A Descriptive-Analytic Study of the Practice Field Behavior of a Winning Female Coach.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dodds, Patt; Rife, Frank

A winning collegiate field hockey coach was observed across seventeen practice sessions through one complete competitive season. A category system for the event recording of verbal and nonverbal behaviors delivered to the team and to the sixteen individual players produced descriptive-analytic information about relative behavior frequencies for…

Descriptive Analysis of Epileptic Seizures and Problem Behavior in Adults with Developmental Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roberts, Celeste; Yoder, Paul J.; Kennedy, Craig H.

2006-01-01

We studied possible relations between seizures and problem behavior in 3 adults with developmental disabilities. Each person was observed for between 56 and 92 days to record occurrences of seizures and problem behavior. Results of our descriptive analysis indicated an association between seizures and problem behavior for each participant. For…

A Novel Approach to Teach the Generation of Bioelectrical Potentials from a Descriptive and Quantitative Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rodriguez-Falces, Javier

2013-01-01

In electrophysiology studies, it is becoming increasingly common to explain experimental observations using both descriptive methods and quantitative approaches. However, some electrophysiological phenomena, such as the generation of extracellular potentials that results from the propagation of the excitation source along the muscle fiber, are…

Problems and challenges in patient information retrieval: a descriptive study.

PubMed Central

Kogan, S.; Zeng, Q.; Ash, N.; Greenes, R. A.

2001-01-01

Many patients now turn to the Web for health care information. However, a lack of domain knowledge and unfamiliarity with medical vocabulary and concepts restrict their ability to successfully obtain information they seek. The purpose of this descriptive study was to identify and classify the problems a patient encounters while performing information retrieval tasks on the Web, and the challenges it poses to informatics research. In this study, we observed patients performing various retrieval tasks, and measured the effectiveness of, satisfaction with, and usefulness of the results. Our study showed that patient information retrieval often failed to produce successful results due to a variety of problems. We propose a classification of patient IR problems based on our observations. PMID:11825205

Computer-based coding of free-text job descriptions to efficiently identify occupations in epidemiological studies

PubMed Central

Russ, Daniel E.; Ho, Kwan-Yuet; Colt, Joanne S.; Armenti, Karla R.; Baris, Dalsu; Chow, Wong-Ho; Davis, Faith; Johnson, Alison; Purdue, Mark P.; Karagas, Margaret R.; Schwartz, Kendra; Schwenn, Molly; Silverman, Debra T.; Johnson, Calvin A.; Friesen, Melissa C.

2016-01-01

Background Mapping job titles to standardized occupation classification (SOC) codes is an important step in identifying occupational risk factors in epidemiologic studies. Because manual coding is time-consuming and has moderate reliability, we developed an algorithm called SOCcer (Standardized Occupation Coding for Computer-assisted Epidemiologic Research) to assign SOC-2010 codes based on free-text job description components. Methods Job title and task-based classifiers were developed by comparing job descriptions to multiple sources linking job and task descriptions to SOC codes. An industry-based classifier was developed based on the SOC prevalence within an industry. These classifiers were used in a logistic model trained using 14,983 jobs with expert-assigned SOC codes to obtain empirical weights for an algorithm that scored each SOC/job description. We assigned the highest scoring SOC code to each job. SOCcer was validated in two occupational data sources by comparing SOC codes obtained from SOCcer to expert assigned SOC codes and lead exposure estimates obtained by linking SOC codes to a job-exposure matrix. Results For 11,991 case-control study jobs, SOCcer-assigned codes agreed with 44.5% and 76.3% of manually assigned codes at the 6- and 2-digit level, respectively. Agreement increased with the score, providing a mechanism to identify assignments needing review. Good agreement was observed between lead estimates based on SOCcer and manual SOC assignments (kappa: 0.6–0.8). Poorer performance was observed for inspection job descriptions, which included abbreviations and worksite-specific terminology. Conclusions Although some manual coding will remain necessary, using SOCcer may improve the efficiency of incorporating occupation into large-scale epidemiologic studies. PMID:27102331

A Description of Contrasting Discourse Patterns Used in Differentiated Reading Instruction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ankrum, Julie; Genest, Maria; Morewood, Aimee

2017-01-01

The purpose of this article is to provide a description of contrasting discourse patterns during small-group reading instruction. The authors report on case studies conducted in two 1st-grade classrooms in different school districts in Pennsylvania. Small-group reading instruction was observed over the course of one year in each classroom, and…

Population description and its role in the interpretation of genetic association

PubMed Central

Yu, Joon-Ho; Crouch, Julia; Fryer-Edwards, Kelly; Burke, Wylie

2010-01-01

Despite calls for greater clarity and precision of population description, studies have documented persistent ambiguity in the use of race/ethnicity terms in genetic research. It is unclear why investigators tolerate such ambiguity, or what effect these practices have on the evaluation of reported associations. To explore the way that population description is used to replicate and/or extend previously reported genetic observations, we examined articles describing the association of the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma-γ Pro12Ala polymorphism with type 2 diabetes mellitus and related phenotypes, published between 1997 and 2005. The 80 articles identified were subjected to a detailed content analysis to determine (1) how sampled populations were described, (2) whether and how the choice of sample was explained, and (3) how the allele frequency and genetic association findings identified were contextualized and interpreted. In common with previous reports, we observed a variety of sample descriptions and little explanation for the choice of population investigated. Samples of European origin were typically described with greater specificity than samples of other origin. However, findings from European samples were nearly always compared to samples described as “Caucasian” and sometimes generalized to all Caucasians or to all humans. These findings suggest that care with population description, while important, may not fully address analytical concerns regarding the interpretation of variable study outcomes or ethical concerns regarding the attribution of genetic observations to broad social groups. Instead, criteria which help investigators better distinguish justified and unjustified forms of population generalization may be required. PMID:20157827

Week Long Topography Study of Young Adults Using Electronic Cigarettes in Their Natural Environment.

PubMed

Robinson, R J; Hensel, E C; Roundtree, K A; Difrancesco, A G; Nonnemaker, J M; Lee, Y O

2016-01-01

Results of an observational, descriptive study quantifying topography characteristics of twenty first generation electronic nicotine delivery system users in their natural environment for a one week observation period are presented. The study quantifies inter-participant variation in puffing topography between users and the intra-participant variation for each user observed during one week of use in their natural environment. Puff topography characteristics presented for each user include mean puff duration, flow rate and volume for each participant, along with descriptive statistics of each quantity. Exposure characteristics including the number of vaping sessions, total number of puffs and cumulative volume of aerosol generated from ENDS use (e-liquid aerosol) are reported for each participant for a one week exposure period and an effective daily average exposure. Significant inter-participant and intra-participant variation in puff topography was observed. The observed range of natural use environment characteristics is used to propose a set of topography protocols for use as command inputs to drive machine-puffed electronic nicotine delivery systems in a controlled laboratory environment.

Week Long Topography Study of Young Adults Using Electronic Cigarettes in Their Natural Environment

PubMed Central

Roundtree, K. A.; Difrancesco, A. G.; Nonnemaker, J. M.; Lee, Y. O.

2016-01-01

Results of an observational, descriptive study quantifying topography characteristics of twenty first generation electronic nicotine delivery system users in their natural environment for a one week observation period are presented. The study quantifies inter-participant variation in puffing topography between users and the intra-participant variation for each user observed during one week of use in their natural environment. Puff topography characteristics presented for each user include mean puff duration, flow rate and volume for each participant, along with descriptive statistics of each quantity. Exposure characteristics including the number of vaping sessions, total number of puffs and cumulative volume of aerosol generated from ENDS use (e-liquid aerosol) are reported for each participant for a one week exposure period and an effective daily average exposure. Significant inter-participant and intra-participant variation in puff topography was observed. The observed range of natural use environment characteristics is used to propose a set of topography protocols for use as command inputs to drive machine-puffed electronic nicotine delivery systems in a controlled laboratory environment. PMID:27736944

High incorrect use of the standard error of the mean (SEM) in original articles in three cardiovascular journals evaluated for 2012.

PubMed

Wullschleger, Marcel; Aghlmandi, Soheila; Egger, Marcel; Zwahlen, Marcel

2014-01-01

In biomedical journals authors sometimes use the standard error of the mean (SEM) for data description, which has been called inappropriate or incorrect. To assess the frequency of incorrect use of SEM in articles in three selected cardiovascular journals. All original journal articles published in 2012 in Cardiovascular Research, Circulation: Heart Failure and Circulation Research were assessed by two assessors for inappropriate use of SEM when providing descriptive information of empirical data. We also assessed whether the authors state in the methods section that the SEM will be used for data description. Of 441 articles included in this survey, 64% (282 articles) contained at least one instance of incorrect use of the SEM, with two journals having a prevalence above 70% and "Circulation: Heart Failure" having the lowest value (27%). In 81% of articles with incorrect use of SEM, the authors had explicitly stated that they use the SEM for data description and in 89% SEM bars were also used instead of 95% confidence intervals. Basic science studies had a 7.4-fold higher level of inappropriate SEM use (74%) than clinical studies (10%). The selection of the three cardiovascular journals was based on a subjective initial impression of observing inappropriate SEM use. The observed results are not representative for all cardiovascular journals. In three selected cardiovascular journals we found a high level of inappropriate SEM use and explicit methods statements to use it for data description, especially in basic science studies. To improve on this situation, these and other journals should provide clear instructions to authors on how to report descriptive information of empirical data.

Developing Kindergarten Children's Mathematical Abilities and Character by Using Area Instruction Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mardiana, Dinny; Mudrikah, Achmad; Amna, Nurjanah

2016-01-01

This study aimed to describe the application of Area Instruction Model on one of the state kindergarten in Bandung city. The study used a qualitative approach with descriptive qualitative design. Data was obtained through interviews, observation, and documentation. The validity of the analysis was guaranteed through perseverance observation and…

Reporting guidelines for primary research: Saying what you did.

PubMed

O'Connor, Annette

2010-12-01

Reporting guidelines aim to facilitate publication of a full and accurate description of research conducted. The motivations for a full and accurate description of research is to enable reproduction of the study, assessment of bias, extraction of data from the study, and to fulfill an ethical obligation to maximize the utility of research findings. Many reporting guidelines exist and most are based on a specific study design such as randomized controlled trials (CONSORT statement) and observational studies (STROBE statement). The REFLECT statement focuses on randomized control trials in livestock and food safety studies. The REFLECT statement has increased emphasis on conveying information about animal housing, group level allocation and challenge studies. Guidelines can be used by authors, reviewers and editors to provide readers with a full and accurate description of the work conducted. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Are normative sonographic values of kidney size in children valid and reliable? A systematic review of the methodological quality of ultrasound studies using the Anatomical Quality Assessment (AQUA) tool.

PubMed

Chhapola, Viswas; Tiwari, Soumya; Deepthi, Bobbity; Henry, Brandon Michael; Brar, Rekha; Kanwal, Sandeep Kumar

2018-06-01

A plethora of research is available on ultrasonographic kidney size standards. We performed a systematic review of methodological quality of ultrasound studies aimed at developing normative renal parameters in healthy children, by evaluating the risk of bias (ROB) using the 'Anatomical Quality Assessment (AQUA)' tool. We searched Medline, Scopus, CINAHL, and Google Scholar on June 04 2018, and observational studies measuring kidney size by ultrasonography in healthy children (0-18 years) were included. The ROB of each study was evaluated in five domains using a 20 item coding scheme based on AQUA tool framework. Fifty-four studies were included. Domain 1 (subject characteristics) had a high ROB in 63% of studies due to the unclear description of age, sex, and ethnicity. The performance in Domain 2 (study design) was the best with 85% of studies having a prospective design. Methodological characterization (Domain 3) was poor across the studies (< 10% compliance), with suboptimal performance in the description of patient positioning, operator experience, and assessment of intra/inter-observer reliability. About three-fourth of the studies had a low ROB in Domain 4 (descriptive anatomy). Domain 5 (reporting of results) had a high ROB in approximately half of the studies, the majority reporting results in the form of central tendency measures. Significant deficiencies and heterogeneity were observed in the methodological quality of USG studies performed to-date for measurement of kidney size in children. We hereby provide a framework for the conducting such studies in future. PROSPERO (CRD42017071601).

Semantic Web Compatible Names and Descriptions for Organisms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, H.; Wilson, N.; McGuinness, D. L.

2012-12-01

Modern scientific names are critical for understanding the biological literature and provide a valuable way to understand evolutionary relationships. To validly publish a name, a description is required to separate the described group of organisms from those described by other names at the same level of the taxonomic hierarchy. The frequent revision of descriptions due to new evolutionary evidence has lead to situations where a single given scientific name may over time have multiple descriptions associated with it and a given published description may apply to multiple scientific names. Because of these many-to-many relationships between scientific names and descriptions, the usage of scientific names as a proxy for descriptions is inevitably ambiguous. Another issue lies in the fact that the precise application of scientific names often requires careful microscopic work, or increasingly, genetic sequencing, as scientific names are focused on the evolutionary relatedness between and within named groups such as species, genera, families, etc. This is problematic to many audiences, especially field biologists, who often do not have access to the instruments and tools required to make identifications on a microscopic or genetic basis. To better connect scientific names to descriptions and find a more convenient way to support computer assisted identification, we proposed the Semantic Vernacular System, a novel naming system that creates named, machine-interpretable descriptions for groups of organisms, and is compatible with the Semantic Web. Unlike the evolutionary relationship based scientific naming system, it emphasizes the observable features of organisms. By independently naming the descriptions composed of sets of observational features, as well as maintaining connections to scientific names, it preserves the observational data used to identify organisms. The system is designed to support a peer-review mechanism for creating new names, and uses a controlled vocabulary encoded in the Web Ontology Language to represent the observational features. A prototype of the system is currently under development in collaboration with the Mushroom Observer website. It allows users to propose new names and descriptions for fungi, provide feedback on those proposals, and ultimately have them formally approved. It relies on SPARQL queries and semantic reasoning for data management. This effort will offer the mycology community a knowledge base of fungal observational features and a tool for identifying fungal observations. It will also serve as an operational specification of how the Semantic Vernacular System can be used in practice in one scientific community (in this case mycology).

Molecular Dynamic Studies of Particle Wake Potentials in Plasmas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ellis, Ian; Graziani, Frank; Glosli, James; Strozzi, David; Surh, Michael; Richards, David; Decyk, Viktor; Mori, Warren

2010-11-01

Fast Ignition studies require a detailed understanding of electron scattering, stopping, and energy deposition in plasmas with variable values for the number of particles within a Debye sphere. Presently there is disagreement in the literature concerning the proper description of these processes. Developing and validating proper descriptions requires studying the processes using first-principle electrostatic simulations and possibly including magnetic fields. We are using the particle-particle particle-mesh (P^3M) code ddcMD to perform these simulations. As a starting point in our study, we examined the wake of a particle passing through a plasma. In this poster, we compare the wake observed in 3D ddcMD simulations with that predicted by Vlasov theory and those observed in the electrostatic PIC code BEPS where the cell size was reduced to .03λD.

A descriptive qualitative study of student learning in a psychosocial nursing class infused with art, literature, music, and film.

PubMed

Jensen, Alice; Curtis, Mary

2008-01-01

Nursing educators have long valued and supported the integration of liberal arts in professional nursing programs. This descriptive qualitative study explores the meanings students derive from the integration of liberal arts content into a psychosocial nursing class. Questionnaires, class observation, and focus group interviews revealed five themes: an interesting hook, a deeper level of understanding, developing self-understanding, developing empathy and increasing cultural awareness. Researchers suggest that integrating liberal arts into nursing education enhances student learning.

Preservice Elementary Teachers Increase Descriptive Science Vocabulary by Making Descriptive Adjective Object Boxes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rule, Audrey C.; Crisafulli, Sherry; DeCare, Heather; DeLeo, Tonya; Eastman, Keri; Farrell, Liz; Geblein, Jennifer; Gioia, Chelsea; Joyce, Ashley; Killian, Kali; Knoop, Kelly; LaRocca, Alison; Meyer, Katie; Miller, Julianne; Roth, Vicki; Throo, Julie; Van Arsdale, Jim; Walker, Malissa

2007-01-01

Descriptive vocabulary is needed for communication and mental processing of science observations. Elementary preservice teachers in a science methods class at a mid-sized public college in central New York State increased their descriptive vocabularies through a course assignment of making a descriptive adjective object box. This teaching material…

Computer-based coding of free-text job descriptions to efficiently identify occupations in epidemiological studies.

PubMed

Russ, Daniel E; Ho, Kwan-Yuet; Colt, Joanne S; Armenti, Karla R; Baris, Dalsu; Chow, Wong-Ho; Davis, Faith; Johnson, Alison; Purdue, Mark P; Karagas, Margaret R; Schwartz, Kendra; Schwenn, Molly; Silverman, Debra T; Johnson, Calvin A; Friesen, Melissa C

2016-06-01

Mapping job titles to standardised occupation classification (SOC) codes is an important step in identifying occupational risk factors in epidemiological studies. Because manual coding is time-consuming and has moderate reliability, we developed an algorithm called SOCcer (Standardized Occupation Coding for Computer-assisted Epidemiologic Research) to assign SOC-2010 codes based on free-text job description components. Job title and task-based classifiers were developed by comparing job descriptions to multiple sources linking job and task descriptions to SOC codes. An industry-based classifier was developed based on the SOC prevalence within an industry. These classifiers were used in a logistic model trained using 14 983 jobs with expert-assigned SOC codes to obtain empirical weights for an algorithm that scored each SOC/job description. We assigned the highest scoring SOC code to each job. SOCcer was validated in 2 occupational data sources by comparing SOC codes obtained from SOCcer to expert assigned SOC codes and lead exposure estimates obtained by linking SOC codes to a job-exposure matrix. For 11 991 case-control study jobs, SOCcer-assigned codes agreed with 44.5% and 76.3% of manually assigned codes at the 6-digit and 2-digit level, respectively. Agreement increased with the score, providing a mechanism to identify assignments needing review. Good agreement was observed between lead estimates based on SOCcer and manual SOC assignments (κ 0.6-0.8). Poorer performance was observed for inspection job descriptions, which included abbreviations and worksite-specific terminology. Although some manual coding will remain necessary, using SOCcer may improve the efficiency of incorporating occupation into large-scale epidemiological studies. 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/

Observations of Children's Interactions with Teachers, Peers, and Tasks across Preschool Classroom Activity Settings

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Booren, Leslie M.; Downer, Jason T.; Vitiello, Virginia E.

2012-01-01

Research Findings: This descriptive study examined classroom activity settings in relation to children's observed behavior during classroom interactions, child gender, and basic teacher behavior within the preschool classroom. A total of 145 children were observed for an average of 80 min during 8 occasions across 2 days using the Individualized…

Attainment of students’ conception in magnetic fields by using of direct observation and symbolic language ability

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Desy Fatmaryanti, Siska; Suparmi; Sarwanto; Ashadi

2017-11-01

This study focuses on description attainment of students’ conception in the magnetic field. The conception was based by using of direct observation and symbolic language ability. The method used is descriptive quantitative research. The subject of study was about 86 students from 3 senior high school at Purworejo. The learning process was done by guided inquiry model. During the learning, students were required to actively investigate the concept of a magnetic field around a straight wire electrical current Data retrieval was performed using an instrument in the form of a multiple choice test reasoned and observation during the learning process. There was four indicator of direct observation ability and four indicators of symbolic language ability to grouping category of students conception. The results of average score showed that students conception about the magnitude more better than the direction of magnetic fields in view of symbolic language. From the observation, we found that students could draw the magnetic fields line not from a text book but their direct observation results. They used various way to get a good accuracy of observation results. Explicit recommendations are presented in the discussion section at the end of this paper.

Rebuilding Government Legitimacy in Post-conflict Societies: Case Studies of Nepal and Afghanistan

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-09-09

administered via the verbal scales due to reduced time spent explaining the visual show cards. Statistical results corresponded with observations from...a three-step strategy for dealing with item non-response. First, basic descriptive statistics are calculated to determine the extent of item...descriptive statistics for all items in the survey), however this section of the report highlights just some of the findings. Thus, the results

The effect of visual and verbal modes of presentation on children's retention of images and words

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vasu, Ellen Storey; Howe, Ann C.

This study tested the hypothesis that the use of two modes of presenting information to children has an additive memory effect for the retention of both images and words. Subjects were 22 first-grade and 22 fourth-grade children randomly assigned to visual and visual-verbal treatment groups. The visual-verbal group heard a description while observing an object; the visual group observed the same object but did not hear a description. Children were tested individually immediately after presentation of stimuli and two weeks later. They were asked to represent the information recalled through a drawing and an oral verbal description. In general, results supported the hypothesis and indicated, in addition, that children represent more information in iconic (pictorial) form than in symbolic (verbal) form. Strategies for using these results to enhance science learning at the elementary school level are discussed.

Socialization to School: A Study of Low-Income and Minority Children in an Early Childhood Setting. Occasional Paper.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schwartz, Audrey James

This study is a description of the initial socialization of low-income children, aged 3 to 6 years, who were recruited by a middle- and upper-income elementary college-laboratory school. Data for this study were obtained through observations of 11 recruited children and their classmates during a 4-year period. These observations were supplemented…

A class of spherical, truncated, anisotropic models for application to globular clusters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Vita, Ruggero; Bertin, Giuseppe; Zocchi, Alice

2016-05-01

Recently, a class of non-truncated, radially anisotropic models (the so-called f(ν)-models), originally constructed in the context of violent relaxation and modelling of elliptical galaxies, has been found to possess interesting qualities in relation to observed and simulated globular clusters. In view of new applications to globular clusters, we improve this class of models along two directions. To make them more suitable for the description of small stellar systems hosted by galaxies, we introduce a "tidal" truncation by means of a procedure that guarantees full continuity of the distribution function. The new fT(ν)-models are shown to provide a better fit to the observed photometric and spectroscopic profiles for a sample of 13 globular clusters studied earlier by means of non-truncated models; interestingly, the best-fit models also perform better with respect to the radial-orbit instability. Then, we design a flexible but simple two-component family of truncated models to study the separate issues of mass segregation and multiple populations. We do not aim at a fully realistic description of globular clusters to compete with the description currently obtained by means of dedicated simulations. The goal here is to try to identify the simplest models, that is, those with the smallest number of free parameters, but still have the capacity to provide a reasonable description for clusters that are evidently beyond the reach of one-component models. With this tool, we aim at identifying the key factors that characterize mass segregation or the presence of multiple populations. To reduce the relevant parameter space, we formulate a few physical arguments based on recent observations and simulations. A first application to two well-studied globular clusters is briefly described and discussed.

Gauge-transformation properties of cosmological observables and its application to the light-cone average

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

Yoo, Jaiyul; Durrer, Ruth, E-mail: jyoo@physik.uzh.ch, E-mail: ruth.durrer@unige.ch

Theoretical descriptions of observable quantities in cosmological perturbation theory should be independent of coordinate systems. This statement is often referred to as gauge-invariance of observable quantities, and the sanity of their theoretical description is verified by checking its gauge-invariance. We argue that cosmological observables are invariant scalars under diffeomorphisms and their theoretical description is gauge-invariant, only at linear order in perturbations. Beyond linear order, they are usually not gauge-invariant, and we provide the general law for the gauge-transformation that the perturbation part of an observable does obey. We apply this finding to derive the second-order expression for the observational light-conemore » average in cosmology and demonstrate that our expression is indeed invariant under diffeomorphisms.« less

The Study of Literature in a Fifth-Grade Classroom: One Teacher's Perspective. Elementary Subjects Center Series No. 83.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Quirk, Barbara A.; Cianciolo, Patricia J.

A descriptive/observational study examined one teacher's approach to teaching literature in a heterogeneous, self-contained fifth-grade classroom in a growing suburban community in southeastern Michigan during one school year. The teacher (with 21 years experience) was selected by the Murray Hill School administrators and was observed once a week…

Morphological comparison of five species of poison dart frogs of the genus Ranitomeya (Anura: Dendrobatidae) including the skeleton, the muscle system and inner organs.

PubMed

Krings, Markus; Klein, Benjamin; Heneka, Markus J; Rödder, Dennis

2017-01-01

The morphology of larvae stages of most amphibians are often completely different than in adults. Tadpole descriptions have historically been based on external characters like morphometrics, color pattern and oral disc structure. Other papers described anatomical details by the use of dissections. The increase in micro-CT scanning technology provides an opportunity to quantify and describe in detail internal characters like skeleton, musculature and organs. To date, no such tadpole descriptions exist for the well-studied Neotropical poison dart frog genus Ranitomeya (Anura: Dendrobatidae). Here we provide descriptions of the internal skeletal, musculature and organ structures of five Ranitomeya species and then provide morphological comparisons. Contrary to previous observations, closely related species display several morphological differences. For example, we observed considerable variation in chondrocranial characters, the extent of cranial ossifications, the appearance of some cranial muscles and the arrangement of inner organs. Further studies on the tadpole morphology of more species of Ranitomeya and other dendrobatid genera are needed to enable us to understand the complete morphological variation in this group.

Morphological comparison of five species of poison dart frogs of the genus Ranitomeya (Anura: Dendrobatidae) including the skeleton, the muscle system and inner organs

PubMed Central

Krings, Markus; Klein, Benjamin; Heneka, Markus J.

2017-01-01

The morphology of larvae stages of most amphibians are often completely different than in adults. Tadpole descriptions have historically been based on external characters like morphometrics, color pattern and oral disc structure. Other papers described anatomical details by the use of dissections. The increase in micro-CT scanning technology provides an opportunity to quantify and describe in detail internal characters like skeleton, musculature and organs. To date, no such tadpole descriptions exist for the well-studied Neotropical poison dart frog genus Ranitomeya (Anura: Dendrobatidae). Here we provide descriptions of the internal skeletal, musculature and organ structures of five Ranitomeya species and then provide morphological comparisons. Contrary to previous observations, closely related species display several morphological differences. For example, we observed considerable variation in chondrocranial characters, the extent of cranial ossifications, the appearance of some cranial muscles and the arrangement of inner organs. Further studies on the tadpole morphology of more species of Ranitomeya and other dendrobatid genera are needed to enable us to understand the complete morphological variation in this group. PMID:28235032

β4 systematics in rare-earth and actinide nuclei: sdg interacting boson model description

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Devi, Y. D.; Kota, V. K. B.

1992-07-01

The observed variation of hexadecupole deformation parameter β4 with mass number A in rare-earth and actinide nuclei is studied in the sdg interacting boson model (IBM) using single j-shell Otsuka-Arima-Iachello mapped and IBM-2 to IBM-1 projected hexadecupole transition operator together with SUsdg(3) and SUsdg(5) coherent states. The SUsdg(3) limit is found to provide a good description of data.

Determinants of Knowledge and Safety Practices of Occupational Hazards of Textile Dye Workers in Sokoto, Nigeria: A Descriptive Analytic Study.

PubMed

Okafoagu, Nneka Christina; Oche, Mansur; Awosan, Kehinde Joseph; Abdulmulmuni, Hashim Bala; Gana, Godwin Jiya; Ango, Jessica Timane; Raji, Ismail

2017-06-23

Textile dye workers are subject to occupational hazards on a daily basis due to exposure to precarious conditions in the workplace. This study aimed to assess the knowledge, attitude and safety practices and its determinants among textile dye workers in Sokoto metropolis, Nigeria. This is a descriptive cross-sectional study conducted among 200 textile dye workers and the respondents were selected by multi stage sampling technique. Data was collected using an interviewer administered questionnaire. Data was processed using SPSS IBM version 20 and analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Majority of the respondents (74.0%) had good knowledge of workplace hazards; (81.0%) had positive attitude and only 20% observed all the safety practices. Formal education (P=0.047); working less than 5 days a week (P=0.001) and permanent employment (P=0.013) were found to be determinants of respondents' knowledge and attitude towards workplace hazards. Although the respondents had good knowledge and positive attitude, their lack of observance of safety practices brings to fore the need for direct safety instruction and training and retraining of textile dye workers on workplace hazards and safety practices.

[The practice of special observation in adults in the German-speaking part of Switzerland - a descriptive cross-sectional study].

PubMed

Lienhardt, Andrea; Rabenschlag, Franziska; Panfil, Eva-Maria

2018-06-08

The practice of special observation in adults in the German-speaking part of Switzerland - a descriptive cross-sectional study Abstract. Psychiatric Special Observation (PSO) is an intervention often used by nurses to prevent service users of harming themselves or to protect others. The intervention ranges between control and therapy and is resource intensive. Despite the widespread use of PSO, there is still no data on the practice of the intervention in Switzerland. What is the current practice of PSO in adults in psychiatric hospitals in the German-speaking part of Switzerland? Descriptive cross-sectional study. Nurses from inpatient psychiatric services in the German-speaking part of Switzerland completed a questionnaire based on a concept analysis of PSO. 538 questionnaires were analysed. PSO was more often conducted intermittent than as constant observation. In more than one out of four cases, suicidality reasoned as a cause for prescription. Nurses generally used standardized instruments to assess the risk of harming oneself or others. The duration of PSO lasted eight hours or more in three out of four cases. In every fifth case, there was no validation of the need of the intervention taking place during one shift. Nurses have a neutral attitude towards the intervention and are experiencing no or weak negative feelings during performance of PSO. The results suggest that there is an inconsistent performance of PSO in Switzerland as well as in other countries. The validation of the need of the intervention is insufficient. To facilitate PSO as a justified performance, the preparation of an interprofessional guideline is recommended.

Fruit and Vegetable Attitudes, Norms, and Intake in Low-Income Youth.

PubMed

Di Noia, Jennifer; Cullen, Karen Weber

2015-12-01

Fruit and vegetable (FV) attitudes and norms have been shown to influence intake in youth; yet research with low-income youth and studies supplementing self-report with objective measures of intake are lacking. Cross-sectional survey data on self-rated FV intake, FV attitudes, and FV norms were collected in a sample of 116 youth attending a residential summer camp serving low-income families. FV intake also was estimated by direct observation. Differences between self-rated and observed FV intake, perceived and observed peer intake, and perceived and peer-reported attitudes toward eating FVs were assessed with paired samples t tests. The role of FV attitudes, descriptive norms (perceived peer FV intake), injunctive norms (perceived peer attitudes toward eating FVs), and actual norms (observed peer FV intake and peer-reported FV attitudes) in predicting FV intake also was examined with multiple regression analysis. Youth misperceived their own and their peers' FV intake (i.e., overestimated intake of fruit and underestimated intake of vegetables) and believed that peers held less favorable attitudes toward eating FVs than was the case. The models predicting self-rated intake were significant, accounting for 34% of the variance in fruit intake and 28% of the variance in vegetable intake. Attitudes and descriptive norms were positively associated with FV intake, and observed peer fruit intake was negatively associated with fruit intake. Findings suggest that in low-income youth, FV attitudes, descriptive norms, and normative peer behavior predict perceived but not actual intake. Youth may benefit from intervention to promote favorable FV attitudes and norms. A focus on descriptive norms holds promise for improving self-rated intake in this population. © 2015 Society for Public Health Education.

Description and Codification of Miscanthus × giganteus Growth Stages for Phenological Assessment

PubMed Central

Tejera, Mauricio D.; Heaton, Emily A.

2017-01-01

Triploid Miscanthus × giganteus (Greef et Deu. ex Hodkinson et Renvoize) is a sterile, perennial grass used for biomass production in temperate environments. While M. × giganteus has been intensively researched, a scale standardizing description of M. × giganteus morphological stages has not been developed. Here we provide such a scale by adapting the widely-used Biologische Bundesanstalt, Bundessortenamt, CHemische Industrie (BBCH) scale and its corresponding numerical code to describe stages of morphological development in M. × giganteus using observations of the “Freedom” and “Illinois” clone in Iowa, USA. Descriptive keys with images are also presented. Because M. × giganteus plants overlap in the field, the scale was first applied to individual stems and then scaled up to assess plants or communities. Of the 10 principal growth stages in the BBCH system, eight were observed in M. × giganteus. Each principal stage was subdivided into secondary stages to enable a detailed description of developmental progression. While M. × giganteus does not have seed development stages, descriptions of those stages are provided to extend the scale to other Miscanthus genotypes. We present methods to use morphological development data to assess phenology by calculating the onset, duration, and abundance of each developmental stage. This scale has potential to harmonize previously described study-specific scales and standardize results across studies. Use of the precise staging presented here should more tightly constrain estimates of developmental parameters in crop models and increase the efficacy of timing-sensitive crop management practices like pest control and harvest. PMID:29062320

Instructional Supervision: A Descriptive Study Focusing on the Observation and Evaluation of Teachers in Cyberschools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Farley, Gregory Charles

2010-01-01

Since 1996, K-12 schools are increasingly moving from a traditional, face-to-face educational environment to an online learning environment utilizing technologies to deliver instruction primarily via the Internet. As this trend continues, administrators familiar with traditional supervisory methods will observe and evaluate teachers of online…

A Typology for Observing Children's Engagement with eBooks at Preschool

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roskos, Kathleen; Burstein, Karen; You, Byeong-Keun

2012-01-01

This research reports a two-phase descriptive study of young children's engagement with ebooks conducted in Head Start classrooms. Phase 1 focused on the development of a typology as an analytic framework for observing engagement with ebooks in different formats (shared book; independent book browsing) and across devices (stationary touch screen;…

Critical discussion of evaluation parameters for inter-observer variability in target definition for radiation therapy.

PubMed

Fotina, I; Lütgendorf-Caucig, C; Stock, M; Pötter, R; Georg, D

2012-02-01

Inter-observer studies represent a valid method for the evaluation of target definition uncertainties and contouring guidelines. However, data from the literature do not yet give clear guidelines for reporting contouring variability. Thus, the purpose of this work was to compare and discuss various methods to determine variability on the basis of clinical cases and a literature review. In this study, 7 prostate and 8 lung cases were contoured on CT images by 8 experienced observers. Analysis of variability included descriptive statistics, calculation of overlap measures, and statistical measures of agreement. Cross tables with ratios and correlations were established for overlap parameters. It was shown that the minimal set of parameters to be reported should include at least one of three volume overlap measures (i.e., generalized conformity index, Jaccard coefficient, or conformation number). High correlation between these parameters and scatter of the results was observed. A combination of descriptive statistics, overlap measure, and statistical measure of agreement or reliability analysis is required to fully report the interrater variability in delineation.

Neo-Taylorism in Educational Administration?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gronn, Peter C.

1982-01-01

Reviews eight recent observational studies of school administrators and criticizes the studies' use of "time and motion" assumptions drawn from Frederick Winslow Taylor's ideas. Outlines an alternate approach based on "thick" description of administrators' work, including their talk, as exemplified in James Boswell's biography…

Parental behaviour in paediatric chronic pain: a qualitative observational study.

PubMed

Dunford, Emma; Thompson, Miles; Gauntlett-Gilbert, Jeremy

2014-10-01

Parental behaviour appears to influence the adjustment of children with chronic pain. However, research in this area has failed to produce consistent evidence. Studies have tended to rely on self-report measures derived from adult pain populations. This qualitative, observational research provides descriptive data of parental behaviour in a clinical environment. A qualitative observational study was made of parents and adolescents in a physically stressful setting. Modified grounded theory was used to analyse verbal and non-verbal behaviours. Eight parent-adolescent dyads seeking treatment for chronic pain were videoed during physical exercise sessions. Verbal and non-verbal behaviours were recorded and transcribed. Four overarching categories emerged: 'monitoring', 'protecting', 'encouraging' and 'instructing'. These often had both verbal and non-verbal aspects. Within these categories, more precise behavioural groups were also identified. This research identifies categories of parental behaviour that were derived directly from observation, rather than imposed on the basis of results from different populations. Four categories of behaviour were derived, which clarify and extend dimensions used in existing self-report instruments. Careful description of parental behaviours showed features that past research has neglected, and highlighted potential drawbacks of apparently positive parental actions. © The Author(s) 2013.

The ligaments of the canine hip joint revisited.

PubMed

Casteleyn, C; den Ouden, I; Coopman, F; Verhoeven, G; Van Cruchten, S; Van Ginneken, C; Van Ryssen, B; Simoens, P

2015-12-01

Numerous conventional anatomical textbooks describe the canine hip joint, but many contradictions, in particular regarding the ligament of the femoral head, are present. This paper presents a brief overview of the different literature descriptions. These are compared with own observations that have resulted in a revised description of the anatomy of the ligament of the femoral head in the dog. To this purpose, the hip joints of 41 dogs, euthanized for reasons not related to this study and devoid of lesions related to hip joint pathology, were examined. It was observed that the ligament of the femoral head is not a single structure that attaches only to the acetabular fossa, as generally accepted, but it also connects to the transverse acetabular ligament and is complemented by a strong accessory ligament that courses in caudal direction to attach in the elongation of the acetabular notch that extends on the cranioventral surface of the body of the ischium. The description of this accessory ligament in conventional anatomical handbooks is incomplete. This description of the accessory ligament of the femoral head could support the research unravelling the etiopathogenesis of hip instability. © 2014 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.

Estimate of the Chinese astronomy development through the descriptions of nova observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nickiforov, Mihael G.

More than a hundred descriptions of guest stars observations made by Chinese, Korean and Japanese astronomers from 6th till 17th centuries are examined in this work. The comparison of the distribution of star outbursts on galactic latitudes from the Chinese sources with the modern data casts doubt on the reliability of the ancient observations. The text analysis shows that the technique of the descriptions of the places of outbursts of new stars does not change from the first ancient observations till the 16th century. This is a sign of a lack of precise instrumental measurements until the arrival of the Jesuits, in 16th century, and of a lack of Chinese star catalog in the medieval China.

Self-Esteem, Study Habits and Academic Performance among University Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chilca Alva, Manuel L.

2017-01-01

This study was intended to establish whether self-esteem and study habits correlate with academic performance among university students. Research conducted was descriptive observational, multivariate or cross-sectional factorial in nature. The study population consisted of 196 students enrolled in a Basic Mathematics 1 class at the School of…

Towards Reproducible Descriptions of Neuronal Network Models

PubMed Central

Nordlie, Eilen; Gewaltig, Marc-Oliver; Plesser, Hans Ekkehard

2009-01-01

Progress in science depends on the effective exchange of ideas among scientists. New ideas can be assessed and criticized in a meaningful manner only if they are formulated precisely. This applies to simulation studies as well as to experiments and theories. But after more than 50 years of neuronal network simulations, we still lack a clear and common understanding of the role of computational models in neuroscience as well as established practices for describing network models in publications. This hinders the critical evaluation of network models as well as their re-use. We analyze here 14 research papers proposing neuronal network models of different complexity and find widely varying approaches to model descriptions, with regard to both the means of description and the ordering and placement of material. We further observe great variation in the graphical representation of networks and the notation used in equations. Based on our observations, we propose a good model description practice, composed of guidelines for the organization of publications, a checklist for model descriptions, templates for tables presenting model structure, and guidelines for diagrams of networks. The main purpose of this good practice is to trigger a debate about the communication of neuronal network models in a manner comprehensible to humans, as opposed to machine-readable model description languages. We believe that the good model description practice proposed here, together with a number of other recent initiatives on data-, model-, and software-sharing, may lead to a deeper and more fruitful exchange of ideas among computational neuroscientists in years to come. We further hope that work on standardized ways of describing—and thinking about—complex neuronal networks will lead the scientific community to a clearer understanding of high-level concepts in network dynamics, and will thus lead to deeper insights into the function of the brain. PMID:19662159

Active Vertex Model for cell-resolution description of epithelial tissue mechanics

PubMed Central

Barton, Daniel L.; Henkes, Silke

2017-01-01

We introduce an Active Vertex Model (AVM) for cell-resolution studies of the mechanics of confluent epithelial tissues consisting of tens of thousands of cells, with a level of detail inaccessible to similar methods. The AVM combines the Vertex Model for confluent epithelial tissues with active matter dynamics. This introduces a natural description of the cell motion and accounts for motion patterns observed on multiple scales. Furthermore, cell contacts are generated dynamically from positions of cell centres. This not only enables efficient numerical implementation, but provides a natural description of the T1 transition events responsible for local tissue rearrangements. The AVM also includes cell alignment, cell-specific mechanical properties, cell growth, division and apoptosis. In addition, the AVM introduces a flexible, dynamically changing boundary of the epithelial sheet allowing for studies of phenomena such as the fingering instability or wound healing. We illustrate these capabilities with a number of case studies. PMID:28665934

Active Vertex Model for cell-resolution description of epithelial tissue mechanics.

PubMed

Barton, Daniel L; Henkes, Silke; Weijer, Cornelis J; Sknepnek, Rastko

2017-06-01

We introduce an Active Vertex Model (AVM) for cell-resolution studies of the mechanics of confluent epithelial tissues consisting of tens of thousands of cells, with a level of detail inaccessible to similar methods. The AVM combines the Vertex Model for confluent epithelial tissues with active matter dynamics. This introduces a natural description of the cell motion and accounts for motion patterns observed on multiple scales. Furthermore, cell contacts are generated dynamically from positions of cell centres. This not only enables efficient numerical implementation, but provides a natural description of the T1 transition events responsible for local tissue rearrangements. The AVM also includes cell alignment, cell-specific mechanical properties, cell growth, division and apoptosis. In addition, the AVM introduces a flexible, dynamically changing boundary of the epithelial sheet allowing for studies of phenomena such as the fingering instability or wound healing. We illustrate these capabilities with a number of case studies.

"To look at death another way": Black teenage males' perspectives on second-lines and regular funerals in New Orleans.

PubMed

Bordere, Tashel C

The purpose of this study was to describe how Black adolescent males understand "second-line" (musical processions) and "regular"/traditional funeral rituals in New Orleans following the violent deaths of significant persons in their lives. In-depth interviews were conducted with 10 Black males between the ages of 12 and 15 using descriptive phenomenology methodology. Findings revealed that these participants understood death as a cause for celebration, remembrance, and unity related to their experiences with the second-line ritual. Three elements of the life world of Black teenage males were descriptive of second lines, including: a) observed locations of second lines; b) dancing to good music; and c) observed messages conveyed through t-shirts. Participants provided gender-based descriptions of perceived spoken and unspoken rights in grieving at the two distinct rituals. Related to their second-line experience, the teens reflect on ways in which they wish to have their deaths ritualized.

van der Waals Interactions and Hadron Resonance Gas: Role of resonance widths modeling on conserved charges fluctuations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vovchenko, Volodymyr; Alba, Paolo; Gorenstein, Mark I.; Stoecker, Horst

2018-02-01

The quantum van der Waals (QvdW) extension of the ideal hadron resonance gas (HRG) model which includes the attractive and repulsive interactions between baryons - the QvdW-HRG model - is applied to study the behavior of the baryon number related susceptibilities in the crossover temperature region. Inclusion of the QvdW interactions leads to a qualitatively different behavior of susceptibilities, in many cases resembling lattice QCD simulations. It is shown that for some observables, in particular for χBQ11/χB2, effects of the QvdW interactions essentially cancel out. It is found that the inclusion of the finite resonance widths leads to an improved description of χB2, but it also leads to a worse description of χBQ11/χB2, as compared to the lattice data. On the other hand, inclusion of the extra, unconfirmed baryons into the hadron list leads to a simultaneous improvement in the description of both observables.

B(IS4; 0{GS/+}→4{/γ +}) systematics in rare-earth nuclei: SUsdg (3) description

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Devi, Y. D.; Kota, V. K. B.

1993-12-01

The observed variation of B(IS4; 0{GS/+}→{/γ +}) with mass number A, that gives information about hexadecupole component in γ-vibration, in rare-earth nuclei is studied in the SUsdg (3) limit of sdg interacting boson model employing IBM-2 to IBM-1 projected hexadecupole transition operator with effective charges determined using a multi- j shell mapping procedure. The SUsdg (3) limit provides a reasonably good description of the data.

A Catalog of Solar White-Light Flares (1859-1982), Including Their Statistical Properties and Associated Emissions.

DTIC Science & Technology

1983-09-20

comprehensively studied. Among those aspects in need of further observational descriptions are (1) morphology (a description of the various WLF forms in terms of...Sacramento Peak, we compiled the list O ourselves. To the best of our knowledge the final list of events is comprehensive , although we have recently...and Conway, M. (1950) The solar, flare of 1949 November 19, Observatory .70.77. 33. Porret, M. (1952) Communications Ecrites : Soelil, I’Astronomie

FULL SCALE PLUME STUDY: A SUMMARY OF DATA COLLECTED AND PHENOMENA OBSERVED

EPA Science Inventory

The paper briefly describes the field tracer studies that were conducted in support of EPA's Complex Terrain Model Development project. A more detailed description is given of the last field study, conducted from the Tracy Power Plant near Reno, Nevada. During 14 experiment perio...

The Woman in the Principal's Office.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Casanova, Ursula

This paper is based on a descriptive study of six elementary school secretaries. The study was undertaken to gain an understanding of the work of the school secretary and how this work might contribute to school effectiveness. Several research methods were combined in this study: onsite observations, interviews with secretaries and their…

Observations of Chat Room Conversations on the Internet: Implications for Educators Addressing the Needs of Female Adolescents

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sanger, Dixie; Ritzman, Mitzi; LaCost, Barbara; Stofer, Keri; Long, Amie; Grady, Marilyn

2005-01-01

This qualitative study explored the meanings of chat room conversations through observations of teenagers using the Internet. Adolescent girls were a focus because of their shaky sense of self. Participants in ten chat rooms included 534 individuals. Six themes, emerging from analyzing 2526 utterances [descriptive statements], included (a)…

Administrators' Descriptions of Their Leadership Roles in a Precollege Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Owens, Michael A.

2010-01-01

The purpose of this work is to describe how leaders of the Upward Bound (UB) program at a university in the western United States described their leadership roles in the program. It is a qualitative study based on data drawn from interviews, observations, written material, and field observations conducted over two years. Participants described…

Descriptive Statistics: Reporting the Answers to the 5 Basic Questions of Who, What, Why, When, Where, and a Sixth, So What?

PubMed

Vetter, Thomas R

2017-11-01

Descriptive statistics are specific methods basically used to calculate, describe, and summarize collected research data in a logical, meaningful, and efficient way. Descriptive statistics are reported numerically in the manuscript text and/or in its tables, or graphically in its figures. This basic statistical tutorial discusses a series of fundamental concepts about descriptive statistics and their reporting. The mean, median, and mode are 3 measures of the center or central tendency of a set of data. In addition to a measure of its central tendency (mean, median, or mode), another important characteristic of a research data set is its variability or dispersion (ie, spread). In simplest terms, variability is how much the individual recorded scores or observed values differ from one another. The range, standard deviation, and interquartile range are 3 measures of variability or dispersion. The standard deviation is typically reported for a mean, and the interquartile range for a median. Testing for statistical significance, along with calculating the observed treatment effect (or the strength of the association between an exposure and an outcome), and generating a corresponding confidence interval are 3 tools commonly used by researchers (and their collaborating biostatistician or epidemiologist) to validly make inferences and more generalized conclusions from their collected data and descriptive statistics. A number of journals, including Anesthesia & Analgesia, strongly encourage or require the reporting of pertinent confidence intervals. A confidence interval can be calculated for virtually any variable or outcome measure in an experimental, quasi-experimental, or observational research study design. Generally speaking, in a clinical trial, the confidence interval is the range of values within which the true treatment effect in the population likely resides. In an observational study, the confidence interval is the range of values within which the true strength of the association between the exposure and the outcome (eg, the risk ratio or odds ratio) in the population likely resides. There are many possible ways to graphically display or illustrate different types of data. While there is often latitude as to the choice of format, ultimately, the simplest and most comprehensible format is preferred. Common examples include a histogram, bar chart, line chart or line graph, pie chart, scatterplot, and box-and-whisker plot. Valid and reliable descriptive statistics can answer basic yet important questions about a research data set, namely: "Who, What, Why, When, Where, How, How Much?"

The Role of Narrative in Multimedia Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Diamond, Myrna Elyse

2011-01-01

This descriptive case study investigated the role of narrative in multimedia learning and teaching and observed how teachers applied their understanding of narrative, and new constructivist technologies, to design multimedia presentations for instruction. The study looked specifically at the cognitive strategies, visual narrative concepts, and…

Mechanisms for Non-Linear Optical Behaviour in Molecular Fluids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McEwan, Kenneth J.

Available from UMI in association with The British Library. Requires signed TDF. This thesis describes a study of the non-linear optical mechanisms that allow high power laser radiation to interact and change the optical properties of fluid based media. Attention is focused on understanding the finite time-scale of the microscopic response and its influence on the experimental observation. Two classes of material are studied: liquid crystalline fluids in their isotropic phase and suspensions of particles capable of absorbing the laser radiation. In the former case a quantitative description of the optical transients seen in two experiments, degenerate four wave mixing and "z-scan" (self-focusing), is obtained. This description is based upon an analysis of refractive index changes associated with laser-induced molecular reorientation and with thermal effects, for molecules that absorb the laser radiation. Material parameters for a large range of nematogens are obtained by applying this description to experimental data. In the absorbing colloidal suspensions a novel mechanism for degenerate four wave mixing is identified and studied. The experimental results are suggestive of a mechanism in which vapour bubbles nucleate explosively around the colloidal particles and drive a coherent sound -wave excitation of the fluid. Theoretical studies confirm that rapid bubble nucleation is possible by a process of spinodal decomposition under the experimental conditions and it is shown that this mechanism can be expected to give rise to transient behaviour of the type observed. Finally laser-induced refractive index changes in a colloidal suspension in a solid matrix are studied. The dynamics of the formation of refractive index gratings is examined and correlated with microscopically observed structural changes in the matrix. ftn*Funded by DRA, Electronics Division (formerly RSRE).

Constant or special observations of inpatients presenting a risk of aggression or violence: nurses' perceptions of the rules of engagement.

PubMed

Mackay, I; Paterson, B; Cassells, C

2005-08-01

In acute psychiatric settings the practice of 'observation' is commonly employed. Increased levels of observation, 'constant' or 'special' are used for those perceived as presenting a 'higher' risk. As an intervention it is used most frequently for those at risk of self-harm or suicide, the practice is also however, used for those thought to present a risk of violent behaviour. In this descriptive study the perceptions of 1st level registered mental nurses (RMNs) gave an account of observation for those perceived to be at risk of violence or aggression and insight into what was considered important and desirable in practice. Unstructured qualitative interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of six RMNs from a psychiatric intensive care unit. Three major categories, Procedure, Role, and Skills emerged which revealed a complex practice far removed from its literal description as merely 'watching'. Six subcategories emerged from the Role. (1) intervening; (2) maintaining the safety of the patient and others; (3) prevention de-escalation and the management of aggression and violence; (4) assessing; (5) communication; and (6) therapy. Skills in these and, experience were thought to IMPACT on the success of the practice. The description of this and the skills involved offer a definition of the 'rules of engagement' which give insight to the practice and the training needs of staff advocated for 'observation'. The acronym IMPACT may be useful in this.

Basic Skills Resource Center: A Descriptive Study of Learning Strategy Applications by English-as a-Second-Langage Students and Teachers in the Army

DTIC Science & Technology

1985-05-01

collection activity is presented in Table 1. Initial classroom observation of ESL classes was undertaken to familiarize researchers with the DLI curriculum...initiative. However, no student was observed asking another for information or clarification. Only in one classroom observation were the soldiers...one classroom observation where the soldiers were required to perform the steps involved in caring for and maintaining a gas mask was enlightening, for

Balzac and human gait analysis.

PubMed

Collado-Vázquez, S; Carrillo, J M

2015-05-01

People have been interested in movement analysis in general, and gait analysis in particular, since ancient times. Aristotle, Hippocrates, Galen, Leonardo da Vinci and Honoré de Balzac all used observation to analyse the gait of human beings. The purpose of this study is to compare Honoré de Balzac's writings with a scientific analysis of human gait. Honoré de Balzac's Theory of walking and other works by that author referring to gait. Honoré de Balzac had an interest in gait analysis, as demonstrated by his descriptions of characters which often include references to their way of walking. He also wrote a treatise entitled Theory of walking (Théorie de la demarche) in which he employed his keen observation skills to define gait using a literary style. He stated that the walking process is divided into phases and listed the factors that influence gait, such as personality, mood, height, weight, profession and social class, and also provided a description of the correct way of walking. Balzac considered gait analysis to be very important and this is reflected in both his character descriptions and Theory of walking, his analytical observation of gait. In our own technology-dominated times, this serves as a reminder of the importance of observation. Copyright © 2011 Sociedad Española de Neurología. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Description and spatial inference of soil drainage using matrix soil colours in the Lower Hunter Valley, New South Wales, Australia

PubMed Central

McBratney, Alex B.; Minasny, Budiman

2018-01-01

Soil colour is often used as a general purpose indicator of internal soil drainage. In this study we developed a necessarily simple model of soil drainage which combines the tacit knowledge of the soil surveyor with observed matrix soil colour descriptions. From built up knowledge of the soils in our Lower Hunter Valley, New South Wales study area, the sequence of well-draining → imperfectly draining → poorly draining soils generally follows the colour sequence of red → brown → yellow → grey → black soil matrix colours. For each soil profile, soil drainage is estimated somewhere on a continuous index of between 5 (very well drained) and 1 (very poorly drained) based on the proximity or similarity to reference soil colours of the soil drainage colour sequence. The estimation of drainage index at each profile incorporates the whole-profile descriptions of soil colour where necessary, and is weighted such that observation of soil colour at depth and/or dominantly observed horizons are given more preference than observations near the soil surface. The soil drainage index, by definition disregards surficial soil horizons and consolidated and semi-consolidated parent materials. With the view to understanding the spatial distribution of soil drainage we digitally mapped the index across our study area. Spatial inference of the drainage index was made using Cubist regression tree model combined with residual kriging. Environmental covariates for deterministic inference were principally terrain variables derived from a digital elevation model. Pearson’s correlation coefficients indicated the variables most strongly correlated with soil drainage were topographic wetness index (−0.34), mid-slope position (−0.29), multi-resolution valley bottom flatness index (−0.29) and vertical distance to channel network (VDCN) (0.26). From the regression tree modelling, two linear models of soil drainage were derived. The partitioning of models was based upon threshold criteria of VDCN. Validation of the regression kriging model using a withheld dataset resulted in a root mean square error of 0.90 soil drainage index units. Concordance between observations and predictions was 0.49. Given the scale of mapping, and inherent subjectivity of soil colour description, these results are acceptable. Furthermore, the spatial distribution of soil drainage predicted in our study area is attuned with our mental model developed over successive field surveys. Our approach, while exclusively calibrated for the conditions observed in our study area, can be generalised once the unique soil colour and soil drainage relationship is expertly defined for an area or region in question. With such rules established, the quantitative components of the method would remain unchanged. PMID:29682425

Description and spatial inference of soil drainage using matrix soil colours in the Lower Hunter Valley, New South Wales, Australia.

PubMed

Malone, Brendan P; McBratney, Alex B; Minasny, Budiman

2018-01-01

Soil colour is often used as a general purpose indicator of internal soil drainage. In this study we developed a necessarily simple model of soil drainage which combines the tacit knowledge of the soil surveyor with observed matrix soil colour descriptions. From built up knowledge of the soils in our Lower Hunter Valley, New South Wales study area, the sequence of well-draining → imperfectly draining → poorly draining soils generally follows the colour sequence of red → brown → yellow → grey → black soil matrix colours. For each soil profile, soil drainage is estimated somewhere on a continuous index of between 5 (very well drained) and 1 (very poorly drained) based on the proximity or similarity to reference soil colours of the soil drainage colour sequence. The estimation of drainage index at each profile incorporates the whole-profile descriptions of soil colour where necessary, and is weighted such that observation of soil colour at depth and/or dominantly observed horizons are given more preference than observations near the soil surface. The soil drainage index, by definition disregards surficial soil horizons and consolidated and semi-consolidated parent materials. With the view to understanding the spatial distribution of soil drainage we digitally mapped the index across our study area. Spatial inference of the drainage index was made using Cubist regression tree model combined with residual kriging. Environmental covariates for deterministic inference were principally terrain variables derived from a digital elevation model. Pearson's correlation coefficients indicated the variables most strongly correlated with soil drainage were topographic wetness index (-0.34), mid-slope position (-0.29), multi-resolution valley bottom flatness index (-0.29) and vertical distance to channel network (VDCN) (0.26). From the regression tree modelling, two linear models of soil drainage were derived. The partitioning of models was based upon threshold criteria of VDCN. Validation of the regression kriging model using a withheld dataset resulted in a root mean square error of 0.90 soil drainage index units. Concordance between observations and predictions was 0.49. Given the scale of mapping, and inherent subjectivity of soil colour description, these results are acceptable. Furthermore, the spatial distribution of soil drainage predicted in our study area is attuned with our mental model developed over successive field surveys. Our approach, while exclusively calibrated for the conditions observed in our study area, can be generalised once the unique soil colour and soil drainage relationship is expertly defined for an area or region in question. With such rules established, the quantitative components of the method would remain unchanged.

Necessary and sufficient conditions for the complete controllability and observability of systems in series using the coprime factorization of a rational matrix

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Callier, F. M.; Nahum, C. D.

1975-01-01

The series connection of two linear time-invariant systems that have minimal state space system descriptions is considered. From these descriptions, strict-system-equivalent polynomial matrix system descriptions in the manner of Rosenbrock are derived. They are based on the factorization of the transfer matrix of the subsystems as a ratio of two right or left coprime polynomial matrices. They give rise to a simple polynomial matrix system description of the tandem connection. Theorem 1 states that for the complete controllability and observability of the state space system description of the series connection, it is necessary and sufficient that certain 'denominator' and 'numerator' groups are coprime. Consequences for feedback systems are drawn in Corollary 1. The role of pole-zero cancellations is explained by Lemma 3 and Corollaires 2 and 3.

Pristine Inner Experience and Descriptive Experience Sampling: Implications for Psychology

PubMed Central

Lapping-Carr, Leiszle R.; Heavey, Christopher L.

2017-01-01

Pristine inner experience is that which is directly present in awareness before it is distorted by attempts at observation or interpretation. Many psychological methods, including most introspective methods, attempt to measure some aspect of pristine inner experience (thoughts, feelings, mental imagery, sensations, etc.). We believe, however, that these methods produce unspecifiable combinations of pristine inner experience, beliefs about the self, beliefs about what inner experience should be like, inaccurate recollections, miscommunications, and other confounding influences. We argue that descriptive experience sampling (DES) can produce high fidelity descriptions of pristine inner experience. These descriptions are used to create idiographic profiles, carefully crafted, in-depth characterizations of the pristine inner experience of individuals. We believe these profiles, because they are built from moments apprehended via a method that confronts the challenges inherent in examining inner experience, are uniquely valuable in advancing the science of inner experience and psychology broadly. For example, DES observations raise important questions about the veracity of results gathered via questionnaires and other introspective methods, like casual introspection. DES findings also provide high fidelity phenomenological data that can be useful for those developing psychological theories, such as theories of emotional processing. Additionally, DES procedures may allow clinicians and clients to practice valuable skills, like bracketing presuppositions and attending to internal experiences. This paper will describe difficulties inherent in the study of pristine inner experience and discuss implications of high fidelity descriptions of pristine inner experience for psychological research, theory development, and clinical practice. PMID:29312047

(Re)Anchored, Video-Centered Engagement: The Transferability of Preservice Training to Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dickinson, Gail; Summers, Emily J.

2010-01-01

This longitudinal study tracks primary participants over 3 years from their last year of university preservice teaching training through their second year of in-service teaching via surveys, interviews, and teaching observations. The study employs a descriptive case study design to examine the transfer of preservice content, pedagogy, and video…

Tobacco Consumption and Motives for Use in Mexican University Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rasmussen-Cruz, Bettylu; Hidalgo-San Martin, Alfredo; Nuno-Gutierrez, Bertha Lidia; Hidalgo-Rasmussen, Carlos

2006-01-01

Increased tobacco consumption, specially among adolescents and females, has been observed recently in Mexico. The goal of this study is to describe tobacco consumption and motives for use among university students. A descriptive cross-sectional study was performed using data provided by 282 students aged 15-24 studying at the University of…

Systematic review: conservative treatments for secondary lymphedema

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background Several conservative (i.e., nonpharmacologic, nonsurgical) treatments exist for secondary lymphedema. The optimal treatment is unknown. We examined the effectiveness of conservative treatments for secondary lymphedema, as well as harms related to these treatments. Methods We searched MEDLINE®, EMBASE®, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials®, AMED, and CINAHL from 1990 to January 19, 2010. We obtained English- and non-English-language randomized controlled trials or observational studies (with comparison groups) that reported primary effectiveness data on conservative treatments for secondary lymphedema. For English-language studies, we extracted data in tabular form and summarized the tables descriptively. For non-English-language studies, we summarized the results descriptively and discussed similarities with the English-language studies. Results Thirty-six English-language and eight non-English-language studies were included in the review. Most of these studies involved upper-limb lymphedema secondary to breast cancer. Despite lymphedema's chronicity, lengths of follow-up in most studies were under 6 months. Many trial reports contained inadequate descriptions of randomization, blinding, and methods to assess harms. Most observational studies did not control for confounding. Many studies showed that active treatments reduced the size of lymphatic limbs, although extensive between-study heterogeneity in areas such as treatment comparisons and protocols, and outcome measures, prevented us from assessing whether any one treatment was superior. This heterogeneity also precluded us from statistically pooling results. Harms were rare (< 1% incidence) and mostly minor (e.g., headache, arm pain). Conclusions The literature contains no evidence to suggest the most effective treatment for secondary lymphedema. Harms are few and unlikely to cause major clinical problems. PMID:22216837

Intensity/time profiles of solar particle events at one astronomical unit

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shea, M. A.

1988-01-01

A description of the intensity-time profiles of solar proton events observed at the orbit of the earth is presented. The discussion, which includes descriptive figures, presents a general overview of the subject without the detailed mathematical description of the physical processes which usually accompany most reviews.

Fundamental Neutron Physics: Theory and Analysis

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

Gudkov, Vladimir

The goal of the proposal was to study the possibility of searching for manifestations of new physics beyond the Standard model in fundamental neutron physics experiments. This involves detailed theoretical analyses of parity- and time reversal invariance-violating processes in neutron-induced reactions, properties of neutron β-decay, and the precise description of properties of neutron interactions with nuclei. To describe neutron-nuclear interactions, we use both the effective field theory approach and the theory of nuclear reaction with phenomenological nucleon potentials for the systematic description of parity- and time reversal-violating effects in the consistent way. A major emphasis of our research during themore » funding period has been the study of parity violation (PV) and time reversal invariance violation (TRIV) in few-body systems. We studied PV effects in non-elastic processes in three-nucleon system using both ”DDH-like” and effective field theory (EFT) approaches. The wave functions were obtained by solving three-body Faddeev equations in configuration space for a number of realistic strong potentials. The observed model dependence for the DDH approach indicates intrinsic difficulty in the description of nuclear PV effects, and it could be the reason for the observed discrepancies in the nuclear PV data analysis. It shows that the DDH approach could be a reasonable approach for analysis of PV effects only if exactly the same strong and weak potentials are used in calculating all PV observables in all nuclei. However, the existing calculations of nuclear PV effects were performed using different potentials; therefore, strictly speaking, one cannot compare the existing results of these calculations among themselves.« less

Determination of Instructional Leadership Administrators

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Öznacar, Behcet; Osma, Elif

2016-01-01

This research, based on observations of teacher candidates in prep school educations and secondary schools the instructional leaders of executive managers who aim at investigating a research study descriptive nature. General screening model is used for the study. The research population in the Near East University in the Faculty of Education,…

Korean Interpersonal Patterns: Implications for Korean/American Intercultural Communication.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Merchant, Jerrold J.

A descriptive field study was conducted in Seoul, Korea, to assess Korean interpersonal communication. The data for the study were collected through observations of interpersonal communication patterns among students in university classes, between faculty and students as well as among various faculty members, among business people, and between the…

[Interrelationship among "NANDA, NOC and NIC". A pilot study and an evaluation of a nursing document].

PubMed

Gomez de Segura Navarro, Carlota; Esain Larrambe, Ainhoa; Tina Majuelo, Pilar; Guembe Ibáñez, Irene; Fernández Perea, Laura; Narvaiza Solís, M Jesús

2006-01-01

(a) to determine the effectiveness of a nursing document which integrates nursing diagnoses, nursing treatments/actions (NIC), and results (NOC); (b) to verify the application of the aforementioned document in a hospitalization unit. A descriptive, transversal and observational study. Nursing documents (NANDA, NIC and NOC taxonomies). PHASES: 1st: analysis of the content in the nursing documentation for 23 pneumonic patients: Selection of nursing diagnoses and the most frequent interdependent problems. 2nd: Selection of results and nursing treatment/actions. 3rd: Elaboration of the document and a description of the Likert scales to define the state of the indicators for each result. 4th: A pilot study of the document applied to 12 patients. the application of the document permits one to identify the real status of a patient; to establish specific objectives; to improve the recording of data; to observe the effectiveness of treatment; to include educational activities; to give greater continuity and quality to a treatment plan.

Analyzing student conceptual understanding of resistor networks using binary, descriptive, and computational questions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mujtaba, Abid H.

2018-02-01

This paper presents a case study assessing and analyzing student engagement with and responses to binary, descriptive, and computational questions testing the concepts underlying resistor networks (series and parallel combinations). The participants of the study were undergraduate students enrolled in a university in Pakistan. The majority of students struggled with the descriptive question, and while successfully answering the binary and computational ones, they failed to build an expectation for the answer, and betrayed significant lack of conceptual understanding in the process. The data collected was also used to analyze the relative efficacy of the three questions as a means of assessing conceptual understanding. The three questions were revealed to be uncorrelated and unlikely to be testing the same construct. The ability to answer the binary or computational question was observed to be divorced from a deeper understanding of the concepts involved.

Raiders of the Latest Art: American Treasure Trove.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

May, Mary Jo

1986-01-01

Lists writing exercises based on observations students can make in a shopping mall. Notes that the exercises are intended to become a springboard for study, description, conjecture, evidence, example, and innovation, and can be combined, expanded, or shortened. (EL)

The Challenges of Observing Geologically: Third Graders' Descriptions of Rock and Mineral Properties

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ford, Danielle J.

2005-01-01

The understandings of properties that children develop in the context of rock and mineral identification point to the challenges of observing in a manner authentic to the discipline of geology. The notebook entries of 34 third graders written during the enactment of a commercial unit on earth materials were investigated for their descriptions of…

Sensitivity of fire behavior simulations to fuel model variations

Treesearch

Lucy A. Salazar

1985-01-01

Stylized fuel models, or numerical descriptions of fuel arrays, are used as inputs to fire behavior simulation models. These fuel models are often chosen on the basis of generalized fuel descriptions, which are related to field observations. Site-specific observations of fuels or fire behavior in the field are not readily available or necessary for most fire management...

Loser! On the combined impact of emotional and person-descriptive word meanings in communicative situations.

PubMed

Rohr, Lana; Abdel Rahman, Rasha

2018-07-01

Humans have a unique capacity to induce intense emotional states in others by simple acts of verbal communication, and simple messages such as bad can elicit strong emotions in the addressee. However, up to now, research has mainly focused on general emotional meaning aspects and paradigms of low personal relevance (e.g., word reading), thereby possibly underestimating the impact of verbal emotion. In the present study, we recorded ERPs while presenting emotional words differing in word-inherent person descriptiveness (in that they may or may not refer to or describe a person; e.g., winner vs. sunflower). We predicted stronger emotional responses to person-descriptive words. Additionally, we enhanced the relevance of the words by embedding them in social-communicative contexts. We observed strong parallels in the characteristics of emotion and descriptiveness effects, suggesting a common underlying motivational basis. Furthermore, word-inherent person descriptiveness affected emotion processing at late elaborate stages reflected in the late positive potential, with emotion effects found only for descriptive words. The present findings underline the importance of factors determining the personal relevance of emotional words. © 2018 Society for Psychophysiological Research.

Objective analysis of observational data from the FGGE observing systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Baker, W.; Edelmann, D.; Iredell, M.; Han, D.; Jakkempudi, S.

1981-01-01

An objective analysis procedure for updating the GLAS second and fourth order general atmospheric circulation models using observational data from the first GARP global experiment is described. The objective analysis procedure is based on a successive corrections method and the model is updated in a data assimilation cycle. Preparation of the observational data for analysis and the objective analysis scheme are described. The organization of the program and description of the required data sets are presented. The program logic and detailed descriptions of each subroutine are given.

Perceptions of smokers influence nonsmoker attitudes and preferences for interactions

PubMed Central

Dillard, Amanda J.; Magnan, Renee E.; Köblitz, Amber R.; McCaul, Kevin D.

2012-01-01

In two studies, we examined nonsmokers’ perceptions of smokers and consequences of the perceptions. In Study 1, smokers answered questions about their sense of self, dependence on smoking, and motivation to quit. Nonsmokers answered questions about their perceptions of these characteristics. Differences between smokers’ self-descriptions and nonsmokers’ perceptions were observed. Study 2 asked nonsmokers to judge two types of smokers for which the descriptions were based on Study 1 findings. Results showed that nonsmokers held a more negative attitude about and were less willing to engage in different close relationships with the smoker who was described in terms of nonsmokers’ perceptions rather than smokers’ reports. Attitude mediated the relationship between type of smoker and willingness to date a smoker. PMID:23734065

Description and quantitative analysis of the dentition of the southern thorny skate Amblyraja doellojuradoi.

PubMed

Delpiani, G; Spath, M C; Deli Antoni, M; Delpiani, M

2017-06-01

A description of the tooth morphology of 234 jaws from the southern thorny skate Amblyraja doellojuradoi in the south-west Atlantic Ocean is given. Seven rows of teeth were selected and length and width of each tooth in these rows were measured. It was found that functional series corresponds to the third teeth and the average width and length of these teeth were compared among jaws, maturity stages, sexes and rows. Generalized linear models were used to determine the subset of measures that most contribute to explain the variability between groups. It was observed that males have longer teeth than females, but the teeth of females are wider. These differences are attributed to reproductive behaviour, in which males bite females to hold them during copulation. This study provides a description of the teeth of A. doellojuradoi, supplying a valuable tool for identification of species. In addition, the establishment of the main variations observed in the dentition, improves the understanding of the species' biology. © 2017 The Fisheries Society of the British Isles.

A review of published analyses of case-cohort studies and recommendations for future reporting.

PubMed

Sharp, Stephen J; Poulaliou, Manon; Thompson, Simon G; White, Ian R; Wood, Angela M

2014-01-01

The case-cohort study design combines the advantages of a cohort study with the efficiency of a nested case-control study. However, unlike more standard observational study designs, there are currently no guidelines for reporting results from case-cohort studies. Our aim was to review recent practice in reporting these studies, and develop recommendations for the future. By searching papers published in 24 major medical and epidemiological journals between January 2010 and March 2013 using PubMed, Scopus and Web of Knowledge, we identified 32 papers reporting case-cohort studies. The median subcohort sampling fraction was 4.1% (interquartile range 3.7% to 9.1%). The papers varied in their approaches to describing the numbers of individuals in the original cohort and the subcohort, presenting descriptive data, and in the level of detail provided about the statistical methods used, so it was not always possible to be sure that appropriate analyses had been conducted. Based on the findings of our review, we make recommendations about reporting of the study design, subcohort definition, numbers of participants, descriptive information and statistical methods, which could be used alongside existing STROBE guidelines for reporting observational studies.

Gauss-Bonnet cosmology unifying late and early-time acceleration eras with intermediate eras

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oikonomou, V. K.

2016-07-01

In this paper we demonstrate that with vacuum F(G) gravity it is possible to describe the unification of late and early-time acceleration eras with the radiation and matter domination era. The Hubble rate of the unified evolution contains two mild singularities, so called Type IV singularities, and the evolution itself has some appealing features, such as the existence of a deceleration-acceleration transition at late times. We also address quantitatively a fundamental question related to modified gravity models description of cosmological evolution: Is it possible for all modified gravity descriptions of our Universe evolution, to produce a nearly scale invariant spectrum of primordial curvature perturbations? As we demonstrate, the answer for the F(G) description is no, since the resulting power spectrum is not scale invariant, in contrast to the F(R) description studied in the literature. Therefore, although the cosmological evolution can be realized in the context of vacuum F(G) gravity, the evolution is not compatible with the observational data, in contrast to the F(R) gravity description of the same cosmological evolution.

Pedestrian safety : the identification of precipitating factors and possible countermeasures. Volume 1

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1971-01-01

The study objective was to identify causes and countermeasures relevant to pedestrian. accidents. Behavioral and descriptive data were collected by interviews and on-scene observations for over 2,000 pedestrian accidents in 13 major cities. Subsequen...

Pedestrian safety, the identification of precipitating factors and possible countermeasures : appendices.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1971-01-01

The study objective was to identify causes and countermeasures : re levant to pedestrian accidents. Behaviora 1 and descriptive data were : collected by interviews and on-scene observations for over 2,000 pedestrian : iccidents in 13 major cities. Su...

A Comparison of Outcomes from Descriptive and Functional Analyses of Problem Behavior

PubMed Central

Thompson, Rachel H; Iwata, Brian A

2007-01-01

We compared results of descriptive and functional analyses of problem behavior for 12 participants whose descriptive data have been reported previously (Thompson & Iwata, 2001). Results indicated that in only 3 of the 12 cases was problem behavior maintained by the consequence observed most frequently during the descriptive analysis. Attention was the most common consequence for problem behavior during descriptive analyses for 8 of the 12 participants; however, maintenance of problem behavior by attention was evident for only 2 of these 8 participants. PMID:17624074

Prevalence and co-prevalence of comorbidities in Belgian patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: a transversal, descriptive study.

PubMed

Hermans, Michel P; Dath, Nicolas

2018-02-01

Most patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) have at least one comorbid chronic disease. These comorbidities increase disease burden and costs and may impact the selection of glucose-lowering therapies. The aim of our study was to describe the prevalence and co-prevalence of comorbidities in patients with T2DM in Belgium. This was a single centre, transversal, descriptive study performed at Saint-Luc University Hospital, Brussels, Belgium. T2DM patients aged >18 years presenting to the outpatient diabetes clinic and regularly followed (≥1 year) between July 2011 and 2016 were included in the database. Information on descriptive characteristics was collected and several comorbidities were assessed. Overall, 778 patients were included. The median age was 68 years. The most frequently observed comorbidities were hypertension (85.5%), metabolic syndrome (MetS; 84.6%) and non-alcoholic hepatic steatosis (71.7%). 78.5% of the T2DM patients had ≥4 comorbidities. The highest co-prevalence of comorbidities was the combination of MetS and hypertension (75.8%), MetS and overweight (60.5%), and hypertension and overweight (56.6%). The observed prevalence and co-prevalence of comorbidities in T2DM Belgian patients was high, with 95.0% patients having at least two comorbid conditions.

Main Geomagnetic Field Models from Oersted and Magsat Data Via a Rigorous General Inverse Theory with Error Bounds

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Backus, George E.

1999-01-01

The purpose of the grant was to study how prior information about the geomagnetic field can be used to interpret surface and satellite magnetic measurements, to generate quantitative descriptions of prior information that might be so used, and to use this prior information to obtain from satellite data a model of the core field with statistically justifiable error estimates. The need for prior information in geophysical inversion has long been recognized. Data sets are finite, and faithful descriptions of aspects of the earth almost always require infinite-dimensional model spaces. By themselves, the data can confine the correct earth model only to an infinite-dimensional subset of the model space. Earth properties other than direct functions of the observed data cannot be estimated from those data without prior information about the earth. Prior information is based on what the observer already knows before the data become available. Such information can be "hard" or "soft". Hard information is a belief that the real earth must lie in some known region of model space. For example, the total ohmic dissipation in the core is probably less that the total observed geothermal heat flow out of the earth's surface. (In principle, ohmic heat in the core can be recaptured to help drive the dynamo, but this effect is probably small.) "Soft" information is a probability distribution on the model space, a distribution that the observer accepts as a quantitative description of her/his beliefs about the earth. The probability distribution can be a subjective prior in the sense of Bayes or the objective result of a statistical study of previous data or relevant theories.

An Examination of Cooperating Teachers' Observations of Their Student Teachers in the Areas of Personal, Teaching, and Musical Skills in the Elementary Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cole, Mark R.

2014-01-01

The purpose of this descriptive study was to examine the observations of elementary school music teachers regarding the level of preparation of their most recent student teachers at the beginning of their student teaching experience. Twenty-seven elementary music teachers participated in a survey rating the preparedness of their student teacher in…

A Descriptive Study of Multicultural Elementary Student Playground Behaviors and Their Relationship to Gender, Age, Race and Socioeconomic Status.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dahmes, Victoria M.

This paper examines the observable play behaviors of elementary school students to determine how children interact within and among cultural groups. Observations were conducted during the recess period at an urban elementary school attended by 623 boys and girls age 6 through 12. Recess periods and play areas were segregated by grade and sex. Data…

An Exploration of L2 Teachers' Use of Pedagogical Interventions Devised to Draw L2 Learners' Attention to Form

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Simard, Daphnee; Jean, Gladys

2011-01-01

This descriptive observational study aimed at exploring the form-focused instruction (FFI) interventions used by four French and four English as-a-second-language high school teachers to draw their students' attention to form. With the help of an Intervention-on-Form(s)-Observation Scheme (IFOS) developed and tested for this purpose, each FFI…

Doubly Special Relativity: A New Relativity or Not

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jafari, Nosratollah; Shariati, Ahmad

2006-06-01

Double Special Relativity theories are the relativistic theories in which the transformations between inertial observers are characterized by two observer-independent scales of the light speed and the Planck length. We study two main examples of these theories and want to show that these theories are not the new theories of relativity, but only are re-descriptions of Einstein's special relativity in the non-conventional coordinates.

Decision Theory Research

DTIC Science & Technology

1975-04-03

by particular foreign leaders and elites o A comparative study of selected military publica - tions wl^ch would provide a descriptive and...the overall aim of the second wo? kshop was to solicit the observations and sug- gestions of senior decision-makers and planners with respect to: o...shops do contain a number of worthwhile observations and sug- gestions by distinguished representatives of both the decision- maxing/planning and

The Problems of Applying Student Centered Syllabus of English in Vocational High Schools in Kendal Regency

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Faridi, Abdurrachman; Bahri, Seful; Nurmasitah, Sita

2016-01-01

This study was descriptive qualitative study aimed to investigate the problems of applying student centered syllabus in vocational high schools in Kendal regency, Central Java, Indonesia. The subjects of the study were twenty English teacher in vocational high schools in Kendal. The data were collected through observations, questionnaires, and…

Some Still Do: River Acres, Texas. Booklet I. Reprinted November, 1978. Report #3 in Evaluation Report Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Denny, Terry

A casework approach study of the River Acres Independent School District, Texas, is presented. The study is descriptive, not evaluative; and observations are supplemented by quotations taken during interviews with teachers, students, administrators, parents, counselors, and other school personnel. The purpose of the study is to describe the…

Observers' measurements in premetric electrodynamics: Time and radar length

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gürlebeck, Norman; Pfeifer, Christian

2018-04-01

The description of an observer's measurement in general relativity and the standard model of particle physics is closely related to the spacetime metric. In order to understand and interpret measurements, which test the metric structure of the spacetime, like the classical Michelson-Morley, Ives-Stilwell, Kennedy-Thorndike experiments or frequency comparison experiments in general, it is necessary to describe them in theories, which go beyond the Lorentzian metric structure. However, this requires a description of an observer's measurement without relying on a metric. We provide such a description of an observer's measurement of the fundamental quantities time and length derived from a premetric perturbation of Maxwell's electrodynamics and a discussion on how these measurements influence classical relativistic observables like time dilation and length contraction. Most importantly, we find that the modification of electrodynamics influences the measurements at two instances: the propagation of light is altered as well as the observer's proper time normalization. When interpreting the results of a specific experiment, both effects cannot be disentangled, in general, and have to be taken into account.

Native Chinese-Speaking K-12 Language Teachers' Beliefs and Practices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lü, Chan; Lavadenz, Magaly

2014-01-01

This study investigated the relationships between the beliefs and practices of K-12 native Chinese teachers on Chinese language and literacy instruction. Using a descriptive-exploratory design, this study employed a mixed-methods approach consisting of three steps: (1) a teacher beliefs questionnaire, (2) classroom observations and videotaping,…

Using Pupil Perspective in the Primary Classroom: An Exploration of Some of the Potential Issues

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fisher, Helen

2014-01-01

This article uses the author's original study of over hundred Year six children's perspectives of literacy and the wider curriculum, in English schools, to explore the potential challenges of exploring "pupil voice". Using collective case studies, with descriptive and time-sampled observations, and semi-structured interviews, across an…

Studying the Cognitive Emphases of Teachers' Classroom Questions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Davis, O. L., Jr.; And Others

1969-01-01

Recent interest in the direct, descriptive study of teaching has led to renewed attention to the types of questions asked by teachers. An important contributing factor has also been the progress made in the analysis of cognitive operations and the identification of a complex hierarchy of operations. Several observation systems developed from…

Literacy, Information and Communication Technology as Tools for Empowerment of Inmates

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Joseph, Tenibiaje Dele

2012-01-01

The study investigated the present position of literacy, information and communication technology (ICT) in prisons by examining the perception of inmates. The study adopted a descriptive survey using structured questionnaire and observation guides on a randomly and purposively drawn sample of 664 inmates out of a population of 47,628 inmates…

Restaurants as Learning Organizations: A Multiple-Site Case Study of U.S. Non-Chain Restaurants

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Boccia, Mark

2016-01-01

This study investigated the construct of the learning organization in the restaurant industry. Descriptive accounts of learning were gleaned from face-to-face interviews, focus groups, observations, document analysis, and data from the Dimensions of the Learning Organization Questionnaire (DLOQ) from 52 participants employed in three US…

Vector ecology of human schistosomiasis in south India and description of a new species of the genus Ferrissia (Mollusca: Gastropoda: Planorbidae).

PubMed

Sankarappan, Anbalagan; Chellapandian, Balachandran; Vimalanathan, Arun Prasanna; Mani, Kannan; Sundaram, Dinakaran; Muthukalingan, Krishnan

2015-09-01

Vector ecology and taxonomy of snails is a prerequisite for controlling schistosomiasis in the tropics. The ecology of the freshwater limpet genus Ferrissia was investigated for detection of cercariae larvae in them, and taxonomic description of a new species of the genus Ferrissia. This study was conducted in 15 perennial streams from five different hills of south India. To study the seasonal patterns, a stream from each hill was selected and sampled in three seasons. In each study site, triplicate sampling was done and specimens were collected from stream substrates as well as waste material submerged in stream. Microscopic examination was carried out for detecting cercariae larvae in limpets. Three freshwater limpets (F. tenuis, F. verruca and F. fivefallsiensis) were observed. Seasonality influenced the abundance of limpets. The highest abundance was observed during post-monsoon (December and January). The distribution of Ferrissia was observed at riffle in pebbles, leaf litter and wastes (polyethylene bags and snacks cover) submerged in water. No cercariae larvae were found from the body of limpets. In this study, we described a new species of Ferrissia fivefallsiensis. Our results showed the distribution, habitat preference and seasonality of limpets, and recommend the detection of Schistosoma from limpets as well as human samples by use of molecular tools.

Student perceptions regarding the usefulness of explicit discussion of "Structure of the Observed Learning Outcome" taxonomy.

PubMed

Prakash, E S; Narayan, K A; Sethuraman, K R

2010-09-01

One method of grading responses of the descriptive type is by using Structure of Observed Learning Outcomes (SOLO) taxonomy. The basis of this study was the expectation that if students were oriented to SOLO taxonomy, it would provide them an opportunity to understand some of the factors that teachers consider while grading descriptive responses and possibly develop strategies to improve scores. We first sampled the perceptions of 68 second-year undergraduate medical students doing the Respiratory System course regarding the usefulness of explicit discussion of SOLO taxonomy. Subsequently, in a distinct cohort of 20 second-year medical students doing the Central Nervous System course, we sought to determine whether explicit illustration of SOLO taxonomy combined with some advice on better answering descriptive test questions (to an experimental group) resulted in better student scores in a continuous assessment test compared with providing advice for better answering test questions but without any reference to SOLO taxonomy (the control group). Student ratings of the clarity of the presentation on SOLO taxonomy appeared satisfactory to the authors, as was student understanding of our presentation. The majority of participants indicated that knowledge of SOLO taxonomy would help them study and prepare better answers for questions of the descriptive type. Although scores in the experimental and control group were comparable, this experience nonetheless provided us with the motivation to orient students to SOLO taxonomy early on in the medical program and further research factors that affect students' development of strategies based on knowledge of SOLO taxonomy.

Hyper Text Mark-up Language and Dublin Core metadata element set usage in websites of Iranian State Universities' libraries.

PubMed

Zare-Farashbandi, Firoozeh; Ramezan-Shirazi, Mahtab; Ashrafi-Rizi, Hasan; Nouri, Rasool

2014-01-01

Recent progress in providing innovative solutions in the organization of electronic resources and research in this area shows a global trend in the use of new strategies such as metadata to facilitate description, place for, organization and retrieval of resources in the web environment. In this context, library metadata standards have a special place; therefore, the purpose of the present study has been a comparative study on the Central Libraries' Websites of Iran State Universities for Hyper Text Mark-up Language (HTML) and Dublin Core metadata elements usage in 2011. The method of this study is applied-descriptive and data collection tool is the check lists created by the researchers. Statistical community includes 98 websites of the Iranian State Universities of the Ministry of Health and Medical Education and Ministry of Science, Research and Technology and method of sampling is the census. Information was collected through observation and direct visits to websites and data analysis was prepared by Microsoft Excel software, 2011. The results of this study indicate that none of the websites use Dublin Core (DC) metadata and that only a few of them have used overlaps elements between HTML meta tags and Dublin Core (DC) elements. The percentage of overlaps of DC elements centralization in the Ministry of Health were 56% for both description and keywords and, in the Ministry of Science, were 45% for the keywords and 39% for the description. But, HTML meta tags have moderate presence in both Ministries, as the most-used elements were keywords and description (56%) and the least-used elements were date and formatter (0%). It was observed that the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Science follows the same path for using Dublin Core standard on their websites in the future. Because Central Library Websites are an example of scientific web pages, special attention in designing them can help the researchers to achieve faster and more accurate information resources. Therefore, the influence of librarians' ideas on the awareness of web designers and developers will be important for using metadata elements as general, and specifically for applying such standards.

Hyper Text Mark-up Language and Dublin Core metadata element set usage in websites of Iranian State Universities’ libraries

PubMed Central

Zare-Farashbandi, Firoozeh; Ramezan-Shirazi, Mahtab; Ashrafi-Rizi, Hasan; Nouri, Rasool

2014-01-01

Introduction: Recent progress in providing innovative solutions in the organization of electronic resources and research in this area shows a global trend in the use of new strategies such as metadata to facilitate description, place for, organization and retrieval of resources in the web environment. In this context, library metadata standards have a special place; therefore, the purpose of the present study has been a comparative study on the Central Libraries’ Websites of Iran State Universities for Hyper Text Mark-up Language (HTML) and Dublin Core metadata elements usage in 2011. Materials and Methods: The method of this study is applied-descriptive and data collection tool is the check lists created by the researchers. Statistical community includes 98 websites of the Iranian State Universities of the Ministry of Health and Medical Education and Ministry of Science, Research and Technology and method of sampling is the census. Information was collected through observation and direct visits to websites and data analysis was prepared by Microsoft Excel software, 2011. Results: The results of this study indicate that none of the websites use Dublin Core (DC) metadata and that only a few of them have used overlaps elements between HTML meta tags and Dublin Core (DC) elements. The percentage of overlaps of DC elements centralization in the Ministry of Health were 56% for both description and keywords and, in the Ministry of Science, were 45% for the keywords and 39% for the description. But, HTML meta tags have moderate presence in both Ministries, as the most-used elements were keywords and description (56%) and the least-used elements were date and formatter (0%). Conclusion: It was observed that the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Science follows the same path for using Dublin Core standard on their websites in the future. Because Central Library Websites are an example of scientific web pages, special attention in designing them can help the researchers to achieve faster and more accurate information resources. Therefore, the influence of librarians’ ideas on the awareness of web designers and developers will be important for using metadata elements as general, and specifically for applying such standards. PMID:24741646

Crustal Dynamics Project: Catalogue of site information

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1985-01-01

This document represents a catalogue of site information for the Crustal Dynamics Project. It contains information and descriptions of those sites used by the Project as observing stations for making the precise geodetic measurements useful for studies of the Earth's crustal movements and deformation.

Influence of indirect information on interpersonal trust despite direct information.

PubMed

Zarolia, Pareezad; Weisbuch, Max; McRae, Kateri

2017-01-01

Trust is integral to successful relationships. The development of trust stems from how one person treats others, and there are multiple ways to learn about someone's trust-relevant behavior. The present research captures the development of trust to examine if trust-relevant impressions and behavior are influenced by indirect behavioral information (i.e., descriptions of how a person treated another individual)-even in the presence of substantial direct behavioral information (i.e., self-relevant, first-hand experience with a person). Participants had repeated interpersonal exchanges with a partner who was trustworthy or untrustworthy with participants' money. The present studies vary the frequency with which (Studies 1 & 2), the order in which (Study 3) and the number of people for whom (Study 4) indirect information (i.e., brief vignettes describing trustworthy or untrustworthy behavior) were presented. As predicted, across 4 studies, we observed a robust effect of indirect-information despite the presence of substantial direct information. Even after dozens of interactions in which a partner betrayed (or not), a brief behavioral description of a partner influenced participants' willingness to actually trust the partner with money, memory-based estimates of partner-behavior, and impressions of the partner. These effects were observed even though participants were also sensitive to partners' actual trust behavior, and even when indirect behavioral descriptions were only presented a single time. Impressions were identified as a strong candidate mechanism for the effect of indirect-information on behavior. We discuss implications of the persistence of indirect information for impression formation, relationship development, and future studies of trust. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Injection safety practices in a main referral hospital in Northeastern Nigeria.

PubMed

Gadzama, G B; Bawa, S B; Ajinoma, Z; Saidu, M M; Umar, A S

2014-01-01

No adherence of safe injection policies remains a major challenge, and, worldwide, annually, it leads to 21 million new hepatitis B cases and 260,000 HIV infection cases. This descriptive observational survey was conducted to determine the level of adherence to universal precaution for safe injection practices in the hospital. The study units were selected using a simple random sampling of injection services provider/phlebotomist in 27 units/wards of the hospital. The study instruments were observation checklist and interviewer administered questionnaires. EPI info (version 3.5.2) software was used for data entry and generation of descriptive statistics was done with units of analysis (units/wards) on injection safety practices of health workers, availability of logistics and supplies, and disposal methods. Only 33.3% of the units (95% CI, 16-54) had non-sharps infectious healthcare waste of any type inside containers specific for non-sharps infectious waste and 17 (77.3%) of the observed therapeutic injections were prepared on a clean, dedicated table or tray, where contamination of the equipment with blood, body fluids, or dirty swabs was unlikely. Absence of recapping of needles was observed in 11 (50.0%) units giving therapeutic injections. Only 7.4% of units surveyed had separate waste containers for infectious non-sharps. This study depicts poor knowledge and a practice of injection safety, inadequate injection safety supplies, and non-compliance to injection safety policy and guidelines.

Reporting of methodological features in observational studies of pre-harvest food safety.

PubMed

Sargeant, Jan M; O'Connor, Annette M; Renter, David G; Kelton, David F; Snedeker, Kate; Wisener, Lee V; Leonard, Erin K; Guthrie, Alessia D; Faires, Meredith

2011-02-01

Observational studies in pre-harvest food safety may be useful for identifying risk factors and for evaluating potential mitigation strategies to reduce foodborne pathogens. However, there are no structured reporting guidelines for these types of study designs in livestock species. Our objective was to evaluate the reporting of observational studies in the pre-harvest food safety literature using guidelines modified from the human healthcare literature. We identified 100 pre-harvest food safety studies published between 1999 and 2009. Each study was evaluated independently by two reviewers using a structured checklist. Of the 38 studies that explicitly stated the observational study design, 27 were described as cross-sectional studies, eight as case-control studies, and three as cohort studies. Study features reported in over 75% of the selected studies included: description of the geographic location of the studies, definitions and sources of data for outcomes, organizational level and source of data for independent variables, description of statistical methods and results, number of herds enrolled in the study and included in the analysis, and sources of study funding. However, other features were not consistently reported, including details related to eligibility criteria for groups (such as barn, room, or pen) and individuals, numbers of groups and individuals included in various stages of the study, identification of primary outcomes, the distinction between putative risk factors and confounding variables, the identification of a primary exposure variable, the referent level for evaluation of categorical variable associations, methods of controlling confounding variables and missing variables, model fit, details of subset analysis, demographic information at the sampling unit level, and generalizability of the study results. Improvement in reporting of observational studies of pre-harvest food safety will aid research readers and reviewers in interpreting and evaluating the results of such studies. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Recommended procedures and methodology of coal description

USGS Publications Warehouse

Chao, E.C.; Minkin, J.A.; Thompson, C.L.

1983-01-01

This document is the result of a workshop on coal description held for the Branch of Coal Resources of the U.S. Geological Survey in March 1982. It has been prepared to aid and encourage the field-oriented coal scientist to participate directly in petrographic coal-description activities. The objectives and past and current practices of coal description vary widely. These are briefly reviewed and illustrated with examples. Sampling approaches and techniques for collecting columnar samples of fresh coal are also discussed. The recommended procedures and methodology emphasize the fact that obtaining a good megascopic description of a coal bed is much better done in the laboratory with a binocular microscope and under good lighting conditions after the samples have been cut and quickly prepared. For better observation and cross-checking using a petrographic microscope for identification purposes, an in-place polishing procedure (requiring less than 2 min) is routinely used. Methods for using both the petrographic microscope and an automated image analysis system are also included for geologists who have access to such instruments. To describe the material characteristics of a coal bed in terms of microlithotypes or lithotypes, a new nomenclature of (V), (E), (1), (M). (S). (X1). (X2) and so on is used. The microscopic description of the modal composition of a megascopically observed lithologic type is expressed in terms of (VEIM); subscripts are used to denote the volume percentage of each constituent present. To describe a coal-bed profile, semiquantitative data (without microscopic study) and quantitative data (with microscopic study) are presented in ready-to-understand form. The average total composition of any thickness interval or of the entire coal bed can be plotted on a triangular diagram having V, E, and I+ M +S as the apices. The modal composition of any mixed lithologies such as (X1), (X2), and so on can also be plotted on such a triangular ternary diagram. Such diagrams can be used either for tracing compositional variations throughout a single coal-bed profile or for comparing variations between different coal beds.

Induction Based on Circumscription

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saito, Haruka; Inoue, Katsumi

We investigate induction from the viewpoint of nonmonotonic reasoning. Induction we consider in this paper is descriptive induction. Hypotheses from descriptive induction have the weak property that they only describe rules with respect to the observations and do not realize an inductive leap. In this paper, we define a new form of descriptive induction with circumscription and the idea of explanation and show two procedures for computing it. The new descriptive induction is called circumscriptive induction. By deciding the roles of predicates in circumscription, we can intentionally minimize models of a given inductive problem. By adopting the idea of explanation, we can distinguish between background knowledge and observations. Additionally, we consider the relationship between the way of choosing the roles of predicates in computing circumscription and the property of hypotheses obtained by circumscriptive induction. It is shown that hypotheses from circumscriptive induction reflect a difference between background knowledge and observations and do not realize an inductive leap. We also investigate revision of hypotheses which is as important as generation of hypotheses. In a process of hypothesis revision, a difference between previous induction and circumscriptive induction is clearly characterised.

Parental Burden in Families with a Young Food-Allergic Child

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Komulainen, Kati

2010-01-01

The purpose of this study is to describe the parental burden in families with a food-allergic child under the age of four. This study was carried out using a descriptive correlational research design. The subjects of this study were 104 families with a young food-allergic child who observed a restricted diet. The majority of the children were…

Retrospective Descriptive Study of Cerebral Palsy in Nepal

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thapa, Ritesh

2016-01-01

There is very little data pertaining to cerebral palsy (CP) from Nepal. In this retrospective study it was observed that dyskinetic CP was seen in 29% and the sex ratio of males to females was two in the study population of children with CP. Both of these are much higher than data from developed countries. Hence, further randomized cross-sectional…

Preliminary Lessons about Supporting Participation and Learning in Inclusive Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morningstar, Mary E.; Shogren, Karrie A.; Lee, Hyunjoo; Born, Kiara

2015-01-01

This descriptive study examined observational data collected in inclusive classrooms from six schools that were operating schoolwide inclusive policies and practices. Illustrative evidence of classroom practices supporting learning and participation of all students, including students with significant disabilities, adds to an understanding of…

Communicating the Library as a Learning Environment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nitecki, Danuta A.; Simpson, Katherine

2016-01-01

Lack of commonly used vocabulary for informal learning environments hinders precise communication concerning what is observed, assessed, and understood about the relationship between space and learning. This study empirically extends taxonomies of terms and phrases that describe such relationships through content analysis of descriptions of…

Crustal Dynamics Project: Catalogue of site information

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Noll, Carey E. (Editor)

1988-01-01

This document represents a catalog of site information for the Crustal Dynamics Project. It contains information on and descriptions of those sites used by the Project as observing stations for making the precise geodetic measurements necessary for studies of the Earth's crustal movements and deformation.

Development of Ren Qiou fractured carbonate oil pools by water injection

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

Yu, Z.; Li, G.

1982-01-01

This work gives a brief description on the geologic characteristics of Ren Qiou oil field and its development. Different methods have been used in its reservoir engineering study such as outcrop investigation, fracture and crevice description in tunnels, observation on core samples and their statistical data, thin section observation, casting section, fluorescence section, scanning electron microscope, mercury injection and withdrawal, down-hole television, and geophysical well logging. Physical modeling, 3-dimensional numeric simulation and reservoir performance analysis, and production profiles by production logging in an open hole, have been used to study mechanics of displacing oil by water and the movement ofmore » oil and water in reservoir pools production technologies with double-porosity. Pressure maintenance by bottomwater injection to keep producing wells flowing, acidization with emulsifying acid to penetrate deeply into the reservoir formation, and water plugging with chemical agent, have been used to maintain a consistent annual recovery rate. 11 references.« less

Resilience and unmet supportive care needs in patients with cancer during early treatment: A descriptive study.

PubMed

Dubey, C; De Maria, J; Hoeppli, C; Betticher, D C; Eicher, M

2015-10-01

The concept of resilience is gaining increasing importance as a key component of supportive care but to date has rarely been addressed in studies with adult cancer patients. The purpose of our study was to describe resilience and its potential predictors and supportive care needs in cancer patients during early treatment and to explore associations between both concepts. This descriptive study included adult cancer patients under treatment in ambulatory cancer services of a Swiss hospital. Subjects completed the 25-item Connor-Davidson-Resilience Scale and the 34-item Supportive Care Needs Survey. Descriptive, correlational and regression analysis were performed. 68 patients with cancer were included in the study. Compared to general population, resilience scores were significantly lower (74.4 ± 12.6 vs. 80.4 ± 12.8, p = .0002). Multiple regression analysis showed predictors ("age", "metastasis", "recurrence" and "living alone") of resilience (adjusted R2 = .19, p < .001). Highest unmet needs were observed in the domain of psychological needs. Lower resilience scores were significantly and strongly associated with higher levels of unmet psychological needs (Rho = -.68, p < .001), supportive care needs (Rho = -.49, p < .001) and information needs (Rho = -.42, p = .001). Ambulatory patients with higher levels of resilience express fewer unmet needs. Further work is needed to elucidate the mechanism of the observed relationships and if interventions facilitating resilience have a positive effect on unmet needs. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

From experimental zoology to big data: Observation and integration in the study of animal development.

PubMed

Bolker, Jessica; Brauckmann, Sabine

2015-06-01

The founding of the Journal of Experimental Zoology in 1904 was inspired by a widespread turn toward experimental biology in the 19th century. The founding editors sought to promote experimental, laboratory-based approaches, particularly in developmental biology. This agenda raised key practical and epistemological questions about how and where to study development: Does the environment matter? How do we know that a cell or embryo isolated to facilitate observation reveals normal developmental processes? How can we integrate descriptive and experimental data? R.G. Harrison, the journal's first editor, grappled with these questions in justifying his use of cell culture to study neural patterning. Others confronted them in different contexts: for example, F.B. Sumner insisted on the primacy of fieldwork in his studies on adaptation, but also performed breeding experiments using wild-collected animals. The work of Harrison, Sumner, and other early contributors exemplified both the power of new techniques, and the meticulous explanation of practice and epistemology that was marshaled to promote experimental approaches. A century later, experimentation is widely viewed as the standard way to study development; yet at the same time, cutting-edge "big data" projects are essentially descriptive, closer to natural history than to the approaches championed by Harrison et al. Thus, the original questions about how and where we can best learn about development are still with us. Examining their history can inform current efforts to incorporate data from experiment and description, lab and field, and a broad range of organisms and disciplines, into an integrated understanding of animal development. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

". . . So Go the Days of Their Lives." A Descriptive Study of the Superintendency. OSSC Bulletin Vol. 22, No. 5.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pitner, N. J.

The study reported is a replication of Henry Mintzberg's study of five executives at work to determine the scope of their job-related activities. For this study superintendents in three suburbs contiguous to a large midwestern city were observed at work for one week, including evening meetings when they were scheduled. An attempt was made to…

Globular-cluster stars - Results of theoretical evolution and pulsation studies compared with the observations.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Iben, I., Jr.

1971-01-01

Survey of recently published studies on globular clusters, and comparison of stellar evolution and pulsation theory with reported observations. The theory of stellar evolution is shown to be capable of describing, in principle, the behavior of a star through all quasi-static stages. Yet, as might be expected, estimates of bulk properties obtained by comparing observations with results of pulsation and stellar atmosphere theory differ somewhat from estimates of these same properties obtained by comparing observations with results of evolution theory. A description is given of how such estimates are obtained, and suggestions are offered as to where the weak points in each theory may lie.

INTEGRATED PROTECTIVE FABRIC SYSTEM (IPFS) PHASE III PROGRAM: AEROSOL PROTECTION REPORT

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-08-16

one layer control. It was observed that aerosol swatch measurements showed no correlation to aerosol system test performance for the materials and...the BRHA model employed. It was observed that aerosol swatch measurements showed no correlation to aerosol system test performance for the...Testing” (McVeety et al., 2015). This report includes a description of the materials and material controls, a description of the IPFS configurations

The Play of Children with Special Needs in Mainstream and Special Education Settings

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bray, Paula; Cooper, Rodney

2007-01-01

Educators and occupational therapists regard play as a primary occupation of childhood, which in the case of children with special needs has not been well studied. The aim of this descriptive study was to observe the free-play behaviour of children with special needs in both special education and mainstream education settings. The Revised…

"Seeing It on the Screen Isn't Really Seeing It": Reading Problems of Writers Using Word Processing.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Haas, Christina

An observational study examined computer writers' use of hard copy for reading. The study begins with a description, based on interviews, of four kinds of reading problems encountered by writers using word processing; formatting, proofreading, reorganizing, and critical reading ("getting a sense of the text"). Subjects, six freshmen…

A Psycholinguistic Description of the Development of Writing in Selected First Grade Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Milz, Vera E.

A study was conducted to examine writing development in first grade children. The writings from an entire classroom were collected. From these, six children's writings were chosen for cross-sectional analysis. Two children from this group were then selected for further in-depth case studies. Interviews, parent surveys, and observations were used…

[Hematology and blood cell cytochemistry of Rhinella fernandezae (Amphibia: Anura) from Espinal and Delta-Islands of Paraná River, Argentina].

PubMed

Cabagna Zenklusen, Mariana C; Lajmanovich, Rafael C; Attademo, Andrés M; Peltzer, Paola M; Junges, Celina M; Fiorenza Biancucci, Gabriela; Bassó, Agustín

2011-03-01

The description of amphibian hematology is scarce and most of these studies have been done in species from North America, Asia and Europe. With the purpose to obtain basic hematological information of Rhinella fernandezae, 23 blood samples from Santa Fe and Entre Rios natural reserves were studied. Blood of each individual was extracted by cardiac puncture and hemograms were carried out. Morphological and cytochemical description of blood cells were analyzed in slides and were inspected for extra and intra cellular parasites. Five leucocytes types were observed, being lymphocytes the predominant ones followed by basophiles. Heterophils and eosinophils were positive to PAS, Sudan B and peroxidase. The erythrocytes and its precursors were negative for cytochemical reactions. Micronuclei and nuclear alterations frequencies were scarce. No significant differences (p > 0.05) were observed between sexes neither in hemograms nor in blood cells morphology. Microfilarias were the only hemoparasites found with a relative low prevalence and infection intensity. The hematological characteristics studied were similar to those reported for other amphibians, suggesting that R. fernandezae individuals present optimal nutritional and immunological status.

Verbal overshadowing of face memory does occur in children too!

PubMed Central

Dehon, Hedwige; Vanootighem, Valentine; Brédart, Serge

2013-01-01

Verbal descriptions of unfamiliar faces have been found to impair later identification of these faces in adults, a phenomenon known as the “verbal overshadowing effect” (VOE). Although determining whether children are good at describing unfamiliar individuals and whether these descriptions impair their recognition performance is critical to gaining a better understanding children's eyewitness ability, only a couple of studies have examined this dual issue in children and these found no evidence of VOE. However, as there are some methodological criticisms of these studies, we decided to conduct two further experiments in 7–8, 10–11, and 13–14-year-old children and in adults using a more optimal method for the VOE to be observed. Evidence of the VOE on face identification was found in both children and adults. Moreover, neither the accuracy of descriptions, nor delay nor target presence in the lineup was found to be associated with identification accuracy. The theoretical and developmental implications of these findings are discussed. PMID:24399985

Phenotypic Description of the Spanish Multicentre Genetic Glaucoma Group Cohort

PubMed Central

Gamundi, Maria José; Duch, Susana; Rios, Jose; Carballo, Miguel; Study Group, EMEIGG

2017-01-01

Introduction The aim of the study was to make a phenotypic description of the Spanish multicentre glaucoma group cohort of patients. Design Retrospective, observational, multicentre, cohort study. Material and Methods The clinical charts of 152 patients with hereditary glaucoma from18 Spanish eye centres were reviewed in order to make an epidemiologic description of the type of glaucoma and associated factors. True hereditary cases were compared with familiar cases according to the Gong et al. criteria. Results 61% were true hereditary cases and 39% familiar cases. Ocular comorbidity, optic disc damage, and visual field mean defect were significantly more severe in hereditary patients, who required significantly more first-line hypotensive drugs and surgical interventions to control intraocular pressure than familiar patients. Conclusions The strength of the hereditary component of glaucoma seems to worsen the clinical course, causing more structural and functional damage and requiring more intense glaucoma treatment. The family history of glaucoma should be carefully investigated and taken into consideration when making treatment decisions or intensifying previous treatment. PMID:29082038

CVD2014-A Database for Evaluating No-Reference Video Quality Assessment Algorithms.

PubMed

Nuutinen, Mikko; Virtanen, Toni; Vaahteranoksa, Mikko; Vuori, Tero; Oittinen, Pirkko; Hakkinen, Jukka

2016-07-01

In this paper, we present a new video database: CVD2014-Camera Video Database. In contrast to previous video databases, this database uses real cameras rather than introducing distortions via post-processing, which results in a complex distortion space in regard to the video acquisition process. CVD2014 contains a total of 234 videos that are recorded using 78 different cameras. Moreover, this database contains the observer-specific quality evaluation scores rather than only providing mean opinion scores. We have also collected open-ended quality descriptions that are provided by the observers. These descriptions were used to define the quality dimensions for the videos in CVD2014. The dimensions included sharpness, graininess, color balance, darkness, and jerkiness. At the end of this paper, a performance study of image and video quality algorithms for predicting the subjective video quality is reported. For this performance study, we proposed a new performance measure that accounts for observer variance. The performance study revealed that there is room for improvement regarding the video quality assessment algorithms. The CVD2014 video database has been made publicly available for the research community. All video sequences and corresponding subjective ratings can be obtained from the CVD2014 project page (http://www.helsinki.fi/psychology/groups/visualcognition/).

Evaluation of postgraduate critical care nursing students' attitudes to, and engagement with, Team-Based Learning: a descriptive study.

PubMed

Currey, Judy; Oldland, Elizabeth; Considine, Julie; Glanville, David; Story, Ian

2015-02-01

The aim of this study was to evaluate postgraduate critical care nursing students' attitudes to, and engagement with, Team-Based Learning (TBL). A descriptive pre and post interventional design was used. Study data were collected by surveys and observation. University postgraduate critical care nursing programme. Students' attitudes to learning within teams (Team Experience Questionnaire) and student engagement (observed and self-reports). Twenty-eight of 32 students agreed to participate (87% response rate). There were significant changes in students' attitudes to learning within teams including increases in overall satisfaction with team experience, team impact on quality of learning, team impact on clinical reasoning ability and professional development. There was no significant increase in satisfaction with peer evaluation. Observation and survey results showed higher student engagement in TBL classes compared with standard lecturing. Postgraduate critical care nursing students responded positively to the introduction of TBL and showed increased engagement with learning. In turn, these factors enhanced nurses' professional skills in teamwork, communication, problem solving and higher order critical thinking. Developing professional skills and advancing knowledge should be core to all critical care nursing education programmes to improve the quality and safety of patient care. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Development of plant anatomy teaching material based on palynological studies of pollen impacted by the haze of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Desti

2018-05-01

The research about palynological study of pollen impacted by the haze of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis from Riau Province and its development as a teaching material for plant anatomy has been conducted in Biology Laboratory of Islamic University of Riau. The objective of this research is to find out of the pollen morphology of H. rosa-sinensis and the result of this study developed for teaching materials for plant anatomy subject. The method is descriptive. The analysis data used descriptive qualitative. The result showed that pollen has several characteristics which can be observed which is impacted by the haze. Pollen was observed is single pollen type, spheroidal sarcoid, polyphenoporate aperture type and exterior ornament. From result of research can be concluded that there is difference of pollen analysis between plant observed. Implication of research results in learning in the form of teaching materials for Plant Anatomy subject. Based on the validation results, it is known that the teaching materials that have been prepared can be used in the learning with percentage level achievement of 90.91% for teaching materials. The subject matter of Plant Anatomy which has been prepared based on the research result can be used in the learning process

Dental Student Stress, Burnout, and Memory.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Davis, Elaine L.; And Others

1989-01-01

A study examined the relationships between self-reported academic burnout, perceived dental educational stress, and memory performance among 46 first-year dental students. In addition, the observed relationship between negative adjectives used for self-description and memory focused attention on the possible role of mood state in memory…

Studying Nomads on the Tibetan Plateau.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goldstein, Melvyn C.; Beall, Cynthia M.

1986-01-01

Noting that few western social scientists have been allowed to enter Tibet, this article describes the 5-month experience of 2 United States anthropologists. Included are 5 photographs of nomads, a description of the research conditions, and a collection of observations and tentative conclusions about these highland peoples (JDH)

A Descriptive Assessment of Instruction-Based Interactions in the Preschool Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ndoro, Virginia W.; Hanley, Gregory P.; Tiger, Jeffrey H.; Heal, Nicole A.

2006-01-01

The current study describes preschool teacher-child interactions during several commonly scheduled classroom activities in which teachers deliver instructions. An observation system was developed that incorporated measurement of evidence-based compliance strategies and included the types of instructions delivered (e.g., integral or deficient…

Denials of Racism in Canadian English Language Textbooks

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gulliver, Trevor; Thurrell, Kristy

2016-01-01

This critical discourse analysis examines denials of racism in descriptions of Canada and Canadians from English language textbooks. Denials of racism often accompany racist and nationalist discourse, preempting observations of racism. The study finds that in representations of Canada or Canadians, English language texts minimize and downplay…

The Communication of Culturally Dominant Modes of Attention from Parents to Children: A Comparison of Canadian and Japanese Parent-Child Conversations during a Joint Scene Description Task

PubMed Central

Takada, Akira; Okada, Hiroyuki

2016-01-01

Previous findings have indicated that, when presented with visual information, North American undergraduate students selectively attend to focal objects, whereas East Asian undergraduate students are more sensitive to background information. However, little is known about how these differences are driven by culture and socialization processes. In this study, two experiments investigated how young children and their parents used culturally unique modes of attention (selective vs. context sensitive attention). We expected that children would slowly learn culturally unique modes of attention, and the experience of communicating with their parents would aid the development of such modes of attention. Study 1 tested children’s solitary performance by examining Canadian and Japanese children’s (4–6 vs. 7–9 years old) modes of attention during a scene description task, whereby children watched short animations by themselves and then described their observations. The results confirmed that children did not demonstrate significant cross-cultural differences in attention during the scene description task while working independently, although results did show rudimentary signs of culturally unique modes of attention in this task scenario by age 9. Study 2 examined parent–child (4–6 and 7–9 years old) dyads using the same task. The results indicated that parents communicated to their children differently across cultures, replicating attentional differences among undergraduate students in previous cross-cultural studies. Study 2 also demonstrated that children’s culturally unique description styles increased significantly with age. The descriptions made by the older group (7–9 years old) showed significant cross-cultural variances in attention, while descriptions among the younger group (4–6 years old) did not. The significance of parental roles in the development of culturally unique modes of attention is discussed in addition to other possible facilitators of this developmental process. PMID:26824241

The Communication of Culturally Dominant Modes of Attention from Parents to Children: A Comparison of Canadian and Japanese Parent-Child Conversations during a Joint Scene Description Task.

PubMed

Senzaki, Sawa; Masuda, Takahiko; Takada, Akira; Okada, Hiroyuki

2016-01-01

Previous findings have indicated that, when presented with visual information, North American undergraduate students selectively attend to focal objects, whereas East Asian undergraduate students are more sensitive to background information. However, little is known about how these differences are driven by culture and socialization processes. In this study, two experiments investigated how young children and their parents used culturally unique modes of attention (selective vs. context sensitive attention). We expected that children would slowly learn culturally unique modes of attention, and the experience of communicating with their parents would aid the development of such modes of attention. Study 1 tested children's solitary performance by examining Canadian and Japanese children's (4-6 vs. 7-9 years old) modes of attention during a scene description task, whereby children watched short animations by themselves and then described their observations. The results confirmed that children did not demonstrate significant cross-cultural differences in attention during the scene description task while working independently, although results did show rudimentary signs of culturally unique modes of attention in this task scenario by age 9. Study 2 examined parent-child (4-6 and 7-9 years old) dyads using the same task. The results indicated that parents communicated to their children differently across cultures, replicating attentional differences among undergraduate students in previous cross-cultural studies. Study 2 also demonstrated that children's culturally unique description styles increased significantly with age. The descriptions made by the older group (7-9 years old) showed significant cross-cultural variances in attention, while descriptions among the younger group (4-6 years old) did not. The significance of parental roles in the development of culturally unique modes of attention is discussed in addition to other possible facilitators of this developmental process.

Parsimonious description for predicting high-dimensional dynamics

PubMed Central

Hirata, Yoshito; Takeuchi, Tomoya; Horai, Shunsuke; Suzuki, Hideyuki; Aihara, Kazuyuki

2015-01-01

When we observe a system, we often cannot observe all its variables and may have some of its limited measurements. Under such a circumstance, delay coordinates, vectors made of successive measurements, are useful to reconstruct the states of the whole system. Although the method of delay coordinates is theoretically supported for high-dimensional dynamical systems, practically there is a limitation because the calculation for higher-dimensional delay coordinates becomes more expensive. Here, we propose a parsimonious description of virtually infinite-dimensional delay coordinates by evaluating their distances with exponentially decaying weights. This description enables us to predict the future values of the measurements faster because we can reuse the calculated distances, and more accurately because the description naturally reduces the bias of the classical delay coordinates toward the stable directions. We demonstrate the proposed method with toy models of the atmosphere and real datasets related to renewable energy. PMID:26510518

Nonlinear problems in flight dynamics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chapman, G. T.; Tobak, M.

1984-01-01

A comprehensive framework is proposed for the description and analysis of nonlinear problems in flight dynamics. Emphasis is placed on the aerodynamic component as the major source of nonlinearities in the flight dynamic system. Four aerodynamic flows are examined to illustrate the richness and regularity of the flow structures and the nature of the flow structures and the nature of the resulting nonlinear aerodynamic forces and moments. A framework to facilitate the study of the aerodynamic system is proposed having parallel observational and mathematical components. The observational component, structure is described in the language of topology. Changes in flow structure are described via bifurcation theory. Chaos or turbulence is related to the analogous chaotic behavior of nonlinear dynamical systems characterized by the existence of strange attractors having fractal dimensionality. Scales of the flow are considered in the light of ideas from group theory. Several one and two degree of freedom dynamical systems with various mathematical models of the nonlinear aerodynamic forces and moments are examined to illustrate the resulting types of dynamical behavior. The mathematical ideas that proved useful in the description of fluid flows are shown to be similarly useful in the description of flight dynamic behavior.

What's in a Name? The Incorrect Use of Case Series as a Study Design Label in Studies Involving Dogs and Cats.

PubMed

Sargeant, J M; O'Connor, A M; Cullen, J N; Makielski, K M; Jones-Bitton, A

2017-07-01

Study design labels are used to identify relevant literature to address specific clinical and research questions and to aid in evaluating the evidentiary value of research. Evidence from the human healthcare literature indicates that the label "case series" may be used inconsistently and inappropriately. Our primary objective was to determine the proportion of studies in the canine and feline veterinary literature labeled as case series that actually corresponded to descriptive cohort studies, population-based cohort studies, or other study designs. Our secondary objective was to identify the proportion of case series in which potentially inappropriate inferential statements were made. Descriptive evaluation of published literature. One-hundred published studies (from 19 journals) labeled as case series. Studies were identified by a structured literature search, with random selection of 100 studies from the relevant citations. Two reviewers independently characterized each study, with disagreements resolved by consensus. Of the 100 studies, 16 were case series. The remaining studies were descriptive cohort studies (35), population-based cohort studies (36), or other observational or experimental study designs (13). Almost half (48.8%) of the case series or descriptive cohort studies, with no control group and no formal statistical analysis, included inferential statements about the efficacy of treatment or statistical significance of potential risk factors. Authors, peer-reviewers, and editors should carefully consider the design elements of a study to accurately identify and label the study design. Doing so will facilitate an understanding of the evidentiary value of the results. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine.

Statistical methods used in the public health literature and implications for training of public health professionals

PubMed Central

Hayat, Matthew J.; Powell, Amanda; Johnson, Tessa; Cadwell, Betsy L.

2017-01-01

Statistical literacy and knowledge is needed to read and understand the public health literature. The purpose of this study was to quantify basic and advanced statistical methods used in public health research. We randomly sampled 216 published articles from seven top tier general public health journals. Studies were reviewed by two readers and a standardized data collection form completed for each article. Data were analyzed with descriptive statistics and frequency distributions. Results were summarized for statistical methods used in the literature, including descriptive and inferential statistics, modeling, advanced statistical techniques, and statistical software used. Approximately 81.9% of articles reported an observational study design and 93.1% of articles were substantively focused. Descriptive statistics in table or graphical form were reported in more than 95% of the articles, and statistical inference reported in more than 76% of the studies reviewed. These results reveal the types of statistical methods currently used in the public health literature. Although this study did not obtain information on what should be taught, information on statistical methods being used is useful for curriculum development in graduate health sciences education, as well as making informed decisions about continuing education for public health professionals. PMID:28591190

Statistical methods used in the public health literature and implications for training of public health professionals.

PubMed

Hayat, Matthew J; Powell, Amanda; Johnson, Tessa; Cadwell, Betsy L

2017-01-01

Statistical literacy and knowledge is needed to read and understand the public health literature. The purpose of this study was to quantify basic and advanced statistical methods used in public health research. We randomly sampled 216 published articles from seven top tier general public health journals. Studies were reviewed by two readers and a standardized data collection form completed for each article. Data were analyzed with descriptive statistics and frequency distributions. Results were summarized for statistical methods used in the literature, including descriptive and inferential statistics, modeling, advanced statistical techniques, and statistical software used. Approximately 81.9% of articles reported an observational study design and 93.1% of articles were substantively focused. Descriptive statistics in table or graphical form were reported in more than 95% of the articles, and statistical inference reported in more than 76% of the studies reviewed. These results reveal the types of statistical methods currently used in the public health literature. Although this study did not obtain information on what should be taught, information on statistical methods being used is useful for curriculum development in graduate health sciences education, as well as making informed decisions about continuing education for public health professionals.

Expressive writing difficulties in children described as exhibiting ADHD symptoms.

PubMed

Re, Anna Maria; Pedron, Martina; Cornoldi, Cesare

2007-01-01

Three groups of children of different ages who were considered by their teachers as showing symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and matched controls were tested in a series of expressive writing tasks, derived from a standardized writing test. In the first study, 24 sixth- and seventh-grade children with ADHD symptoms wrote a description of an image. The ADHD group's expressive writing was worse than that of the control group and associated with a higher number of errors, mainly concerning accents and geminates. The second study showed the generality of the effect by testing younger groups of children with ADHD symptoms and controls with another description task where a verbal description was substituted for the picture stimulus. The third study extended the previous observations with another type of writing task, the request of writing a narrative text. In all the three studies, children with ADHD symptoms scored lower than controls on four qualitative parameters (adequacy, structure, grammar, and lexicon), produced shorter texts, and made more errors. These studies show that children with ADHD symptoms have school difficulties also in writing-both in spelling and expression-and that these difficulties are extended to different tasks and ages.

Levels-of-growing-stock cooperative study in Douglas-fir: report no. 17—The Skykomish Study, 1961–93; The Clemons study, 1963–94.

Treesearch

James E. King; David D. Marshall; John F. Bell

2002-01-01

Stand treatments were completed as prescribed with an initial calibration cut and five thinnings resulting in eight new regimes for management of Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco). Measurements were continued for an additional 14 years to observe stability and yields of stands in a postthinning holding period. Detailed descriptions...

ANALYSES OF RESPONSE–STIMULUS SEQUENCES IN DESCRIPTIVE OBSERVATIONS

PubMed Central

Samaha, Andrew L; Vollmer, Timothy R; Borrero, Carrie; Sloman, Kimberly; Pipkin, Claire St. Peter; Bourret, Jason

2009-01-01

Descriptive observations were conducted to record problem behavior displayed by participants and to record antecedents and consequences delivered by caregivers. Next, functional analyses were conducted to identify reinforcers for problem behavior. Then, using data from the descriptive observations, lag-sequential analyses were conducted to examine changes in the probability of environmental events across time in relation to occurrences of problem behavior. The results of the lag-sequential analyses were interpreted in light of the results of functional analyses. Results suggested that events identified as reinforcers in a functional analysis followed behavior in idiosyncratic ways: after a range of delays and frequencies. Thus, it is possible that naturally occurring reinforcement contingencies are arranged in ways different from those typically evaluated in applied research. Further, these complex response–stimulus relations can be represented by lag-sequential analyses. However, limitations to the lag-sequential analysis are evident. PMID:19949537

[Female homicide victims in Recife, Pernambuco State, Brazil, 2009-2010: a descriptive study].

PubMed

Silva, Maria Arleide da; Cabral Filho, José Eulálio; Amorim, Melania Maria Ramos; Falbo Neto, Gilliatt Hanois

2013-02-01

This study investigated the epidemiological profile of female homicide victims in Recife, Pernambuco State, Northeast Brazil. An observational descriptive and prospective study included all homicides from March 2009 to February 2010 with female victims from Recife, 10 to 49 years of age. A questionnaire was used to record socioeconomic, demographic, and biological risk factors. Relatives of the victims were interviewed, and data were collected from death certificates. We identified 60 homicides during the study period. Most victims were adult women with brown skin color and low schooling and low income. Other characteristics included smoking in 39.7%, alcohol and illicit drugs in 48.3% and 24.1%, respectively, and physical and/or sexual violence in the 12 months prior to the murder in 29.3%. Firearms were used in 69% of these homicides.

Coordinated ionospheric and magnetospheric observations from the ISIS 2 satellite by the ISIS 2 experimenters. Volume 2: Auroral optical emissions magnetic field perturbations, and plasma characteristics, measured simultaneously on the same magnetic field line

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shepherd, G. G.

1980-01-01

The data set consists of a selected number of passes, each comprising a format combination that is most appropriate for the particular data set. A list of ISIS 2 experimenters, with addresses and telephone numbers is included. A brief description of the ISIS 2 satellite is given, followed by more detailed instrument descriptions, format descriptions, data set descriptions, and the data themselves.

Edmund Goodwyn and the first description of diving bradycardia.

PubMed

Vega, Jose L

2017-08-01

Diving bradycardia is a primordial oxygen-conserving reflex by which the heart rate of air-breathing vertebrates, including humans, slows down in response to water immersion. Its discovery is attributed to Paul Bert, whose seminal observation was published in 1870 as part of a series of experiments that examined physiological adaptations to asphyxia in ducks and other animals. However, Edmund Goodwyn, a British physician who studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh, had already described this reflex in his doctoral thesis, which was originally published in Latin in 1786 and again in English in 1788. Ironically, even though Goodwyn's work has yet to be recognized in the diving physiology literature, it was referenced in the very publication that contains Bert's original observation. Thus this article brings Goodwyn's work and its historical context to light and argues that he should be credited with the first description of diving bradycardia. Copyright © 2017 the American Physiological Society.

Needs of family caregivers in home care for older adults 1

PubMed Central

Bierhals, Carla Cristiane Becker Kottwitz; dos Santos, Naiana Oliveira; Fengler, Fernanda Laís; Raubustt, Kamila Dellamora; Forbes, Dorothy Anne; Paskulin, Lisiane Manganelli Girardi

2017-01-01

ABSTRACT Objective: to reveal the felt and normative needs of primary family caregivers when providing instrumental support to older adults enrolled in a Home Care Program in a Primary Health Service in the South of Brazil. Methods: using Bradshaw's taxonomy of needs to explore the caregiver's felt needs (stated needs) and normative needs (defined by professionals), a mixed exploratory study was conducted in three steps: Descriptive quantitative phase with 39 older adults and their caregiver, using a data sheet based on patient records; Qualitative exploratory phase that included 21 caregiver interviews, analyzed by content analysis; Systematic observation, using an observation guide with 16 caregivers, analyzed by descriptive statistics. Results: the felt needs were related to information about instrumental support activities and subjective aspects of care. Caregivers presented more normative needs related to medications care. Conclusion: understanding caregivers' needs allows nurses to plan interventions based on their particularities. PMID:28403338

[Nursing care time in a teaching hospital].

PubMed

Rogenski, Karin Emília; Fugulin, Fernanda Maria Togeiro; Gaidzinski, Raquel Rapone; Rogenski, Noemi Marisa Brunet

2011-03-01

This is a quantitative exploratory, descriptive study performed with the objective to identify and analyze the performance of the average time of nursing care delivered to patients of the Inpatient Units of the University Hospital at University of São Paulo (UH-USP), from 2001 to 2005. The average nursing care time delivered to patients of the referred units was identified by applying of a mathematical equation proposed in the literature, after surveying data from the Medical and Statistical Service and based on the monthly working shifts of the nursing professionals. Data analysis was performed using descriptive statistics. The average nursing care time observed in most units, despite some variations, remained stable during the analyzed period. Based on this observed stability, it is concluded that the nursing staff in the referred HU-USP units has been continuously evaluated with the purposes of maintaining the average time of assistance and, thus, the quality of the care being delivered.

Bone morphology of the hind limbs in two caviomorph rodents.

PubMed

de Araújo, F A P; Sesoko, N F; Rahal, S C; Teixeira, C R; Müller, T R; Machado, M R F

2013-04-01

In order to evaluate the hind limbs of caviomorph rodents a descriptive analysis of the Cuniculus paca (Linnaeus, 1766) and Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris (Linnaeus, 1766) was performed using anatomical specimens, radiography, computed tomography (CT) and full-coloured prototype models to generate bone anatomy data. The appendicular skeleton of the two largest rodents of Neotropical America was compared with the previously reported anatomical features of Rattus norvegicus (Berkenhout, 1769) and domestic Cavia porcellus (Linnaeus, 1758). The structures were analyzed macroscopically and particular findings of each species reported. Features including the presence of articular fibular projection and lunulae were observed in the stifle joint of all rodents. Imaging aided in anatomical description and, specifically in the identification of bone structures in Cuniculus paca and Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris. The imaging findings were correlated with the anatomical structures observed. The data may be used in future studies comparing these animals to other rodents and mammalian species. © 2012 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.

The Observed Relationship between Management Styles and Resource Adequacy.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lynch, David M.; And Others

This descriptive study surveyed deans (N=142), department chairs (N=392), and faculty (N=1173) to examine their perceptions of the relationship between resource adequacy within institutions of higher education and administrators' management styles. The clusters of variables examined were: (1) management style (use of communication and…

Historical gaseous and primary aerosol emissions in the United States from 1990-2010

EPA Science Inventory

An accurate description of emissions is crucial for model simulations to reproduce and interpret observed phenomena over extended time periods. In this study, we used an approach based on activity data to develop a consistent series of spatially resolved emissions in the United S...

Teachers' Perceptions Based on Tenure Status and Gender about Principals' Supervision

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Range, Bret G.; Finch, Kim; Young, Suzanne; Hvidston, David J.

2014-01-01

This descriptive study assessed teachers' attitudes about their formative supervision and the observational ability of principals through the constructs of teacher tenure status and gender. In sum, 255 teachers responded to an online survey indicating teachers' desired feedback focused on classroom climate, student engagement, and instructional…

An Ethnographic Account of the Composing Behaviors of Five Young Bilingual Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Halsall, Sharen Weber

A study examined bilingual children's composing behaviors during classroom writing and their perceptions of writing. Students' descriptions of what occurred in their day-to-day environment were analyzed using ethnographic methods. The researcher observed five subjects--bilingual students in kindergarten through third grade--for 145 hours, and…

Computer-Game-Based Tutoring of Mathematics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ke, Fengfeng

2013-01-01

This in-situ, descriptive case study examined the potential of implementing computer mathematics games as an anchor for tutoring of mathematics. Data were collected from middle school students at a rural pueblo school and an urban Hispanic-serving school, through in-field observation, content analysis of game-based tutoring-learning interactions,…

Experiencing the Reggio Emilia Way: Reflections from Japan.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ishigaki, Emiko Hannah

2003-01-01

Recounts the experiences of a Japanese professor of Early Childhood Education participating in the Canadian delegation of a 6-day study tour in Reggio Emilia, Italy. Includes descriptions of lectures and workshops attended relating to the Reggio Emilia approach. Highlights facilities observed, including an educational materials recycling center,…

The MERRA-2 Aerosol Reanalysis, 1980 - onward, Part I: System Description and Data Assimilation Evaluation.

PubMed

Randles, C A; Da Silva, A M; Buchard, V; Colarco, P R; Darmenov, A; Govindaraju, R; Smirnov, A; Holben, B; Ferrare, R; Hair, J; Shinozuka, Y; Flynn, C J

2017-09-01

The Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications, Version 2 (MERRA-2) updates NASA's previous satellite era (1980 - onward) reanalysis system to include additional observations and improvements to the Goddard Earth Observing System, Version 5 (GEOS-5) Earth system model. As a major step towards a full Integrated Earth Systems Analysis (IESA), in addition to meteorological observations, MERRA-2 now includes assimilation of aerosol optical depth (AOD) from various ground- and space-based remote sensing platforms. Here, in the first of a pair of studies, we document the MERRA-2 aerosol assimilation, including a description of the prognostic model (GEOS-5 coupled to the GOCART aerosol module), aerosol emissions, and the quality control of ingested observations. We provide initial validation and evaluation of the analyzed AOD fields using independent observations from ground, aircraft, and shipborne instruments. We demonstrate the positive impact of the AOD assimilation on simulated aerosols by comparing MERRA-2 aerosol fields to an identical control simulation that does not include AOD assimilation. Having shown the AOD evaluation, we take a first look at aerosol-climate interactions by examining the shortwave, clear-sky aerosol direct radiative effect. In our companion paper, we evaluate and validate available MERRA-2 aerosol properties not directly impacted by the AOD assimilation (e.g. aerosol vertical distribution and absorption). Importantly, while highlighting the skill of the MERRA-2 aerosol assimilation products, both studies point out caveats that must be considered when using this new reanalysis product for future studies of aerosols and their interactions with weather and climate.

Factors Associated with Adolescent Physical Activity during Middle School Physical Education: A One-Year Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Senne, Terry; Rowe, David; Boswell, Boni; Decker, James; Douglas, Shaun

2009-01-01

The purpose of this descriptive component of a larger, exploratory case study was to examine associations among lesson contexts, teacher behaviors, and adolescent physical activity over a year of physical education (PE) at one school. Middle school students (n = 206) and their PE teachers (n = 4) were observed twice-weekly across one academic…

A Study of Implicit Theories and Beliefs about Teaching in Elementary School Teachers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marcelo, Carlos

In this study interactive teaching of two math teachers at elementary schools in Spain was observed. Focus was on the description of the principles of the practice which guide the teaching activities of the subjects, because it was felt these principles form the base of teachers' theories with respect to the teaching and the students. During a…

The Taxonomic Significance of Species That Have Only Been Observed Once: The Genus Gymnodinium (Dinoflagellata) as an Example

PubMed Central

Thessen, Anne E.; Patterson, David J.; Murray, Shauna A.

2012-01-01

Taxonomists have been tasked with cataloguing and quantifying the Earth’s biodiversity. Their progress is measured in code-compliant species descriptions that include text, images, type material and molecular sequences. It is from this material that other researchers are to identify individuals of the same species in future observations. It has been estimated that 13% to 22% (depending on taxonomic group) of described species have only ever been observed once. Species that have only been observed at the time and place of their original description are referred to as oncers. Oncers are important to our current understanding of biodiversity. They may be validly described species that are members of a rare biosphere, or they may indicate endemism, or that these species are limited to very constrained niches. Alternatively, they may reflect that taxonomic practices are too poor to allow the organism to be re-identified or that the descriptions are unknown to other researchers. If the latter are true, our current tally of species will not be an accurate indication of what we know. In order to investigate this phenomenon and its potential causes, we examined the microbial eukaryote genus Gymnodinium. This genus contains 268 extant species, 103 (38%) of which have not been observed since their original description. We report traits of the original descriptions and interpret them in respect to the status of the species. We conclude that the majority of oncers were poorly described and their identity is ambiguous. As a result, we argue that the genus Gymnodinium contains only 234 identifiable species. Species that have been observed multiple times tend to have longer descriptions, written in English. The styles of individual authors have a major effect, with a few authors describing a disproportionate number of oncers. The information about the taxonomy of Gymnodinium that is available via the internet is incomplete, and reliance on it will not give access to all necessary knowledge. Six new names are presented – Gymnodinium campbelli for the homonymous name Gymnodinium translucens Campbell 1973, Gymnodinium antarcticum for the homonymous name Gymnodinium frigidum Balech 1965, Gymnodinium manchuriensis for the homonymous name Gymnodinium autumnale Skvortzov 1968, Gymnodinium christenum for the homonymous name Gymnodinium irregulare Christen 1959, Gymnodinium conkufferi for the homonymous name Gymnodinium irregulare Conrad & Kufferath 1954 and Gymnodinium chinensis for the homonymous name Gymnodinium frigidum Skvortzov 1968. PMID:22952856

Super-family P2 C-96-125 observed by Japan-URSS Joint Emulsion Chamber Experiment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shibuya, E. H.

1985-01-01

A detailed description of the event detected in the second chamber of Japan-URSS Collaboration is presented. A preliminary description was already published and from that time a careful microscopic scanning was carried out.

Emended description of Pasteuria nishizawae.

PubMed

Noel, Gregory R; Atibalentja, N; Domier, Leslie L

2005-07-01

The description of the Gram-positive, obligately parasitic, mycelial and endospore-forming bacterium, Pasteuria nishizawae, is emended to include additional observations on the life cycle, host specificity and endospore morphology. The nucleotide sequence of the 16S rRNA gene is also provided.

Subjective Numeracy and the Influence of Order and Amount of Audible Information on Perceived Medication Value

PubMed Central

Fraenkel, Liana; Stolar, Marilyn; Swift, Sarah; Street, Richard L.; Chowdhary, Harjinder; Peters, Ellen

2016-01-01

Background Order and amount of information influence patients’ risk perceptions, but most studies have evaluated patients’ reactions to written materials. The objective of this study was to examine the effect of four communication strategies, varying in their order and/or amount of information, on judgments related to an audible description of a new medication and among patients who varied in subjective numeracy. Methods We created five versions of a hypothetical scenario describing a new medication. The versions were composed to elucidate whether order and/or amount of the information describing benefits and adverse events influenced how subjects valued a new medication. After listening to a randomly assigned version, perceived medication value was measured by asking subjects to choose one of the following statements: the risks outweigh the benefits, the risks and benefits are equally balanced, or the benefits outweigh the risks. Results Of the 432 patients contacted, 389 participated in the study. Listening to a brief description of benefits followed by an extended description of adverse events resulted in a greater likelihood of perceiving that the medication’s benefits outweighed the risks compared to: 1) presenting the extended adverse events description before the benefits, 2) giving a greater amount of information related to benefits, and 3) sandwiching the adverse events between benefits. These associations were only observed among subjects with average or higher subjective numeracy. Conclusion If confirmed in future studies, our results suggest that, for patients with average or better subjective numeracy, perceived medication value is highest when a brief presentation of benefits is followed by an extended description of adverse events. PMID:27216580

Coronal mass ejections and coronal structures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hildner, E.; Bassi, J.; Bougeret, J. L.; Duncan, R. A.; Gary, D. E.; Gergely, T. E.; Harrison, R. A.; Howard, R. A.; Illing, R. M. E.; Jackson, B. V.

1986-01-01

Research on coronal mass ejections (CMF) took a variety of forms, both observational and theoretical. On the observational side there were: case studies of individual events, in which it was attempted to provide the most complete descriptions possible, using correlative observations in diverse wavelengths; statistical studies of the properties CMEs and their associated activity; observations which may tell us about the initiation of mass ejections; interplanetary observations of associated shocks and energetic particles even observations of CMEs traversing interplanetary space; and the beautiful synoptic charts which show to what degree mass ejections affect the background corona and how rapidly (if at all) the corona recovers its pre-disturbance form. These efforts are described in capsule form with an emphasis on presenting pictures, graphs, and tables so that the reader can form a personal appreciation of the work and its results.

ONS: an ontology for a standardized description of interventions and observational studies in nutrition.

PubMed

Vitali, Francesco; Lombardo, Rosario; Rivero, Damariz; Mattivi, Fulvio; Franceschi, Pietro; Bordoni, Alessandra; Trimigno, Alessia; Capozzi, Francesco; Felici, Giovanni; Taglino, Francesco; Miglietta, Franco; De Cock, Nathalie; Lachat, Carl; De Baets, Bernard; De Tré, Guy; Pinart, Mariona; Nimptsch, Katharina; Pischon, Tobias; Bouwman, Jildau; Cavalieri, Duccio

2018-01-01

The multidisciplinary nature of nutrition research is one of its main strengths. At the same time, however, it presents a major obstacle to integrate data analysis, especially for the terminological and semantic interpretations that specific research fields or communities are used to. To date, a proper ontology to structure and formalize the concepts used for the description of nutritional studies is still lacking. We have developed the Ontology for Nutritional Studies (ONS) by harmonizing selected pre-existing de facto ontologies with novel health and nutritional terminology classifications. The ONS is the result of a scholarly consensus of 51 research centers in nine European countries. The ontology classes and relations are commonly encountered while conducting, storing, harmonizing, integrating, describing, and searching nutritional studies. The ONS facilitates the description and specification of complex nutritional studies as demonstrated with two application scenarios. The ONS is the first systematic effort to provide a solid and extensible formal ontology framework for nutritional studies. Integration of new information can be easily achieved by the addition of extra modules (i.e., nutrigenomics, metabolomics, nutrikinetics, and quality appraisal). The ONS provides a unified and standardized terminology for nutritional studies as a resource for nutrition researchers who might not necessarily be familiar with ontologies and standardization concepts.

Coordinated ionospheric and magnetospheric observations from the ISIS 2 satellite by the ISIS 2 experimenters. Volume 3: High-latitude charged particle, magnetic field and ionospheric plasma observations during northern summer

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1980-01-01

A list of ISIS 2 experiments and a description of the satellite are presented. Instrumentation of the satellite included an auroral scanning photometer, a red line photometer, a swept frequency sounder, an ion mass spectrometer, and triaxial fluxgate magnetometer. Data format descriptions are provided. Included with the geophysical data set is a list of all passes.

Defining acute aortic syndrome after trauma: Are Abbreviated Injury Scale codes a useful surrogate descriptor?

PubMed

Leach, R; McNally, Donal; Bashir, Mohamad; Sastry, Priya; Cuerden, Richard; Richens, David; Field, Mark

2012-10-01

The severity and location of injuries resulting from vehicular collisions are normally recorded in Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) code; we propose a system to link AIS code to a description of acute aortic syndrome (AAS), thus allowing the hypothesis that aortic injury is progressive with collision kinematics to be tested. Standard AIS codes were matched with a clinical description of AAS. A total of 199 collisions that resulted in aortic injury were extracted from a national automotive collision database and the outcomes mapped onto AAS descriptions. The severity of aortic injury (AIS severity score) and stage of AAS progression were compared with collision kinematics and occupant demographics. Post hoc power analyses were used to estimate maximum effect size. The general demographic distribution of the sample represented that of the UK population in regard to sex and age. No significant relationship was observed between estimated test speed, collision direction, occupant location or seat belt use and clinical progression of aortic injury (once initiated). Power analysis confirmed that a suitable sample size was used to observe a medium effect in most of the cases. Similarly, no association was observed between injury severity and collision kinematics. There is sufficient information on AIS severity and location codes to map onto the clinical AAS spectrum. It was not possible, with this data set, to consider the influence of collision kinematics on aortic injury initiation. However, it was demonstrated that after initiation, further progression along the AAS pathway was not influenced by collision kinematics. This might be because the injury is not progressive, because the vehicle kinematics studied do not fully represent the kinematics of the occupants, or because an unknown factor, such as stage of cardiac cycle, dominates. Epidemiologic/prognostic study, level IV.

A fractographic study of clinically retrieved zirconia-ceramic and metal-ceramic fixed dental prostheses.

PubMed

Pang, Zhen; Chughtai, Asima; Sailer, Irena; Zhang, Yu

2015-10-01

A recent 3-year randomized controlled trial (RCT) of tooth supported three- to five-unit zirconia-ceramic and metal-ceramic posterior fixed dental prostheses (FDPs) revealed that veneer chipping and fracture in zirconia-ceramic systems occurred more frequently than those in metal-ceramic systems [1]. This study seeks to elucidate the underlying mechanisms responsible for the fracture phenomena observed in this RCT using a descriptive fractographic analysis. Vinyl-polysiloxane impressions of 12 zirconia-ceramic and 6 metal-ceramic FDPs with veneer fractures were taken from the patients at the end of a mean observation of 40.3±2.8 months. Epoxy replicas were produced from these impressions [1]. All replicas were gold coated, and inspected under the optical microscope and scanning electron microscope (SEM) for descriptive fractography. Among the 12 zirconia-ceramic FDPs, 2 had small chippings, 9 had large chippings, and 1 exhibited delamination. Out of 6 metal-ceramic FDPs, 5 had small chippings and 1 had large chipping. Descriptive fractographic analysis based on SEM observations revealed that fracture initiated from the wear facet at the occlusal surface in all cases, irrespective of the type of restoration. Zirconia-ceramic and metal-ceramic FDPs all fractured from microcracks that emanated from occlusal wear facets. The relatively low fracture toughness and high residual tensile stress in porcelain veneer of zirconia restorations may contribute to the higher chipping rate and larger chip size in zirconia-ceramic FDPs relative to their metal-ceramic counterparts. The low veneer/core interfacial fracture energy of porcelain-veneered zirconia may result in the occurrence of delamination in zirconia-ceramic FDPs. Copyright © 2015 Academy of Dental Materials. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A fractographic study of clinically retrieved zirconia–ceramic and metal–ceramic fixed dental prostheses

PubMed Central

Pang, Zhen; Chughtai, Asima; Sailer, Irena; Zhang, Yu

2015-01-01

Objectives A recent 3-year randomized controlled trial (RCT) of tooth supported three- to five-unit zirconia–ceramic and metal–ceramic posterior fixed dental prostheses (FDPs) revealed that veneer chipping and fracture in zirconia–ceramic systems occurred more frequently than those in metal–ceramic systems [1]. This study seeks to elucidate the underlying mechanisms responsible for the fracture phenomena observed in this RCT using a descriptive fractographic analysis. Methods Vinyl-polysiloxane impressions of 12 zirconia–ceramic and 6 metal–ceramic FDPs with veneer fractures were taken from the patients at the end of a mean observation of 40.3 ± 2.8 months. Epoxy replicas were produced from these impressions [1]. All replicas were gold coated, and inspected under the optical microscope and scanning electron microscope (SEM) for descriptive fractography. Results Among the 12 zirconia–ceramic FDPs, 2 had small chippings, 9 had large chippings, and 1 exhibited delamination. Out of 6 metal–ceramic FDPs, 5 had small chippings and 1 had large chipping. Descriptive fractographic analysis based on SEM observations revealed that fracture initiated from the wear facet at the occlusal surface in all cases, irrespective of the type of restoration. Significance Zirconia–ceramic and metal–ceramic FDPs all fractured from microcracks that emanated from occlusal wear facets. The relatively low fracture toughness and high residual tensile stress in porcelain veneer of zirconia restorations may contribute to the higher chipping rate and larger chip size in zirconia–ceramic FDPs relative to their metal–ceramic counterparts. The low veneer/core interfacial fracture energy of porcelain-veneered zirconia may result in the occurrence of delamination in zirconia–ceramic FDPs. PMID:26233469

Format( )MEDIC( )Input

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Foster, K.

1994-09-01

This document is a description of a computer program called Format( )MEDIC( )Input. The purpose of this program is to allow the user to quickly reformat wind velocity data in the Model Evaluation Database (MEDb) into a reasonable 'first cut' set of MEDIC input files (MEDIC.nml, StnLoc.Met, and Observ.Met). The user is cautioned that these resulting input files must be reviewed for correctness and completeness. This program will not format MEDb data into a Problem Station Library or Problem Metdata File. A description of how the program reformats the data is provided, along with a description of the required and optional user input and a description of the resulting output files. A description of the MEDb is not provided here but can be found in the RAS Division Model Evaluation Database Description document.

An Observation-Driven Agent-Based Modeling and Analysis Framework for C. elegans Embryogenesis.

PubMed

Wang, Zi; Ramsey, Benjamin J; Wang, Dali; Wong, Kwai; Li, Husheng; Wang, Eric; Bao, Zhirong

2016-01-01

With cutting-edge live microscopy and image analysis, biologists can now systematically track individual cells in complex tissues and quantify cellular behavior over extended time windows. Computational approaches that utilize the systematic and quantitative data are needed to understand how cells interact in vivo to give rise to the different cell types and 3D morphology of tissues. An agent-based, minimum descriptive modeling and analysis framework is presented in this paper to study C. elegans embryogenesis. The framework is designed to incorporate the large amounts of experimental observations on cellular behavior and reserve data structures/interfaces that allow regulatory mechanisms to be added as more insights are gained. Observed cellular behaviors are organized into lineage identity, timing and direction of cell division, and path of cell movement. The framework also includes global parameters such as the eggshell and a clock. Division and movement behaviors are driven by statistical models of the observations. Data structures/interfaces are reserved for gene list, cell-cell interaction, cell fate and landscape, and other global parameters until the descriptive model is replaced by a regulatory mechanism. This approach provides a framework to handle the ongoing experiments of single-cell analysis of complex tissues where mechanistic insights lag data collection and need to be validated on complex observations.

Effective International Medical Disaster Relief: A Qualitative Descriptive Study.

PubMed

Broby, Nicolette; Lassetter, Jane H; Williams, Mary; Winters, Blaine A

2018-04-01

Purpose The aim of this study was to assist organizations seeking to develop or improve their medical disaster relief effort by identifying fundamental elements and processes that permeate high-quality, international, medical disaster relief organizations and the teams they deploy. A qualitative descriptive design was used. Data were gathered from interviews with key personnel at five international medical response organizations, as well as during field observations conducted at multiple sites in Jordan and Greece, including three refugee camps. Data were then reviewed by the research team and coded to identify patterns, categories, and themes. The results from this qualitative, descriptive design identified three themes which were key characteristics of success found in effective, well-established, international medical disaster relief organizations. These characteristics were first, ensuring an official invitation had been extended and the need for assistance had been identified. Second, the response to that need was done in an effective and sustainable manner. Third, effective organizations strived to obtain high-quality volunteers. By following the three key characteristics outlined in this research, organizations are more likely to improve the efficiency and quality of their work. In addition, they will be less likely to impede the overall recovery process. Broby N , Lassetter JH , Williams M , Winters BA . Effective international medical disaster relief: a qualitative descriptive study. Prehosp Disaster Med. 2018;33(2):119-126.

The Extrapolation of Elementary Sequences

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Laird, Philip; Saul, Ronald

1992-01-01

We study sequence extrapolation as a stream-learning problem. Input examples are a stream of data elements of the same type (integers, strings, etc.), and the problem is to construct a hypothesis that both explains the observed sequence of examples and extrapolates the rest of the stream. A primary objective -- and one that distinguishes this work from previous extrapolation algorithms -- is that the same algorithm be able to extrapolate sequences over a variety of different types, including integers, strings, and trees. We define a generous family of constructive data types, and define as our learning bias a stream language called elementary stream descriptions. We then give an algorithm that extrapolates elementary descriptions over constructive datatypes and prove that it learns correctly. For freely-generated types, we prove a polynomial time bound on descriptions of bounded complexity. An especially interesting feature of this work is the ability to provide quantitative measures of confidence in competing hypotheses, using a Bayesian model of prediction.

VHDL Descriptions for the FPGA Implementation of PWL-Function-Based Multi-Scroll Chaotic Oscillators

PubMed Central

2016-01-01

Nowadays, chaos generators are an attractive field for research and the challenge is their realization for the development of engineering applications. From more than three decades ago, chaotic oscillators have been designed using discrete electronic devices, very few with integrated circuit technology, and in this work we propose the use of field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) for fast prototyping. FPGA-based applications require that one be expert on programming with very-high-speed integrated circuits hardware description language (VHDL). In this manner, we detail the VHDL descriptions of chaos generators for fast prototyping from high-level programming using Python. The cases of study are three kinds of chaos generators based on piecewise-linear (PWL) functions that can be systematically augmented to generate even and odd number of scrolls. We introduce new algorithms for the VHDL description of PWL functions like saturated functions series, negative slopes and sawtooth. The generated VHDL-code is portable, reusable and open source to be synthesized in an FPGA. Finally, we show experimental results for observing 2, 10 and 30-scroll attractors. PMID:27997930

VHDL Descriptions for the FPGA Implementation of PWL-Function-Based Multi-Scroll Chaotic Oscillators.

PubMed

Tlelo-Cuautle, Esteban; Quintas-Valles, Antonio de Jesus; de la Fraga, Luis Gerardo; Rangel-Magdaleno, Jose de Jesus

2016-01-01

Nowadays, chaos generators are an attractive field for research and the challenge is their realization for the development of engineering applications. From more than three decades ago, chaotic oscillators have been designed using discrete electronic devices, very few with integrated circuit technology, and in this work we propose the use of field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) for fast prototyping. FPGA-based applications require that one be expert on programming with very-high-speed integrated circuits hardware description language (VHDL). In this manner, we detail the VHDL descriptions of chaos generators for fast prototyping from high-level programming using Python. The cases of study are three kinds of chaos generators based on piecewise-linear (PWL) functions that can be systematically augmented to generate even and odd number of scrolls. We introduce new algorithms for the VHDL description of PWL functions like saturated functions series, negative slopes and sawtooth. The generated VHDL-code is portable, reusable and open source to be synthesized in an FPGA. Finally, we show experimental results for observing 2, 10 and 30-scroll attractors.

Meta-analyses and Forest plots using a microsoft excel spreadsheet: step-by-step guide focusing on descriptive data analysis.

PubMed

Neyeloff, Jeruza L; Fuchs, Sandra C; Moreira, Leila B

2012-01-20

Meta-analyses are necessary to synthesize data obtained from primary research, and in many situations reviews of observational studies are the only available alternative. General purpose statistical packages can meta-analyze data, but usually require external macros or coding. Commercial specialist software is available, but may be expensive and focused in a particular type of primary data. Most available softwares have limitations in dealing with descriptive data, and the graphical display of summary statistics such as incidence and prevalence is unsatisfactory. Analyses can be conducted using Microsoft Excel, but there was no previous guide available. We constructed a step-by-step guide to perform a meta-analysis in a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet, using either fixed-effect or random-effects models. We have also developed a second spreadsheet capable of producing customized forest plots. It is possible to conduct a meta-analysis using only Microsoft Excel. More important, to our knowledge this is the first description of a method for producing a statistically adequate but graphically appealing forest plot summarizing descriptive data, using widely available software.

Meta-analyses and Forest plots using a microsoft excel spreadsheet: step-by-step guide focusing on descriptive data analysis

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background Meta-analyses are necessary to synthesize data obtained from primary research, and in many situations reviews of observational studies are the only available alternative. General purpose statistical packages can meta-analyze data, but usually require external macros or coding. Commercial specialist software is available, but may be expensive and focused in a particular type of primary data. Most available softwares have limitations in dealing with descriptive data, and the graphical display of summary statistics such as incidence and prevalence is unsatisfactory. Analyses can be conducted using Microsoft Excel, but there was no previous guide available. Findings We constructed a step-by-step guide to perform a meta-analysis in a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet, using either fixed-effect or random-effects models. We have also developed a second spreadsheet capable of producing customized forest plots. Conclusions It is possible to conduct a meta-analysis using only Microsoft Excel. More important, to our knowledge this is the first description of a method for producing a statistically adequate but graphically appealing forest plot summarizing descriptive data, using widely available software. PMID:22264277

Vertical integration from the large Hilbert space

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Erler, Theodore; Konopka, Sebastian

2017-12-01

We develop an alternative description of the procedure of vertical integration based on the observation that amplitudes can be written in BRST exact form in the large Hilbert space. We relate this approach to the description of vertical integration given by Sen and Witten.

GORGONA - the characteristic of the software system.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Artim, M.; Zejda, M.

A description of the new software system is given. The GORGONA system is established to the processing, making and administration of archives of periodic variable stars observations, observers and observed variable stars.

A Sociolinguistics Study on the Use of the Javanese Language in the Learning Process in Primary Schools in Surakarta, Central Java, Indonesia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Saddhono, Kundharu; Rohmadi, Muhammad

2014-01-01

This study aims at describing the use of language at primary schools grade 1, 2, and 3 in Surakarta. The study belongs to descriptive qualitative research. It emphasizes in a note which depict real situation to support data presentation. Content analysis is used as research methodology. It analyzes the research result of the observed speech event.…

[Diversity and frequency of scientific research design and statistical methods in the "Arquivos Brasileiros de Oftalmologia": a systematic review of the "Arquivos Brasileiros de Oftalmologia"--1993-2002].

PubMed

Crosta, Fernando; Nishiwaki-Dantas, Maria Cristina; Silvino, Wilmar; Dantas, Paulo Elias Correa

2005-01-01

To verify the frequency of study design, applied statistical analysis and approval by institutional review offices (Ethics Committee) of articles published in the "Arquivos Brasileiros de Oftalmologia" during a 10-year interval, with later comparative and critical analysis by some of the main international journals in the field of Ophthalmology. Systematic review without metanalysis was performed. Scientific papers published in the "Arquivos Brasileiros de Oftalmologia" between January 1993 and December 2002 were reviewed by two independent reviewers and classified according to the applied study design, statistical analysis and approval by the institutional review offices. To categorize those variables, a descriptive statistical analysis was used. After applying inclusion and exclusion criteria, 584 articles for evaluation of statistical analysis and, 725 articles for evaluation of study design were reviewed. Contingency table (23.10%) was the most frequently applied statistical method, followed by non-parametric tests (18.19%), Student's t test (12.65%), central tendency measures (10.60%) and analysis of variance (9.81%). Of 584 reviewed articles, 291 (49.82%) presented no statistical analysis. Observational case series (26.48%) was the most frequently used type of study design, followed by interventional case series (18.48%), observational case description (13.37%), non-random clinical study (8.96%) and experimental study (8.55%). We found a higher frequency of observational clinical studies, lack of statistical analysis in almost half of the published papers. Increase in studies with approval by institutional review Ethics Committee was noted since it became mandatory in 1996.

A Matrix for Processing Descriptive and Judgmental Data for Use with the Learning Area Sections of the "Evaluative Criteria," Sixth Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pace, Vernon D.; Buser, Robert L.

1990-01-01

Presents a matrix that can be used by accreditation team members to gather, organize, analyze, and report descriptive and evaluative information about instructional support components, teacher observations/interviews, and curriculum evaluation. (DMM)

Mobility-Related Teacher Turnover and the Unequal Distribution of Experienced Teachers in Turkey

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Özoglu, Murat

2015-01-01

This study investigates the issue of mobility-related teacher turnover in Turkey through both quantitative and qualitative methods. The quantitative findings derived from descriptive and correlational analyses of countrywide teacher-assignment and transfer data indicate that a high rate of mobility-related turnover is observed in the…

A Descriptive-Comparative Study of Teacher Performance Evaluation on Student Achievement in a Public School District

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Christensen, William Howard

2013-01-01

In 2010, the federal government increased accountability expectations by placing more emphasis on monitoring teacher performance. Using a model that focuses on the New York State teacher evaluation system, that is comprised of a rubric for observation, local student assessment scores, and student state assessment scores, this…

Contributions of Environmental Clubs toward Improved Environmental Programs in Selected Secondary Schools in Ibadan, Nigeria

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ana, G. R. E. E.; Oloruntoba, E. O.; Sridhar, M. K. C.

2009-01-01

The descriptive cross-sectional study assessed contributions of Youth Environmental Scout (YES) clubs toward sustainable environmental programs in selected schools in Ibadan, southwest Nigeria. It involved administration of questionnaires, in-depth interviews and observation checklists and results were analyzed using SPSS 10 software package.…

The Self in Decision Making and Decision Implementation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beach, Lee Roy; Mitchell, Terence R.

Since the early 1950's the principal prescriptive model in the psychological study of decision making has been maximization of Subjective Expected Utility (SEU). This SEU maximization has come to be regarded as a description of how people go about making decisions. However, while observed decision processes sometimes resemble the SEU model,…

Learner-Centered Principles in Teacher-Centered Practices?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schuh, K.L.

2004-01-01

In the study reported here, I compare Learner-Centered Battery (a questionnaire of students' perceptions of the classroom) results and the observation and interview data gathered in one sixth-grade classroom noting first a discrepancy between the descriptions of the classroom that stems from each. I review this discrepancy, highlighting a need for…

Implementing Curriculum-Based Learning Portfolio: A Case Study in Taiwan

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chen, Shu-Chin Susan; Cheng, Yu-Pay

2011-01-01

The main purpose of this descriptive research is to examine and document the development of a curriculum-based learning portfolio model for children in a preschool for three-six-year-olds in Taiwan. Data collection methods adopted include classroom observation, in-depth interviews, questionnaires and documentation. Participants include a preschool…

Exploring Milk and Yogurt Selection in an Urban Universal School Breakfast Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Miller, M. Elizabeth; Kwon, Sockju

2015-01-01

Purpose/Objectives: The purpose of this study was to explore milk and yogurt selection among students participating in a School Breakfast Program. Methods: Researchers observed breakfast selection of milk, juice and yogurt in six elementary and four secondary schools. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and logistic regression to…

Women in Educational Leadership within the Tamale Metropolis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Segkulu, L.; Gyimah, K.

2016-01-01

Within the Tamale Metropolis, it is observed that only a few women occupy top level management positions within the Ghana Education Service (GES). A descriptive survey was therefore conducted in 2013/2014 academic year to assess the factors affecting the gender disparity in educational leadership within the Service. Specifically, the study sought…

Research on the Language of the English Classroom: A Disconnected Dream.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kluwin, Thomas N.

Methods used in studies of the classroom language of the English teacher are described in this paper and some results of the research are reported. The paper first describes three methods traditionally employed in the description of the language of the English classroom--live observation systems, coding systems based on transcripts, and…

An Investigation of Reading Strategy Use for a Third Grade Cohort: Correlational and Descriptive Data

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Finore, Ann G.

2013-01-01

This study investigated elementary teachers' observations of how a representative sample of achieving, average and struggling readers adapted the use of best practice comprehension strategies taught in the classroom as well as during instructional level guided reading time. A researcher-constructed strategy checklist was the instrument teachers…

Survival and Self-Descriptive Processing of Abstract and Concrete Nouns

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Caldwell, Jennifer

2010-01-01

Researchers have recently described a new processing task in which rating words on the basis of their survival or fitness relevance leads to better recall and recognition performance than several other well known deep processing tasks. The present study was designed to determine whether this survival processing advantage could be observed when…

Descriptive and experimental analyses of variables maintaining self-injurious behavior.

PubMed Central

Lerman, D C; Iwata, B A

1993-01-01

Independent descriptive (correlational) and functional (experimental) analyses were conducted to determine the extent to which the two methods would yield data supporting similar conclusions about variables maintaining the self-injurious behavior (SIB) of 6 subjects. For the descriptive analyses, subjects were observed in their residences and at training sites at various times each day while observers recorded naturally occurring sequences of specified subject and staff behaviors. The subjects also participated in a day program for the assessment and treatment of SIB, in which they were exposed to functional analyses that manipulated potential maintaining variables in multielement designs. Both sets of data were analyzed via conditional probabilities to identify relevant antecedent and consequent events for subjects' SIB. Using outcomes of the experimental analysis as the standard for comparison, results indicated that the descriptive analysis was useful in identifying the extent to which SIB was related to social versus nonsocial contingencies, but was limited in its ability to distinguish between positive and negative reinforcement (i.e., attention versus escape). PMID:8407680

Endometrial lesions caused by catheters used for embryo transfers: a preliminary report.

PubMed

Marconi, Guillermo; Vilela, Martín; Belló, José; Diradourián, Marco; Quintana, Ramiro; Sueldo, Carlos

2003-08-01

To visualize by microhysteroscopy any possible lesions on the endocervix and endometrium made by the catheters commonly used for embryo transfer (ET). Prospective descriptive study. Tertiary fertility center (IFER). Twenty-three infertile patients underwent a mock transfer before a microhysteroscopy during the postovulatory phase (days 2-5 after ovulation) of the cycle with a Tomcat catheter (n = 5), Frydman's catheter (n = 5), Frydman's set (n = 3), or Wallace's catheter (n = 10). Mock ETs and subsequent mycrohysteroscopies.Visualization, description, and documentation of endocervical and endometrial lesions. The lesions in all 23 patients were described and documented (tunnel-like, groove-like, punch-out, crater-like). The Wallace catheter appears to be less traumatic to the endometrium (but it seems that it is important to take care to not pass the internal os with the outer sheath). The Tomcat catheter and the Frydman's set caused the more significant lesions that were observed. In this preliminary study, for the first time endometrial lesions caused by the ET catheters were directly visualized and documented. Some of these observed lesions appear to be capable of compromising the success of ET.

Aretaeus of Cappadocia and the first description of diabetes.

PubMed

Laios, Konstantinos; Karamanou, Marianna; Saridaki, Zenia; Androutsos, George

2012-01-01

The name Aretaeus of Cappadocia has been linked with diabetes more than that of any other physician of antiquity, his texts forming a sophisticated synthesis of the previous knowledge on this disease copiously supplemented by his own observations. Gifted with a unique faculty for observing pathologic phenomena, he was able to elaborate upon earlier texts enriching them with his own original findings and numerous thoughtful reflections. Among the many diseases he dealt with, Aretaeus has bequeathed to us an outstandingly vivid and accurate description of diabetes.

Aeroelastic Model Structure Computation for Envelope Expansion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kukreja, Sunil L.

2007-01-01

Structure detection is a procedure for selecting a subset of candidate terms, from a full model description, that best describes the observed output. This is a necessary procedure to compute an efficient system description which may afford greater insight into the functionality of the system or a simpler controller design. Structure computation as a tool for black-box modelling may be of critical importance in the development of robust, parsimonious models for the flight-test community. Moreover, this approach may lead to efficient strategies for rapid envelope expansion which may save significant development time and costs. In this study, a least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) technique is investigated for computing efficient model descriptions of nonlinear aeroelastic systems. The LASSO minimises the residual sum of squares by the addition of an l(sub 1) penalty term on the parameter vector of the traditional 2 minimisation problem. Its use for structure detection is a natural extension of this constrained minimisation approach to pseudolinear regression problems which produces some model parameters that are exactly zero and, therefore, yields a parsimonious system description. Applicability of this technique for model structure computation for the F/A-18 Active Aeroelastic Wing using flight test data is shown for several flight conditions (Mach numbers) by identifying a parsimonious system description with a high percent fit for cross-validated data.

'Unconventional' experiments in biology and medicine with optimized design based on quantum-like correlations.

PubMed

Beauvais, Francis

2017-02-01

In previous articles, a description of 'unconventional' experiments (e.g. in vitro or clinical studies based on high dilutions, 'memory of water' or homeopathy) using quantum-like probability was proposed. Because the mathematical formulations of quantum logic are frequently an obstacle for physicians and biologists, a modified modeling that rests on classical probability is described in the present article. This modeling is inspired from a relational interpretation of quantum physics that applies not only to microscopic objects, but also to macroscopic structures, including experimental devices and observers. In this framework, any outcome of an experiment is not an absolute property of the observed system as usually considered but is expressed relatively to an observer. A team of interacting observers is thus described from an external view point based on two principles: the outcomes of experiments are expressed relatively to each observer and the observers agree on outcomes when they interact with each other. If probability fluctuations are also taken into account, correlations between 'expected' and observed outcomes emerge. Moreover, quantum-like correlations are predicted in experiments with local blind design but not with centralized blind design. No assumption on 'memory' or other physical modification of water is necessary in the present description although such hypotheses cannot be formally discarded. In conclusion, a simple modeling of 'unconventional' experiments based on classical probability is now available and its predictions can be tested. The underlying concepts are sufficiently intuitive to be spread into the homeopathy community and beyond. It is hoped that this modeling will encourage new studies with optimized designs for in vitro experiments and clinical trials. Copyright © 2017 The Faculty of Homeopathy. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Impact of rheumatoid arthritis in the public health system in Santa Catarina, Brazil: a descriptive and temporal trend analysis from 1996 to 2009.

PubMed

Gomes, Rafael Kmiliauskis Santos; Pires, Fabio Antero; Nobre, Moacyr Roberto Cuce; Marchi, Mauricio Felippi de Sá; Rickli, Jennifer Cristina Kozechen

There are few studies that carried out a descriptive and trend analysis based on available data from the Unified Health System (SUS) between pre- and post-free dispensing of pharmacological treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) from the perspective of the public health system, in terms of the direct cost of the disease among adults and elderly residents of the State of Santa Catarina, Brazil. This study aims to characterize the direct cost of medical and surgical procedures before and after the dispensing of drugs in this state. This is a time series-type study with a cross-sectional survey of data from the Hospital (SIH) and Outpatient (SIA) Information System of SUS during the period from 1996 to 2009. Between 1996 and 2009, the total expenditure for hospital- and outpatient pharmacological treatment of rheumatoid arthritis was R$ 26,659,127.20. After the dispensing of drug treatment by SUS a decrease of 36% in the number of hospital admissions was observed; however, an increase of 19% in clinical procedures was noted. During the observed period, a reduction in the number of hospital admissions for both clinical and orthopedic surgical procedures related to this disease was observed. Nevertheless, there was an increase in the cost of medical admissions. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Editora Ltda. All rights reserved.

Supporting Creativity in Craft Brewing: A Case Study of iPhone Use in the Transition from Novice towards Mastery

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wright, Steve; Short, Ben; Parchoma, Gale

2013-01-01

This paper presents a case-study of an individual engaged in the practice of craft brewing and the ways in which his use of a mobile device has supported the informal learning underpinning his transition from novice towards mastery. Through participant observation, online ethnographic methods and interview data the authors present a description of…

The Social Interactions of Students with Disabilities in a 5th Grade Level Inclusive Classroom and the Effect on Academic Achievement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marshall-Reed, Estella

2010-01-01

This dissertation is a qualitative, ethnographic case study of 3 students with disabilities. The purpose of this research study was to observe and collect descriptive accounts of the social interactions that exist between the cultures in a 5th grade level inclusive classroom, such as the interactions between the special education students, general…

Teaching Enzymes to Pre-Service Science Teachers through POE (Predict, Observe, Explain) Method: The Case of Catalase

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Güngör, Sema Nur; Özkan, Muhlis

2016-01-01

The aim of this study is to teach enzymes, which are one of the biology subjects in understanding which students have a big difficulty, to pre-service teachers through POE method in the case of catalase, which is an oxidoreductase. Descriptive analysis method was employed in this study in which 38 second grade pre-service teachers attending Uludag…

Mission requirements for a manned earth observatory. Volume 1, task 1: Experiment selection, definition, and documentation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1973-01-01

Information related to proposed earth observation experiments for shuttle sortie missions (SSM) in the 1980's is presented. The step-wise progression of study activities and the development of the rationale that led to the identification, selection, and description of earth observation experiments for SSM are listed. The selected experiments are described, defined, and documented by individual disciplines. These disciplines include: oceanography; meteorology; agriculture, forestry, and rangeland; geology; hydrology; and environmental impact.

Reliability and validity of the symptoms of major depressive illness.

PubMed

Mazure, C; Nelson, J C; Price, L H

1986-05-01

In two consecutive studies, we examined the interrater reliability and then the concurrent validity of interview ratings for individual symptoms of major depressive illness. The concurrent validity of symptoms was determined by assessing the degree to which symptoms observed or reported during an interview were observed in daily behavior. Results indicated that most signs and symptoms of major depression and melancholia can be reliably rated by clinicians during a semistructured interview. Ratings of observable symptoms (signs) assessed during the interview were valid indicators of dysfunction observed in daily behavior. Several but not all ratings based on patient report of symptoms were at variance with observation. These discordant patient-reported symptoms may have value as subjective reports but were not accurate descriptions of observed dysfunction.

Testing hadronic interaction models using a highly granular silicon-tungsten calorimeter

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bilki, B.; Repond, J.; Schlereth, J.; Xia, L.; Deng, Z.; Li, Y.; Wang, Y.; Yue, Q.; Yang, Z.; Eigen, G.; Mikami, Y.; Price, T.; Watson, N. K.; Thomson, M. A.; Ward, D. R.; Benchekroun, D.; Hoummada, A.; Khoulaki, Y.; Cârloganu, C.; Chang, S.; Khan, A.; Kim, D. H.; Kong, D. J.; Oh, Y. D.; Blazey, G. C.; Dyshkant, A.; Francis, K.; Lima, J. G. R.; Salcido, P.; Zutshi, V.; Boisvert, V.; Green, B.; Misiejuk, A.; Salvatore, F.; Kawagoe, K.; Miyazaki, Y.; Sudo, Y.; Suehara, T.; Tomita, T.; Ueno, H.; Yoshioka, T.; Apostolakis, J.; Folger, G.; Ivantchenko, V.; Ribon, A.; Uzhinskiy, V.; Cauwenbergh, S.; Tytgat, M.; Zaganidis, N.; Hostachy, J.-Y.; Morin, L.; Gadow, K.; Göttlicher, P.; Günter, C.; Krüger, K.; Lutz, B.; Reinecke, M.; Sefkow, F.; Feege, N.; Garutti, E.; Laurien, S.; Lu, S.; Marchesini, I.; Matysek, M.; Ramilli, M.; Kaplan, A.; Norbeck, E.; Northacker, D.; Onel, Y.; Kim, E. J.; van Doren, B.; Wilson, G. W.; Wing, M.; Bobchenko, B.; Chadeeva, M.; Chistov, R.; Danilov, M.; Drutskoy, A.; Epifantsev, A.; Markin, O.; Mizuk, R.; Novikov, E.; Popov, V.; Rusinov, V.; Tarkovsky, E.; Besson, D.; Popova, E.; Gabriel, M.; Kiesling, C.; Simon, F.; Soldner, C.; Szalay, M.; Tesar, M.; Weuste, L.; Amjad, M. S.; Bonis, J.; Callier, S.; Conforti di Lorenzo, S.; Cornebise, P.; Doublet, Ph.; Dulucq, F.; Faucci-Giannelli, M.; Fleury, J.; Frisson, T.; Kégl, B.; van der Kolk, N.; Li, H.; Martin-Chassard, G.; Richard, F.; de La Taille, Ch.; Pöschl, R.; Raux, L.; Rouëné, J.; Seguin-Moreau, N.; Anduze, M.; Balagura, V.; Becheva, E.; Boudry, V.; Brient, J.-C.; Cornat, R.; Frotin, M.; Gastaldi, F.; Magniette, F.; Matthieu, A.; Mora de Freitas, P.; Videau, H.; Augustin, J.-E.; David, J.; Ghislain, P.; Lacour, D.; Lavergne, L.; Zacek, J.; Cvach, J.; Gallus, P.; Havranek, M.; Janata, M.; Kvasnicka, J.; Lednicky, D.; Marcisovsky, M.; Polak, I.; Popule, J.; Tomasek, L.; Tomasek, M.; Ruzicka, P.; Sicho, P.; Smolik, J.; Vrba, V.; Zalesak, J.; Jeans, D.; Götze, M.; Calice Collaboration

2015-09-01

A detailed study of hadronic interactions is presented using data recorded with the highly granular CALICE silicon-tungsten electromagnetic calorimeter. Approximately 350,000 selected π- events at energies between 2 and 10 GeV have been studied. The predictions of several physics models available within the GEANT4 simulation tool kit are compared to this data. A reasonable overall description of the data is observed; the Monte Carlo predictions are within 20% of the data, and for many observables much closer. The largest quantitative discrepancies are found in the longitudinal and transverse distributions of reconstructed energy.

Improving Method-in-Use through Classroom Observation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nunn, Roger

2011-01-01

Method-in-use (Nunn, Describing classroom interaction in intercultural curricular research and development, University of Reading, 1996, International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching 37: 23-42, 1999) is a description of the method actually being enacted through classroom interaction in a particular context. The description is…

On the Time-Dependent Analysis of Gamow Decay

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Durr, Detlef; Grummt, Robert; Kolb, Martin

2011-01-01

Gamow's explanation of the exponential decay law uses complex "eigenvalues" and exponentially growing "eigenfunctions". This raises the question, how Gamow's description fits into the quantum mechanical description of nature, which is based on real eigenvalues and square integrable wavefunctions. Observing that the time evolution of any…

New laboratory approach to study Titan ionospheric chemistry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thissen, R.; Dutuit, O.; Pernot, P.; Carrasco, N.; Lilensten, J.; Quirico, E.; Schmitt, B.

The exploration of Titan reveals a very complex chemistry occurring in the ionospheric region of the atmosphere. In order to interpret the observations performed by the Cassini spectrometers, we need to improve our description of the ion molecule chemistry involving nitrogen and hydrocarbons. Up to now, models are based on databases compiled over the years. These are quite complete to describe the major ions, but lack of accuracy for some of them, they totally neglect the questions of isomerization or chemical functionality in the description of ionic species and still miss a lot of inputs for ionic species heavier than 50 daltons. We propose to improve the databases by systematic measurements of ion molecule reaction rates, and further structural description, by means of a high resolution mass spectrometer, allowing for MS/MS structural analysis of the ionic species. A thorough evaluation of nowadays databases by means of uncertainty propagation will lead our choice of the most important reactions to be studied. This study shall also lead to educated choice for chemistry simplification, which is mandatory in order to include the chemistry in 3D or fluid models of the atmosphere. We plan as well to use extracts from tholins as molecular source for our analysis.

The MERRA-2 Aerosol Reanalysis, 1980 Onward. Part I: System Description and Data Assimilation Evaluation

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

Randles, C. A.; da Silva, A. M.; Buchard, V.

The Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications, Version 2 (MERRA-2) updates NASA’s previous satellite era (1980 – onward) reanalysis system to include additional observations and improvements to the Goddard Earth Observing System, Version 5 (GEOS-5) Earth system model. As a major step towards a full Integrated Earth Systems Analysis (IESA), in addition to meteorological observations, MERRA-2 now includes assimila-tion of aerosol optical depth (AOD) from various ground- and space-based remote sensing platforms. Here, in the first of a pair of studies, we document the MERRA-2 aerosol assimilation, including a description of the prognostic model (GEOS-5 coupled to the GOCARTmore » aerosol module), aerosol emissions, and the quality control of ingested observations. We provide initial validation and evaluation of the analyzed AOD fields using independent observations rom ground, aircraft, and shipborne instruments. We demonstrate the pos-itive impact of the AOD assimilation on simulated aerosols by comparing MERRA-2 aerosol fields to an identical control simulation that does not in-clude AOD assimilation. Having shown the AOD evaluation, we take a first look at aerosol-climate interactions by examining the shortwave, clear-sky aerosol direct radiative effect. In our companion paper, we evaluate and validate available MERRA-2 aerosol properties not directly impacted by the AOD assimilation (e.g. aerosol vertical distribution and absorption). Importantly, while highlighting the skill of the MERRA-2 aerosol assimilation products, both studies point out caveats that must be considered when using this new reanalysis product for future studies of aerosols and their interactions with weather and climate.« less

One-Dimensional Modeling Studies of the Gaseous Electronics Conference RF Reference Cell

PubMed Central

Govindan, T. R.; Meyyappan, M.

1995-01-01

A review of the one-dimensional modeling studies in the literature of the Gaseous Electronics Conference (GEC) reference plasma reactor is presented. Most of the studies are based on the fluid model description of the discharge and some utilize hybrid fluid-kinetic schemes. Both models are discussed here briefly. The models provide a basic understanding of the discharge mechanisms and reproduce several critical discharge features observed experimentally. PMID:29151755

A reappraisal of adult abdominal surface anatomy.

PubMed

Mirjalili, S Ali; McFadden, Sara L; Buckenham, Tim; Stringer, Mark D

2012-10-01

Descriptions of clinically important surface landmarks often vary between and within contemporary anatomical texts. The aim of this study was to investigate the surface anatomy of major abdominal vessels, kidneys, spleen, gastroesophageal junction, and duodenojejunal flexure in living adults using computed tomography (CT). After excluding patients with distorting space-occupying lesions, scoliosis, abnormal lordosis, and obvious visceromegaly, 108 abdominal CT scans of supine adults (mean age 60 years, range 18-97 years; 64 female) at end tidal inspiration were available for analysis by dual consensus reporting. Intra-observer agreement was assessed by repeat blind assessment of a random sample of scans. The vertebral level of the aortic bifurcation and almost all of its major branches, and the origin of the inferior vena cava were consistent with current descriptions. Important differences from contemporary descriptions of surface anatomy were as follows: the renal arteries were most commonly at the L1 vertebral level (left 55%, right 43%); the midpoint of the renal hila was most frequently at L2 (left 68%, right 40%); the 11th rib was a posterior relation of the left kidney in only 28% of scans; and the spleen was most frequently located between the 10th and 12th ribs (48%) with its long axis in line with the 11th rib (55%). Although the majority of vascular surface landmarks are consistent with standard descriptions, the surface anatomy of the kidneys, renal arteries, and spleen needs to be revised in accordance with observations using modern imaging techniques in vivo. Copyright © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

PROGNOSTIC VALUE OF SHAPE-DESCRIPTIVE FACTORS FOR THE PROGRESSION OF GEOGRAPHIC ATROPHY SECONDARY TO AGE-RELATED MACULAR DEGENERATION.

PubMed

Pfau, Maximilian; Lindner, Moritz; Goerdt, Lukas; Thiele, Sarah; Nadal, Jennifer; Schmid, Matthias; Schmitz-Valckenberg, Steffen; Sadda, SriniVas R; Holz, Frank G; Fleckenstein, Monika

2018-05-16

To systematically compare the prognostic value of multiple shape-descriptive factors in the natural course of the disease. A total of 296 eyes of 201 patients (female patients 130; mean age: 72.2 ± 13.08 years) with a median follow-up of 2.38 years from 2 prospective, noninterventional natural history studies (Fundus-Autofluorescence-in-Age-related-Macular-Degeneration [clinicaltrials.gov identifier NCT00393692], Directional-Spread-in-Geographic-Atrophy [NCT02051998]) were included in the analysis. Serial fundus autofluorescence images were annotated using semiautomated image analysis software to determine the lesion area, circularity, perimeter, and caliper diameters. These variables and the fundus autofluorescence phenotype were evaluated for prediction of the future square root progression rates using linear mixed-effects models. For the combined model, leave-one-out cross validation on patient level (Scenario 1: previously unknown patient) resulted in a goodness-to-fit (R value) of 0.244 and leave-one-out cross validation on visit level (Scenario 2: previous observation of the patient) in a R value of 0.391. This indicated that shape-descriptive factors could explain 24.4% of the variance in geographic atrophy progression in previously unknown patients and 39.1% in patients with previous observation. These findings confirm the relevance of shape-descriptive factors and previous progression as prognostic variables for geographic atrophy progression. However, a substantial part of the remaining variation in geographic atrophy progression seems to depend on other variables, some of which are visible in optical coherence tomography.

Persistent maritime surveillance using multi-sensor feature association and classification

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van den Broek, Sebastiaan P.; Schwering, Piet B. W.; Liem, Kwan D.; Schleijpen, Ric

2012-06-01

In maritime operational scenarios, such as smuggling, piracy, or terrorist threats, it is not only relevant who or what an observed object is, but also where it is now and in the past in relation to other (geographical) objects. In situation and impact assessment, this information is used to determine whether an object is a threat. Single platform (ship, harbor) or single sensor information will not provide all this information. The work presented in this paper focuses on the sensor and object levels that provide a description of currently observed objects to situation assessment. For use of information of objects at higher information levels, it is necessary to have not only a good description of observed objects at this moment, but also from its past. Therefore, currently observed objects have to be linked to previous occurrences. Kinematic features, as used in tracking, are of limited use, as uncertainties over longer time intervals are so large that no unique associations can be made. Features extracted from different sensors (e.g., ESM, EO/IR) can be used for both association and classification. Features and classifications are used to associate current objects to previous object descriptions, allowing objects to be described better, and provide position history. In this paper a description of a high level architecture in which such a multi-sensor association is used is described. Results of an assessment of the usability of several features from ESM (from spectrum), EO and IR (shape, contour, keypoints) data for association and classification are shown.

Deep-sea observations at hydrocarbon drilling locations: Contributions from the SERPENT Project after 120 field visits

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gates, Andrew R.; Benfield, Mark C.; Booth, David J.; Fowler, Ashley M.; Skropeta, Danielle; Jones, Daniel O. B.

2017-03-01

The SERPENT Project has been running for over ten years. In this time scientists from universities and research institutions have made more than 120 visits to oil rigs, drill ships and survey vessels operated by 16 oil companies, in order to work with the industry's Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROV). Visits have taken place in Europe, North and South America, Africa and Australasia at water depths from 100 m to nearly 3000 m. The project has directly produced >40 peer reviewed publications and data from the project's >2600 entry online image and video archive have been used in many others. The aim of this paper is to highlight examples of how valuable data can be obtained through collaboration with hydrocarbon exploration and production companies to use existing industry infrastructure to increase scientific discovery in unexplored areas and augment environmental monitoring of industrial activity. The large number of industry ROVs operating globally increases chance encounters with large, enigmatic marine organisms. SERPENT video observations include the deepest known records of species previously considered epipelagic such as scalloped hammerhead (Sphyrna lewini) and southern sunfish (Mola ramsayi) and the first in situ observations of pelagic species such as oarfish (Regalecus glesne). Such observations enable improvements to distribution records and description of behaviour of poorly understood species. Specimen collection has been used for taxonomic descriptions, functional studies and natural products chemistry research. Anthropogenic effects been assessed at the local scale using in situ observations and sample collection at the time of drilling operations and subsequent visits have enabled study of recovery from drilling. Future challenges to be addressed using the SERPENT approach include ensuring unique faunal observations by industry ROV operators are reported, further study of recovery from deep-water drilling activity and to carry out in situ studies to improve the understanding of potential future decommissioning of obsolete hydrocarbon infrastructure.

A new concept of the anatomy of the thoracic oesophagus: the meso-oesophagus. Observational study during thoracoscopic esophagectomy.

PubMed

Cuesta, Miguel A; Weijs, Teus J; Bleys, Ronald L A W; van Hillegersberg, Richard; van Berge Henegouwen, Mark I; Gisbertz, Suzanne S; Ruurda, Jelle P; Straatman, Jennifer; Osugi, Harushi; van der Peet, Donald L

2015-09-01

During thoracoscopic oesophageal surgery, we observed not previously described fascia-like structures. Description of similar structures in rectal cancer surgery was of paramount importance in improving the quality of resection. Therefore, we aimed to describe a new comprehensive concept of the surgical anatomy of the thoracic oesophagus with definition of the meso-oesophagus. We retrospectively evaluated 35 consecutive unedited videos of thoracoscopic oesophageal resections for cancer, to determine the surgical anatomy of the oesophageal fascia's vessels and lymphatic drainage. The resulting concept was validated in a prospective study, including 20 patients at three different centres. Additional confirmation was sought by a histologic study of a cadaver's thorax. A thin layer of connective tissue around the infracarinal oesophagus, involving the lymph nodes at the level of the carina, was observed during thoracoscopic esophagectomy in 32 of the 35 patients included in the retrospective study and in 19 of the 20 patients included in the prospective study. A thick fascia-like structure from the upper thoracic aperture to the lower thoracic aperture was visualized in all patients. This fascia is encountered between the descending aorta and left aspect of the infracarinal oesophagus. Above the carina it expands on both sides of the oesophagus to lateral mediastinal structures. This fascia contains oesophageal vessels, lymph vessels and nodes and nerves. The histologic study confirmed these findings. Here we described the concept of the "meso-oesophagus". Applying the description of the meso-oesophagus will create a better understanding of the oesophageal anatomy, leading to more adequate and reproducible surgery.

A Descriptive and Evaluative Analysis of Program Planning Literature, 1950-1983.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sork, Thomas J.; Buskey, John H.

1986-01-01

Literature that presents a complete program planning model was described and analyzed using explicitly defined and uniformly applied descriptive and evaluative dimensions. Several observations about the current state of the program planning literature are made, and recommendations designed to strengthen the literature are offered. (Author/CT)

Chiral electroweak currents in nuclei

DOE PAGES

Riska, D. O.; Schiavilla, R.

2017-01-10

Here, the development of the chiral dynamics based description of nuclear electroweak currents is reviewed. Gerald E. (Gerry) Brown’s role in basing theoretical nuclear physics on chiral Lagrangians is emphasized. Illustrative examples of the successful description of electroweak observables of light nuclei obtained from chiral effective field theory are presented.

--No Title--

Science.gov Websites

Column descriptions ID : Unique integer for each control time simulation LABEL : Description unique to each ID (see paper) Z : Redshift TIMEAREA : Observer-frame control time x area at 'Z' (year-arcmin ^2) Z2 : Second redshift TIMEVOL : Total rest-frame control time x volume between 'Z' and 'Z2' (year

Maternal Label and Gesture Use Affects Acquisition of Specific Object Names

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zammit, Maria; Schafer, Graham

2011-01-01

Ten mothers were observed prospectively, interacting with their infants aged 0 ; 10 in two contexts (picture description and noun description). Maternal communicative behaviours were coded for volubility, gestural production and labelling style. Verbal labelling events were categorized into three exclusive categories: label only; label plus…

Crickets (Insecta, Orthoptera, Grylloidea) from Southern New Caledonia,
with descriptions of new taxa.

PubMed

Anso, Jérémy; Jourdan, Hervé; Desutter-Grandcolas, Laure

2016-06-15

Intensive sampling of cricket communities has been undertaken in southern New Caledonia in selected plots of vegetation, i.e. rain forest, preforest and maquis shrubland. This leads to the discovery of many new taxa, which are described in the present paper, together with closely related species from nearby areas. Descriptions are based on general morphology and characters of genitalia. Calling songs are described for all acoustic taxa but two, and observations about species habitats are given. In total, 35 species belonging to 13 genera are studied, including 21 new species and two new genera. The pattern of assemblages of cricket species in New Caledonia is discussed.

An Overview of Atmospheric Composition OSSE Activities at NASA's Global Modeling and Assimilation Office

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

daSilva, Arlinda

2012-01-01

A model-based Observing System Simulation Experiment (OSSE) is a framework for numerical experimentation in which observables are simulated from fields generated by an earth system model, including a parameterized description of observational error characteristics. Simulated observations can be used for sampling studies, quantifying errors in analysis or retrieval algorithms, and ultimately being a planning tool for designing new observing missions. While this framework has traditionally been used to assess the impact of observations on numerical weather prediction, it has a much broader applicability, in particular to aerosols and chemical constituents. In this talk we will give a general overview of Observing System Simulation Experiments (OSSE) activities at NASA's Global Modeling and Assimilation Office, with focus on its emerging atmospheric composition component.

A Descriptive and Interpretative Information System for the IODP

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blum, P.; Foster, P. A.; Mateo, Z.

2006-12-01

The ODP/IODP has a long and rich history of collecting descriptive and interpretative information (DESCINFO) from rock and sediment cores from the world's oceans. Unlike instrumental data, DESCINFO generated by subject experts is biased by the scientific and cultural background of the observers and their choices of classification schemes. As a result, global searches of DESCINFO and its integration with other data are problematical. To address this issue, the IODP-USIO is in the process of designing and implementing a DESCINFO system for IODP Phase 2 (2007-2013) that meets the user expectations expressed over the past decade. The requirements include support of (1) detailed, material property-based descriptions as well as classification-based descriptions; (2) global searches by physical sample and digital data sources as well as any of the descriptive parameters; (3) user-friendly data capture tools for a variety of workflows; and (4) extensive visualization of DESCINFO data along with instrumental data and images; and (5) portability/interoperability such that the system can work with database schemas of other organizations - a specific challenge given the schema and semantic heterogeneity not only among the three IODP operators but within the geosciences in general. The DESCINFO approach is based on the definition of a set of generic observable parameters that are populated with numeric or text values. Text values are derived from controlled, extensible hierarchical value lists that allow descriptions at the appropriate level of detail and ensure successful data searches. Material descriptions can be completed independently of domain-specific classifications, genetic concepts, and interpretative frameworks.

Studies of particle wake potentials in plasmas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ellis, Ian N.; Graziani, Frank R.; Glosli, James N.; Strozzi, David J.; Surh, Michael P.; Richards, David F.; Decyk, Viktor K.; Mori, Warren B.

2011-09-01

A detailed understanding of electron stopping and scattering in plasmas with variable values for the number of particles within a Debye sphere is still not at hand. Presently, there is some disagreement in the literature concerning the proper description of these processes. Theoretical models assume electrostatic (Coulomb force) interactions between particles and neglect magnetic effects. Developing and validating proper descriptions requires studying the processes using first-principle plasma simulations. We are using the particle-particle particle-mesh (PPPM) code ddcMD and the particle-in-cell (PIC) code BEPS to perform these simulations. As a starting point in our study, we examine the wake of a particle passing through a plasma in 3D electrostatic simulations performed with ddcMD and BEPS. In this paper, we compare the wakes observed in these simulations with each other and predictions from collisionless kinetic theory. The relevance of the work to Fast Ignition is discussed.

Describing knowledge encounters in healthcare: a mixed studies systematic review and development of a classification.

PubMed

Hurst, Dominic; Mickan, Sharon

2017-03-14

Implementation science seeks to promote the uptake of research and other evidence-based findings into practice, but for healthcare professionals, this is complex as practice draws on, in addition to scientific principles, rules of thumb and a store of practical wisdom acquired from a range of informational and experiential sources. The aims of this review were to identify sources of information and professional experiences encountered by healthcare workers and from this to build a classification system, for use in future observational studies, that describes influences on how healthcare professionals acquire and use information in their clinical practice. This was a mixed studies systematic review of observational studies. OVID MEDLINE and Embase and Google Scholar were searched using terms around information, knowledge or evidence and sharing, searching and utilisation combined with terms relating to healthcare groups. Studies were eligible if one of the intentions was to identify information or experiential encounters by healthcare workers. Data was extracted by one author after piloting with another. Studies were assessed using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT). The primary outcome extracted was the information source or professional experience encounter. Similar encounters were grouped together as single constructs. Our synthesis involved a mixed approach using the top-down logic of the Bliss Bibliographic Classification System (BC2) to generate classification categories and a bottom-up approach to develop descriptive codes (or "facets") for each category, from the data. The generic terms of BC2 were customised by an iterative process of thematic content analysis. Facets were developed by using available theory and keeping in mind the pragmatic end use of the classification. Eighty studies were included from which 178 discreet knowledge encounters were extracted. Six classification categories were developed: what information or experience was encountered; how was the information or experience encountered; what was the mode of encounter; from whom did the information originate or with whom was the experience; how many participants were there; and where did the encounter take place. For each of these categories, relevant descriptive facets were identified. We have sought to identify and classify all knowledge encounters, and we have developed a faceted description of key categories which will support richer descriptions and interrogations of knowledge encounters in healthcare research.

Beginning Teacher Evaluation Study: Phase II, 1973-74, Final Report: Volume III.2. Reading and Mathematics Observation System: Description and Analysis of Time Expenditures.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Calfee, Robert; Calfee, Kathryn Hoover

The Beginning Teacher Evaluation Study (BTES), Phase II, was a research project on effective teaching behavior--what teachers do that significantly affects what and how pupils learn. The purposes of Phase II were to (1) develop an assessment system for measuring teacher and pupil behaviors and other factors which could influence each of them and…

Skylab and the Sun

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1973-01-01

Articles pertaining to the solar studies and the Skylab program are presented, with emphasis on the usefulness of the Apollo Telescope Mount (ATM) program. A description of Skylab objectives and key mission events is included along with articles about the sun. Skylab solar studies which are reported include these topics: ATM solar observatory, scientific instruments, crew operations and crew training, and the joint observing program. The Skylab associated solar programs are also reported.

A guide to ozone injury in vascular plants of the Pacific Northwest.

Treesearch

Sarah Brace; David L. Peterson; Darci Bowers

1999-01-01

Controlled-exposure studies have shown that several plant species native to the Pacific Northwest are potentially sensitive to elevated ambient concentrations of tropospheric ozone. This guide reports visual and descriptive documentation of ozone injury symptoms for common tree, shrub, and herbaceous species in the region. Symptoms observed in leaves of these species...

Contextual Approach to the Development of an Indonesian Syntax Textbook in Higher Education in Indonesia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wahyuni, Tutik; Suwandi, Sarwiji; Slamet, St. Y.; Andayani

2018-01-01

The objective of this present research is to develop an Indonesian Syntax textbook. At the exploratory stage, a descriptive-qualitative approach was adopted. The data were collected using a documentary study, observations, and questionnaires and analyzed through a contextual model. The model was experimentally tested. At this stage, some main…

Description and Documentation of the Dental School Dental Delivery System.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chase, Rosen and Wallace, Inc., Alexandria, VA.

A study was undertaken to describe and document the dental school dental delivery system using an integrated systems approach. In late 1976 and early 1977, a team of systems analysts and dental consultants visited three dental schools to observe the delivery of dental services and patient flow and to interview administrative staff and faculty.…

Partnerships Enhancing Practice: A Preliminary Model of Technology-Based Peer-to-Peer Evaluations of Teaching in Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Servilio, Kathryn L.; Hollingshead, Aleksandra; Hott, Brittany L.

2017-01-01

In higher education, current teaching evaluation models typically involve senior faculty evaluating junior faculty. However, there is evidence that peer-to-peer junior faculty observations and feedback may be just as effective. This descriptive case study utilized an inductive analysis to examine experiences of six special education early career…

A method for CRISPR/Cas9 mutation of genes in fathead minnow

EPA Science Inventory

Product Description: CRISPR/Cas9 is a system that can be used to disrupt a gene of interest in any animal. It allows us to study each gene’s role by observing changes in the animal when the gene isn’t functional. We worked out a method to use this technology in the f...

Teacher Adaptations to a Core Reading Program: Increasing Access to Curriculum for Elementary Students in Urban Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Maniates, Helen

2017-01-01

This article examines how three urban elementary school teachers adapted pedagogical strategies from a school district--adopted core reading program to increase their students' access to the curriculum. Using teacher interviews and classroom observations to construct a descriptive case study of teacher adaptation, analysis reveals that the…

A Psychoanalyst in the Classroom: On the Human Condition in Education. Transforming Subjects: Psychoanalysis, Culture, and Studies in Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Britzman, Deborah P.

2015-01-01

"A Psychoanalyst in the Classroom" provides rich descriptions of the surprising ways individuals handle matters of love and hate when dealing with reading and writing in the classroom. With wit and sharp observations, Deborah P. Britzman advocates for a generous recognition of the vulnerabilities, creativity, and responsibilities of…

Sketching in Design Journals: An Analysis of Visual Representations in the Product Design Process

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lau, Kimberly; Oehlberg, Lora; Agogino, Alice

2009-01-01

This paper explores the sketching behavior of designers and the role of sketching in the design process. Observations from a descriptive study of sketches provided in design journals, characterized by a protocol measuring sketching activities, are presented. A distinction is made between journals that are entirely tangible and those that contain…

The Impact of Level of Performance on Feedback Strategy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beaulieu, R. P.; Love, Kevin G.

2006-01-01

The primary purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of the level of observed performance on the feedback strategy selected by a performance evaluator. One hundred and twenty-three actual performance evaluators from 15 different organizations and 123 college students reviewed, in groups which ranged from 2 to 20, a job description for…

A theoretical and methodological proposal for the descriptive assessment of therapeutic interactions.

PubMed

Froján-Parga, María Xesús; Ruiz-Sancho, Elena M; Calero-Elvira, Ana

2016-01-01

The goal of this study is to show the development of a strategy for a descriptive assessment of the therapeutic interaction. In this study, we develop an observational methodology to analyze the dialogues that took place during 92 sessions conducted in a psychological center in Madrid, Spain, in which 19 adults were treated for various psychological problems by 9 behavioral therapists. A system was developed to codify vocal behavior of both the therapists and the clients; the software The Observer XT was used for recording. Therapeutic interactions were analyzed using sequential analysis. There are three main sequences that synthesize the therapist-client interaction: first, an utterance by the client preceded by a therapist's verbalization, specifically a question (discriminative morphology) and followed by an expression of approval (reinforcement morphology); second, verbalizations of failure or discomfort uttered by the client, followed most often by verbalizations of disapproval (punishing morphology) uttered by the therapist; and third, verbalizations uttered by the client that are discriminated by the therapist after an in-depth explanation and followed by different therapist's utterances (expressions of approval, technical information, etc.). Depending on how the client responds the results in this study present a starting point for the study of the functional sequences that form the basis of therapeutic change.

Bryological exploration: field-trip based learning to develop competencies of science teacher candidate

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wisanti; Astriani, D.

2018-04-01

The purpose of this study was analyze the competencies of science teacher candidate after the bryological exploration. The intended competence of science teacher candidate was the ability to apply the concept and science ability to explore plant diversity that could be found around the environment.This field trip was conducted by exploring liverworts, hornworts, and mosses as well. This descriptive research was conducted during March until April 2017 at Universitas Negeri Surabaya (UNESA) and Sumber Brantas Arboretum in Malang, as the location of exploration. The subjects of this study were 76 candidate of teachers from science educations department, which is divided into three classes. The competences observed on this study were describing, identifying, collecting specimens, furthermore. The research instruments were observation sheets, product assessment sheets, and response questionnaire. The data were analyzed descriptive-quantitatively, in percentage and then categorized. The results of this study indicated that: the describing skill was categorized as ‘good’ identifying skill and collecting bryophytes was categorized as ‘very good’ and communicating skills was categorized ‘good’. In addition, the teacher candidates gave a very good response to field-trip-based learning. It can be concluded that the bryological exploration can develop the competences of science teacher candidates of Science Education Department of UNESA.

A conceptual framework for evaluating data suitability for observational studies.

PubMed

Shang, Ning; Weng, Chunhua; Hripcsak, George

2017-09-08

To contribute a conceptual framework for evaluating data suitability to satisfy the research needs of observational studies. Suitability considerations were derived from a systematic literature review on researchers' common data needs in observational studies and a scoping review on frequent clinical database design considerations, and were harmonized to construct a suitability conceptual framework using a bottom-up approach. The relationships among the suitability categories are explored from the perspective of 4 facets of data: intrinsic, contextual, representational, and accessible. A web-based national survey of domain experts was conducted to validate the framework. Data suitability for observational studies hinges on the following key categories: Explicitness of Policy and Data Governance, Relevance, Availability of Descriptive Metadata and Provenance Documentation, Usability, and Quality. We describe 16 measures and 33 sub-measures. The survey uncovered the relevance of all categories, with a 5-point Likert importance score of 3.9 ± 1.0 for Explicitness of Policy and Data Governance, 4.1 ± 1.0 for Relevance, 3.9 ± 0.9 for Availability of Descriptive Metadata and Provenance Documentation, 4.2 ± 1.0 for Usability, and 4.0 ± 0.9 for Quality. The suitability framework evaluates a clinical data source's fitness for research use. Its construction reflects both researchers' points of view and data custodians' design features. The feedback from domain experts rated Usability, Relevance, and Quality categories as the most important considerations. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Medical Informatics Association. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com

Mariner 10 Venus encounter. [scientific objectives and instruments for flyby observations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dunne, J. A.

1974-01-01

Review of the scientific objectives of the Mariner 10 mission with regard to observations of Venus during a flyby, and description of the equipment installed on the spacecraft to fulfill these objectives. A detailed description is given of the hardware modifications made to the payload specifically for the Venus sequence. In discussing the encounter operations, two spacecraft problems which significantly affected the Venus encounter sequence are cited - namely, a failure of the television optic heaters to come on shortly after launch, and the occurrence of a roll gyro oscillation.

Nursing assessment of older people who are in hospital: exploring registered nurses' understanding of their assessment skills.

PubMed

Penney, Wendy; Poulter, Nola; Cole, Clare; Wellard, Sally

2016-01-01

Nurses worldwide are expected to take a leading role in caring for older people. Considerable literature dedicated to the range and application of assessment skills used by nurses vary. There is limited knowledge of registered nurses' (RNs) views of their assessment of older adults. The aim of this project was to explore RNs current perceptions of nursing assessment, and the core skills they identified as necessary. A qualitative descriptive design study was conducted in three inpatient units in one regional hospital in Victoria. Date were collected through participant observation of RNs (n = 13) followed by 1:1 semi-structured interviews. Data were analysed thematically. This research has illuminated that an ill-defined repertoire of skills was used by RNs when assessing older persons. Skills identified appeared to be based on years of personal-professional experience. Differences were noted between the descriptions nurses gave and what was observed during interactions with older persons.

A study of catasterisms in the 'phaenomena' of Aratus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rousseau, A.; Dimitrakoudis, S.

We provide a fresh analysis of the constellations in Aratos Phenomena by using the astronomical program Cybersky (by Stephen Schimpf) to check each reference of constellations within the poem for validity in 2800 BCE and 300 BCE (the later accounting for the broader period of time covering Eudoxus of Cnidus and Aratus of Soli). In each case, the latitude of observation was chose to be 36 North in agreement with the area of the sky that is not covered in the descriptions of Aratus (and contains the unseen constellations for a particular latitude). Each constellation was traced back to its Greek mythological origin through tha various writers of antiquity. Our results are collected in a table of the constellations mentioned by Aratus in his epic poem, with respect to the ancient authors who have mentioned each constellation shaping its myth, the locations on the earth each constellation is associated with and the most likely date of observation according to Aratus description and taking into account precession and the proper motion of stars.

Gapless edges of 2d topological orders and enriched monoidal categories

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kong, Liang; Zheng, Hao

2018-02-01

In this work, we give a mathematical description of a chiral gapless edge of a 2d topological order (without symmetry). We show that the observables on the 1+1D world sheet of such an edge consist of a family of topological edge excitations, boundary CFT's and walls between boundary CFT's. These observables can be described by a chiral algebra and an enriched monoidal category. This mathematical description automatically includes that of gapped edges as special cases. Therefore, it gives a unified framework to study both gapped and gapless edges. Moreover, the boundary-bulk duality also holds for gapless edges. More precisely, the unitary modular tensor category that describes the 2d bulk phase is exactly the Drinfeld center of the enriched monoidal category that describes the gapless/gapped edge. We propose a classification of all gapped and chiral gapless edges of a given bulk phase. In the end, we explain how modular-invariant bulk rational conformal field theories naturally emerge on certain gapless walls between two trivial phases.

Analysis of laparoscopic port site complications: A descriptive study

PubMed Central

Karthik, Somu; Augustine, Alfred Joseph; Shibumon, Mundunadackal Madhavan; Pai, Manohar Varadaraya

2013-01-01

CONTEXT: The rate of port site complications following conventional laparoscopic surgery is about 21 per 100,000 cases. It has shown a proportional rise with increase in the size of the port site incision and trocar. Although rare, complications that occur at the port site include infection, bleeding, and port site hernia. AIMS: To determine the morbidity associated with ports at the site of their insertion in laparoscopic surgery and to identify risk factors for complications. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: Prospective descriptive study. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In the present descriptive study, a total of 570 patients who underwent laparoscopic surgeries for various ailments between August 2009 and July 2011 at our institute were observed for port site complications prospectively and the complications were reviewed. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: Descriptive statistical analysis was carried out in the present study. The statistical software, namely, SPSS 15.0 was used for the analysis of the data. RESULTS: Of the 570 patients undergoing laparoscopic surgery, 17 (3%) had developed complications specifically related to the port site during a minimum follow-up of three months; port site infection (PSI) was the most frequent (n = 10, 1.8%), followed by port site bleeding (n = 4, 0.7%), omentum-related complications (n = 2; 0.35%), and port site metastasis (n = 1, 0.175%). CONCLUSIONS: Laparoscopic surgeries are associated with minimal port site complications. Complications are related to the increased number of ports. Umbilical port involvement is the commonest. Most complications are manageable with minimal morbidity, and can be further minimized with meticulous surgical technique during entry and exit. PMID:23741110

Performance of Language-Coordinated Collective Systems: A Study of Wine Recognition and Description

PubMed Central

Zubek, Julian; Denkiewicz, Michał; Dębska, Agnieszka; Radkowska, Alicja; Komorowska-Mach, Joanna; Litwin, Piotr; Stępień, Magdalena; Kucińska, Adrianna; Sitarska, Ewa; Komorowska, Krystyna; Fusaroli, Riccardo; Tylén, Kristian; Rączaszek-Leonardi, Joanna

2016-01-01

Most of our perceptions of and engagements with the world are shaped by our immersion in social interactions, cultural traditions, tools and linguistic categories. In this study we experimentally investigate the impact of two types of language-based coordination on the recognition and description of complex sensory stimuli: that of red wine. Participants were asked to taste, remember and successively recognize samples of wines within a larger set in a two-by-two experimental design: (1) either individually or in pairs, and (2) with or without the support of a sommelier card—a cultural linguistic tool designed for wine description. Both effectiveness of recognition and the kinds of errors in the four conditions were analyzed. While our experimental manipulations did not impact recognition accuracy, bias-variance decomposition of error revealed non-trivial differences in how participants solved the task. Pairs generally displayed reduced bias and increased variance compared to individuals, however the variance dropped significantly when they used the sommelier card. The effect of sommelier card reducing the variance was observed only in pairs, individuals did not seem to benefit from the cultural linguistic tool. Analysis of descriptions generated with the aid of sommelier cards shows that pairs were more coherent and discriminative than individuals. The findings are discussed in terms of global properties and dynamics of collective systems when constrained by different types of cultural practices. PMID:27729875

Quality of reporting statistics in two Indian pharmacology journals.

PubMed

Jaykaran; Yadav, Preeti

2011-04-01

To evaluate the reporting of the statistical methods in articles published in two Indian pharmacology journals. All original articles published since 2002 were downloaded from the journals' (Indian Journal of Pharmacology (IJP) and Indian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology (IJPP)) website. These articles were evaluated on the basis of appropriateness of descriptive statistics and inferential statistics. Descriptive statistics was evaluated on the basis of reporting of method of description and central tendencies. Inferential statistics was evaluated on the basis of fulfilling of assumption of statistical methods and appropriateness of statistical tests. Values are described as frequencies, percentage, and 95% confidence interval (CI) around the percentages. Inappropriate descriptive statistics was observed in 150 (78.1%, 95% CI 71.7-83.3%) articles. Most common reason for this inappropriate descriptive statistics was use of mean ± SEM at the place of "mean (SD)" or "mean ± SD." Most common statistical method used was one-way ANOVA (58.4%). Information regarding checking of assumption of statistical test was mentioned in only two articles. Inappropriate statistical test was observed in 61 (31.7%, 95% CI 25.6-38.6%) articles. Most common reason for inappropriate statistical test was the use of two group test for three or more groups. Articles published in two Indian pharmacology journals are not devoid of statistical errors.

Supplementary description of Novophytoptus stipae Keifer 1962 (Acariformes, Eriophyoidea) with LT-SEM observation on mites from putativley conspecific populations: cryptic speciation or polyphagy of novophytoptines

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Supplementary descriptions of an infrequently encountered species Novophytoptus stipae Keifer 1962 (Eriophyoidea, Phytoptidae) from Achnatherum speciosum (Poaceae) based on topotypes recovered from dry plant material from California is given. Comparison of topotypes of N. stipae with fresh Novophyto...

Aeroelastic Model Structure Computation for Envelope Expansion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kukreja, Sunil L.

2007-01-01

Structure detection is a procedure for selecting a subset of candidate terms, from a full model description, that best describes the observed output. This is a necessary procedure to compute an efficient system description which may afford greater insight into the functionality of the system or a simpler controller design. Structure computation as a tool for black-box modeling may be of critical importance in the development of robust, parsimonious models for the flight-test community. Moreover, this approach may lead to efficient strategies for rapid envelope expansion that may save significant development time and costs. In this study, a least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) technique is investigated for computing efficient model descriptions of non-linear aeroelastic systems. The LASSO minimises the residual sum of squares with the addition of an l(Sub 1) penalty term on the parameter vector of the traditional l(sub 2) minimisation problem. Its use for structure detection is a natural extension of this constrained minimisation approach to pseudo-linear regression problems which produces some model parameters that are exactly zero and, therefore, yields a parsimonious system description. Applicability of this technique for model structure computation for the F/A-18 (McDonnell Douglas, now The Boeing Company, Chicago, Illinois) Active Aeroelastic Wing project using flight test data is shown for several flight conditions (Mach numbers) by identifying a parsimonious system description with a high percent fit for cross-validated data.

An observational study showed that explaining randomization using gambling-related metaphors and computer-agency descriptions impeded randomized clinical trial recruitment.

PubMed

Jepson, Marcus; Elliott, Daisy; Conefrey, Carmel; Wade, Julia; Rooshenas, Leila; Wilson, Caroline; Beard, David; Blazeby, Jane M; Birtle, Alison; Halliday, Alison; Stein, Rob; Donovan, Jenny L

2018-07-01

To explore how the concept of randomization is described by clinicians and understood by patients in randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and how it contributes to patient understanding and recruitment. Qualitative analysis of 73 audio recordings of recruitment consultations from five, multicenter, UK-based RCTs with identified or anticipated recruitment difficulties. One in 10 appointments did not include any mention of randomization. Most included a description of the method or process of allocation. Descriptions often made reference to gambling-related metaphors or similes, or referred to allocation by a computer. Where reference was made to a computer, some patients assumed that they would receive the treatment that was "best for them". Descriptions of the rationale for randomization were rarely present and often only came about as a consequence of patients questioning the reason for a random allocation. The methods and processes of randomization were usually described by recruiters, but often without clarity, which could lead to patient misunderstanding. The rationale for randomization was rarely mentioned. Recruiters should avoid problematic gambling metaphors and illusions of agency in their explanations and instead focus on clearer descriptions of the rationale and method of randomization to ensure patients are better informed about randomization and RCT participation. Copyright © 2018 University of Bristol. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Baccalaureate Student Nurses' Study Habits Prior to Admission to Nursing Program: A Descriptive Qualitative Study.

PubMed

Felicilda-Reynaldo, Rhea Faye D; Cruz, Jonas Preposi; Bigley, Louise; Adams, Kathryn

2017-06-01

Faculty continue to observe students struggling as they adapt their study strategies to learn nursing core content. This study described the study habits of Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) students prior to admission to the program. This study used a descriptive qualitative research design. A purposive sample of 19 BSN students (juniors [n=10] and seniors [n=9]) from a 4-year public Midwestern university were included in this study. Two focus group sessions, using a semi-structured interview guide, were conducted in the spring semester of 2013. The four themes which emerged from the analysis of data were: "I just got it," "I had a lot of time then," "I studied alone" mostly, and "…a little struggle with the sciences." The findings suggest the BSN students did not study much or employed poor study strategies during their years completing general education courses. Academic support is needed by students prior to admission to the nursing program so they can learn effective study skills and modify their study habits for easier adaptation to the rigors of nursing education. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Geometric description of modular and weak values in discrete quantum systems using the Majorana representation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cormann, Mirko; Caudano, Yves

2017-07-01

We express modular and weak values of observables of three- and higher-level quantum systems in their polar form. The Majorana representation of N-level systems in terms of symmetric states of N  -  1 qubits provides us with a description on the Bloch sphere. With this geometric approach, we find that modular and weak values of observables of N-level quantum systems can be factored in N  -  1 contributions. Their modulus is determined by the product of N  -  1 ratios involving projection probabilities between qubits, while their argument is deduced from a sum of N  -  1 solid angles on the Bloch sphere. These theoretical results allow us to study the geometric origin of the quantum phase discontinuity around singularities of weak values in three-level systems. We also analyze the three-box paradox (Aharonov and Vaidman 1991 J. Phys. A: Math. Gen. 24 2315-28) from the point of view of a bipartite quantum system. In the Majorana representation of this paradox, an observer comes to opposite conclusions about the entanglement state of the particles that were successfully pre- and postselected.

The History of Parkinson's Disease: Early Clinical Descriptions and Neurological Therapies

PubMed Central

Goetz, Christopher G.

2011-01-01

Although components of possible Parkinson's disease can be found in very early documents, the first clear medical description was written in 1817 by James Parkinson. In the mid-1800s, Jean-Martin Charcot was particularly influential in refining and expanding this early description and in disseminating information internationally about Parkinson's disease. He separated Parkinson's disease from multiple sclerosis and other disorders characterized by tremor, and he recognized cases that later would likely be classified among the Parkinsonism-plus syndromes. Early treatments of Parkinson's disease were based on empirical observation, and anticholinergic drugs were used as early as the nineteenth century. The discovery of dopaminergic deficits in Parkinson's disease and the synthetic pathway of dopamine led to the first human trials of levodopa. Further historically important anatomical, biochemical, and physiological studies identified additional pharmacological and neurosurgical targets for Parkinson's disease and allow modern clinicians to offer an array of therapies aimed at improving function in this still incurable disease. PMID:22229124

Complex networks as a unified framework for descriptive analysis and predictive modeling in climate

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

Steinhaeuser, Karsten J K; Chawla, Nitesh; Ganguly, Auroop R

The analysis of climate data has relied heavily on hypothesis-driven statistical methods, while projections of future climate are based primarily on physics-based computational models. However, in recent years a wealth of new datasets has become available. Therefore, we take a more data-centric approach and propose a unified framework for studying climate, with an aim towards characterizing observed phenomena as well as discovering new knowledge in the climate domain. Specifically, we posit that complex networks are well-suited for both descriptive analysis and predictive modeling tasks. We show that the structural properties of climate networks have useful interpretation within the domain. Further,more » we extract clusters from these networks and demonstrate their predictive power as climate indices. Our experimental results establish that the network clusters are statistically significantly better predictors than clusters derived using a more traditional clustering approach. Using complex networks as data representation thus enables the unique opportunity for descriptive and predictive modeling to inform each other.« less

Observation of Muntingia Calabura’s Leaf Extract as Feed Additive for Livestock Diet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pujaningsih, R. I.; Sulistiyanto, B.; Sumarsih, S.

2018-02-01

Using of synthetic antioxidants in feedstuffs continuously can cause negative effect for the livestock. This study observed the constituent compounds of cherry leaf powder using format method of descriptive qualitative. Comparative study was done between young and old leaves to identify the content of antioxidant and antimicrobial. Based on the results of phytochemical tests that have been done, old cherry leaves contain compounds of flavonoids more than young cherry leaves. From the results of this study can be concluded that the results of old cherry leaf isolation using soxhlet extraction has antibacterial power against E. coli bacteria, and S. aureus at concentration of 75% have greater inhibitory ability.

SOHO Ultraviolet Coronagraph Spectrometer (UVCS) Mission Operations and Data Analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kohl, John L.; Gurman, Joseph (Technical Monitor)

2003-01-01

The scientific goal of UVCS is to obtain detailed empirical descriptions of the extended solar corona as it evolves over the solar cycle and to use these descriptions to identify and understand the physical processes responsible for coronal heating, solar wind acceleration, coronal mass ejections (CMEs), and the phenomena that establish the plasma properties of the solar wind as measured by 'in situ' solar wind instruments. This report covers the period from 01 February 2002 to 15 February 2003. During that time, UVCS observations have consisted of three types: 1) standard synoptic observations comprising, primarily, the H I Ly alpha line profile and the O VI 103.2 and 103.7 nm intensity over a range of heights from 1.5 to about 3.0 solar radii and covering 360 degrees about the sun, 2) sit and stare watches for CMEs, and 3) special observations designed by the UVCS Lead Observer of the Week for a specific scientific purpose. The special observations are often coordinated with those of other space-based and ground-based instruments and they often are part of SOHO joint observation programs and campaigns. Lead observers have included UVCS Co-Investigators, scientists from the solar physics community and several graduate and undergraduate level students. UVCS has continued to achieve its purpose of using powerful spectroscopic diagnostic techniques to obtain a much more detailed description of coronal structures and dynamic phenomena than existed before the SOHO mission. The new descriptions of coronal mass ejections (CMEs) and coronal structures from UVCS have inspired a large number of theoretical studies aimed at identifying the physical processes responsible for CMEs and solar wind acceleration in coronal holes and streamers. UVCS has proven to be a very stable instrument. Stellar observations have demonstrated its stability. UVCS has required no flight software modifications and all mechanisms are operational. The UVCS O VI Channel with its redundant optical path for wavelengths near H I Ly alpha is capable of observing the entire UVCS wavelength range. Since December 1998, the O VI Channel has been used for all UVCS observations. Although the H I Ly alpha Channel and detector are still operational, increases in the dark count up to about 5 x 10(exp -4) counts/sec/pixel and an increase in high voltage current to within a factor of two of the maximum used in the laboratory before flight led to the decision to not use that detector at the present time. There is no significant decrease in the scientific capability of UVCS owing to the O VI channel redundant optical path. UVCS data, data analysis software, calibration files and the mission log are available from the SOHO archive and SAO. All UVCS data is now available to scientists and the general public via the SOHO Data Archive and SAO within three months of the observations. UVCS has resulted in 46 scientific papers in 2002. There were numerous presentations at scientific meetings. All requests for observation time by qualified outside users have been granted.

Graphical aids for visualizing and interpreting patterns in departures from agreement in ordinal categorical observer agreement data.

PubMed

Bangdiwala, Shrikant I

2017-01-01

When studying the agreement between two observers rating the same n units into the same k discrete ordinal categories, Bangdiwala (1985) proposed using the "agreement chart" to visually assess agreement. This article proposes that often it is more interesting to focus on the patterns of disagreement and visually understanding the departures from perfect agreement. The article reviews the use of graphical techniques for descriptively assessing agreement and disagreements, and also reviews some of the available summary statistics that quantify such relationships.

Advances in the Techniques and Technology of the Application of Nonlinear Filters and Kalman Filters

DTIC Science & Technology

1982-03-01

which ate composed of experts appointed by the National Delegates, the Consultant and Exchange Programme and the Aerospace Applications Studies ...back to the begirning of the twentieth century and the study and mathematical description of diffusion processes (Einstein /19/). This is because the...similarly tne equat in for the covariance matrix P, taking into allount that P(tit) does not depend immed.ately on the observations (the factor

SOHO Ultraviolet Coronagraph Spectrometer (UVCS) Mission Operations and Data Analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gurman, Joseph (Technical Monitor); Kohl, John L.

2004-01-01

The scientific goal of UVCS is to obtain detailed empirical descriptions of the extended solar corona as it evolves over the solar cycle and to use these descriptions to identify and understand the physical processes responsible for coronal heating, solar wind acceleration, coronal mass ejections (CMEs), and the phenomena that establish the plasma properties of the solar wind as measured by "in situ" solar wind instruments. This report covers the period from 15 February 2003 to 14 April 2004. During that time, UVCS observations have consisted of three types: 1) standard synoptic observations comprising, primarily, the H I Lyalpha line profile and the 0 VI 103.2 and 103.7 nm intensity over a range of heights from 1.5 to about 3.0 solar radii and covering 360 degrees about the Sun, 2) sit and stare observations for major flare watches, and 3) special observations designed by the UVCS Lead Observer of the Week for a specific scientific purpose. The special observations are often coordinated with those of other space-based and ground-based instruments and they often are part of SOHO joint observation programs and campaigns. Lead observers have included UVCS Co-Investigators, scientists from the solar physics community and several graduate and undergraduate level students. UVCS has continued to achieve its purpose of using powerful spectroscopic diagnostic techniques to obtain a much more detailed description of coronal structures and dynamic phenomena than existed before the SOHO mission. The new descriptions of coronal mass ejections (CMEs) and coronal structures from UVCS have inspired a large number of theoretical studies aimed at identifying the physical processes responsible for CMEs and solar wind acceleration in coronal holes and streamers. UVCS has proven to be a very stable instrument. Stellar observations have demonstrated its radiometric stability. UVCS has not required any flight software modifications and all mechanisms are operational. The UVCS 0 VI Channel with its redundant optical path for wavelengths near H I Lyalpha is capable of observing the entire UVCS wavelength range. The regions of the detector currently being used require different grating angles for direct OVI observations and redundant path H I Lyalpha observations, and so those can no longer be observed simultaneously. Since December 1998, the 0 VI Channel has been used for all UVCS observations. Although the H I Lyalpha Channel and detector are still operational, increases in the dark count up to about 5x10(exp 4) counts/sec/pixel and an increase in high voltage current to within a factor of two of the maximum used in the laboratory before flight led to the decision to not use that detector after 1998. The visible light channel functioned nominally during the reporting period. UVCS data, data analysis software, calibration files and the mission log are available from the SOHO archive and SAO. All UVCS data are now available within three months of the observations to scientists and the general public via the SOHO Data Archive and SAO. UVCS has resulted in 33 scientific papers in 2003. There were numerous presentations at scientific meetings. UVCS Education and Public Outreach activities involved nine members of the UVCS team. During the reporting period, there were over a dozen events directed at students and teachers, museum audiences, and public audiences via the mass media, internet and educational literature.

Descriptive Assessment of Sleep Patterns among Community-Living Adults with Mental Retardation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Luiselli, James K.; Magee, Christine; Sperry, James M.; Parker, Shawn

2005-01-01

There is little information about the sleep patterns of adults who have mental retardation and are supported in the community. In the present study, direct-care staff recorded sleep behaviors of 59 adults residing in 16 suburban group homes. Based on direct observation and measurement procedures, the adults averaged 7.9 hours of sleep each evening…

Reading and Mathematics Observation System: Description and Measurement of Time Usage in the Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Calfee, Robert C.; Calfee, Kathryn Hoover

The Beginning Teacher Evaluation Study, Phase II, was a research project on effective teaching behavior--what teachers do that significantly affects what and how pupils learn. The purposes of Phase II were to (1) develop an assessment system for measuring teacher and student behaviors and other factors which could influence each of them and their…

A Descriptive-Comparative Study of Professional Development and Observed Quality in Early Care and Education Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Romeyn, Rebecca

2010-01-01

With over 12 million children enrolled in early care and education programming across the U.S., families with children under the age of 5 years old are dependent on these programs. Although highly important, little regulation exists regarding qualifications necessary for individuals to work in these programs. Consequently, individuals in the field…

Perceptual Drawing as a Learning Tool in a College Biology Laboratory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Landin, Jennifer

2011-01-01

The use of drawing in the classroom has a contentious history in the U.S. education system. While most instructors and students agree that the activity helps students focus and observe more details, there is a lack of empirical data to support these positions. This study examines the use of three treatments (writing a description, drawing a…

"Bullying in Ages 4-7; Teachers & School Environment's Intervention in the Greek Context"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Theodotou, Evgenia; Karachaliou, Angela

2012-01-01

This piece of research is a case study that investigates the intervention of teachers and the school's environment as far as bullying is concerned. The children that were observed attend a multicultural school in Athens. A review of the current literature in Greece and in the United Kingdom formed the basis for the offered description and analysis…

Renaissance in the Heartland: The Indiana Experience--Images and Encounters. Pathways in Geography Series Title No. 20.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oliver, John E., Ed.

This collection of essays offers many ideas, observations, and descriptions of the state of Indiana to stimulate the study of Indiana's geography. The 25 essays in the collection are as follows: (1) "The Changing Geographic Personality of Indiana" (William A. Dando); (2) "The Ice Age Legacy" (Susan M. Berta); (3) "The…

Mercury and Venus: Observing by Amateurs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Steele, R.; Murdin, P.

2003-04-01

MERCURY presents a solid surface at low resolution, while VENUS offers only a visually opaque but dynamic upper atmospheric layer for inspection. Past amateur study is largely the story of visual techniques applied with moderate instrumentation in order to build up a pictorial and descriptive record, but now amateurs use sophisticated techniques to monitor a broader spectral range and there is sco...

18 CFR 2.1c - Policy statement on consultation with Indian tribes in Commission proceedings.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... comprehensive study of one or more of the beneficial uses of a waterway or waterways; (2) Includes a description... may engage in with any party in a contested case. Nevertheless, the Commission will endeavor, to the... approaches, and there are some limitations that must be observed. (j) The Commission will seek to notify...

18 CFR 2.1c - Policy statement on consultation with Indian tribes in Commission proceedings.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... comprehensive study of one or more of the beneficial uses of a waterway or waterways; (2) Includes a description... may engage in with any party in a contested case. Nevertheless, the Commission will endeavor, to the... approaches, and there are some limitations that must be observed. (j) The Commission will seek to notify...

18 CFR 2.1c - Policy statement on consultation with Indian tribes in Commission proceedings.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... comprehensive study of one or more of the beneficial uses of a waterway or waterways; (2) Includes a description... may engage in with any party in a contested case. Nevertheless, the Commission will endeavor, to the... approaches, and there are some limitations that must be observed. (j) The Commission will seek to notify...

18 CFR 2.1c - Policy statement on consultation with Indian tribes in Commission proceedings.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... comprehensive study of one or more of the beneficial uses of a waterway or waterways; (2) Includes a description... may engage in with any party in a contested case. Nevertheless, the Commission will endeavor, to the... approaches, and there are some limitations that must be observed. (j) The Commission will seek to notify...

18 CFR 2.1c - Policy statement on consultation with Indian tribes in Commission proceedings.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... comprehensive study of one or more of the beneficial uses of a waterway or waterways; (2) Includes a description... may engage in with any party in a contested case. Nevertheless, the Commission will endeavor, to the... approaches, and there are some limitations that must be observed. (j) The Commission will seek to notify...

Thick Description of the Teacher-Student Relationship in the Educational Context of School: Results of an Ethnographic Field Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Raufelder, Diana; Bukowski, William M.; Mohr, Sonja

2013-01-01

Complexities of essential aspects of the teacher-student relationship were identified in a group of German adolescents and their teachers through participant observation. It is already known that the determinants of the teacher-student relationship cannot be simply categorized and analyzed as univariate features. Using Clifford Geertz?s concept of…

Some Observations on the Use of the Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Cognitive Ability in Adults with Head Injury.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tupper, David E.

1990-01-01

The study provides descriptive data on use of the Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Cognitive Ability with 39 adults with closed head injury. Correlational analyses indicated significant relationships between coma duration and performance on the Perceptual Speed and Memory clusters of the test. Time since injury did not correlate with test results.…

Dietary standards for school catering in France: serving moderate quantities to improve dietary quality without increasing the food-related cost of meals.

PubMed

Vieux, Florent; Dubois, Christophe; Allegre, Laëtitia; Mandon, Lionel; Ciantar, Laurent; Darmon, Nicole

2013-01-01

To assess the impact on food-related cost of meals to fulfill the new compulsory dietary standards for primary schools in France. A descriptive study assessed the relationship between the level of compliance with the standards of observed school meals and their food-related cost. An analytical study assessed the cost of series of meals published in professional journals, and complying or not with new dietary standards. The costs were based on prices actually paid for food used to prepare school meals. Food-related cost of meals. Parametric and nonparametric tests from a total of 42 and 120 series of 20 meals in the analytical and descriptive studies, respectively. The descriptive study indicated that meeting the standards was not related to cost. The analytical study showed that fulfilling the frequency guidelines increased the cost, whereas fulfilling the portion sizes criteria decreased it. Series of meals fully respecting the standards (ie, frequency and portion sizes) cost significantly less (-0.10 €/meal) than series not fulfilling them, because the standards recommend smaller portion sizes. Introducing portion sizes rules in dietary standards for school catering may help increase dietary quality without increasing the food cost of meals. Copyright © 2013 Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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

Pirojsirikul, Teerapong; Götz, Andreas W.; Weare, John

Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP) is a widely used fluorescent biomarker for the study of biological systems. Our investigation is focused on providing a reliable theoretical description of the GFP chromophore, the photochemical properties of which can be influenced through both the surrounding protein environment and pH levels. In this work we are specifically addressing the effect of an aqueous solvation environment , where a number of experimental measurements have been performed. Our approach is based on a combined quantum mechanics molecular mechanics (QM/MM) methodology, which incorporates high level coupled cluster theory for the analysis of excited states. It also presentsmore » the first application of the newly developed NWChem/AMBER QM/MM interface. Using a systematic approach, which involves comparison of gas phase and aqueous results for different protonation states and conformations, we have resolved existing uncertainties regarding theoretical interpretation of the experimental data. We observe that the impact of aqueous environment on charged states generally results in blue shifts, but the magnitude of the effect is sensitive to charge state and conformation and can be rationalized based on charge movement into the area of higher/lower external electrostatic potentials. At neutral pH levels the experimentally observed absorption signal is most likely coming from the phenol protonated form. Our results also show that the high level coupled description is essential for proper description of excited states of GFP.« less

Embryonic development of chicken (Gallus Gallus Domesticus) from 1st to 19th day-ectodermal structures.

PubMed

Toledo Fonseca, Erika; De Oliveira Silva, Fernanda Menezes; Alcântara, Dayane; Carvalho Cardoso, Rafael; Luís Franciolli, André; Sarmento, Carlos Alberto Palmeira; Fratini, Paula; José Piantino Ferreira, Antônio; Miglino, Maria Angélica

2013-12-01

Birds occupy a prominent place in the Brazilian economy not only in the poultry industry but also as an animal model in many areas of scientific research. Thus the aim of this study was to provide a description of macro and microscopic aspects of the ectoderm-derived structures in chicken embryos / fetuses poultry (Gallus gallus domesticus) from 1st to 19th day of incubation. 40 fertilized eggs, from a strain of domestic chickens, with an incubation period of 2-19 days were subjected to macroscopic description, biometrics, light, and scanning microscopy. All changes observed during the development were described. The nervous system, skin and appendages and organs related to vision and hearing began to be identified, both macro and microscopically, from the second day of incubation. The vesicles from the primitive central nervous system-forebrain, midbrain, and hindbrain-were identified on the third day of incubation. On the sixth day of incubation, there was a clear vascularization of the skin. The optic vesicle was first observed fourth day of development and on the fifth day there was the beginning of the lens formation. Although embryonic development is influenced by animal line as well as external factors such as incubation temperature, this paper provides a chronological description for chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus) during its embryonic development. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Community participation in tsunami early warning system in Pangandaran town

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hadian, Sapari D.; Khadijah, Ute Lies Siti; Saepudin, Encang; Budiono, Agung; Yuliawati, Ayu Krishna

2017-07-01

Disaster-resilient communities are communities capable of anticipating and minimizing destructive forces through adaptation. Disaster is an event very close to the people of Indonesia, especially in the small tourism town of Pangadaran located at West Java, Indonesia. On July 17, 2006, the town was hit by a Mw 7.8 earthquake and tsunami that effected over 300 km of the coastline, where the community suffered losses in which more than 600 people were killed, with run up heights exceeding 20 m. The devastation of the tsunami have made the community more alert and together with the local government and other stakeholder develop an Early Warning System for Tsunami. The study is intended to discover issues on tsunami Early Warning System (EWS), disaster risk reduction measures taken and community participation. The research method used is descriptive and explanatory research. The study describe the Tsunami EWS and community based Disaster Risk Reduction in Pangandaran, the implementation of Tsunami alert/EWS in disaster preparedness and observation of community participation in EWS. Data were gathered by secondary data collection, also primary data through interviews, focus group discussions and field observations. Research resulted in a description of EWS implementation, community participation and recommendation to reduce disaster risk in Pangandaran.

Can autistic children read the mind of an animated triangle?

PubMed

Salter, Gemma; Seigal, Anna; Claxton, Melanie; Lawrence, Kate; Skuse, David

2008-07-01

Are children with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), but normal-range intelligence, impaired on theory of mind skills measured by responses to abstract animations in the form of a computerized cartoon? Fifty-six cases and closely matched comparisons were tested. We rated verbal responses according to the length of their descriptions, their appropriateness and the children's use of 'mentalizing' terms. Children with ASD used 'mentalizing' language to describe the animations as well as comparisons, although the content of their descriptions was significantly less appropriate. Performance on this task was not well correlated with standardized measures of parent-reported behaviour or the child's interactions with an observer. The implications of our results are discussed in relation to previous studies that have used this methodology.

Studies of Particle Wake Potentials in Plasmas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ellis, Ian; Graziani, Frank; Glosli, James; Strozzi, David; Surh, Michael; Richards, David; Decyk, Viktor; Mori, Warren

2011-10-01

Fast Ignition studies require a detailed understanding of electron scattering, stopping, and energy deposition in plasmas with variable values for the number of particles within a Debye sphere. Presently there is disagreement in the literature concerning the proper description of these processes. Developing and validating proper descriptions requires studying the processes using first-principle electrostatic simulations and possibly including magnetic fields. We are using the particle-particle particle-mesh (PPPM) code ddcMD and the particle-in-cell (PIC) code BEPS to perform these simulations. As a starting point in our study, we examine the wake of a particle passing through a plasma in 3D electrostatic simulations performed with ddcMD and with BEPS using various cell sizes. In this poster, we compare the wakes we observe in these simulations with each other and predictions from Vlasov theory. Prepared by LLNL under Contract DE-AC52-07NA27344 and by UCLA under Grant DE-FG52-09NA29552.

Magic Mirror, On the Wall-Which Is the Right Study Design of Them All?-Part II.

PubMed

Vetter, Thomas R

2017-07-01

The assessment of a new or existing treatment or other intervention typically answers 1 of 3 central research-related questions: (1) "Can it work?" (efficacy); (2) "Does it work?" (effectiveness); or (3) "Is it worth it?" (efficiency or cost-effectiveness). There are a number of study designs that, on a situational basis, are appropriate to apply in conducting research. These study designs are generally classified as experimental, quasiexperimental, or observational, with observational studies being further divided into descriptive and analytic categories. This second of a 2-part statistical tutorial reviews these 3 salient research questions and describes a subset of the most common types of observational study designs. Attention is focused on the strengths and weaknesses of each study design to assist in choosing which is appropriate for a given study objective and hypothesis as well as the particular study setting and available resources and data. Specific studies and papers are highlighted as examples of a well-chosen, clearly stated, and properly executed study design type.

Testing deformation hypotheses by constraints on a time series of geodetic observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Velsink, Hiddo

2018-01-01

In geodetic deformation analysis observations are used to identify form and size changes of a geodetic network, representing objects on the earth's surface. The network points are monitored, often continuously, because of suspected deformations. A deformation may affect many points during many epochs. The problem is that the best description of the deformation is, in general, unknown. To find it, different hypothesised deformation models have to be tested systematically for agreement with the observations. The tests have to be capable of stating with a certain probability the size of detectable deformations, and to be datum invariant. A statistical criterion is needed to find the best deformation model. Existing methods do not fulfil these requirements. Here we propose a method that formulates the different hypotheses as sets of constraints on the parameters of a least-squares adjustment model. The constraints can relate to subsets of epochs and to subsets of points, thus combining time series analysis and congruence model analysis. The constraints are formulated as nonstochastic observations in an adjustment model of observation equations. This gives an easy way to test the constraints and to get a quality description. The proposed method aims at providing a good discriminating method to find the best description of a deformation. The method is expected to improve the quality of geodetic deformation analysis. We demonstrate the method with an elaborate example.

Quantitative study of Xanthosoma violaceum leaf surfaces using RIMAPS and variogram techniques.

PubMed

Favret, Eduardo A; Fuentes, Néstor O; Molina, Ana M

2006-08-01

Two new imaging techniques (rotated image with maximum averaged power spectrum (RIMAPS) and variogram) are presented for the study and description of leaf surfaces. Xanthosoma violaceum was analyzed to illustrate the characteristics of both techniques. Both techniques produce a quantitative description of leaf surface topography. RIMAPS combines digitized images rotation with Fourier transform, and it is used to detect patterns orientation and characteristics of surface topography. Variogram relates the mathematical variance of a surface with the area of the sample window observed. It gives the typical scale lengths of the surface patterns. RIMAPS detects the morphological variations of the surface topography pattern between fresh and dried (herbarium) samples of the leaf. The variogram method finds the characteristic dimensions of the leaf microstructure, i.e., cell length, papillae diameter, etc., showing that there are not significant differences between dry and fresh samples. The results obtained show the robustness of RIMAPS and variogram analyses to detect, distinguish, and characterize leaf surfaces, as well as give scale lengths. Both techniques are tools for the biologist to study variations of the leaf surface when different patterns are present. The use of RIMAPS and variogram opens a wide spectrum of possibilities by providing a systematic, quantitative description of the leaf surface topography.

A novel approach to teach the generation of bioelectrical potentials from a descriptive and quantitative perspective.

PubMed

Rodriguez-Falces, Javier

2013-12-01

In electrophysiology studies, it is becoming increasingly common to explain experimental observations using both descriptive methods and quantitative approaches. However, some electrophysiological phenomena, such as the generation of extracellular potentials that results from the propagation of the excitation source along the muscle fiber, are difficult to describe and conceptualize. In addition, most traditional approaches aimed at describing extracellular potentials consist of complex mathematical machinery that gives no chance for physical interpretation. The aim of the present study is to present a new method to teach the formation of extracellular potentials around a muscle fiber from both a descriptive and quantitative perspective. The implementation of this method was tested through a written exam and a satisfaction survey. The new method enhanced the ability of students to visualize the generation of bioelectrical potentials. In addition, the new approach improved students' understanding of how changes in the fiber-to-electrode distance and in the shape of the excitation source are translated into changes in the extracellular potential. The survey results show that combining general principles of electrical fields with accurate graphic imagery gives students an intuitive, yet quantitative, feel for electrophysiological signals and enhances their motivation to continue their studies in the biomedical engineering field.

Temperature, Geochemistry, and Gravity Data of the Tularosa Basin

DOE Data Explorer

Nash, Greg

2017-06-16

This submission contains multiple excel spreadsheets and associated written reports. The datasets area are representative of shallow temperature, geochemistry, and other well logging observations made across WSMR (white sands missile range); located to the west of the Tularosa Basin but still within the study area. Written reports accompany some of the datasets, and they provide ample description of the methodology and results obtained from these studies. Gravity data is also included, as point data in a shapefile, along with a written report describing that particular study.

The Close-Up Imager Onboard the ESA ExoMars Rover: Objectives, Description, Operations, and Science Validation Activities.

PubMed

Josset, Jean-Luc; Westall, Frances; Hofmann, Beda A; Spray, John; Cockell, Charles; Kempe, Stephan; Griffiths, Andrew D; De Sanctis, Maria Cristina; Colangeli, Luigi; Koschny, Detlef; Föllmi, Karl; Verrecchia, Eric; Diamond, Larryn; Josset, Marie; Javaux, Emmanuelle J; Esposito, Francesca; Gunn, Matthew; Souchon-Leitner, Audrey L; Bontognali, Tomaso R R; Korablev, Oleg; Erkman, Suren; Paar, Gerhard; Ulamec, Stephan; Foucher, Frédéric; Martin, Philippe; Verhaeghe, Antoine; Tanevski, Mitko; Vago, Jorge L

The Close-Up Imager (CLUPI) onboard the ESA ExoMars Rover is a powerful high-resolution color camera specifically designed for close-up observations. Its accommodation on the movable drill allows multiple positioning. The science objectives of the instrument are geological characterization of rocks in terms of texture, structure, and color and the search for potential morphological biosignatures. We present the CLUPI science objectives, performance, and technical description, followed by a description of the instrument's planned operations strategy during the mission on Mars. CLUPI will contribute to the rover mission by surveying the geological environment, acquiring close-up images of outcrops, observing the drilling area, inspecting the top portion of the drill borehole (and deposited fines), monitoring drilling operations, and imaging samples collected by the drill. A status of the current development and planned science validation activities is also given. Key Words: Mars-Biosignatures-Planetary Instrumentation. Astrobiology 17, 595-611.

Profile of Students Uninterested in Practicum Class at Faculty of Engineering Universitas Negeri Surabaya

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Munoto; Sondang, Meini; Satriana, FMS

2018-04-01

This study aims to determine the characteristics of students who were uninterested in attending practicum classes. This study applied naturalistic qualitative research methods using participatory observation and interviews. The data validity was ensured by triangulation, detailed description, length of observation time, as well as details and thorough observation. The data were analyzed using domain analysis and followed by conducting taxonomic, component, and thematic analyses. The results of the study indicate that faineant students show a negative behavior while attending laboratory practicums. They have a lack of motivation, effective interaction, and attention. The cognitive abilities vary from low to high. Other causes on how the aspects of the study were low were found as well, therefore improving those aspects allows students to raise their interest in practicum classes. The impact is to create well-skilled vocational teachers in conducting practicum classes in vocational schools and to make graduates better-prepared for the workforce.

Aeronautic Instruments. Section VI : Aerial Navigation and Navigating Instruments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Eaton, H N

1923-01-01

This report outlines briefly the methods of aerial navigation which have been developed during the past few years, with a description of the different instruments used. Dead reckoning, the most universal method of aerial navigation, is first discussed. Then follows an outline of the principles of navigation by astronomical observation; a discussion of the practical use of natural horizons, such as sea, land, and cloud, in making extant observations; the use of artificial horizons, including the bubble, pendulum, and gyroscopic types. A description is given of the recent development of the radio direction finder and its application to navigation.

Accelerated observers and the notion of singular spacetime

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Olmo, Gonzalo J.; Rubiera-Garcia, Diego; Sanchez-Puente, Antonio

2018-03-01

Geodesic completeness is typically regarded as a basic criterion to determine whether a given spacetime is regular or singular. However, the principle of general covariance does not privilege any family of observers over the others and, therefore, observers with arbitrary motions should be able to provide a complete physical description of the world. This suggests that in a regular spacetime, all physically acceptable observers should have complete paths. In this work we explore this idea by studying the motion of accelerated observers in spherically symmetric spacetimes and illustrate it by considering two geodesically complete black hole spacetimes recently described in the literature. We show that for bound and locally unbound accelerations, the paths of accelerated test particles are complete, providing further support to the regularity of such spacetimes.

Light-cone observables and gauge-invariance in the geodesic light-cone formalism

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

Scaccabarozzi, Fulvio; Yoo, Jaiyul, E-mail: fulvio@physik.uzh.ch, E-mail: jyoo@physik.uzh.ch

The remarkable properties of the geodesic light-cone (GLC) coordinates allow analytic expressions for the light-cone observables, providing a new non-perturbative way for calculating the effects of inhomogeneities in our Universe. However, the gauge-invariance of these expressions in the GLC formalism has not been shown explicitly. Here we provide this missing part of the GLC formalism by proving the gauge-invariance of the GLC expressions for the light-cone observables, such as the observed redshift, the luminosity distance, and the physical area and volume of the observed sources. Our study provides a new insight on the properties of the GLC coordinates and itmore » complements the previous work by the GLC collaboration, leading to a comprehensive description of light propagation in the GLC representation.« less

Flexible Description and Adaptive Processing of Earth Observation Data through the BigEarth Platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gorgan, Dorian; Bacu, Victor; Stefanut, Teodor; Nandra, Cosmin; Mihon, Danut

2016-04-01

The Earth Observation data repositories extending periodically by several terabytes become a critical issue for organizations. The management of the storage capacity of such big datasets, accessing policy, data protection, searching, and complex processing require high costs that impose efficient solutions to balance the cost and value of data. Data can create value only when it is used, and the data protection has to be oriented toward allowing innovation that sometimes depends on creative people, which achieve unexpected valuable results through a flexible and adaptive manner. The users need to describe and experiment themselves different complex algorithms through analytics in order to valorize data. The analytics uses descriptive and predictive models to gain valuable knowledge and information from data analysis. Possible solutions for advanced processing of big Earth Observation data are given by the HPC platforms such as cloud. With platforms becoming more complex and heterogeneous, the developing of applications is even harder and the efficient mapping of these applications to a suitable and optimum platform, working on huge distributed data repositories, is challenging and complex as well, even by using specialized software services. From the user point of view, an optimum environment gives acceptable execution times, offers a high level of usability by hiding the complexity of computing infrastructure, and supports an open accessibility and control to application entities and functionality. The BigEarth platform [1] supports the entire flow of flexible description of processing by basic operators and adaptive execution over cloud infrastructure [2]. The basic modules of the pipeline such as the KEOPS [3] set of basic operators, the WorDeL language [4], the Planner for sequential and parallel processing, and the Executor through virtual machines, are detailed as the main components of the BigEarth platform [5]. The presentation exemplifies the development of some Earth Observation oriented applications based on flexible description of processing, and adaptive and portable execution over Cloud infrastructure. Main references for further information: [1] BigEarth project, http://cgis.utcluj.ro/projects/bigearth [2] Gorgan, D., "Flexible and Adaptive Processing of Earth Observation Data over High Performance Computation Architectures", International Conference and Exhibition Satellite 2015, August 17-19, Houston, Texas, USA. [3] Mihon, D., Bacu, V., Colceriu, V., Gorgan, D., "Modeling of Earth Observation Use Cases through the KEOPS System", Proceedings of the Intelligent Computer Communication and Processing (ICCP), IEEE-Press, pp. 455-460, (2015). [4] Nandra, C., Gorgan, D., "Workflow Description Language for Defining Big Earth Data Processing Tasks", Proceedings of the Intelligent Computer Communication and Processing (ICCP), IEEE-Press, pp. 461-468, (2015). [5] Bacu, V., Stefan, T., Gorgan, D., "Adaptive Processing of Earth Observation Data on Cloud Infrastructures Based on Workflow Description", Proceedings of the Intelligent Computer Communication and Processing (ICCP), IEEE-Press, pp.444-454, (2015).

[Critical thinking skills in the nursing diagnosis process].

PubMed

Bittencourt, Greicy Kelly Gouveia Dias; Crossetti, Maria da Graça Oliveira

2013-04-01

The aim of this study was to identify the critical thinking skills utilized in the nursing diagnosis process. This was an exploratory descriptive study conducted with seven nursing students on the application of a clinical case to identify critical thinking skills, as well as their justifications in the nursing diagnosis process. Content analysis was performed to evaluate descriptive data. Six participants reported that analysis, scientific and technical knowledge and logical reasoning skills are important in identifying priority nursing diagnoses; clinical experience was cited by five participants, knowledge about the patient and application of standards were mentioned by three participants; Furthermore, discernment and contextual perspective were skills noted by two participants. Based on these results, the use of critical thinking skills related to the steps of the nursing diagnosis process was observed. Therefore, that the application of this process may constitute a strategy that enables the development of critical thinking skills.

Social functioning and internalized stigma in individuals diagnosed with substance use disorder.

PubMed

Can, Ganime; Tanrıverdi, Derya

2015-12-01

The aim of this descriptive study was to determine social functioning and internalized stigma in individuals with substance use disorder. The study sample consisted of 105 patients diagnosed with substance use disorder according to the DSM-IV-TR diagnostic criteria. A Descriptive Information Form, Internalized Stigma of Mental Illness Scale (ISMI) and Social Functioning Scale (SFS) were used for data collection. Average total SFS score of the patients was 103.25±25.09 points, indicating an intermediate level of social functioning. Average total ISMI score of patients was 2.92±0.48 points, reflecting a high level of internalized stigma. A negative significant association was observed between the internalized stigma levels and social functioning of patients. These results suggest that rehabilitation of substance users should include counseling services in order to reduce internal perception of stigma and improve their social functioning. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Theoretical description of the mixed-field orientation of asymmetric-top molecules: A time-dependent study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Omiste, Juan J.; González-Férez, Rosario

2016-12-01

We present a theoretical study of the mixed-field-orientation of asymmetric-top molecules in tilted static electric field and nonresonant linearly polarized laser pulse by solving the time-dependent Schrödinger equation. Within this framework, we compute the mixed-field orientation of a state-selected molecular beam of benzonitrile (C7H5N ) and compare with the experimental observations [J. L. Hansen et al., Phys. Rev. A 83, 023406 (2011), 10.1103/PhysRevA.83.023406] and with our previous time-independent descriptions [J. J. Omiste et al., Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys. 13, 18815 (2011), 10.1039/c1cp21195a]. For an excited rotational state, we investigate the field-dressed dynamics for several field configurations as those used in the mixed-field experiments. The nonadiabatic phenomena and their consequences on the rotational dynamics are analyzed in detail.

Quality of reporting statistics in two Indian pharmacology journals

PubMed Central

Jaykaran; Yadav, Preeti

2011-01-01

Objective: To evaluate the reporting of the statistical methods in articles published in two Indian pharmacology journals. Materials and Methods: All original articles published since 2002 were downloaded from the journals’ (Indian Journal of Pharmacology (IJP) and Indian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology (IJPP)) website. These articles were evaluated on the basis of appropriateness of descriptive statistics and inferential statistics. Descriptive statistics was evaluated on the basis of reporting of method of description and central tendencies. Inferential statistics was evaluated on the basis of fulfilling of assumption of statistical methods and appropriateness of statistical tests. Values are described as frequencies, percentage, and 95% confidence interval (CI) around the percentages. Results: Inappropriate descriptive statistics was observed in 150 (78.1%, 95% CI 71.7–83.3%) articles. Most common reason for this inappropriate descriptive statistics was use of mean ± SEM at the place of “mean (SD)” or “mean ± SD.” Most common statistical method used was one-way ANOVA (58.4%). Information regarding checking of assumption of statistical test was mentioned in only two articles. Inappropriate statistical test was observed in 61 (31.7%, 95% CI 25.6–38.6%) articles. Most common reason for inappropriate statistical test was the use of two group test for three or more groups. Conclusion: Articles published in two Indian pharmacology journals are not devoid of statistical errors. PMID:21772766

Research designs and making causal inferences from health care studies.

PubMed

Flannelly, Kevin J; Jankowski, Katherine R B

2014-01-01

This article summarizes the major types of research designs used in healthcare research, including experimental, quasi-experimental, and observational studies. Observational studies are divided into survey studies (descriptive and correlational studies), case-studies and analytic studies, the last of which are commonly used in epidemiology: case-control, retrospective cohort, and prospective cohort studies. Similarities and differences among the research designs are described and the relative strength of evidence they provide is discussed. Emphasis is placed on five criteria for drawing causal inferences that are derived from the writings of the philosopher John Stuart Mill, especially his methods or canons. The application of the criteria to experimentation is explained. Particular attention is given to the degree to which different designs meet the five criteria for making causal inferences. Examples of specific studies that have used various designs in chaplaincy research are provided.

50 CFR 218.125 - Requirements for monitoring and reporting.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... observers maintained visual contact with marine mammal(s); (H) Wave height (ft); (I) Visibility; (J) Sonar..., low, and average during exercise); and (I) Narrative description of sensors and platforms utilized for...) Calves observed (y/n); (E) Initial detection sensor; (F) Length of time observers maintained visual...

The Energy Landscapes of Repeat-Containing Proteins: Topology, Cooperativity, and the Folding Funnels of One-Dimensional Architectures

PubMed Central

Komives, Elizabeth A.; Wolynes, Peter G.

2008-01-01

Repeat-proteins are made up of near repetitions of 20– to 40–amino acid stretches. These polypeptides usually fold up into non-globular, elongated architectures that are stabilized by the interactions within each repeat and those between adjacent repeats, but that lack contacts between residues distant in sequence. The inherent symmetries both in primary sequence and three-dimensional structure are reflected in a folding landscape that may be analyzed as a quasi–one-dimensional problem. We present a general description of repeat-protein energy landscapes based on a formal Ising-like treatment of the elementary interaction energetics in and between foldons, whose collective ensemble are treated as spin variables. The overall folding properties of a complete “domain” (the stability and cooperativity of the repeating array) can be derived from this microscopic description. The one-dimensional nature of the model implies there are simple relations for the experimental observables: folding free-energy (ΔGwater) and the cooperativity of denaturation (m-value), which do not ordinarily apply for globular proteins. We show how the parameters for the “coarse-grained” description in terms of foldon spin variables can be extracted from more detailed folding simulations on perfectly funneled landscapes. To illustrate the ideas, we present a case-study of a family of tetratricopeptide (TPR) repeat proteins and quantitatively relate the results to the experimentally observed folding transitions. Based on the dramatic effect that single point mutations exert on the experimentally observed folding behavior, we speculate that natural repeat proteins are “poised” at particular ratios of inter- and intra-element interaction energetics that allow them to readily undergo structural transitions in physiologically relevant conditions, which may be intrinsically related to their biological functions. PMID:18483553

What is AIDS in Guadeloupe? A descriptive and comparative study.

PubMed

Elenga, Narcisse; Georger-Sow, Marie-Thérèse; Messiaen, Thierry; Lamaury, Isabelle; Favre, Isabelle; Nacher, Mathieu; Beaucaire, Gilles

2014-03-01

Since the pathogen ecology differs between Caribbean regions, specific differences in the most frequent clinical presentations of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) may be expected. We therefore conducted the present retrospective cohort study in order to describe the main AIDS-defining events in Guadeloupe and to compare them with those observed in Metropolitan France and in French Guiana. We discuss the local pathogen ecology, the diagnostic limitations of hospitals in overseas territories and the drivers of the epidemic.

Epidemiology of multiple chronic conditions: an international perspective.

PubMed

Schellevis, François G

2013-01-01

The epidemiology of multimorbidity, or multiple chronic conditions (MCCs), is one of the research priority areas of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) by its Strategic Framework on MCCs. A conceptual model addressing methodological issues leading to a valid measurement of the prevalence rates of MCCs has been developed and applied in descriptive epidemiological studies. Comparing these results with those from prevalence studies performed earlier and in other countries is hampered by methodological limitations. Therefore, this paper aims to put the size and patterns of MCCs in the USA, as established within the HHS Strategic Framework on MCCs, in perspective of the findings on the prevalence of MCCs in other countries. General common trends can be observed: increasing prevalence rates with increasing age, and multimorbidity being the rule rather than the exception at old age. Most frequent combinations of chronic diseases include the most frequently occurring single chronic diseases. New descriptive epidemiological studies will probably not provide new results; therefore, future descriptive studies should focus on the prevalence rates of MCCs in subpopulations, statistical clustering of chronic conditions, and the development of the prevalence rates of MCCs over time. The finding of common trends also indicates the necessary transition to a next phase of MCC research, addressing the quality of care of patients with MCCs from an organizational perspective and with respect to the content of care. Journal of Comorbidity 2013;3:36-40.

Quantum epistemology from subquantum ontology: Quantum mechanics from theory of classical random fields

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khrennikov, Andrei

2017-02-01

The scientific methodology based on two descriptive levels, ontic (reality as it is) and epistemic (observational), is briefly presented. Following Schrödinger, we point to the possible gap between these two descriptions. Our main aim is to show that, although ontic entities may be unaccessible for observations, they can be useful for clarification of the physical nature of operational epistemic entities. We illustrate this thesis by the concrete example: starting with the concrete ontic model preceding quantum mechanics (the latter is treated as an epistemic model), namely, prequantum classical statistical field theory (PCSFT), we propose the natural physical interpretation for the basic quantum mechanical entity-the quantum state ("wave function"). The correspondence PCSFT ↦ QM is not straightforward, it couples the covariance operators of classical (prequantum) random fields with the quantum density operators. We use this correspondence to clarify the physical meaning of the pure quantum state and the superposition principle-by using the formalism of classical field correlations. In classical mechanics the phase space description can be considered as the ontic description, here states are given by points λ =(x , p) of phase space. The dynamics of the ontic state is given by the system of Hamiltonian equations.We can also consider probability distributions on the phase space (or equivalently random variables valued in it). We call them probabilistic ontic states. Dynamics of probabilistic ontic states is given by the Liouville equation.In classical physics we can (at least in principle) measure both the coordinate and momentum and hence ontic states can be treated as epistemic states as well (or it is better to say that here epistemic states can be treated as ontic states). Probabilistic ontic states represent probabilities for outcomes of joint measurement of position and momentum.However, this was a very special, although very important, example of description of physical phenomena. In general there are no reasons to expect that properties of ontic states are approachable through our measurements. There is a gap between ontic and epistemic descriptions, cf. also with 't Hooft [49,50] and G G. Groessing et al. [51]. In general the presence of such a gap also implies unapproachability of the probabilistic ontic states, i.e., probability distributions on the space of ontic states. De Broglie [28] called such probability distributions hidden probabilities and distinguished them sharply from probability distributions of measurements outcomes, see also Lochak [29]. (The latter distributions are described by the quantum formalism.)This ontic-epistemic approach based on the combination of two descriptive levels for natural phenomena is closely related to the old Bild conception which was originated in the works of Hertz. Later it was heavily explored by Schrödinger in the quantum domain, see, e.g., [8,11] for detailed analysis. According to Hertz one cannot expect to construct a complete theoretical model based explicitly on observable quantities. The complete theoretical model can contain quantities which are unapproachable for external measurement inspection. For example, Hertz by trying to create a mechanical model for Maxwell's electromagnetism invented hidden masses. The main distinguishing property of a theoretical model (in contrast to an observational model) is the continuity of description, i.e., the absence of gaps in description. From this viewpoint, the quantum mechanical description is not continuous: there is a gap between premeasurement dynamics and the measurement outcome. QM cannot say anything what happens in the process of measurement, this is the well known measurement problem of QM [32], cf. [52,53]. Continuity of description is closely related to causality. However, here we cannot go in more detail, see [8,11].The important question is about interrelation between two levels of description, ontic-epistemic (or theoretical-observational). In the introduction we have already cited Schrödinger who emphasized the possible complexity of this interrelation. In particular, in general there is no reason to expect a straightforward coupling of the form, cf. [9,10]:

Experimental Methods for Studying the Hessdalen-Phenomenon in the Light of the Proposed Theories: A Comparative Overview

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Teodorani, M.; Strand, E.

Unexplained plasma-like atmospheric `light balls' are observed at very low altitudes during alternate phases of maximum and minimum in the Hessdalen area, located in central Norway. Several theories are presented in order to explain the observed phenomenon; among these: piezo-electricity from rocks, atmospheric ionization triggered by solar activity and cosmic rays. The presented study is aimed at proposing the use of a dedicated instrumental set-up, research experimental procedures and methods in order to prove or disprove every single theory: in this context several kinds of observational techniques, measurement strategies and physical tests of tactical relevance are discussed in detail. An introduction on any considered theory is presented together with a detailed discussion regarding the subsequent experimental phase. For each specific theory brief descriptions of the observable parameters and of the essential instrumental choices and a detailed discussion of measurement procedures coupled with suitable flow-charts, are presented.

The intersection between Descriptivism and Meliorism in reasoning research: further proposals in support of 'soft normativism'.

PubMed

Stupple, Edward J N; Ball, Linden J

2014-01-01

The rationality paradox centers on the observation that people are highly intelligent, yet show evidence of errors and biases in their thinking when measured against normative standards. Elqayam and Evans' (2011) reject normative standards in the psychological study of thinking, reasoning and deciding in favor of a 'value-free' descriptive approach to studying high-level cognition. In reviewing Elqayam and Evans' (2011) position, we defend an alternative to descriptivism in the form of 'soft normativism,' which allows for normative evaluations alongside the pursuit of descriptive research goals. We propose that normative theories have considerable value provided that researchers: (1) are alert to the philosophical quagmire of strong relativism; (2) are mindful of the biases that can arise from utilizing normative benchmarks; and (3) engage in a focused analysis of the processing approach adopted by individual reasoners. We address the controversial 'is-ought' inference in this context and appeal to a 'bridging solution' to this contested inference that is based on the concept of 'informal reflective equilibrium.' Furthermore, we draw on Elqayam and Evans' (2011) recognition of a role for normative benchmarks in research programs that are devised to enhance reasoning performance and we argue that such Meliorist research programs have a valuable reciprocal relationship with descriptivist accounts of reasoning. In sum, we believe that descriptions of reasoning processes are fundamentally enriched by evaluations of reasoning quality, and argue that if such standards are discarded altogether then our explanations and descriptions of reasoning processes are severely undermined.

Can we derive an 'exchange rate' between descriptive and preference-based outcome measures for stroke? Results from the transfer to utility (TTU) technique

PubMed Central

Mortimer, Duncan; Segal, Leonie; Sturm, Jonathan

2009-01-01

Background Stroke-specific outcome measures and descriptive measures of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) are unsuitable for informing decision-makers of the broader consequences of increasing or decreasing funding for stroke interventions. The quality-adjusted life year (QALY) provides a common metric for comparing interventions over multiple dimensions of HRQoL and mortality differentials. There are, however, many circumstances when – because of timing, lack of foresight or cost considerations – only stroke-specific or descriptive measures of health status are available and some indirect means of obtaining QALY-weights becomes necessary. In such circumstances, the use of regression-based transformations or mappings can circumvent the failure to elicit QALY-weights by allowing predicted weights to proxy for observed weights. This regression-based approach has been dubbed 'Transfer to Utility' (TTU) regression. The purpose of the present study is to demonstrate the feasibility and value of TTU regression in stroke by deriving transformations or mappings from stroke-specific and generic but descriptive measures of health status to a generic preference-based measure of HRQoL in a sample of Australians with a diagnosis of acute stroke. Findings will quantify the additional error associated with the use of condition-specific to generic transformations in stroke. Methods We used TTU regression to derive empirical transformations from three commonly used descriptive measures of health status for stroke (NIHSS, Barthel and SF-36) to a preference-based measure (AQoL) suitable for attaching QALY-weights to stroke disease states; based on 2570 observations drawn from a sample of 859 patients with stroke. Results Transformations from the SF-36 to the AQoL explained up to 71.5% of variation in observed AQoL scores. Differences between mean predicted and mean observed AQoL scores from the 'severity-specific' item- and subscale-based SF-36 algorithms and from the 'moderate to severe' index- and item-based Barthel algorithm were neither clinically nor statistically significant when 'low severity' SF-36 transformations were used to predict AQoL scores for patients in the NIHSS = 0 and NIHSS = 1–5 subgroups and when 'moderate to severe severity' transformations were used to predict AQoL scores for patients in the NIHSS ≥ 6 subgroup. In contrast, the difference between mean predicted and mean observed AQoL scores from the NIHSS algorithms and from the 'low severity' Barthel algorithms reached levels that could mask minimally important differences on the AQoL scale. Conclusion While our NIHSS to AQoL transformations proved unsuitable for most applications, our findings demonstrate that stroke-relevant outcome measures such as the SF-36 and Barthel Index can be adequately transformed to preference-based measures for the purposes of economic evaluation. PMID:19371444

High Speed Video Observations of Natural Lightning and Their Implications to Fractal Description of Lightning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, N.; Tilles, J.; Boggs, L.; Bozarth, A.; Rassoul, H.; Riousset, J. A.

2016-12-01

Recent high speed video observations of triggered and natural lightning flashes have significantly advanced our understanding of lightning initiation and propagation. For example, they have helped resolve the initiation of lightning leaders [Stolzenburg et al., JGR, 119, 12198, 2014; Montanyà et al, Sci. Rep., 5, 15180, 2015], the stepping of negative leaders [Hill et al., JGR, 116, D16117, 2011], the structure of streamer zone around the leader [Gamerota et al., GRL, 42, 1977, 2015], and transient rebrightening processes occurring during the leader propagation [Stolzenburg et al., JGR, 120, 3408, 2015]. We started an observational campaign in the summer of 2016 to study lightning by using a Phantom high-speed camera on the campus of Florida Institute of Technology, Melbourne, FL. A few interesting natural cloud-to-ground and intracloud lightning discharges have been recorded, including a couple of 8-9 stroke flashes, high peak current flashes, and upward propagating return stroke waves from ground to cloud. The videos show that the propagation of the downward leaders of cloud-to-ground lightning discharges is very complex, particularly for the high-peak current flashes. They tend to develop as multiple branches, and each of them splits repeatedly. For some cases, the propagation characteristics of the leader, such as speed, are subject to sudden changes. In this talk, we present several selected cases to show the complexity of the leader propagation. One of the effective approaches to characterize the structure and propagation of lightning leaders is the fractal description [Mansell et al., JGR, 107, 4075, 2002; Riousset et al., JGR, 112, D15203, 2007; Riousset et al., JGR, 115, A00E10, 2010]. We also present a detailed analysis of the high-speed images of our observations and formulate useful constraints to the fractal description. Finally, we compare the obtained results with fractal simulations conducted by using the model reported in [Riousset et al., 2007, 2010].

Discovery Lab in the Chemistry Lecture Room: Design and Evaluation of Audio-Visual Constructivist Methodology of Teaching Descriptive Inorganic Chemistry.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Young, Barbara N.; Hoffman, Lyubov

Demonstration of chemical reactions is a tool used in the teaching of inorganic descriptive chemistry to enable students to understand the fundamental concepts of chemistry through the use of concrete examples. For maximum benefit, students need to learn through discovery to observe, interpret, hypothesize, and draw conclusions; however, chemical…

The Storage and Transmission of Men's Non-Formal Skills in Working Class Communities: A Working Paper. NALL Working Paper.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smith, Dorothy E.

A descriptive study observed the transmission of manual job skills from older to younger men in working class communities in Ontario and the effects of massive downsizing in industrial plants on this process. Current as well as previous ethnographic research was used. Some of the outcomes of the continual downsizing included the following: (1) the…

Examination of the Social Behavior of 4 Age Old Preschool Children According to Teacher Views

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Amca, Dervise; Kivanç Öztug, Emine

2016-01-01

The main aim of this research is to compare the social behavior of children according to the teacher interviews. Screening model method has been used at this research which is one of the descriptive research methods. The study group of this research was created totally 691 children, from the age group of 4, which were observed at least 8 weeks…

Identifying, Preparing and Evaluating Army Instructors

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-04-01

Description WB1 Monitor/observe students to ensure learning is taking place and that problems/issues (e.g., learning off track, faulty thinking ) are...improve performance. S9 Apply educational technology in ways that enhance student learning . 8 Table 4 Abilities required for an Instructor to... mathematics and science at both the elementary and high school levels. Yet many individual studies often indicate no significant differences in student

Survey research: it's just a few questions, right?

PubMed

Tait, Alan R; Voepel-Lewis, Terri

2015-07-01

While most anesthesiologists and other physician- or nurse-scientists are familiar with traditional descriptive, observational, and interventional study design, survey research has typically remained the preserve of the social scientists. To that end, this article provides a basic overview of the elements of good survey design and offers some rules of thumb to help guide investigators through the survey process. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Molecular hydrodynamics: Vortex formation and sound wave propagation

DOE PAGES

Han, Kyeong Hwan; Kim, Changho; Talkner, Peter; ...

2018-01-14

In the present study, quantitative feasibility tests of the hydrodynamic description of a two-dimensional fluid at the molecular level are performed, both with respect to length and time scales. Using high-resolution fluid velocity data obtained from extensive molecular dynamics simulations, we computed the transverse and longitudinal components of the velocity field by the Helmholtz decomposition and compared them with those obtained from the linearized Navier-Stokes (LNS) equations with time-dependent transport coefficients. By investigating the vortex dynamics and the sound wave propagation in terms of these field components, we confirm the validity of the LNS description for times comparable to ormore » larger than several mean collision times. The LNS description still reproduces the transverse velocity field accurately at smaller times, but it fails to predict characteristic patterns of molecular origin visible in the longitudinal velocity field. Based on these observations, we validate the main assumptions of the mode-coupling approach. The assumption that the velocity autocorrelation function can be expressed in terms of the fluid velocity field and the tagged particle distribution is found to be remarkably accurate even for times comparable to or smaller than the mean collision time. This suggests that the hydrodynamic-mode description remains valid down to the molecular scale.« less

Molecular hydrodynamics: Vortex formation and sound wave propagation

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

Han, Kyeong Hwan; Kim, Changho; Talkner, Peter

In the present study, quantitative feasibility tests of the hydrodynamic description of a two-dimensional fluid at the molecular level are performed, both with respect to length and time scales. Using high-resolution fluid velocity data obtained from extensive molecular dynamics simulations, we computed the transverse and longitudinal components of the velocity field by the Helmholtz decomposition and compared them with those obtained from the linearized Navier-Stokes (LNS) equations with time-dependent transport coefficients. By investigating the vortex dynamics and the sound wave propagation in terms of these field components, we confirm the validity of the LNS description for times comparable to ormore » larger than several mean collision times. The LNS description still reproduces the transverse velocity field accurately at smaller times, but it fails to predict characteristic patterns of molecular origin visible in the longitudinal velocity field. Based on these observations, we validate the main assumptions of the mode-coupling approach. The assumption that the velocity autocorrelation function can be expressed in terms of the fluid velocity field and the tagged particle distribution is found to be remarkably accurate even for times comparable to or smaller than the mean collision time. This suggests that the hydrodynamic-mode description remains valid down to the molecular scale.« less

Reporting and Methodology of Multivariable Analyses in Prognostic Observational Studies Published in 4 Anesthesiology Journals: A Methodological Descriptive Review.

PubMed

Guglielminotti, Jean; Dechartres, Agnès; Mentré, France; Montravers, Philippe; Longrois, Dan; Laouénan, Cedric

2015-10-01

Prognostic research studies in anesthesiology aim to identify risk factors for an outcome (explanatory studies) or calculate the risk of this outcome on the basis of patients' risk factors (predictive studies). Multivariable models express the relationship between predictors and an outcome and are used in both explanatory and predictive studies. Model development demands a strict methodology and a clear reporting to assess its reliability. In this methodological descriptive review, we critically assessed the reporting and methodology of multivariable analysis used in observational prognostic studies published in anesthesiology journals. A systematic search was conducted on Medline through Web of Knowledge, PubMed, and journal websites to identify observational prognostic studies with multivariable analysis published in Anesthesiology, Anesthesia & Analgesia, British Journal of Anaesthesia, and Anaesthesia in 2010 and 2011. Data were extracted by 2 independent readers. First, studies were analyzed with respect to reporting of outcomes, design, size, methods of analysis, model performance (discrimination and calibration), model validation, clinical usefulness, and STROBE (i.e., Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology) checklist. A reporting rate was calculated on the basis of 21 items of the aforementioned points. Second, they were analyzed with respect to some predefined methodological points. Eighty-six studies were included: 87.2% were explanatory and 80.2% investigated a postoperative event. The reporting was fairly good, with a median reporting rate of 79% (75% in explanatory studies and 100% in predictive studies). Six items had a reporting rate <36% (i.e., the 25th percentile), with some of them not identified in the STROBE checklist: blinded evaluation of the outcome (11.9%), reason for sample size (15.1%), handling of missing data (36.0%), assessment of colinearity (17.4%), assessment of interactions (13.9%), and calibration (34.9%). When reported, a few methodological shortcomings were observed, both in explanatory and predictive studies, such as an insufficient number of events of the outcome (44.6%), exclusion of cases with missing data (93.6%), or categorization of continuous variables (65.1%.). The reporting of multivariable analysis was fairly good and could be further improved by checking reporting guidelines and EQUATOR Network website. Limiting the number of candidate variables, including cases with missing data, and not arbitrarily categorizing continuous variables should be encouraged.

50 CFR 216.275 - Requirements for monitoring and reporting.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

..., what type of surface vessel, i.e., FFG, DDG, or CG) (G) Length of time observers maintained visual... exercise) (I) Narrative description of sensors and platforms utilized for marine mammal detection and... calves were observed (E) Initial detection sensor (F) Length of time observers maintained visual contact...

Nursing Philosophy of community mental health nurses in Japan: A qualitative, descriptive study.

PubMed

Tanaka, Koji; Hasegawa, Masami; Nagayama, Yutaka; Oe, Masato

2018-04-01

The present study reports the findings of a qualitative, descriptive study that sought to clarify nursing philosophy for community mental health nurses (CMHN) working at independent psychiatric home-visit nursing agencies in Japan. We carried out participant observation and semistructured interviews with 13 CMHN in rural and urban areas. We identified eight subthemes and three higher-order themes based on these subthemes. CMHN embraced a nursing philosophy in which they: (i) have respect for consumers' ways of life and their self-realization; (ii) find harmony between view of life and work; and (iii) build communities where residents support each other beyond their roles. Together, these themes constitute a valuable nursing philosophy that supports the recovery of people with mental illness. The themes could also help educate professionals about principles and meanings relevant to recovery, which are regarded as key to changing the professional's care paradigm from a biomedical model to a recovery model. © 2017 Australian College of Mental Health Nurses Inc.

[Descriptive study of activity of the bone marrow donor registry and bank from the Murcia Region (southeast of Spain) (1994-2004)].

PubMed

Rojas Montero, G M; Alvarez López, M R; López Bermejo, A; Moya Quiles, M R; Muro Amador, M

2006-11-01

To perform a descriptive study of the activity of the Bank of marrow donors from Murcia Region. All donors in the Bank of bone marrow from 1994 until 2004 (n=3137). This study analysed the number of donors, their origin and, performed donor searches activity. Donors were typed by serological microlymphocytotoxicity and molecular PCR-SSO and PCR-SSP techniques. The Bank of bone marrow has 3,137 voluntary donors typed in low- and high-resolution. A total of 680 donor searches have been realized. The origin of the donors according to several Areas of Health in which the Autonomous Community of Murcia is divided, is the following one: Area I (28%), Area II (18 %), Area III (23 %), Area IV (6 %), Area VI (10 %) and other provinces (12%). An increase is observed in the number of annual donors as well as an increase very marked of donor searches that are realized every year, especially in 2004.

Describing contrast across scales

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Syed, Sohaib Ali; Iqbal, Muhammad Zafar; Riaz, Muhammad Mohsin

2017-06-01

Due to its sensitive nature against illumination and noise distributions, contrast is not widely used for image description. On the contrary, the human perception of contrast along different spatial frequency bandwidths provides a powerful discriminator function that can be modeled in a robust manner against local illumination. Based upon this observation, a dense local contrast descriptor is proposed and its potential in different applications of computer vision is discussed. Extensive experiments reveal that this simple yet effective description performs well in comparison with state of the art image descriptors. We also show the importance of this description in multiresolution pansharpening framework.

UAS in the NAS Project: Large-Scale Communication Architecture Simulations with NASA GRC Gen5 Radio Model

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kubat, Gregory

2016-01-01

This report provides a description and performance characterization of the large-scale, Relay architecture, UAS communications simulation capability developed for the NASA GRC, UAS in the NAS Project. The system uses a validated model of the GRC Gen5 CNPC, Flight-Test Radio model. Contained in the report is a description of the simulation system and its model components, recent changes made to the system to improve performance, descriptions and objectives of sample simulations used for test and verification, and a sampling and observations of results and performance data.

Universal description of III-V/Si epitaxial growth processes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lucci, I.; Charbonnier, S.; Pedesseau, L.; Vallet, M.; Cerutti, L.; Rodriguez, J.-B.; Tournié, E.; Bernard, R.; Létoublon, A.; Bertru, N.; Le Corre, A.; Rennesson, S.; Semond, F.; Patriarche, G.; Largeau, L.; Turban, P.; Ponchet, A.; Cornet, C.

2018-06-01

Here, we experimentally and theoretically clarify III-V/Si crystal growth processes. Atomically resolved microscopy shows that monodomain three-dimensional islands are observed at the early stages of AlSb, AlN, and GaP epitaxy on Si, independently of misfit. It is also shown that complete III-V/Si wetting cannot be achieved in most III-V/Si systems. Surface/interface contributions to the free-energy variations are found to be prominent over strain relief processes. We finally propose a general and unified description of III-V/Si growth processes, including a description of the formation of antiphase boundaries.

Giant Pockels effect in ZnO-F films deposited on bare glasses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kityk, I. V.; Ebothe, J.; El Hichou, A.; Addou, M.; Bougrine, A.; Sahraoui, B.

2002-06-01

A giant linear electro-optics (Pockels) effect (up to 17 pm V-1) (for wavelength about 435 nm) in ZnO crystalline films doped with fluorine and deposited on bare glass has been found. For description of the observed phenomenon, a complex approach including self-consistent band structure calculations together with an appropriate molecular dynamics simulation of the interface structure was applied. Experimental ellipsometric and refractive index measurements confirm an efficiency of the mentioned approach for description of the observed interface (between the film and glass) processes. The origin of the observed effect is caused by substantial non-centrosymmetric charge density distribution between the ZnO wurtzite-like crystalline films and the bare glass substrate, as well as by additional charge density polarization caused by fluorine atoms.

Flexible Description Language for HPC based Processing of Remote Sense Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nandra, Constantin; Gorgan, Dorian; Bacu, Victor

2016-04-01

When talking about Big Data, the most challenging aspect lays in processing them in order to gain new insight, find new patterns and gain knowledge from them. This problem is likely most apparent in the case of Earth Observation (EO) data. With ever higher numbers of data sources and increasing data acquisition rates, dealing with EO data is indeed a challenge [1]. Geoscientists should address this challenge by using flexible and efficient tools and platforms. To answer this trend, the BigEarth project [2] aims to combine the advantages of high performance computing solutions with flexible processing description methodologies in order to reduce both task execution times and task definition time and effort. As a component of the BigEarth platform, WorDeL (Workflow Description Language) [3] is intended to offer a flexible, compact and modular approach to the task definition process. WorDeL, unlike other description alternatives such as Python or shell scripts, is oriented towards the description topologies, using them as abstractions for the processing programs. This feature is intended to make it an attractive alternative for users lacking in programming experience. By promoting modular designs, WorDeL not only makes the processing descriptions more user-readable and intuitive, but also helps organizing the processing tasks into independent sub-tasks, which can be executed in parallel on multi-processor platforms in order to improve execution times. As a BigEarth platform [4] component, WorDeL represents the means by which the user interacts with the system, describing processing algorithms in terms of existing operators and workflows [5], which are ultimately translated into sets of executable commands. The WorDeL language has been designed to help in the definition of compute-intensive, batch tasks which can be distributed and executed on high-performance, cloud or grid-based architectures in order to improve the processing time. Main references for further information: [1] Gorgan, D., "Flexible and Adaptive Processing of Earth Observation Data over High Performance Computation Architectures", International Conference and Exhibition Satellite 2015, August 17-19, Houston, Texas, USA. [2] Bigearth project - flexible processing of big earth data over high performance computing architectures. http://cgis.utcluj.ro/bigearth, (2014) [3] Nandra, C., Gorgan, D., "Workflow Description Language for Defining Big Earth Data Processing Tasks", Proceedings of the Intelligent Computer Communication and Processing (ICCP), IEEE-Press, pp. 461-468, (2015). [4] Bacu, V., Stefan, T., Gorgan, D., "Adaptive Processing of Earth Observation Data on Cloud Infrastructures Based on Workflow Description", Proceedings of the Intelligent Computer Communication and Processing (ICCP), IEEE-Press, pp.444-454, (2015). [5] Mihon, D., Bacu, V., Colceriu, V., Gorgan, D., "Modeling of Earth Observation Use Cases through the KEOPS System", Proceedings of the Intelligent Computer Communication and Processing (ICCP), IEEE-Press, pp. 455-460, (2015).

Self-consistent description of the SHFB equations for 112Sn

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ghafouri, M.; Sadeghi, H.; Torkiha, M.

2018-03-01

The Hartree-Fock (HF) method is an excellent approximation of the closed shell magic nuclei. Pair correlation is essential for the description of open shell nuclei and has been derived for even-even, odd-odd and even-odd nuclei. These effects are reported by Hartree-Fock with BCS (HFBCS) or Hartree-Fock-Bogolyubov (HFB). These issues have been investigated, especially in the nuclear charts, and such studies have been compared with the observed information. We compute observations such as total binding energy, charge radius, densities, separation energies, pairing gaps and potential energy surfaces for neutrons and protons, and compare them with experimental data and the result of the spherical codes. In spherical even-even neutron-rich nuclei are considered in the Skyrme-Hartree-Fock-Bogolyubov (SHFB) method with density-dependent pairing interaction. Zero-range density-dependent interactions is used in the pairing channel. We solve SHF or SHFB equations in the spatial coordinates with spherical symmetry for tin isotopes such as 112Sn. The numerical accuracy of solving equations in the coordinate space is much greater than the fundamental extensions, which yields almost precise results.

Drawing rocks at primary school: a tool for emerging misconceptions and promoting conceptual change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Benciolini, L.; Muscio, G.

2012-04-01

Drawing rocks at primary school: a tool for emerging misconceptions and promoting conceptual change Luca Benciolini Dipartimento di Fisica, Chimica e Ambiente, Università di Udine (Italy) and Giuseppe Muscio Museo Friulano di Storia Naturale (Udine, Italy) In order to investigate spontaneous ideas of children about rock samples, the Museo Friulano di Storia Naturale in collaboration with the Università di Udine submitted six classrooms of fifth and fourth grade-students to a specific test. One hundred thirty-three students without a specific background in Earth Sciences were asked to give a) a written description of a rock sample; b) a drawing of the sample; c) a written short story about the sample. The selected thirty-five samples in the opinion of the researchers contain 255 geologically relevant self-evident characters such as fossils, clastic textures, planar discontinuities and so on. Childs spontaneously described 209 geological characters. Forty-seven fifth-grade students (group A) have been previously followed specific training in multisensory description of objects and observed the 90% of the geologically relevant characters. Group B (forty-three fifth-grade) and group C (forty-three fourth-grade) on the contrary, without any previous instructions discovered the 77%. In order to follow childs building their knowledge through experience we found that the main problem was the lack of consistency between written and drawing description. Heterogeneities as evident as a magmatic contact have been correctly represented by the drawing but it has not been worth of any attention in the written description. On the contrary, written description may sometimes contain careful description of the clastic sedimentary process but these criteria are applied for example to a travertine, without any relations with observed characters. Descriptions and drawing of rock outcrops performed by university students demonstrate the persistence of this attitude. Thus, groups B and C were then asked to describe their drawings. We found encouraging progress stimulated by thinking on their own work. We suggest that drawing activities and laboratory book notes could represent useful strategies in order to stimulate specific skill in observing reality, and to understand complex and heterogeneous natural objects. Conceptual change is promoted by comparing children experiences with their previous ideas.

Observational descriptive study of cutaneous manifestations in patients from Mato Grosso with viral chronic hepatitis*

PubMed Central

Rostey, Renato Roberto Liberato; Souto, Francisco José Dutra

2015-01-01

BACKGROUND Extrahepatic manifestations are seen in association with chronic infection by hepatitis B or C virus including cutaneous disorders. The frequency of these findings seems to vary among different places and reports. There is a lack of information about this issue in Brazil. OBJECTIVES To estimate the prevalence of cutaneous findings affecting HBV or HCV carriers from a reference outpatient unit in Mato Grosso. METHODS A cross-sectional observational study. RESULTS 108 patients were studied. 88.9% presented some cutaneous findings but must of them were nonrelated to chronic viral infection. Four patients had cutaneous or autoimmune syndromes that may be HBV or HCV related. CONCLUSION In our study we found no statistical association between viral hepatitis and skin diseases. PMID:26734863

Ab initio description of the diluted magnetic semiconductor Ga1-xMnxAs: Ferromagnetism, electronic structure, and optical response

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Craco, L.; Laad, M. S.; Müller-Hartmann, E.

2003-12-01

Motivated by a study of various experiments describing the electronic and magnetic properties of the diluted magnetic semiconductor Ga1-xMnxAs, we investigate its physical response in detail using a combination of first-principles band structure with methods based on dynamical mean field theory to incorporate strong, dynamical correlations, and intrinsic as well as extrinsic disorder in one single theoretical picture. We show how ferromagnetism is driven by double exchange (DE), in agreement with very recent observations, along with a good quantitative description of the details of the electronic structure, as probed by scanning tunneling microscopy and optical conductivity. Our results show how ferromagnetism can be driven by DE even in diluted magnetic semiconductors with small carrier concentration.

High-Energy Astrophysics: An Overview

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fishman, Gerald J.

2007-01-01

High-energy astrophysics is the study of objects and phenomena in space with energy densities much greater than that found in normal stars and galaxies. These include black holes, neutron stars, cosmic rays, hypernovae and gamma-ray bursts. A history and an overview of high-energy astrophysics will be presented, including a description of the objects that are observed. Observing techniques, space-borne missions in high-energy astrophysics and some recent discoveries will also be described. Several entirely new types of astronomy are being employed in high-energy astrophysics. These will be briefly described, along with some NASA missions currently under development.

Copernicus observations of a number of galactic X-ray sources

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Culhane, J. L.; Mason, K. O.; Sanford, P. W.; White, N. E.

1976-01-01

The Copernicus satellite was launched on 21 August 1972. The main experiment on board is the University of Princeton UV telescope. In addition a cosmic X-ray package of somewhat modest aperture was provided by the Mullard Space Science Laboratory (MSSL) of University College London. Following a brief description of the instrument, a list of galactic sources observed during the year is presented. Although the X-ray detection aperture is small, the ability to point the satellite for long periods of time with high accuracy makes Copernicus an ideal vehicle for the study of variable sources.

Students’ errors in solving combinatorics problems observed from the characteristics of RME modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meika, I.; Suryadi, D.; Darhim

2018-01-01

This article was written based on the learning evaluation results of students’ errors in solving combinatorics problems observed from the characteristics of Realistic Mathematics Education (RME); that is modeling. Descriptive method was employed by involving 55 students from two international-based pilot state senior high schools in Banten. The findings of the study suggested that the students still committed errors in simplifying the problem as much 46%; errors in making mathematical model (horizontal mathematization) as much 60%; errors in finishing mathematical model (vertical mathematization) as much 65%; and errors in interpretation as well as validation as much 66%.

Hubble Space Telescope: High speed photometer instrument handbook. Version 2.0

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

White, Richard L. (Editor)

1990-01-01

This manual is a guide for astronomers who intend to use the High Speed Photometer (HSP), one of the scientific instruments onboard the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). All the information needed for ordinary uses of the HSP is presented, including: (1) an overview of the instrument; (2) a detailed description of some details of the HSP-ST system that may be important for some observations; (3) tables and figures describing the sensitivity and limitations of the HSP; (4) how to go about planning an observation with the HSP; and (5) a description of the standard calibration to be applied to HSP data and the resulting data products.

Data correlation and analysis of arc tunnel and wind tunnel tests of RSI joints and gaps, phase 2. Volume 1: Technical report

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cristensen, H. E.

1975-01-01

Heat transfer data measured in gaps representative of those being employed for joints in the space shuttle reusable surface insulation (RSI) thermal protection systems (TPS) were assimilated, analyzed, and correlated. Several types of gap were investigated with emphasis on simple butt joints. Gap widths ranged from 0.0 to 0.76 cm and depths ranged from 1 to 6 cm. Laminar, transitional, and turbulent boundary layer flows over the gap opening were investigated. The angle between gap axis and external flow was varied between 0 and pi/2 radians. The contoured cross section gap performed significantly better than all other wide gaps and slightly better than all other narrow gap geometries. Three dimensional heating variations were observed within gaps in the absence of external flow pressure gradients. Interactions between heating within gaps and heating of adjacent top tile surfaces were observed. Gaps aligned with the flow were observed to promote boundary layer transition. Heat transfer correlation equations were obtained for many of the tests. The TPS thickness requirements with and without gaps were computed for a current shuttle entry trajectory. Experimental data employed in the study are summarized. A description of each test facility, run schedule and test conditions, model descriptive information, and heat flux data are included.

A cold air outbreak over the Norwegian Sea observed with the Tiros-N Operational Vertical Sounder (TOVS) and the Special Sensor Microwave/Imager (SSM/I)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Claud, Chantal; Katsaros, Kristina B.; Petty, Grant W.; Chedin, Alain; Scott, Noelle A.

1992-01-01

Until recently, the scarcity of meteorological observations over polar areas has limited studies of high-latitude weather systems, but now data from polar orbiting satellites offer a new opportunity to observe and describe these systems. TOVS data have been used successfully for delineating synoptic and subsynoptic systems, since they provide the vertical temperature structure of the atmosphere; SSM/I observations have proved valuable for analyzing storms through water vapor and rain determinations. These positive results prompted simultaneous analysis of TOVS and SSM/I observations obtained during a cold air outbreak over the Norwegian Sea. After a description of the instruments and the retrieval schemes, the mutually supporting information from these two independent instruments is discussed. Implications for the monitoring of polar lows are presented.

A cold air outbreak over the Norwegian Sea observed with the Tiros-N Operational Vertical Sounder (TOVS) and the Special Sensor Microwave/Imager (SSM/I)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Claud, Chantal; Katsaros, Kristina B.; Petty, Grant W.; Chedin, Alain; Scott, Noelle A.

1992-01-01

Until recently, the scarcity of meteorological observations over polar areas has limited studies of high latitude weather systems, but now data from polar orbiting satellites offer a new opportunity to observe and describe these systems. TOVS data were used successfully for delineating synoptic and subsynoptic systems since they provide the vertical temperature structure of the atmosphere: SSM/I observations have proved valuable for analyzing storms through water vapor and rain determinations. These positive results prompted us to analyze simultaneous TOVS and SSM/I observations obtained during a cold air outbreak over the Norwegian Sea. After a description of the instruments and the retrieval schemes, the mutually supporting information from these two independent instruments is discussed. Implications for the monitoring of polar lows are presented.

From a concept to a word in a syntactically complete sentence: an fMRI study on spontaneous language production in an overt picture description task.

PubMed

Grande, Marion; Meffert, Elisabeth; Schoenberger, Eva; Jung, Stefanie; Frauenrath, Tobias; Huber, Walter; Hussmann, Katja; Moormann, Mareike; Heim, Stefan

2012-07-02

Spontaneous language has rarely been subjected to neuroimaging studies. This study therefore introduces a newly developed method for the analysis of linguistic phenomena observed in continuous language production during fMRI. Most neuroimaging studies investigating language have so far focussed on single word or - to a smaller extent - sentence processing, mostly due to methodological considerations. Natural language production, however, is far more than the mere combination of words to larger units. Therefore, the present study aimed at relating brain activation to linguistic phenomena like word-finding difficulties or syntactic completeness in a continuous language fMRI paradigm. A picture description task with special constraints was used to provoke hesitation phenomena and speech errors. The transcribed speech sample was segmented into events of one second and each event was assigned to one category of a complex schema especially developed for this purpose. The main results were: conceptual planning engages bilateral activation of the precuneus. Successful lexical retrieval is accompanied - particularly in comparison to unsolved word-finding difficulties - by the left middle and superior temporal gyrus. Syntactic completeness is reflected in activation of the left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) (area 44). In sum, the method has proven to be useful for investigating the neural correlates of lexical and syntactic phenomena in an overt picture description task. This opens up new prospects for the analysis of spontaneous language production during fMRI. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Population pharmacokinetics of empagliflozin, a sodium glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitor, in patients with type 2 diabetes.

PubMed

Riggs, Matthew M; Staab, Alexander; Seman, Leo; MacGregor, Thomas R; Bergsma, Timothy T; Gastonguay, Marc R; Macha, Sreeraj

2013-10-01

Data from five randomized, placebo-controlled, multiple oral dose studies of empagliflozin in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM; N = 974; 1-100 mg q.d.; ≤12 weeks) were used to develop a population pharmacokinetic (PK) model for empagliflozin. The model consisted of two-compartmental disposition, lagged first-order absorption and first-order elimination, and incorporated appropriate covariates. Population estimates (interindividual variance, CV%) of oral apparent clearance, central and peripheral volumes of distribution, and inter-compartmental clearance were 9.87 L/h (26.9%), 3.02 L, 60.4 L (30.8%), and 5.16 L/h, respectively. An imposed allometric weight effect was the most influential PK covariate effect, with a maximum effect on exposure of ±30%, using 2.5th and 97.5th percentiles of observed weights, relative to the median observed weight. Sex and race did not lend additional description to PK variability beyond allometric weight effects, other than ∼25% greater oral absorption rate constant for Asian patients. Age, total protein, and smoking/alcohol history did not affect PK parameters. Predictive check plots were consistent with observed data, implying an adequate description of empagliflozin PKs following multiple dosing in patients with T2DM. The lack of marked covariate effects, including weight, suggests that no exposure-based dose adjustments were required within the study population and dose range. © The Author(s) 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

[Description of Clinical and Neurocognitive Profiles in Offspring of Bipolar-Type-I Parents From a Multimodal Intervention Program: Prisma].

PubMed

Palacio-Ortíz, Juan David; Uribe-Villa, Esteban; Duque-Ríos, Paula; Gutiérrez-Briceño, Paola; Zapata-Henao, Violeta; Peña-Quintero, Cristian Esteban; López-Jaramillo, Carlos

2015-01-01

Offspring of bipolar parents are a high risk population for the develop of mental diseases, their study allow determining the genetic risk, early symptoms, prodromes and psychopathology of bipolar disorder. To describe the psychopathological characteristics and neurocognitives profiles of the offspring of bipolar type I parents. And to identify the presence of sub-syndromal symptoms in all the symptom domains. A descriptive and cross-sectional study was conducted on 110 offspring between 6 and 30 years old. Semi-structured diagnostic interviews were performed. The intelectual coeficient was determined and a neuropsychological assessment was performed on 89 offspring. The most prevalent disorder in the offspring was ADHD (27.6%), with major depression (15.5%) and separation anxiety (14.1%) also being prevalent. Seven patients of the sample were diagnosed with bipolar disorder. There was a statistically significant difference between the age groups for ADHD prevalence. The most frequent sub-syndromal symptoms were observed in the disruptive group. Alterations in the cognitive domains: attention, verbal fluency, work memory, and speed of information processing, were observed in the group younger than 18 years. The offspring of bipolar parents have an elevated rate of psychopathology and cognitive alterations. They are a high risk population for the development of mental disease. These subjects also require close longitudinal observation and early and preventive therapeuthic interventions. Copyright © 2014 Asociación Colombiana de Psiquiatría. Publicado por Elsevier España. All rights reserved.

Fascial reinforcement fixing the bronchi to the heart: its anatomy and clinical significance.

PubMed

Nakanishi, Kozo; Goto, Hidenori; Ito, Tomokazu

2017-12-01

The details of the mediastinal fascia have been scarcely described and the bronchopericardial membrane is the only known structure that is present between the bronchi and the pericardium. However, the anatomical description of this structure is unclear. This study aimed to investigate the fascial structures between the bronchi and the pericardium based on surgical findings. The connective tissues in the mid-mediastinum were observed surgically when lung lobectomy, including mediastinal lymph node dissection for lung cancer, was performed at our institute from April 2011 to March 2016. In total, 96 lobectomies were performed in 94 patients. A firm fibrous structure connecting the tracheobronchus and the fibrous pericardium was observed. It fixes the central bronchi to the pericardium and is composed of three parts. The largest part exists in front of the carina, its appearance is membranous, and runs behind the pulmonary artery. The other parts run over the right pulmonary artery and diverge at its superior trunk. The location at which all these structures fuse to the pericardium is the venous part of the hilum cordis (VHC). The results showed that connections of the dense fibrous tissues existed between the tracheobronchus and VHC. The structure not only works as a ligament that fixes the bronchi to the mid-mediastinum, but also divides the mid-mediastinum into two compartments: the Baréty and subcarinal spaces. The anatomy of the structure observed in this study differs from the previous description of the bronchopericardial membrane.

Theoretical Studies of Lorentz and CPT Symmetry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kostelecky, V. Alan

2005-01-01

The fundamental symmetries studied here are Lorentz and CPT invariance, which form a cornerstone of the relativistic quantum theories used in modern descriptions of nature. The results obtained during the reporting period focus on the idea, originally suggested by the P.I. and his group in the late 1980s, that observable CPT and Lorentz violation in nature might emerge from the qualitatively new physics expected to hold at the Planck scale. What follows is a summary of results obtained during the period of this grant.

EFL Teenagers' Social Identity Representation in a Virtual Learning Community on Facebook (Representación de la identidad social de los estudiantes adolescentes de inglés como lengua extranjera en una comunidad de aprendizaje virtual en Facebook)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jiménez Guamán, Laura Verónica

2012-01-01

In this article I report the findings of a descriptive and interpretative qualitative study carried out in a public school in Bogotá, Colombia. The study aimed at analyzing, describing and exploring teenage students' social identity representation as observed in their participation in a learning community on Facebook. Data were collected from…

Connecting single cell to collective cell behavior in a unified theoretical framework

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

George, Mishel; Bullo, Francesco; Campàs, Otger

Collective cell behavior is an essential part of tissue and organ morphogenesis during embryonic development, as well as of various disease processes, such as cancer. In contrast to many in vitro studies of collective cell migration, most cases of in vivo collective cell migration involve rather small groups of cells, with large sheets of migrating cells being less common. The vast majority of theoretical descriptions of collective cell behavior focus on large numbers of cells, but fail to accurately capture the dynamics of small groups of cells. Here we introduce a low-dimensional theoretical description that successfully captures single cell migration, cell collisions, collective dynamics in small groups of cells, and force propagation during sheet expansion, all within a common theoretical framework. Our description is derived from first principles and also includes key phenomenological aspects of cell migration that control the dynamics of traction forces. Among other results, we explain the counter-intuitive observations that pairs of cells repel each other upon collision while they behave in a coordinated manner within larger clusters.

Collapse of the soap-film bridge - Quasistatic description

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cryer, Steven A.; Steen, Paul H.

1992-11-01

Observations of the collapse of a soap-film bridge from a connected to a disconnected state are recorded. The equilibrium framework for this nonequilibrium event is classical. Experiments confirm predictions of stable and unstable equilibria. A quasistatic description is introduced for the dynamic states to extend the static theory. It is found to adequately describe the collapse trajectory while the bridge is still connected.

Collapse of the soap-film bridge - Quasistatic description

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cryer, Steven A.; Steen, Paul H.

1992-01-01

Observations of the collapse of a soap-film bridge from a connected to a disconnected state are recorded. The equilibrium framework for this nonequilibrium event is classical. Experiments confirm predictions of stable and unstable equilibria. A quasistatic description is introduced for the dynamic states to extend the static theory. It is found to adequately describe the collapse trajectory while the bridge is still connected.

Space weather observational activities and data management in Europe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stanisławska, Iwona; Belehaki, Anna

2009-03-01

One of the primary scientific and technical goals of Space Weather investigations is to produce data in order to study the Sun impact on the Earth and its environment. Studies based on data mining philosophy increase our knowledge of the physical properties of Space Weather, modelling capabilities, and gain applications of various procedures in Space Weather monitoring and forecasting. The paper focuses on an analysis of the availability on the Internet of near-real time and historical collections of the European ground-based and satellite observations, operational indices and parameters. A detailed description of data delivered is included. The following issues are discussed: (1) raw observations, and/or corrected/updated data, (2) resolution and availability of real-time and historical data, (3) products resulting from models and theory including maps, forecasts and alerts, (4) platforms for data delivery.

Is mind-mindedness trait-like or a quality of close relationships? Evidence from descriptions of significant others, famous people, and works of art.

PubMed

Meins, Elizabeth; Fernyhough, Charles; Harris-Waller, Jayne

2014-03-01

The four studies reported here sought to explore the nature of the construct of mind-mindedness. In Study 1, involving 37 mothers of 5- to 8-year-old children, mothers' verbal mind-minded descriptions of their children were positively correlated with their mind-minded descriptions of their current romantic partner. Participants in Studies 2 (N=114), 3 (N=173), and 4 (N=153) were young adults who provided written descriptions of: a close friend and their current romantic partner (Study 2); two specified famous people, two works of art, and a close friend (Study 3); a specified famous person, a famous person of the participant's choice, and a close friend (Study 4). Study 2 obtained paper-and-pen written descriptions, whereas participants completed descriptions in electronic format in Studies 3 and 4. Mind-minded descriptions of friends and partners were positively correlated, but there was no relation between mind-minded descriptions of a friend and the tendency to describe famous people or works of art in mind-minded terms. Levels of mind-mindedness were higher in descriptions of friends compared with descriptions of famous people or works of art. Administration format was unrelated to individuals' mind-mindedness scores. The results suggest that mind-mindedness is a facet of personal relationships rather than a trait-like quality. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Hierarchy of evidence referring to the central nervous system in a high-impact radiation oncology journal: a 10-year assessment. Descriptive critical appraisal study.

PubMed

Moraes, Fabio Ynoe; Bonifacio, Lorine Arias; Marta, Gustavo Nader; Hanna, Samir Abdallah; Atallah, Álvaro Nagib; Moraes, Vinícius Ynoe; Silva, João Luis Fernandes; Carvalho, Heloísa Andrade

2015-01-01

To the best of our knowledge, there has been no systematic assessment of the classification of scientific production within the scope of radiation oncology relating to central nervous system tumors. The aim of this study was to systematically assess the status of evidence relating to the central nervous system and to evaluate the geographic origins and major content of these published data. Descriptive critical appraisal study conducted at a private hospital in São Paulo, Brazil. We evaluated all of the central nervous system studies published in the journal Radiotherapy & Oncology between 2003 and 2012. The studies identified were classified according to their methodological design and level of evidence. Information regarding the geographical location of the study, the institutions and authors involved in the publication, main condition or disease investigated and time of publication was also obtained. We identified 3,004 studies published over the 10-year period. Of these, 125 (4.2%) were considered eligible, and 66% of them were case series. Systematic reviews and randomized clinical trials accounted for approximately 10% of all the published papers. We observed an increase in high-quality evidence and a decrease in low-quality published papers over this period (P = 0.036). The inter-rater reliability demonstrated significant agreement between observers in terms of the level of evidence. Increases in high-level evidence and in the total number of central nervous system papers were clearly demonstrated, although the overall number of such studies remained relatively small.

The effects of verbal descriptions on performance in lineups and showups.

PubMed

Wilson, Brent M; Seale-Carlisle, Travis M; Mickes, Laura

2018-01-01

Verbally describing a face has been found to impair subsequent recognition of that face from a photo lineup, a phenomenon known as the verbal overshadowing effect (Schooler & Engstler-Schooler, 1990). Recently, a large direct replication study successfully reproduced that original finding (Alogna et al., 2014). However, in both the original study and the replication studies, memory was tested using only target-present lineups (i.e., lineups containing the previously seen target face), making it possible to compute the correct identification rate (correct ID rate; i.e., the hit rate) but not the false identification rate (false ID rate; i.e., the false alarm rate). Thus, the lower correct ID rate for the verbal condition could reflect either reduced discriminability or a conservative criterion shift relative to the control condition. In four verbal overshadowing experiments reported here, we measured both correct ID rates and false ID rates using photo lineups (Experiments 1 and 2) or single-photo showups (Experiments 3 and 4). The experimental manipulation (verbally describing the face or not) occurred either immediately after encoding (Experiments 1 and 3) or 20-min after encoding (Experiments 2 and 4). In the immediate condition, discriminability did not differ between groups, but in the delayed condition, discriminability was lower in the verbal description group (i.e., a verbal overshadowing effect was observed). A fifth experiment found that the effect of the immediate-versus-delayed manipulation may be attributable to a change in the content of verbal descriptions, with the ratio of diagnostic to generic facial features in the descriptions decreasing as delay increases. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Interstellar matter research with the Copernicus satellite

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spitzer, L., Jr.

1976-01-01

The use of the Copernicus satellite in an investigation of interstellar matter makes it possible to study absorption lines in the ultraviolet range which cannot be observed on the ground because of atmospheric absorption effects. A brief description is given of the satellite and the instrument used in the reported studies of interstellar matter. The results of the studies are discussed, giving attention to interstellar molecular hydrogen, the chemical composition of the interstellar gas, the coronal gas between the stars, and the interstellar abundance ratio of deuterium to hydrogen.

Eliciting Naturalistic Cortical Responses with a Sensory Prosthesis via Optimized Microstimulation

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-08-12

error and correlation as metrics amenable to highly efficient convex optimization. This study concentrates on characterizing the neural responses to both...spiking signal. For LFP, distance measures such as the traditional mean-squared error and cross- correlation can be used, whereas distances between spike...with parameters that describe their associated temporal dynamics and relations to the observed output. A description of the model follows, but we

The Shoemaker-Levy 9 spots on Jupiter: Their place in history

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hockey, T.

1994-01-01

Historical observations of Jupiter were studied in a search for descriptions or depictions of spots of a magnitude comparable to that produced by the impacts of comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 fragments with Jupiter in July 1994. No such record was found. With the possible exception of the Great Red Spot, the Shoemaker-Levy 9 'G' spot appears to be the most prominent jovian spot in history.

Ab initio description of continuum effects in A=11 exotic systems with chiral NN+3N forces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Calci, Angelo; Navratil, Petr; Roth, Robert; Dohet-Eraly, Jeremy; Quaglioni, Sofia; Hupin, Guillaume

2016-09-01

Based on the fundamental symmetries of QCD, chiral effective field theory (EFT) provides two- (NN), three- (3N) and many-nucleon interactions in a consistent and systematically improvable scheme. The rapid developments to construct divers families of chiral NN+3N interactions and the conceptual and technical improvements of ab initio many-body approaches pose a great opportunity for nuclear physics. By studying particular interesting phenomena in nuclear structure and reaction observables one can discriminate between different forces and study the predictive power of chiral EFT. The accurate description of the 11Be nucleus, in particular, the ground-state parity inversion and exceptionally strong E1 transition between its two bound states constitute an enormous challenge for the developments of nuclear forces and many-body approaches. We present a sensitivity analysis of structure and reaction observables to different NN+3N interactions in 11Be and n+10Be as well as the mirror p+10C scattering using the ab initio NCSM with continuum (NCSMC). Supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Nuclear Physics, under Work Proposal No. SCW1158. TRIUMF receives federal funding via a contribution agreement with the National Research Council of Canada.

Role Of Synchrotron Techniques In USEPA Regulatory And Remediation Decisions

EPA Science Inventory

Science provides the foundation for credible decision making. Science is observation followed by an interpretation and understanding of the result of the measurement. Observations may not be correct, complete, or fully descriptive of the phenomena. Interpretation based on avai...

Observations of the global structure of the stratosphere and mesosphere with sounding rockets and with remote sensing techniques from satellites

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Heath, D. F.; Hilsenrath, E.; Krueger, A. J.; Nordberg, W.; Prabhakara, C.; Theon, J. S.

1972-01-01

Brief descriptions are given of the techniques involved in determining the global structure of the mesosphere and stratosphere based on sounding rocket observations and satellite remotely sensed measurements.

Somatotype analysis of physically active individuals.

PubMed

Almeida, A H S; Santos, S A G; Castro, P J P; Rizzo, J A; Batista, G R

2013-06-01

The present study aimed at comparing demographic variables, physical activity level, and health-related anthropometric indicators according to somatotype among physically active individuals. This is a descriptive cross-sectional study, in which the sample consisted of 304 individuals, who are users of the jogging track at the Federal University of Pernambuco (UFPE) in Recife, state of Pernambuco, northeastern Brazil. Somatotypes were analyzed using the anthropometric technique proposed by Heath & Carter (1990). To assess physical activity level, we used the short version of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ). We used as health-related anthropometric indicators: body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), waist-hip ratio (WHR), and conicity index (CI). We used descriptive statistics to characterize the sample, and then used a multivariate analysis of variance (a = 0.05) to test for differences. In the somatotype analysis, we observed among women significant predominance of the endomorphy and lower predominance of the ectomorphy in comparison to men. In the age group ≤ 29 years significantly lower values were found for endomorphy than in other age groups. Irregularly active individuals had significantly lower values of endomorphy. We observed that individuals with obesity and risk in WHR, WC and CI had higher scores of endomorphy and mesomorphy and lower scores of ectomorphy. The somatotype of physically active individuals in the present study raises health concern, mainly related to high relative adiposity represented by endomorphy.

Context retrieval and description benefits for recognition of unfamiliar faces.

PubMed

Jones, Todd C; Robinson, Kealagh; Steel, Brenna C

2018-04-19

Describing unfamiliar faces during or immediately after their presentation in a study phase can produce better recognition memory performance compared with a view-only control condition. We treated descriptions as elaborative information that is part of the study context and investigated how context retrieval influences recognition memory. Following general dual-process theories, we hypothesized that recollection would be used to recall descriptions and that description recall would influence recognition decisions, including the level of recognition confidence. In four experiments description conditions produced higher hit rates and higher levels of recognition confidence than control conditions. Participants recalled descriptive content on some trials, and this context retrieval was linked to an increase in the recognition confidence level. Repeating study faces in description conditions increased recognition scores, recognition confidence level, and context retrieval. Estimates of recollection from Yonelinas' (1994) dual-process signal detection ROCs were, on average, very close to the measures of context recall. Description conditions also produced higher estimates of familiarity. Finally, we found evidence that participants engaged in description activity in some ostensibly view-only trials. An emphasis on the information participants use in making their recognition decisions can advance understanding on description effects when descriptions are part of the study trial context. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

How variations in distance affect eyewitness reports and identification accuracy.

PubMed

Lindsay, R C L; Semmler, Carolyn; Weber, Nathan; Brewer, Neil; Lindsay, Marilyn R

2008-12-01

Witnesses observe crimes at various distances and the courts have to interpret their testimony given the likely quality of witnesses' views of events. We examined how accurately witnesses judged the distance between themselves and a target person, and how distance affected description accuracy, choosing behavior, and identification test accuracy. Over 1,300 participants were approached during normal daily activities, and asked to observe a target person at one of a number of possible distances. Under a Perception, Immediate Memory, or Delayed Memory condition, witnesses provided a brief description of the target, estimated the distance to the target, and then examined a 6-person target-present or target-absent lineup to see if they could identify the target. Errors in distance judgments were often substantial. Description accuracy was mediocre and did not vary systematically with distance. Identification choosing rates were not affected by distance, but decision accuracy declined with distance. Contrary to previous research, a 15-m viewing distance was not critical for discriminating accurate from inaccurate decisions.

Solar maximum mission/ultraviolet spectrometer and polarimeter studies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Henze, William, Jr.

1993-01-01

This final report for NASA Contract No. NAS8-35921 describes various studies performed for the Ultraviolet Spectrometer and Polarimeter (UVSP) experiment, one of several instruments on the Solar Maximum Mission (SMM) satellite which was launched on 14 February 1980. The UVSP consisted primarily of a Gregorian telescope and an Ebert-Fastie spectrometer with a polarimeter that could be inserted into the light path. The spacecraft and most of the instruments, including the UVSP, operated successfully until 23 November 1980, when part of the SMM attitude control system (fine pointing control) failed. The UVSP was then unable to observe the Sun until 18 April 1984, when the SMM was visited by the space shuttle and the attitude control module was replaced by astronauts. The SMM mission ended when the spacecraft reentered the atmosphere of the Earth and was thereby destroyed on 2 December 1989. The topics covered in this report include the following: (1) ultraviolet stellar polarimetry (probably the first such attempted measurement); no polarization as detected and the upper limits, based on the sensitivity as determined by the observed count rate, are rather high; (2) an investigation into the possible position of the UVSP wavelength drive after it became stuck on 26 April 1985; (3) fast timing tests for sit-and-state observations involving one or two detectors; (4) development of computer subroutines to allow the calculation of the component of the SMM spacecraft orbital velocity along the line of sight to the Sun at any desired time during the 1984/1985 period when the UVSP wavelength drive was operating properly; (5) listing of published research papers; (6) description of the UVSP catalog of observations; and (7) description of UVSP calibration report and data users guide.

Human mobility in a continuum approach.

PubMed

Simini, Filippo; Maritan, Amos; Néda, Zoltán

2013-01-01

Human mobility is investigated using a continuum approach that allows to calculate the probability to observe a trip to any arbitrary region, and the fluxes between any two regions. The considered description offers a general and unified framework, in which previously proposed mobility models like the gravity model, the intervening opportunities model, and the recently introduced radiation model are naturally resulting as special cases. A new form of radiation model is derived and its validity is investigated using observational data offered by commuting trips obtained from the United States census data set, and the mobility fluxes extracted from mobile phone data collected in a western European country. The new modeling paradigm offered by this description suggests that the complex topological features observed in large mobility and transportation networks may be the result of a simple stochastic process taking place on an inhomogeneous landscape.

Human Mobility in a Continuum Approach

PubMed Central

Simini, Filippo; Maritan, Amos; Néda, Zoltán

2013-01-01

Human mobility is investigated using a continuum approach that allows to calculate the probability to observe a trip to any arbitrary region, and the fluxes between any two regions. The considered description offers a general and unified framework, in which previously proposed mobility models like the gravity model, the intervening opportunities model, and the recently introduced radiation model are naturally resulting as special cases. A new form of radiation model is derived and its validity is investigated using observational data offered by commuting trips obtained from the United States census data set, and the mobility fluxes extracted from mobile phone data collected in a western European country. The new modeling paradigm offered by this description suggests that the complex topological features observed in large mobility and transportation networks may be the result of a simple stochastic process taking place on an inhomogeneous landscape. PMID:23555885

Observations of red-giant variable stars by Aboriginal Australians

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hamacher, Duane W.

2018-04-01

Aboriginal Australians carefully observe the properties and positions of stars, including both overt and subtle changes in their brightness, for subsistence and social application. These observations are encoded in oral tradition. I examine two Aboriginal oral traditions from South Australia that describe the periodic changing brightness in three pulsating, red-giant variable stars: Betelgeuse (Alpha Orionis), Aldebaran (Alpha Tauri), and Antares (Alpha Scorpii). The Australian Aboriginal accounts stand as the only known descriptions of pulsating variable stars in any Indigenous oral tradition in the world. Researchers examining these oral traditions over the last century, including anthropologists and astronomers, missed the description of these stars as being variable in nature as the ethnographic record contained several misidentifications of stars and celestial objects. Arguably, ethnographers working on Indigenous Knowledge Systems should have academic training in both the natural and social sciences.

Functional test generation for digital circuits described with a declarative language: LUSTRE

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Almahrous, Mazen

1990-08-01

A functional approach to the test generation problem starting from a high level description is proposed. The circuit tested is modeled, using the LUSTRE high level data flow description language. The different LUSTRE primitives are translated to a SATAN format graph in order to evaluate the testability of the circuit and to generate test sequences. Another method of testing the complex circuits comprising an operative part and a control part is defined. It consists of checking experiments for the control part observed through the operative part. It was applied to the automata generated from a LUSTRE description of the circuit.

Taxonomy of Macromotettixoides with the description of a new species (Tetrigidae, Metrodorinae)

PubMed Central

Zha, Ling-Sheng; Yu, Feng-Ming; Boonmee, Saranyaphat; Eungwanichayapant, Prapassorn D.; Wen, Ting-Chi

2017-01-01

Abstract Descriptions of the flying organs and generic characteristics of the genus Macromotettixoides Zheng, Wei & Jiang are currently imprecise. Macromotettixoides is reviewed and compared with allied genera. A re-description is undertaken and a determination key is provided to Macromotettixoides. Macromotettixoides parvula Zha & Wen, sp. n. from the Guizhou Karst Region, China, is described and illustrated with photographs. Observations on the ecology and habits of the new species are recorded. Four current species of Hyboella Hancock are transferred to Macromotettixoides. Variations of the flying organs and tegminal sinus in the Tetrigidae are discussed, which will help to describe them accurately. PMID:28228664

Fidelity of Implementation of Research Experience for Teachers in the Classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sen, Tapati

In this study, the Arizona State University Mathematics and Science Teaching Fellows 2010 program was analyzed qualitatively from start to finish to determine the impact of the research experience on teachers in the classroom. The sample for the study was the 2010 cohort of eight high school science teachers. Erickson’s (1986) interpretive, participant observational fieldwork method was used to report data by means of detailed descriptions of the research experience and classroom implementation. Data was collected from teacher documents, interviews, and observations. The findings revealed various factors that were responsible for an ineffective implementation of the research experience in the classroom such as research experience, curriculum support, availability of resources, and school curriculum. Implications and recommendations for future programs are discussed in the study.

Trends in published meta-analyses in cancer research, 2008-2013.

PubMed

Qadir, Ximena V; Clyne, Mindy; Lam, Tram Kim; Khoury, Muin J; Schully, Sheri D

2017-01-01

In order to capture trends in the contribution of epidemiology to cancer research, we describe an online meta-analysis database resource for cancer clinical and population research and illustrate trends and descriptive detail of cancer meta-analyses from 2008 through 2013. A total of 4,686 cancer meta-analyses met our inclusion criteria. During this 6-year period, a fivefold increase was observed in the yearly number of meta-analyses. Fifty-six percent of meta-analyses concerned observational studies, mostly of cancer risk, more than half of which were genetic studies. The major cancer sites were breast, colorectal, and digestive. This online database for Cancer Genomics and Epidemiology Navigator will be continuously updated to allow investigators to quickly navigate the meta-analyses emerging from cancer epidemiology studies and cancer clinical trials.

The intersection between Descriptivism and Meliorism in reasoning research: further proposals in support of ‘soft normativism’

PubMed Central

Stupple, Edward J. N.; Ball, Linden J.

2014-01-01

The rationality paradox centers on the observation that people are highly intelligent, yet show evidence of errors and biases in their thinking when measured against normative standards. Elqayam and Evans’ (2011) reject normative standards in the psychological study of thinking, reasoning and deciding in favor of a ‘value-free’ descriptive approach to studying high-level cognition. In reviewing Elqayam and Evans’ (2011) position, we defend an alternative to descriptivism in the form of ‘soft normativism,’ which allows for normative evaluations alongside the pursuit of descriptive research goals. We propose that normative theories have considerable value provided that researchers: (1) are alert to the philosophical quagmire of strong relativism; (2) are mindful of the biases that can arise from utilizing normative benchmarks; and (3) engage in a focused analysis of the processing approach adopted by individual reasoners. We address the controversial ‘is–ought’ inference in this context and appeal to a ‘bridging solution’ to this contested inference that is based on the concept of ‘informal reflective equilibrium.’ Furthermore, we draw on Elqayam and Evans’ (2011) recognition of a role for normative benchmarks in research programs that are devised to enhance reasoning performance and we argue that such Meliorist research programs have a valuable reciprocal relationship with descriptivist accounts of reasoning. In sum, we believe that descriptions of reasoning processes are fundamentally enriched by evaluations of reasoning quality, and argue that if such standards are discarded altogether then our explanations and descriptions of reasoning processes are severely undermined. PMID:25414687

Comparison of the light-flash phenomena observed in space and in laboratory experiments.

PubMed

McNulty, P J; Pease, V P; Bond, V P

1977-01-01

Astronauts on Apollo and Skylab missions have reported observing a variety of visual phenomena when their eyes were closed and adapted to darkness. These observations were studied under controlled conditions during a number of sessions on board Apollo and Skylab spacecraft and the data available to date on these so-called light flashes are in the form of descriptions of the phenomena and frequency of occurrence. Similar visual phenomena have been demonstrated in a number of laboratories by exposing the eyes of human subjects to beams of neutrons, alpha particles, pions and protons. More than one physical mechanism is involved in the laboratory and space phenomena. No direct comparison of the laboratory and space observations has been made by observers who have experienced both. However, the range of visual phenomena observed in the laboratory is consistent with the Apollo and Skylab observations. Measured detection efficiencies can be used to estimate the frequencies with which various phenomena would be observed if that subject was exposed to cosmic rays in space.

Seroprevalence of Ehrlichia ruminantium antibodies and its associated risk factors in indigenous goats of South Africa.

PubMed

Mdladla, Khanyisile; Dzomba, Edgar F; Muchadeyi, Farai C

2016-03-01

The present study investigated the seroprevalence of antibodies to Ehrlichia ruminantium and the associated risk factors in goats from five different farming provinces of South Africa. Sera collected from 686 goats of the commercial meat type (n=179), mohair type (n=9), non-descript indigenous goats from Eastern Cape (n=56), KwaZulu-Natal (n=209), Limpopo (n=111), North West (n=61) and Northern Cape (n=11) provinces and a feral Tankwa goat (n=50) were tested for the presence of immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies to antigens of E. ruminantium using the indirect fluorescent-antibody test (IFAT). Fifty two percent of these goats had ticks. The overall seroprevalence of antibodies to E. ruminantium was 64.87% (445/686) with the highest seroprevalence reported for Limpopo (95.50%) and lowest for Northern Cape (20.29%). Highest seroprevalence for antibodies to E. ruminantium was observed in goats from endemic regions (76.09%), and from smallholder production systems (89.54%). High seroprevalence was also observed in non-descript indigenous goats (85.04%), adult goat (69.62%), in does (67.46%) and goats infested with ticks (85.79%). The logistic model showed a gradient of increasing risk for commercial meat type Savanna (OR=3.681; CI=1.335-10.149) and non-descript indigenous (OR=3.466; CI=1.57-7.645) compared to Boer goats and for goats from the smallholder production system (OR=2.582; CI=1.182-5.639) and those with ticks (OR=3.587; CI=2.105-6.112). Results from this study showed that E. ruminantium infections were prevalent but were widely and unevenly distributed throughout South Africa. Findings from the study facilitate identification and mapping of risk areas for heartwater and its endeminicity in South Africa and should be taken into consideration for future disease control strategies and local goat improvement programs. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Study of the Radiative Recombination of Free Carriers Produced by Electron Bombardment in Cadmium Sulfide (thesis); ETUDE DE LA RECOMBINAISON RADIATIVE DES PORTEURS LIBRES PRODUITS PAR UN BOMBARDEMENT ELECTRONIQUE DANS LE SULFURE DE CADMIUM (THESES)

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

de Gaalon, G.

1962-01-01

The structure of the blue emission at the temperature of liquid nitrogen was studied using improved apparatus. The observations were carried to the temperature of liquid He in order to deduce the mechanism of the recombination of the free carriers. Before analysis of the light emitted by CdS single crystals exposed to electron bombardment and before a description of the experimental apparatus, the interaction of electron beams with the crystal and the resultant formation of free carriers are studied theoretically. The experimental study showed that the structure of the emission situated at the absorption limit, obtained by electron bombardment, doesmore » not differ basically from that observed under uv irradiation. However, the existence at 4 deg K of radiation (not observed with uv irradiation) with wave lengths less than 4.856 A was shown. (J.S.R.)« less

Transient Optical Sky survey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hadjiyska, Elena Ivanova

2009-06-01

Optical transients have been studied in isolated cases, but never mapped into a comprehensive data base in the past. These events vary in duration and signature, yet they are united under the umbrella of time varying observables and represent a significant portion of the dynamical processes in the universe. The Transient Optical Sky Survey (TOSS) System is a dedicated, ground-based system of small optical telescopes, observing nightly at fixed Declination while gathering 90 sec exposures and thus creating a repeated partial map of the sky. Presented here is a brief overview of some of the signatures of transient events and a description of the TOSS system along with the data acquired during the 2008-2009 observing campaign, potentially producing over 100,000 light curves.

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

Giudice, Gian F.; McCullough, Matthew; Urbano, Alfredo

The LIGO observation of gravitational waves from a binary black hole merger has begun a new era in fundamental physics. If new dark sector particles, be they bosons or fermions, can coalesce into exotic compact objects (ECOs) of astronomical size, then the first evidence for such objects, and their underlying microphysical description, may arise in gravitational wave observations. In this work we study how the macroscopic properties of ECOs are related to their microscopic properties, such as dark particle mass and couplings. We then demonstrate the smoking gun exotic signatures that would provide observational evidence for ECOs, and hence newmore » particles, in terrestrial gravitational wave observatories. Finally, we discuss how gravitational waves can test a core concept in general relativity: Hawking’s area theorem.« less

Observing position and movements in hydrotherapy: a pilot study.

PubMed

Stark, Mary Ann; Rudell, Barb; Haus, George

2008-01-01

To observe and describe the positions and movements women choose while immersed in water during the first stage of labor. Descriptive, observational pilot study. A rural community hospital that provided hydrotherapy in labor. Women (N = 7) who intended to use hydrotherapy in labor were recruited prenatally from a midwife-managed practice. For 15 minutes of each hour during the first stage of labor, position and movements of the participants were observed and recorded on a laptop computer. The observational tool was developed for this study from a review of the literature and interviews with nursing experts; 435 observations were recorded. Women were free to choose when and how long to use hydrotherapy and had no restriction on their positions and movements. Only 3 of the 7 participants labored in the tub. Women demonstrated a greater range of positions and movements in the tub than in bed, both throughout labor and during late first-stage labor (7-10 cm of dilatation). Women had more contractions and made more rhythmic movements while in the tub than in bed. Hydrotherapy may encourage upright positions and movements that facilitate labor progress and coping, helping women avoid unnecessary interventions.

Decentralization and hospital pharmacy services: the case of Iranian university affilliated hospitals.

PubMed

Ashna Delkhosh, Reza; Ardama, Ali; Salamzadeh, Jamshid

2013-01-01

The aim of this study was to evaluate the satisfaction rate of hospital managerial/clinical teams (HMCTs) including principles (chief executives), managers, supervisor pharmacists and head nurses from services presented by private sectors directing 10 pharmacy departments in hospitals affiliated to Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences. This study is an observational and descriptive study in which a questionnaire containing 16 questions evaluating the satisfaction of the HMCTs from private sectors, and questions about demography of the responders was used for data collection. Collected data was applied to assign a satisfaction score (maximum 64) for each respondent. SPSS 17.0 and Microsoft Office Excel 2007 were used for statistical description and analysis of these information (where applicable). Overall, 97 people in charge of the hospitals (HMCTs) entered the study. The average satisfaction score was 26.38 ± 6.81 with the lowest satisfaction rate observed in Mofid children specialty hospital (19.5%) and the highest rate obtained for Imam Hussein (p.b.u.h) general hospital (65.3%). Generally, 59% of the HMCTs believed that the function of the private sector in the pharmacy of hospitals is satisfactory. Assuming that the satisfaction scores under 75% of the total obtainable score (i.e. 48 out of 64) could not be considered as an indicator of desired pharmacy services, our results revealed that the status of the services offered by private sectors are far behind the desired satisfactory level.

Representing Medical Knowledge in the Form of Structured Text: The Development of Current Disease Descriptions*

PubMed Central

Nelson, Stuart J.; Sherertz, David D.; Erlbaum, Mark S.; Tuttle, Mark S.

1989-01-01

As part of the Unified Medical Language System (UMLS) initiative, some 900 diseases have been described using “structured text.” Structured text is words and short phrases entered under labelled contexts. Vocabulary is not controlled. The contexts comprise a template for the disease description. The structured text is both manipulable by machine and readable by humans. Use of the template was natural, and only a few problems arose in using the template. Instructions to disease description composers must be explicit in definitions of the contexts. Diseases to be described are chosen, after clustering related diseases, according to the distinctions that physicians practicing in the area under question believe are important. Limiting disease descriptions to primitive observations and to entities otherwise described within the corpus appears to be both feasible and desirable.

Linking descriptive geology and quantitative machine learning through an ontology of lithological concepts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klump, J. F.; Huber, R.; Robertson, J.; Cox, S. J. D.; Woodcock, R.

2014-12-01

Despite the recent explosion of quantitative geological data, geology remains a fundamentally qualitative science. Numerical data only constitute a certain part of data collection in the geosciences. In many cases, geological observations are compiled as text into reports and annotations on drill cores, thin sections or drawings of outcrops. The observations are classified into concepts such as lithology, stratigraphy, geological structure, etc. These descriptions are semantically rich and are generally supported by more quantitative observations using geochemical analyses, XRD, hyperspectral scanning, etc, but the goal is geological semantics. In practice it has been difficult to bring the different observations together due to differing perception or granularity of classification in human observation, or the partial observation of only some characteristics using quantitative sensors. In the past years many geological classification schemas have been transferred into ontologies and vocabularies, formalized using RDF and OWL, and published through SPARQL endpoints. Several lithological ontologies were compiled by stratigraphy.net and published through a SPARQL endpoint. This work is complemented by the development of a Python API to integrate this vocabulary into Python-based text mining applications. The applications for the lithological vocabulary and Python API are automated semantic tagging of geochemical data and descriptions of drill cores, machine learning of geochemical compositions that are diagnostic for lithological classifications, and text mining for lithological concepts in reports and geological literature. This combination of applications can be used to identify anomalies in databases, where composition and lithological classification do not match. It can also be used to identify lithological concepts in the literature and infer quantitative values. The resulting semantic tagging opens new possibilities for linking these diverse sources of data.

Studies of the intermediate and deep circulation in the western equatorial Atlantic

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Desaubies, Yves; Frankignoul, C.; Merle, Jacques

1991-01-01

This proposal concerns the preparation and design of an experiment, the objective of which is to improve our knowledge of the intermediate and deep circulation in the western equatorial Atlantic Ocean. We shall focus on the description of the western boundary currents, of their crossing with the equator, on the estimation of their mass and heat fluxes, and their seasonal and interannual variations. We will use satellite altimetric data, tomographic measurements, and in situ observations (current measurements, hydrology, and floaters). We propose a feasibility study and the definition of a strategy based on a high-resolution Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory (GFDL) numerical model to define which in situ measurements are necessary to optimally complete the altimetric observations.

The velocity field of a coronal mass ejection - The event of September 1, 1980

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Low, B. C.; Hundhausen, A. J.

1987-01-01

The velocity field of a mass ejection that was observed by the coronagraph of the SMM satellite over the northwest limb of the sun at about 0600 UT on September 1, 1980 is studied in detail. A descriptive account of the event is given, concentrating on qualitative features of the mass motion and suggesting a possible origin of the unusual two-loop structure. The velocity field is analyzed quantitatively, and the implications of the results for the mass ejection theory are considered. It is concluded that a self-similar description of the velocity field is a gross oversimplification and that although some evidence of wave propagation can be found, the bright features in the mass ejection are plasma structures moving with frozen-in magnetic fields, rather than waves propagating through plasmas and magnetic fields.

Transition between nuclear and quark-gluon descriptions of hadrons and light nuclei

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Holt, R. J.; Gilman, R.

2012-08-01

We provide a perspective on studies aimed at observing the transition between hadronic and quark-gluonic descriptions of reactions involving light nuclei. We begin by summarizing the results for relatively simple reactions such as the pion form factor and the neutral pion transition form factor as well as that for the nucleon and end with exclusive photoreactions in our simplest nuclei. A particular focus will be on reactions involving the deuteron. It is noted that a firm understanding of these issues is essential for unravelling important structure information from processes such as deeply virtual Compton scattering as well as deeply virtual meson production. The connection to exotic phenomena such as color transparency will be discussed. A number of outstanding challenges will require new experiments at modern facilities on the horizon as well as further theoretical developments.

Experimental and theoretical assessment of the multi-domain flow behaviour in a waste body during leachate infiltration

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

Tinet, A-J., E-mail: tinet@ujf-grenoble.fr; Oxarango, L.; Centre for Research in Environmental, Coastal and Hydrological Engineering, School of Civil Engineering, Surveying and Construction, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Howard College Campus, Durban 4041

2011-08-15

The optimisation of landfill operation is a key challenge for the upcoming years. A promising solution to improve municipal solid waste (MSW) management is the bioreactor technology. A meso-scale (around 1 m{sup 3}) experimental set-up was performed to study the effect of moisture control in low density conditions with different leachate injection operations and bioreactor monitoring including the use of a neutron probe. The moisture content distribution evolution demonstrates a multi-domain flow behaviour. A classic van Genuchten-Mualem description of the connected porosity proved insufficient to correctly describe the observed phenomena. A bimodal description of the connected porosity is proposed asmore » solution and a connected/non-connected porosities numerical model was applied to the results. The model explains the experimental results reasonably well.« less

Thank You to Our 2017 Peer Reviewers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hauck, Steven A.; Baratoux, David; Stanley, Sabine; Stanley

2018-02-01

Science operates best by sharing accurate new knowledge in clear ways. In order to check our assumptions, our methods, and our interpretations of the observations, experiments, analyses, and calculations that we do, we ask others to look at our work. We call this peer review—other experts who were not involved in a given study read and critically evaluate the descriptions of our work. They look for completeness, accuracy, whether work is new, and how clearly we have written the descriptions. We continue to be humbled by the time, effort, and careful insights that our colleagues share with each other through the process of peer review. In 2017, JGR Planets benefited from more than 610 reviews provided by 398 of our peers for papers submitted to the journal. Thank you all for your awesome efforts toward advancing planetary science now and for the future.

Revisiting the Landau fluid closure.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hunana, P.; Zank, G. P.; Webb, G. M.; Adhikari, L.

2017-12-01

Advanced fluid models that are much closer to the full kinetic description than the usual magnetohydrodynamic description are a very useful tool for studying astrophysical plasmas and for interpreting solar wind observational data. The development of advanced fluid models that contain certain kinetic effects is complicated and has attracted much attention over the past years. Here we focus on fluid models that incorporate the simplest possible forms of Landau damping, derived from linear kinetic theory expanded about a leading-order (gyrotropic) bi-Maxwellian distribution function f_0, under the approximation that the perturbed distribution function f_1 is gyrotropic as well. Specifically, we focus on various Pade approximants to the usual plasma response function (and to the plasma dispersion function) and examine possibilities that lead to a closure of the linear kinetic hierarchy of fluid moments. We present re-examination of the simplest Landau fluid closures.

Proliferation of Observables and Measurement in Quantum-Classical Hybrids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Elze, Hans-Thomas

2012-01-01

Following a review of quantum-classical hybrid dynamics, we discuss the ensuing proliferation of observables and relate it to measurements of (would-be) quantum mechanical degrees of freedom performed by (would-be) classical ones (if they were separable). Hybrids consist in coupled classical (CL) and quantum mechanical (QM) objects. Numerous consistency requirements for their description have been discussed and are fulfilled here. We summarize a representation of quantum mechanics in terms of classical analytical mechanics which is naturally extended to QM-CL hybrids. This framework allows for superposition, separable, and entangled states originating in the QM sector, admits experimenter's "Free Will", and is local and nonsignaling. Presently, we study the set of hybrid observables, which is larger than the Cartesian product of QM and CL observables of its components; yet it is smaller than a corresponding product of all-classical observables. Thus, quantumness and classicality infect each other.

Negotiating policy in practice: child and family health nurses' approach to the process of postnatal psychosocial assessment.

PubMed

Rollans, Mellanie; Schmied, Virginia; Kemp, Lynn; Meade, Tanya

2013-04-08

There is growing recognition internationally of the need to identify women with risk factors for poor perinatal mental health in pregnancy and following birth. In the state of New South Wales, Australia the Supporting Families Early policy provides a framework of assessment and support for women and families and includes routine psychosocial assessment and depression screening. This study investigated the approach taken by Child and Family Health Nurses (CFHNs) following birth to assessment and screening as recommended by state policy. This was a qualitative ethnographic study that included 83 CFHN and 20 women. Observations occurred with thirteen nurses; with 20 women, in the home or the clinic environment. An additional 70 nurses participated in discussion groups. An observational tool (4D&4R) and field notes were used to record observations and analysed descriptively using frequencies. Field notes, interview data and discussion group transcripts were analysed thematically. This was a qualitative ethnographic study that included 83 CFHN and 20 women. Observations occurred with thirteen nurses; with 20 women, in the home or the clinic environment. An additional 70 nurses participated in discussion groups. An observational tool (4D&4R) and field notes were used to record observations and analysed descriptively using frequencies. Field notes, interview data and discussion group transcripts were analysed thematically. CFHNs demonstrated a range of approaches to assessment and screening. Psychosocial assessment was conducted in 50% (10 out of the 20) of the interactions observed; however, all the women were screened using the Edinburgh Depression Scale. Four major themes that represent the approach taken to the assessment process were identified: 'Engagement: getting that first bit right', 'Doing some paperwork', 'Creating comfort' and 'Psychosocial assessment: doing it another way'. Nurses utilised other skills such as observing the women interacting with their baby, taking note of non verbal communication and using intuition to develop a clinical decision. Overall, nurses' took a sensitive and caring approach to assessment and screening, however, there were differences in interpretations of the policy recommendations across the two sites. Nurses adopt a flexible, relationship-based approach to the assessment process; however, they experience tension when required to incorporate structured psychosocial assessment processes. To undertake assessment and screening effectively, CFHNs require ongoing support, training and supervision to maintain this sensitive and emotionally challenging work.

Retro-aortic left renal vein--an anatomic variation description and review of literature.

PubMed

Suma, H Yekappa; Roopa, Kulkarni

2011-01-01

This study reports the presence of a retro-aortic renal vein on the left side draining into the inferior vena cava. This variation was observed during routine dissection in a female cadaver aged about 55 years. This variation is of importance because of its implications in renal transplantation, renal surgery, vascular surgery, uroradiology and gonadal surgeries. The knowledge of such variations can help the clinicians for its recognition and protection.

Rocket observations of electron-density irregularities in the equatorial ionosphere below 200 km

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Klaus, D. E.; Smith, L. G.

1978-01-01

Nike Apache rockets carring instrumentation to measure electron density and its fine structure in the equatorial ionosphere were launched from Chilca, Peru in May and June 1975. The fine structure experiment and the data reduction system are described. Results obtained from this system are presented and compared with those obtained by VHF radar and from other rocket studies. A description of the equatorial ionosphere and its features is also presented.

Statistical mechanics of economics I

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kusmartsev, F. V.

2011-02-01

We show that statistical mechanics is useful in the description of financial crisis and economics. Taking a large amount of instant snapshots of a market over an interval of time we construct their ensembles and study their statistical interference. This results in a probability description of the market and gives capital, money, income, wealth and debt distributions, which in the most cases takes the form of the Bose-Einstein distribution. In addition, statistical mechanics provides the main market equations and laws which govern the correlations between the amount of money, debt, product, prices and number of retailers. We applied the found relations to a study of the evolution of the economics in USA between the years 1996 to 2008 and observe that over that time the income of a major population is well described by the Bose-Einstein distribution which parameters are different for each year. Each financial crisis corresponds to a peak in the absolute activity coefficient. The analysis correctly indicates the past crises and predicts the future one.

[Descriptive study of the costs of diagnosis and treatment of cutaneous melanoma].

PubMed

Almazán-Fernández, F M; Serrano-Ortega, S; Moreno-Villalonga, J J

2009-11-01

Every year, health expenditure in Spain increases and, with it, the resources dedicated to cancer treatment. Cutaneous melanoma is the skin cancer with the highest morbidity and mortality. We performed a descriptive study of the costs, based on a theoretical model, to determine the healthcare expenditure for patients with cutaneous melanoma; the objective was to define the overall costs (direct and indirect) of the diagnostic and treatment process of cutaneous melanoma, divided into different stages or diagnostic-therapeutic steps, and the possible variations in these costs. For this purpose, we used the Andalusian analytical accountancy program of hospitals and districts (COAN-hyd) and the total costs module of the COAN for 2007, applied to the protocol we use in the melanoma unit of our hospital. The most important conclusions were that the greatest health care expenditure was observed inpatients with more advanced melanomas, with a poor prognosis. Management of the diagnostic-therapeutic process by dermatologists, the appropriate use of complementary tests, and operations performed by dermatologists reduce costs.

Who Supports the Successful Implementation and Sustainability of Evidence-Based Practices? Defining and Understanding the Roles of Intermediary and Purveyor Organizations.

PubMed

Franks, Robert P; Bory, Christopher T

2015-01-01

Research on implementation science has increased significantly over the past decade. In particular, psychologists have looked closely at the value and importance of bridging the gap between science and practice. As evidence-based practices (EBPs) become more prevalent, concrete mechanisms are needed to bring these scientifically supported treatments and interventions to community-based settings. Intermediary and purveyor organizations (IPOs) have emerged in recent years that specialize in bringing research to practice. Using a framework developed by Franks (), this descriptive study surveyed respondents that self-identified as IPOs and focused on identifying shared definitions, functions, and activities. Results indicated that seven descriptive roles previously identified were supported by this survey and many common shared activities, goals, and functions across these organizations were observed. Further, these organizations appear to be influenced by the growing field of implementation science. Limitations and implications of this study are discussed. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

A Crystal Field Approach to Orbitally Degenerate SMMs: Beyond the Spin-Only Hamiltonian

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bhaskaran, Lakshmi; Marriott, Katie; Murrie, Mark; Hill, Stephen

Single-Molecule Magnets (SMMs) with large magnetization reversal barriers are promising candidates for high-density information storage. Recently, a large uniaxial magnetic anisotropy was observed for a mononuclear trigonal bipyramidal (TBP) [NiIICl3(Me-abco)2] SMM. High-field EPR studies analyzed on the basis of a spin-only Hamiltonian give ¦D¦>400 cm-1, which is close to the spin-orbit coupling parameter λ = 668 cm-1 for NiII, suggesting an orbitally degenerate ground state. The spin-only description is ineffective in this limit, necessitating the development of a model that includes the orbital moment. Here we describe a phenomenological approach that takes into account a full description of crystal field, electron-electron repulsion and spin-orbit coupling effects on the ground state of a NiII ion in a TBP coordination geometry. The model is in good agreement with the high-field EPR experiments, validating its use for spectroscopic studies of orbitally degenerate molecular nanomagnets. This work was supported by the NSF (DMR-1309463).

A description of nurses' decision-making in managing electrocardiographic monitor alarms.

PubMed

Gazarian, Priscilla K; Carrier, Natalie; Cohen, Rachel; Schram, Haley; Shiromani, Samara

2015-01-01

To describe the cues and factors that nurses use in their decision-making when responding to clinical alarms. Alarms are designed to be very sensitive, and as a result, they are not very specific. Lack of adherence to the practice standards for electrocardiographic monitoring in hospital settings has been observed, resulting in overuse of the electrocardiographic monitoring. Monitoring without consideration of clinical indicators uses scarce healthcare resources and may even produce untoward circumstances because of alarm fatigue. With so many false alarms, alarm fatigue represents a symptom of a larger problem. It cannot be fixed until all of the factors that contribute to its existence have been examined. This was a qualitative descriptive study. This study was conducted at an academic medical centre located in the Northeast United States. Eight participants were enrolled using purposive sampling. Nurses were observed for two three-hour periods. Following each observation, the nurse was interviewed using the critical decision method to describe the cognitive processes related to the alarm activities. Qualitative data from the conducted interviews were analysed via an a priori framework founded in the critical decision method. This study reveals information, experience, guidance and decision-making as the four prominent categories contributing to nurses' decision-making in relation to alarm management. Managing technology was a category not identified a priori that emerged in the data analysis. Nurses revealed a breadth of information needed to adequately identify and interpret monitor alarms, and how they used that information to put the alarms into the particular context of an individual patient's situations. Understanding the cues and factors nurses use when responding to cardiac alarms will guide the development of learning experiences and inform policies to guide practice. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Memory perspective and self-concept in social anxiety: an exploratory study.

PubMed

Stopa, Lusia; Bryant, Tess

2004-07-01

The mental representation of self and observer perspective images are important maintaining factors in cognitive models of social phobia (Clark & Wells, 1995; Rapee & Heimberg, 1997). This study investigates Libby and Eibach's (2002) hypothesis that the observer perspective is used to recall memories that are incongruent with current self-concept. A total of 60 participants (divided into high and low social anxiety groups) completed a questionnaire in which they described current self-concept, recalled four memories of social occasions (two congruent, two incongruent), and rated memory age and vividness. Congruence was defined as memories that "fit" with current self-descriptions. A qualitative analysis of self-concept showed that both groups used a similar range of themes. High socially anxious participants recalled more observer perspective memories in the second incongruent memory. Congruence did not influence vividness, but public self-consciousness did. The implications of the results are discussed and suggestions made for future research.

Connection, regulation, and care plan innovation: a case study of four nursing homes.

PubMed

Colón-Emeric, Cathleen S; Lekan-Rutledge, Deborah; Utley-Smith, Queen; Ammarell, Natalie; Bailey, Donald; Piven, Mary L; Corazzini, Kirsten; Anderson, Ruth A

2006-01-01

We describe how connections among nursing home staff impact the care planning process using a complexity science framework. We completed six-month case studies of four nursing homes. Field observations (n = 274), shadowing encounters (n = 69), and in-depth interviews (n = 122) of 390 staff at all levels were conducted. Qualitative analysis produced a conceptual/thematic description and complexity science concepts were used to produce conceptual insights. We observed that greater levels of staff connection were associated with higher care plan specificity and innovation. Connection of the frontline nursing staff was crucial for (1) implementation of the formal care plan and (2) spontaneous informal care planning responsive to changing resident needs. Although regulations could theoretically improve cognitive diversity and information flow in care planning, we observed instances of regulatory oversight resulting in less specific care plans and abandonment of an effective care planning process. Interventions which improve staff connectedness may improve resident outcomes.

An analysis of learning process based on scientific approach in physical chemsitry experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arlianty, Widinda Normalia; Febriana, Beta Wulan; Diniaty, Artina

2017-03-01

This study aimed to analysis the quality of learning process based on scientific approach in physical chemistry experiment of Chemistry Education students, Islamic University of Indonesia. The research was descriptive qualitative. The samples of this research were 2nd semester student, class of 2015. Scientific data of learning process were collected by observation sheet and documentation of seven title experimental. The results showed that the achievement of scientific learning process on observing, questioning, experimenting and associating data were 73.98%; 81.79%; 80.74%; and 76.94% respectively, which categorized as medium. Furthermore, for aspect communicating had high category at 86.11% of level achievement.

Marine stratocumulus cloud characteristics from multichannel satellite measurements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Durkee, Philip A.; Mineart, Gary M.

1990-01-01

Understanding the effects of aerosols on the microphysical characteristics of marine stratocumulus clouds, and the resulting influence on cloud radiative properties, is a primary goal of FIRE. The potential for observing variations of cloud characteristics that might be related to variations of available aerosols is studied. Some results from theoretical estimates of cloud reflectance are presented. Also presented are the results of comparisons between aircraft measured microphysical characteristics and satellite detected radiative properties of marine stratocumulus clouds. These results are extracted from Mineart where the analysis procedures and a full discussion of the observations are presented. Only a brief description of the procedures and the composite results are presented.

Seroprevalence of Trypanosoma evansi in dromedaries (Camelus dromedarius) from the Canary Islands (Spain) using an antibody Ab-ELISA.

PubMed

Molina, J M; Ruiz, A; Juste, M C; Corbera, J A; Amador, R; Gutiérrez, C

1999-10-19

After the description in Grand Canary Island of a case of dromedary trypanosomosis caused by Trypanosoma evansi in 1998, an indirect enzyme immunoassay for the detection of specific anti-T. evansi IgG (Ab-ELISA) was used to assess the seroprevalence of this disease on the Canary Islands. Seroprevalence was 9.0% in the four studied islands (Gran Canaria, Tenerife, Lanzarote and Fuerteventura), varying from 10.0 to 7.5% by island (not significantly different). Prevalence using Ab-ELISA was higher than that observed when a parasitological method (microscopic observation of blood smears) was used (1.3%).

Systematic study of baryons in a three-body quark model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aslanzadeh, M.; Rajabi, A. A.

2016-09-01

We investigated the structure of baryons within a three-body quark model based on hypercentral approach. We considered an SU(6)-invariant potential consisting of the well-known "Coulomb-plus-linear" potential plus some multipole interactions as V ( x) ∝ x - n with n > 2. Then, through an analytical solution, we obtained the energy eigenvalues and eigenfunctions of the three-body problem and evaluated some observables such as the mass spectrum of light baryons and both the electromagnetic elastic form factors, and the charge radii of nucleons. We compared our results with the experimental data and showed that the present model provides a good description of the observed resonances.

Delirium in adult patients receiving palliative care: a systematic review of the literature.

PubMed

Sánchez-Román, Sofía; Beltrán Zavala, Cristina; Lara Solares, Argelia; Chiquete, Erwin

2014-01-01

Delirium in palliative care patients is common and its diagnosis and treatment is a major challenge. Our objective was to perform a literature analysis in two phases on the recent scientific evidence (2007-2012) on the diagnosis and treatment of delirium in adults receiving palliative care. In phase 1 (descriptive studies and narrative reviews) 133 relevant articles were identified: 73 addressed the issue of delirium secondarily, and 60 articles as the main topic. However, only 4 prospective observational studies in which delirium was central were identified. Of 135 articles analysed in phase 2 (clinical trials or descriptive studies on treatment of delirium in palliative care patients), only 3 were about prevention or treatment: 2 retrospective studies and one clinical trial on multicomponent prevention in cancer patients. Much of the recent literature is related to reviews on studies conducted more than a decade ago and on patients different to those receiving palliative care. In conclusion, recent scientific evidence on delirium in palliative care is limited and suboptimal. Prospective studies are urgently needed that focus specifically on this highly vulnerable population. Copyright © 2013 SEP y SEPB. Published by Elsevier España. All rights reserved.

Methods and Processes of Developing the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology-Veterinary (STROBE-Vet) Statement.

PubMed

Sargeant, J M; O'Connor, A M; Dohoo, I R; Erb, H N; Cevallos, M; Egger, M; Ersbøll, A K; Martin, S W; Nielsen, L R; Pearl, D L; Pfeiffer, D U; Sanchez, J; Torrence, M E; Vigre, H; Waldner, C; Ward, M P

2016-12-01

Reporting of observational studies in veterinary research presents challenges that often are not addressed in published reporting guidelines. Our objective was to develop an extension of the STROBE (Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology) statement that addresses unique reporting requirements for observational studies in veterinary medicine related to health, production, welfare, and food safety. We conducted a consensus meeting with 17 experts in Mississauga, Canada. Experts completed a premeeting survey about whether items in the STROBE statement should be modified or added to address unique issues related to observational studies in animal species with health, production, welfare, or food safety outcomes. During the meeting, each STROBE item was discussed to determine whether or not rewording was recommended, and whether additions were warranted. Anonymous voting was used to determine consensus. Six items required no modifications or additions. Modifications or additions were made to the STROBE items 1 (title and abstract), 3 (objectives), 5 (setting), 6 (participants), 7 (variables), 8 (data sources and measurement), 9 (bias), 10 (study size), 12 (statistical methods), 13 (participants), 14 (descriptive data), 15 (outcome data), 16 (main results), 17 (other analyses), 19 (limitations), and 22 (funding). The methods and processes used were similar to those used for other extensions of the STROBE statement. The use of this STROBE statement extension should improve reporting of observational studies in veterinary research by recognizing unique features of observational studies involving food-producing and companion animals, products of animal origin, aquaculture, and wildlife.

A Focused Observation Tool Using Dreyfus Stages of Skill Acquisition as an Evaluative Scale.

PubMed

Driver, Richard; Grose, Brian; Serafini, Mario; Cottrell, Scott; Sizemore, Daniel; Vallejo, Manuel

2017-01-01

Focused Observartion (FO) is associated with assessing complex skills and differs from generalized observations and evaluations. We've developed a FO assessing clinical procedural skills using Hubert Dreyfus Stages of Skill Acquisition as descriptive anchors. This study sought to analyze the effectiveness of this measure of skill progression. During week 1 and week 4 of training, FO was performed repetitively on 6 residents during endotracheal intubation. Skill stage ratings were converted to numerical scores. A dependent, paired samples t-test was calculated using total mean score (dependent variable) and an effect size. (Cohen's d) was performed to ascertain the standardized mean difference between observations. A significant improvement in mean scores occurred between Week 1 (AVG 1.2, STDV ± 0.1) and Week 4 (AVG 2.0, STDV ± 0.1) (t= -3.9, p<.05) Calculated Chohen's d indicates that this difference was meaningful. This study demonstrates success in adapting a Focused Observation technique and an innovative evaluative scale based upon Dreyfus stages of skill acquisition.

Weather monitoring and forecasting over eastern Attica (Greece) in the frame of FLIRE project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kotroni, Vassiliki; Lagouvardos, Konstantinos; Chrysoulakis, Nektarios; Makropoulos, Christtos; Mimikou, Maria; Papathanasiou, Chrysoula; Poursanidis, Dimitris

2015-04-01

In the frame of FLIRE project a Decision Support System has been built with the aim to support decision making of Civil Protection Agencies and local stakeholders in the area of east Attica (Greece), in the cases of forest fires and floods. In this presentation we focus on a specific action that focuses on the provision of high resolution short-term weather forecasting data as well as of dense meteorological observations over the study area. Both weather forecasts and observations serve as an input in the Weather Information Management Tool (WIMT) of the Decision Support System. We focus on: (a) the description of the adopted strategy for setting-up the operational weather forecasting chain that provides the weather forecasts for the FLIRE project needs, (b) the presentation of the surface network station that provides real-time weather monitoring of the study area and (c) the strategy adopted for issuing smart alerts for thunderstorm forecasting based of real-time lightning observations as well as satellite observations.

[About Itching and scabies. Pruritus in medical history--from ancient world to the French revolution].

PubMed

Weisshaar, E; König, A; Diepgen, T L; Eckart, W U

2008-12-01

Pruritus (itching) as a disease state and especially as a disease symptom has been object of medical and scientific descriptions and examinations in all epochs since the antiquity and in different cultural periods. Antiquity was dominated by observations and descriptions but during the course of medical history and particularly since the establishment of dermatology, more and more emphasis has been placed on classification and etiologic research.

Eating difficulties among stroke patients in the acute state: a descriptive, cross-sectional, comparative study.

PubMed

Medin, Jörgen; Windahl, Jenny; von Arbin, Magnus; Tham, Kerstin; Wredling, Regina

2011-09-01

To examine eating difficulties among stroke patients - a comparison between women and men. Gender differences have been reported in studies of stroke, but the findings are inconclusive and few of these studies have specifically focused on gender differences in eating difficulties. This study was a descriptive, cross-sectional, comparative study. Patients with stroke were recruited at a general hospital in Sweden. To detect eating difficulties, individual observations of the patients were made during one meal using a structured observation protocol. Assessment also included measurements of nutritional and oral status, degree of independence, stroke severity, neglect and well-being. One hundred and four patients (53·8% women) were included in the study. The proportion of stroke patients with one or more eating difficulties was 81·7%. The most common eating difficulties were 'managing food on the plate' (66·3%), 'food consumption' (54·8%) and 'sitting position' (45·2%). Women had lower 'food consumption', more severe stroke (p = 0·003), worse functional status (p = 0·001) and lower quality of life (QoL) (p=0·038) than men. More women than men were malnourished and living alone. After adjustment for functional status and motor arm, the odds ratio of having difficulties with food consumption was four times higher among women than men (1·7-9·4, confidence interval 95%). More women than men with stroke suffered from inadequate food consumption. The women had more severe strokes, experienced poorer QoL and showed lower functional status than the men. In the rehabilitation process of women with stroke, these factors should be taken into consideration. Structured observation of meals, including assessment of food consumption, might be necessary in acute stroke care to detect patients, especially women, who might need closer supervision and nutritional intervention. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

NGC 2024: Far-infrared and radio molecular observations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Thronson, H. A., Jr.; Lada, C. J.; Schwartz, P. R.; Smith, H. A.; Smith, J.; Glaccum, W.; Harper, D. A.; Loewenstein, R. F.

1984-01-01

Far infrared continuum and millimeter wave molecular observations are presented for the infrared and radio source NGC 2024. The measurements are obtained at relatively high angular resolution, enabling a description of the source energetics and mass distribution in greater detail than previously reported. The object appears to be dominated by a dense ridge of material, extended in the north/south direction and centered on the dark lane that is seen in visual photographs. Maps of the source using the high density molecules CS and HCN confirm this picture and allow a description of the core structure and molecular abundances. The radio molecular and infrared observations support the idea that an important exciting star in NGC 2024 has yet to be identified and is centered on the dense ridge about 1' south of the bright mid infrared source IRS 2. The data presented here allows a presentation of a model for the source.

Ancient observation of spinal cord injury: the case of the Assiryan lion.

PubMed

Luvizutto, Gustavo J; Siqueira, Emerson G; Hamamoto Filho, Pedro Tadao; Zétola, Viviane F; Lange, Marcos C; Theive, Hélio A; Resende, Luiz A; Bazan, Rodrigo

2018-05-19

The description of paraplegia is considered a milestone in the history of neurology. The Egyptians provided excellent descriptions of spinal cord injuries, the Bible has several references to paraplegia, and, more recently, the pioneers of neurology described the classic syndromes related to spinal injuries and paraplegia. Here, we describe an ancient observation by the Assyrian people of paraplegia in an animal. In ancient Assyria, lion hunting was a ritualized activity conducted for political and religious purposes. The Lion Hunt of Ashurbanipal, a series of Assyrian palace reliefs from the North Palace at Nineveh dating from approximately 645 BCE, which is now in the British Museum in London, UK, shows King Ashurbanipal hunting lions. Applying modern knowledge of mammalian dermatomes to the images, we reveal a detailed and precise observation of paraplegia following spinal cord injury. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

VizieR Online Data Catalog: Carlsberg Meridian Catalog, Vol. 7 (CMC7, 1993)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Copenhagen University Observatory; Royal Greenwich Observatory

1995-11-01

The Carlsberg Meridian Catalogues give accurate positions, proper motions and magnitudes of stars north of declination -45deg and down to 15th magnitude. They also contain observations of the solar system objects: Mars, Callisto, Saturn, Titan, Iapetus, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto, and many minor planets. Typical mean errors for an entry are 0.1arcsec in position, 3mas/yr in proper motion, and 0.05mag in magnitude. The stars observed belong to a large number of observing programmes typically dealing with the reference frame or with galactic kinematics. The Carlsberg Automatic Meridian Circle on La Palma is operated by Copenhagen University Observatory, Royal Greenwich Observatory, and Real Instituto y Observatorio de la Armada at the Observatory del Roque de los Muchachos of the Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias. For a detailed introduction, please refer to the printed catalogue. A description of the programme may also be found in the 1993 paper by Fabricius (=1993BICDS..42....5F), from which the present description is derived. Originally the CMC7 was planned to contain only observations from 1991. The actual CMC7 comprises nearly 20 month (January 1991 to August 1992) and is thus more extensive than foreseen when a description was published in Bull. CDS (=1993BICDS..42....5F) Published by Copenhagen University Observatory, Royal Greenwich Observatory and Real Instituto y Observatorio de la Armada en San Fernando. 1993. (5 data files).

Overview Snapshot Observational Technique (OSOT): Administration Manual Experimental Research Form.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coller, Alan R.

Overview Snapshot Observational Technical (OSOT) is specifically designed to allow users to obtain both pictorial and categorical data related to the transactions in context component of early childhood (prekindergarten and kindergarten) educational programs. Such information is especially useful in operations calling for descriptive evaluation.…

Descriptive analysis of the masticatory and salivary functions and gustatory sensitivity in healthy children.

PubMed

Marquezin, Maria Carolina Salomé; Pedroni-Pereira, Aline; Araujo, Darlle Santos; Rosar, João Vicente; Barbosa, Taís S; Castelo, Paula Midori

2016-08-01

The objective of this study is to better understand salivary and masticatory characteristics, this study evaluated the relationship among salivary parameters, bite force (BF), masticatory performance (MP) and gustatory sensitivity in healthy children. The secondary outcome was to evaluate possible gender differences. One hundred and sixteen eutrophic subjects aged 7-11 years old were evaluated, caries-free and with no definite need of orthodontic treatment. Salivary flow rate and pH, total protein (TP), alpha-amylase (AMY), calcium (CA) and phosphate (PHO) concentrations were determined in stimulated (SS) and unstimulated saliva (US). BF and MP were evaluated using digital gnathodynamometer and fractional sieving method, respectively. Gustatory sensitivity was determined by detecting the four primary tastes (sweet, salty, sour and bitter) in three different concentrations. Data were evaluated using descriptive statistics, Mann-Whitney/t-test, Spearman correlation and multiple regression analysis, considering α = 0.05. Significant positive correlation between taste and age was observed. CA and PHO concentrations correlated negatively with salivary flow and pH; sweet taste scores correlated with AMY concentrations and bitter taste sensitivity correlated with US flow rate (p < 0.05). No significant difference between genders in salivary, masticatory characteristics and gustatory sensitivity was observed. The regression analysis showed a weak relationship between the distribution of chewed particles among the different sieves and BF. The concentration of some analytes was influenced by salivary flow and pH. Age, saliva flow and AMY concentrations influenced gustatory sensitivity. In addition, salivary, masticatory and taste characteristics did not differ between genders, and only a weak relation between MP and BF was observed.

Voxel-based lesion mapping of meningioma: a comprehensive lesion location mapping of 260 lesions.

PubMed

Hirayama, Ryuichi; Kinoshita, Manabu; Arita, Hideyuki; Kagawa, Naoki; Kishima, Haruhiko; Hashimoto, Naoya; Fujimoto, Yasunori; Yoshimine, Toshiki

2018-06-01

OBJECTIVE In the present study the authors aimed to determine preferred locations of meningiomas by avoiding descriptive analysis and instead using voxel-based lesion mapping and 3D image-rendering techniques. METHODS Magnetic resonance images obtained in 248 treatment-naïve meningioma patients with 260 lesions were retrospectively and consecutively collected. All images were registered to a 1-mm isotropic, high-resolution, T1-weighted brain atlas provided by the Montreal Neurological Institute (the MNI152), and a lesion frequency map was created, followed by 3D volume rendering to visualize the preferred locations of meningiomas in 3D. RESULTS The 3D lesion frequency map clearly showed that skull base structures such as parasellar, sphenoid wing, and petroclival regions were commonly affected by the tumor. The middle one-third of the superior sagittal sinus was most commonly affected in parasagittal tumors. Substantial lesion accumulation was observed around the leptomeninges covering the central sulcus and the sylvian fissure, with very few lesions observed at the frontal, parietal, and occipital convexities. CONCLUSIONS Using an objective visualization method, meningiomas were shown to be located around the middle third of the superior sagittal sinus, the perisylvian convexity, and the skull base. These observations, which are in line with previous descriptive analyses, justify further use of voxel-based lesion mapping techniques to help understand the biological nature of this disease.

Does Sexual Selection Influence Ornamentation of Hemipenes in Old World Snakes?

PubMed

Andonov, Kostadin; Natchev, Nikolay; Kornilev, Yurii V; Tzankov, Nikolay

2017-09-01

In the present study, we investigated and documented the morphology of the male copulatory organs (hemipenes) in fifteen wide-ranging snake species. The species represent four families (Boidae, Colubridae, Lamprophiidae, and Viperidae) and ten genera. We applied the same preparation techniques for all species, successfully everting and expanding the organs completely. The detailed description of the general morphology of the male copulatory organs was based on 31 specimens. Our data were compared with published observations and we point out some incorrectly described details in previous investigations. We provide the first description of the hemipenial morphology for three ophidian species (Elaphe sauromates, Telescopus fallax, and Malpolon insignitus). In addition to the morphological characteristics of the hemipenes presented in the research, we propose the adoption of a standardized index describing the hemipenial proportions. The immense variation in hemipenial morphology presupposes its dynamic evolution, but we suggest that many of the significant structures observed here may have escaped previous researchers due to differing methodologies. Some of the highly ornamented morphologies that we describe are consistent with a locking mechanism during copulation. However, other morphologies may relate to the variety of mating behaviors observed. As a result, we propose that sexual selection is the major driver affecting the hemipenial ornamentation in snakes. Anat Rec, 300:1680-1694, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Observed Normativity and Deviance in Friendship Dyads' Conversations About Sex and the Relations With Youths' Perceived Sexual Peer Norms.

PubMed

van de Bongardt, Daphne; Reitz, Ellen; Overbeek, Geertjan; Boislard, Marie-Aude; Burk, Bill; Deković, Maja

2017-08-01

The current study examined the relations between observed normativity and deviance during adolescents' and young adults' conversations about sex with their friends and their individual perceptions of sexual peer norms. Participants were 16-21-year-old same-sex friendship dyads (31 male and 30 female dyads) who performed a peer interaction task that consisted of five discussion assignments focusing on party planning, sexual double standards, condom use, homosexuality, and consensual sex. Videotaped discussions were coded to capture the amounts of normative talk (e.g., consistent with notions of healthy sexuality) and deviant talk (e.g., consistent with notions of risky sexuality), and the verbal or nonverbal reinforcement thereof. Participants also completed individual questionnaires to assess their perceived sexual descriptive norms, injunctive norms, pressure, and risk norms among their peers. Actor-partner interdependence model (APIM) results revealed that youths' perceived descriptive, injunctive, and risk norms, but not their experienced peer pressure, were related to both their own (actor effects) and their friends' (partner effects) normativity and deviance. Overall, more deviance was related to perceiving friends to be more sexually active, more approving of having sex, and engaging in more risky sex, whereas more normativity was related to these perceptions in the opposite direction. Gender differences in the APIMs indicated that interactive normativity and deviance was related to perceived descriptive, injunctive, and risk norms for boys, but only to perceived injunctive norms for girls. These findings demonstrate the importance of assessing the dyadic nature of youths' sexual communication with friends, their relation to individual sexual peer norm perceptions, and gender differences therein.

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

Andrés, Nahuel, E-mail: nandres@iafe.uba.ar; Gómez, Daniel; Departamento de Física, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Pabellón I, 1428 Buenos Aires

We present a full two-fluid magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) description for a completely ionized hydrogen plasma, retaining the effects of the Hall current, electron pressure, and electron inertia. According to this description, each plasma species introduces a new spatial scale: the ion inertial length λ{sub i} and the electron inertial length λ{sub e}, which are not present in the traditional MHD description. In the present paper, we seek for possible changes in the energy power spectrum in fully developed turbulent regimes, using numerical simulations of the two-fluid equations in two-and-a-half dimensions. We have been able to reproduce different scaling laws in differentmore » spectral ranges, as it has been observed in the solar wind for the magnetic energy spectrum. At the smallest wavenumbers where plain MHD is valid, we obtain an inertial range following a Kolmogorov k{sup −5∕3} law. For intermediate wavenumbers such that λ{sub i}{sup −1}≪k≪λ{sub e}{sup −1}, the spectrum is modified to a k{sup −7∕3} power-law, as has also been obtained for Hall-MHD neglecting electron inertia terms. When electron inertia is retained, a new spectral region given by k>λ{sub e}{sup −1} arises. The power spectrum for magnetic energy in this region is given by a k{sup −11∕3} power law. Finally, when the terms of electron inertia are retained, we study the self-consistent electric field. Our results are discussed and compared with those obtained in the solar wind observations and previous simulations.« less

Blastopathies and microcephaly in a Chornobyl impacted region of Ukraine

PubMed Central

Wertelecki, Wladimir; Yevtushok, Lyubov; Zymak-Zakutnia, Natalia; Wang, Bin; Sosyniuk, Zoriana; Lapchenko, Serhiy; Hobart, Holly H

2014-01-01

This population-based descriptive epidemiology study demonstrates that rates of conjoined twins, teratomas, neural tube defects, microcephaly, and microphthalmia in the Rivne province of Ukraine are among the highest in Europe. The province is 200 km distant from the Chornobyl site and its northern half, a region known as Polissia, is significantly polluted by ionizing radiation. The rates of neural tube defects, microcephaly and microphthalmia in Polissia are statistically significantly higher than in the rest of the province. A survey of at-birth head size showed that values were statistically smaller in males and females born in one Polissia county than among neonates born in the capital city. These observations provide clues for confirmatory and cause-effect prospective investigations. The strength of this study stems from a reliance on international standards prevalent in Europe and a decade-long population-based surveillance of congenital malformations in two distinct large populations. The limitations of this study, as those of other descriptive epidemiology investigations, is that identified cause-effect associations require further assessment by specific prospective investigations designed to address specific teratogenic factors. PMID:24666273

Structural Equation Modeling to Assess Discrimination, Stress, Social Support, and Depression among the Elderly Women in South Korea.

PubMed

Lee, Hung Sa; Kim, Chunmi

2016-09-01

The purpose of this study was to find the relationship and conceptual model of discrimination, stress, support, and depression among the elderly in South Korea. This was a cross-sectional descriptive study involving 207 community-dwelling elders. Data were collected through questionnaires from May 5 to May 31, 2014 in community senior centers, and analyzed using descriptive statistics, t test, analysis of variance, Scheffé test, and structural equation modeling. There were significant effects of discrimination on stress, support on stress and stress on depression. Moreover, there were two significant indirect effects observed between discrimination and depression, and between support and depression. For each indirect effect, the mediating factor was stress. Additionally, there was no direct effect between discrimination and depression or support. This study found that social support and discrimination had indirect effects on depression through stress. More specifically, decreased stress led to a reduction of depression. Therefore, social support based on a thorough understanding of stress is very important for caring elderly who are depressive. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier B.V.

On the Time Evolution of Gamma-Ray Burst Pulses: A Self-Consistent Description.

PubMed

Ryde; Svensson

2000-01-20

For the first time, the consequences of combining two well-established empirical relations that describe different aspects of the spectral evolution of observed gamma-ray burst (GRB) pulses are explored. These empirical relations are (1) the hardness-intensity correlation and (2) the hardness-photon fluence correlation. From these we find a self-consistent, quantitative, and compact description for the temporal evolution of pulse decay phases within a GRB light curve. In particular, we show that in the case in which the two empirical relations are both valid, the instantaneous photon flux (intensity) must behave as 1&solm0;&parl0;1+t&solm0;tau&parr0;, where tau is a time constant that can be expressed in terms of the parameters of the two empirical relations. The time evolution is fully defined by two initial constants and two parameters. We study a complete sample of 83 bright GRB pulses observed by the Compton Gamma-Ray Observatory and identify a major subgroup of GRB pulses ( approximately 45%) which satisfy the spectral-temporal behavior described above. In particular, the decay phase follows a reciprocal law in time. It is unclear what physics causes such a decay phase.

An analysis of the impact of LHC Run I proton-lead data on nuclear parton densities.

PubMed

Armesto, Néstor; Paukkunen, Hannu; Penín, José Manuel; Salgado, Carlos A; Zurita, Pía

2016-01-01

We report on an analysis of the impact of available experimental data on hard processes in proton-lead collisions during Run I at the large hadron collider on nuclear modifications of parton distribution functions. Our analysis is restricted to the EPS09 and DSSZ global fits. The measurements that we consider comprise production of massive gauge bosons, jets, charged hadrons and pions. This is the first time a study of nuclear PDFs includes this number of different observables. The goal of the paper is twofold: (i) checking the description of the data by nPDFs, as well as the relevance of these nuclear effects, in a quantitative manner; (ii) testing the constraining power of these data in eventual global fits, for which we use the Bayesian reweighting technique. We find an overall good, even too good, description of the data, indicating that more constraining power would require a better control over the systematic uncertainties and/or the proper proton-proton reference from LHC Run II. Some of the observables, however, show sizeable tension with specific choices of proton and nuclear PDFs. We also comment on the corresponding improvements as regards the theoretical treatment.

Investigation of Fluctuation-Induced Electron Transport in Hall Thrusters with a 2D Hybrid Code in the Azimuthal and Axial Coordinates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fernandez, Eduardo; Borelli, Noah; Cappelli, Mark; Gascon, Nicolas

2003-10-01

Most current Hall thruster simulation efforts employ either 1D (axial), or 2D (axial and radial) codes. These descriptions crucially depend on the use of an ad-hoc perpendicular electron mobility. Several models for the mobility are typically invoked: classical, Bohm, empirically based, wall-induced, as well as combinations of the above. Experimentally, it is observed that fluctuations and electron transport depend on axial distance and operating parameters. Theoretically, linear stability analyses have predicted a number of unstable modes; yet the nonlinear character of the fluctuations and/or their contribution to electron transport remains poorly understood. Motivated by these observations, a 2D code in the azimuthal and axial coordinates has been written. In particular, the simulation self-consistently calculates the azimuthal disturbances resulting in fluctuating drifts, which in turn (if properly correlated with plasma density disturbances) result in fluctuation-driven electron transport. The characterization of the turbulence at various operating parameters and across the channel length is also the object of this study. A description of the hybrid code used in the simulation as well as the initial results will be presented.

Newborn physiological responses to noise in the neonatal unit.

PubMed

Cardoso, Sandra Maria Schefer; Kozlowski, Lorena de Cássia; Lacerda, Adriana Bender Moreira de; Marques, Jair Mendes; Ribas, Angela

2015-01-01

The incorporation of technologies in the care of infants has contributed to increased survival; however, this has turned neonatal unit into a noisy environment. To evaluate the physiological and functional effects resulting from the exposure to noise on low-weight newborns in incubators in a neonatal unit. Prospective, observational, quantitative, exploratory, descriptive study. The adopted statistical method included tables of frequency, descriptive statistics, and Student's t-test, with a 0.05 level of significance. As data collection tools, the environmental noise and the noise inside of the incubator were evaluated, and the Assessment of Preterm Infant Behavior scale was used to assess premature newborn behavior and projected specifically to document the neurobehavioral functioning of preterm infants. The data collection occurred from September of 2012 to April of 2013; 61 low-weight newborns admitted in the neonatal unit and in incubators were observed. Significant differences in the variables heart rate and oxygen saturation were noted when newborns were exposed to noise. Low-weight neonates in incubators present physiological alterations when facing discomfort caused by environmental noise in neonatal units. Copyright © 2015 Associação Brasileira de Otorrinolaringologia e Cirurgia Cérvico-Facial. Published by Elsevier Editora Ltda. All rights reserved.

Internal anatomy of Haliclystus antarcticus (Cnidaria, Staurozoa) with a discussion on histological features used in Staurozoan taxonomy.

PubMed

Miranda, Lucília S; Collins, Allen G; Marques, Antonio C

2013-12-01

Stauromedusae have relatively few macromorphological characters, making both their taxonomy and identification difficult. For this reason, histological characters are also employed in the taxonomy of the group. This study presents a detailed description of the histomorphology of Haliclystus antarcticus Pfeffer, 1889 (Cnidaria, Staurozoa). We make new observations for the species and for the class, and address functional, taxonomical, and evolutionary aspects of staurozoan histo-anatomy. A complete reconstruction of H. antarcticus body plan is used to guide a more detailed observation, based on light microscopy, of structures rarely cited in the literature, such as the intertentacular lobules, the ostia between adjacent perradial pockets, and the male and female gonadal vesicles. Two possible regions of nematocyst formation are hypothesized and discussed. We also provide a review of the current use of histological characters in the taxonomy of the group. Understanding the body plan of stauromedusae is a challenge, because each single individual presents characters found in medusae and in polyps of other medusozoans. Comprehensive histological descriptions are important to establish relations of homology within Staurozoa and Cnidaria, providing crucial data on their evolution. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

A description of the first live Poouli captured

USGS Publications Warehouse

Baker, P.E.

1998-01-01

The Poouli (Melamprosops phaeosoma) is an endangered Hawaiian honeycreeper found only on Maui, Hawaii. It was rare at the time of its discovery in 1973, but by 1997 was on the brink of extinction with fewer than six individuals left. Two specimens were collected for the description of the species, but both proved to be immature by comparison with a pair of adults at a nest. Until 1997 no Poouli had ever been captured alive, and consequently descriptions of adult Poouli were produced from field observations. In 1997, I captured an adult male Poouli which is described here for the first time. Detailed comparisons of the plumage of this adult with that of an immature specimen and previous descriptions of the species are discussed in this paper, as are differences in plumage between adult and immature males and females that may aid the sexing and ageing of birds in the field.

Early descriptions of acromegaly and gigantism and their historical evolution as clinical entities.

PubMed

Mammis, Antonios; Eloy, Jean Anderson; Liu, James K

2010-10-01

Giants have been a subject of fascination throughout history. Whereas descriptions of giants have existed in the lay literature for millennia, the first attempt at a medical description was published by Johannes Wier in 1567. However, it was Pierre Marie, in 1886, who established the term "acromegaly" for the first time and established a distinct clinical diagnosis with clear clinical descriptions in 2 patients with the characteristic presentation. Multiple autopsy findings revealed a consistent correlation between acromegaly and pituitary enlargement. In 1909, Harvey Cushing postulated a “hormone of growth" as the underlying pathophysiological trigger involved in pituitary hypersecretion in patients with acromegaly. This theory was supported by his observations of clinical remission in patients with acromegaly in whom he had performed hypophysectomy. In this paper, the authors present some of the early accounts of acromegaly and gigantism, and describe its historical evolution as a medical and surgical entity.

7 CFR 1737.70 - Description of feasibility study

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 11 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Description of feasibility study 1737.70 Section 1737... TELECOMMUNICATIONS LOANS Feasibility Determination Procedures § 1737.70 Description of feasibility study (a) In connection with each loan RUS shall prepare a feasibility study that includes sections on consolidated loan...

7 CFR 1737.70 - Description of feasibility study

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 11 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Description of feasibility study 1737.70 Section 1737... TELECOMMUNICATIONS LOANS Feasibility Determination Procedures § 1737.70 Description of feasibility study (a) In connection with each loan RUS shall prepare a feasibility study that includes sections on consolidated loan...

Safety assessment for the postictal confusional phase following complex partial seizure.

PubMed

Tucker, C

1985-06-01

Misunderstanding of the postictal confusional state that follows the complex partial seizure has caused emotional and physical harm to patients. Concern about this phenomenon and its effects upon the patient prompted this study to explore, describe, and document one method of intervention to lessen these harmful effects. An evaluative descriptive research design was employed to assess patient safety during and after the postictal confusional phase following a complex partial seizure. A closed-structured questionnaire and participant observation were the methods used to collect data for this study. A Level of Safety Tool was specifically designed for this study.

Ethnomathematics: Exploration in Javanese culture

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Risdiyanti, Irma; Charitas Indra Prahmana, Rully

2017-12-01

This research is the exploration study to indicate the correlation between mathematics and Javanese culture. These studies have a purpose of exploring Javanese culture in Yogyakarta that contains mathematics concept namely Batik. The activity of society in making Batik in all regency at Yogyakarta is the focus of this study. The research use ethnography method. The technic to collection data uses principles in ethnography such as observation, interview, documentation, and field note making with the original ethnography description. The result is exploration ethnomathematics in the several motifs of Yogyakarta batik that contains philosophy, deep cultural value, and mathematics concept, especially geometry transform subject.

Neural systems language: a formal modeling language for the systematic description, unambiguous communication, and automated digital curation of neural connectivity.

PubMed

Brown, Ramsay A; Swanson, Larry W

2013-09-01

Systematic description and the unambiguous communication of findings and models remain among the unresolved fundamental challenges in systems neuroscience. No common descriptive frameworks exist to describe systematically the connective architecture of the nervous system, even at the grossest level of observation. Furthermore, the accelerating volume of novel data generated on neural connectivity outpaces the rate at which this data is curated into neuroinformatics databases to synthesize digitally systems-level insights from disjointed reports and observations. To help address these challenges, we propose the Neural Systems Language (NSyL). NSyL is a modeling language to be used by investigators to encode and communicate systematically reports of neural connectivity from neuroanatomy and brain imaging. NSyL engenders systematic description and communication of connectivity irrespective of the animal taxon described, experimental or observational technique implemented, or nomenclature referenced. As a language, NSyL is internally consistent, concise, and comprehensible to both humans and computers. NSyL is a promising development for systematizing the representation of neural architecture, effectively managing the increasing volume of data on neural connectivity and streamlining systems neuroscience research. Here we present similar precedent systems, how NSyL extends existing frameworks, and the reasoning behind NSyL's development. We explore NSyL's potential for balancing robustness and consistency in representation by encoding previously reported assertions of connectivity from the literature as examples. Finally, we propose and discuss the implications of a framework for how NSyL will be digitally implemented in the future to streamline curation of experimental results and bridge the gaps among anatomists, imagers, and neuroinformatics databases. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Understanding Black Hole X-ray Binaries: The Case of Cygnus X-1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pottschmidt, Katja

2008-01-01

Black Hole X-ray Binaries are known to display distinct emission states that differ in their X-ray spectra, their X-ray timing properties (on times scales less than 1 s) and their radio emission. In recent years monitoring observations, specially with NASA's Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE), have provided us with detailed empirical modeling of the phenomenology of the different states as well as a unification scheme of the long term evolution of black holes, transient and persistent, in terms of these states. Observations of the persistent High Mass X-ray Binary (HMXB) Cygnus X-l have been at the forefront of learning about black hole states since its optical identification through a state transition in 1973. In this talk I will present in depth studies of several different aspects of the accretion process in this system. The main data base for these studies is an ongoing RXTE and Ryle radio telescope bi-weekly monitoring campaign that started in 1997. I will discuss high-resolution timing results, especially power spectra, which first gave rise to the Lorentzian description now widely used for black hole and neutron star binaries, and time lags, which we found to be especially well suited to identify state transitions. The evolution of spectral, timing, and radio parameters over years will be shown, including the rms-flux relation and the observation of a clearly correlated radio/x-ray flare. We also observed Cygnus X-1 with INTEGRAL, which allowed us to extend timing and spectral studies to higher energies, with XMM, which provided strong constraints on the parameters of the 6.4 keV iron fluorescence line, and with Chandra, which provided the most in depth study to date of the stellar wind in this system. Models based on the physical conditions in the accretion region are still mainly concentrated on the one or other of the observational areas but they are expanding: as an example I will review results from a jet model for the quantitative description of the radio through X-ray spectra. I will conclude with an outlook on a truly multi-instrument observing campaign of Cygnus X-1 that was performed in 2008 April in order to better constrain the jet models mentioned above (and provide a unique data set for cross-calibration).

The Effect of Descriptive Norms on Pregaming Frequency: Tests of Five Moderators.

PubMed

Merrill, Jennifer E; Kenney, Shannon R; Carey, Kate B

2016-07-02

Pregaming is highly prevalent on college campuses and associated with heightened levels of intoxication and risk of alcohol consequences. However, research examining the correlates of pregaming behavior is limited. Descriptive norms (i.e., perceptions about the prevalence or frequency of a behavior) are reliable and comparatively strong predictors of general drinking behavior, with recent evidence indicating that they are also associated with pregaming. We tested the hypothesis that higher descriptive norms for pregaming frequency would be associated with personal pregaming frequency. We also tested whether this effect would be stronger in the context of several theory-based moderators: female gender, higher injunctive norms (i.e., perceptions of others' attitudes toward a particular behavior), a more positive attitude toward pregaming, a stronger sense of identification with the drinking habits of other students, and stronger social comparison tendencies. College student drinkers (N = 198, 63% female) participated in an online survey assessing frequency of pregaming, descriptive norms, and hypothesized moderators. A multiple regression model revealed that higher descriptive norms, a more positive attitude toward pregaming, and stronger peer identification were significantly associated with greater pregaming frequency among drinkers. However, no moderators of the association between descriptive norms and pregaming frequency were observed. Descriptive norms are robust predictors of pregaming behavior, for both genders and across levels of several potential moderators. Future research seeking to understand pregaming behavior should consider descriptive norms, as well as personal attitudes and identification with student peers, as targets of interventions designed to reduce pregaming.

Qualitative Descriptive Methods in Health Science Research.

PubMed

Colorafi, Karen Jiggins; Evans, Bronwynne

2016-07-01

The purpose of this methodology paper is to describe an approach to qualitative design known as qualitative descriptive that is well suited to junior health sciences researchers because it can be used with a variety of theoretical approaches, sampling techniques, and data collection strategies. It is often difficult for junior qualitative researchers to pull together the tools and resources they need to embark on a high-quality qualitative research study and to manage the volumes of data they collect during qualitative studies. This paper seeks to pull together much needed resources and provide an overview of methods. A step-by-step guide to planning a qualitative descriptive study and analyzing the data is provided, utilizing exemplars from the authors' research. This paper presents steps to conducting a qualitative descriptive study under the following headings: describing the qualitative descriptive approach, designing a qualitative descriptive study, steps to data analysis, and ensuring rigor of findings. The qualitative descriptive approach results in a summary in everyday, factual language that facilitates understanding of a selected phenomenon across disciplines of health science researchers. © The Author(s) 2016.

A laboratory study of nonlinear changes in the directionality of extreme seas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Latheef, M.; Swan, C.; Spinneken, J.

2017-03-01

This paper concerns the description of surface water waves, specifically nonlinear changes in the directionality. Supporting calculations are provided to establish the best method of directional wave generation, the preferred method of directional analysis and the inputs on which such a method should be based. These calculations show that a random directional method, in which the phasing, amplitude and direction of propagation of individual wave components are chosen randomly, has benefits in achieving the required ergodicity. In terms of analysis procedures, the extended maximum entropy principle, with inputs based upon vector quantities, produces the best description of directionality. With laboratory data describing the water surface elevation and the two horizontal velocity components at a single point, several steep sea states are considered. The results confirm that, as the steepness of a sea state increases, the overall directionality of the sea state reduces. More importantly, it is also shown that the largest waves become less spread or more unidirectional than the sea state as a whole. This provides an important link to earlier descriptions of deterministic wave groups produced by frequency focusing, helps to explain recent field observations and has important practical implications for the design of marine structures and vessels.

Attitudes, norms, identity and environmental behaviour: using an expanded theory of planned behaviour to predict participation in a kerbside recycling programme.

PubMed

Nigbur, Dennis; Lyons, Evanthia; Uzzell, David

2010-06-01

In an effort to contribute to greater understanding of norms and identity in the theory of planned behaviour, an extended model was used to predict residential kerbside recycling, with self-identity, personal norms, neighbourhood identification, and injunctive and descriptive social norms as additional predictors. Data from a field study (N=527) using questionnaire measures of predictor variables and an observational measure of recycling behaviour supported the theory. Intentions predicted behaviour, while attitudes, perceived control, and the personal norm predicted intention to recycle. The interaction between neighbourhood identification and injunctive social norms in turn predicted personal norms. Self-identity and the descriptive social norm significantly added to the original theory in predicting intentions as well as behaviour directly. A replication survey on the self-reported recycling behaviours of a random residential sample (N=264) supported the model obtained previously. These findings offer a useful extension of the theory of planned behaviour and some practicable suggestions for pro-recycling interventions. It may be productive to appeal to self-identity by making people feel like recyclers, and to stimulate both injunctive and descriptive norms in the neighbourhood.

Transport of Solar Energetic Particles across the Parker field direction due to field line meandering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Laitinen, T. L.; Kopp, A.; Effenberger, F.; Dalla, S.; Marsh, M. S.

2014-12-01

Multi-spacecraft observations of Solar Energetic Particles (SEPs) show that the SEPs can spread large distances across the mean Parker spiral field. The SEPs accelerated during a solar eruption can be observed 360° around the Sun, and the dependence of SEP peak intensity on heliographic longitude at 1 AU has been fitted with Gaussian profiles with σ=30-50° for several events (e.g., Dresing et al 2014; Richardson et al 2014). SEP anisotropy measurements suggest that interplanetary transport is an important factor to the SEP cross-field extent (Dresing et al 2014). However, the currently used diffusive Fokker Planck (FP) description of SEP transport, with realistic diffusion coefficients, has been found insufficient to explain the SEP event cross-field extents. Recently Laitinen et al (2013) emphasised the importance of particle propagation along meandering field lines, which cannot be described as diffusion. They showed that early in an event field line meandering dominates particle cross-field transport and produces events wider than the FP description. They also introduced a new FP model that incorporates both field line meandering and SEP cross-field diffusion using stochastic differential equations and a constant background magnetic field. In this work, we implement the new FP model into Parker field geometry, to study the evolution of an SEP event in the interplanetary space. We compare the new model to the traditional FP approach by using particle and field line diffusion coefficients that are calculated consistently for both models using an assumed radial and spectral description of the turbulence evolution. We find that while the traditional SEP propagation modelling gives typically longitudinal extent with σ=10-20°, the new model results in values σ=30-50°, which is consistent with SEP observations. We conclude that field line meandering must be taken into account when modelling SEP propagation in the interplanetary space.

Supplement: The Rate of Binary Black Hole Mergers Inferred from Advanced LIGO Observations Surrounding GW150914

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Abbott, B. P.; Abbott, R.; Abbott, T. D.; Abernathy, M. R.; Acernese, F.; Ackley, K.; Adams, C.; Adams, T.; Addesso, P.; Adhikari, R. X.;

Descriptive Analyses of Pediatric Food Refusal: The Structure of Parental Attention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Woods, Julia N.; Borrero, John C.; Laud, Rinita B.; Borrero, Carrie S. W.

2010-01-01

Mealtime observations were conducted and occurrences of appropriate and inappropriate mealtime behavior and various forms of parental attention (e.g., coaxing, reprimands) were recorded for 25 children admitted to an intensive feeding program and their parents. Using the data from the observations, lag sequential analyses were conducted to…

Global soil moisture from the aquarius satellite: Description and initial assessment

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Aquarius satellite observations over land offer a new resource for measuring soil moisture from space. Although Aquarius was designed for ocean salinity mapping, our objective in this investigation is to exploit the large amount of land observations that Aquarius acquires and extend the mission scop...

Baryon production from cluster hadronisation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gieseke, Stefan; Kirchgaeßer, Patrick; Plätzer, Simon

2018-02-01

We present an extension to the colour reconnection model in the Monte Carlo event generator Herwig to account for the production of baryons and compare it to a series of observables for soft physics. The new model is able to improve the description of charged-particle multiplicities and hadron flavour observables in pp collisions.

Music Acquisition of Children in Rural Zimbabwe: A Longitudinal Observation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kreutzer, Natalie Jones

2001-01-01

This article provides qualitative description of behaviors that bring children to musical competence by age 5 in Nharira Communal Lands in Zimbabwe. Based on observation of three villages comprised of multiple extended family groups, the narrative focuses on area demographics, the community's people, musical influences, musical interactions of…

50 CFR 216.175 - Requirements for monitoring and reporting.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

...., FFG, DDG, or CG). (G) Length of time observers maintained visual contact with marine mammal. (H) Wave... height in feet (high, low and average during exercise). (I) Narrative description of sensors and... sensor. (F) Length of time observers maintained visual contact with marine mammal. (G) Wave height. (H...

Universal model for collective access patterns in the Internet traffic dynamics: A superstatistical approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tamazian, A.; Nguyen, V. D.; Markelov, O. A.; Bogachev, M. I.

2016-07-01

We suggest a universal phenomenological description for the collective access patterns in the Internet traffic dynamics both at local and wide area network levels that takes into account erratic fluctuations imposed by cooperative user behaviour. Our description is based on the superstatistical approach and leads to the q-exponential inter-session time and session size distributions that are also in perfect agreement with empirical observations. The validity of the proposed description is confirmed explicitly by the analysis of complete 10-day traffic traces from the WIDE backbone link and from the local campus area network downlink from the Internet Service Provider. Remarkably, the same functional forms have been observed in the historic access patterns from single WWW servers. The suggested approach effectively accounts for the complex interplay of both “calm” and “bursty” user access patterns within a single-model setting. It also provides average sojourn time estimates with reasonable accuracy, as indicated by the queuing system performance simulation, this way largely overcoming the failure of Poisson modelling of the Internet traffic dynamics.

Functional neuroanatomy in the pre-Hippocratic era: observations from the Iliad of Homer.

PubMed

Sahlas, D J

2001-06-01

To describe observations of neurological significance made in the Iliad of Homer and to interpret these relative to pre-Hippocratic concepts of health and disease in Ancient Greece. English translations of the Iliad were analyzed for references of neurological significance, and the Homeric Greek was subsequently reviewed for accuracy. Findings are discussed in the context of ancient Greek ideas regarding anatomy and physiology, early descriptions and conceptualizations of the nervous system, ancient Greek theories concerning illness and disease, and the practice of medicine in the pre-Hippocratic era. Descriptions of injuries sustained by soldiers fighting in the Trojan War represent some of the earliest case histories of neurotrauma. Passages in the Iliad describe immediate death after penetrating head trauma with injury to the brain or the brainstem, make reference to clinical signs of brain injury, and mention neurological signs and symptoms after damage to the spinal cord, brachial plexus, and peripheral nerves. The Iliad of Homer contains many descriptions of traumatic injury to the nervous system and provides us with 3,000-year-old references to some of the basic principles of functional neuroanatomy.

Descriptive studies: what they can and cannot do.

PubMed

Grimes, David A; Schulz, Kenneth F

2002-01-12

Descriptive studies often represent the first scientific toe in the water in new areas of inquiry. A fundamental element of descriptive reporting is a clear, specific, and measurable definition of the disease or condition in question. Like newspapers, good descriptive reporting answers the five basic W questions: who, what, why, when, where. and a sixth: so what? Case reports, case-series reports, cross-sectional studies, and surveillance studies deal with individuals, whereas ecological correlational studies examine populations. The case report is the least-publishable unit in medical literature. Case-series reports aggregate individual cases in one publication. Clustering of unusual cases in a short period often heralds a new epidemic, as happened with AIDS. Cross-sectional (prevalence) studies describe the health of populations. Surveillance can be thought of as watchfulness over a community; feedback to those who need to know is an integral component of surveillance. Ecological correlational studies look for associations between exposures and outcomes in populations-eg, per capita cigarette sales and rates of coronary artery disease-rather than in individuals. Three important uses of descriptive studies include trend analysis, health-care planning, and hypothesis generation. A frequent error in reports of descriptive studies is overstepping the data: studies without a comparison group allow no inferences to be drawn about associations, causal or otherwise. Hypotheses about causation from descriptive studies are often tested in rigorous analytical studies.

A Lunar Optical-Ultraviolet-Infrared Synthesis Array (LOUISA)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Burns, Jack O. (Editor); Johnson, Stewart W. (Editor); Duric, Nebojsa (Editor)

1992-01-01

This document contains papers presented at a workshop held to consider 'optical ultraviolet infrared' interferometric observations from the moon. Part 1 is an introduction. Part 2 is a description of current and planned ground-based interferometers. Part 3 is a description of potential space-based interferometers. Part 4 addresses the potential for interferometry on the moon. Part 5 is the report of the workshop's working groups. Concluding remarks, summary, and conclusions are presented in Part 6.

An optical model description of momentum transfer in heavy ion collisions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Khan, F.; Khandelwal, G. S.; Townsend, Lawrence W.; Wilson, J. W.; Norbury, John W.

1989-01-01

An optical model description of momentum transfer in relativistic heavy ion collisions, based upon composite particle multiple scattering theory, is presented. The imaginary component of the complex momentum transfer, which comes from the absorptive part of the optical potential, is identified as the longitudinal momentum downshift of the projectile. Predictions of fragment momentum distribution observables are made and compared with experimental data. Use of the model as a tool for estimating collision impact parameters is discussed.

Radiation from quantum weakly dynamical horizons in loop quantum gravity.

PubMed

Pranzetti, Daniele

2012-07-06

We provide a statistical mechanical analysis of quantum horizons near equilibrium in the grand canonical ensemble. By matching the description of the nonequilibrium phase in terms of weakly dynamical horizons with a local statistical framework, we implement loop quantum gravity dynamics near the boundary. The resulting radiation process provides a quantum gravity description of the horizon evaporation. For large black holes, the spectrum we derive presents a discrete structure which could be potentially observable.

Study of the relation between Pc 3 micropulsations and magnetosheath fluctuations and of the multisatellite, multimeasurement investigation of the earth's bow shock

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1976-01-01

The structure and direction of bow shock waves and the occurence of Pc 3, 4 micropulsations were investigated. An observational description is given of a quasi-parallel structure in a plasma parameter regime. The use of approximation to estimate the thickness of thin, nearly perpendicular bow shocks at supralaminar Mach numbers is discussed. The pattern of energies of backstreaming protons in the foreshock are predicted.

Model of Team Organization and Behavior and Team Description Method

DTIC Science & Technology

1984-10-01

cumbersome or difficult to use or which did not result in the quality of data desired were revised, or discarded and replaced by alternative procedures. The...observation and study of a variety of real-world teams performing real-world missions. Since time and resources for model development were limited, only...of equipment and supplies , team strength, terrain, weather, and illumination (if’ the mission it performed at night). Any or all of these factors may

Patterns and Variations in Microvascular Decompression for Trigeminal Neuralgia

PubMed Central

TODA, Hiroki; GOTO, Masanori; IWASAKI, Koichi

2015-01-01

Microvascular decompression (MVD) is a highly effective surgical treatment for trigeminal neuralgia (TN). Although there is little prospective clinical evidence, accumulated observational studies have demonstrated the benefits of MVD for refractory TN. In the current surgical practice of MVD for TN, there have been recognized patterns and variations in surgical anatomy and various decompression techniques. Here we provide a stepwise description of surgical procedures and relevant anatomical characteristics, as well as procedural options. PMID:25925756

[Quality of sleep and selective attention in university students: descriptive cross-sectional study].

PubMed

Fontana, Silvia Alicia; Raimondi, Waldina; Rizzo, María Laura

2014-09-05

Sleep quality not only refers to sleeping well at night, but also includes appropriate daytime functioning. Poor quality of sleep can affect a variety of attention processes. The aim of this investigation was to evaluate the relationship between the perceived quality of sleep and selective focus in a group of college students. A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out in a group of 52 Argentinian college students of the Universidad Adventista del Plata. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, the Continuous Performance Test and the Trail Making Test were applied. The main results indicate that students sleep an average of 6.48 hours. Generally half of the population tested had a good quality of sleep. However, the dispersion seen in some components demonstrates the heterogeneity of the sample in these variables. It was observed that the evaluated attention processes yielded different levels of alteration in the total sample: major variability in the process of process and in the divided-attention processes were detected. A lower percentage of alteration was observed in the process of attention support. Poor quality of sleep has more impact in the sub processes with greater participation of corticocortical circuits (selective and divided attention) and greater involvement of the prefrontal cortex. Fewer difficulties were found in the attention-support processes that rely on subcortical regions and have less frontal involvement.

The collagenic architecture of human dura mater.

PubMed

Protasoni, Marina; Sangiorgi, Simone; Cividini, Andrea; Culuvaris, Gloria Tiffany; Tomei, Giustino; Dell'Orbo, Carlo; Raspanti, Mario; Balbi, Sergio; Reguzzoni, Marcella

2011-06-01

Human dura mater is the most external meningeal sheet surrounding the CNS. It provides an efficient protection to intracranial structures and represents the most important site for CSF turnover. Its intrinsic architecture is made up of fibrous tissue including collagenic and elastic fibers that guarantee the maintenance of its biophysical features. The recent technical advances in the repair of dural defects have allowed for the creation of many synthetic and biological grafts. However, no detailed studies on the 3D microscopic disposition of collagenic fibers in dura mater are available. The authors report on the collagenic 3D architecture of normal dura mater highlighting the orientation, disposition in 3 dimensions, and shape of the collagen fibers with respect to the observed layer. Thirty-two dura mater specimens were collected during cranial decompressive surgical procedures, fixed in 2.5% Karnovsky solution, and digested in 1 N NaOH solution. After a routine procedure, the specimens were observed using a scanning electron microscope. The authors distinguished the following 5 layers in the fibrous dura mater of varying thicknesses, orientation, and structures: bone surface, external median, vascular, internal median, and arachnoid layers. The description of the ultrastructural 3D organization of the different layers of dura mater will give us more information for the creation of synthetic grafts that are as similar as possible to normal dura mater. This description will be also related to the study of the neoplastic invasion.

Rehabilitation activities, out-patient visits and employment in patients and partners the first year after ICU: a descriptive study.

PubMed

Agård, A S; Lomborg, K; Tønnesen, E; Egerod, I

2014-04-01

To describe the influence of critical illness on patients and their partners in relation to rehabilitation, healthcare consumption and employment during the first year after Intensive Care Unit discharge. Longitudinal, observational and descriptive. Five Danish Intensive Care Units. Data were collected from hospital charts, population registers and interviews with 18 patients and their partners at 3 and 12 months after intensive care discharge. Descriptive statistical analysis was performed. Post-discharge inpatient rehabilitation was median (range) 52 (15-174) days (n=10). Community-based training was 12 (3-34) weeks (n=15). Neuropsychological rehabilitation following brain damage was 13-20 weeks (n=3). Number of out-patient visits 1 year before and 1 year after were mean 3 versus 8, and General Practitioner visits were 12 versus 18. Three patients resumed work at pre-hospitalisation employment rates after 12 months. After the patients' stay in intensive care, partners' mean full-time sick leave was 17 (range 0-124) days and 21 (range 0-106) days part time. Partners often had long commutes. Most patients had comprehensive recovery needs requiring months of rehabilitation. Some partners needed extensive sick leave. The study reveals the human cost of critical illness and intensive care for patients and partners in the Danish welfare system. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Equilibrium and diffusion studies of metal-hydrogen systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maroevic, Petar

Several new methods and models have been developed pertaining to equilibrium properties of hydrogen in random binary substitutional alloys at room and lower temperatures, describing both statistics and kinetics of hydrogen in them. They represent a solution to the problem of the complete Fermi-Dirac description which is physically appropriate for these systems. Hydrogen diffusion which proceeds via lattice assisted quantum tunneling at room and lower temperatures requires a new and different description from the one based on the thermal hopping picture, which pertains only to relatively high temperatures. It is also shown that the analogs of the solution to the Fermi-Dirac problem of hydrogen can be successfully applied to the description of vacancies in a hydrogenated system, a phenomena known to occur due to high hydrogen-vacancy binding energies and the creation of hydrogen-vacancy clusters. The solution based on this model applies to much lower temperatures and higher concentrations than the tradition alone. This methodology has also been applied to the surface problem where very large vacancy and hydrogen concentrations occur. This is of special importance since mechanical properties are known to be greatly affected by the surface. As another consequence of hydrogen induced vacancies, hydrogen induced lattice migration (HILM) occurs. This has been demonstrated in our electrical resistivity study of palladium wires where recrystallization and annealing effects were observed upon hydrogen-heat-treatment (HHT).

The Role of Alcohol Perceptions as Mediators Between Personality and Alcohol-Related Outcomes Among Incoming College-Student Drinkers

PubMed Central

Hustad, John T. P.; Pearson, Matthew R.; Neighbors, Clayton; Borsari, Brian

2014-01-01

After high school, college students escalate their drinking at a faster rate than their noncollege-attending peers, and alcohol use in high school is one of the strongest predictors of alcohol use in college. Therefore, an improved understanding of the role of predictors of alcohol use during the critical developmental period when individuals transition to college has direct clinical implications to reduce alcohol-related harms. We used path analysis in the present study to examine the predictive effects of personality (e.g., impulsivity, sensation seeking, hopelessness, and anxiety sensitivity) and three measures of alcohol perception: descriptive norms, injunctive norms, and perceptions regarding the perceived role of drinking in college on alcohol-related outcomes. Participants were 490 incoming freshmen college students. Results indicated that descriptive norms, injunctive norms, and the role of drinking largely mediated the effects of personality on alcohol outcomes. In contrast, both impulsivity and hopelessness exhibited direct effects on alcohol-related problems. The perceived role of drinking was a particularly robust predictor of outcomes and mediator of the effects of personality traits, including sensation seeking and impulsivity on alcohol outcomes. The intertwined relationships observed in this study between personality factors, descriptive norms, injunctive norms, and the role of drinking highlight the importance of investigating these predictors simultaneously. Findings support the implementation of interventions that target these specific perceptions about the role of drinking in college. PMID:24467197

Wheelchair accessibility to public buildings in Istanbul.

PubMed

Evcil, A Nilay

2009-03-01

Accessibility to public environment is the human right and basic need of each citizen and is one of the fundamental considerations for urban planning. The aim of this study is to determine the compliance of public buildings in central business districts (CBD) of Istanbul, Turkey, to wheelchair accessibility to the guidelines of the instrument and identify architectural barriers faced by wheelchair users. This is a descriptive study of 26 public buildings in CBD of Istanbul. The instrument used is the adapted Useh, Moyo and Munyonga questionnaire to collect the data from direct observation and measurement. Descriptive statistics of simple percentages and means are used to explain the compliance to the guidelines of the instrument and wheelchair accessibility. The descriptive survey results indicate that wheelchair users experience many accessibility problems in public environment of the most urbanised city (cultural capital of Europe in 2010) in a developing country. It is found that the major architectural barrier is the public transportation items with the lowest mean compliance (25%). Beside this, the most compliant to the instrument is entrance to building items with 79% as mean percentage. It is also found that there is an intention to improve accessibility when building construction period is investigated. This article describes the example of the compliance of public buildings accessibility when the country has legislation, but lacking regulations about accessibility for the wheelchair users.

Magic Mirror, on the Wall-Which Is the Right Study Design of Them All?-Part I.

PubMed

Vetter, Thomas R

2017-06-01

The assessment of a new or existing treatment or intervention typically answers 1 of 3 research-related questions: (1) "Can it work?" (efficacy); (2) "Does it work?" (effectiveness); and (3) "Is it worth it?" (efficiency or cost-effectiveness). There are a number of study designs that on a situational basis are appropriate to apply in conducting research. These study designs are classified as experimental, quasi-experimental, or observational, with observational studies being further divided into descriptive and analytic categories. This first of a 2-part statistical tutorial reviews these 3 salient research questions and describes a subset of the most common types of experimental and quasi-experimental study design. Attention is focused on the strengths and weaknesses of each study design to assist in choosing which is appropriate for a given study objective and hypothesis as well as the particular study setting and available resources and data. Specific studies and papers are highlighted as examples of a well-chosen, clearly stated, and properly executed study design type.

A qualitative analysis of health professionals' job descriptions for surgical service delivery in Uganda.

PubMed

Buwembo, William; Munabi, Ian G; Galukande, Moses; Kituuka, Olivia; Luboga, Samuel A

2014-01-01

The ever increasing demand for surgical services in sub-Saharan Africa is creating a need to increase the number of health workers able to provide surgical care. This calls for the optimisation of all available human resources to provide universal access to essential and emergency surgical services. One way of optimising already scarce human resources for health is by clarifying job descriptions to guide the scope of practice, measuring rewards/benefits for the health workers providing surgical care, and informing education and training for health professionals. This study set out to determine the scope of the mandate to perform surgical procedures in current job descriptions of surgical care health professionals in Uganda. A document review was conducted of job descriptions for the health professionals responsible for surgical service delivery in the Ugandan Health care system. The job descriptions were extracted and subjected to a qualitative content data analysis approach using a text based RQDA package of the open source R statistical computing software. It was observed that there was no explicit mention of assignment of delivery of surgical services to a particular cadre. Instead the bulk of direct patient related care, including surgical attention, was assigned to the lower cadres, in particular the medical officer. Senior cadres were assigned to perform predominantly advisory and managerial roles in the health care system. In addition, a no cost opportunity to task shift surgical service delivery to the senior clinical officers was identified. There is a need to specifically assign the mandate to provide surgical care tasks, according to degree of complexity, to adequately trained cadres of health workers. Health professionals' current job descriptions are not explicit, and therefore do not adequately support proper training, deployment, defined scope of practice, and remuneration for equitable surgical service delivery in Uganda. Such deliberate assignment of mandates will provide a means of increasing surgical service delivery through further optimisation of the available human resources for health.

Subject descriptions, control groups, and research designs in published studies of language-impaired children.

PubMed

Schmitt, J F; Meline, T J

1990-12-01

We reviewed the 1983-1988 issues of six journals that frequently publish papers including specifically language-impaired (LI) subjects. A total of 92 research reports provided data for our review. The research reports included experimental studies, ex post facto studies, and intervention studies. These studies represent a broad spectrum of the theoretical and empirical foundations of knowledge regarding LI children. The analysis of the published research centered on subject descriptions and the use of control groups. A descriptive analysis of the data showed few consistent trends among the studies with respect to subject selection, subject description, and the number and types of control groups. We discuss the importance of more complete subject descriptions in studies of LI children as well as the importance of the choice of matching criteria for control groups in between-subjects designs.

Soho Ultraviolet Coronograph Spectrometer (UVCS) Mission Operations and Data Analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kohl, John L.; Gurman, Joseph (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

The scientific goal of UVCS is to obtain detailed empirical descriptions of the extended solar corona as it evolves over the solar cycle and to use these descriptions to identify and understand the physical processes responsible for coronal heating, solar wind acceleration, coronal mass ejections (CMEs), and the phenomena that establish the plasma properties of the solar wind as measured by 'in situ' solar wind instruments. This report covers the period from 01 December 2000 to 31 January 2002. During that time, UVCS observations have consisted of three types: (1) standard synoptic observations comprising, primarily, the H I Ly(alpha) line profile and the O VI 103.2 and 103.7 nm intensity over a range of heights from 1.5 to about 3.0 solar radii and covering 360 degrees about the sun; (2) sit and stare watches for CMEs; and (3) special observations designed by the UVCS Lead Observer of the Week for a specific scientific purpose. The special observations are often coordinated with those of other space-based and ground-based instruments and they often are part of SOHO joint observation programs and campaigns. Lead observers have included UVCS Co-Investigators, scientists from the solar physics community and several graduate and undergraduate level students.

Evolution in totally constrained models: Schrödinger vs. Heisenberg pictures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Olmedo, Javier

2016-06-01

We study the relation between two evolution pictures that are currently considered for totally constrained theories. Both descriptions are based on Rovelli’s evolving constants approach, where one identifies a (possibly local) degree of freedom of the system as an internal time. This method is well understood classically in several situations. The purpose of this paper is to further analyze this approach at the quantum level. Concretely, we will compare the (Schrödinger-like) picture where the physical states evolve in time with the (Heisenberg-like) picture in which one defines parametrized observables (or evolving constants of the motion). We will show that in the particular situations considered in this paper (the parametrized relativistic particle and a spatially flat homogeneous and isotropic spacetime coupled to a massless scalar field) both descriptions are equivalent. We will finally comment on possible issues and on the genericness of the equivalence between both pictures.

Topology of megagauss magnetic fields and of heat-carrying electrons produced in a high-power laser-solid interaction.

PubMed

Lancia, L; Albertazzi, B; Boniface, C; Grisollet, A; Riquier, R; Chaland, F; Le Thanh, K-C; Mellor, Ph; Antici, P; Buffechoux, S; Chen, S N; Doria, D; Nakatsutsumi, M; Peth, C; Swantusch, M; Stardubtsev, M; Palumbo, L; Borghesi, M; Willi, O; Pépin, H; Fuchs, J

2014-12-05

The intricate spatial and energy distribution of magnetic fields, self-generated during high power laser irradiation (at Iλ^{2}∼10^{13}-10^{14}  W.cm^{-2}.μm^{2}) of a solid target, and of the heat-carrying electron currents, is studied in inertial confinement fusion (ICF) relevant conditions. This is done by comparing proton radiography measurements of the fields to an improved magnetohydrodynamic description that fully takes into account the nonlocality of the heat transport. We show that, in these conditions, magnetic fields are rapidly advected radially along the target surface and compressed over long time scales into the dense parts of the target. As a consequence, the electrons are weakly magnetized in most parts of the plasma flow, and we observe a reemergence of nonlocality which is a crucial effect for a correct description of the energetics of ICF experiments.

Auxiliary field diffusion Monte Carlo calculations of light and medium-mass nuclei with local chiral interactions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lonardoni, D.; Gandolfi, S.; Lynn, J. E.; Petrie, C.; Carlson, J.; Schmidt, K. E.; Schwenk, A.

2018-04-01

Quantum Monte Carlo methods have recently been employed to study properties of nuclei and infinite matter using local chiral effective-field-theory interactions. In this work, we present a detailed description of the auxiliary field diffusion Monte Carlo algorithm for nuclei in combination with local chiral two- and three-nucleon interactions up to next-to-next-to-leading order. We show results for the binding energy, charge radius, charge form factor, and Coulomb sum rule in nuclei with 3 ≤A ≤16 . Particular attention is devoted to the effect of different operator structures in the three-body force for different cutoffs. The outcomes suggest that local chiral interactions fit to few-body observables give a very good description of the ground-state properties of nuclei up to 16O, with the exception of one fit for the softer cutoff which predicts overbinding in larger nuclei.

Prediction of flow dynamics using point processes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hirata, Yoshito; Stemler, Thomas; Eroglu, Deniz; Marwan, Norbert

2018-01-01

Describing a time series parsimoniously is the first step to study the underlying dynamics. For a time-discrete system, a generating partition provides a compact description such that a time series and a symbolic sequence are one-to-one. But, for a time-continuous system, such a compact description does not have a solid basis. Here, we propose to describe a time-continuous time series using a local cross section and the times when the orbit crosses the local cross section. We show that if such a series of crossing times and some past observations are given, we can predict the system's dynamics with fine accuracy. This reconstructability neither depends strongly on the size nor the placement of the local cross section if we have a sufficiently long database. We demonstrate the proposed method using the Lorenz model as well as the actual measurement of wind speed.

Adiabatic description of capture into resonance and surfatron acceleration of charged particles by electromagnetic waves.

PubMed

Artemyev, A V; Neishtadt, A I; Zelenyi, L M; Vainchtein, D L

2010-12-01

We present an analytical and numerical study of the surfatron acceleration of nonrelativistic charged particles by electromagnetic waves. The acceleration is caused by capture of particles into resonance with one of the waves. We investigate capture for systems with one or two waves and provide conditions under which the obtained results can be applied to systems with more than two waves. In the case of a single wave, the once captured particles never leave the resonance and their velocity grows linearly with time. However, if there are two waves in the system, the upper bound of the energy gain may exist and we find the analytical value of that bound. We discuss several generalizations including the relativistic limit, different wave amplitudes, and a wide range of the waves' wavenumbers. The obtained results are used for qualitative description of some phenomena observed in the Earth's magnetosphere. © 2010 American Institute of Physics.

Measurements of near-bed intra-wave sediment entrainment above vortex ripples

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thorne, Peter D.; Davies, Alan G.; Williams, Jon J.

2003-10-01

In general, descriptions of suspended sediment transport beneath surface waves are based on the turbulent diffusion concept. However, it is recognised that this approach is questionable for the suspension of sediment when the seabed is rippled. In this case, at least if the ripples are sufficiently steep, the entrainment process is likely to be well organised, and associated with vortex formation and shedding from the ripples. To investigate the entrainment process above ripples, a study was carried out in a large-scale wave flume facility. Utilising acoustic techniques, visualisations of the intra-wave sediment entrainment above vortex ripples have been generated. The observations provide a detailed description of entrainment, which is interpreted here in relation to the process of vortex formation and shedding. It is anticipated that such measurements will contribute to the development of improved physical process models of sediment transport in the rippled bed regime.

Neck and shoulder disorders in medical secretaries. Part II. Ergonomical work environment and symptom profile.

PubMed

Kamwendo, K; Linton, S J; Moritz, U

1991-01-01

Seventy-nine medical secretaries with neck and shoulder pain were included in a study aimed at an in-depth description of the ergonomical work environment and the participant's symptom profile, as well as analysing relationships between ergonomical factors and symptoms. Data were collected by daily ratings, questionnaires, and direct observation. The symptom profile showed low mean daily ratings of perceived fatigue and pain, a low medicine consumption, and few stress symptoms. A mean number of 2.1 undesirable work postures was observed. The correlations between perceived fatigue, pain, and well-being with number of shifts from sitting to standing and time spent typing, were generally small. This study suggests that risk factors for neck and shoulder pain are individual and multifactorial.

Maternal perception of fetal movements in the third trimester: A qualitative description.

PubMed

Bradford, Billie; Maude, Robyn

2017-12-26

Decreased fetal movements is a common reason for unscheduled antenatal assessment and is associated with adverse pregnancy outcome. Fetal movement counting has not been proven to reduce stillbirths in high-quality studies. The aim was to explore a qualitative account of fetal movements in the third trimester as perceived by pregnant women themselves. Using qualitative descriptive methodology, interviews were conducted with 19 women experiencing an uncomplicated first pregnancy, at two timepoints in their third trimester. Interview transcripts were later analysed using qualitative content analysis. Pregnant women described a sustained increase in strength, frequency and variation in types of fetal movements from quickening until 28-32 weeks. Patterns of fetal movement were consistently described as involving increased movement later in the day and as having an inverse relationship to the women's own activity and rest. At term, the most notable feature was increased strength. Kicking and jolting movements decreased whilst pushing and rolling movements increased. Maternal descriptions of fetal activity in this study were consistent with other qualitative studies and with ultrasound studies of fetal development. Pregnant women observe a complex range of fetal movement patterns, actions and responses that are likely to be consistent with normal development. Maternal perception of a qualitative change in fetal movements may be clinically important and should take precedence over any numeric definition of decreased fetal movement. Midwives may inform women that it is normal to perceive more fetal movement in the evening and increasingly strong movements as pregnancy advances. Copyright © 2017 Australian College of Midwives. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The First NEON School in La Silla

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dennefeld, M.; Melo, C.; Selman, F.

2016-06-01

The NEON Observing Schools have long provided PhD students with practical experience in the preparation, execution and reduction of astronomical observations, primarily at northern observatories. The NEON School was held in Chile for the first time, with observations being conducted at La Silla. The school was attended by 20 students, all from South America, and observations were performed with two telescopes, including the New Technology Telescope. A brief description of the school is presented and the observing projects and their results are described.

The rings of Uranus

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Elliot, J. L.; Dunham, E.; Mink, D.

1977-01-01

A description is given of the observation of five brief occultations of the star SAO 158687 which occurred both before and after its occultation by Uranus on March 10, 1977. The events were observed with a three-channel occultation photometer, attached to a 91-cm telescope. The observations indicate that at least five rings encircle the planet Uranus. Possible reasons for the narrowness of the Uranus rings are discussed.

Description and catalog of ionospheric F-region data, Jicamarca Radar Observatory, November 1966 - April 1969

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Clark, W. L.; Mcclure, J. P.; Vanzandt, T. E.

1976-01-01

Equatorial ionospheric F-region data reduced from the Jicamarca Radar Observatory (JRO) incoherent scatter observations for particular periods is described. It lists in catalog form the times of the observations made during those periods. These F-region data include the electron concentration and the electron and ion temperatures. The data were inferred from the incoherent scatter observations of JRO.

The Race To Understand A Changing Planet

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sellers, Piers J.

2012-01-01

The Earth's climate is changing rapidly. In some respects, the rate of change is outpacing the predictions of only a few years ago. The challenge to Earth Science is to put forward credible projections of possible future climates so that the public and policy makers can make science-based decisions about energy development strategies. Models, observations and experiments all play strong roles in improving knowledge and increasing confidence in our predictions. The models have progressed from simple, coarse-resolution descriptions of atmospheric dynamics and physics only twenty years ago, to full-up Earth System models (ESMs) that include complete descriptions of the oceans and cryosphere. It has been convincingly argued that such complexity - the construction of realistic "toy" Earth's - is necessary to address the complex processes involved in climate change, including not only the physical atmosphere, oceans and cryosphere, but also the carbon cycle - both its natural and anthropogenic components - and the biosphere. Observations, particularly satellite observations, have more or less kept pace with the demands of the modelers, being able to observe progressively more and different facets of the Earth system, but the global satellite fleet is in need of an overhaul very soon. Lastly, field experiments and process studies confront the models with facts and allow us to develop more sophisticated and accurate satellite data algorithms. The challenges facing our relatively small Earth and planetary science communities are considerable and the stakes are significant. The stakeholders, now numbering 7 billion but soon to be 10 billion, will be relying on our results and capabilitie's to guide them into the future.

The race to understand a changing planet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sellers, P. J.

2012-12-01

The Earth's climate is changing rapidly. In some respects, the rate of change is outpacing the predictions of only a few years ago. The challenge to Earth Science is to put forward credible projections of possible future climates so that the public and policy makers can make science-based decisions about energy development strategies. Models, observations and experiments all play strong roles in improving knowledge and increasing confidence in our predictions. The models have progressed from simple, coarse-resolution descriptions of atmospheric dynamics and physics only twenty years ago, to full-up Earth System models (ESMs) that include complete descriptions of the oceans and cryosphere. It has been convincingly argued that such complexity - the construction of realistic "toy" Earths - is necessary to address the complex processes involved in climate change, including not only the physical atmosphere, oceans and cryosphere, but also the carbon cycle - both its natural and anthropogenic components - and the biosphere. Observations, particularly satellite observations, have more or less kept pace with the demands of the modelers, being able to observe progressively more and different facets of the Earth system, but the global satellite fleet is in need of an overhaul very soon. Lastly, field experiments and process studies confront the models with facts and allow us to develop more sophisticated and accurate satellite data algorithms. The challenges facing our relatively small Earth and planetary science communities are considerable and the stakes are significant. The stakeholders, now numbering 7 billion but soon to be 10 billion, will be relying on our results and capabilities to guide them into the future.

Telescope Scientist on the Advanced X-ray Astrophysics Observatory

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

VanSpeybroeck, L.; Smith, Carl M. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

This period included many scientific observations made with the Chandra Observatory. The results, as is well known, are spectacular. Fortunately, the High Resolution Mirror Assembly (HRMA) performance continues to be essentially identical to that predicted from ground calibration data. The Telescope Scientist Team has improved the mirror model to provide a more accurate description to the Chandra observers and enable them to reduce the systematic errors and uncertainties in their data reduction. We also have made considerable progress in improving the scattering model. There also has been progress in the scientific program. At this time 58 distant clusters of galaxies have been observed. We are performing a systematic analysis of this rather large data set for the purpose of determining absolute distances utilizing the Sunyaev Zel'dovich effect. These observations also have been used to study the evolution of the cluster baryon mass function and the cosmological constraints which result from this evolution.

Tilted shear-free axially symmetric fluids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Herrera, L.; Di Prisco, A.; Carot, J.

2018-06-01

We carry on a systematic study of the physical properties of axially symmetric fluid distributions, which appear to be geodesic, shearfree, irrotational, nondissipative, and purely electric, for the comoving congruence of observers, from the point of view of the tilted congruence. The vanishing of the magnetic part of the Weyl tensor for the comoving congruence of observers, suggests that no gravitational radiation is produced during the evolution of the system. Instead, the magnetic part of the Weyl tensor as measured by tilted observers is nonvanishing (as well as the shear, the four-acceleration, the vorticity and the dissipation), giving rise to a flux of gravitational radiation that can be characterized through the super-Poynting vector. This result strengthens further the relevance of the role of observers in the description of a physical system. An explanation of this dual interpretation in terms of the information theory, is provided.

Evaluation of observational research reports published in Turkish nursing journals.

PubMed

Karaçam, Z; Şen, E; Yildirim, B

2015-09-01

The aim of this literature-based descriptive study was to examine the reporting of the observational research studies published in peer-reviewed nursing journals in Turkey. Eleven peer-reviewed nursing journals printed on a regular basis in Turkey between 2007 and 2012 were selected. These journals were searched for observational research studies, and 502 studies were selected and examined by using the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology Statement. Of the 502 studies, 495 were cross-sectional, 3 were cohort, and 4 were case controlled. Summary and introduction and aim sections were sufficient in most of the studies. The methods sections of the reports were mostly not reported: 64.3% of the reports did not indicate eligibility/inclusion criteria; sampling method, 67.0%; possible sources of bias, 99.2%; ways to reach sample size, 92.6%. In the results section, the number of individuals participating in each stage of the studies (44.0%) and in other analyses made (39.2%) was not reported. In the discussion section, a main comment about research findings was partly made (97.4%), and limitations of the studies and possible sources of bias were not written in 99.0% of the studies. This study clearly revealed that the observational research studies published in nursing journals in Turkey did not fulfil the important criteria and needed to be improved. Information obtained from this study can contribute to improvement of the quality of reporting observational studies in nursing and thus using obtained findings in practice. © 2015 International Council of Nurses.

The Specificity of Observational Studies in Physical Activity and Sports Sciences: Moving Forward in Mixed Methods Research and Proposals for Achieving Quantitative and Qualitative Symmetry.

PubMed

Anguera, M Teresa; Camerino, Oleguer; Castañer, Marta; Sánchez-Algarra, Pedro; Onwuegbuzie, Anthony J

2017-01-01

Mixed methods studies are been increasingly applied to a diversity of fields. In this paper, we discuss the growing use-and enormous potential-of mixed methods research in the field of sport and physical activity. A second aim is to contribute to strengthening the characteristics of mixed methods research by showing how systematic observation offers rigor within a flexible framework that can be applied to a wide range of situations. Observational methodology is characterized by high scientific rigor and flexibility throughout its different stages and allows the objective study of spontaneous behavior in natural settings, with no external influence. Mixed methods researchers need to take bold yet thoughtful decisions regarding both substantive and procedural issues. We present three fundamental and complementary ideas to guide researchers in this respect: we show why studies of sport and physical activity that use a mixed methods research approach should be included in the field of mixed methods research, we highlight the numerous possibilities offered by observational methodology in this field through the transformation of descriptive data into quantifiable code matrices, and we discuss possible solutions for achieving true integration of qualitative and quantitative findings.

A comparison of the scaling properties of the English, Spanish, French, and Chinese EQ-5D descriptive systems.

PubMed

Luo, Nan; Li, Minghui; Chevalier, Julie; Lloyd, Andrew; Herdman, Michael

2013-10-01

To compare the scaling properties of the English, Spanish, French, and Chinese versions of the EQ-5D-3L and EQ-5D-5L descriptive systems. Members of the general populations in the UK, Spain, France, and China were interviewed to measure the severity of health problems represented by the response labels used in the EQ-5D descriptive systems using a visual analog scale. Multiple linear regression models were used to compare the perceived label severity across the four language groups. Severity scores for labels from each EQ-5D-5L dimension scale were compared with each other to assess ordinality. EQ-5D-5L and EQ-5D-3L labels used for describing different levels of health problems were rated differently, while those describing the same level of health problems were rated similarly. For example, the deviation of any group mean from the grand severity mean score for the label 'slight(ly)' was no larger than 5 points on a 0-100 scale for all five EQ-5D dimensions (p > 0.05 for all, t tests). Label ratings violating hypothesized ordinality of the EQ-5D-5L scales were observed in only a small proportion of respondents. Our study provided some preliminary evidence supporting the ordinality and equivalence of the EQ-5D-5L and EQ-5D-3L descriptive systems across four major languages.

A Study of Strengths and Weaknesses of Descriptive Assessment from Principals, Teachers and Experts Points of View in Chaharmahal and Bakhteyari Primary Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sharief, Mostafa; Naderi, Mahin; Hiedari, Maryam Shoja; Roodbari, Omolbanin; Jalilvand, Mohammad Reza

2012-01-01

The aim of current study is to determine the strengths and weaknesses of descriptive evaluation from the viewpoint of principals, teachers and experts of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province. A descriptive survey was performed. Statistical population includes 208 principals, 303 teachers, and 100 executive experts of descriptive evaluation scheme in…

"Lomonosov" Satellite—Space Observatory to Study Extreme Phenomena in Space

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sadovnichii, V. A.; Panasyuk, M. I.; Amelyushkin, A. M.; Bogomolov, V. V.; Benghin, V. V.; Garipov, G. K.; Kalegaev, V. V.; Klimov, P. A.; Khrenov, B. A.; Petrov, V. L.; Sharakin, S. A.; Shirokov, A. V.; Svertilov, S. I.; Zotov, M. Y.; Yashin, I. V.; Gorbovskoy, E. S.; Lipunov, V. M.; Park, I. H.; Lee, J.; Jeong, S.; Kim, M. B.; Jeong, H. M.; Shprits, Y. Y.; Angelopoulos, V.; Russell, C. T.; Runov, A.; Turner, D.; Strangeway, R. J.; Caron, R.; Biktemerova, S.; Grinyuk, A.; Lavrova, M.; Tkachev, L.; Tkachenko, A.; Martinez, O.; Salazar, H.; Ponce, E.

2017-11-01

The "Lomonosov" space project is lead by Lomonosov Moscow State University in collaboration with the following key partners: Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, Russia, University of California, Los Angeles (USA), University of Pueblo (Mexico), Sungkyunkwan University (Republic of Korea) and with Russian space industry organizations to study some of extreme phenomena in space related to astrophysics, astroparticle physics, space physics, and space biology. The primary goals of this experiment are to study: Ultra-high energy cosmic rays (UHECR) in the energy range of the Greizen-Zatsepin-Kuzmin (GZK) cutoff; Ultraviolet (UV) transient luminous events in the upper atmosphere; Multi-wavelength study of gamma-ray bursts in visible, UV, gamma, and X-rays; Energetic trapped and precipitated radiation (electrons and protons) at low-Earth orbit (LEO) in connection with global geomagnetic disturbances; Multicomponent radiation doses along the orbit of spacecraft under different geomagnetic conditions and testing of space segments of optical observations of space-debris and other space objects; Instrumental vestibular-sensor conflict of zero-gravity phenomena during space flight. This paper is directed towards the general description of both scientific goals of the project and scientific equipment on board the satellite. The following papers of this issue are devoted to detailed descriptions of scientific instruments.

Development of the Liver in Alpaca (Vicugna pacos): A Microscopic and Macroscopic Description.

PubMed

Castro, A N C; Domínguez, M T; Gómez, S A; Mendoza Torres, G J; Llerena Zavala, C A; Ghezzi, M D; Barbeito, C G

2016-06-01

South American camelids have several biological, morphological and behavioural adaptations that allow them to live in geographical areas dominated by high altitudes. The liver has hematopoietic functions during the prenatal life, which could be modified in response to the unfavorable habitat. However, there are no previous data on the prenatal development of the liver in these species. In the present work, a study on the macroscopic and microscopic morphology of the liver of the alpaca during ontogeny was performed. Forty-one animals ranging in age from 20 days of embryonic development to adults were studied. Macroscopic and microscopic observations were performed on samples subjected to different techniques. Less than 7-g specimens were studied with stereoscopic magnifying glass. The general characteristics of the prenatal liver are similar to those of other mammals, and the structures related to hematopoietic function follow an ontogenic pattern similar to that of previously studied precocial species. However, there are differences in morphology when compared to descriptions for the Old World camelids, including the absence of relation between the caudate lobe and the right kidney and the lack of interlobular connective tissue. © 2015 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.

NASA Langley Airborne High Spectral Resolution Lidar Instrument Description

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Harper, David B.; Cook, Anthony; Hostetler, Chris; Hair, John W.; Mack, Terry L.

2006-01-01

NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) recently developed the LaRC Airborne High Spectral Resolution Lidar (HSRL) to make measurements of aerosol and cloud distribution and optical properties. The Airborne HSRL has undergone as series of test flights and was successfully deployed on the Megacity Initiative: Local and Global Research Observations (MILAGRO) field mission in March 2006 (see Hair et al. in these proceedings). This paper provides an overview of the design of the Airborne HSRL and descriptions of some key subsystems unique to this instrument.

Private Observatories in South Africa

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rijsdijk, C.

2016-12-01

Descriptions of private observatories in South Africa, written by their owners. Positions, equipment descriptions and observing programmes are given. Included are: Klein Karoo Observatory (B. Monard), Cederberg Observatory (various), Centurion Planetary and Lunar Observatory (C. Foster), Le Marischel Observatory (L. Ferreira), Sterkastaaing Observatory (M. Streicher), Henley on Klip (B. Fraser), Archer Observatory (B. Dumas), Overbeek Observatory (A. Overbeek), Overberg Observatory (A. van Staden), St Cyprian's School Observatory, Fisherhaven Small Telescope Observatory (J. Retief), COSPAR 0433 (G. Roberts), COSPAR 0434 (I. Roberts), Weltevreden Karoo Observatory (D. Bullis), Winobs (M. Shafer)

The Skylab Student Project. [high school winners selection and experiments description

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Floyd, H. B.

1973-01-01

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the National Science Teachers' Association (NSTA) undertook in 1971 a cooperative effort which brought high school students of the Nation into the mainstream of Skylab research through the Skylab Student Project. This paper presents the background, objectives and scope of the project, experiment selection procedures, as well as experiment descriptions and status. The paper includes observations on student caliber and inclinations and implications of some developments for the benefit of future researchers.

Time-domain theory of gyrotron traveling wave amplifiers operating at grazing incidence

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

Ginzburg, N. S., E-mail: ginzburg@appl.sci-nnov.ru; Nizhny Novgorod State University, Gagarin Ave., 23, 603950 Nizhny Novgorod; Sergeev, A. S.

Time-domain theory of the gyrotron traveling wave tube (gyro-TWT) operating at grazing incidence has been developed. The theory is based on a description of wave propagation by a parabolic equation. The results of the simulations are compared with experimental results of the observation of subnanosecond pulse amplification in a gyro-TWT consisting of three gain sections separated by severs. The theory developed can also be used successfully for a description of amplification of monochromatic signals.

An inconclusive study comparing the effect of concrete and abstract descriptions of belief-inconsistent information.

PubMed

Collins, Katherine A; Clément, Richard

2018-01-01

Linguistic bias is the differential use of linguistic abstraction (as defined by the Linguistic Category Model) to describe the same behaviour for members of different groups. Essentially, it is the tendency to use concrete language for belief-inconsistent behaviours and abstract language for belief-consistent behaviours. Having found that linguistic bias is produced without intention or awareness in many contexts, researchers argue that linguistic bias reflects, reinforces, and transmits pre-existing beliefs, thus playing a role in belief maintenance. Based on the Linguistic Category Model, this assumes that concrete descriptions reduce the impact of belief-inconsistent behaviours while abstract descriptions maximize the impact of belief-consistent behaviours. However, a key study by Geschke, Sassenberg, Ruhrmann, and Sommer [2007] found that concrete descriptions of belief-inconsistent behaviours actually had a greater impact than abstract descriptions, a finding that does not fit easily within the linguistic bias paradigm. Abstract descriptions (e.g. the elderly woman is athletic) are, by definition, more open to interpretation than concrete descriptions (e.g. the elderly woman works out regularly). It is thus possible that abstract descriptions are (1) perceived as having less evidentiary strength than concrete descriptions, and (2) understood in context (i.e. athletic for an elderly woman). In this study, the design of Geschke et al. [2007] was modified to address this possibility. We expected that the differences in the impact of concrete and abstract descriptions would be reduced or reversed, but instead we found that differences were largely absent. This study did not support the findings of Geschke et al. [2007] or the linguistic bias paradigm. We encourage further attempts to understand the strong effect of concrete descriptions for belief-inconsistent behaviour.

Metal isotope and density functional study of the tetracarboxylatodicopper(II) core vibrations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Drożdżewski, Piotr; Brożyna, Anna

2005-11-01

Vibrational spectra of tetrakis(acetato)diaquadicopper(II) complex have been deeply examined in order to provide a detailed description of dynamics of [Cu 2O 8C 4] core being a typical structural unit of most copper(II) carboxylates. Low frequency bands related to significant motions of metal atoms were detected by metal isotope substitution. Observed spectra and isotope shifts were reproduced in DFT calculations. For clear presentation of computed normal vibrations, a D 4h symmetry approximation was successfully applied. Basing on observed isotope shifts and calculation results, all skeletal vibrations have been analyzed including normal mode with the largest Cu ⋯Cu stretching amplitude assigned to Raman band at 178 cm -1.

Chaotic dynamics in premixed hydrogen/air channel flow combustion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pizza, Gianmarco; Frouzakis, Christos E.; Mantzaras, John

2012-04-01

The complex oscillatory behaviour observed in fuel-lean premixed hydrogen/air atmospheric pressure flames in an open planar channel with prescribed wall temperature is investigated by means of direct numerical simulations, employing detailed chemistry descriptions and species transport, and nonlinear dynamics analysis. As the inflow velocity is varied, the sequence of transitions includes harmonic single frequency oscillations, intermittency, mixed mode oscillations, and finally a period-doubling cascade leading to chaotic dynamics. The observed modes are described and characterised by means of phase-space portraits and next amplitude maps. It is shown that the interplay of chemistry, transport, and wall-bounded developing flow leads to considerably richer dynamics compared to fuel-lean hydrogen/air continuously stirred tank reactor studies.

Qualitative Methods Can Enrich Quantitative Research on Occupational Stress: An Example from One Occupational Group

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schonfeld, Irvin Sam; Farrell, Edwin

2010-01-01

The chapter examines the ways in which qualitative and quantitative methods support each other in research on occupational stress. Qualitative methods include eliciting from workers unconstrained descriptions of work experiences, careful first-hand observations of the workplace, and participant-observers describing "from the inside" a…

Situational Evidence: Strategies for Causal Reasoning From Observational Field Notes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Katz, Jack

2015-01-01

There is unexamined potential for developing and testing rival causal explanations in the type of data that participant observation is best suited to create: descriptions of in situ social interaction crafted from the participants' perspectives. By intensively examining a single ethnography, we can see how multiple predictions can be derived from…

The Indochinese Refugees: An Introduction to Their Cultures.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dinh, Thinh Van

After a brief description of the origins and languages of the three major groups of Indochinese refugees in the United States--Vietnamese, Cambodians, and Laotians--and short references to subgroups, 20 observations on the general cultural traits of the Indochinese are given. These observations touch on the following: the importance of harmonious…

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

Bartholomew, M. J.

To improve the quantitative description of precipitation processes in climate models, the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Climate Research Facility deployed rain gauges located near disdrometers (DISD and VDIS data streams). This handbook deals specifically with the rain gauges that make the observations for the RAIN data stream. Other precipitation observations are made by the surface meteorology instrument suite (i.e., MET data stream).