tool through integration of US EPA’s Sustainable and Health Community Research Program tasks

EPA Science Inventory

We propose a 2-day session combining multiple components of an ongoing integrative research program in USEPA’s Office of Research and Development into a functional community sustainability visualization and assessment tool. The working group will include project leads for a US H...

A Multi-criterial Decision Support System for Forest Management

Treesearch

Donald Nute; Geneho Kim; Walter D. Potter; Mark J. Twery; H. Michael Rauscher; Scott Thomasma; Deborah Bennett; Peter Kollasch

1999-01-01

We describe a research project that has as its goal development of a full-featured decision support system for managing forested land to satisfy multiple criteria represented as timber, wildlife, water, ecological, and wildlife objectives. The decision process proposed for what was originally conceived of as a Northeast Decision Model (NED) includes data acquisition,...

Progress Monitoring in Grade 5 Science for Low Achievers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vannest, Kimberly J.; Parker, Richard; Dyer, Nicole

2011-01-01

This article presents procedures and results from a 2-year project developing science key vocabulary (KV) short tests suitable for progress monitoring Grade 5 science in Texas public schools using computer-generated, -administered, and -scored assessments. KV items included KV definitions and important usages in a multiple-choice cloze format. A…

In it together: Organizational learning through participation in environmental assessment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fitzpatrick, Patricia

2005-07-01

Can organizations learn through participation in environmental assessment (EA)? This was the central research question of a study that explored the linkages among sustainable development, EA, public participation, and learning. To address this question, the research design involved a comparative case study of two concurrent but geographically separate projects, the Wuskwatim generation station and transmission lines projects (Wuskwatim projects), and the Snap Lake Diamonds Project (Snap Lake project). The Wuskwatim projects involve the construction of a low head dam and three 230 kV transmission line segments in Northern Manitoba, Canada. The Snap Lake Project involves the construction and operation of a diamond mine 220 km northwest of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada, at the headwaters of the Lockhart River drainage system. The EAs of these proposed developments provided multiple opportunities for public (and organizational) involvement in the review, including comments on the scope of the assessment, information requests, and public hearings. Data collection included participant observation, semi-structured interviews with EA participants, and documentation generated through the course of the reviews. Data were organized using QSR Nvivo, a database software system. In this dissertation, three key contributions are made. The theoretical framework that draws together a number of separate but related fields of study---communicative action, discursive democracy, transformative learning, organizational learning---is the first contribution. The second is verification that organizations learn through participation in EA. Third, empirical support is presented far the assertion that transformative learning can address change beyond that experienced by the individual, to account for both policy-oriented and organizational learning. Related to the second contribution, results indicate that participants of EA engage in Teaming on multiple scales. Furthermore, learning outcomes include both instrumental and communicative learning. Instrumental learning included an increased understanding of technical issues and assessment tools, such as information requests. Communicative teaming outcomes included the importance of dialogue as a means of resolving issues and a refinement of strategies For promoting organizational positions. At an organizational scale, teaming by state actors, including government and tribunals, emphasized mechanisms designed to improve performance within existing structures, or "single-loop learning". Public actors, however, identified more outcomes associated with changes to their theory-in-use, designed to change the structure of the EA process, or "double-loop learning". The discussion of learning supports the application of transformative learning as a framework for considering different scales of learning, the third contribution to research. Findings revealed that individuals and organizations use project specific EA as an opportunity to compel the development and implementation of sustainable initiatives. These findings suggest that higher order learning for sustainability may be occurring through project based EA. Results also revealed the importance of creating opportunities for discussion and debate as a means of engaging organizations in and encouraging learning through EA. These findings support Habermas' emphasis on dialogue as a means of negotiating political systems.

Evaluating Threats in Multinational Marine Ecosystems: A Coast Salish First Nations and Tribal Perspective.

PubMed

Gaydos, Joseph K; Thixton, Sofie; Donatuto, Jamie

2015-01-01

Despite the merit of managing natural resources on the scale of ecosystems, evaluating threats and managing risk in ecosystems that span multiple countries or jurisdictions can be challenging. This requires each government involved to consider actions in concert with actions being taken in other countries by co-managing entities. Multiple proposed fossil fuel-related and port development projects in the Salish Sea, a 16,925 km2 inland sea shared by Washington State (USA), British Columbia (Canada), and Indigenous Coast Salish governments, have the potential to increase marine vessel traffic and negatively impact natural resources. There is no legal mandate or management mechanism requiring a comprehensive review of the potential cumulative impacts of these development activities throughout the Salish Sea and across the international border. This project identifies ongoing and proposed energy-related development projects that will increase marine vessel traffic in the Salish Sea and evaluates the threats each project poses to natural resources important to the Coast Salish. While recognizing that Coast Salish traditions identify all species as important and connected, we used expert elicitation to identify 50 species upon which we could evaluate impact. These species were chosen because Coast Salish depend upon them heavily for harvest revenue or as a staple food source, they were particularly culturally or spiritually significant, or they were historically part of Coast Salish lifeways. We identified six development projects, each of which had three potential impacts (pressures) associated with increased marine vessel traffic: oil spill, vessel noise and vessel strike. Projects varied in their potential for localized impacts (pressures) including shoreline development, harbor oil spill, pipeline spill, coal dust accumulation and nearshore LNG explosion. Based on available published data, impact for each pressure/species interaction was rated as likely, possible or unlikely. Impacts are likely to occur in 23 to 28% of the possible pressure/species scenarios and are possible in another 15 to 28% additional pressure/species interactions. While it is not clear which impacts will be additive, synergistic, or potentially antagonistic, studies that manipulate multiple stressors in marine ecosystems suggest that threats associated with these six projects are likely to have an overall additive or even synergistic interaction and therefore impact species of major cultural importance to the Coast Salish, an important concept that would be lost by merely evaluating each project independently. Failure to address multiple impacts will affect the Coast Salish and the 7 million other people that also depend on this ecosystem. These findings show the value of evaluating multiple threats, and ultimately conducting risk assessments at the scale of ecosystems and highlight the serious need for managers of multinational ecosystems to actively collaborate on evaluating threats, assessing risk, and managing resources.

Evaluating Threats in Multinational Marine Ecosystems: A Coast Salish First Nations and Tribal Perspective

PubMed Central

Gaydos, Joseph K.; Thixton, Sofie; Donatuto, Jamie

2015-01-01

Despite the merit of managing natural resources on the scale of ecosystems, evaluating threats and managing risk in ecosystems that span multiple countries or jurisdictions can be challenging. This requires each government involved to consider actions in concert with actions being taken in other countries by co-managing entities. Multiple proposed fossil fuel-related and port development projects in the Salish Sea, a 16,925 km2 inland sea shared by Washington State (USA), British Columbia (Canada), and Indigenous Coast Salish governments, have the potential to increase marine vessel traffic and negatively impact natural resources. There is no legal mandate or management mechanism requiring a comprehensive review of the potential cumulative impacts of these development activities throughout the Salish Sea and across the international border. This project identifies ongoing and proposed energy-related development projects that will increase marine vessel traffic in the Salish Sea and evaluates the threats each project poses to natural resources important to the Coast Salish. While recognizing that Coast Salish traditions identify all species as important and connected, we used expert elicitation to identify 50 species upon which we could evaluate impact. These species were chosen because Coast Salish depend upon them heavily for harvest revenue or as a staple food source, they were particularly culturally or spiritually significant, or they were historically part of Coast Salish lifeways. We identified six development projects, each of which had three potential impacts (pressures) associated with increased marine vessel traffic: oil spill, vessel noise and vessel strike. Projects varied in their potential for localized impacts (pressures) including shoreline development, harbor oil spill, pipeline spill, coal dust accumulation and nearshore LNG explosion. Based on available published data, impact for each pressure/species interaction was rated as likely, possible or unlikely. Impacts are likely to occur in 23 to 28% of the possible pressure/species scenarios and are possible in another 15 to 28% additional pressure/species interactions. While it is not clear which impacts will be additive, synergistic, or potentially antagonistic, studies that manipulate multiple stressors in marine ecosystems suggest that threats associated with these six projects are likely to have an overall additive or even synergistic interaction and therefore impact species of major cultural importance to the Coast Salish, an important concept that would be lost by merely evaluating each project independently. Failure to address multiple impacts will affect the Coast Salish and the 7 million other people that also depend on this ecosystem. These findings show the value of evaluating multiple threats, and ultimately conducting risk assessments at the scale of ecosystems and highlight the serious need for managers of multinational ecosystems to actively collaborate on evaluating threats, assessing risk, and managing resources. PMID:26691860

An Optimizing Compiler for Petascale I/O on Leadership-Class Architectures

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

Kandemir, Mahmut Taylan; Choudary, Alok; Thakur, Rajeev

In high-performance computing (HPC), parallel I/O architectures usually have very complex hierarchies with multiple layers that collectively constitute an I/O stack, including high-level I/O libraries such as PnetCDF and HDF5, I/O middleware such as MPI-IO, and parallel file systems such as PVFS and Lustre. Our DOE project explored automated instrumentation and compiler support for I/O intensive applications. Our project made significant progress towards understanding the complex I/O hierarchies of high-performance storage systems (including storage caches, HDDs, and SSDs), and designing and implementing state-of-the-art compiler/runtime system technology that targets I/O intensive HPC applications that target leadership class machine. This final reportmore » summarizes the major achievements of the project and also points out promising future directions Two new sections in this report compared to the previous report are IOGenie and SSD/NVM-specific optimizations.« less

Evaluation Framework and Analyses for Thermal Energy Storage Integrated with Packaged Air Conditioning

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

Kung, F.; Deru, M.; Bonnema, E.

2013-10-01

Few third-party guidance documents or tools are available for evaluating thermal energy storage (TES) integrated with packaged air conditioning (AC), as this type of TES is relatively new compared to TES integrated with chillers or hot water systems. To address this gap, researchers at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory conducted a project to improve the ability of potential technology adopters to evaluate TES technologies. Major project outcomes included: development of an evaluation framework to describe key metrics, methodologies, and issues to consider when assessing the performance of TES systems integrated with packaged AC; application of multiple concepts from the evaluationmore » framework to analyze performance data from four demonstration sites; and production of a new simulation capability that enables modeling of TES integrated with packaged AC in EnergyPlus. This report includes the evaluation framework and analysis results from the project.« less

Laterally injected light-emitting diode and laser diode

DOEpatents

Miller, Mary A.; Crawford, Mary H.; Allerman, Andrew A.

2015-06-16

A p-type superlattice is used to laterally inject holes into an III-nitride multiple quantum well active layer, enabling efficient light extraction from the active area. Laterally-injected light-emitting diodes and laser diodes can enable brighter, more efficient devices that impact a wide range of wavelengths and applications. For UV wavelengths, applications include fluorescence-based biological sensing, epoxy curing, and water purification. For visible devices, applications include solid state lighting and projection systems.

The NASA teleconferencing system: An evaluation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Connors, M. M.; Lindsey, G.; Miller, R. H.

1976-01-01

The communication requirements of the Apollo project led to the development of a teleconferencing network which linked together, in an audio-fax mode, the several NASA centers and supporting contractors of the Apollo project. The usefulness of this communication linkage for the Apollo project suggested that the system might be extended to include all NASA centers, enabling them to conduct their in-house business more efficiently than by traveling to other centers. A pilot project was run in which seventeen NASA center and subcenters, some with multiple facilities, were connected into the NASA teleconferencing network. During that year, costs were charted and, at the end of the year, an evaluation was made to determine how the system had been used and with what results. The year-end evaluation of the use of NASA teleconferencing system is summarized.

Neurochemical, morphologic, and laminar characterization of cortical projection neurons in the cingulate motor areas of the macaque monkey

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nimchinsky, E. A.; Hof, P. R.; Young, W. G.; Morrison, J. H.; Bloom, F. E. (Principal Investigator)

1996-01-01

The primate cingulate gyrus contains multiple cortical areas that can be distinguished by several neurochemical features, including the distribution of neurofilament protein-enriched pyramidal neurons. In addition, connectivity and functional properties indicate that there are multiple motor areas in the cortex lining the cingulate sulcus. These motor areas were targeted for analysis of potential interactions among regional specialization, connectivity, and cellular characteristics such as neurochemical profile and morphology. Specifically, intracortical injections of retrogradely transported dyes and intracellular injection were combined with immunocytochemistry to investigate neurons projecting from the cingulate motor areas to the putative forelimb region of the primary motor cortex, area M1. Two separate groups of neurons projecting to area M1 emanated from the cingulate sulcus, one anterior and one posterior, both of which furnished commissural and ipsilateral connections with area M1. The primary difference between the two populations was laminar origin, with the anterior projection originating largely in deep layers, and the posterior projection taking origin equally in superficial and deep layers. With regard to cellular morphology, the anterior projection exhibited more morphologic diversity than the posterior projection. Commissural projections from both anterior and posterior fields originated largely in layer VI. Neurofilament protein distribution was a reliable tool for localizing the two projections and for discriminating between them. Comparable proportions of the two sets of projection neurons contained neurofilament protein, although the density and distribution of the total population of neurofilament protein-enriched neurons was very different in the two subareas of origin. Within a projection, the participating neurons exhibited a high degree of morphologic heterogeneity, and no correlation was observed between somatodendritic morphology and neurofilament protein content. Thus, although the neurons that provide the anterior and posterior cingulate motor projections to area M1 differ morphologically and in laminar origin, their neurochemical profiles are similar with respect to neurofilament protein. This suggests that neurochemical phenotype may be a more important unifying feature for corticocortical projections than morphology.

A Better Benchmark Assessment: Multiple-Choice versus Project-Based

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Peariso, Jamon F.

2006-01-01

The purpose of this literature review and Ex Post Facto descriptive study was to determine which type of benchmark assessment, multiple-choice or project-based, provides the best indication of general success on the history portion of the CST (California Standards Tests). The result of the study indicates that although the project-based benchmark…

Multi-purpose presentation techniques for geoscientific data in various media

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rink, Karsten; Bilke, Lars

2014-05-01

The intuitive presentation of the progression of complex geoscientific phenomena is often an underrated part of the modelling- and simulation workflow. Compiling such a presentation allows to easily communicate progress in joint research projects between participants with different backgrounds. Also, adequate 3D visualisations are usually easier to understand when presenting research results to stakeholders as well as the general public and critical information is conveyed in a more comprehensible manner. We established a workflow that is based on integration and preprocessing of multiple geoscientific data sets in a suitable framework such as the OpenGeoSys Data Explorer or ParaView. After choosing an adequate visual representation of the data in these frameworks, custom-made interfaces are employed to export the data to presentation frameworks. For instance, using the Unity 3D Engine allows to implement interaction techniques such as adding camera paths, concentrating on specific subsets of the data or scene, blending multiple data sets, etc. While a general sequence of the presentation can be predefined, interactive navigation is still possible and allows to focus on particular interests of the audience. Established interfaces and frameworks allow to display existing presentations in multiple ways, including virtual reality environments, novel hardware such as head-mounted displays like the Occulus Rift, or even websites presenting 3D content. Furthermore, the content can be redistributed as an executable for use on arbitrary machines. This versatility enables the use of prepared presentations for a multitude of occasions including exchange of intermediary result to partners in cooperate projects, reports at conferences, the defense of research projects, or use in training courses or for tutorials.

Management of the Atmosphere Resource Recovery and Environmental Monitoring Project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Roman, Monsi; Perry, Jay; Howard, David

2013-01-01

The Advanced Exploration Systems Program's Atmosphere Resource Recovery and Environmental Monitoring (ARREM) project is working to further optimize atmosphere revitalization and environmental monitoring system architectures. This paper discusses project management strategies that tap into skill sets across multiple engineering disciplines, projects, field centers, and industry to achieve the project success. It is the project's objective to contribute to system advances that will enable sustained exploration missions beyond Lower Earth Orbit (LEO) and improve affordability by focusing on the primary goals of achieving high reliability, improving efficiency, and reducing dependence on ground-based logistics resupply. Technology demonstrations are achieved by infusing new technologies and concepts with existing developmental hardware and operating in a controlled environment simulating various crewed habitat scenarios. The ARREM project's strengths include access to a vast array of existing developmental hardware that perform all the vital atmosphere revitalization functions, exceptional test facilities to fully evaluate system performance, and a well-coordinated partnering effort among the NASA field centers and industry partners to provide the innovative expertise necessary to succeed.

The state of Illinois obstetric hemorrhage project: pre-project and post-training examination scores.

PubMed

Wong, Cynthia A; Scott, Shirley; Jones, Robin L; Walzer, Jennifer; Geller, Stacie

2016-03-01

The Illinois Department of Public Health mandated that all clinicians who provide care to obstetric patients participate in the Illinois Obstetric Hemorrhage Project. The aim of the current report is to describe change in knowledge among providers engaged in the project, as assessed by pre- and post-tests. The project, implemented 2008 to 2010, included four components: a written 25-item multiple-choice examination (pre-test), a didactic lecture, skill stations (for teaching blood loss estimation), and a simulation drill and debriefing. Participants completed a post-test 6 months later. Pre- and post-test examination scores were compared. Data from 95 hospitals are included in this analysis (9456 paired test results). The proportion of participants who scored ≥88% correct answers increased from 10.9% on the pre-test to 49.1% on the post-test (p < 0.0001). Registered nurses made greater improvements in test scores than anesthesia and obstetric providers (p < 0.0001). The Illinois Obstetric Hemorrhage Project was successful in improving knowledge of obstetric hemorrhage in a large number of providers with different expertise and experience levels. Further long-term study is essential to determine whether the skills acquired during the Project contribute to improved obstetric hemorrhage outcomes for the women of Illinois.

Demonstrating artificial intelligence for space systems - Integration and project management issues

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hack, Edmund C.; Difilippo, Denise M.

1990-01-01

As part of its Systems Autonomy Demonstration Project (SADP), NASA has recently demonstrated the Thermal Expert System (TEXSYS). Advanced real-time expert system and human interface technology was successfully developed and integrated with conventional controllers of prototype space hardware to provide intelligent fault detection, isolation, and recovery capability. Many specialized skills were required, and responsibility for the various phases of the project therefore spanned multiple NASA centers, internal departments and contractor organizations. The test environment required communication among many types of hardware and software as well as between many people. The integration, testing, and configuration management tools and methodologies which were applied to the TEXSYS project to assure its safe and successful completion are detailed. The project demonstrated that artificial intelligence technology, including model-based reasoning, is capable of the monitoring and control of a large, complex system in real time.

The study designed by a committee: design of the Multisite Violence Prevention Project.

PubMed

Henry, David B; Farrell, Albert D

2004-01-01

This article describes the research design of the Multisite Violence Prevention Project (MVPP), organized and funded by the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). CDC's objectives, refined in the course of collaboration among investigators, were to evaluate the efficacy of universal and targeted interventions designed to produce change at the school level. The project's design was developed collaboratively, and is a 2 x 2 cluster-randomized true experimental design in which schools within four separate sites were assigned randomly to four conditions: (1) no-intervention control group, (2) universal intervention, (3) targeted intervention, and (4) combined universal and targeted interventions. A total of 37 schools are participating in this study with 8-12 schools per site. The impact of the interventions on two successive cohorts of sixth-grade students will be assessed based on multiple waves of data from multiple sources of information, including teachers, students, parents, and archival data. The nesting of students within teachers, families, schools and sites created a number of challenges for designing and implementing the study. The final design represents both resolution and compromise on a number of creative tensions existing in large-scale prevention trials, including tensions between cost and statistical power, and between internal and external validity. Strengths and limitations of the final design are discussed.

Advanced Avionics and Processor Systems for a Flexible Space Exploration Architecture

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Keys, Andrew S.; Adams, James H.; Smith, Leigh M.; Johnson, Michael A.; Cressler, John D.

2010-01-01

The Advanced Avionics and Processor Systems (AAPS) project, formerly known as the Radiation Hardened Electronics for Space Environments (RHESE) project, endeavors to develop advanced avionic and processor technologies anticipated to be used by NASA s currently evolving space exploration architectures. The AAPS project is a part of the Exploration Technology Development Program, which funds an entire suite of technologies that are aimed at enabling NASA s ability to explore beyond low earth orbit. NASA s Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) manages the AAPS project. AAPS uses a broad-scoped approach to developing avionic and processor systems. Investment areas include advanced electronic designs and technologies capable of providing environmental hardness, reconfigurable computing techniques, software tools for radiation effects assessment, and radiation environment modeling tools. Near-term emphasis within the multiple AAPS tasks focuses on developing prototype components using semiconductor processes and materials (such as Silicon-Germanium (SiGe)) to enhance a device s tolerance to radiation events and low temperature environments. As the SiGe technology will culminate in a delivered prototype this fiscal year, the project emphasis shifts its focus to developing low-power, high efficiency total processor hardening techniques. In addition to processor development, the project endeavors to demonstrate techniques applicable to reconfigurable computing and partially reconfigurable Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs). This capability enables avionic architectures the ability to develop FPGA-based, radiation tolerant processor boards that can serve in multiple physical locations throughout the spacecraft and perform multiple functions during the course of the mission. The individual tasks that comprise AAPS are diverse, yet united in the common endeavor to develop electronics capable of operating within the harsh environment of space. Specifically, the AAPS tasks for the Federal fiscal year of 2010 are: Silicon-Germanium (SiGe) Integrated Electronics for Extreme Environments, Modeling of Radiation Effects on Electronics, Radiation Hardened High Performance Processors (HPP), and and Reconfigurable Computing.

How will climate change affect watershed mercury export in a representative Coastal Plain watershed?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Golden, H. E.; Knightes, C. D.; Conrads, P. A.; Feaster, T.; Davis, G. M.; Benedict, S. T.; Bradley, P. M.

2012-12-01

Future climate change is expected to drive variations in watershed hydrological processes and water quality across a wide range of physiographic provinces, ecosystems, and spatial scales. How such shifts in climatic conditions will impact watershed mercury (Hg) dynamics and hydrologically-driven Hg transport is a significant concern. We simulate the responses of watershed hydrological and total Hg (HgT) fluxes and concentrations to a unified set of past and future climate change projections in a Coastal Plain basin using multiple watershed models. We use two statistically downscaled global precipitation and temperature models, ECHO, a hybrid of the ECHAM4 and HOPE-G models, and the Community Climate System Model (CCSM3) across two thirty-year simulations (1980 to 2010 and 2040 to 2070). We apply three watershed models to quantify and bracket potential changes in hydrologic and HgT fluxes, including the Visualizing Ecosystems for Land Management Assessment Model for Hg (VELMA-Hg), the Grid Based Mercury Model (GBMM), and TOPLOAD, a water quality constituent model linked to TOPMODEL hydrological simulations. We estimate a decrease in average annual HgT fluxes in response to climate change using the ECHO projections and an increase with the CCSM3 projections in the study watershed. Average monthly HgT fluxes increase using both climate change projections between in the late spring (March through May), when HgT concentrations and flow are high. Results suggest that hydrological transport associated with changes in precipitation and temperature is the primary mechanism driving HgT flux response to climate change. Our multiple model/multiple projection approach allows us to bracket the relative response of HgT fluxes to climate change, thereby illustrating the uncertainty associated with the projections. In addition, our approach allows us to examine potential variations in climate change-driven water and HgT export based on different conceptualizations of watershed HgT dynamics and the representative mathematical structures underpinning existing watershed Hg models.

Interdisciplinary Social Science: An Example of Vertical and Horizontal Integrative Strategies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Durlabhji, Subhash

2005-03-01

A "Concept-Centered" strategy for Integrative Studies was proposed and implemented in the creation of the book Power in Focus: Perspectives from Multiple Disciplines. Essays on the ubiquitous concept of Power were solicited internationally and a final cut of ten essays from ten different disciplines, written specifically for this project, were included. This provides an example of what might be called Horizontal Integration, as it cut across multiple disciplines. One of the essays in the volume provides an example of Vertical Integration, as it applies a psychodynamic hypothesis concerning the development of Power relations among humans across hierarchical levels, from the child to the family to other groups and institutions in society, including finally entire nations and regions of the world.

Model Independence in Downscaled Climate Projections: a Case Study in the Southeast United States

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gray, G. M. E.; Boyles, R.

2016-12-01

Downscaled climate projections are used to deduce how the climate will change in future decades at local and regional scales. It is important to use multiple models to characterize part of the future uncertainty given the impact on adaptation decision making. This is traditionally employed through an equally-weighted ensemble of multiple GCMs downscaled using one technique. Newer practices include several downscaling techniques in an effort to increase the ensemble's representation of future uncertainty. However, this practice may be adding statistically dependent models to the ensemble. Previous research has shown a dependence problem in the GCM ensemble in multiple generations, but has not been shown in the downscaled ensemble. In this case study, seven downscaled climate projections on the daily time scale are considered: CLAREnCE10, SERAP, BCCA (CMIP5 and CMIP3 versions), Hostetler, CCR, and MACA-LIVNEH. These data represent 83 ensemble members, 44 GCMs, and two generations of GCMs. Baseline periods are compared against the University of Idaho's METDATA gridded observation dataset. Hierarchical agglomerative clustering is applied to the correlated errors to determine dependent clusters. Redundant GCMs across different downscaling techniques show the most dependence, while smaller dependence signals are detected within downscaling datasets and across generations of GCMs. These results indicate that using additional downscaled projections to increase the ensemble size must be done with care to avoid redundant GCMs and the process of downscaling may increase the dependence of those downscaled GCMs. Climate model generation does not appear dissimilar enough to be treated as two separate statistical populations for ensemble building at the local and regional scales.

An Effort to Map and Monitor Baldcypress Forest Areas in Coastal Louisiana, Using Landsat, MODIS, and ASTER Satellite Data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spruce, Joseph P.; Sader, Steve; Smoot, James

2012-01-01

This presentation discusses a collaborative project to develop, test, and demonstrate baldcypress forest mapping and monitoring products for aiding forest conservation and restoration in coastal Louisiana. Low lying coastal forests in the region are being negatively impacted by multiple factors, including subsidence, salt water intrusion, sea level rise, persistent flooding, hydrologic modification, annual insect-induced forest defoliation, timber harvesting, and conversion to urban land uses. Coastal baldcypress forests provide invaluable ecological services in terms of wildlife habitat, forest products, storm buffers, and water quality benefits. Before this project, current maps of baldcypress forest concentrations and change did not exist or were out of date. In response, this project was initiated to produce: 1) current maps showing the extent and location of baldcypress dominated forests; and 2) wetland forest change maps showing temporary and persistent disturbance and loss since the early 1970s. Project products are being developed collaboratively with multiple state and federal agencies. Products are being validated using available reference data from aerial, satellite, and field survey data. Results include Landsat TM- based classifications of baldcypress in terms of cover type and percent canopy cover. Landsat MSS data was employed to compute a circa 1972 classification of swamp and bottomland hardwood forest types. Landsat data for 1972-2010 was used to compute wetland forest change products. MODIS-based change products were applied to view and assess insect-induced swamp forest defoliation. MODIS, Landsat, and ASTER satellite data products were used to help assess hurricane and flood impacts to coastal wetland forests in the region.

The Nevada NSF EPSCoR infrastructure for climate change science, education, and outreach project: highlights and progress on investigations of ecological change and water resources along elevational gradients

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saito, L.; Biondi, F.; Fenstermaker, L. F.; Arnone, J.; Devitt, D.; Riddle, B.; Young, M.

2010-12-01

In 2008, the Nevada System of Higher Education received a 5-year, $15 million grant from the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR). The mission of the project is to create a statewide interdisciplinary program to stimulate transformative research, education, and outreach about the effects of regional climate change on ecosystem services (especially water resources), and support use of this knowledge by policy makers and stakeholders. The overarching question that this effort will address is: how will climate change affect water resources, disturbance regimes and linked ecosystem and human services? While the overall project includes cyberinfrastructure, policy, education and climate modeling, this presentation will focus on the ecological change and water resources components. The goals of these two components are: 1) improving understanding of processes controlling local- and basin-wide impacts of climate on species dynamics, disturbance regimes, and water recharge rates; 2) evaluating interactions between landscape-level processes and biophysical indicators; 3) evaluating interactions between surface and groundwater systems; 4) predicting changes in wildfire regime, primary productivity, and biodiversity (including invasive species); and 5) assessing how interactions between water and ecology will differ under climate change and/or climate variability scenarios. To achieve these goals, the two components will quantify present-day climate variability at multiple temporal and spatial scales, including at multiple elevations within Nevada’s Basin and Range ecosystem continuum. This presentation will discuss key elements for achieving these goals, including the establishment of instrumented transects spanning a range of elevations and vegetation zones in eastern and southern Nevada.

Development of a Water-Quality Lab That Enhances Learning & Connects Students to the Land

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Enos-Berlage, Jodi

2012-01-01

A 3-week laboratory module was developed for an undergraduate microbiology course that would connect student learning to a real-life challenge, specifically a local water-quality project. The laboratory series included multiple field trips, sampling of soil and water, and subsequent analysis for bacteria and nitrate. Laboratory results confirmed…

Positive effects of afforestation efforts on the health of urban soils

Treesearch

Emily E. Oldfield; Alexander J. Felson; Stephen A. Wood; Richard A. Hallett; Michael S. Strickland; Mark A. Bradford

2014-01-01

Large-scale tree planting projects in cities are increasingly implemented as a strategy to improve the urban environment. Trees provide multiple benefits in cities, including reduction of urban temperatures, improved air quality, mitigation of storm-water run-off, and provision of wildlife habitat. How urban afforestation affects the properties and functions of urban...

Watershed Scale Impacts of Stormwater Green Infrastructure on Hydrology, Nitrogen Fluxes, and Combined Sewer Overflows in the Baltimore, MD and Washington, DC area

EPA Science Inventory

Despite the increasing use of urban stormwater green infrastructure (SGI), including detention ponds and rain gardens, few studies have quantified the cumulative effects of multiple SGI projects on hydrology and water quality at the watershed scale. To assess the effects of SGI, ...

Using Literacy Coaching to Promote the Teaching and Learning of English Learners in Content Areas. CREATE Brief

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reutebuch, Colleen K.

2012-01-01

This brief describes the literacy coaching that was provided as part of the CREATE research project aimed at improving the teaching and learning of English learners in seventh-grade content areas. Coaching was intended to extend professional development and increase teacher capacity through multiple layers of support that included lesson…

From Kickoff to Handoff: Coaching Teens to Tackle STEM Literacy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ripberger, Chad; Blalock, Lydia B.

2015-01-01

This article discusses how intensive, content-rich, multiple-day conferences for teams of youth and their adult coaches can be used to initiate the training and planning needed for teens to successfully serve as STEM teachers. The concepts are based on three 4-H "teens as teachers" projects that included 29-36.5 hour initial training…

Projecting southern timber supply for multiple products by subregion

Treesearch

Robert C. Abt; Frederick W. Cubbage; Karen L. Abt

2009-01-01

While timber supply modeling has been of importance in the wood-producing regions of the United States for decades, it is only more recently that the technology and data have allowed disaggregation of supply and demand to substate regions, including product specific breakdowns and endogenous land use and plantation changes. Using southwide data and an economic supply...

MASTR-MS: a web-based collaborative laboratory information management system (LIMS) for metabolomics.

PubMed

Hunter, Adam; Dayalan, Saravanan; De Souza, David; Power, Brad; Lorrimar, Rodney; Szabo, Tamas; Nguyen, Thu; O'Callaghan, Sean; Hack, Jeremy; Pyke, James; Nahid, Amsha; Barrero, Roberto; Roessner, Ute; Likic, Vladimir; Tull, Dedreia; Bacic, Antony; McConville, Malcolm; Bellgard, Matthew

2017-01-01

An increasing number of research laboratories and core analytical facilities around the world are developing high throughput metabolomic analytical and data processing pipelines that are capable of handling hundreds to thousands of individual samples per year, often over multiple projects, collaborations and sample types. At present, there are no Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS) that are specifically tailored for metabolomics laboratories that are capable of tracking samples and associated metadata from the beginning to the end of an experiment, including data processing and archiving, and which are also suitable for use in large institutional core facilities or multi-laboratory consortia as well as single laboratory environments. Here we present MASTR-MS, a downloadable and installable LIMS solution that can be deployed either within a single laboratory or used to link workflows across a multisite network. It comprises a Node Management System that can be used to link and manage projects across one or multiple collaborating laboratories; a User Management System which defines different user groups and privileges of users; a Quote Management System where client quotes are managed; a Project Management System in which metadata is stored and all aspects of project management, including experimental setup, sample tracking and instrument analysis, are defined, and a Data Management System that allows the automatic capture and storage of raw and processed data from the analytical instruments to the LIMS. MASTR-MS is a comprehensive LIMS solution specifically designed for metabolomics. It captures the entire lifecycle of a sample starting from project and experiment design to sample analysis, data capture and storage. It acts as an electronic notebook, facilitating project management within a single laboratory or a multi-node collaborative environment. This software is being developed in close consultation with members of the metabolomics research community. It is freely available under the GNU GPL v3 licence and can be accessed from, https://muccg.github.io/mastr-ms/.

Uncertainty and extreme events in future climate and hydrologic projections for the Pacific Northwest: providing a basis for vulnerability and core/corridor assessments

USGS Publications Warehouse

Littell, Jeremy S.; Mauger, Guillaume S.; Salathe, Eric P.; Hamlet, Alan F.; Lee, Se-Yeun; Stumbaugh, Matt R.; Elsner, Marketa; Norheim, Robert; Lutz, Eric R.; Mantua, Nathan J.

2014-01-01

The purpose of this project was to (1) provide an internally-consistent set of downscaled projections across the Western U.S., (2) include information about projection uncertainty, and (3) assess projected changes of hydrologic extremes. These objectives were designed to address decision support needs for climate adaptation and resource management actions. Specifically, understanding of uncertainty in climate projections – in particular for extreme events – is currently a key scientific and management barrier to adaptation planning and vulnerability assessment. The new dataset fills in the Northwest domain to cover a key gap in the previous dataset, adds additional projections (both from other global climate models and a comparison with dynamical downscaling) and includes an assessment of changes to flow and soil moisture extremes. This new information can be used to assess variations in impacts across the landscape, uncertainty in projections, and how these differ as a function of region, variable, and time period. In this project, existing University of Washington Climate Impacts Group (UW CIG) products were extended to develop a comprehensive data archive that accounts (in a reigorous and physically based way) for climate model uncertainty in future climate and hydrologic scenarios. These products can be used to determine likely impacts on vegetation and aquatic habitat in the Pacific Northwest (PNW) region, including WA, OR, ID, northwest MT to the continental divide, northern CA, NV, UT, and the Columbia Basin portion of western WY New data series and summaries produced for this project include: 1) extreme statistics for surface hydrology (e.g. frequency of soil moisture and summer water deficit) and streamflow (e.g. the 100-year flood, extreme 7-day low flows with a 10-year recurrence interval); 2) snowpack vulnerability as indicated by the ratio of April 1 snow water to cool-season precipitation; and, 3) uncertainty analyses for multiple climate scenarios.

Robotic and artificial intelligence for keyhole neurosurgery: the ROBOCAST project, a multi-modal autonomous path planner.

PubMed

De Momi, E; Ferrigno, G

2010-01-01

The robot and sensors integration for computer-assisted surgery and therapy (ROBOCAST) project (FP7-ICT-2007-215190) is co-funded by the European Union within the Seventh Framework Programme in the field of information and communication technologies. The ROBOCAST project focuses on robot- and artificial-intelligence-assisted keyhole neurosurgery (tumour biopsy and local drug delivery along straight or turning paths). The goal of this project is to assist surgeons with a robotic system controlled by an intelligent high-level controller (HLC) able to gather and integrate information from the surgeon, from diagnostic images, and from an array of on-field sensors. The HLC integrates pre-operative and intra-operative diagnostics data and measurements, intelligence augmentation, multiple-robot dexterity, and multiple sensory inputs in a closed-loop cooperating scheme including a smart interface for improved haptic immersion and integration. This paper, after the overall architecture description, focuses on the intelligent trajectory planner based on risk estimation and human criticism. The current status of development is reported, and first tests on the planner are shown by using a real image stack and risk descriptor phantom. The advantages of using a fuzzy risk description are given by the possibility of upgrading the knowledge on-field without the intervention of a knowledge engineer.

Increasing atmospheric CO2 overrides the historical legacy of multiple stable biome states in Africa.

PubMed

Moncrieff, Glenn R; Scheiter, Simon; Bond, William J; Higgins, Steven I

2014-02-01

The dominant vegetation over much of the global land surface is not predetermined by contemporary climate, but also influenced by past environmental conditions. This confounds attempts to predict current and future biome distributions, because even a perfect model would project multiple possible biomes without knowledge of the historical vegetation state. Here we compare the distribution of tree- and grass-dominated biomes across Africa simulated using a dynamic global vegetation model (DGVM). We explicitly evaluate where and under what conditions multiple stable biome states are possible for current and projected future climates. Our simulation results show that multiple stable biomes states are possible for vast areas of tropical and subtropical Africa under current conditions. Widespread loss of the potential for multiple stable biomes states is projected in the 21st Century, driven by increasing atmospheric CO2 . Many sites where currently both tree-dominated and grass-dominated biomes are possible become deterministically tree-dominated. Regions with multiple stable biome states are widespread and require consideration when attempting to predict future vegetation changes. Testing for behaviour characteristic of systems with multiple stable equilibria, such as hysteresis and dependence on historical conditions, and the resulting uncertainty in simulated vegetation, will lead to improved projections of global change impacts. © 2013 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2013 New Phytologist Trust.

Research, Recruitment, and Assessment Strategies From The Dune Undergraduate Geomorphology and Geochronology (DUGG) REU Site at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rawling, J.; Presiado, R. S.; Hanson, P. R.

2013-12-01

The goals of the DUGG REU project included providing students with 1) significant field and laboratory training in geomorphology and geochronology, 2) an opportunity to participate in a project of regional significance to geomorphologists and Quaternary scientists and 3) cohort building opportunities resulting in relationships that will serve them throughout their graduate and/or professional STEM careers. Each cohort was provided with three opportunities to visit their chosen study sites and collect data. Students were introduced to their sites with geophysical surveying by conducting ground-penetrating radar transects. During the second and third field excursions students collected subsurface sediment samples with either a bucket auger or a portable vibracoring device. Student generated data from previous trips, including preliminary OSL data before the third trip, better informed subsequent sampling strategies. In total, the students measured the particle-size distributions from ~950 samples taken from 160 sites and dated 65 sand samples using optically-stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating. Efforts made to ensure a diverse applicant pool included the standard NSF and university websites, targeted emails, targeted recruitment at conferences, university visits, and collaborations with other undergraduate research centers. In total, approximately 25% of the participating DUGG students were members of minority groups underrepresented in the sciences (n=5), 65% were women (n=14) and one was a veteran of the Iraq conflict. The DUGG project included a Council on Undergraduate Research review during year one of the program to have external input on the project, and an aggressive internal assessment protocol that evaluated five measures related to the impact the project was having on the students. Over the three years of the project, the multiple annual program assessments were able to document increases in participants' technology literacy, perception toward geosciences, research techniques, and oral presentation skills from the beginning to the end of each DUGG cycle. The DUGG program also yielded effective gains in the student's geoscience content knowledge as measured by the assessment instruments. It is clear from the project assessments that the three years of DUGG had significant successes, and was a direct result of the careful consideration of each year's experience and evaluations. The combination of multiple visits to the research sites, rapid data turn around, diversity recruitment, and rigorous assessment ensured the successful achievement of the program goals and resulted in exceptional experiences for the DUGG students.

Realizing Improvement through Team Empowerment (RITE): A Team-based, Project-based Multidisciplinary Improvement Program.

PubMed

Larson, David B; Mickelsen, L Jake; Garcia, Kandice

2016-01-01

Performance improvement in a complex health care environment depends on the cooperation of diverse individuals and groups, allocation of time and resources, and use of effective improvement methods. To address this challenge, we developed an 18-week multidisciplinary training program that would also provide a vehicle for effecting needed improvements, by using a team- and project-based model. The program began in the radiology department and subsequently expanded to include projects from throughout the medical center. Participants were taught a specific method for team-based problem solving, which included (a) articulating the problem, (b) observing the process, (c) analyzing possible causes of problems, (d) identifying key drivers, (e) testing and refining interventions, and (f) providing for sustainment of results. Progress was formally reviewed on a weekly basis. A total of 14 teams consisting of 78 participants completed the course in two cohorts; one project was discontinued. All completed projects resulted in at least modest improvement. Mean skill scores increased from 2.5/6 to 4.5/6 (P < .01), and the mean satisfaction score was 4.7/5. Identified keys to success include (a) engagement of frontline staff, (b) teams given authority to make process changes, (c) capable improvement coaches, (d) a physician-director with improvement expertise and organizational authority, (e) capable administrative direction, (f) supportive organizational leaders, (g) weekly progress reviews, (h) timely educational material, (i) structured problem-solving methods, and ( j ) multiple projects working simultaneously. The purpose of this article is to review the program, including the methods and results, and discuss perceived keys to program success. © RSNA, 2016.

CILogon-HA. Higher Assurance Federated Identities for DOE Science

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

Basney, James

The CILogon-HA project extended the existing open source CILogon service (initially developed with funding from the National Science Foundation) to provide credentials at multiple levels of assurance to users of DOE facilities for collaborative science. CILogon translates mechanism and policy across higher education and grid trust federations, bridging from the InCommon identity federation (which federates university and DOE lab identities) to the Interoperable Global Trust Federation (which defines standards across the Worldwide LHC Computing Grid, the Open Science Grid, and other cyberinfrastructure). The CILogon-HA project expanded the CILogon service to support over 160 identity providers (including 6 DOE facilities) andmore » 3 internationally accredited certification authorities. To provide continuity of operations upon the end of the CILogon-HA project period, project staff transitioned the CILogon service to operation by XSEDE.« less

The Childhood Obesity Research Demonstration project: a team approach for supporting a multisite, multisector intervention.

PubMed

Williams, Nancy; Dooyema, Carrie A; Foltz, Jennifer L; Belay, Brook; Blanck, Heidi M

2015-02-01

Comprehensive multisector, multilevel approaches are needed to address childhood obesity. This article introduces the structure of a multidisciplinary team approach used to support and guide the multisite, multisector interventions implemented as part of the Childhood Obesity Research Demonstration (CORD) project. This article will describe the function, roles, and lessons learned from the CDC-CORD approach to project management. The CORD project works across multisectors and multilevels in three demonstration communities. Working with principal investigators and their research teams who are engaging multiple stakeholder groups, including community organizations, schools and child care centers, health departments, and healthcare providers, can be a complex endeavor. To best support the community-based research project, scientific and programmatic expertise in a wide range of areas was required. The team was configured based on the skill sets needed to interact with the various levels of staff working with the project. By thoughtful development of the team and processes, an efficient system for supporting the multisite, multisector intervention project sites was developed. The team approach will be formally evaluated at the end of the project period.

A multi-scale metrics approach to forest fragmentation for Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment

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

Kim, Eunyoung, E-mail: eykim@kei.re.kr; Song, Wonkyong, E-mail: wksong79@gmail.com; Lee, Dongkun, E-mail: dklee7@snu.ac.kr

Forests are becoming severely fragmented as a result of land development. South Korea has responded to changing community concerns about environmental issues. The nation has developed and is extending a broad range of tools for use in environmental management. Although legally mandated environmental compliance requirements in South Korea have been implemented to predict and evaluate the impacts of land-development projects, these legal instruments are often insufficient to assess the subsequent impact of development on the surrounding forests. It is especially difficult to examine impacts on multiple (e.g., regional and local) scales in detail. Forest configuration and size, including forest fragmentationmore » by land development, are considered on a regional scale. Moreover, forest structure and composition, including biodiversity, are considered on a local scale in the Environmental Impact Assessment process. Recently, the government amended the Environmental Impact Assessment Act, including the SEA, EIA, and small-scale EIA, to require an integrated approach. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to establish an impact assessment system that minimizes the impacts of land development using an approach that is integrated across multiple scales. This study focused on forest fragmentation due to residential development and road construction sites in selected Congestion Restraint Zones (CRZs) in the Greater Seoul Area of South Korea. Based on a review of multiple-scale impacts, this paper integrates models that assess the impacts of land development on forest ecosystems. The applicability of the integrated model for assessing impacts on forest ecosystems through the SEIA process is considered. On a regional scale, it is possible to evaluate the location and size of a land-development project by considering aspects of forest fragmentation, such as the stability of the forest structure and the degree of fragmentation. On a local scale, land-development projects should consider the distances at which impacts occur in the vicinity of the forest ecosystem, and these considerations should include the impacts on forest vegetation and bird species. Impacts can be mitigated by considering the distances at which these influences occur. In particular, this paper presents an integrated environmental impact assessment system to be applied in the SEIA process. The integrated assessment system permits the assessment of the cumulative impacts of land development on multiple scales. -- Highlights: • The model is to assess the impact of forest fragmentation across multiple scales. • The paper suggests the type of forest fragmentation on a regional scale. • The type can be used to evaluate the location and size of a land development. • The paper shows the influence distance of land development on a local scale. • The distance can be used to mitigate the impact at an EIA process.« less

EBR-II and TREAT Digitization Project

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

Griffith, George W.; Rabiti, Cristian

2015-09-01

Digitizing the technical drawings for EBR-II and TREAT provides multiple benefits. Moving the scanned or hard copy drawings to modern 3-D CAD (Computer Aided Drawing) format saves data that could be lost over time. The 3-D drawings produce models that can interface with other drawings to make complex assemblies. The 3-D CAD format can also include detailed material properties and parametric coding that can tie critical dimensions together allowing easier modification. Creating the new files from the old drawings has found multiple inconsistencies that are being flagged or corrected improving understanding of the reactor(s).

Developing Quality Improvement capacity and capability across the Children in Fife partnership.

PubMed

Morris, Craig; Alexander, Ingrid

2016-01-01

A Project Manager from the Fife Early Years Collaborative facilitated a large-scale Quality Improvement (herein QI) project to build organisational capacity and capability across the Children in Fife partnership through three separate, eight month training cohorts. This 18 month QI project enabled 32 practitioners to increase their skills, knowledge, and experiences in a variety of QI tools including the Model for Improvement which then supported the delivery of high quality improvement projects and improved outcomes for children and families. Essentially growing the confidence and capability of practitioners to deliver sustainable QI. 27 respective improvement projects were delivered, some leading to service redesign, reduced waiting times, increased uptake of health entitlements, and improved accessibility to front-line health services. 13 improvement projects spread or scaled beyond the initial site and informal QI mentoring took place with peers in respective agencies. Multiple PDSA cycles were conducted testing the most efficient and effective support mechanisms during and post training, maintaining regular contact, and utilising social media to share progress and achievements.

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

Samet, J.; Gilliland, F.D.

This project incorporates two related research projects directed toward understanding respiratory carcinogenesis in radon-exposed former uranium miners. The first project involved a continuation of the tissue resource of lung cancer cases from former underground uranium miners and comparison cases from non-miners. The second project was a pilot study for a proposed longitudinal study of respiratory carcinogenesis in former uranium miners. The objectives including facilitating the investigation of molecular changes in radon exposed lung cancer cases, developing methods for prospectively studying clinical, cytologic, cytogenetic, and molecular changes in the multi-event process of respiratory carcinogenesis, and assessing the feasibility of recruiting formermore » uranium miners into a longitudinal study that collected multiple biological specimens. A pilot study was conducted to determine whether blood collection, induced sputum, bronchial brushing, washings, and mucosal biopsies from participants at two of the hospitals could be included efficiently. A questionnaire was developed for the extended study and all protocols for specimen collection and tissue handling were completed. Resource utilization is in progress at ITRI and the methods have been developed to study molecular and cellular changes in exfoliated cells contained in sputum as well as susceptibility factors.« less

National Community Solar Platform

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

Rupert, Bart

This project was created to provide a National Community Solar Platform (NCSP) portal known as Community Solar Hub, that is available to any entity or individual who wants to develop community solar. This has been done by providing a comprehensive portal to make CEC’s solutions, and other proven community solar solutions, externally available for everyone to access – making the process easy through proven platforms to protect subscribers, developers and utilities. The successful completion of this project provides these tools via a web platform and integration APIs, a wide spectrum of community solar projects included in the platform, multiple groupsmore » of customers (utilities, EPCs, and advocates) using the platform to develop community solar, and open access to anyone interested in community solar. CEC’s Incubator project includes web-based informational resources, integrated systems for project information and billing systems, and engagement with customers and users by community solar experts. The combined effort externalizes much of Clean Energy Collective’s industry-leading expertise, allowing third parties to develop community solar without duplicating expensive start-up efforts. The availability of this platform creates community solar projects that are cheaper to build and cheaper to participate in, furthering the goals of DOE’s SunShot Initiative. Final SF 425 Final SF 428 Final DOE F 2050.11 Final Report Narrative« less

Modeling runoff and sediment yield from a terraced watershed using WEPP

Treesearch

Mary Carla McCullough; Dean E. Eisenhauer; Michael G. Dosskey

2008-01-01

The watershed version of WEPP (Water Erosion Prediction Project) was used to estimate 50-year runoff and sediment yields for a 291 ha watershed in eastern Nebraska that is 90% terraced and which has no historical gage data. The watershed has a complex matrix of elements, including terraced and non-terraced subwatersheds, multiple combinations of soils and land...

Impact Assessment of a Department-Wide Science Education Initiative Using Students' Perceptions of Teaching and Learning Experiences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Francis

2017-01-01

Evaluating major post-secondary education improvement projects involves multiple perspectives, including students' perceptions of their experiences. In the final year of a seven-year department-wide science education initiative, we asked students in 48 courses to rate the extent to which each of 39 teaching or learning strategies helped them learn…

Voices from Around the World: International Undergraduate Student Experiences. Professional File Number 104, Summer 2007

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Terkla, Dawn Geronimo; Etish-Andrews, Jane; Roscoe, Heather S.

2007-01-01

This paper explores how students adjust to life at universities outside their home countries. Much of the current research was conducted prior to the 9/11 tragedy and focuses primarily on studies within a single U.S. institution. This project expands the boundaries by including multiple institutions from around the globe post-9/11. Findings…

Skills Conversion Project: Chapter 19, Profile of the Technological Manpower Pool. Final Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Society of Professional Engineers, Washington, DC.

In the absence of any one central source of data covering the profile of the unemployed aerospace and defense technical professional, an extensive analysis of multiple data sources was conducted for the U.S. Department of Labor by the National Society for Professional Engineers. The survey and analysis included data covering approximately 63,000…

2005 TACOM APBI - Partnering to Reset, Recapitalize and Restructure the Force

DTIC Science & Technology

2005-10-28

training. 28 Oct 05~APBI ~9~ Force Projection ~ Technology Challenges (cont.) Force Sustainment Systems Develop smart airdrop systems using Global... UART ). General Purpose Electronic Test Equipment (GPETE) Transform multiple conventional GPETE instruments into a single Virtual Instrument with a...Consists of tools and equipment to refill and repair carbon dioxide fire extinguishers. Rapid Runway Repair - Components include sand grid sections

The Center for Learning Technologies in Urban Schools (LeTUS) Program[R]. What Works Clearinghouse Intervention Report

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

What Works Clearinghouse, 2012

2012-01-01

The "LeTUS" program is a three-year, project-based, technology-integrated middle school science curriculum for grades 6-8. The "LeTUS" program is composed of multiple units, each lasting between eight and ten weeks. Topics include global warming, water and air quality, force and motion, communicable diseases, and ecological…

Simulating fire and forest dynamics for a coordinated landscape fuel treatment project in the Sierra Nevada

Treesearch

Brandon M. Collins; Scott L. Stephens; Gary B. Roller; John Battles

2011-01-01

We evaluate an actual landscape fuel treatment project that was designed by local U. S. Forest Service managers in the northern Sierra Nevada. We model the effects of this project at reducing landscape-level fire behavior at multiple time steps, up to nearly 30 yr beyond treatment implementation. Additionally, we modeled planned treatments under multiple diameter-...

Pedagogical Content Knowledge in Special Needs Education: A Case Study of an Art Project with the Multiple/Severe Handicapped

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Murayama, Taku

2016-01-01

This paper focuses on a project in teacher education through art activities at the undergraduate level. The main theme is art activities by university students and multiple and severe handicapped students. This project has two significant points for the preparation of special education teachers. One point is the opportunity for field work. Even…

International Cancer Genome Consortium Data Portal--a one-stop shop for cancer genomics data.

PubMed

Zhang, Junjun; Baran, Joachim; Cros, A; Guberman, Jonathan M; Haider, Syed; Hsu, Jack; Liang, Yong; Rivkin, Elena; Wang, Jianxin; Whitty, Brett; Wong-Erasmus, Marie; Yao, Long; Kasprzyk, Arek

2011-01-01

The International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC) is a collaborative effort to characterize genomic abnormalities in 50 different cancer types. To make this data available, the ICGC has created the ICGC Data Portal. Powered by the BioMart software, the Data Portal allows each ICGC member institution to manage and maintain its own databases locally, while seamlessly presenting all the data in a single access point for users. The Data Portal currently contains data from 24 cancer projects, including ICGC, The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), Johns Hopkins University, and the Tumor Sequencing Project. It consists of 3478 genomes and 13 cancer types and subtypes. Available open access data types include simple somatic mutations, copy number alterations, structural rearrangements, gene expression, microRNAs, DNA methylation and exon junctions. Additionally, simple germline variations are available as controlled access data. The Data Portal uses a web-based graphical user interface (GUI) to offer researchers multiple ways to quickly and easily search and analyze the available data. The web interface can assist in constructing complicated queries across multiple data sets. Several application programming interfaces are also available for programmatic access. Here we describe the organization, functionality, and capabilities of the ICGC Data Portal.

The PACA Project Ecology: Observing Campaigns, Outreach and Citizen Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yanamandra-Fisher, P. A.

2016-12-01

The PACA Project has three main components: observational campaigns aligned with scientific research; outreach to engage all forms of audiences and citizen science projects that aim to produce specific scientific results, by engaging professional scientific and amateur communities and a variety of audiences. The primary observational projects are defined by specific scientific goals by professionals, resulting in global observing campaigns involving a variety of observers, and observing techniques. Some of PACA's observing campaigns have included global characterization of comets (e.g., C/ISON, SidingSpring, 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, Lovejoy, etc.), planets (Jupiter, Saturn and Mars) and currently expanding to include polarimetric exploration of solar system objects with small apertures and collaboration with CITIZEN CATE, a citizen science observing campaign to observe the 2017 Continental America Total Eclipse. Our Outreach campaigns leverage the multiple social media/platforms for at least two important reasons: (i) the immediate dissemination of observations and interaction with the global network and (ii) free or inexpensive resources for most of the participants. The use of social media is becoming prevalent in citizen science projects due to these factors. The final stage of the PACA ecosystem is the integration of these components into a publication. We shall highlight some of the interesting challenges and solutions of the PACA Project so far and provide a view of future projects in all three categories with new partnerships and collaborations.

Genotype Imputation for Latinos Using the HapMap and 1000 Genomes Project Reference Panels.

PubMed

Gao, Xiaoyi; Haritunians, Talin; Marjoram, Paul; McKean-Cowdin, Roberta; Torres, Mina; Taylor, Kent D; Rotter, Jerome I; Gauderman, William J; Varma, Rohit

2012-01-01

Genotype imputation is a vital tool in genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and meta-analyses of multiple GWAS results. Imputation enables researchers to increase genomic coverage and to pool data generated using different genotyping platforms. HapMap samples are often employed as the reference panel. More recently, the 1000 Genomes Project resource is becoming the primary source for reference panels. Multiple GWAS and meta-analyses are targeting Latinos, the most populous, and fastest growing minority group in the US. However, genotype imputation resources for Latinos are rather limited compared to individuals of European ancestry at present, largely because of the lack of good reference data. One choice of reference panel for Latinos is one derived from the population of Mexican individuals in Los Angeles contained in the HapMap Phase 3 project and the 1000 Genomes Project. However, a detailed evaluation of the quality of the imputed genotypes derived from the public reference panels has not yet been reported. Using simulation studies, the Illumina OmniExpress GWAS data from the Los Angles Latino Eye Study and the MACH software package, we evaluated the accuracy of genotype imputation in Latinos. Our results show that the 1000 Genomes Project AMR + CEU + YRI reference panel provides the highest imputation accuracy for Latinos, and that also including Asian samples in the panel can reduce imputation accuracy. We also provide the imputation accuracy for each autosomal chromosome using the 1000 Genomes Project panel for Latinos. Our results serve as a guide to future imputation based analysis in Latinos.

Principles for a Successful Computerized Physician Order Entry Implementation

PubMed Central

Ash, Joan S.; Fournier, Lara; Stavri, P. Zoë; Dykstra, Richard

2003-01-01

To identify success factors for implementing computerized physician order entry (CPOE), our research team took both a top-down and bottom-up approach and reconciled the results to develop twelve overarching principles to guide implementation. A consensus panel of experts produced ten Considerations with nearly 150 sub-considerations, and a three year project using qualitative methods at multiple successful sites for a grounded theory approach yielded ten general themes with 24 sub-themes. After reconciliation using a meta-matrix approach, twelve Principles, which cluster into groups forming the mnemonic CPOE emerged. Computer technology principles include: temporal concerns; technology and meeting information needs; multidimensional integration; and costs. Personal principles are: value to users and tradeoffs; essential people; and training and support. Organizational principles include: foundational underpinnings; collaborative project management; terms, concepts and connotations; and improvement through evaluation and learning. Finally, Environmental issues include the motivation and context for implementing such systems. PMID:14728129

Implementation and assessment of a yeast orphan gene research project; involving undergraduates in authentic research experiences and progressing our understanding of uncharacterized open reading frames

PubMed Central

Bowling, Bethany V.; Schultheis, Patrick J.

2015-01-01

Saccharomyces cerevisiae was the first eukaryotic organism to be sequenced, however little progress has been made in recent years in furthering our understanding of all open reading frames (ORFs). From October 2012 to May 2015 the number of verified ORFs has only risen from 75.31% to 78% while the number of uncharacterized ORFs have decreased from 12.8% to 11% (representing more than 700 genes still left in this category) [http://www.yeastgenome.org/genomesnapshot]. Course-based research has been shown to increase student learning while providing experience with real scientific investigation; however, implementation in large, multi-section courses presents many challenges. This study sought to test the feasibility and effectiveness of incorporating authentic research into a core genetics course with multiple instructors to increase student learning and progress our understanding of uncharacterized ORFs. We generated a module-based annotation toolkit and utilized easily accessible bioinformatics tools to predict gene function for uncharacterized ORFs within the Saccharomyces Genome Database (SGD). Students were each assigned an uncharacterized ORF which they annotated using contemporary comparative genomics methodologies including multiple sequence alignment, conserved domain identification, signal peptide prediction and cellular localization algorithms. Student learning outcomes were measured by quizzes, project reports and presentations, as well as a post-project questionnaire. Our results indicate the authentic research experience had positive impacts on student's perception of their learning and their confidence to conduct future research. Furthermore we believe that creation of an online repository and adoption and/or adaptation of this project across multiple researchers and institutions could speed the process of gene function prediction. PMID:26460164

Implementation and assessment of a yeast orphan gene research project: involving undergraduates in authentic research experiences and progressing our understanding of uncharacterized open reading frames.

PubMed

Bowling, Bethany V; Schultheis, Patrick J; Strome, Erin D

2016-02-01

Saccharomyces cerevisiae was the first eukaryotic organism to be sequenced; however, little progress has been made in recent years in furthering our understanding of all open reading frames (ORFs). From October 2012 to May 2015 the number of verified ORFs had only risen from 75.31% to 78%, while the number of uncharacterized ORFs had decreased from 12.8% to 11% (representing > 700 genes still left in this category; http://www.yeastgenome.org/genomesnapshot). Course-based research has been shown to increase student learning while providing experience with real scientific investigation; however, implementation in large, multi-section courses presents many challenges. This study sought to test the feasibility and effectiveness of incorporating authentic research into a core genetics course, with multiple instructors, to increase student learning and progress our understanding of uncharacterized ORFs. We generated a module-based annotation toolkit and utilized easily accessible bioinformatics tools to predict gene function for uncharacterized ORFs within the Saccharomyces Genome Database (SGD). Students were each assigned an uncharacterized ORF, which they annotated using contemporary comparative genomics methodologies, including multiple sequence alignment, conserved domain identification, signal peptide prediction and cellular localization algorithms. Student learning outcomes were measured by quizzes, project reports and presentations, as well as a post-project questionnaire. Our results indicate that the authentic research experience had positive impacts on students' perception of their learning and their confidence to conduct future research. Furthermore, we believe that creation of an online repository and adoption and/or adaptation of this project across multiple researchers and institutions could speed the process of gene function prediction. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Central Projections of Antennal and Labial Palp Sensory Neurons in the Migratory Armyworm Mythimna separata

PubMed Central

Ma, Bai-Wei; Zhao, Xin-Cheng; Berg, Bente G.; Xie, Gui-Ying; Tang, Qing-Bo; Wang, Gui-Rong

2017-01-01

The oriental armyworm, Mythimna separata (Walker), is a polyphagous, migratory pest relying on olfactory cues to find mates, locate nectar, and guide long-distance flight behavior. In the present study, a combination of neuroanatomical techniques were utilized on this species, including backfills, confocal microscopy, and three-dimensional reconstructions, to trace the central projections of sensory neurons from the antenna and the labial pit organ, respectively. As previously shown, the axons of the labial sensory neurons project via the ipsilateral labial nerve and terminate in three main areas of the central nervous system: (1) the labial-palp pit organ glomerulus of each antennal lobe, (2) the gnathal ganglion, and (3) the prothoracic ganglion of the ventral nerve cord. Similarly, the antennal sensory axons project to multiple areas of the central nervous system. The ipsilateral antennal nerve targets mainly the antennal lobe, the antennal mechanosensory and motor center, and the prothoracic and mesothoracic ganglia. Specific staining experiments including dye application to each of the three antennal segments indicate that the antennal lobe receives input from flagellar olfactory neurons exclusively, while the antennal mechanosensory and motor center is innervated by mechanosensory neurons from the whole antenna, comprising the flagellum, pedicle, and scape. The terminals in the mechanosensory and motor center are organized in segregated zones relating to the origin of neurons. The flagellar mechanosensory axons target anterior zones, while the pedicular and scapal axons terminate in posterior zones. In the ventral nerve cord, the processes from the antennal sensory neurons terminate in the motor area of the thoracic ganglia, suggesting a close connection with motor neurons. Taken together, the numerous neuropils innervated by axons both from the antenna and labial palp indicate the multiple roles these sensory organs serve in insect behavior. PMID:29209176

Nitrate vulnerability projections from Bayesian inference of multiple groundwater age tracers

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

Alikhani, Jamal; Deinhart, Amanda L.; Visser, Ate

Nitrate is a major source of contamination of groundwater in the United States and around the world. We tested the applicability of multiple groundwater age tracers ( 3H, 3He, 4He, 14C, 13C, and 85Kr) in projecting future trends of nitrate concentration in 9 long-screened, public drinking water wells in Turlock, California, where nitrate concentrations are increasing toward the regulatory limit. Very low 85Kr concentrations and apparent 3H/ 3He ages point to a relatively old modern fraction (40–50 years), diluted with pre-modern groundwater, corroborated by the onset and slope of increasing nitrate concentrations. An inverse Gaussian–Dirac model was chosen to representmore » the age distribution of the sampled groundwater at each well. Model parameters were estimated using a Bayesian inference, resulting in the posterior probability distribution – including the associated uncertainty – of the parameters and projected nitrate concentrations. Three scenarios were considered, including combined historic nitrate and age tracer data, the sole use of nitrate and the sole use of age tracer data. Each scenario was evaluated based on the ability of the model to reproduce the data and the level of reliability of the nitrate projections. The tracer-only scenario closely reproduced tracer concentrations, but not observed trends in the nitrate concentration. Both cases that included nitrate data resulted in good agreement with historical nitrate trends. Use of combined tracers and nitrate data resulted in a narrower range of projections of future nitrate levels. However, use of combined tracer and nitrate resulted in a larger discrepancy between modeled and measured tracers for some of the tracers. In conclusion, despite nitrate trend slopes between 0.56 and 1.73 mg/L/year in 7 of the 9 wells, the probability that concentrations will increase to levels above the MCL by 2040 are over 95% for only two of the wells, and below 15% in the other wells, due to a leveling off of reconstructed historical nitrate loadings to groundwater since about 1990.« less

A new approach for reducing beam hardening artifacts in polychromatic X-ray computed tomography using more accurate prior image.

PubMed

Wang, Hui; Xu, Yanan; Shi, Hongli

2018-03-15

Metal artifacts severely degrade CT image quality in clinical diagnosis, which are difficult to removed, especially for the beam hardening artifacts. The metal artifact reduction (MAR) based on prior images are the most frequently-used methods. However, there exists a lot misclassification in most prior images caused by absence of prior information such as spectrum distribution of X-ray beam source, especially when multiple or big metal are included. This work aims is to identify a more accurate prior image to improve image quality. The proposed method includes four steps. First, the metal image is segmented by thresholding an initial image, where the metal traces are identified in the initial projection data using the forward projection of the metal image. Second, the accurate absorbent model of certain metal image is calculated according to the spectrum distribution of certain X-ray beam source and energy-dependent attenuation coefficients of metal. Third, a new metal image is reconstructed by the general analytical reconstruction algorithm such as filtered back projection (FPB). The prior image is obtained by segmenting the difference image between the initial image and the new metal image into air, tissue and bone. Fourth, the initial projection data are normalized by dividing the projection data of prior image pixel to pixel. The final corrected image is obtained by interpolation, denormalization and reconstruction. Several clinical images with dental fillings and knee prostheses were used to evaluate the proposed algorithm and normalized metal artifact reduction (NMAR) and linear interpolation (LI) method. The results demonstrate the artifacts were reduced efficiently by the proposed method. The proposed method could obtain an exact prior image using the prior information about X-ray beam source and energy-dependent attenuation coefficients of metal. As a result, better performance of reducing beam hardening artifacts can be achieved. Moreover, the process of the proposed method is rather simple and little extra calculation burden is necessary. It has superiorities over other algorithms when include multiple and/or big implants.

Nitrate vulnerability projections from Bayesian inference of multiple groundwater age tracers

DOE PAGES

Alikhani, Jamal; Deinhart, Amanda L.; Visser, Ate; ...

2016-04-20

Nitrate is a major source of contamination of groundwater in the United States and around the world. We tested the applicability of multiple groundwater age tracers ( 3H, 3He, 4He, 14C, 13C, and 85Kr) in projecting future trends of nitrate concentration in 9 long-screened, public drinking water wells in Turlock, California, where nitrate concentrations are increasing toward the regulatory limit. Very low 85Kr concentrations and apparent 3H/ 3He ages point to a relatively old modern fraction (40–50 years), diluted with pre-modern groundwater, corroborated by the onset and slope of increasing nitrate concentrations. An inverse Gaussian–Dirac model was chosen to representmore » the age distribution of the sampled groundwater at each well. Model parameters were estimated using a Bayesian inference, resulting in the posterior probability distribution – including the associated uncertainty – of the parameters and projected nitrate concentrations. Three scenarios were considered, including combined historic nitrate and age tracer data, the sole use of nitrate and the sole use of age tracer data. Each scenario was evaluated based on the ability of the model to reproduce the data and the level of reliability of the nitrate projections. The tracer-only scenario closely reproduced tracer concentrations, but not observed trends in the nitrate concentration. Both cases that included nitrate data resulted in good agreement with historical nitrate trends. Use of combined tracers and nitrate data resulted in a narrower range of projections of future nitrate levels. However, use of combined tracer and nitrate resulted in a larger discrepancy between modeled and measured tracers for some of the tracers. In conclusion, despite nitrate trend slopes between 0.56 and 1.73 mg/L/year in 7 of the 9 wells, the probability that concentrations will increase to levels above the MCL by 2040 are over 95% for only two of the wells, and below 15% in the other wells, due to a leveling off of reconstructed historical nitrate loadings to groundwater since about 1990.« less

Neuronal Diversity in GABAergic Long-Range Projections from the Hippocampus

PubMed Central

Jinno, Shozo; Klausberger, Thomas; Marton, Laszlo F.; Dalezios, Yannis; Roberts, J. David B.; Fuentealba, Pablo; Bushong, Eric A.; Henze, Darrell; Buzsáki, György; Somogyi, Peter

2008-01-01

The formation and recall of sensory, motor, and cognitive representations require coordinated fast communication among multiple cortical areas. Interareal projections are mainly mediated by glutamatergic pyramidal cell projections; only few long-range GABAergic connections have been reported. Using in vivo recording and labeling of single cells and retrograde axonal tracing, we demonstrate novel long-range GABAergic projection neurons in the rat hippocampus: (1) somatostatin- and predominantly mGluR1α-positive neurons in stratum oriens project to the subiculum, other cortical areas, and the medial septum; (2) neurons in stratum oriens, including somatostatin-negative ones; and (3) trilaminar cells project to the subiculum and/or other cortical areas but not the septum. These three populations strongly increase their firing during sharp wave-associated ripple oscillations, communicating this network state to the septotemporal system. Finally, a large population of somatostatin-negative GABAergic cells in stratum radiatum project to the molecular layers of the subiculum, presubiculum, retrosplenial cortex, and indusium griseum and fire rhythmically at high rates during theta oscillations but do not increase their firing during ripples. The GABAergic projection axons have a larger diameter and thicker myelin sheet than those of CA1 pyramidal cells. Therefore, rhythmic IPSCs are likely to precede the arrival of excitation in cortical areas (e.g., subiculum) that receive both glutamatergic and GABAergic projections from the CA1 area. Other areas, including the retrosplenial cortex, receive only rhythmic GABAergic CA1 input. We conclude that direct GABAergic projections from the hippocampus to other cortical areas and the septum contribute to coordinating oscillatory timing across structures. PMID:17699661

Funding Mechanisms for Ecosystem Services Projects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Russell, V.

2014-12-01

Ecosystem services projects ideally should be funded through commoditized markets. Where those markets do not exist financing directly from interested private sector parties can be a direct link between business interested in fulfilling sustainability goals and project implementers. Challenges exist, however in 1) linking those interests; 2) carefully quantifying the services produced, their true costs to implement and meeting protocol standards; 3) measuring the success of projects, especially over lengthy periods of time; and 4) balancing issues related to multiple spatial scales for projects and funding to make a difference. Examples from National Forest Foundation's experience implementing carbon and water projects with multiple private sector funders and the USDA Forest Service will highlight experiences and lessons learned in funding and implementing ecosystem service projects.

The Tailoring of Traditional Systems Engineering for the Morpheus Project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Devolites, Jennifer L.; Hart, Jeremy J.

2013-01-01

NASA's Morpheus Project has developed and tested a prototype planetary lander capable of vertical takeoff and landing that is designed to serve as a testbed for advanced spacecraft technologies. The lander vehicle, propelled by a LOX/Methane engine and sized to carry a 500kg payload to the lunar surface, provides a platform for bringing technologies from the laboratory into an integrated flight system at relatively low cost. From the beginning, one of goals for the Morpheus Project was to streamline agency processes and practices. The Morpheus project accepted a challenge to tailor the traditional NASA systems engineering approach in a way that would be appropriate for a lower cost, rapid prototype engineering effort, but retain the essence of the guiding principles. The team has produced innovative ways to create an infrastructure and approach that would challenge existing systems engineering processes while still enabling successful implementation of the current Morpheus Project. This paper describes the tailored systems engineering approach for the Morpheus project, including the processes, tools, and amount of rigor employed over the project's multiple lifecycles since the project began in FY11. Lessons learned from these trials have the potential to be scaled up and improve efficiency on a larger projects or programs.

Wolf Testing: Open Source Testing Software

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Braasch, P.; Gay, P. L.

2004-12-01

Wolf Testing is software for easily creating and editing exams. Wolf Testing allows the user to create an exam from a database of questions, view it on screen, and easily print it along with the corresponding answer guide. The questions can be multiple choice, short answer, long answer, or true and false varieties. This software can be accessed securely from any location, allowing the user to easily create exams from home. New questions, which can include associated pictures, can be added through a web-interface. After adding in questions, they can be edited, deleted, or duplicated into multiple versions. Long-term test creation is simplified, as you are able to quickly see what questions you have asked in the past and insert them, with or without editing, into future tests. All tests are archived in the database. Written in PHP and MySQL, this software can be installed on any UNIX / Linux platform, including Macintosh OS X. The secure interface keeps students out, and allows you to decide who can create tests and who can edit information already in the database. Tests can be output as either html with pictures or rich text without pictures, and there are plans to add PDF and MS Word formats as well. We would like to thank Dr. Wolfgang Rueckner and the Harvard University Science Center for providing incentive to start this project, computers and resources to complete this project, and inspiration for the project's name. We would also like to thank Dr. Ronald Newburgh for his assistance in beta testing.

Managing aquatic ecosystems and water resources under multiple stress--an introduction to the MARS project.

PubMed

Hering, Daniel; Carvalho, Laurence; Argillier, Christine; Beklioglu, Meryem; Borja, Angel; Cardoso, Ana Cristina; Duel, Harm; Ferreira, Teresa; Globevnik, Lidija; Hanganu, Jenica; Hellsten, Seppo; Jeppesen, Erik; Kodeš, Vit; Solheim, Anne Lyche; Nõges, Tiina; Ormerod, Steve; Panagopoulos, Yiannis; Schmutz, Stefan; Venohr, Markus; Birk, Sebastian

2015-01-15

Water resources globally are affected by a complex mixture of stressors resulting from a range of drivers, including urban and agricultural land use, hydropower generation and climate change. Understanding how stressors interfere and impact upon ecological status and ecosystem services is essential for developing effective River Basin Management Plans and shaping future environmental policy. This paper details the nature of these problems for Europe's water resources and the need to find solutions at a range of spatial scales. In terms of the latter, we describe the aims and approaches of the EU-funded project MARS (Managing Aquatic ecosystems and water Resources under multiple Stress) and the conceptual and analytical framework that it is adopting to provide this knowledge, understanding and tools needed to address multiple stressors. MARS is operating at three scales: At the water body scale, the mechanistic understanding of stressor interactions and their impact upon water resources, ecological status and ecosystem services will be examined through multi-factorial experiments and the analysis of long time-series. At the river basin scale, modelling and empirical approaches will be adopted to characterise relationships between multiple stressors and ecological responses, functions, services and water resources. The effects of future land use and mitigation scenarios in 16 European river basins will be assessed. At the European scale, large-scale spatial analysis will be carried out to identify the relationships amongst stress intensity, ecological status and service provision, with a special focus on large transboundary rivers, lakes and fish. The project will support managers and policy makers in the practical implementation of the Water Framework Directive (WFD), of related legislation and of the Blueprint to Safeguard Europe's Water Resources by advising the 3rd River Basin Management Planning cycle, the revision of the WFD and by developing new tools for diagnosing and predicting multiple stressors. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier B.V.

["Vision through the hands": experience of a project].

PubMed

Ventura, Roberta; Ventura, Liana; Brandt, Carlos; Ferraz, Daniel; Ventura, Bruna

2007-01-01

The Project "Vision through the hands" was performed by the Altino Ventura Foundation, with the purpose of investigating the present child situation with multiple disabilities in the state of Pernambuco, Brazil. Birth and social conditions, social problems, and difficulty in accessing the specialized services were evaluated, aiming to collect relevant data with the goal of posterior implantation of a specialized diagnosis and treatment center. Ophthalmologic care and proper treatment were offered. Three hundred and nine children from five reference institutions in disabilities were attended, on six non consecutive days. All cases underwent ophthalmologic examinations and parent interviews. During the waiting time between the ophthalmologic visits and parent interviews the patients performed activities with artists. A multidisciplinary team of 31 professionals was available. According to parent information 83.1% of the patients were considered included in the society and only 45.4% attended school (normal or special). The difficulty to get access to ophthalmologic service was reported by 51.1%. Two hundred and seventy children with multiple disabilities were identified, 154 (56.2%) of whom underwent an ophthalmologic examination for the first time, and 33.0% had low visual acuity (inferior to 20/60 Snellen). The most frequent diagnoses were: refraction error, strabismus, ambliopia, alterations of optic nerve (glaucoma and atrophy), and cataract. Eighty-four glasses were prescribed. This project was pioneer in the region, allowing to obtain the information about important problems regarding multiple disabilities, and making possible ophthalmologic care and specialized treatment to the children.

A proposed coast-wide reference monitoring system for evaluating Wetland restoration trajectories in Louisiana

USGS Publications Warehouse

Steyer, G.D.; Sasser, C.E.; Visser, J.M.; Swenson, E.M.; Nyman, J.A.; Raynie, R.C.

2003-01-01

Wetland restoration efforts conducted in Louisiana under the Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection and Restoration Act require monitoring the effectiveness of individual projects as well as monitoring the cumulative effects of all projects in restoring, creating, enhancing, and protecting the coastal landscape. The effectiveness of the traditional paired-reference monitoring approach in Louisiana has been limited because of difficulty in finding comparable reference sites. A multiple reference approach is proposed that uses aspects of hydrogeomorphic functional assessments and probabilistic sampling. This approach includes a suite of sites that encompass the range of ecological condition for each stratum, with projects placed on a continuum of conditions found for that stratum. Trajectories in reference sites through time are then compared with project trajectories through time. Plant community zonation complicated selection of indicators, strata, and sample size. The approach proposed could serve as a model for evaluating wetland ecosystems.

A proposed coast-wide reference monitoring system for evaluating wetland restoration trajectories in Louisiana.

PubMed

Steyer, Gregory D; Sasser, Charles E; Visser, Jenneke M; Swenson, Erick M; Nyman, John A; Raynie, Richard C

2003-01-01

Wetland restoration efforts conducted in Louisiana under the Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection and Restoration Act require monitoring the effectiveness of individual projects as well as monitoring the cumulative effects of all projects in restoring, creating, enhancing, and protecting the coastal landscape. The effectiveness of the traditional paired-reference monitoring approach in Louisiana has been limited because of difficulty in finding comparable reference sites. A multiple reference approach is proposed that uses aspects of hydrogeomorphic functional assessments and probabilistic sampling. This approach includes a suite of sites that encompass the range of ecological condition for each stratum, with projects placed on a continuum of conditions found for that stratum. Trajectories in reference sites through time are then compared with project trajectories through time. Plant community zonation complicated selection of indicators, strata, and sample size. The approach proposed could serve as a model for evaluating wetland ecosystems.

SemanticOrganizer: A Customizable Semantic Repository for Distributed NASA Project Teams

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Keller, Richard M.; Berrios, Daniel C.; Carvalho, Robert E.; Hall, David R.; Rich, Stephen J.; Sturken, Ian B.; Swanson, Keith J.; Wolfe, Shawn R.

2004-01-01

SemanticOrganizer is a collaborative knowledge management system designed to support distributed NASA projects, including diverse teams of scientists, engineers, and accident investigators. The system provides a customizable, semantically structured information repository that stores work products relevant to multiple projects of differing types. SemanticOrganizer is one of the earliest and largest semantic web applications deployed at NASA to date, and has been used in diverse contexts ranging from the investigation of Space Shuttle Columbia's accident to the search for life on other planets. Although the underlying repository employs a single unified ontology, access control and ontology customization mechanisms make the repository contents appear different for each project team. This paper describes SemanticOrganizer, its customization facilities, and a sampling of its applications. The paper also summarizes some key lessons learned from building and fielding a successful semantic web application across a wide-ranging set of domains with diverse users.

Including Health in Environmental Assessments of Major Transport Infrastructure Projects: A Documentary Analysis

PubMed Central

Riley, Emily; Harris, Patrick; Kent, Jennifer; Sainsbury, Peter; Lane, Anna; Baum, Fran

2018-01-01

Background: Transport policy and practice impacts health. Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) are regulated public policy mechanisms that can be used to consider the health impacts of major transport projects before they are approved. The way health is considered in these environmental assessments (EAs) is not well known. This research asked: How and to what extent was human health considered in EAs of four major transport projects in Australia. Methods: We developed a comprehensive coding framework to analyse the Environmental Impact Statements (EISs) of four transport infrastructure projects: three road and one light rail. The coding framework was designed to capture how health was directly and indirectly included. Results: We found that health was partially considered in all four EISs. In the three New South Wales (NSW) projects, but not the one South Australian project, this was influenced by the requirements issued to proponents by the government which directed the content of the EIS. Health was assessed using human health risk assessment (HHRA). We found this to be narrow in focus and revealed a need for a broader social determinants of health approach, using multiple methods. The road assessments emphasised air quality and noise risks, concluding these were minimal or predicted to improve. The South Australian project was the only road project not to include health data explicitly. The light rail EIS considered the health benefits of the project whereas the others focused on risk. Only one project considered mental health, although in less detail than air quality or noise. Conclusion: Our findings suggest EIAs lag behind the known evidence linking transport infrastructure to health. If health is to be comprehensively included, a more complete model of health is required, as well as a shift away from health risk assessment as the main method used. This needs to be mandatory for all significant developments. We also found that considering health only at the EIA stage may be a significant limitation, and there is a need for health issues to be considered when earlier, fundamental decisions about the project are being made. PMID:29524938

Large-Scale Transport Model Uncertainty and Sensitivity Analysis: Distributed Sources in Complex Hydrogeologic Systems

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

Sig Drellack, Lance Prothro

2007-12-01

The Underground Test Area (UGTA) Project of the U.S. Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration Nevada Site Office is in the process of assessing and developing regulatory decision options based on modeling predictions of contaminant transport from underground testing of nuclear weapons at the Nevada Test Site (NTS). The UGTA Project is attempting to develop an effective modeling strategy that addresses and quantifies multiple components of uncertainty including natural variability, parameter uncertainty, conceptual/model uncertainty, and decision uncertainty in translating model results into regulatory requirements. The modeling task presents multiple unique challenges to the hydrological sciences as a result ofmore » the complex fractured and faulted hydrostratigraphy, the distributed locations of sources, the suite of reactive and non-reactive radionuclides, and uncertainty in conceptual models. Characterization of the hydrogeologic system is difficult and expensive because of deep groundwater in the arid desert setting and the large spatial setting of the NTS. Therefore, conceptual model uncertainty is partially addressed through the development of multiple alternative conceptual models of the hydrostratigraphic framework and multiple alternative models of recharge and discharge. Uncertainty in boundary conditions is assessed through development of alternative groundwater fluxes through multiple simulations using the regional groundwater flow model. Calibration of alternative models to heads and measured or inferred fluxes has not proven to provide clear measures of model quality. Therefore, model screening by comparison to independently-derived natural geochemical mixing targets through cluster analysis has also been invoked to evaluate differences between alternative conceptual models. Advancing multiple alternative flow models, sensitivity of transport predictions to parameter uncertainty is assessed through Monte Carlo simulations. The simulations are challenged by the distributed sources in each of the Corrective Action Units, by complex mass transfer processes, and by the size and complexity of the field-scale flow models. An efficient methodology utilizing particle tracking results and convolution integrals provides in situ concentrations appropriate for Monte Carlo analysis. Uncertainty in source releases and transport parameters including effective porosity, fracture apertures and spacing, matrix diffusion coefficients, sorption coefficients, and colloid load and mobility are considered. With the distributions of input uncertainties and output plume volumes, global analysis methods including stepwise regression, contingency table analysis, and classification tree analysis are used to develop sensitivity rankings of parameter uncertainties for each model considered, thus assisting a variety of decisions.« less

Individual mediodorsal thalamic neurons project to multiple areas of the rat prefrontal cortex: A single neuron-tracing study using virus vectors.

PubMed

Kuramoto, Eriko; Pan, Shixiu; Furuta, Takahiro; Tanaka, Yasuhiro R; Iwai, Haruki; Yamanaka, Atsushi; Ohno, Sachi; Kaneko, Takeshi; Goto, Tetsuya; Hioki, Hiroyuki

2017-01-01

The prefrontal cortex has an important role in a variety of cognitive and executive processes, and is generally defined by its reciprocal connections with the mediodorsal thalamic nucleus (MD). The rat MD is mainly subdivided into three segments, the medial (MDm), central (MDc), and lateral (MDl) divisions, on the basis of the cytoarchitecture and chemoarchitecture. The MD segments are known to topographically project to multiple prefrontal areas at the population level: the MDm mainly to the prelimbic, infralimbic, and agranular insular areas; the MDc to the orbital and agranular insular areas; and the MDl to the prelimbic and anterior cingulate areas. However, it is unknown whether individual MD neurons project to single or multiple prefrontal cortical areas. In the present study, we visualized individual MD neurons with Sindbis virus vectors, and reconstructed whole structures of MD neurons. While the main cortical projection targets of MDm, MDc, and MDl neurons were generally consistent with those of previous results, it was found that individual MD neurons sent their axon fibers to multiple prefrontal areas, and displayed various projection patterns in the target areas. Furthermore, the axons of single MD neurons were not homogeneously spread, but were rather distributed to form patchy axon arbors approximately 1 mm in diameter. The multiple-area projections and patchy axon arbors of single MD neurons might be able to coactivate cortical neuron groups in distant prefrontal areas simultaneously. Furthermore, considerable heterogeneity of the projection patterns is likely, to recruit the different sets of cortical neurons, and thus contributes to a variety of prefrontal functions. J. Comp. Neurol. 525:166-185, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Techniques for deriving tissue structure from multiple projection dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Feldmesser, Howard S. (Inventor); Charles, Jr., Harry K. (Inventor); Beck, Thomas J. (Inventor); Magee, Thomas C. (Inventor)

2004-01-01

Techniques for deriving bone properties from images generated by a dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry apparatus include receiving first image data having pixels indicating bone mineral density projected at a first angle of a plurality of projection angles. Second image data and third image data are also received. The second image data indicates bone mineral density projected at a different second angle. The third image data indicates bone mineral density projected at a third angle. The third angle is different from the first angle and the second angle. Principal moments of inertia for a bone in the subject are computed based on the first image data, the second image data and the third image data. The techniques allow high-precision, high-resolution dual-energy x-ray attenuation images to be used for computing principal moments of inertia and strength moduli of individual bones, plus risk of injury and changes in risk of injury to a patient.

Comparison of Vehicle Choice Models

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

Stephens, Thomas S.; Levinson, Rebecca S.; Brooker, Aaron

Five consumer vehicle choice models that give projections of future sales shares of light-duty vehicles were compared by running each model using the same inputs, where possible, for two scenarios. The five models compared — LVCFlex, MA3T, LAVE-Trans, ParaChoice, and ADOPT — have been used in support of the Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Vehicle Technologies Office in analyses of future light-duty vehicle markets under different assumptions about future vehicle technologies and market conditions. The models give projections of sales shares by powertrain technology. Projections made using common, but not identical, inputs showed qualitative agreement, with the exception ofmore » ADOPT. ADOPT estimated somewhat lower advanced vehicle shares, mostly composed of hybrid electric vehicles. Other models projected large shares of multiple advanced vehicle powertrains. Projections of models differed in significant ways, including how different technologies penetrated cars and light trucks. Since the models are constructed differently and take different inputs, not all inputs were identical, but were the same or very similar where possible.« less

Coastwide Reference Monitoring System (CRMS)

USGS Publications Warehouse

2010-01-01

In 1990, the U.S. Congress enacted the Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection and Restoration Act (CWPPRA) in response to growing awareness of a land loss crisis in Louisiana. Projects funded by CWPPRA require monitoring and evaluation of project effectiveness, and there is also a need to assess the cumulative effects of all projects to achieve a sustainable coastal environment. In 2003, the Louisiana Office of Coastal Protection and Restoration (OCPR) and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) received approval from the CWPPRA Task Force to implement the Coastwide Reference Monitoring System (CRMS) as a mechanism to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of CWPPRA projects at the project, region, and coastwide levels. The CRMS design implements a multiple reference approach by using aspects of hydrogeomorphic functional assessments and probabilistic sampling. The CRMS program is as dynamic as the coastal habitats it monitors. The program is currently funded through CWPPRA and provides data for a variety of user groups, including resource managers, academics, landowners, and researchers.

Innovations in the Analysis of Chandra-ACIS Observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Broos, Patrick S.; Townsley, Leisa K.; Feigelson, Eric D.; Getman, Konstantin V.; Bauer, Franz E.; Garmire, Gordon P.

2010-05-01

As members of the instrument team for the Advanced CCD Imaging Spectrometer (ACIS) on NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and as Chandra General Observers, we have developed a wide variety of data analysis methods that we believe are useful to the Chandra community, and have constructed a significant body of publicly available software (the ACIS Extract package) addressing important ACIS data and science analysis tasks. This paper seeks to describe these data analysis methods for two purposes: to document the data analysis work performed in our own science projects and to help other ACIS observers judge whether these methods may be useful in their own projects (regardless of what tools and procedures they choose to implement those methods). The ACIS data analysis recommendations we offer here address much of the workflow in a typical ACIS project, including data preparation, point source detection via both wavelet decomposition and image reconstruction, masking point sources, identification of diffuse structures, event extraction for both point and diffuse sources, merging extractions from multiple observations, nonparametric broadband photometry, analysis of low-count spectra, and automation of these tasks. Many of the innovations presented here arise from several, often interwoven, complications that are found in many Chandra projects: large numbers of point sources (hundreds to several thousand), faint point sources, misaligned multiple observations of an astronomical field, point source crowding, and scientifically relevant diffuse emission.

The CELSS Antarctic Analog Project: An Advanced Life Support Testbed at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, Antarctica

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Straight, Christian L.; Bubenheim, David L.; Bates, Maynard E.; Flynn, Michael T.

1994-01-01

CELSS Antarctic Analog Project (CAAP) represents a logical solution to the multiple objectives of both the NASA and the National Science Foundation (NSF). CAAP will result in direct transfer of proven technologies and systems, proven under the most rigorous of conditions, to the NSF and to society at large. This project goes beyond, as it must, the generally accepted scope of CELSS and life support systems including the issues of power generation, human dynamics, community systems, and training. CAAP provides a vivid and starkly realistic testbed of Controlled Ecological Life Support System (CELSS) and life support systems and methods. CAAP will also be critical in the development and validation of performance parameters for future advanced life support systems.

Volunteer Computing Experience with ATLAS@Home

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Adam-Bourdarios, C.; Bianchi, R.; Cameron, D.; Filipčič, A.; Isacchini, G.; Lançon, E.; Wu, W.; ATLAS Collaboration

2017-10-01

ATLAS@Home is a volunteer computing project which allows the public to contribute to computing for the ATLAS experiment through their home or office computers. The project has grown continuously since its creation in mid-2014 and now counts almost 100,000 volunteers. The combined volunteers’ resources make up a sizeable fraction of overall resources for ATLAS simulation. This paper takes stock of the experience gained so far and describes the next steps in the evolution of the project. These improvements include running natively on Linux to ease the deployment on for example university clusters, using multiple cores inside one task to reduce the memory requirements and running different types of workload such as event generation. In addition to technical details the success of ATLAS@Home as an outreach tool is evaluated.

Application of a contextual instructional framework in a continuing professional development training program for physiotherapists in Rwanda.

PubMed

Dunleavy, Kim; Chevan, Julia; Sander, Antoinette P; Gasherebuka, Jean Damascene; Mann, Monika

2018-06-01

Continuing professional development is an important component of capacity building in low resource countries. The purpose of this case study is to describe the use of a contextual instructional framework to guide the processes and instructional design choices for a series of continuing professional development courses for physiotherapists in Rwanda. Four phases of the project are described: (1) program proposal, needs assessment and planning, (2) organization of the program and instructional design, (3) instructional delivery and (4) evaluation. Contextual facilitating factors and needs informed choices in each phase. The model resulted in delivery of continuing professional development to the majority of physiotherapists in Rwanda (n = 168, 0.48 rural/0.52 urban) with participants reporting improvement in skills and perceived benefit for their patients. Environmental and healthcare system factors resulted in offering the courses in rural and urban areas. Content was developed and delivered in partnership with Rwandan coinstructors. Based on the domestic needs identified in early courses, the program included advocacy and leadership activities, in addition to practical and clinical instruction. The contextual factors (environment, healthcare service organization, need for rehabilitation and status and history of the physiotherapy profession) were essential for project and instructional choices. Facilitating factors included the established professional degree and association, continuing professional development requirements, a core group of active professionals and an existing foundation from other projects. The processes and contextual considerations may be useful in countries with established professional-level education but without established postentry-level training. Implications for Rehabilitation Organizations planning continuing professional development programs may benefit from considering the context surrounding training when planning, designing and developing instruction. The surrounding context including the environment, the organization of healthcare services, the population defined need for rehabilitation, and the domestic status and history of the physiotherapy profession, is important for physiotherapy projects in countries with lower resources. Facilitating factors in low resource countries such as an established professional degree and association, continuing professional development requirements, a core group of active professionals and an existing foundation from other projects impact the success of projects. Methods that may be useful for relevance, dissemination and consistency include involvement of in-country leaders and instructors and attendance in multiple courses with consistent themes. Rehabilitation professionals in low resource countries may benefit from continuing professional development courses that emphasize practical skills, and clinical reasoning, accompanied by clinical mentoring and directed coaching that encourages knowledge transfer to the clinical setting. Active learning approaches and multiple progressive courses provide opportunities to develop peer support through professional communities of practice.

Effectiveness and Tradeoffs between Portfolios of Adaptation Strategies Addressing Future Climate and Socioeconomic Uncertainties in California's Central Valley

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tansey, M. K.; Van Lienden, B.; Das, T.; Munevar, A.; Young, C. A.; Flores-Lopez, F.; Huntington, J. L.

2013-12-01

The Central Valley of California is one of the major agricultural areas in the United States. The Central Valley Project (CVP) is operated by the Bureau of Reclamation to serve multiple purposes including generating approximately 4.3 million gigawatt hours of hydropower and providing, on average, 5 million acre-feet of water per year to irrigate approximately 3 million acres of land in the Sacramento, San Joaquin, and Tulare Lake basins, 600,000 acre-feet per year of water for urban users, and 800,000 acre-feet of annual supplies for environmental purposes. The development of effective adaptation and mitigation strategies requires assessing multiple risks including potential climate changes as well as uncertainties in future socioeconomic conditions. In this study, a scenario-based analytical approach was employed by combining three potential 21st century socioeconomic futures with six representative climate and sea level change projections developed using a transient hybrid delta ensemble method from an archive of 112 bias corrected spatially downscaled CMIP3 global climate model simulations to form 18 future socioeconomic-climate scenarios. To better simulate the effects of climate changes on agricultural water demands, analyses of historical agricultural meteorological station records were employed to develop estimates of future changes in solar radiation and atmospheric humidity from the GCM simulated temperature and precipitation. Projected changes in atmospheric carbon dioxide were computed directly by weighting SRES emissions scenarios included in each representative climate projection. These results were used as inputs to a calibrated crop water use, growth and yield model to simulate the effects of climate changes on the evapotranspiration and yields of major crops grown in the Central Valley. Existing hydrologic, reservoir operations, water quality, hydropower, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and both urban and agricultural economic models were integrated into a suite of decision support tools to assess the impacts of future socioeconomic-climate uncertainties on key performance metrics for the CVP, State Water Project and other Central Valley water management systems under current regulatory requirements. Four thematic portfolios consisting of regional and local adaptation strategies including changes in reservoir operations, increased water conservation, storage and conveyance were developed and simulated to evaluate their potential effectiveness in meeting delivery reliability, water quality, environmental, hydropower, GHG, urban and agricultural economic performance criteria. The results indicate that the portfolios exhibit a considerable range of effectiveness depending on the socioeconomic-climate scenario. For most criteria, the portfolios were more sensitive to climate projections than socioeconomic assumptions. However, the results demonstrate that important tradeoffs occur between portfolios depending on the performance criteria considered.

Multiple Mechanisms are Responsible for Transactivation of the Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor in Mammary Epithelial Cells

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

Rodland, Karin D.; Bollinger, Nikki; Ippolito, Danielle L.

2008-11-14

REVIEW ENTIRE DOCUMENT AT: https://pnlweb.pnl.gov/projects/bsd/ERICA%20Manuscripts%20for%20Review/KD%20Rodland%20D7E80/HMEC_transactivation_ms01_15+Figs.pdf ABSTRACT: Using a single nontransformed strain of human mammary epithelial cells, we found that the ability of multiple growth factors and cytokines to induce ERK phosphorylation was dependent on EGFR activity. These included lysophosphatidic acid (LPA), uridine triphosphate, growth hormone, vascular endothelial growth factor, insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), and tumor necrosis factoralpha. In contrast, hepatocyte growth factor could stimulate ERK phosphorylation independent of EGFR activity...

GBLD10+: a compact low-power 10 Gb/s VCSEL driver

DOE PAGES

Zhang, T.; Kulis, S.; Gui, P.; ...

2016-01-13

We report the design and implementation of the GBLD10+, a low-power 10 Gb/s VCSEL driver for High Energy Physics (HEP) applications. With new circuit techniques, the driver consumes only 31 mW and occupies a small area of 400 μm × 1750 μm including the IO PADs and sealrings. These characteristics allow for multiple GBLD10+ ICs to be assembled side by side in a compact module, with each one directly wire bonded to one VCSEL diode. Finally, this makes the GBLD10+ a suitable candidate for the Versatile Link PLUS (VL +) project, offering flexibility in configuring multiple transmitters and receivers.

Absolute Definition of Phase Shift in the Elastic Scattering of a Particle from Compound Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Temkin, A.

1961-01-01

The projection of the target wave function on the total wave function of a scattered particle interacting with the target system is used to define an absolute phase shift including any multiples of pi. With this definition of the absolute phase shift, one can prove rigorously in the limit of zero energy for s-wave electrons scattered from atomic hydrogen that the triplet phase shift must approach a nonzero multiple of pi. One can further show that at least one pi of this phase shift is not connected with the existence of a bound state of the H- ion.

Imaging System and Method for Biomedical Analysis

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-03-11

biological particles and items of interest. Broadly, Padmanabhan et al. utilize the diffraction of a laser light source in flow cytometry to count...spread of light from multiple LED devices over the entire sample surface. Preferably, light source 308 projects a full spectrum white light. Light...for example, red blood cells, white blood cells (which may include lymphocytes which are relatively large and easily detectable), T-helper cells

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

Krasheninnikov, Sergei I.; Angus, Justin; Lee, Wonjae

The goal of the Edge Simulation Laboratory (ESL) multi-institutional project is to advance scientific understanding of the edge plasma region of magnetic fusion devices via a coordinated effort utilizing modern computing resources, advanced algorithms, and ongoing theoretical development. The UCSD team was involved in the development of the COGENT code for kinetic studies across a magnetic separatrix. This work included a kinetic treatment of electrons and multiple ion species (impurities) and accurate collision operators.

Environmental Monitoring for Situation Assessment using Mobile and Fixed Sensors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fikes, Richard

2004-01-01

This project was co-led by Dr. Sheila McIlraith and Prof. Richard Fikes. Substantial research results and published papers describing those results were produced in multiple technology areas, including the following: 1) Monitoring a Complex Physical System using a Hybrid Dynamic Bayes Net; 2) A Formal Theory of Testing for Dynamical Systems; 3) Diagnosing Hybrid Systems Using a Bayesian Model Selection Approach.

Effects of Ensemble Configuration on Estimates of Regional Climate Uncertainties

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

Goldenson, N.; Mauger, G.; Leung, L. R.

Internal variability in the climate system can contribute substantial uncertainty in climate projections, particularly at regional scales. Internal variability can be quantified using large ensembles of simulations that are identical but for perturbed initial conditions. Here we compare methods for quantifying internal variability. Our study region spans the west coast of North America, which is strongly influenced by El Niño and other large-scale dynamics through their contribution to large-scale internal variability. Using a statistical framework to simultaneously account for multiple sources of uncertainty, we find that internal variability can be quantified consistently using a large ensemble or an ensemble ofmore » opportunity that includes small ensembles from multiple models and climate scenarios. The latter also produce estimates of uncertainty due to model differences. We conclude that projection uncertainties are best assessed using small single-model ensembles from as many model-scenario pairings as computationally feasible, which has implications for ensemble design in large modeling efforts.« less

SNPassoc: an R package to perform whole genome association studies.

PubMed

González, Juan R; Armengol, Lluís; Solé, Xavier; Guinó, Elisabet; Mercader, Josep M; Estivill, Xavier; Moreno, Víctor

2007-03-01

The popularization of large-scale genotyping projects has led to the widespread adoption of genetic association studies as the tool of choice in the search for single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) underlying susceptibility to complex diseases. Although the analysis of individual SNPs is a relatively trivial task, when the number is large and multiple genetic models need to be explored it becomes necessary a tool to automate the analyses. In order to address this issue, we developed SNPassoc, an R package to carry out most common analyses in whole genome association studies. These analyses include descriptive statistics and exploratory analysis of missing values, calculation of Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, analysis of association based on generalized linear models (either for quantitative or binary traits), and analysis of multiple SNPs (haplotype and epistasis analysis). Package SNPassoc is available at CRAN from http://cran.r-project.org. A tutorial is available on Bioinformatics online and in http://davinci.crg.es/estivill_lab/snpassoc.

Software Framework for Advanced Power Plant Simulations

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

John Widmann; Sorin Munteanu; Aseem Jain

2010-08-01

This report summarizes the work accomplished during the Phase II development effort of the Advanced Process Engineering Co-Simulator (APECS). The objective of the project is to develop the tools to efficiently combine high-fidelity computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models with process modeling software. During the course of the project, a robust integration controller was developed that can be used in any CAPE-OPEN compliant process modeling environment. The controller mediates the exchange of information between the process modeling software and the CFD software. Several approaches to reducing the time disparity between CFD simulations and process modeling have been investigated and implemented. Thesemore » include enabling the CFD models to be run on a remote cluster and enabling multiple CFD models to be run simultaneously. Furthermore, computationally fast reduced-order models (ROMs) have been developed that can be 'trained' using the results from CFD simulations and then used directly within flowsheets. Unit operation models (both CFD and ROMs) can be uploaded to a model database and shared between multiple users.« less

The NASA Smart Probe Project for real-time multiple microsensor tissue recognition

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Andrews, Russell J.; Mah, Robert W.

2003-01-01

BACKGROUND: Remote surgery requires automated sensors, effectors and sensor-effector communication. The NASA Smart Probe Project has focused on the sensor aspect. METHODS: The NASA Smart Probe uses neural networks and data from multiple microsensors for a unique tissue signature in real time. Animal and human trials use several probe configurations: (1) 8-microsensor probe (2.5 mm in diameter) for rodent studies (normal and subcutaneous mammary tumor tissues), and (2) 21-gauge needle probe with 3 spectroscopic fibers and an impedance microelectrode for breast cancer diagnosis in humans. Multisensor data are collected in real time (update 100 times/s) using PCs. RESULTS: Human data (collected by NASA licensee BioLuminate) from 15 women undergoing breast biopsy distinguished normal tissue from both benign tumors and breast carcinoma. Tumor margins and necrosis are rapidly detected. CONCLUSION: Real-time tissue identification is achievable. Potential applications, including probes incorporating nanoelectrode arrays, are presented. Copyright 2003 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Postdoctoral Fellow | Center for Cancer Research

Cancer.gov

A post-doctoral fellowship is currently available for productive, highly-motivated, and energetic individuals in the Inflammation and Tumorigenesis Section of Dr. Yinling Hu at the NCI-Frederick campus.  A dynamic research environment and outstanding resources are available for enthusiastic individuals.  Requirements include a Ph.D., M.D., or equivalent degree and experience in Immunology, Molecular Biology, and/or Signaling Research. Candidate must have excellent verbal, written communication and organizational skills, and the ability to handle multiple projects simultaneously. The project will be to investigate mechanisms of IKK/NF-kB-involved lung and skin carcinogenesis/cancer biology, tumor initiating cells, and therapy by using mouse genetic modified mouse models.

Project Morpheus: Lean Development of a Terrestrial Flight Testbed for Maturing NASA Lander Technologies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Devolites, Jennifer L.; Olansen, Jon B.

2015-01-01

NASA's Morpheus Project has developed and tested a prototype planetary lander capable of vertical takeoff and landing that is designed to serve as a testbed for advanced spacecraft technologies. The lander vehicle, propelled by a Liquid Oxygen (LOX)/Methane engine and sized to carry a 500kg payload to the lunar surface, provides a platform for bringing technologies from the laboratory into an integrated flight system at relatively low cost. In 2012, Morpheus began integrating the Autonomous Landing and Hazard Avoidance Technology (ALHAT) sensors and software onto the vehicle in order to demonstrate safe, autonomous landing and hazard avoidance. From the beginning, one of goals for the Morpheus Project was to streamline agency processes and practices. The Morpheus project accepted a challenge to tailor the traditional NASA systems engineering approach in a way that would be appropriate for a lower cost, rapid prototype engineering effort, but retain the essence of the guiding principles. This paper describes the tailored project life cycle and systems engineering approach for the Morpheus project, including the processes, tools, and amount of rigor employed over the project's multiple lifecycles since the project began in fiscal year (FY) 2011.

How big is too big or how many partners are needed to build a large project which still can be managed successfully?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Henkel, Daniela; Eisenhauer, Anton

2017-04-01

During the last decades, the number of large research projects has increased and therewith the requirement for multidisciplinary, multisectoral collaboration. Such complex and large-scale projects pose new competencies to form, manage, and use large, diverse teams as a competitive advantage. For complex projects the effort is magnified because multiple large international research consortia involving academic and non-academic partners, including big industries, NGOs, private and public bodies, all with cultural differences, individually discrepant expectations on teamwork and differences in the collaboration between national and multi-national administrations and research organisations, challenge the organisation and management of such multi-partner research consortia. How many partners are needed to establish and conduct collaboration with a multidisciplinary and multisectoral approach? How much personnel effort and what kinds of management techniques are required for such projects. This presentation identifies advantages and challenges of large research projects based on the experiences made in the context of an Innovative Training Network (ITN) project within Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions of the European HORIZON 2020 program. Possible strategies are discussed to circumvent and avoid conflicts already at the beginning of the project.

MULTIPLE PROJECTIONS SYSTEM (MPS): USER'S MANUAL VERSION 2.0

EPA Science Inventory

The document is a user's manual for Multiple Projections System (MPS) Version 2.0, based on the 3% reasonable further progress (RFP) tracking system that was developed in FY92/FY93. The 3% RFP tracking system is a Windows application, and enhancements to convert the 3% RFP track...

Linking Multiple Databases: Term Project Using "Sentences" DBMS.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

King, Ronald S.; Rainwater, Stephen B.

This paper describes a methodology for use in teaching an introductory Database Management System (DBMS) course. Students master basic database concepts through the use of a multiple component project implemented in both relational and associative data models. The associative data model is a new approach for designing multi-user, Web-enabled…

MULTIPLE PROJECTIONS SYSTEM (MPS) - USER'S MANUAL VERSION 1.0

EPA Science Inventory

The report is a user's manual for version 1.0 of the Multiple Projections Systems (MPS), a computer system that can perform "what if" scenario analysis and report the final results (i.e., Rate of Further Progress - ROP - inventories) to EPA (i.e., the Aerometric Information Retri...

Indicators of Family Care for Development for Use in Multicountry Surveys

PubMed Central

Kariger, Patricia; Engle, Patrice; Britto, Pia M. Rebello; Sywulka, Sara M.; Menon, Purnima

2012-01-01

Indicators of family care for development are essential for ascertaining whether families are providing their children with an environment that leads to positive developmental outcomes. This project aimed to develop indicators from a set of items, measuring family care practices and resources important for caregiving, for use in epidemiologic surveys in developing countries. A mixed method (quantitative and qualitative) design was used for item selection and evaluation. Qualitative and quantitative analyses were conducted to examine the validity of candidate items in several country samples. Qualitative methods included the use of global expert panels to identify and evaluate the performance of each candidate item as well as in-country focus groups to test the content validity of the items. The quantitative methods included analyses of item-response distributions, using bivariate techniques. The selected items measured two family care practices (support for learning/stimulating environment and limit-setting techniques) and caregiving resources (adequacy of the alternate caregiver when the mother worked). Six play-activity items, indicative of support for learning/stimulating environment, were included in the core module of UNICEF's Multiple Cluster Indictor Survey 3. The other items were included in optional modules. This project provided, for the first time, a globally-relevant set of items for assessing family care practices and resources in epidemiological surveys. These items have multiple uses, including national monitoring and cross-country comparisons of the status of family care for development used globally. The obtained information will reinforce attention to efforts to improve the support for development of children. PMID:23304914

WIFIRE Data Model and Catalog for Wildfire Data and Tools

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Altintas, I.; Crawl, D.; Cowart, C.; Gupta, A.; Block, J.; de Callafon, R.

2014-12-01

The WIFIRE project (wifire.ucsd.edu) is building an end-to-end cyberinfrastructure for real-time and data-driven simulation, prediction and visualization of wildfire behavior. WIFIRE may be used by wildfire management authorities in the future to predict wildfire rate of spread and direction, and assess the effectiveness of high-density sensor networks in improving fire and weather predictions. WIFIRE has created a data model for wildfire resources including sensed and archived data, sensors, satellites, cameras, modeling tools, workflows and social information including Twitter feeds. This data model and associated wildfire resource catalog includes a detailed description of the HPWREN sensor network, SDG&E's Mesonet, and NASA MODIS. In addition, the WIFIRE data-model describes how to integrate the data from multiple heterogeneous sources to provide detailed fire-related information. The data catalog describes 'Observables' captured by each instrument using multiple ontologies including OGC SensorML and NASA SWEET. Observables include measurements such as wind speed, air temperature, and relative humidity, as well as their accuracy and resolution. We have implemented a REST service for publishing to and querying from the catalog using Web Application Description Language (WADL). We are creating web-based user interfaces and mobile device Apps that use the REST interface for dissemination to wildfire modeling community and project partners covering academic, private, and government laboratories while generating value to emergency officials and the general public. Additionally, the Kepler scientific workflow system is instrumented to interact with this data catalog to access real-time streaming and archived wildfire data and stream it into dynamic data-driven wildfire models at scale.

What's in It for Me? Maintenance of Certification as an Incentive for Faculty Supervision of Resident Quality Improvement Projects.

PubMed

Rosenbluth, Glenn; Tabas, Jeffrey A; Baron, Robert B

2016-01-01

Residents are required to engage in quality improvement (QI) activities, which requires faculty engagement. Because of increasing program requirements and clinical demands, faculty may be resistant to taking on additional teaching and supervisory responsibilities without incentives. The authors sought to create an authentic benefit for University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) Pediatrics Residency Training Program faculty who supervise pediatrics residents' QI projects by offering maintenance of certification (MOC) Part 4 (Performance in Practice) credit. The authors identified MOC as an ideal framework to both more actively engage faculty who were supervising QI projects and provide incentives for doing so. To this end, in 2011, the authors designed an MOC portfolio program which included faculty development, active supervision of residents, and QI projects designed to improve patient care. The UCSF Pediatrics Residency Training Program's Portfolio Sponsor application was approved by the American Board of Pediatrics (ABP) in 2012, and faculty whose projects were included in the application were granted MOC Part 4 credit. As of December 2013, six faculty had received MOC Part 4 credit for their supervision of residents' QI projects. Based largely on the success of this program, UCSF has transitioned to the MOC portfolio program administered through the American Board of Medical Specialties, which allows the organization to offer MOC Part 4 credit from multiple specialty boards including the ABP. This may require refinements to screening, over sight, and reporting structures to ensure the MOC standards are met. Ongoing faculty development will be essential.

Improvement of Project Portfolio Management in an Information Technology Consulting Company

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaewta, S.; Chutima, P.

2014-06-01

The scope of this research is to improve the efficiency of multiple project management in an information technology consulting company through the adaptation of the project portfolio management technique. The project management information system (PMIS) is implemented to establish effective communication channels so that internal and external teams as well as all relevant stakeholders can be employed to negotiate their work schedules. In addition, all activities created by multiple teams can be systematically reviewed and combined into a single checklist to be used as an agreed working plan for all team members. A general guideline for project portfolio management in information technology consulting companies is also proposed, which could results in a higher level of project on-time delivery.

Data collection and storage in long-term ecological and evolutionary studies: The Mongoose 2000 system.

PubMed

Marshall, Harry H; Griffiths, David J; Mwanguhya, Francis; Businge, Robert; Griffiths, Amber G F; Kyabulima, Solomon; Mwesige, Kenneth; Sanderson, Jennifer L; Thompson, Faye J; Vitikainen, Emma I K; Cant, Michael A

2018-01-01

Studying ecological and evolutionary processes in the natural world often requires research projects to follow multiple individuals in the wild over many years. These projects have provided significant advances but may also be hampered by needing to accurately and efficiently collect and store multiple streams of the data from multiple individuals concurrently. The increase in the availability and sophistication of portable computers (smartphones and tablets) and the applications that run on them has the potential to address many of these data collection and storage issues. In this paper we describe the challenges faced by one such long-term, individual-based research project: the Banded Mongoose Research Project in Uganda. We describe a system we have developed called Mongoose 2000 that utilises the potential of apps and portable computers to meet these challenges. We discuss the benefits and limitations of employing such a system in a long-term research project. The app and source code for the Mongoose 2000 system are freely available and we detail how it might be used to aid data collection and storage in other long-term individual-based projects.

Feasibility of Optimizing Recovery and Reserves from a Mature and Geological Complex Multiple Turbidite Offshore Calif. Reservoir through the Drilling and Completion of a Trilateral Horizontal Well, Class III

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

Pacific Operators Offshore, Inc.

The intent of this project was to increase production and extend the economic life of this mature field through the application of advanced reservoir characterization and drilling technology, demonstrating the efficacy of these technologies to other small operators of aging fields. Two study periods were proposed; the first to include data assimilation and reservoir characterization and the second to drill the demonstration well. The initial study period showed that a single tri-lateral well would not be economically efficient in redevelopment of Carpinteria's multiple deep water turbidite sand reservoirs, and the study was amended to include the drilling of a seriesmore » of horizontal redrills from existing surplus well bores on Pacific Operators' Platform Hogan.« less

Innovative Visualization Techniques applied to a Flood Scenario

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Falcão, António; Ho, Quan; Lopes, Pedro; Malamud, Bruce D.; Ribeiro, Rita; Jern, Mikael

2013-04-01

The large and ever-increasing amounts of multi-dimensional, time-varying and geospatial digital information from multiple sources represent a major challenge for today's analysts. We present a set of visualization techniques that can be used for the interactive analysis of geo-referenced and time sampled data sets, providing an integrated mechanism and that aids the user to collaboratively explore, present and communicate visually complex and dynamic data. Here we present these concepts in the context of a 4 hour flood scenario from Lisbon in 2010, with data that includes measures of water column (flood height) every 10 minutes at a 4.5 m x 4.5 m resolution, topography, building damage, building information, and online base maps. Techniques we use include web-based linked views, multiple charts, map layers and storytelling. We explain two of these in more detail that are not currently in common use for visualization of data: storytelling and web-based linked views. Visual storytelling is a method for providing a guided but interactive process of visualizing data, allowing more engaging data exploration through interactive web-enabled visualizations. Within storytelling, a snapshot mechanism helps the author of a story to highlight data views of particular interest and subsequently share or guide others within the data analysis process. This allows a particular person to select relevant attributes for a snapshot, such as highlighted regions for comparisons, time step, class values for colour legend, etc. and provide a snapshot of the current application state, which can then be provided as a hyperlink and recreated by someone else. Since data can be embedded within this snapshot, it is possible to interactively visualize and manipulate it. The second technique, web-based linked views, includes multiple windows which interactively respond to the user selections, so that when selecting an object and changing it one window, it will automatically update in all the other windows. These concepts can be part of a collaborative platform, where multiple people share and work together on the data, via online access, which also allows its remote usage from a mobile platform. Storytelling augments analysis and decision-making capabilities allowing to assimilate complex situations and reach informed decisions, in addition to helping the public visualize information. In our visualization scenario, developed in the context of the VA-4D project for the European Space Agency (see http://www.ca3-uninova.org/project_va4d), we make use of the GAV (GeoAnalytics Visualization) framework, a web-oriented visual analytics application based on multiple interactive views. The final visualization that we produce includes multiple interactive views, including a dynamic multi-layer map surrounded by other visualizations such as bar charts, time graphs and scatter plots. The map provides flood and building information, on top of a base city map (street maps and/or satellite imagery provided by online map services such as Google Maps, Bing Maps etc.). Damage over time for selected buildings, damage for all buildings at a chosen time period, correlation between damage and water depth can be analysed in the other views. This interactive web-based visualization that incorporates the ideas of storytelling, web-based linked views, and other visualization techniques, for a 4 hour flood event in Lisbon in 2010, can be found online at http://www.ncomva.se/flash/projects/esa/flooding/.

Flexible Thermal Protection System Development for Hypersonic Inflatable Aerodynamic Decelerators

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

DelCorso, Joseph A.; Bruce, Walter E., III; Hughes, Stephen J.; Dec, John A.; Rezin, Marc D.; Meador, Mary Ann B.; Guo, Haiquan; Fletcher, Douglas G.; Calomino, Anthony M.; Cheatwood, McNeil

2012-01-01

The Hypersonic Inflatable Aerodynamic Decelerators (HIAD) project has invested in development of multiple thermal protection system (TPS) candidates to be used in inflatable, high downmass, technology flight projects. Flexible TPS is one element of the HIAD project which is tasked with the research and development of the technology ranging from direct ground tests, modelling and simulation, characterization of TPS systems, manufacturing and handling, and standards and policy definition. The intent of flexible TPS is to enable large deployable aeroshell technologies, which increase the drag performance while significantly reducing the ballistic coefficient of high-mass entry vehicles. A HIAD requires a flexible TPS capable of surviving aerothermal loads, and durable enough to survive the rigors of construction, handling, high density packing, long duration exposure to extrinsic, in-situ environments, and deployment. This paper provides a comprehensive overview of key work being performed within the Flexible TPS element of the HIAD project. Included in this paper is an overview of, and results from, each Flexible TPS research and development activity, which includes ground testing, physics-based thermal modelling, age testing, margins policy, catalysis, materials characterization, and recent developments with new TPS materials.

Newberry Well 55-29 Stimulation Data

DOE Data Explorer

Trenton T. Cladouhos

2012-12-08

The Newberry Volcano EGS Demonstration in central Oregon, a 3 year project started in 2010, tests recent technological advances designed to reduce the cost of power generated by EGS in a hot, dry well (NWG 55-29) drilled in 2008. First, the stimulation pumps used were designed to run for weeks and deliver large volumes of water at moderate well-head pressure. Second, to stimulate multiple zones, AltaRock developed thermo-degradable zonal isolation materials (TZIMs) to seal off fractures in a geothermal well to stimulate secondary and tertiary fracture zones. The TZIMs degrade within weeks, resulting in an optimized injection/ production profile of the entire well. Third, the project followed a project-specific Induced Seismicity Mitigation Plan (ISMP) to evaluate, monitor for, and mitigate felt induced seismicity. Stimulation started October 17, 2012 and continued for 7 weeks, with over 41,000 m3 of water injected. Two TZIM treatments successfully shifted the depth of stimulation. Injectivity, DTS, and seismic analysis indicate that fracture permeability in well NWG 55-29 was enhanced by two orders of magnitude. This submission includes all of the files and reports associated with the geophysical exploration, stimulation, and monitoring included in the scope of the project.

Ensemble Eclipse: A Process for Prefab Development Environment for the Ensemble Project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wallick, Michael N.; Mittman, David S.; Shams, Khawaja, S.; Bachmann, Andrew G.; Ludowise, Melissa

2013-01-01

This software simplifies the process of having to set up an Eclipse IDE programming environment for the members of the cross-NASA center project, Ensemble. It achieves this by assembling all the necessary add-ons and custom tools/preferences. This software is unique in that it allows developers in the Ensemble Project (approximately 20 to 40 at any time) across multiple NASA centers to set up a development environment almost instantly and work on Ensemble software. The software automatically has the source code repositories and other vital information and settings included. The Eclipse IDE is an open-source development framework. The NASA (Ensemble-specific) version of the software includes Ensemble-specific plug-ins as well as settings for the Ensemble project. This software saves developers the time and hassle of setting up a programming environment, making sure that everything is set up in the correct manner for Ensemble development. Existing software (i.e., standard Eclipse) requires an intensive setup process that is both time-consuming and error prone. This software is built once by a single user and tested, allowing other developers to simply download and use the software

Telehealth on advanced networks.

PubMed

Wilson, Laurence S; Stevenson, Duncan R; Cregan, Patrick

2010-01-01

We address advanced Internet for complex telehealth applications by reviewing four hospital-based broadband telehealth projects and identifying common threads. These projects were conducted in Australia under a 6-year research project on broadband Internet applications. Each project addressed specific clinical needs and its development was guided by the clinicians involved. Each project was trialed in the field and evaluated against the initial requirements. The four projects covered remote management of a resuscitation team in a district hospital, remote guidance and interpretation of echocardiography, virtual-reality-based instructor-student surgical training, and postoperative outpatient consultations following pediatric surgery. Each was characterized by a high level of interpersonal communication, a high level of clinical expertise, and multiple participants. Each made use of multiple high-quality video and audio links and shared real-time access to clinical data. Four common threads were observed. Each application provided a high level of usability and task focus because the design and use of broadband capability was aimed directly to meet the clinicians' needs. Each used the media quality available over broadband to convey words, gestures, body movements, and facial expressions to support communication and a sense of presence among the participants. Each required a complex information space shared among the participants, including real-time access to stored patient data and real-time interactive access to the patients themselves. Finally, each application supported the social and organizational aspects of their healthcare focus, creating and maintaining relationships between the various participants, and this was done by placing the telehealth application into a wider functioning clinical context. These findings provide evidence for a significantly enhanced role for appropriate telemedicine systems running on advanced networks, in a wider range of clinical applications, more deeply integrated into healthcare systems.

Sample Identification at Scale - Implementing IGSN in a Research Agency

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klump, J. F.; Golodoniuc, P.; Wyborn, L. A.; Devaraju, A.; Fraser, R.

2015-12-01

Earth sciences are largely observational and rely on natural samples, types of which vary significantly between science disciplines. Sharing and referencing of samples in scientific literature and across the Web requires the use of globally unique identifiers essential for disambiguation. This practice is very common in other fields, e.g. ISBN in publishing, doi in scientific literature, etc. In Earth sciences however, this is still often done in an ad-hoc manner without the use of unique identifiers. The International Geo Sample Number (IGSN) system provides a persistent, globally unique label for identifying environmental samples. As an IGSN allocating agency, CSIRO implements the IGSN registration service at the organisational scale with contributions from multiple research groups. Capricorn Distal Footprints project is one of the first pioneers and early adopters of the technology in Australia. For this project, IGSN provides a mechanism for identification of new and legacy samples, as well as derived sub-samples. It will ensure transparency and reproducibility in various geochemical sampling campaigns that will involve a diversity of sampling methods. Hence, diverse geochemical and isotopic results can be linked back to the parent sample, particularly where multiple children of that sample have also been analysed. The IGSN integration for this project is still in early stages and requires further consultations on the governance mechanisms that we need to put in place to allow efficient collaboration within CSIRO and collaborating partners on the project including naming conventions, service interfaces, etc. In this work, we present the results of the initial implementation of IGSN in the context of the Capricorn Distal Footprints project. This study has so far demonstrated the effectiveness of the proposed approach, while maintaining the flexibility to adapt to various media types, which is critical in the context of a multi-disciplinary project.

Haughton-Mars Project (HMP)/NASA 2006 Lunar Medical Contingency Simulation: An Overview

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Scheuring, R. A.; Jones, J. A.; Lee, P.; Comtois, J. M.; Chappell, S.; Rafiq, A.; Braham, S.; Hodgson, E.; Sullivan, P.; Wilkinson, N.

2006-01-01

Medical requirements are currently being developed for NASA's space exploration program. Lunar surface operations for crews returning to the moon will be performed on a daily basis to conduct scientific research and construct a lunar habitat. Inherent to aggressive surface activities is the potential risk of injury to crew members. To develop an evidence-base for handling medical contingencies on the lunar surface, a simulation project was conducted using the moon-Mars analog environment at Devon Island, Nunavut, high Canadian Arctic. A review of the Apollo lunar surface activities and personal communications with Apollo lunar crew members provided a knowledge base of plausible scenarios that could potentially injure an astronaut during a lunar extravehicular activity. Objectives were established to 1) demonstrate stabilization, field extraction and transfer an injured crew member to the habitat and 2) evaluate audio, visual and biomedical communication capabilities with ground controllers at multiple mission control centers. The simulation project s objectives were achieved. Among these objectives were 1) extracting a crew member from a sloped terrain by a two-member team in a 1-g analog environment, 2) establishing real-time communication to multiple space centers, 3) providing biomedical data to flight controllers and crew members, and 4) establishing a medical diagnosis and treatment plan from a remote site. The simulation project provided evidence for the types of equipment and methods needed for planetary space exploration. During the project, the crew members were confronted with a number of unexpected scenarios including environmental, communications, EVA suit, and navigation challenges. These trials provided insight into the challenges of carrying out a medical contingency in an austere environment. The knowledge gained from completing the objectives of this project will be incorporated into the exploration medical requirements involving an incapacited astronaut on the lunar surface.

Methods for structuring scientific knowledge from many areas related to aging research.

PubMed

Zhavoronkov, Alex; Cantor, Charles R

2011-01-01

Aging and age-related disease represents a substantial quantity of current natural, social and behavioral science research efforts. Presently, no centralized system exists for tracking aging research projects across numerous research disciplines. The multidisciplinary nature of this research complicates the understanding of underlying project categories, the establishment of project relations, and the development of a unified project classification scheme. We have developed a highly visual database, the International Aging Research Portfolio (IARP), available at AgingPortfolio.org to address this issue. The database integrates information on research grants, peer-reviewed publications, and issued patent applications from multiple sources. Additionally, the database uses flexible project classification mechanisms and tools for analyzing project associations and trends. This system enables scientists to search the centralized project database, to classify and categorize aging projects, and to analyze the funding aspects across multiple research disciplines. The IARP is designed to provide improved allocation and prioritization of scarce research funding, to reduce project overlap and improve scientific collaboration thereby accelerating scientific and medical progress in a rapidly growing area of research. Grant applications often precede publications and some grants do not result in publications, thus, this system provides utility to investigate an earlier and broader view on research activity in many research disciplines. This project is a first attempt to provide a centralized database system for research grants and to categorize aging research projects into multiple subcategories utilizing both advanced machine algorithms and a hierarchical environment for scientific collaboration.

[Being cared for and caring: living with multiple chronic diseases (Leila)-a qualitative study about APN contributions to integrated care].

PubMed

Müller-Staub, Maria; Zigan, Nicole; Händler-Schuster, Daniela; Probst, Sebastian; Monego, Renate; Imhof, Lorenz

2015-04-01

Living with multiple chronic diseases is complex and leads to enhanced care needs. To foster integrated care a project called "Living with chronic disease" (Leila) was initiated. The aim was to develop an Advanced Practice Nursing (APN) service in collaboration with medical centers for persons who are living with multiple chronic diseases. The following research questions were addressed: 1. What are patients' experiences, referring physicians and APNs with the Leila-Service? 2. How are referral processes performed? 3. How do the involved groups experience collaboration and APN role development? A qualitative approach according grounded theory of Corbin and Strauss was used to explore the experiences with the Leila project and the interaction of the persons involved. 38 interviews were conducted with patients who are living with multiple chronic diseases, their APN's and the referring physicians. The findings revealed "Being cared for and caring" as main category. The data demonstrated how patients responded to their involvement into care and that they were taken as serious partners in the care process. The category "organizing everyday life" describes how patients learned to cope with the consequences of living with multiple chronic diseases. "Using all resources" as another category demonstrates how capabilities and strengths were adopted. The results of the cooperation- and allocation processes showed that the APN recognition and APN role performance have to be negotiated. Prospective APN-services for this patient population should be integrated along with physician networks and other service providers including community health nursing.

Project Success in Agile Development Software Projects

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Farlik, John T.

2016-01-01

Project success has multiple definitions in the scholarly literature. Research has shown that some scholars and practitioners define project success as the completion of a project within schedule and within budget. Others consider a successful project as one in which the customer is satisfied with the product. This quantitative study was conducted…

Long Frontal Projections Help Battus philenor (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae) Larvae Find Host Plants.

PubMed

Kandori, Ikuo; Tsuchihara, Kazuko; Suzuki, Taichi A; Yokoi, Tomoyuki; Papaj, Daniel R

2015-01-01

Animals sometimes develop conspicuous projections on or near their heads as, e.g., weaponry, burrowing or digging tools, and probes to search for resources. The frontal projections that insects generally use to locate and assess resources are segmented appendages, including antennae, maxillary palps, and labial palps. There is no evidence to date that arthropods, including insects, use projections other than true segmental appendages to locate food. In this regard, it is noteworthy that some butterfly larvae possess a pair of long antenna-like projections on or near their heads. To date, the function of these projections has not been established. Larvae of pipevine swallowtail butterflies Battus philenor (Papilionidae) have a pair of long frontal fleshy projections that, like insect antennae generally, can be actively moved. In this study, we evaluated the possible function of this pair of long moveable frontal projections. In laboratory assays, both frontal projections and lateral ocelli were shown to increase the frequency with which search larvae found plants. The frontal projections increased finding of host and non-host plants equally, suggesting that frontal projections do not detect host-specific chemical cues. Detailed SEM study showed that putative mechanosensillae are distributed all around the frontal as well as other projections. Taken together, our findings suggest that the frontal projections and associated mechanosensillae act as vertical object detectors to obtain tactile information that, together with visual information from lateral ocelli and presumably chemical information from antennae and mouthparts, help larvae to find host plants. Field observations indicate that host plants are small and scattered in southern Arizona locations. Larvae must therefore find multiple host plants to complete development and face significant challenges in doing so. The frontal projections may thus be an adaptation for finding a scarce resource before starving to death. This is the first evidence that arthropods use projections other than true segmental appendages such as antennae, mouthparts and legs, to locate food resources.

Long Frontal Projections Help Battus philenor (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae) Larvae Find Host Plants

PubMed Central

Kandori, Ikuo; Tsuchihara, Kazuko; Suzuki, Taichi A.; Yokoi, Tomoyuki; Papaj, Daniel R.

2015-01-01

Animals sometimes develop conspicuous projections on or near their heads as, e.g., weaponry, burrowing or digging tools, and probes to search for resources. The frontal projections that insects generally use to locate and assess resources are segmented appendages, including antennae, maxillary palps, and labial palps. There is no evidence to date that arthropods, including insects, use projections other than true segmental appendages to locate food. In this regard, it is noteworthy that some butterfly larvae possess a pair of long antenna-like projections on or near their heads. To date, the function of these projections has not been established. Larvae of pipevine swallowtail butterflies Battus philenor (Papilionidae) have a pair of long frontal fleshy projections that, like insect antennae generally, can be actively moved. In this study, we evaluated the possible function of this pair of long moveable frontal projections. In laboratory assays, both frontal projections and lateral ocelli were shown to increase the frequency with which search larvae found plants. The frontal projections increased finding of host and non-host plants equally, suggesting that frontal projections do not detect host-specific chemical cues. Detailed SEM study showed that putative mechanosensillae are distributed all around the frontal as well as other projections. Taken together, our findings suggest that the frontal projections and associated mechanosensillae act as vertical object detectors to obtain tactile information that, together with visual information from lateral ocelli and presumably chemical information from antennae and mouthparts, help larvae to find host plants. Field observations indicate that host plants are small and scattered in southern Arizona locations. Larvae must therefore find multiple host plants to complete development and face significant challenges in doing so. The frontal projections may thus be an adaptation for finding a scarce resource before starving to death. This is the first evidence that arthropods use projections other than true segmental appendages such as antennae, mouthparts and legs, to locate food resources. PMID:26222554

FME Senior Project Managers: A Juggling Act of Multiple Projects | Poster

Cancer.gov

By Peggy Pearl, Contributing Writer It was not until the 1950s that organizations in the United States began to apply project management tools and techniques to complex construction and engineering projects (http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_life_cycle).

Evaluation of Manual Spelling, Observational and Incidental Learning Using Computer-Based Instruction with a Tablet PC, Large Screen Projection, and a Forward Chaining Procedure

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Purrazzella, Kimberly; Mechling, Linda C.

2013-01-01

The study employed a multiple probe design to investigate the effects of computer-based instruction (CBI) and a forward chaining procedure to teach manual spelling of words to three young adults with moderate intellectual disability in a small group arrangement. The computer-based program included a tablet PC whereby students wrote words directly…

Implementation and Performance of Factorized Back projection on Low-Cost Commercial-Off-the-Shelf Hardware

DTIC Science & Technology

performance on a low cost, low size, weight, and power (SWAP) computer : a Raspberry Pi Model B. For a comparison of performance, a baseline implementation...improvement factor of 2-3 compared to filtered backprojection. Execution on a single Raspberry Pi is too slow for real-time imaging. However, factorized...backprojection is easily parallelized, and we include a discussion of parallel implementation across multiple Pis .

Environmental Assessment for Multiple Projects at Laughlin Air Forc Base, TX

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-02-06

Table 5 5 Stormwater Concrete Removal 6 Area Disturbed (acres) Average Removal Depth (ft) Concrete Density (lb/ft 3 ) Concrete Removed (lb...600 feet to the north; and, • Repair and improve stormwater drainage and steep slopes at the Laughlin AFB airfield. Construction would include site...of exposed soils from stormwater runoff, best management practices (BMPs) would be implemented during construction and demolition (C&D). These

CEAP watershed assessments: accomplishments and opportunities for new advances

Treesearch

Lisa Durlancik; Mark Walbridge; Deanna Osmond; Roberta Parry

2016-01-01

The Conservation Effects Assessment Project (CEAP) was established in 2003 to document the effects and benefits of conservation practices. CEAP conducts assessments at multiple scales – national, regional, and watershed scale – on croplands, grazing lands and wetlands, and to address wildlife concerns. A major part of CEAP since its inception included a collection of...

Strategies for involving undergraduates in mentored research (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marin-Spiotta, E.

2013-12-01

Early engagement in research can transform the undergraduate experience and has a positive effect on minority student recruitment to graduate school. Multiple strategies used to involve undergraduates in research at a large R1 university are presented. During my first four years as an assistant professor, my lab has hosted 14 undergraduates, 9 of them women and 4 of them Hispanic. Institutional support has been critical for undergraduate student involvement. UW supports a research program for incoming underrepresented students. An advantage of this program is very early research participation, with the opportunity for long-term training. One disadvantage is that many first year students have not yet identified their interests. The Biology major also requires students to complete an independent project, which culminates in a research symposium. Competitive research fellowships and grants are available for students to conduct work under faculty mentorship. We have been successful at keeping students on even when their majors are very different from our research discipline, mainly by providing flexibility and a welcoming lab environment. This mentoring culture is strongly fostered by graduate student interest and involvement with all undergraduates as well as active mentor training. By offering multiple pathways for involvement, we can accommodate students' changing schedules and priorities as well as changing lab needs. Students can volunteer, receive course credit, conduct an independent project or honors thesis, contribute to an existing project, do lab work or write a literature review, work with one mentor or on multiple projects. We often provide employment over the summer and subsequent semesters for continuing students. Some will increase their commitment over time and work more closely with me. Others reduce down to a few hours a week as they gain experience elsewhere. Most students stay multiple semesters and multiple years because they 'enjoy being in the lab.' All undergrads are encouraged to participate in weekly lab meetings, are added to our email list, portrayed on our website, and included in social and professional activities, including meetings with visiting researchers and other campus labs. Beyond receiving research skills training and professional development, students gain a social community beyond their dorms and classes as well as peer and senior mentors in the lab. In a campus with 30,000 students, building a personal relationship with senior researchers and faculty provides an invaluable benefit for students' careers. We have hosted three Puerto Rican students to participate in an intensive summer research program, which provides professional preparation for graduate school. Much of our research is based in Puerto Rico, so we meet our students there and take them to our sites, which provides them with training in field skills as well as a context for their summer lab work at UW. We have learned the importance of setting out clear expectations at the beginning of each project. While getting students excited about our own research field is personally satisfying, we are learning to be more flexible in our measures of student success. Students can enjoy doing research for research sake while others enjoy it as another job. It is important that they all receive mentoring and learn about opportunities appropriate to their own career choices.

What is the extent of research on the characteristics, behaviors, and impacts of health information technology champions? A scoping review.

PubMed

Shea, Christopher Michael; Belden, Charles M

2016-01-12

Although champions are commonly employed in health information technology (HIT) implementations, the state of empirical literature on HIT champions' is unclear. The purpose of our review was to synthesize quantitative and qualitative studies to identify the extent of research on the characteristics, behaviors, and impacts of HIT champions. Ultimately, our goal was to identify gaps in the literature and inform implementation science. Our review employed a broad search strategy using multiple databases-Embase, Pubmed, Cinahl, PsychInfo, Web of Science, and the Cochrane library. We identified 1728 candidate articles, of which 42 were retained for full-text review. Of the 42 studies included, fourteen studies employed a multiple-case study design (33 %), 12 additional articles employed a single-case study design (29 %), five used quantitative methods (12 %), two used mixed-methods (5 %), and one used a Delphi methodology (2 %). Our review revealed multiple categories and characteristics of champions as well as influence tactics they used to promote an HIT project. Furthermore, studies have assessed three general types of HIT champion impacts: (1) impacts on the implementation process of a specific HIT; (2) impacts on usage behavior or overall success of a specific HIT; and (3) impacts on general organizational-level innovativeness. However the extent to which HIT projects fail even with a champion and why such failures occur is not clear. Also unclear is whether all organizations require a champion for successful HIT project implementation. In other words, we currently do not know enough about the conditions under which (1) a health IT champion is needed, (2) multiple champions are needed, and (3) an appointed champion-as opposed to an emergent champion-can be successful. Although champions appear to have contributed to successful implementation of HIT projects, simply measuring the presence or absence of a champion is not sufficient for assessing impacts. Future research should aim for answers to questions about who champions should be, when they should be engaged, what they should do, how management can support their efforts, and what their impact is given the organizational context.

Scheduling optimization of design stream line for production research and development projects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Qinming; Geng, Xiuli; Dong, Ming; Lv, Wenyuan; Ye, Chunming

2017-05-01

In a development project, efficient design stream line scheduling is difficult and important owing to large design imprecision and the differences in the skills and skill levels of employees. The relative skill levels of employees are denoted as fuzzy numbers. Multiple execution modes are generated by scheduling different employees for design tasks. An optimization model of a design stream line scheduling problem is proposed with the constraints of multiple executive modes, multi-skilled employees and precedence. The model considers the parallel design of multiple projects, different skills of employees, flexible multi-skilled employees and resource constraints. The objective function is to minimize the duration and tardiness of the project. Moreover, a two-dimensional particle swarm algorithm is used to find the optimal solution. To illustrate the validity of the proposed method, a case is examined in this article, and the results support the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed model and algorithm.

Scalable screen-size enlargement by multi-channel viewing-zone scanning holography.

PubMed

Takaki, Yasuhiro; Nakaoka, Mitsuki

2016-08-08

Viewing-zone scanning holographic displays can enlarge both the screen size and the viewing zone. However, limitations exist in the screen size enlargement process even if the viewing zone is effectively enlarged. This study proposes a multi-channel viewing-zone scanning holographic display comprising multiple projection systems and a planar scanner to enable the scalable enlargement of the screen size. Each projection system produces an enlarged image of the screen of a MEMS spatial light modulator. The multiple enlarged images produced by the multiple projection systems are seamlessly tiled on the planar scanner. This screen size enlargement process reduces the viewing zones of the projection systems, which are horizontally scanned by the planar scanner comprising a rotating off-axis lens and a vertical diffuser to enlarge the viewing zone. A screen size of 7.4 in. and a viewing-zone angle of 43.0° are demonstrated.

A research strategy case study of alcohol and drug prevention by non-governmental organizations in Sweden 2003-2009.

PubMed

Eriksson, Charli; Geidne, Susanna; Larsson, Madelene; Pettersson, Camilla

2011-04-14

Alcohol and drug prevention is high on the public health agenda in many countries. An increasing trend is the call for evidence-based practice. In Sweden in 2002 an innovative project portfolio including an integrated research and competence-building strategy for non-governmental organisations (NGOs) was designed by the National Board of Health and Welfare (NBHW). This research strategy case study is based on this initiative. The embedded case study includes 135 projects in 69 organisations and 14 in-depth process or effect studies. The data in the case study has been compiled using multiple methods - administrative data; interviews and questionnaires to project leaders; focus group discussions and seminars; direct and participatory observations, interviews, and documentation of implementation; consultations with the NBHW and the NGOs; and a literature review. Annual reports have been submitted each year and three bi-national conferences Reflections on preventions have been held. A broad range of organisations have been included in the NBHW project portfolio. A minority of the project were run by Alcohol or drug organisations, while a majority has children or adolescents as target groups. In order to develop a trustful partnership between practitioners, national agencies and researchers a series of measures were developed and implemented: meeting with project leaders, project dialogues and consultations, competence strengthening, support to documentation, in-depth studies and national conferences. A common element was that the projects were program-driven and not research-driven interventions. The role of researchers-as-technical advisors was suitable for the fostering of a trustful partnership for research and development. The independence of the NGOs was regarded as important for the momentum in the project implementation. The research strategy also includes elements of participatory research. This research strategy case study shows that it is possible to integrate research into alcohol and drug prevention programs run by NGOs, and thereby contribute to a more evidence-based practice. A core element is developing a trustful partnership between the researchers and the organisations. Moreover, the funding agency must acknowledge the importance of knowledge development and allocating resources to research groups that is capable of cooperating with practitioners and NGOs.

Manufacturing Challenges and Benefits When Scaling the HIAD Stacked-Torus Aeroshell to a 15m-Class System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Swanson, Greg; Cheatwood, Neil; Johnson, Keith; Calomino, Anthony; Hughes, Steve; Gilles, Brian; Anderson, Paul; Bond, Bruce

2016-01-01

Over a decade of work has been conducted in the development of NASAs Hypersonic Inflatable Aerodynamic Decelerator (HIAD) deployable aeroshell technology. This effort has included multiple ground test campaigns and flight tests culminating in the HIAD projects second generation (Gen-2) aeroshell system. The HIAD project team has developed, fabricated, and tested stacked-torus inflatable structures (IS) with flexible thermal protection systems (F-TPS) ranging in diameters from 3-6m, with cone angles of 60 and 70 deg. To meet NASA and commercial near term objectives, the HIAD team must scale the current technology up to 12-15m in diameter. The HIAD projects experience in scaling the technology has reached a critical juncture in development. Growing from a 6m to a 15m class system will introduce many...

Adaptation to Climate Change: A Comparative Analysis of Modeling Methods for Heat-Related Mortality.

PubMed

Gosling, Simon N; Hondula, David M; Bunker, Aditi; Ibarreta, Dolores; Liu, Junguo; Zhang, Xinxin; Sauerborn, Rainer

2017-08-16

Multiple methods are employed for modeling adaptation when projecting the impact of climate change on heat-related mortality. The sensitivity of impacts to each is unknown because they have never been systematically compared. In addition, little is known about the relative sensitivity of impacts to "adaptation uncertainty" (i.e., the inclusion/exclusion of adaptation modeling) relative to using multiple climate models and emissions scenarios. This study had three aims: a ) Compare the range in projected impacts that arises from using different adaptation modeling methods; b ) compare the range in impacts that arises from adaptation uncertainty with ranges from using multiple climate models and emissions scenarios; c ) recommend modeling method(s) to use in future impact assessments. We estimated impacts for 2070-2099 for 14 European cities, applying six different methods for modeling adaptation; we also estimated impacts with five climate models run under two emissions scenarios to explore the relative effects of climate modeling and emissions uncertainty. The range of the difference (percent) in impacts between including and excluding adaptation, irrespective of climate modeling and emissions uncertainty, can be as low as 28% with one method and up to 103% with another (mean across 14 cities). In 13 of 14 cities, the ranges in projected impacts due to adaptation uncertainty are larger than those associated with climate modeling and emissions uncertainty. Researchers should carefully consider how to model adaptation because it is a source of uncertainty that can be greater than the uncertainty in emissions and climate modeling. We recommend absolute threshold shifts and reductions in slope. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP634.

Implementing Family Meetings Into a Respiratory Care Unit: A Care and Communication Quality Improvement Project.

PubMed

Loeslie, Vicki; Abcejo, Ma Sunnimpha; Anderson, Claudia; Leibenguth, Emily; Mielke, Cathy; Rabatin, Jeffrey

Substantial evidence in critical care literature identifies a lack of quality and quantity of communication between patients, families, and clinicians while in the intensive care unit. Barriers include time, multiple caregivers, communication skills, culture, language, stress, and optimal meeting space. For patients who are chronically critically ill, the need for a structured method of communication is paramount for discussion of goals of care. The objective of this quality improvement project was to identify barriers to communication, then develop, implement, and evaluate a process for semistructured family meetings in a 9-bed respiratory care unit. Using set dates and times, family meetings were offered to patients and families admitted to the respiratory care unit. Multiple avenues of communication were utilized to facilitate attendance. Utilizing evidence-based family meeting literature, a guide for family meetings was developed. Templates were developed for documentation of the family meeting in the electronic medical record. Multiple communication barriers were identified. Frequency of family meeting occurrence rose from 31% to 88%. Staff satisfaction with meeting frequency, meeting length, and discussion of congruent goals of care between patient/family and health care providers improved. Patient/family satisfaction with consistency of message between team members; understanding of medications, tests, and dismissal plan; and efficacy to address their concerns with the medical team improved. This quality improvement project was implemented to address the communication gap in the care of complex patients who require prolonged hospitalizations. By identifying this need, engaging stakeholders, and developing a family meeting plan to meet to address these needs, communication between all members of the patient's care team has improved.

Challenges and Experiences of Building Multidisciplinary Datasets across Cultures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jamiyansharav, K.; Laituri, M.; Fernandez-Gimenez, M.; Fassnacht, S. R.; Venable, N. B. H.; Allegretti, A. M.; Reid, R.; Baival, B.; Jamsranjav, C.; Ulambayar, T.; Linn, S.; Angerer, J.

2017-12-01

Efficient data sharing and management are key challenges to multidisciplinary scientific research. These challenges are further complicated by adding a multicultural component. We address the construction of a complex database for social-ecological analysis in Mongolia. Funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) Dynamics of Coupled Natural and Human (CNH) Systems, the Mongolian Rangelands and Resilience (MOR2) project focuses on the vulnerability of Mongolian pastoral systems to climate change and adaptive capacity. The MOR2 study spans over three years of fieldwork in 36 paired districts (Soum) from 18 provinces (Aimag) of Mongolia that covers steppe, mountain forest steppe, desert steppe and eastern steppe ecological zones. Our project team is composed of hydrologists, social scientists, geographers, and ecologists. The MOR2 database includes multiple ecological, social, meteorological, geospatial and hydrological datasets, as well as archives of original data and survey in multiple formats. Managing this complex database requires significant organizational skills, attention to detail and ability to communicate within collective team members from diverse disciplines and across multiple institutions in the US and Mongolia. We describe the database's rich content, organization, structure and complexity. We discuss lessons learned, best practices and recommendations for complex database management, sharing, and archiving in creating a cross-cultural and multi-disciplinary database.

An investigation of multidisciplinary complex health care interventions - steps towards an integrative treatment model in the rehabilitation of People with Multiple Sclerosis

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background The Danish Multiple Sclerosis Society initiated a large-scale bridge building and integrative treatment project to take place from 2004–2010 at a specialized Multiple Sclerosis (MS) hospital. In this project, a team of five conventional health care practitioners and five alternative practitioners was set up to work together in developing and offering individualized treatments to 200 people with MS. The purpose of this paper is to present results from the six year treatment collaboration process regarding the development of an integrative treatment model. Discussion The collaborative work towards an integrative treatment model for people with MS, involved six steps: 1) Working with an initial model 2) Unfolding the different treatment philosophies 3) Discussing the elements of the Intervention-Mechanism-Context-Outcome-scheme (the IMCO-scheme) 4) Phrasing the common assumptions for an integrative MS program theory 5) Developing the integrative MS program theory 6) Building the integrative MS treatment model. The model includes important elements of the different treatment philosophies represented in the team and thereby describes a common understanding of the complexity of the courses of treatment. Summary An integrative team of practitioners has developed an integrative model for combined treatments of People with Multiple Sclerosis. The model unites different treatment philosophies and focuses on process-oriented factors and the strengthening of the patients’ resources and competences on a physical, an emotional and a cognitive level. PMID:22524586

Effects of Multiple Intelligences Supported Project-Based Learning on Students' Achievement Levels and Attitudes towards English Lesson

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bas, Gökhan; Beyhan, Ömer

2010-01-01

The aim of the research was to investigate the effects of multiple intelligences supported project-based learning and traditional foreign language-teaching environment on students' achievement and their attitude towards English lesson. The research was carried out in 2009-2010 education-instruction year in Karatli Sehit Sahin Yilmaz Elementary…

A Case Study of Resources Management Planning with Multiple Objectives and Projects

Treesearch

David L. Peterson; David G. Silsbee; Daniel L. Schmoldt

1995-01-01

Each National Park Service unit in the United States produces a resources management plan (RMP) every four years or less. The plans commit budgets and personnel to specific projects for four years, but they are prepared with little quantitative and analytical rigor and without formal decisionmaking tools. We have previously described a multiple objective planning...

Project START: Using a Multiple Intelligences Model in Identifying and Promoting Talent in High-Risk Students. Research Monograph 95136.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Callahan, Carolyn M.; Tomlinson, Carol A.; Moon, Tonya R.; Tomchin, Ellen M.; Plucker, Jonathan A.

This monograph describes Project START (Support To Affirm Rising Talent), a three-year collaborative research effort to develop and apply gifted identification procedures based on Howard Gardner's (1983) theory of multiple intelligences. Specifically, the study attempted to: (1) develop identification procedures; (2) identify high-potential…

Jigsaw Research Communities: Coordinating Research and Service across Multiple Courses to Serve a Single Community Partner

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cross, Anne; Eckberg, Deborah A.

2015-01-01

This article describes a public scholarship project in which two faculty members worked together to integrate service-learning and research into multiple courses to benefit a single community partner. The project linked undergraduate students, graduate students, and faculty in a broad-based research endeavor that contributed to the survival and…

Increasing Reading Motivation in Elementary and Middle School Students through the Use of Multiple Intelligences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Buschick, Mary E.; Shipton, Tracey A.; Winner, Laurie M.; Wise, Melissa D.

2007-01-01

The problem is that with each passing year it becomes increasingly harder to maintain student motivation to read and improve reading comprehension. The purpose of this project was to increase reading motivation in elementary and middle school students through the use of multiple intelligences. This project was conducted by four teacher researchers…

Multiple Site Action Research Case Studies: Practical and Theoretical Benefits and Challenges

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pereira, Mary Delfin; Vallance, Roger

2006-01-01

A curriculum initiative project was implemented in four schools in Singapore over a span of five to six weeks during 2004. The project employed a number of different schools: girls only, boys only and co-educational schools; different levels of performance in a graded situation; multiple teachers and classes within each site; and control and…

Trade Study of Multiple Thruster Options for the Mars Airplane Concept

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kuhl, Christopher A.; Gayle, Steven W.; Hunter, Craig A.; Kenney, Patrick S.; Scola, Salvatore; Paddock, David A.; Wright, Henry S.; Gasbarre, Joseph F.

2009-01-01

A trade study was performed at NASA Langley Research Center under the Planetary Airplane Risk Reduction (PARR) project (2004-2005) to examine the option of using multiple, smaller thrusters in place of a single large thruster on the Mars airplane concept with the goal to reduce overall cost, schedule, and technical risk. The 5-lbf (22N) thruster is a common reaction control thruster on many satellites. Thousands of these types of thrusters have been built and flown on numerous programs, including MILSTAR and Intelsat VI. This study has examined the use of three 22N thrusters for the Mars airplane propulsion system and compared the results to those of the baseline single thruster system.

An Energy Storage Assessment: Using Optimal Control Strategies to Capture Multiple Services

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

Wu, Di; Jin, Chunlian; Balducci, Patrick J.

2015-09-01

This paper presents a methodology for evaluating benefits of battery storage for multiple grid applications, including energy arbitrage, balancing service, capacity value, distribution system equipment deferral, and outage mitigation. In the proposed method, at each hour, a look-ahead optimization is first formulated and solved to determine battery base operating point. The minute by minute simulation is then performed to simulate the actual battery operation. This methodology is used to assess energy storage alternatives in Puget Sound Energy System. Different battery storage candidates are simulated for a period of one year to assess different value streams and overall benefits, as partmore » of a financial feasibility evaluation of battery storage projects.« less

Multiple pure tone elimination strut assembly. [air breathing engines

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Burcham, F. W. (Inventor)

1981-01-01

An acoustic noise elimination assembly is disclosed which has a capability for disrupting the continuity of fields of sound pressures forwardly projected from fans or rotors of a type commonly found in the fan or compressor first stage for air-breathing engines, when operating at tip speeds in the supersonic range. The assembly includes a tubular cowl defining a duct for delivering an air stream axially into the intake for a jet engine. A sound barrier, defined by a number of intersecting flat plates or struts has a line of intersection coincident with a longitudinal axis of the tubular cowl, which serves to disrupt the continuity of rotating fields of multiple pure tonal components of noise.

IMPROVING ACCESS TO INFORMATION ABOUT ORD PROJECTS

EPA Science Inventory

ORD project information is maintained in, and retrieved from, multiple systems and home pages. Not all sources of project information are Intranet accessible. Descriptive information may be abbreviated and not useful in conveying a comprehensive understanding of a project. The m...

The Dust Management Project: Final Report

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hyatt, Mark J.; Straka, Sharon

2011-01-01

A return to the Moon to extend human presence, pursue scientific activities, use the Moon to prepare for future human missions to Mars, and expand Earth s economic sphere, will require investment in developing new technologies and capabilities to achieve affordable and sustainable human exploration. From the operational experience gained and lessons learned during the Apollo missions, conducting longterm operations in the lunar environment will be a particular challenge, given the difficulties presented by the unique physical properties and other characteristics of lunar regolith, including dust. The Apollo missions and other lunar explorations have identified significant lunar dust-related problems that will challenge future mission success. Comprised of regolith particles ranging in size from tens of nanometers to microns, lunar dust is a manifestation of the complex interaction of the lunar soil with multiple mechanical, electrical, and gravitational effects. The environmental and anthropogenic factors effecting the perturbation, transport, and deposition of lunar dust must be studied in order to mitigate it s potentially harmful effects on exploration systems and human explorers. The Dust Management Project (DMP) is tasked with the evaluation of lunar dust effects, assessment of the resulting risks, and development of mitigation and management strategies and technologies related to Exploration Systems architectures. To this end, the DMP supports the overall goal of the Exploration Technology Development Program (ETDP) of addressing the relevant high priority technology needs of multiple elements within the Constellation Program (CxP) and sister ETDP projects. Project scope, approach, accomplishments, summary of deliverables, and lessons learned are presented.

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

Hale, Richard Edward; Cetiner, Sacit M.; Fugate, David L.

The Small Modular Reactor (SMR) Dynamic System Modeling Tool project is in the third year of development. The project is designed to support collaborative modeling and study of various advanced SMR (non-light water cooled) concepts, including the use of multiple coupled reactors at a single site. The objective of the project is to provide a common simulation environment and baseline modeling resources to facilitate rapid development of dynamic advanced reactor SMR models, ensure consistency among research products within the Instrumentation, Controls, and Human-Machine Interface (ICHMI) technical area, and leverage cross-cutting capabilities while minimizing duplication of effort. The combined simulation environmentmore » and suite of models are identified as the Modular Dynamic SIMulation (MoDSIM) tool. The critical elements of this effort include (1) defining a standardized, common simulation environment that can be applied throughout the program, (2) developing a library of baseline component modules that can be assembled into full plant models using existing geometry and thermal-hydraulic data, (3) defining modeling conventions for interconnecting component models, and (4) establishing user interfaces and support tools to facilitate simulation development (i.e., configuration and parameterization), execution, and results display and capture.« less

Space Technology Mission Directorate Game Changing Development Program FY2015 Annual Program Review: Advanced Manufacturing Technology

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vickers, John; Fikes, John

2015-01-01

The Advance Manufacturing Technology (AMT) Project supports multiple activities within the Administration's National Manufacturing Initiative. A key component of the Initiative is the Advanced Manufacturing National Program Office (AMNPO), which includes participation from all federal agencies involved in U.S. manufacturing. In support of the AMNPO the AMT Project supports building and Growing the National Network for Manufacturing Innovation through a public-private partnership designed to help the industrial community accelerate manufacturing innovation. Integration with other projects/programs and partnerships: STMD (Space Technology Mission Directorate), HEOMD, other Centers; Industry, Academia; OGA's (e.g., DOD, DOE, DOC, USDA, NASA, NSF); Office of Science and Technology Policy, NIST Advanced Manufacturing Program Office; Generate insight within NASA and cross-agency for technology development priorities and investments. Technology Infusion Plan: PC; Potential customer infusion (TDM, HEOMD, SMD, OGA, Industry); Leverage; Collaborate with other Agencies, Industry and Academia; NASA roadmap. Initiatives include: Advanced Near Net Shape Technology Integrally Stiffened Cylinder Process Development (launch vehicles, sounding rockets); Materials Genome; Low Cost Upper Stage-Class Propulsion; Additive Construction with Mobile Emplacement (ACME); National Center for Advanced Manufacturing.

Laboratory Directed Research and Development Program FY2011

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

none, none

2012-04-27

Berkeley Lab's research and the Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) program support DOE's Strategic Themes that are codified in DOE's 2006 Strategic Plan (DOE/CF-0010), with a primary focus on Scientific Discovery and Innovation. For that strategic theme, the Fiscal Year (FY) 2011 LDRD projects support each one of the three goals through multiple strategies described in the plan. In addition, LDRD efforts support the four goals of Energy Security, the two goals of Environmental Responsibility, and Nuclear Security (unclassified fundamental research that supports stockpile safety and nonproliferation programs). Going forward in FY 2012, the LDRD program also supports themore » Goals codified in the new DOE Strategic Plan of May, 2011. The LDRD program also supports Office of Science strategic plans, including the 20-year Scientific Facilities Plan and the Office of Science Strategic Plan. The research also supports the strategic directions periodically under consideration and review by the Office of Science Program Offices, such as LDRD projects germane to new research facility concepts and new fundamental science directions. Brief summares of projects and accomplishments for the period for each division are included.« less

The Stanford how things work project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fikes, Richard; Gruber, Tom; Iwasaki, Yumi

1994-01-01

We provide an overview of the Stanford How Things Work (HTW) project, an ongoing integrated collection of research activities in the Knowledge Systems Laboratory at Stanford University. The project is developing technology for representing knowledge about engineered devices in a form that enables the knowledge to be used in multiple systems for multiple reasoning tasks and reasoning methods that enable the represented knowledge to be effectively applied to the performance of the core engineering task of simulating and analyzing device behavior. The central new capabilities currently being developed in the project are automated assistance with model formulation and with verification that a design for an electro-mechanical device satisfies its functional specification.

The BRAIN Initiative Cell Census Consortium: Lessons Learned toward Generating a Comprehensive Brain Cell Atlas.

PubMed

Ecker, Joseph R; Geschwind, Daniel H; Kriegstein, Arnold R; Ngai, John; Osten, Pavel; Polioudakis, Damon; Regev, Aviv; Sestan, Nenad; Wickersham, Ian R; Zeng, Hongkui

2017-11-01

A comprehensive characterization of neuronal cell types, their distributions, and patterns of connectivity is critical for understanding the properties of neural circuits and how they generate behaviors. Here we review the experiences of the BRAIN Initiative Cell Census Consortium, ten pilot projects funded by the U.S. BRAIN Initiative, in developing, validating, and scaling up emerging genomic and anatomical mapping technologies for creating a complete inventory of neuronal cell types and their connections in multiple species and during development. These projects lay the foundation for a larger and longer-term effort to generate whole-brain cell atlases in species including mice and humans. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Podcasting the Anthropocene as a model for student and faculty science communication

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Osborne, M. C.; Traer, M. M.; Hayden, T.

2015-12-01

Generation Anthropocene is an ongoing audio podcast that is produced at Stanford and is currently being hosted by Smithsonian.com. This experimental program invovles teaching a project-based course whereby students pitch, collaborate, and produce audio stories under the guidance of the instructors. Stories are then published online and are freely available to the general public via multiple outlets, including iTunes, genanthro.com, and Smithsonian.com. Here we describe how the program came into existence, how it is currently operating, and how we view the show as a model for integrating curriculum with outreach. We also present data about our listenership and explore potential for the project to expand to other academic institutions.

Global Carbon Project: the 2014 Global Carbon Budget (V.1.0, issued Sept. 2014 and V.1.1, issued May 2015)

DOE Data Explorer

Le Quere, C. [University of East Anglia, Norwich UK; Moriarty, R. [University of East Anglia, Norwich UK; Andrew, R. M. [Univ. of Oslo (Norway); Peters, G. P. [Univ. of Oslo (Norway); Boden, T. A. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States), Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center (CDIAC)

2014-01-01

The GCP provides an annual report of carbon dioxide emissions, land and ocean sinks and accumulation in the atmosphere, incorporating data from multiple research institutes from around the world. More information can be found at www.globalcarbonproject.org/carbonbudget. Each year's Global Carbon Budget is a collaborative effort of the global carbon cycle science community coordinated by the Global Carbon Project. The landing page for this dataset includes links to the 2014 report, V. 1.0, issued Sept2014 and V.1.1, issued May 2015. Many links to older years versions are also available from this landing page.

Algorithm of OMA for large-scale orthology inference

PubMed Central

Roth, Alexander CJ; Gonnet, Gaston H; Dessimoz, Christophe

2008-01-01

Background OMA is a project that aims to identify orthologs within publicly available, complete genomes. With 657 genomes analyzed to date, OMA is one of the largest projects of its kind. Results The algorithm of OMA improves upon standard bidirectional best-hit approach in several respects: it uses evolutionary distances instead of scores, considers distance inference uncertainty, includes many-to-many orthologous relations, and accounts for differential gene losses. Herein, we describe in detail the algorithm for inference of orthology and provide the rationale for parameter selection through multiple tests. Conclusion OMA contains several novel improvement ideas for orthology inference and provides a unique dataset of large-scale orthology assignments. PMID:19055798

Data collection and storage in long-term ecological and evolutionary studies: The Mongoose 2000 system

PubMed Central

Griffiths, David J.; Mwanguhya, Francis; Businge, Robert; Griffiths, Amber G. F.; Kyabulima, Solomon; Mwesige, Kenneth; Sanderson, Jennifer L.; Thompson, Faye J.; Vitikainen, Emma I. K.; Cant, Michael A.

2018-01-01

Studying ecological and evolutionary processes in the natural world often requires research projects to follow multiple individuals in the wild over many years. These projects have provided significant advances but may also be hampered by needing to accurately and efficiently collect and store multiple streams of the data from multiple individuals concurrently. The increase in the availability and sophistication of portable computers (smartphones and tablets) and the applications that run on them has the potential to address many of these data collection and storage issues. In this paper we describe the challenges faced by one such long-term, individual-based research project: the Banded Mongoose Research Project in Uganda. We describe a system we have developed called Mongoose 2000 that utilises the potential of apps and portable computers to meet these challenges. We discuss the benefits and limitations of employing such a system in a long-term research project. The app and source code for the Mongoose 2000 system are freely available and we detail how it might be used to aid data collection and storage in other long-term individual-based projects. PMID:29315317

Including Health in Environmental Assessments of Major Transport Infrastructure Projects: A Documentary Analysis.

PubMed

Riley, Emily; Harris, Patrick; Kent, Jennifer; Sainsbury, Peter; Lane, Anna; Baum, Fran

2018-05-10

Transport policy and practice impacts health. Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) are regulated public policy mechanisms that can be used to consider the health impacts of major transport projects before they are approved. The way health is considered in these environmental assessments (EAs) is not well known. This research asked: How and to what extent was human health considered in EAs of four major transport projects in Australia. We developed a comprehensive coding framework to analyse the Environmental Impact Statements (EISs) of four transport infrastructure projects: three road and one light rail. The coding framework was designed to capture how health was directly and indirectly included. We found that health was partially considered in all four EISs. In the three New South Wales (NSW) projects, but not the one South Australian project, this was influenced by the requirements issued to proponents by the government which directed the content of the EIS. Health was assessed using human health risk assessment (HHRA). We found this to be narrow in focus and revealed a need for a broader social determinants of health approach, using multiple methods. The road assessments emphasised air quality and noise risks, concluding these were minimal or predicted to improve. The South Australian project was the only road project not to include health data explicitly. The light rail EIS considered the health benefits of the project whereas the others focused on risk. Only one project considered mental health, although in less detail than air quality or noise. Our findings suggest EIAs lag behind the known evidence linking transport infrastructure to health. If health is to be comprehensively included, a more complete model of health is required, as well as a shift away from health risk assessment as the main method used. This needs to be mandatory for all significant developments. We also found that considering health only at the EIA stage may be a significant limitation, and there is a need for health issues to be considered when earlier, fundamental decisions about the project are being made. © 2018 The Author(s); Published by Kerman University of Medical Sciences. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Research training of students in minority and international settings: lessons learned from cancer epidemiology education in special populations.

PubMed

Soliman, Amr S; Mullan, Patricia B; Chamberlain, Robert M

2010-06-01

This article describes the development and evaluation of an NCI-sponsored short-term summer cancer research education program. The study questions examined: the feasibility of conducting a cancer education program in special populations at multiple US and international field sites for masters students; the merit and worth that students and faculty attribute to the program; and students' scholarly and cancer-related career outcomes. Developing a new curriculum, increasing the pool of mentors, utilizing and increasing the number of field sites, and program dissemination were also evaluated. Evidence of the program's success included students' completion of field experiences at multiple sites and their subsequent 70% project-related publication rate, with 79% of trainees reporting themselves as likely to pursue future cancer-related careers. Evaluation-guided future plans for the program include implementing faculty development to further enhance the program outcomes.

Scheduling the Remediation of Port Hope: Logistical and Regulatory Challenges of a Multiple Site Urban Remediation Project - 13119

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

Ferguson Jones, Andrea; Lee, Angela; Palmeter, Tim

2013-07-01

The Port Hope Project is part of the larger CAN$1.28 billion Port Hope Area Initiative (PHAI), a community-based program for the development and implementation of a safe, local, long-term management solution for historic Low-Level Radioactive Waste (LLRW) in the Municipalities of Port Hope and Clarington, Ontario, Canada. Atomic Energy of Canada (AECL) is the Project Proponent, Public Works and Government Services (PWGSC) is managing the procurement of services and the MMM Group Limited - Conestoga Rovers and Associates Joint Venture (MMM-CRA Joint Venture) is providing detailed design and construction oversight and administration services for the Project. The Port Hope Projectmore » includes the construction of a long-term waste management facility (LTWMF) in the Municipality of Port Hope and the remediation of 18 (eighteen) large-scale LLRW, numerous small-scale sites still being identified and industrial sites within the Municipality. The total volume to be remediated is over one million cubic metres and will come from sites that include temporary storage sites, ravines, beaches, parks, private commercial and residential properties and vacant industrial sites all within the urban area of Port Hope. Challenges that will need to be overcome during this 10 year project include: - Requirements stipulated by the Environmental Assessment (EA) that affect Project logistics and schedule. - Coordination of site remediation with the construction schedule at the LTWMF. - Physical constraints on transport routes and at sites affecting production rates. - Despite being an urban undertaking, seasonal constrains for birds and fish (i.e., nesting and spawning seasons). - Municipal considerations. - Site-specific constraints. - Site interdependencies exist requiring consideration in the schedule. Several sites require the use of an adjacent site for staging. (authors)« less

End-to-End Data System Architecture for the Space Station Biological Research Project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mian, Arshad; Scimemi, Sam; Adeni, Kaiser; Picinich, Lou; Ramos, Rubin (Technical Monitor)

1998-01-01

The Space Station Biological Research Project (SSBRP) Is developing hardware referred to as the "facility" for providing life sciences research capability on the International Space Station. This hardware includes several biological specimen habitats, habitat holding racks, a centrifuge and a glovebox. An SSBRP end to end data system architecture has been developed to allow command and control of the facility from the ground, either with crew assistance or autonomously. The data system will be capable of handling commands, sensor data, and video from multiple cameras. The data will traverse through several onboard and ground networks and processing entities including the SSBRP and Space Station onboard and ground data systems. A large number of onboard and ground (,entities of the data system are being developed by the Space Station Program, other NASA centers and the International Partners. The SSBRP part of the system which includes the habitats, holding racks, and the ground operations center, User Operations Facility (UOF) will be developed by a multitude of geographically distributed development organizations. The SSBRP has the responsibility to define the end to end data and communications systems to make the interfaces manageable and verifiable with multiple contractors with widely varying development constraints and schedules. This paper provides an overview of the SSBRP end-to-end data system. Specifically, it describes the hardware, software and functional interactions of individual systems, and interface requirements among various entities of the end-to-end system.

Dynamo Catalogue: Geometrical tools and data management for particle picking in subtomogram averaging of cryo-electron tomograms.

PubMed

Castaño-Díez, Daniel; Kudryashev, Mikhail; Stahlberg, Henning

2017-02-01

Cryo electron tomography allows macromolecular complexes within vitrified, intact, thin cells or sections thereof to be visualized, and structural analysis to be performed in situ by averaging over multiple copies of the same molecules. Image processing for subtomogram averaging is specific and cumbersome, due to the large amount of data and its three dimensional nature and anisotropic resolution. Here, we streamline data processing for subtomogram averaging by introducing an archiving system, Dynamo Catalogue. This system manages tomographic data from multiple tomograms and allows visual feedback during all processing steps, including particle picking, extraction, alignment and classification. The file structure of a processing project file structure includes logfiles of performed operations, and can be backed up and shared between users. Command line commands, database queries and a set of GUIs give the user versatile control over the process. Here, we introduce a set of geometric tools that streamline particle picking from simple (filaments, spheres, tubes, vesicles) and complex geometries (arbitrary 2D surfaces, rare instances on proteins with geometric restrictions, and 2D and 3D crystals). Advanced functionality, such as manual alignment and subboxing, is useful when initial templates are generated for alignment and for project customization. Dynamo Catalogue is part of the open source package Dynamo and includes tools to ensure format compatibility with the subtomogram averaging functionalities of other packages, such as Jsubtomo, PyTom, PEET, EMAN2, XMIPP and Relion. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Final Scientific/Technical Report from Hofstra University on DE-SC0001985

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

Farmer, E. Christa

The U.S. Department of Energy award DE-SC0001985 funded the Hofstra University Center for Climate Study (HUCCS) from 29 September 2009 through 1 October 2016. This support enabled several activities over the period of the grant, including 1) the pursuit of several research projects, including sediment coring of coastal marshes, analysis of habitat impact due to climate change, and effects of raindrops of CO2 transfer; 2) support for multiple graduate and undergraduate students, and sponsorship of research projects that involved high school students; 3) fostering mentoring relationships and networking; 4) the design, creation, and installation of an exhibit on climate changemore » at the Cradle of Aviation Museum in Garden City, NY as an effort of public outreach. A total of 11 presentations at conferences, one book, and one peer-reviewed journal article resulted from these activities.« less

The Human Connectome Project: A data acquisition perspective

PubMed Central

Van Essen, D.C.; Ugurbil, K.; Auerbach, E.; Barch, D.; Behrens, T.E.J.; Bucholz, R.; Chang, A.; Chen, L.; Corbetta, M.; Curtiss, S.W.; Della Penna, S.; Feinberg, D.; Glasser, M.F.; Harel, N.; Heath, A.C.; Larson-Prior, L.; Marcus, D.; Michalareas, G.; Moeller, S.; Oostenveld, R.; Petersen, S.E.; Prior, F.; Schlaggar, B.L.; Smith, S.M.; Snyder, A.Z.; Xu, J.; Yacoub, E.

2012-01-01

The Human Connectome Project (HCP) is an ambitious 5-year effort to characterize brain connectivity and function and their variability in healthy adults. This review summarizes the data acquisition plans being implemented by a consortium of HCP investigators who will study a population of 1200 subjects (twins and their non-twin siblings) using multiple imaging modalities along with extensive behavioral and genetic data. The imaging modalities will include diffusion imaging (dMRI), resting-state fMRI (R-fMRI), task-evoked fMRI (T-fMRI), T1- and T2-weighted MRI for structural and myelin mapping, plus combined magnetoencephalography and electroencephalography (MEG/EEG). Given the importance of obtaining the best possible data quality, we discuss the efforts underway during the first two years of the grant (Phase I) to refine and optimize many aspects of HCP data acquisition, including a new 7T scanner, a customized 3T scanner, and improved MR pulse sequences. PMID:22366334

[Using projective tests in forensic psychiatry may lead to wrong conclusions. Only empirically tested tests should be used].

PubMed

Trygg, L; Dåderman, A M; Wiklund, N; Meurling, A W; Lindgren, M; Lidberg, L; Levander, S

2001-06-27

The use of projective and psychometric psychological tests at the Department of Forensic Psychiatry in Stockholm (Huddinge), Sweden, was studied for a population of 60 men, including many patients with neuropsychological disabilities and multiple psychiatric disorders. The results showed that the use of projective tests like Rorschach, Object Relations Test, and House-Tree-Person was more frequent than the use of objective psychometric tests. Neuropsychological test batteries like the Halstead-Reitan Neuropsychological Test Battery or Luria-Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery were not used. The majority of patients were, however, assessed by intelligence scales like the WAIS-R. The questionable reliability and validity of the projective tests, and the risk of subjective interpretations, raise a problem when used in a forensic setting, since the courts' decisions about a sentence to prison or psychiatric care is based on the forensic psychiatric assessment. The use of objective psychometric neuropsychological tests and personality tests is recommended.

Information Management System Supporting a Multiple Property Survey Program with Legacy Radioactive Contamination.

PubMed

Stager, Ron; Chambers, Douglas; Wiatzka, Gerd; Dupre, Monica; Callough, Micah; Benson, John; Santiago, Erwin; van Veen, Walter

2017-04-01

The Port Hope Area Initiative is a project mandated and funded by the Government of Canada to remediate properties with legacy low-level radioactive waste contamination in the Town of Port Hope, Ontario. The management and use of large amounts of data from surveys of some 4800 properties is a significant task critical to the success of the project. A large amount of information is generated through the surveys, including scheduling individual field visits to the properties, capture of field data laboratory sample tracking, QA/QC, property report generation and project management reporting. Web-mapping tools were used to track and display temporal progress of various tasks and facilitated consideration of spatial associations of contamination levels. The IM system facilitated the management and integrity of the large amounts of information collected, evaluation of spatial associations, automated report reproduction and consistent application and traceable execution for this project.x. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Pursuing the method of multiple working hypotheses to understand differences in process-based snow models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Clark, Martyn; Essery, Richard

2017-04-01

When faced with the complex and interdisciplinary challenge of building process-based land models, different modelers make different decisions at different points in the model development process. These modeling decisions are generally based on several considerations, including fidelity (e.g., what approaches faithfully simulate observed processes), complexity (e.g., which processes should be represented explicitly), practicality (e.g., what is the computational cost of the model simulations; are there sufficient resources to implement the desired modeling concepts), and data availability (e.g., is there sufficient data to force and evaluate models). Consequently the research community, comprising modelers of diverse background, experience, and modeling philosophy, has amassed a wide range of models, which differ in almost every aspect of their conceptualization and implementation. Model comparison studies have been undertaken to explore model differences, but have not been able to meaningfully attribute inter-model differences in predictive ability to individual model components because there are often too many structural and implementation differences among the different models considered. As a consequence, model comparison studies to date have provided limited insight into the causes of differences in model behavior, and model development has often relied on the inspiration and experience of individual modelers rather than on a systematic analysis of model shortcomings. This presentation will summarize the use of "multiple-hypothesis" modeling frameworks to understand differences in process-based snow models. Multiple-hypothesis frameworks define a master modeling template, and include a a wide variety of process parameterizations and spatial configurations that are used in existing models. Such frameworks provide the capability to decompose complex models into the individual decisions that are made as part of model development, and evaluate each decision in isolation. It is hence possible to attribute differences in system-scale model predictions to individual modeling decisions, providing scope to mimic the behavior of existing models, understand why models differ, characterize model uncertainty, and identify productive pathways to model improvement. Results will be presented applying multiple hypothesis frameworks to snow model comparison projects, including PILPS, SnowMIP, and the upcoming ESM-SnowMIP project.

Conceptual framework of the Controlling Asthma in American Cities Project.

PubMed

Herman, Elizabeth Jane

2011-02-01

The Controlling Asthma in American Cities Project (CAACP) was designed to improve the control of asthma in inner-city populations of children with a disparate burden of symptoms and adverse outcomes. As with many chronic diseases, asthma is the manifestation of multiple biologic, environmental, and social determinants. In addition to appropriate medical management, individuals with asthma must have logistical, financial, and cultural access to environments that allow avoidance of asthma triggers and encourage good asthma management practices. In recognition of this complexity, the CAACP required the seven project sites to coordinate and synchronize multiple interventions (education, healthcare access, medical management, trigger reduction) at multiple levels (individual, home, school, community, and policy) through the collaboration of relevant groups, institutions, and individuals. This paper describes the "program theory" of the CAACP project-the assumptions about how the project worked, how the components were linked, and what outcomes were anticipated. It relates the subsequent papers in the supplement to the program theory and describes how the papers can inform and guide other community-based interventions, and advance the translation of scientific knowledge to effective interventions in communities of need.

Geospatial Optimization of Siting Large-Scale Solar Projects

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

Macknick, Jordan; Quinby, Ted; Caulfield, Emmet

2014-03-01

Recent policy and economic conditions have encouraged a renewed interest in developing large-scale solar projects in the U.S. Southwest. However, siting large-scale solar projects is complex. In addition to the quality of the solar resource, solar developers must take into consideration many environmental, social, and economic factors when evaluating a potential site. This report describes a proof-of-concept, Web-based Geographical Information Systems (GIS) tool that evaluates multiple user-defined criteria in an optimization algorithm to inform discussions and decisions regarding the locations of utility-scale solar projects. Existing siting recommendations for large-scale solar projects from governmental and non-governmental organizations are not consistent withmore » each other, are often not transparent in methods, and do not take into consideration the differing priorities of stakeholders. The siting assistance GIS tool we have developed improves upon the existing siting guidelines by being user-driven, transparent, interactive, capable of incorporating multiple criteria, and flexible. This work provides the foundation for a dynamic siting assistance tool that can greatly facilitate siting decisions among multiple stakeholders.« less

Design and Development of a New Multi-Projection X-Ray System for Chest Imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chawla, Amarpreet S.; Boyce, Sarah; Washington, Lacey; McAdams, H. Page; Samei, Ehsan

2009-02-01

Overlapping anatomical structures may confound the detection of abnormal pathology, including lung nodules, in conventional single-projection chest radiography. To minimize this fundamental limiting factor, a dedicated digital multi-projection system for chest imaging was recently developed at the Radiology Department of Duke University. We are reporting the design of the multi-projection imaging system and its initial performance in an ongoing clinical trial. The system is capable of acquiring multiple full-field projections of the same patient along both the horizontal and vertical axes at variable speeds and acquisition frame rates. These images acquired in rapid succession from slightly different angles about the posterior-anterior (PA) orientation can be correlated to minimize the influence of overlying anatomy. The developed system has been tested for repeatability and motion blur artifacts to investigate its robustness for clinical trials. Excellent geometrical consistency was found in the tube motion, with positional errors for clinical settings within 1%. The effect of tube-motion on the image quality measured in terms of impact on the modulation transfer function (MTF) was found to be minimal. The system was deemed clinic-ready and a clinical trial was subsequently launched. The flexibility of image acquisition built into the system provides a unique opportunity to easily modify it for different clinical applications, including tomosynthesis, correlation imaging (CI), and stereoscopic imaging.

Advanced architectures and the required technologies for next-generation communications satellite systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Arnold, Ray; Naderi, F. Michael

1988-01-01

The hardware requirements for multibeam operation and onboard data processing and switching on future communication satellites are reviewed. Topics addressed include multiple-beam antennas, frequency-addressable beams, baseband vs IF switching, FDM/TDMA systems, and bulk demodulators. The proposed use of these technologies in the NASA ACTS, Italsat, and the Japanese ETS-VI is discussed in detail and illustrated with extensive diagrams, maps, drawings, and tables of projected performance data.

The Paleontology Portal: An online resource meeting the needs a spectrum of learners

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lindberg, D.; Scotchmoor, J. G.

2005-12-01

The Paleontology Portal website provides a central, interactive entry point to high-quality North American paleontology resources on the Internet for multiple audiences: the research community, government and industry, K-16 students, and the general public. The Portal successfully blends research and education, pulling together information with reviewed and annotated website links for a wide variety of informal learners. Using web-based technology and relational databases, users can explore an interactive map and associated stratigraphic column to access information about particular geographic regions, geologic time periods, depositional environments, and representative taxa. Users are also able to search multiple museum collection databases using a single query form of their own design. Other features include highlights of famous fossil sites and assemblages and a fossil image gallery. Throughout the site, users find images and links to information specific to each time period or geographic region, including current research projects and publications, websites, on-line exhibits and educational materials, and information on collecting fossils. The next phase of development will target the development of resource modules on topics such as collection management and fossil preparation, appropriate for users ranging from the general public to professional paleontologists. Another initiative includes developing methods of personalizing the Portal to support exhibits at museums and other venues on geological history and paleontology. The Paleontology Portal, built by the UC Museum of Paleontology, is a joint project of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology, the Paleontological Society, and the US Geological Survey, in collaboration with the Paleontological Research Institution, the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History, and the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, which serve as hubs for the project. Paleoportal serves as an effective model in two aspects: (1) providing access to a spectrum of reviewed resources from a single starting interface that enables users from novice to professional to access background-appropriate information, and (2) involvement of a wide range of stakeholders (professional societies, universities and museums, and individuals) in both concept development and management. The project is funded by the National Science Foundation under award no. 0234594

Preliminary Concept of Operations for the Spent Fuel Management System--WM2017

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

Cumberland, Riley M; Adeniyi, Abiodun Idowu; Howard, Rob L

The Nuclear Fuels Storage and Transportation Planning Project (NFST) within the U.S. Department of Energy s Office of Nuclear Energy is tasked with identifying, planning, and conducting activities to lay the groundwork for developing interim storage and transportation capabilities in support of an integrated waste management system. The system will provide interim storage for commercial spent nuclear fuel (SNF) from reactor sites and deliver it to a repository. The system will also include multiple subsystems, potentially including; one or more interim storage facilities (ISF); one or more repositories; facilities to package and/or repackage SNF; and transportation systems. The project teammore » is analyzing options for an integrated waste management system. To support analysis, the project team has developed a Concept of Operations document that describes both the potential integrated system and inter-dependencies between system components. The goal of this work is to aid systems analysts in the development of consistent models across the project, which involves multiple investigators. The Concept of Operations document will be updated periodically as new developments emerge. At a high level, SNF is expected to travel from reactors to a repository. SNF is first unloaded from reactors and placed in spent fuel pools for wet storage at utility sites. After the SNF has cooled enough to satisfy loading limits, it is placed in a container at reactor sites for storage and/or transportation. After transportation requirements are met, the SNF is transported to an ISF to store the SNF until a repository is developed or directly to a repository if available. While the high level operation of the system is straightforward, analysts must evaluate numerous alternative options. Alternative options include the number of ISFs (if any), ISF design, the stage at which SNF repackaging occurs (if any), repackaging technology, the types of containers used, repository design, component sizing, and timing of events. These alternative options arise due to technological, economic, or policy considerations. As new developments regularly emerge, the operational concepts will be periodically updated. This paper gives an overview of the different potential alternatives identified in the Concept of Operations document at a conceptual level.« less

Making Progress: The Use of Multiple Progress Reports to Enhance Advertising Students' Media Plan Term Projects

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kritz, Gary H.; Lozada, Hector R.; Long, Mary M.

2007-01-01

Since the AACSB mandates that students demonstrate effective oral and written communication skills, it is imperative that business professors do what is necessary to improve such skills. The authors investigate whether the use of using multiple progress reports in an Advertising class project improves the final product. The data results show that…

Multiple Theoretical Lenses as an Analytical Strategy in Researching Group Discussions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berge, Maria; Ingerman, Åke

2017-01-01

Background: In science education today, there is an emerging focus on what is happening in situ, making use of an array of analytical traditions. Common practice is to use one specific analytical framing within a research project, but there are projects that make use of multiple analytical framings to further the understanding of the same data,…

The Effects of Student Multiple Intelligence Preference on Integration of Earth Science Concepts and Knowledge within a Middle Grades Science Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cutshall, Lisa Christine

This research was conducted in an eastern Tennessee 8th grade science classroom with 99 students participating. The action research project attempted to examine an adolescent science student's integration of science concepts within a project-based setting using the multiple intelligence theory. In an effort to address the national science…

Accelerated Cure Project for Multiple Sclerosis

MedlinePlus

... main content Accelerating research toward a cure for multiple sclerosis Toggle navigation Search form Search Connect Volunteer Donate ... is to accelerate efforts toward a cure for multiple sclerosis by rapidly advancing research that determines its causes ...

The impact on healthcare, policy and practice from 36 multi-project research programmes: findings from two reviews.

PubMed

Hanney, Steve; Greenhalgh, Trisha; Blatch-Jones, Amanda; Glover, Matthew; Raftery, James

2017-03-28

We sought to analyse the impacts found, and the methods used, in a series of assessments of programmes and portfolios of health research consisting of multiple projects. We analysed a sample of 36 impact studies of multi-project research programmes, selected from a wider sample of impact studies included in two narrative systematic reviews published in 2007 and 2016. We included impact studies in which the individual projects in a programme had been assessed for wider impact, especially on policy or practice, and where findings had been described in such a way that allowed them to be collated and compared. Included programmes were highly diverse in terms of location (11 different countries plus two multi-country ones), number of component projects (8 to 178), nature of the programme, research field, mode of funding, time between completion and impact assessment, methods used to assess impact, and level of impact identified. Thirty-one studies reported on policy impact, 17 on clinician behaviour or informing clinical practice, three on a combined category such as policy and clinician impact, and 12 on wider elements of impact (health gain, patient benefit, improved care or other benefits to the healthcare system). In those multi-programme projects that assessed the respective categories, the percentage of projects that reported some impact was policy 35% (range 5-100%), practice 32% (10-69%), combined category 64% (60-67%), and health gain/health services 27% (6-48%). Variations in levels of impact achieved partly reflected differences in the types of programme, levels of collaboration with users, and methods and timing of impact assessment. Most commonly, principal investigators were surveyed; some studies involved desk research and some interviews with investigators and/or stakeholders. Most studies used a conceptual framework such as the Payback Framework. One study attempted to assess the monetary value of a research programme's health gain. The widespread impact reported for some multi-project programmes, including needs-led and collaborative ones, could potentially be used to promote further research funding. Moves towards greater standardisation of assessment methods could address existing inconsistencies and better inform strategic decisions about research investment; however, unresolved issues about such moves remain.

Managing data from multiple disciplines, scales, and sites to support synthesis and modeling

USGS Publications Warehouse

Olson, R. J.; Briggs, J. M.; Porter, J.H.; Mah, Grant R.; Stafford, S.G.

1999-01-01

The synthesis and modeling of ecological processes at multiple spatial and temporal scales involves bringing together and sharing data from numerous sources. This article describes a data and information system model that facilitates assembling, managing, and sharing diverse data from multiple disciplines, scales, and sites to support integrated ecological studies. Cross-site scientific-domain working groups coordinate the development of data associated with their particular scientific working group, including decisions about data requirements, data to be compiled, data formats, derived data products, and schedules across the sites. The Web-based data and information system consists of nodes for each working group plus a central node that provides data access, project information, data query, and other functionality. The approach incorporates scientists and computer experts in the working groups and provides incentives for individuals to submit documented data to the data and information system.

Optic probe for multiple angle image capture and optional stereo imaging

DOEpatents

Malone, Robert M.; Kaufman, Morris I.

2016-11-29

A probe including a multiple lens array is disclosed to measure velocity distribution of a moving surface along many lines of sight. Laser light, directed to the moving surface is reflected back from the surface and is Doppler shifted, collected into the array, and then directed to detection equipment through optic fibers. The received light is mixed with reference laser light and using photonic Doppler velocimetry, a continuous time record of the surface movement is obtained. An array of single-mode optical fibers provides an optic signal to the multiple lens array. Numerous fibers in a fiber array project numerous rays to establish many measurement points at numerous different locations. One or more lens groups may be replaced with imaging lenses so a stereo image of the moving surface can be recorded. Imaging a portion of the surface during initial travel can determine whether the surface is breaking up.

Inkjet printing-based volumetric display projecting multiple full-colour 2D patterns

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hirayama, Ryuji; Suzuki, Tomotaka; Shimobaba, Tomoyoshi; Shiraki, Atsushi; Naruse, Makoto; Nakayama, Hirotaka; Kakue, Takashi; Ito, Tomoyoshi

2017-04-01

In this study, a method to construct a full-colour volumetric display is presented using a commercially available inkjet printer. Photoreactive luminescence materials are minutely and automatically printed as the volume elements, and volumetric displays are constructed with high resolution using easy-to-fabricate means that exploit inkjet printing technologies. The results experimentally demonstrate the first prototype of an inkjet printing-based volumetric display composed of multiple layers of transparent films that yield a full-colour three-dimensional (3D) image. Moreover, we propose a design algorithm with 3D structures that provide multiple different 2D full-colour patterns when viewed from different directions and experimentally demonstrate prototypes. It is considered that these types of 3D volumetric structures and their fabrication methods based on widely deployed existing printing technologies can be utilised as novel information display devices and systems, including digital signage, media art, entertainment and security.

Preliminary report for analysis of genome wide mutations from four ciprofloxacin resistant B. anthracis Sterne isolates generated by Illumina, 454 sequencing and microarrays for DHS

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

Jaing, Crystal; Vergez, Lisa; Hinckley, Aubree

2011-06-21

The objective of this project is to provide DHS a comprehensive evaluation of the current genomic technologies including genotyping, Taqman PCR, multiple locus variable tandem repeat analysis (MLVA), microarray and high-throughput DNA sequencing in the analysis of biothreat agents from complex environmental samples. As the result of a different DHS project, we have selected for and isolated a large number of ciprofloxacin resistant B. anthracis Sterne isolates. These isolates vary in the concentrations of ciprofloxacin that they can tolerate, suggesting multiple mutations in the samples. In collaboration with University of Houston, Eureka Genomics and Oak Ridge National Laboratory, we analyzedmore » the ciprofloxacin resistant B. anthracis Sterne isolates by microarray hybridization, Illumina and Roche 454 sequencing to understand the error rates and sensitivity of the different methods. The report provides an assessment of the results and a complete set of all protocols used and all data generated along with information to interpret the protocols and data sets.« less

MoonProt: a database for proteins that are known to moonlight

PubMed Central

Mani, Mathew; Chen, Chang; Amblee, Vaishak; Liu, Haipeng; Mathur, Tanu; Zwicke, Grant; Zabad, Shadi; Patel, Bansi; Thakkar, Jagravi; Jeffery, Constance J.

2015-01-01

Moonlighting proteins comprise a class of multifunctional proteins in which a single polypeptide chain performs multiple biochemical functions that are not due to gene fusions, multiple RNA splice variants or pleiotropic effects. The known moonlighting proteins perform a variety of diverse functions in many different cell types and species, and information about their structures and functions is scattered in many publications. We have constructed the manually curated, searchable, internet-based MoonProt Database (http://www.moonlightingproteins.org) with information about the over 200 proteins that have been experimentally verified to be moonlighting proteins. The availability of this organized information provides a more complete picture of what is currently known about moonlighting proteins. The database will also aid researchers in other fields, including determining the functions of genes identified in genome sequencing projects, interpreting data from proteomics projects and annotating protein sequence and structural databases. In addition, information about the structures and functions of moonlighting proteins can be helpful in understanding how novel protein functional sites evolved on an ancient protein scaffold, which can also help in the design of proteins with novel functions. PMID:25324305

MABEL at IPAC: managing address books and email lists at the Infrared Processing and Analysis Center

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crane, Megan; Brinkworth, Carolyn; Gelino, Dawn; O'Leary, Ellen

2012-09-01

The Infrared Processing and Analysis Center (IPAC), located on the campus of the California Institute of Technology, is NASA's multi-mission data center for infrared astrophysics. Some of IPAC's services include administering data analysis funding awards to the astronomical community, organizing conferences and workshops, and soliciting and selecting fellowship and observing proposals. As most of these services are repeated annually or biannually, it becomes necessary to maintain multiple lists of email contacts associated with each service. MABEL is a PHP/MySQL web database application designed to facilitate this process. It serves as an address book containing up-to-date contact information for thousands of recipients. Recipients may be assigned to any number of email lists categorized by IPAC project and team. Lists may be public (viewable by all project members) or private (viewable only by team members). MABEL can also be used to send HTML or plain-text emails to multiple lists at once and prevents duplicate emails to a single recipient. This work was performed at the California Institute of Technology under contract to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

''The control of lignin synthesis''

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

Carlson, John E.

2005-04-07

In this project we tested the hypothesis that regulation of the synthesis of lignin in secondary xylem cells in conifer trees involves the transport of glucosylated lignin monomers to the wall of xylem cells, followed by de-glucosylation in the cell wall by monolignol-specific glucosidase enzymes, which activates the monomers for lignin polymerization. The information we gathered is relevant to the fundamental understanding of how trees make wood, and to the applied goal of more environmentally friendly pulp and paper production. We characterized the complete genomic structure of the Coniferin-specific Beta-glucosidase (CBG) gene family in the conifers loblolly pine (Pinus taeda)more » and lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta), and partial genomic sequences were obtained in several other tree species. Both pine species contain multiple CBG genes which raises the possibility of differential regulation, perhaps related to the multiple roles of lignin in development and defense. Subsequent projects will need to include detailed gene expression studies of each gene family member during tree growth and development, and testing the role of each monolignol-specific glucosidase gene in controlling lignin content.« less

Clustering cancer gene expression data by projective clustering ensemble

PubMed Central

Yu, Xianxue; Yu, Guoxian

2017-01-01

Gene expression data analysis has paramount implications for gene treatments, cancer diagnosis and other domains. Clustering is an important and promising tool to analyze gene expression data. Gene expression data is often characterized by a large amount of genes but with limited samples, thus various projective clustering techniques and ensemble techniques have been suggested to combat with these challenges. However, it is rather challenging to synergy these two kinds of techniques together to avoid the curse of dimensionality problem and to boost the performance of gene expression data clustering. In this paper, we employ a projective clustering ensemble (PCE) to integrate the advantages of projective clustering and ensemble clustering, and to avoid the dilemma of combining multiple projective clusterings. Our experimental results on publicly available cancer gene expression data show PCE can improve the quality of clustering gene expression data by at least 4.5% (on average) than other related techniques, including dimensionality reduction based single clustering and ensemble approaches. The empirical study demonstrates that, to further boost the performance of clustering cancer gene expression data, it is necessary and promising to synergy projective clustering with ensemble clustering. PCE can serve as an effective alternative technique for clustering gene expression data. PMID:28234920

Projecting changes in the distribution and productivity of living marine resources: A critical review of the suite of modelling approaches used in the large European project VECTORS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peck, Myron A.; Arvanitidis, Christos; Butenschön, Momme; Canu, Donata Melaku; Chatzinikolaou, Eva; Cucco, Andrea; Domenici, Paolo; Fernandes, Jose A.; Gasche, Loic; Huebert, Klaus B.; Hufnagl, Marc; Jones, Miranda C.; Kempf, Alexander; Keyl, Friedemann; Maar, Marie; Mahévas, Stéphanie; Marchal, Paul; Nicolas, Delphine; Pinnegar, John K.; Rivot, Etienne; Rochette, Sébastien; Sell, Anne F.; Sinerchia, Matteo; Solidoro, Cosimo; Somerfield, Paul J.; Teal, Lorna R.; Travers-Trolet, Morgan; van de Wolfshaar, Karen E.

2018-02-01

We review and compare four broad categories of spatially-explicit modelling approaches currently used to understand and project changes in the distribution and productivity of living marine resources including: 1) statistical species distribution models, 2) physiology-based, biophysical models of single life stages or the whole life cycle of species, 3) food web models, and 4) end-to-end models. Single pressures are rare and, in the future, models must be able to examine multiple factors affecting living marine resources such as interactions between: i) climate-driven changes in temperature regimes and acidification, ii) reductions in water quality due to eutrophication, iii) the introduction of alien invasive species, and/or iv) (over-)exploitation by fisheries. Statistical (correlative) approaches can be used to detect historical patterns which may not be relevant in the future. Advancing predictive capacity of changes in distribution and productivity of living marine resources requires explicit modelling of biological and physical mechanisms. New formulations are needed which (depending on the question) will need to strive for more realism in ecophysiology and behaviour of individuals, life history strategies of species, as well as trophodynamic interactions occurring at different spatial scales. Coupling existing models (e.g. physical, biological, economic) is one avenue that has proven successful. However, fundamental advancements are needed to address key issues such as the adaptive capacity of species/groups and ecosystems. The continued development of end-to-end models (e.g., physics to fish to human sectors) will be critical if we hope to assess how multiple pressures may interact to cause changes in living marine resources including the ecological and economic costs and trade-offs of different spatial management strategies. Given the strengths and weaknesses of the various types of models reviewed here, confidence in projections of changes in the distribution and productivity of living marine resources will be increased by assessing model structural uncertainty through biological ensemble modelling.

Irvine Smart Grid Demonstration, a Regional Smart Grid Demonstration Project

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

Yinger, Robert; Irwin, Mark

ISGD was a comprehensive demonstration that spanned the electricity delivery system and extended into customer homes. The project used phasor measurement technology to enable substation-level situational awareness, and demonstrated SCE’s next-generation substation automation system. It extended beyond the substation to evaluate the latest generation of distribution automation technologies, including looped 12-kV distribution circuit topology using URCIs. The project team used DVVC capabilities to demonstrate CVR. In customer homes, the project evaluated HAN devices such as smart appliances, programmable communicating thermostats, and home energy management components. The homes were also equipped with energy storage, solar PV systems, and a number ofmore » energy efficiency measures (EEMs). The team used one block of homes to evaluate strategies and technologies for achieving ZNE. A home achieves ZNE when it produces at least as much renewable energy as the amount of energy it consumes annually. The project also assessed the impact of device-specific demand response (DR), as well as load management capabilities involving energy storage devices and plug-in electric vehicle charging equipment. In addition, the ISGD project sought to better understand the impact of ZNE homes on the electric grid. ISGD’s SENet enabled end-to-end interoperability between multiple vendors’ systems and devices, while also providing a level of cybersecurity that is essential to smart grid development and adoption across the nation. The ISGD project includes a series of sub-projects grouped into four logical technology domains: Smart Energy Customer Solutions, Next-Generation Distribution System, Interoperability and Cybersecurity, and Workforce of the Future. Section 2.3 provides a more detailed overview of these domains.« less

Future discharge of the French tributaries of the Rhine: a semi-distributed multi-model approach using CMIP5 projections

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thirel, Guillaume; de Lavenne, Alban; Wagner, Jean-Pierre; Perrin, Charles; Gerlinger, Kai; Drogue, Gilles; Renard, Benjamin

2016-04-01

Several projects studied the impact of climate change on the Rhine basin during the past years, using the CMIP3 projections (see Explore2070, FLOW MS, RheinBlick2050 or VULNAR), either on the French or German sides. These studies showed the likely decrease of low flows and a high uncertainty regarding the evolution of high flows. This may have tremendous impacts on several aspects related to discharge, including pollution, flood protection, irrigation, rivers ecosystems and drinking water. While focusing on the same basin (or part of it), many differences including the climate scenarios and models, the hydrological models and the study periods used for these projects make the outcomes of these projects difficult to compare rigorously. Therefore the MOSARH21 (stands for MOselle-SArre-RHine discharge in the 21st century) was built to update and homogenise discharge projections for the French tributaries of the Rhine basin. Two types of models were used: the physically-oriented LARSIM model, which is widely used in Germany and was used in one of the previous projects (FLOW MS), and the semi-distributed conceptual GRSD model tested on French catchments for various objectives. Through the use of these two hydrological models and multiple sets of parameters obtained by various calibrations runs, the structural and parametric uncertainties in the hydrological projections were quantified, as they tend to be neglected in climate change impact studies. The focus of the impact analysis is put on low flows, high flows and regime. Although this study considers only French tributaries of the Rhine, it will foster further cooperation on transboundary basins across Europe, and should contribute to propose better bases for the future definition of adaptation strategies between riverine countries.

Integrating Field-Centered, Project Based Activities with Academic Year Coursework: A Curriculum Wide Approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kelso, P. R.; Brown, L. M.

2015-12-01

Based upon constructivist principles and the recognition that many students are motivated by hands-on activities and field experiences, we designed a new undergraduate curriculum at Lake Superior State University. One of our major goals was to develop stand-alone field projects in most of the academic year courses. Examples of courses impacted include structural geology, geophysics, and geotectonics, Students learn geophysical concepts in the context of near surface field-based geophysical studies while students in structural geology learn about structural processes through outcrop study of fractures, folds and faults. In geotectonics students learn about collisional and rifting processes through on-site field studies of specific geologic provinces. Another goal was to integrate data and samples collected by students in our sophomore level introductory field course along with stand-alone field projects in our clastic systems and sequence stratigraphy courses. Our emphasis on active learning helps students develop a meaningful geoscience knowledge base and complex reasoning skills in authentic contexts. We simulate the activities of practicing geoscientists by engaging students in all aspects of a project, for example: field-oriented project planning and design; acquiring, analyzing, and interpreting data; incorporating supplemental material and background data; and preparing oral and written project reports. We find through anecdotal evidence including student comments and personal observation that the projects stimulate interest, provide motivation for learning new concepts, integrate skill and concept acquisition vertically through the curriculum, apply concepts from multiple geoscience subdisiplines, and develop soft skills such as team work, problem solving, critical thinking and communication skills. Through this projected-centered Lake Superior State University geology curriculum students practice our motto of "learn geology by doing geology."

The impacts of climate, land use, and demography on fires during the 21st century simulated by CLM-CN

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kloster, S.; Mahowald, N. M.; Randerson, J. T.; Lawrence, P. J.

2012-01-01

Landscape fires during the 21st century are expected to change in response to multiple agents of global change. Important controlling factors include climate controls on the length and intensity of the fire season, fuel availability, and fire management, which are already anthropogenically perturbed today and are predicted to change further in the future. An improved understanding of future fires will contribute to an improved ability to project future anthropogenic climate change, as changes in fire activity will in turn impact climate. In the present study we used a coupled-carbon-fire model to investigate how changes in climate, demography, and land use may alter fire emissions. We used climate projections following the SRES A1B scenario from two different climate models (ECHAM5/MPI-OM and CCSM) and changes in population. Land use and harvest rates were prescribed according to the RCP 45 scenario. In response to the combined effect of all these drivers, our model estimated, depending on our choice of climate projection, an increase in future (2075-2099) fire carbon emissions by 17 and 62% compared to present day (1985-2009). The largest increase in fire emissions was predicted for Southern Hemisphere South America for both climate projections. For Northern Hemisphere Africa, a region that contributed significantly to the global total fire carbon emissions, the response varied between a decrease and an increase depending on the climate projection. We disentangled the contribution of the single forcing factors to the overall response by conducting an additional set of simulations in which each factor was individually held constant at pre-industrial levels. The two different projections of future climate change evaluated in this study led to increases in global fire carbon emissions by 22% (CCSM) and 66% (ECHAM5/MPI-OM). The RCP 45 projection of harvest and land use led to a decrease in fire carbon emissions by -5%. The RCP 26 and RCP 60 harvest and landuse projections caused decreases around -20%. Changes in human ignition led to an increase of 20%. When we also included changes in fire management efforts to suppress fires in densely populated areas, global fire carbon emission decreased by -6% in response to changes in population density. We concluded from this study that changes in fire emissions in the future are controlled by multiple interacting factors. Although changes in climate led to an increase in future fire emissions this could be globally counterbalanced by coupled changes in land use, harvest, and demography.

Evaluation of nurse engagement in evidence-based practice.

PubMed

Davidson, Judy E; Brown, Caroline

2014-01-01

The purpose of this project was to explore nurses' willingness to question and change practice. Nurses were invited to report practice improvement opportunities, and participants were supported through the process of a practice change. The project leader engaged to the extent desired by the participant. Meetings proceeded until the participant no longer wished to continue, progress was blocked, or practice was changed. Evaluation of the evidence-based practice change process occurred. Fifteen nurses reported 23 practice improvement opportunities. The majority (12 of 15) preferred to have the project leader review the evidence. Fourteen projects changed practice; 4 were presented at conferences. Multiple barriers were identified throughout the process and included loss of momentum, the proposed change involved other disciplines, and low level or controversial evidence. Practice issues were linked to quality metrics, cost of care, patient satisfaction, regulatory compliance, and patient safety. Active engagement by nurse leaders was needed for a practice change to occur. Participants identified important problems previously unknown to hospital administrators. The majority of nurses preferred involvement in practice change based on clinical problem solving when supported by others to provide literature review and manage the process through committees. Recommendations include supporting a culture that encourages employees to report practice improvement opportunities and provide resources to assist in navigating the identified practice change.

A General Algorithm for Reusing Krylov Subspace Information. I. Unsteady Navier-Stokes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Carpenter, Mark H.; Vuik, C.; Lucas, Peter; vanGijzen, Martin; Bijl, Hester

2010-01-01

A general algorithm is developed that reuses available information to accelerate the iterative convergence of linear systems with multiple right-hand sides A x = b (sup i), which are commonly encountered in steady or unsteady simulations of nonlinear equations. The algorithm is based on the classical GMRES algorithm with eigenvector enrichment but also includes a Galerkin projection preprocessing step and several novel Krylov subspace reuse strategies. The new approach is applied to a set of test problems, including an unsteady turbulent airfoil, and is shown in some cases to provide significant improvement in computational efficiency relative to baseline approaches.

Quantifying VOC emissions from polymers: A case study

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

Schulze, J.K.; Qasem, J.S.; Snoddy, R.

1996-12-31

Evaluating residual volatile organic compound emissions emanating from low-density polyethylene can pose significant challenges. These challenges include quantifying emissions from: (a) multiple process lines with different operating conditions; (b) several different comonomers; (c) variations of comonomer content in each grade; and (d) over 120 grades of LDPE. This presentation is a Case Study outlining a project to develop grade-specific emission data for low-density polyethylene pellets. This study included extensive laboratory analyses and required the development of a relational database to compile analytical results, calculate the mean concentration and standard deviation, and generate emissions reports.

A nursing association's leadership in primary health care: policy, projects, and partnerships in the 1990s.

PubMed

Whyte, N; Stone, S

2000-06-01

This paper documents the work of one provincial nursing association, the Registered Nurses Association of British Columbia (RNABC), to promote primary health care (PHC) as the foundation of the health-care system. In 1990 the RNABC embarked on a comprehensive policy program to influence change from a nursing perspective. A wide array of strategies was used over a 10-year period to help make PHC a reality in British Columbia's health-care system. Successful strategies used during this period included: writing and distributing policy papers, conducting and evaluating demonstration projects, and developing partnerships with other groups. Some of the projects and their outcomes are highlighted, followed by a critical reflection on lessons learned through the various initiatives. Although remarkable achievements were made from the RNABC's policy work during the 1990s, the advancement of PHC requires further collaborative efforts using multiple strategies.

Global Disease Detection-Achievements in Applied Public Health Research, Capacity Building, and Public Health Diplomacy, 2001-2016.

PubMed

Rao, Carol Y; Goryoka, Grace W; Henao, Olga L; Clarke, Kevin R; Salyer, Stephanie J; Montgomery, Joel M

2017-11-01

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has established 10 Global Disease Detection (GDD) Program regional centers around the world that serve as centers of excellence for public health research on emerging and reemerging infectious diseases. The core activities of the GDD Program focus on applied public health research, surveillance, laboratory, public health informatics, and technical capacity building. During 2015-2016, program staff conducted 205 discrete projects on a range of topics, including acute respiratory illnesses, health systems strengthening, infectious diseases at the human-animal interface, and emerging infectious diseases. Projects incorporated multiple core activities, with technical capacity building being most prevalent. Collaborating with host countries to implement such projects promotes public health diplomacy. The GDD Program continues to work with countries to strengthen core capacities so that emerging diseases can be detected and stopped faster and closer to the source, thereby enhancing global health security.

The Effect of Stereoscopic ("3D") vs. 2D Presentation on Learning through Video and Film

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Price, Aaron; Kasal, E.

2014-01-01

Two Eyes, 3D is a NSF-funded research project into the effects of stereoscopy on learning of highly spatial concepts. We report final results on one study of the project which tested the effect of stereoscopic presentation on learning outcomes of two short films about Type 1a supernovae and the morphology of the Milky Way. 986 adults watched either film, randomly distributed between stereoscopic and 2D presentation. They took a pre-test and post-test that included multiple choice and drawing tasks related to the spatial nature of the topics in the film. Orientation of the answering device was also tracked and a spatial cognition pre-test was given to control for prior spatial ability. Data collection took place at the Adler Planetarium's Space Visualization Lab and the project is run through the AAVSO.

Assessing agricultural risks of climate change in the 21st century in a global gridded crop model intercomparison

PubMed Central

Rosenzweig, Cynthia; Elliott, Joshua; Deryng, Delphine; Ruane, Alex C.; Müller, Christoph; Arneth, Almut; Boote, Kenneth J.; Folberth, Christian; Glotter, Michael; Khabarov, Nikolay; Neumann, Kathleen; Piontek, Franziska; Pugh, Thomas A. M.; Schmid, Erwin; Stehfest, Elke; Yang, Hong; Jones, James W.

2014-01-01

Here we present the results from an intercomparison of multiple global gridded crop models (GGCMs) within the framework of the Agricultural Model Intercomparison and Improvement Project and the Inter-Sectoral Impacts Model Intercomparison Project. Results indicate strong negative effects of climate change, especially at higher levels of warming and at low latitudes; models that include explicit nitrogen stress project more severe impacts. Across seven GGCMs, five global climate models, and four representative concentration pathways, model agreement on direction of yield changes is found in many major agricultural regions at both low and high latitudes; however, reducing uncertainty in sign of response in mid-latitude regions remains a challenge. Uncertainties related to the representation of carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and high temperature effects demonstrated here show that further research is urgently needed to better understand effects of climate change on agricultural production and to devise targeted adaptation strategies. PMID:24344314

Assessing Agricultural Risks of Climate Change in the 21st Century in a Global Gridded Crop Model Intercomparison

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rosenzweig, Cynthia E.; Elliott, Joshua; Deryng, Delphine; Ruane, Alex C.; Mueller, Christoph; Arneth, Almut; Boote, Kenneth J.; Folberth, Christian; Glotter, Michael; Khabarov, Nikolay

2014-01-01

Here we present the results from an intercomparison of multiple global gridded crop models (GGCMs) within the framework of the Agricultural Model Intercomparison and Improvement Project and the Inter-Sectoral Impacts Model Intercomparison Project. Results indicate strong negative effects of climate change, especially at higher levels of warming and at low latitudes; models that include explicit nitrogen stress project more severe impacts. Across seven GGCMs, five global climate models, and four representative concentration pathways, model agreement on direction of yield changes is found in many major agricultural regions at both low and high latitudes; however, reducing uncertainty in sign of response in mid-latitude regions remains a challenge. Uncertainties related to the representation of carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and high temperature effects demonstrated here show that further research is urgently needed to better understand effects of climate change on agricultural production and to devise targeted adaptation strategies.

EOS: A project to investigate the design and construction of real-time distributed embedded operating systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Campbell, R. H.; Essick, R. B.; Grass, J.; Johnston, G.; Kenny, K.; Russo, V.

1986-01-01

The EOS project is investigating the design and construction of a family of real-time distributed embedded operating systems for reliable, distributed aerospace applications. Using the real-time programming techniques developed in co-operation with NASA in earlier research, the project staff is building a kernel for a multiple processor networked system. The first six months of the grant included a study of scheduling in an object-oriented system, the design philosophy of the kernel, and the architectural overview of the operating system. In this report, the operating system and kernel concepts are described. An environment for the experiments has been built and several of the key concepts of the system have been prototyped. The kernel and operating system is intended to support future experimental studies in multiprocessing, load-balancing, routing, software fault-tolerance, distributed data base design, and real-time processing.

Floristic Quality Index: An assessment tool for restoration projects and monitoring sites in coastal Louisiana

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cretini, K.F.; Steyer, G.D.

2011-01-01

The Coastwide Reference Monitoring System (CRMS) program was established to assess the effectiveness of individual coastal restoration projects and the cumulative effects of multiple projects at regional and coastwide scales. In order to make these assessments, analytical teams have been assembled for each of the primary data types sampled under the CRMS program, including vegetation, hydrology, landscape, and soils. These teams consist of scientists and support staff from the U.S. Geological Survey and other Federal agencies, the Louisiana Office of Coastal Protection and Restoration, and university academics. Each team is responsible for developing or identifying parameters, indices, or tools that can be used to assess coastal wetlands at various scales. The CRMS Vegetation Analytical Team has developed a Floristic Quality Index for coastal Louisiana to determine the quality of a wetland based on its plant species composition and abundance.

The Chinese Cretaceous Continental Scientific Drilling Project in the Songliao Basin, NE China: Organic-rich source rock evaluation with geophysical logs from Borehole SK-2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, X.; Zou, C.

2017-12-01

The Cretaceous strata have been recognized as an important target of oil or gas exploration in the Songliao Basin, northeast China. The second borehole (SK-2) of the Chinese Cretaceous Continental Scientific Drilling Project in the Songliao Basin (CCSD-SK) is the first one to drill through the Cretaceous continental strata in the frame of ICDP. It was designed not only to solve multiple scientific problems (including the Cretaceous paleoenvironment and paleoclimate, as well as deep resources exploration of the Songliao Basin), but also to expect to achieve new breakthroughs in oil and gas exploration. Based on the project, various geophysical log data (including gamma, sonic, resistivity, density etc.) and core samples have been collected from Borehole SK-2. We do research on organic-rich source rocks estimation using various geophysical log data. Firstly, we comprehensively analyzed organic-rich source rocks' geophysical log response characteristics. Then, source rock's identification methods were constructed to identify organic-rich source rocks with geophysical logs. The main identification methods include cross-plot, multiple overlap and Decision Tree method. Finally, the technique and the CARBOLOG method were applied to evaluate total organic carbon (TOC) content from geophysical logs which provide continuous vertical profile estimations (Passey, 1990; Carpentier et al., 1991). The results show that source rocks are widely distributed in Borehole SK-2, over a large depth strata (985 5700m), including Nenjiang, Qingshankou, Denglouku, Yingcheng, Shahezi Formations. The organic-rich source rocks with higher TOC content occur in the Qingshankou (1647 1650m), Denglouku (2534 2887m) and Shahezi (3367 5697m) Formations. The highest TOC content in these formations can reach 10.31%, 6.58%, 12.79% respectively. The bed thickness of organic-rich source rocks in the these formations are totally up to 7.88m, 74.34m, 276.60m respectively. These organic-rich rocks in the Qingshankou, Denglouku and Shahezi Formations can be considered as excellent source rocks in the Songliao Basin, which are beneficial for oil or gas accumulation. This work was supported by the CCSD-SK of China Geological Survey (No. 12120113017600) and the National Natural Science Foundation Project (grant No.41274185).

Precision bone and muscle loss measurements by advanced, multiple projection DEXA (AMPDXA) techniques for spaceflight applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Charles, H. K. Jr; Beck, T. J.; Feldmesser, H. S.; Magee, T. C.; Spisz, T. S.; Pisacane, V. L.

2001-01-01

An advanced, multiple projection, dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (AMPDXA) scanner system is under development. The AMPDXA is designed to make precision bone and muscle loss measurements necessary to determine the deleterious effects of microgravity on astronauts as well as develop countermeasures to stem their bone and muscle loss. To date, a full size test system has been developed to verify principles and the results of computer simulations. Results indicate that accurate predictions of bone mechanical properties can be determined from as few as three projections, while more projections are needed for a complete, three-dimensional reconstruction. c 2001. Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Development of Production-Intent Plug-In Hybrid Vehicle Using Advanced Lithium-Ion Battery Packs with Deployment to a Demonstration Fleet

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

No, author

2013-09-29

The primary goal of this project was to speed the development of one of the first commercially available, OEM-produced plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV). The performance of the PHEV was expected to double the fuel economy of the conventional hybrid version. This vehicle program incorporated a number of advanced technologies, including advanced lithium-ion battery packs and an E85-capable flex-fuel engine. The project developed, fully integrated, and validated plug-in specific systems and controls by using GM’s Global Vehicle Development Process (GVDP) for production vehicles. Engineering Development related activities included the build of mule vehicles and integration vehicles for Phases I &more » II of the project. Performance data for these vehicles was shared with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). The deployment of many of these vehicles was restricted to internal use at GM sites or restricted to assigned GM drivers. Phase III of the project captured the first half or Alpha phase of the Engineering tasks for the development of a new thermal management design for a second generation battery module. The project spanned five years. It included six on-site technical reviews with representatives from the DOE. One unique aspect of the GM/DOE collaborative project was the involvement of the DOE throughout the OEM vehicle development process. The DOE gained an understanding of how an OEM develops vehicle efficiency and FE performance, while balancing many other vehicle performance attributes to provide customers well balanced and fuel efficient vehicles that are exciting to drive. Many vehicle content and performance trade-offs were encountered throughout the vehicle development process to achieve product cost and performance targets for both the OEM and end customer. The project team completed two sets of PHEV development vehicles with fully integrated PHEV systems. Over 50 development vehicles were built and operated for over 180,000 development miles. The team also completed four GM engineering development Buy-Off rides/milestones. The project included numerous engineering vehicle and systems development trips including extreme hot, cold and altitude exposure. The final fuel economy performance demonstrated met the objectives of the PHEV collaborative GM/DOE project. Charge depletion fuel economy of twice that of the non-PHEV model was demonstrated. The project team also designed, developed and tested a high voltage battery module concept that appears to be feasible from a manufacturability, cost and performance standpoint. The project provided important product development and knowledge as well as technological learnings and advancements that include multiple U.S. patent applications.« less

Weighting climate model projections using observational constraints.

PubMed

Gillett, Nathan P

2015-11-13

Projected climate change integrates the net response to multiple climate feedbacks. Whereas existing long-term climate change projections are typically based on unweighted individual climate model simulations, as observed climate change intensifies it is increasingly becoming possible to constrain the net response to feedbacks and hence projected warming directly from observed climate change. One approach scales simulated future warming based on a fit to observations over the historical period, but this approach is only accurate for near-term projections and for scenarios of continuously increasing radiative forcing. For this reason, the recent Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC AR5) included such observationally constrained projections in its assessment of warming to 2035, but used raw model projections of longer term warming to 2100. Here a simple approach to weighting model projections based on an observational constraint is proposed which does not assume a linear relationship between past and future changes. This approach is used to weight model projections of warming in 2081-2100 relative to 1986-2005 under the Representative Concentration Pathway 4.5 forcing scenario, based on an observationally constrained estimate of the Transient Climate Response derived from a detection and attribution analysis. The resulting observationally constrained 5-95% warming range of 0.8-2.5 K is somewhat lower than the unweighted range of 1.1-2.6 K reported in the IPCC AR5. © 2015 The Authors.

Finding Multiple Internal Rates of Return for a Project with Non-Conventional Cash Flows: Utilizing Popular Financial/Graphing Calculators and Spreadsheet Software

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chen, Jeng-Hong

2008-01-01

This study demonstrates that a popular graphing calculator among students, TI-83 Plus, has a powerful function to draw the NPV profile and find the accurate multiple IRRs for a project with non-conventional cash flows. However, finance textbooks or related supplementary materials do not provide students instructions for this part. The detailed…

Strategies pedagogiques dans les classes a niveaux multiples du nord de l'Ontario--Un compte rendu (Teaching Strategies for Multigraded Classes in Northern Ontario: An Account).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lataille-Demore, Diane

2003-01-01

A training and teaching tools development project aims to help multigrade classroom teachers in remote areas of Ontario. The project presents multiple instructional strategies, such as collaborative learning, differentiated teaching, and subject integration. Sixty teaching activities, created and tested by teachers, are contained on a CD that will…

Elucidating empowerment in El Proyecto Bienestar (the Well-Being Project).

PubMed

Postma, Julie

2008-05-01

This paper describes differences in how socioculturally diverse participants in one community-based participatory research project negotiated 'empowerment', and the implications of those differences for nurses involved in farmworker health and safety efforts. Internationally, empowerment and community participation are increasingly being used as strategies to reduce health disparities. Theories of empowerment vary in the academic literature and their connotations vary across cultures. Study participants were part of El Proyecto Bienestar, a community-based participatory research (CBPR) project whose aim was to identify and respond to occupational and environmental health threats in one Mexican-American farmworker community in the United States of America. Participant observation was used to audiorecord 18 participants in the third year (2006) of this 4-year project discussing future project activities. Discourse analysis was used to analyse the transcripts. While participants agreed that 'empowerment' was central to the project, they had different perspectives on what the term meant and the role that the project should play in empowering the farmworker community. Empowerment discourses positioned the project in three ways: (1) as an instrument used to strengthen farmworkers' collective political voice, (2) as an instrument used to represent multiple community interests and (3) as an instrument used to advocate on behalf of farmworkers. Individuals used multiple discourses signifying the complexity in participants' roles and obligations. Balancing power and developing knowledge collaboratively requires understanding multiple approaches to empowerment. Community empowerment as an outcome should not come at the expense of individual empowerment as part of the CBPR process.

Projecting cumulative benefits of multiple river restoration projects: an example from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River system in California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kondolf, G. Mathias; Angermeier, Paul L.; Cummins, Kenneth; Dunne, Thomas; Healey, Michael; Kimmerer, Wim; Moyle, Peter B.; Murphy, Dennis; Patten, Duncan; Railsback, Steve F.; Reed, Denise J.; Spies, Robert B.; Twiss, Robert

2008-01-01

Despite increasingly large investments, the potential ecological effects of river restoration programs are still small compared to the degree of human alterations to physical and ecological function. Thus, it is rarely possible to “restore” pre-disturbance conditions; rather restoration programs (even large, well-funded ones) will nearly always involve multiple small projects, each of which can make some modest change to selected ecosystem processes and habitats. At present, such projects are typically selected based on their attributes as individual projects (e.g., consistency with programmatic goals of the funders, scientific soundness, and acceptance by local communities), and ease of implementation. Projects are rarely prioritized (at least explicitly) based on how they will cumulatively affect ecosystem function over coming decades. Such projections require an understanding of the form of the restoration response curve, or at least that we assume some plausible relations and estimate cumulative effects based thereon. Drawing on our experience with the CALFED Bay-Delta Ecosystem Restoration Program in California, we consider potential cumulative system-wide benefits of a restoration activity extensively implemented in the region: isolating/filling abandoned floodplain gravel pits captured by rivers to reduce predation of outmigrating juvenile salmon by exotic warmwater species inhabiting the pits. We present a simple spreadsheet model to show how different assumptions about gravel pit bathymetry and predator behavior would affect the cumulative benefits of multiple pit-filling and isolation projects, and how these insights could help managers prioritize which pits to fill.

Adaptation to Climate Change: A Comparative Analysis of Modeling Methods for Heat-Related Mortality

PubMed Central

Hondula, David M.; Bunker, Aditi; Ibarreta, Dolores; Liu, Junguo; Zhang, Xinxin; Sauerborn, Rainer

2017-01-01

Background: Multiple methods are employed for modeling adaptation when projecting the impact of climate change on heat-related mortality. The sensitivity of impacts to each is unknown because they have never been systematically compared. In addition, little is known about the relative sensitivity of impacts to “adaptation uncertainty” (i.e., the inclusion/exclusion of adaptation modeling) relative to using multiple climate models and emissions scenarios. Objectives: This study had three aims: a) Compare the range in projected impacts that arises from using different adaptation modeling methods; b) compare the range in impacts that arises from adaptation uncertainty with ranges from using multiple climate models and emissions scenarios; c) recommend modeling method(s) to use in future impact assessments. Methods: We estimated impacts for 2070–2099 for 14 European cities, applying six different methods for modeling adaptation; we also estimated impacts with five climate models run under two emissions scenarios to explore the relative effects of climate modeling and emissions uncertainty. Results: The range of the difference (percent) in impacts between including and excluding adaptation, irrespective of climate modeling and emissions uncertainty, can be as low as 28% with one method and up to 103% with another (mean across 14 cities). In 13 of 14 cities, the ranges in projected impacts due to adaptation uncertainty are larger than those associated with climate modeling and emissions uncertainty. Conclusions: Researchers should carefully consider how to model adaptation because it is a source of uncertainty that can be greater than the uncertainty in emissions and climate modeling. We recommend absolute threshold shifts and reductions in slope. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP634 PMID:28885979

Supporting Information Linking and Discovery Across Organizations Using the VIVO Semantic Web Software Suite

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mayernik, M. S.; Daniels, M. D.; Maull, K. E.; Khan, H.; Krafft, D. B.; Gross, M. B.; Rowan, L. R.

2016-12-01

Geosciences research is often conducted using distributed networks of researchers and resources. To better enable the discovery of the research output from the scientists and resources used within these organizations, UCAR, Cornell University, and UNAVCO are collaborating on the EarthCollab (http://earthcube.org/group/earthcollab) project which seeks to leverage semantic technologies to manage and link scientific data. As part of this effort, we have been exploring how to leverage information distributed across multiple research organizations. EarthCollab is using the VIVO semantic software suite to lookup and display Semantic Web information across our project partners.Our presentation will include a demonstration of linking between VIVO instances, discussing how to create linkages between entities in different VIVO instances where both entities describe the same person or resource. This discussion will explore how we designate the equivalence of these entities using "same as" assertions between identifiers representing these entities including URIs and ORCID IDs and how we have extended the base VIVO architecture to support the lookup of which entities in separate VIVO instances may be equivalent and to then display information from external linked entities. We will also discuss how these extensions can support other linked data lookups and sources of information.This VIVO cross-linking mechanism helps bring information from multiple VIVO instances together and helps users in navigating information spread-out between multiple VIVO instances. Challenges and open questions for this approach relate to how to display the information obtained from an external VIVO instance, both in order to preserve the brands of the internal and external systems and to handle discrepancies between ontologies, content, and/or VIVO versions.

Understanding developmental language disorder - the Helsinki longitudinal SLI study (HelSLI): a study protocol.

PubMed

Laasonen, Marja; Smolander, Sini; Lahti-Nuuttila, Pekka; Leminen, Miika; Lajunen, Hanna-Reetta; Heinonen, Kati; Pesonen, Anu-Katriina; Bailey, Todd M; Pothos, Emmanuel M; Kujala, Teija; Leppänen, Paavo H T; Bartlett, Christopher W; Geneid, Ahmed; Lauronen, Leena; Service, Elisabet; Kunnari, Sari; Arkkila, Eva

2018-05-21

Developmental language disorder (DLD, also called specific language impairment, SLI) is a common developmental disorder comprising the largest disability group in pre-school-aged children. Approximately 7% of the population is expected to have developmental language difficulties. However, the specific etiological factors leading to DLD are not yet known and even the typical linguistic features appear to vary by language. We present here a project that investigates DLD at multiple levels of analysis and aims to make the reliable prediction and early identification of the difficulties possible. Following the multiple deficit model of developmental disorders, we investigate the DLD phenomenon at the etiological, neural, cognitive, behavioral, and psychosocial levels, in a longitudinal study of preschool children. In January 2013, we launched the Helsinki Longitudinal SLI study (HelSLI) at the Helsinki University Hospital ( http://tiny.cc/HelSLI ). We will study 227 children aged 3-6 years with suspected DLD and their 160 typically developing peers. Five subprojects will determine how the child's psychological characteristics and environment correlate with DLD and how the child's well-being relates to DLD, the characteristics of DLD in monolingual versus bilingual children, nonlinguistic cognitive correlates of DLD, electrophysiological underpinnings of DLD, and the role of genetic risk factors. Methods include saliva samples, EEG, computerized cognitive tasks, neuropsychological and speech and language assessments, video-observations, and questionnaires. The project aims to increase our understanding of the multiple interactive risk and protective factors that affect the developing heterogeneous cognitive and behavioral profile of DLD, including factors affecting literacy development. This accumulated knowledge will form a heuristic basis for the development of new interventions targeting linguistic and non-linguistic aspects of DLD.

Ecological Functions of Off-Channel Habitats of the Willamette River, Oregon, Database and Documentation (1997-2001)

EPA Science Inventory

The database from the Ecological Functions of Off-Channel Habitats of the Willamette River, Oregon project (OCH Project) contains data collected from 1997 through 2001 from multiple research areas of the project, and project documents such as the OCH Research Plan, Quality Assura...

The problem with multiple robots

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Huber, Marcus J.; Kenny, Patrick G.

1994-01-01

The issues that can arise in research associated with multiple, robotic agents are discussed. Two particular multi-robot projects are presented as examples. This paper was written in the hope that it might ease the transition from single to multiple robot research.

The Pacific Coast Fog Project: A Multi-disciplinary Effort to Provide Web-based Climate Products for Ecologists

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Torregrosa, A.; Combs, C.; Ellrod, G. P.; Faloona, I. C.; Gultepe, I.

2012-12-01

The Pacific Coast Fog Project is an effort to pool the expertise from multiple science disciplines to provide regional and local climate information on the frequency and character of fog for effective management of coastal California natural resources. Marine stratocumulus (fog) is a major modifier of the climatic condition along the Pacific coast and has significant effects on the hydrologic cycle and thermodynamic balance in coastal ecological, biological, and economic systems. For example fog is the major source of moisture during summer months for redwood forests, a treasured natural resource. Fog also modulates shallow stream temperatures to reduce the mortality rate of young salmon during their freshwater life stages and adults returning from the ocean to spawn. Fog induced cooling reduces summer energy costs along the Pacific Coast and reduces sun burn on crops such as grapes that are important to the local economy. Furthermore, disruptions in fog distribution or frequency resulting from future climate change would change evapotranspiration rates impacting California water supply and use. Coastal fog is a complex phenomenon with many measurable parameters including extent, frequency, and duration of cloud cover; cloud deck thickness, liquid water content, base height above land, density, heterogeneity, and thermal properties. Variations in fog are a result of processes acting at multiple scales across ocean-land-atmosphere boundaries. Factors that drive the occurrence, duration, and type of fog events along the coast include dynamics of atmospheric summertime inversions, synoptic weather patterns, ocean upwelling, topography, aerosol-cloud dynamics, and differences in temperature between inland valleys and the littoral ocean areas. Estimating the distribution, frequency and characteristics of coastal fog and stratus and evaluating the resulting ecosystem responses require a diverse array of measurements and models that link processes at multiple scales. The project leverages results from existing research projects, such as long-term fog climatology based on surface land and buoy observations ongoing at the University of Washington, and California fog climatology derived from 11 years of Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) data underway at the Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere (CIRA) at Colorado State University in Ft. Collins. There are numerous other collaborators from academia (such as several University of California oceanographic and atmospheric science departments) and government agencies (U. S. Geological Survey, National Weather Service, NASA, and Environment Canada). During the summer of 2012, a pilot project deployed sensors on loan from Environment Canada to augment existing instruments at Bodega Bay, California and Pepperwood Preserve in Sonoma County to gather important data sets on mesoscale and microphysical variables including liquid water content, surface wind, visibility, temperature, and boundary layer height that will be used to better describe the characteristics of coastal fog. Sample transects for significant fog events along with examples of antecedent synoptic weather conditions and mockups of possible graphic products for end users will be shown.

The NASA Carbon Monitoring System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hurtt, G. C.

2015-12-01

Greenhouse gas emission inventories, forest carbon sequestration programs (e.g., Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD and REDD+), cap-and-trade systems, self-reporting programs, and their associated monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) frameworks depend upon data that are accurate, systematic, practical, and transparent. A sustained, observationally-driven carbon monitoring system using remote sensing data has the potential to significantly improve the relevant carbon cycle information base for the U.S. and world. Initiated in 2010, NASA's Carbon Monitoring System (CMS) project is prototyping and conducting pilot studies to evaluate technological approaches and methodologies to meet carbon monitoring and reporting requirements for multiple users and over multiple scales of interest. NASA's approach emphasizes exploitation of the satellite remote sensing resources, computational capabilities, scientific knowledge, airborne science capabilities, and end-to-end system expertise that are major strengths of the NASA Earth Science program. Through user engagement activities, the NASA CMS project is taking specific actions to be responsive to the needs of stakeholders working to improve carbon MRV frameworks. The first phase of NASA CMS projects focused on developing products for U.S. biomass/carbon stocks and global carbon fluxes, and on scoping studies to identify stakeholders and explore other potential carbon products. The second phase built upon these initial efforts, with a large expansion in prototyping activities across a diversity of systems, scales, and regions, including research focused on prototype MRV systems and utilization of COTS technologies. Priorities for the future include: 1) utilizing future satellite sensors, 2) prototyping with commercial off-the-shelf technology, 3) expanding the range of prototyping activities, 4) rigorous evaluation, uncertainty quantification, and error characterization, 5) stakeholder engagement, 6) partnerships with other U.S. agencies and international partners, and 7) modeling and data assimilation.

Integrating Semantic Information in Metadata Descriptions for a Geoscience-wide Resource Inventory.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zaslavsky, I.; Richard, S. M.; Gupta, A.; Valentine, D.; Whitenack, T.; Ozyurt, I. B.; Grethe, J. S.; Schachne, A.

2016-12-01

Integrating semantic information into legacy metadata catalogs is a challenging issue and so far has been mostly done on a limited scale. We present experience of CINERGI (Community Inventory of Earthcube Resources for Geoscience Interoperability), an NSF Earthcube Building Block project, in creating a large cross-disciplinary catalog of geoscience information resources to enable cross-domain discovery. The project developed a pipeline for automatically augmenting resource metadata, in particular generating keywords that describe metadata documents harvested from multiple geoscience information repositories or contributed by geoscientists through various channels including surveys and domain resource inventories. The pipeline examines available metadata descriptions using text parsing, vocabulary management and semantic annotation and graph navigation services of GeoSciGraph. GeoSciGraph, in turn, relies on a large cross-domain ontology of geoscience terms, which bridges several independently developed ontologies or taxonomies including SWEET, ENVO, YAGO, GeoSciML, GCMD, SWO, and CHEBI. The ontology content enables automatic extraction of keywords reflecting science domains, equipment used, geospatial features, measured properties, methods, processes, etc. We specifically focus on issues of cross-domain geoscience ontology creation, resolving several types of semantic conflicts among component ontologies or vocabularies, and constructing and managing facets for improved data discovery and navigation. The ontology and keyword generation rules are iteratively improved as pipeline results are presented to data managers for selective manual curation via a CINERGI Annotator user interface. We present lessons learned from applying CINERGI metadata augmentation pipeline to a number of federal agency and academic data registries, in the context of several use cases that require data discovery and integration across multiple earth science data catalogs of varying quality and completeness. The inventory is accessible at http://cinergi.sdsc.edu, and the CINERGI project web page is http://earthcube.org/group/cinergi

Implementing multiple intervention strategies in Dutch public health-related policy networks.

PubMed

Harting, Janneke; Peters, Dorothee; Grêaux, Kimberly; van Assema, Patricia; Verweij, Stefan; Stronks, Karien; Klijn, Erik-Hans

2017-10-13

Improving public health requires multiple intervention strategies. Implementing such an intervention mix is supposed to require a multisectoral policy network. As evidence to support this assumption is scarce, we examined under which conditions public health-related policy networks were able to implement an intervention mix. Data were collected (2009-14) from 29 Dutch public health policy networks. Surveys were used to identify the number of policy sectors, participation of actors, level of trust, networking by the project leader, and intervention strategies implemented. Conditions sufficient for an intervention mix (≥3 of 4 non-educational strategies present) were determined in a fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis. A multisectoral policy network (≥7 of 14 sectors present) was neither a necessary nor a sufficient condition. In multisectoral networks, additionally required was either the active participation of network actors (≥50% actively involved) or active networking by the project leader (≥monthly contacts with network actors). In policy networks that included few sectors, a high level of trust (positive perceptions of each other's intentions) was needed-in the absence though of any of the other conditions. If the network actors were also actively involved, an extra requirement was active networking by the project leader. We conclude that the multisectoral composition of policy networks can contribute to the implementation of a variety of intervention strategies, but not without additional efforts. However, policy networks that include only few sectors are also able to implement an intervention mix. Here, trust seems to be the most important condition. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Making Knowledge from Numbers : The Shale Network as an Honest Broker for Evaluating and Educating about the Impacts of Hydraulic Fracturing in the Marcellus Shale Region

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pollak, J.; Brantley, S.; Williams, J.; Dykhoff, S.; Brazil, L. I.

2015-12-01

The Marcellus Shale Network is an NSF-funded project that investigates the impacts of hydraulic fracturing for shale gas development on water resources in and around the state of Pennsylvania. It is a collaborative effort that aims to be an honest broker in the shale gas conversation by involving multiple entities (including universities, government agencies, industry groups, nonprofits, etc.) to collect, analyze, and disseminate data that describe the past and current conditions of water in the Marcellus shale region. A critical component of this project has been to engage multiple types of stakeholders - academia, government agencies, industry, and citizen science groups - in annual workshops to present and discuss how to ensure the integrity of water resources in light of the challenges that natural gas extraction can present. Each workshop has included a hands-on activity that allows participants to access water quality data using the tools provided by the CUAHSI Water Data Center. One of these tools is HydroDesktop, which is an open source GIS application that can be used in formal and informal education settings as a geoscience research tool. In addition to being a GIS, HydroDesktop accesses CUAHSI's large catalog of water data thus enabling students, professional researchers, and citizen scientists to discover data that can expand the understanding of water quality issues in one's local environment and beyond. This presentation will highlight the goals of the Shale Network project and the stakeholders involved in addition to how cyberinfrastructure is being used to create a democratic, data-driven conversation about the relationship between energy production from shale gas and our water resources.

The COMPASS Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Duley, A. R.; Sullivan, D.; Fladeland, M. M.; Myers, J.; Craig, M.; Enomoto, F.; Van Gilst, D. P.; Johan, S.

2011-12-01

The Common Operations and Management Portal for Airborne Science Systems (COMPASS) project is a multi-center collaborative effort to advance and extend the research capabilities of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Airborne Science Program (ASP). At its most basic, COMPASS provides tools for visualizing the position of aircraft and instrument observations during the course of a mission, and facilitates dissemination, discussion, and analysis and of multiple disparate data sources in order to more efficiently plan and execute airborne science missions. COMPASS targets a number of key objectives. First, deliver a common operating picture for improved shared situational awareness to all participants in NASA's Airborne Science missions. These participants include scientists, engineers, managers, and the general public. Second, encourage more responsive and collaborative measurements between instruments on multiple aircraft, satellites, and on the surface in order to increase the scientific value of these measurements. Fourth, provide flexible entry points for data providers to supply model and advanced analysis products to mission team members. Fifth, provide data consumers with a mechanism to ingest, search and display data products. Finally, embrace an open and transparent platform where common data products, services, and end user components can be shared with the broader scientific community. In pursuit of these objectives, and in concert with requirements solicited by the airborne science research community, the COMPASS project team has delivered a suite of core tools intended to represent the next generation toolset for airborne research. This toolset includes a collection of loosely coupled RESTful web-services, a system to curate, register, and search, commonly used data sources, end-user tools which leverage web socket and other next generation HTML5 technologies to aid real time aircraft position and data visualization, and an extensible a framework to rapidly accommodate mission specific requirements and mission tools.

Strategic Energy Planning (Area 1) Consultants Reports to Citizen Potawatomi Nation Federally Recognized Indian Tribe

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

Smith, Marvin; Bose, James; Beier, Richard

2004-12-01

The assets that Citizen Potawatomi Nation holds were evaluated to help define the strengths and weaknesses to be used in pursuing economic prosperity. With this baseline assessment, a Planning Team will create a vision for the tribe to integrate into long-term energy and business strategies. Identification of energy efficiency devices, systems and technologies was made, and an estimation of cost benefits of the more promising ideas is submitted for possible inclusion into the final energy plan. Multiple energy resources and sources were identified and their attributes were assessed to determine the appropriateness of each. Methods of saving energy were evaluatedmore » and reported on and potential revenue-generating sources that specifically fit the tribe were identified and reported. A primary goal is to create long-term energy strategies to explore development of tribal utility options and analyze renewable energy and energy efficiency options. Associated goals are to consider exploring energy efficiency and renewable economic development projects involving the following topics: (1) Home-scale projects may include construction of a home with energy efficiency or renewable energy features and retrofitting an existing home to add energy efficiency or renewable energy features. (2) Community-scale projects may include medium to large scale energy efficiency building construction, retrofit project, or installation of community renewable energy systems. (3) Small business development may include the creation of a tribal enterprise that would manufacture and distribute solar and wind powered equipment for ranches and farms or create a contracting business to include energy efficiency and renewable retrofits such as geothermal heat pumps. (4) Commercial-scale energy projects may include at a larger scale, the formation of a tribal utility formed to sell power to the commercial grid, or to transmit and distribute power throughout the tribal community, or hydrogen production, and propane and natural-gas distribution systems.« less

A mathematical model approach toward combining information from multiple image projections of the same patient

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chawla, Amarpreet S.; Samei, Ehsan; Abbey, Craig

2007-03-01

In this study, we used a mathematical observer model to combine information obtained from multiple angular projections of the same breast to determine the overall detection performance of a multi-projection breast imaging system in detectability of a simulated mass. 82 subjects participated in the study and 25 angular projections of each breast were acquired. Projections from a simulated 3 mm 3-D lesion were added to the projection images. The lesion was assumed to be embedded in the compressed breast at a distance of 3 cm from the detector. Hotelling observer with Laguerre-Gauss channels (LG CHO) was applied to each image. Detectability was analyzed in terms of ROC curves and the area under ROC curves (AUC). The critical question studied is how to best integrate the individual decision variables across multiple (correlated) views. Towards that end, three different methods were investigated. Specifically, 1) ROCs from different projections were simply averaged; 2) the test statistics from different projections were averaged; and 3) a Bayesian decision fusion rule was used. Finally, AUC of the combined ROC was used as a parameter to optimize the acquisition parameters to maximize the performance of the system. It was found that the Bayesian decision fusion technique performs better than the other two techniques and likely offers the best approximation of the diagnostic process. Furthermore, if the total dose level is held constant at 1/25th of dual-view mammographic screening dose, the highest detectability performance is observed when considering only two projections spread along an angular span of 11.4°.

Implementation of an education development project in pathology to improve student competency-lessons learnt.

PubMed

Negi, Gita; Harsh, Meena; Chauhan, Vijendra D; Kalra, Vinita; Agarwal, Pradeep; Kusum, Anuradha

2015-08-01

Basic medical sciences and clinical teachings are not coordinated in the present medical education system. They are not taught keeping in mind the outcomes required at the time of actual handling of patients in the community. An educational development project was implemented in the Department of Pathology with the aim that it will result in the student learning to link the pathophysiology of the disease to clinical scenarios and become fully competent for lifelong medical practice. The pathology teaching of the second professional batch was modified by starting with defining the desired outcomes/competencies in the student's knowledge, skills, and attitude which were then addressed by lectures, demonstrations, practical classes and small group activities where case scenarios and laboratory reports were included. The outcome was assessed by Objectively Structured Clinical/Practical Examination and multiple choice questions. Force field analysis, faculty and student interviews, and questionnaires were used to assess the factors affecting its implementation and impact. Totally 80 students of the 2(nd) Professional MBBS were exposed to a competency-based education development project. It was found that the system was appreciated by faculty and students, especially the integration with clinical scenarios. There were many factors which influenced the execution of this program, including motivation level of students and faculty, time, logistics and meticulous planning. There was a significant improvement in student's performance and satisfaction. Many factors including prior planning were a major determinant for the success of this education development project.

Installation of Multiple Application X-ray Imaging Undulator Microscope (MAXIMUM) at ALS: Final report, 8/15/95-8/15/96

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

NONE

1996-12-31

MAXIMUM is short for Multiple Application X-ray IMaging Undulator Microscope, a project started in 1988 by our group at the Synchrotron Radiation Center of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. It is a scanning x-ray photoemission microscope that uses a multilayer-coated Schwarzschild objective as the focusing element. It was designed primarily for materials science studies of lateral variations in surface chemistry. Suitable problems include: lateral inhomogeneities in Schottky barrier formation, heterojunction formation, patterned samples and devices, insulating samples. Any system which has interesting properties that are not uniform as a function of spatial dimension can potentially be studied with MAXIMUM. 6 figs.,more » 3 tabs.« less

NASA's International Lunar Network Anchor Nodes and Robotic Lunar Lander Project Update

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Morse, Brian J.; Reed, Cheryl L. B.; Kirby, Karen W.; Cohen, Barbara A.; Bassler, Julie A.; Harris, Danny W.; Chavers, D. Gregory

2010-01-01

In early 2008, NASA established the Lunar Quest Program, a new lunar science research program within NASA s Science Mission Directorate. The program included the establishment of the anchor nodes of the International Lunar Network (ILN), a network of lunar science stations envisioned to be emplaced by multiple nations. This paper describes the current status of the ILN Anchor Nodes mission development and the lander risk-reduction design and test activities implemented jointly by NASA s Marshall Space Flight Center and The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory. The lunar lander concepts developed by this team are applicable to multiple science missions, and this paper will describe a mission combining the functionality of an ILN node with an investigation of lunar polar volatiles.

Registration and rectification needs of geology

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chavez, P. S., Jr.

1982-01-01

Geologic applications of remotely sensed imaging encompass five areas of interest. The five areas include: (1) enhancement and analysis of individual images; (2) work with small area mosaics of imagery which have been map projection rectified to individual quadrangles; (3) development of large area mosaics of multiple images for several counties or states; (4) registration of multitemporal images; and (5) data integration from several sensors and map sources. Examples for each of these types of applications are summarized.

Turn Basin Construction

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-06-30

At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, cement is poured as part of a construction project to upgrade the turn basin wharf. The work includes driving multiple precast concrete piles to a depth of about 70 feet to accommodate arrival of the core stage for the agency's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket. When the stage for NASA's SLS departs the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, it will be shipped by the agency's modified barge to the Launch Complex 39 turn basin.

Mosaicked Historic Airborne Imagery from Seward Peninsula, Alaska, Starting in the 1950's

DOE Data Explorer

Cherry, Jessica; Wirth, Lisa

2016-12-06

Historical airborne imagery for each Seward Peninsula NGEE Arctic site - Teller, Kougarok, Council - with multiple years for each site. This dataset includes mosaicked, geolocated and, where possible, orthorectified, historic airborne and recent satellite imagery. The older photos were sourced from USGS's Earth Explorer site and the newer, satellite imagery is from the Statewide Digital Mapping Initiative (SDMI) project managed by the Geographic Information Network of Alaska on behalf of the state of Alaska.

Personal Biometric Information from Wearable Technology Tracked and Followed Using an ePortfolio: A Case Study of eHealth Literacy Development with Emerging Technology in Hong Kong Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Notari, Michele; Sobko, Tanja; Churchill, Daniel

2016-01-01

In this paper we will show our research approach and discuss potential outcomes. The research project started in January 2016. To understand eHealth literacy development in higher education in Hong Kong, the researchers will conduct a multiple case study including 20 students from an undergraduate course. Each of them will use a wearable device…

Close Air Support in a Joint Environment: Disconnect Between the Services and How Can Close Air Support Be Improved

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-04-05

military expecting technology to close the gap between the lack of CAS training and the expected pilot proficiency in multiple roles? To be an... Research Project. Carlisle Barracks: U.S. Army War College, 19 March 2004. McGrath, John. Fire for Effect: Field Artillery and Close Air Support in...including suggestions for reducing this burden to Department of Defense, Washington Headquarters Services, Directorate for Information Operations

Simultaneous multiple view high resolution surface geometry acquisition using structured light and mirrors.

PubMed

Basevi, Hector R A; Guggenheim, James A; Dehghani, Hamid; Styles, Iain B

2013-03-25

Knowledge of the surface geometry of an imaging subject is important in many applications. This information can be obtained via a number of different techniques, including time of flight imaging, photogrammetry, and fringe projection profilometry. Existing systems may have restrictions on instrument geometry, require expensive optics, or require moving parts in order to image the full surface of the subject. An inexpensive generalised fringe projection profilometry system is proposed that can account for arbitrarily placed components and use mirrors to expand the field of view. It simultaneously acquires multiple views of an imaging subject, producing a cloud of points that lie on its surface, which can then be processed to form a three dimensional model. A prototype of this system was integrated into an existing Diffuse Optical Tomography and Bioluminescence Tomography small animal imaging system and used to image objects including a mouse-shaped plastic phantom, a mouse cadaver, and a coin. A surface mesh generated from surface capture data of the mouse-shaped plastic phantom was compared with ideal surface points provided by the phantom manufacturer, and 50% of points were found to lie within 0.1mm of the surface mesh, 82% of points were found to lie within 0.2mm of the surface mesh, and 96% of points were found to lie within 0.4mm of the surface mesh.

Road and Roadside Feature Extraction Using Imagery and LIDAR Data for Transportation Operation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ural, S.; Shan, J.; Romero, M. A.; Tarko, A.

2015-03-01

Transportation agencies require up-to-date, reliable, and feasibly acquired information on road geometry and features within proximity to the roads as input for evaluating and prioritizing new or improvement road projects. The information needed for a robust evaluation of road projects includes road centerline, width, and extent together with the average grade, cross-sections, and obstructions near the travelled way. Remote sensing is equipped with a large collection of data and well-established tools for acquiring the information and extracting aforementioned various road features at various levels and scopes. Even with many remote sensing data and methods available for road extraction, transportation operation requires more than the centerlines. Acquiring information that is spatially coherent at the operational level for the entire road system is challenging and needs multiple data sources to be integrated. In the presented study, we established a framework that used data from multiple sources, including one-foot resolution color infrared orthophotos, airborne LiDAR point clouds, and existing spatially non-accurate ancillary road networks. We were able to extract 90.25% of a total of 23.6 miles of road networks together with estimated road width, average grade along the road, and cross sections at specified intervals. Also, we have extracted buildings and vegetation within a predetermined proximity to the extracted road extent. 90.6% of 107 existing buildings were correctly identified with 31% false detection rate.

Application of stroboscopic and pulsed-laser electronic speckle pattern interferometry (ESPI) to modal analysis problems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Van der Auweraer, H.; Steinbichler, H.; Vanlanduit, S.; Haberstok, C.; Freymann, R.; Storer, D.; Linet, V.

2002-04-01

Accurate structural models are key to the optimization of the vibro-acoustic behaviour of panel-like structures. However, at the frequencies of relevance to the acoustic problem, the structural modes are very complex, requiring high-spatial-resolution measurements. The present paper discusses a vibration testing system based on pulsed-laser holographic electronic speckle pattern interferometry (ESPI) measurements. It is a characteristic of the method that time-triggered (and not time-averaged) vibration images are obtained. Its integration into a practicable modal testing and analysis procedure is reviewed. The accumulation of results at multiple excitation frequencies allows one to build up frequency response functions. A novel parameter extraction approach using spline-based data reduction and maximum-likelihood parameter estimation was developed. Specific extensions have been added in view of the industrial application of the approach. These include the integration of geometry and response information, the integration of multiple views into one single model, the integration with finite-element model data and the prior identification of the critical panels and critical modes. A global procedure was hence established. The approach has been applied to several industrial case studies, including car panels, the firewall of a monovolume car, a full vehicle, panels of a light truck and a household product. The research was conducted in the context of the EUREKA project HOLOMODAL and the Brite-Euram project SALOME.

Perceptions of Constructivist Pedagogy in Project Lead the Way

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Capers, Gesa Maria

In 2016, six of six American Nobel Prize winners in science were immigrants. The numbers of U.S. educated graduates who enter the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields have been on the decline, and policymakers and educators have continually sought new policies and programs to try resolve this problem with long-term solutions. In recent years, several Alabama schools have implemented Project Lead the Way (PLTW), a program that is aimed toward promoting students' interest in STEM. The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore how Alabama's educators perceived the use of constructivist pedagogy in PLTW on student learning behaviors and student interests in science and mathematics. Piaget's developmental theory and Vygotsky's social developmental theory provided the theoretical framework for this study. The data collection procedure for this multiple case study included one-on-one interviews with 23 educators in four Alabama PLTW schools. Themes that emerged from the study included motivation and enthusiasm, critical thinking and problem solving, career awareness, student interest in science and math, collaboration, hands-on learning, confidence and engagement, perceived problems, and satisfaction with PLTW. All interviewees perceived that with PLTW's emphasis on constructivist pedagogy, students were excited, engaged, practiced critical thinking and problem solving skills, and that participation in PLTW had a positive effect on the students' learning behaviors and interests in science and mathematics.

The Study Designed by a Committee

PubMed Central

Henry, David B.; Farrell, Albert D.

2009-01-01

This article describes the research design of the Multisite Violence Prevention Project (MVPP), organized and funded by the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). CDC's objectives, refined in the course of collaboration among investigators, were to evaluate the efficacy of universal and targeted interventions designed to produce change at the school level. The project's design was developed collaboratively, and is a 2 × 2 cluster-randomized true experimental design in which schools within four separate sites were assigned randomly to four conditions: (1) no-intervention control group, (2) universal intervention, (3) targeted intervention, and (4) combined universal and targeted interventions. A total of 37 schools are participating in this study with 8–12 schools per site. The impact of the interventions on two successive cohorts of sixth-grade students will be assessed based on multiple waves of data from multiple sources of information, including teachers, students, parents, and archival data. The nesting of students within teachers, families, schools and sites created a number of challenges for designing and implementing the study. The final design represents both resolution and compromise on a number of creative tensions existing in large-scale prevention trials, including tensions between cost and statistical power, and between internal and external validity. Strengths and limitations of the final design are discussed. PMID:14732183

Waverly, Iowa Smart Planning Workshop: Policy Options and Project Designs

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

This report from the EPA-FEMA technical assistance project in Waverly, IA, presents policy options and project design ideas that could help new development be more resilient to disasters such as floods while bringing multiple benefits.

Building Skills with Reiterative Lab Projects.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marine, Susan Sonchik

2003-01-01

Introduces chemistry laboratories in which students have the opportunity to conduct laboratory projects in multiple sessions that promote planning, thinking, technical performance, and responsibility. Defines the process of experimentation and its applications to science laboratories and describes successful project applications. (YDS)

Multimode resource-constrained multiple project scheduling problem under fuzzy random environment and its application to a large scale hydropower construction project.

PubMed

Xu, Jiuping; Feng, Cuiying

2014-01-01

This paper presents an extension of the multimode resource-constrained project scheduling problem for a large scale construction project where multiple parallel projects and a fuzzy random environment are considered. By taking into account the most typical goals in project management, a cost/weighted makespan/quality trade-off optimization model is constructed. To deal with the uncertainties, a hybrid crisp approach is used to transform the fuzzy random parameters into fuzzy variables that are subsequently defuzzified using an expected value operator with an optimistic-pessimistic index. Then a combinatorial-priority-based hybrid particle swarm optimization algorithm is developed to solve the proposed model, where the combinatorial particle swarm optimization and priority-based particle swarm optimization are designed to assign modes to activities and to schedule activities, respectively. Finally, the results and analysis of a practical example at a large scale hydropower construction project are presented to demonstrate the practicality and efficiency of the proposed model and optimization method.

Multimode Resource-Constrained Multiple Project Scheduling Problem under Fuzzy Random Environment and Its Application to a Large Scale Hydropower Construction Project

PubMed Central

Xu, Jiuping

2014-01-01

This paper presents an extension of the multimode resource-constrained project scheduling problem for a large scale construction project where multiple parallel projects and a fuzzy random environment are considered. By taking into account the most typical goals in project management, a cost/weighted makespan/quality trade-off optimization model is constructed. To deal with the uncertainties, a hybrid crisp approach is used to transform the fuzzy random parameters into fuzzy variables that are subsequently defuzzified using an expected value operator with an optimistic-pessimistic index. Then a combinatorial-priority-based hybrid particle swarm optimization algorithm is developed to solve the proposed model, where the combinatorial particle swarm optimization and priority-based particle swarm optimization are designed to assign modes to activities and to schedule activities, respectively. Finally, the results and analysis of a practical example at a large scale hydropower construction project are presented to demonstrate the practicality and efficiency of the proposed model and optimization method. PMID:24550708

Quantification of Road Network Vulnerability and Traffic Impacts to Regional Landslide Hazards.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Postance, Benjamin; Hillier, John; Dixon, Neil; Dijkstra, Tom

2015-04-01

Slope instability represents a prevalent hazard to transport networks. In the UK regional road networks are frequently disrupted by multiple slope failures triggered during intense precipitation events; primarily due to a degree of regional homogeneity of slope materials, geomorphology and weather conditions. It is of interest to examine how different locations and combinations of slope failure impact road networks, particularly in the context of projected climate change and a 40% increase in UK road demand by 2040. In this study an extensive number (>50 000) of multiple failure event scenarios are simulated within a dynamic micro simulation to assess traffic impacts during peak flow (7 - 10 AM). Possible failure locations are selected within the county of Gloucestershire (3150 km2) using historic failure sites and British Geological Survey GeoSure data. Initial investigations employ a multiple linear regression analyses to consider the severity of traffic impacts, as measured by time, in respect of spatial and topographical network characteristics including connectivity, density and capacity in proximity to failure sites; the network distance between disruptions in multiple failure scenarios is used to consider the effects of spatial clustering. The UK Department of Transport road travel demand and UKCP09 weather projection data to 2080 provide a suitable basis for traffic simulations and probabilistic slope stability assessments. Future work will thus focus on the development of a catastrophe risk model to simulate traffic impacts under various narratives of future travel demand and slope instability under climatic change. The results of this investigation shall contribute to the understanding of road network vulnerabilities and traffic impacts from climate driven slope hazards.

Real-time inextensible surgical thread simulation.

PubMed

Xu, Lang; Liu, Qian

2018-03-27

This paper discusses a real-time simulation method of inextensible surgical thread based on the Cosserat rod theory using position-based dynamics (PBD). The method realizes stable twining and knotting of surgical thread while including inextensibility, bending, twisting and coupling effects. The Cosserat rod theory is used to model the nonlinear elastic behavior of surgical thread. The surgical thread model is solved with PBD to achieve a real-time, extremely stable simulation. Due to the one-dimensional linear structure of surgical thread, the direct solution of the distance constraint based on tridiagonal matrix algorithm is used to enhance stretching resistance in every constraint projection iteration. In addition, continuous collision detection and collision response guarantee a large time step and high performance. Furthermore, friction is integrated into the constraint projection process to stabilize the twining of multiple threads and complex contact situations. Through comparisons with existing methods, the surgical thread maintains constant length under large deformation after applying the direct distance constraint in our method. The twining and knotting of multiple threads correspond to stable solutions to contact and friction forces. A surgical suture scene is also modeled to demonstrate the practicality and simplicity of our method. Our method achieves stable and fast simulation of inextensible surgical thread. Benefiting from the unified particle framework, the rigid body, elastic rod, and soft body can be simultaneously simulated. The method is appropriate for applications in virtual surgery that require multiple dynamic bodies.

Relating improvisational music therapy with severely and multiply disabled children to communication development.

PubMed

Rainey Perry, Mary M

2003-01-01

The effect of different levels of preintentional and intentional communication development on musical interaction with children with severe and multiple disabilities has not been explored in the music therapy literature. Aside from stage of communication development, what are the particular influences of disability on musical interaction with children who have preintentional and early intentional communication? A qualitative research project explored these issues. Ten school-aged children with severe and multiple disabilities participated in the project. The most common medical diagnosis was cerebral palsy. Analysis of video recordings and other data confirmed that the children's level of communication development was reflected in individual music therapy. Specifically, children at different levels of communication development varied in their abilities to initiate, anticipate, and sustain participation in turn taking, and to maintain attention to and engagement in the interaction. Both turn taking and playing and singing together were found to be important forms of communication during music therapy. Communication problems related to disability included: difficulties in using objects as a focus of joint attention, difficulties in interpreting the interactive environment, being sufficiently motivated to communicate, severely limited means of interaction, attaining and maintaining an appropriate level of arousal, and lack of interest in interaction and the outside environment. Further study of how music therapy can be related to general issues in communication for individuals with severe and multiple disabilities is recommended.

Collaborative engineering and design management for the Hobby-Eberly Telescope tracker upgrade

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mollison, Nicholas T.; Hayes, Richard J.; Good, John M.; Booth, John A.; Savage, Richard D.; Jackson, John R.; Rafal, Marc D.; Beno, Joseph H.

2010-07-01

The engineering and design of systems as complex as the Hobby-Eberly Telescope's* new tracker require that multiple tasks be executed in parallel and overlapping efforts. When the design of individual subsystems is distributed among multiple organizations, teams, and individuals, challenges can arise with respect to managing design productivity and coordinating successful collaborative exchanges. This paper focuses on design management issues and current practices for the tracker design portion of the Hobby-Eberly Telescope Wide Field Upgrade project. The scope of the tracker upgrade requires engineering contributions and input from numerous fields including optics, instrumentation, electromechanics, software controls engineering, and site-operations. Successful system-level integration of tracker subsystems and interfaces is critical to the telescope's ultimate performance in astronomical observation. Software and process controls for design information and workflow management have been implemented to assist the collaborative transfer of tracker design data. The tracker system architecture and selection of subsystem interfaces has also proven to be a determining factor in design task formulation and team communication needs. Interface controls and requirements change controls will be discussed, and critical team interactions are recounted (a group-participation Failure Modes and Effects Analysis [FMEA] is one of special interest). This paper will be of interest to engineers, designers, and managers engaging in multi-disciplinary and parallel engineering projects that require coordination among multiple individuals, teams, and organizations.

Collaborative Research: Robust Climate Projections and Stochastic Stability of Dynamical Systems

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

Ilya Zaliapin

This project focused on conceptual exploration of El Nino/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) variability and sensitivity using a Delay Differential Equation developed in the project. We have (i) established the existence and continuous dependence of solutions of the model (ii) explored multiple models solutions, and the distribution of solutions extrema, and (iii) established and explored the phase locking phenomenon and the existence of multiple solutions for the same values of model parameters. In addition, we have applied to our model the concept of pullback attractor, which greatly facilitated predictive understanding of the nonlinear model's behavior.

Innovative space x-ray telescopes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hudec, R.; Inneman, A.; Pina, L.; Sveda, L.; Ticha, H.; Brozek, V.

2017-11-01

We report on the progress in innovative X-ray mirror development with focus on requirements of future X-ray astronomy space projects. Various future projects in X-ray astronomy and astrophysics will require large lightweight but highly accurate segments with multiple thin shells or foils. The large Wolter 1 grazing incidence multiple mirror arrays, the Kirkpatrick-Baez modules, as well as the large Lobster-Eye X-ray telescope modules in Schmidt arrangement may serve as examples. All these space projects will require high quality and light segmented shells (shaped, bent or flat foils) with high X-ray reflectivity and excellent mechanical stability.

Update On The Development, Testing, And Manufacture Of High Density LEU-Foil Targets For The Production Of Mo-99

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

Creasy, John T

2015-05-12

This project has the objective to reduce and/or eliminate the use of HEU in commerce. Steps in the process include developing a target testing methodology that is bounding for all Mo-99 target irradiators, establishing a maximum target LEU-foil mass, developing a LEU-foil target qualification document, developing a bounding target failure analysis methodology (failure in reactor containment), optimizing safety vs. economics (goal is to manufacture a safe, but relatively inexpensive target to offset the inherent economic disadvantage of using LEU in place of HEU), and developing target material specifications and manufacturing QC test criteria. The slide presentation is organized under themore » following topics: Objective, Process Overview, Background, Team Structure, Key Achievements, Experiment and Activity Descriptions, and Conclusions. The High Density Target project has demonstrated: approx. 50 targets irradiated through domestic and international partners; proof of concept for two front end processing methods; fabrication of uranium foils for target manufacture; quality control procedures and steps for manufacture; multiple target assembly techniques; multiple target disassembly devices; welding of targets; thermal, hydraulic, and mechanical modeling; robust target assembly parametric studies; and target qualification analysis for insertion into very high flux environment. The High Density Target project has tested and proven several technologies that will benefit current and future Mo-99 producers.« less

The Development and Flight Testing of an Aerially Deployed Unmanned Aerial System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smith, Andrew

An investigation into the feasibility of aerial deployed unmanned aerial vehicles was completed. The investigation included the development and flight testing of multiple unmanned aerial systems to investigate the different components of potential aerial deployment missions. The project consisted of two main objectives; the first objective dealt with the development of an airframe capable of surviving aerial deployment from a rocket and then self assembling from its stowed configuration into its flight configuration. The second objective focused on the development of an autopilot capable of performing basic guidance, navigation, and control following aerial deployment. To accomplish these two objectives multiple airframes were developed to verify their completion experimentally. The first portion of the project, investigating the feasibility of surviving an aerial deployment, was completed using a fixed wing glider that following a successful deployment had 52 seconds of controlled flight. Before developing the autopilot in the second phase of the project, the glider was significantly upgraded to fix faults discovered in the glider flight testing and to enhance the system capabilities. Unfortunately to conform to outdoor flight restrictions imposed by the university and the Federal Aviation Administration it was required to switch airframes before flight testing of the new fixed wing platform could begin. As a result, an autopilot was developed for a quadrotor and verified experimentally completely indoors to remain within the limits of governing policies.

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

Walker, Randy M

Thousands of shipments of radioisotopes developed in the United States (US) are transported domestically and internationally for medical and industrial applications, including to partner laboratories in European Union (EU) countries. Over the past five years, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of Energy (DOE), and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) have worked with state regulatory compliance personnel, key private sector shippers and carriers, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Department of Transportation (DOT), the Department of Defense (DoD) and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) on Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tracking and monitoring of medical and industrial radioisotopes inmore » commerce. The EPA Radiological Source Tracking and Monitoring (RadSTraM) project tested, evaluated, and integrated RFID technologies in laboratory settings, and at multiple private-sector shipping and distribution facilities (Perkin Elmer and DHL) using common radioisotopes used in everyday commerce. The RFID tracking was also tested in association with other deployed technologies including radiation detection, chemical/explosives detection, advanced imaging, lasers, and infrared scanning. At the 2007 EU-US Summit, the leaders of the US Department of Commerce (DOC) and EU European Commission (EC) committed to pursue jointly directed Lighthouse Priority Projects. These projects are intended to 'foster cooperation' and 'reduce regulatory burdens' with respect to transatlantic commerce. The Transatlantic Economic Council (TEC) Lighthouse Project on Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) has been directed to 'develop a joint framework for cooperation on identification and development of best practices for Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technologies.' The RFID Lighthouse Priority Project commits both sides to endeavor to align U.S. and EU regulatory and policy approaches on RFID technologies, including pilot projects in the public sector. The RadSTraM project was specifically cited as a candidate for a RFID Lighthouse Project by the EU/DOC collaboration in meeting their mutual goal of developing a 'joint framework for cooperation on identification and development of best practices for RFID technologies.' Concurrently, the Universal Postal Union (UPU) identified this project as a candidate for radioisotope packages shipped by the postal service between the United State Postal Service (USPS). and European Post Agencies.« less

Improving operating room first start efficiency - value of both checklist and a pre-operative facilitator.

PubMed

Panni, M K; Shah, S J; Chavarro, C; Rawl, M; Wojnarwsky, P K; Panni, J K

2013-10-01

There are multiple components leading to improved operating room efficiency. We undertook a project focusing on first case starts; accounting for each delay component on a global basis. Our hypothesis was there would be a reduction in first start delays after we implemented strategies to address the issues identified through this accounting process. An orange sheet checklist was implemented, with specific items that needed to be clear prior to roll back to the operating room (OR), and an OR facilitator was employed to intervene whenever there were any missing items needed for a specific patient. We present the data from this quality improvement project over an 18-month period. Initially, 10.07 (± 0.73) delayed first starts occurred per day but declined steadily over time to a low of 4.95 (± 0.38) per day after 6 months (-49.2 %, P < 0.001). By the end of the project, the most common reasons for delay still included late surgical attending (19%), schedule changes (14%) as well as 'other reasons' (13%), but with an overall reduction per day of each. Total anaesthesia delay initially totalled 11% of the first start delays, but was negligible (< 1%) at the project's completion. While we have a challenging operating room environment based on our patient population, multiple trainees in both the surgery and anaesthesiology teams: an orange sheet - pre-operative checklist in addition to a dedicated pre-operative facilitator; allowed us to make a substantial improvement in our first start on time starts. © 2013 The Acta Anaesthesiologica Scandinavica Foundation. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

The Dust Management Project: Characterizing Lunar Environments and Dust, Developing Regolith Mitigation Technology and Simulants

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hyatt, Mark J.; Straka, Sharon A.

2010-01-01

A return to the Moon to extend human presence, pursue scientific activities, use the Moon to prepare for future human missions to Mars, and expand Earth?s economic sphere, will require investment in developing new technologies and capabilities to achieve affordable and sustainable human exploration. From the operational experience gained and lessons learned during the Apollo missions, conducting long-term operations in the lunar environment will be a particular challenge, given the difficulties presented by the unique physical properties and other characteristics of lunar regolith, including dust. The Apollo missions and other lunar explorations have identified significant lunar dust-related problems that will challenge future mission success. Comprised of regolith particles ranging in size from tens of nanometers to microns, lunar dust is a manifestation of the complex interaction of the lunar soil with multiple mechanical, electrical, and gravitational effects. The environmental and anthropogenic factors effecting the perturbation, transport, and deposition of lunar dust must be studied in order to mitigate it?s potentially harmful effects on exploration systems and human explorers. The Dust Management Project (DMP) is tasked with the evaluation of lunar dust effects, assessment of the resulting risks, and development of mitigation and management strategies and technologies related to Exploration Systems architectures. To this end, the DMP supports the overall goal of the Exploration Technology Development Program (ETDP) of addressing the relevant high priority technology needs of multiple elements within the Constellation Program (CxP) and sister ETDP projects. Project scope, plans, and accomplishments will be presented.

A Research Strategy Case Study of Alcohol and Drug Prevention by Non-Governmental Organizations in Sweden 2003-2009

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background Alcohol and drug prevention is high on the public health agenda in many countries. An increasing trend is the call for evidence-based practice. In Sweden in 2002 an innovative project portfolio including an integrated research and competence-building strategy for non-governmental organisations (NGOs) was designed by the National Board of Health and Welfare (NBHW). This research strategy case study is based on this initiative. Methods The embedded case study includes 135 projects in 69 organisations and 14 in-depth process or effect studies. The data in the case study has been compiled using multiple methods - administrative data; interviews and questionnaires to project leaders; focus group discussions and seminars; direct and participatory observations, interviews, and documentation of implementation; consultations with the NBHW and the NGOs; and a literature review. Annual reports have been submitted each year and three bi-national conferences Reflections on preventions have been held. Results A broad range of organisations have been included in the NBHW project portfolio. A minority of the project were run by Alcohol or drug organisations, while a majority has children or adolescents as target groups. In order to develop a trustful partnership between practitioners, national agencies and researchers a series of measures were developed and implemented: meeting with project leaders, project dialogues and consultations, competence strengthening, support to documentation, in-depth studies and national conferences. A common element was that the projects were program-driven and not research-driven interventions. The role of researchers-as-technical advisors was suitable for the fostering of a trustful partnership for research and development. The independence of the NGOs was regarded as important for the momentum in the project implementation. The research strategy also includes elements of participatory research. Conclusions This research strategy case study shows that it is possible to integrate research into alcohol and drug prevention programs run by NGOs, and thereby contribute to a more evidence-based practice. A core element is developing a trustful partnership between the researchers and the organisations. Moreover, the funding agency must acknowledge the importance of knowledge development and allocating resources to research groups that is capable of cooperating with practitioners and NGOs. PMID:21492442

Forecasting the effects of coastal protection and restoration projects on wetland morphology in coastal Louisiana under multiple environmental uncertainty scenarios

USGS Publications Warehouse

Couvillion, Brady R.; Steyer, Gregory D.; Wang, Hongqing; Beck, Holly J.; Rybczyk, John M.

2013-01-01

Few landscape scale models have assessed the effects of coastal protection and restoration projects on wetland morphology while taking into account important uncertainties in environmental factors such as sea-level rise (SLR) and subsidence. In support of Louisiana's 2012 Coastal Master Plan, we developed a spatially explicit wetland morphology model and coupled it with other predictive models. The model is capable of predicting effects of protection and restoration projects on wetland area, landscape configuration, surface elevation, and soil organic carbon (SOC) storage under multiple environmental uncertainty scenarios. These uncertainty scenarios included variability in parameters such as eustatic SLR (ESLR), subsidence rate, and Mississippi River discharge. Models were run for a 2010–2060 simulation period. Model results suggest that under a “future-without-action” condition (FWOA), coastal Louisiana is at risk of losing between 2118 and 4677 km2 of land over the next 50 years, but with protection and restoration projects proposed in the Master Plan, between 40% and 75% of that loss could be mitigated. Moreover, model results indicate that under a FWOA condition, SOC storage (to a depth of 1 m) could decrease by between 108 and 250 million metric tons, a loss of 12% to 30% of the total coastwide SOC, but with the Master Plan implemented, between 35% and 74% of the SOC loss could be offset. Long-term maintenance of project effects was best attained in areas of low SLR and subsidence, with a sediment source to support marsh accretion. Our findings suggest that despite the efficacy of restoration projects in mitigating losses in certain areas, net loss of wetlands in coastal Louisiana is likely to continue. Model results suggest certain areas may eventually be lost regardless of proposed restoration investment, and, as such, other techniques and strategies of adaptation may have to be utilized in these areas.

Management of Globally Distributed Software Development Projects in Multiple-Vendor Constellations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schott, Katharina; Beck, Roman; Gregory, Robert Wayne

Global information systems development outsourcing is an apparent trend that is expected to continue in the foreseeable future. Thereby, IS-related services are not only increasingly provided from different geographical sites simultaneously but beyond that from multiple service providers based in different countries. The purpose of this paper is to understand how the involvement of multiple service providers affects the management of the globally distributed information systems development projects. As research on this topic is scarce, we applied an exploratory in-depth single-case study design as research approach. The case we analyzed comprises a global software development outsourcing project initiated by a German bank together with several globally distributed vendors. For data collection and data analysis we have adopted techniques suggested by the grounded theory method. Whereas the extant literature points out the increased management overhead associated with multi-sourcing, the analysis of our case suggests that the required effort for managing global outsourcing projects with multiple vendors depends among other things on the maturation level of the cooperation within the vendor portfolio. Furthermore, our data indicate that this interplay maturity is positively impacted through knowledge about the client that has been derived based on already existing client-vendor relationships. The paper concludes by offering theoretical and practical implications.

Resource Constrained Planning of Multiple Projects with Separable Activities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fujii, Susumu; Morita, Hiroshi; Kanawa, Takuya

In this study we consider a resource constrained planning problem of multiple projects with separable activities. This problem provides a plan to process the activities considering a resource availability with time window. We propose a solution algorithm based on the branch and bound method to obtain the optimal solution minimizing the completion time of all projects. We develop three methods for improvement of computational efficiency, that is, to obtain initial solution with minimum slack time rule, to estimate lower bound considering both time and resource constraints and to introduce an equivalence relation for bounding operation. The effectiveness of the proposed methods is demonstrated by numerical examples. Especially as the number of planning projects increases, the average computational time and the number of searched nodes are reduced.

The PACA Project: Creating Synergy Between Observing Campaigns, Outreach and Citizen Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yanamandra-Fisher, Padma

2017-04-01

The PACA (Pro-Am Collaborative Astronomy) Project's primary goal is to develop and build synergy between professional and amateur astronomers from observations in the many aspects of support of missions and campaigns. To achieve this, the PACA has three main components: observational campaigns aligned with scientific research; outreach to engage all forms of audiences and citizen science projects that aim to produce specific scientific results, by engaging professional scientific and amateur communities and a variety of audiences. The primary observational projects are defined by specific scientific goals by professionals, resulting in global observing campaigns involving a variety of observers, and observing techniques. Some of PACA's observing campaigns have included global characterization of comets (e.g., C/ISON, SidingSpring, 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, Lovejoy, etc.), planets (Jupiter, Saturn and Mars) and currently expanded to include (i) polarimetric exploration of solar system objects with small apertures and (ii) in collaboration with CITIZEN CATE, a citizen science observing campaign to observe the 2017 Continental America Total Eclipse, engage many levels of informal audiences using interactive social media to participate in the campaign. Our Outreach campaigns leverage the multiple social media/platforms for at least two important reasons: (i) the immediate dissemination of observations and interaction with the global network and (ii) free or inexpensive resources for most of the participants. The final stage of the PACA ecosystem is the integration of these components into publications. We shall highlight some of the interesting challenges and solutions of the PACA Project so far and provide a view of future projects and new partnerships in all three categories.

Using Multi-Media Projects to Foster Teacher Candidates' Multiple Literacy Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lawrence, Salika A.

2010-01-01

This article describes the strategies used to incorporate multi-modal technology literacy experiences into a graduate level course for literacy specialists. The candidates created a multi-media project in response to literature. Their projects revealed that the teacher candidates used a variety of sources to create the project but the Internet was…

Cleared for Launch - Lessons Learned from the OSIRIS-REx System Requirements Verification Program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stevens, Craig; Adams, Angela; Williams, Bradley; Goodloe, Colby

2017-01-01

Requirements verification of a large flight system is a challenge. It is especially challenging for engineers taking on their first role in space systems engineering. This paper describes our approach to verification of the Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) system requirements. It also captures lessons learned along the way from developing systems engineers embroiled in this process. We begin with an overview of the mission and science objectives as well as the project requirements verification program strategy. A description of the requirements flow down is presented including our implementation for managing the thousands of program and element level requirements and associated verification data. We discuss both successes and methods to improve the managing of this data across multiple organizational interfaces. Our approach to verifying system requirements at multiple levels of assembly is presented using examples from our work at instrument, spacecraft, and ground segment levels. We include a discussion of system end-to-end testing limitations and their impacts to the verification program. Finally, we describe lessons learned that are applicable to all emerging space systems engineers using our unique perspectives across multiple organizations of a large NASA program.

NextGEOSS project: A user-driven approach to build a Earth Observations Data Hub

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Percivall, G.; Voidrot, M. F.; Bye, B. L.; De Lathouwer, B.; Catarino, N.; Concalves, P.; Kraft, C.; Grosso, N.; Meyer-Arnek, J.; Mueller, A.; Goor, E.

2017-12-01

Several initiatives and projects contribute to support Group on Earth Observation's (GEO) global priorities including support to the UN 2030 Agenda for sustainable development, the Paris Agreement on climate change, and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction . Running until 2020, the NextGEOSS project evolves the European vision of a user driven GEOSS data exploitation for innovation and business, relying on the three main pillars: engaging communities of practice delivering technological advancements advocating the use of GEOSS These 3 pillars support the creation and deployment of Earth observation based innovative research activities and commercial services. In this presentation we will emphasise how the NextGEOSS project uses a pilot-driven approach to ramp up and consolidate the system in a pragmatique way, integrating the complexity of the existing global ecosystem, leveraging previous investments, adding new cloud technologies and resources and engaging the diverse communities to address all types of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). A set of 10 initial pilots have been defined by the project partners to address the main challenges and include as soon as possible contributions to SDGs associated with Food Sustainability, Bio Diversity, Space and Security, Cold Regions, Air Pollutions, Disaster Risk Reduction, Territorial Planning, Energy. In 2018 and 2019 the project team will work on two new series of Architecture Implementation Pilots (AIP-10 and AIP-11), opened world-wide, to increase discoverability, accessibility and usability of data with a strong User Centric approach for innovative GEOSS powered applications for multiple societal areas. All initiatives with an interest in and need of Earth observations (data, processes, models, ...) are welcome to participate to these pilots initiatives. NextGEOSS is a H2020 Research and Development Project from the European Community under grant agreement 730329.

Building Interdisciplinary Research and Communication Skills in the Agricultural and Climate Sciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Johnson-Maynard, J.; Borrelli, K.; Wolf, K.; Bernacchi, L.; Eigenbrode, S.; Daley Laursen, D.

2015-12-01

Preparing scientists and educators to create and promote practical science-based agricultural approaches to climate change adaptation and mitigation is a main focus of the Regional Approaches to Climate Change (REACCH) project. Social, political and environmental complexities and interactions require that future scientists work across disciplines rather than having isolated knowledge of one specific subject area. Additionally, it is important for graduate students earning M.S. or Ph.D. degrees in agriculture and climate sciences to be able to communicate scientific findings effectively to non-scientific audiences. Unfortunately, university graduate curricula rarely adequately prepare students with these important skills. REACCH recognizes the need for graduate students to have thorough exposure to other disciplines and to be able to communicate information for outreach and education purposes. These priorities have been incorporated into graduate training within the REACCH project. The interdisciplinary nature of the project and its sophisticated digital infrastructure provide graduate students multiple opportunities to gain these experiences. The project includes over 30 graduate students from 20 different disciplines and research foci including agronomy, biogeochemistry, soil quality, conservation tillage, hydrology, pest and beneficial organisms, economics, modeling, remote sensing, science education and climate science. Professional develop workshops were developed and held during annual project meetings to enhance student training. The "Toolbox" survey (http://www.cals.uidaho.edu/toolbox/) was used to achieve effective interdisciplinary communication. Interdisciplinary extension and education projects were required to allow students to gain experience with collaboration and working with stakeholder groups. Results of student surveys and rubrics developed to gauge success in interdisciplinary research and communication may provide a helpful starting point for future projects involving graduate student training.

Characterization, Monitoring, and Risk Assessment at the IEA GHG Weyburn-Midale CO2 Monitoring and Storage Project, Saskatchewan, Canada.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ben, R.; Chalaturnyk, R.; Gardner, C.; Hawkes, C.; Johnson, J.; White, D.; Whittaker, S.

2008-12-01

In July 2000, a major research project was initiated to study the geological storage of CO2 as part of a 5000 tonnes/day EOR project planned for the Weyburn Field in Saskatchewan, Canada. Major objectives of the IEA GHG Weyburn CO2 monitoring and storage project included: assessing the integrity of the geosphere encompassing the Weyburn oil pool for effective long-term storage of CO2; monitoring the movement of the injected CO2, and assessing the risk of migration of CO2 from the injection zone (approximately 1500 metres depth) to the surface. Over the period 2000-2004, a diverse group of 80+ researchers worked on: geological, geophysical, and hydrogeological characterizations at both the regional (100 km beyond the field) and detailed scale (10 km around the field); conducted time-lapse geophysical surveys; carried out surface and subsurface geochemical surveys; and undertook numerical reservoir simulations. Results of the characterization were used for a performance assessment that concluded the risk of CO2 movement to the biosphere was very small. By September 2007, more than 14 Mtonnes of CO2 had been injected into the Weyburn reservoir, including approximately 3 Mtonnes recycled from oil production. A "Final Phase" research project was initiated (2007- 2011) to contribute to a "Best Practices" guide for long-term CO2 storage in EOR settings. Research objectives include: improving the geoscience characterization; further detailed analysis and data collection on the role of wellbores; additional geochemical and geophysical monitoring activities; and an emphasis on quantitative risk assessments using multiple analysis techniques. In this talk a review of results from Phase I will be presented followed by plans and initial results for the Final Phase.

Preparing Teachers to Support the Development of Climate Literate Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haddad, N.; Ledley, T. S.; Ellins, K. K.; Bardar, E. W.; Youngman, E.; Dunlap, C.; Lockwood, J.; Mote, A. S.; McNeal, K.; Libarkin, J. C.; Lynds, S. E.; Gold, A. U.

2014-12-01

The EarthLabs climate project includes curriculum development, teacher professional development, teacher leadership development, and research on student learning, all directed at increasing high school teachers' and students' understanding of the factors that shape our planet's climate. The project has developed four new modules which focus on climate literacy and which are part of the larger Web based EarthLabs collection of Earth science modules. Climate related themes highlighted in the new modules include the Earth system with its positive and negative feedback loops; the range of temporal and spatial scales at which climate, weather, and other Earth system processes occur; and the recurring question, "How do we know what we know about Earth's past and present climate?" which addresses proxy data and scientific instrumentation. EarthLabs climate modules use two central strategies to help students navigate the multiple challenges inherent in understanding climate science. The first is to actively engage students with the content by using a variety of learning modes, and by allowing students to pace themselves through interactive visualizations that address particularly challenging content. The second strategy, which is the focus of this presentation, is to support teachers in a subject area where few have substantive content knowledge or technical skills. Teachers who grasp the processes and interactions that give Earth its climate and the technical skills to engage with relevant data and visualizations are more likely to be successful in supporting students' understanding of climate's complexities. This presentation will briefly introduce the EarthLabs project and will describe the steps the project takes to prepare climate literate teachers, including Web based resources, teacher workshops, and the development of a cadre of teacher leaders who are prepared to continue leading the workshops after project funding ends.

Collaborative Projects Weaving Indigenous and Western Science, Knowledge and Perspectives in Climate Change Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sparrow, E. B.; Chase, M.; Brunacini, J.; Spellman, K.

2017-12-01

The "Reaching Arctic Communities Facing Climate Change" and "Feedbacks and Impacts of A Warming Arctic: Engaging Learners in STEM Using GLOBE and NASA Assets" projects are examples of Indigenous and western science communities' collaborative efforts in braiding multiple perspectives and methods in climate change education. Lessons being learned and applied in these projects include the need to invite and engage members of the indigenous and scientific communities in the beginning as a project is being proposed or formulated; the need for negotiated space in the project and activities where opportunity to present and access both knowledge systems is equitable, recognizes and validates each knowledge and method, and considers the use of pedagogical practices including pace/rhythm and instructional approach most suitable to the target audience. For example with Indigenous audiences/participants, it is important to follow local Indigenous protocol to start an event and/or use a resource that highlights the current experience or voices of Indigenous people with climate change. For mixed audience groups, it is critical to have personal introductions at the beginning of an event so that each participant is given an opportunity and encouraged to voice their ideas and opinions starting with how they want to introduce themselves and thus begin to establish a welcoming and collegial atmosphere for dialog. It is also important to communicate climate science in humanistic terms, that people and communities are affected not just the environment or economies. These collaborative partnerships produce mutual benefits including increased awareness and understanding of personal connections to climate change impacts; opportunities for cultural enrichment; opportunities for accessing elder knowledge which is highly valued as well as science, education and communication tools that are needed in working together in addressing issues and making communities resilient and adaptive.

The Project P.A.T.H.S. in Hong Kong: Work Done and Lessons Learned in a Decade.

PubMed

Shek, Daniel T L; Wu, Florence K Y

2016-02-01

The Project Positive Adolescent Training through Holistic Social Programs is a positive youth development program initiated and financially supported by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust. Since 2005, the project has gone through several phases, including the initial phase (2005-2012), school-based extension phase (2009-2016), and community-based extension phase (2013-2017). In the initial phase, with the involvement of academics from 5 universities in Hong Kong, the research team developed youth enhancement programs for junior secondary school students (20 hours per grade), trained the program implementers (20 hours per grade), assisted in the implementation in more than 250 schools, and evaluated the program using multiple evaluation strategies, including a 5-year longitudinal experimental study. In the school-based extension phase, the project was implemented for another cycle (2009-2010 and 2011-2012 school years) and a 6-year longitudinal study was conducted to understand the psychosocial development of Chinese adolescents in Hong Kong. In the community-based extension phase, the programs were administered by social workers in the community settings. Generally speaking, different evaluation findings showed that the programs in Project Positive Adolescent Training through Holistic Social Programs promoted positive development and reduced risk behavior in Chinese adolescents in Hong Kong. Positive youth development attributes and family functioning also have positive contributions to adolescent developmental outcomes over time. Copyright © 2016 North American Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The Arctic Research Mapping Application (ARMAP): a Geoportal for Visualizing Project-level Information About U.S. Funded Research in the Arctic

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kassin, A.; Cody, R. P.; Barba, M.; Gaylord, A. G.; Manley, W. F.; Score, R.; Escarzaga, S. M.; Tweedie, C. E.

2016-12-01

The Arctic Research Mapping Application (ARMAP; http://armap.org/) is a suite of online applications and data services that support Arctic science by providing project tracking information (who's doing what, when and where in the region) for United States Government funded projects. In collaboration with 17 research agencies, project locations are displayed in a visually enhanced web mapping application. Key information about each project is presented along with links to web pages that provide additional information, including links to data where possible. The latest ARMAP iteration has i) reworked the search user interface (UI) to enable multiple filters to be applied in user-driven queries and ii) implemented ArcGIS Javascript API 4.0 to allow for deployment of 3D maps directly into a users web-browser and enhanced customization of popups. Module additions include i) a dashboard UI powered by a back-end Apache SOLR engine to visualize data in intuitive and interactive charts; and ii) a printing module that allows users to customize maps and export these to different formats (pdf, ppt, gif and jpg). New reference layers and an updated ship tracks layer have also been added. These improvements have been made to improve discoverability, enhance logistics coordination, identify geographic gaps in research/observation effort, and foster enhanced collaboration among the research community. Additionally, ARMAP can be used to demonstrate past, present, and future research effort supported by the U.S. Government.

Modeling daily soil salinity dynamics in response to agricultural and environmental changes in coastal Bangladesh

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Payo, Andrés.; Lázár, Attila N.; Clarke, Derek; Nicholls, Robert J.; Bricheno, Lucy; Mashfiqus, Salehin; Haque, Anisul

2017-05-01

Understanding the dynamics of salt movement in the soil is a prerequisite for devising appropriate management strategies for land productivity of coastal regions, especially low-lying delta regions, which support many millions of farmers around the world. At present, there are no numerical models able to resolve soil salinity at regional scale and at daily time steps. In this research, we develop a novel holistic approach to simulate soil salinization comprising an emulator-based soil salt and water balance calculated at daily time steps. The method is demonstrated for the agriculture areas of coastal Bangladesh (˜20,000 km2). This shows that we can reproduce the dynamics of soil salinity under multiple land uses, including rice crops, combined shrimp and rice farming, as well as non-rice crops. The model also reproduced well the observed spatial soil salinity for the year 2009. Using this approach, we have projected the soil salinity for three different climate ensembles, including relative sea-level rise for the year 2050. Projected soil salinity changes are significantly smaller than other reported projections. The results suggest that inter-season weather variability is a key driver of salinization of agriculture soils at coastal Bangladesh.

Breaking Away

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Panettieri, Joseph C.

2007-01-01

This article discusses open source projects which may free universities from expensive, rigid commercial software. But will the rewards outweigh the potential risks? The Kuali Project involves multiple universities writing and sharing code for their financial and operational systems. Another, the Sakai Project, is a community source platform for…

JBioWH: an open-source Java framework for bioinformatics data integration

PubMed Central

Vera, Roberto; Perez-Riverol, Yasset; Perez, Sonia; Ligeti, Balázs; Kertész-Farkas, Attila; Pongor, Sándor

2013-01-01

The Java BioWareHouse (JBioWH) project is an open-source platform-independent programming framework that allows a user to build his/her own integrated database from the most popular data sources. JBioWH can be used for intensive querying of multiple data sources and the creation of streamlined task-specific data sets on local PCs. JBioWH is based on a MySQL relational database scheme and includes JAVA API parser functions for retrieving data from 20 public databases (e.g. NCBI, KEGG, etc.). It also includes a client desktop application for (non-programmer) users to query data. In addition, JBioWH can be tailored for use in specific circumstances, including the handling of massive queries for high-throughput analyses or CPU intensive calculations. The framework is provided with complete documentation and application examples and it can be downloaded from the Project Web site at http://code.google.com/p/jbiowh. A MySQL server is available for demonstration purposes at hydrax.icgeb.trieste.it:3307. Database URL: http://code.google.com/p/jbiowh PMID:23846595

35t Prototype Detector for Experiment at Long Base Line Neutrino Facility (ELBNF) Far Detector

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Santucci, Gabriel; Elbnf Collaboration

2015-04-01

The 35ton prototype detector is a Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber (LAr TPC) utilizing a membrane cryostat. It serves as a prototype for testing technology proposed for the ELBNF far detector. The construction of the prototype is an essential part of the ELBNF project due to the large amount of new technologies introduced for the far detector. In early 2014, it was shown that the membrane cryostat technology was able to reach and maintain the required LAr purity and an electron lifetime of 2.5 ms was achieved. The goals for the next phase include the installation of a fully functional TPC using the novel designs for the ELBNF far detector as much as possible. This includes the installation of the cold electronics, scintillation photon detectors and multiple Anode Plane Arrays with wrapped wires. In this talk I will review the status of the 35t prototype detector and describe what has been accomplished during 2014 and early 2015, including the commissioning phase and the early stages of data taking from cosmic-rays.

JBioWH: an open-source Java framework for bioinformatics data integration.

PubMed

Vera, Roberto; Perez-Riverol, Yasset; Perez, Sonia; Ligeti, Balázs; Kertész-Farkas, Attila; Pongor, Sándor

2013-01-01

The Java BioWareHouse (JBioWH) project is an open-source platform-independent programming framework that allows a user to build his/her own integrated database from the most popular data sources. JBioWH can be used for intensive querying of multiple data sources and the creation of streamlined task-specific data sets on local PCs. JBioWH is based on a MySQL relational database scheme and includes JAVA API parser functions for retrieving data from 20 public databases (e.g. NCBI, KEGG, etc.). It also includes a client desktop application for (non-programmer) users to query data. In addition, JBioWH can be tailored for use in specific circumstances, including the handling of massive queries for high-throughput analyses or CPU intensive calculations. The framework is provided with complete documentation and application examples and it can be downloaded from the Project Web site at http://code.google.com/p/jbiowh. A MySQL server is available for demonstration purposes at hydrax.icgeb.trieste.it:3307. Database URL: http://code.google.com/p/jbiowh.

24 CFR 241.535 - Loan multiples-minimum principal.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... AUTHORITIES SUPPLEMENTARY FINANCING FOR INSURED PROJECT MORTGAGES Eligibility Requirements-Supplemental Loans... Individual Utility Meters in Multifamily Projects Without a HUD-Insured or HUD-Held Mortgage Eligible...

Contextualizing and assessing the social capital of seniors in congregate housing residences: study design and methods

PubMed Central

Moore, Spencer; Shiell, Alan; Haines, Valerie; Riley, Therese; Collier, Carrie

2005-01-01

Background This article discusses the study design and methods used to contextualize and assess the social capital of seniors living in congregate housing residences in Calgary, Alberta. The project is being funded as a pilot project under the Institute of Aging, Canadian Institutes for Health Research. Design/Methods Working with seniors living in 5 congregate housing residencies in Calgary, the project uses a mixed method approach to develop grounded measures of the social capital of seniors. The project integrates both qualitative and quantitative methods in a 3-phase research design: 1) qualitative, 2) quantitative, and 3) qualitative. Phase 1 uses gender-specific focus groups; phase 2 involves the administration of individual surveys that include a social network module; and phase 3 uses anamolous-case interviews. Not only does the study design allow us to develop grounded measures of social capital but it also permits us to test how well the three methods work separately, and how well they fit together to achieve project goals. This article describes the selection of the study population, the multiple methods used in the research and a brief discussion of our conceptualization and measurement of social capital. PMID:15836784

Open to Interpretation: Multiple Intelligences Theory in Adult Literacy Education. Findings from the Adult Multiple Intelligences Study. NCSALL Reports.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kallenbach, Silja; Viens, Julie

The Adult Multiple Intelligences (AMI) Study investigated how multiple intelligences (MI) theory can support instruction and assessment in adult literacy education across different adult learning contexts. Two interwoven qualitative research projects focused on applying MI theory in practice. One involved 10 teacher-conducted and AMI…

Turn Basin Construction

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-06-30

Across from the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, cement trucks stand by to support a construction project to upgrade the turn basin wharf. The work includes driving multiple precast concrete piles to a depth of about 70 feet to accommodate arrival of the core stage for the agency's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket. When the stage for NASA's SLS departs the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, it will be shipped by the agency's modified barge to the Launch Complex 39 turn basin.

Turn Basin Construction

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-06-30

Across from the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, cement is poured as part of a construction project to upgrade the turn basin wharf. The work includes driving multiple precast concrete piles to a depth of about 70 feet to accommodate arrival of the core stage for the agency's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket. When the stage for NASA's SLS departs the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, it will be shipped by the agency's modified barge to the Launch Complex 39 turn basin.

Health Of Americans Who Must Work Longer To Reach Social Security Retirement Age.

PubMed

Choi, HwaJung; Schoeni, Robert F

2017-10-01

To receive full Social Security benefits, Americans born after 1937 must claim those benefits at an older age than earlier birth cohorts. Additionally, proposals to improve the fiscal position of Social Security typically include increasing the age at which workers can receive full benefits. Birth cohorts required to work longer are in worse health at ages 49-60, based on multiple measures of morbidity, than cohorts who could retire earlier. Project HOPE—The People-to-People Health Foundation, Inc.

Integrated Information Technology Policy Analysis Research, CSUSB

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-10-01

cience  fields in order to combine efforts to better understand multiple network s systems, including technical, biological and social networks...Flowing Valued Information (FVI) project has been discussed at the Network  cience  Workshops linked form the Center website and the FVI reports and

Novel Process Revolutionizes Welding Industry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2008-01-01

Glenn Research Center, Delphi Corporation, and the Michigan Research Institute entered into a research project to study the use of Deformation Resistance Welding (DRW) in the construction and repair of stationary structures with multiple geometries and dissimilar materials, such as those NASA might use on the Moon or Mars. Traditional welding technologies are burdened by significant business and engineering challenges, including high costs of equipment and labor, heat-affected zones, limited automation, and inconsistent quality. DRW addresses each of those issues, while drastically reducing welding, manufacturing, and maintenance costs.

Edge detection, cosmic strings and the south pole telescope

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

Stewart, Andrew; Brandenberger, Robert, E-mail: stewarta@physics.mcgill.ca, E-mail: rhb@physics.mcgill.ca

2009-02-15

We develop a method of constraining the cosmic string tension G{mu} which uses the Canny edge detection algorithm as a means of searching CMB temperature maps for the signature of the Kaiser-Stebbins effect. We test the potential of this method using high resolution, simulated CMB temperature maps. By modeling the future output from the South Pole Telescope project (including anticipated instrumental noise), we find that cosmic strings with G{mu} > 5.5 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -8} could be detected.

The directory of US coal and technology export resources

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

Not Available

1990-10-01

The purpose of The Directory remains focused on offering a consolidated resource to potential buyers of US coal, coal technology, and expertise. This is consistent with the US policy on coal and coal technology trade, which continues to emphasize export market strategy implementation. Within this context, DOE will continue to support the teaming'' approach to marketing; i.e., vertically integrated large project teams to include multiple industry sectors, such as coal producers, engineering and construction firms, equipment manufacturers, financing and service organizations.

Nursing leadership in professional organizations.

PubMed

Hill, Karen S

2011-04-01

This department highlights nursing leaders who have demonstrated the ability to inspire and lead change. This competency is seen in the ability to create, structure, and implement organizational change through strategic vision, risk taking, and effective communication. Each article showcases a project of a nurse leader who demonstrates change in a variety of environments, ranging from acute care hospitals to home care and alternative practice settings. Included are several "lessons learned" applicable to multiple settings that provide insight for other nurses in executive practice.

Molecular Cloning Designer Simulator (MCDS): All-in-one molecular cloning and genetic engineering design, simulation and management software for complex synthetic biology and metabolic engineering projects.

PubMed

Shi, Zhenyu; Vickers, Claudia E

2016-12-01

Molecular Cloning Designer Simulator (MCDS) is a powerful new all-in-one cloning and genetic engineering design, simulation and management software platform developed for complex synthetic biology and metabolic engineering projects. In addition to standard functions, it has a number of features that are either unique, or are not found in combination in any one software package: (1) it has a novel interactive flow-chart user interface for complex multi-step processes, allowing an integrated overview of the whole project; (2) it can perform a user-defined workflow of cloning steps in a single execution of the software; (3) it can handle multiple types of genetic recombineering, a technique that is rapidly replacing classical cloning for many applications; (4) it includes experimental information to conveniently guide wet lab work; and (5) it can store results and comments to allow the tracking and management of the whole project in one platform. MCDS is freely available from https://mcds.codeplex.com.

The 1984 ASEE-NASA summer faculty fellowship program (aeronautics and research)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dah-Nien, F.; Hodge, J. R.; Emad, F. P.

1984-01-01

The 1984 NASA-ASEE Faculty Fellowship Program (SFFP) is reported. The report includes: (1) a list of participants; (2) abstracts of research projects; (3) seminar schedule; (4) evaluation questionnaire; and (5) agenda of visitation by faculty programs committee. Topics discussed include: effects of multiple scattering on laser beam propagation; information management; computer techniques; guidelines for writing user documentation; 30 graphics software; high energy electron and antiproton cosmic rays; high resolution Fourier transform infrared spectrum; average monthly annual zonal and global albedos; laser backscattering from ocean surface; image processing systems; geomorphological mapping; low redshift quasars; application of artificial intelligence to command management systems.

Voltammetry Method Evaluation

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

Hoyt, N.; Pereira, C.; Willit, J.

2016-07-29

The purpose of the ANL MPACT Voltammetry project is to evaluate the suitability of previously developed cyclic voltammetry techniques to provide electroanalytical measurements of actinide concentrations in realistic used fuel processing scenarios. The molten salts in these scenarios are very challenging as they include high concentrations of multiple electrochemically active species, thereby creating a variety of complications. Some of the problems that arise therein include issues related to uncompensated resistance, cylindrical diffusion, and alloying of the electrodeposited metals. Improvements to the existing voltammetry technique to account for these issues have been implemented, resulting in good measurements of actinide concentrations acrossmore » a wide range of adverse conditions.« less

Simulation of Mission Phases

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Carlstrom, Nicholas Mercury

2016-01-01

This position with the Simulation and Graphics Branch (ER7) at Johnson Space Center (JSC) provided an introduction to vehicle hardware, mission planning, and simulation design. ER7 supports engineering analysis and flight crew training by providing high-fidelity, real-time graphical simulations in the Systems Engineering Simulator (SES) lab. The primary project assigned by NASA mentor and SES lab manager, Meghan Daley, was to develop a graphical simulation of the rendezvous, proximity operations, and docking (RPOD) phases of flight. The simulation is to include a generic crew/cargo transportation vehicle and a target object in low-Earth orbit (LEO). Various capsule, winged, and lifting body vehicles as well as historical RPOD methods were evaluated during the project analysis phase. JSC core mission to support the International Space Station (ISS), Commercial Crew Program (CCP), and Human Space Flight (HSF) influenced the project specifications. The simulation is characterized as a 30 meter +V Bar and/or -R Bar approach to the target object's docking station. The ISS was selected as the target object and the international Low Impact Docking System (iLIDS) was selected as the docking mechanism. The location of the target object's docking station corresponds with the RPOD methods identified. The simulation design focuses on Guidance, Navigation, and Control (GNC) system architecture models with station keeping and telemetry data processing capabilities. The optical and inertial sensors, reaction control system thrusters, and the docking mechanism selected were based on CCP vehicle manufacturer's current and proposed technologies. A significant amount of independent study and tutorial completion was required for this project. Multiple primary source materials were accessed using the NASA Technical Report Server (NTRS) and reference textbooks were borrowed from the JSC Main Library and International Space Station Library. The Trick Simulation Environment and User Training Materials version 2013.0 release was used to complete the Trick tutorial. Multiple network privilege and repository permission requests were required in order to access previous simulation models. The project was also an introduction to computer programming and the Linux operating system. Basic C++ and Python syntax was used during the completion of the Trick tutorial. Trick's engineering analysis and Monte Carlo simulation capabilities were observed and basic space mission planning procedures were applied in the conceptual design phase. Multiple professional development opportunities were completed in addition to project duties during this internship through the System for Administration, Training, and Education Resources for NASA (SATERN). Topics include: JSC Risk Management Workshop, CCP Risk Management, Basic Radiation Safety Training, X-Ray Radiation Safety, Basic Laser Safety, JSC Export Control, ISS RISE Ambassador, Basic SharePoint 2013, Space Nutrition and Biochemistry, and JSC Personal Protective Equipment. Additionally, this internship afforded the opportunity for formal project presentation and public speaking practice. This was my first experience at a NASA center. After completing this internship I have a much clearer understanding of certain aspects of the agency's processes and procedures, as well as a deeper appreciation from spaceflight simulation design and testing. I will continue to improve my technical skills so that I may have another opportunity to return to NASA and Johnson Space Center.

An Archive of Downscaled WCRP CMIP3 Climate Projections for Planning Applications in the Contiguous United States

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brekke, L. D.; Pruitt, T.; Maurer, E. P.; Duffy, P. B.

2007-12-01

Incorporating climate change information into long-term evaluations of water and energy resources requires analysts to have access to climate projection data that have been spatially downscaled to "basin-relevant" resolution. This is necessary in order to develop system-specific hydrology and demand scenarios consistent with projected climate scenarios. Analysts currently have access to "climate model" resolution data (e.g., at LLNL PCMDI), but not spatially downscaled translations of these datasets. Motivated by a common interest in supporting regional and local assessments, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and LLNL (through support from the DOE National Energy Technology Laboratory) have teamed to develop an archive of downscaled climate projections (temperature and precipitation) with geographic coverage consistent with the North American Land Data Assimilation System domain, encompassing the contiguous United States. A web-based information service, hosted at LLNL Green Data Oasis, has been developed to provide Reclamation, LLNL, and other interested analysts free access to archive content. A contemporary statistical method was used to bias-correct and spatially disaggregate projection datasets, and was applied to 112 projections included in the WCRP CMIP3 multi-model dataset hosted by LLNL PCMDI (i.e. 16 GCMs and their multiple simulations of SRES A2, A1b, and B1 emissions pathways).

77 FR 11109 - Environmental Impacts Statements; Notice of Availability

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-02-24

...-Native Plant Control Project, Proposes a Forest-Wide Integrated Management Strategy to Control the Spread..., Final EIS, USFS, SD, Steamboat Project, Proposes to Implement Multiple Resource Management Actions... EIS, USFS, WA, South George Vegetation and Fuels Management Project, To Improve Forest Health and...

Data Overload Impact on Project Management: How Knowledge Management Systems Can Improve Federal Agencies Effectiveness

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rodriguez, Jacinto

2013-01-01

This mixed method exploratory case study was used to explore the effect data overload has on project management, how data overload affects project management effectiveness, how prepared program office staff is to manage multiple projects effectively, and how the program office's organizational structure and data management systems affect project…

Comparison of Outcomes for Youth Apprenticeship Projects and Youth Career Development Projects. Supplementary Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Richards, James M., Jr.; And Others

The New Youth Initiatives in Apprenticeship Program (YAP) was compared with the Youth Career Development Program (YCD). Data for 1979 and 1980 came from an evaluation of YAP projects by CSR, Incorporated, and an evaluation of the YCD projects by the Educational Testing Service. A multiple regression approach was used to compare student…

Simultaneous fast measurement of circuit dynamics at multiple sites across the mammalian brain

PubMed Central

Kim, Christina K; Yang, Samuel J; Pichamoorthy, Nandini; Young, Noah P; Kauvar, Isaac; Jennings, Joshua H; Lerner, Talia N; Berndt, Andre; Lee, Soo Yeun; Ramakrishnan, Charu; Davidson, Thomas J; Inoue, Masatoshi; Bito, Haruhiko; Deisseroth, Karl

2017-01-01

Real-time activity measurements from multiple specific cell populations and projections are likely to be important for understanding the brain as a dynamical system. Here we developed frame-projected independent-fiber photometry (FIP), which we used to record fluorescence activity signals from many brain regions simultaneously in freely behaving mice. We explored the versatility of the FIP microscope by quantifying real-time activity relationships among many brain regions during social behavior, simultaneously recording activity along multiple axonal pathways during sensory experience, performing simultaneous two-color activity recording, and applying optical perturbation tuned to elicit dynamics that match naturally occurring patterns observed during behavior. PMID:26878381

Unprotected sex of homeless youth: results from a multilevel dyadic analysis of individual, social network, and relationship factors.

PubMed

Kennedy, David P; Tucker, Joan S; Green, Harold D; Golinelli, Daniela; Ewing, Brett

2012-10-01

Homeless youth have elevated risk of HIV through sexual behavior. This project investigates the multiple levels of influence on unprotected sex among homeless youth, including social network, individual, and partner level influences. Findings are based on analyses of an exploratory, semi-structured interview (n = 40) and a structured personal network interview (n = 240) with randomly selected homeless youth in Los Angeles. Previous social network studies of risky sex by homeless youth have collected limited social network data from non-random samples and have not distinguished sex partner influences from other network influences. The present analyses have identified significant associations with unprotected sex at multiple levels, including individual, partner, and, to a lesser extent, the social network. Analyses also distinguished between youth who did or did not want to use condoms when they had unprotected sex. Implications for social network based HIV risk interventions with homeless youth are discussed.

Unprotected Sex of Homeless Youth: Results from a Multilevel Analysis of Individual, Social Network, and Relationship Factors

PubMed Central

Kennedy, David P.; Tucker, Joan S.; Green, Harold D.; Golinelli, Daniela; Ewing, Brett

2012-01-01

Homeless youth have elevated risk of HIV through sexual behavior. This project investigates the multiple levels of influence on unprotected sex among homeless youth, including social network, individual, and partner level influences. Findings are based on analyses of an exploratory, semi-structured interview (n=40) and a structured personal network interview (n=240) with randomly selected homeless youth in Los Angeles. Previous social network studies of risky sex by homeless youth have collected limited social network data from non-random samples and have not distinguished sex partner influences from other network influences. The present analyses have identified significant associations with unprotected sex at multiple levels, including individual, partner, and, to a lesser extent, the social network. Analyses also distinguished between youth who wished they used condoms after having unprotected sex and youth who did not regret having unprotected sex. Implications for social network based HIV risk interventions with homeless youth are discussed. PMID:22610421

System Safety in an IT Service Organization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parsons, Mike; Scutt, Simon

Within Logica UK, over 30 IT service projects are considered safetyrelated. These include operational IT services for airports, railway infrastructure asset management, nationwide radiation monitoring and hospital medical records services. A recent internal audit examined the processes and documents used to manage system safety on these services and made a series of recommendations for improvement. This paper looks at the changes and the challenges to introducing them, especially where the service is provided by multiple units supporting both safety and non-safety related services from multiple locations around the world. The recommendations include improvements to service agreements, improved process definitions, routine safety assessment of changes, enhanced call logging, improved staff competency and training, and increased safety awareness. Progress is reported as of today, together with a road map for implementation of the improvements to the service safety management system. A proposal for service assurance levels (SALs) is discussed as a way forward to cover the wide variety of services and associated safety risks.

Evaluating a collaborative IT based research and development project.

PubMed

Khan, Zaheer; Ludlow, David; Caceres, Santiago

2013-10-01

In common with all projects, evaluating an Information Technology (IT) based research and development project is necessary in order to discover whether or not the outcomes of the project are successful. However, evaluating large-scale collaborative projects is especially difficult as: (i) stakeholders from different countries are involved who, almost inevitably, have diverse technological and/or application domain backgrounds and objectives; (ii) multiple and sometimes conflicting application specific and user-defined requirements exist; and (iii) multiple and often conflicting technological research and development objectives are apparent. In this paper, we share our experiences based on the large-scale integrated research project - The HUMBOLDT project - with project duration of 54 months, involving contributions from 27 partner organisations, plus 4 sub-contractors from 14 different European countries. In the HUMBOLDT project, a specific evaluation methodology was defined and utilised for the user evaluation of the project outcomes. The user evaluation performed on the HUMBOLDT Framework and its associated nine application scenarios from various application domains, resulted in not only an evaluation of the integrated project, but also revealed the benefits and disadvantages of the evaluation methodology. This paper presents the evaluation methodology, discusses in detail the process of applying it to the HUMBOLDT project and provides an in-depth analysis of the results, which can be usefully applied to other collaborative research projects in a variety of domains. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

GEMS Project: A Platform to Investigate Multiple Sclerosis Risk

PubMed Central

Xia, Zongqi; White, Charles C.; Owen, Emily K.; Von Korff, Alina; Clarkson, Sarah R.; McCabe, Cristin A.; Cimpean, Maria; Winn, Phoebe A.; Hoesing, Ashley; Steele, Sonya U.; Cortese, Irene C. M.; Chitnis, Tanuja; Weiner, Howard L.; Reich, Daniel S.; Chibnik, Lori B.; De Jager, Philip L.

2015-01-01

The Genes and Environment in Multiple Sclerosis (GEMS) project establishes a platform to investigate the events leading to MS in at-risk individuals. It has recruited 2,632 first-degree relatives from across the USA. Using an integrated genetic and environmental risk score, we identified subjects with twice the MS risk when compared to the average family member, and we report an initial incidence rate in these subjects that is 30 times greater than that of sporadic MS. We discuss the feasibility of large-scale studies of asymptomatic at-risk subjects that leverage modern tools of subject recruitment to execute collaborative projects. PMID:26583565

The Application of Neutron and X-Ray Techniques to Analyze Works of Art: Examples from The Unvarnished Truth Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

MacDonald, Brandi Lee

2017-01-01

When considered as an object, a painting consists of multiple components that, when analyzed together, have a unique story to tell about the artist, their practice, and the history of the work of art. Techniques traditionally applied in physics, including neutron-, x-radiographic and near-infrared imaging, and surface elemental analysis via x-ray fluorescence, are useful for generating significant insight into works of art. By examining the supporting material, grounds, pigments, and varnishes that a painter chose to utilize, we generate new knowledge regarding the composition, context, and decision-making involved in the creation of a work. The project `The Unvarnished Truth: exploring the material history of paintings' is an interdisciplinary initiative that incorporated the expertise of forensic art historians, conservation scientists, physicists, and biomedical engineers. Through the technical analysis of nine paintings from the McMaster Museum of Art permanent collection, we explored research questions related to painting technique, attribution, authenticity, connoisseurship, and object condition and stability. The paintings span over 500 years of European art history, and include works from Vincent Van Gogh, Alexander Rodchenko, and A. van der Neer. This project highlights the multitude of ways in which micro- and non-destructive methods can be used to answer art historical questions. This project is supported by grants from Canadian Heritage and Ontario Arts Council.

Uncovering a Salt Giant. Deep-Sea Record of Mediterranean Messinian Events (DREAM) multi-phase drilling project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Camerlenghi, Angelo; Aoisi, Vanni; Lofi, Johanna; Hübscher, Christian; deLange, Gert; Flecker, Rachel; Garcia-Castellanos, Daniel; Gorini, Christian; Gvirtzman, Zohar; Krijgsman, Wout; Lugli, Stefano; Makowsky, Yizhaq; Manzi, Vinicio; McGenity, Terry; Panieri, Giuliana; Rabineau, Marina; Roveri, Marco; Sierro, Francisco Javier; Waldmann, Nicolas

2014-05-01

In May 2013, the DREAM MagellanPlus Workshop was held in Brisighella (Italy). The initiative builds from recent activities by various research groups to identify potential sites to perform deep-sea scientific drilling in the Mediterranean Sea across the deep Messinian Salinity Crisis (MSC) sedimentary record. In this workshop three generations of scientists were gathered: those who participated in formulation of the deep desiccated model, through DSDP Leg 13 drilling in 1973; those who are actively involved in present-day MSC research; and the next generation (PhD students and young post-docs). The purpose of the workshop was to identify locations for multiple-site drilling (including riser-drilling) in the Mediterranean Sea that would contribute to solve the several open questions still existing about the causes, processes, timing and consequences at local and planetary scale of an outstanding case of natural environmental change in the recent Earth history: the Messinian Salinity Crisis in the Mediterranean Sea. The product of the workshop is the identification of the structure of an experimental design of site characterization, riser-less and riser drilling, sampling, measurements, and down-hole analyses that will be the core for at least one compelling and feasible multiple phase drilling proposal. Particular focus has been given to reviewing seismic site survey data available from different research groups at pan-Mediterranean basin scale, to the assessment of additional site survey activity including 3D seismics, and to ways of establishing firm links with oil and gas industry. The scientific community behind the DREAM initiative is willing to proceed with the submission to IODP of a Multi-phase Drilling Project including several drilling proposals addressing specific drilling objectives, all linked to the driving objectives of the MSC drilling and understanding . A series of critical drilling targets were identified to address the still open questions related to the MSC event. Several proposal ideas also emerged to support the Multi-phase drilling project concept: Salt tectonics and fluids, Deep stratigraphic and crustal drilling in the Gulf of Lion (deriving from the GOLD drilling project), Deep stratigraphic and crustal drilling in the Ionian Sea, Deep Biosphere, Sapropels, and the Red Sea. A second MagellanPlus workshop held in January 2014 in Paris (France), has proceeded a step further towards the drafting of the Multi-phase Drilling Project and a set of pre-proposals for submission to IODP.

Design of 8-ft-Diameter Barrel Test Article Attachment Rings for Shell Buckling Knockdown Factor Project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lovejoy, Andrew E.; Hilburger, Mark W.

2010-01-01

The Shell Buckling Knockdown Factor (SBKF) project includes the testing of sub-scale cylinders to validate new shell buckling knockdown factors for use in the design of the Ares-I and Ares-V launch vehicles. Test article cylinders represent various barrel segments of the Ares-I and Ares-V vehicles, and also include checkout test articles. Testing will be conducted at Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) for test articles having an eight-foot diameter outer mold line (OML) and having lengths that range from three to ten feet long. Both ends of the test articles will be connected to the test apparatus using attachment rings. Three multiple-piece and one single-piece design for the attachment rings were developed and analyzed. The single-piece design was chosen and will be fabricated from either steel or aluminum (Al) depending on the required safety factors (SF) for test hardware. This report summarizes the design and analysis of these attachment ring concepts.

PlantCV v2: Image analysis software for high-throughput plant phenotyping

PubMed Central

Abbasi, Arash; Berry, Jeffrey C.; Callen, Steven T.; Chavez, Leonardo; Doust, Andrew N.; Feldman, Max J.; Gilbert, Kerrigan B.; Hodge, John G.; Hoyer, J. Steen; Lin, Andy; Liu, Suxing; Lizárraga, César; Lorence, Argelia; Miller, Michael; Platon, Eric; Tessman, Monica; Sax, Tony

2017-01-01

Systems for collecting image data in conjunction with computer vision techniques are a powerful tool for increasing the temporal resolution at which plant phenotypes can be measured non-destructively. Computational tools that are flexible and extendable are needed to address the diversity of plant phenotyping problems. We previously described the Plant Computer Vision (PlantCV) software package, which is an image processing toolkit for plant phenotyping analysis. The goal of the PlantCV project is to develop a set of modular, reusable, and repurposable tools for plant image analysis that are open-source and community-developed. Here we present the details and rationale for major developments in the second major release of PlantCV. In addition to overall improvements in the organization of the PlantCV project, new functionality includes a set of new image processing and normalization tools, support for analyzing images that include multiple plants, leaf segmentation, landmark identification tools for morphometrics, and modules for machine learning. PMID:29209576

PlantCV v2: Image analysis software for high-throughput plant phenotyping.

PubMed

Gehan, Malia A; Fahlgren, Noah; Abbasi, Arash; Berry, Jeffrey C; Callen, Steven T; Chavez, Leonardo; Doust, Andrew N; Feldman, Max J; Gilbert, Kerrigan B; Hodge, John G; Hoyer, J Steen; Lin, Andy; Liu, Suxing; Lizárraga, César; Lorence, Argelia; Miller, Michael; Platon, Eric; Tessman, Monica; Sax, Tony

2017-01-01

Systems for collecting image data in conjunction with computer vision techniques are a powerful tool for increasing the temporal resolution at which plant phenotypes can be measured non-destructively. Computational tools that are flexible and extendable are needed to address the diversity of plant phenotyping problems. We previously described the Plant Computer Vision (PlantCV) software package, which is an image processing toolkit for plant phenotyping analysis. The goal of the PlantCV project is to develop a set of modular, reusable, and repurposable tools for plant image analysis that are open-source and community-developed. Here we present the details and rationale for major developments in the second major release of PlantCV. In addition to overall improvements in the organization of the PlantCV project, new functionality includes a set of new image processing and normalization tools, support for analyzing images that include multiple plants, leaf segmentation, landmark identification tools for morphometrics, and modules for machine learning.

Data distribution satellite

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Price, Kent M.; Jorasch, Ronald E.; Wiskerchen, Michael J.

1991-01-01

A description is given of a data distribution satellite (DDS) system. The DDS would operate in conjunction with the tracking and data relay satellite system to give ground-based users real time, two-way access to instruments in space and space-gathered data. The scope of work includes the following: (1) user requirements are derived; (2) communication scenarios are synthesized; (3) system design constraints and projected technology availability are identified; (4) DDS communications payload configuration is derived, and the satellite is designed; (5) requirements for earth terminals and network control are given; (6) system costs are estimated, both life cycle costs and user fees; and (7) technology developments are recommended, and a technology development plan is given. The most important results obtained are as follows: (1) a satellite designed for launch in 2007 is feasible and has 10 Gb/s capacity, 5.5 kW power, and 2000 kg mass; (2) DDS features include on-board baseband switching, use of Ku- and Ka-bands, multiple optical intersatellite links; and (3) system user costs are competitive with projected terrestrial communication costs.

PlantCV v2: Image analysis software for high-throughput plant phenotyping

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

Gehan, Malia A.; Fahlgren, Noah; Abbasi, Arash

Systems for collecting image data in conjunction with computer vision techniques are a powerful tool for increasing the temporal resolution at which plant phenotypes can be measured non-destructively. Computational tools that are flexible and extendable are needed to address the diversity of plant phenotyping problems. We previously described the Plant Computer Vision (PlantCV) software package, which is an image processing toolkit for plant phenotyping analysis. The goal of the PlantCV project is to develop a set of modular, reusable, and repurposable tools for plant image analysis that are open-source and community-developed. Here in this paper we present the details andmore » rationale for major developments in the second major release of PlantCV. In addition to overall improvements in the organization of the PlantCV project, new functionality includes a set of new image processing and normalization tools, support for analyzing images that include multiple plants, leaf segmentation, landmark identification tools for morphometrics, and modules for machine learning.« less

Status of a Power Processor for the Prometheus-1 Electric Propulsion System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pinero, Luis R.; Hill, Gerald M.; Aulisio, Michael; Gerber, Scott; Griebeler, Elmer; Hewitt, Frank; Scina, Joseph

2006-01-01

NASA is developing technologies for nuclear electric propulsion for proposed deep space missions in support of the Exploration initiative under Project Prometheus. Electrical power produced by the combination of a fission-based power source and a Brayton power conversion and distribution system is used by a high specific impulse ion propulsion system to propel the spaceship. The ion propulsion system include the thruster, power processor and propellant feed system. A power processor technology development effort was initiated under Project Prometheus to develop high performance and lightweight power-processing technologies suitable for the application. This effort faces multiple challenges including developing radiation hardened power modules and converters with very high power capability and efficiency to minimize the impact on the power conversion and distribution system as well as the heat rejection system. This paper documents the design and test results of the first version of the beam supply, the design of a second version of the beam supply and the design and test results of the ancillary supplies.

PlantCV v2: Image analysis software for high-throughput plant phenotyping

DOE PAGES

Gehan, Malia A.; Fahlgren, Noah; Abbasi, Arash; ...

2017-12-01

Systems for collecting image data in conjunction with computer vision techniques are a powerful tool for increasing the temporal resolution at which plant phenotypes can be measured non-destructively. Computational tools that are flexible and extendable are needed to address the diversity of plant phenotyping problems. We previously described the Plant Computer Vision (PlantCV) software package, which is an image processing toolkit for plant phenotyping analysis. The goal of the PlantCV project is to develop a set of modular, reusable, and repurposable tools for plant image analysis that are open-source and community-developed. Here in this paper we present the details andmore » rationale for major developments in the second major release of PlantCV. In addition to overall improvements in the organization of the PlantCV project, new functionality includes a set of new image processing and normalization tools, support for analyzing images that include multiple plants, leaf segmentation, landmark identification tools for morphometrics, and modules for machine learning.« less

Multiple Wheel Throwing: And Chess Sets.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sapiro, Maurice

1978-01-01

A chess set project is suggested to teach multiple throwing, the creation on a potter's wheel of several pieces of similar configuration. Processes and finished sets are illustrated with photographs. (SJL)

Multiple source associated particle imaging for simultaneous capture of multiple projections

DOEpatents

Bingham, Philip R; Hausladen, Paul A; McConchi, Seth M; Mihalczo, John T; Mullens, James A

2013-11-19

Disclosed herein are representative embodiments of methods, apparatus, and systems for performing neutron radiography. For example, in one exemplary method, an object is interrogated with a plurality of neutrons. The plurality of neutrons includes a first portion of neutrons generated from a first neutron source and a second portion of neutrons generated from a second neutron source. Further, at least some of the first portion and the second portion are generated during a same time period. In the exemplary method, one or more neutrons from the first portion and one or more neutrons from the second portion are detected, and an image of the object is generated based at least in part on the detected neutrons from the first portion and the detected neutrons from the second portion.

Challenges and strategies for implementing genomic services in diverse settings: experiences from the Implementing GeNomics In pracTicE (IGNITE) network.

PubMed

Sperber, Nina R; Carpenter, Janet S; Cavallari, Larisa H; J Damschroder, Laura; Cooper-DeHoff, Rhonda M; Denny, Joshua C; Ginsburg, Geoffrey S; Guan, Yue; Horowitz, Carol R; Levy, Kenneth D; Levy, Mia A; Madden, Ebony B; Matheny, Michael E; Pollin, Toni I; Pratt, Victoria M; Rosenman, Marc; Voils, Corrine I; W Weitzel, Kristen; Wilke, Russell A; Ryanne Wu, R; Orlando, Lori A

2017-05-22

To realize potential public health benefits from genetic and genomic innovations, understanding how best to implement the innovations into clinical care is important. The objective of this study was to synthesize data on challenges identified by six diverse projects that are part of a National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI)-funded network focused on implementing genomics into practice and strategies to overcome these challenges. We used a multiple-case study approach with each project considered as a case and qualitative methods to elicit and describe themes related to implementation challenges and strategies. We describe challenges and strategies in an implementation framework and typology to enable consistent definitions and cross-case comparisons. Strategies were linked to challenges based on expert review and shared themes. Three challenges were identified by all six projects, and strategies to address these challenges varied across the projects. One common challenge was to increase the relative priority of integrating genomics within the health system electronic health record (EHR). Four projects used data warehousing techniques to accomplish the integration. The second common challenge was to strengthen clinicians' knowledge and beliefs about genomic medicine. To overcome this challenge, all projects developed educational materials and conducted meetings and outreach focused on genomic education for clinicians. The third challenge was engaging patients in the genomic medicine projects. Strategies to overcome this challenge included use of mass media to spread the word, actively involving patients in implementation (e.g., a patient advisory board), and preparing patients to be active participants in their healthcare decisions. This is the first collaborative evaluation focusing on the description of genomic medicine innovations implemented in multiple real-world clinical settings. Findings suggest that strategies to facilitate integration of genomic data within existing EHRs and educate stakeholders about the value of genomic services are considered important for effective implementation. Future work could build on these findings to evaluate which strategies are optimal under what conditions. This information will be useful for guiding translation of discoveries to clinical care, which, in turn, can provide data to inform continual improvement of genomic innovations and their applications.

Comparing approaches for using climate projections in assessing water resources investments for systems with multiple stakeholder groups

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hurford, Anthony; Harou, Julien

2015-04-01

Climate change has challenged conventional methods of planning water resources infrastructure investment, relying on stationarity of time-series data. It is not clear how to best use projections of future climatic conditions. Many-objective simulation-optimisation and trade-off analysis using evolutionary algorithms has been proposed as an approach to addressing complex planning problems with multiple conflicting objectives. The search for promising assets and policies can be carried out across a range of climate projections, to identify the configurations of infrastructure investment shown by model simulation to be robust under diverse future conditions. Climate projections can be used in different ways within a simulation model to represent the range of possible future conditions and understand how optimal investments vary according to the different hydrological conditions. We compare two approaches, optimising over an ensemble of different 20-year flow and PET timeseries projections, and separately for individual future scenarios built synthetically from the original ensemble. Comparing trade-off curves and surfaces generated by the two approaches helps understand the limits and benefits of optimising under different sets of conditions. The comparison is made for the Tana Basin in Kenya, where climate change combined with multiple conflicting objectives of water management and infrastructure investment mean decision-making is particularly challenging.

Case studies of transportation investment to identify the impacts on the local and state economy.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2013-01-01

This project provides case studies of the impact of transportation investments on local economies. We use multiple : approaches to measure impacts since the effects of transportation projects can vary according to the size of a : project and the size...

Measuring the impact of complete streets projects : preliminary field testing : final report.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2016-12-01

This report describes a field study that sought to assess the impact of Complete Streets (CS) projects in Buffalo, NY. Multiple data collection tools were deployed to capture a diversity of impacts on 8 street corridors where CS projects have been im...

Putting Stories in Motion

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rhoades, Mindi

2012-01-01

A very successful preschool project the author did at Ohio State University's Schoenbaum Family Center combined students' interest in storytelling, drama, and multiple literacies. For this particular project, a classic children's fairy tale was used, though the project is easily adaptable for other stories, texts, content, and age levels. In this…

Capturing the multiple benefits associated with nature-based solutions: lessons from natural flood management project in the Cotswolds, UK

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Short, Chrisopher; Clarke, Lucy; Uttley, Chris; Smith, Brian

2017-04-01

Following severe flooding in 2007, and subsequent smaller flood events, a decision was taken in 2012 to explore nature-based solutions in 250km2 river catchment in the southern Cotswolds in the UK. A major tributary within the catchment has been designated as rapid response; with a primarily limestone geology limestone and a mixture of spring and surface drained sources along a number of tributaries feeding in the river, with one main population centre where the water bodies converge. The project involves landscape and land management interventions aimed at attenuating high flows to reduce flood risk through changes in land management practices in both agriculture and forestry and slowing peak flows in surface flows through increased infiltration and attenuation areas. After three years of the project it is clear that the threshold for effectiveness requires the majority of the upstream catchment area to be implementing these measures. However, the cost effectiveness of the approach seems to be substantial compared to traditional hard-engineering approaches. The level of community involvement, including local flood forums, is high and the social, and natural, capital has been enhanced through the project. Early results suggest that there have been localized improvements in water quality and biodiversity as well as a reduction in peak flow but such changes are difficult to directly associate to the project. What is clear is the role of communities, landowners and partners to implement natural flood management on a catchment wide scale. In this sense the project has adopted a co-management or adaptive management approach which brings together the knowledges of hydrologists, ecologists, farmers, woodland owners and the local community to implement locally be-spoke solutions within a broader project framework. This paper will outline the initial findings and the governance structure that has assisted in the early success of the project within a theoretical framework of co-management and suggest how this type of framework is suitable for a range of nature-based solutions across Europe. However, the challenge remains of capturing the multiple-benefits that such projects offer as these are often missed through conventional approaches such as cost-benefit analysis and some reflections on this will also be presented along with a potential way forward.

Generic and Automated Data Evaluation in Analytical Measurement.

PubMed

Adam, Martin; Fleischer, Heidi; Thurow, Kerstin

2017-04-01

In the past year, automation has become more and more important in the field of elemental and structural chemical analysis to reduce the high degree of manual operation and processing time as well as human errors. Thus, a high number of data points are generated, which requires fast and automated data evaluation. To handle the preprocessed export data from different analytical devices with software from various vendors offering a standardized solution without any programming knowledge should be preferred. In modern laboratories, multiple users will use this software on multiple personal computers with different operating systems (e.g., Windows, Macintosh, Linux). Also, mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets have gained growing importance. The developed software, Project Analytical Data Evaluation (ADE), is implemented as a web application. To transmit the preevaluated data from the device software to the Project ADE, the exported XML report files are detected and the included data are imported into the entities database using the Data Upload software. Different calculation types of a sample within one measurement series (e.g., method validation) are identified using information tags inside the sample name. The results are presented in tables and diagrams on different information levels (general, detailed for one analyte or sample).

The SCALE-UP Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Beichner, Robert

2015-03-01

The Student Centered Active Learning Environment with Upside-down Pedagogies (SCALE-UP) project was developed nearly 20 years ago as an economical way to provide collaborative, interactive instruction even for large enrollment classes. Nearly all research-based pedagogies have been designed with fairly high faculty-student ratios. The economics of introductory courses at large universities often precludes that situation, so SCALE-UP was created as a way to facilitate highly collaborative active learning with large numbers of students served by only a few faculty and assistants. It enables those students to learn and succeed not only in acquiring content, but also to practice important 21st century skills like problem solving, communication, and teamsmanship. The approach was initially targeted at undergraduate science and engineering students taking introductory physics courses in large enrollment sections. It has since expanded to multiple content areas, including chemistry, math, engineering, biology, business, nursing, and even the humanities. Class sizes range from 24 to over 600. Data collected from multiple sites around the world indicates highly successful implementation at more than 250 institutions. NSF support was critical for initial development and dissemination efforts. Generously supported by NSF (9752313, 9981107) and FIPSE (P116B971905, P116B000659).

Renewable Energy Opportunities at the Kanto Installations, Japan

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

Solana, Amy E.; Horner, Jacob A.; Russo, Bryan J.

2010-09-24

This document provides an overview of renewable resource development potential at the U.S. Army installations in the Kanto region in Japan, which includes Camp Zama, Yokohama North Dock, Sagamihara Family Housing Area (SFHA), Sagami General Depot, and Akasaka Press Center. This effort focuses on grid-connected generation of electricity from renewable energy sources and also on ground source heat pumps for heating and cooling buildings. The effort was funded by the Huntsville Army Corps of Engineers, and includes the development of a methodology for renewable resource assessment at Army installations located on foreign soil. The methodology is documented in Renewable Energymore » Assessment Methodology for Japanese OCONUS Army Installations. The site visit to the Kanto installations took place on April 5 and 6, 2010. At the current time, there are some renewable technologies that show economic potential. Because of siting restrictions and the small size of these installations, development of most renewable energy technologies will likely be limited to Camp Zama. Project feasibility is based on installation-specific resource availability and energy costs and projections based on accepted life-cycle cost methods. Development of any renewable energy project will be challenging, as it will require investigation into existing contractual obligations, new contracts that could be developed, the legality of certain partnerships, and available financing avenues, which involves the U.S. Forces Japan (USFJ), the Government of Japan (GOJ), and a number of other parties on both sides. The Army will not be able to implement a project without involvement and approval from the other services and multiple levels of Japanese government. However, implementation of renewable energy projects could be an attractive method for GOJ to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and lower annual utility payments to USFJ. This report recommends projects to pursue and offers approaches to use. The most promising opportunities include waste-to-energy and ground source heat pumps. Solar photovoltaics (PV) may also prove successful. Other resources were found to be insufficient on the Kanto installations.« less

AIDS Community Demonstration Projects for HIV prevention among hard-to-reach groups.

PubMed Central

O'Reilly, K R; Higgins, D L

1991-01-01

The AIDS Community Demonstration Projects are multicenter prevention projects directing community-based interventions to members of hard-to-reach groups at risk of infection from human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), which causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). The projects are supported by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Interventions are derived from theories of behavior change and have as their goal reducing HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases in the communities. The current objectives, intentionally narrow to improve the project's specificity and clarity, are to increase the use of condoms in sexual activity and the use of bleach to clean injecting drug equipment. Additional objectives may be added. The impact of the interventions is seen in increases in the use of HIV counseling and testing services, decreases in all or specific sexual and drug-use risk behaviors, and requests for related social and public health services. A quasi-experimental research design is being used to evaluate the projects. Multiple evaluation measures are used, including a street-based interview with randomly identified respondents in both intervention and control communities. Success in facilitating HIV and AIDS risk reduction is being measured using a model of behavior change describing stages of change. Upon successful completion of these projects in 1994, CDC may be able to offer models of effective, feasible, and easy-to-monitor State and local health departments and community-based organizations. PMID:1659721

EnviroAtlas - Ecosystem Service Market and Project Areas, U.S., 2015, Forest Trends' Ecosystem Marketplace

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

This EnviroAtlas dataset contains polygons depicting the geographic areas of market-based programs, referred to herein as markets, and projects addressing ecosystem services protection in the United States. Depending upon the type of market or project and data availability, polygons reflect market coverage areas, project footprints, or project primary impact areas in which ecosystem service markets and projects operate. The data were collected via surveys and desk research conducted by Forest Trends' Ecosystem Marketplace from 2008 to 2016 on biodiversity (i.e., imperiled species/habitats; wetlands and streams), carbon, and water markets. Additional biodiversity data were obtained from the Regulatory In-lieu Fee and Bank Information Tracking System (RIBITS) database in 2015. Attribute data include information regarding the methodology, design, and development of biodiversity, carbon, and water markets and projects. This dataset was produced by Forest Trends' Ecosystem Marketplace for EnviroAtlas in order to support public access to and use of information related to environmental markets. EnviroAtlas (https://www.epa.gov/enviroatlas) allows the user to interact with a web-based, easy-to-use, mapping application to view and analyze multiple ecosystem services for the contiguous United States. The dataset is available as downloadable data (https://edg.epa.gov/data/Public/ORD/EnviroAtlas) or as an EnviroAtlas map service. Additional descriptive information about thi

Development of Team Action Projects in Surgery (TAPS): a multilevel team-based approach to teaching quality improvement.

PubMed

Waits, Seth A; Reames, Bradley N; Krell, Robert W; Bryner, Benjamin; Shih, Terry; Obi, Andrea T; Henke, Peter K; Minter, Rebecca M; Englesbe, Michael J; Wong, Sandra L

2014-01-01

To meet the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education core competency in Practice-Based Learning and Improvement, educational curricula need to address training in quality improvement (QI). We sought to establish a program to train residents in the principles of QI and to provide practical experiences in developing and implementing improvement projects. We present a novel approach for engaging students, residents, and faculty in QI efforts-Team Action Projects in Surgery (TAPS). Large academic medical center and health system. Multiple teams consisting of undergraduate students, medical students, surgery residents, and surgery faculty were assembled and QI projects developed. Using "managing to learn" Lean principles, these multilevel groups approached each project with robust data collection, development of an A3, and implementation of QI activities. A total of 5 resident led QI projects were developed during the TAPS pilot phase. These included a living kidney donor enhanced recovery protocol, consult improvement process, venous thromboembolism prophylaxis optimization, Clostridium difficile treatment standardization, and understanding variation in operative duration of laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Qualitative and quantitative assessment showed significant value for both the learner and stakeholders of QI related projects. Through the development of TAPS, we demonstrate a novel approach to addressing the increasing focus on QI within graduate medical education. Efforts to expand this multilevel team based approach would have value for teachers and learners alike. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Report for the NGFA-5 project.

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

Jaing, C; Jackson, P; Thissen, J

The objective of this project is to provide DHS a comprehensive evaluation of the current genomic technologies including genotyping, TaqMan PCR, multiple locus variable tandem repeat analysis (MLVA), microarray and high-throughput DNA sequencing in the analysis of biothreat agents from complex environmental samples. To effectively compare the sensitivity and specificity of the different genomic technologies, we used SNP TaqMan PCR, MLVA, microarray and high-throughput illumine and 454 sequencing to test various strains from B. anthracis, B. thuringiensis, BioWatch aerosol filter extracts or soil samples that were spiked with B. anthracis, and samples that were previously collected during DHS and EPAmore » environmental release exercises that were known to contain B. thuringiensis spores. The results of all the samples against the various assays are discussed in this report.« less

A near miss: the importance of context in a public health informatics project in a New Zealand case study.

PubMed

Wells, Stewart; Bullen, Chris

2008-01-01

This article describes the near failure of an information technology (IT) system designed to support a government-funded, primary care-based hepatitis B screening program in New Zealand. Qualitative methods were used to collect data and construct an explanatory model. Multiple incorrect assumptions were made about participants, primary care workflows and IT capacity, software vendor user knowledge, and the health IT infrastructure. Political factors delayed system development and it was implemented untested, almost failing. An intensive rescue strategy included system modifications, relaxation of data validity rules, close engagement with software vendors, and provision of intensive on-site user support. This case study demonstrates that consideration of the social, political, technological, and health care contexts is important for successful implementation of public health informatics projects.

Principles of metadata organization at the ENCODE data coordination center

PubMed Central

Hong, Eurie L.; Sloan, Cricket A.; Chan, Esther T.; Davidson, Jean M.; Malladi, Venkat S.; Strattan, J. Seth; Hitz, Benjamin C.; Gabdank, Idan; Narayanan, Aditi K.; Ho, Marcus; Lee, Brian T.; Rowe, Laurence D.; Dreszer, Timothy R.; Roe, Greg R.; Podduturi, Nikhil R.; Tanaka, Forrest; Hilton, Jason A.; Cherry, J. Michael

2016-01-01

The Encyclopedia of DNA Elements (ENCODE) Data Coordinating Center (DCC) is responsible for organizing, describing and providing access to the diverse data generated by the ENCODE project. The description of these data, known as metadata, includes the biological sample used as input, the protocols and assays performed on these samples, the data files generated from the results and the computational methods used to analyze the data. Here, we outline the principles and philosophy used to define the ENCODE metadata in order to create a metadata standard that can be applied to diverse assays and multiple genomic projects. In addition, we present how the data are validated and used by the ENCODE DCC in creating the ENCODE Portal (https://www.encodeproject.org/). Database URL: www.encodeproject.org PMID:26980513

Michrohole Arrays Drilled with Advanced Abrasive Slurry Jet Technology to Efficiently Exploit Enhanced Geothermal Systems

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

Oglesby, Kenneth; Finsterle, Stefan; Zhang, Yingqi

2014-03-12

This project had two major areas of research for Engineered/ Enhanced Geothermal System (EGS) development - 1) study the potential benefits from using microholes (i.e., bores with diameters less than 10.16 centimeters/ 4 inches) and 2) study FLASH ASJ to drill/ install those microbores between a well and a fracture system. This included the methods and benefits of drilling vertical microholes for exploring the EGS reservoir and for installing multiple (forming an array of) laterals/ directional microholes for creating the in-reservoir heat exchange flow paths. Significant benefit was found in utilizing small microbore sized connecting bores for EGS efficiency andmore » project life. FLASH ASJ was deemed too complicated to optimally work in such deep reservoirs at this time.« less

a Virtual Trip to the Schwarzschild-De Sitter Black Hole

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bakala, Pavel; Hledík, Stanislav; Stuchlík, Zdenĕk; Truparová, Kamila; Čermák, Petr

2008-09-01

We developed realistic fully general relativistic computer code for simulation of optical projection in a strong, spherically symmetric gravitational field. Standard theoretical analysis of optical projection for an observer in the vicinity of a Schwarzschild black hole is extended to black hole spacetimes with a repulsive cosmological constant, i.e, Schwarzschild-de Sitter (SdS) spacetimes. Influence of the cosmological constant is investigated for static observers and observers radially free-falling from static radius. Simulation includes effects of gravitational lensing, multiple images, Doppler and gravitational frequency shift, as well as the amplification of intensity. The code generates images of static observers sky and a movie simulations for radially free-falling observers. Techniques of parallel programming are applied to get high performance and fast run of the simulation code.

Modeling the Volcanic Source at Long Valley, CA, Using a Genetic Algorithm Technique

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tiampo, Kristy F.

1999-01-01

In this project, we attempted to model the deformation pattern due to the magmatic source at Long Valley caldera using a real-value coded genetic algorithm (GA) inversion similar to that found in Michalewicz, 1992. The project has been both successful and rewarding. The genetic algorithm, coded in the C programming language, performs stable inversions over repeated trials, with varying initial and boundary conditions. The original model used a GA in which the geophysical information was coded into the fitness function through the computation of surface displacements for a Mogi point source in an elastic half-space. The program was designed to invert for a spherical magmatic source - its depth, horizontal location and volume - using the known surface deformations. It also included the capability of inverting for multiple sources.

Adaptive Flight Control Research at NASA

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Motter, Mark A.

2008-01-01

A broad overview of current adaptive flight control research efforts at NASA is presented, as well as some more detailed discussion of selected specific approaches. The stated objective of the Integrated Resilient Aircraft Control Project, one of NASA s Aviation Safety programs, is to advance the state-of-the-art of adaptive controls as a design option to provide enhanced stability and maneuverability margins for safe landing in the presence of adverse conditions such as actuator or sensor failures. Under this project, a number of adaptive control approaches are being pursued, including neural networks and multiple models. Validation of all the adaptive control approaches will use not only traditional methods such as simulation, wind tunnel testing and manned flight tests, but will be augmented with recently developed capabilities in unmanned flight testing.

The Mesaba Energy Project: Clean Coal Power Initiative, Round 2

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

Stone, Richard; Gray, Gordon; Evans, Robert

2014-07-31

The Mesaba Energy Project is a nominal 600 MW integrated gasification combine cycle power project located in Northeastern Minnesota. It was selected to receive financial assistance pursuant to code of federal regulations (?CFR?) 10 CFR 600 through a competitive solicitation under Round 2 of the Department of Energy?s Clean Coal Power Initiative, which had two stated goals: (1) to demonstrate advanced coal-based technologies that can be commercialized at electric utility scale, and (2) to accelerate the likelihood of deploying demonstrated technologies for widespread commercial use in the electric power sector. The Project was selected in 2004 to receive a totalmore » of $36 million. The DOE portion that was equally cost shared in Budget Period 1 amounted to about $22.5 million. Budget Period 1 activities focused on the Project Definition Phase and included: project development, preliminary engineering, environmental permitting, regulatory approvals and financing to reach financial close and start of construction. The Project is based on ConocoPhillips? E-Gas? Technology and is designed to be fuel flexible with the ability to process sub-bituminous coal, a blend of sub-bituminous coal and petroleum coke and Illinois # 6 bituminous coal. Major objectives include the establishment of a reference plant design for Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle (?IGCC?) technology featuring advanced full slurry quench, multiple train gasification, integration of the air separation unit, and the demonstration of 90% operational availability and improved thermal efficiency relative to previous demonstration projects. In addition, the Project would demonstrate substantial environmental benefits, as compared with conventional technology, through dramatically lower emissions of sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, volatile organic compounds, carbon monoxide, particulate matter and mercury. Major milestones achieved in support of fulfilling the above goals include obtaining Site, High Voltage Transmission Line Route, and Natural Gas Pipeline Route Permits for a Large Electric Power Generating Plant to be located in Taconite, Minnesota. In addition, major pre-construction permit applications have been filed requesting authorization for the Project to i) appropriate water sufficient to accommodate its worst case needs, ii) operate a major stationary source in compliance with regulations established to protect public health and welfare, and iii) physically alter the geographical setting to accommodate its construction. As of the current date, the Water Appropriation Permits have been obtained.« less

Structural investigation of the Grenville Province by radar and other imaging and nonimaging sensors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lowman, P. D., Jr.; Blodget, H. W.; Webster, W. J., Jr.; Paia, S.; Singhroy, V. H.; Slaney, V. R.

1984-01-01

The structural investigation of the Canadian Shield by orbital radar and LANDSAT, is outlined. The area includes parts of the central metasedimentary belt and the Ontario gneiss belt, and major structures as well-expressed topographically. The primary objective is to apply SIR-B data to the mapping of this key part of the Grenville orogen, specifically ductile fold structures and associated features, and igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rock (including glacial and recent sediments). Secondary objectives are to support the Canadian RADARSAT project by evaluating the baseline parameters of a Canadian imaging radar satellite planned for late in the decade. The baseline parameters include optimum incidence and azimuth angles. The experiment is to develop techniques for the use of multiple data sets.

Development and Implementation of a Surveillance Network System for Emerging Infectious Diseases in the Caribbean (ARICABA).

PubMed

Kim, Wongyu Lewis; Anneducharme, Chelsea; Bucher, Bernard Jean-Marie Philippe

2011-01-01

Dengue fever, including dengue hemorrhagic fever, has become a re-emerging public health threat in the Caribbean in the absence of a comprehensive regional surveillance system. In this deficiency, a project entitled ARICABA, strives to implement a pilot surveillance system across three islands: Martinique, St. Lucia, and Dominica. The aim of this project is to establish a network for epidemiological surveillance of infectious diseases, utilizing information and communication technology. This paper describes the system design and development strategies of a "network of networks" surveillance system for infectious diseases in the Caribbean. Also described are benefits, challenges, and limitations of this approach across the three island nations identified through direct observation, open-ended interviews, and email communications with an on-site IT consultant, key informants, and the project director. Identified core systems design of the ARICABA data warehouse include a disease monitoring system and a syndromic surveillance system. Three components comprise the development strategy: the data warehouse server, the geographical information system, and forecasting algorithms; these are recognized technical priorities of the surveillance system. A main benefit of the ARICABA surveillance system is improving responsiveness and representativeness of existing health systems through automated data collection, process, and transmission of information from various sources. Challenges include overcoming technology gaps between countries; real-time data collection points; multiple language support; and "component-oriented" development approaches.

Development of Ground Reference GIS for Assessing Land Cover Maps of Northeast Yellowstone National Park

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spruce, Joe; Warner, Amanda; Terrie, Greg; Davis, Bruce

2001-01-01

GIS technology and ground reference data often play vital roles in assessing land cover maps derived from remotely sensed data. This poster illustrates these roles, using results from a study done in Northeast Yellowstone National Park. This area holds many forest, range, and wetland cover types of interest to park managers. Several recent studies have focused on this locale, including the NASA Earth Observations Commercial Applications Program (EOCAP) hyperspectral project performed by Yellowstone Ecosystems Studies (YES) on riparian and in-stream habitat mapping. This poster regards a spin-off to the EOCAP project in which YES and NASA's Earth Science Applications Directorate explored the potential for synergistic use of hyperspecral, synthetic aperture radar, and multiband thermal imagery in mapping land cover types. The project included development of a ground reference GIS for site-specific data needed to evaluate maps from remotely sensed imagery. Field survey data included reflectance of plant communities, native and exotic plant species, and forest health conditions. Researchers also collected GPS points, annotated aerial photographs, and took hand held photographs of reference sites. The use of ESRI, ERDAS, and ENVI software enabled reference data entry into a GIS for comparision to georeferenced imagery and thematic maps. The GIS-based ground reference data layers supported development and assessment of multiple maps from remotely sensed data sets acquired over the study area.

Scientific, Social, and Institutional Constraints Facing Coastal Restoration in Louisiana

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kleiss, B.; Shabman, L. A.; Brown, G.

2017-12-01

Due to multiple stressors, including subsidence, accelerated sea level rise, canal construction, tropical storm damages, and basin-wide river management decisions, southern Louisiana is experiencing some of the world's highest rates of coastal land loss. Although ideas abound, the solutions proposed to mitigate for land loss are often uncertain, complex, expensive, and difficult. There are significant scientific uncertainties associated with fundamental processes including the spatial distribution of rates of subsidence, the anticipated impacts of increased inundation on marsh plant species and questions about the resilience of engineered solutions. Socially and politically, there is the need to balance navigation, flood risk management and environmental restoration with the fact that the land involved is largely privately owned and includes many communities and towns. And layered within this, there are federal and state regulatory constraints which seek to follow a myriad of existing State and Federal laws, protect the benefits realized from previous federal investments, and balance the conflicting interests of a large number of stakeholders. Additionally, current practice when implementing some environmental regulations is to assess impacts against the baseline of current conditions, not projected future, non-project conditions, making it difficult to receive a permit for projects which may have a short-term detriment, but hope for a long-term benefit. The resolution (or lack thereof) of these issues will serve to inform similar future struggles in other low lying coastal areas around the globe.

The role of parental warmth and hostility on adolescents' prosocial behavior toward multiple targets.

PubMed

Padilla-Walker, Laura M; Nielson, Matthew G; Day, Randal D

2016-04-01

The current study examined the influence that parental warmth/support and verbal hostility had on adolescents' prosocial behavior toward multiple targets (stranger, friend, family) using multiple reporters (self, parent, observations). Data were taken from Times 2 and 3 of a longitudinal project and included 500 adolescents and their parents (M age of child at Time 2 = 12.34). Structural equation models suggested that mother warmth was associated with prosocial behavior toward family, while father warmth was associated with prosocial behavior toward friends. Findings also suggested that adolescents' prosocial behavior was more consistently influenced by father hostility than it was by father warmth. Finally, observational reports of father hostility were associated with adolescent prosocial behavior more consistently than self- or child-reported parenting. The discussion focuses on the importance of considering target of prosocial behavior, the differences between mothers and fathers, and the role of self-reports compared to observations. (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Self-Healing Gelatin Hydrogels Cross-Linked by Combining Multiple Hydrogen Bonding and Ionic Coordination.

PubMed

Zhang, Guangzhao; Lv, Lei; Deng, Yonghong; Wang, Chaoyang

2017-06-01

Self-healing hydrogels have been studied by many researchers via multiple cross-linking approaches including physical and chemical interactions. It is an interesting project in multifunctional hydrogel exploration that a water soluble polymer matrix is cross-linked by combining the ionic coordination and the multiple hydrogen bonds to fabricate self-healing hydrogels with injectable property. This study introduces a general procedure of preparing the hydrogels (termed gelatin-UPy-Fe) cross-linked by both ionic coordination of Fe 3+ and carboxyl group from the gelatin and the quadruple hydrogen bonding interaction from the ureido-pyrimidinone (UPy) dimers. The gelatin-UPy-Fe hydrogels possess an excellent self-healing property. The effects of the ionic coordination of Fe 3+ and quadruple hydrogen bonding of UPy on the formation and mechanical behavior of the prepared hydrogels are investigated. In vitro drug release of the gelatin-UPy-Fe hydrogels is also observed, giving an intriguing glimpse into possible biological applications. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.