Superordinate Level Processing Has Priority Over Basic-Level Processing in Scene Gist Recognition

PubMed Central

Sun, Qi; Zheng, Yang; Sun, Mingxia; Zheng, Yuanjie

2016-01-01

By combining a perceptual discrimination task and a visuospatial working memory task, the present study examined the effects of visuospatial working memory load on the hierarchical processing of scene gist. In the perceptual discrimination task, two scene images from the same (manmade–manmade pairing or natural–natural pairing) or different superordinate level categories (manmade–natural pairing) were presented simultaneously, and participants were asked to judge whether these two images belonged to the same basic-level category (e.g., street–street pairing) or not (e.g., street–highway pairing). In the concurrent working memory task, spatial load (position-based load in Experiment 1) and object load (figure-based load in Experiment 2) were manipulated. The results were as follows: (a) spatial load and object load have stronger effects on discrimination of same basic-level scene pairing than same superordinate level scene pairing; (b) spatial load has a larger impact on the discrimination of scene pairings at early stages than at later stages; on the contrary, object information has a larger influence on at later stages than at early stages. It followed that superordinate level processing has priority over basic-level processing in scene gist recognition and spatial information contributes to the earlier and object information to the later stages in scene gist recognition. PMID:28382195

Validation and Comprehension of Text Information: Two Sides of the Same Coin

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Richter, Tobias

2015-01-01

In psychological research, the comprehension of linguistic information and the knowledge-based assessment of its validity are often regarded as two separate stages of information processing. Recent findings in psycholinguistics and text comprehension research call this two-stage model into question. In particular, validation can affect…

This person is saying bad things about you: The influence of physically and socially threatening context information on the processing of inherently neutral faces.

PubMed

Klein, Fabian; Iffland, Benjamin; Schindler, Sebastian; Wabnitz, Pascal; Neuner, Frank

2015-12-01

Recent studies have shown that the perceptual processing of human faces is affected by context information, such as previous experiences and information about the person represented by the face. The present study investigated the impact of verbally presented information about the person that varied with respect to affect (neutral, physically threatening, socially threatening) and reference (self-referred, other-referred) on the processing of faces with an inherently neutral expression. Stimuli were presented in a randomized presentation paradigm. Event-related potential (ERP) analysis demonstrated a modulation of the evoked potentials by reference at the EPN (early posterior negativity) and LPP (late positive potential) stage and an enhancing effect of affective valence on the LPP (700-1000 ms) with socially threatening context information leading to the most pronounced LPP amplitudes. We also found an interaction between reference and valence with self-related neutral context information leading to more pronounced LPP than other related neutral context information. Our results indicate an impact of self-reference on early, presumably automatic processing stages and also a strong impact of valence on later stages. Using a randomized presentation paradigm, this study confirms that context information affects the visual processing of faces, ruling out possible confounding factors such as facial configuration or conditional learning effects.

The methodology of database design in organization management systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chudinov, I. L.; Osipova, V. V.; Bobrova, Y. V.

2017-01-01

The paper describes the unified methodology of database design for management information systems. Designing the conceptual information model for the domain area is the most important and labor-intensive stage in database design. Basing on the proposed integrated approach to design, the conceptual information model, the main principles of developing the relation databases are provided and user’s information needs are considered. According to the methodology, the process of designing the conceptual information model includes three basic stages, which are defined in detail. Finally, the article describes the process of performing the results of analyzing user’s information needs and the rationale for use of classifiers.

30 CFR 551.11 - Submission, inspection, and selection of geological data and information collected under a permit...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

..., or interpretation of any geological data and information. Initial analysis and processing are the stages of analysis or processing where the data and information first become available for in-house... geochemical) data and information describing each operation of analysis, processing, and interpretation; (2...

30 CFR 580.40 - When do I notify BOEM that geological data and information are available for submission...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... initial analysis, processing, or interpretation of any geological data and information. Initial analysis and processing are the stages of analysis or processing where the data and information first become... information are available for submission, inspection, and selection? 580.40 Section 580.40 Mineral Resources...

30 CFR 551.11 - Submission, inspection, and selection of geological data and information collected under a permit...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

..., or interpretation of any geological data and information. Initial analysis and processing are the stages of analysis or processing where the data and information first become available for in-house... geochemical) data and information describing each operation of analysis, processing, and interpretation; (2...

30 CFR 580.40 - When do I notify BOEM that geological data and information are available for submission...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... initial analysis, processing, or interpretation of any geological data and information. Initial analysis and processing are the stages of analysis or processing where the data and information first become... information are available for submission, inspection, and selection? 580.40 Section 580.40 Mineral Resources...

30 CFR 551.11 - Submission, inspection, and selection of geological data and information collected under a permit...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

..., or interpretation of any geological data and information. Initial analysis and processing are the stages of analysis or processing where the data and information first become available for in-house... geochemical) data and information describing each operation of analysis, processing, and interpretation; (2...

30 CFR 580.40 - When do I notify BOEM that geological data and information are available for submission...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... initial analysis, processing, or interpretation of any geological data and information. Initial analysis and processing are the stages of analysis or processing where the data and information first become... information are available for submission, inspection, and selection? 580.40 Section 580.40 Mineral Resources...

30 CFR 280.40 - When do I notify MMS that geological data and information are available for submission...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... complete the initial analysis, processing, or interpretation of any geological data and information. Initial analysis and processing are the stages of analysis or processing where the data and information... information are available for submission, inspection, and selection? 280.40 Section 280.40 Mineral Resources...

30 CFR 251.12 - Submission, inspection, and selection of geophysical data and information collected under a...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... information, and interpreted geophysical information including, but not limited to, shallow and deep subbottom...) You must notify the Regional Director, in writing, when you complete the initial processing and interpretation of any geophysical data and information. Initial processing is the stage of processing where the...

Relationship between early and late stages of information processing: an event-related potential study

PubMed Central

Portella, Claudio; Machado, Sergio; Arias-Carrión, Oscar; Sack, Alexander T.; Silva, Julio Guilherme; Orsini, Marco; Leite, Marco Antonio Araujo; Silva, Adriana Cardoso; Nardi, Antonio E.; Cagy, Mauricio; Piedade, Roberto; Ribeiro, Pedro

2012-01-01

The brain is capable of elaborating and executing different stages of information processing. However, exactly how these stages are processed in the brain remains largely unknown. This study aimed to analyze the possible correlation between early and late stages of information processing by assessing the latency to, and amplitude of, early and late event-related potential (ERP) components, including P200, N200, premotor potential (PMP) and P300, in healthy participants in the context of a visual oddball paradigm. We found a moderate positive correlation among the latency of P200 (electrode O2), N200 (electrode O2), PMP (electrode C3), P300 (electrode PZ) and the reaction time (RT). In addition, moderate negative correlation between the amplitude of P200 and the latencies of N200 (electrode O2), PMP (electrode C3), P300 (electrode PZ) was found. Therefore, we propose that if the secondary processing of visual input (P200 latency) occurs faster, the following will also happen sooner: discrimination and classification process of this input (N200 latency), motor response processing (PMP latency), reorganization of attention and working memory update (P300 latency), and RT. N200, PMP, and P300 latencies are also anticipated when higher activation level of occipital areas involved in the secondary processing of visual input rise (P200 amplitude). PMID:23355929

Emotional and movement-related body postures modulate visual processing

PubMed Central

Borhani, Khatereh; Làdavas, Elisabetta; Maier, Martin E.; Avenanti, Alessio

2015-01-01

Human body postures convey useful information for understanding others’ emotions and intentions. To investigate at which stage of visual processing emotional and movement-related information conveyed by bodies is discriminated, we examined event-related potentials elicited by laterally presented images of bodies with static postures and implied-motion body images with neutral, fearful or happy expressions. At the early stage of visual structural encoding (N190), we found a difference in the sensitivity of the two hemispheres to observed body postures. Specifically, the right hemisphere showed a N190 modulation both for the motion content (i.e. all the observed postures implying body movements elicited greater N190 amplitudes compared with static postures) and for the emotional content (i.e. fearful postures elicited the largest N190 amplitude), while the left hemisphere showed a modulation only for the motion content. In contrast, at a later stage of perceptual representation, reflecting selective attention to salient stimuli, an increased early posterior negativity was observed for fearful stimuli in both hemispheres, suggesting an enhanced processing of motivationally relevant stimuli. The observed modulations, both at the early stage of structural encoding and at the later processing stage, suggest the existence of a specialized perceptual mechanism tuned to emotion- and action-related information conveyed by human body postures. PMID:25556213

Stream specificity and asymmetries in feature binding and content-addressable access in visual encoding and memory.

PubMed

Huynh, Duong L; Tripathy, Srimant P; Bedell, Harold E; Ögmen, Haluk

2015-01-01

Human memory is content addressable-i.e., contents of the memory can be accessed using partial information about the bound features of a stored item. In this study, we used a cross-feature cuing technique to examine how the human visual system encodes, binds, and retains information about multiple stimulus features within a set of moving objects. We sought to characterize the roles of three different features (position, color, and direction of motion, the latter two of which are processed preferentially within the ventral and dorsal visual streams, respectively) in the construction and maintenance of object representations. We investigated the extent to which these features are bound together across the following processing stages: during stimulus encoding, sensory (iconic) memory, and visual short-term memory. Whereas all features examined here can serve as cues for addressing content, their effectiveness shows asymmetries and varies according to cue-report pairings and the stage of information processing and storage. Position-based indexing theories predict that position should be more effective as a cue compared to other features. While we found a privileged role for position as a cue at the stimulus-encoding stage, position was not the privileged cue at the sensory and visual short-term memory stages. Instead, the pattern that emerged from our findings is one that mirrors the parallel processing streams in the visual system. This stream-specific binding and cuing effectiveness manifests itself in all three stages of information processing examined here. Finally, we find that the Leaky Flask model proposed in our previous study is applicable to all three features.

30 CFR 280.40 - When do I notify MMS that geological data and information are available for submission...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

..., processing, or interpretation of any geological data and information. Initial analysis and processing are the stages of analysis or processing where the data and information first become available for in-house... information are available for submission, inspection, and selection? 280.40 Section 280.40 Mineral Resources...

Information in general medical practices: the information processing model.

PubMed

Crowe, Sarah; Tully, Mary P; Cantrill, Judith A

2010-04-01

The need for effective communication and handling of secondary care information in general practices is paramount. To explore practice processes on receiving secondary care correspondence in a way that integrates the information needs and perceptions of practice staff both clinical and administrative. Qualitative study using semi-structured interviews with a wide range of practice staff (n = 36) in nine practices in the Northwest of England. Analysis was based on the framework approach using N-Vivo software and involved transcription, familiarization, coding, charting, mapping and interpretation. The 'information processing model' was developed to describe the six stages involved in practice processing of secondary care information. These included the amendment or updating of practice records whilst simultaneously or separately actioning secondary care recommendations, using either a 'one-step' or 'two-step' approach, respectively. Many factors were found to influence each stage and impact on the continuum of patient care. The primary purpose of processing secondary care information is to support patient care; this study raises the profile of information flow and usage within practices as an issue requiring further consideration.

Evaluation of a webquest on the theme "management of material resources in nursing" by undergraduate students.

PubMed

Pereira, Marta Cristiane Alves; Melo, Márcia Regina Antonietto da Costa; Silva, Adriana Serafim Bispo E; Evora, Yolanda Dora Martinez

2010-01-01

The learning process mediated by information and communication technology has considerable importance in the current context. This study describes the evaluation of a WebQuest on the theme "Management of Material Resources in Nursing". It was developed in three stages: Stage 1 consisted of its pedagogical aspect, that is, elaboration and definition of content; Stage 2 involved the organization of content, inclusion of images and completion; Stage 3 corresponded to its availability to students. Results confirm the importance of information technology and information as instruments for a mediating teaching practice in the integration between valid knowledge and the complex and dynamic reality of health services. As a result of the students' favorable evaluation of the approximation with the reality of nursing work and satisfaction for performing the activity successfully, the WebQuest method was considered valid and innovating for the teaching-learning process.

Configuration of management accounting information system for multi-stage manufacturing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mkrtychev, S. V.; Ochepovsky, A. V.; Enik, O. A.

2018-05-01

The article presents an approach to configuration of a management accounting information system (MAIS) that provides automated calculations and the registration of normative production losses in multi-stage manufacturing. The use of MAIS with the proposed configuration at the enterprises of textile and woodworking industries made it possible to increase the accuracy of calculations for normative production losses and to organize accounting thereof with the reference to individual stages of the technological process. Thus, high efficiency of multi-stage manufacturing control is achieved.

Marketing an Information Service: A Case Study of the OECS Economic Affairs Secretariat Documentation Centre.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Evan-Wong, Sue; de Freitas, Claudette

1995-01-01

Presents a methodology for marketing an information service which focuses on including information users in the strategic marketing planning process. Identifies the following stages of a marketing planning process: analysis of the environment, information audit, information needs assessment, market opportunity analysis, tactical marketing program,…

Spontaneous Gender Categorization in Masking and Priming Studies: Key for Distinguishing Jane from John Doe but Not Madonna from Sinatra

PubMed Central

Habibi, Ruth; Khurana, Beena

2012-01-01

Facial recognition is key to social interaction, however with unfamiliar faces only generic information, in the form of facial stereotypes such as gender and age is available. Therefore is generic information more prominent in unfamiliar versus familiar face processing? In order to address the question we tapped into two relatively disparate stages of face processing. At the early stages of encoding, we employed perceptual masking to reveal that only perception of unfamiliar face targets is affected by the gender of the facial masks. At the semantic end; using a priming paradigm, we found that while to-be-ignored unfamiliar faces prime lexical decisions to gender congruent stereotypic words, familiar faces do not. Our findings indicate that gender is a more salient dimension in unfamiliar relative to familiar face processing, both in early perceptual stages as well as later semantic stages of person construal. PMID:22389697

Forced guidance and distribution of practice in sequential information processing.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Decker, L. R.; Rogers, C. A., Jr.

1973-01-01

Distribution of practice and forced guidance were used in a sequential information-processing task in an attempt to increase the capacity of human information-processing mechanisms. A reaction time index of the psychological refractory period was used as the response measure. Massing of practice lengthened response times while forced guidance shortened them. Interpretation was in terms of load reduction upon the response-selection stage of the information-processing system.-

Neural correlates of audiovisual integration in music reading.

PubMed

Nichols, Emily S; Grahn, Jessica A

2016-10-01

Integration of auditory and visual information is important to both language and music. In the linguistic domain, audiovisual integration alters event-related potentials (ERPs) at early stages of processing (the mismatch negativity (MMN)) as well as later stages (P300(Andres et al., 2011)). However, the role of experience in audiovisual integration is unclear, as reading experience is generally confounded with developmental stage. Here we tested whether audiovisual integration of music appears similar to reading, and how musical experience altered integration. We compared brain responses in musicians and non-musicians on an auditory pitch-interval oddball task that evoked the MMN and P300, while manipulating whether visual pitch-interval information was congruent or incongruent with the auditory information. We predicted that the MMN and P300 would be largest when both auditory and visual stimuli deviated, because audiovisual integration would increase the neural response when the deviants were congruent. The results indicated that scalp topography differed between musicians and non-musicians for both the MMN and P300 response to deviants. Interestingly, musicians' musical training modulated integration of congruent deviants at both early and late stages of processing. We propose that early in the processing stream, visual information may guide interpretation of auditory information, leading to a larger MMN when auditory and visual information mismatch. At later attentional stages, integration of the auditory and visual stimuli leads to a larger P300 amplitude. Thus, experience with musical visual notation shapes the way the brain integrates abstract sound-symbol pairings, suggesting that musicians can indeed inform us about the role of experience in audiovisual integration. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Electrophysiological correlates reflect the integration of model-based and model-free decision information.

PubMed

Eppinger, Ben; Walter, Maik; Li, Shu-Chen

2017-04-01

In this study, we investigated the interplay of habitual (model-free) and goal-directed (model-based) decision processes by using a two-stage Markov decision task in combination with event-related potentials (ERPs) and computational modeling. To manipulate the demands on model-based decision making, we applied two experimental conditions with different probabilities of transitioning from the first to the second stage of the task. As we expected, when the stage transitions were more predictable, participants showed greater model-based (planning) behavior. Consistent with this result, we found that stimulus-evoked parietal (P300) activity at the second stage of the task increased with the predictability of the state transitions. However, the parietal activity also reflected model-free information about the expected values of the stimuli, indicating that at this stage of the task both types of information are integrated to guide decision making. Outcome-related ERP components only reflected reward-related processes: Specifically, a medial prefrontal ERP component (the feedback-related negativity) was sensitive to negative outcomes, whereas a component that is elicited by reward (the feedback-related positivity) increased as a function of positive prediction errors. Taken together, our data indicate that stimulus-locked parietal activity reflects the integration of model-based and model-free information during decision making, whereas feedback-related medial prefrontal signals primarily reflect reward-related decision processes.

Environmental impact of mushroom compost production.

PubMed

Leiva, Francisco; Saenz-Díez, Juan-Carlos; Martínez, Eduardo; Jiménez, Emilio; Blanco, Julio

2016-09-01

This research analyses the environmental impact of the creation of Agaricus bisporus compost packages. The composting process is the intermediate stage of the mushroom production process, subsequent to the mycelium cultivation stage and prior to the fruiting bodies cultivation stage. A full life cycle assessment model of the Agaricus bisporus composting process has been developed through the identification and analysis of the inputs-outputs and energy consumption of the activities involved in the production process. The study has been developed based on data collected from a plant during a 1 year campaign, thereby obtaining accurate information used to analyse the environmental impact of the process. A global analysis of the main stages of the process shows that the process that has the greatest impact in most categories is the compost batch preparation process. This is due to an increased consumption of energy resources by the machinery that mixes the raw materials to create the batch. At the composting process inside the tunnel stage, the activity that has the greatest impact in almost all categories studied is the initial stage of composting. This is due to higher energy consumption during the process compared to the other stages. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry.

Young Children's Use of Features to Reorient Is More than Just Associative: Further Evidence against a Modular View of Spatial Processing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Newcombe, Nora S.; Ratliff, Kristin R.; Shallcross, Wendy L.; Twyman, Alexandra D.

2010-01-01

Proponents of a geometric module have argued that instances of young children's use of features as well as geometry to reorient can be explained by a two-stage process. In this model, only the first stage is a true reorientation, accomplished by using geometric information alone; features are considered in a second stage using association (Lee,…

Evaluating the Role of Attention in the Context of Unconscious Thought Theory: Differential Impact of Attentional Scope and Load on Preference and Memory

PubMed Central

Srinivasan, Narayanan; Mukherjee, Sumitava; Mishra, Maruti V.; Kesarwani, Smriti

2013-01-01

Attention is a key process used to conceptualize and define modes of thought, but we lack information about the role of specific attentional processes on preferential choice and memory in multi-attribute decision making. In this study, we examine the role of attention based on two dimensions, attentional scope and load on choice preference strength and memory using a paradigm that arguably elicits unconscious thought. Scope of attention was manipulated by using global or local processing during distraction (Experiment 1) and before the information-encoding stage (Experiment 2). Load was manipulated by using the n-back task in Experiment 1. Results from Experiment 1 show that global processing or distributed attention during distraction results in stronger preference irrespective of load but better memory only at low cognitive load. Task difficulty or load did not have any effect on preference or memory. In Experiment 2, distributed attention before attribute encoding facilitated only memory but did not influence preference. Results show that attentional processes at different stages of processing like distraction and information-encoding influence decision making processes. Scope of attention not only influences preference and memory but the manner in which attentional scope influences them depends on both load and stage of information processing. The results indicate the important role of attention in processes critical for decision making and calls for a re-evaluation of the unconscious thought theory (UTT) and the need for reconceptualizing the role of attention. PMID:23382726

Evaluating the role of attention in the context of unconscious thought theory: differential impact of attentional scope and load on preference and memory.

PubMed

Srinivasan, Narayanan; Mukherjee, Sumitava; Mishra, Maruti V; Kesarwani, Smriti

2013-01-01

Attention is a key process used to conceptualize and define modes of thought, but we lack information about the role of specific attentional processes on preferential choice and memory in multi-attribute decision making. In this study, we examine the role of attention based on two dimensions, attentional scope and load on choice preference strength and memory using a paradigm that arguably elicits unconscious thought. Scope of attention was manipulated by using global or local processing during distraction (Experiment 1) and before the information-encoding stage (Experiment 2). Load was manipulated by using the n-back task in Experiment 1. Results from Experiment 1 show that global processing or distributed attention during distraction results in stronger preference irrespective of load but better memory only at low cognitive load. Task difficulty or load did not have any effect on preference or memory. In Experiment 2, distributed attention before attribute encoding facilitated only memory but did not influence preference. Results show that attentional processes at different stages of processing like distraction and information-encoding influence decision making processes. Scope of attention not only influences preference and memory but the manner in which attentional scope influences them depends on both load and stage of information processing. The results indicate the important role of attention in processes critical for decision making and calls for a re-evaluation of the unconscious thought theory (UTT) and the need for reconceptualizing the role of attention.

Understanding Language: An Information-Processing Analysis of Speech Perception, Reading, and Psycholinguistics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Massaro, Dominic W., Ed.

In an information-processing approach to language processing, language processing is viewed as a sequence of psychological stages that occur between the initial presentation of the language stimulus and the meaning in the mind of the language processor. This book defines each of the processes and structures involved, explains how each of them…

Two-stage, dilute sulfuric acid hydrolysis of wood : an investigation of fundamentals

Treesearch

John F. Harris; Andrew J. Baker; Anthony H. Conner; Thomas W. Jeffries; James L. Minor; Roger C. Pettersen; Ralph W. Scott; Edward L Springer; Theodore H. Wegner; John I. Zerbe

1985-01-01

This paper presents a fundamental analysis of the processing steps in the production of methanol from southern red oak (Quercus falcata Michx.) by two-stage dilute sulfuric acid hydrolysis. Data for hemicellulose and cellulose hydrolysis are correlated using models. This information is used to develop and evaluate a process design.

Predicting forest successional stages using mutitemporal Landsat imagery with forest inventory and analysis data

Treesearch

Weiguo Liu; Conghe Song; Todd A. Schroeder; Warren B. Cohen

2008-01-01

Forest succession is an important ecological process that has profound biophysical, biological and biogeochemical implications in terrestrial ecosystems. Therefore, information on forest successional stages over an extensive forested landscape is crucial for us to understand ecosystem processes, such as carbon assimilation and energy interception. This study explored...

Automated Extraction and Classification of Cancer Stage Mentions fromUnstructured Text Fields in a Central Cancer Registry

PubMed Central

AAlAbdulsalam, Abdulrahman K.; Garvin, Jennifer H.; Redd, Andrew; Carter, Marjorie E.; Sweeny, Carol; Meystre, Stephane M.

2018-01-01

Cancer stage is one of the most important prognostic parameters in most cancer subtypes. The American Joint Com-mittee on Cancer (AJCC) specifies criteria for staging each cancer type based on tumor characteristics (T), lymph node involvement (N), and tumor metastasis (M) known as TNM staging system. Information related to cancer stage is typically recorded in clinical narrative text notes and other informal means of communication in the Electronic Health Record (EHR). As a result, human chart-abstractors (known as certified tumor registrars) have to search through volu-minous amounts of text to extract accurate stage information and resolve discordance between different data sources. This study proposes novel applications of natural language processing and machine learning to automatically extract and classify TNM stage mentions from records at the Utah Cancer Registry. Our results indicate that TNM stages can be extracted and classified automatically with high accuracy (extraction sensitivity: 95.5%–98.4% and classification sensitivity: 83.5%–87%). PMID:29888032

Automated Extraction and Classification of Cancer Stage Mentions fromUnstructured Text Fields in a Central Cancer Registry.

PubMed

AAlAbdulsalam, Abdulrahman K; Garvin, Jennifer H; Redd, Andrew; Carter, Marjorie E; Sweeny, Carol; Meystre, Stephane M

2018-01-01

Cancer stage is one of the most important prognostic parameters in most cancer subtypes. The American Joint Com-mittee on Cancer (AJCC) specifies criteria for staging each cancer type based on tumor characteristics (T), lymph node involvement (N), and tumor metastasis (M) known as TNM staging system. Information related to cancer stage is typically recorded in clinical narrative text notes and other informal means of communication in the Electronic Health Record (EHR). As a result, human chart-abstractors (known as certified tumor registrars) have to search through volu-minous amounts of text to extract accurate stage information and resolve discordance between different data sources. This study proposes novel applications of natural language processing and machine learning to automatically extract and classify TNM stage mentions from records at the Utah Cancer Registry. Our results indicate that TNM stages can be extracted and classified automatically with high accuracy (extraction sensitivity: 95.5%-98.4% and classification sensitivity: 83.5%-87%).

Symmetrical and Asymmetrical Interactions between Facial Expressions and Gender Information in Face Perception.

PubMed

Liu, Chengwei; Liu, Ying; Iqbal, Zahida; Li, Wenhui; Lv, Bo; Jiang, Zhongqing

2017-01-01

To investigate the interaction between facial expressions and facial gender information during face perception, the present study matched the intensities of the two types of information in face images and then adopted the orthogonal condition of the Garner Paradigm to present the images to participants who were required to judge the gender and expression of the faces; the gender and expression presentations were varied orthogonally. Gender and expression processing displayed a mutual interaction. On the one hand, the judgment of angry expressions occurred faster when presented with male facial images; on the other hand, the classification of the female gender occurred faster when presented with a happy facial expression than when presented with an angry facial expression. According to the evoked-related potential results, the expression classification was influenced by gender during the face structural processing stage (as indexed by N170), which indicates the promotion or interference of facial gender with the coding of facial expression features. However, gender processing was affected by facial expressions in more stages, including the early (P1) and late (LPC) stages of perceptual processing, reflecting that emotional expression influences gender processing mainly by directing attention.

Motivation within the Information Processing Model of Foreign Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Manolopoulou-Sergi, Eleni

2004-01-01

The present article highlights the importance of the motivational construct for the foreign language learning (FLL) process. More specifically, in the present article it is argued that motivation is likely to play a significant role at all three stages of the FLL process as they are discussed within the information processing model of FLL, namely,…

Criteria used by nurses to evaluate practice-related information on the World Wide Web.

PubMed

Cader, Raffik; Campbell, Steve; Watson, Don

2003-01-01

Existing criteria used to evaluate information on the World Wide Web often are not related to nursing, especially in relation to clinical and evidence-based practice. Published criteria have been found orientated to the health-consumer, medicine, or general information. In this study, the process by which nurses evaluate practice-related information and the associated evaluative nursing criteria were investigated using a grounded theory approach. In the first stage of this ongoing investigation, semistructured interviews were used to collect data from UK postregistration nursing students. The findings from this initial study provided indications of the process and the criteria for evaluating information on the World Wide Web. Participating students identified intuition as part of the evaluative process. They identified some criteria similar to existing standards, but critically, with additional criteria that are nursing practice related. Because these new criteria are significant for evaluating nursing information, further refinement of these findings is being undertaken through the next stage of the research program.

Impaired theta phase-resetting underlying auditory N1 suppression in chronic alcoholism.

PubMed

Fuentemilla, Lluis; Marco-Pallarés, Josep; Gual, Antoni; Escera, Carles; Polo, Maria Dolores; Grau, Carles

2009-02-18

It has been suggested that chronic alcoholism may lead to altered neural mechanisms related to inhibitory processes. Here, we studied auditory N1 suppression phenomena (i.e. amplitude reduction with repetitive stimuli) in chronic alcoholic patients as an early-stage information-processing brain function involving inhibition by the analysis of the N1 event-related potential and time-frequency computation (spectral power and phase-resetting). Our results showed enhanced neural theta oscillatory phase-resetting underlying N1 generation in suppressed N1 event-related potential. The present findings suggest that chronic alcoholism alters neural oscillatory synchrony dynamics at very early stages of information processing.

Nurses' Experiences of an Initial and Reimplemented Electronic Health Record Use.

PubMed

Chang, Chi-Ping; Lee, Ting-Ting; Liu, Chia-Hui; Mills, Mary Etta

2016-04-01

The electronic health record is a key component of healthcare information systems. Currently, numerous hospitals have adopted electronic health records to replace paper-based records to document care processes and improve care quality. Integrating healthcare information system into traditional nursing daily operations requires time and effort for nurses to become familiarized with this new technology. In the stages of electronic health record implementation, smooth adoption can streamline clinical nursing activities. In order to explore the adoption process, a descriptive qualitative study design and focus group interviews were conducted 3 months after and 2 years after electronic health record system implementation (system aborted 1 year in between) in one hospital located in southern Taiwan. Content analysis was performed to analyze the interview data, and six main themes were derived, in the first stage: (1) liability, work stress, and anticipation for electronic health record; (2) slow network speed, user-unfriendly design for learning process; (3) insufficient information technology/organization support; on the second stage: (4) getting used to electronic health record and further system requirements, (5) benefits of electronic health record in time saving and documentation, (6) unrealistic information technology competence expectation and future use. It concluded that user-friendly design and support by informatics technology and manpower backup would facilitate this adoption process as well.

Electrophysiological evidence for biased competition in V1 for fear expressions.

PubMed

West, Greg L; Anderson, Adam A K; Ferber, Susanne; Pratt, Jay

2011-11-01

When multiple stimuli are concurrently displayed in the visual field, they must compete for neural representation at the processing expense of their contemporaries. This biased competition is thought to begin as early as primary visual cortex, and can be driven by salient low-level stimulus features. Stimuli important for an organism's survival, such as facial expressions signaling environmental threat, might be similarly prioritized at this early stage of visual processing. In the present study, we used ERP recordings from striate cortex to examine whether fear expressions can bias the competition for neural representation at the earliest stage of retinotopic visuo-cortical processing when in direct competition with concurrently presented visual information of neutral valence. We found that within 50 msec after stimulus onset, information processing in primary visual cortex is biased in favor of perceptual representations of fear at the expense of competing visual information (Experiment 1). Additional experiments confirmed that the facial display's emotional content rather than low-level features is responsible for this prioritization in V1 (Experiment 2), and that this competition is reliant on a face's upright canonical orientation (Experiment 3). These results suggest that complex stimuli important for an organism's survival can indeed be prioritized at the earliest stage of cortical processing at the expense of competing information, with competition possibly beginning before encoding in V1.

Social Information Processing Mediates the Intergenerational Transmission of Aggressiveness in Romantic Relationships

PubMed Central

Fite, Jennifer E.; Bates, John E.; Holtzworth-Munroe, Amy; Dodge, Kenneth A.; Nay, Sandra Y.; Pettit, Gregory S.

2012-01-01

This study explored the K. A. Dodge (1986) model of social information processing as a mediator of the association between interparental relationship conflict and subsequent offspring romantic relationship conflict in young adulthood. The authors tested 4 social information processing stages (encoding, hostile attributions, generation of aggressive responses, and positive evaluation of aggressive responses) in separate models to explore their independent effects as potential mediators. There was no evidence of mediation for encoding and attributions. However, there was evidence of significant mediation for both the response generation and response evaluation stages of the model. Results suggest that the ability of offspring to generate varied social responses and effectively evaluate the potential outcome of their responses at least partially mediates the intergenerational transmission of relationship conflict. PMID:18540765

Tracking the first two seconds: three stages of visual information processing?

PubMed

Jacob, Jane; Breitmeyer, Bruno G; Treviño, Melissa

2013-12-01

We compared visual priming and comparison tasks to assess information processing of a stimulus during the first 2 s after its onset. In both tasks, a 13-ms prime was followed at varying SOAs by a 40-ms probe. In the priming task, observers identified the probe as rapidly and accurately as possible; in the comparison task, observers determined as rapidly and accurately as possible whether or not the probe and prime were identical. Priming effects attained a maximum at an SOA of 133 ms and then declined monotonically to zero by 700 ms, indicating reliance on relatively brief visuosensory (iconic) memory. In contrast, the comparison effects yielded a multiphasic function, showing a maximum at 0 ms followed by a minimum at 133 ms, followed in turn by a maximum at 240 ms and another minimum at 720 ms, and finally a third maximum at 1,200 ms before declining thereafter. The results indicate three stages of prime processing that we take to correspond to iconic visible persistence, iconic informational persistence, and visual working memory, with the first two used in the priming task and all three in the comparison task. These stages are related to stages presumed to underlie stimulus processing in other tasks, such as those giving rise to the attentional blink.

Assessment Methodology for Process Validation Lifecycle Stage 3A.

PubMed

Sayeed-Desta, Naheed; Pazhayattil, Ajay Babu; Collins, Jordan; Chen, Shu; Ingram, Marzena; Spes, Jana

2017-07-01

The paper introduces evaluation methodologies and associated statistical approaches for process validation lifecycle Stage 3A. The assessment tools proposed can be applied to newly developed and launched small molecule as well as bio-pharma products, where substantial process and product knowledge has been gathered. The following elements may be included in Stage 3A: number of 3A batch determination; evaluation of critical material attributes, critical process parameters, critical quality attributes; in vivo in vitro correlation; estimation of inherent process variability (IPV) and PaCS index; process capability and quality dashboard (PCQd); and enhanced control strategy. US FDA guidance on Process Validation: General Principles and Practices, January 2011 encourages applying previous credible experience with suitably similar products and processes. A complete Stage 3A evaluation is a valuable resource for product development and future risk mitigation of similar products and processes. Elements of 3A assessment were developed to address industry and regulatory guidance requirements. The conclusions made provide sufficient information to make a scientific and risk-based decision on product robustness.

Measuring information processing in a client with extreme agitation following traumatic brain injury using the Perceive, Recall, Plan and Perform System of Task Analysis.

PubMed

Nott, Melissa T; Chapparo, Christine

2008-09-01

Agitation following traumatic brain injury is characterised by a heightened state of activity with disorganised information processing that interferes with learning and achieving functional goals. This study aimed to identify information processing problems during task performance of a severely agitated adult using the Perceive, Recall, Plan and Perform (PRPP) System of Task Analysis. Second, this study aimed to examine the sensitivity of the PRPP System to changes in task performance over a short period of rehabilitation, and third, to evaluate the guidance provided by the PRPP in directing intervention. A case study research design was employed. The PRPP System of Task Analysis was used to assess changes in task embedded information processing capacity during occupational therapy intervention with a severely agitated adult in a rehabilitation context. Performance is assessed on three selected tasks over a one-month period. Information processing difficulties during task performance can be clearly identified when observing a severely agitated adult following a traumatic brain injury. Processing skills involving attention, sensory processing and planning were most affected at this stage of rehabilitation. These processing difficulties are linked to established descriptions of agitated behaviour. Fluctuations in performance across three tasks of differing processing complexity were evident, leading to hypothesised relationships between task complexity, environment and novelty with information processing errors. Changes in specific information processing capacity over time were evident based on repeated measures using the PRPP System of Task Analysis. This lends preliminary support for its utility as an outcome measure, and raises hypotheses about the type of therapy required to enhance information processing in people with severe agitation. The PRPP System is sensitive to information processing changes in severely agitated adults when used to reassess performance over short intervals and can provide direct guidance to occupational therapy intervention to improve task embedded information processing by categorising errors under four stages of an information processing model: Perceive, Recall, Plan and Perform.

Analysis of consumer behavior in decision making of purchasing ornamental freshwater fish (case of study at ornamental freshwater fish market at Peta Street, Bandung)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gumilar, I.; Rizal, A.; Sriati; Setiawan Putra, R.

2018-04-01

This research aim was to analyzed process of decision making of purchasing ornamental freshwater fish at Peta Street, Bandung City and Analyzed what factors are driving consumers to buy freshwater fish Peta Street. The method used in this research is case study with rating scale and rank spearman analysis. The sampling technique is the accidental random sampling method consist of 30 respondents. The consumer’s decision making process consist of five stages, namely the recognition of needs, information searching, alternative evaluation, process of purchasing, and the evaluation of results. The results showed that at the stage of recognition of needs the motivation of purchasing freshwater fish because respondents are very fond of ornamental freshwater fish, at the stage of information search, the information sources are from the print media and friends or neighborhood. At the stage of alternative evaluation, the reason consumers buy ornamental freshwater fish because the quality of good products. The stage of purchasing decision process consumers bought 1-5 fish with frequency of purchase 1 time per month. The evaluation of results of post-purchasing consumers feel very satisfied with the fish products and the price is very affordable. To observe the factors that influence purchasing motivation of consumers, spearman rank test is the method. The results showed that the quality and price of the product are the factors that most influence the purchase decision of ornamental freshwater fish with the range of student-t value 3,968 and 2,107.

Children With ADHD Show Impairments in Multiple Stages of Information Processing in a Stroop Task: An ERP Study.

PubMed

Kóbor, Andrea; Takács, Ádám; Bryce, Donna; Szűcs, Dénes; Honbolygó, Ferenc; Nagy, Péter; Csépe, Valéria

2015-01-01

This study investigated the role of impaired inhibitory control as a factor underlying attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Children with ADHD and typically developing children completed an animal Stroop task while electroencephalogram (EEG) was recorded. The lateralized readiness potential and event-related brain potentials associated with perceptual and conflict processing were analyzed. Children with ADHD were slower to give correct responses irrespective of congruency, and slower to prepare correct responses in the incongruent condition. This delay could result from enhanced effort allocation at earlier processing stages, indicated by differences in P1, N1, and conflict sustained potential. Results suggest multiple deficits in information processing rather than a specific response inhibition impairment.

JPRS Report, Science & Technology, Japan

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-11-10

stage of microbial culture and fermentation through the stage of product isolation and purification. The information is expected to become an...controlled so that a process can be manipulated normally and safely. For example, in a bioreactor process mainly involving fermentation , the author and his...10) Electron microscope (11) Jar fermenter Continuous centrifuge Examples of equipment used in cell fusion research (1) Autotable Heated vibrating

Information System Implementation: Benchmarking the Stages.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Calbos, Dennis P.

1984-01-01

The evolution of administrative data processing systems at the University of Georgia is summarized. Nolan's revised stage model was used as a framework to present the university's experience and relate it to the growing body of system implementation research. (Author/MLW)

Phases of learning: How skill acquisition impacts cognitive processing.

PubMed

Tenison, Caitlin; Fincham, Jon M; Anderson, John R

2016-06-01

This fMRI study examines the changes in participants' information processing as they repeatedly solve the same mathematical problem. We show that the majority of practice-related speedup is produced by discrete changes in cognitive processing. Because the points at which these changes take place vary from problem to problem, and the underlying information processing steps vary in duration, the existence of such discrete changes can be hard to detect. Using two converging approaches, we establish the existence of three learning phases. When solving a problem in one of these learning phases, participants can go through three cognitive stages: Encoding, Solving, and Responding. Each cognitive stage is associated with a unique brain signature. Using a bottom-up approach combining multi-voxel pattern analysis and hidden semi-Markov modeling, we identify the duration of that stage on any particular trial from participants brain activation patterns. For our top-down approach we developed an ACT-R model of these cognitive stages and simulated how they change over the course of learning. The Solving stage of the first learning phase is long and involves a sequence of arithmetic computations. Participants transition to the second learning phase when they can retrieve the answer, thereby drastically reducing the duration of the Solving stage. With continued practice, participants then transition to the third learning phase when they recognize the problem as a single unit and produce the answer as an automatic response. The duration of this third learning phase is dominated by the Responding stage. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Social-Emotional Correlates of Early Stage Social Information Processing Skills in Children With and Without Autism Spectrum Disorder.

PubMed

Russo-Ponsaran, Nicole M; McKown, Clark; Johnson, Jason K; Allen, Adelaide W; Evans-Smith, Bernadette; Fogg, Louis

2015-10-01

Difficulty processing social information is a defining feature of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Yet the failure of children with ASD to process social information effectively is poorly understood. Using Crick and Dodge's model of social information processing (SIP), this study examined the relationship between social-emotional (SE) skills of pragmatic language, theory of mind, and emotion recognition on the one hand, and early stage SIP skills of problem identification and goal generation on the other. The study included a sample of school-aged children with and without ASD. SIP was assessed using hypothetical social situations in the context of a semistructured scenario-based interview. Pragmatic language, theory of mind, and emotion recognition were measured using direct assessments. Social thinking differences between children with and without ASD are largely differences of quantity (overall lower performance in ASD), not discrepancies in cognitive processing patterns. These data support theoretical models of the relationship between SE skills and SIP. Findings have implications for understanding the mechanisms giving rise to SIP deficits in ASD and may ultimately inform treatment development for children with ASD. © 2015 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Utility-based early modulation of processing distracting stimulus information.

PubMed

Wendt, Mike; Luna-Rodriguez, Aquiles; Jacobsen, Thomas

2014-12-10

Humans are selective information processors who efficiently prevent goal-inappropriate stimulus information to gain control over their actions. Nonetheless, stimuli, which are both unnecessary for solving a current task and liable to cue an incorrect response (i.e., "distractors"), frequently modulate task performance, even when consistently paired with a physical feature that makes them easily discernible from target stimuli. Current models of cognitive control assume adjustment of the processing of distractor information based on the overall distractor utility (e.g., predictive value regarding the appropriate response, likelihood to elicit conflict with target processing). Although studies on distractor interference have supported the notion of utility-based processing adjustment, previous evidence is inconclusive regarding the specificity of this adjustment for distractor information and the stage(s) of processing affected. To assess the processing of distractors during sensory-perceptual phases we applied EEG recording in a stimulus identification task, involving successive distractor-target presentation, and manipulated the overall distractor utility. Behavioral measures replicated previously found utility modulations of distractor interference. Crucially, distractor-evoked visual potentials (i.e., posterior N1) were more pronounced in high-utility than low-utility conditions. This effect generalized to distractors unrelated to the utility manipulation, providing evidence for item-unspecific adjustment of early distractor processing to the experienced utility of distractor information. Copyright © 2014 the authors 0270-6474/14/3416720-06$15.00/0.

Central localization of plasticity involved in appetitive conditioning in Lymnaea

PubMed Central

Straub, Volko A.; Styles, Benjamin J.; Ireland, Julie S.; O'Shea, Michael; Benjamin, Paul R.

2004-01-01

Learning to associate a conditioned (CS) and unconditioned stimulus (US) results in changes in the processing of CS information. Here, we address directly the question whether chemical appetitive conditioning of Lymnaea feeding behavior involves changes in the peripheral and/or central processing of the CS by using extracellular recording techniques to monitor neuronal activity at two stages of the sensory processing pathway. Our data show that appetitive conditioning does not affect significantly the overall CS response of afferent nerves connecting chemosensory structures in the lips and tentacles to the central nervous system (CNS). In contrast, neuronal output from the cerebral ganglia, which represent the first central processing stage for chemosensory information, is enhanced significantly in response to the CS after appetitive conditioning. This demonstrates that chemical appetitive conditioning in Lymnaea affects the central, but not the peripheral processing of chemosensory information. It also identifies the cerebral ganglia of Lymnaea as an important site for neuronal plasticity and forms the basis for detailed cellular studies of neuronal plasticity. PMID:15537733

Automated sleep stage detection with a classical and a neural learning algorithm--methodological aspects.

PubMed

Schwaibold, M; Schöchlin, J; Bolz, A

2002-01-01

For classification tasks in biosignal processing, several strategies and algorithms can be used. Knowledge-based systems allow prior knowledge about the decision process to be integrated, both by the developer and by self-learning capabilities. For the classification stages in a sleep stage detection framework, three inference strategies were compared regarding their specific strengths: a classical signal processing approach, artificial neural networks and neuro-fuzzy systems. Methodological aspects were assessed to attain optimum performance and maximum transparency for the user. Due to their effective and robust learning behavior, artificial neural networks could be recommended for pattern recognition, while neuro-fuzzy systems performed best for the processing of contextual information.

Neural Markers of Responsiveness to the Environment in Human Sleep.

PubMed

Andrillon, Thomas; Poulsen, Andreas Trier; Hansen, Lars Kai; Léger, Damien; Kouider, Sid

2016-06-15

Sleep is characterized by a loss of behavioral responsiveness. However, recent research has shown that the sleeping brain is not completely disconnected from its environment. How neural activity constrains the ability to process sensory information while asleep is yet unclear. Here, we instructed human volunteers to classify words with lateralized hand responses while falling asleep. Using an electroencephalographic (EEG) marker of motor preparation, we show how responsiveness is modulated across sleep. These modulations are tracked using classic event-related potential analyses complemented by Lempel-Ziv complexity (LZc), a measure shown to track arousal in sleep and anesthesia. Neural activity related to the semantic content of stimuli was conserved in light non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep. However, these processes were suppressed in deep NREM sleep and, importantly, also in REM sleep, despite the recovery of wake-like neural activity in the latter. In NREM sleep, sensory activations were counterbalanced by evoked down states, which, when present, blocked further processing of external information. In addition, responsiveness markers correlated positively with baseline complexity, which could be related to modulation in sleep depth. In REM sleep, however, this relationship was reversed. We therefore propose that, in REM sleep, endogenously generated processes compete with the processing of external input. Sleep can thus be seen as a self-regulated process in which external information can be processed in lighter stages but suppressed in deeper stages. Last, our results suggest drastically different gating mechanisms in NREM and REM sleep. Previous research has tempered the notion that sleepers are isolated from their environment. Here, we pushed this idea forward and examined, across all sleep stages, the brain's ability to flexibly process sensory information, up to the decision level. We extracted an EEG marker of motor preparation to determine the completion of the sensory processing chain and explored how it is constrained by baseline and evoked neural activity. In NREM sleep, slow waves elicited by stimuli appeared to block response preparation. We also used a novel analytic approach (Lempel-Ziv complexity) and showed that the ability to process external information correlates with neural complexity. A reversal of the correlation between complexity and motor indices in REM sleep suggests drastically different gating mechanisms across sleep stages. Copyright © 2016 the authors 0270-6474/16/366583-14$15.00/0.

15 CFR 301.5 - Processing of applications by the Department of Commerce.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... the information contained in the prior submission, shall not be considered in making the decision on... his discretion, may take into account factual information contained in untimely comments. (6... discretion at any stage of processing to insert into the record and consider in making his decision any...

Scaffolding in a Medicine Education Intervention for Student Teachers Based on the PROFILES Three Stage Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kärkkäinen, Sirpa; Kukkonen, Jari; Keinonen, Tuula

2014-01-01

This paper focuses on describing the effects of scaffolding on the student teachers' learning process. The scaffolding is based on using information and communication technology in the PROFILES Three Stage Model; Scenario, Inquiry and Decision-making Stages. Six hours of medicine education intervention is conducted as a part of the student…

Policy implications in developing a land use management information systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Landini, A. J.

1975-01-01

The current land use map for the city of Los Angeles was developed by the guesstimation process and provides single stage information for each level in the critical geographical hierarchy for land use planning management. Processing and incorporation of LANDSAT data in the land use information system requires special funding; however, computergraphic maps are able to provide a viable information system for city planning and management.

Always look on the broad side of life: happiness increases the breadth of sensory memory.

PubMed

Kuhbandner, Christof; Lichtenfeld, Stephanie; Pekrun, Reinhard

2011-08-01

Research has shown that positive affect increases the breadth of information processing at several higher stages of information processing, such as attentional selection or knowledge activation. In the present study, we examined whether these affective influences are already present at the level of transiently storing incoming information in sensory memory, before attentional selection takes place. After inducing neutral, happy, or sad affect, participants performed an iconic memory task which measures visual sensory memory. In all conditions, iconic memory performance rapidly decreased with increasing delay between stimulus presentation and test, indicating that affect did not influence the decay of iconic memory. However, positive affect increased the amount of incoming information stored in iconic memory. In particular, our results showed that this occurs due to an elimination of the spatial bias typically observed in iconic memory. Whereas performance did not differ at positions where observers in the neutral and negative conditions showed the highest performance, positive affect enhanced performance at all positions where observers in the neutral and negative conditions were relatively "blind." These findings demonstrate that affect influences the breadth of information processing already at earliest processing stages, suggesting that affect may produce an even more fundamental shift in information processing than previously believed. 2011 APA, all rights reserved

Use of Information: Getting to the Heart of the Matter

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Eisenberg, Michael B.

2005-01-01

The Big6 approach to information problem solving is widely used by students in the US. Use of Information is the 4th stage and marks a shift in focus from selecting and accessing information sources to using the information itself in a process that involves "critical thinking."

The Integration of Object Levels and Their Content: A Theory of Global/Local Processing and Related Hemispheric Differences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hubner, Ronald; Volberg, Gregor

2005-01-01

This article presents and tests the authors' integration hypothesis of global/local processing, which proposes that at early stages of processing, the identities of global and local units of a hierarchical stimulus are represented separately from information about their respective levels and that, therefore, identity and level information have to…

Acquisition of background and technical information and class trip planning

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mackinnon, R. M.; Wake, W. H.

1981-01-01

Instructors who are very familiar with a study area, as well as those who are not, find the field trip information acquisition and planning process speeded and made more effective by organizing it in stages. The stage follow a deductive progression: from the associated context region, to the study area, to the specific sample window sites, and from generalized background information on the study region to specific technical data on the environmental and human use systems to be interpreted at each site. On the class trip and in the follow up laboratory, the learning/interpretive process are at first deductive in applying previously learned information and skills to analysis of the study site, then inductive in reading and interpreting the landscape, imagery, and maps of the site, correlating them with information of other samples sites and building valid generalizations about the larger study area, its context region, and other (similar and/or contrasting) regions.

A Descriptive Study of Decision-Making Conversations during Pediatric Intensive Care Unit Family Conferences.

PubMed

Smith, Michael A; Clayman, Marla L; Frader, Joel; Arenson, Melanie; Haber-Barker, Natalie; Ryan, Claire; Emanuel, Linda; Michelson, Kelly

2018-06-19

Little is known about how decision-making conversations occur during pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) family conferences (FCs). Describe the decision-making process and implementation of shared decision making (SDM) during PICU FCs. Observational study. University-based tertiary care PICU, including 31 parents and 94 PICU healthcare professionals involved in FCs. We recorded, transcribed, and analyzed 14 PICU FCs involving decision-making discussions. We used a modified grounded theory and content analysis approach to explore the use of traditionally described stages of decision making (DM) (information exchange, deliberation, and determining a plan). We also identified the presence or absence of predefined SDM elements. DM involved the following modified stages: information exchange; information-oriented deliberation; plan-oriented deliberation; and determining a plan. Conversations progressed through stages in a nonlinear manner. For the main decision discussed, all conferences included a presentation of the clinical issues, treatment alternatives, and uncertainty. A minority of FCs included assessing the family's understanding (21%), assessing the family's need for input from others (28%), exploring the family's desired decision-making role (35%), and eliciting the family's opinion (42%). In the FCs studied, we found that DM is a nonlinear process. We also found that several SDM elements that could provide information about parents' perspectives and needs did not always occur, identifying areas for process improvement.

Earthquake-Induced Building Damage Assessment Based on SAR Correlation and Texture

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gong, Lixia; Li, Qiang; Zhang, Jingfa

2016-08-01

Comparing with optical Remote Sensing, the Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) has unique advantages as applied to seismic hazard monitoring and evaluation. SAR can be helpful in the whole process of after an earthquake, which can be divided into three stages. On the first stage, pre-disaster imagery provides history information of the attacked area. On the mid-term stage, up-to-date thematic maps are provided for disaster relief. On the later stage, information is provided to assist secondary disaster monitoring, post- disaster assessment and reconstruction second stage. In recent years, SAR has become an important data source of earthquake damage analysis and evaluation.Correlation between pre- and post-event SAR images is considered to be related with building damage. There will be a correlation decrease when the building collapsed in a shock. Whereas correlation decrease does not definitely indicate building changes. Correlation is also affected by perpendicular baseline, the ground coverage type, atmospheric change and other natural conditions, data processing and other factors. Building samples in the earthquake are used to discriminate the relation between damage degree and SAR correlation.

Derivation of Human Chromatic Discrimination Ability from an Information-Theoretical Notion of Distance in Color Space.

PubMed

da Fonseca, María; Samengo, Inés

2016-12-01

The accuracy with which humans detect chromatic differences varies throughout color space. For example, we are far more precise when discriminating two similar orange stimuli than two similar green stimuli. In order for two colors to be perceived as different, the neurons representing chromatic information must respond differently, and the difference must be larger than the trial-to-trial variability of the response to each separate color. Photoreceptors constitute the first stage in the processing of color information; many more stages are required before humans can consciously report whether two stimuli are perceived as chromatically distinguishable. Therefore, although photoreceptor absorption curves are expected to influence the accuracy of conscious discriminability, there is no reason to believe that they should suffice to explain it. Here we develop information-theoretical tools based on the Fisher metric that demonstrate that photoreceptor absorption properties explain about 87% of the variance of human color discrimination ability, as tested by previous behavioral experiments. In the context of this theory, the bottleneck in chromatic information processing is determined by photoreceptor absorption characteristics. Subsequent encoding stages modify only marginally the chromatic discriminability at the photoreceptor level.

Identification of granite varieties from colour spectrum data.

PubMed

Araújo, María; Martínez, Javier; Ordóñez, Celestino; Vilán, José Antonio

2010-01-01

The granite processing sector of the northwest of Spain handles many varieties of granite with specific technical and aesthetic properties that command different prices in the natural stone market. Hence, correct granite identification and classification from the outset of processing to the end-product stage optimizes the management and control of stocks of granite slabs and tiles and facilitates the operation of traceability systems. We describe a methodology for automatically identifying granite varieties by processing spectral information captured by a spectrophotometer at various stages of processing using functional machine learning techniques.

Identification of Granite Varieties from Colour Spectrum Data

PubMed Central

Araújo, María; Martínez, Javier; Ordóñez, Celestino; Vilán, José Antonio

2010-01-01

The granite processing sector of the northwest of Spain handles many varieties of granite with specific technical and aesthetic properties that command different prices in the natural stone market. Hence, correct granite identification and classification from the outset of processing to the end-product stage optimizes the management and control of stocks of granite slabs and tiles and facilitates the operation of traceability systems. We describe a methodology for automatically identifying granite varieties by processing spectral information captured by a spectrophotometer at various stages of processing using functional machine learning techniques. PMID:22163673

Stages of processing in associative recognition: evidence from behavior, EEG, and classification.

PubMed

Borst, Jelmer P; Schneider, Darryl W; Walsh, Matthew M; Anderson, John R

2013-12-01

In this study, we investigated the stages of information processing in associative recognition. We recorded EEG data while participants performed an associative recognition task that involved manipulations of word length, associative fan, and probe type, which were hypothesized to affect the perceptual encoding, retrieval, and decision stages of the recognition task, respectively. Analyses of the behavioral and EEG data, supplemented with classification of the EEG data using machine-learning techniques, provided evidence that generally supported the sequence of stages assumed by a computational model developed in the Adaptive Control of Thought-Rational cognitive architecture. However, the results suggested a more complex relationship between memory retrieval and decision-making than assumed by the model. Implications of the results for modeling associative recognition are discussed. The study illustrates how a classifier approach, in combination with focused manipulations, can be used to investigate the timing of processing stages.

A further test of sequential-sampling models that account for payoff effects on response bias in perceptual decision tasks.

PubMed

Diederich, Adele

2008-02-01

Recently, Diederich and Busemeyer (2006) evaluated three hypotheses formulated as particular versions of a sequential-sampling model to account for the effects of payoffs in a perceptual decision task with time constraints. The bound-change hypothesis states that payoffs affect the distance of the starting position of the decision process to each decision bound. The drift-rate-change hypothesis states that payoffs affect the drift rate of the decision process. The two-stage-processing hypothesis assumes two processes, one for processing payoffs and another for processing stimulus information, and that on a given trial, attention switches from one process to the other. The latter hypothesis gave the best account of their data. The present study investigated two questions: (1) Does the experimental setting influence decisions, and consequently affect the fits of the hypotheses? A task was conducted in two experimental settings--either the time limit or the payoff matrix was held constant within a given block of trials, using three different payoff matrices and four different time limits--in order to answer this question. (2) Could it be that participants neglect payoffs on some trials and stimulus information on others? To investigate this idea, a further hypothesis was considered, the mixture-of-processes hypothesis. Like the two-stage-processing hypothesis, it postulates two processes, one for payoffs and another for stimulus information. However, it differs from the previous hypothesis in assuming that on a given trial exactly one of the processes operates, never both. The present design had no effect on choice probability but may have affected choice response times (RTs). Overall, the two-stage-processing hypothesis gave the best account, with respect both to choice probabilities and to observed mean RTs and mean RT patterns within a choice pair.

Organizational Conflict Management as Disputing Process: The Problem of Social Escalation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morrill, Calvin; Thomas, Cheryl King

1992-01-01

Develops an instrument to study organizational conflict management as a disputing process involving the social escalation from grievance to conflict and dispute stages. Finds differences in dispute process according to different strengths of informal relations. (SR)

Motion processing with two eyes in three dimensions.

PubMed

Rokers, Bas; Czuba, Thaddeus B; Cormack, Lawrence K; Huk, Alexander C

2011-02-11

The movement of an object toward or away from the head is perhaps the most critical piece of information an organism can extract from its environment. Such 3D motion produces horizontally opposite motions on the two retinae. Little is known about how or where the visual system combines these two retinal motion signals, relative to the wealth of knowledge about the neural hierarchies involved in 2D motion processing and binocular vision. Canonical conceptions of primate visual processing assert that neurons early in the visual system combine monocular inputs into a single cyclopean stream (lacking eye-of-origin information) and extract 1D ("component") motions; later stages then extract 2D pattern motion from the cyclopean output of the earlier stage. Here, however, we show that 3D motion perception is in fact affected by the comparison of opposite 2D pattern motions between the two eyes. Three-dimensional motion sensitivity depends systematically on pattern motion direction when dichoptically viewing gratings and plaids-and a novel "dichoptic pseudoplaid" stimulus provides strong support for use of interocular pattern motion differences by precluding potential contributions from conventional disparity-based mechanisms. These results imply the existence of eye-of-origin information in later stages of motion processing and therefore motivate the incorporation of such eye-specific pattern-motion signals in models of motion processing and binocular integration.

Neurobiological correlates of cognitions in fear and anxiety: a cognitive-neurobiological information-processing model.

PubMed

Hofmann, Stefan G; Ellard, Kristen K; Siegle, Greg J

2012-01-01

We review likely neurobiological substrates of cognitions related to fear and anxiety. Cognitive processes are linked to abnormal early activity reflecting hypervigilance in subcortical networks involving the amygdala, hippocampus, and insular cortex, and later recruitment of cortical regulatory resources, including activation of the anterior cingulate cortex and prefrontal cortex to implement avoidant response strategies. Based on this evidence, we present a cognitive-neurobiological information-processing model of fear and anxiety, linking distinct brain structures to specific stages of information processing of perceived threat.

Cognitive integration of asynchronous natural or non-natural auditory and visual information in videos of real-world events: an event-related potential study.

PubMed

Liu, B; Wang, Z; Wu, G; Meng, X

2011-04-28

In this paper, we aim to study the cognitive integration of asynchronous natural or non-natural auditory and visual information in videos of real-world events. Videos with asynchronous semantically consistent or inconsistent natural sound or speech were used as stimuli in order to compare the difference and similarity between multisensory integrations of videos with asynchronous natural sound and speech. The event-related potential (ERP) results showed that N1 and P250 components were elicited irrespective of whether natural sounds were consistent or inconsistent with critical actions in videos. Videos with inconsistent natural sound could elicit N400-P600 effects compared to videos with consistent natural sound, which was similar to the results from unisensory visual studies. Videos with semantically consistent or inconsistent speech could both elicit N1 components. Meanwhile, videos with inconsistent speech would elicit N400-LPN effects in comparison with videos with consistent speech, which showed that this semantic processing was probably related to recognition memory. Moreover, the N400 effect elicited by videos with semantically inconsistent speech was larger and later than that elicited by videos with semantically inconsistent natural sound. Overall, multisensory integration of videos with natural sound or speech could be roughly divided into two stages. For the videos with natural sound, the first stage might reflect the connection between the received information and the stored information in memory; and the second one might stand for the evaluation process of inconsistent semantic information. For the videos with speech, the first stage was similar to the first stage of videos with natural sound; while the second one might be related to recognition memory process. Copyright © 2011 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Search and Coherence-Building in Intuition and Insight Problem Solving.

PubMed

Öllinger, Michael; von Müller, Albrecht

2017-01-01

Coherence-building is a key concept for a better understanding of the underlying mechanisms of intuition and insight problem solving. There are several accounts that address certain aspects of coherence-building. However, there is still no proper framework defining the general principles of coherence-building. We propose a four-stage model of coherence-building. The first stage starts with spreading activation restricted by constraints. This dynamic is a well-defined rule based process. The second stage is characterized by detecting a coherent state. We adopted a fluency account assuming that the ease of information processing indicates the realization of a coherent state. The third stage is designated to evaluate the result of the coherence-building process and assess whether the given problem is solved or not. If the coherent state does not fit the requirements of the task, the process re-enters at stage 1. These three stages characterize intuition. For insight problem solving a fourth stage is necessary, which restructures the given representation after repeated failure, so that a new search space results. The new search space enables new coherent states. We provide a review of the most important findings, outline our model, present a large number of examples, deduce potential new paradigms and measures that might help to decipher the underlying cognitive processes.

Search and Coherence-Building in Intuition and Insight Problem Solving

PubMed Central

Öllinger, Michael; von Müller, Albrecht

2017-01-01

Coherence-building is a key concept for a better understanding of the underlying mechanisms of intuition and insight problem solving. There are several accounts that address certain aspects of coherence-building. However, there is still no proper framework defining the general principles of coherence-building. We propose a four-stage model of coherence-building. The first stage starts with spreading activation restricted by constraints. This dynamic is a well-defined rule based process. The second stage is characterized by detecting a coherent state. We adopted a fluency account assuming that the ease of information processing indicates the realization of a coherent state. The third stage is designated to evaluate the result of the coherence-building process and assess whether the given problem is solved or not. If the coherent state does not fit the requirements of the task, the process re-enters at stage 1. These three stages characterize intuition. For insight problem solving a fourth stage is necessary, which restructures the given representation after repeated failure, so that a new search space results. The new search space enables new coherent states. We provide a review of the most important findings, outline our model, present a large number of examples, deduce potential new paradigms and measures that might help to decipher the underlying cognitive processes. PMID:28611702

Assessing the impact of electronic health records as an enabler of hospital quality and patient satisfaction.

PubMed

Jarvis, Benjamin; Johnson, Tricia; Butler, Peter; O'Shaughnessy, Kathryn; Fullam, Francis; Tran, Lac; Gupta, Richa

2013-10-01

To assess the impact of using an advanced electronic health record (EHR) on hospital quality and patient satisfaction. This retrospective, cross-sectional analysis was conducted in 2012 to evaluate the association between advanced EHR use (Healthcare Information Management Systems Society [HIMSS] Stage 6 or 7 as of December 2012) and estimated process and experience of care scores for hospitals under the Medicare Hospital Value-Based Purchasing Program, using data from the American Hospital Association for 2008 to 2010. Generalized linear regression models were fit to test the association between advanced EHR use with process of care and experience of care, controlling for hospital characteristics. In a second analysis, the models included variables to account for HIMSS stage of advanced EHR use. The study included 2,988 hospitals, with 248 (8.3%) classified as advanced EHR users (HIMSS Stage 6 or 7). After controlling for hospital characteristics, advanced EHR use was associated with a 4.2-point-higher process of care score (P < .001). Hospitals with Stage 7 EHRs had 11.7 points higher process of care scores, but Stage 6 users had scores that were not substantially different from those of nonadvanced users. There was no significant difference in estimated experience of care scores by level of advanced EHR use. This study evaluated the effectiveness of the U.S. federal government's investment in hospital information technology infrastructure. Results suggest that the most advanced EHRs have the greatest payoff in improving clinical process of care scores, without detrimentally impacting the patient experience.

Enabling and Enhancing Space Mission Success and Reduction of Risk through the Application of an Integrated Data Architecture

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Brummett, Robert C.

2008-01-01

The engineering phases of design, development, test, and evaluation (DDT and E) and subsequent planning, preparation, and operation (Ops) of space vehicles in a complex and distributed environment requires massive and continuous flows of information across the enterprise and across temporal stages of the vehicle lifecycle. The resulting capabilities at each subsequent stage depend in part on the capture, preparation, storage, and subsequent provision of information from prior stages. The United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is currently designing a fleet of new vehicles that will replace the Space Shuttle and expand space operations and exploration capabilities. This includes the 2 stage human rated lift vehicle Ares 1 and its associated crew vehicle the Orion, and a service module; the heavy lift cargo vehicle, Ares 5, and an associated cargo stage known as the Earth Departure Stage; and a Lunar Lander vehicle that contains a descent stage, and ascent stage, and a habitation module. A variety of concurrent assorted ground operations infrastructure including software and facilities are also being developed, assorted technology and assembly designs and development for equipment such as EVA suits, life support systems, command and control technologies are also in the pipeline. The development is occurring in a distributed manner, with project deliverables being contributed by a large and diverse assortment of vendors and most space faring nations. Critical information about all of the components, software, and procedures must be shared during the DDT and E phases and then made readily available to the mission operations staff for access during the planning, preparation, and operations phases, and also need to be readily available for system to system interactions. The Constellation Data Systems Project (CxDS) is identifying the needs, and designing and deploying systems and processes to support these needs. This paper details the steps and processes that NASA is applying within the Constellation Program to manage this data and information, and to insure that the correct information is available, correctly annotated, and can be provisioned digitally to enhance response times, and support engineering analysis and anomaly resolution.

Post choice information integration as a causal determinant of confidence: Novel data and a computational account.

PubMed

Moran, Rani; Teodorescu, Andrei R; Usher, Marius

2015-05-01

Confidence judgments are pivotal in the performance of daily tasks and in many domains of scientific research including the behavioral sciences, psychology and neuroscience. Positive resolution i.e., the positive correlation between choice-correctness and choice-confidence is a critical property of confidence judgments, which justifies their ubiquity. In the current paper, we study the mechanism underlying confidence judgments and their resolution by investigating the source of the inputs for the confidence-calculation. We focus on the intriguing debate between two families of confidence theories. According to single stage theories, confidence is based on the same information that underlies the decision (or on some other aspect of the decision process), whereas according to dual stage theories, confidence is affected by novel information that is collected after the decision was made. In three experiments, we support the case for dual stage theories by showing that post-choice perceptual availability manipulations exert a causal effect on confidence-resolution in the decision followed by confidence paradigm. These finding establish the role of RT2, the duration of the post-choice information-integration stage, as a prime dependent variable that theories of confidence should account for. We then present a novel list of robust empirical patterns ('hurdles') involving RT2 to guide further theorizing about confidence judgments. Finally, we present a unified computational dual stage model for choice, confidence and their latencies namely, the collapsing confidence boundary model (CCB). According to CCB, a diffusion-process choice is followed by a second evidence-integration stage towards a stochastic collapsing confidence boundary. Despite its simplicity, CCB clears the entire list of hurdles. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Word Recognition: Theoretical Issues and Instructional Hints.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smith, Edward E.; Kleiman, Glenn M.

Research on adult readers' word recognition skills is used in this paper to develop a general information processing model of reading. Stages of the model include feature extraction, interpretation, lexical access, working memory, and integration. Of those stages, particular attention is given to the units of interpretation, speech recoding and…

Aging, selective attention, and feature integration.

PubMed

Plude, D J; Doussard-Roosevelt, J A

1989-03-01

This study used feature-integration theory as a means of determining the point in processing at which selective attention deficits originate. The theory posits an initial stage of processing in which features are registered in parallel and then a serial process in which features are conjoined to form complex stimuli. Performance of young and older adults on feature versus conjunction search is compared. Analyses of reaction times and error rates suggest that elderly adults in addition to young adults, can capitalize on the early parallel processing stage of visual information processing, and that age decrements in visual search arise as a result of the later, serial stage of processing. Analyses of a third, unconfounded, conjunction search condition reveal qualitatively similar modes of conjunction search in young and older adults. The contribution of age-related data limitations is found to be secondary to the contribution of age decrements in selective attention.

Ultra-Rapid serial visual presentation reveals dynamics of feedforward and feedback processes in the ventral visual pathway.

PubMed

Mohsenzadeh, Yalda; Qin, Sheng; Cichy, Radoslaw M; Pantazis, Dimitrios

2018-06-21

Human visual recognition activates a dense network of overlapping feedforward and recurrent neuronal processes, making it hard to disentangle processing in the feedforward from the feedback direction. Here, we used ultra-rapid serial visual presentation to suppress sustained activity that blurs the boundaries of processing steps, enabling us to resolve two distinct stages of processing with MEG multivariate pattern classification. The first processing stage was the rapid activation cascade of the bottom-up sweep, which terminated early as visual stimuli were presented at progressively faster rates. The second stage was the emergence of categorical information with peak latency that shifted later in time with progressively faster stimulus presentations, indexing time-consuming recurrent processing. Using MEG-fMRI fusion with representational similarity, we localized recurrent signals in early visual cortex. Together, our findings segregated an initial bottom-up sweep from subsequent feedback processing, and revealed the neural signature of increased recurrent processing demands for challenging viewing conditions. © 2018, Mohsenzadeh et al.

The ergonomic process of an automotive company in Brazil: a study case.

PubMed

Bustos, Carolina; Fischer, Daniela; Ballardin, Lucimara; Nielsen, Rudolf

2012-01-01

The goal of this paper is to present the ergonomic process of an automotive company, whose focus is on the adaptation of the work conditions to the psychophysiological characteristics of its employees. The planning and the development of the ergonomic actions took place in three distinctive stages: ergonomic analysis of the work post (stage 1), ergonomic adaptations (stage 2) and Ergonomic Committee (stage 3). The activities started in June 2006 and have lasted to the current date, keeping a permanent improving process. The procedure adopted was based on the ergonomic analysis methodology proposed by Wisner (1994:1997) and the stages of the Ergonomic Analysis of Work presented in the 17 NR Regulatory Manual (MET, 2002). The paper's approach focused on the voluntary participation of workers from different areas and different hierarchical levels of the organization throughout all the stages of the process. The methodological procedures included descriptive research techniques, exploratory and qualitative research criteria, background and guidelines available in literature and legislation, as well as company information. Among the main results it can be mentioned the satisfaction of the employees regarding the appropriate work conditions, cultural and organizational changes and the creation of an Ergonomic Committee in the company.

Improving the quality of consent to randomised controlled trials by using continuous consent and clinician training in the consent process.

PubMed

Allmark, P; Mason, S

2006-08-01

To assess whether continuous consent, a process in which information is given to research participants at different stages in a trial, and clinician training in that process were effective when used by clinicians while gaining consent to the Total Body Hypothermia (TOBY) trial. The TOBY trial is a randomised controlled trial (RCT) investigating the use of whole-body cooling for neonates with evidence of perinatal asphyxia. Obtaining valid informed consent for the TOBY trial is difficult, but is a good test of the effectiveness of continuous consent. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 30 sets of parents who consented to the TOBY trial and with 10 clinicians who sought it by the continuous consent process. Analysis was focused on the validity of parental consent based on the consent components of competence, information, understanding and voluntariness. No marked problems with consent validity at the point of signature were observed in 19 of 27 (70%) couples. Problems were found mainly to lie with the competence and understanding of the parents: mothers, particularly, had problems with competence in the early stages of consent. Problems in understanding were primarily to do with side effects. Problems in both competence and understanding were observed to reduce markedly, particularly for mothers, in the post-signature phase, when further discussion took place. Randomisation was generally understood but unpopular. Information was not always given by clinicians in stages during the short period available before parents gave consent. Most clinicians, however, were able to give follow-up information. Consent validity was found to compare favourably with similar trials examined in the Euricon study. Adopting the elements of the continuous consent process and clinician training in RCTs should be considered by researchers, particularly when they have concerns about the quality of consent they are likely to obtain by using a conventional process.

Lack of correlation between phonetic magnetic mismatch field and plasma d-serine levels in humans.

PubMed

Suga, Motomu; Kawakubo, Yuki; Nishimura, Yukika; Hashimoto, Kenji; Yumoto, Masato; Kasai, Kiyoto

2018-04-24

Uncovering molecular bases for auditory language processing in the human brain is a fundamental scientific challenge. The power and latency of the magnetic mismatch field (MMF) elicited by phoneme change, which are magnetoencephalographic indices of language function in its early stage of information processing, are theoretically thought to be modulated by N-methyl-d-aspartate-type glutamate receptor (NMDAR) function, but no study has yet assessed this possibility. We have thus sought to demonstrate an association between phonetic MMF power/latency and levels of plasma d-serine, an intrinsic co-agonist of glycine binding sites on NMDAR, in adults. The MMF response to phoneme changes was recorded using 204-channel magnetoencephalography in 61 healthy, right-handed, Japanese adults. Plasma levels of d- and l-serine were measured for each participant. We did not find a significant correlation between MMF power/latency and plasma serine levels. Despite a sufficient sample size, we failed to find an association between the physiological markers of the early stage of information processing of language in the auditory cortex and biomarkers indexing glutamatergic function. Our study did not indicate that a molecular index of glutamatergic function could be a surrogate marker for the early stage of information processing of language in humans. Copyright © 2018 International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Development of a model for whole brain learning of physiology.

PubMed

Eagleton, Saramarie; Muller, Anton

2011-12-01

In this report, a model was developed for whole brain learning based on Curry's onion model. Curry described the effect of personality traits as the inner layer of learning, information-processing styles as the middle layer of learning, and environmental and instructional preferences as the outer layer of learning. The model that was developed elaborates on these layers by relating the personality traits central to learning to the different quadrants of brain preference, as described by Neethling's brain profile, as the inner layer of the onion. This layer is encircled by the learning styles that describe different information-processing preferences for each brain quadrant. For the middle layer, the different stages of Kolb's learning cycle are classified into the four brain quadrants associated with the different brain processing strategies within the information processing circle. Each of the stages of Kolb's learning cycle is also associated with a specific cognitive learning strategy. These two inner circles are enclosed by the circle representing the role of the environment and instruction on learning. It relates environmental factors that affect learning and distinguishes between face-to-face and technology-assisted learning. This model informs on the design of instructional interventions for physiology to encourage whole brain learning.

A Novel Statistical Analysis and Interpretation of Flow Cytometry Data

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-03-31

the resulting residuals appear random. In the work that follows, I∗ = 200. The values of B and b̂j are known from the experiment. Notice that the...conjunction with the model parameter vector in a two- stage process. Unfortunately two- stage estimation may cause some parameters of the mathematical model to...information theoretic criteria such as Akaike’s Information Criterion (AIC). From (4.3), it follows that the scaled residuals rjk = λjI[n̂](tj , zk; ~q

Integrating Research into Decision Making: Providing Examples for an Informal Action Research Model. Research Report No. 83-24.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Losak, John; Morris, Cathy

One promising avenue for increasing the utilization of institutional research data is the informal action research model. While formal action research stresses the involvement of researchers throughout the decision-making process, the informal model stresses participation in the later stages of decision making. Informal action research requires…

Speed of feedforward and recurrent processing in multilayer networks of integrate-and-fire neurons.

PubMed

Panzeri, S; Rolls, E T; Battaglia, F; Lavis, R

2001-11-01

The speed of processing in the visual cortical areas can be fast, with for example the latency of neuronal responses increasing by only approximately 10 ms per area in the ventral visual system sequence V1 to V2 to V4 to inferior temporal visual cortex. This has led to the suggestion that rapid visual processing can only be based on the feedforward connections between cortical areas. To test this idea, we investigated the dynamics of information retrieval in multiple layer networks using a four-stage feedforward network modelled with continuous dynamics with integrate-and-fire neurons, and associative synaptic connections between stages with a synaptic time constant of 10 ms. Through the implementation of continuous dynamics, we found latency differences in information retrieval of only 5 ms per layer when local excitation was absent and processing was purely feedforward. However, information latency differences increased significantly when non-associative local excitation was included. We also found that local recurrent excitation through associatively modified synapses can contribute significantly to processing in as little as 15 ms per layer, including the feedforward and local feedback processing. Moreover, and in contrast to purely feed-forward processing, the contribution of local recurrent feedback was useful and approximately this rapid even when retrieval was made difficult by noise. These findings suggest that cortical information processing can benefit from recurrent circuits when the allowed processing time per cortical area is at least 15 ms long.

Integrating health economics into the product development cycle: a case study of absorbable pins for treating hallux valgus.

PubMed

Vallejo-Torres, Laura; Steuten, Lotte; Parkinson, Bonny; Girling, Alan J; Buxton, Martin J

2011-01-01

The probability of reimbursement is a key factor in determining whether to proceed with or abandon a product during its development. The purpose of this article is to illustrate how the methods of iterative Bayesian economic evaluation proposed in the literature can be incorporated into the development process of new medical devices, adapting them to face the relative scarcity of data and time that characterizes the process. A 3-stage economic evaluation was applied: an early phase in which simple methods allow for a quick prioritization of competing products; a mid-stage in which developers synthesize the data into a decision model, identify the parameters for which more information is most valuable, and explore uncertainty; and a late stage, in which all relevant information is synthesized. A retrospective analysis was conducted of the case study of absorbable pins, compared with metallic fixation, in osteotomy to treat hallux valgus. The results from the early analysis suggest absorbable pins to be cost-effective under the beliefs and assumptions applied. The outputs from the models at the mid-stage analyses show the device to be cost-effective with a high probability. Late-stage analysis synthesizes evidence from a randomized controlled trial and informative priors, which are based on previous evidence. It also suggests that absorbable pins are the most cost-effective strategy, although the uncertainty in the model output increased considerably. This example illustrates how the method proposed allows decisions in the product development cycle to be based on the best knowledge that is available at each stage.

Construction of Virtual-Experiment Systems for Information Science Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

She, Jin-Hua; Amano, Naoki

Practice is very important in education because it not only can stimulate the motivation of learning, but also can deepen the understanding of theory. However, due to the limitations on the time and experiment resources, experiments cannot be simply introduced in every lesson. To make the best use of multimedia technology, this paper designs five virtual experiment systems, which are based on the knowledge of physics at the high-school lever, to improve the effectiveness of teaching data processing. The systems are designed by employing the cognitive theory of multimedia learning and the inner game principle to ensure the easy use and to reduce the cognitive load. The learning process is divided into two stages: the first stage teaches the basic concepts of data processing; and the second stage practices the techniques taught in the first stage and uses them to build a linear model and to carry out estimation. The virtual experiment systems have been tested in an university's data processing course, and have demonstrated their validity.

Testing the Predictions of the Central Capacity Sharing Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tombu, Michael; Jolicoeur, Pierre

2005-01-01

The divergent predictions of 2 models of dual-task performance are investigated. The central bottleneck and central capacity sharing models argue that a central stage of information processing is capacity limited, whereas stages before and after are capacity free. The models disagree about the nature of this central capacity limitation. The…

Video Information Communication and Retrieval/Image Based Information System (VICAR/IBIS)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wherry, D. B.

1981-01-01

The acquisition, operation, and planning stages of installing a VICAR/IBIS system are described. The system operates in an IBM mainframe environment, and provides image processing of raster data. System support problems with software and documentation are discussed.

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) facilitates overall visual search response times but does not interact with visual search task factors

PubMed Central

Gordon, Barry

2018-01-01

Whether transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) affects mental functions, and how any such effects arise from its neural effects, continue to be debated. We investigated whether tDCS applied over the visual cortex (Oz) with a vertex (Cz) reference might affect response times (RTs) in a visual search task. We also examined whether any significant tDCS effects would interact with task factors (target presence, discrimination difficulty, and stimulus brightness) that are known to selectively influence one or the other of the two information processing stages posited by current models of visual search. Based on additive factor logic, we expected that the pattern of interactions involving a significant tDCS effect could help us colocalize the tDCS effect to one (or both) of the processing stages. In Experiment 1 (n = 12), anodal tDCS improved RTs significantly; cathodal tDCS produced a nonsignificant trend toward improvement. However, there were no interactions between the anodal tDCS effect and target presence or discrimination difficulty. In Experiment 2 (n = 18), we manipulated stimulus brightness along with target presence and discrimination difficulty. Anodal and cathodal tDCS both produced significant improvements in RTs. Again, the tDCS effects did not interact with any of the task factors. In Experiment 3 (n = 16), electrodes were placed at Cz and on the upper arm, to test for a possible effect of incidental stimulation of the motor regions under Cz. No effect of tDCS on RTs was found. These findings strengthen the case for tDCS having real effects on cerebral information processing. However, these effects did not clearly arise from either of the two processing stages of the visual search process. We suggest that this is because tDCS has a DIFFUSE, pervasive action across the task-relevant neuroanatomical region(s), not a discrete effect in terms of information processing stages. PMID:29558513

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) facilitates overall visual search response times but does not interact with visual search task factors.

PubMed

Sung, Kyongje; Gordon, Barry

2018-01-01

Whether transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) affects mental functions, and how any such effects arise from its neural effects, continue to be debated. We investigated whether tDCS applied over the visual cortex (Oz) with a vertex (Cz) reference might affect response times (RTs) in a visual search task. We also examined whether any significant tDCS effects would interact with task factors (target presence, discrimination difficulty, and stimulus brightness) that are known to selectively influence one or the other of the two information processing stages posited by current models of visual search. Based on additive factor logic, we expected that the pattern of interactions involving a significant tDCS effect could help us colocalize the tDCS effect to one (or both) of the processing stages. In Experiment 1 (n = 12), anodal tDCS improved RTs significantly; cathodal tDCS produced a nonsignificant trend toward improvement. However, there were no interactions between the anodal tDCS effect and target presence or discrimination difficulty. In Experiment 2 (n = 18), we manipulated stimulus brightness along with target presence and discrimination difficulty. Anodal and cathodal tDCS both produced significant improvements in RTs. Again, the tDCS effects did not interact with any of the task factors. In Experiment 3 (n = 16), electrodes were placed at Cz and on the upper arm, to test for a possible effect of incidental stimulation of the motor regions under Cz. No effect of tDCS on RTs was found. These findings strengthen the case for tDCS having real effects on cerebral information processing. However, these effects did not clearly arise from either of the two processing stages of the visual search process. We suggest that this is because tDCS has a DIFFUSE, pervasive action across the task-relevant neuroanatomical region(s), not a discrete effect in terms of information processing stages.

Managing patient complaints in China: a qualitative study in Shanghai

PubMed Central

Jiang, Yishi; Ying, Xiaohua; Zhang, Qian; Tang, Sirui Rae; Kane, Sumit; Mukhopadhyay, Maitrayee; Qian, Xu

2014-01-01

Objectives To examine the handling system for patient complaints and to identify existing barriers that are associated with effective management of patient complaints in China. Setting Key stakeholders of the handling system for patient complaints at the national, Shanghai municipal and hospital levels in China. Participants 35 key informants including policymakers, hospital managers, healthcare providers, users and other stakeholders in Shanghai. Primary and secondary outcome measures Semistructured interviews were conducted to understand the process of handling patient complaints and factors affecting the process and outcomes of patient complaint management. Results The Chinese handling system for patient complaints was established in the past decade. Hospitals shoulder the most responsibility of patient complaint handling. Barriers to effective management of patient complaints included service users’ low awareness of the systems in the initial stage of the process; poor capacity and skills of healthcare providers, incompetence and powerlessness of complaint handlers and non-transparent exchange of information during the process of complaint handling; conflicts between relevant actors and regulations and unjustifiable complaints by patients during solution settlements; and weak enforcement of regulations, deficient information for managing patient complaints and unwillingness of the hospitals to effectively handle complaints in the postcomplaint stage. Conclusions Barriers to the effective management of patient complaints vary at the different stages of complaint handling and perspectives on these barriers differ between the service users and providers. Information, procedure design, human resources, system arrangement, unified legal system and regulations and factors shaping the social context all play important roles in effective patient complaint management. PMID:25146715

A step-by-step translation of evidence into a psychosocial intervention for everyday activities in dementia: a focus group study.

PubMed

Giebel, Clarissa M; Challis, David; Hooper, Nigel M; Ferris, Sally

2018-03-01

In order to increase the efficacy of psychosocial interventions in dementia, a step-by-step process translating evidence and public engagement should be adhered to. This paper describes such a process by involving a two-stage focus group with people with dementia (PwD), informal carers, and staff. Based on previous evidence, general aspects of effective interventions were drawn out. These were tested in the first stage of focus groups, one with informal carers and PwD and one with staff. Findings from this stage helped shape the intervention further specifying its content. In the second stage, participants were consulted about the detailed components. The extant evidence base and focus groups helped to identify six practical and situation-specific elements worthy of consideration in planning such an intervention, including underlying theory and personal motivations for participation. Carers, PwD, and staff highlighted the importance of rapport between practitioners and PwD prior to commencing the intervention. It was also considered important that the intervention would be personalised to each individual. This paper shows how valuable public involvement can be to intervention development, and outlines a process of public involvement for future intervention development. The next step would be to formally test the intervention.

Attention to individual identities modulates face processing.

PubMed

Ruz, María; Aranda, Clara; Sarmiento, Beatriz R; Sanabria, Daniel

2015-05-01

The ability of attention to apply in a flexible manner to several types of information at various stages of processing has been studied extensively. However, the susceptibility of these effects to the nature of the idiosyncratic items being attended is less understood. In the current study, we used symbolic cues to orient the attention of participants to the subsequent appearance of the face of a famous person (the former king of Spain) or an unfamiliar face. These were matched in perceptual characteristics. Behavioral effects showed that face-specific attention optimized response speed in an orthogonal task when the target matched the cue (valid trials) compared to when it did not (invalid trials). According to topographical analyses of the electrophysiological data, the famous and unfamiliar faces engaged dissociable brain circuits in two different temporal windows, from 144 to 300 ms after target processing, and at a later 456-492 ms epoch. In addition, orienting attention to specific faces modulated the perceptual stages reflected in the P1 and N170 potentials but with a different laterality pattern that depended on the familiarity of the faces. Whereas only attention to the famous face enhanced the P1 potential at left posterior electrodes, with no corresponding effect for the unfamiliar face at this stage, the N170 was modulated at left posterior sites for the famous item and at right homologous electrodes for the unfamiliar face. Intermediate processing stages, previously linked to facial identity processing indexed by the P2 and N2 potentials, reflected item familiarity but were not affected by the cueing manipulation. At the P3 level, attention influenced again item processing but did so in an equivalent manner for the famous and unfamiliar face. Our results, showing that identity-specific attention modulates perceptual stages of facial processing at different locations depending on idiosyncratic stimulus familiarity, may inform comparison of studies employing items with different degrees of novelty.

Concerns of Teachers about the Implementation of Information and Communication Technology Curriculum in Basic Education in Ghana

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sarfo, Frederick Kwaku; Amankwah, Francis; Baafi-Frimpong, Stephen; Asomani, Joseph

2017-01-01

Research findings in the literature show that teachers' concern about change process is extremely personal and it influences the implementation of innovation. This study aimed at assessing information and communication technology teachers' stages of concern regarding the implementation of information and communication technology (ICT) curriculum…

The Information Impact: Ensuring New Product Winners.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Trubkin, Loene

Despite investment in new research tools and techniques, the product development success rate has not improved within the last 25 years. One way to increase the success rate is to have the right information at each stage of the process. Today, a relatively new method of gathering information--online access to electronic files called…

Getting it right [Editorial

Treesearch

William M. Block

2007-01-01

Manuscripts contain a vast amount of information. Some of this information summarizes the state-of-knowledge and sets the stage for the paper. Other information presents data and summarizes analysis. Lastly, results are interpreted in the form of a discussion and management implications. Although a number of checks in the review and editorial processes catch errors...

Activity-based costing in services: literature bibliometric review.

PubMed

Stefano, Nara Medianeira; Filho, Nelson Casarotto

2013-12-01

This article is aimed at structuring a bibliography portfolio to treat the application of the ABC method in service and contribute to discussions within the scientific community. The methodology followed a three-stage procedure: Planning, execution and Synthesis. Also, the process ProKnow-C (Knowledge Process Development - Constructivist) was used in the execution stage. International databases were used to collect information (ISI Web of Knowledge and Scopus). As a result, we obtained a bibliography portfolio of 21 articles (with scientific recognition) dealing with the proposed theme.

Utilization of Automatic Tagging Using Web Information to Datamining

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sugimura, Hiroshi; Matsumoto, Kazunori

This paper proposes a data annotation system using the automatic tagging approach. Although annotations of data are useful for deep analysis and mining of it, the cost of providing them becomes huge in most of the cases. In order to solve this problem, we develop a semi-automatic method that consists of two stages. In the first stage, it searches the Web space for relating information, and discovers candidates of effective annotations. The second stage uses knowledge of a human user. The candidates are investigated and refined by the user, and then they become annotations. We in this paper focus on time-series data, and show effectiveness of a GUI tool that supports the above process.

Nutraceutical use in late-stage cancer

PubMed Central

Morris, Jay; Brown, Vondina; Ellis, Jane; Logothetis, Britt; Weber, Rebecca

2012-01-01

Access to a wealth of information on the internet has led many cancer patients to use complementary methods as an adjunct to traditional therapy for cancer, with, and more often, without informing their primary caregiver. Of the common complementary modalities, the use of dietary supplements appears to be highly prevalent in patients in active treatment for cancer, and later in cancer survivors. Emerging research suggests that some plant-based agents may, indeed, impact late-stage cancer, influencing molecular processes corrupted by tumor cells to evade detection, expand clonally, and invade surrounding tissues. The intent of this article is to review some of the current science underpinning the use of nutraceuticals in the latter stages of cancer. PMID:20714787

Visual processing of music notation: a study of event-related potentials.

PubMed

Lee, Horng-Yih; Wang, Yu-Sin

2011-04-01

In reading music, the acquisition of pitch information depends mostly on the spatial position of notes, hence more spatial processing, whereas the acquisition of temporal information depends mostly on the visual features of notes and object recognition. This study used both electrophysiological and behavioral methods to compare the processing of pitch and duration in reading single musical notes. It was observed that in the early stage of note reading, identification of pitch could elicit greater N1 and N2 amplitude than identification of duration at the parietal lobe electrodes. In the later stages of note reading, identifying pitch elicited a greater negative slow wave at parietal electrodes than did identifying note duration. The sustained contribution of parietal processes for pitch suggests that the dorsal pathway is essential for pitch processing. However, the duration task did not elicit greater amplitude of any early ERP components than the pitch task at temporal electrodes. Accordingly, a double dissociation, suggesting involvement of the dorsal visual stream, was not observed in spatial pitch processing and ventral visual stream in processing of note durations.

Processing of acoustic and phonological information of lexical tones in Mandarin Chinese revealed by mismatch negativity.

PubMed

Yu, Keke; Wang, Ruiming; Li, Li; Li, Ping

2014-01-01

The accurate perception of lexical tones in tonal languages involves the processing of both acoustic information and phonological information carried by the tonal signal. In this study we evaluated the relative role of the two types of information in native Chinese speaker's processing of tones at a preattentive stage with event-related potentials (ERPs), particularly the mismatch negativity (MNN). Specifically, we distinguished the acoustic from the phonological information by manipulating phonological category and acoustic interval of the stimulus materials. We found a significant main effect of phonological category for the peak latency of MMN, but a main effect of both phonological category and acoustic interval for the mean amplitude of MMN. The results indicated that the two types of information, acoustic and phonological, play different roles in the processing of Chinese lexical tones: acoustic information only impacts the extent of tonal processing, while phonological information affects both the extent and the time course of tonal processing. Implications of these findings are discussed in light of neurocognitive processes of phonological processing.

Top-down knowledge modulates onset capture in a feedforward manner.

PubMed

Becker, Stefanie I; Lewis, Amanda J; Axtens, Jenna E

2017-04-01

How do we select behaviourally important information from cluttered visual environments? Previous research has shown that both top-down, goal-driven factors and bottom-up, stimulus-driven factors determine which stimuli are selected. However, it is still debated when top-down processes modulate visual selection. According to a feedforward account, top-down processes modulate visual processing even before the appearance of any stimuli, whereas others claim that top-down processes modulate visual selection only at a late stage, via feedback processing. In line with such a dual stage account, some studies found that eye movements to an irrelevant onset distractor are not modulated by its similarity to the target stimulus, especially when eye movements are launched early (within 150-ms post stimulus onset). However, in these studies the target transiently changed colour due to a colour after-effect that occurred during premasking, and the time course analyses were incomplete. The present study tested the feedforward account against the dual stage account in two eye tracking experiments, with and without colour after-effects (Exp. 1), as well when the target colour varied randomly and observers were informed of the target colour with a word cue (Exp. 2). The results showed that top-down processes modulated the earliest eye movements to the onset distractors (<150-ms latencies), without incurring any costs for selection of target matching distractors. These results unambiguously support a feedforward account of top-down modulation.

Research on Technology Innovation Management in Big Data Environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ma, Yanhong

2018-02-01

With the continuous development and progress of the information age, the demand for information is getting larger. The processing and analysis of information data is also moving toward the direction of scale. The increasing number of information data makes people have higher demands on processing technology. The explosive growth of information data onto the current society have prompted the advent of the era of big data. At present, people have more value and significance in producing and processing various kinds of information and data in their lives. How to use big data technology to process and analyze information data quickly to improve the level of big data management is an important stage to promote the current development of information and data processing technology in our country. To some extent, innovative research on the management methods of information technology in the era of big data can enhance our overall strength and make China be an invincible position in the development of the big data era.

Understanding Managerial Problem-Solving, Knowledge Use and Information Processing: Investigating Stages from School to the Workplace

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arts, Jos A. R.; Gijselaers, Wim H.; Boshuizen, Henny P. A.

2006-01-01

The present study explores stages in managerial problem-solving skills of participants beginning with formal education, and continuing through the professional workplace setting. We studied nine different levels of expertise: from novice student groups, to graduates and expert groups. Participants were asked to diagnose and solve business cases.…

Impact of pH, dissolved inorganic carbon, and polyphosphates for the initial stages of water corrosion of copper surfaces investigated by AFM and NEXAFS

EPA Science Inventory

Nanoscale studies at the early stages of the exposure of copper surfaces after systematic treatments in synthesized water solutions can provide useful information about corrosion processes. The corrosion and passivation of copper surfaces as influenced by pH, dissolved inorganic ...

Nondual Psychotherapy and Second Stage Sexual Addictions Recovery: Transforming "Master of the Universe" Narcissism into Nondual Being

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nixon, Gary; Theriault, Brian

2012-01-01

This article describes the process of working through the "dry drunk" second stage of sexual addiction recovery through transforming the narcissistic "Master of the Universe" personality into the experience of nondual being using the Almaas Diamond Approach of self-realization. The Diamond Approach is a transpersonal informed psychology…

Bridging the gap between the economic evaluation literature and daily practice in occupational health: a qualitative study among decision-makers in the healthcare sector.

PubMed

van Dongen, Johanna M; Tompa, Emile; Clune, Laurie; Sarnocinska-Hart, Anna; Bongers, Paulien M; van Tulder, Maurits W; van der Beek, Allard J; van Wier, Marieke F

2013-06-03

Continued improvements in occupational health can only be ensured if decisions regarding the implementation and continuation of occupational health and safety interventions (OHS interventions) are based on the best available evidence. To ensure that this is the case, scientific evidence should meet the needs of decision-makers. As a first step in bridging the gap between the economic evaluation literature and daily practice in occupational health, this study aimed to provide insight into the occupational health decision-making process and information needs of decision-makers. An exploratory qualitative study was conducted with a purposeful sample of occupational health decision-makers in the Ontario healthcare sector. Eighteen in-depth interviews were conducted to explore the process by which occupational health decisions are made and the importance given to the financial implications of OHS interventions. Twenty-five structured telephone interviews were conducted to explore the sources of information used during the decision-making process, and decision-makers' knowledge on economic evaluation methods. In-depth interview data were analyzed according to the constant comparative method. For the structured telephone interviews, summary statistics were prepared. The occupational health decision-making process generally consists of three stages: initiation stage, establishing the need for an intervention; pre-implementation stage, developing an intervention and its business case in order to receive senior management approval; and implementation and evaluation stage, implementing and evaluating an intervention. During this process, information on the financial implications of OHS interventions was found to be of great importance, especially the employer's costs and benefits. However, scientific evidence was rarely consulted, sound ex-post program evaluations were hardly ever performed, and there seemed to be a need to advance the economic evaluation skill set of decision-makers. Financial information is particularly important at the front end of implementation decisions, and can be a key deciding factor of whether to go forward with a new OHS intervention. In addition, it appears that current practice in occupational health in the healthcare sector is not solidly grounded in evidence-based decision-making and strategies should be developed to improve this.

Bridging the gap between the economic evaluation literature and daily practice in occupational health: a qualitative study among decision-makers in the healthcare sector

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Continued improvements in occupational health can only be ensured if decisions regarding the implementation and continuation of occupational health and safety interventions (OHS interventions) are based on the best available evidence. To ensure that this is the case, scientific evidence should meet the needs of decision-makers. As a first step in bridging the gap between the economic evaluation literature and daily practice in occupational health, this study aimed to provide insight into the occupational health decision-making process and information needs of decision-makers. Methods An exploratory qualitative study was conducted with a purposeful sample of occupational health decision-makers in the Ontario healthcare sector. Eighteen in-depth interviews were conducted to explore the process by which occupational health decisions are made and the importance given to the financial implications of OHS interventions. Twenty-five structured telephone interviews were conducted to explore the sources of information used during the decision-making process, and decision-makers’ knowledge on economic evaluation methods. In-depth interview data were analyzed according to the constant comparative method. For the structured telephone interviews, summary statistics were prepared. Results The occupational health decision-making process generally consists of three stages: initiation stage, establishing the need for an intervention; pre-implementation stage, developing an intervention and its business case in order to receive senior management approval; and implementation and evaluation stage, implementing and evaluating an intervention. During this process, information on the financial implications of OHS interventions was found to be of great importance, especially the employer’s costs and benefits. However, scientific evidence was rarely consulted, sound ex-post program evaluations were hardly ever performed, and there seemed to be a need to advance the economic evaluation skill set of decision-makers. Conclusions Financial information is particularly important at the front end of implementation decisions, and can be a key deciding factor of whether to go forward with a new OHS intervention. In addition, it appears that current practice in occupational health in the healthcare sector is not solidly grounded in evidence-based decision-making and strategies should be developed to improve this. PMID:23731570

Reflex inhibition. Global manifestation of the local mechanism

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shumilov, V.; Syryamkin, V.

2018-05-01

The paper considers the issues of training and retraining in self-organizing natural information processing systems and shows the reasons for the rule “The one who comes first gets all” and the possibility of creating a technical device, which is an artificial intelligence carrier. Such a device is not filled with the necessary information at the stage of creation, but receives all the necessary information in the process of functioning, especially at the beginning of its activity and in the process of education, just as the intellect of a person is being raised since childhood.

Photogrammetric mapping for cadastral land information systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Muzakidis, Panagiotis D.

The creation of a "clean" digital database is a most important and complex task, upon which the usefulness of a Parcel-Based Land Information System depends. Capturing data by photogrammetric methods for cadastral purposes necessitates the transformation of data into a computer compatible form. Such input requires the encoding, editing and structuring of data. The research is carried out in two phases, the first is concerned with defining the data modelling schemes and the classification of basic data for a parcel-based land information system together with the photogrammetric methods to be adopted to collect these data. The second deals with data editing and data structuring processes in order to produce "clean" information relevant to such a system. Implementation of the proposed system at both the data collection stage and within the data processing stage itself demands a number of flexible criteria to be defined within the methodology. Development of these criteria will include consideration of the cadastral characteristics peculiar to Greece.

Synaptic physiology of the flow of information in the cat's visual cortex in vivo

PubMed Central

Hirsch, Judith A; Martinez, Luis M; Alonso, José-Manuel; Desai, Komal; Pillai, Cinthi; Pierre, Carhine

2002-01-01

Each stage of the striate cortical circuit extracts novel information about the visual environment. We asked if this analytic process reflected laminar variations in synaptic physiology by making whole-cell recording with dye-filled electrodes from the cat's visual cortex and thalamus; the stimuli were flashed spots. Thalamic afferents terminate in layer 4, which contains two types of cell, simple and complex, distinguished by the spatial structure of the receptive field. Previously, we had found that the postsynaptic and spike responses of simple cells reliably followed the time course of flash-evoked thalamic activity. Here we report that complex cells in layer 4 (or cells intermediate between simple and complex) similarly reprised thalamic activity (response/trial, 99 ± 1.9 %; response duration 159 ± 57 ms; latency 25 ± 4 ms; average ± standard deviation; n = 7). Thus, all cells in layer 4 share a common synaptic physiology that allows secure integration of thalamic input. By contrast, at the second cortical stage (layer 2+3), where layer 4 directs its output, postsynaptic responses did not track simple patterns of antecedent activity. Typical responses to the static stimulus were intermittent and brief (response/trial, 31 ± 40 %; response duration 72 ± 60 ms, latency 39 ± 7 ms; n = 11). Only richer stimuli like those including motion evoked reliable responses. All told, the second level of cortical processing differs markedly from the first. At that later stage, ascending information seems strongly gated by connections between cortical neurons. Inputs must be combined in newly specified patterns to influence intracortical stages of processing. PMID:11927691

Validating commercial remote sensing and spatial information (CRS&SI) technologies for streamlining environmental and planning processes in transportation projects.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2010-03-01

Transportation corridor-planning processes are well understood, and consensus exists among practitioners : about common practices for stages and tasks included in traditional EIS approaches. However, traditional approaches do : not typically employ f...

Selective processing of threatening information: effects of attachment representation and anxiety disorder on attention and memory.

PubMed

Zeijlmans van Emmichoven, Ingeborg A; van IJzendoorn, Marinus H; de Ruiter, Corine; Brosschot, Jos F

2003-01-01

To investigate the effect of the mental representation of attachment on information processing, 28 anxiety disorder outpatients, as diagnosed by the Anxiety Disorders Interview Schedule-Revised, were administered the Adult Attachment Interview and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. They also completed an emotional Stroop task with subliminal and supraliminal exposure conditions, a free recall memory task, and a recognition test. All tasks contained threatening, neutral, and positively valenced stimuli. A nonclinical comparison group of 56 participants completed the same measures. Results on the Stroop task showed color-naming interference for threatening words in the supraliminal condition only. Nonclinical participants with insecure attachment representations showed a global response inhibition to the Stroop task. Clinical participants with secure attachment representations showed the largest Stroop interference of the threatening words compared to the other groups. Results on the free recall task showed superior recall of all types of stimuli by participants with secure attachment representations. In the outpatient group, participants with secure attachment representations showed superior recall of threatening words on the free recall task, compared to insecure participants. Results on the recognition task showed no differences between attachment groups. We conclude that secure attachment representations are characterized by open communication about and processing of threatening information, leading to less defensive exclusion of negative material during the attentional stage of information processing and to better recall of threatening information in a later stage. Attachment insecurity, but not the type of insecurity, seems a decisive factor in attention and memory processes.

Information processing characteristics in subtypes of multiple sclerosis.

PubMed

De Sonneville, L M J; Boringa, J B; Reuling, I E W; Lazeron, R H C; Adèr, H J; Polman, C H

2002-01-01

The purpose of this study was to evaluate information processing characteristics in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). We selected 53 patients with MS and 58 matched healthy controls. Using computerized tests, we investigated focused, divided, sustained attention, and executive function, and attempted to pinpoint deficits in attentional control to peripheral or central processing stages. The results substantiate the hypothesis that the slowing of attention-demanding (controlled) information processing underlying more complex cognitive skills is general, i.e. irrespective of type of controlled processing, with MS patients being 40% slower than controls. MS patients may suffer from focused, and divided and sustained attention deficits, as well as from compromised central processing stages, with secondary progressive (SP) patients showing the most extensive range of deficits, closely followed by primary progressive (PP) patients, while relapsing-remitting (RR) patients appear to be much less affected. General slowing appears to be highest in PP and SP type MS patients (50% slower) versus relapsing-remitting MS (24% slower). In contrast to most previous results, (complex) processing speed appeared to be robustly correlated with severity of MS as measured by the expanded disability status scale and with disease duration. Patients did much less differ in accuracy of processing from controls, suggesting the importance of using time strategies in planning everyday life and job activities to compensate for or alleviate MS-related speed handicaps. Copyright 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd.

Knowledge Translation: Supports, Challenges, and Opportunities for Change in Early Intervention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rabinowicz, Susan; Ray, Sharon

2018-01-01

Knowledge translation (KT) provides a lens to examine the process of moving research-informed knowledge into early intervention practice (P. Sudsawad, 2007). The process of KT entails cognitive, affective, and behavioral stages that are mediated by factors intrinsic and extrinsic to the practitioner. Facilitators and barriers to this process may…

Rapid Motion Adaptation Reveals the Temporal Dynamics of Spatiotemporal Correlation between ON and OFF Pathways

PubMed Central

Oluk, Can; Pavan, Andrea; Kafaligonul, Hulusi

2016-01-01

At the early stages of visual processing, information is processed by two major thalamic pathways encoding brightness increments (ON) and decrements (OFF). Accumulating evidence suggests that these pathways interact and merge as early as in primary visual cortex. Using regular and reverse-phi motion in a rapid adaptation paradigm, we investigated the temporal dynamics of within and across pathway mechanisms for motion processing. When the adaptation duration was short (188 ms), reverse-phi and regular motion led to similar adaptation effects, suggesting that the information from the two pathways are combined efficiently at early-stages of motion processing. However, as the adaption duration was increased to 752 ms, reverse-phi and regular motion showed distinct adaptation effects depending on the test pattern used, either engaging spatiotemporal correlation between the same or opposite contrast polarities. Overall, these findings indicate that spatiotemporal correlation within and across ON-OFF pathways for motion processing can be selectively adapted, and support those models that integrate within and across pathway mechanisms for motion processing. PMID:27667401

Love withdrawal predicts electrocortical responses to emotional faces with performance feedback: a follow-up and extension.

PubMed

Huffmeijer, Renske; Bakermans-Kranenburg, Marian J; Alink, Lenneke R A; van IJzendoorn, Marinus H

2014-06-02

Parental use of love withdrawal is thought to affect children's later psychological functioning because it creates a link between children's performance and relational consequences. In addition, recent studies have begun to show that experiences of love withdrawal also relate to the neural processing of socio-emotional information relevant to a performance-relational consequence link, and can moderate effects of oxytocin on social information processing and behavior. The current study follows-up on our previous results by attempting to confirm and extend previous findings indicating that experiences of maternal love withdrawal are related to electrocortical responses to emotional faces presented with performance feedback. More maternal love withdrawal was related to enhanced early processing of facial feedback stimuli (reflected in more positive VPP amplitudes, and confirming previous findings). However, attentional engagement with and processing of the stimuli at a later stage were diminished in those reporting higher maternal love withdrawal (reflected in less positive LPP amplitudes, and diverging from previous findings). Maternal love withdrawal affects the processing of emotional faces presented with performance feedback differently in different stages of neural processing.

Integration of the Eventlndex with other ATLAS systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barberis, D.; Cárdenas Zárate, S. E.; Gallas, E. J.; Prokoshin, F.

2015-12-01

The ATLAS EventIndex System, developed for use in LHC Run 2, is designed to index every processed event in ATLAS, replacing the TAG System used in Run 1. Its storage infrastructure, based on Hadoop open-source software framework, necessitates revamping how information in this system relates to other ATLAS systems. It will store more indexes since the fundamental mechanisms for retrieving these indexes will be better integrated into all stages of data processing, allowing more events from later stages of processing to be indexed than was possible with the previous system. Connections with other systems (conditions database, monitoring) are fundamentally critical to assess dataset completeness, identify data duplication, and check data integrity, and also enhance access to information in EventIndex by user and system interfaces. This paper gives an overview of the ATLAS systems involved, the relevant metadata, and describe the technologies we are deploying to complete these connections.

How do external donors influence national health policy processes? Experiences of domestic policy actors in Cambodia and Pakistan.

PubMed

Khan, Mishal S; Meghani, Ankita; Liverani, Marco; Roychowdhury, Imara; Parkhurst, Justin

2018-03-01

Although concerns have historically been raised about the influence of external donors on health policy process in recipient countries, remarkably few studies have investigated perspectives and experiences of domestic policymakers and advisers. This study examines donor influence at different stages of the health policy process (priority setting, policy formulation, policy implementation and monitoring and evaluation) in two aid-dependent LMICs, Cambodia and Pakistan. It identifies mechanisms through which asymmetries in influence between donors and domestic policy actors emerge. We conducted 24 key informant interviews-14 in Pakistan and 10 in Cambodia-with high-level decision-makers who inform or authorize health priority setting, allocate resources and/or are responsible for policy implementation, identifying three routes of influence: financial resources, technical expertise and indirect financial and political incentives. We used both inductive and deductive approaches to analyse the data. Our findings indicate that different routes of influence emerged depending on the stage of the policy process. Control of financial resources was the most commonly identified route by which donors influenced priority setting and policy implementation. Greater (perceived) technical expertise played an important role in donor influence at the policy formulation stage. Donors' power in influencing decisions, particularly during the final (monitoring and evaluation) stage of the policy process, was mediated by their ability to control indirect financial and political incentives as well as direct control of financial resources. This study thus helps unpack the nuances of donor influence over health policymaking in these settings, and can potentially indicate areas that require attention to increase the ownership of domestic actors of their countries' health policy processes. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press in association with The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

How do external donors influence national health policy processes? Experiences of domestic policy actors in Cambodia and Pakistan

PubMed Central

Khan, Mishal S; Liverani, Marco; Roychowdhury, Imara; Parkhurst, Justin

2018-01-01

Abstract Although concerns have historically been raised about the influence of external donors on health policy process in recipient countries, remarkably few studies have investigated perspectives and experiences of domestic policymakers and advisers. This study examines donor influence at different stages of the health policy process (priority setting, policy formulation, policy implementation and monitoring and evaluation) in two aid-dependent LMICs, Cambodia and Pakistan. It identifies mechanisms through which asymmetries in influence between donors and domestic policy actors emerge. We conducted 24 key informant interviews—14 in Pakistan and 10 in Cambodia—with high-level decision-makers who inform or authorize health priority setting, allocate resources and/or are responsible for policy implementation, identifying three routes of influence: financial resources, technical expertise and indirect financial and political incentives. We used both inductive and deductive approaches to analyse the data. Our findings indicate that different routes of influence emerged depending on the stage of the policy process. Control of financial resources was the most commonly identified route by which donors influenced priority setting and policy implementation. Greater (perceived) technical expertise played an important role in donor influence at the policy formulation stage. Donors’ power in influencing decisions, particularly during the final (monitoring and evaluation) stage of the policy process, was mediated by their ability to control indirect financial and political incentives as well as direct control of financial resources. This study thus helps unpack the nuances of donor influence over health policymaking in these settings, and can potentially indicate areas that require attention to increase the ownership of domestic actors of their countries’ health policy processes. PMID:29237026

Real-time traffic sign detection and recognition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Herbschleb, Ernst; de With, Peter H. N.

2009-01-01

The continuous growth of imaging databases increasingly requires analysis tools for extraction of features. In this paper, a new architecture for the detection of traffic signs is proposed. The architecture is designed to process a large database with tens of millions of images with a resolution up to 4,800x2,400 pixels. Because of the size of the database, a high reliability as well as a high throughput is required. The novel architecture consists of a three-stage algorithm with multiple steps per stage, combining both color and specific spatial information. The first stage contains an area-limitation step which is performance critical in both the detection rate as the overall processing time. The second stage locates suggestions for traffic signs using recently published feature processing. The third stage contains a validation step to enhance reliability of the algorithm. During this stage, the traffic signs are recognized. Experiments show a convincing detection rate of 99%. With respect to computational speed, the throughput for line-of-sight images of 800×600 pixels is 35 Hz and for panorama images it is 4 Hz. Our novel architecture outperforms existing algorithms, with respect to both detection rate and throughput

Multiple-stage pure phase encoding with biometric information

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Wen

2018-01-01

In recent years, many optical systems have been developed for securing information, and optical encryption/encoding has attracted more and more attention due to the marked advantages, such as parallel processing and multiple-dimensional characteristics. In this paper, an optical security method is presented based on pure phase encoding with biometric information. Biometric information (such as fingerprint) is employed as security keys rather than plaintext used in conventional optical security systems, and multiple-stage phase-encoding-based optical systems are designed for generating several phase-only masks with biometric information. Subsequently, the extracted phase-only masks are further used in an optical setup for encoding an input image (i.e., plaintext). Numerical simulations are conducted to illustrate the validity, and the results demonstrate that high flexibility and high security can be achieved.

Feature integration and object representations along the dorsal stream visual hierarchy

PubMed Central

Perry, Carolyn Jeane; Fallah, Mazyar

2014-01-01

The visual system is split into two processing streams: a ventral stream that receives color and form information and a dorsal stream that receives motion information. Each stream processes that information hierarchically, with each stage building upon the previous. In the ventral stream this leads to the formation of object representations that ultimately allow for object recognition regardless of changes in the surrounding environment. In the dorsal stream, this hierarchical processing has classically been thought to lead to the computation of complex motion in three dimensions. However, there is evidence to suggest that there is integration of both dorsal and ventral stream information into motion computation processes, giving rise to intermediate object representations, which facilitate object selection and decision making mechanisms in the dorsal stream. First we review the hierarchical processing of motion along the dorsal stream and the building up of object representations along the ventral stream. Then we discuss recent work on the integration of ventral and dorsal stream features that lead to intermediate object representations in the dorsal stream. Finally we propose a framework describing how and at what stage different features are integrated into dorsal visual stream object representations. Determining the integration of features along the dorsal stream is necessary to understand not only how the dorsal stream builds up an object representation but also which computations are performed on object representations instead of local features. PMID:25140147

Indexing Theory and Retrieval Effectiveness.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Robertson, Stephen E.

1978-01-01

Describes recent attempts to make explicit connections between the indexing process and the use of the index or information retrieval system, particularly the utility-theoretic and automatic indexing models of William Cooper and Stephen Harter. Theory and performance, information storage and retrieval, search stage feedback, and indexing are also…

Using qualitative methods to develop a contextually tailored instrument: Lessons learned.

PubMed

Lee, Haeok; Kiang, Peter; Kim, Minjin; Semino-Asaro, Semira; Colten, Mary Ellen; Tang, Shirley S; Chea, Phala; Peou, Sonith; Grigg-Saito, Dorcas C

2015-01-01

To develop a population-specific instrument to inform hepatitis B virus (HBV) and human papilloma virus (HPV) prevention education and intervention based on data and evidence obtained from the targeted population of Khmer mothers reflecting their socio-cultural and health behaviors. The principles of community-based participatory research (CBPR) guided the development of a standardized survey interview. Four stages of development and testing of the survey instrument took place in order to inform the quantitative health survey used to collect data in stage five of the project. This article reports only on Stages 1-4. This process created a new quantitative measure of HBV and HPV prevention behavior based on the revised Network Episode Model and informed by the targeted population. The CBPR method facilitated the application and translation of abstract theoretical ideas of HBV and HPV prevention behavior into culturally-relevant words and expressions of Cambodian Americans (CAs). The design of an instrument development process that accounts for distinctive socio-cultural backgrounds of CA refugee/immigrant women provides a model for use in developing future health surveys that are intended to aid minority-serving health care professionals and researchers as well as targeted minority populations.

Processing of chromatic information in a deep convolutional neural network.

PubMed

Flachot, Alban; Gegenfurtner, Karl R

2018-04-01

Deep convolutional neural networks are a class of machine-learning algorithms capable of solving non-trivial tasks, such as object recognition, with human-like performance. Little is known about the exact computations that deep neural networks learn, and to what extent these computations are similar to the ones performed by the primate brain. Here, we investigate how color information is processed in the different layers of the AlexNet deep neural network, originally trained on object classification of over 1.2M images of objects in their natural contexts. We found that the color-responsive units in the first layer of AlexNet learned linear features and were broadly tuned to two directions in color space, analogously to what is known of color responsive cells in the primate thalamus. Moreover, these directions are decorrelated and lead to statistically efficient representations, similar to the cardinal directions of the second-stage color mechanisms in primates. We also found, in analogy to the early stages of the primate visual system, that chromatic and achromatic information were segregated in the early layers of the network. Units in the higher layers of AlexNet exhibit on average a lower responsivity for color than units at earlier stages.

Using qualitative methods to develop a contextually tailored instrument: Lessons learned

PubMed Central

Lee, Haeok; Kiang, Peter; Kim, Minjin; Semino-Asaro, Semira; Colten, Mary Ellen; Tang, Shirley S.; Chea, Phala; Peou, Sonith; Grigg-Saito, Dorcas C.

2015-01-01

Objective: To develop a population-specific instrument to inform hepatitis B virus (HBV) and human papilloma virus (HPV) prevention education and intervention based on data and evidence obtained from the targeted population of Khmer mothers reflecting their socio-cultural and health behaviors. Methods: The principles of community-based participatory research (CBPR) guided the development of a standardized survey interview. Four stages of development and testing of the survey instrument took place in order to inform the quantitative health survey used to collect data in stage five of the project. This article reports only on Stages 1-4. Results: This process created a new quantitative measure of HBV and HPV prevention behavior based on the revised Network Episode Model and informed by the targeted population. The CBPR method facilitated the application and translation of abstract theoretical ideas of HBV and HPV prevention behavior into culturally-relevant words and expressions of Cambodian Americans (CAs). Conclusions: The design of an instrument development process that accounts for distinctive socio-cultural backgrounds of CA refugee/immigrant women provides a model for use in developing future health surveys that are intended to aid minority-serving health care professionals and researchers as well as targeted minority populations. PMID:27981114

The integration of object levels and their content: a theory of global/local processing and related hemispheric differences.

PubMed

Hübner, Ronald; Volberg, Gregor

2005-06-01

This article presents and tests the authors' integration hypothesis of global/local processing, which proposes that at early stages of processing, the identities of global and local units of a hierarchical stimulus are represented separately from information about their respective levels and that, therefore, identity and level information have to be integrated at later stages. It further states that the cerebral hemispheres differ in their capacities for these binding processes. Three experiments are reported in which the integration hypothesis was tested. Participants had to identify a letter at a prespecified level with the viewing duration restricted by a mask. False reporting of the letter at the nontarget level was predicted to occur more often when the integration of identity and level could fail. This was the case. Moreover, visual-field effects occurred, as expected. Finally, a multinomial model was constructed and fitted to the data. ((c) 2005 APA, all rights reserved).

From conceptual modeling to a map

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gotlib, Dariusz; Olszewski, Robert

2018-05-01

Nowadays almost every map is a component of the information system. Design and production of maps requires the use of specific rules for modeling information systems: conceptual, application and data modelling. While analyzing various stages of cartographic modeling the authors ask the question: at what stage of this process a map occurs. Can we say that the "life of the map" begins even before someone define its form of presentation? This question is particularly important at the time of exponentially increasing number of new geoinformation products. During the analysis of the theory of cartography and relations of the discipline to other fields of knowledge it has been attempted to define a few properties of cartographic modeling which distinguish the process from other methods of spatial modeling. Assuming that the map is a model of reality (created in the process of cartographic modeling supported by domain-modeling) the article proposes an analogy of the process of cartographic modeling to the scheme of conceptual modeling presented in ISO 19101 standard.

PROCESS DOCUMENTATION: A MODEL FOR KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT IN ORGANIZATIONS.

PubMed

Haddadpoor, Asefeh; Taheri, Behjat; Nasri, Mehran; Heydari, Kamal; Bahrami, Gholamreza

2015-10-01

Continuous and interconnected processes are a chain of activities that turn the inputs of an organization to its outputs and help achieve partial and overall goals of the organization. These activates are carried out by two types of knowledge in the organization called explicit and implicit knowledge. Among these, implicit knowledge is the knowledge that controls a major part of the activities of an organization, controls these activities internally and will not be transferred to the process owners unless they are present during the organization's work. Therefore the goal of this study is identification of implicit knowledge and its integration with explicit knowledge in order to improve human resources management, physical resource management, information resource management, training of new employees and other activities of Isfahan University of Medical Science. The project for documentation of activities in department of health of Isfahan University of Medical Science was carried out in several stages. First the main processes and related sub processes were identified and categorized with the help of planning expert. The categorization was carried out from smaller processes to larger ones. In this stage the experts of each process wrote down all their daily activities and organized them into general categories based on logical and physical relations between different activities. Then each activity was assigned a specific code. The computer software was designed after understanding the different parts of the processes, including main and sup processes, and categorization, which will be explained in the following sections. The findings of this study showed that documentation of activities can help expose implicit knowledge because all of inputs and outputs of a process along with the length, location, tools and different stages of the process, exchanged information, storage location of the information and information flow can be identified using proper documentation. A documentation program can create a complete identifier for every process of an organization and also acts as the main tool for establishment of information technology as the basis of the organization and helps achieve the goal of having electronic and information technology based organizations. In other words documentation is the starting step in creating an organizational architecture. Afterwards, in order to reach the desired goal of documentation, computer software containing all tools, methods, instructions and guidelines and implicit knowledge of the organization was designed. This software links all relevant knowledge to the main text of the documentation and identification of a process and provides the users with electronic versions of all documentations and helps use the explicit and implicit knowledge of the organization to facilitate the reengineering of the processes in the organization.

Storage-Retrieval Processes of Normal and Learning-Disabled Children: A Stages-of-Learning Analysis of Picture-Word Effects.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Howe, Mark L.; And Others

1985-01-01

A stages-of-learning model was used to examine effects of picture-word manipulation on storage and retrieval differences between disabled and nondisabled grade 2 and 6 children. Results showed that disabled students are poorer at memory tasks and in developing the ability to reliably retrieve information than nondisabled children. (Author/RH)

Development and testing of study tools and methods to examine ethnic bias and clinical decision-making among medical students in New Zealand: The Bias and Decision-Making in Medicine (BDMM) study.

PubMed

Harris, Ricci; Cormack, Donna; Curtis, Elana; Jones, Rhys; Stanley, James; Lacey, Cameron

2016-07-11

Health provider racial/ethnic bias and its relationship to clinical decision-making is an emerging area of research focus in understanding and addressing ethnic health inequities. Examining potential racial/ethnic bias among medical students may provide important information to inform medical education and training. This paper describes the development, pretesting and piloting of study content, tools and processes for an online study of racial/ethnic bias (comparing Māori and New Zealand European) and clinical decision-making among final year medical students in New Zealand (NZ). The study was developed, pretested and piloted using a staged process (eight stages within five phases). Phase 1 included three stages: 1) scoping and conceptual framework development; 2) literature review and identification of potential measures and items; and, 3) development and adaptation of study content. Three main components were identified to assess different aspects of racial/ethnic bias: (1) implicit racial/ethnic bias using NZ-specific Implicit Association Tests (IATs); (2) explicit racial/ethnic bias using direct questions; and, (3) clinical decision-making, using chronic disease vignettes. Phase 2 (stage 4) comprised expert review and refinement. Formal pretesting (Phase 3) included construct testing using sorting and rating tasks (stage 5) and cognitive interviewing (stage 6). Phase 4 (stage 7) involved content revision and building of the web-based study, followed by pilot testing in Phase 5 (stage 8). Materials identified for potential inclusion performed well in construct testing among six participants. This assisted in the prioritisation and selection of measures that worked best in the New Zealand context and aligned with constructs of interest. Findings from the cognitive interviewing (nine participants) on the clarity, meaning, and acceptability of measures led to changes in the final wording of items and ordering of questions. Piloting (18 participants) confirmed the overall functionality of the web-based questionnaire, with a few minor revisions made to the final study. Robust processes are required in the development of study content to assess racial/ethnic bias in order to optimise the validity of specific measures, ensure acceptability and minimise potential problems. This paper has utility for other researchers in this area by informing potential development approaches and identifying possible measurement tools.

The different oscillation patterns of alpha band in the early and later stages of working memory maintenance.

PubMed

Xie, Yuanjun; Feng, Zhengquan; Xu, Yuanyuan; Bian, Chen; Li, Min

2016-10-28

A putative functional role for alpha oscillations in working memory remains controversial. However, recent evidence suggests that such oscillation may reflect distinct phases of working memory processing. The present study investigated alpha band (8-13Hz) activity during the maintenance stage of working memory using a modified Sternberg working memory task. Our results reveal that alpha power was concentrated primarily in the occipital cortex and was decreased during the early stage of maintenance (0-600ms), and subsequently increased during the later stage of maintenance (1000-1600ms). We suggest that reduced alpha power may be involved in focused attention during the working memory maintenance, whereas increased alpha power may reflect suppression of visual stimuli to facilitate internal processing related to the task. This interpretation is generally consistent with recent reports suggesting that variations in alpha power are associated with the representation and processing of information in the discrete time intervals during the working memory maintenance. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Search asymmetries: parallel processing of uncertain sensory information.

PubMed

Vincent, Benjamin T

2011-08-01

What is the mechanism underlying search phenomena such as search asymmetry? Two-stage models such as Feature Integration Theory and Guided Search propose parallel pre-attentive processing followed by serial post-attentive processing. They claim search asymmetry effects are indicative of finding pairs of features, one processed in parallel, the other in serial. An alternative proposal is that a 1-stage parallel process is responsible, and search asymmetries occur when one stimulus has greater internal uncertainty associated with it than another. While the latter account is simpler, only a few studies have set out to empirically test its quantitative predictions, and many researchers still subscribe to the 2-stage account. This paper examines three separate parallel models (Bayesian optimal observer, max rule, and a heuristic decision rule). All three parallel models can account for search asymmetry effects and I conclude that either people can optimally utilise the uncertain sensory data available to them, or are able to select heuristic decision rules which approximate optimal performance. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Using decision mapping to inform the development of a stated choice survey to elicit youth preferences for sexual and reproductive health and HIV services in rural Malawi.

PubMed

Michaels-Igbokwe, Christine; Lagarde, Mylene; Cairns, John; Terris-Prestholt, Fern

2014-03-01

The process of designing and developing discrete choice experiments (DCEs) is often under reported. The need to adequately report the results of qualitative work used to identify attributes and levels used in a DCE is recognised. However, one area that has received relatively little attention is the exploration of the choice question of interest. This paper provides a case study of the process used to design a stated preference survey to assess youth preferences for integrated sexual and reproductive health (SRH) and HIV outreach services in Malawi. Development and design consisted of six distinct but overlapping and iterative stages. Stage one was a review of the literature. Stage two involved developing a decision map to conceptualise the choice processes involved. Stage three included twelve focus group discussions with young people aged 15-24 (n = 113) and three key informant interviews (n = 3) conducted in Ntcheu District, Malawi. Stage four involved analysis of qualitative data and identification of potential attributes and levels. The choice format and experimental design were selected in stages five and six. The results of the literature review were used to develop a decision map outlining the choices that young people accessing SRH services may face. For youth that would like to use services two key choices were identified: the choice between providers and the choice of service delivery attributes within a provider type. Youth preferences for provider type are best explored using a DCE with a labelled design, while preferences for service delivery attributes associated with a particular provider are better understood using an unlabelled design. Consequently, two DCEs were adopted to jointly assess preferences in this context. Used in combination, the results of the literature review, the decision mapping process and the qualitative work provided robust approach to designing the DCEs individually and as complementary pieces of work. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Sequential Ideal-Observer Analysis of Visual Discriminations.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Geisler, Wilson S.

1989-01-01

A new analysis, based on the concept of the ideal observer in signal detection theory, is described. It allows: tracing of the flow of discrimination information through the initial physiological stages of visual processing for arbitrary spatio-chromatic stimuli, and measurement of the information content of said visual stimuli. (TJH)

Common Ground: An Interactive Visual Exploration and Discovery for Complex Health Data

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-04-01

working with Intermountain Healthcare on a new rich dataset extracted directly from medical notes using natural language processing ( NLP ) algorithms...probabilities based on a state- of-the-art NLP classifiers. At that stage the data did not include geographic information or temporal information but we

Testing the idea of privileged awareness of self-relevant information.

PubMed

Stein, Timo; Siebold, Alisha; van Zoest, Wieske

2016-03-01

Self-relevant information is prioritized in processing. Some have suggested the mechanism driving this advantage is akin to the automatic prioritization of physically salient stimuli in information processing (Humphreys & Sui, 2015). Here we investigate whether self-relevant information is prioritized for awareness under continuous flash suppression (CFS), as has been found for physical salience. Gabor patches with different orientations were first associated with the labels You or Other. Participants were more accurate in matching the self-relevant association, replicating previous findings of self-prioritization. However, breakthrough into awareness from CFS did not differ between self- and other-associated Gabors. These findings demonstrate that self-relevant information has no privileged access to awareness. Rather than modulating the initial visual processes that precede and lead to awareness, the advantage of self-relevant information may better be characterized as prioritization at later processing stages. (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Ways forward with ICT: Effective Pedagogy Using Information and Communications Technology for Literacy and Numeracy in Primary Schools.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moseley, David; Higgins, Steve; Bramald, Rod; Hardman, Frank; Miller, Jen; Mroz, Maria; Tse, Harrison; Newton, Doug; Thompson, Ian; Williamson, John; Halligan, Jean; Bramald, Sarah; Newton, Lynne; Tymms, Peter; Henderson, Brian; Stout, Jane

This report reviews and summarizes the findings of a research and development project investigating effective pedagogy using Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in literacy and numeracy in primary schools in Great Britain. It also provides information about the main stages of the research process and the model of teaching and learning…

An overview of the neuro-cognitive processes involved in the encoding, consolidation, and retrieval of true and false memories

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Perception and memory are imperfect reconstructions of reality. These reconstructions are prone to be influenced by several factors, which may result in false memories. A false memory is the recollection of an event, or details of an episode, that did not actually occur. Memory formation comprises at least three different sub-processes: encoding, consolidation and the retrieval of the learned material. All of these sub-processes are vulnerable for specific errors and consequently may result in false memories. Whereas, processes like imagery, self-referential encoding or spreading activation can lead to the formation of false memories at encoding, semantic generalization during sleep and updating processes due to misleading post event information, in particular, are relevant at the consolidation stage. Finally at the retrieval stage, monitoring processes, which are assumed to be essential to reject false memories, are of specific importance. Different neuro-cognitive processes have been linked to the formation of true and false memories. Most consistently the medial temporal lobe and the medial and lateral prefrontal cortex have been reported with regard to the formation of true and false memories. Despite the fact that all phases entailing memory formation, consolidation of stored information and retrieval processes, are relevant for the forming of false memories, most studies focused on either memory encoding or retrieval. Thus, future studies should try to integrate data from all phases to give a more comprehensive view on systematic memory distortions. An initial outline is developed within this review to connect the different memory stages and research strategies. PMID:22827854

An overview of the neuro-cognitive processes involved in the encoding, consolidation, and retrieval of true and false memories.

PubMed

Straube, Benjamin

2012-07-24

Perception and memory are imperfect reconstructions of reality. These reconstructions are prone to be influenced by several factors, which may result in false memories. A false memory is the recollection of an event, or details of an episode, that did not actually occur. Memory formation comprises at least three different sub-processes: encoding, consolidation and the retrieval of the learned material. All of these sub-processes are vulnerable for specific errors and consequently may result in false memories. Whereas, processes like imagery, self-referential encoding or spreading activation can lead to the formation of false memories at encoding, semantic generalization during sleep and updating processes due to misleading post event information, in particular, are relevant at the consolidation stage. Finally at the retrieval stage, monitoring processes, which are assumed to be essential to reject false memories, are of specific importance. Different neuro-cognitive processes have been linked to the formation of true and false memories. Most consistently the medial temporal lobe and the medial and lateral prefrontal cortex have been reported with regard to the formation of true and false memories. Despite the fact that all phases entailing memory formation, consolidation of stored information and retrieval processes, are relevant for the forming of false memories, most studies focused on either memory encoding or retrieval. Thus, future studies should try to integrate data from all phases to give a more comprehensive view on systematic memory distortions. An initial outline is developed within this review to connect the different memory stages and research strategies.

An investigation into social information processing in young people with Asperger syndrome.

PubMed

Flood, Andrea Mary; Julian Hare, Dougal; Wallis, Paul

2011-09-01

Deficits in social functioning are a core feature of autistic spectrum disorders (ASD), being linked to various cognitive and developmental factors, but there has been little attempt to draw on normative models of social cognition to understand social behaviour in ASD. The current study explored the utility of Crick and Dodge's (1994) information processing model to studying social cognition in ASD, and examined associations between social information processing patterns, theory of mind skills and social functioning. A matched-group design compared young people with Asperger syndrome with typically developing peers, using a social information processing interview previously designed for this purpose. The Asperger syndrome group showed significantly different patterns of information processing at the intent attribution, response generation and response evaluation stages of the information processing model. Theory of mind skills were found to be significantly associated with parental ratings of peer problems in the Asperger syndrome group but not with parental ratings of pro-social behaviour, with only limited evidence of an association between social information processing and measures of theory of mind and social functioning. Overall, the study supports the use of normative social information processing approaches to understanding social functioning in ASD.

Exploring the process of capacity-building among community-based health promotion workers in Alberta, Canada.

PubMed

Montemurro, Genevieve R; Raine, Kim D; Nykiforuk, Candace I J; Mayan, Maria

2014-09-01

Community capacity-building is a central element to health promotion. While capacity-building features, domains and relationships to program sustainability have been well examined, information on the process of capacity-building as experienced by practitioners is needed. This study examined this process as experienced by coordinators working within a community-based chronic disease prevention project implemented in four communities in Alberta (Canada) from 2005-2010 using a case study approach with a mixed-method design. Data collection involved semi-structured interviews, a focus group and program documents tracking coordinator activity. Qualitative analysis followed the constant comparative method using open, axial and selective coding. Quantitative data were analyzed for frequency of major activity distribution. Capacity-building process involves distinct stages of networking, information exchange, partnering, prioritizing, planning/implementing and supporting/ sustaining. Stages are incremental though not always linear. Contextual factors exert a great influence on the process. Implications for research, practice and policy are discussed. © The Author (2013). Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Functional hemispheric asymmetries of global/local processing mirrored by the steady-state visual evoked potential.

PubMed

Martens, Ulla; Hübner, Ronald

2013-03-01

While hemispheric differences in global/local processing have been reported by various studies, it is still under dispute at which processing stage they occur. Primarily, it was assumed that these asymmetries originate from an early perceptual stage. Instead, the content-level binding theory (Hübner & Volberg, 2005) suggests that the hemispheres differ at a later stage at which the stimulus information is bound to its respective level. The present study tested this assumption by means of steady-state evoked potentials (SSVEPs). In particular, we presented hierarchical letters flickering at 12Hz while participants categorised the letters at a pre- cued level (global or local). The information at the two levels could be congruent or incongruent with respect to the required response. Since content-binding is only necessary if there is a response conflict, asymmetric hemispheric processing should be observed only for incongruent stimuli. Indeed, our results show that the cue and congruent stimuli elicited equal SSVEP global/local effects in both hemispheres. In contrast, incongruent stimuli elicited lower SSVEP amplitudes for a local than for a global target level at left posterior electrodes, whereas a reversed pattern was seen at right hemispheric electrodes. These findings provide further evidence for a level-specific hemispheric advantage with respect to content-level binding. Moreover, the fact that the SSVEP is sensitive to these processes offers the possibility to separately track global and local processing by presenting both level contents with different frequencies. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Prediction and constraint in audiovisual speech perception

PubMed Central

Peelle, Jonathan E.; Sommers, Mitchell S.

2015-01-01

During face-to-face conversational speech listeners must efficiently process a rapid and complex stream of multisensory information. Visual speech can serve as a critical complement to auditory information because it provides cues to both the timing of the incoming acoustic signal (the amplitude envelope, influencing attention and perceptual sensitivity) and its content (place and manner of articulation, constraining lexical selection). Here we review behavioral and neurophysiological evidence regarding listeners' use of visual speech information. Multisensory integration of audiovisual speech cues improves recognition accuracy, particularly for speech in noise. Even when speech is intelligible based solely on auditory information, adding visual information may reduce the cognitive demands placed on listeners through increasing precision of prediction. Electrophysiological studies demonstrate oscillatory cortical entrainment to speech in auditory cortex is enhanced when visual speech is present, increasing sensitivity to important acoustic cues. Neuroimaging studies also suggest increased activity in auditory cortex when congruent visual information is available, but additionally emphasize the involvement of heteromodal regions of posterior superior temporal sulcus as playing a role in integrative processing. We interpret these findings in a framework of temporally-focused lexical competition in which visual speech information affects auditory processing to increase sensitivity to auditory information through an early integration mechanism, and a late integration stage that incorporates specific information about a speaker's articulators to constrain the number of possible candidates in a spoken utterance. Ultimately it is words compatible with both auditory and visual information that most strongly determine successful speech perception during everyday listening. Thus, audiovisual speech perception is accomplished through multiple stages of integration, supported by distinct neuroanatomical mechanisms. PMID:25890390

High Time- and Size-Resolved Measurements of PM and Chemical Composition from Coal Combustion: Implications for the EC Formation Process.

PubMed

Han, Yong; Chen, Yingjun; Ahmad, Saud; Feng, Yanli; Zhang, Fan; Song, Wenhuai; Cao, Fang; Zhang, Yanlin; Yang, Xin; Li, Jun; Zhang, Gan

2018-06-05

Inefficient coal combustion is a significant source of elemental carbon (EC) air pollution in China, but there is a limited understanding of EC's formation processes. In this study, high time-resolved particle number size distributions (PNSDs) and size-resolved chemical compositions were obtained from the combustion of four bituminous coals burned in a quartz tube furnace at 500 and 800 °C. Based on the distinct characteristics of PNSD, the flaming stage was divided into the first-flaming stage (with a PNSD peak at 0.3-0.4 μm) and the second-flaming stage (with a PNSD peak at 0.1-0.15 μm). For the size-segregated EC and OC measurements, more soot-EC was observed in particles larger than 0.3 μm, whereas the smaller ones possessed more char-EC. The results indicated that gas-phase and direct-conversion EC generation mechanisms dominate different burning stages. The analysis of 16 parent PAHs showed more high-molecular-weight PAHs in the second-flaming stage particles, which supports the idea of different formation processes for char-EC and soot-EC. For all four coals, the PNSD and chemical compositions shared a similar trend, confirming that the different formation processes of EC in different flaming stages were common. This study provides novel information concerning EC formation.

Pre-defined and optional staging for the deployment of enterprise systems: a case study and a framework

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lichtenstein, Yossi; Cucuy, Shy; Fink, Lior

2017-03-01

The effective deployment of enterprise systems has been a major challenge for many organisations. Customising the new system, changing business processes, and integrating multiple information sources are all difficult tasks. As such, they are typically done in carefully planned stages in a process known as phased implementation. Using ideas from Option Theory, this article critiques aspects of phased implementation. One customer relationship management (CRM) project and its phased implementation are described in detail and ten other enterprise system deployments are summarised as a basis for the observation that almost all deployment stages are pre-defined operational steps rather than decision points. However, Option Theory suggests that optional stages, to be used only when risk materialises, should be integral parts of project plans. Although such optional stages are often more valuable than pre-defined stages, the evidence presented in this article shows that they are only rarely utilised. Therefore, a simple framework is presented; it first identifies risks related to the deployment of enterprise systems, then identifies optional stages that can mitigate these risks, and finally compares the costs and benefits of both pre-defined and optional stages.

Developing a primary care patient measure of safety (PC PMOS): a modified Delphi process and face validity testing.

PubMed

Hernan, Andrea L; Giles, Sally J; O'Hara, Jane K; Fuller, Jeffrey; Johnson, Julie K; Dunbar, James A

2016-04-01

Patients are a valuable source of information about ways to prevent harm in primary care and are in a unique position to provide feedback about the factors that contribute to safety incidents. Unlike in the hospital setting, there are currently no tools that allow the systematic capture of this information from patients. The aim of this study was to develop a quantitative primary care patient measure of safety (PC PMOS). A two-stage approach was undertaken to develop questionnaire domains and items. Stage 1 involved a modified Delphi process. An expert panel reached consensus on domains and items based on three sources of information (validated hospital PMOS, previous research conducted by our study team and literature on threats to patient safety). Stage 2 involved testing the face validity of the questionnaire developed during stage 1 with patients and primary care staff using the 'think aloud' method. Following this process, the questionnaire was revised accordingly. The PC PMOS was received positively by both patients and staff during face validity testing. Barriers to completion included the length, relevance and clarity of questions. The final PC PMOS consisted of 50 items across 15 domains. The contributory factors to safety incidents centred on communication, access to care, patient-related factors, organisation and care planning, task performance and information flow. This is the first tool specifically designed for primary care settings, which allows patients to provide feedback about factors contributing to potential safety incidents. The PC PMOS provides a way for primary care organisations to learn about safety from the patient perspective and make service improvements with the aim of reducing harm in this setting. Future research will explore the reliability and construct validity of the PC PMOS. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

Digestion in sea urchin larvae impaired under ocean acidification

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stumpp, Meike; Hu, Marian; Casties, Isabel; Saborowski, Reinhard; Bleich, Markus; Melzner, Frank; Dupont, Sam

2013-12-01

Larval stages are considered as the weakest link when a species is exposed to challenging environmental changes. Reduced rates of growth and development in larval stages of calcifying invertebrates in response to ocean acidification might be caused by energetic limitations. So far no information exists on how ocean acidification affects digestive processes in marine larval stages. Here we reveal alkaline (~pH 9.5) conditions in the stomach of sea urchin larvae. Larvae exposed to decreased seawater pH suffer from a drop in gastric pH, which directly translates into decreased digestive efficiencies and triggers compensatory feeding. These results suggest that larval digestion represents a critical process in the context of ocean acidification, which has been overlooked so far.

What Do Policy Makers Think of Educational Research & Evaluation? Or Do They?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Florio, David H.; And Others

1979-01-01

Twenty-six congressional staff members dealing with educational legislation were surveyed concerning their sources of information and the relative importance and value of educational inquiry in various stages of the policy process. Conclusions were drawn and recommendations regarding improvement of the process were made. (MH)

Handbook for Educational Buildings Planning. Educational Building and Equipment 9.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Almeida, Rodolfo

Stages in the educational facility planning process are presented in this handbook, with a second focus on implementation. Four chapters provide information on the four cycles of the planning process, which include analysis and diagnosis, research and development, planning and programming, and implementation and evaluation. Characteristics of an…

Guide Book for Curriculum Development and Adaptation. Draft.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Bangkok (Thailand). Principal Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific.

This guide was developed as a cooperative initiative by UNESCO member countries to provide information about the process of development and adaptation of a flexible, competency-based curriculum, especially in vocational education. The guidebook outlines an exemplar process of education organized in 11 stages of design and development based on…

Initial Crisis Reaction and Poliheuristic Theory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

DeRouen, Karl, Jr.; Sprecher, Christopher

2004-01-01

Poliheuristic (PH) theory models foreign policy decisions using a two-stage process. The first step eliminates alternatives on the basis of a simplifying heuristic. The second step involves a selection from among the remaining alternatives and can employ a more rational and compensatory means of processing information. The PH model posits that…

Schools Designed with Community Participation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sanoff, Henry

This publication presents case studies of school buildings to demonstrate the application of a post occupancy evaluation (POE) during various stages of the design and planning process. It explains that because POE is a process for gathering information about a building in use, it can be applied effectively both to renovation and expansion projects…

The timing and sources of information for the adoption and implementation of production innovations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ettlie, J. E.

1976-01-01

Two dimensions (personal-impersonal and internal-external) are used to characterize information sources as they become important during the interorganizational transfer of production innovations. The results of three studies are reviewed for the purpose of deriving a model of the timing and importance of different information sources and the utilization of new technology. Based on the findings of two retrospective studies, it was concluded that the pattern of information seeking behavior in user organizations during the awareness stage of adoption is not a reliable predictor of the eventual utilization rate. Using the additional findings of a real-time study, an empirical model of the relative importance of information sources for successful user organizations is presented. These results are extended and integrated into a theoretical model consisting of a time-profile of successful implementations and the relative importance of four types of information sources during seven stages of the adoption-implementation process.

Participatory Design of an Online Self-Management Tool for Users With Spinal Cord Injury: Qualitative Study

PubMed Central

Shepherd, John; Tomasone, Jennifer; Munce, Sarah; Linassi, Gary; Hossain, Saima Noreen; Jaglal, Susan

2018-01-01

Background Rehospitalization rates resulting from secondary conditions in persons with spinal cord injuries (SCI) are high. Self-management programs for many chronic conditions have been associated with decreases in hospital readmissions. However, in the SCI community, evidence suggests that satisfaction with traditional self-management programs is low. Users with SCI have indicated preference for programs that are online (rather than in-person), that target SCI-specific concerns, and are led by peers with SCI. There is currently no program with all of these features, which addresses self-management of secondary conditions after SCI. Objective The aim of this study was to provide details of a participatory design (PD) process for an internet-mediated self-management program for users with SCI (called SCI & U) and illustrate how it has been used to define design constraints and solutions. Methods Users were involved in development as codesigners, codevelopers, and key informants. Codesigners and codevelopers were recruited from consumer advocacy groups and worked with a core development team. Key informants were recruited from geographically distributed advocacy groups to form a product advisory council that met regularly with the core team. During meetings, codesigners and informants walked through stages of work that typify PD processes such as exploration, discovery, and prototyping. This paper details the process by analyzing 10 meetings that took place between August 2015 and May 2016. Meetings were recorded, transcribed, and subjected to an inductive thematic analysis; resulting themes were organized according to their relationship to PD stages. Results A total of 16 individuals participated in meeting discussions, including 7 researchers and 9 persons with SCI from 4 Canadian provinces. Themes of trust, expertise, and community emerged in every group discussion. The exploration stage revealed interest in online self-management resources coupled with concerns about information credibility. In general, participants indicated that they felt more confident with information received from trusted, in-person sources (eg, peers or health care professionals) than information found online. The discovery stage saw participants propose and discuss concepts to filter credible information and highlight community expertise, namely (1) a community-curated resource database, (2) online information navigators, and (3) group chats with peers. Several tools and techniques were collectively prototyped in an effort to foster trust and community; these are illustrated in the Results section. Conclusions A PD process engaging users as codesigners, codevelopers, and informants can be used to identify design concerns and prototype online solutions to promote self-management after SCI. Future work will assess the usability of the collectively designed tools among a broad population of Canadians with SCI and the tools’ impact on self-efficacy and health. PMID:29563075

Impaired global, and compensatory local, biological motion processing in people with high levels of autistic traits.

PubMed

van Boxtel, Jeroen J A; Lu, Hongjing

2013-01-01

People with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are hypothesized to have poor high-level processing but superior low-level processing, causing impaired social recognition, and a focus on non-social stimulus contingencies. Biological motion perception provides an ideal domain to investigate exactly how ASD modulates the interaction between low and high-level processing, because it involves multiple processing stages, and carries many important social cues. We investigated individual differences among typically developing observers in biological motion processing, and whether such individual differences associate with the number of autistic traits. In Experiment 1, we found that individuals with fewer autistic traits were automatically and involuntarily attracted to global biological motion information, whereas individuals with more autistic traits did not show this pre-attentional distraction. We employed an action adaptation paradigm in the second study to show that individuals with more autistic traits were able to compensate for deficits in global processing with an increased involvement in local processing. Our findings can be interpreted within a predictive coding framework, which characterizes the functional relationship between local and global processing stages, and explains how these stages contribute to the perceptual difficulties associated with ASD.

Impaired Global, and Compensatory Local, Biological Motion Processing in People with High Levels of Autistic Traits

PubMed Central

van Boxtel, Jeroen J. A.; Lu, Hongjing

2013-01-01

People with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are hypothesized to have poor high-level processing but superior low-level processing, causing impaired social recognition, and a focus on non-social stimulus contingencies. Biological motion perception provides an ideal domain to investigate exactly how ASD modulates the interaction between low and high-level processing, because it involves multiple processing stages, and carries many important social cues. We investigated individual differences among typically developing observers in biological motion processing, and whether such individual differences associate with the number of autistic traits. In Experiment 1, we found that individuals with fewer autistic traits were automatically and involuntarily attracted to global biological motion information, whereas individuals with more autistic traits did not show this pre-attentional distraction. We employed an action adaptation paradigm in the second study to show that individuals with more autistic traits were able to compensate for deficits in global processing with an increased involvement in local processing. Our findings can be interpreted within a predictive coding framework, which characterizes the functional relationship between local and global processing stages, and explains how these stages contribute to the perceptual difficulties associated with ASD. PMID:23630514

Initial Design of Culturally Informed Behavioral Intervention Technologies: Developing an mHealth Intervention for Young Sexual Minority Men With Generalized Anxiety Disorder and Major Depression

PubMed Central

Montague, Enid; Mohr, David C

2013-01-01

Background To our knowledge, there is no well-articulated process for the design of culturally informed behavioral intervention technologies. Objective This paper describes the early stages of such a process, illustrated by the methodology for the ongoing development of a behavioral intervention technology targeting generalized anxiety disorder and major depression among young sexual minority men. Methods We integrated instructional design for Internet behavioral intervention technologies with greater detail on information sources that can identify user needs in understudied populations, as well as advances in the understanding of technology-specific behavioral intervention technology dimensions that may need to be culturally tailored. Results General psychological theory describing how to effect change in the clinical target is first integrated with theory describing potentially malleable factors that help explain the clinical problem within the population. Additional information sources are then used to (1) evaluate the theory, (2) identify population-specific factors that may affect users’ ability to relate to and benefit from the behavioral intervention technology, and (3) establish specific skills, attitudes, knowledge, etc, required to change malleable factors posited in the theory. User needs result from synthesis of this information. Product requirements are then generated through application of the user needs to specific behavioral intervention technology dimensions (eg, technology platform). We provide examples of considerations relevant to each stage of this process and how they were applied. Conclusions This process can guide the initial design of other culturally informed behavioral intervention technologies. This first attempt to create a systematic design process can spur development of guidelines for design of behavioral intervention technologies aimed to reduce health disparities. PMID:24311444

Subliminally and consciously induced cognitive conflicts interact at several processing levels.

PubMed

Stock, Ann-Kathrin; Friedrich, Julia; Beste, Christian

2016-12-01

Controlled behavior is susceptible to conflicts that can emerge from subliminal or consciously processed information. While research suggests that both sources of conflicting information may interact in their modulation of controlled behavior, it has remained unclear which cognitive sub-processes involved in controlled behavior are affected by this interaction; i.e., at which processing level subliminally and consciously induced response conflicts interact in modulating controlled behavior. Moreover, we investigated whether this interaction of subliminally and consciously induced response conflicts was due to a nexus between the two types of conflict like a common cognitive process or factor. For this, n = 38 healthy young subjects completed a paradigm which combines subliminal primes and consciously perceived flankers while an electroencephalography (EEG) was recorded. We show that the interaction of subliminal and conscious sources of conflict is not restricted to the response selection level (N2) but can already be shown at the earliest stages of perceptual and attentional processing (P1). While the degree of early attentional processing of subliminal information seems to depend on the absence of consciously perceived response conflicts, conflicts during the stage of response selection may be either reduced or enhanced by subliminal priming. Moreover, the results showed that even though the two different sources of conflict interact at the response selection level, they clearly originate from two distinct processes that interact before they detrimentally affect cognitive control. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Study on HOPE Management Mode of Coal Enterprises Based on Systematic Thinking

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhaoran, Zhang; Tianzhu, Zhang; Wenjing, Tong

2018-02-01

The extensive management mode of coal enterprises is no longer applicable to the demand of enterprise development under the new economic situation. Combined with the characteristics of coal mine production, based on the system of thinking, integration of lean, people, comprehensive, job management theory, formed HOPE management model, including a core system and three support systems and 18 elements. There are three stages in the development and implementation of this model. To 6S site management for the initial stage to job process reengineering for the intermediate stage to post value process control for the advanced stage. The successful implementation of HOPE model in coal enterprises needs comprehensive control from five aspects: lean culture construction, flattening organizational structure, cost control system, performance appraisal system and lean information management platform. HOPE model can be implemented smoothly and make “win-win” between enterprises and employees.

Modeling and Numerical Investigation of the Process of Vapor-Oxygen Gasification of Solid Fuels in a Vertical Flow Reactor Under Pressure

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rokhman, B. B.

2014-09-01

With the use of the developed model, detailed information has been obtained on the working process in a flow reactor with single- and two-stage schemes of vapor-oxygen gasification of coals under a pressure of 3 MPa. The dependence of the ratios of mass flow rates O2/coal and H2O/coal on the type of fuel has been established and their optimal values for the "Shell" process have been found. At a given consumption ratio of gas coal and brown coal of brand B1, the optimum diameters of particles providing minimum combustible loss of the carbon mixture have been determined. It has been found that the content of methane in the syngas in the case of two-stage gasification is much higher than in the case of single-stage gasification.

Information Seeking and Satisfaction with Information Sources Among Spouses of Men with Newly Diagnosed Local-Stage Prostate Cancer.

PubMed

Bansal, Aasthaa; Koepl, Lisel M; Fedorenko, Catherine R; Li, Chunyu; Smith, Judith Lee; Hall, Ingrid J; Penson, David F; Ramsey, Scott D

2018-04-01

Information sources about prostate cancer treatment and outcomes are typically designed for patients. Little is known about the availability and utility of information for partners. The objectives of our study were to evaluate information sources used by partners to understand prostate cancer management options, their perceived usefulness, and the relationship between sources used and satisfaction with treatment experience. A longitudinal survey of female partners of men newly diagnosed with local-stage prostate cancer was conducted in three different geographic regions. Partners and associated patients were surveyed at baseline (after patient diagnosis but prior to receiving therapy) and at 12 months following diagnosis. Information sources included provider, literature, friends or family members, Internet websites, books, traditional media, and support groups. Utility of an information source was defined as whether the partner would recommend it to caregivers of other patients with local-stage prostate cancer. Our study cohort included 179 partner-patient pairs. At diagnosis, partners consulted an average of 4.6 information sources. Non-Hispanic white partners were more likely than others to use friends and family as an information source (OR = 2.44, 95% CI (1.04, 5.56)). More educated partners were less likely to use support groups (OR = 0.31, 95% CI (0.14, 0.71)). At 12-month follow-up, partners were less likely to recommend books (OR = 0.23, 95% CI (0.11, 0.49)) compared to baseline. Partners consulted a large number of information sources in researching treatment options for local-stage prostate cancer and the types of sources accessed varied by race/ethnicity and educational attainment. Additional resources to promote selection of high-quality non-provider information sources are warranted to enable partners to better aid patients in their treatment decision-making process.

Information Seeking and Satisfaction with Information Sources Among Spouses of Men with Newly Diagnosed Local-Stage Prostate Cancer

PubMed Central

Bansal, Aasthaa; Koepl, Lisel M.; Fedorenko, Catherine R.; Li, Chunyu; Smith, Judith Lee; Hall, Ingrid J.; Penson, David F.; Ramsey, Scott D.

2017-01-01

Information sources about prostate cancer treatment and outcomes are typically designed for patients. Little is known about the availability and utility of information for partners. The objectives of our study were to evaluate information sources used by partners to understand prostate cancer management options, their perceived usefulness, and the relationship between sources used and satisfaction with treatment experience. A longitudinal survey of female partners of men newly diagnosed with local-stage prostate cancer was conducted in three different geographic regions. Partners and associated patients were surveyed at baseline (after patient diagnosis but prior to receiving therapy) and at 12 months following diagnosis. Information sources included provider, literature, friends or family members, Internet websites, books, traditional media, and support groups. Utility of an information source was defined as whether the partner would recommend it to caregivers of other patients with local-stage prostate cancer. Our study cohort included 179 partner-patient pairs. At diagnosis, partners consulted an average of 4.6 information sources. Non-Hispanic white partners were more likely than others to use friends and family as an information source (OR = 2.44, 95% CI (1.04, 5.56)). More educated partners were less likely to use support groups (OR = 0.31, 95% CI (0.14, 0.71)). At 12-month follow-up, partners were less likely to recommend books (OR = 0.23, 95% CI (0.11, 0.49)) compared to baseline. Partners consulted a large number of information sources in researching treatment options for local-stage prostate cancer and the types of sources accessed varied by race/ethnicity and educational attainment. Additional resources to promote selection of high-quality non-provider information sources are warranted to enable partners to better aid patients in their treatment decision-making process. PMID:28238032

A Review of User-Centered Design for Diabetes-Related Consumer Health Informatics Technologies

PubMed Central

LeRouge, Cynthia; Wickramasinghe, Nilmini

2013-01-01

User-centered design (UCD) is well recognized as an effective human factor engineering strategy for designing ease of use in the total customer experience with products and information technology that has been applied specifically to health care information technology systems. We conducted a literature review to analyze the current research regarding the use of UCD methods and principles to support the development or evaluation of diabetes-related consumer health informatics technology (CHIT) initiatives. Findings indicate that (1) UCD activities have been applied across the technology development life cycle stages, (2) there are benefits to incorporating UCD to better inform CHIT development in this area, and (3) the degree of adoption of the UCD process is quite uneven across diabetes CHIT studies. In addition, few to no studies report on methods used across all phases of the life cycle with process detail. To address that void, the Appendix provides an illustrative case study example of UCD techniques across development stages. PMID:23911188

Role of Evidence in Maternal Health Policy Processes in Vietnam, India and China: Findings from the HEPVIC Project

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mirzoev, Tolib; Green, Andrew; Gerein, Nancy; Pearson, Stephen; Bird, Philippa; Ha, Bui Thi Thu; Ramani, Karaikurichi; Qian, Xu; Yang, Xiaoguang; Mukhopadhyay, Maitrayee; Soors, Werner

2013-01-01

This paper explores the role of evidence in maternal health policy processes in Vietnam, India and China. Both formal and informal types of evidence were used; and differences were found between the stages of policy processes. Evidence used mostly covered easily quantifiable issues and clearly identifiable technical solutions. Different policy…

Dynamic Encoding of Face Information in the Human Fusiform Gyrus

PubMed Central

Ghuman, Avniel Singh; Brunet, Nicolas M.; Li, Yuanning; Konecky, Roma O.; Pyles, John A.; Walls, Shawn A.; Destefino, Vincent; Wang, Wei; Richardson, R. Mark

2014-01-01

Humans’ ability to rapidly and accurately detect, identify, and classify faces under variable conditions derives from a network of brain regions highly tuned to face information. The fusiform face area (FFA) is thought to be a computational hub for face processing, however temporal dynamics of face information processing in FFA remains unclear. Here we use multivariate pattern classification to decode the temporal dynamics of expression-invariant face information processing using electrodes placed directly upon FFA in humans. Early FFA activity (50-75 ms) contained information regarding whether participants were viewing a face. Activity between 200-500 ms contained expression-invariant information about which of 70 faces participants were viewing along with the individual differences in facial features and their configurations. Long-lasting (500+ ms) broadband gamma frequency activity predicted task performance. These results elucidate the dynamic computational role FFA plays in multiple face processing stages and indicate what information is used in performing these visual analyses. PMID:25482825

Dynamic encoding of face information in the human fusiform gyrus.

PubMed

Ghuman, Avniel Singh; Brunet, Nicolas M; Li, Yuanning; Konecky, Roma O; Pyles, John A; Walls, Shawn A; Destefino, Vincent; Wang, Wei; Richardson, R Mark

2014-12-08

Humans' ability to rapidly and accurately detect, identify and classify faces under variable conditions derives from a network of brain regions highly tuned to face information. The fusiform face area (FFA) is thought to be a computational hub for face processing; however, temporal dynamics of face information processing in FFA remains unclear. Here we use multivariate pattern classification to decode the temporal dynamics of expression-invariant face information processing using electrodes placed directly on FFA in humans. Early FFA activity (50-75 ms) contained information regarding whether participants were viewing a face. Activity between 200 and 500 ms contained expression-invariant information about which of 70 faces participants were viewing along with the individual differences in facial features and their configurations. Long-lasting (500+ms) broadband gamma frequency activity predicted task performance. These results elucidate the dynamic computational role FFA plays in multiple face processing stages and indicate what information is used in performing these visual analyses.

Robust head pose estimation via supervised manifold learning.

PubMed

Wang, Chao; Song, Xubo

2014-05-01

Head poses can be automatically estimated using manifold learning algorithms, with the assumption that with the pose being the only variable, the face images should lie in a smooth and low-dimensional manifold. However, this estimation approach is challenging due to other appearance variations related to identity, head location in image, background clutter, facial expression, and illumination. To address the problem, we propose to incorporate supervised information (pose angles of training samples) into the process of manifold learning. The process has three stages: neighborhood construction, graph weight computation and projection learning. For the first two stages, we redefine inter-point distance for neighborhood construction as well as graph weight by constraining them with the pose angle information. For Stage 3, we present a supervised neighborhood-based linear feature transformation algorithm to keep the data points with similar pose angles close together but the data points with dissimilar pose angles far apart. The experimental results show that our method has higher estimation accuracy than the other state-of-art algorithms and is robust to identity and illumination variations. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The physiology and psychophysics of the color-form relationship: a review

PubMed Central

Moutoussis, Konstantinos

2015-01-01

The relationship between color and form has been a long standing issue in visual science. A picture of functional segregation and topographic clustering emerges from anatomical and electrophysiological studies in animals, as well as by brain imaging studies in human. However, one of the many roles of chromatic information is to support form perception, and in some cases it can do so in a way superior to achromatic (luminance) information. This occurs both at an early, contour-detection stage, as well as in late, higher stages involving spatial integration and the perception of global shapes. Pure chromatic contrast can also support several visual illusions related to form-perception. On the other hand, form seems a necessary prerequisite for the computation and assignment of color across space, and there are several respects in which the color of an object can be influenced by its form. Evidently, color and form are mutually dependent. Electrophysiological studies have revealed neurons in the visual brain able to signal contours determined by pure chromatic contrast, the spatial tuning of which is similar to that of neurons carrying luminance information. It seems that, especially at an early stage, form is processed by several, independent systems that interact with each other, each one having different tuning characteristics in color space. At later processing stages, mechanisms able to combine information coming from different sources emerge. A clear interaction between color and form is manifested by the fact that color-form contingencies can be observed in various perceptual phenomena such as adaptation aftereffects and illusions. Such an interaction suggests a possible early binding between these two attributes, something that has been verified by both electrophysiological and fMRI studies. PMID:26578989

Do bodily expressions compete with facial expressions? Time course of integration of emotional signals from the face and the body.

PubMed

Gu, Yuanyuan; Mai, Xiaoqin; Luo, Yue-jia

2013-01-01

The decoding of social signals from nonverbal cues plays a vital role in the social interactions of socially gregarious animals such as humans. Because nonverbal emotional signals from the face and body are normally seen together, it is important to investigate the mechanism underlying the integration of emotional signals from these two sources. We conducted a study in which the time course of the integration of facial and bodily expressions was examined via analysis of event-related potentials (ERPs) while the focus of attention was manipulated. Distinctive integrating features were found during multiple stages of processing. In the first stage, threatening information from the body was extracted automatically and rapidly, as evidenced by enhanced P1 amplitudes when the subjects viewed compound face-body images with fearful bodies compared with happy bodies. In the second stage, incongruency between emotional information from the face and the body was detected and captured by N2. Incongruent compound images elicited larger N2s than did congruent compound images. The focus of attention modulated the third stage of integration. When the subjects' attention was focused on the face, images with congruent emotional signals elicited larger P3s than did images with incongruent signals, suggesting more sustained attention and elaboration of congruent emotional information extracted from the face and body. On the other hand, when the subjects' attention was focused on the body, images with fearful bodies elicited larger P3s than did images with happy bodies, indicating more sustained attention and elaboration of threatening information from the body during evaluative processes.

Do Bodily Expressions Compete with Facial Expressions? Time Course of Integration of Emotional Signals from the Face and the Body

PubMed Central

Gu, Yuanyuan; Mai, Xiaoqin; Luo, Yue-jia

2013-01-01

The decoding of social signals from nonverbal cues plays a vital role in the social interactions of socially gregarious animals such as humans. Because nonverbal emotional signals from the face and body are normally seen together, it is important to investigate the mechanism underlying the integration of emotional signals from these two sources. We conducted a study in which the time course of the integration of facial and bodily expressions was examined via analysis of event-related potentials (ERPs) while the focus of attention was manipulated. Distinctive integrating features were found during multiple stages of processing. In the first stage, threatening information from the body was extracted automatically and rapidly, as evidenced by enhanced P1 amplitudes when the subjects viewed compound face-body images with fearful bodies compared with happy bodies. In the second stage, incongruency between emotional information from the face and the body was detected and captured by N2. Incongruent compound images elicited larger N2s than did congruent compound images. The focus of attention modulated the third stage of integration. When the subjects' attention was focused on the face, images with congruent emotional signals elicited larger P3s than did images with incongruent signals, suggesting more sustained attention and elaboration of congruent emotional information extracted from the face and body. On the other hand, when the subjects' attention was focused on the body, images with fearful bodies elicited larger P3s than did images with happy bodies, indicating more sustained attention and elaboration of threatening information from the body during evaluative processes. PMID:23935825

The physiology and psychophysics of the color-form relationship: a review.

PubMed

Moutoussis, Konstantinos

2015-01-01

The relationship between color and form has been a long standing issue in visual science. A picture of functional segregation and topographic clustering emerges from anatomical and electrophysiological studies in animals, as well as by brain imaging studies in human. However, one of the many roles of chromatic information is to support form perception, and in some cases it can do so in a way superior to achromatic (luminance) information. This occurs both at an early, contour-detection stage, as well as in late, higher stages involving spatial integration and the perception of global shapes. Pure chromatic contrast can also support several visual illusions related to form-perception. On the other hand, form seems a necessary prerequisite for the computation and assignment of color across space, and there are several respects in which the color of an object can be influenced by its form. Evidently, color and form are mutually dependent. Electrophysiological studies have revealed neurons in the visual brain able to signal contours determined by pure chromatic contrast, the spatial tuning of which is similar to that of neurons carrying luminance information. It seems that, especially at an early stage, form is processed by several, independent systems that interact with each other, each one having different tuning characteristics in color space. At later processing stages, mechanisms able to combine information coming from different sources emerge. A clear interaction between color and form is manifested by the fact that color-form contingencies can be observed in various perceptual phenomena such as adaptation aftereffects and illusions. Such an interaction suggests a possible early binding between these two attributes, something that has been verified by both electrophysiological and fMRI studies.

The effect of emotionally valenced eye region images on visuocortical processing of surprised faces.

PubMed

Li, Shuaixia; Li, Ping; Wang, Wei; Zhu, Xiangru; Luo, Wenbo

2018-05-01

In this study, we presented pictorial representations of happy, neutral, and fearful expressions projected in the eye regions to determine whether the eye region alone is sufficient to produce a context effect. Participants were asked to judge the valence of surprised faces that had been preceded by a picture of an eye region. Behavioral results showed that affective ratings of surprised faces were context dependent. Prime-related ERPs with presentation of happy eyes elicited a larger P1 than those for neutral and fearful eyes, likely due to the recognition advantage provided by a happy expression. Target-related ERPs showed that surprised faces in the context of fearful and happy eyes elicited dramatically larger C1 than those in the neutral context, which reflected the modulation by predictions during the earliest stages of face processing. There were larger N170 with neutral and fearful eye contexts compared to the happy context, suggesting faces were being integrated with contextual threat information. The P3 component exhibited enhanced brain activity in response to faces preceded by happy and fearful eyes compared with neutral eyes, indicating motivated attention processing may be involved at this stage. Altogether, these results indicate for the first time that the influence of isolated eye regions on the perception of surprised faces involves preferential processing at the early stages and elaborate processing at the late stages. Moreover, higher cognitive processes such as predictions and attention can modulate face processing from the earliest stages in a top-down manner. © 2017 Society for Psychophysiological Research.

Problems in the long-term storage of data obtained from scientific space experiments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zlotin, G. N.; Khovanskiy, Y. D.

1975-01-01

It is shown that long-term data storage systems can be achieved when the system which organizes and conducts the scientific space experiments is equipped with a specialized subsystem: the information filing system. Its main functions are described along with the necessity of stage-by-stage development and compatibility with the data processing systems. The requirements for long-term data storage media are discussed.

Conflict-Specific Aging Effects Mainly Manifest in Early Information Processing Stages-An ERP Study with Different Conflict Types.

PubMed

Korsch, Margarethe; Frühholz, Sascha; Herrmann, Manfred

2016-01-01

Aging is usually accompanied by alterations of cognitive control functions such as conflict processing. Recent research suggests that aging effects on cognitive control seem to vary with degree and source of conflict, and conflict specific aging effects on performance measures as well as neural activation patterns have been shown. However, there is sparse information whether and how aging affects different stages of conflict processing as indicated by event related potentials (ERPs) such as the P2, N2 and P3 components. In the present study, 19 young and 23 elderly adults performed a combined Flanker conflict and stimulus-response-conflict (SRC) task. Analysis of the reaction times (RTs) revealed an increased SRC related conflict effect in elderly. ERP analysis furthermore demonstrated an age-related increase of the P2 amplitude in response to the SRC task. In addition, elderly adults exhibited an increased P3 amplitude modulation induced by incongruent SRC and Flanker conflict trials.

Research on Chinese Intelligent Guanglianda in High-rise Construction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Romanovich, Marina; Shi, Peiyu; Wang, Ziyue; Zhao, Liang; Gerasimova, Vera

2018-03-01

Since the reform and opening up in China, the rapid development of China's construction industry, especially after 2011, BIM technology in China has a rapid development and depth of application. This article mainly discusses the process of development of China's construction industry management and the process of development of BIM technology in China and, the use of software in China, the main use of revit in 3D modeling (design stage), the use of Guanglianda in the whole process of construction management. This article researches on Guanglianda and the applications were described, for example, in the integrated project of management information, labor management information, construction video surveillance, material management, material site acceptance. This paper also elaborates on the cooperation of Revit and Guanglianda in different stages. This paper also elaborates on a construction case in China, and makes a description of the problems of crane, facts and time, and then explores the reasons behind the rapid construction of China. And the feasibility of China's construction management approach to the introduction of Russia.

Working memory capacity and visual-verbal cognitive load modulate auditory-sensory gating in the brainstem: toward a unified view of attention.

PubMed

Sörqvist, Patrik; Stenfelt, Stefan; Rönnberg, Jerker

2012-11-01

Two fundamental research questions have driven attention research in the past: One concerns whether selection of relevant information among competing, irrelevant, information takes place at an early or at a late processing stage; the other concerns whether the capacity of attention is limited by a central, domain-general pool of resources or by independent, modality-specific pools. In this article, we contribute to these debates by showing that the auditory-evoked brainstem response (an early stage of auditory processing) to task-irrelevant sound decreases as a function of central working memory load (manipulated with a visual-verbal version of the n-back task). Furthermore, individual differences in central/domain-general working memory capacity modulated the magnitude of the auditory-evoked brainstem response, but only in the high working memory load condition. The results support a unified view of attention whereby the capacity of a late/central mechanism (working memory) modulates early precortical sensory processing.

Differentiated Staffing and Non-Teamed Organizational Structures as They Affect Elementary School Teacher-Pupil Interaction.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Petrie, Thomas A.; And Others

A study was conducted of the differences in the frequency of selected student-teacher interaction in differentiated staffs and in non-teamed schools. The interaction processes studied were synthesized from Erikson's four stages of childhood: student behaviors--information processing, choice-making, reflection, problem solving, and procedures or…

The Journey to an Inaugural Chief Diversity Officer: Preparation, Implementation and Beyond

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arnold, Jeanne; Kowalski-Braun, Marlene

2012-01-01

In this article, we discuss the necessary components for successfully creating and implementing a chief diversity officer (CDO) position within a four-year public institution. We explore information about critical stages of the process such as the creation of the position, the recruitment process, and compatibility with the institution's mission.…

A Guide to Writing Adult Education Grant Proposals.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

James, Waynne; And Others

This guide is designed to help adult educators to get through the grant application process required by the Bureau of Adult and Community Education, Florida Department of Education. It provides information on the four stages of the process: planning the project, writing the proposal, submitting the application package, and receiving notification.…

Cognitive and affective control in a flanker word task: common and dissociable brain mechanisms.

PubMed

Alguacil, Sonia; Tudela, Pío; Ruz, María

2013-08-01

In the present study we compared the nature of cognitive and affective conflict modulations at different stages of information processing using electroencephalographic recordings. Participants performed a flanker task in which they had to focus on a central word target and indicate its semantic category (cognitive version) or its valence (affective version). Targets were flanked by congruent or incongruent words in both versions. Although tasks were equivalent at the behavioral level, event-related potentials (ERPs) showed common and dissociable cognitive and emotional conflict modulations. At early stages of information processing, both tasks generated parallel sequential conflict effects in the P1 and N170 potentials. Later, the N2 and the first part of the P3 wave were exclusively modulated by cognitive conflict, whereas the last section of the P3 deflection/Late Positive Component (LPC) was only involved in affective current conflict processing. Therefore, the whole data set suggests the existence of early common mechanisms that are equivalent for cognitive and affective materials and later task-specific conflict processing. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Differential Effects of Motor Efference Copies and Proprioceptive Information on Response Evaluation Processes

PubMed Central

Stock, Ann-Kathrin; Wascher, Edmund; Beste, Christian

2013-01-01

It is well-kown that sensory information influences the way we execute motor responses. However, less is known about if and how sensory and motor information are integrated in the subsequent process of response evaluation. We used a modified Simon Task to investigate how these streams of information are integrated in response evaluation processes, applying an in-depth neurophysiological analysis of event-related potentials (ERPs), time-frequency decomposition and sLORETA. The results show that response evaluation processes are differentially modulated by afferent proprioceptive information and efference copies. While the influence of proprioceptive information is mediated via oscillations in different frequency bands, efference copy based information about the motor execution is specifically mediated via oscillations in the theta frequency band. Stages of visual perception and attention were not modulated by the interaction of proprioception and motor efference copies. Brain areas modulated by the interactive effects of proprioceptive and efference copy based information included the middle frontal gyrus and the supplementary motor area (SMA), suggesting that these areas integrate sensory information for the purpose of response evaluation. The results show how motor response evaluation processes are modulated by information about both the execution and the location of a response. PMID:23658624

[Cognitive functions, their development and modern diagnostic methods].

PubMed

Klasik, Adam; Janas-Kozik, Małgorzata; Krupka-Matuszczyk, Irena; Augustyniak, Ewa

2006-01-01

Cognitive psychology is an interdisciplinary field whose main aim is to study the thinking mechanisms of humans leading to cognizance. Therefore the concept of human cognitive processes envelopes the knowledge related to the mechanisms which determine the way humans acquire information from the environment and utilize their knowledge and experience. There are three basic processes which need to be distinguished when discussing human perception development: acquiring sensations, perceptiveness and attention. Acquiring sensations means the experience arising from the stimulation of a single sense organ, i.e. detection and differentiation of sensory information. Perceptiveness stands for the interpretation of sensations and may include recognition and identification of sensory information. The attention process relates to the selectivity of perception. Mental processes of the higher order used in cognition, thanks to which humans tend to try to understand the world and adapt to it, doubtlessly include the processes of memory, reasoning, learning and problem solving. There is a great difference in the human cognitive functioning at different stages of one's life (from infancy to adulthood). The difference is both quantitative and qualitative. There are three main approaches to the human cognitive functioning development: Jean Piaget's approach, information processing approach and psychometric approach. Piaget's ideas continue to form the groundwork of child cognitive psychology. Piaget identified four developmental stages of child cognition: 1. Sensorimotor stage (birth - 2 years old); 2. Preoperational stage (ages 2-7); 3. Concrete operations (ages 7-11; 4. Formal operations (11 and more). The supporters of the information processing approach use a computer metaphor to present the human cognitive processes functioning model. The three important mechanisms involved are: coding, automation and strategy designing and they all often co-operate together. This theory has provided a theory. The psychometric approach concentrates on studying the differences in intelligence. The aim of this approach is to test intelligence by means of standardized tests (e.g. WISC-R, WAIS-R) used to show the individual differences among humans. Human cognitive functions determine individuals' adaptation capabilities and disturbances in this area indicate a number of psychopathological changes and are a symptom enabling to differentiate or diagnose one with a disorder. That is why the psychological assessment of cognitive functions is an important part of patients' diagnosis. Contemporary neuropsychological studies are to a great extent based computer tests. The use of computer methods has a number of measurement-related advantages. It allows for standardized testing environment, increasing therefore its reliability and standardizes the patient assessment process. Special attention should be paid to the neuropsychological tests included in the Vienna Test System (Cognitron, SIGNAL, RT, VIGIL, DAUF), which are used to assess the operational memory span, learning processes, reaction time, attention selective function, attention continuity as well as attention interference resistance. It also seems justified to present the CPT id test (Continuous Performance Test) as well as Free Recall. CPT is a diagnostic tool used to assess the attention selective function, attention continuity of attention, attention interference resistance as well as attention alertness. The Free Recall test is used in the memory processes diagnostics to assess patients' operational memory as well as the information organization degree in operational memory. The above mentioned neuropsychological tests are tools used in clinical assessment of cognitive function disorders.

Prediction and constraint in audiovisual speech perception.

PubMed

Peelle, Jonathan E; Sommers, Mitchell S

2015-07-01

During face-to-face conversational speech listeners must efficiently process a rapid and complex stream of multisensory information. Visual speech can serve as a critical complement to auditory information because it provides cues to both the timing of the incoming acoustic signal (the amplitude envelope, influencing attention and perceptual sensitivity) and its content (place and manner of articulation, constraining lexical selection). Here we review behavioral and neurophysiological evidence regarding listeners' use of visual speech information. Multisensory integration of audiovisual speech cues improves recognition accuracy, particularly for speech in noise. Even when speech is intelligible based solely on auditory information, adding visual information may reduce the cognitive demands placed on listeners through increasing the precision of prediction. Electrophysiological studies demonstrate that oscillatory cortical entrainment to speech in auditory cortex is enhanced when visual speech is present, increasing sensitivity to important acoustic cues. Neuroimaging studies also suggest increased activity in auditory cortex when congruent visual information is available, but additionally emphasize the involvement of heteromodal regions of posterior superior temporal sulcus as playing a role in integrative processing. We interpret these findings in a framework of temporally-focused lexical competition in which visual speech information affects auditory processing to increase sensitivity to acoustic information through an early integration mechanism, and a late integration stage that incorporates specific information about a speaker's articulators to constrain the number of possible candidates in a spoken utterance. Ultimately it is words compatible with both auditory and visual information that most strongly determine successful speech perception during everyday listening. Thus, audiovisual speech perception is accomplished through multiple stages of integration, supported by distinct neuroanatomical mechanisms. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

77 FR 64755 - Medicare and Medicaid Programs; Electronic Health Record Incentive Program-Stage 2; Corrections

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-10-23

... EHR PQRS, ACO, Group Clinical Process/ Blood Pressure. Contact Information: Reporting PQRS, UDS... of hypertension and whose blood pressure was adequately controlled ( www.asco.org ;. cancer who are...

A statistical approach for segregating cognitive task stages from multivariate fMRI BOLD time series.

PubMed

Demanuele, Charmaine; Bähner, Florian; Plichta, Michael M; Kirsch, Peter; Tost, Heike; Meyer-Lindenberg, Andreas; Durstewitz, Daniel

2015-01-01

Multivariate pattern analysis can reveal new information from neuroimaging data to illuminate human cognition and its disturbances. Here, we develop a methodological approach, based on multivariate statistical/machine learning and time series analysis, to discern cognitive processing stages from functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) blood oxygenation level dependent (BOLD) time series. We apply this method to data recorded from a group of healthy adults whilst performing a virtual reality version of the delayed win-shift radial arm maze (RAM) task. This task has been frequently used to study working memory and decision making in rodents. Using linear classifiers and multivariate test statistics in conjunction with time series bootstraps, we show that different cognitive stages of the task, as defined by the experimenter, namely, the encoding/retrieval, choice, reward and delay stages, can be statistically discriminated from the BOLD time series in brain areas relevant for decision making and working memory. Discrimination of these task stages was significantly reduced during poor behavioral performance in dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), but not in the primary visual cortex (V1). Experimenter-defined dissection of time series into class labels based on task structure was confirmed by an unsupervised, bottom-up approach based on Hidden Markov Models. Furthermore, we show that different groupings of recorded time points into cognitive event classes can be used to test hypotheses about the specific cognitive role of a given brain region during task execution. We found that whilst the DLPFC strongly differentiated between task stages associated with different memory loads, but not between different visual-spatial aspects, the reverse was true for V1. Our methodology illustrates how different aspects of cognitive information processing during one and the same task can be separated and attributed to specific brain regions based on information contained in multivariate patterns of voxel activity.

[Cognitive experimental approach to anxiety disorders].

PubMed

Azaïs, F

1995-01-01

Cognitive psychology is proposing a functional model to explain the mental organisation leading to emotional disorders. Among these disorders, anxiety spectrum represents a domain in which this model seems to be interesting for an efficient and comprehensive approach of the pathology. Number of behavioral or cognitive psychotherapeutic methods are relating to these cognitive references, but the theorical concepts of cognitive "shemata" or cognitive "processes" evoked to describe mental functioning in anxiety need an experimental approach for a better rational understanding. Cognitive function as perception, attention or memory can be explored in this domaine in an efficient way, allowing a more precise study of each stage of information processing. The cognitive model proposed in the psychopathology of anxiety suggests that anxious subjects are characterized by biases in processing of emotionally valenced information. This hypothesis suggests functional interference in information processing in these subjects, leading to an anxious response to the most of different stimuli. Experimental approach permit to explore this hypothesis, using many tasks for testing different cognitive dysfunction evoked in the anxious cognitive organisation. Impairments revealed in anxiety disorders seem to result from specific biases in threat-related information processing, involving several stages of cognitive processes. Semantic interference, attentional bias, implicit memory bias and priming effect are the most often disorders observed in anxious pathology, like simple phobia, generalised anxiety, panic disorder or post-traumatic stress disorder. These results suggest a top-down organisation of information processing in anxious subjects, who tend to detect, perceive and label many situations as threatening experience. The processes of reasoning and elaboration are consequently impaired in their adaptative function to threat, leading to the anxious response observed in clinical condition. The cognitive, behavioral and emotional components of this anxious reaction maintain the stressful experience for the subject, in which the self cognitive competence remain pathologically decreased. Cognitive psychology proposes an interesting model for the understanding of anxiety, in a domain in which subjectivity could benefit from an experimental approach.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Digital Avionics Information System (DAIS): Mid-1980's Maintenance Task Analysis. Final Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Czuchry, Andrew J.; And Others

The fundamental objective of the Digital Avionics Information System (DAIS) Life Cycle Cost (LCC) Study is to provide the Air Force with an enhanced in-house capability to incorporate LCC considerations during all stages of the system acquisition process. The purpose of this report is to describe the technical approach, results, and conclusions…

Web-Based Tools for Designing and Developing Teaching Materials for Integration of Information Technology into Instruction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chang, Kuo-En; Sung, Yao-Ting; Hou, Huei-Tse

2006-01-01

Educational software for teachers is an important, yet usually ignored, link for integrating information technology into classroom instruction. This study builds a web-based teaching material design and development system. The process in the system is divided into four stages, analysis, design, development, and practice. Eight junior high school…

Implementation of an Integrated Information Management System at the National Library of Wales: A Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Evans, Manon Foster; Thomas, Sian

2007-01-01

Purpose: This paper aims to describe the experiences of the National Library of Wales in implementing an integrated information management system. Design/methodology/approach: Discusses the stages involved in the procurement process, data migration and general system implementation. Findings: Emphasises the need for a well-prepared yet flexible…

Sensorimotor Slowing with Ageing is Mediated by a Functional Dysregulation of Motor-Generation Processes: Evidence from High-Resolution Event-Related Potentials

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yordanova, Juliana; Kolev, Vasil; Hohnsbein, Joachim; Falkenstein, Michael

2004-01-01

The objective of the present study was to identify the origin(s) of aging-related behavioral slowing in sensorimotor tasks. For this aim, event-related potentials (ERPs) were analyzed at 64 electrodes to evaluate the strength and timing of different stages of information processing in the brain. Electrophysiological induces of stimulus processing,…

Waste management of printed wiring boards: a life cycle assessment of the metals recycling chain from liberation through refining.

PubMed

Xue, Mianqiang; Kendall, Alissa; Xu, Zhenming; Schoenung, Julie M

2015-01-20

Due to economic and societal reasons, informal activities including open burning, backyard recycling, and landfill are still the prevailing methods used for electronic waste treatment in developing countries. Great efforts have been made, especially in China, to promote formal approaches for electronic waste management by enacting laws, developing green recycling technologies, initiating pilot programs, etc. The formal recycling process can, however, engender environmental impact and resource consumption, although information on the environmental loads and resource consumption is currently limited. To quantitatively assess the environmental impact of the processes in a formal printed wiring board (PWB) recycling chain, life cycle assessment (LCA) was applied to a formal recycling chain that includes the steps from waste liberation through materials refining. The metal leaching in the refining stage was identified as a critical process, posing most of the environmental impact in the recycling chain. Global warming potential was the most significant environmental impact category after normalization and weighting, followed by fossil abiotic depletion potential, and marine aquatic eco-toxicity potential. Scenario modeling results showed that variations in the power source and chemical reagents consumption had the greatest influence on the environmental performance. The environmental impact from transportation used for PWB collection was also evaluated. The results were further compared to conventional primary metals production processes, highlighting the environmental benefit of metal recycling from waste PWBs. Optimizing the collection mode, increasing the precious metals recovery efficiency in the beneficiation stage and decreasing the chemical reagents consumption in the refining stage by effective materials liberation and separation are proposed as potential improvement strategies to make the recycling chain more environmentally friendly. The LCA results provide environmental information for the improvement of future integrated technologies and electronic waste management.

Information processing. [in human performance

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wickens, Christopher D.; Flach, John M.

1988-01-01

Theoretical models of sensory-information processing by the human brain are reviewed from a human-factors perspective, with a focus on their implications for aircraft and avionics design. The topics addressed include perception (signal detection and selection), linguistic factors in perception (context provision, logical reversals, absence of cues, and order reversals), mental models, and working and long-term memory. Particular attention is given to decision-making problems such as situation assessment, decision formulation, decision quality, selection of action, the speed-accuracy tradeoff, stimulus-response compatibility, stimulus sequencing, dual-task performance, task difficulty and structure, and factors affecting multiple task performance (processing modalities, codes, and stages).

Information Engineering and Workflow Design in a Clinical Decision Support System for Colorectal Cancer Screening in Iran.

PubMed

Maserat, Elham; Seied Farajollah, Seiede Sedigheh; Safdari, Reza; Ghazisaeedi, Marjan; Aghdaei, Hamid Asadzadeh; Zali, Mohammad Reza

2015-01-01

Colorectal cancer is a major cause of morbidity and mortality throughout the world. Colorectal cancer screening is an optimal way for reducing of morbidity and mortality and a clinical decision support system (CDSS) plays an important role in predicting success of screening processes. DSS is a computer-based information system that improves the delivery of preventive care services. The aim of this article was to detail engineering of information requirements and work flow design of CDSS for a colorectal cancer screening program. In the first stage a screening minimum data set was determined. Developed and developing countries were analyzed for identifying this data set. Then information deficiencies and gaps were determined by check list. The second stage was a qualitative survey with a semi-structured interview as the study tool. A total of 15 users and stakeholders' perspectives about workflow of CDSS were studied. Finally workflow of DSS of control program was designed by standard clinical practice guidelines and perspectives. Screening minimum data set of national colorectal cancer screening program was defined in five sections, including colonoscopy data set, surgery, pathology, genetics and pedigree data set. Deficiencies and information gaps were analyzed. Then we designed a work process standard of screening. Finally workflow of DSS and entry stage were determined. A CDSS facilitates complex decision making for screening and has key roles in designing optimal interactions between colonoscopy, pathology and laboratory departments. Also workflow analysis is useful to identify data reconciliation strategies to address documentation gaps. Following recommendations of CDSS should improve quality of colorectal cancer screening.

Decision Makers' Allocation of Home-Care Therapy Services: A Process Map

PubMed Central

Poss, Jeff; Egan, Mary; Rappolt, Susan; Berg, Katherine

2013-01-01

ABSTRACT Purpose: To explore decision-making processes currently used in allocating occupational and physical therapy services in home care for complex long-stay clients in Ontario. Method: An exploratory study using key-informant interviews and client vignettes was conducted with home-care decision makers (case managers and directors) from four home-care regions in Ontario. The interview data were analyzed using the framework analysis method. Results: The decision-making process for allocating therapy services has four stages: intake, assessment, referral to service provider, and reassessment. There are variations in the management processes deployed at each stage. The major variation is in the process of determining the volume of therapy services across home-care regions, primarily as a result of financial constraints affecting the home-care programme. Government funding methods and methods of information sharing also significantly affect home-care therapy allocation. Conclusion: Financial constraints in home care are the primary contextual factor affecting allocation of therapy services across home-care regions. Given the inflation of health care costs, new models of funding and service delivery need to be developed to ensure that the right person receives the right care before deteriorating and requiring more costly long-term care. PMID:24403672

Conceptual knowledge in the interpretation of idioms.

PubMed

Nayak, N P; Gibbs, R W

1990-09-01

The authors examined how people determine the contextual appropriateness of idioms. In Experiment 1, idioms referring to the same temporal stage of a conceptual prototype were judged to be more similar in meaning than idioms referring to different temporal stages. In Experiment 2, idioms in a prototypical temporal sequence were more meaningful than idioms in sentences that violated the temporal sequence. In Experiment 3, idioms referring to the same stage of a conceptual prototype were differentiable on the basis of conceptual information. The conceptual coherence between idioms and contexts facilitated the processing speed of idioms in Experiment 4. Experiment 5 showed that speakers can recover the underlying conceptual metaphors that link an idiom to its figurative meaning. Experiment 6 showed that the metaphoric information reflected in the lexical makeup of idioms also determined the metaphoric appropriateness of idioms in certain contexts.

Evaluating Indicators and Life Cycle Inventories for Processes in Early Stages of Technical Readiness

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

Tan, Eric C; Smith, Raymond; Ruiz-Mercado, Gerardo

This presentation examines different methods for analyzing manufacturing processes in the early stages of technical readiness. Before developers know much detail about their processes, it is valuable to apply various assessments to evaluate their performance. One type of assessment evaluates performance indicators to describe how closely processes approach desirable objectives. Another type of assessment determines the life cycle inventories (LCI) of inputs and outputs for processes, where for a functional unit of product, the user evaluates the resources used and the releases to the environment. These results can be compared to similar processes or combined with the LCI of othermore » processes to examine up-and down-stream chemicals. The inventory also provides a listing of the up-stream chemicals, which permits study of the whole life cycle. Performance indicators are evaluated in this presentation with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's GREENSCOPE (Gauging Reaction Effectiveness for ENvironmental Sustainability with a multi-Objective Process Evaluator) methodology, which evaluates processes in four areas: Environment, Energy, Economics, and Efficiency. The method develops relative scores for indicators that allow comparisons across various technologies. In this contribution, two conversion pathways for producing cellulosic ethanol from biomass, via thermochemical and biochemical routes, are studied. The information developed from the indicators and LCI can be used to inform the process design and the potential life cycle effects of up- and down-stream chemicals.« less

Defining the fundamentals of care.

PubMed

Kitson, Alison; Conroy, Tiffany; Wengstrom, Yvonne; Profetto-McGrath, Joanne; Robertson-Malt, Suzi

2010-08-01

A three-stage process is being undertaken to investigate the fundamentals of care. Stage One (reported here) involves the use of a met a-narrative review methodology to undertake a thematic analysis, categorization and synthesis of selected contents extracted from seminal texts relating to nursing practice. Stage Two will involve a search for evidence to inform the fundamentals of care and a refinement of the review method. Stage Three will extend the reviews of the elements defined as fundamentals of care. This introductory paper covers the following aspects: the conceptual basis upon which nursing care is delivered; how the fundamentals of care have been defined in the literature and in practice; an argument that physiological aspects of care, self-care elements and aspects of the environment of care are central to the conceptual refinement of the term fundamentals of care; and that efforts to systematize such information will enhance overall care delivery through improvements in patient safety and quality initiatives in health systems.

Tin-tungsten mineralizing processes in tungsten vein deposits: Panasqueira, Portugal

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lecumberri-Sanchez, P.; Pinto, F.; Vieira, R.; Wälle, M.; Heinrich, C. A.

2015-12-01

Tungsten has a high heat resistance, density and hardness, which makes it widely applied in industry (e.g. steel, tungsten carbides). Tungsten deposits are typically magmatic-hydrothermal systems. Despite the economic significance of tungsten, there are no modern quantitative analytical studies of the fluids responsible for the formation of its highest-grade deposit type (tungsten vein deposits). Panasqueira (Portugal) is a tungsten vein deposit, one of the leading tungsten producers in Europe and one of the best geologically characterized tungsten vein deposits. In this study, compositions of the mineralizing fluids at Panasqueira have been determined through combination of detailed petrography, microthermometric measurements and LA-ICPMS analyses, and geochemical modeling has been used to determine the processes that lead to tungsten mineralization. We characterized the fluids related to the various mineralizing stages in the system: the oxide stage (tin and tungsten mineralization), the sulfide stage (chalcopyrite and sphalerite mineralization) and the carbonate stage. Thus, our results provide information on the properties of fluids related with specific paragenetic stages. Furthermore we used those fluid compositions in combination with host rock mineralogy and chemistry to evaluate which are the controlling factors in the mineralizing process. This study provides the first quantitative analytical data on fluid composition for tungsten vein deposits and evaluates the controlling mineralization processes helping to determine the mechanisms of formation of the Panasqueira tin-tungsten deposit and providing additional geochemical constraints on the local distribution of mineralization.

Mental health courts and their selection processes: modeling variation for consistency.

PubMed

Wolff, Nancy; Fabrikant, Nicole; Belenko, Steven

2011-10-01

Admission into mental health courts is based on a complicated and often variable decision-making process that involves multiple parties representing different expertise and interests. To the extent that eligibility criteria of mental health courts are more suggestive than deterministic, selection bias can be expected. Very little research has focused on the selection processes underpinning problem-solving courts even though such processes may dominate the performance of these interventions. This article describes a qualitative study designed to deconstruct the selection and admission processes of mental health courts. In this article, we describe a multi-stage, complex process for screening and admitting clients into mental health courts. The selection filtering model that is described has three eligibility screening stages: initial, assessment, and evaluation. The results of this study suggest that clients selected by mental health courts are shaped by the formal and informal selection criteria, as well as by the local treatment system.

Alcohol and Memory: Retrieval Processes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Birnbaum, Isabel M.; And Others

1978-01-01

The influence of alcohol intoxication on the retrieval of information from memory was investigated in nonalcoholic subjects Intoxicated subjects recalled fewer categories and words within categories. The retrieval stage of memory did not appear to be affected by alcohol. (SW)

Females scan more than males: a potential mechanism for sex differences in recognition memory.

PubMed

Heisz, Jennifer J; Pottruff, Molly M; Shore, David I

2013-07-01

Recognition-memory tests reveal individual differences in episodic memory; however, by themselves, these tests provide little information regarding the stage (or stages) in memory processing at which differences are manifested. We used eye-tracking technology, together with a recognition paradigm, to achieve a more detailed analysis of visual processing during encoding and retrieval. Although this approach may be useful for assessing differences in memory across many different populations, we focused on sex differences in face memory. Females outperformed males on recognition-memory tests, and this advantage was directly related to females' scanning behavior at encoding. Moreover, additional exposures to the faces reduced sex differences in face recognition, which suggests that males may be able to improve their recognition memory by extracting more information at encoding through increased scanning. A strategy of increased scanning at encoding may prove to be a simple way to enhance memory performance in other populations with memory impairment.

Organisation of biotechnological information into knowledge.

PubMed

Boh, B

1996-09-01

The success of biotechnological research, development and marketing depends to a large extent on the international transfer of information and on the ability to organise biotechnology information into knowledge. To increase the efficiency of information-based approaches, an information strategy has been developed and consists of the following stages: definition of the problem, its structure and sub-problems; acquisition of data by targeted processing of computer-supported bibliographic, numeric, textual and graphic databases; analysis of data and building of specialized in-house information systems; information processing for structuring data into systems, recognition of trends and patterns of knowledge, particularly by information synthesis using the concept of information density; design of research hypotheses; testing hypotheses in the laboratory and/or pilot plant; repeated evaluation and optimization of hypotheses by information methods and testing them by further laboratory work. The information approaches are illustrated by examples from the university-industry joint projects in biotechnology, biochemistry and agriculture.

Developing "My Asthma Diary": a process exemplar of a patient-driven arts-based knowledge translation tool.

PubMed

Archibald, Mandy M; Hartling, Lisa; Ali, Samina; Caine, Vera; Scott, Shannon D

2018-06-05

Although it is well established that family-centered education is critical to managing childhood asthma, the information needs of parents of children with asthma are not being met through current educational approaches. Patient-driven educational materials that leverage the power of the storytelling and the arts show promise in communicating health information and assisting in illness self-management. However, such arts-based knowledge translation approaches are in their infancy, and little is known about how to develop such tools for parents. This paper reports on the development of "My Asthma Diary" - an innovative knowledge translation tool based on rigorous research evidence and tailored to parents' asthma-related information needs. We used a multi-stage process to develop four eBook prototypes of "My Asthma Diary." We conducted formative research on parents' information needs and identified high quality research evidence on childhood asthma, and used these data to inform the development of the asthma eBooks. We established interdisciplinary consulting teams with health researchers, practitioners, and artists to help iteratively create the knowledge translation tools. We describe the iterative, transdisciplinary process of developing asthma eBooks which incorporates: (I) parents' preferences and information needs on childhood asthma, (II) quality evidence on childhood asthma and its management, and (III) the engaging and informative powers of storytelling and visual art as methods to communicate complex health information to parents. We identified four dominant methodological and procedural challenges encountered during this process: (I) working within an inter-disciplinary team, (II) quantity and ordering of information, (III) creating a composite narrative, and (IV) balancing actual and ideal management scenarios. We describe a replicable and rigorous multi-staged approach to developing a patient-driven, creative knowledge translation tool, which can be adapted for use with different populations and contexts. We identified specific procedural and methodological challenges that others conducting comparable work should consider, particularly as creative, patient-driven knowledge translation strategies continue to emerge across health disciplines.

Search and selection hotel system in Surabaya based on geographic information system (GIS) with fuzzy logic

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Purbandini, Taufik

2016-03-01

Surabaya is a metropolitan city in Indonesia. When the visitor has an interest in Surabaya for several days, then the visitor was looking for lodging that is closest to the interests of making it more efficient and practical. It was not a waste of time for the businessman because of congestion and so we need full information about the hotel as an inn during a stay in Surabaya began name, address of the hotel, the hotel's website, the distance from the hotel to the destination until the display of the map along the route with the help of Google Maps. This system was designed using fuzzy logic which aims to assist the user in making decisions. Design of hotel search and selection system was done through four stages. The first phase was the collection of data and as the factors that influence the decision-making along with the limit values of these factors. Factors that influence covers a distance of the hotel, the price of hotel rooms, and hotel reviews. The second stage was the processing of data and information by creating membership functions. The third stage was the analysis of systems with fuzzy logic. The steps were performed in systems analysis, namely fuzzification, inference using Mamdani, and defuzzification. The last stage was the design and construction of the system. Designing the system using use case diagrams and activity diagram to describe any process that occurs. Development system includes system implementation and evaluation systems. Implementation of mobile with Android-based system so that these applications were user friendly.

Read-out of emotional information from iconic memory: the longevity of threatening stimuli.

PubMed

Kuhbandner, Christof; Spitzer, Bernhard; Pekrun, Reinhard

2011-05-01

Previous research has shown that emotional stimuli are more likely than neutral stimuli to be selected by attention, indicating that the processing of emotional information is prioritized. In this study, we examined whether the emotional significance of stimuli influences visual processing already at the level of transient storage of incoming information in iconic memory, before attentional selection takes place. We used a typical iconic memory task in which the delay of a poststimulus cue, indicating which of several visual stimuli has to be reported, was varied. Performance decreased rapidly with increasing cue delay, reflecting the fast decay of information stored in iconic memory. However, although neutral stimulus information and emotional stimulus information were initially equally likely to enter iconic memory, the subsequent decay of the initially stored information was slowed for threatening stimuli, a result indicating that fear-relevant information has prolonged availability for read-out from iconic memory. This finding provides the first evidence that emotional significance already facilitates stimulus processing at the stage of iconic memory.

Participatory Design of an Online Self-Management Tool for Users With Spinal Cord Injury: Qualitative Study.

PubMed

Allin, Sonya; Shepherd, John; Tomasone, Jennifer; Munce, Sarah; Linassi, Gary; Hossain, Saima Noreen; Jaglal, Susan

2018-03-21

Rehospitalization rates resulting from secondary conditions in persons with spinal cord injuries (SCI) are high. Self-management programs for many chronic conditions have been associated with decreases in hospital readmissions. However, in the SCI community, evidence suggests that satisfaction with traditional self-management programs is low. Users with SCI have indicated preference for programs that are online (rather than in-person), that target SCI-specific concerns, and are led by peers with SCI. There is currently no program with all of these features, which addresses self-management of secondary conditions after SCI. The aim of this study was to provide details of a participatory design (PD) process for an internet-mediated self-management program for users with SCI (called SCI & U) and illustrate how it has been used to define design constraints and solutions. Users were involved in development as codesigners, codevelopers, and key informants. Codesigners and codevelopers were recruited from consumer advocacy groups and worked with a core development team. Key informants were recruited from geographically distributed advocacy groups to form a product advisory council that met regularly with the core team. During meetings, codesigners and informants walked through stages of work that typify PD processes such as exploration, discovery, and prototyping. This paper details the process by analyzing 10 meetings that took place between August 2015 and May 2016. Meetings were recorded, transcribed, and subjected to an inductive thematic analysis; resulting themes were organized according to their relationship to PD stages. A total of 16 individuals participated in meeting discussions, including 7 researchers and 9 persons with SCI from 4 Canadian provinces. Themes of trust, expertise, and community emerged in every group discussion. The exploration stage revealed interest in online self-management resources coupled with concerns about information credibility. In general, participants indicated that they felt more confident with information received from trusted, in-person sources (eg, peers or health care professionals) than information found online. The discovery stage saw participants propose and discuss concepts to filter credible information and highlight community expertise, namely (1) a community-curated resource database, (2) online information navigators, and (3) group chats with peers. Several tools and techniques were collectively prototyped in an effort to foster trust and community; these are illustrated in the Results section. A PD process engaging users as codesigners, codevelopers, and informants can be used to identify design concerns and prototype online solutions to promote self-management after SCI. Future work will assess the usability of the collectively designed tools among a broad population of Canadians with SCI and the tools' impact on self-efficacy and health. ©Sonya Allin, John Shepherd, Jennifer Tomasone, Sarah Munce, Gary Linassi, Saima Noreen Hossain, Susan Jaglal. Originally published in JMIR Rehabilitation and Assistive Technology (http://rehab.jmir.org), 21.03.2018.

The Utility of Stage-specific Mid-to-late Drosophila Follicle Isolation

PubMed Central

Spracklen, Andrew J.; Tootle, Tina L.

2013-01-01

Drosophila oogenesis or follicle development has been widely used to advance the understanding of complex developmental and cell biologic processes. This methods paper describes how to isolate mid-to-late stage follicles (Stage 10B-14) and utilize them to provide new insights into the molecular and morphologic events occurring during tight windows of developmental time. Isolated follicles can be used for a variety of experimental techniques, including in vitro development assays, live imaging, mRNA expression analysis and western blot analysis of proteins. Follicles at Stage 10B (S10B) or later will complete development in culture; this allows one to combine genetic or pharmacologic perturbations with in vitro development to define the effects of such manipulations on the processes occurring during specific periods of development. Additionally, because these follicles develop in culture, they are ideally suited for live imaging studies, which often reveal new mechanisms that mediate morphological events. Isolated follicles can also be used for molecular analyses. For example, changes in gene expression that result from genetic perturbations can be defined for specific developmental windows. Additionally, protein level, stability, and/or posttranslational modification state during a particular stage of follicle development can be examined through western blot analyses. Thus, stage-specific isolation of Drosophila follicles provides a rich source of information into widely conserved processes of development and morphogenesis. PMID:24326735

The Future System for Roughmill Optimization

Treesearch

Richard W. Conners; D.Earl Kline; Philip A. Araman; Thomas T. Drayer

1997-01-01

From forest to finished product, wood is moved from one processing stage to the next, subject to the decisions of individuals along the way. While this process has worked for hundreds of years, the technology exists today to provide more complete information to the decision makers. Virginia Tech has developed this technology, creating a machine vision prototype for...

Emerging Interaction of Political Processes: The Effect on a Study Abroad Program in Cuba

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Clarke, Ruth

2007-01-01

The emerging interaction of political processes sets the stage for the level of macro uncertainty and specific risk events that may occur in an international relationship. Strongly defined social control in Cuba, formal and informal, dominates the dynamics of the relationship, while simultaneously government, formal, action in the U.S. dominates…

Machine Vision Technology for the Forest Products Industry

Treesearch

Richard W. Conners; D.Earl Kline; Philip A. Araman; Thomas T. Drayer

1997-01-01

From forest to finished product, wood is moved from one processing stage to the next, subject to the decisions of individuals along the way. While this process has worked for hundreds of years, the technology exists today to provide more complete information to the decision makers. Virginia Tech has developed this technology, creating a machine vision prototype for...

Preserved learning of novel information in amnesia: evidence for multiple memory systems.

PubMed

Gordon, B

1988-06-01

Four of five patients with marked global amnesia, and others with new learning impairments, showed normal processing facilitation for novel stimuli (nonwords) and/or for familiar stimuli (words) on a word/nonword (lexical) decision task. The data are interpreted as a reflection of the learning capabilities of in-line neural processing stages with multiple, distinct, informational codes. These in-line learning processes are separate from the recognition/recall memory impaired by amygdalohippocampal/dosomedial thalamic damage, but probably supplement such memory in some tasks in normal individuals. Preserved learning of novel information seems incompatible with explanations of spared learning in amnesia that are based on the episodic/semantic or memory/habit distinctions, but is consistent with the procedural/declarative hypothesis.

Limited ability driven phase transitions in the coevolution process in Axelrod's model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Bing; Han, Yuexing; Chen, Luonan; Aihara, Kazuyuki

2009-04-01

We study the coevolution process in Axelrod's model by taking into account of agents' abilities to access information, which is described by a parameter α to control the geographical range of communication. We observe two kinds of phase transitions in both cultural domains and network fragments, which depend on the parameter α. By simulation, we find that not all rewiring processes pervade the dissemination of culture, that is, a very limited ability to access information constrains the cultural dissemination, while an exceptional ability to access information aids the dissemination of culture. Furthermore, by analyzing the network characteristics at the frozen states, we find that there exists a stage at which the network develops to be a small-world network with community structures.

Operative planning of functional sessions for multisatellite observation and communication systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Darnopykh, Valeriy V.; Malyshev, Veniamin V.

2012-04-01

An important control aspect of modern satellite observation and communication systems is the control of the functional processes. Functional sessions proceed under conditions of restricted technical ability, large amounts or information to be processed by the on-board equipment, practice inequality of the received information, intentions of system management and operators, interests of customers and other factors. A large number of spacecrafts (SC) in orbital constellation is one of the most important factors affecting the functional process also. Besides that some modern projects of satellite systems are multifunctional that is mixed operations of observation and communication. Therefore the functioning of SC on-board equipment must be accurately co-ordinate. That is why the problem of operative planning the functioning of these systems, while directly affecting the efficiency of the system, is very complex and actual at present. A methodical approach and software package for operative planning of functional processes for satellite observation and communication systems, including multifunctional projects, are considered in the paper. The base scheme of this approach consists of four main stages: stage 1—modeling of SC orbital kinematics and dynamics; stage 2—modeling of system functional processes with all kind of restrictions and criterion function values; stage 3—solving an optimization tasks by numerical applicable algorithms and constructing the optimal (or accuracy) plans; stage 4—repeated plan optimization (different variants) and analyzing. Such scheme is the result of authors practical research which have been realized during last 15 years by the operative planning as for any kinds of single SC as for satellite systems with different structure of orbital constellation. The research helps to unify the procedure of operative planning, to formulate basic principles and approaches for its solving, to develop special software package. The main aspects of the approach proposed are illustrated in the paper. The results of the calculations of applied planning problems are presented. The objects of research in these problems are: projects of CBERS observation systems (1-3 SC) and projects of Iridium (66 SC) global communication system.

A Study of the Adoption Process of a Family Living Practice by Homemakers in a Selected North Carolina County. Report No. 8.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stroud, Maidred Morris

This study sought to determine the stage (awareness, interest, evaluation, trial, or adoption) reached by homemakers in adopting the water blanching of vegetables for freezing; to identify information sources (mass media, agencies, experts, informal personal contacts, and organizations); and to assess the relationship of certain personal, social,…

Rationale for patient package inserts.

PubMed

Morris, L A

1978-02-01

The need for patient package inserts (PPIs) is discussed in terms of the "consumers' right-to-know" and "patient health education" themes, as well as the premise that verbal means of communication are often inadequate. Some of the reasons for the frequent failure of verbal messages are reviewed by detailing the five stages through which any communication must be processed in order to be effective. Verbal information may be inadequate because: (1) patients are not exposed to necessary material, (2) they may not pay attention to the information, (3) they may not understand it, (4) the information may not be accepted as valid, and (5) patients may not remember the material. Written communication which must be processed through the same five stages also may be frequently inadequate. Therefore, PPIs must be viewed as reinforcing and augmenting verbal consultation, and both written and verbal forms are necessary. Consumer surveys and demonstration projects have shown that written communications are a desired and effective means for conveying additional prescription drug information to patients. The wide implementation of PPIs is apt to cause many problems for the pharmacists; however, it may also serve as a means to enhance the pharmacist's clinical role.

Adaptive automation of human-machine system information-processing functions.

PubMed

Kaber, David B; Wright, Melanie C; Prinzel, Lawrence J; Clamann, Michael P

2005-01-01

The goal of this research was to describe the ability of human operators to interact with adaptive automation (AA) applied to various stages of complex systems information processing, defined in a model of human-automation interaction. Forty participants operated a simulation of an air traffic control task. Automated assistance was adaptively applied to information acquisition, information analysis, decision making, and action implementation aspects of the task based on operator workload states, which were measured using a secondary task. The differential effects of the forms of automation were determined and compared with a manual control condition. Results of two 20-min trials of AA or manual control revealed a significant effect of the type of automation on performance, particularly during manual control periods as part of the adaptive conditions. Humans appear to better adapt to AA applied to sensory and psychomotor information-processing functions (action implementation) than to AA applied to cognitive functions (information analysis and decision making), and AA is superior to completely manual control. Potential applications of this research include the design of automation to support air traffic controller information processing.

Influences on women's decision making about intrauterine device use in Madagascar.

PubMed

Gottert, Ann; Jacquin, Karin; Rahaivondrafahitra, Bakoly; Moracco, Kathryn; Maman, Suzanne

2015-04-01

We explored influences on decision making about intrauterine device (IUD) use among women in the Women's Health Project (WHP), managed by Population Services International in Madagascar. We conducted six small group photonarrative discussions (n=18 individuals) and 12 individual in-depth interviews with women who were IUD users and nonusers. All participants had had contact with WHP counselors in three sites in Madagascar. Data analysis involved creating summaries of each transcript, coding in Atlas.ti and then synthesizing findings in a conceptual model. We identified three stages of women's decision making about IUD use, and specific forms of social support that seemed helpful at each stage. During the first stage, receiving correct information from a trusted source such as a counselor conveys IUD benefits and corrects misinformation, but lingering fears about the method often appeared to delay method adoption among interested women. During the second stage, hearing testimony from satisfied users and receiving ongoing emotional support appeared to help alleviate these fears. During the third stage, accompaniment by a counselor or peer seemed to help some women gain confidence to go to the clinic to receive the IUD. Identifying and supplying the types of social support women find helpful at different stages of the decision-making process could help program managers better respond to women's staged decision-making process about IUD use. This qualitative study suggests that women in Madagascar perceive multiple IUD benefits but also fear the method even after misinformation is corrected, leading to a staged decision-making process about IUD use. Programs should identify and supply the types of social support that women find helpful at each stage of decision making. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Behavioral Task Analysis

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-01-01

and related tech- nologies . Washington, DC: National Academies Press. Neisser , U . (1967) . Cognitive psychology. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts...behavior (see Neisser [1967] for a review of the early stages of information processing). The result is a characterization of human tasks as involving

Describing the Process of Adopting Nutrition and Fitness Apps: Behavior Stage Model Approach

PubMed Central

Sproesser, Gudrun; Schupp, Harald T; Renner, Britta

2018-01-01

Background Although mobile technologies such as smartphone apps are promising means for motivating people to adopt a healthier lifestyle (mHealth apps), previous studies have shown low adoption and continued use rates. Developing the means to address this issue requires further understanding of mHealth app nonusers and adoption processes. This study utilized a stage model approach based on the Precaution Adoption Process Model (PAPM), which proposes that people pass through qualitatively different motivational stages when adopting a behavior. Objective To establish a better understanding of between-stage transitions during app adoption, this study aimed to investigate the adoption process of nutrition and fitness app usage, and the sociodemographic and behavioral characteristics and decision-making style preferences of people at different adoption stages. Methods Participants (N=1236) were recruited onsite within the cohort study Konstanz Life Study. Use of mobile devices and nutrition and fitness apps, 5 behavior adoption stages of using nutrition and fitness apps, preference for intuition and deliberation in eating decision-making (E-PID), healthy eating style, sociodemographic variables, and body mass index (BMI) were assessed. Results Analysis of the 5 behavior adoption stages showed that stage 1 (“unengaged”) was the most prevalent motivational stage for both nutrition and fitness app use, with half of the participants stating that they had never thought about using a nutrition app (52.41%, 533/1017), whereas less than one-third stated they had never thought about using a fitness app (29.25%, 301/1029). “Unengaged” nonusers (stage 1) showed a higher preference for an intuitive decision-making style when making eating decisions, whereas those who were already “acting” (stage 4) showed a greater preference for a deliberative decision-making style (F4,1012=21.83, P<.001). Furthermore, participants differed widely in their readiness to adopt nutrition and fitness apps, ranging from having “decided to” but not yet begun to act (stage 2; nutrition: 6.88%, 70/1017; fitness: 9.23%, 95/1029) to being “disengaged” following previous adoption (stage 5; nutrition: 13.77%, 140/1017; fitness: 15.06%, 155/1029). Conclusions Using a behavior stage model approach to describe the process of adopting nutrition and fitness apps revealed motivational stage differences between nonusers (being “unengaged,” having “decided not to act,” having “decided to act,” and being “disengaged”), which might contribute to a better understanding of the process of adopting mHealth apps and thus inform the future development of digital interventions. This study highlights that new user groups might be better reached by apps designed to address a more intuitive decision-making style. PMID:29535078

Describing the Process of Adopting Nutrition and Fitness Apps: Behavior Stage Model Approach.

PubMed

König, Laura M; Sproesser, Gudrun; Schupp, Harald T; Renner, Britta

2018-03-13

Although mobile technologies such as smartphone apps are promising means for motivating people to adopt a healthier lifestyle (mHealth apps), previous studies have shown low adoption and continued use rates. Developing the means to address this issue requires further understanding of mHealth app nonusers and adoption processes. This study utilized a stage model approach based on the Precaution Adoption Process Model (PAPM), which proposes that people pass through qualitatively different motivational stages when adopting a behavior. To establish a better understanding of between-stage transitions during app adoption, this study aimed to investigate the adoption process of nutrition and fitness app usage, and the sociodemographic and behavioral characteristics and decision-making style preferences of people at different adoption stages. Participants (N=1236) were recruited onsite within the cohort study Konstanz Life Study. Use of mobile devices and nutrition and fitness apps, 5 behavior adoption stages of using nutrition and fitness apps, preference for intuition and deliberation in eating decision-making (E-PID), healthy eating style, sociodemographic variables, and body mass index (BMI) were assessed. Analysis of the 5 behavior adoption stages showed that stage 1 ("unengaged") was the most prevalent motivational stage for both nutrition and fitness app use, with half of the participants stating that they had never thought about using a nutrition app (52.41%, 533/1017), whereas less than one-third stated they had never thought about using a fitness app (29.25%, 301/1029). "Unengaged" nonusers (stage 1) showed a higher preference for an intuitive decision-making style when making eating decisions, whereas those who were already "acting" (stage 4) showed a greater preference for a deliberative decision-making style (F 4,1012 =21.83, P<.001). Furthermore, participants differed widely in their readiness to adopt nutrition and fitness apps, ranging from having "decided to" but not yet begun to act (stage 2; nutrition: 6.88%, 70/1017; fitness: 9.23%, 95/1029) to being "disengaged" following previous adoption (stage 5; nutrition: 13.77%, 140/1017; fitness: 15.06%, 155/1029). Using a behavior stage model approach to describe the process of adopting nutrition and fitness apps revealed motivational stage differences between nonusers (being "unengaged," having "decided not to act," having "decided to act," and being "disengaged"), which might contribute to a better understanding of the process of adopting mHealth apps and thus inform the future development of digital interventions. This study highlights that new user groups might be better reached by apps designed to address a more intuitive decision-making style. ©Laura M König, Gudrun Sproesser, Harald T Schupp, Britta Renner. Originally published in JMIR Mhealth and Uhealth (http://mhealth.jmir.org), 13.03.2018.

Dissociation of Neural Substrates of Response Inhibition to Negative Information between Implicit and Explicit Facial Go/Nogo Tasks: Evidence from an Electrophysiological Study

PubMed Central

Sun, Shiyue; Carretié, Luis; Zhang, Lei; Dong, Yi; Zhu, Chunyan; Luo, Yuejia; Wang, Kai

2014-01-01

Background Although ample evidence suggests that emotion and response inhibition are interrelated at the behavioral and neural levels, neural substrates of response inhibition to negative facial information remain unclear. Thus we used event-related potential (ERP) methods to explore the effects of explicit and implicit facial expression processing in response inhibition. Methods We used implicit (gender categorization) and explicit emotional Go/Nogo tasks (emotion categorization) in which neutral and sad faces were presented. Electrophysiological markers at the scalp and the voxel level were analyzed during the two tasks. Results We detected a task, emotion and trial type interaction effect in the Nogo-P3 stage. Larger Nogo-P3 amplitudes during sad conditions versus neutral conditions were detected with explicit tasks. However, the amplitude differences between the two conditions were not significant for implicit tasks. Source analyses on P3 component revealed that right inferior frontal junction (rIFJ) was involved during this stage. The current source density (CSD) of rIFJ was higher with sad conditions compared to neutral conditions for explicit tasks, rather than for implicit tasks. Conclusions The findings indicated that response inhibition was modulated by sad facial information at the action inhibition stage when facial expressions were processed explicitly rather than implicitly. The rIFJ may be a key brain region in emotion regulation. PMID:25330212

Parametric Design within an Atomic Design Process (ADP) applied to Spacecraft Design

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ramos Alarcon, Rafael

This thesis describes research investigating the development of a model for the initial design of complex systems, with application to spacecraft design. The design model is called an atomic design process (ADP) and contains four fundamental stages (specifications, configurations, trade studies and drivers) that constitute the minimum steps of an iterative process that helps designers find a feasible solution. Representative design models from the aerospace industry are reviewed and are compared with the proposed model. The design model's relevance, adaptability and scalability features are evaluated through a focused design task exercise with two undergraduate teams and a long-term design exercise performed by a spacecraft payload team. The implementation of the design model is explained in the context in which the model has been researched. This context includes the organization (a student-run research laboratory at the University of Michigan), its culture (academically oriented), members that have used the design model and the description of the information technology elements meant to provide support while using the model. This support includes a custom-built information management system that consolidates relevant information that is currently being used in the organization. The information is divided in three domains: personnel development history, technical knowledge base and laboratory operations. The focused study with teams making use of the design model to complete an engineering design exercise consists of the conceptual design of an autonomous system, including a carrier and a deployable lander that form the payload of a rocket with an altitude range of over 1000 meters. Detailed results from each of the stages of the design process while implementing the model are presented, and an increase in awareness of good design practices in the teams while using the model are explained. A long-term investigation using the design model consisting of the successful characterization of an imaging system for a spacecraft is presented. The spacecraft is designed to take digital color images from low Earth orbit. The dominant drivers from each stage of the design process are indicated as they were identified, with the accompanying hardware development leading to the final configuration that comprises the flight spacecraft.

Processing Stages Underlying Word Recognition in the Anteroventral Temporal Lobe

PubMed Central

Halgren, Eric; Wang, Chunmao; Schomer, Donald L.; Knake, Susanne; Marinkovic, Ksenija; Wu, Julian; Ulbert, Istvan

2006-01-01

The anteroventral temporal lobe integrates visual, lexical, semantic and mnestic aspects of word-processing, through its reciprocal connections with the ventral visual stream, language areas, and the hippocampal formation. We used linear microelectrode arrays to probe population synaptic currents and neuronal firing in different cortical layers of the anteroventral temporal lobe, during semantic judgments with implicit priming, and overt word recognition. Since different extrinsic and associative inputs preferentially target different cortical layers, this method can help reveal the sequence and nature of local processing stages at a higher resolution than was previously possible. The initial response in inferotemporal and perirhinal cortices is a brief current sink beginning at ~120ms, and peaking at ~170ms. Localization of this initial sink to middle layers suggests that it represents feedforward input from lower visual areas, and simultaneously increased firing implies that it represents excitatory synaptic currents. Until ~800ms, the main focus of transmembrane current sinks alternates between middle and superficial layers, with the superficial focus becoming increasingly dominant after ~550ms. Since superficial layers are the target of local and feedback associative inputs, this suggests an alternation in predominant synaptic input between feedforward and feedback modes. Word repetition does not affect the initial perirhinal and inferotemporal middle layer sink, but does decrease later activity. Entorhinal activity begins later (~200ms), with greater apparent excitatory postsynaptic currents and multiunit activity in neocortically-projecting than hippocampal-projecting layers. In contrast to perirhinal and entorhinal responses, entorhinal responses are larger to repeated words during memory retrieval. These results identify a sequence of physiological activation, beginning with a sharp activation from lower level visual areas carrying specific information to middle layers. This is followed by feedback and associative interactions involving upper cortical layers, which are abbreviated to repeated words. Following bottom-up and associative stages, top-down recollective processes may be driven by entorhinal cortex. Word processing involves a systematic sequence of fast feedforward information transfer from visual areas to anteroventral temporal cortex, followed by prolonged interactions of this feedforward information with local associations, and feedback mnestic information from the medial temporal lobe. PMID:16488158

Understanding Motivation to Implement Smoking Bans among Mothers with a Hospitalized Infant

PubMed Central

Stotts, Angela L.; Klawans, Michelle R.; Northrup, Thomas F.; Villarreal, Yolanda; Hovell, Melbourne F.

2016-01-01

Objective Secondhand smoke exposure (SHSe) poses risks to hospitalized children upon discharge and no uniformly effective interventions have been identified. Understanding change-related processes and social-contextual factors related to motivation for implementing home and car smoking bans may inform interventions to reduce infant SHSe among mothers with a hospitalized infant. Methods In this cross-sectional, secondary analysis, mothers of neonatal ICU infants who reported smoking or living with a smoker (N=205) were assigned to stages of change (pre-contemplation, contemplation, preparation, or action) based on behaviors and intentions for establishing smoking bans in their homes and cars. Processes of change (POC) for SHSe reduction practices, self-efficacy, depressive symptoms, generalized anxiety, and social support for not smoking in the home were examined across all four stages. Results The majority of mothers were in the action stage for having a home smoking ban in place (55%); only 35% of participants were in action for a car smoking ban. POC use differed across the stages of change for having a home ban (p=0.004) and car ban (p=0.02), with earlier stages using fewer overall and relatively fewer cognitive/affective processes. Earlier stage women also reported lower self-efficacy to change, less familial and partner support for in-home smoking bans, and more depressive symptoms. Conclusions Novel intervention targets were identified, including cognitive/affective change processes, mental health, and familial/social contingencies for implementing SHSe protective practices. Creative ways in which to affect change at the individual and household level are needed in order to fully address the complexity of child SHSe. PMID:26914262

Disruption of visual awareness during the attentional blink is reflected by selective disruption of late-stage neural processing

PubMed Central

Harris, Joseph A.; McMahon, Alex R.; Woldorff, Marty G.

2015-01-01

Any information represented in the brain holds the potential to influence behavior. It is therefore of broad interest to determine the extent and quality of neural processing of stimulus input that occurs with and without awareness. The attentional blink is a useful tool for dissociating neural and behavioral measures of perceptual visual processing across conditions of awareness. The extent of higher-order visual information beyond basic sensory signaling that is processed during the attentional blink remains controversial. To determine what neural processing at the level of visual-object identification occurs in the absence of awareness, electrophysiological responses to images of faces and houses were recorded both within and outside of the attentional blink period during a rapid serial visual presentation (RSVP) stream. Electrophysiological results were sorted according to behavioral performance (correctly identified targets versus missed targets) within these blink and non-blink periods. An early index of face-specific processing (the N170, 140–220 ms post-stimulus) was observed regardless of whether the subject demonstrated awareness of the stimulus, whereas a later face-specific effect with the same topographic distribution (500–700 ms post-stimulus) was only seen for accurate behavioral discrimination of the stimulus content. The present findings suggest a multi-stage process of object-category processing, with only the later phase being associated with explicit visual awareness. PMID:23859644

Distributed Data Collection for the ATLAS EventIndex

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sánchez, J.; Fernández Casaní, A.; González de la Hoz, S.

2015-12-01

The ATLAS EventIndex contains records of all events processed by ATLAS, in all processing stages. These records include the references to the files containing each event (the GUID of the file) and the internal pointer to each event in the file. This information is collected by all jobs that run at Tier-0 or on the Grid and process ATLAS events. Each job produces a snippet of information for each permanent output file. This information is packed and transferred to a central broker at CERN using an ActiveMQ messaging system, and then is unpacked, sorted and reformatted in order to be stored and catalogued into a central Hadoop server. This contribution describes in detail the Producer/Consumer architecture to convey this information from the running jobs through the messaging system to the Hadoop server.

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

Mehl, M; Kukkadapu, G; Kumar, K

The use of gasoline in homogeneous charge compression ignition engines (HCCI) and in duel fuel diesel - gasoline engines, has increased the need to understand its compression ignition processes under engine-like conditions. These processes need to be studied under well-controlled conditions in order to quantify low temperature heat release and to provide fundamental validation data for chemical kinetic models. With this in mind, an experimental campaign has been undertaken in a rapid compression machine (RCM) to measure the ignition of gasoline mixtures over a wide range of compression temperatures and for different compression pressures. By measuring the pressure history duringmore » ignition, information on the first stage ignition (when observed) and second stage ignition are captured along with information on the phasing of the heat release. Heat release processes during ignition are important because gasoline is known to exhibit low temperature heat release, intermediate temperature heat release and high temperature heat release. In an HCCI engine, the occurrence of low-temperature and intermediate-temperature heat release can be exploited to obtain higher load operation and has become a topic of much interest for engine researchers. Consequently, it is important to understand these processes under well-controlled conditions. A four-component gasoline surrogate model (including n-heptane, iso-octane, toluene, and 2-pentene) has been developed to simulate real gasolines. An appropriate surrogate mixture of the four components has been developed to simulate the specific gasoline used in the RCM experiments. This chemical kinetic surrogate model was then used to simulate the RCM experimental results for real gasoline. The experimental and modeling results covered ultra-lean to stoichiometric mixtures, compressed temperatures of 640-950 K, and compression pressures of 20 and 40 bar. The agreement between the experiments and model is encouraging in terms of first-stage (when observed) and second-stage ignition delay times and of heat release rate. The experimental and computational results are used to gain insight into low and intermediate temperature processes during gasoline ignition.« less

Stage scoring of liver fibrosis using Mueller matrix microscope

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Jialing; He, Honghui; Wang, Ye; Ma, Hui

2016-10-01

Liver fibrosis is a common pathological process of varied chronic liver diseases including alcoholic hepatitis, virus hepatitis, and so on. Accurate evaluation of liver fibrosis is necessary for effective therapy and a five-stage grading system was developed. Currently, experienced pathologists use stained liver biopsies to assess the degree of liver fibrosis. But it is difficult to obtain highly reproducible results because of huge discrepancy among different observers. Polarization imaging technique has the potential of scoring liver fibrosis since it is capable of probing the structural and optical properties of samples. Considering that the Mueller matrix measurement can provide comprehensive microstructural information of the tissues, in this paper, we apply the Mueller matrix microscope to human liver fibrosis slices in different fibrosis stages. We extract the valid regions and adopt the Mueller matrix polar decomposition (MMPD) and Mueller matrix transformation (MMT) parameters for quantitative analysis. We also use the Monte Carlo simulation to analyze the relationship between the microscopic Mueller matrix parameters and the characteristic structural changes during the fibrosis process. The experimental and Monte Carlo simulated results show good consistency. We get a positive correlation between the parameters and the stage of liver fibrosis. The results presented in this paper indicate that the Mueller matrix microscope can provide additional information for the detections and fibrosis scorings of liver tissues and has great potential in liver fibrosis diagnosis.

A 3D THz image processing methodology for a fully integrated, semi-automatic and near real-time operational system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brook, A.; Cristofani, E.; Vandewal, M.; Matheis, C.; Jonuscheit, J.; Beigang, R.

2012-05-01

The present study proposes a fully integrated, semi-automatic and near real-time mode-operated image processing methodology developed for Frequency-Modulated Continuous-Wave (FMCW) THz images with the center frequencies around: 100 GHz and 300 GHz. The quality control of aeronautics composite multi-layered materials and structures using Non-Destructive Testing is the main focus of this work. Image processing is applied on the 3-D images to extract useful information. The data is processed by extracting areas of interest. The detected areas are subjected to image analysis for more particular investigation managed by a spatial model. Finally, the post-processing stage examines and evaluates the spatial accuracy of the extracted information.

Temporal variation of aftershocks by means of multifractal characterization of their inter-event time and cluster analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Figueroa-Soto, A.; Zuñiga, R.; Marquez-Ramirez, V.; Monterrubio-Velasco, M.

2017-12-01

. The inter-event time characteristics of seismic aftershock sequences can provide important information to discern stages in the aftershock generation process. In order to investigate whether separate dynamic stages can be identified, (1) aftershock series after selected earthquake mainshocks, which took place at similar tectonic regimes were analyzed. To this end we selected two well-defined aftershock sequences from New Zealand and one aftershock sequence for Mexico, we (2) analyzed the fractal behavior of the logarithm of inter-event times (also called waiting times) of aftershocks by means of Holdeŕs exponent, and (3) their magnitude and spatial location based on a methodology proposed by Zaliapin and Ben Zion [2011] which accounts for the clustering properties of the sequence. In general, more than two coherent process stages can be identified following the main rupture, evidencing a type of "cascade" process which precludes implying a single generalized power law even though the temporal rate and average fractal character appear to be unique (as in a single Omorís p value). We found that aftershock processes indeed show multi-fractal characteristics, which may be related to different stages in the process of diffusion, as seen in the temporary-spatial distribution of aftershocks. Our method provides a way of defining the onset of the return to seismic background activity and the end of the main aftershock sequence.

Pediatric HIV disclosure: a process-oriented framework.

PubMed

Cantrell, Kathryn; Patel, Nehali; Mandrell, Belinda; Grissom, Shawna

2013-08-01

As children with vertically transmitted human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection live into adulthood, caregivers face the stressful process of informing their children about their infection. Although developmentally guided disclosure of HIV status is widely recommended, there are few specific frameworks to guide caregivers, families, and health care providers through the disclosure process. The authors propose a process-oriented framework for the disclosure of HIV in children and adolescents. This educational framework incorporates Piaget's cognitive development theory in an attempt to disclose and assist children and adolescents in understanding their HIV status. The framework is organized into 10 sequential stages of disclosure and three assessment stages in which health care providers discuss HIV health concepts with the child and caregiver, based on the child's developmental readiness. The described framework can be easily replicated by health care providers in disclosing disease status to children with HIV.

Applicability and Limitations of Reliability Allocation Methods

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cruz, Jose A.

2016-01-01

Reliability allocation process may be described as the process of assigning reliability requirements to individual components within a system to attain the specified system reliability. For large systems, the allocation process is often performed at different stages of system design. The allocation process often begins at the conceptual stage. As the system design develops, more information about components and the operating environment becomes available, different allocation methods can be considered. Reliability allocation methods are usually divided into two categories: weighting factors and optimal reliability allocation. When properly applied, these methods can produce reasonable approximations. Reliability allocation techniques have limitations and implied assumptions that need to be understood by system engineers. Applying reliability allocation techniques without understanding their limitations and assumptions can produce unrealistic results. This report addresses weighting factors, optimal reliability allocation techniques, and identifies the applicability and limitations of each reliability allocation technique.

Managing distrust-induced risk with deposit in supply chain contract decisions.

PubMed

Han, Guanghua; Dong, Ming; Sun, Qi

2014-01-01

This paper studies the trust issue in a two-echelon supply chain information sharing process. In a supply chain, the retailer reports the forecasted demand to the supplier. Traditionally, the supplier's trust in the retailer's reported information is based on the retailer's reputation. However, this paper considers that trust is random and is also affected by the reputation and the demand gap. The supplier and retailer have been shown to have different evaluations regarding the degree of trust. Furthermore, distrust is inherently linked to perceived risk. To mitigate perceived risk, a two-stage decision process with an unpayback deposit contract is proposed. At the first stage, the supplier and the retailer negotiate the deposit contract. At the second stage, a Stackelberg game is used to determine the retailer's reported demand and the supplier's production quantity. We show that the deposits from the retailer's and supplier's perspectives are different. When the retailer's reported demand is equal to the supplier's forecasted demand, the retailer's evaluation of the deposit is more than that of supplier's. When the retailer's reported demand is equal to the retailer's forecasted demand, the deposit from the retailer's perspective is at the lowest level.

Options as information: rational reversals of evaluation and preference.

PubMed

Sher, Shlomi; McKenzie, Craig R M

2014-06-01

This article develops a rational analysis of an important class of apparent preference reversals-joint-separate reversals traditionally explained by the evaluability hypothesis. The "options-as-information" model considers a hypothetical rational actor with limited knowledge about the market distribution of a stimulus attribute. The actor's evaluations are formed via a 2-stage process-an inferential stage in which beliefs are updated on the basis of the sample of options received, followed by an assessment stage in which options are evaluated in light of these updated beliefs. This process generates joint-separate reversals in standard experimental designs. The normative model explains why the evaluability hypothesis works when it does, identifies boundary conditions for the hypothesis, and clarifies some common misconceptions about these effects. In particular, it implies that joint-separate reversals are not irrational; in fact, they are not preference reversals. However, in expanded designs where more than 2 options are jointly evaluated, the model predicts that genuine (and rational) preference reversals will sometimes emerge. Results of 3 experiments suggest an excellent fit between the rational actor model and the judgments of human actors in joint-separate experiments. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved.

Using evaluation to adapt health information outreach to the complex environments of community-based organizations.

PubMed

Olney, Cynthia A

2005-10-01

After arguing that most community-based organizations (CBOs) function as complex adaptive systems, this white paper describes the evaluation goals, questions, indicators, and methods most important at different stages of community-based health information outreach. This paper presents the basic characteristics of complex adaptive systems and argues that the typical CBO can be considered this type of system. It then presents evaluation as a tool for helping outreach teams adapt their outreach efforts to the CBO environment and thus maximize success. Finally, it describes the goals, questions, indicators, and methods most important or helpful at each stage of evaluation (community assessment, needs assessment and planning, process evaluation, and outcomes assessment). Literature from complex adaptive systems as applied to health care, business, and evaluation settings is presented. Evaluation models and applications, particularly those based on participatory approaches, are presented as methods for maximizing the effectiveness of evaluation in dynamic CBO environments. If one accepts that CBOs function as complex adaptive systems-characterized by dynamic relationships among many agents, influences, and forces-then effective evaluation at the stages of community assessment, needs assessment and planning, process evaluation, and outcomes assessment is critical to outreach success.

Managing Distrust-Induced Risk with Deposit in Supply Chain Contract Decisions

PubMed Central

Han, Guanghua; Dong, Ming; Sun, Qi

2014-01-01

This paper studies the trust issue in a two-echelon supply chain information sharing process. In a supply chain, the retailer reports the forecasted demand to the supplier. Traditionally, the supplier's trust in the retailer's reported information is based on the retailer's reputation. However, this paper considers that trust is random and is also affected by the reputation and the demand gap. The supplier and retailer have been shown to have different evaluations regarding the degree of trust. Furthermore, distrust is inherently linked to perceived risk. To mitigate perceived risk, a two-stage decision process with an unpayback deposit contract is proposed. At the first stage, the supplier and the retailer negotiate the deposit contract. At the second stage, a Stackelberg game is used to determine the retailer's reported demand and the supplier's production quantity. We show that the deposits from the retailer's and supplier's perspectives are different. When the retailer's reported demand is equal to the supplier's forecasted demand, the retailer's evaluation of the deposit is more than that of supplier's. When the retailer's reported demand is equal to the retailer's forecasted demand, the deposit from the retailer's perspective is at the lowest level. PMID:25054190

Temporally selective attention modulates early perceptual processing: event-related potential evidence.

PubMed

Sanders, Lisa D; Astheimer, Lori B

2008-05-01

Some of the most important information we encounter changes so rapidly that our perceptual systems cannot process all of it in detail. Spatially selective attention is critical for perception when more information than can be processed in detail is presented simultaneously at distinct locations. When presented with complex, rapidly changing information, listeners may need to selectively attend to specific times rather than to locations. We present evidence that listeners can direct selective attention to time points that differ by as little as 500 msec, and that doing so improves target detection, affects baseline neural activity preceding stimulus presentation, and modulates auditory evoked potentials at a perceptually early stage. These data demonstrate that attentional modulation of early perceptual processing is temporally precise and that listeners can flexibly allocate temporally selective attention over short intervals, making it a viable mechanism for preferentially processing the most relevant segments in rapidly changing streams.

Mating Signals Indicating Sexual Receptiveness Induce Unique Spatio-Temporal EEG Theta Patterns in an Anuran Species

PubMed Central

Fang, Guangzhan; Yang, Ping; Cui, Jianguo; Yao, Dezhong; Brauth, Steven E.; Tang, Yezhong

2012-01-01

Female mate choice is of importance for individual fitness as well as a determining factor in genetic diversity and speciation. Nevertheless relatively little is known about how females process information acquired from males during mate selection. In the Emei music frog, Babina daunchina, males normally call from hidden burrows and females in the reproductive stage prefer male calls produced from inside burrows compared with ones from outside burrows. The present study evaluated changes in electroencephalogram (EEG) power output in four frequency bands induced by male courtship vocalizations on both sides of the telencephalon and mesencephalon in females. The results show that (1) both the values of left hemispheric theta relative power and global lateralization in the theta band are modulated by the sexual attractiveness of the acoustic stimulus in the reproductive stage, suggesting the theta oscillation is closely correlated with processing information associated with mate choice; (2) mean relative power in the beta band is significantly greater in the mesencephalon than the left telencephalon, regardless of reproductive status or the biological significance of signals, indicating it is associated with processing acoustic features and (3) relative power in the delta and alpha bands are not affected by reproductive status or acoustic stimuli. The results imply that EEG power in the theta and beta bands reflect different information processing mechanisms related to vocal recognition and auditory perception in anurans. PMID:23285010

End-User Evaluations of Semantic Web Technologies

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

McCool, Rob; Cowell, Andrew J.; Thurman, David A.

Stanford University's Knowledge Systems Laboratory (KSL) is working in partnership with Battelle Memorial Institute and IBM Watson Research Center to develop a suite of technologies for information extraction, knowledge representation & reasoning, and human-information interaction, in unison entitled 'Knowledge Associates for Novel Intelligence' (KANI). We have developed an integrated analytic environment composed of a collection of analyst associates, software components that aid the user at different stages of the information analysis process. An important part of our participatory design process has been to ensure our technologies and designs are tightly integrate with the needs and requirements of our end users,more » To this end, we perform a sequence of evaluations towards the end of the development process that ensure the technologies are both functional and usable. This paper reports on that process.« less

Women's decision-making processes and the influences on their mode of birth following a previous caesarean section in Taiwan: a qualitative study.

PubMed

Chen, Shu-Wen; Hutchinson, Alison M; Nagle, Cate; Bucknall, Tracey K

2018-01-17

Vaginal birth after caesarean (VBAC) is an alternative option for women who have had a previous caesarean section (CS); however, uptake is limited because of concern about the risks of uterine rupture. The aim of this study was to explore women's decision-making processes and the influences on their mode of birth following a previous CS. A qualitative approach was used. The research comprised three stages. Stage I consisted of naturalistic observation at 33-34 weeks' gestation. Stage II involved interviews with pregnant women at 35-37 weeks' gestation. Stage III consisted of interviews with the same women who were interviewed postnatally, 1 month after birth. The research was conducted in a private medical centre in northern Taiwan. Using a purposive sampling, 21 women and 9 obstetricians were recruited. Data collection involved in-depth interviews, observation and field notes. Constant comparative analysis was employed for data analysis. Ensuring the safety of mother and baby was the focus of women's decisions. Women's decisions-making influences included previous birth experience, concern about the risks of vaginal birth, evaluation of mode of birth, current pregnancy situation, information resources and health insurance. In communicating with obstetricians, some women complied with obstetricians' recommendations for repeat caesarean section (RCS) without being informed of alternatives. Others used four step decision-making processes that included searching for information, listening to obstetricians' professional judgement, evaluating alternatives, and making a decision regarding mode of birth. After birth, women reflected on their decisions in three aspects: reflection on birth choices; reflection on factors influencing decisions; and reflection on outcomes of decisions. The health and wellbeing of mother and baby were the major concerns for women. In response to the decision-making influences, women's interactions with obstetricians regarding birth choices varied from passive decision-making to shared decision-making. All women have the right to be informed of alternative birthing options. Routine provision of explanations by obstetricians regarding risks associated with alternative birth options, in addition to financial coverage for RCS from National Health Insurance, would assist women's decision-making. Establishment of a website to provide women with reliable information about birthing options may also assist women's decision-making.

Information properties of morphologically complex words modulate brain activity during word reading

PubMed Central

Hultén, Annika; Lehtonen, Minna; Lagus, Krista; Salmelin, Riitta

2018-01-01

Abstract Neuroimaging studies of the reading process point to functionally distinct stages in word recognition. Yet, current understanding of the operations linked to those various stages is mainly descriptive in nature. Approaches developed in the field of computational linguistics may offer a more quantitative approach for understanding brain dynamics. Our aim was to evaluate whether a statistical model of morphology, with well‐defined computational principles, can capture the neural dynamics of reading, using the concept of surprisal from information theory as the common measure. The Morfessor model, created for unsupervised discovery of morphemes, is based on the minimum description length principle and attempts to find optimal units of representation for complex words. In a word recognition task, we correlated brain responses to word surprisal values derived from Morfessor and from other psycholinguistic variables that have been linked with various levels of linguistic abstraction. The magnetoencephalography data analysis focused on spatially, temporally and functionally distinct components of cortical activation observed in reading tasks. The early occipital and occipito‐temporal responses were correlated with parameters relating to visual complexity and orthographic properties, whereas the later bilateral superior temporal activation was correlated with whole‐word based and morphological models. The results show that the word processing costs estimated by the statistical Morfessor model are relevant for brain dynamics of reading during late processing stages. PMID:29524274

Information properties of morphologically complex words modulate brain activity during word reading.

PubMed

Hakala, Tero; Hultén, Annika; Lehtonen, Minna; Lagus, Krista; Salmelin, Riitta

2018-06-01

Neuroimaging studies of the reading process point to functionally distinct stages in word recognition. Yet, current understanding of the operations linked to those various stages is mainly descriptive in nature. Approaches developed in the field of computational linguistics may offer a more quantitative approach for understanding brain dynamics. Our aim was to evaluate whether a statistical model of morphology, with well-defined computational principles, can capture the neural dynamics of reading, using the concept of surprisal from information theory as the common measure. The Morfessor model, created for unsupervised discovery of morphemes, is based on the minimum description length principle and attempts to find optimal units of representation for complex words. In a word recognition task, we correlated brain responses to word surprisal values derived from Morfessor and from other psycholinguistic variables that have been linked with various levels of linguistic abstraction. The magnetoencephalography data analysis focused on spatially, temporally and functionally distinct components of cortical activation observed in reading tasks. The early occipital and occipito-temporal responses were correlated with parameters relating to visual complexity and orthographic properties, whereas the later bilateral superior temporal activation was correlated with whole-word based and morphological models. The results show that the word processing costs estimated by the statistical Morfessor model are relevant for brain dynamics of reading during late processing stages. © 2018 The Authors Human Brain Mapping Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Housing decision making methods for initiation development phase process

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zainal, Rozlin; Kasim, Narimah; Sarpin, Norliana; Wee, Seow Ta; Shamsudin, Zarina

2017-10-01

Late delivery and sick housing project problems were attributed to poor decision making. These problems are the string of housing developer that prefers to create their own approach based on their experiences and expertise with the simplest approach by just applying the obtainable standards and rules in decision making. This paper seeks to identify the decision making methods for housing development at the initiation phase in Malaysia. The research involved Delphi method by using questionnaire survey which involved 50 numbers of developers as samples for the primary stage of collect data. However, only 34 developers contributed to the second stage of the information gathering process. At the last stage, only 12 developers were left for the final data collection process. Finding affirms that Malaysian developers prefer to make their investment decisions based on simple interpolation of historical data and using simple statistical or mathematical techniques in producing the required reports. It was suggested that they seemed to skip several important decision-making functions at the primary development stage. These shortcomings were mainly due to time and financial constraints and the lack of statistical or mathematical expertise among the professional and management groups in the developer organisations.

Fuels planning: science synthesis and integration; economic uses fact sheet 05: NEPA and economics

Treesearch

Rocky Mountain Research Station USDA Forest Service

2004-01-01

The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is the law that requires Federal agencies to consider the environmental impacts of their actions, involve the public in the decisionmaking process, and disclose information, starting at the initial stages of planning. This fact sheet discusses when you should consider economics in the NEPA process, when to do an analysis,...

The Role of the Striatum in Sentence Processing: Evidence from a Priming Study in Early Stages of Huntington's Disease

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Teichmann, Marc; Dupoux, Emmanuel; Cesaro, Pierre; Bachoud-Levi, Anne-Catherine

2008-01-01

The role of sub-cortical structures such as the striatum in language remains a controversial issue. Based on linguistic claims that language processing implies both recovery of lexical information and application of combinatorial rules it has been shown that striatal damaged patients have difficulties applying conjugation rules while lexical…

The Challenges of a Post-Industrial Society.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Quilling, Joan I.

1982-01-01

Postindustrialism often describes societies which deemphasize agriculture and manufacturing while emphasizing information processing. There are five stages to postindustrialization: (1) mining, agriculture; (2) manufactured goods; (3) transportation, communication, public services; (4) commerce; and (5) abstract activities. The United States is in…

Design and process aspects of laboratory scale SCF particle formation systems.

PubMed

Vemavarapu, Chandra; Mollan, Matthew J; Lodaya, Mayur; Needham, Thomas E

2005-03-23

Consistent production of solid drug materials of desired particle and crystallographic morphologies under cGMP conditions is a frequent challenge to pharmaceutical researchers. Supercritical fluid (SCF) technology gained significant attention in pharmaceutical research by not only showing a promise in this regard but also accommodating the principles of green chemistry. Given that this technology attained commercialization in coffee decaffeination and in the extraction of hops and other essential oils, a majority of the off-the-shelf SCF instrumentation is designed for extraction purposes. Only a selective few vendors appear to be in the early stages of manufacturing equipment designed for particle formation. The scarcity of information on the design and process engineering of laboratory scale equipment is recognized as a significant shortcoming to the technological progress. The purpose of this article is therefore to provide the information and resources necessary for startup research involving particle formation using supercritical fluids. The various stages of particle formation by supercritical fluid processing can be broadly classified into delivery, reaction, pre-expansion, expansion and collection. The importance of each of these processes in tailoring the particle morphology is discussed in this article along with presenting various alternatives to perform these operations.

The role of the striatum in rule application: the model of Huntington's disease at early stage.

PubMed

Teichmann, Marc; Dupoux, Emmanuel; Kouider, Sid; Brugières, Pierre; Boissé, Marie-Françoise; Baudic, Sophie; Cesaro, Pierre; Peschanski, Marc; Bachoud-Lévi, Anne-Catherine

2005-05-01

The role of the basal ganglia, and more specifically of the striatum, in language is still debated. Recent studies have proposed that linguistic abilities involve two distinct types of processes: the retrieving of stored information, implicating temporal lobe areas, and the application of combinatorial rules, implicating fronto-striatal circuits. Studies of patients with focal lesions and neurodegenerative diseases have suggested a role for the striatum in morphological rule application, but functional imaging studies found that the left caudate was involved in syntactic processing and not morphological processing. In the present study, we tested the view that the basal ganglia are involved in rule application and not in lexical retrieving in a model of striatal dysfunction, namely Huntington's disease at early stages. We assessed the rule-lexicon dichotomy in the linguistic domain with morphology (conjugation of non-verbs and verbs) and syntax (sentence comprehension) and in a non-linguistic domain with arithmetic operations (subtraction and multiplication). Thirty Huntington's disease patients (15 at stage I and 15 at stage II) and 20 controls matched for their age and cultural level were included in this study. Huntington's disease patients were also assessed using the Unified Huntington's Disease Rating Scale (UHDRS) and MRI. We found that early Huntington's disease patients were impaired in rule application in the linguistic and non-linguistic domains (morphology, syntax and subtraction), whereas they were broadly spared with lexical processing. The pattern of performance was similar in patients at stage I and stage II, except that stage II patients were more impaired in all tasks assessing rules and had in addition a very slight impairment in the lexical condition of conjugation. Finally, syntactic rule abilities correlated with all markers of the disease evolution including bicaudate ratio and performance in executive function, whereas there was no correlation with arithmetic and morphological abilities. Together, this suggests that the striatum is involved in rule processing more than in lexical processing and that it extends to linguistic and non-linguistic domains. These results are discussed in terms of domain-specific versus domain-general processes of rule application.

[Potential of Information and Communications Technology to Improve Intersectoral Processes of Care: A Case Study of the Specialised Outpatient Palliative Care].

PubMed

Meyer-Delpho, C; Schubert, H-J

2015-09-01

The added value of information and communications technologies should be demonstrated precisely in such areas of care in which the importance of intersectoral and interdisciplinary cooperation is particularly high. In the context of the accompanying research of a supply concept for palliative care patients, the potential of a digital documentation process was comparatively analysed with the conventional paper-based workflow. Data were collected in the form of a multi-methodological approach and processed for the project in 3 stages: (1) Development and analysis of a palliative care process with the focus on all relevant steps of documentation. (2) Questionnaire design and the comparative mapping of specific process times. (3) Sampling, selection, and analysis of patient records and their derivable insights of process iterations. With the use of ICT, the treatment time per patient is reduced by up to 53% and achieves a reduction in costs and workload by up to 901 min. The result of an up to 213% increase in the number of patient contacts allows a higher continuity of care. Although the 16% increase in documentation loyalty improves the usability of cross-team documented information, it partially extends the workload on the level of individual actors. By using a digital health record around 31% more patients could be treated with the same staffing ratio. The multi-stage analysis of the palliative care process showed that ICT has a decisive influence on the process dimension of intersectoral cooperation. Due to favourable organisational conditions the pioneering work of palliative care also provides important guidance for a successful use of ICT technologies in the context of innovative forms of care. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

Notes from the field: the economic value chain in disease management organizations.

PubMed

Fetterolf, Donald

2006-12-01

The disease management (DM) "value chain" is composed of a linear series of steps that include operational milestones in the development of knowledge, each stage evolving from the preceding one. As an adaptation of Michael Porter's "value chain" model, the process flow in DM moves along the following path: (1) data/information technology, (2) information generation, (3) analysis, (4) assessment/recommendations, (5) actionable customer plan, and (6) program assessment/reassessment. Each of these stages is managed as a major line of product operations within a DM company or health plan. Metrics around each of the key production variables create benchmark milestones, ongoing management insight into program effectiveness, and potential drivers for activity-based cost accounting pricing models. The value chain process must remain robust from early entry of data and information into the system, through the final presentation and recommendations for our clients if the program is to be effective. For individuals involved in the evaluation or review of DM programs, this framework is an excellent method to visualize the key components and sequence in the process. The value chain model is an excellent way to establish the value of a formal DM program and to create a consultancy relationship with a client involved in purchasing these complex services.

Cochlear implants in children implanted in Jordan: A parental overview.

PubMed

Alkhamra, Rana A

2015-07-01

Exploring the perspective of parents on the cochlear implant process in Jordan. Sixty parents of deaf children were surveyed on the information gathering process prior to cochlear implant surgery, and their implant outcome expectations post-surgery. Whether child or parent characteristics may impact parents' post-surgical expectations was explored. Although parents used a variety of information sources when considering a cochlear implant, the ear, nose and throat doctor comprised their major source of information (60%). Parents received a range of information prior to cochlear implant but agreed (93.3%) on the need for a multidisciplinary team approach. Post-surgically, parents' expected major developments in the areas of spoken language (97%), and auditory skills (100%). Receiving education in mainstream schools (92%) was expected too. Parents perceived the cochlear implant decision as the best decision they can make for their child (98.3%). A significant correlation was found between parents contentment with the cochlear implant decision and expecting developments in the area of reading and writing (r=0.7). Child's age at implantation and age at hearing loss diagnosis significantly affected parents' post-implant outcome expectations (p<0.05). Despite the general satisfaction from the information quantity and quality prior to cochlear implant, parents agree on the need for a comprehensive multidisciplinary team approach during the different stages of the cochlear implant process. Parents' education about cochlear implants prior to the surgery can affect their post-surgical outcome expectations. The parental perspective presented in this study can help professionals develop better understanding of parents' needs and expectations and henceforth improve their services and support during the different stages of the cochlear implant process. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.

Contractor relationships and inter-organizational strategies in NASA's R and D acquisition process

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Guiltinan, J.

1976-01-01

Interorganizational analysis of NASA's acquisition process for research and development systems is discussed. The importance of understanding the contractor environment, constraints, and motives in selecting an acquisition strategy is demonstrated. By articulating clear project goals, by utilizing information about the contractor and his needs at each stage in the acquisition process, and by thorough analysis of the inter-organizational relationship, improved selection of acquisition strategies and business practices is possible.

"At Risk of Harm"? An Exploratory Survey of School Counsellors in the UK, Their Perceptions of Confidentiality, Information Sharing and Risk Management

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jenkins, Peter; Palmer, Joanne

2012-01-01

The primary objective of this study was to explore perceptions of UK school counsellors of confidentiality and information sharing in therapeutic work with children and young people, using qualitative methods. The research design employed a two-stage process, using questionnaires and follow-up interviews, with a small, non-random sample of school…

Ontologies and Information Systems: A Literature Survey

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-06-01

Science and Technology Organisation DSTO–TN–1002 ABSTRACT An ontology captures in a computer-processable language the important con - cepts in a...knowledge shara- bility, reusability and scalability, and that support collaborative and distributed con - struction of ontologies, the DOGMA and DILIGENT...and assemble the received information). In the second stage, the designers determine how ontologies should be used in the pro - cess of adding

Waste Management Information System (WMIS) User Guide

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

R. E. Broz

2008-12-22

This document provides the user of the Waste Management Information System (WMIS) instructions on how to use the WMIS software. WMIS allows users to initiate, track, and close waste packages. The modular design supports integration and utilization of data throuh the various stages of waste management. The phases of the waste management work process include generation, designation, packaging, container management, procurement, storage, treatment, transportation, and disposal.

Cue acquisition: A feature of Malawian midwives decision making process to support normality during the first stage of labour.

PubMed

Chodzaza, Elizabeth; Haycock-Stuart, Elaine; Holloway, Aisha; Mander, Rosemary

2018-03-01

to explore Malawian midwives decision making when caring for women during the first stage of labour in the hospital setting. this focused ethnographic study examined the decision making process of 9 nurse-midwives with varying years of clinical experience in the real world setting of an urban and semi urban hospital from October 2013 to May 2014.This was done using 27 participant observations and 27 post-observation in-depth interviews over a period of six months. Qualitative data analysis software, NVivo 10, was used to assist with data management for the analysis. All data was analysed using the principle of theme and category formation. analysis revealed a six-stage process of decision making that include a baseline for labour, deciding to admit a woman to labour ward, ascertaining the normal physiological progress of labour, supporting the normal physiological progress of labour, embracing uncertainty: the midwives' construction of unusual labour as normal, dealing with uncertainty and deciding to intervene in unusual labour. This six-stage process of decision making is conceptualised as the 'role of cue acquisition', illustrating the ways in which midwives utilise their assessment of labouring women to reason and make decisions on how to care for them in labour. Cue acquisition involved the midwives piecing together segments of information they obtained from the women to formulate an understanding of the woman's birthing progress and inform the midwives decision making process. This understanding of cue acquisition by midwives is significant for supporting safe care in the labour setting. When there was uncertainty in a woman's progress of labour, midwives used deductive reasoning, for example, by cross-checking and analysing the information obtained during the span of labour. Supporting normal labour physiological processes was identified as an underlying principle that shaped the midwives clinical judgement and decision making when they cared for women in labour. the significance of this study is in the new understanding and insight into the process of midwifery decision making. Whilst the approach to decision making by the midwives requires further testing and refinement in order to explore implications for practice, the findings here provide new conceptual and practical clarity of midwifery decision making. The work contributes to the identified lack of knowledge of how midwives working clinically, in the 'real world setting. These findings therefore, contribute to this body of knowledge with regards to our understanding of decision making of midwives. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Estimation of the Scatterer Distribution of the Cirrhotic Liver using Ultrasonic Image

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yamaguchi, Tadashi; Hachiya, Hiroyuki

1998-05-01

In the B-mode image of the liver obtained by an ultrasonic imaging system, the speckled pattern changes with the progression of the disease such as liver cirrhosis.In this paper we present the statistical characteristics of the echo envelope of the liver, and the technique to extract information of the scatterer distribution from the normal and cirrhotic liver images using constant false alarm rate (CFAR) processing.We analyze the relationship between the extracted scatterer distribution and the stage of liver cirrhosis. The ratio of the area in which the amplitude of the processing signal is more than the threshold to the entire processed image area is related quantitatively to the stage of liver cirrhosis.It is found that the proposed technique is valid for the quantitative diagnosis of liver cirrhosis.

Taking Brief Strategic Family Therapy from Bench to Trench: Evidence Generation Across Translational Phases.

PubMed

Horigian, Viviana E; Anderson, Austen R; Szapocznik, José

2016-09-01

In this article, we review the research evidence generated over 40 years on Brief Strategic Family Therapy illustrating the NIH stages of intervention development and highlighting the translational process. Basic research (Stage 0) led to the discovery of the characteristics of the population and the nature of the problems that needed to be addressed. This step informed the selection of an intervention model that addressed the problems presented by the population, but in a fashion that was congruent with the population's culture, defined in terms of its value orientations. From this basic research, an intervention that integrated structural and strategic elements was selected and refined through testing (Stage I). The second stage of translation (Stage II) included efficacy trials of a specialized engagement module that responded to challenges to the provision of services. It also included several other efficacy trials that documented the effects of the intervention, mostly in research settings or with research therapists. Stages III/IV in the translational process led to the testing of the effectiveness of the intervention in real-world settings with community therapists and some oversight from the developer. This work revealed that an implementation/organizational intervention was required to achieve fidelity and sustainability of the intervention in real-world settings. The work is currently in Stage V in which new model development led to an implementation intervention that can ensure fidelity and sustainability. Future research will evaluate the effectiveness of the current implementation model in increasing adoption, fidelity, and long-term sustainability in real-world settings. © 2016 Family Process Institute.

On the origins of logarithmic number-to-position mapping.

PubMed

Dotan, Dror; Dehaene, Stanislas

2016-11-01

The number-to-position task, in which children and adults are asked to place numbers on a spatial number line, has become a classic measure of number comprehension. We present a detailed experimental and theoretical dissection of the processing stages that underlie this task. We used a continuous finger-tracking technique, which provides detailed information about the time course of processing stages. When adults map the position of 2-digit numbers onto a line, their final mapping is essentially linear, but intermediate finger location show a transient logarithmic mapping. We identify the origins of this log effect: Small numbers are processed faster than large numbers, so the finger deviates toward the target position earlier for small numbers than for large numbers. When the trajectories are aligned on the finger deviation onset, the log effect disappears. The small-number advantage and the log effect are enhanced in dual-task setting and are further enhanced when the delay between the 2 tasks is shortened, suggesting that these effects originate from a central stage of quantification and decision making. We also report cases of logarithmic mapping-by children and by a brain-injured individual-which cannot be explained by faster responding to small numbers. We show that these findings are captured by an ideal-observer model of the number-to-position mapping task, comprising 3 distinct stages: a quantification stage, whose duration is influenced by both exact and approximate representations of numerical quantity; a Bayesian accumulation-of-evidence stage, leading to a decision about the target location; and a pointing stage. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

A systematic approach to the interpretation of preoperative staging MRI for rectal cancer.

PubMed

Taylor, Fiona G M; Swift, Robert I; Blomqvist, Lennart; Brown, Gina

2008-12-01

The purpose of this article is to provide an aid to the systematic evaluation of MRI in staging rectal cancer. MRI has been shown to be an effective tool for the accurate preoperative staging of rectal cancer. In the Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Rectal Cancer European Equivalence Study (MERCURY), imaging workshops were held for participating radiologists to ensure standardization of scan acquisition techniques and interpretation of the images. In this article, we report how the information was obtained and give examples of the images and how they are interpreted, with the aim of providing a systematic approach to the reporting process.

Recollection-Based Retrieval Is Influenced by Contextual Variation at Encoding but Not at Retrieval

PubMed Central

Rosenstreich, Eyal; Goshen-Gottstein, Yonatan

2015-01-01

In this article, we investigated the effects of variations at encoding and retrieval on recollection. We argue that recollection is more likely to be affected by the processing that information undergoes at encoding than at retrieval. To date, manipulations shown to affect recollection were typically carried out at encoding. Therefore, an open question is whether these same manipulations would also affect recollection when carried out at retrieval, or whether there is an inherent connection between their effects on recollection and the encoding stage. We therefore manipulated, at either encoding or retrieval, fluency of processing (Experiment 1)—typically found not to affect recollection—and the amount of attentional resources available for processing (Experiments 2 and 3)—typically reported to affect recollection. We found that regardless of the type of manipulation, recollection was affected more by manipulations carried out at encoding and was essentially unaffected when these manipulations were carried out at retrieval. These findings suggest an inherent dependency between recollection-based retrieval and the encoding stage. It seems that because recollection is a contextual-based retrieval process, it is determined by the processing information undergoes at encoding—at the time when context is bound with the items—but not at retrieval—when context is only recovered. PMID:26135583

Development of a software tool to support chemical and biological terrorism intelligence analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hunt, Allen R.; Foreman, William

1997-01-01

AKELA has developed a software tool which uses a systems analytic approach to model the critical processes which support the acquisition of biological and chemical weapons by terrorist organizations. This tool has four major components. The first is a procedural expert system which describes the weapon acquisition process. It shows the relationship between the stages a group goes through to acquire and use a weapon, and the activities in each stage required to be successful. It applies to both state sponsored and small group acquisition. An important part of this expert system is an analysis of the acquisition process which is embodied in a list of observables of weapon acquisition activity. These observables are cues for intelligence collection The second component is a detailed glossary of technical terms which helps analysts with a non- technical background understand the potential relevance of collected information. The third component is a linking capability which shows where technical terms apply to the parts of the acquisition process. The final component is a simple, intuitive user interface which shows a picture of the entire process at a glance and lets the user move quickly to get more detailed information. This paper explains e each of these five model components.

Danger Changes the Way the Mammalian Brain Stores Information About Innocuous Events: A Study of Sensory Preconditioning in Rats

PubMed Central

Qureshi, Omar A.; Killcross, Simon

2018-01-01

Abstract The amygdala is a critical substrate for learning about cues that signal danger. Less is known about its role in processing innocuous or background information. The present study addressed this question using a sensory preconditioning protocol in male rats. In each experiment, rats were exposed to pairings of two innocuous stimuli in stage 1, S2 and S1, and then to pairings of S1 and shock in stage 2. As a consequence of this training, control rats displayed defensive reactions (freezing) when tested with both S2 and S1. The freezing to S2 is a product of two associations formed in training: an S2-S1 association in stage 1 and an S1-shock association in stage 2. We examined the roles of two medial temporal lobe (MTL) structures in consolidation of the S2-S1 association: the perirhinal cortex (PRh) and basolateral complex of the amygdala (BLA). When the S2-S1 association formed in a safe context, its consolidation required neuronal activity in the PRh (but not BLA), including activation of AMPA receptors and MAPK signaling. In contrast, when the S2-S1 association formed in a dangerous context, or when the context was rendered dangerous immediately after the association had formed, its consolidation required neuronal activity in the BLA (but not PRh), including activation of AMPA receptors and MAPK signaling. These roles of the PRh and BLA show that danger changes the way the mammalian brain stores information about innocuous events. They are discussed with respect to danger-induced changes in stimulus processing. PMID:29464195

Cross-cultural differences in processing of architectural ranking: evidence from an event-related potential study.

PubMed

Mecklinger, Axel; Kriukova, Olga; Mühlmann, Heiner; Grunwald, Thomas

2014-01-01

Visual object identification is modulated by perceptual experience. In a cross-cultural ERP study we investigated whether cultural expertise determines how buildings that vary in their ranking between high and low according to the Western architectural decorum are perceived. Two groups of German and Chinese participants performed an object classification task in which high- and low-ranking Western buildings had to be discriminated from everyday life objects. ERP results indicate that an early stage of visual object identification (i.e., object model selection) is facilitated for high-ranking buildings for the German participants, only. At a later stage of object identification, in which object knowledge is complemented by information from semantic and episodic long-term memory, no ERP evidence for cultural differences was obtained. These results suggest that the identification of architectural ranking is modulated by culturally specific expertise with Western-style architecture already at an early processing stage.

KSC-2012-1117

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-01-22

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- Stage 2 is separated from stage 3 of an Orbital Sciences Corp. Pegasus rocket in processing facility 1555 at Vandenberg Air Force Base (VAFB) in California to reinstall some RF cabling. The stages were remated after the installation was complete. The rocket is being prepared to launch NASA's Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) into space. After the rocket and spacecraft are processed at Vandenberg, they will be flown on the Orbital Sciences' L-1011 carrier aircraft to the Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Defense Test Site at the Pacific Ocean's Kwajalein Atoll for launch, targeted for no earlier than March 14. The high-energy x-ray telescope will conduct a census for black holes, map radioactive material in young supernovae remnants, and study the origins of cosmic rays and the extreme physics around collapsed stars. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/nustar. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin, VAFB

EIA's Natural Gas Production Data

EIA Publications

2009-01-01

This special report examines the stages of natural gas processing from the wellhead to the pipeline network through which the raw product becomes ready for transportation and eventual consumption, and how this sequence is reflected in the data published by the Energy Information Administration (EIA).

Use of a computerised decision aid (DA) to inform the decision process on adjuvant chemotherapy in patients with stage II colorectal cancer: development and preliminary evaluation.

PubMed

Miles, A; Chronakis, I; Fox, J; Mayer, A

2017-03-24

To develop a computerised decision aid (DA) to inform the decision process on adjuvant chemotherapy in patients with stage II colorectal cancer, and examine perceived usefulness, acceptability and areas for improvement of the DA. Mixed methods. Single outpatient oncology department in central London. Consecutive recruitment of 13 patients with stage II colorectal cancer, 12 of whom completed the study. Inclusion criteria were: age >18 years; complete resection for stage II adenocarcinoma of the colon or rectum; patients within 14-56 days after surgery; no contraindication to adjuvant chemotherapy; able to give written informed consent. Exclusion criterion: previous chemotherapy. Patient perceived usefulness (assessed by the PrepDM questionnaire) and acceptability of the DA. PrepDM scores, measuring the perceived usefulness of the DA in preparing the patient to communicate with their doctor and make a health decision, were above those reported in other patient groups. Patient acceptability scores were also high; however, interviews showed that there was evidence of a lack of understanding of key information among some patients, in particular their baseline risk of recurrence, the net benefit of combination chemotherapy and the rationale for having chemotherapy when cancer had apparently gone. Patients found the DA acceptable and useful in supporting their decision about whether or not to have adjuvant chemotherapy. Suggested improvements for the DA include: sequential presentation of treatment options (eg, no treatment vs 1 drug, 1 drug vs 2 drugs) to enhance patient understanding of the difference between combination and single therapy, diagrams to help patients understand the rationale for chemotherapy to prevent a recurrence and inbuilt checks on patient understanding of baseline risk of recurrence and net benefit of chemotherapy. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

Results of research on development of an intellectual information system of bankruptcy risk assessment of the enterprise

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Telipenko, E.; Chernysheva, T.; Zakharova, A.; Dumchev, A.

2015-10-01

The article represents research results about the knowledge base development for the intellectual information system for the bankruptcy risk assessment of the enterprise. It is described the process analysis of the knowledge base development; the main process stages, some problems and their solutions are given. The article introduces the connectionist model for the bankruptcy risk assessment based on the analysis of industrial enterprise financial accounting. The basis for this connectionist model is a three-layer perceptron with the back propagation of error algorithm. The knowledge base for the intellectual information system consists of processed information and the processing operation method represented as the connectionist model. The article represents the structure of the intellectual information system, the knowledge base, and the information processing algorithm for neural network training. The paper shows mean values of 10 indexes for industrial enterprises; with the help of them it is possible to carry out a financial analysis of industrial enterprises and identify correctly the current situation for well-timed managerial decisions. Results are given about neural network testing on the data of both bankrupt and financially strong enterprises, which were not included into training and test sets.

Efficiency improvement of technological preparation of power equipment manufacturing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Milukov, I. A.; Rogalev, A. N.; Sokolov, V. P.; Shevchenko, I. V.

2017-11-01

Competitiveness of power equipment primarily depends on speeding-up the development and mastering of new equipment samples and technologies, enhancement of organisation and management of design, manufacturing and operation. Actual political, technological and economic conditions cause the acute need in changing the strategy and tactics of process planning. At that the issues of maintenance of equipment with simultaneous improvement of its efficiency and compatibility to domestically produced components are considering. In order to solve these problems, using the systems of computer-aided process planning for process design at all stages of power equipment life cycle is economically viable. Computer-aided process planning is developed for the purpose of improvement of process planning by using mathematical methods and optimisation of design and management processes on the basis of CALS technologies, which allows for simultaneous process design, process planning organisation and management based on mathematical and physical modelling of interrelated design objects and production system. An integration of computer-aided systems providing the interaction of informative and material processes at all stages of product life cycle is proposed as effective solution to the challenges in new equipment design and process planning.

Developing the foundation for syndromic surveillance and health information exchange for yolo county, california.

PubMed

Chaudhary, Osama

2012-01-01

This report delineates Yolo County Health Department's process to ascertain its optimal methods of participation in syndromic surveillance and health information exchange. As a health department serving a county of just 200,000 residents, Yolo County Health Department needed to operate within strict financial constraints. Meaningful Use legislation enabled it to pursue both syndromic surveillance and health information exchange participation whilst complying with its budgetary restrictions. The Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH), a segment of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, has incentivized the 'Meaningful Use' of electronic health records (EHRs) by providing incentive reimbursements and non-compliance penalties. The Meaningful Use of EHRs is to take place over 3 Stages: Stage 1 has begun, Stage 2 is imminent, and Stage 3 is currently being discussed. Having been solicited by both health information exchange and syndromic surveillance options which were cost-prohibitive, Yolo County Health Department focused attention on BioSense 2.0, a Meaningul Use-ready and virtually free syndromic surveillance program developed by the Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In collaboration with Sacramento County Department of Health and Human Services, and with support from several other area counties, Yolo County Health Department submitted a Funding Opportunity application for BioSense 2.0 regional implementation. Through this collaboration, Yolo County Health Department has begun participating in the formative stages of the Sacramento Area Center for Advanced Biosurveillance (SAC-B). Via SAC-B, Yolo County Health Department will be able to participate in syndromic surveillance in the BioSense 2.0 program, and simultaneously expand its electronic health data sharing towards a more comprehensive health information exchange. LASTLY, OVER THE COURSE OF THESE PROJECTS, THREE OTHER METHODS OF PARTICIPATING IN ELECTRONIC HEALTH DATA SHARING BECAME AVAILABLE TO YOLO COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT: all three methods were the direct result of Meaningful Use legislation.

The integration of probabilistic information during sensorimotor estimation is unimpaired in children with Cerebral Palsy

PubMed Central

Sokhey, Taegh; Gaebler-Spira, Deborah; Kording, Konrad P.

2017-01-01

Background It is important to understand the motor deficits of children with Cerebral Palsy (CP). Our understanding of this motor disorder can be enriched by computational models of motor control. One crucial stage in generating movement involves combining uncertain information from different sources, and deficits in this process could contribute to reduced motor function in children with CP. Healthy adults can integrate previously-learned information (prior) with incoming sensory information (likelihood) in a close-to-optimal way when estimating object location, consistent with the use of Bayesian statistics. However, there are few studies investigating how children with CP perform sensorimotor integration. We compare sensorimotor estimation in children with CP and age-matched controls using a model-based analysis to understand the process. Methods and findings We examined Bayesian sensorimotor integration in children with CP, aged between 5 and 12 years old, with Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS) levels 1–3 and compared their estimation behavior with age-matched typically-developing (TD) children. We used a simple sensorimotor estimation task which requires participants to combine probabilistic information from different sources: a likelihood distribution (current sensory information) with a prior distribution (learned target information). In order to examine sensorimotor integration, we quantified how participants weighed statistical information from the two sources (prior and likelihood) and compared this to the statistical optimal weighting. We found that the weighing of statistical information in children with CP was as statistically efficient as that of TD children. Conclusions We conclude that Bayesian sensorimotor integration is not impaired in children with CP and therefore, does not contribute to their motor deficits. Future research has the potential to enrich our understanding of motor disorders by investigating the stages of motor processing set out by computational models. Therapeutic interventions should exploit the ability of children with CP to use statistical information. PMID:29186196

[Development of Web-based multimedia content for a physical examination and health assessment course].

PubMed

Oh, Pok-Ja; Kim, Il-Ok; Shin, Sung-Rae; Jung, Hoe-Kyung

2004-10-01

This study was to develop Web-based multimedia content for Physical Examination and Health Assessment. The multimedia content was developed based on Jung's teaching and learning structure plan model, using the following 5 processes : 1) Analysis Stage, 2) Planning Stage, 3) Storyboard Framing and Production Stage, 4) Program Operation Stage, and 5) Final Evaluation Stage. The web based multimedia content consisted of an intro movie, main page and sub pages. On the main page, there were 6 menu bars that consisted of Announcement center, Information of professors, Lecture guide, Cyber lecture, Q&A, and Data centers, and a site map which introduced 15 week lectures. In the operation of web based multimedia content, HTML, JavaScript, Flash, and multimedia technology (Audio and Video) were utilized and the content consisted of text content, interactive content, animation, and audio & video. Consultation with the experts in context, computer engineering, and educational technology was utilized in the development of these processes. Web-based multimedia content is expected to offer individualized and tailored learning opportunities to maximize and facilitate the effectiveness of the teaching and learning process. Therefore, multimedia content should be utilized concurrently with the lecture in the Physical Examination and Health Assessment classes as a vital teaching aid to make up for the weakness of the face-to- face teaching-learning method.

Process of smoking cessation. Implications for clinicians.

PubMed

Prochaska, J O; Goldstein, M G

1991-12-01

The process of smoking cessation involves progression through five stages of change: precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, and maintenance. Most patients are not prepared to take action on their smoking, yet most smoking cessation programs are designed for smokers who are so prepared. Small percentages of smokers register for action-oriented cessation programs. How much progress patients make after an intervention is directly related to what stage they are in prior to intervention. The stages of change can be quickly assessed with four questions. Physicians can then be more effective with a broader range of patients by matching their interventions to the patients' stage of change. Helping patients progress just one stage can double their chances of not smoking 6 months later. Providing personalized information about the cons of smoking, asking affect-arousing questions, and encouraging patients to re-evaluate themselves as smokers are interventions physicians can use to help patients who are not prepared to quit smoking. Behavioral interventions, such as providing substitutes like nicotine gum and removing or altering cues for smoking, are most helpful for patients who are ready to take action. The use of a stage-matched, patient-centered counseling intervention can help physicians to feel less frustrated and more effective in their efforts to help a broad range of their patients.

Information acquisition for women facing surgical treatment for breast cancer: influencing factors and selected outcomes.

PubMed

O'Leary, Katherine A; Estabrooks, Carole A; Olson, Kärin; Cumming, Ceinwen

2007-12-01

To examine, summarize, and critically assess the literature focusing on information use by early-stage breast cancer patients. Empirical articles reporting the information needs, sources used/preferred, and intervention-related outcomes experienced by patients in the context of making a treatment choice were chosen. Several healthcare databases were searched. Articles were limited to those published in English between January 1, 1986 and March 31, 2006. A total of 25 articles met the inclusion criteria. Information needs were consistent, and highest rankings were for (in order): information about chances for a cure, stage of disease, and treatment options. Results were equivocal regarding the factors found to influence information need: age, time since diagnosis, and preferred role in decision-making. The highest ranked information sources accessed and preferred were physicians. Age, education, and type of treatment chosen influenced source choice. Patients using consumer decision aids (CDAs) had less decisional conflict, higher satisfaction with the decision made and the decision process, and higher knowledge levels. Information needs and source use were influenced by several personal and contextual factors. A better understanding of source use could provide more effective ways of disseminating information to patients.

How to (and how not to) think about top-down influences on visual perception.

PubMed

Teufel, Christoph; Nanay, Bence

2017-01-01

The question of whether cognition can influence perception has a long history in neuroscience and philosophy. Here, we outline a novel approach to this issue, arguing that it should be viewed within the framework of top-down information-processing. This approach leads to a reversal of the standard explanatory order of the cognitive penetration debate: we suggest studying top-down processing at various levels without preconceptions of perception or cognition. Once a clear picture has emerged about which processes have influences on those at lower levels, we can re-address the extent to which they should be considered perceptual or cognitive. Using top-down processing within the visual system as a model for higher-level influences, we argue that the current evidence indicates clear constraints on top-down influences at all stages of information processing; it does, however, not support the notion of a boundary between specific types of information-processing as proposed by the cognitive impenetrability hypothesis. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

mRNA N6-methyladenosine methylation of postnatal liver development in pig.

PubMed

He, Shen; Wang, Hong; Liu, Rui; He, Mengnan; Che, Tiandong; Jin, Long; Deng, Lamei; Tian, Shilin; Li, Yan; Lu, Hongfeng; Li, Xuewei; Jiang, Zhi; Li, Diyan; Li, Mingzhou

2017-01-01

N6-methyladenosine (m6A) is a ubiquitous reversible epigenetic RNA modification that plays an important role in the regulation of post-transcriptional protein coding gene expression. Liver is a vital organ and plays a major role in metabolism with numerous functions. Information concerning the dynamic patterns of mRNA m6A methylation during postnatal development of liver has been long overdue and elucidation of this information will benefit for further deciphering a multitude of functional outcomes of mRNA m6A methylation. Here, we profile transcriptome-wide m6A in porcine liver at three developmental stages: newborn (0 day), suckling (21 days) and adult (2 years). About 33% of transcribed genes were modified by m6A, with 1.33 to 1.42 m6A peaks per modified gene. m6A was distributed predominantly around stop codons. The consensus motif sequence RRm6ACH was observed in 78.90% of m6A peaks. A negative correlation (average Pearson's r = -0.45, P < 10-16) was found between levels of m6A methylation and gene expression. Functional enrichment analysis of genes consistently modified by m6A methylation at all three stages showed genes relevant to important functions, including regulation of growth and development, regulation of metabolic processes and protein catabolic processes. Genes with higher m6A methylation and lower expression levels at any particular stage were associated with the biological processes required for or unique to that stage. We suggest that differential m6A methylation may be important for the regulation of nutrient metabolism in porcine liver.

Reasoning process characteristics in the diagnostic skills of beginner, competent, and expert dentists.

PubMed

Crespo, Kathleen E; Torres, José E; Recio, María E

2004-12-01

The purpose of this study was to evaluate qualitative differences in the diagnostic reasoning process at different developmental stages of expertise. A qualitative design was used to study cognitive processes that characterize the diagnosis of oral disease at the stages of beginner (five junior students who had passed the NBDE I), competent (five GPR first-year residents), and expert dentists (five general dentists with ten or more years of experience). Individually, each participant was asked to determine the diagnosis of an oral condition based on a written clinical case, using the think aloud technique and retrospective reports. A subsequent interview was conducted to obtain the participants' diagnostic process model and pathophysiology of the case. The analysis of the verbal protocols indicated that experts referred to the patient's sociomedical context more frequently, demonstrated better organization of ideas, could determine key clinical findings, and had an ability to plan for the search of pertinent information. Fewer diagnostic hypotheses were formulated by participants who used forward reasoning, independent of the stage of development. Beginners requested additional diagnostic aids (radiographs, laboratory tests) more frequently than the competent/expert dentists. Experts recalled typical experiences with patients, while competent/beginner dentists recalled information from didactic courses. Experts evidenced cognitive diagnostic schemas that integrate pathophysiology of disease, while competent and beginner participants had not achieved this integration. We conclude that expert performance is a combination of a knowledge base, reasoning skills, and an accumulation of experiences with patients that is qualitatively different from that of competent and beginner dentists. It is important for dental education to emphasize the teaching of cognitive processes and to incorporate a wide variety of clinical experiences in addition to the teaching of disciplinary content.

An image based information system - Architecture for correlating satellite and topological data bases

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bryant, N. A.; Zobrist, A. L.

1978-01-01

The paper describes the development of an image based information system and its use to process a Landsat thematic map showing land use or land cover in conjunction with a census tract polygon file to produce a tabulation of land use acreages per census tract. The system permits the efficient cross-tabulation of two or more geo-coded data sets, thereby setting the stage for the practical implementation of models of diffusion processes or cellular transformation. Characteristics of geographic information systems are considered, and functional requirements, such as data management, geocoding, image data management, and data analysis are discussed. The system is described, and the potentialities of its use are examined.

Binding and unbinding the auditory and visual streams in the McGurk effect.

PubMed

Nahorna, Olha; Berthommier, Frédéric; Schwartz, Jean-Luc

2012-08-01

Subjects presented with coherent auditory and visual streams generally fuse them into a single percept. This results in enhanced intelligibility in noise, or in visual modification of the auditory percept in the McGurk effect. It is classically considered that processing is done independently in the auditory and visual systems before interaction occurs at a certain representational stage, resulting in an integrated percept. However, some behavioral and neurophysiological data suggest the existence of a two-stage process. A first stage would involve binding together the appropriate pieces of audio and video information before fusion per se in a second stage. Then it should be possible to design experiments leading to unbinding. It is shown here that if a given McGurk stimulus is preceded by an incoherent audiovisual context, the amount of McGurk effect is largely reduced. Various kinds of incoherent contexts (acoustic syllables dubbed on video sentences or phonetic or temporal modifications of the acoustic content of a regular sequence of audiovisual syllables) can significantly reduce the McGurk effect even when they are short (less than 4 s). The data are interpreted in the framework of a two-stage "binding and fusion" model for audiovisual speech perception.

Assessment of the quality of medical care among patients with early stage prostate cancer undergoing expectant management in the United States.

PubMed

Ritchey, Jamie; Gay, E Greer; Spencer, Benjamin A; Miller, David C; Wallner, Lauren P; Stewart, Andrew K; Dunn, Rodney L; Litwin, Mark S; Wei, John T

2012-09-01

Given the increased attention to the quality and cost of medical care, the Institute of Medicine and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services have called for performance measurement and reporting. The clinical management of prostate cancer has been outlined, yet is not intended to describe quality prostate cancer care. Therefore, RAND researchers developed quality indicators for early stage prostate cancer. The ACoS (American College of Surgeons) used these indicators to perform the first national assessment to our knowledge of the quality of care among men with early stage prostate cancer undergoing expectant management. Information from medical records was abstracted for evidence of compliance with the RAND indicators (structure and process). Weighted and stratified proportions were calculated to assess indicator compliance. Logistic regression models were fit and evaluated by hospital type and patient factors. A weighted and stratified total of 13,876 early stage prostate cancer cases on expectant management in 2000 to 2001 were investigated. Compliance with structural indicators was high (greater than 80%) and compliance with process indicators varied (19% to 87%). Differences in process indicators were observed from models by hospital type and comorbid conditions, but not for age, race or insurance status. Using the RAND quality indicators this study revealed several process areas for quality improvement among men with early stage prostate cancer on expectant management in the United States. Efforts to improve the quality of early stage prostate cancer care need to move beyond the paradigm of age, race and insurance status. Copyright © 2012 American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Understanding motivation to implement smoking bans among mothers with a hospitalized infant.

PubMed

Stotts, Angela L; Klawans, Michelle R; Northrup, Thomas F; Villarreal, Yolanda; Hovell, Melbourne F

2016-07-01

Secondhand smoke exposure (SHSe) poses risks to hospitalized children upon discharge and no uniformly effective interventions have been identified. Understanding change-related processes and social-contextual factors related to motivation for implementing home and car smoking bans may inform interventions to reduce infant SHSe among mothers with a hospitalized infant. In this cross-sectional, secondary analysis, mothers of neonatal ICU infants who reported smoking or living with a smoker (N=205) were assigned to stages of change (pre-contemplation, contemplation, preparation, or action) based on behaviors and intentions for establishing smoking bans in their homes and cars. Processes of change (POC) for SHSe reduction practices, self-efficacy, depressive symptoms, generalized anxiety, and social support for not smoking in the home were examined across all four stages. The majority of mothers were in the action stage for having a home smoking ban in place (55%); only 35% of participants were in action for a car smoking ban. POC use differed across the stages of change for having a home ban (p=0.004) and car ban (p=0.02), with earlier stages using fewer overall and relatively fewer cognitive/affective processes. Earlier stage women also reported lower self-efficacy to change, less familial and partner support for in-home smoking bans, and more depressive symptoms. Novel intervention targets were identified, including cognitive/affective change processes, mental health, and familial/social contingencies for implementing SHSe protective practices. Creative ways in which to affect change at the individual and household level are needed in order to fully address the complexity of child SHSe. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Social Information Processing in Deaf Adolescents.

PubMed

Torres, Jesús; Saldaña, David; Rodríguez-Ortiz, Isabel R

2016-07-01

The goal of this study was to compare the processing of social information in deaf and hearing adolescents. A task was developed to assess social information processing (SIP) skills of deaf adolescents based on Crick and Dodge's (1994; A review and reformulation of social information-processing mechanisms in children's social adjustment. Psychological Bulletin, 115, 74-101) reformulated six-stage model. It consisted of a structured interview after watching 18 scenes of situations depicting participation in a peer group or provocations by peers. Participants included 32 deaf and 20 hearing adolescents and young adults aged between 13 and 21 years. Deaf adolescents and adults had lower scores than hearing participants in all the steps of the SIP model (coding, interpretation, goal formulation, response generation, response decision, and representation). However, deaf girls and women had better scores on social adjustment and on some SIP skills than deaf male participants. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

To Trace a Law: Use of Library Materials in a Classroom Exercise.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shannon, Michael Owen

A legislative history shows the various stages in the process of enacting laws. In order to follow the legislative process the student is asked to select a topic of interest and research the various steps as a bill becomes law. Then he is given descriptions of some current and standard reference works which will help him find information on the…

How does Interhemispheric Communication in Visual Word Recognition Work? Deciding between Early and Late Integration Accounts of the Split Fovea Theory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Van der Haegen, Lise; Brysbaert, Marc; Davis, Colin J.

2009-01-01

It has recently been shown that interhemispheric communication is needed for the processing of foveally presented words. In this study, we examine whether the integration of information happens at an early stage, before word recognition proper starts, or whether the integration is part of the recognition process itself. Two lexical decision…

Localized analysis of paint-coat drying using dynamic speckle interferometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sierra-Sosa, Daniel; Tebaldi, Myrian; Grumel, Eduardo; Rabal, Hector; Elmaghraby, Adel

2018-07-01

The paint-coating is part of several industrial processes, including the automotive industry, architectural coatings, machinery and appliances. These paint-coatings must comply with high quality standards, for this reason evaluation techniques from paint-coatings are in constant development. One important factor from the paint-coating process is the drying, as it has influence on the quality of final results. In this work we present an assessment technique based on the optical dynamic speckle interferometry, this technique allows for the temporal activity evaluation of the paint-coating drying process, providing localized information from drying. This localized information is relevant in order to address the drying homogeneity, optimal drying, and quality control. The technique relies in the definition of a new temporal history of the speckle patterns to obtain the local activity; this information is then clustered to provide a convenient indicative of different drying process stages. The experimental results presented were validated using the gravimetric drying curves

Curricular Revision and Reform: The Process, What Was Important, and Lessons Learned.

PubMed

Ilkiw, Jan E; Nelson, Richard W; Watson, Johanna L; Conley, Alan J; Raybould, Helen E; Chigerwe, Munashe; Boudreaux, Karen

Beginning in 2005, the Doctor of Veterinary Medicine program at the University of California underwent major curricular review and reform. To provide information for others that follow, we have documented our process and commented on factors that were critical to success, as well as factors we found surprising, difficult, or problematic. The review and reform were initiated by the Executive Committee, who led the process and commissioned the committees. The planning stage took 6 years and involved four faculty committees, while the implementation stage took 5 years and was led by the Curriculum Committee. We are now in year 2 of the institutionalizing stage and no longer refer to our reform as the "new curriculum." The change was driven by a desire to improve the curriculum and the learning environment of the students by aligning the delivery of information with current teaching methodologies and implementing adult learning strategies. We moved from a department- and discipline-based curriculum to a school-wide integrated block curriculum that emphasized student-centered, inquiry-based learning. A limit was placed on in-class time to allow students to apply classroom knowledge by solving problems and cases. We found the journey long and arduous, requiring tremendous commitment and effort. In the change process, we learned the importance of adequate planning, leadership, communication, and a reward structure for those doing the "heavy lifting." Specific to our curricular design, we learned the importance of the block leader role, of setting clear expectations for students, and of partnering with students on the journey.

Biogeochemical Processes in Microbial Ecosystems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

DesMarais, David J.

2001-01-01

The hierarchical organization of microbial ecosystems determines process rates that shape Earth's environment, create the biomarker sedimentary and atmospheric signatures of life, and define the stage upon which major evolutionary events occurred. In order to understand how microorganisms have shaped the global environment of Earth and, potentially, other worlds, we must develop an experimental paradigm that links biogeochemical processes with ever-changing temporal and spatial distributions of microbial populations and their metabolic properties. Additional information is contained in the original extended abstract.

Community College Older Adult Program Development Guidelines.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Getskow, Veronica

This guide provides information and suggestions for developing programs that meet the needs of older adults at community colleges. Recommended procedures are presented for the following stages of program development: (1) leadership influences, highlighting the process of hiring effective leaders, key leadership skills, and leaders'…

Musical chords and emotion: major and minor triads are processed for emotion.

PubMed

Bakker, David Radford; Martin, Frances Heritage

2015-03-01

Musical chords are arguably the smallest building blocks of music that retain emotional information. Major chords are generally perceived as positive- and minor chords as negative-sounding, but there has been debate concerning how early these emotional connotations may be processed. To investigate this, emotional facial stimuli and musical chord stimuli were simultaneously presented to participants, and facilitation of processing was measured via event-related potential (ERP) amplitudes. Decreased amplitudes of the P1 and N2 ERP components have been found to index the facilitation of early processing. If simultaneously presented musical chords and facial stimuli are perceived at early stages as belonging to the same emotional category, then early processing should be facilitated for these congruent pairs, and ERP amplitudes should therefore be decreased as compared to the incongruent pairs. ERPs were recorded from 30 musically naive participants as they viewed happy, sad, and neutral faces presented simultaneously with a major or minor chord. When faces and chords were presented that contained congruent emotional information (happy-major or sad-minor), processing was facilitated, as indexed by decreased N2 ERP amplitudes. This suggests that musical chords do possess emotional connotations that can be processed as early as 200 ms in naive listeners. The early stages of processing that are involved suggest that major and minor chords have deeply connected emotional meanings, rather than superficially attributed ones, indicating that minor triads possess negative emotional connotations and major triads possess positive emotional connotations.

Treatment stage associated changes in cellular and molecular microbial markers during the production of drinking water at the Vansjø water works.

PubMed

Charnock, Colin; Otterholt, Eli; Nordlie, Anne-Lise

2015-09-15

The production of a drinking water that meets current aesthetic, microbiological and chemical standards, generally requires a combination of mechanical purification and disinfection in a multi-component treatment chain. Treatment choices and optimisation of water processing is best informed by using markers (including microbiological parameters) which indicate how each stage contributes to the production of the potable water. The present study combines culture-based and a number of culture-independent analyses to indicate what is happening at each stage of a state-of-the-art water treatment chain at Vansjø near the city of Moss in Norway. We show that particularly clarification with flotation and post-chlorination have profound and positive effects on water quality with respect to the removal and inactivation of microbes. Post-chlorination achieved better disinfection of the water than UV-treatment and was of paramount importance, as the penultimate step filtration through granular activated shed microbes to the water. Cloning and sequencing showed that some clones present in the raw water were detected at all stages in the treatment process, perhaps providing examples of microbes breaching physically all barriers in the treatment process. Results from the study should be useful in the improvement and maintenance of the treatment process at the Vansjø plant and others. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Asian Women's Action for Resilience and Empowerment Intervention: Stage I Pilot Study.

PubMed

Hahm, Hyeouk Chris; Chang, Stephanie Tzu-Han; Lee, Gloria Yoonseung; Tagerman, Michelle D; Lee, Christina S; Trentadue, Mia Pamela; Hien, Denise A

2017-01-01

This study describes the development and pilot test of Asian Women's Action for Resilience and Empowerment (AWARE), a culturally informed group psychotherapy intervention designed to reduce depressive symptoms, suicidality, substance use, and HIV and sexual risk behaviors among 1.5 and second generation Asian American (AA) women. To participate, AA women had to meet the criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or have a history of exposure to interpersonal violence (IPV) as determined using the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS) and Traumatic Life Events Questionnaire (TLEQ). This article also presents the preliminary feasibility and acceptability of AWARE from its Stage I pilot study of nine Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese American women. To foster holistic treatment, AWARE was developed based on original research findings from Stage 0 and integrated theoretical models including fractured identity theory, empowerment theory, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), mindfulness-based techniques, and the AIDS Risk Reduction Model (ARRM). The development of AWARE was an iterative process informed by participant feedback, which led to frequent intervention modifications for a future randomized controlled trial (RCT) in Stage II. A qualitative analysis of participant feedback informed the following modifications: further exploration of feelings, improvements in technology delivery, learning and practicing coping skills, more specific cultural tailoring related to sexual health, decreased number of sessions and increased time per session. Findings provide support for the acceptability and feasibility of AWARE as "culturally informed" for AA young women with IPV histories, high-risk behaviors, and mental health issues.

Hierarchical representation of shapes in visual cortex—from localized features to figural shape segregation

PubMed Central

Tschechne, Stephan; Neumann, Heiko

2014-01-01

Visual structures in the environment are segmented into image regions and those combined to a representation of surfaces and prototypical objects. Such a perceptual organization is performed by complex neural mechanisms in the visual cortex of primates. Multiple mutually connected areas in the ventral cortical pathway receive visual input and extract local form features that are subsequently grouped into increasingly complex, more meaningful image elements. Such a distributed network of processing must be capable to make accessible highly articulated changes in shape boundary as well as very subtle curvature changes that contribute to the perception of an object. We propose a recurrent computational network architecture that utilizes hierarchical distributed representations of shape features to encode surface and object boundary over different scales of resolution. Our model makes use of neural mechanisms that model the processing capabilities of early and intermediate stages in visual cortex, namely areas V1–V4 and IT. We suggest that multiple specialized component representations interact by feedforward hierarchical processing that is combined with feedback signals driven by representations generated at higher stages. Based on this, global configurational as well as local information is made available to distinguish changes in the object's contour. Once the outline of a shape has been established, contextual contour configurations are used to assign border ownership directions and thus achieve segregation of figure and ground. The model, thus, proposes how separate mechanisms contribute to distributed hierarchical cortical shape representation and combine with processes of figure-ground segregation. Our model is probed with a selection of stimuli to illustrate processing results at different processing stages. We especially highlight how modulatory feedback connections contribute to the processing of visual input at various stages in the processing hierarchy. PMID:25157228

Hierarchical representation of shapes in visual cortex-from localized features to figural shape segregation.

PubMed

Tschechne, Stephan; Neumann, Heiko

2014-01-01

Visual structures in the environment are segmented into image regions and those combined to a representation of surfaces and prototypical objects. Such a perceptual organization is performed by complex neural mechanisms in the visual cortex of primates. Multiple mutually connected areas in the ventral cortical pathway receive visual input and extract local form features that are subsequently grouped into increasingly complex, more meaningful image elements. Such a distributed network of processing must be capable to make accessible highly articulated changes in shape boundary as well as very subtle curvature changes that contribute to the perception of an object. We propose a recurrent computational network architecture that utilizes hierarchical distributed representations of shape features to encode surface and object boundary over different scales of resolution. Our model makes use of neural mechanisms that model the processing capabilities of early and intermediate stages in visual cortex, namely areas V1-V4 and IT. We suggest that multiple specialized component representations interact by feedforward hierarchical processing that is combined with feedback signals driven by representations generated at higher stages. Based on this, global configurational as well as local information is made available to distinguish changes in the object's contour. Once the outline of a shape has been established, contextual contour configurations are used to assign border ownership directions and thus achieve segregation of figure and ground. The model, thus, proposes how separate mechanisms contribute to distributed hierarchical cortical shape representation and combine with processes of figure-ground segregation. Our model is probed with a selection of stimuli to illustrate processing results at different processing stages. We especially highlight how modulatory feedback connections contribute to the processing of visual input at various stages in the processing hierarchy.

Visual Cortex Inspired CNN Model for Feature Construction in Text Analysis

PubMed Central

Fu, Hongping; Niu, Zhendong; Zhang, Chunxia; Ma, Jing; Chen, Jie

2016-01-01

Recently, biologically inspired models are gradually proposed to solve the problem in text analysis. Convolutional neural networks (CNN) are hierarchical artificial neural networks, which include a various of multilayer perceptrons. According to biological research, CNN can be improved by bringing in the attention modulation and memory processing of primate visual cortex. In this paper, we employ the above properties of primate visual cortex to improve CNN and propose a biological-mechanism-driven-feature-construction based answer recommendation method (BMFC-ARM), which is used to recommend the best answer for the corresponding given questions in community question answering. BMFC-ARM is an improved CNN with four channels respectively representing questions, answers, asker information and answerer information, and mainly contains two stages: biological mechanism driven feature construction (BMFC) and answer ranking. BMFC imitates the attention modulation property by introducing the asker information and answerer information of given questions and the similarity between them, and imitates the memory processing property through bringing in the user reputation information for answerers. Then the feature vector for answer ranking is constructed by fusing the asker-answerer similarities, answerer's reputation and the corresponding vectors of question, answer, asker, and answerer. Finally, the Softmax is used at the stage of answer ranking to get best answers by the feature vector. The experimental results of answer recommendation on the Stackexchange dataset show that BMFC-ARM exhibits better performance. PMID:27471460

Visual Cortex Inspired CNN Model for Feature Construction in Text Analysis.

PubMed

Fu, Hongping; Niu, Zhendong; Zhang, Chunxia; Ma, Jing; Chen, Jie

2016-01-01

Recently, biologically inspired models are gradually proposed to solve the problem in text analysis. Convolutional neural networks (CNN) are hierarchical artificial neural networks, which include a various of multilayer perceptrons. According to biological research, CNN can be improved by bringing in the attention modulation and memory processing of primate visual cortex. In this paper, we employ the above properties of primate visual cortex to improve CNN and propose a biological-mechanism-driven-feature-construction based answer recommendation method (BMFC-ARM), which is used to recommend the best answer for the corresponding given questions in community question answering. BMFC-ARM is an improved CNN with four channels respectively representing questions, answers, asker information and answerer information, and mainly contains two stages: biological mechanism driven feature construction (BMFC) and answer ranking. BMFC imitates the attention modulation property by introducing the asker information and answerer information of given questions and the similarity between them, and imitates the memory processing property through bringing in the user reputation information for answerers. Then the feature vector for answer ranking is constructed by fusing the asker-answerer similarities, answerer's reputation and the corresponding vectors of question, answer, asker, and answerer. Finally, the Softmax is used at the stage of answer ranking to get best answers by the feature vector. The experimental results of answer recommendation on the Stackexchange dataset show that BMFC-ARM exhibits better performance.

Quality analysis of population-based information on cancer stage at diagnosis across Europe, with presentation of stage-specific cancer survival estimates: A EUROCARE-5 study.

PubMed

Minicozzi, Pamela; Innos, Kaire; Sánchez, Maria-José; Trama, Annalisa; Walsh, Paul M; Marcos-Gragera, Rafael; Dimitrova, Nadya; Botta, Laura; Visser, Otto; Rossi, Silvia; Tavilla, Andrea; Sant, Milena

2017-10-01

Cancer registries (CRs) are fundamental for estimating cancer burden, evaluating screening and monitoring health service performance. Stage at diagnosis-an essential information item collected by CRs-has been made available, for the first time, by CRs participating in EUROCARE-5. We analysed the quality of this information and estimated stage-specific survival across Europe for CRs with good data quality. Sixty-two CRs sent stage (as TNM, condensed TNM or extent of disease) for 15 cancers diagnosed in 2000-2007. We assessed the quality, partly by comparing stage according to the three systems. We also developed procedures to reconstruct stage (categories: local, regional, metastatic and unknown) using information from all three systems, thus minimising the amount of missing information. Moderate-to-excellent stage concordance was found for practically all 24 CRs, for which it was possible to compare at least two staging systems. However, since stage was often incorrectly assigned, and information on the presence/absence of metastases was often lacking, data on only 7/15 cancers from 34/62 CRs (15 countries) were of sufficient quality for further analysis. Cases diagnosed ≥70 years had more advanced (or lacking) stage- and worse stage-specific survival than those <70 years. Many European CRs collect and record reasonably accurate stage information. Others have difficulties. Both the completeness of primary data and the accuracy of stage coding need to be improved in order for CRs to fulfil their expanding roles in cancer control. We propose our stage reconstruction/checking procedures as a means of fully exploiting the stage information provided by EUROCARE CRs. More advanced (or lacking) stage at diagnosis plus poorer stage-specific survival in the elderly are worrying. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Unified risk analysis of fatigue failure in ductile alloy components during all three stages of fatigue crack evolution process.

PubMed

Patankar, Ravindra

2003-10-01

Statistical fatigue life of a ductile alloy specimen is traditionally divided into three stages, namely, crack nucleation, small crack growth, and large crack growth. Crack nucleation and small crack growth show a wide variation and hence a big spread on cycles versus crack length graph. Relatively, large crack growth shows a lesser variation. Therefore, different models are fitted to the different stages of the fatigue evolution process, thus treating different stages as different phenomena. With these independent models, it is impossible to predict one phenomenon based on the information available about the other phenomenon. Experimentally, it is easier to carry out crack length measurements of large cracks compared to nucleating cracks and small cracks. Thus, it is easier to collect statistical data for large crack growth compared to the painstaking effort it would take to collect statistical data for crack nucleation and small crack growth. This article presents a fracture mechanics-based stochastic model of fatigue crack growth in ductile alloys that are commonly encountered in mechanical structures and machine components. The model has been validated by Ray (1998) for crack propagation by various statistical fatigue data. Based on the model, this article proposes a technique to predict statistical information of fatigue crack nucleation and small crack growth properties that uses the statistical properties of large crack growth under constant amplitude stress excitation. The statistical properties of large crack growth under constant amplitude stress excitation can be obtained via experiments.

Mismatch negativity as a potential neurobiological marker of early-stage Alzheimer disease and vascular dementia.

PubMed

Jiang, Shixiang; Yan, Chang; Qiao, Zhengxue; Yao, Haiqian; Jiang, Shiquan; Qiu, Xiaohui; Yang, Xiuxian; Fang, Deyu; Yang, Yanjie; Zhang, Limei; Wang, Lina; Zhang, Liming

2017-04-24

Alzheimer's disease (AD) and vascular dementia (VD) are serious, irreversible forms of cognitive impairment, which means that an early diagnosis is essential to slow down their progression. One potential neurophysiological biomarker of these diseases is the mismatch negativity (MMN) event-related potentials (ERP) component, which reflects an automatic detection mechanism at the pre-attentive stages of information processing. We evaluated the auditory MMN response in individuals from two patient groups: those in the prodromal stages of AD (P-AD) and those in the prodromal stages of VD (P-VD). Thirty patients (15 P-AD patients and 15 P-VD patients) and 30 age-matched controls were recruited to undergo electrophysiological recordings during the presentation of an auditory deviant-standard-reverse oddball paradigm that was used to elicit genuine MMN responses. We show that over the frontal-central area, the mean amplitude of the MMN was significantly reduced in both the P-AD (p=0.017) and P-VD groups (p=0.013) compared with controls. The MMN peak latency in P-VD patients was significantly shorter than in controls (p=0.027). No MMN response differences between the P-AD and P-VD were found in either the frontal-central or the temporal areas. These results indicate that P-AD and P-VD patients exhibit impaired pre-attentive information processing mechanisms as revealed by the frontal-central area MMN response, which is associated with sensory memory and cognitive deficits. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Visual attention spreads broadly but selects information locally.

PubMed

Shioiri, Satoshi; Honjyo, Hajime; Kashiwase, Yoshiyuki; Matsumiya, Kazumichi; Kuriki, Ichiro

2016-10-19

Visual attention spreads over a range around the focus as the spotlight metaphor describes. Spatial spread of attentional enhancement and local selection/inhibition are crucial factors determining the profile of the spatial attention. Enhancement and ignorance/suppression are opposite effects of attention, and appeared to be mutually exclusive. Yet, no unified view of the factors has been provided despite their necessity for understanding the functions of spatial attention. This report provides electroencephalographic and behavioral evidence for the attentional spread at an early stage and selection/inhibition at a later stage of visual processing. Steady state visual evoked potential showed broad spatial tuning whereas the P3 component of the event related potential showed local selection or inhibition of the adjacent areas. Based on these results, we propose a two-stage model of spatial attention with broad spread at an early stage and local selection at a later stage.

Problem posing and cultural tailoring: developing an HIV/AIDS health literacy toolkit with the African American community.

PubMed

Rikard, R V; Thompson, Maxine S; Head, Rachel; McNeil, Carlotta; White, Caressa

2012-09-01

The rate of HIV infection among African Americans is disproportionately higher than for other racial groups in the United States. Previous research suggests that low level of health literacy (HL) is an underlying factor to explain racial disparities in the prevalence and incidence of HIV/AIDS. The present research describes a community and university project to develop a culturally tailored HIV/AIDS HL toolkit in the African American community. Paulo Freire's pedagogical philosophy and problem-posing methodology served as the guiding framework throughout the development process. Developing the HIV/AIDS HL toolkit occurred in a two-stage process. In Stage 1, a nonprofit organization and research team established a collaborative partnership to develop a culturally tailored HIV/AIDS HL toolkit. In Stage 2, African American community members participated in focus groups conducted as Freirian cultural circles to further refine the HIV/AIDS HL toolkit. In both stages, problem posing engaged participants' knowledge, experiences, and concerns to evaluate a working draft toolkit. The discussion and implications highlight how Freire's pedagogical philosophy and methodology enhances the development of culturally tailored health information.

Performance improvement CME for quality: challenges inherent to the process.

PubMed

Vakani, Farhan Saeed; O'Beirne, Ronan

2015-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the perspective debates upon the real-time challenges for a three-staged Performance Improvement Continuing Medical Education (PI-CME) model, an innovative and potential approach for future CME, to inform providers to think, prepare and to act proactively. In this discussion, the challenges associated for adopting the American Medical Association's three-staged PI-CME model are reported. Not many institutions in USA are using a three-staged performance improvement model and then customizing it to their own healthcare context for the specific targeted audience. They integrate traditional CME methods with performance and quality initiatives, and linking with CME credits. Overall the US health system is interested in a structured PI-CME model with the potential to improve physicians practicing behaviors. Knowing the dearth of evidence for applying this structured performance improvement methodology into the design of CME activities, and the lack of clarity on challenges inherent to the process that learners and providers encounter. This paper establishes all-important first step to render the set of challenges for a three-staged PI-CME model.

Nuclear forensics: Soil content

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

Beebe, Merilyn Amy

Nuclear Forensics is a growing field that is concerned with all stages of the process of creating and detonating a nuclear weapon. The main goal is to prevent nuclear attack by locating and securing nuclear material before it can be used in an aggressive manner. This stage of the process is mostly paperwork; laws, regulations, treaties, and declarations made by individual countries or by the UN Security Council. There is some preliminary leg work done in the form of field testing detection equipment and tracking down orphan materials; however, none of these have yielded any spectacular or useful results. Inmore » the event of a nuclear attack, the first step is to analyze the post detonation debris to aid in the identification of the responsible party. This aspect of the nuclear forensics process, while reactive in nature, is more scientific. A rock sample taken from the detonation site can be dissolved into liquid form and analyzed to determine its chemical composition. The chemical analysis of spent nuclear material can provide valuable information if properly processed and analyzed. In order to accurately evaluate the results, scientists require information on the natural occurring elements in the detonation zone. From this information, scientists can determine what percentage of the element originated in the bomb itself rather than the environment. To this end, element concentrations in soils from sixty-nine different cities are given, along with activity concentrations for uranium, thorium, potassium, and radium in various building materials. These data are used in the analysis program Python.« less

Time course of implicit processing and explicit processing of emotional faces and emotional words.

PubMed

Frühholz, Sascha; Jellinghaus, Anne; Herrmann, Manfred

2011-05-01

Facial expressions are important emotional stimuli during social interactions. Symbolic emotional cues, such as affective words, also convey information regarding emotions that is relevant for social communication. Various studies have demonstrated fast decoding of emotions from words, as was shown for faces, whereas others report a rather delayed decoding of information about emotions from words. Here, we introduced an implicit (color naming) and explicit task (emotion judgment) with facial expressions and words, both containing information about emotions, to directly compare the time course of emotion processing using event-related potentials (ERP). The data show that only negative faces affected task performance, resulting in increased error rates compared to neutral faces. Presentation of emotional faces resulted in a modulation of the N170, the EPN and the LPP components and these modulations were found during both the explicit and implicit tasks. Emotional words only affected the EPN during the explicit task, but a task-independent effect on the LPP was revealed. Finally, emotional faces modulated source activity in the extrastriate cortex underlying the generation of the N170, EPN and LPP components. Emotional words led to a modulation of source activity corresponding to the EPN and LPP, but they also affected the N170 source on the right hemisphere. These data show that facial expressions affect earlier stages of emotion processing compared to emotional words, but the emotional value of words may have been detected at early stages of emotional processing in the visual cortex, as was indicated by the extrastriate source activity. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Setting health priorities in a community: a case example

PubMed Central

Sousa, Fábio Alexandre Melo do Rego; Goulart, Maria José Garcia; Braga, Antonieta Manuela dos Santos; Medeiros, Clara Maria Oliveira; Rego, Débora Cristina Martins; Vieira, Flávio Garcia; Pereira, Helder José Alves da Rocha; Tavares, Helena Margarida Correia Vicente; Loura, Marta Maria Puim

2017-01-01

ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE To describe the methodology used in the process of setting health priorities for community intervention in a community of older adults. METHODS Based on the results of a health diagnosis related to active aging, a prioritization process was conceived to select the priority intervention problem. The process comprised four successive phases of problem analysis and classification: (1) grouping by level of similarity, (2) classification according to epidemiological criteria, (3) ordering by experts, and (4) application of the Hanlon method. These stages combined, in an integrated manner, the views of health team professionals, community nursing and gerontology experts, and the actual community. RESULTS The first stage grouped the identified problems by level of similarity, comprising a body of 19 issues for analysis. In the second stage these problems were classified by the health team members by epidemiological criteria (size, vulnerability, and transcendence). The nine most relevant problems resulting from the second stage of the process were submitted to expert analysis and the five most pertinent problems were selected. The last step identified the priority issue for intervention in this specific community with the participation of formal and informal community leaders: Low Social Interaction in Community Participation. CONCLUSIONS The prioritization process is a key step in health planning, enabling the identification of priority problems to intervene in a given community at a given time. There are no default formulas for selecting priority issues. It is up to each community intervention team to define its own process with different methods/techniques that allow the identification of and intervention in needs classified as priority by the community. PMID:28273229

Early Amyloidogenic Oligomerization Studied through Fluorescence Lifetime Correlation Spectroscopy

PubMed Central

Paredes, Jose M.; Casares, Salvador; Ruedas-Rama, Maria J.; Fernandez, Elena; Castello, Fabio; Varela, Lorena; Orte, Angel

2012-01-01

Amyloidogenic protein aggregation is a persistent biomedical problem. Despite active research in disease-related aggregation, the need for multidisciplinary approaches to the problem is evident. Recent advances in single-molecule fluorescence spectroscopy are valuable for examining heterogenic biomolecular systems. In this work, we have explored the initial stages of amyloidogenic aggregation by employing fluorescence lifetime correlation spectroscopy (FLCS), an advanced modification of conventional fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) that utilizes time-resolved information. FLCS provides size distributions and kinetics for the oligomer growth of the SH3 domain of α-spectrin, whose N47A mutant forms amyloid fibrils at pH 3.2 and 37 °C in the presence of salt. The combination of FCS with additional fluorescence lifetime information provides an exciting approach to focus on the initial aggregation stages, allowing a better understanding of the fibrillization process, by providing multidimensional information, valuable in combination with other conventional methodologies. PMID:22949804

Sensitivity to timing and order in human visual cortex

PubMed Central

Singer, Jedediah M.; Madsen, Joseph R.; Anderson, William S.

2014-01-01

Visual recognition takes a small fraction of a second and relies on the cascade of signals along the ventral visual stream. Given the rapid path through multiple processing steps between photoreceptors and higher visual areas, information must progress from stage to stage very quickly. This rapid progression of information suggests that fine temporal details of the neural response may be important to the brain's encoding of visual signals. We investigated how changes in the relative timing of incoming visual stimulation affect the representation of object information by recording intracranial field potentials along the human ventral visual stream while subjects recognized objects whose parts were presented with varying asynchrony. Visual responses along the ventral stream were sensitive to timing differences as small as 17 ms between parts. In particular, there was a strong dependency on the temporal order of stimulus presentation, even at short asynchronies. From these observations we infer that the neural representation of complex information in visual cortex can be modulated by rapid dynamics on scales of tens of milliseconds. PMID:25429116

78 FR 4081 - Request for Comment on Enforcement Process

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-01-18

... making determination at pre-RTB stage); see also Enforcement Procedure 1992-10 (Subject: News Articles... types of information; and (4) news articles and similar published sources, considering such factors as..., Directive 6 states that news articles and other similar published accounts may constitute the source of...

Requirements, model and prototype for a multi-utility locational and security information hub.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2015-11-01

This project lays the foundation for building an exchange hub for locational and security data and risk assessment of potential excavation work. It acts primarily at 2 stages: upstream of the mark-out process, as a decision support tool to help strea...

The Locus of Tool-Transformation Costs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kunde, Wilfried; Pfister, Roland; Janczyk, Markus

2012-01-01

Transformations of hand movements by tools such as levers or electronic input devices can invoke performance costs compared to untransformed movements. This study investigated by means of the Psychological Refractory Period (PRP) paradigm at which stage of information processing such tool-transformation costs arise. We used an inversion…

Stress Process Model for Individuals with Dementia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Judge, Katherine S.; Menne, Heather L.; Whitlatch, Carol J.

2010-01-01

Purpose: Individuals with dementia (IWDs) face particular challenges in managing and coping with their illness. The experience of dementia may be affected by the etiology, stage, and severity of symptoms, preexisting and related chronic conditions, and available informal and formal supportive services. Although several studies have examined…

Socialization of the Academic Chairperson: A Typology of Communication Dimensions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Staton-Spicer, Ann Q.; Spicer, Christopher H.

1987-01-01

Describes a typology of communication dimensions used by academic chairpersons in the early stages of the socialization process. Four new chairpersons were interviewed, and four functions of communication (informative, integrative, regulative, and innovative) guided data gathering in researching the link between communicator and role…

Young children's use of features to reorient is more than just associative: further evidence against a modular view of spatial processing.

PubMed

Newcombe, Nora S; Ratliff, Kristin R; Shallcross, Wendy L; Twyman, Alexandra D

2010-01-01

Proponents of a geometric module have argued that instances of young children's use of features as well as geometry to reorient can be explained by a two-stage process. In this model, only the first stage is a true reorientation, accomplished by using geometric information alone; features are considered in a second stage using association (Lee, Shusterman & Spelke, 2006). This account is contradicted by the data from two experiments. Experiment 1a sets the stage for Experiment 1b by showing that young children use geometric information to reorient in a complex geometric figure without a single principal axis of symmetry (an octagon). In such a figure, there are two sets of geometrically congruent corners, with four corners in each set. The addition of a colored wall leads to the existence of three geometrically congruent but, crucially, all unmarked corners; using the colored wall to distinguish among them could not be done associatively. In Experiment 1b, both 3- and 5-year-old children showed true non-associative reorientation using features by performing at above-chance levels on all-white trials. Experiment 2 used a paradigm without distinctive geometry, modeled on Lee et al. (2006), involving an equilateral triangle of hiding places located within a circular enclosure, but with a large stable feature rather than a small moveable one. Four-year-olds (the age group studied by Lee et al.) used features at above-chance levels. Thus, features can be used to reorient, in a way not dependent on association, in contradiction to the two-stage version of the modular view.

[Orange Platform].

PubMed

Toba, Kenji

2017-07-01

The Organized Registration for the Assessment of dementia on Nationwide General consortium toward Effective treatment in Japan (ORANGE platform) is a recently established nationwide clinical registry for dementia. This platform consists of multiple registries of patients with dementia stratified by the following clinical stages: preclinical, mild cognitive impairment, early-stage, and advanced-stage dementia. Patients will be examined in a super-longitudinal fashion, and their lifestyle, social background, genetic risk factors, and required care process will be assessed. This project is also notable because the care registry includes information on the successful, comprehensive management of patients with dementia. Therefore, this multicenter prospective cohort study will contribute participants to all clinical trials for Alzheimer's disease as well as improve the understanding of individuals with dementia.

How do patients with end-stage ankle arthritis decide between two surgical treatments? A qualitative study.

PubMed

Zaidi, Razi; Pfeil, Michael; Macgregor, Alexander J; Goldberg, Andy

2013-01-01

To examine how patients decide between ankle fusion and ankle replacement in end-stage ankle arthritis. Purposive patient selection, semistructured interviews, thematic analysis. Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital, Stanmore, UK. 14 patients diagnosed with end-stage ankle osteoarthritis. We interviewed 6 men and 8 women with a mean age of 58 years (range 41-83). All had opted for surgery after failure of at least 6 months of conservative management, sequentially trading-off daily activities to limit the evolving pain. To decide between two offered treatments of ankle fusion and total ankle replacement (TAR), three major sources informed the patients' decision-making process: their surgeon, peers and the internet. The treating surgeon was viewed as the most reliable and influential source of information. Information gleaned from other patients was also important, but with questionable reliability, as was information from the internet, both of which invariably required validation by the surgeon and in some cases the general practitioner. Patients seek knowledge from a wealth of sources including the internet, web forums and other patients. While they leverage each of these sources to guide decision-making, the most important and influential factor in governing how patients decide on any particular surgical intervention is their surgeon. A high quality doctor-patient relationship, coupled with clear, balanced and complete information is essential to enable shared decision-making to become a standard model of care.

Mood-congruent attention and memory bias in dysphoria: Exploring the coherence among information-processing biases.

PubMed

Koster, Ernst H W; De Raedt, Rudi; Leyman, Lemke; De Lissnyder, Evi

2010-03-01

Recent studies indicate that depression is characterized by mood-congruent attention bias at later stages of information-processing. Moreover, depression has been associated with enhanced recall of negative information. The present study tested the coherence between attention and memory bias in dysphoria. Stable dysphoric (n = 41) and non-dysphoric (n = 41) undergraduates first performed a spatial cueing task that included negative, positive, and neutral words. Words were presented for 250 ms under conditions that allowed or prevented elaborate processing. Memory for the words presented in the cueing task was tested using incidental free recall. Dysphoric individuals exhibited an attention bias for negative words in the condition that allowed elaborate processing, with the attention bias for negative words predicting free recall of negative words. Results demonstrate the coherence of attention and memory bias in dysphoric individuals and provide suggestions on the influence of attention bias on further processing of negative material. 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Non-destructive determination of floral staging in cereals using X-ray micro computed tomography (µCT).

PubMed

Tracy, Saoirse R; Gómez, José Fernández; Sturrock, Craig J; Wilson, Zoe A; Ferguson, Alison C

2017-01-01

Accurate floral staging is required to aid research into pollen and flower development, in particular male development. Pollen development is highly sensitive to stress and is critical for crop yields. Research into male development under environmental change is important to help target increased yields. This is hindered in monocots as the flower develops internally in the pseudostem. Floral staging studies therefore typically rely on destructive analysis, such as removal from the plant, fixation, staining and sectioning. This time-consuming analysis therefore prevents follow up studies and analysis past the point of the floral staging. This study focuses on using X-ray µCT scanning to allow quick and detailed non-destructive internal 3D phenotypic information to allow accurate staging of Arabidopsis thaliana L. and Barley ( Hordeum vulgare L.) flowers. X-ray µCT has previously relied on fixation methods for above ground tissue, therefore two contrast agents (Lugol's iodine and Bismuth) were observed in Arabidopsis and Barley in planta to circumvent this step. 3D models and 2D slices were generated from the X-ray µCT images providing insightful information normally only available through destructive time-consuming processes such as sectioning and microscopy. Barley growth and development was also monitored over three weeks by X-ray µCT to observe flower development in situ. By measuring spike size in the developing tillers accurate non-destructive staging at the flower and anther stages could be performed; this staging was confirmed using traditional destructive microscopic analysis. The use of X-ray micro computed tomography (µCT) scanning of living plant tissue offers immense benefits for plant phenotyping, for successive developmental measurements and for accurate developmental timing for scientific measurements. Nevertheless, X-ray µCT remains underused in plant sciences, especially in above-ground organs, despite its unique potential in delivering detailed non-destructive internal 3D phenotypic information. This work represents a novel application of X-ray µCT that could enhance research undertaken in monocot species to enable effective non-destructive staging and developmental analysis for molecular genetic studies and to determine effects of stresses at particular growth stages.

Expert Systems for the Scheduling of Image Processing Tasks on a Parallel Processing System

DTIC Science & Technology

1986-12-01

existed for over twenty years. Credit for designing and implementing the first computer vision system is usually given to L. G . Roberts [Robe65]. With...hardware differences between systems. 44 LIST OF REFERENCES [Adam82] G . B. Adams III and H. J. Siegel, "The Extra Stage Cube: a Fault-Tolerant...Academic Press, 1985 [Robe65] L. G . Roberts, "Machine Perception of Three-Dimensional Solids," in Optical and Electro-Optical Information Processing, ed. J

Systems engineering: A formal approach. Part 1: System concepts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vanhee, K. M.

1993-03-01

Engineering is the scientific discipline focused on the creation of new artifacts that are supposed to be of some use to our society. Different types of artifacts require different engineering approaches. However, in all these disciplines the development of a new artifact is divided into stages. Three stages can always be recognized: Analysis, Design, and Realization. The book considers only the first two stages of the development process. It focuses on a specific type of artifacts, called discrete dynamic systems. These systems consist of active components of actors that consume and produce passive components or tokens. Three subtypes are studied in more detail: business systems (like a factory or restaurant), information systems (whether automated or not), and automated systems (systems that are controlled by an automated information system). The first subtype is studied by industrial engineers, the last by software engineers and electrical engineers, whereas the second is a battlefield for all three disciplines. The union of these disciplines is called systems engineering.

Differences in early and late stages of information processing between slow versus fast participants.

PubMed

Portella, Claudio; Machado, Sergio; Paes, Flávia; Cagy, Mauricio; Sack, Alexander T; Sandoval-Carrillo, Ada; Salas-Pacheco, Jose; Silva, Adriana Cardoso; Piedade, Roberto; Ribeiro, Pedro; Nardi, Antonio Egídio; Arias-Carrión, Oscar

2014-01-01

The human brain is a system consisting of various interconnected neural networks, with functional specialization coexisting with functional integration occurring both; temporally and spatially at many levels. The current study ranked and compared fast and slow participants in processing information by assessing latency and amplitude of early and late Event-Related Potential (ERP) components, including P200, N200, Premotor Potential (PMP) and P300. In addition, the Reaction Time (RT) of participants was compared and related to the respective ERP components. For this purpose, twenty right-handed and healthy individuals were subjected to a classical ERP "Oddball" paradigm. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Discriminant Function analyses (DFA) used PRE components and the Reaction Time (RT) to classify individuals. Our results indicate that latencies of P200 (O2 electrode), N200 (O2), PMP (C3) and P300 (Pz) components are significantly reduced in the group of fast responding participants. In addition, the P200 amplitude is significantly increased in the group of fast responding participants. Based on these findings, we suggest that the ERP is able to detect even minimal impairments, in the processing of somatosensory information and cognitive and motor stages. Hence, the study of ERP might also be capable of assessing sensorimotor dysfunctions in healthy old-aged people and in neuropsychiatric patients (suffering from dementia, Parkinson's disease, and other neurological disorders).

Closing the loop of the medication use process using electronic medication administration registration.

PubMed

Lenderink, Bertil W; Egberts, Toine C G

2004-08-01

Recent reports and studies of errors in the medication process have raised the awareness of the threat to public health. An essential step in this multi-stage process is the actual administration of a medicine to the patient. The closed loop system is thought to be a way of preventing medication errors. Current information technology can facilitate this process. This article describes the way barcode technology is being used to facilitate medication administration registration on several wards in our hospital and nursing home.

Dilemmas across different overseas liver transplant stages: Taiwan transplant recipient families' perspectives.

PubMed

Chen, H-M; Hu, R-H; Shih, F-Jong; Shih, F-J

2012-03-01

This study aimed to explore the dilemmas of Taiwanese overseas liver transplant recipient families (OLTRF) across three overseas liver transplant (OLT) stages in Taiwan and Mainland China. An exploratory qualitative method was employed using a purposive sample of OLTRF, who received guided face-to-face, semistructured interviews. Data were subjected to content analysis. Nineteen OLTRF (15 female, 4 male) aged between 29 and 71 years (mean 55.1) for 19 patients with end-stage liver diseases were interviewed. OLT stages including predeparture stage (first stage), stay in China stage (second stage), and reentry to Taiwan stage (third stage). Ten kinds of dilemmas were encountered: (1) unable to get transplantation immediately (first to second stages); (2) dilemma of choosing overseas transplantation (first to second stages); (3) uncertainty about the transplantation outcomes (second to third stages); (4) care pressure (second to third stages); (5) poor diet adaptation (second to third stages); (6) lack of trust in the medical care quality (second stage); (7) worry about not fulfilling family responsibilities (second stage); (8) lack of information (all stages); (9) financial pressure (all stages); and (10) frustration when seeking medical care (all stages). Taiwanese OLTRF's perspectives of their dilemmas through the OLT process were first revealed in this study. Both Western and Eastern health professionals might be empowered by better understanding of OLTRF's living experiences and concerns during the stages of overseas liver transplantation. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Formation of the image on the receiver of thermal radiation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Akimenko, Tatiana A.

2018-04-01

The formation of the thermal picture of the observed scene with the verification of the quality of the thermal images obtained is one of the important stages of the technological process that determine the quality of the thermal imaging observation system. In this article propose to consider a model for the formation of a thermal picture of a scene, which must take into account: the features of the object of observation as the source of the signal; signal transmission through the physical elements of the thermal imaging system that produce signal processing at the optical, photoelectronic and electronic stages, which determines the final parameters of the signal and its compliance with the requirements for thermal information and measurement systems.

Representing idioms: syntactic and contextual effects on idiom processing.

PubMed

Holsinger, Edward

2013-09-01

Recent work on the processing of idiomatic expressions argues against the idea that idioms are simply big words. For example, hybrid models of idiom representation, originally investigated in the context of idiom production, propose a priority of literal computation, and a principled relationship between the conceptual meaning of an idiom, its literal lemmas and its syntactic structure. We examined the predictions of the hybrid representation hypothesis in the domain of idiom comprehension. We conducted two experiments to examine the role of syntactic, lexical and contextual factors on the interpretation of idiomatic expressions. Experiment I examines the role of syntactic compatibility and lexical compatibility on the real-time processing of potentially idiomatic strings. Experiment 2 examines the role of contextual information on idiom processing and how context interacts with lexical information during processing. We find evidence that literal computation plays a causal role in the retrieval of idiomatic meaning and that contextual, lexical and structural information influence the processing of idiomatic strings at early stages during processing, which provide support for the hybrid model of idiom representation in the domain of idiom comprehension.

Impaired holistic coding of facial expression and facial identity in congenital prosopagnosia.

PubMed

Palermo, Romina; Willis, Megan L; Rivolta, Davide; McKone, Elinor; Wilson, C Ellie; Calder, Andrew J

2011-04-01

We test 12 individuals with congenital prosopagnosia (CP), who replicate a common pattern of showing severe difficulty in recognising facial identity in conjunction with normal recognition of facial expressions (both basic and 'social'). Strength of holistic processing was examined using standard expression composite and identity composite tasks. Compared to age- and sex-matched controls, group analyses demonstrated that CPs showed weaker holistic processing, for both expression and identity information. Implications are (a) normal expression recognition in CP can derive from compensatory strategies (e.g., over-reliance on non-holistic cues to expression); (b) the split between processing of expression and identity information may take place after a common stage of holistic processing; and (c) contrary to a recent claim, holistic processing of identity is functionally involved in face identification ability. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Interaction between dorsal and ventral processing streams: where, when and how?

PubMed

Cloutman, Lauren L

2013-11-01

The execution of complex visual, auditory, and linguistic behaviors requires a dynamic interplay between spatial ('where/how') and non-spatial ('what') information processed along the dorsal and ventral processing streams. However, while it is acknowledged that there must be some degree of interaction between the two processing networks, how they interact, both anatomically and functionally, is a question which remains little explored. The current review examines the anatomical, temporal, and behavioral evidence regarding three potential models of dual stream interaction: (1) computations along the two pathways proceed independently and in parallel, reintegrating within shared target brain regions; (2) processing along the separate pathways is modulated by the existence of recurrent feedback loops; and (3) information is transferred directly between the two pathways at multiple stages and locations along their trajectories. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Impaired holistic coding of facial expression and facial identity in congenital prosopagnosia

PubMed Central

Palermo, Romina; Willis, Megan L.; Rivolta, Davide; McKone, Elinor; Wilson, C. Ellie; Calder, Andrew J.

2011-01-01

We test 12 individuals with congenital prosopagnosia (CP), who replicate a common pattern of showing severe difficulty in recognising facial identity in conjunction with normal recognition of facial expressions (both basic and ‘social’). Strength of holistic processing was examined using standard expression composite and identity composite tasks. Compared to age- and sex-matched controls, group analyses demonstrated that CPs showed weaker holistic processing, for both expression and identity information. Implications are (a) normal expression recognition in CP can derive from compensatory strategies (e.g., over-reliance on non-holistic cues to expression); (b) the split between processing of expression and identity information may take place after a common stage of holistic processing; and (c) contrary to a recent claim, holistic processing of identity is functionally involved in face identification ability. PMID:21333662

Two Stage Sibling Cycle Compressor/Expander.

DTIC Science & Technology

1994-02-01

documents, follow the procedures in DoD 5200.22-M, Industrial Security Manual, Section 11-19 or DoD 5200.1 -R, Information Security Program Regulation...procedures in DoD 5200.22-M, Industrial Security Manual, Section 11-19 or DoD 5200.1-R, Information Security Program Regulation, Chapter IX. For...Spae Piston rotation periodically connects channels from expansion/ compresion ces to ports P1Port B2 Heat Exchangers B Piston moves Ports Process Al

Novel method of extracting motion from natural movies.

PubMed

Suzuki, Wataru; Ichinohe, Noritaka; Tani, Toshiki; Hayami, Taku; Miyakawa, Naohisa; Watanabe, Satoshi; Takeichi, Hiroshige

2017-11-01

The visual system in primates can be segregated into motion and shape pathways. Interaction occurs at multiple stages along these pathways. Processing of shape-from-motion and biological motion is considered to be a higher-order integration process involving motion and shape information. However, relatively limited types of stimuli have been used in previous studies on these integration processes. We propose a new algorithm to extract object motion information from natural movies and to move random dots in accordance with the information. The object motion information is extracted by estimating the dynamics of local normal vectors of the image intensity projected onto the x-y plane of the movie. An electrophysiological experiment on two adult common marmoset monkeys (Callithrix jacchus) showed that the natural and random dot movies generated with this new algorithm yielded comparable neural responses in the middle temporal visual area. In principle, this algorithm provided random dot motion stimuli containing shape information for arbitrary natural movies. This new method is expected to expand the neurophysiological and psychophysical experimental protocols to elucidate the integration processing of motion and shape information in biological systems. The novel algorithm proposed here was effective in extracting object motion information from natural movies and provided new motion stimuli to investigate higher-order motion information processing. Copyright © 2017 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Visual search and the aging brain: discerning the effects of age-related brain volume shrinkage on alertness, feature binding, and attentional control.

PubMed

Müller-Oehring, Eva M; Schulte, Tilman; Rohlfing, Torsten; Pfefferbaum, Adolf; Sullivan, Edith V

2013-01-01

Decline in visuospatial abilities with advancing age has been attributed to a demise of bottom-up and top-down functions involving sensory processing, selective attention, and executive control. These functions may be differentially affected by age-related volume shrinkage of subcortical and cortical nodes subserving the dorsal and ventral processing streams and the corpus callosum mediating interhemispheric information exchange. Fifty-five healthy adults (25-84 years) underwent structural MRI and performed a visual search task to test perceptual and attentional demands by combining feature-conjunction searches with "gestalt" grouping and attentional cueing paradigms. Poorer conjunction, but not feature, search performance was related to older age and volume shrinkage of nodes in the dorsolateral processing stream. When displays allowed perceptual grouping through distractor homogeneity, poorer conjunction-search performance correlated with smaller ventrolateral prefrontal cortical and callosal volumes. An alerting cue attenuated age effects on conjunction search, and the alertness benefit was associated with thalamic, callosal, and temporal cortex volumes. Our results indicate that older adults can capitalize on early parallel stages of visual information processing, whereas age-related limitations arise at later serial processing stages requiring self-guided selective attention and executive control. These limitations are explained in part by age-related brain volume shrinkage and can be mitigated by external cues.

Economic Analysis of Biological Invasions in Forests

Treesearch

Tomas P. Holmes; Julian Aukema; Jeffrey Englin; Robert G. Haight; Kent Kovacs; Brian Leung

2014-01-01

Biological invasions of native forests by nonnative pests result from complex stochastic processes that are difficult to predict. Although economic optimization models describe efficient controls across the stages of an invasion, the ability to calibrate such models is constrained by lack of information on pest population dynamics and consequent economic damages. Here...

Integrative knowledge management to enhance pharmaceutical R&D.

PubMed

Marti-Solano, Maria; Birney, Ewan; Bril, Antoine; Della Pasqua, Oscar; Kitano, Hiroaki; Mons, Barend; Xenarios, Ioannis; Sanz, Ferran

2014-04-01

Information technologies already have a key role in pharmaceutical research and development (R&D), but achieving substantial advances in their use and effectiveness will depend on overcoming current challenges in sharing, integrating and jointly analysing the range of data generated at different stages of the R&D process.

Stellar Ontogeny: From Dust...

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

MOSAIC, 1978

1978-01-01

Discusses the process of star formation. Infrared and radio astronomy, particularly microwave astronomy is used to provide information on different stages of stellar formation. The role of dust and gas which swirl through the interstellar regions of a galaxy and the collapse of a cloud in star formation are also presented. (HM)

Investigating Storage and Retrieval Processes of Directed Forgetting: A Model-Based Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rummel, Jan; Marevic, Ivan; Kuhlmann, Beatrice G.

2016-01-01

Intentional forgetting of previously learned information is an adaptive cognitive capability of humans but its cognitive underpinnings are not yet well understood. It has been argued that it strongly depends on the presentation method whether forgetting instructions alter storage or retrieval stages (Basden, Basden, & Gargano, 1993). In…

Use of Referential Discourse Contexts in L2 Offline and Online Sentence Processing.

PubMed

Yang, Pi-Lan

2016-10-01

The present study aimed to investigate (a) the extent to which Chinese-speaking learners of English in Taiwan use referential noun phrase (NP) information contained in discourse contexts to complete ambiguous noun/verb fragments in a sentence completion task, and (b) whether and when they use the contexts to disambiguate main verb versus reduced relative clause (MV/RRC) ambiguities in real time. Results showed that unlike native English speakers, English learners did not create a marked increase in RRC completions in biasing two-NP-referent discourse contexts except for advanced learners. Nevertheless, like native speakers, the learners at elementary, intermediate, and advanced English proficiency levels all used the information in a later stage of resolving the MV/RRC ambiguities in real time. The delayed effect of referential context information observed suggests that L2 learners, like native speakers, are able to construct syntax-to-discourse mappings in real time. It also suggests that processing of syntactic information takes precedence over integration of syntactic information with discourse information during L1 and L2 online sentence processing.

Visual representation of spatiotemporal structure

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schill, Kerstin; Zetzsche, Christoph; Brauer, Wilfried; Eisenkolb, A.; Musto, A.

1998-07-01

The processing and representation of motion information is addressed from an integrated perspective comprising low- level signal processing properties as well as higher-level cognitive aspects. For the low-level processing of motion information we argue that a fundamental requirement is the existence of a spatio-temporal memory. Its key feature, the provision of an orthogonal relation between external time and its internal representation, is achieved by a mapping of temporal structure into a locally distributed activity distribution accessible in parallel by higher-level processing stages. This leads to a reinterpretation of the classical concept of `iconic memory' and resolves inconsistencies on ultra-short-time processing and visual masking. The spatial-temporal memory is further investigated by experiments on the perception of spatio-temporal patterns. Results on the direction discrimination of motion paths provide evidence that information about direction and location are not processed and represented independent of each other. This suggests a unified representation on an early level, in the sense that motion information is internally available in form of a spatio-temporal compound. For the higher-level representation we have developed a formal framework for the qualitative description of courses of motion that may occur with moving objects.

Perceptual conflict during sensorimotor integration processes - a neurophysiological study in response inhibition.

PubMed

Chmielewski, Witold X; Beste, Christian

2016-05-25

A multitude of sensory inputs needs to be processed during sensorimotor integration. A crucial factor for detecting relevant information is its complexity, since information content can be conflicting at a perceptual level. This may be central to executive control processes, such as response inhibition. This EEG study aims to investigate the system neurophysiological mechanisms behind effects of perceptual conflict on response inhibition. We systematically modulated perceptual conflict by integrating a Global-local task with a Go/Nogo paradigm. The results show that conflicting perceptual information, in comparison to non-conflicting perceptual information, impairs response inhibition performance. This effect was evident regardless of whether the relevant information for response inhibition is displayed on the global, or local perceptual level. The neurophysiological data suggests that early perceptual/ attentional processing stages do not underlie these modulations. Rather, processes at the response selection level (P3), play a role in changed response inhibition performance. This conflict-related impairment of inhibitory processes is associated with activation differences in (inferior) parietal areas (BA7 and BA40) and not as commonly found in the medial prefrontal areas. This suggests that various functional neuroanatomical structures may mediate response inhibition and that the functional neuroanatomical structures involved depend on the complexity of sensory integration processes.

Basic disturbances of information processing in psychosis prediction.

PubMed

Bodatsch, Mitja; Klosterkötter, Joachim; Müller, Ralf; Ruhrmann, Stephan

2013-01-01

The basic symptoms (BS) approach provides a valid instrument in predicting psychosis onset and represents moreover a significant heuristic framework for research. The term "basic symptoms" denotes subtle changes of cognition and perception in the earliest and prodromal stages of psychosis development. BS are thought to correspond to disturbances of neural information processing. Following the heuristic implications of the BS approach, the present paper aims at exploring disturbances of information processing, revealed by functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and electro-encephalographic as characteristics of the at-risk state of psychosis. Furthermore, since high-risk studies employing ultra-high-risk criteria revealed non-conversion rates commonly exceeding 50%, thus warranting approaches that increase specificity, the potential contribution of neural information processing disturbances to psychosis prediction is reviewed. In summary, the at-risk state seems to be associated with information processing disturbances. Moreover, fMRI investigations suggested that disturbances of language processing domains might be a characteristic of the prodromal state. Neurophysiological studies revealed that disturbances of sensory processing may assist psychosis prediction in allowing for a quantification of risk in terms of magnitude and time. The latter finding represents a significant advancement since an estimation of the time to event has not yet been achieved by clinical approaches. Some evidence suggests a close relationship between self-experienced BS and neural information processing. With regard to future research, the relationship between neural information processing disturbances and different clinical risk concepts warrants further investigations. Thereby, a possible time sequence in the prodromal phase might be of particular interest.

Model-based pH monitor for sensor assessment.

PubMed

van Schagen, Kim; Rietveld, Luuk; Veersma, Alex; Babuska, Robert

2009-01-01

Owing to the nature of the treatment processes, monitoring the processes based on individual online measurements is difficult or even impossible. However, the measurements (online and laboratory) can be combined with a priori process knowledge, using mathematical models, to objectively monitor the treatment processes and measurement devices. The pH measurement is a commonly used measurement at different stages in the drinking water treatment plant, although it is a unreliable instrument, requiring significant maintenance. It is shown that, using a grey-box model, it is possible to assess the measurement devices effectively, even if detailed information of the specific processes is unknown.

Transprocessing: A Proposed Neurobiological Mechanism of Psychotherapeutic Processing

PubMed Central

Bota, Robert G.

2014-01-01

How does the human brain absorb information and turn it into skills of its own in psychotherapy? In an attempt to answer this question, the authors will review the intricacies of processing channels in psychotherapy and propose the term transprocessing (as in transduction and processing combined) for the underlying mechanisms. Through transprocessing the brain processes multimodal memories and creates reparative solutions in the course of psychotherapy. Transprocessing is proposed as a stage-sequenced mechanism of deconstruction of engrained patterns of response. Through psychotherapy, emotional-cognitive reintegration and its consolidation is accomplished. This process is mediated by cellular and neural plasticity changes. PMID:25478135

[Public health education integrated in hospital. An internship proposal, "Medical information and pharmacology"].

PubMed

Boulay, F; Chevallier, T; Staccini, P; Chichmanian, R M

1997-06-01

According to a recent circular reforming french medical studies, we propose a teaching of medical information and pharmacology in situ within hospital instructions. Students could acquire an investigation methodology on the medicine economy. It will cover in four sessions the succeeding stages of medical information processing and be subject to an assessment: case studies and appreciation on student's, instruction record. By combining public health teaching with clinical practice, our project promotes its development in contact with other learnings and activities such as clinical research.

Ares I-X Flight Test Philosophy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Davis, S. R.; Tuma, M. L.; Heitzman, K.

2007-01-01

In response to the Vision for Space Exploration, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has defined a new space exploration architecture to return humans to the Moon and prepare for human exploration of Mars. One of the first new developments will be the Ares I Crew Launch Vehicle (CLV), which will carry the Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV), into Low Earth Orbit (LEO) to support International Space Station (ISS) missions and, later, support lunar missions. As part of Ares I development, NASA will perform a series of Ares I flight tests. The tests will provide data that will inform the engineering and design process and verify the flight hardware and software. The data gained from the flight tests will be used to certify the new Ares/Orion vehicle for human space flight. The primary objectives of this first flight test (Ares I-X) are the following: Demonstrate control of a dynamically similar integrated Ares CLV/Orion CEV using Ares CLV ascent control algorithms; Perform an in-flight separation/staging event between an Ares I-similar First Stage and a representative Upper Stage; Demonstrate assembly and recovery of a new Ares CLV-like First Stage element at Kennedy Space Center (KSC); Demonstrate First Stage separation sequencing, and quantify First Stage atmospheric entry dynamics and parachute performance; and Characterize the magnitude of the integrated vehicle roll torque throughout the First Stage (powered) flight. This paper will provide an overview of the Ares I-X flight test process and details of the individual flight tests.

Changes, disruption and innovation: An investigation of the introduction of new health information technology in a microbiology laboratory.

PubMed

Toouli, George; Georgiou, Andrew; Westbrook, Johanna

2012-01-01

It is expected that health information technology (HIT) will deliver a safer, more efficient and effective health care system. The aim of this study was to undertake a qualitative and video-ethnographic examination of the impact of information technologies on work processes in the reception area of a Microbiology Department, to ascertain what changed, how it changed and the impact of the change. The setting for this study was the microbiology laboratory of a large tertiary hospital in Sydney. The study consisted of qualitative (interview and focus group) data and observation sessions for the period August 2005 to October 2006 along with video footage shot in three sessions covering the original system and the two stages of the Cerner implementation. Data analysis was assisted by NVivo software and process maps were produced from the video footage. There were two laboratory information systems observed in the video footage with computerized provider order entry introduced four months later. Process maps highlighted the large number of pre data entry steps with the original system whilst the newer system incorporated many of these steps in to the data entry stage. However, any time saved with the new system was offset by the requirement to complete some data entry of patient information not previously required. Other changes noted included the change of responsibilities for the reception staff and the physical changes required to accommodate the increased activity around the data entry area. Implementing a new HIT is always an exciting time for any environment but ensuring that the implementation goes smoothly and with minimal trouble requires the administrator and their team to plan well in advance for staff training, physical layout and possible staff resource reallocation.

Ground-plane influences on size estimation in early visual processing.

PubMed

Champion, Rebecca A; Warren, Paul A

2010-07-21

Ground-planes have an important influence on the perception of 3D space (Gibson, 1950) and it has been shown that the assumption that a ground-plane is present in the scene plays a role in the perception of object distance (Bruno & Cutting, 1988). Here, we investigate whether this influence is exerted at an early stage of processing, to affect the rapid estimation of 3D size. Participants performed a visual search task in which they searched for a target object that was larger or smaller than distracter objects. Objects were presented against a background that contained either a frontoparallel or slanted 3D surface, defined by texture gradient cues. We measured the effect on search performance of target location within the scene (near vs. far) and how this was influenced by scene orientation (which, e.g., might be consistent with a ground or ceiling plane, etc.). In addition, we investigated how scene orientation interacted with texture gradient information (indicating surface slant), to determine how these separate cues to scene layout were combined. We found that the difference in target detection performance between targets at the front and rear of the simulated scene was maximal when the scene was consistent with a ground-plane - consistent with the use of an elevation cue to object distance. In addition, we found a significant increase in the size of this effect when texture gradient information (indicating surface slant) was present, but no interaction between texture gradient and scene orientation information. We conclude that scene orientation plays an important role in the estimation of 3D size at an early stage of processing, and suggest that elevation information is linearly combined with texture gradient information for the rapid estimation of 3D size. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Learning science and science education in a new era.

PubMed

Aysan, Erhan

2015-06-01

Today, it takes only a few months for the amount of knowledge to double. The volume of information available has grown so much that it cannot be fully encompassed by the human mind. For this reason, science, learning, and education have to change in the third millennium. The question is thus: what is it that needs to be done? The answer may be found through three basic stages. The first stage is persuading scientists of the necessity to change science education. The second stage is more difficult, in that scientists must be told that they should not place an exaggerated importance on their own academic field and that they should see their field as being on an equal basis with other fields. In the last stage, scientists need to condense the bulk of information on their hands to a manageable size. "Change" is the magic word of our time. Change brings about new rules, and this process happens very quickly in a global world. If we scientists do not rapidly change our scientific learning and education, we will find our students and ourselves caught up in an irreversibly destructive and fatal change that sets its own rules, just like the Arab spring.

Decoding and disrupting left midfusiform gyrus activity during word reading

PubMed Central

Hirshorn, Elizabeth A.; Ward, Michael J.; Fiez, Julie A.; Ghuman, Avniel Singh

2016-01-01

The nature of the visual representation for words has been fiercely debated for over 150 y. We used direct brain stimulation, pre- and postsurgical behavioral measures, and intracranial electroencephalography to provide support for, and elaborate upon, the visual word form hypothesis. This hypothesis states that activity in the left midfusiform gyrus (lmFG) reflects visually organized information about words and word parts. In patients with electrodes placed directly in their lmFG, we found that disrupting lmFG activity through stimulation, and later surgical resection in one of the patients, led to impaired perception of whole words and letters. Furthermore, using machine-learning methods to analyze the electrophysiological data from these electrodes, we found that information contained in early lmFG activity was consistent with an orthographic similarity space. Finally, the lmFG contributed to at least two distinguishable stages of word processing, an early stage that reflects gist-level visual representation sensitive to orthographic statistics, and a later stage that reflects more precise representation sufficient for the individuation of orthographic word forms. These results provide strong support for the visual word form hypothesis and demonstrate that across time the lmFG is involved in multiple stages of orthographic representation. PMID:27325763

Decoding and disrupting left midfusiform gyrus activity during word reading.

PubMed

Hirshorn, Elizabeth A; Li, Yuanning; Ward, Michael J; Richardson, R Mark; Fiez, Julie A; Ghuman, Avniel Singh

2016-07-19

The nature of the visual representation for words has been fiercely debated for over 150 y. We used direct brain stimulation, pre- and postsurgical behavioral measures, and intracranial electroencephalography to provide support for, and elaborate upon, the visual word form hypothesis. This hypothesis states that activity in the left midfusiform gyrus (lmFG) reflects visually organized information about words and word parts. In patients with electrodes placed directly in their lmFG, we found that disrupting lmFG activity through stimulation, and later surgical resection in one of the patients, led to impaired perception of whole words and letters. Furthermore, using machine-learning methods to analyze the electrophysiological data from these electrodes, we found that information contained in early lmFG activity was consistent with an orthographic similarity space. Finally, the lmFG contributed to at least two distinguishable stages of word processing, an early stage that reflects gist-level visual representation sensitive to orthographic statistics, and a later stage that reflects more precise representation sufficient for the individuation of orthographic word forms. These results provide strong support for the visual word form hypothesis and demonstrate that across time the lmFG is involved in multiple stages of orthographic representation.

Fast object reconstruction in block-based compressive low-light-level imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ke, Jun; Sui, Dong; Wei, Ping

2014-11-01

In this paper we propose a simply yet effective and efficient method for long-term object tracking. Different from traditional visual tracking method which mainly depends on frame-to-frame correspondence, we combine high-level semantic information with low-level correspondences. Our framework is formulated in a confidence selection framework, which allows our system to recover from drift and partly deal with occlusion problem. To summarize, our algorithm can be roughly decomposed in a initialization stage and a tracking stage. In the initialization stage, an offline classifier is trained to get the object appearance information in category level. When the video stream is coming, the pre-trained offline classifier is used for detecting the potential target and initializing the tracking stage. In the tracking stage, it consists of three parts which are online tracking part, offline tracking part and confidence judgment part. Online tracking part captures the specific target appearance information while detection part localizes the object based on the pre-trained offline classifier. Since there is no data dependence between online tracking and offline detection, these two parts are running in parallel to significantly improve the processing speed. A confidence selection mechanism is proposed to optimize the object location. Besides, we also propose a simple mechanism to judge the absence of the object. If the target is lost, the pre-trained offline classifier is utilized to re-initialize the whole algorithm as long as the target is re-located. During experiment, we evaluate our method on several challenging video sequences and demonstrate competitive results.

Bayesian hierarchical models for regional climate reconstructions of the last glacial maximum

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weitzel, Nils; Hense, Andreas; Ohlwein, Christian

2017-04-01

Spatio-temporal reconstructions of past climate are important for the understanding of the long term behavior of the climate system and the sensitivity to forcing changes. Unfortunately, they are subject to large uncertainties, have to deal with a complex proxy-climate structure, and a physically reasonable interpolation between the sparse proxy observations is difficult. Bayesian Hierarchical Models (BHMs) are a class of statistical models that is well suited for spatio-temporal reconstructions of past climate because they permit the inclusion of multiple sources of information (e.g. records from different proxy types, uncertain age information, output from climate simulations) and quantify uncertainties in a statistically rigorous way. BHMs in paleoclimatology typically consist of three stages which are modeled individually and are combined using Bayesian inference techniques. The data stage models the proxy-climate relation (often named transfer function), the process stage models the spatio-temporal distribution of the climate variables of interest, and the prior stage consists of prior distributions of the model parameters. For our BHMs, we translate well-known proxy-climate transfer functions for pollen to a Bayesian framework. In addition, we can include Gaussian distributed local climate information from preprocessed proxy records. The process stage combines physically reasonable spatial structures from prior distributions with proxy records which leads to a multivariate posterior probability distribution for the reconstructed climate variables. The prior distributions that constrain the possible spatial structure of the climate variables are calculated from climate simulation output. We present results from pseudoproxy tests as well as new regional reconstructions of temperatures for the last glacial maximum (LGM, ˜ 21,000 years BP). These reconstructions combine proxy data syntheses with information from climate simulations for the LGM that were performed in the PMIP3 project. The proxy data syntheses consist either of raw pollen data or of normally distributed climate data from preprocessed proxy records. Future extensions of our method contain the inclusion of other proxy types (transfer functions), the implementation of other spatial interpolation techniques, the use of age uncertainties, and the extension to spatio-temporal reconstructions of the last deglaciation. Our work is part of the PalMod project funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Science (BMBF).

Low-level sensory plasticity during task-irrelevant perceptual learning: Evidence from conventional and double training procedures

PubMed Central

Pilly, Praveen K.; Grossberg, Stephen; Seitz, Aaron R.

2009-01-01

Studies of perceptual learning have focused on aspects of learning that are related to early stages of sensory processing. However, conclusions that perceptual learning results in low-level sensory plasticity are controversial, since such learning may also be attributed to plasticity in later stages of sensory processing or in readout from sensory to decision stages, or to changes in high-level central processing. To address this controversy, we developed a novel random dot motion (RDM) stimulus to target motion cells selective to contrast polarity by ensuring the motion direction information arises only from signal dot onsets and not their offsets, and used these stimuli in the paradigm of task-irrelevant perceptual learning (TIPL). In TIPL, learning is achieved in response to a stimulus by subliminally pairing that stimulus with the targets of an unrelated training task. In this manner, we are able to probe learning for an aspect of motion processing thought to be a function of directional V1 simple cells with a learning procedure that dissociates the learned stimulus from the decision processes relevant to the training task. Our results show direction-selective learning for the designated contrast polarity that does not transfer to the opposite contrast polarity. This polarity specificity was replicated in a double training procedure in which subjects were additionally exposed to the opposite polarity. Taken together, these results suggest that TIPL for motion stimuli may occur at the stage of directional V1 simple cells. Finally, a theoretical explanation is provided to understand the data. PMID:19800358

[THE ROLE OF THE CYTOKINE PROFILE IN TREATMENT IN WOMEN WITH ENDOMETRIAL CANCER FIRST STAGE].

PubMed

Dimitrov, T; Gorchev, G; Tomov, S

2015-01-01

Endometrial canceris the most common gynecological cancer. It is positive that more than 53% of diagnosed cases of endometrial cancer are in first stage when the therapeutic options are more successive. More and more gynecologists in addition to the normal clinical and histological tests expand the information for the neoplastic process with biochemical and immunological markers-tumor markers, hormones, lymphocyte population, cytokines, markers for lesion-inflammatory processes, etc. Several biological mechanisms track the connection between overweight and endometrial neoplastic risk. In the surgical practice is increasing the interest towards the cytokine group as independent prognostic factors, aggressiveness and options for treatment of the neoplastic process. The cytokine profile can be used as factor for evaluation of the primary neoplastic immune impairment as well as for a choice of surgical intervention. This is extremely important for obese patients because obesity is turning into worldwide medico-social problem.

How the bimodal format of presentation affects working memory: an overview.

PubMed

Mastroberardino, Serena; Santangelo, Valerio; Botta, Fabiano; Marucci, Francesco S; Olivetti Belardinelli, Marta

2008-03-01

The best format in which information that has to be recalled is presented has been investigated in several studies, which focused on the impact of bimodal stimulation on working memory performance. An enhancement of participant's performance in terms of correct recall has been repeatedly found, when bimodal formats of presentation (i.e., audiovisual) were compared to unimodal formats (i.e, either visual or auditory), in providing implications for multimedial learning. Several theoretical frameworks have been suggested in order to account for the bimodal advantage, ranging from those emphasizing early stages of processing (such as automatic alerting effects or multisensory integration processes) to those centred on late stages of processing (as postulated by the dual coding theory). The aim of this paper is to review previous contributions to this topic, providing a comprehensive theoretical framework, which is updated by the latest empirical studies.

Disentangling conscious from unconscious cognitive processing with event-related EEG potentials.

PubMed

Rohaut, B; Naccache, L

By looking for properties of consciousness, cognitive neuroscience studies have dramatically enlarged the scope of unconscious cognitive processing. This emerging knowledge inspired the development of new approaches allowing clinicians to probe and disentangle conscious from unconscious cognitive processes in non-communicating brain-injured patients both in terms of behaviour and brain activity. This information is extremely valuable in order to improve diagnosis and prognosis in such patients both at acute and chronic settings. Reciprocally, the growing observations coming from such patients suffering from disorders of consciousness provide valuable constraints to theoretical models of consciousness. In this review we chose to illustrate these recent developments by focusing on brain signals recorded with EEG at bedside in response to auditory stimuli. More precisely, we present the respective EEG markers of unconscious and conscious processing of two classes of auditory stimuli (sounds and words). We show that in both cases, conscious access to the corresponding representation (e.g.: auditory regularity and verbal semantic content) share a similar neural signature (P3b and P600/LPC) that can be distinguished from unconscious processing occurring during an earlier stage (MMN and N400). We propose a two-stage serial model of processing and discuss how unconscious and conscious signatures can be measured at bedside providing relevant informations for both diagnosis and prognosis of consciousness recovery. These two examples emphasize how fruitful can be the bidirectional approach exploring cognition in healthy subjects and in brain-damaged patients. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Persistent Identifiers in Earth science data management environments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weigel, Tobias; Stockhause, Martina; Lautenschlager, Michael

2014-05-01

Globally resolvable Persistent Identifiers (PIDs) that carry additional context information (which can be any form of metadata) are increasingly used by data management infrastructures for fundamental tasks. The notion of a Persistent Identifier is originally an abstract concept that aims to provide identifiers that are quality-controlled and maintained beyond the life time of the original issuer, for example through the use of redirection mechanisms. Popular implementations of the PID concept are for example the Handle System and the DOI System based on it. These systems also move beyond the simple identification concept by providing facilities that can hold additional context information. Not only in the Earth sciences, data managers are increasingly attracted to PIDs because of the opportunities these facilities provide; however, long-term viable principles and mechanisms for efficient organization of PIDs and context information are not yet available or well established. In this respect, promising techniques are to type the information that is associated with PIDs and to construct actionable collections of PIDs. There are two main drivers for extended PID usage: Earth science data management middleware use cases and applications geared towards scientific end-users. Motivating scenarios from data management include hierarchical data and metadata management, consistent data tracking and improvements in the accountability of processes. If PIDs are consistently assigned to data objects, context information can be carried over to subsequent data life cycle stages much easier. This can also ease data migration from one major curation domain to another, e.g. from early dissemination within research communities to formal publication and long-term archival stages, and it can help to document processes across technical and organizational boundaries. For scientific end users, application scenarios include for example more personalized data citation and improvements in the amount of context available for unfamiliar datasets. We can see how Earth system model data is spatially and temporally transformed to better fit the differing scenarios relevant in consecutive life cycle stages. At the end, users often want to cite and use distinct subsets of data which are disseminated through e-science infrastructures. If actionable collections of fine-granular PIDs are available, much more precise citation and use can be supported. This can also help to establish interoperable input and output references for processing tasks during intermediate life cycle stages. The current working draft API of the Research Data Alliance's working group on PID Information Types combined with more elaborate collection mechanisms can provide the necessary foundations and tools to enable wide-spread use of PIDs for data life cycle management and user applications. This contribution will highlight some of the available mechanisms and existing efforts with particular focus on applications for institutional data management and e-science infrastructures such as the Earth System Grid Federation.

[Multi-criteria decision analysis for health technology resource allocation and assessment: so far and so near?

PubMed

Campolina, Alessandro Gonçalves; Soárez, Patrícia Coelho De; Amaral, Fábio Vieira do; Abe, Jair Minoro

2017-10-26

Multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) is an emerging tool that allows the integration of relevant factors for health technology assessment (HTA). This study aims to present a summary of the methodological characteristics of MCDA: definitions, approaches, applications, and implementation stages. A case study was conducted in the São Paulo State Cancer Institute (ICESP) in order to understand the perspectives of decision-makers in the process of drafting a recommendation for the incorporation of technology in the Brazilian Unified National Health System (SUS), through a report by the Brazilian National Commission for the Incorporation of Technologies in the SUS (CONITEC). Paraconsistent annotated evidential logic Eτ was the methodological approach adopted in the study, since it can serve as an underlying logic for constructs capable of synthesizing objective information (from the scientific literature) and subjective information (from experts' values and preferences in the area of knowledge). It also allows the incorporation of conflicting information (contradictions), as well as vague and even incomplete information in the valuation process, resulting from imperfection of the available scientific evidence. The method has the advantages of allowing explicit consideration of the criteria that influenced the decision, facilitating follow-up and visualization of process stages, allowing assessment of the contribution of each criterion separately, and in aggregate, to the decision's outcome, facilitating the discussion of diverging perspectives by different stakeholder groups, and increasing the understanding of the resulting recommendations. The use of an explicit MCDA approach should facilitate conflict mediation and optimize participation by different stakeholder groups.

Localized Fluctuant Oscillatory Activity by Working Memory Load: A Simultaneous EEG-fMRI Study.

PubMed

Zhao, Xiaojie; Li, Xiaoyun; Yao, Li

2017-01-01

Working memory (WM) is a resource-limited memory system for temporary storage and processing of brain information during the execution of cognitive tasks. Increased WM load will increase the amount and difficulty of memory information. Several studies have used electroencephalography (EEG) or functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to explore load-dependent cognition processing according to the time courses of electrophysiological activity or the spatial pattern of blood oxygen metabolic activity. However, the relationships between these two activities and the underlying neural mechanism are still unclear. In this study, using simultaneously collected EEG and fMRI data under an n-back verbal WM task, we modeled the spectral perturbation of EEG oscillation and fMRI activation through joint independent component analysis (JICA). Multi-channel oscillation features were also introduced into the JICA model for further analysis. The results showed that time-locked activity of theta and beta were modulated by memory load in the early stimuli evaluation stage, corresponding to the enhanced activation in the frontal and parietal lobe, which were involved in stimulus discrimination, information encoding and delay-period activity. In the late response selection stage, alpha and gamma activity changes dependent on the load correspond to enhanced activation in the areas of frontal, temporal and parietal lobes, which played important roles in attention, information extraction and memory retention. These findings suggest that the increases in memory load not only affect the intensity and time course of the EEG activities, but also lead to the enhanced activation of brain regions which plays different roles during different time periods of cognitive process of WM.

Building a Foreign Military Sales Construction Delivery Strategy Decision Support System

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-09-01

DSS, formulates it into a computer model and produces solutions using information and expert heuristics. Using the Expert Systeic Process to Build a DSS...computer model . There are five stages in the development of an expert system. They are: 1) Identify and characterize the important aspects of the problem...and Steven A. Hidreth. U.S. Security Assistance: The Political Process. Massachusetts: Heath and Company, 1985. 19. Guirguis , Amir A., Program

An Annotated Bibliography on Tactical Map Display Symbology

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-08-01

failure of attention to be focused on one element selectively in filtering tasks where only that one element was relevant to the discrimination. Failure of...The present study evaluates a class of models of human information processing made popular by Broadbent . A brief tachistoscopic display of one or two...213-219. Two experiments were performed to test Neisser’s two-stage model of recognition as applied to matching. Evidence of parallel processing was

The parietal cortex in sensemaking: the dissociation of multiple types of spatial information.

PubMed

Sun, Yanlong; Wang, Hongbin

2013-01-01

According to the data-frame theory, sensemaking is a macrocognitive process in which people try to make sense of or explain their observations by processing a number of explanatory structures called frames until the observations and frames become congruent. During the sensemaking process, the parietal cortex has been implicated in various cognitive tasks for the functions related to spatial and temporal information processing, mathematical thinking, and spatial attention. In particular, the parietal cortex plays important roles by extracting multiple representations of magnitudes at the early stages of perceptual analysis. By a series of neural network simulations, we demonstrate that the dissociation of different types of spatial information can start early with a rather similar structure (i.e., sensitivity on a common metric), but accurate representations require specific goal-directed top-down controls due to the interference in selective attention. Our results suggest that the roles of the parietal cortex rely on the hierarchical organization of multiple spatial representations and their interactions. The dissociation and interference between different types of spatial information are essentially the result of the competition at different levels of abstraction.

The Parietal Cortex in Sensemaking: The Dissociation of Multiple Types of Spatial Information

PubMed Central

Sun, Yanlong; Wang, Hongbin

2013-01-01

According to the data-frame theory, sensemaking is a macrocognitive process in which people try to make sense of or explain their observations by processing a number of explanatory structures called frames until the observations and frames become congruent. During the sensemaking process, the parietal cortex has been implicated in various cognitive tasks for the functions related to spatial and temporal information processing, mathematical thinking, and spatial attention. In particular, the parietal cortex plays important roles by extracting multiple representations of magnitudes at the early stages of perceptual analysis. By a series of neural network simulations, we demonstrate that the dissociation of different types of spatial information can start early with a rather similar structure (i.e., sensitivity on a common metric), but accurate representations require specific goal-directed top-down controls due to the interference in selective attention. Our results suggest that the roles of the parietal cortex rely on the hierarchical organization of multiple spatial representations and their interactions. The dissociation and interference between different types of spatial information are essentially the result of the competition at different levels of abstraction. PMID:23710165

Exploration of mineral resource deposits based on analysis of aerial and satellite image data employing artificial intelligence methods

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Osipov, Gennady

2013-04-01

We propose a solution to the problem of exploration of various mineral resource deposits, determination of their forms / classification of types (oil, gas, minerals, gold, etc.) with the help of satellite photography of the region of interest. Images received from satellite are processed and analyzed to reveal the presence of specific signs of deposits of various minerals. Course of data processing and making forecast can be divided into some stages: Pre-processing of images. Normalization of color and luminosity characteristics, determination of the necessary contrast level and integration of a great number of separate photos into a single map of the region are performed. Construction of semantic map image. Recognition of bitmapped image and allocation of objects and primitives known to system are realized. Intelligent analysis. At this stage acquired information is analyzed with the help of a knowledge base, which contain so-called "attention landscapes" of experts. Used methods of recognition and identification of images: a) combined method of image recognition, b)semantic analysis of posterized images, c) reconstruction of three-dimensional objects from bitmapped images, d)cognitive technology of processing and interpretation of images. This stage is fundamentally new and it distinguishes suggested technology from all others. Automatic registration of allocation of experts` attention - registration of so-called "attention landscape" of experts - is the base of the technology. Landscapes of attention are, essentially, highly effective filters that cut off unnecessary information and emphasize exactly the factors used by an expert for making a decision. The technology based on denoted principles involves the next stages, which are implemented in corresponding program agents. Training mode -> Creation of base of ophthalmologic images (OI) -> Processing and making generalized OI (GOI) -> Mode of recognition and interpretation of unknown images. Training mode includes noncontact registration of eye motion, reconstruction of "attention landscape" fixed by the expert, recording the comments of the expert who is a specialist in the field of images` interpretation, and transfer this information into knowledge base.Creation of base of ophthalmologic images (OI) includes making semantic contacts from great number of OI based on analysis of OI and expert's comments.Processing of OI and making generalized OI (GOI) is realized by inductive logic algorithms and consists in synthesis of structural invariants of OI. The mode of recognition and interpretation of unknown images consists of several stages, which include: comparison of unknown image with the base of structural invariants of OI; revealing of structural invariants in unknown images; ynthesis of interpretive message of the structural invariants base and OI base (the experts` comments stored in it). We want to emphasize that the training mode does not assume special involvement of experts to teach the system - it is realized in the process of regular experts` work on image interpretation and it becomes possible after installation of a special apparatus for non contact registration of experts` attention. Consequently, the technology, which principles is described there, provides fundamentally new effective solution to the problem of exploration of mineral resource deposits based on computer analysis of aerial and satellite image data.

[Staged oncological screening with TG test].

PubMed

Bakhlaev, I E; Ageenko, A I; Rolik, I S

2006-01-01

The authors present their analysis of screening methods used for early diagnostics of cancer of various localization and for detection of high-risk individuals. They offer a program of step-by-step screening that makes it possible to cover more population with prophylactic examination and to reduce the need for special examination methods. TG-test is a universal and the most informative blastomatous process indicator at any stage, including the preclinical one. The practical screening results double the revealing rate of oncopathology and allow for three-fold reduction in the diagnostic costs compared with standard methods of cancer diagnostics. The medical efficiency of the oncological screening is high; in one third of the examined patients a tumor is diagnosed at the preclinical stage.

Long-term academic stress enhances early processing of facial expressions.

PubMed

Zhang, Liang; Qin, Shaozheng; Yao, Zhuxi; Zhang, Kan; Wu, Jianhui

2016-11-01

Exposure to long-term stress can lead to a variety of emotional and behavioral problems. Although widely investigated, the neural basis of how long-term stress impacts emotional processing in humans remains largely elusive. Using event-related brain potentials (ERPs), we investigated the effects of long-term stress on the neural dynamics of emotionally facial expression processing. Thirty-nine male college students undergoing preparation for a major examination and twenty-one matched controls performed a gender discrimination task for faces displaying angry, happy, and neutral expressions. The results of the Perceived Stress Scale showed that participants in the stress group perceived higher levels of long-term stress relative to the control group. ERP analyses revealed differential effects of long-term stress on two early stages of facial expression processing: 1) long-term stress generally augmented posterior P1 amplitudes to facial stimuli irrespective of expression valence, suggesting that stress can increase sensitization to visual inputs in general, and 2) long-term stress selectively augmented fronto-central P2 amplitudes for angry but not for neutral or positive facial expressions, suggesting that stress may lead to increased attentional prioritization to processing negative emotional stimuli. Together, our findings suggest that long-term stress has profound impacts on the early stages of facial expression processing, with an increase at the very early stage of general information inputs and a subsequent attentional bias toward processing emotionally negative stimuli. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Determination of quality television programmes based on sentiment analysis on Twitter

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Amalia, A.; Oktinas, W.; Aulia, I.; Rahmat, R. F.

2018-03-01

Public sentiment from social media like Twitter can be used as one of the indicators to determine the quality of TV Programmes. In this study, we implemented information extraction on Twitter by using sentiment analysis method to assess the quality of TV Programmes. The first stage of this study is pre-processing which consists of cleansing, case folding, tokenizing, stop-word removal, stemming, and redundancy filtering. The next stage is weighting process for every single word by using TF-IDF method. The last step of this study is the sentiment classification process which is divided into three sentiment category which is positive, negative and neutral. We classify the TV programmes into several categories such as news, children, or films/soap operas. We implemented an improved k-nearest neighbor method in classification 4000 twitter status, for four biggest TV stations in Indonesia, with ratio 70% data for training and 30% of data for the testing process. The result obtained from this research generated the highest accuracy with k=10 as big as 90%.

Light Water Reactor Sustainability Program Operator Performance Metrics for Control Room Modernization: A Practical Guide for Early Design Evaluation

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

Ronald Boring; Roger Lew; Thomas Ulrich

2014-03-01

As control rooms are modernized with new digital systems at nuclear power plants, it is necessary to evaluate the operator performance using these systems as part of a verification and validation process. There are no standard, predefined metrics available for assessing what is satisfactory operator interaction with new systems, especially during the early design stages of a new system. This report identifies the process and metrics for evaluating human system interfaces as part of control room modernization. The report includes background information on design and evaluation, a thorough discussion of human performance measures, and a practical example of how themore » process and metrics have been used as part of a turbine control system upgrade during the formative stages of design. The process and metrics are geared toward generalizability to other applications and serve as a template for utilities undertaking their own control room modernization activities.« less

Modeling Early-Stage Processes of U-10 Wt.%Mo Alloy Using Integrated Computational Materials Engineering Concepts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Xiaowo; Xu, Zhijie; Soulami, Ayoub; Hu, Xiaohua; Lavender, Curt; Joshi, Vineet

2017-12-01

Low-enriched uranium alloyed with 10 wt.% molybdenum (U-10Mo) has been identified as a promising alternative to high-enriched uranium. Manufacturing U-10Mo alloy involves multiple complex thermomechanical processes that pose challenges for computational modeling. This paper describes the application of integrated computational materials engineering (ICME) concepts to integrate three individual modeling components, viz. homogenization, microstructure-based finite element method for hot rolling, and carbide particle distribution, to simulate the early-stage processes of U-10Mo alloy manufacture. The resulting integrated model enables information to be passed between different model components and leads to improved understanding of the evolution of the microstructure. This ICME approach is then used to predict the variation in the thickness of the Zircaloy-2 barrier as a function of the degree of homogenization and to analyze the carbide distribution, which can affect the recrystallization, hardness, and fracture properties of U-10Mo in subsequent processes.

Resting Stage of Plankton Diversity from Singapore Coastal Water: Implications for Harmful Algae Blooms and Coastal Management

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Trottet, Aurore; Wilson, Bryan; Sew Wei Xin, Genevieve; George, Christaline; Casten, Lemuel; Schmoker, Claire; Rawi, Nurul Syazana Binte Modh; Chew Siew, Moon; Larsen, Ole; Eikaas, Hans S.; Tun, Karenne; Drillet, Guillaume

2018-02-01

Resting strategies of planktonic organisms are important for the ecological processes of coastal waters and their impacts should be taken into consideration in management of water bodies used by multiple industries. We combined different approaches to evaluate the importance of resting stages in Singapore coastal waters. We used molecular approaches to improve the knowledge on Singapore biodiversity, we sampled and extracted cysts from sediments to evaluate the density of resting stages in Johor Strait, and we compared systematically information on Singapore planktonic biodiversity to existing published information on resting stages from these reported organisms. This is the first study evaluating the importance of resting stages in Singapore waters. Above 120 species reported in Singapore are known to produce resting stages though no previous work has ever been done to evaluate the importance of these strategies in these waters. The results from the resting stage survey confirmed 0.66 to 5.34 cyst g-1 dry weight sediment were present in the Johor Strait suggesting that cysts may be flushed by tidal currents into and out of the strait regularly. This also suggest that the blooms occurring in Singapore are likely due to secondary growth of Harmful Algae Bloom species in the water rather than from direct germination of cysts from sediment. Finally, we discuss the importance of these resting eggs for three main national industries in Singapore (shipping, marine aquaculture and provision of drinking water through seawater desalination). We argue that this study will serve as a baseline for some of the future management of Singapore waters.

E-Model for Online Learning Communities.

PubMed

Rogo, Ellen J; Portillo, Karen M

2015-10-01

The purpose of this study was to explore the students' perspectives on the phenomenon of online learning communities while enrolled in a graduate dental hygiene program. A qualitative case study method was designed to investigate the learners' experiences with communities in an online environment. A cross-sectional purposive sampling method was used. Interviews were the data collection method. As the original data were being analyzed, the researchers noted a pattern evolved indicating the phenomenon developed in stages. The data were re-analyzed and validated by 2 member checks. The participants' experiences revealed an e-model consisting of 3 stages of formal learning community development as core courses in the curriculum were completed and 1 stage related to transmuting the community to an informal entity as students experienced the independent coursework in the program. The development of the formal learning communities followed 3 stages: Building a Foundation for the Learning Community, Building a Supportive Network within the Learning Community and Investing in the Community to Enhance Learning. The last stage, Transforming the Learning Community, signaled a transition to an informal network of learners. The e-model was represented by 3 key elements: metamorphosis of relationships, metamorphosis through the affective domain and metamorphosis through the cognitive domain, with the most influential element being the affective development. The e-model describes a 4 stage process through which learners experience a metamorphosis in their affective, relationship and cognitive development. Synergistic learning was possible based on the interaction between synergistic relationships and affective actions. Copyright © 2015 The American Dental Hygienists’ Association.

[Evaluation of patient satisfaction with the quality of health care received within the EORTC IN-PATSAT32 trial by patients with breast and colorectal cancer, and non-Hodgkin lymphoma at different stages. Correlation with sociodemographic characteristics, comorbidities and other procedural variables at the Mexican Institute of Social Security].

PubMed

Balderas-Peña, Luz-Ma-Adriana; Sat-Muñoz, Daniel; Contreras-Hernández, Iris; Solano-Murillo, Pedro; Hernández-Chávez, Guillermo-Allan; Mariscal-Ramírez, Ignacio; Lomelí-García, Martha; Díaz-Cortés, Margarita-Arimatea; Mould-Quevedo, Joaquín-Federico; Castro-Cervantes, Juan-Manuel; Garcés-Ruiz, Oscar-Miguel; Morgan-Villela, Gilberto

2011-01-01

In Mexico cancer is a public health burden. Nowadays the health care systems pay special attention to patient's perception and satisfaction of the health care received. Satisfaction with quality of health care has an impact in the adherence to the treatment. To evaluate the satisfaction with the quality of health care received at the IMSS in a group of cancer patients [non Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), breast and colorectal cancer]. Socio-demographic features, co-morbid diseases, and attendance processes impact on satisfaction are also evaluated. 476 cancer patients were studied: 314 with breast cancer, 92 with NHL and 70 with colorectal cancer. In women with breast cancer the mean score to nurses' interpersonal skills in non-classified disease group and clinical stage III group were: 73.64 ± 32.53, 90.00 ± 18.25 respectively (p=0.005), nurses' availability in non-classified and clinical stage III group were: 69.71 ± 30.25, 89.21 ± 19.00 respectively (p=0.003). In subjects with NHL the mean scores for doctors' technical skills in clinical stage I and III groups, were: 63.69 ± 37.78, 80.30 ± 18.46 respectively (p=0.017), doctors' information provision scores in subject in clinical stage I and IV were: 49.40 ± 40.75, 79.49 ± 24.63 respectively (p=0.043). In the group of colorectal cancer patients the mean of the score to exchange of information between clinical stage II and clinical stage III group were 50.00 ± 41.83, 84.21 ± 22.37 respectively (p=0.036). Were not observed association between attendance processes features and general satisfaction. In Mexico 50% of cancer patients are attended at the IMSS. The continued evaluation of the satisfaction with health care received by the health care service users is important to enhance attention's quality. Copyright © 2011 International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

When math operations have visuospatial meanings versus purely symbolic definitions: Which solving stages and brain regions are affected?

PubMed

Pyke, Aryn A; Fincham, Jon M; Anderson, John R

2017-06-01

How does processing differ during purely symbolic problem solving versus when mathematical operations can be mentally associated with meaningful (here, visuospatial) referents? Learners were trained on novel math operations (↓, ↑), that were defined strictly symbolically or in terms of a visuospatial interpretation (operands mapped to dimensions of shaded areas, answer = total area). During testing (scanner session), no visuospatial representations were displayed. However, we expected visuospatially-trained learners to form mental visuospatial representations for problems, and exhibit distinct activations. Since some solution intervals were long (~10s) and visuospatial representations might only be instantiated in some stages during solving, group differences were difficult to detect when treating the solving interval as a whole. However, an HSMM-MVPA process (Anderson and Fincham, 2014a) to parse fMRI data identified four distinct problem-solving stages in each group, dubbed: 1) encode; 2) plan; 3) compute; and 4) respond. We assessed stage-specific differences across groups. During encoding, several regions implicated in general semantic processing and/or mental imagery were more active in visuospatially-trained learners, including: bilateral supramarginal, precuneus, cuneus, parahippocampus, and left middle temporal regions. Four of these regions again emerged in the computation stage: precuneus, right supramarginal/angular, left supramarginal/inferior parietal, and left parahippocampal gyrus. Thus, mental visuospatial representations may not just inform initial problem interpretation (followed by symbolic computation), but may scaffold on-going computation. In the second stage, higher activations were found among symbolically-trained solvers in frontal regions (R. medial and inferior and L. superior) and the right angular and middle temporal gyrus. Activations in contrasting regions may shed light on solvers' degree of use of symbolic versus mental visuospatial strategies, even in absence of behavioral differences. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Dual-Ratiometric Fluorescent Nanoprobe for Visualizing the Dynamic Process of pH and Superoxide Anion Changes in Autophagy and Apoptosis.

PubMed

Yang, Limin; Chen, Yuanyuan; Yu, Zhengze; Pan, Wei; Wang, Hongyu; Li, Na; Tang, Bo

2017-08-23

Autophagy and apoptosis are closely associated with various pathological and physiological processes in cell cycles. Investigating the dynamic changes of intracellular active molecules in autophagy and apoptosis is of great significance for clarifying their inter-relationship and regulating mechanism in many diseases. In this study, we develop a dual-ratiometric fluorescent nanoprobe for quantitatively differentiating the dynamic process of superoxide anion (O 2 •- ) and pH changes in autophagy and apoptosis in HeLa cells. A rhodamine B-loaded mesoporous silica core was used as the reference, and fluorescence probes for pH and O 2 •- measurement were doped in the outer layer shell of SiO 2 . Then, chitosan and triphenylphosphonium were modified on the surface of SiO 2 . The experimental results showed that the nanoprobe is able to simultaneously and precisely visualize the changes of mitochondrial O 2 •- and pH in HeLa cells. The kinetics data revealed that the changes of pH and O 2 •- during autophagy and apoptosis in HeLa cells were significantly different. The pH value was decreased at the early stage of apoptosis and autophagy, whereas the O 2 •- level was enhanced at the early stage of apoptosis and almost unchanged at the initial stage of autophagy. At the late stage of apoptosis and autophagy, the concentration of O 2 •- was increased, whereas the pH was decreased at the late stage of autophagy and almost unchanged at the late stage of apoptosis. We hope that the present results provide useful information for studying the effects of O 2 •- and pH in autophagy and apoptosis in various pathological conditions and diseases.

[Clinical Handling of Patients with Dissociative Disorders].

PubMed

Okano, Kenichiro

2015-01-01

This paper discusses the way informed psychiatrists are expected to handle dissociative patients in clinical situations, with a specific focus on dissociative identity disorders and dissociative fugue. On the initial interview with dissociative patients, information on their history of trauma and any nascent dissociative symptoms in their childhood should be carefully obtained. Their level of stress in their current life should also be assessed in order to understand their symptomatology, as well as to predict their future clinical course. A psychoeducational approach is crucial; it might be helpful to give information on dissociative disorder to these patients as well as their family members in order to promote their adherence to treatment. Regarding the symptomatology of dissociative disorders, detailed symptoms and the general clinical course are presented. It was stressed that dissociative identity disorder and dissociative fugue, the most high-profile dissociative disorders, are essentially different in their etiology and clinical presentation. Dissociative disorders are often confused with and misdiagnosed as psychotic disorders, such as schizophrenia. Other conditions considered in terms of the differential diagnosis include borderline personality disorder as well as temporal lobe epilepsy. Lastly, the therapeutic approach to dissociative identity disorder is discussed. Each dissociative identity should be understood as potentially representing some traumatically stressful event in the past. The therapist should be careful not to excessively promote the creation or elaboration of any dissociative identities. Three stages are proposed in the individual psychotherapeutic process. In the initial stage, a secure environment and stabilization of symptoms should be sought. The second stage consists of aiding the "host" personality to make use of other more adaptive coping skills in their life. The third stage involves coaching as well as continuous awareness of their comorbid psychiatric conditions. Lastly, factors preventing the patients' smooth recovery process are mentioned. They include their contact with past and current aggressors, chronic and ongoing stress within the family, including abuse and violence, and comorbid conditions such as depression and chronic medical conditions.

Amodal processing in human prefrontal cortex.

PubMed

Tamber-Rosenau, Benjamin J; Dux, Paul E; Tombu, Michael N; Asplund, Christopher L; Marois, René

2013-07-10

Information enters the cortex via modality-specific sensory regions, whereas actions are produced by modality-specific motor regions. Intervening central stages of information processing map sensation to behavior. Humans perform this central processing in a flexible, abstract manner such that sensory information in any modality can lead to response via any motor system. Cognitive theories account for such flexible behavior by positing amodal central information processing (e.g., "central executive," Baddeley and Hitch, 1974; "supervisory attentional system," Norman and Shallice, 1986; "response selection bottleneck," Pashler, 1994). However, the extent to which brain regions embodying central mechanisms of information processing are amodal remains unclear. Here we apply multivariate pattern analysis to functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data to compare response selection, a cognitive process widely believed to recruit an amodal central resource across sensory and motor modalities. We show that most frontal and parietal cortical areas known to activate across a wide variety of tasks code modality, casting doubt on the notion that these regions embody a central processor devoid of modality representation. Importantly, regions of anterior insula and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex consistently failed to code modality across four experiments. However, these areas code at least one other task dimension, process (instantiated as response selection vs response execution), ensuring that failure to find coding of modality is not driven by insensitivity of multivariate pattern analysis in these regions. We conclude that abstract encoding of information modality is primarily a property of subregions of the prefrontal cortex.

Transcriptome profiling of the cysticercus stage of the laboratory model Taenia crassiceps, strain ORF.

PubMed

García-Montoya, Gisela M; Mesa-Arango, Jairo A; Isaza-Agudelo, Juan P; Agudelo-Lopez, Sonia P; Cabarcas, Felipe; Barrera, Luis F; Alzate, Juan F

2016-02-01

Neurocysticercosis (NC) is a serious public health problem mainly in developing countries. NC caused by the cysticercus stage from cestode Taenia solium is considered by the WHO and ITFDE as a potentially eradicable disease. Definitive diagnosis of NC is challenging because of the unspecific clinical manifestations such as the non-definitive evidence presented by neuroimaging (in most cases) and the lack of definitive serological test. Taenia crassiceps (ORF strain) is a cestode closely related to T. solium and it has frequently been used as a source of antigens for immunodiagnostics. A murine model to study host immune response to infection has also been established by using T. crassiceps. Despite the extensive use of T. crassiceps for research, molecular information for this cestode is scarce in public databases. With the aim of providing more extensive information on T. crassiceps biology, an RNA-seq experiment and subsequent bioinformatic transcriptome processing of this cestode parasite mRNA in its cysticercus stage were carried out. A total of 227,082 read/ESTs were sequenced using the 454-GS FLX Titanium technology and assembled into 10,787 contigs. This transcriptome dataset represents new and valuable molecular information of the cestode T. crassiceps (ORF). This information will substantially improve public information and will help to achieve a better understanding of the biology of T. crassiceps and to identify target proteins for serodiagnosis and vaccination. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Typing pictures: Linguistic processing cascades into finger movements.

PubMed

Scaltritti, Michele; Arfé, Barbara; Torrance, Mark; Peressotti, Francesca

2016-11-01

The present study investigated the effect of psycholinguistic variables on measures of response latency and mean interkeystroke interval in a typewritten picture naming task, with the aim to outline the functional organization of the stages of cognitive processing and response execution associated with typewritten word production. Onset latencies were modulated by lexical and semantic variables traditionally linked to lexical retrieval, such as word frequency, age of acquisition, and naming agreement. Orthographic variables, both at the lexical and sublexical level, appear to influence just within-word interkeystroke intervals, suggesting that orthographic information may play a relevant role in controlling actual response execution. Lexical-semantic variables also influenced speed of execution. This points towards cascaded flow of activation between stages of lexical access and response execution. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Roi Detection and Vessel Segmentation in Retinal Image

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sabaz, F.; Atila, U.

2017-11-01

Diabetes disrupts work by affecting the structure of the eye and afterwards leads to loss of vision. Depending on the stage of disease that called diabetic retinopathy, there are sudden loss of vision and blurred vision problems. Automated detection of vessels in retinal images is a useful study to diagnose eye diseases, disease classification and other clinical trials. The shape and structure of the vessels give information about the severity of the disease and the stage of the disease. Automatic and fast detection of vessels allows for a quick diagnosis of the disease and the treatment process to start shortly. ROI detection and vessel extraction methods for retinal image are mentioned in this study. It is shown that the Frangi filter used in image processing can be successfully used in detection and extraction of vessels.

Numbers and Policy in Care for People with Intellectual Disability in the United Kingdom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Glover, Gyles

2015-01-01

Background: Statements or commitments making use of numbers have an important place in government policy. They appear at all stages of the policy process: campaigning, formulation, monitoring and evaluation. Many types of sources are involved including research studies, national survey information, routine operational data collections and special…

From the forest to the sea: a story of fallen trees.

Treesearch

Chris Maser; Robert F. Tarrant; James M. Trappe; Jerry F. Franklin

1988-01-01

Large, fallen trees in various stages of decay contribute much-needed diversity of ecological processes to terrestrial, aquatic, estuarine, coastal beach, and open ocean habitats in the Pacific Northwest. intensive utilization and management can deprive these habitats of large, fallen trees. This publication presents sound information for managers making resource...

Cross-Modal Interactions during Perception of Audiovisual Speech and Nonspeech Signals: An fMRI Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hertrich, Ingo; Dietrich, Susanne; Ackermann, Hermann

2011-01-01

During speech communication, visual information may interact with the auditory system at various processing stages. Most noteworthy, recent magnetoencephalography (MEG) data provided first evidence for early and preattentive phonetic/phonological encoding of the visual data stream--prior to its fusion with auditory phonological features [Hertrich,…

75 FR 74073 - Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Draft Revised Recovery Plan for the Northern...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-11-30

... population program HexSim. Though still at preliminary draft stage, population response simulations from this portion of the modeling process are available for public review by request from our office. These simulations do not estimate what will occur in the future, but provide comparative information on potential...

Teaching Assistant Competencies in Canada: Building a Framework for Practice Together

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Korpan, Cynthia; Sheffield, Suzanne Le-May; Verwoord, Roselynn

2015-01-01

This paper examines the stages of development for a framework of teaching assistant (TA) competencies initiated by the Teaching Assistant and Graduate Student Advancement (TAGSA) special interest group (SIG) of the Society of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education (STLHE). TAGSA initiated an iterative consultative process to inform the creation…

State of Student Aid and Higher Education in Texas, 2016

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fernandez, Chris; Fletcher, Carla; Klepfer, Kasey

2016-01-01

Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corporation (TG) provides critical support to schools, students, and borrowers at every stage of the federal student aid process--from providing information on how to pay for a higher education including financial aid options, to facilitating successful loan repayment after graduation. This 2016 issue of "State…

State of Student Aid and Higher Education in Texas

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Creusere, Marlena; Fletcher, Carla; Klepfer, Kasey; Norman, Patricia

2015-01-01

TG provides critical support to schools, students, and borrowers at every stage of the federal student aid process--from providing information on how to pay for a higher education including financial aid options, to facilitating successful loan repayment after graduation. This issue of "State of Student Aid and Higher Education in Texas"…

State of Student Aid and Higher Education in Texas, 2017

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fernandez, Chris; Fletcher, Carla; Klepfer, Kasey

2017-01-01

The Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corporation (TG) offers critical support to schools, students, and borrowers at every stage of the federal student aid process--from providing information on how to pay for a higher education, including financial aid options, to facilitating successful loan repayment after graduation. As part of that support, this…

12 CFR Appendix A to Part 1310 - Financial Stability Oversight Council Guidance for Nonbank Financial Company Determinations

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... its review. In the first stage of the process, the Council will apply six uniform quantitative... quantitative thresholds using information available through existing public and regulatory sources, nonbank..., rather than applying a broadly applicable quantitative metric. The Council believes that the threat a...

12 CFR Appendix A to Part 1310 - Financial Stability Oversight Council Guidance for Nonbank Financial Company Determinations

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... its review. In the first stage of the process, the Council will apply six uniform quantitative... quantitative thresholds using information available through existing public and regulatory sources, nonbank..., rather than applying a broadly applicable quantitative metric. The Council believes that the threat a...

Embedding Marketing in International Campus Development: Lessons from UK Universities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lewis, Vicky

2016-01-01

This paper provides recommendations for embedding a market- and marketing-informed approach within the development process for a new international campus. It includes a brief outline of the current global profile of international campuses (as one form of transnational education) before highlighting the role of marketing at key stages of campus…

The Technology Transfer of the ICT Curriculum in Taiwan

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Huang, Teng

2015-01-01

Focusing on the process of "technology transfer", this paper aims to critically examine the production and usage of the information and communication technology (ICT) curriculum, and discusses its possibilities. It is found that the goals in both of the two stages of the ICT curriculum in Taiwan were rather "rhetorical". Three…

Models of Organizational Learning: Paradoxes and Best Practices in the Post Industrial Workplace.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Laiken, Marilyn E.

A research project studied Canadian organizations that are using informal organizational learning approaches to embed ongoing learning within the actual work processes. Five organizations that self-identified as learning organizations at mature stages of development were studied in depth. No organization was a paragon of organizational learning.…

Distributed and opposing effects of incidental learning in the human brain.

PubMed

Hall, Michelle G; Naughtin, Claire K; Mattingley, Jason B; Dux, Paul E

2018-06-01

Incidental learning affords a behavioural advantage when sensory information matches regularities that have previously been encountered. Previous studies have taken a focused approach by probing the involvement of specific candidate brain regions underlying incidentally acquired memory representations, as well as expectation effects on early sensory representations. Here, we investigated the broader extent of the brain's sensitivity to violations and fulfilments of expectations, using an incidental learning paradigm in which the contingencies between target locations and target identities were manipulated without participants' overt knowledge. Multivariate analysis of functional magnetic resonance imaging data was applied to compare the consistency of neural activity for visual events that the contingency manipulation rendered likely versus unlikely. We observed widespread sensitivity to expectations across frontal, temporal, occipital, and sub-cortical areas. These activation clusters showed distinct response profiles, such that some regions displayed more reliable activation patterns under fulfilled expectations, whereas others showed more reliable patterns when expectations were violated. These findings reveal that expectations affect multiple stages of information processing during visual decision making, rather than early sensory processing stages alone. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

NASAwide electronic publishing system-prototype STI electronic document distribution: Stage-4 evaluation report. Part 2; Appendices

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tuey, Richard C.; Collins, Mary; Caswell, Pamela; Haynes, Bob; Nelson, Michael L.; Holm, Jeanne; Buquo, Lynn; Tingle, Annette; Cooper, Bill; Stiltner, Roy

1996-01-01

This evaluation report contains an introduction, seven chapters, and five appendices. The Introduction describes the purpose, conceptual framework, functional description, and technical report server of the Scientific and Technical Information (STI) Electronic Document Distribution (EDD) project. Chapter 1 documents the results of the prototype STI EDD in actual operation. Chapter 2 documents each NASA center's post processing publication processes. Chapter 3 documents each center's STI software, hardware. and communications configurations. Chapter 7 documents STI EDD policy, practices, and procedures. The appendices consist of (A) the STI EDD Project Plan, (B) Team members, (C) Phasing Schedules, (D) Accessing On-line Reports, and (E) Creating an HTML File and Setting Up an xTRS. In summary, Stage 4 of the NASAwide Electronic Publishing System is the final phase of its implementation through the prototyping and gradual integration of each NASA center's electronic printing systems, desk top publishing systems, and technical report servers, to be able to provide to NASA's engineers, researchers, scientists, and external users, the widest practicable and appropriate dissemination of information concerning its activities and the result thereof to their work stations.

An appreciation of Bruce and Young's (1986) serial stage model of face naming after 25 years.

PubMed

Hanley, J Richard

2011-11-01

The current status of Bruce and Young's (1986) serial model of face naming is discussed 25 years after its original publication. In the first part of the paper, evidence for and against the serial model is reviewed. It is argued that there is no compelling reason why we should abandon Bruce and Young's claim that recall of a name is contingent upon prior retrieval of semantic information about the person. The current status of the claim that people's names are more difficult to recall than the names of objects is then evaluated. Finally, an account of the anatomical location in the brain of Bruce and Young's three processing stages (face familiarity, retrieval of semantic information, retrieval of names) is suggested. In particular, there is evidence that biographical knowledge about familiar people is stored in the right anterior temporal lobes (ATL) and that the left temporal pole (TP) is heavily involved in retrieval of the names of familiar people. The issue of whether these brain areas play a similar role in object processing is also discussed. ©2011 The British Psychological Society.

A brain-computer interface based on self-regulation of gamma-oscillations in the superior parietal cortex

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grosse-Wentrup, Moritz; Schölkopf, Bernhard

2014-10-01

Objective. Brain-computer interface (BCI) systems are often based on motor- and/or sensory processes that are known to be impaired in late stages of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). We propose a novel BCI designed for patients in late stages of ALS that only requires high-level cognitive processes to transmit information from the user to the BCI. Approach. We trained subjects via EEG-based neurofeedback to self-regulate the amplitude of gamma-oscillations in the superior parietal cortex (SPC). We argue that parietal gamma-oscillations are likely to be associated with high-level attentional processes, thereby providing a communication channel that does not rely on the integrity of sensory- and/or motor-pathways impaired in late stages of ALS. Main results. Healthy subjects quickly learned to self-regulate gamma-power in the SPC by alternating between states of focused attention and relaxed wakefulness, resulting in an average decoding accuracy of 70.2%. One locked-in ALS patient (ALS-FRS-R score of zero) achieved an average decoding accuracy significantly above chance-level though insufficient for communication (55.8%). Significance. Self-regulation of gamma-power in the SPC is a feasible paradigm for brain-computer interfacing and may be preserved in late stages of ALS. This provides a novel approach to testing whether completely locked-in ALS patients retain the capacity for goal-directed thinking.

The Processing of Somatosensory Information Shifts from an Early Parallel into a Serial Processing Mode: A Combined fMRI/MEG Study.

PubMed

Klingner, Carsten M; Brodoehl, Stefan; Huonker, Ralph; Witte, Otto W

2016-01-01

The question regarding whether somatosensory inputs are processed in parallel or in series has not been clearly answered. Several studies that have applied dynamic causal modeling (DCM) to fMRI data have arrived at seemingly divergent conclusions. However, these divergent results could be explained by the hypothesis that the processing route of somatosensory information changes with time. Specifically, we suggest that somatosensory stimuli are processed in parallel only during the early stage, whereas the processing is later dominated by serial processing. This hypothesis was revisited in the present study based on fMRI analyses of tactile stimuli and the application of DCM to magnetoencephalographic (MEG) data collected during sustained (260 ms) tactile stimulation. Bayesian model comparisons were used to infer the processing stream. We demonstrated that the favored processing stream changes over time. We found that the neural activity elicited in the first 100 ms following somatosensory stimuli is best explained by models that support a parallel processing route, whereas a serial processing route is subsequently favored. These results suggest that the secondary somatosensory area (SII) receives information regarding a new stimulus in parallel with the primary somatosensory area (SI), whereas later processing in the SII is dominated by the preprocessed input from the SI.

The Processing of Somatosensory Information Shifts from an Early Parallel into a Serial Processing Mode: A Combined fMRI/MEG Study

PubMed Central

Klingner, Carsten M.; Brodoehl, Stefan; Huonker, Ralph; Witte, Otto W.

2016-01-01

The question regarding whether somatosensory inputs are processed in parallel or in series has not been clearly answered. Several studies that have applied dynamic causal modeling (DCM) to fMRI data have arrived at seemingly divergent conclusions. However, these divergent results could be explained by the hypothesis that the processing route of somatosensory information changes with time. Specifically, we suggest that somatosensory stimuli are processed in parallel only during the early stage, whereas the processing is later dominated by serial processing. This hypothesis was revisited in the present study based on fMRI analyses of tactile stimuli and the application of DCM to magnetoencephalographic (MEG) data collected during sustained (260 ms) tactile stimulation. Bayesian model comparisons were used to infer the processing stream. We demonstrated that the favored processing stream changes over time. We found that the neural activity elicited in the first 100 ms following somatosensory stimuli is best explained by models that support a parallel processing route, whereas a serial processing route is subsequently favored. These results suggest that the secondary somatosensory area (SII) receives information regarding a new stimulus in parallel with the primary somatosensory area (SI), whereas later processing in the SII is dominated by the preprocessed input from the SI. PMID:28066197

Neuromodulation: acetylcholine and memory consolidation.

PubMed

Hasselmo

1999-09-01

Clinical and experimental evidence suggests that hippocampal damage causes more severe disruption of episodic memories if those memories were encoded in the recent rather than the more distant past. This decrease in sensitivity to damage over time might reflect the formation of multiple traces within the hippocampus itself, or the formation of additional associative links in entorhinal and association cortices. Physiological evidence also supports a two-stage model of the encoding process in which the initial encoding occurs during active waking and deeper consolidation occurs via the formation of additional memory traces during quiet waking or slow-wave sleep. In this article I will describe the changes in cholinergic tone within the hippocampus in different stages of the sleep-wake cycle and will propose that these changes modulate different stages of memory formation. In particular, I will suggest that the high levels of acetylcholine that are present during active waking might set the appropriate dynamics for encoding new information in the hippocampus, by partially suppressing excitatory feedback connections and so facilitating encoding without interference from previously stored information. By contrast, the lower levels of acetylcholine that are present during quiet waking and slow-wave sleep might release this suppression and thereby allow a stronger spread of activity within the hippocampus itself and from the hippocampus to the entorhinal cortex, thus facilitating the process of consolidation of separate memory traces.

Neural analysis of bovine ovaries ultrasound images in the identification process of the corpus luteum

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Górna, K.; Jaśkowski, B. M.; Okoń, P.; Czechlowski, M.; Koszela, K.; Zaborowicz, M.; Idziaszek, P.

2017-07-01

The aim of the paper is to shown the neural image analysis as a method useful for identifying the development stage of the domestic bovine corpus luteum on digital USG (UltraSonoGraphy) images. Corpus luteum (CL) is a transient endocrine gland that develops after ovulation from the follicle secretory cells. The aim of CL is the production of progesterone, which regulates many reproductive functions. In the presented studies, identification of the corpus luteum was carried out on the basis of information contained in ultrasound digital images. Development stage of the corpus luteum was considered in two aspects: just before and middle of domination phase and luteolysis and degradation phase. Prior to the classification, the ultrasound images have been processed using a GLCM (Gray Level Co-occurence Matrix). To generate a classification model, a Neural Networks module implemented in the STATISTICA was used. Five representative parameters describing the ultrasound image were used as learner variables. On the output of the artificial neural network was generated information about the development stage of the corpus luteum. Results of this study indicate that neural image analysis combined with GLCM texture analysis may be a useful tool for identifying the bovine corpus luteum in the context of its development phase. Best-generated artificial neural network model was the structure of MLP (Multi Layer Perceptron) 5:5-17-1:1.

Binocular contrast-gain control for natural scenes: Image structure and phase alignment.

PubMed

Huang, Pi-Chun; Dai, Yu-Ming

2018-05-01

In the context of natural scenes, we applied the pattern-masking paradigm to investigate how image structure and phase alignment affect contrast-gain control in binocular vision. We measured the discrimination thresholds of bandpass-filtered natural-scene images (targets) under various types of pedestals. Our first experiment had four pedestal types: bandpass-filtered pedestals, unfiltered pedestals, notch-filtered pedestals (which enabled removal of the spatial frequency), and misaligned pedestals (which involved rotation of unfiltered pedestals). Our second experiment featured six types of pedestals: bandpass-filtered, unfiltered, and notch-filtered pedestals, and the corresponding phase-scrambled pedestals. The thresholds were compared for monocular, binocular, and dichoptic viewing configurations. The bandpass-filtered pedestal and unfiltered pedestals showed classic dipper shapes; the dipper shapes of the notch-filtered, misaligned, and phase-scrambled pedestals were weak. We adopted a two-stage binocular contrast-gain control model to describe our results. We deduced that the phase-alignment information influenced the contrast-gain control mechanism before the binocular summation stage and that the phase-alignment information and structural misalignment information caused relatively strong divisive inhibition in the monocular and interocular suppression stages. When the pedestals were phase-scrambled, the elimination of the interocular suppression processing was the most convincing explanation of the results. Thus, our results indicated that both phase-alignment information and similar image structures cause strong interocular suppression. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Use of PCR-DGGE Based Molecular Methods to Analyse Microbial Community Diversity and Stability during the Thermophilic Stages of an ATAD Wastewater Sludge Treatment Process as an Aid to Performance Monitoring

PubMed Central

Piterina, Anna V.; Pembroke, J. Tony

2013-01-01

PCR and PCR-DGGE techniques have been evaluated to monitor biodiversity indexes within an ATAD (autothermal thermophilic aerobic digestion) system treating domestic sludge for land spread, by examining microbial dynamics in response to elevated temperatures during treatment. The ATAD process utilises a thermophilic population to generate heat and operates at elevated pH due to degradation of sludge solids, thus allowing pasteurisation and stabilisation of the sludge. Genera-specific PCR revealed that Archaea, Eukarya and Fungi decline when the temperature reaches 59°C, while the bacterial lineage constitutes the dominant group at this stage. The bacterial community at the thermophilic stage, its similarity index to the feed material, and the species richness present were evaluated by PCR-DGGE. Parameters such as choice of molecular target (16S rDNA or rpoB genes), and electrophoresis condition, were optimised to maximise the resolution of the method for ATAD. Dynamic analysis of microbial communities was best observed utilising PCR-DGGE analysis of the V6-V8 region of 16S rDNA, while rpoB gene profiles were less informative. Unique thermophilic communities were shown to quickly adapt to process changes, and shown to be quite stable during the process. Such techniques may be used as a monitoring technique for process health and efficiency. PMID:25937969

Face Context Influences Local Part Processing: An ERP Study.

PubMed

Zhang, Hong; Sun, Yaoru; Zhao, Lun

2017-09-01

Perception of face parts on the basis of features is thought to be different from perception of whole faces, which is more based on configural information. Face context is also suggested to play an important role in face processing. To investigate how face context influences the early-stage perception of facial local parts, we used an oddball paradigm that tested perceptual stages of face processing rather than recognition. We recorded the event-related potentials (ERPs) elicited by whole faces and face parts presented in four conditions (upright-normal, upright-thatcherised, inverted-normal and inverted-thatcherised), as well as the ERPs elicited by non-face objects (whole houses and house parts) with corresponding conditions. The results showed that face context significantly affected the N170 with increased amplitudes and earlier peak latency for upright normal faces. Removing face context delayed the P1 latency but did not affect the P1 amplitude prominently for both upright and inverted normal faces. Across all conditions, neither the N170 nor the P1 was modulated by house context. The significant changes on the N170 and P1 components revealed that face context influences local part processing at the early stage of face processing and this context effect might be specific for face perception. We further suggested that perceptions of whole faces and face parts are functionally distinguished.

Changes in microbial contamination levels and prevalence of foodborne pathogens in alfalfa (Medicago sativa) and rapeseed (Brassica napus) during sprout production in manufacturing plants.

PubMed

Kim, S A; Kim, O M; Rhee, M S

2013-01-01

Samples were taken from three sprout processing plants at five different stages of production (a total of 20 investigations). Quantitative analyses comprised aerobic plate counts (APCs) and the measurement of coliforms and Bacillus cereus levels, whereas qualitative analyses involved assessing the levels of Escherichia coli and major foodborne pathogens (E. coli O157:H7, Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella spp., and Staphylococcus aureus). The APC for alfalfa seeds (3·71-4·61 log CFU g(-1)) and rapeseed (4·25-5·11 log CFU g(-1)) increased by approximately 3 log CFU g(-1) during sprouting, reaching 7·17-7·61 and 7·33-8·28 log CFU g(-1), respectively, by the final stage of production. Similarly, increasing trends were noted in the level of coliforms (0·58-4·03 log CFU g(-1) at the seed stage, increasing to 5·52-6·99 log CFU g(-1) by the sprout stage). Bacillus cereus was detected in eight alfalfa (40%) and 14 rapeseed (70%) sprouts, and L. monocytogenes was isolated from one pregermination soaked alfalfa seed. A slight reduction in the level of bacterial contamination was noted after washing the sprouts with water prior to storage, indicating that improvements to the current washing protocol, or other efficient intervention methods, may be needed. Taken together, these results suggest that improved hygiene control during production and processing and a more sanitary environment are needed. The present study provides comprehensive information regarding the microbiological safety of seeds and sprouts during manufacturing. The present study investigated the levels of microbial contamination present in alfalfa and rapeseed sprouts by examining the samples taken at different stages of the manufacturing process in three actual plants. The results provide detailed information regarding the levels of seed and sprout contamination during production. The results may be useful to those involved in the sprout industry and/or academic research in terms of developing hygienic control measures, efficient intervention methods and appropriate guidelines. © 2012 The Society for Applied Microbiology.

A comparison of gene transcription profiles of domesticated and wild Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.) at early life stages, reared under controlled conditions.

PubMed

Bicskei, Beatrix; Bron, James E; Glover, Kevin A; Taggart, John B

2014-10-09

Atlantic salmon have been subject to domestication for approximately ten generations, beginning in the early 1970s. This process of artificial selection will have created various genetic differences between wild and farmed stocks. Each year, hundreds of thousands of farmed fish escape into the wild. These escapees may interbreed with wild conspecifics raising concerns for both the fish-farming industry and fisheries managers. Thus, a better understanding of the interactions between domesticated and wild salmon is essential to the continued sustainability of the aquaculture industry and to the maintenance of healthy wild stocks. We compared the transcriptomes of a wild Norwegian Atlantic salmon population (Figgjo) and a Norwegian farmed strain (Mowi) at two life stages: yolk sac fry and post first-feeding fry. The analysis employed 44 k oligo-microarrays to analyse gene expression of 36 farmed, wild and hybrid (farmed dam x wild sire) individuals reared under identical hatchery conditions. Although some of the transcriptional differences detected overlapped between sampling points, our results highlighted the importance of studying various life stages. Compared to the wild population, the Mowi strain displayed up-regulation in mRNA translation-related and down regulation in nervous and immune system -related pathways in the sac fry, whereas up-regulation of digestive and endocrine activities, carbohydrate, energy, amino acid and lipid metabolism and down-regulation of environmental information processing and immune system pathways were evident in the feeding fry. Differentially regulated pathways that were common among life stages generally belonged to environmental information processing and immune system functional groups. In addition, we found indications of strong maternal effects, reinforcing the importance of including reciprocal hybrids in the analysis. In agreement with previous studies we showed that domestication has caused changes in the transcriptome of wild Atlantic salmon and that many of the affected pathways are life-stage specific We highlighted the importance of reciprocal hybrids to the deconvolution of maternal/paternal effects and our data support the view that the genetic architecture of the strains studied highly influences the genes differentially expressed between wild and domesticated fish.

Analysis of flight equipment purchasing practices of representative air carriers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1977-01-01

The process through which representative air carriers decide whether or not to purchase flight equipment was investigated as well as their practices and policies in retiring surplus aircraft. An analysis of the flight equipment investment decision process in ten airlines shows that for the airline industry as a whole, the flight equipment investment decision is in a state of transition from a wholly informal process in earliest years to a much more organized and structured process in the future. Individual air carriers are in different stages with respect to the formality and sophistication associated with the flight equipment investment decision.

Text block identification in restoration process of Javanese script damage

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Himamunanto, A. R.; Setyowati, E.

2018-05-01

Generally, in a sheet of documents there are two objects of information, namely text and image. A text block area in the sheet of manuscript is a vital object because the restoration process would be done only in this object. Text block or text area identification becomes an important step before. This paper describes the steps leading to the restoration of Java script destruction. The process stages are: pre-processing, identification of text block, segmentation, damage identification, restoration. The test result based on the input manuscript “Hamong Tani” show that the system works with a success rate of 82.07%

[Combined application of multiple fluorescence in research on the degradation of fluoranthene by potassium ferrate].

PubMed

Li, Si; Yu, Dan-Ni; Ji, Fang-Ying; Zhou, Guang-Ming; He, Qiang

2012-11-01

The degradation of fluoranthene was researched by combined means of multiple fluorescence spectra, including emission, synchronous, excitation emission matrix (EEM), time-scan and photometry. The characteristics of the degradation and fluoranthene molecular changes within the degradation's process were also discussed according to the information about the degradation provided by all of the fluorescence spectra mentioned above. The equations of fluoranthene's degradation by potassium ferrate were obtained on the bases of fitting time-scan fluorescence curves at different time, and the degradation's kinetic was speculated accordingly. From the experimental results, multiple fluorescence data commonly reflected that it had same degradation rate at the same reaction time. t = 10 s, and the degradation rate is -55%, t = 25 s, -81%, t = 40 s, -91%. No new fluorescent characteristic was observed within every degradation' stage. The reaction stage during t < or = 20 s was crucial, in which the degradation process is closest to linear relationship. After this beginning stage, the linear relationship deviated gradually with the development of the degradation process. The degradation of fluoranthene by potassium ferrate was nearly in accord with the order of the first order reaction.

Cardiovascular regulation during sleep quantified by symbolic coupling traces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suhrbier, A.; Riedl, M.; Malberg, H.; Penzel, T.; Bretthauer, G.; Kurths, J.; Wessel, N.

2010-12-01

Sleep is a complex regulated process with short periods of wakefulness and different sleep stages. These sleep stages modulate autonomous functions such as blood pressure and heart rate. The method of symbolic coupling traces (SCT) is used to analyze and quantify time-delayed coupling of these measurements during different sleep stages. The symbolic coupling traces, defined as the symmetric and diametric traces of the bivariate word distribution matrix, allow the quantification of time-delayed coupling. In this paper, the method is applied to heart rate and systolic blood pressure time series during different sleep stages for healthy controls as well as for normotensive and hypertensive patients with sleep apneas. Using the SCT, significant different cardiovascular mechanisms not only between the deep sleep and the other sleep stages but also between healthy subjects and patients can be revealed. The SCT method is applied to model systems, compared with established methods, such as cross correlation, mutual information, and cross recurrence analysis and demonstrates its advantages especially for nonstationary physiological data. As a result, SCT proves to be more specific in detecting delays of directional interactions than standard coupling analysis methods and yields additional information which cannot be measured by standard parameters of heart rate and blood pressure variability. The proposed method may help to indicate the pathological changes in cardiovascular regulation and also the effects of continuous positive airway pressure therapy on the cardiovascular system.

How Semantic Radicals in Chinese characters Facilitate Hierarchical Category-Based Induction.

PubMed

Wang, Xiaoxi; Ma, Xie; Tao, Yun; Tao, Yachen; Li, Hong

2018-04-03

Prior studies indicate that the semantic radical in Chinese characters contains category information that can support the independent retrieval of category information through the lexical network to the conceptual network. Inductive reasoning relies on category information; thus, semantic radicals may influence inductive reasoning. As most natural concepts are hierarchically structured in the human brain, this study examined how semantic radicals impact inductive reasoning for hierarchical concepts. The study used animal and plant nouns, organized in basic, superordinate, and subordinate levels; half had a semantic radical and half did not. Eighteen participants completed an inductive reasoning task. Behavioural and event-related potential (ERP) data were collected. The behavioural results showed that participants reacted faster and more accurately in the with-semantic-radical condition than in the without-semantic-radical condition. For the ERPs, differences between the conditions were found, and these differences lasted from the very early cognitive processing stage (i.e., the N1 time window) to the relatively late processing stages (i.e., the N400 and LPC time windows). Semantic radicals can help to distinguish the hierarchies earlier (in the N400 period) than characters without a semantic radical (in the LPC period). These results provide electrophysiological evidence that semantic radicals may improve sensitivity to distinguish between hierarchical concepts.

Real Time Spectroscopic Ellipsometry Analysis of First Stage CuIn1−xGaxSe2 Growth: Indium-Gallium Selenide Co-Evaporation

PubMed Central

Pradhan, Puja; Aryal, Puruswottam; Attygalle, Dinesh; Ibdah, Abdel-Rahman; Koirala, Prakash; Li, Jian; Bhandari, Khagendra P.; Liyanage, Geethika K.; Ellingson, Randy J.; Heben, Michael J.; Marsillac, Sylvain; Collins, Robert W.; Podraza, Nikolas J.

2018-01-01

Real time spectroscopic ellipsometry (RTSE) has been applied for in-situ monitoring of the first stage of copper indium-gallium diselenide (CIGS) thin film deposition by the three-stage co-evaporation process used for fabrication of high efficiency thin film photovoltaic (PV) devices. The first stage entails the growth of indium-gallium selenide (In1−xGax)2Se3 (IGS) on a substrate of Mo-coated soda lime glass maintained at a temperature of 400 °C. This is a critical stage of CIGS deposition because a large fraction of the final film thickness is deposited, and as a result precise compositional control is desired in order to achieve the optimum performance of the resulting CIGS solar cell. RTSE is sensitive to monolayer level film growth processes and can provide accurate measurements of bulk and surface roughness layer thicknesses. These in turn enable accurate measurements of the bulk layer optical response in the form of the complex dielectric function ε = ε1 − iε2, spectra. Here, RTSE has been used to obtain the (ε1, ε2) spectra at the measurement temperature of 400 °C for IGS thin films of different Ga contents (x) deduced from different ranges of accumulated bulk layer thickness during the deposition process. Applying an analytical expression in common for each of the (ε1, ε2) spectra of these IGS films, oscillator parameters have been obtained in the best fits and these parameters in turn have been fitted with polynomials in x. From the resulting database of polynomial coefficients, the (ε1, ε2) spectra can be generated for any composition of IGS from the single parameter, x. The results have served as an RTSE fingerprint for IGS composition and have provided further structural information beyond simply thicknesses, for example information related to film density and grain size. The deduced IGS structural evolution and the (ε1, ε2) spectra have been interpreted as well in relation to observations from scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffractometry and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy profiling analyses. Overall the structural, optical and compositional analysis possible by RTSE has assisted in understanding the growth and properties of three stage CIGS absorbers for solar cells and shows future promise for enhancing cell performance through monitoring and control. PMID:29337931

Real Time Spectroscopic Ellipsometry Analysis of First Stage CuIn1-xGaxSe₂ Growth: Indium-Gallium Selenide Co-Evaporation.

PubMed

Pradhan, Puja; Aryal, Puruswottam; Attygalle, Dinesh; Ibdah, Abdel-Rahman; Koirala, Prakash; Li, Jian; Bhandari, Khagendra P; Liyanage, Geethika K; Ellingson, Randy J; Heben, Michael J; Marsillac, Sylvain; Collins, Robert W; Podraza, Nikolas J

2018-01-16

Real time spectroscopic ellipsometry (RTSE) has been applied for in-situ monitoring of the first stage of copper indium-gallium diselenide (CIGS) thin film deposition by the three-stage co-evaporation process used for fabrication of high efficiency thin film photovoltaic (PV) devices. The first stage entails the growth of indium-gallium selenide (In 1- x Ga x )₂Se₃ (IGS) on a substrate of Mo-coated soda lime glass maintained at a temperature of 400 °C. This is a critical stage of CIGS deposition because a large fraction of the final film thickness is deposited, and as a result precise compositional control is desired in order to achieve the optimum performance of the resulting CIGS solar cell. RTSE is sensitive to monolayer level film growth processes and can provide accurate measurements of bulk and surface roughness layer thicknesses. These in turn enable accurate measurements of the bulk layer optical response in the form of the complex dielectric function ε = ε₁ - iε₂, spectra. Here, RTSE has been used to obtain the (ε₁, ε₂) spectra at the measurement temperature of 400 °C for IGS thin films of different Ga contents ( x ) deduced from different ranges of accumulated bulk layer thickness during the deposition process. Applying an analytical expression in common for each of the (ε₁, ε₂) spectra of these IGS films, oscillator parameters have been obtained in the best fits and these parameters in turn have been fitted with polynomials in x . From the resulting database of polynomial coefficients, the (ε₁, ε₂) spectra can be generated for any composition of IGS from the single parameter, x . The results have served as an RTSE fingerprint for IGS composition and have provided further structural information beyond simply thicknesses, for example information related to film density and grain size. The deduced IGS structural evolution and the (ε₁, ε₂) spectra have been interpreted as well in relation to observations from scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffractometry and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy profiling analyses. Overall the structural, optical and compositional analysis possible by RTSE has assisted in understanding the growth and properties of three stage CIGS absorbers for solar cells and shows future promise for enhancing cell performance through monitoring and control.

Design of high reliability organizations in health care.

PubMed

Carroll, J S; Rudolph, J W

2006-12-01

To improve safety performance, many healthcare organizations have sought to emulate high reliability organizations from industries such as nuclear power, chemical processing, and military operations. We outline high reliability design principles for healthcare organizations including both the formal structures and the informal practices that complement those structures. A stage model of organizational structures and practices, moving from local autonomy to formal controls to open inquiry to deep self-understanding, is used to illustrate typical challenges and design possibilities at each stage. We suggest how organizations can use the concepts and examples presented to increase their capacity to self-design for safety and reliability.

Sensitivity to timing and order in human visual cortex.

PubMed

Singer, Jedediah M; Madsen, Joseph R; Anderson, William S; Kreiman, Gabriel

2015-03-01

Visual recognition takes a small fraction of a second and relies on the cascade of signals along the ventral visual stream. Given the rapid path through multiple processing steps between photoreceptors and higher visual areas, information must progress from stage to stage very quickly. This rapid progression of information suggests that fine temporal details of the neural response may be important to the brain's encoding of visual signals. We investigated how changes in the relative timing of incoming visual stimulation affect the representation of object information by recording intracranial field potentials along the human ventral visual stream while subjects recognized objects whose parts were presented with varying asynchrony. Visual responses along the ventral stream were sensitive to timing differences as small as 17 ms between parts. In particular, there was a strong dependency on the temporal order of stimulus presentation, even at short asynchronies. From these observations we infer that the neural representation of complex information in visual cortex can be modulated by rapid dynamics on scales of tens of milliseconds. Copyright © 2015 the American Physiological Society.

Achieving success in intervention studies: an analysis of variable staff engagement across three midwifery settings.

PubMed

Henderson, Amanda; Schoonbeek, Sue; Ossenberg, Christine; Caddick, Alison; Wing, Diane; Capell, Lorna; Gould, Karen

2014-06-01

To critically analyse the success of staff's behaviour changes in the practice setting. Facilitators were employed to initiate and facilitate a four-step process (optimism, overcoming obstacles, oversight and reinforcing outcomes) that fostered development of behaviours consistent with learning in everyday practice. Many studies seek to engage staff in workplace behaviour improvement. The success of such studies is highly variable. Little is known about the work of the facilitator in ensuring success. Understanding the contextual factors that contribute to effective facilitation of workplace improvement is essential to ensure best use of resources. Mixed methods Facilitators employed a four-step process - optimism, overcoming obstacles, oversight and reinforcing outcomes - to stage behaviour change implementation. The analysis of staff engagement in behaviour changes was assessed through weekly observation of workplaces, informal discussions with staff and facilitator diaries. The impact of behaviour change was informed through pre- and postsurveys on staff's perception across three midwifery sites. Surveys measured (1) midwives' perception of support for their role in facilitating learning (Support Instrument for Nurses Facilitating the Learning of Others) and (2) development of a learning culture in midwifery practice settings (Clinical Learning Organisational Culture Survey). Midwives across three sites completed the presurvey (n = 216) and postsurvey (n = 90). Impact varied according to the degree that facilitators were able to progress teams through four stages necessary for change (OOORO). Statistically significant results were apparent in two subscales important for supporting staff, namely teamwork and acknowledgement; in the two areas, facilitators worked through 'obstacles' and coached staff in performing the desired behaviours and rewarded them for their success. Elements of the learning culture also statistically improved in one site. Findings suggest behaviour change success is dependent on facilitators to systematically engage staff through all four stages of implementation. It is important that investment is made to commitment and resources to all four stages before embarking on change processes. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Character Decomposition and Transposition Processes of Chinese Compound Words in Rapid Serial Visual Presentation.

PubMed

Cao, Hong-Wen; Yang, Ke-Yu; Yan, Hong-Mei

2017-01-01

Character order information is encoded at the initial stage of Chinese word processing, however, its time course remains underspecified. In this study, we assess the exact time course of the character decomposition and transposition processes of two-character Chinese compound words (canonical, transposed, or reversible words) compared with pseudowords using dual-target rapid serial visual presentation (RSVP) of stimuli appearing at 30 ms per character with no inter-stimulus interval. The results indicate that Chinese readers can identify words with character transpositions in rapid succession; however, a transposition cost is involved in identifying transposed words compared to canonical words. In RSVP reading, character order of words is more likely to be reversed during the period from 30 to 180 ms for canonical and reversible words, but the period from 30 to 240 ms for transposed words. Taken together, the findings demonstrate that the holistic representation of the base word is activated, however, the order of the two constituent characters is not strictly processed during the very early stage of visual word processing.

Evaluation of interventions for informed consent for randomised controlled trials (ELICIT): protocol for a systematic review of the literature and identification of a core outcome set using a Delphi survey.

PubMed

Gillies, Katie; Entwistle, Vikki; Treweek, Shaun P; Fraser, Cynthia; Williamson, Paula R; Campbell, Marion K

2015-10-27

The process of obtaining informed consent for participation in randomised controlled trials (RCTs) was established as a mechanism to protect participants against undue harm from research and allow people to recognise any potential risks or benefits associated with the research. A number of interventions have been put forward to improve this process. Outcomes reported in trials of interventions to improve the informed consent process for decisions about trial participation tend to focus on the 'understanding' of trial information. However, the operationalization of understanding as a concept, the tools used to measure it and the timing of the measurements are heterogeneous. A lack of clarity exists regarding which outcomes matter (to whom) and why. This inconsistency between studies results in difficulties when making comparisons across studies as evidenced in two recent systematic reviews of informed consent interventions. As such, no optimal method for measuring the impact of these interventions aimed at improving informed consent for RCTs has been identified. The project will adopt and adapt methodology previously developed and used in projects developing core outcome sets for assessment of clinical treatments. Specifically, the work will consist of three stages: 1) A systematic methodology review of existing outcome measures of trial informed consent interventions; 2) Interviews with key stakeholders to explore additional outcomes relevant for trial participation decisions; and 3) A Delphi study to refine the core outcome set for evaluation of trial informed consent interventions. All stages will include the stakeholders involved in the various aspects of RCT consent: users (that is, patients), developers (that is, trialists), deliverers (focusing on research nurses) and authorisers (that is, ethics committees). A final consensus meeting including all stakeholders will be held to review outcomes. The ELICIT study aims to develop a core outcome set for the evaluation of interventions intended to improve informed consent for RCTs for use in future RCTs and reviews, thereby improving the reliability and consistency of research in this area.

A usability evaluation toolkit for In-Vehicle Information Systems (IVISs).

PubMed

Harvey, Catherine; Stanton, Neville A; Pickering, Carl A; McDonald, Mike; Zheng, Pengjun

2011-05-01

Usability must be defined specifically for the context of use of the particular system under investigation. This specific context of use should also be used to guide the definition of specific usability criteria and the selection of appropriate evaluation methods. There are four principles which can guide the selection of evaluation methods, relating to the information required in the evaluation, the stage at which to apply methods, the resources required and the people involved in the evaluation. This paper presents a framework for the evaluation of usability in the context of In-Vehicle Information Systems (IVISs). This framework guides designers through defining usability criteria for an evaluation, selecting appropriate evaluation methods and applying those methods. These stages form an iterative process of design-evaluation-redesign with the overall aim of improving the usability of IVISs and enhancing the driving experience, without compromising the safety of the driver. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd and The Ergonomics Society. All rights reserved.

Influence of a Small Amount of Glycerol on the Trehalose Bioprotective Action Analyzed In Situ During Freeze-Drying of Lyzozyme Formulations by Micro-Raman Spectroscopy.

PubMed

Starciuc, Tatiana; Guinet, Yannick; Paccou, Laurent; Hedoux, Alain

2017-10-01

Micro-Raman spectroscopy gives the original opportunity to monitor simultaneously the operating process and the protein structure from in situ investigations along the 3 stages of the freeze-drying (FD) process. This opportunity was used for determining how a small amount of glycerol enhances the bioprotective efficiency of trehalose during FD of lysozyme formulations. Three lysozyme formulations were analyzed: lysozyme dissolved in D 2 O (wt% 1:9), in trehalose-D 2 O mixture (wt% 1:1:8), and in the trehalose-glycerol-D 2 O mixture (wt% 1:1:0.17:7.93). Raman mapping performed during each stage of the FD process has provided important information about the preferential interaction between water, trehalose, and lysozyme in relation to the protein stability. It was found that the addition of a small amount of glycerol had a plasticizing effect on the glassy trehalose-water matrix during the primary drying stage and then reduced the bioprotective effect of trehalose. By contrast, during the secondary drying stage, glycerol significantly enhanced the stabilizing effect of trehalose in the same sample, by replacing water-trehalose H-bonds with stronger glycerol-trehalose H-bonds and stiffening the amorphous trehalose matrix. The action of glycerol is also related to its capability to prevent aggregation of trehalose, making the structure of the frozen product more homogeneous, by changing the hydrogen-bond networks in the liquid formulation before the freezing stage. Copyright © 2017 American Pharmacists Association®. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The ideas about advanced life support and affecting factors at the end-stage of life in a hospital in Turkey.

PubMed

Albayrak, Turgay; Şencan, İrfan; Akça, Ömer; Koç, Esra Meltem; Aksoy, Hilal; Ünsal, Selim; Bülbül, İskender; Bahadır, Adem; Kasım, İsmail; Kahveci, Rabia; Özkara, Adem

2017-01-01

The participation of the people in health decisions may be structured in various levels. One of these is participation in decisions for the treatment. "Advanced directives" is one of the examples for the participation in decisions for the treatment. We wanted to determine the decisions on advanced life support at the end-stage of life in case of a life-threatening illness for the people themselves and their first degree relatives and the factors effecting these decisions. The cross-sectional study was conducted with volunteers among patients and patient relatives who applied to all polyclinics of the Ankara Numune Training and Research Hospital except the emergency, oncology and psychiatry polyclinics between 15.12.2012 and 15.03.2013. A questionnaire, the Hospital Anxiety Depression (HAD) scale, and Templer's Death Anxiety Scale (TDA) were applied to all individuals. SPSS for Win. Ver. 17.0 and MS-Excel 2010 Starter software bundles were used for all statistical analysis and calculations. The participants want both themselves and their first degree relatives included in end-stage decision-making process. Therefore, the patients and their families should be informed adequately during decision making process and quality communication must be provided. Participants who have given their end-stage decisions previously want to be treated according to these decisions. This desire can just be possible by advanced directives.When moral and material loads of end-stage process are taken into consideration, countries, in which advanced directives are practiced, should be examined well and participants' desire should be evaluated in terms of practicability.

Knowledge Interaction Design for Creative Knowledge Work

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nakakoji, Kumiyo; Yamamoto, Yasuhiro

This paper describes our approach for the development of application systems for creative knowledge work, particularly for early stages of information design tasks. Being a cognitive tool serving as a means of externalization, an application system affects how the user is engaged in the creative process through its visual interaction design. Knowledge interaction design described in this paper is a framework where a set of application systems for different information design domains are developed based on an interaction model, which is designed for a particular model of a thinking process. We have developed two sets of application systems using the knowledge interaction design framework: one includes systems for linear information design, such as writing, movie-editing, and video-analysis; the other includes systems for network information design, such as file-system navigation and hypertext authoring. Our experience shows that the resulting systems encourage users to follow a certain cognitive path through graceful user experience.

Neural time course of visually enhanced echo suppression.

PubMed

Bishop, Christopher W; London, Sam; Miller, Lee M

2012-10-01

Auditory spatial perception plays a critical role in day-to-day communication. For instance, listeners utilize acoustic spatial information to segregate individual talkers into distinct auditory "streams" to improve speech intelligibility. However, spatial localization is an exceedingly difficult task in everyday listening environments with numerous distracting echoes from nearby surfaces, such as walls. Listeners' brains overcome this unique challenge by relying on acoustic timing and, quite surprisingly, visual spatial information to suppress short-latency (1-10 ms) echoes through a process known as "the precedence effect" or "echo suppression." In the present study, we employed electroencephalography (EEG) to investigate the neural time course of echo suppression both with and without the aid of coincident visual stimulation in human listeners. We find that echo suppression is a multistage process initialized during the auditory N1 (70-100 ms) and followed by space-specific suppression mechanisms from 150 to 250 ms. Additionally, we find a robust correlate of listeners' spatial perception (i.e., suppressing or not suppressing the echo) over central electrode sites from 300 to 500 ms. Contrary to our hypothesis, vision's powerful contribution to echo suppression occurs late in processing (250-400 ms), suggesting that vision contributes primarily during late sensory or decision making processes. Together, our findings support growing evidence that echo suppression is a slow, progressive mechanism modifiable by visual influences during late sensory and decision making stages. Furthermore, our findings suggest that audiovisual interactions are not limited to early, sensory-level modulations but extend well into late stages of cortical processing.

How consumers are affected by product descriptions in online shopping: Event-related potentials evidence of the attribute framing effect.

PubMed

Jin, Jia; Zhang, Wuke; Chen, Mingliang

2017-12-01

Due to the limitations of the human ability to process information, e-consumers' decisions are likely to be influenced by various cognitive biases, such as the attribute framing effect. This effect has been well studied by numerous scholars; however, the associated underlying neural mechanisms with a critical temporal resolution have not been revealed. Thus, this study applies the measurement of event-related potentials (ERPs) to directly examine the role of attribute framing in information processing and decision-making in online shopping. The behavioral results showed that participants demonstrated a higher purchase intention with a shorter reaction time under a positive framing condition compared to participants under a negative framing condition. Compared with positive framing messages, the results of ERPs indicated that negative framing messages attracted more attention resources at the early stage of rapid automatic processing (larger P2 amplitude) and resulted in greater cognitive conflict and decision difficulty (larger P2-N2 complex). Moreover, compared with negative messages, positive framing messages allowed consumers to perceive a better future performance of products and classify these products as a categorization of higher evaluation (larger LPP amplitude) at the late cognitive processing stage of evaluation. Based on these results, we provide evidence for a better understanding of how different attribute framing messages are processed and ultimately lead to the framing effect. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ireland Ltd and Japan Neuroscience Society. All rights reserved.

A Cleaner Process for Selective Recovery of Valuable Metals from Electronic Waste of Complex Mixtures of End-of-Life Electronic Products.

PubMed

Sun, Zhi; Xiao, Y; Sietsma, J; Agterhuis, H; Yang, Y

2015-07-07

In recent years, recovery of metals from electronic waste within the European Union has become increasingly important due to potential supply risk of strategic raw material and environmental concerns. Electronic waste, especially a mixture of end-of-life electronic products from a variety of sources, is of inherently high complexity in composition, phase, and physiochemical properties. In this research, a closed-loop hydrometallurgical process was developed to recover valuable metals, i.e., copper and precious metals, from an industrially processed information and communication technology waste. A two-stage leaching design of this process was adopted in order to selectively extract copper and enrich precious metals. It was found that the recovery efficiency and extraction selectivity of copper both reached more than 95% by using ammonia-based leaching solutions. A new electrodeposition process has been proven feasible with 90% current efficiency during copper recovery, and the copper purity can reach 99.8 wt %. The residue from the first-stage leaching was screened into coarse and fine fractions. The coarse fraction was returned to be releached for further copper recovery. The fine fraction was treated in the second-stage leaching using sulfuric acid to further concentrate precious metals, which could achieve a 100% increase in their concentrations in the residue with negligible loss into the leaching solution. By a combination of different leaching steps and proper physical separation of light materials, this process can achieve closed-loop recycling of the waste with significant efficiency.

What information do patients need following a whiplash injury? The perspectives of patients and physiotherapists.

PubMed

Maujean, Annick; Sterling, Joanna; Sterling, Michele

2018-05-01

The aims of the present study were to identify information that individuals with whiplash associated disorders (WAD) need to know in the early stages of recovery and to establish whether there is a difference between what physiotherapists and whiplash-injured patients perceive as important information. Forty-one participants were recruited (20 whiplash-injured patients, 21 physiotherapists). Participants were asked to provide five statements to one open-ended question about what they believe is the most important information individuals with WAD need to know in the early stages of recovery. Participants provided 182 statements which were reviewed independently and organised into themes by two of the authors. Six key themes emerged from the statements. These included general information about whiplash injury, treatment and recovery, reassurance, provision of poor information and patients' interaction with general practitioners, maintaining daily activities, and compensation claims and litigation. Both patients and physiotherapists agreed on the type of general whiplash information that should be provided however, major differences were found with regard to information pertaining to compensation claims and litigation and maintaining daily activities. The findings of this study provide some insight into the type of information that WAD individuals require in the early stages of recovery. Implications for Rehabilitation The provision of reassurance can be an effective communication tool to decrease patients concerns about their injury and help strengthen the patient-health practitioner relationship. Although clinical guidelines for the management of whiplash injuries recommend that individuals must remain physically active post-injury, statements from the patient group indicate that this information is not always provided and clearly explained to patients. Keeping in line with the patient centred care approach of being responsive to patient needs and values, it is essential for health practitioners to be attentive to patients' preferences regarding the level of participation in treatment decisions. Processes need to be developed to deliver individuals with WAD accurate information regarding compensation claims so that these factors do not distract from focusing on recovery.

A qualitative study exploring midlife women's stages of change from domestic violence towards freedom.

PubMed

Keeling, June; Smith, Debbie; Fisher, Colleen

2016-03-08

Domestic Violence (DV) remains a significant global health problem for women in contemporary society. Existing literature on midlife women's experiences of domestic violence is limited and focuses on health implications. Leaving a violent relationship is a dynamic process that often requires multiple attempts and separations prior to final termination. The aim of this study was to explore the process of leaving a violent relationship for midlife women. This qualitative study involved fifteen women aged between 40-55 who had accessed residential and non-residential community support services for domestic violence within the UK. Community-based support agencies provided these women with access to letters of invitation and participant information sheet explaining the study. The women notified agency staff who contacted the research team to arrange a mutually convenient time to meet within a safe place for both the women and researchers. It was stressed to all potential participants that no identifiable information would be shared with the agency staff. Women were considered survivors of DV if they defined themselves as such. Data were gathered through semi structured interviews, transcribed verbatim and thematically analysed. Midlife women appear to differ from younger women by transitioning quickly though the stages of change, moving rapidly through the breaking free onto the maintenance stage. This rapid transition is the resultant effect of living with long-term violence causing a shift in the women's perception towards the violent partner, with an associated reclamation of power from within the violent relationship. A realisation that rapid departure from the violence may be critical in terms of personal safety, and the realisation that there was something 'wrong' within the relationship, a 'day of dawning' that had not been apparent previously appears to positively affect the trajectory of leaving. Midlife women appeared to navigate through the stages of change in a rapid linear process, forging ahead and exiting the relationship with certainty and without considering options. Whilst these findings appear to differ from younger women's process of leaving, further research is needed to explore and understand the optimum time for intervention and support to maximise midlife women's opportunities to escape an abusive partner, before being reflected appropriately in policy and practice.

Is that me in the mirror? Depersonalisation modulates tactile mirroring mechanisms.

PubMed

Adler, Julia; Schabinger, Nadine; Michal, Matthias; Beutel, Manfred E; Gillmeister, Helge

2016-05-01

Our sense of self is thought to develop through sensory-motor contingencies provided, not only by observing one's own body, but also by mirroring interactions with others. This suggests that there is a strong link between mirroring mechanisms and the bodily self. The present study tested whether this link is expressed at early, implicit stages of the mirroring process or at later, more cognitive stages. We also provide, to the best of our knowledge, the first demonstration of how inter-individual differences in our sense of bodily self may affect mirroring mechanisms. We used somatosensory event-related potentials (SEPs) to investigate the temporal dynamics of mirroring highly self-related information (viewed touch on one's own face) compared to other-related information (viewed touch on a stranger's face), in individuals with low and high levels of depersonalisation, a mental condition characterised by feeling detached or estranged from one's self and body. For the low-depersonalisation group, mirroring for self-related events (P45) preceded mirroring for other-related events (N80). At later stages (P200), mirroring was stronger for other-related than self-related events. This shows that early, implicit and later, more cognitive processes play different relative roles in mirroring self- and other-related bodily events. Critically, mirroring differed in the high-depersonalisation group, specifically for self-related events. An absence of early, implicit mirroring for self-related events over P45 suggests that the associated processes may be the neural correlates of the disembodiment experienced in depersonalisation. A lack of differential mirroring for self- and other-related events over P200 may reflect compensatory mechanisms that redress deficiencies in mirroring at earlier stages, which may break down to give rise to symptoms of depersonalisation. Alternatively, or in addition, they may represent an attenuation of processes related to self-other distinction. Our study thus shows that mirroring, especially for events on one's own face, can be strongly affected by how connected the observer feels to their own bodily self. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

An effective fovea detection and automatic assessment of diabetic maculopathy in color fundus images.

PubMed

Medhi, Jyoti Prakash; Dandapat, Samarendra

2016-07-01

Prolonged diabetes causes severe damage to the vision through leakage of blood and blood constituents over the retina. The effect of the leakage becomes more threatening when these abnormalities involve the macula. This condition is known as diabetic maculopathy and it leads to blindness, if not treated in time. Early detection and proper diagnosis can help in preventing this irreversible damage. To achieve this, the possible way is to perform retinal screening at regular intervals. But the ratio of ophthalmologists to patients is very small and the process of evaluation is time consuming. Here, the automatic methods for analyzing retinal/fundus images prove handy and help the ophthalmologists to screen at a faster rate. Motivated from this aspect, an automated method for detection and analysis of diabetic maculopathy is proposed in this work. The method is implemented in two stages. The first stage involves preprocessing required for preparing the image for further analysis. During this stage the input image is enhanced and the optic disc is masked to avoid false detection during bright lesion identification. The second stage is maculopathy detection and its analysis. Here, the retinal lesions including microaneurysms, hemorrhages and exudates are identified by processing the green and hue plane color images. The macula and the fovea locations are determined using intensity property of processed red plane image. Different circular regions are thereafter marked in the neighborhood of the macula. The presence of lesions in these regions is identified to confirm positive maculopathy. Later, the information is used for evaluating its severity. The principal advantage of the proposed algorithm is, utilization of the relation of blood vessels with optic disc and macula, which enhances the detection process. Proper usage of various color plane information sequentially enables the algorithm to perform better. The method is tested on various publicly available databases consisting of both normal and maculopathy images. The algorithm detects fovea with an accuracy of 98.92% when applied on 1374 images. The average specificity and sensitivity of the proposed method for maculopathy detection are obtained as 98.05% and 98.86% respectively. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Development of a decision aid to inform patients' and families' renal replacement therapy selection decisions.

PubMed

Ameling, Jessica M; Auguste, Priscilla; Ephraim, Patti L; Lewis-Boyer, LaPricia; DePasquale, Nicole; Greer, Raquel C; Crews, Deidra C; Powe, Neil R; Rabb, Hamid; Boulware, L Ebony

2012-12-01

Few educational resources have been developed to inform patients' renal replacement therapy (RRT) selection decisions. Patients progressing toward end stage renal disease (ESRD) must decide among multiple treatment options with varying characteristics. Complex information about treatments must be adequately conveyed to patients with different educational backgrounds and informational needs. Decisions about treatment options also require family input, as families often participate in patients' treatment and support patients' decisions. We describe the development, design, and preliminary evaluation of an informational, evidence-based, and patient-and family-centered decision aid for patients with ESRD and varying levels of health literacy, health numeracy, and cognitive function. We designed a decision aid comprising a complementary video and informational handbook. We based our development process on data previously obtained from qualitative focus groups and systematic literature reviews. We simultaneously developed the video and handbook in "stages." For the video, stages included (1) directed interviews with culturally appropriate patients and families and preliminary script development, (2) video production, and (3) screening the video with patients and their families. For the handbook, stages comprised (1) preliminary content design, (2) a mixed-methods pilot study among diverse patients to assess comprehension of handbook material, and (3) screening the handbook with patients and their families. The video and handbook both addressed potential benefits and trade-offs of treatment selections. The 50-minute video consisted of demographically diverse patients and their families describing their positive and negative experiences with selecting a treatment option. The video also incorporated health professionals' testimonials regarding various considerations that might influence patients' and families' treatment selections. The handbook was comprised of written words, pictures of patients and health care providers, and diagrams describing the findings and quality of scientific studies comparing treatments. The handbook text was written at a 4th to 6th grade reading level. Pilot study results demonstrated that a majority of patients could understand information presented in the handbook. Patient and families screening the nearly completed video and handbook reviewed the materials favorably. This rigorously designed decision aid may help patients and families make informed decisions about their treatment options for RRT that are well aligned with their values.

Two-Stage Processing of Aesthetic Information in the Human Brain Revealed by Neural Adaptation Paradigm.

PubMed

Iwasaki, Miho; Noguchi, Yasuki; Kakigi, Ryusuke

2018-06-07

Some researchers in aesthetics assume visual features related to aesthetic perception (e.g. golden ratio and symmetry) commonly embedded in masterpieces. If this is true, an intriguing hypothesis is that the human brain has neural circuitry specialized for the processing of visual beauty. We presently tested this hypothesis by combining a neuroimaging technique with the repetition suppression (RS) paradigm. Subjects (non-experts in art) viewed two images of sculptures sequentially presented. Some sculptures obeyed the golden ratio (canonical images), while the golden proportion were impaired in other sculptures (deformed images). We found that the occipito-temporal cortex in the right hemisphere showed the RS when a canonical sculpture (e.g. Venus de Milo) was repeatedly presented, but not when its deformed version was repeated. Furthermore, the right parietal cortex showed the RS to the canonical proportion even when two sculptures had different identities (e.g. Venus de Milo as the first stimulus and David di Michelangelo as the second), indicating that this region encodes the golden ratio as an abstract rule shared by different sculptures. Those results suggest two separate stages of neural processing for aesthetic information (one in the occipito-temporal and another in the parietal regions) that are hierarchically arranged in the human brain.

Integrating health economics modeling in the product development cycle of medical devices: a Bayesian approach.

PubMed

Vallejo-Torres, Laura; Steuten, Lotte M G; Buxton, Martin J; Girling, Alan J; Lilford, Richard J; Young, Terry

2008-01-01

Medical device companies are under growing pressure to provide health-economic evaluations of their products. Cost-effectiveness analyses are commonly undertaken as a one-off exercise at the late stage of development of new technologies; however, the benefits of an iterative use of economic evaluation during the development process of new products have been acknowledged in the literature. Furthermore, the use of Bayesian methods within health technology assessment has been shown to be of particular value in the dynamic framework of technology appraisal when new information becomes available in the life cycle of technologies. In this study, we set out a methodology to adapt these methods for their application to directly support investment decisions in a commercial setting from early stages of the development of new medical devices. Starting with relatively simple analysis from the very early development phase and proceeding to greater depth of analysis at later stages, a Bayesian approach facilitates the incorporation of all available evidence and would help companies to make better informed choices at each decision point.

Preparing routine health information systems for immediate health responses to disasters

PubMed Central

Aung, Eindra; Whittaker, Maxine

2013-01-01

During disaster times, we need specific information to rapidly plan a disaster response, especially in sudden-onset disasters. Due to the inadequate capacity of Routine Health Information Systems (RHIS), many developing countries face a lack of quality pre-disaster health-related data and efficient post-disaster data processes in the immediate aftermath of a disaster. Considering the significance of local capacity during the early stages of disaster response, RHIS at local, provincial/state and national levels need to be strengthened so that they provide relief personnel up-to-date information to plan, organize and monitor immediate relief activities. RHIS professionals should be aware of specific information needs in disaster response (according to the Sphere Project’s Humanitarian Minimum Standards) and requirements in data processes to fulfil those information needs. Preparing RHIS for disasters can be guided by key RHIS-strengthening frameworks; and disaster preparedness must be incorporated into countries’ RHIS. Mechanisms must be established in non-disaster times and maintained between RHIS and information systems of non-health sectors for exchanging disaster-related information and sharing technologies and cost. PMID:23002249

Low NO sub x heavy fuel combustor concept program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Russell, P.; Beal, G.; Hinton, B.

1981-01-01

A gas turbine technology program to improve and optimize the staged rich lean low NOx combustor concept is described. Subscale combustor tests to develop the design information for optimization of the fuel preparation, rich burn, quick air quench, and lean burn steps of the combustion process were run. The program provides information for the design of high pressure full scale gas turbine combustors capable of providing environmentally clean combustion of minimally of minimally processed and synthetic fuels. It is concluded that liquid fuel atomization and mixing, rich zone stoichiometry, rich zone liner cooling, rich zone residence time, and quench zone stoichiometry are important considerations in the design and scale up of the rich lean combustor.

Titanium nitride formation by a dual-stage femtosecond laser process

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hammouti, S.; Holybee, B.; Zhu, W.; Allain, J. P.; Jurczyk, B.; Ruzic, D. N.

2018-06-01

Formation of TiN by femtosecond laser processing in controlled gas atmosphere is reported. A dual-stage process was designed and aimed to first remove and restructure the native oxide layer of titanium surface through laser irradiation under an argon-controlled atmosphere, and then to maximize titanium nitride formation through an irradiation under a nitrogen reactive environment. An extensive XPS study was performed to identify and quantify laser-induced titanium surface chemistry modifications after a single-stage laser process (Ar and N2 individually), and a dual-stage laser process. The importance of each step that composes the dual-stage laser process was demonstrated and leads to the dual-stage laser process for the formation of TiO, Ti2O3 and TiN. In this study, the largest nitride formation occurs for the dual stage process with laser conditions at 4 W/1.3 J cm-2 under argon and 5 W/1.6 J cm-2 under nitrogen, yielding a total TiN composition of 8.9%. Characterization of both single-stage and dual-stage laser process-induced surface morphologies has been performed as well, leading to the observation of a wide range of hierarchical surface structures such as high-frequency ripples, grooves, protuberances and pillow-like patterns. Finally, water wettability was assessed by means of contact angle measurements on untreated titanium surface, and titanium surfaces resulting from either single-stage laser process or dual-stage laser process. Dual-stage laser process allows a transition of titanium surface, from phobic (93°) to philic (35°), making accessible both hydrophilic and chemically functionalized hierarchical surfaces.

A rule-based automatic sleep staging method.

PubMed

Liang, Sheng-Fu; Kuo, Chin-En; Hu, Yu-Han; Cheng, Yu-Shian

2012-03-30

In this paper, a rule-based automatic sleep staging method was proposed. Twelve features including temporal and spectrum analyses of the EEG, EOG, and EMG signals were utilized. Normalization was applied to each feature to eliminating individual differences. A hierarchical decision tree with fourteen rules was constructed for sleep stage classification. Finally, a smoothing process considering the temporal contextual information was applied for the continuity. The overall agreement and kappa coefficient of the proposed method applied to the all night polysomnography (PSG) of seventeen healthy subjects compared with the manual scorings by R&K rules can reach 86.68% and 0.79, respectively. This method can integrate with portable PSG system for sleep evaluation at-home in the near future. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Implementation of the common phrase index method on the phrase query for information retrieval

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fatmawati, Triyah; Zaman, Badrus; Werdiningsih, Indah

2017-08-01

As the development of technology, the process of finding information on the news text is easy, because the text of the news is not only distributed in print media, such as newspapers, but also in electronic media that can be accessed using the search engine. In the process of finding relevant documents on the search engine, a phrase often used as a query. The number of words that make up the phrase query and their position obviously affect the relevance of the document produced. As a result, the accuracy of the information obtained will be affected. Based on the outlined problem, the purpose of this research was to analyze the implementation of the common phrase index method on information retrieval. This research will be conducted in English news text and implemented on a prototype to determine the relevance level of the documents produced. The system is built with the stages of pre-processing, indexing, term weighting calculation, and cosine similarity calculation. Then the system will display the document search results in a sequence, based on the cosine similarity. Furthermore, system testing will be conducted using 100 documents and 20 queries. That result is then used for the evaluation stage. First, determine the relevant documents using kappa statistic calculation. Second, determine the system success rate using precision, recall, and F-measure calculation. In this research, the result of kappa statistic calculation was 0.71, so that the relevant documents are eligible for the system evaluation. Then the calculation of precision, recall, and F-measure produces precision of 0.37, recall of 0.50, and F-measure of 0.43. From this result can be said that the success rate of the system to produce relevant documents is low.

Exploring the transition from registered nurse to family nurse practitioner.

PubMed

Poronsky, Cathlin Buckingham

2013-01-01

There is limited information available regarding the transition from registered nurse (RN) to family nurse practitioner (FNP). Several authors described this transition as taking place in 4 stages, and others described it as a 2-phase process. However, there is a lack of consensus about the definition of these stages and phases and at what point they occur for nurses who are making the transition from an RN to an FNP. From what is known, this multistage/2-phase transition is accompanied by feelings of anxiety, stress, role confusion, and emotional turmoil. As a nurse faculty member, the author theorized that nurse faculty might be in a position to provide support for graduate students making this transition in role. However, there was little information available about the transition phases, stages, and needs of students during graduate school. The search for a framework to explore transition yielded transition theory, which is described and applied to FNP transition in this article. Transition theory may be useful for examining more fully the phases and stages of RN-to-FNP transition. In this time of increased need for qualified primary care providers, it is essential that graduates of FNP programs transition into practice following graduation. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

LANGUAGE EXPERIENCE SHAPES PROCESSING OF PITCH RELEVANT INFORMATION IN THE HUMAN BRAINSTEM AND AUDITORY CORTEX: ELECTROPHYSIOLOGICAL EVIDENCE.

PubMed

Krishnan, Ananthanarayan; Gandour, Jackson T

2014-12-01

Pitch is a robust perceptual attribute that plays an important role in speech, language, and music. As such, it provides an analytic window to evaluate how neural activity relevant to pitch undergo transformation from early sensory to later cognitive stages of processing in a well coordinated hierarchical network that is subject to experience-dependent plasticity. We review recent evidence of language experience-dependent effects in pitch processing based on comparisons of native vs. nonnative speakers of a tonal language from electrophysiological recordings in the auditory brainstem and auditory cortex. We present evidence that shows enhanced representation of linguistically-relevant pitch dimensions or features at both the brainstem and cortical levels with a stimulus-dependent preferential activation of the right hemisphere in native speakers of a tone language. We argue that neural representation of pitch-relevant information in the brainstem and early sensory level processing in the auditory cortex is shaped by the perceptual salience of domain-specific features. While both stages of processing are shaped by language experience, neural representations are transformed and fundamentally different at each biological level of abstraction. The representation of pitch relevant information in the brainstem is more fine-grained spectrotemporally as it reflects sustained neural phase-locking to pitch relevant periodicities contained in the stimulus. In contrast, the cortical pitch relevant neural activity reflects primarily a series of transient temporal neural events synchronized to certain temporal attributes of the pitch contour. We argue that experience-dependent enhancement of pitch representation for Chinese listeners most likely reflects an interaction between higher-level cognitive processes and early sensory-level processing to improve representations of behaviorally-relevant features that contribute optimally to perception. It is our view that long-term experience shapes this adaptive process wherein the top-down connections provide selective gating of inputs to both cortical and subcortical structures to enhance neural responses to specific behaviorally-relevant attributes of the stimulus. A theoretical framework for a neural network is proposed involving coordination between local, feedforward, and feedback components that can account for experience-dependent enhancement of pitch representations at multiple levels of the auditory pathway. The ability to record brainstem and cortical pitch relevant responses concurrently may provide a new window to evaluate the online interplay between feedback, feedforward, and local intrinsic components in the hierarchical processing of pitch relevant information.

LANGUAGE EXPERIENCE SHAPES PROCESSING OF PITCH RELEVANT INFORMATION IN THE HUMAN BRAINSTEM AND AUDITORY CORTEX: ELECTROPHYSIOLOGICAL EVIDENCE

PubMed Central

Krishnan, Ananthanarayan; Gandour, Jackson T.

2015-01-01

Pitch is a robust perceptual attribute that plays an important role in speech, language, and music. As such, it provides an analytic window to evaluate how neural activity relevant to pitch undergo transformation from early sensory to later cognitive stages of processing in a well coordinated hierarchical network that is subject to experience-dependent plasticity. We review recent evidence of language experience-dependent effects in pitch processing based on comparisons of native vs. nonnative speakers of a tonal language from electrophysiological recordings in the auditory brainstem and auditory cortex. We present evidence that shows enhanced representation of linguistically-relevant pitch dimensions or features at both the brainstem and cortical levels with a stimulus-dependent preferential activation of the right hemisphere in native speakers of a tone language. We argue that neural representation of pitch-relevant information in the brainstem and early sensory level processing in the auditory cortex is shaped by the perceptual salience of domain-specific features. While both stages of processing are shaped by language experience, neural representations are transformed and fundamentally different at each biological level of abstraction. The representation of pitch relevant information in the brainstem is more fine-grained spectrotemporally as it reflects sustained neural phase-locking to pitch relevant periodicities contained in the stimulus. In contrast, the cortical pitch relevant neural activity reflects primarily a series of transient temporal neural events synchronized to certain temporal attributes of the pitch contour. We argue that experience-dependent enhancement of pitch representation for Chinese listeners most likely reflects an interaction between higher-level cognitive processes and early sensory-level processing to improve representations of behaviorally-relevant features that contribute optimally to perception. It is our view that long-term experience shapes this adaptive process wherein the top-down connections provide selective gating of inputs to both cortical and subcortical structures to enhance neural responses to specific behaviorally-relevant attributes of the stimulus. A theoretical framework for a neural network is proposed involving coordination between local, feedforward, and feedback components that can account for experience-dependent enhancement of pitch representations at multiple levels of the auditory pathway. The ability to record brainstem and cortical pitch relevant responses concurrently may provide a new window to evaluate the online interplay between feedback, feedforward, and local intrinsic components in the hierarchical processing of pitch relevant information. PMID:25838636

Hearing with Two Ears: Evidence for Cortical Binaural Interaction during Auditory Processing.

PubMed

Henkin, Yael; Yaar-Soffer, Yifat; Givon, Lihi; Hildesheimer, Minka

2015-04-01

Integration of information presented to the two ears has been shown to manifest in binaural interaction components (BICs) that occur along the ascending auditory pathways. In humans, BICs have been studied predominantly at the brainstem and thalamocortical levels; however, understanding of higher cortically driven mechanisms of binaural hearing is limited. To explore whether BICs are evident in auditory event-related potentials (AERPs) during the advanced perceptual and postperceptual stages of cortical processing. The AERPs N1, P3, and a late negative component (LNC) were recorded from multiple site electrodes while participants performed an oddball discrimination task that consisted of natural speech syllables (/ka/ vs. /ta/) that differed by place-of-articulation. Participants were instructed to respond to the target stimulus (/ta/) while performing the task in three listening conditions: monaural right, monaural left, and binaural. Fifteen (21-32 yr) young adults (6 females) with normal hearing sensitivity. By subtracting the response to target stimuli elicited in the binaural condition from the sum of responses elicited in the monaural right and left conditions, the BIC waveform was derived and the latencies and amplitudes of the components were measured. The maximal interaction was calculated by dividing BIC amplitude by the summed right and left response amplitudes. In addition, the latencies and amplitudes of the AERPs to target stimuli elicited in the monaural right, monaural left, and binaural listening conditions were measured and subjected to analysis of variance with repeated measures testing the effect of listening condition and laterality. Three consecutive BICs were identified at a mean latency of 129, 406, and 554 msec, and were labeled N1-BIC, P3-BIC, and LNC-BIC, respectively. Maximal interaction increased significantly with progression of auditory processing from perceptual to postperceptual stages and amounted to 51%, 55%, and 75% of the sum of monaural responses for N1-BIC, P3-BIC, and LNC-BIC, respectively. Binaural interaction manifested in a decrease of the binaural response compared to the sum of monaural responses. Furthermore, listening condition affected P3 latency only, whereas laterality effects manifested in enhanced N1 amplitudes at the left (T3) vs. right (T4) scalp electrode and in a greater left-right amplitude difference in the right compared to left listening condition. The current AERP data provides evidence for the occurrence of cortical BICs during perceptual and postperceptual stages, presumably reflecting ongoing integration of information presented to the two ears at the final stages of auditory processing. Increasing binaural interaction with the progression of the auditory processing sequence (N1 to LNC) may support the notion that cortical BICs reflect inherited interactions from preceding stages of upstream processing together with discrete cortical neural activity involved in binaural processing. Clinically, an objective measure of cortical binaural processing has the potential of becoming an appealing neural correlate of binaural behavioral performance. American Academy of Audiology.

An adaptive environmental effects monitoring framework for assessing the influences of liquid effluents on benthos, water and sediments in aquatic receiving environments.

PubMed

Somers, Keith M; Kilgour, Bruce W; Munkittrick, Kelly R; Arciszewski, Tim J

2018-05-16

Environmental effects monitoring (EEM) has been traditionally used to evaluate the effects of existing facilities discharging liquid effluents into natural receiving waters in Canada. EEM also has the potential to provide feedback to an ongoing project in an adaptive management context, and can inform the design of future projects. EEM, consequently, can and should also be used to test the predictions of effects related to new projects. Despite EEM's potential for widespread applicability, challenges related to the effective implementation of EEM include the use of appropriate study designs, as well as to the adoption of tiers for increasing or decreasing monitoring intensity. Herein we describe a template for designing and implementing a six-tiered EEM program that utilizes information from the project-planning and pre-development baseline data collection stages to build on forecasts from the initial environmental impact assessment project-design stage, and feeds into an adaptive management process. Movement between the six EEM tiers is based on the exceedance of Baseline Monitoring Triggers, Forecast Triggers and Management Triggers at various stages in the EEM process. To distinguish these types of triggers, we review the historical development of numeric and narrative triggers as applied to chemical (water and sediment) and biological (plankton, benthos, fish) endpoints. We also provide an overview of historical study design issues and discuss how the six EEM tiers and associated triggers influence the temporal-spatial experimental design options and how the information gained through EEM could be used in an adaptive management context. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Evaluator's Guide for Microcomputer-Based Instructional Packages. Developed by MicroSIFT, a Project of the Computer Technology Program. Sixth Revision.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Northwest Regional Educational Lab., Portland, OR.

This guide developed by MicroSIFT, a clearinghouse for microcomputer-based educational software and courseware, provides background information and forms to aid teachers and other educators in evaluating available microcomputer courseware. The evaluation process comprises six stages: (1) sifting, which screens out those programs that are not…

Interactive Computer Based Assessment Tasks: How Problem-Solving Process Data Can Inform Instruction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zoanetti, Nathan

2010-01-01

This article presents key steps in the design and analysis of a computer based problem-solving assessment featuring interactive tasks. The purpose of the assessment is to support targeted instruction for students by diagnosing strengths and weaknesses at different stages of problem-solving. The first focus of this article is the task piloting…

Measuring Social Relations in New Classroom Spaces: Development and Validation of the Social Context and Learning Environments (SCALE) Survey

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walker, J. D.; Baepler, Paul

2017-01-01

This study addresses the need for reliable and valid information concerning how innovative classrooms on college and university campuses affect teaching and learning. The Social Context and Learning Environments (SCALE) survey was developed though a three-stage process involving approximately 1300 college students. Exploratory and confirmatory…

Going around the Circle Again: Exploring Kolb's Theory of Growth and Development.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johns, Krista R.

Thirty years after their development, David A. Kolb's Cycle of Learning and Learning Style Inventory are widely used to understand the stages of learning and the ways people prefer to receive and process new information. The model and the self-assessment are both based on Kolb's experiential learning theory, which emphasizes the need for learner…

School Self-Evaluation at an Embryonic Stage: Depicting Teachers' Experiences with a Participative Project

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Karagiorgi, Yiasemina

2012-01-01

This case study aims to enquire into the journey of a Greek-Cypriot primary school through a self-evaluating process, in accordance to the respective guidelines proposed in the national educational reform documents. The article outlines the phases involved, beginning from the collection of information, moving to the formulation of a school…

Soil conservation service tests of Eucalyptus species for windbreaks

Treesearch

Gary L. Young

1983-01-01

The Soil Conservation Service is in the early stages of testing many species of Eucalyptus or windbreaks. Over 260 different species have been collected. The pre-planting selection criteria and process is described as well as the test conditions and procedures. Some sources of information on the use of the Eucalypts may be misleading through...

The Three Stages of Coding and Decoding in Listening Courses of College Japanese Specialty

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yang, Fang

2008-01-01

The main focus of research papers on listening teaching published in recent years is the theoretical meanings of decoding on the training of listening comprehension ability. Although in many research papers the bottom-up approach and top-down approach, information processing mode theory, are applied to illustrate decoding and to emphasize the…

Principles of Temporal Processing Across the Cortical Hierarchy.

PubMed

Himberger, Kevin D; Chien, Hsiang-Yun; Honey, Christopher J

2018-05-02

The world is richly structured on multiple spatiotemporal scales. In order to represent spatial structure, many machine-learning models repeat a set of basic operations at each layer of a hierarchical architecture. These iterated spatial operations - including pooling, normalization and pattern completion - enable these systems to recognize and predict spatial structure, while robust to changes in the spatial scale, contrast and noisiness of the input signal. Because our brains also process temporal information that is rich and occurs across multiple time scales, might the brain employ an analogous set of operations for temporal information processing? Here we define a candidate set of temporal operations, and we review evidence that they are implemented in the mammalian cerebral cortex in a hierarchical manner. We conclude that multiple consecutive stages of cortical processing can be understood to perform temporal pooling, temporal normalization and temporal pattern completion. Copyright © 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Encapsulated social perception of emotional expressions.

PubMed

Smortchkova, Joulia

2017-01-01

In this paper I argue that the detection of emotional expressions is, in its early stages, informationally encapsulated. I clarify and defend such a view via the appeal to data from social perception on the visual processing of faces, bodies, facial and bodily expressions. Encapsulated social perception might exist alongside processes that are cognitively penetrated, and that have to do with recognition and categorization, and play a central evolutionary function in preparing early and rapid responses to the emotional stimuli. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Ecogenomics: Ensemble Analysis of Gene Expression in Microbial Communities

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sogin, Mitchell; DesMarais, David J.; Stahl, D. A.; Pace, Norman R.

2001-01-01

The hierarchical organization of microbial ecosystems determines process rates that shape Earth's environment, create the biomarker sedimentary and atmospheric signatures of life, and define the stage upon which major evolutionary events occurred. In order to understand how microorganisms have shaped the global environment of Earth and, potentially, other worlds, we must develop an experimental paradigm that links biogeochemical processes with ever-changing temporal and spatial distributions of microbial populations and their metabolic properties. Additional information is contained in the original extended abstract.

A review of the use of health examination data from the Health Survey for England in government policy development and implementation.

PubMed

Oyebode, Oyinlola; Mindell, Jennifer S

2014-01-01

Information is needed at all stages of the policy making process. The Health Survey for England (HSE) is an annual cross-sectional health examination survey of the non-institutionalised general population in England. It was originally set up to inform national policy making and monitoring by the Department of Health. This paper examines how the nurse collected physical and biological measurement data from the HSE have been essential or useful for identification of a health issue amenable to policy intervention; initiation, development or implementation of a strategy; choice and monitoring of targets; or assessment and evaluation of policies. Specific examples of use of HSE data were identified through interviews with senior members of staff at the Department of Health and the Health and Social Care Information Centre. Policy documents mentioned by interviewees were retrieved for review, and reference lists of associated policy documents checked. Systematic searches of Chief Medical Officer Reports, Government 'Command Papers', and clinical guidance documents were also undertaken. HSE examination data have been used at all stages of the policy making process. Data have been used to identify an issue amenable to policy-intervention (e.g. quantifying prevalence of undiagnosed chronic kidney disease), in strategy development (in models to inform chronic respiratory disease policy), for target setting and monitoring (the 1992 blood pressure target) and in evaluation of health policy (the effect of the smoking ban on second hand smoke exposure). A health examination survey is a useful part of a national health information system.

A review of the use of health examination data from the Health Survey for England in government policy development and implementation

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Background Information is needed at all stages of the policy making process. The Health Survey for England (HSE) is an annual cross-sectional health examination survey of the non-institutionalised general population in England. It was originally set up to inform national policy making and monitoring by the Department of Health. This paper examines how the nurse collected physical and biological measurement data from the HSE have been essential or useful for identification of a health issue amenable to policy intervention; initiation, development or implementation of a strategy; choice and monitoring of targets; or assessment and evaluation of policies. Methods Specific examples of use of HSE data were identified through interviews with senior members of staff at the Department of Health and the Health and Social Care Information Centre. Policy documents mentioned by interviewees were retrieved for review, and reference lists of associated policy documents checked. Systematic searches of Chief Medical Officer Reports, Government ‘Command Papers’, and clinical guidance documents were also undertaken. Results HSE examination data have been used at all stages of the policy making process. Data have been used to identify an issue amenable to policy-intervention (e.g. quantifying prevalence of undiagnosed chronic kidney disease), in strategy development (in models to inform chronic respiratory disease policy), for target setting and monitoring (the 1992 blood pressure target) and in evaluation of health policy (the effect of the smoking ban on second hand smoke exposure). Conclusions A health examination survey is a useful part of a national health information system. PMID:25114791

Taiwanese women's process of recovery from stillbirth: a qualitative descriptive study.

PubMed

Tseng, Ying-Fen; Chen, Chung-Hey; Wang, Hsiu-Hung

2014-06-01

The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to portray the recovery process of Taiwanese women after stillbirth. Data were generated through individual in-depth interviews with 21 women selected using purposeful sampling. Three stages in an emotional journey of recovery were suffering from silent grief, searching for a way out, and achieving peace of mind and mental stability. Throughout their journey, the women's overarching concern was where the deceased child had gone and whether it was well. Together these stages composed A pathway to peace of mind, a mental journey on which women struggled to spiritually connect with the lost baby and finally sought a personal pathway to emotional peace. Findings can inform healthcare providers in providing culturally sensitive care for Taiwanese women to facilitate healing after a stillbirth. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Strategies for converting to a DBMS environment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Durban, D. M.

1984-01-01

The conversion to data base management systems processing techniques consists of three different strategies - one for each of the major stages in the development process. Each strategy was chosen for its approach in bringing about a smooth evolutionary type transition from one mode of operation to the next. The initial strategy of the indoctrination stage consisted of: (1) providing maximum access to current administrative data as soon as possible; (2) select and developing small prototype systems; (3) establishing a user information center as a central focal point for user training and assistance; and (4) developing a training program for programmers, management and ad hoc users in DBMS application and utilization. Security, the rate of the data dictionary, and data base tuning and capacity planning, and the development of a change of attitude in an automated office are issues meriting consideration.

The development of thematic materials using project based learning for elementary school

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yuliana, M.; Wiryawan, S. A.; Riyadi

2018-05-01

Teaching materials is one of the important factors in supporting on learning process. This paper discussed about developing thematic materials using project based learning. Thematic materials are designed to make students to be active, creative, cooperative, easy in thinking to solve the problem. The purpose of the research was to develop thematic material using project based learning which used valid variables. The method of research which used in this research was four stages of research and development proposed by Thiagarajan consisting of 4 stages, namely: (1) definition stage, (2) design stage, (3) development stage, and (4) stage of dissemination. The first stage was research and information collection, it was in form of need analysis with questionnaire, observation, interview, and document analysis. Design stage was based on the competencies and indicator. The third was development stage, this stage was used to product validation from expert. The validity of research development involved media validator, material validator, and linguistic validator. The result from the validation of thematic material by expert showed that the overall result had a very good rating which ranged from 1 to 5 likert scale, media validation showed a mean score 4,83, the material validation showed mean score 4,68, and the mean of linguistic validation was e 4,74. It showed that the thematic material using project based learning was valid and feasible to be implemented in the context thematic learning.

Self-awareness and the subconscious effect of personal pronouns on word encoding: a magnetoencephalography (MEG) study.

PubMed

Walla, Peter; Greiner, Katharina; Duregger, Cornelia; Deecke, Lüder; Thurner, Stefan

2007-03-02

The effect of personal pronouns such as "ein" (German for "a"), "mein" (German for "my") and "sein" (German for "his") on the processing of associated nouns was investigated using MEG. Three different encoding strategies were provided in order to vary the level of consciousness involved in verbal information processing. A shallow (alphabetic), a deep (semantic) and a very deep (contextual) encoding instruction related to visual word presentation were given to all study participants. After the encoding of pronoun-noun pairs, recognition performances of nouns only were tested. The number of correctly recognized nouns previously associated with "sein" was significantly lower than the number of correctly recognized nouns previously associated with "ein" in the shallow encoding condition. The same trend was found for "mein" associated nouns which were also less accurately recognized compared to "ein" associated nouns. Magnetic field distributions recorded during the encoding phases revealed two significant effects, one between about 200 and 400ms after stimulus onset and the other between about 500 and 800ms. The earlier effect was found over occipito-parietal sensors, whereas the later effect occurred over left frontal sensors. Within both time ranges, brain activation varied significantly as a function of associated pronoun independent of depth of word processing. In the respective areas of both time ranges, conditions including personal pronouns ("mein" and "sein") showed higher magnetic field components compared to the control condition of no personal pronouns ("ein"). Evidence is shown that early stage processing is able to distinguish between no personal and personal information, whereas later stage processing is able to distinguish between information related to oneself and to another person (self and non-self). Along with other previous reports our MEG findings support the notion that particular human brain functions involved in processing neurophysiological correlates of self and non-self can be identified.

Monitoring groundwater-surface water interaction using time-series and time-frequency analysis of transient three-dimensional electrical resistivity changes

USGS Publications Warehouse

Johnson, Timothy C.; Slater, Lee D.; Ntarlagiannis, Dimitris; Day-Lewis, Frederick D.; Elwaseif, Mehrez

2012-01-01

Time-lapse resistivity imaging is increasingly used to monitor hydrologic processes. Compared to conventional hydrologic measurements, surface time-lapse resistivity provides superior spatial coverage in two or three dimensions, potentially high-resolution information in time, and information in the absence of wells. However, interpretation of time-lapse electrical tomograms is complicated by the ever-increasing size and complexity of long-term, three-dimensional (3-D) time series conductivity data sets. Here we use 3-D surface time-lapse electrical imaging to monitor subsurface electrical conductivity variations associated with stage-driven groundwater-surface water interactions along a stretch of the Columbia River adjacent to the Hanford 300 near Richland, Washington, USA. We reduce the resulting 3-D conductivity time series using both time-series and time-frequency analyses to isolate a paleochannel causing enhanced groundwater-surface water interactions. Correlation analysis on the time-lapse imaging results concisely represents enhanced groundwater-surface water interactions within the paleochannel, and provides information concerning groundwater flow velocities. Time-frequency analysis using the Stockwell (S) transform provides additional information by identifying the stage periodicities driving groundwater-surface water interactions due to upstream dam operations, and identifying segments in time-frequency space when these interactions are most active. These results provide new insight into the distribution and timing of river water intrusion into the Hanford 300 Area, which has a governing influence on the behavior of a uranium plume left over from historical nuclear fuel processing operations.

EUROSCAN INTERNATIONAL NETWORK MEMBER AGENCIES: THEIR STRUCTURE, PROCESSES, AND OUTPUTS.

PubMed

Packer, Claire; Simpson, Sue; de Almeida, Rosimary Terezinha

2015-01-01

The EuroScan International Network is a global network of publicly funded early awareness and alert (EAA) systems for health technologies. We describe the EuroScan member agency systems and methods, and highlight the potential for increased collaboration. EuroScan members completed postal questionnaires supplemented with telephone interviews in 2012 to elicit additional information and check equivalence of responses. Information was updated between March and May 2013. Fifteen of the seventeen member agencies responded. The principal purpose of agencies is to inform decisions on coverage or reimbursement of health services and decisions on undertaking secondary research. The main users of information are national governments; health professionals; health services purchasers, commissioners, and decision makers; and healthcare providers. Most EuroScan agencies are small with almost half having fewer than two whole time equivalent staff. Ten agencies use both active and passive identification approaches, four use only active approaches. Most start identification in the experimental or investigational stages of the technology life cycle. All agencies assessed technologies when they are between the investigational and established, but under diffusion stages. Barriers to collaboration revolve around different system aims, purposes, and requirements; a lack of staff, finance, or opportunity; language differences; and restrictions on dissemination. Although many barriers to collaboration were identified, the majority of agencies were supportive of increased collaboration either involving the whole EuroScan Network or between individual agencies. Despite differences in the detailed identification processes, members thought that this was the most feasible phase to develop additional collaboration.

Positive and negative emotion enhances the processing of famous faces in a semantic judgment task.

PubMed

Bate, Sarah; Haslam, Catherine; Hodgson, Timothy L; Jansari, Ashok; Gregory, Nicola; Kay, Janice

2010-01-01

Previous work has consistently reported a facilitatory influence of positive emotion in face recognition (e.g., D'Argembeau, Van der Linden, Comblain, & Etienne, 2003). However, these reports asked participants to make recognition judgments in response to faces, and it is unknown whether emotional valence may influence other stages of processing, such as at the level of semantics. Furthermore, other evidence suggests that negative rather than positive emotion facilitates higher level judgments when processing nonfacial stimuli (e.g., Mickley & Kensinger, 2008), and it is possible that negative emotion also influences latter stages of face processing. The present study addressed this issue, examining the influence of emotional valence while participants made semantic judgments in response to a set of famous faces. Eye movements were monitored while participants performed this task, and analyses revealed a reduction in information extraction for the faces of liked and disliked celebrities compared with those of emotionally neutral celebrities. Thus, in contrast to work using familiarity judgments, both positive and negative emotion facilitated processing in this semantic-based task. This pattern of findings is discussed in relation to current models of face processing. Copyright 2009 APA, all rights reserved.

The theoretical cognitive process of visualization for science education.

PubMed

Mnguni, Lindelani E

2014-01-01

The use of visual models such as pictures, diagrams and animations in science education is increasing. This is because of the complex nature associated with the concepts in the field. Students, especially entrant students, often report misconceptions and learning difficulties associated with various concepts especially those that exist at a microscopic level, such as DNA, the gene and meiosis as well as those that exist in relatively large time scales such as evolution. However the role of visual literacy in the construction of knowledge in science education has not been investigated much. This article explores the theoretical process of visualization answering the question "how can visual literacy be understood based on the theoretical cognitive process of visualization in order to inform the understanding, teaching and studying of visual literacy in science education?" Based on various theories on cognitive processes during learning for science and general education the author argues that the theoretical process of visualization consists of three stages, namely, Internalization of Visual Models, Conceptualization of Visual Models and Externalization of Visual Models. The application of this theoretical cognitive process of visualization and the stages of visualization in science education are discussed.

An ergonomics action research demonstration: integrating human factors into assembly design processes.

PubMed

Village, J; Greig, M; Salustri, F; Zolfaghari, S; Neumann, W P

2014-01-01

In action research (AR), the researcher participates 'in' the actions in an organisation, while simultaneously reflecting 'on' the actions to promote learning for both the organisation and the researchers. This paper demonstrates a longitudinal AR collaboration with an electronics manufacturing firm where the goal was to improve the organisation's ability to integrate human factors (HF) proactively into their design processes. During the three-year collaboration, all meetings, workshops, interviews and reflections were digitally recorded and qualitatively analysed to inform new 'actions'. By the end of the collaboration, HF tools with targets and sign-off by the HF specialist were integrated into several stages of the design process, and engineers were held accountable for meeting the HF targets. We conclude that the AR approach combined with targeting multiple initiatives at different stages of the design process helped the organisation find ways to integrate HF into their processes in a sustainable way. Researchers acted as a catalyst to help integrate HF into the engineering design process in a sustainable way. This paper demonstrates how an AR approach can help achieve HF integration, the benefits of using a reflective stance and one method for reporting an AR study.

Intonation processing deficits of emotional words among Mandarin Chinese speakers with congenital amusia: an ERP study.

PubMed

Lu, Xuejing; Ho, Hao Tam; Liu, Fang; Wu, Daxing; Thompson, William F

2015-01-01

Congenital amusia is a disorder that is known to affect the processing of musical pitch. Although individuals with amusia rarely show language deficits in daily life, a number of findings point to possible impairments in speech prosody that amusic individuals may compensate for by drawing on linguistic information. Using EEG, we investigated (1) whether the processing of speech prosody is impaired in amusia and (2) whether emotional linguistic information can compensate for this impairment. Twenty Chinese amusics and 22 matched controls were presented pairs of emotional words spoken with either statement or question intonation while their EEG was recorded. Their task was to judge whether the intonations were the same. Amusics exhibited impaired performance on the intonation-matching task for emotional linguistic information, as their performance was significantly worse than that of controls. EEG results showed a reduced N2 response to incongruent intonation pairs in amusics compared with controls, which likely reflects impaired conflict processing in amusia. However, our EEG results also indicated that amusics were intact in early sensory auditory processing, as revealed by a comparable N1 modulation in both groups. We propose that the impairment in discriminating speech intonation observed among amusic individuals may arise from an inability to access information extracted at early processing stages. This, in turn, could reflect a disconnection between low-level and high-level processing.

Intonation processing deficits of emotional words among Mandarin Chinese speakers with congenital amusia: an ERP study

PubMed Central

Lu, Xuejing; Ho, Hao Tam; Liu, Fang; Wu, Daxing; Thompson, William F.

2015-01-01

Background: Congenital amusia is a disorder that is known to affect the processing of musical pitch. Although individuals with amusia rarely show language deficits in daily life, a number of findings point to possible impairments in speech prosody that amusic individuals may compensate for by drawing on linguistic information. Using EEG, we investigated (1) whether the processing of speech prosody is impaired in amusia and (2) whether emotional linguistic information can compensate for this impairment. Method: Twenty Chinese amusics and 22 matched controls were presented pairs of emotional words spoken with either statement or question intonation while their EEG was recorded. Their task was to judge whether the intonations were the same. Results: Amusics exhibited impaired performance on the intonation-matching task for emotional linguistic information, as their performance was significantly worse than that of controls. EEG results showed a reduced N2 response to incongruent intonation pairs in amusics compared with controls, which likely reflects impaired conflict processing in amusia. However, our EEG results also indicated that amusics were intact in early sensory auditory processing, as revealed by a comparable N1 modulation in both groups. Conclusion: We propose that the impairment in discriminating speech intonation observed among amusic individuals may arise from an inability to access information extracted at early processing stages. This, in turn, could reflect a disconnection between low-level and high-level processing. PMID:25914659

Spectral Characteristics of Continuous Acoustic Emission (AE) Data from Laboratory Rock Deformation Experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Flynn, J. William; Goodfellow, Sebastian; Reyes-Montes, Juan; Nasseri, Farzine; Young, R. Paul

2016-04-01

Continuous acoustic emission (AE) data recorded during rock deformation tests facilitates the monitoring of fracture initiation and propagation due to applied stress changes. Changes in the frequency and energy content of AE waveforms have been previously observed and were associated with microcrack coalescence and the induction or mobilisation of large fractures which are naturally associated with larger amplitude AE events and lower-frequency components. The shift from high to low dominant frequency components during the late stages of the deformation experiment, as the rate of AE events increases and the sample approaches failure, indicates a transition from the micro-cracking to macro-cracking regime, where large cracks generated result in material failure. The objective of this study is to extract information on the fracturing process from the acoustic records around sample failure, where the fast occurrence of AE events does not allow for identification of individual AE events and phase arrivals. Standard AE event processing techniques are not suitable for extracting this information at these stages. Instead the observed changes in the frequency content of the continuous record can be used to characterise and investigate the fracture process at the stage of microcrack coalescence and sample failure. To analyse and characterise these changes, a detailed non-linear and non-stationary time-frequency analysis of the continuous waveform data is required. Empirical Mode Decomposition (EMD) and Hilbert Spectral Analysis (HSA) are two of the techniques used in this paper to analyse the acoustic records which provide a high-resolution temporal frequency distribution of the data. In this paper we present the results from our analysis of continuous AE data recorded during a laboratory triaxial deformation experiment using the combined EMD and HSA method.

Transcriptomic Analysis of Flower Blooming in Jasminum sambac through De Novo RNA Sequencing.

PubMed

Li, Yong-Hua; Zhang, Wei; Li, Yong

2015-06-10

Flower blooming is a critical and complicated plant developmental process in flowering plants. However, insufficient information is available about the complex network that regulates flower blooming in Jasminum sambac. In this study, we used the RNA-Seq platform to analyze the molecular regulation of flower blooming in J. sambac by comparing the transcript profiles at two flower developmental stages: budding and blooming. A total of 4577 differentially-expressed genes (DEGs) were identified between the two floral stages. The Gene Ontology and the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway enrichment analyses revealed that the DEGs in the "oxidation-reduction process", "extracellular region", "steroid biosynthesis", "glycosphingolipid biosynthesis", "plant hormone signal transduction" and "pentose and glucuronate interconversions" might be associated with flower development. A total of 103 and 92 unigenes exhibited sequence similarities to the known flower development and floral scent genes from other plants. Among these unigenes, five flower development and 19 floral scent unigenes exhibited at least four-fold differences in expression between the two stages. Our results provide abundant genetic resources for studying the flower blooming mechanisms and molecular breeding of J. sambac.

Focus group discussion in mathematical physics learning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ellianawati; Rudiana, D.; Sabandar, J.; Subali, B.

2018-03-01

The Focus Group Discussion (FGD) activity in Mathematical Physics learning has helped students perform the stages of problem solving reflectively. The FGD implementation was conducted to explore the problems and find the right strategy to improve the students' ability to solve the problem accurately which is one of reflective thinking component that has been difficult to improve. The research method used is descriptive qualitative by using single subject response in Physics student. During the FGD process, one student was observed of her reflective thinking development in solving the physics problem. The strategy chosen in the discussion activity was the Cognitive Apprenticeship-Instruction (CA-I) syntax. Based on the results of this study, it is obtained the information that after going through a series of stages of discussion, the students' reflective thinking skills is increased significantly. The scaffolding stage in the CA-I model plays an important role in the process of solving physics problems accurately. Students are able to recognize and formulate problems by describing problem sketches, identifying the variables involved, applying mathematical equations that accord to physics concepts, executing accurately, and applying evaluation by explaining the solution to various contexts.

Processing Control Information in a Nominal Control Construction: An Eye-Tracking Study.

PubMed

Kwon, Nayoung; Sturt, Patrick

2016-08-01

In an eye-tracking experiment, we examined the processing of the nominal control construction. Participants' eye-movements were monitored while they read sentences that included either giver control nominals (e.g. promise in Luke's promise to Sophia to photograph himself) or recipient control nominals (e.g. plea in Luke's plea to Sophia to photograph herself). In order to examine both the initial access of control information, and its later use in on-line processing, we combined a manipulation of nominal control with a gender match/mismatch paradigm. Results showed that there was evidence of processing difficulty for giver control sentences (relative to recipient control sentences) at the point where the control dependency was initially created, suggesting that control information was accessed during the early parsing stages. This effect is attributed to a recency preference in the formation of control dependencies; the parser prefers to assign a recent antecedent to PRO. In addition, readers slowed down after reading a reflexive pronoun that mismatched with the gender of the antecedent indicated by the control nominal (e.g. Luke's promise to Sophia to photograph herself). The mismatch cost suggests that control information of the nominal control construction was used to constrain dependency formation involving a controller, PRO and a reflexive, confirming the use of control information in on-line interpretation.

[The Role and Function of Informatics Nurses in Information Technology Decision-Making].

PubMed

Lee, Tso-Ying

2017-08-01

The medical environment has changed greatly with the coming of the information age, and, increasingly, the operating procedures for medical services have been altered in keeping with the trend toward mobile, paperless services. Informatization has the potential to improve the working efficiency of medical personnel, enhance patient care safety, and give medical organizations a positive image. Informatics nurses play an important role in the decision-making processes that accompany informatization. As one of the decision-making links in the information technology lifecycle, this role affects the success of the development and operation of information systems. The present paper examines the functions and professional knowledge that informatics nurses must possess during the technology lifecycle, the four stages of which include: planning, analysis, design/development/revision, and implementation/assessment/support/maintenance. The present paper further examines the decision-making shortcomings and errors that an informatics nurses may make during the decision-making process. We hope that this paper will serve as an effective and useful reference for informatics nurses during the informatization decision-making process.

Reconstruction dynamics of recorded holograms in photochromic glass.

PubMed

Mihailescu, Mona; Pavel, Eugen; Nicolae, Vasile B

2011-06-20

We have investigated the dynamics of the record-erase process of holograms in photochromic glass using continuum Nd:YVO₄ laser radiation (λ=532 nm). A bidimensional microgrid pattern was formed and visualized in photochromic glass, and its diffraction efficiency decay versus time (during reconstruction step) gave us information (D, Δn) about the diffusion process inside the material. The recording and reconstruction processes were carried out in an off-axis setup, and the images of the reconstructed object were recorded by a CCD camera. Measurements realized on reconstructed object images using holograms recorded at a different incident power laser have shown a two-stage process involved in silver atom kinetics.

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

Anthony D. Rollett; Hasso Weiland; Mohammed Alvi

Carnegie Mellon University was teamed with the Alcoa Technical Center with support from the US Dept. of Energy (Office of Industrial Technology) and the Pennsylvania Technology Investment Authority (PTIA) to make processing of aluminum less costly and more energy efficient. Researchers in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering have investigated how annealing processes in the early stages of aluminum processing affect the structure and properties of the material. Annealing at high temperatures consumes significant amounts of time and energy. By making detailed measurements of the crystallography and morphology of internal structural changes they have generated new information that willmore » provide a scientific basis for shortening processing times and consuming less energy during annealing.« less

New Product Development (NPD) Process - An Example of Industrial Sector

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kazimierska, Marianna; Grębosz-Krawczyk, Magdalena

2017-12-01

This aim of this article is to present the process of new product introduction on example of industrial sector in context of new product development (NPD) concept. In the article, the concept of new product development is discussed and the different stages of the process of new electric motor development are analysed taking into account its objectives, implemented procedures, functions and responsibilities division. In the article, information from secondary sources and the results of empirical research - conducted in an international manufacturing company - are used. The research results show the significance of project leader and regular cooperation with final client in the NPD process.

The use of applied software for the professional training of students studying humanities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sadchikova, A. S.; Rodin, M. M.

2017-01-01

Research practice is an integral part of humanities students' training process. In this regard the training process is to include modern information techniques of the training process of students studying humanities. This paper examines the most popular applied software products used for data processing in social science. For testing purposes we selected the most commonly preferred professional packages: MS Excel, IBM SPSS Statistics, STATISTICA, STADIA. Moreover the article contains testing results of a specialized software Prikladnoy Sotsiolog that is applicable for the preparation stage of the research. The specialised software were tested during one term in groups of students studying humanities.

Evidence Synthesis in Harm Assessment of Medicines Using the Example of Rosiglitazone and Myocardial Infarction.

PubMed

Rietbergen, Charlotte; Stefansdottir, Gudrun; Leufkens, Hubert G; Knol, Mirjam J; De Bruin, Marie L; Klugkist, Irene

2017-01-01

The current system of harm assessment of medicines has been criticized for relying on intuitive expert judgment. There is a call for more quantitative approaches and transparency in decision-making. Illustrated with the case of cardiovascular safety concerns for rosiglitazone, we aimed to explore a structured procedure for the collection, quality assessment, and statistical modeling of safety data from observational and randomized studies. We distinguished five stages in the synthesis process. In Stage I, the general research question, population and outcome, and general inclusion and exclusion criteria are defined and a systematic search is performed. Stage II focusses on the identification of sub-questions examined in the included studies and the classification of the studies into the different categories of sub-questions. In Stage III, the quality of the identified studies is assessed. Coding and data extraction are performed in Stage IV. Finally, meta-analyses on the study results per sub-question are performed in Stage V. A Pubmed search identified 30 randomized and 14 observational studies meeting our search criteria. From these studies, we identified 4 higher level sub-questions and 4 lower level sub-questions. We were able to categorize 29 individual treatment comparisons into one or more of the sub-question categories, and selected study duration as an important covariate. We extracted covariate, outcome, and sample size information at the treatment arm level of the studies. We extracted absolute numbers of myocardial infarctions from the randomized study, and adjusted risk estimates with 95% confidence intervals from the observational studies. Overall, few events were observed in the randomized studies that were frequently of relatively short duration. The large observational studies provided more information since these were often of longer duration. A Bayesian random effects meta-analysis on these data showed no significant increase in risk of rosiglitazone for any of the sub-questions. The proposed procedure can be of additional value for drug safety assessment because it provides a stepwise approach that guides the decision-making in increasing process transparency. The procedure allows for the inclusion of results from both randomized an observational studies, which is especially relevant for this type of research.

Information Needs of Older Women With Early-Stage Breast Cancer When Making Radiation Therapy Decisions.

PubMed

Wang, Shi-Yi; Kelly, Gabrielle; Gross, Cary; Killelea, Brigid K; Mougalian, Sarah; Presley, Carolyn; Fraenkel, Liana; Evans, Suzanne B

2017-07-15

To identify the information older women with early-stage breast cancer need when making radiation therapy decisions, and who patients identify as the main decision maker. We surveyed (through face-to-face interview, telephone, or mail) women aged ≥65 years who received lumpectomy and were considering or receiving adjuvant radiation therapy for early-stage breast cancer. The survey instrument was constructed with input from patient and professional advisory committees, including breast cancer survivors, advocates of breast cancer care and aging, clinicians, and researchers. Participants rated the importance (on a 4-point scale) of 24 statements describing the benefits, side effects, impact on daily life, and other issues of radiation therapy in relation to radiation therapy decision making. Participants also designated who was considered the key decision maker. The response rate was 56.4% (93 of 165). Mean age was 72.5 years, ranging from 65 to 93 years. More than 96% of participants indicated they were the main decision maker on receiving radiation therapy. There was wide variation in information needs regarding radiation therapy decision making. Participants rated a mean of 18 (range, 3-24) items as "essential." Participants rated items related to benefits highest, followed by side effects. Participants who were older than 75 years rated 13.9 questions as essential, whereas participants aged ≤74 years rated 18.7 as essential (P=.018). Older women desire information and have more agency and input in the decision-making process than prior literature would suggest. The variation in information needs indicates that future decision support tools should provide options to select what information would be of interest to the participants. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Guidelines for safe handling of hazardous drugs: A systematic review

PubMed Central

Bernabeu-Martínez, Mari A.; Ramos Merino, Mateo; Santos Gago, Juan M.; Álvarez Sabucedo, Luis M.; Wanden-Berghe, Carmina

2018-01-01

Objective To review the scientific literature related to the safe handling of hazardous drugs (HDs). Method Critical analysis of works retrieved from MEDLINE, the Cochrane Library, Scopus, CINHAL, Web of Science and LILACS using the terms "Hazardous Substances", "Antineoplastic Agents" and "Cytostatic Agents", applying "Humans" and "Guidelines" as filters. Date of search: January 2017. Results In total, 1100 references were retrieved, and from those, 61 documents were selected based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria: 24 (39.3%) documents related to recommendations about HDs; 27 (44.3%) about antineoplastic agents, and 10 (33.3%) about other types of substances (monoclonal antibodies, gene medicine and other chemical and biological agents). In 14 (23.3%) guides, all the stages in the manipulation process involving a risk due to exposure were considered. Only one guide addressed all stages of the handling process of HDs (including stages with and without the risk of exposure). The most described stages were drug preparation (41 guides, 67.2%), staff training and/or patient education (38 guides, 62.3%), and administration (37 guides, 60.7%). No standardized informatics system was found that ensured quality management, traceability and minimization of the risks associated with these drugs. Conclusions Most of the analysed guidelines limit their recommendations to the manipulation of antineoplastics. The most frequently described activities were preparation, training, and administration. It would be convenient to apply ICTs (Information and Communications Technologies) to manage processes involving HDs in a more complete and simpler fashion. PMID:29750798

In Vitro Bioaccessibility of Colored Carotenoids in Tomato Derivatives as Affected by Ripeness Stage and the Addition of Different Types of Oil.

PubMed

González-Casado, Sandra; Martín-Belloso, Olga; Elez-Martínez, Pedro; Soliva-Fortuny, Robert

2018-05-01

The simultaneous effect of tomato ripeness stage (mature green, pink, and red-ripe), mechanical processing (dicing and grinding), and oil addition (coconut, sunflower, and olive oils) on the amount and bioaccessible fraction of carotenoids were evaluated. Tomato products obtained from fruits at the most advanced ripeness stage exhibited the greatest values of both concentration and bioaccessible fraction of total carotenoids and lycopene. The type of processing also exerted an important influence on carotenoids content, as well as on its bioaccessibility. Thus, despite the concentration of carotenoids in tomato puree significantly decreased (36% to 59%), their bioaccessibility was greater (up to 2.54-fold increase) than in tomato cubes. Moreover, the addition of oil significantly improved the carotenoid bioaccessibility, especially when olive oil was added, reaching up to 21-fold increase with respect to samples without oil. The results obtained clearly indicate that carotenoids bioaccessibility of tomato derivatives was strongly influenced by the ripeness stage of the fruit, processing and the addition of oil. Bioaccessibility of carotenoids is known to be affected by different factors. This study provides useful information about the synergic effect of different factors affecting the amount and the bioaccessible fraction of carotenoids, especially lycopene, in two common tomato derivatives. The findings of this work may contribute to develop tomato derivatives with high content of bioaccessible carotenoids, leading to the enhancement of their health-promoting properties. © 2018 Institute of Food Technologists®.

Guidelines for safe handling of hazardous drugs: A systematic review.

PubMed

Bernabeu-Martínez, Mari A; Ramos Merino, Mateo; Santos Gago, Juan M; Álvarez Sabucedo, Luis M; Wanden-Berghe, Carmina; Sanz-Valero, Javier

2018-01-01

To review the scientific literature related to the safe handling of hazardous drugs (HDs). Critical analysis of works retrieved from MEDLINE, the Cochrane Library, Scopus, CINHAL, Web of Science and LILACS using the terms "Hazardous Substances", "Antineoplastic Agents" and "Cytostatic Agents", applying "Humans" and "Guidelines" as filters. Date of search: January 2017. In total, 1100 references were retrieved, and from those, 61 documents were selected based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria: 24 (39.3%) documents related to recommendations about HDs; 27 (44.3%) about antineoplastic agents, and 10 (33.3%) about other types of substances (monoclonal antibodies, gene medicine and other chemical and biological agents). In 14 (23.3%) guides, all the stages in the manipulation process involving a risk due to exposure were considered. Only one guide addressed all stages of the handling process of HDs (including stages with and without the risk of exposure). The most described stages were drug preparation (41 guides, 67.2%), staff training and/or patient education (38 guides, 62.3%), and administration (37 guides, 60.7%). No standardized informatics system was found that ensured quality management, traceability and minimization of the risks associated with these drugs. Most of the analysed guidelines limit their recommendations to the manipulation of antineoplastics. The most frequently described activities were preparation, training, and administration. It would be convenient to apply ICTs (Information and Communications Technologies) to manage processes involving HDs in a more complete and simpler fashion.

What is the role of culture, diversity, and community engagement in transdisciplinary translational science?

PubMed

Graham, Phillip W; Kim, Mimi M; Clinton-Sherrod, A Monique; Yaros, Anna; Richmond, Alan N; Jackson, Melvin; Corbie-Smith, Giselle

2016-03-01

Concepts of culture and diversity are necessary considerations in the scientific application of theory generation and developmental processes of preventive interventions; yet, culture and/or diversity are often overlooked until later stages (e.g., adaptation [T3] and dissemination [T4]) of the translational science process. Here, we present a conceptual framework focused on the seamless incorporation of culture and diversity throughout the various stages of the translational science process (T1-T5). Informed by a community-engaged research approach, this framework guides integration of cultural and diversity considerations at each phase with emphasis on the importance and value of "citizen scientists" being research partners to promote ecological validity. The integrated partnership covers the first phase of intervention development through final phases that ultimately facilitate more global, universal translation of changes in attitudes, norms, and systems. Our comprehensive model for incorporating culture and diversity into translational research provides a basis for further discussion and translational science development.

Rethinking the architectural design concept in the digital culture (in architecture's practice perspective)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prawata, Albertus Galih

2017-11-01

The architectural design stages in architectural practices or in architectural design studio consist of many aspects. One of them is during the early phases of the design process, where the architects or designers try to interpret the project brief into the design concept. This paper is a report of the procedure of digital tools in the early design process in an architectural practice in Jakarta. It targets principally the use of BIM and digital modeling to generate information and transform them into conceptual forms, which is not very common in Indonesian architectural practices. Traditionally, the project brief is transformed into conceptual forms by using sketches, drawings, and physical model. The new method using digital tools shows that it is possible to do the same thing during the initial stage of the design process to create early architectural design forms. Architect's traditional tools and methods begin to be replaced effectively by digital tools, which would drive bigger opportunities for innovation.