Assessment of wastewater treatment alternatives for small communities: An analytic network process approach.

PubMed

Molinos-Senante, María; Gómez, Trinidad; Caballero, Rafael; Hernández-Sancho, Francesc; Sala-Garrido, Ramón

2015-11-01

The selection of the most appropriate wastewater treatment (WWT) technology is a complex problem since many alternatives are available and many criteria are involved in the decision-making process. To deal with this challenge, the analytic network process (ANP) is applied for the first time to rank a set of seven WWT technology set-ups for secondary treatment in small communities. A major advantage of ANP is that it incorporates interdependent relationships between elements. Results illustrated that extensive technologies, constructed wetlands and pond systems are the most preferred alternatives by WWT experts. The sensitivity analysis performed verified that the ranking of WWT alternatives is very stable since constructed wetlands are almost always placed in the first position. This paper showed that ANP analysis is suitable to deal with complex decision-making problems, such as the selection of the most appropriate WWT system contributing to better understand the multiple interdependences among elements involved in the assessment. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Special Advanced Studies for Pollution Prevention Delivery Order 0065: The Monitor - Winter 2001

DTIC Science & Technology

2001-04-01

were selected based on previous efforts. These alternatives included Alodine 2000, NCS Rainseal, Sanchem Full Process, and trivalent chromium . CTC’s IVD...12 Alternatives for Chromium Electroplating: ElectroSpark Deposition .................. 13...Requirements ............ 15 Aluminum Substitution for Cadmium/ Chromium ............................................... 16 Review of Cadmium Alternatives

The role of selective attention and action selection in the development of multiple action capabilities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simione, Luca; Nolfi, Stefano

2014-10-01

In this paper we illustrate how the capacity to select the most appropriate actions when handling contexts affording multiple conflicting actions can be solved either through a selective attention strategy (in which the stimuli affording alternative actions are filtered out at the perceptual level through top-down regulation) or at later processing stages through an action selection strategy (through the suppression of the premotor information eliciting alternative actions). By carrying out a series of experiments in which a neuro-robot develops an ability to choose between conflicting actions, we were able to identify the conditions that lead to the development of solutions based on one strategy or another. Overall, the results indicate that the selective attention strategy constitutes the most simple and straightforward mechanism enabling the acquisition of such capacities. Moreover, the characteristics of the adaptive/learning process influence whether the adaptive robot converges towards a selective attention and/or action selection strategy.

A Search Algorithm for Generating Alternative Process Plans in Flexible Manufacturing System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tehrani, Hossein; Sugimura, Nobuhiro; Tanimizu, Yoshitaka; Iwamura, Koji

Capabilities and complexity of manufacturing systems are increasing and striving for an integrated manufacturing environment. Availability of alternative process plans is a key factor for integration of design, process planning and scheduling. This paper describes an algorithm for generation of alternative process plans by extending the existing framework of the process plan networks. A class diagram is introduced for generating process plans and process plan networks from the viewpoint of the integrated process planning and scheduling systems. An incomplete search algorithm is developed for generating and searching the process plan networks. The benefit of this algorithm is that the whole process plan network does not have to be generated before the search algorithm starts. This algorithm is applicable to large and enormous process plan networks and also to search wide areas of the network based on the user requirement. The algorithm can generate alternative process plans and to select a suitable one based on the objective functions.

Supplier Selection Using Weighted Utility Additive Method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Karande, Prasad; Chakraborty, Shankar

2015-10-01

Supplier selection is a multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) problem which mainly involves evaluating a number of available suppliers according to a set of common criteria for choosing the best one to meet the organizational needs. For any manufacturing or service organization, selecting the right upstream suppliers is a key success factor that will significantly reduce purchasing cost, increase downstream customer satisfaction and improve competitive ability. The past researchers have attempted to solve the supplier selection problem employing different MCDM techniques which involve active participation of the decision makers in the decision-making process. This paper deals with the application of weighted utility additive (WUTA) method for solving supplier selection problems. The WUTA method, an extension of utility additive approach, is based on ordinal regression and consists of building a piece-wise linear additive decision model from a preference structure using linear programming (LP). It adopts preference disaggregation principle and addresses the decision-making activities through operational models which need implicit preferences in the form of a preorder of reference alternatives or a subset of these alternatives present in the process. The preferential preorder provided by the decision maker is used as a restriction of a LP problem, which has its own objective function, minimization of the sum of the errors associated with the ranking of each alternative. Based on a given reference ranking of alternatives, one or more additive utility functions are derived. Using these utility functions, the weighted utilities for individual criterion values are combined into an overall weighted utility for a given alternative. It is observed that WUTA method, having a sound mathematical background, can provide accurate ranking to the candidate suppliers and choose the best one to fulfill the organizational requirements. Two real time examples are illustrated to prove its applicability and appropriateness in solving supplier selection problems.

Cost-Benefit Analysis For Alternative Low-Emission Surface Preparation/ Depainting Technologies for Structural Steel

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lewis, Pattie

2007-01-01

Stennis Space Center (SSC), Kennedy Space Center (KSC) and Air Force Space Command (AFSPC) identified particulate emissions and waste generated from the depainting process of steel structures as hazardous materials to be eliminated or reduced. A Potential Alternatives Report, Potential Alternatives Report for Validation of Alternative Low Emission Surface Preparation/Depainting Technologies for Structural Steel, provided a technical analyses of identified alternatives to the current coating removal processes, criteria used to select alternatives for further analysis, and a list of those alternatives recommended for testing. The initial coating removal alternatives list was compiled using literature searches and stakeholder recommendations. The involved project participants initially considered approximately 13 alternatives. In late 2003, core project members selected the following depainting processes to be further evaluated: (1) Plastic Blast Media-Quickstrip(R)-A. (2) Hard Abrasive-Steel-Magic(R). (3) Sponge Blasting-Sponge-Jet(R). (4) Liquid Nitrogen-NItroJet(R). (5) Mechanical Removal with Vacuum Attachment-DESCO and OCM Clean-Air (6) Laser Coating Removal Alternatives were tested in accordance with the Joint Test Protocol for Validation of Alternative Low-Emission Surface Preparation/Depainting Technologies for Structural Steel, and the Field Evaluation Test Plan for Validation of Alternative Low-Emission Surface Preparation/Depainting Technologies for Structural Steel. Results of the testing are documented in the Joint Test Report. This Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) focuses on the three alternatives (Quickstrip(R)-A, SteelMagic (R), and Sponge-Jet(R)) that were considered viable alternatives for large area operations based on the results of the field demonstration and lab testing. This CBA was created to help participants determine if implementation of the candidate alternatives is economically justified. Each of the alternatives examined reduced Environmental Activity (EA) Costs-those costs associated with complying with environmental regulations. One alternative, Steel-Magic(R), also showed reduced Direct Costs and reduced total costs.

A decision tool for selecting trench cap designs

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

Paige, G.B.; Stone, J.J.; Lane, L.J.

1995-12-31

A computer based prototype decision support system (PDSS) is being developed to assist the risk manager in selecting an appropriate trench cap design for waste disposal sites. The selection of the {open_quote}best{close_quote} design among feasible alternatives requires consideration of multiple and often conflicting objectives. The methodology used in the selection process consists of: selecting and parameterizing decision variables using data, simulation models, or expert opinion; selecting feasible trench cap design alternatives; ordering the decision variables and ranking the design alternatives. The decision model is based on multi-objective decision theory and uses a unique approach to order the decision variables andmore » rank the design alternatives. Trench cap designs are evaluated based on federal regulations, hydrologic performance, cover stability and cost. Four trench cap designs, which were monitored for a four year period at Hill Air Force Base in Utah, are used to demonstrate the application of the PDSS and evaluate the results of the decision model. The results of the PDSS, using both data and simulations, illustrate the relative advantages of each of the cap designs and which cap is the {open_quotes}best{close_quotes} alternative for a given set of criteria and a particular importance order of those decision criteria.« less

West Valley demonstration project: Alternative processes for solidifying the high-level wastes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Holton, L. K.; Larson, D. E.; Partain, W. L.; Treat, R. L.

1981-10-01

Two pretreatment approaches and several waste form processes for radioactive wastes were selected for evaluation. The two waste treatment approaches were the salt/sludge separation process and the combined waste process. Both terminal and interim waste form processes were studied.

Multi-objective decision-making under uncertainty: Fuzzy logic methods

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hardy, Terry L.

1994-01-01

Selecting the best option among alternatives is often a difficult process. This process becomes even more difficult when the evaluation criteria are vague or qualitative, and when the objectives vary in importance and scope. Fuzzy logic allows for quantitative representation of vague or fuzzy objectives, and therefore is well-suited for multi-objective decision-making. This paper presents methods employing fuzzy logic concepts to assist in the decision-making process. In addition, this paper describes software developed at NASA Lewis Research Center for assisting in the decision-making process. Two diverse examples are used to illustrate the use of fuzzy logic in choosing an alternative among many options and objectives. One example is the selection of a lunar lander ascent propulsion system, and the other example is the selection of an aeration system for improving the water quality of the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland, Ohio. The fuzzy logic techniques provided here are powerful tools which complement existing approaches, and therefore should be considered in future decision-making activities.

Special experimental project (SEP-14) alternate surfacing bidding [summary].

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2008-01-01

The Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) has a pavement type selection process that includes the comparison of initial and life cycle costs for different pavement types. Those cost differences and secondary factors are considered when selecting...

Identifying Leader Talent: Alternative Predictors for U.S. Air Force Junior Officer Selection and Assessment

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-11-01

not ensure that a selection system will achieve its desired and expected impact (Guion, 1998; Higgs, Papper , & Carr, 2000). Ultimately, to be...C., Papper , E. M., & Carr, L. S. (2000). Integrating selection with other organizational processes and systems. In J. F. Kehoe (Ed.), Managing

SUPERFUND TREATABILITY CLEARINGHOUSE: PCB SEDIMENT DECONTAMINATION PROCESS-SELECTION FOR TEST AND EVALUATION

EPA Science Inventory

This document is a report describing the assessment of seven alternative treatment processes that show potential for decontaminating polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB)-contaminated sediments. The processes are KPEG, MODAR Supercritical Water Oxidation, Bio-Clean, Ultrasonics/UV, C...

SAGE SOLVENT ALTERNATIVES GUIDE: SYSTEM IMPROVEMENTS FOR SELECTING INDUSTRIAL SURFACE CLEANING ALTERNATIVES

EPA Science Inventory

The paper describes computer software, called SAGE, that can provide not only cleaning recommendations but also general information on various surface cleaning options. In short, it is an advisory system which can provide users with vital information on the cleaning process optio...

SYNTHESIS OF PARTIAL-OXYGENATED HYDROCARBONS USING PHOTOCATALYSIS IN A LAMINAR FALLING FILM SLURRY REACTOR

EPA Science Inventory

The search for "Green" alternative processes for the oxidation of hydrocarbons selectively to partial oxygenates has been the subject of intense chemical research for many years. The USEPA is currently investigating an alternative synthesis pathway for the production of alcoho...

SYNTHESIS OF PARTIALLY-OXYGENATED HYDROCARBONS USING PHOTOCATALYSIS IN A LAMINAR FALLING FILM SLURRY REACTOR

EPA Science Inventory

The search for "Green" alternative processes for the oxidation of hydrocarbons selectively to partial oxygenates has been the subject of intense chemical research for many years. The USEPA is currently investigating an alternative synthesis pathway for the production of alcoho...

An approach to quantitative sustainability assessment in the early stages of process design.

PubMed

Tugnoli, Alessandro; Santarelli, Francesco; Cozzani, Valerio

2008-06-15

A procedure was developed for the quantitative assessment of key performance indicators suitable for the sustainability analysis of alternative processes, mainly addressing the early stages of process design. The methodology was based on the calculation of a set of normalized impact indices allowing a direct comparison of the additional burden of each process alternative on a selected reference area. Innovative reference criteria were developed to compare and aggregate the impact indicators on the basis of the site-specific impact burden and sustainability policy. An aggregation procedure also allows the calculation of overall sustainability performance indicators and of an "impact fingerprint" of each process alternative. The final aim of the method is to support the decision making process during process development, providing a straightforward assessment of the expected sustainability performances. The application of the methodology to case studies concerning alternative waste disposal processes allowed a preliminary screening of the expected critical sustainability impacts of each process. The methodology was shown to provide useful results to address sustainability issues in the early stages of process design.

Fuzzy MCDM Technique for Planning the Environment Watershed

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Yi-Chun; Lien, Hui-Pang; Tzeng, Gwo-Hshiung; Yang, Lung-Shih; Yen, Leon

In the real word, the decision making problems are very vague and uncertain in a number of ways. The most criteria have interdependent and interactive features so they cannot be evaluated by conventional measures method. Such as the feasibility, thus, to approximate the human subjective evaluation process, it would be more suitable to apply a fuzzy method in environment-watershed plan topic. This paper describes the design of a fuzzy decision support system in multi-criteria analysis approach for selecting the best plan alternatives or strategies in environmentwatershed. The Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (FAHP) method is used to determine the preference weightings of criteria for decision makers by subjective perception. A questionnaire was used to find out from three related groups comprising fifteen experts. Subjectivity and vagueness analysis is dealt with the criteria and alternatives for selection process and simulation results by using fuzzy numbers with linguistic terms. Incorporated the decision makers’ attitude towards preference, overall performance value of each alternative can be obtained based on the concept of Fuzzy Multiple Criteria Decision Making (FMCDM). This research also gives an example of evaluating consisting of five alternatives, solicited from a environmentwatershed plan works in Taiwan, is illustrated to demonstrate the effectiveness and usefulness of the proposed approach.

An Alternative to Adaptation by Sexual Selection: Habitat Choice.

PubMed

Porter, Cody K; Akcali, Christopher K

2018-06-09

Adaptation in mating signals and preferences has generally been explained by sexual selection. We propose that adaptation in such mating traits might also arise via a non-mutually exclusive process wherein individuals preferentially disperse to habitats where they experience high mating performance. Here we explore the evolutionary implications of this process. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Analytic hierarchy process helps select site for limestone quarry expansion in Barbados.

PubMed

Dey, Prasanta Kumar; Ramcharan, Eugene K

2008-09-01

Site selection is a key activity for quarry expansion to support cement production, and is governed by factors such as resource availability, logistics, costs, and socio-economic-environmental factors. Adequate consideration of all the factors facilitates both industrial productivity and sustainable economic growth. This study illustrates the site selection process that was undertaken for the expansion of limestone quarry operations to support cement production in Barbados. First, alternate sites with adequate resources to support a 25-year development horizon were identified. Second, technical and socio-economic-environmental factors were then identified. Third, a database was developed for each site with respect to each factor. Fourth, a hierarchical model in analytic hierarchy process (AHP) framework was then developed. Fifth, the relative ranking of the alternate sites was then derived through pair wise comparison in all the levels and through subsequent synthesizing of the results across the hierarchy through computer software (Expert Choice). The study reveals that an integrated framework using the AHP can help select a site for the quarry expansion project in Barbados.

Evaluation of HCFC AK 225 Alternatives for Precision Cleaning and Verification

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Melton, D. M.

1998-01-01

Maintaining qualified cleaning and verification processes are essential in an production environment. Environmental regulations have and are continuing to impact cleaning and verification processing in component and large structures, both at the Michoud Assembly Facility and component suppliers. The goal of the effort was to assure that the cleaning and verification proceeds unimpeded and that qualified, environmentally compliant material and process replacements are implemented and perform to specifications. The approach consisted of (1) selection of a Supersonic Gas-Liquid Cleaning System; (2) selection and evaluation of three cleaning and verification solvents as candidate alternatives to HCFC 225 (Vertrel 423 (HCFC), Vertrel MCA (HFC/1,2-Dichloroethylene), and HFE 7100DE (HFE/1,2 Dichloroethylene)); and evaluation of an analytical instrumental post cleaning verification technique. This document is presented in viewgraph format.

Evolution of Students' Ideas about Natural Selection through a Constructivist Framework

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baumgartner, Erin; Duncan, Kanesa

2009-01-01

Educating students about the process of evolution through natural selection is vitally important because not only is it the unifying theory of biological science, it is also widely regarded as difficult for students to fully comprehend. Anderson and colleagues (2002) describe alternative ideas and misconceptions about natural selection as highly…

Seeking Positive Experiences Can Produce Illusory Correlations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Denrell, Jerker; Le Mens, Gael

2011-01-01

Individuals tend to select again alternatives about which they have positive impressions and to avoid alternatives about which they have negative impressions. Here we show how this sequential sampling feature of the information acquisition process leads to the emergence of an illusory correlation between estimates of the attributes of…

Acquisition Management for Systems-of-Systems: Exploratory Model Development and Experimentation

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-04-22

outputs of the Requirements Development and Logical Analysis processes into alternative design solutions and selects a final design solution. Decision...Analysis Provides the basis for evaluating and selecting alternatives when decisions need to be made. Implementation Yields the lowest-level system... Dependenc y Matrix 1 ⎥ ⎥ ⎥ ⎦ ⎤ ⎢ ⎢ ⎢ ⎣ ⎡ 011 100 110 2 ⎥ ⎥ ⎥ ⎦ ⎤ ⎢ ⎢ ⎢ ⎣ ⎡ 000 100 100 a) Example of SoS b) Model Structure for Example SoS

Diverse alternative back-splicing and alternative splicing landscape of circular RNAs

PubMed Central

Zhang, Xiao-Ou; Dong, Rui; Zhang, Yang; Zhang, Jia-Lin; Luo, Zheng; Zhang, Jun; Chen, Ling-Ling; Yang, Li

2016-01-01

Circular RNAs (circRNAs) derived from back-spliced exons have been widely identified as being co-expressed with their linear counterparts. A single gene locus can produce multiple circRNAs through alternative back-splice site selection and/or alternative splice site selection; however, a detailed map of alternative back-splicing/splicing in circRNAs is lacking. Here, with the upgraded CIRCexplorer2 pipeline, we systematically annotated different types of alternative back-splicing and alternative splicing events in circRNAs from various cell lines. Compared with their linear cognate RNAs, circRNAs exhibited distinct patterns of alternative back-splicing and alternative splicing. Alternative back-splice site selection was correlated with the competition of putative RNA pairs across introns that bracket alternative back-splice sites. In addition, all four basic types of alternative splicing that have been identified in the (linear) mRNA process were found within circRNAs, and many exons were predominantly spliced in circRNAs. Unexpectedly, thousands of previously unannotated exons were detected in circRNAs from the examined cell lines. Although these novel exons had similar splice site strength, they were much less conserved than known exons in sequences. Finally, both alternative back-splicing and circRNA-predominant alternative splicing were highly diverse among the examined cell lines. All of the identified alternative back-splicing and alternative splicing in circRNAs are available in the CIRCpedia database (http://www.picb.ac.cn/rnomics/circpedia). Collectively, the annotation of alternative back-splicing and alternative splicing in circRNAs provides a valuable resource for depicting the complexity of circRNA biogenesis and for studying the potential functions of circRNAs in different cells. PMID:27365365

Selection of reference standard during method development using the analytical hierarchy process.

PubMed

Sun, Wan-yang; Tong, Ling; Li, Dong-xiang; Huang, Jing-yi; Zhou, Shui-ping; Sun, Henry; Bi, Kai-shun

2015-03-25

Reference standard is critical for ensuring reliable and accurate method performance. One important issue is how to select the ideal one from the alternatives. Unlike the optimization of parameters, the criteria of the reference standard are always immeasurable. The aim of this paper is to recommend a quantitative approach for the selection of reference standard during method development based on the analytical hierarchy process (AHP) as a decision-making tool. Six alternative single reference standards were assessed in quantitative analysis of six phenolic acids from Salvia Miltiorrhiza and its preparations by using ultra-performance liquid chromatography. The AHP model simultaneously considered six criteria related to reference standard characteristics and method performance, containing feasibility to obtain, abundance in samples, chemical stability, accuracy, precision and robustness. The priority of each alternative was calculated using standard AHP analysis method. The results showed that protocatechuic aldehyde is the ideal reference standard, and rosmarinic acid is about 79.8% ability as the second choice. The determination results successfully verified the evaluation ability of this model. The AHP allowed us comprehensive considering the benefits and risks of the alternatives. It was an effective and practical tool for optimization of reference standards during method development. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Alternative Refrigerant Evaluation for High-Ambient-Temperature Environments: R-22 and R-410A Alternatives for Mini-Split Air Conditioners

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

Abdelaziz, Omar; Shrestha, Som S.; Munk, Jeffrey D.

The Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) High-Ambient-Temperature Evaluation Program for low– global warming potential (Low-GWP) Refrigerants aims to develop an understanding of the performance of low-GWP alternative refrigerants to hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC) and hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) refrigerants in mini-split air conditioners under high-ambient-temperature conditions. This final report describes the parties involved, the alternative refrigerant selection process, the test procedures, and the final results.

Alternative Refrigerant Evaluation for High-Ambient Temperature Environments: R-22 and R-410A Alternatives for Mini-Split Air Conditioners

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

Abdelaziz, Omar; Munk, Jeffrey D.; Shrestha, Som S.

The Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) High-Ambient Temperature Testing Program for Low-GWP Refrigerants aims to develop an understanding of the performance of low-Global Warming Potential (low-GWP) alternatives to Hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC) and Hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) refrigerants in mini-split air conditioners under high ambient temperature conditions. This interim working paper describes the parties involved, the alternative refrigerants selection process, the test procedures, and the preliminary results.

Solvent replacement for green processing.

PubMed Central

Sherman, J; Chin, B; Huibers, P D; Garcia-Valls, R; Hatton, T A

1998-01-01

The implementation of the Montreal Protocol, the Clean Air Act, and the Pollution Prevention Act of 1990 has resulted in increased awareness of organic solvent use in chemical processing. The advances made in the search to find "green" replacements for traditional solvents are reviewed, with reference to solvent alternatives for cleaning, coatings, and chemical reaction and separation processes. The development of solvent databases and computational methods that aid in the selection and/or design of feasible or optimal environmentally benign solvent alternatives for specific applications is also discussed. Images Figure 2 Figure 3 PMID:9539018

Post-Baccalaureate Teacher Certification Programs: Strategies for Enhancement, Improvement, and Peaceful Co-existence with Traditional Teacher Certification Programs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Duhon-Haynes, Gwendolyn; And Others

This paper examines alternative certification programs in terms of entrance requirements, supervision and mentoring, and post-certification professional support. A good alternative program uses rigorous screening processes to ensure the selection of qualified teacher interns; provides high-quality preservice training in methodology, classroom…

Structural and morphological approach of Co-Cr dental alloys processed by alternative manufacturing technologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Porojan, Sorin; Bîrdeanu, Mihaela; Savencu, Cristina; Porojan, Liliana

2017-08-01

The integration of digitalized processing technologies in traditional dental restorations manufacturing is an emerging application. The objective of this study was to identify the different structural and morphological characteristics of Co-Cr dental alloys processed by alternative manufacturing techniques in order to understand the influence of microstructure on restorations properties and their clinical behavior. Metallic specimens made of Co-Cr dental alloys were prepared using traditional casting (CST), and computerized milling (MIL), selective laser sintering (SLS) and selective laser melting (SLM). The structural information of the samples was obtained by X-ray diffraction, the morphology and the topography of the samples were investigated by Scanning Electron Microscopy and Atomic Force Microscope. Given that the microstructure was significantly different, further differences in the clinical behavior of prosthetic restorations manufactured using additive techniques are anticipated.

Paskibraka Member Selection Using A Combination Of AHP and TOPSIS Methods On The Office Of Youth And Sports Of Kutai Kartanegara Regency

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maharani, Septya; Hatta, Heliza Rahmania; Anzhari, Afif Nur; Khairina, Dyna Marisa

2018-02-01

Paskibraka as troops whose job is to flap the heritage duplicates flag. To become a Paskibraka a selection that participants are high school students are made. Because the number of participants of the selection of many support systems to facilitate the assessment process is made. This system uses Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) to determine the weight value criteria that comprise the value of the interview, health, physical, .height and value rules for marching as well as using Technique For Others Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) methods to seek best alternative participants. The calculation results of 21 alternative names best male and female of the participants and their school origin. The system has also been tested by performing the calculations manually using Microsoft Excel (Ms.Excel) to calculate the calculation of the system using AHP and TOPSIS.

Development of a Novel Process Integrating the Treatment of Sludge Reject Water and the Production of Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs).

PubMed

Frison, Nicola; Katsou, Evina; Malamis, Simos; Oehmen, Adrian; Fatone, Francesco

2015-09-15

Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) from activated sludge and renewable organic material can become an alternative product to traditional plastics since they are biodegradable and are produced from renewable sources. In this work, the selection of PHA storing bacteria was integrated with the side stream treatment of nitrogen removal via nitrite from sewage sludge reject water. A novel process was developed and applied where the alternation of aerobic-feast and anoxic-famine conditions accomplished the selection of PHA storing biomass and nitrogen removal via nitrite. Two configurations were examined: in configuration 1 the ammonium conversion to nitrite occurred in the same reactor in which the PHA selection process occurred, while in configuration 2 two separate reactors were used. The results showed that the selection of PHA storing biomass was successful in both configurations, while the nitrogen removal efficiency was much higher (almost 90%) in configuration 2. The PHA selection degree was evaluated by the volatile fatty acid (VFA) uptake rate (-qVFAs) and the PHA production rate (qPHA), which were 239 ± 74 and 89 ± 7 mg of COD per gram of active biomass (Xa) per hour, respectively. The characterization of the biopolymer recovered after the accumulation step, showed that it was composed of 3-hydroxybutyrate (3HB) (60%) and 3-hydroxyvalerate (3HV) (40%). The properties associated with the produced PHA suggest that they are suitable for thermoplastic processing.

Environmental evaluation of alternatives for long-term management of Defense high-level radioactive wastes at the Idaho Chemical Processing Plant

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

Not Available

1982-09-01

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is considering the selection of a strategy for the long-term management of the defense high-level wastes at the Idaho Chemical Processing Plant (ICPP). This report describes the environmental impacts of alternative strategies. These alternative strategies include leaving the calcine in its present form at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL), or retrieving and modifying the calcine to a more durable waste form and disposing of it either at the INEL or in an offsite repository. This report addresses only the alternatives for a program to manage the high-level waste generated at the ICPP. 24more » figures, 60 tables.« less

Nonstrategic Contributions to Putatively Strategic Effects in Selective Attention Tasks

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Risko, Evan F.; Blais, Chris; Stolz, Jennifer A.; Besner, Derek

2008-01-01

Proportion compatible manipulations are often used to index strategic processes in selective attention tasks. Here, a subtle confound in proportion compatible manipulations is considered. Specifically, as the proportion of compatible trials increases, the ratio of complete repetitions and complete alternations to partial repetitions increases on…

Linguistic Alternants and Code Selection in Baba Malay.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pakir, Anne

1989-01-01

Provides a brief account and explanation of the phenomenon of language use among the Baba community, which uses Hokkien, Malay, and English in the process of code selection and code mixing/switching. Data are drawn from recordings of conversation of the Babas and Nyonyas. (Author/OD)

Word Production Deficits in Schizophrenia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marvel, Cherie L.; Schwartz, Barbara L.; Isaacs, Keren L.

2004-01-01

Fronto-cerebellar circuitry is implicated in word production. Data suggest that the cerebellum is involved in word "search," whereas the prefrontal cortex underlies the "selection" of words from among competing alternatives. We explored the role of search and selection processes in word production deficits in schizophrenia patients. In Experiment…

Perspectives on Home-based Healthcare as an Alternative to Hospital Admission After Emergency Treatment.

PubMed

Stuck, Amy; Crowley, Christopher; Martinez, Tracy; Wittgrove, Alan; Brennan, Jesse J; Chan, Theodore C; Castillo, Edward M

2017-06-01

The study objective was to explore emergency physicians' (EP) awareness, willingness, and prior experience regarding transitioning patients to home-based healthcare following emergency department (ED) evaluation and treatment; and to explore patient selection criteria, processes, and services that would facilitate use of home-based healthcare as an alternative to hospitalization. We provided a five-question survey to 52 EPs, gauging previous experience referring patients to home-based healthcare, patient selection, and motivators and challenges when considering home-based options as an alternative to admission. In addition, we conducted three focus groups and four interviews. Of participating EPs, 92% completed the survey, 38% reported ordering home-based healthcare from the ED as an alternative to admission, 90% ranked cellulitis among the top three medical conditions for home-based healthcare, 90% ranked "reduce unnecessary hospitalizations and observation stays" among their top three perceived motivators for using home-based care, and 77% ranked "no existing process in place to refer to home-based care" among their top three perceived barriers. Focus group and interview themes included the need for alternatives to admission; the longer-term benefits of home-based healthcare; the need for streamlined transition processes; and the need for highly qualified home-care staff capable of responding the same day or within 24 hours. The study found that EPs are receptive to referring patients for home-based healthcare following ED treatment and believe people with certain diagnoses are likely to benefit, with the dominant barrier being the absence of an efficient referral process.

Perspectives on Home-based Healthcare as an Alternative to Hospital Admission After Emergency Treatment

PubMed Central

Stuck, Amy; Crowley, Christopher; Martinez, Tracy; Wittgrove, Alan; Brennan, Jesse J.; Chan, Theodore C.; Castillo, Edward M.

2017-01-01

Introduction The study objective was to explore emergency physicians’ (EP) awareness, willingness, and prior experience regarding transitioning patients to home-based healthcare following emergency department (ED) evaluation and treatment; and to explore patient selection criteria, processes, and services that would facilitate use of home-based healthcare as an alternative to hospitalization. Methods We provided a five-question survey to 52 EPs, gauging previous experience referring patients to home-based healthcare, patient selection, and motivators and challenges when considering home-based options as an alternative to admission. In addition, we conducted three focus groups and four interviews. Results Of participating EPs, 92% completed the survey, 38% reported ordering home-based healthcare from the ED as an alternative to admission, 90% ranked cellulitis among the top three medical conditions for home-based healthcare, 90% ranked “reduce unnecessary hospitalizations and observation stays” among their top three perceived motivators for using home-based care, and 77% ranked “no existing process in place to refer to home-based care” among their top three perceived barriers. Focus group and interview themes included the need for alternatives to admission; the longer-term benefits of home-based healthcare; the need for streamlined transition processes; and the need for highly qualified home-care staff capable of responding the same day or within 24 hours. Conclusion The study found that EPs are receptive to referring patients for home-based healthcare following ED treatment and believe people with certain diagnoses are likely to benefit, with the dominant barrier being the absence of an efficient referral process. PMID:28611899

United States transportation fuel economics (1975 - 1995)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Alexander, A. D., III

1975-01-01

The United States transportation fuel economics in terms of fuel resources options, processing alternatives, and attendant economics for the period 1975 to 1995 are evaluated. The U.S. energy resource base is reviewed, portable fuel-processing alternatives are assessed, and selected future aircraft fuel options - JP fuel, liquid methane, and liquid hydrogen - are evaluated economically. Primary emphasis is placed on evaluating future aircraft fuel options and economics to provide guidance for future strategy of NASA in the development of aviation and air transportation research and technology.

Modeling the effects of harvest alternatives on mitigating oak decline in a Central Hardwood Forest landscape

Treesearch

Wen J. Wang; Hong S. He; Martin A. Spetich; Stephen R. Shifley; Frank R. III Thompson; Jacob S. Fraser

2013-01-01

Oak decline is a process induced by complex interactions of predisposing factors, inciting factors, and contributing factors operating at tree, stand, and landscape scales. It has greatly altered species composition and stand structure in affected areas. Thinning, clearcutting, and group selection are widely adopted harvest alternatives for reducing forest...

Specifying the role of the left prefrontal cortex in word selection

PubMed Central

Ries, S. K; Karzmark, C. R.; Navarrete, E.; Knight, R. T.; Dronkers, N. F.

2015-01-01

Word selection allows us to choose words during language production. This is often viewed as a competitive process wherein a lexical representation is retrieved among semantically-related alternatives. The left prefrontal cortex (LPFC) is thought to help overcome competition for word selection through top-down control. However, whether the LPFC is always necessary for word selection remains unclear. We tested 6 LPFC-injured patients and controls in two picture naming paradigms varying in terms of item repetition. Both paradigms elicited the expected semantic interference effects (SIE), reflecting interference caused by semantically-related representations in word selection. However, LPFC patients as a group showed a larger SIE than controls only in the paradigm involving item repetition. We argue that item repetition increases interference caused by semantically-related alternatives, resulting in increased LPFC-dependent cognitive control demands. The remaining network of brain regions associated with word selection appears to be sufficient when items are not repeated. PMID:26291289

Divergent selection for amino-nitrogen concentration in sugarbeet roots

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Improvements in sugarbeet (Beta vulgaris L.) processing quality, and therefore the cost-effectiveness of processing, will enhance beet sugar’s competitiveness with cane sugar and alternative sweeteners. Amino-nitrogen is one of the naturally occurring constituents of sugarbeet, referred to as impuri...

Pervaporation and Vapor Permeation Tutorial: Membrane Processes for the Selective Separation of Liquid and Vapor Mixtures

EPA Science Inventory

Pervaporation and vapor permeation are membrane-based processes proposed as alternatives to conventional separation technologies. Applications range from organic solvent removal from water, ethanol or butanol recovery from fermentation broths, solvent/biofuel dehydration to meet ...

Pervaporation & Vapor Permeation Membrane Processes for the Selective Separation of Liquid and Vapor Mixtures

EPA Science Inventory

Pervaporation and vapor permeation are membrane-based processes which have been proposed as alternatives to conventional separation technologies. Applications range from organic solvent removal from water, ethanol or butanol recovery from dilute fermentation broths, solvent/biofu...

Biophysical comparison of ATP synthesis mechanisms shows a kinetic advantage for the rotary process.

PubMed

Anandakrishnan, Ramu; Zhang, Zining; Donovan-Maiye, Rory; Zuckerman, Daniel M

2016-10-04

The ATP synthase (F-ATPase) is a highly complex rotary machine that synthesizes ATP, powered by a proton electrochemical gradient. Why did evolution select such an elaborate mechanism over arguably simpler alternating-access processes that can be reversed to perform ATP synthesis? We studied a systematic enumeration of alternative mechanisms, using numerical and theoretical means. When the alternative models are optimized subject to fundamental thermodynamic constraints, they fail to match the kinetic ability of the rotary mechanism over a wide range of conditions, particularly under low-energy conditions. We used a physically interpretable, closed-form solution for the steady-state rate for an arbitrary chemical cycle, which clarifies kinetic effects of complex free-energy landscapes. Our analysis also yields insights into the debated "kinetic equivalence" of ATP synthesis driven by transmembrane pH and potential difference. Overall, our study suggests that the complexity of the F-ATPase may have resulted from positive selection for its kinetic advantage.

Integrated economic and experimental framework for screening of primary recovery technologies for high cell density CHO cultures

PubMed Central

Popova, Daria; Stonier, Adam; Pain, David; Titchener‐Hooker, Nigel J.

2016-01-01

Abstract Increases in mammalian cell culture titres and densities have placed significant demands on primary recovery operation performance. This article presents a methodology which aims to screen rapidly and evaluate primary recovery technologies for their scope for technically feasible and cost‐effective operation in the context of high cell density mammalian cell cultures. It was applied to assess the performance of current (centrifugation and depth filtration options) and alternative (tangential flow filtration (TFF)) primary recovery strategies. Cell culture test materials (CCTM) were generated to simulate the most demanding cell culture conditions selected as a screening challenge for the technologies. The performance of these technology options was assessed using lab scale and ultra scale‐down (USD) mimics requiring 25–110mL volumes for centrifugation and depth filtration and TFF screening experiments respectively. A centrifugation and depth filtration combination as well as both of the alternative technologies met the performance selection criteria. A detailed process economics evaluation was carried out at three scales of manufacturing (2,000L, 10,000L, 20,000L), where alternative primary recovery options were shown to potentially provide a more cost‐effective primary recovery process in the future. This assessment process and the study results can aid technology selection to identify the most effective option for a specific scenario. PMID:27067803

The application of a multi-parameter analysis in choosing the location of a new solid waste landfill in Serbia.

PubMed

Milosevic, Igor; Naunovic, Zorana

2013-10-01

This article presents a process of evaluation and selection of the most favourable location for a sanitary landfill facility from three alternative locations, by applying a multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) method. An incorrect choice of location for a landfill facility can have a significant negative economic and environmental impact, such as the pollution of air, ground and surface waters. The aim of this article is to present several improvements in the practical process of landfill site selection using the VIKOR MCDM compromise ranking method integrated with a fuzzy analytic hierarchy process approach for determining the evaluation criteria weighing coefficients. The VIKOR method focuses on ranking and selecting from a set of alternatives in the presence of conflicting and non-commensurable (different units) criteria, and on proposing a compromise solution that is closest to the ideal solution. The work shows that valuable site ranking lists can be obtained using the VIKOR method, which is a suitable choice when there is a large number of relevant input parameters.

Selecting appropriate wastewater treatment technologies using a choosing-by-advantages approach.

PubMed

Arroyo, Paz; Molinos-Senante, María

2018-06-01

Selecting the most sustainable wastewater treatment (WWT) technology among possible alternatives is a very complex task because the choice must integrate economic, environmental, and social criteria. Traditionally, several multi-criteria decision-making approaches have been applied, with the most often used being the analytical hierarchical process (AHP). However, AHP allows users to offset poor environmental and/or social performance with low cost. To overcome this limitation, our study examines a choosing-by-advantages (CBA) approach to rank seven WWT technologies for secondary WWT. CBA results were compared with results obtained by using the AHP approach. The rankings of WWT alternatives differed, depending on whether the CBA or AHP approach was used, which highlights the importance of the method used to support decision-making processes, particularly ones that rely on subjective interpretations by experts. This paper uses a holistic perspective to demonstrate the benefits of using the CBA approach to support a decision-making process when a group of experts must come to a consensus in selecting the most suitable WWT technology among several available. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Postoptimality Analysis in the Selection of Technology Portfolios

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Adumitroaie, Virgil; Shelton, Kacie; Elfes, Alberto; Weisbin, Charles R.

2006-01-01

This slide presentation reviews a process of postoptimally analysing the selection of technology portfolios. The rationale for the analysis stems from the need for consistent, transparent and auditable decision making processes and tools. The methodology is used to assure that project investments are selected through an optimization of net mission value. The main intent of the analysis is to gauge the degree of confidence in the optimal solution and to provide the decision maker with an array of viable selection alternatives which take into account input uncertainties and possibly satisfy non-technical constraints. A few examples of the analysis are reviewed. The goal of the postoptimality study is to enhance and improve the decision-making process by providing additional qualifications and substitutes to the optimal solution.

The effects of mutational processes and selection on driver mutations across cancer types.

PubMed

Temko, Daniel; Tomlinson, Ian P M; Severini, Simone; Schuster-Böckler, Benjamin; Graham, Trevor A

2018-05-10

Epidemiological evidence has long associated environmental mutagens with increased cancer risk. However, links between specific mutation-causing processes and the acquisition of individual driver mutations have remained obscure. Here we have used public cancer sequencing data from 11,336 cancers of various types to infer the independent effects of mutation and selection on the set of driver mutations in a cancer type. First, we detect associations between a range of mutational processes, including those linked to smoking, ageing, APOBEC and DNA mismatch repair (MMR) and the presence of key driver mutations across cancer types. Second, we quantify differential selection between well-known alternative driver mutations, including differences in selection between distinct mutant residues in the same gene. These results show that while mutational processes have a large role in determining which driver mutations are present in a cancer, the role of selection frequently dominates.

Fuzzy approaches to supplier selection problem

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ozkok, Beyza Ahlatcioglu; Kocken, Hale Gonce

2013-09-01

Supplier selection problem is a multi-criteria decision making problem which includes both qualitative and quantitative factors. In the selection process many criteria may conflict with each other, therefore decision-making process becomes complicated. In this study, we handled the supplier selection problem under uncertainty. In this context; we used minimum criterion, arithmetic mean criterion, regret criterion, optimistic criterion, geometric mean and harmonic mean. The membership functions created with the help of the characteristics of used criteria, and we tried to provide consistent supplier selection decisions by using these memberships for evaluating alternative suppliers. During the analysis, no need to use expert opinion is a strong aspect of the methodology used in the decision-making.

The data base management system alternative for computing in the human services.

PubMed

Sircar, S; Schkade, L L; Schoech, D

1983-01-01

The traditional incremental approach to computerization presents substantial problems as systems develop and grow. The Data Base Management System approach to computerization was developed to overcome the problems resulting from implementing computer applications one at a time. The authors describe the applications approach and the alternative Data Base Management System (DBMS) approach through their developmental history, discuss the technology of DBMS components, and consider the implications of choosing the DBMS alternative. Human service managers need an understanding of the DBMS alternative and its applicability to their agency data processing needs. The basis for a conscious selection of computing alternatives is outlined.

Economic comparisons of haul road construction versus forwarding versus longer skid distances

Treesearch

Michael D. Erickson; Curt C. Hassler; Chris B. LeDoux

1992-01-01

There currently exists no set of basic guidelines for Appalachian loggers to use in the decision making process for selecting the best way to harvest a tract of timber. Specifically, guidelines are needed for deciding between the alternatives of constructing truck haul roads to access an area or other alternatives such as skidding or forwarding timber longer distances...

Advancing alternatives analysis: The role of predictive toxicology in selecting safer chemical products and processes.

PubMed

Malloy, Timothy; Zaunbrecher, Virginia; Beryt, Elizabeth; Judson, Richard; Tice, Raymond; Allard, Patrick; Blake, Ann; Cote, Ila; Godwin, Hilary; Heine, Lauren; Kerzic, Patrick; Kostal, Jakub; Marchant, Gary; McPartland, Jennifer; Moran, Kelly; Nel, Andre; Ogunseitan, Oladele; Rossi, Mark; Thayer, Kristina; Tickner, Joel; Whittaker, Margaret; Zarker, Ken

2017-09-01

Alternatives analysis (AA) is a method used in regulation and product design to identify, assess, and evaluate the safety and viability of potential substitutes for hazardous chemicals. It requires toxicological data for the existing chemical and potential alternatives. Predictive toxicology uses in silico and in vitro approaches, computational models, and other tools to expedite toxicological data generation in a more cost-effective manner than traditional approaches. The present article briefly reviews the challenges associated with using predictive toxicology in regulatory AA, then presents 4 recommendations for its advancement. It recommends using case studies to advance the integration of predictive toxicology into AA, adopting a stepwise process to employing predictive toxicology in AA beginning with prioritization of chemicals of concern, leveraging existing resources to advance the integration of predictive toxicology into the practice of AA, and supporting transdisciplinary efforts. The further incorporation of predictive toxicology into AA would advance the ability of companies and regulators to select alternatives to harmful ingredients, and potentially increase the use of predictive toxicology in regulation more broadly. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2017;13:915-925. © 2017 SETAC. © 2017 SETAC.

Propensity Score Estimation with Data Mining Techniques: Alternatives to Logistic Regression

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Keller, Bryan S. B.; Kim, Jee-Seon; Steiner, Peter M.

2013-01-01

Propensity score analysis (PSA) is a methodological technique which may correct for selection bias in a quasi-experiment by modeling the selection process using observed covariates. Because logistic regression is well understood by researchers in a variety of fields and easy to implement in a number of popular software packages, it has…

Ion-selective detection by plasticized poly(vinyl chloride) membrane in glass nanopipette with alternating voltage modulation.

PubMed

Deng, Xiao Long; Takami, Tomohide; Son, Jong Wan; Kang, Eun Ji; Kawai, Tomoji; Park, Bae Ho

2013-08-01

An alternating current (AC) voltage modulation was applied to ion-selective observations with plasticized poly(vinyl chloride) membranes in glass nanopipettes. The liquid confronting the membranes in the nanopipettes, the conditioning process, and AC voltage modulation play important roles in the ion-selective detection. In the AC detection system developed by us, where distilled water was used as the liquid within the nanopipettes, potassium ions were selectively detected in the sample solution of sodium and potassium ions because sodium ions were captured at the membrane containing bis(12-crown-4) ionophores, before the saturation of the ionophores. The membrane lost the selectivity after the saturation. On using sodium chloride as the liquid within the nanopipette, the membrane selectively detected potassium and sodium ions before and after the saturation of ionophores, respectively. The ion-selective detection of our system can be explained by the ion extraction-diffusion-dissolution mechanism through the bis(12-crown-4) ionophores with AC voltage modulation.

The UARS and open data system concept and analysis study. Executive summary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mittal, M.; Nebb, J.; Woodward, H.

1983-01-01

Alternative concepts for a common design for the UARS and OPEN Central Data Handling Facility (CDHF) are offered. The designs are consistent with requirements shared by UARS and OPEN and the data storage and data processing demands of these missions. Because more detailed information is available for UARS, the design approach was to size the system and to select components for a UARS CDHF, but in a manner that does not optimize the CDHF at the expense of OPEN. Costs for alternative implementations of the UARS designs are presented showing that the system design does not restrict the implementation to a single manufacturer. Processing demands on the alternative UARS CDHF implementations are discussed. With this information at hand together with estimates for OPEN processing demands, it is shown that any shortfall in system capability for OPEN support can be remedied by either component upgrades or array processing attachments rather than a system redesign.

Contingency Management and Deliberative Decision-Making Processes.

PubMed

Regier, Paul S; Redish, A David

2015-01-01

Contingency management is an effective treatment for drug addiction. The current explanation for its success is rooted in alternative reinforcement theory. We suggest that alternative reinforcement theory is inadequate to explain the success of contingency management and produce a model based on demand curves that show how little the monetary rewards offered in this treatment would affect drug use. Instead, we offer an explanation of its success based on the concept that it accesses deliberative decision-making processes. We suggest that contingency management is effective because it offers a concrete and immediate alternative to using drugs, which engages deliberative processes, improves the ability of those deliberative processes to attend to non-drug options, and offsets more automatic action-selection systems. This theory makes explicit predictions that can be tested, suggests which users will be most helped by contingency management, and suggests improvements in its implementation.

Contingency Management and Deliberative Decision-Making Processes

PubMed Central

Regier, Paul S.; Redish, A. David

2015-01-01

Contingency management is an effective treatment for drug addiction. The current explanation for its success is rooted in alternative reinforcement theory. We suggest that alternative reinforcement theory is inadequate to explain the success of contingency management and produce a model based on demand curves that show how little the monetary rewards offered in this treatment would affect drug use. Instead, we offer an explanation of its success based on the concept that it accesses deliberative decision-making processes. We suggest that contingency management is effective because it offers a concrete and immediate alternative to using drugs, which engages deliberative processes, improves the ability of those deliberative processes to attend to non-drug options, and offsets more automatic action-selection systems. This theory makes explicit predictions that can be tested, suggests which users will be most helped by contingency management, and suggests improvements in its implementation. PMID:26082725

Neural Mechanisms of Credit Assignment in a Multicue Environment

PubMed Central

Kolling, Nils; Brown, Joshua W.; Rushworth, Matthew

2016-01-01

In complex environments, many potential cues can guide a decision or be assigned responsibility for the outcome of the decision. We know little, however, about how humans and animals select relevant information sources that should guide behavior. We show that subjects solve this relevance selection and credit assignment problem by selecting one cue and its association with a particular outcome as the main focus of a hypothesis. To do this, we examined learning while using a task design that allowed us to estimate the focus of each subject's hypotheses on a trial-by-trial basis. When a prediction is confirmed by the outcome, then credit for the outcome is assigned to that cue rather than an alternative. Activity in medial frontal cortex is associated with the assignment of credit to the cue that is the main focus of the hypothesis. However, when the outcome disconfirms a prediction, the focus shifts between cues, and the credit for the outcome is assigned to an alternative cue. This process of reselection for credit assignment to an alternative cue is associated with lateral orbitofrontal cortex. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Learners should infer which features of environments are predictive of significant events, such as rewards. This “credit assignment” problem is particularly challenging when any of several cues might be predictive. We show that human subjects solve the credit assignment problem by implicitly “hypothesizing” which cue is relevant for predicting subsequent outcomes, and then credit is assigned according to this hypothesis. This process is associated with a distinctive pattern of activity in a part of medial frontal cortex. By contrast, when unexpected outcomes occur, hypotheses are redirected toward alternative cues, and this process is associated with activity in lateral orbitofrontal cortex. PMID:26818500

Reference compounds for alternative test methods to indicate developmental neurotoxicity (DNT) potential of chemicals: example lists and criteria for their selection and use.

PubMed

Aschner, Michael; Ceccatelli, Sandra; Daneshian, Mardas; Fritsche, Ellen; Hasiwa, Nina; Hartung, Thomas; Hogberg, Helena T; Leist, Marcel; Li, Abby; Mundi, William R; Padilla, Stephanie; Piersma, Aldert H; Bal-Price, Anna; Seiler, Andrea; Westerink, Remco H; Zimmer, Bastian; Lein, Pamela J

2017-01-01

There is a paucity of information concerning the developmental neurotoxicity (DNT) hazard posed by industrial and environmental chemicals. New testing approaches will most likely be based on batteries of alternative and complementary (non-animal) tests. As DNT is assumed to result from the modulation of fundamental neurodevelopmental processes (such as neuronal differentiation, precursor cell migration or neuronal network formation) by chemicals, the first generation of alternative DNT tests target these processes. The advantage of such types of assays is that they capture toxicants with multiple targets and modes-of-action. Moreover, the processes modelled by the assays can be linked to toxicity endophenotypes, i.e., alterations in neural connectivity that form the basis for neurofunctional deficits in man. The authors of this review convened in a workshop to define criteria for the selection of positive/negative controls, to prepare recommendations on their use, and to initiate the setup of a directory of reference chemicals. For initial technical optimization of tests, a set of > 50 endpoint-specific control compounds was identified. For further test development, an additional "test" set of 33 chemicals considered to act directly as bona fide DNT toxicants is proposed, and each chemical is annotated to the extent it fulfills these criteria. A tabular compilation of the original literature used to select the test set chemicals provides information on statistical procedures, and toxic/non-toxic doses (both for pups and dams). Suggestions are provided on how to use the > 100 compounds (including negative controls) compiled here to address specificity, adversity and use of alternative test systems.

Reference compounds for alternative test methods to indicate developmental neurotoxicity (DNT) potential of chemicals: example lists and criteria for their selection and use

PubMed Central

Aschner, Michael; Ceccatelli, Sandra; Daneshian, Mardas; Fritsche, Ellen; Hasiwa, Nina; Hartung, Thomas; Hogberg, Helena T.; Leist, Marcel; Li, Abby; Mundy, William R.; Padilla, Stephanie; Piersma, Aldert H.; Bal-Price, Anna; Seiler, Andrea; Westerink, Remco H.; Zimmer, Bastian; Lein, Pamela J.

2016-01-01

Summary There is a paucity of information concerning the developmental neurotoxicity (DNT) hazard posed by industrial and environmental chemicals. New testing approaches will most likely be based on batteries of alternative and complementary (non-animal) tests. As DNT is assumed to result from the modulation of fundamental neurodevelopmental processes (such as neuronal differentiation, precursor cell migration or neuronal network formation) by chemicals, the first generation of alternative DNT tests target these processes. The advantage of such types of assays is that they capture toxicants with multiple targets and modes-of-action. Moreover, the processes modelled by the assays can be linked to toxicity endophenotypes, i.e. alterations in neural connectivity that form the basis for neurofunctional deficits in man. The authors of this review convened in a workshop to define criteria for the selection of positive/negative controls, to prepare recommendations on their use, and to initiate the setup of a directory of reference chemicals. For initial technical optimization of tests, a set of >50 endpoint-specific control compounds was identified. For further test development, an additional “test” set of 33 chemicals considered to act directly as bona fide DNT toxicants is proposed, and each chemical is annotated to the extent it fulfills these criteria. A tabular compilation of the original literature used to select the test set chemicals provides information on statistical procedures, and toxic/non-toxic doses (both for pups and dams). Suggestions are provided on how to use the >100 compounds (including negative controls) compiled here to address specificity, adversity and use of alternative test systems. PMID:27452664

Generalized Poisson-Kac Processes: Basic Properties and Implications in Extended Thermodynamics and Transport

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Giona, Massimiliano; Brasiello, Antonio; Crescitelli, Silvestro

2016-04-01

We introduce a new class of stochastic processes in Rn,{{{mathbb R}}^n}, referred to as generalized Poisson-Kac (GPK) processes, that generalizes the Poisson-Kac telegrapher's random motion in higher dimensions. These stochastic processes possess finite propagation velocity, almost everywhere smooth trajectories, and converge in the Kac limit to Brownian motion. GPK processes are defined by coupling the selection of a bounded velocity vector from a family of N distinct ones with a Markovian dynamics controlling probabilistically this selection. This model can be used as a probabilistic tool for a stochastically consistent formulation of extended thermodynamic theories far from equilibrium.

Rules of thumb for superfund remedy selection

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

NONE

1997-08-01

The guidance document describes key principles and expectations, interspersed with `best practices` based on program experience, that should be consulted during the Superfund remedy selection process. These remedy selection `Rules of Thumb` are organized into three major policy areas: (1) risk assessment and risk management, (2) developing remedial alternatives, and (3) ground-water response actions. The purpose of this guide is to briefly summarize key elements of various remedy selection guidance documents and policies in one publication.

Batch Tests with IONSIV IE-911 and a Simulant of the Savannah River Site ''Average'' Supernatant: Distribution Ratios vs Time

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

Anderson, K.K.; Collins, J.L.; Hunt, R.D.

1999-02-01

The Department of Energy (DOE) is required by law to treat and safely dispose of the radioactive wastes from its nuclear weapon production activities. The primary radionuclide in the DOE liquid wastes or supernatants is {sup 137}Cs. At the Savannah River Site (SRS), the In-Tank Precipitation (ITP) process was selected as the baseline technology to remove {sup 137}Cs from the supernatants, which are stored in underground storage tanks. In the ITP process, tetraphenylborate reacts with the water-soluble cesium to form a precipitant. The treated supernatant can then be immobilized in grout or saltstone and stored in vaults at the SRS.more » However, problems were encountered during the full-scale ITP processing. These difficulties have led to the evaluation of alternative technologies and/or concepts to the currently configured ITP process. The High-Level Waste Salt Disposition Team at the SRS is currently performing this assessment. After an initial screening of all potential alternatives, the Salt Disposition Team selected four primary options to evaluate further before the final down-selection. Crystalline silicotitanate (CST), an inorganic ion exchanger, was chosen as one of the leading alternatives. Since nearly all of the CST tests have been performed on supernatants from Hanford and Oak Ridge, the Salt Disposition Team has requested that personnel at the SRS and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) determine the performance of the engineered form of CST, IONSIV{reg_sign} IE-911, with actual and simulated SRS supernatants.« less

Application of analytic hierarchy process in a waste treatment technology assessment in Mexico.

PubMed

Taboada-González, Paul; Aguilar-Virgen, Quetzalli; Ojeda-Benítez, Sara; Cruz-Sotelo, Samantha

2014-09-01

The high per capita generation of solid waste and the environmental problems in major rural communities of Ensenada, Baja California, have prompted authorities to seek alternatives for waste treatment. In the absence of a selection methodology, three technologies of waste treatment with energy recovery (an anaerobic digester, a downdraft gasifier, and a plasma gasifier) were evaluated, taking the broader social, political, economic, and environmental issues into considerations. Using the scientific literature as a baseline, interviews with experts, decision makers and the community, and waste stream studies were used to construct a hierarchy that was evaluated by the analytic hierarchy process. In terms of the criteria, judgments, and assumptions made in the model, the anaerobic digester was found to have the highest rating and should consequently be selected as the waste treatment technology for this area. The study results showed low sensitivity, so alternative scenarios were not considered. The methodology developed in this study may be useful for other governments who wish to assess technologies to select waste treatment.

Distinct Contributions of the Magnocellular and Parvocellular Visual Streams to Perceptual Selection

PubMed Central

Denison, Rachel N.; Silver, Michael A.

2014-01-01

During binocular rivalry, conflicting images presented to the two eyes compete for perceptual dominance, but the neural basis of this competition is disputed. In interocular switch (IOS) rivalry, rival images periodically exchanged between the two eyes generate one of two types of perceptual alternation: 1) a fast, regular alternation between the images that is time-locked to the stimulus switches and has been proposed to arise from competition at lower levels of the visual processing hierarchy, or 2) a slow, irregular alternation spanning multiple stimulus switches that has been associated with higher levels of the visual system. The existence of these two types of perceptual alternation has been influential in establishing the view that rivalry may be resolved at multiple hierarchical levels of the visual system. We varied the spatial, temporal, and luminance properties of IOS rivalry gratings and found, instead, an association between fast, regular perceptual alternations and processing by the magnocellular stream and between slow, irregular alternations and processing by the parvocellular stream. The magnocellular and parvocellular streams are two early visual pathways that are specialized for the processing of motion and form, respectively. These results provide a new framework for understanding the neural substrates of binocular rivalry that emphasizes the importance of parallel visual processing streams, and not only hierarchical organization, in the perceptual resolution of ambiguities in the visual environment. PMID:21861685

The influence of the number of relevant causes on the processing of covariation information in causal reasoning.

PubMed

Kim, Kyungil; Markman, Arthur B; Kim, Tae Hoon

2016-11-01

Research on causal reasoning has focused on the influence of covariation between candidate causes and effects on causal judgments. We suggest that the type of covariation information to which people attend is affected by the task being performed. For this, we manipulated the test questions for the evaluation of contingency information and observed its influence on both contingency learning and subsequent causal selections. When people select one cause related to an effect, they focus on conditional contingencies assuming the absence of alternative causes. When people select two causes related to an effect, they focus on conditional contingencies assuming the presence of alternative causes. We demonstrated this use of contingency information in four experiments.

Transshipment site selection using the AHP and TOPSIS approaches under fuzzy environment.

PubMed

Onüt, Semih; Soner, Selin

2008-01-01

Site selection is an important issue in waste management. Selection of the appropriate solid waste site requires consideration of multiple alternative solutions and evaluation criteria because of system complexity. Evaluation procedures involve several objectives, and it is often necessary to compromise among possibly conflicting tangible and intangible factors. For these reasons, multiple criteria decision-making (MCDM) has been found to be a useful approach to solve this kind of problem. Different MCDM models have been applied to solve this problem. But most of them are basically mathematical and ignore qualitative and often subjective considerations. It is easier for a decision-maker to describe a value for an alternative by using linguistic terms. In the fuzzy-based method, the rating of each alternative is described using linguistic terms, which can also be expressed as triangular fuzzy numbers. Furthermore, there have not been any studies focused on the site selection in waste management using both fuzzy TOPSIS (technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution) and AHP (analytical hierarchy process) techniques. In this paper, a fuzzy TOPSIS based methodology is applied to solve the solid waste transshipment site selection problem in Istanbul, Turkey. The criteria weights are calculated by using the AHP.

Comparison of alternate fuels for aircraft. [liquid hydrogen, liquid methane, and synthetic aviation kerosene

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Witcofski, R. D.

1979-01-01

Liquid hydrogen, liquid methane, and synthetic aviation kerosene were assessed as alternate fuels for aircraft in terms of cost, capital requirements, and energy resource utilization. Fuel transmission and airport storage and distribution facilities are considered. Environmental emissions and safety aspects of fuel selection are discussed and detailed descriptions of various fuel production and liquefaction processes are given. Technological deficiencies are identified.

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

Abdelaziz, Omar; Shrestha, Som S.; Shen, Bo

The Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) High-Ambient-Temperature Evaluation Program for Low-Global Warming Potential (Low-GWP) Refrigerants aims to develop an understanding of the performance of low-GWP alternative refrigerants relative to hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC) and hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) refrigerants in packaged or Rooftop Unit (RTU) air conditioners under high-ambient-temperature conditions. This final report describes the parties involved, the alternative refrigerants selection process, the test procedures, and the final results.

Innovative Instruction in Higher Education: Thirty Exemplary Projects Conducted in Selected Institutions of Post-Secondary Education--State of Oregon.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harper, Ronald; And Others

This manual reviews thirty projects selected by the Oregon Educational Coordinating Council (ECC) as exemplary in method, operation, and development. The projects are organized into 9 broad classifications: large group-small group alternatives, autotutorial programmed instruction, process centered, computer and simulation, on-site/field study,…

A Data Envelopment Analysis Model for Selecting Material Handling System Designs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Fuh-Hwa Franklin; Kuo, Wan-Ting

The material handling system under design is an unmanned job shop with an automated guided vehicle that transport loads within the processing machines. The engineering task is to select the design alternatives that are the combinations of the four design factors: the ratio of production time to transportation time, mean job arrival rate to the system, input/output buffer capacities at each processing machine, and the vehicle control strategies. Each of the design alternatives is simulated to collect the upper and lower bounds of the five performance indices. We develop a Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) model to assess the 180 designs with imprecise data of the five indices. The three-ways factorial experiment analysis for the assessment results indicates the buffer capacity and the interaction of job arrival rate and buffer capacity affect the performance significantly.

Specifying the role of the left prefrontal cortex in word selection.

PubMed

Riès, S K; Karzmark, C R; Navarrete, E; Knight, R T; Dronkers, N F

2015-10-01

Word selection allows us to choose words during language production. This is often viewed as a competitive process wherein a lexical representation is retrieved among semantically-related alternatives. The left prefrontal cortex (LPFC) is thought to help overcome competition for word selection through top-down control. However, whether the LPFC is always necessary for word selection remains unclear. We tested 6 LPFC-injured patients and controls in two picture naming paradigms varying in terms of item repetition. Both paradigms elicited the expected semantic interference effects (SIE), reflecting interference caused by semantically-related representations in word selection. However, LPFC patients as a group showed a larger SIE than controls only in the paradigm involving item repetition. We argue that item repetition increases interference caused by semantically-related alternatives, resulting in increased LPFC-dependent cognitive control demands. The remaining network of brain regions associated with word selection appears to be sufficient when items are not repeated. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

An Integrated MCDM Model for Conveyor Equipment Evaluation and Selection in an FMC Based on a Fuzzy AHP and Fuzzy ARAS in the Presence of Vagueness.

PubMed

Nguyen, Huu-Tho; Dawal, Siti Zawiah Md; Nukman, Yusoff; Rifai, Achmad P; Aoyama, Hideki

2016-01-01

The conveyor system plays a vital role in improving the performance of flexible manufacturing cells (FMCs). The conveyor selection problem involves the evaluation of a set of potential alternatives based on qualitative and quantitative criteria. This paper presents an integrated multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) model of a fuzzy AHP (analytic hierarchy process) and fuzzy ARAS (additive ratio assessment) for conveyor evaluation and selection. In this model, linguistic terms represented as triangular fuzzy numbers are used to quantify experts' uncertain assessments of alternatives with respect to the criteria. The fuzzy set is then integrated into the AHP to determine the weights of the criteria. Finally, a fuzzy ARAS is used to calculate the weights of the alternatives. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed model, a case study is performed of a practical example, and the results obtained demonstrate practical potential for the implementation of FMCs.

An Integrated MCDM Model for Conveyor Equipment Evaluation and Selection in an FMC Based on a Fuzzy AHP and Fuzzy ARAS in the Presence of Vagueness

PubMed Central

Nguyen, Huu-Tho; Md Dawal, Siti Zawiah; Nukman, Yusoff; P. Rifai, Achmad; Aoyama, Hideki

2016-01-01

The conveyor system plays a vital role in improving the performance of flexible manufacturing cells (FMCs). The conveyor selection problem involves the evaluation of a set of potential alternatives based on qualitative and quantitative criteria. This paper presents an integrated multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) model of a fuzzy AHP (analytic hierarchy process) and fuzzy ARAS (additive ratio assessment) for conveyor evaluation and selection. In this model, linguistic terms represented as triangular fuzzy numbers are used to quantify experts’ uncertain assessments of alternatives with respect to the criteria. The fuzzy set is then integrated into the AHP to determine the weights of the criteria. Finally, a fuzzy ARAS is used to calculate the weights of the alternatives. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed model, a case study is performed of a practical example, and the results obtained demonstrate practical potential for the implementation of FMCs. PMID:27070543

Mapping protein-protein interactions with phage-displayed combinatorial peptide libraries.

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

Kay, B. K.; Castagnoli, L.; Biosciences Division

This unit describes the process and analysis of affinity selecting bacteriophage M13 from libraries displaying combinatorial peptides fused to either a minor or major capsid protein. Direct affinity selection uses target protein bound to a microtiter plate followed by purification of selected phage by ELISA. Alternatively, there is a bead-based affinity selection method. These methods allow one to readily isolate peptide ligands that bind to a protein target of interest and use the consensus sequence to search proteomic databases for putative interacting proteins.

Modeling and system design for the LOFAR station digital processing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alliot, Sylvain; van Veelen, Martijn

2004-09-01

In the context of the LOFAR preliminary design phase and in particular for the specification of the Station Digital Processing (SDP), a performance/cost model of the system was used. We present here the framework and the trajectory followed in this phase when going from requirements to specification. In the phased array antenna concepts for the next generation of radio telescopes (LOFAR, ATA, SKA) signal processing (multi-beaming and RFI mitigation) replaces the large antenna dishes. The embedded systems for these telescopes are major infrastructure cost items. Moreover, the flexibility and overall performance of the instrument depend greatly on them, therefore alternative solutions need to be investigated. In particular, the technology and the various data transport selections play a fundamental role in the optimization of the architecture. We proposed a formal method [1] of exploring these alternatives that has been followed during the SDP developments. Different scenarios were compared for the specification of the application (selection of the algorithms as well as detailed signal processing techniques) and in the specification of the system architecture (selection of high level topologies, platforms and components). It gave us inside knowledge on the possible trade-offs in the application and architecture domains. This was successful in providing firm basis for the design choices that are demanded by technical review committees.

The Interplay of Temperature and Genotype on Patterns of Alternative Splicing in Drosophila melanogaster.

PubMed

Jakšić, Ana Marija; Schlötterer, Christian

2016-09-01

Alternative splicing is the highly regulated process of variation in the removal of introns from premessenger-RNA transcripts. The consequences of alternative splicing on the phenotype are well documented, but the impact of the environment on alternative splicing is not yet clear. We studied variation in alternative splicing among four different temperatures, 13, 18, 23, and 29°, in two Drosophila melanogaster genotypes. We show plasticity of alternative splicing with up to 10% of the expressed genes being differentially spliced between the most extreme temperatures for a given genotype. Comparing the two genotypes at different temperatures, we found <1% of the genes being differentially spliced at 18°. At extreme temperatures, however, we detected substantial differences in alternative splicing-with almost 10% of the genes having differential splicing between the genotypes: a magnitude similar to between species differences. Genes with differential alternative splicing between genotypes frequently exhibit dominant inheritance. Remarkably, the pattern of surplus of differences in alternative splicing at extreme temperatures resembled the pattern seen for gene expression intensity. Since different sets of genes were involved for the two phenotypes, we propose that purifying selection results in the reduction of differences at benign temperatures. Relaxed purifying selection at temperature extremes, on the other hand, may cause the divergence in gene expression and alternative splicing between the two strains in rarely encountered environments. Copyright © 2016 by the Genetics Society of America.

A Fuzzy-Based Decision Support Model for Selecting the Best Dialyser Flux in Haemodialysis.

PubMed

Oztürk, Necla; Tozan, Hakan

2015-01-01

Decision making is an important procedure for every organization. The procedure is particularly challenging for complicated multi-criteria problems. Selection of dialyser flux is one of the decisions routinely made for haemodialysis treatment provided for chronic kidney failure patients. This study provides a decision support model for selecting the best dialyser flux between high-flux and low-flux dialyser alternatives. The preferences of decision makers were collected via a questionnaire. A total of 45 questionnaires filled by dialysis physicians and nephrologists were assessed. A hybrid fuzzy-based decision support software that enables the use of Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (FAHP), Analytic Network Process (ANP), and Fuzzy Analytic Network Process (FANP) was used to evaluate the flux selection model. In conclusion, the results showed that a high-flux dialyser is the best. option for haemodialysis treatment.

A new perspective on the perceptual selectivity of attention under load.

PubMed

Giesbrecht, Barry; Sy, Jocelyn; Bundesen, Claus; Kyllingsbaek, Søren

2014-05-01

The human attention system helps us cope with a complex environment by supporting the selective processing of information relevant to our current goals. Understanding the perceptual, cognitive, and neural mechanisms that mediate selective attention is a core issue in cognitive neuroscience. One prominent model of selective attention, known as load theory, offers an account of how task demands determine when information is selected and an account of the efficiency of the selection process. However, load theory has several critical weaknesses that suggest that it is time for a new perspective. Here we review the strengths and weaknesses of load theory and offer an alternative biologically plausible computational account that is based on the neural theory of visual attention. We argue that this new perspective provides a detailed computational account of how bottom-up and top-down information is integrated to provide efficient attentional selection and allocation of perceptual processing resources. © 2014 New York Academy of Sciences.

Risk Assessment Methodology for Hazardous Waste Management (1998)

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

A methodology is described for systematically assessing and comparing the risks to human health and the environment of hazardous waste management alternatives. The methodology selects and links appropriate models and techniques for performing the process.

A Guide to the Selection of Cost-Effective Wastewater Treatment Systems. Technical Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Van Note, Robert H.; And Others

The data within this publication provide guidelines for planners, engineers and decision-makers at all governmental levels to evaluate cost-effectiveness of alternative wastewater treatment proposals. The processes described include conventional and advanced treatment units as well as most sludge handling and processing units. Flow sheets, cost…

Systems and processes for conversion of ethylene feedstocks to hydrocarbon fuels

DOEpatents

Lilga, Michael A.; Hallen, Richard T.; Albrecht, Karl O.; Cooper, Alan R.; Frye, John G.; Ramasamy, Karthikeyan Kallupalayam

2018-04-03

Systems, processes, and catalysts are disclosed for obtaining fuel and fuel blends containing selected ratios of open-chain and closed-chain fuel-range hydrocarbons suitable for production of alternate fuels including gasolines, jet fuels, and diesel fuels. Fuel-range hydrocarbons may be derived from ethylene-containing feedstocks and ethanol-containing feedstocks.

Systems and processes for conversion of ethylene feedstocks to hydrocarbon fuels

DOEpatents

Lilga, Michael A.; Hallen, Richard T.; Albrecht, Karl O.; Cooper, Alan R.; Frye, John G.; Ramasamy, Karthikeyan Kallupalayam

2017-05-30

Systems, processes, and catalysts are disclosed for obtaining fuel and fuel blends containing selected ratios of open-chain and closed-chain fuel-range hydrocarbons suitable for production of alternate fuels including gasolines, jet fuels, and diesel fuels. Fuel-range hydrocarbons may be derived from ethylene-containing feedstocks and ethanol-containing feedstocks.

Systems and processes for conversion of ethylene feedstocks to hydrocarbon fuels

DOEpatents

Lilga, Michael A.; Hallen, Richard T.; Albrecht, Karl O.; Cooper, Alan R.; Frye, John G.; Ramasamy, Karthikeyan Kallupalayam

2017-09-26

Systems, processes, and catalysts are disclosed for obtaining fuels and fuel blends containing selected ratios of open-chain and closed-chain fuel-range hydrocarbons suitable for production of alternate fuels including gasolines, jet fuels, and diesel fuels. Fuel-range hydrocarbons may be derived from ethylene-containing feedstocks and ethanol-containing feedstocks.

Collaborative decision-making on wind power projects based on AHP method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Badea, A.; Proştean, G.; Tămăşilă, M.; Vârtosu, A.

2017-01-01

The complexity of projects implementation in Renewable Energy Sources (RES) requires finding collaborative alliances between suppliers and project developers in RES. Links activities in supply chain in RES, respectively, transportation of heavy components, processing orders to purchase quality raw materials, storage and materials handling, packaging, and other complex activities requiring a logistics system collaboratively to be permanently dimensioned properly selected and monitored. Requirements imposed by stringency of wind power energy projects implementation inevitably involves constraints in infrastructure, implementation and logistics. Thus, following an extensive research in RES project, to eliminate these constraints were identified alternative collaboration to provide feasible solutions on different levels of performance. The paper presents a critical analysis of different collaboration alternatives in supply chain for RES projects, selecting the ones most suitable for particular situations by using decision-making method Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). The role of AHP method was to formulate a decision model by which can be establish the collaboration alternative choice through mathematical calculation to reduce the impact created by constraints encountered. The solution provided through AHP provides a framework for detecting optimal alternative collaboration between suppliers and project developers in RES and avoids some breaks in the chain by resizing safety buffers for leveling orders in RES projects.

Comparison of Alternate and Original Items on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment.

PubMed

Lebedeva, Elena; Huang, Mei; Koski, Lisa

2016-03-01

The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) is a screening tool for mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in elderly individuals. We hypothesized that measurement error when using the new alternate MoCA versions to monitor change over time could be related to the use of items that are not of comparable difficulty to their corresponding originals of similar content. The objective of this study was to compare the difficulty of the alternate MoCA items to the original ones. Five selected items from alternate versions of the MoCA were included with items from the original MoCA administered adaptively to geriatric outpatients (N = 78). Rasch analysis was used to estimate the difficulty level of the items. None of the five items from the alternate versions matched the difficulty level of their corresponding original items. This study demonstrates the potential benefits of a Rasch analysis-based approach for selecting items during the process of development of parallel forms. The results suggest that better match of the items from different MoCA forms by their difficulty would result in higher sensitivity to changes in cognitive function over time.

Balancing Vibrations at Harmonic Frequencies by Injecting Harmonic Balancing Signals into the Armature of a Linear Motor/Alternator Coupled to a Stirling Machine

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Holliday, Ezekiel S. (Inventor)

2014-01-01

Vibrations at harmonic frequencies are reduced by injecting harmonic balancing signals into the armature of a linear motor/alternator coupled to a Stirling machine. The vibrations are sensed to provide a signal representing the mechanical vibrations. A harmonic balancing signal is generated for selected harmonics of the operating frequency by processing the sensed vibration signal with adaptive filter algorithms of adaptive filters for each harmonic. Reference inputs for each harmonic are applied to the adaptive filter algorithms at the frequency of the selected harmonic. The harmonic balancing signals for all of the harmonics are summed with a principal control signal. The harmonic balancing signals modify the principal electrical drive voltage and drive the motor/alternator with a drive voltage component in opposition to the vibration at each harmonic.

An Analysis of the Selection and Training of Guiding Teachers in an Urban Teacher Education Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lopez, Carmen Lizette

2012-01-01

In response to a growing trend towards alternative teacher education programs, this study aims to direct the focus on traditional teacher preparation programs. The purpose of this study is to analyze the processes of how classroom teachers are selected, trained, and supported as guiding teachers in one urban teacher education program. The…

Multimodality: a basis for augmentative and alternative communication--psycholinguistic, cognitive, and clinical/educational aspects.

PubMed

Loncke, Filip T; Campbell, Jamie; England, Amanda M; Haley, Tanya

2006-02-15

Message generating is a complex process involving a number of processes, including the selection of modes to use. When expressing a message, human communicators typically use a combination of modes. This phenomenon is often termed multimodality. This article explores the use of models that explain multimodality as an explanatory framework for augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). Multimodality is analysed from a communication, psycholinguistic, and cognitive perspective. Theoretical and applied topics within AAC can be explained or described within the multimodality framework considering iconicity, simultaneous communication, lexical organization, and compatibility of communication modes. Consideration of multimodality is critical to understanding underlying processes in individuals who use AAC and individuals who interact with them.

Isoform Evolution in Primates through Independent Combination of Alternative RNA Processing Events

PubMed Central

Zhang, Shi-Jian; Wang, Chenqu; Yan, Shouyu; Fu, Aisi; Luan, Xuke; Li, Yumei; Sunny Shen, Qing; Zhong, Xiaoming; Chen, Jia-Yu; Wang, Xiangfeng; Chin-Ming Tan, Bertrand; He, Aibin; Li, Chuan-Yun

2017-01-01

Abstract Recent RNA-seq technology revealed thousands of splicing events that are under rapid evolution in primates, whereas the reliability of these events, as well as their combination on the isoform level, have not been adequately addressed due to its limited sequencing length. Here, we performed comparative transcriptome analyses in human and rhesus macaque cerebellum using single molecule long-read sequencing (Iso-seq) and matched RNA-seq. Besides 359 million RNA-seq reads, 4,165,527 Iso-seq reads were generated with a mean length of 14,875 bp, covering 11,466 human genes, and 10,159 macaque genes. With Iso-seq data, we substantially expanded the repertoire of alternative RNA processing events in primates, and found that intron retention and alternative polyadenylation are surprisingly more prevalent in primates than previously estimated. We then investigated the combinatorial mode of these alternative events at the whole-transcript level, and found that the combination of these events is largely independent along the transcript, leading to thousands of novel isoforms missed by current annotations. Notably, these novel isoforms are selectively constrained in general, and 1,119 isoforms have even higher expression than the previously annotated major isoforms in human, indicating that the complexity of the human transcriptome is still significantly underestimated. Comparative transcriptome analysis further revealed 502 genes encoding selectively constrained, lineage-specific isoforms in human but not in rhesus macaque, linking them to some lineage-specific functions. Overall, we propose that the independent combination of alternative RNA processing events has contributed to complex isoform evolution in primates, which provides a new foundation for the study of phenotypic difference among primates. PMID:28957512

Selection of suitable alternatives to reduce the environmental impact of road traffic noise using a fuzzy multi-criteria decision model

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

Ruiz-Padillo, Alejandro, E-mail: aruizp@correo.ugr.es; Civil Engineering Department, University of Granada, Av. Fuentenueva s/n, 18071 Granada; Ruiz, Diego P., E-mail: druiz@ugr.es

Road traffic noise is one of the most significant environmental impacts generated by transport systems. To this regard, the recent implementation of the European Environmental Noise Directive by Public Administrations of the European Union member countries has led to various noise action plans (NAPs) for reducing the noise exposure of EU inhabitants. Every country or administration is responsible for applying criteria based on their own experience or expert knowledge, but there is no regulated process for the prioritization of technical measures within these plans. This paper proposes a multi-criteria decision methodology for the selection of suitable alternatives against traffic noisemore » in each of the road stretches included in the NAPs. The methodology first defines the main criteria and alternatives to be considered. Secondly, it determines the relative weights for the criteria and sub-criteria using the fuzzy extended analytical hierarchy process as applied to the results from an expert panel, thereby allowing expert knowledge to be captured in an automated way. A final step comprises the use of discrete multi-criteria analysis methods such as weighted sum, ELECTRE and TOPSIS, to rank the alternatives by suitability. To illustrate an application of the proposed methodology, this paper describes its implementation in a complex real case study: the selection of optimal technical solutions against traffic noise in the top priority road stretch included in the revision of the NAP of the regional road network in the province of Almeria (Spain).« less

Optimal Contractor Selection in Construction Industry: The Fuzzy Way

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krishna Rao, M. V.; Kumar, V. S. S.; Rathish Kumar, P.

2018-02-01

A purely price-based approach to contractor selection has been identified as the root cause for many serious project delivery problems. Therefore, the capability of the contractor to execute the project should be evaluated using a multiple set of selection criteria including reputation, past performance, performance potential, financial soundness and other project specific criteria. An industry-wide questionnaire survey was conducted with the objective of identifying the important criteria for adoption in the selection process. In this work, a fuzzy set based model was developed for contractor prequalification/evaluation, by using effective criteria obtained from the percept of construction professionals, taking subjective judgments of decision makers also into consideration. A case study consisting of four alternatives (contractors in the present case) solicited from a public works department of Pondicherry in India, is used to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach. The final selection of contractor is made based on the integrated score or Overall Evaluation Score of the decision alternative in prequalification as well as bid evaluation stages.

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

Onuet, Semih; Soner, Selin

Site selection is an important issue in waste management. Selection of the appropriate solid waste site requires consideration of multiple alternative solutions and evaluation criteria because of system complexity. Evaluation procedures involve several objectives, and it is often necessary to compromise among possibly conflicting tangible and intangible factors. For these reasons, multiple criteria decision-making (MCDM) has been found to be a useful approach to solve this kind of problem. Different MCDM models have been applied to solve this problem. But most of them are basically mathematical and ignore qualitative and often subjective considerations. It is easier for a decision-maker tomore » describe a value for an alternative by using linguistic terms. In the fuzzy-based method, the rating of each alternative is described using linguistic terms, which can also be expressed as triangular fuzzy numbers. Furthermore, there have not been any studies focused on the site selection in waste management using both fuzzy TOPSIS (technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution) and AHP (analytical hierarchy process) techniques. In this paper, a fuzzy TOPSIS based methodology is applied to solve the solid waste transshipment site selection problem in Istanbul, Turkey. The criteria weights are calculated by using the AHP.« less

Alternatives Assessment Frameworks: Research Needs for the Informed Substitution of Hazardous Chemicals

PubMed Central

Jacobs, Molly M.; Malloy, Timothy F.; Tickner, Joel A.; Edwards, Sally

2015-01-01

Background Given increasing pressures for hazardous chemical replacement, there is growing interest in alternatives assessment to avoid substituting a toxic chemical with another of equal or greater concern. Alternatives assessment is a process for identifying, comparing, and selecting safer alternatives to chemicals of concern (including those used in materials, processes, or technologies) on the basis of their hazards, performance, and economic viability. Objectives The purposes of this substantive review of alternatives assessment frameworks are to identify consistencies and differences in methods and to outline needs for research and collaboration to advance science policy practice. Methods This review compares methods used in six core components of these frameworks: hazard assessment, exposure characterization, life-cycle impacts, technical feasibility evaluation, economic feasibility assessment, and decision making. Alternatives assessment frameworks published from 1990 to 2014 were included. Results Twenty frameworks were reviewed. The frameworks were consistent in terms of general process steps, but some differences were identified in the end points addressed. Methodological gaps were identified in the exposure characterization, life-cycle assessment, and decision–analysis components. Methods for addressing data gaps remain an issue. Discussion Greater consistency in methods and evaluation metrics is needed but with sufficient flexibility to allow the process to be adapted to different decision contexts. Conclusion Although alternatives assessment is becoming an important science policy field, there is a need for increased cross-disciplinary collaboration to refine methodologies in support of the informed substitution and design of safer chemicals, materials, and products. Case studies can provide concrete lessons to improve alternatives assessment. Citation Jacobs MM, Malloy TF, Tickner JA, Edwards S. 2016. Alternatives assessment frameworks: research needs for the informed substitution of hazardous chemicals. Environ Health Perspect 124:265–280; http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/ehp.1409581 PMID:26339778

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

Not Available

The SPS Concept Development and Evaluation Program includes a comparative assessment. An early first step in the assessment process is the selection and characterization of alternative technologies. This document describes the cost and performance (i.e., technical and environmental) characteristics of six central station energy alternatives: (1) conventional coal-fired powerplant; (2) conventional light water reactor (LWR); (3) combined cycle powerplant with low-Btu gasifiers; (4) liquid metal fast breeder reactor (LMFBR); (5) photovoltaic system without storage; and (6) fusion reactor.

A combined approach of simulation and analytic hierarchy process in assessing production facility layouts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ramli, Razamin; Cheng, Kok-Min

2014-07-01

One of the important areas of concern in order to obtain a competitive level of productivity in a manufacturing system is the layout design and material transportation system (conveyor system). However, changes in customers' requirements have triggered the need to design other alternatives of the manufacturing layout for existing production floor. Hence, this paper discusses effective alternatives of the process layout specifically, the conveyor system layout. Subsequently, two alternative designs for the conveyor system were proposed with the aims to increase the production output and minimize space allocation. The first proposed layout design includes the installation of conveyor oven in the particular manufacturing room based on priority, and the second one is the one without the conveyor oven in the layout. Simulation technique was employed to design the new facility layout. Eventually, simulation experiments were conducted to understand the performance of each conveyor layout design based on operational characteristics, which include predicting the output of layouts. Utilizing the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), the newly and improved layout designs were assessed before the final selection was done. As a comparison, the existing conveyor system layout was included in the assessment process. Relevant criteria involved in this layout design problem were identified as (i) usage of space of each design, (ii) operator's utilization rates, (iii) return of investment (ROI) of the layout, and (iv) output of the layout. In the final stage of AHP analysis, the overall priority of each alternative layout was obtained and thus, a selection for final use by the management was made based on the highest priority value. This efficient planning and designing of facility layout in a particular manufacturing setting is able to minimize material handling cost, minimize overall production time, minimize investment in equipment, and optimize utilization of space.

Alternate Models of Needs Assessment: Selecting the Right One for Your Organization.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leigh, Doug; Watkins, Ryan; Platt, William A.; Kaufman, Roger

2000-01-01

Defines needs assessment and compares different models in terms of levels (mega, macro, micro) and process and input. Recommends assessment of strengths and weakness of a model before using it in human resource development. (SK)

Development of an alternating magnetic-field-assisted finishing process for microelectromechanical systems micropore x-ray optics.

PubMed

Riveros, Raul E; Yamaguchi, Hitomi; Mitsuishi, Ikuyuki; Takagi, Utako; Ezoe, Yuichiro; Kato, Fumiki; Sugiyama, Susumu; Yamasaki, Noriko; Mitsuda, Kazuhisa

2010-06-20

X-ray astronomy research is often limited by the size, weight, complexity, and cost of functioning x-ray optics. Micropore optics promises an economical alternative to traditional (e.g., glass or foil) x-ray optics; however, many manufacturing difficulties prevent micropore optics from being a viable solution. Ezoe et al. introduced microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) micropore optics having curvilinear micropores in 2008. Made by either deep reactive ion etching or x-ray lithography, electroforming, and molding (LIGA), MEMS micropore optics suffer from high micropore sidewall roughness (10-30nmrms) which, by current standards, cannot be improved. In this research, a new alternating magnetic-field-assisted finishing process was developed using a mixture of ferrofluid and microscale abrasive slurry. A machine was built, and a set of working process parameters including alternating frequency, abrasive size, and polishing time was selected. A polishing experiment on a LIGA-fabricated MEMS micropore optic was performed, and a change in micropore sidewall roughness of 9.3+/-2.5nmrms to 5.7+/-0.7nmrms was measured. An improvement in x-ray reflectance was also seen. This research shows the feasibility and confirms the effects of this new polishing process on MEMS micropore optics.

Information-Processing Alternatives to Holistic Perception: Identifying the Mechanisms of Secondary-Level Holism within a Categorization Paradigm

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fific, Mario; Townsend, James T.

2010-01-01

Failure to selectively attend to a facial feature, in the part-to-whole paradigm, has been taken as evidence of holistic perception in a large body of face perception literature. In this article, we demonstrate that although failure of selective attention is a necessary property of holistic perception, its presence alone is not sufficient to…

Efficiency of Osmotic Dehydration of Apples in Polyols Solutions.

PubMed

Cichowska, Joanna; Żubernik, Joanna; Czyżewski, Jakub; Kowalska, Hanna; Witrowa-Rajchert, Dorota

2018-02-17

The present study aimed to evaluate the influence of selected compounds from the polyol group, as well as other saccharides, on the osmotic dehydration process of apples. The following alternative solutions were examined: erythritol, xylitol, maltitol, inulin and oligofructose. Efficiency of the osmotic dehydration process was evaluated based on the kinetics of the process, and through comparison of the results obtained during the application of a sucrose solution. This innovative research utilizes alternative solutions in osmotic pretreatment, which until now, have not been commonly used in fruit processing by researchers worldwide. Results indicate that erythritol and xylitol show stronger or similar efficiency to sucrose; however, the use of inulin, as well as oligofructose, was not satisfactory due to the insufficient, small osmotic driving forces of the process, and the low values of mass transfer parameters.

Optimization of wastewater treatment alternative selection by hierarchy grey relational analysis.

PubMed

Zeng, Guangming; Jiang, Ru; Huang, Guohe; Xu, Min; Li, Jianbing

2007-01-01

This paper describes an innovative systematic approach, namely hierarchy grey relational analysis for optimal selection of wastewater treatment alternatives, based on the application of analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and grey relational analysis (GRA). It can be applied for complicated multicriteria decision-making to obtain scientific and reasonable results. The effectiveness of this approach was verified through a real case study. Four wastewater treatment alternatives (A(2)/O, triple oxidation ditch, anaerobic single oxidation ditch and SBR) were evaluated and compared against multiple economic, technical and administrative performance criteria, including capital cost, operation and maintenance (O and M) cost, land area, removal of nitrogenous and phosphorous pollutants, sludge disposal effect, stability of plant operation, maturity of technology and professional skills required for O and M. The result illustrated that the anaerobic single oxidation ditch was the optimal scheme and would obtain the maximum general benefits for the wastewater treatment plant to be constructed.

Alternative process for thin layer etching: Application to nitride spacer etching stopping on silicon germanium

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

Posseme, N., E-mail: nicolas.posseme@cea.fr; Pollet, O.; Barnola, S.

2014-08-04

Silicon nitride spacer etching realization is considered today as one of the most challenging of the etch process for the new devices realization. For this step, the atomic etch precision to stop on silicon or silicon germanium with a perfect anisotropy (no foot formation) is required. The situation is that none of the current plasma technologies can meet all these requirements. To overcome these issues and meet the highly complex requirements imposed by device fabrication processes, we recently proposed an alternative etching process to the current plasma etch chemistries. This process is based on thin film modification by light ionsmore » implantation followed by a selective removal of the modified layer with respect to the non-modified material. In this Letter, we demonstrate the benefit of this alternative etch method in term of film damage control (silicon germanium recess obtained is less than 6 A), anisotropy (no foot formation), and its compatibility with other integration steps like epitaxial. The etch mechanisms of this approach are also addressed.« less

Evidence accumulation as a model for lexical selection.

PubMed

Anders, R; Riès, S; van Maanen, L; Alario, F X

2015-11-01

We propose and demonstrate evidence accumulation as a plausible theoretical and/or empirical model for the lexical selection process of lexical retrieval. A number of current psycholinguistic theories consider lexical selection as a process related to selecting a lexical target from a number of alternatives, which each have varying activations (or signal supports), that are largely resultant of an initial stimulus recognition. We thoroughly present a case for how such a process may be theoretically explained by the evidence accumulation paradigm, and we demonstrate how this paradigm can be directly related or combined with conventional psycholinguistic theory and their simulatory instantiations (generally, neural network models). Then with a demonstrative application on a large new real data set, we establish how the empirical evidence accumulation approach is able to provide parameter results that are informative to leading psycholinguistic theory, and that motivate future theoretical development. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Cognitive load reducing in destination decision system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Chunhua; Wang, Cong; Jiang, Qien; Wang, Jian; Chen, Hong

2007-12-01

With limited cognitive resource, the quantity of information can be processed by a person is limited. If the limitation is broken, the whole cognitive process would be affected, so did the final decision. The research of effective ways to reduce the cognitive load is launched from two aspects: cutting down the number of alternatives and directing the user to allocate his limited attention resource based on the selective visual attention theory. Decision-making is such a complex process that people usually have difficulties to express their requirements completely. An effective method to get user's hidden requirements is put forward in this paper. With more requirements be caught, the destination decision system can filtering more quantity of inappropriate alternatives. Different information piece has different utility, if the information with high utility would get attention easily, the decision might be made more easily. After analyzing the current selective visual attention theory, a new presentation style based on user's visual attention also put forward in this paper. This model arranges information presentation according to the movement of sightline. Through visual attention, the user can put their limited attention resource on the important information. Hidden requirements catching and presenting information based on the selective visual attention are effective ways to reducing the cognitive load.

Histone and RNA-binding protein interaction creates crosstalk network for regulation of alternative splicing.

PubMed

Kim, Yong-Eun; Park, Chungoo; Kim, Kyoon Eon; Kim, Kee K

2018-04-30

Alternative splicing is an essential process in eukaryotes, as it increases the complexity of gene expression by generating multiple proteins from a single pre-mRNA. However, information on the regulatory mechanisms for alternative splicing is lacking, because splicing occurs over a short period via the transient interactions of proteins within functional complexes of the spliceosome. Here, we investigated in detail the molecular mechanisms connecting alternative splicing with epigenetic mechanisms. We identified interactions between histone proteins and splicing factors such as Rbfox2, Rbfox3, and splicing factor proline and glutamine rich protein (SFPQ) by in vivo crosslinking and immunoprecipitation. Furthermore, we confirmed that splicing factors were bound to specific modified residues of histone proteins. Additionally, changes in histone methylation due to histone methyltransferase inhibitor treatment notably affected alternative splicing in selected genes. Therefore, we suggested that there may be crosstalk mechanisms connecting histone modifications and RNA-binding proteins that increase the local concentration of RNA-binding proteins in alternative exon loci of nucleosomes by binding specific modified histone proteins, leading to alternative splicing. This crosstalk mechanism may play a major role in epigenetic processes such as histone modification and the regulation of alternative splicing. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Cost-Benefit Analysis for Alternatives to Aliphatic Isocyanate Polyurethanes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lewis, Pattie

2007-01-01

NASA and Air Force Space Command (AFSPC) have similar missions and therefore similar facilities and structures in similar environments. The standard practice for protecting metallic substrates in atmospheric environments is the application of an applied coating system. The most common topcoats used in coating systems are polyurethanes that contain isocyanates. Isocyanates are classified as potential human carcinogens and are known to cause cancer in animals. The primary objective of this effort was to demonstrate and validate alternatives to aliphatic isocyanate polyurethanes resulting in one or more isocyanate-free coatings qualified for use at AFSPC and NASA installations participating in this project. This Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) quantifies the estimated capital and process costs of coating alternatives and cost savings relative to the current coatings. The estimates in this CBA are to be used for assessing the relative merits of the selected alternatives. The actual economic effects at any specific facility will depend on the alternative material or technology implemented, the number of actual applications converted, future workloads, and other factors . The participants initially considered eighteen (18) alternative coatings as described in the Potential Alternatives Report entitled Potential Alternatives Report for Validation of Alternatives to Aliphatic Isocyanate Polyurethanes, prepared by ITB. Of those, 8 alternatives were selected for testing in accordance with the Joint Test Protocol entitled Joint Test Protocol for Validation of Alternatives to Aliphatic Isocyanate Polyurethanes, and the Field Test Plan entitled Field Evaluations Test Plan for Validation of Alternatives 10 Aliphatic Isocyanate Polyurethanes, both of which were prepared by ITB. A joint Test Report entitled Joint Test Report for Validation of Alternatives to Aliphatic Isocyanate Polyurethanes, prepared by ITB, documents the results of the laboratory and field testing, as well as any test modifications made during the execution of the testing. The coatings selected for evaluation in this CBA are shown in the table below. Only one control coating system is considered in this analysis. These coatings were either downselected for Phase II or performed well enough to be included in the Qualified Products List in the NASA technical standard NASA-STD-5008, Protective Coating of Carbon Steel, Stainless Steel, and Aluminum on Launch Structures, Facilities, and Ground Support Equipment.

Supplier selection in supply chain management using analytical network process for Indonesian cement industry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ismail, A. H.; Mahardika, R. Z. Z.

2017-12-01

Supply chain management has increased more significance with the impact of globalization. In the present worldwide market, well-managed supply chain is a standout amongst the most vital requirement to be more competitive in the market. For any organization incorporate cement industry, the most critical decision in initial process of supply chain management is to buy products, materials or services from suppliers. So the role of suppliers is irrefutable important in the global aggressive markets. Appropriate decision of supplier selection can lead to reducing cost in supply chain management. However, it is becoming more complex because of existing various criteria and involving the suitable experts in the company to make valid decision in accordance with its criteria. In this study, the supplier selection of an Indonesia’s leading cement company is analyzed by using one of the popular multi-criteria decision making method, Saaty’s analytical network process (ANP). It is employed for the selection of the best alternative among three suppliers of pasted bag. Supplier with the highest rank comes from several major steps from building the relationship between various criteria to rating the alternatives with the help of experts from the company. The results show that, Communication capability, Flexible payment terms, Ability to meet delivery quantities are the most important criteria in the pasted bag supplier selection in Indonesian cement industry with 0.155, 0.110 and 0.1 ANP coefficient respectively. And based on the ANP coefficient values in limit supermatrix, the A2 or supplier 2 had the highest score with 64.7% or 0.13 ANP coefficient.

Synthesis of acrylates and methacrylates from coal-derived syngas

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

Spivey, J.J.; Gogate, M.R.; Jang, B.W.L.

1995-12-31

Acrylates and methacrylates are among the most widely used chemical intermediates in the world. One of the key chemicals of this type is methyl methacrylate. Of the 4 billion pounds produced each year, roughly 85% is made using the acetone-cyanohydrin process, which requires handling of large quantities of hydrogen cyanide and produces ammonium sulfate wastes that pose an environmental disposal challenge. The U.S. Department of Energy and Eastman Chemical Company are sharing the cost of research to develop an alternative process for the synthesis of methyl methacrylate from syngas. Research Triangle Institute is focusing on the synthesis and testing ofmore » active catalysts for the condensation reactions, and Bechtel is analyzing the costs to determine the competitiveness of several process alternatives. Results thus far show that the catalysts for the condensation of formaldehyde and the propionate are key to selectively producing the desired product, methacrylic acid, with a high yield. These condensation catalysts have both acid and base functions and the strength and distribution of these acid-base sites controls the product selectivity and yield.« less

Multicriteria Selection of Optimal Location of TCSC in a Competitive Energy Market

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alomoush, Muwaffaq I.

2010-05-01

The paper investigates selection of the best location of thyristor-controlled series compensator (TCSC) in a transmission system from many candidate locations in a competitive energy market such that the TCSC causes a net valuable impact on congestion management outcome, transmission utilization, transmission losses, voltage stability, degree of fulfillment of spot market contracts, and system security. The problem is treated as a multicriteria decision-making process such that the candidate locations of TCSC are the alternatives and the conflicting objectives are the outcomes of the dispatch process, which may have different importance weights. The paper proposes some performance indices that the dispatch decision-making entity can use to measure market dispatch outcomes of each alternative. Based on agreed-upon preferences, the measures presented may help the decision maker compare and rank dispatch scenarios to ultimately decide which location is the optimal one. To solve the multicriteria decision, we use the preference ranking organization method for enrichment evaluations (PROMETHEE), which is a multicriteria decision support method that can handle complex conflicting-objective decision-making processes.

Comparison of Alternate and Original Items on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment

PubMed Central

Lebedeva, Elena; Huang, Mei; Koski, Lisa

2016-01-01

Background The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) is a screening tool for mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in elderly individuals. We hypothesized that measurement error when using the new alternate MoCA versions to monitor change over time could be related to the use of items that are not of comparable difficulty to their corresponding originals of similar content. The objective of this study was to compare the difficulty of the alternate MoCA items to the original ones. Methods Five selected items from alternate versions of the MoCA were included with items from the original MoCA administered adaptively to geriatric outpatients (N = 78). Rasch analysis was used to estimate the difficulty level of the items. Results None of the five items from the alternate versions matched the difficulty level of their corresponding original items. Conclusions This study demonstrates the potential benefits of a Rasch analysis-based approach for selecting items during the process of development of parallel forms. The results suggest that better match of the items from different MoCA forms by their difficulty would result in higher sensitivity to changes in cognitive function over time. PMID:27076861

Surface texture and hardness of dental alloys processed by alternative technologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Porojan, Liliana; Savencu, Cristina E.; Topală, Florin I.; Porojan, Sorin D.

2017-08-01

Technological developments have led to the implementation of novel digitalized manufacturing methods for the production of metallic structures in prosthetic dentistry. These technologies can be classified as based on subtractive manufacturing, assisted by computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) systems, or on additive manufacturing (AM), such as the recently developed laser-based methods. The aim of the study was to assess the surface texture and hardness of metallic structures for dental restorations obtained by alternative technologies: conventional casting (CST), computerized milling (MIL), AM power bed fusion methods, respective selective laser melting (SLM) and selective laser sintering (SLS). For the experimental analyses metallic specimens made of Co-Cr dental alloys were prepared as indicated by the manufacturers. The specimen structure at the macro level was observed by an optical microscope and micro-hardness was measured in all substrates. Metallic frameworks obtained by AM are characterized by increased hardness, depending also on the surface processing. The formation of microstructural defects can be better controlled and avoided during SLM and MIL process. Application of power bed fusion techniques, like SLS and SLM, is currently a challenge in dental alloys processing.

A Multi-Area Stochastic Model for a Covert Visual Search Task.

PubMed

Schwemmer, Michael A; Feng, Samuel F; Holmes, Philip J; Gottlieb, Jacqueline; Cohen, Jonathan D

2015-01-01

Decisions typically comprise several elements. For example, attention must be directed towards specific objects, their identities recognized, and a choice made among alternatives. Pairs of competing accumulators and drift-diffusion processes provide good models of evidence integration in two-alternative perceptual choices, but more complex tasks requiring the coordination of attention and decision making involve multistage processing and multiple brain areas. Here we consider a task in which a target is located among distractors and its identity reported by lever release. The data comprise reaction times, accuracies, and single unit recordings from two monkeys' lateral interparietal area (LIP) neurons. LIP firing rates distinguish between targets and distractors, exhibit stimulus set size effects, and show response-hemifield congruence effects. These data motivate our model, which uses coupled sets of leaky competing accumulators to represent processes hypothesized to occur in feature-selective areas and limb motor and pre-motor areas, together with the visual selection process occurring in LIP. Model simulations capture the electrophysiological and behavioral data, and fitted parameters suggest that different connection weights between LIP and the other cortical areas may account for the observed behavioral differences between the animals.

Evaluation method of membrane performance in membrane distillation process for seawater desalination.

PubMed

Chung, Seungjoon; Seo, Chang Duck; Choi, Jae-Hoon; Chung, Jinwook

2014-01-01

Membrane distillation (MD) is an emerging desalination technology as an energy-saving alternative to conventional distillation and reverse osmosis method. The selection of appropriate membrane is a prerequisite for the design of an optimized MD process. We proposed a simple approximation method to evaluate the performance of membranes for MD process. Three hollow fibre-type commercial membranes with different thicknesses and pore sizes were tested. Experimental results showed that one membrane was advantageous due to the highest flux, whereas another membrane was due to the lowest feed temperature drop. Regression analyses and multi-stage calculations were used to account for the trade-offeffects of flux and feed temperature drop. The most desirable membrane was selected from tested membranes in terms of the mean flux in a multi-stage process. This method would be useful for the selection of the membranes without complicated simulation techniques.

Adolescent Friendships, BMI, and Physical Activity: Untangling Selection and Influence Through Longitudinal Social Network Analysis

PubMed Central

Simpkins, Sandra D.; Schaefer, David R.; Price, Chara D.; Vest, Andrea E.

2012-01-01

Bioecological theory suggests that adolescents’ health is a result of selection and socialization processes occurring between adolescents and their microsettings. This study examines the association between adolescents’ friends and health using a social network model and data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (N = 1,896, mean age = 15.97 years). Results indicated evidence of friend influence on BMI and physical activity. Friendships were more likely among adolescents who engaged in greater physical activity and who were similar to one another in BMI and physical activity. These effects emerged after controlling for alternative friend selection factors, such as endogenous social network processes and propinquity through courses and activities. Some selection effects were moderated by gender, popularity, and reciprocity. PMID:24222971

APASdb: a database describing alternative poly(A) sites and selection of heterogeneous cleavage sites downstream of poly(A) signals

PubMed Central

You, Leiming; Wu, Jiexin; Feng, Yuchao; Fu, Yonggui; Guo, Yanan; Long, Liyuan; Zhang, Hui; Luan, Yijie; Tian, Peng; Chen, Liangfu; Huang, Guangrui; Huang, Shengfeng; Li, Yuxin; Li, Jie; Chen, Chengyong; Zhang, Yaqing; Chen, Shangwu; Xu, Anlong

2015-01-01

Increasing amounts of genes have been shown to utilize alternative polyadenylation (APA) 3′-processing sites depending on the cell and tissue type and/or physiological and pathological conditions at the time of processing, and the construction of genome-wide database regarding APA is urgently needed for better understanding poly(A) site selection and APA-directed gene expression regulation for a given biology. Here we present a web-accessible database, named APASdb (http://mosas.sysu.edu.cn/utr), which can visualize the precise map and usage quantification of different APA isoforms for all genes. The datasets are deeply profiled by the sequencing alternative polyadenylation sites (SAPAS) method capable of high-throughput sequencing 3′-ends of polyadenylated transcripts. Thus, APASdb details all the heterogeneous cleavage sites downstream of poly(A) signals, and maintains near complete coverage for APA sites, much better than the previous databases using conventional methods. Furthermore, APASdb provides the quantification of a given APA variant among transcripts with different APA sites by computing their corresponding normalized-reads, making our database more useful. In addition, APASdb supports URL-based retrieval, browsing and display of exon-intron structure, poly(A) signals, poly(A) sites location and usage reads, and 3′-untranslated regions (3′-UTRs). Currently, APASdb involves APA in various biological processes and diseases in human, mouse and zebrafish. PMID:25378337

Using an in Silico Approach to Teach 3D Pharmacodynamics of the Drug-Target Interaction Process Focusing on Selective COX2 Inhibition by Celecoxib

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tavares, Maurício T.; Primi, Marina C.; Silva, Nuno A. T. F.; Carvalho, Camila F.; Cunha, Micael R.; Parise-Filho, Roberto

2017-01-01

Teaching the molecular aspects of drug-target interactions and selectivity is not always an easy task. In this context, the use of alternative and engaging approaches could help pharmacy and chemistry students better understand this important topic of medicinal chemistry. Herein a 4 h practical exercise that uses freely available software as a…

AEROSPACE NESHAP GUIDANCE: PAINTING AND DEPAINTING ALTERNATIVES FOR SELECTED DOD OPERATIONS

EPA Science Inventory

This project was sponsored by the DOD's Strategic Environmental Research and Development program (SERDP) and conducted by the EPA's Clean Processes and Products Branch at the NRMRL. In support of SERDP's objective of developing environmental solutions that improve mission readine...

78 FR 77549 - Revise Notice of Intent for an Environmental Impact Statement: State Route (SR) 95 Realignment...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-12-23

...), intend to use a tiered process to facilitate project decision-making. This notice revises the NOI that... study. If the Record of Decision indicates that FHWA has selected one of the alternative corridors as...

Inertial Energy Storage for Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rodriguez, G. E.

1984-01-01

The feasibility of inertial energy storage in a spacecraft power system is evaluated on the basis of a conceptual integrated design that encompasses a composite rotor, magnetic suspension and a permanent magnet (PM) motor/generator for a 3-kW orbital average payload at a bus distribution voltage of 250 volts dc. The conceptual design, is referred to as a Mechanical Capacitor. The baseline power system configuration selected is a series system employing peak-power-tracking for a Low Earth-Orbiting application. Power processing, required in the motor/generator, provides potential alternative that can only be achieved in systems with electrochemical energy storage by the addition of power processing components. One such alternative configuration provides for peak-power-tracking of the solar array and still maintains a regulated bus, without the expense of additional power processing components. Precise speed control of the two counterrotating wheels is required to reduce interaction with the attitude control system (ACS) or alternatively, used to perform attitude control functions.

Multi-criteria analysis for municipal solid waste management in a Brazilian metropolitan area.

PubMed

Santos, Simone Machado; Silva, Maisa Mendonça; Melo, Renata Maciel; Gavazza, Savia; Florencio, Lourdinha; Kato, Mario T

2017-10-15

The decision-making process involved in municipal solid waste management (MSWM) must consider more than just financial aspects, which makes it a difficult task in developing countries. The Recife Metropolitan Region (RMR) in the Northeast of Brazil faces a MSWM problem that has been ongoing since the 1970s, with no common solution. In order to direct short-term solutions, three MSWM alternatives were outlined for the RMR, considering the current and future situations, the time and cost involved and social/environmental criteria. A multi-criteria approach, based on the Preference Ranking Organization Method for Enrichment Evaluations (PROMETHEE), was proposed to rank these alternatives. The alternative that included two private landfill sites and seven transfer, sorting and composting stations was confirmed as the most suitable and stable option for short-term MSWM, considering the two scenarios for the criteria weights. Sensitivity analysis was also performed to support the robustness of the results. The implementation of separate collections would minimize the amount of waste buried, while maximizing the useful life of landfill sites and increasing the timeframe of the alternative. Overall, the multi-criteria analysis was helpful and accurate during the alternative selection process, considering the similarities and restrictions of each option, which can lead to difficulties during the decision-making process.

When combinatorial processing results in reconceptualization: toward a new approach of compositionality

PubMed Central

Schumacher, Petra B.

2013-01-01

Propositional content is often incomplete but comprehenders appear to adjust meaning and add unarticulated meaning constituents effortlessly. This happens at the propositional level (The baby drank the bottle) but also at the phrasal level (the wooden turtle). In two ERP experiments, combinatorial processing was investigated in container/content alternations and adjective-noun combination transforming an animate entity into a physical object. Experiment 1 revealed that container-for-content alternations (The baby drank the bottle) engendered a Late Positivity on the critical expression and on the subsequent segment, while content-for-container alternations (Chris put the beer on the table) did not exert extra costs. In Experiment 2, adjective-noun combinations (the wooden turtle) also evoked a Late Positivity on the critical noun. First, the Late Positivities are taken to reflect discourse updating demands resulting from reference shift from the original denotation to the contextually appropriate interpretation (e.g., the reconceptualization form animal to physical object). This shift is supported by the linguistic unavailability of the original meaning, exemplified by copredication tests. Second, the data reveal that meaning alternations differ qualitatively. Some alternations involve (cost-free) meaning selection, while others engender processing demands associated with reconceptualization. This dissociation thus calls for a new typology of metonymic shifts that centers around the status of the involved discourse referents. PMID:24098293

Promoter-Terminator Gene Loops Affect Alternative 3'-End Processing in Yeast.

PubMed

Lamas-Maceiras, Mónica; Singh, Badri Nath; Hampsey, Michael; Freire-Picos, María A

2016-04-22

Many eukaryotic genes undergo alternative 3'-end poly(A)-site selection producing transcript isoforms with 3'-UTRs of different lengths and post-transcriptional fates. Gene loops are dynamic structures that juxtapose the 3'-ends of genes with their promoters. Several functions have been attributed to looping, including memory of recent transcriptional activity and polarity of transcription initiation. In this study, we investigated the relationship between gene loops and alternative poly(A)-site. Using the KlCYC1 gene of the yeast Kluyveromyces lactis, which includes a single promoter and two poly(A) sites separated by 394 nucleotides, we demonstrate in two yeast species the formation of alternative gene loops (L1 and L2) that juxtapose the KlCYC1 promoter with either proximal or distal 3'-end processing sites, resulting in the synthesis of short and long forms of KlCYC1 mRNA. Furthermore, synthesis of short and long mRNAs and formation of the L1 and L2 loops are growth phase-dependent. Chromatin immunoprecipitation experiments revealed that the Ssu72 RNA polymerase II carboxyl-terminal domain phosphatase, a critical determinant of looping, peaks in early log phase at the proximal poly(A) site, but as growth phase advances, it extends to the distal site. These results define a cause-and-effect relationship between gene loops and alternative poly(A) site selection that responds to different physiological signals manifested by RNA polymerase II carboxyl-terminal domain phosphorylation status. © 2016 by The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

Analysis of the Federal Aviation Administration’s Host Computer Acquisition Process and Potential Application in Department of Defense Acquisitions

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-09-01

defense programs lost far more to inefficient procedures than to fraud and dishonesty * (President’s Commission, l986c:15). Based on the Commission...recommendations from current studies, lessons learned from a successful program, and DOD expert opinions to develop an acquisition management strategy that...established for the alternative(s) selected in the preceding phase. 5. In the concept demonstration/validation phase the technical risk and economic

Preparing for what might happen: An episodic specificity induction impacts the generation of alternative future events.

PubMed

Jing, Helen G; Madore, Kevin P; Schacter, Daniel L

2017-12-01

A critical adaptive feature of future thinking involves the ability to generate alternative versions of possible future events. However, little is known about the nature of the processes that support this ability. Here we examined whether an episodic specificity induction - brief training in recollecting details of a recent experience that selectively impacts tasks that draw on episodic retrieval - (1) boosts alternative event generation and (2) changes one's initial perceptions of negative future events. In Experiment 1, an episodic specificity induction significantly increased the number of alternative positive outcomes that participants generated to a series of standardized negative events, compared with a control induction not focused on episodic specificity. We also observed larger decreases in the perceived plausibility and negativity of the original events in the specificity condition, where participants generated more alternative outcomes, relative to the control condition. In Experiment 2, we replicated and extended these findings using a series of personalized negative events. Our findings support the idea that episodic memory processes are involved in generating alternative outcomes to anticipated future events, and that boosting the number of alternative outcomes is related to subsequent changes in the perceived plausibility and valence of the original events, which may have implications for psychological well-being. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Molecular basis of cyclooxygenase enzymes (COXs) selective inhibition

PubMed Central

Limongelli, Vittorio; Bonomi, Massimiliano; Marinelli, Luciana; Gervasio, Francesco Luigi; Cavalli, Andrea; Novellino, Ettore; Parrinello, Michele

2010-01-01

The widely used nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs block the cyclooxygenase enzymes (COXs) and are clinically used for the treatment of inflammation, pain, and cancers. A selective inhibition of the different isoforms, particularly COX-2, is desirable, and consequently a deeper understanding of the molecular basis of selective inhibition is of great demand. Using an advanced computational technique we have simulated the full dissociation process of a highly potent and selective inhibitor, SC-558, in both COX-1 and COX-2. We have found a previously unreported alternative binding mode in COX-2 explaining the time-dependent inhibition exhibited by this class of inhibitors and consequently their long residence time inside this isoform. Our metadynamics-based approach allows us to illuminate the highly dynamical character of the ligand/protein recognition process, thus explaining a wealth of experimental data and paving the way to an innovative strategy for designing new COX inhibitors with tuned selectivity. PMID:20215464

PHOTOOXIDATION OF HYDROCARBONS TO PARTIAL OXYGENATES IN AN AQUEOUS ENVIRONMENT [EXHIBIT, POSTER

EPA Science Inventory

The USEPA is researching the use of alternative oxidation technologies (AOT's) as a catalytic process for the selective oxidation of hydrocarbon substrates. One AOT currently under investigation is the use of photocatalysis employed with a laminar thin-film falling reactor. Thi...

Integrating multi-criteria evaluation techniques with geographic information systems for landfill site selection: a case study using ordered weighted average.

PubMed

Gorsevski, Pece V; Donevska, Katerina R; Mitrovski, Cvetko D; Frizado, Joseph P

2012-02-01

This paper presents a GIS-based multi-criteria decision analysis approach for evaluating the suitability for landfill site selection in the Polog Region, Macedonia. The multi-criteria decision framework considers environmental and economic factors which are standardized by fuzzy membership functions and combined by integration of analytical hierarchy process (AHP) and ordered weighted average (OWA) techniques. The AHP is used for the elicitation of attribute weights while the OWA operator function is used to generate a wide range of decision alternatives for addressing uncertainty associated with interaction between multiple criteria. The usefulness of the approach is illustrated by different OWA scenarios that report landfill suitability on a scale between 0 and 1. The OWA scenarios are intended to quantify the level of risk taking (i.e., optimistic, pessimistic, and neutral) and to facilitate a better understanding of patterns that emerge from decision alternatives involved in the decision making process. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Analysis of Selection Process for Management Education: Korean Military Case.

DTIC Science & Technology

1984-06-01

applicable to selecting Korean military officers for postgraduate education in management, is proposed. 1! 6! 6i N 0102. L r * 014- 6601 2 Unclassified...officers uhc can manage the ailitary Fersctrel Ard modern uea~ons efficiently. As a result, the military has begun to educate some of its cfficers in the...referal, advisinj 4 aiplicant- about alternatives in employment, and furthering public relations. Oijectives cf group interview might te to assess

Optimizing multiple-choice tests as tools for learning.

PubMed

Little, Jeri L; Bjork, Elizabeth Ligon

2015-01-01

Answering multiple-choice questions with competitive alternatives can enhance performance on a later test, not only on questions about the information previously tested, but also on questions about related information not previously tested-in particular, on questions about information pertaining to the previously incorrect alternatives. In the present research, we assessed a possible explanation for this pattern: When multiple-choice questions contain competitive incorrect alternatives, test-takers are led to retrieve previously studied information pertaining to all of the alternatives in order to discriminate among them and select an answer, with such processing strengthening later access to information associated with both the correct and incorrect alternatives. Supporting this hypothesis, we found enhanced performance on a later cued-recall test for previously nontested questions when their answers had previously appeared as competitive incorrect alternatives in the initial multiple-choice test, but not when they had previously appeared as noncompetitive alternatives. Importantly, however, competitive alternatives were not more likely than noncompetitive alternatives to be intruded as incorrect responses, indicating that a general increased accessibility for previously presented incorrect alternatives could not be the explanation for these results. The present findings, replicated across two experiments (one in which corrective feedback was provided during the initial multiple-choice testing, and one in which it was not), thus strongly suggest that competitive multiple-choice questions can trigger beneficial retrieval processes for both tested and related information, and the results have implications for the effective use of multiple-choice tests as tools for learning.

Siting MSW landfill using weighted linear combination and analytical hierarchy process (AHP) methodology in GIS environment (case study: Karaj).

PubMed

Moeinaddini, Mazaher; Khorasani, Nematollah; Danehkar, Afshin; Darvishsefat, Ali Asghar; Zienalyan, Mehdi

2010-05-01

Selection of landfill site is a complex process and needs many diverse criteria. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the suitability of the studied site as landfill for MSW in Karaj. Using weighted linear combination (WLC) method and spatial cluster analysis (SCA), suitable sites for allocation of landfill for a 20-year period were identified. For analyzing spatial auto-correlation of the land suitability map layer (LSML), Maron's I was used. Finally, using the analytical hierarchy process (AHP), the most preferred alternative for the landfill siting was identified. Main advantages of AHP are: relative ease of handling multiple criteria, easy to understand and effective handling of both qualitative and quantitative data. As a result, 6% of the study area is suitable for landfill siting and third alternative was identified as the most preferred for siting MSW landfill by AHP. The ranking of alternatives were obtained only by applying the WLC approach showed different results from the AHP. The WLC should be used only for the identification of alternatives and the AHP is used for prioritization. We suggest the employed procedure for other similar regions. Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Multi-level multi-criteria analysis of alternative fuels for waste collection vehicles in the United States.

PubMed

Maimoun, Mousa; Madani, Kaveh; Reinhart, Debra

2016-04-15

Historically, the U.S. waste collection fleet was dominated by diesel-fueled waste collection vehicles (WCVs); the growing need for sustainable waste collection has urged decision makers to incorporate economically efficient alternative fuels, while mitigating environmental impacts. The pros and cons of alternative fuels complicate the decisions making process, calling for a comprehensive study that assesses the multiple factors involved. Multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) methods allow decision makers to select the best alternatives with respect to selection criteria. In this study, two MCDA methods, Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) and Simple Additive Weighting (SAW), were used to rank fuel alternatives for the U.S. waste collection industry with respect to a multi-level environmental and financial decision matrix. The environmental criteria consisted of life-cycle emissions, tail-pipe emissions, water footprint (WFP), and power density, while the financial criteria comprised of vehicle cost, fuel price, fuel price stability, and fueling station availability. The overall analysis showed that conventional diesel is still the best option, followed by hydraulic-hybrid WCVs, landfill gas (LFG) sourced natural gas, fossil natural gas, and biodiesel. The elimination of the WFP and power density criteria from the environmental criteria ranked biodiesel 100 (BD100) as an environmentally better alternative compared to other fossil fuels (diesel and natural gas). This result showed that considering the WFP and power density as environmental criteria can make a difference in the decision process. The elimination of the fueling station and fuel price stability criteria from the decision matrix ranked fossil natural gas second after LFG-sourced natural gas. This scenario was found to represent the status quo of the waste collection industry. A sensitivity analysis for the status quo scenario showed the overall ranking of diesel and fossil natural gas to be more sensitive to changing fuel prices as compared to other alternatives. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Monitoring in the nearshore: A process for making reasoned decisions

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bodkin, James L.; Dean, T.A.

2003-01-01

Over the past several years, a conceptual framework for the GEM nearshore monitoring program has been developed through a series of workshops. However, details of the proposed monitoring program, e.g. what to sample, where to sample, when to sample and at how many sites, have yet to be determined. In FY 03 we were funded under Project 03687 to outline a process whereby specific alternatives to monitoring are developed and presented to the EVOS Trustee Council for consideration. As part of this process, two key elements are required before reasoned decisions can be made. These are: 1) a comprehensive historical perspective of locations and types of past studies conducted in the nearshore marine communities within Gulf of Alaska, and 2) estimates of costs for each element of a proposed monitoring program. We have developed a GIS database that details available information from past studies of selected nearshore habitats and species in the Gulf of Alaska and provide a visual means of selecting sites based (in part) on the locations for which historical data of interest are available. We also provide cost estimates for specific monitoring plan alternatives and outline several alternative plans that can be accomplished within reasonable budgetary constraints. The products that we will provide are: 1) A GIS database and maps showing the location and types of information available from the nearshore in the Gulf of Alaska; 2) A list of several specific monitoring alternatives that can be conducted within reasonable budgetary constraints; and 3) Cost estimates for proposed tasks to be conducted as part of the nearshore program. Because data compilation and management will not be completed until late in FY03 we are requesting support for close-out of this project in FY 04.

Integrated model for assessing the cost and CO2 emission (IMACC) for sustainable structural design in ready-mix concrete.

PubMed

Hong, Taehoon; Ji, Changyoon; Park, Hyoseon

2012-07-30

Cost has traditionally been considered the most important factor in the decision-making process. Recently, along with the consistent interest in environmental problems, environmental impact has also become a key factor. Accordingly, there is a need to develop a method that simultaneously reflects the cost and environmental impact in the decision-making process. This study proposed an integrated model for assessing the cost and CO(2) emission (IMACC) at the same time. IMACC is a model that assesses the cost and CO(2) emission of the various structural-design alternatives proposed in the structural-design process. To develop the IMACC, a standard on assessing the cost and CO(2) emission generated in the construction stage was proposed, along with the CO(2) emission factors in the structural materials, based on such materials' strengths. Moreover, using the economic and environmental scores that signify the cost and CO(2) emission reduction ratios, respectively, a method of selecting the best design alternative was proposed. To verify the applicability of IMACC, practical application was carried out. Structural designs were assessed, each of which used 21, 24, 27, and 30 MPa ready-mix concrete (RMC). The use of IMACC makes it easy to verify what the best design is. Results show the one that used 27 MPa RMC was the best design. Therefore, the proposed IMACC can be used as a tool for supporting the decision-making process in selecting the best design alternative. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Toward a Framework for Benefit-Risk Assessment in Diagnostic Imaging: Identifying Scenario-specific Criteria.

PubMed

Agapova, Maria; Bresnahan, Brian W; Linnau, Ken F; Garrison, Louis P; Higashi, Mitchell; Kessler, Larry; Devine, Beth

2017-05-01

Diagnostic imaging has many effects and there is no common definition of value in diagnostic radiology. As benefit-risk trade-offs are rarely made explicit, it is not clear which framework is used in clinical guideline development. We describe initial steps toward the creation of a benefit-risk framework for diagnostic radiology. We performed a literature search and an online survey of physicians to identify and collect benefit-risk criteria (BRC) relevant to diagnostic imaging tests. We operationalized a process for selection of BRC with the use of four clinical use case scenarios that vary by diagnostic alternatives and clinical indication. Respondent BRC selections were compared across clinical scenarios and between radiologists and nonradiologists. Thirty-six BRC were identified and organized into three domains: (1) those that account for differences attributable only to the test or device (n = 17); (2) those that account for clinical management and provider experiences (n = 12); and (3) those that capture patient experience (n = 7). Forty-eight survey participants selected 22 criteria from the initial list in the survey (9-11 per case). Engaging ordering physicians increased the number of criteria selected in each of the four clinical scenarios presented. We developed a process for standardizing selection of BRC in guideline development. These results suggest that a process relying on elements of comparative effectiveness and the use of standardized BRC may ensure consistent examination of differences among alternatives by way of making explicit implicit trade-offs that otherwise enter the decision-making space and detract from consistency and transparency. These findings also highlight the need for multidisciplinary teams that include input from ordering physicians. Copyright © 2017 The Association of University Radiologists. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

32 CFR 989.22 - Mitigation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 32 National Defense 6 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Mitigation. 989.22 Section 989.22 National... ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ANALYSIS PROCESS (EIAP) § 989.22 Mitigation. (a) When preparing EIAP documents, indicate clearly whether mitigation measures (40 CFR 1508.20) must be implemented for the alternative selected. If...

32 CFR 989.22 - Mitigation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 32 National Defense 6 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Mitigation. 989.22 Section 989.22 National... ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ANALYSIS PROCESS (EIAP) § 989.22 Mitigation. (a) When preparing EIAP documents, indicate clearly whether mitigation measures (40 CFR 1508.20) must be implemented for the alternative selected. If...

32 CFR 989.22 - Mitigation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 32 National Defense 6 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Mitigation. 989.22 Section 989.22 National... ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ANALYSIS PROCESS (EIAP) § 989.22 Mitigation. (a) When preparing EIAP documents, indicate clearly whether mitigation measures (40 CFR 1508.20) must be implemented for the alternative selected. If...

32 CFR 989.22 - Mitigation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 32 National Defense 6 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Mitigation. 989.22 Section 989.22 National... ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ANALYSIS PROCESS (EIAP) § 989.22 Mitigation. (a) When preparing EIAP documents, indicate clearly whether mitigation measures (40 CFR 1508.20) must be implemented for the alternative selected. If...

Decision-Guided Recommenders with Composite Alternatives

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alodhaibi, Khalid

2011-01-01

Recommender systems aim to support users in their decision-making process while interacting with large information spaces and recommend items of interest to users based on preferences they have expressed, either explicitly or implicitly. Recommender systems are increasingly used with product and service selection over the Internet. Although…

Selection of species and sampling areas: The importance of inference

Treesearch

Paul Stephen Corn

2009-01-01

Inductive inference, the process of drawing general conclusions from specific observations, is fundamental to the scientific method. Platt (1964) termed conclusions obtained through rigorous application of the scientific method as "strong inference" and noted the following basic steps: generating alternative hypotheses; devising experiments, the...

Remedial Action Assessment System (RAAS): Evaluation of selected feasibility studies of CERCLA (Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act) hazardous waste sites

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

Whelan, G.; Hartz, K.E.; Hilliard, N.D.

1990-04-01

Congress and the public have mandated much closer scrutiny of the management of chemically hazardous and radioactive mixed wastes. Legislative language, regulatory intent, and prudent technical judgment, call for using scientifically based studies to assess current conditions and to evaluate and select costeffective strategies for mitigating unacceptable situations. The NCP requires that a Remedial Investigation (RI) and a Feasibility Study (FS) be conducted at each site targeted for remedial response action. The goal of the RI is to obtain the site data needed so that the potential impacts on public health or welfare or on the environment can be evaluatedmore » and so that the remedial alternatives can be identified and selected. The goal of the FS is to identify and evaluate alternative remedial actions (including a no-action alternative) in terms of their cost, effectiveness, and engineering feasibility. The NCP also requires the analysis of impacts on public health and welfare and on the environment; this analysis is the endangerment assessment (EA). In summary, the RI, EA, and FS processes require assessment of the contamination at a site, of the potential impacts in public health or the environment from that contamination, and of alternative RAs that could address potential impacts to the environment. 35 refs., 7 figs., 1 tab.« less

Joint Test Protocol for Validation of Alternative Low-Emission Surface Preparation/Depainting Technologies for Structural Steel

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lewis, Pattie

2005-01-01

Headquarters National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) chartered the Acquisition Pollution Prevention (AP2) Office to coordinate agency activities affecting pollution prevention issues identified during system and component acquisition and sustainment processes. The primary objectives of the AP2 Office are to: (1) Reduce or eliminate the use of hazardous materials (HazMats) or hazardous processes at manufacturing, remanufacturing, and sustainment locations. (2) A void duplication of effort in actions required to reduce or eliminate HazMats through joint center cooperation and technology sharing. This project will identify, evaluate and approve alternative surface preparation technologies for use at NASA and Air Force Space Command (AFSPC) installations. Materials and processes will be evaluated with the goal of selecting those processes that will improve corrosion protection at critical systems, facilitate easier maintenance activity, extend maintenance cycles, eliminate flight hardware contamination and reduce the amount of hazardous waste generated. This Joint Test Protocol (JTP) contains the critical requirements and tests necessary to qualify alternative Low-Emission Surface Preparation/Depainting Technologies for Structural Steel Applications. These tests were derived from engineering, performance, and operational impact (supportability) requirements defined by a consensus of NASA and Air Force Space Command (AFSPC) participants. The Field Test Plan (FTP), entitled Joint Test Protocol for Validation of Alternative Low Emission Surface Preparation/Depainting Technologies for Structural Steel, prepared by ITB, defines the field evaluation and testing requirements for validating alternative surface preparation/depainting technologies and supplements the JTP.

Alternative sites for LNG facilities in the Cook Inlet/Kenia Peninsula, Alaska area. Final report

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

Not Available

1975-10-02

The purpose of this study was to analyze alternate LNG sites in the Cook Inlet area, Alaska, with primary emphasis on sites not identified by the El Paso-Alaska LNG Company in Docket No. CP-75-96. The evaluation included a systematic gross elimination process of eleven major subregions of Cook Inlet to eight subregions based upon considerations of land use and status, proximity of volcanos and other detrimental geological features, unsafe approaches for maneuvering and docking transport vessels, and adverse meteorological and marine conditions. This initial elimination process was followed by a more detailed iterative process of location and evaluation of 26more » specific sites in terms of local adverse impacts to biotic communities, human populations, and present land use practices. The analysis and elimination process resulted in the eventual selection and ranking of three sites: (1) Nikiski; (2) Cape Starichkof; (3) Resurrection Bay East. (GRA)« less

Medicare Part D Beneficiaries' Plan Switching Decisions and Information Processing.

PubMed

Han, Jayoung; Urmie, Julie

2017-03-01

Medicare Part D beneficiaries tend not to switch plans despite the government's efforts to engage beneficiaries in the plan switching process. Understanding current and alternative plan features is a necessary step to make informed plan switching decisions. This study explored beneficiaries' plan switching using a mixed-methods approach, with a focus on the concept of information processing. We found large variation in beneficiary comprehension of plan information among both switchers and nonswitchers. Knowledge about alternative plans was especially poor, with only about half of switchers and 2 in 10 nonswitchers being well informed about plans other than their current plan. We also found that helpers had a prominent role in plan decision making-nearly twice as many switchers as nonswitchers worked with helpers for their plan selection. Our study suggests that easier access to helpers as well as helpers' extensive involvement in the decision-making process promote informed plan switching decisions.

Aptamer Selection Express: A Novel Method for Rapid Single-Step Selection and Sensing of Aptamers

PubMed Central

Fan, Maomian; McBurnett, Shelly Roper; Andrews, Carrie J.; Allman, Amity M.; Bruno, John G.; Kiel, Johnathan L.

2008-01-01

Here we describe a new DNA capture element (DCE) sensing system, based on the quenching and dequenching of a double-stranded aptamer. This system shows very good sensitivity and thermal stability. While quenching, dequenching, and separating the DCE systems made from different aptamers (all selected by SELEX), an alternative method to rapidly select aptamers was developed—the Aptamer Selection Express (ASExp). This process has been used to select aptamers against different types of targets (Bacillus anthracis spores, Bacillus thuringiensis spores, MS-2 bacteriophage, ovalbumin, and botulinum neurotoxin). The DCE systems made from botulinum neurotoxin aptamers selected by ASExp have been investigated. The results of this investigation indicate that ASExp can be used to rapidly select aptamers for the DCE sensing system. PMID:19183794

Cadmium Alternatives: Zinc-Nickel Electroplating & Repair of Aluminum Coatings

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-02-27

Brighteners and Other Additives to Create Low Embrittling Plating Process • Based on Successful Test Results an LHE Alkaline Zn-Ni Formula was Selected for...Corrosion Testing (Salt Spray and Galvanic) – Fluid Immersion (ASTM F 483) Lubricity (Fasteners)– – Strippability • Ammonium Nitrate (pH 10...Considered – LDC 5030 Sn-Zn and SIFCO 4018 Zn-Ni • LDC 5030 Sn-Zn Selected Because of No-Bake Hydrogen Embrittlement Performance • Aluminum Surface

Behavioral Response Generation and Selection of Rejected-Reactive Aggressive, Rejected-Nonaggressive, and Average Status Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wood, C. Nannette; Gross, Alan M.

2002-01-01

Examines response decision processes of rejected-reactive aggressive, rejected-nonaggressive and average children in terms of the presence or absence of behavioral response alternatives. Congruent with previous research, rejected-reactive aggressive children made significantly more hostile attributions and generated a higher number of aggressive…

Development and Validation of Cognitive Screening Instruments.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jarman, Ronald F.

The author suggests that most research on the early detection of learning disabilities is characterisized by an ineffective and a theoretical method of selecting and validating tasks. An alternative technique is proposed, based on a neurological theory of cognitive processes, whereby task analysis is a first step, with empirical analyses as…

Design Course for Micropower Generation Devices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mitsos, Alexander

2009-01-01

A project-based design course is developed for man-portable power generation via microfabricated fuel cell systems. Targeted audience are undergraduate chemical/process engineering students in their final year. The course covers 6 weeks, with three hours of lectures per week. Two alternative projects are developed, one focusing on selection of…

Dysphagia in stroke and neurologic disease.

PubMed

González-Fernández, Marlís; Daniels, Stephanie K

2008-11-01

Dysphagia is a common problem in neurologic disease. The authors describe rates of dysphagia in selected neurologic diseases, and the evaluation and treatment of dysphagia in this population. Applicable physiology and aspects of neural control are reviewed. The decision-making process to determine oral feeding versus alternative means of alimentation is examined.

Hybrid and Mixed Matrix Membranes for Separations from Fermentations

PubMed Central

Davey, Christopher John; Leak, David; Patterson, Darrell Alec

2016-01-01

Fermentations provide an alternative to fossil fuels for accessing a number of biofuel and chemical products from a variety of renewable and waste substrates. The recovery of these dilute fermentation products from the broth, however, can be incredibly energy intensive as a distillation process is generally involved and creates a barrier to commercialization. Membrane processes can provide a low energy aid/alternative for recovering these dilute fermentation products and reduce production costs. For these types of separations many current polymeric and inorganic membranes suffer from poor selectivity and high cost respectively. This paper reviews work in the production of novel mixed-matrix membranes (MMMs) for fermentative separations and those applicable to these separations. These membranes combine a trade-off of low-cost and processability of polymer membranes with the high selectivity of inorganic membranes. Work within the fields of nanofiltration, reverse osmosis and pervaporation has been discussed. The review shows that MMMs are currently providing some of the most high-performing membranes for these separations, with three areas for improvement identified: Further characterization and optimization of inorganic phase(s), Greater understanding of the compatibility between the polymer and inorganic phase(s), Improved methods for homogeneously dispersing the inorganic phase. PMID:26938567

Recombinant protein production and insect cell culture and process

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spaulding, Glenn (Inventor); Prewett, Tacey (Inventor); Goodwin, Thomas (Inventor); Francis, Karen (Inventor); Andrews, Angela (Inventor); Oconnor, Kim (Inventor)

1993-01-01

A process has been developed for recombinant production of selected polypeptides using transformed insect cells cultured in a horizontally rotating culture vessel modulated to create low shear conditions. A metabolically transformed insect cell line is produced using the culture procedure regardless of genetic transformation. The recombinant polypeptide can be produced by an alternative process using the cultured insect cells as host for a virus encoding the described polypeptide such as baculovirus. The insect cells can also be a host for viral production.

Recombinant Protein Production and Insect Cell Culture and Process

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spaulding, Glenn F. (Inventor); Goodwin, Thomas J. (Inventor); OConnor, Kim C. (Inventor); Francis, Karen M. (Inventor); Andrews, Angela D. (Inventor); Prewett, Tracey L. (Inventor)

1997-01-01

A process has been developed for recombinant production of selected polypeptides using transformed insect cells cultured in a horizontally rotating culture vessel modulated to create low shear conditions. A metabolically transformed insect cell line is produced using the culture procedure regardless of genetic transformation. The recombinant polypeptide can be produced by an alternative process using virtually infected or stably transformed insect cells containing a gene encoding the described polypeptide. The insect cells can also be a host for viral production.

Comparative lifecycle assessment of alternatives for waste management in Rio de Janeiro - Investigating the influence of an attributional or consequential approach.

PubMed

Bernstad Saraiva, A; Souza, R G; Valle, R A B

2017-10-01

The environmental impacts from three management alternatives for organic fraction of municipal solid waste were compared using lifecycle assessment methodology. The alternatives (sanitary landfill, selective collection of organic waste for anaerobic digestion and anaerobic digestion after post-separation of organic waste) were modelled applying an attributional as well as consequential approach, in parallel with the aim of identifying if and how these approaches can affect results and conclusions. The marginal processes identified in the consequential modelling were in general associated with higher environmental impacts than average processes modelled with an attributional approach. As all investigated waste management alternatives result in net-substitution of energy and in some cases also materials, the consequential modelling resulted in lower absolute environmental impacts in five of the seven environmental impact categories assessed in the study. In three of these, the chosen modelling approach can alter the hierarchy between compared waste management alternatives. This indicates a risk of underestimating potential benefits from efficient energy recovery from waste when applying attributional modelling in contexts in which electricity provision historically has been dominated by technologies presenting rather low environmental impacts, but where projections point at increasing impacts from electricity provision in coming years. Thus, in the present case study, the chosen approach affects both absolute and relative results from the comparison. However, results were largely related to the processes identified as affected by investigated changes, and not merely the chosen modelling approach. The processes actually affected by future choices between different waste management alternatives are intrinsically uncertain. The study demonstrates the benefits of applying different assumptions regarding the processes affected by investigated choices - both for provision of energy and materials substituted by waste management processes in consequential LCA modelling, in order to present outcomes that are relevant as decision support within the waste management sector. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Hydrodynamics of spatially inhomogeneous real membranes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kirii, V. A.; Shelistov, V. S.; Demekhin, E. A.

2017-07-01

Electrokinetic processes in the vicinity of inhomogeneous ion-selective surfaces (electrodes, membranes, microchannels, and nanochannels) consisting of alternating conducting and nonconducting regions in the presence of a normal-to-surface electric current are numerically studied. An increase in the electric current density is observed in the case of some particular alternation of conducting and nonconducting regions of the surface. The current-voltage characteristics of homogeneous and inhomogeneous electric membranes are found to be in qualitative agreement. Various physical phenomena leading to the emergence of a supercritical current in homogeneous and inhomogeneous membranes are detected.

Performance Evaluation of Hap-Free Paint Strippers vs. Methylene-Chloride-Based Strippers for Removing Army Chemical Agent Resistant Coatings (CARC)

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-06-01

Preparation..........................................................................................................3 2.2 Alternatives Selection ...water-borne panels were green. 2.2 Alternatives Selection The Gap Assessment Report generated by CTC/NDCEE identified many HAP-free alternatives to...strip times (as reported by the vendor) of many of the products. ARL used this information to select the alternatives to be included in its test

Stress and dietary behaviour among first-year university students in Australia: sex differences.

PubMed

Papier, Keren; Ahmed, Faruk; Lee, Patricia; Wiseman, Juliet

2015-02-01

The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between stress and food selection patterns by sex among first-year undergraduate students studying in an Australian university. Participating in this cross-sectional study were 728 (331 men and 397 female students) first-year students, ages >18 y, attending the Gold Coast Campus of Griffith University. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire consisting of three sections: sociodemographic information, stress measures, and a 7-d food frequency questionnaire. More than half (52.9%) of the participants were found to suffer from some level of stress, with relatively more female students (57.4%) suffering than men (47.4%). Men who experienced mild to moderate levels of stress were two to three times more likely to eat cereal foods (P < 0.01), fish/seafood (P < 0.001), and protein powder (P < 0.05). They also tended to eat more meat alternatives (P < 0.05), highly processed foods (P < 0.05), and to drink more alcohol (P < 0.05) than unstressed male students. However, they were less likely to consume vegetables and fruit (P < 0.05) compared with their unstressed counterparts. The trend analysis results indicated significant dose-response patterns in the relationship between stress level and consumption of cereal food, meat alternatives, vegetables and fruit (negative trend), highly processed food, protein powder, beverages and alcoholic beverages (all P < 0.05). Female students who experienced mild to moderate stress were 2.22 times more likely to eat processed food (P < 0.01) than unstressed female students. Female students who experienced severe stress were less likely to consume meat alternatives (P < 0.05) than their unstressed counterparts. Significant dose-response trends were found in the relationship between stress levels and the consumption of meat alternatives, vegetables and fruit (both negative trends), and processed food (all P < 0.01). These results demonstrate a clear difference in food selection patterns between stressed male and female students, with stress being a more significant predictor of unhealthy food selection among male students. Further research is needed using a qualitative approach to understand how stress and eating behavior are related in university students. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Bipartite functions of the CREB co-activators selectively direct alternative splicing or transcriptional activation

PubMed Central

Amelio, Antonio L; Caputi, Massimo; Conkright, Michael D

2009-01-01

The CREB regulated transcription co-activators (CRTCs) regulate many biological processes by integrating and converting environmental inputs into transcriptional responses. Although the mechanisms by which CRTCs sense cellular signals are characterized, little is known regarding how CRTCs contribute to the regulation of cAMP inducible genes. Here we show that these dynamic regulators, unlike other co-activators, independently direct either pre-mRNA splice-site selection or transcriptional activation depending on the cell type or promoter context. Moreover, in other scenarios, the CRTC co-activators coordinately regulate transcription and splicing. Mutational analyses showed that CRTCs possess distinct functional domains responsible for regulating either pre-mRNA splicing or transcriptional activation. Interestingly, the CRTC1–MAML2 oncoprotein lacks the splicing domain and is incapable of altering splice-site selection despite robustly activating transcription. The differential usage of these distinct domains allows CRTCs to selectively mediate multiple facets of gene regulation, indicating that co-activators are not solely restricted to coordinating alternative splicing with increase in transcriptional activity. PMID:19644446

Defect Detection in Arc-Welding Processes by Means of the Line-to-Continuum Method and Feature Selection.

PubMed

Garcia-Allende, P Beatriz; Mirapeix, Jesus; Conde, Olga M; Cobo, Adolfo; Lopez-Higuera, Jose M

2009-01-01

Plasma optical spectroscopy is widely employed in on-line welding diagnostics. The determination of the plasma electron temperature, which is typically selected as the output monitoring parameter, implies the identification of the atomic emission lines. As a consequence, additional processing stages are required with a direct impact on the real time performance of the technique. The line-to-continuum method is a feasible alternative spectroscopic approach and it is particularly interesting in terms of its computational efficiency. However, the monitoring signal highly depends on the chosen emission line. In this paper, a feature selection methodology is proposed to solve the uncertainty regarding the selection of the optimum spectral band, which allows the employment of the line-to-continuum method for on-line welding diagnostics. Field test results have been conducted to demonstrate the feasibility of the solution.

Analysis of Alternatives for Dismantling of the Equipment in Building 117/1 at Ignalina NPP - 13278

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

Poskas, Povilas; Simonis, Audrius; Poskas, Gintautas

2013-07-01

Ignalina NPP was operating two RBMK-1500 reactors which are under decommissioning now. In this paper dismantling alternatives of the equipment in Building 117/1 are analyzed. After situation analysis and collection of the primary information related to components' physical and radiological characteristics, location and other data, two different alternatives for dismantling of the equipment are formulated - the first (A1), when major components (vessels and pipes of Emergency Core Cooling System - ECCS) are segmented/halved in situ using flame cutting (oxy-acetylene) and the second one (A2), when these components are segmented/halved at the workshop using CAMC (Contact Arc Metal Cutting) technique.more » To select the preferable alternative MCDA method - AHP (Analytic Hierarchy Process) is applied. Hierarchical list of decision criteria, necessary for assessment of alternatives performance, are formulated. Quantitative decision criteria values for these alternatives are calculated using software DECRAD, which was developed by Lithuanian Energy Institute Nuclear engineering laboratory. While qualitative decision criteria are evaluated using expert judgment. Analysis results show that alternative A1 is better than alternative A2. (authors)« less

Remedial Action Assessment System: A computer-based methodology for conducting feasibility studies

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

White, M.K.; Buelt, J.L.; Stottlemyre, J.A.

1991-02-01

Because of the complexity and number of potential waste sites facing the US Department of Energy (DOE) for potential cleanup, DOE is supporting the development of a computer-based methodology to streamline the remedial investigation/feasibility study process. The Remedial Action Assessment System (RAAS), can be used for screening, linking, and evaluating established technology processes in support of conducting feasibility studies. It is also intended to do the same in support of corrective measures studies. The user interface employs menus, windows, help features, and graphical information while RAAS is in operation. Object-oriented programming is used to link unit processes into sets ofmore » compatible processes that form appropriate remedial alternatives. Once the remedial alternatives are formed, the RAAS methodology can evaluate them in terms of effectiveness, implementability, and cost. RAAS will access a user-selected risk assessment code to determine the reduction of risk after remedial action by each recommended alternative. The methodology will also help determine the implementability of the remedial alternatives at a site and access cost estimating tools to provide estimates of capital, operating, and maintenance costs. This paper presents the characteristics of two RAAS prototypes currently being developed. These include the RAAS Technology Information System, which accesses graphical, tabular and textual information about technologies, and the main RAAS methodology, which screens, links, and evaluates remedial technologies. 4 refs., 3 figs., 1 tab.« less

Total Life Cycle-Based Materials Selection for Polymer Metal Hybrid Body-in-White Automotive Components

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grujicic, M.; Sellappan, V.; He, T.; Seyr, Norbert; Obieglo, Andreas; Erdmann, Marc; Holzleitner, Jochen

2009-03-01

Over the last dozen of years, polymer metal hybrid (PMH) technologies have established themselves as viable alternatives for use in light-weight automotive body-in-white bolt-on as well as load-bearing (structural) components. Within the PMH technologies, sheet-metal stamped/formed and thermoplastic injection molding subcomponents are integrated into a singular component/module. Due to attending synergetic effects, the performance of the PMH component typically exceeds that attainable by an alternative single-material technologies. In the present work, a total life cycle (TLC) approach to the selection of metallic and thermoplastic materials (as well as the selection of structural adhesives, where appropriate) is considered. The TLC material selection approach considers the consequences and ramifications of material selection at each major stage of the vehicle manufacturing process chain (press shop, injection molding shop, body shop, paint shop, and assembly), as well as relation to the vehicle performance, durability and the end-of-the-life-of-the-vehicle considerations. The approach is next applied to the case of injection overmolding technology to identify the optimal grade of short glass-fiber reinforced nylon when used in a prototypical PMH load-bearing automotive body-in-white component.

Parameter Estimation of Computationally Expensive Watershed Models Through Efficient Multi-objective Optimization and Interactive Decision Analytics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Akhtar, Taimoor; Shoemaker, Christine

2016-04-01

Watershed model calibration is inherently a multi-criteria problem. Conflicting trade-offs exist between different quantifiable calibration criterions indicating the non-existence of a single optimal parameterization. Hence, many experts prefer a manual approach to calibration where the inherent multi-objective nature of the calibration problem is addressed through an interactive, subjective, time-intensive and complex decision making process. Multi-objective optimization can be used to efficiently identify multiple plausible calibration alternatives and assist calibration experts during the parameter estimation process. However, there are key challenges to the use of multi objective optimization in the parameter estimation process which include: 1) multi-objective optimization usually requires many model simulations, which is difficult for complex simulation models that are computationally expensive; and 2) selection of one from numerous calibration alternatives provided by multi-objective optimization is non-trivial. This study proposes a "Hybrid Automatic Manual Strategy" (HAMS) for watershed model calibration to specifically address the above-mentioned challenges. HAMS employs a 3-stage framework for parameter estimation. Stage 1 incorporates the use of an efficient surrogate multi-objective algorithm, GOMORS, for identification of numerous calibration alternatives within a limited simulation evaluation budget. The novelty of HAMS is embedded in Stages 2 and 3 where an interactive visual and metric based analytics framework is available as a decision support tool to choose a single calibration from the numerous alternatives identified in Stage 1. Stage 2 of HAMS provides a goodness-of-fit measure / metric based interactive framework for identification of a small subset (typically less than 10) of meaningful and diverse set of calibration alternatives from the numerous alternatives obtained in Stage 1. Stage 3 incorporates the use of an interactive visual analytics framework for decision support in selection of one parameter combination from the alternatives identified in Stage 2. HAMS is applied for calibration of flow parameters of a SWAT model, (Soil and Water Assessment Tool) designed to simulate flow in the Cannonsville watershed in upstate New York. Results from the application of HAMS to Cannonsville indicate that efficient multi-objective optimization and interactive visual and metric based analytics can bridge the gap between the effective use of both automatic and manual strategies for parameter estimation of computationally expensive watershed models.

New solar selective coating based on carbon nanotubes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abendroth, Thomas; Leupolt, Beate; Mäder, Gerrit; Härtel, Paul; Grählert, Wulf; Althues, Holger; Kaskel, Stefan; Beyer, Eckhard

2016-05-01

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) can be applied to assemble a new type of solar selective coating system for solar thermal applications. In this work the predominant absorption processes occurring by interaction with π-plasmon and Van Hove singularities (VHS) were investigated by UV-VIS-NIR spectroscopy and ellipsometry. Not only optical properties for as deposited SWCNT thin films itself, but also the potential for systematic tailoring will be presented. Besides low cost technologies required, the adjustability of optical properties, as well as their thermal stability render CNT based solar selective coatings as promising alternative to commercially available coating systems.

48 CFR 715.370 - Alternative source selection procedures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... selection procedures. 715.370 Section 715.370 Federal Acquisition Regulations System AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT CONTRACTING METHODS AND CONTRACT TYPES CONTRACTING BY NEGOTIATION Source Selection 715.370 Alternative source selection procedures. The following selection procedures may be used, when...

Neural Underpinnings of Decision Strategy Selection: A Review and a Theoretical Model.

PubMed

Wichary, Szymon; Smolen, Tomasz

2016-01-01

In multi-attribute choice, decision makers use decision strategies to arrive at the final choice. What are the neural mechanisms underlying decision strategy selection? The first goal of this paper is to provide a literature review on the neural underpinnings and cognitive models of decision strategy selection and thus set the stage for a neurocognitive model of this process. The second goal is to outline such a unifying, mechanistic model that can explain the impact of noncognitive factors (e.g., affect, stress) on strategy selection. To this end, we review the evidence for the factors influencing strategy selection, the neural basis of strategy use and the cognitive models of this process. We also present the Bottom-Up Model of Strategy Selection (BUMSS). The model assumes that the use of the rational Weighted Additive strategy and the boundedly rational heuristic Take The Best can be explained by one unifying, neurophysiologically plausible mechanism, based on the interaction of the frontoparietal network, orbitofrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex and the brainstem nucleus locus coeruleus. According to BUMSS, there are three processes that form the bottom-up mechanism of decision strategy selection and lead to the final choice: (1) cue weight computation, (2) gain modulation, and (3) weighted additive evaluation of alternatives. We discuss how these processes might be implemented in the brain, and how this knowledge allows us to formulate novel predictions linking strategy use and neural signals.

Population Response Profiles in Early Visual Cortex Are Biased in Favor of More Valuable Stimuli

PubMed Central

Saproo, Sameer

2010-01-01

Voluntary and stimulus-driven shifts of attention can modulate the representation of behaviorally relevant stimuli in early areas of visual cortex. In turn, attended items are processed faster and more accurately, facilitating the selection of appropriate behavioral responses. Information processing is also strongly influenced by past experience and recent studies indicate that the learned value of a stimulus can influence relatively late stages of decision making such as the process of selecting a motor response. However, the learned value of a stimulus can also influence the magnitude of cortical responses in early sensory areas such as V1 and S1. These early effects of stimulus value are presumed to improve the quality of sensory representations; however, the nature of these modulations is not clear. They could reflect nonspecific changes in response amplitude associated with changes in general arousal or they could reflect a bias in population responses so that high-value features are represented more robustly. To examine this issue, subjects performed a two-alternative forced choice paradigm with a variable-interval payoff schedule to dynamically manipulate the relative value of two stimuli defined by their orientation (one was rotated clockwise from vertical, the other counterclockwise). Activation levels in visual cortex were monitored using functional MRI and feature-selective voxel tuning functions while subjects performed the behavioral task. The results suggest that value not only modulates the relative amplitude of responses in early areas of human visual cortex, but also sharpens the response profile across the populations of feature-selective neurons that encode the critical stimulus feature (orientation). Moreover, changes in space- or feature-based attention cannot easily explain the results because representations of both the selected and the unselected stimuli underwent a similar feature-selective modulation. This sharpening in the population response profile could theoretically improve the probability of correctly discriminating high-value stimuli from low-value alternatives. PMID:20410360

Treatment of evaporator condensates by pervaporation

DOEpatents

Blume, Ingo; Baker, Richard W.

1990-01-01

A pervaporation process for separating organic contaminants from evaporator condensate streams is disclosed. The process employs a permselective membrane that is selectively permeable to an organic component of the condensate. The process involves contacting the feed side of the membrane with a liquid condensate stream, and withdrawing from the permeate side a vapor enriched in the organic component. The driving force for the process is the in vapor pressure across the membrane. This difference may be provided for instance by maintaining a vacuum on the permeate side, or by condensing the permeate. The process offers a simple, economic alternative to other separation techniques.

A Grey Fuzzy Logic Approach for Cotton Fibre Selection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chakraborty, Shankar; Das, Partha Protim; Kumar, Vidyapati

2017-06-01

It is a well known fact that the quality of ring spun yarn predominantly depends on various physical properties of cotton fibre. Any variation in these fibre properties may affect the strength and unevenness of the final yarn. Thus, so as to achieve the desired yarn quality and characteristics, it becomes imperative for the spinning industry personnel to identify the most suitable cotton fibre from a set of feasible alternatives in presence of several conflicting properties/attributes. This cotton fibre selection process can be modelled as a Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) problem. In this paper, a grey fuzzy logic-based approach is proposed for selection of the most apposite cotton fibre from 17 alternatives evaluated based on six important fibre properties. It is observed that the preference order of the top-ranked cotton fibres derived using the grey fuzzy logic approach closely matches with that attained by the past researchers which proves the application potentiality of this method in solving varying MCDM problems in textile industries.

Affimer proteins are versatile and renewable affinity reagents

PubMed Central

Tiede, Christian; Bedford, Robert; Heseltine, Sophie J; Smith, Gina; Wijetunga, Imeshi; Ross, Rebecca; AlQallaf, Danah; Roberts, Ashley PE; Balls, Alexander; Curd, Alistair; Hughes, Ruth E; Martin, Heather; Needham, Sarah R; Zanetti-Domingues, Laura C; Sadigh, Yashar; Peacock, Thomas P; Tang, Anna A; Gibson, Naomi; Kyle, Hannah; Platt, Geoffrey W; Ingram, Nicola; Taylor, Thomas; Coletta, Louise P; Manfield, Iain; Knowles, Margaret; Bell, Sandra; Esteves, Filomena; Maqbool, Azhar; Prasad, Raj K; Drinkhill, Mark; Bon, Robin S; Patel, Vikesh; Goodchild, Sarah A; Martin-Fernandez, Marisa; Owens, Ray J; Nettleship, Joanne E; Webb, Michael E; Harrison, Michael; Lippiat, Jonathan D; Ponnambalam, Sreenivasan; Peckham, Michelle; Smith, Alastair; Ferrigno, Paul Ko; Johnson, Matt; McPherson, Michael J; Tomlinson, Darren Charles

2017-01-01

Molecular recognition reagents are key tools for understanding biological processes and are used universally by scientists to study protein expression, localisation and interactions. Antibodies remain the most widely used of such reagents and many show excellent performance, although some are poorly characterised or have stability or batch variability issues, supporting the use of alternative binding proteins as complementary reagents for many applications. Here we report on the use of Affimer proteins as research reagents. We selected 12 diverse molecular targets for Affimer selection to exemplify their use in common molecular and cellular applications including the (a) selection against various target molecules; (b) modulation of protein function in vitro and in vivo; (c) labelling of tumour antigens in mouse models; and (d) use in affinity fluorescence and super-resolution microscopy. This work shows that Affimer proteins, as is the case for other alternative binding scaffolds, represent complementary affinity reagents to antibodies for various molecular and cell biology applications. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.24903.001 PMID:28654419

Recognition of Watson-Crick base pairs: constraints and limits due to geometric selection and tautomerism

PubMed Central

Yusupov, Marat; Yusupova, Gulnara

2014-01-01

The natural bases of nucleic acids have a strong preference for one tautomer form, guaranteeing fidelity in their hydrogen bonding potential. However, base pairs observed in recent crystal structures of polymerases and ribosomes are best explained by an alternative base tautomer, leading to the formation of base pairs with Watson-Crick-like geometries. These observations set limits to geometric selection in molecular recognition of complementary Watson-Crick pairs for fidelity in replication and translation processes. PMID:24765524

Studies on the selective lysis and purification of Trypanosoma cruzi

PubMed Central

1975-01-01

The mechanism by which culture forms of Trypanosoma cruzi are lysed by normal mammalian sera was examined. Lysis is restricted to the epimastigote form of the organism and is not dependent on the presence of agglutinins. Lysis is a complement-dependent process, the activity being generated by the alternate pathway. The selective lysis by serum was exploited to purify viable trypomastigotes by means of centrifugation in an albumin column. Essentially pure trypomastigote populations are now being employed in cell culture experiments. PMID:807672

Evaluation of Treatment Technologies for Wastewater from Insensitive Munitions Production. Phase 1: Technology Down-Selection

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-11-01

the AOP reactor according to the target process formulation. Gases were vented to a GAC vessel. ERDC/EL TR-13-20 94 10.2.2 Results and Discussion...destructive and filtration methods such as biological treatment (destructive), chemical reduction (destructive), reverse osmosis (RO)/nano- filtration ... filtration ), and advanced oxidation processes (destructive). A comprehensive evaluation of alternatives relies on a detailed list of criteria, allowing for

Reference Pricing Changes The 'Choice Architecture' Of Health Care For Consumers.

PubMed

Robinson, James C; Brown, Timothy T; Whaley, Christopher

2017-03-01

Reference pricing in health insurance creates incentives for patients to select for nonemergency services providers that charge relatively low prices and still offer high quality of care. It changes the "choice architecture" by offering standard coverage if the patient chooses cost-effective providers but requires considerable consumer cost sharing if more expensive alternatives are selected. The short-term impact of reference pricing has been to shift patient volumes from hospital-based to freestanding surgical, diagnostic, imaging, and laboratory facilities. This article summarizes reference pricing's impacts to date on patient choice, provider prices, surgical complications, and employer spending and estimates its potential impacts if expanded to more services and a broader population. Reference pricing induces consumers to select lower-price alternatives for all of the forms of care studied, leading to significant reductions in prices paid and spending incurred by insurers and employers. The impact on consumer cost sharing is mixed, with some studies finding higher copayments and some lower. We conclude with a discussion of the incentives created for providers to redesign their clinical processes and for efficient providers to expand into price-sensitive markets. Over time, reference pricing may increase pressures for price competition and lead to further cost-reducing innovations in health care products and processes. Project HOPE—The People-to-People Health Foundation, Inc.

Automatic computer subprogram selection from application program libraries

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Drozdowski, J. M.

1972-01-01

The program ALTLIB (ALTernate LIBrary) which allows a user access to an alternate subprogram library with a minimum effort is discussed. The ALTLIB program selects subprograms from an alternate library file and merges them with the user's program load file. Only subprograms that are called for (directly or indirectly) by the user's programs and that are available on the alternate library file will be selected. ALTLIB eliminates the need for elaborate control-card manipulations to add subprograms from a subprogram file. ALTLIB returns to the user his binary file and the selected subprograms in correct order for a call to the loader. The user supplies the alternate library file. Subprogram requests which are not satisfied from the alternate library file will be satisfied at load time from the system library.

A Grand Challenge for CMOS Scaling: Alternate Gate Dielectrics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wallace, Robert M.

2001-03-01

Many materials systems are currently under consideration as potential replacements for SiO2 as the gate dielectric material for sub-0.13 um complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) technology. The prospect of replacing SiO2 is a formidable task because the alternate gate dielectric must provide many properties that are, at a minimum, comparable to those of SiO2 yet with a much higher permittivity. A systematic examination of the required performance of gate dielectrics suggests that the key properties to consider in the selection an alternative gate dielectric candidate are (a) permittivity, band gap and band alignment to silicon, (b) thermodynamic stability, (c) film morphology, (d) interface quality, (e) compatibility with the current or expected materials to be used in processing for CMOS devices, (f) process compatibility, and (g) reliability. Many dielectrics appear favorable in some of these areas, but very few materials are promising with respect to all of these guidelines. We will review the performance requirements for materials associated with CMOS scaling, the challenges associated with these requirements, and the state-of-the-art in current research for alternate gate dielectrics. The requirements for process integration compatibility are remarkably demanding, and any serious candidates will emerge only through continued, intensive investigation.

Green material selection for sustainability: A hybrid MCDM approach.

PubMed

Zhang, Honghao; Peng, Yong; Tian, Guangdong; Wang, Danqi; Xie, Pengpeng

2017-01-01

Green material selection is a crucial step for the material industry to comprehensively improve material properties and promote sustainable development. However, because of the subjectivity and conflicting evaluation criteria in its process, green material selection, as a multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) problem, has been a widespread concern to the relevant experts. Thus, this study proposes a hybrid MCDM approach that combines decision making and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL), analytical network process (ANP), grey relational analysis (GRA) and technique for order performance by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS) to select the optimal green material for sustainability based on the product's needs. A nonlinear programming model with constraints was proposed to obtain the integrated closeness index. Subsequently, an empirical application of rubbish bins was used to illustrate the proposed method. In addition, a sensitivity analysis and a comparison with existing methods were employed to validate the accuracy and stability of the obtained final results. We found that this method provides a more accurate and effective decision support tool for alternative evaluation or strategy selection.

Green material selection for sustainability: A hybrid MCDM approach

PubMed Central

Zhang, Honghao; Peng, Yong; Tian, Guangdong; Wang, Danqi; Xie, Pengpeng

2017-01-01

Green material selection is a crucial step for the material industry to comprehensively improve material properties and promote sustainable development. However, because of the subjectivity and conflicting evaluation criteria in its process, green material selection, as a multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) problem, has been a widespread concern to the relevant experts. Thus, this study proposes a hybrid MCDM approach that combines decision making and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL), analytical network process (ANP), grey relational analysis (GRA) and technique for order performance by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS) to select the optimal green material for sustainability based on the product's needs. A nonlinear programming model with constraints was proposed to obtain the integrated closeness index. Subsequently, an empirical application of rubbish bins was used to illustrate the proposed method. In addition, a sensitivity analysis and a comparison with existing methods were employed to validate the accuracy and stability of the obtained final results. We found that this method provides a more accurate and effective decision support tool for alternative evaluation or strategy selection. PMID:28498864

Categorization and identification of simultaneous targets.

PubMed

Theeuwes, J

1991-02-01

Early and late selection theories of visual attention disagree about whether identification occurs before or after selection. Studies showing the category effect, i.e., the time to detect a letter is hardly affected by the number of digits present in the display, are taken as evidence for late selection theories since these studies suggest parallel identification of all items in the display. As an extension of previous studies, in the present study two categorically different targets were presented simultaneously among a variable number of nontargets. Subjects were shown brief displays of two target letters among either 2, 4 or 6 nontarget digits. Subjects responded 'same' when the two letters were identical and 'different' otherwise. Since the 'same-different' response reflects the combined outcome of the simultaneous targets, late-selection theory predicts that the time to match the target letters is independent of the number of nontarget digits. Alternatively, early-selection theory predicts a linear increase of reaction time with display size since the presence of more than one target disrupts parallel preattentive processing, leading to a serial search through all items in the display. The results provide evidence for the early-selection view since reaction time increased linearly with the number of categorically different nontargets. A control experiment revealed that none of the alternative explanations could account for the display size effect.

Advanced Placement and Rural Schools: Access, Success, and Exploring Alternatives

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gagnon, Douglas J.; Mattingly, Marybeth J.

2016-01-01

Completing Advanced Placement (AP) coursework is an important part of the selective college admissions process, and access to AP coursework can be viewed as a measure of equal opportunity. Relatively little research has fully examined how access to AP coursework is mediated by school characteristics. Rural schools are at a particular disadvantage…

Putting Empirical Knowledge to Work: Linking Research and Programming on Marital Quality

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Adler-Baeder, Francesca; Higginbotham, Brian; Lamke, Leanne

2004-01-01

When selecting a marriage education curriculum, educators can turn to programs that have been evaluated for effectiveness; however, few curricula have undergone such study. An alternative approach, consistent with best practices, is to ensure a research base for program content. A translation process model is offered as an initial attempt to…

Selective Short-Term Memory Deficits Arise from Impaired Domain-General Semantic Control Mechanisms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hoffman, Paul; Jefferies, Elizabeth; Ehsan, Sheeba; Hopper, Samantha; Lambon Ralph, Matthew A.

2009-01-01

Semantic short-term memory (STM) patients have a reduced ability to retain semantic information over brief delays but perform well on other semantic tasks; this pattern suggests damage to a dedicated buffer for semantic information. Alternatively, these difficulties may arise from mild disruption to domain-general semantic processes that have…

Doing Without Schema Hierarchies: A Recurrent Connectionist Approach to Normal and Impaired Routine Sequential Action

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Botvinick, Matthew; Plaut, David C.

2004-01-01

In everyday tasks, selecting actions in the proper sequence requires a continuously updated representation of temporal context. Previous models have addressed this problem by positing a hierarchy of processing units, mirroring the roughly hierarchical structure of naturalistic tasks themselves. The present study considers an alternative framework,…

Planning for a Change; A Resource Catalogue. A Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Center for New Schools, Inc., Chicago, IL.

This 293-item catalog lists selected entries that should be useful to planning groups and others interested in establishing new school programs. It is concerned with what is considered a crucial step in the planning process--searching for alternatives. Past experience with school-community planning efforts has shown that, in the search for…

Prioritization of water management for sustainability using hydrologic simulation model and multicriteria decision making techniques.

PubMed

Chung, Eun-Sung; Lee, Kil Seong

2009-03-01

The objective of this study is to develop an alternative evaluation index (AEI) in order to determine the priorities of a range of alternatives using both the hydrological simulation program in FORTRAN (HSPF) and multicriteria decision making (MCDM) techniques. In order to formulate the HSPF model, sensitivity analyses of water quantity (peak discharge and total volume) and quality (BOD peak concentrations and total loads) are conducted and a number of critical parameters were selected. To achieve a more precise simulation, the study watershed is divided into four regions for calibration and verification according to landuse, location, slope, and climate data. All evaluation criteria were selected using the Driver-Pressure-State-Impact-Response (DPSIR) model, a sustainability evaluation concept. The Analytic Hierarchy Process is used to estimate the weights of the criteria and the effects of water quantity and quality were quantified by HSPF simulation. In addition, AEIs that reflected residents' preferences for management objectives are proposed in order to induce the stakeholder to participate in the decision making process.

Lunar lander and return propulsion system trade study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hurlbert, Eric A.; Moreland, Robert; Sanders, Gerald B.; Robertson, Edward A.; Amidei, David; Mulholland, John

1993-01-01

This trade study was initiated at NASA/JSC in May 1992 to develop and evaluate main propulsion system alternatives to the reference First Lunar Outpost (FLO) lander and return-stage transportation system concept. Thirteen alternative configurations were developed to explore the impacts of various combinations of return stage propellants, using either pressure or pump-fed propulsion systems and various staging options. Besides two-stage vehicle concepts, the merits of single-stage and stage-and-a-half options were also assessed in combination with high-performance liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen propellants. Configurations using an integrated modular cryogenic engine were developed to assess potential improvements in packaging efficiency, mass performance, and system reliability compared to non-modular cryogenic designs. The selection process to evaluate the various designs was the analytic hierarchy process. The trade study showed that a pressure-fed MMH/N2O4 return stage and RL10-based lander stage is the best option for a 1999 launch. While results of this study are tailored to FLO needs, the design date, criteria, and selection methodology are applicable to the design of other crewed lunar landing and return vehicles.

GREEN CHEMISTRY. Shape-selective zeolite catalysis for bioplastics production.

PubMed

Dusselier, Michiel; Van Wouwe, Pieter; Dewaele, Annelies; Jacobs, Pierre A; Sels, Bert F

2015-07-03

Biodegradable and renewable polymers, such as polylactic acid, are benign alternatives for petrochemical-based plastics. Current production of polylactic acid via its key building block lactide, the cyclic dimer of lactic acid, is inefficient in terms of energy, time, and feedstock use. We present a direct zeolite-based catalytic process, which converts lactic acid into lactide. The shape-selective properties of zeolites are essential to attain record lactide yields, outperforming those of the current multistep process by avoiding both racemization and side-product formation. The highly productive process is strengthened by facile recovery and practical reactivation of the catalyst, which remains structurally fit during at least six consecutive reactions, and by the ease of solvent and side-product recycling. Copyright © 2015, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Economic irrationality is optimal during noisy decision making

PubMed Central

Moreland, James; Chater, Nick; Usher, Marius; Summerfield, Christopher

2016-01-01

According to normative theories, reward-maximizing agents should have consistent preferences. Thus, when faced with alternatives A, B, and C, an individual preferring A to B and B to C should prefer A to C. However, it has been widely argued that humans can incur losses by violating this axiom of transitivity, despite strong evolutionary pressure for reward-maximizing choices. Here, adopting a biologically plausible computational framework, we show that intransitive (and thus economically irrational) choices paradoxically improve accuracy (and subsequent economic rewards) when decision formation is corrupted by internal neural noise. Over three experiments, we show that humans accumulate evidence over time using a “selective integration” policy that discards information about alternatives with momentarily lower value. This policy predicts violations of the axiom of transitivity when three equally valued alternatives differ circularly in their number of winning samples. We confirm this prediction in a fourth experiment reporting significant violations of weak stochastic transitivity in human observers. Crucially, we show that relying on selective integration protects choices against “late” noise that otherwise corrupts decision formation beyond the sensory stage. Indeed, we report that individuals with higher late noise relied more strongly on selective integration. These findings suggest that violations of rational choice theory reflect adaptive computations that have evolved in response to irreducible noise during neural information processing. PMID:26929353

Economic irrationality is optimal during noisy decision making.

PubMed

Tsetsos, Konstantinos; Moran, Rani; Moreland, James; Chater, Nick; Usher, Marius; Summerfield, Christopher

2016-03-15

According to normative theories, reward-maximizing agents should have consistent preferences. Thus, when faced with alternatives A, B, and C, an individual preferring A to B and B to C should prefer A to C. However, it has been widely argued that humans can incur losses by violating this axiom of transitivity, despite strong evolutionary pressure for reward-maximizing choices. Here, adopting a biologically plausible computational framework, we show that intransitive (and thus economically irrational) choices paradoxically improve accuracy (and subsequent economic rewards) when decision formation is corrupted by internal neural noise. Over three experiments, we show that humans accumulate evidence over time using a "selective integration" policy that discards information about alternatives with momentarily lower value. This policy predicts violations of the axiom of transitivity when three equally valued alternatives differ circularly in their number of winning samples. We confirm this prediction in a fourth experiment reporting significant violations of weak stochastic transitivity in human observers. Crucially, we show that relying on selective integration protects choices against "late" noise that otherwise corrupts decision formation beyond the sensory stage. Indeed, we report that individuals with higher late noise relied more strongly on selective integration. These findings suggest that violations of rational choice theory reflect adaptive computations that have evolved in response to irreducible noise during neural information processing.

A cloud model based multi-attribute decision making approach for selection and evaluation of groundwater management schemes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lu, Hongwei; Ren, Lixia; Chen, Yizhong; Tian, Peipei; Liu, Jia

2017-12-01

Due to the uncertainty (i.e., fuzziness, stochasticity and imprecision) existed simultaneously during the process for groundwater remediation, the accuracy of ranking results obtained by the traditional methods has been limited. This paper proposes a cloud model based multi-attribute decision making framework (CM-MADM) with Monte Carlo for the contaminated-groundwater remediation strategies selection. The cloud model is used to handle imprecise numerical quantities, which can describe the fuzziness and stochasticity of the information fully and precisely. In the proposed approach, the contaminated concentrations are aggregated via the backward cloud generator and the weights of attributes are calculated by employing the weight cloud module. A case study on the remedial alternative selection for a contaminated site suffering from a 1,1,1-trichloroethylene leakage problem in Shanghai, China is conducted to illustrate the efficiency and applicability of the developed approach. Totally, an attribute system which consists of ten attributes were used for evaluating each alternative through the developed method under uncertainty, including daily total pumping rate, total cost and cloud model based health risk. Results indicated that A14 was evaluated to be the most preferred alternative for the 5-year, A5 for the 10-year, A4 for the 15-year and A6 for the 20-year remediation.

Written advice can provide a safe and acceptable alternative to new patient assessment for selected referrals to haematologists.

PubMed

Ganly, Peter S; Keeman, Helen; Spearing, Ruth L; Smith, Mark P; Patton, Nigel; Merriman, Eileen G; Gibbons, Steve S

2008-01-07

To measure the safety and acceptability of providing written advice (WA) for selected patients referred to a haematology service, as an alternative to inpatient or outpatient assessment. Review of the initial management and subsequent course of patients newly referred to a tertiary referral hospital in Christchurch, New Zealand, between 16 October 2003 and 8 June 2006. Structured questionnaires were sent to all referring doctors and patients recently managed with WA. Numbers and diagnoses of patients managed with WA, early assessment or delayed assessment; re-referral and treatment details; characteristics of WA letters; and opinions of referring doctors and their patients on the WA process. 26% of new referrals (714/2785) were managed with prompt WA, while 16% (455/2785) received the alternative of delayed assessment. After a median follow-up of 23 months (range, 8-40 months), 13% of those managed with WA (91/714) were re-referred back to the same haematologists; 7% (52/714) were assessed in hospital and 2% (15/714) eventually required treatment. There were no deaths due to haematological causes. Over 90% of responding referring doctors said the WA process was rapid and effective, and 77% of recently managed patients were pleased to be treated by their own doctors. Using WA to manage a substantial minority of patients referred to haematologists can be rapid and safe. It is widely accepted by referring doctors.

Photochemical isotope separation

DOEpatents

Robinson, C. Paul; Jensen, Reed J.; Cotter, Theodore P.; Greiner, Norman R.; Boyer, Keith

1987-01-01

A process for separating isotopes by selective excitation of isotopic species of a volatile compound by tuned laser light. A highly cooled gas of the volatile compound is produced in which the isotopic shift is sharpened and defined. Before substantial condensation occurs, the cooled gas is irradiated with laser light precisely tuned to a desired wavelength to selectively excite a particular isotopic species in the cooled gas. The laser light may impart sufficient energy to the excited species to cause it to undergo photochemical reaction or even to photoionize. Alternatively, a two-photon irradiation may be applied to the cooled gas to induce photochemical reaction or photoionization. The process is particularly applicable to the separation of isotopes of uranium and plutonium.

Laser isotope separation

DOEpatents

Robinson, C. Paul; Jensen, Reed J.; Cotter, Theodore P.; Boyer, Keith; Greiner, Norman R.

1988-01-01

A process and apparatus for separating isotopes by selective excitation of isotopic species of a volatile compound by tuned laser light. A highly cooled gas of the volatile compound is produced in which the isotopic shift is sharpened and defined. Before substantial condensation occurs, the cooled gas is irradiated with laser light precisely tuned to a desired wavelength to selectively excite a particular isotopic species in the cooled gas. The laser light may impart sufficient energy to the excited species to cause it to undergo photolysis, photochemical reaction or even to photoionize. Alternatively, a two-photon irradiation may be applied to the cooled gas to induce photolysis, photochemical reaction or photoionization. The process is particularly applicable to the separation of isotopes of uranium.

Isotope separation by laser means

DOEpatents

Robinson, C. Paul; Jensen, Reed J.; Cotter, Theodore P.; Greiner, Norman R.; Boyer, Keith

1982-06-15

A process for separating isotopes by selective excitation of isotopic species of a volatile compound by tuned laser light. A highly cooled gas of the volatile compound is produced in which the isotopic shift is sharpened and defined. Before substantial condensation occurs, the cooled gas is irradiated with laser light precisely tuned to a desired wavelength to selectively excite a particular isotopic species in the cooled gas. The laser light may impart sufficient energy to the excited species to cause it to undergo photochemical reaction or even to photoionize. Alternatively, a two-photon irradiation may be applied to the cooled gas to induce photochemical reaction or photoionization. The process is particularly applicable to the separation of isotopes of uranium and plutonium.

Vapor Hydrogen Peroxide as Alternative to Dry Heat Microbial Reduction

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cash, Howard A.; Kern, Roger G.; Chung, Shirley Y.; Koukol, Robert C.; Barengoltz, Jack B.

2006-01-01

The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, in conjunction with the NASA Planetary Protection Officer, has selected vapor phase hydrogen peroxide (VHP) sterilization process for continued development as a NASA approved sterilization technique for spacecraft subsystems and systems. The goal is to include this technique, with appropriate specification, in NPG8020.12C as a low temperature complementary technique to the dry heat sterilization process. A series of experiments were conducted in vacuum to determine VHP process parameters that provided significant reductions in spore viability while allowing survival of sufficient spores for statistically significant enumeration. With this knowledge of D values, sensible margins can be applied in a planetary protection specification. The outcome of this study provided an optimization of test sterilizer process conditions: VHP concentration, process duration, a process temperature range for which the worst case D value may be imposed, a process humidity range for which the worst case D value may be imposed, and robustness to selected spacecraft material substrates.

Multiattribute selection of acute stroke imaging software platform for Extending the Time for Thrombolysis in Emergency Neurological Deficits (EXTEND) clinical trial.

PubMed

Churilov, Leonid; Liu, Daniel; Ma, Henry; Christensen, Soren; Nagakane, Yoshinari; Campbell, Bruce; Parsons, Mark W; Levi, Christopher R; Davis, Stephen M; Donnan, Geoffrey A

2013-04-01

The appropriateness of a software platform for rapid MRI assessment of the amount of salvageable brain tissue after stroke is critical for both the validity of the Extending the Time for Thrombolysis in Emergency Neurological Deficits (EXTEND) Clinical Trial of stroke thrombolysis beyond 4.5 hours and for stroke patient care outcomes. The objective of this research is to develop and implement a methodology for selecting the acute stroke imaging software platform most appropriate for the setting of a multi-centre clinical trial. A multi-disciplinary decision making panel formulated the set of preferentially independent evaluation attributes. Alternative Multi-Attribute Value Measurement methods were used to identify the best imaging software platform followed by sensitivity analysis to ensure the validity and robustness of the proposed solution. Four alternative imaging software platforms were identified. RApid processing of PerfusIon and Diffusion (RAPID) software was selected as the most appropriate for the needs of the EXTEND trial. A theoretically grounded generic multi-attribute selection methodology for imaging software was developed and implemented. The developed methodology assured both a high quality decision outcome and a rational and transparent decision process. This development contributes to stroke literature in the area of comprehensive evaluation of MRI clinical software. At the time of evaluation, RAPID software presented the most appropriate imaging software platform for use in the EXTEND clinical trial. The proposed multi-attribute imaging software evaluation methodology is based on sound theoretical foundations of multiple criteria decision analysis and can be successfully used for choosing the most appropriate imaging software while ensuring both robust decision process and outcomes. © 2012 The Authors. International Journal of Stroke © 2012 World Stroke Organization.

Positive selection and propeptide repeats promote rapid interspecific divergence of a gastropod sperm protein.

PubMed

Hellberg, M E; Moy, G W; Vacquier, V D

2000-03-01

Male-specific proteins have increasingly been reported as targets of positive selection and are of special interest because of the role they may play in the evolution of reproductive isolation. We report the rapid interspecific divergence of cDNA encoding a major acrosomal protein of unknown function (TMAP) of sperm from five species of teguline gastropods. A mitochondrial DNA clock (calibrated by congeneric species divided by the Isthmus of Panama) estimates that these five species diverged 2-10 MYA. Inferred amino acid sequences reveal a propeptide that has diverged rapidly between species. The mature protein has diverged faster still due to high nonsynonymous substitution rates (> 25 nonsynonymous substitutions per site per 10(9) years). cDNA encoding the mature protein (89-100 residues) shows evidence of positive selection (Dn/Ds > 1) for 4 of 10 pairwise species comparisons. cDNA and predicted secondary-structure comparisons suggest that TMAP is neither orthologous nor paralogous to abalone lysin, and thus marks a second, phylogenetically independent, protein subject to strong positive selection in free-spawning marine gastropods. In addition, an internal repeat in one species (Tegula aureotincta) produces a duplicated cleavage site which results in two alternatively processed mature proteins differing by nine amino acid residues. Such alternative processing may provide a mechanism for introducing novel amino acid sequence variation at the amino-termini of proteins. Highly divergent TMAP N-termini from two other tegulines (Tegula regina and Norrisia norrisii) may have originated by such a mechanism.

Alternative splicing and the evolution of phenotypic novelty.

PubMed

Bush, Stephen J; Chen, Lu; Tovar-Corona, Jaime M; Urrutia, Araxi O

2017-02-05

Alternative splicing, a mechanism of post-transcriptional RNA processing whereby a single gene can encode multiple distinct transcripts, has been proposed to underlie morphological innovations in multicellular organisms. Genes with developmental functions are enriched for alternative splicing events, suggestive of a contribution of alternative splicing to developmental programmes. The role of alternative splicing as a source of transcript diversification has previously been compared to that of gene duplication, with the relationship between the two extensively explored. Alternative splicing is reduced following gene duplication with the retention of duplicate copies higher for genes which were alternatively spliced prior to duplication. Furthermore, and unlike the case for overall gene number, the proportion of alternatively spliced genes has also increased in line with the evolutionary diversification of cell types, suggesting alternative splicing may contribute to the complexity of developmental programmes. Together these observations suggest a prominent role for alternative splicing as a source of functional innovation. However, it is unknown whether the proliferation of alternative splicing events indeed reflects a functional expansion of the transcriptome or instead results from weaker selection acting on larger species, which tend to have a higher number of cell types and lower population sizes.This article is part of the themed issue 'Evo-devo in the genomics era, and the origins of morphological diversity'. © 2016 The Author(s).

Alternative splicing and the evolution of phenotypic novelty

PubMed Central

Bush, Stephen J.; Chen, Lu; Tovar-Corona, Jaime M.

2017-01-01

Alternative splicing, a mechanism of post-transcriptional RNA processing whereby a single gene can encode multiple distinct transcripts, has been proposed to underlie morphological innovations in multicellular organisms. Genes with developmental functions are enriched for alternative splicing events, suggestive of a contribution of alternative splicing to developmental programmes. The role of alternative splicing as a source of transcript diversification has previously been compared to that of gene duplication, with the relationship between the two extensively explored. Alternative splicing is reduced following gene duplication with the retention of duplicate copies higher for genes which were alternatively spliced prior to duplication. Furthermore, and unlike the case for overall gene number, the proportion of alternatively spliced genes has also increased in line with the evolutionary diversification of cell types, suggesting alternative splicing may contribute to the complexity of developmental programmes. Together these observations suggest a prominent role for alternative splicing as a source of functional innovation. However, it is unknown whether the proliferation of alternative splicing events indeed reflects a functional expansion of the transcriptome or instead results from weaker selection acting on larger species, which tend to have a higher number of cell types and lower population sizes. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Evo-devo in the genomics era, and the origins of morphological diversity’. PMID:27994117

Accuracy and suitability of selected sampling methods within conifer dominated riparian zones

Treesearch

Theresa Marquardt; Hailemariam Temesgen; Paul D. Anderson

2010-01-01

Sixteen sampling alternatives were examined for their performance to quantify selected attributes of overstory conifers in riparian areas of western Oregon. Each alternative was examined at eight headwater forest locations based on 0.52 ha square stem maps. The alternatives were evaluated for selected stand attributes (tree per hectare, basal area per hectare, and...

Status report: Data management program algorithm evaluation activity at Marshall Space Flight Center

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jayroe, R. R., Jr.

1977-01-01

An algorithm evaluation activity was initiated to study the problems associated with image processing by assessing the independent and interdependent effects of registration, compression, and classification techniques on LANDSAT data for several discipline applications. The objective of the activity was to make recommendations on selected applicable image processing algorithms in terms of accuracy, cost, and timeliness or to propose alternative ways of processing the data. As a means of accomplishing this objective, an Image Coding Panel was established. The conduct of the algorithm evaluation is described.

Reactor technology assessment and selection utilizing systems engineering approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zolkaffly, Muhammed Zulfakar; Han, Ki-In

2014-02-01

The first Nuclear power plant (NPP) deployment in a country is a complex process that needs to consider technical, economic and financial aspects along with other aspects like public acceptance. Increased interest in the deployment of new NPPs, both among newcomer countries and those with expanding programs, necessitates the selection of reactor technology among commercially available technologies. This paper reviews the Systems Decision Process (SDP) of Systems Engineering and applies it in selecting the most appropriate reactor technology for the deployment in Malaysia. The integrated qualitative and quantitative analyses employed in the SDP are explored to perform reactor technology assessment and to select the most feasible technology whose design has also to comply with the IAEA standard requirements and other relevant requirements that have been established in this study. A quick Malaysian case study result suggests that the country reside with PWR (pressurized water reactor) technologies with more detailed study to be performed in the future for the selection of the most appropriate reactor technology for Malaysia. The demonstrated technology assessment also proposes an alternative method to systematically and quantitatively select the most appropriate reactor technology.

Red meat, diseases, and healthy alternatives: A critical review.

PubMed

Ekmekcioglu, Cem; Wallner, Peter; Kundi, Michael; Weisz, Ulli; Haas, Willi; Hutter, Hans-Peter

2018-01-22

Meat is an important food for human nutrition, by especially providing high-quality protein and also some essential micronutrients, in front iron, zinc, and vitamin B 12 . However, a high intake of red and processed meat is associated with an increased risk for diseases, especially type 2 diabetes and colorectal cancer, as several epidemiological studies and meta-analyses have shown. This review summarizes meta-analyses of publications studying the association between red and processed meat intake and type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, colorectal and other cancers, and all-cause mortality. Various potential mechanisms involved in the increased disease risk are discussed. Furthermore, the beneficial effects of healthy alternatives for meat, like fish, nuts, vegetables and fruits, pulses and legumes, whole grains, and dairy products are reviewed by including selected papers and recent meta-analyses.

Computer Based Decision Support Tool for Helicopter Mission Planning in Disaster Relief and Military Operations (Outil informatique d’aide a la decision pour la planification des missions d’helicopteres dans des operations militaires et de secours en cas de catastrophe)

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-06-01

capacity planning; • Electrical generation capacity planning; • Machine scheduling; • Freight scheduling; • Dairy farm expansion planning...Support Systems and Multi Criteria Decision Analysis Products A.2.11.2.2.1 ELECTRE IS ELECTRE IS is a generalization of ELECTRE I. It is a...criteria, ELECTRE IS supports the user in the process of selecting one alternative or a subset of alternatives. The method consists of two parts

Operations planning simulation: Model study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1974-01-01

The use of simulation modeling for the identification of system sensitivities to internal and external forces and variables is discussed. The technique provides a means of exploring alternate system procedures and processes, so that these alternatives may be considered on a mutually comparative basis permitting the selection of a mode or modes of operation which have potential advantages to the system user and the operator. These advantages are measurements is system efficiency are: (1) the ability to meet specific schedules for operations, mission or mission readiness requirements or performance standards and (2) to accomplish the objectives within cost effective limits.

Comparison of alternate fuels for aircraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Witcofski, R. D.

1979-01-01

A comparison of candidate alternate fuels for aircraft is presented. The fuels discussed include liquid hydrogen, liquid methane, and synthetic aviation kerosene. Each fuel is evaluated from the standpoint of production, transmission, airport storage and distribution facilities, and use in aircraft. Technology deficient areas for cryogenic fuels, which should be advanced prior to the introduction of the fuels into the aviation industry, are identified, as are the cost and energy penalties associated with not achieving those advances. Environmental emissions and safety aspects of fuel selection are discussed. A detailed description of the various fuel production and liquefaction processes and their efficiencies and economics is given.

What to expect from an evolutionary hypothesis for a human disease: The case of type 2 diabetes.

PubMed

Watve, Milind; Diwekar-Joshi, Manawa

2016-10-01

Evolutionary medicine has a promise to bring in a conceptual revolution in medicine. However, as yet the field does not have the same theoretical rigour as that of many other fields in evolutionary studies. We discuss here with reference to type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) what role an evolutionary hypothesis should play in the development of thinking in medicine. Starting with the thrifty gene hypothesis, evolutionary thinking in T2DM has undergone several transitions, modifications and refinements of the thrift family of hypotheses. In addition alternative hypotheses independent of thrift are also suggested. However, most hypotheses look at partial pictures; make selective use of supportive data ignoring inconvenient truths. Most hypotheses look at a superficial picture and avoid getting into the intricacies of underlying molecular, neuronal and physiological processes. Very few hypotheses have suggested clinical implications and none of them have been tested with randomized clinical trials. In the meanwhile the concepts in the pathophysiology of T2DM are undergoing radical changes and evolutionary hypotheses need to take them into account. We suggest an approach and a set of criteria to evaluate the relative merits of the alternative hypotheses. A number of hypotheses are likely to fail when critically evaluated against these criteria. It is possible that more than one selective process are at work in the evolution of propensity to T2DM, but the intercompatibility of the alternative selective forces and their relative contribution needs to be examined. The approach we describe could potentially lead to a sound evolutionary theory that is clinically useful and testable by randomized controlled clinical trials. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

L-Methionine Production.

PubMed

Shim, Jihyun; Shin, Yonguk; Lee, Imsang; Kim, So Young

L-Methionine has been used in various industrial applications such as the production of feed and food additives and has been used as a raw material for medical supplies and drugs. It functions not only as an essential amino acid but also as a physiological effector, for example, by inhibiting fat accumulation and enhancing immune response. Producing methionine from fermentation is beneficial in that microorganisms can produce L-methionine selectively using eco-sustainable processes. Nevertheless, the fermentative method has not been used on an industrial scale because it is not competitive economically compared with chemical synthesis methods. Presented are efforts to develop suitable strains, engineered enzymes, and alternative process of producing L-methionine that overcomes problems of conventional fermentation methods. One of the alternative processes is a two-step process in which the L-methionine precursor is produced by fermentation and then converted to L-methionine by enzymes. Directed efforts toward strain development and enhanced enzyme engineering will advance industrial production of L-methionine based on fermentation.

Adaptive constructive processes and memory accuracy: Consequences of counterfactual simulations in young and older adults

PubMed Central

Gerlach, Kathy D.; Dornblaser, David W.; Schacter, Daniel L.

2013-01-01

People frequently engage in counterfactual thinking: mental simulations of alternative outcomes to past events. Like simulations of future events, counterfactual simulations serve adaptive functions. However, future simulation can also result in various kinds of distortions and has thus been characterized as an adaptive constructive process. Here we approach counterfactual thinking as such and examine whether it can distort memory for actual events. In Experiments 1a/b, young and older adults imagined themselves experiencing different scenarios. Participants then imagined the same scenario again, engaged in no further simulation of a scenario, or imagined a counterfactual outcome. On a subsequent recognition test, participants were more likely to make false alarms to counterfactual lures than novel scenarios. Older adults were more prone to these memory errors than younger adults. In Experiment 2, younger and older participants selected and performed different actions, then recalled performing some of those actions, imagined performing alternative actions to some of the selected actions, and did not imagine others. Participants, especially older adults, were more likely to falsely remember counterfactual actions than novel actions as previously performed. The findings suggest that counterfactual thinking can cause source confusion based on internally generated misinformation, consistent with its characterization as an adaptive constructive process. PMID:23560477

Adaptive constructive processes and memory accuracy: consequences of counterfactual simulations in young and older adults.

PubMed

Gerlach, Kathy D; Dornblaser, David W; Schacter, Daniel L

2014-01-01

People frequently engage in counterfactual thinking: mental simulations of alternative outcomes to past events. Like simulations of future events, counterfactual simulations serve adaptive functions. However, future simulation can also result in various kinds of distortions and has thus been characterised as an adaptive constructive process. Here we approach counterfactual thinking as such and examine whether it can distort memory for actual events. In Experiments 1a/b young and older adults imagined themselves experiencing different scenarios. Participants then imagined the same scenario again, engaged in no further simulation of a scenario, or imagined a counterfactual outcome. On a subsequent recognition test participants were more likely to make false alarms to counterfactual lures than novel scenarios. Older adults were more prone to these memory errors than younger adults. In Experiment 2 younger and older participants selected and performed different actions, then recalled performing some of those actions, imagined performing alternative actions to some of the selected actions, and did not imagine others. Participants, especially older adults, were more likely to falsely remember counterfactual actions than novel actions as previously performed. The findings suggest that counterfactual thinking can cause source confusion based on internally generated misinformation, consistent with its characterisation as an adaptive constructive process.

Altered selection during language processing in individuals at high risk for psychosis.

PubMed

Vargas, T; Snyder, H; Banich, M; Newberry, R; Shankman, Stewart A; Strauss, Gregory P; Mittal, V A

2018-06-19

Performance in the executive function (EF) domain has been linked to symptoms and functional outcomes in psychosis. Studies have found that UHR populations have difficulty with verbal fluency, which involves multiple facets of EF. Two potentially implicated EF facets were examined to explore whether these could be dissociated in UHR populations: selection among alternatives (measured by selection costs) and retrieval from semantic memory retrieval (measured by retrieval costs). A total of 45 UHR individuals and 46 healthy controls (HVs) were assessed with a verb generation task. Differences in selection cost (RT difference between high and low selection demand conditions) and retrieval cost (RT difference between high and low retrieval demand conditions) were examined and participants were also assessed for clinical symptoms. The UHR group showed greater selection costs relative to HVs, F (1, 91) = 4.39, p = 0.039. However, there were no group differences on retrieval cost, F (1, 91) = 0.63, p = 0.43. A positive association (r = 0.41) was found between disorganized and negative symptoms and selection costs (but not retrieval costs) in the UHR group. There was no significant association between selection costs and positive symptoms. Increased selection costs may reflect impaired performance in the neural inhibition domain of EF in the UHR population, potentially underlying a mechanistically distinct EF subdomain that affects the group's ability to efficiently select between competing options. Findings suggest that UHR individuals may exhibit impairment in selecting among alternatives, but not in retrieval from semantic memory. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

[Selected problems of manufacturing influenza vaccines].

PubMed

Augustynowicz, Ewa

2010-01-01

In the study chosen issues of manufacturing influenza vaccines running to increase effectiveness were performed. New concepts into development of process of safety and efficacy influenza vaccines are connected with use a new adjuvants, use of alternative routes of administration of vaccine, new structural virus subunits including DNA, new way of virus culture and use of live, attenuated vaccines.

Structuring Assignments to Improve Understanding and Presentation Skills: Experiential Learning in the Capstone Strategic Management Team Presentation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Helms, Marilyn M.; Whitesell, Melissa

2017-01-01

In the strategic management course, students select, analyze, and present viable future alternatives based on information provided in cases or computer simulations. Rather than understanding the entire process, the student's focus is on the final presentation. Chickering's (1977) research on active learning suggests students learn more effectively…

Optimization of the decision-making process for the selection of therapeutics to undergo clinical testing for spinal cord injury in the North American Clinical Trials Network.

PubMed

Guest, James; Harrop, James S; Aarabi, Bizhan; Grossman, Robert G; Fawcett, James W; Fehlings, Michael G; Tator, Charles H

2012-09-01

The North American Clinical Trials Network (NACTN) includes 9 clinical centers funded by the US Department of Defense and the Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation. Its purpose is to accelerate clinical testing of promising therapeutics in spinal cord injury (SCI) through the development of a robust interactive infrastructure. This structure includes key committees that serve to provide longitudinal guidance to the Network. These committees include the Executive, Data Management, and Neurological Outcome Assessments Committees, and the Therapeutic Selection Committee (TSC), which is the subject of this manuscript. The NACTN brings unique elements to the SCI field. The Network's stability is not restricted to a single clinical trial. Network members have diverse expertise and include experts in clinical care, clinical trial design and methodology, pharmacology, preclinical and clinical research, and advanced rehabilitation techniques. Frequent systematic communication is assigned a high value, as is democratic process, fairness and efficiency of decision making, and resource allocation. This article focuses on how decision making occurs within the TSC to rank alternative therapeutics according to 2 main variables: quality of the preclinical data set, and fit with the Network's aims and capabilities. This selection process is important because if the Network's resources are committed to a therapeutic, alternatives cannot be pursued. A proposed methodology includes a multicriteria decision analysis that uses a Multi-Attribute Global Inference of Quality matrix to quantify the process. To rank therapeutics, the TSC uses a series of consensus steps designed to reduce individual and group bias and limit subjectivity. Given the difficulties encountered by industry in completing clinical trials in SCI, stable collaborative not-for-profit consortia, such as the NACTN, may be essential to clinical progress in SCI. The evolution of the NACTN also offers substantial opportunity to refine decision making and group dynamics. Making the best possible decisions concerning therapeutics selection for trial testing is a cornerstone of the Network's function.

National Environmental Policy Act Hazards Assessment for the TREAT Alternative

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

Boyd D. Christensen; Annette L. Schafer

2013-11-01

This document provides an assessment of hazards as required by the National Environmental Policy Act for the alternative of restarting the reactor at the Transient Reactor Test (TREAT) facility by the Resumption of Transient Testing Program. Potential hazards have been identified and screening level calculations have been conducted to provide estimates of unmitigated dose consequences that could be incurred through this alternative. Consequences considered include those related to use of the TREAT Reactor, experiment assembly handling, and combined events involving both the reactor and experiments. In addition, potential safety structures, systems, and components for processes associated with operating TREAT andmore » onsite handling of nuclear fuels and experiments are listed. If this alternative is selected, a safety basis will be prepared in accordance with 10 CFR 830, “Nuclear Safety Management,” Subpart B, “Safety Basis Requirements.”« less

National Environmental Policy Act Hazards Assessment for the TREAT Alternative

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

Christensen, Boyd D.; Schafer, Annette L.

2014-02-01

This document provides an assessment of hazards as required by the National Environmental Policy Act for the alternative of restarting the reactor at the Transient Reactor Test (TREAT) facility by the Resumption of Transient Testing Program. Potential hazards have been identified and screening level calculations have been conducted to provide estimates of unmitigated dose consequences that could be incurred through this alternative. Consequences considered include those related to use of the TREAT Reactor, experiment assembly handling, and combined events involving both the reactor and experiments. In addition, potential safety structures, systems, and components for processes associated with operating TREAT andmore » onsite handling of nuclear fuels and experiments are listed. If this alternative is selected, a safety basis will be prepared in accordance with 10 CFR 830, “Nuclear Safety Management,” Subpart B, “Safety Basis Requirements.”« less

Neural Underpinnings of Decision Strategy Selection: A Review and a Theoretical Model

PubMed Central

Wichary, Szymon; Smolen, Tomasz

2016-01-01

In multi-attribute choice, decision makers use decision strategies to arrive at the final choice. What are the neural mechanisms underlying decision strategy selection? The first goal of this paper is to provide a literature review on the neural underpinnings and cognitive models of decision strategy selection and thus set the stage for a neurocognitive model of this process. The second goal is to outline such a unifying, mechanistic model that can explain the impact of noncognitive factors (e.g., affect, stress) on strategy selection. To this end, we review the evidence for the factors influencing strategy selection, the neural basis of strategy use and the cognitive models of this process. We also present the Bottom-Up Model of Strategy Selection (BUMSS). The model assumes that the use of the rational Weighted Additive strategy and the boundedly rational heuristic Take The Best can be explained by one unifying, neurophysiologically plausible mechanism, based on the interaction of the frontoparietal network, orbitofrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex and the brainstem nucleus locus coeruleus. According to BUMSS, there are three processes that form the bottom-up mechanism of decision strategy selection and lead to the final choice: (1) cue weight computation, (2) gain modulation, and (3) weighted additive evaluation of alternatives. We discuss how these processes might be implemented in the brain, and how this knowledge allows us to formulate novel predictions linking strategy use and neural signals. PMID:27877103

Computer-Aided Group Problem Solving for Unified Life Cycle Engineering (ULCE)

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-02-01

defining the problem, generating alternative solutions, evaluating alternatives, selecting alternatives, and implementing the solution. Systems...specialist in group dynamics, assists the group in formulating the problem and selecting a model framework. The analyst provides the group with computer...allocating resources, evaluating and selecting options, making judgments explicit, and analyzing dynamic systems. c. University of Rhode Island Drs. Geoffery

Selection of alternative central-station technologies for the Satellite Power System (SPS) comparative assessment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Samsa, M.

1980-01-01

An important effort is the Satellite Power System (SPS) comparative Assessment is the selection and characterization of alternative technologies to be compared with the SPS concept. The ground rules, criteria, and screening procedure applied in the selection of those alternative technologies are summarized. The final set of central station alternatives selected for comparison with the SPS concept includes: (1) light water reactor with improved fuel utilization, (2) conventional coal combustion with improved environmental controls, (3) open cycle gas turbine with integral low Btu gasifier, (4) terrestrial photovoltaic, (5) liquid metal fast breeder reactor, and (6) magnetic confinement fusion.

Splicing predictions reliably classify different types of alternative splicing

PubMed Central

Busch, Anke; Hertel, Klemens J.

2015-01-01

Alternative splicing is a key player in the creation of complex mammalian transcriptomes and its misregulation is associated with many human diseases. Multiple mRNA isoforms are generated from most human genes, a process mediated by the interplay of various RNA signature elements and trans-acting factors that guide spliceosomal assembly and intron removal. Here, we introduce a splicing predictor that evaluates hundreds of RNA features simultaneously to successfully differentiate between exons that are constitutively spliced, exons that undergo alternative 5′ or 3′ splice-site selection, and alternative cassette-type exons. Surprisingly, the splicing predictor did not feature strong discriminatory contributions from binding sites for known splicing regulators. Rather, the ability of an exon to be involved in one or multiple types of alternative splicing is dictated by its immediate sequence context, mainly driven by the identity of the exon's splice sites, the conservation around them, and its exon/intron architecture. Thus, the splicing behavior of human exons can be reliably predicted based on basic RNA sequence elements. PMID:25805853

Screening of groundwater remedial alternatives for brownfield sites: a comprehensive method integrated MCDA with numerical simulation.

PubMed

Li, Wei; Zhang, Min; Wang, Mingyu; Han, Zhantao; Liu, Jiankai; Chen, Zhezhou; Liu, Bo; Yan, Yan; Liu, Zhu

2018-06-01

Brownfield sites pollution and remediation is an urgent environmental issue worldwide. The screening and assessment of remedial alternatives is especially complex owing to its multiple criteria that involves technique, economy, and policy. To help the decision-makers selecting the remedial alternatives efficiently, the criteria framework conducted by the U.S. EPA is improved and a comprehensive method that integrates multiple criteria decision analysis (MCDA) with numerical simulation is conducted in this paper. The criteria framework is modified and classified into three categories: qualitative, semi-quantitative, and quantitative criteria, MCDA method, AHP-PROMETHEE (analytical hierarchy process-preference ranking organization method for enrichment evaluation) is used to determine the priority ranking of the remedial alternatives and the solute transport simulation is conducted to assess the remedial efficiency. A case study was present to demonstrate the screening method in a brownfield site in Cangzhou, northern China. The results show that the systematic method provides a reliable way to quantify the priority of the remedial alternatives.

Energy-Efficient Bioalcohol Recovery by Gel Stripping

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Godbole, Rutvik; Ma, Lan; Hedden, Ronald

2014-03-01

Design of energy-efficient processes for recovering butanol and ethanol from dilute fermentations is a key challenge facing the biofuels industry due to the high energy consumption of traditional multi-stage distillation processes. Gel stripping is an alternative purification process by which a dilute alcohol is stripped from the fermentation product by passing it through a packed bed containing particles of a selectively absorbent polymeric gel material. The gel must be selective for the alcohol, while swelling to a reasonable degree in dilute alcohol-water mixtures. To accelerate materials optimization, a combinatorial approach is taken to screen a matrix of copolymer gels having orthogonal gradients in crosslinker concentration and hydrophilicity. Using a combination of swelling in pure solvents, the selectivity and distribution coefficients of alcohols in the gels can be predicted based upon multi-component extensions of Flory-Rehner theory. Predictions can be validated by measuring swelling in water/alcohol mixtures and conducting h HPLC analysis of the external liquid. 95% + removal of butanol from dilute aqueous solutions has been demonstrated, and a mathematical model of the unsteady-state gel stripping process has been developed. NSF CMMI Award 1335082.

Investigation of Advanced Processed Single-Crystal Turbine Blade Alloys

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Peters, B. J.; Biondo, C. M.; DeLuca, D. P.

1995-01-01

This investigation studied the influence of thermal processing and microstructure on the mechanical properties of the single-crystal, nickel-based superalloys PWA 1482 and PWA 1484. The objective of the program was to develop an improved single-crystal turbine blade alloy that is specifically tailored for use in hydrogen fueled rocket engine turbopumps. High-gradient casting, hot isostatic pressing (HIP), and alternate heat treatment (HT) processing parameters were developed to produce pore-free, eutectic-free microstructures with different (gamma)' precipitate morphologies. Test materials were cast in high thermal gradient solidification (greater than 30 C/cm (137 F/in.)) casting furnaces for reduced dendrite arm spacing, improved chemical homogeneity, and reduced interdendritic pore size. The HIP processing was conducted in 40 cm (15.7 in.) diameter production furnaces using a set of parameters selected from a trial matrix study. Metallography was conducted on test samples taken from each respective trial run to characterize the as-HIP microstructure. Post-HIP alternate HT processes were developed for each of the two alloys. The goal of the alternate HT processing was to fully solution the eutectic gamma/(gamma)' phase islands and to develop a series of modified (gamma)' morphologies for subsequent characterization testing. This was accomplished by slow cooling through the (gamma)' solvus at controlled rates to precipitate volume fractions of large (gamma)'. Post-solution alternate HT parameters were established for each alloy providing additional volume fractions of finer precipitates. Screening tests included tensile, high-cycle fatigue (HCF), smooth and notched low-cycle fatigue (LCF), creep, and fatigue crack growth evaluations performed in air and high pressure (34.5 MPa (5 ksi)) hydrogen at room and elevated temperature. Under the most severe embrittling conditions (HCF and smooth and notched LCF in 34.5 MPa (5 ksi) hydrogen at 20 C (68 F), screening test results showed increases in fatigue life typically on the order of 1OX, when compared to the current Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) Alternate Turbopump (AT) blade alloy (PWA 1480).

Selecting sustainable alternatives for cruise ships in Venice using multi-criteria decision analysis.

PubMed

Pesce, Marco; Terzi, Stefano; Al-Jawasreh, Raid Issa Mahmoud; Bommarito, Claudia; Calgaro, Loris; Fogarin, Stefano; Russo, Elisabetta; Marcomini, Antonio; Linkov, Igor

2018-06-14

The rapid growth of cruise ship tourism increases the use of historic port cities as strategic hubs for cruise ship operators. Benefits derived from increased tourism for the municipality and cruise ships are often at odds with the environmental and social impacts associated with continued historical port use. This study illustrates the use of Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) for weighing of various criteria and metrics related to the environment, economy, and social sustainability for the selection of a sustainable cruise line route. Specifically, MCDA methodology was employed in Venice, Italy to illustrate its application. First, the four most representative navigational route projects among those presented to local authorities were assessed based on social, economic, and environmental considerations. Second, a pool of experts representing the local authority, private port businesses, and cruise line industry were consulted to evaluate the validity and weight assignments for the selected criteria. Finally, a sensitivity analysis was employed to assess the robustness of the recommendations using an evaluation of weight changes and their effects on the ranking of alternative navigational routes. The results were presented and discussed in a multi-stakeholder meeting to further the route selection process. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Metal–organic framework with optimally selective xenon adsorption and separation

DOE PAGES

Banerjee, Debasis; Simon, Cory M.; Plonka, Anna M.; ...

2016-06-13

Nuclear energy is considered among the most viable alternatives to our current fossil fuel based energy economy.1 The mass-deployment of nuclear energy as an emissions-free source requires the reprocessing of used nuclear fuel to mitigate the waste.2 One of the major concerns with reprocessing used nuclear fuel is the release of volatile radionuclides such as Xe and Kr. The most mature process for removing these radionuclides is energy- and capital-intensive cryogenic distillation. Alternatively, porous materials such as metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have demonstrated the ability to selectively adsorb Xe and Kr at ambient conditions.3-8 High-throughput computational screening of large databases ofmore » porous materials has identified a calcium-based nanoporous MOF, SBMOF-1, as the most selective for Xe over Kr.9,10 Here, we affirm this prediction and report that SBMOF-1 exhibits by far the highest Xe adsorption capacity and a remarkable Xe/Kr selectivity under relevant nuclear reprocessing conditions. The exceptional selectivity of SBMOF-1 is attributed to its pore size tailored to Xe and its dense wall of atoms that constructs a binding site with a high affinity for Xe, as evident by single crystal X-ray diffraction and molecular simulation.« less

Fuzzy Logic Approaches to Multi-Objective Decision-Making in Aerospace Applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hardy, Terry L.

1994-01-01

Fuzzy logic allows for the quantitative representation of multi-objective decision-making problems which have vague or fuzzy objectives and parameters. As such, fuzzy logic approaches are well-suited to situations where alternatives must be assessed by using criteria that are subjective and of unequal importance. This paper presents an overview of fuzzy logic and provides sample applications from the aerospace industry. Applications include an evaluation of vendor proposals, an analysis of future space vehicle options, and the selection of a future space propulsion system. On the basis of the results provided in this study, fuzzy logic provides a unique perspective on the decision-making process, allowing the evaluator to assess the degree to which each option meets the evaluation criteria. Future decision-making should take full advantage of fuzzy logic methods to complement existing approaches in the selection of alternatives.

Photo-crosslinkable polymers for fabrication of photonic multilayer sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chiappelli, Maria; Hayward, Ryan C.

2013-03-01

We have used photo-crosslinkable polymers to fabricate photonic multilayer sensors. Benzophenone is utilized as a covalently incorporated pendent photo-crosslinker, providing a convenient means of fabricating multilayer films by sequential spin-coating and crosslinking processes. Colorimetric temperature sensors were designed from thermally-responsive, low-refractive index poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) and high-refractive index poly(para-methyl styrene) (P pMS). Copolymer chemistries and layer thicknesses were selected to provide robust multilayer sensors which show color changes across nearly the full visible spectrum due to changes in temperature of the hydrated film stack. We have characterized the uniformity and interfacial broadening within the multilayers, the kinetics of swelling and de-swelling, and the reversibility over multiple hydration/dehydration cycles. We also describe how the approach can be extended to alternative sensor designs through the ability to tailor each layer independently, as well as to additional stimuli by selecting alternative copolymer chemistries.

Cadmium Alternatives High Strength Steel JTP

DTIC Science & Technology

2005-03-01

Cadmium Alternatives HSS JTP Alternative Coatings Selected by JCAT: Primary Repair LHE Cadmium (control) IVD Aluminum (control) Zinc-Nickel, acid...Tin-Zinc Cadmium Alternatives HSS JTP Demonstration Tests Selected by JCAT: Phase I Phase II Hydrogen Embrittlement Hydrogen Re-Embrittlement (NRB...immersion, exposed C-ring (Army)) Bend Adhesion (Q/A) Appearance Throwing Power Composition Uniformity Strippability Galvanic Potential Bend Adhesion

Design and optimization of a chromatographic purification process for Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype 23F capsular polysaccharide by a Design of Experiments approach.

PubMed

Ji, Yu; Tian, Yang; Ahnfelt, Mattias; Sui, Lili

2014-06-27

Multivalent pneumococcal vaccines were used worldwide to protect human beings from pneumococcal diseases. In order to eliminate the toxic organic solutions used in the traditional vaccine purification process, an alternative chromatographic process for Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype 23F capsular polysaccharide (CPS) was proposed in this study. The strategy of Design of Experiments (DoE) was introduced into the process development to solve the complicated design procedure. An initial process analysis was given to review the whole flowchart, identify the critical factors of chromatography through FMEA and chose the flowthrough mode due to the property of the feed. A resin screening study was then followed to select candidate resins. DoE was utilized to generate a resolution IV fractional factorial design to further compare candidates and narrow down the design space. After Capto Adhere was selected, the Box-Behnken DoE was executed to model the process and characterize all effects of factors on the responses. Finally, Monte Carlo simulation was used to optimize the process, test the chosen optimal conditions and define the control limit. The results of three scale-up runs at set points verified the DoE and simulation predictions. The final results were well in accordance with the EU pharmacopeia requirements: Protein/CPS (w/w) 1.08%; DNA/CPS (w/w) 0.61%; the phosphorus content 3.1%; the nitrogen 0.315% and the Methyl-pentose percentage 47.9%. Other tests of final pure CPS also met the pharmacopeia specifications. This alternative chromatographic purification process for pneumococcal vaccine without toxic organic solvents was successfully developed by the DoE approach and proved scalability, robustness and suitability for large scale manufacturing. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Decision-making in the dairy aisle: maximizing taste, health, cost and family considerations.

PubMed

Hammond, Gail K; Chapman, Gwen E

2008-01-01

To gain insight into the decision-making processes used by women when selecting dairy and dairy alternative foods, including examination of the role of bone health concerns. Semi-structured, point-of-purchase interviews were conducted with a convenience sample of 30 female grocery shoppers. Constant comparative data analysis was used to generate themes on shoppers' decision-making processes. Women considered multiple issues in their dairy and dairy alternative food choice strategies: taste was most often associated with the fat and sugar content of foods; health concerns were centred on achieving an acceptable body weight and preventing osteoporosis and cardiovascular disease, and women chose foods to satisfy other family members' needs and preferences and to obtain "good food value." Women prioritized their food choices by weighing the value of each issue, which led to a strategic process for "maximizing the value" of their food choices. The availability of a wide range of dairy and dairy alternative foods meant that in most instances, it was unnecessary for women to "trade off" one area of concern for another. Dietitians and nutrition educators can help women make dietary changes by helping them identify foods that they perceive as meeting a variety of needs.

Energy conservation in coal conversion. Final report, September 15, 1977--September 1, 1978. Selected case studies and conservation methodologies

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

Purcupile, J.C.

The purpose of this study is to apply the methodologies developed in the Energy Conservation in Coal Conversion August, 1977 Progress Report - Contract No. EY77S024196 - to an energy efficient, near-term coal conversion process design, and to develop additional, general techniques for studying energy conservation and utilization in coal conversion processes. The process selected for study was the Ralph M. Parsons Company of Pasadena, California ''Oil/Gas Complex, Conceptual Design/Economic Analysis'' as described in R and D Report No. 114 - Interim Report No. 4, published March, 1977, ERDA Contract No. E(49-18)-1975. Thirteen papers representing possible alternative methods of energymore » conservation or waste heat utilization have been entered individually into EDB and ERA. (LTN)« less

Mass Transit: Implementation of FTA’s New Starts Evaluation Process and FY 2001 Funding Proposals

DTIC Science & Technology

2000-04-01

formalize the process. FTA issued a proposed rule on April 7, 1999, and plans to issue final regulations by the summer of 2000. In selecting projects for...commit funds to any more New Starts projects during the last 2 years of TEA-21—through fiscal year 2003. Because there are plans for many more...regional review of alternatives, develop preliminary engineering plans , and meet FTA’s approval for the final design. TEA-21 requires that FTA evaluate

Selection, integration, and conflict monitoring; assessing the nature and generality of prefrontal cognitive control mechanisms.

PubMed

Badre, David; Wagner, Anthony D

2004-02-05

Prefrontal cortex (PFC) supports flexible behavior by mediating cognitive control, though the elemental forms of control supported by PFC remain a central debate. Dorsolateral PFC (DLPFC) is thought to guide response selection under conditions of response conflict or, alternatively, may refresh recently active representations within working memory. Lateral frontopolar cortex (FPC) may also adjudicate response conflict, though others propose that FPC supports higher order control processes such as subgoaling and integration. Anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) is hypothesized to upregulate response selection by detecting response conflict; it remains unclear whether ACC functions generalize beyond monitoring response conflict. The present fMRI experiment directly tested these competing theories regarding the functional roles of DLPFC, FPC, and ACC. Results reveal dissociable control processes in PFC, with mid-DLPFC selectively mediating resolution of response conflict and FPC further mediating subgoaling/integration. ACC demonstrated a broad sensitivity to control demands, suggesting a generalized role in modulating cognitive control.

Mapping technological and biophysical capacities of watersheds to regulate floods

USGS Publications Warehouse

Mogollón, Beatriz; Villamagna, Amy M.; Frimpong, Emmanuel A.; Angermeier, Paul

2016-01-01

Flood regulation is a widely valued and studied service provided by watersheds. Flood regulation benefits people directly by decreasing the socio-economic costs of flooding and indirectly by its positive impacts on cultural (e.g., fishing) and provisioning (e.g., water supply) ecosystem services. Like other regulating ecosystem services (e.g., pollination, water purification), flood regulation is often enhanced or replaced by technology, but the relative efficacy of natural versus technological features in controlling floods has scarcely been examined. In an effort to assess flood regulation capacity for selected urban watersheds in the southeastern United States, we: (1) used long-term flood records to assess relative influence of technological and biophysical indicators on flood magnitude and duration, (2) compared the widely used runoff curve number (RCN) approach for assessing the biophysical capacity to regulate floods to an alternative approach that acknowledges land cover and soil properties separately, and (3) mapped technological and biophysical flood regulation capacities based on indicator importance-values derived for flood magnitude and duration. We found that watersheds with high biophysical (via the alternative approach) and technological capacities lengthened the duration and lowered the peak of floods. We found the RCN approach yielded results opposite that expected, possibly because it confounds soil and land cover processes, particularly in urban landscapes, while our alternative approach coherently separates these processes. Mapping biophysical (via the alternative approach) and technological capacities revealed great differences among watersheds. Our study improves on previous mapping of flood regulation by (1) incorporating technological capacity, (2) providing high spatial resolution (i.e., 10-m pixel) maps of watershed capacities, and (3) deriving importance-values for selected landscape indicators. By accounting for technology that enhances or replaces natural flood regulation, our approach enables watershed managers to make more informed choices in their flood-control investments.

Multicriteria Decision Framework for Cybersecurity Risk Assessment and Management.

PubMed

Ganin, Alexander A; Quach, Phuoc; Panwar, Mahesh; Collier, Zachary A; Keisler, Jeffrey M; Marchese, Dayton; Linkov, Igor

2017-09-05

Risk assessors and managers face many difficult challenges related to novel cyber systems. Among these challenges are the constantly changing nature of cyber systems caused by technical advances, their distribution across the physical, information, and sociocognitive domains, and the complex network structures often including thousands of nodes. Here, we review probabilistic and risk-based decision-making techniques applied to cyber systems and conclude that existing approaches typically do not address all components of the risk assessment triplet (threat, vulnerability, consequence) and lack the ability to integrate across multiple domains of cyber systems to provide guidance for enhancing cybersecurity. We present a decision-analysis-based approach that quantifies threat, vulnerability, and consequences through a set of criteria designed to assess the overall utility of cybersecurity management alternatives. The proposed framework bridges the gap between risk assessment and risk management, allowing an analyst to ensure a structured and transparent process of selecting risk management alternatives. The use of this technique is illustrated for a hypothetical, but realistic, case study exemplifying the process of evaluating and ranking five cybersecurity enhancement strategies. The approach presented does not necessarily eliminate biases and subjectivity necessary for selecting countermeasures, but provides justifiable methods for selecting risk management actions consistent with stakeholder and decisionmaker values and technical data. Published 2017. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the U.S.A.

Proposed plan for final remedial action for the groundwater operable unit at the chemical plant area of the Weldon Spring Site, Weldon Spring, Missouri.

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

NONE

2003-08-06

This Proposed Plan (PP) presents the preferred alternative for addressing contaminated groundwater and springs at the Chemical Plant area of the Weldon Spring site, in Weldon Spring, Missouri. The site is located about 30 mi west of St. Louis, in St. Charles County (Figure 1). This proposed action constitutes the final remedial action for the Weldon Spring site. The residual contamination in groundwater and springs at the Chemical Plant area is the only remaining contamination that needs to be addressed for the site. All other contamination has been addressed by previous remedial actions. After this remedial action is implemented, long-termmore » surveillance and maintenance activities will maintain the effectiveness of all remedial actions conducted at the Weldon Spring site, including this final remedial action for groundwater and springs that is being proposed in this plan. DOE complies with the requirements of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) in conducting remedial activities at the site. National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) values have been incorporated into the CERCLA process; that is, the analysis conducted and presented in the remedial investigation/feasibility study (RI/FS) reports included an evaluation of environmental impacts that is comparable to that performed under NEPA. This PP is required under CERCLA to (1) notify the public and present a brief analysis of the remedial action alternatives, (2) identify and present the rationale for the preferred remedial action alternative identified in the PP, (3) summarize key information from the RI/FS evaluations, including the Baseline Risk Assessment (BRA), and (4) inform the public of its role in the remedy selection process and give the public the opportunity to participate in the process. Remediation activities at the Weldon Spring site have been coordinated with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (MDNR). The EPA has overall oversight and approval authority, with consultation provided by the MDNR. A range of alternatives was considered in identifying the preferred alternative. The alternatives were developed after careful analysis of geological, environmental, and human health and ecological risk data and an evaluation of the effectiveness, implementability, and cost of the various technologies available for groundwater remediation at the Chemical Plant area. Monitored natural attenuation (MNA) coupled with institutional controls (ICs) and contingency activities has been selected as the preferred alternative.« less

Selective suppression of the incorrect response implementation in choice behavior assessed by transcranial magnetic stimulation.

PubMed

Tandonnet, Christophe; Garry, Michael I; Summers, Jeffery J

2011-04-01

Selecting the adequate alternative in choice situations may involve an inhibition process. Here we assessed response implementation during the reaction time of a between-hand choice task with single- or paired-pulse (3 or 15 ms interstimulus intervals [ISIs]) transcranial magnetic stimulation of the motor cortex. The amplitude of the single-pulse motor evoked potential (MEP) initially increased for both hands. At around 130 ms, the single-pulse MEP kept increasing for the responding hand and decreased for the nonresponding hand. The paired-pulse MEP revealed a similar pattern for both ISIs with no effect on short intracortical inhibition and intracortical facilitation measures. The results suggest that the incorrect response implementation was selectively suppressed before execution of the correct response, preventing errors in choice context. The results favor models assuming that decision making involves an inhibition process. Copyright © 2010 Society for Psychophysiological Research.

Laser isotope separation

DOEpatents

Robinson, C.P.; Reed, J.J.; Cotter, T.P.; Boyer, K.; Greiner, N.R.

1975-11-26

A process and apparatus for separating isotopes by selective excitation of isotopic species of a volatile compound by tuned laser light is described. A highly cooled gas of the volatile compound is produced in which the isotopic shift is sharpened and defined. Before substantial condensation occurs, the cooled gas is irradiated with laser light precisely tuned to a desired wavelength to selectively excite a particular isotopic species in the cooled gas. The laser light may impart sufficient energy to the excited species to cause it to undergo photolysis, photochemical reaction or even to photoionize. Alternatively, a two-photon irradiation may be applied to the cooled gas to induce photolysis, photochemical reaction or photoionization. The process is particularly applicable to the separation of isotopes of uranium.

Photochemical isotope separation

DOEpatents

Robinson, C.P.; Jensen, R.J.; Cotter, T.P.; Greiner, N.R.; Boyer, K.

1987-04-28

A process is described for separating isotopes by selective excitation of isotopic species of a volatile compound by tuned laser light. A highly cooled gas of the volatile compound is produced in which the isotopic shift is sharpened and defined. Before substantial condensation occurs, the cooled gas is irradiated with laser light precisely tuned to a desired wavelength to selectively excite a particular isotopic species in the cooled gas. The laser light may impart sufficient energy to the excited species to cause it to undergo photochemical reaction or even to photoionize. Alternatively, a two-photon irradiation may be applied to the cooled gas to induce photochemical reaction or photoionization. The process is particularly applicable to the separation of isotopes of uranium and plutonium. 8 figs.

A framework for sustainable nanomaterial selection and design based on performance, hazard, and economic considerations.

PubMed

Falinski, Mark M; Plata, Desiree L; Chopra, Shauhrat S; Theis, Thomas L; Gilbertson, Leanne M; Zimmerman, Julie B

2018-04-30

Engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) and ENM-enabled products have emerged as potentially high-performance replacements to conventional materials and chemicals. As such, there is an urgent need to incorporate environmental and human health objectives into ENM selection and design processes. Here, an adapted framework based on the Ashby material selection strategy is presented as an enhanced selection and design process, which includes functional performance as well as environmental and human health considerations. The utility of this framework is demonstrated through two case studies, the design and selection of antimicrobial substances and conductive polymers, including ENMs, ENM-enabled products and their alternatives. Further, these case studies consider both the comparative efficacy and impacts at two scales: (i) a broad scale, where chemical/material classes are readily compared for primary decision-making, and (ii) within a chemical/material class, where physicochemical properties are manipulated to tailor the desired performance and environmental impact profile. Development and implementation of this framework can inform decision-making for the implementation of ENMs to facilitate promising applications and prevent unintended consequences.

Accounting for no net loss: A critical assessment of biodiversity offsetting metrics and methods.

PubMed

Carreras Gamarra, Maria Jose; Lassoie, James Philip; Milder, Jeffrey

2018-08-15

Biodiversity offset strategies are based on the explicit calculation of both losses and gains necessary to establish ecological equivalence between impact and offset areas. Given the importance of quantifying biodiversity values, various accounting methods and metrics are continuously being developed and tested for this purpose. Considering the wide array of alternatives, selecting an appropriate one for a specific project can be not only challenging, but also crucial; accounting methods can strongly influence the biodiversity outcomes of an offsetting strategy, and if not well-suited to the context and values being offset, a no net loss outcome might not be delivered. To date there has been no systematic review or comparative classification of the available biodiversity accounting alternatives that aim at facilitating metric selection, and no tools that guide decision-makers throughout such a complex process. We fill this gap by developing a set of analyses to support (i) identifying the spectrum of available alternatives, (ii) understanding the characteristics of each and, ultimately (iii) making the most sensible and sound decision about which one to implement. The metric menu, scoring matrix, and decision tree developed can be used by biodiversity offsetting practitioners to help select an existing metric, and thus achieve successful outcomes that advance the goal of no net loss of biodiversity. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

OXIDATION OF ALKANES WITH AIR USING IRON AND MANGANESE CATALYSTS. AN OVERALL GREEN CHEMISTRY APPROACH INCLUDING THE USE OF ALTERNATIVE SOLVENT SYSTEMS GENERATED BY PARIS II

EPA Science Inventory

The selective oxidation of alkanes is an industrially important process that is often plagued by low conversions and the formation of unwanted by-products. Research being conducted at the USEPA, implements a Green chemistry approach which is utilized to improve these difficult o...

Establishing Junior-Level Colleges in Developing Nations: A Site Selection Process Using Data from Uganda

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Iaeger, Paula Irene

2012-01-01

This research synthesizes data and presents it using mapping software to help to identify potential site locations for community-centered higher education alternatives and more traditional junior-level colleges in Uganda. What factors can be used to quantify one site over another for the location of such an institution and if these factors can be…

Augmentative Device Helps Max Speak. PACER Center ACTion Information Sheets. PHP-c75

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

PACER Center, 2014

2014-01-01

This Action Information Sheet follows a family's process of selecting and using augmentative and alternative communication to help their young son, Max, speak. Max is affected by global dyspraxia, which makes learning new motor skills--especially speech--quite difficult. For the first years of his life, Max could not say words. Before he and his…

Some implications of the technology assessment function for the effective public decision-making process

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mayo, L. H.

1971-01-01

A preliminary provisional assessment of the prospects for the establishment of an adequate technology assessment function and the implications of the assessment function for the public decision process are presented. Effects of the technology assessment function on each phase of the public decision process and briefly explored. Significant implications during the next decade are projected with respect to the following phases: invention and development of alternative means (technological configurations); evaluation, selection and promotion of preferred courses of action; and modification of statutory scheme or social action program as an outcome of continuing monitoring and appraisal.

Model of the best-of-N nest-site selection process in honeybees.

PubMed

Reina, Andreagiovanni; Marshall, James A R; Trianni, Vito; Bose, Thomas

2017-05-01

The ability of a honeybee swarm to select the best nest site plays a fundamental role in determining the future colony's fitness. To date, the nest-site selection process has mostly been modeled and theoretically analyzed for the case of binary decisions. However, when the number of alternative nests is larger than two, the decision-process dynamics qualitatively change. In this work, we extend previous analyses of a value-sensitive decision-making mechanism to a decision process among N nests. First, we present the decision-making dynamics in the symmetric case of N equal-quality nests. Then, we generalize our findings to a best-of-N decision scenario with one superior nest and N-1 inferior nests, previously studied empirically in bees and ants. Whereas previous binary models highlighted the crucial role of inhibitory stop-signaling, the key parameter in our new analysis is the relative time invested by swarm members in individual discovery and in signaling behaviors. Our new analysis reveals conflicting pressures on this ratio in symmetric and best-of-N decisions, which could be solved through a time-dependent signaling strategy. Additionally, our analysis suggests how ecological factors determining the density of suitable nest sites may have led to selective pressures for an optimal stable signaling ratio.

Model of the best-of-N nest-site selection process in honeybees

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reina, Andreagiovanni; Marshall, James A. R.; Trianni, Vito; Bose, Thomas

2017-05-01

The ability of a honeybee swarm to select the best nest site plays a fundamental role in determining the future colony's fitness. To date, the nest-site selection process has mostly been modeled and theoretically analyzed for the case of binary decisions. However, when the number of alternative nests is larger than two, the decision-process dynamics qualitatively change. In this work, we extend previous analyses of a value-sensitive decision-making mechanism to a decision process among N nests. First, we present the decision-making dynamics in the symmetric case of N equal-quality nests. Then, we generalize our findings to a best-of-N decision scenario with one superior nest and N -1 inferior nests, previously studied empirically in bees and ants. Whereas previous binary models highlighted the crucial role of inhibitory stop-signaling, the key parameter in our new analysis is the relative time invested by swarm members in individual discovery and in signaling behaviors. Our new analysis reveals conflicting pressures on this ratio in symmetric and best-of-N decisions, which could be solved through a time-dependent signaling strategy. Additionally, our analysis suggests how ecological factors determining the density of suitable nest sites may have led to selective pressures for an optimal stable signaling ratio.

48 CFR 715.370 - Alternative source selection procedures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 5 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Alternative source selection procedures. 715.370 Section 715.370 Federal Acquisition Regulations System AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT CONTRACTING METHODS AND CONTRACT TYPES CONTRACTING BY NEGOTIATION Source Selection 715...

Air and Water System (AWS) Design and Technology Selection for the Vision for Space Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jones, Harry; Kliss, Mark

2005-01-01

This paper considers technology selection for the crew air and water recycling systems to be used in long duration human space exploration. The specific objectives are to identify the most probable air and water technologies for the vision for space exploration and to identify the alternate technologies that might be developed. The approach is to conduct a preliminary first cut systems engineering analysis, beginning with the Air and Water System (AWS) requirements and the system mass balance, and then define the functional architecture, review the International Space Station (ISS) technologies, and discuss alternate technologies. The life support requirements for air and water are well known. The results of the mass flow and mass balance analysis help define the system architectural concept. The AWS includes five subsystems: Oxygen Supply, Condensate Purification, Urine Purification, Hygiene Water Purification, and Clothes Wash Purification. AWS technologies have been evaluated in the life support design for ISS node 3, and in earlier space station design studies, in proposals for the upgrade or evolution of the space station, and in studies of potential lunar or Mars missions. The leading candidate technologies for the vision for space exploration are those planned for Node 3 of the ISS. The ISS life support was designed to utilize Space Station Freedom (SSF) hardware to the maximum extent possible. The SSF final technology selection process, criteria, and results are discussed. Would it be cost-effective for the vision for space exploration to develop alternate technology? This paper will examine this and other questions associated with AWS design and technology selection.

Using multi-attribute decision-making approaches in the selection of a hospital management system.

PubMed

Arasteh, Mohammad Ali; Shamshirband, Shahaboddin; Yee, Por Lip

2018-01-01

The most appropriate organizational software is always a real challenge for managers, especially, the IT directors. The illustration of the term "enterprise software selection", is to purchase, create, or order a software that; first, is best adapted to require of the organization; and second, has suitable price and technical support. Specifying selection criteria and ranking them, is the primary prerequisite for this action. This article provides a method to evaluate, rank, and compare the available enterprise software for choosing the apt one. The prior mentioned method is constituted of three-stage processes. First, the method identifies the organizational requires and assesses them. Second, it selects the best method throughout three possibilities; indoor-production, buying software, and ordering special software for the native use. Third, the method evaluates, compares and ranks the alternative software. The third process uses different methods of multi attribute decision making (MADM), and compares the consequent results. Based on different characteristics of the problem; several methods had been tested, namely, Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS), Elimination and Choice Expressing Reality (ELECTURE), and easy weight method. After all, we propose the most practical method for same problems.

Selecting Pesticides and Nonchemical Alternatives: Green Thumbs' Rules of Thumb Decision Tools.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Grieshop, James I.; And Others

1992-01-01

A sample of 78 (of 320) home gardeners use rules of thumb (heuristics) to choose between chemical pesticides and nonchemical alternatives. Pesticides rank low in 24 choice attributes where alternatives rank high, and vice versa. Gender, age, and years of pesticide use correlate with pesticide selection. (SK)

77 FR 5243 - Proposed Priority, Requirements, Definitions, and Selection Criteria-Arts in Education National...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-02-02

... professional development, partnerships, educational programming, and supporting systemic school reform. Child... alternative regulatory approaches, select those approaches that maximize net benefits (including potential... benefits justify their costs. In choosing among alternative regulatory approaches, we selected those...

Object reasoning for waste remediation

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

Pennock, K.A.; Bohn, S.J.; Franklin, A.L.

1991-08-01

A large number of contaminated waste sites across the United States await size remediation efforts. These sites can be physically complex, composed of multiple, possibly interacting, contaminants distributed throughout one or more media. The Remedial Action Assessment System (RAAS) is being designed and developed to support decisions concerning the selection of remediation alternatives. The goal of this system is to broaden the consideration of remediation alternatives, while reducing the time and cost of making these considerations. The Remedial Action Assessment System is a hybrid system, designed and constructed using object-oriented, knowledge- based systems, and structured programming techniques. RAAS uses amore » combination of quantitative and qualitative reasoning to consider and suggest remediation alternatives. The reasoning process that drives this application is centered around an object-oriented organization of remediation technology information. This paper describes the information structure and organization used to support this reasoning process. In addition, the paper describes the level of detail of the technology related information used in RAAS, discusses required assumptions and procedural implications of these assumptions, and provides rationale for structuring RAAS in this manner. 3 refs., 3 figs.« less

Product design enhancement using apparent usability and affective quality.

PubMed

Seva, Rosemary R; Gosiaco, Katherine Grace T; Santos, Ma Crea Eurice D; Pangilinan, Denise Mae L

2011-03-01

In this study, apparent usability and affective quality were integrated in a design framework called the Usability Perception and Emotion Enhancement Model (UPEEM). The UPEEM was validated using structural equation modeling (SEM). The methodology consists of four phases namely product selection, attribute identification, design alternative generation, and design alternative evaluation. The first stage involved the selection of a product that highly involves the consumer. In the attribute identification stage, design elements of the product were identified. The possible values of these elements were also determined for use in the experimentation process. Design of experiments was used to identify how the attributes will be varied in the design alternative stage and which of the attributes significantly contribute to affective quality, apparent usability, and desirability in the design evaluation stage. Results suggest that product attributes related to form are relevant in eliciting intense affect and perception of usability in mobile phones especially those directly related to functionality and aesthetics. This study considered only four product attributes among so many due to the constraints of the research design employed. Attributes related to aesthetic perception of a product enhance apparent usability such as those related to dimensional ratios. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd and The Ergonomics Society. All rights reserved.

Simulation of Water Gas Shift Zeolite Membrane Reactor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Makertiharta, I. G. B. N.; Rizki, Z.; Zunita, Megawati; Dharmawijaya, P. T.

2017-07-01

The search of alternative energy sources keeps growing from time to time. Various alternatives have been introduced to reduce the use of fossil fuel, including hydrogen. Many pathways can be used to produce hydrogen. Among all of those, the Water Gas Shift (WGS) reaction is the most common pathway to produce high purity hydrogen. The WGS technique faces a downstream processing challenge due to the removal hydrogen from the product stream itself since it contains a mixture of hydrogen, carbon dioxide and also the excess reactants. An integrated process using zeolite membrane reactor has been introduced to improve the performance of the process by selectively separate the hydrogen whilst boosting the conversion. Furthermore, the zeolite membrane reactor can be further improved via optimizing the process condition. This paper discusses the simulation of Zeolite Membrane Water Gas Shift Reactor (ZMWGSR) with variation of process condition to achieve an optimum performance. The simulation can be simulated into two consecutive mechanisms, the reaction prior to the permeation of gases through the zeolite membrane. This paper is focused on the optimization of the process parameters (e.g. temperature, initial concentration) and also membrane properties (e.g. pore size) to achieve an optimum product specification (concentration, purity).

Multiple Choice Knapsack Problem: example of planning choice in transportation.

PubMed

Zhong, Tao; Young, Rhonda

2010-05-01

Transportation programming, a process of selecting projects for funding given budget and other constraints, is becoming more complex as a result of new federal laws, local planning regulations, and increased public involvement. This article describes the use of an integer programming tool, Multiple Choice Knapsack Problem (MCKP), to provide optimal solutions to transportation programming problems in cases where alternative versions of projects are under consideration. In this paper, optimization methods for use in the transportation programming process are compared and then the process of building and solving the optimization problems is discussed. The concepts about the use of MCKP are presented and a real-world transportation programming example at various budget levels is provided. This article illustrates how the use of MCKP addresses the modern complexities and provides timely solutions in transportation programming practice. While the article uses transportation programming as a case study, MCKP can be useful in other fields where a similar decision among a subset of the alternatives is required. Copyright 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

An alternative parameter to characterize biogas materials: Available carbon-nitrogen ratio.

PubMed

Wang, Ming; Li, Wenzhe; Li, Pengfei; Yan, Shuiping; Zhang, Yanlin

2017-04-01

Available carbon-nitrogen ratio (AC/N) was proposed as an alternative parameter for evaluating the potential of biogas materials in this paper. In the calculation of AC/N ratio, only the carbon that could be effectively utilized in anaerobic digestion (AD) process is included. Compared with total C/N, AC/N is particularly more suitable for the characterization of biogas materials rich in recalcitrant components. Nine common biogas materials were selected and a series of semi-continuous tests for up to 110days were carried out to investigate the source of available carbon and the relationship between AC/N and the stability of AD process. The results showed that only the carbon existing in proteins, sugars, fat and hemicelluose should be considered as available carbon for anaerobic microbes. Besides, the optimal AC/N for semi-continuous AD process was preliminarily determined to be 11-15. Taken together, our results demonstrate that AC/N is more effective than total C/N in the evaluation of the potential performance of AD process. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Fermi paradox and alternative strategies for SETI programs - The anthropic principle and the search for close solar analogs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fracassini, Massimo; Pasinetti Fracassini, Laura E.; Pasinetti, Antonio L.

1988-07-01

The Anthropic Principle, a new trend of modern cosmology, claims that the origin of life and the development of intelligent beings on the Earth is the result of highly selective biological processes, strictly tuned in the fundamental physical characteristics of the Universe. This principle could account for the failure of some programs of search for extraterrestrial intelligences (SETI) and suggests the search for strict solar analogs as a primary target for SETI strategies. In this connection, the authors have selected 22 solar analogs and discussed their choice.

Innovative application of the moisture analyzer for determination of dry mass content of processed cheese

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kowalska, Małgorzata; Janas, Sławomir; Woźniak, Magdalena

2018-04-01

The aim of this work was the presentation of an alternative method of determination of the total dry mass content in processed cheese. The authors claim that the presented method can be used in industry's quality control laboratories for routine testing and for quick in-process control. For the test purposes both reference method of determination of dry mass in processed cheese and moisture analyzer method were used. The tests were carried out for three different kinds of processed cheese. In accordance with the reference method, the sample was placed on a layer of silica sand and dried at the temperature of 102 °C for about 4 h. The moisture analyzer test required method validation, with regard to drying temperature range and mass of the analyzed sample. Optimum drying temperature of 110 °C was determined experimentally. For Hochland cream processed cheese sample, the total dry mass content, obtained using the reference method, was 38.92%, whereas using the moisture analyzer method, it was 38.74%. An average analysis time in case of the moisture analyzer method was 9 min. For the sample of processed cheese with tomatoes, the reference method result was 40.37%, and the alternative method result was 40.67%. For the sample of cream processed cheese with garlic the reference method gave value of 36.88%, and the alternative method, of 37.02%. An average time of those determinations was 16 min. Obtained results confirmed that use of moisture analyzer is effective. Compliant values of dry mass content were obtained for both of the used methods. According to the authors, the fact that the measurement took incomparably less time for moisture analyzer method, is a key criterion of in-process control and final quality control method selection.

Influence of Translation Initiation on Organellar Protein Targeting in Arabidopsis

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

Sally A. Mackenzie

2011-04-18

A primary focus of the Mackenzie laboratory is the elucidation of processes and machinery for mitochondrial genome maintenance and transmission in higher plants. We have found that numerous organellar DNA maintenance components in plants appear to be dual targeted to mitochondria and plastids. Of particular interest was the observation that some twin (tandemly arrayed) dual targeting presequences appeared to utilize non-AUG alternative translation initiation, allowing for multiple translation starts at a single gene. Two aspects of this phenomenon were of particular interest: (1) Alternative translation initiation might provide a mechanism to regulate protein targeting temporally and spatially, a possibility thatmore » had not been demonstrated previously, and (2) alternative translation initiation might occur in genes involved in nuclear-controlled mitochondrial genome recombination, thought to be exclusively mitochondrial in their function. During the course of this research, we pursued three aims, with an emphasis on two specific genes of interest: POLgamma2, an organellar DNA polymerase, and MSH1, a MutS homolog thought to participate in mitochondrial, but not plastid, genome recombination surveillance. Our aims were to (1) Identify additional genes within Arabidopsis and other genomes that employ non-AUG alternative translation initiation, (2) Locate sequences upstream to the annotated AUG that confer alternative non-AUG translation initiation activity, and (3) Identify cis and trans factors that influence start site selection in genes with non-AUG starts. Toward these ends, we have shown that non-AUG initiation occurs in a number of genes, likely influencing targeting behavior of the protein. We have also shown that start site selection is strongly influenced by Kozak consensus sequence environment, indicating that alternative translation initiation in plants occurs by relaxation of ribosome scanning.« less

Cultural group selection plays an essential role in explaining human cooperation: A sketch of the evidence.

PubMed

Richerson, Peter; Baldini, Ryan; Bell, Adrian V; Demps, Kathryn; Frost, Karl; Hillis, Vicken; Mathew, Sarah; Newton, Emily K; Naar, Nicole; Newson, Lesley; Ross, Cody; Smaldino, Paul E; Waring, Timothy M; Zefferman, Matthew

2016-01-01

Human cooperation is highly unusual. We live in large groups composed mostly of non-relatives. Evolutionists have proposed a number of explanations for this pattern, including cultural group selection and extensions of more general processes such as reciprocity, kin selection, and multi-level selection acting on genes. Evolutionary processes are consilient; they affect several different empirical domains, such as patterns of behavior and the proximal drivers of that behavior. In this target article, we sketch the evidence from five domains that bear on the explanatory adequacy of cultural group selection and competing hypotheses to explain human cooperation. Does cultural transmission constitute an inheritance system that can evolve in a Darwinian fashion? Are the norms that underpin institutions among the cultural traits so transmitted? Do we observe sufficient variation at the level of groups of considerable size for group selection to be a plausible process? Do human groups compete, and do success and failure in competition depend upon cultural variation? Do we observe adaptations for cooperation in humans that most plausibly arose by cultural group selection? If the answer to one of these questions is "no," then we must look to other hypotheses. We present evidence, including quantitative evidence, that the answer to all of the questions is "yes" and argue that we must take the cultural group selection hypothesis seriously. If culturally transmitted systems of rules (institutions) that limit individual deviance organize cooperation in human societies, then it is not clear that any extant alternative to cultural group selection can be a complete explanation.

List blocking and longer retention intervals reveal an influence of gist processing for lexically ambiguous critical lures

PubMed Central

McNabb, Jaimie; Hutchison, Keith A.

2016-01-01

In two experiments, we examined veridical and false memory for lists of associates from two meanings (e.g., stumble, trip, harvest, pumpkin, etc.) that converged upon a single, lexically ambiguous critical lure (e.g., fall), in order to compare the activation-monitoring and fuzzy-trace false memory accounts. In Experiment 1, we presented study lists that were blocked or alternated by meaning (within subjects), followed by a free recall test completed immediately or after a 2.5-min delay. Correct recall was greater for blocked than for alternated lists. Critical-lure false recall was greater for blocked lists on an immediate test, whereas both list types produced equivalent false recall on a delayed test. In Experiment 2, lists blocked and alternated by meaning were presented via a between-subjects design, in order to eliminate possible list-type carryover effects. Correct recall replicated the result from Experiment 1; however, blocking lists increased false recall on delayed, but not on immediate, tests. Across the experiments, clustering correct recall by meaning increased across the delay selectively for the alternated lists. Our results suggest that thematic (i.e., gist) processes are influential for false recall, especially following a delay, a pattern consistent with fuzzy-trace theory. PMID:26105976

Assessment of the best available wastewater management techniques for a textile mill: cost and benefit analysis.

PubMed

Dogan, Bugce; Kerestecioglu, Merih; Yetis, Ulku

2010-01-01

In the present study, several water recovery and end-of-pipe wastewater treatment alternatives were evaluated towards the evaluation of Best Available Techniques (BATs) for the management of wastewaters from a denim textile mill in accordance with the European Union's Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC) Directive. For this purpose, an assessment that translates the key environmental aspects into a quantitative measure of environmental performance and also financial analysis was performed for each of the alternatives. The alternatives considered for water recovery from dyeing wastewaters were nanofiltration (NF) with coagulation and/or microfiltration (MF) pre-treatment, ozonation or peroxone and Fenton oxidation. On the other hand, for the end-of-pipe treatment of the mill's mixed wastewater, ozonation, Fenton oxidation, membrane bioreactor (MBR) and activated sludge (AS) process followed by membrane filtration technologies were evaluated. The results have indicated that membrane filtration process with the least environmental impacts is the BAT for water recovery. On the other side, MBR technology has appeared as the BAT for the end-of-pipe treatment of the mill's mixed wastewater. A technical and financial comparison of these two BAT alternatives revealed that water recovery via membrane filtration from dyeing wastewaters is selected as the BAT for the water and wastewater management in the mill.

Multi-objective decision-making under uncertainty: Fuzzy logic methods

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hardy, Terry L.

1995-01-01

Fuzzy logic allows for quantitative representation of vague or fuzzy objectives, and therefore is well-suited for multi-objective decision-making. This paper presents methods employing fuzzy logic concepts to assist in the decision-making process. In addition, this paper describes software developed at NASA Lewis Research Center for assisting in the decision-making process. Two diverse examples are used to illustrate the use of fuzzy logic in choosing an alternative among many options and objectives. One example is the selection of a lunar lander ascent propulsion system, and the other example is the selection of an aeration system for improving the water quality of the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland, Ohio. The fuzzy logic techniques provided here are powerful tools which complement existing approaches, and therefore should be considered in future decision-making activities.

Hydrogen generator, via catalytic partial oxidation of methane for fuel cells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Recupero, Vincenzo; Pino, Lidia; Di Leonardo, Raffaele; Lagana', Massimo; Maggio, Gaetano

It is well known that the most acknowledged process for generation of hydrogen for fuel cells is based upon the steam reforming of methane or natural gas. A valid alternative could be a process based on partial oxidation of methane, since the process is mildly exothermic and therefore not energy intensive. Consequently, great interest is expected from conversion of methane into syngas, if an autothermal, low energy intensive, compact and reliable process could be developed. This paper covers the activities, performed by the CNR Institute of Transformation and Storage of Energy (CNR-TAE), on theoretical and experimental studies for a compact hydrogen generator, via catalytic selective partial oxidation of methane, integrated with second generation fuel cells (EC-JOU2 contract). In particular, the project focuses the attention on methane partial oxidation via heterogeneous selective catalysts, in order to: demonstrate the basic catalytic selective partial oxidation of methane (CSPOM) technology in a subscale prototype, equivalent to a nominal output of 5 kWe; develop the CSPOM technology for its application in electric energy production by means of fuel cells; assess, by a balance of plant analysis, and a techno-economic evaluation, the potential benefits of the CSPOM for different categories of fuel cells.

Perpendicular distance sampling: an alternative method for sampling downed coarse woody debris

Treesearch

Michael S. Williams; Jeffrey H. Gove

2003-01-01

Coarse woody debris (CWD) plays an important role in many forest ecosystem processes. In recent years, a number of new methods have been proposed to sample CWD. These methods select individual logs into the sample using some form of unequal probability sampling. One concern with most of these methods is the difficulty in estimating the volume of each log. A new method...

Stream Management

DTIC Science & Technology

2000-03-01

from coconut husks bound within a woven mesh rope either made from polyethylene or coir rope. The CGR incorporates wetland plants (usually as rooted...Process 6-1 Nonrestoration Alternative Considerations 6-3 Stormwater ponds 6-4 Infiltration (exfiltration) devices 6-6 Oil and grease trap devices 6-8... Oil and Grease Trap Pollutant Removal 6-9 Table 6.4. Sand Filter Pollutant Removal 6-11 Table 6.5. Selection of Appropriate Structural Solutions

Implementation of an Open Source Library Management System: Experiences with Koha 3.0 at the Royal London Homoeopathic Hospital

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bissels, Gerhard

2008-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to describe the selection process and criteria that led to the implementation of the Koha 3.0 library management system (LMS) at the Complementary and Alternative Medicine Library and Information Service (CAMLIS), Royal London Homoeopathic Hospital. Design/methodology/approach: The paper is a report based on…

Research and Trends in the Studies of School-Based Oral English Assessment from 2003 to 2011: A Review of Selected Journals

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kamal, Nur Diana Mohd; Siraj, Saedah; Alias, Norlidah; Attaran, Mohammad

2013-01-01

Assessing oral proficiency is a real challenge for English language practitioners. Throughout the process of assessing, many features of oral competence are worth given attention by teachers as the assessors. As such, the Malaysian Ministry of Education has urged for another alternative for oral assessment in 2002 with the intention of revamping…

Proceedings of the tenth annual DOE low-level waste management conference: Session 2: Site performance assessment

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

Not Available

1988-12-01

This document contains twelve papers on various aspects of low-level radioactive waste management. Topics of this volume include: performance assessment methodology; remedial action alternatives; site selection and site characterization procedures; intruder scenarios; sensitivity analysis procedures; mathematical models for mixed waste environmental transport; and risk assessment methodology. Individual papers were processed separately for the database. (TEM)

Development of a Prototype Decision Support System to Manage the Air Force Alternative Care Program

DTIC Science & Technology

1990-09-01

development model was selected to structure the development process. Since it is necessary to ensure...uncertainty. Furthermore, the SDLC model provides a specific framework "by which an application is conceived, developed , and implemented" (Davis and Olson...associated with the automation of the manual ACP procedures. The SDLC Model has three stages: (1) definition, (2) development , and (3) installation

Alternative School Education: Using Web-Based Curriculum Programs to Assist At-Risk Students with High School Credit Recovery in Select East Central Indiana Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Robbins, William Shane

2011-01-01

"We know that education can be an arduous process. Countries use different approaches based on societal acceptances, but effective education always requires enormous efforts. Whether success is achieved, depends on the development of a rigorous and progressive curriculum, while at the same time providing all students the opportunity to…

MANUFACTURING PROCESS FUNCTIONS--I. AN ALTERNATIVE MODEL AND ITS COMPARISON WITH EXISTING FUNCTIONS (AND)II. SELECTION OF TRAINEES AND CONTROL OF THEIR PROGRESS.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

GLOVER, J.H.

THE CHIEF OBJECTIVE OF THIS STUDY OF SPEED-SKILL ACQUISITION WAS TO FIND A MATHEMATICAL MODEL CAPABLE OF SIMPLE GRAPHIC INTERPRETATION FOR INDUSTRIAL TRAINING AND PRODUCTION SCHEDULING AT THE SHOP FLOOR LEVEL. STUDIES OF MIDDLE SKILL DEVELOPMENT IN MACHINE AND VEHICLE ASSEMBLY, AIRCRAFT PRODUCTION, SPOOLMAKING AND THE MACHINING OF PARTS CONFIRMED…

Guide for Identifying and Converting High-Potential Petroleum Brownfield Sites to Alternative Fuel Stations

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

Johnson, C.; Hettinger, D.; Mosey, G.

Former gasoline stations that are now classified as brownfields can be good sites to sell alternative fuels because they are in locations that are convenient to vehicles and they may be seeking a new source of income. However, their success as alternative fueling stations is highly dependent on location-specific criteria. First, this report outlines what these criteria are, how to prioritize them, and then applies that assessment framework to five of the most popular alternative fuels--electricity, natural gas, hydrogen, ethanol, and biodiesel. The second part of this report delves into the criteria and tools used to assess an alternative fuelmore » retail site at the local level. It does this through two case studies of converting former gasoline stations in the Seattle-Eugene area into electric charge stations. The third part of this report addresses steps to be taken after the specific site has been selected. This includes choosing and installing the recharging equipment, which includes steps to take in the permitting process and key players to include.« less

Investigation of Laser Welding of Ti Alloys for Cognitive Process Parameters Selection.

PubMed

Caiazzo, Fabrizia; Caggiano, Alessandra

2018-04-20

Laser welding of titanium alloys is attracting increasing interest as an alternative to traditional joining techniques for industrial applications, with particular reference to the aerospace sector, where welded assemblies allow for the reduction of the buy-to-fly ratio, compared to other traditional mechanical joining techniques. In this research work, an investigation on laser welding of Ti⁻6Al⁻4V alloy plates is carried out through an experimental testing campaign, under different process conditions, in order to perform a characterization of the produced weld bead geometry, with the final aim of developing a cognitive methodology able to support decision-making about the selection of the suitable laser welding process parameters. The methodology is based on the employment of artificial neural networks able to identify correlations between the laser welding process parameters, with particular reference to the laser power, welding speed and defocusing distance, and the weld bead geometric features, on the basis of the collected experimental data.

Investigation of Laser Welding of Ti Alloys for Cognitive Process Parameters Selection

PubMed Central

2018-01-01

Laser welding of titanium alloys is attracting increasing interest as an alternative to traditional joining techniques for industrial applications, with particular reference to the aerospace sector, where welded assemblies allow for the reduction of the buy-to-fly ratio, compared to other traditional mechanical joining techniques. In this research work, an investigation on laser welding of Ti–6Al–4V alloy plates is carried out through an experimental testing campaign, under different process conditions, in order to perform a characterization of the produced weld bead geometry, with the final aim of developing a cognitive methodology able to support decision-making about the selection of the suitable laser welding process parameters. The methodology is based on the employment of artificial neural networks able to identify correlations between the laser welding process parameters, with particular reference to the laser power, welding speed and defocusing distance, and the weld bead geometric features, on the basis of the collected experimental data. PMID:29677114

Relationship between Small Animal Intern Rank and Performance at a University Teaching Hospital.

PubMed

Hofmeister, Erik H; Saba, Corey; Kent, Marc; Creevy, Kate E

2015-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine if there is a relationship between selection committee rankings of internship applicants and the performance of small animal interns. The hypothesis was that there would be a relationship between selection committee rank order and intern performance; the more highly an application was ranked, the better the intern's performance scores would be. In 2007, the Department of Small Animal Medicine and Surgery instituted a standardized approach to its intern selection process both to streamline the process and to track its effectiveness. At the end of intern years 2010-2014, every faculty member in the department was provided an intern assessment form for that year's class. There was no relationship between an individual intern's final rank by the selection committee and his/her performance either as a percentile score or a Likert-type score (p=.25, R2=0.04; p=0.31, R2=0.03, respectively). Likewise, when interns were divided into the top and bottom quartile based on their final rank by the selection committee, there was no relationship between their rank and their performance as a percentile score (median rank 15 vs. 20; p=.14) or Likert-type score (median rank 14 vs. 19; p=.27). Institutions that use a similar intern selection method may need to reconsider the time and effort being expended for an outcome that does not predict performance. Alternatively, specific criteria more predictive of performance outcomes should be identified and employed in the internship selection process.

Physical Evaluation of Cleaning Performance: We Are Only Fooling Ourselves

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pratz, Earl; McCool, A. (Technical Monitor)

2000-01-01

Surface cleaning processes are normally evaluated using visual physical properties such as discolorations, streaking, staining and water-break-free conditions. There is an assumption that these physical methods will evaluate all surfaces all the time for all subsequent operations. We have found that these physical methods are lacking in sensitivity and selectivity with regard to surface residues and subsequent process performance. We will report several conditions where evaluations using visual physical properties are lacking. We will identify possible alternative methods and future needs for surface evaluations.

A twin study of spatial and non-spatial delayed response performance in middle age.

PubMed

Kremen, William S; Mai, Tuan; Panizzon, Matthew S; Franz, Carol E; Blankfeld, Howard M; Xian, Hong; Eisen, Seth A; Tsuang, Ming T; Lyons, Michael J

2011-06-01

Delayed alternation and object alternation are classic spatial and non-spatial delayed response tasks. We tested 632 middle-aged male veteran twins on variants of these tasks in order to compare test difficulty, measure their inter-correlation, test order effects, and estimate heritabilities (proportion of observed variance due to genetic influences). Non-spatial alternation (NSA), which may involve greater reliance on processing of subgoals, was significantly more difficult than spatial alternation (SA). Despite their similarities, NSA and SA scores were uncorrelated. NSA performance was worse when administered second; there was no SA order effect. NSA scores were modestly heritable (h(2)=.25; 26); SA was not. There was shared genetic variance between NSA scores and general intellectual ability (r(g)=.55; .67), but this also suggests genetic influences specific to NSA. Compared with findings from small, selected control samples, high "failure" rates in this community-based sample raise concerns about interpretation of brain dysfunction in elderly or patient samples. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A Twin Study of Spatial and Non-Spatial Delayed Response Performance in Middle Age

PubMed Central

Kremen, William S.; Mai, Tuan; Panizzon, Matthew S.; Franz, Carol E.; Blankfeld, Howard M.; Xian, Hong; Eisen, Seth A.; Tsuang, Ming T.; Lyons, Michael J.

2011-01-01

Delayed alternation and object alternation are classic spatial and non-spatial delayed response tasks. We tested 632 middle-aged male veteran twins on variants of these tasks in order to compare test difficulty, measure their inter-correlation, test order effects, and estimate heritabilities (proportion of observed variance due to genetic influences). Non-spatial alternation (NSA), which may involve greater reliance on processing of subgoals, was significantly more difficult than spatial alternation (SA). Despite their similarities, NSA and SA scores were uncorrelated. NSA performance was worse when administered second; there was no SA order effect. NSA scores were modestly heritable (h2=.25; 26); SA was not. There was shared genetic variance between NSA scores and general intellectual ability (rg=.55; .67), but this also suggests genetic influences specific to NSA. Compared with findings from small, selected control samples, high “failure” rates in this community-based sample raise concerns about interpretation of brain dysfunction in elderly or patient samples. PMID:21477911

Entropy-based gene ranking without selection bias for the predictive classification of microarray data.

PubMed

Furlanello, Cesare; Serafini, Maria; Merler, Stefano; Jurman, Giuseppe

2003-11-06

We describe the E-RFE method for gene ranking, which is useful for the identification of markers in the predictive classification of array data. The method supports a practical modeling scheme designed to avoid the construction of classification rules based on the selection of too small gene subsets (an effect known as the selection bias, in which the estimated predictive errors are too optimistic due to testing on samples already considered in the feature selection process). With E-RFE, we speed up the recursive feature elimination (RFE) with SVM classifiers by eliminating chunks of uninteresting genes using an entropy measure of the SVM weights distribution. An optimal subset of genes is selected according to a two-strata model evaluation procedure: modeling is replicated by an external stratified-partition resampling scheme, and, within each run, an internal K-fold cross-validation is used for E-RFE ranking. Also, the optimal number of genes can be estimated according to the saturation of Zipf's law profiles. Without a decrease of classification accuracy, E-RFE allows a speed-up factor of 100 with respect to standard RFE, while improving on alternative parametric RFE reduction strategies. Thus, a process for gene selection and error estimation is made practical, ensuring control of the selection bias, and providing additional diagnostic indicators of gene importance.

Extended performance solar electric propulsion thrust system study. Volume 4: Thruster technology evaluation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Poeschel, R. L.; Hawthorne, E. I.; Weisman, Y. C.; Frisman, M.; Benson, G. C.; Mcgrath, R. J.; Martinelli, R. M.; Linsenbardt, T. L.; Beattie, J. R.

1977-01-01

Several thrust system design concepts were evaluated and compared using the specifications of the most advanced 30 cm engineering model thruster as the technology base. Emphasis was placed on relatively high power missions (60 to 100 kW) such as a Halley's comet rendezvous. The extensions in thruster performance required for the Halley's comet mission were defined and alternative thrust system concepts were designed in sufficient detail for comparing mass, efficiency, reliability, structure, and thermal characteristics. Confirmation testing and analysis of thruster and power processing components were performed, and the feasibility of satisfying extended performance requirements was verified. A baseline design was selected from the alternatives considered, and the design analysis and documentation were refined. The baseline thrust system design features modular construction, conventional power processing, and a concentrator solar array concept and is designed to interface with the Space Shuttle.

Counter-propagation network with variable degree variable step size LMS for single switch typing recognition.

PubMed

Yang, Cheng-Huei; Luo, Ching-Hsing; Yang, Cheng-Hong; Chuang, Li-Yeh

2004-01-01

Morse code is now being harnessed for use in rehabilitation applications of augmentative-alternative communication and assistive technology, including mobility, environmental control and adapted worksite access. In this paper, Morse code is selected as a communication adaptive device for disabled persons who suffer from muscle atrophy, cerebral palsy or other severe handicaps. A stable typing rate is strictly required for Morse code to be effective as a communication tool. This restriction is a major hindrance. Therefore, a switch adaptive automatic recognition method with a high recognition rate is needed. The proposed system combines counter-propagation networks with a variable degree variable step size LMS algorithm. It is divided into five stages: space recognition, tone recognition, learning process, adaptive processing, and character recognition. Statistical analyses demonstrated that the proposed method elicited a better recognition rate in comparison to alternative methods in the literature.

Group decision making with the analytic hierarchy process in benefit-risk assessment: a tutorial.

PubMed

Hummel, J Marjan; Bridges, John F P; IJzerman, Maarten J

2014-01-01

The analytic hierarchy process (AHP) has been increasingly applied as a technique for multi-criteria decision analysis in healthcare. The AHP can aid decision makers in selecting the most valuable technology for patients, while taking into account multiple, and even conflicting, decision criteria. This tutorial illustrates the procedural steps of the AHP in supporting group decision making about new healthcare technology, including (1) identifying the decision goal, decision criteria, and alternative healthcare technologies to compare, (2) structuring the decision criteria, (3) judging the value of the alternative technologies on each decision criterion, (4) judging the importance of the decision criteria, (5) calculating group judgments, (6) analyzing the inconsistency in judgments, (7) calculating the overall value of the technologies, and (8) conducting sensitivity analyses. The AHP is illustrated via a hypothetical example, adapted from an empirical AHP analysis on the benefits and risks of tissue regeneration to repair small cartilage lesions in the knee.

Extended performance solar electric propulsion thrust system study. Volume 2: Baseline thrust system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Poeschel, R. L.; Hawthorne, E. I.

1977-01-01

Several thrust system design concepts were evaluated and compared using the specifications of the most advanced 30- cm engineering model thruster as the technology base. Emphasis was placed on relatively high-power missions (60 to 100 kW) such as a Halley's comet rendezvous. The extensions in thruster performance required for the Halley's comet mission were defined and alternative thrust system concepts were designed in sufficient detail for comparing mass, efficiency, reliability, structure, and thermal characteristics. Confirmation testing and analysis of thruster and power-processing components were performed, and the feasibility of satisfying extended performance requirements was verified. A baseline design was selected from the alternatives considered, and the design analysis and documentation were refined. The baseline thrust system design features modular construction, conventional power processing, and a concentractor solar array concept and is designed to interface with the space shuttle.

Life-cycle assessment of selected management options for air pollution control residues from waste incineration.

PubMed

Fruergaard, Thilde; Hyks, Jiri; Astrup, Thomas

2010-09-15

Based on available technology and emission data seven selected management options for air-pollution-control (APC) residues from waste incineration were evaluated by life-cycle assessment (LCA) using the EASEWASTE model. Scenarios were evaluated with respect to both non-toxicity impact categories (e.g. global warming) and toxicity related impact categories (e.g. ecotoxicity and human toxicity). The assessment addressed treatment and final placement of 1 tonne of APC residue in seven scenarios: 1) direct landfilling without treatment (baseline), 2) backfilling in salt mines, 3) neutralization of waste acid, 4) filler material in asphalt, 5) Ferrox stabilization, 6) vitrification, and 7) melting with automobile shredder residues (ASR). The management scenarios were selected as examples of the wide range of different technologies available worldwide while at the same time using realistic technology data. Results from the LCA were discussed with respect to importance of: energy consumption/substitution, material substitution, leaching, air emissions, time horizon aspects for the assessment, and transportation distances. The LCA modeling showed that thermal processes were associated with the highest loads in the non-toxicity categories (energy consumption), while differences between the remaining alternatives were small and generally considered insignificant. In the toxicity categories, all treatment/utilization options were significantly better than direct landfilling without treatment (lower leaching), although the thermal processes had somewhat higher impacts than the others options (air emissions). Transportation distances did not affect the overall ranking of the management alternatives. Copyright 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Review of ecological-based risk management approaches used at five Army Superfund sites.

PubMed

Poucher, Sherri L; Tracey, Gregory A; Johnson, Mark S; Haines, Laurie B

2012-04-01

Factors used in environmental remedial decision making concerning ecological risk are not well understood or necessarily consistent. Recent Records of Decision (RODs) for Army CERCLA sites were reviewed to select case studies where remedial management occurred in response to ecological risks. Thirty-four Army RODs were evaluated representing decisions promulgated between 1996 and 2004. Five were selected based on assessments that remedial actions were clearly linked to concern for ecological receptors. The Ecological Risk Assessment (ERA) approach and the subsequent risk management process were reviewed for each site. The case studies demonstrated that the ERA findings, as well as critical management decisions regarding interpretation of identified ecological risks, were determinants of remedial action objectives. Decisions regarding the selection of remedial alternatives were based on a set of criteria prescribed by Superfund requirements and guidance. Remedial alternative evaluations require protection of human health and the environment, but protective conditions were determined using different methods at each site. Examining the remedial management process for the 5 case study sites revealed that uncertainty in the risk assessment and decisions regarding appropriate spatial scales for both risk assessment and remediation were important factors influencing remedial action decisions. The case reviews also revealed that levels of documentation were variable from site to site. In the future, more detailed documentation of decision criteria and the development of criteria that consider the resilience of the site will result in more technically defensible ecological risk management. Copyright © 2011 SETAC.

Selected Papers from the Spring 1993 Breivogel Conference at the University of Florida on Alternative/Portfolio Assessment.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vernetson, Theresa, Ed.

1993-01-01

This edition of the "Research Bulletin" is a compilation of papers presented at the annual William F. Breivogel Conference in 1993. The conference theme was alternative and portfolio assessment. Papers were grouped into assessment in general, portfolio assessment, and alternative assessments and curriculum questions. The selected papers…

Application of an integrated multi-criteria decision making AHP-TOPSIS methodology for ETL software selection.

PubMed

Hanine, Mohamed; Boutkhoum, Omar; Tikniouine, Abdessadek; Agouti, Tarik

2016-01-01

Actually, a set of ETL software (Extract, Transform and Load) is available to constitute a major investment market. Each ETL uses its own techniques for extracting, transforming and loading data into data warehouse, which makes the task of evaluating ETL software very difficult. However, choosing the right software of ETL is critical to the success or failure of any Business Intelligence project. As there are many impacting factors in the selection of ETL software, the same process is considered as a complex multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) problem. In this study, an application of decision-making methodology that employs the two well-known MCDM techniques, namely Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) methods is designed. In this respect, the aim of using AHP is to analyze the structure of the ETL software selection problem and obtain weights of the selected criteria. Then, TOPSIS technique is used to calculate the alternatives' ratings. An example is given to illustrate the proposed methodology. Finally, a software prototype for demonstrating both methods is implemented.

An Integrated DEMATEL-VIKOR Method-Based Approach for Cotton Fibre Selection and Evaluation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chakraborty, Shankar; Chatterjee, Prasenjit; Prasad, Kanika

2018-01-01

Selection of the most appropriate cotton fibre type for yarn manufacturing is often treated as a multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) problem as the optimal selection decision needs to be taken in presence of several conflicting fibre properties. In this paper, two popular MCDM methods in the form of decision making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) and VIse Kriterijumska Optimizacija kompromisno Resenje (VIKOR) are integrated to aid the cotton fibre selection decision. DEMATEL method addresses the interrelationships between various physical properties of cotton fibres while segregating them into cause and effect groups, whereas, VIKOR method helps in ranking all the considered 17 cotton fibres from the best to the worst. The derived ranking of cotton fibre alternatives closely matches with that obtained by the past researchers. This model can assist the spinning industry personnel in the blending process while making accurate fibre selection decision when cotton fibre properties are numerous and interrelated.

An Integrated DEMATEL-VIKOR Method-Based Approach for Cotton Fibre Selection and Evaluation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chakraborty, Shankar; Chatterjee, Prasenjit; Prasad, Kanika

2018-06-01

Selection of the most appropriate cotton fibre type for yarn manufacturing is often treated as a multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) problem as the optimal selection decision needs to be taken in presence of several conflicting fibre properties. In this paper, two popular MCDM methods in the form of decision making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) and VIse Kriterijumska Optimizacija kompromisno Resenje (VIKOR) are integrated to aid the cotton fibre selection decision. DEMATEL method addresses the interrelationships between various physical properties of cotton fibres while segregating them into cause and effect groups, whereas, VIKOR method helps in ranking all the considered 17 cotton fibres from the best to the worst. The derived ranking of cotton fibre alternatives closely matches with that obtained by the past researchers. This model can assist the spinning industry personnel in the blending process while making accurate fibre selection decision when cotton fibre properties are numerous and interrelated.

An alternative mechanism for spin-forbidden photo-ionization of diatomic molecules and its rotation-electronic selection rules

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chiu, Ying-Nan; Chiu, Lue-Yung Chow

1990-02-01

The spin-forbidden photo-ionization of diatomic molecules is proposed. Spin orbit interaction is invoked, resulting in the correction and mixing of the wave functions of different multiplicities. The rotation-electronic selection rules given by Dixit and McKoy (1986) for Hund's case a based on the conventional mechanism of electric dipole transition are rederived and expressed in a different format. This new format permits the generalization of the selection rules to other photoionization transitions caused by the magnetic dipole, the electric quadrupole, and the two- and three-photon operators. These selection rules, which are for transitions from one specific rotational level of a given Kronig reflection symmetry to another, will help understand rotational branching and the dynamics of interaction in the excited state. They will also help in the selective preparation of well-defined rovibronic states in resonant-enhanced multi-photon ionization processes.

Alternative Polyadenylation Regulates CELF1/CUGBP1 Target Transcripts Following T Cell Activation

PubMed Central

Beisang, Daniel; Reilly, Cavan; Bohjanen, Paul R.

2014-01-01

Alternative polyadenylation (APA) is an evolutionarily conserved mechanism for regulating gene expression. Transcript 3′ end shortening through changes in polyadenylation site usage occurs following T cell activation, but the consequences of APA on gene expression are poorly understood. We previously showed that GU-rich elements (GREs) found in the 3′ untranslated regions of select transcripts mediate rapid mRNA decay by recruiting the protein CELF1/CUGBP1. Using a global RNA sequencing approach, we found that a network of CELF1 target transcripts involved in cell division underwent preferential 3′ end shortening via APA following T cell activation, resulting in decreased inclusion of CELF1 binding sites and increased transcript expression. We present a model whereby CELF1 regulates APA site selection following T cell activation through reversible binding to nearby GRE sequences. These findings provide insight into the role of APA in controlling cellular proliferation during biological processes such as development, oncogenesis and T cell activation PMID:25123787

Diverse functions of myosin VI elucidated by an isoform-specific α-helix domain

PubMed Central

Magistrati, Elisa; Molteni, Erika; Lupia, Michela; Soffientini, Paolo; Rottner, Klemens; Cavallaro, Ugo; Pozzoli, Uberto; Mapelli, Marina; Walters, Kylie J.; Polo, Simona

2016-01-01

Myosin VI functions in endocytosis and cell motility. Alternative splicing of myosin VI mRNA generates two distinct isoform types, myosin VIshort and myosin VIlong, which differ in the C-terminal region. Their physiological and pathological role remains unknown. Here we identified an isoform-specific regulatory helix, named α2-linker that defines specific conformations and hence determines the target selectivity of human myosin VI. The presence of the α2-linker structurally defines a novel clathrin-binding domain that is unique to myosin VIlong and masks the known RRL interaction motif. This finding is relevant to ovarian cancer, where alternative myosin VI splicing is aberrantly regulated, and exon skipping dictates cell addiction to myosin VIshort for tumor cell migration. The RRL interactor optineurin contributes to this process by selectively binding myosin VIshort. Thus the α2-linker acts like a molecular switch that assigns myosin VI to distinct endocytic (myosin VIlong) or migratory (myosin VIshort) functional roles. PMID:26950368

Diverse functions of myosin VI elucidated by an isoform-specific α-helix domain.

PubMed

Wollscheid, Hans-Peter; Biancospino, Matteo; He, Fahu; Magistrati, Elisa; Molteni, Erika; Lupia, Michela; Soffientini, Paolo; Rottner, Klemens; Cavallaro, Ugo; Pozzoli, Uberto; Mapelli, Marina; Walters, Kylie J; Polo, Simona

2016-04-01

Myosin VI functions in endocytosis and cell motility. Alternative splicing of myosin VI mRNA generates two distinct isoform types, myosin VI(short) and myosin VI(long), which differ in the C-terminal region. Their physiological and pathological roles remain unknown. Here we identified an isoform-specific regulatory helix, named the α2-linker, that defines specific conformations and hence determines the target selectivity of human myosin VI. The presence of the α2-linker structurally defines a new clathrin-binding domain that is unique to myosin VI(long) and masks the known RRL interaction motif. This finding is relevant to ovarian cancer, in which alternative myosin VI splicing is aberrantly regulated, and exon skipping dictates cell addiction to myosin VI(short) in tumor-cell migration. The RRL interactor optineurin contributes to this process by selectively binding myosin VI(short). Thus, the α2-linker acts like a molecular switch that assigns myosin VI to distinct endocytic (myosin VI(long)) or migratory (myosin VI(short)) functional roles.

The EGF and FGF receptors mediate neuroglian function to control growth cone decisions during sensory axon guidance in Drosophila.

PubMed

García-Alonso, L; Romani, S; Jiménez, F

2000-12-01

Cell adhesion molecules (CAMs) implement the process of axon guidance by promoting specific selection and attachment to substrates. We show that, in Drosophila, loss-of-function conditions of either the Neuroglian CAM, the FGF receptor coded by the gene heartless, or the EGF receptor coded by DER display a similar phenotype of abnormal substrate selection and axon guidance by peripheral sensory neurons. Moreover, neuroglian loss-of-function phenotype can be suppressed by the expression of gain-of-function conditions of heartless or DER. The results are consistent with a scenario where the activity of these receptor tyrosine kinases is controlled by Neuroglian at choice points where sensory axons select between alternative substrates for extension.

Determining the appropriate strategies for emergency planning through AHP-SWOT.

PubMed

Kalatpour, Omid

2017-01-01

During an unexpected incident, companies should demonstrate appropriate behaviour based on predetermined and rehearsed emergency strategies. This paper describes how to select the proper strategies for emergency situations via means of the AHP-SWOT tool, where the initial SWOT analysis is conducted for the emergency management system, and the final strategies are selected via the analytic hierarchy process (AHP). Alternative response strategies comprise internal, shared and external responses. Most of the scenarios investigated for this study demanded a shared response. These findings highlight the importance of mutual aid agreements, cooperative exercises and the improvement of communication systems. Organisations can take advantage of integrated approaches to select the best strategies and tactics for normal situations in general and emergency situations in particular.

Potential of metal-organic frameworks for separation of xenon and krypton.

PubMed

Banerjee, Debasis; Cairns, Amy J; Liu, Jian; Motkuri, Radha K; Nune, Satish K; Fernandez, Carlos A; Krishna, Rajamani; Strachan, Denis M; Thallapally, Praveen K

2015-02-17

CONSPECTUS: The total world energy demand is predicted to rise significantly over the next few decades, primarily driven by the continuous growth of the developing world. With rapid depletion of nonrenewable traditional fossil fuels, which currently account for almost 86% of the worldwide energy output, the search for viable alternative energy resources is becoming more important from a national security and economic development standpoint. Nuclear energy, an emission-free, high-energy-density source produced by means of controlled nuclear fission, is often considered as a clean, affordable alternative to fossil fuel. However, the successful installation of an efficient and economically viable industrial-scale process to properly sequester and mitigate the nuclear-fission-related, highly radioactive waste (e.g., used nuclear fuel (UNF)) is a prerequisite for any further development of nuclear energy in the near future. Reprocessing of UNF is often considered to be a logical way to minimize the volume of high-level radioactive waste, though the generation of volatile radionuclides during reprocessing raises a significant engineering challenge for its successful implementation. The volatile radionuclides include but are not limited to noble gases (predominately isotopes of Xe and Kr) and must be captured during the process to avoid being released into the environment. Currently, energy-intensive cryogenic distillation is the primary means to capture and separate radioactive noble gas isotopes during UNF reprocessing. A similar cryogenic process is implemented during commercial production of noble gases though removal from air. In light of their high commercial values, particularly in lighting and medical industries, and associated high production costs, alternate approaches for Xe/Kr capture and storage are of contemporary research interest. The proposed pathways for Xe/Kr removal and capture can essentially be divided in two categories: selective absorption by dissolution in solvents and physisorption on porous materials. Physisorption-based separation and adsorption on highly functional porous materials are promising alternatives to the energy-intensive cryogenic distillation process, where the adsorbents are characterized by high surface areas and thus high removal capacities and often can be chemically fine-tuned to enhance the adsorbate-adsorbent interactions for optimum selectivity. Several traditional porous adsorbents such as zeolites and activated carbon have been tested for noble gas capture but have shown low capacity, selectivity, and lack of modularity. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) or porous coordination polymers (PCPs) are an emerging class of solid-state adsorbents that can be tailor-made for applications ranging from gas adsorption and separation to catalysis and sensing. Herein we give a concise summary of the background and development of Xe/Kr separation technologies with a focus on UNF reprocessing and the prospects of MOF-based adsorbents for that particular application.

Multicriteria Personnel Selection by the Modified Fuzzy VIKOR Method

PubMed Central

Alguliyev, Rasim M.; Aliguliyev, Ramiz M.; Mahmudova, Rasmiyya S.

2015-01-01

Personnel evaluation is an important process in human resource management. The multicriteria nature and the presence of both qualitative and quantitative factors make it considerably more complex. In this study, a fuzzy hybrid multicriteria decision-making (MCDM) model is proposed to personnel evaluation. This model solves personnel evaluation problem in a fuzzy environment where both criteria and weights could be fuzzy sets. The triangular fuzzy numbers are used to evaluate the suitability of personnel and the approximate reasoning of linguistic values. For evaluation, we have selected five information culture criteria. The weights of the criteria were calculated using worst-case method. After that, modified fuzzy VIKOR is proposed to rank the alternatives. The outcome of this research is ranking and selecting best alternative with the help of fuzzy VIKOR and modified fuzzy VIKOR techniques. A comparative analysis of results by fuzzy VIKOR and modified fuzzy VIKOR methods is presented. Experiments showed that the proposed modified fuzzy VIKOR method has some advantages over fuzzy VIKOR method. Firstly, from a computational complexity point of view, the presented model is effective. Secondly, compared to fuzzy VIKOR method, it has high acceptable advantage compared to fuzzy VIKOR method. PMID:26516634

Selecting forest residue treatment alternatives using goal programming.

Treesearch

Bruce B. Bare; Brian F. Anholt

1976-01-01

The use of goal programing for selecting forest residue treatment alternatives within a multiple goal framework is described. The basic features of goal programing are reviewed and illustrated with a hypothetical problem involving the selection of residue treatments for 10 cutting units. Twelve residue-regeneration treatment combinations are evaluated by using physical...

Use of structured decision making to identify monitoring variables and management priorities for salt marsh ecosystems

USGS Publications Warehouse

Neckles, Hilary A.; Lyons, James E.; Guntenspergen, Glenn R.; Shriver, W. Gregory; Adamowicz, Susan C.

2015-01-01

Most salt marshes in the USA have been degraded by human activities, and coastal managers are faced with complex choices among possible actions to restore or enhance ecosystem integrity. We applied structured decision making (SDM) to guide selection of monitoring variables and management priorities for salt marshes within the National Wildlife Refuge System in the northeastern USA. In general, SDM is a systematic process for decomposing a decision into its essential elements. We first engaged stakeholders in clarifying regional salt marsh decision problems, defining objectives and attributes to evaluate whether objectives are achieved, and developing a pool of alternative management actions for achieving objectives. Through this process, we identified salt marsh attributes that were applicable to monitoring National Wildlife Refuges on a regional scale and that targeted management needs. We then analyzed management decisions within three salt marsh units at Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge, coastal Delaware, as a case example of prioritizing management alternatives. Values for salt marsh attributes were estimated from 2 years of baseline monitoring data and expert opinion. We used linear value modeling to aggregate multiple attributes into a single performance score for each alternative, constrained optimization to identify alternatives that maximized total management benefits subject to refuge-wide cost constraints, and used graphical analysis to identify the optimal set of alternatives for the refuge. SDM offers an efficient, transparent approach for integrating monitoring into management practice and improving the quality of management decisions.

Invasion of host cells by malaria parasites: a tale of two protein families.

PubMed

Iyer, Jayasree; Grüner, Anne Charlotte; Rénia, Laurent; Snounou, Georges; Preiser, Peter R

2007-07-01

Malaria parasites are obligate intracellular parasites whose invasive stages select and invade the unique host cell in which they can develop with exquisite specificity and efficacy. Most studies aimed at elucidating the molecules and the mechanisms implicated in the selection and invasion processes have been conducted on the merozoite, the stage that invades erythrocytes to perpetuate the pathological cycles of parasite multiplication in the blood. Bioinformatic analysis has helped identify the members of two parasite protein families, the reticulocyte-binding protein homologues (RBL) and erythrocyte binding like (EBL), in recently sequenced genomes of different Plasmodium species. In this article we review data from classical studies and gene disruption experiments that are helping to illuminate the role of these proteins in the selection-invasion processes. The manner in which subsets of proteins from each of the families act in concert suggests a model to explain the ability of the parasites to use alternate pathways of invasion. Future perspectives and implications are discussed.

Redefining the Practice of Peer Review Through Intelligent Automation Part 2: Data-Driven Peer Review Selection and Assignment.

PubMed

Reiner, Bruce I

2017-12-01

In conventional radiology peer review practice, a small number of exams (routinely 5% of the total volume) is randomly selected, which may significantly underestimate the true error rate within a given radiology practice. An alternative and preferable approach would be to create a data-driven model which mathematically quantifies a peer review risk score for each individual exam and uses this data to identify high risk exams and readers, and selectively target these exams for peer review. An analogous model can also be created to assist in the assignment of these peer review cases in keeping with specific priorities of the service provider. An additional option to enhance the peer review process would be to assign the peer review cases in a truly blinded fashion. In addition to eliminating traditional peer review bias, this approach has the potential to better define exam-specific standard of care, particularly when multiple readers participate in the peer review process.

Chemical probes to potently and selectively inhibit endocannabinoid cellular reuptake.

PubMed

Chicca, Andrea; Nicolussi, Simon; Bartholomäus, Ruben; Blunder, Martina; Aparisi Rey, Alejandro; Petrucci, Vanessa; Reynoso-Moreno, Ines Del Carmen; Viveros-Paredes, Juan Manuel; Dalghi Gens, Marianela; Lutz, Beat; Schiöth, Helgi B; Soeberdt, Michael; Abels, Christoph; Charles, Roch-Philippe; Altmann, Karl-Heinz; Gertsch, Jürg

2017-06-20

The extracellular effects of the endocannabinoids anandamide and 2-arachidonoyl glycerol are terminated by enzymatic hydrolysis after crossing cellular membranes by facilitated diffusion. The lack of potent and selective inhibitors for endocannabinoid transport has prevented the molecular characterization of this process, thus hindering its biochemical investigation and pharmacological exploitation. Here, we report the design, chemical synthesis, and biological profiling of natural product-derived N -substituted 2,4-dodecadienamides as a selective endocannabinoid uptake inhibitor. The highly potent (IC 50 = 10 nM) inhibitor N -(3,4-dimethoxyphenyl)ethyl amide (WOBE437) exerted pronounced cannabinoid receptor-dependent anxiolytic, antiinflammatory, and analgesic effects in mice by increasing endocannabinoid levels. A tailored WOBE437-derived diazirine-containing photoaffinity probe (RX-055) irreversibly blocked membrane transport of both endocannabinoids, providing mechanistic insights into this complex process. Moreover, RX-055 exerted site-specific anxiolytic effects on in situ photoactivation in the brain. This study describes suitable inhibitors to target endocannabinoid membrane trafficking and uncovers an alternative endocannabinoid pharmacology.

Lithography alternatives meet design style reality: How do they "line" up?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smayling, Michael C.

2016-03-01

Optical lithography resolution scaling has stalled, giving innovative alternatives a window of opportunity. One important factor that impacts these lithographic approaches is the transition in design style from 2D to 1D for advanced CMOS logic. Just as the transition from 3D circuits to 2D fabrication 50 years ago created an opportunity for a new breed of electronics companies, the transition today presents exciting and challenging time for lithographers. Today, we are looking at a range of non-optical lithography processes. Those considered here can be broadly categorized: self-aligned lithography, self-assembled lithography, deposition lithography, nano-imprint lithography, pixelated e-beam lithography, shot-based e-beam lithography .Do any of these alternatives benefit from or take advantage of 1D layout? Yes, for example SAPD + CL (Self Aligned Pitch Division combined with Complementary Lithography). This is a widely adopted process for CMOS nodes at 22nm and below. Can there be additional design / process co-optimization? In spite of the simple-looking nature of 1D layout, the placement of "cut" in the lines and "holes" for interlayer connections can be tuned for a given process capability. Examples of such optimization have been presented at this conference, typically showing a reduction of at least one in the number of cut or hole patterns needed.[1,2] Can any of the alternatives complement each other or optical lithography? Yes.[3] For example, DSA (Directed Self Assembly) combines optical lithography with self-assembly. CEBL (Complementary e-Beam Lithography) combines optical lithography with SAPD for lines with shot-based e-beam lithography for cuts and holes. Does one (shrinking) size fit all? No, that's why we have many alternatives. For example NIL (Nano-imprint Lithography) has been introduced for NAND Flash patterning where the (trending lower) defectivity is acceptable for the product. Deposition lithography has been introduced in 3D NAND Flash to set the channel length of select and memory transistors.

Genetic patterns of habitat fragmentation and past climate-change effects in the Mediterranean high-mountain plant Armeria caespitosa (Plumbaginaceae).

PubMed

García-Fernández, Alfredo; Iriondo, Jose M; Escudero, Adrián; Aguilar, Javier Fuertes; Feliner, Gonzalo Nieto

2013-08-01

Mountain plants are among the species most vulnerable to global warming, because of their isolation, narrow geographic distribution, and limited geographic range shifts. Stochastic and selective processes can act on the genome, modulating genetic structure and diversity. Fragmentation and historical processes also have a great influence on current genetic patterns, but the spatial and temporal contexts of these processes are poorly known. We aimed to evaluate the microevolutionary processes that may have taken place in Mediterranean high-mountain plants in response to changing historical environmental conditions. Genetic structure, diversity, and loci under selection were analyzed using AFLP markers in 17 populations distributed over the whole geographic range of Armeria caespitosa, an endemic plant that inhabits isolated mountains (Sierra de Guadarrama, Spain). Differences in altitude, geographic location, and climate conditions were considered in the analyses, because they may play an important role in selective and stochastic processes. Bayesian clustering approaches identified nine genetic groups, although some discrepancies in assignment were found between alternative analyses. Spatially explicit analyses showed a weak relationship between genetic parameters and spatial or environmental distances. However, a large proportion of outlier loci were detected, and some outliers were related to environmental variables. A. caespitosa populations exhibit spatial patterns of genetic structure that cannot be explained by the isolation-by-distance model. Shifts along the altitude gradient in response to Pleistocene climatic oscillations and environmentally mediated selective forces might explain the resulting structure and genetic diversity values found.

Selective, ultrathin membrane skins prepared by deposition of novel polymer films on porous alumina supports

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Balachandra, Anagi Manjula

Membrane-based separations are attractive in industrial processes because of their low energy costs and simple operation. However, low permeabilities often make membrane processes uneconomical. Since flux is inversely proportional to membrane thickness, composite membranes consisting of ultrathin, selective skins on highly permeable supports are required to simultaneously achieve high throughput and high selectivity. However, the synthesis of defect-free skins with thicknesses less than 50 nm is difficult, and thus flux is often limited. Layer-by-layer deposition of oppositely charged polyelectrolytes on porous supports is an attractive method to synthesize ultrathin ion-separation membranes with high flux and high selectivity. The ion-transport selectivity of multilayer polyelectrolyte membranes (MPMs) is primarily due to Donnan exclusion; therefore increase in fixed charge density should yield high selectivity. However, control over charge density in MPMs is difficult because charges on polycations are electrostatically compensated by charges on polyanions, and the net charge in the bulk of these films is small. To overcome this problem, we introduced a templating method to create ion-exchange sites in the bulk of the membrane. This strategy involves alternating deposition of a Cu2+-poly(acrylic acid) complex and poly(allylamine hydrochloride) on a porous alumina support followed by removal of Cu2+ and deprotonation to yield free -COO- ion-exchange sites. Diffusion dialysis studies showed that the Cl-/SO42-. Selectivity of Cu2+-templated membranes is 4-fold higher than that of membranes prepared in the absence of Cu2+. Post-deposition cross-linking of these membranes by heat-induced amide bond formation further increased Cl-/SO42- selectivity to values as high as 600. Room-temperature, surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) provides another convenient method for formation of ultrathin polymer skins. This process involves attachment of polymerization initiators to a porous alumina support and subsequent polymerization from these initiators. Because ATRP is a controlled polymerization technique, it yields well-defined polymer films with low polydispersity indices (narrow molecular weight distributions). Additionally, this method is attractive because film thickness can be easily controlled by adjusting polymerization time. Gas-permeability data showed that grafted poly(ethylene glycol dimethacrylate) membranes have a CO 2/CH4 selectivity of 20, whereas poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) films grown from a surface have negligible selectivity. However, derivatization of PHEMA with pentadecafluorooctanoyl chloride increases the solubility of CO2 in the membrane and results in a CO2/CH4 selectivity of 9. Although composite PHEMA membranes have no significant gas-transport selectivity, diffusion dialysis studies with PHEMA membranes showed moderate ion-transport selectivities. Cross-linking of PHEMA membranes by reaction with succinyl chloride greatly enhanced anion-transport selectivities while maintaining reasonable flux. The selectivities of these systems demonstrate that alternating polyelectrolyte deposition and surface-initiated ATRP are indeed capable of forming ultrathin, defect-free membrane skins that can potentially be modified for specific separations.

Group Decision Support System to Aid the Process of Design and Maintenance of Large Scale Systems

DTIC Science & Technology

1992-03-23

from a fuzzy set of user requirements. The overall objective of the project is to develop a system combining the characteristics of a compact computer... AHP ) for hierarchical prioritization. 4) Individual Evaluation and Selection of Alternatives - Allows the decision maker to individually evaluate...its concept of outranking relations. The AHP method supports complex decision problems by successively decomposing and synthesizing various elements

Selection of an Alternative Production Part Approval Process to Improve Weapon Systems Production Readiness

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-09-01

production outcomes: 1) knowledge gaps in technology, 2) design instability and 3) manufacturing knowledge gaps. Only manufacturing knowledge gaps...ability to produce at a desired production rate. Each item produced under this manufacturing development is to meet that item’s design requirements. The...represented with respect to assessing manufacturing design and development with a verification and demonstration. DOD acquisition waits to assess production

Transit Vehicles for National Parks : Selection Factors and Technologies.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2003-03-31

Increasingly, national parks are purchasing and operating buses and other alternative : transportation vehicles to transport visitors to and from or within park boundaries. : Selecting alternative transportation vehicles is a complex, multi-faceted p...

Heuristic-based information acquisition and decision making among pilots.

PubMed

Wiggins, Mark W; Bollwerk, Sandra

2006-01-01

This research was designed to examine the impact of heuristic-based approaches to the acquisition of task-related information on the selection of an optimal alternative during simulated in-flight decision making. The work integrated features of naturalistic and normative decision making and strategies of information acquisition within a computer-based, decision support framework. The study comprised two phases, the first of which involved familiarizing pilots with three different heuristic-based strategies of information acquisition: frequency, elimination by aspects, and majority of confirming decisions. The second stage enabled participants to choose one of the three strategies of information acquisition to resolve a fourth (choice) scenario. The results indicated that task-oriented experience, rather than the information acquisition strategies, predicted the selection of the optimal alternative. It was also evident that of the three strategies available, the elimination by aspects information acquisition strategy was preferred by most participants. It was concluded that task-oriented experience, rather than the process of information acquisition, predicted task accuracy during the decision-making task. It was also concluded that pilots have a preference for one particular approach to information acquisition. Applications of outcomes of this research include the development of decision support systems that adapt to the information-processing capabilities and preferences of users.

Using skype as an alternative for residency selection interviews.

PubMed

Edje, Louito; Miller, Christine; Kiefer, Jacklyn; Oram, David

2013-09-01

Residency interviews can place significant time and financial burdens on applicants. To determine whether the use of Skype as a screening tool during interview season in a family medicine residency is cost-effective and time-efficient for the applicant and the residency program. We surveyed 2 groups of medical students during interviews for our family medicine program. Thirty-two students were interviewed via our face-to-face, traditional interview (TI) process, and 10 students, the second group, who did not meet the program's standard interview selection criteria for TI, underwent our Skype interview (SI) process. Using an unpaired t test, we found that the applicants' costs of an SI were significantly less than a TI, $566 (95% confidence interval [CI] $784-$349, P < .001). Direct cash savings plus indirect salary savings to the program were $5,864, with a time savings of 7 interview days. Three of the applicants who were participants in the SI limb of the study were in our final rank order list. For interviewing in family medicine residencies, use of Skype may be a cost-effective and time-efficient screening tool for both the applicant and the program. Alternate uses of SI may include the time-sensitive, postmatch Supplemental Offer and Acceptance Program.

Using Skype as an Alternative for Residency Selection Interviews

PubMed Central

Edje, Louito; Miller, Christine; Kiefer, Jacklyn; Oram, David

2013-01-01

Background Residency interviews can place significant time and financial burdens on applicants. Objective To determine whether the use of Skype as a screening tool during interview season in a family medicine residency is cost-effective and time-efficient for the applicant and the residency program. Methods We surveyed 2 groups of medical students during interviews for our family medicine program. Thirty-two students were interviewed via our face-to-face, traditional interview (TI) process, and 10 students, the second group, who did not meet the program's standard interview selection criteria for TI, underwent our Skype interview (SI) process. Results Using an unpaired t test, we found that the applicants' costs of an SI were significantly less than a TI, $566 (95% confidence interval [CI] $784–$349, P < .001). Direct cash savings plus indirect salary savings to the program were $5,864, with a time savings of 7 interview days. Three of the applicants who were participants in the SI limb of the study were in our final rank order list. Conclusions For interviewing in family medicine residencies, use of Skype may be a cost-effective and time-efficient screening tool for both the applicant and the program. Alternate uses of SI may include the time-sensitive, postmatch Supplemental Offer and Acceptance Program. PMID:24404318

Methodologies for processing plant material into acceptable food on a small scale

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Parks, Thomas R.; Bindon, John N.; Bowles, Anthony J. G.; Golbitz, Peter; Lampi, Rauno A.; Marquardt, Robert F.

1994-01-01

Based on the Controlled Environment Life Support System (CELSS) production of only four crops, wheat, white potatoes, soybeans, and sweet potatoes; a crew size of twelve; a daily planting/harvesting regimen; and zero-gravity conditions, estimates were made on the quantity of food that would need to be grown to provide adequate nutrition; and the corresponding amount of biomass that would result. Projections were made of the various types of products that could be made from these crops, the unit operations that would be involved, and what menu capability these products could provide. Equipment requirements to perform these unit operations were screened to identify commercially available units capable of operating (or being modified to operate) under CELSS/zero-gravity conditions. Concept designs were developed for those equipment needs for which no suitable units were commercially available. Prototypes of selected concept designs were constructed and tested on a laboratory scale, as were selected commercially available units. This report discusses the practical considerations taken into account in the various design alternatives, some of the many product/process factors that relate to equipment development, and automation alternatives. Recommendations are made on both general and specific areas in which it was felt additional investigation would benefit CELSS missions.

Material selection and assembly method of battery pack for compact electric vehicle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lewchalermwong, N.; Masomtob, M.; Lailuck, V.; Charoenphonphanich, C.

2018-01-01

Battery packs become the key component in electric vehicles (EVs). The main costs of which are battery cells and assembling processes. The battery cell is indeed priced from battery manufacturers while the assembling cost is dependent on battery pack designs. Battery pack designers need overall cost as cheap as possible, but it still requires high performance and more safety. Material selection and assembly method as well as component design are very important to determine the cost-effectiveness of battery modules and battery packs. Therefore, this work presents Decision Matrix, which can aid in the decision-making process of component materials and assembly methods for a battery module design and a battery pack design. The aim of this study is to take the advantage of incorporating Architecture Analysis method into decision matrix methods by capturing best practices for conducting design architecture analysis in full account of key design components critical to ensure efficient and effective development of the designs. The methodology also considers the impacts of choice-alternatives along multiple dimensions. Various alternatives for materials and assembly techniques of battery pack are evaluated, and some sample costs are presented. Due to many components in the battery pack, only seven components which are positive busbar and Z busbar are represented in this paper for using decision matrix methods.

Instrument Selection for Randomized Controlled Trials Why This and Not That?

PubMed Central

Records, Kathie; Keller, Colleen; Ainsworth, Barbara; Permana, Paska

2011-01-01

A fundamental linchpin for obtaining rigorous findings in quantitative research involves the selection of survey instruments. Psychometric recommendations are available for the processes for scale development and testing and guidance for selection of established scales. These processes are necessary to address the validity link between the phenomena under investigation, the empirical measures and, ultimately, the theoretical ties between these and the world views of the participants. Detailed information is most often provided about study design and protocols, but far less frequently is a detailed theoretical explanation provided for why specific instruments are chosen. Guidance to inform choices is often difficult to find when scales are needed for specific cultural, ethnic, or racial groups. This paper details the rationale underlying instrument selection for measurement of the major processes (intervention, mediator and moderator variables, outcome variables) in an ongoing study of postpartum Latinas, Madres para la Salud [Mothers for Health]. The rationale underpinning our choices includes a discussion of alternatives, when appropriate. These exemplars may provide direction for other intervention researchers who are working with specific cultural, racial, or ethnic groups or for other investigators who are seeking to select the ‘best’ instrument. Thoughtful consideration of measurement and articulation of the rationale underlying our choices facilitates the maintenance of rigor within the study design and improves our ability to assess study outcomes. PMID:21986392

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

Underwood, R.P.

As part of the DOE-sponsored contract Synthesis of Dimethyl Ether and Alternative Fuels in the Liquid Phase from Coal-Derived Syngas'' experimental evaluations of the one-step synthesis of alternative fuels were carried out. The objective of this work was to develop novel processes for converting coal-derived syngas to fuels or fuel additives. Building on a technology base acquired during the development of the Liquid Phase Methanol (LPMEOH) process, this work focused on the development of slurry reactor based processes. The experimental investigations, which involved bench-scale reactor studies, focused primarily on three areas: (1) One-step, slurry-phase syngas conversion to hydrocarbons or methanol/hydrocarbonmore » mixtures using a mixture of methanol synthesis catalyst and methanol conversion catalyst in the same slurry reactor. (2) Slurry-phase conversion of syngas to mixed alcohols using various catalysts. (3) One-step, slurry-phase syngas conversion to mixed ethers using a mixture of mixed alcohols synthesis catalyst and dehydration catalyst in the same slurry reactor. The experimental results indicate that, of the three types of processes investigated, slurry phase conversion of syngas to mixed alcohols shows the most promise for further process development. Evaluations of various mixed alcohols catalysts show that a cesium-promoted Cu/ZnO/Al[sub 2]O[sub 3] methanol synthesis catalyst, developed in Air Products' laboratories, has the highest performance in terms of rate and selectivity for C[sub 2+]-alcohols. In fact, once-through conversion at industrially practical reaction conditions yielded a mixed alcohols product potentially suitable for direct gasoline blending. Moreover, an additional attractive aspect of this catalyst is its high selectivity for branched alcohols, potential precursors to iso-olefins for use in etherification.« less

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

Underwood, R.P.

As part of the DOE-sponsored contract ``Synthesis of Dimethyl Ether and Alternative Fuels in the Liquid Phase from Coal-Derived Syngas`` experimental evaluations of the one-step synthesis of alternative fuels were carried out. The objective of this work was to develop novel processes for converting coal-derived syngas to fuels or fuel additives. Building on a technology base acquired during the development of the Liquid Phase Methanol (LPMEOH) process, this work focused on the development of slurry reactor based processes. The experimental investigations, which involved bench-scale reactor studies, focused primarily on three areas: (1) One-step, slurry-phase syngas conversion to hydrocarbons or methanol/hydrocarbonmore » mixtures using a mixture of methanol synthesis catalyst and methanol conversion catalyst in the same slurry reactor. (2) Slurry-phase conversion of syngas to mixed alcohols using various catalysts. (3) One-step, slurry-phase syngas conversion to mixed ethers using a mixture of mixed alcohols synthesis catalyst and dehydration catalyst in the same slurry reactor. The experimental results indicate that, of the three types of processes investigated, slurry phase conversion of syngas to mixed alcohols shows the most promise for further process development. Evaluations of various mixed alcohols catalysts show that a cesium-promoted Cu/ZnO/Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} methanol synthesis catalyst, developed in Air Products` laboratories, has the highest performance in terms of rate and selectivity for C{sub 2+}-alcohols. In fact, once-through conversion at industrially practical reaction conditions yielded a mixed alcohols product potentially suitable for direct gasoline blending. Moreover, an additional attractive aspect of this catalyst is its high selectivity for branched alcohols, potential precursors to iso-olefins for use in etherification.« less

How does male–male competition generate negative frequency-dependent selection and disruptive selection during speciation?

PubMed Central

Border, Shana E

2018-01-01

Abstract Natural selection has been shown to drive population differentiation and speciation. The role of sexual selection in this process is controversial; however, most of the work has centered on mate choice while the role of male–male competition in speciation is relatively understudied. Here, we outline how male–male competition can be a source of diversifying selection on male competitive phenotypes, and how this can contribute to the evolution of reproductive isolation. We highlight how negative frequency-dependent selection (advantage of rare phenotype arising from stronger male–male competition between similar male phenotypes compared with dissimilar male phenotypes) and disruptive selection (advantage of extreme phenotypes) drives the evolution of diversity in competitive traits such as weapon size, nuptial coloration, or aggressiveness. We underscore that male–male competition interacts with other life-history functions and that variable male competitive phenotypes may represent alternative adaptive options. In addition to competition for mates, aggressive interference competition for ecological resources can exert selection on competitor signals. We call for a better integration of male–male competition with ecological interference competition since both can influence the process of speciation via comparable but distinct mechanisms. Altogether, we present a more comprehensive framework for studying the role of male–male competition in speciation, and emphasize the need for better integration of insights gained from other fields studying the evolutionary, behavioral, and physiological consequences of agonistic interactions. PMID:29492042

Recent advances in applying decision science to managing national forests

USGS Publications Warehouse

Marcot, Bruce G.; Thompson, Matthew P.; Runge, Michael C.; Thompson, Frank R.; McNulty, Steven; Cleaves, David; Tomosy, Monica; Fisher, Larry A.; Andrew, Bliss

2012-01-01

Management of federal public forests to meet sustainability goals and multiple use regulations is an immense challenge. To succeed, we suggest use of formal decision science procedures and tools in the context of structured decision making (SDM). SDM entails four stages: problem structuring (framing the problem and defining objectives and evaluation criteria), problem analysis (defining alternatives, evaluating likely consequences, identifying key uncertainties, and analyzing tradeoffs), decision point (identifying the preferred alternative), and implementation and monitoring the preferred alternative with adaptive management feedbacks. We list a wide array of models, techniques, and tools available for each stage, and provide three case studies of their selected use in National Forest land management and project plans. Successful use of SDM involves participation by decision-makers, analysts, scientists, and stakeholders. We suggest specific areas for training and instituting SDM to foster transparency, rigor, clarity, and inclusiveness in formal decision processes regarding management of national forests.

Difference in electrodynamic transduction between speaker and alternator in thermoacoustic applications.

PubMed

Gonen, Eran; Grossman, Gershon

2015-09-01

Conventional reciprocating pistons, normally found in thermoacoustic engines, tend to introduce complex impedance characteristics, including acoustic, mechanical, and electrical portions. System behavior and performance usually rely on proper tuning processes and selection of an optimal point of operation, affected substantially by complementary hardware, typically adjusted for the specific application. The present study proposes an alternative perspective on the alternator behavior, by considering the relative motion between gas and piston during the engine mode of operation. Direct analytical derivation of the velocity distribution inside a tight seal gap and the associated impedance is employed to estimate the electro-acoustic conversion efficiency, thus indicating how to improve the system performance. The influence of acoustic phase, gap dimensions, and working conditions is examined, suggesting the need to develop tighter and longer seal gaps, having increased impedance, to allow optimization for use in upcoming sustainable power generation solutions and smart grids.

Expert reasoning within an object-oriented framework

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

Bohn, S.J.; Pennock, K.A.

1991-10-01

A large number of contaminated waste sites across the United States await site remediation efforts. These sites can be physically complex, composed of multiple, possibly interacting, contaminants distributed throughout one or more media. The Remedial Action Assessment System (RAAS) is being designed and developed to support decisions concerning the selection of remediation alternatives. The goal of this system is to broaden the consideration of remediation alternatives, while reducing the time and cost of making these considerations. The Remedial Action Assessment System was designed and constructed using object-oriented techniques. It is a hybrid system which uses a combination of quantitative andmore » qualitative reasoning to consider and suggest remediation alternatives. the reasoning process that drives this application is centered around an object-oriented organization of remediation technology information. This paper briefly describes the waste remediation problem and then discusses the information structure and organization RAAS utilizes to address it. 4 refs., 4 figs.« less

NASA TEERM Hexavalent Chrome Alternatives Projects

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kessel, Kurt; Rothgeb, Matt

2011-01-01

This slide presentation reviews the NASA project to select an alternative to hexavalent chrome in the aerospace industry. Included is a recent historic testing and research that the Agency has performed on (1) the external tank, (2) the shuttle orbiter, (3) the Shuttle Rocket Booster, and (4) the Space Shuttle Main Engine. Other related Technology Evaluation for Environmental Risk Mitigation (TEERM) projects are reviewed. The Phase I process of the project performed testing of alternatives the results are shown in a chart for different coating systems. International collaboration was also reviewed. Phase II involves further testing of pretreatment and primers for 6 and 12 months of exposure to conditions at Launch Pad and the beach. Further test were performed to characterize the life cycle corrosion of the space vehicles. A new task is described as a joint project with the Department of Defense to identify a Hex Chrome Free Coatings for Electronics.

40 CFR 63.7507 - What are the health-based compliance alternatives for the hydrogen chloride (HCl) and total...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 14 2012-07-01 2011-07-01 true What are the health-based compliance alternatives for the hydrogen chloride (HCl) and total selected metals (TSM) standards? 63.7507 Section 63.7507... the hydrogen chloride (HCl) and total selected metals (TSM) standards? (a) As an alternative to the...

40 CFR 63.7507 - What are the health-based compliance alternatives for the hydrogen chloride (HCl) and total...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 13 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false What are the health-based compliance alternatives for the hydrogen chloride (HCl) and total selected metals (TSM) standards? 63.7507 Section 63.7507... the hydrogen chloride (HCl) and total selected metals (TSM) standards? (a) As an alternative to the...

40 CFR 63.7507 - What are the health-based compliance alternatives for the hydrogen chloride (HCl) and total...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 13 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false What are the health-based compliance alternatives for the hydrogen chloride (HCl) and total selected metals (TSM) standards? 63.7507 Section 63.7507... the hydrogen chloride (HCl) and total selected metals (TSM) standards? (a) As an alternative to the...

Student Transportation: Comparing Alternative Methods of Providing the Service. Reports of the County School Board Project: No. 2.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Elwood, Bryan C.

This report provides a procedure by which the educational administrator can select from available alternatives the best method for transporting students and can evaluate at intervals the success or failure of the method selected. The report outlines the methodology used to analyze the problem, defines the range of alternatives called the…

The insufficient part of abiogenesis theory - natural selection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ploompuu, Tõnu

2016-04-01

Abiogenesis has already been studied for a whole century. There have been studies on the synthesis of precursors of biopolymers, concentration processes and polymerization pathways, sites of initiation of life. Autoreplication has been explained. Protocells have been constructed from abiogenic membranes. But one essential aspect for life - the natural selection - has been marginalized in these investigations. Despite the convincing use of natural selection in biology for one and half century, it has not been used sufficiently in the models of the beginning of life. Pictorially - Darwin's pond model is used without darwinism. This generates an unnecessary interruption on the path for understanding the process. Natural selection is essential in abiogenesis, in the genesis of biological information system. A selection of more collaborative autoreplicate biopolymers and the depolymerisation of others was required. Only natural selection was able to combine biopolymer molecules for life. The primary natural selection can operate only in an environment with variable physical and chemical conditions. The selective agent must constantly fluctuate during a long time span and a large area. Formation of the simplest complex of life needs homeostasis. The best sites for constant fluctuations are littoral areas of oceans. Two very constant fluctuations - waves and tides - occur there. The best conditions for the origin of life were exactly in the end of the Late Heavy Bombardment at temperature nealy 100° C. Earth's surface was then protected against the UV destruction by a thick cloud cover. High evaporation at the hotter parts of shore rocks increased the concentration of the primordial soup and there was excellent selective power by routine water level fluctuations. Because of the water level fluctuations salty ocean water and fresh water from continuous downpours alternated at the littoral zones. In low temperatures the formation of life would be hindered by UV-radiation and low concentrations of monomers. Rift areas or small ponds, on the other hand, do not have sufficient continuity of chemical conditions, fluctuations and coverage area, to be suitable sites for the initiation of life. The localisation of possible sites of abiogenesis enhances the validity of studies on the chemistry of abiogenesis. Life initiated in a triple point of space by the force of a routine selective alternation of one component in a complex. This routine generated the first information of life from causal signals of the environment.

Systematic assessment of benefits and risks: study protocol for a multi-criteria decision analysis using the Analytic Hierarchy Process for comparative effectiveness research

PubMed Central

Singh, Sonal

2013-01-01

Background: Regulatory decision-making involves assessment of risks and benefits of medications at the time of approval or when relevant safety concerns arise with a medication. The Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) facilitates decision-making in complex situations involving tradeoffs by considering risks and benefits of alternatives. The AHP allows a more structured method of synthesizing and understanding evidence in the context of importance assigned to outcomes. Our objective is to evaluate the use of an AHP in a simulated committee setting selecting oral medications for type 2 diabetes.  Methods: This study protocol describes the AHP in five sequential steps using a small group of diabetes experts representing various clinical disciplines. The first step will involve defining the goal of the decision and developing the AHP model. In the next step, we will collect information about how well alternatives are expected to fulfill the decision criteria. In the third step, we will compare the ability of the alternatives to fulfill the criteria and judge the importance of eight criteria relative to the decision goal of the optimal medication choice for type 2 diabetes. We will use pairwise comparisons to sequentially compare the pairs of alternative options regarding their ability to fulfill the criteria. In the fourth step, the scales created in the third step will be combined to create a summary score indicating how well the alternatives met the decision goal. The resulting scores will be expressed as percentages and will indicate the alternative medications' relative abilities to fulfill the decision goal. The fifth step will consist of sensitivity analyses to explore the effects of changing the estimates. We will also conduct a cognitive interview and process evaluation.  Discussion: Multi-criteria decision analysis using the AHP will aid, support and enhance the ability of decision makers to make evidence-based informed decisions consistent with their values and preferences. PMID:24555077

Systematic assessment of benefits and risks: study protocol for a multi-criteria decision analysis using the Analytic Hierarchy Process for comparative effectiveness research.

PubMed

Maruthur, Nisa M; Joy, Susan; Dolan, James; Segal, Jodi B; Shihab, Hasan M; Singh, Sonal

2013-01-01

Regulatory decision-making involves assessment of risks and benefits of medications at the time of approval or when relevant safety concerns arise with a medication. The Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) facilitates decision-making in complex situations involving tradeoffs by considering risks and benefits of alternatives. The AHP allows a more structured method of synthesizing and understanding evidence in the context of importance assigned to outcomes. Our objective is to evaluate the use of an AHP in a simulated committee setting selecting oral medications for type 2 diabetes.  This study protocol describes the AHP in five sequential steps using a small group of diabetes experts representing various clinical disciplines. The first step will involve defining the goal of the decision and developing the AHP model. In the next step, we will collect information about how well alternatives are expected to fulfill the decision criteria. In the third step, we will compare the ability of the alternatives to fulfill the criteria and judge the importance of eight criteria relative to the decision goal of the optimal medication choice for type 2 diabetes. We will use pairwise comparisons to sequentially compare the pairs of alternative options regarding their ability to fulfill the criteria. In the fourth step, the scales created in the third step will be combined to create a summary score indicating how well the alternatives met the decision goal. The resulting scores will be expressed as percentages and will indicate the alternative medications' relative abilities to fulfill the decision goal. The fifth step will consist of sensitivity analyses to explore the effects of changing the estimates. We will also conduct a cognitive interview and process evaluation.  Multi-criteria decision analysis using the AHP will aid, support and enhance the ability of decision makers to make evidence-based informed decisions consistent with their values and preferences.

Stroop effects in persons with traumatic brain injury: selective attention, speed of processing, or color-naming? A meta-analysis.

PubMed

Ben-David, Boaz M; Nguyen, Linh L T; van Lieshout, Pascal H H M

2011-03-01

The color word Stroop test is the most common tool used to assess selective attention in persons with traumatic brain injury (TBI). A larger Stroop effect for TBI patients, as compared to controls, is generally interpreted as reflecting a decrease in selective attention. Alternatively, it has been suggested that this increase in Stroop effects is influenced by group differences in generalized speed of processing (SOP). The current study describes an overview and meta-analysis of 10 studies, where persons with TBI (N = 324) were compared to matched controls (N = 501) on the Stroop task. The findings confirmed that Stroop interference was significantly larger for TBI groups (p = .008). However, these differences may be strongly biased by TBI-related slowdown in generalized SOP (r² = .81 in a Brinley analysis). We also found that TBI-related changes in sensory processing may affect group differences. Mainly, a TBI-related increase in the latency difference between reading and naming the font color of a color-neutral word (r² = .96) was linked to Stroop effects. Our results suggest that, in using Stroop, it seems prudent to control for both sensory factors and SOP to differentiate potential changes in selective attention from other changes following TBI.

A Quality Function Deployment-Based Expert System for Cotton Fibre Selection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chakraborty, Shankar; Prasad, Kanika

2018-01-01

The textile industries have seen resurgence in customers' demand for quality products during the preceding few years. This product range is extremely varied, with hand-spun and hand-woven products at one end of the spectrum, while products manufactured from the capital intensive sophisticated machineries at the other end. Since, cotton fibres are predominantly employed as the raw material for manufacturing these products, their proper selection is crucial for sustainable development of the textile/spinning industries. However, availability of numerous cotton fibre alternatives with various physical properties makes this selection process unwieldy and time consuming. Thus, there is need for a structured approach that can incorporate customers' demand into the selection process. This paper demonstrates the application of a structured and logical procedure of selecting the best cotton fibre type to fulfill a set of specified end product requirements through design and development of a quality function deployment (QFD)-based expert system. The QFD technique is employed here to provide due importance to the customers' spoken and unspoken needs, and subsequently calculate the priority weights of the considered cotton fibre properties. Two real time illustrative examples are presented to explicate the applicability and potentiality of the developed expert system to resolve cotton fibre selection problems.

A Quality Function Deployment-Based Expert System for Cotton Fibre Selection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chakraborty, Shankar; Prasad, Kanika

2018-06-01

The textile industries have seen resurgence in customers' demand for quality products during the preceding few years. This product range is extremely varied, with hand-spun and hand-woven products at one end of the spectrum, while products manufactured from the capital intensive sophisticated machineries at the other end. Since, cotton fibres are predominantly employed as the raw material for manufacturing these products, their proper selection is crucial for sustainable development of the textile/spinning industries. However, availability of numerous cotton fibre alternatives with various physical properties makes this selection process unwieldy and time consuming. Thus, there is need for a structured approach that can incorporate customers' demand into the selection process. This paper demonstrates the application of a structured and logical procedure of selecting the best cotton fibre type to fulfill a set of specified end product requirements through design and development of a quality function deployment (QFD)-based expert system. The QFD technique is employed here to provide due importance to the customers' spoken and unspoken needs, and subsequently calculate the priority weights of the considered cotton fibre properties. Two real time illustrative examples are presented to explicate the applicability and potentiality of the developed expert system to resolve cotton fibre selection problems.

Meta-analysis using Dirichlet process.

PubMed

Muthukumarana, Saman; Tiwari, Ram C

2016-02-01

This article develops a Bayesian approach for meta-analysis using the Dirichlet process. The key aspect of the Dirichlet process in meta-analysis is the ability to assess evidence of statistical heterogeneity or variation in the underlying effects across study while relaxing the distributional assumptions. We assume that the study effects are generated from a Dirichlet process. Under a Dirichlet process model, the study effects parameters have support on a discrete space and enable borrowing of information across studies while facilitating clustering among studies. We illustrate the proposed method by applying it to a dataset on the Program for International Student Assessment on 30 countries. Results from the data analysis, simulation studies, and the log pseudo-marginal likelihood model selection procedure indicate that the Dirichlet process model performs better than conventional alternative methods. © The Author(s) 2012.

Conical scan impact study. Volume 2: Small local user data processing facility. [multispectral band scanner design alternatives for earth resources data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ebert, D. H.; Chase, P. E.; Dye, J.; Fahline, W. C.; Johnson, R. H.

1973-01-01

The impact of a conical scan versus a linear scan multispectral scanner (MSS) instrument on a small local-user data processing facility was studied. User data requirements were examined to determine the unique system rquirements for a low cost ground system (LCGS) compatible with the Earth Observatory Satellite (EOS) system. Candidate concepts were defined for the LCGS and preliminary designs were developed for selected concepts. The impact of a conical scan MSS versus a linear scan MSS was evaluated for the selected concepts. It was concluded that there are valid user requirements for the LCGS and, as a result of these requirements, the impact of the conical scanner is minimal, although some new hardware development for the LCGS is necessary to handle conical scan data.

Manufacturing of Proteins and Antibodies: Chapter Downstream Processing Technologies : Harvest Operations.

PubMed

Turner, Richard; Joseph, Adrian; Titchener-Hooker, Nigel; Bender, Jean

2017-08-04

Cell harvesting is the separation or retention of cells and cellular debris from the supernatant containing the target molecule Selection of harvest method strongly depends on the type of cells, mode of bioreactor operation, process scale, and characteristics of the product and cell culture fluid. Most traditional harvesting methods use some form of filtration, centrifugation, or a combination of both for cell separation and/or retention. Filtration methods include normal flow depth filtration and tangential flow microfiltration. The ability to scale down predictably the selected harvest method helps to ensure successful production and is critical for conducting small-scale characterization studies for confirming parameter targets and ranges. In this chapter we describe centrifugation and depth filtration harvesting methods, share strategies for harvest optimization, present recent developments in centrifugation scale-down models, and review alternative harvesting technologies.

24 CFR 3288.110 - Alternative Process agreements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 5 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Alternative Process agreements... HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT MANUFACTURED HOME DISPUTE RESOLUTION PROGRAM Alternative Process in HUD-Administered States § 3288.110 Alternative Process agreements. (a) Required agreement. To use the Alternative...

Dissociating the Influence of Response Selection and Task Anticipation on Corticospinal Suppression During Response Preparation

PubMed Central

Duque, Julie; Labruna, Ludovica; Cazares, Christian; Ivry, Richard B.

2014-01-01

Motor behavior requires selecting between potential actions. The role of inhibition in response selection has frequently been examined in tasks in which participants are engaged in some advance preparation prior to the presentation of an imperative signal. Under such conditions, inhibition could be related to processes associated with response selection, or to more general inhibitory processes that are engaged in high states of anticipation. In Experiment 1, we manipulated the degree of anticipatory preparation. Participants performed a choice reaction time task that required choosing between a movement of the left or right index finger, and used transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to elicit motor evoked potentials (MEPs) in the left hand agonist. In high anticipation blocks, a non-informative cue (e.g., fixation marker) preceded the imperative; in low anticipation blocks, there was no cue and participants were required to divide their attention between two tasks to further reduce anticipation. MEPs were substantially reduced before the imperative signal in high anticipation blocks. In contrast, in low anticipation blocks, MEPs remained unchanged before the imperative signal but showed a marked suppression right after the onset of the imperative. This effect occurred regardless of whether the imperative had signaled a left or right hand response. After this initial inhibition, left MEPs increased when the left hand was selected and remained suppressed when the right hand was selected. We obtained similar results in Experiment 2 except that the persistent left MEP suppression when the left hand was not selected was attenuated when the alternative response involved a non-homologous effector (right foot). These results indicate that, even in the absence of an anticipatory period, inhibitory mechanisms are engaged during response selection, possibly to prevent the occurrence of premature and inappropriate responses during a competitive selection process. PMID:25128431

Multicriteria Decision Analysis of Material Selection of High Energy Performance Residential Building

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Čuláková, Monika; Vilčeková, Silvia; Katunská, Jana; Krídlová Burdová, Eva

2013-11-01

In world with limited amount of energy sources and with serious environmental pollution, interest in comparing the environmental embodied impacts of buildings using different structure systems and alternative building materials will be increased. This paper shows the significance of life cycle energy and carbon perspective and the material selection in reducing energy consumption and emissions production in the built environment. The study evaluates embodied environmental impacts of nearly zero energy residential structures. The environmental assessment uses framework of LCA within boundary: cradle to gate. Designed alternative scenarios of material compositions are also assessed in terms of energy effectiveness through selected thermal-physical parameters. This study uses multi-criteria decision analysis for making clearer selection between alternative scenarios. The results of MCDA show that alternative E from materials on nature plant base (wood, straw bales, massive wood panel) present possible way to sustainable perspective of nearly zero energy houses in Slovak republic

Cost, energy, global warming, eutrophication and local human health impacts of community water and sanitation service options.

PubMed

Schoen, Mary E; Xue, Xiaobo; Wood, Alison; Hawkins, Troy R; Garland, Jay; Ashbolt, Nicholas J

2017-02-01

We compared water and sanitation system options for a coastal community across selected sustainability metrics, including environmental impact (i.e., life cycle eutrophication potential, energy consumption, and global warming potential), equivalent annual cost, and local human health impact. We computed normalized metric scores, which we used to discuss the options' strengths and weaknesses, and conducted sensitivity analysis of the scores to changes in variable and uncertain input parameters. The alternative systems, which combined centralized drinking water with sanitation services based on the concepts of energy and nutrient recovery as well as on-site water reuse, had reduced environmental and local human health impacts and costs than the conventional, centralized option. Of the selected sustainability metrics, the greatest advantages of the alternative community water systems (compared to the conventional system) were in terms of local human health impact and eutrophication potential, despite large, outstanding uncertainties. Of the alternative options, the systems with on-site water reuse and energy recovery technologies had the least local human health impact; however, the cost of these options was highly variable and the energy consumption was comparable to on-site alternatives without water reuse or energy recovery, due to on-site reuse treatment. Future work should aim to reduce the uncertainty in the energy recovery process and explore the health risks associated with less costly, on-site water treatment options. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Treating Youths with Selective Mutism with an Alternating Design of Exposure-Based Practice and Contingency Management

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vecchio, Jennifer; Kearney, Christopher A.

2009-01-01

Selective mutism is a severe childhood disorder involving failure to speak in public situations in which speaking is expected. The present study examined 9 youths with selective mutism treated with child-focused, exposure-based practices and parent-focused contingency management via an alternating treatments design. Broadband measures of…

75 FR 31465 - United States, State of Illinois, State of Colorado, and State of Indiana

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-06-03

..., and often offer full-service restaurants or in-service dining. Premiere theatres also differ from... selection is deemed not to be a suitable alternative, the United States shall in its sole discretion select... suitable alternative pursuant to Section VI(A). If AMC's selection is deemed not to be a suitable...

76 FR 5611 - Notice of Availability of the Environmental Assessment for the Short Term Sentences Acquisition

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-02-01

... action alternatives and the No Action Alternative. Natural, cultural, and socioeconomic resource impacts.... Cohn, Chief, or Issac J. Gaston, Site Selection Specialist, Capacity Planning and Site Selection Branch..., Capacity Planning and Site Selection Branch. [FR Doc. 2011-1817 Filed 1-31-11; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE P ...

An assessment of potential impact of alternative fluorocarbons on tropospheric ozone

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Niki, Hiromi

1990-01-01

While the chlorofuorocarbons (CFCs) such as CFC-11 (CFCl3) and CFC-12 (CF2Cl2) are chemically inert in the troposphere, the hydrogen-containing halocarbons being considered as their replacements can, to a large extent, be removed in the troposphere by the HO radical. These alternative halocarbons include the hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) 123 (CF3CHCl2), 141b (CFCl2CH3), 142b (CF2ClCH3), 22 (CHF2Cl), and 124 (CF3CHFCl) and the hydrofluorocarbons (HCFs) 134a (CF3CH2F), 152a (CHF2CH3) and 125 (CF3CHF2). Listed are the rate constants (k) for the HO radical reaction of these compounds and their estimated chemical lifetimes in the troposphere. In this table, values of the lifetimes of these selected HCFCs and HCFs are seen to vary by more than a factor of more than ten ranging from 1.6 years for HFC 152a and HCFC 125 to as long as 28 years for HFC 125. Clearly, from the standpoint of avoiding or minimizing impact on stratospheric O3, those halocarbons with short tropospheric lifetimes are the desirable alternates. However, potential environmental consequences of their degradation in the troposphere should be assessed and taken into account in the selection process.

Green polymer chemistry: enzyme catalysis for polymer functionalization.

PubMed

Sen, Sanghamitra; Puskas, Judit E

2015-05-21

Enzyme catalyzed reactions are green alternative approaches to functionalize polymers compared to conventional methods. This technique is especially advantageous due to the high selectivity, high efficiency, milder reaction conditions, and recyclability of enzymes. Selected reactions can be conducted under solventless conditions without the application of metal catalysts. Hence this process is becoming more recognized in the arena of biomedical applications, as the toxicity created by solvents and metal catalyst residues can be completely avoided. In this review we will discuss fundamental aspects of chemical reactions biocatalyzed by Candida antarctica lipase B, and their application to create new functionalized polymers, including the regio- and chemoselectivity of the reactions.

Satellite Power System (SPS)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Edler, H. G.

1978-01-01

Potential organizational options for a solar power satellite system (SPS) were investigated. Selection and evaluation criteria were determined to include timeliness, reliability, and adequacy to contribute meaningfully to the U.S. supply; political feasibility (both national and international); and cost effectiveness (including environmental and other external costs). Based on these criteria, four organizational alternatives appeared to offer reasonable promise as potential options for SPS. A large number of key issues emerged as being factors which would influence the final selection process. Among these issues were a variety having to do with international law, international institutions, environmental controls, economics, operational flexibility, congressional policies, commercial-vs-governmental ownership, national dedication, and national and operational stategic issues.

Using the regulation of accuracy to study performance when the correct answer is not known.

PubMed

Luna, Karlos; Martín-Luengo, Beatriz

2017-08-01

We examined memory performance in multiple-choice questions when correct answers were not always present. How do participants answer when they are aware that the correct alternative may not be present? To answer this question we allowed participants to decide on the number of alternatives in their final answer (the plurality option), and whether they wanted to report or withhold their answer (report option). We also studied the memory benefits when both the plurality and the report options were available. In two experiments participants watched a crime and then answered questions with five alternatives. Half of the questions were presented with the correct alternative and half were not. Participants selected one alternative and rated confidence, then selected three alternatives and again rated confidence, and finally indicated whether they preferred the answer with one or with three alternatives (plurality option). Lastly, they decided whether to report or withhold the answer (report option). Results showed that participants' confidence in their selections was higher, that they chose more single answers, and that they preferred to report more often when the correct alternative was presented. We also attempted to classify a posteriori questions as either presented with or without the correct alternative from participants' selection. Classification was better than chance, and encouraging, but the forensic application of the classification technique is still limited since there was a large percentage of responses that were incorrectly classified. Our results also showed that the memory benefits of both plurality and report options overlap. © 2017 Scandinavian Psychological Associations and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Active heat exchange system development for latent heat thermal energy storage

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lefrois, R. T.; Mathur, A. K.

1980-01-01

Five tasks to select, design, fabricate, test and evaluate candidate active heat exchanger modules for future applications to solar and conventional utility power plants were discussed. Alternative mechanizations of active heat exchange concepts were analyzed for use with heat of fusion phase change materials (PCMs) in the temperature range of 250 to 350 C. Twenty-six heat exchange concepts were reviewed, and eight were selected for detailed assessment. Two candidates were selected for small-scale experimentation: a coated tube and shell heat exchanger and a direct contact reflux boiler. A dilute eutectic mixture of sodium nitrate and sodium hydroxide was selected as the PCM from over 50 candidate inorganic salt mixtures. Based on a salt screening process, eight major component salts were selected initially for further evaluation. The most attractive major components in the temperature range of 250 to 350 C appeared to be NaNO3, NaNO2, and NaOH. Sketches of the two active heat exchange concepts selected for test are given.

Active heat exchange system development for latent heat thermal energy storage

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lefrois, R. T.; Mathur, A. K.

1980-04-01

Five tasks to select, design, fabricate, test and evaluate candidate active heat exchanger modules for future applications to solar and conventional utility power plants were discussed. Alternative mechanizations of active heat exchange concepts were analyzed for use with heat of fusion phase change materials (PCMs) in the temperature range of 250 to 350 C. Twenty-six heat exchange concepts were reviewed, and eight were selected for detailed assessment. Two candidates were selected for small-scale experimentation: a coated tube and shell heat exchanger and a direct contact reflux boiler. A dilute eutectic mixture of sodium nitrate and sodium hydroxide was selected as the PCM from over 50 candidate inorganic salt mixtures. Based on a salt screening process, eight major component salts were selected initially for further evaluation. The most attractive major components in the temperature range of 250 to 350 C appeared to be NaNO3, NaNO2, and NaOH. Sketches of the two active heat exchange concepts selected for test are given.

Method to control residual stress in a film structure and a system thereof

DOEpatents

Parthum, Sr., Michael J.

2008-12-30

A method for controlling residual stress in a structure in a MEMS device and a structure thereof includes selecting a total thickness and an overall equivalent stress for the structure. A thickness for each of at least one set of alternating first and second layers is determined to control an internal stress with respect to a neutral axis for each of the at least alternating first and second layers and to form the structure based on the selected total thickness and the selected overall equivalent stress. Each of the at least alternating first and second layers is deposited to the determined thickness for each of the at least alternating first and second layers to form the structure.

Analytical network process based optimum cluster head selection in wireless sensor network.

PubMed

Farman, Haleem; Javed, Huma; Jan, Bilal; Ahmad, Jamil; Ali, Shaukat; Khalil, Falak Naz; Khan, Murad

2017-01-01

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) are becoming ubiquitous in everyday life due to their applications in weather forecasting, surveillance, implantable sensors for health monitoring and other plethora of applications. WSN is equipped with hundreds and thousands of small sensor nodes. As the size of a sensor node decreases, critical issues such as limited energy, computation time and limited memory become even more highlighted. In such a case, network lifetime mainly depends on efficient use of available resources. Organizing nearby nodes into clusters make it convenient to efficiently manage each cluster as well as the overall network. In this paper, we extend our previous work of grid-based hybrid network deployment approach, in which merge and split technique has been proposed to construct network topology. Constructing topology through our proposed technique, in this paper we have used analytical network process (ANP) model for cluster head selection in WSN. Five distinct parameters: distance from nodes (DistNode), residual energy level (REL), distance from centroid (DistCent), number of times the node has been selected as cluster head (TCH) and merged node (MN) are considered for CH selection. The problem of CH selection based on these parameters is tackled as a multi criteria decision system, for which ANP method is used for optimum cluster head selection. Main contribution of this work is to check the applicability of ANP model for cluster head selection in WSN. In addition, sensitivity analysis is carried out to check the stability of alternatives (available candidate nodes) and their ranking for different scenarios. The simulation results show that the proposed method outperforms existing energy efficient clustering protocols in terms of optimum CH selection and minimizing CH reselection process that results in extending overall network lifetime. This paper analyzes that ANP method used for CH selection with better understanding of the dependencies of different components involved in the evaluation process.

Analytical network process based optimum cluster head selection in wireless sensor network

PubMed Central

Javed, Huma; Jan, Bilal; Ahmad, Jamil; Ali, Shaukat; Khalil, Falak Naz; Khan, Murad

2017-01-01

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) are becoming ubiquitous in everyday life due to their applications in weather forecasting, surveillance, implantable sensors for health monitoring and other plethora of applications. WSN is equipped with hundreds and thousands of small sensor nodes. As the size of a sensor node decreases, critical issues such as limited energy, computation time and limited memory become even more highlighted. In such a case, network lifetime mainly depends on efficient use of available resources. Organizing nearby nodes into clusters make it convenient to efficiently manage each cluster as well as the overall network. In this paper, we extend our previous work of grid-based hybrid network deployment approach, in which merge and split technique has been proposed to construct network topology. Constructing topology through our proposed technique, in this paper we have used analytical network process (ANP) model for cluster head selection in WSN. Five distinct parameters: distance from nodes (DistNode), residual energy level (REL), distance from centroid (DistCent), number of times the node has been selected as cluster head (TCH) and merged node (MN) are considered for CH selection. The problem of CH selection based on these parameters is tackled as a multi criteria decision system, for which ANP method is used for optimum cluster head selection. Main contribution of this work is to check the applicability of ANP model for cluster head selection in WSN. In addition, sensitivity analysis is carried out to check the stability of alternatives (available candidate nodes) and their ranking for different scenarios. The simulation results show that the proposed method outperforms existing energy efficient clustering protocols in terms of optimum CH selection and minimizing CH reselection process that results in extending overall network lifetime. This paper analyzes that ANP method used for CH selection with better understanding of the dependencies of different components involved in the evaluation process. PMID:28719616

Application of sensitivity analysis for assessment of de-desertification alternatives in the central Iran by using Triantaphyllou method.

PubMed

Sadeghi Ravesh, Mohammad Hassan; Ahmadi, Hassan; Zehtabian, Gholamreza

2011-08-01

Desertification, land degradation in arid, semi-arid, and dry sub-humid regions, is a global environmental problem. With respect to increasing importance of desertification and its complexity, the necessity of attention to the optimal de-desertification alternatives is essential. Therefore, this work presents an analytic hierarchy process (AHP) method to objectively select the optimal de-desertification alternatives based on the results of interviews with experts in Khezr Abad region, central Iran as the case study. This model was used in Yazd Khezr Abad region to evaluate the efficiency in presentation of better alternatives related to personal and environmental situations. Obtained results indicate that the criterion "proportion and adaptation to the environment" with the weighted average of 33.6% is the most important criterion from experts viewpoints. While prevention alternatives of land usage unsuitable of reveres and conversion with 22.88% mean weight and vegetation cover development and reclamation with 21.9% mean weight are recognized ordinarily as the most important de-desertification alternatives in region. Finally, sensitivity analysis is performed in detail by varying the objective factor decision weight, the priority weight of subjective factors, and the gain factors. After the fulfillment of sensitivity analysis and determination of the most sensitive criteria and alternatives, the former classification and ranking of alternatives does not change so much, and it was observed that unsuitable land use alternative with the preference degree of 22.7% was still in the first order of priority. The final priority of livestock grazing control alternative was replaced with the alternative of modification of ground water harvesting.

Radiation-induced alternative transcripts as detected in total and polysome-bound mRNA.

PubMed

Wahba, Amy; Ryan, Michael C; Shankavaram, Uma T; Camphausen, Kevin; Tofilon, Philip J

2018-01-02

Alternative splicing is a critical event in the posttranscriptional regulation of gene expression. To investigate whether this process influences radiation-induced gene expression we defined the effects of ionizing radiation on the generation of alternative transcripts in total cellular mRNA (the transcriptome) and polysome-bound mRNA (the translatome) of the human glioblastoma stem-like cell line NSC11. For these studies, RNA-Seq profiles from control and irradiated cells were compared using the program SpliceSeq to identify transcripts and splice variations induced by radiation. As compared to the transcriptome (total RNA) of untreated cells, the radiation-induced transcriptome contained 92 splice events suggesting that radiation induced alternative splicing. As compared to the translatome (polysome-bound RNA) of untreated cells, the radiation-induced translatome contained 280 splice events of which only 24 were overlapping with the radiation-induced transcriptome. These results suggest that radiation not only modifies alternative splicing of precursor mRNA, but also results in the selective association of existing mRNA isoforms with polysomes. Comparison of radiation-induced alternative transcripts to radiation-induced gene expression in total RNA revealed little overlap (about 3%). In contrast, in the radiation-induced translatome, about 38% of the induced alternative transcripts corresponded to genes whose expression level was affected in the translatome. This study suggests that whereas radiation induces alternate splicing, the alternative transcripts present at the time of irradiation may play a role in the radiation-induced translational control of gene expression and thus cellular radioresponse.

Synthesizing Equivalence Indices for the Comparative Evaluation of Technoeconomic Efficiency of Industrial Processes at the Design/Re-engineering Level

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fotilas, P.; Batzias, A. F.

2007-12-01

The equivalence indices synthesized for the comparative evaluation of technoeconomic efficiency of industrial processes are of critical importance since they serve as both, (i) positive/analytic descriptors of the physicochemical nature of the process and (ii) measures of effectiveness, especially helpful for investigated competitiveness in the industrial/energy/environmental sector of the economy. In the present work, a new algorithmic procedure has been developed, which initially standardizes a real industrial process, then analyzes it as a compromise of two ideal processes, and finally synthesizes the index that can represent/reconstruct the real process as a result of the trade-off between the two ideal processes taking as parental prototypes. The same procedure makes fuzzy multicriteria ranking within a set of pre-selected industrial processes for two reasons: (a) to analyze the process most representative of the production/treatment under consideration, (b) to use the `second best' alternative as a dialectic pole in absence of the two ideal processes mentioned above. An implantation of this procedure is presented, concerning a facility of biological wastewater treatment with six alternatives: activated sludge through (i) continuous-flow incompletely-stirred tank reactors in series, (ii) a plug flow reactor with dispersion, (iii) an oxidation ditch, and biological processing through (iv) a trickling filter, (v) rotating contactors, (vi) shallow ponds. The criteria used for fuzzy (to count for uncertainty) ranking are capital cost, operating cost, environmental friendliness, reliability, flexibility, extendibility. Two complementary indices were synthesized for the (ii)-alternative ranked first and their quantitative expressions were derived, covering a variety of kinetic models as well as recycle/bypass conditions. Finally, analysis of estimating the optimal values of these indices at maximum technoeconomic efficiency is presented and the implications (expected to be) caused by exogenous and endogenous factors (e.g., environmental standards change and innovative energy savings/substitution, respectively) are discussed by means of marginal efficiency graphs.

Value-Based Assessment of New Medical Technologies: Towards a Robust Methodological Framework for the Application of Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis in the Context of Health Technology Assessment.

PubMed

Angelis, Aris; Kanavos, Panos

2016-05-01

In recent years, multiple criteria decision analysis (MCDA) has emerged as a likely alternative to address shortcomings in health technology assessment (HTA) by offering a more holistic perspective to value assessment and acting as an alternative priority setting tool. In this paper, we argue that MCDA needs to subscribe to robust methodological processes related to the selection of objectives, criteria and attributes in order to be meaningful in the context of healthcare decision making and fulfil its role in value-based assessment (VBA). We propose a methodological process, based on multi-attribute value theory (MAVT) methods comprising five distinct phases, outline the stages involved in each phase and discuss their relevance in the HTA process. Importantly, criteria and attributes need to satisfy a set of desired properties, otherwise the outcome of the analysis can produce spurious results and misleading recommendations. Assuming the methodological process we propose is adhered to, the application of MCDA presents three very distinct advantages to decision makers in the context of HTA and VBA: first, it acts as an instrument for eliciting preferences on the performance of alternative options across a wider set of explicit criteria, leading to a more complete assessment of value; second, it allows the elicitation of preferences across the criteria themselves to reflect differences in their relative importance; and, third, the entire process of preference elicitation can be informed by direct stakeholder engagement, and can therefore reflect their own preferences. All features are fully transparent and facilitate decision making.

A contrast between DEMATEL-ANP and ANP methods for six sigma project selection: a case study in healthcare industry.

PubMed

Ortíz, Miguel A; Felizzola, Heriberto A; Nieto Isaza, Santiago

2015-01-01

The project selection process is a crucial step for healthcare organizations at the moment of implementing six sigma programs in both administrative and caring processes. However, six-sigma project selection is often defined as a decision making process with interaction and feedback between criteria; so that it is necessary to explore different methods to help healthcare companies to determine the Six-sigma projects that provide the maximum benefits. This paper describes the application of both ANP (Analytic Network process) and DEMATEL (Decision Making trial and evaluation laboratory)-ANP in a public medical centre to establish the most suitable six sigma project and finally, these methods were compared to evaluate their performance in the decision making process. ANP and DEMATEL-ANP were used to evaluate 6 six sigma project alternatives under an evaluation model composed by 3 strategies, 4 criteria and 15 sub-criteria. Judgement matrixes were completed by the six sigma team whose participants worked in different departments of the medical centre. The improving of care opportunity in obstetric outpatients was elected as the most suitable six sigma project with a score of 0,117 as contribution to the organization goals. DEMATEL-ANP performed better at decision making process since it reduced the error probability due to interactions and feedback. ANP and DEMATEL-ANP effectively supported six sigma project selection processes, helping to create a complete framework that guarantees the prioritization of projects that provide maximum benefits to healthcare organizations. As DEMATEL- ANP performed better, it should be used by practitioners involved in decisions related to the implementation of six sigma programs in healthcare sector accompanied by the adequate identification of the evaluation criteria that support the decision making model. Thus, this comparative study contributes to choosing more effective approaches in this field. Suggestions of further work are also proposed so that these methods can be applied more adequate in six sigma project selection processes in healthcare.

A contrast between DEMATEL-ANP and ANP methods for six sigma project selection: a case study in healthcare industry

PubMed Central

2015-01-01

Background The project selection process is a crucial step for healthcare organizations at the moment of implementing six sigma programs in both administrative and caring processes. However, six-sigma project selection is often defined as a decision making process with interaction and feedback between criteria; so that it is necessary to explore different methods to help healthcare companies to determine the Six-sigma projects that provide the maximum benefits. This paper describes the application of both ANP (Analytic Network process) and DEMATEL (Decision Making trial and evaluation laboratory)-ANP in a public medical centre to establish the most suitable six sigma project and finally, these methods were compared to evaluate their performance in the decision making process. Methods ANP and DEMATEL-ANP were used to evaluate 6 six sigma project alternatives under an evaluation model composed by 3 strategies, 4 criteria and 15 sub-criteria. Judgement matrixes were completed by the six sigma team whose participants worked in different departments of the medical centre. Results The improving of care opportunity in obstetric outpatients was elected as the most suitable six sigma project with a score of 0,117 as contribution to the organization goals. DEMATEL-ANP performed better at decision making process since it reduced the error probability due to interactions and feedback. Conclusions ANP and DEMATEL-ANP effectively supported six sigma project selection processes, helping to create a complete framework that guarantees the prioritization of projects that provide maximum benefits to healthcare organizations. As DEMATEL- ANP performed better, it should be used by practitioners involved in decisions related to the implementation of six sigma programs in healthcare sector accompanied by the adequate identification of the evaluation criteria that support the decision making model. Thus, this comparative study contributes to choosing more effective approaches in this field. Suggestions of further work are also proposed so that these methods can be applied more adequate in six sigma project selection processes in healthcare. PMID:26391445

Environmental Assessment for the Strategic Petroleum Reserve West Hackberry Facility Raw Water Intake Pipeline Replacement Cameron and Calcasieu Parishes, Louisiana

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

N /A

The proposed action and three alternatives, including a No Build alternative, were evaluated along the existing RWIPL alignment to accommodate the placement of the proposed RWIPL. Construction feasibility, reasonableness and potential environmental impacts were considered during the evaluation of the four actions (and action alternatives) for the proposed RWIPL activities. Reasonable actions were identified as those actions which were considered to be supported by common sense and sound technical principles. Feasible actions were those actions which were considered to be capable of being accomplished, practicable and non-excessive in terms of cost. The evaluation process considered the following design specifications, whichmore » were determined to be important to the feasibility of the overall project. The proposed RWIPL replacement project must therefore: (1) Comply with the existing design basis and criteria, (2) Maintain continuity of operation of the facility during construction, (3)Provide the required service life, (4) Be cost effective, (5)Improve the operation and maintenance of the pipeline, and (6) Maintain minimal environmental impact while meeting the performance requirements. Sizing of the pipe, piping construction materials, construction method (e.g., open-cut trench, directional drilling, etc.) and the acquisition of new Right-of-Way (ROW) were additionally evaluated in the preliminary alternative identification, selection and screening process.« less

Brazilian Center for the Validation of Alternative Methods (BraCVAM) and the process of validation in Brazil.

PubMed

Presgrave, Octavio; Moura, Wlamir; Caldeira, Cristiane; Pereira, Elisabete; Bôas, Maria H Villas; Eskes, Chantra

2016-03-01

The need for the creation of a Brazilian centre for the validation of alternative methods was recognised in 2008, and members of academia, industry and existing international validation centres immediately engaged with the idea. In 2012, co-operation between the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (FIOCRUZ) and the Brazilian Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA) instigated the establishment of the Brazilian Center for the Validation of Alternative Methods (BraCVAM), which was officially launched in 2013. The Brazilian validation process follows OECD Guidance Document No. 34, where BraCVAM functions as the focal point to identify and/or receive requests from parties interested in submitting tests for validation. BraCVAM then informs the Brazilian National Network on Alternative Methods (RENaMA) of promising assays, which helps with prioritisation and contributes to the validation studies of selected assays. A Validation Management Group supervises the validation study, and the results obtained are peer-reviewed by an ad hoc Scientific Review Committee, organised under the auspices of BraCVAM. Based on the peer-review outcome, BraCVAM will prepare recommendations on the validated test method, which will be sent to the National Council for the Control of Animal Experimentation (CONCEA). CONCEA is in charge of the regulatory adoption of all validated test methods in Brazil, following an open public consultation. 2016 FRAME.

Speed in Information Processing with a Computer Driven Visual Display in a Real-time Digital Simulation. M.S. Thesis - Virginia Polytechnic Inst.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kyle, R. G.

1972-01-01

Information transfer between the operator and computer-generated display systems is an area where the human factors engineer discovers little useful design data relating human performance to system effectiveness. This study utilized a computer-driven, cathode-ray-tube graphic display to quantify human response speed in a sequential information processing task. The performance criteria was response time to sixteen cell elements of a square matrix display. A stimulus signal instruction specified selected cell locations by both row and column identification. An equal probable number code, from one to four, was assigned at random to the sixteen cells of the matrix and correspondingly required one of four, matched keyed-response alternatives. The display format corresponded to a sequence of diagnostic system maintenance events, that enable the operator to verify prime system status, engage backup redundancy for failed subsystem components, and exercise alternate decision-making judgements. The experimental task bypassed the skilled decision-making element and computer processing time, in order to determine a lower bound on the basic response speed for given stimulus/response hardware arrangement.

Disaggregation and separation dynamics of magnetic particles in a microfluidic flow under an alternating gradient magnetic field

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cao, Quanliang; Li, Zhenhao; Wang, Zhen; Qi, Fan; Han, Xiaotao

2018-05-01

How to prevent particle aggregation in the magnetic separation process is of great importance for high-purity separation, while it is a challenging issue in practice. In this work, we report a novel method to solve this problem for improving the selectivity of size-based separation by use of a gradient alternating magnetic field. The specially designed magnetic field is capable of dynamically adjusting the magnetic field direction without changing the direction of magnetic gradient force acting on the particles. Using direct numerical simulations, we show that particles within a certain center-to-center distance are inseparable under a gradient static magnetic field since they are easy aggregated and then start moving together. By contrast, it has been demonstrated that alternating repulsive and attractive interaction forces between particles can be generated to avoid the formation of aggregations when the alternating gradient magnetic field with a given alternating frequency is applied, enabling these particles to be continuously separated based on size-dependent properties. The proposed magnetic separation method and simulation results have the significance for fundamental understanding of particle dynamic behavior and improving the separation efficiency.

Influences of credibility of testimony and strength of statistical evidence on children’s and adolescents’ reasoning

PubMed Central

Kail, Robert V.

2013-01-01

According to dual-process models that include analytic and heuristic modes of processing, analytic processing is often expected to become more common with development. Consistent with this view, on reasoning problems, adolescents are more likely than children to select alternatives that are backed by statistical evidence. It is shown here that this pattern depends on the quality of the statistical evidence and the quality of the testimonial that is the typical alternative to statistical evidence. In Experiment 1, 9- and 13-year-olds (N = 64) were presented with scenarios in which solid statistical evidence was contrasted with casual or expert testimonial evidence. When testimony was casual, children relied on it but adolescents did not; when testimony was expert, both children and adolescents relied on it. In Experiment 2, 9- and 13-year-olds (N = 83) were presented with scenarios in which casual testimonial evidence was contrasted with weak or strong statistical evidence. When statistical evidence was weak, children and adolescents relied on both testimonial and statistical evidence; when statistical evidence was strong, most children and adolescents relied on it. Results are discussed in terms of their implications for dual-process accounts of cognitive development. PMID:23735681

Non-aqueous cleaning solvent substitution

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Meier, Gerald J.

1994-01-01

A variety of environmental, safety, and health concerns exist over use of chlorinated and fluorinated cleaning solvents. Sandia National Laboratories, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories, and the Kansas City Division of AlliedSignal have combined efforts to focus on finding alternative cleaning solvents and processes which are effective, environmentally safe, and compliant with local, state, and federal regulations. An alternative solvent has been identified, qualified, and implemented into production of complex electronic assemblies, where aqueous and semi-aqueous cleaning processes are not allowed. Extensive compatibility studies were performed with components, piece-parts, and materials. Electrical testing and accelerated aging were used to screen for detrimental, long-term effects. A terpene, d-limonene, was selected as the solvent of choice, and it was found to be compatible with the components and materials tested. A brief history of the overall project will be presented, along with representative cleaning efficiency results, compatibility results, and residual solvent data. The electronics industry is constantly searching for proven methods and environmentally-safe materials to use in manufacturing processes. The information in this presentation will provide another option to consider on future projects for applications requiring high levels of quality, reliability, and cleanliness from non-aqueous cleaning processes.

Coupling between alternative polyadenylation and alternative splicing is limited to terminal introns.

PubMed

Movassat, Maliheh; Crabb, Tara L; Busch, Anke; Yao, Chengguo; Reynolds, Derrick J; Shi, Yongsheng; Hertel, Klemens J

2016-07-02

Alternative polyadenylation has been implicated as an important regulator of gene expression. In some cases, alternative polyadenylation is known to couple with alternative splicing to influence last intron removal. However, it is unknown whether alternative polyadenylation events influence alternative splicing decisions at upstream exons. Knockdown of the polyadenylation factors CFIm25 or CstF64 in HeLa cells was used as an approach in identifying alternative polyadenylation and alternative splicing events on a genome-wide scale. Although hundreds of alternative splicing events were found to be differentially spliced in the knockdown of CstF64, genes associated with alternative polyadenylation did not exhibit an increased incidence of alternative splicing. These results demonstrate that the coupling between alternative polyadenylation and alternative splicing is usually limited to defining the last exon. The striking influence of CstF64 knockdown on alternative splicing can be explained through its effects on UTR selection of known splicing regulators such as hnRNP A2/B1, thereby indirectly influencing splice site selection. We conclude that changes in the expression of the polyadenylation factor CstF64 influences alternative splicing through indirect effects.

Use of life cycle assessments to evaluate the environmental footprint of contaminated sediment remediation.

PubMed

Sparrevik, Magnus; Saloranta, Tuomo; Cornelissen, Gerard; Eek, Espen; Fet, Annik Magerholm; Breedveld, Gijs D; Linkov, Igor

2011-05-15

Ecological and human risks often drive the selection of remedial alternatives for contaminated sediments. Traditional human and ecological risk assessment (HERA) includes assessing risk for benthic organisms and aquatic fauna associated with exposure to contaminated sediments before and after remediation as well as risk for human exposure but does not consider the environmental footprint associated with implementing remedial alternatives. Assessment of environmental effects over the whole life cycle (i.e., Life Cycle Assessment, LCA) could complement HERA and help in selecting the most appropriate sediment management alternative. Even though LCA has been developed and applied in multiple environmental management cases, applications to contaminated sediments and marine ecosystems are in general less frequent. This paper implements LCA methodology for the case of the polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and -furans (PCDD/F)-contaminated Grenland fjord in Norway. LCA was applied to investigate the environmental footprint of different active and passive thin-layer capping alternatives as compared to natural recovery. The results showed that capping was preferable to natural recovery when analysis is limited to effects related to the site contamination. Incorporation of impacts related to the use of resources and energy during the implementation of a thin layer cap increase the environmental footprint by over 1 order of magnitude, making capping inferior to the natural recovery alternative. Use of biomass-derived activated carbon, where carbon dioxide is sequestered during the production process, reduces the overall environmental impact to that of natural recovery. The results from this study show that LCA may be a valuable tool for assessing the environmental footprint of sediment remediation projects and for sustainable sediment management.

Decision Support Model for Selection Technologies in Processing of Palm Oil Industrial Liquid Waste

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ishak, Aulia; Ali, Amir Yazid bin

2017-12-01

The palm oil industry continues to grow from year to year. Processing of the palm oil industry into crude palm oil (CPO) and palm kernel oil (PKO). The ratio of the amount of oil produced by both products is 30% of the raw material. This means that 70% is palm oil waste. The amount of palm oil waste will increase in line with the development of the palm oil industry. The amount of waste generated by the palm oil industry if it is not handled properly and effectively will contribute significantly to environmental damage. Industrial activities ranging from raw materials to produce products will disrupt the lives of people around the factory. There are many alternative technologies available to process other industries, but problems that often occur are difficult to implement the most appropriate technology. The purpose of this research is to develop a database of waste processing technology, looking for qualitative and quantitative criteria to select technology and develop Decision Support System (DSS) that can help make decisions. The method used to achieve the objective of this research is to develop a questionnaire to identify waste processing technology and develop the questionnaire to find appropriate database technology. Methods of data analysis performed on the system by using Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and to build the model by using the MySQL Software that can be used as a tool in the evaluation and selection of palm oil mill processing technology.

Ultrasound-assisted oxidative desulfurization of liquid fuels and its industrial application.

PubMed

Wu, Zhilin; Ondruschka, Bernd

2010-08-01

Latest environmental regulations require a very deep desulfurization to meet the ultra-low sulfur diesel (ULSD, 15 ppm sulfur) specifications. Due to the disadvantages of hydrotreating technology on the slashing production conditions, costs and safety as well as environmental protection, the ultrasound-assisted oxidative desulfurization (UAOD) as an alternative technology has been developed. UAOD process selectively oxidizes sulfur in common thiophenes in diesel to sulfoxides and sulfones which can be removed via selective adsorption or extractant. SulphCo has successfully used a 5000 barrel/day mobile "Sonocracking" unit to duplicate on a commercial scale its proprietary process that applies ultrasonics at relatively low temperatures and pressures. The UAOD technology estimate capital costs less than half the cost of a new high-pressure hydrotreater. The physical and chemical mechanisms of UAOD process are illustrated, and the effective factors, such as ultrasonic frequency and power, oxidants, catalysts, phase-transfer agent, extractant and adsorbent, on reaction kinetics and product recovery are discussed in this review. Copyright 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Thermoplastic Elastomer Part Color as Function of Temperature Histories and Oxygen Atmosphere During Selective Laser Sintering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kummert, C.; Josupeit, S.; Schmid, H.-J.

2018-03-01

The influence of selective laser sintering (SLS) parameters on PA12 part properties is well known, but research on other materials is rare. One alternative material is a thermoplastic elastomer (TPE) called PrimePart ST that is more elastic and shows a distinct SLS processing behavior. It undergoes a three-dimensional temperature distribution during the SLS process within the TPE part cake. To examine this further, a temperature measurement system that allows temperature measurements inside the part cake is applied to TPE in the present work. Position-dependent temperature histories are directly correlated with the color and mechanical properties of built parts and are in very good agreement with artificial heat treatment in a furnace. Furthermore, it is clearly shown that the yellowish discoloration of parts in different intensities is not only temperature dependent but also influenced by the residual oxygen content in the process atmosphere. Nevertheless, the discoloration has no influence on the mechanical part properties.

Multi-Criteria Decision Making for a Spatial Decision Support System on the Analysis of Changing Risk

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Olyazadeh, Roya; van Westen, Cees; Bakker, Wim H.; Aye, Zar Chi; Jaboyedoff, Michel; Derron, Marc-Henri

2014-05-01

Natural hazard risk management requires decision making in several stages. Decision making on alternatives for risk reduction planning starts with an intelligence phase for recognition of the decision problems and identifying the objectives. Development of the alternatives and assigning the variable by decision makers to each alternative are employed to the design phase. Final phase evaluates the optimal choice by comparing the alternatives, defining indicators, assigning a weight to each and ranking them. This process is referred to as Multi-Criteria Decision Making analysis (MCDM), Multi-Criteria Evaluation (MCE) or Multi-Criteria Analysis (MCA). In the framework of the ongoing 7th Framework Program "CHANGES" (2011-2014, Grant Agreement No. 263953) of the European Commission, a Spatial Decision Support System is under development, that has the aim to analyse changes in hydro-meteorological risk and provide support to selecting the best risk reduction alternative. This paper describes the module for Multi-Criteria Decision Making analysis (MCDM) that incorporates monetary and non-monetary criteria in the analysis of the optimal alternative. The MCDM module consists of several components. The first step is to define criteria (or Indicators) which are subdivided into disadvantages (criteria that indicate the difficulty for implementing the risk reduction strategy, also referred to as Costs) and advantages (criteria that indicate the favorability, also referred to as benefits). In the next step the stakeholders can use the developed web-based tool for prioritizing criteria and decision matrix. Public participation plays a role in decision making and this is also planned through the use of a mobile web-version where the general local public can indicate their agreement on the proposed alternatives. The application is being tested through a case study related to risk reduction of a mountainous valley in the Alps affected by flooding. Four alternatives are evaluated in this case study namely: construction of defense structures, relocation, implementation of an early warning system and spatial planning regulations. Some of the criteria are determined partly in other modules of the CHANGES SDSS, such as the costs for implementation, the risk reduction in monetary values, and societal risk. Other criteria, which could be environmental, economic, cultural, perception in nature, are defined by different stakeholders such as local authorities, expert organizations, private sector, and local public. In the next step, the stakeholders weight the importance of the criteria by pairwise comparison and visualize the decision matrix, which is a matrix based on criteria versus alternatives values. Finally alternatives are ranked by Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method. We expect that this approach will help the decision makers to ease their works and reduce their costs, because the process is more transparent, more accurate and involves a group decision. In that way there will be more confidence in the overall decision making process. Keywords: MCDM, Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), SDSS, Natural Hazard Risk Management

Human Factors Engineering Integration Project, Phase 1 Report

DTIC Science & Technology

1976-07-01

HFE. ESSEX CORPORATION Essex Corporation, Alexandria, Virginia, was selected to be the integration contractor. The primary role of the integration...having primary cognizance for the individual phases of the process. u PAS-75-52 ■ fay^a^^ja^^ aiiijlaiiaiiiig^^ a W’IPlJW’wi’UlWBII» ^■JWrtB^r...alternative ships. Implication for HFEI The design aspects of this stage can be characterized as addressing primary payload and performance features (speed

[Ethical problems in the selection of embryos with therapeutic usefulness].

PubMed

Collazo Chao, Eliseo

2010-01-01

The first saviour sibling produced entirely in Spain was born in Hospital Virgen del Rocío of Seville in October 2008. The consequente mass media coverage has unleashed multiple requests for similar treatments to be carried on throughout the country. The process, its methodology and efficiency are revised. Their anthropological, ethical and deontological foundations are explored in order to assess their fulfillment. Umbilical cord banking blood is proposed as an alternative.

Cholinergic enhancement modulates neural correlates of selective attention and emotional processing.

PubMed

Bentley, Paul; Vuilleumier, Patrik; Thiel, Christiane M; Driver, Jon; Dolan, Raymond J

2003-09-01

Neocortical cholinergic afferents are proposed to influence both selective attention and emotional processing. In a study of healthy adults we used event-related fMRI while orthogonally manipulating attention and emotionality to examine regions showing effects of cholinergic modulation by the anticholinesterase physostigmine. Either face or house pictures appeared at task-relevant locations, with the alternative picture type at irrelevant locations. Faces had either neutral or fearful expressions. Physostigmine increased relative activity within the anterior fusiform gyrus for faces at attended, versus unattended, locations, but decreased relative activity within the posterolateral occipital cortex for houses in attended, versus unattended, locations. A similar pattern of regional differences in the effect of physostigmine on cue-evoked responses was also present in the absence of stimuli. Cholinergic enhancement augmented the relative neuronal response within the middle fusiform gyrus to fearful faces, whether at attended or unattended locations. By contrast, physostigmine influenced responses in the orbitofrontal, intraparietal and cingulate cortices to fearful faces when faces occupied task-irrelevant locations. These findings suggest that acetylcholine may modulate both selective attention and emotional processes through independent, region-specific effects within the extrastriate cortex. Furthermore, cholinergic inputs to the frontoparietal cortex may influence the allocation of attention to emotional information.

Multi-Attribute Selection of Coal Center Location: A Case Study in Thailand

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuakunrittiwong, T.; Ratanakuakangwan, S.

2016-11-01

Under Power Development Plan 2015, Thailand has to diversify its heavily gas-fired electricity generation. The main owner of electricity transmission grids is responsible to implement several coal-fired power plants with clean coal technology. To environmentally handle and economically transport unprecedented quantities of sub-bituminous and bituminous coal, a coal center is required. The location of such facility is an important strategic decision and a paramount to the success of the energy plan. As site selection involves many criteria, Fuzzy Analytical Hierarchy Process or Fuzzy-AHP is applied to select the most suitable location among three candidates. Having analyzed relevant criteria and the potential alternatives, the result reveals that engineering and socioeconomic are important criteria and Map Ta Phut is the most suitable site for the coal center.

Selection of a suitable method for the preparation of polymeric nanoparticles: multi-criteria decision making approach.

PubMed

Krishnamoorthy, Kannan; Mahalingam, Manikandan

2015-03-01

The present study is aimed to select the suitable method for preparation of camptothecin loaded polymeric nanoparticles by utilizing the multi-criteria decision making method. Novel approaches of drug delivery by formulation using nanotechnology are revolutionizing the future of medicine. Recent years have witnessed unprecedented growth of research and application in the area of nanotechnology. Nanoparticles have become an important area of research in the field of drug delivery because they have the ability to deliver a wide range of drug to varying areas of body. Despite of extensive research and development, polymeric nanoparticles are frequently used to improve the therapeutic effect of drugs. A number of techniques are available for the preparation of polymeric nanoparticles. The Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) is a method for decision making, which are derived from individual judgements for qualitative factors, using the pair-wise comparison matrix. In AHP, a decision hierarchy is constructed with a goal, criteria and alternatives. The model uses three main criteria 1) Instrument, 2) Process and Output and 3) Cost. In addition, there are eight sub-criteria's as well as eight alternatives. Pair-wise comparison matrixes are used to obtain the overall priority weight and ranking for the selection of suitable method. Nanoprecipitation technique is the most suitable method for the preparation of camptothecin loaded polymeric nanoparticles with the highest overall priority weight of 0.297 CONCLUSION: In particular, the result indicates that the priority weights obtained from AHP could be defined as a multiple output for finding out the most suitable method for preparation of camptothecin loaded polymeric nanoparticles.

Polypyrimidine Tract Binding Protein Homologs from Arabidopsis Are Key Regulators of Alternative Splicing with Implications in Fundamental Developmental Processes[W

PubMed Central

Rühl, Christina; Stauffer, Eva; Kahles, André; Wagner, Gabriele; Drechsel, Gabriele; Rätsch, Gunnar; Wachter, Andreas

2012-01-01

Alternative splicing (AS) generates transcript variants by variable exon/intron definition and massively expands transcriptome diversity. Changes in AS patterns have been found to be linked to manifold biological processes, yet fundamental aspects, such as the regulation of AS and its functional implications, largely remain to be addressed. In this work, widespread AS regulation by Arabidopsis thaliana Polypyrimidine tract binding protein homologs (PTBs) was revealed. In total, 452 AS events derived from 307 distinct genes were found to be responsive to the levels of the splicing factors PTB1 and PTB2, which predominantly triggered splicing of regulated introns, inclusion of cassette exons, and usage of upstream 5′ splice sites. By contrast, no major AS regulatory function of the distantly related PTB3 was found. Dependent on their position within the mRNA, PTB-regulated events can both modify the untranslated regions and give rise to alternative protein products. We find that PTB-mediated AS events are connected to diverse biological processes, and the functional implications of selected instances were further elucidated. Specifically, PTB misexpression changes AS of PHYTOCHROME INTERACTING FACTOR6, coinciding with altered rates of abscisic acid–dependent seed germination. Furthermore, AS patterns as well as the expression of key flowering regulators were massively changed in a PTB1/2 level-dependent manner. PMID:23192226

Evaluation and selection of 3PL provider using fuzzy AHP and grey TOPSIS in group decision making

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Garside, Annisa Kesy; Saputro, Thomy Eko

2017-11-01

Selection of a 3PL provider is a problem of multi criteria decision making, where the decision maker has to select several 3PL provider alternatives based on several evaluation criteria. A decision maker will have difficulty to express judgments in exact numerical values due to the fact that information is often incomplete and the decision environment is uncertain. This paper presents an integrated fuzzy AHP and Grey TOPSIS for the evaluation and selection of 3PL provider method. Fuzzy AHP is used to determine the importance weight of evaluation criteria. For final selection, grey TOPSIS is used to evaluate the alternatives and obtain the overall performance which is measured as closeness coefficient. This method is applied to solve the selection of 3PL provider at PT. X. Five criterias and twelve sub-criterias were determined and then the best alternative among four 3PL providers was selected by proposed method.

Understanding The Role of Mate Selection Processes in Couples' Pair-Bonding Behavior.

PubMed

Horwitz, Briana N; Reynolds, Chandra A; Walum, Hasse; Ganiban, Jody; Spotts, Erica L; Reiss, David; Lichtenstein, Paul; Neiderhiser, Jenae M

2016-01-01

Couples are similar in their pair-bonding behavior, yet the reasons for this similarity are often unclear. A common explanation is phenotypic assortment, whereby individuals select partners with similar heritable characteristics. Alternatively, social homogamy, whereby individuals passively select partners with similar characteristic due to shared social backgrounds, is rarely considered. We examined whether phenotypic assortment and/or social homogamy can contribute to mate similarity using a twin-partner design. The sample came from the Twin and Offspring Study in Sweden, which included 876 male and female monozygotic and same-sex dizygotic twins plus their married or cohabitating partners. Results showed that variance in pair-bonding behavior was attributable to genetic and nonshared environmental factors. Furthermore, phenotypic assortment accounted for couple similarity in pair-bonding behavior. This suggests that individuals' genetically based characteristics are involved in their selection of mates with similar pair-bonding behavior.

Lactic acid bacteria and natural antimicrobials to improve the safety and shelf-life of minimally processed sliced apples and lamb's lettuce.

PubMed

Siroli, Lorenzo; Patrignani, Francesca; Serrazanetti, Diana I; Tabanelli, Giulia; Montanari, Chiara; Gardini, Fausto; Lanciotti, Rosalba

2015-05-01

Outbreaks of food-borne disease associated with the consumption of fresh and minimally processed fruits and vegetables have increased dramatically over the last few years. Traditional chemical sanitizers are unable to completely eradicate or kill the microorganisms on fresh produce. These conditions have stimulated research to alternative methods for increasing food safety. The use of protective cultures, particularly lactic acid bacteria (LAB), has been proposed for minimally processed products. However, the application of bioprotective cultures has been limited at the industrial level. From this perspective, the main aims of this study were to select LAB from minimally processed fruits and vegetables to be used as biocontrol agents and then to evaluate the effects of the selected strains, alone or in combination with natural antimicrobials (2-(E)-hexenal/hexanal, 2-(E)-hexenal/citral for apples and thyme for lamb's lettuce), on the shelf-life and safety characteristics of minimally processed apples and lamb's lettuce. The results indicated that applying the Lactobacillus plantarum strains CIT3 and V7B3 to apples and lettuce, respectively, increased both the safety and shelf-life. Moreover, combining the selected strains with natural antimicrobials produced a further increase in the shelf-life of these products without detrimental effects on the organoleptic qualities. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Lunar-base construction equipment and methods evaluation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Boles, Walter W.; Ashley, David B.; Tucker, Richard L.

1993-01-01

A process for evaluating lunar-base construction equipment and methods concepts is presented. The process is driven by the need for more quantitative, systematic, and logical methods for assessing further research and development requirements in an area where uncertainties are high, dependence upon terrestrial heuristics is questionable, and quantitative methods are seldom applied. Decision theory concepts are used in determining the value of accurate information and the process is structured as a construction-equipment-and-methods selection methodology. Total construction-related, earth-launch mass is the measure of merit chosen for mathematical modeling purposes. The work is based upon the scope of the lunar base as described in the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Office of Exploration's 'Exploration Studies Technical Report, FY 1989 Status'. Nine sets of conceptually designed construction equipment are selected as alternative concepts. It is concluded that the evaluation process is well suited for assisting in the establishment of research agendas in an approach that is first broad, with a low level of detail, followed by more-detailed investigations into areas that are identified as critical due to high degrees of uncertainty and sensitivity.

Advantages offered by high average power picosecond lasers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moorhouse, C.

2011-03-01

As electronic devices shrink in size to reduce material costs, device size and weight, thinner material thicknesses are also utilized. Feature sizes are also decreasing, which is pushing manufacturers towards single step laser direct write process as an attractive alternative to conventional, multiple step photolithography processes by eliminating process steps and the cost of chemicals. The fragile nature of these thin materials makes them difficult to machine either mechanically or with conventional nanosecond pulsewidth, Diode Pumped Solids State (DPSS) lasers. Picosecond laser pulses can cut materials with reduced damage regions and selectively remove thin films due to the reduced thermal effects of the shorter pulsewidth. Also, the high repetition rate allows high speed processing for industrial applications. Selective removal of thin films for OLED patterning, silicon solar cells and flat panel displays is discussed, as well as laser cutting of transparent materials with low melting point such as Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET). For many of these thin film applications, where low pulse energy and high repetition rate are required, throughput can be increased by the use of a novel technique to using multiple beams from a single laser source is outlined.

Study of thermo-fluidic behavior of micro-droplet in inkjet-based micro manufacturing processes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Das, Raju; Mahapatra, Abhijit; Ball, Amit Kumar; Roy, Shibendu Shekhar; Murmu, Naresh Chandra

2017-06-01

Inkjet printing technology, a maskless, non-contact patterning operation, which has been a revelation in the field of micro and nano manufacturing for its use in the selective deposition of desired materials. It is becoming an exciting alternative technology such as lithography to print functional material on to a substrate. Selective deposition of functional materials on desired substrates is a basic requirement in many of the printing based micro and nano manufacturing operations like the fabrication of microelectronic devices, solar cell, Light-emitting Diode (LED) research fields like pharmaceutical industries for drug discovery purposes and in biotechnology to make DNA microarrays. In this paper, an attempt has been made to design and develop an indigenous Electrohydrodynamic Inkjet printing system for micro fabrication and to study the interrelationships between various thermos-fluidic parameters of the ink material in the printing process. The effect of printing process parameters on printing performance characteristics has also been studied. And the applicability of the process has also been experimentally demonstrated. The experimentally found results were quite satisfactory and accordance to its applicability.

Applying the ecosystem approach to select priority areas for forest landscape restoration in the Yungas, Northwestern Argentina.

PubMed

Ianni, Elena; Geneletti, Davide

2010-11-01

This paper proposes a method to select forest restoration priority areas consistently with the key principles of the Ecosystem Approach (EA) and the Forest Landscape Restoration (FLR) framework. The methodology is based on the principles shared by the two approaches: acting at ecosystem scale, involving stakeholders, and evaluating alternatives. It proposes the involvement of social actors which have a stake in forest management through multicriteria analysis sessions aimed at identifying the most suitable forest restoration intervention. The method was applied to a study area in the native forests of Northern Argentina (the Yungas). Stakeholders were asked to identify alternative restoration actions, i.e. potential areas implementing FLR. Ten alternative fincas-estates derived from the Spanish land tenure system-differing in relation to ownership, management, land use, land tenure, and size were evaluated. Twenty criteria were selected and classified into four groups: biophysical, social, economic and political. Finca Ledesma was the closest to the economic, social, environmental and political goals, according to the values and views of the actors involved in the decision. This study represented the first attempt to apply EA principles to forest restoration at landscape scale in the Yungas region. The benefits obtained by the application of the method were twofold: on one hand, researchers and local actors were forced to conceive the Yungas as a complex net of rights rather than as a sum of personal interests. On the other hand, the participatory multicriteria approach provided a structured process for collective decision-making in an area where it has never been implemented.

Solvent Free Transesterification of Glycerol Into Glycerol Carbonate Over Nanostructured CaAl Hydrotalcite Catalyst.

PubMed

Devarajan, Arulselvan; Thiripuranthagan, Sivakumar; Radhakrishnan, Ramakrishnan; Kumaravel, Sakthivel

2018-07-01

Drastic increase in green house gases due to fossil fuels usage urges the mankind to look for alternative fuel resources. Biodiesel is one of the alternative fuels which attracted the attention of many researchers. In recent years, bio-diesel drags much attention as an alternative clean fuel. Glycerol is an unavoidable byproduct in the transesterification process of vegetable oils into bio diesel and therefore market is flooded with glycerol. So it is high time to find ways of utilizing the abundant glycerol into value added products. Herein we report the catalytic transesterification of glycerol using dimethyl carbonate over MgAl-hydrotalcite (MgAl-HT), CaAl-hydrotalcite (CaAl-HT) and nano structured CaAl-HT catalysts. All the catalysts were characterized by XRD, FT-IR, TPD-CO2, BET, SEM and HR-TEM techniques. Among them Ca4Al-HT was found to be best in terms of conversion of glycerol (82.4%) and selectivity (95.9%) towards glycerol carbonate. The effect of CTAB template concentration in the nano synthesis of Ca4Al-HT on conversion and selectivity was studied and Ca4Al-HT synthesized with 0.4 moles of CTAB showed the best conversion of glycerol (98.7%) and the highest selectivity towards glycerol carbonate (97.9%). The recyclability test performed with the best catalyst showed that the catalyst was recyclable even after 5 cycles. Valorization of glycerol yields glycerol carbonate (GC) which is a very good polar solvent with high boiling point, building block in several organic syntheses and used in the production of surfactants, poly urethanes etc.

Applying the Ecosystem Approach to Select Priority Areas for Forest Landscape Restoration in the Yungas, Northwestern Argentina

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ianni, Elena; Geneletti, Davide

2010-11-01

This paper proposes a method to select forest restoration priority areas consistently with the key principles of the Ecosystem Approach (EA) and the Forest Landscape Restoration (FLR) framework. The methodology is based on the principles shared by the two approaches: acting at ecosystem scale, involving stakeholders, and evaluating alternatives. It proposes the involvement of social actors which have a stake in forest management through multicriteria analysis sessions aimed at identifying the most suitable forest restoration intervention. The method was applied to a study area in the native forests of Northern Argentina (the Yungas). Stakeholders were asked to identify alternative restoration actions, i.e. potential areas implementing FLR. Ten alternative fincas—estates derived from the Spanish land tenure system—differing in relation to ownership, management, land use, land tenure, and size were evaluated. Twenty criteria were selected and classified into four groups: biophysical, social, economic and political. Finca Ledesma was the closest to the economic, social, environmental and political goals, according to the values and views of the actors involved in the decision. This study represented the first attempt to apply EA principles to forest restoration at landscape scale in the Yungas region. The benefits obtained by the application of the method were twofold: on one hand, researchers and local actors were forced to conceive the Yungas as a complex net of rights rather than as a sum of personal interests. On the other hand, the participatory multicriteria approach provided a structured process for collective decision-making in an area where it has never been implemented.

Changes in cognitive functions of students in the transitional period from elementary school to junior high school.

PubMed

Mizuno, Kei; Tanaka, Masaaki; Fukuda, Sanae; Sasabe, Tetsuya; Imai-Matsumura, Kyoko; Watanabe, Yasuyoshi

2011-05-01

When students proceed to junior high school from elementary school, rapid changes in the environment occur, which may cause various behavioral and emotional problems. However, the changes in cognitive functions during this transitional period have rarely been studied. In 158 elementary school students from 4th- to 6th-grades and 159 junior high school students from 7th- to 9th-grades, we assessed various cognitive functions, including motor processing, spatial construction ability, semantic fluency, immediate memory, delayed memory, spatial and non-spatial working memory, and selective, alternative, and divided attention. Our findings showed that performance on spatial and non-spatial working memory, alternative attention, divided attention, and semantic fluency tasks improved from elementary to junior high school. In particular, performance on alternative and divided attention tasks improved during the transitional period from elementary to junior high school. Our finding suggests that development of alternative and divided attention is of crucial importance in the transitional period from elementary to junior high school. Copyright © 2010 The Japanese Society of Child Neurology. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Considering Future Potential Regarding Structural Diversity in Selection of Forest Reserves.

PubMed

Lundström, Johanna; Öhman, Karin; Rönnqvist, Mikael; Gustafsson, Lena

2016-01-01

A rich structural diversity in forests promotes biodiversity. Forests are dynamic and therefore it is crucial to consider future structural potential when selecting reserves, to make robust conservation decisions. We analyzed forests in boreal Sweden based on 17,599 National Forest Inventory (NFI) plots with the main aim to understand how effectiveness of reserves depends on the time dimension in the selection process, specifically by considering future structural diversity. In the study both the economic value and future values of 15 structural variables were simulated during a 100 year period. To get a net present structural value (NPSV), a single value covering both current and future values, we used four discounting alternatives: (1) only considering present values, (2) giving equal importance to values in each of the 100 years within the planning horizon, (3) applying an annual discount rate considering the risk that values could be lost, and (4) only considering the values in year 100. The four alternatives were evaluated in a reserve selection model under budget-constrained and area-constrained selections. When selecting young forests higher structural richness could be reached at a quarter of the cost over almost twice the area in a budget-constrained selection compared to an area-constrained selection. Our results point to the importance of considering future structural diversity in the selection of forest reserves and not as is done currently to base the selection on existing values. Targeting future values increases structural diversity and implies a relatively lower cost. Further, our results show that a re-orientation from old to young forests would imply savings while offering a more extensive reserve network with high structural qualities in the future. However, caution must be raised against a drastic reorientation of the current old-forest strategy since remnants of ancient forests will need to be prioritized due to their role for disturbance-sensitive species.

A hierarchical modeling methodology for the definition and selection of requirements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dufresne, Stephane

This dissertation describes the development of a requirements analysis methodology that takes into account the concept of operations and the hierarchical decomposition of aerospace systems. At the core of the methodology, the Analytic Network Process (ANP) is used to ensure the traceability between the qualitative and quantitative information present in the hierarchical model. The proposed methodology is implemented to the requirements definition of a hurricane tracker Unmanned Aerial Vehicle. Three research objectives are identified in this work; (1) improve the requirements mapping process by matching the stakeholder expectations with the concept of operations, systems and available resources; (2) reduce the epistemic uncertainty surrounding the requirements and requirements mapping; and (3) improve the requirements down-selection process by taking into account the level of importance of the criteria and the available resources. Several challenges are associated with the identification and definition of requirements. The complexity of the system implies that a large number of requirements are needed to define the systems. These requirements are defined early in the conceptual design, where the level of knowledge is relatively low and the level of uncertainty is large. The proposed methodology intends to increase the level of knowledge and reduce the level of uncertainty by guiding the design team through a structured process. To address these challenges, a new methodology is created to flow-down the requirements from the stakeholder expectations to the systems alternatives. A taxonomy of requirements is created to classify the information gathered during the problem definition. Subsequently, the operational and systems functions and measures of effectiveness are integrated to a hierarchical model to allow the traceability of the information. Monte Carlo methods are used to evaluate the variations of the hierarchical model elements and consequently reduce the epistemic uncertainty. The proposed methodology is applied to the design of a hurricane tracker Unmanned Aerial Vehicles to demonstrate the origin and impact of requirements on the concept of operations and systems alternatives. This research demonstrates that the hierarchical modeling methodology provides a traceable flow-down of the requirements from the problem definition to the systems alternatives phases of conceptual design.

100-KE REACTOR CORE REMOVAL PROJECT ALTERNATIVE ANALYSIS WORKSHOP REPORT

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

HARRINGTON RA

2010-01-15

On December 15-16, 2009, a 100-KE Reactor Core Removal Project Alternative Analysis Workshop was conducted at the Washington State University Consolidated Information Center, Room 214. Colburn Kennedy, Project Director, CH2M HILL Plateau Remediation Company (CHPRC) requested the workshop and Richard Harrington provided facilitation. The purpose of the session was to select the preferred Bio Shield Alternative, for integration with the Thermal Shield and Core Removal and develop the path forward to proceed with project delivery. Prior to this workshop, the S.A. Robotics (SAR) Obstruction Removal Alternatives Analysis (565-DLV-062) report was issued, for use prior to and throughout the session, tomore » all the team members. The multidisciplinary team consisted ofrepresentatives from 100-KE Project Management, Engineering, Radcon, Nuclear Safety, Fire Protection, Crane/Rigging, SAR Project Engineering, the Department of Energy Richland Field Office, Environmental Protection Agency, Washington State Department of Ecology, Defense Nuclear Facility Safety Board, and Deactivation and Decommission subject matter experts from corporate CH2M HILL and Lucas. Appendix D contains the workshop agenda, guidelines and expectations, opening remarks, and attendance roster going into followed throughout the workshop. The team was successful in selecting the preferred alternative and developing an eight-point path forward action plan to proceed with conceptual design. Conventional Demolition was selected as the preferred alternative over two other alternatives: Diamond Wire with Options, and Harmonic Delamination with Conventional Demolition. The teams preferred alternative aligned with the SAR Obstruction Removal Alternative Analysis report conclusion. However, the team identified several Path Forward actions, in Appendix A, which upon completion will solidify and potentially enhance the Conventional Demolition alternative with multiple options and approaches to achieve project delivery. In brief, the Path Forward was developed to reconsider potential open air demolition areas; characterize to determine if any zircaloy exists, evaluate existing concrete data to determine additional characterization needs, size the new building to accommodate human machine interface and tooling, consider bucket thumb and use ofshape-charges in design, and finally to utilize complex-wide and industry explosive demolition lessons learned in the design approach. Appendix B documents these results from the team's use ofValue Engineering process tools entitled Weighted Analysis Alternative Matrix, Matrix Conclusions, Evaluation Criteria, and Alternative Advantages and Disadvantages. These results were further supported with the team's validation of parking-lot information sheets: memories (potential ideas to consider), issues/concerns, and assumptions, contained in Appendix C. Appendix C also includes the recorded workshop flipchart notes taken from the SAR Alternatives and Project Overview presentations. The SAR workshop presentations, including a 3-D graphic illustration demonstration video have been retained in the CHPRC project file, and were not included in this report due to size limitations. The workshop concluded with a round robin close-out where each member was engaged for any last minute items and meeting utility. In summary, the team felt the session was value added and looked forward to proceeding with the recommended actions and conceptual design.« less

Decision-Making Dysfunctions of Counterfactuals in Depression: Who Might I have Been?

PubMed Central

Howlett, Jonathon R.; Paulus, Martin P.

2013-01-01

Cognitive neuroscience enables us now to decompose major depressive disorder into dysfunctional component processes and relate these processes to specific neural substrates. This approach can be used to illuminate the biological basis of altered psychological processes in depression, including abnormal decision-making. One important decision-related process is counterfactual thinking, or the comparison of reality to hypothetical alternatives. Evidence suggests that individuals with depression experience exaggerated emotional responses due to focusing on counterfactual decision outcomes in general and regret, i.e., the emotion associated with focus on an alternative superior outcome, in particular. Regret is linked to self-esteem in that it involves the evaluation of an individual’s own decisions. Alterations of self-esteem, in turn, are a hallmark of depression. The literature on the behavioral and neural processes underlying counterfactual thinking, self-esteem, and depression is selectively reviewed. A model is proposed in which unstable self-representation in depression is more strongly perturbed when a different choice would have produced a better outcome, leading to increased feelings of regret. This approach may help unify diverse aspects of depression, can generate testable predictions, and may suggest new treatment avenues targeting distorted counterfactual cognitions, attentional biases toward superior counterfactual outcomes, or increased affective response to regretted outcomes. PMID:24265620

Genome-Wide Survey of Cold Stress Regulated Alternative Splicing in Arabidopsis thaliana with Tiling Microarray

PubMed Central

Leviatan, Noam; Alkan, Noam; Leshkowitz, Dena; Fluhr, Robert

2013-01-01

Alternative splicing plays a major role in expanding the potential informational content of eukaryotic genomes. It is an important post-transcriptional regulatory mechanism that can increase protein diversity and affect mRNA stability. Alternative splicing is often regulated in a tissue-specific and stress-responsive manner. Cold stress, which adversely affects plant growth and development, regulates the transcription and splicing of plant splicing factors. This can affect the pre-mRNA processing of many genes. To identify cold regulated alternative splicing we applied Affymetrix Arabidopsis tiling arrays to survey the transcriptome under cold treatment conditions. A novel algorithm was used for detection of statistically relevant changes in intron expression within a transcript between control and cold growth conditions. A reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis of a number of randomly selected genes confirmed the changes in splicing patterns under cold stress predicted by tiling array. Our analysis revealed new types of cold responsive genes. While their expression level remains relatively unchanged under cold stress their splicing pattern shows detectable changes in the relative abundance of isoforms. The majority of cold regulated alternative splicing introduced a premature termination codon (PTC) into the transcripts creating potential targets for degradation by the nonsense mediated mRNA decay (NMD) process. A number of these genes were analyzed in NMD-defective mutants by RT-PCR and shown to evade NMD. This may result in new and truncated proteins with altered functions or dominant negative effects. The results indicate that cold affects both quantitative and qualitative aspects of gene expression. PMID:23776682

Evolution at protein ends: major contribution of alternative transcription initiation and termination to the transcriptome and proteome diversity in mammals

PubMed Central

Shabalina, Svetlana A.; Ogurtsov, Aleksey Y.; Spiridonov, Nikolay A.; Koonin, Eugene V.

2014-01-01

Alternative splicing (AS), alternative transcription initiation (ATI) and alternative transcription termination (ATT) create the extraordinary complexity of transcriptomes and make key contributions to the structural and functional diversity of mammalian proteomes. Analysis of mammalian genomic and transcriptomic data shows that contrary to the traditional view, the joint contribution of ATI and ATT to the transcriptome and proteome diversity is quantitatively greater than the contribution of AS. Although the mean numbers of protein-coding constitutive and alternative nucleotides in gene loci are nearly identical, their distribution along the transcripts is highly non-uniform. On average, coding exons in the variable 5′ and 3′ transcript ends that are created by ATI and ATT contain approximately four times more alternative nucleotides than core protein-coding regions that diversify exclusively via AS. Short upstream exons that encompass alternative 5′-untranslated regions and N-termini of proteins evolve under strong nucleotide-level selection whereas in 3′-terminal exons that encode protein C-termini, protein-level selection is significantly stronger. The groups of genes that are subject to ATI and ATT show major differences in biological roles, expression and selection patterns. PMID:24792168

Engineering application of anaerobic ammonium oxidation process in wastewater treatment.

PubMed

Mao, Nianjia; Ren, Hongqiang; Geng, Jinju; Ding, Lili; Xu, Ke

2017-08-01

Anaerobic ammonium oxidation (Anammox), a promising biological nitrogen removal process, has been verified as an efficient, sustainable and cost-effective alternative to conventional nitrification and denitrification processes. To date, more than 110 full-scale anammox plants have been installed and are in operation, treating industrial NH 4 + -rich wastewater worldwide, and anammox-based technologies are flourishing. This review the current state of the art for engineering applications of the anammox process, including various anammox-based technologies, reactor selection and attempts to apply it at different wastewater plants. Process control and implementation for stable performance are discussed as well as some remaining issues concerning engineering application are exposed, including the start-up period, process disturbances, greenhouse gas emissions and especially mainstream anammox applications. Finally, further development of the anammox engineering application is proposed in this review.

Direct selective growth of ZnO nanowire arrays from inkjet-printed zinc acetate precursor on a heated substrate

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Inkjet printing of functional materials has drawn tremendous interest as an alternative to the conventional photolithography-based microelectronics fabrication process development. We introduce direct selective nanowire array growth by inkjet printing of Zn acetate precursor ink patterning and subsequent hydrothermal ZnO local growth without nozzle clogging problem which frequently happens in nanoparticle inkjet printing. The proposed process can directly grow ZnO nanowires in any arbitrary patterned shape, and it is basically very fast, low cost, environmentally benign, and low temperature. Therefore, Zn acetate precursor inkjet printing-based direct nanowire local growth is expected to give extremely high flexibility in nanomaterial patterning for high-performance electronics fabrication especially at the development stage. As a proof of concept of the proposed method, ZnO nanowire network-based field effect transistors and ultraviolet photo-detectors were demonstrated by direct patterned grown ZnO nanowires as active layer. PMID:24252130

Advancing the scientific basis of trivalent actinide-lanthanide separations

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

Nash, K.L.

For advanced fuel cycles designed to support transmutation of transplutonium actinides, several options have been demonstrated for process-scale aqueous separations for U, Np, Pu management and for partitioning of trivalent actinides and fission product lanthanides away from other fission products. The more difficult mutual separation of Am/Cm from La-Tb remains the subject of considerable fundamental and applied research. The chemical separations literature teaches that the most productive alternatives to pursue are those based on ligand donor atoms less electronegative than O, specifically N- and S-containing complexants and chloride ion (Cl{sup -}). These 'soft-donor' atoms have exhibited usable selectivity in theirmore » bonding interactions with trivalent actinides relative to lanthanides. In this report, selected features of soft donor reagent design, characterization and application development will be discussed. The roles of thiocyanate, aminopoly-carboxylic acids and lactate in separation processes are detailed. (authors)« less

Retrofitting the Williams Energy Services Ignacio Plant for higher throughput and recovery

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

Lynch, J.T.; Pitman, R.N.

1999-07-01

The Ignacio Plant located near Durango, Colorado was originally designed to process 346 MMscfd of feed gas and to recover approximately 82% of the contained ethane. Based on increasing volumes of available feed gas, Williams Energy Services (WES) undertook a study to investigate alternatives for increasing plant capacity and ethane recovery. This study led to the selection of Ortloff's Recycle Split-Vapor (RSV) process for retrofitting the existing facility because it offered several very important advantages: maximum utilization of existing equipment, a 30% increase in plant feed handling capacity and an increase in average ethane recovery to 94% without adding residuemore » compressors. This paper presents the comparative case analysis that led to the selection of the RSV design. It also describes the modifications required for the retrofit, all of which can be accomplished with minimum plant down time. The modified Ignacio Plant is scheduled for startup in March 1999.« less

Study on the Materials for Compressor and Reliability of Refrigeration Circuit in Refrigerator with R134a Refrigerant

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Komatsubara, Takeo; Sunaga, Takasi; Takahasi, Yasuki

R134a was selected as the alternative refrigerant for R12 because of the similar thermodynamic properties with R12. But refrigeration oil for R12 couldn't be used for R134a because of the immiscibility with R134a. To solve this problem we researched miscible oil with R134a and selected polyol ester oil (POE) as refrigeration oil. But we found sludge deposition into capillary tube after life test of refrigerator with POE and detected metal soap, decomposed oil and alkaline ions by analysis of sludge. This results was proof of phenomena like oil degradation, precipitation of process materials and wear of compressor. Therefore we improved stability and lubricity of POE, reevaluated process materials and contaminations in refrigerating circuit. In this paper we discuss newly developed these technologies and evaluation results of it by life test of refrigerator.

On-board B-ISDN fast packet switching architectures. Phase 2: Development. Proof-of-concept architecture definition report

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shyy, Dong-Jye; Redman, Wayne

1993-01-01

For the next-generation packet switched communications satellite system with onboard processing and spot-beam operation, a reliable onboard fast packet switch is essential to route packets from different uplink beams to different downlink beams. The rapid emergence of point-to-point services such as video distribution, and the large demand for video conference, distributed data processing, and network management makes the multicast function essential to a fast packet switch (FPS). The satellite's inherent broadcast features gives the satellite network an advantage over the terrestrial network in providing multicast services. This report evaluates alternate multicast FPS architectures for onboard baseband switching applications and selects a candidate for subsequent breadboard development. Architecture evaluation and selection will be based on the study performed in phase 1, 'Onboard B-ISDN Fast Packet Switching Architectures', and other switch architectures which have become commercially available as large scale integration (LSI) devices.

15 CFR 990.54 - Restoration selection-evaluation of alternatives.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 15 Commerce and Foreign Trade 3 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Restoration selection-evaluation of... ACT REGULATIONS NATURAL RESOURCE DAMAGE ASSESSMENTS Restoration Planning Phase § 990.54 Restoration selection—evaluation of alternatives. (a) Evaluation standards. Once trustees have developed a reasonable...

15 CFR 990.53 - Restoration selection-developing restoration alternatives.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 15 Commerce and Foreign Trade 3 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Restoration selection-developing... OIL POLLUTION ACT REGULATIONS NATURAL RESOURCE DAMAGE ASSESSMENTS Restoration Planning Phase § 990.53 Restoration selection—developing restoration alternatives. (a) General. (1) If the information on injury...

15 CFR 990.53 - Restoration selection-developing restoration alternatives.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 15 Commerce and Foreign Trade 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Restoration selection-developing... OIL POLLUTION ACT REGULATIONS NATURAL RESOURCE DAMAGE ASSESSMENTS Restoration Planning Phase § 990.53 Restoration selection—developing restoration alternatives. (a) General. (1) If the information on injury...

Sustainable energy planning decision using the intuitionistic fuzzy analytic hierarchy process: choosing energy technology in Malaysia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abdullah, Lazim; Najib, Liana

2016-04-01

Energy consumption for developing countries is sharply increasing due to the higher economic growth due to industrialisation along with population growth and urbanisation. The increasing demand of energy leads to global energy crisis. Selecting the best energy technology and conservation requires both quantitative and qualitative evaluation criteria. The fuzzy set-based approach is one of the well-known theories to handle fuzziness, uncertainty in decision-making and vagueness of information. This paper proposes a new method of intuitionistic fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (IF-AHP) to deal with the uncertainty in decision-making. The new IF-AHP is applied to establish a preference in the sustainable energy planning decision-making problem. Three decision-makers attached with Malaysian government agencies were interviewed to provide linguistic judgement prior to analysing with the new IF-AHP. Nuclear energy has been decided as the best alternative in energy planning which provides the highest weight among all the seven alternatives.

Quantitative genetic models of sexual conflict based on interacting phenotypes.

PubMed

Moore, Allen J; Pizzari, Tommaso

2005-05-01

Evolutionary conflict arises between reproductive partners when alternative reproductive opportunities are available. Sexual conflict can generate sexually antagonistic selection, which mediates sexual selection and intersexual coevolution. However, despite intense interest, the evolutionary implications of sexual conflict remain unresolved. We propose a novel theoretical approach to study the evolution of sexually antagonistic phenotypes based on quantitative genetics and the measure of social selection arising from male-female interactions. We consider the phenotype of one sex as both a genetically influenced evolving trait as well as the (evolving) social environment in which the phenotype of the opposite sex evolves. Several important points emerge from our analysis, including the relationship between direct selection on one sex and indirect effects through selection on the opposite sex. We suggest that the proposed approach may be a valuable tool to complement other theoretical approaches currently used to study sexual conflict. Most importantly, our approach highlights areas where additional empirical data can help clarify the role of sexual conflict in the evolutionary process.

Biomechanical differences in the stem straightening process among Pinus pinaster provenances. A new approach for early selection of stem straightness.

PubMed

Sierra-de-Grado, Rosario; Pando, Valentín; Martínez-Zurimendi, Pablo; Peñalvo, Alejandro; Báscones, Esther; Moulia, Bruno

2008-06-01

Stem straightness is an important selection trait in Pinus pinaster Ait. breeding programs. Despite the stability of stem straightness rankings in provenance trials, the efficiency of breeding programs based on a quantitative index of stem straightness remains low. An alternative approach is to analyze biomechanical processes that underlie stem form. The rationale for this selection method is that genetic differences in the biomechanical processes that maintain stem straightness in young plants will continue to control stem form throughout the life of the tree. We analyzed the components contributing most to genetic differences among provenances in stem straightening processes by kinetic analysis and with a biomechanical model defining the interactions between the variables involved (Fournier's model). This framework was tested on three P. pinaster provenances differing in adult stem straightness and growth. One-year-old plants were tilted at 45 degrees, and individual stem positions and sizes were recorded weekly for 5 months. We measured the radial extension of reaction wood and the anatomical features of wood cells in serial stem cross sections. The integral effect of reaction wood on stem leaning was computed with Fournier's model. Responses driven by both primary and secondary growth were involved in the stem straightening process, but secondary-growth-driven responses accounted for most differences among provenances. Plants from the straight-stemmed provenance showed a greater capacity for stem straightening than plants from the sinuous provenances mainly because of (1) more efficient reaction wood (higher maturation strains) and (2) more pronounced secondary-growth-driven autotropic decurving. These two process-based traits are thus good candidates for early selection of stem straightness, but additional tests on a greater number of genotypes over a longer period are required.

Febuxostat for the treatment of gout.

PubMed

Bridgeman, Mary Barna; Chavez, Benjamin

2015-02-01

Gout is a rheumatologic condition associated with elevated serum uric acid levels and deposition of monosodium urate crystals in joints and soft tissues. The xanthine oxidase inhibitor, allopurinol, has historically been the principle agent utilized for reducing elevated uric acid levels and treating underlying cause of gout symptoms; the availability of febuxostat, a newer non-purine selective xanthine oxidase inhibitor, represents an alternative therapy for those patients with contraindications or intolerance to allopurinol. This article reviews the published literature on the pharmacologic characteristics and clinical safety and efficacy data on the use of febuxostat in the treatment of gout. A literature search of MEDLINE and MEDLINE In-Process & Other Non-Indexed Citations Databases (1996-November 2014) was conducted utilizing the key words 'febuxostat', 'allopurinol', and 'gout'. All published articles regarding febuxostat were evaluated. References of selected articles, data from poster presentations, and abstract publications were additionally reviewed. Febuxostat has shown benefit with respect to symptomatic relief and uric acid level reduction. The safety profile of this agent makes it an ideal alternative in those patients with contraindications to or who are intolerant of allopurinol.

Droplet Traffic at a Simple Junction at Low Capillary Numbers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Engl, Wilfried; Roche, Matthieu; Colin, Annie; Panizza, Pascal; Ajdari, Armand

2005-11-01

We report that, when a train of confined droplets flowing through a channel reaches a junction, the droplets either are alternately distributed between the different outlets or all collect into the shortest one. We argue that this behavior is due to the hydrodynamic feedback of droplets in the different outlets on the selection process occurring at the junction. A “mean field” model, yielding semiquantitative results, offers a first guide to predict droplet traffic in branched networks.

Thermodynamic analysis of the selective chlorination of electric arc furnace dust.

PubMed

Pickles, C A

2009-07-30

The remelting of automobile scrap in an electric arc furnace (EAF) results in the production of a dust, which contains high concentrations of the oxides of zinc, iron, calcium and other metals. Typically, the lead and zinc are of commercial value, while the other metals are not worth recovering. At the present time, EAF dusts are treated in high temperature Waelz rotary kiln-type processes, where the lead and zinc oxides are selectively reduced and simultaneously reoxidized and a crude zinc oxide is produced. Another alternative processing route is selective chlorination, in which the non-ferrous metals are preferentially chlorinated to their gaseous chlorides and in this manner separated from the iron. In the present research, a detailed thermodynamic analysis of this chlorination process has been performed and the following factors were investigated; temperature, amount of chlorine, lime content, silica content, presence of an inert gas and the oxygen potential. High lead and zinc recoveries as gaseous chlorides could be achieved but some of the iron oxide was also chlorinated. Additionally, the calcium oxide in the dust consumes chlorine, but this can be minimized by adding silica, which results in the formation of stable calcium silicates. The optimum conditions were determined for a typical dust composition. The selectivities achieved with chlorination were lower than those for reduction, as reported in the literature, but there are other advantages such as the potential recovery of copper.

Decision making by patients with breast cancer: the role of information in treatment selection.

PubMed

Hughes, K K

1993-05-01

In recent years, patients have become more involved in the clinical decision-making process, yet the nature of this process, including the role of information, is poorly understood. The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine the relationship between information about breast cancer treatment alternatives and patients' choices of treatments. The target population was all patients with breast cancer in the process of deciding between breast conservation (lumpectomy plus irradiation) and more traditional management (modified radical mastectomy, with or without reconstruction). A convenience sample of 71 female patients with stage I or II breast cancer was drawn from a breast clinic affiliated with a 1,000-bed tertiary medical center. The amount of information provided to each subject and the nature of its presentation were recorded using an observer checklist. Recall of information and final treatment selection were ascertained during telephone interviews conducted six to eight weeks after surgery. The results indicate that subjects' choice of treatment was unrelated to the amount of information they received during the clinic visit. Manner of presentation also did not influence treatment selection. However, treatment selection was related to the amount of information subjects received prior to their clinic visit (p < 0.01). The results also indicate that patients' recall of information about treatments and associated risks is exceedingly poor. Clinical and legal implications are discussed and recommendations for further research are offered in this article.

37. ALTERNATE DESIGN, SIMILAR TO THAT ULTIMATELY SELECTED, BUT USING ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

37. ALTERNATE DESIGN, SIMILAR TO THAT ULTIMATELY SELECTED, BUT USING STEPPED TOWERS, AND WITH PYLONS CAPPED BY LANTERNS Pen-and-ink drawing by project architect Alfred Eichler, ca. 1934. - Sacramento River Bridge, Spanning Sacramento River at California State Highway 275, Sacramento, Sacramento County, CA

15 CFR 990.54 - Restoration selection-evaluation of alternatives.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 15 Commerce and Foreign Trade 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Restoration selection-evaluation of alternatives. 990.54 Section 990.54 Commerce and Foreign Trade Regulations Relating to Commerce and Foreign Trade (Continued) NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE OIL POLLUTION...

Selection and Evaluation of Priority Domains in Global Energy Internet Standard Development Based on Technology Foresight

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jin, Yang; Ciwei, Gao; Jing, Zhang; Min, Sun; Jie, Yu

2017-05-01

The selection and evaluation of priority domains in Global Energy Internet standard development will help to break through limits of national investment, thus priority will be given to standardizing technical areas with highest urgency and feasibility. Therefore, in this paper, the process of Delphi survey based on technology foresight is put forward, the evaluation index system of priority domains is established, and the index calculation method is determined. Afterwards, statistical method is used to evaluate the alternative domains. Finally the top four priority domains are determined as follows: Interconnected Network Planning and Simulation Analysis, Interconnected Network Safety Control and Protection, Intelligent Power Transmission and Transformation, and Internet of Things.

Five Guidelines for Selecting Hydrological Signatures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McMillan, H. K.; Westerberg, I.; Branger, F.

2017-12-01

Hydrological signatures are index values derived from observed or modeled series of hydrological data such as rainfall, flow or soil moisture. They are designed to extract relevant information about hydrological behavior, such as to identify dominant processes, and to determine the strength, speed and spatiotemporal variability of the rainfall-runoff response. Hydrological signatures play an important role in model evaluation. They allow us to test whether particular model structures or parameter sets accurately reproduce the runoff generation processes within the watershed of interest. Most modeling studies use a selection of different signatures to capture different aspects of the catchment response, for example evaluating overall flow distribution as well as high and low flow extremes and flow timing. Such studies often choose their own set of signatures, or may borrow subsets of signatures used in multiple other works. The link between signature values and hydrological processes is not always straightforward, leading to uncertainty and variability in hydrologists' signature choices. In this presentation, we aim to encourage a more rigorous approach to hydrological signature selection, which considers the ability of signatures to represent hydrological behavior and underlying processes for the catchment and application in question. To this end, we propose a set of guidelines for selecting hydrological signatures. We describe five criteria that any hydrological signature should conform to: Identifiability, Robustness, Consistency, Representativeness, and Discriminatory Power. We describe an example of the design process for a signature, assessing possible signature designs against the guidelines above. Due to their ubiquity, we chose a signature related to the Flow Duration Curve, selecting the FDC mid-section slope as a proposed signature to quantify catchment overall behavior and flashiness. We demonstrate how assessment against each guideline could be used to compare or choose between alternative signature definitions. We believe that reaching a consensus on selection criteria for hydrological signatures will assist modelers to choose between competing signatures, facilitate comparison between hydrological studies, and help hydrologists to fully evaluate their models.

Advances in Solid State Joining of High Temperature Alloys

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ding, Jeff; Schneider, Judy

2011-01-01

Many of the metals used in the oil and gas industry are difficult to fusion weld including Titanium and its alloys. Solid state joining processes are being pursued as an alternative process to produce robust structures more amenable to high pressure applications. Various solid state joining processes include friction stir welding (FSW) and a patented modification termed thermal stir welding (TSW). The configuration of TSWing utilizes an induction coil to preheat the material minimizing the burden on the weld tool extending its life. This provides the ability to precisely select and control the temperature to avoid detrimental changes to the microstructure. The work presented in this presentation investigates the feasibility of joining various titanium alloys using the solid state welding processes of FSW and TSW. Process descriptions and attributes of each weld process will be presented. Weld process set ]up and welding techniques will be discussed leading to the challenges experienced. Mechanical property data will also be presented.

Alternatives across Latin America: catalysing change in the curriculum.

PubMed

Jukes, Nick

2009-01-01

A 6-week series of seminars addressing replacement of harmful animal use in education and training was held across Latin America in March-April 2008. Organised by InterNICHE and partner organisations in Bolivia, Peru, Brazil, Argentina and Mexico, the events built on the experience of previous major outreach in Russia and India. Up to 6 full-day seminars were held at universities and independent venues in each country. Smaller meetings with campaigners, teachers and professional bodies complemented the large presentations. All events included spoken presentations, demonstrations and free trials of a wide range of alternatives. Speakers included InterNICHE experts and those from the host countries who are involved in replacement work. Partner organisations were empowered through the process of planning and execution of the seminars, and the tour helped to identify and provide support to others who are progressing humane education initiatives. Further collaboration is now planned. Information on the current situation concerning animal use and alternatives, including laws and regulations, was also gathered from each country. The tour succeeded in raising awareness and generating interest in replacement alternatives, also by national-level interviews and media coverage. Information and freeware alternatives were widely distributed, and further translations of material into Spanish and Portuguese are in progress. To continue the hands-on access to alternatives provided at the seminars, a Mexican / Central American Alternatives Loan System has been established, and others are being built in Peru and Brasil. The donation of computers and alternatives to selected universities is also being planned in order to establish multimedia laboratories that will promote alternatives through example.

Electrokinetic Response of Charge-Selective Nanostructured Polymeric Membranes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schiffbauer, Jarrod; Li, Diya; Gao, Feng; Phillip, William; Chang, Hsueh-Chia

2017-11-01

Nanostructured polymeric membranes, with a tunable pore size and ease of surface molecular functionalization, are a promising material for separations, filtration, and sensing applications. Recently, such membranes have been fabricated wherein the ion selectivity is imparted by self-assembled functional groups through a two-step process. Amine groups are used to provide a positive surface charge and acid groups are used to yield a negative charge. The membranes can be fabricated as either singly-charged or patterned/mosaic membranes, where there are alternating regions of amine- lined or acid-lined pores. We demonstrate that such membranes, in addition to having many features in common with other charge selective membranes (i.e. AMX or Nafion), display a unique single-membrane rectification behavior. This is due to the asymmetric distribution of charged functional groups during the fabrication process. We demonstrate this rectification effect using both dc current-voltage characteristics as well as dc-biased electrical impedance spectroscopy. Furthermore, surface charge changes due to dc concentration polarization and generation of localized pH shifts are monitored using electrical impedance spectroscopy. (formerly at University of Notre Dame).

Gene selection heuristic algorithm for nutrigenomics studies.

PubMed

Valour, D; Hue, I; Grimard, B; Valour, B

2013-07-15

Large datasets from -omics studies need to be deeply investigated. The aim of this paper is to provide a new method (LEM method) for the search of transcriptome and metabolome connections. The heuristic algorithm here described extends the classical canonical correlation analysis (CCA) to a high number of variables (without regularization) and combines well-conditioning and fast-computing in "R." Reduced CCA models are summarized in PageRank matrices, the product of which gives a stochastic matrix that resumes the self-avoiding walk covered by the algorithm. Then, a homogeneous Markov process applied to this stochastic matrix converges the probabilities of interconnection between genes, providing a selection of disjointed subsets of genes. This is an alternative to regularized generalized CCA for the determination of blocks within the structure matrix. Each gene subset is thus linked to the whole metabolic or clinical dataset that represents the biological phenotype of interest. Moreover, this selection process reaches the aim of biologists who often need small sets of genes for further validation or extended phenotyping. The algorithm is shown to work efficiently on three published datasets, resulting in meaningfully broadened gene networks.

Decision Making: The Toughest Job in the World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bullis, Robert V.

1977-01-01

The four phases in rational decision-making are (1) diagnosis, (2) discovering alternative solutions, (3) analyzing and comparing alternatives, and (4) selecting the proper alternative or plan to follow. (Author)

Metallurgical Evaluations of Depainting Processes on Aluminum Substrate

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

McGill, Preston

1999-01-01

In December 1993, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Emission Standards Division and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA's) Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) signed an Interagency Agreement (IA) initiating a task force for the technical assessment of alternative technologies for aerospace depainting operations. The United States Air Force (USAF) joined the task force in 1994. The mandates of the task force were: (1) To identify available alternative depainting systems that do not rely on methylene chloride or other ozone-depleting, chlorinated, and volatile organic carbon solvents. (2) To determine the viability, applicability, and pollution prevention potential of each identified alternative. (3) To address issues of safety, environmental impact, reliability, and maintainability. Through a Technical Implementation Committee (TIC), the task force selected and evaluated eight alternative paint stripping technologies: chemical stripping, carbon dioxide (CO2) blasting, xenon flashlamp and CO2 coatings removal (FLASHJET(R)), CO2 laser stripping, plastic media blasting (PMB), sodium bicarbonate wet stripping, high-pressure water blasting (WaterJet), and wheat starch abrasive blasting (Enviro-Strip(R)). (The CO2 blasting study was discontinued after the first depainting sequence.) This final report presents the results of the Joint EPA/NASA/USAF Interagency Depainting Study. Significant topics include: (1) Final depainting sequence data for the chemical stripping, PMB, sodium bicarbonate wet stripping, and WaterJet processes. (2) Strip rates for all eight technologies. (3) Sequential comparisons of surface roughness measurements for the seven viable depainting technologies. (4) Chronological reviews of and lessons learned in the conduct of all eight technologies. (5) An analysis of the surface roughness trends for each of the seven technologies. (6) Metallurgic evaluations of panels Summaries of corrosion and hydrogen embrittlement evaluations of chemical stripping panels, detailed descriptions of which appear in previous reports. Because the requirements for alternative systems are diverse, as are initial setup, training, and on-going operational considerations, this study does not recommend a particular product or process. Users of this study will draw their own conclusions from the data presented herein.

An organismic critique of molecular darwinism.

PubMed

Wicken, J S

1985-12-21

The molecular darwinian approach to the emergence of life treats the competition between RNA sequences for nucleotide resources as the primordial selective process in prebiotic evolution, which prescribes possible pathways for the subsequent elaboration of organizational relationships. Since success in this competition is determined by the "phenotypic" properties of RNA strands in the absence of organizational context, the genesis of biotic organization is dependent upon the establishment of co-operative, hypercyclic interactions between competing RNA sequences. The thesis of this paper is that hypercycle theory is based on unwarranted assumptions about the conditions of prebiotic evolution, and that the implications of these assumptions run counter to both empirical evidence and to the rational by which natural selection operates in evolution generally. An organismic alternative to hypercycle theory is suggested, based on the catalytic microsphere and the thermodynamics of selection.

Project evaluation and selection using fuzzy Delphi method and zero - one goal programming

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alias, Suriana; Adna, Nofarziah; Arsad, Roslah; Soid, Siti Khuzaimah; Ali, Zaileha Md

2014-12-01

Project evaluation and selection is a factor affecting the impotence of board director in which is trying to maximize all the possible goals. Assessment of the problem occurred in organization plan is the first phase for decision making process. The company needs a group of expert to evaluate the problems. The Fuzzy Delphi Method (FDM) is a systematic procedure to evoke the group's opinion in order to get the best result to evaluate the project performance. This paper proposes an evaluation and selection of the best alternative project based on combination of FDM and Zero - One Goal Programming (ZOGP) formulation. ZOGP is used to solve the multi-criteria decision making for final decision part by using optimization software LINDO 6.1. An empirical example on an ongoing decision making project in Johor, Malaysia is implemented for case study.

Genetics of alternative splicing evolution during sunflower domestication.

PubMed

Smith, Chris C R; Tittes, Silas; Mendieta, J Paul; Collier-Zans, Erin; Rowe, Heather C; Rieseberg, Loren H; Kane, Nolan C

2018-06-11

Alternative splicing enables organisms to produce the diversity of proteins necessary for multicellular life by using relatively few protein-coding genes. Although differences in splicing have been identified among divergent taxa, the shorter-term evolution of splicing is understudied. The origins of novel splice forms, and the contributions of alternative splicing to major evolutionary transitions, are largely unknown. This study used transcriptomes of wild and domesticated sunflowers to examine splice differentiation and regulation during domestication. We identified substantial splicing divergence between wild and domesticated sunflowers, mainly in the form of intron retention. Transcripts with divergent splicing were enriched for seed-development functions, suggesting that artificial selection impacted splicing patterns. Mapping of quantitative trait loci (QTLs) associated with 144 differential splicing cases revealed primarily trans -acting variation affecting splicing patterns. A large proportion of identified QTLs contain known spliceosome proteins and are associated with splicing variation in multiple genes. Examining a broader set of wild and domesticated sunflower genotypes revealed that most differential splicing patterns in domesticated sunflowers likely arose from standing variation in wild Helianthus annuus and gained frequency during the domestication process. However, several domesticate-associated splicing patterns appear to be introgressed from other Helianthus species. These results suggest that sunflower domestication involved selection on pleiotropic regulatory alleles. More generally, our findings indicate that substantial differences in isoform abundances arose rapidly during a recent evolutionary transition and appear to contribute to adaptation and population divergence.

The best alternative for estimating reference crop evapotranspiration in different sub-regions of mainland China.

PubMed

Peng, Lingling; Li, Yi; Feng, Hao

2017-07-14

Reference crop evapotranspiration (ET o ) is a critically important parameter for climatological, hydrological and agricultural management. The FAO56 Penman-Monteith (PM) equation has been recommended as the standardized ET o (ET o,s ) equation, but it has a high requirements of climatic data. There is a practical need for finding a best alternative method to estimate ET o in the regions where full climatic data are lacking. A comprehensive comparison for the spatiotemporal variations, relative errors, standard deviations and Nash-Sutcliffe efficacy coefficients of monthly or annual ET o,s and ET o,i (i = 1, 2, …, 10) values estimated by 10 selected methods (i.e., Irmak et al., Makkink, Priestley-Taylor, Hargreaves-Samani, Droogers-Allen, Berti et al., Doorenbos-Pruitt, Wright and Valiantzas, respectively) using data at 552 sites over 1961-2013 in mainland China. The method proposed by Berti et al. (2014) was selected as the best alternative of FAO56-PM because it was simple in computation process, only utilized temperature data, had generally good accuracy in describing spatiotemporal characteristics of ET o,s in different sub-regions and mainland China, and correlated linearly to the FAO56-PM method very well. The parameters of the linear correlations between ET o of the two methods are calibrated for each site with the smallest determination of coefficient being 0.87.

Evaluate the use of tanning agent in leather industry using material flow analysis, life cycle assessment and fuzzy multi-attribute decision making (FMADM)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alfarisi, Salman; Sutono, Sugoro Bhakti; Sutopo, Wahyudi

2017-11-01

Tanning industry is one of the companies that produce many pollutants and cause the negative impact on the environment. In the production process of tanning leather, the use of input material need to be evaluated. The problem of waste, not only have a negative impact on the environment, but also human health. In this study, the impact of mimosa as vegetable tanning agent evaluated. This study will provide alternative solutions for improvements to the use of vegetable tanning agent. The alternative solution is change mimosa with indusol, gambier, and dulcotan. This study evaluate the vegetable tanning of some aspects using material flow analysis and life cycle assessment approach. Life cycle assessment (LCA) is used to evaluate the environmental impact of vegetable tanning agent. Alternative solution selection using fuzzy multi-attribute decision making (FMADM) approach. Results obtained by considering the environment, human toxicity, climate change, and marine aquatic ecotoxicity, is to use dulcotan.

Design and Simulation Plant Layout Using Systematic Layout Planning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suhardini, D.; Septiani, W.; Fauziah, S.

2017-12-01

This research aims to design the factory layout of PT. Gunaprima Budiwijaya in order to increase production capacity. The problem faced by this company is inappropriate layout causes cross traffic on the production floor. The re-layout procedure consist of these three steps: analysing the existing layout, designing plant layout based on SLP and evaluation and selection of alternative layout using Simulation Pro model version 6. Systematic layout planning is used to re-layout not based on the initial layout. This SLP produces four layout alternatives, and each alternative will be evaluated based on two criteria, namely cost of material handling using Material Handling Evaluation Sheet (MHES) and processing time by simulation. The results showed that production capacity is increasing as much as 37.5% with the addition of the machine and the operator, while material handling cost was reduced by improvement of the layout. The use of systematic layout planning method reduces material handling cost of 10,98% from initial layout or amounting to Rp1.229.813,34.

On the role of verbalization during task set selection: switching or serial order control?

PubMed

Bryck, Richard L; Mayr, Ulrich

2005-06-01

Recent task-switching work in which paper-and-pencil administered single-task lists were compared with task-alternation lists has demonstrated large increases in task-switch costs with concurrent articulatory suppression (AS), implicating a crucial role for verbalization during switching (Baddeley, Chincotta, & Adlam, 2001; Emerson & Miyake, 2003). Experiment 1 replicated this result, using computerized assessment, albeit with much smaller effect sizes than in the original reports. In Experiment 2, AS interference was reduced when a sequential cue (spatial location) that indicated the current position in the sequence of task alternations was given. Finally, in Experiment 3, switch trials and no-switch trials were compared within a block of alternating runs of two tasks. Again, AS interference was obtained mainly when the endogenous sequencing demand was high, and it was comparable for no-switch and switch trials. These results suggest that verbalization may be critical for endogenous maintenance and updating of a sequential plan, rather than exclusively for the actual switching process.

Extended performance solar electric propulsion thrust system study. Volume 3: Tradeoff studies of alternate thrust system configurations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hawthorne, E. I.

1977-01-01

Several thrust system design concepts were evaluated and compared using the specifications of the most advanced 30 cm engineering model thruster as the technology base. Emphasis was placed on relatively high power missions. The extensions in thruster performance required for the Halley's comet mission were defined and alternative thrust system concepts were designed in sufficient detail for comparing mass, efficiency, reliability, structure, and thermal characteristics. Confirmation testing and analysis of thruster and power-processing components were performed. A baseline design was selected from the alternatives considered, and the design analysis and documentation were refined. A program development plan was formulated that outlines the work structure considered necessary for developing, qualifying, and fabricating the flight hardware for the baseline thrust system within the time frame of a project to rendezvous with Halley's comet. An assessment was made of the costs and risks associated with a baseline thrust system as provided to the mission project under this plan. Critical procurements and interfaces were identified and defined.

Brief review: Preparation techniques of biomass based activated carbon monolith electrode for supercapacitor applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Taer, Erman; Taslim, Rika

2018-02-01

The synthesis of activated carbon monolith electrode made from a biomass material using the hydrolytic pressure or the pelletization technique of pre-carbonized materials is one of standard reported methods. Several steps such as pre-carbonization, milling, chemical activation, hydraulic press, carbonization, physical activation, polishing and washing need to be accomplished in the production of electrodes by this method. This is relatively a long process that need to be simplified. In this paper we present the standard method and proceed with the introduction to several alternative methods in the synthesis of activated carbon monolith electrodes. The alternative methods were emphasized on the selection of suitable biomass materials. All of carbon electrodes prepared by different methods will be analyzed for physical and electrochemical properties. The density, degree of crystallinity, surface morphology are examples for physical study and specific capacitance was an electrochemical properties that has been analysed. This alternative method has offered a specific capacitance in the range of 10 to 171 F/g.

Technoeconomic aspects of alternative municipal solid wastes treatment methods.

PubMed

Economopoulos, Alexander P

2010-04-01

This paper considers selected treatment technologies for comingled domestic and similar wastes and provides technoeconomic data and information, useful for the development of strategic management plans. For this purpose, treatment technologies of interest are reviewed and representative flow diagrams, along with material and energy balances, are presented for the typical composition of wastes in Greece; possible difficulties in the use of treatment products, along with their management implications, are discussed, and; cost functions are developed, allowing assessment of the initial capital investment and annual operating costs. Based on the latter, cost functions are developed for predicting the normalized treatment costs of alternative methods (in euro/t of MSW treated), as function of the quantity of MSW processed by plants built and operated (a) by municipality associations, and (b) by private enterprises. Finally, the alternative technologies considered are evaluated on the basis of their cost aspects, product utilization and compatibility with the EU waste framework Directive 2008/98. Copyright 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Alternative Bio-Based Solvents for Extraction of Fat and Oils: Solubility Prediction, Global Yield, Extraction Kinetics, Chemical Composition and Cost of Manufacturing

PubMed Central

Sicaire, Anne-Gaëlle; Vian, Maryline; Fine, Frédéric; Joffre, Florent; Carré, Patrick; Tostain, Sylvain; Chemat, Farid

2015-01-01

The present study was designed to evaluate the performance of alternative bio-based solvents, more especially 2-methyltetrahydrofuran, obtained from crop’s byproducts for the substitution of petroleum solvents such as hexane in the extraction of fat and oils for food (edible oil) and non-food (bio fuel) applications. First a solvent selection as well as an evaluation of the performance was made with Hansen Solubility Parameters and the COnductor-like Screening MOdel for Realistic Solvation (COSMO-RS) simulations. Experiments were performed on rapeseed oil extraction at laboratory and pilot plant scale for the determination of lipid yields, extraction kinetics, diffusion modeling, and complete lipid composition in term of fatty acids and micronutrients (sterols, tocopherols and tocotrienols). Finally, economic and energetic evaluations of the process were conducted to estimate the cost of manufacturing using 2-methyltetrahydrofuran (MeTHF) as alternative solvent compared to hexane as petroleum solvent. PMID:25884332

Perceptions of Greek medical students regarding medical profession and the specialty selection process during the economic crisis years.

PubMed

Labiris, Georgios; Vamvakerou, Vasileia; Tsolakaki, Olympia; Giarmoukakis, Athanassios; Sideroudi, Haris; Kozobolis, Vassilios

2014-08-01

To assess the beliefs and preferences of 6th year Greek medical students, regarding medical profession and the specialty selection process, in the years of financial crisis. Democritus University of Thrace, Medical School, Alexandroupolis, Greece. A custom questionnaire based on former similar studies was developed and administered to senior medical students. Further to demographics, the questionnaire gathered information on perceptions and trends regarding medical profession, the specialty and residency selection processes. Total question scores were summed for comparisons among questions. Mean scores and standard deviations were calculated for comparisons between student groups. 111 students responded successfully to the instrument. "Helping patients" and the "scientific basis of medicine" were the fundamental reasons for choosing the medical profession. Compared to women, male students placed greater importance on the "financial allowances" (men: 3.73±1.03, women: 3.05±1.30, p=0.01). Regarding the selection criteria for a certain specialty, "challenging specialty" and "bedside specialty", were the main influence factors. Men more strongly preferred a specialty that could "financially support their desired lifestyle" (men: 3.93±0.88, women: 3.41±1.30, p=0.02). Concerning selection criteria of a residency program, students chose a "well structured" program at a "recognized hospital/department". Regarding the country of preference for their residency, 86% planned to continue abroad, primarily in Germany and the United Kingdom. Greek medical students perceive the medical profession and the specialty process in a similar way like their colleagues form Western countries. However, the vast majority identify that migration to another country is the most promising alternative choice for their medical career. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Development of Alternative Technetium Waste Forms

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

Czerwinski, Kenneth

2013-09-13

The UREX+1 process is under consideration for the separation of transuranic elements from spent nuclear fuel. The first steps of this process extract the fission product technicium-99 ({sup 99}Tc) into an organic phase containing tributylphosphate together with uranium. Treatment of this stream requires the separation of Tc from U and placement into a suitable waste storage form. A potential candidate waste form involves immobilizing the Tc as an alloy with either excess metallic zirconium or stainless steel. Although Tc-Zr alloys seem to be promising waste forms, alternative materials must be investigated. Innovative studies related to the synthesis and behavior ofmore » a different class of Tc materials will increase the scientific knowledge related to development of Tc waste forms. These studies will also provide a better understanding of the behavior of {sup 99}Tc in repository conditions. A literature survey has selected promising alternative waste forms for further study: technetium metallic alloys, nitrides, oxides, sulfides, and pertechnetate salts. The goals of this project are to 1) synthesize and structurally characterize relevant technetium materials that may be considered as waste forms, 2) investigate material behavior in solution under different conditions of temperature, electrochemical potential, and radiation, and 3) predict the long-term behavior of these materials.« less

Laser cleaning of steel for paint removal

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, G. X.; Kwee, T. J.; Tan, K. P.; Choo, Y. S.; Hong, M. H.

2010-11-01

Paint removal is an important part of steel processing for marine and offshore engineering. For centuries, a blasting techniques have been widely used for this surface preparation purpose. But conventional blasting always has intrinsic problems, such as noise, explosion risk, contaminant particles, vibration, and dust. In addition, processing wastes often cause environmental problems. In recent years, laser cleaning has attracted much research effort for its significant advantages, such as precise treatment, and high selectivity and flexibility in comparison with conventional cleaning techniques. In the present study, we use this environmentally friendly technique to overcome the problems of conventional blasting. Processed samples are examined with optical microscopes and other surface characterization tools. Experimental results show that laser cleaning can be a good alternative candidate to conventional blasting.

Application of ICME Methods for the Development of Rapid Manufacturing Technologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maiwald-Immer, T.; Göhler, T.; Fischersworring-Bunk, A.; Körner, C.; Osmanlic, F.; Bauereiß, A.

Rapid manufacturing technologies are lately gaining interest as alternative manufacturing method. Due to the large parameter sets applicable in these manufacturing methods and their impact on achievable material properties and quality, support of the manufacturing process development by the use of simulation is highly attractive. This is especially true for aerospace applications with their high quality demands and controlled scatter in the resulting material properties. The applicable simulation techniques to these manufacturing methods are manifold. The paper will focus on the melt pool simulation for a SLM (selective laser melting) process which was originally developed for EBM (electron beam melting). It will be discussed in the overall context of a multi-scale simulation within a virtual process chain.

A rapid alternative to X-ray crystallography for chiral determination: case studies of vibrational circular dichroism (VCD) to advance drug discovery projects.

PubMed

Wesolowski, Steven S; Pivonka, Don E

2013-07-15

The absolute stereochemistry of chiral drugs is usually established via X-ray crystallography. However, vibrational circular dichroism (VCD) spectroscopy coupled with quantum mechanics simulations offers a rapid alternative to crystallography and is readily applied to both crystalline and non-crystalline samples. VCD is an effective complement to X-ray analysis of drug candidates, and it can be used as a high-throughput means of assessing absolute stereochemistry at all phases of the discovery process (hundreds of assignments per year). The practical implementation (or fee-for-service outsourcing) of VCD and selected case studies are illustrated with an emphasis on providing utility and impact to pharmaceutical discovery programs. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Comprehensive analysis of alternative splicing and functionality in neuronal differentiation of P19 cells.

PubMed

Suzuki, Hitoshi; Osaki, Ken; Sano, Kaori; Alam, A H M Khurshid; Nakamura, Yuichiro; Ishigaki, Yasuhito; Kawahara, Kozo; Tsukahara, Toshifumi

2011-02-18

Alternative splicing, which produces multiple mRNAs from a single gene, occurs in most human genes and contributes to protein diversity. Many alternative isoforms are expressed in a spatio-temporal manner, and function in diverse processes, including in the neural system. The purpose of the present study was to comprehensively investigate neural-splicing using P19 cells. GeneChip Exon Array analysis was performed using total RNAs purified from cells during neuronal cell differentiation. To efficiently and readily extract the alternative exon candidates, 9 filtering conditions were prepared, yielding 262 candidate exons (236 genes). Semiquantitative RT-PCR results in 30 randomly selected candidates suggested that 87% of the candidates were differentially alternatively spliced in neuronal cells compared to undifferentiated cells. Gene ontology and pathway analyses suggested that many of the candidate genes were associated with neural events. Together with 66 genes whose functions in neural cells or organs were reported previously, 47 candidate genes were found to be linked to 189 events in the gene-level profile of neural differentiation. By text-mining for the alternative isoform, distinct functions of the isoforms of 9 candidate genes indicated by the result of Exon Array were confirmed. Alternative exons were successfully extracted. Results from the informatics analyses suggested that neural events were primarily governed by genes whose expression was increased and whose transcripts were differentially alternatively spliced in the neuronal cells. In addition to known functions in neural cells or organs, the uninvestigated alternative splicing events of 11 genes among 47 candidate genes suggested that cell cycle events are also potentially important. These genes may help researchers to differentiate the roles of alternative splicing in cell differentiation and cell proliferation.

A data science approach to candidate gene selection of pain regarded as a process of learning and neural plasticity.

PubMed

Ultsch, Alfred; Kringel, Dario; Kalso, Eija; Mogil, Jeffrey S; Lötsch, Jörn

2016-12-01

The increasing availability of "big data" enables novel research approaches to chronic pain while also requiring novel techniques for data mining and knowledge discovery. We used machine learning to combine the knowledge about n = 535 genes identified empirically as relevant to pain with the knowledge about the functions of thousands of genes. Starting from an accepted description of chronic pain as displaying systemic features described by the terms "learning" and "neuronal plasticity," a functional genomics analysis proposed that among the functions of the 535 "pain genes," the biological processes "learning or memory" (P = 8.6 × 10) and "nervous system development" (P = 2.4 × 10) are statistically significantly overrepresented as compared with the annotations to these processes expected by chance. After establishing that the hypothesized biological processes were among important functional genomics features of pain, a subset of n = 34 pain genes were found to be annotated with both Gene Ontology terms. Published empirical evidence supporting their involvement in chronic pain was identified for almost all these genes, including 1 gene identified in March 2016 as being involved in pain. By contrast, such evidence was virtually absent in a randomly selected set of 34 other human genes. Hence, the present computational functional genomics-based method can be used for candidate gene selection, providing an alternative to established methods.

Selection of a Suitable Method for the Preparation of Polymeric Nanoparticles: Multi-Criteria Decision Making Approach

PubMed Central

Krishnamoorthy, Kannan; Mahalingam, Manikandan

2015-01-01

Purpose: The present study is aimed to select the suitable method for preparation of camptothecin loaded polymeric nanoparticles by utilizing the multi-criteria decision making method. Novel approaches of drug delivery by formulation using nanotechnology are revolutionizing the future of medicine. Recent years have witnessed unprecedented growth of research and application in the area of nanotechnology. Nanoparticles have become an important area of research in the field of drug delivery because they have the ability to deliver a wide range of drug to varying areas of body. Methods: Despite of extensive research and development, polymeric nanoparticles are frequently used to improve the therapeutic effect of drugs. A number of techniques are available for the preparation of polymeric nanoparticles. The Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) is a method for decision making, which are derived from individual judgements for qualitative factors, using the pair-wise comparison matrix. In AHP, a decision hierarchy is constructed with a goal, criteria and alternatives. Results: The model uses three main criteria 1) Instrument, 2) Process and Output and 3) Cost. In addition, there are eight sub-criteria’s as well as eight alternatives. Pair-wise comparison matrixes are used to obtain the overall priority weight and ranking for the selection of suitable method. Nanoprecipitation technique is the most suitable method for the preparation of camptothecin loaded polymeric nanoparticles with the highest overall priority weight of 0.297 Conclusion: In particular, the result indicates that the priority weights obtained from AHP could be defined as a multiple output for finding out the most suitable method for preparation of camptothecin loaded polymeric nanoparticles. PMID:25789220

Selection of the open pit mining cut-off grade strategy under price uncertainty using a risk based multi-criteria ranking system / Wybór strategii określania warunku opłacalności wydobycia w kopalniach odkrywkowych w warunkach niepewności cen w oparciu o wielokryterialny system rankingowy z uwzględnieniem czynników ryzyka

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Azimi, Yousue; Osanloo, Montza; Esfahanipour, Akbar

2012-12-01

Cut-off Grade Strategy (COGS) is a concept that directly influences the financial, technical, economic, environmental, and legal issues in relation to exploitation of a mineral resource. A decision making system is proposed to select the best technically feasible COGS under price uncertainty. In the proposed system both the conventional discounted cash flow and modern simulation based real option valuations are used to evaluate the alternative strategies. Then the conventional expected value criterion and a multiple criteria ranking system were used to rank the strategies based on the two valuation methods. In the multiple criteria ranking system besides the expected value other stochastic orders expressing abilities of strategies in producing extra profits, minimizing losses and achieving the predefined goals of the exploitation strategy are considered. Finally, the best strategy is selected based on the overall average rank of strategies through all ranking systems. The proposed system was examined using the data of Sungun Copper Mine. To assess the merits of the alternatives better, ranking process was done at both high (prevailing economic condition) and low price conditions. Ranking results revealed that at different price conditions and valuation methods, different results would be obtained. It is concluded that these differences are due to the different behavior of the embedded option to close the mine early, which is more likely to be exercised under low price condition rather than high price condition. The proposed system would enhance the quality of decision making process by providing a more informative and certain platform for project evaluation.

Financing the FAA : comparisons of existing and alternative systems to provide funding for the development and operations of the National Airspace System

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2000-03-30

This paper examines selected alternative methods of financing the National : Airspace System (NAS), and presents information on the consequences to major : system users of alternative financing mechanisms. The paper examines : alternatives that have ...

14 CFR 135.395 - Large nontransport category airplanes: Landing limitations: Alternate airports.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

...: Landing limitations: Alternate airports. 135.395 Section 135.395 Aeronautics and Space FEDERAL AVIATION... category airplanes: Landing limitations: Alternate airports. No person may select an airport as an alternate airport for a large nontransport category airplane unless that airplane (at the weight anticipated...

14 CFR 135.395 - Large nontransport category airplanes: Landing limitations: Alternate airports.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

...: Landing limitations: Alternate airports. 135.395 Section 135.395 Aeronautics and Space FEDERAL AVIATION... category airplanes: Landing limitations: Alternate airports. No person may select an airport as an alternate airport for a large nontransport category airplane unless that airplane (at the weight anticipated...

Case Studies of Selected Alternative Schools: [Alternative Schools I, II, III, Orca, Nova, Summit K-12. Report Nos. 82-10A to 82-10F].

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wootten, Marian; And Others

Separate formal evaluations were conducted of the following alternative schools in the Seattle Public Schools system: Nova, Orca, Summit K-12, Alternative School 1 (AS1), Alternative Elementary School II (AES II), and Alternative Elementary School III (AES III). These six documents, combined here as one item, describe the distinctive…

Layout design in order to improve efficiency in manufacturing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Siregar, I.; Tarigan, U.; Nasution, T. H.

2018-02-01

This research was conducted at the company that produces bobbins and ream type cigarette paper. Problems that found on the production process is the back and forth (back tracking) movement. Back and forth (back tracking) movement extending the total distance moved by the material and increase the total moment of transfer materials thus reducing the efficiency of the transfer of materials in the production process. The purpose of this study is to give design for the layout of production facilities in the company, so that the expected production produced by the company can reach the targets set by the management company. The method used in this research is the Graph-Based Construction and Travel Chart Method. The results of the analysis of the proposed layout with Graph-Based Construction was selected with a total value that is equal to the moment of transfer of 780 758 m / year. This result is better than the actual layout in the amount of 1,021,038.12 meters / year and the results of the method Travel Alternative Chart I of 826.236,60 meters/year, Alternative II of 1.004.433,56 meters / year, and Alternative III for 828,467.12 meters/year. The design layout of Graph-Based Construction material increases the transfer efficiency for 23.53%. With this layout proposal, expected production capacity will be increased along with the shortening of the distance of the displacement that must be passed by the material to be processed.

Assessment of flywheel energy storage for spacecraft power systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rodriguez, G. E.; Studer, P. A.; Baer, D. A.

1983-01-01

The feasibility of inertial energy storage in a spacecraft power system is evaluated on the basis of a conceptual integrated design that encompasses a composite rotor, magnetic suspension, and a permanent magnet (PM) motor/generator for a 3-kW orbital average payload at a bus distribution voltage of 250 volts dc. The conceptual design, which evolved at the Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), is referred to as a Mechanical Capacitor. The baseline power system configuration selected is a series system employing peak-power-tracking for a Low Earth-Orbiting application. Power processing, required in the motor/generator, provides a potential alternative configurations that can only be achieved in systems with electrochemical energy storage by the addition of power processing components. One such alternative configuration provides for peak-power-tracking of the solar array and still maintains a regulated bus, without the expense of additional power processing components. Precise speed control of the two counterrotating wheels is required to reduce interaction with the attitude control system (ACS) or alternatively, used to perform attitude control functions. Critical technologies identified are those pertaining to the energy storage element and are prioritized as composite wheel development, magnetic suspension, motor/generator, containment, and momentum control. Comparison with a 3-kW, 250-Vdc power system using either NiCd or NiH2 for energy storage results in a system in which inertial energy storage offers potential advantages in lifetime, operating temperature, voltage regulation, energy density, charge control, and overall system weight reduction.

Natural selection. VII. History and interpretation of kin selection theory.

PubMed

Frank, S A

2013-06-01

Kin selection theory is a kind of causal analysis. The initial form of kin selection ascribed cause to costs, benefits and genetic relatedness. The theory then slowly developed a deeper and more sophisticated approach to partitioning the causes of social evolution. Controversy followed because causal analysis inevitably attracts opposing views. It is always possible to separate total effects into different component causes. Alternative causal schemes emphasize different aspects of a problem, reflecting the distinct goals, interests and biases of different perspectives. For example, group selection is a particular causal scheme with certain advantages and significant limitations. Ultimately, to use kin selection theory to analyse natural patterns and to understand the history of debates over different approaches, one must follow the underlying history of causal analysis. This article describes the history of kin selection theory, with emphasis on how the causal perspective improved through the study of key patterns of natural history, such as dispersal and sex ratio, and through a unified approach to demographic and social processes. Independent historical developments in the multivariate analysis of quantitative traits merged with the causal analysis of social evolution by kin selection. © 2013 The Author. Journal of Evolutionary Biology © 2013 European Society For Evolutionary Biology.

Neural substrates of decision-making.

PubMed

Broche-Pérez, Y; Herrera Jiménez, L F; Omar-Martínez, E

2016-06-01

Decision-making is the process of selecting a course of action from among 2 or more alternatives by considering the potential outcomes of selecting each option and estimating its consequences in the short, medium and long term. The prefrontal cortex (PFC) has traditionally been considered the key neural structure in decision-making process. However, new studies support the hypothesis that describes a complex neural network including both cortical and subcortical structures. The aim of this review is to summarise evidence on the anatomical structures underlying the decision-making process, considering new findings that support the existence of a complex neural network that gives rise to this complex neuropsychological process. Current evidence shows that the cortical structures involved in decision-making include the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). This process is assisted by subcortical structures including the amygdala, thalamus, and cerebellum. Findings to date show that both cortical and subcortical brain regions contribute to the decision-making process. The neural basis of decision-making is a complex neural network of cortico-cortical and cortico-subcortical connections which includes subareas of the PFC, limbic structures, and the cerebellum. Copyright © 2014 Sociedad Española de Neurología. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Influences of credibility of testimony and strength of statistical evidence on children's and adolescents' reasoning.

PubMed

Kail, Robert V

2013-11-01

According to dual-process models that include analytic and heuristic modes of processing, analytic processing is often expected to become more common with development. Consistent with this view, on reasoning problems, adolescents are more likely than children to select alternatives that are backed by statistical evidence. It is shown here that this pattern depends on the quality of the statistical evidence and the quality of the testimonial that is the typical alternative to statistical evidence. In Experiment 1, 9- and 13-year-olds (N=64) were presented with scenarios in which solid statistical evidence was contrasted with casual or expert testimonial evidence. When testimony was casual, children relied on it but adolescents did not; when testimony was expert, both children and adolescents relied on it. In Experiment 2, 9- and 13-year-olds (N=83) were presented with scenarios in which casual testimonial evidence was contrasted with weak or strong statistical evidence. When statistical evidence was weak, children and adolescents relied on both testimonial and statistical evidence; when statistical evidence was strong, most children and adolescents relied on it. Results are discussed in terms of their implications for dual-process accounts of cognitive development. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Sustainable Ammonia Synthesis – Exploring the scientific challenges associated with discovering alternative, sustainable processes for ammonia production

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

Nørskov, Jens; Chen, Jingguang; Miranda, Raul

Ammonia (NH 3) is essential to all life on our planet. Until about 100 years ago, NH 3 produced by reduction of dinitrogen (N 2) in air came almost exclusively from bacteria containing the enzyme nitrogenase.. DOE convened a roundtable of experts on February 18, 2016. Participants in the Roundtable discussions concluded that the scientific basis for sustainable processes for ammonia synthesis is currently lacking, and it needs to be enhanced substantially before it can form the foundation for alternative processes. The Roundtable Panel identified an overarching grand challenge and several additional scientific grand challenges and research opportunities: -Discovery ofmore » active, selective, scalable, long-lived catalysts for sustainable ammonia synthesis. -Development of relatively low pressure (<10 atm) and relatively low temperature (<200 C) thermal processes. -Integration of knowledge from nature (enzyme catalysis), molecular/homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis. -Development of electrochemical and photochemical routes for N 2 reduction based on proton and electron transfer -Development of biochemical routes to N 2 reduction -Development of chemical looping (solar thermochemical) approaches -Identification of descriptors of catalytic activity using a combination of theory and experiments -Characterization of surface adsorbates and catalyst structures (chemical, physical and electronic) under conditions relevant to ammonia synthesis.« less

A Monte Carlo Risk Analysis of Life Cycle Cost Prediction.

DTIC Science & Technology

1975-09-01

process which occurs with each FLU failure. With this in mind there is no alternative other than the binomial distribution. 24 GOR/SM/75D-6 With all of...Weibull distribution of failures as selected by user. For each failure of the ith FLU, the model then samples from the binomial distribution to deter- mine...which is sampled from the binomial . Neither of the two conditions for normality are met, i.e., that RTS Ie close to .5 and the number of samples close

Multidimensional Programming Methods for Energy Facility Siting: Alternative Approaches

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Solomon, B. D.; Haynes, K. E.

1982-01-01

The use of multidimensional optimization methods in solving power plant siting problems, which are characterized by several conflicting, noncommensurable objectives is addressed. After a discussion of data requirements and exclusionary site screening methods for bounding the decision space, classes of multiobjective and goal programming models are discussed in the context of finite site selection. Advantages and limitations of these approaches are highlighted and the linkage of multidimensional methods with the subjective, behavioral components of the power plant siting process is emphasized.

Boehringer Ingleheim's selective glucocorticoid receptor agonist development candidate: evaluation of WO2010141331, WO2010141332 and WO2010141333.

PubMed

Norman, Peter

2011-07-01

Three applications from Boehringer Ingelheim all relate to the preparation of non-steroidal glucocorticoid receptor agonists useful in the treatment of inflammatory respiratory diseases. The first two applications claim chiral processes for the preparation of these compounds or intermediates useful therein. These provide two alternative routes, respectively, using achiral and chiral reagents. The third application relates to the preparation of a crystalline salt of the preferred compound on a multi-kilogram scale in micronised form.

An engineering perspective on 3D printed personalized scaffolds for tracheal suspension technique

PubMed Central

An, Jia

2016-01-01

3D printing is a large family of many distinct technologies covering a wide range of topics. From an engineering point of view, there should be considerations for selection of design, material, and process when using 3D printing for surgical technique innovation such as personalized scaffolds. Moreover, cost should also be considered if there are equally effective alternatives to the innovation. Furthermore, engineering considerations and options should be clearly communicated and readily available to surgeons for advancement in future. PMID:28149624

[Traditional and ayurvedic herbalism, homeopathy--the alternative therapeutic methods in dentistry. Review].

PubMed

Wyganowska-Swiatkowska, Marzena; Kurhańska-Flisykowska, Anna

2012-01-01

Herbalism is the oldest therapeutic system useful also ayurvedic medicine. Homepathy uses small doses of various substances to stimulate autoregulatory and self-healing processes. Medicines are prepared by serial dilution and shaking, which proponents claim imprints information into water. Ayurveda is a holistic form of therapy. In this meaning herbalism selects substances by matching a patient's symptoms with symptoms produced by these substances in healthy individuals. The some substances useful in dentistry were showed in this letter.

Method of examining microcircuit patterns

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Suszko, S. F. (Inventor)

1986-01-01

Examination of microstructures of LSI and VLSI devices is facilitated by employing a method in which the device is photographed through a darkfield illumination optical microscope and the resulting negative subjected to inverse processing to form a positive on a photographic film. The film is then developed to form photographic prints or transparencies which clearly illustrate the structure of the device. The entire structure of a device may be examined by alternately photographing the device and selectively etching layers of the device in order to expose underlying layers.

Intelligent Advanced Communications IP Telephony Feasibility for the U.S. Navy. Volume 1

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-10-01

Monitors Control and Bearer Designed by the There are no bearing Circuitry Health through Non - manufacture of the circuits to be testing in Selectable... controlled process, only replacing non -tactical end devices at first and then replacing tactical when the sailors and the commanding officers build up...looked at as an alternative to the touch screen in a non -software research . A complete review of development of voice is larger then this test bed can

Development of techniques for producing static strata maps and development of photointerpretive methods based on multitemporal LANDSAT data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Colwell, R. N. (Principal Investigator)

1977-01-01

The results and progress of work conducted in support of the Large Area Crop Inventory Experiment (LACIE) are documented. Research was conducted for two tasks. These tasks include: (1) evaluation of the UCB static stratification procedure and modification of that procedure if warranted; and (2) the development of alternative photointerpretive techniques to the present LACIE procedure for the identification and selection of training areas for machine-processing of LACIE segments.

An engineering perspective on 3D printed personalized scaffolds for tracheal suspension technique.

PubMed

An, Jia; Chua, Chee Kai

2016-12-01

3D printing is a large family of many distinct technologies covering a wide range of topics. From an engineering point of view, there should be considerations for selection of design, material, and process when using 3D printing for surgical technique innovation such as personalized scaffolds. Moreover, cost should also be considered if there are equally effective alternatives to the innovation. Furthermore, engineering considerations and options should be clearly communicated and readily available to surgeons for advancement in future.

Alternative Computer Access for Young Handicapped Children: A Systematic Selection Procedure.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morris, Karen J.

The paper describes the type of computer access products appropriate for use by handicapped children and presents a systematic procedure for selection of such input and output devices. Modification of computer input is accomplished by three strategies: modifying the keyboard, adding alternative keyboards, and attaching switches to the keyboard.…

41 CFR 102-117.130 - Must I select TSPs who use alternative fuels?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 117-TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT Business Rules To Consider Before Shipping Freight or Household Goods... 41 Public Contracts and Property Management 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Must I select TSPs who use alternative fuels? 102-117.130 Section 102-117.130 Public Contracts and Property Management...

Dissociating the influence of response selection and task anticipation on corticospinal suppression during response preparation.

PubMed

Duque, Julie; Labruna, Ludovica; Cazares, Christian; Ivry, Richard B

2014-12-01

Motor behavior requires selecting between potential actions. The role of inhibition in response selection has frequently been examined in tasks in which participants are engaged in some advance preparation prior to the presentation of an imperative signal. Under such conditions, inhibition could be related to processes associated with response selection, or to more general inhibitory processes that are engaged in high states of anticipation. In Experiment 1, we manipulated the degree of anticipatory preparation. Participants performed a choice reaction time task that required choosing between a movement of the left or right index finger, and used transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to elicit motor evoked potentials (MEPs) in the left hand agonist. In high anticipation blocks, a non-informative cue (e.g., fixation marker) preceded the imperative; in low anticipation blocks, there was no cue and participants were required to divide their attention between two tasks to further reduce anticipation. MEPs were substantially reduced before the imperative signal in high anticipation blocks. In contrast, in low anticipation blocks, MEPs remained unchanged before the imperative signal but showed a marked suppression right after the onset of the imperative. This effect occurred regardless of whether the imperative had signalled a left or right hand response. After this initial inhibition, left MEPs increased when the left hand was selected and remained suppressed when the right hand was selected. We obtained similar results in Experiment 2 except that the persistent left MEP suppression when the left hand was not selected was attenuated when the alternative response involved a non-homologous effector (right foot). These results indicate that, even in the absence of an anticipatory period, inhibitory mechanisms are engaged during response selection, possibly to prevent the occurrence of premature and inappropriate responses during a competitive selection process. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Visual analytics in cheminformatics: user-supervised descriptor selection for QSAR methods.

PubMed

Martínez, María Jimena; Ponzoni, Ignacio; Díaz, Mónica F; Vazquez, Gustavo E; Soto, Axel J

2015-01-01

The design of QSAR/QSPR models is a challenging problem, where the selection of the most relevant descriptors constitutes a key step of the process. Several feature selection methods that address this step are concentrated on statistical associations among descriptors and target properties, whereas the chemical knowledge is left out of the analysis. For this reason, the interpretability and generality of the QSAR/QSPR models obtained by these feature selection methods are drastically affected. Therefore, an approach for integrating domain expert's knowledge in the selection process is needed for increase the confidence in the final set of descriptors. In this paper a software tool, which we named Visual and Interactive DEscriptor ANalysis (VIDEAN), that combines statistical methods with interactive visualizations for choosing a set of descriptors for predicting a target property is proposed. Domain expertise can be added to the feature selection process by means of an interactive visual exploration of data, and aided by statistical tools and metrics based on information theory. Coordinated visual representations are presented for capturing different relationships and interactions among descriptors, target properties and candidate subsets of descriptors. The competencies of the proposed software were assessed through different scenarios. These scenarios reveal how an expert can use this tool to choose one subset of descriptors from a group of candidate subsets or how to modify existing descriptor subsets and even incorporate new descriptors according to his or her own knowledge of the target property. The reported experiences showed the suitability of our software for selecting sets of descriptors with low cardinality, high interpretability, low redundancy and high statistical performance in a visual exploratory way. Therefore, it is possible to conclude that the resulting tool allows the integration of a chemist's expertise in the descriptor selection process with a low cognitive effort in contrast with the alternative of using an ad-hoc manual analysis of the selected descriptors. Graphical abstractVIDEAN allows the visual analysis of candidate subsets of descriptors for QSAR/QSPR. In the two panels on the top, users can interactively explore numerical correlations as well as co-occurrences in the candidate subsets through two interactive graphs.

Relation between social information processing and intimate partner violence in dating couples.

PubMed

Setchell, Sarah; Fritz, Patti Timmons; Glasgow, Jillian

2017-07-01

We used couple-level data to predict physical acts of intimate partner violence (IPV) from self-reported negative emotions and social information-processing (SIP) abilities among 100 dating couples (n = 200; mean age = 21.45 years). Participants read a series of hypothetical conflict situation vignettes and responded to questionnaires to assess negative emotions and various facets of SIP including attributions for partner behavior, generation of response alternatives, and response selection. We conducted a series of negative binomial mixed-model regressions based on the actor-partner interdependence model (APIM; Kenny, Kashy, & Cook, 2006, Dyadic data analysis. New York, NY: Guilford Press). There were significant results for the response generation and negative emotion models. Participants who generated fewer coping response alternatives were at greater risk of victimization (actor effect). Women were at greater risk of victimization if they had partners who generated fewer coping response alternatives (sex by partner interaction effect). Generation of less competent coping response alternatives predicted greater risk of perpetration among men, whereas generation of more competent coping response alternatives predicted greater risk of victimization among women (sex by actor interaction effects). Two significant actor by partner interaction effects were found for the negative emotion models. Participants who reported discrepant levels of negative emotions from their partners were at greatest risk of perpetration. Participants who reported high levels of negative emotions were at greatest risk of victimization if they had partners who reported low levels of negative emotions. This research has implications for researchers and clinicians interested in addressing the problem of IPV. Aggr. Behav. 43:329-341, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

14 CFR 135.387 - Large transport category airplanes: Turbine engine powered: Landing limitations: Alternate airports.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

....387 Large transport category airplanes: Turbine engine powered: Landing limitations: Alternate... alternate airport for a turbine engine powered large transport category airplane unless (based on the... operators may select an airport as an alternate airport for a turbine engine powered large transport...

14 CFR 135.387 - Large transport category airplanes: Turbine engine powered: Landing limitations: Alternate airports.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

....387 Large transport category airplanes: Turbine engine powered: Landing limitations: Alternate... alternate airport for a turbine engine powered large transport category airplane unless (based on the... operators may select an airport as an alternate airport for a turbine engine powered large transport...

The influence of expert opinions on the selection of wastewater treatment alternatives: a group decision-making approach.

PubMed

Kalbar, Pradip P; Karmakar, Subhankar; Asolekar, Shyam R

2013-10-15

The application of multiple-attribute decision-making (MADM) to real life decision problems suggests that avoiding the loss of information through scenario-based approaches and including expert opinions in the decision-making process are two major challenges that require more research efforts. Recently, a wastewater treatment technology selection effort has been made with a 'scenario-based' method of MADM. This paper focuses on a novel approach to incorporate expert opinions into the scenario-based decision-making process, as expert opinions play a major role in the selection of treatment technologies. The sets of criteria and the indicators that are used consist of both qualitative and quantitative criteria. The group decision-making (GDM) approach that is implemented for aggregating expert opinions is based on an analytical hierarchy process (AHP), which is the most widely used MADM method. The pairwise comparison matrices (PCMs) for qualitative criteria are formed based on expert opinions, whereas, a novel approach is proposed for generating PCMs for quantitative criteria. It has been determined that the experts largely prefer natural treatment systems because they are more sustainable in any scenario. However, PCMs based on expert opinions suggest that advanced technologies such as the sequencing batch reactor (SBR) can also be appropriate for a given decision scenario. The proposed GDM approach is a rationalized process that will be more appropriate in realistic scenarios where multiple stakeholders with local and regional societal priorities are involved in the selection of treatment technology. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cadmium Alternatives for High-Strength Steel JTP - Phase 2

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-02-27

Project Overview Objective • Assess DoD- selected Cadmium alternatives in accordance with the DoD-approved Joint Test Protocol (JTP) for both...HE and adhesion testing): NAVAIR (complete) – Phase II (JTP test matrix): AFRL/CTC – Phase III (Testing for Threaded Fasteners): ARL • Selection of...Curry • Hill AFB – Mr. Nate Hughes • Alumiplate – Mr. Gus Vallejo • Marshall Labs – Mr. John Marshall U.S. AIR FORCE Phase I Overview and Selection

25 CFR 42.4 - What are alternative dispute resolution processes?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... What are alternative dispute resolution processes? Alternative dispute resolution (ADR) processes are... action. (a) ADR processes may: (1) Include peer adjudication, mediation, and conciliation; and (2... that these practices are readily identifiable. (b) For further information on ADR processes and how to...

25 CFR 42.4 - What are alternative dispute resolution processes?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... What are alternative dispute resolution processes? Alternative dispute resolution (ADR) processes are... action. (a) ADR processes may: (1) Include peer adjudication, mediation, and conciliation; and (2... that these practices are readily identifiable. (b) For further information on ADR processes and how to...

Can Untargeted Metabolomics Be Utilized in Drug Discovery/Development?

PubMed

Caldwell, Gary W; Leo, Gregory C

2017-01-01

Untargeted metabolomics is a promising approach for reducing the significant attrition rate for discovering and developing drugs in the pharmaceutical industry. This review aims to highlight the practical decision-making value of untargeted metabolomics for the advancement of drug candidates in drug discovery/development including potentially identifying and validating novel therapeutic targets, creating alternative screening paradigms, facilitating the selection of specific and translational metabolite biomarkers, identifying metabolite signatures for the drug efficacy mechanism of action, and understanding potential drug-induced toxicity. The review provides an overview of the pharmaceutical process workflow to discover and develop new small molecule drugs followed by the metabolomics process workflow that is involved in conducting metabolomics studies. The pros and cons of the major components of the pharmaceutical and metabolomics workflows are reviewed and discussed. Finally, selected untargeted metabolomics literature examples, from primarily 2010 to 2016, are used to illustrate why, how, and where untargeted metabolomics can be integrated into the drug discovery/preclinical drug development process. Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.org.

Reinforcement in plants.

PubMed

Hopkins, Robin

2013-03-01

A major goal of evolutionary biology is to understand how diverging populations become species. The evolution of reproductive isolation (RI) halts the genomic homogenization caused by gene flow and recombination, and enables differentiation and local adaptations to become fixed between newly forming species. Selection can favor the strengthening of RI through a process termed reinforcement. Reinforcement occurs when selection favors traits that decrease mating between two incipient species in response to costly mating or the production of maladapted hybrids. Although this process has been investigated more frequently in animals, there is also evidence of reinforcement in plants. There are three strategies for the investigation of the process of reinforcement: case studies of species or diverging taxa; experimental evolution studies; and comparative studies. Here, I discuss how all three strategies find evidence consistent with reinforcement occurring in plants. I focus largely on case studies, and use research on Phlox drummondii to illustrate the importance of testing alternative hypotheses. Although the existing evidence suggests that reinforcement can occur, further investigations, particularly using large-scale comparative studies, are needed to determine the importance of reinforcement in plant speciation.

Advancing three-dimensional MEMS by complimentary laser micro manufacturing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Palmer, Jeremy A.; Williams, John D.; Lemp, Tom; Lehecka, Tom M.; Medina, Francisco; Wicker, Ryan B.

2006-01-01

This paper describes improvements that enable engineers to create three-dimensional MEMS in a variety of materials. It also provides a means for selectively adding three-dimensional, high aspect ratio features to pre-existing PMMA micro molds for subsequent LIGA processing. This complimentary method involves in situ construction of three-dimensional micro molds in a stand-alone configuration or directly adjacent to features formed by x-ray lithography. Three-dimensional micro molds are created by micro stereolithography (MSL), an additive rapid prototyping technology. Alternatively, three-dimensional features may be added by direct femtosecond laser micro machining. Parameters for optimal femtosecond laser micro machining of PMMA at 800 nanometers are presented. The technical discussion also includes strategies for enhancements in the context of material selection and post-process surface finish. This approach may lead to practical, cost-effective 3-D MEMS with the surface finish and throughput advantages of x-ray lithography. Accurate three-dimensional metal microstructures are demonstrated. Challenges remain in process planning for micro stereolithography and development of buried features following femtosecond laser micro machining.

The involvement of central attention in visual search is determined by task demands.

PubMed

Han, Suk Won

2017-04-01

Attention, the mechanism by which a subset of sensory inputs is prioritized over others, operates at multiple processing stages. Specifically, attention enhances weak sensory signal at the perceptual stage, while it serves to select appropriate responses or consolidate sensory representations into short-term memory at the central stage. This study investigated the independence and interaction between perceptual and central attention. To do so, I used a dual-task paradigm, pairing a four-alternative choice task with a visual search task. The results showed that central attention for response selection was engaged in perceptual processing for visual search when the number of search items increased, thereby increasing the demand for serial allocation of focal attention. By contrast, central attention and perceptual attention remained independent as far as the demand for serial shifting of focal attention remained constant; decreasing stimulus contrast or increasing the set size of a parallel search did not evoke the involvement of central attention in visual search. These results suggest that the nature of concurrent visual search process plays a crucial role in the functional interaction between two different types of attention.

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation: Decomposing the Processes Underlying Action Preparation.

PubMed

Bestmann, Sven; Duque, Julie

2016-08-01

Preparing actions requires the operation of several cognitive control processes that influence the state of the motor system to ensure that the appropriate behavior is ultimately selected and executed. For example, some form of competition resolution ensures that the right action is chosen among alternatives, often in the presence of conflict; at the same time, impulse control ought to be deployed to prevent premature responses. Here we review how state-changes in the human motor system during action preparation can be studied through motor-evoked potentials (MEPs) elicited by transcranial magnetic stimulation over the contralateral primary motor cortex (M1). We discuss how the physiological fingerprints afforded by MEPs have helped to decompose some of the dynamic and effector-specific influences on the motor system during action preparation. We focus on competition resolution, conflict and impulse control, as well as on the influence of higher cognitive decision-related variables. The selected examples demonstrate the usefulness of MEPs as physiological readouts for decomposing the influence of distinct, but often overlapping, control processes on the human motor system during action preparation. © The Author(s) 2015.

Multi-locus analysis of genomic time series data from experimental evolution.

PubMed

Terhorst, Jonathan; Schlötterer, Christian; Song, Yun S

2015-04-01

Genomic time series data generated by evolve-and-resequence (E&R) experiments offer a powerful window into the mechanisms that drive evolution. However, standard population genetic inference procedures do not account for sampling serially over time, and new methods are needed to make full use of modern experimental evolution data. To address this problem, we develop a Gaussian process approximation to the multi-locus Wright-Fisher process with selection over a time course of tens of generations. The mean and covariance structure of the Gaussian process are obtained by computing the corresponding moments in discrete-time Wright-Fisher models conditioned on the presence of a linked selected site. This enables our method to account for the effects of linkage and selection, both along the genome and across sampled time points, in an approximate but principled manner. We first use simulated data to demonstrate the power of our method to correctly detect, locate and estimate the fitness of a selected allele from among several linked sites. We study how this power changes for different values of selection strength, initial haplotypic diversity, population size, sampling frequency, experimental duration, number of replicates, and sequencing coverage depth. In addition to providing quantitative estimates of selection parameters from experimental evolution data, our model can be used by practitioners to design E&R experiments with requisite power. We also explore how our likelihood-based approach can be used to infer other model parameters, including effective population size and recombination rate. Then, we apply our method to analyze genome-wide data from a real E&R experiment designed to study the adaptation of D. melanogaster to a new laboratory environment with alternating cold and hot temperatures.

NASA Electronic Publishing System: Cost/benefit Methodology

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tuey, Richard C.

1994-01-01

The NASA Scientific and Technical Information Office was assigned the responsibility to examine the benefits of the utilization of electronic printing and duplicating systems throughout NASA Installations and Headquarters. The subject of this report is the documentation of the methodology used in justifying the acquisition of the most cost beneficial solution for the printing and duplicating requirements of a duplicating facility that is contemplating the acquisition of an electronic printing and duplicating system. Four alternatives are presented with each alternative costed out with its associated benefits. The methodology goes a step further than just a cost benefit analysis through its comparison of risks associated with each alternative, sensitivity to number of impressions and productivity gains on the selected alternative and finally the return on investment for the selected alternative. The report can be used in conjunction with the two earlier reports, NASA-TM-106242 and TM-106510 in guiding others in determining the cost effective duplicating alternative.

Fuzzy sets, rough sets, and modeling evidence: Theory and Application. A Dempster-Shafer based approach to compromise decision making with multiattributes applied to product selection

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dekorvin, Andre

1992-01-01

The Dempster-Shafer theory of evidence is applied to a multiattribute decision making problem whereby the decision maker (DM) must compromise with available alternatives, none of which exactly satisfies his ideal. The decision mechanism is constrained by the uncertainty inherent in the determination of the relative importance of each attribute element and the classification of existing alternatives. The classification of alternatives is addressed through expert evaluation of the degree to which each element is contained in each available alternative. The relative importance of each attribute element is determined through pairwise comparisons of the elements by the decision maker and implementation of a ratio scale quantification method. Then the 'belief' and 'plausibility' that an alternative will satisfy the decision maker's ideal are calculated and combined to rank order the available alternatives. Application to the problem of selecting computer software is given.

Augmentative and alternative communication in children with Down's syndrome: a systematic review.

PubMed

Barbosa, Renata Thaís de Almeida; de Oliveira, Acary Souza Bulle; de Lima Antão, Jennifer Yohanna Ferreira; Crocetta, Tânia Brusque; Guarnieri, Regiani; Antunes, Thaiany Pedrozo Campos; Arab, Claudia; Massetti, Thaís; Bezerra, Italla Maria Pinheiro; de Mello Monteiro, Carlos Bandeira; de Abreu, Luiz Carlos

2018-05-11

The use of technology to assist in the communication, socialization, language, and motor skills of children with Down's syndrome (DS) is required. The aim of this study was to analyse research findings regarding the different instruments of 'augmentative and alternative communication' used in children with Down's syndrome. This is a systematic review of published articles available on PubMed, Web of Science, PsycInfo, and BVS using the following descriptors: assistive technology AND syndrome, assistive technology AND down syndrome, down syndrome AND augmentative and alternative communication. Studies published in English were selected if they met the following inclusion criteria: (1) study of children with a diagnosis of DS, and (2) assistive technology and/or augmentative and alternative communication analysis in this population. A total of 1087 articles were identified. Thirteen articles met the inclusion criteria. The instruments most used by the studies were speech-generating devices (SGDs) and the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS). Twelve instruments that provided significant aid to the process of communication and socialization of children with DS were identified. These instruments increase the interaction between individuals among this population and their peers, contributing to their quality of life and self-esteem.

Knowledge based system and decision making methodologies in materials selection for aircraft cabin metallic structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Adhikari, Pashupati Raj

Materials selection processes have been the most important aspects in product design and development. Knowledge-based system (KBS) and some of the methodologies used in the materials selection for the design of aircraft cabin metallic structures are discussed. Overall aircraft weight reduction means substantially less fuel consumption. Part of the solution to this problem is to find a way to reduce overall weight of metallic structures inside the cabin. Among various methodologies of materials selection using Multi Criterion Decision Making (MCDM) techniques, a few of them are demonstrated with examples and the results are compared with those obtained using Ashby's approach in materials selection. Pre-defined constraint values, mainly mechanical properties, are employed as relevant attributes in the process. Aluminum alloys with high strength-to-weight ratio have been second-to-none in most of the aircraft parts manufacturing. Magnesium alloys that are much lighter in weight as alternatives to the Al-alloys currently in use in the structures are tested using the methodologies and ranked results are compared. Each material attribute considered in the design are categorized as benefit and non-benefit attribute. Using Ashby's approach, material indices that are required to be maximized for an optimum performance are determined, and materials are ranked based on the average of consolidated indices ranking. Ranking results are compared for any disparity among the methodologies.