Orbit Software Suite

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Osgood, Cathy; Williams, Kevin; Gentry, Philip; Brownfield, Dana; Hallstrom, John; Stuit, Tim

2012-01-01

Orbit Software Suite is used to support a variety of NASA/DM (Dependable Multiprocessor) mission planning and analysis activities on the IPS (Intrusion Prevention System) platform. The suite of Orbit software tools (Orbit Design and Orbit Dynamics) resides on IPS/Linux workstations, and is used to perform mission design and analysis tasks corresponding to trajectory/ launch window, rendezvous, and proximity operations flight segments. A list of tools in Orbit Software Suite represents tool versions established during/after the Equipment Rehost-3 Project.

MINDS: A microcomputer interactive data system for 8086-based controllers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Soeder, J. F.

1985-01-01

A microcomputer interactive data system (MINDS) software package for the 8086 family of microcomputers is described. To enhance program understandability and ease of code maintenance, the software is written in PL/M-86, Intel Corporation's high-level system implementation language. The MINDS software is intended to run in residence with real-time digital control software to provide displays of steady-state and transient data. In addition, the MINDS package provides classic monitor capabilities along with extended provisions for debugging an executing control system. The software uses the CP/M-86 operating system developed by Digital Research, Inc., to provide program load capabilities along with a uniform file structure for data and table storage. Finally, a library of input and output subroutines to be used with consoles equipped with PL/M-86 and assembly language is described.

Part II: preparing and assessing first-year radiology resident on-call readiness technical implementation.

PubMed

Yam, Chun-Shan; Kruskal, Jonathan; Pedrosa, Ivan; Kressel, Herbert

2006-06-01

The effectiveness of using a Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM)-based interactive examination system in evaluating the readiness of first year radiology residents before taking overnight call in the emergency department (ED) was reported in part I of this article. This report describes technical aspects for the design and implementation of this system. The examination system consists of two modules: Data Collection and Image Viewing. The Data Collection module was a personal computer (PC)-based DICOM storage server based on a free public domain software package, the Mallinckrodt Central Test Node. The Image Viewing module was a Java-based DICOM viewer created using another freeware package: zDicom ActiveX component. The examination takes place once a year at the end of the first 6-month rotation. Cases selected for the examination were actual clinical cases according to the American Society of Emergency Radiology core curriculum. In the 3-hour timed examination, each resident was required to read the cases and provide clinical findings and recommendations. Upper-level residents also participated in the examination to serve as a control. Answers were scored by two staff radiologists. We have been using this examination system successfully in our institution since 2003 to evaluate the readiness of the first-year residents before they take overnight call in the ED. This report describes a step-by-step procedure for implementing this system into a PC-based platform. This DICOM viewing software is available as freeware to other academic radiology institutions. The total cost for implementing this system is approximately 2000 US dollars.

Real Time Control of the SSC String Magnets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Calvo, O.; Flora, R.; MacPherson, M.

1987-08-01

The system described in this paper, called SECAR, was designed to control the excitation of a test string of magnets for the proposed Superconducting Super Collider (SSC) and will be used to upgrade the present Tevatron Excitation, Control and Regulation (TECAR) hardware and software . It resides in a VME crate and is controlled by a 68020/68881 based CPU running the application software under a real time operating system named VRTX.

Real time control of the SSC string magnets

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

Calvo, O.; Flora, R.; MacPherson, M.

1987-08-01

The system described in this paper, called SECAR, was designed to control the excitation of a test string of magnets for the proposed Superconducting Super Collider (SSC) and will be used to upgrade the present Tevatron Excitation, Control and Regulation (TECAR) hardware and software. It resides in a VME orate and is controlled by a 68020/68881 based CPU running the application software under a real time operating system named VRTX.

Minerva: using a software program to improve resident performance during independent call

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Itri, Jason N.; Redfern, Regina O.; Cook, Tessa; Scanlon, Mary H.

2010-03-01

We have developed an application called Minerva that allows tracking of resident discrepancy rates and missed cases. Minerva mines the radiology information system (RIS) for preliminary interpretations provided by residents during independent call and copies both the preliminary and final interpretations to a database. Both versions are displayed for direct comparison by Minerva and classified as 'in agreement', 'minor discrepancy' or 'major discrepancy' by the resident program director. Minerva compiles statistics comparing minor, major and total discrepancy rates for individual residents relative to the overall group. Discrepant cases are categorized according to date, modality and body part and reviewed for trends in missed cases. The rate of minor, major and total discrepancies for residents on-call at our institution was similar to rates previously published, including a 2.4% major discrepancy rate for second year radiology residents in the DePICTORS study and a 2.6% major discrepancy rate for resident at a community hospital. Trend analysis of missed cases was used to generate a topic-specific resident missed case conference on acromioclavicular (AC) joint separation injuries, which resulted in a 75% decrease in the number of missed cases related to AC separation subsequent to the conference. Using a software program to track of minor and major discrepancy rates for residents taking independent call using modified RadPeer scoring guidelines provides a competency-based metric to determine resident performance. Topic-specific conferences using the cases identified by Minerva can result in a decrease in missed cases.

Ascent/Descent Software

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Brown, Charles; Andrew, Robert; Roe, Scott; Frye, Ronald; Harvey, Michael; Vu, Tuan; Balachandran, Krishnaiyer; Bly, Ben

2012-01-01

The Ascent/Descent Software Suite has been used to support a variety of NASA Shuttle Program mission planning and analysis activities, such as range safety, on the Integrated Planning System (IPS) platform. The Ascent/Descent Software Suite, containing Ascent Flight Design (ASC)/Descent Flight Design (DESC) Configuration items (Cis), lifecycle documents, and data files used for shuttle ascent and entry modeling analysis and mission design, resides on IPS/Linux workstations. A list of tools in Navigation (NAV)/Prop Software Suite represents tool versions established during or after the IPS Equipment Rehost-3 project.

Informatics in radiology: web-based preliminary reporting system for radiology residents with PACS integration.

PubMed

O'Connell, Timothy; Chang, Debra

2012-01-01

While on call, radiology residents review imaging studies and issue preliminary reports to referring clinicians. In the absence of an integrated reporting system at the training sites of the authors' institution, residents were typing and faxing preliminary reports. To partially automate the on-call resident workflow, a Web-based system for resident reporting was developed by using the free open-source xAMP Web application framework and an open-source DICOM (Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine) software toolkit, with the goals of reducing errors and lowering barriers to education. This reporting system integrates with the picture archiving and communication system to display a worklist of studies. Patient data are automatically entered in the preliminary report to prevent identification errors and simplify the report creation process. When the final report for a resident's on-call study is available, the reporting system queries the report broker for the final report, and then displays the preliminary report side by side with the final report, thus simplifying the review process and encouraging review of all of the resident's reports. The xAMP Web application framework should be considered for development of radiology department informatics projects owing to its zero cost, minimal hardware requirements, ease of programming, and large support community.

Management of an affiliated Physics Residency Program using a commercial software tool.

PubMed

Zacarias, Albert S; Mills, Michael D

2010-06-01

A review of commercially available allied health educational management software tools was performed to evaluate their capacity to manage program data associated with a CAMPEP-accredited Therapy Physics Residency Program. Features of these software tools include: a) didactic course reporting and organization, b) competency reporting by topic, category and didactic course, c) student time management and accounting, and d) student patient case reporting by topic, category and course. The software package includes features for recording school administrative information; setting up lists of courses, faculty, clinical sites, categories, competencies, and time logs; and the inclusion of standardized external documents. There are provisions for developing evaluation and survey instruments. The mentors and program may be evaluated by residents, and residents may be evaluated by faculty members using this feature. Competency documentation includes the time spent on the problem or with the patient, time spent with the mentor, date of the competency, and approval by the mentor and program director. Course documentation includes course and lecture title, lecturer, topic information, date of lecture and approval by the Program Director. These software tools have the facility to include multiple clinical sites, with local subadministrators having the ability to approve competencies and attendance at clinical conferences. In total, these software tools have the capability of managing all components of a CAMPEP-accredited residency program. The application database lends the software to the support of multiple affiliated clinical sites within a single residency program. Such tools are a critical and necessary component if the medical physics profession is to meet the projected needs for qualified medical physicists in future years.

Factors that affect implementation of web-based faculty evaluation forms: residents' perspectives from a developing country.

PubMed

Ibrahim, S H; Ali, S K; Sadaf, S

2010-08-01

A web-based evaluation system for residents to provide feedback on faculty was piloted in four training programs at the Aga Khan University prior to institution-wide implementation. Of the four programs, less than 50% of forms were submitted by residents of three programs while more than 70% of forms were submitted by the residents of one program. This study was conducted to identify reasons for the varying participation rates of the four programs with a view to improving the system. A qualitative approach was employed using focus group discussions (FGDs). Volunteers were invited and three groups of eight to ten residents each were formed. Participants for FGDs were selected from all residency years. FGDs were used to identify residents' perceptions regarding the web-based faculty evaluation system and to identify residents' problems and concerns with completing the web-based faculty evaluating forms. Technical issues in completing and submitting the forms online were identified to be the main deterrents to completing the evaluation forms. Non-accessibility of a resource person for resolving technical problems with the software and the burden of taking time out to complete the forms were considered as limiting factors by many residents. Residents recommended a focused orientation session to the new system within the departments. Residents' confidence and support are key to promoting adequate participation in web-based evaluations. Focused orientation sessions, reinforcement, reminders, assurances of confidentiality, and removal of technical glitches should help to improve resident participation.

A novel use of the discrete templated notes within an electronic health record software to monitor resident supervision.

PubMed

Ban, Vin Shen; Madden, Christopher J; Browning, Travis; O'Connell, Ellen; Marple, Bradley F; Moran, Brett

2017-04-01

Monitoring the supervision of residents can be a challenging task. We describe our experience with the implementation of a templated note system for documenting procedures with the aim of enabling automated, discrete, and standardized capture of documentation of supervision of residents performing floor-based procedures, with minimal extra effort from the residents. Procedural note templates were designed using the standard existing template within a commercial electronic health record software. Templates for common procedures were created such that residents could document every procedure performed outside of the formal procedural areas. Automated reports were generated and letters were sent to noncompliers. A total of 27 045 inpatient non-formal procedural area procedures were recorded from August 2012 to June 2014. Compliance with NoteWriter template usage averaged 86% in the first year and increased to 94.6% in the second year ( P  = .0055). Initially, only 12.5% of residents documented supervision of any form. By the end of the first year, this was above 80%, with the gains maintained into the second year and beyond. Direct supervision was documented to have occurred where required in 62.8% in the first year and increased to 99.8% in the second year ( P  = .0001) after the addition of hard stops. Notification of attendings prior to procedures was documented 100% of the time by September 2013. Letters sent to errant residents decreased from 3.6 to 0.83 per 100 residents per week. The templated procedure note system with hard stops and integrated reporting can successfully be used to improve monitoring of resident supervision. This has potential impact on resident education and patient safety. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Medical Informatics Association. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com

Flight code validation simulator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sims, Brent A.

1996-05-01

An End-To-End Simulation capability for software development and validation of missile flight software on the actual embedded computer has been developed utilizing a 486 PC, i860 DSP coprocessor, embedded flight computer and custom dual port memory interface hardware. This system allows real-time interrupt driven embedded flight software development and checkout. The flight software runs in a Sandia Digital Airborne Computer and reads and writes actual hardware sensor locations in which Inertial Measurement Unit data resides. The simulator provides six degree of freedom real-time dynamic simulation, accurate real-time discrete sensor data and acts on commands and discretes from the flight computer. This system was utilized in the development and validation of the successful premier flight of the Digital Miniature Attitude Reference System in January of 1995 at the White Sands Missile Range on a two stage attitude controlled sounding rocket.

IGDS/TRAP Interface Program (ITIP). Software User Manual (SUM). [network flow diagrams for coal gasification studies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jefferys, S.; Johnson, W.; Lewis, R.; Rich, R.

1981-01-01

This specification establishes the requirements, concepts, and preliminary design for a set of software known as the IGDS/TRAP Interface Program (ITIP). This software provides the capability to develop at an Interactive Graphics Design System (IGDS) design station process flow diagrams for use by the NASA Coal Gasification Task Team. In addition, ITIP will use the Data Management and Retrieval System (DMRS) to maintain a data base from which a properly formatted input file to the Time-Line and Resources Analysis Program (TRAP) can be extracted. This set of software will reside on the PDP-11/70 and will become the primary interface between the Coal Gasification Task Team and IGDS, DMRS, and TRAP. The user manual for the computer program is presented.

Mass Memory Storage Devices for AN/SLQ-32(V).

DTIC Science & Technology

1985-06-01

tactical programs and libraries into the AN/UYK-19 computer , the RP-16 microprocessor, and other peripheral processors (e.g., ADLS and Band 1) will be...software must be loaded into computer memory from the 4-track magnetic tape cartridges (MTCs) on which the programs are stored. Program load begins...software. Future computer programs , which will reside in peripheral processors, include the Automated Decoy Launching System (ADLS) and Band 1. As

The effect of electronic health record software design on resident documentation and compliance with evidence-based medicine.

PubMed

Rodriguez Torres, Yasaira; Huang, Jordan; Mihlstin, Melanie; Juzych, Mark S; Kromrei, Heidi; Hwang, Frank S

2017-01-01

This study aimed to determine the role of electronic health record software in resident education by evaluating documentation of 30 elements extracted from the American Academy of Ophthalmology Dry Eye Syndrome Preferred Practice Pattern. The Kresge Eye Institute transitioned to using electronic health record software in June 2013. We evaluated the charts of 331 patients examined in the resident ophthalmology clinic between September 1, 2011, and March 31, 2014, for an initial evaluation for dry eye syndrome. We compared documentation rates for the 30 evidence-based elements between electronic health record chart note templates among the ophthalmology residents. Overall, significant changes in documentation occurred when transitioning to a new version of the electronic health record software with average compliance ranging from 67.4% to 73.6% (p < 0.0005). Electronic Health Record A had high compliance (>90%) in 13 elements while Electronic Health Record B had high compliance (>90%) in 11 elements. The presence of dialog boxes was responsible for significant changes in documentation of adnexa, puncta, proptosis, skin examination, contact lens wear, and smoking exposure. Significant differences in documentation were correlated with electronic health record template design rather than individual resident or residents' year in training. Our results show that electronic health record template design influences documentation across all resident years. Decreased documentation likely results from "mouse click fatigue" as residents had to access multiple dialog boxes to complete documentation. These findings highlight the importance of EHR template design to improve resident documentation and integration of evidence-based medicine into their clinical notes.

Concurrent Image Processing Executive (CIPE). Volume 1: Design overview

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lee, Meemong; Groom, Steven L.; Mazer, Alan S.; Williams, Winifred I.

1990-01-01

The design and implementation of a Concurrent Image Processing Executive (CIPE), which is intended to become the support system software for a prototype high performance science analysis workstation are described. The target machine for this software is a JPL/Caltech Mark 3fp Hypercube hosted by either a MASSCOMP 5600 or a Sun-3, Sun-4 workstation; however, the design will accommodate other concurrent machines of similar architecture, i.e., local memory, multiple-instruction-multiple-data (MIMD) machines. The CIPE system provides both a multimode user interface and an applications programmer interface, and has been designed around four loosely coupled modules: user interface, host-resident executive, hypercube-resident executive, and application functions. The loose coupling between modules allows modification of a particular module without significantly affecting the other modules in the system. In order to enhance hypercube memory utilization and to allow expansion of image processing capabilities, a specialized program management method, incremental loading, was devised. To minimize data transfer between host and hypercube, a data management method which distributes, redistributes, and tracks data set information was implemented. The data management also allows data sharing among application programs. The CIPE software architecture provides a flexible environment for scientific analysis of complex remote sensing image data, such as planetary data and imaging spectrometry, utilizing state-of-the-art concurrent computation capabilities.

A Functional Description of a Digital Flight Test System for Navigation and Guidance Research in the Terminal Area

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hegarty, D. M.

1974-01-01

A guidance, navigation, and control system, the Simulated Shuttle Flight Test System (SS-FTS), when interfaced with existing aircraft systems, provides a research facility for studying concepts for landing the space shuttle orbiter and conventional jet aircraft. The SS-FTS, which includes a general-purpose computer, performs all computations for precisely following a prescribed approach trajectory while properly managing the vehicle energy to allow safe arrival at the runway and landing within prescribed dispersions. The system contains hardware and software provisions for navigation with several combinations of possible navigation aids that have been suggested for the shuttle. The SS-FTS can be reconfigured to study different guidance and navigation concepts by changing only the computer software, and adapted to receive different radio navigation information through minimum hardware changes. All control laws, logic, and mode interlocks reside solely in the computer software.

[Implementation of a new electronic patient record in surgery].

PubMed

Eggli, S; Holm, J

2001-12-01

The increasing amount of clinical data, intensified interest of patients in medical information, medical quality management and the recent cost explosion in health care systems have forced medical institutions to improve their strategy in handling medical data. In the orthopedic department (3,600 surgeries, 75 beds, 14,000 consultations) software application for comprehensive patient data management has been developed. When implementing the electronic patient history following criteria were evaluated: 1. software evaluation, 2. implementation, 3. work flow, 4. data security/system stability. In the first phase the functional character was defined. Implementation required 3 months after parametrization. The expense amounted to 130,000 DM (30 clients). The training requirements were one afternoon for the secretaries and a 2-h session for the residents. The access speed on medically relevant data averaged under 3 s. The average saving in working hours was approximately 5 h/week for the secretaries and 4 h/week for the residents. The saving in paper amounted to 36,000 sheets/year. In 3 operational years there were 3 server breakdowns. Evaluation of the saving on working hours showed that such a system can amortize within a year. The latest improvements in hardware and software technology made the electronic medical record with integrated quality-control practicable without massive expenditure. The system supplies an extensive platform of information for patient treatment and an instrument to evaluate the efficiency of therapy strategies independent of the clinical field.

Microcomputer software development facilities

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gorman, J. S.; Mathiasen, C.

1980-01-01

A more efficient and cost effective method for developing microcomputer software is to utilize a host computer with high-speed peripheral support. Application programs such as cross assemblers, loaders, and simulators are implemented in the host computer for each of the microcomputers for which software development is a requirement. The host computer is configured to operate in a time share mode for multiusers. The remote terminals, printers, and down loading capabilities provided are based on user requirements. With this configuration a user, either local or remote, can use the host computer for microcomputer software development. Once the software is developed (through the code and modular debug stage) it can be downloaded to the development system or emulator in a test area where hardware/software integration functions can proceed. The microcomputer software program sources reside in the host computer and can be edited, assembled, loaded, and then downloaded as required until the software development project has been completed.

HOW GOOD ARE MY DATA? INFORMATION QUALITY ASSESSMENT METHODOLOGY

EPA Science Inventory

Quality assurance techniques used in software development and hardware maintenance/reliability help to ensure that data in a computerized information management system are maintained well. However, information workers may not know the quality of the data resident in their inf...

Impact of Three-Dimensional Printed Pelvicaliceal System Models on Residents' Understanding of Pelvicaliceal System Anatomy Before Percutaneous Nephrolithotripsy Surgery: A Pilot Study.

PubMed

Atalay, Hasan Anıl; Ülker, Volkan; Alkan, İlter; Canat, Halil Lütfi; Özkuvancı, Ünsal; Altunrende, Fatih

2016-10-01

To investigate the impact of three-dimensional (3D) printed pelvicaliceal system models on residents' understanding of pelvicaliceal system anatomy before percutaneous nephrolithotripsy (PCNL). Patients with unilateral complex renal stones indicating PCNL were selected. Usable data of patients were obtained from CT-scans in Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) format. Mimics software version 16.0 (Materialise, Belgium) was used for segmentation and extraction of pelvicaliceal systems (PCSs). All DICOM-formatted files were converted to the stereolithography file format. Finally, fused deposition modeling was used to create plasticine 3D models of PCSs. A questionnaire was designed so that residents could assess the 3D models' effects on their understanding of the anatomy of the pelvicaliceal system before PCNL (Fig. 3). Five patients' anatomically accurate models of the human renal collecting system were effectively generated (Figs. 1 and 2). After presentation of the 3D models, residents were 86% and 88% better at determining the number of anterior and posterior calices, respectively, 60% better at understanding stone location, and 64% better at determining optimal entry calix into the collecting system (Fig. 5). Generating kidney models of PCSs using 3D printing technology is feasible, and the models were accepted by residents as aids in surgical planning and understanding of pelvicaliceal system anatomy before PCNL.

Email notification combined with off site signing substantially reduces resident approval to faculty verification time.

PubMed

Deitte, Lori A; Moser, Patricia P; Geller, Brian S; Sistrom, Chris L

2011-06-01

Attending radiologist signature time (AST) is a variable and modifiable component of overall report turnaround time. Delays in finalized reports have potential to undermine radiologists' value as consultants and adversely affect patient care. This study was performed to evaluate the impact of notebook computer distribution and daily automated e-mail notification on reducing AST. Two simultaneous interventions were initiated in the authors' radiology department in February 2010. These included the distribution of a notebook computer with preloaded software for each attending radiologist to sign radiology reports and daily automated e-mail notifications for unsigned reports. The digital dictation system archive and the radiology information system were queried for all radiology reports produced from January 2009 through August 2010. The time between resident approval and attending radiologist signature before and after the intervention was analyzed. Potential unintended "side effects" of the intervention were also studied. Resident-authored reports were signed, on average, 2.53 hours sooner after the intervention. This represented a highly significant (P = .003) decrease in AST with all else held equal. Postintervention reports were authored by residents at the same rate (about 70%). An unintended "side effect" was that attending radiologists were less likely to make changes to resident-authored reports after the intervention. E-mail notification combined with offsite signing can reduce AST substantially. Notebook computers with preloaded software streamline the process of accessing, editing, and signing reports. The observed decrease in AST reflects a positive change in the timeliness of report signature. Copyright © 2011 AUR. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The Implementation of Satellite Attitude Control System Software Using Object Oriented Design

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Reid, W. Mark; Hansell, William; Phillips, Tom; Anderson, Mark O.; Drury, Derek

1998-01-01

NASA established the Small Explorer (SNMX) program in 1988 to provide frequent opportunities for highly focused and relatively inexpensive space science missions. The SMEX program has produced five satellites, three of which have been successfully launched. The remaining two spacecraft are scheduled for launch within the coming year. NASA has recently developed a prototype for the next generation Small Explorer spacecraft (SMEX-Lite). This paper describes the object-oriented design (OOD) of the SMEX-Lite Attitude Control System (ACS) software. The SMEX-Lite ACS is three-axis controlled and is capable of performing sub-arc-minute pointing. This paper first describes high level requirements governing the SMEX-Lite ACS software architecture. Next, the context in which the software resides is explained. The paper describes the principles of encapsulation, inheritance, and polymorphism with respect to the implementation of an ACS software system. This paper will also discuss the design of several ACS software components. Specifically, object-oriented designs are presented for sensor data processing, attitude determination, attitude control, and failure detection. Finally, this paper will address the establishment of the ACS Foundation Class (AFC) Library. The AFC is a large software repository, requiring a minimal amount of code modifications to produce ACS software for future projects.

Step-by-step training in basic laparoscopic skills using two-way web conferencing software for remote coaching: A multicenter randomized controlled study.

PubMed

Mizota, Tomoko; Kurashima, Yo; Poudel, Saseem; Watanabe, Yusuke; Shichinohe, Toshiaki; Hirano, Satoshi

2018-07-01

Despite its advantages, few trainees outside of North America have access to simulation training. We hypothesized that a stepwise training method using tele-mentoring system would be an efficient technique for training in basic laparoscopic skills. Residents were randomized into two groups and trained to proficiency in intracorporeal suturing. The stepwise group (SG) practiced the task step-by-step, while the other group practiced comprehensively (CG). Each participant received weekly coaching via two-way web conferencing software. The duration of the coaching sessions and self-practice time were compared between the two groups. Twenty residents from 15 institutions participated, and all achieved proficiency. Coaching sessions using tele-mentoring system were completed without difficulties. The SG required significantly shorter coaching time per session than the CG (p = .002). There was no significant difference in self-practice time. The stepwise training method with the tele-mentoring system appears to make efficient use of surgical trainees' and trainers' time. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Concurrent Image Processing Executive (CIPE)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lee, Meemong; Cooper, Gregory T.; Groom, Steven L.; Mazer, Alan S.; Williams, Winifred I.

1988-01-01

The design and implementation of a Concurrent Image Processing Executive (CIPE), which is intended to become the support system software for a prototype high performance science analysis workstation are discussed. The target machine for this software is a JPL/Caltech Mark IIIfp Hypercube hosted by either a MASSCOMP 5600 or a Sun-3, Sun-4 workstation; however, the design will accommodate other concurrent machines of similar architecture, i.e., local memory, multiple-instruction-multiple-data (MIMD) machines. The CIPE system provides both a multimode user interface and an applications programmer interface, and has been designed around four loosely coupled modules; (1) user interface, (2) host-resident executive, (3) hypercube-resident executive, and (4) application functions. The loose coupling between modules allows modification of a particular module without significantly affecting the other modules in the system. In order to enhance hypercube memory utilization and to allow expansion of image processing capabilities, a specialized program management method, incremental loading, was devised. To minimize data transfer between host and hypercube a data management method which distributes, redistributes, and tracks data set information was implemented.

Federal Student Aid: Progress in Integrating Pell Grant and Direct Student Loan Systems and Processes, but Critical Work Remains. Report to the Secretary of Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Powner, David A.

To address system problems and other management weaknesses, in 1998 Congress created the Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA) within the Department of Education. This office adopted a new approach to systems integration using middleware (software that can allow an application to access data residing indifferent databases) and Extensible Markup…

e-Stars Template Builder

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cox, Brian

2003-01-01

e-Stars Template Builder is a computer program that implements a concept of enabling users to rapidly gain access to information on projects of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The information about a given project is not stored in a data base, but rather, in a network that follows the project as it develops. e-Stars Template Builder resides on a server computer, using Practical Extraction and Reporting Language (PERL) scripts to create what are called "e-STARS node templates," which are software constructs that allow for project-specific configurations. The software resides on the server and does not require specific software on the user machine except for an Internet browser. A user's computer need not be equipped with special software (other than an Internet-browser program). e-Stars Template Builder is compatible with Windows, Macintosh, and UNIX operating systems. A user invokes e-Stars Template Builder from a browser window. Operations that can be performed by the user include the creation of child processes and the addition of links and descriptions of documentation to existing pages or nodes. By means of this addition of "child processes" of nodes, a network that reflects the development of a project is generated.

Navigation/Prop Software Suite

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bruchmiller, Tomas; Tran, Sanh; Lee, Mathew; Bucker, Scott; Bupane, Catherine; Bennett, Charles; Cantu, Sergio; Kwong, Ping; Propst, Carolyn

2012-01-01

Navigation (Nav)/Prop software is used to support shuttle mission analysis, production, and some operations tasks. The Nav/Prop suite containing configuration items (CIs) resides on IPS/Linux workstations. It features lifecycle documents, and data files used for shuttle navigation and propellant analysis for all flight segments. This suite also includes trajectory server, archive server, and RAT software residing on MCC/Linux workstations. Navigation/Prop represents tool versions established during or after IPS Equipment Rehost-3 or after the MCC Rehost.

ISS Material Science Research Rack HWIL Interface Simulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Williams, Philip J.; Ballard, Gary H.; Crumbley, Robert T. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

In this paper, the first Material Science Research Rack (MSRR-1) hardware-in-the-loop (HWIL) interface simulation is described. Dynamic Concepts developed this HWIL simulation system with funding and management provided by the Flight Software group (ED14) of NASA-MSFC's Avionics Department. The HWIL system has been used both as a flight software development environment and as a software qualification tool. To fulfill these roles, the HWIL simulator accurately models the system dynamics of many MSRR-1 subsystems and emulates most of the internal interface signals. The modeled subsystems include the Experiment Modules, the Thermal Environment Control System, the Vacuum Access System, the Solid State Power Controller Module, and the Active Rack Isolation Systems. The emulated signals reside on three separate MIL-STD-1553B digital communication buses, the ISS Medium Rate Data Link, and several analog controller and sensor signals. To enhance the range of testing, it was necessary to simulate several off-nominal conditions that may occur in the interfacing subsystems.

Efficient accesses of data structures using processing near memory

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

Jayasena, Nuwan S.; Zhang, Dong Ping; Diez, Paula Aguilera

Systems, apparatuses, and methods for implementing efficient queues and other data structures. A queue may be shared among multiple processors and/or threads without using explicit software atomic instructions to coordinate access to the queue. System software may allocate an atomic queue and corresponding queue metadata in system memory and return, to the requesting thread, a handle referencing the queue metadata. Any number of threads may utilize the handle for accessing the atomic queue. The logic for ensuring the atomicity of accesses to the atomic queue may reside in a management unit in the memory controller coupled to the memory wheremore » the atomic queue is allocated.« less

Practical, redundant, failure-tolerant, self-reconfiguring embedded system architecture

DOEpatents

Klarer, Paul R.; Hayward, David R.; Amai, Wendy A.

2006-10-03

This invention relates to system architectures, specifically failure-tolerant and self-reconfiguring embedded system architectures. The invention provides both a method and architecture for redundancy. There can be redundancy in both software and hardware for multiple levels of redundancy. The invention provides a self-reconfiguring architecture for activating redundant modules whenever other modules fail. The architecture comprises: a communication backbone connected to two or more processors and software modules running on each of the processors. Each software module runs on one processor and resides on one or more of the other processors to be available as a backup module in the event of failure. Each module and backup module reports its status over the communication backbone. If a primary module does not report, its backup module takes over its function. If the primary module becomes available again, the backup module returns to its backup status.

Real time software for a heat recovery steam generator control system

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

Valdes, R.; Delgadillo, M.A.; Chavez, R.

1995-12-31

This paper is addressed to the development and successful implementation of a real time software for the Heat Recovery Steam Generator (HRSG) control system of a Combined Cycle Power Plant. The real time software for the HRSG control system physically resides in a Control and Acquisition System (SAC) which is a component of a distributed control system (DCS). The SAC is a programmable controller. The DCS installed at the Gomez Palacio power plant in Mexico accomplishes the functions of logic, analog and supervisory control. The DCS is based on microprocessors and the architecture consists of workstations operating as a Man-Machinemore » Interface (MMI), linked to SAC controllers by means of a communication system. The HRSG real time software is composed of an operating system, drivers, dedicated computer program and application computer programs. The operating system used for the development of this software was the MultiTasking Operating System (MTOS). The application software developed at IIE for the HRSG control system basically consisted of a set of digital algorithms for the regulation of the main process variables at the HRSG. By using the multitasking feature of MTOS, the algorithms are executed pseudo concurrently. In this way, the applications programs continuously use the resources of the operating system to perform their functions through a uniform service interface. The application software of the HRSG consist of three tasks, each of them has dedicated responsibilities. The drivers were developed for the handling of hardware resources of the SAC controller which in turn allows the signals acquisition and data communication with a MMI. The dedicated programs were developed for hardware diagnostics, task initializations, access to the data base and fault tolerance. The application software and the dedicated software for the HRSG control system was developed using C programming language due to compactness, portability and efficiency.« less

Implementation of a School-wide Clinical Intervention Documentation System

PubMed Central

Stevenson, T. Lynn; Fox, Brent I.; Andrus, Miranda; Carroll, Dana

2011-01-01

Objective. To evaluate the effectiveness and impact of a customized Web-based software program implemented in 2006 for school-wide documentation of clinical interventions by pharmacy practice faculty members, pharmacy residents, and student pharmacists. Methods. The implementation process, directed by a committee of faculty members and school administrators, included preparation and refinement of the software, user training, development of forms and reports, and integration of the documentation process within the curriculum. Results. Use of the documentation tool consistently increased from May 2007 to December 2010. Over 187,000 interventions were documented with over $6.2 million in associated cost avoidance. Conclusions. Successful implementation of a school-wide documentation tool required considerable time from the oversight committee and a comprehensive training program for all users, with ongoing monitoring of data collection practices. Data collected proved to be useful to show the impact of faculty members, residents, and student pharmacists at affiliated training sites. PMID:21829264

A hybrid integrated services digital network-internet protocol solution for resident education.

PubMed

Erickson, Delnora; Greer, Lester; Belard, Arnaud; Tinnel, Brent; O'Connell, John

2010-05-01

The purpose of this study was to explore the effectiveness of incorporating Web-based application sharing of virtual medical simulation software within a multipoint video teleconference (VTC) as a training tool in graduate medical education. National Capital Consortium Radiation Oncology Residency Program resident and attending physicians participated in dosimetry teaching sessions held via VTC using Acrobat Connect application sharing. Residents at remote locations could take turns designing radiation treatments using standard three-dimensional planning software, whereas instructors gave immediate feedback and demonstrated proper techniques. Immediately after each dosimetry lesson, residents were asked to complete a survey that evaluated the effectiveness of the session. At the end of a 3-month trial of using Adobe Connect, residents completed a final survey that compared this teaching technology to the prior VTC-alone method. The mean difference from equality across all quality measures from the weekly survey was 0.8, where 0 indicated neither enhanced nor detracted from the learning experience and 1 indicated a minor enhancement in the learning experience. The mean difference from equality across all measures from the final survey comparing use of application sharing with VTC to VTC alone was 1.5, where 1 indicated slightly better and 2 indicated a somewhat better experience. The teaching efficacy of multipoint VTC is perceived by medical residents to be more effective when complemented by application-sharing software such as Adobe Acrobat Connect.

ORATOS: ESA's future flight dynamics operations system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dreger, Frank; Fertig, Juergen; Muench, Rolf

The Orbit and Attitude Operations System (ORATOS -- the European Space Agency's future orbit and attitude operations system -- will be in use from the mid-nineties until well beyond the year 2000. The ORATOS design is based on the experience from flight dynamics support to all past ESA missions. The ORATOS computer hardware consists of a network of powerful UNIX workstations. ORATOS resides on several hardware platforms, each comprising one or more fileservers, several client workstations and the associated communications interface hardware. The ORATOS software is structured into three layers. The flight dynamics applications layer, the support layer and the operating system layer. This architectural design separates the flight dynamics application software from the support tools and operating system facilities. It allows upgrading and replacement of operating system facilities with a minimum (or no) effect on the application layer.

Passive sensor technology interface to assess elder activity in independent living.

PubMed

Alexander, Gregory L; Wakefield, Bonnie J; Rantz, Marilyn; Skubic, Marjorie; Aud, Myra A; Erdelez, Sanda; Ghenaimi, Said Al

2011-01-01

The effectiveness of clinical information systems to improve nursing and patient outcomes depends on human factors, including system usability, organizational workflow, and user satisfaction. The aim of this study was to examine to what extent residents, family members, and clinicians find a sensor data interface used to monitor elder activity levels usable and useful in an independent living setting. Three independent expert reviewers conducted an initial heuristic evaluation. Subsequently, 20 end users (5 residents, 5 family members, 5 registered nurses, and 5 physicians) participated in the evaluation. During the evaluation, each participant was asked to complete three scenarios taken from three residents. Morae recorder software was used to capture data during the user interactions. The heuristic evaluation resulted in 26 recommendations for interface improvement; these were classified under the headings content, aesthetic appeal, navigation, and architecture, which were derived from heuristic results. Total time for elderly residents to complete scenarios was much greater than for other users. Family members spent more time than clinicians but less time than residents did to complete scenarios. Elder residents and family members had difficulty interpreting clinical data and graphs, experienced information overload, and did not understand terminology. All users found the sensor data interface useful for identifying changing resident activities. Older adult users have special needs that should be addressed when designing clinical interfaces for them, especially information as important as health information. Evaluating human factors during user interactions with clinical information systems should be a requirement before implementation.

Implementation of the AES as a Hash Function for Confirming the Identity of Software on a Computer System

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

Hansen, Randy R.; Bass, Robert B.; Kouzes, Richard T.

2003-01-20

This paper provides a brief overview of the implementation of the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) as a hash function for confirming the identity of software resident on a computer system. The PNNL Software Authentication team chose to use a hash function to confirm software identity on a system for situations where: (1) there is limited time to perform the confirmation and (2) access to the system is restricted to keyboard or thumbwheel input and output can only be displayed on a monitor. PNNL reviewed three popular algorithms: the Secure Hash Algorithm - 1 (SHA-1), the Message Digest - 5 (MD-5),more » and the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) and selected the AES to incorporate in software confirmation tool we developed. This paper gives a brief overview of the SHA-1, MD-5, and the AES and sites references for further detail. It then explains the overall processing steps of the AES to reduce a large amount of generic data-the plain text, such is present in memory and other data storage media in a computer system, to a small amount of data-the hash digest, which is a mathematically unique representation or signature of the former that could be displayed on a computer's monitor. This paper starts with a simple definition and example to illustrate the use of a hash function. It concludes with a description of how the software confirmation tool uses the hash function to confirm the identity of software on a computer system.« less

Gamification as a tool for enhancing graduate medical education

PubMed Central

Nevin, Christa R; Westfall, Andrew O; Rodriguez, J Martin; Dempsey, Donald M; Cherrington, Andrea; Roy, Brita; Patel, Mukesh; Willig, James H

2014-01-01

Introduction The last decade has seen many changes in graduate medical education training in the USA, most notably the implementation of duty hour standards for residents by the Accreditation Council of Graduate Medical Education. As educators are left to balance more limited time available between patient care and resident education, new methods to augment traditional graduate medical education are needed. Objectives To assess acceptance and use of a novel gamification-based medical knowledge software among internal medicine residents and to determine retention of information presented to participants by this medical knowledge software. Methods We designed and developed software using principles of gamification to deliver a web-based medical knowledge competition among internal medicine residents at the University of Alabama (UA) at Birmingham and UA at Huntsville in 2012–2013. Residents participated individually and in teams. Participants accessed daily questions and tracked their online leaderboard competition scores through any internet-enabled device. We completed focus groups to assess participant acceptance and analysed software use, retention of knowledge and factors associated with loss of participants (attrition). Results Acceptance: In focus groups, residents (n=17) reported leaderboards were the most important motivator of participation. Use: 16 427 questions were completed: 28.8% on Saturdays/Sundays, 53.1% between 17:00 and 08:00. Retention of knowledge: 1046 paired responses (for repeated questions) were collected. Correct responses increased by 11.9% (p<0.0001) on retest. Differences per time since question introduction, trainee level and style of play were observed. Attrition: In ordinal regression analyses, completing more questions (0.80 per 10% increase; 0.70 to 0.93) decreased, while postgraduate year 3 class (4.25; 1.44 to 12.55) and non-daily play (4.51; 1.50 to 13.58) increased odds of attrition. Conclusions Our software-enabled, gamification-based educational intervention was well accepted among our millennial learners. Coupling software with gamification and analysis of trainee use and engagement data can be used to develop strategies to augment learning in time-constrained educational settings. PMID:25352673

Gamification as a tool for enhancing graduate medical education.

PubMed

Nevin, Christa R; Westfall, Andrew O; Rodriguez, J Martin; Dempsey, Donald M; Cherrington, Andrea; Roy, Brita; Patel, Mukesh; Willig, James H

2014-12-01

The last decade has seen many changes in graduate medical education training in the USA, most notably the implementation of duty hour standards for residents by the Accreditation Council of Graduate Medical Education. As educators are left to balance more limited time available between patient care and resident education, new methods to augment traditional graduate medical education are needed. To assess acceptance and use of a novel gamification-based medical knowledge software among internal medicine residents and to determine retention of information presented to participants by this medical knowledge software. We designed and developed software using principles of gamification to deliver a web-based medical knowledge competition among internal medicine residents at the University of Alabama (UA) at Birmingham and UA at Huntsville in 2012-2013. Residents participated individually and in teams. Participants accessed daily questions and tracked their online leaderboard competition scores through any internet-enabled device. We completed focus groups to assess participant acceptance and analysed software use, retention of knowledge and factors associated with loss of participants (attrition). Acceptance: In focus groups, residents (n=17) reported leaderboards were the most important motivator of participation. Use: 16 427 questions were completed: 28.8% on Saturdays/Sundays, 53.1% between 17:00 and 08:00. Retention of knowledge: 1046 paired responses (for repeated questions) were collected. Correct responses increased by 11.9% (p<0.0001) on retest. Differences per time since question introduction, trainee level and style of play were observed. Attrition: In ordinal regression analyses, completing more questions (0.80 per 10% increase; 0.70 to 0.93) decreased, while postgraduate year 3 class (4.25; 1.44 to 12.55) and non-daily play (4.51; 1.50 to 13.58) increased odds of attrition. Our software-enabled, gamification-based educational intervention was well accepted among our millennial learners. Coupling software with gamification and analysis of trainee use and engagement data can be used to develop strategies to augment learning in time-constrained educational settings. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

Managing computer-controlled operations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Plowden, J. B.

1985-01-01

A detailed discussion of Launch Processing System Ground Software Production is presented to establish the interrelationships of firing room resource utilization, configuration control, system build operations, and Shuttle data bank management. The production of a test configuration identifier is traced from requirement generation to program development. The challenge of the operational era is to implement fully automated utilities to interface with a resident system build requirements document to eliminate all manual intervention in the system build operations. Automatic update/processing of Shuttle data tapes will enhance operations during multi-flow processing.

VHP - An environment for the remote visualization of heuristic processes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Crawford, Stuart L.; Leiner, Barry M.

1991-01-01

A software system called VHP is introduced which permits the visualization of heuristic algorithms on both resident and remote hardware platforms. The VHP is based on the DCF tool for interprocess communication and is applicable to remote algorithms which can be on different types of hardware and in languages other than VHP. The VHP system is of particular interest to systems in which the visualization of remote processes is required such as robotics for telescience applications.

Play dough as an educational tool for visualization of complicated cerebral aneurysm anatomy.

PubMed

Eftekhar, Behzad; Ghodsi, Mohammad; Ketabchi, Ebrahim; Ghazvini, Arman Rakan

2005-05-10

Imagination of the three-dimensional (3D) structure of cerebral vascular lesions using two-dimensional (2D) angiograms is one of the skills that neurosurgical residents should achieve during their training. Although ongoing progress in computer software and digital imaging systems has facilitated viewing and interpretation of cerebral angiograms enormously, these facilities are not always available. We have presented the use of play dough as an adjunct to the teaching armamentarium for training in visualization of cerebral aneurysms in some cases. The advantages of play dough are low cost, availability and simplicity of use, being more efficient and realistic in training the less experienced resident in comparison with the simple drawings and even angiographic views from different angles without the need for computers and similar equipment. The disadvantages include the psychological resistance of residents to the use of something in surgical training that usually is considered to be a toy, and not being as clean as drawings or computerized images. Although technology and computerized software using the patients' own imaging data seems likely to become more advanced in the future, use of play dough in some complicated cerebral aneurysm cases may be helpful in 3D reconstruction of the real situation.

The New Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education Next Accreditation System Milestones Evaluation System: What Is Expected and How Are Plastic Surgery Residency Programs Preparing?

PubMed

Sillah, Nyama M; Ibrahim, Ahmed M S; Lau, Frank H; Shah, Jinesh; Medin, Caroline; Lee, Bernard T; Lin, Samuel J

2015-07-01

The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education Next Accreditation System milestones were implemented for plastic surgery programs in July of 2014. Forward progress through the milestones is an indicator of trainee-appropriate development, whereas regression or stalling may indicate the need for concentrated, targeted training. Online software at www.surveymonkey.com was used to create a survey about the program's approaches to milestones and was distributed to program directors and administrators of 96 Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education-approved plastic surgery programs. The authors had a 63.5 percent response rate (61 of 96 plastic surgery programs). Most programs report some level of readiness, only 22 percent feel completely prepared for the Next Accreditation System milestones, and only 23 percent are completely satisfied with their planned approach for compliance. Seventy-five percent of programs claim to be using some form of electronic tracking system. Programs plan to use multiple tools to capture and report milestone data. Most programs (44.4 percent) plan to administer evaluations at the end of each rotation. Over 70 percent of respondents believe that the milestones approach would improve the quality of resident training. However, programs were less than confident that their current compliance systems would live up to their full potential. The Next Accreditation System has been implemented nationwide for plastic surgery training programs. Milestone-based resident training is a new paradigm for residency training evaluation; programs are in the process of making this transition to find ways to make milestone data meaningful for faculty and residents.

Breathing Room in Monitored Space: The Impact of Passive Monitoring Technology on Privacy in Independent Living.

PubMed

Berridge, Clara

2016-10-01

This study examines articulations of the relationship between privacy and passive monitoring by users and former users of a sensor-based remote monitoring system. A new conceptualization of privacy provides a framework for a constructive analysis of the study's findings with practical implications. Forty-nine in-depth semistructured interviews were conducted with elder residents, family members, and staff of 6 low-income independent living residence apartment buildings where the passive monitoring system had been offered for 6 years. Transcribed interviews were coded into the Dedoose software service and were analyzed using methods of grounded theory. Five diverse articulations of the relationship between privacy and passive monitoring emerged. The system produced new knowledge about residents and enabled staff to decide how much of that knowledge to disclose to residents. They chose not to disclose to residents their reason for following up on system-generated alerts for 2 reasons: concern that feelings of privacy invasion may arise and cause dissatisfaction with the technology, and the knowledge that many resident users did not comprehend the extent of its features and would be alarmed. This research reveals the importance and challenges of obtaining informed consent. It identifies where boundary intrusion can occur in the use of passive monitoring as well as how changes to technology design and practice could create opportunities for residents to manage their own boundaries according to their privacy needs. The diversity of approaches to privacy supports the need for "opportunity for boundary management" to be employed as both a design and practice principle. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Shots by STFM: value of immunization software to family medicine residency directors: a CERA study.

PubMed

Nowalk, Mary Patricia; Clinch, C Randall; Tarn, Derjung M; Chang, Tammy; Ncube, Collette N; Troy, Judith A; Zimmerman, Richard K

2012-01-01

The Group on Immunization Education (GIE) of the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine (STFM) has developed Shots by STFM immunization software, which is available free of charge for a variety of platforms. It is routinely updated with the Center for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC's) most recent immunization schedules. Successful development and marketing of teaching resources requires periodic evaluation of their use and value to their target audience. This study was undertaken to evaluate the 2011 version of Shots by STFM. Family medicine residency directors were surveyed about their use of Shots by STFM for teaching residents and their ratings of its features. The response rate for the survey was 38% (172/452). While awareness of Shots by STFM among responding residency directors was low (57%), ratings by those using the resource were excellent. Thirty percent of respondents recommend or require their residents to use Shots by STFM. Better marketing of Shots by STFM to family medicine residency directors seems to be indicated.

Grants Document-Generation System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hairell, Terri; Kreymer, Lev; Martin, Greg; Sheridan, Patrick

2008-01-01

The Grants Document-Generation System (GDGS) software allows the generation of official grants documents for distribution to the appropriate parties. The documents are created after the selection and entry of specific data elements and clauses. GDGS is written in Cold Fusion that resides on an SQL2000 database and is housed on-site at Goddard Space Flight Center. It includes access security written around GSFC's (Goddard Space Flight Center's) LIST system, and allows for the entry of Procurement Request information necessary for the generation of the resulting Grant Award.

Plagiarism in Personal Statements of Anesthesiology Residency Applicants.

PubMed

Parks, Lance J; Sizemore, Daniel C; Johnstone, Robert E

2016-02-15

Plagiarism by residency applicants in their personal statements, as well as sites that sell personal statements, have been described, and led in 2011 to advice to avoid plagiarism and the caution that plagiarism detection software was available. We screened personal statements of 467 anesthesiology residency applicants from 2013-2014 using Viper Plagiarism Scanner software, and studied them for plagiarism. After quotes and commonly used phrases were removed, 82 statements contained unoriginal content of 8 or more consecutive words. After the study, 13.6% of personal statements from non-United States medical school graduates, and 4.0% from United States medical school graduates, contained plagiarized material, a significant difference. Plagiarized content ranged up to 58%. Plagiarism continues to occur in anesthesiology residency personal statements, with a higher incidence among graduates of non-United States medical schools.

A Testbed for Evaluating Lunar Habitat Autonomy Architectures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lawler, Dennis G.

2008-01-01

A lunar outpost will involve a habitat with an integrated set of hardware and software that will maintain a safe environment for human activities. There is a desire for a paradigm shift whereby crew will be the primary mission operators, not ground controllers. There will also be significant periods when the outpost is uncrewed. This will require that significant automation software be resident in the habitat to maintain all system functions and respond to faults. JSC is developing a testbed to allow for early testing and evaluation of different autonomy architectures. This will allow evaluation of different software configurations in order to: 1) understand different operational concepts; 2) assess the impact of failures and perturbations on the system; and 3) mitigate software and hardware integration risks. The testbed will provide an environment in which habitat hardware simulations can interact with autonomous control software. Faults can be injected into the simulations and different mission scenarios can be scripted. The testbed allows for logging, replaying and re-initializing mission scenarios. An initial testbed configuration has been developed by combining an existing life support simulation and an existing simulation of the space station power distribution system. Results from this initial configuration will be presented along with suggested requirements and designs for the incremental development of a more sophisticated lunar habitat testbed.

An Adaptable Power System with Software Control Algorithm

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Castell, Karen; Bay, Mike; Hernandez-Pellerano, Amri; Ha, Kong

1998-01-01

A low cost, flexible and modular spacecraft power system design was developed in response to a call for an architecture that could accommodate multiple missions in the small to medium load range. Three upcoming satellites will use this design, with one launch date in 1999 and two in the year 2000. The design consists of modular hardware that can be scaled up or down, without additional cost, to suit missions in the 200 to 600 Watt orbital average load range. The design will be applied to satellite orbits that are circular, polar elliptical and a libration point orbit. Mission unique adaptations are accomplished in software and firmware. In designing this advanced, adaptable power system, the major goals were reduction in weight volume and cost. This power system design represents reductions in weight of 78 percent, volume of 86 percent and cost of 65 percent from previous comparable systems. The efforts to miniaturize the electronics without sacrificing performance has created streamlined power electronics with control functions residing in the system microprocessor. The power system design can handle any battery size up to 50 Amp-hour and any battery technology. The three current implementations will use both nickel cadmium and nickel hydrogen batteries ranging in size from 21 to 50 Amp-hours. Multiple batteries can be used by adding another battery module. Any solar cell technology can be used and various array layouts can be incorporated with no change in Power System Electronics (PSE) hardware. Other features of the design are the standardized interfaces between cards and subsystems and immunity to radiation effects up to 30 krad Total Ionizing Dose (TID) and 35 Mev/cm(exp 2)-kg for Single Event Effects (SEE). The control algorithm for the power system resides in a radiation-hardened microprocessor. A table driven software design allows for flexibility in mission specific requirements. By storing critical power system constants in memory, modifying the system code for other programs is simple. These constants can be altered also by ground command, or in response to an anomolous event. All critical power system functions have backup hardware functions to prevent a software or computer glitch from propagating. A number of battery charge control schemes can be implemented by selecting the proper control terms in the code. The architecture allows the design engineer to tune the system response to various system components and anticipated load profiles without costly alterations. A design trade was made with the size, weight and power dissipation of the electronics versus the performance of the power bus to load variations. Linear, fine control is maintained with a streamlined electronics design. This paper describes the hardware design as well as the software control algorithm. The challenges of closing the system control loop digitally is discussed. Control loop margin and power system performance is presented. Lab measurements are shown and compared to the system response of a hardware model running actual flight software.

Bonneville Power Administration Communication Alarm Processor expert system:

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

Goeltz, R.; Purucker, S.; Tonn, B.

This report describes the Communications Alarm Processor (CAP), a prototype expert system developed for the Bonneville Power Administration by Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The system is designed to receive and diagnose alarms from Bonneville's Microwave Communications System (MCS). The prototype encompasses one of seven branches of the communications network and a subset of alarm systems and alarm types from each system. The expert system employs a backward chaining approach to diagnosing alarms. Alarms are fed into the expert system directly from the communication system via RS232 ports and sophisticated alarm filtering and mailbox software. Alarm diagnoses are presented to operatorsmore » for their review and concurrence before the diagnoses are archived. Statistical software is incorporated to allow analysis of archived data for report generation and maintenance studies. The delivered system resides on a Digital Equipment Corporation VAX 3200 workstation and utilizes Nexpert Object and SAS for the expert system and statistical analysis, respectively. 11 refs., 23 figs., 7 tabs.« less

A comparison of traditional textbook and interactive computer learning of neuromuscular block.

PubMed

Ohrn, M A; van Oostrom, J H; van Meurs, W L

1997-03-01

We designed an educational software package, RELAX, for teaching first-year anesthesiology residents about the pharmacology and clinical management of neuromuscular blockade. The software uses an interactive, problem-based approach and moves the user through cases in an operating room environment. It can be run on personal computers with Microsoft Windows (Microsoft Corp., Redmond, WA) and combines video, graphics, and text with mouse-driven user input. We utilized test scores 1) to determine whether our software was beneficial to be the educational progress of anesthesiology residents and 2) to compare computer-based learning with textbook learning. Twenty-three residents were divided into two groups matched for age and sex, and a pretest was administered to all 23 residents. There was no significant difference (P > 0.05) in the pretest scores of the two groups. Three weeks later, both groups were subjected to an educational intervention; one with our computer software and the other with selected textbooks. Both groups took a posttest immediately after the intervention. The test scores of the computer group improved significantly more (P < 0.05) than those of the textbook group. Although prior to the study the two groups showed no statistical difference in their familiarity with computers, the computer group reported much higher satisfaction with their learning experience than did the textbook group (P < 0.0001).

Streamlined sign-out of capillary protein electrophoresis using middleware and an open-source macro application.

PubMed

Mathur, Gagan; Haugen, Thomas H; Davis, Scott L; Krasowski, Matthew D

2014-01-01

Interfacing of clinical laboratory instruments with the laboratory information system (LIS) via "middleware" software is increasingly common. Our clinical laboratory implemented capillary electrophoresis using a Sebia(®) Capillarys-2™ (Norcross, GA, USA) instrument for serum and urine protein electrophoresis. Using Data Innovations Instrument Manager, an interface was established with the LIS (Cerner) that allowed for bi-directional transmission of numeric data. However, the text of the interpretive pathology report was not properly transferred. To reduce manual effort and possibility for error in text data transfer, we developed scripts in AutoHotkey, a free, open-source macro-creation and automation software utility. Scripts were written to create macros that automated mouse and key strokes. The scripts retrieve the specimen accession number, capture user input text, and insert the text interpretation in the correct patient record in the desired format. The scripts accurately and precisely transfer narrative interpretation into the LIS. Combined with bar-code reading by the electrophoresis instrument, the scripts transfer data efficiently to the correct patient record. In addition, the AutoHotKey script automated repetitive key strokes required for manual entry into the LIS, making protein electrophoresis sign-out easier to learn and faster to use by the pathology residents. Scripts allow for either preliminary verification by residents or final sign-out by the attending pathologist. Using the open-source AutoHotKey software, we successfully improved the transfer of text data between capillary electrophoresis software and the LIS. The use of open-source software tools should not be overlooked as tools to improve interfacing of laboratory instruments.

Programs for generating data tables for the annual water-resources data report of the U.S. Geological Survey

USGS Publications Warehouse

Mason, R.R.; Hill, C.L.

1988-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey has developed software that interfaces with the Automated Data Processing System to facilitate and expedite preparation of the annual water-resources data report. This software incorporates a feature that prepares daily values tables and appends them to previously edited files containing station manuscripts. Other features collate the merged files with miscellaneous sections of the report. The report is then printed as page-size, camera-ready copy. All system components reside on a minicomputer; this provides easy access and use by remote field offices. Automation of the annual report preparation process results in significant savings of labor and cost. Use of the system for producing the 1986 annual report in the North Carolina District realized a labor savings of over two man-months. A fully implemented system would produce a greater savings and speed release of the report to users.

Play dough as an educational tool for visualization of complicated cerebral aneurysm anatomy

PubMed Central

Eftekhar, Behzad; Ghodsi, Mohammad; Ketabchi, Ebrahim; Ghazvini, Arman Rakan

2005-01-01

Background Imagination of the three-dimensional (3D) structure of cerebral vascular lesions using two-dimensional (2D) angiograms is one of the skills that neurosurgical residents should achieve during their training. Although ongoing progress in computer software and digital imaging systems has facilitated viewing and interpretation of cerebral angiograms enormously, these facilities are not always available. Methods We have presented the use of play dough as an adjunct to the teaching armamentarium for training in visualization of cerebral aneurysms in some cases. Results The advantages of play dough are low cost, availability and simplicity of use, being more efficient and realistic in training the less experienced resident in comparison with the simple drawings and even angiographic views from different angles without the need for computers and similar equipment. The disadvantages include the psychological resistance of residents to the use of something in surgical training that usually is considered to be a toy, and not being as clean as drawings or computerized images. Conclusion Although technology and computerized software using the patients' own imaging data seems likely to become more advanced in the future, use of play dough in some complicated cerebral aneurysm cases may be helpful in 3D reconstruction of the real situation. PMID:15885141

Vibroacoustic Payload Environment Prediction System (VAPEPS): VAPEPS management center remote access guide

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fernandez, J. P.; Mills, D.

1991-01-01

A Vibroacoustic Payload Environment Prediction System (VAPEPS) Management Center was established at the JPL. The center utilizes the VAPEPS software package to manage a data base of Space Shuttle and expendable launch vehicle payload flight and ground test data. Remote terminal access over telephone lines to the computer system, where the program resides, was established to provide the payload community a convenient means of querying the global VAPEPS data base. This guide describes the functions of the VAPEPS Management Center and contains instructions for utilizing the resources of the center.

Evaluation of Residence Time on Nitrogen Oxides Removal in Non-Thermal Plasma Reactor

PubMed Central

Talebizadeh, Pouyan; Rahimzadeh, Hassan; Babaie, Meisam; Javadi Anaghizi, Saeed; Ghomi, Hamidreza; Ahmadi, Goodarz; Brown, Richard

2015-01-01

Non-thermal plasma (NTP) has been introduced over the last few years as a promising after- treatment system for nitrogen oxides and particulate matter removal from diesel exhaust. NTP technology has not been commercialised as yet, due to its high rate of energy consumption. Therefore, it is important to seek out new methods to improve NTP performance. Residence time is a crucial parameter in engine exhaust emissions treatment. In this paper, different electrode shapes are analysed and the corresponding residence time and NOx removal efficiency are studied. An axisymmetric laminar model is used for obtaining residence time distribution numerically using FLUENT software. If the mean residence time in a NTP plasma reactor increases, there will be a corresponding increase in the reaction time and consequently the pollutant removal efficiency increases. Three different screw thread electrodes and a rod electrode are examined. The results show the advantage of screw thread electrodes in comparison with the rod electrode. Furthermore, between the screw thread electrodes, the electrode with the thread width of 1 mm has the highest NOx removal due to higher residence time and a greater number of micro-discharges. The results show that the residence time of the screw thread electrode with a thread width of 1 mm is 21% more than for the rod electrode. PMID:26496630

Utilization of personal digital assistants (PDAS) by pediatric and emergency medicine residents.

PubMed

Khan, Abu N G A; Frank, Joshua; Geria, Rajesh; Davidson, Steven

2007-05-01

The objective of the present study was to investigate the current personal digital assistant (PDA) usage patterns of the residents and their interest in future PDA-based applications. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among the Pediatrics (Peds) and Emergency Medicine (EM) residents in an urban teaching hospital. Data points included level of training, specialty of training, experience of use of different PDA devices, use of current software applications, and interest in future applications. A total of 60/74 (81%) eligible residents participated in the study. Palm (Palm Inc., Sunnyvale, CA) was the most commonly used operating system (82%). Among the PDA users, 82% reported using the device several times a day, and 16% used them a few times a week. The most commonly used applications included the simple calculator (81%), drug references (80%), medical calculators (75%), electronic textbooks (66%), and schedule and contact information (42%). In addition, residents showed interest in using PDA applications for procedure logs, patient tracking, and prescription writing. No significant differences were noted in the frequency and expertise of using PDAs between the Peds and EM residents (p = 0.29). Our data show current trends of use of PDAs by Peds and EM residents and their interest for future applications.

Evaluation of a deidentification (De-Id) software engine to share pathology reports and clinical documents for research.

PubMed

Gupta, Dilip; Saul, Melissa; Gilbertson, John

2004-02-01

We evaluated a comprehensive deidentification engine at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC), Pittsburgh, PA, that uses a complex set of rules, dictionaries, pattern-matching algorithms, and the Unified Medical Language System to identify and replace identifying text in clinical reports while preserving medical information for sharing in research. In our initial data set of 967 surgical pathology reports, the software did not suppress outside (103), UPMC (47), and non-UPMC (56) accession numbers; dates (7); names (9) or initials (25) of case pathologists; or hospital or laboratory names (46). In 150 reports, some clinical information was suppressed inadvertently (overmarking). The engine retained eponymic patient names, eg, Barrett and Gleason. In the second evaluation (1,000 reports), the software did not suppress outside (90) or UPMC (6) accession numbers or names (4) or initials (2) of case pathologists. In the third evaluation, the software removed names of patients, hospitals (297/300), pathologists (297/300), transcriptionists, residents and physicians, dates of procedures, and accession numbers (298/300). By the end of the evaluation, the system was reliably and specifically removing safe-harbor identifiers and producing highly readable deidentified text without removing important clinical information. Collaboration between pathology domain experts and system developers and continuous quality assurance are needed to optimize ongoing deidentification processes.

Tool Integration and Environment Architectures

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-05-01

include the Interactive Development Environment (IDE) Software Through Pictures (STP), Sabre-C and FrameMaker coalition, and the Verdix Ada Development...System (VADS) APSE, which includes the VADS compiler and choices of CADRE Teamwork or STP and FrameMaker or Interleaf. The key characteristic of...remote procedure execution to achieve a simulation of a homoge- neous repository (i.e., a simulation that the data in a FrameMaker document resides in one

Exploring the Association Between Electronic Health Record Use and Burnout Among Psychiatry Residents and Faculty: a Pilot Survey Study.

PubMed

Domaney, Nicholas M; Torous, John; Greenberg, William E

2018-05-21

Burnout is a phenomenon with profound negative effects on the US healthcare system. Little is known about the relationship between time spent working on electronic health record (EHR) and burnout among psychiatry residents. The purpose of this study is to generate preliminary data on EHR use and burnout among psychiatry residents and faculty. In August 2017, psychiatry residents and faculty at an academic medical center were given the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI), a standardized measurement tool for burnout, and a survey of factors related to EHR use and potential risk factors for burnout. MBI data along with selected burnout risk and protective factors were analyzed with R Studio software. Responses were obtained from 40 psychiatry residents (73%) and 12 clinical faculty members (40%). Residents reported 22 h per week using EHR on average. Mean score of residents surveyed in postgraduate year (PGY)-1-4 met criteria for high emotional exhaustion associated with burnout. The magnitude of correlation between EHR use and emotional exhaustion was stronger than for other burnout factors including sleep, exercise, and clinical service. Psychiatry residents show signs of high emotional exhaustion, which is associated with burnout. Results demonstrate a strong positive correlation between EHR use and resident burnout. Time spent on EHR use may be an area of importance for psychiatry program directors and other psychiatric educators to consider when seeking to minimize burnout and promote wellness.

Evaluation of a haptics-based virtual reality temporal bone simulator for anatomy and surgery training.

PubMed

Fang, Te-Yung; Wang, Pa-Chun; Liu, Chih-Hsien; Su, Mu-Chun; Yeh, Shih-Ching

2014-02-01

Virtual reality simulation training may improve knowledge of anatomy and surgical skills. We evaluated a 3-dimensional, haptic, virtual reality temporal bone simulator for dissection training. The subjects were 7 otolaryngology residents (3 training sessions each) and 7 medical students (1 training session each). The virtual reality temporal bone simulation station included a computer with software that was linked to a force-feedback hand stylus, and the system recorded performance and collisions with vital anatomic structures. Subjects performed virtual reality dissections and completed questionnaires after the training sessions. Residents and students had favorable responses to most questions of the technology acceptance model (TAM) questionnaire. The average TAM scores were above neutral for residents and medical students in all domains, and the average TAM score for residents was significantly higher for the usefulness domain and lower for the playful domain than students. The average satisfaction questionnaire for residents showed that residents had greater overall satisfaction with cadaver temporal bone dissection training than training with the virtual reality simulator or plastic temporal bone. For medical students, the average comprehension score was significantly increased from before to after training for all anatomic structures. Medical students had significantly more collisions with the dura than residents. The residents had similar mean performance scores after the first and third training sessions for all dissection procedures. The virtual reality temporal bone simulator provided satisfactory training for otolaryngology residents and medical students. Copyright © 2013. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.

GIS Methodic and New Database for Magmatic Rocks. Application for Atlantic Oceanic Magmatism.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Asavin, A. M.

2001-12-01

There are several geochemical Databases in INTERNET available now. There one of the main peculiarities of stored geochemical information is geographical coordinates of each samples in those Databases. As rule the software of this Database use spatial information only for users interface search procedures. In the other side, GIS-software (Geographical Information System software),for example ARC/INFO software which using for creation and analyzing special geological, geochemical and geophysical e-map, have been deeply involved with geographical coordinates for of samples. We join peculiarities GIS systems and relational geochemical Database from special software. Our geochemical information system created in Vernadsky Geological State Museum and institute of Geochemistry and Analytical Chemistry from Moscow. Now we tested system with data of geochemistry oceanic rock from Atlantic and Pacific oceans, about 10000 chemical analysis. GIS information content consist from e-map covers Wold Globes. Parts of these maps are Atlantic ocean covers gravica map (with grid 2''), oceanic bottom hot stream, altimeteric maps, seismic activity, tectonic map and geological map. Combination of this information content makes possible created new geochemical maps and combination of spatial analysis and numerical geochemical modeling of volcanic process in ocean segment. Now we tested information system on thick client technology. Interface between GIS system Arc/View and Database resides in special multiply SQL-queries sequence. The result of the above gueries were simple DBF-file with geographical coordinates. This file act at the instant of creation geochemical and other special e-map from oceanic region. We used more complex method for geophysical data. From ARC\\View we created grid cover for polygon spatial geophysical information.

Operator Station Design System - A computer aided design approach to work station layout

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lewis, J. L.

1979-01-01

The Operator Station Design System is resident in NASA's Johnson Space Center Spacecraft Design Division Performance Laboratory. It includes stand-alone minicomputer hardware and Panel Layout Automated Interactive Design and Crew Station Assessment of Reach software. The data base consists of the Shuttle Transportation System Orbiter Crew Compartment (in part), the Orbiter payload bay and remote manipulator (in part), and various anthropometric populations. The system is utilized to provide panel layouts, assess reach and vision, determine interference and fit problems early in the design phase, study design applications as a function of anthropometric and mission requirements, and to accomplish conceptual design to support advanced study efforts.

A web-based library consult service for evidence-based medicine: Technical development.

PubMed

Schwartz, Alan; Millam, Gregory

2006-03-16

Incorporating evidence based medicine (EBM) into clinical practice requires clinicians to learn to efficiently gain access to clinical evidence and effectively appraise its validity. Even using current electronic systems, selecting literature-based data to solve a single patient-related problem can require more time than practicing physicians or residents can spare. Clinical librarians, as informationists, are uniquely suited to assist physicians in this endeavor. To improve support for evidence-based practice, we have developed a web-based EBM library consult service application (LCS). Librarians use the LCS system to provide full text evidence-based literature with critical appraisal in response to a clinical question asked by a remote physician. LCS uses an entirely Free/Open Source Software platform and will be released under a Free Software license. In the first year of the LCS project, the software was successfully developed and a reference implementation put into active use. Two years of evaluation of the clinical, educational, and attitudinal impact on physician-users and librarian staff are underway, and expected to lead to refinement and wide dissemination of the system. A web-based EBM library consult model may provide a useful way for informationists to assist clinicians, and is feasible to implement.

Association between periodontal diseases and systemic illnesses: A survey among internal medicine residents in Nigeria.

PubMed

Umeizudike, Kehinde A; Iwuala, Sandra O; Ozoh, Obianuju B; Ayanbadejo, Patricia O; Fasanmade, Olufemi A

2016-01-01

To assess internal medicine residents' knowledge of associations between periodontal disease and systemic illnesses, and attitudes toward patients' periodontal health. A cross-sectional survey using a self-administered questionnaire was conducted among internal medicine residents attending the Faculty of Internal Medicine 2014 Update Course organized by the National Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria. Participants came from all over the country. Data on respondents' demographic characteristics, periodontal disease knowledge, knowledge of associations between periodontal disease and systemic illnesses, and attitudes toward patients' periodontal health were collected. Data were analyzed using Epi INFO software. The Pearson chi square test was used to measure significant association between categorical variables such as the knowledge of periodontal disease and gender, age group and designation of the participants (p ⩽ 0.05). Of 150 questionnaires distributed, 123 were returned (82% response rate); 109 questionnaires were completed properly and included in the analysis. The most common source of residents' information on oral health was television (59.4%). Only 11.2% of respondents were aware that gingival bleeding was the earliest sign of periodontal disease. Respondents correctly identified periodontal disease as a risk factor for coronary heart disease (45.9%), stroke (43.5%), hospital-acquired pneumonia (53.2%), diabetes mellitus (13.8%), and preterm birth (11%). Increased age (p = 0.032) and male gender (p = 0.022) were associated significantly with knowledge of periodontal disease as a risk factor for stroke. Higher designation (p = 0.002) and longer duration in residency training (p = 0.004) were associated significantly with knowledge of periodontal disease as risk factor for peripheral arterial disease. The majority (90.9%) of respondents had positive attitudes toward the referral of their patients for regular periodontal care. Knowledge of periodontal disease as a risk factor for systemic illnesses among medical residents in Nigeria is inadequate. These relationships should be emphasized in continuing medical education courses.

Use of an innovative video feedback technique to enhance communication skills training.

PubMed

Roter, Debra L; Larson, Susan; Shinitzky, Harold; Chernoff, Robin; Serwint, Janet R; Adamo, Graceanne; Wissow, Larry

2004-02-01

Despite growing interest in medical communication by certification bodies, significant methodological and logistic challenges are evident in experiential methods of instruction. There were three study objectives: 1) to explore the acceptability of an innovative video feedback programme to residents and faculty; 2) to evaluate a brief teaching intervention comprising the video feedback innovation when linked to a one-hour didactic and role-play teaching session on paediatric residents' communication with a simulated patient; and 3) to explore the impact of resident gender on communication change. Pre/post comparison of residents' performance in videotaped interviews with simulated patients before and after the teaching intervention. Individually tailored feedback on targeted communication skills was facilitated by embedding the Roter Interaction Analysis System (RIAS) within a software platform that presents a fully coded interview with instant search and review features. 28 first year residents in a large, urban, paediatric residency programme. Communication changes following the teaching intervention were demonstrated through significant improvements in residents' performance with simulated patients pre and post teaching and feedback. Using paired t-tests, differences include: reduced verbal dominance; increased use of open-ended questions; increased use of empathy; and increased partnership building and problem solving for therapeutic regimen adherence. Female residents demonstrated greater communication change than males. The RIAS embedded CD-ROM provides a flexible structure for individually tailoring feedback of targeted communication skills that is effective in facilitating communication change as part of a very brief teaching intervention.

Assessing medical residents' usage and perceived needs for personal digital assistants.

PubMed

Barrett, James R; Strayer, Scott M; Schubart, Jane R

2004-02-01

Health care professionals need information delivery tools for accessing information at the point of patient care. Personal digital assistants (PDAs), or hand-held devices demonstrate great promise as point of care information devices. An earlier study [The Constellation Project: experience and evaluation of personal digital assistants in the clinical environment, in: Proceedings of the 19th Annual Symposium on Computer Applications in Medical Care, 1995, 678] on the use of PDAs at the point of care found that hardware constraints, such as memory capability limited their usefulness, however, they were used frequently for accessing medical references and drug information [The Constellation Project: experience and evaluation of personal digital assistants in the clinical environment, in: Proceedings of the 19th Annual Symposium on Computer Applications in Medical Care, 1995, 678]. Since this study was completed in 1995, hand-held computer technology has advanced rapidly, and between 26 and 50% of physicians currently use PDAs [Physician's use of hand-helds increases from 15% in 1999 to 26% in 2001: Harris interactive poll results, Harris Poll. 8-24-2002 (electronic citation); ACP-ASIM survey finds nearly half of U.S. members use hand-held computers: ACP-ASIM press release, American College of Physicians, 9-3-2002 (electronic citation)]. This use appears higher among residents, with one recent study finding that over two-thirds of family practice residencies use hand-held computers in their training programs [J. Am. Med. Inform. Assoc. 9 (1) (2002) 80]. In this study, we systematically evaluate PDA usage by residents in our institution using quantitative and qualitative methods. Our evaluation included a brief on-line survey of 88 residents in seven residency programs including primary care and specialty practices. The surveys were completed between 26 October 2001 and 30 April 2002. Follow-up interviews with 15 of the surveyed residents were then conducted between 24 April 2002 and 13 May 2002. The original contributions of this study are the evaluation of residents in primary and specialty programs and evaluation of both medical application software and the conventional personal organizational software (such as calendars and to-do lists). This evaluation was also conducted using significantly advanced hardware and software compared with previous studies [The Constellation Project: experience and evaluation of personal digital assistants in the clinical environment, in: Proceedings of the 19th Annual Symposium on Computer Applications in Medical Care, 1995, 678]. Results of our survey and follow-up interviews of residents showed most residents use PDAs daily, regardless of practice or whether their program encourages PDAs. Uses include commercial medical references and personal organization software, such as calendars and address books. Concerns and drawbacks mentioned by these residents included physical size of the PDA and the potential for catastrophic data loss. Another issue raised by our results suggests that security and Health Information Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) compliance need to be addressed, in part by resident education about securing patient data on PDAs. Overall, PDAs may become even more widely used if two issues can be addressed: (a) providing secure clinical data for the current patients of a given resident, and (b) allaying concerns of catastrophic data loss from their PDAs (e.g. by educating residents about procedures to recover information from PDA backup files).

Use of Soft Computing Technologies for a Qualitative and Reliable Engine Control System for Propulsion Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Trevino, Luis; Brown, Terry; Crumbley, R. T. (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

The problem to be addressed in this paper is to explore how the use of Soft Computing Technologies (SCT) could be employed to improve overall vehicle system safety, reliability, and rocket engine performance by development of a qualitative and reliable engine control system (QRECS). Specifically, this will be addressed by enhancing rocket engine control using SCT, innovative data mining tools, and sound software engineering practices used in Marshall's Flight Software Group (FSG). The principle goals for addressing the issue of quality are to improve software management, software development time, software maintenance, processor execution, fault tolerance and mitigation, and nonlinear control in power level transitions. The intent is not to discuss any shortcomings of existing engine control methodologies, but to provide alternative design choices for control, implementation, performance, and sustaining engineering, all relative to addressing the issue of reliability. The approaches outlined in this paper will require knowledge in the fields of rocket engine propulsion (system level), software engineering for embedded flight software systems, and soft computing technologies (i.e., neural networks, fuzzy logic, data mining, and Bayesian belief networks); some of which are briefed in this paper. For this effort, the targeted demonstration rocket engine testbed is the MC-1 engine (formerly FASTRAC) which is simulated with hardware and software in the Marshall Avionics & Software Testbed (MAST) laboratory that currently resides at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, building 4476, and is managed by the Avionics Department. A brief plan of action for design, development, implementation, and testing a Phase One effort for QRECS is given, along with expected results. Phase One will focus on development of a Smart Start Engine Module and a Mainstage Engine Module for proper engine start and mainstage engine operations. The overall intent is to demonstrate that by employing soft computing technologies, the quality and reliability of the overall scheme to engine controller development is further improved and vehicle safety is further insured. The final product that this paper proposes is an approach to development of an alternative low cost engine controller that would be capable of performing in unique vision spacecraft vehicles requiring low cost advanced avionics architectures for autonomous operations from engine pre-start to engine shutdown.

The Implementation of Satellite Control System Software Using Object Oriented Design

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, Mark O.; Reid, Mark; Drury, Derek; Hansell, William; Phillips, Tom

1998-01-01

NASA established the Small Explorer (SMEX) program in 1988 to provide frequent opportunities for highly focused and relatively inexpensive space science missions that can be launched into low earth orbit by small expendable vehicles. The development schedule for each SMEX spacecraft was three years from start to launch. The SMEX program has produced five satellites; Solar Anomalous and Magnetospheric Particle Explorer (SAMPEX), Fast Auroral Snapshot Explorer (FAST), Submillimeter Wave Astronomy Satellite (SWAS), Transition Region and Coronal Explorer (TRACE) and Wide-Field Infrared Explorer (WIRE). SAMPEX and FAST are on-orbit, TRACE is scheduled to be launched in April of 1998, WIRE is scheduled to be launched in September of 1998, and SWAS is scheduled to be launched in January of 1999. In each of these missions, the Attitude Control System (ACS) software was written using a modular procedural design. Current program goals require complete spacecraft development within 18 months. This requirement has increased pressure to write reusable flight software. Object-Oriented Design (OOD) offers the constructs for developing an application that only needs modification for mission unique requirements. This paper describes the OOD that was used to develop the SMEX-Lite ACS software. The SMEX-Lite ACS is three-axis controlled, momentum stabilized, and is capable of performing sub-arc-minute pointing. The paper first describes the high level requirements which governed the architecture of the SMEX-Lite ACS software. Next, the context in which the software resides is explained. The paper describes the benefits of encapsulation, inheritance and polymorphism with respect to the implementation of an ACS software system. This paper will discuss the design of several software components that comprise the ACS software. Specifically, Object-Oriented designs are presented for sensor data processing, attitude control, attitude determination and failure detection. The paper addresses the benefits of the OOD versus a conventional procedural design. The final discussion in this paper will address the establishment of the ACS Foundation Class (AFC) Library. The AFC is a large software repository, requiring a minimal amount of code modifications to produce ACS software for future projects, saving production time and costs.

Western aeronautical test range real-time graphics software package MAGIC

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Malone, Jacqueline C.; Moore, Archie L.

1988-01-01

The master graphics interactive console (MAGIC) software package used on the Western Aeronautical Test Range (WATR) of the NASA Ames Research Center is described. MAGIC is a resident real-time research tool available to flight researchers-scientists in the NASA mission control centers of the WATR at the Dryden Flight Research Facility at Edwards, California. The hardware configuration and capabilities of the real-time software package are also discussed.

Reliability of skeletal maturity analysis using the cervical vertebrae maturation method on dedicated software.

PubMed

Padalino, Saverio; Sfondrini, Maria Francesca; Chenuil, Laura; Scudeller, Luigia; Gandini, Paola

2014-12-01

The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility of skeletal maturation analysis using the Cervical Vertebrae Maturation (CVM) method by means of dedicated software, developed in collaboration with Outside Format (Paullo-Milan), as compared with manual analysis. From a sample of patients aged 7-21 years, we gathered 100 lateral cephalograms, 20 for each of the five CVM stages. For each cephalogram, we traced cervical vertebrae C2, C3 and C4 by hand using a lead pencil and an acetate sheet and dedicated software. All the tracings were made by an experienced operator (a dentofacial orthopedics resident) and by an inexperienced operator (a student in dental surgery). Each operator recorded the time needed to make each tracing in order to demonstrate differences in the times taken. Concordance between the manual analysis and the analysis performed using the dedicated software was 94% for the resident and 93% for the student. Interobserver concordance was 99%. The hand-tracing was quicker than that performed by means of the software (28 seconds more on average). The cervical vertebrae analysis software offers excellent clinical performance, even if the method takes longer than the manual technique. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

UltraNet Target Parameters. Chapter 1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kislitzin, Katherine T.; Blaylock, Bruce T. (Technical Monitor)

1992-01-01

The UltraNet is a high speed network capable of rates up to one gigabit per second. It is a hub based network with four optical fiber links connecting each hub. Each link can carry up to 256 megabits of data, and the hub backplane is capable of one gigabit aggregate throughput. Host connections to the hub may be fiber, coax, or channel based. Bus based machines have adapter boards that connect to transceivers in the hub, while channel based machines use a personality module in the hub. One way that the UltraNet achieves its high transfer rates is by off-loading the protocol processing from the hosts to special purpose protocol engines in the UltraNet hubs. In addition, every hub has a PC connected to it by StarLAN for network management purposes. Although there is hub resident and PC resident UltraNet software, this document treats only the host resident UltraNet software.

Increasing emergency medicine residents' confidence in disaster management: use of an emergency department simulator and an expedited curriculum.

PubMed

Franc, Jeffrey Michael; Nichols, Darren; Dong, Sandy L

2012-02-01

Disaster Medicine is an increasingly important part of medicine. Emergency Medicine residency programs have very high curriculum commitments, and adding Disaster Medicine training to this busy schedule can be difficult. Development of a short Disaster Medicine curriculum that is effective and enjoyable for the participants may be a valuable addition to Emergency Medicine residency training. A simulation-based curriculum was developed. The curriculum included four group exercises in which the participants developed a disaster plan for a simulated hospital. This was followed by a disaster simulation using the Disastermed.Ca Emergency Disaster Simulator computer software Version 3.5.2 (Disastermed.Ca, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada) and the disaster plan developed by the participants. Progress was assessed by a pre- and post-test, resident evaluations, faculty evaluation of Command and Control, and markers obtained from the Disastermed.Ca software. Twenty-five residents agreed to partake in the training curriculum. Seventeen completed the simulation. There was no statistically significant difference in pre- and post-test scores. Residents indicated that they felt the curriculum had been useful, and judged it to be preferable to a didactic curriculum. In addition, the residents' confidence in their ability to manage a disaster increased on both a personal and and a departmental level. A simulation-based model of Disaster Medicine training, requiring approximately eight hours of classroom time, was judged by Emergency Medicine residents to be a valuable component of their medical training, and increased their confidence in personal and departmental disaster management capabilities.

Low-cost endoscopic third ventriculostomy simulator with mimetic endoscope.

PubMed

Garling, Richard Justin; Jin, Xin; Yang, Jianzhong; Khasawneh, Ahmad H; Harris, Carolyn Anne

2018-05-11

OBJECTIVE Hydrocephalus affects approximately 1 in 500 people in the US, yet ventricular shunting, the gold standard of treatment, has a nearly 85% failure rate. Endoscopic third ventriculostomy (ETV) is an alternative surgical approach for a specific subset of hydrocephalic patients, but can be limited by the inability of neurosurgical residents to practice prior to patient contact. The goal of this study was to create an affordable ETV model and endoscope for resident training. METHODS Open-source software was used to isolate the skull and brain from the CT and MR images of a 2-year-old boy with hydrocephalus. A 3D printer created the skull and a 3D mold of the brain. A mixture of silicone and silicone tactile mutator was used to cast the brain mold prior to subsequent compression and shearing modulus testing. A mimetic endoscope was then created from basic supplies and a 3D printed frame. A small cohort of neurosurgical residents and attending physicians evaluated the ETV simulator with mimetic endoscope. RESULTS The authors successfully created a mimetic endoscope and ETV simulator. After compression and shearing modulus testing, a silicone/Slacker ratio between 10:6 and 10:7 was found to be similar to that of human brain parenchyma. Eighty-seven percent of participants strongly agreed that the simulator was useful for resident training, and 93% strongly agreed that the simulator helped them understand how to orient themselves with the endoscope. CONCLUSIONS The authors created an affordable (US$123, excluding 3D printer), easy-to-use ETV simulator with endoscope. Previous models have required expensive software and costly operative endoscopes that may not be available to most residents. Instead, this attempt takes advantage of open-source software for the manipulation and fabrication of a patient-specific mold. This model can assist with resident development, allowing them to safely practice use of the endoscope in ETV.

Case Study of the Space Shuttle Cockpit Avionics Upgrade Software

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ferguson, Roscoe C.; Thompson, Hiram C.

2005-01-01

The purpose of the Space Shuttle Cockpit Avionics Upgrade project was to reduce crew workload and improve situational awareness. The upgrade was to augment the Shuttle avionics system with new hardware and software. An early version of this system was used to gather human factor statistics in the Space Shuttle Motion Simulator of the Johnson Space Center for one month by multiple teams of astronauts. The results were compiled by NASA Ames Research Center and it was was determined that the system provided a better than expected increase in situational awareness and reduction in crew workload. Even with all of the benefits nf the system, NASA cancelled the project towards the end of the development cycle. A major success of this project was the validation of the hardware architecture and software design. This was significant because the project incorporated new technology and approaches for the development of human rated space software. This paper serves as a case study to document knowledge gained and techniques that can be applied for future space avionics development efforts. The major technological advances were the use of reflective memory concepts for data acquisition and the incorporation of Commercial off the Shelf (COTS) products in a human rated space avionics system. The infused COTS products included a real time operating system, a resident linker and loader, a display generation tool set, and a network data manager. Some of the successful design concepts were the engineering of identical outputs in multiple avionics boxes using an event driven approach and inter-computer communication, a reconfigurable data acquisition engine, the use of a dynamic bus bandwidth allocation algorithm. Other significant experiences captured were the use of prototyping to reduce risk, and the correct balance between Object Oriented and Functional based programming.

Fostering sustained energy behavior change and increasing energy literacy in a student housing energy challenge

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brewer, Robert Stephen

We designed the Kukui Cup challenge to foster energy conservation and increase energy literacy. Based on a review of the literature, the challenge combined a variety of elements into an overall game experience, including: real-time energy feedback, goals, commitments, competition, and prizes. We designed a software system called Makahiki to provide the online portion of the Kukui Cup challenge. Energy use was monitored by smart meters installed on each floor of the Hale Aloha residence halls on the University of Hawai'i at Manoa campus. In October 2011, we ran the UH Kukui Cup challenge for the over 1000 residents of the Hale Aloha towers. To evaluate the Kukui Cup challenge, I conducted three experiments: challenge participation, energy literacy, and energy use. Many residents participated in the challenge, as measured by points earned and actions completed through the challenge website. I measured the energy literacy of a random sample of Hale Aloha residents using an online energy literacy questionnaire administered before and after the challenge. I found that challenge participants' energy knowledge increased significantly compared to non-challenge participants. Positive self-reported energy behaviors increased after the challenge for both challenge participants and non-participants, leading to the possibility of passive participation by the non-challenge participants. I found that energy use varied substantially between and within lounges over time. Variations in energy use over time complicated the selection of a baseline of energy use to compare the levels during and after the challenge. The best team reduced its energy use during the challenge by 16%. However, team energy conservation did not appear to correlate to participation in the challenge, and there was no evidence of sustained energy conservation after the challenge. The problems inherent in assessing energy conservation using a baseline call into question this common practice. My research has generated several contributions, including: a demonstration of increased energy literacy as a result of the challenge, the discovery of fundamental problems with the use of baselines for assessing energy competitions, the creation of two open source software systems, and the creation of an energy literacy assessment instrument.

A web-based library consult service for evidence-based medicine: Technical development

PubMed Central

Schwartz, Alan; Millam, Gregory

2006-01-01

Background Incorporating evidence based medicine (EBM) into clinical practice requires clinicians to learn to efficiently gain access to clinical evidence and effectively appraise its validity. Even using current electronic systems, selecting literature-based data to solve a single patient-related problem can require more time than practicing physicians or residents can spare. Clinical librarians, as informationists, are uniquely suited to assist physicians in this endeavor. Results To improve support for evidence-based practice, we have developed a web-based EBM library consult service application (LCS). Librarians use the LCS system to provide full text evidence-based literature with critical appraisal in response to a clinical question asked by a remote physician. LCS uses an entirely Free/Open Source Software platform and will be released under a Free Software license. In the first year of the LCS project, the software was successfully developed and a reference implementation put into active use. Two years of evaluation of the clinical, educational, and attitudinal impact on physician-users and librarian staff are underway, and expected to lead to refinement and wide dissemination of the system. Conclusion A web-based EBM library consult model may provide a useful way for informationists to assist clinicians, and is feasible to implement. PMID:16542453

Autonomous power system brassboard

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Merolla, Anthony

1992-01-01

The Autonomous Power System (APS) brassboard is a 20 kHz power distribution system which has been developed at NASA Lewis Research Center, Cleveland, Ohio. The brassboard exists to provide a realistic hardware platform capable of testing artificially intelligent (AI) software. The brassboard's power circuit topology is based upon a Power Distribution Control Unit (PDCU), which is a subset of an advanced development 20 kHz electrical power system (EPS) testbed, originally designed for Space Station Freedom (SSF). The APS program is designed to demonstrate the application of intelligent software as a fault detection, isolation, and recovery methodology for space power systems. This report discusses both the hardware and software elements used to construct the present configuration of the brassboard. The brassboard power components are described. These include the solid-state switches (herein referred to as switchgear), transformers, sources, and loads. Closely linked to this power portion of the brassboard is the first level of embedded control. Hardware used to implement this control and its associated software is discussed. An Ada software program, developed by Lewis Research Center's Space Station Freedom Directorate for their 20 kHz testbed, is used to control the brassboard's switchgear, as well as monitor key brassboard parameters through sensors located within these switches. The Ada code is downloaded from a PC/AT, and is resident within the 8086 microprocessor-based embedded controllers. The PC/AT is also used for smart terminal emulation, capable of controlling the switchgear as well as displaying data from them. Intelligent control is provided through use of a T1 Explorer and the Autonomous Power Expert (APEX) LISP software. Real-time load scheduling is implemented through use of a 'C' program-based scheduling engine. The methods of communication between these computers and the brassboard are explored. In order to evaluate the features of both the brassboard hardware and intelligent controlling software, fault circuits have been developed and integrated as part of the brassboard. A description of these fault circuits and their function is included. The brassboard has become an extremely useful test facility, promoting artificial intelligence (AI) applications for power distribution systems. However, there are elements of the brassboard which could be enhanced, thus improving system performance. Modifications and enhancements to improve the brassboard's operation are discussed.

Assessment of resident operative performance using a real-time mobile Web system: preparing for the milestone age.

PubMed

Wagner, Justin P; Chen, David C; Donahue, Timothy R; Quach, Chi; Hines, O Joe; Hiatt, Jonathan R; Tillou, Areti

2014-01-01

To satisfy trainees' operative competency requirements while improving feedback validity and timeliness using a mobile Web-based platform. The Southern Illinois University Operative Performance Rating Scale (OPRS) was embedded into a website formatted for mobile devices. From March 2013 to February 2014, faculty members were instructed to complete the OPRS form while providing verbal feedback to the operating resident at the conclusion of each procedure. Submitted data were compiled automatically within a secure Web-based spreadsheet. Conventional end-of-rotation performance (CERP) evaluations filed 2006 to 2013 and OPRS performance scores were compared by year of training using serial and independent-samples t tests. The mean CERP scores and OPRS overall resident operative performance scores were directly compared using a linear regression model. OPRS mobile site analytics were reviewed using a Web-based reporting program. Large university-based general surgery residency program. General Surgery faculty used the mobile Web OPRS system to rate resident performance. Residents and the program director reviewed evaluations semiannually. Over the study period, 18 faculty members and 37 residents logged 176 operations using the mobile OPRS system. There were 334 total OPRS website visits. Median time to complete an evaluation was 45 minutes from the end of the operation, and faculty spent an average of 134 seconds on the site to enter 1 assessment. In the 38,506 CERP evaluations reviewed, mean performance scores showed a positive linear trend of 2% change per year of training (p = 0.001). OPRS overall resident operative performance scores showed a significant linear (p = 0.001), quadratic (p = 0.001), and cubic (p = 0.003) trend of change per year of clinical training, reflecting the resident operative experience in our training program. Differences between postgraduate year-1 and postgraduate year-5 overall performance scores were greater with the OPRS (mean = 0.96, CI: 0.55-1.38) than with CERP measures (mean = 0.37, CI: 0.34-0.41). Additionally, there were consistent increases in each of the OPRS subcategories. In contrast to CERPs, the OPRS fully satisfies the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education and American Board of Surgery operative assessment requirements. The mobile Web platform provides a convenient interface, broad accessibility, automatic data compilation, and compatibility with common database and statistical software. Our mobile OPRS system encourages candid feedback dialog and generates a comprehensive review of individual and group-wide operative proficiency in real time. Copyright © 2014 Association of Program Directors in Surgery. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Databank Software for the 1990s and Beyond--Part 1: The User's Wish List.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Basch, Reva

1990-01-01

Describes desired software enhancements identified by the Southern California Online Users Group in the areas of search language, database selection, document retrieval and display, user interface, customer support, and cost and economic issues. The need to prioritize these wishes and to determine whether features should reside in the mainframe or…

The key image and case log application: new radiology software for teaching file creation and case logging that incorporates elements of a social network.

PubMed

Rowe, Steven P; Siddiqui, Adeel; Bonekamp, David

2014-07-01

To create novel radiology key image software that is easy to use for novice users, incorporates elements adapted from social networking Web sites, facilitates resident and fellow education, and can serve as the engine for departmental sharing of interesting cases and follow-up studies. Using open-source programming languages and software, radiology key image software (the key image and case log application, KICLA) was developed. This system uses a lightweight interface with the institutional picture archiving and communications systems and enables the storage of key images, image series, and cine clips. It was designed to operate with minimal disruption to the radiologists' daily workflow. Many features of the user interface have been inspired by social networking Web sites, including image organization into private or public folders, flexible sharing with other users, and integration of departmental teaching files into the system. We also review the performance, usage, and acceptance of this novel system. KICLA was implemented at our institution and achieved widespread popularity among radiologists. A large number of key images have been transmitted to the system since it became available. After this early experience period, the most commonly encountered radiologic modalities are represented. A survey distributed to users revealed that most of the respondents found the system easy to use (89%) and fast at allowing them to record interesting cases (100%). Hundred percent of respondents also stated that they would recommend a system such as KICLA to their colleagues. The system described herein represents a significant upgrade to the Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine teaching file paradigm with efforts made to maximize its ease of use and inclusion of characteristics inspired by social networking Web sites that allow the system additional functionality such as individual case logging. Copyright © 2014 AUR. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A discrete event simulation model for evaluating the performances of an m/g/c/c state dependent queuing system.

PubMed

Khalid, Ruzelan; Nawawi, Mohd Kamal M; Kawsar, Luthful A; Ghani, Noraida A; Kamil, Anton A; Mustafa, Adli

2013-01-01

M/G/C/C state dependent queuing networks consider service rates as a function of the number of residing entities (e.g., pedestrians, vehicles, and products). However, modeling such dynamic rates is not supported in modern Discrete Simulation System (DES) software. We designed an approach to cater this limitation and used it to construct the M/G/C/C state-dependent queuing model in Arena software. Using the model, we have evaluated and analyzed the impacts of various arrival rates to the throughput, the blocking probability, the expected service time and the expected number of entities in a complex network topology. Results indicated that there is a range of arrival rates for each network where the simulation results fluctuate drastically across replications and this causes the simulation results and analytical results exhibit discrepancies. Detail results that show how tally the simulation results and the analytical results in both abstract and graphical forms and some scientific justifications for these have been documented and discussed.

Plug-and-play design approach to smart harness for modular small satellites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mughal, M. Rizwan; Ali, Anwar; Reyneri, Leonardo M.

2014-02-01

A typical satellite involves many different components that vary in bandwidth demand. Sensors that require a very low data rate may reside on a simple two- or three-wire interface such as I2C, SPI, etc. Complex sensors that require high data rate and bandwidth may reside on an optical interface. The AraMiS architecture is an enhanced capability architecture with different satellite configurations. Although keeping the low-cost and COTS approach of CubeSats, it extends the modularity concept as it also targets different satellite shapes and sizes. But modularity moves beyond the mechanical structure: the tiles also have thermo-mechanical, harness and signal-processing functionalities. Further modularizing the system, every tile can also host a variable number of small sensors, actuators or payloads, connected using a plug-and-play approach. Every subsystem is housed in a small daughter board and is supplied, by the main tile, with power and data distribution functions, power and data harness, mechanical support and is attached and interconnected with space-grade spring-loaded connectors. The tile software is also modular and allows a quick adaptation to specific subsystems. The basic software for the CPU is properly hardened to guarantee high level of radiation tolerance at very low cost.

CDC WONDER: a cooperative processing architecture for public health.

PubMed Central

Friede, A; Rosen, D H; Reid, J A

1994-01-01

CDC WONDER is an information management architecture designed for public health. It provides access to information and communications without the user's needing to know the location of data or communication pathways and mechanisms. CDC WONDER users have access to extractions from some 40 databases; electronic mail (e-mail); and surveillance data processing. System components include the Remote Client, the Communications Server, the Queue Managers, and Data Servers and Process Servers. The Remote Client software resides in the user's machine; other components are at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The Remote Client, the Communications Server, and the Applications Server provide access to the information and functions in the Data Servers and Process Servers. The system architecture is based on cooperative processing, and components are coupled via pure message passing, using several protocols. This architecture allows flexibility in the choice of hardware and software. One system limitation is that final results from some subsystems are obtained slowly. Although designed for public health, CDC WONDER could be useful for other disciplines that need flexible, integrated information exchange. PMID:7719813

Using Google Earth as an innovative tool for community mapping.

PubMed

Lefer, Theodore B; Anderson, Matthew R; Fornari, Alice; Lambert, Anastasia; Fletcher, Jason; Baquero, Maria

2008-01-01

Maps are used to track diseases and illustrate the social context of health problems. However, commercial mapping software requires special training. This article illustrates how nonspecialists used Google Earth, a free program, to create community maps. The Bronx, New York, is characterized by high levels of obesity and diabetes. Residents and medical students measured the variety and quality of food and exercise sources around a residency training clinic and a student-run free clinic, using Google Earth to create maps with minimal assistance. Locations were identified using street addresses or simply by pointing to them on a map. Maps can be shared via e-mail, viewed online with Google Earth or Google Maps, and the data can be incorporated into other mapping software.

DoD Key Technologies Plan

DTIC Science & Technology

1992-07-01

methodologies ; software performance analysis; software testing; and concurrent languages. Finally, efforts in algorithms, which are primarily designed to upgrade...These codes provide a powerful research tool for testing new concepts and designs prior to experimental implementation. DoE’s laser program has also...development, and specially designed production facilities. World leadership in bth non -fluorinated and fluorinated materials resides in the U.S. but Japan

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

This software is a plug-in that interfaces between the Phoenix Integration's Model Center and the Base SAS 9.2 applications. The end use of the plug-in is to link input and output data that resides in SAS tables or MS SQL to and from "legacy" software programs without recoding. The potential end users are users who need to run legacy code and want data stored in a SQL database.

Plagiarism in residency application essays.

PubMed

Segal, Scott; Gelfand, Brian J; Hurwitz, Shelley; Berkowitz, Lori; Ashley, Stanley W; Nadel, Eric S; Katz, Joel T

2010-07-20

Anecdotal reports suggest that some residency application essays contain plagiarized content. To determine the prevalence of plagiarism in a large cohort of residency application essays. Retrospective cohort study. 4975 application essays submitted to residency programs at a single large academic medical center between 1 September 2005 and 22 March 2007. Specialized software was used to compare residency application essays with a database of Internet pages, published works, and previously submitted essays and the percentage of the submission matching another source was calculated. A match of more than 10% to an existing work was defined as evidence of plagiarism. Evidence of plagiarism was found in 5.2% (95% CI, 4.6% to 5.9%) of essays. The essays of non-U.S. citizens were more likely to demonstrate evidence of plagiarism. Other characteristics associated with the prevalence of plagiarism included medical school location outside the United States and Canada; previous residency or fellowship; lack of research experience, volunteer experience, or publications; a low United States Medical Licensing Examination Step 1 score; and non-membership in the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society. The software database is probably incomplete, the 10%-match threshold for defining plagiarism has not been statistically validated, and the study was confined to applicants to 1 institution. Evidence of matching content in an essay cannot be used to infer the applicant's intent and is not sensitive to variations in the cultural context of copying in some societies. Evidence of plagiarism in residency application essays is more common in international applicants but was found in those by applicants to all specialty programs, from all medical school types, and even among applicants with significant academic honors. No external funding.

Using a Faculty-in-Residence Model to Enhance Curriculae in Computer Science and Social Work with Writing and Critical Thinking

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sarnoff, Susan; Welch, Lonnie; Gradin, Sherrie; Sandell, Karin

2004-01-01

This paper will discuss the results of a project that enabled three faculty members from disparate disciplines: Social Work, Interpersonal Communication and Software Engineering, to enhance writing and critical thinking in their courses. The paper will address the Faculty-in-Residence project model, the activities taken on as a result of it, the…

Operating system for a real-time multiprocessor propulsion system simulator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cole, G. L.

1984-01-01

The success of the Real Time Multiprocessor Operating System (RTMPOS) in the development and evaluation of experimental hardware and software systems for real time interactive simulation of air breathing propulsion systems was evaluated. The Real Time Multiprocessor Operating System (RTMPOS) provides the user with a versatile, interactive means for loading, running, debugging and obtaining results from a multiprocessor based simulator. A front end processor (FEP) serves as the simulator controller and interface between the user and the simulator. These functions are facilitated by the RTMPOS which resides on the FEP. The RTMPOS acts in conjunction with the FEP's manufacturer supplied disk operating system that provides typical utilities like an assembler, linkage editor, text editor, file handling services, etc. Once a simulation is formulated, the RTMPOS provides for engineering level, run time operations such as loading, modifying and specifying computation flow of programs, simulator mode control, data handling and run time monitoring. Run time monitoring is a powerful feature of RTMPOS that allows the user to record all actions taken during a simulation session and to receive advisories from the simulator via the FEP. The RTMPOS is programmed mainly in PASCAL along with some assembly language routines. The RTMPOS software is easily modified to be applicable to hardware from different manufacturers.

NASA's Optical Program on Ascension Island: Bringing MCAT to Life as the Eugene Stansbery-Meter Class Autonomous Telescope (ES-MCAT)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lederer, S. M.; Hickson, P.; Cowardin, H. M.; Buckalew, B.; Frith, J.; Alliss, R.

In June 2015, the construction of the Meter Class Autonomous Telescope was completed and MCAT saw the light of the stars for the first time. In 2017, MCAT was newly dedicated as the Eugene Stansbery-MCAT telescope by NASA’s Orbital Debris Program Office (ODPO), in honour of his inspiration and dedication to this newest optical member of the NASA ODPO. Since that time, MCAT has viewed the skies with one engineering camera and two scientific cameras, and the ODPO optical team has begun the process of vetting the entire system. The full system vetting includes verification and validation of: (1) the hardware comprising the system (e.g. the telescopes and its instruments, the dome, weather systems, all-sky camera, FLIR cloud infrared camera, etc.), (2) the custom-written Observatory Control System (OCS) master software designed to autonomously control this complex system of instruments, each with its own control software, and (3) the custom written Orbital Debris Processing software for post-processing the data. ES-MCAT is now capable of autonomous observing to include Geosyncronous survey, TLE (Two-line element) tracking of individual catalogued debris at all orbital regimes (Low-Earth Orbit all the way to Geosynchronous (GEO) orbit), tracking at specified non-sidereal rates, as well as sidereal rates for proper calibration with standard stars. Ultimately, the data will be used for validation of NASA’s Orbital Debris Engineering Model, ORDEM, which aids in engineering designs of spacecraft that require knowledge of the orbital debris environment and long-term risks for collisions with Resident Space Objects (RSOs).

NASA's Optical Program on Ascension Island: Bringing MCAT to Life as the Eugene Stansbery-Meter Class Autonomous Telescope (ES-MCAT)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lederer, S. M.; Hickson, P.; Cowardin, H. M.; Buckalew, B.; Frith, J.; Alliss, R.

2017-01-01

In June 2015, the construction of the Meter Class Autonomous Telescope was completed and MCAT saw the light of the stars for the first time. In 2017, MCAT was newly dedicated as the Eugene Stansbery-MCAT telescope by NASA's Orbital Debris Program Office (ODPO), in honor of his inspiration and dedication to this newest optical member of the NASA ODPO. Since that time, MCAT has viewed the skies with one engineering camera and two scientific cameras, and the ODPO optical team has begun the process of vetting the entire system. The full system vetting includes verification and validation of: (1) the hardware comprising the system (e.g. the telescopes and its instruments, the dome, weather systems, all-sky camera, FLIR cloud infrared camera, etc.), (2) the custom-written Observatory Control System (OCS) master software designed to autonomously control this complex system of instruments, each with its own control software, and (3) the custom written Orbital Debris Processing software for post-processing the data. ES-MCAT is now capable of autonomous observing to include Geosynchronous survey, TLE (Two-line element) tracking of individual catalogued debris at all orbital regimes (Low-Earth Orbit all the way to Geosynchronous (GEO) orbit), tracking at specified non-sidereal rates, as well as sidereal rates for proper calibration with standard stars. Ultimately, the data will be used for validation of NASA's Orbital Debris Engineering Model, ORDEM, which aids in engineering designs of spacecraft that require knowledge of the orbital debris environment and long-term risks for collisions with Resident Space Objects (RSOs).

A year in transition: a qualitative study examining the trajectory of first year residents’ well-being

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background It is generally understood that trainees experience periods of heightened stress during first year residency, yet there is little information on variations in stress and well-being over the transition period or those factors that contribute to these variations. This qualitative study explored the trajectory of well-being described by first year residents in the context of challenges, supports and adaptations over time. Methods In-depth interviews were conducted face-to-face with 17 first year residents at the University of Toronto. Participants drew a graph of their well-being over the course of their first year and described critical periods of challenge and adaptation. Interviews were audio-taped and transcribed. Results were organized into a thematic analysis using NVivo software. Results Residents described a pattern of well-being that varied in accordance with changes in rotations. Well-being increased when residents perceived high levels of team support, felt competent and experienced valued learning opportunities. Well-being decreased with low team support, heavy work demands, few learning opportunities and poor orientations. Anxiety and excitement in the beginning of the year gave way to heightened confidence but increased fatigue and apathy towards the year’s end. Residents used a number of cognitive, behavioural and self-care strategies to cope with transitional challenges. Conclusions Residents experienced a pattern of highly fluctuating well-being that coincided with changes in rotations. Residents’ well-being varied according to levels of supervisor and colleague support, learning opportunities, and work demands. Residents’ well-being may be improved by program interventions that facilitate better team and supervisory supports, maintain optimal service to learning ratios, establish effective fatigue and risk management systems, offer wellness support services and integrate skills based resiliency training into the curriculum. PMID:23842470

SQL-RAMS

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Alfaro, Victor O.; Casey, Nancy J.

2005-01-01

SQL-RAMS (where "SQL" signifies Structured Query Language and "RAMS" signifies Rocketdyne Automated Management System) is a successor to the legacy version of RAMS -- a computer program used to manage all work, nonconformance, corrective action, and configuration management on rocket engines and ground support equipment at Stennis Space Center. The legacy version resided in the File-Maker Pro software system and was constructed in modules that could act as standalone programs. There was little or no integration among modules. Because of limitations on file-management capabilities in FileMaker Pro, and because of difficulty of integration of FileMaker Pro with other software systems for exchange of data using such industry standards as SQL, the legacy version of RAMS proved to be limited, and working to circumvent its limitations too time-consuming. In contrast, SQL-RAMS is an integrated SQL-server-based program that supports all data-exchange software industry standards. Whereas in the legacy version, it was necessary to access individual modules to gain insight into a particular workstatus document, SQL-RAMS provides access through a single-screen presentation of core modules. In addition, SQL-RAMS enables rapid and efficient filtering of displayed statuses by predefined categories and test numbers. SQL-RAMS is rich in functionality and encompasses significant improvements over the legacy system. It provides users the ability to perform many tasks, which in the past required administrator intervention. Additionally, many of the design limitations have been corrected, allowing for a robust application that is user centric.

SQL-RAMS

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Alfaro, Victor O.; Casey, Nancy J.

2005-01-01

SQL-RAMS (where "SQL" signifies Structured Query Language and "RAMS" signifies Rocketdyne Automated Management System) is a successor to the legacy version of RAMS a computer program used to manage all work, nonconformance, corrective action, and configuration management on rocket engines and ground support equipment at Stennis Space Center. The legacy version resided in the FileMaker Pro software system and was constructed in modules that could act as stand-alone programs. There was little or no integration among modules. Because of limitations on file-management capabilities in FileMaker Pro, and because of difficulty of integration of FileMaker Pro with other software systems for exchange of data using such industry standards as SQL, the legacy version of RAMS proved to be limited, and working to circumvent its limitations too time-consuming. In contrast, SQL-RAMS is an integrated SQL-server-based program that supports all data-exchange software industry standards. Whereas in the legacy version, it was necessary to access individual modules to gain insight to a particular work-status documents, SQL-RAMS provides access through a single-screen presentation of core modules. In addition, SQL-RAMS enable rapid and efficient filtering of displayed statuses by predefined categories and test numbers. SQL-RAMS is rich in functionality and encompasses significant improvements over the legacy system. It provides users the ability to perform many tasks which in the past required administrator intervention. Additionally many of the design limitations have been corrected allowing for a robust application that is user centric.

The Milestones Passport: A Learner-Centered Application of the Milestone Framework to Prompt Real-Time Feedback in the Emergency Department.

PubMed

Yarris, Lalena M; Jones, David; Kornegay, Joshua G; Hansen, Matthew

2014-09-01

In July 2013, emergency medicine residency programs implemented the Milestone assessment as part of the Next Accreditation System. We hypothesized that applying the Milestone framework to real-time feedback in the emergency department (ED) could affect current feedback processes and culture. We describe the development and implementation of a Milestone-based, learner-centered intervention designed to prompt real-time feedback in the ED. We developed and implemented the Milestones Passport, a feedback intervention incorporating subcompetencies, in our residency program in July 2013. Our primary outcomes were feasibility, including faculty and staff time and costs, number of documented feedback encounters in the first 2 months of implementation, and user-reported time required to complete the intervention. We also assessed learner and faculty acceptability. Development and implementation of the Milestones Passport required 10 hours of program coordinator time, 120 hours of software developer time, and 20 hours of faculty time. Twenty-eight residents and 34 faculty members generated 257 Milestones Passport feedback encounters. Most residents and faculty reported that the encounters required fewer than 5 minutes to complete, and 48% (12 of 25) of the residents and 68% (19 of 28) of faculty reported satisfaction with the Milestones Passport intervention. Faculty satisfaction with overall feedback in the ED improved after the intervention (93% versus 54%, P  =  .003), whereas resident satisfaction with feedback did not change significantly. The Milestones Passport feedback intervention was feasible and acceptable to users; however, learner satisfaction with the Milestone assessment in the ED was modest.

Managing People's Data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Le, Diana; Cooper, David M. (Technical Monitor)

1994-01-01

Just imagine a mass storage system that consists of a machine with 2 CPUs, 1 Gigabyte (GB) of memory, 400 GB of disk space, 16800 cartridge tapes in the automated tape silos, 88,000 tapes located in the vault, and the software to manage the system. This system is designed to be a data repository; it will always have disk space to store all the incoming data. Currently 9.14 GB of new data per day enters the system with this rate doubling each year. To assure there is always disk space available for new data, the system. has to move data reside from the expensive disk to a much less expensive medium such as the 3480 cartridge tapes. Once the data is archived to tape, it should be able to move back to disk when someone wants to access it and the data movement should be transparent to the user. Now imagine all the tasks that a system administrator must perform to keep this system running 24 hour a day, 7 days a week. Since the filesystem maintains the illusion of unlimited disk space, data that comes to the system must get moved to tapes in an efficient manner. This paper will describe the mass storage system running at the Numerical Aerodynamic Simulation (NAS) at NASA Ames Research Center in both software and hardware aspects, then it will describe all of the tasks the system administrator has to perform on this system.

DOCU-TEXT: A tool before the data dictionary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Carter, B.

1983-01-01

DOCU-TEXT, a proprietary software package that aids in the production of documentation for a data processing organization and can be installed and operated only on IBM computers is discussed. In organizing information that ultimately will reside in a data dictionary, DOCU-TEXT proved to be a useful documentation tool in extracting information from existing production jobs, procedure libraries, system catalogs, control data sets and related files. DOCU-TEXT reads these files to derive data that is useful at the system level. The output of DOCU-TEXT is a series of user selectable reports. These reports can reflect the interactions within a single job stream, a complete system, or all the systems in an installation. Any single report, or group of reports, can be generated in an independent documentation pass.

The new information technologies and psychiatry.

PubMed

Fauman, M A

1989-09-01

The author reviews the history and technology of the microcomputer and discusses the various classes of software that are presently available. Three major categories of software are described: numeric data processing, text processing, and communications. The application of this software to psychiatric education and practice is briefly discussed. A short curriculum on computers for psychiatric residents is outlined, and a brief bibliography of the recent relevant literature on computer applications to medicine and psychiatry is presented. Predictions are made about the future direction of computer technology and its application to psychiatry.

An evaluation of immunization education resources by family medicine residency directors.

PubMed

Nowalk, Mary Patricia; Zimmerman, Richard K; Middleton, Donald B; Sherwood, Roger A; Ko, Feng-Shou; Kimmel, Sanford R; Troy, Judith A

2007-01-01

Immunization is a rapidly evolving field, and teachers of family medicine are responsible for ensuring that they and their students are knowledgeable about the latest vaccine recommendations. A survey was mailed to 456 family medicine residency directors across the United States to obtain their evaluation of immunization resources developed by the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine's Group on Immunization Education. Frequencies, measures of central tendency, and differences between responses from 2001 to 2005 were analyzed. Directors of 261 (57%) family medicine residencies responded, with >80% reporting satisfaction with immunization teaching resources. The popularity of bound resources decreased from 2001 to 2005, while immunization Web sites increased in importance. The journal supplement, "Vaccines Across the Lifespan, 2005" was less frequently read in 2005 than its predecessor published in 2001, but quality ratings remained high. Use of the Web site, www.ImmunizationEd.org, and the Shots software for both desktop and handheld computers has increased since their creation. Electronic immunization teaching resources are increasingly popular among family medicine residencies. As the field continues to change, the use of electronic resources is expected to continue, since they are easily updated and, in the case of www.ImmunizationEd.org and Shots software, are available free of charge.

Software Development to Assist in the Processing and Analysis of Data Obtained Using Fiber Bragg Grating Interrogation Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hicks, Rebecca

2009-01-01

A fiber Bragg grating is a portion of a core of a fiber optic strand that has been treated to affect the way light travels through the strand. Light within a certain narrow range of wavelengths will be reflected along the fiber by the grating, while light outside that range will pass through the grating mostly undisturbed. Since the range of wavelengths that can penetrate the grating depends on the grating itself as well as temperature and mechanical strain, fiber Bragg gratings can be used as temperature and strain sensors. This capability, along with the light-weight nature of the fiber optic strands in which the gratings reside, make fiber optic sensors an ideal candidate for flight testing and monitoring in which temperature and wing strain are factors. The purpose of this project is to research the availability of software capable of processing massive amounts of data in both real-time and post-flight settings, and to produce software segments that can be integrated to assist in the task as well.

The Raptor Real-Time Processing Architecture

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Galassi, M.; Starr, D.; Wozniak, P.; Brozdin, K.

The primary goal of Raptor is ambitious: to identify interesting optical transients from very wide field of view telescopes in real time, and then to quickly point the higher resolution Raptor ``fovea'' cameras and spectrometer to the location of the optical transient. The most interesting of Raptor's many applications is the real-time search for orphan optical counterparts of Gamma Ray Bursts. The sequence of steps (data acquisition, basic calibration, source extraction, astrometry, relative photometry, the smarts of transient identification and elimination of false positives, telescope pointing feedback, etc.) is implemented with a ``component'' approach. All basic elements of the pipeline functionality have been written from scratch or adapted (as in the case of SExtractor for source extraction) to form a consistent modern API operating on memory resident images and source lists. The result is a pipeline which meets our real-time requirements and which can easily operate as a monolithic or distributed processing system. Finally, the Raptor architecture is entirely based on free software (sometimes referred to as ``open source'' software). In this paper we also discuss the interplay between various free software technologies in this type of astronomical problem.

Raptor -- Mining the Sky in Real Time

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Galassi, M.; Borozdin, K.; Casperson, D.; McGowan, K.; Starr, D.; White, R.; Wozniak, P.; Wren, J.

2004-06-01

The primary goal of Raptor is ambitious: to identify interesting optical transients from very wide field of view telescopes in real time, and then to quickly point the higher resolution Raptor ``fovea'' cameras and spectrometer to the location of the optical transient. The most interesting of Raptor's many applications is the real-time search for orphan optical counterparts of Gamma Ray Bursts. The sequence of steps (data acquisition, basic calibration, source extraction, astrometry, relative photometry, the smarts of transient identification and elimination of false positives, telescope pointing feedback...) is implemented with a ``component'' aproach. All basic elements of the pipeline functionality have been written from scratch or adapted (as in the case of SExtractor for source extraction) to form a consistent modern API operating on memory resident images and source lists. The result is a pipeline which meets our real-time requirements and which can easily operate as a monolithic or distributed processing system. Finally: the Raptor architecture is entirely based on free software (sometimes referred to as "open source" software). In this paper we also discuss the interplay between various free software technologies in this type of astronomical problem.

NSWC-NADC interactive communication links for AN/UYS-1 loadtape creation and retrieval

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Greathouse, D. M.

1984-09-01

This report contains an alternative method of communication (interactive vs. remote batch) with the Naval Air Development Center for the creation and retrieval of AN/UYS-1 Advanced Signal Processor (ASP) operational software loadtapes. Operational software for the Digital Acoustic Sensor Simulator (DASS) program is developed and maintained at the Naval Air Development Center (NADC). The Facility for Automated Software Production (FASP), an NADC-resident software generation facility, provides the support tools necessary for data base creation, software development and maintenance, and loadtape generation. Once a loadtape file is generated at NADC, it must be retrieved via telephone transmission and placed in a format suitable for loading into the AN/UYS-1 Advanced Signal Processor (ASP).

[Perceptions and experiences of access to health services and their utilization among the immigrant population].

PubMed

Bas-Sarmiento, Pilar; Fernández-Gutiérrez, Martina; Albar-Marín, M A Jesús; García-Ramírez, Manuel

2015-01-01

To identify and describe the needs and problems of the immigrant population related to access and utilization of health services. A descriptive, qualitative, phenomenological study was conducted using focus groups. The study area was the county of Campo de Gibraltar (Spain), which represents the gateway to Europe for immigration from Africa. The final sample size (51 immigrants from 11 countries) was determined by theoretical saturation. A narrative analysis was conducted with QSR NVivo9 software. Immigrants' discourse showed four categories of analysis: response to a health problem, system access, knowledge of social and health resources, and health literacy needs. Responses to health problems and the route of access to the health care system differed according to some sociodemographic characteristics (nationality/culture of origin, length of residence, and economic status). In general, immigrants primarily used emergency services, hampering health promotion and prevention. The health literacy needs identified concerned language proficiency and the functioning of the health system. There is a need to promote interventions to enhance health literacy among immigrants. These interventions should take into account diversity and length of residence, and should be based on an action-participation methodology. Copyright © 2014 SESPAS. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

The widest practicable dissemination: The NASA technical report server

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nelson, Michael L.; Gottlich, Gretchen L.; Bianco, David J.; Binkley, Robert L.; Kellogg, Yvonne D.; Paulson, Sharon S.; Beaumont, Chris J.; Schmunk, Robert B.; Kurtz, Michael; Accomazzi, Alberto

1995-01-01

The search for innovative methods to distribute NASA's information lead a gross-roots team to create the NASA Technical Report Server (NTRS), which uses the World Wide Web and other popular Internet-based information systems as search engines. The NTRS is an inter-center effort which provides uniform access to various distributed publication servers residing on the Internet. Users have immediate desktop access to technical publications from NASA centers and institutes. This paper presents the NTRS architecture, usage metrics, and the lessons learned while implementing and maintaining the services over the initial 6-month period. The NTRS is largely constructed with freely available software running on existing hardware. NTRS builds upon existing hardware and software, and the resulting additional exposure for the body of literature contained will allow NASA to ensure that its institutional knowledge base will continue to receive the widest practicable and appropriate dissemination.

Analysis of Ligand-Receptor Association and Intermediate Transfer Rates in Multienzyme Nanostructures with All-Atom Brownian Dynamics Simulations.

PubMed

Roberts, Christopher C; Chang, Chia-En A

2016-08-25

We present the second-generation GeomBD Brownian dynamics software for determining interenzyme intermediate transfer rates and substrate association rates in biomolecular complexes. Substrate and intermediate association rates for a series of enzymes or biomolecules can be compared between the freely diffusing disorganized configuration and various colocalized or complexed arrangements for kinetic investigation of enhanced intermediate transfer. In addition, enzyme engineering techniques, such as synthetic protein conjugation, can be computationally modeled and analyzed to better understand changes in substrate association relative to native enzymes. Tools are provided to determine nonspecific ligand-receptor association residence times, and to visualize common sites of nonspecific association of substrates on receptor surfaces. To demonstrate features of the software, interenzyme intermediate substrate transfer rate constants are calculated and compared for all-atom models of DNA origami scaffold-bound bienzyme systems of glucose oxidase and horseradish peroxidase. Also, a DNA conjugated horseradish peroxidase enzyme was analyzed for its propensity to increase substrate association rates and substrate local residence times relative to the unmodified enzyme. We also demonstrate the rapid determination and visualization of common sites of nonspecific ligand-receptor association by using HIV-1 protease and an inhibitor, XK263. GeomBD2 accelerates simulations by precomputing van der Waals potential energy grids and electrostatic potential grid maps, and has a flexible and extensible support for all-atom and coarse-grained force fields. Simulation software is written in C++ and utilizes modern parallelization techniques for potential grid preparation and Brownian dynamics simulation processes. Analysis scripts, written in the Python scripting language, are provided for quantitative simulation analysis. GeomBD2 is applicable to the fields of biophysics, bioengineering, and enzymology in both predictive and explanatory roles.

Software Development Standard Processes (SDSP)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lavin, Milton L.; Wang, James J.; Morillo, Ronald; Mayer, John T.; Jamshidian, Barzia; Shimizu, Kenneth J.; Wilkinson, Belinda M.; Hihn, Jairus M.; Borgen, Rosana B.; Meyer, Kenneth N.;

Evaluation of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Residents' Operative Skills: Feasibility and Engagement Study Using SIMPL Software for a Mobile Phone.

PubMed

Kaban, Leonard B; Cappetta, Alyssa; George, Brian C; Lahey, Edward T; Bohnen, Jordan D; Troulis, Maria J

2017-10-01

There are no universally accepted tools to evaluate operative skills of surgical residents in a timely fashion. The purpose of this study was to determine the feasibility of using a smartphone application, SIMPL (System for Improving and Measuring Procedural Learning), developed by a multi-institutional research collaborative, to achieve a high rate of timely operative evaluations and resident communication and to collect performance data. The authors hypothesized that these goals would be achieved because the process is convenient and efficient. This was a prospective feasibility and engagement study using SIMPL to evaluate residents' operative skills. SIMPL requires the attending surgeon to answer 3 multiple-choice questions: 1) What level of help (Zwisch Scale) was required by the trainee? 2) What was the level of performance? 3) How complex was the case? The evaluator also can dictate a narrative. The sample was composed of 3 faculty members and 3 volunteer senior residents. Predictor variables were the surgeons, trainees, and procedures performed. Outcome variables included number and percentage of procedures performed by faculty-and-resident pairs assessed, time required to complete assessments, time lapsed to submission, percentage of assessments with narratives, and residents' response rates. From March through June 2016, 151 procedures were performed in the operating room by the faculty-and-resident teams. There were 107 assessments submitted (71%). Resident response (self-assessment) to faculty evaluations was 81%. Recorded time to complete assessments (n = 75 of 107) was shorter than 2 minutes. The time lapsed to submission was shorter than 72 hours (100%). Dictations were submitted for 35 evaluations (33%). Data for the type of help, performance, and complexity of cases were collected for each resident. SIMPL facilitates timely intraoperative evaluations of surgical skills, engagement by faculty and residents, and collection of detailed procedural data. Additional prospective trials to assess this tool further are planned. Copyright © 2017 American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

How to improve WEEE management? Novel approach in mobile collection with application of artificial intelligence.

PubMed

Król, Aleksander; Nowakowski, Piotr; Mrówczyńska, Bogna

2016-04-01

In global demand of improvement of electrical and electronic waste management systems, stakeholders look for effective collection systems that generate minimal costs. In this study we propose a novel model for application in mobile collection schemes - on demand that waste be taken back from household residents. This type of the waste equipment collection is comfortable for residents as they can indicate day and time windows for the take-back. Collecting companies are interested in lowering operational costs required for service. This lowering includes selection of a sufficient number of vehicles and employees, and then minimising the routes' length in order to achieve savings in fuel consumption, and lowering of emissions. In the proposed model we use a genetic algorithm for optimisation of the route length and number of vehicles and fuzzy logic for representation of the household residents' satisfaction on the take-back service provided by collection companies. Also, modern communication channels like websites or mobile phone applications can be used to send the waste equipment take-back request from the household, so it has the potential to be developed in future applications. The operation of the model has been presented in the case study of a city in southern Poland. The results can be useful for collecting companies and software producers for preparation of new applications to be used in waste collection. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Individual and contextual determinants of resident-on-resident abuse in nursing homes: a random sample telephone survey of adults with an older family member in a nursing home.

PubMed

Schiamberg, Lawrence B; von Heydrich, Levente; Chee, Grace; Post, Lori A

2015-01-01

Few empirical investigations of elder abuse in nursing homes address the frequency and determinants of resident-on-resident abuse (RRA). A random sample of 452 adults with an older adult relative, ≥65 years of age, in a nursing home completed a telephone survey regarding elder abuse experienced by that elder family member. Using a Linear Structural Relations (LISREL) modeling design, the study examined the association of nursing home resident demographic characteristics (e.g., age, gender), health and behavioral characteristics (e.g., diagnosis of Alzheimer's Disease, Activities of Daily Living (ADLs), Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADLs), types of staff abuse (e.g., physical, emotional), and factors beyond the immediate nursing home setting (e.g., emotional closeness of resident with family members) with RRA. Mplus statistical software was used for structural equation modeling. Main findings indicated that resident-on-resident mistreatment of elderly nursing home residents is associated with the age of the nursing home resident, all forms of staff abuse, all ADLs and IADLs, and emotional closeness of the older adult to the family. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Association between periodontal diseases and systemic illnesses: A survey among internal medicine residents in Nigeria

PubMed Central

Umeizudike, Kehinde A.; Iwuala, Sandra O.; Ozoh, Obianuju B.; Ayanbadejo, Patricia O.; Fasanmade, Olufemi A.

2015-01-01

Objective To assess internal medicine residents’ knowledge of associations between periodontal disease and systemic illnesses, and attitudes toward patients’ periodontal health. Methods A cross-sectional survey using a self-administered questionnaire was conducted among internal medicine residents attending the Faculty of Internal Medicine 2014 Update Course organized by the National Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria. Participants came from all over the country. Data on respondents’ demographic characteristics, periodontal disease knowledge, knowledge of associations between periodontal disease and systemic illnesses, and attitudes toward patients’ periodontal health were collected. Data were analyzed using Epi INFO software. The Pearson chi square test was used to measure significant association between categorical variables such as the knowledge of periodontal disease and gender, age group and designation of the participants (p ⩽ 0.05). Results Of 150 questionnaires distributed, 123 were returned (82% response rate); 109 questionnaires were completed properly and included in the analysis. The most common source of residents’ information on oral health was television (59.4%). Only 11.2% of respondents were aware that gingival bleeding was the earliest sign of periodontal disease. Respondents correctly identified periodontal disease as a risk factor for coronary heart disease (45.9%), stroke (43.5%), hospital-acquired pneumonia (53.2%), diabetes mellitus (13.8%), and preterm birth (11%). Increased age (p = 0.032) and male gender (p = 0.022) were associated significantly with knowledge of periodontal disease as a risk factor for stroke. Higher designation (p = 0.002) and longer duration in residency training (p = 0.004) were associated significantly with knowledge of periodontal disease as risk factor for peripheral arterial disease. The majority (90.9%) of respondents had positive attitudes toward the referral of their patients for regular periodontal care. Conclusions Knowledge of periodontal disease as a risk factor for systemic illnesses among medical residents in Nigeria is inadequate. These relationships should be emphasized in continuing medical education courses. PMID:26792966

Communication-Gateway Software For NETEX, DECnet, And TCP/IP

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Keith, B.; Ferry, D.; Fendler, E.

1990-01-01

Communications gateway software, GATEWAY, provides process-to-process communication between remote applications programs in different protocol domains. Communicating peer processes may be resident on any paired combination of NETEX, DECnet, or TCP/IP hosts. Provides necessary mapping from one protocol to another and facilitates practical intermachine communications in cost-effective manner by eliminating need to standardize on single protocol or to implement multiple protocols in host computers. Written in Ada.

Viewing ISS Data in Real Time via the Internet

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Myers, Gerry; Chamberlain, Jim

2004-01-01

EZStream is a computer program that enables authorized users at diverse terrestrial locations to view, in real time, data generated by scientific payloads aboard the International Space Station (ISS). The only computation/communication resource needed for use of EZStream is a computer equipped with standard Web-browser software and a connection to the Internet. EZStream runs in conjunction with the TReK software, described in a prior NASA Tech Briefs article, that coordinates multiple streams of data for the ground communication system of the ISS. EZStream includes server components that interact with TReK within the ISS ground communication system and client components that reside in the users' remote computers. Once an authorized client has logged in, a server component of EZStream pulls the requested data from a TReK application-program interface and sends the data to the client. Future EZStream enhancements will include (1) extensions that enable the server to receive and process arbitrary data streams on its own and (2) a Web-based graphical-user-interface-building subprogram that enables a client who lacks programming expertise to create customized display Web pages.

A Discrete Event Simulation Model for Evaluating the Performances of an M/G/C/C State Dependent Queuing System

PubMed Central

Khalid, Ruzelan; M. Nawawi, Mohd Kamal; Kawsar, Luthful A.; Ghani, Noraida A.; Kamil, Anton A.; Mustafa, Adli

2013-01-01

M/G/C/C state dependent queuing networks consider service rates as a function of the number of residing entities (e.g., pedestrians, vehicles, and products). However, modeling such dynamic rates is not supported in modern Discrete Simulation System (DES) software. We designed an approach to cater this limitation and used it to construct the M/G/C/C state-dependent queuing model in Arena software. Using the model, we have evaluated and analyzed the impacts of various arrival rates to the throughput, the blocking probability, the expected service time and the expected number of entities in a complex network topology. Results indicated that there is a range of arrival rates for each network where the simulation results fluctuate drastically across replications and this causes the simulation results and analytical results exhibit discrepancies. Detail results that show how tally the simulation results and the analytical results in both abstract and graphical forms and some scientific justifications for these have been documented and discussed. PMID:23560037

Development and usage of wiki-based software for point-of-care emergency medical information.

PubMed

Donaldson, Ross I; Ostermayer, Daniel G; Banuelos, Rosa; Singh, Manpreet

2016-11-01

To describe the creation and evaluate the usage of the first medical wiki linked to dedicated mobile applications. With the support of multiple current and past contributors, we developed an emergency medicine wiki linked to offline mobile applications (WikEM) in 2009. First deployment was at the Harbor-UCLA Medical Center emergency medicine residency program, with the wiki later opened to public use. To evaluate the project, we performed a post hoc analysis of system use and surveyed 8 years of current and past residents. Outcomes included website and application analytics, as well as survey analysis by composite response categories. Over the 6-year period of this project, the wiki grew to over 7250 pages and 45 500 edits. The website receives more than 85 000 user sessions per month, with over 150 million page views to date. There have been over 200 000 installs of the mobile applications, progressing to produce over 5000 mobile sessions daily. Of potential survey respondents, 87.7% (107) completed the Internet-based survey. Among those who contributed to the wiki, 74.6% reported that it benefited their understanding of core emergency medicine content. Of program graduates, the vast majority reported use of the wiki as a resource after residency (93.8%) along with improvement in clinical efficiency (89.7%). Residents reported higher use and a more favorable opinion of wiki usefulness compared to graduates (P < .001). A wiki paired with mobile applications is beneficial for resident education and useful in post-residency clinical practice. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Medical Informatics Association. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

The Milestones Passport: A Learner-Centered Application of the Milestone Framework to Prompt Real-Time Feedback in the Emergency Department

PubMed Central

Yarris, Lalena M.; Jones, David; Kornegay, Joshua G.; Hansen, Matthew

2014-01-01

Background In July 2013, emergency medicine residency programs implemented the Milestone assessment as part of the Next Accreditation System. Objective We hypothesized that applying the Milestone framework to real-time feedback in the emergency department (ED) could affect current feedback processes and culture. We describe the development and implementation of a Milestone-based, learner-centered intervention designed to prompt real-time feedback in the ED. Methods We developed and implemented the Milestones Passport, a feedback intervention incorporating subcompetencies, in our residency program in July 2013. Our primary outcomes were feasibility, including faculty and staff time and costs, number of documented feedback encounters in the first 2 months of implementation, and user-reported time required to complete the intervention. We also assessed learner and faculty acceptability. Results Development and implementation of the Milestones Passport required 10 hours of program coordinator time, 120 hours of software developer time, and 20 hours of faculty time. Twenty-eight residents and 34 faculty members generated 257 Milestones Passport feedback encounters. Most residents and faculty reported that the encounters required fewer than 5 minutes to complete, and 48% (12 of 25) of the residents and 68% (19 of 28) of faculty reported satisfaction with the Milestones Passport intervention. Faculty satisfaction with overall feedback in the ED improved after the intervention (93% versus 54%, P  =  .003), whereas resident satisfaction with feedback did not change significantly. Conclusions The Milestones Passport feedback intervention was feasible and acceptable to users; however, learner satisfaction with the Milestone assessment in the ED was modest. PMID:26279784

Can teenage novel users perform as well as General Surgery residents upon initial exposure to a robotic surgical system simulator?

PubMed

Mehta, A; Patel, S; Robison, W; Senkowski, T; Allen, J; Shaw, E; Senkowski, C

2018-03-01

New techniques in minimally invasive and robotic surgical platforms require staged curricula to insure proficiency. Scant literature exists as to how much simulation should play a role in training those who have skills in advanced surgical technology. The abilities of novel users may help discriminate if surgically experienced users should start at a higher simulation level or if the tasks are too rudimentary. The study's purpose is to explore the ability of General Surgery residents to gain proficiency on the dVSS as compared to novel users. The hypothesis is that Surgery residents will have increased proficiency in skills acquisition as compared to naive users. Six General Surgery residents at a single institution were compared with six teenagers using metrics measured by the dVSS. Participants were given two 1-h sessions to achieve an MScoreTM in the 90th percentile on each of the five simulations. MScoreTM software compiles a variety of metrics including total time, number of attempts, and high score. Statistical analysis was run using Student's t test. Significance was set at p value <0.05. Total time, attempts, and high score were compared between the two groups. The General Surgery residents took significantly less Total Time to complete Pegboard 1 (PB1) (p = 0.043). No significant difference was evident between the two groups in the other four simulations across the same MScoreTM metrics. A focused look at the energy dissection task revealed that overall score might not be discriminant enough. Our findings indicate that prior medical knowledge or surgical experience does not significantly impact one's ability to acquire new skills on the dVSS. It is recommended that residency-training programs begin to include exposure to robotic technology.

The role of the host in a cooperating mainframe and workstation environment, volumes 1 and 2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kusmanoff, Antone; Martin, Nancy L.

1989-01-01

In recent years, advancements made in computer systems have prompted a move from centralized computing based on timesharing a large mainframe computer to distributed computing based on a connected set of engineering workstations. A major factor in this advancement is the increased performance and lower cost of engineering workstations. The shift to distributed computing from centralized computing has led to challenges associated with the residency of application programs within the system. In a combined system of multiple engineering workstations attached to a mainframe host, the question arises as to how does a system designer assign applications between the larger mainframe host and the smaller, yet powerful, workstation. The concepts related to real time data processing are analyzed and systems are displayed which use a host mainframe and a number of engineering workstations interconnected by a local area network. In most cases, distributed systems can be classified as having a single function or multiple functions and as executing programs in real time or nonreal time. In a system of multiple computers, the degree of autonomy of the computers is important; a system with one master control computer generally differs in reliability, performance, and complexity from a system in which all computers share the control. This research is concerned with generating general criteria principles for software residency decisions (host or workstation) for a diverse yet coupled group of users (the clustered workstations) which may need the use of a shared resource (the mainframe) to perform their functions.

TREAT Reactor Control and Protection System

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

Lipinski, W.C.; Brookshier, W.K.; Burrows, D.R.

1985-01-01

The main control algorithm of the Transient Reactor Test Facility (TREAT) Automatic Reactor Control System (ARCS) resides in Read Only Memory (ROM) and only experiment specific parameters are input via keyboard entry. Prior to executing an experiment, the software and hardware of the control computer is tested by a closed loop real-time simulation. Two computers with parallel processing are used for the reactor simulation and another computer is used for simulation of the control rod system. A monitor computer, used as a redundant diverse reactor protection channel, uses more conservative setpoints and reduces challenges to the Reactor Trip System (RTS).more » The RTS consists of triplicated hardwired channels with one out of three logic. The RTS is automatically tested by a digital Dedicated Microprocessor Tester (DMT) prior to the execution of an experiment. 6 refs., 5 figs., 1 tab.« less

A practical implementation for a data dictionary in an environment of diverse data sets

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sprenger, Karla K.; Larsen, Dana M.

1993-01-01

The need for a data dictionary database at the U.S. Geological Survey's EROS Data Center (EDC) was reinforced with the Earth Observing System Data and Information System (EOSDIS) requirement for consistent field definitions of data sets residing at more than one archive center. The EDC requirement addresses the existence of multiple sets with identical field definitions using various naming conventions. The EDC is developing a data dictionary database to accomplish the following foals: to standardize field names for ease in software development; to facilitate querying and updating of the date; and to generate ad hoc reports. The structure of the EDC electronic data dictionary database supports different metadata systems as well as many different data sets. A series of reports is used to keep consistency among data sets and various metadata systems.

Web survey data collection and retrieval to plan teleradiology implementation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alaoui, Adil; Collmann, Jeff R.; Johnson, Jeffrey A.; Lindisch, David; Nguyen, Dan; Mun, Seong K.

2003-05-01

This case study details the experience of system engineers of the Imaging Science and Information Systems Center, Georgetown University Medical Center (ISIS) and radiologists from the department of Radiology in the implementation of a new Teleradiology system. The Teleradiology system enables radiologists to view medical images from remote sites under those circumstances where a resident radiologist needs assistance in evaluating the images after hours and during weekends; it also enables clinicians access to patients" medical images from different workstations within the hospital. The Implementation of the Teleradiology project was preceded by an evaluation phase to perform testing, gather users feedback using a web site and collect information that helped eliminate system bugs, complete recommendations regarding minimum hardware configuration and bandwidth and enhance system"s functions, this phase included a survey-based system assessment of computer configurations, Internet connections, problem identification, and recommendations for improvement, and a testing period with 2 radiologists and ISIS engineers; The second phase was designed to launch the system and make it available to all attending radiologists in the department. To accomplish the first phase of the project a web site was designed and ASP pages were created to enable users to securely logon and enter feedback and recommendations into an SQL database. This efficient, accurate data flow alleviated networking, software and hardware problems. Corrective recommendations were immediately forwarded to the software vendor. The vendor responded with software updates that better met the needs of the radiologists. The ISIS Center completed recommendations for minimum hardware and bandwidth requirements. This experience illustrates that the approach used in collecting the data and facilitating the teamwork between the system engineers and radiologists was instrumental in the project"s success. Major problems with the Teleradiology system were discovered and remedied early by linking the actual practice experience of the physicians to the system improvements.

High-level virtual reality simulator for endourologic procedures of lower urinary tract.

PubMed

Reich, Oliver; Noll, Margarita; Gratzke, Christian; Bachmann, Alexander; Waidelich, Raphaela; Seitz, Michael; Schlenker, Boris; Baumgartner, Reinhold; Hofstetter, Alfons; Stief, Christian G

2006-06-01

To analyze the limitations of existing simulators for urologic techniques, and then test and evaluate a novel virtual reality (VR) simulator for endourologic procedures of the lower urinary tract. Surgical simulation using VR has the potential to have a tremendous impact on surgical training, testing, and certification. Endourologic procedures seem to be an ideal target for VR systems. The URO-Trainer features genuine VR, obtained from digital video footage of more than 400 endourologic diagnostic and therapeutic procedures, as well as data from cross-sectional imaging. The software offers infinite random variations of the anatomy and pathologic features for diagnosis and surgical intervention. An advanced haptic force feedback is incorporated. Virtual cystoscopy and resection of bladder tumors were evaluated by 24 medical students and 12 residents at our department. The system was assessed by more than 150 international urologists with varying experience at different conventions and workshops from March 2003 to September 2004. Because of these evaluations and constant evolutions, the final version provides a genuine representation of endourologic procedures. Objective data are generated by a tutoring system that has documented evident teaching benefits for medical students and residents in cystoscopy and treatment of bladder tumors. The URO-Trainer represents the latest generation of endoscopy simulators. Authentic visual and haptic sensations, unlimited virtual cases, and an intelligent tutoring system make this modular system an important improvement in computer-based training and quality control in urology.

[Learning styles in medical residents and their professors of a pediatric hospital.

PubMed

Juárez-Muñoz, Irina Elizabeth; Gómez-Negrete, Alonso; Varela-Ruiz, Margarita; Mejía-Aranguré, Juan Manuel; Mercado-Arellano, José Agustín; Sciandra-Rico, Martha Minerva; Matute-González, Mario Manuel

2013-01-01

Background: the learning styles are cognitive, emotional, and psychological characteristics, which function as relatively stable indicators of how teachers and students perceive, interact, and respond to their learning environments. Knowing students' styles allows teachers to have tools to improve medical education. Our objective was to identify learning styles in pediatric residents and professors from a pediatric hospital. Methods: a learning styles questionnaire was applied to residents and theirs professors; data was analyzed in SPSS 12 software. Results: the dominant learning style in pediatric residents was reflexive and for professors was theoretical. There wasn't any difference between sexes or between medical or surgical specialities. There was more correlation between professors and residents when there was an increase in training time. Conclusions: the learning styles between professors and residents are different, especially at the beginning of the medical specialty courses; that's why it is necessary to realize a confrontation between the students' learning styles and teaching methods used by professors to improve significant learning. To know learning styles gives residents an important alternative to find a better study strategy.

Using the Systems-Practice Framework to Understand Food Allergen Management Practices at College Catering Operations: A Qualitative Study.

PubMed

Verstappen, Jennie; Mirosa, Miranda; Thomson, Carla

2018-03-01

The number of individuals with food allergies or intolerances attending catered university residential colleges is increasing, and safe dining options are required to minimize the risk of allergic reactions and food-induced death. This qualitative research study sought to advance professional knowledge of the factors affecting allergen management practices, particularly pertaining to college foodservices. Three catered residential colleges affiliated with a major university in New Zealand were selected as research sites. The study used an ethnographic approach and systems-practice theory as a framework for data collection and organizing results. Data collection techniques included document analyses (3 hours per site), observations (6 to 8 hours per site), focus groups with foodservice workers (30 to 45 minutes per site, n=16), and interviews with foodservice managers (45 to 90 minutes per interview, n=5). Notes and transcripts were coded through the process of thematic analysis using NVivo for Mac software, version 11.1.1, to identify factors affecting allergen management practices. The main factors affecting allergen management practices at college foodservices included information provided by residents about dietary requirements; communication between residents and foodservice staff; systems for allergen management; attitude of foodservice staff; and college size. Detailed dietary information, effective communication with residents, sufficient resources, clarification of responsibilities, and thorough systems are required for staff to perform safe allergen management practices. Ultimately, successful implementation was predominantly determined by staff attitude. Foodservice managers are advised to identify motivators and address barriers of staff attitudes toward allergen management practices to promote successful implementation. Copyright © 2018 Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Challenges with the establishment of congenital cardiac surgery centers in Nigeria: survey of cardiothoracic surgeons and residents.

PubMed

Okonta, Kelechi E; Tobin-West, Charles I

2016-05-01

There are gaps in understanding the challenges with the establishment of pediatric cardiac surgical practices in Nigeria. The aim of this study was to examine the prospects and challenges limiting the establishment of pediatric cardiac surgical practices in Nigeria from the perspectives of cardiothoracic surgeons and resident doctors. A descriptive study was carried out to articulate the views of the cardiothoracic surgeons and cardiothoracic resident doctors in Nigeria. A self-administered questionnaire was used to generate information from the participants between December 2014 and January 2015. Data were analyzed using the SPSS version 21 statistical software package. Thirty-one of the 51 eligible participants (60.7%) took part in the survey. Twenty-one (67.7%) were specialists/consultants, and 10 (32.3%) were resident doctors in cardiothoracic surgical units. Most of the respondents, 26 (83.9%) acknowledged the enormity of pediatric patients with cardiac problems in Nigeria; however, nearly all such children were referred outside Nigeria for treatment. The dearth of pediatric cardiac surgical centers in Nigeria was attributed to weak health system, absence of skilled manpower, funds, and equipment. Although there was a general consensus on the need for the establishment of open pediatric cardiac surgical centers in the country, their set up mechanisms were not explicit. The obvious necessity and huge potentials for the establishment of pediatric cardiac centers in Nigeria cannot be overemphasized. Nevertheless, weakness of the national health system, including human resources remains a daunting challenge. Therefore, local and international partnerships and collaborations with country leadership are strongly advocated to pioneer this noble service. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Fullrmc, a rigid body Reverse Monte Carlo modeling package enabled with machine learning and artificial intelligence.

PubMed

Aoun, Bachir

2016-05-05

A new Reverse Monte Carlo (RMC) package "fullrmc" for atomic or rigid body and molecular, amorphous, or crystalline materials is presented. fullrmc main purpose is to provide a fully modular, fast and flexible software, thoroughly documented, complex molecules enabled, written in a modern programming language (python, cython, C and C++ when performance is needed) and complying to modern programming practices. fullrmc approach in solving an atomic or molecular structure is different from existing RMC algorithms and software. In a nutshell, traditional RMC methods and software randomly adjust atom positions until the whole system has the greatest consistency with a set of experimental data. In contrast, fullrmc applies smart moves endorsed with reinforcement machine learning to groups of atoms. While fullrmc allows running traditional RMC modeling, the uniqueness of this approach resides in its ability to customize grouping atoms in any convenient way with no additional programming efforts and to apply smart and more physically meaningful moves to the defined groups of atoms. In addition, fullrmc provides a unique way with almost no additional computational cost to recur a group's selection, allowing the system to go out of local minimas by refining a group's position or exploring through and beyond not allowed positions and energy barriers the unrestricted three dimensional space around a group. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Fullrmc, a rigid body reverse monte carlo modeling package enabled with machine learning and artificial intelligence

DOE PAGES

Aoun, Bachir

2016-01-22

Here, a new Reverse Monte Carlo (RMC) package ‘fullrmc’ for atomic or rigid body and molecular, amorphous or crystalline materials is presented. fullrmc main purpose is to provide a fully modular, fast and flexible software, thoroughly documented, complex molecules enabled, written in a modern programming language (python, cython ,C and C++ when performance is needed) and complying to modern programming practices. fullrmc approach in solving an atomic or molecular structure is different from existing RMC algorithms and software. In a nutshell, traditional RMC methods and software randomly adjust atom positions until the whole system has the greatest consistency with amore » set of experimental data. In contrast, fullrmc applies smart moves endorsed with reinforcement machine learning to groups of atoms. While fullrmc allows running traditional RMC modelling, the uniqueness of this approach resides in its ability to customize grouping atoms in any convenient way with no additional programming efforts and to apply smart and more physically meaningful moves to the defined groups of atoms. Also fullrmc provides a unique way with almost no additional computational cost to recur a group’s selection, allowing the system to go out of local minimas by refining a group’s position or exploring through and beyond not allowed positions and energy barriers the unrestricted three dimensional space around a group.« less

Fullrmc, a rigid body reverse monte carlo modeling package enabled with machine learning and artificial intelligence

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

Aoun, Bachir

Here, a new Reverse Monte Carlo (RMC) package ‘fullrmc’ for atomic or rigid body and molecular, amorphous or crystalline materials is presented. fullrmc main purpose is to provide a fully modular, fast and flexible software, thoroughly documented, complex molecules enabled, written in a modern programming language (python, cython ,C and C++ when performance is needed) and complying to modern programming practices. fullrmc approach in solving an atomic or molecular structure is different from existing RMC algorithms and software. In a nutshell, traditional RMC methods and software randomly adjust atom positions until the whole system has the greatest consistency with amore » set of experimental data. In contrast, fullrmc applies smart moves endorsed with reinforcement machine learning to groups of atoms. While fullrmc allows running traditional RMC modelling, the uniqueness of this approach resides in its ability to customize grouping atoms in any convenient way with no additional programming efforts and to apply smart and more physically meaningful moves to the defined groups of atoms. Also fullrmc provides a unique way with almost no additional computational cost to recur a group’s selection, allowing the system to go out of local minimas by refining a group’s position or exploring through and beyond not allowed positions and energy barriers the unrestricted three dimensional space around a group.« less

The Radiology Resident iPad Toolbox: an educational and clinical tool for radiology residents.

PubMed

Sharpe, Emerson E; Kendrick, Michael; Strickland, Colin; Dodd, Gerald D

2013-07-01

Tablet computing and mobile resources are the hot topics in technology today, with that interest spilling into the medical field. To improve resident education, a fully configured iPad, referred to as the "Radiology Resident iPad Toolbox," was created and implemented at the University of Colorado. The goal was to create a portable device with comprehensive educational, clinical, and communication tools that would contain all necessary resources for an entire 4-year radiology residency. The device was distributed to a total of 34 radiology residents (8 first-year residents, 8 second-year residents, 9 third-year residents, and 9 fourth-year residents). This article describes the process used to develop and deploy the device, provides a distillation of useful applications and resources decided upon after extensive evaluation, and assesses the impact this device had on resident education. The Radiology Resident iPad Toolbox is a cost-effective, portable, educational instrument that has increased studying efficiency; improved access to study materials such as books, radiology cases, lectures, and web-based resources; and increased interactivity in educational conferences and lectures through the use of audience-response software, with questions geared toward the new ABR board format. This preconfigured tablet fully embraces the technology shift into mobile computing and represents a paradigm shift in educational strategy. Copyright © 2013 American College of Radiology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The post-evaluation of green residential building in Ningxia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Yunna; Wang, Zhen

2017-06-01

Green residential buildings are concerned by more and more people. However, the development of green residential buildings has been limited due to the single-standard requirements and lack of the multi-objective performance. At same time, the evaluation criteria system of green residential building is not comprehensive enough. So first of all, using SPSS software, residents questionnaire surveys are figured and found that the judge of experts and residents about the green elements is inconsistent, so the owners’ satisfaction is included in the post-evaluation criterial systems of green residential building from five aspects-the preliminary work of construction, construction process, economic, social benefits and owners satisfaction in Ningxia area, combined with expert interviews. Secondly, in the post-evaluation, it is difficult for many experts judgment matrix to meet the requirement of consistency, in this paper using MATLAB program, judgment matrix consistency is adjusted. And the weights of the criteria and sub-criteria and experts weights using group AHP method are determined. Finally, the grey clustering method is used to establish the post-evaluation model and the real case of Sai-shang project is carried out. It shows that the result obtained by using the improved criteria system and method in this paper is in a high degree of agreement with the actual result.

The effects of fatigue on robotic surgical skill training in Urology residents.

PubMed

Mark, James R; Kelly, Douglas C; Trabulsi, Edouard J; Shenot, Patrick J; Lallas, Costas D

2014-09-01

This study reports on the effect of fatigue on Urology residents using the daVinci surgical skills simulator (dVSS). Seven Urology residents performed a series of selected exercises on the dVSS while pre-call and post-call. Prior to dVSS performance a survey of subjective fatigue was taken and residents were tested with the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS). Using the metrics available in the dVSS software, the performance of each resident was evaluated. The Urology residents slept an average of 4.07 h (range 2.5-6 h) while on call compared to an average of 5.43 h while not on call (range 3-7 h, p = 0.08). Post-call residents were significantly more likely to be identified as fatigued by the Epworth Sleepiness Score than pre-call residents (p = 0.01). Significant differences were observed in fatigued residents performing the exercises, Tubes and Match Board 2 (p = 0.05, 0.02). Additionally, there were significant differences in the total number of critical errors during the training session (9.29 vs. 3.14, p = 0.04). Fatigue in post-call Urology residents leads to poorer performance on the dVSS simulator. The dVSS may become a useful instrument in the education of fatigued residents and a tool to identify fatigue in trainees.

Digitized hand-wrist radiographs: comparison of subjective and software-derived image quality at various compression ratios.

PubMed

McCord, Layne K; Scarfe, William C; Naylor, Rachel H; Scheetz, James P; Silveira, Anibal; Gillespie, Kevin R

2007-05-01

The objectives of this study were to compare the effect of JPEG 2000 compression of hand-wrist radiographs on observer image quality qualitative assessment and to compare with a software-derived quantitative image quality index. Fifteen hand-wrist radiographs were digitized and saved as TIFF and JPEG 2000 images at 4 levels of compression (20:1, 40:1, 60:1, and 80:1). The images, including rereads, were viewed by 13 orthodontic residents who determined the image quality rating on a scale of 1 to 5. A quantitative analysis was also performed by using a readily available software based on the human visual system (Image Quality Measure Computer Program, version 6.2, Mitre, Bedford, Mass). ANOVA was used to determine the optimal compression level (P < or =.05). When we compared subjective indexes, JPEG compression greater than 60:1 significantly reduced image quality. When we used quantitative indexes, the JPEG 2000 images had lower quality at all compression ratios compared with the original TIFF images. There was excellent correlation (R2 >0.92) between qualitative and quantitative indexes. Image Quality Measure indexes are more sensitive than subjective image quality assessments in quantifying image degradation with compression. There is potential for this software-based quantitative method in determining the optimal compression ratio for any image without the use of subjective raters.

Usability of Low-Cost Android Data Collection System for Community-Based Participatory Research.

PubMed

Salihu, Hamisu M; Salinas-Miranda, Abraham; Turner, DeAnne; King, Lindsey; Paothong, Arnut; Austin, Deborah; Berry, Estrellita Lo

2016-01-01

Android tablet computers can be valuable tools for data collection, but their usability has not been evaluated in community-based participatory research (CBPR). This article examines the usability of a low-cost bilingual touchscreen computerized survey system using Android tablets, piloted with a sample of 201 community residents in Tampa, Florida, from November 2013 to March 2014. Needs assessment questions were designed with the droidSURVEY software, and deployed using Android tablet computers. In addition, participants were asked questions about system usability. The mean system usability was 77.57 ± 17.66 (range, 0-100). The mean completion time for taking the 63 survey questions in the needs assessment was 23.11 ± 9.62 minutes. The survey completion rate was optimal (100%), with only 6.34% missingness per variable. We found no sociodemographic differences in usability scores. Our findings indicate that Android tablets could serve as useful tools in CBPR studies.

A software system for evaluation and training of spatial reasoning and neuroanatomical knowledge in a virtual environment.

PubMed

Armstrong, Ryan; de Ribaupierre, Sandrine; Eagleson, Roy

2014-04-01

This paper describes the design and development of a software tool for the evaluation and training of surgical residents using an interactive, immersive, virtual environment. Our objective was to develop a tool to evaluate user spatial reasoning skills and knowledge in a neuroanatomical context, as well as to augment their performance through interactivity. In the visualization, manually segmented anatomical surface images of MRI scans of the brain were rendered using a stereo display to improve depth cues. A magnetically tracked wand was used as a 3D input device for localization tasks within the brain. The movement of the wand was made to correspond to movement of a spherical cursor within the rendered scene, providing a reference for localization. Users can be tested on their ability to localize structures within the 3D scene, and their ability to place anatomical features at the appropriate locations within the rendering. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

A Comparison Study and Software Implementation of NORDA Ocean Models.

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-10-08

L01?C07 ’EEEEElshhhh A COMPARISON STUDY AND SOFTWARE IMPLEMENTATION OF NORDA OCEAN MODELS J&IEA m/ MST* f-....~ cre mx IRSD~I?( J 300 Unicorn Park...34- NOO-79- 741 9. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME AND ADDRESS 10. PROGRAM ELEMENT. PROJECT, TASK AREA 6 WORK UNIT NUMBERSJAYC0, 300 Unicorn Park Drive...before another execution of the energetics program, move them back to disk. Note that the outputs of the preprocessor reside on disk, they should not be

Use of Unified Modeling Language (UML) in Model-Based Development (MBD) For Safety-Critical Applications

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-12-01

appears that UML is becoming the de facto MBD language. OMG® states the following on the MDA® FAQ page: “Although not formally required [for MBD], UML...a known limitation [42], so UML users should plan accordingly, especially for safety-critical programs. For example, “models are not used to...description of the MBD tool chain can be produced. That description could be resident in a Plan for Software Aspects of Certification (PSAC) or Software

Barriers and facilitators to Electronic Medical Record (EMR) use in an urban slum.

PubMed

Jawhari, Badeia; Keenan, Louanne; Zakus, David; Ludwick, Dave; Isaac, Abraam; Saleh, Abdullah; Hayward, Robert

2016-10-01

Rapid urbanization has led to the growth of urban slums and increased healthcare burdens for vulnerable populations. Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) have the potential to improve continuity of care for slum residents, but their implementation is complicated by technical and non-technical limitations. This study sought practical insights about facilitators and barriers to EMR implementation in urban slum environments. Descriptive qualitative method was used to explore staff perceptions about a recent open-source EMR deployment in two primary care clinics in Kibera, Nairobi. Participants were interviewed using open-ended, semi-structured questions. Content analysis was used when exploring transcribed data. Three major themes - systems, software, and social considerations - emerged from content analysis, with sustainability concerns prevailing. Although participants reported many systems (e.g., power, network, Internet, hardware, interoperability) and software (e.g., data integrity, confidentiality, function) challenges, social factors (e.g., identity management, training, use incentives) appeared the most important impediments to sustainability. These findings are consistent with what others have reported, especially the importance of practical barriers to EMR deployments in resource-constrained settings. Other findings contribute unique insights about social determinants of EMR impact in slum settings, including the challenge of multiple-identity management and development of meaningful incentives to staff compliance. This study exposes front-line experiences with opportunities and shortcomings of EMR implementations in urban slum primary care clinics. Although the promise is great, there are a number of unique system, software and social challenges that EMR advocates should address before expecting sustainable EMR use in resource-constrained settings. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Structured Head and Neck CT Angiography Reporting Reduces Resident Revision Rates.

PubMed

Johnson, Tucker F; Brinjikji, Waleed; Doolittle, Derrick A; Nagelschneider, Alex A; Welch, Brian T; Kotsenas, Amy L

2018-04-12

This resident-driven quality improvement project was undertaken to assess the effectiveness of structured reporting to reduce revision rates for afterhours reports dictated by residents. The first part of the study assessed baseline revision rates for head and neck CT angiography (CTA) examinations dictated by residents during afterhours call. A structured report was subsequently created based on templates on the RSNA informatics reporting website and critical findings that should be assessed for on all CTA examinations. The template was made available to residents through the speech recognition software for all head and neck CTA examinations for a duration of 2 months. Report revision rates were then compared with and without use of the structured template. The structured template was found to reduce revision rates by approximately 50% with 10/41 unstructured reports revised and 2/17 structured reports revised. We believe that structured reporting can help reduce reporting errors, particularly in term of typographical errors, train residents to evaluate complex examinations in a systematic fashion, and assist them in recalling critical findings on these examinations. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

User Interface Developed for Controls/CFD Interdisciplinary Research

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

The NASA Lewis Research Center, in conjunction with the University of Akron, is developing analytical methods and software tools to create a cross-discipline "bridge" between controls and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) technologies. Traditionally, the controls analyst has used simulations based on large lumping techniques to generate low-order linear models convenient for designing propulsion system controls. For complex, high-speed vehicles such as the High Speed Civil Transport (HSCT), simulations based on CFD methods are required to capture the relevant flow physics. The use of CFD should also help reduce the development time and costs associated with experimentally tuning the control system. The initial application for this research is the High Speed Civil Transport inlet control problem. A major aspect of this research is the development of a controls/CFD interface for non-CFD experts, to facilitate the interactive operation of CFD simulations and the extraction of reduced-order, time-accurate models from CFD results. A distributed computing approach for implementing the interface is being explored. Software being developed as part of the Integrated CFD and Experiments (ICE) project provides the basis for the operating environment, including run-time displays and information (data base) management. Message-passing software is used to communicate between the ICE system and the CFD simulation, which can reside on distributed, parallel computing systems. Initially, the one-dimensional Large-Perturbation Inlet (LAPIN) code is being used to simulate a High Speed Civil Transport type inlet. LAPIN can model real supersonic inlet features, including bleeds, bypasses, and variable geometry, such as translating or variable-ramp-angle centerbodies. Work is in progress to use parallel versions of the multidimensional NPARC code.

The Advanced Communication Technology Satellite and ISDN

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lowry, Peter A.

1996-01-01

This paper depicts the Advanced Communication Technology Satellite (ACTS) system as a global central office switch. The ground portion of the system is the collection of earth stations or T1-VSAT's (T1 very small aperture terminals). The control software for the T1-VSAT's resides in a single CPU. The software consists of two modules, the modem manager and the call manager. The modem manager (MM) controls the RF modem portion of the T1-VSAT. It processes the orderwires from the satellite or from signaling generated by the call manager (CM). The CM controls the Recom Laboratories MSPs by receiving signaling messages from the stacked MSP shelves ro units and sending appropriate setup commands to them. There are two methods used to setup and process calls in the CM; first by dialing up a circuit using a standard telephone handset or, secondly by using an external processor connected to the CPU's second COM port, by sending and receiving signaling orderwires. It is the use of the external processor which permits the ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network) Signaling Processor to implement ISDN calls. In August 1993, the initial testing of the ISDN Signaling Processor was carried out at ACTS System Test at Lockheed Marietta, Princeton, NJ using the spacecraft in its test configuration on the ground.

Psychometric properties of the Persian version of the Ambulatory Care Learning Educational Environment Measure (ACLEEM) questionnaire, Shiraz, Iran.

PubMed

Parvizi, Mohammad Mahdi; Amini, Mitra; Dehghani, Mohammad Reza; Jafari, Peyman; Parvizi, Zahra

2016-01-01

Evaluation is the main component in design and implementation of educational activities and rapid growth of educational institution programs. Outpatient medical education and clinical training environment is one of the most important parts of training of medical residents. This study aimed to determine the validity and reliability of the Persian version of Ambulatory Care Learning Educational Environment Measure (ACLEEM) questionnaire, as an instrument for assessment of educational environments in residency medical clinics. This study was performed on 180 residents in Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran, in 2014-2015. The questionnaire designers' electronic permission (by email) and the residents' verbal consent were obtained before distributing the questionnaires. The study data were gathered using ACLEEM questionnaire developed by Arnoldo Riquelme in 2013. The data were analyzed using the SPSS statistical software, version 14, and MedCalc ® software. Then, the construct validity, including convergent and discriminant validities, of the Persian version of ACLEEM questionnaire was assessed. Its internal consistency was also checked by Cronbach's alpha coefficient. Five team members who were experts in medical education were consulted to test the cultural adaptation, linguistic equivalency, and content validity of the Persian version of the questionnaire. Content validity indexes were >0.9 in all items. In factor analysis of the instrument, the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin index was 0.928 and Barlett's sphericity test yielded the following results: X 2 =6,717.551, df =1,225, and P ≤0.001. Besides, Cronbach's alpha coefficient of ACLEEM questionnaire was 0.964. Cronbach's alpha coefficients were also >0.80 in all the three domains of the questionnaire. Overall, the Persian version of ACLEEM showed excellent convergent validity and acceptable discriminant validity, except for the clinical training domain. According to the results, the Persian version of ACLEEM questionnaire was a valid and reliable instrument for Iranian residents to assess specialized clinics and residency ambulatory settings.

A pilot study of the utility of a laboratory-based spinal fixation training program for neurosurgical residents.

PubMed

Sundar, Swetha J; Healy, Andrew T; Kshettry, Varun R; Mroz, Thomas E; Schlenk, Richard; Benzel, Edward C

2016-05-01

OBJECTIVE Pedicle and lateral mass screw placement is technically demanding due to complex 3D spinal anatomy that is not easily visualized. Neurosurgical and orthopedic surgery residents must be properly trained in such procedures, which can be associated with significant complications and associated morbidity. Current training in pedicle and lateral mass screw placement involves didactic teaching and supervised placement in the operating room. The objective of this study was to assess whether teaching residents to place pedicle and lateral mass screws using navigation software, combined with practice using cadaveric specimens and Sawbones models, would improve screw placement accuracy. METHODS This was a single-blinded, prospective, randomized pilot study with 8 junior neurosurgical residents and 2 senior medical students with prior neurosurgery exposure. Both the study group and the level of training-matched control group (each group with 4 level of training-matched residents and 1 senior medical student) were exposed to a standardized didactic education regarding spinal anatomy and screw placement techniques. The study group was exposed to an additional pilot program that included a training session using navigation software combined with cadaveric specimens and accessibility to Sawbones models. RESULTS A statistically significant reduction in overall surgical error was observed in the study group compared with the control group (p = 0.04). Analysis by spinal region demonstrated a significant reduction in surgical error in the thoracic and lumbar regions in the study group compared with controls (p = 0.02 and p = 0.04, respectively). The study group also was observed to place screws more optimally in the cervical, thoracic, and lumbar regions (p = 0.02, p = 0.04, and p = 0.04, respectively). CONCLUSIONS Surgical resident education in pedicle and lateral mass screw placement is a priority for training programs. This study demonstrated that compared with a didactic-only training model, using navigation simulation with cadavers and Sawbones models significantly reduced the number of screw placement errors in a laboratory setting.

Canadian residents teaching and learning psychiatry in Ethiopia: a grounded theory analysis focusing on their experiences.

PubMed

Brook, Shelley; Robertson, David; Makuwaza, Tutsirai; Hodges, Brian D

2010-01-01

The Toronto Addis Ababa Psychiatry Project (TAAPP) is an international collaboration between University of Toronto and Addis Ababa University. University of Toronto psychiatric residents may participate in TAAPP as an elective. The authors explored the Canadian resident experience in a qualitative study of the project. Eleven residents were interviewed using a semistructured questionnaire. Grounded theory was employed to organize participants' experiences and highlight emerging themes. The computer software NVivo7 was used to facilitate data analysis. Participants described gaining competency as health advocates, collaborators, scholars, and teachers. They endorsed increased sensitivity to cross-cultural issues and greater awareness of global health issues, including practical and ethical ramifications of working at an intersection of cultures. Residents gained international perspective psychiatric practice. The elective provided unique opportunities for acquiring clinical, teaching, collaborative, leadership and advocacy skills. It prompted participants to consider ethical and cross-cultural issues and allowed them to be mentored intensively by Ethiopian and Canadian teachers and peers.

Neighbourhood influences on mental health in master planned estates: a qualitative study of resident perspectives.

PubMed

Francis, Jacinta; Giles-Corti, Billie; Wood, Lisa; Knuiman, Matthew

2014-12-01

Neighbourhood characteristics have been linked to a range of health outcomes, including mental health. Despite the growth of master planned estates (MPEs) within Australia, few studies have investigated the physical and social correlates of mental health in residents of new housing developments. Methods This study aimed to identify the facilitators of, and barriers to, mentally healthy neighbourhoods using focus groups with residents of MPEs in metropolitan Perth, Western Australia. Focus group interviews were analysed using qualitative research software package QSR NVivo. Results and Conclusions Results suggest that mental health is strongly influenced by a sense of community and security, as well as an aesthetically pleasing environment. Residents of MPEs may experience a strong sense of community due to similarities in life-stage and the community building efforts of property developers. Expanding population size, social exclusion, and insufficient services may negatively affect the mental health of residents in MPEs. SO WHAT?: Identifying correlates of mentally healthy neighbourhoods may help urban planners design residential areas that promote healthy living.

Does semi-automatic bone-fragment segmentation improve the reproducibility of the Letournel acetabular fracture classification?

PubMed

Boudissa, M; Orfeuvre, B; Chabanas, M; Tonetti, J

2017-09-01

The Letournel classification of acetabular fracture shows poor reproducibility in inexperienced observers, despite the introduction of 3D imaging. We therefore developed a method of semi-automatic segmentation based on CT data. The present prospective study aimed to assess: (1) whether semi-automatic bone-fragment segmentation increased the rate of correct classification; (2) if so, in which fracture types; and (3) feasibility using the open-source itksnap 3.0 software package without incurring extra cost for users. Semi-automatic segmentation of acetabular fractures significantly increases the rate of correct classification by orthopedic surgery residents. Twelve orthopedic surgery residents classified 23 acetabular fractures. Six used conventional 3D reconstructions provided by the center's radiology department (conventional group) and 6 others used reconstructions obtained by semi-automatic segmentation using the open-source itksnap 3.0 software package (segmentation group). Bone fragments were identified by specific colors. Correct classification rates were compared between groups on Chi 2 test. Assessment was repeated 2 weeks later, to determine intra-observer reproducibility. Correct classification rates were significantly higher in the "segmentation" group: 114/138 (83%) versus 71/138 (52%); P<0.0001. The difference was greater for simple (36/36 (100%) versus 17/36 (47%); P<0.0001) than complex fractures (79/102 (77%) versus 54/102 (53%); P=0.0004). Mean segmentation time per fracture was 27±3min [range, 21-35min]. The segmentation group showed excellent intra-observer correlation coefficients, overall (ICC=0.88), and for simple (ICC=0.92) and complex fractures (ICC=0.84). Semi-automatic segmentation, identifying the various bone fragments, was effective in increasing the rate of correct acetabular fracture classification on the Letournel system by orthopedic surgery residents. It may be considered for routine use in education and training. III: prospective case-control study of a diagnostic procedure. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Issues and approaches for electronic document approval and transmittal using digital signatures and text authentication: Prototype documentation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Boling, M. E.

1989-09-01

Prototypes were assembled pursuant to recommendations made in report K/DSRD-96, Issues and Approaches for Electronic Document Approval and Transmittal Using Digital Signatures and Text Authentication, and to examine and discover the possibilities for integrating available hardware and software to provide cost effective systems for digital signatures and text authentication. These prototypes show that on a LAN, a multitasking, windowed, mouse/keyboard menu-driven interface can be assembled to provide easy and quick access to bit-mapped images of documents, electronic forms and electronic mail messages with a means to sign, encrypt, deliver, receive or retrieve and authenticate text and signatures. In addition they show that some of this same software may be used in a classified environment using host to terminal transactions to accomplish these same operations. Finally, a prototype was developed demonstrating that binary files may be signed electronically and sent by point to point communication and over ARPANET to remote locations where the authenticity of the code and signature may be verified. Related studies on the subject of electronic signatures and text authentication using public key encryption were done within the Department of Energy. These studies include timing studies of public key encryption software and hardware and testing of experimental user-generated host resident software for public key encryption. This software used commercially available command-line source code. These studies are responsive to an initiative within the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) for the protection of unclassified but sensitive data. It is notable that these related studies are all built around the same commercially available public key encryption products from the private sector and that the software selection was made independently by each study group.

Passive Thermal Design Approach for the Space Communications and Navigation (SCaN) Testbed Experiment on the International Space Station (ISS)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Siamidis, John; Yuko, Jim

2014-01-01

The Space Communications and Navigation (SCaN) Program Office at NASA Headquarters oversees all of NASAs space communications activities. SCaN manages and directs the ground-based facilities and services provided by the Deep Space Network (DSN), Near Earth Network (NEN), and the Space Network (SN). Through the SCaN Program Office, NASA GRC developed a Software Defined Radio (SDR) testbed experiment (SCaN testbed experiment) for use on the International Space Station (ISS). It is comprised of three different SDR radios, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) radio, Harris Corporation radio, and the General Dynamics Corporation radio. The SCaN testbed experiment provides an on-orbit, adaptable, SDR Space Telecommunications Radio System (STRS) - based facility to conduct a suite of experiments to advance the Software Defined Radio, Space Telecommunications Radio Systems (STRS) standards, reduce risk (Technology Readiness Level (TRL) advancement) for candidate Constellation future space flight hardware software, and demonstrate space communication links critical to future NASA exploration missions. The SCaN testbed project provides NASA, industry, other Government agencies, and academic partners the opportunity to develop and field communications, navigation, and networking technologies in the laboratory and space environment based on reconfigurable, software defined radio platforms and the STRS Architecture.The SCaN testbed is resident on the P3 Express Logistics Carrier (ELC) on the exterior truss of the International Space Station (ISS). The SCaN testbed payload launched on the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV) and was installed on the ISS P3 ELC located on the inboard RAM P3 site. The daily operations and testing are managed out of NASA GRC in the Telescience Support Center (TSC).

Systems Architecture for Fully Autonomous Space Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Esper, Jamie; Schnurr, R.; VanSteenberg, M.; Brumfield, Mark (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

The NASA Goddard Space Flight Center is working to develop a revolutionary new system architecture concept in support of fully autonomous missions. As part of GSFC's contribution to the New Millenium Program (NMP) Space Technology 7 Autonomy and on-Board Processing (ST7-A) Concept Definition Study, the system incorporates the latest commercial Internet and software development ideas and extends them into NASA ground and space segment architectures. The unique challenges facing the exploration of remote and inaccessible locales and the need to incorporate corresponding autonomy technologies within reasonable cost necessitate the re-thinking of traditional mission architectures. A measure of the resiliency of this architecture in its application to a broad range of future autonomy missions will depend on its effectiveness in leveraging from commercial tools developed for the personal computer and Internet markets. Specialized test stations and supporting software come to past as spacecraft take advantage of the extensive tools and research investments of billion-dollar commercial ventures. The projected improvements of the Internet and supporting infrastructure go hand-in-hand with market pressures that provide continuity in research. By taking advantage of consumer-oriented methods and processes, space-flight missions will continue to leverage on investments tailored to provide better services at reduced cost. The application of ground and space segment architectures each based on Local Area Networks (LAN), the use of personal computer-based operating systems, and the execution of activities and operations through a Wide Area Network (Internet) enable a revolution in spacecraft mission formulation, implementation, and flight operations. Hardware and software design, development, integration, test, and flight operations are all tied-in closely to a common thread that enables the smooth transitioning between program phases. The application of commercial software development techniques lays the foundation for delivery of product-oriented flight software modules and models. Software can then be readily applied to support the on-board autonomy required for mission self-management. An on-board intelligent system, based on advanced scripting languages, facilitates the mission autonomy required to offload ground system resources, and enables the spacecraft to manage itself safely through an efficient and effective process of reactive planning, science data acquisition, synthesis, and transmission to the ground. Autonomous ground systems in turn coordinate and support schedule contact times with the spacecraft. Specific autonomy software modules on-board include mission and science planners, instrument and subsystem control, and fault tolerance response software, all residing within a distributed computing environment supported through the flight LAN. Autonomy also requires the minimization of human intervention between users on the ground and the spacecraft, and hence calls for the elimination of the traditional operations control center as a funnel for data manipulation. Basic goal-oriented commands are sent directly from the user to the spacecraft through a distributed internet-based payload operations "center". The ensuing architecture calls for the use of spacecraft as point extensions on the Internet. This paper will detail the system architecture implementation chosen to enable cost-effective autonomous missions with applicability to a broad range of conditions. It will define the structure needed for implementation of such missions, including software and hardware infrastructures. The overall architecture is then laid out as a common thread in the mission life cycle from formulation through implementation and flight operations.

Motherhood during residency training: challenges and strategies.

PubMed

Walsh, Allyn; Gold, Michelle; Jensen, Phyllis; Jedrzkiewicz, Michelle

2005-07-01

To determine what factors enable or impede women in a Canadian family medicine residency program from combining motherhood with residency training. To determine how policies can support these women, given that in recent decades the number of female family medicine residents has increased. Qualitative study using in-person interviews. McMaster University Family Medicine Residency Program. Twenty-one of 27 family medicine residents taking maternity leave between 1994 and 1999. Semistructured interviews. The research team reviewed transcripts of audiotaped interviews for emerging themes; consensus was reached on content and meaning. NVIVO software was used for data analysis. Long hours, unpredictable work demands, guilt because absences from work increase workload for colleagues, and residents' high expectations of themselves cause pregnant residents severe stress. This stress continues upon return to work; finding adequate child care is an added stress. Residents report receiving less support from colleagues and supervisors upon return to work; they associate this with no longer being visibly pregnant. Physically demanding training rotations put additional strain on pregnant residents and those newly returned to work. Flexibility in scheduling rotations can help accommodate needs at home. Providing breaks, privacy, and refrigerators at work can help maintain breastfeeding. Allowing residents to remain involved in academic and clinical work during maternity leave helps maintain clinical skills, build new knowledge, and promote peer support. Pregnancy during residency training is common and becoming more common. Training programs can successfully enhance the experience of motherhood during residency by providing flexibility at work to facilitate a healthy balance among the competing demands of family, work, and student life.

A pilot prospective feasibility study of organ-at-risk definition using Target Contour Testing/Instructional Computer Software (TaCTICS), a training and evaluation platform for radiotherapy target delineation.

PubMed

Kalpathy-Cramer, Jayashree; Bedrick, Steven D; Boccia, Kelly; Fuller, Clifton D

2011-01-01

Target volume delineation is a critical, but time-consuming step in the creation of radiation therapy plans used in the treatment of many types of cancer. However, variability in target volume definitions can introduce substantial differences in resulting doses to tumors and critical structures. We developed TaCTICS, a web-based educational training software application targeted towards non-expert users. We report on a small, prospective study to evaluate the utility of this online tool in improving conformance of regions-of-interest (ROIs) with a reference set. Eight residents contoured a set of structures for a head-and-neck cancer case. Subsequently, they were provided access to TaCTICS as well as contouring atlases to allow evaluation of their contours in reference to other users as well as reference ROIs. The residents then contoured a second case using these resources. Volume overlap metrics between the users showed a substantial improvement following the intervention. Additionally, 66% of users reported that they found TaCTICS to be a useful educational tool and all participants reported they would like to use TaCTICS to track their contouring skills over the course of their residency.

Remote information service access system based on a client-server-service model

DOEpatents

Konrad, Allan M.

1996-01-01

A local host computing system, a remote host computing system as connected by a network, and service functionalities: a human interface service functionality, a starter service functionality, and a desired utility service functionality, and a Client-Server-Service (CSS) model is imposed on each service functionality. In one embodiment, this results in nine logical components and three physical components (a local host, a remote host, and an intervening network), where two of the logical components are integrated into one Remote Object Client component, and that Remote Object Client component and the other seven logical components are deployed among the local host and remote host in a manner which eases compatibility and upgrade problems, and provides an illusion to a user that a desired utility service supported on a remote host resides locally on the user's local host, thereby providing ease of use and minimal software maintenance for users of that remote service.

Remote information service access system based on a client-server-service model

DOEpatents

Konrad, A.M.

1997-12-09

A local host computing system, a remote host computing system as connected by a network, and service functionalities: a human interface service functionality, a starter service functionality, and a desired utility service functionality, and a Client-Server-Service (CSS) model is imposed on each service functionality. In one embodiment, this results in nine logical components and three physical components (a local host, a remote host, and an intervening network), where two of the logical components are integrated into one Remote Object Client component, and that Remote Object Client component and the other seven logical components are deployed among the local host and remote host in a manner which eases compatibility and upgrade problems, and provides an illusion to a user that a desired utility service supported on a remote host resides locally on the user`s local host, thereby providing ease of use and minimal software maintenance for users of that remote service. 16 figs.

Remote information service access system based on a client-server-service model

DOEpatents

Konrad, Allan M.

1999-01-01

A local host computing system, a remote host computing system as connected by a network, and service functionalities: a human interface service functionality, a starter service functionality, and a desired utility service functionality, and a Client-Server-Service (CSS) model is imposed on each service functionality. In one embodiment, this results in nine logical components and three physical components (a local host, a remote host, and an intervening network), where two of the logical components are integrated into one Remote Object Client component, and that Remote Object Client component and the other seven logical components are deployed among the local host and remote host in a manner which eases compatibility and upgrade problems, and provides an illusion to a user that a desired utility service supported on a remote host resides locally on the user's local host, thereby providing ease of use and minimal software maintenance for users of that remote service.

Remote information service access system based on a client-server-service model

DOEpatents

Konrad, A.M.

1996-08-06

A local host computing system, a remote host computing system as connected by a network, and service functionalities: a human interface service functionality, a starter service functionality, and a desired utility service functionality, and a Client-Server-Service (CSS) model is imposed on each service functionality. In one embodiment, this results in nine logical components and three physical components (a local host, a remote host, and an intervening network), where two of the logical components are integrated into one Remote Object Client component, and that Remote Object Client component and the other seven logical components are deployed among the local host and remote host in a manner which eases compatibility and upgrade problems, and provides an illusion to a user that a desired utility service supported on a remote host resides locally on the user`s local host, thereby providing ease of use and minimal software maintenance for users of that remote service. 16 figs.

Remote information service access system based on a client-server-service model

DOEpatents

Konrad, Allan M.

1997-01-01

A local host computing system, a remote host computing system as connected by a network, and service functionalities: a human interface service functionality, a starter service functionality, and a desired utility service functionality, and a Client-Server-Service (CSS) model is imposed on each service functionality. In one embodiment, this results in nine logical components and three physical components (a local host, a remote host, and an intervening network), where two of the logical components are integrated into one Remote Object Client component, and that Remote Object Client component and the other seven logical components are deployed among the local host and remote host in a manner which eases compatibility and upgrade problems, and provides an illusion to a user that a desired utility service supported on a remote host resides locally on the user's local host, thereby providing ease of use and minimal software maintenance for users of that remote service.

Methods and implementation of a central biosample and data management in a three-centre clinical study.

PubMed

Angelow, Aniela; Schmidt, Matthias; Weitmann, Kerstin; Schwedler, Susanne; Vogt, Hannes; Havemann, Christoph; Hoffmann, Wolfgang

2008-07-01

In our report we describe concept, strategies and implementation of a central biosample and data management (CSDM) system in the three-centre clinical study of the Transregional Collaborative Research Centre "Inflammatory Cardiomyopathy - Molecular Pathogenesis and Therapy" SFB/TR 19, Germany. Following the requirements of high system resource availability, data security, privacy protection and quality assurance, a web-based CSDM was developed based on Java 2 Enterprise Edition using an Oracle database. An efficient and reliable sample documentation system using bar code labelling, a partitioning storage algorithm and an online documentation software was implemented. An online electronic case report form is used to acquire patient-related data. Strict rules for access to the online applications and secure connections are used to account for privacy protection and data security. Challenges for the implementation of the CSDM resided at project, technical and organisational level as well as at staff level.

The markup is the model: reasoning about systems biology models in the Semantic Web era.

PubMed

Kell, Douglas B; Mendes, Pedro

2008-06-07

Metabolic control analysis, co-invented by Reinhart Heinrich, is a formalism for the analysis of biochemical networks, and is a highly important intellectual forerunner of modern systems biology. Exchanging ideas and exchanging models are part of the international activities of science and scientists, and the Systems Biology Markup Language (SBML) allows one to perform the latter with great facility. Encoding such models in SBML allows their distributed analysis using loosely coupled workflows, and with the advent of the Internet the various software modules that one might use to analyze biochemical models can reside on entirely different computers and even on different continents. Optimization is at the core of many scientific and biotechnological activities, and Reinhart made many major contributions in this area, stimulating our own activities in the use of the methods of evolutionary computing for optimization.

Potential of minicomputer/array-processor system for nonlinear finite-element analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Strohkorb, G. A.; Noor, A. K.

1983-01-01

The potential of using a minicomputer/array-processor system for the efficient solution of large-scale, nonlinear, finite-element problems is studied. A Prime 750 is used as the host computer, and a software simulator residing on the Prime is employed to assess the performance of the Floating Point Systems AP-120B array processor. Major hardware characteristics of the system such as virtual memory and parallel and pipeline processing are reviewed, and the interplay between various hardware components is examined. Effective use of the minicomputer/array-processor system for nonlinear analysis requires the following: (1) proper selection of the computational procedure and the capability to vectorize the numerical algorithms; (2) reduction of input-output operations; and (3) overlapping host and array-processor operations. A detailed discussion is given of techniques to accomplish each of these tasks. Two benchmark problems with 1715 and 3230 degrees of freedom, respectively, are selected to measure the anticipated gain in speed obtained by using the proposed algorithms on the array processor.

The SSM/PMAD automated test bed project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lollar, Louis F.

1991-01-01

The Space Station Module/Power Management and Distribution (SSM/PMAD) autonomous subsystem project was initiated in 1984. The project's goal has been to design and develop an autonomous, user-supportive PMAD test bed simulating the SSF Hab/Lab module(s). An eighteen kilowatt SSM/PMAD test bed model with a high degree of automated operation has been developed. This advanced automation test bed contains three expert/knowledge based systems that interact with one another and with other more conventional software residing in up to eight distributed 386-based microcomputers to perform the necessary tasks of real-time and near real-time load scheduling, dynamic load prioritizing, and fault detection, isolation, and recovery (FDIR).

[Intergenerational differences on the nutritional status and lifestyle of Chinese residents].

PubMed

Su, Chang; Wang, Huijun; Zhang, Jiguo; Du, Wenwen; Wang, Zhihong; Zhang, Ji; Zhai, Fengying; Zhang, Bing

2012-05-01

To study the diversities on nutritional status and lifestyle of adult Chinese residents born in different years. The data of healthy adult residents born in the 1960s and 1980s were selected from the CHNS 1993 and 2009. Information on physical examination, nutrient intake and lifestyle factors were used as indicators to evaluate the nutritional status of residents; data was analyzed by SAS and STATA software. (1) Weight, height, BMI, waist circumference, hip circumference, waist-hip ratio, skin fold thickness, overweight/obesity, hypertension rate of residents born in the 1980s were all significantly higher than residents born in the 1960s. (2) Dietary fats intake, percentage of energy contributed from total fat, cholesterol intake, calcium intake and the rate of energy and cholesterol intake exceeding the Chinese dietary reference intakes (Chinese DRIs) of residents born in the 1980s were all significantly higher than residents born in the 1960s, however, the energy intake,carbohydrate intake, salt intake, vitamin B1 intake, vitamin C intake, the energy contributed from carbohydrates and the rate of vitamin B1 intake and vitamin C intake exceeding the Chinese DRIs of residents born in the 1980s were all significantly lower in residents born in the 1960s. (3) The smoking rates, rates of drinking tea and the percentage of population engaged in medium or vigorous physical activity of residents born in the 1980s were all significantly lower than residents born in the 1960s. The diversity of nutritional status and lifestyle in different generations could not be ignored, and the phenomenon of increased prevalence of nutrition-related non-communicable diseases (NR-NCDs) of residents born in 1980s should be concerned.

Monitoring the impact of human papillomavirus vaccines on high-grade pre-invasive cervical lesions: designing a framework of linked immunization information system and cancer registry data in Michigan.

PubMed

Potter, Rachel C; Flagg, Elaine W; Datta, S Deblina; Saraiya, Mona; Copeland, Glenn

2015-03-10

State immunization and cancer registries contain data that, if linked, could be used to monitor the impact of human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine on cervical cancer and precancer. Michigan is uniquely positioned to examine these outcomes using two population-based resources: the state-wide cancer registry and immunization information system (IIS). We assessed the feasibility of identifying females in the IIS who had continuous Michigan residence and linking them to the cancer registry. We considered continuous residence necessary for future studies of vaccine impact to avoid misclassifying those who may have been immunized while residing out-of-state and whose immunization therefore may not have been reported in Michigan. We identified females with 1976-1996 birthdates in the IIS and used probabilistic linkage software to match them with Michigan birth records. A stratified random sample of IIS-birth matches was provided to a commercial locator service to identify females with continuous Michigan residence. Cervical carcinoma in situ cases diagnosed in 2006 among females aged 10 through 30 years were also matched with the birth records; cancer registry-birth matches were merged with the IIS-birth matches using the birth record identifier. Overall, 68% of the 1274,282 IIS and 61% of the 1358 cancer registry records could be matched with birth records. Among the sample of IIS-birth matches, most (86%) were continuous residents. Seventy percent or more of cancer registry-birth matches merged with IIS-birth matches for cases born after 1984. This is the first effort in the U.S. to show that linking records across IIS and cancer registries is practical and reasonably efficient. The increasing proportion of matches between the registries and live birth file with birth year, and the use of population-based data, strengthen the utility of this approach. Future steps include use of this method to examine incidence of cervical cancer precursors in HPV immunization-eligible females. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Who wants feedback? An investigation of the variables influencing residents' feedback-seeking behavior in relation to night shifts.

PubMed

Teunissen, Pim W; Stapel, Diederik A; van der Vleuten, Cees; Scherpbier, Albert; Boor, Klarke; Scheele, Fedde

2009-07-01

The literature on feedback in clinical medical education has predominantly treated trainees as passive recipients. Past research has focused on how clinical supervisors can use feedback to improve a trainee's performance. On the basis of research in social and organizational psychology, the authors reconceptualized residents as active seekers of feedback. They investigated what individual and situational variables influence residents' feedback-seeking behavior on night shifts. Early in 2008, the authors sent obstetrics-gynecology residents in the Netherlands--both those in their first two years of graduate training and those gaining experience between undergraduate and graduate training--a questionnaire that assessed four predictor variables (learning and performance goal orientation, and instrumental and supportive leadership), two mediator variables (perceived feedback benefits and costs), and two outcome variables (frequency of feedback inquiry and monitoring). They used structural equation modeling software to test a hypothesized model of relationships between variables. The response rate was 76.5%. Results showed that residents who perceive more feedback benefits report a higher frequency of feedback inquiry and monitoring. More perceived feedback costs result mainly in more feedback monitoring. Residents with a higher learning goal orientation perceive more feedback benefits and fewer costs. Residents with a higher performance goal orientation perceive more feedback costs. Supportive physicians lead residents to perceive more feedback benefits and fewer costs. This study showed that some residents actively seek feedback. Residents' feedback-seeking behavior partially depends on attending physicians' supervisory style. Residents' goal orientations influence their perceptions of the benefits and costs of feedback-seeking.

Distributed computing system with dual independent communications paths between computers and employing split tokens

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rasmussen, Robert D. (Inventor); Manning, Robert M. (Inventor); Lewis, Blair F. (Inventor); Bolotin, Gary S. (Inventor); Ward, Richard S. (Inventor)

1990-01-01

This is a distributed computing system providing flexible fault tolerance; ease of software design and concurrency specification; and dynamic balance of the loads. The system comprises a plurality of computers each having a first input/output interface and a second input/output interface for interfacing to communications networks each second input/output interface including a bypass for bypassing the associated computer. A global communications network interconnects the first input/output interfaces for providing each computer the ability to broadcast messages simultaneously to the remainder of the computers. A meshwork communications network interconnects the second input/output interfaces providing each computer with the ability to establish a communications link with another of the computers bypassing the remainder of computers. Each computer is controlled by a resident copy of a common operating system. Communications between respective ones of computers is by means of split tokens each having a moving first portion which is sent from computer to computer and a resident second portion which is disposed in the memory of at least one of computer and wherein the location of the second portion is part of the first portion. The split tokens represent both functions to be executed by the computers and data to be employed in the execution of the functions. The first input/output interfaces each include logic for detecting a collision between messages and for terminating the broadcasting of a message whereby collisions between messages are detected and avoided.

Implementation of a Campuswide Distributed Mass Storage Service: the Dream Versus Reality

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Prahst, Stephen; Armstead, Betty Jo

1996-01-01

In 1990, a technical team at NASA Lewis Research Center, Cleveland, Ohio, began defining a Mass Storage Service to pro- wide long-term archival storage, short-term storage for very large files, distributed Network File System access, and backup services for critical data dw resides on workstations and personal computers. Because of software availability and budgets, the total service was phased in over dm years. During the process of building the service from the commercial technologies available, our Mass Storage Team refined the original vision and learned from the problems and mistakes that occurred. We also enhanced some technologies to better meet the needs of users and system administrators. This report describes our team's journey from dream to reality, outlines some of the problem areas that still exist, and suggests some solutions.

Comparison of Electronic Learning Versus Lecture-based Learning in Improving Emergency Medicine Residents' Knowledge About Mild Induced Hypothermia After Cardiac Arrest.

PubMed

Soleimanpour, Maryam; Rahmani, Farzad; Naghizadeh Golzari, Mehrad; Ala, Alireza; Morteza Bagi, Hamid Reza; Mehdizadeh Esfanjani, Robab; Soleimanpour, Hassan

2017-08-01

The process of medical education depends on several issues such as training materials, students, professors, educational fields, and the applied technologies. The current study aimed at comparing the impacts of e-learning and lecture-based learning of mild induced hypothermia (MIH) after cardiac arrest on the increase of knowledge among emergency medicine residents. In a pre- and post-intervention study, MIH after cardiac arrest was taught to 44 emergency medicine residents. Residents were randomly divided into 2 groups. The first group included 21 participants (lecture-based learning) and the second had 23 participants (e-learning). A 19-item questionnaire with approved validity and reliability was employed as the pretest and posttest. Then, data were analyzed with SPSS software version 17.0. There was no statistically significant difference in terms of the learning method between the test scores of the 2 groups (P = 0.977). E-learning and lecture-based learning methods was effective in augmentation of residents of emergency medicine knowledge about MIH after cardiac arrest; nevertheless, there was no significant difference between these mentioned methods.

Creating objective and measurable postgraduate year 1 residency graduation requirements.

PubMed

Starosta, Kaitlin; Davis, Susan L; Kenney, Rachel M; Peters, Michael; To, Long; Kalus, James S

2017-03-15

The process of developing objective and measurable postgraduate year 1 (PGY1) residency graduation requirements and a progress tracking system is described. The PGY1 residency accreditation standard requires that programs establish criteria that must be met by residents for successful completion of the program (i.e., graduation requirements), which should presumably be aligned with helping residents to achieve the purpose of residency training. In addition, programs must track a resident's progress toward fulfillment of residency goals and objectives. Defining graduation requirements and establishing the process for tracking residents' progress are left up to the discretion of the residency program. To help standardize resident performance assessments, leaders of an academic medical center-based PGY1 residency program developed graduation requirement criteria that are objective, measurable, and linked back to residency goals and objectives. A system for tracking resident progress relative to quarterly progress targets was instituted. Leaders also developed a focused, on-the-spot skills assessment termed "the Thunderdome," which was designed for objective evaluation of direct patient care skills. Quarterly data on residents' progress are used to update and customize each resident's training plan. Implementation of this system allowed seamless linkage of the training plan, the progress tracking system, and the specified graduation requirement criteria. PGY1 residency requirements that are objective, that are measurable, and that attempt to identify what skills the resident must demonstrate in order to graduate from the program were developed for use in our residency program. A system for tracking the residents' progress by comparing residents' performance to predetermined quarterly benchmarks was developed. Copyright © 2017 by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, Inc. All rights reserved.

[Digital administrative maps - a tool for visualization of epidemiological data].

PubMed

Niewiadomska, Ewa; Kowalska, Malgorzata; Czech, Elibieta; Skrzypek, Michal

2013-01-01

The aim of the study is to present the methods for visualization of epidemiological data using digital contour maps that take into account administrative division of Poland. The possibility of epidemiological data visualization in a geographical order, limited to the administrative level of the country, voivodeships and poviats (countics), are presented. They are crucial for the process of identifying and undertaking adequate prophylactic activities directed towards decreasing the risk and improving the population's health. This paper presents tools and techniques available in Geographic Information System ArcGIS and statistical software package R. The work includes our own data reflecting: 1) the values of specific mortality rates due to respiratory diseases, Poland, 2010, based on the Central Statistical Office data, using the R statistical software package; 2) the averaged registered incidence rates of sarcoidosis in 2006-2010 for the population aged 19+ in the Silesian voivodeship, using G(eographic Information System ArcGIS; and 3) the number of children with diagnosed respiratory diseases in the city of L.egnica in 2009, taking into account their place of residence, using layered maps in Geographic Information System ArcGIS. The tools presented and described in this paper make it possible to visualize the results of research, to increase attractiveness of courses for students, as well as to enhance the skills and competence of students and participants of courses.

MOOsburg: Multi-User Domain Support for a Community Network.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carroll, John M.; Rosson, Mary Beth; Isenhour, Philip L.; Van Metre, Christina; Schafer, Wendy A.; Ganoe, Craig H.

2001-01-01

Explains MOOsburg, a community-oriented MOO that models the geography of the town of Blacksburg, Virginia and is designed to be used by local residents. Highlights include the software architecture; client-server communication; spatial database; user interface; interaction; map-based navigation; application development; and future plans. (LRW)

Introducing radiology report checklists among residents: adherence rates when suggesting versus requiring their use and early experience in improving accuracy.

PubMed

Powell, Daniel K; Lin, Eaton; Silberzweig, James E; Kagetsu, Nolan J

2014-03-01

To retrospectively compare resident adherence to checklist-style structured reporting for maxillofacial computed tomography (CT) from the emergency department (when required vs. suggested between two programs). To compare radiology resident reporting accuracy before and after introduction of the structured report and assess its ability to decrease the rate of undetected pathology. We introduced a reporting checklist for maxillofacial CT into our dictation software without specific training, requiring it at one program and suggesting it at another. We quantified usage among residents and compared reporting accuracy, before and after counting and categorizing faculty addenda. There was no significant change in resident accuracy in the first few months, with residents acting as their own controls (directly comparing performance with and without the checklist). Adherence to the checklist at program A (where it originated and was required) was 85% of reports compared to 9% of reports at program B (where it was suggested). When using program B as a secondary control, there was no significant difference in resident accuracy with or without using the checklist (comparing different residents using the checklist to those not using the checklist). Our results suggest that there is no automatic value of checklists for improving radiology resident reporting accuracy. They also suggest the importance of focused training, checklist flexibility, and a period of adjustment to a new reporting style. Mandatory checklists were readily adopted by residents but not when simply suggested. Copyright © 2014 AUR. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Psychometric characteristics of Clinical Reasoning Problems (CRPs) and its correlation with routine multiple choice question (MCQ) in Cardiology department.

PubMed

Derakhshandeh, Zahra; Amini, Mitra; Kojuri, Javad; Dehbozorgian, Marziyeh

2018-01-01

Clinical reasoning is one of the most important skills in the process of training a medical student to become an efficient physician. Assessment of the reasoning skills in a medical school program is important to direct students' learning. One of the tests for measuring the clinical reasoning ability is Clinical Reasoning Problems (CRPs). The major aim of this study is to measure psychometric qualities of CRPs and define correlation between this test and routine MCQ in cardiology department of Shiraz medical school. This study was a descriptive study conducted on total cardiology residents of Shiraz Medical School. The study population consists of 40 residents in 2014. The routine CRPs and the MCQ tests was designed based on similar objectives and were carried out simultaneously. Reliability, item difficulty, item discrimination, and correlation between each item and the total score of CRPs were all measured by Excel and SPSS software for checking psycometeric CRPs test. Furthermore, we calculated the correlation between CRPs test and MCQ test. The mean differences of CRPs test score between residents' academic year [second, third and fourth year] were also evaluated by Analysis of variances test (One Way ANOVA) using SPSS software (version 20)(α=0.05). The mean and standard deviation of score in CRPs was 10.19 ±3.39 out of 20; in MCQ, it was 13.15±3.81 out of 20. Item difficulty was in the range of 0.27-0.72; item discrimination was 0.30-0.75 with question No.3 being the exception (that was 0.24). The correlation between each item and the total score of CRP was 0.26-0.87; the correlation between CRPs test and MCQ test was 0.68 (p<0.001). The reliability of the CRPs was 0.72 as calculated by using Cronbach's alpha. The mean score of CRPs was different among residents based on their academic year and this difference was statistically significant (p<0.001). The results of this present investigation revealed that CRPs could be reliable test for measuring clinical reasoning in residents. It can be included in cardiology residency assessment programs.

Psychometric properties of the Persian version of the Ambulatory Care Learning Educational Environment Measure (ACLEEM) questionnaire, Shiraz, Iran

PubMed Central

Parvizi, Mohammad Mahdi; Amini, Mitra; Dehghani, Mohammad Reza; Jafari, Peyman; Parvizi, Zahra

2016-01-01

Purpose Evaluation is the main component in design and implementation of educational activities and rapid growth of educational institution programs. Outpatient medical education and clinical training environment is one of the most important parts of training of medical residents. This study aimed to determine the validity and reliability of the Persian version of Ambulatory Care Learning Educational Environment Measure (ACLEEM) questionnaire, as an instrument for assessment of educational environments in residency medical clinics. Materials and methods This study was performed on 180 residents in Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran, in 2014–2015. The questionnaire designers’ electronic permission (by email) and the residents’ verbal consent were obtained before distributing the questionnaires. The study data were gathered using ACLEEM questionnaire developed by Arnoldo Riquelme in 2013. The data were analyzed using the SPSS statistical software, version 14, and MedCalc® software. Then, the construct validity, including convergent and discriminant validities, of the Persian version of ACLEEM questionnaire was assessed. Its internal consistency was also checked by Cronbach’s alpha coefficient. Results Five team members who were experts in medical education were consulted to test the cultural adaptation, linguistic equivalency, and content validity of the Persian version of the questionnaire. Content validity indexes were >0.9 in all items. In factor analysis of the instrument, the Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin index was 0.928 and Barlett’s sphericity test yielded the following results: X2=6,717.551, df =1,225, and P≤0.001. Besides, Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of ACLEEM questionnaire was 0.964. Cronbach’s alpha coefficients were also >0.80 in all the three domains of the questionnaire. Overall, the Persian version of ACLEEM showed excellent convergent validity and acceptable discriminant validity, except for the clinical training domain. Conclusion According to the results, the Persian version of ACLEEM questionnaire was a valid and reliable instrument for Iranian residents to assess specialized clinics and residency ambulatory settings. PMID:27729824

The NASA Technical Report Server

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nelson, Michael L.; Gottlich, Gretchen L.; Bianco, David J.; Paulson, Sharon S.; Binkley, Robert L.; Kellogg, Yvonne D.; Beaumont, Chris J.; Schmunk, Robert B.; Kurtz, Michael J.; Accomazzi, Alberto

1995-01-01

The National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 established NASA and charged it to "provide for the widest practicable and appropriate dissemination of information concerning its activities and the results thereof." The search for innovative methods to distribute NASA's information lead a grass-roots team to create the NASA Technical Report Server (NTRS), which uses the World Wide Web and other popular Internet-based information systems as search engines. The NTRS is an inter-center effort which provides uniform access to various distributed publication servers residing on the Internet. Users have immediate desktop access to technical publications from NASA centers and institutes. The NTRS is comprised of several units, some constructed especially for inclusion in NTRS, and others that are existing NASA publication services that NTRS reuses. This paper presents the NTRS architecture, usage metrics, and the lessons learned while implementing and maintaining the service. The NTRS is largely constructed with freely available software running on existing hardware. NTRS builds upon existing hardware and software, and the resulting additional exposure for the body of literature contained ensures that NASA's institutional knowledge base will continue to receive the widest practicable and appropriate dissemination.

Familiarity with Long-acting Reversible Contraceptives among Obstetrics and Gynecology, Family Medicine, and Pediatrics Residents: Results of a 2015 National Survey and Implications for Contraceptive Provision for Adolescents.

PubMed

Davis, Susan A; Braykov, Nikolay P; Lathrop, Eva; Haddad, Lisa B

2018-02-01

To assess familiarity with long-acting reversible contraceptives (LARC) among current obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN), family medicine (FM), and pediatrics senior residents in the United States. DESIGN, SETTING, PARTICIPANTS, INTERVENTIONS, AND MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: We selected 156 OB/GYN, FM, and pediatrics residency programs using the American Medical Association Freida database. Senior residents completed a survey addressing any training they had received on LARC, and rated their comfort level counseling about and inserting LARC. Residents rated their likelihood of recommending LARC to an adolescent, nulliparous patient, and indicated whether they would like additional training on LARC. Descriptive and analytic statistics were generated using R statistical software (The R Project for Statistical Computing; https://www.r-project.org). The survey was completed by 326 of 1,583 residents (20.6% response rate); at least 1 resident completed the survey at 105 (67.3%) of the residency programs contacted. Most programs (84.8%) provided some training on LARC. Residents in OB/GYN programs were comfortable counseling about and inserting contraceptive implants (97%, 83%), copper intrauterine devices (IUDs; 100%, 86%), and levonorgestrel (LNG) IUDs (100%, 86%). In FM programs, fewer residents were comfortable counseling about and inserting contraceptive implants (71%, 47%), copper IUDs (68%, 21%), and LNG IUDs (79%, 18%). Residents in pediatrics programs had low comfort levels counseling about contraceptive implants (14%), copper IUDs (14%), and LNG IUDs (25%); no pediatrics residents were comfortable inserting LARC. OB/GYN residents were significantly more likely to recommend a LARC to an adolescent, nulliparous patient (P = .019). Most pediatric and FM residents desired additional training on LARC (82.7% and 60.7%, respectively). This study shows that knowledge gaps exist regarding LARC among FM and pediatrics residents. Copyright © 2017 North American Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Partitioning of genetic variation between regulatory and coding gene segments: the predominance of software variation in genes encoding introvert proteins.

PubMed

Mitchison, A

1997-01-01

In considering genetic variation in eukaryotes, a fundamental distinction can be made between variation in regulatory (software) and coding (hardware) gene segments. For quantitative traits the bulk of variation, particularly that near the population mean, appears to reside in regulatory segments. The main exceptions to this rule concern proteins which handle extrinsic substances, here termed extrovert proteins. The immune system includes an unusually large proportion of this exceptional category, but even so its chief source of variation may well be polymorphism in regulatory gene segments. The main evidence for this view emerges from genome scanning for quantitative trait loci (QTL), which in the case of the immune system points to a major contribution of pro-inflammatory cytokine genes. Further support comes from sequencing of major histocompatibility complex (Mhc) class II promoters, where a high level of polymorphism has been detected. These Mhc promoters appear to act, in part at least, by gating the back-signal from T cells into antigen-presenting cells. Both these forms of polymorphism are likely to be sustained by the need for flexibility in the immune response. Future work on promoter polymorphism is likely to benefit from the input from genome informatics.

A temporary home to nurture health: lived experiences of older nursing home residents in Taiwan.

PubMed

Tsai, Hsiu-Hsin; Tsai, Yun-Fang

2008-07-01

This study explored the lived experiences of older nursing home residents in Taiwan. With more long-term care institutions in Taiwan, older people are more often placed in nursing homes than in the past. Increased understanding of their lived experience is essential to assess residents' needs and determine the effectiveness of nursing interventions. A qualitative design was used to gain a deeper understanding of the lived experiences of older nursing home residents in Taiwan. Focus groups, followed by in-depth interviews, were used to gather information from 33 older residents at eight nursing homes in northern Taiwan. Participants were asked to describe what was important to them and what impressed them most in their daily lives in the nursing home. Participants (24 females and nine males) were on an average 75.3 years old. Verbatim transcripts of audiotaped focus groups and interviews were analysed by thematic analysis via ATLAS.ti software. The core theme of older residents' nursing home experience was 'a temporary home to nurture health'. This core theme was reflected in participants' descriptions of their overall life in the nursing home as a temporary experience to nurture their health. Their everyday experience was characterised by four subthemes: highly structured lifestyle, restricted activities, safety concerns and social interactions. Our findings may enhance policy makers' and healthcare providers' understanding of the lived experience of older nursing home residents, thus guiding the evaluation and development of nursing home services to improve residents' lives. For example, residents with the same characteristics could be placed in the same room or same floor, thus increasing their interactions with other residents. Residents' interactions with family members could also be developed using the Internet or mobile telephones.

Evaluation of Real-Time Ground-Based GPS Meteorology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fang, P.; Bock, Y.; Gutman, S.

2003-04-01

We demonstrate and evaluate a system to estimate zenith tropospheric delays in real time (5-10 minute latency) based on the technique of instantaneous GPS positioning as described by Bock et al. [2000] using data from the Orange County Real Time GPS Network. OCRTN is an upgrade of a sub-network of SCIGN sites in southern California to low latency (1-2 sec), high-rate (1 Hz) data streaming. Currently, ten sites are streaming data (Ashtech binary MBEN format) by means of dedicated, point-to-point radio modems to a network hub that translates the asynchronous serial data to TCP/IP and onto a PC workstation residing on a local area network. Software residing on the PC allows multiple clients to access the raw data simultaneously though TCP/IP. One of the clients is a Geodetics RTD server that receives and archives (1) the raw 1 Hz network data, (2) estimates of instantaneous positions and zenith tropospheric delays, and (3) RINEX data to decimated to 30 seconds. The network is composed of ten sites. The distribution of nine of the sites approximates a right triangle with two 60 km legs, and a tenth site on Catalina Island a distance of about 50 km (over water) from the hypotenuse of the triangle. Relative zenith delays are estimated every second with a latency less than a second. Median values are computed at a user-specified interval (e.g., 10 minutes) with outliers greater than 4 times the interquartile range rejected. We describe the results with those generated by our operational system using the GAMIT software, with a latency of 30-60 minutes. Earlier results (from a similar network) comparing 30-minute median RTD values to GAMIT 30-minute estimates indicate that the two solutions differ by about 1 cm. We also describe our approach to determining absolute zenith delays. If an Internet connection is available we will present a real-time demonstration. [Bock, Y., R. Nikolaidis, P. J. de Jonge, and M. Bevis, Instantaneous resolution of crustal motion at medium distances with the Global Positioning System, J. Geophys. Res., 105, 28,223-28,254, 2000.

Exploring Digisonde Ionogram Data with SAO-X and DIDBase

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khmyrov, Grigori M.; Galkin, Ivan A.; Kozlov, Alexander V.; Reinisch, Bodo W.; McElroy, Jonathan; Dozois, Claude

2008-02-01

A comprehensive suite of software tools for ionogram data analysis and archiving has been developed at UMLCAR to support the exploration of raw and processed data from the worldwide network of digisondes in a low-latency, user-friendly environment. Paired with the remotely accessible Digital Ionogram Data Base (DIDBase), the SAO Explorer software serves as an example of how an academic institution conscientiously manages its resident data archive while local experts continue to work on design of new and improved data products, all in the name of free public access to the full roster of acquired ionospheric sounding data.

Tracker controls development and control architecture for the Hobby-Eberly Telescope Wide Field Upgrade

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mock, Jason R.; Beno, Joe; Rafferty, Tom H.; Cornell, Mark E.

2010-07-01

To enable the Hobby-Eberly Telescope Wide Field Upgrade, the University of Texas Center for Electromechanics and McDonald Observatory are developing a precision tracker system - a 15,000 kg robot to position a 3,100 kg payload within 10 microns of a desired dynamic track. Performance requirements to meet science needs and safety requirements that emerged from detailed Failure Modes and Effects Analysis resulted in a system of 14 precision controlled actuators and 100 additional analog and digital devices (primarily sensors and safety limit switches). This level of system complexity and emphasis on fail-safe operation is typical of large modern telescopes and numerous industrial applications. Due to this complexity, demanding accuracy requirements, and stringent safety requirements, a highly versatile and easily configurable centralized control system that easily links with modeling and simulation tools during the hardware and software design process was deemed essential. The Matlab/Simulink simulation environment, coupled with dSPACE controller hardware, was selected for controls development and realization. The dSPACE real-time operating system collects sensor information; motor commands are transmitted over a PROFIBUS network to servo amplifiers and drive motor status is received over the same network. Custom designed position feedback loops, supplemented by feed forward force commands for enhanced performance, and algorithms to accommodate self-locking gearboxes (for safety), reside in dSPACE. To interface the dSPACE controller directly to absolute Heidenhain sensors with EnDat 2.2 protocol, a custom communication board was developed. This paper covers details of software and hardware, design choices and analysis, and supporting simulations (primarily Simulink).

Managing Laboratory Data Using Cloud Computing as an Organizational Tool

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bennett, Jacqueline; Pence, Harry E.

2011-01-01

One of the most significant difficulties encountered when directing undergraduate research and developing new laboratory experiments is how to efficiently manage the data generated by a number of students. Cloud computing, where both software and computer files reside online, offers a solution to this data-management problem and allows researchers…

Description and pilot evaluation of the Metabolic Irregularities Narrowing down Device software: a case analysis of physician programming.

PubMed

Kashiouris, Markos G; Miljković, Miloš; Herasevich, Vitaly; Goldberg, Andrew D; Albrecht, Charles

2015-01-01

There is a gap between the abilities and the everyday applications of Computerized Decision Support Systems (CDSSs). This gap is further exacerbated by the different 'worlds' between the software designers and the clinician end-users. Software programmers often lack clinical experience whereas practicing physicians lack skills in design and engineering. Our primary objective was to evaluate the performance of Metabolic Irregularities Narrowing down Device (MIND) intelligent medical calculator and differential diagnosis software through end-user surveys and discuss the roles of CDSS in the inpatient setting. A tertiary care, teaching community hospital. Thirty-one responders answered the survey. Responders consisted of medical students, 24%; attending physicians, 16%, and residents, 60%. About 62.5% of the responders reported that MIND has the ability to potentially improve the quality of care, 20.8% were sure that MIND improves the quality of care, and only 4.2% of the responders felt that it does not improve the quality of care. Ninety-six percent of the responders felt that MIND definitely serves or has the potential to serve as a useful tool for medical students, and only 4% of the responders felt otherwise. Thirty-five percent of the responders rated the differential diagnosis list as excellent, 56% as good, 4% as fair, and 4% as poor. MIND is a suggesting, interpreting, alerting, and diagnosing CDSS with good performance and end-user satisfaction. In the era of the electronic medical record, the ongoing development of efficient CDSS platforms should be carefully considered by practicing physicians and institutions.

A survey of attitudes, practices, and knowledge regarding drug-drug interactions among medical residents in Iran.

PubMed

Nabovati, Ehsan; Vakili-Arki, Hasan; Taherzadeh, Zhila; Saberi, Mohammad Reza; Abu-Hanna, Ameen; Eslami, Saeid

2017-06-01

Background When prescribing medications, physicians should recognize clinically relevant potential drug-drug interactions (DDIs). To improve medication safety, it is important to understand prescribers' knowledge and opinions pertaining to DDIs. Objective To determine the current DDI information sources used by medical residents, their knowledge of DDIs, their opinions about performance feedback on co-prescription of interacting drugs. Setting Academic hospitals of Mashhad University of Medical Sciences (MUMS) in Iran. Methods A questionnaire containing questions regarding demographic and practice characteristics, DDI information sources, ability to recognize DDIs, and opinions about performance feedback was distributed to medical residents of 22 specialties in eight academic hospitals in Iran. We analyzed their perception pertaining to DDIs, their performance on classifying drug pairs, and we used a linear regression model to assess the association of potential determinants on their DDI knowledge. Main Outcome Measure prescribers' knowledge and opinions pertaining to DDIs. Results The overall response rate and completion rate for 315 distributed questionnaires were 90% (n = 295) and 86% (n = 281), respectively. Among DDI information sources, books, software on mobile phone or tablet, and Internet were the most commonly-used references. Residents could correctly classify only 41% (5.7/14) of the drug pairs. The regression model showed no significant association between residents' characteristics and their DDI knowledge. An overwhelming majority of the respondents (n = 268, 95.4%) wished to receive performance feedback on co-prescription of interacting drugs in their prescriptions. They mostly selected information technology-based tools (i.e. short text message and email) as their preferred method of receiving feedback. Conclusion Our findings indicate that prescribers may have poor ability to prevent clinically relevant potential DDI occurrence, and they perceive the need for performance feedback. These findings underline the importance of well-designed computerized alerting systems and delivering performance feedback to improve patient safety.

Why do some women refuse to allow male residents to perform pelvic exams?

PubMed

Rifkin, Julie I; Shapiro, Howard; Regensteiner, Judith G; Stotler, Jeanne K; Schmidt, Betty

2002-10-01

Many women who receive medical care in residency training clinics refuse to allow male residents to perform their pelvic exams. This study was conducted to identify which women were most likely to refuse and to learn their reasons for refusing. From January to March 1997, a questionnaire was given to all women entering a Tri-County Health office and a Planned Parenthood clinic, both in the Denver, Colorado, metropolitan area, who consented to participate in the study. Data from the questionnaire were analyzed using a statistical software package. A total of 1,437 women entered the clinics during the study period. Of these patients, 1,078 consented to complete the questionnaire. Seven of these 1,078 women did not complete the questionnaire. Women who did not know the training level of the resident performing the pelvic exam were more likely to refuse than were women who knew the training level of the resident (p =.001), but many women preferred a female physician regardless of the physician's training level. Fifty-eight percent said they would allow a male resident to observe a female attending physician perform the exam, compared with 36% who said they would allow a male resident to observe if the attending physician was a man. Common statements from those who would refuse were: "I am just more comfortable with a female," "Women do not want men to examine their private body parts," and "Women explain things better." A woman's knowledge of the resident's training level correlates with her willingness to have a pelvic exam performed by a male resident. Women who said they would refuse a pelvic exam performed by a male resident gave specific reasons for their decision.

Making Together: An Interdisciplinary, Inter-institutional Assistive-Technology Project.

PubMed

Reiser, Susan; Bruce, Rebecca; Martin, Jackson; Skidmore, Brent

2017-01-01

Faculty at the University of North Carolina Asheville partnered with local healthcare professionals and retirement home residents and administrators on an assistive-technology project. The Creative Fabrication introductory computer science course incorporated subject-matter experts from the healthcare community, older and differently abled "users," medical students, and sculpture faculty. Over the semester, the class students created assistive devices to meet the needs of the retirement home residents. They prototyped their designs in foam and 3D modeling software and cast parts of their design in bronze or aluminum. User-centered design, the design process, and the importance of form and function were emphasized throughout the project.

Clinician-Oriented Access to Data - C.O.A.D.: A Natural Language Interface to a VA DHCP Database

PubMed Central

Levy, Christine; Rogers, Elizabeth

1995-01-01

Hospitals collect enormous amounts of data related to the on-going care of patients. Unfortunately, a clinicians access to the data is limited by complexities of the database structure and/or programming skills required to access the database. The COAD project attempts to bridge the gap between the clinical user's need for specific information from the database, and the wealth of data residing in the hospital information system. The project design includes a natural language interface to data contained in a VA DHCP database. We have developed a prototype which links natural language software to certain DHCP data elements, including, patient demographics, prescriptions, diagnoses, laboratory data, and provider information. English queries can by typed onto the system, and answers to the questions are returned. Future work includes refinement of natural language/DHCP connections to enable more sophisticated queries, and optimization of the system to reduce response time to user questions.

An innovative on-call system for paediatric residency programs: The alternate night float.

PubMed

Moore, Gregory P; Talarico, Susanna; Kempinska, Anna; Lawrence, Sarah E; Weisz, Dany E

2015-03-01

Night-float systems, in which residents work consecutive nights, have been increasingly adopted in paediatric programs, but may be detrimental to residents' sleep and mood. To describe the self-reported impact of a novel system consisting of two consecutive weeks of 16 h overnight shifts every second day that was piloted at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (Ottawa, Ontario). A survey of 28 senior paediatric residents examined their experience with the alternate night-float system in three domains (patient care, resident professional development and well-being) and their comparison of the system with the traditional overnight on-call system. Twenty-six of 28 residents responded. Nearly all (96%) felt familiar with important details of inpatients and that handover was effective (92%). Results were mixed for professional development, with concerns about the quality of supervisors' feedback and perceived difficulty in attending daytime teaching. All residents believed that the night-float system provided a better learning experience compared with the traditional system. Less than 35% considered fatigue to be a notable problem, although 20% increased use of sleep aids or stimulants beyond their typical use. Ninety-six percent believed their workload was appropriate. All residents felt equally or less fatigued under the night-float system compared with the traditional system. Ninety-six percent recommended that the night-float model continue as the on-call system. This novel night-float system is an alternative method of providing paediatric inpatient night coverage because it meets duty hour regulations and has strong resident approval. Studies to examine its impact on residents and patient care in comparison with other systems are warranted.

Optimization of long circulating mixed polymeric micelles containing vinpocetine using simple lattice mixture design, in vitro and in vivo characterization.

PubMed

El-Dahmy, Rania Moataz; Elsayed, Ibrahim; Elshafeey, Ahmed Hassen; Gawad, Nabaweya Abdelaziz Abd El; El-Gazayerly, Omaima Naim

2014-12-30

The aim of this study was to increase the in vivo mean residence time of vinpocetine after IV injection utilizing long circulating mixed micellar systems. Mixed micelles were prepared using Pluronics L121, P123 and F127. The systems were characterized by testing their entrapment efficiency, particle size, polydispersity index, zeta potential, transmission electron microscopy and in vitro drug release. Simple lattice mixture design was planned for the optimization using Design-Expert(®) software. The optimized formula was lyophilized, sterilized and imaged by scanning electron microscope. Moreover, the in vivo behavior of the optimized formula was evaluated after IV injection in rabbits. The optimized formula, containing 68% w/w Pluronic L121 and 32% w/w Pluronic F127, had the highest desirability value (0.621). Entrapment efficiency, particle size, polydispersity index and zeta potential of the optimized formula were 50.74 ± 3.26%, 161.50 ± 7.39 nm, 0.21 ± 0.03 and -22.42 ± 1.72 mV, respectively. Lyophilization and sterilization did not affect the characteristics of the optimized formula. Upon in vivo investigation in rabbits, the optimized formula showed a significantly higher elimination half-life and mean residence time than the market product. Finally, mixed micelles could be considered as a promising long circulating nanocarrier for lipophilic drugs. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Use of the QR Reader to Provide Real-Time Evaluation of Residents' Skills Following Surgical Procedures.

PubMed

Reynolds, Kellin; Barnhill, Danny; Sias, Jamie; Young, Amy; Polite, Florencia Greer

2014-12-01

A portable electronic method of providing instructional feedback and recording an evaluation of resident competency immediately following surgical procedures has not previously been documented in obstetrics and gynecology. This report presents a unique electronic format that documents resident competency and encourages verbal communication between faculty and residents immediately following operative procedures. The Microsoft Tag system and SurveyMonkey platform were linked by a 2-D QR code using Microsoft QR code generator. Each resident was given a unique code (TAG) embedded onto an ID card. An evaluation form was attached to each resident's file in SurveyMonkey. Postoperatively, supervising faculty scanned the resident's TAG with a smartphone and completed the brief evaluation using the phone's screen. The evaluation was reviewed with the resident and automatically submitted to the resident's educational file. The evaluation system was quickly accepted by residents and faculty. Of 43 residents and faculty in the study, 38 (88%) responded to a survey 8 weeks after institution of the electronic evaluation system. Thirty (79%) of the 38 indicated it was superior to the previously used handwritten format. The electronic system demonstrated improved utilization compared with paper evaluations, with a mean of 23 electronic evaluations submitted per resident during a 6-month period versus 14 paper assessments per resident during an earlier period of 6 months. This streamlined portable electronic evaluation is an effective tool for direct, formative feedback for residents, and it creates a longitudinal record of resident progress. Satisfaction with, and use of, this evaluation system was high.

Use of the QR Reader to Provide Real-Time Evaluation of Residents' Skills Following Surgical Procedures

PubMed Central

Reynolds, Kellin; Barnhill, Danny; Sias, Jamie; Young, Amy; Polite, Florencia Greer

2014-01-01

Background A portable electronic method of providing instructional feedback and recording an evaluation of resident competency immediately following surgical procedures has not previously been documented in obstetrics and gynecology. Objective This report presents a unique electronic format that documents resident competency and encourages verbal communication between faculty and residents immediately following operative procedures. Methods The Microsoft Tag system and SurveyMonkey platform were linked by a 2-D QR code using Microsoft QR code generator. Each resident was given a unique code (TAG) embedded onto an ID card. An evaluation form was attached to each resident's file in SurveyMonkey. Postoperatively, supervising faculty scanned the resident's TAG with a smartphone and completed the brief evaluation using the phone's screen. The evaluation was reviewed with the resident and automatically submitted to the resident's educational file. Results The evaluation system was quickly accepted by residents and faculty. Of 43 residents and faculty in the study, 38 (88%) responded to a survey 8 weeks after institution of the electronic evaluation system. Thirty (79%) of the 38 indicated it was superior to the previously used handwritten format. The electronic system demonstrated improved utilization compared with paper evaluations, with a mean of 23 electronic evaluations submitted per resident during a 6-month period versus 14 paper assessments per resident during an earlier period of 6 months. Conclusions This streamlined portable electronic evaluation is an effective tool for direct, formative feedback for residents, and it creates a longitudinal record of resident progress. Satisfaction with, and use of, this evaluation system was high. PMID:26140128

Annotating smart environment sensor data for activity learning.

PubMed

Szewcyzk, S; Dwan, K; Minor, B; Swedlove, B; Cook, D

2009-01-01

The pervasive sensing technologies found in smart homes offer unprecedented opportunities for providing health monitoring and assistance to individuals experiencing difficulties living independently at home. In order to monitor the functional health of smart home residents, we need to design technologies that recognize and track the activities that people perform at home. Machine learning techniques can perform this task, but the software algorithms rely upon large amounts of sample data that is correctly labeled with the corresponding activity. Labeling, or annotating, sensor data with the corresponding activity can be time consuming, may require input from the smart home resident, and is often inaccurate. Therefore, in this paper we investigate four alternative mechanisms for annotating sensor data with a corresponding activity label. We evaluate the alternative methods along the dimensions of annotation time, resident burden, and accuracy using sensor data collected in a real smart apartment.

Implementation of a web-based, interactive polytrauma tutorial in computed tomography for radiology residents: how we do it.

PubMed

Schlorhaufer, C; Behrends, M; Diekhaus, G; Keberle, M; Weidemann, J

2012-12-01

Due to the time factor in polytraumatized patients all relevant pathologies in a polytrauma computed tomography (CT) scan have to be read and communicated very quickly. During radiology residency acquisition of effective reading schemes based on typical polytrauma pathologies is very important. Thus, an online tutorial for the structured diagnosis of polytrauma CT was developed. Based on current multimedia theories like the cognitive load theory a didactic concept was developed. As a web-environment the learning management system ILIAS was chosen. CT data sets were converted into online scrollable QuickTime movies. Audiovisual tutorial movies with guided image analyses by a consultant radiologist were recorded. The polytrauma tutorial consists of chapterized text content and embedded interactive scrollable CT data sets. Selected trauma pathologies are demonstrated to the user by guiding tutor movies. Basic reading schemes are communicated with the help of detailed commented movies of normal data sets. Common and important pathologies could be explored in a self-directed manner. Ambitious didactic concepts can be supported by a web based application on the basis of cognitive load theory and currently available software tools. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Transfer of communication skills to the workplace during clinical rounds: impact of a program for residents.

PubMed

Liénard, Aurore; Merckaert, Isabelle; Libert, Yves; Bragard, Isabelle; Delvaux, Nicole; Etienne, Anne-Marie; Marchal, Serge; Meunier, Julie; Reynaert, Christine; Slachmuylder, Jean-Louis; Razavi, Darius

2010-08-26

Communication with patients is a core clinical skill in medicine that can be acquired through communication skills training. Meanwhile, the importance of transfer of communication skills to the workplace has not been sufficiently studied. This study aims to assess the efficacy of a 40-hour training program designed to improve patients' satisfaction and residents' communication skills during their daily clinical rounds. Residents were randomly assigned to the training program or to a waiting list. Patients' satisfaction was assessed with a visual analog scale after each visit. Transfer of residents' communication skills was assessed in audiotaped actual inpatient visits during a half-day clinical round. Transcripted audiotapes were analyzed using content analysis software (LaComm). Training effects were tested with Mann-Whitney tests and generalized linear Poisson regression models. Eighty-eight residents were included. First, patients interacting with trained residents reported a higher satisfaction with residents' communication (Median=92) compared to patients interacting with untrained residents (Median=88) (p=.046). Second, trained residents used more assessment utterances (Relative Risk (RR)=1.17; 95% Confidence intervals (95%CI)=1.02-1.34; p=.023). Third, transfer was also observed when residents' training attendance was considered: residents' use of assessment utterances (RR=1.01; 95%CI=1.01-1.02; p=.018) and supportive utterances (RR=0.99; 95%CI=0.98-1.00; p=.042) (respectively 1.15 (RR), 1.08-1.23 (95%CI), p<.001 for empathy and 0.95 (RR), 0.92-0.99 (95%CI), p=.012 for reassurance) was proportional to the number of hours of training attendance. The training program improved patients' satisfaction and allowed the transfer of residents' communication skills learning to the workplace. Transfer was directly related to training attendance but remained limited. Future studies should therefore focus on the improvement of the efficacy of communication skills training in order to ensure a more important training effect size on transfer.

[Coding Causes of Death with IRIS Software. Impact in Navarre Mortality Statistic].

PubMed

Floristán Floristán, Yugo; Delfrade Osinaga, Josu; Carrillo Prieto, Jesus; Aguirre Perez, Jesus; Moreno-Iribas, Conchi

2016-08-02

There are few studies that analyze changes in mortality statistics derived from the use of IRIS software, an automatic system for coding multiple causes of death and for the selection of the underlying cause of death, compared to manual coding. This study evaluated the impact of the use of IRIS in the Navarre mortality statistic. We proceeded to double coding 5,060 death certificates corresponding to residents in Navarra in 2014. We calculated coincidence between the two encodings for ICD10 chapters and for the list of causes of the Spanish National Statistics Institute (INE-102) and we estimated the change on mortality rates. IRIS automatically coded 90% of death certificates. The coincidence to 4 characters and in the same chapter of the CIE10 was 79.1% and 92.0%, respectively. Furthermore, coincidence with the short INE-102 list was 88.3%. Higher matches were found in death certificate of people under 65 years. In comparison with manual coding there was an increase in deaths from endocrine diseases (31%), mental disorders (19%) and disease of nervous system (9%), while a decrease of genitourinary system diseases was observed (21%). The coincidence at level of ICD10 chapters coding by IRIS in comparison to manual coding was 9 out of 10 deaths, similar to what is observed in other studies. The implementation of IRIS has led to increased of endocrine diseases, especially diabetes and hyperlipidaemia, and mental disorders, especially dementias.

Integration of QR codes into an anesthesia information management system for resident case log management.

PubMed

Avidan, Alexander; Weissman, Charles; Levin, Phillip D

2015-04-01

Quick response (QR) codes containing anesthesia syllabus data were introduced into an anesthesia information management system. The code was generated automatically at the conclusion of each case and available for resident case logging using a smartphone or tablet. The goal of this study was to evaluate the use and usability/user-friendliness of such system. Resident case logging practices were assessed prior to introducing the QR codes. QR code use and satisfactions amongst residents was reassessed at three and six months. Before QR code introduction only 12/23 (52.2%) residents maintained a case log. Most of the remaining residents (9/23, 39.1%) expected to receive a case list from the anesthesia information management system database at the end of their residency. At three months and six months 17/26 (65.4%) and 15/25 (60.0%) residents, respectively, were using the QR codes. Satisfaction was rated as very good or good. QR codes for residents' case logging with smartphones or tablets were successfully introduced in an anesthesia information management system and used by most residents. QR codes can be successfully implemented into medical practice to support data transfer. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

The OBRA-87 nursing home regulations and implementation of the Resident Assessment Instrument: effects on process quality.

PubMed

Hawes, C; Mor, V; Phillips, C D; Fries, B E; Morris, J N; Steele-Friedlob, E; Greene, A M; Nennstiel, M

1997-08-01

To characterize changes in key aspects of process quality received by nursing home residents before and after the implementation of the national nursing home Resident Assessment Instrument (RAI) and other aspects of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (OBRA) nursing home reforms. A quasi-experimental study using a complex, multistage probability-based sample design, with data collected before (1990) and after (1993) implementation of the RAI and other OBRA provisions. Two independent cohorts (n > 2000) of residents in a random sample of 254 nursing facilities located in metropolitan statistical areas in 10 states. OBRA-87 enhanced the regulation of nursing homes and included new requirements on quality of care, resident assessment, care planning, and the use of neuroleptic drugs and physical restraints. One of the key provisions, used to help implement the OBRA requirements in daily nursing home practice, was the mandatory use of a standardized, comprehensive system, known as the RAI, to assist in assessment and care planning. OBRA provisions went into effect in federal law on October 1, 1990, although delays issuing the regulations led to actual implementation of the RAI during the Spring of 1991. MEASUREMENTS AND ANALYSES: Research nurses spent an average of 4 days per facility in each data collection round, assessing a sample of residents, collecting data through interviews with and observations of residents, interviews with multiple shifts of direct staff caregivers for the sampled residents, and review of medical records, including physician's orders, treatment and care plans, nursing progress notes, and medication records. The RNs collected data on the characteristics of the sampled residents, on the care they received, and on facility practices. The effect of being a member of the 1990 pre-OBRA or the 1993 post-OBRA cohort was assessed on the accuracy of information in the residents' medical records, the comprehensiveness of care plans, and on other key aspects of process quality while controlling for any changes in resident case-mix. The data were analyzed using contingency tables and logistic regression and a special statistical software (SUDAAN) to assure proper variance estimation. Overall, the process of care in nursing homes improved in several important areas. The accuracy of information in residents' medical records increased substantially, as did the comprehensiveness of care plans. In addition, several problematic care practices declined during this period, including use of physical restraints (37.4 to 28.1% (P < .001)) and indwelling urinary catheters (9.8 to 7% (P < .001)). There were also increases in good care practices, such as the presence of advanced directives, participation in activities, and use of toileting programs for residents with bowel incontinence. These results were sustained after controlling for differences in the resident characteristics between 1990 and 1993. Other practices, such as use of antipsychotic drugs, behavior management programs, preventive skin care, and provision of therapies were unaffected, or the differences were not statistically significant, after adjusting for changes in resident case-mix. The OBRA reforms and introduction of the RAI constituted an unprecedented implementation of comprehensive geriatric assessment in Medicare- and Medicaid-certified nursing homes. The evaluation of the effects of these interventions demonstrates significant improvements in the quality of care provided to residents. At the same time, these findings suggest that more needs to be done to improve process quality. The results suggest the RAI is one tool that facility staff, therapists, pharmacy consultants, and physicians can use to support their continuing efforts to provide high quality of care and life to the nation's 1.7 million nursing home residents.

[Tablet computers and their benefits for nursing home residents with dementia: Results of a qualitative pilot study].

PubMed

Nordheim, Johanna; Hamm, Sabine; Kuhlmey, Adelheid; Suhr, Ralf

2015-08-01

Initial sporadic experiences in a Berlin nursing home showed that residents with dementia responded well to activating therapy with tablet computers. This innovative technology seemed to provide a differentiated and individual therapeutic access. These observations encouraged the nursing home management to contact the Institute of Medical Sociology and Rehabilitation Science at the Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin with the aim to examine the practical experiences. The Centre for Quality in Care (ZQP) sponsored the 1 year pilot study. An examination of the feasibility and usability of tablet computers in the daily care of nursing home residents with dementia was carried out. In this study 14 residents (12 women and 2 men) of a special care unit for dementia patients were included in a 3-month intervention of tablet activation 3 times a week. Qualitative and quantitative methods were used to analyze data (e.g. observation protocols and videos, staff interviews, document analysis of nursing records and standardized resident interviews/proxy interviews). Nursing home residents suffering from dementia showed a high degree of acceptance of tablet computers. Most notable benefits were easy handling and the variety of multifunctional applications. Sustainable therapeutic effects resulted in stimulation of communication and interaction, improvement of well-being, memory training and reduction of neuropsychiatric symptoms. Furthermore, contact to family members of several residents was improved. The use of tablet computers was convincing as an activation therapy for nursing home residents with dementia. Further research and development of specially adapted software are required.

Can fatigue affect acquisition of new surgical skills? A prospective trial of pre- and post-call general surgery residents using the da Vinci surgical skills simulator.

PubMed

Robison, Weston; Patel, Sonya K; Mehta, Akshat; Senkowski, Tristan; Allen, John; Shaw, Eric; Senkowski, Christopher K

2018-03-01

To study the effects of fatigue on general surgery residents' performance on the da Vinci Skills Simulator (dVSS). 15 General Surgery residents from various postgraduate training years (PGY2, PGY3, PGY4, and PGY5) performed 5 simulation tasks on the dVSS as recommended by the Robotic Training Network (RTN). The General Surgery residents had no prior experience with the dVSS. Participants were assigned to either the Pre-call group or Post-call group based on call schedule. As a measure of subjective fatigue, residents were given the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) prior to their dVSS testing. The dVSS MScore™ software recorded various metrics (Objective Structured Assessment of Technical Skills, OSATS) that were used to evaluate the performance of each resident to compare the robotic simulation proficiency between the Pre-call and Post-call groups. Six general surgery residents were stratified into the Pre-call group and nine into the Post-call group. These residents were also stratified into Fatigued (10) or Nonfatigued (5) groups, as determined by their reported ESS scores. A statistically significant difference was found between the Pre-call and Post-call reported sleep hours (p = 0.036). There was no statistically significant difference between the Pre-call and Post-call groups or between the Fatigued and Nonfatigued groups in time to complete exercise, number of attempts, and high MScore™ score. Despite variation in fatigue levels, there was no effect on the acquisition of robotic simulator skills.

Design and implementation of handheld and desktop software for the structured reporting of hepatic masses using the LI-RADS schema.

PubMed

Clark, Toshimasa J; McNeeley, Michael F; Maki, Jeffrey H

2014-04-01

The Liver Imaging Reporting and Data System (LI-RADS) can enhance communication between radiologists and clinicians if applied consistently. We identified an institutional need to improve liver imaging report standardization and developed handheld and desktop software to serve this purpose. We developed two complementary applications that implement the LI-RADS schema. A mobile application for iOS devices written in the Objective-C language allows for rapid characterization of hepatic observations under a variety of circumstances. A desktop application written in the Java language allows for comprehensive observation characterization and standardized report text generation. We chose the applications' languages and feature sets based on the computing resources of target platforms, anticipated usage scenarios, and ease of application installation, deployment, and updating. Our primary results are the publication of the core source code implementing the LI-RADS algorithm and the availability of the applications for use worldwide via our website, http://www.liradsapp.com/. The Java application is free open-source software that can be integrated into nearly any vendor's reporting system. The iOS application is distributed through Apple's iTunes App Store. Observation categorizations of both programs have been manually validated to be correct. The iOS application has been used to characterize liver tumors during multidisciplinary conferences of our institution, and several faculty members, fellows, and residents have adopted the generated text of Java application into their diagnostic reports. Although these two applications were developed for the specific reporting requirements of our liver tumor service, we intend to apply this development model to other diseases as well. Through semiautomated structured report generation and observation characterization, we aim to improve patient care while increasing radiologist efficiency. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Developing competency in post-graduate students of anaesthesiology for taking informed consent for elective caesarean section.

PubMed

Mehta, Kamla Harshad; Shah, Vandana Saurin; Patel, Kirti Dhirajlal

2017-02-01

Post-graduate medical students (residents) generally lack effective communication skills required to obtain informed consent. The aim of this study was to assess role play and group discussion as teaching/learning tools for improving residents' knowledge on informed consent and competency in communicating while taking informed consent. This prospective, observational study was conducted on 30 anaesthesia residents. They were first observed while obtaining informed consent and their basic knowledge regarding communication skills was checked with a pre-test questionnaire. Then, lecture and group discussion were carried out to increase the knowledge base, and their knowledge gain was checked by the same questionnaire as a post-test. Communication skills were demonstrated by role play and residents were assessed by direct unobtrusive observation using a checklist. Feedback regarding effectiveness of programme was taken from students. Statistical analyses were done using Microsoft Office Excel and SPSS software. Percentage gain was 122.37% for knowledge domain. For communication skills, mean ± standard deviation for checklist was 8.93 ± 1.43 before role play and it improved to 17.96 ± 1.29 after role play. Regarding effectiveness of role play as a teaching/learning tool, 76.66% of residents said they strongly agreed and 23.33% of residents said they agreed. Likert scale for evaluation of programme was graded 4 or 5 by all residents. The knowledge and communication skills required for obtaining informed consent was improved significantly after role playing.

Scheduling the resident 80-hour work week: an operations research algorithm.

PubMed

Day, T Eugene; Napoli, Joseph T; Kuo, Paul C

2006-01-01

The resident 80-hour work week requires that programs now schedule duty hours. Typically, scheduling is performed in an empirical "trial-and-error" fashion. However, this is a classic "scheduling" problem from the field of operations research (OR). It is similar to scheduling issues that airlines must face with pilots and planes routing through various airports at various times. The authors hypothesized that an OR approach using iterative computer algorithms could provide a rational scheduling solution. Institution-specific constraints of the residency problem were formulated. A total of 56 residents are rotating through 4 hospitals. Additional constraints were dictated by the Residency Review Committee (RRC) rules or the specific surgical service. For example, at Hospital 1, during the weekday hours between 6 am and 6 pm, there will be a PGY4 or PGY5 and a PGY2 or PGY3 on-duty to cover Service "A." A series of equations and logic statements was generated to satisfy all constraints and requirements. These were restated in the Optimization Programming Language used by the ILOG software suite for solving mixed integer programming problems. An integer programming solution was generated to this resource-constrained assignment problem. A total of 30,900 variables and 12,443 constraints were required. A total of man-hours of programming were used; computer run-time was 25.9 hours. A weekly schedule was generated for each resident that satisfied the RRC regulations while fulfilling all stated surgical service requirements. Each required between 64 and 80 weekly resident duty hours. The authors conclude that OR is a viable approach to schedule resident work hours. This technique is sufficiently robust to accommodate changes in resident numbers, service requirements, and service and hospital rotations.

The development and test of an intervention to improve ADR screening in nursing homes.

PubMed

Dilles, Tinne; Vander Stichele, Robert H; Van Bortel, Lucas M; Elseviers, Monique M

2013-05-01

The aim of this study was to develop and test the effect of an instrument, Pharmanurse, to facilitate nurse-driven adverse drug reaction (ADR) screening as an input for interdisciplinary medication review in nursing homes. Intervention study with a pre-posttest design All residents of a convenience sample of 8 nursing homes of more than 80 beds were eligible if they resided at least 1 month in the nursing home and took 4 or more different medications. Residents receiving palliative care were excluded. The intervention consisted of interdisciplinary medication review, prepared by nurse observations of potential ADRs using personalized screening lists generated by the Pharmanurse software. Pharmanurse is specifically adapted to use by nurses and to use in nursing homes. Outcome parameters were the number of ADRs detected by nurses, ADRs confirmed by general practitioners, and medication changes. After the intervention, health care professionals involved completed a questionnaire to evaluate the value and the feasibility of the intervention. Nurses observed 1527 potential ADRs in 81% of the 418 residents (mean per resident 3.7). Physicians confirmed 821 ADRs in 60% of the residents (mean per resident 2.0). As a result, 214 medication changes were planned in 21% of the residents (mean per resident 0.5) because of ADRs. Health care professionals gave the Pharmanurse intervention a score of 7 of 10 for the potential to improve pharmacotherapy and 83% of the physicians were satisfied about nurses' screening for ADRs. The Pharmanurse intervention supports nurses in ADR screening and may have the potential to improve pharmacotherapy. Copyright © 2013 American Medical Directors Association, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Pediatric resident perceptions of shift work in ward rotations.

PubMed

Nomura, Osamu; Mishina, Hiroki; Jasti, Harish; Sakai, Hirokazu; Ishiguro, Akira

2017-10-01

Although the long working hours of physicians are considered to be a social issue, no effective policies such as duty hour regulations have so far been proposed in Japan. We implemented an overnight call shift (OCS) system for ward rotations to improve the working environment for residents in a pediatric residency program. We later conducted a cross-sectional questionnaire asking the residents to compare this system with the traditional overnight call system. Forty-one pediatric residents participated in this survey. The residents felt that the quality of patient care improved (80.4% agreed). Most felt that there was less emphasis on education (26.8%) and more emphasis on service (31.7%). Overall, the residents reported that the OCS was beneficial (90.2%). In conclusion, the pediatric residents considered the OCS system during ward rotations as beneficial. Alternative solutions are vital to balance improvements in resident work conditions with the requirement for a high quality of education. © 2017 Japan Pediatric Society.

The virtual practice: using the residents' continuity clinic to teach practice management and systems-based practice.

PubMed

Perez, Jose A; Faust, Cheryl; Kenyon, Angie

2009-09-01

Education in systems-based practice is a required component of all postgraduate medical education programs in the United States. Competency in this area requires that trainees have an understanding of the health care system sufficient to provide optimal care to patients. Most trainees in residency programs have little understanding of the complexities and challenges of present-day practice in the current system of care and consider themselves unprepared to undertake this activity following completion of training. Training in practice management in residency programs has not been emphasized as an important component of systems-based practice. Historically, practice management training in residency programs has been done using a fully didactic model, and residents have expressed a desire to learn this skill by becoming more directly involved in the operations and management of a practice. The patient visit touches many aspects of the health care system, including clinic operations, insurance, quality, and finances. At our institution, we used the residents' continuity clinic practices as a vehicle to provide education in practice management and systems-based practice by creating a curriculum that included the residents' perceived gaps in knowledge regarding going into practice. This is known as the virtual practice. This curriculum is taught using data obtained from residents' practice to illustrate concepts in many areas, including primary practice operations, malpractice insurance, financial benchmarks, and career planning. Resident self-assessed knowledge of these areas increased after participating in the curriculum, and resident testimonials indicate satisfaction with the project. In addition, residents have become engaged and interested in how their effort translates into performance and how they participate in the health care system.

The influence of an audience response system on knowledge retention: an application to resident education.

PubMed

Pradhan, Archana; Sparano, Dina; Ananth, Cande V

2005-11-01

The purpose of the study was to compare delivery methods of lecture material regarding contraceptive options by either traditional or interactive lecture style with the use of an audience response system with obstetrics and gynecology residents. A prospective, randomized controlled trial that included 17 obstetrics and gynecology residents was conducted. Group differences and comparison of pre/posttest scores to evaluate efficacy of lecture styles were performed with the Student t test. Each participant completed an evaluation to assess usefulness of the audience response system. Residents who received audience response system interactive lectures showed a 21% improvement between pretest and posttest scores; residents who received the standard lecture demonstrated a 2% improvement (P = .018). The evaluation survey showed that 82% of residents thought that the audience response system was a helpful learning aid. The results of this randomized controlled trial demonstrate the effectiveness of audience response system for knowledge retention, which suggests that it may be an efficient teaching tool for residency education.

The impact of an inadequate municipal water system on the residents of Chinhoyi town, Zimbabwe.

PubMed

Schwartz, U; Siziya, S; Tshimanga, M; Barduagni, P; Chauke, T L

1999-06-01

To assess the use and impact of the water reticulation system in Chinhoyi on its residents. Cross sectional and case series studies. Chinhoyi town. 600 Chinhoyi residents. Practices and perceptions of Chinhoyi residents on the water system, and distribution of water-related diseases per area of residence. Out of 600 respondents, 565 (99.3%) had access to piped water and 558 (98.0%) to flush toilets. Breakdowns of water supply and functioning of toilet facility were reported by 308 (77.0%) and 110 (28.0%) respondents in the previous six months, respectively. Main complaints of Chinhoyi residents were about low water quality (36.2%), inadequate sewage system (31.3%) and environmental pollution (26.5%). Cases of water-related diseases were not associated with natural water bodies. Chinhoyi residents have good access to the municipal water and an adequate sanitation system. However, low quality of the water, frequent system breakdowns and the degradation and loss of amenity of the environment impair their quality of life.

A microcontroller-based simulation of dural venous sinus injury for neurosurgical training.

PubMed

Cleary, Daniel R; Siler, Dominic A; Whitney, Nathaniel; Selden, Nathan R

2018-05-01

OBJECTIVE Surgical simulation has the potential to supplement and enhance traditional resident training. However, the high cost of equipment and limited number of available scenarios have inhibited wider integration of simulation in neurosurgical education. In this study the authors provide initial validation of a novel, low-cost simulation platform that recreates the stress of surgery using a combination of hands-on, model-based, and computer elements. Trainee skill was quantified using multiple time and performance measures. The simulation was initially validated using trainees at the start of their intern year. METHODS The simulation recreates intraoperative superior sagittal sinus injury complicated by air embolism. The simulator model consists of 2 components: a reusable base and a disposable craniotomy pack. The simulator software is flexible and modular to allow adjustments in difficulty or the creation of entirely new clinical scenarios. The reusable simulator base incorporates a powerful microcomputer and multiple sensors and actuators to provide continuous feedback to the software controller, which in turn adjusts both the screen output and physical elements of the model. The disposable craniotomy pack incorporates 3D-printed sections of model skull and brain, as well as artificial dura that incorporates a model sagittal sinus. RESULTS Twelve participants at the 2015 Western Region Society of Neurological Surgeons postgraduate year 1 resident course ("boot camp") provided informed consent and enrolled in a study testing the prototype device. Each trainee was required to successfully create a bilateral parasagittal craniotomy, repair a dural sinus tear, and recognize and correct an air embolus. Participant stress was measured using a heart rate wrist monitor. After participation, each resident completed a 13-question categorical survey. CONCLUSIONS All trainee participants experienced tachycardia during the simulation, although the point in the simulation at which they experienced tachycardia varied. Survey results indicated that participants agreed the simulation was realistic, created stress, and was a useful tool in training neurosurgical residents. This simulator represents a novel, low-cost approach for hands-on training that effectively teaches and tests residents without risk of patient injury.

Maternal Territoriality Achieved Through Shaking and Lunging: An Investigation of Patterns in Associated Behaviors and Substrate Vibrations in a Colonial Embiopteran, Antipaluria urichi

PubMed Central

Dejan, Khaaliq A.; Fresquez, John M.; Meyer, Annika M.; Edgerly, Janice S.

2013-01-01

Substrate vibration communication is displayed by a variety of insects that rely on silk for shelter. Such signaling is often associated with territoriality and social interactions. The goal in this study was to explore the use of substrate vibration by subsocial insects of the little-studied order Embioptera (also known as Embiidina). Antipaluria urichi (Saussure) (Embioptera: Clothodidae) from Trinidad and Tobago, a large embiopteran, exhibits maternal care and facultatively colonial behavior. Previous observations suggested that they were aggressive while guarding eggs but gregarious when not. Egg-guarders in particular have been observed shaking and lunging their bodies, but to date these putative signals have not been recorded nor were their contexts known. Staged interactions were conducted in the laboratory using residents that had established silk domiciles enveloping piezo-electric film used to detect vibrations. Predictions from two competing hypotheses, the maternal territoriality hypothesis and the group cohesion hypothesis, were erected to explain the occurrence of signaling. Experiments pitted pre-reproductive and egg-guarding residents against female and male intruders, representing social partners that ranged from potentially threatening to innocuous or even helpful. Behavioral acts were identified and scored along with associated substrate vibrations, which were measured for associated body movements, duration, and frequency spectra. Signals, sorted by the distinct actions used to generate them, were lunge, shake, push up, and snapback. Egg-guarding females produced most signals in response to female intruders, a result that supported the maternal territoriality hypothesis. Female intruders generally responded to such signaling by moving away from egg-guarding residents. In contrast, pre-reproductive residents did not signal much, and intruders settled beside them. Theme software was used to analyze the behavioral event recordings to seek patterns over time and their association with signals. Long patterns of behavioral acts were associated with shakes, lunges, and push-ups, indicating that interactions were occurring between the residents and intruders as would be expected when communication occurs. The value of Theme software, as well as the relationship between signaling by A. urichi and the risks and benefits of coloniality, are discussed. PMID:24224696

Nonlinear Differential Equations and Feedback Control Design for the Urban-Rural Resident Pension Insurance in China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Lijian

2015-12-01

Facing many problems of the urban-rural resident pension insurance system in China, one should firstly make sure that this system can be optimized. This paper, based on the modern control theory, sets up differential equations as models to describe the urban-rural resident pension insurance system, and discusses the globally asymptotic stability in the sense of Liapunov for the urban-rural resident pension insurance system in the new equilibrium point. This research sets the stage for our further discussion, and it is theoretically important and convenient for optimizing the urban-rural resident pension insurance system.

On public space design for Chinese urban residential area based on integrated architectural physics environment evaluation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dong, J. Y.; Cheng, W.; Ma, C. P.; Tan, Y. T.; Xin, L. S.

2017-04-01

The residential public space is an important part in designing the ecological residence, and a proper physics environment of public space is of greater significance to urban residence in China. Actually, the measure to apply computer aided design software into residential design can effectively avoid an inconformity of design intent with actual using condition, and a negative impact on users due to bad architectural physics environment of buildings, etc. The paper largely adopts a design method of analyzing architectural physics environment of residential public space. By analyzing and evaluating various physics environments, a suitability assessment is obtained for residential public space, thereby guiding the space design.

Network Extender for MIL-STD-1553 Bus

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Marcus, Julius; Hanson, T. David

2003-01-01

An extender system for MIL-STD-1553 buses transparently couples bus components at multiple developer sites. The bus network extender is a relatively inexpensive system that minimizes the time and cost of integration of avionic systems by providing a convenient mechanism for early testing without the need to transport the usual test equipment and personnel to an integration facility. This bus network extender can thus alleviate overloading of the test facility while enabling the detection of interface problems that can occur during the integration of avionic systems. With this bus extender in place, developers can correct and adjust their own hardware and software before products leave a development site. Currently resident at Johnson Space Center, the bus network extender is used to test the functionality of equipment that, although remotely located, is connected through a MILSTD- 1553 bus. Inasmuch as the standard bus protocol for avionic equipment is that of MIL-STD-1553, companies that supply MIL-STD-1553-compliant equipment to government or industry and that need long-distance communication support might benefit from this network bus extender

Competency-based achievement system: using formative feedback to teach and assess family medicine residents' skills.

PubMed

Ross, Shelley; Poth, Cheryl N; Donoff, Michel; Humphries, Paul; Steiner, Ivan; Schipper, Shirley; Janke, Fred; Nichols, Darren

2011-09-01

Family medicine residency programs require innovative means to assess residents' competence in "soft" skills (eg, patient-centred care, communication, and professionalism) and to identify residents who are having difficulty early enough in their residency to provide remedial training. To develop a method to assess residents' competence in various skills and to identify residents who are having difficulty. The Competency-Based Achievement System (CBAS) was designed to measure competence using 3 main principles: formative feedback, guided self-assessment, and regular face-to-face meetings. The CBAS is resident driven and provides a framework for meaningful interactions between residents and advisors. Residents use the CBAS to organize and review their feedback, to guide their own assessment of their progress, and to discern their future learning needs. Advisors use the CBAS to monitor, guide, and verify residents' knowledge of and competence in important skills. By focusing on specific skills and behaviour, the CBAS enables residents and advisors to make formative assessments and to communicate their findings. Feedback indicates that the CBAS is a user-friendly and helpful system to assess competence.

Virtual Machine Language

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Grasso, Christopher; Page, Dennis; O'Reilly, Taifun; Fteichert, Ralph; Lock, Patricia; Lin, Imin; Naviaux, Keith; Sisino, John

2005-01-01

Virtual Machine Language (VML) is a mission-independent, reusable software system for programming for spacecraft operations. Features of VML include a rich set of data types, named functions, parameters, IF and WHILE control structures, polymorphism, and on-the-fly creation of spacecraft commands from calculated values. Spacecraft functions can be abstracted into named blocks that reside in files aboard the spacecraft. These named blocks accept parameters and execute in a repeatable fashion. The sizes of uplink products are minimized by the ability to call blocks that implement most of the command steps. This block approach also enables some autonomous operations aboard the spacecraft, such as aerobraking, telemetry conditional monitoring, and anomaly response, without developing autonomous flight software. Operators on the ground write blocks and command sequences in a concise, high-level, human-readable programming language (also called VML ). A compiler translates the human-readable blocks and command sequences into binary files (the operations products). The flight portion of VML interprets the uplinked binary files. The ground subsystem of VML also includes an interactive sequence- execution tool hosted on workstations, which runs sequences at several thousand times real-time speed, affords debugging, and generates reports. This tool enables iterative development of blocks and sequences within times of the order of seconds.

The Widest Practicable Dissemination: The NASA Technical Report Server

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nelson, Michael L.; Gottlich, Gretchen L.; Bianco, David J.; Binkley, Robert L.; Kellogg, Yvonne D.; Paulson, Sharon S.; Beaumont, Chris J.; Schmunk, Robert B.; Kurtz, Michael J.; Accomazzi, Alberto

1995-01-01

The National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 established NASA and charged it to "provide for the widest practicable and appropriate dissemination of information concerning [...] its activities and the results thereof." The search for innovative methods to distribute NASA s information lead a grass-roots team to create the NASA Technical Report Server (NTRS), which uses the World Wide Web and other popular Internet-based information systems as search engines. The NTRS is an inter-center effort which provides uniform access to various distributed publication servers residing on the Internet. Users have immediate desktop access to technical publications from NASA centers and institutes. The NTRS is comprised of several units, some constructed especially for inclusion in NTRS, and others that are existing NASA publication services that NTRS reuses. This paper presents the NTRS architecture, usage metrics, and the lessons learned while implementing and maintaining the services over the initial 6-month period. The NTRS is largely constructed with freely available software running on existing hardware. NTRS builds upon existing hardware and software, and the resulting additional exposure for the body of literature contained will allow NASA to ensure that its institutional knowledge base will continue to receive the widest practicable and appropriate dissemination.

The widest practicable dissemination: The NASA technical report server

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nelson, Michael L.; Gottlich, Gretchen L.; Bianco, David J.; Binkley, Robert L.; Kellogg, Yvonne D.; Paulson, Sharon S.; Beaumont, Chris J.; Schmunk, Robert B.; Kurtz, Michael J.; Accomazzi, Alberto

1995-01-01

The National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 established NASA and charged it to 'provide for the widest practicable and appropriate dissemination of information concerning...its activities and the results thereof.' The search for innovative methods to distribute NASA's information lead a grass-roots team to create the NASA Technical Report Server (NTRS), which uses the World Wide Web and other popular Internet-based information systems as search engines. The NTRS is an inter-center effort which provides uniform access to various distributed publication servers residing on the Internet. Users have immediate desktop access to technical publications from NASA centers and institutes. The NTRS is comprised of several units, some constructed especially for inclusion in NTRS, and others that are existing NASA publication services that NTRS reuses. This paper presents the NTRS architecture, usage metrics, and the lessons learned while implementing and maintaining the services over the initial six-month period. The NTRS is largely constructed with freely available software running on existing hardware. NTRS builds upon existing hardware and software, and the resulting additional exposure for the body of literature contained will allow NASA to ensure that its institutional knowledge base will continue to receive the widest practicable and appropriate dissemination.

Embedded Web Technology: Internet Technology Applied to Real-Time System Control

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Daniele, Carl J.

1998-01-01

The NASA Lewis Research Center is developing software tools to bridge the gap between the traditionally non-real-time Internet technology and the real-time, embedded-controls environment for space applications. Internet technology has been expanding at a phenomenal rate. The simple World Wide Web browsers (such as earlier versions of Netscape, Mosaic, and Internet Explorer) that resided on personal computers just a few years ago only enabled users to log into and view a remote computer site. With current browsers, users not only view but also interact with remote sites. In addition, the technology now supports numerous computer platforms (PC's, MAC's, and Unix platforms), thereby providing platform independence.In contrast, the development of software to interact with a microprocessor (embedded controller) that is used to monitor and control a space experiment has generally been a unique development effort. For each experiment, a specific graphical user interface (GUI) has been developed. This procedure works well for a single-user environment. However, the interface for the International Space Station (ISS) Fluids and Combustion Facility will have to enable scientists throughout the world and astronauts onboard the ISS, using different computer platforms, to interact with their experiments in the Fluids and Combustion Facility. Developing a specific GUI for all these users would be cost prohibitive. An innovative solution to this requirement, developed at Lewis, is to use Internet technology, where the general problem of platform independence has already been partially solved, and to leverage this expanding technology as new products are developed. This approach led to the development of the Embedded Web Technology (EWT) program at Lewis, which has the potential to significantly reduce software development costs for both flight and ground software.

Building oceanographic and atmospheric observation networks by composition: unmanned vehicles, communication networks, and planning and execution control frameworks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sousa, J. T.; Pinto, J.; Martins, R.; Costa, M.; Ferreira, F.; Gomes, R.

2014-12-01

The problem of developing mobile oceanographic and atmospheric observation networks (MOAO) with coordinated air and ocean vehicles is discussed in the framework of the communications and control software tool chain developed at Underwater Systems and Technologies Laboratory (LSTS) from Porto University. This is done with reference to field experiments to illustrate key capabilities and to assess future MOAO operations. First, the motivation for building MOAO by "composition" of air and ocean vehicles, communication networks, and planning and execution control frameworks is discussed - in networked vehicle systems information and commands are exchanged among multiple vehicles and operators, and the roles, relative positions, and dependencies of these vehicles and operators change during operations. Second, the planning and execution control framework developed at LSTS for multi-vehicle systems is discussed with reference to key concepts such as autonomy, mixed-initiative interactions, and layered organization. Third, the LSTS tool software tool chain is presented to show how to develop MOAO by composition. The tool chain comprises the Neptus command and control framework for mixed initiative interactions, the underlying IMC messaging protocol, and the DUNE on-board software. Fourth, selected LSTS operational deployments illustrate MOAO capability building. In 2012 we demonstrated the use of UAS to "ferry" data from UUVs located beyond line of sight (BLOS). In 2013 we demonstrated coordinated observations of coastal fronts with small UAS and UUVs, "bent" BLOS through the use of UAS as communication relays, and UAS tracking of juvenile hammer-head sharks. In 2014 we demonstrated UUV adaptive sampling with the closed loop controller of the UUV residing on a UAS; this was done with the help of a Wave Glider ASV with a communications gateway. The results from these experiments provide a background for assessing potential future UAS operations in a compositional MOAO.

Developing online learning modules in a family medicine residency.

PubMed

Skye, Eric P; Wimsatt, Leslie A; Master-Hunter, Tara A; Locke, Amy B

2011-03-01

Online modules offer an opportunity to overcome barriers to educational delivery. Such approaches can require significant investment dependent on the development model used. There is little in the literature on the formative assessment of design and development. Better understanding is needed to determine effective methods of training and supporting faculty authors. The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of Web-based modules developed by a Department of Family Medicine in delivering instruction to resident learners and to examine perceptions of the design and development process. Participants included 49 resident learners and 28 faculty and staff members as the development team. Data collection involved use of Web-based surveys, participant observation focus groups, and pretesting/posttesting. Frequency distributions and mean comparisons were used to analyze quantitative data. Participant comments were thematically analyzed. Residents felt that modules met their educational goals and contributed to understanding of core content. Pretest/posttest data showed statistical improvement for a majority of modules. The use of Web authoring software for Web-based learning and scheduling time to work on the modules posed the greatest challenges to module authors. Formative assessment methods can provide important information to module developers and support staff to shape training, content development, and improve module ease of use, navigation, and content for resident learners.

A Study of Covert Communications in Space Platforms Hosting Government Payloads

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-02-01

possible adversarial actions (e.g., malicious software co- resident on the commercial host). Threats to the commercial supply chain are just one... supply chain to either create or exploit channel vulnerabilities. For government hosted payload missions, the critical payload data are encrypted...access to space by hosting government- supplied payloads on commercial space platforms. These commercially hosted payloads require stringent

SAGA: A project to automate the management of software production systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Campbell, Roy H.; Beckman-Davies, C. S.; Benzinger, L.; Beshers, G.; Laliberte, D.; Render, H.; Sum, R.; Smith, W.; Terwilliger, R.

1986-01-01

Research into software development is required to reduce its production cost and to improve its quality. Modern software systems, such as the embedded software required for NASA's space station initiative, stretch current software engineering techniques. The requirements to build large, reliable, and maintainable software systems increases with time. Much theoretical and practical research is in progress to improve software engineering techniques. One such technique is to build a software system or environment which directly supports the software engineering process, i.e., the SAGA project, comprising the research necessary to design and build a software development which automates the software engineering process. Progress under SAGA is described.

MOS 2.0: The Next Generation in Mission Operations Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bindschadler, Duane L.; Boyles, Carole A.; Carrion, Carlos; Delp, Chris L.

2010-01-01

A Mission Operations System (MOS) or Ground System constitutes that portion of an overall space mission Enterprise that resides here on Earth. Over the past two decades, technological innovations in computing and software technologies have allowed an MOS to support ever more complex missions while consuming a decreasing fraction of Project development budgets. Despite (or perhaps, because of) such successes, it is routine to hear concerns about the cost of MOS development. At the same time, demand continues for Ground Systems which will plan more spacecraft activities with fewer commanding errors, provide scientists and engineers with more autonomous functionality, process and manage larger and more complex data more quickly, all while requiring fewer people to develop, deploy, operate and maintain them. One successful approach to such concerns over this period is a multimission approach, based on the reuse of portions (most often software) developed and used in previous missions. The Advanced Multi-Mission Operations System (AMMOS), developed for deep-space science missions, is one successful example of such an approach. Like many computing-intensive systems, it has grown up in a near-organic fashion from a relatively simple set of tools into a complexly interrelated set of capabilities. Such systems, like a city lacking any concept of urban planning, can and will grow in ways that are neither efficient nor particularly easy to sustain. To meet the growing demands and unyielding constraints placed on ground systems, a new approach is necessary. Under the aegis of a multi-year effort to revitalize the AMMOS's multimission operations capabilities, we are utilizing modern practices in systems architecting and model-based engineering to create the next step in Ground Systems: MOS 2.0. In this paper we outline our work (ongoing and planned) to architect and design a multimission MOS 2.0, describe our goals and measureable objectives, and discuss some of the benefits that this top-down, architectural approach holds for creating a more flexible and capable MOS for Missions while holding the line on cost.

Wide-bandwidth high-resolution search for extraterrestrial intelligence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Horowitz, Paul

1993-01-01

A third antenna was added to the system. It is a terrestrial low-gain feed, to act as a veto for local interference. The 3-chip design for a 4 megapoint complex FFT was reduced to finished working hardware. The 4-Megachannel circuit board contains 36 MByte of DRAM, 5 CPLDs, the three large FFT ASICs, and 74 ICs in all. The Austek FDP-based Spectrometer/Power Accumulator (SPA) has now been implemented as a 4-layer printed circuit. A PC interface board has been designed and together with its associated user interface and control software allows an IBM compatible computer to control the SPA board, and facilitates the transfer of spectra to the PC for display, processing, and storage. The Feature Recognizer Array cards receive the stream of modulus words from the 4M FFT cards, and forward a greatly thinned set of reports to the PC's in whose backplane they reside. In particular, a powerful ROM-based state-machine architecture has been adopted, and DRAM has been added to permit integration modes when tracking or reobserving source candidates. The general purpose (GP) array consists of twenty '486 PC class computers, each of which receives and processes the data from a feature extractor/correlator board set. The array performs a first analysis on the provided 'features' and then passes this information on to the workstation. The core workstation software is now written. That is, the communication channels between the user interface, the backend monitor program and the PC's have working software.

Software Safety Risk in Legacy Safety-Critical Computer Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hill, Janice; Baggs, Rhoda

2007-01-01

Safety-critical computer systems must be engineered to meet system and software safety requirements. For legacy safety-critical computer systems, software safety requirements may not have been formally specified during development. When process-oriented software safety requirements are levied on a legacy system after the fact, where software development artifacts don't exist or are incomplete, the question becomes 'how can this be done?' The risks associated with only meeting certain software safety requirements in a legacy safety-critical computer system must be addressed should such systems be selected as candidates for reuse. This paper proposes a method for ascertaining formally, a software safety risk assessment, that provides measurements for software safety for legacy systems which may or may not have a suite of software engineering documentation that is now normally required. It relies upon the NASA Software Safety Standard, risk assessment methods based upon the Taxonomy-Based Questionnaire, and the application of reverse engineering CASE tools to produce original design documents for legacy systems.

Modernizing Systems and Software: How Evolving Trends in Future Trends in Systems and Software Technology Bode Well for Advancing the Precision of Technology

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-04-23

of Code Need for increased functionality will be a forcing function to bring the fields of software and systems engineering... of Software-Intensive Systems is Increasing 3 How Evolving Trends in Systems and Software Technologies Bode Well for Advancing the Precision of ...Engineering in Continued Partnership 4 How Evolving Trends in Systems and Software Technologies Bode Well for Advancing the

An Architecture, System Engineering, and Acquisition Approach for Space System Software Resiliency

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Phillips, Dewanne Marie

Software intensive space systems can harbor defects and vulnerabilities that may enable external adversaries or malicious insiders to disrupt or disable system functions, risking mission compromise or loss. Mitigating this risk demands a sustained focus on the security and resiliency of the system architecture including software, hardware, and other components. Robust software engineering practices contribute to the foundation of a resilient system so that the system "can take a hit to a critical component and recover in a known, bounded, and generally acceptable period of time". Software resiliency must be a priority and addressed early in the life cycle development to contribute a secure and dependable space system. Those who develop, implement, and operate software intensive space systems must determine the factors and systems engineering practices to address when investing in software resiliency. This dissertation offers methodical approaches for improving space system resiliency through software architecture design, system engineering, increased software security, thereby reducing the risk of latent software defects and vulnerabilities. By providing greater attention to the early life cycle phases of development, we can alter the engineering process to help detect, eliminate, and avoid vulnerabilities before space systems are delivered. To achieve this objective, this dissertation will identify knowledge, techniques, and tools that engineers and managers can utilize to help them recognize how vulnerabilities are produced and discovered so that they can learn to circumvent them in future efforts. We conducted a systematic review of existing architectural practices, standards, security and coding practices, various threats, defects, and vulnerabilities that impact space systems from hundreds of relevant publications and interviews of subject matter experts. We expanded on the system-level body of knowledge for resiliency and identified a new software architecture framework and acquisition methodology to improve the resiliency of space systems from a software perspective with an emphasis on the early phases of the systems engineering life cycle. This methodology involves seven steps: 1) Define technical resiliency requirements, 1a) Identify standards/policy for software resiliency, 2) Develop a request for proposal (RFP)/statement of work (SOW) for resilient space systems software, 3) Define software resiliency goals for space systems, 4) Establish software resiliency quality attributes, 5) Perform architectural tradeoffs and identify risks, 6) Conduct architecture assessments as part of the procurement process, and 7) Ascertain space system software architecture resiliency metrics. Data illustrates that software vulnerabilities can lead to opportunities for malicious cyber activities, which could degrade the space mission capability for the user community. Reducing the number of vulnerabilities by improving architecture and software system engineering practices can contribute to making space systems more resilient. Since cyber-attacks are enabled by shortfalls in software, robust software engineering practices and an architectural design are foundational to resiliency, which is a quality that allows the system to "take a hit to a critical component and recover in a known, bounded, and generally acceptable period of time". To achieve software resiliency for space systems, acquirers and suppliers must identify relevant factors and systems engineering practices to apply across the lifecycle, in software requirements analysis, architecture development, design, implementation, verification and validation, and maintenance phases.

Comparison of 2 resident learning tools-interactive screen-based simulated case scenarios versus problem-based learning discussions: a prospective quasi-crossover cohort study.

PubMed

Rajan, Shobana; Khanna, Ashish; Argalious, Maged; Kimatian, Stephen J; Mascha, Edward J; Makarova, Natalya; Nada, Eman M; Elsharkawy, Hesham; Firoozbakhsh, Farhad; Avitsian, Rafi

2016-02-01

Simulation-based learning is emerging as an alternative educational tool in this era of a relative shortfall of teaching anesthesiologists. The objective of the study is to assess whether screen-based (interactive computer simulated) case scenarios are more effective than problem-based learning discussions (PBLDs) in improving test scores 4 and 8 weeks after these interventions in anesthesia residents during their first neuroanesthesia rotation. Prospective, nonblinded quasi-crossover study. Cleveland Clinic. Anesthesiology residents. Two case scenarios were delivered from the Anesoft software as screen-based sessions, and parallel scripts were developed for 2 PBLDs. Each resident underwent both types of training sessions, starting with the PBLD session, and the 2 cases were alternated each month (ie, in 1 month, the screen-based intervention used case 1 and the PBLD used case 2, and vice versa for the next month). Test scores before the rotation (baseline), immediately after the rotation (4 weeks after the start of the rotation), and 8 weeks after the start of rotation were collected on each topic from each resident. The effect of training method on improvement in test scores was assessed using a linear mixed-effects model. Compared to the departmental standard of PBLD, the simulation method did not improve either the 4- or 8-week mean test scores (P = .41 and P = .40 for training method effect on 4- and 8-week scores, respectively). Resident satisfaction with the simulation module on a 5-point Likert scale showed subjective evidence of a positive impact on resident education. Screen-based simulators were not more effective than PBLD for education during the neuroanesthesia rotation in anesthesia residency. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Comparison of expectations and beliefs about good teaching in an academic day release medical education program: a qualitative study.

PubMed

van Roermund, Thea A C M; Mokkink, Henk G; Bottema, Ben J A M; van Weel, Chris; Scherpbier, Albert J J A

2014-10-03

In a professional learner-centered(ness) educational environment, communication and alignment of expectations about teaching are indispensable. Professional education of residents could benefit from an analysis and comparison of teachers' and residents' educational expectations and beliefs. Our purpose is to identify success factors and barriers related to aligning expectations and beliefs and building a supportive professional learner-centered educational environment. We conducted semi-structured individual interviews with teachers and semi-structured focus groups with residents. A single interview format was used to make it possible to compare the results. Data were analysed using a qualitative software package (AtlasTi). Data analysis steps were followed by the author team, which identified four domains of good teaching: personal traits, knowledge, relationships and teaching qualities. Teachers and residents agreed about the importance of personal professional characteristics like being a role model and having an open and enthusiastic attitude. They all thought that having a specific knowledge base was essential for teaching. Approaching residents as adult learners was found to be an important element of the learner-centred environment and it was agreed that teachers should take practical experiences to a higher level. However, teachers and residents had different expectations about the practical consequences of being a role model, adult learning, coaching and openness, and the type of knowledge that was needed in the professional development program. Communication about different expectations appeared to be difficult. Teachers and residents agreed on a conceptual level about expectations and beliefs regarding good teaching, but disagreed on an executive level. According to the residents, the disagreement about good teaching was not the biggest barrier to creating alignment and a supportive professional relationship; instead, it was the absence of a proper dialogue regarding issues about expectations and beliefs.

Systems-Based Aspects in the Training of IMG or Previously Trained Residents: Comparison of Psychiatry Residency Training in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, India, and Nigeria

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jain, Gaurav; Mazhar, Mir Nadeem; Uga, Aghaegbulam; Punwani, Manisha; Broquet, Karen E.

2012-01-01

Objectives: International medical graduates (IMGs) account for a significant proportion of residents in psychiatric training in the United States. Many IMGs may have previously completed psychiatry residency training in other countries. Their experiences may improve our system. Authors compared and contrasted psychiatry residency training in the…

Working environment and specialty of choice chosen by the dental students at Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University, Saudi Arabia: A cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Sam, George; Alghmlas, Abdullah Saud; Alrashed, Muath I; Alaskar, Ziyad A

2016-04-01

This cross-sectional study was conducted to explore the specialty chosen by the dental students for postgraduate studies and the future aspirations of students in a Saudi Arabia dental college. Of the total number of 120 questionnaires that were distributed, 107 subjects responded with selective responses and a response rate of 89%. A descriptive survey was conducted using one of the questionnaires among the students of dentistry at the dental college, Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University, Al-Kharj among male students (men's college) for a period of 2 months. The data were analyzed using the statistical software program, predictive analytics software Statistics version 22.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA). A hundred and seven of the 120 students took part in the study. A passion for orthodontics (42.9%) was reported to be the most important factor that influenced the decision to pursue specialty training in orthodontics followed by intellectual stimulation/challenge (25%). The decision to pursue orthodontics was made by 32.1% of the respondents while in dental school; 35.7% took the decision after completing dental school during private practice and 14.3% during a dental residency, whereas 3.6% had already decided before initiating their dental school studies. Working in a private practice environment was preferred by 11 residents (39.3%). Only four residents indicated that they would most likely be practicing in an academic setting while 10 were undecided. The zest for nonclinical specialties is less among students at Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University's dental college, Saudi Arabia.

Educational Video Recording and Editing for The Hand Surgeon

PubMed Central

Rehim, Shady A.; Chung, Kevin C.

2016-01-01

Digital video recordings are increasingly used across various medical and surgical disciplines including hand surgery for documentation of patient care, resident education, scientific presentations and publications. In recent years, the introduction of sophisticated computer hardware and software technology has simplified the process of digital video production and improved means of disseminating large digital data files. However, the creation of high quality surgical video footage requires basic understanding of key technical considerations, together with creativity and sound aesthetic judgment of the videographer. In this article we outline the practical steps involved with equipment preparation, video recording, editing and archiving as well as guidance for the choice of suitable hardware and software equipment. PMID:25911212

Implementation of Distributed Services for a Deep Sea Moored Instrument Network

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oreilly, T. C.; Headley, K. L.; Risi, M.; Davis, D.; Edgington, D. R.; Salamy, K. A.; Chaffey, M.

2004-12-01

The Monterey Ocean Observing System (MOOS) is a moored observatory network consisting of interconnected instrument nodes on the sea surface, midwater, and deep sea floor. We describe Software Infrastructure and Applications for MOOS ("SIAM"), which implement the management, control, and data acquisition infrastructure for the moored observatory. Links in the MOOS network include fiber-optic and 10-BaseT copper connections between the at-sea nodes. A Globalstar satellite transceiver or 900 MHz Freewave terrestrial line-of-sight RF modem provides the link to shore. All of these links support Internet protocols, providing TCP/IP connectivity throughout a system that extends from shore to sensor nodes at the air-sea interface, through the oceanic water column to a benthic network of sensor nodes extending across the deep sea floor. Exploiting this TCP/IP infrastructure as well as capabilities provided by MBARI's MOOS mooring controller, we use powerful Internet software technologies to implement a distributed management, control and data acquisition system for the moored observatory. The system design meets the demanding functional requirements specified for MOOS. Nodes and their instruments are represented by Java RMI "services" having well defined software interfaces. Clients anywhere on the network can interact with any node or instrument through its corresponding service. A client may be on the same node as the service, may be on another node, or may reside on shore. Clients may be human, e.g. when a scientist on shore accesses a deployed instrument in real-time through a user interface. Clients may also be software components that interact autonomously with instruments and nodes, e.g. for purposes such as system resource management or autonomous detection and response to scientifically interesting events. All electrical power to the moored network is provided by solar and wind energy, and the RF shore-to-mooring links are intermittent and relatively low-bandwidth connections. Thus power and wireless bandwidth are limited resources that constrain our choice of service technologies and wireless access strategy. We describe and evaluate system performance in light of actual deployment of observatory elements in Monterey Bay, and discuss how the system can be developed further. We also consider management and control strategies for the cable-to-shore observatory known as MARS ("Monterey Accelerated Research System"). The MARS cable will provide high power and continuous high-bandwidth connectivity between seafloor instrument nodes and shore, thus removing key limitations of the moored observatory. Moreover MARS functional requirements may differ significantly from MOOS requirements. In light of these differences, we discuss how elements of our MOOS moored observatory architecture might be adapted to MARS.

Study of fault tolerant software technology for dynamic systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Caglayan, A. K.; Zacharias, G. L.

1985-01-01

The major aim of this study is to investigate the feasibility of using systems-based failure detection isolation and compensation (FDIC) techniques in building fault-tolerant software and extending them, whenever possible, to the domain of software fault tolerance. First, it is shown that systems-based FDIC methods can be extended to develop software error detection techniques by using system models for software modules. In particular, it is demonstrated that systems-based FDIC techniques can yield consistency checks that are easier to implement than acceptance tests based on software specifications. Next, it is shown that systems-based failure compensation techniques can be generalized to the domain of software fault tolerance in developing software error recovery procedures. Finally, the feasibility of using fault-tolerant software in flight software is investigated. In particular, possible system and version instabilities, and functional performance degradation that may occur in N-Version programming applications to flight software are illustrated. Finally, a comparative analysis of N-Version and recovery block techniques in the context of generic blocks in flight software is presented.

Java-based remote viewing and processing of nuclear medicine images: toward "the imaging department without walls".

PubMed

Slomka, P J; Elliott, E; Driedger, A A

2000-01-01

In nuclear medicine practice, images often need to be reviewed and reports prepared from locations outside the department, usually in the form of hard copy. Although hard-copy images are simple and portable, they do not offer electronic data search and image manipulation capabilities. On the other hand, picture archiving and communication systems or dedicated workstations cannot be easily deployed at numerous locations. To solve this problem, we propose a Java-based remote viewing station (JaRViS) for the reading and reporting of nuclear medicine images using Internet browser technology. JaRViS interfaces to the clinical patient database of a nuclear medicine workstation. All JaRViS software resides on a nuclear medicine department server. The contents of the clinical database can be searched by a browser interface after providing a password. Compressed images with the Java applet and color lookup tables are downloaded on the client side. This paradigm does not require nuclear medicine software to reside on remote computers, which simplifies support and deployment of such a system. To enable versatile reporting of the images, color tables and thresholds can be interactively manipulated and images can be displayed in a variety of layouts. Image filtering, frame grouping (adding frames), and movie display are available. Tomographic mode displays are supported, including gated SPECT. The time to display 14 lung perfusion images in 128 x 128 matrix together with the Java applet and color lookup tables over a V.90 modem is <1 min. SPECT and PET slice reorientation is interactive (<1 s). JaRViS could run on a Windows 95/98/NT or a Macintosh platform with Netscape Communicator or Microsoft Intemet Explorer. The performance of Java code for bilinear interpolation, cine display, and filtering approaches that of a standard imaging workstation. It is feasible to set up a remote nuclear medicine viewing station using Java and an Internet or intranet browser. Images can be made easily and cost-effectively available to referring physicians and ambulatory clinics within and outside of the hospital, providing a convenient alternative to film media. We also find this system useful in home reporting of emergency procedures such as lung ventilation-perfusion scans or dynamic studies.

Inheriting the Learner's View: A Google Glass-Based Wearable Computing Platform for Improving Surgical Trainee Performance.

PubMed

Brewer, Zachary E; Fann, Hutchinson C; Ogden, W David; Burdon, Thomas A; Sheikh, Ahmad Y

2016-01-01

It is speculated that, in operative environments, real-time visualization of the trainee's viewpoint by the instructor may improve performance and teaching efficacy. We hypothesized that introduction of a wearable surgical visualization system allowing the instructor to visualize otherwise "blind" areas in the operative field could improve trainee performance in a simulated operative setting. A total of 11 surgery residents (4 in general surgery training and 7 in an integrated 6-year cardiothoracic surgery program) participated in the study. Google (Mountain View, CA) Glass hardware running proprietary software from CrowdOptic (San Francisco, CA) was utilized for creation of the wearable surgical visualization system. Both the learner and trainer wore the system, and video was streamed from the learner's system in real time to the trainer, who directed the learner to place needles in a simulated operative field. Subjects placed a total of 5 needles in each of 4 quadrants. A composite error score was calculated based on the accuracy of needle placement in relation to the intended needle trajectories as described by the trainer. Time to task completion (TTC) was also measured and participants completed an exit questionnaire. All residents completed the protocol tasks and the survey. Introduction of the wearable surgical visualization system did not affect mean time to task completion (278 ± 50 vs. 282 ± 69 seconds, p = NS). However, mean composite error score fell significantly once the wearable system was deployed (18 ± 5 vs. 15 ± 4, p < 0.05), demonstrating improved accuracy of needle placement. Most of the participants deemed the device unobtrusive, easy to operate, and useful for communication and instruction. This study suggests that wearable surgical visualization systems allowing for adoption of the learner's perspective may be a useful educational adjunct in the training of surgeons. Further evaluations of the efficacy of wearable technology in the operating room environment are warranted. Copyright © 2016 Association of Program Directors in Surgery. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Medical Information Exchange: Pattern of Global Mobile Messenger Usage among Otolaryngologists.

PubMed

Siegal, Gil; Dagan, Elad; Wolf, Michael; Duvdevani, Shay; Alon, Eran E

2016-11-01

Information technology has revolutionized health care. However, the development of dedicated mobile health software has been lagging, leading to the use of general mobile applications to fill in the void. The use of such applications has several legal, ethical, and regulatory implications. We examined the experience and practices governing the usage of a global mobile messenger application (WhatsApp) for mobile health purposes in a national cohort of practicing otolaryngologists in Israel, a known early adaptor information technology society. Cross-sectional data were collected from practicing otolaryngologists and otolaryngology residents via self-administered questionnaire. The questionnaire was composed of a demographic section, a section surveying the practices of mobile application use, mobile health application use, and knowledge regarding institutional policies governing the transmission of medical data. The sample included 22 otolaryngology residents and 47 practicing otolaryngologists. Of the physicians, 83% worked in academic centers, and 88% and 40% of the physicians who worked in a hospital setting or a community clinic used WhatsApp for medical use, respectively. Working with residents increased the medical usage of WhatsApp from 50% to 91% (P = .006). Finally, 72% were unfamiliar with any institutional policy regarding the transfer of medical information by personal smartphones. Mobile health is becoming an integral part of modern medical systems, improving accessibility, efficiency, and possibly quality of medical care. The need to incorporate personal mobile devices in the overall information technology standards, guidelines, and regulation is becoming more acute. Nonetheless, practices must be properly instituted to prevent unwanted consequences. © American Academy of Otolaryngology—Head and Neck Surgery Foundation 2016.

AAPM/RSNA physics tutorial for residents: physics of flat-panel fluoroscopy systems: Survey of modern fluoroscopy imaging: flat-panel detectors versus image intensifiers and more.

PubMed

Nickoloff, Edward Lee

2011-01-01

This article reviews the design and operation of both flat-panel detector (FPD) and image intensifier fluoroscopy systems. The different components of each imaging chain and their functions are explained and compared. FPD systems have multiple advantages such as a smaller size, extended dynamic range, no spatial distortion, and greater stability. However, FPD systems typically have the same spatial resolution for all fields of view (FOVs) and are prone to ghosting. Image intensifier systems have better spatial resolution with the use of smaller FOVs (magnification modes) and tend to be less expensive. However, the spatial resolution of image intensifier systems is limited by the television system to which they are coupled. Moreover, image intensifier systems are degraded by glare, vignetting, spatial distortions, and defocusing effects. FPD systems do not have these problems. Some recent innovations to fluoroscopy systems include automated filtration, pulsed fluoroscopy, automatic positioning, dose-area product meters, and improved automatic dose rate control programs. Operator-selectable features may affect both the patient radiation dose and image quality; these selectable features include dose level setting, the FOV employed, fluoroscopic pulse rates, geometric factors, display software settings, and methods to reduce the imaging time. © RSNA, 2011.

Evacuation Simulation in Kalayaan Residence Hall, up Diliman Using Gama Simulation Software

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Claridades, A. R. C.; Villanueva, J. K. S.; Macatulad, E. G.

2016-09-01

Agent-Based Modeling (ABM) has recently been adopted in some studies for the modelling of events as a dynamic system given a set of events and parameters. In principle, ABM employs individual agents with assigned attributes and behaviors and simulates their behavior around their environment and interaction with other agents. This can be a useful tool in both micro and macroscale-applications. In this study, a model initially created and applied to an academic building was implemented in a dormitory. In particular, this research integrates three-dimensional Geographic Information System (GIS) with GAMA as the multi-agent based evacuation simulation and is implemented in Kalayaan Residence Hall. A three-dimensional GIS model is created based on the floor plans and demographic data of the dorm, including respective pathways as networks, rooms, floors, exits and appropriate attributes. This model is then re-implemented in GAMA. Different states of the agents and their effect on their evacuation time were then observed. GAMA simulation with varying path width was also implemented. It has been found out that compared to their original states, panic, eating and studying will hasten evacuation, and on the other hand, sleeping and being on the bathrooms will be impedances. It is also concluded that evacuation time will be halved when path widths are doubled, however it is recommended for further studies for pathways to be modeled as spaces instead of lines. A more scientific basis for predicting agent behavior in these states is also recommended for more realistic results.

AVE-SESAME program for the REEDA System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hickey, J. S.

1981-01-01

The REEDA system software was modified and improved to process the AVE-SESAME severe storm data. A random access file system for the AVE storm data was designed, tested, and implemented. The AVE/SESAME software was modified to incorporate the random access file input and to interface with new graphics hardware/software now available on the REEDA system. Software was developed to graphically display the AVE/SESAME data in the convention normally used by severe storm researchers. Software was converted to AVE/SESAME software systems and interfaced with existing graphics hardware/software available on the REEDA System. Software documentation was provided for existing AVE/SESAME programs underlining functional flow charts and interacting questions. All AVE/SESAME data sets in random access format was processed to allow developed software to access the entire AVE/SESAME data base. The existing software was modified to allow for processing of different AVE/SESAME data set types including satellite surface and radar data.

[Tuebingen Education System (TES)--An interactive case demonstration software].

PubMed

Schiefer, Ulrich; Schiller, Jan; Burth, Roland; Schnerring, Wolfgang

2002-08-01

Presentations based on slides, videos and/or computer presentations are usually sequentially structured, resulting in an inflexible order of the demonstrated information and examination results. However, in (medical) education such a system only inadequately reflects the real physician-patient situation. The software solution presented here is based on the widespread computer programme Microsoft PowerPoint(R) (PPT) which offers an opportunity to present information via text boxes, figures, illustrations, video sequences and/or audio files in an user-friendly way. However, PPT's capabilities of simulating realistic decision processes (e. g. by "interactive keys" and "hyperlinks") are still restricted as far as adapting the order of the information/slides to the individual demand is concerned. The Tuebingen Education System (TES) uses an additional user interface based on Visual Basic. By means of this, every examination result or information can be chosen via five additional pull-up menus in an arbitrary order. Furthermore, the pathway - i. e. the examinations used to arrive at a diagnosis - as well as the costs incurred are documented in parallel and are finally compared to the costs incurred using an optimum pathway. TES has been used routinely in the education of the students and residents of the University Eye Hospital Tuebingen for three (half-)terms. Meanwhile, an adapted version of TES is used to educate students in the department of paediatric surgery. TES was judged in extensive evaluations of both subjects very positively. TES is an easy to use tool suitable for lecturers and students, a further step towards realistic, practice-oriented and interactive education.

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

Arena, Lois

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Building America research team Consortium for Advanced Residential Buildings (CARB) worked with the EcoVillage cohousing community in Ithaca, New York, on the Third Residential EcoVillage Experience neighborhood. This communityscale project consists of 40 housing units—15 apartments and 25 single-family residences. Units range in size from 450 ft2 to 1,664 ft2 and cost from $80,000 for a studio apartment to $235,000 for a three- or four-bedroom single-family home. For the research component of this project, CARB analyzed current heating system sizing methods for superinsulated homes in cold climates to determine if changes in building load calculationmore » methodology should be recommended. Actual heating energy use was monitored and compared to results from the Air Conditioning Contractors of America’s Manual J8 (MJ8) and the Passive House Planning Package software. Results from that research indicate that MJ8 significantly oversizes heating systems for superinsulated homes and that thermal inertia and internal gains should be considered for more accurate load calculations.« less

Efficient Access to Massive Amounts of Tape-Resident Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yu, David; Lauret, Jérôme

2017-10-01

Randomly restoring files from tapes degrades the read performance primarily due to frequent tape mounts. The high latency and time-consuming tape mount and dismount is a major issue when accessing massive amounts of data from tape storage. BNL’s mass storage system currently holds more than 80 PB of data on tapes, managed by HPSS. To restore files from HPSS, we make use of a scheduler software, called ERADAT. This scheduler system was originally based on code from Oak Ridge National Lab, developed in the early 2000s. After some major modifications and enhancements, ERADAT now provides advanced HPSS resource management, priority queuing, resource sharing, web-browser visibility of real-time staging activities and advanced real-time statistics and graphs. ERADAT is also integrated with ACSLS and HPSS for near real-time mount statistics and resource control in HPSS. ERADAT is also the interface between HPSS and other applications such as the locally developed Data Carousel, providing fair resource-sharing policies and related capabilities. ERADAT has demonstrated great performance at BNL.

Users guide for the Water Resources Division bibliographic retrieval and report generation system

USGS Publications Warehouse

Tamberg, Nora

1983-01-01

The WRDBIB Retrieval and Report-generation system has been developed by applying Multitrieve (CSD 1980, Reston) software to bibliographic data files. The WRDBIB data base includes some 9 ,000 records containing bibliographic citations and descriptors of WRD reports released for publication during 1968-1982. The data base is resident in the Reston Multics computer and may be accessed by registered Multics users in the field. The WRDBIB Users Guide provides detailed procedures on how to run retrieval programs using WRDBIB library files, and how to prepare custom bibliographic reports and author indexes. Users may search the WRDBIB data base on the following variable fields as described in the Data Dictionary: Authors, organizational source, title, citation, publication year, descriptors, and the WRSIC (accession) number. The Users Guide provides ample examples of program runs illustrating various retrieval and report generation aspects. Appendices include Multics access and file manipulation procedures; a ' Glossary of Selected Terms'; and a complete ' Retrieval Session ' with step-by-step outlines. (USGS)

Racial and ethnic comparisons of nursing home residents at admission.

PubMed

Buchanan, Robert J; Rosenthal, Mark; Graber, David R; Wang, Suojin; Kim, Myung Suk

2008-10-01

To present racial/ethnic comparisons of comprehensive profiles of nursing home residents at admission, including whites, African Americans, Hispanics, Asians/Pacific Islanders, and American Indians/Alaska Natives. More than 885,000 admission assessments recorded in the national Minimum Data Set (MDS) were analyzed. Racial and ethnic analyses of the MDS admission assessments were conducted using the software package SAS. There were significant racial/ethnic differences in gender and age, with minority residents more likely to be male and younger. African American, Hispanic, and Asian/Pacific Islanders were significantly more likely than white residents to exhibit total dependence in the self-performance of the ADLs and to have greater cognitive impairments, with Asian/Pacific Islanders the most physically dependent and cognitively impaired. The results illustrate significant and substantive differences among the racial/ethnic groups for many demographic characteristics, as well as health-related indicators and conditions. This analysis suggests that the general perspective that economically disadvantaged minorities enter nursing homes in worse condition than whites is too simplistic. More research, particularly qualitative studies of specific minority groups, will advance our understanding of why members of some racial/ethnic groups require nursing home placement sooner than other groups.

Evaluation of [18F]Mefway biodistribution and dosimetry based on whole-body PET imaging of mice.

PubMed

Constantinescu, Cristian C; Sevrioukov, Evgueni; Garcia, Adriana; Pan, Min-Liang; Mukherjee, Jogeshwar

2013-04-01

[(18)F]Mefway is a novel radiotracer specific to the serotonin 5-HT1A receptor class. In preparation for using this tracer in humans, we have performed whole-body PET studies in mice to evaluate the biodistribution and dosimetry of [(18)F]Mefway. Six mice (three females and three males) received IV injections of [(18)F]Mefway and were scanned for 2 h in an Inveon-dedicated PET scanner. Each animal also received a high-resolution CT scan using an Inveon CT. The CT images were used to draw volume of interest on the following organs: the brain, large intestine, stomach, heart, kidneys, liver, lungs, pancreas, bone, spleen, testes, thymus, gallbladder, uterus, and urinary bladder. All organ time-activity curves without decay correction were normalized to the injected activity. The area under the normalized curves was then used to compute the residence times in each organ. Data were analyzed using PMOD and Matlab software. The absorbed doses in mouse organs were computed using the RAdiation Dose Assessment Resource animal models for dose assessment. The residence times in mouse organs were converted to human values using scale factors based on differences between organ and body weights. OLINDA/EXM 1.1 software was used to compute the absorbed human doses in multiple organs for both female and male phantoms. The highest mouse residence times were found in the liver, urinary bladder, and kidneys. The largest doses in mice were found in the urinary bladder (critical organ), kidney, and liver for both females and males, indicating primary elimination via urinary system. The projected human effective doses were 1.21E - 02 mSv/MBq for the adult female model and 1.13E - 02 mSv/MBq for the adult male model. The estimated human biodistribution of [(18)F]Mefway was similar to that of [(11)C]WAY 100,635, a 5-HT1A tracer for which dosimetry has been evaluated in humans. The elimination of radiotracer was primarily via the kidney and urinary bladder with the urinary bladder being the critical organ. Whole-body mouse imaging can be used as a preclinical tool to provide initial estimates of the absorbed doses of [(18)F]Mefway in humans.

Software Design Improvements. Part 2; Software Quality and the Design and Inspection Process

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lalli, Vincent R.; Packard, Michael H.; Ziemianski, Tom

1997-01-01

The application of assurance engineering techniques improves the duration of failure-free performance of software. The totality of features and characteristics of a software product are what determine its ability to satisfy customer needs. Software in safety-critical systems is very important to NASA. We follow the System Safety Working Groups definition for system safety software as: 'The optimization of system safety in the design, development, use and maintenance of software and its integration with safety-critical systems in an operational environment. 'If it is not safe, say so' has become our motto. This paper goes over methods that have been used by NASA to make software design improvements by focusing on software quality and the design and inspection process.

Fast massive preventive security and information communication systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Akopian, David; Chen, Philip; Miryakar, Susheel; Kumar, Abhinav

2008-04-01

We present a fast massive information communication system for data collection from distributive sources such as cell phone users. As a very important application one can mention preventive notification systems when timely notification and evidence communication may help to improve safety and security through wide public involvement by ensuring easy-to-access and easy-to-communicate information systems. The technology significantly simplifies the response to the events and will help e.g. special agencies to gather crucial information in time and respond as quickly as possible. Cellular phones are nowadays affordable for most of the residents and became a common personal accessory. The paper describes several ways to design such systems including existing internet access capabilities of cell phones or downloadable specialized software. We provide examples of such designs. The main idea is in structuring information in predetermined way and communicating data through a centralized gate-server which will automatically process information and forward it to a proper destination. The gate-server eliminates a need in knowing contact data and specific local community infrastructure. All the cell phones will have self-localizing capability according to FCC E911 mandate, thus the communicated information can be further tagged automatically by location and time information.

Development and implementation of an Integrated Water Resources Management System (IWRMS)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Flügel, W.-A.; Busch, C.

2011-04-01

One of the innovative objectives in the EC project BRAHMATWINN was the development of a stakeholder oriented Integrated Water Resources Management System (IWRMS). The toolset integrates the findings of the project and presents it in a user friendly way for decision support in sustainable integrated water resources management (IWRM) in river basins. IWRMS is a framework, which integrates different types of basin information and which supports the development of IWRM options for climate change mitigation. It is based on the River Basin Information System (RBIS) data models and delivers a graphical user interface for stakeholders. A special interface was developed for the integration of the enhanced DANUBIA model input and the NetSyMod model with its Mulino decision support system (mulino mDss) component. The web based IWRMS contains and combines different types of data and methods to provide river basin data and information for decision support. IWRMS is based on a three tier software framework which uses (i) html/javascript at the client tier, (ii) PHP programming language to realize the application tier, and (iii) a postgresql/postgis database tier to manage and storage all data, except the DANUBIA modelling raw data, which are file based and registered in the database tier. All three tiers can reside on one or different computers and are adapted to the local hardware infrastructure. IWRMS as well as RBIS are based on Open Source Software (OSS) components and flexible and time saving access to that database is guaranteed by web-based interfaces for data visualization and retrieval. The IWRMS is accessible via the BRAHMATWINN homepage: http://www.brahmatwinn.uni-jena.de and a user manual for the RBIS is available for download as well.

Advanced software development workstation project: Engineering scripting language. Graphical editor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1992-01-01

Software development is widely considered to be a bottleneck in the development of complex systems, both in terms of development and in terms of maintenance of deployed systems. Cost of software development and maintenance can also be very high. One approach to reducing costs and relieving this bottleneck is increasing the reuse of software designs and software components. A method for achieving such reuse is a software parts composition system. Such a system consists of a language for modeling software parts and their interfaces, a catalog of existing parts, an editor for combining parts, and a code generator that takes a specification and generates code for that application in the target language. The Advanced Software Development Workstation is intended to be an expert system shell designed to provide the capabilities of a software part composition system.

Development and Implementation of a Combined Master of Science and PGY1/PGY2 Health-System Pharmacy Administration Residency Program at a Large Community Teaching Hospital.

PubMed

Gazda, Nicholas P; Griffin, Emily; Hamrick, Kasey; Baskett, Jordan; Mellon, Meghan M; Eckel, Stephen F; Granko, Robert P

2018-04-01

Purpose: The purpose of this article is to share experiences after the development of a health-system pharmacy administration residency with a MS degree and express the need for additional programs in nonacademic medical center health-system settings. Summary: Experiences with the development and implementation of a health-system pharmacy administration residency at a large community teaching hospital are described. Resident candidates benefit from collaborations with other health-systems through master's degree programs and visibility to leaders at your health-system. Programs benefit from building a pipeline of future pharmacy administrators and by leveraging the skills of residents to contribute to projects and department-wide initiatives. Tools to assist in the implementation of a new pharmacy administration program are also described and include rotation and preceptor development, marketing and recruiting, financial evaluation, and steps to prepare for accreditation. Conclusion: Health-system pharmacy administration residents provide the opportunity to build a pipeline of high-quality leaders, provide high-level project involvement, and produce a positive return on investment (ROI) for health-systems. These programs should be explored in academic and nonacademic-based health-systems.

Enhancing requirements engineering for patient registry software systems with evidence-based components.

PubMed

Lindoerfer, Doris; Mansmann, Ulrich

2017-07-01

Patient registries are instrumental for medical research. Often their structures are complex and their implementations use composite software systems to meet the wide spectrum of challenges. Commercial and open-source systems are available for registry implementation, but many research groups develop their own systems. Methodological approaches in the selection of software as well as the construction of proprietary systems are needed. We propose an evidence-based checklist, summarizing essential items for patient registry software systems (CIPROS), to accelerate the requirements engineering process. Requirements engineering activities for software systems follow traditional software requirements elicitation methods, general software requirements specification (SRS) templates, and standards. We performed a multistep procedure to develop a specific evidence-based CIPROS checklist: (1) A systematic literature review to build a comprehensive collection of technical concepts, (2) a qualitative content analysis to define a catalogue of relevant criteria, and (3) a checklist to construct a minimal appraisal standard. CIPROS is based on 64 publications and covers twelve sections with a total of 72 items. CIPROS also defines software requirements. Comparing CIPROS with traditional software requirements elicitation methods, SRS templates and standards show a broad consensus but differences in issues regarding registry-specific aspects. Using an evidence-based approach to requirements engineering for registry software adds aspects to the traditional methods and accelerates the software engineering process for registry software. The method we used to construct CIPROS serves as a potential template for creating evidence-based checklists in other fields. The CIPROS list supports developers in assessing requirements for existing systems and formulating requirements for their own systems, while strengthening the reporting of patient registry software system descriptions. It may be a first step to create standards for patient registry software system assessments. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Using MATLAB Software on the Peregrine System | High-Performance Computing

Science.gov Websites

| NREL MATLAB Software on the Peregrine System Using MATLAB Software on the Peregrine System Learn how to use MATLAB software on the Peregrine system. Running MATLAB in Batch Mode Using the node. Understanding Versions and Licenses Learn about the MATLAB software versions and licenses

File-based data flow in the CMS Filter Farm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Andre, J.-M.; Andronidis, A.; Bawej, T.; Behrens, U.; Branson, J.; Chaze, O.; Cittolin, S.; Darlea, G.-L.; Deldicque, C.; Dobson, M.; Dupont, A.; Erhan, S.; Gigi, D.; Glege, F.; Gomez-Ceballos, G.; Hegeman, J.; Holzner, A.; Jimenez-Estupiñán, R.; Masetti, L.; Meijers, F.; Meschi, E.; Mommsen, R. K.; Morovic, S.; Nunez-Barranco-Fernandez, C.; O'Dell, V.; Orsini, L.; Paus, C.; Petrucci, A.; Pieri, M.; Racz, A.; Roberts, P.; Sakulin, H.; Schwick, C.; Stieger, B.; Sumorok, K.; Veverka, J.; Zaza, S.; Zejdl, P.

2015-12-01

During the LHC Long Shutdown 1, the CMS Data Acquisition system underwent a partial redesign to replace obsolete network equipment, use more homogeneous switching technologies, and prepare the ground for future upgrades of the detector front-ends. The software and hardware infrastructure to provide input, execute the High Level Trigger (HLT) algorithms and deal with output data transport and storage has also been redesigned to be completely file- based. This approach provides additional decoupling between the HLT algorithms and the input and output data flow. All the metadata needed for bookkeeping of the data flow and the HLT process lifetimes are also generated in the form of small “documents” using the JSON encoding, by either services in the flow of the HLT execution (for rates etc.) or watchdog processes. These “files” can remain memory-resident or be written to disk if they are to be used in another part of the system (e.g. for aggregation of output data). We discuss how this redesign improves the robustness and flexibility of the CMS DAQ and the performance of the system currently being commissioned for the LHC Run 2.

Evaluation of Social Media Use by Emergency Medicine Residents and Faculty.

PubMed

Pearson, David; Bond, Michael C; Kegg, Jason; Pillow, Tyson; Hopson, Laura; Cooney, Robert; Garg, Manish; Khadpe, Jay; Runyon, Michael; Patterson, Leigh

2015-09-01

Clinicians and residency programs are increasing their use of social media (SM) websites for educational and promotional uses, yet little is known about the use of these sites by residents and faculty. The objective of the study is to assess patterns of SM use for personal and professional purposes among emergency medicine (EM) residents and faculty. In this multi-site study, an 18-question survey was sent by e-mail to the residents and faculty in 14 EM programs and to the Council of Emergency Medicine Residency Directors (CORD) listserv via the online tool SurveyMonkey™. We compiled descriptive statistics, including assessment with the chi-square test or Fisher's exact test. StatsDirect software (v 2.8.0, StatsDirect, Cheshire, UK) was used for all analyses. We received 1,314 responses: 63% of respondents were male, 40% were <30 years of age, 39% were between the ages 31 and 40, and 21% were older than 40. The study group consisted of 772 residents and 542 faculty members (15% were program directors, 21% were assistant or associate PDs, 45% were core faculty, and 19% held other faculty positions. Forty-four percent of respondents completed residency more than 10 years ago. Residents used SM markedly more than faculty for social interactions with family and friends (83% vs 65% [p<0.0001]), entertainment (61% vs 47% [p<0.0001]), and videos (42% vs 23% [p=0.0006]). Residents used Facebook™ and YouTube™ more often than faculty (86% vs 67% [p<0.001]; 53% vs 46% [p=0.01]), whereas residents used Twitter™ (19% vs 26% [p=0.005]) and LinkedIn™ (15% vs 32% [p<0.0001]) less than faculty. Overall, residents used SM sites more than faculty, notably in daily use (30% vs 24% [p<0.001]). For professional use, residents were most interested in its use for open positions/hiring (30% vs 18% [p<0.0001]) and videos (33% vs 26% [p=0.005]) and less interested than faculty with award postings (22% vs 33% [p<0.0001]) or publications (30% vs 38% [p=0.0007]). EM residents and faculty have different patterns and interests in the personal and professional uses of social media. Awareness of these utilization patterns could benefit future educational endeavors.

SAGA: A project to automate the management of software production systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Campbell, R. H.; Badger, W.; Beckman, C. S.; Beshers, G.; Hammerslag, D.; Kimball, J.; Kirslis, P. A.; Render, H.; Richards, P.; Terwilliger, R.

1984-01-01

The project to automate the management of software production systems is described. The SAGA system is a software environment that is designed to support most of the software development activities that occur in a software lifecycle. The system can be configured to support specific software development applications using given programming languages, tools, and methodologies. Meta-tools are provided to ease configuration. Several major components of the SAGA system are completed to prototype form. The construction methods are described.

Abortion training at multiple sites: an unexpected curriculum for teaching systems-based practice.

PubMed

Herbitter, Cara; Kumar, Vanita; Karasz, Alison; Gold, Marji

2010-04-01

In 1999, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education endorsed systems-based practice as one of six general competencies. The objective is to explore the paradigm of teaching residents systems-based practice during a women's health rotation that included abortion training in multiple settings. During a routine women's health rotation, residents from two urban family medicine residency programs received early abortion training at a high-volume abortion clinic and their continuity clinic. Thirty-min semistructured interviews were conducted with all 26 residents who rotated between July 2005 and August 2006. Transcripts were analyzed using thematic codes. Through exposure to different healthcare delivery systems, residents learned about systems-based practice, including understanding the failure of the larger system to meet patients' reproductive healthcare needs, differences between two systems, and potential systems barriers they might face as providers. Abortion training in multiple settings may serve as a paradigm for teaching systems-based practice during other rotations that include training in multiple sites.

Resilience Engineering in Critical Long Term Aerospace Software Systems: A New Approach to Spacecraft Software Safety

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dulo, D. A.

Safety critical software systems permeate spacecraft, and in a long term venture like a starship would be pervasive in every system of the spacecraft. Yet software failure today continues to plague both the systems and the organizations that develop them resulting in the loss of life, time, money, and valuable system platforms. A starship cannot afford this type of software failure in long journeys away from home. A single software failure could have catastrophic results for the spaceship and the crew onboard. This paper will offer a new approach to developing safe reliable software systems through focusing not on the traditional safety/reliability engineering paradigms but rather by focusing on a new paradigm: Resilience and Failure Obviation Engineering. The foremost objective of this approach is the obviation of failure, coupled with the ability of a software system to prevent or adapt to complex changing conditions in real time as a safety valve should failure occur to ensure safe system continuity. Through this approach, safety is ensured through foresight to anticipate failure and to adapt to risk in real time before failure occurs. In a starship, this type of software engineering is vital. Through software developed in a resilient manner, a starship would have reduced or eliminated software failure, and would have the ability to rapidly adapt should a software system become unstable or unsafe. As a result, long term software safety, reliability, and resilience would be present for a successful long term starship mission.

Decision support using anesthesia information management system records and accreditation council for graduate medical education case logs for resident operating room assignments.

PubMed

Wanderer, Jonathan P; Charnin, Jonathan; Driscoll, William D; Bailin, Michael T; Baker, Keith

2013-08-01

Our goal in this study was to develop decision support systems for resident operating room (OR) assignments using anesthesia information management system (AIMS) records and Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) case logs and evaluate the implementations. We developed 2 Web-based systems: an ACGME case-log visualization tool, and Residents Helping in Navigating OR Scheduling (Rhinos), an interactive system that solicits OR assignment requests from residents and creates resident profiles. Resident profiles are snapshots of the cases and procedures each resident has done and were derived from AIMS records and ACGME case logs. A Rhinos pilot was performed for 6 weeks on 2 clinical services. One hundred sixty-five requests were entered and used in OR assignment decisions by a single attending anesthesiologist. Each request consisted of a rank ordered list of up to 3 ORs. Residents had access to detailed information about these cases including surgeon and patient name, age, procedure type, and admission status. Success rates at matching resident requests were determined by comparing requests with AIMS records. Of the 165 requests, 87 first-choice matches (52.7%), 27 second-choice matches (16.4%), and 8 third-choice matches (4.8%) were made. Forty-three requests were unmatched (26.1%). Thirty-nine first-choice requests overlapped (23.6%). Full implementation followed on 8 clinical services for 8 weeks. Seven hundred fifty-four requests were reviewed by 15 attending anesthesiologists, with 339 first-choice matches (45.0%), 122 second-choice matches (16.2%), 55 third-choice matches (7.3%), and 238 unmatched (31.5%). There were 279 overlapping first-choice requests (37.0%). The overall combined match success rate was 69.4%. Separately, we developed an ACGME case-log visualization tool that allows individual resident experiences to be compared against case minimums as well as resident peer groups. We conclude that it is feasible to use ACGME case-log data in decision support systems for informing resident OR assignments. Additional analysis will be necessary to assess the educational impact of these systems.

75 FR 11918 - Hewlett Pachard Company, Business Critical Systems, Mission Critical Business Software Division...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-03-12

... Pachard Company, Business Critical Systems, Mission Critical Business Software Division, Openvms Operating... Business Software Division, Openvms Operating System Development Group, Including an Employee Operating Out... Company, Business Critical Systems, Mission Critical Business Software Division, OpenVMS Operating System...

Performance of residents using digital images versus glass slides on certification examination in anatomical pathology: a mixed methods pilot study

PubMed Central

Mirham, Lorna; Naugler, Christopher; Hayes, Malcolm; Ismiil, Nadia; Belisle, Annie; Sade, Shachar; Streutker, Catherine; MacMillan, Christina; Rasty, Golnar; Popovic, Snezana; Joseph, Mariamma; Gabril, Manal; Barnes, Penny; Hegele, Richard G.; Carter, Beverley; Yousef, George M.

2016-01-01

Background: It is anticipated that many licensing examination centres for pathology will begin fully digitizing the certification examinations. The objective of our study was to test the feasibility of a fully digital examination and to assess the needs, concerns and expectations of pathology residents in moving from a glass slide-based examination to a fully digital examination. Methods: We conducted a mixed methods study that compared, after randomization, the performance of senior residents (postgraduate years 4 and 5) in 7 accredited anatomical pathology training programs across Canada on a pathology examination using either glass slides or digital whole-slide scanned images of the slides. The pilot examination was followed by a post-test survey. In addition, pathology residents from all levels of training were invited to participate in an online survey. Results: A total of 100 residents participated in the pilot examination; 49 were given glass slides instead of digital images. We found no significant difference in examination results between the 2 groups of residents (estimated marginal mean 8.23/12, 95% confidence interval [CI] 7.72-8.87, for glass slides; 7.84/12, 95% CI 7.28-8.41, for digital slides). In the post-test survey, most of the respondents expressed concerns with the digital examination, including slowly functioning software, blurring and poor detail of images, particularly nuclear features. All of the respondents of the general survey (n = 179) agreed that additional training was required if the examination were to become fully digital. Interpretation: Although the performance of residents completing pathology examinations with glass slides was comparable to that of residents using digital images, our study showed that residents were not comfortable with the digital technology, especially given their current level of exposure to it. Additional training may be needed before implementing a fully digital examination, with consideration for a gradual transition. PMID:27280119

Software cost/resource modeling: Software quality tradeoff measurement

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lawler, R. W.

1980-01-01

A conceptual framework for treating software quality from a total system perspective is developed. Examples are given to show how system quality objectives may be allocated to hardware and software; to illustrate trades among quality factors, both hardware and software, to achieve system performance objectives; and to illustrate the impact of certain design choices on software functionality.

f-treeGC: a questionnaire-based family tree-creation software for genetic counseling and genome cohort studies.

PubMed

Tokutomi, Tomoharu; Fukushima, Akimune; Yamamoto, Kayono; Bansho, Yasushi; Hachiya, Tsuyoshi; Shimizu, Atsushi

2017-07-14

The Tohoku Medical Megabank project aims to create a next-generation personalized healthcare system by conducting large-scale genome-cohort studies involving three generations of local residents in the areas affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake. We collected medical and genomic information for developing a biobank to be used for this healthcare system. We designed a questionnaire-based pedigree-creation software program named "f-treeGC," which enables even less experienced medical practitioners to accurately and rapidly collect family health history and create pedigree charts. f-treeGC may be run on Adobe AIR. Pedigree charts are created in the following manner: 1) At system startup, the client is prompted to provide required information on the presence or absence of children; f-treeGC is capable of creating a pedigree up to three generations. 2) An interviewer fills out a multiple-choice questionnaire on genealogical information. 3) The information requested includes name, age, gender, general status, infertility status, pregnancy status, fetal status, and physical features or health conditions of individuals over three generations. In addition, information regarding the client and the proband, and birth order information, including multiple gestation, custody, multiple individuals, donor or surrogate, adoption, and consanguinity may be included. 4) f-treeGC shows only marriages between first cousins via the overlay function. 5) f-treeGC automatically creates a pedigree chart, and the chart-creation process is visible for inspection on the screen in real time. 6) The genealogical data may be saved as a file in the original format. The created/modified date and time may be changed as required, and the file may be password-protected and/or saved in read-only format. To enable sorting or searching from the database, the file name automatically contains the terms typed into the entry fields, including physical features or health conditions, by default. 7) Alternatively, family histories are collected using a completed foldable interview paper sheet named "f-sheet", which is identical to the questionnaire in f-treeGC. We developed a questionnaire-based family tree-creation software, named f-treeGC, which is fully compliant with international recommendations for standardized human pedigree nomenclature. The present software simplifies the process of collecting family histories and pedigrees, and has a variety of uses, from genome cohort studies or primary care to genetic counseling.

Final Draft of RACER Audit

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

Paige, Karen Schultz; Gomez, Penelope E.

This document describes the approach Waste and Environmental Services - Environmental Data and Analysis plans to take to resolve the issues presented in a recent audit of the WES-EDA Environmental Database relative to the RACER database. A majority of the issues discovered in the audit will be resolved in May 2011 when the WES-EDA Environmental Database, along with other LANL databases, are integrated and moved to a new vendor providing an Environmental Information Management (EIM) system that allows reporting capabilities for all users directly from the database. The EIM system will reside in a publicly accessible LANL cloud-based software system.more » When this transition occurs, the data quality, completeness, and access will change significantly. In the remainder of this document, this new structure will be referred to as the LANL Cloud System In general, our plan is to address the issues brought up in this audit in three ways: (1) Data quality issues such as units and detection status, which impinge upon data usability, will be resolved as soon possible so that data quality is maintained. (2) Issues requiring data cleanup, such as look up tables, legacy data, locations, codes, and significant data discrepancies, will be addressed as resources permit. (3) Issues associated with data feed problems will be eliminated by the LANL Cloud System, because there will be no data feed. As discussed in the paragraph above, in the future the data will reside in a publicly accessible system. Note that report writers may choose to convert, adapt, or simplify the information they receive officially through our data base, thereby introducing data discrepancies between the data base and the public report. It is not always possible to incorporate and/or correct these errors when they occur. Issues in the audit will be discussed in the order in which they are presented in the audit report. Clarifications will also be noted as the audit report was a draft document, at the time of this response.« less

Face, content and concurrent validity of the Mimic® dV-Trainer for robot-assisted endoscopic surgery: a prospective study.

PubMed

Egi, H; Hattori, M; Tokunaga, M; Suzuki, T; Kawaguchi, K; Sawada, H; Ohdan, H

2013-01-01

The aim of this study was to determine whether any correlation exists between the performance of the Mimic® dV-Trainer (Mimic Technologies, Seattle, Wash., USA) and the da Vinci Surgical System (Intuitive Surgical, Sunnyvale, Calif., USA). Twelve participants were recruited, ranging from residents to consultants. We used four training tasks, consisting of 'Pick and Place', 'Peg Board', 'Thread the Rings' and 'Suture Sponge', from the software program of the Mimic dV-Trainer. The performance of the participants was recorded and measured. Additionally, we prepared the same tasks for the da Vinci Surgical System. All participants completed the tasks using the da Vinci Surgical System and were assessed according to time, the Objective Structured Assessment of Technical Skill checklist and the global rating score for endoscopic suturing assessed by two independent blinded observers. After performing these tasks, the participants completed a questionnaire that evaluated the Mimic dV-Trainer's face and content validity. The final results for each participant for the Mimic dV-Trainer and the da Vinci Surgical System were compared. All participants ranked the Mimic dV-Trainer as a realistic training platform that is useful for residency training. There was a significant relationship between the Mimic dV-Trainer and the da Vinci Surgical System in all four tasks. We verified the reliability of the assessment of the checklist and the global rating scores for endoscopic suturing assessed by the two blinded observers using Cronbach's alpha test (r = 0.803, 0.891). We evaluated the concurrent validity of the Mimic dV-Trainer and the da Vinci Surgical System. Our results suggest the possibility that training using the Mimic dV-Trainer may therefore be able to improve the operator's performance during live robot-assisted surgery. © 2013 S. Karger AG, Basel.

A patient safety objective structured clinical examination.

PubMed

Singh, Ranjit; Singh, Ashok; Fish, Reva; McLean, Don; Anderson, Diana R; Singh, Gurdev

2009-06-01

There are international calls for improving education for health care workers around certain core competencies, of which patient safety and quality are integral and transcendent parts. Although relevant teaching programs have been developed, little is known about how best to assess their effectiveness. The objective of this work was to develop and implement an objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) to evaluate the impact of a patient safety curriculum. The curriculum was implemented in a family medicine residency program with 47 trainees. Two years after commencing the curriculum, a patient safety OSCE was developed and administered at this program and, for comparison purposes, to incoming residents at the same program and to residents at a neighboring residency program. All 47 residents exposed to the training, all 16 incoming residents, and 10 of 12 residents at the neighboring program participated in the OSCE. In a standardized patient case, error detection and error disclosure skills were better among trained residents. In a chart-based case, trained residents showed better performance in identifying deficiencies in care and described more appropriate means of addressing them. Third year residents exposed to a "Systems Approach" course performed better at system analysis and identifying system-based solutions after the course than before. Results suggest increased systems thinking and inculcation of a culture of safety among residents exposed to a patient safety curriculum. The main weaknesses of the study are its small size and suboptimal design. Much further investigation is needed into the effectiveness of patient safety curricula.

Use of recorded interactive seminars in orthodontic distance education.

PubMed

Miller, Kenneth T; Hannum, Wallace M; Morley, Tarrl; Proffit, William R

2007-09-01

Our objective was evaluate the effectiveness and acceptability of 3 methods of instructor interaction during distance learning with prerecorded seminars in orthodontic residencies and continuing education. After residents at 3 schools (Sydney, Australia; Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada; and Manchester, United Kingdom) viewed a recorded interactive seminar, they discussed its content with the seminar leader at a distance via video conferencing, audio-only interaction by telephone, and Internet chat with Net Meeting software (Microsoft, Bellevue, Wash). The residents then completed evaluations containing both closed- and open-ended questions. In addition, attendees at the Iranian Orthodontic Congress also viewed a recorded seminar, had questions answered via an interpreter in a video conference, and completed summary evaluations. Video conferencing received the highest ratings and was never cited as the least favorite method of interaction. Telephone interaction was a close second in mean scores, and Internet chat was a distant third. All residents stated that they would like to be taught through distance education again. However, the Iranian orthodontists were less enthusiastic. Distance learning based on observation of recorded seminars and follow-up interaction is an acceptable method of instruction that can allow residents and practicing orthodontists access to various materials and experts, and perhaps help to ease the strains of current faculty shortages. More data are needed to determine whether video conferencing is worth the additional cost and complexity over audio-only interaction.

Mobbing Exposure of Anaesthesiology Residents in Turkey

PubMed Central

Aykut, Gülnihal; Efe, Esra Mercanoğlu; Bayraktar, Selcan; Şentürk, Sinem; Başeğmez, İrem; Özkumit, Özlem; Kabak, Elmas; Yavaşçaoğlu, Belgin; Bilgin, Hülya

2016-01-01

Objective In recent years, psychological problems that are caused by working conditions, like burn out syndrome, are more commonly observed. In our study, we aimed to evaluate mobbing exposure, factors causing mobbing and precautions for mobbing in residency students who are educated in anaesthesiology and reanimation clinics in Turkey. Methods After obtaining consent from the ethics committee, we sent our questionnaires to the secretariats of the departments by postal mail. Completed questionnaires were collected in our department’s secretariat blindly and randomly mixed. One hundred and one participants were returned the questionnaires. Data was statistically analysed in SPSS 21.0 software programme. Results During residency programme, sated to have experienced mobbing one or more time. Interestingly, 5.9% participants complained of physical mobbing. Mobbing exposure was more common in females. The most serious new onset psychosomatic symptoms stated during residency were committing suicide (2%), addiction (16%), severe depression (18%), panic attack (8%), more accidents (7%) and tendency of violence (15%). In mobbing group there was statistically significant dissatisfaction rate. Conclusion In professions where mobbing is common, incidences of psychiatric diseases and suicide attempts are high are increased. Who are under risk for experiencing mobbing should be noticed carefully to ensure good judgement and problems should be inspected objectively in a detailed manner. Anesthesiology societies and other medical professional societies should establish mobbing committees. Thus, mobbing problems can be resolved and healthy career oppurtunities can be presented to residents. PMID:27909591

Mobbing Exposure of Anaesthesiology Residents in Turkey.

PubMed

Aykut, Gülnihal; Efe, Esra Mercanoğlu; Bayraktar, Selcan; Şentürk, Sinem; Başeğmez, İrem; Özkumit, Özlem; Kabak, Elmas; Yavaşçaoğlu, Belgin; Bilgin, Hülya

2016-08-01

In recent years, psychological problems that are caused by working conditions, like burn out syndrome, are more commonly observed. In our study, we aimed to evaluate mobbing exposure, factors causing mobbing and precautions for mobbing in residency students who are educated in anaesthesiology and reanimation clinics in Turkey. After obtaining consent from the ethics committee, we sent our questionnaires to the secretariats of the departments by postal mail. Completed questionnaires were collected in our department's secretariat blindly and randomly mixed. One hundred and one participants were returned the questionnaires. Data was statistically analysed in SPSS 21.0 software programme. During residency programme, sated to have experienced mobbing one or more time. Interestingly, 5.9% participants complained of physical mobbing. Mobbing exposure was more common in females. The most serious new onset psychosomatic symptoms stated during residency were committing suicide (2%), addiction (16%), severe depression (18%), panic attack (8%), more accidents (7%) and tendency of violence (15%). In mobbing group there was statistically significant dissatisfaction rate. In professions where mobbing is common, incidences of psychiatric diseases and suicide attempts are high are increased. Who are under risk for experiencing mobbing should be noticed carefully to ensure good judgement and problems should be inspected objectively in a detailed manner. Anesthesiology societies and other medical professional societies should establish mobbing committees. Thus, mobbing problems can be resolved and healthy career oppurtunities can be presented to residents.

The effectiveness of annotated (vs. non-annotated) digital pathology slides as a teaching tool during dermatology and pathology residencies.

PubMed

Marsch, Amanda F; Espiritu, Baltazar; Groth, John; Hutchens, Kelli A

2014-06-01

With today's technology, paraffin-embedded, hematoxylin & eosin-stained pathology slides can be scanned to generate high quality virtual slides. Using proprietary software, digital images can also be annotated with arrows, circles and boxes to highlight certain diagnostic features. Previous studies assessing digital microscopy as a teaching tool did not involve the annotation of digital images. The objective of this study was to compare the effectiveness of annotated digital pathology slides versus non-annotated digital pathology slides as a teaching tool during dermatology and pathology residencies. A study group composed of 31 dermatology and pathology residents was asked to complete an online pre-quiz consisting of 20 multiple choice style questions, each associated with a static digital pathology image. After completion, participants were given access to an online tutorial composed of digitally annotated pathology slides and subsequently asked to complete a post-quiz. A control group of 12 residents completed a non-annotated version of the tutorial. Nearly all participants in the study group improved their quiz score, with an average improvement of 17%, versus only 3% (P = 0.005) in the control group. These results support the notion that annotated digital pathology slides are superior to non-annotated slides for the purpose of resident education. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Analyzing Software Requirements Errors in Safety-Critical, Embedded Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lutz, Robyn R.

1993-01-01

This paper analyzes the root causes of safety-related software errors in safety-critical, embedded systems. The results show that software errors identified as potentially hazardous to the system tend to be produced by different error mechanisms than non- safety-related software errors. Safety-related software errors are shown to arise most commonly from (1) discrepancies between the documented requirements specifications and the requirements needed for correct functioning of the system and (2) misunderstandings of the software's interface with the rest of the system. The paper uses these results to identify methods by which requirements errors can be prevented. The goal is to reduce safety-related software errors and to enhance the safety of complex, embedded systems.

OAST Space Theme Workshop. Volume 3: Working group summary. 4: Software (E-4). A. Summary. B. Technology needs (form 1). C. Priority assessment (form 2)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1976-01-01

Only a few efforts are currently underway to develop an adequate technology base for the various themes. Particular attention must be given to software commonality and evolutionary capability, to increased system integrity and autonomy; and to improved communications among the program users, the program developers, and the programs themselves. There is a need for quantum improvement in software development methods and increasing the awareness of software by all concerned. Major thrusts identified include: (1) data and systems management; (2) software technology for autonomous systems; (3) technology and methods for improving the software development process; (4) advances related to systems of software elements including their architecture, their attributes as systems, and their interfaces with users and other systems; and (5) applications of software including both the basic algorithms used in a number of applications and the software specific to a particular theme or discipline area. The impact of each theme on software is assessed.

Software Design Methods for Real-Time Systems

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-12-01

This module describes the concepts and methods used in the software design of real time systems . It outlines the characteristics of real time systems , describes...the role of software design in real time system development, surveys and compares some software design methods for real - time systems , and

Resident Front Office Experience: A Systems-Based Practice Activity

PubMed Central

Sutkin, Gary; Aronoff, Christine K.

2008-01-01

Purpose: We set out to create and evaluate a systems-based practice experience designed to introduce residents to front office responsibilities and stimulate suggestions for front office improvements. Methods: On two occasions in 2002 and 2006, each resident in the Obstetrics and Gynecology Department was trained by a front office staff member for one day. The residents completed pre- and post-experience surveys, answered open-ended questions about their experience, and volunteered suggestions for improving the front office staff, and were evaluated by their precepting staff member. Results: All but two of 23 particpating residents participated enthusiastically. These residents perceived experiencing the staff as vital to the success of the practice, reported an increased sense of appreciation for the training of staff personnel, and were evaluated favorably. Conclusion: This program gave our residents an appreciation for the training and responsibilities of pivotal office staff and an opportunity to suggest improvements. This program also satisfied ACGME resident education requirements regarding systems-based practice. PMID:20165536

Residents' and attendings' perceptions of a night float system in an internal medicine program in Canada.

PubMed

Saxena, Anurag; Desanghere, Loni; Skomro, Robert P; Wilson, Thomas W

2015-01-01

The Night Float system (NFS) is often used in residency training programs to meet work hour regulations. The purpose of this study was to examine resident and attendings' perceptions of the NFS on issues of resident learning, well-being, work, non-educational activities and the health care system (patient safety and quality of care, inter-professional teams, workload on attendings and costs of on-call coverage). A survey questionnaire with closed and open-ended questions (26 residents and eight attendings in an Internal Medicine program), informal discussions with the program and moonlighting and financial data were collected. The main findings included, (i) an overall congruency in opinions between resident and attendings across all mean comparisons, (ii) perceptions of improvement for most aspects of resident well-being (e.g. stress, fatigue) and work environment (e.g. supervision, support), (iii) a neutral effect on the resident learning environment, except resident opinions on an increase in opportunities for learning, (iv) perceptions of improved patient safety and quality of care despite worsened continuity of care, and (v) no increases in work-load on attendings or the health care system (cost-neutral call coverage). Patient safety, handovers and increased utilization of moonlighting opportunities need further exploration.

Taking the Observatory to the Astronomer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bisque, T. M.

1997-05-01

Since 1992, Software Bisque's Remote Astronomy Software has been used by the Mt. Wilson Institute to allow interactive control of a 24" telescope and digital camera via modem. Software Bisque now introduces a comparable, relatively low-cost observatory system that allows powerful, yet "user-friendly" telescope and CCD camera control via the Internet. Utilizing software developed for the Windows 95/NT operating systems, the system offers point-and-click access to comprehensive celestial databases, extremely accurate telescope pointing, rapid download of digital CCD images by one or many users and flexible image processing software for data reduction and analysis. Our presentation will describe how the power of the personal computer has been leveraged to provide professional-level tools to the amateur astronomer, and include a description of this system's software and hardware components. The system software includes TheSky Astronomy Software?, CCDSoft CCD Astronomy Software?, TPoint Telescope Pointing Analysis System? software, Orchestrate? and, optionally, the RealSky CDs. The system hardware includes the Paramount GT-1100? Robotic Telescope Mount, as well as third party CCD cameras, focusers and optical tube assemblies.

Real-time Electrophysiology: Using Closed-loop Protocols to Probe Neuronal Dynamics and Beyond

PubMed Central

Linaro, Daniele; Couto, João; Giugliano, Michele

2015-01-01

Experimental neuroscience is witnessing an increased interest in the development and application of novel and often complex, closed-loop protocols, where the stimulus applied depends in real-time on the response of the system. Recent applications range from the implementation of virtual reality systems for studying motor responses both in mice1 and in zebrafish2, to control of seizures following cortical stroke using optogenetics3. A key advantage of closed-loop techniques resides in the capability of probing higher dimensional properties that are not directly accessible or that depend on multiple variables, such as neuronal excitability4 and reliability, while at the same time maximizing the experimental throughput. In this contribution and in the context of cellular electrophysiology, we describe how to apply a variety of closed-loop protocols to the study of the response properties of pyramidal cortical neurons, recorded intracellularly with the patch clamp technique in acute brain slices from the somatosensory cortex of juvenile rats. As no commercially available or open source software provides all the features required for efficiently performing the experiments described here, a new software toolbox called LCG5 was developed, whose modular structure maximizes reuse of computer code and facilitates the implementation of novel experimental paradigms. Stimulation waveforms are specified using a compact meta-description and full experimental protocols are described in text-based configuration files. Additionally, LCG has a command-line interface that is suited for repetition of trials and automation of experimental protocols. PMID:26132434

Advanced Monitoring to Improve Combustion Turbine/Combined Cycle Reliability, Availability & Maintainability

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

Leonard Angello

2005-09-30

Power generators are concerned with the maintenance costs associated with the advanced turbines that they are purchasing. Since these machines do not have fully established Operation and Maintenance (O&M) track records, power generators face financial risk due to uncertain future maintenance costs. This risk is of particular concern, as the electricity industry transitions to a competitive business environment in which unexpected O&M costs cannot be passed through to consumers. These concerns have accelerated the need for intelligent software-based diagnostic systems that can monitor the health of a combustion turbine in real time and provide valuable information on the machine's performancemore » to its owner/operators. EPRI, Impact Technologies, Boyce Engineering, and Progress Energy have teamed to develop a suite of intelligent software tools integrated with a diagnostic monitoring platform that, in real time, interpret data to assess the 'total health' of combustion turbines. The 'Combustion Turbine Health Management System' (CTHMS) will consist of a series of 'Dynamic Link Library' (DLL) programs residing on a diagnostic monitoring platform that accepts turbine health data from existing monitoring instrumentation. CTHMS interprets sensor and instrument outputs, correlates them to a machine's condition, provide interpretative analyses, project servicing intervals, and estimate remaining component life. In addition, the CTHMS enables real-time anomaly detection and diagnostics of performance and mechanical faults, enabling power producers to more accurately predict critical component remaining useful life and turbine degradation.« less

Implementing Software Safety in the NASA Environment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wetherholt, Martha S.; Radley, Charles F.

1994-01-01

Until recently, NASA did not consider allowing computers total control of flight systems. Human operators, via hardware, have constituted the ultimate safety control. In an attempt to reduce costs, NASA has come to rely more and more heavily on computers and software to control space missions. (For example. software is now planned to control most of the operational functions of the International Space Station.) Thus the need for systematic software safety programs has become crucial for mission success. Concurrent engineering principles dictate that safety should be designed into software up front, not tested into the software after the fact. 'Cost of Quality' studies have statistics and metrics to prove the value of building quality and safety into the development cycle. Unfortunately, most software engineers are not familiar with designing for safety, and most safety engineers are not software experts. Software written to specifications which have not been safety analyzed is a major source of computer related accidents. Safer software is achieved step by step throughout the system and software life cycle. It is a process that includes requirements definition, hazard analyses, formal software inspections, safety analyses, testing, and maintenance. The greatest emphasis is placed on clearly and completely defining system and software requirements, including safety and reliability requirements. Unfortunately, development and review of requirements are the weakest link in the process. While some of the more academic methods, e.g. mathematical models, may help bring about safer software, this paper proposes the use of currently approved software methodologies, and sound software and assurance practices to show how, to a large degree, safety can be designed into software from the start. NASA's approach today is to first conduct a preliminary system hazard analysis (PHA) during the concept and planning phase of a project. This determines the overall hazard potential of the system to be built. Shortly thereafter, as the system requirements are being defined, the second iteration of hazard analyses takes place, the systems hazard analysis (SHA). During the systems requirements phase, decisions are made as to what functions of the system will be the responsibility of software. This is the most critical time to affect the safety of the software. From this point, software safety analyses as well as software engineering practices are the main focus for assuring safe software. While many of the steps proposed in this paper seem like just sound engineering practices, they are the best technical and most cost effective means to assure safe software within a safe system.

A 360 degrees evaluation of a night-float system for general surgery: a response to mandated work-hours reduction.

PubMed

Goldstein, Michael J; Kim, Eugene; Widmann, Warren D; Hardy, Mark A

2004-01-01

New York State Code 405 and societal/political pressure have led the RRC and ACGME to mandate strict limitations on resident work hours. In an attempt to meet these limitations, we have switched from the previous Q3 call schedule to a specialized night float (NF) system, the continuity-care system (CCS). The purpose of this CCS is to maximize resident duty time spent on direct patient care, operative experience, and outpatient clinics, while reducing duty hours spent on performing routine tasks and call coverage. The implementation of the CCS is the fundamental step in the restructuring of our residency program. In addition to a change in the call system, we added physician assistants to aid in performing some service tasks. We performed a 360 degrees evaluation of this work in progress. In May 2002, the standard Q3 call system was abolished on the general surgery services at the New York Presbyterian Hospital, Columbia campus. Two dedicated teams were created to provide day and night coverage, a day continuity-care team (DCT) and a night continuity-care team (NCT). The DCTs, consisting of PGY1-5 residents, provide daily in-house coverage from 6 AM to 5 PM with no regular weekday night-call responsibilities. The DCT residents provide Friday night, Saturday, and daytime Sunday call coverage 3 to 4 days per month. The NCT, consisting of 5 PGY1-5 residents, provides nightly continuous care, 5 PM to 6 AM, Sunday through Thursday, with no other weekend call responsibilities. This system creates a schedule with less than 80 duty hours per week, on average, with one 24-hour period off a week, one complete weekend off per month, and no more than 24 hours of consecutive duty time. After 1 year of use, the system was evaluated by a 360 degrees method in which residents, residents' spouses, nurses, and faculty were surveyed using a Likert-type scale. Statistical significance was calculated using the Student t-test. Patient satisfaction was measured both by internal review of a patient complaint database as well as by the Press Ganey patient satisfaction surveys. Twenty-one residents, 10 residents' spouses, 11 general surgery faculty, and 16 nurses were surveyed. Statistically significant findings included reduced resident fatigue noted by all groups (residents, p = 0.01; resident spouses, p = 0.05; faculty, p < 0.0001; nurses, p < 0.0001). Further, residents reported more time for sleep at home (p = 0.0005) and more time for independent reading (p = 0.01). Residents' spouses reported increased availability for family events (p = 0.01). Nurses reported increased availability of residents (p = 0.0002), shorter times to physician identification of patient problems (p = 0.0086), improved resident-nursing communications (p = 0.0096), and increased ease of nursing duties (p < 0.0001). Faculty were the only responders who felt that continuity of patient care suffered with the new system (p = 0.02). The Press Ganey review showed improvement in the quality of care rendered as perceived by patients. The institution of a specialized NF or CCS for in-house coverage of general surgical services in a large metropolitan university hospital has had initial success in meeting the mandated changes in resident work hours. The CCS reduced resident fatigue, improved quality of resident life, and improved patient care as judged by patients and nurse.

14 CFR 417.123 - Computing systems and software.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Computing systems and software. 417.123... systems and software. (a) A launch operator must document a system safety process that identifies the... systems and software. (b) A launch operator must identify all safety-critical functions associated with...

14 CFR 417.123 - Computing systems and software.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Computing systems and software. 417.123... systems and software. (a) A launch operator must document a system safety process that identifies the... systems and software. (b) A launch operator must identify all safety-critical functions associated with...

14 CFR 417.123 - Computing systems and software.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Computing systems and software. 417.123... systems and software. (a) A launch operator must document a system safety process that identifies the... systems and software. (b) A launch operator must identify all safety-critical functions associated with...

14 CFR 417.123 - Computing systems and software.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Computing systems and software. 417.123... systems and software. (a) A launch operator must document a system safety process that identifies the... systems and software. (b) A launch operator must identify all safety-critical functions associated with...

14 CFR 417.123 - Computing systems and software.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Computing systems and software. 417.123... systems and software. (a) A launch operator must document a system safety process that identifies the... systems and software. (b) A launch operator must identify all safety-critical functions associated with...

Advanced software techniques for data management systems. Volume 1: Study of software aspects of the phase B space shuttle avionics system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Martin, F. H.

1972-01-01

An overview of the executive system design task is presented. The flight software executive system, software verification, phase B baseline avionics system review, higher order languages and compilers, and computer hardware features are also discussed.

Network, system, and status software enhancements for the autonomously managed electrical power system breadboard. Volume 1: Project summary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mckee, James W.

1990-01-01

This volume (1 of 4) gives a summary of the original AMPS software system configuration, points out some of the problem areas in the original software design that this project is to address, and in the appendix collects all the bimonthly status reports. The purpose of AMPS is to provide a self reliant system to control the generation and distribution of power in the space station. The software in the AMPS breadboard can be divided into three levels: the operating environment software, the protocol software, and the station specific software. This project deals only with the operating environment software and the protocol software. The present station specific software will not change except as necessary to conform to new data formats.

Software system safety

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Uber, James G.

1988-01-01

Software itself is not hazardous, but since software and hardware share common interfaces there is an opportunity for software to create hazards. Further, these software systems are complex, and proven methods for the design, analysis, and measurement of software safety are not yet available. Some past software failures, future NASA software trends, software engineering methods, and tools and techniques for various software safety analyses are reviewed. Recommendations to NASA are made based on this review.

Software And Systems Engineering Risk Management

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-04-01

RSKM 2004 COSO Enterprise RSKM Framework 2006 ISO/IEC 16085 Risk Management Process 2008 ISO/IEC 12207 Software Lifecycle Processes 2009 ISO/IEC...1 Software And Systems Engineering Risk Management John Walz VP Technical and Conferences Activities, IEEE Computer Society Vice-Chair Planning...Software & Systems Engineering Standards Committee, IEEE Computer Society US TAG to ISO TMB Risk Management Working Group Systems and Software

Smartphones, tablets and mobile applications for radiology.

PubMed

Székely, András; Talanow, Roland; Bágyi, Péter

2013-05-01

Smartphones are phone devices that may also be used for browsing, navigation and running smaller computer programs called applications. One may consider them as compact personal computers which are primarily to be used for making phone calls. Tablets or "tablet PCs" are fully functioning standalone computers the size of a thin LCD monitor that use the screen itself for control and data input. Both of these devices may be categorized based on the mobile operating system that they use. The aim of this study is to illustrate how smartphones and tablets can be used by diagnostic imaging professionals, radiographers and residents, and to introduce relevant applications that are available for their field. A search was performed on iTunes, Android Market, Blackberry App World, and Windows Phone Marketplace for mobile applications pertinent to the field of diagnostic imaging. The following terms were applied for the search strategy: (1) radiology, (2) X-ray, (3) ultrasound, (4) MRI, (5) CT, (6) radiographer, (7) nuclear medicine. Two radiologists and one radiology resident reviewed the results. Our review was limited to english-language software. Additional applications were identified by reviewing the list of similar software provided in the description of each application. We downloaded and installed all applications that appeared relevant to an appropriate mobile phone or tablet device. We identified and reviewed a total of 102 applications. We ruled out 1 non-English application and 20 other applications that were created for entertainment purposes. Thus our final list includes 81 applications in the following five categories: diagnostic reading, decision support applications, medical books, interactive encyclopedias, and journal reading programs. Smartphones and tablets offer new opportunities for diagnostic imaging practitioners; these easy-to-use devices equipped with excellent display may be used for diagnostic reading, reference, learning, consultation, and for communication with patients. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

The role of the resid solvent in coprocessing

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

Curtis, C.W.

1995-12-31

The objective of this project is to determine the role of petroleum resid in coprocessing of coal and resid. The question being asked is whether the resid is a reactant in the system or whether the resid is a merely a diluent that is being simultaneously upgraded? To fulfill the objective the hydrogen transfer from model compounds, naphthenes that represent petroleum resids to model acceptors is being determined. The specificity of different catalytic systems for promoting the hydrogen transfer from naphthenes to model acceptors and to coal is also being determined. In addition the efficacy of hydrogen transfer from andmore » solvancy of whole and specific resid fractions under coprocessing conditions is being determined.« less

22 CFR 121.8 - End-items, components, accessories, attachments, parts, firmware, software, and systems.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

..., parts, firmware, software, and systems. 121.8 Section 121.8 Foreign Relations DEPARTMENT OF STATE...-items, components, accessories, attachments, parts, firmware, software, and systems. (a) An end-item is.... Firmware includes but is not limited to circuits into which software has been programmed. (f) Software...

22 CFR 121.8 - End-items, components, accessories, attachments, parts, firmware, software and systems.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

..., parts, firmware, software and systems. 121.8 Section 121.8 Foreign Relations DEPARTMENT OF STATE...-items, components, accessories, attachments, parts, firmware, software and systems. (a) An end-item is.... Firmware includes but is not limited to circuits into which software has been programmed. (f) Software...

22 CFR 121.8 - End-items, components, accessories, attachments, parts, firmware, software and systems.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

..., parts, firmware, software and systems. 121.8 Section 121.8 Foreign Relations DEPARTMENT OF STATE...-items, components, accessories, attachments, parts, firmware, software and systems. (a) An end-item is.... Firmware includes but is not limited to circuits into which software has been programmed. (f) Software...

22 CFR 121.8 - End-items, components, accessories, attachments, parts, firmware, software and systems.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

..., parts, firmware, software and systems. 121.8 Section 121.8 Foreign Relations DEPARTMENT OF STATE...-items, components, accessories, attachments, parts, firmware, software and systems. (a) An end-item is.... Firmware includes but is not limited to circuits into which software has been programmed. (f) Software...

22 CFR 121.8 - End-items, components, accessories, attachments, parts, firmware, software and systems.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

..., parts, firmware, software and systems. 121.8 Section 121.8 Foreign Relations DEPARTMENT OF STATE...-items, components, accessories, attachments, parts, firmware, software and systems. (a) An end-item is.... Firmware includes but is not limited to circuits into which software has been programmed. (f) Software...

Experience of health-system pharmacy administration residents in a longitudinal human resource management program.

PubMed

Amerine, Lindsey B Poppe; Granko, Robert P; Savage, Scott W; Daniels, Rowell; Eckel, Stephen F

2014-12-15

The experience of health-system pharmacy administration (HSPA) residents in a longitudinal human resource (HR) management program is described. The subsequent benefits to the residents, department, and profession are also discussed. Postgraduate year 2 HSPA residents at an academic medical center desired more responsibility for managing an operational area. To this end, a program was created in which these residents directly manage a small group of pharmacy technicians and report to a clinical manager or assistant director with oversight responsibility. These "resident managers" are responsible, under the direction of the area's clinical manager, for the personnel, schedule, time and attendance, and HR activities of the area. Resident managers have led and sustained operational improvement projects in their areas. In addition to providing learning experiences to residents, the HSPA residency program has also improved the operations of the areas in which these residents work. Benefits to the residents include conducting annual performance evaluations for employees with whom they have a relationship as it is a task every administrator completes. Resident managers at UNC have consistently stated that this longitudinal HR experience is one of the most rewarding and most challenging experiences offered in the two-year HSPA residency. The involvement of HSPA residents in longitudinal management responsibilities furthers residents' leadership success by providing trained managers who are ready to immerse themselves into practice postresidency, having employee engagement and HR skills as well as experiences with leading operational improvements. A longitudinal HR management experience was successfully incorporated into an HSPA residency combined Master of Science degree program. Copyright © 2014 by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, Inc. All rights reserved.

Advance care planning for residents in aged care facilities: what is best practice and how can evidence-based guidelines be implemented?

PubMed

Lyon, Cheryl

2007-12-01

Background  Advance care planning in a residential care setting aims to assist residents to make decisions about future healthcare and to improve end-of-life care through medical and care staff knowing and respecting the wishes of the resident. The process enables individuals and others who are important to them, to reflect on what is important to the resident including their beliefs/values and preferences about care when they are dying. This paper describes a project conducted as part of the Joanna Briggs Institute Clinical Aged Care Fellowship Program implemented at the Manningham Centre in metropolitan Melbourne in a unit providing services for 46 low and high care residents. Objectives  The objectives of the study were to document implementation of best practice in advance care planning in a residential aged care facility using a cycle of audit, feedback and re-audit cycle audit with a clinical audit software program, the Practical Application of Clinical Evidence System. The evidence-based guidelines found in 'Guidelines for a Palliative Approach in Residential Aged Care' were used to inform the process of clinical practice review and to develop a program to implement advance care planning. Results  The pre-implementation audit results showed that advance care planning practice was not based on high level evidence as initial compliance with five audit criteria was 0%. The barriers to implementation that became apparent during the feedback stage included the challenge of creating a culture where advance care planning policy, protocols and guidelines could be implemented, and advance care planning discussions held, by adequately prepared health professionals and carers. Opportunities were made to equip the resident to discuss their wishes with family, friends and healthcare staff. Some residents made the decision to take steps to formally document those wishes and/or appoint a Medical Enduring Power of Attorney to act on behalf of the resident when they are unable to communicate wishes. The post-implementation audit showed a clear improvement as compliance ranged from 15-100% for the five audit criteria. Strong leadership by the project team was effective in engaging staff in this quality improvement program. Conclusion  The outcomes of the project were extremely positive and demonstrate a genuine improvement in practice. All audit criteria indicate that the Manningham Centre is now positively working towards improved practice based on the best available evidence. It is hoped that as the expertise developed during this project is shared, other areas of gerontological practice will be similarly improved and more facilities caring for the older person will embrace evidence-based practice.

Psychometric characteristics of Clinical Reasoning Problems (CRPs) and its correlation with routine multiple choice question (MCQ) in Cardiology department

PubMed Central

DERAKHSHANDEH, ZAHRA; AMINI, MITRA; KOJURI, JAVAD; DEHBOZORGIAN, MARZIYEH

2018-01-01

Introduction: Clinical reasoning is one of the most important skills in the process of training a medical student to become an efficient physician. Assessment of the reasoning skills in a medical school program is important to direct students’ learning. One of the tests for measuring the clinical reasoning ability is Clinical Reasoning Problems (CRPs). The major aim of this study is to measure psychometric qualities of CRPs and define correlation between this test and routine MCQ in cardiology department of Shiraz medical school. Methods: This study was a descriptive study conducted on total cardiology residents of Shiraz Medical School. The study population consists of 40 residents in 2014. The routine CRPs and the MCQ tests was designed based on similar objectives and were carried out simultaneously. Reliability, item difficulty, item discrimination, and correlation between each item and the total score of CRPs were all measured by Excel and SPSS software for checking psycometeric CRPs test. Furthermore, we calculated the correlation between CRPs test and MCQ test. The mean differences of CRPs test score between residents’ academic year [second, third and fourth year] were also evaluated by Analysis of variances test (One Way ANOVA) using SPSS software (version 20)(α=0.05). Results: The mean and standard deviation of score in CRPs was 10.19 ±3.39 out of 20; in MCQ, it was 13.15±3.81 out of 20. Item difficulty was in the range of 0.27-0.72; item discrimination was 0.30-0.75 with question No.3 being the exception (that was 0.24). The correlation between each item and the total score of CRP was 0.26-0.87; the correlation between CRPs test and MCQ test was 0.68 (p<0.001). The reliability of the CRPs was 0.72 as calculated by using Cronbach's alpha. The mean score of CRPs was different among residents based on their academic year and this difference was statistically significant (p<0.001). Conclusion: The results of this present investigation revealed that CRPs could be reliable test for measuring clinical reasoning in residents. It can be included in cardiology residency assessment programs. PMID:29344528

ATIP Report: Cyber Security Research in China

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-06-05

vulnerabilities. ATIP Document ID: 150605AR CYBER SECURITY RESEARCH IN CHINA 17 Le GUAN et al. at SKLOIS of IIE, CAS proposed a solution named “ Mimosa ...that protects RSA private keys against the above software-based and physical memory attacks. When the Mimosa service is in idle, private keys are...encrypted and reside in memory as ciphertext. During the cryptographic computing, Mimosa uses hardware transactional memory (HTM) to ensure that (a

Diversity of the Marine Cyanobacterium Trichodesmium: Characterization of the Woods Hole Culture Collection and Quantification of Field Populations

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-09-01

using her beadbeater, Sonya Dyhrman for being my initial biology advisor, Heidi Sosik for her advice on image processing , the residents of Watson...64 2-17 Phycobiliprotein absorption spectra . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 3-1 Image processing for automated cell counts...digital camera and Axiovision 4.6.3 software. Images were measured, and cell metrics were determined using the MATLAB image processing toolbox

A Survey of Commonly Applied Methods for Software Process Improvement

DTIC Science & Technology

1994-02-01

conducted a controlled experimental study of the effectiveness of the method. They compared 10 cleanroom teams with 5 non -cleanroom teams working for six...Robert D. Austin Doctoral Candidate Carnegie Mellon University Daniel J. Paulish Resident Affiliate Siemens Corporate Research , Inc. Accesion For0...the U.S. Department of Defense. Copyright 0 1994 by Carnegie Mellon University. Copies of the documen are available from Research Access. Iinc., 800

Collaborative Interactive Visualization Exploratory Concept

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-06-01

the FIAC concepts. It consists of various DRDC-RDDC-2015-N004 intelligence analysis web services build of top of big data technologies exploited...sits on the UDS where validated common knowledge is stored. Based on the Lumify software2, this important component exploits big data technologies such...interfaces. Above this database resides the Big Data Manager responsible for transparent data transmission between the UDS and the rest of the S3

Knowledge and Perception of Consumption of Iodized Salt Among Food Handlers in Southern Ethiopia.

PubMed

Haji, Yusuf; Abdurahmen, Junayde; Paulos, Wondimagegn

2016-01-01

Iodine deficiency is the world's single most important cause of preventable mental retardation. In Ethiopia, the knowledge and perception of food handlers toward the iodized salt consumption (ISC) was very low. To assess knowledge and perception of food handlers toward consumption of iodized salt in Wolaita Sodo town and Sodo Zuria woreda, 2014. The community-based cross-sectional study design was done from May 10 to May 30, 2014 in Sodo town and Sodo Zuria woreda (district), Wolaita zone, southern Ethiopia. Systematic sampling techniques were used to identify study participants. Data entered into the software Epi Info version 3.5.3 and analyzed using the software SPSS version 16. To assess an association, odds ratio was used at 95% confidence interval, whereas confounding was controlled by employing multivariate logistic regression. Lower knowledge and perception on iodine deficiency was observed. About 239 (44.7%) of the respondents had good knowledge and 228 (42.6%) had positive attitude toward consumption of iodized salt. Most (346, 64.7%) of the participants had heard about goiter, whereas only 170 (31.8%) of them associated it with iodine deficiency. About 46.4% of respondents heard about iodized salt. Respondents' age, education, family income, place of residence, and occupation had significant association with good knowledge and positive attitude toward consumption of iodized salt. The study revealed the existence of knowledge and perception gap in iodine deficiency disorder and ISC. Household income, education of respondents, and place of residence were determinant factors for poor knowledge and perception of iodized salt. Therefore, efforts to scale-up the knowledge and perception toward ISC should focus on households with low income, educational level, and rural residence.

Software Architecture for Big Data Systems

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-03-27

Software Architecture: Trends and New Directions #SEIswArch © 2014 Carnegie Mellon University Software Architecture for Big Data Systems...AND SUBTITLE Software Architecture for Big Data Systems 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER 5b. GRANT NUMBER 5c. PROGRAM ELEMENT NUMBER 6. AUTHOR(S) 5d. PROJECT...ih - . Software Architecture: Trends and New Directions #SEIswArch © 2014 Carnegie Mellon University WHAT IS BIG DATA ? FROM A SOFTWARE

Effects of a night-team system on resident sleep and work hours.

PubMed

Chua, Kao-Ping; Gordon, Mary Beth; Sectish, Theodore; Landrigan, Christopher P

2011-12-01

In 2009, Children's Hospital Boston implemented a night-team system on general pediatric wards to reduce extended work shifts. Residents worked 5 consecutive nights for 1 week and worked day shifts for the remainder of the rotation. Of note, resident staffing at night decreased under this system. The objective of this study was to assess the effects of this system on resident sleep and work hours. We conducted a prospective cohort study in which residents on the night-team system logged their sleep and work hours on work days. These data were compared with similar data collected in 2004, when there was a traditional call system. In 2004 and 2009, mean shift length was 15.22 ± 6.86 and 12.92 ± 5.70 hours, respectively (P = .161). Daily work hours were 10.49 ± 6.85 and 8.79 ± 6.42 hours, respectively (P = .08). Nightly sleep time decreased from 6.72 ± 2.60 to 4.77 ± 2.46 hours (P < .001). Total sleep time decreased from 7.50 ± 3.13 to 5.47 ± 2.34 hours (P < .001). Implementation of a night-team system was unexpectedly associated with decreased sleep hours. As residency programs create work schedules that are compliant with the 2011 Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education duty-hour standards, resident sleep should be monitored carefully.

A Probabilistic Software System Attribute Acceptance Paradigm for COTS Software Evaluation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Morris, A. Terry

2005-01-01

Standard software requirement formats are written from top-down perspectives only, that is, from an ideal notion of a client s needs. Despite the exactness of the standard format, software and system errors in designed systems have abounded. Bad and inadequate requirements have resulted in cost overruns, schedule slips and lost profitability. Commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) software components are even more troublesome than designed systems because they are often provided as is and subsequently delivered with unsubstantiated validation of described capabilities. For COTS software, there needs to be a way to express the client s software needs in a consistent and formal manner using software system attributes derived from software quality standards. Additionally, the format needs to be amenable to software evaluation processes that integrate observable evidence garnered from historical data. This paper presents a paradigm that effectively bridges the gap between what a client desires (top-down) and what has been demonstrated (bottom-up) for COTS software evaluation. The paradigm addresses the specification of needs before the software evaluation is performed and can be used to increase the shared understanding between clients and software evaluators about what is required and what is technically possible.

Survey of New York City Resident Physicians on Cause-of-Death Reporting, 2010

PubMed Central

Wexelman, Barbara A.; Eden, Edward

2013-01-01

Introduction Death certificates contain critical information for epidemiology, public health research, disease surveillance, and community health programs. In most teaching hospitals, resident physicians complete death certificates. The objective of this study was to examine the experiences and opinions of physician residents in New York City on the accuracy of the cause-of-death reporting system. Methods In May and June 2010, we conducted an anonymous, Internet-based, 32-question survey of all internal medicine, emergency medicine, and general surgery residency programs (n = 70) in New York City. We analyzed data by type of residency and by resident experience in reporting deaths. We defined high-volume respondents as those who completed 11 or more death certificates in the last 3 years. Results A total of 521 residents from 38 residency programs participated (program response rate, 54%). We identified 178 (34%) high-volume respondents. Only 33.3% of all respondents and 22.7% of high-volume residents believed that cause-of-death reporting is accurate. Of all respondents, 48.6% had knowingly reported an inaccurate cause of death; 58.4% of high-volume residents had done so. Of respondents who indicated they reported an inaccurate cause, 76.8% said the system would not accept the correct cause, 40.5% said admitting office personnel instructed them to “put something else,” and 30.7% said the medical examiner instructed them to do so; 64.6% cited cardiovascular disease as the most frequent diagnosis inaccurately reported. Conclusion Most resident physicians believed the current cause-of-death reporting system is inaccurate, often knowingly documenting incorrect causes. The system should be improved to allow reporting of more causes, and residents should receive better training on completing death certificates. PMID:23660118

Configuration management and software measurement in the Ground Systems Development Environment (GSDE)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Church, Victor E.; Long, D.; Hartenstein, Ray; Perez-Davila, Alfredo

1992-01-01

A set of functional requirements for software configuration management (CM) and metrics reporting for Space Station Freedom ground systems software are described. This report is one of a series from a study of the interfaces among the Ground Systems Development Environment (GSDE), the development systems for the Space Station Training Facility (SSTF) and the Space Station Control Center (SSCC), and the target systems for SSCC and SSTF. The focus is on the CM of the software following delivery to NASA and on the software metrics that relate to the quality and maintainability of the delivered software. The CM and metrics requirements address specific problems that occur in large-scale software development. Mechanisms to assist in the continuing improvement of mission operations software development are described.

[Evaluation and impact on the use of information and communication technology in the clinical management and agreed shared monitoring of pressure ulcers].

PubMed

Bueno Yáñez, Olga; Rodríguez Arrieta, Jimena; Bagüés Bafaluy, Miren I; Calvo Aguirre, Juan José

2015-01-01

Tackling the huge problem of Pressure Ulcers (PU), involves looking for new recording methods and strategies, as well as the standardization of the assessment and intervention criteria. In this context, a specific software application for PU management has been developed and was used for assessing its acceptability, usefulness and applicability by professional nurses from three residential homes for the elderly over a period of one year. A software application is designed and evaluated. This software application allows health professionals to: Manage and monitor PUs.; to determine the risk of PUs; and perform a nutritional status screen, based on a comprehensive data collection, processing and interpretation. It also allows health professionals to exchange data between themselves and at different care levels, which could provide a new approach based on the use of ICT as a tool for an agreement to shared care. This approach has an important journey ahead in terms of its assessment, to which we attempt to contribute through this article. Three centres and 69 residents are taking part in this project. During these processes, 27 nutritional status screens and 22 PU risk assessments, as well as the monitoring of 230 PUs have been performed. Nurses professionals think that the system is useful, easy to use, and perceive that it improves patient monitoring, but not relationship between professionals. Moreover, they would like to makethe web a more powerful part of the application and to speed up the procedures. Copyright © 2014 SEGG. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

AMPS/PC - AUTOMATIC MANUFACTURING PROGRAMMING SYSTEM

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schroer, B. J.

1994-01-01

The AMPS/PC system is a simulation tool designed to aid the user in defining the specifications of a manufacturing environment and then automatically writing code for the target simulation language, GPSS/PC. The domain of problems that AMPS/PC can simulate are manufacturing assembly lines with subassembly lines and manufacturing cells. The user defines the problem domain by responding to the questions from the interface program. Based on the responses, the interface program creates an internal problem specification file. This file includes the manufacturing process network flow and the attributes for all stations, cells, and stock points. AMPS then uses the problem specification file as input for the automatic code generator program to produce a simulation program in the target language GPSS. The output of the generator program is the source code of the corresponding GPSS/PC simulation program. The system runs entirely on an IBM PC running PC DOS Version 2.0 or higher and is written in Turbo Pascal Version 4 requiring 640K memory and one 360K disk drive. To execute the GPSS program, the PC must have resident the GPSS/PC System Version 2.0 from Minuteman Software. The AMPS/PC program was developed in 1988.

Three-dimensional brain arteriovenous malformation models for clinical use and resident training.

PubMed

Dong, Mengqi; Chen, Guangzhong; Li, Jianyi; Qin, Kun; Ding, Xiaowen; Peng, Chao; Zhou, Dong; Lin, Xiaofeng

2018-01-01

To fabricate three-dimensional (3D) models of brain arteriovenous malformation (bAVM) and report our experience with customized 3D printed models of patients with bAVM as an educational and clinical tool for patients, doctors, and surgical residents. Using computerized tomography angiography (CTA) or digital subtraction angiography (DSA) images, the rapid prototyping process was completed with specialized software and "in-house" 3D printing service. Intraoperative validation of model fidelity was performed by comparing to DSA images of the same patient during the endovascular treatment process. 3D bAVM models were used for preoperative patient education and consultation, surgical planning, and resident training. 3D printed bAVM models were successful made. By neurosurgeons' evaluation, the printed models precisely replicated the actual bAVM structure of the same patients (n = 7, 97% concordance, range 95%-99% with average of < 2 mm variation). The use of 3D models was associated shorter time for preoperative patient education and consultation, higher acceptable of the procedure for patients and relatives, shorter time between obtaining intraoperative DSA data and the start of endovascular treatment. Thirty surgical residents from residency programs tested the bAVM models and provided feedback on their resemblance to real bAVM structures and the usefulness of printed solid model as an educational tool. Patient-specific 3D printed models of bAVM can be constructed with high fidelity. 3D printed bAVM models were proven to be helpful in preoperative patient consultation, surgical planning, and resident training. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.

Debugging and Performance Analysis Software Tools for Peregrine System |

Science.gov Websites

High-Performance Computing | NREL Debugging and Performance Analysis Software Tools for Peregrine System Debugging and Performance Analysis Software Tools for Peregrine System Learn about debugging and performance analysis software tools available to use with the Peregrine system. Allinea

75 FR 5146 - Hewlett Packard Company Business Critical Systems, Mission Critical Business Software Division...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-02-01

... Packard Company Business Critical Systems, Mission Critical Business Software Division, OpenVMS Operating... Software Division, OpenVMS Operating System Development Group, Including an Employee Operating Out of the..., Mission Critical Business Software Division, OpenVMS Operating System Development Group, including...

Achieving Better Buying Power through Acquisition of Open Architecture Software Systems for Web-Based and Mobile Devices

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-05-01

Achieving Better Buying Power through Acquisition of Open Architecture Software Systems for Web-Based and Mobile Devices Walt Scacchi and Thomas...2015 to 00-00-2015 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Achieving Better Buying Power through Acquisition of Open Architecture Software Systems for Web-Based and...architecture (OA) software systems  Emerging challenges in achieving Better Buying Power (BBP) via OA software systems for Web- based and Mobile devices

Computer software.

PubMed

Rosenthal, L E

1986-10-01

Software is the component in a computer system that permits the hardware to perform the various functions that a computer system is capable of doing. The history of software and its development can be traced to the early nineteenth century. All computer systems are designed to utilize the "stored program concept" as first developed by Charles Babbage in the 1850s. The concept was lost until the mid-1940s, when modern computers made their appearance. Today, because of the complex and myriad tasks that a computer system can perform, there has been a differentiation of types of software. There is software designed to perform specific business applications. There is software that controls the overall operation of a computer system. And there is software that is designed to carry out specialized tasks. Regardless of types, software is the most critical component of any computer system. Without it, all one has is a collection of circuits, transistors, and silicone chips.

Software Management for the NOνAExperiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Davies, G. S.; Davies, J. P.; C Group; Rebel, B.; Sachdev, K.; Zirnstein, J.

2015-12-01

The NOvAsoftware (NOνASoft) is written in C++, and built on the Fermilab Computing Division's art framework that uses ROOT analysis software. NOνASoftmakes use of more than 50 external software packages, is developed by more than 50 developers and is used by more than 100 physicists from over 30 universities and laboratories in 3 continents. The software builds are handled by Fermilab's custom version of Software Release Tools (SRT), a UNIX based software management system for large, collaborative projects that is used by several experiments at Fermilab. The system provides software version control with SVN configured in a client-server mode and is based on the code originally developed by the BaBar collaboration. In this paper, we present efforts towards distributing the NOvA software via the CernVM File System distributed file system. We will also describe our recent work to use a CMake build system and Jenkins, the open source continuous integration system, for NOνASoft.

Engineering Complex Embedded Systems with State Analysis and the Mission Data System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ingham, Michel D.; Rasmussen, Robert D.; Bennett, Matthew B.; Moncada, Alex C.

2004-01-01

It has become clear that spacecraft system complexity is reaching a threshold where customary methods of control are no longer affordable or sufficiently reliable. At the heart of this problem are the conventional approaches to systems and software engineering based on subsystem-level functional decomposition, which fail to scale in the tangled web of interactions typically encountered in complex spacecraft designs. Furthermore, there is a fundamental gap between the requirements on software specified by systems engineers and the implementation of these requirements by software engineers. Software engineers must perform the translation of requirements into software code, hoping to accurately capture the systems engineer's understanding of the system behavior, which is not always explicitly specified. This gap opens up the possibility for misinterpretation of the systems engineer s intent, potentially leading to software errors. This problem is addressed by a systems engineering methodology called State Analysis, which provides a process for capturing system and software requirements in the form of explicit models. This paper describes how requirements for complex aerospace systems can be developed using State Analysis and how these requirements inform the design of the system software, using representative spacecraft examples.

Software archeology: a case study in software quality assurance and design

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

Macdonald, John M; Lloyd, Jane A; Turner, Cameron J

2009-01-01

Ideally, quality is designed into software, just as quality is designed into hardware. However, when dealing with legacy systems, demonstrating that the software meets required quality standards may be difficult to achieve. As the need to demonstrate the quality of existing software was recognized at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), an effort was initiated to uncover and demonstrate that legacy software met the required quality standards. This effort led to the development of a reverse engineering approach referred to as software archaeology. This paper documents the software archaeology approaches used at LANL to document legacy software systems. A case studymore » for the Robotic Integrated Packaging System (RIPS) software is included.« less

Putting Safety in the Software

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wetherholt, Martha S.; Berens, Kalynnda M.; Hardy, Sandra (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

Software is a vital component of nearly every piece of modern technology. It is not a 'sub-system', able to be separated out from the system as a whole, but a 'co-system' that controls, manipulates, or interacts with the hardware and with the end user. Software has its fingers into all the pieces of the pie. If that 'pie', the system, can lead to injury, death, loss of major equipment, or impact your business bottom line, then software safety becomes vitally important. Learning to think about software from a safety perspective is the focus of this paper. We want you to think of software as part of the safety critical system, a major part. This requires 'system thinking' - being able to grasp the whole picture. Software's contribution to modern technology is both good and potentially bad. Software allows more complex and useful devices to be built. It can also contribute to plane crashes and power outages. We want you to see software in a whole new light, see it as a contributor to system hazards, and also as a possible fix or mitigation to some of those hazards.

Software Engineering Improvement Plan

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2006-01-01

In performance of this task order, bd Systems personnel provided support to the Flight Software Branch and the Software Working Group through multiple tasks related to software engineering improvement and to activities of the independent Technical Authority (iTA) Discipline Technical Warrant Holder (DTWH) for software engineering. To ensure that the products, comments, and recommendations complied with customer requirements and the statement of work, bd Systems personnel maintained close coordination with the customer. These personnel performed work in areas such as update of agency requirements and directives database, software effort estimation, software problem reports, a web-based process asset library, miscellaneous documentation review, software system requirements, issue tracking software survey, systems engineering NPR, and project-related reviews. This report contains a summary of the work performed and the accomplishments in each of these areas.

Variability in Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education Resident Case Log System practices among orthopaedic surgery residents.

PubMed

Salazar, Dane; Schiff, Adam; Mitchell, Erika; Hopkinson, William

2014-02-05

The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) Resident Case Log System is designed to be a reflection of residents' operative volume and an objective measure of their surgical experience. All operative procedures and manipulations in the operating room, Emergency Department, and outpatient clinic are to be logged into the Resident Case Log System. Discrepancies in the log volumes between residents and residency programs often prompt scrutiny. However, it remains unclear if such disparities truly represent differences in operative experiences or if they are reflections of inconsistent logging practices. The purpose of this study was to investigate individual recording practices among orthopaedic surgery residents prior to August 1, 2011. Orthopaedic surgery residents received a questionnaire on case log practices that was distributed through the Council of Orthopaedic Residency Directors list server. Respondents were asked to respond anonymously about recording practices in different clinical settings as well as types of cases routinely logged. Hypothetical scenarios of common orthopaedic procedures were presented to investigate the differences in the Current Procedural Terminology codes utilized. Two hundred and ninety-eight orthopaedic surgery residents completed the questionnaire; 37% were fifth-year residents, 22% were fourth-year residents, 18% were third-year residents, 15% were second-year residents, and 8% were first-year residents. Fifty-six percent of respondents reported routinely logging procedures performed in the Emergency Department or urgent care setting. Twenty-two percent of participants routinely logged procedures in the clinic or outpatient setting, 20% logged joint injections, and only 13% logged casts or splints applied in the office setting. There was substantial variability in the Current Procedural Terminology codes selected for the seven clinical scenarios. There has been a lack of standardization in case-logging practices among orthopaedic surgery residents prior to August 1, 2011. ACGME case log data prior to this date may not be a reliable measure of residents' procedural experience.

Software metrics: Software quality metrics for distributed systems. [reliability engineering

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Post, J. V.

1981-01-01

Software quality metrics was extended to cover distributed computer systems. Emphasis is placed on studying embedded computer systems and on viewing them within a system life cycle. The hierarchy of quality factors, criteria, and metrics was maintained. New software quality factors were added, including survivability, expandability, and evolvability.

14 CFR 415.123 - Computing systems and software.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Computing systems and software. 415.123... Launch Vehicle From a Non-Federal Launch Site § 415.123 Computing systems and software. (a) An applicant's safety review document must describe all computing systems and software that perform a safety...

14 CFR 415.123 - Computing systems and software.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Computing systems and software. 415.123... Launch Vehicle From a Non-Federal Launch Site § 415.123 Computing systems and software. (a) An applicant's safety review document must describe all computing systems and software that perform a safety...

14 CFR 415.123 - Computing systems and software.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Computing systems and software. 415.123... Launch Vehicle From a Non-Federal Launch Site § 415.123 Computing systems and software. (a) An applicant's safety review document must describe all computing systems and software that perform a safety...

14 CFR 415.123 - Computing systems and software.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Computing systems and software. 415.123... Launch Vehicle From a Non-Federal Launch Site § 415.123 Computing systems and software. (a) An applicant's safety review document must describe all computing systems and software that perform a safety...

14 CFR 415.123 - Computing systems and software.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Computing systems and software. 415.123... Launch Vehicle From a Non-Federal Launch Site § 415.123 Computing systems and software. (a) An applicant's safety review document must describe all computing systems and software that perform a safety...

Models for Deploying Open Source and Commercial Software to Support Earth Science Data Processing and Distribution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yetman, G.; Downs, R. R.

2011-12-01

Software deployment is needed to process and distribute scientific data throughout the data lifecycle. Developing software in-house can take software development teams away from other software development projects and can require efforts to maintain the software over time. Adopting and reusing software and system modules that have been previously developed by others can reduce in-house software development and maintenance costs and can contribute to the quality of the system being developed. A variety of models are available for reusing and deploying software and systems that have been developed by others. These deployment models include open source software, vendor-supported open source software, commercial software, and combinations of these approaches. Deployment in Earth science data processing and distribution has demonstrated the advantages and drawbacks of each model. Deploying open source software offers advantages for developing and maintaining scientific data processing systems and applications. By joining an open source community that is developing a particular system module or application, a scientific data processing team can contribute to aspects of the software development without having to commit to developing the software alone. Communities of interested developers can share the work while focusing on activities that utilize in-house expertise and addresses internal requirements. Maintenance is also shared by members of the community. Deploying vendor-supported open source software offers similar advantages to open source software. However, by procuring the services of a vendor, the in-house team can rely on the vendor to provide, install, and maintain the software over time. Vendor-supported open source software may be ideal for teams that recognize the value of an open source software component or application and would like to contribute to the effort, but do not have the time or expertise to contribute extensively. Vendor-supported software may also have the additional benefits of guaranteed up-time, bug fixes, and vendor-added enhancements. Deploying commercial software can be advantageous for obtaining system or software components offered by a vendor that meet in-house requirements. The vendor can be contracted to provide installation, support and maintenance services as needed. Combining these options offers a menu of choices, enabling selection of system components or software modules that meet the evolving requirements encountered throughout the scientific data lifecycle.

Development of a Night Float Call Model for Obstetrics and Gynaecology Residency: The Process and Residents' Perceptions.

PubMed

Sterling, Lynn; McCaffrey, Carmen; Secter, Michael; Rich, Rebecca; Green, Jessica; Shirreff, Lindsay; Steele, Donna

2016-11-01

The 2013 pan-Canadian consensus Report on Resident Duty Hours identified that traditional 24-hour duty periods pose risks to the well-being of residents and should be avoided. In anticipation of duty-hour restrictions, the Obstetrics and Gynaecology Residency Program at the University of Toronto developed and implemented a night float (NF) call model over a three-year span. Quarterly resident surveys have consistently shown that the NF system is preferred to traditional 24-hour call and has resulted in reduced fatigue and improved continuity of patient care. Through many iterations, the NF model achieved levels of resident morale, surgical experience, and impact on family relationships that are comparable to the 24-hour call system. We review here our process for developing an NF call model and the perceptions and experiences of residents, with the goal of providing insight for other residency programs that are considering or instituting NF call systems. Copyright © 2016 The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada/La Société des obstétriciens et gynécologues du Canada. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Developing a User-Centred Planning Tool for Young Adults with Development Disorders: A Research-Based Teaching Project.

PubMed

Ribu, Kirsten; Patel, Tulpesh

2016-01-01

People with development disorders, for instance autism, need structured plans to help create predictability in their daily lives. Digital plans can facilitate enhanced independency, learning, and quality of life, but existing apps are largely general purpose and lack the flexibility required by this specific but heterogeneous user group. Universal design is both a goal and a process and should be based on a holistic approach and user-centered design, interacting with the users in all stages of the development process. At Oslo and Akershus University College (HiOA) we conducted a research-based teaching project in co-operation with the Department of Neuro-habilitation at Oslo University Hospital (OUS) with two employees acting as project managers and students as developers. Three groups of Computer Science bachelor students developed digital prototypes for a planning tool for young adults with pervasive development disorders, who live either with their families or in supervised residences, and do not receive extensive public services. The students conducted the initial planning phase of the software development process, focusing on prototyping the system requirements, whilst a professional software company programmed the end solution. The goal of the project was to develop flexible and adaptive user-oriented and user-specific app solutions for tablets that can aid this diverse user group in structuring daily life, whereby, for example, photos of objects and places known to the individual user replace general pictures or drawings, and checklists can be elaborate or sparse as necessary. The three student groups worked independently of each other and created interactive working prototypes based on tests, observations and short interviews with end users (both administrators and residents) and regular user feedback from the project managers. Three very different solutions were developed that were of high enough quality that an external software company were able to continue the work and create a beta version of the app. The first phase in software development process is always challenging and time consuming. Using a research-based teaching approach allowed us to not only save time and expense in the development phase, but, importantly, allowed us to thoroughly investigate a variety of aspects of the problem to create an accessible solution, whilst leveraging our students' knowledge, competencies and creativity. The next stage will be to evaluate the beta version of the app and study its impact on the user's quality of life. Although the end solution is designed for a specific user group, the built-in flexibility of its structure and function means there is the inherent potential to open it up to all users. The universal benefit lies in the flexibility of the solution.

Beyond night float? The impact of call structure on internal medicine residents.

PubMed

Rosenberg, M; McNulty, D

1995-02-01

Limitation of resident working hours has been a critical issue for training programs in recent years. At Providence Medical Center, residents and faculty collaborated in developing goals, implementation strategies, and an evaluation process for a new ward float system. The goals of the float system were to reduce fatigue, facilitate education, maintain continuity of care, and minimize the negative impact of training on residents' personal lives. Evaluation revealed: 1) 74% of the residents preferred Providence Medical Center float system (PMCF) to either night float (NF) (13%) or standard every-fourth-night call (EFNC) (13%); and 2) PMCF was perceived to ensure quality patient care to a greater degree than was NF, to better facilitate resident education than was NF, and to have a less negative impact on personal lives than was EFNC.

Financial Implications of Residency Programs for Sponsoring Organizations.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Heiberger, Michael H.

1997-01-01

Explores cost implications of residency programs within the Veterans Administration health care system, particularly the costs and benefits of residencies in family medicine, osteopathic medicine, and general dentistry, because they resemble optometric residencies most closely. Costs of an existing vision therapy residency are examined, and…

Competency-Based Achievement System

PubMed Central

Ross, Shelley; Poth, Cheryl N.; Donoff, Michel; Humphries, Paul; Steiner, Ivan; Schipper, Shirley; Janke, Fred; Nichols, Darren

2011-01-01

Abstract Problem addressed Family medicine residency programs require innovative means to assess residents’ competence in “soft” skills (eg, patient-centred care, communication, and professionalism) and to identify residents who are having difficulty early enough in their residency to provide remedial training. Objective of program To develop a method to assess residents’ competence in various skills and to identify residents who are having difficulty. Program description The Competency-Based Achievement System (CBAS) was designed to measure competence using 3 main principles: formative feedback, guided self-assessment, and regular face-to-face meetings. The CBAS is resident driven and provides a framework for meaningful interactions between residents and advisors. Residents use the CBAS to organize and review their feedback, to guide their own assessment of their progress, and to discern their future learning needs. Advisors use the CBAS to monitor, guide, and verify residents’ knowledge of and competence in important skills. Conclusion By focusing on specific skills and behaviour, the CBAS enables residents and advisors to make formative assessments and to communicate their findings. Feedback indicates that the CBAS is a user-friendly and helpful system to assess competence. PMID:21918129

Progress in the Development of a Prototype Reuse Enablement System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marshall, J. J.; Downs, R. R.; Gilliam, L. J.; Wolfe, R. E.

2008-12-01

An important part of promoting software reuse is to ensure that reusable software assets are readily available to the software developers who want to use them. Through dialogs with the community, the NASA Earth Science Data Systems Software Reuse Working Group has learned that the lack of a centralized, domain- specific software repository or catalog system addressing the needs of the Earth science community is a major barrier to software reuse within the community. The Working Group has proposed the creation of such a reuse enablement system, which would provide capabilities for contributing and obtaining reusable software, to remove this barrier. The Working Group has recommended the development of a Reuse Enablement System to NASA and has performed a trade study to review systems with similar capabilities and to identify potential platforms for the proposed system. This was followed by an architecture study to determine an expeditious and cost-effective solution for this system. A number of software packages and systems were examined through both creating prototypes and examining existing systems that use the same software packages and systems. Based on the results of the architecture study, the Working Group developed a prototype of the proposed system using the recommended software package, through an iterative process of identifying needed capabilities and improving the system to provide those capabilities. Policies for the operation and maintenance of the system are being established for the system, and the identification of system policies also has contributed to the development process. Additionally, a test plan is being developed for formal testing of the prototype, to ensure that it meets all of the requirements previously developed by the Working Group. This poster summarizes the results of our work to date, focusing on the most recent activities.

Practical Methods for Estimating Software Systems Fault Content and Location

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nikora, A.; Schneidewind, N.; Munson, J.

1999-01-01

Over the past several years, we have developed techniques to discriminate between fault-prone software modules and those that are not, to estimate a software system's residual fault content, to identify those portions of a software system having the highest estimated number of faults, and to estimate the effects of requirements changes on software quality.

SAGA: A project to automate the management of software production systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Campbell, Roy H.; Beckman, Carol S.; Benzinger, Leonora; Beshers, George; Hammerslag, David; Kimball, John; Kirslis, Peter A.; Render, Hal; Richards, Paul; Terwilliger, Robert

1985-01-01

The SAGA system is a software environment that is designed to support most of the software development activities that occur in a software lifecycle. The system can be configured to support specific software development applications using given programming languages, tools, and methodologies. Meta-tools are provided to ease configuration. The SAGA system consists of a small number of software components that are adapted by the meta-tools into specific tools for use in the software development application. The modules are design so that the meta-tools can construct an environment which is both integrated and flexible. The SAGA project is documented in several papers which are presented.

Robust Software Architecture for Robots

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Aghazanian, Hrand; Baumgartner, Eric; Garrett, Michael

2009-01-01

Robust Real-Time Reconfigurable Robotics Software Architecture (R4SA) is the name of both a software architecture and software that embodies the architecture. The architecture was conceived in the spirit of current practice in designing modular, hard, realtime aerospace systems. The architecture facilitates the integration of new sensory, motor, and control software modules into the software of a given robotic system. R4SA was developed for initial application aboard exploratory mobile robots on Mars, but is adaptable to terrestrial robotic systems, real-time embedded computing systems in general, and robotic toys.

Analyses of requirements for computer control and data processing experiment subsystems: Image data processing system (IDAPS) software description (7094 version), volume 2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1973-01-01

A description of each of the software modules of the Image Data Processing System (IDAPS) is presented. The changes in the software modules are the result of additions to the application software of the system and an upgrade of the IBM 7094 Mod(1) computer to a 1301 disk storage configuration. Necessary information about IDAPS sofware is supplied to the computer programmer who desires to make changes in the software system or who desires to use portions of the software outside of the IDAPS system. Each software module is documented with: module name, purpose, usage, common block(s) description, method (algorithm of subroutine) flow diagram (if needed), subroutines called, and storage requirements.

Cost, staffing and quality impact of bedside electronic medical record (EMR) in nursing homes.

PubMed

Rantz, Marilyn J; Hicks, Lanis; Petroski, Gregory F; Madsen, Richard W; Alexander, Greg; Galambos, Colleen; Conn, Vicki; Scott-Cawiezell, Jill; Zwygart-Stauffacher, Mary; Greenwald, Leslie

2010-09-01

There is growing political pressure for nursing homes to implement the electronic medical record (EMR) but there is little evidence of its impact on resident care. The purpose of this study was to test the unique and combined contributions of EMR at the bedside and on-site clinical consultation by gerontological expert nurses on cost, staffing, and quality of care in nursing homes. Eighteen nursing facilities in 3 states participated in a 4-group 24-month comparison: Group 1 implemented bedside EMR, used nurse consultation; Group 2 implemented bedside EMR only; Group 3 used nurse consultation only; Group 4 neither. Intervention sites (Groups 1 and 2) received substantial, partial financial support from CMS to implement EMR. Costs and staffing were measured from Medicaid cost reports, and staff retention from primary data collection; resident outcomes were measured by MDS-based quality indicators and quality measures. Total costs increased in both intervention groups that implemented technology; staffing and staff retention remained constant. Improvement trends were detected in resident outcomes of ADLs, range of motion, and high-risk pressure sores for both intervention groups but not in comparison groups. Implementation of bedside EMR is not cost neutral. There were increased total costs for all intervention facilities. These costs were not a result of increased direct care staffing or increased staff turnover. Nursing home leaders and policy makers need to be aware of on-going hardware and software costs as well as costs of continual technical support for the EMR and constant staff orientation to use the system. EMR can contribute to the quality of nursing home care and can be enhanced by on-site consultation by nurses with graduate education in nursing and expertise in gerontology. Copyright 2010 American Medical Directors Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

77 FR 50724 - Developing Software Life Cycle Processes for Digital Computer Software Used in Safety Systems of...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-08-22

... NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION [NRC-2012-0195] Developing Software Life Cycle Processes for Digital... Software Life Cycle Processes for Digital Computer Software used in Safety Systems of Nuclear Power Plants... clarifications, the enhanced consensus practices for developing software life-cycle processes for digital...

Proceedings of Tenth Annual Software Engineering Workshop

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1985-01-01

Papers are presented on the following topics: measurement of software technology, recent studies of the Software Engineering Lab, software management tools, expert systems, error seeding as a program validation technique, software quality assurance, software engineering environments (including knowledge-based environments), the Distributed Computing Design System, and various Ada experiments.

Designing Control System Application Software for Change

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Boulanger, Richard

2001-01-01

The Unified Modeling Language (UML) was used to design the Environmental Systems Test Stand (ESTS) control system software. The UML was chosen for its ability to facilitate a clear dialog between software designer and customer, from which requirements are discovered and documented in a manner which transposes directly to program objects. Applying the UML to control system software design has resulted in a baseline set of documents from which change and effort of that change can be accurately measured. As the Environmental Systems Test Stand evolves, accurate estimates of the time and effort required to change the control system software will be made. Accurate quantification of the cost of software change can be before implementation, improving schedule and budget accuracy.

Data systems and computer science: Software Engineering Program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zygielbaum, Arthur I.

1991-01-01

An external review of the Integrated Technology Plan for the Civil Space Program is presented. This review is specifically concerned with the Software Engineering Program. The goals of the Software Engineering Program are as follows: (1) improve NASA's ability to manage development, operation, and maintenance of complex software systems; (2) decrease NASA's cost and risk in engineering complex software systems; and (3) provide technology to assure safety and reliability of software in mission critical applications.

Healthcare software assurance.

PubMed

Cooper, Jason G; Pauley, Keith A

2006-01-01

Software assurance is a rigorous, lifecycle phase-independent set of activities which ensure completeness, safety, and reliability of software processes and products. This is accomplished by guaranteeing conformance to all requirements, standards, procedures, and regulations. These assurance processes are even more important when coupled with healthcare software systems, embedded software in medical instrumentation, and other healthcare-oriented life-critical systems. The current Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulatory requirements and guidance documentation do not address certain aspects of complete software assurance activities. In addition, the FDA's software oversight processes require enhancement to include increasingly complex healthcare systems such as Hospital Information Systems (HIS). The importance of complete software assurance is introduced, current regulatory requirements and guidance discussed, and the necessity for enhancements to the current processes shall be highlighted.

Healthcare Software Assurance

PubMed Central

Cooper, Jason G.; Pauley, Keith A.

2006-01-01

Software assurance is a rigorous, lifecycle phase-independent set of activities which ensure completeness, safety, and reliability of software processes and products. This is accomplished by guaranteeing conformance to all requirements, standards, procedures, and regulations. These assurance processes are even more important when coupled with healthcare software systems, embedded software in medical instrumentation, and other healthcare-oriented life-critical systems. The current Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulatory requirements and guidance documentation do not address certain aspects of complete software assurance activities. In addition, the FDA’s software oversight processes require enhancement to include increasingly complex healthcare systems such as Hospital Information Systems (HIS). The importance of complete software assurance is introduced, current regulatory requirements and guidance discussed, and the necessity for enhancements to the current processes shall be highlighted. PMID:17238324

Use of a data warehouse at an academic medical center for clinical pathology quality improvement, education, and research

PubMed Central

Krasowski, Matthew D.; Schriever, Andy; Mathur, Gagan; Blau, John L.; Stauffer, Stephanie L.; Ford, Bradley A.

2015-01-01

Background: Pathology data contained within the electronic health record (EHR), and laboratory information system (LIS) of hospitals represents a potentially powerful resource to improve clinical care. However, existing reporting tools within commercial EHR and LIS software may not be able to efficiently and rapidly mine data for quality improvement and research applications. Materials and Methods: We present experience using a data warehouse produced collaboratively between an academic medical center and a private company. The data warehouse contains data from the EHR, LIS, admission/discharge/transfer system, and billing records and can be accessed using a self-service data access tool known as Starmaker. The Starmaker software allows users to use complex Boolean logic, include and exclude rules, unit conversion and reference scaling, and value aggregation using a straightforward visual interface. More complex queries can be achieved by users with experience with Structured Query Language. Queries can use biomedical ontologies such as Logical Observation Identifiers Names and Codes and Systematized Nomenclature of Medicine. Result: We present examples of successful searches using Starmaker, falling mostly in the realm of microbiology and clinical chemistry/toxicology. The searches were ones that were either very difficult or basically infeasible using reporting tools within the EHR and LIS used in the medical center. One of the main strengths of Starmaker searches is rapid results, with typical searches covering 5 years taking only 1–2 min. A “Run Count” feature quickly outputs the number of cases meeting criteria, allowing for refinement of searches before downloading patient-identifiable data. The Starmaker tool is available to pathology residents and fellows, with some using this tool for quality improvement and scholarly projects. Conclusion: A data warehouse has significant potential for improving utilization of clinical pathology testing. Software that can access data warehouse using a straightforward visual interface can be incorporated into pathology training programs. PMID:26284156

Use of a data warehouse at an academic medical center for clinical pathology quality improvement, education, and research.

PubMed

Krasowski, Matthew D; Schriever, Andy; Mathur, Gagan; Blau, John L; Stauffer, Stephanie L; Ford, Bradley A

2015-01-01

Pathology data contained within the electronic health record (EHR), and laboratory information system (LIS) of hospitals represents a potentially powerful resource to improve clinical care. However, existing reporting tools within commercial EHR and LIS software may not be able to efficiently and rapidly mine data for quality improvement and research applications. We present experience using a data warehouse produced collaboratively between an academic medical center and a private company. The data warehouse contains data from the EHR, LIS, admission/discharge/transfer system, and billing records and can be accessed using a self-service data access tool known as Starmaker. The Starmaker software allows users to use complex Boolean logic, include and exclude rules, unit conversion and reference scaling, and value aggregation using a straightforward visual interface. More complex queries can be achieved by users with experience with Structured Query Language. Queries can use biomedical ontologies such as Logical Observation Identifiers Names and Codes and Systematized Nomenclature of Medicine. We present examples of successful searches using Starmaker, falling mostly in the realm of microbiology and clinical chemistry/toxicology. The searches were ones that were either very difficult or basically infeasible using reporting tools within the EHR and LIS used in the medical center. One of the main strengths of Starmaker searches is rapid results, with typical searches covering 5 years taking only 1-2 min. A "Run Count" feature quickly outputs the number of cases meeting criteria, allowing for refinement of searches before downloading patient-identifiable data. The Starmaker tool is available to pathology residents and fellows, with some using this tool for quality improvement and scholarly projects. A data warehouse has significant potential for improving utilization of clinical pathology testing. Software that can access data warehouse using a straightforward visual interface can be incorporated into pathology training programs.

Development of a Web-based resident profiling tool to support training in practice-based learning and improvement.

PubMed

Lyman, Jason A; Schorling, John; Nadkarni, Mohan; May, Natalie; Scully, Ken; Voss, John

2008-04-01

Multiple factors are driving residency programs to explicitly address practice-based learning and improvement (PBLI), yet few information systems exist to facilitate such training. We developed, implemented, and evaluated a Web-based tool that provides Internal Medicine residents at the University of Virginia Health System with population-based reports about their ambulatory clinical experiences. Residents use Systems and Practice Analysis for Resident Competencies (SPARC) to identify potential areas for practice improvement. Thirty-three (65%) of 51 residents completed a survey assessing SPARC's usefulness, with 94% agreeing that it was a useful educational tool. Twenty-six residents (51%) completed a before-after study indicating increased agreement (5-point Likert scale, with 5=strongly agree) with statements regarding confidence in ability to access population-based data about chronic disease management (mean [SD] 2.5 [1.2] vs. 4.5 [0.5], p < .001, sign test) and information comparing their practice style to that of their peers (2.2 [1.2] vs. 4.6 [0.5], p < .001).

The effect of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education Duty Hours Policy on plastic surgery resident education and patient care: an outcomes study.

PubMed

Basu, Chandrasekhar Bob; Chen, Li-Mei; Hollier, Larry H; Shenaq, Saleh M

2004-12-01

The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) Work-Hours Duty Policy became effective on July 1, 2003, mandating the reduction of resident duty work hours. The Baylor College of Medicine Multi-Institutional Integrated Plastic Surgery Program instituted a resident duty work-hours policy on July 1, 2002 (1 year ahead of the national mandate). Outcomes data are needed to facilitate continuous improvements in plastic surgical residency training while maintaining high-quality patient care. To assess the effect of this policy intervention on plastic surgery resident education as measured through the six core competencies and patient/resident safety, the investigators surveyed all categorical plastic surgery residents 6 months after implementation of the policy. This work represents the first empiric study investigating the effect of duty hours reduction on plastic surgery training and education. The categorical plastic surgery residents at the Baylor College of Medicine Multi-Institutional Integrated Plastic Surgery Program completed a 68-item survey on a five-point Likert scale (1 = strongly disagree to 5 = strongly agree). Residents were asked to rate multiple parameters based on the ACGME six core competencies, including statements on patient care and clinical/operative duties, resident education, resident quality of life, and resident perceptions on this policy. All surveys were completed anonymously. The sample size was n = 12 (program year 3 through program year 6), with a 100 percent response rate. Univariate and bivariate statistical analysis was conducted with SPSS version 10.0 statistical software. Specifically, interquartile deviations were used to find consensus among resident responses to each statement. Descriptive statistics indicated higher percentages of agreement on a majority of statements in three categories, including patient care and clinical/operative duties, academic duties, and resident quality of life. Using interquartile deviation, the highest levels of consensus among the residents were found in positive statements addressing resident alertness (both in and out of the operative environment), time to read/prepare for cases/conferences, efficacy of the didactic curriculum, and overall satisfaction with this policy for surgery resident education. Residents also felt that their patients favored this work hours policy. In addition, there was high consensus that this policy improved overall patient care. The majority of residents identified a negative effect of this policy through an increase in cross-coverage responsibilities, however, and half of the residents perceived that faculty negatively viewed their unavailability postcall. In addition, no consensus among the residents was achieved regarding perceptions on overall weekly operative experience. Plastic surgery residents perceived that the reduction of resident work hours through adherence to the ACGME guidelines has beneficial effects on patient care and clinical/operative duties, academic duties, and resident quality of life. Residents felt, however, that these benefits may increase cross-coverage workloads. Furthermore, residents were concerned about faculty perception of their changes in postcall duties. In contrast to previously published findings in the general surgery literature, the current results indicate that residents do not believe that this policy negatively affects continuity of patient care. In fact, the current findings suggest that adherence to this policy improves patient care on multiple levels. The effect on the operative experience remains to be elucidated. Further large-scale and longitudinal research design and analysis is warranted to better assess the results of the ACGME resident duty work-hours policy in plastic surgery resident education.

Software Fault Tolerance: A Tutorial

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Torres-Pomales, Wilfredo

2000-01-01

Because of our present inability to produce error-free software, software fault tolerance is and will continue to be an important consideration in software systems. The root cause of software design errors is the complexity of the systems. Compounding the problems in building correct software is the difficulty in assessing the correctness of software for highly complex systems. After a brief overview of the software development processes, we note how hard-to-detect design faults are likely to be introduced during development and how software faults tend to be state-dependent and activated by particular input sequences. Although component reliability is an important quality measure for system level analysis, software reliability is hard to characterize and the use of post-verification reliability estimates remains a controversial issue. For some applications software safety is more important than reliability, and fault tolerance techniques used in those applications are aimed at preventing catastrophes. Single version software fault tolerance techniques discussed include system structuring and closure, atomic actions, inline fault detection, exception handling, and others. Multiversion techniques are based on the assumption that software built differently should fail differently and thus, if one of the redundant versions fails, it is expected that at least one of the other versions will provide an acceptable output. Recovery blocks, N-version programming, and other multiversion techniques are reviewed.

NASA software specification and evaluation system: Software verification/validation techniques

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1977-01-01

NASA software requirement specifications were used in the development of a system for validating and verifying computer programs. The software specification and evaluation system (SSES) provides for the effective and efficient specification, implementation, and testing of computer software programs. The system as implemented will produce structured FORTRAN or ANSI FORTRAN programs, but the principles upon which SSES is designed allow it to be easily adapted to other high order languages.

24 CFR 902.50 - Resident service and satisfaction assessment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 4 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Resident service and satisfaction... URBAN DEVELOPMENT PUBLIC HOUSING ASSESSMENT SYSTEM PHAS Indicator #4: Resident Service and Satisfaction § 902.50 Resident service and satisfaction assessment. (a) Objective. The objective of the Resident...

Integrated Environment for Development and Assurance

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-01-26

Jan 26, 2015 © 2015 Carnegie Mellon University We Rely on Software for Safe Aircraft Operation Embedded software systems introduce a new class of...eveloper Compute Platform Runtime Architecture Application Software Embedded SW System Engineer Data Stream Characteristics Latency jitter affects...Why do system level failures still occur despite fault tolerance techniques being deployed in systems ? Embedded software system as major source of

48 CFR 252.234-7003 - Notice of Cost and Software Data Reporting System. (NOV 2010)

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... Software Data Reporting System. (NOV 2010) 252.234-7003 Section 252.234-7003 Federal Acquisition... Software Data Reporting System. (NOV 2010) As prescribed in 234-7101(a)(1), use the following provision: Notice of Cost and Software Data Reporting System (NOV 2010) (a) This solicitation includes— (1) The...

48 CFR 252.234-7003 - Notice of Cost and Software Data Reporting System. (NOV 2010)

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... Software Data Reporting System. (NOV 2010) 252.234-7003 Section 252.234-7003 Federal Acquisition... Software Data Reporting System. (NOV 2010) As prescribed in 234-7101(a)(1), use the following provision: Notice of Cost and Software Data Reporting System (NOV 2010) (a) This solicitation includes— (1) The...

48 CFR 252.234-7003 - Notice of Cost and Software Data Reporting System. (NOV 2010)

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... Software Data Reporting System. (NOV 2010) 252.234-7003 Section 252.234-7003 Federal Acquisition... Software Data Reporting System. (NOV 2010) As prescribed in 234-7101(a)(1), use the following provision: NOTICE OF COST AND SOFTWARE DATA REPORTING SYSTEM (NOV 2010) (a) This solicitation includes— (1) The...

48 CFR 252.234-7003 - Notice of Cost and Software Data Reporting System. (NOV 2010)

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... Software Data Reporting System. (NOV 2010) 252.234-7003 Section 252.234-7003 Federal Acquisition... Software Data Reporting System. (NOV 2010) As prescribed in 234-7101(a)(1), use the following provision: Notice of Cost and Software Data Reporting System (NOV 2010) (a) This solicitation includes— (1) The...

AADL and Model-based Engineering

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-10-20

and MBE Feiler, Oct 20, 2014 © 2014 Carnegie Mellon University We Rely on Software for Safe Aircraft Operation Embedded software systems ...D eveloper Compute Platform Runtime Architecture Application Software Embedded SW System Engineer Data Stream Characteristics Latency...confusion Hardware Engineer Why do system level failures still occur despite fault tolerance techniques being deployed in systems ? Embedded software

SAGA: A project to automate the management of software production systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Campbell, Roy H.; Laliberte, D.; Render, H.; Sum, R.; Smith, W.; Terwilliger, R.

1987-01-01

The Software Automation, Generation and Administration (SAGA) project is investigating the design and construction of practical software engineering environments for developing and maintaining aerospace systems and applications software. The research includes the practical organization of the software lifecycle, configuration management, software requirements specifications, executable specifications, design methodologies, programming, verification, validation and testing, version control, maintenance, the reuse of software, software libraries, documentation, and automated management.

Visitors and Resident Autonomy: Spoken and Unspoken Rules in Assisted Living.

PubMed

Bennett, Colleen R; Frankowski, Ann Christine; Rubinstein, Robert L; Peeples, Amanda D; Perez, Rosa; Nemec, Mary; Tucker, Gretchen G

2017-04-01

This article explores resident autonomy in assisted living (AL) and the effects that visitors and visiting the AL have on that autonomy. We examine formal and informal policies that govern visiting in AL, stakeholders' views and enforcement of these policies, and the complex arrangements that visiting often entails in everyday life in the setting. Data are drawn from a multiyear ethnographic study of autonomy in AL. Research from multiple sites included participant observation, informal and in-depth, open-ended interviews of various stakeholders, and the writing of field notes. Research team biweekly discussions and the Atlas.ti software program facilitated coding and analysis of interview transcripts and fieldnotes. Our ethnographic data highlight complicated factors related to visitors and visiting in AL. We discuss two important aspects of visiting: (a) formal and informal policies at each setting; and (b) how resident autonomy is expressed or suppressed through rules about visiting in AL. Our data underscore the importance of resident autonomy and quality of care in relation to visitors and visiting, especially how this relationship is affected by inconsistent and confusing formal and informal visiting policies in AL. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

MUST - An integrated system of support tools for research flight software engineering. [Multipurpose User-oriented Software Technology

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Straeter, T. A.; Foudriat, E. C.; Will, R. W.

1977-01-01

The objectives of NASA's MUST (Multipurpose User-oriented Software Technology) program at Langley Research Center are to cut the cost of producing software which effectively utilizes digital systems for flight research. These objectives will be accomplished by providing an integrated system of support software tools for use throughout the research flight software development process. A description of the overall MUST program and its progress toward the release of a first MUST system will be presented. This release includes: a special interactive user interface, a library of subroutines, assemblers, a compiler, automatic documentation tools, and a test and simulation system.

DMFS: A Data Migration File System for NetBSD

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Studenmund, William

1999-01-01

I have recently developed dmfs, a Data Migration File System, for NetBSD. This file system is based on the overlay file system, which is discussed in a separate paper, and provides kernel support for the data migration system being developed by my research group here at NASA/Ames. The file system utilizes an underlying file store to provide the file backing, and coordinates user and system access to the files. It stores its internal meta data in a flat file, which resides on a separate file system. Our data migration system provides archiving and file migration services. System utilities scan the dmfs file system for recently modified files, and archive them to two separate tape stores. Once a file has been doubly archived, files larger than a specified size will be truncated to that size, potentially freeing up large amounts of the underlying file store. Some sites will choose to retain none of the file (deleting its contents entirely from the file system) while others may choose to retain a portion, for instance a preamble describing the remainder of the file. The dmfs layer coordinates access to the file, retaining user-perceived access and modification times, file size, and restricting access to partially migrated files to the portion actually resident. When a user process attempts to read from the non-resident portion of a file, it is blocked and the dmfs layer sends a request to a system daemon to restore the file. As more of the file becomes resident, the user process is permitted to begin accessing the now-resident portions of the file. For simplicity, our data migration system divides a file into two portions, a resident portion followed by an optional non-resident portion. Also, a file is in one of three states: fully resident, fully resident and archived, and (partially) non-resident and archived. For a file which is only partially resident, any attempt to write or truncate the file, or to read a non-resident portion, will trigger a file restoration. Truncations and writes are blocked until the file is fully restored so that a restoration which only partially succeed does not leave the file in an indeterminate state with portions existing only on tape and other portions only in the disk file system. We chose layered file system technology as it permits us to focus on the data migration functionality, and permits end system administrators to choose the underlying file store technology. We chose the overlay layered file system instead of the null layer for two reasons: first to permit our layer to better preserve meta data integrity and second to prevent even root processes from accessing migrated files. This is achieved as the underlying file store becomes inaccessible once the dmfs layer is mounted. We are quite pleased with how the layered file system has turned out. Of the 45 vnode operations in NetBSD, 20 (forty-four percent) required no intervention by our file layer - they are passed directly to the underlying file store. Of the twenty five we do intercept, nine (such as vop_create()) are intercepted only to ensure meta data integrity. Most of the functionality was concentrated in five operations: vop_read, vop_write, vop_getattr, vop_setattr, and vop_fcntl. The first four are the core operations for controlling access to migrated files and preserving the user experience. vop_fcntl, a call generated for a certain class of fcntl codes, provides the command channel used by privileged user programs to communicate with the dmfs layer.

Software platform virtualization in chemistry research and university teaching

PubMed Central

2009-01-01

Background Modern chemistry laboratories operate with a wide range of software applications under different operating systems, such as Windows, LINUX or Mac OS X. Instead of installing software on different computers it is possible to install those applications on a single computer using Virtual Machine software. Software platform virtualization allows a single guest operating system to execute multiple other operating systems on the same computer. We apply and discuss the use of virtual machines in chemistry research and teaching laboratories. Results Virtual machines are commonly used for cheminformatics software development and testing. Benchmarking multiple chemistry software packages we have confirmed that the computational speed penalty for using virtual machines is low and around 5% to 10%. Software virtualization in a teaching environment allows faster deployment and easy use of commercial and open source software in hands-on computer teaching labs. Conclusion Software virtualization in chemistry, mass spectrometry and cheminformatics is needed for software testing and development of software for different operating systems. In order to obtain maximum performance the virtualization software should be multi-core enabled and allow the use of multiprocessor configurations in the virtual machine environment. Server consolidation, by running multiple tasks and operating systems on a single physical machine, can lead to lower maintenance and hardware costs especially in small research labs. The use of virtual machines can prevent software virus infections and security breaches when used as a sandbox system for internet access and software testing. Complex software setups can be created with virtual machines and are easily deployed later to multiple computers for hands-on teaching classes. We discuss the popularity of bioinformatics compared to cheminformatics as well as the missing cheminformatics education at universities worldwide. PMID:20150997

Software platform virtualization in chemistry research and university teaching.

PubMed

Kind, Tobias; Leamy, Tim; Leary, Julie A; Fiehn, Oliver

2009-11-16

Modern chemistry laboratories operate with a wide range of software applications under different operating systems, such as Windows, LINUX or Mac OS X. Instead of installing software on different computers it is possible to install those applications on a single computer using Virtual Machine software. Software platform virtualization allows a single guest operating system to execute multiple other operating systems on the same computer. We apply and discuss the use of virtual machines in chemistry research and teaching laboratories. Virtual machines are commonly used for cheminformatics software development and testing. Benchmarking multiple chemistry software packages we have confirmed that the computational speed penalty for using virtual machines is low and around 5% to 10%. Software virtualization in a teaching environment allows faster deployment and easy use of commercial and open source software in hands-on computer teaching labs. Software virtualization in chemistry, mass spectrometry and cheminformatics is needed for software testing and development of software for different operating systems. In order to obtain maximum performance the virtualization software should be multi-core enabled and allow the use of multiprocessor configurations in the virtual machine environment. Server consolidation, by running multiple tasks and operating systems on a single physical machine, can lead to lower maintenance and hardware costs especially in small research labs. The use of virtual machines can prevent software virus infections and security breaches when used as a sandbox system for internet access and software testing. Complex software setups can be created with virtual machines and are easily deployed later to multiple computers for hands-on teaching classes. We discuss the popularity of bioinformatics compared to cheminformatics as well as the missing cheminformatics education at universities worldwide.

A measurement system for large, complex software programs

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rone, Kyle Y.; Olson, Kitty M.; Davis, Nathan E.

1994-01-01

This paper describes measurement systems required to forecast, measure, and control activities for large, complex software development and support programs. Initial software cost and quality analysis provides the foundation for meaningful management decisions as a project evolves. In modeling the cost and quality of software systems, the relationship between the functionality, quality, cost, and schedule of the product must be considered. This explicit relationship is dictated by the criticality of the software being developed. This balance between cost and quality is a viable software engineering trade-off throughout the life cycle. Therefore, the ability to accurately estimate the cost and quality of software systems is essential to providing reliable software on time and within budget. Software cost models relate the product error rate to the percent of the project labor that is required for independent verification and validation. The criticality of the software determines which cost model is used to estimate the labor required to develop the software. Software quality models yield an expected error discovery rate based on the software size, criticality, software development environment, and the level of competence of the project and developers with respect to the processes being employed.

The rate of antibiotic utilization in Iranian under 5-year-old children with acute respiratory tract illness: A nationwide community-based study

PubMed Central

Mostafavi, Nasser; Rashidian, Arash; Karimi-Shahanjarini, Akram; Khosravi, Ardeshir; Kelishadi, Roya

2015-01-01

Background: To investigate the prevalence of antibiotic usage in children aged <5 years with acute respiratory tract illness (ARTI) in Iran. Materials and Methods: Data were collected from a national health survey conducted in 2010 (Iran's Multiple Indicator Demographic and Health Survey). Participants of this cross-sectional study were selected by multistage stratified cluster-random sampling from 31 provinces of Iran. Parents of children with <5 years of age responded to questions about the occurrence of any cough during the previous 2 weeks, referral to private/governmental/other health care systems, and utilization of any oral/injection form of antibiotics. Data were analyzed using SPSS software18. The chi-square test was used to determine antibiotic consumption in various gender and residency groups and also a place of residence with the referral health care system. Results: Of the 9345 children under 5 years who participated in the study, 1506 cases (16.2%) had ARTI during 2 weeks prior to the interview, in whom 1143 (75.9%) were referred to urban or rural health care centers (43.4 vs. 30.4%; P < 0.001). Antibiotics were utilized by 715 (62.6%) of affected children. Injection formulations were used for 150 (13.1%) patients. The frequency of receiving antibiotics was higher in urban than in rural inhabitants (66.0% vs. 57.7% P < 0.05). Conclusion: The prevalence of total and injection antibiotics usage in children <5 years with ARTI is alarmingly high in Iran. Therefore, interventions to reduce antibiotic use are urgently needed. PMID:26487870

A multimedia Anatomy Browser incorporating a knowledge base and 3D images.

PubMed Central

Eno, K.; Sundsten, J. W.; Brinkley, J. F.

1991-01-01

We describe a multimedia program for teaching anatomy. The program, called the Anatomy Browser, displays cross-sectional and topographical images, with outlines around structures and regions of interest. The user may point to these structures and retrieve text descriptions, view symbolic relationships between structures, or view spatial relationships by accessing 3-D graphics animations from videodiscs produced specifically for this program. The software also helps students exercise what they have learned by asking them to identify structures by name and location. The program is implemented in a client-server architecture, with the user interface residing on a Macintosh, while images, data, and a growing symbolic knowledge base of anatomy are stored on a fileserver. This architecture allows us to develop practical tutorial modules that are in current use, while at the same time developing the knowledge base that will lead to more intelligent tutorial systems. PMID:1807699

Concurrent Image Processing Executive (CIPE). Volume 2: Programmer's guide

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Williams, Winifred I.

1990-01-01

This manual is intended as a guide for application programmers using the Concurrent Image Processing Executive (CIPE). CIPE is intended to become the support system software for a prototype high performance science analysis workstation. In its current configuration CIPE utilizes a JPL/Caltech Mark 3fp Hypercube with a Sun-4 host. CIPE's design is capable of incorporating other concurrent architectures as well. CIPE provides a programming environment to applications' programmers to shield them from various user interfaces, file transactions, and architectural complexities. A programmer may choose to write applications to use only the Sun-4 or to use the Sun-4 with the hypercube. A hypercube program will use the hypercube's data processors and optionally the Weitek floating point accelerators. The CIPE programming environment provides a simple set of subroutines to activate user interface functions, specify data distributions, activate hypercube resident applications, and to communicate parameters to and from the hypercube.

Practice-based learning and improvement: a curriculum in continuous quality improvement for surgery residents.

PubMed

Canal, David F; Torbeck, Laura; Djuricich, Alexander M

2007-05-01

Surgery residents can learn continuous quality improvement (CQI) principles within a structured curriculum and propose quality improvement projects. Curriculum within a surgical residency program. A university surgical residency program with multiple hospital training sites. Fifteen surgical residents during the dedicated research year. A curriculum in CQI that focuses on devising a quality improvement project. Resident self-reported attitudes about quality improvement and implementation of resident-initiated quality improvement projects. Resident survey data demonstrated an improvement in knowledge, self-efficacy, and experiences within CQI. Fifteen individual residents, within smaller teams, created 4 quality improvement projects worthy of implementation. A structured CQI curriculum can be successfully integrated into a general surgery residency program. Residents can learn the skill of constructing CQI project ideas within the framework of the plan-do-study-act cycle. Residents are eager to make improvements in their local system of residency. By giving them the tools to critically investigate systems improvement and a much needed ear to hear their concerns and suggestions for improvement, we found ways to potentially enhance patient care and developed ideas to improve the education of future surgeons. In doing so, we provided the residents with "buy-in" into their residency program, while addressing the competency of practice-based learning and improvement required by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education for resident education.

The Role and Quality of Software Safety in the NASA Constellation Program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Layman, Lucas; Basili, Victor R.; Zelkowitz, Marvin V.

2010-01-01

In this study, we examine software safety risk in the early design phase of the NASA Constellation spaceflight program. Obtaining an accurate, program-wide picture of software safety risk is difficult across multiple, independently-developing systems. We leverage one source of safety information, hazard analysis, to provide NASA quality assurance managers with information regarding the ongoing state of software safety across the program. The goal of this research is two-fold: 1) to quantify the relative importance of software with respect to system safety; and 2) to quantify the level of risk presented by software in the hazard analysis. We examined 154 hazard reports created during the preliminary design phase of three major flight hardware systems within the Constellation program. To quantify the importance of software, we collected metrics based on the number of software-related causes and controls of hazardous conditions. To quantify the level of risk presented by software, we created a metric scheme to measure the specificity of these software causes. We found that from 49-70% of hazardous conditions in the three systems could be caused by software or software was involved in the prevention of the hazardous condition. We also found that 12-17% of the 2013 hazard causes involved software, and that 23-29% of all causes had a software control. Furthermore, 10-12% of all controls were software-based. There is potential for inaccuracy in these counts, however, as software causes are not consistently scoped, and the presence of software in a cause or control is not always clear. The application of our software specificity metrics also identified risks in the hazard reporting process. In particular, we found a number of traceability risks in the hazard reports may impede verification of software and system safety.

Software Prototyping: Designing Systems for Users.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Spies, Phyllis Bova

1983-01-01

Reports on major change in computer software development process--the prototype model, i.e., implementation of skeletal system that is enhanced during interaction with users. Expensive and unreliable software, software design errors, traditional development approach, resources required for prototyping, success stories, and systems designer's role…

Geographic information systems (GIS): an emerging method to assess demand and provision for rehabilitation services.

PubMed

Passalent, Laura; Borsy, Emily; Landry, Michel D; Cott, Cheryl

2013-09-01

To illustrate the application of geographic information systems (GIS) as a tool to assess rehabilitation service delivery by presenting results from research recently conducted to assess demand and provision for community rehabilitation service delivery in Ontario, Canada. Secondary analysis of data obtained from existing sources was used to establish demand and provision profiles for community rehabilitation services. These data were integrated using GIS software. A number of descriptive maps were produced that show the geographical distribution of service provision variables (location of individual rehabilitation health care providers and location of private and publicly funded community rehabilitation clinics) in relation to the distribution of demand variables (location of the general population; location of specific populations (i.e., residents age 65 and older) and distribution of household income). GIS provides a set of tools for describing and understanding the spatial organization of the health of populations and the distribution of health services that can aid the development of health policy and answer key research questions with respect to rehabilitation health services delivery. Implications for Rehabilitation It is important to seek out alternative and innovative methods to examine rehabilitation service delivery. GIS is a computer-based program that takes any data linked to a geographically referenced location and processes it through a software system that manages, analyses and displays the data in the form of a map, allowing for an alternative level of analysis. GIS provides a set of tools for describing and understanding the spatial organization of population health and health services that can aid the development of health policy and answer key research questions with respect to rehabilitation health services delivery.

Product Engineering Class in the Software Safety Risk Taxonomy for Building Safety-Critical Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hill, Janice; Victor, Daniel

2008-01-01

When software safety requirements are imposed on legacy safety-critical systems, retrospective safety cases need to be formulated as part of recertifying the systems for further use and risks must be documented and managed to give confidence for reusing the systems. The SEJ Software Development Risk Taxonomy [4] focuses on general software development issues. It does not, however, cover all the safety risks. The Software Safety Risk Taxonomy [8] was developed which provides a construct for eliciting and categorizing software safety risks in a straightforward manner. In this paper, we present extended work on the taxonomy for safety that incorporates the additional issues inherent in the development and maintenance of safety-critical systems with software. An instrument called a Software Safety Risk Taxonomy Based Questionnaire (TBQ) is generated containing questions addressing each safety attribute in the Software Safety Risk Taxonomy. Software safety risks are surfaced using the new TBQ and then analyzed. In this paper we give the definitions for the specialized Product Engineering Class within the Software Safety Risk Taxonomy. At the end of the paper, we present the tool known as the 'Legacy Systems Risk Database Tool' that is used to collect and analyze the data required to show traceability to a particular safety standard

Averting Denver Airports on a Chip

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sullivan, Kevin J.

1995-01-01

As a result of recent advances in software engineering capabilities, we are now in a more stable environment. De-facto hardware and software standards are emerging. Work on software architecture and design patterns signals a consensus on the importance of early system-level design decisions, and agreements on the uses of certain paradigmatic software structures. We now routinely build systems that would have been risky or infeasible a few years ago. Unfortunately, technological developments threaten to destabilize software design again. Systems designed around novel computing and peripheral devices will spark ambitious new projects that will stress current software design and engineering capabilities. Micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) and related technologies provide the physical basis for new systems with the potential to produce this kind of destabilizing effect. One important response to anticipated software engineering and design difficulties is carefully directed engineering-scientific research. Two specific problems meriting substantial research attention are: A lack of sufficient means to build software systems by generating, extending, specializing, and integrating large-scale reusable components; and a lack of adequate computational and analytic tools to extend and aid engineers in maintaining intellectual control over complex software designs.

SEI Software Engineering Education Directory.

DTIC Science & Technology

1987-02-01

Software Design and Development Gilbert. Philip Systems: CDC Cyber 170/750 CDC Cyber 170760 DEC POP 11/44 PRIME AT&T 3B5 IBM PC IBM XT IBM RT...Macintosh VAx 8300 Software System Development and Laboratory CS 480/480L U P X T Textbooks: Software Design and Development Gilbert, Philip Systems: CDC...Acting Chair (618) 692-2386 Courses: Software Design and Development CS 424 U P E Y Textbooks: Software Design and Development, Gilbert, Philip Topics

Defect measurement and analysis of JPL ground software: a case study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Powell, John D.; Spagnuolo, John N., Jr.

2004-01-01

Ground software systems at JPL must meet high assurance standards while remaining on schedule due to relatively immovable launch dates for spacecraft that will be controlled by such systems. Toward this end, the Software Quality Improvement (SQI) project's Measurement and Benchmarking (M&B) team is collecting and analyzing defect data of JPL ground system software projects to build software defect prediction models. The aim of these models is to improve predictability with regard to software quality activities. Predictive models will quantitatively define typical trends for JPL ground systems as well as Critical Discriminators (CDs) to provide explanations for atypical deviations from the norm at JPL. CDs are software characteristics that can be estimated or foreseen early in a software project's planning. Thus, these CDs will assist in planning for the predicted degree to which software quality activities for a project are likely to deviation from the normal JPL ground system based on pasted experience across the lab.

Fault Tree Analysis Application for Safety and Reliability

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wallace, Dolores R.

2003-01-01

Many commercial software tools exist for fault tree analysis (FTA), an accepted method for mitigating risk in systems. The method embedded in the tools identifies a root as use in system components, but when software is identified as a root cause, it does not build trees into the software component. No commercial software tools have been built specifically for development and analysis of software fault trees. Research indicates that the methods of FTA could be applied to software, but the method is not practical without automated tool support. With appropriate automated tool support, software fault tree analysis (SFTA) may be a practical technique for identifying the underlying cause of software faults that may lead to critical system failures. We strive to demonstrate that existing commercial tools for FTA can be adapted for use with SFTA, and that applied to a safety-critical system, SFTA can be used to identify serious potential problems long before integrator and system testing.

77 FR 50722 - Software Unit Testing for Digital Computer Software Used in Safety Systems of Nuclear Power Plants

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-08-22

... NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION [NRC-2012-0195] Software Unit Testing for Digital Computer Software...) is issuing for public comment draft regulatory guide (DG), DG-1208, ``Software Unit Testing for Digital Computer Software used in Safety Systems of Nuclear Power Plants.'' The DG-1208 is proposed...

78 FR 47011 - Software Unit Testing for Digital Computer Software Used in Safety Systems of Nuclear Power Plants

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-08-02

... NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION [NRC-2012-0195] Software Unit Testing for Digital Computer Software... revised regulatory guide (RG), revision 1 of RG 1.171, ``Software Unit Testing for Digital Computer Software Used in Safety Systems of Nuclear Power Plants.'' This RG endorses American National Standards...

Modeling software systems by domains

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dippolito, Richard; Lee, Kenneth

1992-01-01

The Software Architectures Engineering (SAE) Project at the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) has developed engineering modeling techniques that both reduce the complexity of software for domain-specific computer systems and result in systems that are easier to build and maintain. These techniques allow maximum freedom for system developers to apply their domain expertise to software. We have applied these techniques to several types of applications, including training simulators operating in real time, engineering simulators operating in non-real time, and real-time embedded computer systems. Our modeling techniques result in software that mirrors both the complexity of the application and the domain knowledge requirements. We submit that the proper measure of software complexity reflects neither the number of software component units nor the code count, but the locus of and amount of domain knowledge. As a result of using these techniques, domain knowledge is isolated by fields of engineering expertise and removed from the concern of the software engineer. In this paper, we will describe kinds of domain expertise, describe engineering by domains, and provide relevant examples of software developed for simulator applications using the techniques.

Automated Software Development Workstation (ASDW)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fridge, Ernie

1990-01-01

Software development is a serious bottleneck in the construction of complex automated systems. An increase of the reuse of software designs and components has been viewed as a way to relieve this bottleneck. One approach to achieving software reusability is through the development and use of software parts composition systems. A software parts composition system is a software development environment comprised of a parts description language for modeling parts and their interfaces, a catalog of existing parts, a composition editor that aids a user in the specification of a new application from existing parts, and a code generator that takes a specification and generates an implementation of a new application in a target language. The Automated Software Development Workstation (ASDW) is an expert system shell that provides the capabilities required to develop and manipulate these software parts composition systems. The ASDW is now in Beta testing at the Johnson Space Center. Future work centers on responding to user feedback for capability and usability enhancement, expanding the scope of the software lifecycle that is covered, and in providing solutions to handling very large libraries of reusable components.

Software Defined Radio with Parallelized Software Architecture

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Heckler, Greg

2013-01-01

This software implements software-defined radio procession over multicore, multi-CPU systems in a way that maximizes the use of CPU resources in the system. The software treats each processing step in either a communications or navigation modulator or demodulator system as an independent, threaded block. Each threaded block is defined with a programmable number of input or output buffers; these buffers are implemented using POSIX pipes. In addition, each threaded block is assigned a unique thread upon block installation. A modulator or demodulator system is built by assembly of the threaded blocks into a flow graph, which assembles the processing blocks to accomplish the desired signal processing. This software architecture allows the software to scale effortlessly between single CPU/single-core computers or multi-CPU/multi-core computers without recompilation. NASA spaceflight and ground communications systems currently rely exclusively on ASICs or FPGAs. This software allows low- and medium-bandwidth (100 bps to approx.50 Mbps) software defined radios to be designed and implemented solely in C/C++ software, while lowering development costs and facilitating reuse and extensibility.

Software Defined Radio with Parallelized Software Architecture

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Heckler, Greg

2013-01-01

This software implements software-defined radio procession over multi-core, multi-CPU systems in a way that maximizes the use of CPU resources in the system. The software treats each processing step in either a communications or navigation modulator or demodulator system as an independent, threaded block. Each threaded block is defined with a programmable number of input or output buffers; these buffers are implemented using POSIX pipes. In addition, each threaded block is assigned a unique thread upon block installation. A modulator or demodulator system is built by assembly of the threaded blocks into a flow graph, which assembles the processing blocks to accomplish the desired signal processing. This software architecture allows the software to scale effortlessly between single CPU/single-core computers or multi-CPU/multi-core computers without recompilation. NASA spaceflight and ground communications systems currently rely exclusively on ASICs or FPGAs. This software allows low- and medium-bandwidth (100 bps to .50 Mbps) software defined radios to be designed and implemented solely in C/C++ software, while lowering development costs and facilitating reuse and extensibility.

NIRS external dose estimation system for Fukushima residents after the Fukushima Dai-ichi NPP accident

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Akahane, Keiichi; Yonai, Shunsuke; Fukuda, Shigekazu; Miyahara, Nobuyuki; Yasuda, Hiroshi; Iwaoka, Kazuki; Matsumoto, Masaki; Fukumura, Akifumi; Akashi, Makoto

2013-04-01

The great east Japan earthquake and subsequent tsunamis caused Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) accident. National Institute of Radiological Sciences (NIRS) developed the external dose estimation system for Fukushima residents. The system is being used in the Fukushima health management survey. The doses can be obtained by superimposing the behavior data of the residents on the dose rate maps. For grasping the doses, 18 evacuation patterns of the residents were assumed by considering the actual evacuation information before using the survey data. The doses of the residents from the deliberate evacuation area were relatively higher than those from the area within 20 km radius. The estimated doses varied from around 1 to 6 mSv for the residents evacuated from the representative places in the deliberate evacuation area. The maximum dose in 18 evacuation patterns was estimated to be 19 mSv.

NIRS external dose estimation system for Fukushima residents after the Fukushima Dai-ichi NPP accident.

PubMed

Akahane, Keiichi; Yonai, Shunsuke; Fukuda, Shigekazu; Miyahara, Nobuyuki; Yasuda, Hiroshi; Iwaoka, Kazuki; Matsumoto, Masaki; Fukumura, Akifumi; Akashi, Makoto

2013-01-01

The great east Japan earthquake and subsequent tsunamis caused Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) accident. National Institute of Radiological Sciences (NIRS) developed the external dose estimation system for Fukushima residents. The system is being used in the Fukushima health management survey. The doses can be obtained by superimposing the behavior data of the residents on the dose rate maps. For grasping the doses, 18 evacuation patterns of the residents were assumed by considering the actual evacuation information before using the survey data. The doses of the residents from the deliberate evacuation area were relatively higher than those from the area within 20 km radius. The estimated doses varied from around 1 to 6 mSv for the residents evacuated from the representative places in the deliberate evacuation area. The maximum dose in 18 evacuation patterns was estimated to be 19 mSv.

Attributes and Behaviors of Performance-Centered Systems.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gery, Gloria

1995-01-01

Examines attributes, characteristics, and behaviors of performance-centered software packages that are emerging in the consumer software marketplace and compares them with large-scale systems software being designed by internal information systems staffs and vendors of large-scale software designed for financial, manufacturing, processing, and…

Residence-time framework for modeling multicomponent reactive transport in stream hyporheic zones

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Painter, S. L.; Coon, E. T.; Brooks, S. C.

2017-12-01

Process-based models for transport and transformation of nutrients and contaminants in streams require tractable representations of solute exchange between the stream channel and biogeochemically active hyporheic zones. Residence-time based formulations provide an alternative to detailed three-dimensional simulations and have had good success in representing hyporheic exchange of non-reacting solutes. We extend the residence-time formulation for hyporheic transport to accommodate general multicomponent reactive transport. To that end, the integro-differential form of previous residence time models is replaced by an equivalent formulation based on a one-dimensional advection dispersion equation along the channel coupled at each channel location to a one-dimensional transport model in Lagrangian travel-time form. With the channel discretized for numerical solution, the associated Lagrangian model becomes a subgrid model representing an ensemble of streamlines that are diverted into the hyporheic zone before returning to the channel. In contrast to the previous integro-differential forms of the residence-time based models, the hyporheic flowpaths have semi-explicit spatial representation (parameterized by travel time), thus allowing coupling to general biogeochemical models. The approach has been implemented as a stream-corridor subgrid model in the open-source integrated surface/subsurface modeling software ATS. We use bedform-driven flow coupled to a biogeochemical model with explicit microbial biomass dynamics as an example to show that the subgrid representation is able to represent redox zonation in sediments and resulting effects on metal biogeochemical dynamics in a tractable manner that can be scaled to reach scales.

Understanding Digital Technology Access and Use Among New York State Residents to Enhance Dissemination of Health Information.

PubMed

Manganello, Jennifer A; Gerstner, Gena; Pergolino, Kristen; Graham, Yvonne; Strogatz, David

2016-01-01

Many state and local health departments, as well as community organizations, have been using new technologies to disseminate health information to targeted populations. Yet little data exist that show access and use patterns, as well as preferences for receiving health information, at the state level. This study was designed to obtain information about media and technology use, and health information seeking patterns, from a sample of New York State (NYS) residents. A cross-sectional telephone survey (with mobile phones and landlines) was developed to assess media and technology access, use patterns, and preferences for receiving health information among a sample of 1350 residents in NYS. The survey used random digit dialing methodology. A weighted analysis was conducted utilizing Stata/SE software. Data suggest that NYS residents have a high level of computer and Internet use; 82% have at least one working computer at home, and 85% use the Internet at least sometimes. Mobile phone use is also high; 90% indicated having a mobile phone, and of those 63% have a smartphone. When asked about preferences for receiving health information from an organization, many people preferred websites (49%); preferences for other sources varied by demographic characteristics. Findings suggest that the Internet and other technologies are viable ways to reach NYS residents, but agencies and organizations should still consider using traditional methods of communication in some cases, and determine appropriate channels based on the population of interest.

Understanding Digital Technology Access and Use Among New York State Residents to Enhance Dissemination of Health Information

PubMed Central

Gerstner, Gena; Pergolino, Kristen; Graham, Yvonne; Strogatz, David

2016-01-01

Background Many state and local health departments, as well as community organizations, have been using new technologies to disseminate health information to targeted populations. Yet little data exist that show access and use patterns, as well as preferences for receiving health information, at the state level. Objective This study was designed to obtain information about media and technology use, and health information seeking patterns, from a sample of New York State (NYS) residents. Methods A cross-sectional telephone survey (with mobile phones and landlines) was developed to assess media and technology access, use patterns, and preferences for receiving health information among a sample of 1350 residents in NYS. The survey used random digit dialing methodology. A weighted analysis was conducted utilizing Stata/SE software. Results Data suggest that NYS residents have a high level of computer and Internet use; 82% have at least one working computer at home, and 85% use the Internet at least sometimes. Mobile phone use is also high; 90% indicated having a mobile phone, and of those 63% have a smartphone. When asked about preferences for receiving health information from an organization, many people preferred websites (49%); preferences for other sources varied by demographic characteristics. Conclusions Findings suggest that the Internet and other technologies are viable ways to reach NYS residents, but agencies and organizations should still consider using traditional methods of communication in some cases, and determine appropriate channels based on the population of interest. PMID:27227163

Practical Issues in Implementing Software Reliability Measurement

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nikora, Allen P.; Schneidewind, Norman F.; Everett, William W.; Munson, John C.; Vouk, Mladen A.; Musa, John D.

1999-01-01

Many ways of estimating software systems' reliability, or reliability-related quantities, have been developed over the past several years. Of particular interest are methods that can be used to estimate a software system's fault content prior to test, or to discriminate between components that are fault-prone and those that are not. The results of these methods can be used to: 1) More accurately focus scarce fault identification resources on those portions of a software system most in need of it. 2) Estimate and forecast the risk of exposure to residual faults in a software system during operation, and develop risk and safety criteria to guide the release of a software system to fielded use. 3) Estimate the efficiency of test suites in detecting residual faults. 4) Estimate the stability of the software maintenance process.

A Software Safety Risk Taxonomy for Use in Retrospective Safety Cases

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hill, Janice L.

2007-01-01

Safety standards contain technical and process-oriented safely requirements. The best time to include these requirements is early in the development lifecycle of the system. When software safety requirements are levied on a legacy system after the fact, a retrospective safety case will need to be constructed for the software in the system. This can be a difficult task because there may be few to no art facts available to show compliance to the software safely requirements. The risks associated with not meeting safely requirements in a legacy safely-critical computer system must be addressed to give confidence for reuse. This paper introduces a proposal for a software safely risk taxonomy for legacy safely-critical computer systems, by specializing the Software Engineering Institute's 'Software Development Risk Taxonomy' with safely elements and attributes.

Research of real-time communication software

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Maotang; Guo, Jingbo; Liu, Yuzhong; Li, Jiahong

2003-11-01

Real-time communication has been playing an increasingly important role in our work, life and ocean monitor. With the rapid progress of computer and communication technique as well as the miniaturization of communication system, it is needed to develop the adaptable and reliable real-time communication software in the ocean monitor system. This paper involves the real-time communication software research based on the point-to-point satellite intercommunication system. The object-oriented design method is adopted, which can transmit and receive video data and audio data as well as engineering data by satellite channel. In the real-time communication software, some software modules are developed, which can realize the point-to-point satellite intercommunication in the ocean monitor system. There are three advantages for the real-time communication software. One is that the real-time communication software increases the reliability of the point-to-point satellite intercommunication system working. Second is that some optional parameters are intercalated, which greatly increases the flexibility of the system working. Third is that some hardware is substituted by the real-time communication software, which not only decrease the expense of the system and promotes the miniaturization of communication system, but also aggrandizes the agility of the system.

75 FR 36689 - United States, et al. v. Election Systems & Software, Inc.; Public Comments and Response on...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-06-28

... DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE Antitrust Division United States, et al. v. Election Systems & Software, Inc... proposed Final Judgment in United States, et al. v. Election Systems & Software Inc., Case No. 1:10-00380... America, et al., Plaintiffs, v. Election Systems and Software, Inc., Defendant. Case No.: 1:10-cv-00380...

75 FR 12256 - United States, et al. v. Election Systems and Software, Inc.; Proposed Final Judgment and...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-03-15

... DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE Antitrust Division United States, et al. v. Election Systems and Software... Columbia in United States, et al. v. Election Systems and Software Inc., Civil Action No. 10-00380. On... Systems and Software, Inc., (``ES&S'') of Premier Election Services, Inc., and PES Holdings, Inc. violated...

Process Based on SysML for New Launchers System and Software Developments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hiron, Emmanuel; Miramont, Philippe

2010-08-01

The purpose of this paper is to present the Astrium-ST engineering process based on SysML. This process is currently set-up in the frame of common CNES /Astrium-ST R&T studies related to the Ariane 5 electrical system and flight software modelling. The tool used to set up this process is Rhapsody release 7.3 from IBM-Software firm [1]. This process focuses on the system engineering phase dedicated to Software with the objective to generate both System documents (sequential system design and flight control) and Software specifications.

Fault-tolerant software - Experiment with the sift operating system. [Software Implemented Fault Tolerance computer

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Brunelle, J. E.; Eckhardt, D. E., Jr.

1985-01-01

Results are presented of an experiment conducted in the NASA Avionics Integrated Research Laboratory (AIRLAB) to investigate the implementation of fault-tolerant software techniques on fault-tolerant computer architectures, in particular the Software Implemented Fault Tolerance (SIFT) computer. The N-version programming and recovery block techniques were implemented on a portion of the SIFT operating system. The results indicate that, to effectively implement fault-tolerant software design techniques, system requirements will be impacted and suggest that retrofitting fault-tolerant software on existing designs will be inefficient and may require system modification.

Evaluating Professionalism, Practice-Based Learning and Improvement, and Systems-Based Practice: Utilization of a Compliance Form and Correlation with Conflict Styles

PubMed Central

Ogunyemi, Dotun; Eno, Michelle; Rad, Steve; Fong, Alex; Alexander, Carolyn; Azziz, Ricardo

2010-01-01

Objective The purpose of this article was to develop and determine the utility of a compliance form in evaluating and teaching the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education competencies of professionalism, practice-based learning and improvement, and systems-based practice. Methods In 2006, we introduced a 17-item compliance form in an obstetrics and gynecology residency program. The form prospectively monitored residents on attendance at required activities (5 items), accountability of required obligations (9 items), and completion of assigned projects (3 items). Scores were compared to faculty evaluations of residents, resident status as a contributor or a concerning resident, and to the residents' conflict styles, using the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict MODE Instrument. Results Our analysis of 18 residents for academic year 2007–2008 showed a mean (standard error of mean) of 577 (65.3) for postgraduate year (PGY)-1, 692 (42.4) for PGY-2, 535 (23.3) for PGY-3, and 651.6 (37.4) for PGY-4. Non-Hispanic white residents had significantly higher scores on compliance, faculty evaluations on interpersonal and communication skills, and competence in systems-based practice. Contributing residents had significantly higher scores on compliance compared with concerning residents. Senior residents had significantly higher accountability scores compared with junior residents, and junior residents had increased project completion scores. Attendance scores increased and accountability scores decreased significantly between the first and second 6 months of the academic year. There were positive correlations between compliance scores with competing and collaborating conflict styles, and significant negative correlations between compliance with avoiding and accommodating conflict styles. Conclusions Maintaining a compliance form allows residents and residency programs to focus on issues that affect performance and facilitate assessment of the ACGME competencies. Postgraduate year, behavior, and conflict styles appear to be associated with compliance. A lack of association with faculty evaluations suggests measurement of different perceptions of residents' behavior. PMID:21976093

Evaluating professionalism, practice-based learning and improvement, and systems-based practice: utilization of a compliance form and correlation with conflict styles.

PubMed

Ogunyemi, Dotun; Eno, Michelle; Rad, Steve; Fong, Alex; Alexander, Carolyn; Azziz, Ricardo

2010-09-01

The purpose of this article was to develop and determine the utility of a compliance form in evaluating and teaching the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education competencies of professionalism, practice-based learning and improvement, and systems-based practice. In 2006, we introduced a 17-item compliance form in an obstetrics and gynecology residency program. The form prospectively monitored residents on attendance at required activities (5 items), accountability of required obligations (9 items), and completion of assigned projects (3 items). Scores were compared to faculty evaluations of residents, resident status as a contributor or a concerning resident, and to the residents' conflict styles, using the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict MODE Instrument. Our analysis of 18 residents for academic year 2007-2008 showed a mean (standard error of mean) of 577 (65.3) for postgraduate year (PGY)-1, 692 (42.4) for PGY-2, 535 (23.3) for PGY-3, and 651.6 (37.4) for PGY-4. Non-Hispanic white residents had significantly higher scores on compliance, faculty evaluations on interpersonal and communication skills, and competence in systems-based practice. Contributing residents had significantly higher scores on compliance compared with concerning residents. Senior residents had significantly higher accountability scores compared with junior residents, and junior residents had increased project completion scores. Attendance scores increased and accountability scores decreased significantly between the first and second 6 months of the academic year. There were positive correlations between compliance scores with competing and collaborating conflict styles, and significant negative correlations between compliance with avoiding and accommodating conflict styles. Maintaining a compliance form allows residents and residency programs to focus on issues that affect performance and facilitate assessment of the ACGME competencies. Postgraduate year, behavior, and conflict styles appear to be associated with compliance. A lack of association with faculty evaluations suggests measurement of different perceptions of residents' behavior.

48 CFR 208.7400 - Scope of subpart.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... OF DEFENSE ACQUISITION PLANNING REQUIRED SOURCES OF SUPPLIES AND SERVICES Enterprise Software... commercial software and software maintenance, including software and software maintenance that is acquired— (a) As part of a system or system upgrade, where practicable; (b) Under a service contract; (c) Under...

Surgical Pathology Resident Rotation Restructuring at a Tertiary Care Academic Center.

PubMed

Mehr, Chelsea R; Obstfeld, Amrom E; Barrett, Amanda C; Montone, Kathleen T; Schwartz, Lauren E

2017-01-01

Changes in the field of pathology and resident education necessitate ongoing evaluation of residency training. Evolutionary change is particularly important for surgical pathology rotations, which form the core of anatomic pathology training programs. In the past, we organized this rotation based on subjective insight. When faced with the recent need to restructure the rotation, we strove for a more evidence-based process. Our approach involved 2 primary sources of data. We quantified the number of cases and blocks submitted per case type to estimate workload and surveyed residents about the time required to gross specimens in all organ systems. A multidisciplinary committee including faculty, residents, and staff evaluated the results and used the data to model how various changes to the rotation would affect resident workload, turnaround time, and other variables. Finally, we identified rotation structures that equally distributed work and created a point-based system that capped grossing time for residents of different experience. Following implementation, we retrospectively compared turnaround time and duty hour violations before and after these changes and surveyed residents about their experiences with both systems. We evaluated the accuracy of the point-based system by examining grossing times and comparing them to the assigned point values. We found overall improvement in the rotation following the implementation. As there is essentially no literature on the subject of surgical pathology rotation organization, we hope that our experience will provide a road map to improve pathology resident education at other institutions.

State analysis requirements database for engineering complex embedded systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bennett, Matthew B.; Rasmussen, Robert D.; Ingham, Michel D.

2004-01-01

It has become clear that spacecraft system complexity is reaching a threshold where customary methods of control are no longer affordable or sufficiently reliable. At the heart of this problem are the conventional approaches to systems and software engineering based on subsystem-level functional decomposition, which fail to scale in the tangled web of interactions typically encountered in complex spacecraft designs. Furthermore, there is a fundamental gap between the requirements on software specified by systems engineers and the implementation of these requirements by software engineers. Software engineers must perform the translation of requirements into software code, hoping to accurately capture the systems engineer's understanding of the system behavior, which is not always explicitly specified. This gap opens up the possibility for misinterpretation of the systems engineer's intent, potentially leading to software errors. This problem is addressed by a systems engineering tool called the State Analysis Database, which provides a tool for capturing system and software requirements in the form of explicit models. This paper describes how requirements for complex aerospace systems can be developed using the State Analysis Database.

RT-Syn: A real-time software system generator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Setliff, Dorothy E.

1992-01-01

This paper presents research into providing highly reusable and maintainable components by using automatic software synthesis techniques. This proposal uses domain knowledge combined with automatic software synthesis techniques to engineer large-scale mission-critical real-time software. The hypothesis centers on a software synthesis architecture that specifically incorporates application-specific (in this case real-time) knowledge. This architecture synthesizes complex system software to meet a behavioral specification and external interaction design constraints. Some examples of these external constraints are communication protocols, precisions, timing, and space limitations. The incorporation of application-specific knowledge facilitates the generation of mathematical software metrics which are used to narrow the design space, thereby making software synthesis tractable. Success has the potential to dramatically reduce mission-critical system life-cycle costs not only by reducing development time, but more importantly facilitating maintenance, modifications, and extensions of complex mission-critical software systems, which are currently dominating life cycle costs.

WinHPC System Software | High-Performance Computing | NREL

Science.gov Websites

Software WinHPC System Software Learn about the software applications, tools, toolchains, and for industrial applications. Intel Compilers Development Tool, Toolchain Suite featuring an industry

Software agents for the dissemination of remote terrestrial sensing data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Toomey, Christopher N.; Simoudis, Evangelos; Johnson, Raymond W.; Mark, William S.

1994-01-01

Remote terrestrial sensing (RTS) data is constantly being collected from a variety of space-based and earth-based sensors. The collected data, and especially 'value-added' analyses of the data, are finding growing application for commercial, government, and scientific purposes. The scale of this data collection and analysis is truly enormous; e.g., by 1995, the amount of data available in just one sector, NASA space science, will reach 5 petabytes. Moreover, the amount of data, and the value of analyzing the data, are expected to increase dramatically as new satellites and sensors become available (e.g., NASA's Earth Observing System satellites). Lockheed and other companies are beginning to provide data and analysis commercially. A critical issue for the exploitation of collected data is the dissemination of data and value-added analyses to a diverse and widely distributed customer base. Customers must be able to use their computational environment (eventually the National Information Infrastructure) to obtain timely and complete information, without having to know the details of where the relevant data resides and how it is accessed. Customers must be able to routinely use standard, widely available (and, therefore, low cost) analyses, while also being able to readily create on demand highly customized analyses to make crucial decisions. The diversity of user needs creates a difficult software problem: how can users easily state their needs, while the computational environment assumes the responsibility of finding (or creating) relevant information, and then delivering the results in a form that users understand? A software agent is a self-contained, active software module that contains an explicit representation of its operational knowledge. This explicit representation allows agents to examine their own capabilities in order to modify their goals to meet changing needs and to take advantage of dynamic opportunities. In addition, the explicit representation allows agents to advertize their capabilities and results to other agents, thereby allowing the collection of agents to reuse each others work.

Methodology for Software Reliability Prediction. Volume 1.

DTIC Science & Technology

1987-11-01

SPACECRAFT 0 MANNED SPACECRAFT B ATCH SYSTEM AIRBORNE AVIONICS 0 UNMANNED EVENT C014TROL a REAL TIME CLOSED 0 UNMANNED SPACECRAFT LOOP OPERATINS SPACECRAFT...software reliability. A Software Reliability Measurement Framework was established which spans the life cycle of a software system and includes the...specification, prediction, estimation, and assessment of software reliability. Data from 59 systems , representing over 5 million lines of code, were

Evaluation of the learning environment of urology residency training using the postgraduate hospital educational environment measure inventory.

PubMed

Binsaleh, Saleh; Babaeer, Abdulrahman; Alkhayal, Abdullah; Madbouly, Khaled

2015-01-01

The educational environment plays a crucial role in the learning process. We aimed to evaluate the educational-environment perceptions of Saudi urology residents using the postgraduate hospital educational environment measure (PHEEM) inventory, and to investigate associations of their perception with stages of residency program, regions of Saudi Arabia, and main sectors of the health care system. We used PHEEM to measure the educational environment of Saudi urology residents. Respondents' perception was compared regarding different levels of residency training, regions of Saudi Arabia, and sectors of the health care system. Internal reliability of the inventory was assessed using Cronbach's alpha coefficient. Out of 72 registered residents, 38 (53%) completed the questionnaire. The residents did not perceive their environment positively (77.7±16.5). No significant differences in perception were found among residents of different program stages or Saudi regions. Residents from different health care sectors differed significantly regarding the total PHEEM score (P=0.024) and the teaching subscale (P=0.017). The inventory showed a high internal consistency with Cronbach's alpha of 0.892. Saudi urology residents perceived the educational environment as less than satisfactory. Perception of the educational environment did not change significantly among different stages of the program or different regions of Saudi Arabia. However, some sectors of the health care system are doing better than others.

Impacts of Technological Changes in the Cyber Environment on Software/Systems Engineering Workforce Development

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-04-01

for decoupled parallel development Ref: Barry Boehm 12 Impacts of Technological Changes in the Cyber Environment on Software/Systems Engineering... Pressman , R.S., Software Engineering: A Practitioner’s Approach, 13 Impacts of Technological Changes in the Cyber Environment on Software/Systems

A Proposed Resident's Operative Case Tracking and Evaluation System.

PubMed

Sehli, Deema N; Esene, Ignatius N; Baeesa, Saleh S

2016-03-01

Neurosurgery program trainers are continuously searching for new methods to evaluate trainees' competency besides number of cases and training duration. Recently, efforts are made on the development of reliable methods to teach competency and valid methods to measure teaching efficacy. Herein, we propose the "Resident's Operative Case Tracking and Evaluation System" (ROCTES) for the assessment and monitoring of the resident's performance quality during each procedure. We developed a data-based website and smartphone application for neurosurgical attending physicians, residents, and resident review committees in our accredited neurosurgical institutions. ROCTES runs through five steps: Login (Resident), Case Entry, Login (Attending Physician), Case Approval and Evaluation, and Report. The Resident enters each case record under "Case Entry" field and can "save," "edit," or "submit" the case data to the Attending Physician. The latter from the attending physician login profile will be able to "approve and evaluate" the resident's "knowledge," "skills," and "attitude" ranking from 1 to 15 for that particular case; add his comments and then "save," "edit," or "submit" the data, which can be viewed by users as a "report." Program Directors can also "login" to monitor the resident's progress. The implementation of this communication tool should enable the filtering and retrieval of information needed for the better assessment and monitoring of residents' exposure to variety of cases in each training center. This proposed evaluation system will provide a transparent assessment for residency training programs and should convert trainees into competent neurosurgeons. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A collaborative approach to residency preparation programming for pharmacy students.

PubMed

Rider, Shyla K; Oeder, Jessica L; Nguyen, Trang T; Rodis, Jennifer L

2014-06-01

An innovative program to help pharmacy students navigate the residency application and interview process is described, including results of a survey evaluating the program's impact. The Ohio State University (OSU) chapter of the Student Society of Health-System Pharmacy (SSHP) collaborated with OSU College of Pharmacy faculty members, pharmacists from OSU Wexner Medical Center and surrounding areas, and current pharmacy residents to provide programming to equip pharmacy students with skills to succeed as residency candidates. The programming has four components: Curriculum Vitae (CV) Critique, Mock Residency Interviews, Residency 101, and Midyear to Match (M-M), a six-part series that provides guidance on the Residency Showcase at the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) Midyear Clinical Meeting, Match day (the annual matching process coordinated by ASHP), and the post-Match "scramble," in which unmatched applicants compete for unfilled residency slots. In an online survey conducted by the SSHP chapter after the 2012-13 residency year, 26 of 57 survey respondents indicated they had pursued a residency. Twenty respondents reported success in the Match (a rate 15% higher than the national average), with 9 reporting acceptance by their first-choice residency site. The mock interview program was rated as the most useful (a mean score of 4.8 on a 5-point scale), followed by the M-M series (mean score, 4.6). Collaborative programming coordinated by the OSU chapter of SSHP was offered to pharmacy students to improve preparation for the residency application and interview process. The program was well received by participants. Copyright © 2014 by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, Inc. All rights reserved.

Teaching sexual history-taking skills using the Sexual Events Classification System.

PubMed

Fidler, Donald C; Petri, Justin Daniel; Chapman, Mark

2010-01-01

The authors review the literature about educational programs for teaching sexual history-taking skills and describe novel techniques for teaching these skills. Psychiatric residents enrolled in a brief sexual history-taking course that included instruction on the Sexual Events Classification System, feedback on residents' video-recorded interviews with simulated patients, discussion of videos that simulated bad interviews, simulated patients, and a competency scoring form to score a video of a simulated interview. After the course, residents completed an anonymous survey to assess the usefulness of the experience. After the course, most residents felt more comfortable taking sexual histories. They described the Sexual Events Classification System and simulated interviews as practical methods for teaching sexual history-taking skills. The Sexual Events Classification System and simulated patient experiences may serve as a practical model for teaching sexual history-taking skills to general psychiatric residents.

Milestone-specific, Observed data points for evaluating levels of performance (MODEL) assessment strategy for anesthesiology residency programs.

PubMed

Nagy, Christopher J; Fitzgerald, Brian M; Kraus, Gregory P

2014-01-01

Anesthesiology residency programs will be expected to have Milestones-based evaluation systems in place by July 2014 as part of the Next Accreditation System. The San Antonio Uniformed Services Health Education Consortium (SAUSHEC) anesthesiology residency program developed and implemented a Milestones-based feedback and evaluation system a year ahead of schedule. It has been named the Milestone-specific, Observed Data points for Evaluating Levels of performance (MODEL) assessment strategy. The "MODEL Menu" and the "MODEL Blueprint" are tools that other anesthesiology residency programs can use in developing their own Milestones-based feedback and evaluation systems prior to ACGME-required implementation. Data from our early experience with the streamlined MODEL blueprint assessment strategy showed substantially improved faculty compliance with reporting requirements. The MODEL assessment strategy provides programs with a workable assessment method for residents, and important Milestones data points to programs for ACGME reporting.

Distributed shared memory for roaming large volumes.

PubMed

Castanié, Laurent; Mion, Christophe; Cavin, Xavier; Lévy, Bruno

2006-01-01

We present a cluster-based volume rendering system for roaming very large volumes. This system allows to move a gigabyte-sized probe inside a total volume of several tens or hundreds of gigabytes in real-time. While the size of the probe is limited by the total amount of texture memory on the cluster, the size of the total data set has no theoretical limit. The cluster is used as a distributed graphics processing unit that both aggregates graphics power and graphics memory. A hardware-accelerated volume renderer runs in parallel on the cluster nodes and the final image compositing is implemented using a pipelined sort-last rendering algorithm. Meanwhile, volume bricking and volume paging allow efficient data caching. On each rendering node, a distributed hierarchical cache system implements a global software-based distributed shared memory on the cluster. In case of a cache miss, this system first checks page residency on the other cluster nodes instead of directly accessing local disks. Using two Gigabit Ethernet network interfaces per node, we accelerate data fetching by a factor of 4 compared to directly accessing local disks. The system also implements asynchronous disk access and texture loading, which makes it possible to overlap data loading, volume slicing and rendering for optimal volume roaming.

78 FR 47014 - Configuration Management Plans for Digital Computer Software Used in Safety Systems of Nuclear...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-08-02

... Software Used in Safety Systems of Nuclear Power Plants AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission. ACTION... Computer Software Used in Safety Systems of Nuclear Power Plants.'' This RG endorses, with clarifications... Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) Standard 828-2005, ``IEEE Standard for Software Configuration...

Systems, methods and apparatus for developing and maintaining evolving systems with software product lines

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hinchey, Michael G. (Inventor); Rash, James L. (Inventor); Pena, Joaquin (Inventor)

2011-01-01

Systems, methods and apparatus are provided through which an evolutionary system is managed and viewed as a software product line. In some embodiments, the core architecture is a relatively unchanging part of the system, and each version of the system is viewed as a product from the product line. Each software product is generated from the core architecture with some agent-based additions. The result may be a multi-agent system software product line.

Navigating the Next Accreditation System: A Dashboard for the Milestones.

PubMed

Johna, Samir; Woodward, Brandon

2015-01-01

In July 2014, all residency programs accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) were enrolled in a new system called the Next Accreditation System. Residency programs may not be clear on how best to comply with these new accreditation requirements. Large amounts of data must be collected, evaluated, and submitted twice a year to the council's Web-based data collection system. One challenge is that the new "end-of-rotation" evaluations must reflect specialty-specific milestones, on which many faculty members are not well versed. Like other residency programs, we tried to address the challenges using our local resources. We used our existing electronic goals and objectives for each rotation coupled with appropriate end-of-rotation evaluations reflecting the specialty-specific milestones through a process of editing and mapping. Data extracted from these evaluations were added to an interactive dashboard that also contained evaluations on additional program-specific modifiers of residents' performance. A resident's final overall performance was visually represented on a plot graph. The novel dashboard included features to save evaluations for future comparisons and to track residents' progress during their entire training. It proved simple to use and was able to reduce the time needed for each resident evaluation to 5 to 10 minutes. This tool has made it much easier and less challenging for the members of our Clinical Competency Committee to start deliberation about each resident's performance.

Reducing Risk in DoD Software-Intensive Systems Development

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-03-01

intensive systems development risk. This research addresses the use of the Technical Readiness Assessment (TRA) using the nine-level software Technology...The software TRLs are ineffective in reducing technical risk for the software component development. • Without the software TRLs, there is no...effective method to perform software TRA or reduce the technical development risk. The software component will behave as a new, untried technology in nearly

Learning about systems-based practice in the informal curriculum: a case study in an academic pediatric continuity clinic.

PubMed

Balmer, Dorene; Ruzek, Sheryl; Ludwig, Stephen; Giardino, Angelo P

2007-01-01

Pediatric residents learn about systems-based practice (SBP) explicitly in the formal curriculum and implicitly in the informal curriculum as they engage in practice alongside physician faculty. Recent studies describe innovative ways to address SBP in the formal curriculum for SBP, but the informal curriculum has not been explored. We examined what, and how, third-year pediatric residents learn about SBP in the informal curriculum at one continuity clinic, and to consider how this learning aligns with the formal curriculum. A case study involving 10 third-year pediatric residents and 10 continuity preceptors was conducted at one continuity clinic, housed in a community-based, pediatric primary care center. Data were derived from 5 months (100 hours) of direct observation in the precepting room at the case clinic, semistructured interviews with residents (before and after observation) and with preceptors (after observation). Interview transcripts and notes from observation were inductively coded and analyzed for major themes. Two themes emerged in the informal curriculum. Residents perceived "our system," the academic health system in which they trained and practiced as separate and distinct from the "real system," the larger, societal context of health care. Residents also understood SBP as a commitment to helping individual patients and families navigate the complexities of "our system," dealing with issues that concerned them. Residents learn important lessons about SBP in the informal curriculum in continuity clinic. These lessons may reinforce some elements of the competency-based formal curriculum for SBP, but challenge others.

Software safety - A user's practical perspective

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dunn, William R.; Corliss, Lloyd D.

1990-01-01

Software safety assurance philosophy and practices at the NASA Ames are discussed. It is shown that, to be safe, software must be error-free. Software developments on two digital flight control systems and two ground facility systems are examined, including the overall system and software organization and function, the software-safety issues, and their resolution. The effectiveness of safety assurance methods is discussed, including conventional life-cycle practices, verification and validation testing, software safety analysis, and formal design methods. It is concluded (1) that a practical software safety technology does not yet exist, (2) that it is unlikely that a set of general-purpose analytical techniques can be developed for proving that software is safe, and (3) that successful software safety-assurance practices will have to take into account the detailed design processes employed and show that the software will execute correctly under all possible conditions.

The FoReVer Methodology: A MBSE Framework for Formal Verification

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baracchi, Laura; Mazzini, Silvia; Cimatti, Alessandro; Tonetta, Stefano; Garcia, Gerald

2013-08-01

The need for high level of confidence and operational integrity in critical space (software) systems is well recognized in the Space industry and has been addressed so far through rigorous System and Software Development Processes and stringent Verification and Validation regimes. The Model Based Space System Engineering process (MBSSE) derived in the System and Software Functional Requirement Techniques study (SSFRT) focused on the application of model based engineering technologies to support the space system and software development processes, from mission level requirements to software implementation through model refinements and translations. In this paper we report on our work in the ESA-funded FoReVer project where we aim at developing methodological, theoretical and technological support for a systematic approach to the space avionics system development, in phases 0/A/B/C. FoReVer enriches the MBSSE process with contract-based formal verification of properties, at different stages from system to software, through a step-wise refinement approach, with the support for a Software Reference Architecture.

A software engineering approach to expert system design and verification

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bochsler, Daniel C.; Goodwin, Mary Ann

1988-01-01

Software engineering design and verification methods for developing expert systems are not yet well defined. Integration of expert system technology into software production environments will require effective software engineering methodologies to support the entire life cycle of expert systems. The software engineering methods used to design and verify an expert system, RENEX, is discussed. RENEX demonstrates autonomous rendezvous and proximity operations, including replanning trajectory events and subsystem fault detection, onboard a space vehicle during flight. The RENEX designers utilized a number of software engineering methodologies to deal with the complex problems inherent in this system. An overview is presented of the methods utilized. Details of the verification process receive special emphasis. The benefits and weaknesses of the methods for supporting the development life cycle of expert systems are evaluated, and recommendations are made based on the overall experiences with the methods.

Use of XML and Java for collaborative petroleum reservoir modeling on the Internet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Victorine, John; Watney, W. Lynn; Bhattacharya, Saibal

2005-11-01

The GEMINI (Geo-Engineering Modeling through INternet Informatics) is a public-domain, web-based freeware that is made up of an integrated suite of 14 Java-based software tools to accomplish on-line, real-time geologic and engineering reservoir modeling. GEMINI facilitates distant collaborations for small company and academic clients, negotiating analyses of both single and multiple wells. The system operates on a single server and an enterprise database. External data sets must be uploaded into this database. Feedback from GEMINI users provided the impetus to develop Stand Alone Web Start Applications of GEMINI modules that reside in and operate from the user's PC. In this version, the GEMINI modules run as applets, which may reside in local user PCs, on the server, or Java Web Start. In this enhanced version, XML-based data handling procedures are used to access data from remote and local databases and save results for later access and analyses. The XML data handling process also integrates different stand-alone GEMINI modules enabling the user(s) to access multiple databases. It provides flexibility to the user to customize analytical approach, database location, and level of collaboration. An example integrated field-study using GEMINI modules and Stand Alone Web Start Applications is provided to demonstrate the versatile applicability of this freeware for cost-effective reservoir modeling.

Use of retrospective data to assess ecotoxicological monitoring needs for terrestrial vertebrates residing in Atlantic coast estuaries

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cohen, J.B.; Rattner, B.A.; Golden, N.H.

2003-01-01

The 'Contaminant Exposure and Effects--Terrestrial Vertebrates' (CEE-TV) database contains 4,336 records of ecotoxicological information for free-ranging amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals residing in Atlantic and Florida Gulf coast estuaries and their drainages. To identify spatial data gaps, those CEE-TV records for which the specific study location were known (n=2,740) were combined with watershed and wildlife management unit boundaries using Geographic Information Systems software. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Index of Watershed Indicators (IWI), which classifies watersheds based on water quality and their vulnerability to pollution, was used to prioritize these data gaps. Of 136 watersheds in the study area, 15 that are classified by the IWI as having water quality problems or high vulnerability to pollution lacked terrestrial vertebrate ecotoxicological monitoring or research in the past decade. Older studies within some of these watersheds documented high levels of contaminants in wildlife tissues. Of 90 National Wildlife Refuge units, 42 without current data fall within watersheds of concern. Of 40 National Park units larger than 1 km2, 17 without current data fall within watersheds of concern. Issues encountered in this analysis highlighted the need for spatially and temporally replicated field monitoring programs that utilize random sampling. Without data from such studies, it will be difficult to perform unbiased assessments of regional trends in contaminant exposure and effects in terrestrial vertebrates.

Use of retrospective data to assess ecotoxicological monitoring needs for terrestrial vertebrates residing in Atlantic coast estuaries.

PubMed

Cohen, Jonathan B; Rattner, Barnett A; Golden, Nancy H

2003-01-01

The "Contaminant Exposure and Effects-Terrestrial Vertebrates" (CEE-TV) database contains 4,336 records of ecotoxicological information for free-ranging amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals residing in Atlantic and Florida Gulf coast estuaries and their drainages. To identify spatial data gaps, those CEE-TV records for which the specific study location were known (n = 2,740) were combined with watershed and wildlife management unit boundaries using Geographic Information Systems software. The US Environmental Protection Agency's Index of Watershed Indicators (IWI), which classifies watersheds based on water quality and their vulnerability to pollution, was used to prioritize these data gaps. Of 136 watersheds in the study area, 15 that are classified by the IWI as having water quality problems or high vulnerability to pollution lacked terrestrial vertebrate ecotoxicological monitoring or research in the past decade. Older studies within some of these watersheds documented high levels of contaminants in wildlife tissues. Of 90 National Wildlife Refuge units, 42 without current data fall within watersheds of concern. Of 40 National Park units larger than 1 km2, 17 without current data fall within watersheds of concern. Issues encountered in this analysis highlighted the need for spatially and temporally replicated field monitoring programs that utilize random sampling. Without data from such studies, it will be difficult to perform unbiased assessments of regional trends in contaminant exposure and effects in terrestrial vertebrates.

Use of XML and Java for collaborative petroleum reservoir modeling on the Internet

USGS Publications Warehouse

Victorine, J.; Watney, W.L.; Bhattacharya, S.

2005-01-01

The GEMINI (Geo-Engineering Modeling through INternet Informatics) is a public-domain, web-based freeware that is made up of an integrated suite of 14 Java-based software tools to accomplish on-line, real-time geologic and engineering reservoir modeling. GEMINI facilitates distant collaborations for small company and academic clients, negotiating analyses of both single and multiple wells. The system operates on a single server and an enterprise database. External data sets must be uploaded into this database. Feedback from GEMINI users provided the impetus to develop Stand Alone Web Start Applications of GEMINI modules that reside in and operate from the user's PC. In this version, the GEMINI modules run as applets, which may reside in local user PCs, on the server, or Java Web Start. In this enhanced version, XML-based data handling procedures are used to access data from remote and local databases and save results for later access and analyses. The XML data handling process also integrates different stand-alone GEMINI modules enabling the user(s) to access multiple databases. It provides flexibility to the user to customize analytical approach, database location, and level of collaboration. An example integrated field-study using GEMINI modules and Stand Alone Web Start Applications is provided to demonstrate the versatile applicability of this freeware for cost-effective reservoir modeling. ?? 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A Requirements Analysis Model for Selection of Personal Computer (PC) software in Air Force Organizations

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-09-01

Institute of Technology Air University In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Systems Management Dexter R... management system software Diag/Prob Diagnosis and problem solving or problem finding GR Graphics software Int/Transp Interoperability and...language software Plan/D.S. Planning and decision support or decision making PM Program management software SC Systems for Command, Control, Communications

Flight software requirements and design support system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Riddle, W. E.; Edwards, B.

1980-01-01

The desirability and feasibility of computer-augmented support for the pre-implementation activities occurring during the development of flight control software was investigated. The specific topics to be investigated were the capabilities to be included in a pre-implementation support system for flight control software system development, and the specification of a preliminary design for such a system. Further, the pre-implementation support system was to be characterized and specified under the constraints that it: (1) support both description and assessment of flight control software requirements definitions and design specification; (2) account for known software description and assessment techniques; (3) be compatible with existing and planned NASA flight control software development support system; and (4) does not impose, but may encourage, specific development technologies. An overview of the results is given.

Educational role of nurse practitioners in a family practice centre: perspectives of learners and nurses.

PubMed

Walsh, Allyn; Moore, Ainsley; Barber, Anne; Opsteen, Joanne

2014-06-01

To examine the role of nurse practitioners (NPs) as educators of family medicine residents in order to better understand the interprofessional educational dynamics in a clinical teaching setting. A qualitative descriptive approach, using purposive sampling. A family practice centre that is associated with an academic department of family medicine and is based in an urban area in southern Ontario. First-year (8 of 9) and second-year (9 of 10) family medicine residents whose training program was based at the family practice centre, and all NPs (4 of 4) who worked at the centre. Semistructured interviews were conducted, which were audiotaped and transcribed. An iterative approach was used for coding and analysis. Data management software guided organization and analysis of the data. Four interconnected themes were identified: role clarification, professional identity formation, factors that enhance the educational role of NPs, and factors that limit the educational role of NPs. Although residents recognized NPs' value in team functioning and areas of specialized knowledge, they were unclear about NPs' scope of practice. Depending on residents' level of training, residents tended to respond differently to teaching by NPs. More of the senior residents believed they needed to think like physicians and preferred clinical teaching from physician teachers. Junior residents valued the step-by-step instructional approach used by NPs, and they had a decreased sense of vulnerability when being taught by NPs. Training in teaching skills was helpful for NPs. Barriers to providing optimal education included opportunity, time, and physician attitudes. The lack of an intentional orientation of family medicine residents to NPs' scope of practice and educational role can lead to difficulties in interprofessional education. More explicit recognition of the evolving professional identity of family medicine residents might decrease resistance to teaching by NPs and ensure that interprofessional teaching and learning strategies are effective. Faculty development opportunities for all educators are required to manage these issues, both to ensure teaching competencies and to reinforce positive interprofessional collaboration. Copyright© the College of Family Physicians of Canada.

Teaching medical management and operations engineering for systems-based practice to radiology residents.

PubMed

Brandon, Catherine J; Mullan, Patricia B

2013-03-01

To better prepare radiology residents for providing care within the context of the larger health care system, this study evaluated the feasibility and impact of a curriculum to enhance radiology residents' understanding and ability to apply concepts from medical management and industrial and operational engineering to systems-based practice problems in radiology practice. A multiprofessional team including radiology, medical education, and industrial and operational engineering professionals collaborated in developing a seven-module curriculum, including didactic lectures, interactive large-group analysis, and small-group discussions with case-based radiology examples, which illustrated real-life management issues and the roles physicians held. Residents and faculty participated in topic selection. Pre- and post-instruction formative assessments were administered, and results were shared with residents during teaching sessions. Attendance and participation in case-based scenario resolutions indicate the feasibility and impact of the interactive curriculum on residents' interest and ability to apply curricular concepts to systems-based practice in radiology. Paired t test analyses (P < .05) and effect sizes showed residents significantly increased their knowledge and ability to apply concepts to systems-based practice issues in radiology. Our iterative curriculum development and implementation process demonstrated need and support for a multiprofessional team approach to teach management and operational engineering concepts. Curriculum topics are congruent with Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education requirements for systems-based practice. The case-based curriculum using a mixed educational format of didactic lectures and small-group discussion and problem analysis could be adopted for other radiology programs, for both residents and continuing medical education applications. Copyright © 2013 AUR. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

SEPAC flight software detailed design specifications, volume 1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1982-01-01

The detailed design specifications (as built) for the SEPAC Flight Software are defined. The design includes a description of the total software system and of each individual module within the system. The design specifications describe the decomposition of the software system into its major components. The system structure is expressed in the following forms: the control-flow hierarchy of the system, the data-flow structure of the system, the task hierarchy, the memory structure, and the software to hardware configuration mapping. The component design description includes details on the following elements: register conventions, module (subroutines) invocaton, module functions, interrupt servicing, data definitions, and database structure.

Database interfaces on NASA's heterogeneous distributed database system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Huang, Shou-Hsuan Stephen

1987-01-01

The purpose of Distributed Access View Integrated Database (DAVID) interface module (Module 9: Resident Primitive Processing Package) is to provide data transfer between local DAVID systems and resident Data Base Management Systems (DBMSs). The result of current research is summarized. A detailed description of the interface module is provided. Several Pascal templates were constructed. The Resident Processor program was also developed. Even though it is designed for the Pascal templates, it can be modified for templates in other languages, such as C, without much difficulty. The Resident Processor itself can be written in any programming language. Since Module 5 routines are not ready yet, there is no way to test the interface module. However, simulation shows that the data base access programs produced by the Resident Processor do work according to the specifications.

Office Computer Software: A Comprehensive Review of Software Programs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Secretary, 1992

1992-01-01

Describes types of software including system software, application software, spreadsheets, accounting software, graphics packages, desktop publishing software, database, desktop and personal information management software, project and records management software, groupware, and shareware. (JOW)

ETICS: the international software engineering service for the grid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meglio, A. D.; Bégin, M.-E.; Couvares, P.; Ronchieri, E.; Takacs, E.

2008-07-01

The ETICS system is a distributed software configuration, build and test system designed to fulfil the needs of improving the quality, reliability and interoperability of distributed software in general and grid software in particular. The ETICS project is a consortium of five partners (CERN, INFN, Engineering Ingegneria Informatica, 4D Soft and the University of Wisconsin-Madison). The ETICS service consists of a build and test job execution system based on the Metronome software and an integrated set of web services and software engineering tools to design, maintain and control build and test scenarios. The ETICS system allows taking into account complex dependencies among applications and middleware components and provides a rich environment to perform static and dynamic analysis of the software and execute deployment, system and interoperability tests. This paper gives an overview of the system architecture and functionality set and then describes how the EC-funded EGEE, DILIGENT and OMII-Europe projects are using the software engineering services to build, validate and distribute their software. Finally a number of significant use and test cases will be described to show how ETICS can be used in particular to perform interoperability tests of grid middleware using the grid itself.

Study on a novel laser target detection system based on software radio technique

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, Song; Deng, Jia-hao; Wang, Xue-tian; Gao, Zhen; Sun, Ji; Sun, Zhi-hui

2008-12-01

This paper presents that software radio technique is applied to laser target detection system with the pseudo-random code modulation. Based on the theory of software radio, the basic framework of the system, hardware platform, and the implementation of the software system are detailed. Also, the block diagram of the system, DSP circuit, block diagram of the pseudo-random code generator, and soft flow diagram of signal processing are designed. Experimental results have shown that the application of software radio technique provides a novel method to realize the modularization, miniaturization and intelligence of the laser target detection system, and the upgrade and improvement of the system will become simpler, more convenient, and cheaper.

Development of a Web-based Resident Profiling Tool to Support Training in Practice-based Learning and Improvement

PubMed Central

Schorling, John; Nadkarni, Mohan; May, Natalie; Scully, Ken; Voss, John

2008-01-01

Multiple factors are driving residency programs to explicitly address practice-based learning and improvement (PBLI), yet few information systems exist to facilitate such training. We developed, implemented, and evaluated a Web-based tool that provides Internal Medicine residents at the University of Virginia Health System with population-based reports about their ambulatory clinical experiences. Residents use Systems and Practice Analysis for Resident Competencies (SPARC) to identify potential areas for practice improvement. Thirty-three (65%) of 51 residents completed a survey assessing SPARC’s usefulness, with 94% agreeing that it was a useful educational tool. Twenty-six residents (51%) completed a before–after study indicating increased agreement (5-point Likert scale, with 5=strongly agree) with statements regarding confidence in ability to access population-based data about chronic disease management (mean [SD] 2.5 [1.2] vs. 4.5 [0.5], p < .001, sign test) and information comparing their practice style to that of their peers (2.2 [1.2] vs. 4.6 [0.5], p < .001). PMID:18373150

78 FR 47015 - Software Requirement Specifications for Digital Computer Software Used in Safety Systems of...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-08-02

... NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION [NRC-2012-0195] Software Requirement Specifications for Digital Computer Software Used in Safety Systems of Nuclear Power Plants AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission... issuing a revised regulatory guide (RG), revision 1 of RG 1.172, ``Software Requirement Specifications for...

Software Engineering Laboratory (SEL) data base reporting software user's guide and system description. Volume 1: Introduction and user's guide

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1983-01-01

Reporting software programs provide formatted listings and summary reports of the Software Engineering Laboratory (SEL) data base contents. The operating procedures and system information for 18 different reporting software programs are described. Sample output reports from each program are provided.

Analysis of a hardware and software fault tolerant processor for critical applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dugan, Joanne B.

1993-01-01

Computer systems for critical applications must be designed to tolerate software faults as well as hardware faults. A unified approach to tolerating hardware and software faults is characterized by classifying faults in terms of duration (transient or permanent) rather than source (hardware or software). Errors arising from transient faults can be handled through masking or voting, but errors arising from permanent faults require system reconfiguration to bypass the failed component. Most errors which are caused by software faults can be considered transient, in that they are input-dependent. Software faults are triggered by a particular set of inputs. Quantitative dependability analysis of systems which exhibit a unified approach to fault tolerance can be performed by a hierarchical combination of fault tree and Markov models. A methodology for analyzing hardware and software fault tolerant systems is applied to the analysis of a hypothetical system, loosely based on the Fault Tolerant Parallel Processor. The models consider both transient and permanent faults, hardware and software faults, independent and related software faults, automatic recovery, and reconfiguration.

From Bridges and Rockets, Lessons for Software Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Holloway, C. Michael

2004-01-01

Although differences exist between building software systems and building physical structures such as bridges and rockets, enough similarities exist that software engineers can learn lessons from failures in traditional engineering disciplines. This paper draws lessons from two well-known failures the collapse of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge in 1940 and the destruction of the space shuttle Challenger in 1986 and applies these lessons to software system development. The following specific applications are made: (1) the verification and validation of a software system should not be based on a single method, or a single style of methods; (2) the tendency to embrace the latest fad should be overcome; and (3) the introduction of software control into safety-critical systems should be done cautiously.

Protocol standards and implementation within the digital engineering laboratory computer network (DELNET) using the universal network interface device (UNID). Part 2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Phister, P. W., Jr.

1983-12-01

Development of the Air Force Institute of Technology's Digital Engineering Laboratory Network (DELNET) was continued with the development of an initial draft of a protocol standard for all seven layers as specified by the International Standards Organization's (ISO) Reference Model for Open Systems Interconnections. This effort centered on the restructuring of the Network Layer to perform Datagram routing and to conform to the developed protocol standards and actual software module development of the upper four protocol layers residing within the DELNET Monitor (Zilog MCZ 1/25 Computer System). Within the guidelines of the ISO Reference Model the Transport Layer was developed utilizing the Internet Header Format (IHF) combined with the Transport Control Protocol (TCP) to create a 128-byte Datagram. Also a limited Application Layer was created to pass the Gettysburg Address through the DELNET. This study formulated a first draft for the DELNET Protocol Standard and designed, implemented, and tested the Network, Transport, and Application Layers to conform to these protocol standards.

Non-native (exotic) snake envenomations in the U.S., 2005-2011.

PubMed

Warrick, Brandon J; Boyer, Leslie V; Seifert, Steven A

2014-09-29

Non-native (exotic) snakes are a problematic source of envenomation worldwide. This manuscript describes the current demographics, outcomes and challenges of non-native snakebites in the United States (U.S.). We performed a retrospective case series of the National Poison Data System (NPDS) database between 2005 and 2011. There were 258 human exposures involving at least 61 unique exotic venomous species (average = 37 per year; range = 33-40). Males comprised 79% and females 21%. The average age was 33 years with 16% less than 20 years old. 70% of bites occurred in a private residence and 86% were treated at a healthcare facility. 35% of cases received antivenom and 10% were given antibiotics. This study is compared to our previous study (1994-2004) in which there was a substantial coding error rate. Software modifications significantly reduced coding errors. Identification and acquisition of appropriate antivenoms pose a number of logistical difficulties in the management of these envenomations. In the U.S., poison centers have valuable systems and clinical roles in the provision of expert consultation and in the management of these cases.

Non-Native (Exotic) Snake Envenomations in the U.S., 2005–2011

PubMed Central

Warrick, Brandon J.; Boyer, Leslie V.; Seifert, Steven A.

2014-01-01

Non-native (exotic) snakes are a problematic source of envenomation worldwide. This manuscript describes the current demographics, outcomes and challenges of non-native snakebites in the United States (U.S.). We performed a retrospective case series of the National Poison Data System (NPDS) database between 2005 and 2011. There were 258 human exposures involving at least 61 unique exotic venomous species (average = 37 per year; range = 33–40). Males comprised 79% and females 21%. The average age was 33 years with 16% less than 20 years old. 70% of bites occurred in a private residence and 86% were treated at a healthcare facility. 35% of cases received antivenom and 10% were given antibiotics. This study is compared to our previous study (1994–2004) in which there was a substantial coding error rate. Software modifications significantly reduced coding errors. Identification and acquisition of appropriate antivenoms pose a number of logistical difficulties in the management of these envenomations. In the U.S., poison centers have valuable systems and clinical roles in the provision of expert consultation and in the management of these cases. PMID:25268980

78 FR 47804 - Verification, Validation, Reviews, and Audits for Digital Computer Software Used in Safety...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-08-06

..., ``Configuration Management Plans for Digital Computer Software used in Safety Systems of Nuclear Power Plants... Digital Computer Software Used in Safety Systems of Nuclear Power Plants AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory..., Reviews, and Audits for Digital Computer Software Used in Safety Systems of Nuclear Power Plants.'' This...

Complexity, Systems, and Software

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-08-14

2014 Carnegie Mellon University Complexity, Systems, and Software Software Engineering Institute Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA...this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to Washington Headquarters Services , Directorate for Information...OMB control number. 1. REPORT DATE 29 OCT 2014 2. REPORT TYPE N/A 3. DATES COVERED 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Complexity, Systems, and Software

A Mechanized Decision Support System for Academic Scheduling.

DTIC Science & Technology

1986-03-01

an operational system called software. The first step in the development phase is Design . Designers destribute software control by factoring the Data...SUBJECT TERMS (Continue on reverse if necessary and identify by block number) ELD GROUP SUB-GROUP Scheduling, Decision Support System , Software Design ...scheduling system . It will also examine software - design techniques to identify the most appropriate method- ology for this problem. " - Chapter 3 will

[Depressive disorder in Mexican pediatric patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)].

PubMed

Carbajal-Alonso, Hilda Lilian; García-Moreno, Norberta Prisilia; Rodríguez-Arreola, Brenda; Barrera de León, Juan Carlos

2016-01-01

To identify the prevalence of depression in Mexican pediatric patients with systemic lupus erythematosus. Analytical transversal study including patients aged 7-16 years with a diagnosis of systemic lupus erythematosus seen at the Pediatric Rheumatology Consultation Service. The disease was classified by means of the MEX-SLEDAI questionnaire. Descriptive statistics with central tendency and dispersion and comparative measurements with chi-squared and Mann-Whitney U tests. Logistic regression and association with odds ratios. SPSS v.21.0 statistical software package. We evaluated 45 patients who presented depression, n=9 (20%), including eight females (89%) and one male (11%), median age 13 years (range, 7-16) in children with depression vs. 13 years (range, 9-14) p=0.941, depression more frequent in schoolchildren. Habitual residence, disease evolution time, and duration of the immunosuppressor did not show a significant difference between both groups. Divorced parents p=0.037. Neuropsychiatric manifestations of lupus presented in 2.2% of all patients and in 100% of patients with depression. Disease activity index (MEX-SLEDAI) did not demonstrate a relationship with the presence of depression. Prevalences in pediatric populations are less that that reported in adults, association with disease activity, evolution time, and immunosuppressor use and duration not found.

Dual-stroke heat pump field performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Veyo, S. E.

1984-11-01

Two nearly identical proprototype systems, each employing a unique dual-stroke compressor, were built and tested. One was installed in an occupied residence in Jeannette, Pa. It has provided the heating and cooling required from that time to the present. The system has functioned without failure of any prototypical advanced components, although early field experience did suffer from deficiencies in the software for the breadboard micro processor control system. Analysis of field performance data indicates a heating performance factor (HSPF) of 8.13 Stu/Wa, and a cooling energy efficiency (SEER) of 8.35 Scu/Wh. Data indicate that the beat pump is oversized for the test house since the observed lower balance point is 3 F whereas 17 F La optimum. Oversizing coupled with the use of resistance heat ot maintain delivered air temperature warmer than 90 F results in the consumption of more resistance heat than expected, more unit cycling, and therefore lower than expected energy efficiency. Our analysis indicates that with optimal mixing the dual stroke heat pump will yield as HSFF 30% better than a single capacity heat pump representative of high efficiency units in the market place today for the observed weather profile.

File-Based Data Flow in the CMS Filter Farm

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

Andre, J.M.; et al.

2015-12-23

During the LHC Long Shutdown 1, the CMS Data Acquisition system underwent a partial redesign to replace obsolete network equipment, use more homogeneous switching technologies, and prepare the ground for future upgrades of the detector front-ends. The software and hardware infrastructure to provide input, execute the High Level Trigger (HLT) algorithms and deal with output data transport and storage has also been redesigned to be completely file- based. This approach provides additional decoupling between the HLT algorithms and the input and output data flow. All the metadata needed for bookkeeping of the data flow and the HLT process lifetimes aremore » also generated in the form of small “documents” using the JSON encoding, by either services in the flow of the HLT execution (for rates etc.) or watchdog processes. These “files” can remain memory-resident or be written to disk if they are to be used in another part of the system (e.g. for aggregation of output data). We discuss how this redesign improves the robustness and flexibility of the CMS DAQ and the performance of the system currently being commissioned for the LHC Run 2.« less

Residents in difficulty: a mixed methods study on the prevalence, characteristics, and sociocultural challenges from the perspective of residency program directors.

PubMed

Christensen, Mette K; O'Neill, Lotte; Hansen, Dorthe H; Norberg, Karen; Mortensen, Lene S; Charles, Peder

2016-02-22

The majority of studies on prevalence and characteristics of residents in difficulty have been conducted in English-speaking countries and the existing literature may not reflect the prevalence and characteristics of residents in difficulty in other parts of the world such as the Scandinavian countries, where healthcare systems are slightly different. The aim of this study was to examine prevalence and characteristics of residents in difficulty in one out of three postgraduate medical training regions in Denmark, and to produce both a quantifiable overview and in-depth understanding of the topic. We performed a mixed methods study. All regional residency program directors (N = 157) were invited to participate in an e-survey about residents in difficulty. Survey data were combined with database data on demographical characteristics of the background population (N = 2399) of residents, and analyzed statistically (Chi-squared test (Χ (2)) or Fisher's exact test). Secondly, we performed a qualitative interview study involving three focus group interviews with residency program directors. The analysis of the interview data employed qualitative content analysis. 73.2 % of the residency program directors completed the e-survey and 22 participated in the focus group interviews. The prevalence of residents in difficulty was 6.8 %. We found no statistically significant differences in the prevalence of residents in difficulty by gender and type of specialty. The results also showed two important themes related to the workplace culture of the resident in difficulty: 1) belated and inconsistent feedback on the resident's inadequate performance, and 2) the perceived culturally rooted priority of efficient patient care before education in the workplace. These two themes were emphasized by the program directors as the primary underlying causes of the residents' difficulty. More work is needed in order to clarify the link between, on the one hand, observable markers of residents in difficulty and, on the other hand, immanent processes and logics of practice in a healthcare system. From our perspective, further sociological and pedagogical investigations in educational cultures across settings and specialties could inform our understanding of and knowledge about pitfalls in residents' and doctors' socialization into the healthcare system.

Longitudinal association between change in the neighbourhood built environment and the wellbeing of local residents in deprived areas: an observational study.

PubMed

Foley, Louise; Coombes, Emma; Hayman, Dan; Humphreys, David; Jones, Andrew; Mitchell, Richard; Ogilvie, David

2018-04-24

Features of the urban neighbourhood influence the physical, social and mental wellbeing of residents and communities. We explored the longitudinal association between change to the neighbourhood built environment and the wellbeing of local residents in deprived areas of Glasgow, Scotland. A cohort of residents (n = 365; mean age 50 years; 44% male; 4.1% of the 9000 mailed surveys at baseline) responded to a postal survey in 2005 and 2013. Wellbeing was assessed with the mental (MCS-8) and physical (PCS-8) components of the SF-8 scale. We developed software to aid identification of visible changes in satellite imagery occurring over time. We then used a Geographical Information System to calculate the percentage change in the built environment occurring within an 800 m buffer of each participant's home. The median change in the neighbourhood built environment was 3% (interquartile range 6%). In the whole sample, physical wellbeing declined by 1.5 units on average, and mental wellbeing increased by 0.9 units, over time. In multivariable linear regression analyses, participants living in neighbourhoods with a greater amount of change in the built environment (unit change = 1%) experienced significantly reduced physical (PCS-8: -0.13, 95% CI -0.26 to 0.00) and mental (MCS-8: -0.16, 95% CI -0.31 to - 0.02) wellbeing over time compared to those living in neighbourhoods with less change. For mental wellbeing, a significant interaction by baseline perception of financial strain indicated a larger reduction in those experiencing greater financial strain (MCS-8: -0.22, 95% CI -0.39 to - 0.06). However, this relationship was reversed in those experiencing lower financial strain, whereby living in neighbourhoods with a greater amount of change was associated with significantly improved mental wellbeing over time (MCS-8: 0.38, 95% CI 0.04 to 0.72). Overall, we found some evidence that living in neighbourhoods experiencing higher levels of physical change worsened wellbeing in local residents. However, we found a stronger negative relationship in those with lower financial security and a positive relationship in those with higher financial security. This is one of few studies exploring the longitudinal relationship between the environment and health.

TMT approach to observatory software development process

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buur, Hanne; Subramaniam, Annapurni; Gillies, Kim; Dumas, Christophe; Bhatia, Ravinder

2016-07-01

The purpose of the Observatory Software System (OSW) is to integrate all software and hardware components of the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) to enable observations and data capture; thus it is a complex software system that is defined by four principal software subsystems: Common Software (CSW), Executive Software (ESW), Data Management System (DMS) and Science Operations Support System (SOSS), all of which have interdependencies with the observatory control systems and data acquisition systems. Therefore, the software development process and plan must consider dependencies to other subsystems, manage architecture, interfaces and design, manage software scope and complexity, and standardize and optimize use of resources and tools. Additionally, the TMT Observatory Software will largely be developed in India through TMT's workshare relationship with the India TMT Coordination Centre (ITCC) and use of Indian software industry vendors, which adds complexity and challenges to the software development process, communication and coordination of activities and priorities as well as measuring performance and managing quality and risk. The software project management challenge for the TMT OSW is thus a multi-faceted technical, managerial, communications and interpersonal relations challenge. The approach TMT is using to manage this multifaceted challenge is a combination of establishing an effective geographically distributed software team (Integrated Product Team) with strong project management and technical leadership provided by the TMT Project Office (PO) and the ITCC partner to manage plans, process, performance, risk and quality, and to facilitate effective communications; establishing an effective cross-functional software management team composed of stakeholders, OSW leadership and ITCC leadership to manage dependencies and software release plans, technical complexities and change to approved interfaces, architecture, design and tool set, and to facilitate effective communications; adopting an agile-based software development process across the observatory to enable frequent software releases to help mitigate subsystem interdependencies; defining concise scope and work packages for each of the OSW subsystems to facilitate effective outsourcing of software deliverables to the ITCC partner, and to enable performance monitoring and risk management. At this stage, the architecture and high-level design of the software system has been established and reviewed. During construction each subsystem will have a final design phase with reviews, followed by implementation and testing. The results of the TMT approach to the Observatory Software development process will only be preliminary at the time of the submittal of this paper, but it is anticipated that the early results will be a favorable indication of progress.

Storage system software solutions for high-end user needs

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hogan, Carole B.

1992-01-01

Today's high-end storage user is one that requires rapid access to a reliable terabyte-capacity storage system running in a distributed environment. This paper discusses conventional storage system software and concludes that this software, designed for other purposes, cannot meet high-end storage requirements. The paper also reviews the philosophy and design of evolving storage system software. It concludes that this new software, designed with high-end requirements in mind, provides the potential for solving not only the storage needs of today but those of the foreseeable future as well.

Development of a support software system for real-time HAL/S applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, R. S.

1984-01-01

Methodologies employed in defining and implementing a software support system for the HAL/S computer language for real-time operations on the Shuttle are detailed. Attention is also given to the management and validation techniques used during software development and software maintenance. Utilities developed to support the real-time operating conditions are described. With the support system being produced on Cyber computers and executable code then processed through Cyber or PDP machines, the support system has a production level status and can serve as a model for other software development projects.

Portable Electromyograph

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

De Luca, Gianluca; De Luca, Carlo J.; Bergman, Per

2004-01-01

A portable electronic apparatus records electromyographic (EMG) signals in as many as 16 channels at a sampling rate of 1,024 Hz in each channel. The apparatus (see figure) includes 16 differential EMG electrodes (each electrode corresponding to one channel) with cables and attachment hardware, reference electrodes, an input/output-and-power-adapter unit, a 16-bit analog-to-digital converter, and a hand-held computer that contains a removable 256-MB flash memory card. When all 16 EMG electrodes are in use, full-bandwidth data can be recorded in each channel for as long as 8 hours. The apparatus is powered by a battery and is small enough that it can be carried in a waist pouch. The computer is equipped with a small screen that can be used to display the incoming signals on each channel. Amplitude and time adjustments of this display can be made easily by use of touch buttons on the screen. The user can also set up a data-acquisition schedule to conform to experimental protocols or to manage battery energy and memory efficiently. Once the EMG data have been recorded, the flash memory card is removed from the EMG apparatus and placed in a flash-memory- card-reading external drive unit connected to a personal computer (PC). The PC can then read the data recorded in the 16 channels. Preferably, before further analysis, the data should be stored in the hard drive of the PC. The data files are opened and viewed on the PC by use of special- purpose software. The software for operation of the apparatus resides in a random-access memory (RAM), with backup power supplied by a small internal lithium cell. A backup copy of this software resides on the flash memory card. In the event of loss of both main and backup battery power and consequent loss of this software, the backup copy can be used to restore the RAM copy after power has been restored. Accessories for this device are also available. These include goniometers, accelerometers, foot switches, and force gauges.

Mixing and residence times of stormwater runoff in a detection system

USGS Publications Warehouse

Martin, Edward H.

1989-01-01

Five tracer runs were performed on a detention pond and wetlands system to determine mixing and residence times in the system. The data indicate that at low discharges and with large amounts of storage, the pond is moderately mixed with residence times not much less than the theoretical maximum possible under complete mixing. At higher discharges and with less storage in the pond, short-circuiting occurs, reducing the amount of mixing in the pond and appreciably reducing the residence times. The time between pond outlet peak concentrations and wetlands outlet peak concentrations indicate that in the wetlands, mixing increases with decreasing discharge and increasing storage.

Proposal for hierarchical description of software systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Thauboth, H.

1973-01-01

The programming of digital computers has developed into a new dimension full of diffculties, because the hardware of computers has become so powerful that more complex applications are entrusted to computers. The costs of software development, verification, and maintenance are outpacing those of the hardware and the trend is toward futher increase of sophistication of application of computers and consequently of sophistication of software. To obtain better visibility into software systems and to improve the structure of software systems for better tests, verification, and maintenance, a clear, but rigorous description and documentation of software is needed. The purpose of the report is to extend the present methods in order to obtain a documentation that better reflects the interplay between the various components and functions of a software system at different levels of detail without losing the precision in expression. This is done by the use of block diagrams, sequence diagrams, and cross-reference charts. In the appendices, examples from an actual large sofware system, i.e. the Marshall System for Aerospace Systems Simulation (MARSYAS), are presented. The proposed documentation structure is compatible to automation of updating significant portions of the documentation for better software change control.

Vehicle management and mission planning systems with shuttle applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1972-01-01

A preliminary definition of a concept for an automated system is presented that will support the effective management and planning of space shuttle operations. It is called the Vehicle Management and Mission Planning System (VMMPS). In addition to defining the system and its functions, some of the software requirements of the system are identified and a phased and evolutionary method is recommended for software design, development, and implementation. The concept is composed of eight software subsystems supervised by an executive system. These subsystems are mission design and analysis, flight scheduler, launch operations, vehicle operations, payload support operations, crew support, information management, and flight operations support. In addition to presenting the proposed system, a discussion of the evolutionary software development philosophy that the Mission Planning and Analysis Division (MPAD) would propose to use in developing the required supporting software is included. A preliminary software development schedule is also included.

Compiling software for a hierarchical distributed processing system

DOEpatents

Archer, Charles J; Blocksome, Michael A; Ratterman, Joseph D; Smith, Brian E

2013-12-31

Compiling software for a hierarchical distributed processing system including providing to one or more compiling nodes software to be compiled, wherein at least a portion of the software to be compiled is to be executed by one or more nodes; compiling, by the compiling node, the software; maintaining, by the compiling node, any compiled software to be executed on the compiling node; selecting, by the compiling node, one or more nodes in a next tier of the hierarchy of the distributed processing system in dependence upon whether any compiled software is for the selected node or the selected node's descendents; sending to the selected node only the compiled software to be executed by the selected node or selected node's descendent.

Enhancement/upgrade of Engine Structures Technology Best Estimator (EST/BEST) Software System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shah, Ashwin

2003-01-01

This report describes the work performed during the contract period and the capabilities included in the EST/BEST software system. The developed EST/BEST software system includes the integrated NESSUS, IPACS, COBSTRAN, and ALCCA computer codes required to perform the engine cycle mission and component structural analysis. Also, the interactive input generator for NESSUS, IPACS, and COBSTRAN computer codes have been developed and integrated with the EST/BEST software system. The input generator allows the user to create input from scratch as well as edit existing input files interactively. Since it has been integrated with the EST/BEST software system, it enables the user to modify EST/BEST generated files and perform the analysis to evaluate the benefits. Appendix A gives details of how to use the newly added features in the EST/BEST software system.

76 FR 18741 - Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records-Evaluation of Teacher Residency Programs

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-04-05

... DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records--Evaluation of Teacher Residency... of Teacher Residency Programs'' (18-13-24). The National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional...) (20 U.S.C. 9561(b) and 9563), and section 202(h)(1) of the Higher Education Act, as amended by the...

Achieving Better Buying Power through Acquisition of Open Architecture Software Systems. Volume 2 Understanding Open Architecture Software Systems: Licensing and Security Research and Recommendations

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-01-06

of- breed software components and software products lines (SPLs) that are subject to different IP license and cybersecurity requirements. The... commercially priced closed source software components, to be used in the design, implementation, deployment, and evolution of open architecture (OA... breed software components and software products lines (SPLs) that are subject to different IP license and cybersecurity requirements. The Department

Software dependability in the Tandem GUARDIAN system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lee, Inhwan; Iyer, Ravishankar K.

1995-01-01

Based on extensive field failure data for Tandem's GUARDIAN operating system this paper discusses evaluation of the dependability of operational software. Software faults considered are major defects that result in processor failures and invoke backup processes to take over. The paper categorizes the underlying causes of software failures and evaluates the effectiveness of the process pair technique in tolerating software faults. A model to describe the impact of software faults on the reliability of an overall system is proposed. The model is used to evaluate the significance of key factors that determine software dependability and to identify areas for improvement. An analysis of the data shows that about 77% of processor failures that are initially considered due to software are confirmed as software problems. The analysis shows that the use of process pairs to provide checkpointing and restart (originally intended for tolerating hardware faults) allows the system to tolerate about 75% of reported software faults that result in processor failures. The loose coupling between processors, which results in the backup execution (the processor state and the sequence of events) being different from the original execution, is a major reason for the measured software fault tolerance. Over two-thirds (72%) of measured software failures are recurrences of previously reported faults. Modeling, based on the data, shows that, in addition to reducing the number of software faults, software dependability can be enhanced by reducing the recurrence rate.

Keeping Research Data from the Continental Deep Drilling Programme (KTB) Accessible and Taking First Steps Towards Digital Preservation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klump, J. F.; Ulbricht, D.; Conze, R.

2014-12-01

The Continental Deep Drilling Programme (KTB) was a scientific drilling project from 1987 to 1995 near Windischeschenbach, Bavaria. The main super-deep borehole reached a depth of 9,101 meters into the Earth's continental crust. The project used the most current equipment for data capture and processing. After the end of the project key data were disseminated through the web portal of the International Continental Scientific Drilling Program (ICDP). The scientific reports were published as printed volumes. As similar projects have also experienced, it becomes increasingly difficult to maintain a data portal over a long time. Changes in software and underlying hardware make a migration of the entire system inevitable. Around 2009 the data presented on the ICDP web portal were migrated to the Scientific Drilling Database (SDDB) and published through DataCite using Digital Object Identifiers (DOI) as persistent identifiers. The SDDB portal used a relational database with a complex data model to store data and metadata. A PHP-based Content Management System with custom modifications made it possible to navigate and browse datasets using the metadata and then download datasets. The data repository software eSciDoc allows storing self-contained packages consistent with the OAIS reference model. Each package consists of binary data files and XML-metadata. Using a REST-API the packages can be stored in the eSciDoc repository and can be searched using the XML-metadata. During the last maintenance cycle of the SDDB the data and metadata were migrated into the eSciDoc repository. Discovery metadata was generated following the GCMD-DIF, ISO19115 and DataCite schemas. The eSciDoc repository allows to store an arbitrary number of XML-metadata records with each data object. In addition to descriptive metadata each data object may contain pointers to related materials, such as IGSN-metadata to link datasets to physical specimens, or identifiers of literature interpreting the data. Datasets are presented by XSLT-stylesheet transformation using the stored metadata. The presentation shows several migration cycles of data and metadata, which were driven by aging software systems. Currently the datasets reside as self-contained entities in a repository system that is ready for digital preservation.

Evaluation of urology residents' perception of surgical theater educational environment.

PubMed

Binsaleh, Saleh; Babaeer, Abdulrahman; Rabah, Danny; Madbouly, Khaled

2015-01-01

To evaluate surgical theater learning environment perception in urology residents in Saudi Arabia and to investigate association of learning environment perception and stages of residency program, sectors of health care system, and regions of Saudi Arabia. A cross-sectional survey using the surgical theater educational environment measure (STEEM) inventory. The STEEM inventory was used to measure theater learning environment perception of urology residents in Saudi Arabia. Respondents' perception was compared regarding different residency stages, sectors of the health care system, and regions of Saudi Arabia. Internal reliability of the inventory was assessed using the Cronbach α coefficient. Correlation analysis was done using the Spearman ρ coefficient. Of 72 registered residents, 33 (45.8%) completed the questionnaire. The residents perceived their environment less than acceptable (135.9 ± 16.7, 67.95%). No significant differences in perception were found among residents of different program stages, different sectors of health care system, or different regions in Saudi Arabia. Residents from the eastern region perceived the training and teaching domain better (p = 0.025). The inventory showed a high internal consistency with a Cronbach α of 0.862. STEEM survey is an applicable and reliable instrument for assessing the learning environment and training skills of urology residency program in Saudi Arabia. Urology residents in Saudi Arabia perceived the theater learning environment as less than ideal. The perceptions of theater learning environment did not change significantly among different stages of the program, different sectors of health care system, or different training regions of Saudi Arabia assuring the uniformity of urology training all over Saudi Arabia. The training programs should address significant concerns and pay close attention to areas in surgical theater educational environment, which need development and enhancement, mainly planned fashion of training, supportive supervision and hospital environment, and proper coverage and management of workloads. Copyright © 2014 Association of Program Directors in Surgery. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Measurement and analysis of operating system fault tolerance

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lee, I.; Tang, D.; Iyer, R. K.

1992-01-01

This paper demonstrates a methodology to model and evaluate the fault tolerance characteristics of operational software. The methodology is illustrated through case studies on three different operating systems: the Tandem GUARDIAN fault-tolerant system, the VAX/VMS distributed system, and the IBM/MVS system. Measurements are made on these systems for substantial periods to collect software error and recovery data. In addition to investigating basic dependability characteristics such as major software problems and error distributions, we develop two levels of models to describe error and recovery processes inside an operating system and on multiple instances of an operating system running in a distributed environment. Based on the models, reward analysis is conducted to evaluate the loss of service due to software errors and the effect of the fault-tolerance techniques implemented in the systems. Software error correlation in multicomputer systems is also investigated.

NASA JPL Distributed Systems Technology (DST) Object-Oriented Component Approach for Software Inter-Operability and Reuse

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hall, Laverne; Hung, Chaw-Kwei; Lin, Imin

2000-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to provide a description of NASA JPL Distributed Systems Technology (DST) Section's object-oriented component approach to open inter-operable systems software development and software reuse. It will address what is meant by the terminology object component software, give an overview of the component-based development approach and how it relates to infrastructure support of software architectures and promotes reuse, enumerate on the benefits of this approach, and give examples of application prototypes demonstrating its usage and advantages. Utilization of the object-oriented component technology approach for system development and software reuse will apply to several areas within JPL, and possibly across other NASA Centers.

48 CFR 252.234-7004 - Cost and Software Data Reporting System. (NOV 2010)

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 3 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Cost and Software Data... AND CONTRACT CLAUSES Text of Provisions And Clauses 252.234-7004 Cost and Software Data Reporting System. (NOV 2010) As prescribed in 234.7101(b)(1), use the following clause: Cost and Software Data...

48 CFR 252.234-7004 - Cost and Software Data Reporting System. (NOV 2010)

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 3 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Cost and Software Data... AND CONTRACT CLAUSES Text of Provisions And Clauses 252.234-7004 Cost and Software Data Reporting System. (NOV 2010) As prescribed in 234.7101(b)(1), use the following clause: Cost and Software Data...

48 CFR 252.234-7004 - Cost and Software Data Reporting System. (NOV 2010)

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 3 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Cost and Software Data... AND CONTRACT CLAUSES Text of Provisions And Clauses 252.234-7004 Cost and Software Data Reporting System. (NOV 2010) As prescribed in 234.7101(b)(1), use the following clause: COST AND SOFTWARE DATA...

48 CFR 252.234-7004 - Cost and Software Data Reporting System. (NOV 2010)

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 3 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Cost and Software Data... AND CONTRACT CLAUSES Text of Provisions And Clauses 252.234-7004 Cost and Software Data Reporting System. (NOV 2010) As prescribed in 234.7101(b)(1), use the following clause: Cost and Software Data...

[Workload, work satisfaction and burnout among Hungarian female residents. Results of representative, online survey].

PubMed

Győrffy, Zsuzsa; Girasek, Edmond

2014-11-16

Years of residency are the most challenging period of a medical carrier. The aim of this study was to analyze female residents' (n = 380) workload, work satisfaction and burnout. Data in this representative, cross-sectional epidemiological study were obtained from online questionnaires completed by 380 female residents. For a wider interpretation of the data, male residents (n = 176) were included in the analysis as a control group. The average weakly work hours of female residents were 66 hours and 70% of them felt overloaded. The medium and high level personal accomplishment was 75.9%, the emotional exhaustion was 58% and the medium and high level of depersonalization subscale was 53%. Female residents were mostly dissatisfied with working conditions, financial status, and prestige of her work. Dissatisfaction with the Hungarian health system was about 80% and nearly a quarter of respondents were considering working abroad. Female residents represent the "critical mass" of the young doctors. Residents' well-being is an important indicator of the functioning and effectiveness of the health care system.

Integrating Systems-Based Practice, Community Psychiatry, and Recovery into Residency Training

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

LeMelle, Stephanie; Arbuckle, Melissa R.; Ranz, Jules M.

2013-01-01

Background: Behavioral health services involving multiple systems of care are increasingly being provided in community as well as hospital settings. Residents therefore should be familiar with multiple systems and the role of the psychiatrist in these systems. The authors describe a curriculum incorporating principles of systems-based practice…

Software Development to Assist in the Processing and Analysis of Data Obtained Using Fiber Bragg Grating Interrogation Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hicks, Rebecca

2010-01-01

A fiber Bragg grating is a portion of a core of a fiber optic stand that has been treated to affect the way light travels through the strand. Light within a certain narrow range of wavelengths will be reflected along the fiber by the grating, while light outside that range will pass through the grating mostly undisturbed. Since the range of wavelengths that can penetrate the grating depends on the grating itself as well as temperature and mechanical strain, fiber Bragg gratings can be used as temperature and strain sensors. This capability, along with the light-weight nature of the fiber optic strands in which the gratings reside, make fiber optic sensors an ideal candidate for flight testing and monitoring in which temperature and wing strain are factors. A team of NASA Dryden engineers has been working to advance the fiber optic sensor technology since the mid 1990 s. The team has been able to improve the dependability and sample rate of fiber optic sensor systems, making them more suitable for real-time wing shape and strain monitoring and capable of rivaling traditional strain gauge sensors in accuracy. The sensor system was recently tested on the Ikhana unmanned aircraft and will be used on the Global Observer unmanned aircraft. Since a fiber Bragg grating sensor can be placed every halfinch on each optic fiber, and since fibers of approximately 40 feet in length each are to be used on the Global Observer, each of these fibers will have approximately 1,000 sensors. A total of 32 fibers are to be placed on the Global Observer aircraft, to be sampled at a rate of about 50 Hz, meaning about 1.6 million data points will be taken every second. The fiber optic sensors system is capable of producing massive amounts of potentially useful data; however, methods to capture, record, and analyze all of this data in a way that makes the information useful to flight test engineers are currently limited. The purpose of this project is to research the availability of software capable of processing massive amounts of data in both real-time and post-flight settings, and to produce software segments that can be integrated to assist in the task as well. The selected software must be able to: (1) process massive amounts of data (up to 4GB) at a speed useful in a real-time settings (small fractions of a second); (2) process data in post-flight settings to allow test reproduction or further data analysis, inclusive; (3) produce, or make easier to produce, three-dimensional plots/graphs to make the data accessible to flight test engineers; and (4) be customized to allow users to use their own processing formulas or functions and display the data in formats they prefer. Several software programs were evaluated to determine their utility in completing the research objectives. These programs include: OriginLab, Graphis, 3D Grapher, Visualization Sciences Group (VSG) Avizo Wind, Interactive Analysis and Display System (IADS), SigmaPlot, and MATLAB.

The embedded software life cycle - An expanded view

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Larman, Brian T.; Loesh, Robert E.

1989-01-01

Six common issues that are encountered in the development of software for embedded computer systems are discussed from the perspective of their interrelationships with the development process and/or the system itself. Particular attention is given to concurrent hardware/software development, prototyping, the inaccessibility of the operational system, fault tolerance, the long life cycle, and inheritance. It is noted that the life cycle for embedded software must include elements beyond simply the specification and implementation of the target software.

V&V Within Reuse-Based Software Engineering

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Addy, Edward A.

1996-01-01

Verification and Validation (V&V) is used to increase the level of assurance of critical software, particularly that of safety-critical and mission-critical software. V&V is a systems engineering discipline that evaluates the software in a systems context, and is currently applied during the development of a specific application system. In order to bring the effectiveness of V&V to bear within reuse-based software engineering, V&V must be incorporated within the domain engineering process.

Diagnosis and Prognosis of Weapon Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nolan, Mary; Catania, Rebecca; deMare, Gregory

2005-01-01

The Prognostics Framework is a set of software tools with an open architecture that affords a capability to integrate various prognostic software mechanisms and to provide information for operational and battlefield decision-making and logistical planning pertaining to weapon systems. The Prognostics NASA Tech Briefs, February 2005 17 Framework is also a system-level health -management software system that (1) receives data from performance- monitoring and built-in-test sensors and from other prognostic software and (2) processes the received data to derive a diagnosis and a prognosis for a weapon system. This software relates the diagnostic and prognostic information to the overall health of the system, to the ability of the system to perform specific missions, and to needed maintenance actions and maintenance resources. In the development of the Prognostics Framework, effort was focused primarily on extending previously developed model-based diagnostic-reasoning software to add prognostic reasoning capabilities, including capabilities to perform statistical analyses and to utilize information pertaining to deterioration of parts, failure modes, time sensitivity of measured values, mission criticality, historical data, and trends in measurement data. As thus extended, the software offers an overall health-monitoring capability.

The relationships between software publications and software systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hogg, David W.

2017-01-01

When we build software systems or software tools for astronomy, we sometimes do and sometimes don't also write and publish standard scientific papers about those software systems. I will discuss the pros and cons of writing such publications. There are impacts of writing such papers immediately (they can affect the design and structure of the software project itself), in the short term (they can promote adoption and legitimize the software), in the medium term (they can provide a platform for all the literature's mechanisms for citation, criticism, and reuse), and in the long term (they can preserve ideas that are embodied in the software, possibly on timescales much longer than the lifetime of any software context). I will argue that as important as pure software contributions are to astronomy—and I am both a preacher and a practitioner—software contributions are even more valuable when they are associated with traditional scientific publications. There are exceptions and complexities of course, which I will discuss.

Meeting American Geriatrics Society Competencies: Are Residents Meeting Expectations for Quality Care of Older Adults?

PubMed

Bynum, Debra L; Wilson, Lindsay A; Ong, Thuan; Callahan, Kathryn E; Dalton, Thomas; Ohuabunwa, Ugochi

2015-09-01

In order to determine how often internal medicine and family medicine residents performed specific actions related to the geriatric competencies established by the American Geriatrics Society (AGS) when caring for older hospitalized adults, a cross-sectional anonymous survey of residents at the University of North Carolina, University of Washington, Wake Forest University, Duke University, and Emory University was undertaken. Data on frequency of self-reported behaviors were analyzed, with comparisons made for different levels of training, institution, and program. A total of 375 residents responded for an overall response rate of 48%. Residents reported that they often do not demonstrate all of the AGS recommended core competencies when caring for older adults in the hospital setting. Residents report more frequently performing activities that are routinely integrated into hospital systems such as reviewing medication lists, working with an interdisciplinary team, evaluating for inappropriate bladder catheters, and evaluating for pressure ulcers. There were no consistent differences between institutions and only minor differences noted between Family Medicine and Internal Medicine residents. Operationalizing core competencies by integrating them into hospital systems' quality process indicators may prompt more consistent high-quality care and ensure systems support residents' competence. © 2015, Copyright the Authors Journal compilation © 2015, The American Geriatrics Society.

[An analysis of residents' self-evaluation and faculty-evaluation in internal medicine standardized residency training program using Milestones evaluation system].

PubMed

Zhang, Y; Chu, X T; Zeng, X J; Li, H; Zhang, F C; Zhang, S Y; Shen, T

2018-06-01

Objective: To assess the value of internal medicine residency training program at Peking Union Medical College Hospital (PUMCH), and the feasibility of applying revised Milestones evaluation system. Methods: Postgraduate-year-one to four (PGY-1 to PGY-4) residents in PUMCH finished the revised Milestones evaluation scales in September 2017. Residents' self-evaluation and faculty-evaluation scores were calculated. Statistical analysis was conducted on the data. Results: A total of 207 residents were enrolled in this cross-sectional study. Both self and faculty scores showed an increasing trend in senior residents. PGY-1 residents were assessed during their first month of residency with scores of 4 points or higher, suggesting that residents have a high starting level. More strikingly, the mean score in PGY-4 was 7 points or higher, proving the career development of residency training program. There was no statistically significant difference between total self- and faculty-evaluation scores. Evaluation scores of learning ability and communication ability were lower in faculty group ( t =-2.627, -4.279, all P <0.05). The scores in graduate students were lower than those in standardized training residents. Conclusions: The goal of national standardized residency training is to improve the quality of healthcare and residents' career development. The evaluation results would guide curriculum design and emphasize the importance and necessity of multi-level teaching. Self-evaluation contributes to the understanding of training objectives and personal cognition.

Empirical studies of software design: Implications for SSEs

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Krasner, Herb

1988-01-01

Implications for Software Engineering Environments (SEEs) are presented in viewgraph format for characteristics of projects studied; significant problems and crucial problem areas in software design for large systems; layered behavioral model of software processes; implications of field study results; software project as an ecological system; results of the LIFT study; information model of design exploration; software design strategies; results of the team design study; and a list of publications.

Software Development for the Hobby-Eberly Telescope's Segment Alignment Maintenance System using LABView

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hall, Drew P.; Ly, William; Howard, Richard T.; Weir, John; Rakoczy, John; Roe, Fred (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

The software development for an upgrade to the Hobby-Eberly Telescope (HET) was done in LABView. In order to improve the performance of the HET at the McDonald Observatory, a closed-loop system had to be implemented to keep the mirror segments aligned during periods of observation. The control system, called the Segment Alignment Maintenance System (SAMs), utilized inductive sensors to measure the relative motions of the mirror segments. Software was developed in LABView to tie the sensors, operator interface, and mirror-control motors together. Developing the software in LABView allowed the system to be flexible, understandable, and able to be modified by the end users. Since LABView is built using block diagrams, the software naturally followed the designed control system's block and flow diagrams, and individual software blocks could be easily verified. LABView's many built-in display routines allowed easy visualization of diagnostic and health-monitoring data during testing. Also, since LABView is a multi-platform software package, different programmers could develop the code remotely on various types of machines. LABView s ease of use facilitated rapid prototyping and field testing. There were some unanticipated difficulties in the software development, but the use of LABView as the software "language" for the development of SAMs contributed to the overall success of the project.

Medical education and the ACGME duty hour requirements: assessing the effect of a day float system on educational activities.

PubMed

Roey, Steve

2006-01-01

In July 2003, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) instituted new resident work hour mandates, which are being shown to improve resident well-being and patient safety. However, there are limited data on the impact these new mandates may have on educational activities. To assess the impact on educational activities of a day float system created to meet ACGME work hour mandates. The inpatient ward coverage was changed by adding a day float team responsible for new patient admissions in the morning, with the on-call teams starting later and being responsible for new patient admissions thereafter. I surveyed the residents to assess the impact of this new system on educational activities-resident autonomy, attending teaching, conference attendance, resident teaching, self-directed learning, and ability to complete patient care responsibilities. There was no adverse effect of the day float system on educational activities. House staff reported increased autonomy, enhanced teaching from attending physicians, and improved ability to complete patient care responsibilities. Additionally, house staff demonstrated improved compliance with the ACGME mandates. The implementation of a novel day float system for the inpatient medicine ward service improved compliance with ACGME work duty requirements and did not adversely impact educational activities of the residency training program.

Orbiter subsystem hardware/software interaction analysis. Volume 8: AFT reaction control system, part 2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Becker, D. D.

1980-01-01

The orbiter subsystems and interfacing program elements which interact with the orbiter computer flight software are analyzed. The failure modes identified in the subsystem/element failure mode and effects analysis are examined. Potential interaction with the software is examined through an evaluation of the software requirements. The analysis is restricted to flight software requirements and excludes utility/checkout software. The results of the hardware/software interaction analysis for the forward reaction control system are presented.